Winter winds howled over the monument known as Mount Ebott. They sang a dirge about futility for a member of their kind.
A fallen angel in blue, bearing a sword in his hand. Again and again he cut down the dark demon in ways befitting their deeds.
Again and again, his efforts came to nothing.
Yet… it is his sworn duty to carry out the judgement. The fallen angel had loved ones to protect.
Sans sat at the edge of the cliff of the Underground entrance, gazing over the land below. Weariness weighed on his shoulders.
Papyrus stood before his brother with a phone clutched in his hand. The battery indicator hovered at one percent, a hint of the amount of true amount of time that passed in this looping night.
Like the batteries, his power of ‘Ascension’ will soon fade. His shining glow had already subsided to more of a gleam. When these resets end, he’ll be normal bones again: indistinguishable from other skeletons.
The elder brother glanced sideways at the younger. In his perpetual grin, he said, “Wow. I take my eyes off you for one day and you came back ten years wiser.”
Sans paused, then he corrected himself. “Nah. More like, a hundred. That’s just awesome. You’re so cool, Paps. Really cool.”
Papyrus walked over and sat down next to his brother. “WHAT HAPPENED TO YOUR PUNS?”
“Heh. Believe it or not, I’m not in the mood for them right now.”
“BUT YOU ALWAYS MAKE THE MOOD.”
That earned a weak laugh. “I never thought I’d live to hear The Great Papyrus wanting my bad puns.”
“I… DO LIKE THEM. IT’S JUST, YOU TEND TO PICK THE MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENTS FOR THE PUNCHLINE.”
“That’s part of the fun, Paps.”
“I KNOW. AND STRANGE AS IT SOUNDS… I MISS YOUR PUNS.”
There was no comeback.
Papyrus then asked, “IS THERE ANY WAY YOU COULD SPARE CHARA? WHAT’S HAPPENING NOW… IT’S TOO SAD.”
“Nope,” Sans answered.
Straightforward, to the point. How unusual. The younger brother was too used to being spun around for a joke.
Now, it’s a simple reply. As if they’re both real adults dealing with a serious business.
“WHY?” Papyrus asked back. He wasn’t angry.
“A few reasons, not counting the mystery man behind the loops. Remember Paps, that’s Frisk’s body. Any crime Chara commits, Frisk will have to pay. Be it murder, stealing, car-jacking, whatever else they’d do to survive. Goodbye budding ambassador career. Can’t let that happen.”
“Then, all Chara needs to do is to kill one person to start a domino effect. Human or monster. Execution Points and Level of Violence, you know. Can’t let that happen either.”
Papyrus figured that it would be something along those lines. His experiences taught him as much. “I UNDERSTAND.”
Should he call Mezil to try again?
No. It didn’t work.
Chara kept rejecting the offer of mercy. No matter what Papyrus said, they ran.
And no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t catch up. Undyne wasn’t kidding when she said the kid had fast legs.
His shields? They won’t last long enough for Mezil to arrive.
At one point, the Magus made a new SAVE file one minute after Chara’s escape. Said he wanted to observe Frisk and Sans: what they would do, how they would react.
The DEMON? Written off as hopeless.
Papyrus stopped chasing after Chara by then. Instead, he focused his power to track their location and see their future. He needed to report the event in full detail.
Somewhere in the loops, he hoped that his offer of mercy would be accepted. They continued to reject. Hence, they perished in the hands of the seraphim.
Everyone thought that Frisk’s intervention would create a positive result. After this round, it didn’t seem to be the case anymore.
Papyrus raked his mind for a solution to this problem, but he’s drawing a blank.
…Then an idea hit him. Think from another angle. Get a second opinion. Like Mezil did with the jumble-crossword-timeline issue.
“SANS, I NEED YOUR ADVICE. WHAT DO YOU THINK I CAN DO TO PREVENT THIS TRAGEDY?”
The elder brother leaned back in surprise. “Whoa, Paps. You’re asking your lazy trash bro for advice now?”
“I WANT TO MAKE SURE YOU DON’T NEED TO DO A VIOLENCE.” Papyrus then gave a warm, reassuring smile. “IN THE NEXT TIMELINE, OF COURSE.”
Sans chuckled away. “Oh man, you’re such a bright sunshine. When you were born, Dad said that the ‘Moon’ finally had a ‘Sun’ to keep him company. Gaster used to have this old painting with a blue moon and an orange sun. ”
“Funny enough, it fits. The moon reflects sunlight, and that’s how it gets its famous silver glow. That thing’s just a dark piece of rock otherwise. Accurate, right? Just like you and me.”
After a relaxed sigh, he gave Papyrus his words of wisdom: “Bro, you need to change the circumstances. As it is, that kid’s gonna drive themselves into a dead end all the time. Can’t trust them to make the right decision. ”
“Instead, you gotta make sure they don’t go anywhere. No chance to escape. Maybe lock them in an unbreakable cage? Or chain them down? Do that on the very first opportunity.”
“OKAY. SO I MUST CAPTURE THEM ON THE VERY FIRST--”
Papyrus’ sockets grew wide with epiphany.
The brother replied. “Heh. That look on your face. You figured something out, eh? Go ahead. I’ll be waiting for the results, Papyrus.”
“THANK YOU SO VERY MUCH! I PROMISE YOU THAT, I -- THE GREAT PAPYRUS -- CARRY FRISK HOME SAFE AND SOUND IN THE NEXT RESET! NYEH HEH HEH!”
“Good luck with that, bro. You can do it.”
Without a second thought, Papyrus got on his feet and jumped off the mountain. He floated himself back to town with the aid of gravity magic.
He thought to himself, no more violence.
No more sacrifice.
When he arrived at Alphys’ lab, Papyrus walked into the middle of a loud, screeching scream.
“MEZIL THYYYYYYYYMEEEEE!!!” Cenna yelled, “I told you to be on fucking standby! Stand! By! Why the hell is your earliest SAVE point AFTER the exorcism???”
“Language, please.” the other replied. It’s none other than Mezil Thyme himself. “It’s not exactly my fault that some urgent business popped up at the same time as your attempt. There are many things that I can’t control.”
The survivors of the night used Alphys’ anime PC to make a video call to Mezil’s address. They huddled around the webcam’s field of view, curious to meet Cenna’s colleague.
Gaster noticed Papyrus’ return. He beckoned the bloke to join the group. “Skip the phone, my boy. We have direct contact now.”
“I STILL NEED TO CHARGE THIS FIRST.” He lifted his dead phone to make his point known.
Alphys then said, “I have a spare wire here, Papyrus. We can hook it up to the computer.”
They did just that. The time-travelling phone now rested on the table, refilling its much needed energy.
With that out of the way, Cenna resumed her grilling. She pointed a demanding finger the camera. “Of all the people you could choose, you had to pick the cinnamonest of cinnamon rolls! WHY???”
Papyrus blurted, “WHO IS THIS CINNAMONEST OF CINNAMON ROLLS?”
Undyne replied, “You, Paps.”
“WHAT IS A CINNAMON ROLL? AND HOW DOES THAT APPLY TO ME?”
Cenna groaned out loud. She showed both hands at Papyrus and said, “See? SEE??? This is exactly what I mean! He doesn’t even know his namesake, Mez! And you put him through a night of hell?!”
Mezil furrowed his brows in displeasure. “In my defense, Seer Papyrus is the ideal candidate for our current mission. He far exceeded my expectations. Achieving Ascension as a monster is no small matter.”
“And what the hell did he have to survive to achieve said Ascension?”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story.
Gaster replied in Mezil’s stead, saying, “He witnessed the truth behind The Core Incident and chose the path of forgiveness.”
“…You bloody serious? Forgiveness?” Cenna replied. “That’s hardest of the hard, doc. Ain’t gonna lie there.”
“I know, yet that’s what he did.”
Undyne squinted her eye. “The Core Incident? The one that fucked Sans up big time? Killed Frisk’s and Cenna’s parents?”
“Language,” Gaster sighed. “But yes. That same incident.”
Undyne immediately shifted her attention to her junior. “Okay Paps, you’re going to tell me exactly what went down that day. The truth and nothing but the truth!”
“SORRY UNDYNE, NOT RIGHT NOW,” Papyrus replied, “THIS TIMELINE WILL RESET. WE’LL RECORD THE TRUTH WHEN FRISK IS SAFE FOR REAL.”
Talking about Frisk prompted Asgore to ask a question. “Where’s Frisk? And Chara?”
The skeleton looked back at the King in sorrow. “THEY’RE NOT HERE ANYMORE, YOUR MAJESTY. IT’S TOO TRAGIC TO SPEAK OF.”
Asgore understood the subtext. He lowered his head and muttered, “I… I see.”
“PLEASE DON’T WORRY. I WILL SAVE THEM BOTH.”
Bleak and nonsensical the prospect may be, the King found himself comforted by Papyrus’ ever shining confidence.
“I’ve yet to understand the situation,” he said, “But I trust you. Thank you so much for your efforts.”
The orange Seer nodded. He walked closer to the webcam and leaned forward to the camera: “MISTER MAGUS, WE MUST USE YOUR THIRD SAVE FILE.”
It was subdued, but Mezil tensed up upon that mention. “I-I believe you’ve miscounted, Papyrus. We have only two SAVES relevant to this incident. One for our starting point, and one after the DEMON escaped.”
“IT’S NOT GOOD TO LIE,” Papyrus replied, “I THOUGHT WE’VE DISCUSSED ABOUT THIS.”
“Well--”
Hawk-eyed Cenna glared at Mezil. Her body began emitting a yellow, wispy aura: curling the fringes of her hair with the force of magic.
Papyrus gasped, “OH MY GOD, MISS AUNT! YOU CAN GO GLOWY TOO?!”
“Hell yeah I can,” she replied. “I ain’t Judge Vanquisher for nothing, cinnamon roll. Facing this old stubborn coot in denial makes my ‘Justice’ aspect boil hotter than facing a DEMON!”
Cenna slammed the table so hard, one of Alphys’ figurines dropped off the edge. Mettaton managed to catch it before it hit the ground.
Alphys started sweating from the tension.
“Ohemgee ohemgee ohemgee,” she squealed. “Is her hair going to turn spiky and golden???”
“Maybe,” Undyne said. It wouldn’t surprise her if it happened. This one week was more anime than her entire life.
On the top of her lungs, Judge Cenna yelled: “You seriously had Jungle Curry for dinner?! On the night of the most dangerous exorcism in modern history?!? Why the fuck do you even torture yourself with that shit???”
Everyone except Gaster bubbled into various varieties of ‘What?’ and ‘Huh?’
Papyrus then asked, “WHAT’S THIS ‘JUNGLE CURRY’?”
With his hands in a steeple, Gaster explained: “It’s a type of dry curry known for their liberal use of hot spices and coconut milk. A speciality of the island tropics. From what I understand, the level of heat… would give Grillby issues.”
“BUT GRILLBY IS MADE OF FIRE.”
“Exactly my point. It’s not for the unacquainted.”
Mezil tried his best to remain stoic, but his cheeks started to go pink from embarrassment.
“This man,” Cenna growled, “His bowels can’t tolerate coconut milk AND excessive chili! Yet he eats the worst possible dish in secret, time and time again!”
“How did you figure that out?” asked Mezil.
“Because it’s fucking SATURDAY! You’ll have the damn curry on Saturday, suffer diarrhea for the night, then use the rest of Sunday to recover from your weird habit!”
One pause. “WAIT. THIS DIARRHEA THING… I’VE HEARD OF IT BEFORE. FRISK DESCRIBED IT AS ‘A VERY BAD TIME IN THE TOILET’. DOES THAT MEAN MISTER MAGUS’ THIRD SAVE FILE WAS IN THE MIDDLE OF THAT BAD TIME?”
“Correction. It’s before. As in, right at the entrance of my toilet.”
Mezil admitted his biggest shame of the night at long last. The monsterfolk gave him a very weird look.
Upon his confession, Cenna’s glow faded away.
“… Look, I’ve not had Jungle Curry since your kind emerged. Not counting the RESETs. It’s very distracting to have a craving unsatisfied.”
Papyrus commented, “WOWIE, THAT’S ABOUT AS UNHEALTHY AS MY BROTHER’S ADDICTION TO KETCHUP.”
Mezil winced in response to that statement. He then explained: “I noticed my level of stress spiked in the past week or two. So, I thought I should wind down by giving myself a long-desired treat.”
Helvetica asked in a series of hand signs. Gaster translated, “The madam wondered why you can’t magically replicate the dish in your Hub. You can refresh your mind without suffering their ill-effects there.”
“I… I tried. Except I don’t know the exact mix of ingredients. It’s not just any Jungle Curry. There’s a store run by a native of that land, and that’s the only place I could get true authentic taste. Other establishments had it either watered down or their spice mix wrong. Such a shame.”
“Anyways,” Mezil resumed, “Upon my savouring of the spice of life, Judge Caraway informed me of her urgent operations.”
“Needless to say, I can’t just un-consume my dinner. This timeline had a string of unique events that led to our best chance yet. I didn’t want to put anything at risk.”
“Can’t you then use your nearest checkpoint?” Asked Alphys, “If, I understand what’s going on.”
“Here’s the thing, I couldn’t make single SAVE, or checkpoint, since your freedom. Frisk as well. Our levels of Determination were so close, we interfered with each other. My last usable spot was on the day when Frisk fell into the Underground.”
“If we go back there now, the DEMON will destroy the universe for certain. Failure is not an option.”
“IT’S TRUE,” Papyrus added. “I SAW THAT OUTCOME IN A VISION.”
“All my SAVES made during their adventure ended up corrupted. Conflict of cause and effect. I can’t access a timeline that doesn’t exist anymore. Hence, unusable.”
Mettaton’s head spun from the overload of information. “Oh my, this is complicated business. Correct timing to use the power of time? Ironic drama at its finest. Reminds me of Blooky’s music sensibilities. It’s all about the timing, he once told me.”
“Only those who’ve experienced it first-hand would know the limitations of being The Living Victory.”
“The gamechanger here is the DT-Extraction Machine. With Frisk drained of their Determination, I finally have my power back at full potential. That’s why we’re here.”
Turning to Papyrus, Mezil then asked a vital question. “Seer. Should I use this third SAVE, what’s your plan? I certainly do not want to spend the next set of loops on the ceramic throne. If I can help it.”
The skeleton lit up his orange Eye and scanned the people around him. When he’s done, he declared his answer with sheer utmost confidence. “MISTER MAGUS, YOU WILL ONLY NEED TO DO THIS ONCE. PROMISE!”
He wrapped an arm around Cenna and pulled her into a sideways-hug.
“Uh, cinnamon roll?” The woman cringed a bit from the awkward and tight angle.
“MISS AUNT, YOU HAVE A MAGICAL WATCH YOU WILL USE IT IN THE FUTURE PAST. THAT’S THE KEY TO SOLVE THIS PUZZLE!”
Cenna rose her brows as far as they could go. “Oi oi, that’s a family secret. I didn’t even tell Frisky yet ‘cause they got a bloody parasite in them.”
“THAT’S EXACTLY WHY IT’S PERFECT! NOBODY EXCEPT YOU AND ME AND MAYBE MISTER MAGUS KNOWS WHAT IT DOES.”
Mezil caught on. “I do. Normally I wouldn’t consider it due to its limitations, but it would have garnered enough power by now. I approve of your plan. Meet me at the Hub.”
Papyrus pumped his fist in joy.
“One more thing. May I know Chara’s primary cause of death? When they were human, that is.”
Alphys raised her hand. “I believe it had something to do with ‘buttercups’. Chara asked the Prince to harvest them in secret. I found the VHS recordings for it…”
“I see. Hmm… I’m not sure if I could obtain those in the heart of winter. Nonetheless, it’s helpful information. Thank you, Doctor Alphys.”
“In the next timeline, I’ll meet all of you in person. See you there.”
Mezil snapped his fingers. With that, the young skeleton found himself standing in the Hub.
Papyrus felt sad that they won’t return here anymore. At least, not for the foreseeable future. It’s a place that had become a second home, and now he had to say goodbye.
Goodbyes are forbidden in his town. This place? It’s not his. It belonged to someone else.
Gaster and Mezil waited for Papyrus at the SAVE console.
The uncle said, “Your father asked if you want to walk around the Hub for one last time. Relax, prepare your mind. That sort of thing.”
Papyrus thought about it. He could if he wanted to. Time doesn’t flow here. But he decided against it. If he lingered, he might get too attached and grow reluctant.
“NO, THANK YOU,” he answered. “I MUST MOVE FORWARD. FOR EVERYONE’S SAKE.”
It’s a response that would make any teacher or parent proud. The young man had come a long way.
“Well then, it’s time.” Mezil activated his SAVE console and summoned the file-selection screen. The top number changed whenever he swiped the set left.
The third SAVE occupied slot number ‘50’, well hidden from any curious meddling. Exactly as Mezil had said, it’s right in front of a toilet.
“This timestamp…” Gaster muttered. “It’s during the exorcism itself. Long before Judge Caraway dealt the final blow, but some time after she first drained Frisk’s DT.”
“I apologize for putting you through so much trouble,” said Mezil. “I hoped that we could find a solution without resorting to this SAVE. Without Judge Caraway’s watch at its current capacity, this checkpoint is useless.”
“She can’t abort the procedure after trapping the DEMON. Neither could I arrive in time to provide an alternative. However, that artifact’s power will solve both of those dead ends.”
He’s reluctant to activate that SAVE. Understandably so. He’d end up at a rather unpleasant point in time, both physically and mentally.
Papyrus gave a reassuring and apologetic pat on the old human’s back. He felt for the other’s suffering, even though the skeleton himself never had terrible times in the toilet before.
His best reference was the session with the kitchen sink, except downwards instead of upwards. Awful times indeed.
“I AM VERY, TRULY, ABSOLUTELY SORRY TO MAKE YOU GO THROUGH THE BAD TIMES AGAIN. AS I HAD SAID BEFORE, I PROMISE THAT YOU ONLY NEED TO GO THROUGH THIS ONCE.”
“PLEASE LET ME KNOW IF I YOU NEED ANY MEDICINE. I CAN ASK ALPHYS TO PREPARE THEM.”
“It’s alright, I have the all medicines I need,” Mezil replied. “It’s sweet for you to offer though. I can see why Judge Caraway calls you the ‘cinnamonest of cinnamon rolls’.”
“Speaking of our spunky Vanquisher,” he said, “There’s something you must know; not all conditions can be cured with medicine. I can’t ever say it in front of her face. She’d probably smash the screen to end the call.”
“OH?” Papyrus blinked.
“Have you noticed her lifeforce? Or rather, the lack of it?”
“YES. SHE HAD 13 HP. A VERY, VERY STRANGE NUMBER. THEN TODAY IT DROPPED TO 12! SHE’S TURNING INTO A TALL GIRLY SANS AND THAT’S BAD.”
Mezil tapped his cane several times. “Papyrus, she’s very sick. Been so for years. Her body will weaken long before old age. In five years, it’s likely that she would end up paralyzed, mute, and bedridden. From there it’s just waiting for a slow death.”
Never before had the youngster heard of such affliction. In the Underground, the worst disease involved ‘falling down’. Plus it was rather painless.
Cenna? Horrific, if not agonizing. As though she’s ‘falling down’ at a snail’s pace with full consciousness.
“WE REALLY CAN’T HELP HER?” He whimpered. “NO MEDICINE? NO HEALING MAGIC? NOTHING?”
The Magus shook his head. “No, there’s no cure for her illness. But there is a method to delay its effects. Used in conjunction with specific drugs, of course.”
“It involves permanent consumption of the SOUL to reinforce her weakening body. Whenever the symptoms return, she must shave off a lifeforce unit to preserve integrity. Also, the procedure cannot go below a value of ‘ten’.”
“You said she has ‘twelve’ now, right? That means she can perform the reinforcement two more times before the disease consumes her.”
“The vision with the court case… You saw her strapped in strange supports. That’s just the beginning of an inevitable decline.”
“Hmm,” Gaster pondered upon this new revelation. “Her predicament does fit with the limitations of Psychia Reinforcement on living beings. It’ll just be a matter of time before the reinforced cells decay, replaced by new ones made from her faulty genes. It’s a losing battle.”
Mezil nodded. “Doctor Gaster is correct. Believe it or not, her SOUL is more brittle than Sans’. Or any monster. If she uses her Ascension at full power now, she will surely die. And she’s very willing to die. So… if possible, don’t give her a reason to do so until Spring.”
All the talk about this whole ‘winter season illness’ was a lie. Papyrus did not approve of that approach. If everyone knew about her true condition, they will do their best to make the most out of their time together.
But, he understood that it was a very personal and heartbreaking situation to explain. Thus, he held no grudges.
“BUT WHY SPRING?” Asked Papyrus.
“Judge Caraway will be going on a very important mission then. It’s something only she can do. I want her to continue living for as long as possible.”
That reason was enough. “LEAVE IT TO ME, MISTER MAGUS! I -- THE GREAT PAPYRUS -- WILL PROTECT MISS AUNT UNTIL HER VERY IMPORTANT MISSION. NYEH HEH HEH!”
“Thank you,” Mezil smiled. “Now I have no hesitations.”
“I DON’T EITHER.”
Together, they selected File 50 and pressed the confirmation button.