A/N: This chapter was a little longer than I was comfortable with (that's what happens when you never update LMAO), so I'll be posting it in two parts. The next chapter will be posted later on today or tomorrow. The "real" a/n will be then.
"Magic? I never would have believed in it, you know? You always see those vintage kids cartoons on TV, about people going to magic school and stuff. Heck, if you believe some of these quacks out there, magic was supposed to have existed in Britain this entire time! But I didn't buy it. No one did. I mean, were we really supposed to? All this magic stuff sounded insane, and with technology being the way it is nowadays, who needs it? Even when the monsters appeared, it was easy to brush it off because well, they're monsters. We're humans. We're not like that.
But the things I saw that night. They sure did show us. I never could have ever imagined that I would have to fight other humans who can use magic. I certainly didn't see us losing as many men as we did then either. I mean, what, there were like fifty of us? And they had maybe half that at best? We thought it would be easy. We have laser-guided bullets that travel three times the speed of sound and can still arc to hit their targets. We have grenades that will stick to their targets and eviscerate them from the inside out. And that still wasn't enough to stop them from shattering my buddy's heart mere feet away from me. All it took was a couple hits from a magic ball of light.
Elias Meier, Commandant in the 4th Special Operations Division of the European Defense Union Navy.
Special Interview on "The Pendragon Incident" by Euronews, March 15, 2121
Walbrook London, England
Thursday, April 25th, 2120. 11:40 PM
Despite the full emergence of spring, a sharp cold wind rustled Frisk's hair as they sat and gazed at St. Peter's Cathedral. In the evening since the broadcast, the European Union had moved quickly to isolate Cauldron, and Frisk, along with Queen Willow and King Asgore, would be responsible for leading a royal assault on the church. Their goal: To create a distraction large enough to allow for the forces led by Captain Undyne to enter and retake it from Cage. Dressed in the uniform loaned from the armory of the European Union's finest soldiers, Frisk tugged at their ill-fitting uniform as they tried to adjust it to fit their curves. As if size wasn't enough of an issue, knowing that Frisk was wearing the fatigues of another nation made them uneasy. Knowing it was a human nation made Chara feel even worse.
"Frisk, you're killing me! Wearing the uniform of humans!? And making me wear it too? How rude can you be!?"
"I had no choice," Frisk said, unamused by Chara's protests. "I don't have an armor to wear like Undyne or Asgore does. And we don't have anything to protect us from lasers or grenades like the Euros do. I needed something. We all can't be incorporeal ghost like you."
Chara scoffed but continued teasing anyway. "Rude. Speaking of rude, wow, I'm honestly kind of shocked. I never would have imagined you going off in there like you did earlier. Even I was scared for a bit."
Frisk took a heavy sigh "No tact, as usual."
"Honestly, if that's what you need right now, I can play along. I can be all "Frisk, I'm so sorry! *cries* I can't believe Cauldron would hurt our mom like that! We have to stop them!"
Frisk, unfazed, raised an eyebrow. "Is that not what you think already? You were never one for talking about your true feelings."
"Meh. It's not like I can do much anymore. There's no point in stressing over it. Plus, I can feel your anger. I don't need to be angry for you when you have plenty of it yourself.
Frisk slammed their fist on the ground before becoming exasperated by their own emotions. They tried their best to not let a whimper sneak into their voice. "I-I'm trying to be better! I'm trying to do better. And part of that was the promise I made with you. I don't plan on killing anyone tonight. Not if…if I can help it."
"You think you'll be able to hold yourself to that"
"Don't you?"
Chara laughed. "Not in the slightest! This just confirms what we've already known, which is that there seems to be more garbage than we ever thought. We both sort of knew this sort of thing would happen soon, right?
Frisk leaned in more towards their knees. Their eyes dropped as their spirit did. "I just thought that…well, we could finally have our peace this time, you know? Everything was literally perfect until this morning. Sure, there are minor issues, and there always will be, but the world was on the verge of respecting us, of giving us our freedom. But now, everything's changed. I can't even reset now if I wanted to. And…"
Chara snarled. "That's just it, Frisk. You can't count on others to give you freedom. You have to take it. And I am looking forward to watching you take every bit of it from that scumbag Cage."
Frisk curled up again as they shifted their focus again to St. Peter's Cathedral ahead. As they became lost in thought, Queen Willow climbed up the ladder to the side of the building and sat against Frisk's back. She too was dressed in the tactical uniform provided to her by the European Union, with some small modifications to allow for greater protections on her arms and legs. Frisk made a mental note to tease her of their radically different dress later, when both of them could appreciate it.
Willow was first to begin. "I've never seen London from the rooftops before. Even during all of this, the city looks tranquil."
"Yeah, but you're also not facing the cathedral, which looks like exactly the opposite." Frisk retorted, and it was true. The church, usually lit by a couple of modest lights at night, was awash with light and surrounded by a sea of emergency vehicles as the European Union prepared to assault the building. Frisk moped as they looked at it. "What a spectacle. Cauldron's really outdone themselves now."
Willow sighed. "Frisk, we'll make this right. We'll stop Cauldron and save your family. I'm sure of it. And they'll always be another chance to bring the world together again."
Willow had hoped to get a smile or at least some affirmation out of Frisk, but they remained quiet. Disappointed, she decided to change the topic.
"So Frisk, tell me again about human magic users. What kind of people are we going to be facing tonight?"
Frisk picked their head up to answer. "Well, you remember the seven soul colors, right?"
"Yeah. Light Blue for patience, Orange for bravery, Dark Blue for integrity, Green for Kindness, Purple for Perseverance, my soul, which is Yellow for justice, and then there's your soul, which is…"
"Red. For determination. Huh, better than I thought. Sounds like you managed to fit in some homework time between running an entire country."
Willow rolled her eyes. "Trust me, it's harder than it looks. And their attacks. Everyone is different, right?"
"Exactly. So, while there's people that can, like monsters, channel their magic into unique forms or objects, the majority of magic users I've encountered can only make simple bullet patterns out of what I call "friendliness pellets." You were the same way, until I returned for this conference."
"Speak for yourself! The last time I saw you, you couldn't do much of anything but dodge. And now, you can make your sword glow red! And it shoots laser beams!" Willow let herself giggle and gave a slight smile to the night. "It's like you're an anime character from another time. Incredible."
Frisk lowered their head as that statement gave them pause. "From another time, huh…"
Before either of them had the chance to expand on that topic further, the both began to hear the access ladder to the roof creak and moan as Asgore lumbered his way to the roof. His stature far exceeded anything the MI6-owned flat was ever designed for. He gave them a deep chuckle as he settled in on the roof. He stood next to them in the battle armor that Frisk once faced him in, a moment that now felt as if was lifetimes ago. "Well, I don't think the builders of this apartment ever expected a monster like me to be on top of it! I guess I was a tad bit too large for the frame."
Asgore's bad impression at an English accent and self-referential jab at himself caused Willow to outright laugh, but Frisk resisted Asgore's attempt at comedy. "Should we really be joking right now? We have a serious fight ahead of us that we have to be ready for."
Willow turned slightly to visibly scowl at her friend, but Asgore simply smiled at the both of them. "You may be right, young one. I don't doubt that this fight will be anything other than rough. But being tense about it isn't going to make me any more ready. Being with you two, however, most definitely will."
Frisk stood up and faced their adoptive father, tears welling in their eyes. Skeptical, they carefully measured their response to avoid a repeat of earlier. "Oh? And how is that, exactly?"
Asgore's smile never faltered. "It's because you both remind me why I continue to fight in the first place. Everything I love, everything I want to protect, it's right here. And being able to be by your side is more than enough to always keep me smiling."
Frisk's tough façade began to fall to pieces, and they embraced Asgore's tough metal body for as long as they could manage before settling and holding their dad's large paw in their hands. Willow looked on and smiled as she began to respond to an incoming voice message.
"Pen One, this is Pen Three. The operation's ready to go. Are you?"
Willow stood up and dusted herself off before facing the other two. "Yeah, we're ready. I give my final blessing for the operation. You're free to move."
Her confirmation was the signal they needed to alert everyone via their comm links and send out a virtual flare. Asgore and Willow both summoned their magical weapons and Frisk looked inward to draw on their determination as the three of them both moved to the edge of the building. In a minute more, the operation to retake the cathedral would finally begin.
Paternoster Square, London, England
Thursday, April 25th, 2120. 11:45 PM
"Ahhh, this feels so much BETTER! How much longer until the start of the operation!? I'm ready to start dispensing my own brand of Justice!" Undyne stretched in her royal armor at the foot of the Temple Bar Gate, grinning at the familiar creaking and clanking of her own sayian-shaped metal. Behind her scurried a camp full of European Union operatives in much more modern-looking equipment. None of them looked as calm as Undyne in the slightest, but to her surprise, a near-constant stream of orders from a tired-looking Sir Justin Greenwood was enough to calm many of them down.
"Five minutes. I swear, these guys can take on political terrorists and bomb-equipped drones, but they begin to lose their head at the slightest mention of magic."
Undyne let out a laugh. "NGAHH! I'll take them all on! I'm so strong, those cauldron grunts won't know what hit them. I'm even more excited that there's plenty of punks to spare!"
Justin nervously laughed as Undyne brought two passing soldiers into a headlock and noogied the both of them. "Your confidence never ceases to amaze me, Undyne. But before you absolutely destroy these two fine people, I have something to give you." He reached into his pocket and materialized an ear-mounted communicator designed specifically for Undyne's large fins. "Here, take this. It's what we briefed you on earlier. It'll allow you to communicate with us during the mission."
Undyne, noticeably less excited about the human tech, fidgeted with the earpiece and extended the thin sheet of glass over her remaining eye Making a thinly-veiled attempt to hide her fake excitement at having to wear so much extra equipment, she said "Gee Justin, I'm not so hot with human tech. What's the little glass thing for again?"
"Oh!" he smiled and stepped over to Undyne's right. "I'm sure you'll love this feature!" And with a click of a button on the side of the earpiece, the HUD flashed to life to show, among other things, a clock, a small map with several dots, and a microfeed of a coffee-sipping Alphys at her monitor in Grand Ebott City.
"ALPHYS! It's you!" Beaming, she now turned to a smiling Justin. "Don't tell me I'll get to talk to my wifey the entire mission!"
Flushed, Alphys spoke up. "H-Hey Fishcake! Umm, sort of! I'll have to switch to audio communication only once the fighting starts. But for now, video is okay too!"
Justin, looking like his job was done, swung his hands to his back and turned to walk towards the makeshift command center. "Well, it looks like my work here is done. Alphys will be providing your team with up-to-date readings on any magic shenanigans, and I'll be in the tent directing the mission from there. Together, we shouldn't have a problem."
Alphys put on her best determined face. "Yeah! I'm also taking to Frisk and Asgore! I'll be able to connect everyone to what I find out here back in the capital! All of this technology is gonna be good for something! I-I just…I just wish I could fight with everyone too."
"Alphy! it's okay!" Undyne flailed her arms as she tried to comfort her love from afar. "You're doing an AWESOME job being the smartest, prettiest, nerdiest person here! Forget these brit whits! All I need is you!"
Justin made it a point to audibly moan as he stepped up the stairs into the command center. Over the intercom, he addressed the pair. "I'm sorry to break you two lovebirds up, the square that I am. But I just dispatched Frisk to begin the rooftop operation. We'll be sending out the drones so too. So…"
Undyne eye filled with excitement "So you mean!"
"Yep. It's time to go."
Cordwainer, London, England
Thursday, April 25th, 2120. 11:50 PM
At a speed that almost bewildered Willow, Frisk took off towards the edge of the roof, their eyes turning scarlet as they used their magic to take the first leap over the busy street below and onto the next building. Willow hesitated at first, but Asgore scooped her up as he too effortless began to hop between buildings.
"Wow Asgore, I didn't know you do this kind of stuff! N-no offense about your size of course."
Asgore simply smiled as he put his focus towards not busting a hole in the glass roof they now ran across "Once you've been alive as long as I have, there's little you can't do. Even then, I'm surprised that Frisk, on the other hand…"
"…can do all of this..."
Frisk looked as if they were letting their emotions go. Furious, they continued ahead of the group, clearing Queen Victoria Street once again with a single bound. Chara coached them as they continued over the tops of the city's buildings.
"Get ready to jump…now!
Be careful of this ledge, it's glass, and if you push off as hard as you did before, you're gonna break it.
Aim for the square building, you'll have better footing."
From behind, Asgore endeavored to keep up with his child, moving slow but measured at a fair distance behind them. Willow, somehow calm in Asgore's arms, called forward to them on her intercom. "Frisk, slow down! We can't keep up with you at this pace!"
Frisk was at first reluctant to respond but then shot back "We need to move quickly. If they see us coming, we'll never reach the cathedral." They jumped off the building onto a conglomeration of flats next door, only to find that Cauldron had already beaten them there. Two Cauldron members that had been focusing on the street below turned their attention to focus on Frisk instead. "Fuck. We may be too late. We've got company."
Now only two blocks from the cathedral, it looked like these two Cauldron members had been stationed there to perform reconnaissance for the main force. One of them, a slender-looking pale human who hid their defining features in the group's standard witch doctor mask and beret, engaged Frisk's soul while the other reached up to turn on his communication link. Both posed a threat to Frisk and the group.
Chara pushed Frisk into action. "Frisk, prioritize the one with the link! If they know we're here, the operation will fall apart!"
"Right!" Frisk rushed forward, and before the radio-speaking grunt could speak, Frisk quickly drew their sword and knocked them out with a quick chest jab. The grunt let out a wheeze before crumbing to the floor of the roof, and the other member, ready to fight, wasted no time in responding to Frisk's aggression in kind. They pivoted and jumped in order to avoid a close barrage of bullets.
"Y-You! You're him! The ambassador! The source of all this madness!" The grunt leaped backwards to avoid Frisk's sword, readying himself to fight back against the crimson-eyed child.
"I'm at fault here!? You have got to be kidding! You're the ones who have caused all of this chaos, who ruined our perfect future!" Frisk dashed under the next hail of bullets and brought their katana to the front of the grunt's neck. They spoke coldly as their eyes flared with emotion. "This is the only chance I'm giving you. Stand down and you will not get hurt. I don't want to hurt you."
The grunt, pressured to his knees, let out yelp as he fell. Despite his near-death situation, he began talk with a nervous confidence in his voice. "You think you've won? You have no idea kid what kind of power you're messing with, kid. The witches of Cauldron have many, many spells." He pulled off his mask to reveal a set of pale blue eyes above his stubby chin. He let out a yell. "CROW, NOW!"
As if out of nowhere, a large figure jumped from under the edge of the building. Crow, a large, burly-looking man with bright but deep blue eyes and decked in metal greaves and knuckles, was silhouetted by the moon as loomed in Frisk's direction. But, as soon Frisk focused their attention on them, they felt an intense gravity pull them towards the roof, a gravity so intense that neither Chara nor them had felt it since their genocide runs so many years ago. Struggling to regain their footing, they could only watch as Crow pulled back and began to let blue-colored energy gather around his left fist.
"Sans!? No wait, it can't be! But then, this gravity-!" Frisk said.
Chara responded with vitriol in their voice. "It's him. That human who appeared out of nowhere. And you see that? He has no mask. That means…"
"You! You're a leader then! Who are you?"
Crow looked on, narrowing their eyes as they surveyed Frisk one more time before firing. "I have no need to explain my identity to the dead. Goodbye."
But before he could fire, Asgore appeared from the top of the previous building, soaring just high enough to be level with Crow. At that moment, Willow jumped off their back and sacrificed her bullet orbs to stop Crow and Asgore slashed him with his trident, smashing him into the roof of the next building and causing considerable damage. Crow's attack exploded in the air, and if they're yelling hadn't been loud enough, the entire neighborhood certainly heard them now.
Willow gracefully landed on the building and ran to help Frisk to their feet. "Frisk, you nearly got yourself killed there! Try not to run off next time, yeah?
Frisk groaned as they stumbled to their feet. Shame rushed to their face. "Ugh, I feel like I just got launched into space. Thanks for the save, I guess I got…a little carried away there."
"It's okay. This is a tough time, and no one could have predicted that they would have people waiting here. There's no way they could have known we were coming."
"But then…how?"
Crow grunted as he stood, his eyes still awash with Integrity. He sized his new opponent up before engaging Asgore's SOUL and turning it blue. "Lucky guess. And shot."
Never one to pass up a jab, Willow said "Hah! Your deadpan manner is almost funny. I didn't know we'd have another comedian on our hands." She mockingly let her voice drop as she stared Crow down. "Don't think you're going to get lucky again."
The grunt, who had managed to scramble behind Crow in the chaos, consulted his boss for orders. "Crow, sir! Now that we know where the subversives are, should we contact the other Legates? We're going to need backup to take all of them down."
Frisk began to worry. "No! We can't let them do that!" They picked up their sword and rushed forward, but before they could make contact, Asgore moved first, stomping across the roof to take a swing at both the Cauldron operatives. Crow easily blocked Asgore attack and dug in as he faced a standoff with the King of Monsters.
Asgore turned and head and attempted to grunt words through the strain. "Frisk, Willow, go on ahead! The operation must continue as planned. You have to stop Cage! You're the only ones who can do it."
Frisk hesitated; they turned around to look at Willow, who, after a fleeting moment of worry, nodded in affirmation to Asgore's concerns. Gripping their sword, they let the blade turn red as rushed past Asgore and Crow, striking the grunt and crumpling him to the spot where he stood. Crow moved to respond, but Asgore's refusal to let up slowed him down, giving both the royal children time to get away from him. Willow, however, looked aghast at what Frisk had done.
"FRISK! Did you…did you just kill him!? I don't see any blood, but…"
Frisk looked to confirm Willow's successful jump and then immediately took off, once again moving towards the cathedral. Yelling behind them, Frisk said "It'll be okay. I attacked his SOUL directly by imbuing my blade with magic. He'll hurt when he gets up, but he's alive. Never mind him though! We're almost there! We have to keep moving!"
As satisfied as she could be, Willow fell in line, and the two of them cleared another street as they inched ever close to the bright light of St. Paul's Cathedral.
Paternoster Square, London, England
Thursday, April 25th, 2120. 11:55 PM
BOOM! With a large bang, the barricaded door separating the grounds from the crypt of the cathedral was blown open, and several small drone robots, no bigger than a trash can, navigated down the stairs to the crypt where Cauldron was presumably hiding. From the mobile command center, Justin watched from his console as the robots fanned out in the lower level and started scanning for whatever they could find.
Sir Greenwood looked weirdly confident. He leaned back in his chair and said "Huh, with twenty-five people being kept in this small basement, you'd think they'd put up more of a fight. So far, we haven't seen anyone."
One of his officers spoke up, scanning the consoles as he spoke. "Sir, it's pitch black down here, they took the lights out. Switching the drones to infrared mode…now."
Almost at the second he did so, Justin and his officers watched as each of the drone feeds go fuzzy as each of them lost contact. The shock sent the still-injured noble to his feet, flabbergasted that they could have coordinated something like that all at once. It didn't take long at all for them to change the momentum to their side.
"Incredible, connection issues at a time like this? So much for top-notch European technology." He sat back in his chair and let the urgency in his voice fade. It was almost like he was telling himself not to worry. "Do you have any response from the drones?"
"My Lord, I-I don't understand how this could happen! They shouldn't have access to this sort of technology. You don't think that-"
Justin, sounding almost bored, cut him off and picked up his communicator. "I do. Unfortunately, my next best guess seems to be correct. Send in the special forces. Tell them to make sure nothing comes out of the door we just blew up. And remember, target-guided ammunition only! We want to avoid as little damage as possible!"
"But I don't understand, how are we supposed to counter this?"
Justin smiled. "Undyne, the stage is yours. Don't go too crazy in there."
Just as he said that, everyone in the command trailer paused as a large bang erupted from the front of the cathedral. From the dust appeared Captain Undyne, making quick work of any grunt she could see as she dashed forward into the interior of the cathedral. The radio was filled with her cackles as she continued to hopelessly dominate passing enemies.
"NGAHHHH! These people are nothing! Justin, you were worried about this? I'm barely facing any resistance from these fools. Your upgrades to my armor were great! Plus, their magic barely has any effect on me! They're just too weak!"
"Be cautious," Justin responded "There may be people that we yet know about in there. After all, our intelligence seems to imply there are two more bosses that have yet to reveal themselves."
Undyne ducked behind a pillar near the end of the nave to avoid a stray magic bullet. She readied a line of spears behind her as she scoped out the path across the hall to the stairs downstairs. "Oh yeah? If they haven't shown themselves yet, can they even really be a threat?"
Of course, it would be just at that moment that someone would have to appear.
Alphys, over her voice line, spoke up. "Undyne, be careful! I'm suddenly picking up a spike in magical energy in your vicinity! It matches the ones we felt earlier at the palace. Keep your eyes open."
"THIS IS YOUR END, MONSTER SCUM! Prepare to die!" An unknown figure jumped from the Whispering Gallery, brandishing a black carbon scythe with a chain attached to the end. While it didn't appear to be sharp, Undyne took no chances in jumping back and knocking the attacker back with a well-timed spear. The two stood at opposite ends of the pews as more Cauldron fighters closed in around her. The person in front of her appeared to be a short, masculine person with bangs and a soft, clean face that most certainly betrayed their true age. Their bright purple eyes illuminated the scowl that painted their face.
The mystery person continued. "So the so-called Spear of Justice decides to grace us with her presence? I should feel so honored to be able to fight such a strong opponent! A worthy battle for someone of my caliber indeed."
Undyne scoffed confidently at the bright-eyed hothead. "Says a lot about your caliber then that I haven't even heard of you until now! Leave it to a pretty-faced human like you to be so full of yourself that you think you can crash an entire peace ceremony!"
"Peace ceremony? Like hell that would have been! Just admit that your plan all along is just to subjugate humanity. If you'd really believed in peace, you monsters would stop forcing your will on others. But alas, it looks like I have to be the one that stands to set you straight!"
"Oh yeah? You should consider yourself lucky." Undyne said, drawing her spear and pointing it squarely at her attacker. "For the sake of everyone who believes in justice, I'm going to stop you right here! You-!"
The figure stopped them. "Vulture. They call me Vulture. I am a Legate in the Order of the Black Cauldron, and a direct descendant of the brave mages who once saved the world by locking away your kind." Vulture branded the scythe at their side. "One thousand years later, it looks like we're going to do it again. You ready for a rematch, monster!"
Undyne let a slight smile grow as she took hold of their soul and held them in place. She lowered her head as she talked and summoned a ring of spears around her. Some of the other Cauldron members even stepped back a bit. "You know, I was a little worried about this, about coming in here and hurting people a little too much. Don't get me wrong. I'm a girl who loves her fights, and I'd gladly take some punks like you down any day. But now…" She looked up with intense eyes and returned Vulture's confident scowl with a vicious smile of her own. "I'm thankful. You've given me a reason to not hold back on you any longer. I don't particularly care what your goals are. I don't care who you are. But I can feel deep down in my soul that for everyone I love, I'm stopping you right here. Do you think you're ready for that, human?"
Vulture looked as if they could barely hold in their excitement. They held their scythe out in a defensive position and returned Undyne's determined smile. "En garde, Captain Undyne. Let's make this a fight for the ages."
