Finally, all of the events were in alignment. Papyrus and the others just reached hell, Chara became and angel, and Zalgo was preparing to start his machine. 

The final conflict was about to begin.

Papyrus had a sense of understanding about this, fully aware that this was likely going to be the biggest battle of his life. He was about to fight a demon lord for his brother. Something large was about to go down, and he was ready. All of these years, his entire life, he’s been training for this. Training to become a member of the Royal Guard, training his magic to protect people. All those years of pain, of torment, it all leads to this.

Papyrus expected to find a burning landscape when he arrived at hell, but of course it wasn’t that simple. Just as heaven had subverted his expectations, hell did as well. Instead, he found himself standing within a hallway, pictures of burning things scattered along the walls. A stray cat made its way across the hall, disappearing somewhere around the corner. An elevator could be seen across from them, a large button on the wall taunting him. 

“I really wanna steal that cat,” Cole whispered, rubbing awkwardly at her neck as he glanced back towards purgatory. “Think I could smuggle it under my shirt?”

“You aren’t wearing a shirt,” Undyne said.

“Heh, yeah," Cole muttered, looking distracted as he rubbed at his neck again.

“We got to actual hell and you still insist on insulting,” Silky tsked, smacking his shoulder as she picked up Addy. “But we should focus on the task at hand. Our two most strongest Fathers, Laughing Jack and Slender, are out of the battle. Dad is here somewhere, but we can assume he’s not going to be of very much help. Jane, Toby, Splendor, Smile Dog, and Flowey are also out of commission. Offender and Trender are still in Italy, and Hewey and Tondra are gone too. This does cut down our numbers, unfortunately.”

“We’ve all been through worse,” Jeff chuckled, bouncing a knife in his hand. “What’d ya say? Split up, all go for it at once?”

“I’d suggest we eat a squirrel,” Bean giggled, holding up a live squirrel from places Papyrus didn’t want to ask about.

“Oh lord, I-I thought it was a mouse,” Wayne hissed from embarrassment, digging his face into his hands.

“I’m only at 9%,” Leonie wheezed, eye sockets wide as she held her phone tenderly to her chest.

“No!” BoBo said quickly, snatching it from Bean before he set it on the ground. “Be free, little one!”

The squirrel barely ran four feet away before the cat pounced on it, killing it in one fell swoop.

“NOOOOOOO!” BoBo screeched.

“It will be hard for us to search all of hell together, but then again,” Silky said, tucking a piece of hair back into her ponytail, “It’ll be easier for all of us to defend each other in case of trouble.

The girl walked over to a wall and tilted a painting, making it perfectly even with the painting on the other side of the hallway. The cat dragged the squirrels corpse away, BoBo covering his mouth from shock.

“I want that cat as my pet,” Bean muttered, smile drawing on her face. 

“Final conclusion on the plan?” Eyeless Jack asked Silky.

“... Two groups.” She adjusted her hold on Addy. “I doubt that elevator can hold all of us, but if we split into two we could have travel quicker. Ben can use our phones. And I have to suggest this, but… I believe it’d be best if the adults split from the children.”

“What? No, no,” Masky insisted, picking up Sally. “We were all just seperated, not again. I’m going to find my son and my husband, and we’re all going to leave here alive and together.”

“I don’t think it’s a good idea, either,” Undyne said.

“Wait, she said it isn’t, so we should definitely do it now,” Cole said. 

“I don’t like it either, but there isn’t enough room in the elevator for all of us,” Silky explained, “We’re too big of a crowd to move around. Unless…” She paused for a moment. “Here, give me a moment to think. I've never really been to hell, so I need to adjust my plans a bit."

Papyrus suddenly felt his clothes shift, looking over to see Cole lightly poking him. His hand hadn't left his neck the entire time. 

"Can I talk to you for a moment?" He asked, "We can go into one of these rooms."

"Uh, sure."

Papyrus and him stepped aside into some room, tilting the door closed behind them. Cole continued to rub at his neck from behind the red scarf, a look of discomfort tainting his face.

"I uh, saw another timeline," Cole spoke softly, "Where you hadn't managed to pull me out of the way. And I, um, my head… it didn't… they would have stabbed me in the neck and would have completely cut off my…"

Oh. Oh no. Cole saw his own death, and of that? It was one thing to witness the death of another person, but yourself? 

"So yeah, thanks," Cole muttered, grasping at his neck once more. "For saving me."

"Of course."

Papyrus dragged his nephew in for a hug, reassuringly rubbing his back. 

"Because that's what family does."

《》《》《》

Sorry if this chapter has worse quality, I had to write most of it on my phone.

Which is why I'm here to discuss this with you, because as it turns out, water and computers do not get along. Rip my computer. I've managed to somewhat save it, but right now things are funky and I'm not sure exactly how bad this will ruin my schedule. I can still write on my phone, but my drawings and progress on other books is probably going to decline. Don't worry, I'll figure it out, just warning all of you for any possible changes.

But yeah, that's why gamenights on my discord is a no go. Rip my pc for gaming.