Asriel: Howdy, readers. If any were curious before, here's a take on the meaning of the names for the continents, if you're interested.
Alphys: From Latin to English:
Scelus=sin; crime. Potestas=power; strength. Exspes=bereave; hopeless. Numen=divine will
Make of these what you will. But, uh...try and keep it on the down low, as much as possible? I appreciate it, readers!
Flowey:...The third one sounds promising. No really. I pick that one for best vacation spot. Gonna have a grand fun time there...
Warning: Lots of exposition. World-Building here and there, explanations for different things, that kind of stuff. Be prepared. I can at least say I gave this a shot.
Chapter Start!
"Ugh...hangover...not really a fan of being over hanged..." Elvira muttered as she woke up several hours later rubbing the back of her head. "...Well, with that kinda outta the way, you've sure got quite a method of transportation. Sure beats my crappy old boat by a landslide."
"Yeah, you explained how much of a beating it took, yet you managed to not get a scratch. That's pretty impressive, at least via the tenacity you've shown in trying to get to us." Asriel said while scratching the back of his head.
The expedition team was currently riding something, and it wasn't a boat this time. Oh no, River Person had decided to one-up their previous action, and did so with effortless grace and precision.
"...Change."
One magic word later, and River Person materializes a large, durable, and roomy submarine-cat face on the nose-that was capable of holding over fifty passengers. The crew were currently underwater, casually chatting with one another while preparing for the possible challenges ahead, which were sure to be difficult ones. It was impressive how much River Person could manage with the likes of vehicle magic, and everyone was sure that they could do so much more if if given the time and energy. A submarine certainly wasn't the classiest of vehicles, but it would get them to the needed port quickly and quietly. All they had to do from there is a fairly long walk to the main capital. Seemed simple enough for the moment.
Undyne put her hand down and leaned closer to Elvira, her eye narrowed a bit. "So...about you being Parvos' mother."
"Hm? Oh, yeah. That's definitely my kid. Believe me. Sense our souls connected for yourself."
"No, that's okay, I believe you. I just...needed to hear it from you to really grasp it." Undyne said while scratching her head. "It's tough to believe it that you're his mom, though. I mean, even though you're a drunk, you still seem significantly more stable than he does. Plus he's never really talked about you. And you seem relatively nice, while he's a major pain in the ass."
"Thanks for not holding back your thoughts. I know my son has been a massive thorn in your side for a while. But it's not completely his fault, nor is it completely his Ratovero's fault, though he was definitely a major part of it, the shitty kitty." Elvira shook her head. "No. I had a part in Parvos'...less than ideal upbringing as well. I'll tell you more about it later."
"Right. Mind if I ask about the Scelus continent?"
"To put things simply? The Kingdom we're headed to might be the only clear-cut nice one. But due to the nature of Ratovero's influence, that's been compromised. Now it's considered no different than two other kingdoms on the continent; one's very apathetic and the other's outrageously greedy."
"Damn..."
"Yeah. There is a silver lining to all of this, even though it's ridiculously and pathetically thin. There's no severe discrimination between humans or monsters on this continent. They're either sweet together, rotten together, or anywhere in-between. If you survive the numerous conflicts that pop up every now and then, you've proven yourself to most citizens here if not all." Elvira explained. "These unspoken rules kinda go through all the Kingdoms here, which cover three whole pieces of the continent. We are currently in the smallest and weakest one in terms of sheer power. Things have died down a lot since they heard that Ratoveros has been killed. Someone new has been put in charge and they've been calming things down. It makes for a pretty decent start to your objective since everything has mostly settled down here."
"Someone new is in charge? Who?"
"Someone trustworthy, and MUCH nicer than Ratoveros, that's for sure. We should be meeting her soon when we get there." Elvira says softly with a nod. "...Besides, she's one of the major reasons why I'm able to get away with what I do. It's shady, but it helps us both in the long run. Plus, she loves Parvos as much as I do, and she looked heartbroken when she thought he was dead. She thought her blessing finally wore out."
"Blessing...?"
Elvira smiled. "You'll know what I mean when you see her." She points to another part of the map, in which the others began to gather. "Anyway, the Kingdoms here are named as the following: Fortuna, Astus, and Surripio. Fortuna is the smallest and weakest, but aside from Ratoveros being the boss of it for so long, it usually gets a lot of good luck to help it scrape by. Astus is decently strong, but they mostly keep to themselves and care for no ones problems but their own. And Surripio...they're kinda the worst of the bunch. It's especially chaotic and corrupt over there. It's also where Scythe's League-the Colddusts-were originally from, so you can understand why some of their more merciless traits were necessary for them to get anywhere."
"INDEED..." Papyrus hummed quietly. "HAVE YOU BEEN OVER THERE YOURSELF, ELVIRA?"
"Oh yeah, plenty of times. It isn't the best place to live a decent life at all. Sometimes it's a struggle simply to walk around the place without being attacked by someone who thinks you're easy game. But that's a bridge I'll help you cross when we actually get to it. We have this bridge to tend to at the moment." She says as she feels the submarine shift slightly. "Oh, we must be at the port now. This thing is faster than I thought it would be."
"What can we say? River Person is a pro at what they do." Alphys chuckled. It was a gradual single file out of the sub due to the numerous passengers within. The only ones who really stayed behind were the Colddusts. Who we're following through with the organization that Toriel set out. Though it looks like it wouldn't be followed to the letter, they could still adapt.
"Alright. You all are going to wait at your home Kingdom when River Person drops you off. We'll catch up with you soon enough." Undyne said to them. "Will you be okay?"
"Not to worry, Boss. We've managed to live there a majority of our lives. Going back much stronger than before isn't going to change much." Scythe briefly smirked at her before climbing back into the sub, and the others watched it sink into the water before sailing off once again.
Undyne scratched her head with a sigh. That place is their turf, I'll trust that they'll be alright, especially with their skill and strength. I'll catch up soon enough.
Elvira lead the way after River Person sailed off with the Colddusts, the path to the capital not being too far but still being a twenty minute walk. Papyrus refused to carry Sans and Sans didn't want to waste magic teleporting them there. Save it for later, he reasoned.
Though they indeed eventually made it to the capital they were promised to be taken to. I appeared just over the horizon. It wasn't quite as big as Ebott, but the quality seemed to be different in a bright way. The gravel they began walking on soon changed to clear marble. The buildings around them were shimmering with stained glass that looked much durable than they initially thought, as they sensed protective magic around them. It soon came to them that unlike Ebott's buildings, these buildings were likely made with magic. They seemed more durable and made of much higher material.
The wealth divide became obvious when they could see an honest to goodness silver castle right around the very center of the city. From there a wealth divide has been made more clear. Near the entrance, the quality was lower yet still respectably admirable. Though the further they traveled the more that quality rose. Nothing too awe-inspiring, but the detail, effort and love put into them became more and more obvious.
And as Elvira mentioned before, they could see humans and monsters of many kinds, interacting peacefully. Most human and monster children were playing on the sidewalks, several adults were speaking with one another on subjects from the state of the kingdom, to simply laughing at how bad a day someone had at work, and were now enjoying friendly company. There were even several monster-human couple's both old and young sitting on benches, walking with one another, snuggling, nose-nuzzling, kissing, or just being silly in the trees or in the grass, just happy to be with one another.
Unconsciously, the last bit had Chara react by reaching out and holding one of Muffet's hands with a gentle squeeze. She affectionately returned the gesture with a loving smile.
"Aha! There she is." Elvira pointed forward, with the gang following her gesture to see someone waiting for them. In front of them stood yet another feline yet significantly more regal looking and feeling than Elvira. The very first thing that tipped this off was the gold sheen of her fur. Others would be the elegant long-sleeved yellow gown she wore, with a white sash wrapped around her waist. She greeted the part with a kind smile. Her eye color was exactly the same as Elvira's.
"Elvira. You've returned safely. And with guests." She said, her voice proving to be softer than they were prepared for. It reminded Frisk of the very first time he heard Toriel's voice, as if he knew everything would be okay with her around. The feline monster turned towards Parvos and gasped slightly, paws over her muzzle. "Parvos...you've come home safely as well...!"
"Yeah...heya Aunt Eloise..." Parvos waved sheepishly.
"...Excuse me?" Toriel couldn't help but say.
"Yup! This pompus looking kitty is my twin sister! Can't ya tell the family resemblance?~" She said while sliding an arm around her supposed sibling and sharing a smile with her. It was incredibly hard to see it, from the gangs eyes. Aside from their shared eye color, as well as sensing just as much magic from her as Elvira, it wouldn't be highly difficult to tell that they were related by dust. Especially when one puts Parvos in the picture.
"It appears that we have much explaining to do." Eloise smiled. "Come with me. Not to the castle, mind you, but to my own house within this neighborhood. It feels more, how you say...'down-to-earth'."
Dumbfounded by one revelation after another, the gang simply follows the seemingly twin felines to the latter's home. Indeed, they had much to discuss.
Eloise wasn't kidding when she said that her actual home-she confirmed the castle to be hers-was much more cozy and modest than they were expecting. While still holding an air of wealth within, it wasn't overly obvious. There was a fairly sized living room with three sofas and a fireplace in the back, a kitchen in the side where Eloise already prepared tea, upstairs bedrooms, and an expansive backyard that the Pack-and Muffet-chose to play in and Flowey to sit around and flaunt how much better he is than other flowers.
Meanwhile, the remaining members of the Dreemurr Faction were gathered around Elvira, Eloise, and Parvos, after Eloise passed out tea to those who accepted. When they have gotten settled in, they were met met with more revelations about these sisters, Parvos, the Fortuna Kingdom, and Ebott's involvement in it.
"You're...Noble Monsters?" Asgore asked, and the same question flashed between Toriel and Asriel's eyes, while everyone else was curious. The three seemed more familiar with it than the others.
"Indeed. I am a Noble. And despite what appearances-and actions-may say otherwise, Elvira and Parvos are of nobility as well." Eloise explained, only slightly annoyed that instead of actual tea, her sister had the nerve to pour wine into her teacup and try and pretend it was the same thing. She ignored her. "For those who might not know, Noble Monsters are not quite on par when it comes to Boss Monsters like Lord Asgore, Lady Toriel, and Lord Asriel."
"P-Please, no need for that. Just our names is fine." Asriel said hurriedly while waving his paw.
"Indeed." Toriel nodded.
"Let us forgo the titles. Asgore, Toriel, and Asriel are just fine." Asgore nodded with his own teacup in his paw.
Eloise smiled and nodded. "As I was saying, Noble Monsters such as myself don't really compare in either magic power or sheer influence compared to Boss Monsters, but they're still quite significant. Though you three seem surprised by the mention of the term and not the term itself. I take it there are no Noble Monsters within Ebott?" A shake of a head from each answered. "Hm. I wasn't really expecting such, yet I'm also not overly surprised by it. Monsters of nobility are a rank below Boss Monsters. We are usually the ones most trusted to assist with the Boss Monster's rule. Boss Monsters are most suited to rule. And Boss Monsters are almost solely Dreemurrs." She sighed. "However, since the known remaining Dreemurrs fled to the place under Mt. Ebott known as the Underground, that option was no longer available. As such, it depended on Noble Monsters such as myself and my sister, as well as working with human nobility, to keep our civilization from collapsing due to a lack of leadership. Though for a time, even though us of able dust or blood have voting power to elect a King or Queen...it wasn't so simple."
"What happened? Was it something bad...?" Frisk asked.
Elvira nodded while sipping nearly all wine from her teacup, then setting it back down, leaning forward with paws on her knees. "Yeah. Our ancestors after the War, human and surviving monster nobility alike, usually had the power to select the one they saw most capable to become their ruler. However...things kinda went south along the way." The grim look she gave made it look like an understatement. "Nobility succumbed to the tendency to get darkly corrupt in their position of power, be they human or monster. For a long time, there was rarely any decent high ranked nobles, at least on the Scelus Continent. Who knows if the same applies to the other continents? It didn't help that they're the ones who recorded that there had to be a unanimous vote for there to be a High-King or Queen of the Kingdoms."
"woah, hold up...'high-king or queen?' as in, in charge of over more than one kingdom?" Sans interjected.
"You're correct. There is a King and/or Queen in each of our Kingdoms, but what we lacked was a High King or Queen to band them all together. That is where the trouble initially began and soon worsened." Eloise sighed. "The vote must be unanimous between the King and/or Queen of each Kingdom, otherwise no official selection can be made. I suppose you could call me the 'Queen' of the Fortuna Kingdom as my ancestors were most involved with it's development, shady or not. My sister turned down the position, not that many picked her due to her nature..."
"I thought of something difficult. That almost made Parvos...Prince Parvos...?" Undyne narrowed her eye while folding her arms and sticking out her tongue. "Blegh. It doesn't sound right, alliterative sense be damned."
"That's right, Warden. Nobility within my dust. Gonna give me a bit of leeway now?" Parvos grinned cheekily.
"Nah. I think I'm just gonna keep callin' ya 'Shitty Kitty' because that's how I see you. You have my protection and leadership, but you're long ways from earning my respect or trust."
"I like you." Elvira pointed towards the fish with a wide grin, before pulling back and swirling her glass. "So yeah. The less the nobility agreed, the less progress could be made together, the worse things got for everyone. At some point, all three Kingdoms in Scelus mostly struck out on their own because almost none of them could stomach the idea of having a ruler over the rulers, unanimous agreement or not. At best we could agree with the occasional trade. Fortuna's wealth, Astus's warriors, and Surripio's supplies. They even arranged established trade routes to account for terrain and weather. Unfortunately the system isn't perfect due to the distrust and greediness giving rise to several bandits and pillagers of smaller communities in-between routes. It only got more difficult by the year, but never enough to disband the system completely. Though once again, a silver lining here discrimination between humans and monsters is almost non-existent...though this is mostly because everyone has bigger things to worry about than acting condescending towards someone for being different via species. Most were more interested in simply surviving together."
"And yet despite this, moral compass deteriorated. Trust became brittle. Corruption between kingdoms increased. Any genuine attempts to connect in a meaningful heartfelt way have been shut down, either out of fear or malevolence, usually by one faction ruining it for everyone else. No Kingdom is exempt nor immune from dishing out or taking this treatment." Eloise said with her ears flattened against her head. "Things have gotten significantly better when I technically took up role as the 'Queen' from my mother, but it wasn't enough to do something meaningful in the long-run, not by myself. At this point, the Kingdoms are more invested in surviving each other's scheming than living together and compromising."
"It was around that point that Ratoveros really went into asshole mode." Elvira groaned while pouring more tea for everyone else. "He eventually decided that he would call the shots and decide what's best for the kingdom-AKA himself, the prick-and with a majority of the warriors loyal under his banner, Eloise could do nothing but sit on house arrest while I was thrown out completely and threatened to never come back unless we wanted something to happen to Parvos. We were frustrated, but too powerless to do anything about it without significant risk to ourselves or him."
"We had to watch from a distance as our nephew/son and his friends were turned into weapons without their significant input. And the things Parvos did, the things he began enjoying was too much for us to bear. But we could tell that deep down, he never eanted any of this. Trust us when we say that Parvos is skilled at hiding his emotions under seeming apathy and snark. He is no sociopath. He wouldn't have treasured his comrades in the slightest if he was." Eloise said solemnly. "...Luckily, your constant interference with how he believes things should be broke his focus so Ratoveros could solely target you. Elvira and I would then work in secret to see if we couldn't make things better for the Kingdom. Once we heard of his death, we knew it was time to increase our pace and our efforts."
"You crazy lot were just an unchecked blip on his radar at first, and he knew who you were, which is why he sent Shamir and his group to try and kill you. He tried to snuff out your spark before it caught fire. Unfortunately, all he kept doing was fanning the flames of your righteous anger, until it began spreading like wildfire, only incinerating the wicked and protecting the innocent. Ya know, that kind of poetic junk. He didn't think that such a minor city, which was designated to be sucked dry of resources at anybody's leisure until nothing remained, could cause him such a severe headache."
"To summarize, you all simply trying to live your lives and being so defiant and determined gave us a golden opportunity. We just had to sit patiently-if painfully-and take very careful steps not to jump the gun in order to improve things. Now with Ratoveros dead, we can move and speak more freely." Eloise smiled as she lightly hugs Parvos. "Plus, we have our Parvos back, and we can now begin his path towards redemption. I'd call that a stroke of luck, better late than never. Now then, are there any questions?"
Initially, there were none, as it was a lot to take in. For the longest time, they thought they had a pretty accurate picture of how their world worked. Though, after changing their minds due to one crisis after another happening targeting them, they've decided to go on this second expedition a year later, only now do they realize how important a decision that was. Right now, they were learning much more, even though it was only for this continent. It also highlighted just how fragile things were between these Kingdoms, and how Eloise and Elvira seemed to try their best at relieving the issue, with unfortunately no significant success.
Nobility played a key role in setting foundations for these civilizations years ago, and the fact that things were less than stellar between them only caused more concern. This was way bigger than they initially thought, and some of them were even hesitant to continue. Not because they were discouraged, but the danger level could trace back to their home city, and they wouldn't be able to forgive themselves for that if something serious happened. And it gave them a sinking feeling that many monsters surviving on the surface after the war wasn't completely due to extremely good look and perseverance...something was definitely amiss, and it bothered them not knowing what it was.
While they were frozen in that mindset...Frisk broke the silence in a more lighthearted manner.
"Elvira and Eloise. You're nobility, and you're sisters. How's your relationship in general?"
"Ah. A curious one when it comes to us?" Elvira grinned as she had Parvos pick out a book from a nearby bookcase. Eloise would set it down and open to the first page. It was a photo album of the two sisters. The first was of their birth, both small and super fluffy. While Eloise was quiet and peaceful, Elvira already had her paws out and was looking to scratch someone with her not-yet-existing claws. The next album continued, showing the twins opening their eyes for the first time while crawling upon the ground. Both of them had big glowing golden eyes. Another showed the both of them being ten, and holding each other's paw with bright smiles. "Ya see, me and my sis are kinda inseparable as kittens, even though we couldn't be anymore different."
"That's right. Our tastes and worldviews were drastically contrasting. I approved of organized order, she relished in the amusement of playful disorder." Eloise chuckled as she flipped to another page, one where the two were a slight bit older, around sixteen, with both of them wearing dresses that matched their fur...and Elvira was flipping the latter's dress completely upwards, leading to rather unfortunate exposure to thankful male passerbys. In another picture, Eloise was dumping a whole can of magic white paint over Elvira's fur, greatly surprising the sister greatly and leaving her a white cat for weeks. "Of course, I retaliated whenever I could."
"And as such, we didn't always get along. Though we've never gotten into spats bad enough to abandon one another. We weren't different enough for that to ever be a possibility." And it showed. Several pictures showed Elvira standing up for Eloise against bullies, the latter teaching the former how to read, the former teaching the latter how to fight, then the latter serving the former some tea. "We're tight. That'll never change."
"A bond between sisters. How nice." Asriel smiles fondly.
"Our contrast even spreads to our magic." Eloise explained. "I was blessed with the magic of good fortune. For the longest time in my youth, good luck came to me and my people, simply from my very presence. And I used my Luck Magic to bless Parvos from afar and hoping he doesn't get too in over his head."
"And you can probably guess what my magic is, eh? I AM a walking black cat, after all." Elvira grinned. "I bring bad luck, misfortune. I'm a living jinx. At first I couldn't control it whatsoever when I was a kit, bad things happened all around me, and sometimes to those I cared about. Not being able to control magic like that is a bit of a friendship killer. Luckily nothing bad happened to Eloise because of me, and yet nothing too good happened to her because of me. We kind of balanced each other out magic-wise for a while until we trained enough to use them more voluntarily. Though since luck-good or bad-can be extremely unpredictable, some things just happen to work in or against our favor."
Sans had a deep feeling that many of the hardships Elvira went through, including ending up with a malevolent monster and watching her son turned into a seemingly remorseless warrior, piled on top of the problems the kingdom she lives in faces, had her cursing her magic for possibly being responsible for it all. That wouldn't be fair though. Plenty of outside factors were just as responsible for this, if not more so.
"It also helps in our lines of occupancy." Eloise nodded. "I stay home and do what I can to manage the Kingdom and it's citizens..."
"...while I go out and do the field work. We balance each other out there too, as I'm not the best with people. I wouldn't be cut out to be Queen. Stubborn kitten me found that hard to accept, though." Elvira shrugged. "Still, push comes to shove, we are a pretty impressive team. Ya know, when she isn't being a total buzzkill."
"Yes...when she isn't out drinking."
"When she isn't stuffing her face with string cheese."
"Or when she forgets to bathe for several days straight."
"Tch, I smell great no matter what. You're always worrying about how you look in a crowd, overthinking about how your butt's too big and it might stand out too much in your dress.~"
"Ah yes, perhaps. But then again I'm not too distracted by the fatness of my chest, am I? I do hope you don't constantly feel like falling over. Then again, they might just break your otherwise painful fall.~"
"I dunno. I could suffocate you with em'.~"
"I'd hip-check you across the street before you'd get the chance.~"
"Ooookay! Let's move on!" Alphys clapped twice while sweatdropping and blushing. There's no more doubt that they're sisters and related to Parvos, as he was just sitting back and enjoying the playful squabble. "Is...is there anything else you'd like to say, before we get further onto business?"
The sisters looked at each other for a moment, a silent conversation flickering in their eyes. They nodded in agreement as they turned towards the group and bowed their heads, much to their surprise. "Thank you for spring my son/nephew." Parvos could see the two of them now. He sighed, but nonetheless looked down if only to spare himself of being the odd cat out.
"Hm?" Undyne raised an eyebrow.
"It is no shock that Parvos fell down on a dark path, and it was painfully obvious that he began to enjoy it, albeit in a way to spite his 'father'. That was our fault for not doing more for him, doing more to discipline him or convince him not to do this. Ratoveros repeatedly threatened us into silence." Elvira stated seriously. "Bastard knew he couldn't beat me in a straight fight for him, so he decided not to fight fair."
"We would not have blamed you if you killed Parvos in your conflict. We would have been angry, we would have been in tears, we would have been ashamed at not being able to do more and lamented forever being unable to do so...but we would not have blamed you. You were just protecting your city, your family...and your friends."
"The fact that you avoided this and instead gave him a chance to better himself spells intense things about how we feel. Gratitude doesn't behind to cover it. I mean...this is my kit. And despite how I may seem, I DO love and care for him, and so does Eloise."
"As do I. Now that he is back home, we can both do our part to make sure we prove this, to help in his road of redemption, the opportunity you have provided him. From the bottom of our hearts and the purity of our souls, thank you for sparing his life."
"...Don't worry about it." Undyne said with folded arms, looking away slightly.
"Is there anything else?" Eloise asked politely.
"YES. OUR FELINE COMRADES ALL GREW UP HERE AS WELL, YES? ALBEIT NOT SO PLEASANTLY UNDER RATOVEROS' WATCH." Papyrus said. "I CAN STILL REMEMBER OUR VERY FIRST CONTACT WITH THEM A YEAR AGO."
"At the time I thought my defeat to be shameful because of how easy it seemed to be. Now I'm somewhat glad that it happened." Shamir nodded.
"We were able to find some semblance of peace during our stay within Ebott. Our worries decreased with each passing day." Rasha said while holding Ribras' paw.
"Yes. We could be together without too much hassle. It was a much easier time, more than we expected." Ribras' said. Lesser and Greater Cat simply meowed and laid across the floor on their backs, the world the furthest from their minds. It made Frisk chuckle.
"That so? You lot are more merciful than ya look." Elvira hummed. "Then again, I suppose you could tell that deep down they really didn't put their all into it, did they?"
"It was quite easy to tell with them. They didn't want to fight, so I figured I could diffuse any further conflict by pointing out that we don't have to fight. That they could be safe and accepted within Ebott." Asriel said while looking at his reflection within his tea. "...It's because of that...our battles are getting progressively more difficult as truly unreasonable people kept coming after us...and my friends are forced to kill them so they don't hurt anyone else." He lightly clutched his cup. "Reasoning has become more and more difficult a solution to reach...some were so sure of their path that no amount of dialogue could dissuade them. Extending our time any further would lead to massive loss of innocent life...and we couldn't allow that..."
"Ah. Ya see, that's a crucial detail when it comes to us royalty. We're much more capable of making the tough decisions when necessary. But being more capable doesn't exactly mean that we like it. It just means that we're usually certain of which is more important to us. The lives of your friends and people, or the lives of strangers seeking to kill them. The choice SHOULD be obvious. But those with bleeding hearts and souls like yours don't completely agree, and compel you to save both. Am I wrong?"
Asriel turned his head away slightly with a contemplating pout. So did Frisk.
Chara was the only one of the trio unfazed, as he instigated a subject change. "You say that monster AND human nobility are usually the one responsible for setting ground rules and regulations for civilizations? Would that include those who sought to reap from their own land and people for their own selfish ends?"
"I've heard about this. The mayor of Ebott, Alvina. And her brother, Adam. They are of nobility as well, from their human ancestors. And despite the latter's actions, he is one of the kinder descendants alongside Alvina. So it's beyond all comprehension that they were born from such malevolent and twisted parents and grandparents who relished in their status, and felt that they could do whatever they please, without remorse. Those two are like rare golden apples wanting to fall as far away from their coal black rotten tree as possible, knowing it would be impossible for them to coexist. Only the fresher one succeeded, with the other was still trapped in the branches for years. After finally escaping, that apple is now sour and dirty, but certainly not rotten."
"In any case, this leaves another question." Asriel continued on once Chara's curiosity has been sated for the time being. "...Are there any problems within these three Kingdoms? How can we help?"
"Huh. Someone's eager to get straight to business." Elvira grinned. She leaned forward after setting her drink down. "Most things in this specific Kingdom have already been taken care of. It's the other two that are becoming problems. Astus refuses to cooperate with us, and Surripio keeps trying to upend both of us every chance they get. At this rate, nothing will get done and the innocent will continue to suffer for it."
"So here is what we would request of you." Eloise continued. "Help me help Astus. No thanks to Ratoveros malevolence, Astus' trust in Fortuna is long gone. With him deceased I could try again...but I have a feeling you lot will be much more successful at persuading them than I. Nevertheless, I shall accompany you to assist however I can."
"As for Surripio...their King." Elvira huffed. "The guy's greedy and selfish as hell...but he's not pure evil. Through negotiation or through force, you might be able to convince him to be more lenient with his demands. I might be able to help. Surripio has the supplies that Astus needs, and Fortuna is the only one who can fully and competently compensate for them. Their King intends to keep taking advantage of Fortuna's kind gestures, while Astus won't do anything to help yet keep demanding supplies. This cycle is going to destroy one or two of us if it keeps up."
"So: Fortuna is whipped into giving money to Surripio to help Astus, Astus is apathetic to Fortuna's plight and attempts at communication but needs Surripio's supplies, and Surripio is savvy enough to take advantage of both of these openings by taking the Fortuna's money in exchange for the supplies to give to Astus, possibly sabotaging some things to keep the demand up. And without Ratoveros' intimidation lessening the blows, it's beginning to get worse for Fortuna...tch." Undyne frowned, folding her arms. Fortuna is the least forceful of the three Kingdoms of Scelus without Ratovero's occupation, and since he's been lost, Fortuna has little to repel these problems, since no one is interested in peaceful dialogue. It'll continue to be drained...which means Ebott will eventually get caught up in it again by extension.
That was unacceptable.
"WHAT DO YOU ALL THINK?" Papyrus eventually piped up. "WE ARE BEING TASKED TO CONVINCING TWO KINGDOMS TO RELINQUISH THEIR APATHY AND GREED RESPECTIVELY. A WORTHY CHALLENGE FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS FOR SURE. BUT WHAT OF ALL OF YOU?"
"Well once again, a great risk lies in front of us." Asgore hummed. "Failure on our part will surely leave us in a crippling disadvantage. But our success can possibly guarantee our turning of the tables for our own situation, or at the very least, drastically increasing our advantages."
"so success or failure, everything is gonna change." Sans continued. "and all it's gonna take is getting two other kingdoms to be our friends. mutual allies at best if not friends."
"Both of them keep mooching off of Fortuna without offering better solutions either due to apathy or greed. We have to change their minds on the whole mess before it gets any worse." Chara added. "We can either get them to cooperate through showing that we're stronger..."
"Or negotiate with them to assure them we don't have to be enemies." Frisk nodded. "This might be our first super major mission as a faction. As Dad said, failure is a critical blow, success is a drastic increase of our chances."
"And once we gauge what those chances are, we'll have the information and resources to deduce our next move." Toriel agreed.
"That might be best." Alphys nodded.
Eyes turned to Asriel, Elvira and Eloise's included. He realized that they wished to hear his input on the matter if he had one. He was about to say that he simply agreed with everyone...but then he thought more about it. It was something they already knew needed doing, but he felt like summarizing it his way.
"Astus can't believe in Fortuna anymore due to the constant antagonizing by Ratoveros, so they won't accept direct aid from it. They outright hate Surripio, but won't reject the supply that it gives happily...so long as Fortuna pays for them all, despite the prices seemingly getting higher on purpose. They're trapped in a cycle of distrust, greed, and pain because for generations, none of the leaders can speak honestly with one another without trying to either use each other or ignore them outright. Everyone is suffering for it. If we're going to get anything done, this needs to end, soon."
"No disagreements here. Got an idea on how to manage that?" Elvira raised an eyebrow.
"We have to rebuild Astus' trust in you." Asriel said. He continued when he saw the feline's curious gaze. "Trust is a very important foundation of many relationships. You can respect someone, you can feel friendship and camaraderie with them, and of course you can even love them...but if there is no trust, then everything else stops in place, gradually falls apart, perhaps even shatters completely. It's trust that compels you to allow certain people into your home or heart. It's trust that reassures you that even though they're not physically by your side, you know they're supporting you all the way. It's trust that puts your own life in someone else's hands and hope that they don't let you down. If that kind of trust is broken, it's very difficult to regain if not completely impossible."
Eloise sighed while shaking her head in shame. "We have tried...I swear we have tried...but..."
"We know. And judging by what you explained to us, it's not your fault." Frisk continued. "You just need to reassure them that you won't ever hurt them the way Ratoveros did ever again, that his sins do not speak for the entire Kingdom. However, also judging by what you told us, it seems words alone will not do enough to persuade them. It's a good thing that actions speak louder than words, it's necessary in this case. We have to get them to trust you again. And at the same time, we have to quell Surripio's greed. If we do those things, then we can find a way to get all the leaders on the kingdoms to talk through their problems and form a compromise you can all agree on. And to further emphasize how important trust is here, you'd have to meet on neutral ground instead of within your respective territories."
"Where would that be?"
"Ebott City. Even if it's only once, it should begin there." Asriel said.
"Ebott? Wouldn't they consider it a part of the Fortuna Kingdom?" Shamir asked.
"...I see where they're gettin' at." Gerson said slowly. "In normal circumstances, yes, that would have been true. But for the longest time, everyone-Fortuna Kingdom included-didn't recognize Ebott as anything important, not even a part of the territory; it was simply a resource for them to take advantage of. As a result, right now it isn't a part of anything official outside of it's borders. We're not really aligned to ANY of the three kingdoms on this continent, and we seek to help all three. Fortuna just reached out to us first." Gerson confirmed. Everyone's eyes slowly brightened in understanding. "Due to how well Alvina's managed to help the city become more self-sufficient over the years despite this, it can technically consider itself a city-state, and no one outside of it cared about it enough to dispute that. A land that isn't aligned to any of the outside Kingdoms might be the best initial location for a meeting of leaders of different kingdoms until they've grown comfortable enough to meet in other locations!"
"in other words, even if it really is only once...since ebott isn't officially aligned with anyone, it will be the neutral ground where compromises and truces between kingdoms can be made." Sans summarized.
"That's the basics it, yes." Asriel and Frisk both smiled.
Ebott being it's own land with no official outside connections had been considered a weakness. Now it's been turned into a possible strength to build connections between kingdoms.
"...Now THAT'S the kind of talk a Prince and Ambassador would cook up!" Undyne grins.
"Indeed. Well done, my children." Toriel rubbed her chin. "Of course, ground rules will have to be made in accordance to this. We have our place for now, so we must also consider the time. And they should bring a trusted advisor and/or guard, no more than two max. This is to be notified ahead of time. And of course, none of the Kingdoms are to act against each other while their leader is gone, so travel restrictions might be placed for all those not attending the meeting. It will last before, during, and after the meeting to assuage the cautious ones of any fears of retaliation when they return home. And of course Alvina's permission will be needed for this to work."
"pullin' out all the stops for that one, eh tori?" Sans chuckled. "still, let's sorry about that after we somehow get the other two leaders to meet with eloise, since she's already raring to go."
"Sans is right. We focus on the problems plaguing them now so they don't come to haunt us in the future." Asgore declared. "Based on what she told us, only action will get through to the Astus Kingdom at this point, so we must do whatever we can to earn their trust and renew their trust within Fortuna. Meanwhile we must convince the leader of Surripio to relinquish his greed-filled arrangements and settle for something far more reasonable that won't instill even more discord between the three of them. Now...as we've said many times already, great risk accompanies this mission, as does great advantages should we succeed in this endeavor. Still, I shall not force any of you to do this if you feel hesitant, nor should we force each other." Asgore narrowed his eyes. "I already know the answer, but I simply wish to witness it for myself. Do you wish to turn back? I feel I must reiterate the severity of what continuing on this path entails us before we proceed. Because once we do from tomorrow onwards, we permanently cross the line into extreme peril. Turning back shall not be an option afterwards. We will most definitely be targeted for the actions we shall commence over the next several days, especially if we manage to succeed in the end. I do not wish to impose this on you if you have second thoughts about it, nor do I want any of you to regret agreeing later on. So if you have any misgivings, please...voice them now."
No one said a word. They simply gazed at Asgore, all of their gazes filled with determination. Toriel's gaze was especially fiery due to her adamant rejection of leaving him alone against a crisis again. As he thought, he already knew the answer.
"...Very well. We begin this quest tomorrow. Take the time to prepare ourselves, mentally, physically, emotionally. We'll also be working out how we'll organize our teams, who goes where, what supplies to bring, necessities such as those. It is likely that we won't be returning to Ebott for some time. Do brace yourselves for that, and let us do our best."
"Right!"
Eloise and Elvira looked on as the group called it a day, and would officially rake action tomorrow. The cats smiled at this.
"What a passionate group they are. They take on this challenge with great danger to themselves, for our sake, and even for the sake of the other two kingdoms." Eloise lowered her eyes. "Most of the benefits they speak of amount to more protection for themselves. Do they not wish for rewards in helping us?"
"It ain't about what they have to gain, sis. But what they can't afford to lose. What that is? I think it's obvious." She gestures to the gang once. "Each other. And obviously their home. With that as their drive, there might be few that can stop them."
"I believe you may be right about that...I'm glad we sought their help, as well as their counsel. They've truly helped me with their ingenuity and their wisdom."
"Hold on! Important question." Chara interrupted while rubbing his chin. "...Any idea when we'll be eating and resting between all of this?"
...
...
...
"You call that an important question?!" Flowey glared heatedly.
"I wonder if they have ingredients for pie baking here in case we eat all the prepped pies...?" Toriel hummed.
"I have plenty of instant ramen!" Alphys raised a paw.
"YOU WON'T BE GETTING FULL OFF OF THAT, ALPHYS!" Papyrus disagreed.
"the rate she eats them? she probably will." Sans chuckled. "we should probably find an inn or somethin'. don't wanna overstay our welcome with the aristocats."
"Pffffft hahahahaha!~" Toriel laughed while holding her sides. "Aristocats! My word, that's ridiculous!~"
"...ALL RIGHT. I SHALL ADMIT THE CHARM TO THAT PUN. BUT NO MORE TODAY!"
"I wanna watch that movie again..." Alphys mumbled while twiddling her paws.
"Pardon? There's an honest, legitimate moving picture out there called 'The Aristocats?'" Eloise asked, eyes wide with curiosity. "You simply must introduce me to it when you have the chance!"
"My interest's peaked too." Elvira grinned.
"I'll bring the drinks, Shmair brings the popcorn, Rasha and Ribras brings the snacks." Parvos says casually.
"It seems we have a movie night." Asriel smiled.
"You're all impossible!" Flowey howled in disbelief. This is the group tasked with bringing together three Kingdoms in a week at best?
I don't know how I feel about our chances...oh wait, I do. Immense concern and even more immense annoyance.
Having a soul was more annoying than he expected.
And their quest begins!
Did ya like it? The Dreemurr Faction have been winging it for most of the story, but now they're beginning to really act like an organization. Making plans, sharing ideas, assigning duties. I mean, it took them over a year, but at least they're finally adapting, albeit at great risk to themselves.
Though they eventually realized that they were going to be targeted regardless of whether they acted or not. They'd rather not let inaction be their downfall. And if actual action leads to that outcome, at least they can say they tried.
No turning back from this, anyhow.
Sorry if I got several things kinda...messy. Trying to continue crafting this altered world here after so many chapters. Wanna expand beyond Ebott because our cast won't survive long by staying where they are. Put the world-building in words here, gonna try and turn some into motion in the next one. I'll do my best.
Oh, as for the terms:
Fortuna-luck; adversity. Astus-cunning; crafty. Surripio-kidnap; steal.
Again, make of them as you will. Preferably without being too spoilerish for others. I know that can be kinda tough. Questions are fine, though!
Until next time!