Underleague
Chapter 42
Author Notes: Ok we are back folks! Shout outs go to the people who've been having to wait so long for me to get this stuff typed up. Again apologies for all this(are you guys getting sick of me typing this lol?)
Now last time Frisk started her new adventure with Rosemary's assistant and San's brother... And well, they're still alive thankfully lol. Let's see what our new group has in store this chapter. As per usual I do not at all own pokemon or Undertale!
3rd P.O.V
It seemed that resting after doing some first aid treatment on themselves had been a good call as everyone was re-energized and ready to go. Hours ticked by and the group was making good progress after they packed their things away.
Best of all they hadn't run into anymore ekan nests. Though with hours of travel came slight anxiety since Frisk wasn't really sure if they were going the right way. Even if Temy was assuring the child that they were, the young trainer would've felt much better if she was better at reading the map program in her pokedex.
For the first time since she fell into Mount Ebbot, Frisk was worried she was lost. Usually it was Asriel who lead the way-and who always knew just what was going on. At that thought Frisk shook her head with a strong inhale. No.
She couldn't let her worries and unease get to her. One of the reasons she decided to do this was to be more independent. She was determined to make Pikaboo better on top of getting Temy home. She could do this.
"Ohhh it's the wishy flowers~ We's almost home!" With furrowed brows Frisk tilted her head in confusion as her friend rushed ahead. "Wishing flowers?" Both her and Papyrus watch as the girl dives headfirst into a field of blue and white flowers, rolling around with a giggle.
Eve and poochyena(who still somehow managed to best THE GREAT PAPYRUS) trot closer to the flora. Each giving them a nice sniff. "DO YOU NOT HAVE WISHING FLOWERS ON THE SURFACE? THEY'RE QUITE COMMON HERE! ALONGSIDE THE ECHO FLOWERS~"
Immediately the ten year old shakes her head. Inching her way towards the patch she kneels down, gently plucking one of the flowers to look at. It was a white one that had a light golden glow on the inside the petals.
"No. We got a lot of pretty flowers up there, but these look like a mix of carnations and sunflowers." The blue ones, which she could only assume was the echo flowers had big open, daffodil like petals with black and purple spots in the center.
Both of them were absolutely beautiful. She could see these catching anyone's eye. "Why are they called wishing and echo flowers?" Even more so as Papyrus makes a dashing pose. Readying himself to tell some stories of the Underground.
Or rather repeat some interesting factoids he memorized from his time in school. "ECHO FLOWERS ARE NAMED BECAUSE THEY ECHO WHATEVER SOMEONE SAYS." Just like he stated(and decided to make an example of) a string of the blue flora in front of him repeat his statement in different tones and pitches.
'ECHOFLOWERS ARE NAMED BECAUSE THEY ECHO WHATEVER SOMEONE SAYS.'
It was incredible to the now wide eyed Frisk. To her it sounded like an entire audience or chorus of people repeated Papyrus. All of them had different voices, yet were in perfect harmony. Curious, she grabbed an echo flower. "La la dee daa." The one she plucked was still growing, not yet fully unfurled.
'La la dee daa.'
The echoed melody was soft and quiet, much like her, making her grin in excitement. Just barely able to register that Papyrus was still in teaching/storytime mode. Fortunately he doesn't realize as he was too focused talking.
"...ZUBATS ABSOLUTELY LOVE EATING THESE FLOWERS-OHHH HOW SANS USED TO LOVE(AND STILL DOES MIND YOU) TO JAPE PEOPLE WITH THEM." At this point Frisk got herself comfortable sitting on the ground.
Her full attention on Papyrus. "With the zubats or the flowers?" Temy meanwhile was still rolling around. Her audino out with an amused expression on his face. "BOTH." Papyrus paused for a moment, scowling.
One particular memory came to mind as he told his tale. Though it has been many years, there are some things one cannot forgive. It didn't help that Sans STILL made fun of him for it every once in a while.
Whether it was habit of his mischievous brother or just a way to get under his skin Papyrus wasn't too sure. But regardless that was a particular story for another time. Not right now when he was trying to be cool and show off his knowledge to his younger friend/rival for the underleague challenge.
"ON HALLOWEEN ESPECIALLY, SANS WOULD COLLECT A BUNCH OF THESE FLOWERS AND HIDE THEM ALL OVER THE PLACE. ZUBATS DON'T HAVE EYES SO THEY CAN'T SEE-BUT THEY HAVE EXCELLENT HEARING AND ARE VERY SENSITIVE TO TOUCH!"
It was still a mystery how zubat gains eyes as a golbat. One that multiple researchers were trying to figure out to this day. And it was one of the reasons why there were so many zubat in caves all over the world.
"SO USING THEIR SUPER SONIC ABILITIES THEY CAN DETECT THE FLOWERS THAT ECHO SOUND WAVES. THEY'RE ABLE TO BOTH HEAR THEIR CRIES AND FEEL THE SOUNDWAVES BOUNCING OFF THEM."
Now that she actually thought about it, it made sense. Even though she had struggled seeing in the Ice Chasms, she remembered her and MK encountering a zubat, and it had no trouble attacking her in the dark. Still it was cool to hear some more details that couldn't be found in the deus ex machina.
However that left the other question. "What about the wishing flowers? What's the story behind those?" Much to her surprise, Papyrus's confident pose and smile dimmed. His expression almost...sad.
"WELL...YEARS AGO, THERE HAD BEEN A HUGE ACCIDENT. I DON'T REALLY REMEMBER WHAT CAUSED IT, BUT THE ENTIRE MOUNTAIN SHOOK. CAUSING ROCKSLIDES AND CAVE INS ALL OVER THE UNDERGROUND." To say it was a disaster was a huge understatement.
One not too many would speak about if prompted or asked. "THERE WERE...A LOT OF CASUALTIES AND DAMAGES. IT TOOK MONTHS AND HELP FROM THE SURFACE FOR THINGS TO RETURN TO NORMAL." Papyrus had been one of the lucky ones in the incident.
Not having to deal with busted property or family members going missing. For once he had been blessed with a somewhat lazy brother, since he knew where he was. But he joined the volunteer services along with multiple classmates from his school and neighbors-he saw the destruction first hand.
His heart went out to those who went through so much. "BACK THEN...A LOT OF PEOPLE WERE STRUGGLING. PEOPLE WERE MISSING, FOOD WAS SCARCE, AND THE POWER WAS OUT." When people say it was a dark time they meant it, both literally and figuratively.
If it wasn't for the pokemon that the civilians had, they would've been far worse off. Still with every tragedy had hope, no matter how small it may be. Before Frisk could stop him, telling him he didn't need to continue. Papyrus took the little flower from her hand. Twirling it around.
"THAT'S THEN THESE LITTLE WHITE FLOWERS BEGAN GROWING EVERYWHERE. MANY OF THE LOST USED THESE FLOWERS AS BEACONS TO GUIDE THEM HOME, OR AS A SAFE PLACE TO OFFER PRAYERS AND WISHES. IT'S ALSO WHY WE LIKE MINIOR SO MUCH DESPITE THEIR EXPLOSIVE TENDENCIES."
There were no stars here. Sure there were little openings throughout the mountain that gave you a chance to see the actual sky. However people found themselves captivated with the meteor pokemon that made this place their home.
At night time, these heavy sentient stars will shed off their shells, illuminating the shadowy caves in a majestic, rainbow light. In fact it was one of the best ways to tell time without a clock or nocturnal pokemon. Minior shed their shells at night, and fall to the ground for a blast in the morning.
By exploding, they destroy whatever's in their way, and then surround themselves with dirt and rocks to make a new shell. "Wow." By mid-day the rock pokemon find the energy to levitate themselves back towards the ceilings and walls of the cave they claimed as their territory.
But it was those crucial months, that people truly appreciated the star pokemon. Because like the wishing flowers, they illuminated the caves, helping the lost and injured make their way back. Something she understood all too well.
When she first met those pokemon, Frisk thought they were cool, but listening to her friend made her respect and like the pokemon more. "That's amazing. Are we near any minior clusters Papyrus?" Blinking, he hummed, rubbing his chin in thought.
"PERHAPS, BUT AS GREAT AS I-THE GREAT PAPYRUS AM, I'M AFRAID IT'S BEEN AWHILE SINCE I'VE BEEN HERE. AND EVERY ONCE IN AWHILE MINIOR LIKE TO TRAVEL AND CLAIM DIFFERENT SPOTS. LET ME CHECK MY INCREDIBLE POKEDEX FOR A MOMENT."
It definitely was incredible as he pulled it out from his bag. A shiny, sleek red and white coloration similar to the premier balls. Far fancier and newer than the model Frisk received from Toriel. She waits a moment while Papyrus opens it up.
Frowning as he pressed a few buttons. "DR. ALPHYS JUST GAVE ME THIS COOL GPS UPDATE. IT ALLOWS THE POKEDEX TO DO WHAT I BELIEVE TAKE SIGNALS FROM HER MACHINES AND TRACK WHATEVER POKEMON I WANT." In all honesty he wasn't sure how to explain the function.
He wasn't a science wiz like her or Sans, all he knew was that even if the pokemon species he was looking for was currently in the midst of traveling he could track them. "YOU ARE IN LUCK MY FRIEND! IT SEEMS THERE'S SOME NEARBY TEMY'S VILLAGE~"
Then it was decided. "Let's gooooessss~ We can sees the stars dancing! Temy knows Bob loves doing parties with the dancing stars." Clapping her hands, Temy gets up, covered head to toe in dirt and scattered petals.
One by one she grabs a bundle of the blue and white flowers, smiling at the two. "And everyones at Tem village loves flowers~" She takes a big sniff before walking off. Signaling to everyone else it was time to go. They were close too. It wouldn't take too long at all to reach it.
However it was only a few minutes of them being back on the road before a huge rumble in the ground caught their attention. "Huh?" It wasn't big enough to be considered an earthquake or rather if it was-wasn't close enough to cause damage.
But that didn't quell Frisk's nerves. Especially when they feel another not even a minute later. And then another. "WHAT'S HAPPENING!?" A thought suddenly came to mind as the brunette glanced up towards the cave ceiling.
"Didn't you say there were minior nearby? Could it be them?" It was the only thing she could think of. "NO. IT'S TOO EARLY. UNLESS A TRAINER IS ACTIVELY PURSUING THEM THEY DON'T SHED THEIR SHELLS OR FALL AT THIS TIME."
He even double checked his pokedex for the time. It made sense they didn't hear or feel anything when they took a rest before. Papyrus had a good internal clock, and was easily able to keep track of it even when he was fleeing for his life against those ekans.
So when it was decided that they patch up their(Temy's) injuries and rest, he had no issues with it, since it was night time at that point. But they were far, far away from any sort of minior cluster. Now though? Even though they were close-they should still not have heard or felt something.
Let alone to this extent. And it's not like they had any sort of poke-predators to worry about. Their hard shell made them bulky-and many of the other inhabitants avoided minior for their explosions. No matter what way it looked there was no doubt- a trainer has to be involved.
"Come on!" Of course that meant trouble. It would be fine if this person attacked one, maybe two-but attacking an entire cluster was just asking for trouble. If not for them, then for the Tem village that was right by it.
However as Frisk ran, stumbling through the trees and bushes as the earth shakes all the harder, she finds her eyes widening in shock. "Hey! Get away!" It was them. Whatever good mood she had went away instantly as a familiar pair sneered at her from a tree along with a pokemon Frisk wasn't familiar with.
Roselia-the thorn pokemon and the evolved form of budew. These pokemon are known for their beautiful flowers and relaxing fragrance. The healthier it is, the more vibrant their colors and scent is.
"Oh look Catty-it's the annoying little shrimp from Snowdin." They were the reason the ground was constantly rattling. "Ugh-like can we not deal with her today? I'm in no mood." Well Frisk was in no mood to deal with these mean girls either.
But that wasn't going to stop her from getting involved. "Leave them alone!" Both of the evil team rolled their eyes. Bratty huffed as she glanced down to the little pokemon next to her. "Roselia, be a dear and shut that brat up. Magical leaf!" With a little curtsey, the grass/poison type does as asked.
Sending a rush of rainbow colored petals and leaves the ten year old's way. "Ah! Allen teleport!" She barely managed to send her pokemon out, but it worked as he quickly got them out of the attack's range.
Just in time for Papyrus and Temy to catch up. "WHO ARE THEY?" So much for a simple mission. "Bad guys Papyrus!" Bratty and Catty had come to knock out and collect the minior clusters. "Noooos-not the dancing stars! Go aways you-you meanies!"
And had gotten a pretty good amount in the giant blast proof container they brought. Doing far better then when they ambushed the pokemon center, but of course with their luck it was only a matter of time before someone came to interrupt.
"Well I guess it can't be helped Catty. It's intro time~" Frankly they were tired and ready to go home with their prize. Those miniors were no laughing matter with not only being heavy-but being stubborn by blowing up in their faces.
Their hair and outfits were not in a good state right now. "Like-let's totally do it and send her back home crying to mommy! There won't be no heroes helping you this time brat!" A light suddenly appeared as the roselia summoned a bunch of flower petals for dramatic effect.
Bratty: Here we are, we've finally arrived~
Catty: Thanks for waiting, you know we took our time
Bratty: Hand over the goods don't be mean
Catty: You're dealing with the most spectacular team!
Bratty: Bratty reporting for duty
Catty: And Catty the total cutie
Bratty: We'll take your pokemon like the jewels they are
Catty: When something shiny's around we won't be far
Both: We're Team Gold Digger. The ultimate stars
to be continued
Author Notes: So fun fact there are flowers that are actually found in real life to the echo and wish flowers i wrote. The Cuban echo vine came up when i was looking to find out what kind of floral the undertale echoflowers were based or inspired by.
And apparently there's a lot of flowers that glow in the dark or grow at night. moonflowers(duh lol) evening primrose, queen of the night and four O'clocks were just some that popped up when i was browsing the internet.
Sen: Seriously props to Mako-because I was ready to veto the flowers in this chapter until she told me there was actual real life examples. It's actually really cool~ But now that i think about it...even if that wasn't the case we could've always said Alphy's or Sans did some botany stuff and made them.
Mako: True, of course I didn't think about that when talking to you till after the fact. Still...it went well and this helps bring some more history and lore to our underleague story.
Sen: Kills two birds with one stone all with a new chapter to boot~
Mako: And with that we're done for now. Guys if you like this series so far please feel free to fav/follow/review as it would mean a lot to us. Later guys~