Gentle string notes floated through the air. A bow moved back and forth, guided by a golden grasp. A tail with a similar shine swung at a constant rate. Both eyes of the performer were shut, though the left eye was closed due to a three-pronged scar rather than by choice. Gradually, the wordless tune ended on a prolonged note.

"That was wonderful, Alphys!" A pair of blue gloves clapped.

The golden drake sighed, holding her violin and her bow down. "I don't know, Blue. It still feels like it's missing something."

"Hey, don't go doubting yourself!" The short skeleton tsked at her. "You need to believe in your talent so that everyone else can believe in it too! Take it from me: The Magnificent Sans! I believe in myself and that leads to others believing in me. Mweh heh heh!"

"You're too pure for this world, Sans." Alphys smiled while setting her instrument in its case. "What did I ever do to deserve a little brother like you?"

"Ah! What did I just say?" Sans squinted his starry blue eyes. He put one hand against his hip.

"To believe in myself," Alphys muttered.

"I can't hear you!" He held up a glove to his nonexistent ear.

"To believe in myself!" She lifted a clawed fist.

"Now you're getting it!" Sans grinned proudly.

Alphys walked over and grabbed him with one arm. "Come here, you lovable dork!"

"Please don't strangle the skeleton!" Sans choked out.

She dropped him back onto the couch. "Thanks, I feel better now. I'm sure I'll figure something out before the concert. I'm going to try to get some rest."

"Oh, wowie! Where did the time go?" Sans glanced over at an old clock. "Goodnight, Sis."

"Goodnight." Alphys walked up the stairs.

…

Alphys walked through Hotland while she was wearing casual clothes. Next to her was a panting fish in a dress. The nervous fish had a squirt bottle fan to keep herself conscious in the high temperatures. Fortunately, they could see the lab in the distance.

"So, Undyne." Alphys glanced at her walking partner. "What you been up to down in the basement these days?"

Undyne's hands shook. She fumbled with her bottle fan for a few seconds before catching it securely. "Um… w-what have I been doing? Well, I, uh… was looking at the results of some… fallen down monsters that hadn't turned to dust. No luck so far in trying to wake them up."

"Honestly, I'm impressed you found a way to keep them in shape this long." Alphys gestured. "Asleep is a step up from being gone forever."

"R-Right, got to stay positive and all that." Undyne shook but still nodded as she walked. Her eyes wandered to her left. "Huh? What's that?"

Alphys followed her friend's gaze. They saw a gray roof on top of an open structure. On either side were wooden posts. The foundation resembled an old lemonade stand.

"Hmm. That wasn't always there." Alphys took a couple steps. "I wonder who put that together."

"I don't like this." Undyne shook her head. "What if it's bugged or trapped or something?"

Alphys smirked. "You worry too much, Uni. If it is a trap, I'll just give it the old one-two strike!" She made sparks dance around her claws for emphasis. "You wait here. I'll be right back."

Undyne gulped. "Be careful, Alphys."

Alphys stepped over to the gray post and lifted the folding counter. It sounded more like a creaking door. When she stepped behind the counter, Hotland was gone. Her surroundings resembled a pitch-dark void. She walked along a floor made of midnight blue tiles. A few broken, marble pillars littered either side of the path.

"What the hell is this place?" She looked around. Beyond the tiles and pillars, it was like nothing else existed.

"Heya."

Alphys snapped her attention in front of her. A lone figure stood in light green slippers. Its hands were tucked into an orange hoodie. A lit cigarette was held between off-white teeth in a skull. Half of its cranium was cracked. The remaining eye-socket looked tired.

"It's been a while, Alphys." The figure lifted out a boney hand. "How've you been?"

Alphys tilted her head. "Who… are you?"

"You don't remember me?" A sigh released a cloud of smoke. "Well, that sucks. Here I thought we could catch up like old friends." The broken skull slowly shook left and right. "No point in dragon this out." It looked like it was trying to grin wider.

Alphys blinked twice. "Was that supposed to be a joke at my expense?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I don't blame you for forgetting, considering recent events. Name's Papyrus. Some call me Carrot, for reasons I can only chomp at the bit."

Alphys growled and conjured a battle axe. "You better start making sense before I beat it into you!"

"Whoa, whoa." Papyrus held out both hands openly. "I'm not here to fight. That'd be too much work. We just want to give you a present before you leave."

"We?" Alphys slowly turned around.

A pair of glowing, bone hands reached out of the darkness. They covered Alphys's eyes before she could react. Strange energy pulsed through her head. In surprise, she dropped her axe.

"Wake up, Alphys."

…

Alphys sat up and blinked. Her surroundings gradually came into focus. Undyne was standing near the bed with concern on her face. This was somewhere in her laboratory.

"Oh, geez." Undyne held a hand against the light blanket. "Alphys, how are you feeling?"

Alphys scratched her head. "What… happened to me?"

"I don't really know," Undyne admitted. "One minute, you were walking behind that weird structure. The next minute, it vanished, and you were out cold!"

"Ugh, sorry to make you worry." Alphys moved to stand up.

"Oh! I should probably get you something to eat."

Undyne fumbled around the contents of a mini fridge, right next to a microwave and a cabinet. Alphys spotted a couple packets of something on top. She reached over and ripped one of them open with her claws. The sound of Alphys crunching it between her fangs caused Undyne to look up in panic.

"Wait! You're supposed to boil those in water first!" Undyne looked disheartened when her words fell on deaf ears.

Alphys shrugged as she felt her strength return. "Eh, they taste better dry." When she glanced at the microwave's clock, her eye opened wide. "Uh, Uni? Please tell me it's not that time already."

"Huh?" Undyne turned and looked at the clock's lit up numbers. "Yeah, that's definitely the time." Realization hit her as well. "Oh, crap!"

"I'm going to be late for the concert!" Alphys shoved her shoes on and ran.

"Grab a ride from Mystery Rower!" Undyne called after her. "I'll catch up as soon as I can!"

…

"~Tra la la! Beware the voice that flows like water."

The cloaked man's words always freaked Alphys out. As soon as the boat stopped, she jumped out. As she dashed into the first section of Waterfall, she could see a crowd already gathered and seated. A robot wearing a blue cap was tapping his metal foot.

"There you are, dudette!" Napstabot marched around and shoved the drake from behind. "We're all set to start!"

"Wait a sec!" Alphys wildly looked around. "Sans and Undyne aren't-"

But she was already pushed onto the stage. Her violin and bow were sitting on the stand. She looked over at Napstabot. He simply gave a deadpanned look, but also a thumbs-up. Alphys sighed, picked up her instrument, and strummed her song's intro.

'Where are those two?' She thought. 'Undyne, I can kind of understand being late. She had more ground to cover. But Snowdin isn't that far away. Where is Sans?'

The beat of her tail was slightly slower than her typical tempo. Right as she got to her chorus, a strange wave went through her body. Her head ached, but she tried to ignore it to keep the strings singing. The pain was getting worse.

She gasped. 'Undyne and Sans are in trouble!' She didn't know how she knew that, but the feeling was stronger than ever.

Her violin and bow fell to the ground. Murmurs passed in the crowd, but she didn't hear them. Her feet carried her deeper into Waterfall. She passed several glowing flowers and rocks. Right as she was about to call out, she saw an awful sight.

Undyne was leaning against a boulder. Her dress looked torn up. There were icy scratches on her arms, legs, and face. She was shivering.

"Undyne!" Alphys ran up to her and knelt. "What happened?"

"M-M-Met up with Sans on my way to the c-c-concert." Undyne flinched. "When out of n-n-nowhere, some guy with spikes on his head jumped out. He started attacking us with icicles, and then-"

Alphys inhaled sharply. "Undyne, where is Blue?"

"He told me to run." Undyne shivered. "Said he'd hold him off." Shaking, she lifted a finger toward the path around the boulder.

Alphys gently lifted Undyne's chin to look her in the eye. "Listen, you need to get help. The Queen should be near the concert venue. She can heal you up. I'm going to go find Sans."

"Okay." Undyne slowly nodded. "Be c-c-careful, Alphys."

Alphys smirked before she took off running. After a few seconds, she spotted her brother. The little skeleton was holding up a wall of light blue bones. Enemy icicles were peppering his defense. He flinched as sweat magically dripped.

She ran up next to him and stared to the front. The attacker had frozen spikes on the top of his head. He was smiling creepily with two flat slits for eyes. He closely resembled a monster Alphys recognized as Ice Cap.

Sans turned his head and gasped. "Alphys!"

Alphys conjured her battle axe. "Sorry I'm late! What's the situation?"

"I don't really know!" Sans glanced at the opponent. "This guy's not as open to negotiating as I had hoped."

"Judging by what he did to Undyne, I kind of figured that much already." She growled. "Blue, go tell the Royal Guards what's happening! I'll hold him here as long as I can."

"What?!" Sans dropped his bone wall in surprise. "Sis, I know you're strong, but we know nothing about this guy!"

"We don't have time to argue!" Alphys called a lightning bolt that stopped some incoming icicles. "Go get help! Now!"

"Okay," Sans relented. "Promise you'll be alright?"

Alphys chuckled. "I believe in myself."

Sans grinned and nodded. Then, he ran so fast that he looked like he was gliding. Alphys spun her axe with one hand while sparks danced in the other. She stared at the creepy Ice Cap.

"Well, look what we have here." Ice Cap spread his stubby arms as far apart as he could. "Fancy yourself a hero, Alphys?"

"Maybe, maybe not." Alphys glared. "All I know is that you're going to pay for hurting my friends."

"Come now." Ice Cap waved his stub dismissively. "Empty threats are for smiling carrots, like Papyrus."

Alphys paused.

…

"Name's Papyrus. Some call me Carrot."

…

Her grip on her battle axe tightened. "I don't know what your deal is, and I don't care!"

Alphys threw her axe. It spun around and cloned two more. Ice Cap levitated his hat out of the way of the first axe. He rolled forward to dodge the second and third axes. As he stood up, his hat plopped back onto his head.

Ice Cap held up a stub and launched a barrage of icicles. Alphys ran around to avoid the barrage. She swung her electrified claws, creating a cone of lightning. The attack barreled right for Ice Cap. He conjured a giant ice sculpture in the shape of his hat. The moves collided with each other, creating a cold mist.

"Believe it or not, I already know all your moves," said Ice Cap.

Alphys jerked her head back. She saw Ice Cap floating several feet above her. She threw a bolt and a battle axe. He calmly sidestepped the lightning. Then, he leaned out of the way of the axe.

"What a shame." Ice Cap's smile thinned. "You're beginning to bore me. Why don't I show you a real attack?"

He held out his stubs and conjured a dozen icicles. With a glint from his eyes, the icicles altered their shape into giant blue knives. He clapped, turning the knives into impromptu hailstones. They landed and surrounded the drake on the ground. She wondered what they were doing, until they glowed brighter.

Every single frozen knife exploded at once. Alphys cried out as shards of ice peppered her scales. She flew backwards, crashing into a tree. She grunted and tried to stand back up. The pain was way too cold yet searing. She gritted her teeth as she stared at the floating Ice Cap.

"Well, if nothing else, you managed to kill a couple minutes." Ice Cap summoned another swarm of freezing knives. "Now, it's time to listen to your sweet scream of agony. Die!" He launched his attack.

Alphys closed her eye, bracing for impact. To her surprise, her injured eye opened and flashed. When she didn't feel any new pain, she looked around. She was several feet away from the tree that she had been sitting under.

"What?!" Ice Cap frowned. He summoned some more icicles and fired them at the drake.

Alphys clenched her fist. Her injured eye glowed. Now, she was standing near a pond. She smiled in excitement. She didn't know how she moved like that, but she was glad it happened.

Ice Cap growled. "You're not supposed to be able to teleport! That's not fair!"

Alphys glared with both eyes now. "Shut up."

"Come again?" Ice Cap scowled.

Alphys teleported in midair behind him. "I said to shut up!"

She swung her battle axe and supercharged it with lightning. In a millisecond, the slits vanished from Ice Cap's face. Now, his eyes resembled whites with black pupils. But he took the electrified damage all the same and slid across the ground. When his back collided with a stray rock, the wind was knocked right out of him.

Alphys teleported one last time to stand on the soil. The glow dimmed in her injured eye, but it matched the light in her good eye. She dispelled her axe and claw sparks. She exhaled.

"Alphys!"

She blinked and looked around. Sans and Undyne were standing back. Some of the guards marched over to the unconscious Ice Cap. Queen Toriel walked up. It wasn't often that Alphys had to look up at someone that was standing near her.

"Our investigators were searching for the cause of several disappearances and ice-related mortalities." The Queen bowed her head. "I thank you for helping us finally apprehend the culprit."

Alphys was at a loss for words. The Queen was bowing to her? What was she supposed to do in this situation? But as soon as the bow had started, it ended.

The Queen smiled. "In honor of your courage today, I would like to officially grant you a place in the Royal Guard."

…

"You saw it too, didn't you?"

Papyrus crushed the cigarette between his fingers. "His eyes… they were the same as that thing's eyes." He turned on his heel. "But I destroyed that thing in the last Merciless timeline!"

"Yes, you destroyed its body. But its mind is evidently still there."

Papyrus spat. "So, what do we do about it now, Doc Rivers?"

The other presence folded its glowing hands. "Now? We cannot do anything drastic, else we risk losing our existence entirely. The best thing we can do is to gently build up Alphys's power."

"Are you sure she's our only option?" Papyrus frowned. "In the Merciless runs before, she couldn't win even when the enemy had a body. How's she supposed to stand a chance against an invisible mind?"

"Why, by changing the water, of course."

Papyrus's shoulders slouched. "Why do I get the feeling this is going to end badly?"

Doc Rivers chuckled. "I have no idea what you're talking about, Carrot."