Sans doesn't stop running until he's sure that Undyne isn't following him. When he does slow, he's shaking from exertion. The tunnel he's in now has tall grass on both sides of the path. It looks like the tunnel brightens and opens up ahead, but he's too tired to even think about continuing. The skeleton collapses into the concealing grass and falls asleep almost instantly. When waking again, half a day has passed, but he has no way to know that.

"Are you alright, Sans? You've been sleeping for a really long time......", Papyrus leans over his brother when he sees Sans awake. Worry is written all over his face.

"No.... I feel sick", Sans admits. When he sits up, the world spins. His clothes are mostly dry after yesterday's swim. One end of Sans's scarf sticks to his cheek when he sits up. The grass has a perfect indent from where the skeleton was curled up. Everything aches. This new ability, teleporting, takes a lot out of him. He absently rubs at the edge of his sockets to try and get the dizziness to go away.

"That Undyne lady was horrible!", Papyrus leans back and crosses his arms in a pout, "Why'd she have to chase you like that? You didn't do anything to her".

"Don't be too mad, Pappy. I don't think she really wanted to hurt me". Sans winces when he shifts. When did the world dim?

"Bring out your soul and then stay still. I'm going to give you an injection", Papyrus stands up as he talks. Anyone can easily see his brother's droopiness. Sans really should be taking better care of himself.

"I don't like those". Sans's face would've wrinkled up in a grimace if he had facial muscles.

"Then will you eat Miss Toriel's pie?".

Sans looks away and says nothing. He just wanted to savor it in the beginning, but now eating the pie feels like forgetting Miss Toriel. Then again, with all the running, the pie's been thrown all around it's container. It doesn't really look like pie anymore. Maybe he'll eat it later.

      Papyrus ends up giving Sans two injections. He won't admit that they do make him feel better. Everything doesn't hurt so much. After sleeping for so long, he's not tired, either. Sans straightens out his clothes and zips up his coat before pulling the backpack on. Both boys wade out of the grass and start walking down the tunnel. It gets brighter, and Sans has to look away and at his feet until they exit the tunnel.

     The drastic shift in temperature is the first thing that Sans notices. Snow and water can be cold, but here, it feels warm. It's like the entire area is wrapped underneath a blanket. The light is also a lot brighter. Sans has no idea where the source is. The ground is made of an orangish-red rock that feels slightly warm to the touch.

      "Whoa..... Sans! Come look at this!", Papyrus shouts. When Sans turns to look, his brother is leaning over the edge of the path. The Monster didn't realize that the path drops off steeply on either side. Way down at the bottom of the cliff, molten rock sluggishly bubbles and releases heat. Falling in would certainly be unpleasant.

Sans tries to walk in the dead center of the path as they continue on. He only looks up when a massive shadow blocks out the light. A large, white building sits right in the middle of the path. There's no way past it but to go through it. Sans stops abruptly about halfway to the door. More Monsters will definitely be inside.

"Sans?", Papyrus asks, confused when his brother stops.

"I don't wanna go in there", the skeleton mumbles. He crosses his thin arms in a pout.

"Why not? There's no way around it! I'm sure that the barrier is just past here". Papyrus tries to be encouraging. He walks back and tugs gently on the end of Sans's purple scarf.

"There are gonna be Monsters in the building and then you'll have to hide again! I don't want you to go away", Sans sulks even more.

"Brother......... I can't stay with you forever. Besides, I'm tired. The Barrier has to be close! I'll see you after you make it through the building".

"But you're never tired! And we'll always be together". Sans is alarmed by what his brother is saying.

Papyrus waves him off and motions back to the massive building. The skeleton looks over at it, and then back, but his brother is gone. The loneliness strikes him hard and fast. He's never been truly alone before, not with his brother looking after him. Hesitantly, Sans starts to walk towards the building again. It's massive. More and more, it starts to remind him of the lab that he came from.

      When Sans gets close to the doors, they slide open with a mechanical whir. He jumps back in fright, but after the doors remain open, Sans slowly steps inside. The shiny, tile floor under his boots make the skeleton cringe. It's all too familiar. The doors lead to a large room. One wall is completely covered with monitors and screens, but Sans isn't sure what they are. He walks over to get a better look. To his shock, all the screens show places that he's already been. The door to the Ruins makes him feel the worst.

      Something makes a wet splat as it hits the floor behind the skeleton. He turns so fast that he falls against the screens, filled with absolute terror. A short Monster stands behind him. She dropped a white bowl all over the floor. The small Monster looks a little like a lizard from Papyrus's drawings. Her yellow tail drags behind her. What really scares Sans is the white lab coat that she wears.

       "O-Oh! You're here! I-I didn't expect for you to get here s-so fast", she stutters, "I'm Doctor Alphys, but you-you can just call me Alphys".

     Sans doesn't reply. He's still shoved against the moniters, as far away as he can get from Alphys. After meeting Undyne, his fear of Monsters has come back full force. Alphys doesn't seem to know what to do. Sans's debilitating fear makes her uncomfortable.

     "I-I'm not going to h-hurt you, Sans. Undyne called me and told me what she f-found out", Alphys tries to explain. Sans tenses up even more at the fish lady's name, if that's even possible at this point. Alphys quickly moves on when she sees this. "You-You're safe here! I promise! I ev-even got Metteton out of the lab".

       "You're........ not going to hurt me?", Sans asks quietly.

       "No, Sans. Undyne told me what she s-saw when she checked you. I do-don't know what's going on above ground, but this is something that King Asgore has to de-decide", Alphys stumbles. She can hardly believe that Sans isn't a real Monster, but checks don't lie. What Alphys really wants is to get a look at the skeleton's hybrid soul. She has a million questions to ask. Could artificial life be used to break the barrier? Alphys has so many questions, but looking at Sans, a frightened child who's been hunted all throughout the Underground, she bites her tongue.

"What happens now?", Sans relaxes a little, "I need to get to the Barrier. Do you know where it is?".

     "Yes, y-yes. Asgore will meet you at the Barrier", Alphys looks away at her feet, "If you go through the lab, you'll find the rest of Hotland. I've disabled all the tr-traps for you".

Sans has a hard time believing that Alphys is simply letting him go. He waits a moment to see if there's any sort of catch. When Alphys doesn't say anything else, he turns around and quickly slips out the lab's back entrance.