A Maelstrom's Tale
Chapter 10: Truths to be Sought and Revealed
Naruto along with Frisk and Nikan opened their eyes to find themselves at the SAVE Point next to the entrance leading to where the barrier and Asgore are waiting ahead of them but this time, the trio aren't heading there just yet.
"We made it back, I hope we don't have to use it again. One is already enough for me honestly," said Naruto with a frown.
"So, we'll be going to talk to Alphys?" asked Frisk.
"Yeah, she's likely to know or at least figure out a way to bring down the Barrier without having to sacrifice any life, either human or monster,"
Frisk nodded in affirmation "Okay, let's head for Hotland since that's where Alphys would be," Nikan barked in agreement.
The group left the place and doubled back to the CORE where they came across an elevator which they used to get to the bottom and it had dropped them right at the entrance of the CORE. They were going across the wooden bridge towards the MTT Resort when Frisk's phone began to ring, so she answered it.
"Hello?" asked Frisk.
{Hey! Uh…this is Undyne!}
"Undyne, how did you get this number?" asked Frisk confusedly.
{Actually, I'm using Papyrus' phone to call ya. I need you to deliver something for me!}
"What is it?" asked Naruto.
{Uh, I can't really say it on the phone. So, could you come over? I'm over at Papyrus' in Snowdin so you better get over here quick! Uh…please?}
"Okay Undyne, we'll be there as soon as possible,"
{Sweet, don't keep me waiting!} said Undyne before ending the call.
"So, we'll be going to Snowdin first?" asked Frisk.
Naruto shrugged in response "Pretty much yeah, we can go to Alphys afterwards,"
"Okay,"
The group resumed their trek albeit with a different destination in mind as they went through the MTT Resort to go through the main path of Hotland, using the elevator to descend to the first floor. They continued southwards until reaching the River Person who was beached at the riverbank.
"Tra la la, would you care for a ride?" asked the River Person.
"Yes please," said Frisk.
"Where will we be going to?"
"Can you take us to Snowdin?" asked Naruto.
"Indeed, climb aboard and we shall be off,"
Naruto and co got on the boat before the River Person proceeded to steer them through the river, all the while making rather odd commentaries and statements which mostly confuses the children and wolf pup until they finally arrived at their destination and disembarked. They resumed going south past the wolf monster who was still throwing ice into the river but at least they know where it ends up at.
As they neared the house, Frisk called out to Naruto "There's Undyne and Papyrus over there,"
Sure enough, the aforementioned two were indeed standing at the front of Papyrus' house as Naruto and Frisk approached.
"Ah, my two human friends and not annoying dog have arrived," said Papyrus happily.
"Took you brats long enough to show up!" Undyne scoffed but was grinning nonetheless.
"So, what was it that you wanted us to deliver?" asked Naruto.
"I want you to deliver to uh…Doctor Alphys," said Undyne with a tinge of pink on her cheeks.
"But, can't you deliver it to her yourself?" asked Frisk confusedly.
"Why?...um…well…," Undyne fidgeted nervously, looking away from the children "I-It's kind of personal but we're friends so…I'll tell you…Hotland SUCKS and I don't wanna have to go over there!"
"I guess you have a pint there," said Naruto, recalling what happened to Undyne when she was chasing him and Frisk then passed out from the heat and dehydration because of her being a fish type monster.
"Here's the letter," Undyne held out a white envelope to him "If you dare open to read it…I'll KILL you,"
Naruto sweated nervously "O-Of course I won't, let's go Frisk-chan!"
Papyrus spoke up "Actually, we would like for our female human friend to remain behind,"
"Why?" asked Frisk curiously.
"We could use a bit help from you while you're here with us," said Undyne rather vaguely.
Naruto hummed in thought for a moment "In that case, Nikan can stay with you while I go and deliver the letter to Alphys before coming back,"
"Okay Naruto, see you later then," said Frisk with Nikan sitting next albeit reluctantly as the wolf pup really wanted to follow Naruto.
Naruto set off with the letter as he hitched a ride with the River Person back to Hotland, but he left for the lab with the River Person giving him a rather strange message which had him feeling a bit tense and uncomfortable.
"Beware of the man who speaks with his hands,"
"I wonder what he meant by that? I hope it doesn't turn out to be another problem since we already have one to deal with right now," said Naruto with a small frown.
He soon arrived at the lab and came across a problem…the door has no mail slot, he pondered over what to do next before glancing downwards and seeing there's a gap between the door and floor which is enough for him to slide the letter through.
"Guess I should slide it through there since the door won't open," said Naruto, he slid the letter under the door and knocked on it before waiting for a response. A few minutes passed and Naruto thought Alphys wasn't home when he heard faint footsteps approaching.
"O-Oh n-no, is that another letter…? I-I don't want t-to open it, can't I j-just slide it back?" said Alphys.
Naruto frowned upon hearing this, it sounds like Alphys has been receiving letters and yet never opens them to read. He remained silent and continued to listen.
"N…no, I can't keep doing this…I-I'll read this one," said Alphys "U-Um, it's kind of t-tightly shut, isn't it?"
"…wait a second,"
Suddenly the doors opened up with Alphys looking rather down "Hey, if this is a joke, it's…," she looked up to see Naruto and gasped in shock "Oh my god, did YOU write this letter?"
Naruto blinked in confusion "…Huh?"
"It wasn't signed, so I had no idea who could have…I had no idea you wrote that way. It's really adorable!" said Alphys giddily "And I'm surprised that you did so after all the gross things I did,"
"I get the feeling that there's a big misunderstanding, Alphys thinks that I wrote this letter since Undyne didn't sign it with her name," thought Naruto with a sweatdrop.
"You know what? I'll do it! It's the least I can do to make it up to you. Y-yeah, let's go on a date!"
BGM start: Undertale OST; Dating Start!
Naruto's eyes widened in shock "Uh oh, just what did Undyne write in that letter?" he hardly had a chance to speak when Alphys ran back inside the lab. A few minutes later, she returned while wearing a polka dot dress instead of her usual lab coat.
"I'm back, so how I look? A friend of mine picked it out for me," asked Alphys shyly.
Naruto rubbed the back of his head nervously "Uh…It looks really good on you,"
"Oh uh, thank you. How about we get this date started?"
"Actually Alphys, I-,"
"Hold on, I've gotta give you items to raise your affection statistics first in order to increase the chances of a good outcome in a date. Not to worry, I came prepared with just the things; metal armor polish, waterproof cream for your scales, and magical spear repair kit that I ordered some time ago," said Alphys.
"Alphys, I can't use any of those things," Naruto pointed out "Those are more suited for Undyne,"
"…oops, I should have realized that myself. Let's just get on with the date then," said Alphys.
"So, uh…do you like anime?"
"Actually I do, along with manga and video games. Just not too indulgent in them," said Naruto with a shrug.
"Oh, then have you watched Mew Mew Kissy Cutie?" asked Alphys hopefully.
"Not really, but I've seen snippets of its episodes whenever I'm on the internet," said Naruto.
"Then maybe we could it together sometime,"
"Sure, I don't mind," said Naruto, in spite of needing to tell her that all this is a misunderstanding "Um…do we have anywhere to go?"
"Actually… I know a good place for a date; the garbage dump!" said Alphys giddily.
Naruto quirked an eyebrow at that "The garbage dump?"
"Yeah, let's go there!" Alphys eagerly walked ahead with Naruto following her from behind as they left Hotland to Waterfall until they arrived at their destination being the garbage dump "Here we are! Undyne and I come here a lot to find a lot of good stuff which we would use,"
"I see…," said Naruto, he glanced to the side and spotted something or rather someone in the distance "Wait, isn't that Undyne over there?"
BGM change: Undertale OST; Dating Tense!
Alphys looked and her eyes widened upon confirming that it's really her "O-Oh no, I can let her see me on a date with you! I uh…I mean…here she comes!" she quickly went to hide behind a trash can right before Undyne arrived.
A closer look reveals that Undyne having dressed differently compared to her armor and everyday clothing. She's currently wearing a white turtleneck under a black leather jacket, a scarf around her neck, black pants, a light-colored eye patch, she even applied lipstick and let some of her hair down.
"Oh there you are, I uh just realized that giving you that letter to deliver to Alphys is a bad idea," said Undyne.
"A bit too late for that," thought Naruto.
"So, I'll be the one to deliver it. Now hand it over!"
"So, Undyne but I already gave it to Alphys," said Naruto apologetically for several things.
"You already gave it to her?! Ngaaaaaah! In that case, have you seen her?"
Naruto glanced at the trash can to see Alphys shaking behind it before turning to Undyne "Yeah I did, I saw her over there," he pointed at a random direction.
"So she's nearby…," Undyne nodded in response "Thanks, I'll go and look for her," she took off without another word.
"You can come out now, the coast is clear," said Naruto after making sure that Undyne was out of sight
BGM change: Undertale OST; Alphys
Alphys emerged from behind the trash can with a sheepish look on her face "W-Well…it's pretty obvious at this point; I really l-like Undyne…I mean m-more than a f-friend,"
"Yeah, there were some clues along the way that gave me the idea," said Naruto, thinking back on the things that he and Frisk noticed during their time with Alphys and Undyne.
"S-Sorry, I thought it would be f-fun if we went on a kind of cute…pretend date? Just to make you feel better," said Alphys hesitantly.
Naruto rubbed the back of his head at this "And here I was thinking that I created a misunderstanding,"
"I'm sorry, I messed up again," Alphys looked down in depression "Undyne is really the one I wanted to go on a date with…but she's way out of my league,"
"What makes you say that?"
"She's always so confident, strong and funny too. But I'm just a nobody,"
"Come on, that can't be true. Frisk and I have seen you do cool things and even created someone like Mettaton," Naruto protested.
"And yet all I've ever done is hurt people. I've told Undyne so many lies that she thinks that I'm way cooler than I actually am, I'm scared of what might happen if she gets too close to me and finds out the truth. I don't know what to do,"
"You should tell her the truth then with your own mouth," said Naruto.
Alphys took a step back in shock at his words "T-Tell her the truth!? But she'll hate me! Wouldn't it be better to live a lie where both people are happy instead of a truth where neither are?"
Naruto shook his head at that "It wouldn't at all, you're rather giving me the impression that you don't fully trust Undyne and not ready to commit to her. It's better that you tell her on your own than someone else telling her or she finding out on her own…that's guaranteed for her to lost her trust in you,"
"B-But I don't have the c-confidence to tell her. I'm scared and I don't know how,"
Naruto hummed in thought for about a minute before coming up with an idea "How about we do a roleplay where I'll pretend to be Undyne so you can practice on how to tell the truth to her?"
"Actually…that sounds kind of fun, just like that scene in episode 15 of Mew Mew Kissy Cutie," said Alphys, getting a little excited at it.
"Alright then, let's get started," said Naruto.
"Alright, *Ahem* Hello Undyne, how are you?"
"I'm doing great," Naruto in a gruff voice, trying to match the way the real Undyne speaks.
"Oh g-glad to hear to hear that!" Alphys stuttered "So um…there's something…I-I want to t-tell you,"
"Then Undyne kisses you!" said Naruto "Yeah, I'm pretty sure that's how the scene goes in that anime I watched…though the guy got slapped in the end,"
"What?! Undyne would never…never…," Alphys paused in thought before speaking "Then I kiss her back softly…and look into her eyes…and…AND I START HOLLERING!"
Naruto was taken aback "Uh Alphys?"
But the scientist wasn't really listening "UNDYNE! I LOVE YOU! KISS ME AGAIN!"
"Alphys calm down or Undyne might-,"
"WHAT'S GOING ON HERE?!"
BGM End
Everyone froze at the voice then turned to see Undyne looking at them in confusion of what's going on and wanting to get to the bottom of things.
"U…Undyne! I…was…just…," Alphys was caught completely off guard by her sudden appearance.
"Hold on, that's a pretty cute dress you have on. So, what's the occasion?" Undyne looked between Naruto and Alphys with a frown slowly forming on her face "Are…you two…on a date?"
Naruto shook his head "No, not at all! It's a pretend date!"
"A pretend date?"
Alphys nodded shakily in agreement "Y-yeah, we were…doing a…r-romantic roleplay…a-about you,"
"WHAT?" said Undyne in shock.
"I mean…I mean…," Alphys took in a deep breath before speaking calmly "Undyne…I've been…lying to you,"
"About what?"
"About everything! When I said seaweed is scientifically important, I was actually using them to make ice cream. All those human history books I've been reading were really dorky comic books! The history movies were really anime!" with each sentence, Alphys approached Undyne till she was standing right before her "And I…I…,"
"Alphys…,"
"I just…wanted to impress you, to have you think I was smart and cool instead of a…dorky nerd," Alphys was snapped out of her worry when Undyne began petting her head before crouching down to hug her.
Naruto smiled inwardly "Guess things are turning out okay,"
"Alphys…," Undyne muttered softly, before carrying Alphys in her arms…and tossing the scientist into the trash can?!
"Huh? Undyne?" asked Naruto in confusion.
BGM start: Undertale OST; Spear of Justice
"Alphys, I think you're neat too…I guess," Undyne rubbed the back of her head sheepishly "But you gotta realize that most of what you said doesn't really matter to me. To be honest, watching kid cartoons and comics to me is nothing but nerdy crap! What I really like about you is how passionate you are about them! Being so analytical! You actually care about them, 100 percent and at maximum power!"
"I kinda forgot that Undyne is a very passionate person, I recall uncle Kakashi talking about someone in his team who's all about youth and hardwork…but the dude wears green spandex for some weird reason," thought Naruto.
"So, you don't have to lie to me or anyone else,"
Alphys poked her head out from the trash can with eyes of hope "Really?"
"That's right, I want you become happy with who you are and I know the training to do just that,"
"You mean you'll train me?"
Undyne scoffed in response "Pffft, not me," someone jumped out from behind a trash heap to amongst them, revealing who it is.
"Papyrus?" asked Naruto in confusion, the skeleton was currently dressed in armor which appears to be sports-themed and recalled Frisk telling him that Papyrus wore something like this during their playdate.
"That's right, Papyrus will be the one to train you," said Undyne as-a-matter-of-factly.
"That's right, the great Papyrus shall aid in your training to become the best you! Let's get those bones shaking as we run 100 laps while yelling how great we are!" said Papyrus with enthusiasm.
"Undyne…I'll do my best!" Alphys got out of the trash can and left with Papyrus.
Undyne suddenly let out a breath which she didn't know she was holding "Oh my god! She was kidding, right?! All those cartoons and comics are real…right?!" she looked at Naruto in desperation.
"I can't lie to you Undyne, I'm afraid they aren't real…BUT they were inspired by real activities," said Naruto.
"Like which ones? I gotta know!" said Undyne.
"Ummmm, hold on. I got something," Naruto reached into his waist pack and brought out his iPhone "I got a couple of videos here to show you,"
Undyne rushed over to see Naruto play several videos depicting sports, like boxing, extreme sports, stunts, even a couple of 'Like a Boss' clips which he downloaded from YouTube. This seemed to have calmed her down and rather excited her instead.
"As I thought, you humans can be amazing and terrifying at the same time. Thanks for telling me the truth and revealing this to me. I feel like I can do my utmost best…for Alphys," said Undyne thoughtfully.
Naruto smiled in response "I'm very happy to hear,"
"Well, this date turned out unexpected but I'm cool with it all the same. I'll see you later with the other human," she took off while bidding the blonde farewell.
BGM End
"Guess I should head back to Snowdin and meet up with Frisk and Nikan," said Naruto. He proceeded to make his way out of the garbage dump and was just about reaching the exit when his phone began and he answered it to find out who's calling him "Hello?"
{Howdy, it is the great Papyrus; a friend whom you trust!} said Papyrus.
"Hey Papyrus, what's up?"
{Well, Alphys and I finished our training earlier than planned so I sent her home…very home}
"Okay?"
{Well, for some strange reason. I feel that you should go to her lab-house, I have good feelings about this and I've already sent my other human friend and not annoying dog to wait for you with the River Person}
"I see, then I'll be heading there,"
{Great, goodbye for now}
Naruto ended the call with a small frown on his face, for Papyrus to tell them to go to Alphys' lab can't be a mere coincidence, it's likely that there's something else going on and they're soon going to find out. He left the garbage dump and headed over to the River Person where Frisk and Nikan were waiting for him.
"Hi Naruto, how did everything go?" asked Frisk.
"Unexpected, but things turned out for the better," said Naruto, getting on board the boat.
"Where are we off to today?" asked the River Person.
"Could you take us to Hotland?" Frisk requested politely.
"Tra la la, we're off,"
The River Person proceeded to transport the children and wolf pup through the river channel with the latter two contemplating on the reason why Papyrus was being so insistent on they going to speak with Alphys until arriving at their destination.
"Thanks for the ride," said Naruto gratefully.
"Tra la la…beware of the man from the other world," said the River Person, sailing away before Naruto could question him further.
"Just what is he going on about?" asked Naruto.
"I don't know either," said Frisk.
The group went on their way and entered the lab, but oddly enough Alphys was nowhere to be seen.
"Alphys, where are you?" Naruto called out but there was no response.
"But I thought Papyrus said that Alphys went home," said Frisk with concern.
"That's what he said,"
"Bark, bark, bark!" Nikan began barking, drawing their attention to the wolf pup.
"Nikan, what's the matter?" asked Naruto before seeing Nikan sniffing at a piece of paper on the floor "It looks like a note, from Alphys,"
"What does it say?" asked Frisk,
"The handwriting is kinda hard to make out but I'll try," Naruto began to read the note.
Thanks for your help back there. You guys…your support really means a lot to me, but as difficult as it is to say this…you guys alone cannot magically make my problems go away. I want to be a better person; I don't want to be afraid anymore. And for that to happen, I have to face my own mistakes, starting from now. I need to be clear that this isn't anyone's problem but mine, but if you don't ever hear from me again…if you want to know the 'truth'. Enter the door to the north of this note, you all at least deserve to know what I did.
"Just did Alphys do that she feels so guilty about?" asked Frisk.
"I don't know but…," Naruto turned towards the open door to their left "She said that we would find the truth behind that door,"
"I'm a little scared," said Frisk worriedly.
Naruto placed a hand on her shoulder, calming her down "I'm sure we'll be okay, don't worry about it,"
Frisk nodded softly, feeling a bit better "O-Okay.
They went through the door to find themselves inside an elevator, Naruto went on to press a button to transport them down to the bottom floor, things were going smoothly when the elevator jerked for a moment then proceeded to descend at an alarming rate with red lights flashing and alerts blaring all around them.
WARNING! WARNING! ELEVATOR LOSING POWER! EM TETHER STABILITY LOST! ALTITUDE DROPPING!
"Frisk, hold on to me!" Naruto immediately wrapped his arms around with the brunette hugging him in fear while Nikan hopped in between them, whining in fright. They awaited what would happened as everywhere went black with the rumbling ongoing until things went silent and still…then the elevator doors opened up much to their confusion.
"It's official…elevators are one of the most terrifying things in my life," said Naruto, his heart thumping against his chest.
Frisk nodded shakily "M-Me too,"
They stepped out of the elevator to find themselves and a slightly dark area with barely lit lights to luminate the way for them to go through.
"I wonder where we are," said Frisk thoughtfully.
"Something tells me that we're far beneath the lab, this could be the real lab since it's so well hidden. Let's go see what kind of secret that this place is hiding but keep an eye out for Alphys," said Naruto, receiving a nod from Frisk and a bark from Nikan.
BGM start: Undertale OST; Here We Are
The group began their exploration of the place and took note of the monitors built into the walls which appears to be displaying Research Logs.
Research Log #1 to #5 spoke of how Alphys was requested by Asgore to find a way to break through the barrier, she discovered that the power of the SOUL cannot be artificially created. She couldn't extract the power from a Monster SOUL as it would disappear moments after death but a human SOUL is a different, even identifying this power to last even after death and capable of defying fate as Determination.
They went on to the next and finding a double door being locked up, so they took the left hallway to learn more about the place. They found more research logs with #6 and #9 speaking of Asgore giving the comatose bodies of the monsters who had 'fallen down' and she thought of injecting Determination in an attempt to revive, but she was also getting nervous from the monsters questioning what was going on.
Naruto and Frisk went into a room where there was an empty key slot and a scrap of paper with a clue written 'drain…dropped it'. They went to check on the sinks in the previous room where they were suddenly attacked by some strange white monster which doesn't seem to have a fixed shape. They managed to make it lose interest in them and fade away, leaving behind a Red Key. Frisk took the key and went to insert it into the slot. They doubled back to the main room to see that one part of the double door was glowing and figured that they need to find the remaining keys to open. Then they went on through the right hallway.
Reading Research Log #12 to #14, the monsters weren't waking up at first after being injected with Determination but later awoke and acted like nothing happened. Nikan sniffed out a Yellow Key from one of the beds for Frisk to attach to her phone's keychain. There was Research Log #7 and #10 which spoke of Alphys theorizing that Humans and Monsters might not make good vessels to contain great power, but a vessel that is neither human nor monster could be a much more suitable choice. The group were attacked by another one of those deformed white monsters when going through a hall of several mirrors but were able to send it away as well.
They found the next key slot but noted that the Yellow Key doesn't fit in, they found another scrap of paper which read '…cold…,'. The group headed back to the room where the yellow key was found and went through the northern doorway.
Research Log #15 explained Alphys viewing the project as a dead-end and planning to send the revived monsters back to their families, Research Log #11 spoke of the scientist's fear of Mettaton no longer wanting to be friends with her once she had completed the building of his body. The children and wolf pup found themselves in a room which had a lot of fans but the place was rather foggy and cold with white particles floating in the air. Naruto found a switch which activated the fans to clear the fog but the white particles actually formed together to become another one of those white deformed monsters. For some strange reason, this particular monster was acting in ways similar to that of the Canine Unit in Snowdin when they played catch and pet it enough to leave happily.
"The way these white monsters are acting reminds me of the ones we met along the way," said Frisk thoughtfully.
"I thought so too, but I can't exactly figure why," said Naruto with a small frown.
They continued on their way, thing got a bit scary when they entered a particular room and saw something creepily moving about behind a shower curtain. Naruto cautiously approached with bokken in hand before pulling away the curtain only to find nothing there save for a Green Key for Frisk to attach to her phone's keychain.
The next room that they entered had a machine which resembles too much like the form Flowey took on when he absorbed the SOULs albeit more mechanical in structure and design. Apparently Alphys dubbed it the DT Extraction Machine which is meant for obtaining Determination from SOULs. There was a door next to the machine which led to a smaller room where there's a tv with a VHS along with shelves of tapes, and a yellow key slot. The entry spoke of Alphys having found these tapes during her research, she suspects that Asgore never watched these and believes that he shouldn't even do so.
"Why would Alphys prefer that Asgore doesn't watch these tapes?" asked Naruto.
"Maybe she saw something which would hurt him? I remember that he really misses his family," said Frisk, remembering how sad Asgore was when he spoke about them.
"This might be part of the truth that Alphys was talking, I think we should watch these tapes," said Naruto, taking one of the tapes and inserting it into the VHS player.
First thing that they noted was the tapes had no visual content but the audio was playing nonetheless, the first three tapes depicted the good times the Dreemurr family spent together along with their adopted human whose name is Chara. But then, things started getting rather odd from the fourth tape onwards as they listened.
{ I...I don't like this idea, Chara. Wh…what? N-no, I'm not...big kids don't cry. Yeah, you're right. No! I'd never doubt you, Chara. Never! Y...yeah! We'll be strong! We'll free everyone. I'll go get the flowers}
{(Toriel) Chara...can you hear me? We want you to wake up...
(Asgore) Chara! You have to stay determined! You can't give up! You are the future of humans and monsters...
(Asriel)...Psst...Chara...Please...Wake up...I don't like this plan anymore. I...I…no, I said...I said I'd never doubt you. Six, right? We just have to get six...And we'll do it together, right?}
Naruto frowned as the final tape ended "Something doesn't seem to make sense here, what we heard from the monsters on our way to Asgore differs from what we're listening from these tapes,"
"They said that the human child suddenly became ill and requested to see the flowers at their home village before dying, then Asriel absorbed the SOUL in order to cross the barrier and carry the body there which led to him getting killed by the humans. But these tapes are rather telling us that they purposely poisoned themselves by eating buttercups then dying so Asriel can absorb their SOUL," said Frisk.
"Asriel spoke of getting six, I'm guessing he's talking about getting six human SOULs to break the barrier. But then, why didn't he do so but chose to return with the body instead? We're still missing some pieces for this puzzle,"
"Maybe we'll learn more when we go in further," Frisk suggested.
Naruto shrugged in response "Sounds about the only option we have,"
After inserting the Yellow Key into the designated Key Slot before leaving the room, Naruto and the others resumed their exploration through the secret lab, they had to fend off more of these white monsters with one of them dropping a Blue Key before disappearing. The Research Logs #19, #20, and #21 spoke of Alphys no longer answering her phone and Asgore calling about the monsters getting angry due to receiving no news concerning their family members, and she started going to the Garbage Dump to cope with things since then.
"I don't understand, I thought she said that the monsters were revived and going to be sent back to their families. So why this reaction?" asked Frisk.
"Maybe the injection of Determination had some sort of side effect on them, that might be it," said Naruto.
"I hope we'll be leaving soon, this place is really scaring me," said Frisk, staying close to the blonde.
"Same here, I keep feeling like something is watching us from a distance,"
"Please stop saying those things, I don't like scary stuff at all," Frisk tugged Naruto's sleeve anxiously.
"Sorry Frisk-chan,"
With the two remaining keys in hand, the trio went back and forth to insert the keys in their designated spot before returning to the now unlocked double door and going through it to find themselves in an elevator but there was another pathway besides the one which they came through leading elsewhere for them to go through. They went past some blank screens which were inactive due to lack of power before finding themselves in what appears to be a Power Room of sorts.
Naruto went on to flip the switch and the power began to run through the rest of the lab "Guess it means that elevator from before will also start working,"
BGM End
Frisk noticed Nikan growling and turned to see what the wolf pup was growling before tugging on Naruto's hoodie "Um Naruto? Those white monsters from before are back,"
Naruto looked back to see said monsters approaching them before her stood before Frisk and Nikan with bokken in hand "Jeez, why now of all times?" the monsters continued to approach with them becoming ever more tense until a voice called out.
"HEY! STOP!" they looked to see Alphys running up to them with a frown "I got you guys some food okay?" the monsters obediently left the room, leaving the scientist with the children "Sorry about that, they get kind of sassy when they don't get fed on time,"
"We noticed," Naruto deadpanned.
"Um, anyways, the power went out and I was trying to turn it back on. But you guys kinda beat me to the punch,"
"I see, so was the note from before having to do with these monsters?" asked Naruto.
Alphys shook her head in response "That's not what I meant where I said that I might not come back but because I was scared of running away or doing something cowardly,"
"But then, what are those monsters?" asked Frisk.
"…," Alphys appeared reluctant at first but steeled herself and spoke "As you two probably know by now, Asgore had asked me to study the nature of SOULs during which I isolated a power called Determination and injected it into the comatose monsters. It worked at first and revived them but I soon came to discover that monsters do not have sufficient physical matter to take in such concentrations unlike humans. The end result was the monsters losing their physical forms and melting with all of them fusing into those white monsters from before,"
"So that explains, I noticed that some of the white monsters acted in ways similar to the monsters we met during out time here," said Naruto thoughtfully.
"They must be related," Frisk added with Naruto nodded in agreement.
"Upon seeing them like that, I knew that I couldn't tell their families what happened and chose to keep them hidden away so that no one would find out about my failure," said Alphys sadly before speaking once more "But that's going to change, I'm going to tell everyone the truth. It's going to be hard for me, but at least I can do it while knowing that I have friends that care about me and accept me for who I am,"
Naruto smiled and nodded in response "That's right, we'll always be friends no matter what,"
"He's right, we really like you Alphys. The same goes for the other monsters too," said Frisk eagerly.
Alphys smiled tearfully, barely holding back the happiness in her. Undyne's as well as their acceptance of her tells her that she's truly deserving of happiness despite her past mistakes "…Thank you," she looked back to see that the white monsters have returned after eating their food "Come on guys, it's time for you to go home," she left the room with the monsters following her.
"Guess that's that, but there are still some questions we haven't gotten answers yet," said Naruto.
"I don't think there's any more to do here so let's go and ask Alphys about the Barrier," said Frisk.
They exited the room and came upon the formerly blank screens which are now displaying the Research Logs with interesting information
Entry #8
{I've chosen a candidate.
I haven't told ASGORE yet, because I want to surprise him with it...
In the center of his garden, there's something special.
The first golden flower, that grew before all the others.
The flower from the outside world.
It appeared just before the queen left.
I wonder...What happens when something without a SOUL gains the will to live?}
Entry #18
{the flower's gone}
"A golden flower…could it be?" Naruto was snapped out of his thoughts as Frisk's phone started ringing when they entered the elevator.
Frisk answered the phone "Hello, who is it?"
{Chara, are you there?} a male voice which neither of them had ever heard spoke through the phone.
"Who is this?" asked Frisk warily.
{It has been a long time, but you've done well. Everything has fallen into place}
"You haven't answered our question; who are you?" Naruto demanded with a deep frown.
{See you soon, Chara} said the voice before ending the call.
Suddenly the doors closed up much to their surprise and the elevator began to rise upwards with great velocity, causing the children to hold on to each other and try not to lose their balance.
"Oh, not again!" Naruto yelled out as they ascended towards who knows where.
This is Hussbek online with the latest chapter, Naruto and Frisk reloaded their most recent SAVE file and set out to find an alternative to what they had experienced. They got involved in what seems to be Undyne wanting to go on a date with Alphys but certain misunderstandings ended up revealing certain truths which rather strengthened the bond between the Royal Knight and Royal Scientist. Advised by Papyrus, the children went to see Alphys only to soon find themselves in the True Lab hidden beneath the one they were familiar. Naruto and Frisk discovered things which knocked them for a loop and ended up creating more questions than providing answers. Now a phone call from an unknown person adds even more questions to their already long list before being transported via an uncontrollable elevator to who knows where before asking Alphys for more details concerning the barrier.
The next chapter will officially mark the end of the Undertale arc…yes, I said arc as I'll be bringing in more arcs and most definitely Deltarune although I'll go about it differently compared to canon plus I'll also add some games to this. For certain people wondering if Asgore and Toriel would get together again…let's just say, things might get intense and painful truths will be brought out whether they like it or not, even Naruto would have to come to terms with himself. Be sure to read and review as always.
This is Hussbek from Ghana.
Signing out and staying alive.