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It was a leap of faith- that much she knew when she sought out after the murderous human. She had encountered a human before of course, she had been doing this whole guard thing long enough to give her one run-in with a child whose head didn’t even reach her torso. When that particular human became far too acquainted with the pointed end of one of her spears, they staggered and fell but their soul managed to float when she took it.
This human, the second human she fought, died differently. Their eyes had widened and their foot had slipped despite their flawless balance during the fight. They had been cocky, they were an experienced killer and they knew it, and when the final blow struck they were so caught off guard that they didn’t even notice their sad red soul slip from their chest. Maybe they were hoping that in some other life they would beat her, because they wanted the satisfaction of killing the Captain of the Underground’s Royal Guard. Or maybe they just saw her as another potential victim, just like everybody else had been. Point is, she knew they were a killer and now they’re dead. How they saw her doesn’t matter now.
So when she stumbled backwards after that weird sadistic kid’s death, she noticed that their soul was different, it looked different from any other soul she had ever seen. When she grabbed it, her suspicions were confirmed- it was small but heavy. It carried a lot of weight. She was not surprised, however, as that very human had tried to kill her. They had weakened her so much that she had no choice but to become stronger. Losing was not an option. When you cut off the head of the Hydra, two heads grow back in place.
As she staggered back toward the Capitol, feeling the damage that child had done to her and knowing there would be bruises, the last thought on her mind was to prepare for the crowd of monsters waiting in Hotland. they were cheering, some were crying even. Alphys ran to her and pulled her into a hug.
“I’m so glad you’re okay. I was w-watching and I was so nervous and- Oh no, you’re hurt I’m sorry I shouldn’t be hugging you...” The much shorter monster let go of her hero.
“Alphys, it’s okay. Nothing but a flesh wound, am I right?” Alphys chuckled a little, and then glanced around and remembered that a huge crowd of the Underground’s citizens were surrounding them.
“I-I’ll take you to the lab and fix you up, alright?”
“But the soul. I have to give Asgore this so we can all get the hell out of here, ya know?” Undyne shifted a little. She had to admit, she did not have the best way of transporting the soul. That soul in particular was squishy and gooey like a clump of sludge. Carrying it in a burlap sack had to be one of the most awkward methods imaginable, but that was the best she could manage. Even after years of training and preparing, you wouldn’t just think to carry some kind of jar when you’re running around patrolling everywhere, right?
A familiar rectangle rolled his way to the front of the crowd.
“If you want, I can deliver it specially to His Majesty. Afterall, this is the final soul, so why not make the delivery wonderfully dramatic?”
“M-Mettaton, I’m not sure that would be necessary,” Alphys replied. “Undyne can keep the soul until after I fix her up. It’ll be quick.”
“Yeah... besides, since when am I not dramatic enough?” She let out a faint NGAHHH! and it was just as pathetic as that may sound. In fact, it was more along the lines of a “nya~” like a cat from some anime.
Speaking of anime, as Alphys patched up Undyne, she decided to put on some good ol’ classic Mew Mew. “It helps me focus,” she always argued, but in this instance, Undyne felt that it detracted from her feeling of victory, considering that this particular episode was the infamous beach episode- a slightly amusing filler episode at best. Of course she wouldn’t say that to Alphys, who was clearly enjoying reciting every line word for word as she wrapped the gauze around Undyne’s arm.
“Thanks, Al.” The small scientist was surprisingly good at medical care, be it magic or traditional medication. Her doctorate covered a wide range of skills. Undyne smiled as Alphys drew a small heart on the wrapped gauze, even though she couldn’t tell if it was just a sign of affection or representative of a human soul, which would be timely and a bit ironic.
When Undyne traveled to the Capitol, all patched up and still feeling glorious, she was followed by the crowd of monsters that Alphys had saved from the homicidal human. They had all hid in her lab while Undyne fought- she and Alphys had saved their entire species. That was worth bragging about.
Asgore smiled faintly when he saw the last soul. It was rotten - the outsides were darkening and staining the sack. A couple of monsters had backed away when they noticed it decaying. The King of course knew that this soul was evil, as all the other souls looked fine, even years after the deaths of their respective humans. Nonetheless, he took the sack and awarded the Heroine with a gold medalion. Alphys held her hand and Undyne blushed.
When the Barrier broke, the monsters emerged and gasped at the world they saw. There was a Sun in the sky, the same Sun that they had read about in stories, saw poorly recreated on MTT shows, and assumed was a myth. It was real and Undyne was going to fight it.
“That big fire orb in the sky is hurting my eyes and it deserves death!”
“Undyne no, don’t do that!!”
“I’M GONNA FIGHT IT!”
The other monsters were amused only until they noticed Sans, the lone skeleton who had now wrapped himself up in a red scarf. Sans, everyone’s friend, the pride and joy of Grillby’s, the master of hotdogs - he had no great puns to offer, no words of wisdom either. All he asked then was what many of the other monsters had been wondering, beneath all of the smiles and laughter.
“So what do we do now?”