Cap 1 – The pact

The judging room, perhaps this place can currently be considered the most hated place in the underground, at least for the one who carries the burden of acting as the judge. What was once a beautiful golden corridor leading to the throne room, has now turned into ruins with craters scattered randomly across the floor as well as shattered windows and broken columns. In the center of it all, a red puddle was spread around the body of a human child impaled by bones, but contrary to expectations, the child in question was smiling as if the supposed pain he should be feeling was non-existent.

Not far away from the already almost lifeless body was the perpetrator and the main culprit for all the destruction around, a skeleton that only displayed a void in both its eye socket and its fakes smile. Sans the skeleton, the last real obstacle that the human needed to overcome to then fulfill his goal of eliminating all life in the underground. Countless times a deadly dance between two different races took place in this room, and countless times the winner remained the same, just as countless times everything restarted as if the battle of life and death had never happened in the first place, only to be started over again.

- So I guess we are approaching the four-digit attempt. Cheer up child, maybe next time you'll make it. - In response to the provocative words, the human only laughed for a few brief moments, until he was forced to stop when he choked on his own blood and was forced to spit it out. - Megalomaniac!

Confronted again with his opponent's lack of fear of death, a bone without hesitation pierces the skull of the murderous child, but before any chance to enjoy the victory arises, everything returns to normal as if nothing had happened. A glint of a golden star can be seen at the other end of the corridor from where Sans is standing, and just as expected, the human approached again without any kind of injuries and endowed with a menacing smile while holding a sharp knife in his hands, a weapon that claimed the lives of countless innocent lives.

- Let's just get to the point. - Already accustomed to this situation that has repeated itself hundreds of times, Sans is the first to make a move.

The underground judge remembered very well how the first battles took place, he barely needed to leave his original position and just attacked with his magic from a safe distance, but after a few dozen times he finally needed to start moving more to survive. Because with each attempt, each time he accomplished his goal and his opponent unjustly came back from the dead, the child learned something new, after all one of the greatest characteristics of humans has always been to adapt.

For someone with a lazy nature, it was only a matter of time before Sans ran out of moves and tricks available to survive. So it was necessary to improvise and learn new tactics, after all, lack of time and an opponent to train with were not a problem for him. Before anyone realized it, human and monster were evolving with each confrontation.

Meanwhile, the distance between them was slowly disappearing, and as if predicting the future, the battle whose number consisted of four digits finally had a different outcome. Just one wrong choice at the wrong time was enough.

Before he knew it, a wide horizontal cut hit the judge's chest, causing him to crash to the ground. Such an outcome resulted in different reactions among the participants of this so far endless fight, while the human displayed a euphoric and sickly smile, Sans showed a surprising smile of acceptance. For each time the human died and then returned, a small part of Sans' will to continue fighting faded away. But now it was finally over.

- So... I guess that's it, huh? - Making a slight effort to stand up, Sans started to walk to the exit of this hated place. - I'm going to Grillby's.

And with a quick snap of his fingers, his surroundings changed to the snowy region of Snowdin, more specifically in front of the establishment where years of his life were spent. Unlike the much hated courtroom, this was a place where he felt safe, a place where he had friends, a place where he was happy.

As Sans staggered slowly, his hand was raised forward in a futile attempt to reach a happy ending that didn't exist. Until his strength betrayed him, driving him straight into the icy ground and quickly disappearing as his body turned to dust.

The darkness that surrounded him was almost cozy, no more worries, no more pain or suffering of any kind, just eternal rest. The thought that maybe he should have given up sooner and thus as a consequence suffered less crossed his mind, but that didn't matter anymore now, all he needed to do was to enjoy the peace that only death could provide. But even the luxury of death is something he was denied.

A very familiar scream could be heard when Sans opened his eyes and noticed that he was lying on the couch in his house, next to him Papyrus was complaining about his socks that were scattered all over the house and he should put them away. As he surveyed his surroundings, the whole nightmare he had lived earlier seemed to be just that, a nightmare that wasn't real. But deep down he knew, Sans knew very well what that meant, this was just another RESET.

The following events were predictable, the human's LOVE continued to increase as it had done before and the life underground slowly died out until the already expected encounter happened once again.

As he teleported away, the sight around him was the already well-known and despicable judgment room, the place that made Sans hate the color gold. A few moments after his arrival, his unwelcome guest approached, but the judge only needed a single glance to notice that this time there was something different.

- Kid? Is it really you? - Hundreds of battles against the same enemy have taught him a few things about his behavior, and the human in front of him was definitely not the same one he had fought so many times. Even small actions such as the way he walked and the way he looked gave away that he was a different individual, even if he looked the same.

- How perceptive of you, comedian. - Despite the comment practically confirming the suspicion of the skeleton monster, the human made no effort to try to explain himself.

- Even though you are someone different, your actions are the same. Great, another megalomaniac, who are you? - To his question, his opponent just flashed a strangely charming smile before answering.

- The demon that comes when people call its name. - And without further ado, the battle was on.

It didn't take long for Sans to notice the difference in the child's movements, this time the knife attacks were faster, more precise and even stronger. However, the judge still held the position of the strongest monster underground, so even though he had lost in the last fight, his merit in having won hundreds and hundreds of times still existed. So in the end he was still the winner.

But as it was already expected, the glow of the color most hated by Sans appeared again, bringing an unholy human who started the fight once more without any intention of wasting time with unnecessary dialogues. And just as before, the next few hours were composed exclusively of attacks by both combatants in the sickening death dance of triumphing by taking the life of your opponent, only to win the prize of fighting again as a reward for victory.

What once took hundreds of attempts, this time only took dozens. A curiously familiar cut hit its target, thus ending the comedian's life in an almost identical series of events as last time. The only difference being the absence of the comfort of death, as Sans knew he would wake up in his home as if nothing had happened, and then face hell once again.

At each RESET, the events occurred almost identically, as if everything was a hellish theatrical play whose protagonist was a demon with the sole purpose of life in spreading chaos and suffering. The only difference would be that the battles against the judge would get longer and longer, since the human was able to survive for a longer period of time before being killed by a bone shot or a beam of light. As well as the fact that the child needed fewer and fewer attempts to triumph, eventually the moment when the human was able to kill Sans on his very first attempt finally happened. But even such an achievement was not enough to satisfy the seemingly insatiable hunger for power of the megalomaniacal child.

Even though no words were exchanged between fights, Sans reached a point where he believed he knew his opponent better than anyone he had ever met in his entire life, including his own brother. Because the human began to innovate during his attempts at mass genocide, by purposely using weaker equipment to make his journey more difficult and then getting the sweet taste of satisfaction from killing everyone even though he was at a disadvantage. This action was clearly debauchery, and the judge, being the only one who practically remembered each RESET, was the only one who noticed it.

At this point, although Sans was still struggling physically, spiritually there was no longer any form of resistance. During the seemingly endless number of RESETS, there were occasions where the judge finally gave up trying to carry the entire burden of responsibility alone and shared with everyone what he knew about the human who would fall in the underground and begin to eliminate everyone. Such an action caused changes in the order of events the child was used to, but this only served to amuse him as he could finally explore new situations. And as expected, the whole plan failed, and the one who always triumphs in the end did not change.

In this RESET, Sans was back in his most hated place in the underground while waiting gloomily for his future murdered to arrive, but when he appeared, contrary to his expectations, a dialogue was initiated.

- It's no fun if you don't fight back with the fire in your eyes that you had before, comedian. Make this fight worthwhile. - Although he was a little surprised to hear after so long the voice of the person responsible for all his suffering, Sans didn't show any interest and just continued with the emptiness in his gaze and a fake smile. Despite being a skeleton, the judge at this moment really resembled a lifeless corpse. - I imagined you would react like this, well then, I have a proposal. How about killing everyone together with me? - And with these words, finally some life could be noticed in Sans.

- Kill... everyone? With you?

- Yes, why not? You are the only one who still manages to give me a little satisfaction during our fights, but even this is becoming a little boring lately. It would be interesting if you would kill everyone with me, so what do you think? It's not a bad deal, is it?

After these words a long silence arose between the two, but the human just patiently waited with a smile on his face for an answer. Sans, in turn, stared at the ground in silence for some time, again feeling as if there were no life left in it. Until he suddenly started laughing out loud.

- I know you're crazy, but I didn't expect you to be this crazy. Me? Join you? Kill my family and friends? NEVER! - His words were followed by a Gaster Blaster shot that the child easily avoided. - A deal with you is no different than a pact with the devil, I will never play your sick game.

- Again, I am not surprised by your reaction. But that's okay, time is not a problem for me, so I'll just make the same proposal again next time. Let's see how long it will take for you to finally give in.

As if a flame that has been extinguished had been rekindled, Sans fought with the real intention of winning even though he knew that in the end it would mean nothing. And although the judge had succeeded a few times, in the end the result didn't change when his opponent's weapon managed to hit him with a sharp blow.

- Who are you trying to fool here, comedian? Aren't you tired of always being on the losing side? Think I didn't realize that you like to hurt me as much as I like to hurt others? From our first fight until this moment, you have changed comedian, you can't even show a genuine smile anymore. But there's still time to change your mind you know, all you have to do is take my hand. - And with a simple gesture as if they were friends, the human extended his hand to the skeleton monster in front of him. The monster just flashed his usual tired old empty smile in response.

- Burn in hell. - Following these words, its body was scattered in the form of dust across the room.

However, as promised, when the time for battle came once again, the proposal was made again. But just as before, rejection was the only answer the human found.

However, if there is one thing that Sans learned from the genocidal human during all this time, it would be how persevering he could be. Therefore, the same proposal was made more times than he could count, but it was firmly refused each time. Until something finally changed.

- Why would you reject me comedian? Your brother and friends will keep dying anyway, the only difference is that you can do it next time. Aren't you bored of this game just like me? Don't you want to feel the thrill of new experiences? I'm offering it to you. - In front of him was the usual sight of a dying monster seconds away from becoming dust, but still his tenacity allowed him to respond to the offer with a bone attack, which was easily blocked by a knife. - I have to admit, you are lasting longer than I thought you would, but that's okay. I know a way to make things more interesting.

The last thing Sans could notice before he died was the now familiar demonic smile on the human's face, but at this point it looked more like a real demon than a person. When his eyes opened, instead of the expected waking up inside his house, Sans was still in the judgment room with his slowly approaching enemy and then immediately started another deadly dance. And it was at this moment that Sans realized that his horrible life could get even worse, because by using the cursed power to reset from the last saved point instead of the beginning, the human could steal what little happy time Sans could have with his brother. Thus forcing him to have to fight forever without a moment's rest regardless of whether he would win or lose the fight.

And for the first time since this whole circus of horrors began, Sans made no attempt to defend himself and just laughed out loud as his body was cut violently by his enemy's knife. As he died, the golden glow of the star that represented the human's save point shone as bright as ever, and then a child emerged from it and began to deliver its attacks again and again. During this time when Sans sometimes struggled to prolong his existence a little longer, the judge used this time to reflect on his life.

The job of acting as the judge who judges the human's actions also comes with a great burden, that of being the only one who remembers the RESETS and therefore has to deal alone with the consequences that this brings. Among them is the fact that he is the only one who remembers seeing all those he has lived with throughout his entire life being ruthlessly murdered, and then coming back to life without any memory of what happened, only to die again. Any attempt to explain what happened, whether successful or not, would only result in postponing the inevitable.

His friends do not understand his pain, his brother Papyrus, possibly the kindest and most innocent monster alive, was the only comfort he had left and helped him maintain what little sanity he had left, but now even this was no longer possible, even this small luxury was taken from him now. Sans' life now literally boils down to an endless cycle of death thanks to a megalomaniacal madman, and there was nothing the judge could do about it to stop him. He never cursed his ability to remember the RESETS as much as he did now, because living in ignorance would be so much better than having the knowledge he possessed. However, there was a way out that could somehow save him, a single choice that could change everything.

As the killing cycle was about to begin once again, the child stopped his advance when he saw Sans suddenly kneel in front of him.

- I... I give up, you win. I accept your deal. - His voice was as loud as a whisper, but was heard loud and clear by the human in front of him.

- Glad to hear it, partner. - As he held out his hand again, there was only a slight hesitation before Sans decided to accept and used it as a support to stand up. - I knew that you would agree eventually, just as the former owner of this body also accepted my proposal in the past. Never forget that I am the one in control now... just one more thing. - While still holding the skeletal hand, the child quickly stabbed him with his knife. - Wait for me at the exit of the ruins, let's start our fun when I get there. By the way, you can call me Chara from now on, Sans.

And with that the pact was sealed, the body of the underground judge turned to dust for what he hoped would be the last time. When the world was reset, Sans obediently did as commanded as he made his way to the old door of the ruins while awaiting the arrival of what would now be his killing partner. Even if it meant going against everything he had fought for all this time so far, Sans was too tired to care, as the desperation of wanting to escape the hellish cycle of killing, of finally no longer being the one who is hurt, but rather the one who hurts, overshadowed any possible judgment of giving up this plan and doing the right thing. Gradually, an anger against all those he once fought to protect began to be born, since no one suffered as much as he did, and no one was even aware of his sacrifice, so why should he care about them when no one came to his rescue when he needed help the most?

A considerable amount of time passed with such thoughts filling his mind until eventually the doors of the ruins opened, thus scaring his daydreams away.

- Glad you're here, well then, ready to begin, partner?

- Let's get this over with. And don't call me that.

Both the smile on Chara's face and his words repulsed Sans, since until recently their relationship had been exclusively hostile to each other. But now here they were, supposedly talking as if they were friends somehow.

- Don't be so cold, as long as you don't go back on your decision we are partners. Now show me what you can do.

The duo only had to advance for a few moments until the first victim appeared, a small and practically defenseless monster that in Sans' eyes, eyes that no longer possessed life and were only two empty eye sockets, was nothing more free EXP. As he took the initiative to approach, traumatizing memories of the endless conflicts with Chara often flashed through his mind, and this act only served to further inflame his pent-up anger and frustration that could now finally be unleashed on an easy target.

The little snow monster recognized Sans at sight, and despite the sinister atmosphere surrounding him, there was initially no hint of fear, at least until the first bone attack hit him. But instead of eliminating his victim quickly, the now corrupted judge made a point of playing with his victim by torturing him slowly, which as a consequence resulted in screams of pain spreading through the forest in which they found themselves.

- This is something that even I don't do it, it seems that you will enjoy this even more than I thought, comedian. - To Chara's surprise, when Sans finished and turned to face him, he was smiling. But this time, the demonic child could discern a remarkable difference in his partner's expression., in front of him was a genuine smile of amusement. - I think it's more correct now to call you a executioner than a judge. But we are just beginning.

The fate of all those who had the bad luck to cross the path of this crazy duo was the same, all of them had their bodies turned to dust scattered by the wind. Chara would never admit it, but even he was having more fun than ever by having the support of the strongest monster by his side, what was once an easy job, now became even simpler and faster to execute to the point that it would be possible to complete the genocidal route in record time. All this added to the feeling of superiority in having corrupted his greatest obstacle and dragged him into a collar caused a sick pleasure in the human. Sans, in turn, only took the chance to cause others suffering to minimize his own, thus slowly drowning even more in his own madness, but there was a small problem when the now executioner of the underground met his brother.

Papyrus came running confused and frightened by all the commotion that was happening in Snowdin's town, when he saw his brother he rushed over and tried to understand the situation while making sure Sans was okay. But his brother just stood there silently watching him.

- This should be interesting. - Chara commented as he took a few steps back in order to better observe the unfolding drama.

- I hate you. - These were the first words Sans said in this meeting to Papyrus, who just stared at him confused and surprised. - It's not fair that I'm the only one who remembers, I envy you. Why don't you remember either? Why only me? Why is it only me that remembers? Why do I need to get hurt for others? Why do I have to suffer for you who never do anything useful? It is not fair! It's not fair! - A short pause was made before a Gaster Blaster came floating up beside him and aimed at his brother, followed by an insane laugh. - You are a failure as a brother... I needed you, but not anymore.

- Sans... it doesn't mean that we need to fight. Whatever you're going through right now, we can get through it together. I will never hurt you. - Extending his long arms in the form of a hug, Papyrus showed mercy against the one who wanted to steal his life. But the only reaction that could be caused in Sans was a sadistic smile at his gesture of kindness.

- You are so stupid. - And with that a shot was fired from his Blaster, a shot that Papyrus was unable to do anything to defend himself and as a result was brutally thrown to the ground with parts of his body destroyed. - Pathetic, if you fought back maybe you could survive at least a little longer.

- I'm sorry brother, I didn't know. - Due to his injuries, Papyrus' voice was weak and low, but still loud enough to be heard by everyone present. - If my existence hurts you that much, then that's okay. I'm sorry that it was so hard for you, but if my death will help you, then I am happy.

- Papyrus I... - In a way, the acceptance of his brother's death was able to light a small spark of sanity in Sans' hitherto dead eyes.

- It's all right brother... it's all right. - Slowly, his body began to disappear as his last words were spoken. - I will always love you, goodbye. - And with this outcome, Sans' LOVE increased as his only family perished by his own hand.

Two small points of light appeared in Sans' eyes like two tiny pupils, even if it was only for a brief instant, the judge regained consciousness.

The next scene that occurred was of a crying skeleton monster kneeling over the remains of his brother's corpse while mumbling words difficult to understand due to his crying and fragile mental state. But soon this same monster felt a warm hand touching his shoulder as if it was to comforting him.

- It was your first time so it's normal to act this way, but eventually you get used to it. - With a firm movement, Sans stood up, avoiding the human's touch as he cried out.

- No! I don't want to do this anymore! I won't do it anymore!

- I think it's a little too late for that now, partner, look around you. - Staring at all the destruction around them, dozens of piles of dust that represented one lost life each could be seen. - It wasn't just your brother, you did it to them too, congratulations, you're a murderer now. But don't worry, none of this matters because everything will go back to normal when I reset, and you know better than anyone that they won't remember this. - Walking behind Sans, Chara once again put his hands on his shoulder as if trying to reassure him. Eventually his voice could be heard as a demon's evil and malicious whisper in his ear. - Break free from these moral shackles that have bound you for so long, and try new things with me. With each RESET the guilt will diminish more and more as you realize that nothing you have done really matters. In this eternal dance with insanity, come have fun with me comedian. - And with these words, once again the two bright spots went out, bringing darkness again into the eyes of the now executioner. - Sans, welcome to the genocidal route.