All right...Starting Saturday, I'll be gone for about a week, so I won't be able to update for a while.

Anyways, enjoy the chapter.

For the rest of the day, Papyrus spent the whole day searching for Sans. He made sure to check around the garbage dump while Undyne went on ahead to check Temmie Village. Unable to find anything, Papyrus figured that he would look back at his cave to see if Sans came back for whatever reason.

Papyrus walked into the rainy area, checking to see if his brother was around. So far, there hasn't been any sign of him, or any other monster for that matter. However, as he walked closer to the cave, he saw a small, blue figure leaning against the wall.

"Sans?" Papyrus ran over to the figure and knelt down to his level. He began shaking the smaller skeleton. "Why are you sleeping out in the rain?"

Something didn't feel right, Sans' breath was shallow, he felt warm under Papyrus' touch. He took the smaller skeleton inside the cave and laid him down on the makeshift bed. He wondered what was wrong with him. Since his clothes were completely soaked, maybe it was a severe case of the flu? He lightly tapped on his brother's cheekbones to wake him up, but that didn't do anything. Suddenly, a horrible thought came to Papyrus' head. "Please don't tell me that you have what I think you have!"

He gently lifted his brother's shirt, he saw that Sans' soul was slowly losing its magic, it slipped freely from his rib cage. At this point, Papyrus knew it was MUCH worse then the flu. Somehow, Sans managed to catch Soul Sickness.

Soul Sickness was a fatal disease that drains the magic out of a living monster, to the point where they fall down and turn to dust. This disease could kill a monster within days, maybe even hours. And only the strongest monsters usually survive such an illness.

Papyrus wasn't sure what he should do now. Soul Sickness was treatable, he knew that much, but they were very far away from New Home's hospital. There was the lab in Hotland, so maybe there was something there that could help Sans? But what about Undyne? Would she be upset if Papyrus just left her out here? Whatever the risk, he wrapped Sans into a blanket to try and preserve any magic he had left in him. He picked him up off the ground and ran out of the cave, shielding Sans from the rain. He was willing to do whatever it takes to save his brother.

"I'm sorry, Sans! But I don't have a choice!"

Papyrus ran as fast as his long, bony legs could carry him while keeping Sans close to his chest. He ran past the bridges, through the garbage dump, and through the field of echo flowers. He steered clear of any monsters that were in his way, trying his best to avoid any conflict. He didn't want Sans to die, he REFUSED to let him die, he was not willing to lose his one and only family in the Underground.

Eventually, Papyrus felt his legs getting tired, he couldn't keep running, anymore. Looking around, he was in an area full of mushrooms. He assumed that Temmie Village was nearby, so he had to be getting closer to Hotland. He looked down at Sans, who looked like he was getting worse by each passing minute. Papyrus held him close as he kept moving. "Don't worry, Sans...we're almost there!"

Papyrus heard a thumping noise, which startled him. He looked around until he saw someone walking out of the shadows. It was a familiar orange dragon, one that he wasn't too pleased to see.

"Hehe...it's been a while...hasn't it, Rattles?"

Papyrus backed away slowly as the dragon got closer. "I-Is that you, Ricky?"

"Who did you think it was?" Ricky asked. "Ever since Sclara died, I've had to stay as far away from New Home as I possibly could. Because of you, I've had the pleasure of running away from those guards," He gave Papyrus a dirty look, "I especially have to worry about is that annoying fish!"

"U-um..." Papyrus started to shrink back. "I know you're mad, but please! This is an emergency!"

"I don't care if it's an emergency," Ricky yelled, "It's YOUR fault I'm out here! If you'd stay far away from Sclara, she would still be alive...she still would've been my FRIEND."

Papyrus couldn't tell, but it looked like Ricky had tears forming in his eyes. Papyrus gave his a sympathetic look as he walked closer to him. "Ricky, please...I know you're upset, but blaming me isn't going to do anything...It's not going to bring Sclara back."

"...That may be true...but you know what? I can finally kill you off, myself!"

"WHAT!? NO!" Papyrus yelled in protest. "FOR GOD'S SAKE, HAVE SOME MERCY!"

"But someone like you doesn't even DESERVE mercy," Ricky said as he looked down, noticing noticing that Sans was unconscious in his arms. "Oh hey...not only will I be able to kill you off, I'll be able to put your brother out of his misery...After all, I'm sure I can kill two brothers with one claw strike!"

Papyrus jumped back at Ricky stroked the floor with his claws. Using whatever magic he had, Papyrus summoned a Gaster Blaster, which scared the dragon as it shot in his direction. While Ricky was distracted, Papyrus made a run for it. He ran away from the field of mushrooms and into the field of echo flowers.

"GET BACK HERE, YOU ANNOYING BUNDLE OF BONES!" Ricky yelled as he chased Papyrus through Waterfall. No matter what, he had to keep running. He knew that Ricky wouldn't hesitate to kill him if he stopped. He was getting further and further away from Hotland, but he had to protect Sans at all costs.

There was a gap ahead of them. Perhaps if he jumped over the gap, he would be able to lose Ricky for a small amount of time. Mustering whatever courage he had left, Papyrus jumped over the gap. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to work. Ricky jumped over it without any effort. As Papyrus kept running, he eventually made his way into some tall grass. He hoped that by staying very quiet in the grass, Ricky might not be able to find him. So far, it looked like it was working.

Papyrus sat down in the grass, exhausted. He tried to catch his breath, hoping that Ricky might not be able to find him. His bones were rattling uncontrollably.

Despite being unconscious, Sans let out a small whimper. Papyrus held his brother close and gently rubbed the back of his skull, he could tell that he was in a lot of pain, but this was all he could do for him. "It's OK, Sans, I promise we'll make it out of this, alive!"

It was strangely silent, Papyrus wasn't sure if they were safe or not. He stood up slowly, expecting Ricky to be gone. However, he was wrong. He felt four sharp claws running painfully down his back, striking him down.

"So...you thought you could get away," Ricky said, smiling sadistically. Papyrus looked up at Ricky, he felt like he could fall apart at any moment.

"Y-You don't h-have t-to do this," Papyrus said, weakly. "I-I kn-know you c-can do a l-little better!"

"You're absolutely right!" Ricky said, happily. "And I CAN do better by killing you both right here, right now!"

Ricky tried to strike down at Papyrus, again. The tall skeleton cringed in fear, holding his brother for dear life. Nothing could save them, now.

...Except for the ground?

Papyrus noticed the ground below Ricky turning blue, knocking him back as blue spears shot upwards like water geysers. Shortly after the spears disappeared, Undyne came out of the grass, jumping defensively in front of Papyrus. "If you want to hurt my friends, you'll have to go through ME first!"

Ricky snorted as he looked down at Undyne. "Like I'm going to listen to some fish!"

Undyne started to growl, menacingly. She looked back at Papyrus, still keeping a tough image. "Papyrus, are you OK?"

"Ergh..." Papyrus struggled to stand up, holding Sans tightly as he did so. "Y-yes, I'm fine!"

Ricky tried to strike at Undyne, who blocked his attack off with her spear. Papyrus had no doubts that she was strong enough to defeat Ricky, and yet...

"Undyne!"

The fish turned her head, giving Papyrus a confused look.

"I need you to take Sans to a hospital," Papyrus said as he handed the sick skeleton over to Undyne. "What? Why me?"

"Because I'M the one, he's after!"

"But-"

"JUST GO!" Papyrus yelled as he pushed Undyne, "FORGET ABOUT ME!"

Undyne gave Papyrus one last look of concern before heading off with Sans. Now it was just a fight between Papyrus and Ricky, like it SHOULD be.

Papyrus turned Ricky's soul blue, throwing him against the wall while summoning a bone in his hand. He looked over at Papyrus with a confused look.

"If you want a fight, then fine!" I'll give you a fight!" Papyrus yelled as his eye sockets started to glow Orange. Ricky scoffed as he sat up, pulling firecrackers out of his pockets. "All right, but we both know how this will end!"

Ricky threw firecrackers at Papyrus, who dodged them quickly. He retaliated by waving his bone wand, summoning blue and white bones and sending them over to Ricky. Fighting him was going to be hard, but as long as Undyne was able to find a hospital, then he really didn't mind.

Papyrus summoned two more Gaster Blasters, aiming them both at Ricky as the dragon tried to roll away. One of the beams managed to hit his tail. Ricky summoned a dozen fireballs in his hands and quickly sent them over to Papyrus. One of them managed to hit his chest, but Papyrus kept his feet planted onto the ground. His eyes began to flash between orange and purple as he attacked Ricky with a barrage of bones, giving the dragon a much harder time to dodge. However, after the bones were gone, Ricky went missing. Papyrus looked around frantically until Ricky slashed him from behind, knocking his down, once again. The dragon cackled as he placed a foot on Papyrus' ribcage. "You know, Rattles...I think it's about time you learn your place!"

"Well, I think it's time that you learn yours!" Papyrus yelled as he summoned a small blaster, throwing Ricky off of his back as the blaster shot a laser at him. He felt a sharp pain along his spine, but he HAD to keep fighting. Not only for his sake, but for Sans' sake as well.

He could only hope that Sans was still alive.

Snowdin was a quiet town that rested outside of the Ruins (known formally as "Home"). It was mainly inhabited by fuzzy creatures as well as ice monsters. It wasn't as big as New Home, but the sight of the small town was always welcoming to strangers.

A group of dogs were walking out of the bar. The leader of the group looked like a husky (or was he a Shepard? Nobody really knew what he was). His name was Doggo, he let out a defeated sigh as he took out a dog biscuit and lit it up. "I can't believe I lost to the big guy, again!"

The tallest dog in the group barked loudly as he started wagging his tail. Another dog, Dogamy, wearing a black robe gave the husky a pat on the back. "Well, maybe you'll win, next time."

"That's easy for you to say, I can't even tell which cards are supposed to be which!"

Suddenly, the fourth dog in the group began to sniff the air. Her tail began to wag as her mouth started to water. Doggo began to whisper in Dogamy's ear. "Hey, I think something's wrong with your wife!"

"Nothing's wrong with her," Dogamy argued, "She must've found something important!"

"It's true," said the female dog, "I smell bones," She sniffed the air, again. "And...fish?"

The dogs' ears perked up as they saw a blue fish monster running through town, knocking people over while carrying something wrapped up in her arms. "Is that Captain Undyne?"

Not long after, Undyne ran up to the dogs, she looked like she was in a hurry. "Have you guys seen Dr. Puff anywhere!?"

"She should be at the hospital," Doggo replied. "Why do you ask?"

"BECAUSE I NEED HER, RIGHT NOW!" Undyne yelled, revealing the sick skeleton in her arms. "WE HAVE TO HURRY BEFORE HE FALLS DOWN!"

The dogs panicked as they followed Undyne to the hospital. She nearly kicked the door off of its hinges. At the front desk was a poodle, wearing a nurse's uniform. She looked like she just woke up from a nap.

"DR. PUFF, I NEED YOU TO TAKE CARE OF THIS MONSTER RIGHT NOW OR-"

"Slow down, I can hardly hear what you're saying," Puff complained as she rubbed her eyes. Undyne handed Sans over to Puff before she could do anything else. "I need you to take him in, RIGHT NOW!"

Puff looked down at Sans, she could tell that he was ready to fall down at any second. She walked out of her desk and started heading upstairs. "I'll see what I can do!"

"Oh my god, thank you!" Undyne placed a hand over her chest, she didn't realize how fast her heart was beating. Dogamy placed a hand on her shoulder. "Are you OK, Undyne?"

Undyne looked back at the other dogs, giving them a weary look. "I'm fine, I've just been busy keeping an eye on these two boneheads!"

"You mean there's another one?" asked Dogaressa. Undyne nodded. "Yes, and I need to find the other one before he gets himself killed!"

"UNDYNE, WAIT!"

It was too late, Undyne bolted out of the hospital before the dogs could say anything. All this running was going to tire her out, but she needed to make sure that Papyrus was OK. Knowing that Ricky almost killed him once, it was a matter of time before Papyrus dies, himself. She looked back as the dogs started to run after her, it was almost like they were chasing a cat. She began yelling back at them. "C'MON, WE GOTTA HURRY!"

The dogs began to run faster, keeping up with Undyne as best as they could. If they could catch Ricky on time, then hopefully they'll be able to save Papyrus, as well.

Papyrus had been fighting Ricky for what seemed like forever. He could tell that he was exhausted, the best thing for him to do would be to quit. But he wasn't going to give up just yet.

Ricky ran up to Papyrus and tried to slash at him, again. However, Papyrus dodged the attack and whacked Ricky with the bone in his hand. The dragon hissed as he spat a tooth out of his mouth. Ricky growled furiously as he summoned hundreds of fireballs, all of which were different colors: White, blue, and orange. He threw them all at Papyrus, who tried to swat at them. Unfortunately, it didn't work well against the flames as they knocked him against the wall. He was sitting there, he was going limp from exhaustion.

"Well doesn't this look familiar?" Ricky asked in a snarky tone. He walked over to Papyrus and grabbed him by the scarf. A fireball started to form in his hand. "Maybe you should've let that fish fight for you, instead!"

But before Ricky could hurt Papyrus, five Gaster Blasters appeared over the skeleton's head. All of them went off at once. Ricky fell back harshly on the floor as Papyrus landed on his feet. His eye sockets continued to flash as he looked down at Ricky disdainfully.

"Haha...HAHAHAHA," Ricky began to laugh, pathetically. "WHAT ARE YOU GONNA DO, KILL ME!?"

Papyrus snorted in disrespect. "You are the worst monster I have ever met! All you've ever done is terrorize everyone you thought was weak. Not only that, but you tried to kill me TWICE! I could kill you RIGHT HERE if I wanted to...but..." The bone in Papyrus' hand disappeared, the glow in his eye sockets began to fade. "No matter HOW much I hate someone, no matter HOW terrible they are, I could never bring myself to kill them!"

"...So even after what I've done to you, you STILL want to give me mercy?"

"Of course I do," Papyrus said, kneeling and offering to give Ricky his hand. "I have no desire to be friends with you, but I still think you deserve another chance. After all, I think that's what Sclara would've wanted."

"Heh...you know what? I accept your offer," Ricky said as he grabbed Papyrus' hand. The skeleton began to smile as he helped Ricky sit up. However, a wave of betrayal hit him like a brick as the dragon stabbed through his rib cage, his claws digging through the bones like twigs. Papyrus collapsed onto the floor, protecting what was left of his chest. "W-why?"

"Because you should've killed me when you had the chance!"

"I see..." Papyrus began to scowl, it hurt to talk, but he used whatever energy he had left to speak to Ricky. "But...if you ARE going to kill me, then I promise...nothing good...will come out of it!"

Ricky stepped onto Papyrus' skull, he was about to turn him into dust when a group of spears flew by him. He ducked as the spears flew by, but was pushed to the ground by a large dog. When Ricky tried to move, the dog snarled at him.

"That's right, Greater Dog, make sure he doesn't leave that spot!"

Papyrus looked over to his left, he saw Undyne had returned with a group of dogs following not too far behind her. He could see that she was talking to two dogs wearing a black robe. He wanted to say something, but he couldn't speak. And as the dogs walked over to him, his vision turned blurry. He passed out shortly after he was picked up off the ground.

Welp, this is officially the longest fanfiction I've ever written...should I be proud?