Richter was woken by a high-pitched bell of some sort. He placed the damned thing's location to be upstairs. Whatever it was, Richter had this innate urge to find it and destroy it. The noise it produced was horrifically loud, to say the least. It was finally muffled by the sound of, from Richter's experience, a stampede of Wargs. Stumbling and several falls were all Richter heard from upstairs. Richter was going to tumble out of bed, but the fleet of bandages reminded him that he was basically stuck in the Guest Room. However, Richter was surely determined to move. It just took him a very long time to do so. He had managed to shamble his way over to a chair in the room; its' location near the window prime for thinking.
Opening the shades, Richter saw that it was still dark outside. He couldn't help but wonder why anyone would be producing such a racket at an early hour. Haven't they heard of a good rest? Richter's training used to be early in the morning, but not the degree that it was dark outside.
After a while, the noise seemed to move downstairs. Richter hoped things would become quieter from there, allowing him to think and rest. However, the other noises were heading in his direction. At that moment, Richter knew that his morning was over. He had to stop himself from preparing a Boomerang Cross or two. He couldn't believe that he had to remind himself that he was in someone else's house and that everyone wasn't trying to jump him. It could be one of the house visitors. He was absolutely sure it wasn't the kids. Richter assumed that they, out of all people, would value sleep.
Then, the door to the room slammed open, and in ran the two children. Richter REALLY hated being wrong. The Belmont knew that the only reason why the kids would be up at this time is if they wanted to ask another hundred questions. He knew he was right, for they decided to basically crowd him. Probably excited for some reason; the reason remaining unknown to the Vampire Hunter. They were interrupting each other and rambling at the same time. He didn't think they said a coherent sentence.
"Hey Richter-"
"Toriel told us not to-"
"but we really wanted to see-"
This continued for a while. Richter just sighed, rubbing his temples with his hands. After a minute or two, they finished up.
"So yea."
Richter could only thank god that they had reached some sort of conclusion. He didn't know how to respond to an invasion of children in the morning. Was there a true solution? No one truly knows. However, Richter thought that he handled it rather well.
"Huh?"
Smooth. Really smooth. Smoother than than a Boomerang Skeleton's skull.
"Guys. I don't mean to sound rude, but could you talk slightly quieter and somewhat slower? I was just woken up by a demon bell; a slumber that I honestly needed. So, what were you saying?"
The kids seemed unfazed. Frisk started first, of course. Asriel jumped in after Frisk.
"Well, Mom said that you came here during the storm and you were sleeping in the guest room."
"But she told us that we shouldn't disturb you."
"So we woke up early to decide on what we should do."
"And we decided on visiting you. You don't seem too hurt to talk to us."
"Are you?"
They seemed honestly worried. Richter couldn't get past how strange the people in the house were.
"I'll be fine. I just injured my shoulder outside and it was hailing. This was the only place I thought I could go to for shelter."
Asriel seemed to remember something and didn't hesitate to ask whatever he was thinking about.
"So that means that you can't go home? You said that you were going back to the stone thing to go home. If you found out how to go home, you wouldn't be here."
The Belmont was impressed that the kid had remembered what he had said yesterday. He had to give the kid some credit.
"Yea, I'm stuck here. This place isn't that bad though. I just miss home."
Toriel came in right after their exchange. She was surprised to see her children crowding Richter.
"My children, what are you doing in Richter's room this early? School doesn't start for another hour. He needs rest."
"Toriel, it's fine. In fact-"
Richter looked up and checked his health. A remainder of half was present. That was good for him. He was healing faster than he had expected. The Belmont usually healed a quarter a night. Everyone just gave Richter strange looks. He guessed it was a bit strange to look at Status Bar that wasn't there for others.
"Yea, I've healed at a surprising pace. Another night and I will be fit for working."
Toriel just nodded. She internally doubted Richter's judgement, but she didn't want to argue so early in the morning.
"Hopefully. We don't want you injured forever."
The kids, although looking dejected, left the room. Toriel hesitated, however.
"Richter, are you sure you are ok? You look terrible. From how it looks, we will need to replace those bandages."
"I'll be fine, trust me. I know some people who can help me if things get really serious. I've done this more times than you have breathed. Yesterday was an exception. I don't normally introduce myself by throwing my bloody corpse on their doorstep. I usually greet them first, then I lay on their doorstep. There is a specific order here."
He couldn't help but chuckle at the accidental reference towards Maria. When Richter first rescued her from the castle, he wasn't in the best shape. The Mermen guarding her room were incredibly hostile. As well as that, it was his first time actually fighting them. He had no idea they could spout fire. Why would he ever assume that a water monster would use a fire based attack? The answer is he wouldn't. Maria thought Richter was a "poor soul who wasn't capable of his job". A lot of sass coming from a young-ling. Her opinion changed dramatically when he basically escorted her through the depths of the castle, wiping through more bosses than she had ever seen. Richter knew Maria was a competent fighter herself, but she had no idea on how powerful Richter really was. To be honest, Richter is glad that she had some knowledge of his power. However, he was also glad that she didn't know too much. The Belmonts were a bit...prideful when it came to their abilities. For Richter, it was the only skill people payed attention to.
Toriel didn't get the reference. He was glad that she didn't. Incoming sass, from what her face said.
"Oh really? I've breathed many times."
"And I've done this many times as well. Might as well count now! HEY! STOP CHEATING!"
"Me? How am I cheating?"
"You are breathing when we are trying to count. Thus, that's cheating."
A lighthearted glaring competition began between the two. She obviously won. Richter wasn't as skilled at pseudo-glaring as Toriel was. Probably because she had more actual experience glaring than he did. From where Richter came from, glaring got them no where. They would usually attacked each other before they had time to give a stern look. As well as that, most of his past enemies wore helmets.
Knowing that he was about to lose, Richter began to mock-surrender.
"I can't buckle your facial defenses! It's impossible!"
Toriel began to laugh.
"You can't beat a mother at her own game."
She began to walk out of the room.
"Well, I will leave you be."
True to her word, she left. No one came into the room for the rest of the morning, not even the kids. Toriel probably told them not to. Once Richter had heard the house become quiet, he began to plan the excavation mission. He knew that the space itself needed to be massive, considering how large and extensive the the village and/or castle would be. Thankfully, Richter had held onto the large list of volunteers. For ultimate efficiency, he decided to cut the list into sections. For each main area of the castle to be rebuilt into either a village area or just a direct translation of the castle, there would be a section leader. This allowed him to have meetings without worrying about space. However, he still had to select section leaders. The selection for these parts wasn't going to be easy. To select bosses as section leaders might be useful. However, certain bosses aren't really fit for the job. Richter knew that the Hippogryph a prime example of the bosses that wouldn't work, for obvious reasons.
In the end, he had to make a list of the kinds of creatures that would be useful as Section Leaders. Most of them, if not all of them, were veterans and were incredibly resilient. As well as that, they all had some form of leadership skills. The fact that most of the other creatures respect these beings helped Richter immensely. It was somewhat amusing to the Belmont that most of them wore armor. He guessed that it was a common theme.
By the time he had finished the possible list, it was nearly noon. No one had arrived at the house yet, so he assumed he should be able to talk to the Librarian. Him and Death, of course. Just from his past encounters, including the Library meeting, he seemed to be a respectable man. Well, at least to Richter. He had only just met the sod. Strangely, an inkling of loneliness burrowed into Richter's soul. It was only now that he realized that it's been there ever since he first arrived. Trying not to get too depressed, he shifted his thoughts onto the project. After all, it was normal for a Belmont to bury their emotions until the job was done. Richter just hoped that this job would last a lifetime.
Redressing his bandages, he thought of how to resolve where he would be holding his meeting with the Librarian and Death. Several options were viable, but due to Richter being immobile, he wasn't really going outside the room. That only left him with one option: Hosting it in the Guest Room. If Toriel was here, Richter knew she would probably flip out over the appearance of two more strangers.
Richter pinged the Librarian and Death. They might be doing something, so he wanted to give them the option of waiting. He wasn't going anywhere anyway. His worries were well-placed for they took quite a while to arrive. Death arrived first, strangely. He didn't seemed to be fazed by his surroundings. Richter was relieved for it confirmed a suspicion of his; that they could watch Richter from the Altar.
Death, deciding not to sit down, asked, "You called, Richter?"
Nodding, the Vampire Hunter promptly responded, "Yes. All we need to do is wait for the Librarian, if he wants to show up. He hasn't said anything otherwise. Probably busy. Doing what, I don't know. What would a Librarian his age do?"
Death became silent. Richter hated silence with his entire soul. It signified the lack of answers, really. Then again, Death was usually silent. That was until he decided to throw off his robes and pull out his massive scythe. That's when he became talkative. Strange how the prospect of murder can get someone talking. The Librarian showed up soon after, looking confused.
"Something wrong Richter? We didn't expect to be called this early today." He indicated towards Death with his hand while talking.
"No, nothing is wrong. Unless you count progress as a problem. Then we would be doomed. Plans require dedication after all."
The Librarian suddenly realized that was going on. That much was shown by his face. Richter was quite glad that the Librarian caught on so quickly. The Librarian still asked his question anyway.
"The plans? Is this about the Excavation?"
I nodded again. Death gave the Librarian a strange look, one that showed that Death must have known about this prior. The Librarian just gave a shrug to answer Death's silent message.
"Well, if we are going to excavate a cave large enough for the entire castle, or a village of that size, before I and the Librarian die of age, we would need to have multiple sections being worked on at the same time. This would require section leaders."
Death and the Librarian nodded in agreement.
"So I've come up with a list of the possible candidates for section leaders. Considering how large the castle is, we would have to have many sections. This means that most of these people would, if they accepted the request, be working anyway. However, I was wondering if you had anything to add or remove from this list. I added some small notes for each creature to explain my choice."
The Librarian spoke up, "Seems like a good idea to have multiple leaders. This would also help some of the creatures get acquainted with some of the others who normally reside in areas most wouldn't dare to go. Thus, speeding up the process immensely."
Richter handed over the list with his notes haphazardly attached. They both sat there, reading to themselves. Occasionally, one would ask a question about Richter's penmanship.. They finished five to six minutes later. Death spoke first,
"Good list. Not sure on the Frozen Half, Salome, and Lossoth."
The Librarian gave a quiet 'hmm'.
"Yes, I don't think any of the Frozen Half's or Salome's would work. They are experienced, and the Frozen Half's have been trained by Galamoth, but they tend to work alone. Lossoth isn't fit for any form of excavation."
They seemed to be on the same track Richter was on. He hoped that they could provide some assistance on the organisation of such a project. After all, a Belmont wasn't normally up to tasks like the one that now confronts Richter.
Planning the meeting was the easy part; actually holding it was the hard part. The location was one of the larger problems. They had no idea where they were going to host it. Richter couldn't fit everyone in the Guest Room and he didn't think Toriel would want to find a giant mob of different creatures residing in her Living Room. The job would have been so much easier if he hadn't designated the date for today. Grabbing a piece of parchment, he wrote Toriel a note saying he was gone and hosting a meeting. Richter really did hate sitting around doing nothing. Hopefully Toriel doesn't mind...although she would probably glare at him again or something. Richter didn't want to be on the receiving end of her glare if it became serious.
After they had discussed who could be a valid section leader, Death and the Librarian left. Their destination was known to Richter, for it was the meeting place they had decided on. Richter knew he had to join them soon, so he slowly shambled his way towards the forest. The castle was the best place to hold the meeting without worrying about space. As he left, he laughed at the small cliff note he had added at the bottom of the paper.
"Sorry Toriel, but no one in your town can fit creatures like Galamoth".
Richter slowly wandered the Frozen Caverns, reflecting. Strangely, the Caverns haunted Richter more than any other location in the entire castle, even more so than the Castle Keep. Something about the rare echoing sounds and the common eerie silence caused memories to resurface in Richter's mind. Yet, it also brought up a large amount of satisfaction to the Belmont. He thought of back when he found Maria, the thrill of slowly storming the castle, saving Annette, and kicking Dracula's ass so hard that he died both spiritually and physically. However, his thoughts didn't stay positive forever. It was to be expected since the castle was the epitome of horror and pain. The negative memories slowly crept into his subconscious. Shaft slowly taking over his mind, his summoning of the castle, the destruction of the local villages by his hand, and the death of Her also by his hand. So many things he had caused and he blamed himself for despite knowing he shouldn't. He truly wasn't the cause, but he internally blamed himself for association.
Richter tried as hard as he could to push the haunting memories into the back of his mind, but they resisted; more determined than any monster to torment Richter. His vision spiraled out of control as he found himself in the Castle Keep, with Her kneeling in front of another him. Guardians surrounded the throne holding the bodies of the villagers. Richter knew that the past Richter was aware that Maria was missing from his search and was furious. Richter could only watch in horror as he saw himself walking down the throne's stairs towards Her. Richter wanted to scream, to lash out towards the horrific deed his past self was about to commit. Richter knew what was coming and he slowly slid down the wall and onto the floor. Face in his hands, all he could do was listen as he himself grabbed Her and embedded a knife into her heart. The soft gasp was the only noise that came from Her, wanting to remain brave until the end. At the thud of her body contacting the floor, Richter lost himself in the darkness.
She was wandering the caves to find someone to talk to. Not to really talk to, but to just hang out with. One would be surprised as to where some creatures were found. Ever since Richter had encouraged the monsters to wander the castle and talk, many have been appearing in random locations. It wasn't like she was lonely; something she told herself often. Honestly, she had never been down into the Frozen Caverns before. The cold made her uncomfortable for the same reason that a Frozen Shade wouldn't be in the Catacombs. Right as she was about to give up her endeavor. He heard what sounded like sobs. Back when Dracula controlled the castle, the cries of tortured souls were often heard. Dracula had a tendency to torment humans for his own amusement. However, she was sure that Richter wouldn't torture people. Richter seemed to be very caring. Well, the current version of Richter. She was there when Richter first took control of the castle, under Shaft's control. She only recently realized how much of a different man he was. The two versions were polar opposites. The Shaft version was ruthless, vile, and absolutely hated animals. Yet, Richter's version of the castle contained the most animals. It was strange to the Fire Warg. It was common knowledge that the castle's form was based off of the Master's desires and thoughts. That was the only reason why there was a church, despite Richter's claims that it was there to begin with. She got the feeling that he was hiding something.
The sobs from the tormented soul seemed only to pick up in frequency. She could identify that it was human of some sort due to its' lack of tinniness that usually accompanied the sounds of the Knight's voices. They were they closest sounding to humans in the castle. She couldn't think of many humans in the castle that openly displayed their emotions. It was also rare to find a monster in the castle who was emotional. Everything in the castle had some form of emotions. She wouldn't suspect Richter to be one for being emotional and the Librarian was too old for it. The Grave Keepers were usually silent, even when dying. The Archers didn't actually breathe and couldn't make any noises. The Witches would usually be in groups, so being alone in the Frozen Caverns was out of the question. That only left three options: A Frozen Half, the Hunting Girl, or a Doppelganger
The Fire Warg's urge to investigate finally overcame the cold as she headed deeper into the Caverns. It was truly freezing in her area, so she wanted to find what was wrong and leave almost immediately. Sure, she had fur, but it didn't help when one was next to a waterfall that consisted of a magical liquid that had the constant temperature of ice. Turning a corner, she found the source of the sound. It was in what looked to be a makeshift meeting room, formally the lair of Scylla. She was incredibly surprised to find that the terrible weeping was coming from...Richter? Yes, it looked to be Richter. She doubted that it was a doppelganger. No one had the guts to mimic Richter. Even when they did, it didn't last long. His form was strangely cursed. It worked almost like Soul Corruption; slowly eating away at the body while under his guise.
Richter was curled up in a ball, quivering and shaking next to an overturned table. His body was constantly racked with sobs. It was a pitiful sight to the Warg, but also alarming. She didn't understand why Richter, the Legendary Vampire Hunter, would be curled in the corner weeping. There were a few things the creatures of the castle thought they knew about Richter; one of them being that he rarely, if never, openly displayed his true emotions. The Warg was confused. However, she felt that the sorrow was real. She wanted to do something, to somehow find out what was plaguing the Belmont and destroy it so everything would return to normalcy. She took a step towards his form. No response from Richter. Another step resulting in the same reaction, or lack of. She could now hear Richter faintly mumbling something. Even with her sensitive hearing, she couldn't quite understand what he was saying due to the distance and the sobs. She continued taking slow steps towards Richter until she was about a sword-length away from him. She could finally hear what he was saying.
"Annette, I'm sorry. Oh god, I'm so sorry. I just wasn't strong enough."
The Fire Warg knew exactly what was wrong after hearing those words. She was surprised that she hadn't thought of that as the reason earlier. Every creature in the castle knew who Annette was: Richter's former love. Her kidnapping was one of the main reasons Richter stormed the castle the first time, other than it being his job. After Her rescue, Richter adopted Maria as his sister and planned on marrying Annette. They had lived together until Richter disappeared five years later, finally being possessed by Shaft. One of the first things the Possessed Richter demanded out of the creatures of the altar was to destroy the village Annette had lived in. However, Annette was captured and taken to Richter. He then, without mercy, killed her and sent out several search parties for his sister. The Fire Wargs were part of the operation due to their innate tracking skills. She was glad that she never encountered Maria during the search.
Another burst of loud sobs came from Richter, interrupting the Warg's thoughts. She felt as if every sob struck her like the blow of a hammer. She needed to do something to end his, and in extension, her, torment. A magical connection to the depressed man meant that the sorrow pierced her core as well as any of the creatures in the nearby area. Yet, she was trying her hardest to get over how unusual the situation was. Richter was known to be a rock, able to neglect any emotions to complete a task. Nothing could phase the Belmont with his supposed nerves of steel. However, the open display of emotional pain in front of the Warg said otherwise. She couldn't help but feel terrible for him. His one known weakness was something that could cripple him entirely. Annette's death was the chip in his his armor. No longer the stoic icon of holy justice, all he was now was an emotional mess on the floor. She needed to talk, to comfort him. However, due to her being a Warg, she couldn't really talk. She then remembered that due to her magical link to Richter, she could talk telepathically to him. All beings that are manifested in the altar can contact the Altar's master. Although Richter likes to deny it, he is still the master of the altar; no matter if he likes it or not.
"(Richter, what's wrong?)"
She got no response.
"(Richter, please; Tell me what's wrong. We've never seen you like this before. It's scaring me.)"
Richter barely moved his head, enough to see who was talking to him. She could see his eyes. She was both repulsed and saddened by his eyes. A mass of sorrow was visible deep within his eyes, a sign confirming his emotional status. Once Richter saw who was "talking", he immediately began to recover, pushing his emotions back into his soul. However, the sorrowful eyes remained.
"(I want to help. I know what the problem is, so let me help. You shouldn't be alone through this.)"
That got his complete attention. Now sitting against the wall, he just slowly shook his head. He didn't want anyone to know about how vulnerable he was. However, no matter how hard he tried, he just couldn't push the emotions far enough into his subconscious.
"I'm perfectly fine, thank you. In fact, I'll be leaving now."
She was not going to take that as an answer. Walking up beside Richter, she forced him down with her muzzle and laid down next to him . Richter obviously was attempting to seclude himself and she wouldn't allow him to go through with it. She faced him, her muzzle a dagger-length away from his face. Richter could feel her breath, feeling like he was outside a furnace.
"(I will keep you here until you talk to me about it.)"
Richter just sighed deeply. He didn't know how she could help him with his current predicament.
"It's fine. Thanks for offering though. Now I've really got to-"
He attempted to get up, only to be knocked down by her muzzle.
"(Told you. Talk to me or you won't leave.)"
Richter sighed again. However, he didn't seem to be as sad. She mentally noted that this kind of friendly resistance and banter cheered Richter up.
"You already know the problem, so no point talking abo-"
"(No. I want to hear it from you. Now, talk.)"
"But there really isn't a point for doi-"
"(Just talk.)"
"Fine then. I was just reflecting."
She nodded, signalling with her head for him to continue.
"Do I have to be specific?"
She just nodded slightly.
"Ok. This will be difficult...Well, I was reflecting on my past quests in this castle. You know, kicking Dracula's undead ass, saving Maria, killing Shaft at least two times; What happened to Her being the focal point."
He laughed in a self-deprecating manner.
"You know, it's not like a Belmont to become emotional. If my past lineage could see me now, I'm sure they would bow their heads in shame. "
She could detect his rising anger; it was directed towards himself.
"I'm honestly not a worthy of the Belmont name if I'm bawling my eyes out in the corner of some random fucking cave! We were always taught to push our emotions to the side to complete the job, no matter how hard it seemed. Too bad I can't remember the simplest of shit! ALL OF THAT FUCKING TRAINING FOR NOTHING!"
He suddenly slammed his hand down onto the ice which left a reasonable dent. The Fire Warg could feel his anger, both magically and emotionally. It was as noticeable as his scent.(Not that she would tell him that though)
"ME, A FUCKING BELMONT? HAH! I'M PRETTY SURE A BELMONT WOULDN'T RESURRECT DRACULA SO HE COULD FIGHT HIM AGAIN FOREVER! THAT WOULD GO AGAINST A BELMONT'S TEACHINGS. NOW LOOK AT WHAT I'VE DONE! I'M NOT A BELMONT ANYMORE. LOOK AT ME! DO I LOOK LIKE A BELMONT TO YOU? LOOK AT ME..."
"(It wasn't you, Richter. You know it to be true.)"
"YES, I'VE BEEN TOLD THAT EVER SINCE I WAS RELEASED FROM THAT FUCKING SPELL! I'VE JUST GIVEN UP TRYING TO BELIEVE THEM. IT'S AS IF I'VE ALREADY GIVEN UP BEING A BELMONT ENTIRELY! TO BE HONEST, I'M SURE I HAVE! THAT IS WHAT SADDENS ME! NOT THAT I HAD KILLED MY SOON-TO-BE WIFE OR BASICALLY DOOMED THE HUMAN RACE FOR A YEAR OR SO! Although THOSE are things I SHOULD be saddened by!"
He took in a deep and shaky breath. He managed to collect himself. His voice became much quieter.
"It's as if I've given up on my life entirely. You know, it's not the death of Annette or my resurrection of the castle that angers me. It was that I couldn't resist. They say that every generation of the Belmonts are more powerful than the last. I was always told that I was the strongest and most powerful Belmont yet. Constantly being praised for my powers. Yet, look at where that got me."
The situation was worse than the Fire Warg had suspected. Everyone knew that Richter blamed himself for Annette's death. However, she knew that nobody suspected Richter of doubting his own powers and lineage. As she had reminded herself earlier, a Belmont's pride was everything to them. If they ever began to doubt themselves, their own emotional status would be multiplied.
Richter began to tremble again, his breathing becoming hitched. She knew that she had to do something or he would sink back into the depressive state he was in earlier. Quickly thinking of how she would calm the younger Wargs, she got up and curled herself around the Belmont; her head pressing against his right side. Including her tail, she surrounded Richter completely. Without thinking, he leaned back onto the side of the Fire Warg. He could feel the immense warmth that came from the body of the Warg. It reminded him of a blanket: a giant, sentient and occasionally fiery blanket. He quietly chuckled at the image. He decided to slowly stroke her fur, starting with the top of her head and ending between her shoulders. They continued for several minutes, until Richter got up. He dusted himself off as he spoke.
"Thank you."
That wasn't what she expected. She lifted her head and stared, slightly tilted.
"Don't make me spell it out for you. I'm just surprised I managed to hide it for this long."
He began to laugh slightly nervously. The Fire Warg was just confused further.
"(Managed to hide what?)"
Richter basically blanched. His face quickly became flushed and he turned around, arms crossed. He was surprised that she didn't know already. He silently reminded himself that he might not want to tell her if she couldn't already pick out what he meant. He had to quickly think of something; a lie of some sort.
"What I meant was thank you for not assuming I was invincible. Most, if not everyone here, think I'm a god of some kind. You know, immune to emotions. I'm surprised that I had managed to keep my emotions hidden long enough for people to assume this. Makes my life easier in a way, but it makes it a pain in the ass to revert their minds afterwords."
"(Uhhh...yeah, sure. I definitely didn't think you were invincible.)"
After all, no one had really seen Richter being emotional before. They had only seen him fighting or controlling them while under the control of Shaft. Richter knew this as well, so he didn't get onto the Warg for her response.
"Hey? Can you do me a favor?"
"(Sure. What is it?)"
"Please, just don't tell anyone about this. I will bring it to their attention later. It will make my job so much easier if they learn about this AFTER they start working. Don't want them thinking about this beforehand."
"(You sure?)"
Richter sighed with frustration. The Fire Warg had seen Richter at his most vulnerable state and wasn't going to let the situation drop so easily.
"How about this: If you don't tell anyone and we don't bring this up again, I will disclose something that no one other than Maria knows."
That peaked her interest. She didn't know what else Richter could be hiding from the populous of the castle.
"(Oh, I see how it is. However, are you sure you don't want me telling some people? It would allow for more of them to understand and possibly help your situation.)"
"Good GOD that would be awful. I don't need people to assume I'm some emotional weakling. That would be worse than my current situation anyway. HOWEVER, do you agree?"
"(Yes, I do. If it helps you, I won't say anything about it. But, you have to tell me what you promised.)"
Richter could hear her excitement in her...voice? He didn't know what to classify a telepathic connection as.
"Ok then. Simple as this: These boots make me look taller."
The Fire Warg wasn't amused that she was so easily duped. Quickly snapping at him, he quickly left the room laughing. About a minute later, she heard his footsteps approach the room. He suddenly entered the room again, looking sheepish.
"Uhh, we are holding a meeting here with some of the head members of the castle. I forgot about that. I have to stay in here to finish the preparations so yea. It would be best if you left this part of the Frozen Caverns. Sorry."
That explained the tables and chairs to the Warg. She got up and walked past Richter towards the exit.
"(If there ever is something wrong, don't be afraid to ping me. You need all of the help you can get.)"
"Sure, I will."
Richter just nodded, internally debating if she should stay or not. He finally came to the conclusion that, while her presence would be comforting, it would just serve as a distraction. With her exit, Richter began to set up the rest of the chairs, reflecting on what just happened. He made a mental note to talk to her again. He was just glad she didn't know that he had a weakness for animals. They were strangely calming to the man. She probably wouldn't let that go if she found out. Ever.
Everything was set. Enough room for everyone in the Caverns, including Galamoth. The sheer amount of creatures that would be there was going to be difficult to handle. For example, the size of the creatures varied incredibly. Also choosing which individual of a certain kind to ping was also difficult. One of the interesting things about the castle was that almost all of the beings in the castle had duplicates. Only a few normal monsters and the bosses were the exception. That was to be expected anyway. Richter stretched out the castle map on the main table, as well as the requirements for the cave. On the side of the map was the list of the sections with the reservation for different leaders. The table was surrounded with chairs of different sizes, enough for all of the attending creatures. Galamoth and Scylla couldn't have seats, of course. Scylla would be in the water nearby, so that was fine. Richter hoped dearly that the meeting would go well. If not, well, all of his effort would be for nothing. Standing in his position at the table, he pinged the designated creatures.
Then the chaos began. Scylla already lived in this cave, so she was naturally here first. The Wolf Heads coming from her torso looked around excitedly. It reminded Richter of the Fire Warg he had encountered moments earlier. He had to clear his head of that moment so he could focus. Honestly, Richter wasn't fond of water creatures. Richter didn't know how to swim. The magic the Belmont had made it so he could breath underwater so he never had to worry about it. However, that didn't stop the nightmares of him drowning. Another weakness to hide in the vault of his mind. He turned his thoughts back towards Scylla. She was one of the only Water Creatures that he actually and genuinely liked. The lore behind her was incredibly interesting to the Belmont. He would love to get to know her once he had time. He just simply waved and continued to work on the map.
Next came the selected Grave Keeper. He just bowed and sat down, saying nothing. Richter found it strange that Dracula would have kept a few humans in his castle. Then again, the Librarian existed, so nothing made sense.
Then the selected Guardian arrived. Richter had forgotten how bulky and intimidating the beings were; he wouldn't allow himself to be affected, however. The Guardian sat down in his spot, also saying nothing. They were amazing fighters and protectors, but they rarely spoke.
Next were the three brothers: Gurkha, Hammer, and Blade. Unlike all of the previous people, they talked a lot. Greeting everyone else in the room, they then began to try to get the Grave Keeper to talk. They knew it was a fruitless effort, but that didn't make it any less amusing to see three giant suits of armor trying to get a small man to speak. Richter could barely hold his laughter. It wasn't everyday that he saw things like that.
The Cloaked Knight appeared soon after. No one payed any attention to him, not even the brothers. Everyone seemed strangely warry of the man. Richter's conversational attempts fell upon deaf ears, apparently. He just sat there, motionless. The only thing moving was his glowing sword, occasionally tilting in a direction for some unknown reason.
Up next was the Discus Lord. Another of Richter's favorites. He couldn't help it; he just found the Lord's choice of weapon unusual and respectable. Richter knew how hard it was to use an exotic weapon so effectively. He was like the Brothers in the way he greeted everyone. He wasn't as easily excitable as them, but he was still incredibly sociable. He soon joined them in their endeavor to get the Grave Keeper to speak. It didn't work.
The Medusa and the selected Sword Lord appeared next. The Medusa was naturally quiet, but she still attempted to join any conversations. Richter always wondered how she could see where she was going when she wore a bandage over her eyes. She ended up in a heated debate with the Gurkha about the treatment of snakes. The Sword Lord, although normally loud, said nothing as he sat next to the Cloaked Knight. The two greeted each other with a nod, but nothing else.
Azaghal, Galamoth, and the Hellfire Beast came next. They were already discussing leadership in the Underworld, so they didn't greet anyone. No one wanted to interrupt their debate. If one knows anything about those three, it is to not interrupt them. They were fearsome fighters and quite temperamental. Richter would probably have to remind them to not be so pissed during the meeting.
Karasuman was in the room since the first arrival, but was on the ceiling. Richter only noticed him after nearly falling over from tripping on a snake. After questioned, Karasuman's excuse was that he wanted to watch everyone arrive. Richter assumed otherwise.
Death and the Librarian were the last people to arrive. Richter waved them over as he continued to chart certain sections of the map. The Librarian spoke first.
"It's funny, to think that we came from killing each other to planning an excavation mission with creatures from all parts of the castle."
Death responded.
"Life can be quite fickle when it comes to alliances."
"Yes, that is true."
Richter indicated to the different job positions written on the map.
"We should have enough spaces for everyone. The difficult part is figuring out who goes where."
Death began to speak.
"That was the point of this meeting, yes? That means you have some ideas."
"Or I called the meeting so we could think of some ideas. I don't know everything."
Death only nodded. The Librarian filled the silence.
"Are we ready to begin?"
"Yes, I think we are. SEATS, PEOPLE!"
Everyone sat down in their respected chairs, except Galamoth. He couldn't really sit in a chair. He just stood their awkwardly. Richter just glanced apologetically at the creature.
"Greetings! If you remember, I had said something about having another meeting. Welcome to that meeting, obviously."
Richter sat down.
"If we are going to work on excavating a cavern large enough for the castle or village of its size, we need to cut the job into sections. There would be leaders of those sections, somewhat like a warden for a jail. The interesting thing about this project is that we will be building the castle or village while we create the cave. This will allow us to finish the castle faster while providing more support to the cavern's walls and ceiling."
The group seemed to be quiet from thought.
"All of you are worthy candidates for section leaders. Your experience and knowledge of the castle would help the project considerably. That's if you want to help."
Richter rotated the map so everyone at the table could read it.
"As you can see here, this castle has many sections. Fourteen, to be exact. Yet, we have sixteen people here. That will be dealt with once we get to it."
Hammer spoke.
"So you want us to lead the construction of certain parts of the village? So, we would be telling people what to do and such?"
"In summary, potentially. Section leaders will also be working alongside their workers."
"That sounds fun. What do you think, Blade?"
Blade responded.
"I can totally see us ordering people around."
Gurkah interrupted.
"Brothers, this job is more than just ordering people aro-"
Blade cut him off.
"Gurkah, don't ruin the fun! Let us enjoy this!"
Richter continued.
"So you've decided on building the village instead of the castle?"
Gurkah responded.
"Yeah, I assume so. We've been in this castle for so long. I think a change of scenery would do us good, yes?"
Everyone murmured in agreement
"Before we continue, is there anyone here who doesn't want to do this?"
No one objected. Blade and Gurkah went back to arguing. They seemed to pick up on the silence and directed their attention back to Richter.
"Ok then. What we need to do now is figure out who will be working where. We have the obvious, such as the Librarian working on the Village's Long Library and Scylla working on the Underground Caverns equivalent in the village. However, the rest are difficult choices. If any of you want to work on a certain section and have had experience there, feel free to volunteer yourself."
Death spoke.
"I could work on the Castle Keep's translation. Must I elaborate?"
"No, we all should know why you qualify for such an area. Anyone else?"
Up came the voices. Richter knew it was going to get interesting.
Only Richter and Death remained in the room. Everyone had left a few minutes prior. Finding that he could relax, Richter sunk into his chair.
"Finally, a period of relaxation. That went better than expected."
Death nodded in agreement.
"Richter, are you sure you can handle management of such a large task?"
"I'm sure I can handle this. We Belmonts never succeeded by giving in to the pressure. I've handled worse. You should know, Death. Anyway, I don't need to worry about doing this alone, for I have the castle's inhabitants. This helps lessen the workload."
"You may be right there, but try to remember that everyone has their limits. I have mine and you have yours. No one is invincible."
"That's about the fourth time I've been told that."
"Probably due to it being true. One of the first things people notice about you is your sheer determination. However, that determination will get you killed."
"It most likely will."
"Farewell, Richter."
"Indeed, Death."
Death vanished then, leaving Richter alone to tend to the map and papers. He had much planning to do, but such little time. The first thing he knew he had to do was return to Toriel's home. Rolling the map and papers up, he placed it in his satchel and headed out. He needed to get to the Courtyard so he could leave.
The trip went fairly well. It seemed that ever since Richter properly introduced himself, the atmosphere of the castle became much more up-beat. Richter saw more creatures exploring the castle and hanging out. Richter had to stop himself from joining some of their conversations. It was as if he hadn't been fighting these beings a few days ago. He then had to remind himself of the circumstances of those events. He could get used to this.
Exiting the Main Hall, he encountered the Fire Warg from earlier in the Courtyard. Richter wondered what she wanted.
"Oh, hello! You seem to be waiting for someone."
"(You would be correct.)"
"And that someone is probably me, yes?"
"(Again, you are correct.)"
"So, what is it that you want? I need to head back to Toriel's house before she explodes."
"(Well, I was wondering if I could accompany you on your trip back there.)"
Richter didn't expect that in the slightest. This Warg seemed to be totally invested in Richter's well-being. The Fire Warg tilted her head slightly in confusion at Richter's surprised look.
"I don't know if that would work. I don't think the Humans would react well to a giant wolf walking down the street with a bandaged man clad in blue. Might give them the wrong idea."
"(They will have to adjust to us anyway, so why not start now? You have already started the excavation mission, so I assume you like progress.)"
He didn't know what to say to this. He thought it would be cool to see some of the Castle's monsters roaming the surface, but he didn't want it to go wrong so early. He hasn't even been introduced to the surface community. Richter's own emotions should have no hold in his internal debate, yet, they got the better of him.
"You know what? Let's do it. The place isn't too far from the Altar. However, we will only do this under one condition."
"(And that would be?)"
"That you teleport home RIGHT after I arrive at Toriel's."
No delay in her response.
"(I can do that. So, are we going or not?)"
"Yes, we are leaving now. Let's get going."
Both walked towards the altar, ready to go to the normal world. Once they arrived in the surface, Richter realized something: He was royally screwed. It was near dusk when they appeared in the forest. Apparently, he had spent most of the day at the meeting. Toriel was going to somehow find a way to ground an adult, Richter thought. However, he couldn't do anything about it. He knew that the meeting was completely necessary for a multitude of reasons. As one of his favorite phrases went, "Can't kill a Vampire Lord without cracking a few skulls." Yet, Richter was pretty sure that Toriel wasn't a Vampire Lord. She didn't even seem remotely evil to the Belmont.
Their arrival in the forest didn't go as expected for him. He had expected that the Fire Warg would dash off into the forest and explore. However, she just stood next to him, unmoving. Richter was immediately suspicious. Rather cheekily, Richter asked,
"What, you don't want to explore? I'm pretty sure you haven't been up here before."
"(Uhh...I mean...Kinda...)"
Who knew that one could stutter telepathically. Richter turned towards her and gave a genuine glare. The Warg seemed to be troubled by this and instantly began to apologize.
"(Hey, come on! I wasn't the only one! We didn't go past the forest, I promise. Please don't get angry.)"
She emphasized her last statement by nudging Richter's cheek with her muzzle. He could hear her emit a small whine. Richter instantly cracked.
"Oh, alright. However, you WILL tell me the next time you are planning on heading out of the altar. What if several humans saw all of you and located the altar? What exactly would you guys do other than kill them?"
"(Oh, I know! We would...Uhmm.)"
"That's what I thought. Let's go."
Richter and the Fire Warg took a makeshift path that cut through the forest like an unwanted scar. Richter knew a few things about scars. Thinking about it, the forest itself struck Richter as odd. There was a strong magical presence in the forest and yet, no visible signs of magic were there. He assumed that cutting through time would do something to the world. He was just glad though that he hadn't practically doomed another world. The dirt path eventually led to an outcropping, which connected to a section of sidewalk. The Fire Warg began to become excited. She hadn't gone this far and she could smell thousands of foreign scents. Richter had to practically drag her along, a task that was hard considering that she was on the side of his injured arm.
The closer they got to the residential area, the more people stared. It first was only a few people, but soon a crowd had formed. Getting tired of being viewed as some sort of freak show, Richter turned towards the group. One look at his pissed face turned the group and they dispersed. After they left, the Fire Warg began "talking".
"(You were right about them being nervous. Wish there was a way to convince them that we aren't a threat to them.)"
"It just takes time. They just started to accept the monsters native to this world. You, and in a way I, are obviously different from them. I don't expect that they see giant wolves on a day-to-day basis."
She gave a soft chuckle, a strange sound coming from a Warg.
"(It would be strange if they did.)"
It was quiet up to Toriel's house. Richter really didn't like the quiet in situations such as the one they were in. The Fire Warg didn't mind the silence. Unlike Richter, she was used to crowded environments to the point that she liked the few quiet moments that were scattered throughout her life. They didn't say much to each other, for there wasn't anything to say. She obviously was still admiring this world, while Richter was trying to watch for any dangers. Richter remembered that Toriel had told him that the humans in this world had advanced versions of muskets. He really didn't want some random hunters to come by and shoot the Fire Warg.
He was relieved that nothing had happened as they approached the house. Richter turned towards the Fire Warg at the doorstep.
"Well, this is where our walk ends. You know what to do now."
Nodding, she pressed against Richter's shoulder with her giant muzzle. A rumbling echoed through her chest and into his shoulder as she 'spoke'.
"(Yeah, I get it. I'll see you later, hopefully. )"
With that, she disappeared. The warmth that normally surrounds Fire Wargs vanished with her. Alone, and slightly cold, Richter knocked on Toriel's door. There seemed to be lights coming from inside the house, so someone should be there. He knocked again. Nothing. Richter found it to be slightly strange that the lights in the house were on and yet no one was there. Richter decided to come back later and began to walk off. That's when he heard a voice. It didn't sound like Toriel's voice nor was it a voice that he had heard before. Richter found himself comparing it to one of the Guardians when it came to how deep it was.
"what's the password?"
Richter felt like he was missing out on something. Toriel didn't tell him about a password. Then again, Toriel had told him not to leave the house. Deciding that it would be better if he could figure it out on his own, he began to explain his presence here instead of answering the absurd question.
"I came by to apologize to Toriel for leaving so early. You see, I had some stuff that needed to be taken care of. Could you tell her I came by?"
"why don't you do that yourself? don't work me to the bone here."
The person behind the door laughed at something, but he didn't know what they were laughing at.
"Well, it's obvious that you are guarding the door, with entrance only being granted with a password. I, however, don't know this password. I'm not going to stand out here all night and wait until she leaves."
"why not take a guess?"
"Because I will most likely be wrong."
"doesn't hurt to try."
Richter found himself agreeing with the voice. Most of his teachings involved pure guessing and assumptions.
"Is this password based off of anything?"
"can't give hints, ruins the fun."
Richter began to think of possible passwords. He knew it couldn't be something from his world.
"hurry up, i'm getting bonley in here."
Giving up, he checked his surroundings for anything that could allude to what the password was. The Belmont was impressed with the landscaping and gardening of their yard. The sheer amount of variety when it came to the plants was astounding. Suddenly thinking of something, he guessed.
"Is the password Flower? Whip in the dark there."
The voice that came out of the door was shockingly serious to Richter, compared to its' tone before.
"you said flowey?"
"You must've misheard me. I said FLOWER. Don't want to get this guess even more wrong."
An audible sigh came from behind the door.
"sorry. i'm such a bonehead sometimes. well, you guessed incorrectly. but, i can't blame a skeleton for trying. come on in."
With that, the door opened. Richter was thinking about the person's strange reaction to him saying flower and the random puns about skeletons. The Belmont looked about, but found no one in the house. He found that worrying. He headed over to the table where he had placed the note. It was gone, so he knew someone must have seen it. Problem was that he didn't hear anyone in the house. Richter decided to try asking about the growing predicament.
"Hey, I was wondering if you could tell me where everyone is? Shouldn't they be home?"
Richter heard a few footsteps behind him, same location as the voice that began to talk.
"out to eat. don't you know how to greet a new friend? turn around and shake my hand."
Chuckling at how blunt the person was, the Vampire Hunter turned around. No one was there.
"down here."
Richter began to apologize as he looked down, only to stop abruptly. The person was a skeleton. Not the skeletons from the castle, but a wide and slightly chubby skeleton wearing the largest coat Richter's ever seen. A giant smile was plastered on his face, with two white pips representing eyes in his giant eye-sockets. Richter muttered to himself,
"Of course it was a skeleton."
That's when the skeleton references and jokes hit him. He began to laugh as he extended his hand.
"Sorry about that. I didn't expect you to be a skeleton of such a short stature. I'm used to the skeletons I've dealt with being a bit taller."
The skeleton stretched out his hand, saying nothing, and they shook. A loud fart sound suddenly echoed in the room. Needless to say, Richter was confused. The Belmont was wondering if that was how he normally greeted guests.
"hah. old whoopee cushion in the hand trick. classic. anyway, you know toriel? that's cool."
Richter was shocked by how casual the skeleton was after the shenanigans he had just pulled.
"Somewhat. We only met yesterday, under strange circumstances. I don't know why those situations keep on repeating."
Richter aimed the last part of his statement more towards himself as he sat down.
"Did Toriel read the note, by chance? The one I had on this table?"
The skeleton shrugged.
"i wasn't here then. she called me and asked if i could stay at the house while they were going out."
He quickly changed the subject, which Richter found strange. His voice was oddly serious, clashing with his giant smile.
"anyway, i'm sans, sans the skeleton. i'm close friends with their family. you are?"
"Oh, I'm Richter Belmont. I'm not so close friends with their family. Like I said, I just met them yesterday."
Richter checked his stopwatch to see that it was incredibly late. If he wanted to get anything done, he would have to start now.
"Sorry Sans, I have a lot to get done tonight. We can possibly talk tomorrow."
With nothing more to say, Richter headed off towards the room he was assigned earlier. Sans didn't do anything as he left. He was still trying to figure out why a heavily bandaged man was residing in Toriel's home.
Entering the room and shutting the door, Richter laid out the maps and papers on the floor. It was the only place that could fit the map. He needed to figure out when they should start and the order of sections. He knew they couldn't work on everything at once, so there had to be a sense of order, literally in a way. The groups would continue to work as the cave's size increased, allowing more groups to work. That was the plan, anyway.
A few hours in, Richter felt himself become drowsy. He realized that Toriel, Death, and seemingly half of the population had a point when they spoke of his condition. He didn't want to admit it though. He tried to stifle a yawn, but failed. He put his head down on the floor, thinking that if he closed his eyes for a second, he would be fine. Nothing's wrong for resting for a second.
The door to Richter's room slowly opened, with Toriel and Sans entering. Richter had fallen unconscious on the floor. Papers were scattered everywhere and a giant map was the centerpiece to the room. The map depicted a large castle with unreadable scribbles written in different areas. Toriel quietly whispered to Sans,
"When did he get here?"
"around twelve. for a guy who looks like he works around the clock, he has terrible timing."
Toriel muffled her mouth as a laugh escaped. She quickly became serious.
"What did he say when he got here? His note didn't explain much, nor does his current situation. He really shouldn't of left in the first place."
"said he came by to apologize about leaving and said he left due to some unfinished business. i'm going to take a shot in the dark here and say that these papers are part of the unfinished business."
Toriel glared at him.
"I could guess that. We should let him sleep. He does seem to be a busy person. Unhealthy so."
As they left, Sans brought up a question.
"how do you know that sleeper anyway? he seems quite strange."
Toriel shut the door, and turned to Sans.
"I'll explain once I get the children to bed. Would you get Asgore? I don't know where he went."
Sans gave a thumbs up and walked into the kitchen, where Asgore obviously wasn't.