Chapter 54: Run! from the Quiet Water
The five headed through the dump south of Undyne's home back to where Frisk had confronted the Mad Dummy. A secret alcove lead further south where Frisk saw more trash piles.
Chara glanced around.
"Wow, this place really is a train wreck."
"So where exactly is this place?" Frisk asked Alphys.
Everyone boarded a wooden raft where the water that had covered the ground had grown deeper and Alphys took an oar while Undyne took another.
"the old Waterfall is deep in the dump. most of it just consists of worn down buildings due to it flooding all the time. the only building left in tact was the grand hall. before we moved, everyone lived here but the trash built up and there was no room for us to live so the town was moved elsewhere. i used to live there before that time."
"Really?" Undyne asked.
"y-yeah," Alphys said.
"I always wondered what was down here."
As they traveled deeper into the dump, Frisk saw piles of trash gathered to the sides and a large building made of crumbling blue stone in the distance.
"Is that the grand hall?" Frisk asked pointing at the building.
"yeah."
Finally they made it to the shore of trash, getting off and walking towards the building.
Once they made it inside the large building, Frisk saw it had a lot of blue scattered around inside. The walls were made of blue stone while the seats and tables were all a mix of blue stone and oak wood. Three white dogs were situated at one table. One was in a large suit of armor making them look rather large and the other two were also in suits of armor but where the large dog had pointed.
The two other dogs had floppy ears.
At another table was a blue rabbit and a green dragon monster in suits of armor. Their helmets were situated on the table in front of them.
"This place looks pretty empty doesn't it?" Chara noted.
A tall black flame monster stood behind the front counter serving drinks with a green bull-like monster. Frisk sat in front of the pub in one of the seats ignoring Chara.
He whirled around .
"I keep my eye off you for one second and you run off."
Frisk addressed the black monster behind the counter.
"So do you have any water?"
"Does this look like some kiddy establishment to you. I serve only liquor here."
"You kind of look familiar," Frisk said. "You wouldn't happen to be related to Grillby would you?"
"You think every monster that looks alike has to be related in some way? How ignorant can you be?" Chara asked.
"What kind of question is that? Of course we're related. He's my brother."
Chara glanced at him with surprise.
Frisk looked confused.
"It's weird because he never mentioned you at all."
The monster grinned.
"Well, he doesn't like to waste words, we weren't exactly best pals y'know."
"So what's your name then?"
"Name's Smoky. Y'know because I'm black."
Chara chortled.
"So what kind of drink ya want? I got Get Shrunk, Boomblast, Blood and Silence. If you're ditching a girlfriend or a boyfriend, I'd recommend Bloodbreath, it contains margarita and ketchup. Tastes good but causes bad breath," he said with a grin.
"I want to try the 'boomblast'."
Smoky looked at Frisk like she was crazy.
"Are you crazy that stuff's highly explosive."
Frisk grinned.
"Ah, now I have to try it."
Smoky smacked his forehead.
"Well it's your funeral."
He headed to the back room.
A shrill sound came from the backroom as well as some shuffling.
'Is someone back there?'
"I'll go see," Chara said phasing through the door.
Inside he saw what looked like a red loox tied to a chair with a piece of tape over their mouth.
'Wait don't I know them from somewhere? I think I heard him say their name before.'
He phased out the door returning to Frisk's side.
'So you can phase through doors too, huh?'
Chara smiled confidently.
"Well I figured if I was really a ghost then I should be able to do it. That's what ghosts typically do don't they? They phase through walls."
'So was someone in there?'
"Just a loox though they look like the one we met before in the library."
'What is Layax doing here and why is Grillby's brother holding them at this place?'
Frisk was contemplating this as Smoky returned with a black substance in a shot glass.
The surface of the drink was on fire.
"Wow, I've heard rumors about it but I didn't know it was true. This stuff is legend for being the only liquid that's very explosive while being entirely safe to drink."
"Well if you want your body to feel funny for a couple of days. It gives you the crash of normal liquor wihout any perks."
"i heard the boomblast is made from pollen from the echo flowers," said Alphys.
"You seem to to know an awful lot about these things."
"well i am a scientist after all," she said.
"Huh, that sounds cool."
"I used to enjoy it at least at first."
Alphys remembered when an orange monster had seen her stove that froze food instantly.
"Great invention. I love it. Now to get the green patent, Tommy has to give your invention his seal of approval. He's expecting you in his office Sunday next week at 8 o'clock in the morning."
That Sunday, Alphys headed to Tommy's office in Waterfall.
Alphys waited for some time before Tommy had stepped out of his office.
"Ms Draygon, I've been expecting you."
Alphys' mouth was agape.
"You looked surprised," he said.
She chuckled.
"I just didn't expect you to be so short."
The brow above his left eye twitched.
"Don't worry, it happens all the time."
Alphys followed him inside.
The room was small, most of the walls were covered in filing cabinets. A desk and two seats stood in the midst of it.
"Have a seat," Tommy said. "Now what purpose does your invention have?"
"Um, it's supposed to freeze things."
"Like what?"
"Food, I guess."
"Why would you do that?"
"Maybe to prevent it from spoiling."
"What purpose would that serve when our food doesn't spoil."
Alphys shrugged.
"Are you insulting my intelligence?"
"Not at all sir."
"You cut me off. How rude."
"I'm s-"
"Never have I been so deeply offended, goodbye."
Alphys headed out without a word.
"I guess after that I got discouraged," she said.
"If you like it, it seems strange you'd give it up just like that. I mean if it was me, I'd try again. You win some, you lose some but I would have been persistent," Frisk said.
Alphys shrugged.
"well that's understandable i mean you don't look like a person you can compromise with."
Chara chuckled.
'Just what's that supposed to mean?' Frisk thought.
"Well she does have a point. You can be very stubborn when you wanna be."
Her thoughts must have been written on her face because Alphys began to visibly shake.
"uh, er I mean-"
Frisk found herself amused by this despite herself.
"Please don't hold back for my sake. Please let me know what you really think."
Alphys began to sweat.
"it's nothin, really."
"I insist."
Frisk's lips curled into a smile against her will hinting to Alphys that she had been teasing.
"you're evil."
"Still I wanna know."
"well it's just you seem very determined to survive that you're willing to resort back to your weapon when all else fails."
"How do you know about that?" Frisk asked.
"well i-i may have been recording your entire journey since you've left the ruins."
'I thought something was odd.'
"All that time and you did nothing," Frisk said coolly.
"the king told me to report if a human came out of the ruins. when i saw the dust on your hands i didn't know what to think."
"Everyone keeps mentioning dust. What is that?"
"it's the result of killing a monster."
"So when Sans mentioned the dust on my hands he wasn't talking about my sins. He was literally talking about the monsters I killed."
"yes."
'Sans' words take on a whole new meaning after that.'
"See. I told you, you shouldn't cross the skeleton."
"Still it doesn't justify your actions. Do you know what any human would think being attacked by a monster?" Frisk asked.
"i have some idea but-"
"If you had any idea then why didn't you step in. Why didn't you stop them? Every monster I killed was because I saw no other way to survive but no one stopped their attack."
"tell me something, if you were on an island with your worst enemy how would you get off the island?"
"Depends how despicable they are. What if we fought with each other, what if they were preventing me from leaving the island?"
Alphys smiled casting a narrowed side glance at Frisk.
"what if i told you there was a way to leave the island without ever interacting with the other person what would you say then?"
"What if you had to?"
"i would try to get along with them but if i was killed at least i was killed being a good person."
"She has a point," Chara said. "I'd rather die knowing that I taught someone the right way."
"Tell me then, what is the purpose of throwing away your own life if you have something to live for?"
Chara and Alphys glanced at Frisk as if she grew another head.
Alphys was silent for a moment.
"i suppose if you had a purpose to live, there would be no point in throwing your own life away."
"So anyone wanting to throw their lives away would have nothing to live for to begin with. So why contemplate sacrifice when their lives are meaningless anyway. It'd be different if you were actually fighting for something. So don't you think the people trying to kill you should be equally accountable for their own actions?"
"yes, but i don't think killing them is the answer."
"Even if they killed others, even if they killed your family and friends."
"i-i don't know."
"Maybe you better think about that."
Alphys chuckled nervously.
"yeah."
"hey."
Sans spoke from behind them.
Frisk turned.
"so whatcha two talkin' 'bout?"
"Nothin'," Frisk said, her hands reaching for her drink.
Sans put a hand on her shoulder.
"not so fast, kiddo. i wouldn't drink that unless you wanna internally combust."
"It's completely harmless. Grillby told me so."
Sans ordered a Granny Apple and gave it to Frisk.
"still i'd be more at ease if you drink something a little less risky. there you go. drink up."
Sans grinned.
"Are you sure this is liquor?"
Sans whispered in Frisk's ear making her feel warm.
"yes, but it completely loses if effect on humans."
Chills crept up her spine.
"Thanks for the drink," she said.
"don't mention it, kiddo."
"So what's the deal between you and Grillby anyhow?"
Sans blushed.
"well he thinks he owes me a livin' after helpin' his daughter. some monsters were tryin' to get with her and i intervened."
"Huh, I thought you two might have been closer than that."
Sans shrugged.
"So you don't know about his brother then?"
"grillbz has a brother huh?"
"Yeah, I just got finished talking to him about it. He says he doesn't get along with him."
"oh does his brother run this joint or something?"
"Something like that."
"i guess the whole family runs the restaurant gig."
Frisk looked past him and saw Papyrus and Undyne drinking in the corner.
"So what's your brother doing?"
Sans turned to glance at them before he stood up.
"looks like trouble. gotta go."
"so you're good friends with sans too?"
"Friends? Hah."
"he seems to like your company that's more than i could say myself and we've known each other for much longer."
"You know Sans?"
"well we were colleagues at one point but we've never got along."
"A good portion of that might be related to how you're putting your foot in your mouth."
Alphys cringed.
"i'm really sorry. i've just never been good at conversation."
"Well you converse just fine, I think you might want to start on your tact."
Minutes later, Sans dropped by dragging Papyrus by his scarf.
"sorry, my bro got completely plastered so i gotta leave. hope you understand."
"It's ok. It's not like anything'll go wrong when you leave," Frisk said.
The two disappeared before Alphys sighed.
"he's always tryin to get out of these things."
"Who?"
"sans, of course."
"Really?"
"you don't look surprised. i guess it's not that shocking but sans gets along with everyone," Alphys said. "usually."
"That may be his problem."
From the corner of her eye, Frisk saw Smoky talking with the green bull monster who sat nearby before walking towards the door that lead to where Layax was staying.
Frisk saw the dogs were at a table near the door, maybe she could sneak inside once Smoky had left the room.
She decided to get up.
"Well I'm gonna have a walk. I'll see ya later, Alphys."
Frisk walked towards the dogs, her ears picking up snippets of their conversation.
"So did Doggo ever return from his vacation?"
One of the dogs with the floppy ears spoke.
The dog in the armor barked.
"The captain hasn't received word from him, that strange."
"(I hope he didn't get lost again. He's usually trying so hard to pull his own weight. It must be so difficult being blind and all.") said the other floppy earred dog who had a softer voice.
The dog in the armor barked again.
"It must have been lonely for him with his father gone. Wasn't the royal scientist doing some crazy experiments on all the monsters who had fallen down?"
Frisk took a seat at their table intrigued by the conversation.
"Really?" Frisk asked, cutting in. "What kind of experiments?"
"Don't know. The king never elaborated."
Just then the doors busted open and much to Frisk's horror, Red stepped inside.
Frisk tried to look small in an attempt to remain invisible.
Smoky exited the door. Now was her chance to rescue Layax.
Just then Undyne crept up behind her slapping her on the back.
"Hey whatcha doing talkin' to these losers? They'll bore you to tears. Greater Dog can't talk and Dogamy and Dogressa are always babbling about each other. It's not entertaining at all."
Frisk stroked her head looking forward to the impending headache. The whole display caught Red's attention as she was looking directly at them.
"How dare you lull everyone into a false sense of security? You have some nerve playin' innocent," Red said walking up to them.
"Red?" Undyne inquired in confusion.
"Don't ya know who he is?"
She lunged towards Frisk, removing her mask.
Undyne pushed Frisk away.
"He's human," Red said
"What?" Dogressa muttered softly with surprise.
"Red, what are you talking about?" Dogamy asked.
"He's the human who killed Doggo."
"You mean Doggo is dead?"
"He's been dead and it's all his fault."
Red pointed her sword at Frisk.
Undyne lunged for Red pulling her back.
"That's enough let me handle it."
The three dogs growled loudly.
Dogamy lunged Frisk with his axe.
"stop it. that's enough," Alphys said cutting through. "can't we resolve this peacefully?"
"Peacefully? When has any human wanted to solve things peacefully? They'e the reason we're stuck down here," Dogamy said growling.
"Yes, because two wrongs make a right," Frisk retorted.
"ahem, who's doing this? me or you?"
Frisk sighed and lounged back in her chair.
"humans may be the reason that we're stuck here but what are you hoping to prove by attacking a human unprovoked?"
"It's obvious isn't it? That's what fishlady tells them to do. One which attacks anything that moves. Maybe he's the one turnin' all the monsters into dust," Frisk said.
"HOW DARE YOU? DOGGO WAS KIND. He's just misunderstood," Dogressa said.
"well it's not like he really had much of a life to begin with. it is difficult getting by with no vision."
Dogamy and Dogressa glared at Frisk.
"She said it not me," Frisk said pointing at Alphys.
Dogressa swung her axe at Frisk who pushed off her chair and took a couple of steps back. The axe landing in the wood.
"oh no, what do i do?" Alphys muttered.
"Well standing around isn't doing anything."
Alphys left.
"Oh great."
Suddenly the sound of rushing wind slipped passed Frisk's ears. Frisk quickly sidestepped turning around just as Dogamy swung his axe.
It missed her by inches.
"If you continue to attack me like this, you won't make it out alive. Your friend had to learn his lesson the hard way."
Dogressa and Dogamy swung their axes at her.
Frisk was fast on her feet slashing through them with her knife.
"You-"
The two faded to dust.
Red looked on in horror.
Undyne glared at her.
"Now do you see why I told you to stay away."
Undyne snapped.
"Those two monsters died because of you."
Frisk snorted.
"No, they died because they attacked me," she said.
"You liar," Undyne said.
"Call me what you will. It makes little difference to me."
While the ruckus was going on, Frisk noticed the the bunny and dragon guard had left. Smoky and the green bull monster had disappeared too possibly taking Layax with them.
'Sh-te. At this rate, I'll be a goner.'
Near the exit stood Alphys who was covered by a white sheet with two holes in it. She motioned for Frisk to follow her.
Frisk ran towards her.
"See you later."
A lightning barrier had been fabricated to block Undyne and Red from following them.
"The nerve of this a-h-le," Undyne snarled.
Once they were some distance away from the pub when Frisk spoke.
"What was that all about and why did you come in dressed like that?"
Alphys blushed.
"i just feel so bad like i'm betraying them. undyne has always desired to collect all seven human souls so we could go free. i feel with this, it'd disappoint her."
Frisk snorted.
"Was she responsible for killing the other humans? I mean Red knew about me because someone babbled about it but it's strange how the sentries immediately attacked me on sight without even knowing what a human looks like. The monster may have been blind but he wasn't stupid either. He could sense my location, too," Frisk said. "She's killed other humans hasn't she?"
"i-i don't know."
"That's how she knew. The way she talks about us makes me sick."
"what will you do now?" Alphys asked.
"Don't know."
"she will come after you, you know and she won't rest until she captured you."
"What do you suggest I do?"
"leave town and head to hotland. she doesn't like that place too much so you should be safe."
"Thanks Alphys."
She blushed.
"don't mention it. hey i know what to do. i'll leave you my number in case you want to call me. can I borrow your phone for a minute?"
Frisk handed her cellphone.
"wow, it's so old."
Alphys input her number.
"there i did it."
She handed the phone back to Frisk before they left the dump.
Frisk walked past Gerson's place.
"Hey kid."
Frisk turned and saw Gerson standing behind her.
"I wanna give you something before you leave."
Gerson handed her a bag containing packets of tea.
"I heard Undyne's around looking for you. Heat this up and drink it when you need a boost in speed. It'll also be useful for healing any minor injuries."
"Thank you, Gerson."
Gerson waved at her.
"Good luck."