Shattered Below

I : The Fall

Year 18xx, the Town of Alderhaben

Mount Ebbott was always rumored to be a deathly mountain, where demons and unspeakable evils resided. The forests that surrounded it acted like a wall, and was said to be haunted by the dead and roamed by beasts. The Prime Minister of Cavitio has always reminded the citizens to stay away from areas of the forest and the mountain, and to stay vigilant if they were ever to be forced to journey through it. The reason? Terrible, terrible beasts that lurk in the dark, waiting to snatch humans away from the light. In the books, most of the history surrounding Mt. Ebbott was expunged, thus rousing the curiosity of Frisk, a curious child when it came to mysteries like this. She loved to go to the library to read up on the mountain, often bringing the book back to her home. If not reading, she spent her past-time listening to the stories from Old Man Jacob. People say he's crazy, but Frisk didn't believe that. Even if he was a little shaken in the head, she was always happy to hear his experiences during his time in there. 

".. And that's where I saw it.. a monster! Big horns on its head and real sharp teeth in its maw!" He spoke in his voice, laced with a foreign accent, the feel of a swashbuckling pirate right around his tongue.

His hands moved up to his head, just right above his gray hair. His index fingers pointed upwards, resembling horns. He had his mouth wide open, resembling the face of a frightening beast.

"I took out me trusty blade and went against its weapon, a crimson red trident. Red as the blood in our veins. And-- Eh? Are you listening, lassie?"

"Hm?"

Frisk looked up from the open notebook in her lap. She had been scribbling the monsters that Jacob described. A soft pink blush flushed into her cheeks as she had been caught not paying attention.

"Oh, sorry Mr. Welter. I must've gotten distracted again.."

"That's alright, Frisk." He replied with a chuckle. "Now, where was I again?"

"You were talking about your battle with the most powerful monster, the Lion-Goat hybrid." 

"Oh, that's right! Now that one tried to fool me, you know? But I didn't believe the pained eyes.. I knew for one that once I let my guard down, it'd kill me." He spoke with a huff, leaning back in his armchair.

"That's what all those monsters were.. Backstabbing beasts hiding behind civil masks."

Of course, Frisk merely nodded. She had heard this story over and over before from him, but she never got tired of it.

"Could you tell me the story about the abandoned barrier?" Frisk asked, whilst flipping the pages of her book.

"I'd be glad to, lassie!" He spoke with pride, before clearing his throat, creating a grisly sound.

"So, the humans pushed the monsters back under ground, right? To keep them in there, they made a really strong gate! Now, in your bedtime stories, they call it the magical barrier. But this gate ain't no little fairy magic, its the works of the greatest engineers, built to hold back even the strongest monsters!"

He chuckled, leaning down lightly towards Frisk. He put his hand on the side of his face, in a whispering gesture.

"I would know, because I put one out of the six most powerful ores to keep it running to this day."

He leaned back to his seat once again.

"And I think you know what that Ore is.." He spoke with a smile.

"The Soul Ore!"

"Spot on there, Frisk! One of them ores can make you powerful enough, you can make a pack of them feral wood mutts turn tail and run off!" He spoke, followed by a sway of his hand in the air.