The hurried trek back to the lab felt agonizingly longer than it actually was. Every single step was like another tick of the clock as it counted down the precious time left before Papyrus would be travelling via explosion... to a place they wouldn't be able to find him. At every possible chance, they took shortcut after shortcut, hoping that the time shaved off would be enough.

Thankfully, the outside door remained unmoved, having been wrenched open by Undyne as they left earlier. When they all piled into the room, they looked around.

"he's not here," said Sans.

"Th-They've probably got him in the lab," said Alphys, panting. "I-It's this way; come on!" She hurried to the door and tried to wrench it open. "D-damn it."

"Move over." Undyne shoved the smaller monster out of the way as she and Asgore worked together to pry the door open.

"Elevator's broken, b-but I think we can get in." Alphys paused to think about this for a moment. "All right, Toriel, d-do you think you can climb down the shaft? It t-takes a lot of upper body strength..."

"Yes." Toriel replied. "I believe I can."

"Good. Undyne, you first. Then Toriel with S-Sans on her back... and Asgore, w-will you carry me?" She went a bit pink as she asked.

Asgore nodded. "Of course I will."

Undyne charged, leapt into the elevator shaft, and grabbed the cables, wasting no time in descending. Sans climbed onto Toriel's back and she followed, descending much more slowly than the fishwoman. Gently, Asgore hoisted Alphys onto his back, and with them entering the shaft, the five them descended the dank, dark elevator. The tiny flashlight attached to Undyne's belt was the only light they had, and that was moving farther from the pack with every passing second.

The dichotomy between the climbing styles of Undyne and the boss monsters was exceptionally clear. Whereas Toriel and Asgore were doing their best to descend gently, Undyne was shaking the cables with every grip. It got to be so bad a few times that Toriel urged her to slow down. She did, but only temporarily, as the thought of the timer served as a whip driving her forward.

As they reached the last several feet, Undyne let go and free fell before landing catlike on top of the broken elevator. She winced a bit, but pushed onward, breaking open the door on the elevator's roof and swinging inside, only to find that the doors were closed. Prying open the doors once more-which proved to be even more formidable than the other doors had been-she burst out into the main section of the True Lab.

It was dark, musty, and all kinds of unpleasant. Undyne covered her nostrils as she yanked her flashlight off her belt, looking around for a sign of anything suspicious. After five minutes of running around to no avail, she soon heard the sounds of the others emerging from the broken elevator.

She ran over to them, screeching to a halt. "Alphys, I can't find anything. Do you have any ideas?"

"Split up." Alphys said. "You and me go left, Toriel, Sans, and Asgore go right. Asgore and I are the only ones who know anything about this place's layout."

"I'm glad somebody knows; this place has too many doors!"

The five split up as proposed, the left group checking out the various exam rooms to the left, and the right group, once Asgore had pried open the door guarding it, exploring the right side.

"Nothing!" Undyne shouted, kicking one of the exam tables in frustration. "We might as well go join the others; this is all that's here, right?"

Alphys nodded. "Y-Yeah, it'd probably be best to-"

"FOUND HIM!" Asgore panted, running through the door. "We found him in the room with the yellow lock!"

Alphys' hands flew to her mouth. "The VCR room?"

"Yes, hurry!" Asgore picked up Alphys and would've picked up Undyne too, had she not already been out the door faster than an ice cube melting in lava.

All obstacles along the way were disregarded; Undyne jumped over the beds that were in the main sleeping room behind the right door, and Asgore, as though they were pillows, effortlessly thrust them out of his way.

Undyne wasn't really sure which way she was going; all she could do was follow the sound of familiar voices and the sickening sound of electronic blips passing at one second intervals. When they were their loudest, Undyne turned a corner and entered the aforementioned room.

The sight just about killed her. There sat Papyrus, in the worst state of panic she'd ever seen him; sweating, shaking, just... so helpless. Toriel was trying in vain to calm him, and Sans knelt at his side, furiously examining the paper in his hands.

"UNDYNE!" the taller skeleton screamed.

Undyne ran for him. "PAPYRUS!" She quickly got around to the back of his chair, looking for a way to untie the bomb from him.

"DON'T TOUCH ME!" Papyrus cried. "IF I MOVE TOO MUCH, THIS IS GOING TO GO OFF!"

She backed off, the earlier conversation between Papyrus and the Starlight Killer replaying in her mind.

"we've got two minutes." Sans informed her. "and apparently we need to work together on this clue."

Asgore rushed in, setting Alphys on the ground. The two of them looked around expectantly at the others.

"Well, what is it?" Undyne demanded.

Sans pointed to the paper as he spoke. "a combination lock. six numbers. six clues."

"Wh-What are they?" Alphys asked, leaning in closer

Number of times you rewrote your very first letter draft to Alphys.

You once told someone online that Papyrus acted like a child. What age did you give as an example?

Just how many children did you gut with that big red trident of yours?

How many years did you imprison the child most reluctant to stay with you?

How old was Papyrus the time you made him cry by telling him you hated him?

How many nights did you wait outside Undyne's house gathering the courage to ask to join the Royal Guard?

"Who's it for?" Undyne asked, blushing and trying to feign ignorance as to the first question.

But it didn't take long for them all to realize that each and every one of these questions had been specifically tailor-made for each of them, just as the earlier clues had.

Undyne shrugged and rushed for the combination lock. "The first number is seven."

Alphys' eyes nearly popped through her glasses. "SEVEN?"

"Look, just get the next number in; who's number two?" Undyne punched in the number 7 and looked at the group as the keypad beeped in acceptance.

"Omigod, Papyrus I..." Alphys looked close to tears. "I-I didn't know you then and you p-posted all those bicep pictures; I'm sorry!"

"What's the number?"

"Five." Alphys mumbled. "It was five."

Another beep for the second number.

"I believe the next clue is mine..." Asgore mumbled, his eyes cast to the floor. "And the answer is two."

Another beep.

"My clue is next and... three." Toriel stated.

Beep.

"i, uhh... " Sans gulped. "four."

Beep.

"So... there's a sixth clue." Undyne looked up at Papyrus. "And I think it's yours."

Papyrus began sweating even more. He opened his mouth, and with much effort, finally said "...EIGHT."

BEE-BEE-BEEP.

The bomb's casing opened to reveal a smaller metal box with another timer on it, this time only reading 30 seconds. A small note accompanied it: SAY GOODBYE.

"WHAT?" Undyne barked. "H-how do we disarm it? Alphys?"

Alphys quickly looked it over. "I-I think that kind of metal needs a special tool to cut through!"

"We've only got 25 seconds!" Undyne shouted.

"There is no time." Toriel shook her head.

"THEN PLEASE SAVE YOURSELVES, DON'T DIE FOR ME!"

Undyne looked at Papyrus like he'd lost his mind. "No, I'm not leaving you here."

"me neither," said Sans.

"NO, PLEASE GO, YOU'LL DIE!"

Alphys cringed. "20 seconds."

Undyne stepped forward, wrapping her arms around her fiancé. "I said I'm not leaving you."

"BUT UNDYNE-"

"DAMMIT, PAPYRUS, I LOVE YOU! I'M NOT LEAVING!" She tightened her grip, holding him closer.

Papyrus closed his eye sockets as a tear slipped down his cheek.

"...i said i wasn't leaving either," said Sans, walking over and throwing his arms around Papyrus from the back.

Toriel joined them, surrounding Sans in her hug for Papyrus. "We are here for you."

"Y-Yeah, if we're g-going, we're going tog-g-gether." Alphys was only able to wrap her little arms around Papyrus and Undyne.

Asgore knelt before Papyrus, looking him directly in the eye. "We cannot let you go through this alone."

By this point, Papyrus was utterly tearful. "WOWIE..."

The timer clicked down the final 5 seconds... four, three, two...

Undyne leaned in and whispered to Papyrus "...I love you."

One.

BEEP.

"...Thank you for giving me just enough time to make my getaway. Hope you enjoyed this experience as much as I did. See you later."

Seconds after the electronic voice had ceased, the entire room was completely quiet.

Until a thunderous boom of a laugh broke the silence moments later. Toriel had burst into almost hysterical giggles.

Slowly, she was joined by Sans, Alphys, Asgore... and finally, Undyne and Papyrus. They each let go, laughing until their sides ached and tears were streaming down their faces.

"I-HA-I c-can't believe that just ha-happened!" Alphys wheezed.

"W-WELL, THIS IS ALL FINE AND GOOD," Papyrus chortled, attempting to wipe his face on his sleeve, "BUT CAN YOU UNTIE ME NOW?"

They all broke out into a fresh wave of laughter, with Undyne sitting up and ripping apart the tape that was holding Papyrus to the chair and attaching him to the fake bomb. That done, she pulled him close in a tight hug, even closer than she could have with the decoy in the way. But as they hugged, their laughter gave way to heavy sobbing and tears. The rest of the room quieted down as they watched the two of them cry out the stress of the past 24 hours. The mood in the room shifted to one of sympathy; seeing Undyne, as adept as she usually was at hiding emotions she deemed "weak," sobbing as hard as the overemotional Papyrus, they could barely begin to imagine what she must have been going through.

"...I do believe we should give them some privacy," Toriel remarked as she stood up.

Sans appeared reluctant to leave his brother alone, even for a few minutes, but he stood up and followed Toriel out of the room. Asgore and Alphys exited behind them.

The sobbing continued for a little while afterwards, when it seemed like a good deal of their stress-based energy had been depleted. Papyrus looked Undyne in the eye, smiling softly. "...YOU CAME. YOU REALLY CAME..."

"Well, duh..." Undyne said, hiccuping once or twice. "Of course I did. You needed me; how could I not come get you?"

"BUT HE... HE SAID YOU GAVE UP."

Undyne scoffed. "Guy's a lying-" She caught herself. "-Uh... stupidhead."

Papyrus shook his head. "WOWIE, HE MUST BE PRETTY BAD FOR YOU TO USE SUCH STRONG LANGUAGE!"

She laughed. "Haha, yeah, the worst..." She wiped the tears from her eyes. "Seriously, though, he was really doing his hardest to mess with you. I... heard it."

"YOU HEARD WHAT?"

"Just... all of the horrible things he said to you. He had us parked in your old room, and there was a speaker there. I hate that he lied to you like that. But I want you to know that none of that was true. We all care about you, Papyrus. And, most of all..."

She leaned in and gave him a tender kiss on the cheek. "...I love you."

Papyrus blushed. "...WOWIE..." He rested his forehead against Undyne's. "I LOVE YOU TOO, UNDYNE."

She gently tightened up their hug, and the two of them sat together like that for the next several minutes, not wanting to let the other go.

Down the hallway, an entirely different scene was playing out. Sans and Toriel were huddled together, Toriel holding Sans, and Sans reassuring himself that yes, Papyrus was going to be all right. "he's fine, he's okay..." the small skeleton whispered to himself over and over again, a single tear rolling down his cheek. Toriel rocked gently back and forth, humming softly.

Alphys and Asgore stood nearby, relieved that things hadn't turned out as badly as they seemed they were going to a few minutes ago. Alphys fidgeted nervously, feeling a trickle of sweat slowly fall down her face. Finally, she took a deep breath and turned to Asgore.

"Asgore, I really like you and I think we'd be great together," she blurted out, her face reddening.

"I'm sorry?" Asgore said, staring at her with wide eyes.

"I, uhh... I really like you. I've l-liked you for a while. H-had a crush on you for y-years, actually."

Asgore's expression remained constant. "Why Alphys, I... it is unlike you to be so bold."

She rubbed the back of her head. "W-well we did almost just die. Err, I mean we thought we were going to... it kind of gives you a perspective on all the risks you never thought you were brave enough to take, you know?"

"I do not know what to say."

"Well..." she turned a little pinker. "...Y-You could say yes."

"Yes to... what?"

"What? Oh! Heheheh... will you g-go out on a date? With me? Sometime? Maybe soon?"

Asgore's lips melted into a very warm smile. "It would be my pleasure."

Alphys could've sworn the whole world had just come to a grinding halt. "R-really?"

"Of course." Asgore chuckled.

"...I-I think I'm gonna swoon... c-could you catch me?" Alphys winked at him.

"I will do better than that." Asgore reached down, picked up the little dinosaur, and spun her around.

"Asgore, wh-what are you doing?" Alphys giggled.

"Celebrating. It has been a long day and night and I am very tired so therefore, I am a bit giddy that it is over." Asgore hugged her tightly and put her down just in time for Undyne and Papyrus to walk out, hands tightly clasped.

Sans, seeing his brother freed from the chair, carefully got out of Toriel's lap and bolted for his brother, almost knocking him over with a flying leap. Undyne had to let go of Papyrus' hand so his arm wouldn't have been yanked off from the force. He said nothing, but it was clear from the hug how he was feeling.

Everyone else smiled, joining the two of them for a proper group hug this time, one free from imposed time limits and death threats. If they could've seen it, it would've made them even happier to see how big Papyrus was smiling, the seeds of doubt in his soul uprooted by the true love of his friends.

After a while, they broke up the hug, a few of them chuckling over the whole incident, still trying to work off a little residual stress. A few moments later, after everyone had settled down, Alphys spoke up.

"S-So... are we climbing up out of here, oooor...?"

Papyrus looked surprised. "CLIMBING?"

"Uh, yeah," Undyne said, scratching the back of her head. "We kind of had to lower ourselves down here with the elevator cables because there's no power to the lab."

"THAT'S ODD... AFTER THE KIDNAPPER LEFT, I COULD'VE SWORN I HEARD SOME KIND OF ELECTRIC BUZZING."

Alphys looked up at him, surprised. "A-Are you sure? Wh-Where was it coming from?"

He shrugged. "I'M AFRAID I DO NOT REMEMBER. BUT, I AM FAIRLY CERTAIN... THAT IF WE SEARCH THE AREA, WE WILL DEFINITELY FIND IT!"

Undyne chuckled; her fiancé seemed to be getting a bit of his familiar spark back.

Upon searching the area further, they discovered that there was indeed a switch that the Starlight Killer had been using to easily go to and from the lab. They found it already activated, so they rode the elevator back, all the way to the top, relieved to be out of such a melancholy place. But something was odd.

"Right to the Throne Room," Undyne sighed. "How convenient."

Alphys frowned. "Convenient that he l-left the elevators on to give us a shortcut. I d-don't like it."

"I don't either." Undyne sighed. "At this point, I don't care. We got Papyrus back. That's what we came for."

The sunrise painted the cave floor outside the Throne Room a brilliant yellow as the group headed back towards the cave exit. They were about to step outside when Alphys stopped, tugging on Asgore's sleeve. He in turn also paused, looking at whatever seemed to have caught her attention.

"Hold up," he said to everyone. "You all need to see this."

The rest of them came back to what was a message quickly scribbled on the cave wall in bright, glowing letters that shined brightly even with the sunlight on the floor.

YOU'LL STAY AWAY FROM THE POLICE FORCE IF YOU VALUE YOUR LIFE.

THIS IS YOUR LAST WARNING.

HAVE A NICE WEDDING.

Undyne instinctively grabbed Papyrus' hand, giving it a firm but tender squeeze. She wasn't sure what they were going to do about the message at the moment, but if anything, it was important to keep on the back-burner. She took her phone out and was about to take a picture, but realized the battery was completely dead this time.

Alphys noticed what Undyne was doing and took out her own phone, taking a picture of the writing. "Ah, d-don't worry; I've g-got this."

They all stepped out of the cave, shielding their eyes from the sun's piercing light. Before heading back to Undyne's cruiser, they decided to stop and take a look out over the beautiful view that the land was offering them.

"...IT'S FUNNY," Papyrus said. "THIS IS REMINDING ME OF WHEN WE ALL LEFT THE UNDERGROUND A FEW YEARS AGO... FOR THE VERY FIRST TIME."

Undyne smiled. "Aww, yeah?"

"AND I WAS ALSO THINKING..." Tears started running down his cheeks. "ABOUT HOW HAPPY I AM TO SEE IT WITH YOU ALL AGAIN! I THOUGHT I NEVER WOULD!"

"Aww, come here, Papyrus..." Adding to the already large number of hugs he'd gotten that morning, Undyne pulled him close for another tender embrace.

After giving them a few moments, Sans spoke up. "i hate to break up a tender moment, but i'm kinda hungry, so..." He motioned back down the path to the cruiser.

"Ah, right," Undyne said. She rubbed her fiancé's back as they walked back to their transportation. "Anyone else hungry?"

"Very much so," said Toriel.

At the very least, the trip back down the path was easier than the trek up... and with little good quality sleep and empty stomachs, that was just the kind of walk that they all needed, something easy.

When they reached the bottom, Undyne opened the door for Papyrus to get inside her SUV. She then opened the others for Toriel, Asgore, Alphys, and Sans. But as the others were climbing in, Sans pulled her aside.

"i, uh, wanted to apologize." He rubbed the back of his head.

Undyne's eyebrows rose. "You do?"

"yeah. it's no secret that, throughout this whole ordeal, i treated you horribly. and... well, i guess the only reason i blamed this whole thing on you was because you were right there and the most involved with papyrus. it wasn't fair to you at all. so... i'm sorry." He shuffled his feet a bit. "even if i don't say it, i'm actually really happy to be getting you as a sister-in-law. you really are everything papyrus needs." Sans looked up at her. "anyway, thanks for hearing me out." He turned to climb inside.

"Sans, wait," Undyne said.

The small skeleton was a little confused, but this soon gave way to surprise as Undyne gave him a tight hug.

"I forgive you, Sans."

"...okay but is the hug really necessary?"

Undyne gave him a serious look. "Yes."

He shrugged. "heh, fine."

Sans climbed back into car, situating himself on Toriel's lap. Asgore sat on the other side of the backseat, with Alphys happily sitting in the middle. And Papyrus was up front, waiting for Undyne to get in. As soon as she did and started the cruiser, he took her hand, smiling. She smiled and nodded, and with that, they were on their way back to the city, three hours away.