"Sans," Alphys said slowly, wiggling her fingers as they glowed with yellow magic. "Do you take me for a fool?"

"I do," Sans barked in response. "Though I wouldn't put it so nicely. Give it up, Alphys. I know you've failed. So does Flowey, so does Mettaton. You've got no one on your side. It would be in your best interest to listen to me."

Silence stretched on for what felt like centuries, and all Sans could see was the glint of the reptile's glasses in the dark. He couldn't read her expression. For some reason, she didn't cower, didn't flinch when his words hit her- and why? She'd been caught.

...Right?

"I think the only fool here is you, my dear skeleton," the witch hissed, taking a step closer, her sharp teeth peeking out at him past her scaly lips. "Do you honestly think me so incompetent? Sure, I admit the humans were utter failures. Their corpses were too weak and withered to withstand the level of determination I'd injected into them- but that only lead me to discover something else. Something better. Something stronger. Take a look at Mettaton here. Just how do you think I was able to bring him to life? Hm?"

The robot in question put a hand to his chest and blinked in surprise, his shoulders hunching once he realized her words.

"Y-You mean.. I'm-"

"Get to the point, you stinking reptile!" Sans yelled, clenching his hands into fists. "I don't have time for games- I could turn you to dust right now if I felt like it!"

"And if you did, who would bring your poor, sweet Pappy back?" Alphys crooned, making the floor at her feet glow a menacing yellow to counter Sans' threatening scarlet. "Oh, yes. I overheard that conversation, Sans. I overheard all of it. You need me more than you'd like to admit. In fact, I'd go as far as to say that right now- I'm your only hope. But go ahead, kill me. If that's what you really want."

Alphys' yellow magic receded, and she spread her arms, her cloak billowing out behind her as she gave herself up. Sans' magical aura grew for a few seconds, before he hesitated, and took a step back, shaking his head in bitter defeat. There would be too many questions left unanswered, too many resources wasted if he took a chance and ended Alphys now. As much as he hated to admit it... she was right. Without her, Papyrus would be unable to fight. They'd be powerless against Toriel if Flowey failed- and heaven forbid them go up against Asgore as weak as they were right now. They needed her.

"Explain," he demanded, stomping his foot. "No questions, no riddles. Just answers."

With a snort, Alphys smirked and pointed a finger at Papyrus' limp body, causing it to levitate. Sans growled indignantly and watched his sibling carefully as he floated behind the witchy reptile, who only gave an innocent shrug.

"What?" she asked, batting her eyes at him. "It's not fair if he doesn't get to hear too. Follow me."

She started walking quickly, leading them down various musty hallways and long, dark corridors. Not even Mettaton knew where they were going, giving Sans a confused shrug when the skeleton shot him a baffled look. Soon, they reached a dead end- or so they thought. Alphys pressed her hand onto the mossy bricks and muttered an incantation under her breath, making the entire wall shimmer with amber light before it vanished and gave way to a massive room full of candles, old books, and many scattered pieces of paper with messy writing on them.

"Most of the hallways and corridors are for show," she elaborated, setting Papyrus in the middle of the floor. "So intruders get lost. Stand back, by the way, this is going to get a bit messy."

Mettaton instantly obeyed and shuffled over to where the doorway had previously been, but Sans stood his ground and suspiciously crossed his arms. He still wasn't fond of being told what to do, and furthermore...

"What're you going to do to him?" he asked gruffly, shifting his weight from one leg bone to the other. Alphys' tail lashed, and she lowered her glasses to squint at him from under the wide brim of her hat. A smile twitched at her lips.

"I'm going to heal him. That's what you wanted, isn't it?" she asked, tapping her foot impatiently. "Face it, Sans. You're in my territory now, and it's best for you if you do as I say. Now, don't make me have to say it again. Stand back."

Huffing, Sans joined Mettaton, grumbling insults under his breath. His spine shook with mixed feelings. On one hand, he was secretly relieved that Alphys was going to bring Papyrus back. On the other hand- it would mean he owed her. It would mean he'd been weak, that he'd needed someone, that he hadn't been able to do something on his own. When Papyrus awakened, he'd have to confront his errors, he'd have to apologize... It was disgusting, overwhelming, and he wasn't quite sure he wanted to go through with it all of a sudden- but if he had anything to say about it, it was too late.

Alphys drew a symbol around Papyrus' body with chalk, and lit various candles, each giving forth an amber flame. She proceeded to stand in front of him, and spread her arms, yellow magic pulsing at her finger tips and causing Papyrus to levitate once more. The flames began to flicker as her lips parted and she began to chant. It cast eerie shadows on the walls. Sans didn't know what she was saying, but something about the ancient tongue made more shivers go down his spine. It made him feel small. Sweat started to bead his skull, and he shifted nervously as the chanting got louder.

With every incantation, the candles' flames flickered, and grew brighter until they were practically blinding. A sickening crunch was heard as several vertebrae pieced themselves back together, and the fragmented bits of Papyrus' skull fused. His shattered arm straightened, and the pieces snapped back into place with sharp cracks that made Mettaton wince and look away. Alphys was practically screaming at this point, her voice grating on their ears, her teeth bared as Papyrus began to shake, his bones rattling loudly as his body descended. When he touched the ground, it vibrated until dust started falling from the rafters, and Sans thought his own skull would shatter and fall off.

Finally, the candles went out, and there was silence, save for Alphys panting in the dark. Sweat beaded her brow, and she trembled lightly as she pushed her glasses up, turning to the two stunned spectators behind her.

"It's done," she wheezed, waving a clammy hand. "Give him time."

The shorter skeleton stared fixedly at his sibling, and after a few seconds of thick silence, his shoulders drooped. This... wasn't what he was expecting. He was both relieved and disappointed.

"How much time are we talking?" Sans pressed, crossing his arms. Alphys stared at him fixedly, and shook her head.

"You're terrible at hiding your feelings, you know," she chided, fixing her hat nonchalantly as Sans fumed in response.

"We don't have all day!" he cried, gesturing. "And you've yet to explain anything! How am I supposed to trust you when-"

"I healed your brother, didn't I?" Alphys yelled, rounding on him angrily. "Isn't that enough? If I wanted you dead, you would have been dust in the snow fifteen minutes ago, skeleton. Now do you want answers or not?"

"I'd.. like some answers."

The three turned to see Papyrus sitting up sluggishly, a baffled expression on his face as he stared at his previously broken arm and then looked up at them. The taller skeleton locked gazes with Sans for a few painful seconds, and Sans couldn't help but look away, practically flinching at the nagging emotions bubbling up inside him. Gross.

"Ah, Papyrus," Alphys cooed, clasping her hands together. "You're right on time. The show's just getting started-"

Papyrus slowly shook his head and stood, wobbling in place for a few seconds before pointing at Alphys angrily.

"You! You-"

"Papyrus, it's," Sans said haltingly, voice catching when the younger skeleton turned to look at him. "It's fine. She's uh.. She's with us. I think."

"Who's 'us'?" Papyrus asked testily, crossing his arms. The smaller skeleton began to sweat profusely, shifting his weight from leg bone to leg bone almost anxiously. He'd come to terms with the fact that he wasn't as ruthless as he'd previously thought, that he was no longer working for Asgore, that he'd been wrong- but admitting it out loud? No. Not yet.

"Look," he snapped. "Things- things are different. 'Us' is Flowey, Mettaton, Alphys, Frisk and..me and you."

"Why should I trust you after what you did?" Papyrus asked, raising his voice as his emotions got the better of him. He stalked over, and loomed above Sans threateningly, his eye socket throbbing with barely contained magic. Sans growled, and took half a step back, his shoulders hunching defensively, jaw bone clicking open to speak when-

"He brought you here!" Mettaton cried, gesturing with two of his four arms desperately, his amber eyes wide. Papyrus suddenly recoiled as if he'd been hit, gazing at the robot in shock. Mettaton huffed and gave a nod and a shrug. "He brought you here, Papyrus. So that Alphys could heal you. Which, she did. Congrats."

Papyrus gave Sans one final look before stepping away to stare at Alphys harshly, his hands curling into fists.

"Explain," he demanded, practically quivering with anger. Alphys rolled her eyes and slowly pushed up her glasses, waving him off as if he were nothing more than an annoying insect.

"What do you think I've been trying to do this whole time? Are you done?" she mocked, lip curling in a bit of a sneer before she started pacing, her padding steps echoing in the small space. "You were under the impression that I was helping Asgore by injecting determination into human corpses for his supposed army, correct? You'd received information from Flowey, who told you that I'd failed and I was stalling, correct? Well, you were wrong. It's true that the determination experiments failed- but I wasn't stalling. In fact, I was being very, very productive."

Alphys snapped her fingers and in the middle of the room, a hulking shape appeared, concealed by a single sheet. The reptile smirked and continued to pace in front of it, ignoring Sans' impatient snarl.

"I had all this determination, harvested from humans, but what to do with it? Then I was struck with inspiration. If the bodies couldn't handle the injections of determination, then what did I need? New bodies. Stronger bodies. Metal bodies- and that's when I made Mettaton. He's not just a menial security guard, you know. He's a weapon. His canon is infused with lethal amounts of magic and determination," she elaborated, waving her hand once more. "He's entirely made out of metal, but he's sentient, capable of understanding and following commands. However.. He was just a prototype."

The witch chuckled and lifted up a corner of the sheet, pausing for a few seconds before pulling it back with a proud flourish. Beneath was an enormous robot with a coat of shining blue paint and sharp shoulders. Four long metal arms hung at its sides, and four vacant eyes stared straight ahead.

"Gentlemen," she said, pointing. "Meet Napstaton. They're the key to winning the revolt against Asgore and his idiotic plans."

As she stared expectantly, Sans stepped forward, seething. His eye lit up with scarlet, and he curled his hands into fists, shivering with fury. All this riddling and showmanship- and for what? A single robot. If it was anything like the lying, stupid, cowardly scrapheap that Mettaton was, they were all doomed. He'd sacrificed his pride, his status, his very life- all for this? All for a robot? He wanted to strangle Alphys at that very moment, and wipe the proud grin off her face.

"One robot," he choked, scarlet beginning to thrum at his fingertips. "All of this.. this ridiculousness over one robot?!"

His yell echoed menacingly in the small room, and Papyrus couldn't help but flinch. He, too, was a bit disappointed. He'd been expecting something more... helpful. Yes, Alphys was a genius when it came to magic and it's use, but what did this possibly do for them? They were right back at square one, with no defenses. Beside him, Mettaton shifted uneasily and crossed one pair of arms.

"Alphys," he began. "I'm, like.. flattered and all, but how is this going to help us?"

He stared in confusion, amber eyes narrowing as Alphys' grin only widened, a crazed gleam coming to her eye.

"Because this," she chuckled. "Is one of many."

Hi, gang. Unfortunately, I've lost the muse for this story. I hope you guys like this last chapter, and as always- thank you for your support!