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"Catch him!"
"Don't let him get away!"
Nightmare groaned, watching his boys chase after the new Sans variant they stumbled upon. Why they were trying to catch him, he wasn't sure, but he wasn't going to spoil their fun. At least Horror and Cross were a bit more behaved than they were, even while still causing chaos...
He shook his head and leaned back against the air vent, closing his eye socket. He could feel the chaos and negativity of the AU, and that was enough to fuel himself as he felt himself relax for a while.
"No way to leave now- OH SHIT! MY KNIFE!"
Nightmare opened his eye socket at Killer's panic. He leaned down and found the Sans variant holding out two Gaster Blasters, each covered in pink, purple and icy blue pixels. Dust looked done with his teammate, grumbling about how they should have gotten backup. Killer stared at the variant, looking both offended and shocked.
"That's my knife! Why would you turn it into pixels!?"
Oh?
Nightmare's interest piqued, raising an eyebrow as he moved closer to the alleyway. The variant wore a midnight blue fit at best, with one arm metal and a screen glowing under his sleeve while he wore a navy blue scarf around his neck. On his face was a white skull-faced mask, and behind it, Nightmare could see that he had heterochromatic eyes; one the usual black socket and the other a bright icy blue while his eye lights were purple; one shaped into a zero and the other shaped into a one.
What a strange variant...
"You both attacked first." The variant rolled his eye lights. "Now, do you wanna join your knife or are you going to let me through?" One hand clenched into a fist. "I wouldn't mind either,"
Dust growled and reached out to fire his sharpened bones, only for the variant to snap his fingers, causing the bones to turn into pixels. Killer's jaw dropped.
"Hey, hey! At least let us have a fair advantage!"
"This is two versus one, tell me who has an unfair advantage here??" The variant scoffed.
Nightmare had to hold back a snort. Snarky and confident... this one is interesting him more and more.
"I don't have time for this..." The variant shook his head before he held out his screen. He tapped a few buttons, and Killer and Dust pixelated before their eyes. "Tch, how pathetic."
Nightmare's eye socket widened. He sent a tentacle straight through the variant, causing the other to shriek. His Gaster Blasters disappeared as he was pulled closer to the Guardian, who gripped his scarf.
"WHAT DID YOU DO TO THEM!?"
"Ack!" The variant coughed, gripping on the tentacle. Blood was dripping down where he was stabbed, but he paid it no attention. "They... They're fine! I just teleported them somewhere!"
Nightmare glared at the variant before closing his eye socket. He reached out to find his boys, only breathing out a sigh of relief when he felt them somewhere far from the alley. A bit ruffled, but alive.
"Hmph." His eye light glowed as he opened his socket, narrowing his gaze at the variant. "You should be dead by now... but you're not." His grip on him never faltered, but it did adjust to slam him onto the wall. "What kind of variant are you?"
"A variant in trouble, the longer I stay here..." The variant hissed. His purple eye lights glowed. "I can... only assume that you're the Guardian of Negativity that Error told me about."
Oh? He knows Error?
The oddity of this grew. Usually, Error was doing everything to destroy new universes to keep new variants from appearing and causing more chaos, whether as an ally of the Star Sanses or the Bad Sanses.
So why keep this variant alive?
Why is this variant so special?
Nightmare was unable to ask when strings suddenly gripped his soul. He paused, moving to see a portal open, with Error and Ink standing in front of it. Error's grip on the blue strings were strong as he glared at him with gritted teeth.
"Let. Him. Go."
"Yeah!" Ink held out his giant paintbrush, eye lights red and orange. "Let him go, Nightmare!"
...
Nightmare hissed as the grip on his soul grew tighter. He released the variant and stepped back, the variant falling on the ground. Error released his soul before running to catch the variant.
"You alright, Hacker?"
"Barely..." The variant, Hacker, coughed as he was helped up.
"Let's get you to safety," Ink got the other's arm to drag them all to the portal.
Hacker...
His name is Hacker.
...
What an interesting name...
"Night?"
Nightmare's attention returned to his twin's. "Hm? What is it?"
"I've been trying to get your attention," Dream snorted. "But you've been staring at Hacker for a while now,"
"..." Nightmare blinked and turned to find the variant sitting in a booth of code in the middle of the Anti-Void. "I've met him before,"
"Oh?" Dream tilted his head. "During one of your missions with the boys?"
"Yes." Nightmare nodded. "I forgot that he resides here,"
"Well, Ink said that Hacker could probably find the perpetrator," Dream chuckled. "Error disagreed, so now they're... fighting again," He sighed and shook his head. "Maybe we can go ask Hacker for his opinion?"
"Hm." Nightmare's lips pursed. "Perhaps,"
The twins approached the Sans variant slowly. Dream tapped one of the codes. "Hacker?"
"Hm?" The variant removed the code blueprint, looking up with his glowing purple eye lights. "Oh! Hey, Dream!" He smiled before it turned sour at the sight of the other. "Nightmare."
"Hacker." Nightmare crossed his arms. "I'm not here to fight... or attack you."
"I know," Hacker sighed. "You're here to ask for help about the perpetrator, right?"
"Yep!" Dream gave a nod. "Can you help?"
"I thought you'd never ask," Hacker grinned. He removed all of the code blueprints around him before taking out his screen.
"Great! I'll go tell Ink and Error the good news!" Dream beamed and ran off.
Dammit, Dream. Nightmare cursed under his breath, glaring at the smug expression on his twin's face. Whatever he was thinking, it was the opposite, my GOD--
"So are you and Dream in a permanent truce now?"
Nightmare shifted his attention to the other. "Huh?"
"Are you and Dream in a permanent truce now?" Hacker repeated nonchalantly.
"Yes," Nightmare nodded.
"Cool," Hacker smiled. "I'm glad Dream has his brother back. Maybe it would lessen his chaotic tendencies..." He shuddered. "You know what? No, you're probably going to encourage it,"
"Yes I will," Nightmare cackled.
"Of course, more work for me and Ink," Hacker huffed.
"Too bad," Nightmare smirked. "I love my brother, chaotic and all,"
Hacker blinked before giggled. "You know that's the first time you admitted that,"
"Wha- Wait a minute." Nightmare's eye socket widened, face heating in embarrassment as he gripped the variant by the scarf. "Don't you fucking tell him!"
"Or else what??" Hacker's smirked. "What are you planning to do to me if I try to tell Dream, huh?" His tone was teasing, and Nightmare couldn't help but blush harder.
"I swear, I'M GOING TO DESTROY YOU, HACKER!"
Hacker only laughed, not minding his threats or the grip on his scarf.
"Oh my~ Already so forward, your majesty?~"
Nightmare growled and shook him to make him stop, but his efforts were in vain, only causing the other to laugh louder. His face heated up more with a blue-green blush.
"HACKER--!"
"Ohhhh!" Ink giggled as he, Dream and Error watched the two interact. "How cute!"
"I know, right?" Dream grinned.
"This is ridiculous," Error growled. "Just a couple of months ago, Nightmare tried to kill him!"
"Feelings change, Error," Ink waved away his concern. "I mean, a few years ago, you were trying to kill me, right?" He grinned.
Error scoffed, face turning a bright yellow. "Sh-Shut up! That's different!"
Dream snorted. He turned to his brother and his friend interacting. I'm sure Hacker will be good for Nightmare... He leaned back on the nearby table. If he wasn't... well, I can always make him pay if he tries to hurt Night!