The last few days were overall really fun. Got to eat lots at Grillbys. Spent time with Luna, her kids and husband, and hung out with Sans.
And finally!
"Greetings human parent of Luna!" Papyrus declared as he introduced himself. "I, the great Papyrus! Am terribly sorry it has taken me this long to introduce myself to you. A terrible flue got to me before your arrival."
"It's alright." I nodded, even though I was hiding how giddy I was to meet Papyrus here. "Even great people get sick from time to time."
"Regrettably that seems to be the case. Regardless, I am… unfortunately still unfit enough to act on my role as the Snowdin Boss, so, instead of a battle, I have a puzzle gauntlet for you to go through! Nyeh heh heh!" He said, then ran off past me.
"He's been excited for this for years." Squeaks chuckled.
"Very much so." Gastor nodded.
"And I am also excited about this." I said readily. "Onwards to the puzzle gauntlet." I said with a smile as I headed off to the gauntlet.
I ran over to the first area, seeing Papyrus standing across a large seemingly open area. "Greetings human! Behold! My invisible electric maze! Each wall of invisible electricity is coursing with ten thousand - what?!" He yelped as I walked around and bumped into the walls, feeling nothing really until I was standing before him. Compared to when I had my trouble makers, and all the electricity resistance Electrification and Electronium have given me, I hardly felt that.
"When you have to deal with fifty to a few hundred thousand bolts from very energetic and pranky happy thunder ferrets, you get used to it." I said with a smile.
"Hmm. I see, this must be what Luna meant when she mentioned her four younger brothers… very well, an oversight on my part, but congratulations, you pass the first challenge! Continue if you dare!" He said, running off ahead again.
"Oh I do dare." I chuckled as I followed along happily.
It took a while but eventually I came across what appeared to be a rather cartoony bomb with a small Sans plushie taped to it.
"Human! The next test! This bomb will blow in exactly one minute! Defuse it to save the Sans plushie!"
Well this took a turn!
"Right…" I said as I quickly rushed over to it, looking over it quickly trying to figure out this nonsense with my High Spec quirk, ready to see if that title was correct in it doubling my quirks every year for ten years.
Okay let's see here and… done!
"Wow. You actually did it." Papyrus said. "Ten years of explosives training for less than a few seconds of effort to defuse…"
"Ugh…my head hurts…" I grumbled and rubbed my head. "Listen, the bomb was well designed, believe me…but using a intellect quirk that's been getting doubled every year for ten years…it gives you one hell of a headache thinking that fast…"
"Still. Spent two years making that thing. Very well, you have bested me yet again human. Onto the final trial!" Papyrus said, running ahead again.
I actually felt a little bad at that…I gently pulled the Sans plush off and looked at it. "Alright…last trial." I said, putting the plush away and heading off.
Thankfully the walk let my headache clear up and there was Papyrus standing there yet again, only this time there was a podium for me. I walked over and up to it.
"Congratulations human, you have made it to my final trial! Death! By! Quiz show!"
Suddenly, there was several cameras that popped out of the ground, a screen rising from the ground behind Papyrus.
Two other podiums popped up next to me on my right and left. To my right was Squeaks, to my left- Tony?!
"Sup sexy! Long time no see!" My wolf-wyvern man said with a grin.
I hug tackled my fluffy thunder pupper happily. "After one thousand years I get to experience your floof again!" I said happily.
"Pfft, sure, but can it wait, you are on camera and this is still Papyrus's moment here." Tony chuckled, giving me a quick tight hug.
"I'm sorry." I said sheepishly, pulling away and composing myself. "Sorry folks…it's just been a long time since I last saw Tony."
"Heh, that my line." Tony chuckled. "From your perspective it's only been a few days." He added, rubbing my head and messing up my hair. Ah crap, I really need to get this cut shorter…
"Thank you for reminding me that I need a haircut." I admitted, brushing some of it to at least look presentable. "So quiz time?"
"Yes." Papyrus said as I returned to my podium. "Now then, you have five questions. You must answer at least three correctly or else you die. Now! To help you answer, you can ask Squeaks and Tony for hints if needed. Now then, question one. How many children do you believe Tony has fathered since you've been away."
Oh boy… hmm… I wonder… Tony can't directly tell me. Still, I looked over to him and saw he was blushing.
"Give me a range, cause I don't remember how many kids an alligator has and cats would have a max of six if biology still works like that with monsters."
"Heh… it's uh, actually less than you're thinking." Tony laughed weakly.
I looked at Tony, as I remembered how many kids an alligator can have…"You…didn't have any, did you?" I asked, surprised if that was the case.
"Is that your final answer?" Papyrus asked.
"...Yes…I don't know how monster biology works when…pregnant, but the fact I haven't heard anything about Tony having a kid would make the most sense."
"That answer is… correct!" Papyrus said, the green behind him turning green and a recorded applause played for a few seconds. "Tony here has not fathered, nor bedded anyone in the one thousand years he has been here!"
Wait, Tony's been… celibate this whole time?!
"Then…the bit about Bratty and Catty? Was that a joke or what?" I inquired.
"No I'm dating them, but we all agreed to wait till you got here…those two help me with waiting since I…hate being alone…." Tony sighed.
"Next question!" Papyrus said. The screen returned to black. "What are the seven human soul types?"
"Oh that's easy, Patience, Perseverance, Justice, Kindness, Integrity, Bravery and Determination." I answered simply.
"Correct! One more and you win human!" Papyrus said. "What powers the Core in Hotland?"
Hmm… it probably changed… and was never really stated in the game either…
"Uh…isn't it thermal powered?" I asked, knowing it being shoved in the middle of Hotland using Lava and Steam to power it would make sense. "Or is it in another spot?"
"You're close." Squeaks said. "Only problem is that despite the name there is no natural magma in Hotland."
I blinked. "How? We're underneath the mountain probably far enough to start hitting magma…"
"You'd think but oddly no." Tony nodded. "So, when building the core we got creative."
"Uh…magic?" I asked sheepishly.
"Ooh! Very close. And basically, yes!" Papyrus said. "David uses his fire magic to super heat the earth under the core into boiling magma, and Tony uses his ice powers to create large ice chunks that melt and turn to steam, giving the entire underground and some of the above ground power."
"That's fair." I nodded. "So does that count as correct or am I wrong cause it was still close?"
"Well, given my whole gauntlet earlier was completed by you in under ten minutes, might as well give it to you." Papyrus sighed. "Congratulations human, you win." The cameras, podiums and screen all went back into the ground. Immediately being covered in snow. "I'll go unlock the way to Waterfall."
"I'm sorry Papyrus…is there anything I can do to make it up to you?" I asked, not really okay with having Papyrus do all this and have it be beaten in such short time.
"It's alright." He said, heading off towards the entrance to Waterfall.
"I'll go check on him." Squeaks said, giving me a pat on the arm before catching up to her step son.
Heh, still a weird thought.
"So… been a while." Tony chuckled.
I hugged Tony again. "Yes…it's been a while my fluffy thunder pupper."
"That's my line." He chuckled.
"I know…but I still missed a thousand years with you, even if it only felt like a few days." I stated, hugging him a little tighter. "I'm sorry…"
Tony sighed, gently putting a hand on my head and rubbing his fingers through my hair, gentler than earlier. "It's okay… none of us expected… this."
"Yeah…but we're together and things will get better."
"Heh. That's the plan. So, how was the Gastor fight?"
"It was…something." I admitted. "I was exhausted and couldn't do a damn thing for the most part while he was holding back…which learning my new Titles I was the one really holding back at that point…but it was enjoyable."
"Heh, yeah. He gets real mad when people hold back against him regardless if they are weak or strong. Still amazed he and Squeaks are a thing…"
"Yeah, I am really amazed she's dating him… but I didn't know I was holding back cause I didn't know my Title, Vestige, my quirks were being doubled in power each year…and it's been 10 years since I got it."
"From what I was told you were also still super depressed so, that probably didn't help."
"And I have to ask how you've been." I said softly. "And…I am a bit upset still about all this but…at least you're all here still."
"Yeah, still here." Tony nodded. "Things were a bit rough when I first arrived, but we moved on."
"Yeah…" I hugged my woof closely. "Got a whole lot to talk about."
"Yeah. Come on, I got a place in mind." Tony said. He lead me a bit further down the road, taking a turn in an unmarked snow covered path where we soon came across a large claw carved cave entrance. Some wood log benches around a small fire pit. Tony tossed a few cut logs into it, and shot some lightning at them, setting the wood on fire. "Like it? I come here to think back to… simpler times, maybe drink if someone is willing to join."
"And I'm willing to drink." I said honestly.
"Fair." Tony nodded, moving aside a thin cut logs piece, revealing an ice filled floor with various canned beers and bottles. He gave me one, and after I took it he rummaged around for what looked to be a large bottle of whiskey, pulling the cork off and drinking from the large bottle that looked normal sized in his hand.
"So…where do you want to start?" I inquired, popping the lip and taking a swig of the booze he handed me.
"Well, beginning is best I guess. I remember us all jumping into the hole, then next thing I knew, I woke up near the base of MT Ebott. Squeaks was there and waking up as well. We were super confused, then after a bit, Davy and Luna flew down. Davy immediately hugged Squeaks, Luna gave me a hug… seeing her so much… older, made it hit that something went wrong… and that's when they told us we were late by a thousand years, or rather, early. And you still hadn't shown up… meaning it was another thousand before we were gonna see you."
"Yeah…that sucks." I admitted. "Luna gave me a bit of those details her first go around…how she had to be apart of a War…"
Tony nodded. "She told me. Hard to imagine that once pervy teenager that wanted to shag me was now a war veteran with a body count… kinda stung when she said she got over me as a crush but heh, a thousand year absence will do that I guess." Tony chuckled taking another swig.
"Yeah, that's fair." I shrugged, taking a swig. "So what happened next?"
"Well, Squeaks and Davy went to reconnect. A thousand years was the longest any of them went without seeing one another, and before it was almost zero. Davy back then looked… rough. Luna let me stay with her for a while to digest all I learned and such. At the time, it was… the year 1007. Despite that though tech wise it was maybe early eighteenth century."
"Interesting." I admitted. "I suppose with all the scientists between human and monsters would cause a technological boom."
"Yeah. I took a while getting used to everything. It was… different. Not bad. Tried my charisma on a few people. Some reciprocated. Some didn't. Some took offense. Heh, honestly it was almost like being back on earth bar and club surfing."
"Well, better than a lot of people assaulting you for doing some harmless flirting." I admitted.
"Heh, that was really only Toriel… woman is a very territorial goat." Tony chuckled.
"Yeah, and I'm still a bit miffed about that." I admitted.
"Pft. It happened to me and I'm long over it. Gotta admit… was surprised she would suplex me… that Boss Monsters stuff really doesn't joke around."
"I understand." I nodded. "But…you wouldn't have your own booze room if there wasn't some other problems…"
"Heh… not wrong." He sighed.
"So what happened?" I asked.
"Heh. At first it was just my dry spell but… time went on and with little to do I… thought. Thought a lot. Everything I lost. Everyone… Tina. My mates. Sandra… Kids… I guess the loss just finally caught up with me with no one and nothing to distract me. Then you being gone. I'd have nightmares that I lost you and our kids like I did my family before… never experienced a panic attack before then…"
"I…I'm so sorry…" I said sadly. "It…I can only imagine how hard it was…"
"It…was worse, cause during all of that…all the nightmares of me losing you and our kids…all I heard was people laughing…treating me like a joke since I got here besides you and some others…even if I was strong, capable, and able to do a lot of great things…I was treated like some joke, a failure that shouldn't be here…"
"That's not true." I shook my head. "I mean sure…Davy's an ass but you're not some joke."
"I know… I actually had an episode and tried to fight him." Tony chuckled, taking another swig.
"And how did that go?" I asked, taking another swig.
"Well, I threw everything I had and could do at him… he just blocked and let me… vent out on him. After that I just… broke, cried for a long time. He kept me company, not saying much but staying with me."
"Surprising." I admitted. "All things considered…Davy and Squeaks never really liked you…" I sighed,
"Heh… thought that too. Despite the jokes, sarcasm and pranks, they're not used to being around people, and over the last thousand years, Davy fell back on old habits. Keeping distant… after all, respawning was not a thing for anyone other than him, Luna, myself, and Squeaks. And three of us are immortal… I can see now why he preferred to be an ass and keep others distant… I'd seen death but… I never attended the funeral of a close friend before… So far, I've attended three hundred and forty nine funerals. Humans, Monsters, Davy's new Nokori's… I really got it after the first one that… this was just gonna keep happening… and I have no choice but to live with it."
"Yeah…funeral's suck." I admitted.
"Pfft! That's the take away from that?" Tony chuckled, taking another swig.
"Partly yes." I nodded. "But…I suppose when in a world where people are ageless and can respawn you…take death for granted for a time."
"Heh. I guess. Either way, Davy, Squeaks and I got close after that. I knew them better after that and they felt… safe, knowing for sure I wasn't going anywhere on them. We shared stories, learned a lot about each other, and since I had… so much time before you got here I actually went back to school. Mostly to refresh my prior diploma knowledge and then got some new ones."
"That's good to know." I nodded. "And when did you meet Catty and Bratty?"
"Would you believe me if I said I met them in a college class I took just ten years ago?"
"That…makes sense actually." I said honestly. "And you three hit it off real quick or something? And…I suppose that helped you feel a little less lonely?"
"Davy and them helped but, romance wise, well, Davy was waiting for you to finish all this and reunite with Shift, Squeaks now has Gastor, all that. It was nice being with people again. People who were interested too. Still, we held off on that for several reasons."
"One of the reasons was me I take it?" I inquired.
"That… and without abilities… I can't exactly… fit into anyone…" Tony said, blushing a bit.
"Well…I can easily fix that." I said readily.
"Oh believe me, I know and have been drooling for the day… but uh… as much as I'd love to make sweet, sweet love to you in this little nest of mine, it might be best to wait until after you finish this dungeon."
"Curse you obligations!" I shook my hand in the sky at that.
"Pfft! Tell me about it."
"Yeah…" I sighed, taking another swig. "Also this is some good booze."
"Thanks. One of the first things I learned when I got here after my breakdown with Davy was how to brew. Since I'm larger and my new body and all, I never got to test my alcohol limits on Equis, the other planet either and well, there wasn't any booze on the turtle, so, this was some of the first liquor I had in a long time. Shit Davy makes actually killed me after the first glass. Stuff is Ancient Greek quality."
"Awesome." I chuckled. "So if we ever wanted to get shitfaced, go see Davy."
"Heh, yeah. Said he learned how to brew from people all across his world. Elves, Dwarves, even Orcs. But enough about that. So, Asriel huh?"
"He's an adorable fluffy boy and at first it was to 'defeat' him in that fight…but he's adorable and it went to dating." I admitted.
"Well, you hope. Apparently he's still out cold." Tony laughed.
"Really?" I asked. "Has nobody even tried to wake him up?"
"Chara slaps them awake, they wake up, remember why they passed out, then pass out again." Tony chuckled. "Kid is an uber virgin."
"Holy hell that is some next level virgin and innocent to pass out after waking up from the thing you passed out by."
"Yup, he's a pure, untainted, untouched flower." Tony said, putting a hand on my shoulder. "When you bang him, make it nasty and violent as you rip his flower from it's stem."
I blushed crimson and Tony burst out laughing.
"Bruh, the fuck?" I asked incredulously.
"Sorry! Sorry! Davy's sense of humor rubbed off on me over the years. The guy can go from censored to zero filter at the drop of a hat."
"Fair I suppose." I said honestly. "But I'm not going to ravish the poor goat like that, I'm going to be more sensual about it."
"... I know for me it's been a thousand years but it's only been a few days for you. I know how you like to ride it… there ain't nothing sensual about that."
"I'm not going to demolish the poor boy's hips." I huffed.
"Yeah. He's a Uber virgin so odds are it won't last long enough for you to throw yourself hard enough."
"Bruh." I groaned. "If you keep talking like that I might as well just tackle you right now."
"Pfft. Davy was right, the reactions the zero filter jokes get are priceless." Tony laughed.
"Alright you, you're getting a little too much like Davy, I want my thunder pupper back." I pouted.
"Well I did spend a thousand years around the guy. You should have seen Luna when I got here. The things she would say would have made you go into shock."
I sighed. "Yeah…yeah I know…" I took another swig. "Just a lot of things I missed and…upsetting Papyrus like that also isn't helping me…he worked so hard to…"
Tony took a long sigh. "Yeah… Some things are the same but for different reasons. Sans having PTSD and depression from the Genocide Route Vissions, and Paps has self worth issues and anxiety, but stemming from feeling inadequate compared to his family. I mean, Squeaks is Squeaks, Gastor is in the same ballpark, Sans despite the whole base stats of one thing is still magically super strong, and Paps just feels… less than…"
"Which is weird cause Papyrus should be as strong, if not stronger, than Sans all things considered, excluding any base stat nonsense…" I frowned.
"There's a lot of factors that go into a Monster's strength and stats." Tony said. "Sans is actually so magically strong because his base stats are all one. It's like a magic rebalancing thing."
"Well…I suppose that makes sense, but what about Papyrus? Shouldn't he be really strong?" I asked, knowing that I only have the game logic I always assumed Papyrus was super strong but he held back constantly.
"Heh. It's not so much that he isn't strong. Gaster assures that Papyrus can be very powerful when he wants to be, but like I said, his self worth and anxiety issues are part of why he isn't. Like you holding back because of your apathy and feeling less than compared to Davy and them, Paps is holding back because he genuinely believes there's too much of a gap between his family and him. They always tell him there isn't and have even tried to help prove this to him time and time again but… at the end of the day, he's scared to fail so he doesn't really try."
"Ah…that…that makes sense…" I sighed. "I'm trying to think of something I can do to help…but challenging him to a fight doesn't sound right when I…probably can't throw it convincingly."
"Not just that, but he just got over that flu so he's probably not in fighting shape yet." Tony sighed. "Maybe you can give him a job when we get back to the turtle. I know he's been really happy about seeing the outside world, well, the world outside this planet sized pocket dimension."
"Yeah that's fair…gonna have to come up with something later cause there's a lot of jobs." I hummed. "But still I want to make it up to him somehow…he deserves to be happy here instead of upset about the circumstances."
"Another day. Paps is nothing if not resilient. Squeaks probably already has him in a better mood. She is his mom, despite the no genetic relation, she's the only mom he's known."
"I understand…still, feels like I should do something." I admitted.
"Give it time." Tony said, patting me on the back. "So, as you can imagine, Undyne is the boss for Waterfall… and the optional boss of Waterfall is Buroke."
"Buroke?" I inquired. "Don't know who that is."
"Well, believe it or not, he's Undyne's little brother." Tony said.
I almost spit my beer out.
I coughed and pounded my chest. "Hold up, what?"
"Heh, this world is different from the Undertale you know. Undyne is the oldest of nine siblings. Her parents in the old undertale world died in the war, but here, thanks to Luna, they survived and retired to rebuild their aquatic towns and such."
"Well that's cool." I nodded.
"Yeah. She's also a lot stronger than she was before…" Tony gave a weak laugh.
"I know for a fact you were taking it easy on her." I frowned, considering I was told about Phoenix Biology and his own Monster biology, he should be really strong both physically and magically.
"Heh, I have gotten stronger…" Tony sighed, looking at their own hand for a moment. "Sometimes I don't feel it, others it's one day to the next there was just a sudden jump… It's incredible… and scary…"
"I can imagine…I mean, I haven't really tested my abilities since I noticed I got Vestige but…I'm honestly a bit scared about what I could do…I could accidentally do something horrible if I let out a stray attack without thinking it…"
"... Heh, congratulations. Now you're thinking like Davy and them. Power, but at a price." He said, handing me another beer. "I know that all to personally. Once accidentally created this huge ice mountain by accident… Took out a whole shipyard. No one was hurt thank gods but… There's still ice there. Some of it refuses to melt. They're calling it Eternal Ice."
"Well that's fun…but you had a thousand years to get stronger…me, I just learned that all my Quirk's are getting multiplied by a thousand twenty four…so even a spark from explosion would be multiplied by that much over the 10 years I've had Vestige…"
Tony nodded. "And time will only make them stronger. But… Just remember… never hold back when fighting against someone who deserves it."
"I understand." I nodded. "It's…still scary when I can just imagine how strong my powers are and…I haven't really used any of them to their real power yet…plus Generation…"
"Heh. Trust me, I get it. So, gonna head off to Waterfall yet? Once you clear there, it's Hotland, and that's where Davy is."
"Yeah, I'm gonna have to go there eventually." I said honestly. "Don't want to keep everyone waiting for my next step in this adventure."
"Heh, yeah. Plus you're gonna want to get the rest of those items right?"
"Yeah, cause if my earring's give my defense a six hundred percent boost which is…massive, cause my original defense was one eighty, now it's over a thousand."
"That's impressive. Heh, well, go on, there's the whole rest of the underground to go see."
"Alright." I nodded, getting up and giving Tony a quick kiss. "Love you."
"I love you too…" He said, giving me a return kiss. "Funny… thinking back, I never said that as much as I should have…"
"Well that just means we have to fix that." I chuckled.
"Yeah." Tony said, giving me a smile. "Well, go on then. Waterfall awaits."
"Alright." I said, giving my thunder pupper one last hug before heading off to Waterfall.
I made my way to the entrance to Waterfall, the cold and snow giving way to a slight humidity, but still cool area that was all rock and saves. A damp smell hit my nose and after a while my eyes began adjusting to the dark. A few blinks and I noticed the glowing moss and mushrooms everywhere. Pretty.
"Well…this place is rather pretty I'll give it that." I admitted, following along the path and enjoying the natural beauty of the place.
Let's see… where am I going first… ah, here's some signs for directions… River Town this way… Slime Cave that way… and this way is… Temmie Village.
"Hmm…well, might as well start with Temmie Village…" I muttered.
I followed the path towards Temmie Village. After a while, I found the entrance to the place, and saw one Temmie standing outside the entrance.
"Hi there." I said politely to the Temmie.
"Hey. You're David right?" The Temmie said.
"Surprised I'm not hearing Tem speak…" I thought to myself. "Yes, yes I am." I nodded.
"I'm Bob."
Oh! Bob the Temmie! I remember this Temmie!
"Nice to meet you Bob." I nodded.
"So, you heading into the village?"
"Yep, seems like a good place to start here in Waterfall." I admitted.
"Alright, well have fun then." Bob the Temmie shrugged as they went back to looking out the way I came.
"Alright." I nodded, walking past and not wanting to make this awkward for Bob.
I headed inside and… huh… everything is so short… Oh right… They're all rather small… of course it would all be Temmie sized… aw… that means I can't go inside anywhere… And I don't have any shrinking Abilities…
"Crap…" I muttered. "Well…that sucks…"
I sighed… turning and leaving. Well that was depressing.
"Leaving Already?" Bob asked.
"Sadly the place is a bit too small for me and I don't have any size changing abilities to help with that." I admitted.
"Ah. That makes sense. Well, good luck with wherever you go next I guess."
Huh… Bob sounds… different. Though come to think of it, this is the only Temmie I've seen here…
"So mind if I ask some questions before I leave?" I asked, cause this was a bit curious about what I just noticed. "Like…why are you the first and only Temmie I've seen so far?"
"Temmie's don't like strangers. Humans especially." Bob said.
"Well…not liking strangers is okay I suppose, but why humans?"
"Some think we're cute, keep touching, squeezing and grabbing us. Some think we're a poor excuse for a Monster Species. Some in the past tried to kidnap us as pets… thinking our young were puppies. Always humans…" Bob sighed.
"I'm…really sorry to hear that." I said sadly.
"Most Temmies all live in isolated villages, like this one. Only reason I'm out here is because I honestly hate it in there. Always quiet, only time anyone comes out of their houses is when the weekly grocery deliveries come. Other than that any and all socializing is done either online or over the phones."
I winced. "Oh…that's…that hit's a little close to home…"
"How so?" Bob asked, looking up and over at me.
"Well…I'm an Isekai, or from another dimension entirely." I started. "And in my home world, people…did that a lot." I said. "Sometimes because they couldn't actually physically meet people, a global pandemic happening…or just people don't care about going out anymore as places to hang out were becoming scarce cause why hang out physically when you can just be online and not deal with being actually social?"
"Hm. I guess that makes sense." Bob nodded. "Did you hate it too?"
"Well…I did miss what little friend's I had physically and was sad I never got to meet any of my online friends but…I lived a simple life." I shrugged, deciding to sit down since this is probably going to be a long talk.
"What did you do?"
"Worked at a fast food restaurant, so while it was a bitch and a half it paid the bills…somehow." I admitted.
"Bills?" Bob asked.
"You…don't have to pay any bills like rent, water, electricity…any of that?"
"No. Why would someone need to pay for basic necessities?"
"Because stupid people think that's what you're supposed to do."
"That's dumb. Everyone, Human, Monster, Nokori, has the right to food, water, house, and any modern necessities like power, plumbing, water, internet, and some basic food supplies are delivered to the houses weekly."
Holy shit… that's amazing.
"That's amazing, I wish that was the case back home." I frowned.
"The fact it wasn't sounds like a bad dystopian movie." Bob chuckled. "Right out of a cheap B Movie."
"Well…that's what happens when you have greedy and evil people in charge of all your basic necessities."
"Your king didn't put a stop to them?"
"The country I lived in never had a king, it was a Democracy run by elected officials…which sadly involved a lot of 'legal' bribery and a bunch of other bullshit."
"Oh… so it was a failure of democracy then." Bob said.
I chuckled. "Basically."
"That's sad. Only reason King Asgore and Queen Toriel have remained in power for this long is partly because the two are genuinely good rulers, and because of their Royal Advisor."
"Who is the Royal Advisor?" I inquired, having a feeling it was probably Davy.
"David Romero." Bob said.
Knew it…
"Yeah I'm not surprised he would…" I sighed.
"You know him?"
"Yes, he's one of my friends…as he was sent to this world two thousand years before me with my daughter Luna…then Squeaks and Tony appeared a thousand years after they did…and here I am."
"Right. I think history class mentioned something like that before." Bob nodded. "So, you're supposed to make it to New Home and open that special gate?"
"Yes, and bring this new dungeon world into the real world." I said.
"When you say real world like that, you make it sound like this world is fake."
"Considering this was supposed to be a Dungeon that turned into…all of this when me and the four other's jumped in here all at the same time…this place isn't fake, it's more like a pocket dimension."
"Hm… weird. So, you going to fight Undyne and all them and make it to New Home… Can… Can I come with?"
"Of course." I nodded. "Going to fight Undyne and…apparently her little brother." I admitted.
"Thanks. I just… don't really want to return home."
"That's fair." I nodded. "Though this might get televised so…fair warning if you don't want the lime light." I admitted.
"Only the main boss fights are being televised. The rest of your travels aren't. Nor are any optional boss fights, as David made those for you to really test yourself."
"Fair." I shrugged. "Any questions you have for me?"
"Well… What is outside this world like?"
"Well…the specific area on the massive planet we're on is basically if Waterworld was more like a calmer end of the world scenario." I admitted. "But the outside world is full of wonders beyond your imagination…just kinda blows that the outside world is mostly us on a planet called Armageddon…"
"Sounds bad."
"Well, the planet is a culmination of every end of the world scenario mashed together, but honestly the part we live in is rather nice and secluded to be honest."
"Well, I guess that's pretty good. Ever run across bad people?"
"Well…not technically, but I did get to talk to an insane person that has a fetish for Davy and Squeaks." I admitted.
"Gross…"
"I mean, he's the one that turned Davy and Squeaks into what they are…" I said carefully.
"Wow… is he dangerous?"
"Considering he can make powerful bioweapons…I'd say yes."
"Do you think he'll attack us?"
"He's mostly after Davy, Squeaks and his family…he won't attack you or the other's as long as I'm around."
"Are you sure?"
I sighed. "As sure as I can be. But even then, I'm here, I'm supposed to be a hero and I'll protect everyone."
"Hero huh… Well, at least your confident then." Bob nodded.
The rest of my trip through Waterfall was fairly calm. It was lovely, calming environments and eventually I found Undyne's iconic fish shaped house. I was about the knock on the door… when I dodged, Danger Sense going off as a scaly fist punched the door flying.
"Holy crap you actually dodged! Got good senses." Undyne said.
"Danger Sense helps when it comes to reacting." I admitted. "And is this how you always introduce yourself or am I the special one here?"
"You're special. Because I get to fight you and hold nothing back!" Undyne declared, summoning a magic spear and throwing it at blinding speed at me. I dodged it, watching it fly to a nearby wall… and tunneling through, leaving one of what looked to be many holes in that wall.
"Uh…right…" I said carefully. "Maybe we should talk about this first?" I asked sheepishly, really not wanting to be a pin cushion and kind of scared Steel or Harden might not be enough at this point.
"FIGHT ME!"
A whole day… a whole damn day… multiple Quirks, Quirk Combinations, Some aid from generation… and FIVE Loads later…
Undyne finally admitted defeat… only because our exhaustion from the fight made us both pass out… and we awkwardly woke up the next morning cuddling.
"So… you win… and that whole thing we woke up to never happened… agreed." Undyne said.
"I mean…there's nothing wrong with cuddles." I admitted. "Though at half power she was still able to keep up…let's just keep that info from her…" I thought to myself. "Also it depends on if all this was televised…cause if the cuddles were televised than oh boy."
"I hope not… Alphys will never let me live it down if it was…" Undyne gulped.
"Now…that depends on what you mean, cause is she protective or will she be upset she didn't get to join the cuddle pile?" I asked carefully.
"... More so she'll be upset… and then offer up where it could have gone…" Wow… Alphys has some confidence. Nice.
"Well that's good to know." I admitted. "So…I defeated you fair and square…next will be having to beat your brother in a fight…that'll be fun."
"Heh, yeah, and the only reason he's stronger than me is because he has that stupid Mana Mutation." Undyne huffed. "Well, I'll head to the gate, unlock it… and see if Alphys has seen all… that… Later!"
With that, Undyne ran off like a bullet.
Mana Mutation?
"Ready?" Bob asked, walking up to me with a plate on their back, a bagel and some coffee in a take out cup balanced on their head.
"Uh…one moment…also the hell is Mana Mutation?" I asked curiously, getting up and stretching a bit as I saved real quick.
"A Mana Mutation is a rare phenomenon in Monsters when the Magic manifests in an entirely different way than either parents or their species is known to possess." Bob said as I grabbed the bagel and coffee off the plate. He then tossed the plate aside. "Buroke is a Fishman Monster. Their magic can allow them controle over water and ice, as well as use it to create makeshift weapons, but Buroke's allow him to control Kinetic Energy rather than ice and water."
"Oh…" I said carefully. "Oh that's some bullshit…" I thought to myself. "So is it like bending or do they need to physically touch something to control it's Kinetic Energy?" I inquired, cause if it's how I think it works that is literally an unwinnable fight.
"From what I know, Buroke mainly needs to touch something in order to affect it, but this also allows him to set delayed traps by spiking a surface with his mana then once they target gets close enough he has it super charge the molecules, making magma and lava explosions, this also applies to anything he uses as a weapons or even wears. Even the air around him he can make as hot or as cold as he can tolerate."
"Fuck…" I frowned. "So…that boss fight is impossible…" I said, cause if he can affect the very air around around him than there's no way of telling if he could just affect my own Kinetic Energy till I was literally helpless, even with Speed Force or Half Hot Half Cold he could just siphon it all away…"I suppose all I can say is how fast it needs to take to use his powers…"
"Don't know." Bob said.
"Alright…so just have to find my optional boss."
"Pretty sure you and Undyne blasted through his house a while ago before you two passed out." Bob said, motioning behind him, showing me all the damage to some homes and the various walls, floors and ceilings within Waterfall.
Oh…
"Uh…shit…" I said worriedly.
I walked over, passed and through some of the houses and eventually found another Fishman Monster. Same colors as Undyne, wearing a black and purple shirt and some jean shorts. He was sitting in what was left of a living room, eating breakfast on a partly burned, spear stabbed couch.
"Sup." He said to me with a nod.
"I'm…really sorry about this." I said sheepishly.
"Heh, trust me, this is nothing compared to the family gatherings." Buroke laughed, sipping some of their coffee. "So, nice to meet you officially David. I'm Buroke, and I wasn't able to introduce myself to you while you and big sis were duking it out through my house and the neighborhood."
"Yeah, my name's David, and it's nice to officially meet you…just didn't want to break…part of the town here because of our fight."
"Trust me, people here are used to Undyne's little… sessions." Buroke chuckled, finishing their coffee and quickly eating their breakfast in a few bites. "So, Guess you're here for our fight? You win you get the Sun and Moon Rings. Both give you an HP and MP boost of four hundred, totaling eight hundred when paired."
Yeah… no wonder this guy is the boss for them… still, that's such a good boost. The earrings do so much already…
"Alright…so I must ask first, how does your Kinetic Energy manipulation work?" I asked. "Cause I have to ask to make sure if fighting you is even possible."
"I can stop, accelerate or slow down kinetic energy within an object, person or area around me within a foot, or on whatever I touch. David taught me this trick based on his own magic where I implant some magic into an area and can set it off like a bomb depending."
"And how fast can this ability work?" I asked, already feeling my shoulder's sag as what I feared was going to happen.
"Well, when I touch something it can be instantaneous. But the field around me takes five seconds."
"Well…better than nothing…" I admitted, knowing I had Naval Laser and some combos with that but at least I know there's at least something I can do besides that. "But where shall our fight take place?"
"Same place you fought Gaster. Here." He said, giving me his hand.
I took it and was back in that box again.
I used the Save Point here and eyed Buroke as he walked to his end of the room.
"Right, so what are the rules?" I inquired.
"Well, if you can land three hits on me, you win, or if you can last ten minutes, you win."
"Alright…seems simple enough." I said, stretching a bit as I need to remember that this bitch can also increase their speed and capabilities. "Well…let's get this started." I said, raising my hand and firing a bolt of lightning at the fishman.
He raised his hands, seeming to catch the lighting as I witnessed it go from a bolt of energy into a small amount of dust. "Nice, my turn." He said, suddenly gone in- Oh shit!
I used Speed Force, dodging his punch just in time and using it to keep distant. Alright, so he can Super Speed himself… but his is Magic based. Meaning there's likely a limit to how long he can keep his own speed up.
"Alright…so he can catch lightning normally cause that's a third the speed of light so his kinetic energy couldn't have messed with it that much…" I thought to myself, even though I was probably only in a foot radius for about a second…this bites, so I used Fire in a cone to act as both an attack against him and a detector to see if he made any time bombs around the area.
To my surprise he rushed into the cone, reaching to it and began nullifying it.
What? Wait…
He Grabbed the lightning… if physical contact is instantaneous, that means the attack still has to make contact…
I used Scan.
[Target HP
65,850/66,000]
He's letting himself take damage when he makes contact with my attacks… even if he's taking a fraction of them… damage is damage.
"Right…so he's going to be face tanking this…but this would technically be the second hit…" I thought to myself. "Hmm…I have a dumbass idea…" I thought, raising my hand up for a handshake. "I know it's out of the blue, but mind if I get a quick handshake before we continue?"
"... Uh, sure?" He said, confused but looking on guard as he took my hand.
I used Lizard Tail Splitter, popping my hand off as my hand was about to cause the Kinetic Siphon, as I smacked him in the gut with a ball of ice.
"... ouch…" He groaned. "The fuck?"
"So that's Lizard Tail Splitting, a quirk where I can pop off any parts of my body and control them telekinetically…kind of like the Chop Chop Fruit from One Piece now that I think about it…" I frowned at that realization. "And two…well, I gathered you liked to face tank attacks cause you have the health and defense to shrug it off and your ability would just make you a massive pain in the ass."
"Yeah, heh… so you found out my trick." He smirked. "Yeah, when I make contact with the attacks to nullify them, I do take damage and by extension, that is landing a hit on me still so, congrats, that was three hits."
"Oh thank god!" I sighed out thankfully. "Okay, cause I was really scared that the first two didn't count because that little trick would have only worked once, and the way you explained it was…honestly if I didn't act fast enough there would be literally nothing I could do."
"Hey, I did say hit me three times and well, the first two did hit me when I grabbed them. Well, now this is unsettling… If big sis sees me back so soon she's never gonna let me live it down…"
"I mean hand, I gotta give you a hand for the fight." I joked with a shit eating grin, quickly grabbing my hand that he threw me.
"That was bad." He groaned, also tossing me a small box. I grabbed it and opened it, seeing inside was one silver ring with a shimmering moonstone, and a glowing golden one with a sunstone. I smiled, putting them on.
[Enchanted Items Detected!
Sun Rung: Increase HP and MP by 400%
Moon Ring: Increase HP and MP by 400%
Total enchantment bonus, 800% boost to MP and HP.
MP is now at 4,500.
HP is now at 16,713.]
Oh, oh that is such a boost!
"Okay that's really good." I said, putting my hand back on my wrist and flexing it a bit. "So…since we have a bit of time, want to talk?"
"I guess." He shrugged. "So… Asriel?"
"Is everyone going to question that?" I chuckled. "He's a cute fluffy boy that, originally, was just a spur of the moment to beat him in the fight then…well I did also kind of want to date because he's just adorable and it would be nice to get a date…also apparently he's still unconscious because of his Turbo Virginity."
"Pfft! Yeah, he's been coddled a lot as a kid." Buroke chuckled. "Well, too bad. I would have loved to spend a night with anyone who could beat big sis in a fight."
"I mean, if you're offering, I'm perfectly fine with it." I admitted.
"... Wait but aren't you… oh… OH! Oh you're into open relationships then?"
"Well, outside this world I do have a harem of…thousands…" I said sheepishly. "So I'd say yes, I am into open relationship's, as long as everyone's consenting adults with boundaries set by all parties so there isn't any weird chicanery going on that upsets people."
"... I don't think that's a harem when there's that many people involved… are they all with you, or with one another too or… what?"
"We're in a big polyamorous relationship and…part of that is due to my symbiote fairy girlfriend having a fetish for it." I said honestly.
"Huh… that's… a thing… But are on and off flings on the table with you? Not looking for anything serious but some good sex every now and then would be nice."
"That's fine." I shrugged. "Friends with Benefits as they say."
"Heh, to a wonderful friendship then." He chuckled.
"Did you really sleep with Buroke?" Bob asked me as we passed through the gateway from Waterfall to Hotland.
"Yes. and it was really fun." I said with a smile. "Not a couple, but we're friends with benefits and I'm happy about that."
"Right… well, in any case, Hotland here is home to the Core, and I believe the boss here is Mettaton, and the Optional Boss is Napstablook." Bob said.
"That sounds about right." I nodded. "Wonder how their fight's are going to be?" I wondered, cause Mettaton's fight might be the same as the base game and I have no idea what Napstablook would do now that he's a robot dj here.
"Well, either way, there's not many towns or anything here so I imagine the main thing you'll wanna visit is the MTT Restaurant, Studio, and the Labs. That's where David and Alphys are."
"Yeah, gonna need to visit all those places." I nodded.
"Alright, so where do you wanna visit first?"
"Well, unless the layout is different we should be heading to the Lab first." I said honestly. "Plus just to see how Davy is doing."
Bob nodded, following along as we followed the various directional signs and eventually came across the entrance to the Labs. The door slid open with a pressurized sound. Inside was all dark. I saw a light flickering in the distance, two silhouettes in front of it… and some rather... wait a minute…
"Oh Mother it's been forever since I last saw Ouran High School Host Club." I laughed.
I walked up to the two silhouette… only to find that they were two literal sacks of potatoes… what?
The lights then flickered on, blinding me for a bit when I could see, around the corner I spotted a familiar yellow lizard lady, maybe standing five, five foot two or so, wearing a lab coat, shorts that on her looked almost like pants, and I noticed a cup of coffee in her hand.
"Ah, David Two." She said, giving a half smile as she sipped her coffee.
"Hi there, you must be Dr. Alphys." I said. "Also, good choice in anime."
"Heh, yeah. Left the TV playing reruns last night. So, before I say anything else, there's something I've been wanting to say to you since I heard about you." She said, walking up to me and with her other hand poking a semi-sharp but dull pointed claw in my stomach. "Twink."
… What the?
"Does this look like a twink to you?" I asked, raising my shirt and showing off my eight pack abs.
Click!
I paused at hearing a camera go off, noticing Alphys was now holding a camera phone. "Heh, knew you'd fall for it. Also, you forgot to wear a bra."
I immediately covered myself again.
"Nice tats."
"I didn't forget to wear a bra, it probably got destroyed in my fight with Undyne." I tried to defend myself as I blushed brightly.
"Or you left it in the room after your fun time fuck fest with Buroke." She smirked, sitting more of her coffee.
"And how do you know that?" I asked incredulously.
"The Optional Boss arena might not be televised but we did put some cameras in there to record combat data for evaluation and learning from prior battles. Needless to say it was a surprise to see you both start going at it over, and over, and over, and over, and over… and over." She chuckled. "You got some stamina."
"Right…" I blushed brightly. "So…at this point you probably saw me and Undyne cuddling did you?"
"Oh yeah I did. It was adorable in case you are wondering." She said, pulling out a printed photo of Undyne and I spooning in our sleep on the ground. "She's currently sulking in the shower."
"I can imagine." I admitted. "Jeez, confident Alphys is certainly something." I thought to myself. "So…why did you take a picture of my abs?"
"I bet David I could get you to expose part of yourself to me with one word." She chuckled. "He owes me fifty G."
"Of course." I rolled my eyes.
"Oh don't be like that. Your abs were nice, and your tits were really hot with those tattoos. Keeping this one in my private collection." She laughed.
"Hate women's clothes sometimes…" I grumbled, knowing I only lifted it up enough to show my abs but it keeps making my fun bags spill out. "Also the tats were…a bet and a gift to someone I care about."
"Clearly." She smirked, finishing off her coffee. "So, that aside, I take it you're here to see David?"
"And you, but so far I can tell we're going to be fast friends." I chuckled.
"You let your friends take nude photos of you? Well, that's new information." Alphys chuckled.
"I do not let friends take nude photos of me but this is an exception." I stated. "Plus you reminded me of a classic anime, so I know we're going to be friends over that."
"Well I am an S class Weeb." Alphys said, laughing a little.
"An S class Weeb you say?" I asked. "I might have to see your credentials on that one." I said with a grin, as I was getting a bit excited to talk about anime here.
Smirking, Alphys pulled out a wallet from her lab coat, and from that pulled out a card and gave it to me.
[Alphys Scalthrow, Member of the International Weebs and Nerds Association.
Weeb Class S
Nerd Class S]
I actually laughed at that. "Okay, originally I was just going to get into an anime reference contest but this also works."
"Literally a group dedicated to making, sharing and developing cartoons, anime, games and all the fun stuff." Alphys chuckled.
"That sounds amazing." I said happily.
"Yeah, lot of good people, always looking to bring in and help grow talent and skills. So, that aside," She said, taking the card back. "Anything you want to ask?"
"Hmm…so many questions, but I might as well start with when did you and Undyne start dating?"
"Three years ago. We were friends for years and I'd tease the shit out of her, and one day at a party, we got a bit too wasted and well… things were said, lips were kissed, and when the hangover came we just stuck together."
"Wow, and here I thought Undyne would have been the one raising you up on high shouting your praises as you were just an embarrassed ball of scales, how the roles have reversed I see." I chuckled.
"Oh you should see the way she blushes when I tease and flirt with her. She was red for days after our first time together. She might be one buff and tough lady but she's like puddy in my hands."
"No wonder why she was so embarrassed when we cuddled like that and did not want me to talk about it." I chuckled.
"Yeah. Well, come on, David's this way." Alphys said, giving a wave as she led me to a hallway. "He's probably still asleep I think…"
"I wouldn't be surprised." I said, following after Alphys to see Davy.
She led me down the hall to a door that had David's name on it. The first thing I noticed was all the… frost, covering the door.
"Uh…why is there frost over it?" I inquired.
"David has a lot of nightmares. When he does his fire can spark up so the room has all kinds of built in anti-fire measures."
"Yeah that's fair, and I assume you're using some of Tony's ice magic from this?" I inquired.
"His eternal ice is used among other things." Alphys nodded. "Well, you head inside, I should go get him his coffee pot."
I nodded and walked over to the door as I knocked on the frost covered door and knocking some of it off. "Davy? You awake in there?"
The door slid open, and the rush of cold air that hit me instantly sent me shivering. Shit, this is colder than Snowdin!
The lights that were in here were on and I saw Davy laying on a bed. The cold around him seemed to just keep refreezing as his sleeping body was cloaked in fire. His bed and blanket surprisingly were not on fire. Must be special materials. Maybe even enchanted.
"Right then…" I muttered, separating a hand and letting it float over and lightly tap his shoulder. "Wakey Wakey, you forgot to do your regular wake up call ya silly bird."
Davy's unconscious response set his flames up larger, instantly small holes in the wall over his bed shot out some kind of fog or something that seemed to make them lower, but didn't extinguish them.
"Right…apparently he's a heavy sleeper…" I muttered, trying to think of how to wake him up.
Hmm… Well, his flames at the moment aren't hot enough to break through my fire resistance. I haven't used Memory Share in a long time… wonder what he's having nightmares about…
"Well…alright, Memory Share time…" I muttered as I used my special ability to look into his Nightmares.
The gunfire was the first thing I heard. What followed was beasteal roars like some demon out of hell.
"Damn it the fuckers are getting way to close!" Someone yelled. "Hey, you, new girl!" Someone yelled, slapping me. I woke up, seeing a five foot four, black haired, white furred Nokori woman. She had two long ears, two fuzzy antennae on her forehead and some large moth-like wings on her back. She was dressed in some military gear and a bullet proof vest. "Grab a gun and get shooting, now's not the time to fucking nap!"
"The fuck?" I thought to myself, getting out of bed quickly and rushing to grab a gun. "I shouldn't be a part of this, I should just be an observer outside of it…"
I followed this woman through the place, a window we were coming up on shattering as a massive clawed paw reached in. She stopped, making me stop as she offloaded into the limb until it was decapitated, whatever it was attached to giving an ear bleeding roar as it pulled back.
She then pulled out a grenade, pulled the pin and threw it out the window before pushing me a few stops back and an explosion of dirt and blood came in from the broken window. "Damn Volatiles." She huffed. "Need to change our pants yet rookie?"
"I've seen worse ma'am." I admitted. "Where are we headed?"
"Heh, nice attitude. Gotta clear them out of here otherwise they'll be getting uncomfortably close to the city." She said, heading forwards as I followed. "Last thing we need are these fucks getting into the city and making meals of the locals."
"Yeah, that would not be a good thing for anyone." I admitted. "Where's everyone else?"
"Trying to make it to the big guns and keeping the infirmary from becoming lunch." She said. "This whole situation just gets worse and worse. David better pick up his act before we lose another city." She growled as we made it to an area where human, Nokori, Elves and some other races were all in similar armor, some with guns, some with what looked to be enchanted blades, and some were using magic.
"Knowing him he's probably leaving all the small fish for us." I admitted, picking up a stray shotgun and rifle real quick just in case.
"Pfft, yeah, sure, and Cyclopses aren't cannibals with the mindset of toddlers." The moth woman chuckled. "Don't talk like you know the dumbass." She added before heading off through one of the linking hallways.
"You'd be surprised what I know about said dumbass." I thought to myself, rushing over but taking a quick stop, raising my rifle and, with both my Sniper Training and doing gun work with Luna from time to time, I fired and hit a Volatile straight through the eye.
The beast roared, the gunshot wound bleeding profusely but it still turned my way. I shot three more rounds, hitting its upper chest and neck, but the thing still kept charging.
I fired off more and more, it finally going down after my mag was empty.
I felt someone take my shotgun, shooting it at the falling thing until the skull was split wide open.
The one who took my gun was a winged cow man, brown fur and hair, covered in deep scars and one arm seemed to be metallic. "Can't be too careful with these fucks. Some play dead." He said, giving me the shotgun back.
I nodded and took the shotgun. "Thanks." I nodded. "Let's get moving."
"Alright. Oh, my name's Arthie. You look new here." He said, giving me a handshake before we were walking off.
Arthie… it rings a bell but I can't place it…
"Names David." I said, wondering when thing's start to go sideways here.
"Ha! Sorry, just funny to run into someone else with that name given everything." He said as we made it to some rubble. I then watched him lift what must have been almost two tons of concrete and metal aside, unblocking the path. "So, what made you join? Live in Deramoor or?"
"Not in Deramoor, but I wanted to join so I can help the people that need it and shove it to all the chucklefucks that think this is 'the right thing'." I spat the last part, acid in my tone as I remembered what Davy and the rest said about this damned war.
"Heh, wow, you even sound like the other one." He said. We then came across some creature that was thin but both metallic and flesh, it's body some kind of odd inhuman shape as it leaped at us. Arthie grabbed it by the head and slammed it into the ground, the head turning to paste but then began regenerating.
Acting quick he pulled out what looked like ash, throwing it over the thing before it went up in a blinding blue light, burning it away to ashes. "Shit, I miss when Stalker's didn't regenerate…"
"Yeah, regenerating enemies always suck." I admitted. "But what's the ash? I don't think I saw that before."
"It's a special blend of chemicals and powdered magic. Only real way to get rid of the regenerating Stalkers. Just glad not all of them regenerate." Arthie said as we started moving again.
"Yeah, cause if all these assholes regenerated we'd be in a lot more trouble." I admitted.
"So, that your first time ever seeing the ugly fucks?"
"Regenerators? Yes, the rest of the fugly ducklings? I've seen one or two around." I admitted.
"Well, Stalkers tend to leave an impression." Arthie said. "I actually miss when they were the biggest threat to us." He added as we stopped at a corner, looking around I saw FIVE Volatile Nokori down there. "Fuck…"
"Doubt I have my powers…which especially fucking blows." I thought to myself. "Right…"
"Move it rookie!" I heard a familiar voice as I turned, seeing that moth woman again, turning the hall and shooting off something that fired with not a bang, but a pressurized fwoop followed by an explosion. She then shot what I realized was a grenade launcher several more times. "Yeesh these shits are like roaches…"
"I see you found the grenade launcher Holy." Arthie chuckled.
"Heh, and just in time." She smirked.
Holy, now I know I heard that name… I looked and saw the same silenced pistol David had, was on her in a holster.
"This…I know what this is…" I thought to myself carefully. "Nice to see you again ma'am."
"Sup rookie." She nodded.
"Guess what? They're name's David also." Arthie said.
"Ha! Too bad you're the wrong one." She chuckled. "Well come on then, sooner we get outside the sooner we can clear the yard and refortify the place." Holy added as she marched forwards.
I nodded, following along quickly. "How many more are around?"
"They usually travel in herds of eighty." Arthie said.
Eighty! Shit no wonder these things were such a headache for Davy and them…
"Right, and so far we've accounted for…eight…so seventy two more."
"If we're lucky." Holy said. We arrived at some torn off doors and behind them was a swarm of those things walking in and outside. Holy whistled, then shot off more explosives. "Your only orders are 'Do not die' now fight!" Holy declared as other soldiers all followed behind us and we charged out into the swarm.
I brought out my shotgun, shoved it into one of the Volatile's mouth's as it tried to bite at me and fired, blowing it's head clean off. "Davy…he doesn't make it in time." I thought, jumping away from another Volatile's swing and blasting it's head.
The battle was… carnage. Gunfire and blades and magic were used all over.
I saw a Volatile charge from behind Holy…
She jumped… FLYING in an arc and shooting an explosive round right into the back of her would be attacker.
… holy shit…
"Eye's on the fighting rookie!" She yelled at me before flying off.
… Well, guess her wings aren't for show then.
I leaned back and dodged another attack, slamming the butt of my shotgun against it's face as I flipped it around and used all my strength for a baseball swing and slammed it into it's skull, hearing it viscerally shatter as it went limp, pulling out my rifle and blasting it's head clean open. "On it Ma'am!"
She can sure as hell fight. And I haven't seen her use her magic at all. Maybe it's not combat oriented?
The battle began to die down some, and eventually it seems like the last of the Volatiles were killed.
"Alright! Good work everyone! Get to gathering the dead and burning the monsters! Arthie! Get to turning the rubble into fortifications!" Holy yelled.
"Yes ma'am!" Arthie said already getting to work.
She… lived…
So… what makes this a Nightmare? Also… where is Davy?
"Something's not adding up here…" I thought to myself carefully, trying to figure out what makes this a nightmare…especially since I'm technically not supposed to be affecting his memories…
Unless… I'm missing something here…
THUD!
Ouch!
I yelped as someone kicked me in the ass. Turning, I saw Holy there. "Rookie… you don't belong here…"
"Don't know what you mean Ma'am." I said, trying to play along with either the dream or something else cause I'd rather not cause a giant problem here.
She gut punched me… agh… not having my powers sucks… "Do I look fucking stupid to you? I know you aren't part of this memory."
"And I'm technically not even supposed to be here, I'm supposed to be some phantom onlooker, not personally experiencing this." I coughed. "So now that we're on the same page, what's this 'nightmare' supposed to be?"
"Three… two… one." Holy said, an explosion going off in the distance. Looking I saw…
What the fuck is…
The thing was taller than all the standing skyscrapers in the distance. It had multiple eyes of various colors and pitch black skin. Mouths ran across its multiple limbs from its seven heads to its feet. Some mouths even were in its eyes and vice versa.
"Excuse me, the actual fuck is the Blowjob Nine Thousand doing here?" I asked in shock and horror.
"Pfft! HA! Oh man, how did I never think of that." Holy laughed, crossing her arms and looking at it with an unimpressed gaze. "That was Doctor Alex. Maybe it is." She said. "I dunno, but this is the day David and them finally killed the bastard."
"How? By making him choke on every dick in a ten mile radius?" I asked. "Seriously, YMCA Singing group's ain't got shit on Alex there."
"Alright, you got me with the first one but now you're beating a dead horse." Holy said. "From what I gather, he looks like that because having all five magic bases in a living being at once is apparently not what one would call stable."
"I can see that." I said carefully. "Oh…by the way…what country are we in?"
"Brazil, home of Leto and ground zero of the whole Nokori coming out into the world." She said.
"Ah, that makes sense." I nodded, glad to know that this wasn't how Korea was glassed.
"Yeah, David's way over there in this memory. Only reason he knows what's going on here is from piecing it together from what the real me, Arthie and others told them later on." Holy explained. "Heh… had us all recounting events when we all got older…" She sighed. "You should leave."
"Best I know what really happens here…I need to know why this is a Nightmare."
"No you don't." Holy said. I turned to her-
"Gah!" I yelped, falling on my butt. Shit! My body is freezing!
I used Half hot half cold to warm up and get the froze off me I was growing. Shit… That bitch SHOT ME! She shot me in the head!
What the fuck!?
"Why the fuck did she shoot me in the head?" I groaned.
I got myself up, shaping off the migraine that gave me and looking at Davy… well, not many options…
"He's still asleep?" I turned to the door, seeing Alphys there with a whole pot of coffee in her hand, already mixed with what I assume is sugar and milk.
"Yes…somehow." I said carefully.
"Heh. I got this. David, coffee!" Alphys said loudly.
"Where!" He sat up instantly.
That was all it took?!
Alphys gave them the pot, Davy chugging it in record time. "Ah… Hey! David Two! Finally, been wondering when you'd get here…" He paused, then sniffed me. "Oh you didn't… you slept with Buroke?!"
"And flashed me when I called them a twink." Alphys added.
"Crap… and I thought so highly of you…"
"I didn't mean to flash her, I just raised my shirt up to show my abs but women's clothes can be annoying at times." I huffed. "Also yes cause…well, he wanted to be fuck buddies and who am I to say no?"
"Someone who can't it seems." Davy said. "At least you used protection right?"
… That's a thing here now!? Oh… oh… okay, that's good, that's very good… and also oh fuck me!
"David Two was raw dogged." Alphys chuckled.
"... My disappointment is immeasurable… for shame David Two…" Davy sighed.
"Oh shove it ya overgrown turkey." I rolled my eyes. "So you're awake, I went through some of your special vietnam flashbacks, and now I need to hear your side of two thousand years of me not being here."
"Well, that's intrusive of my personal space." Davy said as he stood up. "But alright, come on." Davy said, heading out as Alphys and I followed him.
"Honestly did it to see why you were having nightmares and if it would wake you up…I murdered a good ten Volatiles and got shot in the head for my troubles."
"Ouch… weird, but alright." He shrugged. We soon arrived in a room with a world map. Various towns and such marked on it in an odd lineup. Looks like outside Mt Ebott is in north Canada… and wow that's basically the same as back on earth, give or take some islands and I'm assuming underwater settlements and cities. "Welp, here's the world within this dungeon reality."
"This is really cool." I commented.
"Yeah. Sorry if you can't pronounce some of the names here, they're mostly all in an old elven language from back home." Davy said, smirking.
"Really need to learn some languages…" I muttered. "But all this is…it's definitely going to be something when this all join's up with us back home.'
"Oh yeah. And don't worry, it's easy to learn." Davy said, pointing to a town on the top east most part of the map in North america. "This word, the english translation is Never." He said. "This next one… is Gonna."
… He…
"This one is You… and that one is Up." He grinned.
…
I turned around and left. "You ruined it. You ruined it and I'm leaving."
Davy's laughter echoed from behind me. "Five hundred years in the making! Worth it!"
"You disappoint me Davy!" I called back.
"That was for you Yuri, Leon!" He yelled, still laughing.
I sighed, walking around the corner.
"So, hated the joke?" Squeaks asked, leaning against the wall there.
"I'm sorry in advance, but the joke was about as dead as Holy and Arthie." I frowned.
"Bit of a low blow but I get it… Heh, but he promised Leon and Yuri he'd prank a whole planet in their honor. Those three caused a lot of chaos back in the day." Squeaks chuckled. "Don't take it so personally. He takes his promises seriously, no matter how silly they can be at times."
I sighed. "Yeah…and the only reason why I bring them up is because I…fought with them in Davy's nightmare when you fought against Alex in his…well, as I originally called it 'Blowjob Nine Thousand' form."
"... Pfft! Hahahaha!" Squeaks laughed… that's the first time I've ever heard her laugh… it's… nice. "Oh my gods! That's priceless!"
"Yeah, I mean come on…that many mouth's? I don't care if he wasn't in a stable form but jesus."
"Heh, yeah. So… you saw Holy and Arthie in his memories?"
"Yeah, I fought beside them against Volatiles and…it was definitely an experience." I said honestly. "Holy shot me in the head though…"
"Yeah… that sounds like Holy." Squeaks nodded.
"Apparently Holy knew I was in his dreams and told me I wasn't allowed…so she shot me to 'wake me up'...which is a bit rude."
"That's Holy." Squeaks chuckled. "Guess even as a memory she still cares about David that much…"
"I understand." I nodded. "So…all that was a thing, plus how Davy is only woken by Coffee."
"Heh. Live a few thousand years and you learn you can sleep through a lot, but some things you will always wake up for." Squeaks smirked. "So… how much about Holy did you learn from that memory?"
"That she's a really good fighter, that she talked to Davy about what happened in that specific dream until the day she died…and she was rather fluffy as a moth lady."
"Yeah, well we don't know what kind of moth she was merged with. Still… She meant a lot to us… to David most of all…" Squeaks sighed.
"I understand." I sighed. "Losing friend's is hard, especially when…you outlive them."
"...For a time, she was more than a friend to him…"
I nodded. "Yeah…that would do it."
"Do you wanna hear the story?"
"I'd like to know." I said.
With a nod, Squeaks motioned for me to follow.
I did, following her around a corner and finding myself suddenly walking up to the MTT Restaurant.
We entered, made a were given a table, ordered and now that we were waiting Squeaks put her arms on the table, sighing. "Back in the early years, David was very weary about dating anyone… a mix of acknowledging his own immortality and his only other experience being Alex… he was hesitant. Still, he gave Shift a chance. Shift loved David genuinely… there was just one problem…"
"Was his heart not into it or was it with someone else?"
"It was. It fell into it… at the worst time." Squeaks sighed, our food arriving as well as our drinks, two glasses of wine. "As you know, Shift used to be a sex addict, dependent on it for a sense of emotional supplement for the love they never got as a child from their family… try as Shift did, therapy and exercises… they made a mistake."
"I can…see where that headed." I said carefully.
"Shift was completely guilt ridden about it. They told David… and broke up. David finally learned to feel love for another again just to lose it. He was… in a bad place for a while after that. Shift kept their distance out of guilt and shame. David missed a lot of work, so, one day Holy, his boss at the Agency and one of its co-founders, more or less walked into his room, offloaded a magazine into his ass and forced him into a shower then work suit. She forced him to work with her as a partner to both make up all his missed days and to force him to get over it. At the very least be good enough to work without her drill Sargenting him every day."
"Well then…" I said. "That's…one way to do it."
"Holy wasn't exactly the romantic type either. Her one and only time loving someone gave her her son, Luke… and then left without so much as a goodbye. The two other times did a lot of missions and good work that got the Agency more publicity, funding, authority. A few times she even joined David on his runs as the Hellfire Human Hunter, keeping hidden but helping take out targets far more directly than the head of a government agency could. The two became close friends during this time… and it wasn't until the mission that took them to a Y Labs facility in southern Leto did the two finally start to become a couple."
"That's good to know." I nodded.
"Heh. The facility was trapped. Set to blow. David and Holy got buried alive under the rubble. They were stuck. They had air, but David couldn't use his fire to melt the metal and concrete, Holy was there and the heat would burn her out in no time. So, they had to wait. They talked, shared stories, shared a kiss. Heh, Several, I later learned. David trusted Holy enough to know she wouldn't manipulate him or make a mistake like Shift did, and Holy fell for David because of his equal dislikes of secrets, her power making that even more a priority, and he never lied to her. Annoyed her, all the time, but never lied to her. She liked that about him. Loved it about him."
"That's good to know." I nodded. "While it sucked they were stuck there for a while…it's great to hear the two learned to love each other."
"They did. For a little over three years they enjoyed that love to the fullest. Even if they did keep it a secret, given she was his boss, and some people might not have liked the age gap between them, their closest friends and family knew, and that was enough."
"That's fair." I nodded. "So…what happened?"
"There was an accident. Holy's car got hit by a semi-truck. She survived, only breaking a leg… but it reminded her. Reminded her she was still mortal, that she was already much older than David… and that she knew David, if he loved her til the day she died… would never let himself love anyone else ever again. She wasn't wrong either… that's just how David is. Love for him is hard to get, and is kept and treasured by him forever… even if the other person was to pass, he would have clung to it and never moved on. So… she let him go, because she knew if she didn't, when she did die, he'd be miserable for the rest of his life."
"Yeah…I…I can imagine…" I sighed.
"After that, she worked to get him and Shift back together. Shift was the hesitant one this time, but three years of constant therapy and effort to get over their addiction paid off. David and Shift got back together… and stayed that way to this day. Holy even attended their wedding, acting as David's best man since she knew it would make for a laugh and it pissed Silver off." Squeaks sighed, taking a sip from their wine. "Holy passed away, at the age of eighty three in her sleep. Despite everything, everyone agreed the only reason she died in her sleep was because had death come for her when she was awake she would have fought, and probably won." Squeaks chuckled.
"Yeah, some people are just that stubborn." I chuckled. "Well…good to know she lived a good life and made Davy happy."
"Yeah. Shift always told them that if they ever wanted to…get together for old times sake, they'd be alright with it, but both refused. Part of me wonders… if we could see her again in this world?"
"Well…all things considered, she might be." I said honestly.
"Maybe… I wonder how David will react if she does, when he sees her again. Is it wrong that part of me thinks that old flame is still there? If so, think they'd give it a shot, I know Shift is more than alright with sharing David." Squeaks smirked.
"Love is a very stubborn and powerful thing." I admitted. "It's why I have a harem, a massive polyamorous relationship…because I well and truly love them all, and if Holy comes back…I'm sure Davy there would try and find that spark again."
"Heh, not without a push and a shove and maybe a few kicks in the back… Holy too most likely." Squeaks said. "Care to help out in that regard if such an event does come to pass?"
"Always happy to help." I nodded.