Chapter 10: Here we are

"Citizens of Britannia," the old voice boomed clearly through dead silence. Tall and proud, the king opened his arms as if to embrace the whole world. "Not all men are born equal. Some are born strong in body; some are born strong in mind. "

Chara tried to stand steadily and calm, yet the mirrored, cold gaze of the king glancing down from the screens at all angles seemed to weight down on them even more than the presence of the real man in front of them did.

"Decades ago, our empire rose in power. Asia, after years of blood and sacrifice, bowed to their rightful masters." The king paused for a moment, letting cheers rise from the ranks beneath him. The smile on Chara's face felt like a hard mask. Behind the upwards turned lips, their teeth were so tightly locked that they were beginning to ache.

The king's words rang far through the masses in front of the palace and over the heads of the tributes, into a magnitude of microphones. King Charles zi Britannia shifted a bit, just so that the nearest ones could pick up the words more clearly. A few miles away in a tightly filled operation room, a member of the capitol's communication center cranked down the audio just a bit to compensate. No one paid any mind to the slightly off transmission strength, that seemed to fluctuate for just a moment.

"There was only one place tainted by weakness left; one step to civilizing the whole world. It was ravaged by barbarians and monsters that were overtaken by their own senseless power. The very land we now stand on was a wasteland. While strong in body, those monsters lacked in common sense."

And even further away from the communication center, a weak signal traveled to the peacekeeper's outposts, keeping any soldier lucky enough to be off duty the opportunity to share this graceful moment with the rest of Britannia. In district 12, a peacekeeper fumbled around behind a large screen in an attempt to fix the slightly distorted audio. They didn't know about the old cables running deep down into the earth that even preceded the war. They didn't know about the section were those cables harmlessly slid through stone and a particular barrier that hummed with energy. And they also didn't know about the cable that bridged away from the old communication line, messily held together by duct tape and anime stickers.

"One's true strength is found in battle. I learned that back then, fighting as the youngest king to ever be crowned for our glorious empire. I've seen it with my own two eyes: Barbarians that could level whole cities in one day, bringing forth the flames of hell with a flick of their wrists." Admittedly, the signal wasn't exactly the strongest that far down and the duct tape solution was far from safe, but it worked none the less. The king's words were thin down there, distorted by a background noise of static. And even though the audio was the only thing left from the speech's live recording, a small group still huddled in front of a large screen with speakers. Grim satisfaction filled the space as proof of their small achievement rung through the room.

"Some shared the face of monsters, while others looked like any man or woman fighting as a noble Britannian, while still harboring the evil power of demons inside of them. I ask you here today to not fall prey to the trap of deceit. While those among the former enemy's lines may at times appear just like you and me, the evil within taints even the purest soul."

A little squeak filled the room, as the smallest figure was suddenly picked up. "You did it! And clear as day, that sweet, sweet audio." Udyne beamed as she squeezed the small lizard monster in her arms. "You cute, wonderful genius!"

"C-Cute?" The lizard looked up at the armored fish monster holding her, momentarily forgetting their main mission. Even the Brittanian king's words seemed to only drift by somewhere far away.

"Some of the tainted were stronger than others. Their powers possessed potential, yet their minds were weak. They needed guidance, but they were tainted by their evil power."

A rumbling noise awakened the two monsters out of their trance, as their true king cleared his throat. "Excuse me, I'm not good at technical matters, but may there be anything I can help you with?" A small smile had crept itself onto Asgore's face. The two hugging monsters sprang apart, embarrassment on their faces.

"E-erm, yes, of course. W-we are already behind on schedule." Alphy's shook her head, trying to clear it. She sent one last look in Undyne's direction, remembering the cooling, strong scales that had wrapped around her body only moments ago. And that beautiful, gleaming eye. No, no, no. Focus! They had waited months for this moment.

"Us, born of pure, Britannian blood, may not possess that power. But we are strong in mind and will. Though we don't harvest the power of demons, we are blessed with knowledge and strategy. It was our strategy that won the war and crushed any roots of resistance."

Alphys rushed over to her displays, listening more carefully to the speech, waiting for pauses or any change of volume that might indicate an end. "J-judging by the usual duration of airtime, we may have about a minute left. Maybe less." Asgore nodded thoughtfully. "Speeches on television should be kept short if one wants the attention of their subjects"

"Judging by the direction this is taking, I'd say we might have half a minute left at most." Toriel piped in for the first time. Her stern expression betrayed the casual robes and reading glasses on her snout. "We should be ready."

Alphys nodded. "Right."

"But we are merciful. We, who rose out of our own strength of heart against all odds, know that even the most tainted being can be put to good use. So instead of crushing those monsters and demons, we chose to give them a chance to prove themselves."

"I'll check in with the guards up front." Undyne gave Alphy's a quick, sideways hug that made the lizard monster blush, before hurrying towards the only entrance to Alphy's lab. The small monster focused on the readings. Their window of opportunity would be incredibly small. Yet, she was hopeful. They didn't have much to work with, but she could make this work.

The royal scientist felt a presence step up beside her. "Is there anything else that has to be done, my dear?" Alphys glanced up at the queen. Taking a deep breath to calm her nerves, she answered "N-no, it's fine. Once the speech is over, the ratings will fluctuate from B-Brittanians changing to different channels and s-such. As soon as that h-happens, we'll be able to send a signal o-out without anyone noticing. Hopefully. I-I think."

The queen smiled calmly down at the younger monster. "You're a brilliant scientist, my child. I'm sure it will work." Her gaze flickered for a moment to the speakers, caring eyes turning to ice as the Britannian king's voice picked up in volume.

"By containing their power, we keep the evil from reaching their already tainted minds any further. By separating them into districts, we protect them from spreading the curse throughout the nation. By giving them work, a purpose, we allowed them to grasp the beauty of civilization. And that is why each year, we allow 24 tributes, two from each district, to prove their worth in front of their loving father nation. So that one of them may prove their strength, just like we Brittanians did in wars of the past."

"Don't worry, my children," Toriel whispered. "We're with you. I won't let any more harm come to you. I promise."

With bated breath, Alphys raised her finger above the button.

"Behold this year's tributes, as one of them will soon prove themselves worthy. May the strongest rise above. Let the Hunger Games begin!"

Send. The place in front of the palace erupted in cheers. The king of Britannia smiled calmly from above, taking in the enthusiastic screams in stride.

The noise thrummed against Chara's ears in painful waves. There were so many humans cheering for the king; a king that wanted the children's death.

Even though there were so many people surrounding them, Chara had never felt more alone.