Sans never thought that he would welcome these time loops. Each reset taught him better ways of building the Seraph System as a whole.
His fourth build finished sooner than the third. If the trend keeps going upwards, he might finish all the electronics by next morning.
But, the phone rang just when he was about to start his fifth attempt. The number belonged to ‘HotAndSpicy’.
Sans switched on the speakers and answered: “The number you have called is unavailable. Please leave a message after the beep. Beeeeeeep.”
One brief pause later. “Hot damn, I’m glad Lucy ain’t doing the dialing. She would have dropped a tree on ya or something.”
That earned a laugh. “Welp, it looks like she made a sansible choice then.”
The Mark’s pun-ishment struck swift and merciless.
“Okay, okay. I’ll bite. What’s up? I noticed that you guys went through a bunch of loops. And not just as mere numbers on a counter.”
“Huh, you remembered? I thought the Claim should have prevented memory retention. Even after punning.”
“Nah. I don’t think that will work on me. I haven’t checked myself in the mirror yet, but I think I might have some traces of residual Red mixed into my other Aspects.”
“That makes things easy then. Okay, Assassino. Here’s the lowdown: we’re being hounded by a Seer sniper.”
Sans dropped the grin. “A Seer? Really?”
“Ahuh! They’ve been firing shrapnel shots through the portals around Mount Ebott. Since you’re the guy who knows every shortcut like the back of his hand, we need your help. Think you could take down the shooter ASAP?”
“Whatever happened to Snakedog? He’s so fast, he’d put a blue hedgehog to shame. That’s not even counting his sheer strength.”
Over the line, Sans could hear Cenna breathing through her teeth. “The enemy has an anti-Seer weapon too. I don’t know what it is, but it eff-ing injured Gael and Lucy.”
The more he listened, the worse it sounded. “Lil’ Miss Lucy too?”
“Yup. Must be some kind of a DT-imbued tool. A frontal attack won’t work on this fellow.”
Sans flipped through his memories for all the similar incidents that he had encountered thus far.
The weird Arcanagrams that lined the Spire’s elevator shaft.
The Crimson Hall’s stone door.
The WESS.
The hypothetical Persona Timeline.
All had something in common: they mess with a Seer’s sight.
“Are those two alright?” asked Sans.
Cenna sighed over the line. “They claim to be fine, but I can’t help but worry. Especially Gael. He might get too aggressive against our target.”
“Isn’t that his default stance?”
“Nononono you don’t get it, man. Gael freaked out HARD after that last loop! He won’t eat, drink, or let his guard down at all. We’re talking Mega Bad News here. Whoever’s behind this is crazy smart. I don’t wanna underestimate them.”
“I see. Why are you asking me then? I’m a Seer too y’know. That’s already a detriment.”
“As far as I know, you’re the resident anti-human guy. That makes you the anti-Seer guy by proxy.”
“I doubt it works that way, but let me see what I got.”
He glanced at the half-finished Seraph System and promptly decided that it won’t be enough.
“Sorry to disappoint. I have a dead arm and an unfinished weapon. I’m at a total disadvantage.”
“The Seraph System is still not done?”
“Nope. It partially works, but I can’t risk any stray bullets blasting it to pieces. Really don’t wanna start over from scratch.”
“Damn. Any other bright ideas? Fancy assassin tricks? We can’t let the sniper act.”
“Do you have a backup plan?”
“Plan B would be to send Gael back out there to flush them out of their hidey hole, regardless of his condition. But honestly? I really, really don’t wanna do that. The success rate is way too low. Even if we did manage to nab our target, we’re gonna have a high coffin count.”
“In other words,” said Sans. “A complete PR disaster for Papyrus. The feast might as well fail.”
“Glad you’re sharp as ever, Assassino.”
“…Give me a moment to think.”
Sans pushed his chair close, sat down, and pondered.
“Y’know,” he said. “You’re not so dumb after all. Yep, I’m an assassin alright. A good assassin knows more than one way to make a ‘killing’. I’ll take the job, but you gotta provide me the tools.”
“What would they be? As long it’s not crazy reckless or expensive, Lucy can arrange something.”
“I need a way to talk to this fellow. Droids, radio hacks, tapped calls, anything. All’s fine if I can establish contact. I’d prefer to do it through a computer with a microphone, though. Phones won’t give me the liberty of controlling my voice input.”
“Going the way of Charisma dice rolls, huh? How can I know it ain’t gonna backfire to high heavens?”
“Eh, you don’t. But Papyrus’ wishes are mine. The criterium for his scenario is straightforward: zero casualties on either side. Let’s call it a redemption arc.”
“If you put it that way…” said Cenna. “I think the Observers over at Mount Ebott should still have some enchanted surveillance drones in their equipment stash.”
“Enchanted, huh? How many do you have?”
“They carry a minimum of three, maximum of twelve. Those things get destroyed pretty often, as you can imagine.”
“I want ‘em all.”
“Sure, Mister Serif. Order taken! So, what about the hardware on your end?”
“I have a particular PC in mind. I’ll ring you from my end.”
“Good! I’ll be waiting for ya. By the way, this Seer’s colours are Cyan, Orange, and Yellow. Contemplate on that while I handle the other stuff.”
“Thanks.”
When the call ended, Sans groaned out loud. It’s one problem after another.
“Damn,” he muttered. “Asgore still hasn’t settled the Six yet. Guess peace is always an uphill battle. Let’s see… those colours are… Ascertain, Reach, Appraise. Stamina to maintain silent focus. Judgement to fire at the best moment from afar. They’ll also have great natural vision. Damn. It’s the ideal sniper. All those traits synergize with each other.”
“What would be their weakness? Hmm. No means of shielding or healing themselves. They can’t fly. No ninja balance either. Most importantly, they won’t have dejavu. But can I really call that a ‘weakness’? Recording methods do exist. Anything they lack can be compensated for with the right equipment.”
“This person’s colours are the complete opposite of Lil’ Miss Lucy. Orange concerns me the most. What if they have future sight?”
The train of thought was interrupted by a weird crunching sound from Sans’ right sleeve.
Sans placed his paralyzed arm on the table. When he pulled the sleeve back… dust sloughed off his bones.
The inevitable had come much sooner than expected. He knew his SOUL no longer recognized the existence of his arm, therefore it was no longer immune to the effects of Karma. It would rot despite his best efforts to preserve it.
Arrangements for surgery can wait for later; the job came first.
Sans left his workshop, taking his phone along. In the living room, Napstablook was still preparing to resume Mettaton’s livestream.
He teleported straight to the ghost, startling the poor fellow.
“…Ah!…” They faded in and out. “…O-oh… It’s you… Please don’t do that…”
“Sorry for the spook Blook,” said Sans. “But do you have a spare wired headset with a microphone lying around? I need it to make an urgent call.”
“…I do… Hang on…”
Napstablook took out the request from the sound equipment box. “…Uh… I heard you’re a one-armed bandit now… Let me help you plug this into the PC…”
“That’ll help a ton. Thanks.”
The nearest computer with an internet connection was… the same machine that Frisk had used last winter. Whatever Sans found in their search history started this whole mad quest.
How things had come to a full circle.
Napstablook was thorough in their aid. They did everything for the disabled skeleton, from the setup to the fitting, to the details on the communications app. Sans made extra sure that the ghost had set the microphone to push-to-talk.
“Can you load a window for your cousin’s livestream?”
“…Sure…”
A few ghosty clicks later, Napstablook loaded the page.
“A-ok,” said Sans. “Thanks again. Maybe I can hire you as my ‘hand’ in the future?”
The ghost smiled. “…No, thank you… I’m booked to the brim… Besides… I’m not a great maid…”
“Heh, it’s ok. I’m just joking anyway. You’re a good ghost.”
Napstablook started to blush. “…Oh… oooooooooh… I’m not feeling up to praise yet… I’ll go back to my sound station…”
Off they went. Then, Sans called Cenna from the computer.
She picked up on the second ring. “Yo, Assassino.”
Sans pushed the assigned button. “‘Sup. You can start linking to this computer now.”
“Right on it. I’m gonna pass the message to the tech guys. Stay there in the meantime, yeah?”
“Wait for a moment. Can you guys do me a favour? Make sure Mettaton doesn’t reach the border. If our Cyan - Orange - Yellow sniper is shooting through the shortcuts, I’m positive that they’re using the livestream as an extra scope.”
“Hate to burst your bubble, but Frisky beat ya to that idea. Something about ‘calm plant time with Goatdad’. They also told Captain Undyne to sort the entourage by alphabetical order. ‘G’ goes before ‘M’, so Gungnir will get their preferred spot anyway.”
“Huh. They’re pretty smart. That’s gonna save you guys a lot of time.”
“Yup. Definitely. We’ll head straight to the school after we deal with the sniper. Hang on, going radio silence for a bit.”
While the Magi did their work, Sans released the button and leaned back against his chair. He took the time to chill. Old habits die hard.
The break was brief. Cenna soon returned and said the following:
You might be reading a pirated copy. Look for the official release to support the author.
“Everything’s ready. We’re diverting the feed to you right now. Go knock yourself out.”
“Okay,” he said.
Sans accepted the video feed. The Magi had just released the drones within the forest. They scuttled low on the ground, light and quiet. Their spider-based shape reminded Sans of Muffet’s underlings.
The drones entered a clearing. After a slight hum of magic, they walked through a water-like veil. It’s none other than a shortcut.
The camera switched to a low-light mode almost immediately. It appears that the enemy hid in some subterranean tunnel.
Cenna then said: “At the end of this tunnel is Gael’s last known encounter with the enemy. Do you copy? Over.”
“Copy that, over,” Sans replied. If that’s the case, they had to hurry. The enemy might change locations soon.
While they traversed, Mettaton’s livestream went back online.
King Asgore, Queen Toriel, and Frisk waved at the camera.
“Welcome back, beauties and gentlebeauties~! I deeply apologize for the previous mayhem. Well, that’s why livestreams are full of dangers. One may never know if we stumble onto something UNSAVOURY! LIVE!”
“Enough of the gloom. Today, our wonderful King Asgore had discovered a rare but poisonous magical plant. It’s none other than the beau-ti-ful Silvermane!”
“Howdy. I’m Asgore, the King of Monsters. Why yes indeed, as Mettaton mentioned this is a rare but poisonous magical plant. It’s covered in insect-deterring glassy hairs, giving it a mane-like silverish sheen.”
“Oooh what wonderful purple-- I mean blue flowers! Your Majesty, how does a magical plant differ from the normal non-magical kind?”
“Non-magical plants such as your garden variety tomatoes do not react upon a magical charge. Look what happens when I give it a slight pulse.”
Frisk gasped. “It’s glowing! Does the same happen if you do this to an Echo Flower?”
“Yes, my child. You’re correct. Now, I have quite a personal history with this Silvermane. When I was but a new king, I had harvested the wrong flower from the woods by mistake. My knowledge of botany was not as well-versed as my current self, so I thought this candy-like scent meant that an edible treat awaited me.”
“Oh, I became lightheaded almost immediately and turned immobile for one day and one night! It's a miracle that I survived at all. The herbalist later told me that I had consumed Silvermane: a key ingredient in a potent painkilling solution that doubles as a sedative.”
Toriel added: “Your father always had issues with such substances. He considers dental visits to be quite a terror for a reason.”
Asgore scratched his cheek in embarrassment. “Quite. Eherm. As you can imagine, the Silvermane was in high demand during the Sealing War. My nation’s healers dug up every plant they could find. Their roots are especially effective, although the whole plant is just as valuable. Sadly, efforts to farm more from seed failed, and we didn’t have time to study their ecological needs.”
“I thought they had gone extinct all this while… until I smelled their scent in the school playground! Remembering my own foolish presumptions, I immediately potted the plant before any child was tempted by its intense nectar.”
“What an intriguing tale!” Mettaton exclaimed, “I wonder how they bounced back from their near-extinction. I’d say we have a medically important mystery in our midst: a breakthrough in the making!”
As the drones veered into the shadows, Cenna notified: “We found the target. I repeat, we found the target. Routing your output to the drones and going on radio silence. Look lively, mister. Out.”
Illuminated by the light of a phone’s screen, their target stood near the end of the tunnel. They appeared to be in standard military gear, including a gas mask. Their clothing seemed somewhat loose, however; not something tailored to fit their size. Perhaps it was meant to be disposable.
Sans saw them hit the wall in anger with the side of their gloved hand. It turns out they were exploiting Mettaton’s livestream after all.
Then… a recording began to play.
[Empat. Amaran: misi telah dikompromi. Sang Binatang telah menjumpai anda. Hakim mungkin bertindak tidak lama lagi. Meniliti perhatian.]
It belonged to a young girl’s voice. A teenager perhaps? Couldn’t be any older than twenty. The recording played out the speech at a clear, deliberate pace. The Code is difficult to understand without the aid of hand signals, but prioritizing the clarity of tones above speed may solve that issue.
Does this recording belong to the sniper? For now, Sans would presume so. Although it did not translate back to English, he heard two familiar words: ‘misi’ and ‘kompromi’.
“Seem to be English loanwords,” he muttered. “Misi… mission… kompromi… compromise. Mission compromised. Welp.”
“I should test her language skills…”
Sans pressed the talk button. “Hey, seems like you’re in quite a pickle.”
The camera got immediately destroyed. It was not a problem as the Magi just switched to a different drone. When the feed came back online, she had already stashed her weapon.
Press button. “Wait. I’m here to negotiate.”
It got destroyed again. Was she reacting to being discovered? It didn’t look like it. If that was the case, she should have ran already.
But… she remained in the same spot. On guard, but not fleeing.
Sans thought to try a different approach. [Hold your fire. I’m not here to hurt you. I’m not even here.]
[Mana engkau?]
At least he had one positive match: it was the same voice from the recording.
[Curious, instead of shooting again, you asked a question. I’m guessing you do brain The Code’s original language. Not surprising. You’re a Seer like me. We’re born with that understanding.]
[Here’s the scoop. You’re exposed, kiddo. Mettaton’s Livestream is proof of that.]
The sniper didn’t budge.
[Hmm. Interesting. Old news to ya, huh? Maybe it’s because of your fancy recording device?]
Still no response. Talk about being a hard nut to crack.
[Keeping quiet? You’re either super confident… or darn spooked. Not gonna lie, I would be concerned too if I were in your shoes. You’re a Cyan-Orange-Yellow mix, and yet you failed to realize that you're surrounded.]
[It’s okay. I know a human intruder would have caused a bigger ripple. Might even radiate a clear killing intent too. Drones are small and emotionless. Pretty hard to spot something like that in the dark. Slap a shortcut-crossing Gram on them and they’re good to go.]
[Sudah! Diam!]
Talk about stirred agitation. This girl was all brains and no social skills. Reminded Sans of two other brainy ladies he had met in recent times…
[Judging from the tone of your voice, you’re getting tired of me. Heh. Too bad. I’m a patient guy.]
[Back to the start. I'd like to negotiate. Break a deal. Parley. Cause you’re in a serious pickle otherwise. I’m talking ‘extra sour with a ton of hot spice’ kind of pickle. And, I’m offering you a way out of that mess.]
[All you have to do is give up the gun and come with. If you do, I’ll take good care of you. Nice food, friends, all that jazz. My brother would be so happy to meet ya. But if you insist on on your ‘misi kompromi’, missy. Welp, it’ll definitely be a bad time.]
[So, how do you wanna play this game? The easy, or the hard way?]
The dice rolls… failed. The girl became furious. Insulted, even.
[Kau sangka aku bodoh? Jahil? Aku tak endah apa-apa yang kau menawarkan! Berlagak betul. Kita tengok siapa lebih pandai!]
[I’m pretty sure that was a challenge.]
In her haste, the sniper made her first mistake. She took out her phone right in Sans Serif's and the Magi’s view. On the back, it had a glowing music note.
[Lima. Amaran: JANGAN endahkan mulut manis Sang Rangka Angkuh dalam mana-mana senario! Dia mempunyai suara yang mendalam. Terus tembak!]
Upon completing her record, the sniper destroyed the drone.
Cenna called not long after the development. “Damn, did you see that?!”
“Yep. That’s a Mark alright. Things are getting miiighty fishy. If she had the support of a Living Victory, why is she depending on a Marked device? Turning her into one of those ‘proxies’ would have made both our lives much easier.”
“Huh? ‘Both our lives’, you say? Won’t proxies make crap unpredictable?”
“Predictably unpredictable. We’re in a timeline where that tool guides the action. If anything happens and she loses that power, not even I can predict what she's gonna do. Right now I at least know how she’s planning to attack. And that’s a good thing.”
“I still don’t see how that’s a good thing-- Oh, hold on. Frisky’s trying to tell me something.”
Sans heard the kid say something in the background. Cenna then sounded a long ‘fffffffffff’ as she resisted the urge to swear out loud.
“We gotta go. Right now. Aiden is on his way and I’ll be damned if the Dreemurrs don’t show up on time.”
“Already? That’s okay. Go do your Princess Cenna thing.”
“Thanks! Wait, how do you know about that?”
“I just figured it’s a Tori thing to do. Either way, I’m going offline now too. Got a sniper to chase down. Bye.”
Sans yanked off the headset and plunked it on the table. At first he thought of teleporting back into the workshop to grab some cables… but why waste precious seconds when they’re right here? He was lucky that the ghost chose a wired headset.
“Sorry Blookie. It’s an emergency.”
He unplugged the device, conjured a bone, and cut the cord from the headset.
With the aid of telekinesis, and his own dexterity, Sans bound his dead arm to his torso. It’s too dangerous to have it flail around on the whims of momentum.
Then, last but not least, he pulled his hood up. When it comes to a ranged fighter, it’s best to obscure his skull. A clear view could spell instant death.
“Time to head out.”
Sans hopped straight to the school’s rooftops. Preliminary scouting confirmed Cenna’s words. The Gungnir entourage had already crossed the border and were well on their way toward school grounds.
Focus.
His Seer’s Eye set alight. At a low intensity burn, Sans used his Cyan to dampen other environmental distractions.
Ten tense seconds passed. On the eleventh tick, he sensed a faint rippling murmur above his head.
He dodged sideways upon instinct, narrowly avoiding a thin beam of magic.
Next came the counter, as he teleported straight through the shortcut with his own Blasters at the ready.
There she was: the enemy.
The conflict soon transformed into a chase of portals. They traded magic blow after magic blow, but none ever coming into contact.
The battle dragged them everywhere: forest, mountain, town, Muffet’s bakery, an unfortunate monster’s bathroom, the Town Hall’s porch, and the grassy meadow hills. The list of locations went on and on.
Along the way, Sans observed a number of things.
First, the Seer was a clairvoyant-type without a doubt. He’s piling up the pressure, yet she dodged every single attack with fluid ease. The flow of her movements reminded him of a mix of Snakedog and Papyrus.
Second, her Blasters had a canine motif, either dog or wolf. He found it odd for her to choose a social animal as her emblem when she had very little sociability.
Third, she’s had the sniper’s rifle strapped on her back all the while. She refuses to use it to defend herself. By the virtue of the weapon’s nature, the recoil would put her in quite a bit of trouble. She therefore kept to bone magic and her Blasters.
I’m being lured away from the school, dragged along like a bone strung on a kite. She’s probably trying to find the right portal with the ideal trajectory.
I think I know where she aims to go. I must stop her before then.
Sans commanded his Blasters to engulf his foe from all directions. Yet, she leapt out of the beams with little more than some frayed clothing, escaping into yet another shortcut.
He knew where that one would end up at. In fact, he knew every shortcut around this region, including alternate pathways. As Tactician it was his job to remember every nook and cranny. Besides, he enjoyed making that map. Enjoyed it so, so much.
With that in mind, he chose to intercept her through a different set of portals and eventually found her on Mount Ebott, sliding down a hill. He arrived ahead her, cutting her off at the bottom of the slope.
‘Rockfall’, that’s what the townsfolk dubbed this place. It was where Frisk’s parents met their untimely demise. It was also here -- at this most cursed of cursed spots -- where one could find a direct shortcut back to the school.
[This is as far as you go.] He signed.
Unable to proceed any further to her goal, the enemy Seer reached for her pocket, ready to pull out her trump card. Clearly she had enough of Sans and his shenanigans.
Sans thus had to make the hard choice. He could either shut his Eye off to prevent the weapon from taking effect, or keep it active to understand the truth.
He chose to take it whole. Sans burned his Eye to gather as much data as he could.
Out came the weapon in question. Embedded in the center of an octagonal metal board lay a small, white stone. It radiated Determination, monster magic, and the cries of the damned.
Identity confirmed. This ‘secret weapon’ was none other than a Philosopher’s Stone.
By means of a magical charge, the Arcanagrams on the board activated. The Stone projected an overbearing blast of raw colour magic: a mess of noise designed to disorientate a Seer.
Sans’ sight distorted in response. Sheared. Squares of intense rainbow overlapped. His head and his chest grew hotter and hotter. It was as though someone poured gasoline on a flame. Explosive. Out of control.
…That stone… I see… Seers sacrificed… her pack of wolves… packed into one…
While he’s disabled, the enemy ran up to him and slammed the butt of her gun into his skull, sending him face first into the ground. Despite the hit, his skull didn’t crack. It didn’t nick off his 1HP either. He thought it was weird that he survived at all.
He can’t give up now. He must be DETERMINED.
Get up… Get! Up!
He feverishly pushed himself up from the earth. Alas, he was too late. The enemy’s own Eye burned bright. She aimed straight towards the cliffside, at the exact location of the shortcut.
The enemy then pulled the trigger. That bullet cleaved the air connecting Rockfall and the school.
The sound of the gunshot boomed into the forest, causing the resident woodland creatures to scatter. Cawing crows circled overhead. Ominous. Alarming.
Alarming who?
About what?
With her mission complete, the enemy spoke to herself.
[Sasaran dihapuskan. Misi tercapai.]
She packed up and prepared to leave. Vacate. Hide.
She shot towards the school. Everyone’s there.
Kid. Asgore. Tori. Papyrus. Miss Detective.
I don’t know where they are. She might have killed them…
I failed you all. Again.
No. Never again!
The air went silent, still. Crows froze in mid flight. Time had stopped ticking.
Caught in the boundary, the enemy bumped into frozen air. She tried to smash her way out to no avail.
Did his time-freeze always do that? Sans couldn’t recall. He had a feeling that something had changed, but he couldn’t put his finger on the difference.
All he knew was that he couldn't let her go.
A strange thirst bubbled from his SOUL. Maddening. Infuriating. With each heavy step forward… the sensation grew more and more unbearable within his heart.
[EXP,] he said. [It’s an acronym. It stands for “execution points.” A way of quantifying the pain you have inflicted on others.]
[When you have enough EXP, your LOVE increases. LOVE, too, is an acronym. It stands for “Level of Violence.” A way of measuring someone’s capacity to hurt.]
[The warmth of LOVE… I crave. Crave for EXP to increase LOVE. I need more strength to kill the human. I need more strength to avenge Papyrus. I need more strength to… to…]
The enemy Seer pressed her back against the edge. She spoke The Code in desperation, but it was too foreign for Sans to understand.
That rattling of terror… made Sans burst into a mad, bitter laugh. Oh how exhilarating. If the Seer didn’t want such fear, she shouldn’t have crossed HIS path. She should have taken his offer. To become good friends, eat nice food, and all that jazz.
But she refused. Serves her right, he thought. Serves her right.
Sans teleported close to her. He charged Karma into his left arm and plunged it straight through her chest. It didn’t matter what manner of protective gear she wore; his power will render them as permeable as floating dust.
Was his Karma always this strong? If so, why didn’t he exploit it sooner? Did he just choose not to?
He felt a magic-filled crunch in his grip. A spark of life coursed through Sans’ marrows. It’s warm. Empowering. Reinvigorating in a dark, twisted way.
Using the last of her strength, the enemy Seer took out her phone and attempted to make one last, desperate recording.
[Amaran… jauhi diri… Sang Angkuh… mata… merah… bahaya… Terus… bunuh…]
The phone slipped out of her grip, landing face down. After that, she disintegrated into dust. Her clothes fell into a messy pile, body armour and all.
“Oh. Right. She had her phone Marked. That will lead me to my next target.”
Sans Serif shifted the sniper's leftover fabrics aside to get a closer look. However… the Mark had vanished. Not a single trace of it was left behind.
“Huh,” he muttered. “Whoever it was, looks like they’re already dead.”
What am I supposed to do now?
I’m getting a feeling that something went wrong. Horribly wrong. But hmm, I can’t put my finger why.
Come to think of it. Why is my right arm tied up? I can’t feel it. When did that happen? When was I injured?
He flipped the device to its glassy front face. Then and there… he saw his own reflection.
Sans’ Seer’s Eye had become more Red than Cyan. He was so steeped in Corruptive Determination, even his other normal eye had taken on a crimson hue.
He stared at it for a good few seconds. Out loud, he then wondered…
“What… am I?”