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#Post#: 3379--------------------------------------------------
The Hope of the People...? (Asgore Arc Aftermath Vignette)
By: guest105 Date: January 1, 2018, 2:13 am
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[center]
HTML https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=44A0UTwoCsg
[sub]In Character Date & Time: 13th November UUY 1,
approximately 10-11 PM
Set after Part II - Fighting For Freedom
HTML http://undergroundunlimited.createaforum.com/hotlands/part-ii-fighting-for-freedom/<br
/>& Memories of the Goat Family
HTML http://undergroundunlimited.createaforum.com/waterfall/memories-of-the-goat-family-(asriel-and-toriel)/[/sub][/center]
[hr]
The sound of his own footsteps padding softly along the castle
corridors echoed in Asgore’s ears as he slowly passed through
them, at present having no particular destination in mind. It
was late and much of the staff were already gone or abed, even
after everything that had happened with the crisis in Hotland.
Even his son -- brought back somehow from the purgatory that had
been his flowered form -- was tucked in for the night, though a
guard stood watch over that once familiar room should the young
lad require anything.
Or, in truth, in case some part of that darker self still
remained.
Despite that possibility, the monarch had great faith in his
son’s ability to do the right thing, particularly given his
actions toward protecting Undyne against the giant robot that
had tried to end everyone who’d had the misfortune of being
present when all hell broke loose. If anything, it was himself
in which Asgore had little faith at present. The actions which
had been brought to light had resurfaced some rather unpleasant
memories for the monster, ones that he was hardly proud of, but
were the harsh reality of his war upon humanity. People had died
at his hands for no other reason than their species and his plan
to break the Barrier with those seven souls once he had them.
But even now, that plan was cast into doubt. Various monsters
had called him out on the notion that perhaps this plan to use
the power of seven human souls might not even actually break the
Barrier as had been foretold centuries ago. The very idea that
all his sacrifice, all the blood on his hands might be for
naught troubled the ruler immensely; he had pushed the idea
aside at the time during the crisis, but now, in its aftermath,
it was one that he was forced to revisit again as all the
happenings weighed heavy on his heart.
Feet found their way to his study, the darkness of the room
comforting as only a dim light came through the large double
doors that led out to the balcony. Shutting the study door, the
caprine monster made his way across the room to those double
doors, pulling them open before stepping out onto the high
balcony beyond. He could see portions of the garden below, hear
the soft sounds of insects singing among the foliage of the cool
night, the gemstones above glistening with the magic inlaid
within ages ago. Further beyond he could see the Capital, a city
that felt like it never slept as even at this late hour lights
could still be seen glowing like beacons in the distance.
Asgore briefly wondered what it had looked like when the Core
was powered off. Had it plunged everything into darkness, save
for the soft nightlights in the arching caverns above? He hoped
there hadn’t been panic, though he knew that the Captain had
taken steps to try and keep the citizens safe during those
events. But now, things looked… normal. It was almost jarring
just how normal everything looked in the aftermath, despite the
quakes and blackouts that had rippled through the Underground.
He found himself wondering if any of that reached the surface
world above, impacted the humans who lived there as well.
“[font=courier]Their families should not have to suffer as ours
have, we can be free without taking other's freedom.[/font]”
Shoulders sagged with a heavy sigh as the King leaned against
the railing. It sent a mild ache through his shoulder and chest
where the bullets had torn through and been healed by the Azar
heir, but he paid it little mind. In truth, the ache of his soul
was much worse than those mild pangs as he ruminated on
everything the night had brought to the forefront of his mind.
So many people had stood against him when they found out the
truth of the plan he’d been slowly enacting over centuries since
Asriel’s apparent death. His wife had abandoned him instead of
offering an alternative. His people had needed hope, and
humanity had thrown them away like the garbage they still sent
down from the surface into Waterfall.
Why shouldn’t they suffer as ours have? How can we be free
without taking other’s freedom when they must become necessarily
as trapped as us to help us?
Pale eyelids slid over troubled grey irises as the noble blooded
monster ruminated. He knew the answer to the question even as he
asked it. There was not now a human left alive that was
responsible for sealing his people in this subterranean world to
be held accountable for those grievances. The humans on the
surface world knew nothing of them, except perhaps as broken
fairy tales and legends. They were mere stories, likely
boogeymen used to scare errant children. It would be wrong to
judge them for actions others had performed so very long ago. It
was wrong to take those innocent lives for his own purposes,
noble-intended though they were, when in truth he could have at
the very least let them live their lives out in peace and then
collect their souls upon a natural death.
It wasn’t as if he was going to die of old age anytime soon. He
could have afforded to wait.
Perhaps it would have prevented the events of today from
occurring at all had I been so patient. Prevented Undyne’s
sacrifices… Asgore’s features crumpled into anguish at the
memory of her lost arm. He knew she accepted such sacrifices as
part of her duties, and her loyalty was admirable, but he found
himself feeling decidedly unworthy of it when it was his actions
that caused her to have to make such a sacrifice in the first
place. If I hadn’t murdered Peter, she wouldn’t have been forced
to take action against June and at the very least Austin
wouldn’t have felt the need to attack us had her death been
natural…
He lifted a hand to cradle his face in with a deep groan,
curling through his golden hair and coming to brush against the
crown still adorning his head. It prompted him to pull it down
and look at it. Such a simple piece of wrought metal that held
such significance. His reflection looked back at him in the
polished gold, tired and weary. How can the souls be used while
alive, though? Humans apparently have no magic of their own, and
even they cannot pass through the Barrier without someone else’s
soul. A heavy sigh fogged the metal as he felt the flames
licking up inside again. What kind of progress had Gaster and
Sans made with their project before his death? His gaze turned
toward the horizon again. We’re stuck here, impotently waiting
for something to happen so we can go free, and now we’re down a
soul.
In frustration his fingers clenched around the simple coronet
before he cast it aside with a loud clatter. There was no way
that he could tell his people about that lost soul. They had
been so close to the seven souls they needed to break the
Barrier, and now they needed two.
If the need for seven was really truth at all.
Another sigh, this time with more of his heat behind it. They’d
been operating off the notion for so long that it had become
gospel for monsterkind. Now, he wasn’t so sure, and the fact
that he may have taken those innocent lives for nothing made his
soul feel far heavier than Papyrus’ blue magic had even come
close to tonight.
That thought prompted him to draw his own soul out, looking at
the amethyst surface. It bore a number of hairline cracks along
it, though these he knew had little to do with the injuries he
had sustained tonight. No, he could trace every single one back
to the deaths he had caused to those innocents. True, some
humans -- like the one who took the life of Sans and Papyrus’
mother -- were harmful, hardly innocent; but there were
certainly others like Peter and June who were victims of
circumstances and became trapped down here just like all of
monsterkind through no fault of their own, and certainly no harm
brought to his people.
Was letting June go the right decision? Everyone else seemed to
think so. That was the will of the people tonight. But could
their judgement be trusted? They certainly didn’t have the
weight of centuries of life backing them when making those
decisions, but then again Toriel had felt that was the right
course also.
He sighed. It seemed there wasn’t really a good answer to be had
no matter where he looked.
Asgore drew his soul back inside, not wishing to look upon that
sight any further. It certainly wouldn’t give him any answers it
seemed. The caprine yearned to talk to someone, share this
burden, get some external insight, but there was no one. Gerson
certainly wouldn’t have the patience for his nonsense, Undyne
deserved her rest and a strong leader to look up to, Toriel had
already given plenty of her thoughts tonight whether he welcomed
them or not…
We’ll just have to capture any humans who fall down and then
decide how to handle them from there… We can’t afford a mass
panic from a sudden change of plans. At least, not a public
change of plans. The Guard clearly needs some adjustments and
redressing… I’ll have to talk to Undyne about that very soon. We
can’t afford another security breach like tonight, and if the
Guard can’t even handle that I certainly don’t think they could
handle keeping the peace for the whole of the Underground if
word of this got out to the public…
His blood ran cold at the fact that Mettaton had been there,
half wondering if the celebrity had further snooped on them, but
also knowing that there had been a lot of people at that party
and who had volunteered, and in truth he wasn’t sure if all of
them could be trusted to keep their mouths shut. Fingers tugged
at his beard anxiously, the monarch moving to pace a slow but
certainly agitated circuit back and forth across the overhanging
patio. They would have to say that the soul had been recovered
in some kind of public statement, because Undyne surely hadn’t
been very quiet in her anger upon learning it was missing.
Probably make up something about the thief being caught and
suitably punished. Well, it’s not entirely made up. We did catch
and punish the thief, so to speak… Eyes closed as he paused.
I’ll have to reach out to everyone who saw what happened and
impress the importance of keeping those events private…
Asgore exhaled heavily, moving to sit in a nearby bench with a
deep groan. That was really something that should have been done
before anyone went home. As it was, the rumor mill was probably
already churning, and he’d simply have to work to do damage
control in some capacity.
Will the people still listen to me?
Fingers combed through his hair again, tugging it back in a half
nervous, half agitated gesture. He’d been so sure he had the
backing of his people, and yet now, those who had seen what kind
of reality they were facing in backing his plan, they mostly
stood against him, or at the very least were silent with any
support they might have given.
Can I even expect Undyne’s loyalty after all that transpired
tonight?
That thought troubled him perhaps most of all. He certainly
didn’t feel he deserved it at present, not after his actions had
caused her such grievous injuries. He knew she was tough --
always had been -- but he couldn’t help but see the young
monster that had tried to beat him all those years ago everytime
he looked at her. He was so proud of her, and he felt like he
had failed her in some fundamental way given how everything had
gone down tonight and his failure to step up to the plate until
so many others had already made sacrifices on behalf of
monsterkind.
Elbows on knees, he buried his face in his palms with a
frustrated groan. He truly felt out of his elemental trying to
figure out everything on his own like this. Asgore knew he
always made better decisions with outside information, and the
confidence of the people had long helped him stay on this
difficult path in the war on humanity, long after the fires of
his anger had died down and left him only with an endless grief
that no human’s death had ever given him solace from. June had
admonished him to be real again, to be the monster Undyne
believed in; that he didn’t have to stay in the same place as
he’d been in when he’d taken those two lives.
In truth, he never wanted to sink that low again. He wanted to
be the monster that Undyne believed in and admired. A beacon of
hope for his people. That was all he’d ever wanted. He hated
fighting. The war that had sealed them all away had left him
with little taste for it anymore, and yet in his anger and grief
he’d opted for such a foolish path again.
Have I become the pure evil that June claimed I was? The same
one others seem to fear my son still being? He took a funny
sounding breath. Is it my fault that Asriel became such a
monster when he was stuck without a soul in limbo as that
flower?
Asgore paused on that thought and reflected backwards, realizing
that if the child had been watching from the shadows this whole
time, seeing him being so ready to take the lives of even
innocent children -- just because they were human -- couldn’t
have been setting a very good example to follow. It was quite
possible those actions had -- directly or indirectly -- shaped
the boy into something he most certainly was not in life: a
murderer.
That thought prompted a shudder down his spine. Asriel certainly
didn’t seem like that to him right now -- he’d helped save
Undyne’s life, after all -- but could simply having a soul be
enough to guide him from that path? That wasn’t so clear cut.
Asgore knew he wanted to set the better example for his child
now that he had been gifted that precious life once more, for
however long he was blessed to have it. They would need to see
Alphys sooner rather than later to figure out anything they
could on that front, that was for certain.
So what does setting the better example look like?
The King paused to ruminate on that for a bit. Not murdering any
other humans was probably a good start, he figured rather
sardonically. It was obvious that they couldn’t just immediately
withdraw from that public war on humanity, however. They would
need to come up with a viable alternative to present to the
people and give them hope instead. Something tangible. He’d have
to talk to Alphys about what kind of progress she’d made toward
the Barrier and the needed power to break it or otherwise free
them, but he was also starting to wonder if putting all his
investment on an alternative in one person was misguided.
Papyrus had insisted rather strongly that Gaster and Sans had
been close to some kind of breakthrough in their own research,
but after his prior interaction with the short skeleton and the
death of the first royal scientist, the monarch wasn’t so sure
that Sans would be willing to resume work on the project.
Well, can’t know unless we try, right? Maybe for his brother or
even monsterkind he’d be willing to give it a go, and if not, at
least I made an effort and can absolve my conscious of such
burdens. A sigh. I do still owe him an apology, so perhaps I
could take care of both at once.
The caprine stroked his golden beard as he tried to figure out
what else he could do. They’d have to address any rumors that
cropped up if they were pervasive enough and get a proper public
statement out, likely come Monday morning. It’d give him time to
consult with his advisors and figure out the best way to allay
any fears tonight’s more noticeable events had caused. They
needed to get the Guard back into proper fighting form again,
that was certain, and adjust the orders regarding humans to
merely be for their capture somehow, but in such a way that it
didn’t raise suspicions. He’d have to talk to Undyne about that
and figure out what the best way to accomplish that might be.
Well, assuming she still trusts me enough to even carry such a
plan out… After everyone was lashing out at me, I can’t be
certain she’ll even want to continue working for me.
It was a depressing thought and he hoped he was very wrong about
it.
A heavy sigh fell from his lips as he slumped in the bench he
was in, staring up at the ceiling stars with their soft glow as
an errant breeze wafted by and rustled through his hair and fur.
It almost felt like the earth was sighing with him, but he knew
that was silly and improbable. Certainly a little too self
indulgent for how small he felt right now. His crownless brow
felt rather appropriate, but he knew that he should at least try
to make amends before giving up entirely. There had to be
something he could do to set things right again and prevent
further tragedies related to those looking up to him for his
care and guidance.
It certainly wouldn’t set a good example to Asriel if he just
gave up immediately either.
Drawing in a deep breath -- a mild twinge reminded him that
wasn’t an entirely good idea -- Asgore sighed it out again
slowly, but more meditatively as he tried to bring his thoughts
back to center from all the dark paths they’d run away to. There
was a lot that was still very muddy about how to proceed, but he
knew that he wanted to try and be a better person, for his son
and his people. He needed to talk to Undyne and various other
advisors to figure out the best way forward without inciting
public unrest. That would have to wait until tomorrow at the
earliest, and he wasn’t entirely sure he wanted to pester Undyne
unduly given that she probably needed rest after her injuries.
He chuckled. She’d kick my butt for even insinuating such a
thing though.
That thought cheered him slightly, and he did want to at least
check up on her somehow tomorrow, even if via text. He’d wait
until a decent hour of the day for that, however, he decided, as
it was definitely getting late and he was starting to feel the
day’s events catching up to him rather strongly.
With another softer sigh that was almost a yawn, Asgore pushed
himself out of the chair, going in search of the crown he’d
chucked away in his frustration. He found it with a bit of
fire-aided light and looked at his reflection in the scuff his
tossing had produced across its face. It seemed somehow
appropriate, so he didn’t bother trying to buff it out before
setting the coronet back on his scalp. It felt unusually heavy
for a change, but he knew it was more important than ever to
keep up appearances, so he wore it anyway.
He had persisted through centuries of hardship. This was just a
bump in the road and he could do the same through it, whatever
that ended up looking like, Asgore decided as he closed the
balcony doors and made his way out of the study. The monarch
certainly didn’t have all the answers, but as he padded down the
hallway along the familiar path to his bedchambers he reflected
that nobody else would either. It was all simply a guess based
on best evidence at the time. The results were always at least a
little uncertain, but with some input from people he trusted,
the caprine noble was certain that they could find the best way
forward from here together.
It was just a matter of perseverance.
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