Hello there! Been quite a while has it?
Chara: Close to three months, actually. -_-
Frisk: Hey! That's MY expression! Sometimes.
Asriel: Ah geez, it really has been some time.
Toriel: Too long...
Asgore: Indeed.
Yeah...sorry about that. That's all I can really say about it. Trying to find my footing in RL and all that, ya know? Trying to get out of a slump. Been tough to muster up the will to write this again. Not because I'm tired of it, not at all, no way. But because everything else was tiring ME out to the point where actually getting myself to write it was difficult.
But now I'm gonna keep going, and gonna try to regain my consistent updating if nothing else comes up that requires my primary attention. One of those is finally being employed. It's a small job though, not the one I'm going for. It's a temporary stepping stone to help me move onwards, but it's also one I surprisingly made peace with at the moment, because at least I'm starting somewhere. That's good, right?
Oh well.
It's been a while, so things might seem rough in some places. Hopefully I can get back into the swing of things.
Let's get to it!
Chapter Start!
(Airship Radiant)
It's been quite a while since the crew set out in their new expedition. And Asgore had to admit, it was pretty amazing to be traveling via airship. He never would have imagined that he would be able to ride such a technomagical marvel.
Honestly, he was currently out on the balcony, looking out towards the skies, and the clouds themselves. Both the feeling and the view was fantastic, and brought about feelings of giddy glee, the kind of glee he would feel when he was a kid, and his eyes would sparkle whenever he looked towards the majestic sky.
Now he was flying through that majestic sky on an airship that one of his comrades helped build to truly help enhance the feeling of adventure that they were embarking on. That only made this experience all the more fulfilling.
"Asgore..."
He blinked slightly as he turned his head to see Alphys waddling up to him while twiddling her fingers. She was wearing a little cute and snugly Mew Mew Kissy Cutie nightdress, which she lightly patted down with a nervous smile. Kindly, Asgore returns it.
"Ah, Alphys. You're awake as well, hm? How about the others?"
"They're slowly getting up, one after another. We should be arriving at our destination in about four hours."
"Ah, lovely." Asgore smiled as he looked out towards the skies again, with Alphys joining him. "I must say, Alphys, this is truly one of your greatest works yet."
"Oh come on. I already told you I had help.~" Alphys smiled while scratching her cheek slightly. "B-But yeah. I can say that I'm the tiniest bit proud of what I helped accomplished with this Airship. I really gave it my all when it came to it's creation and conception. I mean, if we're really going to commit to this whole thing, we might as well make it somewhat cool, convivial, and comfy."
"Indeed."
"Y-Yeah. That's kind of how I got through the entire process. I actually had fun coming up with it and bringing it to life." Alphys hummed. "I guess the scientist in me never really goes into retirement. Just takes breaks. Many breaks spent subconsciously planning, calculating, meditating...watching anime. Ya know, the usual hobbies."
"Bahaha. I get it. Sometimes the scientific mind needs a little bit of inspiration, wherever it may originate and however it may come to be. And since your magic now consists of mystical and technological aspects, it must be incredibly difficult to find some inspiration, your drive."
"Kinda like that. Which is why I'm very much glad I had a lot of help putting it together. And now, we're soaring the skies, heading off for another adventure...which is surely going to have some serious trouble waiting for us." Alphys lightly rubbed her neck.
Asgore chuckled deeply while lowering his head. "So that's how it is, hm? Have to be on our guard when doing these things. We're beginning to prepare for the worst, no matter how unlikely it may be."
"We'd rather be somewhat cautious and have nothing happen than too laid-back and be caught off-guard. It's a bit rough to take those kinds of chances, but with every clash with malevolent forces, it feels like the somewhat better option. Especially since we're exploring well past our safety zone at this point."
"Fair enough." Asgore hummed as he looked out towards the skies again. "Your decision to become GROUP'S supervisor...it's clear that you put a lot of thought into it."
"Yeah...I did." Alphys smiled anxiously. "I mean...they've been through quite enough because of us, and I want to do my best to make it up to them.
Asgore smiled lightly towards Alphys. "Hmm...you are a kind one, Alphys."
"Me? Nah. I just pointed my questionable genius in a different direction and it just happens to be working." Alphys chuckled as she lightly took off her glasses to briefly wipe the lenses. "My decisions being interpreted as kind in nature seems to simply be an effect of those actions."
"Bahahaha! Very well. We'll accept that as your reasoning, for your own sake."
"Thanks for understanding. Hehe...heh..." The two drastically different sized friends chuckled together while still admiring the scenery. Really, Alphys felt like she's outdone herself, for making it possible for them to see a view lioe this in relative safety.
"Alright, onto more civil matters. Did you sleep well?"
"Enough to get out of bed, yes. Even though I really didn't want to."
"Ah. Arising from the comforts of your bed. It is consistently one of life's greatest challenges."
"I know right?!" Alphys lightly scratched her cheek. "I-It was a bit rough to get Undyne to let me leave. She has quite a grip..." Not that she MINDED being in Undyne's comforting strong arms, but Alphys needed to do necessary checks of the airship with the help of many provided Mettabots to make sure everything was operating as it should. It was unlikely for anything to malfunction with how carefully she planned and constructed it, but once again, it was better to be safe than sorry.
"Golly, I understand. It's considered a bonus challenge to get out of bed while your significant other tries to persuade you otherwise. By now, Tori is holed up in the airship's library."
"A f-fair choice..."
Asgore huffed while cheekily wiping his brow. "Sooo...four hours until we reach our destination. What do you wish to do while meeting up with the others?"
Alphys thought for a few seconds, before she lifted her head up and smiled. "I turned several clouds into actual cotton candy."
"Whaaaaat?! Preposterous!"
"You're talking to the scientist who turned Waterfall's grass into safely edible ice cream. Don't underestimate me!~"
"But what brought you to do something like this?"
"It was requested. Papyrus wanted to see if I could."
"...Alright, fair enough." Asgore blinked, then smiled sheepishly. "Can I, uh...have some?~"
"Sure! I have quite a variety of flavors prepared, I think you'll like quite a few of them." Alphys smiled cheerily.
Well, Asgore decided what he was going to do until Airship Radiant reaches it's destination. And he wondered if the others would agree.
"I'm still wrapping my head around the fact that we're riding on board an airship like this." Asriel stated casually, looking over from the bridge in one of the resting rooms. "Feels pretty amazing."
"Frisk takes Flight." Frisk says rather casually.
"I am Faryn the Sky Fox, Fox of the Skies!" Faryn calls out with glee. "...It's a fox's dream to fly through the sky...flying around at the speed of fox..."
"Don't you mean speed of sound?" Chara deadpanned.
"We have places to go." Frisk smiled.
"Let's follow a rainbow!" Faryn cheered.
"What are you two doing?" Red's eye twitched.
"Sorry dearie, we can't stick around that, gotta keep moving on." Muffet smiled.
"I wonder what lies ahead?" Asriel tilted his head while rubbing his chin.
"Only one way to find out!~" Faryn pumped her fists up.
Chara and Red expressed all of the annoyance in their faces. The latter even stomped.
"You all need to get your head in the game! We're heading towards unknown territory on a different continent! We have to take this seriously!"
"You're right! We have to take this super serious!" Faryn nodded with narrowed eyes...while having muffin crumbs on her lips after biting into one. "...I seriously enjoy this muffin."
Red's eye twitched. "Not...what I meant."
"Me too." Frisk hummed while biting into his own muffin.
"What the heck...?" Red sputtered.
"Me three." Chara shrugged while also biting into a muffin.
"Where'd you get those-?!"
"Me four..." Asriel hummed dreamily while biting into his own muffin.
"Asriel-?!"
"Me five!~" Muffet beamed while holding the last two muffins in her top hands.
"...You did this on purpose." Red glared.
"Perish the thought!~" Muffet cooed while holding out a muffin. "Here. Have one. Join Muffet's Muffin Rally. We accept new members of all kinds with open arms.~"
"Do you hear what she's doing?" Red gazed towards a nonplussed Chara, who simply shrugged again.
"The MMR has been gaining loads of momentum."
"It's only getting stronger, Red." Asriel continued.
"Muffins shall rule all breakfast products. The muffin man has nothing on the Muffin Muffet." Frisk said semi-seriously.
Red gaped in disbelief. Were they seriously going through with this? "...Faryn? Help?"
"Nyom!~"
"I think we all know where this is going." Muffet says with a slightly lowered business-like tone, without losing her smile.
"...Gimme the muffin." Red grumbled as she snatched it from Muffet's hand and disregarding her spider smug smile.
"Thank you for joining Muffet's Muffin Rally. Your patronage is greatly appreciated, and you will all be provided with a free goodie basket filled with muffins, and a fruit cup.~"
"Hooray!" Asriel, Frisk, and Faryn cheered with glee.
"Meh." Chara shrugged.
"Rally paired with dilly dally. Just what we need." Red grumbled while angrily biting into her muffin. She was upset over the fact that she was enjoying it so much that her tail was wagging, and that played into Muffet's six hands. "...This doesn't mean you've won."
"You're so cute when you're grumpy. Don't worry Dearie. Muffins and head pats will make you feel better.~" Muffet cooed at Red as she bit into her muffin, petting the top of her head.
"Your head pats mean nothing." Red mumbled. She turned towards Asriel, who was being gently head patted by Chara, smiling comfortably with a small tail wag. The same was said for Frisk patting Faryn's head, gaining an energetic tail wag from her. "...This proves nothing."
"Are you sure?~"
"NOTHING. Nothing is proved. Shut your annoying spider mouth."
"And thus Rude Baby Red once again bares her cute little fangs. Who'd be suprised?" Chara smirked.
"I will bite you."
"Very well. A subject change is in order." Muffet smiled. "Frisky Bits, what do you think we'll encounter on Legatum?"
"Honestly? I dunno. Probably something that we can take home with us. An interesting bunch of experineces being one of them." Frisk scratched his cheek. "And of course, the trouble that will come along with it. It's really hard to avoid completely..." Frisk found it better to expect trouble and be able to try and prevent it from getting worse, than to not expect trouble at all and be blindsided by it. It's something he's reluctantly learned how to try and do if he could help it. There have been too many clashed with the malevolent to not at least consider it.
"In any case, this might be a good opportunity for us, if a somewhat risky one." Asriel said while looking towards the others. "A new kingdom on another continent. It does sound like a pretty interesting prospect for adventure. It also sounds like a great, though still risky, opportunity to make new friends. And new allies."
"Allies against the ones who seem determined to make lives hell just for living wrong, apparently." Chara huffed. "Well, whatever the case, we're going there whether they like it or not. We've been invited, and it'd be rude to not show up when they sound like decent folks...hopefully."
"It would be kind of a troublesome time if they aren't..." Muffet gasped while holding a hand to her mouth. "Oh my. Is it safe to speak about such things? We might jinx ourselves!"
"...Damn." Chara hung his head in realization.
"Oh well, too late now. We'll just have to deal with whatever happens when we get there. We're adaptable like that." Muffet waved off rather easily.
"I don't think it'll be that simple, no matter how much I wish for it to be so." Chara muttered.
Asriel took a deep breath, and sighed. "Well, regardless of what happens, we need to be as ready as we can be."
"Speaking of ready..." Red's eye twitched as she looked to the far right. MK was sitting rather peacefully against his chair, snoring away without a care in the world. "How are you not awake yet?!"
Asriel and Chara sweatdropped for poor MK as he was rudely awakened for an annoyed tongue lashing from Red. They chose to weather it out and focused on their muffins. It wouldn't be too much of a bother to just let her vent, right?
She was beginning to bark. It was too late to stop her. Everyone sighed, except for Faryn, her entire focus fully dedicated to her precious muffin.
They dearly hoped to arrive at Legatum soon...
Legatum was in sight after a few more hours of anxious waiting. This was it, their journey to another Kingdom on a different continent. And needless to say, their anxiety felt more than a bit acceptable. Then again, their was a hint of excitement on top of it as well.
They could see it from afar.
With a very observant eye-and perhaps a bit of help from a telescope, they were already able to see the lands from their current distance, which grew shorter by the moment. From what they could see at the moment, Legatum was separated into five large areas, with the one in the center being the largest and likely to be the capital, giving them the impression that's where the Queen possibly resides.
"Oi, Darkness. Are we here?" Undyne asks for clarification, eye still trained on the area.
"Yes. That is indeed the Kingdom we're looking to visit." Darkness confirmed with his paws behind his back.
"I definitely remember stuff here being harder to understand than it needed to be. Maybe, just maybe, they shaped up a bit." Lunar scoffed.
"Whether they shaped up or not, it's still our destination. That won't change. Whatever happens, we'll just have to deal with it." Tempest stated, though he said this while trying to push down the shaking in his paw.
But Sans wasn't fooled for a moment. He recognized that the three dragons have been here before, like they confirmed in their travels around Potentia. Legatum was one of those locations.
One pivotal question at the moment: What was their involvement in Legatum? And why?
gonna have to pay attention to certain things while we're here...sheesh, what a drag.
"ARE THESE NEW LANDS PREPARED FOR THE GREAT PAPYRUS? NOT LIKELY! NYEH!" Papyrus declared excitedly, then calmed down a bit while rubbing his chin. Perhaps I should get Dynamo a souvenir while I'm here...
Sans relaxed his shoulders a bit, shaking his head with a smile. At least Papyrus would definitely try to enjoy his visit, even though they were all on a shared mission.
"Alright guys. I think I've found somewhere to oand this." Alphys declared while swiping on her magitech tablet. "And it looks like they'll be greeting us near that landing space too. Hopefulpy it's a friendly greeting, or at least one where we can exchange greetings properly."
"Yeah. There ain't much that can make a huge mess of things more than a pretty bad turn of miscommunication. Best to be honest with our intentions here." Undyne folded her arms. "Let's try our best to not cause more trouble for these folks than we need to."
"again, that feels so strange comin' from you of all people."
"We were invited. No matter the circumstance or reason, Legatum offered their hospitality to us. In return, we have to give that the respect that it deserves."
"Being on decent behavior while we're here will also help pave the way for positive relations with then in the future. We mustn't make things more difricult for them than necessary for our objectives." Asgore said while looking over to the land they're soon to visit. "In any case, we should also be prepared for things to get out of hand anyway. I wish our luck was better than that, but I don't wish to be sorry for not doing so before."
"I'm in agreement with this. It would do us well to know all we can and do all we can, without having things get too out of hand." Toriel nodded. "We seem to be getting close to the ground. I have the same hope that our greetings at least goes well. A good start may do wonders."
"I don't disagree with you, Tori. We're all hopin' for it. But just in case..." Gerson was all for making a good first impression, though if it turns out that the hospitality is less than hospitable, then he and the others would have to act accordingly. Hopefully it doesn't come to that.
The Radiant finally landed, and luckily it was in a safe area where there wouldn't be too much hassle. And of course, their arrival was expected. Plenty of guards were waiting for them. Frisk sensed no hostility from them, so far that was very good.
When everyone exited the large aircraft, Alphys swiped away at her tablet and the Radiant digitized and eventually returned to the a Dimensional Box, only taking up one space.
Magitech, how I love thee.~
Most of the gang tried to make themselves look as presentable as they can as they were approached by the guardsman, consisting of humans and monsters, most of them in cloaks, much like the Dogi, something Undyne recognized slightly. After several moments of sizing each other up, the guardsman referred to each orher.
"Is that them?"
"Definitely. You don't get just any colorful bunch like this one to to show up in an airship. Besides, the three Dreemurrs there are unmistakable." They nodded. "Right, you were invited...and...we see you've brought quite a number of guests."
"We're not here to stir up anything unnecessarily, we promise." Asriel said with a paw over his soul.
"We believe you. Many a rumor about you has gone around that you're not ones to start up trouble of that nature." They turned and gestured for them to follow. "If you don't mind, please follow our lead. Our Queen would very much like to meet you within her palace first so she can officially try being a good host."
"Very well then. We'll follow you. Everyone stay together, don't get lost." Asgore instructed. It was obvious already, but he said it anyway just to be safe.
They managed to avoid a misunderstanding on their arrival. So far so good, now they only had to keep this up and not do anything to accidentally ruin the flow of things.
Getting a feel for the new environment was no easy task, especially with how large it was.
Obviously the Capital itself was very large, with numerous people moving about.
Wandering eyes and wandering minds like Frisk and Faryn's were simply gazing in awe at their new environment. The Capital was a large city much like Ebott, but obviously with a more different feel. Despite certainly looking like a modern city, there was also a sort of fantastical feel to it that drew their attention. Like this city has had it much longer than Ebott, but built up with just as much heart.
It was very tempting for them to go out for themselves and see what was in store for them. The adventurous side of them demanded it. Though they had little choice but to follow through with their current line of action before they think about doing something like that.
What caught Asriel and Muffet's interest was how things seemed to look and feel fancier the higher up that they went, but still nonetheless carries that feeling through every level. Like there was a certain amount of wealth and prestige carried through them all, even on the lowest one. A sense of nobility. One thing is for sure, it feels a lot cleaner, brighter, and sophisticated/elegant than that of Surripio.
And yet, despite how awed she was, Muffet couldn't help but be suspicious. Something about this Kingdom was amiss, she just couldn't place her finger on it, and the Dragon Trio are unlikely to feel comfortable enough to share.
She'd have to keep her eyes peeled. All five of them.
It wasn't long until the entire gang was eventually lead to the palace that her thoughts eventually refocused. It was actually quite a nice palace on the outside, all things considered. Had the fantastical feeling of a usual castle, yet the modern feel of a normal family household. Now that they thought about it, most of the housing had this sort of feeling, at least on the outside.
"Alright, we're here." One of the guardsman blinked as they looked up. "Oh, just in time, too! The Queen's just stepping out!"
Almost immediately, everyone silenced themselves and tried a making themselves more presentable. First impressions were very important, however slight they were. Asgore, Toriel, Asriel, Chara, and Frisk were notably in the forefront. In this formation, they would see the Queen stepping out now.
From what they could see, she wore a long green and blue snugly dress with an elegant ribbon sash around her waist. Her flowing white hair was long and reached slightly past her waist, with short bangs on both sides of her face. Her eyes were a welcoming, intrigued green, gazing at the strange group before her. The guardsman spread out and kneeled before her. She gently waved to them, letting them know it was alright for them to stand.
A few of the gang's inner reactions was slightly varied.
wonder if the draggos know about this queen lady. Sans thought quietly.
HER HAIR IS REALLY LONG! Papyrus thought clearly.
I do wonder what her story is. Asgore nodded.
Bit of a youthful youngin', ain't she? Gerson raised a vurious eyebrow.
Huh...she looks kinda cute. Undyne thought with a casual shrug.
She feels pretty strong. Chara thought with slight intrigue.
How are we going to proceed from here, I wonder...? I really, REALLY hope we can make this work out. Friendly relations is important. We should try to be friends. Something to that degree. Asriel thought very anxiously, lightly rubbing his paws.
...The clouds were really fluffy. And my fur is really fluffy too! A fluffy cloud fox...what would that look like? Like Papa's fur, but even fluffier? Oh, right! New Queen Lady! Gotta pay attention! Faryn's thought's were...wandering for a bit.
The silence was finally broken as the Queen smiles quietly. "Ah. You're finally here. The Dreemurrs that I've heard so much about, and their friends/comrades, who also have their fair bit of recognition. I'm grateful that you've recieved and accepted my invitation."
"We were more than happy to accept the invitation. A friendly hand reaching out to us, it would be a bit rude to not at least acknowledge it." Asgore smiled while sheepishly rubbing the back of his neck. "I take it you already know most of us by name. Yet to our slight embarrassment, we do not know yours yet."
"Ah, I suppose I should start with that." The woman stepped forward. "My name is Rebecca. Very pleasant to meet you. I do hope that you'll come to appreciate and enjoy our accommoda-
Trip.
-tions?"
Whomp!
Everyone blinked once. Twice. Then thrice.
Queen Rebecca just tripped over herself and landed face-first on the ground, arms flat out.
"Woah! She's just like me!" MK gasped without the slightest bit of teasing. He was just amazed and surprised, while everyone else felt awkward as they gave Rebecca time to recover. She eventually recovered, with merely a small bruise on her forehead, which she rubbed sensitively with a pained, much higher-pitched whimper.
"Owwww..." Rebecca grumbled as she reopened her eyes. They then widened in some sort of realization, as she palmed her cheeks "Wait...did I just...oh no. Ooohhh noooo. Nononononononooooo..." She groaned while shaking her head. "I messed up! I messed it all up! I'm such an IDIOT!"
...Heh?
That was all that crossed everyone's minds as the Queen of Legatum fell to her knees and shook her head in shame and embarrassment.
"You had one easy job, Rebecca! ONE! Greet the Dreemurrs formally with as much respect as you can, make them feel welcome, give them an overall good first impression of yourself, and what do you do? LITERALLY fall on your face! You went ahead and embarrassed yourself in under thirty seconds! How can you be so careless so quickly?!"
"H-Hey, your Highness! It really wasn't that bad!"
"Yeah, nothin' to worry about at all!"
"Just a minor slip, completely unnoticable!"
The guardsman sheepishly tried to comforr her, downplay the incident to something more manageable for her mind. Though it didn't seem to have worked, as she simply turned to one guardsman in particular, a human guardswoman to be exact.
"Lyla! Tell me straight, no sugarcoating! Did I mess this up?!"
"You blew it, M'lady." The woman answered bluntly.
"SEE?! SEE?!" Rebecca shouted while grabbing her head and pressing her own forehead into the ground. "The moment is gone...I screwed up...!"
Her guards stared at the stunned Dreemurr Faction with knowing looks that said 'Not quite what you were expecting, huh?' And they'd be right. Aside from possibly the dragons, they weren't expecting this at all.
The one who reacted to the distraught Queen first was Frisk, who raised a hand with a placating smile. "Hey hey, there's no need to be all pouty! Everything will be alright! How about we tag along with you and we can start over a little? Maybe take some time to recompose yourself, regain your bearings? And while you do so, you can invite us into your humble home? If it doesn't trouble you too much. Or we can converse outside if inside is too private?"
"...No...no, it's alright." Rebecca sighed as she stood up straight, smoothing out her dress. "Forgive me for that unsightly display. I just really wanted to get this first meeting right, and I stumbled right at the start. Hence my immense embarrassment."
"It's all good, everything's fiiiinnne.~" Frisk shrugged with a waving hand. "So long as you didn't hurt yourself too badly with that stumble, everything will be okay."
"Right. Well then, shall we head inside the palace? I would very much like to converse with you all and clear a few things up, and overall understand you better."
Faryn blinked, then raised her hand. Frisk knew right away.
"Yes, Faryn. There will be much snacks."
"Sweetness!~"
Being invited Rebecca's palace was quite a humble honor. She seem to recognize that the Dreemurr Faction has come a long way to come and meet her invitation request, so she wanted to show as much hospitality as possible.
And of course, she decided to greet their friendliness with friendliness of her own. And of course, that meant that she was providing Faryn's favorite method of offering hospitality. It was of course, the offering of food.
Which is why most of them were now sitting in a rather spacious dining room surprisingly filled with more than enough tables and chairs for everyone. She must have done something like this quite often.
GROUP was seating over at their own table, eating their own snacks while chatting leaisurely, and weren't too far from Alphys, or Gaster. Darkness, Tempest, and Lunar were close by as well, in their own little circle. It was mostly Lunar talking down to Tempest for a laugh, though. Darkness simply sighed and shook it off.
Muffet and Red were also speaking with one another, though it was mostly the former messing with the latter again, in a very cheeky manner. Papyrus and Sans were mostly admiring the extravagant inners of the palace...well, Papyrus was, Sans was just about ready for a nap after the long trip. Undyne was roughly eating as much as she could. Admittedly, so was Asriel.
After taken this relaxed moment to regain her composure, Rebecca smiled while sipping her tea. "Allow me to reiterate again, but I am very grateful for your choice to accept my invitation and to see it through. I know there's quite a bit of risk to your well-beings..."
"Guess what you can't spell without risk?~" Frisk smiled.
"You're a moron." Chara said dryly.
"More like an humor opportunist." Asriel half-heartedly corrected with a smile.
"Or an appreciator of puns." Toriel supported with a chuckle.
"Perhaps it comes naturally." Asgore says with a mock look of deep interest.
Chara's eye twitched, knowing full well that they were doing this on purpose.
Rebecca sighed softly while pushing her hair away a little bit. "I really do appreciate that you're all much more easygoing than I expected. I thought that I made a grave error in impression due to my clumsiness earlier, and my subsequent reaction to it. Imagine my relief when you've taken that all in stride."
"We're quite accepting of strange things at this point." Toriel smiled kindly with a waving paw.
"Let's not dawdle off-topic for too long." Gaster pointed out, with several of his floating hands holding accessories for him. "Queen Rebecca. Not that I don't enjoy a casual conversation, mind you. We all know why we're here, aside from a pretty impressive field trip."
"Right. Of course. I have not forgotten." Rebecca sighed while pushing her hair away a bit. "I know you are here for the incident related to the Seloms Archipelago. From what I heard, it is quite a personal matter that you wish to see resolved."
"A friend of ours used to live there. Somebody went and destroyed it, almost killed her entire tribe after they finally caught a break. That ain't gonna fly with us." Undyne said seriously with a narrowed eye. She wanted to find the culprit, and soon. If Terra decided to bail, it would be problematic for them to chase her down.
"Right, this is indeed personal, to a degree." Toriel nodded firmly. Nikon was her friend, and what happened to her, her tribe, and their home was unacceptable. She simply could not let this go without apprehending the one responsible, and getting answers for it.
"We fought fang and claw to protect and save their home, only for THAT to happen. That's dogwash, I tell you." Red muttered, her ears folded back as she was lapping up a cup of milk with a serious, resolved expression.
"Cute..." Of course, Muffet won't take it very seriously.
"QUEEN REBECCA. IF YOU DO INDEED KNOW SOMETHING ABOUT THE PERSON WE'RE LOOKING FOR, WE'D BE VERY APPRECIATIVE OF YOU TELLING US." Papyrus raised a hand. "OF COURSE, IF YOU FEEL IT TOO MUCH..."
"No, it's quite alright. I understand completely..." Rebecca nodded. "Unfortunately, nothing has really come to mind in quite a few days-"
"You can always ask your Guardians, M'lady." Lyla pointed out. Rebecca paused for a moment, which made her female guardsman raise an eyebrow. "You forgot you could do that, didn't you?"
"N-No! Of course not! I knew I could do that! There's no way I could embarrass myself in an inmportant meeting twice in one day, Lyla!"
"We both know that isn't true, m'lady."
"I appreciate your bluntness, Lyla...however hurtful it is." Rebecca smiled weakly, before turning back to her visitors. "Of course I don't personally know the details of your perpetrator. But the Guardians might each have something that can assist you."
"Guardians?" Asgore blinked curiously.
"Four monsters who are the lead protectors of Legatum and are without a doubt the Kingdom's greatest warriors." Rebecca explained. "I've known them ever since I was a girl. I'm sure they'll provide you with the information you need." She blinked. "Well...as long as you ask them nicely...then they will provide you with what you need."
"Oh! I know how to ask nicely! Manners and politeness are super important!" Faryn raised her hand rather energetically.
"Sharpen our manners and power-up our politeness!" Frisk raised a hand as well.
"Hey...I can get behind that!" Undyne grinned with pumped fists. "Politeness is our ultimate attack!"
"If it's politeness, does it need to be an 'attack'?" Asriel sweatdropped.
"maybe it can be a lowkey gradual attack." Sans shrugged.
"Says the skeleton midget who's special attack is sleeping." Lunar called over her shoulder. "What kind of good will sleeping in the middle of a fight do?"
"If you played enough games, you'll see it's surprisingly effective for healing." Alphys pushed her glasses up. "Though it's only acceptable as long as you put yourself in a position that you can safely afford to do so. Otherwise you're just wide open with no defense and no way to counter."
"I suggest you continue. This happens quite often." Toriel suggested to Rebecca with a knowing, awkward smile.
"Right. As for the names of the Guardians, they're known in Legatum as Efreet, Gnome, Slyph, and Undine."
Undyne's eye rose a bit at the last name. ...Huh. How about that.
"They are each elemental-type monsters and are each powerful in their own right. I am sure they have some information on your perpetrator." Rebecca frowned. "If she has somehow hidden away in this Kingdom without detection, it is imperative that she is found as soon as possible. They know this, so they will gladly assist."
"Sounds good to me. Let's go." Undyne narrowed her eye and stood up quickly. "If we start looking now, she won't have too much time to run off again. She might have even known of our arrival here, so we can't chance taking too long to find her."
"Patience, Undyne. We will find her for sure." Toriel raised a calming paw. "But let us wait a bit for our guides to show us around the Kingdom first, shall we? We need to get a feel for the place so we at least know where to look."
"Yes, that seems to be our best route at the moment." Gaster agreed. "As such, it might do us well to split into four groups."
"Indeed." Toriel nods. "I shall take Frisk, Faryn, Gaster, and Lunar with me. Undyne will take Alphys, Chara, GROUP, and Muffet. Asriel shall take Red, Monster Kid, and Tempest. Asgore shall take Gerson, Papyrus, Sans, and Darkness."
"Your group should head with Gnome, Tori." Asgore suggested. "Mine will head with Efreet, Undyne's will see to...well, Undine. And Asriel's will head with Slyph. Is this alright with everyone?"
"Of course, Gorey."
"Alright, if I must. Someone's gotta keep an eye on ya, my King." Gerson huffed with a small smile.
"I'm alright with this..." Alphys lightly pressed her fingers together.
"Me too, we're gonna get our perp no matter what!" Undyne slammed a fist into her palm.
"guess we're doin' this. alrighty then." Sans sighed while scratching the back of his skull. "gonna be a pretty eventful trip, if anything is to be certain."
"VISITING ANOTHER KINGDOM TENDS TO BE PRETTY EVENTFUL, SANS!" Papyrus declared.
"It's also a key opportunity to try and understand another land better. So we should stick to our guides as much as we can." Asriel suggested.
"Yes. Yes indeed." Darkness said slowly, gasing towards Lunar and Tempest, who looked back at him in return. The latter seemed especially nervous, while the former seemed alert.
Sans noticed it appeared especially difficult for Darkness and Tempest to look Rebecca in the eye.
"We've got our positions. Let's make the best of it and help find Terra as soon as possible." Chara noted while scratching his head.
"Right. Sooner we do, the more better off we will be. Preferably before something big happens that can cause a lot of trouble." Frisk also suggested.
"We can't let her get away. Not a chance. She needs to answer for what she did to the Seloms Archipelago. Nikon and her tribe, we owe her that much." Red said seriously.
"We have to remember that Nikon still want to meet up with her, so bringing her back is a priority. Subdue and capture." Gaster reminded.
"I can help with that.~" Muffet smiles graciously as webs gently stretched from her middle hands. "Maybe she'll feel comfy in some capture webbing.~"
Rebecca sighed slightly, managing a small smile. "It looks like you're all very motivated. I suppose I can appreciate that." She turned to Asgore. "I hope it isn't too much trouble for me to accompany your group?" If there was trouble brewing in her Kingdom, then she needed to help see that the matter is resolved as soon as possible.
"If you want to, then that is perfectly fine." Gerson bows gently. "More eyes lookin', the better. Especially someone who knows the area better than most of us."
"Thank you."
Hold on a moment! I haven't finished my om-noms! Faryn thought quickly as she swallows the food in her mouth. "Alright then, time to go and explore!" As acknowledging as she is about the critical mission, she is very eager to explore a new Kingdom. To get a feel for it and discovering new things.
"Alright. It appears we are all set. Let us begin!" Rebecca clapped as she stood up quickly. She then blinked and turned to Lyla. "Lyla, am I on the right track? I'm unsure if I'm doing well so far with this..."
"You're doing fine, M'lady. For the most part." The guardswoman shrugged off. "At the very least, you didn't spill your food on your guests. Speaking of spilling food, you might want to clean yourself up first before you go."
"...Ah." Rebecca blinked, noticing how distracted she was with her conversation with her visitors, that she has been nonchalantly dirtied her dress quite a bit. She gasped as she palmed her cheeks, looking away with a blush. "E-Excuse me...I-I should probably go change into something a bit more clean."
"We'll still be here." Asgore reassured.
"And you'll still be pretty!" Frisk called out. Chara and Red promptly facepalmed.
"Thank you for being so understanding." Rebecca nodded as she got up from her seat and began walking away. "Really, Rebecca? Really?! You were about to walk outside to help guide some of your guests with your dress filthy with food?! How did you not notice this?! Stupid, Rebecca! Stupid!" She was heard berating herself with low yet cute grumbles.
"Don't mind her. She does this quite often." Lyla turned to the understandably confused guests. "She'll be out in about five minutes, you can wait outside for her if you'd like."
"Yes, we'll do that." Asgore scratched the back of his head as he and the others stood up from their seats. "Okay, everyone. We know what we need to do and where each of us are headed. So let us do our best to make sure that our objectives are a success!"
"Alright!"
Unknown to them, several buildings away when the gang stepped out to wait outside...
"...They made the trip, it seems. Good on them." Tengu said while perched on the edge of said building, his excellent vision managing to see most of the group perfectly despite being quite a distance away. "Right on time, too. Ya get that, Proph?" He asked, nonchalantly speaking into a phone.
"Yeah. It won't be long until things get intense. I'm sure that you know what to do."
"We'll do what we can." Tengu reassured. Hounda was right next to him, looking out into the distance while wearing her wolf mask, her cloak fluttering with the wind.
"...It was quite unexpected of Monster Mam to suddenly join us on our assignment." Hounda said. "Then again, I suppose seeing the child known as Monster Kid influenced her decision."
"Oh, we know it did. But she's more stubborn than either of us. Telling her no wasn't a great option." Tengu chuckled.
"Anyway, all four of us know which group we'll be tailing. Let's be sure we stick to them...and prepare for what happens. And most importantly, don't let any of them directly see you if you can help it."
"Gotcha." Tengu nodded as the Prophet hung up. His wings folded as he stood up and stretched, a steeled gaze in his eyes.
He needed to be prepared for a harsh battle.
(?)
The sounds of screaming filled a room. There were only a few others that were accompanying the one responsible for causing the disturbance, and they didn't seem too bothered by it. Except for one.
A human man seemed to be lying down on the ground, writhing in utter agony. Nothing he could do could relieve the suffering, nothing he could do to resist. All he could do was lie down nearly motionless, and slowly die in pain and suffering as his body slowly shuts down. It seemed to be caused by three growing green claw gashes on his chest.
"You attempted a few clumsy strikes before your arms and legs gave out. Now you can only struggle for your life.~" The perpetrator beamed while watching on, making camera fingers. "If only you were a bit healthier, ya probably could have lasted longer.~"
"Is this really the time for you to amuse yourself in such a manner?" One of his acquaintances noted, shaking his head. "His screaming is aggravating to the ears."
"Well excuse me if I can't control other people's vocal cords!" The perpetrator retorted absentmindedly, keeping his eyes on his victim. The screaming died down slowly, a few choked pleads, and then silence. "Oh, he's dead now. The life in his eyes is well and truly gone. He struggled to keep it even though he knew it would do no good."
The perpetrator was a purple-scaled dragon with a green underbelly and green claws who was watching the slow death in a fixed position, with his tail holding a camera recording the entire thing. He wore a violet jacket with a hood over his head.
"I don't think anyone will truly understand that hobby of yours." Another fellow onlooker said while looking away. "That takes care of the turncoat, at least."
"Something about the last moments of suffering and struggle as one desperately clings to life...fascinates me." Was the gentle response, his tail dropping the camera in his paws. "I'm glad I got to document this one before we head out.~"
Yet another member sighed as he was looking out the window. "We've been given our orders. Legatum has made a mistake in judgement. Allowing a corrupting influence like the Dreemurrs into their borders."
"Oh, that won't do. Legatum can't just let outsiders in like that! Haven't they learned from their last catastrophic mistake of doing so?" Another brought up. "Guess we need to remind them of the consequences of such carelessness, and the mark carelessness left on the Kingdom's history. It's legacy, forever tainted. Maybe when the smoke clears, the lesson will stick. They'll grow stronger and know better."
"I should document the look on Rebecca's face if she dies realizing what happens next was her fault. What kind of expression will she make? Will the life in her eyes die before she does? How long can she struggle for it?" The dragon said inquisitively. "Quite an interesting subject, wondering what goes through a Queen's mind as she realizes that she's failed her Kingdom, and have that be the last thought that passes through her kind before dying..."
"Your interests are troublesome, Toxin." The now named dragon's accomplice deadpanned.
"Summarized, this will be a harsh yet necessary lesson for Rebecca and Legatum as a whole. But if she dies, she dies." Toxin smiled and shrugged as he stood up and stretched. He then turned to someone sitting near the corner, a rather shapely dragoness who was minding her own business. "Rise and shine, Terra! We've got ourselves a big assignment!"
Terra slowly turned towards her five handlers, looking rather despondent. Her scales were yellow and her underbelly was orange. Her eyes were a dull blue, though one could see the impression that they weren't always that way. The most she wore was a yellow and pink dress with a frill around the helm, and a green necklace around her neck in the shape of a dragon's claw.
"Don't look so down, Terra! You've been doing so good! Good good good good!~" Toxin said with a smile. "You provided me ample documentation with your destroying of the Seloms Archipelago. Really, you helped quite a bunch!"
Terra didn't respond. She simply stared at him, before returning her gaze to the window.
"Tough crowd..."
"Enough of that." The lead human, named Keter, gradually moved up to Terra and planted a very firm hand on her skull. "Terra, we require your power. Continue to lend it towards this cause. Earn your freedom."
Terra only managed an uninterested blink of her eyes at his statement, before turning again and giving her attention to anything else. This was meant to be a part of Karma, the Legatum Branch of Karma at least. It does not forgive stagnation, and will do anything in order to jumpstart evolution. And since Legatum is considered the weakest of the remaining four Kingdoms on Potentia, they found this unacceptable. Thus, they intend to jumpstart it's growth by placing hardship and suffering upon them that they can surpass and grow stronger from.
Honestly, Terra doesn't believe that Legatum can survive another diasaster like the last one. It nearly destroyed them, mostly on a spiritual level.
But she had no choice but to help invoke another. She knew that what she was doing was wrong, and what she was ordered to do to the Seloms Archipelago was unlikely to be forgivable.
But she cannot disobey. The choice was taken away from her long ago.
Well...
On the bright side, the gang made it to Legatum safely!
On the not so bright side, there might be a few unpleasant experiences waiting for them that will balance out the positivity...huh.
They're going to be in for a pretty rough visit, and the Kingdom might be in for even rougher experiences. Let's see if they can all get through it.
Until next time!