(Notes: Epilogue 6 is the last one... It feels sad to see it end but at the same time I'm excited about moving on to new stories. This has been quite the ride. Geez, it's not even over and I'm feeling nostalgic.)
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Epilogue 5
Months later...
"We are all gathered here today for the dedication of this monument." Asgore said solemnly to the gathered crowd and rolling cameras. The monument before him had six small human figures in a circle, arms stretched out and up, each with a stone soul in the their small hands. In the middle of the circle was the worn and cracked statue of Asriel. "Our people have gone through many hardships, being locked underground, the loss of the royal children, those who have fallen down before their time. In my grief I called for a war, so that a promise of freedom, no matter how faint, would give my people hope. The hope to keep living."
He took a deep breath. His hands began to shake and he tightly gripped the sides of the podium, "Six. Six lives, with hopes and dreams, paid the price for my foolish plan. Six young humans with full lives ahead were cut short by my war, my foolishness and grief. But those dark days are behind us. No longer will hope come from death and the promise of destruction.
"Today marks a new day where our hope will come from life, and from the future we build for our children." He gestured with one open arm to where Frisk, Chara and Asriel stood beside the podium. "A new age of hope for all of Monsterkind!" He gestured broadly, his smile a little forced, his hands still shaking slightly though you wouldn't really notice.
Toriel started the applause and everyone joined in and once it died down everyone began to disperse, leaving for the ferry, looking at the monument or gathering to the side of the podium to talk with the King.
The big camera was put away and the crowd began to disperse and make their way back towards the ferry. One camera-monster remained, with a smaller camera on their shoulder following diligently behind Mettaton who was making his way over to the side of the podium.
Frisk waved when they saw Mettaton, in his box form with his snazzy red suit.
Toriel grimaced slightly and hurried over to Asgore who was speaking with a small group of important monsters. Asriel stiffened slightly but did his best to pretend he was totally nonchalant.
"Hello, darlings!" Mettaton crooned, "I was hoping for a little exclusive~"
Chara raised their eyebrow, "You're the only tv station in the underground, everything you make is exclusive, Mettaton."
"Details, details!" He swung around them in a half circle to face the camera, already pulling out a microphone and holding it out in front of them, "The Underground has simply been abuzz since Unsafe Walkways was unmandated and Safe and Efficient Walkways was mandated! Before anyone could even catch their breath all of Hotland was flipped on its head! Puzzles moved, railings put up, new walkways with directions and signs!"
Chara sighed inwardly and put on their public face, "With these new improvements it is now possible to walk through Hotland in fifteen minutes rather than an hour all the while risking life and limb over deadly lava." Chara held up a finger and leaned forward, quickly saying, "Of course! None of the historic and culturally significant puzzles and steam mazes native to the area have been removed! The Dreemurrs strongly believe and support monsterkind's history and legacy of puzzle building and want them to be available for young and old to experience and enjoy!"
"Then you've heard the complaints about how your new changes are destroying the historic legacy of monsterkind," Mettaton said in an AHA sort of tone, waggling his microphone, "Spikes, lava, and dangerous bridges are the pillars of youth!"
Chara grit their teeth and smiled stiffly, "The Dreemurrs understand and empathize with the Puzzle Preservation Society and others that support their vision. It is our hope that the changes made thus far are the perfect compromise between preservation of our history and the safely and comfort of our citizens. It is my hope that the changes to Hotland, and eventually to all the regions of the underground, will help to connect our kingdom; to make it easy and possible to walk from New Home to Home, not in eight or nine hours but in one or two. To reestablish connections, to relink families and to make it easier for monsters to settle in some of our beautiful and more remote regions without being cutting off from the Capital and their friends and family."
"There are rumors that the Ruins are going to be officially reopened." Mettaton purred hopefully, pushing the microphone closer to their face.
Frisk smiled brightly, "Soon! They have to be repaired a little 'cause they've been kinda empty for a long time but it's gonna be great!" They bounded excitedly, "Home is big and sooo pretty and it's sad that not many monsters live there!"
Chara turned and grabbed Asriel by the shoulders steering him forward, "But that's the final stage of our improvement plan. Prince Asriel why don't you tell everyone about the next exciting stage that's just begun here in beautiful Waterfall!"
Frisk whispered encouragingly in his ear, "You can do it!"
Asriel stared stiffly at the microphone in front of him, "Um, the... the next stage of improvements in Waterfall will be straightening and constructions of paths and bridges, new signposts, uh, puzzle conservation, and informational plaques about the- the-" he looked at Chara in a panic.
"-unique flora of the area."
"-theuniqueplantsthatgrowthere." he gasped out.
Chara shrugged. "And the cistern," They prompted.
"Oh right! The biggest project will be the repair of the ancient cistern so that it can once again fill with water and provide much needed room for our, our, aquatic monster residents." Asriel finished and sagged with relief as Chara let him edge back, to stand not quite but pretty much behind them.
Mettaton said cheerfully, "That's very good news indeed! The overcrowding of the aquariums at New Home have been an ongoing problem."
It's all you, Frisk.
Frisk perked up and and said brightly, "Thank you for always asking, Mettaton! You're the best!"
"Of course, Darling, I'm the star of the Underground after all." Mettaton preened.
Frisk smiled and waved to the camera, "Bye now! We have a lot of work to do."
Mettaton held out a hand to say something then reluctantly pulled it back and glided in front of the camera, "Well my darlings, it seems as if the Underground is getting brighter all the time! Make sure to tune in to MTT News for all your Underground news needs!" He waved and made a cut signal with his hand, throwing the microphone over his shoulder where some luckless intern caught it with their face.
Mettaton drooped slightly, "Did you get everything?" He asked the camera person.
They nodded, "No problems, MTT, sir."
"Good, take it all back to the studio and get started on the audio leveling, I'll be up in a bit to make final cuts for tonights broadcast. Oh, and good work today."
"Yes, sir, MTT, sir!" the camera person said and hurried after the rest of the camera crews heading for the boat landing.
"It seems every time we meet you're busy with something new." Mettaton said, "Don't forget that you're children, darlings, there's no need to rush."
Frisk and Chara smiled, "Thanks Thank you. But we have a fun day once a week! And most evenings."
"Ugh. Could you not do that?" Asriel said, "It's really creepy."
Chara turned to Asriel and smiled.
He flinched, "I take it back!"
Chara dropped their creepy smile and snickered.
"Well. I must be going, I have deadlines!" Mettaton said with a wave. "We should have lunch sometime, with Blooky. They are so fond of you."
"Yes!" Frisk insisted on a hug and they all said their goodbyes.
"Spikes and dangerous bridges are the pillars of youth." Chara muttered, "Where have I heard that before...?"
"Pap." Frisk said, "He says it all the time and makes sad faces whenever you talk about railings and puzzle byways for Snowdin."
Chara groaned. "Betrayed by our own."
"Hey," Asriel said nervously, "how'd I do? I mean I've been reading all the stuff you give me every night so, I mean, I'm trying to memorize it."
"You did great!" Frisk said, "Soon you'll be all cool and professional like Chara!"
"I get so nervous..." He wrung his hands, "I just feel like I shouldn't be... I feel like a phoney. How can you be so calm all the time, Chara?"
Chara slung their arm over his shoulder, "Buddy-chum-ol pal of mine, I hate every minute of it. If I had a choice I'd rather spend the rest of my life locked away in my room reading."
"Wha-! But you seem so-"
"I pretend. Just like the good old times, remember when we'd play monsters versus humans, and you were the God of Hyper-Death? Hero of monsterkind."
"Not so loud!" Asriel hushed them, looking intensely embarrassed. "That's different!"
"What about when you were Flowey and you always tried to be scary? You did that really well!" Frisk said.
"Tried!? I was scary!" Asriel said indignantly, "I practiced! It was really scary! You were scared!"
Frisk giggled and nodded.
"It was!" he insisted, crossing his arms.
"Asriel!" Toriel said as she walked over, "Are you ready to go back home?"
He mumbled something under his breath.
Toriel sighed and patted his head. "What has you all riled up this time, my child?"
"Nothing." Asriel muttered.
Toriel shook her head and smiled. "Well, Chara, Frisk, I was hoping you might be able to come over for dinner tonight for a little celebration."
Chara pulled a small ragged notebook out of their pocket and flipped it open, "I still have to go see Alphys and..." they groaned, "The leaders of the Puzzle Preservation Society."
"Oh dear." Toriel placed her hand on her cheek, "I thought you had managed to come to an agreement?"
"About established puzzles." Chara said, putting the notebook away, "But they want to monsters to be able to install new puzzles along the road which would totally defeat the purpose of the new walkways. I offered to designate puzzle construction areas but they won't budge."
Toriel said, "Well..."
"I'll do it." Asriel said, a faint glint in his eye, "I'll talk to them."
There was a significant pause.
"I can do it!" Asriel insisted.
"Perhaps I should come along." Toriel said.
"Mom!"
Toriel smoothed his ears, "We both know you can become very, intense, Asriel."
"...Fine," he muttered.
"It will be good practice for learning to control your temper."
"Thanks Mom, Asriel." Chara said.
Toriel smiled fondly, "Of course, my child. I'm very proud of all the work you and Frisk are doing for the Underground but you don't have to do it alone. If you need help you only have to ask. Now, dinner will be at six thirty but feel free to come by as soon as you finished with Alphys and do invite Sans and Papyrus. It's been too long since they've been over."
"Ok!" Frisk said.
They hugged Toriel and Asgore and hurried down to the ferry, taking it to Alphys lab, texting Sans and Papyrus about dinner along the way. Inside the lab, on the floor opposite Alphys computer and monitor array were large heaps of various scrap metals and wires.
"Back here!" Alphys called.
Frisk hurried to the conveyer belt and rode it back to Alphys apartment. She was standing at her work table and excitedly waved them over. Books were laid out all over the edges of her table, held open with clothes pins and rulers. In the center of the table was a blueprint.
"It's finished!" She said excitedly, "O-or I hope so!"
Chara leaned over to get a better look at all the complex drawing. "This is amazing, Alphys!"
"We can't really g-get enough uh, computer parts to make something really high tech so I designed it based on human cable-cars!" She pointed out the various parts on the design, "It will run on magical electricity, that will run through a cable along the ceiling of the route. I estimate it will be able to reach a top speed of fifteen kilometers per hour and will be able to hold sixty passengers, twenty eight seated." She lifted the blueprint up and pulled out a map, laying it on top. "It will have to start down here in Hotland because of New Homes is too high up in the mountain, if it could travel in a straight line f-from Hotland to Home with no stops, it would only take fifteen minutes."
"Fifteen minutes?!"
"Of course it can't r-really go in a straight line, with stops at Waterfall and Snowdin and along this route, it will take probably, forty-five minutes?" She traced along a line drawn on the map that went through Hotland, veered along right along the caverns of Waterfall to its one town, left to Snowdin and then almost straight to Home. There Alphys had marked a number of possible routes, "There's not really a big enough entrance into the old capital so a tunnel will have to be dug."
Chara nodded, "I'll ask Petunia to come talk to you about it. She's our head engineer for the revitalization project. Once they reach Home they can do some surveys while they repair the about materials?"
"Oh!" Alphys jumped nervously, "The, um, the dump sorting crews have found a lot of metal but I'm not sure it will be enough. Just the rails are going to require s-so much. It's a bit of pickle."
Frisk giggled.
Alphys relaxed a little and smiled, "I'm s-sure we can do it though!"
Frisk lifted up the map and looked down at the blueprint underneath, "How'd they get enough to build the core? It's really big."
Alphys blinked, "...The core? That's right! It used an incredible amount of metal. They must have gotten it from somewhere." She pushed the books around, pulled open drawers, "I could've sworn I've seen something about the core around here, notes... or something. I'm sure I'll find it! Or ask around, there has to be s-some monsters still around from the building of the core who would know..."
She reluctantly pushed the drawers closed and straightened out her desk, "A-anyway! I've been studying the elevators in the, u-undergound labs. They move a lot further, a lot faster than the elevators that go from here up to the Capital. If I can figure out how, maybe I can install an express elevator from New Home to Hotland... or maybe from MTT to Hotland. Mettaton would th-throw a fit if I made something that bypassed his resort."
"He would be soo mad." Frisk giggled.
Alphys smiled and played with her claws nervously, "That's e-everything so... I don't s-suppose you want to watch anime w-with me? I mean, if your b-busy that's fine, I understand..."
Frisk pulled out their phone, "We have an hour?"
Chara shrugged, "Sounds good to me. What episode did we end on last time?"
Alphys lit up, "We'd just watched Mew Mew Kissy Cutie, The Devilish Deception! Where Mew Mew's best friend turned out to be the reincarnated possessed Dark Lady! But before she was only the Dark Lady at night and never remembered turning into her but the Dark Lady finally took over her mind and now Mew Mew has to save her and-"
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(Next and Last Update: Wednesday, August 24th)
