A small note before we begin with this chapter...
Although I know there were six human children, I thought it would be interesting if the monsters had only five SOULS at this point, and needed two more - one from Roger and one from Frisk (or Chara, during Genocide Route - but more of that later.)
I never saw this idea explored before, so I decided to give it a go, see how it works out!
'Whatever is written like this' marks internal thought. I'm working out until I find a proper style for thoughts as well.
I have changed the names of the Royal Guards, so I make them more feline-like (Ribras and Rasha are the equivalent of Dogamy and Dogaressa, while Parvos is the equivalent of Doggo - and they're the only ones that will make an appearance for the Feline Royal Guards.)
If you see anything marked like this, [Hi, this is Shamir] - that represents a memory of that character.
Let's see what awaits us next!
CHAPTER ONE: UNDER AND ABOVE THE GROUND
The air surrounding Mount Ebott's peak was chilly, but that didn't bother the skeleton monster that casually dug his bony feet in the snowy ground and placed his clenched fists in the pockets of his blue lab coat. The expression on his skeletal face turned from a frown to a hopeless grin, yet the aura of magic surrounding him didn't tone down in the slightest - that could mean only one thing. He was pissed. He knew Toriel got a good look at the human and saw a purple SOUL floating inside the human's chest, which was the sixth SOUL they needed, and shook his head in disbelief. 'asgore's gonna be a little mad - as always - and i'll just have to keep going with what he asked.' the skeleton monster thought as he exhaled heavily and warped back to his lab, leaving behind him a perfect circle uncovered by snow, with slight burns at the edges.
[Sans's Lab, Snowdin]
The minute his warping stopped, a sensation of familiar ground tingled his old bones, and the frown soon changed into a small grin. He arranged his blue lab coat and walked towards the big computer that he installed just a few days ago - to make it easier for Asgore to keep tabs on him, while the skeleton wasn't really pleased with the idea - and began working on the various formulae that he left unfinished yesterday. His bony fingers were rapidly dashing on the keyboard, writing figures, numbers, equations, trying to work out if any of his latest test subjects could be a proper replacement for the last two souls, should no human at all descend in the Underground, and his eyes were squinted in full focus at the computer's screen.
The lab itself was formed of two chambers - the one where Sans worked on variables and coding to make sure he can keep a tab on the Snowdin puzzles - and another where test subjects were held in containers filled with his blue magic and connected to breathing apparatuses. Those monsters used to be dead, but Sans' genius worked out so hard they were now alive, yet not completely stable to walk again in the Underground - he got dozens of emails on the Undernet about when will the families get the dust of those particular monsters to give them a proper funeral - but Sans always hesitated in answering those emails, so his trashbin was full of more than 1,500 emails on the topic.
He paused for a moment, and picked up a bottle of ketchup, staring at it for two minutes in disbelief.
'i need a break so badly...' he thought as he carefully opened the ketchup bottle and drank nearly half of it, clearing his face with the right sleeve of his lab coat. He then capped the bottle and placed it back on the already messy desk, pondering if he should just call this a day and sleep - but just then, he heard the blip of a received email.
'damn it, what is is right now?' he cursed mentally, as he looked at the new message prompt that showed up on the computer's screen. 'it better not be asgore again, cause i'm really not in the mood to handle his requests', he scoffed as he clicked lazily on the small, blinking envelope icon in the mailbox window.
It was a message from Shamir, asking him if he could spare some time to teach him a new lesson in Monsters' History, to which Sans exhaled in relief. 'i could use a break from all the equations to teach my pal something new today...' he mused as his grin widened with excitement, but just as he wanted to warp towards the Feline Royal Guard's quarters, he could hear the click of the front door and a familiar voice calling for him.
[Sans and Papyrus's home, living room]
"SAAAANS, I'M HOME!"
"great." Sans could only utter under his breath, in disbelief - he knew just how borderline-boring his brother could be, when he started talking about how fabulous his tourney of the Underground was -'just how many times has he been touring the underground again? ah...yeah, five times already. and everytime it's about how cute alphys and undyne were, and how undyne keeps saying she'll be in the feline royal guard, even if shamir has made his point that undyne is still learning to fight!' Sans shook his head at the thought.
"SANS, WHERE ARE YOU, LAZYBONES?!" Papyrus called out his brother, seeing he didn't get an answer at first.
"coming right in, paps," Sans begrudingly answered his brother, as he warped inside the living room.
Their living room was modest, with a big TV, a large red couch and a table where a green vase with golden flowers - courtesy of Asgore - was sitting, alongside Sans's pet rock, Rocky. Sans lazily sat down on the couch, while still glaring at his brother who wore a dashing tuxedo, with pink cufflings at the end and a microphone in his pocket. Papyrus' smile was really large, but seeing that his brother didn't welcome him with warmth, made the tall skeleton wonder what upset his brother so.
"SANS, WHY ARE YOU SO MAD AT ME? WHAT HAVE I DONE?" Papyrus asked, genuine wonder in his voice.
"paps, i've had enough work for today - and i'm bonetired. i can't summon the energy to listen to yet another tale of how you went touring the underground. "
"I'M SORRY IF MY TALES UPSET YOU, BROTHER. I JUST WANT TO MAKE YOU PROUD...OF HAVING SUCH A COOL BROTHER LIKE ME." Papyrus said, dumbfounded by the coldness displayed by his brother.
"paps, don't get the wrong end of the bone with that. it's just - you tell me exactly the same story, over and over - you're a great star for the underground, i get it, i love it, you really make me proud." Sans said as he closed his eyes. "but really, there are times when i'd want to talk about something else instead."
"SANS...I DIDN'T KNOW I MADE YOU FEEL SO EMBARASSED WITH MY STORIES. PERHAPS YOU ARE CORRECT, WE DO NOT SPEND SO MUCH TIME TOGETHER AS WE USED TO." Papyrus noted, with a bit of sadness in his voice. "HOW ABOUT WE VISIT TOGETHER OUR FRIENDS? PERHAPS WE CAN SPEND TOGETHER SO MUCH TIME!" the tall skeleton said as he adopted a dashing position.
"I, THE AMAZING STAR PAPYRUS, WILL MAKE SURE ME AND MY GREAT SCIENTIST BROTHER WILL HAVE A GLORIOUS AFTERNOON!"
"and here's why i am proud of my babybones brother," Sans smiled softly. "i'd be compuzzled if i said i wasn't."
"SAAAAAAAANS!"
"come on, you just smiled at it." Sans grinned widely.
"I AM, BUT I HATE IT!" Papyrus retorted, a bit grumpy about it.
[Meanwhile, on the Surface]
The red Cadillac was going with 80 miles per hour down the unmarked road, until he slowed down to look at an old, rusty indicator that said Road 80 ahead. He looked confused at the sign, scratching the back of his head, and decided to stop to a nearby village along the way, maybe somebody would know where Ebotton might be. 'Damn it, I really, really should've asked Toriel.' he chided himself for this lack of reason - when he was usually a very logical man - and placed it on the fact he found Toriel a little distracting, even for a monster. 'She was beautiful, and that fur was so soft...had I been a child, I would've wanted her as my mother,' he thought dreamily, almost forgetting to pay attention to the road, when he saw a huge truck coming down his way - and skidded the Cadillac just in time, only to end up crashing it in a tree.
'Goddamnit, Roger! Do you have any idea how much the repair will be, you dumbass?!' he berated himself as he looked at the damage in front of him - the radiator was busted, the bumper was only half-damaged - and some paint was chipped away around the headlights. 'Well, bugger. I have to look for a garage somewhere now,' he said as he searched around in the torpedo for some useful numbers to call to, and placed a few of these in his pocket, while waving desperately for someone to stop and help him out.
Finally, after half an hour of desperate hand-waving, a grey truck stopped next to the damaged Cadillac, and from it descended a man in his fourties, with a long black beard, blue eyes, fair skin, and dressed in a worker-like attire, with a blue smock-frock and a white-and-black squared shirt. Behind him stood a small child, tanned skin, a darker brown hair, with a blue and pink striped shirt and black pants, who looked at Roger in curiosity.
"That's a nasty crash you got yerself here, young man," the bearded man said. "Where did'ja want to go?"
"I'm looking for a town named Ebotton," Roger said, almost expecting the man not to believe him.
"Ebotton? Never heard of it. Perhaps you mean Esbon, right?" the stranger said, still looking at Roger in puzzlement.
"Uh, no, I meant what I said," Roger trailed, sheepishly, "but as long as I can get my car fixed, I suppose I can go with you to Esbon."
"By the way, name's Sam." the bearded man said as he extended his large, calloused hand. "And the kid next to me is Frankie, but prefers to be called Frisk. Kid's strange, but is really patient and causes me no trouble..."
"I'm Roger." our hero replied after a few moments, shaking Sam's hand. "Nice to meet you, Sam and Frisk."
Sam looked at the damaged Cadillac and, after a good five minutes examination, went to the back of his truck and pulled out a towing hook, carefully attaching it where the bumper wasn't completely busted. "Okay, I want you two to stand back. I'll try to tow the car with care, so no further damage is done."
"Sure, Sam," Roger said as he gently took Frisk by the hand and took the child to a safer zone.
The skilled worker went behind the wheel of the grey truck and slowly, with some shifting gears and whirrs of the old engine, managed to pull out the damaged Cadillac out of the tree. The car plopped with a bang, and Roger looked in total disbelief at how stupid he could be, a full-fledged palm covering his face. 'I've never been this stupid before...', he chastised himself as a frown replaced the soft smile from eariler, and Sam noted, inside the car, just how much Roger reminded him of the days when he did that.
"Don't need to be grumpy, Roge'," Sam said with a genuine laughter as he descended from the running truck, "it happened to me as well, but it's nothing that can't be fixed. Ya'll see, the car will be good as new tomorrow!"
"I sure hope so, Sam, I don't want to trouble you anymore." Roger said, still embarassed.
"Come on, hop in my truck, and hold Frisk in your lap. Kid's usually sitting the front seat, and hates to be in the back one." Sam said as a grin formed on his face, ruffling Frisk's hair with tenderness.
"Okay, sure!" Roger said, thankful that Sam was a nice guy.
[New Home, Asgore and Toriel's Castle]
"Dum dee dum... the flowers are surely growing nicely," Asgore noted, as he kept watering them, "and the day looks perfect outside, with the birds chirping so lively as ever."
Distinct pitter-patter could be heard in the distance, as well as sword-clanking, and Asgore paused for a moment, as if trying to discern the intruder's identity. "Shamir? Is that you?", the king's baritonal voice called out in the inner garden.
"Your Highness." a gruff voice replied from the shadows that covered the entrance, the stranger's breathing audible.
"Come closer, Captain," Asgore said as he gently placed the watering can among the golden flowers, and turned to face the other monster.
Shamir bowed before Asgore and then, dusting his fur, he began reporting to Asgore the events of the day, only to see the King silencing him with a paw.
"Sans has already informed me of this. Until the human will arrive in our midst, there's no possibility I could order an action against him like that."
"But, your Highness! He is a vital part of the plan to break the Barrier! I have already assembled the Feline Royal Guard and ordered them to bring the human straight to you!" Shamir protested, confused by his leader's actions.
"King Asgore is correct, Captain of the Royal Guard," Toriel said as she appeared from the shadows, wearing a mauve dress, adorned with the Delta Rune symbol on it, looking at the jaguar with a seething glare.
"But-" Shamir wanted to say something, only to see Toriel silencing him with a paw.
"No 'buts', Captain Shamir. You have your orders. You are to stay put until the human arrives in here. Under no circumstances you're allowed to hurt the humans, except for the case they would prove a true danger to our race." Queen Toriel said as she looked sternly at the Captain before her.
Seeing that his monarchs were not to be reasoned with, he didn't have any choice but to obey the orders - after all, they knew he was trying to do his duty - and agreed that he will remain at his station, and will ask the Feline Royal Guard to be on watch only in the moment any human will arrive in the Underground. The two goat monsters smiled gracefully at the jaguar monster and motioned for him to take his leave.
"Do you think he will really do what we asked of him? He's kinda reckless sometimes..." Asgore voiced his concerns, as he scratched the back of his head.
"He will. Everytime he walks in here, I can sense his deep respect for us, even though he finds our decisions quite puzzling." Toriel said as she softly smiled towards Asgore.
"He seems to be a self-sacrificing monster at all costs. Wonder if that's because we have been through a lot..." Asgore noted with bewilderment.
"Time will tell if he's going to evolve in the role he has." Toriel said, almost convinced by Shamir's strength.
[Feline Royal Guard's Headquarters, Waterfall]
Shamir still did not understand why his monarchs have refused such an opportunity. He was a tactician, he didn't like to miss a chance when it presented itself, and yet Asgore and Toriel were right. If he would've gone through with his idea, the war would've been at paw faster than King Asgore wanted - the jaguar captain had to admit that the king was no fool, even if he was a gentle soul at core - but then again, the master decisions would always come from Queen Toriel. He sighed and looked at the Underground map for the eleventh time, studying each and every corner from where he could place better sentries and - if Sans would agree - some turrets of sorts so the Underground is better defended.
He pulled out his knives and marked where the Underground began and end, while muttering under his breath "There are just not enough sentries for what I want to do...and no monster is willing to join our ranks, saying we're far too tough for their tastes," he finished his rant by banging his paw in the table.
"Captain?" a male voice rang outside Shamir's chambers.
"Who goes there?" Shamir asked, with a rather tensed voice.
"Parvos, the sentry of Snowdin, sir." a white leopard dressed in black robes said, as he stood in front of the door.
"Come in, come in, Parvos." the Captain said as he sat on a white ottoman.
"Sir, what are your orders? Ribras and Rasha have sent me to-" Parvos began, his brown eyes staring at the fearsome leader.
"We are to stay put in our stations until the human, or humans, arrive." Shamir said as his eyes closed. "Queen Toriel's orders. You do not want to cross Her Majesty, I presume, Parvos?" the jaguar monster added.
"No, sir. But if the human is dangerous?"
"Only then we're allowed to attack and defend the Underground," Shamir said as he raised from the ottoman. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I expect an old friend of mine to come by." the Captain said as he gently ushered Parvos out of his chamber.
'I'll be damned if Captain Shamir knows what he does...' Parvos thought as he walked away from the headquarters towards his station, while stopping to announce Ribras and Rasha of their new orders.
[Alphys and Undyne's House, Waterfall]
"Alphy, where the heck are you?" Undyne said as she looked for her younger sister.
"R-Right here, 'Dine!" Alphys said as she was reading an anime magazine in the gardens.
"Whatcha read here?" the fish monster asked as she stole her sister's magazine.
"H-HEY! G-give it back! It's a r-rare Mew Mew manga!" the lizard monster said as she began chasing her sister.
"Ooh, you're reading about this human that can kiss other humans and do whatever they want for her?" Undyne teased, a big grin on her face.
"S-Stop! Just g-give it back! I-" Alphys said as she covered her snout in shame.
"Just teasin' ya, little sister. Here, you can have it back. After all - I HAVE BEEN READING IT TWICE ALREADY -," Undyne replied as she gave back the manga to Alphys, a hearty laughter escaping her.
Undyne hugged her small sister, then returned to the gym inside their large house - because Alphys loved to tinker with scientific things and would, more than once, ask for Sans' advice about it - and Undyne wanted to train hard enough to gain Shamir's respect and to be accepted in the Royal Guard. She began summoning blue spears and pierced nearly every dummy in the room, and felt a little disappointed that she wasn't perfect. 'NGAHHH, I don't want to be less than perfect! If I want to be in the Royal Guard, I have to work thrice as hard!' she scolded herself and began fighting with the last dummy that she didn't pierce. She practiced kicking the dummy in the head, at the torso, the arms and legs, until she panted with exhaustion. She then reminded the speech Shamir would give to one of his younger recruits of the Royal Guard:
[If you want to be a member of the Royal Guard, there's no such thing as giving up in here. I know, it can be hard at times, but your goal was to be among us, right? If you do not give out your maximum potential, then how are you expecting to be successful in battle? Now come on, press on, and always be vigilant!]
'Shamir looked so cool right there, like a real leader, encouraging that recruit to press on.' she thought as she dawdled on that particular memory. and began pulling some chin ups to fortify herself, sweat stemming off her and a look of determination in her eyes.
Outside, Alphys looked at how cool her sister was, and how proud she was of her. 'I hope Captain Shamir will one day fulfill her dream of entering the Royal Guard...day after day she tries so hard to prove herself...'
[Esbon, Kansas, after six hours of driving.]
"Here we are, Roger! The small, nice town, of Esbon..." Sam said as he looked at the small houses and shops that appeared welcoming.
"Phew, that was one long drive, Sam. Do you know where the garage is?" Roger asked as he scratched the back of his head.
"No, but we can ask around. In the meantime, let us find ourselves a place to sleep. Frisk looks awfully tired."
Indeed, the small child was fast asleep in Roger's lap, and while the latter didn't have any experience tending to children, he did his best to ensure that the child's slumber was not disturbed at all by the various bumps along the road. Frisk looked so oddly similar to him - as if the small human was a perfect replica of his - and a thought crossed his mind, 'Maybe, if the child will get used to my presence, they will open up...?' Sam noticed the thoughtful expression on Roger's face, and nodded solemnly.
"Yup, that's how I can get Frisk to talk...sometimes," Sam said as he descended from the truck. "Wait here, I'll go ask around and see if there's any garage."
Roger looked at the small child in his lap, and gently awoke them with a soft noogie, "Hey, Frisk. Wake up, buddy...we're in Esbon already.", to which Frisk looked at the man in curiosity and smiled, a pair of funny eyes staring at Roger.
After a few minutes, Frisk noticed the absence of Sam and looked at Roger in questioning, while the latter didn't quite catch up on the kid's puzzlement as he was busy looking towards the shop Sam entered before Frisk woke up.
"Where's Sam?" Frisk uttered, as if almost scared of their voice.
"Huh? I'm sorry, did you ask me anything?" Roger turned towards Frisk, eyes widened.
Frisk shook their head and pointed towards the empty driver's seat, to which Roger - finally - understood what the child wanted to know, and probably did ask.
"Ah, Sam is just in that shop, asking for directions..." Roger answered Frisk's concerns, but the young man couldn't help wonder what took Sam so long.
'He's in there for 10 minutes already - maybe he's just shopping and asks for directions.' Roger thought as he looked towards the modest building Sam was in, with a firm named Simone's Shop. But as he was looking down the street, he could see a masked man, about five feet and eight inches tall, wearing a torn brown jacket with many pockets, torn blue jeans with rolled edges, and a black pair of shoes. The masked man looked determined in his pace, because, three minutes later, Roger saw him enter the shop Sam was in, and muffled sounds were heard from inside the shop.
What he did hear loud and clear though, were two gunshots, and saw the man breaking down the door, running away with a black bag.
Roger saw, in the shadows where the door used to be, someone struggling to move outside - a woman, perhaps? - while Frisk looked with scared eyes towards Roger as they desperately tugged on his shirt. "Not now, Frisk, please...lay low and be quiet!" Roger said sternly, but softly, to the insistent child, while watching the shadows dissipating.
In the twilight's aura, stood a trembling woman, in her thirties, with red hair, wearing a blue turtleneck blouse and white skirt, the latter stained by something - and the only words she could utter were...
"Help! H-help...a-a man...a man just died in-in here!"
