VOXISTALE: Season 1

Daybreak: Part 1

Tap

The wooden stick tapped against the vinyl floor, leaving a small, almost entirely unnoticeable indention on the surface.

Tap

A second tap beside it. A second indention. Nothing more, nothing less.

Tap

A third tap.

"Can you stop that?"

The girl blurted out the words in a calmed annoyance. Gerson raised a brow at her as he sat in his chair, seated across the table from her. He proceeded to tap the floor with his cane a fourth time.

"Eh? You'll have to speak up!"

Gerson had received a letter a day prior, requesting a meeting with very little information as to what this person actually wanted with him. He'd initially thought it would be related to the incident at the Crystal Caves, but instead, he'd gotten this. A young girl he'd never met nor seen before, perhaps in her early twenties, with light brown skin, striking cyan eyes, and long, chocolate-colored hair with a single braid in the front. Her attire wasn't too formal, but not what one would call casual either, a black buttoned shirt with a matching skirt and a salmon-colored sweater that hung loosely over her shoulders.

Another thing Gerson happened to notice were all the bandages on her; her knees had them, a few wrapped around her arms, and a black one draped underneath her jaw, though she certainly didn't look injured.

"Sorry—it's just annoying. I mean, it's your house. Nevermind. Sorry."

In spite of the wild, curious look in her eyes, she was polite—or at least, she tried to be, something that amused the old turtle monster. He didn't hide this satisfaction, letting out a hoarse chuckle. "I don't usually come down here. To Voxis, I mean," the girl told him, not breaking eye contact. If she wasn't so obviously doing her best to adjust to this setting, Gerson might've even considered her gaze and aura intense. "But I heard a rumor about you, from a friend. About your skill, and all the people you've trained."

"Ehh?" Gerson raised an eyebrow, putting a hand on his chin. "I don't quite understand. Do you want an autograph? Or a mentor, perhaps?"

"Not really. I don't think I need a mentor," the girl shook her head, before her lips began to curl into the subtle shape of a grin, resting her hands on the table, which appeared to be recovering from training, covered in scratches and bandages. "You're the one who trained the monster Undyne, isn't that right?"

Gerson let out a short slew of chuckles, a twinkle emerging from his good eye. "Aye," he confirmed. "Trained her father too. And his father. And his father. Come to think of it, was s'posed to train her brother instead of her. She breaks tradition like she breaks expectations, though, eh heh heh."

Squinting at the young woman seated across from him, Gerson leaned forward. "Question is; why do you want to know?"

"Because she's been making quite a name for herself as of late," the girl replied, crossing one leg over the other and leaning forward, her hands still resting on the table.

"Is she now?" Gerson thought aloud.

"Not in the public eye," the girl shook her head. "Certain people are doing what they can to cover up what she did to those two Messiah lieutenants. Instead of being regarded as a hero, she's got a target on her back now. Right? She's strong, so the Messiah is going to want her out of the picture."

"Ah, so you know more about our Messiah situation than you let on," Gerson chuckled once again, though he wasn't quite as amused now as the dark topic of the Messiah inevitably came up. "It is true that her power will brew fear amongst her enemies. I have no doubts about that. But why do you care about Undyne's safety? Are you a friend of hers?"