Chapter 19: Masked Mechanical Monster-Goht

"You cannot be serious…" Toriel's worried voice resonated through the room. They both had finally recovered from the initial shock of the quake. But, many aftershocks were shaking the Underground. Both were utterly confused on what was causing these enormous tremors.

However, Chara was not just going to stand there. Everything was shaking around them, as the pounding of something huge relentlessly persisted. The human had a soul now, and emotions were making them worry about whoever was near whatever was making that.

Of course, their mother would be persistent. "My child, there could be danger out there…" Who wouldn't after just finding out their child had risen from the dead? It wasn't unjustified that she did not want Chara leaving. It was just fear that she would lose them again.

Toriel had already let many children leave the Ruins, and none had returned. She still had no news on what had happened to Frisk. It worried her, but she was sure Frisk was still out there. She had to believe it was the case. If not, Asgore would have already shattered the barrier…

Of course, Chara knew this. It was a rational fear. Telling her that Frisk was alive still would lead to even more questions that they did not have time for in the immediate moment. "Look, trust me on this. I know how to handle myself out there." That many runs would definitely put you out of any danger.

The one thing they did fear was that nothing like this had happened, ever. It could be something completely new and unpredictable. If their soul had really started fading like they had seen while fighting Toriel, was the power of loading still in their hands? Maybe Frisk would have an idea. Where was that kid anyway?

"But, your… soul." The mother spoke in worry, motioning to their chest. "It is still so fragile. I do not want you risking your life outside."

Chara sighed in annoyance. If they did not have a soul right now, they would have just cut their mom down to get passed her. Which, now with a soul, felt like a horrible thing to ever consider doing in the first place. Now, they were stuck with trying to instead convince the overprotective mother to let them out of the Ruins.

They thought for a moment for a response. Toriel would not listen to pleading, then they'd have to be a tad more rude. "No, my soul is fine. Mom, if you really believe there is something dangerous out there, shouldn't you, the Queen of Monsters, be doing something?"

That seemed to hit home. Toriel flinched backwards slightly, hurt in her eyes. She wouldn't step down. "I am no longer Queen of people that murder innocents. I am merely concerned for your safety."

The offensive side of Chara was coming back. "Oh yeah, you abandoned everyone else to stay in the Ruins, when you could have swayed everyone. Asgore is so broken right now, that he-" They bit their tongue. It hadn't actually happened in this timeline… but they had indeed seen it. Asgore would kill himself if Flowey didn't end him on his own…

He was broken beyond belief, and their mother had made him that way. Then again, they weren't completely innocent either. Chara was the reason the Underground was the way it was. They were the whole reason this situation had even started. Blaming it all on Toriel was a foolish and hypocritical decision.

"He what?" Toriel asked, face emotionless. "What did Asgore do this time?" She waited for an answer, but received none. "I left because I would not take part in the slaughter of children. Neither will I let an unknowing monster hurt you."

They tried to evade the question about what he did. However, they needed to get out of here and find out what was going on. This timeline was so bizarre already, that any disturbances needed to be found out. "Then why don't you come if you're so worried. Because you aren't stopping me."

"Stop being so persistent! I won't let you d-"

-10

Chara's incoming fist collided with the mother's face, catching her off guard with the hit. Their fighting tendencies were not gone. While Toriel was stunned by the blow, the human ran out from their bedroom, making a sprint for the basement. They had to get out of there.

By the time they had leapt the railing and were headed down the large hallway, thundering footsteps were heard from upstairs. They didn't have much time to get the hell out before Toriel caught up. She was calling after them frantically, but they didn't listen.

*Masked Mechanical Monster-Goht…

1000 ATK 10000 DEF

Goht was quickly changing after being struck by Skull Kid's magic. The horns on the front of the goat's head were growing longer. With a blinding flash, they began glowing a bright purple. It's eyes turned a dark shade of red, glowing as well.

Frisk noticed an eye on its back, peeking out every now and then. It was being covered by a translucent purple shield made of magic. If they had to guess, it was important. The menacing beast became ten times more threatening when its metallic armor it wore became reinforced with magic. Or… was that just its body. Electrical currents darted across its body, making anyone striking have to be extremely careful.

Their soul had popped out of their chest, shining with defiance against the beast. Brandishing the Worn Dagger, Frisk prepared for whatever this beast could do to them. However, they felt a stinging pain resonate from within their soul.

12/12 HP

It felt like they were being ripped apart from the inside. And they could see why. Their soul seemed to be breaking apart. The outside layer stayed mostly intact, but it was the area in the middle that fell away completely. An empty black void in the shape of a soul was all that remained in the center.

They could even feel their hope depleting.

Did this have to do with that the Skull Kid said about Chara?

The mechanical creature roared, beginning a charge on the Canine Unit. Dogamy and Dogaressa were the first to have a reaction. Their halberds flashed out of their robes as Goht made his charge. They both swung their massive axes in on its head, trying to possibly gain a hit on its skull.

They were only met with a shock. Not the emotional shock, a literal one. The electricity around its armored body rendered melee hits useless. Frisk began sweating when they realized wolves were surrounding them and Papyrus. The first thing Frisk tried was checking these new monsters.

*Wolfos

They completely forgot that without Chara, they could not see the stats. All they knew was the name. Great, now they didn't even know how to reason with it. Could it even be reasoned with? There were maybe four circling the two of them. How would this work out?

Two ran in as the other kept their distance. However, they were fairly slow. Papyrus summoned defensive bones, as to try not to hurt the offending monsters. The wolves had no idea how the attacks worked, and instead completely ran straight through, trying to slash at the human and skeleton.

Papyrus was ready, turning both of their souls blue and sending them as far away as possible. The two others once again charged in. Frisk had spent lifetimes recognizing battle patterns. This was simpler than it looked. They would run around, and then come in for a standard strike.

The Wolfos slashed at them with its claws. They were easily parried by a few knife blows. Papyrus summoned a bone staff in his right hand, hitting the Wolfos across the head and sending it sprawling through the snow.

Goht was causing havoc, tearing through the guard dogs like it was nothing. Doggo was flipping out, seeing that Goht was constantly moving. That began giving Papyrus an idea. He'd need to get rid of all the smaller monsters in pursuit as they would indeed be a problem.

Undyne took command, trying to stop Goht. She first attempted turning its soul green. However, a purple barrier made itself known, blocking the soul changing effect. It roared, enraged at the warrior. Lesser Dog and Greater Dog raised their spears, trying to protect their leader. She did not need it.

Readying her magic, she flung a fist upwards. Spears began tearing from the ground, flying higher an higher until reaching a stopping point. They rained from the heavens, pelting Goht, blow after blow. The metallic spears clanked harmlessly off of its armor, only leaving scratches. This thing was nearly indestructible.

Robed goblins emerged from the woods, a fire staff with one and an ice staff with another. Frisk began sweating, cursing at just how many enemies there were out here. The guard was going to get overwhelmed easily. Goht was the main issue, but if they all focused on him, his buddies could take them out unexpectedly.

Before Goht could charge Undyne with its horns, Asgore had already slashed with his trident. He pulled it sideways, clashing with the beast's horns. They came to a deadlock, both goat monsters pushing with extreme ferocity. How powerful could boss monsters even get? Asgore was definitely holding back. Was it for the safety of the surrounding area?

Papyrus had an idea of how to handle Goht, but he just needed to get free from these monsters. Dogamy and Dogaressa were stuck fighting with ice statues that began forming from the ground. They fired ice bolts at the Dogi, trying to freeze them with the intense magic. This was getting overwhelming. They both tried to block with their halberds, but it was getting difficult to keep up. Even Greater Dog and Lesser Dog were focusing for once.

The goblins that had come from the woods were teleporting everywhere. Frisk had no idea what exactly they were, but the combination of fire and ice attacks was confusing. It was Undyne who was forced to deal with them. She was firing spears every direction, trying to land a hit. They were dodging effortlessly.

However, they stopped for a moment, charging a powerful attack. That was all the time Undyne needed. She swiped a spear across. The goblins did not even notice what she tried to do. Green magic enveloped them, holding them into place. The strange thing that Frisk noticed was the lack of a soul… Shouldn't they have one? Or were they completely unable to feel compassion?

The goblins found that they weren't able to move. Undyne was able to send spears their way. They were unable to defend, getting speared straight in the chest. Life disappeared from their eyes as they turned straight to ash. Frisk choked down the memory of them doing the same to many other monsters in the past.

Another wolfos leapt from the snow, trying to gain another hit on the human. Luckily, these enemies were predictable as usual. They leapt out of the way, avoiding the strike. Papyrus was struggling against them as well. There were so many now.

Asgore was sweating now, trying to hold back Goht. Both were pushing as hard as they possibly could. The king's eyes snapped open, fire burning around his trident. It pelted the armor of the beast, but didn't even leave a scratch. The magic protecting it was too strong. How would they get in?

Goht's horns began glowing brighter. It responded with a searing burn in Asgore's soul. It was not physical damage. It seemed like some defense mechanism. He was forced to release his defense, dodging to the side. Goht didn't begin the charge immediately. It reared on its back hooves, charging purple lightning from its horns.

Everyone prepared for it to hit them, but that wasn't the case. Goht struck its own helpers, making them all lock up and cease attacking. The Guard used the time wisely, attempting to attack the offending monsters. However, a purple barrier came to life around them, protecting them from any blows.

Undyne grimaced, raising even more magically charge spears into the air. "What is this DAMN MAGIC?" All of them glanced harmlessly off of the beasts.

All of the attackers were beginning to contort, turning into even more horrid things. The many Wolfos began growing black and grey fur. Their eyes shone yellow as their fangs grew longer. They were probably two times the size. Frisk began sweating, despite the cold of the area. Speaking of cold, the ice statues that sprung from the ground were now growing double heads and moving at double the speed. This was more unpredictable.

Papyrus tried to take initiative to help the Royal Guards attack. "EVERYONE, I HAVE AN IDEA. BUT I NEED YOU ALL TO FOCUS ON EVERYONE BUT THE GIANT GOAT. JUST DISTRACT THEM."

No one questioned, trying to see if his idea would work. They were running on empty, and any plan would be considered good to try. Asgore was reluctant to stop his attack on Goht, but he decided to give it a shot.

Goht faced the skeleton, hot breath escaping its nostrils. This was a big leap, but Papyrus had nothing to lose at this point. Blue bones began sprouting from the ground, tearing through the ruined forest. Goht roared, charging the skeleton.

The thing with Papyrus is his constant eccentric battle style. Frisk had seen it many times, no matter what the timeline was. He always fought with some sort of flair to his movements. And, that was exactly what Papyrus was about to do. He took his cape off, holding it in his right hand.

As soon as Goht was close, he made a swift leap to the left, the red cape blowing in the wind as the beast charged by. It gave the exact impression of someone fighting a bull with a red cape. The skeleton snapped his head to Goht who was making his way back over.

His right eye turned orange as he began his second attack. He stomped his foot into the ground, a flair of orange and blue pulsing around his foot. Bones produced from the ground, making a protective shield. Goht had no idea how the attacks worked, charging straight through. Papyrus waved his red cape, enjoying the moment.

The bones were nullified by the magic barrier, but then did their job. As soon as they passed by the barrier and were under Goht, blue bones tore through the beast's shell as he kept moving forward. Papyrus had found out how to do damage. Blue attacks were exactly what needed to be used. While in the ground, blue attacks worked. That gave him another idea.

As Goht's horns neared to piercing the skeleton, he leapt into the air, carrying himself in an orange aura. For style, he performed a series of flips in the air before driving an orange bone through the barrier. It became lodged, but would not disappear as the barrier was not moving. This would be constant damage as it was now stuck in the shell. This was perfect.

The other monsters were struggling against the many Wolfos' and the ice sculptures… However, as soon as Asgore joined in, their power began being dwarfed by his. The king was extremely powerful. Fire erupted from the prongs of his trident, melting the icy environment, and the statues with it.

Shadows covered his eyes as he swung his trident around at the many Wolfos'. One escaped his view, leaping behind him for a clawed strike. A spear crashed through it before any damage could be done. It growled, facing the offender. Undyne held up a glowing green spear, changing its soul to green. Four spears pierced right through its chest, reducing it to ash.

Undyne and Asgore stood back to back, more Wolfos' rising from the snow with bared teeth. Teacher glanced back to student as a flurry of fire and spears was unleashed. Asgores trident spun in his hand, his cape blowing in the wind. Many Wolfos' were struck down in the process. Undyne froze them in place, spearing them all straight through the chest with ease.

Alone, they could not win. But, when they fought in sync, they could beat anything.

That's what they thought.

Goht roared, stomping its hooves into the floor of the Underground. Giant boulders dislodged from the mountain ceiling. No holes were created, but there was plenty of room for spare rocks to fall. Being that everyone was fighting close together as to help one another, they all fell to one location. Directly on top of all of them.

Asgore lifted his trident, trying to shield the others. Whether it worked or not, Papyrus couldn't tell. They were all covered in the boulders, vanishing from view. "ASGORE? UNDYNE? FRISK?" He tried to call out. No one answered… He gazed out, his eye igniting in disbelief. To his relief, he was able to sense their souls still alive within the cage.

The time he used checking to see if they were alive caught him off guard. He barely had time to summon a protective bone staff to deflect Goht's horns ramming into his ribcage. Papyrus was not as strong as Asgore, being thrown backwards in a heap. Harmful blue lightning tried to strike him as he rolled out of the way.

In the time, he was able to lift a rock with his magic. It was only one, as he couldn't focus his magic enough to get them all. The hit had disoriented him. Goht stood over him, preparing a magical lightning charge between its horns. The skeleton realized what was happening, and tried to get out of the way. However, much to his shock, Goht rushed forward with his horns, and tried to pin the skeleton before he could react. There was nowhere to go.

Fear… that's the emotion he felt...

"Screw this Snowdin air!" Chara internally screamed, still rushing through the thick woods. They had lost Toriel far back in the woods. When escaping the door, they ran into the trees to hopefully get her lost. It had been a close call, but thank god they had learned to be quick on their feet through past resets.

The tremors were still being felt over and over again. They were rather irritating at best if Chara had to admit. But, the deeper they went into the woods, the louder and greater they became. Chara was almost lured to the possible destruction. Magic was definitely in the air around these parts.

On instinct, they slightly ducked when a more powerful rumble was heard. Rocks had fallen from the ceiling of the Underground, and nearly scared the life out of them. "Stupid rocks…" They muttered, stepping by the large boulder. But, they stole a second glance, wondering what could cause that to happen.

They continued further, drawing closer to the source of the tremors and magical power. It had only been a few moments before fluttering of wings were heard around them. They arched a brow, looking up into the trees. An owl had made its way through the barrier somehow. That was new… It was no secret animals sometimes would cross through the barrier. They were not confined to the laws of it as their souls, or lack thereof if it was the case, were neither human nor monster. The human paid no mind, continuing to walk.

The owl came to a perch on a branch above them, gazing curiously. Chara was becoming annoyed that it was following them. Maybe it was just their irritable attitude. Either way, they were eager for something just to yell at to vent a little bit of anger. "What? Get lost stupid owl."

The animal tilted its head slightly to the right. That was when something unexpected happened. "It's rude to talk that way about your elders, child…"

Chara's eyes narrowed dangerously at the owl. They could not say they were surprised, as talking animals weren't exactly new around here. However, they were not amused with the antics this timeline was putting them through. "I don't have time for this…" They muttered, continuing on their journey.

"If you were smart, you would stop where you are moving and listen." The owl persisted, leaping to another branch. Chara was still ignoring it, walking further. "Hey-" The human kept walking further away as the owl was forced to fly in front of them. "Would you just slow down!"

"Hmm, let me think about that…" Chara gave a fake smile before it turned into a demonic one. "NO."

The owl sighed in annoyance. "All right, then you leave me no choice… Chara Dreemurr, I am here to task you with a quest important to the success of the Hero of Ti-"

"Could you just… not?" It took every fiber of their body not to pick up a stick and whack this stupid owl. "I really could care less right now." Once again, they proceeded forward.

"This is urgent! All of the monsters are in trouble from a powerful beast deep in these woods!" It persisted, flipping its head upside down.

Chara was about to lose it. "BIRD BRAIN! I AM HEADED OVER THERE RIGHT NOW!"

"Yes, but there is only one way to stop it. You must take an item I will give to you after a very long explanation on how to use i-"

"DO. I. LOOK. LIKE. I. CARE." This owl was going to be their dinner if it didn't shut up.

The owl scowled, before pulling something out from under its wing. It seemed like a purple lens of sorts. If anything, Chara thought it looked extremely cryptic. "Just take the Lens of Truth. You'll die if you don't."

"Really? Because I've experienced death already, idiot." The human frowned, picking up the Lens of Truth anyway. "But, I guess I'll take it just because you're offering me free tools…"

It was content with that. "Amazing! Now, I must teach you how to use it. First, you must-"

Chara was already off in the direction of Goht, giving no craps whatsoever. "GIVE ME ONE MORE TUTORIAL OWL, I DARE YOU!"

A grin appeared on its face knowingly. "Would you like to hear what I said again?"

AN: I just had to do that bit at the end. I'm sry XD

Sorry if this is lacking in quality. I'm running on no sleep right now...

Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the chapter. And, the Goht battle will finish next one.

Exams are in two weeks, so updates will slow. Please understand.

BadDRUMMERboy15 Signing Off.