Chapter 12: Ambush

AN: SO. I fixed all the chapter stuff and now we're back on track. Also sorry I took a break from fanfiction, school started and I'm not failing senior year like I did junior year.

"Come." Sans' voice was brisk and his motions quick as he dragged you along the hallway. Your heart didn't have the chance to skip a beat as his digits entwined with your own, bone squeezing your skin between your knuckles.

"What are-"

"No time," the skeleton cut you off, "If Gaster says Flowey's close, he's close." Probably by magic, you reached the edge of the water almost instantly. Sure enough, the boat lady was approaching, nearing the shore just in time for you to catch your breath.

"Hurry," she whispered, calm but so very urgently ushering you two into her vessel.

Out of nowhere, a rumbling filled the air, followed by a quiet sloshing sound which immediately turned into an ominous wave, nearing the boat, growing at an alarming rate.

"Sans!" The Riverperson shouted, turning away from the wave to meet Sans' eyes. Her voice was frantic, and you now could confirm her gender as female, though you didn't like how. When she turned to look at the short skeleton braced against the tipping wooden rail next to you, her hood flittered back just enough for you to catch a glimpse of her eyes. Long, voluminous eyelashes shadowed her wide, fearful pupils. The overwhelming amount of emotion you were overcome with just with a quick glance at her eyes told you all you needed to know about why she kept her identity so secret. Maybe she really was the prophet bestowed upon this world, life shrouded in mystery, connections to other monsters prohibited by her ubiquitous knowledge.

It was clear that Sans saw it too, because he stared for a single moment, time stopped around the little boat, the one deciding factor in the continuously flowing river, before he nodded. His eyes darkening infinitely before he turned, stance stiff yet pliable to the elements. A single hand outstretched, he summoned his magic, blue swirls so vibrantly energized that the tension in the air was palpable. Gathering up all his strength, he wrapped the ball of lightning around his fingers so easily, he bent the elements as if they were string. He grimaced, clearly affected by the magnitude of the attack, but his other hand remained in his pocket. He never ceased to amaze – and frighten – you at how far he was willing to go.

Finally, the air crackling with electricity and sparks, he released it against the current, fountains of water plowing over you, sprinkling showers over your hair. However, the force of the blow did not fully elude you despite avoiding the blunt of it. "Shit," you heard sans mutter as you were swept backwards by the wind, boat tumbling in loop the loops. A moment later your eyes stung and your lungs filled painfully with water, but it wasn't water. Your throat burned with the sour taste of acid and you screamed, flailing as you went under. Despite your best efforts, your arms would not propel you upwards. You were saved only by two bony arms tugging you by your armpits, up into the air where you stayed suspended. Painfully, you opened your eyes, cursing every god you could think of (including a few superheroes for good measure). Blurry, you saw Sans a few feet away from you, dragging the Riverwoman up in the same manner as you, both of them coated in the blue curls of Sans' magic.

"Milady!" Sans screamed. You saw the Riverwoman look up in response, a sharp jerk of her neck. Again, you saw a flash of her eyes under her hood and you forced yourself to look away, blocking out the emotions she sent forward in waves not unlike the scene unfolding around you all. "I know we promised we'd never do this again but..." He paused, and you sensed it without even looking at the prophet's eyes. Dread. Terror. Misery. Death.

"We have to," she said sadly, and through the downpour you could tell she was crying. Or maybe it was raining now because she was crying; you wouldn't doubt it.

Nodding, Sans brought her closer to him, grasping her hands in his. Abruptly, you could feel yourself being pulled in. The closer you came, the more magic you could sense radiating off of the two monsters. You gaped in awe as they began to vibrate, both buzzing as their other hands met in a resengan of magic and light. Then, for a moment, all was silent and blindingly white. But only for a moment, as a heartbeat later everything surrounding you flew off in different directions with such immense force that you thought every individual hair might be blown from your head. Over the chaos, you heard the Riverwoman shriek, "Now, Sans!" before everything went black.

The first thing you noticed was that you were not cold or wet. Quite the opposite, in fact; you were very hot. You smiled, sitting up to bask in the sunlight. You blinked your eyes open, and only wondered why they hurt for a moment before it all came flooding back to you. With a gasp, you scurried over to the closest figure kneeling on the ground next to you. A skeleton in a blue hoodie, out cold. "Sans!" You yelled, shaking him. Wearily, he sat up, eyes flickering dimly. Coming to the conclusion that he was drained from not only the attack but teleporting you to Hotland, you skimmed his bones for injuries. Finding none, you looked around for the other member of your party. You found her laying limply on her side, robe in tatters. Sans gasped from behind you before scampering over to her, pushing you away from her frail forme, phalanges hovering over her. "No," you heard him sob, and you looked away for the second time that day. You hated how clearly these monsters displayed their emotions when peril rolled around.

Reluctantly, not wanting to see the innocent, nothing but kind shadow maiden in pain, you knelt by Sans' side, taking in her half robed face. You couldn't help but gasp; even on her deathbed, she was beautiful, and strikingly so. Her features failed to take on any definite form, seemingly flowing over her curved visage. While so detailed and endless, the only word you could use to describe it was perfection. However, even without seeing her face, the emotion she emanated now was crystal clear: sadness.

"No," Sans sobbed again, slouching over her body as she weakly reached out to touch the two of you. You both leaned towards her, allowing her to use her last bit of energy to cup your faces.

"Be safe, my children," she whispered, voice faint and airy. "And always show mercy."

Her dust drifted through the air, wind carrying it across the gentle ripples of the river.

Sans started to sob. You felt sympathy for him, but did not allow him a shred of pity. After all, you had both gone through enough death in the past few years to last a lifetime. Besides that, you didn't have the time to even attempt to wipe his tears. In the distance, you heard the ominous rumbling again. Flowey had caught up to you, and you had zero desire to find out what he had in store for you this time.

"Sans," you said, gently but firmly tugging the shoulder of his sweatshirt. It was dusty, you noticed. Again. You cleared your throat to dislodge the thought. "We have to go now."

"No," he squeaked, voice failing. He looked up at you and you cringed at the rawness of his eyes as his once elusive tears streamed down his zygomatic bones. "You go. I'm not leaving her."

"Sans, you'll die too. Flowey's coming. We have to go," You emphasized, trying to snap him back into his rational, good-in-times-of-stress self.

"They I stay and fight." Eyes glossed over with black, he began to pace towards

"Sans, no!" You commanded, pulling him back towards you only to receive a glare that made you cower. "You'll die." You insisted persistently.

"Then reset and I'll beat him to a pulp again."

"That will make us just as guilty as him!" You yelled over the sound of the wind. It was coming closer by the second. Putting a hand up to shield your eyes, you walked in front of him and grabbed him by the shoulders. "Come on, Sans, wake up! You can't really use Gaster's plan, we are better than that. Than him!"

Sans mereley shook his head. "He deserves a taste of what Gaster has in store for him."

"That may be true," You shouted over the roar of the sand that now enveloped both of you. "But you know that isn't the right thing to do. I know you wouldn't want her," you gestured to the place where the Riverwoman's body once laid before gesturing to Sans again, "to die in vain so you could go against both her and Papyrus' wishes. Please Sans," you sighed, extending a hand to him. "Leave that as our last resort and do the right thing."

Sans looked down at your outstretched arm before his gaze flickered back to yours. Pupils reapearing and lighting the small area between you two before he hesitantly, almost reluctantly, took your hand.

You smiled, but only for a moment. You hadn't even had the time to wipe his tears when the wind blew you both over, knocking a glimmer of light out of Sans' pocket. You gasped, making a lunge for it. The core was just within the reach of your fingertips when a leafy tendon snatched it away without warning. Your heart dropped into your stomach. He had finally caught up with you.

"You thought I couldn't figure out how to actually use the DT Extraction Machine to reverse it's effects?" He laughed manically, voice resonating on the faraway canyons, bloodlust eyes matching the shade of the fiery shade of embers that crackled around you. The flames rose and sweat began dripping in pools down both you and Sans' face. When you turned to steal a glance at him, he looked terrified. Looking back at the giant Flowey, you officially panicked. The last thing you saw before you blacked out was the light of the ring of ashes around you glimmering in hellish streaks off of Flowey's shiny, slicing leaves as he swatted at both of you, crystal in hand, and knocked you both flat into the dirt.