A collection of inane nonsense (ranging from Error being reincarnated as Palette to Dust finding a new love for the color pink) circling around the many AUs and Multiverses of the Undertale world. Some stories will be connected; Others will be rando...
A/N: Probably not the epic conclusion everyone has been waiting so long for, but this is what I originally planned on ending the story with- Hopefully, it doesn't disappoint too badly.
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The heels of Sci's work shoes clicked against the marbled floor, punctuating his steps throughout the spacious halls. The sharp echo was palpable even amongst any ongoing chatter. Yet it drew little to no attention, as most were too preoccupied to busy themselves with the worries of others. Each aggressive propulsion sent the end of his pristine lab coat swishing, almost like the tail of a riled cat- which the scientist's downright murderous expression certainly matched. After a particular number of steps, he routinely pushed his glasses back up to keep them from being shaken off his skull.
Though, the action did little to halt his forceful gait as he trod through the Star Sanses' main headquarters.
Despite the ample room between the walls, the space was far too crowded for his liking; Claustrophobic, humiliating. Sanses from all over the Multiverse wandered the inner halls- Each with their own goals in mind. Each likely more successful in their pursuits than Sci.
The failure.
The skeleton whose revolutionary project met defeat at the hands of a half-baked, purple-dyed children's school project that barely even fizzled.
A loud growl tore out Sci's nonexistent throat, causing some Sanses to send him very startled and confused looks as he passed. Unsurprising, seeing as he was marked one of the calmer/less volatile of them. His dull green eyelights flared whilst he shot a withering glare toward a Sans whose j̶u̶d̶g̶i̶n̶g̶ gaze lingered too long. Consequently, making the hoodie-wearing monster recoil anxiously and look away.
The lab coat-clad skeleton would have continued marching onward in blind anger - no, searing rage - walking off to who knew where to do who knew what, if not for a firm skeletal hand suddenly grasping his shoulder. It was large, firm, and warm. Traits that made it all too similar to the paws of a specific goat monster: Asgore. His traitor of a king who'd given him a c̶o̶n̶d̶e̶s̶c̶e̶n̶d̶i̶n̶g̶ pitying pat on the shoulder after assigning his worthless rock of a father the role of Royal Scientist at the official ceremony.
Sci bristled. Summoning the speed of ten dark coffees, he spun on his heels and slapped the offending hand away. In return, receiving, "Woah, kid- Ya okay?"
The voice was a familiar one- deep, smooth, boarding the edge of confident and concerned.
He blinked the crimson hue from his vision and took a shaky breath.
Despite the conclusion his mind may have jumped to, Asgore had, in fact, not traversed dimensions to mock his scientific pursuits further. Nor to drive monster-kind toward a dystopian future. (Even though the line the king walked drew closer and closer to the latter every day.) Instead of the royal boss monster, a skeleton standing above the average height limit for a Sans - i.e., a few inches taller - paused before Sci. The other's larger frame was adorned by various dark clothes (edgy, one might call them): a black hoodie accented with dull red/yellow hues and fluffy off-white trim, long matching shorts, and heavy, possibly steel-toed sneakers.
The Multiverse contained numerous Underfell Sanses, and many looked more than a little similar. Like with most Sanses. But this one- this one couldn't be any other than Red.
Concern painted the edgy Sans' skull as he pulled his smacked arm back to his side.
"Sci- seriously, are ya okay? Ya aren't... lookin' too good." He asked, a frown tugging at his jaws.
On a normal day, such attention from his crush would have left Sci's soul fluttering. Today, however, the scientist could only feel the bottled rage he'd been shoving down since the Royal Science competition. The burning sensation that had merely grown after the assignment of the honored title.
"I'm I okay? I'm I okay?!" Laughter bubbled in Sci's chest, escaping as a broken maniacal cackle. The noise made more than a few Sanses exit the hallway while he continued, clenching his hands into fists and growling, "Why is Asgore such an idiot? Can't he see I'm more qualified to be the Royal Scientist instead of that baking soda-loving, hole-handed, molten-faced-"
Realization sparked in Red's eyelights, then he shoved his hands into his pockets and hissed sympathetically. "Ah... I see ya've fallen victim to the Volcano Effect."
Sci's eye sockets narrowed. "Volcano Effect?"
"Yeah. It's like a rite of passage for most, if not all, Sanses with a scientific background." The Underfell Sans explained.
"Oh," The lab coat-clad skeleton muttered, deflating.
The heat in his rage-ladden soul snuffed, chilled as though dumped in a bucket of iced water. It seemed even the fates had been against him from the very beginning. If a majority of Sanses tried and failed what he'd hoped to achieve, the likelihood of him winning the title of Royal Scientist was next to none.
"Don't feel too bad!" Red frantically amended once the anger fell from Sci's face, leaving misery in its wake. "From what I've seen, every AU has it in one form or another, even Swap."
"Really? Blue had to go through that too?" The scientist sniffled, pushing up his glasses and wiping his eyes with a sleeve. The pristine white fabric caught the magical tears that dared escape without his permission, making way for new ones. Despite how hard he attempted to keep them in.
Red shrugged nervously. "Well, yeah? Why else would he've thrown his Gaster into the Void?"
Sci blinked, adjusting his glasses. "He did what? Wait, Gaster ends up in the Void because-"
An arm suddenly wrapped around his shoulder, causing him to startle. All the while, Red's face dropped. Impossibly paler and marred by an expression akin to fear. The scientist's eyelights anxiously flicked to the left. Standing against his side laid the very monster they'd mentioned, Blue, wearing a friendly smile that didn't portray so much as a hint of malicious intent. (But, after the Christmas party, Sci knew better than to trust those lying teeth.)
The Underswap Sans had appeared so suddenly, as though summoned by the mere mention of his name- or sensing the incriminating topic of their conversation.
Perhaps Sci needed to revisit his theory about the other's possibly demonic nature.
"Heya, Red! Not talking about things you shouldn't, are you?" Blue chimed, flashing his signature cheery grin.
Red shrunk away, sweat slowly sliding down the side of his skull. "N- No, just tellin' Sci here about the Volcano Effect since he just experienced it firsthand."
"I see!" Blue slipped his arm off the lab coat-clad skeleton and took a step back, adding a wink as he said, "Well, then, let me know if you need someone to help give a little extra push!"
"E-extra push?" Sci sputtered, taking his own step away from the other.
"Exactly! But don't go around telling anyone I offered." With that, the Underswap Sans casually walked away, leaving no room for further questioning. He threw in a wave whilst he turned a corner. Thus, disappearing from their view.
Sci shuffled closer to Red, skull periodically turning between his blind spot - behind him - and the location Blue once was. "W- When did Blue become so scary?"
Red warily shot a glance toward the direction the armor-clad Sans disappeared in, quietly muttering, "Before Error kidnapped him, that's for sure."
