Horrifying screams echo through the Waterfall, terminal after terminal from those betrayed by trusted acquaintances, friends, and neighbors. Voices rang out, asking where is Undine, desperately searching for the Captain of the Guard, sworn to protect them in such a tragedy, but those who would hear the call had long since been mowed down by an attack from the square before the tragedy could begin. The monsters who could not know better called out for help from those who would not come, fleeing from the traitor in anger or fighting back, collapsing into dust.
Fleeing from the slayer, Washua ran into a cluster of echo flowers. Her instinct was to burrow beneath the echo flowers and hide, but that was not a wise choice. The blue petals that brighten the dimly lit cave provide no shade. As the flowers swayed in the light cave breeze, Washua's body was clearly visible in the blue light as she fluttered about, praying for the slayer to pass. It was not a sight Sandz would miss. The eyes of the dying met the eyes of the slayer. Washua spoke in a trembling voice.
"Yes, your soul is tainted...."
It was an accusation I had heard many times. There was nothing more to hear. Without hesitation, the Slayer swung his arm. Bone dug into Washua's brow. The accusation failed, falling to dust, mixing with the water on Washua's back and soaking into the floor. The dust of monsters is often scattered on things they loved in life, but whether this Washua loved echo flowers is unknown.
Now there's no need to look for monsters in the waterfall. Sands knew that from long experience. Now the only place left is the Hotlands. There's no need to hurry. By this time, the humans will have reached Snowdyne, which is already in ruins. Unlike them, human feet are slow, unable to take shortcuts.
"Pop, let's take a break."
Sands spoke to the only brother he could see, the papyrus apparition.
Are you tired of holding that thing, brother?
Papyrus, not Papyrus, scolded Sands for working so hard. Papyrus's vision was always like that. He never saw his brother lazy, not even for a moment. The visions of his guilt for failing to save his brother-or rather, for killing him-had followed him like his sins, whipping him, chastising him, pushing him to the limit.
But who said time was a medicine? Sands took it in stride.
"There's a long way to go before the humans come. You can take it easy."
Lazy, lazy, lazy.
"Yeah, yeah."
Even here underground, time was a drug, though it was broken, not knowing how to flow smoothly in one direction. Sands, who at first had been terrified by the mere presence of the phantom, unable to look it in the face, gagging with guilt, exhausted and saying he couldn't do it anymore, and then chasing monsters until he collapsed with exhaustion and muttering apologies to whoever it was he was addressing, now stretched as if he could hear his brother's question about whether he felt like resting after killing me. His bones clattered together in a cacophony of sound. The dust of her slain was everywhere, but Sands didn't care. He didn't care whether he stepped in it or not, only dodging the occasional puddle of stagnant water as he stretched his stiffened body.
With a click, something cold touched the bones of her outstretched fingers. Droplets of water.
"Rain?"
Snap, vomit.
"You can never guess the weather down here."
Most things underground were predictable, but the weather was unpredictable, and if the layered memories of his past were any indication, the weather on any given day had always been similar, perhaps this was another aftereffect of his time in the madhouse. He didn't care, because it didn't interfere with what he was doing. There was nothing he could do about the weather, no matter how or what it turned out to be.
As he looked around, his eyes caught sight of an umbrella on the ground. He didn't know which monster had dropped it, but he was pretty sure it was unclaimed. He unfolded the umbrella, inspected it for holes or breaks, and tossed it aside.
What are you doing, big brother?
Papyrus said, as if the vision of him under the umbrella was ridiculous.
"I don't know."
I don't like rain.
"Remember, Pop, when you were a kid, you always ran around without an umbrella when it rained, because you were so strong, you wouldn't get cold."
Falling raindrops soaked the hood of her hoodie.
"Then one day it rained so hard that I got soaked. I caught a nasty cold, didn't I? You must have been bedridden for a week."
My brother.
"I don't know how long it's been since I've put an umbrella on you since you got over your cold. Well, sometimes he's been walking around without one, and if I want to put one on him, I can't reach his arm."
Droplets of water trickled down Sands' eyes.
"...Let's just do this until it stops raining."
There was no more conversation. Only the sound of the rain continued in silence.
