The Beginning of Hotland

Poppy's POV

Poppy pushed the door open, clutching her notebook. "Hey! I'm back!" She announced, closing the door behind her. "Sorry if I was gone for a while." Napstablook turned to her. They were in front of the computer, probably typing something.

"It's okay… um… I don't mean to be rude but… why are there black marks on your face?"

"Hm? Oh!" Poppy wiped the black marks away. "Undyne's house caught on fire while we were cooking. Anyways, where were we in the song?" She walked to Napstablook's side, glancing at the computer.

"The chorus… um… sorry… I kinda... added some things while you were gone." Poppy scanned the document.

"That's okay. These are actually pretty good." She pointed to part of it. "Though I'd switch up the second 'fear' to another word, to vary it a little bit."

"Oh… okay…" Napstablook began typing something up. The two spent a while writing lyrics together before Napstablook glanced at the television, their eyes widening.

"Oh… it's almost time for Mettaton's show…" they informed.

"Mettaton?" Poppy asked, cocking her head.

"My cousin," Napstablook explained, glancing at the ground. "His ghost lives inside a robot that Doctor Alphys made. Now he's a TV star. His show is pretty good..."

Poppy stood up. "Well, we can take a break to watch it. I don't mind."

"Really…" Napstablook's eyes lit up. "Thanks… I'll uh, put it on…" The ghost drifted toward the television, tapping a button to turn it on. Poppy sat down on the ground. Napstablook floated beside her, both staring at the TV as ads flashed on the screen.

After a while, the screen went black.

"OH YES!" echoed a robotic voice in the darkness. "WELCOME, BEAUTIES... " A spotlight appeared, revealing a rectangle on a wheel in the center of the screen. The robot held a microphone in one hand. "TO TODAY'S QUIZ SHOW!"

"Is that him?" Poppy asked, glancing at Napstablook.

"Yeah…" they replied with a nod. Lights appeared around Mettaton. Poppy's eyes widened when the light revealed Ray, Frisk, Teri, Clover, and Kat behind a panel.

"OH BOY! I CAN ALREADY TELL IT'S GONNA BE A GREAT SHOW!" Mettaton continued. "EVERYONE GIVE A HAND FOR OUR WONDERFUL CONTESTANTS." Confetti drizzled down from the ceiling. "NEVER PLAYED BEFORE BEAUTIES?"

"Uh… no?" Poppy flinched as she heard Kat's voice.

"NO PROBLEM! IT'S SIMPLE! THERE'S ONLY ONE RULE. ANSWER CORRECTLY." He paused. "OR YOU DIE." Poppy's eyes widened. The second I leave them, they're about to be killed by Napstablook's cousin on some messed up show?! What is wrong with this place?!

Frisk's POV

Frisk stopped to save before leading the group into a strange laboratory. They had tried to go the other way but two buff-looking guards blocked the way so this was their only choice. The door opened automatically for them, leading them into pure darkness. Frisk tried to look around. However, even squinting, they were unable to see anything. Except a huge screen. Frisk glanced at the screen, their eyes widening to see themself and the group looking back at them.

"Are we being recorded?!" Teri asked, her eyes huge.

"That's creepy…" Clover replied with a shudder.

"Someone knows we're here…" Frisk murmured. "Let's just hope they're friendly."

"At this point, they're definitely not," Chara grunted. Frisk continued through the darkness, skidding to a halt as a strange sound filled the room. They stopped the others with their arms. Bright light filled the room, revealing a short, yellow monster in a lab coat. She turned to them, letting out a gasp.

"Oh my god!" Her jaw dropped. She began spinning around in circles as she spoke, her eyes wide. "I didn't expect you to show up so soon! I haven't showered, I'm barely dressed, it's all messy, and…"

"Um… hi," Teri stepped forward, waving at the monster. She turned to the group.

"Um… h-h-hiya! I'm Doctor Alphys. I'm Asgore's royal scientist!"

"Alphys! That person Undyne mentioned!" Kat exclaimed, pointing to her.

"U-Undyne mentioned me?!" Alphys's cheeks turned bright red. She cleared her throat and continued. "Um… th-that's nice… anyways, uh, I-I'm not one of the bad guys!"

"Yes!" Kat exclaimed.

"Thank goodness," Frisk sighed in relief.

"She could just be saying that you know," Chara muttered.

"Actually, since you stepped out of the Ruins, I've been uh… observing your journey through my console."

"So you've been spying on us?" Ray asked, raising an eyebrow.

"W-well I wouldn't call it spying…" Alphys insisted, holding up her claws. "I just… I have c-cameras set up all around the U-underground… you know, in case something happens. Like if humans were to enter! So, uh, I was originally going to stop you but… watching people on a screen really makes you root for them.��� The group nodded, exchanging murmurs of agreement among themselves. "S-so now I want to help you! Using my knowledge, I can easily guide you through Hotland."

"Really?! Thanks!" Kat exclaimed, clasping her hands together.

Alphys nodded. "Yes, and I know a way right to Asgore's castle, no problem!" She paused, glancing off to the side. "Well, actually, umm, there's just a tiny issue."

"And, here we go," Chara let out a sigh.

"A long time ago, I made a robot named Mettaton."

"The TV star that Undyne told us about?" Clover asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Yeah!" Alphys exclaimed with a nod. "That's what I built him for, actually, but recently I decided to make him more useful. You know, just some small practical adjustments. Like, um… Anti… anti-human combant features?"

"And there it is," Chara grunted, the sound of a facepalm echoing in Frisk's ears. Frisk's eyes widened at Alphys.

"Of c-course, as soon as I saw you coming, I immediately decided… I have to remove those features! Unfortunately, I may have made a teensy mistake while doing so and, um… Now he's an unstoppable killing machine with a thirst for human blood?" Alphys forced a laugh. The room was so silent Frisk could practically hear crickets chirping.

"How do you mess that up?!" Ray exclaimed, breaking the silence.

Alphys's eyes widened. "Well… um… I…" She was cut off by a banging noise that shook the whole room. Frisk stumbled on their feet.

"What was that?!" Kat exclaimed, taking a step back.

"I-I don't know," Alphys admitted, looking around the room. The sound got louder and louder, eventually tossing Frisk and the others into the air. They let out gasps. Frisk landed with a splat on top of Ray. They backed off.

"Oh no…" Alphys gasped. The room was submerged in darkness, even darker than when they had first entered. Frisk couldn't even tell if their eyes were open or closed.

"OH YES!" Frisk flinched as a new voice filled the room. It sounded vaguely electronic, almost like an autotune, yet extremely flamboyant as well. "WELCOME, BEAUTIES... " A spotlight appeared, revealing a rectangular robot, with yellow squares for a face, a wheel on a peg for a leg, and white gloved hands, one of which held a microphone. "TO TODAY'S QUIZ SHOW!" A red M shape appeared over the yellow squares of his face. A sign that read "Quiz Show" and disco balls on either side of it appeared, casting a faint light through the room as confetti rained from the sky.

"What the heck?" Chara muttered.

"OH BOY! I CAN ALREADY TELL IT'S GONNA BE A GREAT SHOW! EVERYONE GIVE A HAND FOR OUR WONDERFUL CONTESTANTS." As Mettaton clapped, confetti rained down on the group. Frisk glanced at their friends. Ray, Clover, and Kat gazed at Mettaton with the same confusion Frisk felt. Meanwhile, Teri's face was bright. Her hands were on her mouth, and eyes were brighter than stars. "NEVER PLAYED BEFORE BEAUTIES?"

"Uh… no?" Kat replied, tilting her head to the side.

"NO PROBLEM! IT'S SIMPLE! THERE'S ONLY ONE RULE. ANSWER CORRECTLY." He paused. "OR YOU DIE." Frisk blinked. That was closer to what they had been expecting… Mettaton rolled forward. A panel emerged from the ground, showing four buttons each one with a letter: A, B, C, or D. There was a blank screen in front of it as well. Clover glanced at Frisk.

"Are we really doing this?" he asked, cocking his head.

"I don't think we have a choice," Frisk replied with a shrug. "What's the first question?"

"LET'S START WITH AN EASY ONE." Mettaton pulled out a piece of paper. "WHAT'S THE PRIZE FOR ANSWERING CORRECTLY?" Four answers appeared on the screen, each corresponding to a letter choice: Money, mercy, a new car, more questions. Frisk glanced at the others.

"More questions sounds the most correct," Teri replied, with a shrug.

"But he said if we don't answer correctly we die," Frisk argued, pointing at the robot. "Not killing us sounds like mercy to me." Frisk took a step forward, pressing "B."

"WRONG!" Mettaton exclaimed, pointing at Frisk. Something shot out of his finger, slamming into Frisk and making them jerk around with a gasp.

"Frisk!" The group gasped. Frisk staggered to their feet.

"I'm fine," they grunted, popping a crab apple into their mouth."

"NEXT QUESTION." Everyone looked back at Mettaton. "WHAT'S THE KING'S FULL NAME?"

"Oh, well that's easy," Frisk replied with a shrug. "We've heard his name like five times." They tapped the "Asgore Dreemurr" option.

"CORRECT! WHAT A TERRIFIC ANSWER! ENOUGH ABOUT YOU." None of those questions were about us. "LET'S TALK ABOUT ME."

"Oh my god," Chara grunted. "Self-absorbed much?" Frisk nodded in agreement.

"WHAT ARE ROBOTS MADE OF?"

"Metal and magic right?" Teri asked, tilting her head to the side.

Frisk nodded. "That makes sense." They reached out to tap the answer but Teri jumped in front of them.

"No, wait. Let me answer this one," Teri insisted. "I can take a hit if it's wrong."

"So can I!" Frisk exclaimed, trying to reach for the button as Teri grabbed their wrist. If she dies, it will be real! "You don't have to do this!"

"Guys the timer's almost up!" Kat gasped, pushing them aside. She slammed the "metal and magic' option.

"TOO EASY FOR YOU, HUH?!" Mettaton exclaimed, resting his hand on the side of his 'head.' "HERE'S ANOTHER EASY ONE FOR YOU. Two trains, Train A, and Train B, simultaneously depart Station A and Station B. Station A, and Station B are two hundred and fifty point five miles apart from each other…" Frisk's eyes widened.

"What?!" they gasped.

"Look at Alphys, Ray giggled, pointing at her. Frisk glanced at Alphys. Their eyes widened when they realized that her hands formed the shape of a 'D.' Frisk pressed the answer.

"WONDERFUL! I'M ASTOUNDED FOLKS!" Mettaton had stopped rambling.

"She's giving us the answers," Frisk muttered, their eyes still wide.

"Isn't that cheating?" Teri asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Kinda, but I'd like to live thanks," Clover replied. The group didn't even hear the next question but they got the right answer anyways from looking at Alphys.

"CORRECT! YOU'RE SO LUCKY TODAY!"

"Dang right you are," Chara muttered. "How does Alphys even know these answers?"

"She's smart," Frisk murmured in response.

"LET'S PLAY MEMORY GAME." A picture of half a Froggit's face appeared on the screen. "WHAT MONSTER IS THIS?"

"That's a Froggit," Kat replied, taking a step forward.

"That's not the answer Alphys is showing," Ray grunted, pointing at the yellow monster, who was forming a "D" with her claws. Frisk tapped the "Mettaton" option. The picture zoomed out to reveal that it was Mettaton wearing a shirt with a Froggit on it.

"I'M SO FLATTERED YOU REMEMBERED!" He exclaimed.

"Are you serious?" Chara muttered.

"BUT CAN YOU GET THIS ONE? WOULD YOU SMOOCH A GHOST?" Every answer was "Heck Yeah." Frisk glanced at Alphys, whose eyes were narrowed at Mettaton.

"I guess we can just pick any of them…" Frisk shrugged.

"Alright!" Teri pushed her way toward the control panel, slamming every button at once.

"GREAT ANSWER! I LOVE IT!"

Frisk glanced at Teri. "Would you really?" they asked raising an eyebrow. Teri shrugged.

"HERE'S A SIMPLE ONE. HOW MANY LETTERS IN THE NAME METTATON?" Frisk looked at the screen. The number of N's in the name kept increasing, looping around the screen, and the numbers in the answers increased too. Frisk pressed option 'C.' Even after they clicked it, the numbers still increased.

"OF COURSE THAT WAS EASY FOR YOU! TIME TO BREAK OUT THE BIG GUNS!! IN THE DATING SIMULATION VIDEO GAME "MEW MEW KISSY CUTIE" WHAT IS MEW MEW'S FAVOURITE FOOD?"

"OH! OH!" ALphys raised her hand, shaking it wildly as she spewed out an enormous answer. "I KNOW THIS ONE! IT'S SNAIL ICE CREAM! IN THE FOURTH CHAPTER EVERYONE GOES TO THE BEACH! AND SHE BUYS ICE CREAM FOR ALL OF HER FRIENDS! BUT IT'S SNAIL FLAVOR AND SHE'S THE ONLY ONE WHO WANTS IT! IT'S ONE OF MY FAVORITE PARTS OF THE GAME BECAUSE IT'S ACTUALLY A VERY POWERFUL message about friendship and…" Alphys stopped, glancing at Mettaton with wide eyes.

"ALPHYS, ALPHYS, ALPHYS. YOU AREN'T HELPING OUR CONTESTANTS, ARE YOU?" Mettaton asked, shaking his finger side to side. Alphys shook her head. However, her guilty smile gave it all away. "OOOOOOH!!! YOU SHOULD HAVE TOLD ME. I'LL ASK A QUESTION… YOU'LL BE SURE TO KNOW THE ANSWER TO!" Alphys's eyes widened and her hands covered her mouth. "WHO DOES DOCTOR ALPHYS HAVE A CRUSH ON?" The options were 'Undyne,' 'Asgore,' 'one of the humans,' and 'Don't Know.'

"How are we supposed to know that?" Ray asked, tossing his arms into the air. Frisk glanced at Alphys, who was shaking her head and reaching out to them.

"The timer isn't going down," Clover replied, pointing at it. "Maybe it doesn't matter what we pick?" He pressed the Undyne option. Alphy's face turned a deep red, which she tried and failed to cover with her claws as she bristled wildly.

"SEE, ALPHYS? I TOLD YOU IT WAS OBVIOUS. EVEN THE HUMANS FIGURED IT OUT. YES, SHE SCRAWLS HER NAME IN THE MARGINS OF HER NOTES. SHE NAMES PROGRAMMING VARIABLES AFTER HER. SHE EVEN WRITES STORIES OF THEM TOGETHER... SHARING A DOMESTIC LIFE. PROBABILITY OF CRUSH: ONE HUNDRED AND ONE PERCENT. MARGIN OF ERROR: ONE PERCENT."

"Alphys has a crush on Undyne?" Teri gasped, pressing her hands against her cheeks. "That's so cute!"

"Bit of a low blow to announce that on live TV though," Kat replied, with a grunt. Teri shrugged.

"WELL WELL WELL. WITH DOCTOR ALPHYS HELPING YOU, THE SHOW HAS NO DRAMATIC TENSION! WE CAN'T GO ON LIKE THIS! BUT. BUT! THIS WAS JUST THE PILOT EPISODE!! NEXT UP, MORE DRAMA! MORE ROMANCE! MORE BLOODSHED!!! UNTIL NEXT TIME, DARLINGS...!" Mettaton's wheel and arms disappeared, before a flame appeared beneath him and he took to the air. The lights turned back on, and everyone turned to Alphys.

"What the heck was that?!" Ray exclaimed, pointing at the spot where Mettaton had disappeared.

"I don't know but I liked it," Teri replied, beaming.

"It was pretty cool to be on live TV!" Clover added, holding up a fist.

"That last question…" Alphys muttered to herself. "He… he wasn't supposed to ask that one."

"What do you mean 'wasn't supposed to?' Kat asked, raising an eyebrow.

"He wasn't supposed to tell anyone, but he did anyways!" Alphys gasped, her eyes wide with sadness. "On live TV no less! Word is going to get to Undyne…"

"Lo siento," Clover sighed, resting his hand on Alphys's shoulder. "I didn't think about that…"

"What's so bad about Undyne knowing that you like her?" Teri asked, tilting her head.

"I-it's embarrassing," Alphys muttered, looking at the ground. "What if she doesn't like me back? What if it ruins our friendship? What if she hates me?!"

"You could just say Mettaton was lying," Kat suggested, stepping toward her. Alphys replied with a sigh.

"Let's go," Frisk replied, gesturing toward the group. They nodded, following Frisk down the hall.

"Hey wait." Frisk turned to Alphys as she rushed toward them. "Let me give you my ph-phone number. Th-then… m-maybe… If you need help, I could… Um…" her voice drifted away.

"Sure," Frisk replied, taking out their phone.

Alphys's eyes widened. "Wh… where'd you get that phone?! It's ANCIENT! It doesn't even have texting."

"Toriel gave it to us," Clover informed with a shrug.

"Here, let me upgrade it for you," Alphys replied, taking the phone. Frisk reached out to it. Alphys turned and rushed the other direction. There was some screeching noises as she tampered with the phone before she ran back to the group with the phone in hand.

"Here, I upgraded it for you! It can do texting, items, it's got a key chain… I even signed you up for the Underground's number one social network! Now we're officially friends! Well…" Alphys pointed at Frisk. "Me and you are…" Alphys forced a laugh, which slowly faltered. She looked away. Silence descended upon the room, as everyone exchanged confused glances. "I have to go to the bathroom." Alphys rushed into another room.

"That was… weird…" Clover stated, breaking the silence.

"Well, at least we're alive?" Kat replied with a shrug. Everyone nodded.

"So, where to now?" Ray asked, looking around. Frisk glanced around the lab, spotting a door in the back.

"That way," Frisk replied, pointing at the door. The group followed Frisk out the door. Outside, was a bright orange terrain above a lake of lava. Frisk's phone buzzed constantly as they walked, alerting them of Alphys's posts on Undernet.

"She's such a nerd," Ray commented, smirking.

"She's cool though," Kat added with a shrug.

"Yeah…" Teri glanced at the ground with a sigh. "But she seems a bit… off." Frisk glanced at her, raising an eyebrow.

"What do you mean off?" Clover asked, tilting his head to the side.

"I… I don't know." Teri shrugged, glancing at the others. "She's great…

"Much better than that Mettaton guy, that is," Ray commented, crossing his arms. Clover, Kat, and Frisk nodded.

"He's not… that bad," Teri protested, biting her lip.

"Not that bad?" Ray demanded, stomping toward her. "He tried to kill us!"

"But… he didn't… he just… made us play a game on TV…" Frisk cleared their throat. "And, okay he did shoot Frisk…"

"Eh, who hasn't at this point?" Frisk asked with a shrug. The group made their way across a conveyor belt before their souls appeared. A tiny volcano creature appeared, smiling brightly.

"Vulkin strolls in," Chara announced.

"AWW!" Teri exclaimed, falling to her knees in front of the monster. "You're so cute!" Teri wrapped her arms around the volcano, ignoring the blazing heat in her arms.

"Ahh... so... LOVEY!" the monster exclaimed before turning and bouncing away. The group continued down the next conveyer belt. Then into the next area. Frisk stopped to save before leading the group across some steam vents. Before they could make it to the next steam vent, a plane zipped in their way. It had a hat and red tinted cheeks.

"It's Tsunderplane! She gets in the way but... not on purpose or anything." Chara informed.

"Tsunderplane?" Frisk grunted, tilting their head to the side. "Really?"

"Tsunderplane?" Ray repeated, cracking a smile. "That's… that's a good one." Teri snickered to herself while Kat and Clover exchanged glances. Frisk took a step toward Tsunderplane.

"Eeeeh, human?!" Tsunderplane shrieked, her cheeks reddening. The plane fired mini versions of itself, surrounded by a green glow. Frisk touched the green parts. The others joined them, careful not to touch the centers. As they did this, the red in Tsunderplane's cheeks increased to the point of not being on her cheeks anymore. Tsunderplane shook a bit, tapping Frisk with her wing. The group walked away. Frisk skidded to a halt after the last steam vent when a ringing sound erupted from their pocket. They put their phone to their ear.

"Hello?" There was no reply. "Hello…?!" Frisk put their phone back in their pocket.

"Musta hung up," Ray replied with a shrug. Frisk nodded before they continued to the next area. Ahead of them stood a line of blue and orange lasers, the latter of which moved back and forth over the floor of pipes. A ringing sound filled the air. Frisk put their phone to their ear, immediately to be greeted by a stuttering voice. They put the phone on speaker.

"Uhh! H-hi, so, the blue lasers… Uhh! I mean, Alphys here! Hi!"

"Hi Alphys!" Kat greeted, waving at the phone.

"The blue lasers won't hurt you if you don't move! O-orange ones, um… Y-you have to be moving, and they… Um, they won't, um… Move through those ones!"

"Okay," Frisk replied, shrugging. Silence followed from Alphys's end of the phone.

"Bye!" she replied, hanging up.

"So it's the same as those attacks from Snowdin," Ray replied, pointing at the lasers. "Seems easy enough." Ray sprinted through the orange laser, skidding to a halt just before the blue laser passed through him. He kept that same pattern. He booked it through the orange lasers, barely stopping before the blue lasers before he finally made it to the other side. Teri went next. Gripping her tutu, she twirled through the first orange laser. As the blue laser passed over her, she froze with her hand pressed against her forehead. She continued on in this manner, twirling and hopping through orange lasers and posing in the blue ones as they passed through her. The others followed, walking much more cautiously until they made it across. Frisk continued forward. They stopped in front of a circle of steam vents as the phone rang.

"A-A-Alphys here. Th… the northern door will stay locked until you... s-solve the puzzles on the right and left. I… I think you sh-should g-g-go to the right first." Alphys hung up before anyone could respond.

"Alright." Clover clasped his hands together. "I guess it's puzzle time."