thud-thud-thud-thud-thuD-THUD-THUD ... splash! -THUD-THUD-THUD!
CRASH!
"NNNNAAAAGHHHHHH! ALPHYS!"
Undyne smashed through the door in a flurry of metal parts, sweat, and desperation. The warrior fish frantically looked around the dark lab until the bright synthetic lights blinded her one eye after detecting her presence. Blinking hard to rid herself of the annoying blind spots in her vision, Undyne searched the entire two floors of the Royal Lab.
The lab was empty.
Until a door on the first floor meant to be a washroom opened to see a frantic Alyphys scurrying out.
"Wha-wha-wha!"
Before the timid dino could finish even one word, Undyne descended on the flustered scientist.
"ALYPHYS! IT'S HERE! THE LAST HUMAN SOUL! IT'S READY TO BE PROCESSED BUT SOMETHING IS WRONG WITH IT. I NEED YOU COME AND INVESTIGATE IT!"
Undyne huffed and puffed from the exertion of speaking on her short breathe. The water she had used to hydrate herself had already evaporated.
Alphys stood in shocked silence. She was still processing what Undyne said. Her stubby claws shook as what her crush said sunk in.
"W-what do you mean? What h-happened?"
"It will be faster to just show you. Get your equipment quickly, we don't have a lot of time."
"Al-alright, I don't understand, b-but I'll get my stuff."
Her adventure ... Her adventure of friendship, teamwork, and action ... her part in the adventure as over before it began.
Alphys followed the ecstatic Undyne in somber silence and a forced smile. They were going to be free soon. She needed to appear happy.
Mettaton busted through the wall without his usual fanfare. The reason for this is because the humans were no longer alive for him to entertain the notion of playing with them. The Royal Knights Captain had already left with Alphys to collect the Human SOUL.
He wheeled over to the monitor that was ever watchful of everyone and everywhere. Alphys called it a surveillance system, but, to Mettaton, it was just her hobby to stalk various monsters.
He pressed various buttons until he came upon a curious scene. It was a little ways from the entrance of Hotland. The terrain had been partially demolished. There were two Skeleton Monsters and a form on the ground vaguely similar to Alphys' description of a human.
There was also a mysterious red glow on the dark soil.
He had the camera zoom in on the glow. Mettaton experienced the heady feeling of sickness and could have gagged if not for the metal construction of his body. It was a mutilated SOUL in a puddle of its own essence. The monitor could pick up a faint black mist wafting from the remains. This wasn't beautiful, at all.
He wheeled back from the monitor as the Captain of the Guard and the Royal Scientist came upon the scene. Now that they have the seventh human SOUL, Asgore will become god-like in power and declare War on the humans once the barrier is broken.
He will need to time this perfectly and stealthily if he wants to be a Surface Celebrity. Plus save the human race as they don't know it glamorously!
This will be his last chance!
The clanking of heavy armor resounded throughout the castle halls. Bunny Guard and Dragon Guard rushed through the parapets towards the decorative house on the inner most gardens of the castle. They must inform King Asgore that the last Human SOUL has been acquired and being processed as Captain Undyne's orders.
They came upon the quaint house and took calming breathes before Dragon Guard knocked on the door delicately with his gauntlet.
"One moment please!"
The guards stood at attention as the deep baritone politely shouted through the door. As promised, a moment later the door opened to reveal the King of Monsters, Asgore Dreemurr, with a smile on his face.
"Howdy"
The guards dropped into a bow.
"Your Majesty! Captain undyne has sent us to delivery to you her report. Please read this at your earliest convenience. She exclaims that this is extremely important."
Asgore's warm features leaked as he took the offered scroll from the Dragon Guard.
"Thank you, would you two like to have a cup of tea?"
"Like, we are sorry, but Captain Undyne, like, demands our presence right after delivering this report to you. Super sorry."
"Very well then, you may go."
The guards saluted and marched away stiffly. Asgore closed his door and proceeded to his dinner table to read the report. He supposed it could be about a collapse cave in the further reaches of his Kingdom. He would need to prepare necessary funds and laborers.
He sat down with his tea set slowly cooling from when he sat down earlier in his usual contemplative silence. He gently pried open the wax seal to unravel his captain's report. He delicately gripped his tea cup to take a sip as he read the first sentence.
His grip tightened around the parchment as his shaking paw slowly place his tea cup back down as he continued to read. Once finished, he sat back and sighed.
He stood.
He walked towards the stairs, briefly pausing before the calendar. The brightly circled date catching his eye. He thinned his lips and continued to the Barrier Room.
The time has finally come.
Silence hung in the air.
Papyrus sat on the ground with his boots pulled to his chest. He watched the trail stretching beyond the yawning tunnel towards Hot Land. His gaze vacant.
Sans slumped against his brother's back. His stare focused on Frisk's still body. Sans was waiting.
Time continued on unhindered.
Magic was charged in the air. A whistle of air picked up.
Undyne and Alphys arrived. Undyne's grin was victorious and eager. Alphys stumbled and stuttered in nervous dismay. Papyrus didn't move. Sans stayed were he was in solidarity and unsettled patience.
It was taking the kid a really long time to RESET.
Undyne directed Alphys towards Frisk's Body. They piled the SOUL pieces in a specialized container. Undyne picked up the kid like a sack of crabapples and off they went towards the castle.
Nothing happened.
Sans started to sweat.
Why wasn't anything happening?
Sans could feel an unknown emotion crawl through his SOUL. Was time going to continue? Will everything play out well without the kid? Will he ...
Will he be free from the RESETs?
Sans flopped when Papyrus suddenly stood up. Papyrus didn't have his usual chipper aura.
"you doin ok pap?"
Papyrus looked down.
"NO, BROTHER, BUT EVERYTHING WILL BE OKAY. COME ON THEN! WE NEED TO PREPARE."
Papyrus turned to Sans and gave him a smile. A small smile filled with jaded sorrow. Sans smiled in kind. Yeah, everything will be fine.
"heh, you're so cool bro."
An old messenger bag sat forgotten in the battle torn cliff. A scuffle sounded softly down the path. A large shadow loomed over the old fabric. A gloved appendage reached to pick it up, but the fabric tore and a red orb flashed dimly on its new journey towards the ground. The aura was dim and small, but the texture of its magic was odd.
The figure dropped the damaged bag in a panic to grab the mischievous tool. It floated and looped away from the grasping hands before landing on the ground at a spin.
The orb rolled slowly towards the evaporating puddle of SOUL essence. The figure followed frantically.
Too late...
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Leaves swayed with in the breeze. The sun shone gently upon the forest. The stream trickled merrily down the mountain towards the river connecting the sea. Silence pervaded throughout the forest in one particular area of the forest. A campsite forgotten, rundown and pillaged sat deject in the sunlight of nice weather. Other than those in pursuit, no one has come up the mountain to check on the missing family.
Days went by.
Days turned into weeks.
Those weeks became months before something happened.
A sweaty indoors man huffed, puffed, and wobbled up to the camp. His appearance was disheaveled from this trek up the mountain carrying his heavy pack. Following behind him an older dog snuffled along, doing considerably better than the man. The man dumped his pack on a clearing of stone before follwing its decent to the ground. He pulled out his phone to check his search app, grumbling about low reception. He jolted when he discovered he made it. Looking around frantically, he could only see time taking its slow toll on the once campsite.
Th-thump
Th-thump
Breathing heavily he cupped his hands around his mouth, he shouted with all his worth.
"KKIIIAAAAAAAAA! FFFRRRRRRIIIISSKK!"
Tom the neighbor listened. Some birds startled into flight somewhere. His dog whined.
Th-Thump
Th-Thump
He racked his brains of every careful conversation the single mother had ever had with him. Every emotional relapse she ever had opened up to him. A name revealed. A secret kept close shared between them. A name for emergency's only. He cupped his mouth once more.
"AMANDA!"
The orb tipped on the graveled edge of the SOUL essence puddle. With a whisper on the wind, the orb fell into the puddle and disappeared beneth the surface. Silence prevailed. Gloved hands fidgeted together, their boots shuffling nervously. Then there was rumbling, a humming. It made his bones vibrate with the growing intensity.
Within the crimson darkness of the puddle, a single bright light shone. It wisped up into the air like vapor and vanished.
The rest of the puddle rippled violently. It reached up in drops, globs, then a skeletal hand. It clawed at the ground leaving gouges. The figure stepped forward to help. His gloved hand reach out towards the claws.
Ribbons of lime green magic snapped up from within the puddle to wrap around the claws. The claws struggled by digging further into the ground, but the restraints were powerful. The hand disappeared back into the puddle.
The figure's arm sunk deep in the desperate search for the struggling creature. There was pain searing into his bones, but he was flooded with something very foreign and so very familiar.
It was Passionate. It was Resolved and Driven! It filled him with DETERMINATION!
With his other arm, he searched vigorously until gripped something and pulled with all his strength with a might cry NEH! He and the creature flew through the air and over the edge of the trail.
They plunged down into darkness. Papyrus and the creature stared at each other through the crimson and lime glow. He reached one gooey mitten towards the mummifying creature.
"KIA! I KNOW YOU CAN PULL THROUGH. PLEASE, THIS WORLD NEEDS YOU. THE UNDERGROUND NEEDS YOU. FRISK NEEDS YOU NOW MORE THAN EVER. I BELIEVE IN YOU. COME BACK!"
The creature wreathed in the wrappings. It lost its vision. it's arms were bound to their sides. The creature and Papyrus collided in the air. The creature's jaws snapped into the skeleton's melting armor. Papyrus flinched.
The creature had latched onto the collar, very close to his neck.
They stopped falling. Papyrus blinked open solid eye sockets. His vision was filled with bright emerald light. Above the completed cocoon, ribbons of magic were held on by a rainbow of human hands. They were being hauled up by Kai and his comrades. Papyrus waved and grinned widely.
"THANK YOU VERY MUCH RainBow humans."
Papyrus wanted to say more, but the closer to the Human SOULs, the less he could see. It was harder to think. His bones were strangely heavy. Before his vision gave out, he could spot the grim look on the green human.