Chapter 28: The Other Side
Anxiously, Sans looked as the scenery went by between the bars of their cage.
After two long hours trudging in the forest, the two skeletons had been thrown without any consideration into one of these prison carriages, the same one they used to transport circus animals. The human soldiers walked all around them, and didn't hide their curiosity, hate or mockery as the two scared children cuddled with one another. They had no markers here, no one to help them anymore. They were between the hands of the enemy now and totally left to their own devices.
In the arms of his big brother, Papyrus was shaking uncontrollably, hugging Sans' torso firmly. The older skeleton managed to calm down temporarily the huge panic attack he had when they had to hop in the carriage, but not his fear of the unknown. He was anyway not the best to comfort him.
Even if he tried very hard to keep the face, Sans was absolutely terrified. He was slowly realizing how serious the situation was, and the ineluctable nature of their fate. However, he couldn't slip away from this anymore. Papyrus needed him, he refused to let him down.
The snowy forest soon disappeared, replaced by enormous plains. The children saw a big city appear in the background, circled with stone fortifications. As soon as they approached, trumpets and bells echoed in the distance, announcing their arrival. It didn't take long to drive near the first cottages. Curious, several humans got out of their houses to look at the soldiers. Fingers rapidly pointed at them.
Sans held Papyrus closer to protect him from these malevolent vultures. Unfortunately, it only got worse once they reached the true entrance of the city.
After they crossed the drawbridge, the convoy moved into a very crowded square. Humans climbed on each other to catch a glimpse of the monster. Others directly ran their hands through the bars of the cage to try to touch them. Sans managed to push the first ones away, but in seconds, a man who could be easily three times his sides succeeded in grabbing Papyrus' leg. The small skeleton high-pitched scream as he dragged them toward the edge, quickly followed by other humans who tried to help him. Sans threw himself against the bars, eye shining bright blue as he kicked the man's arm away. He couldn't use his magic, but he intended to get his brother away from them.
Far from getting offended, the man started to applaud happily, followed by the rest of the crowd, completely destabilizing the small skeleton. What was even happening? Sans dragged Papyrus to the middle of the cage, out of reach. He hated every second of this.
However, all the reactions were not that "friendly". A first rock crashed against the bars of the cage as they passed near some residential buildings, then a second ended its course right to their feet. Insults streamed in from every direction, as men and women threw themselves on the carriage, clearly trying to hurt them. The soldiers did their job and pushed them away, but the words couldn't be stopped.
"Creations of the Devil!"
"Murderers!"
"Children killers!"
A vicious woman managed to haul herself enough on the road to throw a rock that hit Papyrus harshly in the back, despite Sans's quick reaction to get him out of the way. It was the final straw for Papyrus to break down into tears, terrified by the avalanche of hate that fell upon them.
"Why… Why are they hating us?" His brother asked, his voice trembling. "We did nothing to them…"
"Don't take it personally. We're at war, and they lost a lot of people they cared about, like us. They're just angry unfairly against us. Don't give them any attention, alright buddy?"
"Sans… I'm scared…" Papyrus cried. "Please… I just want to go back home…"
"I know." Sans sighed. "I know."
Papyrus cuddled a little closer to his brother, hiding his face in his chest. With a pinch to the heart, Sans strengthened his hold on his brother's body and slowly rocked him to help him ignore the crowd. The truth was Sans would have given anything to return home as well, but it was not possible anymore. He was even madder Gaster dragged Papyrus into this now. Sans could have managed on his own. He only sent Papyrus to hurt him more. He hated his father with all his soul. He would make him regret the second they would get out of here.
If they ever escaped that place.
The crowd cleared as they approached the middle of the city. They were heading toward a big castle, hiding behind a human courthouse and a cathedral. The guards closed ranks and grew in number, but at least the children were not bothered anymore. The carriage slowed down in front of the gigantic building, then stopped. A cobbled path surrounded by perfectly maintained gardens led to the entrance of their apparently new residence. Kennels were visible on each side of the door. Dozens of hunt dogs barked their way, more and more aggressive as they spotted the children.
Jolanger got off his horse and walked calmly to the cage. He opened the door and smiled at the two skeletons that immediately crawled to the back of their cage as far away as they could from him. The man didn't get offended, and simply leaned a hand to them.
"Come now, there is nothing to fear. You are both safe here."
Sans growled lightly and didn't move a bone, simply staring darkly at him. The man laughed stupidly.
"You look exactly like your father like this. We're a little spicy, aren't we? You have two possibilities, child. Either you cooperate nicely and everything will go well, or either I come to fetch you by force and you will regret it a lot. Easy, right?" Jolanger threatened, suddenly serious.
Papyrus shivered in fear and looked up towards his brother. Sans sighed and got up. It wasn't worth it. Not yet. He took his little brother's hand and slowly walked to the human, wary. Jolange smiled at him, satisfied, and patted his head a few times. Sans flinched.
"Good boy!" He congratulated him like he was just a poodle. "You made the right choice after all."
The skeleton didn't answer. He would not play his little game.
Sans and Papyrus both jumped from the carriage. The soldiers immediately tied new chains to their wrists, lighter. Another one tied their restraints to the new "owner" belt, and they followed him compliantly to the entrance.
The inside of the castle was even more luxurious than the outside. A big red carpet led the way to the different rooms and upstairs. Several butlers ran to the soldiers to help them get rid of their armor and weapons, and proposed some refreshments. All of them completely ignored the small skeletons, even if one or two looked their way with either curiosity or disgust. An old man with a wooden leg dismissed the soldiers, who soon disappeared into the east wing of the building. Only the two men near Jolanger stayed, and what looked like the chief of the butlers.
"Sir, the Emperor is waiting for your arrival in the throne room." The old man announced.
"Good. Very good even. I will escort them to him before entrusting them to our scientists. Is their room ready?"
"Yes, sir. We will welcome them in one of the bedrooms near the lab, as you asked us to."
"Thanks, Georges. You can leave us."
The man bowed his head and climbed the stairs without a look at them. Sans watched him leave with apprehension. Next to a lab, uh? Nothing was really changing after all.
Jolanger turned around to look at them and kneeled in front of them. Papyrus quickly pulled on his chains to hide behind his brother.
"Do not be afraid. There is no bigger honor than serving us and you should be proud, monsters. Don't forget to pay your respects in front of the Emperor. It would be a shame to punish the both of you so soon after your arrival, isn't it?"
The last question sounded like another threat. Sans already hated that hypocritical man. Who did he think he was to speak to them this way? He couldn't help but think they were just new toys ready to be thrown into the hands of a very capricious child they needed to not disappoint at all costs. He got mad he didn't find the words to answer him. He wanted to rebel so badly and put that idiot-looking man in his place, but he refused Papyrus to pay for his choices. So he ground his tooth and nodded, silent. Toriel said to play along at first.
The man straightened and pulled the chains, leaving them no choice but to follow. The two guards walked closely behind them to prevent any attempt to escape.
They crossed the door leading to the west wing of the castle and entered a long corridor. The walls were full of portraits of unknown men and women who judged the skeletons silently as they walked by. They were all part of the Emperor's lineage, Sans thought. The last painting overhung huge black wood doors. It depicted a bold man with a black goatee in a blue military suit, wearing a serious expression, next to a way younger woman sitting in a white dress, a hand on her round belly. The portrait seemed recent. It gleamed like the paint had just been appended.
Jolanger knocked twice on the door then took a step back, hands behind the back. Nothing happened for a good five minutes before a guard finally deigned to open. An old lady walked by them, holding a baby against her. The child had red eyes, an unusual color for a human. Sans stared for a long time as the caretaker disappeared at the end of the corridor.
The guard in front of them invited them in.
The two children entered a new room. The ceiling was covered with religious paintings. Several rows of seats, crowded, circled a red carpet that led to two thrones on a stage.
The countless people around them slowly fell silent as Jolanger forced them to walk. Sans felt scrutinized from all sides. A lot of people were whispering, pointing occasionally at them. Terrified, Papyrus huddled closer to his brother, who took his hand to comfort him, despite not feeling much better. Neither of them ever saw that many humans gathered inside a room.
Jolanger made them stop in front of the empty thrones.
"The Emperor and his spouse." A butler announced.
The bald man from the painting walked out from some purple curtains, followed by a young blond woman. When he saw the monsters, a big smile spread across his face. Jolanger and the guards curtsied. Papyrus stared nervously at Sans before more or less bowing, following their example. But Sans didn't move. He would certainly not kiss the hand that would soon hurt him.
As the woman sat down, the Emperor approached to warmly shake hands with Jolanger.
"Fantastic work, my good fellow. I can't believe you made King Asgore yield in front of us. Are the subjects true to our deal?"
"I witnessed with my own eyes how powerful the older one is. They will serve their purpose well after some conditioning. After all, they are only monsters and I would never compare their intelligence to yours, your Highness."
"Do they have names?"
Sans clenched his fists. Once again, people spoke about them like they weren't in the room, or too stupid to understand. Maybe it was not that different from home after all.
"The older one is named Sans. The other, Papyrus. And you would never guess! They are Doctor Gaster's own offspring."
"Really?" The man said, surprised. "I thought his loyalty to his late wife's principles was stronger than that. Even if, well, do we not get rid of the dog after our loved one is gone, by fear of the memories?"
He busted into laughter and the crowd followed him, hypocrite. Sans shivered, the anger rising.
The man grabbed his chin and forced him to look at his face.
"I will personally make sure his sacrifice will not go to waste. What is the status of the research on determination? Doctor Gregory?"
A man in a white lab coat stood up in the first row, next to them. He clumsily climbed the ledge and quickly ran to stand next to Jolanger.
"We made great progress to better understand the soul of your child. However, to set a magic barrier up, we will need to study these monsters better. We also need them for another of my projects. I discovered that the determination can be controlled under certain circumstances. If the information we received is correct, the oldest skeleton possesses a large quantity of it. It will be useful if we ever need to annihilate monster kind, if King Asgore refuses to stay under the mountain that is. I will personally lead the project team on this."
"I won't tolerate failure. You have my trust. I expect daily reports."
"Of course, your Highness."
"Jolanger, where are they going to leave?"
"We have a room for them upstairs. For now, they are not our prisoners. After all, they might be the saviors of humanity, your Highness. Let's treat them with respect."
"You're right. Lead them to their room and disinfect them. I want them at my table for dinner tonight. I want to know them better."
"Very good, your Highness. As you wish."
Jolanger turned around, and unhook the chains from their wrists, only leaving the magic inhibitor bracelets. Sans took a step back and immediately looked around him. The door was closed, the windows out of reach. He wouldn't be able to flee at their nose. Maybe in their room? In a sigh, he decided to play along for now.
"Thank the Emperor." Jolanger ordered. "Kneel and kiss his feet."
"No." Sans answered, shrugging. "I'm just a dog, I could give him the rabies."
Everyone held their breath in the room, shocked. Sans met the Emperor's eyes and smiled innocently.
"I like this one." The Emperor said. "Don't be too harsh with him, Jolanger. He doesn't know yet what awaits him. The meeting is over for today. Thank you all for your presence, like always."
The Emperor leaned a hand to his wife, and they both simply walked away.
Jolanger turned around, clearly mad. He lifted his hand and slapped the skeleton hard on the cheek. Sans kept smiling, unbothered. He didn't regret a second what he said.
"Do not disrespect the Emperor again!" He screamed, angry. "Good." He immediately said after, brutally calming down. "Follow me, please."
Sans didn't answer and followed him silently, Papyrus running shortly behind. They wanted to play "who's the more hypocrite?". Sans could play too, and better. A small smile widened on his face.
The game was on.