I tripped.

I fell as silently as I could, hoping to not alert Error's heightened sense of hearing, but it didn't work out as I'd hoped. He heard me, and he quickly turned to help me up; I could barely find the strength to move, let alone run more. Even the kid looked distraughtly at my condition. Unfortunately, the guards quickly caught up with us, and we were surrounded. 

We had failed.

"Good job!" Ink smirked. "You practically locked your own cage again, Error; compassion is a weakness."

Error sighed; he wasn't escaping today.

"Take the prisoner back to his cell, lock the child with the others, and bring the skeleton to the interrogation room; I'd like to have a little chat with him." Ink ordered.

"Yes, Sir." The guards did as they were told, and our group was separated; that wasn't good.

The kid was teleported away from us quickly, and rather forcefully; they were a pretty tough kid, but the guards were stronger. Error and I didn't receive the luxury of teleportation, instead being walked back through the hallway. Since I had used virtually all of my energy, I didn't have to walk; I was instead dragged across the sharp rock floor, and it didn't exactly feel great. Error's sadness was evident: he had been locked away all this time, just to see another failed escape attempt. I felt so sorry that I had ruined the escape; if I had fallen softer, or even just kept running, maybe things would have been different..our situation was my fault, and nobody else's. I should have done something! I eventually went unconscious as we continued our trek through the hallway, but I refused to enjoy my dusty nightmare; I messed up what could have been our only chance, and I did it in the worst way possible. Now we were all captured. If it was only me, maybe the others would have been able to do something, but all I'd done was make a mess of it. Ink would probably kill me, and I wouldn't come back again. I worried about Papyrus; what would he have thought? I didn't know. When I finally awoke, I found myself in a room similar to the interrogation room I was familiar with, but there were a few differences: there were weapons lining the walls, and my feet and hands weren't restrained. Ink sat across from me.

"So." Ink began. "Sans, is it?"

"Once.." I hadn't looked up; I couldn't bring myself to look anyone in the eyes after my failure.

"You made it pretty far; I'm impressed. For a moment, I almost thought you would make it. Fortunately for me, you didn't. Are you part of the resistance?" 

"Perhaps.."

"Partially?"

"That term would fit it better.."

"I see. Your plan was to send a Sans and a child to rescue the prisoner, correct?"

"That's obvious.."

"You must be strong for them to select you; perhaps you volunteered for a sacrificial mission, willing to rescue him at all costs?"

"If it came to that.."

"Indeed. I bet you would make a great addition to my army."

"I'm not joining any army. I came to do one thing, and I failed; that doesn't mean I'm switching sides."

"Interesting. I've heard that from so many of my loyal soldiers. Tell me: are you aware of how I run my empire?"

"Not particularly.."

"You must be new, then. Since it looks like you're going to get a firsthand experience, I'll tell you! Determined children are much too rambunctious to keep in their AUs, so I simply lock them in a prison. The inhabitants are allowed to live quite a free and peaceful life without resets..that is..if they obey. A strict set of guidelines is enforced over AUs, preventing rebellion on a massive scale. For extra protection, I take the judge of the AU, which is typically a Sans, such as yourself, and make them a part of my army. But how would you control them, you ask? Wonderful question! I have the unique power to alter code; you probably have no idea what that is, but I won't ruin it for you. I change it, quite simply, so that they have to follow my orders, or their brother instantly dies! Doesn't that sound fun? It does to me!"

"You're sick." I was disgusted by Ink's sense of humor.

"So I am!" Ink laughed heartily. "Anyway, Sans, do you have a nickname? If not, I'll give you an appropriate title."

"I don't want your titles, and I'm not joining your army!"

"You can say that all you want, but it changes nothing." Ink reached across the table.

"Hey!" I tried to keep Ink from pulling my hood up, but I didn't quite succeed.

"What?" Ink seemed shocked. "Dust?"

Contrary to my predictions, Ink began to laugh. He laughed upon revealing my identity.

"I killed you!" Ink laughed even more. "And you're back! Oh, this is too good! You know what?"

I remained silent; now was not the time for talking.

"I'm going to clear my schedule!" Ink chuckled. "This is rich!"

Ink stood from his seat and walked to the back of the room, giving the door a few knocks. It opened quickly to reveal a guard; he seemed frightened of Ink.

"Y-yes, Sir?" The guard was definitely afraid. 

"Have him taken to my quarters, quickly!" Ink emphasized.

"Y-yes, Sir!"

Soon after that, Ink left the room, and the guard called an escort. After he had finished that, he walked over to me.

"He doesn't usually take prisoners to his room unless he regards them as special.." The guard started. "What did you try to do?"

"I tried to save Error..and I messed up right at the end.." I sighed.

"Oh..that would make you special. What's your name?"

"Dust."

"Dust? You mean as in the Dust from Nightmare's gang?"

"Yep.."

"Oh my gosh! You're like, heroes! Everybody thought you were executed..weren't you?"

"We were..my universe reset..that doesn't make much of a difference, now, I guess.."

"Oh. Well, I wish you good luck in whatever faces you! Ink can be...cruel."

"Thanks.."

"I should..get back now. It was awesome talking to you!"

"Same to you."

The guard quickly returned to his post, and he was just in time, too; two more guards entered the room soon after and took firm grips on my arms. I didn't struggle; I wouldn't try to escape when I knew that Error was still trapped. As I was walked through the large hallways, I wondered what Papyrus was doing; he's the best. He and Chara were probably already working on a backup plan, or they could have been working on finding a power source for Last Hope; they would no doubt bring the others back to complete the rescue! I was sure that Paps would find a way to succeed where I failed! He's the best, after all, and he could do anything better than me! When we reached our destination, the guards opened a door to a rather large room, decorated mostly with paint; the majority of it was red - I really hoped it was paint. Ink was lying on a painted bed, awaiting our arrival; he seemed overjoyed. I would have bet he wouldn't have had that smirk on his face if Error did escape. When we entered the room, the guards kept me standing by the door as Ink silently dismissed them; I was left alone with him again. When we were definitely alone, he sat up and smiled at me; I wondered what he was planning.

"Dust." Ink said. "Come over here."

"I don't see why I should." I wasn't stupid. 

"You don't have a choice. If I'm going to inflict pain on you, which I probably am, don't you think it would be better for you to just get over here?"

I crossed my arms and decided to give in; Ink was right, unfortunately. I walked over to his bed, where he forced me onto the ground; I didn't find it wise to fight him. 

"Good!" Ink was pleased. "Now...what do I do when one of the first people I ever hated shows up, and I have nothing to worry about? Turn him into a guard? No, that wouldn't be any fun..I have no leverage, anyway. Hmm..what's something that everyone hates? Feelings..pity..no. Oh! I know! Everybody hates pain! What better to do than make you suffer?"

"Let Error go." I suggested.

"No." Ink was stern. "I think I'll use you as a plaything..that seems to suit my needs perfectly!"

"Maybe not do that?"

"Oh, you're just nervous! Don't worry, Dust! We'll have lots of fun together, and I can introduce you to your new best friend!"

"Huh?"

"Oh, you haven't met him yet! I forgot! Let me introduce you!" Ink unsheathed his paintbrush. "His name..is Pain."

The second he said that, Ink swung his brush at me hard enough to send me flying across the room; I certainly felt pain from that. As soon as I had risen to my feet, Ink had made his way across the room and began to batter me more with his brush; I had a feeling that this would become normal. Ink continued his rampage for over three hours, breaking several of my bones and leaving me essentially crippled; Ink enjoyed that. One of my legs had been severely broken, hindering my ability to walk; the rest of my bones were intact enough to move, but I didn't see a bright future for them. When Ink finished his spree, he sat on the floor beside me, smiling. 

"That was fun, wasn't it?" Ink asked. 

"No.." I felt horrible.

"Well, maybe you'll change your mind tomorrow; I'll use paint, then. Have you ever tasted paint?"

I shook my skull.

"It's really quite the experience!" Ink giggled, holding up one of his vials. "Would you like to try it?"

"No." I had felt Ink's paint before in battle; it wasn't pleasant.

"Suit yourself, but tomorrow, you won't get this choice." Ink began to sip some paint.

"Why are you even keeping me here? Wouldn't I be better off in a prison cell?"

"No, silly! You're my new toy, and my toys get to stay right where I can see them!"

"What are you planning?"

"Hmm..the way I see it, you stay here until I get bored of you - and trust me, I don't get bored easily. During your stay here, most of your time will be spent in pain, which is unavoidable. I figure that first, a sense of normalcy will begin to grow; our pattern will be quite simple. Second, your will will break; that may take some time, but we'll get there. Third happens right after your will breaks: you start to become afraid of me; it's only natural. Fourth, you develop a healthy fear of me, and at that point, you begin to plead for mercy; it won't be given to you. Fifth, your fear grows to be quite extensive, and you are willing to beg for me to stop, which I may respond to - I like it when people beg. Sixth, you begin to realize that it's hopeless to beg and plead, at which point, you merely scream and hope it ends soon. Seventh, you lose all sense of hope, and that is what we're trying to accomplish. I've never seen someone who's lost all hope, but I'm willing to put you in that situation. If there is an eighth, it could be a variety of things; we'll just have to see! Does that answer your question?"

I was a bit shaken by that answer; Ink seemed to realize that.

"Hmm. I guess it is a bit much..my last toy virtually passed out when I told him..he only lived until stage three. I know what you're thinking: 'Am I going to die?'  Well, the simple answer is yes. Don't worry, though: I've got it all figured out. When you eventually die, I'll send you to your AU, and I'll force a reset! You'll soon come back to life, and we can continue! Of course, I know that you probably have some wonders about your AU; at the moment, we're setting the rules in Dusttale, and pretty soon, it'll be completely under my control! To purge any wonders you may have, you will be allowed to roam your AU freely for one hour every time you die! Consider it a gift for being my toy! After the hour, you will be tracked down and returned here, where we will continue our experiment. Does that make sense?"

I nodded; there wasn't anything else to do.

"You're much more helpful than my last toy; I'm sure the guards will love you." Ink grinned. "Speaking of guards.."

The moment he said that, there was a knock on the door; that was confusing and weird. He left me on the floor and answered the door; a few guards were bid to walk in. Ink began to tell them about me and how I was his "new toy," which seemed to sadden them; they obviously didn't want to see anybody in pain. They were ordered to spread the word; I hardly saw a need. When they left, Ink opened some curtains; they blended in so well with the paint that I didn't even notice them. There was a crescent moon looking into the colorful bedroom, and the stars twinkled brightly; they reminded me of my family. They reminded me of the family I failed to save. Error was still locked up, and it was all my fault..Papyrus was probably worried about us; we had failed the mission, and now we were worse off than ever. If Ink wasn't there to watch me, I would have cried; I wanted to cry, but I had to stay strong. I had hope, and that was the best thing to keep close in bad situations; I just hoped I didn't lose it like Ink wanted me to. After Ink had gotten his fill of stars, he closed the curtains and walked over to me. 

"It's night." Ink stated the obvious. "Night means go to bed. Now sleep; you're going to need your rest for tomorrow!"

After Ink said that, he walked to a lightswich, and the room suddenly became darker; he climbed into his painted bed and left me to sleep on the floor. I didn't mind the dark, really, but the floor was hard, and the dried paint gave it a rather uncomfortable texture; I couldn't argue if I wanted to.

I could only hope, and that was what I did.

~~~chapter end woot~~~

Dust bean fail :(

Imma warn you now. Dusty ain't gonna be met with fluff for like...*time insert here*

Thanks for reading my unaccomplished writing!

Bye!