Royal Blue

What is (un)known (Chapter Thirty Two)

"What happened?" Toriel asked as they emerged into the outside air. Frisk looked up to Alphys, who was already pulling out her phone.

She flicked through screens, live camera feeds, Undyne realized.

"I-I think we ju-just got a shock w-wave from, from some k-kind of, c-cave in," Alphys answered softly.

Toriel looked up, her dark, caring eyes, blown wide and fretful.

"Where?"

"N-Near the ruins." Undyne leaned over her shoulder to get a look, but her girlfriend was flicking through different feeds so quickly, it was hard to really take in anything between the motion and grey static.

"Is anyone trapped? Can you see any potential injured?" Asgore asked.

"N-Not that I c-can see," Alphys answered, "but the collapse t-took out one of m-my camera's, and da-damaged a few n-nearby."

Undyne looked around for Papyrus, ready to call him to action-

But he was nowhere to be found.

How the hell someone that loud and ostentatious, could just... disappear, was beyond her. But there was no time to dwell, a voice in the back of her head reminded. It felt fuzzy.

It was right, of course. There was no time. There could be monsters, trapped in the rubble. In need of her help-

"Are there any guards at the site?" Undyne asked, quickly summoning a spear. Ready to head off on her own.

"I-I think a few of the Dog Pack a-are heading t-toward it, b-but they're not there yet-"

"I CAN'T FIND SANS!" A loud, distraught voice cried from behind them, shaken, as if the world were still quaking.

Undyne immediately twisted toward him.

Papyrus stood in the open doorway. He looked... Scared. Desperate. Visibly out of breath too.

The bright daylight cast heavy, harsh shadows that clung under his bones. Ducking out from the curtain of darkness; of what was left behind.

Lanky, knock-kneed legs shambled immediately toward the group.

"I-I ONLY TOOK M-MY EYES OFF OF HIM FOR A SECOND, I WAS RIGHT BESIDE HIM AND THEN HE WAS JUST GONE, I-" Papyrus rambled. Toriel quickly took to his side, concern evident and warm, a furry paw placed over his shoulder, quietly reminding him to 'breathe'.

"I CAN'T FIND HIM. I- I DON'T- I LOOKED ALL OVER THE CASTLE-"

Hot tears had begun to flow from his narrow eye-sockets, pooling and catching on the rim of his jaw. He hiccuped and scrubbed at the warm, irritated bone. Trying desperately to mop the flood of emotion that, like a glass overfilled, just kept pouring.

"Shhh, hun, it'll be alright," Toriel whispered, gathering the skeleton in her arms. His already weakened legs began to buckle, and Toriel slowly lowered him to the ground.

Papyrus's bony hands twisted together, pinching the fabric of his gloved hands; then gripping tight, like he was tearing something invisible apart.

"We can help you look for him, alright?" Toriel spoke softly.

Undyne snarled inwardly, sharp teeth glinting in the yellow light.

Of course Sans would use this as some kind of bullshit opportunity to sneak off.

How hadn't she noticed? And how dare he continually worry Papyrus like this?! This was-

Undyne summoned a spear with her frustration. She tried to think of when and where Sans could have separated off-