Disclaimer: I do not own Undertale.

Iterations

Evacuate

He observed as the door opened, hidden within the surrounding trees. The demon stepped out into the snow, knife clenched within its fist. The deviation from routine made it cautious. It was, undoubtedly, expecting him to show up. It sat, tossing the knife up and catching it. It was waiting for him. An hour passed, then another. It was becoming impatient. It realized that he was not coming for it this time. A smug grin spread across its face. Standing, it cracked its neck.

It scanned the forest, knowing he was watching. They both knew that it would not be able to find him unless he let it. "Don't want to be the first to die? Fine, I'll allow it. I've got plenty of friends to fill up my free time until you're ready."

Then it turned and skipped back into the Ruins, the door closing and locking behind them with a soft click.

It did not take long for the screaming to start.

Sans teleported straight into Papyrus' room. Rummaging in the back of his closet, he picked up a bag that had been collecting dust since they had moved to Snowdin. He yanked clothes off their hangers, stuffing them into the bag. A quick glance told him he had managed to pack all necessities. He went on to put some of his favorite action figures in. Cramming them down into the bag, he managed to make enough room to slip in his brother's copies of 'Advanced Puzzle Construction for Critical Minds' and 'Peek-a-Boo with Fluffy Bunny.' He blinked downstairs to the kitchen. Grabbing an empty plastic bag from the cupboard beneath the sink, he filled it with all the containers of spaghetti in the fridge. He stopped midway into a shortcut to double back and drop a fork into the bag.

In the next moment he found himself in Undyne's house. Glancing at the clock, he knew she would not be home for at least another half hour. He dropped heavily onto a chair and waited restlessly. Twenty-two minutes. Drummed fingers against the table. Twenty. Bounced a leg up and down. He was starting to regret taking the shortcut. At least if he walked he would not be wasting so much time doing nothing. Nineteen. He jumped up from his place at her table and unshouldered the bag. Unzipping it, he dumped it out. He took his time separating the contents into categories. Sixteen minutes. Folded and refolded all the clothes, meticulously making sure there was not a single crease. Twelve. Separated clothing into tops and bottoms. Packed them back away. Ten. With the clothes folded, he was able to fit the containers of spaghetti into the bag too. He placed the books and action figures in last. Seven. He was about to unpack everything all over again when he heard the jingle of keys. Finally. She had finished her patrol early.

Noticing him as she opened the door, she blinked in surprise. "Sans? How did you get–"

"i need a favor," he interrupted, tossing the bag at her.

She barely managed to catch it. "What–"

"human," he answered simply. It was almost a lie but he had no intention of going into the whole 'demon possessing the human body of his friend' thing. He had no time to answer her questions. "dangerous. get pap out of here."

"Human?" she repeated incredulously. She seemed to stand straighter and excitement gleamed in her eyes. A blue spear appeared in her hand.

"no," he said firmly, wrenching her spear out of her hand and flinging it across the room with magic. "that's not what i asked you to do."

Her gaze went from him to her spear now embedded in the wall and back. Her posture tensed and she conjured another spear. She glared down at him. Her voice had all the authority of her position. "No stupid human is making us run. It's my job to take their soul and I'm doing it. Stand down."

His eye turned blue and Undyne was lifted into the air. A bone materialized and slammed against her spear, shattering it. "no, your job is to protect everyone."

Recognition flashed in her eyes and her gaze turned wary. While she still glared at him defiantly, she did not try to conjure another weapon. He must have made a real lasting impression when he fought her if she was still feeling it this many iterations after. Good. A healthy dose of fear made cooperation easier to wrangle.

"evacuate," he commanded. "get pap out of here and keep him out."

"But–"

"he listens to you. make it an order. you know he could never hurt anyone."

"I can fight!" she insisted.

"you can also die," he retorted. "in fact, i guarantee that if you do fight, you will."

She squirmed in the air but was unable to escape his grasp. He held her gaze. Finally, she slumped and nodded. He let her down.

"that bag is for papyrus. get him as far away from here as you can," he spoke softly. "take the time to get alphys out of here too. they'll probably need her smarts."

At Alphys' name she seemed to become more receptive. She stood tall and nodded resolutely. She would make this her mission. At the doorway, she paused.

"What are you going to do, Sans?"

"find a way to stop this."

She accepted his answer and stepped out. He was relieved as he heard her start talking to Papyrus on the phone, urging him to meet her at Alphys' lab. He watched her through the window as she hung up and began running full out towards Hotland.

Then he teleported to his hidden lab.

Undyne was the Head of the Royal Guard for a reason. Within an hour after she left, members of the Royal Guard were stomping through Waterfall, ushering civilians out. By then, distress calls had been made reporting a human that was slaughtering monsters in Snowdin. A group of guards had been sent in to evacuate monsters in the growing massacre zone. When they did not return, they stationed guards at the border between Snowdin and Waterfall. They stood as a barrier meant only to buy time. It was understood that the monsters that resided in the winter city were beyond help.

The Royal Guard fell.

A/N: Lots of death, yo. Things are looking pretty grim right now, but things will get better soon. Still no Frisk but I promise she isn't gone. The next chapter is well underway.

Thanks for reading.

Until next time friendlies,

Dfsemina