Core Issues

by Nicolle

Disclaimer: Undertale is copyright to Toby Fox. Gaster!Sans (our lovely narrator) is the creation of Borurou. Underfell is a community creation. Fase is from Technotale. The story is copyright to me.

Special Disclaimers!: (1)The Frisk, Sans, and Papyrus we see in this episode are not part of an official AU but are based on the fanart of 22o22. This artist's work is phenomenal! (2) Though Underswap does not make an appearance in this series, part of the basic idea will appear here, so credit for that goes to the Underswap creator Morty.

1. My beta has changed his mind. This is his fav episode. I, apparently, blew him right out of his seat when he read the original draft.

2. This story is rated T for language, suggestive jokes/themes, and violence.

Ep. 9 - Memory

The water glistened under a bright sun. Frisk was in the line next to this world's Sans, waiting for the right wave to come along. I sat on a beach chair, enjoying the breeze and the warm sun while White hid under a large beach umbrella next to me. Red's nasal bone was buried in a book, occasionally looking up at his Frisk before taking a sip of mustard. His Frisk was under an umbrella with this world's monster Frisk, a cute cross between a cat and a rabbit in black fur with a flat tail. They were busy building a sandcastle in the shade. My Frisk came up on a wave.

I looked over at White. "Stop staring at my girl, White."

"Hey! Why does Red get to look when I don't?!" He pouted.

Red looked up at the water. "*wouldn't it be easier for sugar plum to do tricks if she were using a shorter surfboard?"

"That's why Red get's to look."

White huffed. "I hate you both. And I hate knowing that the bathing suit pic you have is that one." He pointed to my girl in her blue floral rashguard and shorts. "The bikini in my imagination is so much better."

"She doesn't own a bikini," I said. I turned the page of my magazine.

"And that's a damn shame!" White huffed. He suddenly smiled deviously. "Does she have any lingerie?"

I gave him my best glare.

"*stop talking like that in front of my frisk," Red growled softly.

"Fine," White muttered. He pulled the strings on his hoodie to close the front around his face, going into full sulk.

This world's Papyrus sat down next to me, cross legged in the sand, in a red knit and black slacks. He'd left his bone mask off, revealing the scars of the disease he'd only just managed to cure. And I was sure, if Red's brother had skin, this is exactly what he would look like. He rubbed his jaw while watching the surfers.

"*hey, papyrus!" Red put his book down. "*thanks for having us. the kiddo's been having a great time."

Red's Frisk sat up, purple and brown braids flopping in her face. She pushed her hair back, in that easy way teen girls did, with a smile that was increasingly like my Frisk's. "This is awesome! Thank you so much."

I was still a little off-put that she was sixteen now. Had it really been four years since she and Flowey had used the Seraph Foundation's facility as a race track for her scooter? I looked over at White. He was watching the surfers and when he looked at the kiddo it was with the same smile reserved for his little brother. The same one he bestowed on Verdana and Ravie. I wondered if that was part of the baby-bones phenomenon. Or something relational about Frisks. Did all Sans-es fit all other Frisks into the most appropriate place in their lives and vice versa?

Papyrus nodded. "You're welcome."

The monster Frisk hopped into Papyrus' arms. "Are we still going to see Red's lab?"

He smiled softly and pet her head. "Yes." He looked to Red. "My mother has asked to join us. Do you mind?"

Red shook his head. There was a sudden, happy softness to his skull. There hadn't been a Lucida in my past. The only woman who'd held my heart so firmly before Frisk had been my mother. I still had vivid dreams of her tossing me, or rather Wing Dings, in the air as a child.

My Frisk came out of the water with her board. She set it down softly before dropping to the sand next to Papyrus. "Thanks for having us."

"It's the least I could do to thank you. You did not have to take Black's deal on behalf of a stranger."

She smiled and I pretended not to see the warm glow in his eyes.

"It honestly isn't as bad as Black likes to make it out to be. His idea of a good time is to have his friends play video games on his youtube channel that make them scared, disgusted, and/or sick."

"*what'd ya end up playing?" Red asked.

"Five Nights at Freddy's."

"*and?" Red poked, smile wide.

"I told Freddy Fazbear to go F himself."

"*you swore?!" Red cackled.

Frisk looked embarrassed. "A lot. As in, I felt like I needed to wash my mouth out with soap when I was done."

"*this i need to watch." Red pulled out his phone. "*has he uploaded it yet?"

"Yeah."

"So why weren't you taking his calls?" White asked.

Frisk frowned. "Because last time he had me playing SCP Containment Breach and I was so sick from the swinging camera, I completely freaked out."

"She had nightmares for almost three weeks after that one," I said. I took a sip of hot sauce. "I spent two of them in her bed so I could comfort her when she inevitably had a bad dream."

"Ooh La La!" the kiddo said. She giggled, looking at me.

I pointed at her. "Don't you start, young lady."

She stuck her tongue out at me. "I cannot imagine you being that scared."

Frisk shrugged. "Everyone has their break point and apparently mine is a creepy statue." Frisk turned back to Papyrus. "So why aren't you out there?" She motioned to the waves with a nod of her head.

Papyrus sighed. "I had a spill yesterday and hit the reef. My shoulder is still sore."

"Do you want some Monster Candy?"

He shook his head. "A day on the sand won't kill me." His Frisk rubbed her head against his chest before jumping out of his lap and heading back over to the sand castle. "Do you want a hand getting your board cleaned up?"

Frisk shook her head and stood. "I'm good." She picked up her board and headed over to the trees to rinse it.

Papyrus turned back to the water, watching his brother surf, while Red giggled like a maniac to the video on his phone. Both Flowey's popped back up and climbed up on their respective Frisks, chattering away at each other. Frisk came back and sat on the sand in front of me. I leaned forward and touched the side of her neck, careful to avoid where I knew C's implants were hidden under her skin. If I moved her hair, I would see C's connector chip in the back of her neck. She reached up and laid her hand over my phalanges.

C burst to life on Frisk's shoulder. "We've got an hour until we want to be at Red's Lab."

"Hello," Papyrus said, immediately interested. "And what might you be?"

"This is C. He's my A.I." Frisk answered. "Asriel put him in my head to keep me from hurting monsters in the Underground after I fell."

"That was an issue?"

Frisk shrugged. "Being unconscious, I couldn't argue the point with him at the time. And, I do have a lot of LOVE."

Papyrus snorted, the idea amusing him immensely. He stood. "Will you and my brother be able to handle things while we're gone, White?"

White pulled his hood off. "No worries." There was blue glow to his eyes. "I doubt MC can dish out anything we can't handle."

Papyrus waved to his brother and Sans came in from the water.

"Heading off already?" He gave a false sulk behind his bone mask. "It's nice to meet new people. Come back again soon."

"Will do!" the kiddo said, giving him a hug.

He hugged her back and reached down to pet his Frisk's head. "Be good for Mom and Papy, all right? No shenanigans." He got a smile before she scampered over to Papyrus and jumped into his arms.

Papyrus put her on his shoulder. "Ready to go get mom?"

She nodded and we headed off for the house.

Lucida was putting a book away on the shelf as we came in, hand lingering on the urn containing her husband's ashes. She hadn't mentioned how long he'd been gone. She'd only looked at me very sadly when we'd met earlier, the shadow of memory hanging heavy over her.

Red offered Lucida his arm while Papyrus put a hand on his shoulder. I put my arms around my Frisk and the kiddo and landed us just outside the Lab in Red's Fell world. The kiddo ran over to the door and opened it, heading over to the elevator excitedly. We followed her.

"*hey kiddo? did you have enough water today?"

"Yes, Sans."

"*and your meds?"

She rolled her eyes. "Yes, Sans." She kissed the side of his skull. "I'm good. Promise."

"*good. here. lab's been cold recently." He shrugged off his jacket and handed it to her.

"How's the 'cyborg' me doing?" my Frisk asked.

"Really good!" the kiddo answered, pulling on Sans jacket. "He's able to reset now, so his timeline is back in order. It took a while to explain to his Sans all the strange and disturbing memories. Especially the one of having been killed by Paps. Anyway, he comes back to hang out a lot. I guess he got really comfortable with Dad and I around. I would not be surprised if he's here right now."

The elevator doors opened on level one of the original True Lab. We followed Red into the bunk area. Three beds were filled and Dr. Gaster was talking quietly with an assistant about the patients in them.

"*our guests are here, dad."

Wing Dings handed the clip board in his hand to the assistant and came over. Papyrus' looked away suddenly and his Frisk quickly rubbed her face against his. He looked at her and scratched her behind the ears to quell the sudden trembling in his hands. He took a deep breath and managed a restrained smile.

Red handled the introductions. "*this is dr. papyrus gaster. he's the medical researcher who discovered the cure and developed the vaccine to ao742. and this is his mother, dr. lucida gaster."

Dings froze the moment his eyes caught sight of Lucida. Taking a deep breath, he stepped toward her, hands behind his back. She held her hands behind her back the same way and smiled up at him. When he held out a hand, Lucida placed hers in it.

"Charmed." There was an intensity to the flicker in the Ding's red eyes that would have melted a lesser being.

Frisk whistled low and whispered to me, "I've seen that look before. Ten bucks says they end the tour in his bedroom."

"Exactly where have you seen that look before?" I asked.

"On you."

I face palmed.

Dings offered Lucida his arm and she took it. "This way." He led us along to the secondary elevator off of refrigeration and took us to the second basement level of the Lab, explaining the various expansions of the True Lab over time. As Red's Frisk had predicted, 'cyborg' Frisk, who now lacked mechanical parts, was helping several of the assistants in the medical bay. His Sans was napping in a chair outside Ding's office door. The kiddo ran over to him and the two started talking up a storm while he worked.

Lucida's first question jarred me, but not because of content. She had slipped deeply into the parts of 'Gaster speak' that made her almost incomprehensible. Dings responded with the same speech and I stopped listening to avoid the eventual headache.

Red rolled his eyes and motioned Papyrus over to continue the tour elsewhere. I looked at my Frisk and she smiled at me, stifling a laugh behind her hand. I leaned back against a wall with my hands in my pockets, Frisk next to me, watching Dings and Lucida romance each other with science.

"Shall we discuss this over a cup of tea?" Dings offered, suddenly understandable.

Lucida nodded and he led her into his apartment. As soon as the door shut, the lock clicked. There was a loud thump against the wall followed by a soft moan.

Both of the kiddos stared at the door before looking at each other.

"Your dad works fast," 'cyborg' Frisk said.

Red's Frisk nodded.

My Frisk stared at the door, surprised. "You should have taken the bet. They didn't even make it to the bedroom."

"*i'm not sure how comfortable i am with this," Red sighed.

"They were always like that," Papyrus muttered.

"*Must be where I get it from," they both said. They looked at each other and snickered.

Monster Frisk jumped down from Papyrus' shoulders to Red's, and then to the floor, heading over to the other Frisks.

My phone buzzed and I gave it a quick look. It was a set of equations from Blue. I frowned. I'd never received a mission this way. Maybe he was busy? Or just being lazy. Probably lazy. Red and Papyrus came over.

"*heading out?"

"Looks like it," I said. "Just weird that Blue sent a text with equations and didn't call."

My Frisk hopped into Ding's office to change into her uniform. The kiddo came over and stole my phone to look at the text. She frowned.

"Woah there!"

She smiled at me and handed back the phone. Then frowned again, deep in thought.

My Frisk came back out, ready to go. I put an arm around her and started solving the equations.

"No! Wait!" The kiddo grabbed my arm and Papyrus quickly grabbed her.

We landed on a barren world, the wind rushing around us. Frisk pulled the kiddo in close to shield her. I looked around and spotted an old, abandoned house that was withstanding the wind. I motioned for everyone to follow and we hid inside.

Once sheltered, I loomed over Red's Frisk. "That was incredibly dangerous! What were you thinking?"

She was not the least bit intimidated and grabbed my jacket to pull my face down to hers. "The equations are wrong! They didn't just move us through the void. They moved us through time." She suddenly looked angry, a red glow edging her brown eyes. "How did you not notice that?"

"Calm down, Frisk!" Flowey wrapped multiple vines around her chest, trapping her arms.

She sighed, hands dropping. "I'm fine. The question stands." She looked away. "You're smarter than me, right? Why the screw up?"

I huffed. "Smarter than you? I read your last paper, sweetheart." I sighed. "We've moved through time before to get places. Missions often depend on when we arrive more than where." I put a hand on her head. "Still, this is really suspicious."

My Frisk held out her hand. "Give me your phone."

I handed it to her. She popped open the text and opened the numerical information. She frowned and handed it back.

"It's a spoof. That's not Blue's number." A slow annoyance came to her face. "But I do recognize that number."

My eye sockets narrowed. "It's his, isn't it?"

Frisk nodded.

"Who are you talking about?" Papyrus asked.

"A male version of my Frisk who is with Midnight Collapse." I looked to the window. "I wonder what his game is?"

"I'll call Fase to get us out of here," Frisk pulled out her phone. "Or I won't." She looked at her phone. "Last time I got this error was in Sheriff Sans' world."

The rest of us checked our phones. Nothing.

"We'll need to make the proper equations ourselves." I looked at the kiddo. "Wanna help me reverse engineer this one?"

She nodded and pulled a marker out of her pocket.

My Frisk looked out the window again. "At least we know that by not coming back immediately, Red will call Fase and get the ball rolling on finding us. C? Are you getting any signal here?"

C burst life on her shoulder. "Nothing. This whole place dead. There's wiring in the house, but it's rotted out."

Papyrus joined her at the window. "What should we expect?"

She crossed her arms over her chest. "Not sure. This is very different from anything MC has tried before and the first time that the other me has gotten directly involved. He usually just shows up to observe or talk." She stepped away from the window. "It might be a test to see if we can get back. Might be something else. I'm going to check the rest of the house."

"I'll join you."

My Frisk nodded. They headed into the next room. The kiddo wrote on the wall next to me, working through several possibilities.

"You okay with them being alone?" Frisk asked as she worked.

"Nothing escapes you, huh? It's fine. Your Papyrus gives her the same look, especially when they're training together. It comes off as sexual, but it's not. It's the recognition of a kindred spirit. Someone who understands what it's like to see a world bathed in blood. It's why he rubs his jaw when he looks at her. Just like your brother will touch the cracks around his eye socket. They know her scars are there too, even if they can't see them."

Frisk's hand flew across the wall, the math flowing from her like water. "My brother would still put her against a wall if she'd let him."

"That's because in your universe, sex among monsters is an expression of loyalty more than one of love."

"Then what makes White different?"

I smiled. "White is so used to being by himself that he's uncomfortable with the idea of having a romantic relationship. Pretending that he has a thing for Frisk is his way of dealing with it. He knows she won't ever respond and neither will she abandon him as a friend."

"I meant why do you rag on White so hard if you know it's not serious?"

I stopped for a moment and then continued the calculations. "I'm a monster and my Frisk is human. We'd been introduced to White long before I was sure of my own feelings let alone hers. White isn't exactly bad looking."

"So it's straight up jealousy. Okay."

I rolled my eye.

She smiled at me. "Thanks for not being embarrassed by my questions."

"Hey, I'm not gonna leave ya hanging."

Her smile turned devious as she reached over to my work and changed a set of numbers. "So have you two done the do yet?"

"Frisk!" Flowey yelled.

I snorted. "Too personal and you're sixteen."

She giggled. "Ask Frisk instead. Got it."

I smiled and we switched places, working through each other's math. "Oh, that's right. Ask the person who's makes me look like an open book. You'll totally get a straight answer there."

"I don't get it. I've met three other versions of you. One was a nuclear physicist and a total man whore. One was a part time druggie and a full time musician. And G is the sweetest man in the entire multi-verse. I can call him anytime and he's always happy to chat, even when his essence bleed is really bad. And all of you have completely different stories when it comes to how you became a fusion of Gaster and Sans. But for all your differences, you're all super private. Is that the common thread?"

"For my variation, yes. Just like every variation of Red is trying to fill a void in their very being. There's always a common thread."

"So which one of you is the first?"

"Not sure. I know it isn't me. There's one you haven't met yet because his world is a glitched out mess. His little Frisk has this box full of bandages to fix all the glitches. I'm pretty sure he's the first," I answered.

"Why?"

"He drinks ketchup."

Frisk and Papyrus came back in the room.

"Well, we know where we are at least," my Frisk said. "He left us a map." She held up a map of St. Canard. There was a circle with the words 'You Are Here.'

"This is where the train depot is located," I said. "The whole area looks like farm land outside."

Frisk pointed at me. "You're right." She pointed to the date on the map. "2017," she said. She put the map down and held up a calendar. "2253. And who knows how many years after this calendar went defunct. Any progress on the equations?"

"Slowly," the kiddo said. "This would actually be easier if we could portal directly to the prime world. But Blue keeps the place completely locked down." She sat down, and stared up at the math.

"Do you need a nap, sweetheart?" I asked.

"Not yet." She rubbed her face with the palms of her hands. "Soon though."

The house suddenly shook.

"What was that?" Red's Frisk asked.

Papyrus looked out of the window. "That."

I looked and saw a massive bone foot just outside the window. There was another shake as it moved away. We ran to the windows to look out at a massive bone dragon walking by. It's tail swung out and struck the house. I quickly put my arms around both of the girls and hooked a finger in Papyrus' shirt, short cutting us to outside the house. The dragon stopped and turned, looking at us.

"It felt my short cut," I breathed.

It's tail whipped at us. Papyrus grabbed the kiddo while I got a better grip on my girl and we both cut backwards out of the way of the swinging tail.

It roared and a volley of bones came at us.

The kiddo threw out both hands, left eye glowing. A line of bones rose out of the ground, making a barrier. The volley broke against it. The dragon rushed the barrier and Frisk dropped it completely, letting the dragon crash through and fall in a roll.

It roared again, scrambling to it's feet, tail lashing at us. My Frisk dashed out of my arms, dodging under the tail. She got up to the back hip bones and climbed up on it. It thrashed underneath her, and I readied to catch her if she was thrown. She held on and the dragon stopped thrashing long enough to stand properly. Frisk took advantage of the moment and climbed up to it's shoulders. The head turned toward on its long neck, snapping at her with sharp teeth. She dodged the first two strikes only to get caught by the third. She shrieked as teeth sank into her arm and shoulder.

The reaction surprised the dragon and it let go. Papyrus and I summoned bone strikes directly underneath the dragon, trapping it in place and keeping it from moving it's neck and head.

Frisk looked up at the dragon's skull, left arm hanging useless at her side. She patted the snout with her right hand. "It's okay, Sans. We aren't here to hurt you."

A set of white eyes appeared in the sockets and the head cocked to the side. An ethereal hissing slid from the dragon's jaws. "*frisssssssk...?"

She nodded. "Yeah. I'm a Frisk."

Deep anguish overcame the dragon Sans and it wailed.

Frisk huddled against his neck, unable to cover her ears properly. She lost her balance and fell. I short cut and caught her. She gritted her teeth and buried her face against my shoulder to keep from screaming. I knelt down and gently set her next to me. Digging around in her pockets, I found a cinnamon bunny. I unwrapped it and she shoved it in her mouth, eating it in three bites. Her arm and shoulder knit back together.

Red's Frisk dispelled the bones holding the dragon in place. It laid down, eyes watching us sadly. She hugged its massive skull, gently petting the nasal bone.

"You're not supposed to be like this, are you?"

Dragon Sans groaned miserably.

"Where is everyone?" she asked.

"*gone. alone."

She hugged him tightly, head resting near his left eye.

"Uh, Frisk?" Flowey poked her. "Oh great. She fell asleep."

Papyrus laughed and Flowey huffed at him.

"Oh please. That's funny." He lifted her up and moved her onto his back. She wrapped her arms around his shoulders, murmuring lightly.

My Frisk stood and rolled her left shoulder. She knelt next to Dragon Sans' skull.

"*sorry. so sorry."

"It's okay." She patted his boney snout. "But you're not completely alone. Someone has been here. That's why you attacked us."

"*yes." The dragon's eyes flickered, like it was having trouble speaking. "*sorry. so sorry."

"Still okay." She petted the nasal bone. "Are there any other buildings left anywhere? Any parts of St. Canard still intact?"

Dragon Sans stood and looked off toward where the Seraph Facility would have been in our world. "*that way." He started walking slowly in that direction and we followed.

Frisk looked to Papyrus. "Are you okay with carrying Frisk?"

He nodded. "She's sixteen, right? She's under weight and under height for her age if you are any comparison. What's her medical condition?"

"Childhood malnutrition," Flowey said. He looked sad. "She was running away from home when she fell on Mt. Ebott. Her continued health has been a long work in progress for Sans. Well, Red. Dr. Gaster replaced her heart when she was ten with one he cloned. It took them a long time to get to that point because she kept dying in her sleep and resetting the work. Once her heart was in working order, it was a matter of making sure she had the right combination of food, vitamins, and medication. She still tires out fast, and needs a midday nap, but she'll get to have a mostly normal life." He smiled. "Every day is a little better than the last."

"How did Red solve the problem of her dying in her sleep? If it was a constant thing, it means the only thing bringing her back was her determination."

"Black gets the credit for that one," Frisk said. "He happened to read an article about infants with heart problems having better outcomes when they slept with their mothers or other family members. He thought it might work for her and had his Frisk make a small pillow with a noisemaker that sounded like a heart beat. Red would put the pillow in his rib cage and Frisk stopped dying in the middle of the night."

"We'll have to get her back home soon. She can miss her evening medication, but she'll need more than the food we have on us we end up being here for more than a day," I said.

Papyrus nodded and adjusted her on his back.

"...make you tea when we get home..." the kiddo murmured in her sleep, "promise..."

Papyrus chuckled softly.

Dragon Sans stopped at the crest of a hill. At the bottom was a large building. And though the grounds around it were in shambles, there was no mistaking what we were looking at. It was a perfect copy of the Seraph Foundation.

"We are on a different world right? We aren't home, just several hundred years on?" Frisk asked.

"We are on a different world."

Her eyes blazed with determination. "Well then. Let's see if this is where the other me comes from."

When we got to the entrance, Dragon Sans laid down. Papyrus laid the kiddo down against the dragon's massive forearm. She cuddled up against the bone and the tail came up to hold her.

Frisk patted his snout. "We'll just be inside."

"*so sorry."

She smiled at him patiently. "Will you be all right out here with her?"

"*yes."

"I'll come get you guys if we need help," Flowey said.

We walked inside the building.

"Where do we go first?" I asked. "Your office?"

She shook her head. "My apartment."

The building was little more than dusty. A good indication that someone had been using it frequently enough to keep in in good repair. We crept quietly through the halls and up the stairs to the top floor and the living quarters. The door to what would have been Frisk's apartment was ajar. Frisk pulled her gun before gently pushing the door open. She stepped in, swept the interior, and put up her gun. The living area was empty.

Where my girl's apartment was a warm cloud of feminine comforts, this apartment was a warm cabin deep in the woods. Frisk went over to his desk and searched the drawers while Papyrus and I checked the other rooms. On the nightstand was a sketchbook very similar to the one my girl kept. She never let me have a look at it. Curiosity getting the better of me, I picked it up and had a look.

The book was split into two sections. Nothing inside was dated. The front half of the book were drawings of other timelines: a Sans like Red weeping at a grave covered in flowers; a child Frisk with black holes for eyes leading various monsters away from devastated timelines; a Sans in a lab coat desperate to regain lost memories; a nightmarish Sans chasing down a terrified child Frisk. The back half was filled with drawings that were suggestive at best. I closed the book and took it with me into the living room.

Frisk had a huge file open on the desk, photographs and papers spread out. Papyrus leaned over her shoulder, watching her work.

"Did you find something?" I asked.

"Oh boy, did I find something." She held up several pictures. "These were taken before Blue recruited us and Asriel was setting up the Foundation." She handed them to me. "This photograph is clearly from when I first met Red. This one is from the day I bought you the Chevelle. It's even taken from the interior of the barn. He's been stalking me for a long time. These are even copies of my service paperwork, including quite a few that are classified."

"But why? If he's with Midnight Collapse, why not kill you? Why stalk you?" Papyrus asked.

"That's a good question." I looked at Frisk. "Do you have your sketchbook on you?"

She looked at me, annoyed. "What have I said repeatedly about-"

I held up the other sketchbook. "I want to compare."

Trapped, I could almost see her mind desperately seeking any excuse not to hand over the book.

"Just show him already," C said.

She sighed and pulled out her sketchbook. Laying the two side by side, I flipped the pages in unison. The drawing styles were a match, which wasn't a surprise. What was a surprise was the marked difference in the content. Instead of Sans weeping at a grave, he was sitting with a Frisk covered in flowers. Instead of a eyeless, child Frisk leading various monsters, the monsters were living together in a happy place away from destruction. Instead of a Sans desperate to regain lost memories, he appeared to be talking happily with Alphys about some project. Instead of nightmarish Sans chasing down a terrified Frisk, the nightmarish Sans was carrying the boy on his shoulder through the underground.

"These are dreams you have, aren't they?" I asked.

She nodded.

"Then he's having the same ones, but look at the differences. Each of these are a kind of nightmare in his book, but a peaceful dream in yours."

"He appears to be broken," Papyrus said. "And is obsessed with a version of himself that he sees as whole or at least fixed." He reached down and flipped both sketchbooks to the back pages.

Frisk blushed deeply and immediately shut her journal. "Not sharing that part." She crammed it back in her bag. "You're playing the piano for me when we get home." She stood and put the file back together. She shoved it and the other sketchbook in her bag. "We need to move. I don't want to leave Frisk alone for too long and I want to check the office."

Moving toward the door, she stopped. "Papyrus? Would you mind raiding the kitchen? Bones, go check on Frisk and Dragon Sans. I'll head to the office. After five minutes, we'll all meet at the bottom of the stairs."

Papyrus and I nodded. I short cut to outside the facility. Red's Frisk had already woken up and was talking to Dragon Sans as she continued to work on the equations, writing on her arm with a pen. She held up her arm when she saw me.

"I can get us home!"

I came over and looked at the equations. "That'll do it."

She smiled.

"And you solved for bringing your new friend along as well, huh?"

"Of course." She pulled out her phone and took a picture of her arm before pulling out a roll of clear tape and wrapping it around her arm to keep the ink from smudging. She pulled her sleeve back down and smiled at me. She patted Dragon Sans on the nasal bone. "We'll be right back. We won't leave you here alone, okay."

The eye in the left socket turned blue and a long tongue came out, the very tip flicking against her cheek.

"Oh!" She hugged his skull and kissed the top of one eye socket.

"Come on. Frisk wants us to meet at the stairs."

She nodded and headed in with me.

"Hey, Flowey? Can you hide in Sans' jacket? I want to keep you secret if we run into trouble," she said.

"Sure thing!" The flower monster disappeared down the back of the jacket.

We met Papyrus at the stairs. Frisk wasn't there yet.

"Are you feeling all right?" he asked.

The kiddo nodded. "Yeah. Let's find Frisk."

"Which way to the office?"

"This way," I said. I led them down the hall. I saw Frisk crouched against the wall next to the door to the lab.

Frisk saw us and motioned for us to stop and stay quiet. I couldn't hear what she was listening too, but hoped that it was loud enough for C to record. After a few minutes of tense silence, she moved to the door and looked inside. She stood and motioned us over. "Looks like they teleported away."

"How many and any idea who?" I asked.

"Two people. By voice, the male version of me and a Papyrus with the same voice your brother has."

"The Sans from this world doesn't have a cracked skull," I said.

"He was experimented on to make him into a dragon. He may have had the cracks at some point only to have them fuse together," the kiddo said. "He wouldn't say who experimented on him. But I'll put money on his Papyrus."

"Have you checked the office yet?" I asked.

Frisk shook her head. "I didn't want to tip them off so I waited it out. I couldn't hear what they were saying though. Come on."

We went into the office and Frisk started raiding the drawers of the desk.

"Jackpot!" She pulled out a set of files. "He organizes just like I do. Service records. Medical records. Everything." She popped open the service file first. "Listed for the same project. I figured that much, but, oh that's bad." She put her finger on a line in the file and opened the medical record. She flipped through several pages of the medical record matching the dates.

"Failed implantation of an A.I. unit. This happened before falling on Mt. Ebott. This is a major departure from our world's technology. It looks like all members of this world's Project Viper received A.I. unit implants. He was still cleared for this timeline's version of the project despite the original A.I. unit failure. The record shows that he was trusted enough for certain missions, but was not given the ones he preferred."

Her fingers traced both records, eyes going back and forth. "Here's his last mission. He was put on a deep cover assignment in a small village. His mission was to wait for the arrival of terrorist leader and assassinate him. After mission completion he was given a Midnight Collapse order." She sat back. "Oh God."

"What does that mean?" the kiddo asked.

"Midnight Collapse is a defunct code used by my military unit several decades ago. It's an order to kill everyone with whom you have had contact with during a mission and withdraw."

"Have you ever done that?" Papyrus asked.

"No. No one in my unit has. It's a failed command. It breaks the people who are ordered to do it. It was a project history lesson in my timeline. Otherwise, I wouldn't even know what it was." She took a deep breath. "Okay. So what we have here is a male version of me who was messed up in some way by a failed A.I. implantation and was able to either hide it or was cleared in spite of it. After a frustrating career, he's put on an assassination assignment and carried out a Midnight Collapse order from command."

She went back to the record. "He's discharged with a short debriefing and no treatment for obvious PTSD symptoms. There's a blank spot in the medical record here. That's likely the point when he fell on Mt. Ebott. The medical record picks up again with notations by Alphys. Her notes say that he's been implanted with an A.I., but she doesn't know by whom and that no one was in the Ruins after the barrier opened."

She turned the file to me, pointing to the writing. "That's your Gaster speak. What does it say?"

I lifted the paper. "Multiple resets. Frisk is worse with each one. Do not trust A.I." I handed back the paper. "Pack this all up and bring it with us. Frisk has figured out the equations to get us back."

Frisk put the files in her bag and we left the office.

"I'm not leaving without Dragon Sans," the kiddo said.

I smiled at her. "We won't."

"I WOULD RATHER THAT YOU DID NOT TAKE MY BROTHER ANYWHERE."

The kiddo immediately short cut down the hall, avoiding being grabbed and leaving a skeletal Papyrus like my brother open to attack. I sent a bone strike and he turned it blue in mid air, letting it pass through him. Frisk pulled her gun and was grabbed from behind the male version of herself. He slammed her to the floor, pinning her, and put a gun to her head.

"Give yourselves up. These rounds are live."

Papyrus and I put our hands up.

The male Frisk looked down the empty hallway. "I wasn't aware you had a Frisk on your team who could teleport. That's an especially rare ability. We'll find her later." He lifted Frisk from the floor and pulled her into the lab. "Come along."

Once inside the lab, my Frisk was shoved forward and the skeletal Papyrus summoned bone cages around us.

"Sit tight while we find your fourth."

"I WILL STAY WITH OUR CAPTIVES."

The male Frisk nodded and left the lab, his Papyrus watching him. After several minutes of silence, he grabbed a hold of the bones making up the cage around Frisk.

"I NEED YOUR HELP. YOU MUST FIX HIM. THE OTHERS COULDN'T. YOU MUST."

"Others? How many versions of me have you gone through?"

His eye sockets closed, tears threatening to spill as he shook. "YOU'RE MY ONLY HOPE."

She looked at me for a moment and then placed her hands over his. "I need to know what's going on. Why is he trying to destroy all timelines?"

"HE ISN'T. THAT IS MERELY A DISTRACTION. HE WANTS TO COLLAPSE THE PRIME UNIVERSE."

"Why?"

"BECAUSE HIS RESET CANNOT ERASE HIS MEMORY. AND HE SO DEARLY WANTS NOT TO REMEMBER. HE BELIEVES THAT IF HE CAN COLLAPSE THE PRIME WORLD IT WILL GIVE HIM A RESET THAT WILL DESTROY HIS MEMORIES. TAKE HIM BACK TO ZERO."

"That won't work!" I said. "Collapsing the Prime universe will destroy all timelines! Who convinced him that such a thing was even possible?"

"HIS A.I."

"Papyrus? Why are you helping him?" Frisk asked.

"BECAUSE I MUST. I CANNOT ABANDON HIM." His head fell against the bones. "I SENT YOU THE EQUATIONS THAT WOULD BRING YOU HERE SO YOU COULD LEARN WHAT YOU NEEDED TO KNOW. I WILL FREE YOU. PLEASE FIND THE CHILD AND LEAVE."

"We are not leaving without your brother."

He sighed deeply. "IF LOSING HIM IS A PRICE I MUST PAY FOR MY FAILURES, AT LEAST I KNOW YOU WILL CARE FOR HIM WELL." The bone cages dropped. "HURRY." He teleported away.

"Where would Frisk have gone?" Papyrus asked.

"She's a genius, but she's also Red's little sister. I bet she's in here with us."

The door to the cabinet next to my feet slid open and the kiddo climbed out. "Of course I am!"

"Let's grab the dragon and go."

Papyrus shook his head. "This Frisk is leading Midnight Collapse. We should take the opportunity to capture him. Remove the head from the snake."

I pointed to Red's Frisk. "Her safety comes first. I won't risk it."

Papyrus looked at my Frisk. "Do you agree with him?"

"She comes first." Frisk put her hand on Papyrus' arm. "Another chance will come. And when it does, we'll be ready. Promise."

He sighed. "Lead on."

"Let's short cut out to Dragon Sans and go home."

Papyrus picked up the kiddo and she leaned in, planting a peck on his cheek.

"I'm sorry I'm a burden."

"You are the opposite of a burden, child." He short cut away.

I put an arm around Frisk and we short cut out to the front. I smacked against a barrier of bones. The kiddo and Papyrus were holding a barrier against Dragon Sans. He was rampaging, attempting to kill his Frisk. A bone strike came up underneath him, trapping him in one place.

"I AM SORRY, MY BROTHER. BUT I CANNOT LET YOU HURT OUR FRISK."

The dragon roared.

My Frisk rounded the barrier coming up behind the male Frisk and slamming into him hard enough to send him flying. She pulled her gun and fired, trapping him in foam core. A line of tentacles shot from his Papyrus, breaking the foam away. The male Frisk stood, brushing himself off. A red hologram burst to life on his shoulder, laughing at him.

"You didn't even see her coming!" the A.I. laughed.

He growled. "That is not a joke for you to enjoy!" He readied to go on the attack. "I'll want a good explanation as to why they're free Papyrus."

The skeleton said nothing.

"Make yourself useful and keep the other three busy. I need to have a word with myself." He rushed Frisk and she slid to the side, letting him move by her, and tripping him. He rolled forward and up to his feet. Quick as a snake, he grabbed her gun from her hand and aimed at her. Frisk pushed his hand aside and away from us. She grabbed his wrist, turned, and pulled him into her back while disarming him. She let go of him and rounded, pointing the gun at his head.

His Papyrus put up a barrier between us and the two Frisks.

The male Frisk stepped up to the barrel. "At this range, a foam core ball to the head would kill me." He stood there, waiting for her to move.

She dropped her arm.

He grabbed her, holding her tightly against his chest, and injected a green liquid from a syringe hidden in his jacket in her neck near C's implants. "This won't kill you, but it will incapacitate you long enough to keep you from being a nuisance while I deal with your Sans."

Frisk's eyes closed, head falling to his shoulder, and she went limp in his arms.

Her eyes opened, glowing a bright, blood red. Chara pulled the knife hidden in Frisk's boot and shoved it in his stomach, pushing it upwards. He shoved Chara away, pulling the knife from his gut.

"Impossible. The injection should have disabled you."

Chara pulled out another knife, tossing it lightly. "Oh I'm sure it would have." That red gaze turned on the male Frisk. "If I was just an A.I." Chara smiled and rushed him. He dodged to the left, slashing at Chara's midsection, the knife glancing off the armor under the uniform.

Chara's knife came up and caught him under the arm, slicing upward. The male Frisk grabbed his arm. Chara stepped back and pulled a smelling salt from Frisk's pocket.

"The stuff you gave her was potent, but easily isolated. She'll sweat it out before the fight's even over." Chara broke open the smelling salt and ran it under their shared nose. Frisk coughed, waking up. Her right eye turned blue. "Tell me when you're ready to have your body back."

I cut the magic holding a barrier between us. The kiddo sent a fire magic strike directly for his Papyrus.

"Now," Frisk said. Her left eye turned blue and she brought both hands down on the male Frisk's injured arm. His Papyrus short cut to behind him, avoiding the fire volley. Putting an arm around his Frisk, he short cut them back.

"WE ARE LEAVING. NOW."

The male Frisk looked at mine. "It looks like that word with you will have to wait."

"Why are you doing this? Why?" Frisk yelled.

There was a pained look to his face. "I can't erase the memory of what I've done. I'd hoped that, by spending time with you, I would have learned the secret to living with that knowledge. But you and I are not exactly alike. You are missing key pieces of my narrative. There is no Midnight Collapse. So, if I can't erase my memory, I will erase all else instead." He turned and walked away.

"COWARD!" she screamed. "COWARD!"

He stopped and took a deep breath, eyes closed. He let it out slowly and his Papyrus teleported them away.

Frisk hung her head and wept. "You coward."

xxx

Author's Note:

I mentioned a couple official AU's and one sub-AU with the sketchbook. While the characters from those AUs will not make an appearance, here are there official mentions in order of appearance. With the exception of the first, you can check them out on the AU Masterlist.

FlowerFell - FlowerFell is a sub AU of Underfell. If you ever want to die from the feels, head over to AO3 and look up the story 'Overgrowth' by SociopathicArchangel.

Core!Frisk

Othertale

Terrortale