"A little bit of everything. I Fell In Love WIth A Killer Robot is a romantic comedy, The Killer Robot Who Loved Me is a psychological thriller. Cooking With a Killer Robot is a cooking show. He has a game show that mostly revolves around explosions called Find the Bomb ... He's the main source of news - MTT Nightly News - but since little ever happens in the Underground most of the news is just him aggrandizing himself, usually promoting his newest thing. Basically, if it has explosions, chainsaws, and Mettaton, he does it."

"...that's a lot of, uh, killer robots," remarks Kato after a silence.

"Mettaton is the killer robot in question, so it's just the one, actually."

"He... kills people?" says Papenna.

"Is he a robot or is he a robot themed monster?" says Kato.

"He's supposed to kill humans who fall into the Underground, by order of King Asgore. As far as I know Mettaton hasn't actually killed anyone yet. He oly seems passingly interested in it.

"And I'm not sure what you would classify him as. He's a robot with an artificial monster soul, or at least that's what Alphys says."

"...why did the king order him to kill humans who fall into the Underground?" asks Kato.

"Would he still - work - if he didn't have the soul?" asks Papenna. "Or is it just that souls can make things that wouldn't normally act alive, like bones and metal, behave like they're alive, and if he didn't have his he'd just be a sculpture?"

"I don't think he'd work if he didn't have a soul, but you'd have to ask Alphys for specifics. She's been pretty tight lipped about how she created Mettaton. Some monsters think she's hiding something about it. I don't know if he'd be a sculpture. I know without my soul I would just be dust - which is what all monsters become when we die," Hel says to Papenna. When she turns to answer Kato she looks sad.

"It was after his son and adopted human child died. The story I was told is that the human became ill and died after living in the Underground for a while. Asriel - the prince - took their soul and crossed the Barrier with their body. I think they meant to find the other six souls and free monsterkind. But when Asriel returned to the Underground he had been attacked by humans and was fatally wounded. He died and dusted in the throne room, just inside the Barrier. After that, Asgore proclaimed war against the humans, and said that the life of any human to fall into the Underground was forfeit."

"Do the humans... know about that?" asks Kato.

Hel shakes her head, clearly uncomfortable. "Doubtful. None of the humans who have fallen since then left the Underground, so there's no way they could have found out."

Kato doesn't pursue that line of questioning. "What other six souls?" he asks instead.

"Seven human mages - magic users - made the Barrier, so seven human souls are needed to break it. Or power equivalent to that. "

"Right, you mentioned that, but if Asriel was bringing one human soul to the barrier, his sibling, then where were the other six intended to come from?"

"I don't know what his plan was. From what people say, he was a gentle soul. He was the one who found his sibling after they entered the Underground, and took them to his parents for help. At the same time, all I can think of is he planned to kill six humans and take their souls. Maybe he hoped he could find violent or cruel humans?"

"Why would there be any humans in that spot at all? He couldn't go out looking, could he?"

"Once he was past the Barrier he could go anywhere he wanted. And there must be a town or a city near Mount Ebott, or the human wouldn't have been able to fall into the Underground."

"Is the barrier not... difficult to get through? I thought it was what was keeping monsters underground."

"Monsters can't cross the barrier, but humans can as long as they also have the soul of a monster. Asriel could cross because he had a human soul and a monster soul. After taking his sibling's soul he would have had godlike power."

"Oh. - and then he wouldn't have it anymore to use to free the monsters, or could he take it out again?"

"Once a monster takes a soul it becomes part of them. Trying to separate a monster and a human soul would be like trying to tear yourself in half. "

"Was he planning to... die in the process of opening the Barrier -? I'm sorry, I know you're not him and can't reasonably answer all these questions about his motivations, it's just a remarkably puzzling story."

"None of the stories talk about the monster having to die to break the Barrier, just that it required the power of seven human souls. My assumption is his plan was to get the souls and absorb them and then throw magic at the Barrier until it broke. That's what I would have done. He was a child, so I don't know if he had a plan at all, but I don't think he planned on dying."

"Oh, I see, that makes more sense. - How old are you, Helvetica?" Kato can pronounce the V just fine and the L almost fine.

"Nineteen. I'm a bit out of adolescence, but I'm not really considered a fully independent adult yet."

"Nineteen what, how long are your units - do you use years, operating underground -"

"Oh! Yeah, we use years. Our years are 365 days - with an extra day every 4 years, although more important to us are solstices and equinoxes. Monsters can feel things like the rising of the sun and length of days, due to how the ambient mana reacts. It's sort of like how the moon controls the tide."