The earth smelled rich beneath his talons, leaves crunching pleasantly as the lush undergrowth rustled in his passing, trees dully roaring with the wind, birdsong echoing in his senses as he galloped by. The air was intoxicating, every breath tinged with something that was not smoke, but not steam either. His tail scraped the bark off trees in his passing, the sensation dulled in his wild excitement.

He belonged here, in the wild, free and uncaged. The world was not quite itself, and that was alright. He would make it better. He wasn't quite sure how, but as he bounced through the forest, he knew.
On two feet, he didn't believe he should be anything important, but on four he was more.
...On four, he was hungry.

It was an odd thing to realize, but it didn't matter. Free. Thoughts weren't important. Who he was faded in value, concerns drifted away as his feet pounded the earth, full of endless energy, a gift from the world.

He sped up momentarily as he approached a river, only to leap into the air, arching over to land solidly on the other side, stumbling briefly as human voices cried out in alarm, glancing back at a boat on the water.
It didn't matter. They were only humans. What harm could they do? He meant no harm himself.

He turned and continued prancing through the woods, breathless in delight. Trees, bushes, grasses, shrubbery, all were familiar. Reminiscent of home. What home?

A wilder place. A land older than this one, much older, yet forevermore young. A place only in memory now, a place in dreams. Brighter, fresher, balanced. Beasts of scale, beasts of feather, of fur, of more, those that were part of and watched over the land, and the simple ones that lived off it, ignorant yet blissful in their smallness.

He distantly remembered scales as blue as the ocean, glinting in the pale glow of lightning as it flashed through the night, striking the water and lighting it up in all directions, waves the size of small mountains roiling in the wind and rain in the dark of night, breaking apart wooden vessels that trespassed in his waters.

He sighed, the memory breaking apart into fragments, cut through with moments of shivering in the dark, dank caverns that dripped endlessly, alone. Of clinging to another with the fierce desire to protect them from his own pain, of struggling to stay close to another that drifted away without any good reason, of being cast aside for not being needed anymore.

Memories of the desire to put effort into anything anymore on both parties abruptly draining away, giving up to lonely and empty fates. Memories of trying to speak and failing, confused and trying again and again, quickly cast aside for perceived reasons that could not be further from the truth. Of remaining indignant, frustrated in isolation until abuse turned thoughts to the mountain where children didn't come back.

He abruptly slammed his back feet into the ground to slide to a stop, suddenly jolting back into a more present frame of mind. Napstablook blinked, trying to hold onto the memories flitting away from him as Sans flinched and lashed out at something grabbing him, struggling to return to himself. Frisk was left to try to pick up the pieces before they could vanish, stunned by the fading recollection.
Something isn't what it should be. He realized.

. • ° . • ° . • °

"Ow, fuck." Undyne cursed quietly, gripping her hand. Alphys flinched at the surprising amount of blood, glancing at Sans as the skeleton groaned, holding his skull. At least he seemed awake now.

"Undyne, are you alright?" Toriel quested, stepping forth to heal the shockingly deep gash in the fish lady's wrist.
"Yeah, it's fine. I just.. is something wrong with Sans? He somehow cut me."

"He appears to have claws." Abbadon noted, crouching over the short one as he checked the blood-specked hand.
"Since when? Sans doesn't have claws." Undyne scoffed, unbelieving.
"I am aware of that. Few skeletons have claws, and he was not among their number."
"What, you're saying he just sprouted them?"
"..It would seem that he did."

Alphys blinked at the late afternoon sun outside. "We-well.. we should probably head h-h-home. Before we focus on a-all this."
"Not a bad idea, babe." Undyne gave her a half hug, moving her hand from Toriel's grasp as it was healed.

She picked him up, handling him with caution before hooking her arm under and facing the others. "Do you think he's stuck in the bone dragon again?"
"A possibility." Abbadon noted, peering at the sharp claws as Sans swung there, unconscious.

"Speaking of which, where has it gone?" Toriel quested curiously. Abbadon smiled. "If Avalon has been successful, then he is still finding his way to the first of the dragons."
"Wait what." Undyne deadpanned.
"Only Sans or Avalon can tell us where his other half has gone."

"I thought he didn't believe..?" Alphys trailed in confusion.
"I suppose we can only find out when we get home." Toriel sighed, regarding Abbadon.
"Can you take us there?"
He bowed dramatically. "Of course, my Lady."

She snorted into her paw even as Undyne groaned, Alphys giggling quietly as everyone gathered near.
"Sucks that they never got to see his Blaster thing." Undyne muttered before they all vanished in a flash of yellow.

. • ° . • °

They jolted in surprise, sensing one half jumping locations unwillingly. Sans blinked, hoping it was Abbadon. He glanced back to the distant mountain, wishing he was awake.

𝙸𝚏 𝚠𝚎 𝚑𝚞𝚛𝚛𝚢, 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚗 𝙸 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚗𝚔.. 𝚠𝚎 𝚌𝚊𝚗 𝚐𝚘 𝚋𝚊𝚌𝚔 𝚊𝚗𝚍 𝚏𝚒𝚡 𝚝𝚑𝚒𝚜 𝚜𝚘𝚘𝚗𝚎𝚛..
Yeah, yeah, I know.
They sighed, tense and afraid as they turned and started trotting again. Every footfall brought on a touch more weariness, the ambient magic growing weaker the further from the mountain they went.

They were beginning to understand how it worked now, at least. If Sans fell asleep and the Blaster did not, he would wake within it. If both were awake, Napstablook had full control of the creature. They weren't sure what would happen if the Blaster was asleep and Sans was awake, but they had half of it down.

When Sans was awake and it was running, Napstablook would quickly zone out. Something to watch for, because his mind drifted to strange places when he did, Frisk struggling to glimpse what was happening when he was still mostly situated with Sans.

As it was, all three minds were conscious within the beast as it trotted on, flooded with doubts.
Why did I let that damn half plant talk me into this.. Sans complained, pausing to shake a loose clump of dirt from one talon. He scowled at the packed earth under his claws, turning and pressing on.

Napstablook fretfully glanced around them, the only one afraid of the smell of a campfire nearby. It itched at their nasal cavity, bringing about the irritating desire to sneeze when they couldn't.
Voices murmured around them, twisted up by the wind and echoing as the sea muddled with their senses.

The call drew them nearer, almost an audible hum within their skull, musical and unknown. It spurred them on despite their trepidation. It was all-consuming, something almost desperate, like a final call out into the dark with a blind hope of a rescue emerging from the night.

Speaking of night, it had somehow fallen already, draping with world in cloudy dimness, nothing but glimpses of the moon passing through the shadows of clouds and trees. The smell of rain drifted in on the saltine breeze, barely discernable from the overpowering, noxious, greasy, oily scent of the nearby city. It had always smelled unclean before, but this was ridiculous. Sans couldn't help but understand why everyone avoided the city despite enjoying it so much. It just smelled bad.

They suddenly couldn't resist a burst of speed as they recognized grass ahead, dull shrubbery falling away to seaside establishments, dirt shifting into sand beneath their feet.

Soon they arrived at the top of a bluff, forcing themselves to stop there and regard the buildings between them and the water. They could see faint tendrils of light, magic, waving out and around in long, slow, lazy movements. Several of the greenish yellow strands had tied to the Blaster, visibly pulling them to the ocean.

Many humans stood between them and the sea, walking around in groups, chattering, laughing, enjoying the end of the day. They didn't know how long all these humans would be here, and they knew they couldn't wait.

It's like a spy mission. Frisk noted somewhat excitedly. They blinked.
... We're actually sneaking through docks. Sans sighed, the strange mist puffing out into the air. I can't believe I'm doing this.

With that, they began creeping in between two buildings, pausing at the edge of the light from their fronts, a group passing by with loud, girlish giggles, dressed in skimpy bikinis.
...Why.
Why what?
Why do you dress like that to go swimming?
... I'm not a girl. And I guess it's to look sexy?

Sans didn't reply, only finding disgust in it as they darted out and found their way to a darker alley, these buildings closed for the night.
𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚛𝚎𝚊𝚕𝚕𝚢 𝚐𝚎𝚝 𝚒𝚝 𝚎𝚒𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛..
Same here, less clothes means it's easier to get sunburned. Frisk gave the approximate of a mental shrug.

Sans physically shrugged, an odd movement for the dragonic creature. He proceeded to creep across the darker pathway between the next rows on the beachfront, darting for the dock and quietly scampering over to the water.

It was almost too late when he noticed the group of people sitting on the end of the dock, sipping cans and swinging their legs over the edge. His claws raked over the wood as he slid to a stop, a few yards from the small gathering.

Apparently that small skirch was enough to warrant someone flashing a light in his direction.
"Holy shit!"
Acting on impulse, Napstablook abruptly threw themself off the edge, diving into the water with a loud splash.

They blinked, water flooding their sockets as numerous footsteps rattled the boards. Seconds later, their surroundings became clear and lights were boring into the waves. Sans glanced up, alarmed, then scrambled under the dock to hide, kicking up silt.

Something darted away into the gloom, clouds of shadowy brown floating up around the Blaster.
What now? Frisk asked, even as they glanced down the rest of the dock into open water.
I guess we swim. Sans answered, kicking off and paddling over, daring to surface and breathe.

It was chaotic at first, but they quickly understood to movements as opposed to walking and running. A thin layer of water seemed to coalesce around them as they paddled, tail swishing side to side in an effort to move forward. It quickly became clear that it was their best form of movement, propelling them through the water like a torpedo.

Several voices cried out and recoiled from the dock as they emerged, diving down and powering over to the light that only illuminated to them, unseen to all else.

The ocean was murky, random objects drifting by in the current, garbage caught by the waves from the careless activities of humanity.
It.. really bugged them.

Swimming deeper, the trash and murk cleared, the weight on them rapidly increasing up until it became hard to hold their breath, the pull drawing them deeper and deeper, into darkness where only their eyelights illuminated the water, blue, white, red, yellow, whatever, they kept shifting through the spectrum.

After a few minutes, a few alien fish darted off as they reached the seafloor, far from the surface up above. To them, it was glowing brilliantly with mana, a slight greenish yellow that disappeared into the rock. An odd warmth emanated from the silt, beckoning.

Sans tapped it with a claw, confused.
Well now what? He pondered, beginning to dig out of bewilderment. There could at least be something.
...Blast it. Frisk suggested.
𝙲𝚊𝚗 𝚠𝚎 𝚎𝚟𝚎𝚗 𝚍𝚘 𝚝𝚑𝚊𝚝 𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚠𝚊𝚝𝚎𝚛?
...I never tried. Ah hell, why not?

The energy built up in their maw, the whine dull and muted before flashing and blowing them upwards several meters. It shut off, leaving the Blaster baffled as superheated water rushed up around them. All the strands of magic were retreating into the earth, curling up like tentacles before they slipped through.
Sans let out an irritated snort, bubbles rising.
That's it? He questioned, not fully believing it.

And he was right to think that. A strange quake suddenly shook the water, an eerie sound that sent all manner of fish suddenly swarming out of the bay, into deeper waters. Sans swept closer to the original spot, too far away for his eyelights to illuminate it.

As soon as they did, the Blaster tensed. A large crack had opened up in the ground, water rushing in and tearing at the sides of the expanding crevice, already achieving the size needed for them to swim through.
𝙳𝚘.. 𝚍𝚘 𝚠𝚎 𝚐𝚘 𝚍𝚘𝚠𝚗 𝚝𝚑𝚎𝚛𝚎? Napstablook asked in fear.
I.. don't know..
We should go down there. You can still teleport out if we have to.

Decision made, they drifted over the fissure, tensing as it began sucking them in. As soon as they were past the opening, the current yanked them down into a channel, leaving enough space in the tunnel to breach the surface and breathe, gasping as algae shimmered cyan in the current, lime green lining the walls and ceiling just above them.

This was a mistake. Sans concluded, gathering himself to teleport outside- but Frisk stopped him.
We're not hurt! We're going somewhere! It's-
They cut off as it abruptly tilted and went horizontal, sliding into a much more open cavern, glowing with numerous colored spirit-flames, some burning even underwater. The shadows were lengthy, the space filled with uneven terrain and many pools, a strange silence weighing on everything.

Sans blinked. Well shit. There is something here. He regarded the dim cavern in curiosity, hesitantly stepping on a dense mat of dark moss, damp with seawater. The water behind him continued flowing into a deep bowl shaped depression beside him, almost like it was carved. Then he noticed the oddly shaped mounds in the far end, glowing brilliantly with that greenish yellow magic.

They trudged through the peaceful realm, a place he imagined Undyne would have loved to see. Strange stone figures of water-borne creatures lay around him, untouched by moss and algae. Mermaids, he could see, as well as sea serpents, krakens, watery hydras, strange giant fish that had him unsettled, creatures with necks almost as long as himself and a body to match. In the pools glittered hundreds of thousands of gem-like fish on the walls, going down and down in the deep wells.

He hopped up to one round side of a beached whale like sculpture with a note of unease, hopping over the lumpy mass on the other end. He eventually arrived at the tip of it, seeing a bunch of rocks adhering to something underneath, something big. As he glanced down the oddly gleaming rock, Sans realized that whatever this was, it was stretching through half the cavern.

They slowly traced the shape, gradually identifying some sort of ropy tail, curling around itself in several loops, leading to a slightly bulkier though still wiry body befitted with long legs and oddly placed wings that stretched up to hold the ceiling in place, long and thin. There was a second set of wings up near it's front shoulders even closer to where they stood- oh.
...They were standing in front of its face.

... 𝙸𝚝'𝚜 𝚊 𝚍𝚛𝚊𝚐𝚘𝚗. Napstablook stated in fear and awe.
It looks.. snakey. Frisk noted. How is it supposed to wake up?
...Is it even friendly? Sans asked, stepping away.
I guess we're about to find out. Frisk replied as Napstablook instinctively leaned forward, sparking as their snout connected with the rock.
Nothing happened.
.....Until something did.

A single crack formed in the dense armor, small and miniscule at first before jolting up the beast's jawline, fading into the distance as it continued down it's neck, the rock walls echoing the sounds in a medley of noise.

The Blaster stepped away, tense as they glanced around. Small rockfalls were happening at the edges of the cave, water spraying out from cracks in the walls. Then a swath of stone collapsed around the tail in the distance, the limb lifting up, revealing red-orange fur as it brushed against the ceiling. A yellow glow suddenly painted the ground around them, and the Blaster looked back.

There, amid the collapsing rock around that great face lay two, yellow-gold eyes, glowing unnaturally. More rock fell away in a mini avalanche, revealing olive colored skin. The entire cavern rumbled like a distant cave-in, but they knew that it was the great beast awakening.

Sans was beginning to rethink his life choices that led up to this moment as one wing wrenched itself free of the ceiling, a good chunk of it coming down with a wave of water following with a great crash. All the reddish stone that had buried the creature had now dissolved, leaving only three wings attached to the roof, holding back the weight of the ocean.

Salty water swirled all around as it poured in, sculptures melting away to reveal similarly slumbering creatures that rapidly came to life, throwing themselves into the sea as the gems in the tunnels became animate, pulling themselves off the walls and getting carried away by the current.

They stumbled back as the great dragon opened its mouth, letting out a sigh that washed over them with a moist, heavy smell. Then, shockingly enough, the dragon rumbled and began to speak.
"Sæƈʂԋιυɳ."

All three minds blanked for a moment, simultaneously recognizing the word and not.
"𝕊𝕒𝕖𝕔𝕤𝕙𝕚𝕦𝕟?" They asked hesitantly. The dragon's great eyes blinked, and it tugged it's claws free of the earth, warbling until it spoke in a more comprehensive tone, still unbelievably loud and slow.
"Yeesss... you came.."
"𝐖𝐞.. 𝕨𝕖 𝕕𝕚𝕕?"

It nodded dreamily, gradually pushing itself to its feet as it regarded them somewhat mournfully. "You.. do not.. remember."
"...ℕ𝕠."
Another wing yanked itself free, letting in another deluge of water, merfolk calling out in delight as they leapt into the waterfall. The cave was flooding, filled with the roar of the sea.

The dragon peered up at the distant surface beyond the remains of the ceiling, then back down again to study the Blaster.
"...I alone cannot make you remember.. but I will tell you.. I am Gaasyendietha."
Oh geez, what a mouthful.
"𝔸𝕟𝕕.. 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐒𝐚𝐞𝐜𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐮𝐧?"

The dragon, Gaasyendietha, leaned forward much faster than they expected, causing the Blaster to stumble backwards.
"It is you." He said simply, leaning back. "You have forgotten." He shook his brilliant red mane to life, an orange undercoat gleaming beneath. "Come. Let me gaze upon our new world of man."

With a heave, he wrenched both his upper wings free, and the ocean came crashing down.

. • ° . • ° . • °

Undyne stood off to the side, unnerved by the spastic twitches Sans had fallen to, Papyrus hugging his brother and struggling to remain calm as Avalon discussed things with him. Toriel stood off beside them, both her and Asgore in a heated discussion with Urbane.

Running footsteps drew her attention to the doorway, finding Asriel racing frantically into the room, gasping. His parents both cut short, glancing over in concern.
Finally, the prince sucked in a deep breath and cried out.
"Guys! You have to see this right now!"

He turned and raced back to the entrance of the Underground, Undyne the first to follow. Urbane was right behind her, the Dreemurs following him and the rest past that were moving more hesitantly.

But when she turned and peered outside into open air, her eye immediately caught on the wave of lights radiating out from the sea.
"Whoa, what the heck is that?"

Avalon just surged forward, moving to stand on the edge of the cliff beside a frozen in place Abbadon.
"...It looks like the DragonSoul came through." Urbane slowly grinned, glancing back at Sans.
"Dragon?" Papyrus questioned in shock.
"Dragons." Urbane agreed, moving to stand by his brother's side.

With that, they all turned as something massive exploded out of the water, spraying it hundreds of feet away as it flung itself into the sky on four wings, drifting down to land in the forest. Even then it was so big that the trees only barely covered its body, tail and head still protruding above the canopy.

"Holy..." Undyne was at a loss for words. "It's.. so big.."
"Is Sans alright?" Toriel murmured, glancing over at the unconscious skeleton who was completely still.

The great dragon in the distance was staring at the gleaming towers, nose wrinkled in disgust.
"I don't believe he very much appreciates the city." Abbadon noted.
"Will it.. do something?" Undyne all but whispered.
"I don't know."

A few minutes later, and it's great maned head turned toward the mountain, glowing gold eyes regarding it. The dragon's wings spread out, long and thin with their ends splitting off in feather-like tips made of skin or keratin of some kind. It leapt into the sky, suddenly flying as it approached with frightening speed.
"It's coming here!" "Away from the edge!"
"Oh my gosh it's so big-" "Move!"

They had all retreated into the cave when it dipped down, back legs meeting the earth before one of its front talons rested on the cliff, the other carrying a skeletal creature with wide sockets. It deposited the beast on its feet before bending over to study them all with one gigantic eye.

The Blaster trotted over with it's skull low, eyelights a pair of glowing blue and yellow rings. It stared at Avalon as though looking into his Soul.

"...Sans?" Asriel asked in a small voice. It's gaze shifted over, blinking at last. Then Sans spoke in a mostly dead voice.
"𝐈 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐧𝐨 𝐢𝐝𝐞𝐚."
A few of them burst into awkward smiles. "You're okay!" Asriel breathed. "We were worried!" Papyrus added with a note of confusion.
Sans glanced back at the dragon silently watching, and everyone went mute.

Then, shocking everyone, it spoke, voice painfully loud and deep, alien words slow and majestic. Undyne glanced at the others in confusion, Asriel locking eyes with her in similar bewilderment as the rest bowed or inclined their heads.

"We are honored that you would roost so close to our prison despite your preferred climate, Old One." Toriel curtseyed- curtseyed! To the dragon, Undyne positively flabbergasted at the sight.

So she moved to the Blaster's side to ask what in the world was going on.

. • °

"I do not wish to see your kind.. lost to your harsher counterparts. Monsterkind.. is the bridge between our worlds. And now that we may all return.. our kinds shall be in need of yours once again. We have all awaited.. the day when we would all wake and walk upon the changed earth, but it has been long... too long. This world has been remade in the image of humans, and it strains to break free.. to follow its natural order. You see this."

"Yes, we indeed have. It is a travesty, what humans have done, but I believe it can be remedied." Avalon spoke with great respect. The dragon regarded him as Undyne began poking at Sans quietly. He nudged her away, shaking his skull as he listened.

"By the smell of the air.. and the filth in the water.. I see that much has been done. The world is unnaturally warm.. the sky is full of smog like the breath of a mountain that roars.. and the pulse of the world is faded and weak. There is much that must be done. Humans must be held accountable.. for their misdeeds. I will fly on to the other sanctuaries, to awaken those that I am able.. but it is not within my power.. to awaken them all. That duty lies with Saecshiun.. or what name or names.. he may be to you."

Sans couldn't help the slight twitch at the name, a blink of a memory flickering past in his mind before it escaped him again, frustratingly elusive.

"Very well, oh Great One. We will do as we can in your absence. We will not disappoint." Asgore inclined his head, others copying or bowing as well. A snort blew the leaves and flowers backwards, swirling into the cavern as Gaasyendietha's eyes crinkled in amusement.

"I do not imagine there is something a monster could do.. that would disappoint me. You are already much gentler and understanding than humans. But perhaps.. I am too forgiving for my race."
He let go of the ledge, turning to take off.
"𝐖𝐚𝐢𝐭!" Sans lunged forward, electricity zapping. Gaasyendietha turned one great eye on him again.

"𝐈.." He glanced back at Avalon, who nodded for him to continue. Sans sighed, working up the courage to address the tremendous one.
"𝐈 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩 𝐦𝐞."
The ground shuddered as the dragon shifted back to face him. Sans looked down impulsively, shifting on his feet.

"𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐡𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐧 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐩𝐞𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐬𝐞 𝐢𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐚𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡.. 𝐪𝐮𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐮𝐦 𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐚-𝐞𝐧𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐲 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐩𝐡𝐲𝐬𝐢𝐜𝐬. 𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐚𝐬.. 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐕𝐨𝐢𝐝?" It shifted into a question as he peered up, afraid of the answer.

Gaasyendietha hummed. "The Space where things are Not?"
Sans hesitated. "𝐈 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧.. 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐧𝐞 𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐭𝐨 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐝 𝐢𝐭."
"What business have you with such an empty place where time is no more?"

Sans sighed. "𝐈'𝐯𝐞 𝐥𝐨𝐬𝐭 𝐩𝐞𝐨𝐩𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐭. 𝐅𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬, 𝐟𝐚𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐲, 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐲'𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞, 𝐚𝐧𝐝 𝐈'𝐦 𝐠𝐫𝐚𝐬𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚𝐭 𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐰𝐬 𝐨𝐧 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐦 𝐨𝐮𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞. ..𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐩𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐲𝐨𝐮'𝐝 𝐛𝐞 𝐚𝐛𝐥𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐡𝐞𝐥𝐩. 𝐈 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐭𝐨𝐥𝐝 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝." He regarded Avalon pointedly.

The dragon paused, appalled. He blinked, tucking his chin in as he thought.
"..I do not have the power to help you.."
Sans felt his hope dropping, but then he continued.
"But there are others. Those of greater strength, of more knowledge, those that could help you return your family to the world proper. No creature deserves.. to wither away in such a grey place."
"𝐖𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞?" Sans practically demanded, standing straight.

Gaasyendietha sighed softly, then pointed his snout off to the side. "A journey away from here lies a shiftling. She will help you recover what you must to awaken one of our greatest.. he who was named Quetzalcoatl to your people and humans. He has the might to achieve that which you desire. I can take you to Kinepeikwa, but no further."

Sans hesitated, considering this. Was he willing to do this to bring back his father?
...Yes. He absolutely was.
He glanced back at Papyrus, still holding his sleeping body. He could explain everything when he woke up later. ..Everything he felt safe sharing. He sighed, facing the dragon.
"𝐅𝐢𝐧𝐞."

"Very well." The dragon rumbled, talon closing over spine and lifting the Blaster effortlessly into the air, preparing to take flight as the other opened- his- his sleeping form flew into it, torn straight from his brother's arms.

His claws immediately dug into the earth, alarmed as Papyrus cried out.
"𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠. 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐝𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐠? 𝐈 𝐝𝐢𝐝𝐧'𝐭 𝐚𝐠𝐫𝐞𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭- 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭- 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭- 𝐖𝐚𝐢𝐭!" He yelped as he was dragged back, claws cutting deep grooves into the earth as Papyrus ran towards him.

"SANS!"
"𝐏𝐚𝐩𝐬 𝐰𝐚𝐢𝐭- 𝐦𝐨𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐜𝐤𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐮𝐭 𝐦𝐞 𝐃𝐎𝐖𝐍!" He snapped at the talon, but it was too wide and thick and solid to sink teeth into, leaving a panic to set in as he glanced at the closed talon that carried his sleeping form, wishing desperately that he could wake up.

He started scrabbling to pull himself free, but it went ignored as he zoomed towards the edge, Gaasyendietha not uttering a single word as Sans let out a panicked screech.
"𝐃𝐎𝐍'𝐓 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐚𝐰𝐚𝐲 𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐦 𝐏𝐀𝐏𝐘𝐑𝐔𝐒! 𝐏𝐋𝐄𝐀𝐒𝐄! 𝐏𝐀𝐏𝐘𝐑𝐔𝐒!"

He screamed as everyone reached out to grab him, already slipping off the cliffside as the dragon flew upwards. He flung magic in the direction of the already distant ledge, falling short as it was cut off by the far larger being. Sans gave up and screeched, howling after his brother as he kicked and thrashed in place, the talon utterly immovable. He roared into the night, terrified of leaving his only brother alone, unable to return.

Then Gaasyendietha spoke in the softest tone yet.
"I know it pains you, little Saecshiun.. but where you must go is no place for any monster. You will only put him in danger."
"𝐈 𝐀𝐌 𝐀 𝐌𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐑!"
"No, Saecshiun. You are one of us. You placed yourself in a monster's body and have now forgotten who you are... Kinepeikwa can awaken the you who remains asleep."

"𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐫𝐞 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠! 𝐘𝐨𝐮'𝐯𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐭 𝐢𝐭 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐰𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐠! 𝐈'𝐦 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭- 𝐈'𝐦 𝐣𝐮𝐬𝐭 𝐚 𝐬𝐤𝐞𝐥𝐞𝐭𝐨𝐧! 𝐌𝐲 𝐧𝐚𝐦𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐧𝐬, 𝐈'𝐦 𝐚 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐨𝐰𝐧 𝐛𝐲 𝐒𝐧𝐨𝐰𝐝𝐢𝐧, 𝐈'𝐯𝐞 𝐠𝐨𝐭 𝐟𝐫𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐬 𝐚𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐫𝐨𝐮𝐧𝐝, 𝐈 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐨𝐟 𝐦𝐲 𝐛𝐫𝐨- 𝐩𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞. 𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐞 𝐦𝐞 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤. 𝐀𝐭 𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐭.. 𝐡𝐚𝐥𝐟. 𝐏𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐞!"

A few pale white tears dripped off down into the forest before the dragon sighed, wings pounding methodically.
"You believe you are only a.. skeleton? But I feel the Soul of a dragon, torn and bonding together once more. I see a dragon who has lost his flesh and been broken into many bodies. I hear a dragon crying out to protect its blood, I hear a dragon pleading to save their kith and kin."

"...𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐝𝐫𝐚𝐠𝐨𝐧𝐬." Sans whispered.
"But dragons can be monsters." Gaasyendietha replied. "One dragon can split his spirit and strength into two monsters. But to return to a dragon, they must further split their will into a human vessel, and hope their monster forms are compatible. And you.. you chose wisely, Saecshiun."

He felt his pulse speed up as more than just one mind began to connect the dots and freeze up in fear. They all mentally regarded each other in cold realization.
"𝔹𝕦𝕥.. 𝚋𝚞𝚝 𝚠𝚑𝚢? 𝐇𝐨𝐰?"

Gaasyendietha was silent for a minute, long enough for one of Sans's howls to distantly echo back to them.
"I will tell you, as you do not remember..." He hummed for a moment, then spoke.

"An Elder of magic, like a dragon, can die like any other... but unlike others, their Soul can live on. They can attach to other spirits of magic, even their own race, and experience the world through their eyes. In turn, the host can borrow some of their strength and magic. And when it comes time for their life to fade, they can choose to allow the Soul to take their body and recover to the form they had before death. They can choose to let their Soul break and move on, or become one with the greater."

A few wingbeats later, and he continued. "But there have been rare beings that choose to host a DragonSoul while carrying a child. The Soul can break and become the Soul of the child.. leaving a sleeping half in the mother until they encounter a suitable secondary mother with child, where it will transfer across. There, a dragon becomes not one monster, but two. And with the correct attached spell.. they can drain their essence into a human Soul, where they shall meet once again and find their way back into their first form, the rightful one."

Sans was quiet.
... Mute.
Gaasyendietha flew on, fire sparking from his fur and wingtips as it trailed behind him.
...I just want my dad back.
A few white teardrops fell away to the distant ground.
𝙸 𝚍𝚘𝚗'𝚝 𝚞𝚗𝚍𝚎𝚛𝚜𝚝𝚊𝚗𝚍..
"...𝕎𝕙𝕪?"

The sigh that followed shook the air in a rumble like thunder.
"...You wanted to ensure that our kinds would return. You believed like no other that monsters could reason with humans like no other... You were willing to walk among them as their own, to rise and teach them to show their violent, simpler human correspondence to not hate so blindly, to fear all that which is not their own..."

He rose up higher than the clouds, humming.
"But you made your decision much too late, and we had no choice but to retreat to our hidden places when the humans attacked.. and to await the one who would find us when the day would come."

"...𝕐𝕠𝕦 𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕖 𝕟𝕠 𝕚𝕕𝕖𝕒 𝕙𝕠𝕨 𝕝𝕠𝕟𝕘 𝕚𝕥'𝕤 𝕓𝕖𝕖𝕟."
"No."
"..𝕀𝕥.. 𝐢𝐭'𝐬 𝐛𝐞𝐞𝐧 𝐚 𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐞."
"I am sure of such."
Sans glanced up at the long, lightly flaming mane around Gaasyendietha's head, seeing it only covered the back and left the neck exposed, covered in scales like that of a snake's belly, but thicker, almost like armor plating.
"..𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬.. 𝐰𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐚𝐬 𝐒𝐚𝐞𝐜𝐬𝐡𝐢𝐮𝐧 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞?"

They were flying up to a height planes were likely to travel, the air quiet and cold in the lonely moonlight. The great dragon rumbled thoughtfully, glancing down at him.
"A sharp one. A possessive breed, but.. that is not uncommon. What is a rarity was how kind and forgiving he could be. You. There was a gentleness about the otherwise.. fiesty one."

A wisp of smoke wafted into Sans's face, making him cringe as it hit his sockets, before he regarded the billowing patches of flame flickering in the depths of the other's mane. He sighed, a little tired of the world-shattering truths.
"𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐛𝐮𝐫𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐤𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭?"

A staccato rumble shook the beast before he replied.
"It is how I fly and keep warm, little one. The air I travel in is high and cold, and only so much of me is furred.... If all of me were fur, I would not be able to swim, and I would miss that. I prefer to dwell in lakes and marshes, not the sea like you.."

Sans blinked, puzzled.
"𝐀𝐫𝐞𝐧'𝐭 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚 𝐛𝐢𝐭 𝐛𝐢𝐠 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐞𝐢𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐨𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐨𝐬𝐞?"
Now Gaasyendietha was definitely laughing, sides shaking as gouts of flame stuttered from his nostrils. "I have only taken this size to create the largest sanctuary I am able... This is not my preference, not in the least."
Sans blinked again. "𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐬𝐢𝐳𝐞 𝐚𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥?"
"As can you, little Saecshiun."

He perked up, admittedly fascinated. "𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐛𝐥𝐞?"
"The larger a Great One, the more their body is made of energy."
"𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐝𝐨 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐮𝐬𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭?" Sans couldn't help but ask, already beginning to suspect based off of his own experience.
"Magic." Gaasyendietha answered simply.

"It pumps in our blood, and back into the world, where its pulse brings it back to us.... Our people have lived long. So long. We have become a part of the world... The endless looping web that is both life and decay is a part of us. We know this. We know it will be broken without us. So we must not let ourselves pass on because of our mistakes. We must protect ourselves to protect the lifeblood of the world. You knew this."

"..." Sans glanced down at the faraway terrain, feeling his thoughts cloud with exhaustion.
"𝐈 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐤 𝐈'𝐯𝐞 𝐡𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐞𝐧𝐨𝐮𝐠𝐡 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐧𝐨𝐰." He mumbled.
"Will you try to flee?"
"...𝐘𝐨𝐮 𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐮𝐩𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐝."
"Upper hand?"
"𝐈 𝐜𝐚𝐧'𝐭. 𝐖𝐡𝐲 𝐚𝐫𝐞 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐚𝐬𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠."

Without a word, Gaasyendietha moved his talon forward, Sans recoiling in surprise as he was drawn closer to the massive dragon's head, watching as it turned around and under in an awkward position, the entire beast wobbling unsteadily in flight as the Blaster was just dropped in the dense fur.

He clung tight in alarm as the dragon resumed his former position, long, red, stiff strands of hair rising around Sans as a soft orange undercoat lay beneath him, one burning patch just underneath his leg. Sans flinched away, already noting how it hadn't burned.

Before he could study it further, Gaasyendietha's voice rumbled much closer than before.
"Rest for tonight. We shall reach Kinepeikwa's den late tomorrow."
Sans huffed in reply, glancing at the flame trailing smoke and kneading the spot in curiosity. He noted a faint blue aura surrounding his claws, attracting the flame and lengthening as more of it made contact.

He shrugged, having lost his capacity to care due to drowsiness, instead flopping down and sighing at the faint tang of the sea amidst the dry earthy scent.
.. Goodnight, Sans.
Night, ki-.. Frisk.
𝙶𝚘𝚘𝚍 𝚗𝚒𝚐𝚑𝚝.

. • ° . • ° . • °

The unnatural screeching roars echoed into the night, short and terrified mixed with long and despairing. Undyne shuddered in horror, staring after the distant comet trail that remained of the dragon that took Sans.

Papyrus abruptly sobbed into his gloves hands, still on his kneecaps at the edge of the cliff. Toriel rested her hand on his still armored figure in a gentle attempt to console him, but it went entirely unnoticed.

Everyone was considerably silent, regarding each other in shock.
Those screams continued to echo around, sounding so far from the person they knew yet containing so much raw emotion in each wail.
Sans was gone, and they had no way to save him.

Finally snapping, Undyne stormed over to Avalon, grabbing the half-nymph by the shoulder and dragging him off to the side, growling.
"What the fuck was that about?"

The elder was still somewhat shaken. "I did not think he would take all of him. The dragons only need the dragon half as far as I have been aware."

"Well listen here, bucko. Sans was just dragged off by a gigantic.. thing right in front of his baby brother for something I don't think even he knows much about. So you're going to explain what the hell is going on, and where it might be taking him."

"I do not know! He mentioned Kinepeikwa, a dragon name, but I don't know where Kinepeikwa might be nesting. Honest. I do not know enough about the DragonSoul and what exactly it means for one to be such-"
"But given what he called Sans, I'm beginning to get a better idea of what that is." Abbadon interrupted, face unyielding in emotion.

"What? Tell me, dammit! I haven't been told a damn thing this entire time!" Undyne hissed.
"Saecshiun was the name of the seastorm dragon that held the most peaceful communications between our races. Saecshiun mysteriously vanished a few years before the war. And Gaasyendietha, the dragon we just met, called Sans that name."

Undyne stared at him, not quite following as Avalon turned.
"You believe that is possible?"
"Somehow, it must be. You saw how he reacted to the name, did you not?"
"I don't get it." Undyne cut in, bewildered as Asriel found his way to her side.
"You're saying that Sans is an actual dragon? He's just a skeleton."

"Perhaps on the surface." Abbadon replied. "But look me in the lights and tell me that again while considering recent events, why don't you? Not to mention what he has been capable of all this time without your knowledge."

She scowled, not wanting to believe the absurd concept. "It just.. how?"
"I couldn't tell you. But the facts align too well. His behaviors, his sudden changes, his personality, even."
"So what, he's just carried away for being.. something else that isn't him anymore?" She cringed at the note of desperation in her voice.
"That's just not right. Sure as hell not fair to him."

"At.. the moment, all the dragons are still very much in the past. He may have woken Gaasyendietha of his own free will as Sans, but what he said.. it sounds as though he intends to take Sans to one that can reawaken the dragon within him. If that is so.. I pray that we do not lose the skeleton we know in the face of who and what a dragon is." Avalon explained hesitantly.

"...Are you saying that we could lose Sans?" Asriel asked quietly, tone unidentifiable.
"It's regrettably possible, considering what we know." The halfling sighed.
"And you told him to go out there.." Asriel.. no, Chara added ruefully, eyes glowing a menacing red. "Without even knowing the full consequences."

Avalon paused, glancing out at the stars, at Papyrus, the younger still sobbing between the Dreemurs.
"I am sorry." He whispered.

"We have to fix this. Somehow. We.. we gotta get Sans back." Undyne decided. "We can't lose him, it'd.. Papyrus would break. Snowdin would fall apart if they lost him, I- shit. We have to get him back."

"We have to get Sans back." Asriel agreed, looking back out at the stars.
"At least, make sure we don't lose him forever, right?"
"Yeah.."