HAZE

MEET YOUR MAKER

The twins stumbled back, mouths hanging open in horror, staring eye-to-eye with the skeleton brothers. Their forms glitched and warped in front of them, dyed in shadow, white specs obscuring their view here and there. The skeletons held identical expressions, troublesome ones, their eyesockets dark and jaws locked in wide, unsettling smiles.

The everchanging walls around them settled into a bland, monotonous splash of white and grey, mimicking tile and floor to recreate a familiar room that neither of them had seen in years.

The lab. Their lab—Dr. Gaster's.

The laughter from before died down into a dull ring, shrouding them all in numbing silence, excluding the ever-present static.

All was calm. For the moment.

"Dings," Aster whispered, glancing over to his brother from the corner of his eyes. "Dings, what d'we do?"

The static grew louder, piercing their ears. The image of the skeleton brothers flickered, looming above them.

Wingdings remained silent for some time, staring up at Sans and Papyrus in what Aster could only guess to be awe, not comprehending his brother's question at first. Then, meeting his eyes, he said, "I don't know."

That scared Aster more than what stood in front of them.

Static blared in their ears, their heads ringing, and in that span of confusion, of disbelief, it seemed that Sans and Papyrus had come to their own decision.

The boys were greeted with the familiar sounds of Gaster blasters charging themselves, the monstrous skulls hovering high above them, aimed at their frozen frames.

"Run!" The word flew from his mouth before Aster could stop it, grabbing his brother's arm and pulling him away from the attack just before it fired. The floor remained scorched, just where the two had been standing.

Neither of them needed further warning. They took off, dodging blasts and bone as they charged the door, throwing it open and slamming it closed behind them. Running outside, they found the hall beyond twisted and turned, branching off in various directions.

Dings hesitated. "Which—"

"Dings, you idiot, don't stop—" His brother dragged him along, keeping him on his feet. "Just pick one and go."

"But—"

Bang! Bang!

The door behind them splintered, broken into pieces as if it were nothing. They both gasped, stepping away just as the skeletons stepped into view.

"Where are you going—"

"We're not finished here—"

"Just go!"

Aster grabbed Wingdings's wrist, pulling him in the opposite direction. He pulled them down one of the many branches, which quickly blended into one. An optical illusion.

They didn't know where they were going; with how much the hall changed before them, and how the floor behind them cracked and fell away with every attack the skeletons threw their way, they were stuck going nowhere other than forward, stuck on the path they'd chosen. Doors slammed open and closed on either side of them, splotches of static eating away at everything as they ran, ran, ran—

"Ah!"

Dings fell, Aster stopping in his tracks.

"Dings!" Aster knelt down beside him, his brother whimpering on the floor. Rolling him onto his back, he found a bone jutting through the other's leg. "Oh, God—"