Something was off about Sans when he woke up. Maybe it was the way he seemed to relish in his own body, moving and flexing every joint and taking every sense slowly and methodically. Maybe it was the purple tint in his otherwise white eyelights. Maybe it was that he hadn't even so much as given his adopted children a glance since he woke up... since they woke up. Yes, the pups knew there was something off about their father figure... and they were too scared to speak up. Even bold Orion couldn't utter a word as he watched Sans get up and leave them alone to the care of the still sleeping Gerson without saying a word as to where he was going. When he was gone, Sirius ran to the shell and knocked and shook at it. "Gerson! Gerson, wake up!" Gerson woke with a start and complained loudly about waking an old turtle and how dangerous that was. But the fearful looks the boys were giving him as they huddled together. "Where's yer dad?" Gerson asked. "He just left... without a word..." Gerson furrowed his brows. "Without a word, eh..? And yer sister?" The boys froze. Where was Artemis?

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Artemis got her name for a reason. She was a stealthy little hunter. Her dad had said as much, and she proved it now as she carefully followed this imposter. She knew it. She didn't know who it was, but her dad would never leave them alone! This skeleton posing as her dad spoke strangely too, speaking to himself in symbols as he headed back towards the lab where Dr. Alphys worked. Would Alphys notice his change, too? Would she help Artemis get their dad back? Even if she didn't notice, Artemis could tell her, and Artemis knew that Alphys would at least help her as she had helped her brothers and her daddy. Hotland was hard for her to follow and tail him through, though. She was a puppy, built for the cold weather. Hotland wasn't her scene. She already knew where he was going, though. She could take her time and prepare for the agonizing journey at the water cooler. Hopefully, by then, maybe Alphys will have stopped the imposter and got her daddy back. A pup could dream. This time, she wasn't going to stand idly by like she had with her brothers. This time, she would help.

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Alphys wasn't expecting Sans so soon, though it didn't seem to be her he wanted to see. Rather, he went straight to her 'restroom' without a word. "H-hey Sans, where are your pups?" She couldn't let him go in there. He couldn't learn about the Amalgamates! "pups? i have... oh yes, those pups. they are fine, with the general." Alphys was startled and confused with that answer. Sans would never forget his pups, for one. They were his kids, his reason for living! For two, nobody called Gerson 'The General'. He had long since been retired of that title. Sans tried to slip into the elevator. "W-wait! How a-are your dreams doing? S-still bad..?" Sans smiled, but it wasn't his smile. It seemed twisted, in some way. False. "oh, i slept fine, doctor. whatever you have done, it worked wonders." That was it. Alphys knew something bad happened. This wasn't Sans. She'd never prescribed Sans anything and he did anything in his power to take shortcuts, whether it was in everyday activities or sentences. "W-who are you and what have y-you done to Sans!" He didn't flinch. He didn't move a muscle. "i am sans." He replied before he snapped his fingers and disappeared inside the elevator. Blank, grey monsters appeared in his place, guarding the entrance and moving to seize the scientist.