nightelf37: Come to think of it, now that I've played Iji again, I realized that some of the things she's gotten aren't possible in-game, but can be gotten in-story after the game's events, so I'll just edit things in.
Oops, I did it again. Let's just assume she shuffled her inventory around.
Phone Inventory:
Cinnamon Bunny, Dog Salad, Dog Residue, Nice Cream, Nice Cream, Nice Cream, [Empty], [Empty], [Empty]
Satchel inventory:
Supplies, Canteen, Water-Purifying Pills, Flashlight, Pen, Tasen Logbook, Stick, Barbs of Wire, Bookmark, Box of Raisins, Toy Knife, Worn Glove, Worn Glove, Manly Bandanna, Ballet Shoes, Bag Of Misc. Junk, Torn Notebook
Box Storage:
Beans Can, Butterscotch-Cinnamon Pie, Snowman Piece, Old Tutu, Spaghetti, Abandoned Quiche, Cloudy Glasses, Crab Apple, Sea Tea, Spider Donut
Tasen Logbook Records:
directions_to_snowdin, ascii_catgirl, color_tile_puzzle_guide, monster_compendium, temmie_village_directions, gaster_note, the_undertale, underground_compilation, ask_gerson_about_the_king_later, negotiation_proposal_(draft)
Iji's Nanofield
LEVEL: 55, HEALTH: 10, ATTACK: 10 (last few points gotten after the end of the game), ASSIMILATE: 10, STRENGTH: 10, TASEN: 10, KOMATO: 10, CRACK: 10
10 out of 10 Supercharges Collected (the one in the generator acquired post-'game'), All Weapons (inc. Null Driver) Collected, Scrambler Acquired (given to by Yukabacera), Jump Upgrade, Armor Upgrade Level 3, Nanofield Reset Learned
To ThatOneGuy: That phrase I put in the end is just by farewell phrase. Nearly every fanfic author whose stories I've read have such. It's supposed to make me unique (I think), and it's a reference to the "Who's On First" routine. I explained it at the end of my second chapter in Kingdom Hearts Remake 1 (Retcon Version).
As for Iji's LV, it's seen in Chapter 1, when she first checked her phone. Her LV not being 1 there is alluding to the fact that…well, I'd rather not spoil the details for those who've yet to play (or watch a Pacifist Run Let's Play) of Undertale. And something about reflects in Iji 1.6. How LV works still applies in the context of what she did.
For point of reference, it's October 10 in the story. Iji entered the Underground sometime in the afternoon at October 7, and time travels a small percentage faster in the Underground as a weird side-effect of the Alpha Strike hitting the Barrier. Magic and all that.
It was a much shorter time than she had thought, but Iji was surprised to see the Temmie shopkeeper back already, and with her graduation cap, as well as a boxed item that read "Temmie Armor" on the outside. Temmie college must be vastly different from what she was thinking.
"tem bak from cool leg, tem learn MANY THINs, learn to sell new ITEM! yayA!" said the shopkeeper.
"Congratulations!" replied Iji, then asked. "So, what's that Temmie Armor?"
"tem armor so GOOds! any battle becom! a EASY victories! but, hnn, tem think… if u use armors, battles wouldn b a challenge anymores."
"I think I'd prefer that, actually." I mean, I did see that thing in Sector X where one can bring Tor's exoskeleton to Maximum Charge, but I didn't use it because why the hell would I?!
"but tem…have a solushun!"
Oh?
"tem will offer…A SKOLARSHIPS! if you lose a lot of battles, tem wil LOWER THE PRICE! so if you get to TOUGH BATTLE and feel FRUSTRATE, can buy TEM armor as last resort! but tem armor so goods, promise to only buy if you really needs it. in fack… PRICE MAY ALREADY BE LOWERS! WOA! Congra-tem-lations!"
"Whoa, really? How much is the armor?"
"Well, the orig price is 9999G, but wit your SKOLARSHIPS, tem sell it to you for…750G!" (1)
Iji couldn't believe her ears. Was this "Temmie Armor" so good to deserve such an exorbitant price tag? And even with the discount, it's still pretty costly. But she wanted that armor. An exploitation be damned, she was going to get it. Come to think of it, she had a little more junk in her satchel to sell. And maybe Temmies might like beans.
"bOI!"
When Iji exited the Tem Shop, she was clad in the Temmie Armor. For whatever reason, she was expecting something out of cardboard or maybe a Temmie strapped to her body, but it was actually like a standard knight's cuirass and shoulder plates, though it did expectedly have a Temmie motif and colors matching the shopkeeper's T-shirt. There was also a warm feeling of magic coating the armor, and when she checked her Phone, she saw her HP slowly rising. (2) Huh. Who knew they could make something so great?
Bidding the Temmies farewell, she continued through Waterfall, using another flare to help light the way. It certainly helped now that the next area seemed to dim. A set of glyphs she passed read Without candles of magic to guide them Home, the monsters used crystals to navigate. But since she had a flare, that wouldn't be necessary.
Eventually getting out of the twisted bio-luminescent grass path, she found her way to a dark narrow corridor which opened up to a shallow flooded area. To her left was an alternate path, but Iji decided to press forward, which opened to dry ground. It did lead to a dead end though, marked by an Echo Flower, and some tall grass to the left.
Wonder what this says? Iji mused as she approached the flower.
"Behind you," came a gruff female voice from it. Immediately turning around, she saw that Undyne was on the other side, leaving her trapped in this corridor as the captain approached her target, her heavy armor making sounds with every step. Realizing she might need to actually fight her, Iji tossed the flare down to the floor between them and unholstered her Nanogun.
"… Seven. Seven human souls," she said. "With the power of seven human souls, our king… King Asgore Dreemurr… will become a god. With that power, Asgore can finally shatter the barrier. He will finally take the surface back from humanity… And give them back the suffering and pain that we have endured. Understand, human? This is your only chance at redemption. Give up your soul… Or I'll tear it from your body."
Undyne then crouched as she summoned a spear. Iji set her Nanogun to Resonance Detonator mode. She really did not want to kill her.
"I guess you haven't heard, huh?" the human replied. "Do you know about that earthquake that hit here? And the 'aliens' that came in here and attacked your people? Well, they blasted the entire world with huge lasers. There are so few of us left there's room now for all of us to share. And what about the aliens you fought off? Can't their souls substitute for a human's? That's what I came to tell your king."
Undyne did not dignify that with a response as she began to charge forward…only to stop as Kid suddenly emerged from the tall grass and ended up between the two.
"Undyne! I'll help you fight!" He then noticed nobody was talking as he looked back and forth between his idol and his new friend. The flare continued to burn right underneath the captain, but she didn't seem to mind. "YO! You did it, Iji! Undyne is right in front of you!" He then looked back at the armored monster. "She told me that she apparently got you really, really mad because of something she did. What did she do that you would want to beat her up?"
Undyne's response was to dismiss her spear, approach Kid, and pull him away by the face (since he had no arms to be pulled by), leaving until Iji could no longer see them.
"H-hey! You aren't gonna tell my parents about this, are you?" he was saying as she was pulled away.
Once they were gone, Iji re-holstered her Nanogun, retrieved the flare, and held it up before heading to the other path she found earlier.
The next area consisted of a low flooded area with Echo Flowers, although the terrain between the path seemed to be lower for some reason, and the water wasn't flowing to those areas. Iji ignored this phenomenon and pressed forward, listening to the conversation that seemed to have taken place here once before, recorded by the flowers.
"…hmm… if I say my wish… You promise you won't laugh at me?"
"Of course I won't laugh!"
"Someday, I'd like to climb this mountain we're all buried under. Standing under the sky, looking at the world all around… That's my wish."
Then came the sound of laughter.
"…hey, you said you wouldn't laugh at it!"
"Sorry, it's just funny… That's my wish, too."
On a set of glyphs on a wall before a right turn, she saw the prophecy she read once before in the Snowdin library. The Angel… The One Who Has Seen The Surface… They will return. And the underground will go empty.
After taking the right turn, the wall eventually ended there and a long wooden bridge stood ahead, supported by wooden supports and one rock formation. Around her ware stalagmites, stalactites, and formations where those two met and fused. Just before she could reach the other side, though, she heard a voice.
"Yo!"
Iji turned around and saw Kid, without Undyne, and approaching her. But why was he doing this? Surely Undyne already told him what she was, right?
"Yo, I'm not supposed to be here, but… I wanna ask you something."
"…All right," she replied cautiously.
"Man, I've never had to ask anyone this before… Umm… Yo… You're human, right? Haha."
She nodded in response. "That's why Undyne's after me."
"Man! I knew it! …well, I know it now, I mean. Undyne told me,um, 'stay away from that human'. So, like, ummm… I guess that makes us enemies or something. But I kinda stink at that, haha. Yo, say something mean so I can hate you? Please?"
While she knows this might be best for Kid, Iji just couldn't being herself to, especially if Undyne shows up again. "No. I can't."
"Yo, what? So I have to do it? Here goes nothing…" Kid steeled himself however much he could. "Yo, I I… I hate your guts."
"…" His insult really was pathetic, especially when she's heard much worse trash talk from Krotera, Asha, and Iosa.
"Man, I… I'm such a turd. I'm… I'm gonna go home now."
Kid then backed up a bit before turning around and running once more. He then tripped, like he usually did, but since he was on a bridge, he now found himself dangling on the side, barely hanging on with his teeth.
"KID!" gasped Iji.
"Yo, w-w-wait! Help! I tripped!"
And as if to make things worse, Undyne chose this time to enter the scene, now standing on the other side of the bridge, but Iji knew what she had to do. Ignoring the captain for the moment, who was also making to move but was a bit hesitant, she moved in to pick up Kid and set him down safely on the bridge. And then she backed away to ensure Undyne that she wasn't going to use him as a shield, putting her hands up in gesture of peace. "Come on, Kid. Go to her."
Instead of doing that, though, Kid faced Undyne and stood his ground. He was shaking, but he remained where he was. "Y… y… yo… dude… If… If y-you wanna hurt my friend… You're gonna have to get through me, first."
Undyne for her part backed up one, step, then another, and then walked away, to Iji's relief and surprise.
Kid turned back to face Iji. "She's gone… Yo, you really saved my skin."
"Of course I did, Kid," she replied. "It was the right thing to do."
"Guess being enemies was just a nice thought, haha. We'll just have to be friends instead. …man, I should REALLY go home… I bet my parents are worried sick about me!"
With that, he began to walk back the way Undyne came, only to turn back to Iji once more to say "Later, dude!" before finally absconding.
"Bye!"
Now, without any distractions, and holding no illusions that Undyne will continue to go after her despite that, Iji continued forth, making her way back to solid ground. Before she did, though, she needs to call someone.
"Ansaksie?" she called.
"Yeah, Iji?"
"I feel I'm about to face Undyne once again soon. Can you promise me something?"
The Komato did a cautious pause."What?"
"Don't kill her, even if she's gonna try to kill me."
"I'm not sure about this. You remember what we did to Iosa?"
"Iosa and Undyne are not the same. I'll admit I had notions of trying to spare her then, but that was just me holding on to my beliefs, as well as getting your kind to leave. These monsters live here as much as humans do, and I can't make a bad impression by killing their captain of the guard.
"Iosa was a psychotic elite soldier of the Komato fleet; Undyne's her people's heroine. Even when she was after me, I could tell she was more concerned for her kind. She pulled a kid out of the fray rather than fight me and hope the kid runs. When that same kid defended me after I saved him in front of her, she didn't go past him to fight me anyway. Besides, you had something personal with Iosa and you wanted my help."
There was a pregnant pause before the Komato spoke again. "…All right. It's your mission, after all, and you did defeat Tor and Asha. Undyne shouldn't prove much of a problem for you."
"Thank you, Ansaksie."
"Another thing. About Iosa. If you had spared her then by not meeting up with me, she would've killed you, no matter what Tor would've said, even if they were together. To be called the Invincible, and yet be beaten, she wouldn't be able to take the humiliation, and she would've made sure that you would die for real the next time she ran into you. (3) We did right killing her. I couldn't have done it without you."
"I guess. Be seeing you, wherever you are."
"Closer than you think. I'll be watching."
And the transmission ended there. All right. Without Kid backing me up, Undyne's clear to come after me. And after four failures, one she brought onto herself, I'm betting she's waiting in the next area. Continuing on, after Iji crossed another small wooden bridge to another patch of solid ground, she found herself at a path that turned left into a tunnel cutting through a huge crag. And standing atop this crag was Undyne! And off in the distance were pipes and steam-based machinery.
"Seven," the captain said. "Seven souls, and King Asgore will become a god." Undyne then turned to the right. "Six. That's how many we have collected thus far." She then turned to look down at Iji. "Understand? Through your seventh and final soul, this world will be transformed." She then turned to her right again so that she looked like she was facing left. "First, however, as is customary for those who make it this far," And then she faced Iji once more. "I shall tell you the tragic tale of our people." Turned to the left again. "It all started, long ago…"
Iji waited patiently, not taking out her Nanogun yet.
"… No, you know what?" All of a sudden, Undyne was shouting. "Screw it! Why should I tell that story when you're about to die!? NGAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Her voice grew so loud at the end there that Iji had to turn away. When she looked again, Undyne had her helmet off, showing that she was a piscine, anthropomorphic monster. She had blue scales, a long red ponytail, and red and blue fins on the sides of her head. She also now had her back turned, but she eventually turned around once more, showing a a pair of sharp, yellow, protruding teeth, red eye shadow, an eye patch on her left eye, her right eye had a black vertical pupil and yellow scleroses, and she lacked a nose.
"YOU! You're standing in the way of everybody's hopes and dreams! Alphys's history books made me think humans were cool with their giant robots and flowery swordswomen."
What? She sounds like one of those shonen animé protagonists…, Iji thought as she un-holstered her Nanogun.
"But you? You're just a coward! Hiding behind that kid so you could run away from me again! And let's not forget your wimpy goody-two-shoes-schtick!"
Too passionate. No reasoning with her from this distance.
"Oooh! I'm making such a difference by hugging random strangers!" Undyne mocked before resuming her hot-blooded mood. "You know what would be more valuable to everyone? If you were dead! That's right, human! Your continued existence is a crime! Your life is all that stands between us and our freedom! Right now, I can feel everyone's hearts pounding together! Everyone's been waiting their whole lives for this moment! But we're not nervous at all. When everyone puts their hearts together, they can't lose!
"Now, human! Let's end this, right here, right now. I'll show you how determined monsters can be! Step forward when you're ready! Fuhuhuhu!"
For some reason, the wind started to howl, and this made Iji all the more determined to get past the captain of the guard, one way or another, but without Undyne becoming dust in the process. It felt like one of those moments in those animé, where rivals faced one another. She had enough of that one-sided shit with Asha. But she could feel the sincerity in Undyne's claim. If this was someone who can be befriended, it'll have to be done by combat, or saving her life. But right now, Iji's priority was reaching Asgore, and that means passing Undyne, and so she prepared to break into a run.
Before that could happen however, Iji was assaulted with visions.
Unable to escape, Iji was forced to throw down with Undyne, exchanging shotgun blasts and dodging spear attacks. The battle was fierce, and both were equally determined to win it.
Before long, one final blast from Iji brought Undyne down to her knees. Iji herself was also down to a low HP count, Cinnamon Bunny and two Nice Creams already consumed. She was saving one for Undyne.
"Ngahhh… You were stronger… than I thought…" the captain said between huffs of breath.
"I was not bragging when I said I plowed through two armies." Iji wasn't as tired, but she was also kneeling.
"So then… this is where… it ends…"
"It doesn't have to be. Just take me to your king."
Despite her injuries, Undyne summoned a spear and used it to prop herself to her feet. "No…NO! I won't die! Alphys… Asgore… Papyrus… Everyone is counting on me to protect them! NNNNAGH!" With one last swing, she bound Iji's SOUL in place once more, and another spear spawned in the human's free hand. "Human! In the name of everyone's hopes and dreams…I will defeat you!"
"Undyne! Stop doing this!" Iji pleaded.
"Come on, is that all you've got!?"
Both Nanogun and spear were used to block the incoming attacks. Undyne was smiling as if nothing was wrong. As if she was taking pride in this sacrifice. A sacrifice that was frankly misplaced and unnecessary.
"…pathetic. You're going to have to try harder than that!"
"I don't want to fight you! I've told you that the entire fight!" Undyne's attacks were getting slower as her body began to waver, like her body was about to fade from existence and she was just hanging on with sheer determination.
"S-see how strong we are when we believe in ourselves?"
More attacks. Even slower than before. Undyne's body was losing its shape. Iji could clearly tell Undyne was about to die. And she didn't want that to happen. "Let me go, Undyne. Please…"
"H…heh… Had enough yet…"
More, or to be precise, less attacks. And even slower. Holstering her Nanogun and opening her Phone's inventory, Iji took out her last Nice Cream and extended it to Undyne. "Undyne. Take this. You don't have to die."
She ignored the offered healing item. "…I won't… …Give up…"
Only three attacks came, straight from Undyne's direction, and were stopped effortlessly. And the ripples were reaching her head. Iji was starting to tear up, not having cried like this since hugging her brother Dan outside the facility as they watched the Komato fleet leave. "I'm begging you. Take it!"
And still she didn't, all while keeping Iji's SOUL pinned.. "…Ha… ha… ...Alphys... This is what I was afraid of... This is why I never told you..." And then, it was as if Undyne found the resolve to continue on. "No… No! Not yet! I won't die! NGAHHHHHHHH! I WON'T DIE!" And her body seemed to pull itself back together.
However, this seems to have terrible consequences, because her body was starting to melt. Alarmed, Iji began trying to pull herself to the dying monster, but her SOUL was still green, and it refused to her her move.
"I…WON'T…DIE!"
Undyne's mantra was becoming slower. Iji continued struggling against her SOUL's immovability.
"I…WON'T…DIE!"
No. No. Please don't!
"I… WON'T…—"
The second Iji's SOUL became red, she was onto Undyne in an instant, Nice Cream ready to be forcefully shoved into her mouth. Unfortunately, the monster's unstable body meant that upon reaching her, Undyne instantly dissolved into dust, which bypassed Iji's Nanofield and coated her body except the back.
Iji had seen living beings die before. The corpses of Dan's colleagues and other humans, Vateilika shooting Krotera in the back, Ansaksie dealing the final blow to Iosa, Tor committing suicide, not to mention all the Tasen and Komato that died trying to kill her or fighting each other. But for some reason, Undyne's passing struck her much more. She could feel her body quivering as she fell to her knees, and then down to her hands, letting the unused Nice Cream fall a short distance away.
She felt the tears fall from her eyes.
She ignored the Phone in her hand notifying that her LOVE has increased from 10 to 11. (4)
She ignored Ansaksie teleporting right behind her.
"Why…" Iji began to mutter.
The Komato respectfully said nothing.
"Why did she have to throw herself at me?"
Ansaksie still thought speaking now was improper.
"Why does everybody important have to fight me? Elite Krotera. Assasin Asha. Iosa the Invincible. General Tor. Toriel. Papyrus. And now Undyne. Each time, I wanted to just talk to them peacefully or just get past them. Each time, they didn't listen, and I had to fight them. And each time, save Papyrus and Toriel, they have all died. Not by my hand, but I'm still partly responsible."
"Iji…" the Assassin began to speak.
The human pounded the ground with a fist in frustration, cracking it, and cutting off her friend. "Why?! Why do I have the worst luck when it comes to the important people?! Why can't I do it right with them?!"
"Don't blame yourself, Iji,"Ansaksie tried to assure her as she continued to cry. "Asha's always been an asshole. Peaceful talk has always been a foreign concept for Iosa. And Tor's always been a slave to public demand. I can't say anything about Krotera, though."
It took a while before Iji finally calmed herself down. "I just wish I could turn back the clock. Do things over. Use what I know to make sure I don't—"
And then she was suddenly back to reality. And Undyne hadn't taken advantage of this opportunity to impale her with a spear.
What the hell was that?! Iji thought. (5) No. Best think of that later. I must not hurt her much. That's what I should remember. And then, she steeled her resolve as she got ready.
Undyne sensed it, too. "That's it, then…! No more running away!" She jumped off the crag, spear out, ready to impale the human. "Here I come!"
But Iji was already past her. However, Undyne had another trick up her sleeve. As she got up, Undyne turned around and hurled her spear, hitting her mark. Not only did Iji's SOUL start to glow, it also turned green, and she found herself incapable of moving it from its current position. While she can still move her body around, it was only as long as her SOUL remained where it was. For the moment, she was stuck.
"En guarde!"
Left without a choice, Iji unholstered her Nanogun, only for a spear of energy to manifest on one hand. (6)
"As long as you're green, you can't escape! Unless you learn to face danger head-on… You won't last a second against me!"
She then flashed a menacing smile as she summoned arrows of energy that came Iji's way, who used the Resonance Reflector to return them to sender, though the third was slow on the arrival. The human then used the spear to block that arrow.
"You underestimate your opponent, Undyne!" Iji countered.
"Not bad! Then how about this!?" Another volley of arrows, two in front, two from the left, and two from the right. The front ones were reflected, while the side ones were stopped with the spear.
Iji ignored the smell of sushi that seemed to waft from the captain. "You don't know the first thing about me!"
"For years, we've dreamed of a happy ending…" Spears closed in both from left and right and were promptly blocked. But Iji missed the one coming right from behind. "And now, sunlight is just within our reach!" As the captain bounced impatiently, she launched another volley, which closed in on Iji from all directions, forcing the human to spin to block them all. The last of those came from Undyne's general direction, and the Resonance Reflector was used on them to return to sender, but for all her hot-blooded passion, Undyne was certainly much smarter than the aliens Iji fought, and dodged them with ease. "I won't let you snatch it away from us!"
"And I won't!" Iji talked back. "I'm gonna break the Barrier myself!" Another volley came, and this time, Iji saw the one arrow coming from behind and used the Reflector to send it away. She also saw Undyne drawing her finger across her neck.
"NGAHHH! Enough warming up!" In came another volley from all directions, but at the last second, Undyne swung her spear, turning Iji's SOUL red again, banishing the spear from her hand, and sending another one her way from the side. Iji ducked on instinct and the spear sailed over her head, then holstered her Nanogun as she ran straight for Undyne.
The captain met this by running headlong as well, spear in hand. Reading her opponent's move, Iji weaved around the attack, quickly closing in on Undyne, then clotheslined her by the neck before running down the path to Hotland, her SOUL fading as soon as she made good distance.
Undyne was quick to get up from that though and was immediately pursuing her. She seemed to be going faster than the first time they clashed. Probably an adrenaline rush or something.
Iji just managed to reach what looked like a digital marquee that said WELCOME TO HOTLAND! when Undyne managed to catch up to her and render her SOUL green again. Once again, a spear of energy appeared in her hands. No using the Nanogun this time.
"You won't get away from me this time!" the captain declared. "Honestly, I'm doing you a favor…" She then proceeded with another set of energy arrows, which Iji easily blocked. "No human has ever made it past Asgore!"
Another volley, with one slow-moving arrow headed to the human's left, but quicker shots from the other directions nearly caught her off guard. Key word being "nearly".
"Killing you now is an act of mercy!"
Another volley, this time consisting of a fast volley of arrows from both sides, and then front-and-back volley.
"So stop being so damn resilient!"
After yet another volley of arrows, an off-guard swipe of Undyne's spear like last time turned Iji's SOUL red again. And like last time, the human dodged it easy.
"What the hell are humans made out of!?"
Undyne summoned spears all over the area before sending them straight for Iji, who evaded them as she unholstered her Nanogun and fire the Resonance Reflector once more, sending some of the spears away.
"Anyone else would be dead by now!"
This is getting out of hand. Iji thought as spears came out from the ground like the time she encountered her with Kid. I have to subdue her somehow! I wonder if a hard blow to the head will knock her out? That should do it. "No human has the protection or weapon I have!"
Undyne took this time to render her opponent's SOUL green again, and the spear re-manifested itself.
"Alphys told me humans were determined…"
Undyne's next volley of arrows came with one that looked orange and seemed to be flying backwards. And then that arrow curved until it was 180 degrees from its previous position in respect to her, making an attack from the right an attack to the left instead.
"I see now what she meant by that!"
Another volley coupled with those orange arrows.
"But I'm determined, too!"
Yet another volley of regular arrows, followed by a volley or orange ones.
"Determined to end this right now!"
Instead of another volley of arrows, Undyne grabbed a huge boulder from the side, lifted it like it was nothing, then hurled it straight at Iji. (7) The human hoped her Nanofield works against huge objects like this and delivered a kick to it, cracking it quite a bit before returning it to sender. Undyne countered this by sending a lot of spears to slice it apart.
"Whoa!" Undyne had to admit. "You're much cooler than you look! But I still need your SOUL."
"Why?!" Iji replied. "I know for a fact that there have been others before me that came here and fought your kind. The kid even saw you kill one of them. Haven't you tried using their SOULs?"
"Alphys is still finding out the answer as we speak, but until then, human SOULs are what we need, and there is one right in front of me!" Spawning a spear in her hand, the captain charged forward, and at the same time turned Iji's SOUL red again, but did not banish her spear.
Iji turned her weapon around so that the pointy end was facing away from Undyne, then swung it to divert the captain's thrust attack. "Seriously? A few months and still no answer from her and her research team?"
"Research team?" scoffed Undyne as the two began to clash their spears against one another. "Alphys is the only scientist working on this, and ever since the attack, she's also the only one left!"
"One or two attacks wiping out all but one of monsterkind's scientists? Surely that's not true! And are you sure she hasn't taken in any interns?"
"None that I—wait, why am I telling you this?!" She put a lot more effort into her attacks, and it took Iji everything she had just to keep up.
And then her Phone started to ring. And for some reason Undyne stopped attacking and even backed off and gestured for Iji to answer it! The human dropped the spear she had on hand, took out her Phone and answered it in one hand, while unholstering her Nanogun with the other hand and setting it to Resonance Detonator mode.
"HEY! WHAT'S UP!?" It was Papyrus! "I WAS JUST THINKING… YOU, ME, AND UNDYNE SHOULD ALL HANG OUT SOMETIME! I THINK YOU WOULD MAKE GREAT PALS! LET'S MEET UP AT HER HOUSE LATER!"
"Undyne's with me right—" Iji quickly edged in but he already hung up. Seemingly knowing the call was over, Undyne charged straight at her, but the Resonance Detonator quickly repelled her all the way to the other side of the corridor they were at. (8) Iji then immediately hotfooted down the path, bypassing the marquee and making her first steps into Hotland.
The first place she found herself in was a raised platform of reddish rock with a "wooden" bridge ahead (likely a rock formation painted to look like wood), as well as freaking magma right below. It made Iji nervous, since while Yukabacera once said that Nanofields can repel even molten rock (if they can withstand surface-of-the-sun hot drinks), the air trapped in her Nanofield if that happened means diving in it can still eventually kill her.
Oh, and a sentry station was there, too. Sans was manning it, and there was even snow on the roof (somehow). But the skeleton seemed to be sleeping, and Iji wasn't sure where his loyalties lie. So she ignored him for now and crossed the bridge. Already, she can hear the mad footsteps of Undyne in pursuit. Eventually, the bridge ended in another raised platform that had a water cooler complete with a holder for plastic cups.
Feeling a little thirsty, Iji thought she could use a quick break and poured herself a cup; surely she could drink it and go before Undyne makes it here.
And then she heard the sound of heavy armor. And it was slow. The human turned to see the captain of the guard just about to cross the bridge as well, but something was wrong.
"Armor… so… hot…" she panted. "But I can't… Give up…" And then she collapsed, and it made Iji panic a bit.
Crap. She must be overheated! No way that water over there can help her much! Immediately, Iji filled another cup, rushed over to Undyne, then splashed it all over her armor in hopes of cooling it down. Then, positioning herself correctly, Iji bent down, lifted Undyne over her shoulder, then started walking back with her in tow. (9) With her Nanofield's Strength upgrades, it was quite easy.
As she passed Sans' station, she swore she saw his eye flash for a moment before finding herself past it and close to the path with the marquee.
It was a silent walk all the way back to Undyne's house. Or at least it would've been had she not awoken. And she was unsurprisingly shocked to see the human she was fighting carrying her.
Feeling her move, Iji immediately said, "If I wanted you dead, I would've thrown you into the magma. I told you I didn't want to fight. But I understand why you did; you hold the burden of the fate of your kind on your shoulders. You feel like this is what you must do, although I'm sure you do like some of it."
Undyne took this in as Iji lit a flare before speaking up. "So where are you taking me?"
"To your house."
"What?! How did you know—"
"Papyrus told me where. That was him on the phone by the way. He was hoping the three of us could hang out sometime."
Seeing as she lacked the stamina to escape the human's grasp, Undyne let herself hang for now. But as soon as she was confident she could get out of the human's grip, or if the human made any move to dispose of her… "Wait. You actually think I'm gonna be friends with you? You're the enemy of everyone's hopes and dreams. I will never be your friend."
"I'll settle with not being your enemy. You don't even know why I'm here. Nor do you seem to care."
"Well, obviously you want all monsters to be dead. To finish what your kind started in the war."
Wow. She's pretty stubborn. But I'll reach her. "If that was the case, then Snowdin would've been a ghost town, Papyrus would be dead, and so would you the moment I saw you."
"You're here to assassinate King Asgore, then. After gaining everybody's trust, once you reach him, you're gonna attack him when he's most vulnerable, because you know you can't take him in a straight-up fight. No one can."
"You could've kept an eye on me if you took me to him. Have me watched 24/7."
"So, why are you here, really?" By this point, the two were just passing by Gerson's shop.
"I'm here as an ambassador between mankind and monsterkind. I know we've had our differences, and there's the whole war centuries ago, but a lot of things have changed in the surface, and I believe cooperation is vital if both our races are to survive."
The piscine monster was confused. "Survive? What the heck are you talking about?"
"Later. We're here."
Indeed, Iji and Undyne were finally at the latter's house, and Papyrus was standing in front of it, facing the door. Because she thought Undyne wouldn't like to look weak around Papyrus, even though she's already looked such in front of every monster the two have bypassed on the way here, Iji put her down and helped her stand up.
"There." She then called out to their mutual friend. "Hey, Papyrus!"
The skeleton turned around and was surprised with whom he saw. "IJI! UNDYNE! I'VE BEEN WAITING!"
Undyne then seemed to remember something. "Oh. Right. Your extra-private, one-on-one training."
Iji realized certain implications with that one sentence, but she already knows the training is just exactly that.
"YOU BET!"
Undyne looked to the human who carried her all the way back here, then to the Royal Guard wannabe she's been training, and then to the human again. Iji seemed to be patiently urging her to make her decision. Papyrus looked like he really wanted the three of them to hang out together. Eventually… "Why don't you two come in?"
As if in response, the door Papyrus was standing close to opened up like a mouth. Papyrus immediately stepped aside as the two females walked in together, after which he followed.
The interior of Undyne's house consists of a kitchen with a table, a chair, a fridge, a large sword, a piano, and a window on the left side of the house. The only other door aside from the entrance presumably led to Undyne's own room. The home owner immediately went to the last of those, presumably to change clothes, while Iji and Papyrus stood side by side with the entrance behind them.
Eventually, Undyne exited her room, now clad in a black tank top, jeans, and red sneakers. "So are we ready to start?" she asked.
Papyrus spoke up. "WHOOPSY DOOPSY! I JUST REMEMBERED! I HAVE TO GO TO THE BATHROOM! YOU TWO HAVE FUN!"
"Huh? You need to shower so soo—" Iji was about to say when she got cut off by him running to the window and jumping through it, crashing through the glass. "Okay…" She turned back to Undyne. "Does he do that often?"
"Yeah," the piscine monster responded. "But normally he nails the landing. So…where were we?"
"Right. The survival of our races. This'll take a while. Better prepare some drinks."
Just like with Toriel, Iji explained what life had been before the Tasen Alpha Strike, and covered her entire story, starting with what the last scientists of the D.C.M.F.P.R. Research Facility did to her while she was in a coma before they died, continuing with her discovery that it had not been just the Facility that got hit but the entire planet, that she did not (personally) take a single life as he marched through all the soldiers trying to kill her, to make it to their leaders so they could leave, and getting herself tangled in the Tasen's last stand with the Komato. Starting from her awakening to finally getting Tor to call off the Komato, all of this happened in the span of two days. Iji also made a point to include the friends she made among those races (but not mention Ansaksie being here for now).
During this, tea was prepared (and Iji decided they were going to go through one cup of each flavor Undyne had) and they drank. Occasionally, Undyne interrupted her to ask certain questions regarding "human culture" she learned from Alphys. She seemed disappointed that humanity basically went down to the Tasen without even so much as a fight; monsters at least managed to battle humans before being driven back into this mountain. ("Where were your colossal alien-fighting robots?!" "If we ever had any, I think their Alpha Strike destroyed them all. We didn't even know they were there until they struck. But by then, it was too late.")
By the time Iji was done, Undyne was impressed with the battles the Human Anomaly went through, and how her desire to not kill the aliens that attacked her nearly mirrors her journey through Snowdin and Waterfall. She was also skeptical about the truth behind Iji's weaponry ("I'm saving them all for the Barrier. I might need every single ammo to break it." "The Barrier can't be broken with brute force. We've tried everything." "You didn't have me back then. And the Alpha Strike didn't hit it back then."), as well as amazed with how the human drank the tea without so much as flinching from its hotness.
After that, Undyne noted their current cup of tea they were drinking, golden flower tea, was King Asgore's favorite kind, and that Iji reminded her of him; both were "total weenies…sort of", and then covered the Underground's own battle against the alien forces. Tasen forces only entered from the open end of the Barrier at Asgore's castle (and presumably from the Ruin entrance through which Iji entered), and the king was able to decimate them all. Komato forces eventually followed, their Berserkers teleporting in from the ceiling, and two massive Annihilators entered through the Barrier along with Troopers and Beasts, leaving Asgore and his best guards to fend them off from there while Undyne and the rest of the Royal Guard defended the populace.
Casualties weren't as high as they could've been, but a lot of Royal Guards lost their lives: Doge, Intermediate Dog, Demiwolf, Quasihound, Overhusky, and Least Dog of the Snowdin Canine Unit (10), RG 05, RG 06, RG 07, RG 08, and more. In a stroke of bad luck, every single Moldaverage was also killed. She also swore she saw powerful bone attacks around, but she doubted they were from Papyrus.
Discussion eventually shifted to more lighthearted things. After Iji told Undyne parts of her pre-Alpha Strike life story, it was the captain's turn, and she looked a little somber.
"Y'know I was a pretty hotheaded kid. Once, to prove I was the strongest, I tried to fight Asgore. Emphasis on tried. I couldn't land a single blow on him! And worse, the whole time, he refused to fight back! I was so humiliated… Afterwards, he apologized and said something goofy… 'Excuse me, do you want to know how to beat me?' I said yes, and from then on, he trained me. One day, during practice, I finally knocked him down. I felt… bad. But he was beaming. I had never seen someone more proud to get their butt kicked. Anyway, long story short, he kept training me, and now I'm the head of the Royal Guard! So I'm the one who gets to train dorks how to fight! …like, uh, Papyrus."
She paused for a bit to catch her breath, and Iji waited patiently. It felt nice succeeding in convincing someone who wanted to fight her to not fight her.
"But, um, to be honest…I don't know if… I can ever let Papyrus into the Royal Guard." Iji raised an eyebrow in response. "Don't tell him I said that! He's just… Well… I mean, it's not that he's weak. He's actually pretty freaking tough! It's just that… He's… He's too innocent and nice! I mean, look, he was supposed to capture you, and he ended up being friends with you instead! I could never send him into battle! He'd get ripped into little smiling shreds. That's part of why… I started teaching him how to cook, you know? So, um, maybe he can do something else with his life."
She was silent after that for a bit before she realized something.
"Wait a second. Papyrus… His cooking lesson…" She immediately stood up and clenched her fists as she flexed her arms. "He was supposed to have that right now! And if he's not here to have it, you'll have to have it for him!" Undyne leaped upward and back-flipped as she landed on one end of the counter, then began sidestepping it all the way to the other end. "That's right! Nothing has brought Papyrus and I closer than cooking! Which means that if I give you his lesson, we'll become closer than you can ever imagine!"
Iji decided to stand up at this point. "Not so fast, Undyne! I've tasted his cooking, and now I know who to blame!" She then pointed at the captain like a certain defense attorney. "Allow me to teach you how we cook spaghetti!"
What happened next was a bit of a hassle. Thankfully, Undyne had all the necessary ingredients, but her boiling passion to do things full force clashed with the meticulous instructions that should've been followed. It forced Iji to push her away and berate her with just as much fervor. Half of her time spent cooking was used to keep Undyne from messing things up. Most memorable of these moments was the prolonged wrestling they did while Iji waited for the prerequisite 10 minutes.
Iji was forced to take Undyne outside before the first minute, after which the captain decided that since they were outside, she no longer needed to uphold hospitality and demanded a rematch to regain her lost pride, summoning her spear and letting her opponent attack first. Already having her patience reach the breaking point throughout the cooking lesson, Iji, her SOUL glowing, after calming her heart and mind to ensure that she had no killing intent behind her attack, decided to deliver a powerful kick, striking Undyne in the chest and sending her to the wall behind her, making it crack from the impact…but the captain looked more startled than hurt.
"What. That's the best you can manage?" she asked. "Even attacking at full force, even after it sent me crashing here… You just can't muster any intent to hurt me, huh? …Heh, you know what?" Undyne let go of the spear she managed to clutch onto and it disappeared. "I don't actually want to hurt you either. At first, I hated your stupid saccharine schtick, but… The way you hit me right now, it... reminded me of someone I know train with. Now I know you aren't just some wimpy loser." She managed to crack a smile as she got herself off of her impromptu crater. "You're like Papyrus if he were more like me, but never let go of his incredible compassion."
Undyne sighed as she stood up straight. "…Listen, Iji. It seems that you and Asgore are fated to fight. But knowing him, he probably doesn't want to. Talk to him. I'm sure you can persuade him to let you try things your way. If that doesn't…well, eventually, some mean human will fall down here, and I'll take their soul instead. That makes sense, right?" She let out a laugh. "Oh, and if you do hurt Asgore, I'll take the human souls... Cross the barrier, and beat the hell out of you! That's what friends are for, right?"
Iji cracked a smile. Looks like I was able to befriend Undyne, after all. Oh, wait. She immediately turned to the house and ran inside. "The spaghetti!"
"Oh, right!" Undyne gasped and went in, too.
Thankfully, the spaghetti was saved, and Iji finished the cooking lesson with the proper application of tomato sauce. She and Undyne then had it for lunch (or is it technically elevenses, as the British say?), and Undyne was enamored by its flavor, but Iji didn't think it was that good. Then again, seeing that Undyne was why Papyrus was terrible at cooking spaghetti, her standards were likely low. Iji made sure to leave behind instructions, and promised she will teach Undyne again if she finds her spaghetti…lacking in quality, and she would restrain her all over again.
After exchanging phone numbers, Iji prepared to leave. "Well, time for me to go all the way back to Hotland."
"Wait," said Undyne as she brought the dishes to the sink to wash them. "There's a faster way to get there."
That caught her attention. "Where?"
"South of Gerson's place should be the river. It connects to Snowdin and Hotland. If you need to get from one place to another, jump in! The River Person should be there or in two other stops."
"Oh. That one. How much is the fare?"
"Fare?"
"How much do I pay for a ride?"
"Normally it depends on where you are and where you're going, but today is Free River Ride Week."
"Well, that's convenient. Thanks, Undyne."
"What're friends for?" She then waved goodbye. "See ya later, punk!"
After leaving Undyne's house (11), Iji went to the place her new friend told her, and found a completely hooded figure on a wooden boat. It was impossible to determine their gender, let alone anything else beneath.
"Tra la la. I am the riverman," they introduced themself. "Or am I the riverwoman...? It doesn't really matter. I love to ride in my boat. Would you care to join me?"
Perhaps she's feeling a little too trustworthy at the moment, because Iji didn't hesitate to say "Yes."
"Where will we go today?"
"Hotland."
"Then we're off…"
The…ferry monster, which the monster_compendium file "identified" as the River Person, just like Undyne said, waited for Iji to board the boat before embarking.
The trip was relatively boring, but the boat seemed to be moving at a speed that wasn't natural for rowboats. Maybe the boat was a monster, too, just like Woshuas (probably) and some of the Hotland monsters like Tsunderplanes and Pyropes.
The River Person wasn't particularly talkative, either, and only said this in the middle of their trip. "Tra la la. Beware of the man who speaks in hands."
"That sounds discriminatory. The mute people can't help it, if they even have hands at all; it's the only way for them to communicate apart from writing."
The River Person said nothing as they continued sailing. Eventually, they reached their destination, and the boat stopped at a similar drop off point like before, except it ledt to a stairway made of the same rock in Hotland, as well as four grilles for circulating hot air.
"Come again some time. Tra la la."
Iji thanked them as she got off the boat and climbed the steps.
The area she found herself in was a bit of a crossroads, with three paths available. Well, one was technically being blocked by two huge monsters in black armor, which was probably treated to withstand Hotland's innate heat (which Iji's Nanofield somehow easily repelled to keep her from sweltering). The path to her left led to the water cooler (put by Dr. Alphys for Undyne) and was an alternate entrance to Hotland from Waterfall, and the right led to a large white-and-red building labeled Lab.
Hoping for some help, Iji decided to call Undyne.
"Yeah?"
"I've reached Hotland, and I'm seeing two guards blocking one of the paths. Well, there's one that leads to the Lab, but that's private property, right?"
"What!? Royal Guards are blocking the way!? Then I'll tell them to...! Well, nothing, I guess."
"Why?"
"I already told them to seek out and destroy you! And I can't just tell them I've changed my mind. You see, Alphys showed me these animations about… Uhh, humans? So I can learn their weaknesses? And one of them is about this human that, uh… Well, suffice to say, they can control people's minds!"
Iji was starting to doubt the sources this Dr. Alphys used for research on humans, and wasn't impressed. "Mind control," she deadpanned.
"Surprised? I know your kind's hidden power!"
"Actually, that's not true, but there might be a special few I don't know."
"Sure, sure…" Undyne sounded like she didn't believe her. "Anyway, I told my crew that if I ever defended a human, I must be under some kind of mind control! And to disregard everything that I tell them! So, sorry... But my hands are tied. By the way, that animation is really good!"
"I see. Do you think Dr. Alphys will help me get past them?"
"I wouldn't know about that, but her Lab has two entrances. You can easily pass through if she lets you in."
"Will she let me in?"
"I think she would. We talked about you earlier and saw your…battle with Papyrus over the cameras."
So those cameras were hers. "I see. Thanks again, Undyne. Catch you later."
"Later!"
With the call concluded, Iji immediately avoided the guards and went straight for the lab. And its door opened automatically as soon as she approached it. Well that's certainly ominous. Left with little choice anyway, Iji stepped inside.
nightelf37: And there we go. I apologize if the fight might not have been as intense as it should be, but this is someone who doesn't want to fight but is capable of doing so. Also, I said from the start that this is a writing experiment, so don't expect anything stellar.
(1) Yes. Temmie somehow counts the deaths Iji suffered (not that she'd remember) throughout her own game. Playing pacifist runs tends to be difficult, after all (except in Undertale, where you're encouraged to do a pacifist run). I decided to go for the full discount for laughs. Normal Mode for Iji isn't actually that difficult.
(2) Since we don't know what Temmie Armor actually looks like, I decided…not to go for a joke appearance and go for a standard armor appearance, since I thought it'd be hilarious if they can actually make armor like this.
(3) That's right. Iji 1.7 has Spare options, but you have to meet certain conditions to have these options available for you to make a choice with.
(4) Because Iji's EXP is 1337, the 500 she gets when Undyne dies takes her to the next LV.
(5) This is a previous run in a SAVE before ReLOADing. I wanted to add this scene without making it canon.
(6) Yes, Undyne gives the Child a spear, which she mentions when you deliberately get yourself hit by her first attacks.
(7) Another departure from standard gameplay for two reasons. One, it wouldn't be as entertaining. Two, her opponent is clearly not some nigh-helpless child.
(8) At first, I debated on adding Iji seeing an HP bar (as this was the first time she deals damage onto a monster), but ultimately decided against it.
(9) Because the Human Child is so small, of course carrying Undyne wouldn't be an option for them, no matter their Determination.
(10) Some of these canine characters are a reference to the Mega Crossover project called the "TV Tropes Pantheon" and how deities there are classified as follows power-wise/influence-wise from weakest to strongest (not that those in the former can't beat those in the latter): Quasideity, Demi[god(dess)/deity], Lesser [God(dess)/Deity], Intermediate [God(dess), Greater [God(dess)/Deity], and Overdeity. Their names are inspired by Lesser Dog and Greater Dog. Doge is from cut content in the Undertale game.
(11) Yup. For once, it isn't burnt down.
Up next: Iji meets up with two very well-known individuals in the Underground.
See ya on Third!