Through your phone, you received a confirmation from Lucas about the conclusion of The Handler’s trial. The worst was over.
You were told to return to The Lab to be officially debriefed. It bummed you out a tiny bit. Given a choice, you would have preferred to stay, watching the election process to the very end: online or offline.
But, you gotta do what you gotta do. You wished your Dad and Flowey the best of luck before you left. There was no doubt in your mind that they could manage by themselves.
The Aratet continued serving as your bodyguards. You were their VVVIP after all, and your safety was their top priority. They escorted you to the back of the Town Hall for a ride to The Lab. There, your Tsunderjudge-approved car just rolled around the bend, slowing to a stop right in front of you. Excited and delighted, you tried to get in right away.
However, Aiden swooped your small self off the ground, carrying you as though you were his own child. His protective fatherly instinct kicked into the highest gear. You must have done something very reckless in his eyes.
As he set you back on the ground, he said: “Don’t. The vehicle is not cleared for safety yet.”
On his signal, his men checked the car. Haza crouched down to the ground to inspect the underside. Bhur gestured to the driver to unlock the boot, then made sure there was nothing suspicious inside. Rhom himself scanned the seats.
What are they checking for?
“Bombs. Assassins. Impostors.”
Aha. Bodyguard things. Their mental checklist was much more extensive than yours, a testament to their experience. That definitely explained why Aiden interfered with such urgency. One misstep and it’s GAME OVER.
Once Aiden’s men confirmed that your car was safe and sound, it was time for everyone to take their seats. Bhur rode shotgun, Haza to your left, Rhom to your right, while Aiden squeezed together with you in the middle. They were adamant to prevent you from getting sniped.
You noticed Mezil’s personal driver hadn’t greeted you with his usual friendly chattiness. Based on what you could see from the rear-view mirror, the Gungnir warriors intimidated him greatly.
Tensions, high. Caution, cranked up to max. Not a single word was exchanged during the entire ride.
In the view past the dashboard window, you observed how deathly quiet the town had become. Not a single vehicle drove alongside you. No cars, no motorcycles, no bicycles, not even a child’s tricycle. Everyone must be huddled in their homes, participating in deciding the fate of the country’s future. The atmosphere of anxious unease weighed down more than ever before.
After what felt like forever, you arrived at The Lab. Mom was the first person to welcome you back home.
Mom!!!!
You dashed straight into her arms.
“Oh Frisk, my child…” She hugged you tight in her fluffy fluffiness. “I am so glad you are safe and sound.”
You’re so glad to see Mom doing well, too. Did any of the bad guys try to break in?
Susie, the gruff Barney dinosaur with the raw strength of Megatron, replied: “Nah. I was told they got smashed to pieces in the first round by my Freeze Buster. And they weren’t taking second chances. Uh, if you’re looking for your sister, she’s getting ready for some sort of debriefing. Heard from her that it’s super mega important.”
You thanked her for the heads up.
Somehow, even though she’s part of Ralsei’s crew, Susie’s honesty made her a more welcoming figure than her boss.
Turning to the rest of his men, Aiden said: “Guard the building with your life! I’m joining the meeting with Deva Wanderstar.”
They bowed with hands clasped together and went off to do their task.
A little confused, Mom asked: “‘Deva’?”
Uh… Let’s just say you’re in good standing with the Aratet.
“Ah. I see. Even now, you are forging diplomatic ties. That is commendable of you, my child. Speaking of which, I have been invited to join the meeting in your father's stead, as the Queen of the Dreemurr Nation. I shall take you there.”
In that case, let’s go together!
Arriving at the Magi’s improvised command room, it was evident from the size of the crowd that your group was the last to arrive. This was as expected, as you had to be slow and cautious with your return.
The Tsunderjudge himself sat on a chair, leaning against his cane with his eyes closed for a moment’s rest. He had returned to his white-haired self, together with the wrinkles of old age. Which meant… the power of the Philosopher’s Stone no longer coursed through his veins.
You looked around to see who else joined you. Staying furthest in the back were Victor and Edmund. You exchanged nods of acknowledgement, though they seemed down in the dumps over what had happened to Rosemary.
That unmistakable glow on the walls clued you in to Grillby’s presence. He had a sword wrapped up in a fiery orange cloth, resting across his lap.
Had he always owned one? The design of the hilt seemed familiar, but you couldn’t really see enough of it to draw a conclusion.
Sitting next to him was Undyne. Her hair was an absolute mess, and that ventilated neck brace concerned you. She must have gone through the roughest of fights.
Even so, her attention was hyper-focused on Doctor Alphys. Your lizard friend looked unusually exhausted, slowly sipping on a carton of boxed juice for hydration and energy.
Papyrus was there. He seemed a bit shaken. Otherwise, he appeared to be unhurt.
Cenna beckoned to the empty seats reserved in the front. Snakeface too. They had come to an agreement to focus on the debriefing and save the personal questions for later.
Together, the Queen and her Royal Child sat in the front row.
Aiden parted ways to settle down elsewhere. He must be more comfortable by his lonesome, and you’re okay with that.
With everyone now present and seated, The Supreme Judge stood up. “The debriefing shall now commence.”
Wait, hold on! You didn’t see Sans anywhere… Are we starting without him?!
“Yes. But rest assured, Sans Serif shall receive a full transcript of this meeting.”
And so, Mezil began: “First and foremost. I thank you all for the help contributed for this mission, both voluntary or otherwise. The Magus Association will do their best to compensate you for your efforts.”
“I’d like to especially thank Sir Grillenn. With the combination of his newfound abilities, his martial expertise, and an oath, he played a pivotal role in destroying the Amalgamate slugs in one fell swoop. A great sacrifice on his part was made… One that I’m uncertain that anyone could ever repay. Papyrus, the white flames that engulfed your pursuers were to Sir Grillenn’s credit.”
“T-THANK YOU GRILLBY. I’LL NEVER COMPLAIN ABOUT YOUR GREASY FOOD EVER AGAIN. YOU… REALLY SAVED MY BACON!”
Did you hear trouble in Papyrus’ voice? Some kind of awkwardness? You tried to get a good look at his expression.
That face…. Was someone who understood what Grillby’s ‘sacrifice’ meant. Your Seer friend must have had a vision. Unfortunately, you can’t really ask about the details from this distance.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Judge continued: “After Keeper Wanderstar graced us with their ‘Hopes and Dreams’ and Sans Serif broke the Claim on my Psychia, I managed to eliminate our enemy with the compounded might of what remained of The Philosopher’s Stone and True Name Magic. The latter constitutes a complete erasure of Pawn’s existence. Absolutely nothing will bring him back to the land of the living, and any attempted replications of his data will fail. Future similarities will be nothing more than a different entity performing mimicry.”
You slumped down on your chair with a mixture of relief and sadness. On one hand, you were glad that you would never need to worry about that doodoobutt making a surprise comeback. On the other hand… you wished he could have served out a proper sentence. Who knows if he might have turned over a new leaf in due time.
“We shall now move on to what we’ve discovered about our enemy’s history.” Nodding to his wife, he said: “Lady Lucidia, would you please?”
Lady Lucidia nodded back and turned her attention to the monitor. An intricate web of lies and intrigue popped up on the display: profile faces, red lines of relevance, group names, and more.
Using his cane as a guiding stick, Mezil pointed at the image of a glowing red chess piece. “For simplicity’s sake, I’ll first focus on our main culprit and his movements. The Handler’s true identity was ‘Pawn’, a False Mark containing the Artificial Intelligence of Doctor Weiss, benefactor to Kisei Yuzukitsui.”
You raised your hand like you were in class. Mezil paused for your question.
Artificial Intelligence? Does that mean The Supreme Judge had killed an entity that’s not even alive?
“I would prefer to think of Pawn as a memory clone. Whether or not he’s counted as a living being is a debate in itself. Nonetheless, Weiss and Kisei’s collaboration created Pawn. Then, Pawn operated in secret for at least a decade before he was discovered by Gungnir’s then-Persona, Kenneth Odin.”
The cane moved to lightning beefcake’s smug mugshot. Even here, you could hear him laughing from beyond his grave.
“Chronography has revealed that Pawn attempted to elicit a pardon from Persona by offering highly classified Magus Association information to the Gungnir. It was a partial success. Although his life was spared, his main laboratory was marked for destruction. At the time, he was forced to acknowledge Malaya as the only salvageable test subject, turning the rest into a Philosopher’s Stone. Pawn then resettled into his new base of operations.”
Mezil pointed to a child-like drawing of a skelly-person spearing fish in a densely forested river. The water was unusually brown instead of the expected blue.
“Based on the girl’s doodles, Tracker Blanc theorised that Malaya was raised in an equatorial tropical jungle. High rainfall and loose, light-coloured soil often makes muddy rivers. Traversing those areas remains difficult to this day, perfect for Pawn to establish a fresh hidden laboratory and to raise his living weapon.”
“Years later, Pawn came out of hiding to offer his services to a new generation of Gungnir. However, their leadership was split between two of Persona’s children: his son Aiden Asachulra Bhuntiri and his daughter Madina Odin.” The cane moved to the corresponding mugshots.
“Aiden turned down the proposal out of principle. Not even Aratet pragmatism allowed such dealings. In contrast, Madina accepted the deal despite its heretical nature, as she was desperate to rescue her father from The Magus Association no matter the cost. Pawn therefore gained the cooperation required to infiltrate Ebott without Aiden’s knowing.”
“This was where the Odin family first began to fracture. The rift in ideology between Aiden and Madina grew larger and larger with time. And, before long, Madina had updated her contract with Pawn to eliminate her half-brother and his family. Is this an accurate description, Aiden?”
From the far side of the room, Aiden answered, “Yes. It is as you’ve described, Vampire. After our skirmish at The Spire, I had grown weary of risking lives in needless battles. My sister accused me of taking the easy way out. She sought only complete vengeance.”
“Thank you for the confirmation.” Mezil paused for a moment, shutting his eyes and pinching the bridge of his nose. The sudden weariness of losing the Philosopher’s Stone started to weigh down on his head.
Resuming, he pointed at Malaya’s picture. “At Madina’s request, Pawn thus ordered Malaya to attack the Feast of Fantasy.”
“I believe this was the earliest opportunity for Pawn to slip into The Core undetected. Mount Ebott was relatively abandoned, and the escalating conflict with Malaya would have drawn the attention to her and her alone. From there, he must have been free to spy on our actions across many timelines… until Doctor Gaster did his antics.”
That would be Goopdoc’s reincarnation stunt.
“A full blown riot happened not long after. Since then, Pawn’s modus operandi shifted away from fulfilling Gungnir’s requests to satisfying his own desires, becoming so adamantly determined that I had to step in personally to end his pursuits.”
Victor mentioned, “I never realised a time traveller would still encounter so many issues. Here I thought it was an OP ability that could solve anything…”
Edmund, the wise senior, said, “Life is a million moving cogs. It’s impossible to keep track of all of them.”
You remembered Mezil’s lessons. According to him, victory could pave the way for defeat. At the same time defeat could open up a path to victory.
Looking back at the monitor, Mezil said: “Unfortunately, Pawn remained tight-lipped about his ultimate goal. This debriefing may help unravel that mystery. Therefore…” He sat back down on his chair. “Chronographer Lucidia will provide her hypothesis. Raise your hand first before asking any questions.”
With the baton officially passed to her, Lady Lucidia of House Berendin bowed to greet everyone.
“From following the common thread of Pawn’s activities, it appears his motives are tied to the deepest studies of Demontology, Magitek, and Necromancy. For the uninitiated among you, I shall now provide a quick introduction to these subjects.”
She brought up a digital whiteboard on the monitor. For a test, she used her stylus to write the three topics she just mentioned.
Before Lady Lucy could even start her presentation, you heard Undyne say out loud: “Ma’am! Alphys has a question!” When you turned around, you saw that your lizard friend had raised her hand.
Lady Lucidia said, “Please state your query.”
Undyne leaned in to listen to Alphys’ whispers, becoming her girlfriend’s megaphone. “To quote: ‘Is that a typo? Shouldn’t it be ‘Demonology’ and not ‘Demontology’?”
Papyrus raised his hand too. “DOCTOR ALPHYS HAS A POINT. I TRIED SEARCHING THE INTERNET FOR MY PERSONAL HOMEWORK, AND I WOULD ALWAYS BE AUTOCORRECTED TO THE T-LESS VERSION!”
On the screen, Lady Lucidia opened up a fresh tab on her digital whiteboard and wrote down two words: ‘Astrology’ and ‘Astronomy’. “Both of these had root words from ‘aster’, ‘star’. Yet, despite the similarities in etymology, they are two completely different fields of inequivalent validity. Can anyone elaborate on the differences?”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
“I KNOW!” Papyrus puffed his chest with pride. “ASTRONOMY IS THE SCIENTIFIC STUDY OF OUTER SPACE! I KNOW BECAUSE SANS IS A HUGE FAN OF THAT STUFF. SETTING UP THE TELESCOPE TO VIEW THE REAL STARS WAS ONE OF OUR FIRST SIBLING ACTIVITIES TOGETHER ON THE SURFACE! … I DON’T KNOW WHAT THIS ASTROLOGY THING IS, THOUGH.”
Undyne blinked twice, confused. “T-they’re not the same…? Yeah, Alphys? Um, she said ‘Astrology’ is fortune telling based on the constellations and has nothing to do with actual science.”
“Correct on both counts. And it is empirical evidence that allows genuine academic disciplines to separate fact from fiction. The same applies for Demonology and Demontology.”
As she wrote her notes on the whiteboard, she explained: “They both derive from the word ‘daimon’, ‘deity; lesser god; guiding spirit’. From there it further shifted into the word ‘daemon’, meaning ‘spirit’, and eventually into ‘demon’, ‘a malignant spirit’, the term you’re familiar with today.”
“Similar to how Chemistry deviated from the roots of ancient Alchemy, The Magi’s field of Demontology diverged from Demonology into its own discipline. Instead of a realm of mysticism where folklore, fiction, superstition, and supernatural consequences are blurred together, it became the study of Determination-based lifeforms: a proper science in its own right due to its reliable replicability.”
Listening to Lady Lucidia’s explanations felt like it gave you +30 points in Knowledge.
Undyne exclaimed. “Oooooooooooh… so that’s the difference!”
“I SEE, I SEE!” Papyrus was enlightened too.
Victor then said: “That’s different from what I thought.”
Oh, he’s even newer to magic than you. That reaction was to be expected.
What about Magitek with a ‘k’ and Magitech and a ‘ch’? You wondered. Are they different too?
“Negative. They are the same. In that case, it’s due to historical disagreements on transliteration.”
Drats! You thought you’ve finally caught a pattern! Foiled again. Oh well.
“For your information, The Magus Association considers the spelling with the ‘k’ as the official version. It comes from the combination of two words: Magic, and Technology. ‘Magos’ ‘a member of the learned and priestly class’. ‘Tekhnē’ ‘art, skill, craft, method’. Therefore, Magitek covers all technology that uses magic as a component of their construction.”
“Given prior reactions, the nuances of modern Necromancy may also surprise you. After all, the term ‘necromancy’ conjures images of the old methods of either reanimation or through making dead creatures from flesh. In actuality, it goes beyond that.”
She wrote ‘Necromancy’ first, followed by ‘nekromanteia’, “Allow me to explain: ‘Nekros’, ‘dead body’. ‘Nek’, ‘death’. ‘Manteia’, divination. This suggests that the earliest form of necromancy involved communicating with the dead.”
More and more information piled up in your little brain. I-is this a mission debriefing or a cooleg lecture? You expected something more like what Mezil did earlier.
Lady Lucidia carried on regardless. “Since then, the field of Necromancy evolved far from its humble origins. It no longer focused on communication. Instead, it has come to revolve around the understanding and manipulation of life and death.”
Life? Once again you raised your hand.
“Yes, Keeper Wanderstar?”
If life is included, you asked, wouldn’t it be better to call it ‘Biomancy’? The word ‘Biology’ comes to mind. You’re very sure that ‘bio’ means life here.
“That is indeed correct. ‘Bios’ does mean ‘life’ in ancient tongue. However, there is a caveat: the ‘life’ that Bios speaks of is ‘one’s lifetime’. A story of one’s lifetime still ends with a death of some kind, therefore the ancients did not think it was necessary to make such a distinction.”
W-wow…
It was as though everything you thought you knew got turned upside down. If language mutated to that point, maybe it was you who was upside-down and not right-side-up.
Lady Lucidia seemed pleased by your willingness to learn. “Don’t worry. I will compile this information for your future reference, Keeper Wanderstar.”
That would be excellent! Please carry on.
She nodded and resumed her debriefing-lecture-combination meeting. She started writing and drawing another graph on her digital whiteboard. “According to the Magi, Necromancy is divided into three main sub disciplines: Mind, Body and Soul.”
“Necromancy of the Mind is the transfer and preservation of consciousness. Memories. Intellect. Experience. Anything capable of recording and displaying information are potential mediums to preserve the mind: from books, to stones, to memory chips, to other lifeforms. Ebott Goldenflowers are a prime example of such recording vectors.”
“Necromancy of the Body is the retrieval and restoration of genetic data. Cloning a deceased pet is a common application of this field. Regrowing a new functional organ to replace a deteriorated original is another. Both share the concept of converting dead matter into living cells.”
“Necromancy of the Soul is the manipulation and augmentation of the magical powerhouse known as the Psychia. The union of a human and monster is the most well known example of this type. By natural means, however, merging has always required the sacrifice of a life. Therefore, great effort has been made to discover artificial alternatives for unlocking this hidden potential.”
Raising your hand, you exclaimed: Hold on a minute! Something isn’t right! Why separate Mind and Soul? Flowey told you that the SOUL is the very culmination of your being!
“That statement is true only to a certain extent. ‘Culmination’ comes from ‘culminatus’, the past participle of ‘culminare’, meaning ‘to crown’, which itself stems from ‘culmen’: ‘peak, the highest point’. Think of climbing to a mountain’s summit. Based on these concepts, the word ‘culmination’ gradually shifted into ‘the end result of something’. By that definition, the Psychia – which sits at the core of the body and houses the essence, yet produces magic based on both – can be considered the condensed distillation of your being.”
“Still, it should not be forgotten that Mind, Body, and Soul have a synergistic relationship; any one factor can affect the other. The separate pieces are all part of a greater whole. Many ancient cultures, such as those who wrote the earliest books of the Scriptures, don’t even make a distinction between the three. This is because a lack of balance between each criterium creates a flawed being. A body without mind and soul is a puppet. A mind without body and soul is a DEMON. A soul without a mind and body is a comatose essence.”
Drawing a picture of Flowey the Flower, she further explained: “Perhaps it would be easier to understand by examining Flowey’s current state. The Ebott Goldenflower -- the aforementioned recording vector for the ‘Mind’ -- absorbed Prince Asriel’s essence, forming the ‘hardware’. The injected Determination activated the latent data and acted as the ‘software’ component, thus returning Prince Asriel to life.”
“However, being a physical plant with limited senses and lacking a brain, the Ebott Goldenflower makes for a poor body. It limits Flowey’s ability to express himself as a balanced person. And if he cannot do so, then he won’t be able to properly form a soul. This results in a malformed Psychia unable to feel or express love like regular monsters would.”
You gasped. She had just described Flowey woes with pinpoint accuracy! You imagined your brain gaining more wrinkles from all that understanding.
Lady Lucidia continued, “I’ve been observing Flowey and Chara for a long-term treatment. Though I don’t have anything concrete at the moment, the main solution might be to update the composition of their bodies, and then foster the continued growth of their Psychia.”
“Flowey’s condition highlights the importance of taking into account all three sub disciplines. Which brings us back to Pawn and his creator, Doctor Weiss…”
Lady Lucidia shrunk the whiteboard window into a square icon and placed it on the map of deception. She then drew a long line from that icon all the way to Doctor Weiss’ mugshot. For some reason, he reminded you of a more handsome Goopdoc with glasses.
“Doctor Weiss was born with faulty Seer’s Eyes. As a result, he had poor regular vision, lack of spacetime powers, and an atrophied output of Determination. The condition was so severe that he was unable to conjure basic monster magic, making him a social outcast. A great deal of effort was thus put into compensating or accommodating for this disability.”
“Even so, the comorbidities of his genetic defect meant that he was expected to pass away early, between 40 to 50 years old, much less than even the average human of his era. This had led me to conclude the initial goal of Weiss’ research was to extend his own lifespan.”
“His methods involved a luxurious expenditure on cloning, utilising key principles of Necromancy by procuring and modifying his own genetic data. Earliest experiments used cuts of his own ribs, though the process was refined to require less debilitating sources later on.”
“With the exception of a handful of control samples for future use, these clones would be grown at an accelerated rate until they showed signs of independence. Doctor Weiss then made the younglings bond and fight among each other, subjecting them to a cruel mistreatment that served solely to heighten their emotional distress, raising their Determination levels prior to harvesting.”
“The extracted DT was just enough to perform pseudo self-Amalgamation, softening his tissues for implantation of any cloned monster parts: repairing and augmenting his defective body with healthy, rejuvenated parts, devoid of defects.”
Mom’s hands tightened both of her furry fists. Knowing how much she cared about children, this horror story must be infuriating to her.
You gently reached out and rested your hand on hers. Your soothing aura calmed her down almost immediately.
“Thank you, my child,” she said. “I am fine now.”
Lady Lucidia resumed: “There are three major downsides to Weiss’ methods. The first problem was a monetary one. Growing and maintaining so many lives is an expensive endeavour. The second problem was a matter of security. His material needs inadvertently left a sizable paper trail that put him under a great deal of scrutiny, risking discovery by law enforcement. Third, a gradual increase in his own Determination requirements resulted in a net negative upkeep over time. With every upgrade, his newfound powers demanded more and more, further stressing the whole operation per issues One and Two.”
“Therefore, as Doctor Weiss upscaled production, he also sought for a better source of Determination in the meantime. His connections in the Magus Association led him to a willing collaborator: the Yuzukitsui Clan from the Far East, a magecraft family with significant corporate wealth. Kisei, their then-heir to the business, proven to be an extremely brilliant Artificer with a Red Soul, became his appointed contact.”
…Huh, for some reason, they didn’t have a face for this ‘Kisei Yuzukitsui’ fellow. He was instead shown as a King chess piece. His identity was definitely known, so why wouldn't they use his mugshot?
The sudden muffled rattling of steel made you jolt. Turning around, you saw Grillby holding down the cloth-wrapped sword with both hands, trying his darndest to prevent it from flying out.
That thing was DEFINITELY a magic sword of some kind! But, why did it respond to a Far Eastern name? Isn’t that a Western style sword???
A second later, the weapon became still and silent: just like how an inanimate object should be.
“…Apologies…” said Grillby. “…It won’t happen again…”
When it was back to business, a lingering tension remained in the air. Lady Lucidia, however, resumed her session as if nothing had ever happened.
“The two began trading knowledge with each other. To support Weiss’ research, Kisei revealed to him the secrets of the Reds. This is where Demontology becomes relevant…”
Lady Lucidia linked the word ‘Demontology’ to Doctor Weiss, adding it to the web of lies and intrigue. She then wrote the words ‘False Mark’ under the line she had drawn.
“Invented by an expert in Demontology, – my former teacher, Crimson Keeper Anya Willowherb – the original intent for the False Mark was to solve Supreme Judge James Aran Pashowar’s succession crisis. Though he was getting old, he had yet to find someone worthy of becoming the next Supreme Judge. The idea was to create an Artificial Intelligence capable of generating Determination, and having that manage and support the network of Claims. Doing so would’ve provided stability to a rather fragile chain of succession. Unfortunately, Yuzukitsui Kisei hijacked her creation and let Doctor Weiss further develop it for their own nefarious purposes.”
“When Doctor Weiss’ illegal activities were finally exposed, the False Mark called ‘Pawn’ had only recently been completed. Though Weiss had indeed gained access to limitless Determination, it was too little too late; the sheer cost of his cloning experiments had already caught up to him. Whatever remaining time he had left went into destroying evidence connecting him to Kisei, and making a clean getaway.”
“He did so by cheating his own death: fully Amalgamating himself using the False Mark alongside excess faux monster material he had prepared just in case. They are what allow him to transform into an immortal being while keeping his Body, Mind, and Soul intact.”
Mom raised her hand. “Lady Lucidia, did Judge Thyme not state that this Pawn is a ‘memory clone’? Yet, you mentioned that Doctor Weiss kept all his original self intact?”
“Correct. Doctor Weiss intended to prevent the risks of imperfection that led to an existence like Flowey. In theory, not a single piece of himself would’ve been lost in the process. But then… he failed to account for a hidden curse Kisei included in Pawn’s base components. Think of it as a virus that usurped the identity of Weiss and imprisoned the original. I believe you’ve already met a similar entity by the name of Spamton G. Spamton.”
Oh! It’s the weird DEMON that took over Mettaton’s body, turning him into a bad salesman!
“Then you have the required comparison to understand Pawn. At the moment of takeover, Sans Serif noted a change in Weiss’ ‘Personal Universe Number’: the unique identifier tied to a person. No two entities share the same number, even if they’re genetically identical.”
Writing out the PUN values, she said: “Here are the first seven digits of Doctor Weiss’ identification. Compare it with Pawn’s, as observed on the Mark and all its Amalgamate extensions.”
Doctor Weiss’ PUN read ‘8574731’. The Pawn’s PUN read ‘99’. Only two numbers. That’s it.
“Notice that Pawn’s number is too short. It’s as though its existence – by its very nature – was ‘incomplete’. His command phrase to activate The Celestial Calamity reflects a similar sentiment.”
‘Devour, Crimson Sun. Shine, Bloodstained Moon. Become as one. Under your matrimonious eclipse, grant transcendence for the weak.’
‘The Celestial Calamity shall deliver evolution denied.’
“The first verse is static. It’s the ritual’s base activation clause.” She drew a bracket over that part and put a ‘1’ above it.
“The second verse is the caster’s declaration.” And then she drew another bracket and a ‘2’ over ‘grant transcendence for the weak’. “In Pawn’s case, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to think that the original Doctor Weiss resented his weakness and envied others, and that same desire was replicated within Pawn.”
“The final verse is the caster’s desired result.” Bracket number ‘3’ covered the word ‘deliver evolution denied’.
“Pawn had spent decades building up his strength, trying to evolve. At the height of his power, he thought of himself as strong enough to come out on top against ‘The Living Victory’, and the Dreemurr Nation’s Champions. Yet, something still eluded him. Strength, after all, does not correlate with ‘completion’.”
The chart zoomed in on Doctor Gaster. Indeed, the goopdoc that started a ton of messes. Though his extreme tendencies were infuriating, you couldn’t bring yourself to hate him because of how well he treated you. He was an excellent teacher in the brief moments you interacted with him.
“Through his own chaotic means, Doctor Wendell Dominic Gaster made an immense breakthrough in all levels of magitek. With the revival of The Six, Times Roman, and Helvetica, he earned himself the title of ‘The Father of Reincarnation’.”
“If Pawn could acquire the power of rebirth, he would evolve to a higher plane, far beyond Boss Monsters… an immortal monster with divine authority to rival a Living Victory, capable of expressing with magic, yet devoid of the limitations of Amalgamates… truly complete on its own, without the need for a Merger: a ‘Primordial’.”
Head empty, you blinked with a tilted head. You raised your hand with too many questions on your mind.
The term ‘Primordial’, however cool, had no meaning for you. Actually, what even is The Celestial Calamity to begin with? And what would have happened had Pawn completed the spell? There are too many new terminologies for you to grasp.
“The Primordials are the origin of Boss Monsters. ”
Your mother, Queen Toriel, then said: “I… might have heard about them during my childhood. But they were long considered figures of myth even before The Sealing.”
“They are not a myth, Your Majesty.” Lady Lucidia responded with full confidence, “Primordials did indeed exist. Their primary role was to enrich and care for the planet. Any territory under their watch would have bounties beyond imagination, both in mundane and magical terms. Unfortunately, adjusting ecosystems on a massive scale could trigger cataclysmic events. This caused a rift between the mortals and the immortals. Vilified due to the lack of understanding and communication, The Primordials were hunted down in order to stop their associated ‘disasters’.”
“Many gave in to hatred, and so met their end in violent ways. Others gave up their life to split their power among their chosen candidates, leading to the creation of the first Boss Monsters. A rare few co-existed with humanity in their own way.”
Excited, you asked Mom what powers did she inherit from her ancestors? Asriel used a lot of star power, something Dad didn’t have. If he took more after Dad, he would have used a lot more plant-based magic instead. Does that mean Mom’s ancestors had something to do with space???
Mom chuckled with an awkward smile. Patting your head, she said: “My, my, what imagination you have. I am afraid I have to disappoint you. Asgore and I were matchmade because we both came from the lineage of fire. Your father’s talent for gardening has nothing to do with his ancestry.”
Awwww…. Headcanon destroyed.
Mezil cleared his throat to catch your attention. Ah, there he was, silently telling you to pipe down and not further distract the debriefing more than you already had.
You straightened your back and sat very still. Nope. No more disruptions. No siree.
Appreciating your cooperation, Lady Lucidia moved on to the next subject without a fuss. “As for The Celestial Calamity… Please give me a moment. I need to answer your question in an understandable manner without divulging too much confidential information.”
You pictured a loading bar above her head as her supercomputer brain tried to piece something together.
“Since you’re familiar with the Living Victory’s Hub, I think the best description would be the ‘materialisation of the inner world’. The alignment of the sun and moon creates an eclipse, the alchemical symbol of birth. The eclipse then draws out the contents of the soul and builds a new reality in its image. This action does not discriminate between dreams and nightmares.”
“The ritual’s initial inception is believed to be a simple wish: to make a better world for humanity to live in. The ancient texts described it as ‘Celestial Paradise’, ‘Heaven’s Stairway’, and ‘Return to Eden’. However, no inner world is truly pure and coherent, even among the greatest of saints. Calamity becomes the inevitable end result.”
If good intentions always create disaster-level craziness, you cannot imagine how much worse it would be for a malicious wish to be granted.
“It would have been a form of Hell, for certain. The data we have on Pawn’s Hub suggests that completion of the ritual would’ve transformed Ebott Town into a laboratory for the damned, turning every single person within its influence into eternal test subjects.”
“Still, based on Pawn’s repeated attempts to negotiate for diplomatic immunity with Keeper Wanderstar and Supreme Judge Thyme, the Celestial Calamity was a last resort to defunct The Keys of Fate. Pawn greatly preferred to keep Ebott Town relatively untouched. The reason for this seems to stem from a eugenics point of view. That is, the unique conditions of the Dreemurr Nation’s citizens surviving under The Barrier for over a thousand years have made them especially robust.”
Lady Lucidia stared at the verses for a while, seeing something you didn’t catch. You tried to think like her: what discrepancy would there be?
She pointed at the second phrase, tapping it lightly with her fingertip. “…This clause. There are no phrases that indicate that the spell is limited only to the caster. There is no ‘my’ or ‘mine’ or ‘I’. Should the caster wish, this could be applied to groups as well as individuals.”
“With so much power and responsibility, no natural-born Primordial would give their blessings without scrutiny. However, suppose that Pawn ascended into a Primordial, he could theoretically turn any Champion into a Boss Monster, and from there create new Primordials. And he would begin this conversion with the best of the best of The Dreemurr Nation.”
Wait. Does she mean… what you think she means?
Lady Lucidia therefore concluded: “This is my amended hypothesis: Pawn desired to elevate monsterkind as a whole. Humanity would be forced to accept monsters as their equal, if not their superiors.”
In other words, humanity’s deepest fears about monsterkind would become true…