~Cody~
Cody didn't really like to hate, but since he was wearing an apron and a long-sleeved shirt and pants, he really couldn't bring himself to like hot weather. He did, however, really like his friends. Don't we all?
He stayed nearby Clover, wiping sweat off his brow. She and Percy were walking side by side. Cody was glad his sister wasn't mad at Percy anymore. Cody found Percy a bit strange sometimes, but he generally enjoyed Percy's presence. Percy was very smart and he knew a lot about everything (unless it involved interacting with the human species). He also seemed to get quite flustered around his sister for some reason...
Cody left his sister and Percy and hung around Faye and Melody. He thought Faye was really nice. Quiet, but really nice. Melody was strict, but Cody liked her too. She was at least nice to him. Brayden was ahead, checking out his phone. The eighth human was with him. Cody liked Brayden, even if he was loud and ever so slightly aggressive. But he liked food, like Cody. Oh and just about the entire population.
The eighth human was really weird. But they were so generous and caring. Cody hoped he could be like them. He didn't want to be mean to people. He only wanted to help. His sister said he was too caring, but Cody couldn't help it. He was going to be kind to everyone, like his mom wanted him to...
Cody's phone buzzed. So did everyone else's. Alphys had posted a status on the Undernet. Cody read it.
...
ALPHYS: just realized i didn't watch undyne fight the humans. well i know shes unbeatable I'll ask her abt it later ^_^
OtakuBoy: It's a shame you didn't get to watch that, I had an awesome transformation scene that was soooo anime.
Ilovecooking6: What does so anime mean?
~MelodyTrust~: It means it has to do with anime and such.
sevenleafclover: guys why are we posting online? we can just talk irl
👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍: WAIT WHO THE HECK ARE ALL YOU GUYS?! I'M SO CONFUSED!
...
The kids approached a bunch of conveyor belts.
"AWESOME!" Brayden yelled.
"Looks dizzy." Melody commented. Cody had to agree.
...
ALPHYS: for now i gotta call up the humans and guide them ^-^
~MelodyTrust~: That won't be necessary, we have the stick kid. Right?
mynameisnotchara: ...
...
Cody, riding on the conveyor belt, wasn't really looking where he was going. He ran into a monster named Vulkin. It was a kawaii volcano with little legs. Cody found it adorable. He loved cute things.
"You're adorable!" he squeaked, wrapping his arms around the mini volcano. It burned his skin. The pain made him want to scream in horror. His HP decreased. But the Vulkin cheered so brightly Cody couldn't bring himself to be angry.
"Bro!" his over-protective sister, however, got very angry.
She joined the battle. She had her hand on her pistol.
"It's just a little monster, sis..." Cody told Clover.
"Vulkin is helping!" Vulkin cheered.
"See?" Cody asked, smiling.
Clover didn't look convinced. Cody pouted. His sister was too stubborn. Some of the others came over, including the eighth human. Cody knew his sister would hold back now. She'd told him how concerned she was when she shot the eighth human back in the RUINS. Even if they had healing powers, she was still furious with herself.
"Aww, that's adorable..." Faye said, admiring the Vulkin.
"Did I miss out on the fight?!" Brayden asked. He groaned. "Oh come on!"
The eighth human spared the Vulkin. The kids went on more conveyor belts.
"Whee." Percy said emotionlessly, riding on a conveyor belt. Cody stayed with his sister and the eighth human.
...
ALPHYS: gonna call them in a minute ^.^
sevenleafclover: you said that a min ago pardner...
...
The kids continued walking across conveyor belts.
"THESE ARE THE BEST!" Brayden yelled. He ran ahead. The eighth human and Melody followed him.
...
i'mfayedingaway: i think its really pretty here, am i the only one
~MelodyTrust~: You think everywhere is pretty, Faye. There's lava and stuff everywhere! I'm boiling. How is this pretty?
i'mfayedingaway: theres beauty in everything if you know where to look ;)
OtakuBoy: Your username is misspelled.
i'mfayedingaway: its a pun, 'faye-ding' away, remember
OtakuBoy: I remember that. But spelling errors annoy me to unmeasurable lengths.
sevenleafclover: guys seriously we can talk irl... we're right next to each other.
OtakuBoy: 'Talking irl' is for people who are actually social, unlike me. I am an anti-social garbage can of a human.
Ilovecooking6: No you're not! You're great, percy!
OtakuBoy: Great at being an antisocial garbage can of a human, that is.
~MelodyTrust~: Percy I will smack you in real-life if you don't shush.
👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍: WHAT DOES ANTI-SOCIAL MEAN?!
...
The eighth human did that strange thing where they paused for a moment at a random spot. Cody wasn't exactly sure why they did that. He walked over to them.
"Hey, if you don't mind me asking," he began. "Why do you... randomly stand somewhere for a few seconds...?" The eighth human cocked their head. "Oh... that's okay. You don't have to tell me."
"STEAM VENTS!" Brayden yelled, eyeing some steam vents ahead. "I LOVE THIS PLACE!"
...
ALPHYS: I HATE USING THE PHONE I DON'T WANT TO DO THIS LMAO ^.^
OkatuBoy: I also have a strong dislike for calling people.
~MelodyTrust~: Oh for goodness' sake Percy...
...
"Oh, jumping!" Melody exclaimed, eyeing the vents. She eagerly hopped over to the vents.
Tsunderplane gets in the way! Not on purpose or anything.
Melody groaned. "Are you kidding me?!"
"Tsundere!" Percy squealed.
He joined Melody. So did the eighth kid. They got close to Tsunderplane. But not too close.
"Eeeh?" Tsunderplane asked, blushing. "Human...?"
Cody watched the eighth human dodge Tsunderplane's bombs. They... sensually stroked Tsunderplane's wings. Clover covered his eyes.
The twins flew over the pits of boiling lava. It was a little intimidating. Clover grabbed his arm. Cody decided to tolerate it. She led him over the vents, using her other hand to hold onto her hat. Cody's apron was flying up. Thankfully he was wearing clothes underneath it.
They were actually getting ahead of the others, aside from Brayden and the eighth human, who were always ahead. Somehow. Clover faced her brother.
"Cody," she said. They were standing on a path. Cody eyed his sister. "I wanted to say-"
...
ALPHYS: omg ive had my claw over the last digit for five minutes omg i'm just gonna do it i'm just gonna call!
👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍: WELL HURRY THE HECK UP!
~MelodyTrust~: Don't rush her, Brayden! That's so rude!
OtakuBoy: Impatient, actually.
...
Clover groaned. She rolled her eyes. "I don't really like this UnderNet stuff. We're pretty much next to each other, ain't we?" She paused. "That's not what I wanted to say. I wanted to say-"
"WASSUP!" Brayden jumped in between them and grabbed their shoulders, a big grin on his face.
The eighth human stood on the side, staring at the lava.
"What're you two talking about?" Brayden asked.
"Why do you need to know?" Clover asked, folding her arms.
"'Cause I wanna know!" Brayden replied, blowing a raspberry.
"You three!" Melody came over as well. Percy and Faye were following her. "We're splitting up and going all over the place! It's chaos! Let's stick together a little more!"
"At least we have the UnderNet," Percy replied. "We can contact each other easily."
Clover frowned.
"That's a good point." Melody said, shrugging. "Let's go on."
Clover glanced at Cody. Cody had a feeling she wanted to talk about the Gaster thing again. Since Cody had passed out back there, she had become a lot more protective. It made Cody a little annoyed. He just wanted to help Gaster. There was nothing wrong with that.
Cody had wondered how to get in contact with Gaster (and that strange child) again. His friends had no idea... though Faye had hinted at something.
"I saw a lot of things in my dreams," she said. "Maybe you will too."
"So I just need to go to sleep?" Cody asked. He wondered what Faye saw in her dreams...
"If you're lucky," Faye shrugged. "I don't see anything anymore. But maybe you will, Cody. Because I think they're speaking to you."
"Who?" Cody asked.
"The people in your dreams." Faye replied, giving him a small smile. Then she got distracted by Brayden, so Cody couldn't talk to her anymore.
But it sure did give him a lot of mind candy.
The kids came across some lasers. Alphys awkwardly called and explained their deal. They were blue and orange. Blue ones you couldn't move, and orange ones you had to move. Cody gripped his burnt pan. He was okay with these things, but they weren't his favourite. Undyne's battle was easier. He was surprised how easy it was. He was going to say something during the battle, but then Percy...
Papyrus' battle had been slightly difficult. Toriel's was a heartache. Apparently Faye was a lot scarier than she looked.
Cody really liked Toriel. He hadn't had a mother figure in a long time. He missed her. He liked Papyrus and Undyne as well... even if Papyrus' spaghetti was... interesting, to say the least.
...
ALPHYS posted a picture. It was a trash can with several pink, glittery filters over it.
ALPHYS: CUte PIC OF ME RIGHT NOW ^.^
~MelodyTrust~: How many people think they're trashcans?
👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍: WE CAN POST PICTURES?! WAIT A SEC!
👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍 posted a picture. It was a picture of Brayden grinning and flexing.
👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍: YEAH THAT'S THE STUFF!
~MelodyTrust~: Oh for goodness' sake...
i'mfayedingaway added 👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍s picture to the collection, 'cute pics'.
mynameisnotchara: ;)
OtakuBoy: 😏
i'mfayedingaway: oh that's... um... i'm going now.
...
Alphys suddenly rung.
"Alphys here!" She took a deep breath of relief. "Th... the northern door will stay locked until you... s-solve the puzzles on the right and left."
"Puzzles?" Brayden asked. He groaned. "REALLY?!"
"The stick-wielding child will solve them." Percy said dryly. Cody flashed Percy a glance of sympathy. He thought Percy was good at puzzles, even if the eighth human kept doing them all.
"I... I think you s-should g-g-go to the right first!" Alphys squeaked. She hung up. Ahead of the kids were split paths that led to the puzzles. As usual, the eighth human knew what to do. They headed off to the right.
"I'm gonna go help 'em," Clover said. She trailed after the eighth human. "Y'all do what you want." She looked at Cody. He gave her a smile. Clover followed the eighth human. Cody approached Percy.
"Hey," he said. "Let's go and solve the puzzle on the left. I'm sure the stick kid won't mind! It'll probably help them, actually."
"Alright." Percy said.
The boys went left. The puzzle was blocked off by a blue laser.
"Alphys! Here!" Alphys rung them. "Th-that blue laser seems totally impassable! B-b-but! As the Royal Scientist, I h-have some tricks up my sleeve! I'll h-hack into the Hotland database and take it out!"
Alphys did just that. The laser disappeared.
"Wow!" Cody said brightly.
...
Ilovecooking6: Good job, alphys!
ALPHYS: thanks? 0_0
...
"Oh my goodness, Cody," Percy spoke up. He eyed Cody. "I was speaking to some monsters (who looked like anime school girls) and they said the puzzles reactivated randomly. It means someone must have hacked them, like Alphys just did. That means, if I can figure this out... I can hack the rest of the puzzles, then we will have no more puzzles to solve. Then I will be the puzzle master."
He paused for dramatic effect.
"Ha ha ha." His laugh was dry and emotionless. "Oh no, I sounded like a stereotypical Disney villain."
"Wow!" Cody was really confused. "That sounds great, Percy!"
"Yes," Percy replied. "Go ahead and solve the puzzle yourself. I'm going to start hacking."
He sat down and played with his phone.
"I'm not very good with puzzles..." Cody admitted.
"Miku!" Percy replied, captivated by his phone.
Cody sighed. He went inside a little room. In there was a puzzle. It was a bunch of boxes with arrows pointing at them. He read the instructions.
(Shoot the opposing ship!) (Move the boxes to complete your mission.)
It was ever so slightly perplexing. Cody pressed some buttons. He moved some boxes around. Next to the arrow on his side were two bullets.
"Okay," he mumbled. "I can do this." He moved more boxes. He tried to create a clear path to shoot at the 'opposing ship'.
...
OkatuBoy: Accomplices, when you're finished with the puzzles, come to me. I've got to tell you all something about other puzzles. Also, listen to these songs...
Cody saw Percy had posted a lot of songs about something called 'vocaloid'. And also 'Top Ten Anime Theme Songs'.
Cody laughed. He didn't really expect anything else from Percy.
👍👍SUPERMAN👍👍: ARE WE GETTING MORE PUZZLES!?
i'mfayedingaway: i like all these vocaloid songs but theyre kinda sad...
~MelodyTrust~: Where even are you, Percy? You and Cody just walked off.
OtakuBoy: Cody is solving a puzzle and I'm doing my thing.
~MelodyTrust~: You have a lot of things, Percy.
OtakuBoy: I know. And yes, Faye, vocaloid songs can be depressing.
...
The eighth human came over to Cody. They solved the puzzle in two seconds flat. Everyone outside was standing around Percy.
"Do you really think he can do it?" Cody asked the eighth human. They shrugged. "Yeah, me too. He's Percy! He'll find a way."
The kids jumped over some more vents. They reached a clean, tiled floor. Clover was suspicious. Cody grinned. It looked like a kitchen. And he loved kitchens. The next room, however, was completely black. The only light was Percy's phone.
Alphys rung. "H-hey, it's kind of dark in there, isn't it? Don't worry! I'll hack into the light system and-" The lights switched on by themselves. "Oh...?"
"One step ahead of you." Percy said. His phone lost connection. "Oh, fiddlesticks..."
However, the kids could clearly see they were in a pale brown kitchen. There was a kitchen bench with ingredients, a microwave, an oven, a fridge, cupboards and other things you'd find in a regular kitchen.
"Cooking!" Cody cheered.
"FOOD!" Brayden yelled.
Percy coughed into his arm. "Death."
"Mettaton." Faye said, eyeing the ground.
"Oh no," Alphys added.
Mettaton appeared, wearing a chef's hat. "OHHH YES! WELCOME, BEAUTIES, TO THE UNDERGROUND'S PREMIER COOKING SHOW! Cooking With A Killer Robot."
"Sounds awful." Melody commented, crinkling her nose.
"Cooking with a... killer robot...?" Cody said, laughing nervously.
"PREHEAT YOUR OVENS, BECAUSE WE'VE GOT A VERY SPECIAL RECIPE FOR YOU TODAY!" Mettaton continued. "WE'RE GOING TO BE MAKING... A SEVEN-LAYER CAKE!"
"Ooh!" Cody cheered, the only one invested. Brayden was as well I guess, but only for the food. And just about the entire population.
"MY LOVELY ASSISTANTS HERE WILL GATHER THE INGREDIENTS." Mettaton said. "EVERYONE GIVE THEM ALL A BIG HAND!"
There was a clapping sound effect. Confetti came down from the ceiling.
"My hair..." Melody groaned.
Mettaton said, "WE'LL NEED SUGAR, MILK, AND EGGS. GO FOR IT, SWEATHEARTS!"
Cody spotted said ingredients on the back counter. He headed over there and picked them up. It was sort of a natural thing now. The others let him do his thing. His sister winked at him. The eighth human did as well, but sensually. Cody blushed and placed the ingredients on Mettaton's counter.
"PERFECT!" Mettaton cheered. "GREAT JOB, BEAUTIFUL! WE'VE GOT ALL OF THE INGREDIENTS WE NEED TO BAKE A CAKE!"
"Well, honestly, I'd add a few more ingredients." Cody said, tilting his head. "We'd also need butter if we're going to put it in the oven, icing sugar, flour-"
"YOU'RE RIGHT, DARLING... BUT OH MY! WAIT JUST A MAGNIFICENT MOMENT!" Mettaton waved his hand. "HOW COULD I FORGET! WE'RE MISSING THE MOST IMPORTANT INGREDIENT OF ALL!"
"It has to be flour," Cody said, folding his arms. "It won't be a cake without it."
"WELL, THAT TOO, BUT NOT WHAT I WAS TALKING ABOUT," Mettaton replied. He held up a chainsaw. "IT'S SEVEN HUMAN SOULS!"
"Oopsie." Faye mumbled.
Cody yelped. His sister pulled him behind her and held up her gun. Brayden made a punching motion with his fists. Melody looked like she was ready to kick Mettaton in the wheel. The eighth human looked bored. Percy held up his book.
Suddenly, Mettaton's phone rung. Alphys.
"HELLO...?" Mettaton asked, clearly irritated. "I'M KIND OF IN THE MIDDLE OF SOMETHING HERE."
"W-wait a second!" Alphys squeaked. "Couldn't you make a... couldn't you use a..."
"A substitution?" Percy suggested.
"Yeah, that!" Alphys chirped.
"... A SUBSTITUTION?" Mettaton asked. "YOU MEAN, USE A DIFFERENT, NON-HUMAN INGREDIENT?" If he had visible emotions, he would've frowned. "...WHY?"
"Uhh... what if someone's..." Alphys paused. "Vegan?"
"... VEGAN." Mettaton said.
"Oh, I make vegan food all the time!" Cody spoke up. "Some of it is-"
"YES!" Mettaton exclaimed. "THAT'S A BRILLIANT IDEA, ALPHYS! ACTUALLY, I HAPPEN TO HAVE AN OPTION RIGHT HERE! MTT-BRAND ALWAYS-CONVENIENT-HUMAN-SOUL-FLAVOUR-SUBSTITUTE! A CAN OF WHICH... IS JUST OVER ON THAT COUNTER!"
There was indeed a can over on a counter.
"Convenient indeed," Percy mumbled. "I would like to know how to make a can of human-soul-flavoured substitution."
"Um, no, I think you wouldn't, Percy." Melody said, crinkling her nose.
"What would a soul even taste like anyway?" Brayden asked. He looked curious.
"It could be flavoured due to colour," Percy said, tapping his chin. "If I could try some-"
"Alright, enough of this!" Melody said, breaking them up. "We have to go get that can."
"I have a feeling that can's gonna be booby-trapped or somethin'." Clover said, folding her arms.
"Hee hee, booby." Brayden snorted. Melody rolled her eyes.
Clover was right. As soon as the kids approached the can, the desk it was sitting on grew up like a ladder. It got up so high, the kids couldn't even see it anymore.
"OH COME ON!" Brayden yelled, shaking his fist.
"That is not fair!" Clover complained.
"Clover is right for once!" Melody agreed. "There's no way we can reach that!"
"BY THE WAY, OUR SHOW RUNS ON A STRICT SCHEDULE," Mettaton added. "IF YOU CAN'T GET THE CAN IN THE NEXT ONE MINUTE... WE'LL JUST HAVE TO GO BACK TO THE ORIGINAL PLAN! BETTER START CLIMBING, DARLINGS!" He flew off.
"It's physically impossible for us to reach the top in one minute by climbing," Percy said, looking up from his notes. He sounded dead inside. "We're screwed. Oh no."
Cody bit his lip. He wasn't ready to die yet. Suddenly, the phone rung.
"Oh no!" Alphys squeaked. "There's not enough time to climb up! F-f-fortunately, I might have a plan! All of your phones have a few... features. You guys see that huge button that says 'JETPACK'? Watch this!" Everyone's phone turned into a jetpack. "There! You all should have just enough fuel to reach the top! Now, get up there!"
The kids took off with a blast of smoke. Cody wobbled. This jetpack was slightly hard to pilot. The eighth human was beside them, determination expressed on their expressionless face.
"MELODY OH WHAT THE HECK!" Brayden yelled, crashing into Melody.
"Brayden!" Melody yelled, shoving him away. "Get off me!"
"Mettaton is throwing cake ingredients at us," Percy said emotionlessly. "Uh oh."
Eggs were raining down from the sky. Cody covered his head with his frying pan. He caught about twenty eggs. The other kids were flying around, trying to avoid the egg rain. This was followed by flour.
"Ack! It's getting all over me!" Melody yelped, covered in the white powder.
"Then move outta the way!" Clover yelled at her.
"I can't, Brayden damaged my jetpack!" Melody complained.
"I DID NOT!" Brayden spat, glaring at her.
"Milk rain." Percy said emotionlessly. Milk was coming down now.
"Can these things please stop getting in my hair!?" Melody shrieked.
"No one cares about your hair, Melody!" Clover told her, folding her arms.
"Melody!" Cody flew over to her. "Do you want my pan? You can cover your head!"
Melody accepted Cody's pan. "Some people care, Clover!"
Clover sighed. She glanced at her brother. He shrugged in response. He looked around. Percy was fixing something on Brayden's jetpack. Faye and the eighth human were flying side by side. Cody noticed Faye was laughing at a lot of things they were saying. Or not saying.
"MY MY," Mettaton spoke up.
The kids had reached the top successfully! Well, at least the eighth human and Faye had. The others soon caught up.
"IT SEEMS YOU'VE BESTED ME..." Mettaton huffed. "BUT ONLY BECAUSE YOU HAD THE HELP OF THE BRILLIANT DOCTOR ALPHYS! OH, I LOATHE TO THINK OF WHAT WOULD HAVE HAPPENED TO YOU ALL WITHOUT HER!"
The kids glanced at each other.
"What 'bout the substitute thingy?" Clover asked.
"OH YES!" Mettaton exclaimed. "ABOUT THE SUBSTITUTION... HAVEN'T YOU EVER SEEN A COOKING SHOW BEFORE? I ALREADY BAKED THE CAKE AHEAD OF TIME! SO FORGET IT! TOODLES!"
The robot took off. The kids returned to the ground.
"Well, that was pointless." Percy commented.
"You don't say..." Melody groaned.
"At least it was kind of fun!" Cody said, shrugging.
"Wow!" Alphys rung. "We... we did it! We... really did it! Great job out there, team!"
"YEAH!" Brayden punched the air. "GO US!"
"W-well, uh, anyway, let's keep heading forward!" Alphys said. She hung up.
The kids continued walking. They came to a view of a strange-looking metal machine. It was sitting in the lava. Cody stared at it for a bit. It was quite ominous. He wondered what it was for. Percy was taking notes.
"That is fascinating," he said, looking excited. "What is it?"
"S-see that building in the distance?" Alphys rung. "That's the CORE. The source of all power for the underground. It converts geothermal energy into magical electricity, by... uhh, anyway, that's where we're going to go. In the CORE is an elevator directly to ASGORE's castle. And from there... you guys can go home." Alphys hung up.
"AWESOME!" Brayden cheered.
Cody smiled. He liked the CORE a lot more now.
"Then let's get there." Clover said.
"Wait," Faye spoke up. "That means we're getting closer to the end. To home... and to... Chara." She made a face. Cody patted her shoulder.
"We'll be fine, Faye," he told her. "We'll be able to stop Chara. Right, guys?"
He eyed his friends.
"Right, bro," Clover replied. She put her arms around Faye and Cody. "And we'll get home. Trust me, the bad won't win."
The eighth human nodded, though they were twitching. They must've been very nervous. But wasn't everyone?