Human Soul
A spark leapt from the circuit board that Alphys was working on, but she hardly noticed. Essentially she was putting the finishing touches on the ship’s environmental systems. The Human Soul of Kindness had offered to oversee the system from the inside, adjusting manually what normally a computer AI would be doing. Unlike a computer it would be able to assess a system based on the Monsters using it and what they needed and wanted rather than what streams of impersonal data told it they wanted. All of the souls had volunteered willingly enough. It had been quite a shock to see it. The King and Queen had resisted Doctor Gaster’s plan quite adamantly, backed by their son. Even Alphys had been called in for her opinion on it, and she squirmed with embarrassment at the memory of herself standing there and struggling to choke the words out while her anxiety skyrocketed. But she’d pointed out that the Souls might be the only way to actually power the ship at this point, since they had no other source. Not one readily available at least. That hadn’t pleased the Royal Family in the least and more experts were called in. Even Isa was brought in, and Papyrus in his role as Captain of the Royal Guard, and Sans as a former scientist and current psychologist. The argument had gone on for more than an hour, and she’d found herself shrinking back behind the others, not really wanting to be a part of this as voices had raised higher and higher. It was the only time she’d ever actually seen Doctor Gaster look angry. He was gesticulating wildly, illustrating his words with grandiose movements of his arms and skeletal hands, his eyes tinged red with fury. Toe to toe with him was Queen Toriel, her own hands practically smoking as she resisted the urge to summon fire. Asgore too was hanging back from everything, looking as if he wished he was anywhere else while his son and wife led the front line of the heated argument. Then something changed. A sound like shattering glass cut through the sound in an instant. Everyone went quiet and turned to look as something soared in through the doorway. It was the human souls. She’d never imagined that they had only stayed in the containers because they wished to, that they were never truly trapped at all. But the moment they decided to make a move, they simply shattered their prisons and moved on as if it were nothing. They couldn’t really speak, not directly. But Asriel was able to translate, having once been connected with them. In the end, Gaster’s plan had been the one they chose. Insisting on the need for leaving this world. What they had actually called it was “This dying world”, but Alphys was trying not to think about that. Each of the different Souls ran one of the main systems. Kindness was the environmental controls, Bravery was the Tactical and Defense system, Perseverance was the Emergency Operations system and various auxiliary systems that responded in case of malfunction in any of ship’s other systems, Integrity ran the sensor stations and the communication system, Patience headed the Navigation system, and Justice oversaw the Command systems. Together with the crew of the ship, they would work as a team to move them through whatever they found in the Void. Not that she entirely understood what they’d be facing there. Gaster’s explanation had been...convoluted. She smirked and closed the panel, satisfied that it was finished. “ALPHYS!” What? That was Papyrus. What was he doing here? And why did he sound... distressed? The tall skeleton, seeming quite authoritative and dashing in his uniform, burst through the door. From the noise outside it seemed like he’d run down the steps of Gaster’s cavern where the ship was and ordered scientists and workmen out of his way without stopping. She stood up and dusted herself off, giving him her full attention. This must be serious. What came out of his mouth next spread ice through her veins. “DOCTOR ALPHYS, WE NEED YOUR HELP! ISA IS GRAVELY ILL! WE’VE NEVER SEEN ANYTHING LIKE IT!”
