Ch. 6 Summary: When the human changes the script and breaks reality, Sans finds himself toppled into Underfell: a Kill or Be Killed universe. More annoyed than anything, Sans dodges feral monsters, searches for a way home, and uncovers a horrifying realization. The powers of RESETS and RELOADS have become his. Chara is nowhere to be found but he knows she hunts for him. If he can return home without dragging her with him, then maybe her tyranny can end once and for all. Heh, hopefully Red won't mind.
WARNINGS: WARNINGS: Swearing and mentions of violence.
Ch. 6 – Toppling Realities
Sans cocked his skull with an easy smile despite the blood pooling out of his mouth. The arched windows lit the judgement hall with a golden hue, warming the room despite the massive devastation. He muttered to himself as he staggered by the human, following the script of repeated timelines. Chara had defeated him again and he'd finally return to the time when his younger bro was alive. She'd have no choice but to RESET once she finished this run and hell would begin all over. But at least it was a hell he knew.
As he crashed to the floor, feeling his consciousness begin to fade as his body disintegrated, footsteps approached. A small hand grasped the back of his hood and hauled him upwards. A bottle of red liquid pressed itself to his mouth and he didn't have the strength to spit it out. What was the human doing? She'd never done this before, so what…?
He swallowed and coughed, the liquid sliding painfully down his nonexistent throat. He groaned as the hand let him go and he clattered back to the floor. Slowly, bones realigned themselves and wounds sealed. He blinked as the spots across his vision receded. He…he was alive?
"Kid…?" He forced himself to his knees. "What the hell are you–"
The kid was gone.
"What?" He whipped around too fast and toppled to the floor with a pained grunt. "What is she planning? This isn't part of the script…"
The only other place she could've gone was to the king. Groaning, he pushed himself to his feet and dragged his sorry, aching butt to the throne room. King Fluffybuns was nothing more than a pile of dust and a flower begged the human to spare him.
Chara slaughtered the flower.
Sans leaned against the doorway and grunted. "Kid?"
She turned, lips curling a mockery of a grin. Blood red eyes pinned him with sick and sadistic glee. "Sansy! Wouldn't you say it's about time…"
"…for a change of pace?"
The human souls, free of their containers, floated above her in a slow circle. He watched, dumbfounded. This was new. He'd never been alive to see what she did after she killed him. So what… What changed?
"I'm all for experiments and I know you like science, Sansy!" Chara giggled and lifted a hand. "So let's try a new hypothesis!"
She flung an arm towards him and the human souls shot at him. Horror washed away apathy. If they touched him, he'd become the equivalent to a god. Warning bells rang and instinct guided him as he teleported but didn't travel far with such low magic reserves. He found himself in the judgement hall and stifled a curse. The souls were still flying after him.
He stumbled for the door but colors blinded him. A scream ripped itself from his throat as his unwilling soul absorbed the humans' own. Over the sound of his wails, Chara roared with laughter and the world around him glitched. Like when he shotcutted, black flooded his vision. The Void. Then white. Snowdin.
He flailed in the air, falling fast. Black spotted across his vision and the snow covered ground rushed to meet him. Screams and wind reverberated in his skull. The ground was too close. He had no magic left. He was about to a dust. About to dust and he could do nothing but scream.
He hit the ground. Hard.
Black enveloped his senses. Nothing but his ragged breathing could be heard and he struggled to roll himself onto his back with trembling arms. The Void again? So he had shortcutted?
Yellow glinted in his peripheral vision and he tilted his head. Gigantic words towered over him. He swallowed. His soul plummeted from his chest to his feet.
RESET or RELOAD?
"Oh stars…" he sucked in air as hysteria bubbled to the surface. "Kid what did you do?"
Minuted ticked by as he wrestled with his emotions. There was no way. No fucking way. How had he gained the power? Was it the human souls? Was it Chara's doing? A delirious laugh burst and he couldn't stop the tears that overflowed from his sockets.
She changed the script.
He laughed until he couldn't breathe but even then the tears wouldn't stop. He had finally come to accept the vicious cycle of resetting timelines because at least they were predictable. He knew where everyone was, what they would say, when they would say it. He knew everything. But she changed the game. And now he knew nothing.
A thrill of excitement shot up his spine despite the fear. This was new. This was off the script. This was… "a real change of pace, right kiddo?"
Once he wrangled himself back under control, he stood and faced the letters. But what was he supposed to do with them? Say some magic word? Touch them? Mentally shrugging, he reached for RESET.
Bright light flared outwards. Magic flooded his senses, replenished and aches gone, and his surroundings dimmed into coherency. Surroundings that were rushing to meet him. Fast.
Cursing, he willed his magic to flare. His left eye burned bright blue and he slipped through the Void for half a second before reappearing on the snow covered ground, unharmed.
If that was the way to RESET, then he was not looking forward to constantly doing that whenever he died. But there was the option to RELOAD, wasn't there? Didn't that mean there had to be the ability to SAVE..?
Yellow flickered into vision and he jolted as a shining bundle floated in front of him. Was…was that how he saved? Throwing caution to the wind, he touched the light and a pleasant heat flowed over his bare bones. Huh. Odd.
But what to do now? He never fell through the sky whenever the kid reseted and he never had the power before, so what else had changed?
"…Better check on Paps…" he muttered to himself and took a moment to properly look around.
So he was near the ruins, then. The large doors loomed but he was closer to the bridge. A bridge that looked worse for wear, yeesh.
Deciding to take the long way and get a solid feel for the environment, Sans walked (urgh) to his and his bro's house. Only, when he got there he had a distinct feeling of dread. For one, there were no festive lights decorating the exterior. And two, the wood was splattered with graffiti and black paint.
When he realized he was hesitant to enter his own house he scoffed and shrugged off the alarm bells. He turned the knob and frowned when it didn't budge. Oh, right, Paps did like to lock the door. He fished in his pocket for the key and tried the lock.
It didn't fit.
"Oh…kay." He stepped back. "Gettin' weird vibes here."
Maybe he could just shortcut inside? He rolled the idea around his head. Or maybe he could check the town? While he debated, the door flung open and he had half a second to register the weapon flying towards him before instinct allowed him to dodge in the nick (heh, nick) of time.
The weapon, a bone rather than a knife, smashed snow behind him. The only other who could summon bones was his brother but he would never attack him. So then–
Another bone soared and he side-stepped with a scowl. "What's the big id–" He stopped to stare.
A mirror image of himself readied another bone attack. Only, the imposter had burning red eyelights, fangs with a gold tooth, and rugged clothing. Sans absently dodged the next attack, studying the other. They were roughly the same size although the rougher version of himself was slightly taller. And angrier, yeesh. He dodged another attack. The other wore a spiked red collar and black hoodie with yellow stained fur. Coupled with the black gym shorts and sneakers, he woulda thought the other hothead was some wannabe thug.
He snorted at the thought and shortcutted when a barrage of bones sailed his way. "Would you mind stopping so we can talk?" He quirked a brow as he reappeared behind the other.
His lookalike covered a startled yelp with a snarl. "Who 're ya, faker?"
Sans leveled a flat stare. "Three guesses and the first two don't count."
Red eyelights crackled but the other paused long enough to look him over. "Yer an awful knock off."
Magic washed over him as he felt himself being 'checked' and he scowled. "Rude. Don't you know better?"
Instead of listening, the other cackled. "Ya've only got one HP? What a weakling!" A sneer darkened his face. "Yer walking free EXP."
Sans narrowed his sockets. "Careful there," blue eyelights vanished. "You wouldn't wanna have a bad time, would you?"
The red-eyed lookalike curled his lips, unimpressed. "I'll even make it easy for ya. Nice and painless."
"Riiiight." Sans drawled and slipped on a lazy smile. "Look, I'm not looking for a fight. Mind tellin' me where I am?"
"Ah do, actually." The other readied a bone. "No hard feelings, but yer about to die."
The bone launched and he vanished. Annoyance bubbled as he reappeared outside the house. "Buddy."
When the other initiated a fight, he sighed and lightly dodged the attacks. He didn't bother retaliating, instead using any chance to 'spare' the other. The other only snarled and continued to attack, following him as he lead them deeper into the woods and away from the house.
The other yelled. "For the easiest monster ya sure are obnoxious! Stay still!"
Sans let himself check the other and snorted at the stats. Compared to Chara, the red-eyed lookalike was barely a threat. The other reddened with rage having felt the magic. Heh. Red. That could work as a name. Not the best, but it would work.
"Ya little shit!" Red threw more bones that Sans dodged with practiced ease.
"At this rate, you'll tire yourself out." Sans' grin twitched. "Wouldn't wanna wear yourself ragged because then I could wipe the floor with you."
Red howled and renewed the fervor of his attacks. Sans amused himself by dancing out of reach, an odd habit he picked up from Chara. It used to rile him up and he guessed this alternate version of himself would react the same. Red screeched. He was right. Heh.
And then Red summoned gaster blasters.
Sans hummed, unimpressed. Only two? Either the other had less magic reserves or hadn't lived through as many RESETS and built up larger magic reserves. Did they even have RESETS here? Was he in a different universe entirely? He let himself frown. Not good. Not good at all.
Red cackled. "Die, fucker!"
Brilliant beams of red light shot towards him and he shortcutted. The other staggered forwards, laughing. Sans was half-concerned but decided to shrug it off. The other threatened and attacked him. If the guy was unhinged then that was no skin off his back.
He half debated staying to tease before shrugging. The other wasn't open to reason. No sense wasting more time and if the other thought he was dead then, hey, at least he wouldn't be bothered. He teleported back to the bridge.
"Snowdin, it is…"
He shuffled pink slippered feet to the town. Once he came within eyesight, he subtly stiffened. Hungry eyes watched him and magic constantly flowed as other monsters 'checked' him. Yep. Definitely in a different universe if Snowdin residents were rude enough to check without permission.
He continued on his way, unbothered, until he entered Grillby's. All focus turned to him but he had zeroed on the skeleton at the counter in front of a purple flame monster. He kept a easy smile fixed on his face as he waved at the other monsters and approached the bar.
"Hey." He greeted the lookalike. "Calmed down, yet?"
Red whipped around so fast and squeezed the yellow bottle hard enough to splatter Sans' face with it. His smile twitched as he realized it was mustard on his face.
"How the fu–"
"I mustard you a question." Sans breezed over his scandalized expression. "Have you seen any humans lately?"
Red bared his fangs. "You should be dust."
Sans grabbed a napkin and wiped his face. "Dustn't look like that to me." The other growled as he flagged the Grillby lookalike. "Hey, you got any ketchup?"
The purple flame monster studied him for a moment before nodding.
Sans stuffed his hands into his pockets. "How much?"
"…three gold."
His sockets lifted. "Yikes. Alright, I'll bite." He rifled through his pockets for the money and placed them to the counter.
The bartender swiped the money and walked away. Sans directed his focus onto the bundle of anger.
"Let's start over." He extended a palm and stifled a smirk. "The name's Sans."
Red looked ready to strangled him. "…Ahm also Sans."
Despite the murderous glare, the other accepted the shake. Immediately, a fart noise erupted from their joint hands and Sans couldn't stop himself from busting a gut. The other reared back, scandalized.
"Your face!" He chortled and felt tears well in his sockets. "Stars, it's like you've never played a prank before!"
"Prank?" The other snapped. "I outta–"
The ketchup thudded in front of him. The purple flame monster shot a warning glare at Red and the other cut off his own threat and grumbled to himself.
Sans sniffled and wiped his eyes, downing the condiment. "So, let's try this again. Mind tellin' me where I am?"
"Figure it out yerself." Red snapped.
"Alright, alright, yeesh."
Though the other version of himself was the best bet for information, the guy clearly wasn't interested in helping. So he had to tackle this world alone, then. Alright, no biggie. He'd been alone all this time, he could handle it just fine. Hopefully his brother would be okay, though. He had to find a way home. He just had to.
He scooted off the seat and thanked the bartender. The flame monster paused, visibly surprised, before returning the gratitude with a composed nod. He bid farewell to his grouchy lookalike and left the bar.
Immediately, he could sense monsters following him and stifled a groan. What was with this world and unfriendly monsters? He kept his stride steady and wandered about the town. He debated on retiring at the inn before he decided he best keep what little money he had on hand. Hmm. He'd probably need to get a job too if he wanted to stock up on food. And where would he stay? The geography was similar to his own home so maybe the cave near the ruins could still be there?
Heck, if not that then a sturdy branch in a tree. He could sleep anywhere, after all.
His magic flickered as someone approached from behind. Instinctually, he dodged the attack and stretched his grin.
"Hey there, buddy." He twisted and faced the panther monster. "I'm not lookin' for a fight."
"You're fast for a weakling." The monster tightened their features into a leer. "But not fast enough."
Sans sighed as claws slashed towards him but he side-stepped and leaned out of harms way. Hands still stuffed into his pocket, he seized the monster's soul and held them in place.
"Look, I–" Footsteps crunched behind him, approaching fast. Blue magic surrounded the other attacker's soul. "Would you just–"
More monsters swarmed him and his irritation bubbled into a boiling point. He let his magic surround him, building energy in a tight sphere, before exploding outwards. The blast toppled enemies to the ground or smashed them against buildings and Sans growled, low.
"Buddies." Magic swirled in his left eye, flickering between blue and yellow. "Keep after me and you'll be in for a really bad time."
Threat delivered, he vanished with a shortcut.
~oOo~
He reappeared near the ruins once more. Blue magic churned within him, agitated and annoyed, and he forced himself to steady his breathing. The urge to unleash pent up frustration festered within his bones but he stomped down the sensation. No one deserved the brunt of his anger and the true cause was nowhere to be found.
"Where is she, anyway?" He scanned the area and his eyes wandered to the grand doorway.
His face softened. What were the chances of Tori sitting behind that door? Might as well take the chance. He shuffled to the doors and pressed his back against it, studying the sky.
White knuckles lightly rapped the door. "Knock knock."
Something rustled on the other side and he smiled. Maybe he could coax the other to play along? He continued with the joke. "Who's there?"
A light thump pressed against the door. Good, she was listening.
"Adore." His smile twitched. "Adore who?"
His smile slipped into a smirk. "Adore is between us. Open up?"
A light snort drifted through the wood. "My, don't you know better than to knock on a stranger's door?
He shrugged and slid to the snow covered ground. "What can I say? I a door meeting new people."
"Awfully odd, wouldn't you say?" The usually melodic voice was rougher than he remembered but the undertone was kind. "I don't know about you, but doorn't say I didn't warn you."
"Door not worry, I'll take my chances."
"Are you always this friendly? Because kindness is knock usual."
"Where I'm from, kindness is the dorm."
The playful tone switched to suspicious curiosity. "Where are you from?"
"Heh," white eyelights traced the distant stalactites. "Would you believe me if I told you? It's pretty outta this world."
"You've surprised me so far." Wood whispered as the other shifted. "Surprise me some more."
He closed his sockets. "I'm from a different universe."
A pause passed. "…my, that really is otherworldly."
He snorted and the two burst into giggles. When the bubbling feeling of joy subsided, he sobered. "…yeah, it really is."
The other picked up on his mood. "Do you plan to return?"
"I have to. My brother's waiting for me."
They continued to talk. From what his universe was like to what her universe was like. Apparently it was a Kill or Be Killed world, yikes. They swapped jokes and histories. Steadily, the ceiling dimmed with the illusion of a setting sun as artificial lights began to turn off. He sighed and stood, patting remaining snow off his rear and readied a farewell.
"Sans…" Toriel's hesitant tone made him pause. "May I ask a favor…?"
He tensed and his mouth moved before he could stop it. "If it's about protecting a human, then I can't promise that."
"…No." Toriel sucked in air. "No, not that. You mentioned the human Chara is the cause of your grief, but…"
He waited, curious despite himself.
"Give this world a chance."
Did…did he hear that right? "Huh?"
Tori treaded carefully, audibly searching for the right words. "I have a feeling you're the light this world needs to change."
"Huh?"
"Your kindness," she elaborated. "Your humor. It…it reminds me of a long, long time ago. When monsters lived and didn't just survive."
Sans wariness softened into understanding. "I'll try."
With that, they parted ways. He wandered through the darkening forest in search of the cave. Eventually he found it and tucked himself in the back. Hidden from prying eyes, he let himself drift into uneasy sleep.
~oOo~
He woke to the sound of heavy footfalls and threatening magic washing over him. Great. Another monster 'checking' him. He rolled onto his stomach and lifted groggy eyelights to scan the stranger. Immediately, he froze with pinpricks for eyes.
"Paps…?"
No, no that couldn't be his brother. This imposter wore jagged, ripped clothing. Black and red colors coupled with sharp teeth and a permanent scowl made for an intimidating aura. What could've happened in this world to make his precious baby brother turn into a monster full of danger?
He didn't like it.
"So you are the faker my useless brother spoke of."
No, he didn't like it at all.
Indignation bubbled within him but, remembering Toriel's request, he suffocated the righteous anger towards the imposter and kept his body relaxed. He tucked a palm beneath his chin and slid on a easygoin' smile. He was the picture of lounging nonchalance.
It infuriated the other. "I should kill you for such insolence! Do you not know who stands before you?"
He rolled his shoulders with a loose shrug. "I have a feelin' you're about to tell me."
"Insolent little–" The edgey version of his brother stopped himself with a forceful intake of air. "I am the Great and Terrible Papyrus, Captain of the Royal Guard and the one who will end your pathetic existence!"
Oh, wow. That shouldn't have hurt but coming from a face that looked so much like his brother's… But, no, this wasn't his brother. Wasn't even his world. He kept his smile relaxed as his free hand formed a finger gun.
"Seems to me you're nothin' but rough edges, buddy. How 'bout I call you Edge, instead?"
A bone construct flying at him was his answer. Grumbling to himself, he flopped out of the way. Compared to Chara's ruthless attacks, Edge was awfully slow. He continued to roll out of the way until the ground vibrated and he launched himself to his feet and leaped out of the attack range.
"Yeesh, ever heard of anger management?" He shortcutted behind the other and seized Edge's soul. "I'm not looking for trouble–"
Edge snarled profanities and struggled against the blue magic. "Put me down you miserable little–"
Sans scowled and kept him aloft. "This world is full of awful listeners."
He released the other and teleported once more. He reappeared in the forest and waved as the other whipped around in search of him. Red magic hurled his way and he continued to dodge, only bothering to use magic to teleport and dodge the occasional gaster blaster or bones shooting from the ground. Edge continued his barrage without fail and Sans felt boredom creeping upon him. The guy wasn't even a challenge compared to Chara.
Deciding enough was enough, blue magic encompassed the other's soul and bones erupted from the ground to trap Edge in one spot. He released the soul and shuffled forwards, slow but steady.
"Are you done yet?" He couldn't keep the irritation out of his tone. "Because if you'd just take a moment to listen instead of attacking first–"
"There is nothing you could say of interest!" Edge swatted the bones and promptly froze, red eyelights shrinking to pin pricks.
"Heh." Sans couldn't stop the dark smile. "Feel those sins crawling on your back?"
It took several minutes but when Edge returned to himself, he was sweating bullets and Sans found himself dozing on the uprooted ground.
"What." Edge growled but the tone was weak. "Did you. Do?"
"Karmic Retribution." He answered instead, opening an socket. "I'd ask if I could check your stats but you look like you're about to pass out so I'm gonna do it anyway."
Sans let magic wash over the other despite the garbled protests. He 'checked' Edge and lifted his brows. Wow. The guy had a ridiculously high amount of LOVE. No wonder one touch of his bones was enough to knock his HP down to single digits.
"Alright," Sans stood and stretched. "Gotta drag your sorry butt back to your house before you turn to dust on me.
Edge readied a snarl but Sans just shot him a look. "This 'pathetic whelp' just knocked you down with one hit. Don't mess with me, buddy, I'm not in the mood."
The imposter seemed to chew on the knowledge and reluctantly simmered in agitation as Sans dispelled the magic and grasped the other by the soul. Edge floated above him as he shuffled back to the house. Best not to use more magic than needed. He had to save his energy for when he'd either face Chara once more or another gang of battle-hungry jerks.
When he arrived at the house, he brought Edge close and rifled through the other's pockets. Once he had the key, he unlocked the door and tucked the key back into the angry monster's pants pocket. Once they were inside, he kicked the door shut and turned the lock before wandering into the kitchen.
He rummaged through the fridge and found leftover spaghetti. The sight sent a pang through his soul but he forced back memories and shoved the plate into the microwave. When it was done, he dropped Edge into a chair and dumped the plate and fork in front of him.
"Eat." He turned to grab another plate. "Hope you don't mind me feeding myself either."
Edge grumbled and the fork scraped as the other ate. "…why have you not killed me?"
Sans halted, completely thrown. "Pardon?"
Edge cleared his throat. "You clearly had the chance to dust me. Yet you did not. Why?"
"Uh…" he purposefully busied himself with heating more pasta. "Because that's murder?"
The monster snorted. "That is survival."
Sans grabbed a fork and sat himself on the other end of the table. "Not where I'm from."
"And where are you from?" The wariness was thick.
He shrugged and habit slipped on his grin. "Different universe." He took a bite and his eyelights glowed. "Wow, this is delicious!"
Edge scowled. "You can't expect me to believe–"
The front door slammed open. "Boss!"
Footsteps pattered as his rough mirror image entered the kitchen. "Boss?"
Sans waved. "Yo."
"What the fuck?" Red whipped onto Edge, expression torn between rage and confusion. "Boss?"
Edge straightened. "Report, whelp."
Phalanges clawed at his skull. "Urgh! Mutts reported ripped up ground by the cave in the woods. Was that ya?"
Edge scowled. "And what of it?"
"Who else could it have been? No one's as powerful as…" Red glared at Sans as he idly stuffed his face. "Why the hell is he here, anyway?"
Edge sighed, wary. "I owe him."
Sans paused. "Uh…?" He turned to Edge. "What?"
"Don't play dumb," The guy snapped. "A life for a life. What do you want in return for sparing me?"
Red reeled. "'Spare'? Boss, are ye sayin' this punk actually–"
Sans narrowed his sockets. "Alright, I'll bite."
The brothers watched him warily.
"I need a place to stay until I can return home. Don't know how long it will take. Never studied alternate universes before. But, heads up, there might be a human here who came from my world. She's an absolute nightmare. Don't ever fight her because she will dust you. Gruesomely."
Red stared, confused. "A violent human? What's 'er name?"
"Chara."
The confusion increased as the other muttered to himself. "Not Frisk…?"
Sans frowned but didn't respond. "So. In exchange for sparing your life, I get to stay here. Sound like a deal?"
The brother's swapped a silent conversation with looks alone. It ended when Red looked away with crossed arms and Edge sat taller and outstretched a hand.
"Deal."
~oOo~
Notes: This was mostly inspired by the song Invincible by Skillet. Not sure how I feel about Sans portrayal in this one but, eh, I tried. Either way, felt like I lost the flow of the story towards the end.
The next bit was gonna be somethin' like Sans dying – either because the Fell bros stab him in the back or because Chara gets the jump on him. He reloads and Red freaks, figures out Sans secret, and becomes even more distrustful of him because "how did you get that power? Only the HUMAN has that ability!"
Thanks for reading and feel free to review!