The morning sun rose into the sky. Another busy day began for Lucidia of House Berendin. She just received the good news that her mansion, much like Ebott Town, had its electricity restored. In other words, she could use the main Chronograph at full capacity once more.
Before she returned though, she started writing an official request for help from Lemuria.
Ever curious, the flower children watched over her shoulder as she typed her letter on a computer.
“Let’s see,” said Flowey, “Post incident report. Giant monster. Police intervention. Literal 4D politics. Something something big shot Commissioner. Reinforcement request: nurses, magitek engineers, lawyers, a prosthetics specialist, and ‘miscellaneous help’? Where’s the ‘surgeon’? Weren’t you planning a ‘surgery’?”
Lucidia said, “Explanation: Other than myself, there is no one else with the required knowledge to treat Sans Serif and Papyrus. I will act as the surgeon for this task.”
Chara crossed their vine arms. “Even SOULS can be operated, huh? Talk about being in the future. What about the stupid skelegirl?”
“I have not found a donor that matches her yet. On the other hand, the brothers compliment each other by a sheer miracle. Even Sans’ newfound Red Aspect may prove beneficial to Papyrus."
“What do you mean?” Flowey grew anxious. “H-hey, Papyrus is not gonna turn into a Smiley Trashbag, right?!”
“Negative.” Lucidia replied, “I can confirm that Papyrus will not suffer a complete personality change, as he has a much better prognosis than Sans Serif. It’s the latter that I’m concerned about. There’s a threshold before an injury becomes a permanent scar. Sans Serif has lost more than just an arm. I’m afraid that this procedure can only halt the decay and not reverse it.”
The former prince wiped a leaf across his flowery forehead. “Golly! That’s good news. As long as Papyrus will remain himself, I’m happy.”
“Yeah. Who cares about that Edgebag?” Chara scoffed. “Serves him right for him to get some permanent punishment. He thinks he can escape consequences. What an idiot.”
The child’s statements caused Lucidia to pause her typing. “…Sans Serif destroyed all his possessions because he expected consequences. He knew he’d lose his old life no matter the outcome.”
“Ugh. Whatever, lady. You’re the expert.”
Such was an expected response from those flower children. There’s no point explaining further to them. So, Lucidia said, “Proposal: please excuse yourselves now so I may focus on the task at hand.”
“Sure. Come on, Azzy. This is boring.”
“Okay, Chara. Hey, isn’t it April Fool’s today? Wanna prank somebody?”
“Yeah. Let’s ‘Mez’ with the warlock.”
“‘Mez.’” Flowey groaned. “That’s so trashy. It’s Sans level trash. You should be ashamed of yourself.”
The flower children left without any extra snark, preoccupied with their own fun. She’s grateful for their semi-compliance. Certainly didn’t need more Gaster-like accusations.
After signing her digital signature, she saved the letter in a memory stick. Only the Chronograph had the means to securely send messages to the hidden monster island. All the more reason why she must return home.
On the way out, she heard the children call out to her from a distance.
“Hey! Hey, Lady Lucy!”
“Grillby is here!”
Sir Grillenn? So soon? Lucidia knew her husband had a major discussion last night between Aiden and the bar owner. No doubt he would have given the verdict too. She expected maybe a day or two for him to come to terms with his failure.
“Note to self: consider the possibility of a tasteless April Fools joke.”
However, it really was the Fire Eater. He looked like he had just arrived after a lengthy dash.
Upon noticing Luicidia’s presence, Sir Grillenn got down on one knee, rested a fist across his chest, and lowered his head.
This pose signified the offering of both the physical and figurative heart: a knight’s pledge of loyalty.
“Confirmation: Are you certain? Have you discussed this with your King?”
“…No…” Sir Grillenn replied, “…But I know he would allow this… Please consider me as a willing participant… for a cultural exchange…”
Lucidia found no fault in Sir Grillenn’s statements. King Asgore does have a permissive personality, unlike the stricter Queen. Yet her conscience bothered her. She doesn’t want Sir Grillenn to suffer the same fate as Gaelic. Even if she knew it was illogical, Lucidia felt that joining under her banner might bring him certain doom.
“There are ways for you to assist without going this far.” She said, “You need not pledge yourself to House Berendin. Papyrus has agreed to become a full-time Chronographer. Furthermore, Sans Serif is obliged to assist his brother. I believe two from your nation is already more than enough.”
“…Apologies, but I must object… There are things that even Papyrus cannot do… For example… To wield the ancient relic…”
Lucidia persevered. “Please present the reasons why you would be a suitable candidate.”
“…Sir Gaelic said that I wielded a magic sword in an alternate timeline… He believes that it had a reason to choose me… At first I thought he was being fanciful… But I believe there’s more to his rhetoric…”
How keen his perception was. Indeed, there was a reason why he was the one selected to prosecute Sans Serif. Still, Confirmation or denial will leak too much information on foreign grounds. Therefore, she opted for the third path. “Please rise. I wish to bring you somewhere. Is that acceptable?”
“…Yes…” Grillby stood back up on his feet. “…Where will we go?…”
“First, I require you to be blindfolded.”
“…Pardon?…” Not long after, the surprise was pushed aside. “…I apologize for my rudeness… Yes, Lady Lucidia… I trust you…”
Lucidia wasted no time to cover Sir Grillenn’s eyes with a dark handkerchief. It’s for his own sake that she did this. Other than her husband and Judge Caraway, her other guests always ended up terrified from her choice of shortcuts. Even Gaelic would rather take his own shortcuts than to use hers, if he had a choice.
Her own Eyes burned as she summoned a pair of crane skulls to bind the Fire Eater to her path. Doing so would keep him close by her side no matter what.
Then, the journey began. Lucida led Sir Grillenn to the rooftops of Alphys’ Lab. From there, the two of them flew upwards and through one of the floating Seer’s portals. The exit sent them high into the heavens, close to the sun.
It’s fair weather today: a blue sky with sparse wispy clouds. The view was beautiful, yet frightening for those unaccustomed to heights.
Already, she sensed a spike of confused fear from her passenger. The winds up here will always be cold and roaring. The edges of Sir Grillenn’s flame-like hair flapped like a tattered flag.
All the more reason why she must be quick.
* * *
Undyne managed to squeeze in some time to visit the school today. Despite everything, she was technically still the Physical Education teacher there. She thought that she should at least check up on the children’s well-being.
According to her own notes, it was dodgeball day for Frisk’s class. That kid shouldn’t have any problems. They’re an absolute PRO at dodging stuff.
Except today. Five minutes into the match, and the pint size human received a full face frontal strike. Good thing the ball was made from soft cloth and not something hard like a basketball. Lord knows how Toriel would flip out if anything happened to her child in these uncertain times.
Thankfully, the kid didn’t suffer any real injuries. They were just winded. Nothing that some water and a short break won’t solve.
One of the children commented: “Another weird thing happened again…”
“Yeah,” said the armless lizard child. “Miss Toriel was sooooo out of it too.”
Frisk called that kid ‘Monster Kid’, which was confusing because his name was really just ‘Kid’, after a legendary cowboy.
Something fishy was going on, and it wasn’t Undyne’s own body odor. She squatted down and beckoned the kids to shuffle closer.
“What happened to Toriel?” she asked.
“Don’t snow.” Snowy shrugged. “Today she told us to do our own reading, which was cool and all. But then she started chilling out on her desk. And now Frisk froze up like that too. So I thought maybe they both caught a cold? Yeah. Like, they’re out cold from the cold?”
Kid added, “Yup. Sure seems so. It’s April Fools on the Surface, right? I tried drawing on Miss Toriel’s face. But she, like, didn’t respond at all. Not even angry at me. It’s weeeird.”
Very odd indeed. Other than falling down, monsters don’t really get sick. The same can’t be said for the human though. So, Undyne made a quick check on their temperature. Placed her hand on their forehead for a few seconds. It was normal, not burning hot like the time they ended up in hospital. But they did look tired. Exhausted. Depressed, even.
“Nah, it’s not the cold. No leaky nose and no fever. Guess the punk is just beat from yesterday’s big event.”
A squid girl asked: “Is Santa beat from yesterday’s big event too?”
“King Asgore? Why did you think so?”
Using her tentacle appendages, she mimicked the motion of a hedge clipper. “He was trimming the Papyrus sculpture like a movie zombie. Burrrrr. Then before we could prank him, he suddenly snipped off Papyrus’ knee bone from his thigh bone!”
The tentacles clapped together with a splat, emphasizing the moment of Asgore’s blunder.
Undyne said, “Oh my god. Really?”
“Ahuh,” Kid nodded. “Like, SNIP! Gone.”
More and more red flags. It’s becoming a Determination golf course at this rate.
What the heck is going on? She wondered.
Buzz, buzz, buzz. Incoming text. Undyne checked her phone to see if it’s urgent.
It’s a direct message from Cenna.
HotAndSpicy
Cap, call me whenever you can.
Keep it discreet though.
Don’t wanna worry anyone.
That sure sounded urgent enough. Was that why there’s a giant backlog of messages from the group chat? Undyne always muted it when she needed to teach.
If it’s anything political, instead of japes, she can’t mention it in front of the kids. Better to make some kind of an excuse to get away from them for a while. So she said: “I’m gonna get Frisk some water. You guys continue the game, okay? And play nice!”
The children unanimously replied: “Yes, Miss Undyne!”
Outside, on the way to the water dispenser, Undyne rang Cenna’s number. The other side answered the call almost immediately.
“Yo, Cap,” greeted Cenna, “How’s Frisky and my new goat parents doin’?”
Undyne scrunched her brows. “Acting weird. Toriel slept in class, Asgore ruined a sculpture, and Frisk received a full dodgeball in the face.”
“Thought so. Aw, man! He really did a number to them. Dammit, why did he have to make things so difficult. Always too serious for his own good, that man.”
“Who? Tsunderjudge?”
“No, Commissioner Roger Eldin. My ‘other’ boss. He met the Dreemurrs this morning and… well… things didn’t go so dandy.”
“Commissioner? You mean the boss of the local city police force?”
“B-boss of what? Oh no. Nononononononoooo. Okay this is worse than I thought. Undyne, listen. He ain’t just any Commissioner. He’s Commissioner of the Metropolis, appointed by the human royal family themselves! Ol’ Roger is THE most important police officer IN THE COUNTRY!”
Undyne immediately broke a cold sweat. “Wut. So… s-something like Captain of the Royal Guard?”
“Bingo! Point being, The Commissioner of the Metropolis has direct contact to the current reigning monarch. If Ol’ Roger tells them that monsters can’t be trusted, then the Dreemurr Nation is royally screwed!”
“What the hell?!” Undyne exclaimed, “Why?! I thought all the surviving human royalty in this region no longer have any real power. That’s what we were told by the surrounding towns!”
“Just because they don’t have the same political power as in ye olde days doesn’t mean they have zero influence. They’re still very much respected by the people. Ol’ Mez worried a ton over the legitimacy of the Dreemurrs for a reason.”
“Then why didn’t they come and talk to us yet??? Shouldn’t they have had some kind of an official meeting with Asgore and Toriel?”
“That’s because your whole monster nation thing ain’t official yet. Not in the eyes of law. Yesterday’s feast was one step forward. But, you gotta sign and file papers before it becomes recognized.”
“Damn… one problem after another huh? Give me a moment. I’m getting some water for Frisk.”
At the school’s water dispenser, Undyne filled a paper cup with some fresh cool water. She resumed talking on the way back to the gym.
“So, what’s up?” Undyne continued, “I don’t think you’ll ask me to contact you if it’s just a status update.
“Awesome. Nice to know we’re on the same wavelength. You see, Ol’ Roger is issuing you a challenge from one boss cop to another. I’m serious about the challenge part by the way. He wants you to join a mission to arrest Aiden’s sister. Remember the lass who held you hostage in the HQ’s waterworks?”
“…Yeah.” She grit her teeth. “I remember her! That freaking Gungnir woman! She kept shoving that Dayton kid around. What a crappy aunt! I’ll gladly teach her a lesson she won’t forget!!! So, what’s the deal? I mean, why the challenge?”
“The Commissioner wants to know if you have what it takes. See if you know when to use lethal force and when not to. Also manage teams, discipline, yadda yadda. Accidents are bad optics, especially when it involves the loss of lives. Always a complete shitshow when that happens.”
Cenna let out a big sigh over the other end. “Normally Ol’ Roger would have called for my help, but my dumbass self went and got a week’s suspension for punching Mez. I’m tied down until Thursday.”
Talk about the motherload of short notices. Undyne paused for a moment to think. She’s not the type to ruminate about a thousand and one possibilities. That’s more of an Alphys thing to do.
This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.
The fish decided: “I’ll do it. Under the condition that I’m allowed to operate at my own discretion. The last thing I want is having to argue about the ’right decision’ when we’re in a boiling hot pickle. Also, I do have to inform Queen Toriel about this. I AM still a registered teacher, y’know! I can’t just ditch my job.”
“Don’t worry. I’ll handle it. Godspeed, Cap. Try to keep cool throughout the day. You’re gonna need to.”
“Okay…? Bye.”
Undyne stopped walking, wondering why Cenna wanted her to stay calm. Could it have something to do with the group chat?
Curiosity got the better of her. She tapped the room’s name and began reading the backlog.
MTT
Can any darling explain why my social media account got flooded today with awful anti-monster sentiments?!
Some of this filth isn’t even age appropriate! Like, look at these DUMPSTER CHUTES! They wrote whole slanderous essays of character assassination for every person who attended the feast!
Is this a prank? It’s the first of April today so I’m extra suspicious.
Humans and their holidays continue to surprise me.
Shining Star
Including Papyrus?
MTT
Yes!
It’s just, WHY???
Of all the beauties in the world, why slander Papyrus????
I need some mind bleach from reading all those swear-words.
ALPHYS
let me take a quick look
wow you weren’t kidding
this is bad
it’s barely coherent too
monsters are problematic?
sorry but what the fuck is this shit?
Shining Star
How did that start?
ALPHYS
seems like it all began when mettaton’s fans compared suplex queen (♥) with fire heiwajima (©)
one side said, fish is stronger
cause she pinned down wolfzilla with unlimited spear works! if you know what I mean?
Shining Star
I understood those refs.
Please continue.
ALPHYS
other side said, fire is stronger
skills over brawn, so the reasoning went
i don’t agree, but he did manage to fend her off and 20 other people *shrug*
Shining Star
Sans could do the same, right? Does that make him stronger than Undyne?
MTT
Goodness me, cheeky baby. Sans can NEVER bench press the weight of 17 adults!
That’s the epitome of apples and oranges.
ALPHYS
so uh, next someone came along and did some math to conclude that undyne is basically a walking nuke
i crunched the numbers real fast and can confirm they’re accurate
roughly around 1/12 of the bomb used in the far east over a century ago
MTT
THAT was when the rabble showed up! Those darn conspiracy nuts were talking about whether or not the Kaiju was planted by us.
A show of power, they say.
So the humans get scared and stay away, they say.
I’m an actor and yet I thought it’s moronic to risk the destruction of my own town for stupid politic points.
The NERVE of these people, I tell you! It’s absolute insanity!
HotAndSpicy
Guys guys guys.
The best thing you can do is to go offline and stay quiet.
If you say anything, they WILL use it against you.
If people can throw shit at the cleanest piece of children’s entertainment, they’ll throw shit at anything.
ALPHYS
uhm we did sorta kinda plant the kaiju
i mean sure we didn’t hire a paid actor
but the hot husbando judge still triggered the transformation forcefully
and made a big show about it on live cam too
Shining Star
………
I’m sorry.
I screwed up.
HotAndSpicy
Noooo Frisky it ain’t your fault.
This happens every single time.
I mean it. Mez gets it every day.
Hate mobs scream the loudest on social media.
I guarantee you that there are a lot more sane and supportive people out there.
But it’ll take time before they can get their voices out.
Shining Star
There’s more to it than that. It’s… complicated.
MTT
My oh my, what happened superstar?
Shining Star
This morning, me, Mom, and Dad met up with Commissioner Eldin for breakfast. I’ll call him Copman from here on.
It started out fine.
Good food, nice atmosphere. Hungover mom.
Ok that’s actually a bad start.
Before we knew it, Copman started asking us tough questions between the family talk.
It made Dad uncomfortable. Mom got mad. I tried to salvage the whole thing but apparently I made it worse.
CoolSkeleton95
WHAT DID HE SAY?
Shining Star
Omg you’re awake!
Uh. He called Dad a stooge and Mom a Karen, though I don’t really know what a ‘Karen’ is.
HotAndSpicy
Remember Linda? That Frisky, is what a ‘Karen’ is. Male version is ‘Ken’ btw.
Why those names? Dunno, but old folk tend to use them a lot.
Shining Star
Oooooh. I see.
…I guess Mom can be like that too.
Ok. So then he criticized Mom and Dad for depending too much on the only person in the room who has half an idea of what the human world is like.
Who’s also a minor by law.
Who’s obviously carrying too much on their tiny little shoulders.
That’s me.
Shining Star
Basically he concluded that our goteparents are too ordinary for the responsibilities of royalty.
To quote: ‘If you’re so daft that you can’t be arsed to admit the dangers of your magic subjects gallivanting about in the human world, then you got no business on the bloody throne’.
Something like that.
Paraphrasing, y’know.
Shining Star
Golly I thought Tsunderjudge hits the heart hard enough.
Copman may seem friendly at first, but I could feel the sheer disappointment from 10 miles away.
I don’t know who’s worse. Tsunderjudge or Copman.
At least Tsunderjudge is honest and upfront with his tsundereness…
CoolSkeleton95
…………
I’M SORRY TO HEAR THAT.
Shining Star
If it wasn’t for the Kaiju panic, Copman might have believed Mom and Dad.
But after that kind of display… fat chance.
I really should have listened to Tsunderjudge.
He got really pissed at me for rewinding time too soon.
I thought he was being a cowardly doodoobutt until I met the Copman himself.
The Tsunderjudge would have known what kind of a person he is.
That’s why I apologized for screwing up.
I didn’t do enough research before I went and changed reality…
HotAndSpicy
I wouldn’t throw in the towel yet, Frisky.
You don’t know Ol’ Roger, but I do.
He’s not a guy who changes his mind easily (a big trait of Integrity mains)
BUT!
Work with him and he’ll work with you.
I get to say his name this casually off the job because we’ve seen each other’s bullcrap aplenty. I mean, the both of us survived Mez’s hellish helicopter ride!
Shining Star
Don’t you mean HELL-icopter? rofles
ALPHYS
omg really, frisk?
HotAndSpicy
Oh my good lord I wish I thought of that sooner.
CoolSkeleton95
NYEEEEHHHHH!!!
THIS IS NOT THE TIME FOR SANSPUNS!!!
THOUGH I DO GENUINELY MISS THEM… ESPECIALLY TODAY.
Shining Star
Sorry Papyrus…
ALPHYS
does… does that mean sans was right?
i still can’t approve his baka unreasonable dimensionally impossible villain plot
however
it doesn’t look like we could change the world overnight even with time travel.
what if a new war breaks out between humans and monsters over this?
what if they find out about the six?
Shining Star
I don’t know yet, Alphys…
Sans didn’t go crazy for no reason, I guess.
This happened over an hour ago, when Toriel had her class.
The more Undyne read the conversation…
…The more her blood boiled.
So many parties risked life and limb to end a thousand-year war… and this was how the world ‘thanked’ them?
Did they already forget how the monsters rescued humans in the big fire? Or were those folk acceptable casualties because they were Magi?
This whole ordeal had gone beyond just being fishy. It reeked like a whole chum bucket!
The timing and details were way too specific.
“UGH! That FREAKING Gungnir WOMAN!!!”
Time and time again, she and her ilk had resorted to the same methods: using the internet to rile up the masses.
Undyne then remembered how she was warned to stay calm no matter what. Don’t vent. Don’t rant. Because anything she does could become ammunition for more slander.
So she drank some water from the cup, then started doing the breathing exercises Asgore taught her as a child.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Repeat a couple more times.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Breathe in.
Breathe out.
Nope. That didn’t work. She was so furious, she poured remaining cold liquid on herself and slammed the empty paper cup into the nearest trash bin.
“RAAAARGHHHHHHH!!!” she yelled. If this wasn’t public property, she would have kicked the trash bin too. Imagined it as one of those stupid naysaying jerks.
“Okay Undyne. Get! Your! Act! Together! The VERY last thing you need right now is another dang scandal!”
That worked, somehow. Maybe it’s because she had already spent energy.
“Water. Yeah. The punk is still waiting for their water.”
So she went back to the water cooler to get a fresh cup. From there, it’s a brisk walk back to the gym.
Upon arrival, she discovered that Queen Toriel was already there. The children were no longer playing dodgeball. Instead, it turned into a magic practice session. It was no doubt due to Toriel’s standards of ‘safety’: she tends to be too restrictive when it comes to sports.
Frisk stayed by Toriel’s side, looking better than they were before. The kid beckoned the fish to come over.
“Yes?” asked Undyne.
“Water please,” said Frisk. “And lower yourself a bit.”
Undyne handed the water to Frisk.
While gulping their drink, Frisk reached their hand out to Undyne’s chest. Their magic brought her SOUL on the surface and etched their Mark on it. Then, they put everything back before their classmates noticed it.
“That magic keeps your memories,” said the kid. “I hope you don’t need to rely on that. Also, thanks for the water.”
The Queen said, “Go do what you need to do, Captain Undyne. I have already informed the children that you will be leaving early. We -- The Dreemurrs -- were the ones who recommended you to the Commissioner.”
“Now that we are living on the Surface, all of us must be more mindful in how we use magic. Humans… are like glass. They are strong, yet they are also brittle. Just one bad fall from a tree could kill them.”
“Captain Undyne, as one of the strongest monsters in our nation, you are a role model for the next generation. As such, you would have gotten involved one way or another. Commissioner Eldin has his eyes on your actions, and with him many others.”
Undyne said, “So whether or not I go, something’s gonna happen.”
Frisk clasped their hands. “Please don’t die. Dying sucks, can confirm.”
Hearing that, Undyne burst into a huge laugh. She slapped her hand down on the little squirt’s non-cup shoulder. Was it too hard? It’s fine as long as there was no permanent injury.
“Fufufu! I’m gonna do a ‘no-death’ run. And I’ll brag about it in chat! Just watch!”
* * *
Lucidia identified the portal that would lead straight into the hidden library. Upon entry, the howling winds immediately ceased.
The man asked, “…Did we just… fly?…”
“Affirmative. But we’re on safe ground now. Oh, please keep your blindfolds on. You do not have clearance to see this path yet.”
“…Understood… And I thank you for your thoughtfulness… I might have lost my composure from the flight…”
It appeared she had yet another guest with aerophobia. A mild case, yet enough to cause distress. While taking Sir Grillenn’s hand, she said: “We’re almost at our destination. Please let me lead you. We will be able to speak more freely there. ”
After navigating the rows of shelves, they stopped before a wall that bore her family’s crest: the Ace of Spades. A magical seal auto-activated upon detecting her presence. Scanning her blue brooch, it verified her identity.
The wall then parted ways to reveal the physical Chronograph. It had not been damaged by the fire one bit. Other than over a week’s worth of dust, the room was the same as always. That included the integrity of the eastern fire-exit.
It had already been that long? Lucidia didn’t realise that so much time had passed.
Returning to The Spire’s familiarity, a huge wave of relief washed over her. It was an utter hassle working with other people’s equipment. She especially hated those cheap membrane keyboards and how they hurt the joints on her fingers. The whole experience was like wearing another person’s shoes: never completely comfortable.
But here -- in this very chamber -- she had everything fine-tuned for her comfort. From the tools to the hardware peripherals.
At the base of the Chronograph, Lucidia made a swiping gesture. The machine responded by shifting the protective plates around. The act revealed her usual low-resistance keyboard, a high-spec monitor, and a special issue Seer’s visor.
Beyond the shadow of a doubt, this was the place she called ‘home’.
As she took off Sir Grillen’s blindfolds, she said: “Welcome to The Chronograph. My humble abode.”
After letting his eyes adjust, the fire knight looked around. What caught his attention was the massive size of the Chronograph itself.
“…Is that… about seven stories tall?…”
“Accurate.”
“…This looks more like a tower than a computer… A far cry from Gaster’s creation…”
“Technically, it is a collection of supercomputers. My predecessors had laid the foundation. And I’ve improved on it even before I was officially elected.”
Two chairs emerged from inside the device, one for herself and one for her guest.
“Please have a seat.”
After sitting down, Lucidia asked: “So that we’re on the same page, what have you learned so far?”
“…Last night, Judge Thyme spoke about Genocider’s vaults… Warned about talking artifacts…”
“He has revealed that much to you? I see. I’m not sure what else I can legally disclose. If only Queen Toriel agreed to our terms sooner. It would have eased matters such as these. As of now, I cannot proceed without the necessary conditions. The Dreemurrs have yet to formally sign a treaty between nations. Without it, the exact nature of this relic will remain top secret.”
“…Unless I become Sir Gaelic’s peer…”
“Yes,” said Lady Lucidia. “But doing so without a diplomatic agreement could land you in some serious complications. You may or may not lose your Ebottian citizenship.”
“…I know…” Sir Grillenn replied, “…But we have precious little time left… If I don’t stand under your banner… Will I ever have Lemuria’s trust?… Will I have the humans’ trust?… From the tales I have heard… The answer would be ‘no’…”
“That is indeed true. I’m honoured that you’re willing to risk so much for the world’s sake. However, I ask that we don’t act too hasty just yet.”
Plugging the memory stick into a slot on the computer’s working area, she elaborated: “You may not be dealt the same hand as that dark timeline if we acquire extra help. I should receive a response within twelve hours.”
Mail, sent. It’s still very early over at Lemuria. Hopefully, the night-shift staff would start making arrangements for the morning shift.
Then, someone tried to contact her via her phone. Lucidia tried to answer it, but she halted in her tracks when she saw the name.
The name on screen read the following:
‘Roger Eldin, Commissioner’.
She immediately put on the Seer’s visor and linked the reception of her phone to the machine. She set the output to speakers, intentionally so. Whatever follows, she wanted Sir Grillenn to hear it.
LINK SUCCESS. INPUT OK, OUTPUT OK.
“Lucidia Berendin speaking,” she said.
Roger greeted back. “Morning, Missus Thyme! Has your hubby tucked himself into the satin lining yet?”
“Affirmative. For at least a few hours now. He should be awake in the afternoon. Do you wish to arrange for an appointment?”
“Nah. Don’t wanna knacker the Old Thymer. Just relay the talk as usual. Tell him I met with the Royal Farm this morning over fish and chips. And holy smokes -- that was a whole lotta bleating! I pity the pintsized Crimson Keeper.”
“Clarification: Judge Caraway has already informed me of the outcome.”
“No doubt about it. I swear, the lass wanted to knuckle sandwich me so bad, I could feel it in the goolies. Haha! Sorry prissy princess, but stooges and Karens ain’t my cup of tea! And I bet they’re not yours either, Missus Thyme. Now I get why the Old Thymer refused to parley with them at first. What a bollocks time sink! What even made him change his mind? Did he meet a miracle worker or something?”
“A fairly accurate description. You’ve not met Papyrus in person. Therefore, you’ve not seen his honest determination to make an impossibility a reality.”
“That spoopy skeleton? He’s the chap who melted the Old Thymer’s icy heart? Well, color me gobsmacked! I thought he’s not batting on a full wicket. I definitely gotta meet this fellow in person then. Hope he’s not as much of a bust as the Dreaming Dreemurrs.”
“Disclaimer: I am unable to guarantee if Papyrus could satisfy your standards. You are not my husband.”
“Whoa, madam! Don’t get your knickers in a twist. I won’t rake him on hot coals like what I did at the goat barbecue. He ain’t a high-born big shot. I can respect a self-made man.”
“Apologies, Commissioner Eldin. We should focus back on diplomatic matters. From what I understand from Judge Caraway’s report, your main concern was about the Dreemurr Nation’s attitude to magic.”
“Yep. Brings back memories of the bad era, y’know. The last generation knew sod all about magic. Lumped it together with hogwash and balderdash. Because of that, the force lost a lot of good men and women to ‘unknown circumstances’.”
“Then you and your hubby came along. Idealistic, yet realistic at the same time. Ever since we shook hands publically to combine forces, everything’s been hunky-dory and my mates stopped dying in vain. Always appreciated that.”
“House Berendin also thanks your steadfast cooperation for the past 25 years.”
“Haha! No need to be so formal, madam.”
“Query: you claim that the monsters are dangerous. Unreliable ‘storybook rejects’ you call them. Then… what of me?”
There was a pause from the other end, as if he’s got the ‘collywobbles’.“Crikey Missus Thyme, that’s a pretty peculiar question to ask. You respect magic like you respect science, with all its dangers included. That’s why you earned my trust.”
“Response acknowledged. Thank you.”
“Uh, right. Where have we left off? Thyme managed to get the head honcho Aratet to talk. I don’t know how the mad lad did it, but I ain’t gonna pry. We now have a lead to catch one of the big brains behind the terrorist attack. So I asked the daft goats who they thought is best suited for the task.”
A curious proposition. “I presume that you’re initiating an arrest. Is it Grillbz Grillenn?”
“Close, but no cigar. It’s that Suplex Queen gal. I would have told them to bugger off if they suggested him anyway, if you catch my drift.”
This is not the right moment to assume anything. Lucidia frowned as she said: “Error, ‘drift’ not found. Vague implications may lead to incorrect conclusions. Requesting explicit explanation.”
“Well… Anyone who can fight almost two dozen goons without getting nicked? That’s the bee’s knees! For him, this mission would be a piece of a cake. But if these monsters wanna lolligag alongside humankind, their whole police force has gotta learn how to deal with the bad apples the non-lethal way. One wrong move, and you’re looking at torches and pitchforks. Those twats who parade as paragons won’t miss the chance to raise holy hell.”
“I’m already hearing folks saying that we need to ‘limit their power’. Monster rights ain’t a thing yet. Makes it way easier for the wrong parties to get a foothold. I don’t think the Dreemurr Family is capable of resisting them wankers.”
Lucidia remembered the rewound past wherein everything went south. Whether monster society realised it or not, tensions tipped at a deadly cliff edge. The last time a riot happened, Roger Eldin was trapped in his own office by his own men. The police force mutinied against him and prevented help from ever arriving at Ebott Town.
“In other words,” said Lucidia, “You’re suggesting that House Berendin should directly employ the most capable of the Dreemurr Nation’s citizens for their own safekeeping. This bolsters the strength of the pro-magic faction and gives The Magus Association future leverage. Query: won’t the people accuse us for gathering an army of superweapons? It doesn't help that my husband burned many bridges ten years ago.”
“Meh. They’ve sang that song a million times over. Besides, you better get some new allies before attempting to build those bridges back. Keeps those muppets humble, y’know. Otherwise, they’ll puff up like a hot-air balloon.”
“Oh. Speaking of hot stuff… I think I have something that belongs to the Fire Man. One of my officers dropped off a whole knight’s armour and a pair of glasses. Didn’t know who they belonged to until recently. He owns this pub called ‘Grillby’s’, right? Should I send it to that address?”
Lucidia shook her head. “No, please send it to the Berendin Manor. Sir Grillenn will be with me for mission preparations. I thank you on his behalf.”
“Darn! You’re ahead of the game, eh? Well played! And here I thought I had beaten you to the punch for once. Sounds like you got all your ducks in a row. Just make sure the Old Thymer stays the hell away from any Jungle Curry! He can binge on it after his victory. My treat.”
“I will pass on that sentiment too. Good day, Commissioner Eldin.”
“Cheerio. Here’s hoping we’ll have no more unwanted April surprises.”
CALL END
Lucidia took off her visors and sighed, disappointed by the outcome.
“I’m… I’m sorry,” she clutched the visor. “Your people have been backed into a corner again. I truly wish you could walk a different path.”
Grillby replied: “…It’s fine… I’m still here on my own volition…”
Didn’t Gaelic say the same thing? It had lifted guilt off her shoulders, but was it fair or justified? She didn’t know anymore.
Still, she can’t wallow in pity. There’s barely any room left for such emotions.
“Sir Grillenn. Before we can finalize the procedures for your knighting, I need to extract the remnants of the girl’s fire from your neck. It should contain residual memories of her life. I am unable to retrieve anything with her current condition.”
So much to do.
Too much to do.
And The Ocean Battle looms ever closer…