Chapter Text
Entry Number ##
More tests have been made. As usual, Subject 2 is showing especially poor results. Even with his brother's Even with Subject 1's help, he is still struggling and shows no capability of improving. Subject 1's health is still poor, I cannot exactly pin down the cause behind this. He has been doing well on everything... everything besides the combat. I have been doing surgery on his SOUL recently. Nothing helps. This is certainly only making things the more difficult. One of them is incapable of ever truly achieving anything productive or useful, the other is completely worthless for any form of combat. I wonder if they could work together, to try to fix their obvious flaws?
Exhausted.
Annoyed.
Impatient.
That's all the feelings he could experience in the recent days, whenever he tried to do any tests with the Subjects. 2-P shows no sign of improvement, he still remains as foolish as he has been from the beginning. He could achieve far greater abilities in combat, if it wasn't for his nonsensical ideals. At least he slightly excels on those tests, everything else is always nothing more than a miserable, worthless failure. Subject 1... well... after the last experiment where he tried to fix his eye, ended in failure, he ended up being a little more... difficult. He seems to enjoy annoying him very much, though that was never a surprise for him. His attitude is something he inherited, no doubt, as much as he hated to admit it.
Last night's hopeless attempts on trying to achieve progress without any luck has truly exhausted him, more so than usual. It was really difficult for him to wake up from that long, heavy sleep he has fallen into, around 3 in the morning. As he slowly opened his eyes to take a glance at his clock, he could already see it was 1 in the afternoon. All those hours that could have been spent with work, ended up being wasted.
With a tired and annoyed groan, Gaster got up, found his glasses somewhere on the floor where they fell down last night when he collapsed on the couch, and put on his usual attire of a grey turtle neck and his favorite white lab coat. He slumped over to the coffee machine. Even if it was early afternoon, he always needed coffee to properly wake up. He made his way to his computer and turned it on, to check on the security cameras. Everything was normal. They were still in their cell. He knew nobody would ever come down here, but it never hurt just to make sure. After he had his cup of coffee, he went to the kitchen to try and find some food, he was sure the brothers didn't get anything to eat yet since they wake up.
"NNNHH... I'M SO TIRED..."
"hey, you're the one who chose not to go to sleep, i told you it was late."
Last night's events exhausted the brothers completely as well. 1-S could get his quality sleep, however 2-P felt completely drained after all the exhausting tests and the lack of sleep. He was leaning to the wall, while 1-S was sitting on the metal plate on the wall that served as their bed, playing with the color cube.
"y'know. it was pretty funny when he got to me. he put me in that tube thingy, checked my SOUL and stuff. then he got me to try and do some damage on that dummy we always practice on. heh, you should have seen the disappointed look on his face, he thought he was onto something, but i purposefully messed it off just to piss him off."
"I THINK HE WASN'T IN A GOOD MOOD AFTER THAT THOUGH..."
"meh... y'know. after a while i can't bother to try and put effort into whatever he wants me to do for him."
2-P looked at his brother. "BROTHER THAT'S REALLY LAZY! YOU CAN'T LET HIM THINK YOU'RE WEAK!! YOU NEED TO PROVE TO HIM HOW STRONG YOU ARE!"
His eyes went dark. "what's the point? i'm just worthless. always was, always will be. nothing will change that." He put the cube down and turned his gaze to the wall, still with darkened eyes. 2-P sat next to him on the metal-bed.
"THAT'S NOT TRUE BROTHER! AND WE BOTH KNOW IT! YOU'RE REALLY STRONG OKAY?"
He hummed and shrugged it off. "i guess... if you say so..."
He looked back at 2-P with a smirk. "but hey, if you're gonna talk like that, we need to agree on something."
"YEAH?"
"you don't let him push you around okay?"
"UH... WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"
"c'mon, i know he pushed you really hard last night. you put all that effort into whatever he wanted... and it still wasn't enough for him. just don't let him make you think you're dumb 'kay?"
"YEAH... YEAH! I KNOW! I KNOW I'M GREAT!"
1-S winked. "yeah, ya are. he just doesn't get you, heh."
Soon they heard footsteps and Gaster came to them holding a plate with two hot dogs.
"about time, i'm super hungry."
"YOU'RE ALWAYS HUNGRY BROTHER..."
They both stood up and walked to him while he disabled the force field for a moment to hand them the food.
"Here. Try not to get it everywhere now, will you?"
As he started walking away, 1-S couldn't resist the desperate urge to annoy him just for a little while.
"hey, did you have fun with last night's sessions? how did you like my performance? heh."
He rolled his eye and slightly looked back. "I know you've been doing poorly purposely just to try and annoy me." He fully turned back and gave 1-S a look. "It's getting old, you know."
"sorry, just can't resist the urge sometimes." He said with his usual grin. Gaster groaned and turned away. "Your lack of respect is going to get you in a lot of troubles someday."
"tch... like he knows. we're just gonna be trapped down here forever anyway."
During the whole conversation 2-P had a specific uncomfortable look on his face. "DON'T DO THIS OR HE'S GOING TO DO SOMETHING MEAN TO US!"
"nah, he doesn't dare, I know him too well." 1-S shrugged.
"BUT YOU CAN'T KNOW THAT FOR SURE!"
His brother just had a look that really said 'meh' and 2-P just leaned to the wall, trying to look annoyed.
Gaster went back to the computer in his office. What he saw on one of the cameras made his eyes go wide.
Alphys was entering his lab through the elevator. What was she doing here? She's never come down here before. Gaster hurried to the hallway as fast as he could. His feelings were mixed with confusion and worry. Why would Alphys come down here at such hour?
She was just standing by the elevator, fiddling with her hands looking around.
"A-Ah g-good day Dr. Gaster!" She greeted as soon as she saw Gaster approaching around the hallway.
"Alphys what... what is this about? You... never..."
"I-I-I know you don't uh... l-like uh... visitors down here... I-I'm sorry for bursting in so suddenly, I just uh... want to talk to you about something... important. Uh, p-personally."
"You could have given me a call." Gaster mumbled, rubbing his skull looking away.
"U-Uhm... y-you uh... d-didn't respond..."
Ah. Right. Of course. After all the work last night, he fell asleep so heavily as if he got knocked out. He groaned. "Right... my apologies, I must have lost track of time again..." Gaster looked back at Alphys, a little uncomfortable. "But... still you could have... I could have came to your house instead of... you... coming here..."
"I-I know I-I just uh..." Alphys started sweating, her expression turning the usual one of anxiety. "I got uh... a-a bit worried... y-you know? I-I wanted to c-come t-to uh... s-see if you're okay...? hehe..."
Gaster looked up. "Have I missed another meeting...?"
"Oh, n-no no! T-This is nothing like that! I-It's uh... something else."
He sighed. "Alright Alphys. We can discuss this in my office just... stay here for... a little while... I uh... need to get something done first."
"O-Oh uh... o-okay!"
Gaster hurried back in the hallway. He knew there was still an empty guest's room in the lab. And he did find it near his office. He went to the brother's cell.
"Come with me. And be quiet."
"... WE'RE NOT DOING MORE TESTS RIGHT?"
"No."
"then uh... what is this about?"
"I said be quiet."
They looked at each other, confused. 1-S also slightly annoyed. Gaster led them to the empty guest room. There was a medium sized bed, a small table, empty bookshelves. The brothers walked closer in and 2-P sat on the bed. "THIS THING IS NICE AND SOFT, COME CHECK IT OUT BROTHER!"
"You two, stay here for a little while. Do not leave this room until I come back."
"uh... why?" 1-S asked suspiciously while he sat next to his brother on the bed.
"No more questions. And one more thing. Do not make a sound while you're in here you understand?"
"UH... BUT UH... WHY DO WE-?"
"I said no more questions."
"WHY DO WE HAVE TO BE HERE THOUGH?"
"What did I just say?"
Gaster closed the door on them and they looked at each other again. "THIS IS WERID..."
"uh yeah... kinda... he never does this stuff. and did you see how nervous he looked?"
"YEAH... I WONDER WHAT IT MEANS."
"yeah... me too..."
"SSSHHH BROTHER!"
"what??"
They heard footsteps passing by the door.
"HE SAID TO BE QUIET IN HERE!"
"... yeah, yeah fine..." He rolled his eyes. The two brothers just lied down on the nice, warm, soft bed. Soon 2-P fell asleep for the first time in the last few days. His brother curled around him and hugged him in his sleep.
Gaster lead Alphys to his office and they both took a seat on the couch. "So what did you want to talk about Alphys?"
"W-Well uh... earlier today... uh... a n-new uh... human fell down."
Gaster felt his heart skip a beat. "... Another human...?"
"U-Uh... y-yeah..."
"What about it..."
"They're uh... d-different... different than the o-other humans... th-they uh... h-have uh..."
"Have what?"
"... D-... Determination."
... Determination. The last time a human with determination has fallen Underground, it cost the life of the prince and Queen, and Asgore declared war on humanity.
"And what about them?"
"I-I th-thought you'd want to uh... m-.. maybe uh... u-use their determination...?"
Gaster looked at Alphys. "... What are you talking about?" Alphys looked away, her expression getting slightly saddened. "L-Look I... I-I know y-you've been wanting to help the K-King... uh break... break the b-barrier... a-and uh... m-maybe this could do it?"
"Alphys..."
"I-I know you uh... don't like humans... b-but uh..."
Gaster leaned back, staring at the ceiling. "...How could I even trust a human in this building...? A human with Determination soul even..."
"I-I just f-feel like it would uh... d-do good for you...?"
"... Good for me?" Gaster asked his eyes still pinned onto the ceiling. "What good would a human do for me right now? Why should I even trust a human being in this place, this place is like a 2nd home to me, how could I ever..." His sentence trailed off as he pushed back the emerging frustration that was about to be unleashed on Alphys. He sighed and looked at Alphys.
"Alphys... you know how untrustworthy humans are... I... don't believe this is a good idea."
"I-I know but... tr-truth is I..." Alphys looked away. "P-People are... w-worried about you, Dr. Gaster... Y-You... you b-barely leave your lab... I-I ... I barely see you outside of w-work... everyone... b-barely sees you..."
He sighed again and put a hand to his forehead. "I'm just worrying people, aren't I?"
"Uh n-no! Uh... y-... yes... k-kind of."
"I'm sorry I just... I've been too preoccupied with... things."
"T-That's why I want you to do this. Maybe it would d-do good for you if y-you uh... f-focused on some thing else instead of... uh... w-whatever it is you're currently working on..."
He looked away, thinking. Working with a human, while he also has to equally focus on his Subjects? They don't even know what a human is. How could he trust that the human will not try to harm them? How could he trust that the human will not try to harm him? But... at the same time... who knows... a sample of determination could aid his experiments in so many ways... but no matter how hard he thinks... there are more downsides to this.
"I'll... think... about it... I... suppose."
"Al-... uh... alright... uh i-if you... if you decided, j-just g-give me a c-call, o-okay?"
"Yes. Thank you for your visit Alphys."
"Y-Yeah n-no problem! I-I can come over a-any time you'd ... uh... want me... heh..."
"Yes well, we'll see."
Gaster walked Alphys out, then he went back to his office, sat on his chair and looked up to the ceiling, absorbed in his thoughts. A human. This is the 5th human who has fallen Underground. He knew exactly what would happen, if the human ever happened to reach Asgore's castle... he would only need two more souls... two more souls to break the barrier, two more souls to become godlike... Two more souls... before his fate will be ultimately sealed... he's running out of time... maybe... maybe Alphys was right... if he could prevent the human from ever getting to Asgore, he wouldn't have to kill them. And he could just kill the human for him at any time and nobody would know. And to think what kind of new powers 1-S and 2-P could achieve if the human determination could be mixed with monster magic... Maybe his experiment could be greatly advanced... as dangerous as it sounds, he can't just pass up an opportunity like this.
But... before he decides anything... a lesson is in order. He walked to one of his bookshelves and searched for a Human history book. Then he walked to the brother's room.
Both of them were sleeping on the bed. Gaster rolled his eye and walked to them.
"Come on... wake up, we got work to do."
"MMM... W-... WHAT?"
"Wake up your brother, we have something we need to get done."
"CAN'T IT... WAIT... I'M TIRED..."
"You should have slept over night. Come on, hurry."
"NGHH... BROTHER WAKE UP."
1-S rolled clutching into the pillow. "... just 5 more minutes." Gaster rolled his eyes and walked over to him. "Come on. Wake up, we're wasting time." He slowly opened his eyes. "what? are we gonna have another torture session?" Gaster groaned. "No, no... just sit down."
He sat on the chair at the table and the brothers sat on the other two chairs. Gaster looked at them both.
"So. As you know, here in the Underground only live monsters." He opened the book and set in on the table, on the current page was an illustration of a human.
"WHAT IS THAT? THEY LOOK FUNNY."
"This is a human."
"a human? what's that thing?"
"They live... above Underground in the surface. They are a different type of creatures entirely. Different than us. Humans are far stronger than us, they have far more powerful soul, with various soul traits. They have far stronger magical abilities although... I do not know too much about human magic anymore as much as I used to."
The brothers looked at the illustration... the human was covered in something... that looked softer than bones... their head was furry, they were wearing strange clothes.
"THEY LOOK REALLY WEIRD!"
"Humans are different than you. They are made of physical matter, while you are only made of magic."
"WHAT'S... PHYSICAL MATTER?"
"They have... skin... flesh... hair... and a lot of other things that skeletons and most species of monsters can't have."
Gaster closed the book and the brothers set their gaze back on him.
"What you need to know. Is that a human cannot be trusted under any kind of circumstances. If you ever happen to encounter one... you can never give them your trust. They will always stab you in the back, no matter what happens."
"BUT... WHY? WHAT IF THEY'RE NICE?"
"That's only what they want you to believe. You can never be careful enough. You can never allow yourself to trust a human."
"BUT MAYBE WE COULD MAKE FRIENDS!"
Gaster just rolled his eye and didn't respond. He picked up the book and stood up. "Now... you're going back to your cell."
"AWW... BUT THIS ROOM WAS NICE... CAN'T WE STAY HERE?"
His response was simply just an annoyed groan. As they were walking back, 1-S asked.
"so uh... why did you tell us all this stuff?"
"No reason. No reason at all."
As they got back, locked them back in their cell. "Stay here for a little while, I have something I need to get done."
They both nodded.
He went back to his office and looked around... he picked up his alarm clock... picked out several other books scientific and research books from his bookshelves. Then he went to the brother's room. He filled the empty bookshelf with his books and set down the alarm clock on their beside table. Then he went to the kitchen and made hot dogs and sandwiches, which he put on a plate on their table. In a small bowl he even put some marshmallows for them. He went back to their cell and led them back to the room.
"From now on, you will be sleeping in this room."
"OH! WE EVEN GOT THESE NICE MALLOWS!"
"cool. i'm hungry."
"Do not eat everything at once. I will not always have the time to make you food."
2-P couldn't resist to eat at least one marshmallow as he sat down on the bed and starting playing with his color cube. On the bedside table 1-S could observe the clock. "what's this thing?"
Gaster walked to him. "It's an alarm clock." He picked up the clock and put his finger on the big hand. "When this is on the number eight, you both need to sleep. I trust you to keep your eye on this clock."
"uh... okay?" 1-S took the clock and examined the numbers and lines on it. "so if uh... this thing is pointing... here... it's like when you turn off the lights and you gotta sleep?"
"Correct."
He looked at Gaster. "but uh... why do we get all of this stuff? why are we staying in this room?"
"Oh? You would rather go back to your cell instead?"
"nah, i'm just... y'know curious. what are you up to?"
"AND WHO WAS THAT LADY YOU WERE TALKING WITH EARLIER?"
Gaster froze for a moment. "... I... I have no idea what you are talking about. Just... stay in here and only leave this room if it's absolutely neccessary. Do not leave your room otherwise, only if it's important."
"got it." 1-S hopped on the bed next to his brother and Gaster closed the door, leaving them alone. He went back to the office and called Alphys on his cellphone."
"Alright... Alphys... I decided... I will give it a shot."
"O-Oh! T-That's g-good to hear hehe..."
"So, where is the human now?"
"Oh uh... th... they're uh..."
"... Yes?"
"T-They're uh... a-about to e-enter my lab r-right now."
Notes:
That is the end of the first chapter. One time I thought, what if the 5th Human ended up being Determination and not Kindness, leading to Gaster wanting to make experiments with their determination. The upload of the chapters will be weekly, but that also depends on how much people would want to see more.
Chapter Text
"... They're coming... right now?"
Gaster did not expect to be seeing the human right now, on this very day. He still had several tests he wished to do with 1-S and 2-P before that. He checked the clock. It was 4 PM. Maybe there was still time.
"Uhm... y-yeah... uh.. r-right uh... n-now... uh... they're uh... c-coming in... they're uh... looking around..."
Alphys heard Gaster sigh on the other end. "Alright, I'll be right over there Alphys." He hung up and Alphys, awkwardly approached the human.
"U-Uhm h-hiya!"
The human just stood around, staring at her for a moment. "U-Uh y-you're the new human r-right?"
"Uh... yeah... hello." They looked a little shy. Or maybe startled. Though, considering that none of the humans made it to Hotland yet because of a certain someone... yes... startled seems like the perfect word.
"Uh d-don't worry! I-I'm not gonna hurt you! I'm Dr. Alphys! I-I'm uh... o-one of the co-workers of uh... t-the King's Royal Scientist."
"That sounds cool! I've always liked science though... I'm uh... not smart at all hehe..." They rubbed their head awkwardly.
"D-Don't say that I-I'm sure you're fine... y-you uh... c-can't be any worse than me... hehe..." Alphys looked away, sweating a little, the usual anxiety filling her once again. The small talk was interrupted by the noise of an elevator opening as Dr. Gaster entered Alphys's lab.
"O-Oh uh... h-hey Dr. G-Gaster!" She waved at him. Gaster walked closer to the two and for a few moments gave some glances to the human. "So... is this the human?"
"Y-Yeah... t-they just uh... arrived..."
The human could only wave at Gaster. His height was far greater compared to Alphys, although... he didn't look as menacing as Undyne. One eye shut... round glasses... with holes in his hands... just your average skeleton, if not a little more unique in terms of look. Just how they saw the skeletons in their history classes.
"Alright I'll... take it from here... come with me." Gaster mumbled. There was a certain uncomfortable feeling hanging over him. The same uncomfortable feeling that filled the human too, at this very moment. For whatever reason, they had to go with him, they didn't want to question... at least for now.
The elevator ride back to Gaster's lab was... awkward... They didn't want to look at each other, or say any word to each other. After some minutes of very uncomfortable, awkward silence, they arrived at the lab. As they stepped out of the elevator, the human could see a long hallway with multiple entrances opening into multiple rooms. Gaster stood in front of the human to examine them for a little while. They just... stared at one another.
The human, was quite tall compared to the other humans who made their way here. They were about Subject 2's height. They had quite messy, short dark brown hair, a dark red vest, a bright red shirt with a single, lighter red stripe, the sleeves of that shirt being a dark beige. They had a light pink scarf around their neck and they were wearing the same colored shorts with dark shoes.
Gaster turned away. "Come on." He said, not exactly in the most polite tone. They walked for a while until they entered one of the rooms. There was a computer still running. By glancing to it, the human could see there was a security feed of the entire lab open. There was a couch, a small double bed, a bookshelves filled with multiple books, some of them they recognized from their school supplies. Gaster led the human to a small coffee table.
"Empty your pockets."
"What?" They asked back, confused, looking up at him. Out of all the things he could have said, this was not the thing they were expecting.
"I said empty your pockets."
"Uh... why?"
"Just do as your told." His tone was quite... demanding.
"Uh... okay?" The human dug deep into the pockets in their pants and vest.
Crumpled papers of monster candy... some G... a faded dusty ribbon... a piece of stick. Nothing out of the ordinary, really.
No weapons.
Gaster hummed. "Good. Follow me." They walked again for a few moments until they reached a big empty room, with a single metal plate hanging off from one side of the wall. The brothers' old cell.
"Go in there."
As the human slowly entered, Gaster turned on the force field.
"Wait you're gonna lock me in here??"
"You'll stay in here for a while until I decide what to do with you. Stay here and don't touch anything."
The human looked around the cell... clearly, there wasn't anything to touch... "Can I at least get one of those books you got?" The human asked Gaster before he could walk away. The skeleton just rolled his eye. "Wait... hold on!"
He turned his attention back to the human for a moment. "What."
"Aren't you the uh... Royal Scientist or something?"
"... Yes." He folded his arms and looked away with his generic expression on his face. "Not sure why you would need to know that though..."
"I'm just uh... curious... so uh what am I doing here?"
"That's my business." Gaster buried his hands into his pockets and gave them a look as he answered.
"How long will I be here?"
He rubbed his chin. "Hmm... I'm not sure... We'll see. It really depends whether you'll be difficult or not."
Difficult? What does that even mean? Before they could ask any more questions, Gaster walked away from the cell. The human just sat on the cold metal plate attached to the wall... letting their imagination allow them to pass time, as best they could. In this empty cold cell, there was really nothing to do but let themselves travel into their own mind palace. They have been exhausted after the run in with Undyne... might as well take a nap.
Gaster entered his office and sighed. "Humans..." He settled back into his office chair and looked at the time. It was almost 5 PM. He had to make a check up on the brothers to make sure they were alright, make sure the human could not cause any harm to them if they ever got the chance.
Meanwhile...
1-S was playing with the color cube, as per usual, while 2-P tried to read some of the books that Gaster lent them. Though, none of them really piqued his interest too much. "WHAT DO YOU THINK OF THIS ROOM? IT'S NICE HERE ISN'T IT?" He asked his brother as he lowered another scientific book he deemed too boring.
"yeah. whatever this big soft thing is, it's better than sitting on that cold plate on the wall." 1-S said, as he started slightly bouncing on the bed. "WHY DO YOU THINK HE MOVED US HERE? DO YOU THINK IT'S A TEST?"
"well he's up to something. that's for sure. he's never acted this... weird before..." 1-S wondered aloud, lowering the cube.
"DID YOU NOTICE IT TOO?"
"notice... what?"
"WHEN HE TALKED ABOUT HUMANS... HIS FACE LOOKED KIND OF FUNNY..."
"uh... yeah, i hear you. i'm telling you, he's hiding something. he's acting way too weird. and unusual."
"AWW..." 2-P whined, disappointed.
"what's wrong bro?"
"ALL THESE BOOKS ARE SO BORING... WHY COULDN'T HE GIVE US SOMETHING INTERESTING..."
"hold on lemme check." 1-S reached for the book and he handed the cube to his brother, so 2-P was soon entertained by making up various puzzles while 1-S looked into his rejected book.
'Monster souls are made entirely of magical essence. Most commonly called monster soul essence. Soul essence is everything for us monsters, as it not only gives us our magical abilities, but it is also what keeps us alive. If a monster runs out of soul essence, they end up in a state which we call 'Fallen Down'...'
"huh... this is actually pretty interesting..." 1-S raised a brow as he went on with reading the book. For some moments everything went quiet. The noises of 2-P playing with the color cube and 1-S turning the pages every few minutes were the only things breaking the silence.
Until the door opened.
"Subject 2. Come with me."
"OH OKAY!" 2-P put down the color cube and they started walking down the long hallway. "WHAT ARE WE DOING?"
"I need to check something." They soon reached the room with the two tubes. "Alright, come here." 2-P walked closer to him and Gaster helped him take down his coat.
"I THOUGHT YOU ONLY PUT MY BROTHER IN THIS TUBE THINGY."
"Yes, I know but... there is something I need to see. Stay still." Gaster picked up 2-P with blue magic and lowered him into the tube. "Alright... let's see..." He mumbled.
SUBJECT TWO
SPECIES: SKELETON
HP: 36/36
SOUL: STABLE
HEALTH: STABLE
CONDITION: NONE
SOUL ESSENCE: STABLE
"Alright. That's it. You're fine." Gaster lifted 2-P out of the tube with blue magic. "Alright, now stay still." He got a towel and he started wiping 2-P clean, gently.
"WHAT DID YOU DO?"
"It doesn't matter. I just needed to see something, you're fine."
"BUT WHAT DID YOU NEED TO SEE?"
"You wouldn't understand."
"OH..."
Gaster helped him back into his coat, then they went back to the room to get his brother. Just like with Subject 2, Gaster took him to the tube room to check his condition.
"ugh... this again? i thought we went over this last night." 1-S stood on the chair Gaster told him to, then looked at him and waved his arms around. "heellooooo, heeeellooooo, i am completely broken and utterly useless, thank you, i already know this. this tube thing isn't necessary for another time at all, i am already broken you can't break me even more-"
Gaster groaned, annoyed as he helped him take down the coat. "Ugh. Enough. Be quiet. And stay still."
"yeah... yeah... whatever." 1-S rolled his eyes.
He sighed. "You are making this a lot more difficult then it needs to be."
"ey, you know, it's just boring. i mean... what difference do you expect, honestly? i'm already broken as it is, it can't get worse. so like... as long as you still see me standing, you should know that i'm as fine as i can be. right?"
"Yes, yes, but it never hurts to make sure. I know what I'm doing, you don't have to lecture me about it. You just need to survive these five minutes."
"why exactly are you doing this again by the way? and what are you even doing? care to explain for once?" 1-S questioned after he was lowered in the tube by Gaster.
"I need to check if everything is stable. Your soul, your magic, your health, well as much as it can be."
"and... why?"
"You know how delicate your condition can be. I can never be too careful when it comes to you. It's best to always make sure that everything is how it is supposed to be."
"yeah... like i could get even more broken..." 1-S thought, his eyes darkening.
SUBJECT ONE
SPECIES: SKELETON
HP: 1/1
HEALTH: STABLE
CONDITION: DELICATE BODY AND SOUL
SOUL ESSENCE: STABLE
"Alright. It's all normal. Come on out."
"yeah! what a surprise! like i expected anything else! it's not like we did the exact same thing like three times yesterday."
"Quiet." Gaster lowered him out of the tube. "And stay still this time, will you? It's not that hard."
"oh, what?" He gave Gaster his usual mischievous grin. "did i get you wet? hehe..."
"What did I say?"
After getting done with the checkup, 1-S got back to the room to his brother.
"WHAT DID HE DO?" 2-P ask as his brother entered the room and settled on the bed, continuing his book where he left off.
1-S shrugged. "check me out." His eyes darkened "as if i could even get any worse at this point."
"BROTHER!"
"yeah, yeah sorry... did he check you out too?"
"YEAH. HE SAID I WAS NORMAL THOUGH."
"same."
"DID HE TELL YOU WHAT HE WAS DOING? I ASKED HIM BUT..." 2-P looked away with an uncomfortable expression. "HE UH... SAID I WOULDN'T UNDERSTAND... EVEN IF HE TOLD ME..."
"well... he said he had to 'make sure everything is right' or something. dunno why he would need to check you out too though."
2-P gazed in the distance with a wistful expression. "I... FEEL LIKE THIS MEANS SOMETHING..."
"like what?"
"I UH... I MEAN... HE'S NEVER ACTED LIKE THIS BEFORE HAS HE? MAYBE..."
1-S shrugged it off and buried his face into the book just so his brother won't be able to tell that he is completely doubting about his thoughts. "yeah... i guess... maybe..."
Gaster returned in his office and sat on his chair, letting out a sigh. It was a sigh mixed with exhaustion from his lack of sleep lately... and annoyance. 1-S has always enjoyed being difficult over the most insignificant matters just to tease him. He never really managed to make Gaster angry but... after a while it just got...
Well, it was a bit much.
He opened the security feed on the computer to see if everything was normal. The brothers were staying in their room, 2-P playing with the color cube and 1-S reading one of Gaster's science books. It was kind of surprising for Gaster that the brothers are actually staying put, despite the fact that they have the chance to just leave through a door at any time.
The human was still in the old cell and it seemed that they were asleep.
"I should probably see their soul too... I need to make sure they're not endangering them." Gaster thought as he rolled out his drawers, looking for something. And he found it too. It was a scanner. A Soul scanner to be exact. This is a device he would typically use on himself whenever he was feeling a little more drained than normal. It was more effective than he M-D Solution at times. He would turn it on, and hold it in front of his soul for a few moments and it would scan his soul thoroughly, revealing it's condition. This should be the perfect device on the human, as putting THEM in an M-D Solution would be... rather problematic on many levels.
He took the scanning device and went to the cell. He disabled the force field to get into the human's cell and woke them up.
"... Come on... I need you to wake up for a moment... there is something I need to check."
They stirred. "Wh... w-what..." They mumbled, then they slowly opened their eyes to meet with Gaster's.
"Come on, I need you just for a minute get up."
"o... okay..." They rubbed their eyes and slowly stood up.
"Stand straight. And stay still." He took the scanning device and lifted it in front of the human's chest.
"What's that thing?"
"Quiet. Stay still. You shouldn't feel a thing I just need to... check something."
A few silent moments passed and the scanning device made a little beep! noise, indicating that it has successfully scanned the human soul. He turned away from the human to check the results. For a moment he glanced on the open doorway. As Gaster looked there, the human glanced there too.
"Mmmm... just in case..." With the wave of his hand he summoned a wall of blue bones so the human would not have the chance to leave the cell. Gaster turned his focus back to the scanning device.
???
SPECIES: HUMAN
HP: 20/20
LV: 1
HEALTH: STABLE
CONDITION: NONE
MAGIC: STABLE
POWER: WEAK
"Magic?" He raised a brow. The lowered the scanning device and turned to the human. "Can you do any magic?"
"Oh well uh..." The human looked down, looking a little uncomfortable. "I can do this." They raised a hand and... after a few moments... some small red orbs appeared, floating on their fingertips. "But... it's not much..." They looked away blushing a little in embarrassment.
"Hmmm..." Gaster touched one of the small orbs with a finger.
-1
"Your damage isn't too strong. That will make things more convenient in the long run."
"More convenient?" They wondered. "Uh... what does-"
"No questions." He raised his finger. "That's all I wanted. Now just... do whatever you were doing before." He walked out of the cell and turned on the force field again, also eliminating the blue bones in the process.
He went back to his office, put the healing device back in the drawer he took it out from, and began typing on the computer.
Entry Number ##
A Human has arrived to the lab, possessing a Determination Soul. They appear to be just a child, but still, I cannot give them my trust under any circumstances. You can never know what a human is capable of, especially if you let your guard down. They do appear to be receptive to magical abilities, though their magic seems to be really weak. Hopefully it will stay that way too. I do not want the Human to make any kind of contact with Subject One, or Two as their behavior and nature can be an extremely harmful, bad influence on them. Both on the Human, and on One and Two. Had the three of them make contact... I am not sure what the results would be, but it would no doubt serve as rather harmful than helpful. I must make sure that One and Two always stay in their room and that the Human never leaves the cell. Their magic isn't too dangerous for 2-P, but their weak magic is just enough to kill 1-S with a single hit, though I have to make sure to never mention that to them. I do not want them getting any ideas... I will make sure to keep an extra careful eye on the children Human and the Subjects to prevent anything from happening. Anything that could endanger my experiments with any of them.
As Gaster finished the entry, he looked at his system clock. It was nearly 8 pm. He got up from his chair and went to the brother's room. They were playing a bone tossing game at the moment.
"It is time for you to sleep." He said as he walked in the room.
"but the thingy isn't on the eight yet..." 1-S remarked a little confused though, more annoyed.
"It is nearly 8 pm, those few minutes don't matter."
"I'M NOT TIRED THOUGH!"
"I do not want to hear any of your complaints tomorrow so you better get a good enough sleep."
"AWW... OKAY..."
"yeah... fine..."
With that, Gaster closed the door on them and they lie on the bed, hugging each other as they always did when they were ready to sleep. Despite their protests, the two brothers were quick to fall asleep. The comfort of the warm, soft bed felt ever greater than sleeping in that cold old cell.
Gaster too, went back to his office and put his glasses on his desk, then he went to his own double bed and also fell asleep shortly after.
* * * * *
Some hours later however, sometime really late at night, 2-P woke up to a loud bang
"BROTHER..." He mumbled... "BROTHER WAKE UP."
"mmmhhh... w... what...?" 1-S slowly opened his eyes.
"BROTHER I HEARD SOMETHING."
"wha? what do you... mean..." He mumbled with a yawn escaping him in the middle of his sentence.
"I HEAR A LOUD NOISE... IT WAS SCARY..."
"hmm... weird..."
"DO YOU THINK HE DID SOMETHING?"
"... i dunno... maybe you're just hungry? i know i am."
"BROTHER!"
1-S got out of the bed to turn on the light switch and eat one of the foods on the table.
...
Only that the light switch was not working.
"huh this is weird. why is the lights not turning on?"
"MAYBE YOU'RE DOING IT WRONG."
"i'm not doing it wrong!" 1-S looked back at his brother.
"YOU HAVE BABY HANDS BROTHER, YOU'RE PROBABLY DOING IT WRONG."
"i don't have baby hands!" 1-S said with an annoyed tone.
"LET ME TRY." 2-P got out of the bed and walked to the light switch. But it was not turning on. "HMM... MAYBE WE SHOULD ASK HIM WHAT'S GOING ON."
"yeah. probably... but uh... what if he's not here?"
"WELL WE JUST HAVE TO CHECK."
Gaster woke up with a groan. For a few moments, he could only stare at the ceiling. There was a large bang noise waking him up, that doesn't usually happen. Despite being extremely exhausted, Gaster crawled out of his bed and tried to turn on the lights.
But the switch wasn't working.
The power went out. Figures. Gaster groaned again, fetched his glasses and put on his lab coat over on his pajamas. This is an issue he had to fix tomorrow, but for now, he has to take the Human to his own room... to keep an eye on them at least for the night until he solves the issue tomorrow. He slowly made his way to the cell. Just as expected, the force field wasn't turned on. He couldn't risk the Human getting out of the cell, so he picked them up with blue magic and were ready to carry them over to their room.
But soon...
"hey there you are. we've been looking for you."
"WOAH WAIT... WHAT IS THAT THING?"
The brothers quickly rushed over to Gaster to examine the Human he was holding.
"What are you-" He tried to ask, but he was cut off by the brothers unstoppably bombarding him with questions.
"IS IT ALIVE??"
"what is it... why are you carrying this thing?"
"IS IT FOR A TEST?"
"is this what you did that made the lights go off?"
"NO! That's-" He put a hand to his forehead and sighed with an especially annoyed and angry tone. "What are you doing here?! I told you to stay in your room!"
"WE HEARD A LOUD NOISE. AND WE WANTED TO ASK YOU WHAT IT WAS."
"hang on... isn't this a human? why is a human in here?" 1-S approached them, but Gaster shoved him away.
"No don't touch them!"
"why have you got a human here? i thought you said we can't trust them."
"THIS IS A HUMAN! WOAH!! I'VE NEVER SEEN A HUMAN BEFORE THIS IS SO COOL!!"
"I... I... ugh..." Gaster facepalmed. "This was not supposed to be happening... why did you... why did you have to... Why wouldn't you just stay put?!"
"hey don't start blaming it on us not like it's our fault!"
"I told you to DO NOT leave the room under ANY circumstances why couldn't you just listen?!"
"IS IT REALLY THAT BAD THOUGH?"
"Just..." He sighed and closed his eyes. "Just... come with me..."
Having no choice by now, Gaster led the brothers to his office, still carrying the human with blue magic. "You'll be staying in this room for the night. You can sleep on the bed, I'll sleep on the couch."
"IS THIS YOUR ROOM?"
"you got a big room."
"Just be quiet and get to bed. It's late and you need to sleep."
"sheesh, yeah, fine." The brothers walked over to the double bed and got up to their usual sleeping position. Gaster looked around the room... finally he picked up the pillows from the couch and put the human on those. He locked the room with a key, then he lie on the couch and fell asleep with his lab coat on and his glasses still on his face.
Notes:
Children will continue to be curious and there is nothing you can do about it Gaster!
Chapter Text
They slowly opened their eyes from what felt like the longest sleep they had since they stepped out of the Ruins.
They already felt they were somewhere else. They could feel the soft warmness of pillows under them. As the Human's vision progressively became less and less blurry, the first thing they saw was Gaster sleeping on the couch just next to them. One of his arms was hanging off the couch, and his glasses were tilted on his face. It looked like he was very tired. His quiet snoring broke the silence of the otherwise empty room. The Human slowly got up from their place. They could notice that they were only sleeping on two pillows the whole night, yet they felt way more comfortable than in the cold cell. How they got here, remained in question.
They looked around the room... and they could see... one of those strange yellow stars that were all over the Underground as they traveled. They weren't sure what it was, but they knew for sure that it has always saved their very life from death in the most tricky situations. So, without hesitation, the Human touched it, as always.
The strangely calming silence of the monochrome lab...
It fills you with Determination.
KALE LV 1 314:32
Hotland - Gaster's lab
FILE SAVED
And they heard the familiar sound as they 'saved the file'. They were not exactly sure what that even meant, but one thing was sure, that star did always save them from death whenever they used it. They wondered if anyone else in the Underground could see the stars. As they turned away from it, they saw... the most precious thing they probably ever saw down here...
Two small skeleton children... sleeping together on the bed, hugging. The Human walked over to them and watched them. One of them had round head, the other's head shape was very similar to Gaster's. They were hugging in their sleep, their souls glowing blue in unison. The bigger skeleton's eyes even glowed green. He must have been having a nice dream. Then they saw... something strange on their hands... The Human took the smaller skeleton's hand, carefully not to disturb him.
WDG-1S
They raised a brow... and took a look at the other skeleton's hand
WDG-2P
What do these mean? Were they acronyms? Codes? Why would skeleton children have this on their hands? Maybe all skeletons have this? The Human slowly walked to Gaster on the couch, and hesitantly took his hand, to see if he had such strange plates. But all they could see was that his hand had big circular holes, cut through his palm. As the Human took his hand, Gaster snorted and pulled away.
".. N... No... t... touching..." He mumbled, then he rolled around the couch. The Human's heart was beating a little too fast in the moment, but it steadied quickly, since they didn't actually wake up Gaster. They just left the scientist be and continued looking around. This room was way bigger than the cell. With way more things. Bookshelves, containing various books and files. There was a computer, it seemed to be turned off. The Human saw that at the entrance of the room, near the yellow start... was a framed picture on a bedside table. The Human walked closer to take a look.
On the picture were four people. The Human could only recognize two of them.
There was the kind goat lady, Toriel from the Ruins. She was wearing way different clothes. She was wearing a small crown and it looked like she had royal clothing on. In front of her was standing a young goat boy, wearing a lime green shirt with a yellow stripe, having slightly messy hair. Next to her was another, male goat monster, they did not recognize. He also had a crown and a bushy golden beard, and they were wearing similar royal clothing that Toriel also wore. Between the two goat monsters, was standing Gaster, wearing the same clothes he usually wears, minus the white lab coat. Everyone was smiling on the picture...
Everyone... but Gaster...
His expression, compared to the other's, was quite neutral, he was looking down, it was quite hard to read what exactly he was thinking. But the Human could read one thing from his face...
He... was not happy. For whatever reason...
The Human soon heard Gaster waking up and that made them accidentally drop the photo on the ground and breaking the frame as they shoot their gaze towards the Royal Scientist. Gaster groaned. He was slowly opening his eyes. He adjusted the glasses on his face and got up. Then he soon realized that the Human has woken up.
"What..." He mumbled, tired. "What are you doing...?" He yawned in the middle of his sentence. The Human let an embarrassed, innocent smirk spread across their face as they rubbed the back of their head.
"U-Uhm nothing! I-I was just uh..." They looked at the broken picture on the floor. "Uhm... looking around...? Hehe..."
Gaster rolled his eye and walked to them, to pick up the photo. As he saw that the frame had been broken, he just let out an annoyed sigh. "Just be careful next time... and you shouldn't be touching my personal possessions anyway..." He looked at the Human with the face of disappointment. They looked down. That look of embarrassed guilt was not unfamiliar to Gaster, he knew that expression from all those times he scolded 2-P.
"I... I'm sorry I just... got curious..."
Gaster just let out his usual monotonous hum and he went to check the time. It was seven in the morning. He went over to the coffee maker and soon, the sipping of freshly made coffee was the only thing breaking the silence.
"Uh so... I'm kind of hungry?" The Human said in an awkward tone, breaking the silence.
"I'm will wake them up soon, then I will make food for all of you." Gaster said, his tone more casual than what the Human heard him talk in before.
"Who are 'them'?" The Human asked, taking a curious glance at the skeleton children. Gaster followed their gaze.
"None of your business... you weren't even supposed to see them I just... had to take all of you into my office for the night, as the power went out."
"So uh... do you know what time is it?"
"It must be around seven or eight in the morning..." Gaster let out an annoyed groan. "I was supposed to wake them up hours ago..."
"Are they your kids?" The question slipped from the Human's mouth, but they immediately regret asking as they saw the expression that quickly settled on Gaster's face.
"No, they are not, and not like any of it is your business. Stop bothering me with foolish questions that are none of your concern, Human."
"Uh... right... sorry..." They looked away. "Sheesh... rude kinda?"
"And do not touch them either. Do not talk to them... just stay away from them as much as you can manage, you won't stay in here for too long anyway."
Well, 'don't touch them' was a rule that they already broke when they looked at their face. It seemed their expression was really easy to read as they heard Gaster let out a sigh.
"Just ... don't touch them anymore if may I ask..."
They just nodded. As Gaster finished his coffee, he walked to the brothers to wake them.
"Come on... wake up you two, it's morning."
"MMM...? OH... IS IT MORNING ALREADY?" 2-P looked at Gaster with a sleepy expression.
"Yes..." Gaster assured in a slightly annoyed tone.
"AWW I HAD A REALLY NICE DREAM... WE WERE OUTSIDE AND WE WERE ALL HAPPY AND YOU WERE BEING REALLY NICE TO US."
Gaster rolled his eye. "Sometimes, a dream is just a dream." The thought crossed his mind, though he did not want to share that thought with 2-P. "Wake up your brother, I will get you something to eat."
Gaster left the room and 2-P got up into a sitting position on the bed, and touched their brother's shoulder. "BROTHER... BROTHER WAKE UP!"
"nn... wha..." 1-S rubbed his eye sockets and yawned. "dang... i'm still tired... it can't be morning already... i feel like i haven't slept a single minute."
"IT IS MORNING ALREADY. YOU'RE JUST ALWAYS TIRED BROTHER! ALWAYS!" 2-P stared at his brother, slightly disappointed.
"and you're not tired enough!" 1-S said back with a slightly annoyed tone as he sat up on the bed.
The Human tilted their head with curiosity. So they were brothers... the skeleton children didn't seem to notice them, so they wanted to say hi, but considering what Gaster told them, they figured it would be better not to. Soon Gaster returned to the bedroom and he was carrying two plates, one of them with two sandwiches sitting on it, the other with just one. Gaster gave the plate of one sandwich to the Human, without even looking at them and then he walked to the bed and gave the other plate to the brothers.
"Here."
"AREN'T YOU GOING TO EAT?" 2-P looked up at him.
"I did already..." Gaster mumbled, folding his arms, looking away with his usual annoyed expression that also seemed slightly uncomfortable. Gaster sat on the couch, seemingly getting absorbed in thoughts. The brothers could not focus on their meal as both of them were too distracted by a certain someone...
The Human only just noticed that they have been watching them.
"so uh... who is this?" 1-S asked, looking at Gaster, his mouth half full with sandwich. "aside from the fact that they're human."
"DON'T TALK WITH YOUR MOUTH FULL BROTHER, IT'S SO GROSS!" 2-P scolded his brother. Gaster looked at 1-S, then at the human and the same, generic expression settled on his face as he stood up, facing the skeleton children.
"Just ignore them." He said, tilting his head in an exhausted manner. 2-P also tilted his head and a saddened expression settled on his face as he looked at Gaster.
"AWW... BUT I WANNA TALK TO THEM! I NEVER SEEN A HUMAN BEFORE!!"
"And it is good thing too. Remember what I told you about humans, Subject Two. They cannot be trusted."
"pft... i mean... the human can't be worse than you right?" 1-S gave Gaster that familiar mischievous grin. Gaster just ignored him, know that this was just another one of Subject One's attempts at trying to annoy him.
"I really wouldn't hurt them! You can trust me! I promise I wouldn't even think about hurting kids... that are even younger than me..."
Gaster just scoffed. "Yes, I am undoubtedly going to trust whatever a Human says. Be quiet you. I've learned my lesson in the past."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN? WHAT HAPPENED?"
"Nothing. Shush." Gaster buried his hands in his pocket and looked away so he wouldn't have to look at the Subjects, or the Human.
"i mean... you know... it wouldn't be a big surprise if a human was being a jerk to you. i mean... what better do you deserve, honestly?"
"I said. Be quiet." Gaster said, his voice increasing in volume and getting more impatient. 1-S looked away and his eyes darkened. "yeah... what. ever."
The Human looked a little uncomfortable. Seemed Gaster had a pretty... complicated relationship with these two. They did not dare ask anymore questions however, since Gaster was getting increasingly impatient. They would rather not twist the knife. They just sat down on one of the pillows on the floor that they slept on, and soon all gone silent for quite some minutes. After the brothers finished their meal, Gaster took the plates from the children and after returning from the kitchen, he sat on his office chair, entering him own mind-space. The brothers just sat on the bed, enjoying the comfort. 1-S attempted to take one of Gaster's books without him noticing. He saw a book with the title, 'Human History Vol.1' and he thought that was perfect to read.
Human History Volume One
Written by: Gerson Boom
'Thousands of years ago... Humans and Monsters used to live in peace and prosperity on the Surface world. The Surface has been ruled by many, many leaders over the many years, but the most recognizable and remembered Monsters and Humans were, Monster King and Queen, Asgore and Toriel Dreemurr, and, Human King and Queen Ancil and Nieves Daddow. Humans and Monsters used to both share great knowledge of magical abilities, however Human magic has always been weaker than Monster Magic. Afraid of our power, the Humans, after many seemingly problem free years, have declared war on us. But they were oblivious to the fact... that however strong our magical abilities were compared to their own, Humans have excelled in their physical strengths. Unlike Monsters, who are made entirely of magic, Humans are made of physical matters, therefor, there are many, many things that make them far stronger than Monsters. Magic was just simply, not one of them...'
Soon, Gaster's has broken the silence. The Human and 2-P took a curious glance over the Royal Scientist, however 1-S was too enchanted by the book he was reading. Gaster was soon knocked back from his seemingly long train of thought as he answered the phone.
"Yes, Dr. Alphys?"
"U-Uh h-hiya Dr Gaster!" The nervous, high voice of Alphys sounded from the other end. "U-Uhm... did... the power went out for you t-too...?"
Gaster rolled on the chair slightly. "Yes, it happened sometime last night."
"W-Well uh... I-I am s-sorry it's uh... k-kinda my fault...? hehe..."
Gaster raised a brow. "What do you mean?"
"W-Well I was uh... d-doing something uh... important? A-And I uh... a-accidentally busted down the p-power... a-and I think the CORE a-also simotaniously has a-another m-meltdown t-too... I-I guess it was just too much. A-And I uh... w-wanted to ask if you mind uhm... h-helping me turn the power back on? Ehehe..."
"Hmm, alright, I can come and take a look. Did you manage to get the CORE readings despite the power outage?"
"W-Well I-I uh... don't know yet."
"That's alright, just make sure to send them to me later today, so I can take a look."
"Y-Yeah! Y-You got it!"
"Alright, I'll be at your lab shortly, see you soon Alphys."
"S-See you D-Dr Gaster!"
Gaster got up from his chair and took a look at the children. "Alright, I need to go and turn the power back on. All of you stay in here and don't touch anything..."
Gaster looked at 1-S and took the Human History book from his hand with blue magic.
"aww come on!" 1-S looked at him with a frustrated expression. "i was just reading what's wrong with that?!"
"You can only read books I allow you to read. That is not one of them."
"yeah, whatever." 1-S folded his arms and looked away with an angry frown. 2-P put an arm around his shoulders in an attempt to comfort him.
"Anyway, I will be back shortly, don't touch anything and stay in here." Gaster looked at the human and pointed a finger at them. "That especially goes to you. Understand?"
"Yeah, yeah I got it... don't touch anything, don't touch them, don't talk to them, yadda yadda..." The Human responded in a tone that was starting to sound very much familiar to 1-S's tone of voice. They were getting slightly tired of hearing the same thing over and over again.
"Alright. Good. I will be back soon." Gaster left the room and closed the door. 1-S rolled his eyes and picked out the book he was reading from the bookshelf. But before he could continue reading, his brother looked at him.
"BROTHER... I'M BORED..."
"hey, let's go back to the other room and get your cube huh?" 1-S winked at his brother.
"BUT... HE TOLD US NOT TO LEAVE."
"c'mon bro, he won't even know. and it's not like we have to go far."
"Uh... hey?" The Human in the mean time, mustered the confidence to get up and talk to the brothers, despite what Gaster told them. The bothers' conversation was forgotten soon, as they looked at the Human, both curious. 1-S set down the book as he also looked at them. All three of them were wearing the same curious-timid look. The Human sat on the bed in front of them.
"so... you're a human huh?"
"Uh... yeah, guess I am, heh... and you're skeletons right?"
The brothers looked at each other. "YES! WE ARE!" 2-P answered brightly, but his brother looked at him.
"nah we're not. we're things. that's what he says."
2-P's expression shifted, his smile fading. "AH... Y-YEAH RIGHT... WE'RE NOT SKELETONS... WE'RE THINGS. THAT'S WHAT HE'S ALWAYS CALLED US."
Things? What does that even mean? A great confusion settled in the Human's mind.
"Things...? But... you look like skeletons that doesn't ... make any sense... I learned about skeletons in my history classes, I know what they look like."
"...WHAT'S A HISTORY CLASS?" 2-P tilted his head with childlike curiosity, though his expression was more confused.
"... Y'know? History? One of the subjects in school? Though I guess it makes sense monsters would have different subjects in their school."
"uh... subjects... in school? what does that mean?" 1-S asked, with a raised brow, just as confused as his brother.
"Uh... you know... school?"
"WHAT'S A SCHOOL? I DON'T UNDERSTAND..."
The Human's eyes widened, as all their features got frozen with genuine surprise mixed with confusion.
"You..." They tried to ask. "You don't know what a ... school is?"
The brothers just kept giving the the same confused expression.
"Don't you... go to school?"
"WHAT IS A SCHOOL?" 2-P rubbed his skull, his expression just getting more confused.
"is it something fun? if he never told us about it i bet it's something fun." 1-S's eyes darkened as he folded his arms and looked away.
"Well uh... not really... it's pretty boring actually." The Human looked away.
"AWW..." 2-P whined, disappointedly, his spark of curiosity disappeared in that second.
"School is where..." The Human rubbed their head, thinking of the rights words to say. "School is where they... y'know? Teach you things? Doesn't he ever take you to school? Doesn't he teach you about history, or science, or how to use your magic?"
"OH! OH! WE DO HAVE COMBAT TESTS WHERE WE GET TO USE OUR MAGIC!"
Combat... tests?
1-S looked at them, tilting his head, his arms still folded. "and he does give us some other tests sometimes."
His eyes then darkened, as he looked down. "though mostly, what he does is just put us through endless torture sessions."
"BROTHER!" 2-P yelled at his brother. But then his expression got really uncomfortable and scared. "BUT UH... YEAH... HE MOSTLY JUST DOES EXPERIMENTS THAT HURT..."
The Human's worries got awakened, hearing that. "... Torture ... sessions? Come on it can't be that bad... what does he usually does to you in those uh... experiments?"
1-S went through all the most terrible things that Gaster has did to them so far. "one time he blew up half my head... the other time, he broke my bro's arm on purpose just to make a point about something. another time he forced by brother to kill something and he was going to kill me if he didn't do it." His eyes were by now, darker than the deepest pits of the void.
2-P was sweating, as he anxiously tried to force a smile. "B-BUT! HE WAS ALSO NICE TO US SOMETIMES! HE FEEDS US... HE... UH... HE FIXED MY ARM ONCE! A-AND..."
"yeah, my bro really believes there's some good in this guy apparently."
The Human had been left completely silenced. They haven't known Gaster for a very long time and he does look like a pretty grumpy guy in their eyes... but is he really that bad? Would he really do such things to... children? Literally just small skeleton children?
"I... I don't understand... why would he... you guys are just kids... why would he do such things to a pair kids?"
"hell if i know." 1-S said quietly in a deep, dark tone.
"There must be some misunderstand I mean... Yeah sure, he is rude and strict but... he can't be that bad right?"
"I KNOW HE CAN BE A BETTER PERSON IF HE JUST TRIED! I KNOW THERE IS GOOD IN HIM! I KNOW DEEP DOWN HE IS A GOOD PERSON."
1-S scoffed. "yeah..."
".... MY BROTHER DOESN'T THINK SO."
"Well..." The human looked at 2-P. "I agree with you! I bet he isn't as bad as he seems... and uh... he must have a good reason to do these things to you... and I'm sure he doesn't actually mean to harm you."
1-S just couldn't hold himself, his frustration rising. "oh please, you should see him for real, when he's experimenting on us. you really think he doesn't mean it? then what do you have to say about these huh?" 1-S showed his left hand with the metal plate WDG-1S drilled into it.
"What are those things?"
"there was one time... when he drilled these plates in our hands..."
"THAT... IT REALLY HURT... IT WAS REALLY BAD... I WAS SO SCARED... THAT WAS WHEN EVERYTHING GOT A LOT WORSE... HE WAS ACTUALLY NICE TO US BEFORE THAT BUT... HE CHANGED AFTER THAT..." 2-P put his hand on his plate and his expression changed to a real sad one.
"Do you guys... always sit in this lab?"
"yeah. all the time. he used to keep us in a cell. but i guess he wanted us to be somewhere else after you came along."
So he drilled plates in their hands and has been experimenting on them all this time, keeping them down here as literal prisoners. That sounded... terrible... worse than terrbile. The Human could not have imagined Gaster to be this bad. Despite his not too polite personality, they never thought he could actually be this kind of a person. It got them to wonder if Alphys even knows about all this.
"I... I'm so sorry you have to go through something like this everyday guys... This sounds horrible..."
"... you have no idea..." 1-S said quietly, his tone sounding... slightly weaker this time.
"BUT! I ALWAYS KEEP POSITIVE, BELIEVING THAT HE CAN CHANGE FOR THE BETTER SOMEDAY! THAT HE'S GONNA TAKE US OUT OF THIS PLACE ONE DAY, I KNOW IT!" 2-P managed a confident smile.
"That's a pretty good way of thinking. You should always stay positive!" The Human gave 2-P an encouraging smirk. 1-S just looked away. "I am sure everything will get better for you two... one day..." They tried to reassure. "By the way... what's your name?"
"name?" 1-S looked at them.
"UH... WHAT IS THAT?" The same confused expression soon settled on both of their faces.
"... You don't have names either? He really didn't give you names?"
"what is a name?" 1-S asked again, raising a brow, the confusion growing in his expression.
"Well uh a name is... what... people call you...? What uh... what does he usually call you?"
"HE CALLS ME... SUBJECT TWO. OR 2-P. I GUESS THAT'S MY NAME?"
"yeah... i guess my name is 1-S then..."
The Human's expression changed into one of disappointment. But then they smiled, confident. "Okay, you know what? If he doesn't care enough to properly name you, then I will! Can I see you hand for a moment?" The Human asked for 1-S's hand and he silently obliged, though still slightly confused.
WDG-1S
"Okay, I decided... I will call you... Sam! How's that sound?"
"uh... sam...?"
"Yeah! Sam!"
1-S smiled a bit. "i... i guess that does sound better than... whatever he calls me sometimes..."
"And I'll call you... Pap! Okay?" They looked at 2-P as they glanced at his plate saying WDG-2P.
"PAP?" 2-P asked slightly confused.
"Yeah! I'll call you two, Sam and Pap. Do you like it?"
"SAM..."
"and... pap?"
They both looked at each other. Both of them finally smiling and nodding at the Human in response. "THAT DOES SOUND NICE! I LIKE THOSE UH... NAMES? ARE THEY?"
"Heh, yeah, that's the names I'm gonna call you now."
"it does sound way better than the thing he calls us. so i guess my name is sam hehe." Sam smirked with a big grin.
"AND MINE IS PAP! NYEH HEH HEH!"
For one moment, everything gone quiet. Sam couldn't help but chukle. "... is that... really how you laugh?"
"WHAT? WHAT'S WRONG WITH IT?!" Pap looked at his brother with a slightly frustrated expression.
"nothin' it's just... nice to hear you... actually laugh for once bro... pap." Sam smiled at his brother, and Pap returned the smile. Then they looked at the Human. "AND WHAT'S YOUR NAME HUMAN?"
"Oh uh right... my name..." They blushed a little in embarrassment, realizing they completely forgot to tell them their own name. "My name is Kale."
"kale?" Sam asked and Kale nodded.
"... IT'S A NICE NAME." Pap smiled.
"Yeah... thanks..." Kale smiled back.
Soon, they heard Gaster coming back and Kale quickly returned to sitting on the pillows, Sam put the book back on the shelf, and all three of them acted as if their conversation never happened.
"Alright. I am back. The power was successfully reactivated, so you two are going back to your room. Come on."
"... CAN THEY COME?" Pap asked Gaster, looking at Kale. Gaster also looked at them. He was quick to respond. "Absolutely not. A Human's presence around you could only bring harm for several reasons."
"BUT... PLEASE? CAN THEY? CAN THEY? CAN THEY COME TOO, PLEASE?" 2-P begged.
"uh yeah? it'd be uh... pretty cool? i mean... they probably won't do anything bad anyway."
Gaster's expression hardened. "I told you, a Human cannot be trusted. I won't let you be alone in one room with a Human, I can't let them-..." His sentence trailed off and he folded his arms, his expression getting uncomfortable.
"I uh... look, Mr. Scientist, I really, really wouldn't think about hurting them! Honestly! I wouldn't want to hurt anyone for no reason!"
Gaster looked at Kale for several moments. Then, after a long pause, he sighed, annoyed. "... Fine... I allow it..."
"REALLY? YOU MEAN IT?"
"they can stay in our room?" The brother's got excited, Pap's eyes shining.
"... Yes... they can... for a while, and later I'll decide if it is going to stay that way too." Gaster said quietly.
"THANK YOU!"
"Yeah! Thanks uh... Mr..."
"...Gaster... it's Gaster... and you don't need to be formal." He mumbled, looking at Kale.
"wait... your name is gaster? and you never even told us?" 1-S looked at the scientist. This caused him to look away in an uncomfortable manner.
"YOU HAVE A NAME TOO?" Pap asked, looking at him.
"Yes... why wouldn't I-" He cut himself off and sighed, his expression changing immediately. "Anyway... you're going back to your room. Come on."
The three skeletons and Kale left the office and they walked to the small guests room. Sam and Pap entered the bedroom first but before Kale could enter, Gaster set him aside.
His expression changed into one that Kale has not experienced before. It was an expression...
Of true hatred...
"Before you go in there... I am warning you... If you dare touch them. If you dare even think about hurting them, I will know. And if you hurt them, I will have no reason to continue sparing you. You are a Human and just because those two seem fond of you right that doesn't mean I have any reasons to trust you. Am I making myself clear?"
A hint of red made it's way into Gaster's eye as he was staring at Kale with the most tense, most enraged expression they have ever seen from the Royal Scientist. They were not expecting the sudden change of behavior in the skeleton, and the things he just said caught them completely off guard.
"Am I making myself clear Human?"
Kale could only slowly nod, a fearful expression settling on their face. The red glow vanished from Gaster's eye, but his expression was unchanging.
"Good. Keep this in mind. Because I am watching you, and if you do anything wrong. I will know."
Kale could only nod again and Gaster soon walked away. For a few moments they could only stand in the hallway, trying to process what had just happened. They let out a sigh and went into the bedroom, trying to put on a brave face.
Both brothers were already sitting on the bad, Pap playing with a Rubik's Cube and Sam reading one of Gaster's books. Kale sat on the bed near then and for a few moments they could only stare at the wall.
"ARE YOU OKAY? YOUR FACE LOOKS FUNNY." Pap put a hand on Kale's shoulder, his expression one of slight concern. "ARE YOU FEELING SICK?"
"No, no I'm alright Pap. I think I'll sleep for a bit actually I'm uh... kind of tired."
"OH! OKAY! IF YOU SAY!" Pap put a hand on his chin. "HUH WEIRD, ONLY MY BROTHER SLEEPS DURING THE DAY... AND SOMETIMES HE DOES TOO..."
"It's called napping Pap." Kale smirked at the skeleton, with a smirk on their face. They lie on the bed without disturbing the two brothers and then they soon fell asleep.
Most of the afternoon went by quiet. Gaster was checking in the guest room, a little more often than usual, but Kale did their best to not give him any reason of getting suspicious, and they really did not lie when they said they would never think about hurting the brothers. It was actually very fun, to stay in the room with the brothers, Pap made a lot of different puzzles on the Rubik's Cube that Kale had to solve, and some of them were indeed really good puzzles and caused them to fell into deep thinking many times. All the while Sam was reading the books Gaster left them, but after a while he joined the two of them, playing puzzles. Near the later afternoon hours Gaster checked on everyone's Soul once again, making sure there was no damage on either of the skeleton children. Then, soon the night hours came.
However, Kale did not intend to sleep one minute over the night.
* * * * *
It was very late at night by that time. Kale checked the alarm clock on the bedside table. It was 10 PM. They decided it was time. Kale carefully got out of the bed without waking up Sam or Pap and they sneaked out of the room and into Gaster's office.
The Royal Scientist was asleep in front of his computer. His head was supported by one arm, his glasses were tilted on his face and his mouth was half open and he was quietly snoring. Kale walked to the computer, curiously checking what Gaster has been working on.
However all of them was written in a strange symbol language and Kale could not read a single word. They took a look at the Royal Scientist. He looked deep asleep. Kale waved a hand in front of his face. It didn't seem like he was going to wake up anytime soon. Good. Kale was sure Gaster was going to get extremely mad for what they were about to do.
They wanted to sneak in the office and look at Gaster's files, in hopes of finding out more about Sam and Pap and why exactly Gaster is keeping them down in this lab and why he is doing the awful things to them that they stated. But Kale mostly wanted to find out... if those things were true or not. They were determined to know what exactly is happening inside this lab. They quietly dragged a chair from a table that was in the room and they took a look one the files.
One of them was labeled SUBJECTS.
Kale decided to pick that one out first. They opened the file and fished out the first entry.
Entry Number ##
It's been 6 hours since I've removed them from the M-D Solution, they are clumsy and confused, fearful. They stumble and trip like chil As expected, little experience in non-suspension has led to difficult adjustment period, particularly regarding ambulatory motion. It will come in time, I'm sure. They are currently separated as their nature and interest in each other is unclear at this point. I will investigate this more carefully on a later date, after they've mastered movement. They do not appear to understand me, or be capable of speech. They may not be truly sentient, it will be easier if they are not. It does not matter either way. The line has been crossed long ago. There is no turning back now. The taller one is needier than I'd like. ...I need to take steps to prevent attachment.
That was the end of this entry. Kale was left slightly confused. It was obviously about Pap, but... Kale could not exactly pin down, what Pap and Sam were talking about when they told them all the bad things that Gaster did to them. And from this, it did not seem Gaster was as bad as they said, though there were many things written in the entry that were questionable. Why would Gaster want to prevent attachment? What is this 'line' that Gaster crossed? Why exactly did he make Sam and Pap to begin with?
Kale just moved onto the next entry, hoping to get some answers to their questions.
Entry Number ##
7 hours since removal. The little smaller one is awake. I'm surprised both that he's survived outside at all, given his frailty, and that he has woken up again so quickly. He may be harder than I initially thought, which is promising. I went to observe him in person. I am keeping my distance at first. He is poking and prodding at the walls and floor, though he does not come near the force field. Maybe he senses the aura it gives off. I get the impression he is trying to find a way out. Perhaps he wants to go back to the suspension? He has yet to make any sound. It's preferable from the other one's constant whining and crying. He may not be capable of it, or he is just too focused on his exploration. I've come closer and he's caught sight of me. He is vary and suspicious, though still silent. Obviously, he sees me as a potential threat. So, he is more perceptive than the other one at least. I've taken another step closer. His eyes flared a deep purple color, interlaced with blue, and he's backed up against the wall. Another step closer, his eyes are glowing brighter. I can sense magic gathering in his soul, but he's too young too new to know how to make it manifest into an attack. If he could open his mouth, I'm sure he would snap at me. You can't use magic to defend yourself as much as you try. I wonder what you'll do if I keep approaching? Closer still. He's getting quite frantic. ...He's rattling his bones at me. At that point I decided to leave him be, to attend to other matters. The two of them differ strikingly in temperament. One docile, one hostile. Whether that will make things easier or harder, I will have to see.
As the entry ended, Kale could hear... that Gaster woke up. They dropped the file on the floor, jumped off the chair and tried to sneak out of the room, but Gaster caught sight of them.
"What are you doing here?"
"U-Uh I was just..." Kale looked away, trying to make up and excuse, but Gaster walked to them. Seeing the moved chair, and the folder dropped on the floor... he could understand what was going on.
"... How much did you see?"
"Uh... just about uh... t-them...?"
There was a few moments of silence.
"Get out."
"What-"
"Get. Out."
"But wait! What about-"
"I SAID GET OUT OF MY OFFICE ALREADY!"
Kale's mouth snapped shut and they quickly rushed back to the guest room before Gaster would get more mad at them. The skeleton sighed, picked up the folder and put it back on the bookshelf. He moved the chair back to the table, then he checked the security cameras one last time. All three children were sleeping in the room.
Good.
This human was more nosy than he originally thought. With an annoyed sigh, Gaster turned off the computer, took off his lab coat and glasses and went to his bed, falling asleep all over again.
Notes:
Alternate title: Gaster threatens an innocent child
Entries were taken directly from Zarla's comics here:
https://www.deviantart.com/zarla/art/Arm-thief-Arm-thief-582697075https://www.deviantart.com/zarla/art/Back-off-man-585152439
Chapter Text
In the next morning, Gaster woke up with an especially grumpy mood. He was just laying in his bed for several minutes, maybe even hours, and let his thoughts sail away his mind from reality. The Human intruding his office, did not leave him with any good thoughts or feelings and Gaster wanted to strictly avoid letting the Human know more, than they were supposed to. He even went as far, as to thinking he should implement some kind of security measures, had the Human or maybe even the Subject tried to invade his office. But that intention was not exactly driven by anger...
But rather fear.
He knew what Humans were capable of. He knew what happened the last time he trusted a Human and now... the thought of letting a Human stay directly in a room where Subject 1-S and 2-P spent most of their hours... it worried Gaster, to say the least. He did not know why the Human would want to snoop through his personal files.
Was it out of bad measures?
Was it out of curiosity?
Or was it... out of pure, sheer Determination?
Needless to say, Gaster got slightly concerned with the Human's lack of respect on his privacy, and he even started considering that letting the Human in his lab, was a bad idea. But for now, he did not want to do anything to them, for that not only would have meant Asgore would get one step closer to sealing his fate, but he did not have the opportunity yet, to use the Human Determination for something that could aid his experiments.
Knowing he already wasted a lot of time, Gaster and looked at his clock on the bedside table - which he asked Alphys to give to him for 'experimental reasons' - and saw that it was already 9 am. All those hours wasted with nothing but him, laying on his bed like a branch that has been severely damaged from a heavy storm. Gaster slowly lifted up from his bed, wiped his eye sockets, then he put on his favorite white lab coat, which was left on the left arm of his office chair, and went to the coffee maker for his usual morning coffee. As soon as he finished with the drink, he went to the kitchen to once again try to make some kind of breakfast for everyone in the lab.
* * * * *
Kale has woken up. They were awake, but their eyelids just felt like they have been glued to their eye balls. They could not manage to open their eyes. The idea of staying up all night, has indeed proved to be a poor choice. Not only that, but Kale didn't find the investigation of Gaster's lab, to be too productive. They could read some entries, sure, but that only left them with more questions, rather than less, as they have hoped. All they really achieved, was that Gaster probably hates them even more now. They didn't even remember the position they went to sleep in last night, all Kale remembered was that they collapsed on the bed as soon as they escaped from Gaster's rage. They rolled around in the bed and...
...found themselves falling face first to the floor. It seemed they were sleeping on the edge very edge of the bed. Kale felt the burning pain spreading across their whole face and the fall finally made them open their glued-shut eyes. But as soon as they did, they felt their eyes burning as if there was soap and lemonade in them simultaneously. Kale wanted to go out... to find a bathroom... to wash their face... maybe take a shower, while they're at it, they haven't showered in at least three days since they came Underground. Kale limped to the door, with legs that felt like they have gained at least 100 pounds in weight, and they slowly opened the door.
As they did, they nearly made Gaster drop the plate of food on the floor, as he was just about to bring in the breakfast.
"Ah sorry Dr. Gaster!" Kale stepped away, looking at the Doctor's face. It looked quite generic but yet... a little harder. They did not plan on giving Gaster more reasons to be angry with them.
Gaster, since he almost lost his balance, started levitating the plates of food with blue magic, and gave Kale a look. "Good morning, I see you are up."
"Uh... yeah." Kale tried to keep a confident, straight look and just hoped Gaster would not get too judgmental of them after they invaded his privacy.
"Why exactly did you want to leave the room?" Gaster raised a brow, with a suspicious look. "I have told Subject One and Two to only leave this room if it is absolutely necessary, this same rule applies to you too, you know, no matter how 'special' you may be."
There was a spark of frustration in Kale, suddenly.
Sure, they may be a Human, sure they may have looked through a couple of Gaster's files, but that doesn't mean they are always looking to cause trouble or any of that sort. They could not bring themselves to say this to Gaster directly though. Given how the scientist already introduced what he was capable of, Kale would rather not push their luck.
They were still holding the eye contact with Gaster, as they pushed their frustration deep down and answered Gaster's question calmly and completely honestly.
"I just wanted to look for the bathroom. You have a bathroom right?"
Gaster's expression changed into a frustrated-tired one. "No... there is no bathroom down here." In reality there WAS a bathroom, but Gaster rater preferred if the Human wouldn't be walking around in his lab on their own.
Kale raised a brow and now it was their turn, to give Gaster a look. "Really? You have a kitchen down here, but no bathroom? You actually never took a shower ever since you sleep down here? Though, that would explain why you smell like..." Kale looked away and sniffed into the air. "Uh... smoke and dirty laundry?" They looked at Gaster with a now, confused and questioning expression.
He sighed. "Enough. Be quiet, you." He couldn't deny, this Human had quite the attitude. He was used to this kind of behavior from Sam, but he still couldn't deny that Kale, was the typical rebellious teenager type. He soon rolled his eyes as he looked at the brothers. "I'm surprised they haven't woken up yet... they sure are, deep sleepers." Before Kale could do anything, Gaster grabbed their soul with blue magic and sat them on the bed. The feeling was quite uncomfortable, though rather unusual for Kale.
"Wake up, you two... come on." Gaster mumbled in the most monotonous voice Kale heard. Seemed out of all things, waking up the brothers was not his favorite step in his daily schedule. Pap started moving.
Gaster's tone changed. "I did not let you stay in this room, just so you can sleep all day. You were supposed to wake up hours ago." He gave Pap a disapproving look.
"BUT, THIS BED IS SO NICE AND SOFT... I COULD SLEEP ON IT FOREVER."
"Still, no excuse. Wake up your brother. I have some tests to do with you two, today."
The sound of tests made Pap feel a little uneasy. He turned to his brother, trying to wake him up as Gaster left the room, closing the door behind him.
"Morning Pap." Kale spoke up. They felt slightly hurt by Pap, not really acknowledging that they were awake.
"OH, GOOD MORNING, HUMAN KALE!! DID YOU SLEEP WELL?"
"Uh... yeah, sure." Kale managed a tiny smile. The truth was that they did not sleep well and felt like they were a living corpse, but they did not want to dampen Pap's spirit.
"THAT'S NICE!! YOU LOOK TIRED THOUGH, YOUR FACE LOOKS LIKE HIS FACE DOES... PRETTY MUCH ALL THE TIME."
"Uh... yeah, it's nothing." Kale rubbed their eyes, which still felt like it was being burnt. Pap groaned. "I GIVE UP!! SAM YOU LAZYBONES WAKE UP!!"
Sam was quietly snoring, not getting bothered by anything in the world. Kale smiled at that and crawled forward on the bed, to the brothers.
"I got this, don't worry." Kale rolled up their sleeves and found probably the most sensitive part on Sam. Their hands were going wild, they couldn't stop, they were just tickling Sam, uncontrollably. The smaller skeleton immediately darted up from the bed and broke into hysterical laughter. Pap was just watching the events, slightly confused. As soon as Kale saw the desired effect happen, they stopped. Sam looked at them with confusion.
"uh... what did you do? it felt weird... and kinda uh... stingy?"
"Oh, I was just uh... tickling you."
"IS THAT A HUMAN SPELL OR SOMETHING?"
Kale chuckled. "Oh, no, no it's uh... I um..." They really had no idea how to explain the action. Just what actually was tickling, they asked themselves. "Uh, never mind, it's nothing."
Pap looked at his brother. "IT DIDN'T HURT THOUGH, RIGHT?"
"nah, it didn't feel bad."
"Anyway, guys you might want to eat your breakfast while it's still warm." Kale said and surely enough, there was a noise that sounded very much like a whale.
Sam's stomach. The small skeleton rubbed his stomach and said. "yeah... you're right... i'm super hungry."
The three children silently ate their breakfast and after that, they were all occupied with their usual activities. Pap and Kale made puzzles for each other and Sam was reading the monster history book again, from where he left off.
'Afraid of our Power, the Humans have declared war on us. Why did the Humans attack, you must ask yourself, dear reader? Indeed, it seemed they had nothing to fear. Ever if their magic was weaker, they have excelled greatly in physical combat, in the use of physical weapons and along with that, they were more agile and just overall way more physically capable, as they were able to withstand things such as blood, which monsters were not capable of. Monsters have always been more fragile, the only thing that made them better than Humans, was their magic and above all, their ability of healing magic. Any monster is capable of using healing magic, some better than others. Boss monsters are especially great healers in our kind, though, unfortunately after the war, many species of boss monsters have gone extinct. The only known boss monsters remaining, are only goat monsters, more specifically, members of the Dreemurr family. Toriel and Asgore Dreemurr are boss monsters and their son, Asriel Dreemurr used to be one too, before his untimely demise. There used to be a lot more species with boss monsters among them, such as Elves, Goblins, Skeletons, Trolls and many others. Unfortunately, all of these species have gone extinct in the war. All of their kinds have gone mercilessly slain by Humans. Goblins, Imps, Skeletons, Trolls, Elves, Ghouls, they have all been eradicated through the War. Thousands... maybe even millions of us have fallen, and not a single Human was slain, as we know. The skeleton species demise, was especially unfortunate and surprising as they possessed some of the most powerful magical abilities of their era. Although, despite that, skeletons are probably the most fragile and physically weak out of all of our kind as their bones are easy to break by any sort of damage inflicted. The only, singular known skeleton to have survived the war, was Wingdings Gaster. Dr. Gaster has truly lived up to the skeleton name, as he has became the most excellent scientist of our entire era, and is currently under the services of King Asgore Dreemurr to this day. Gaster came from a family with some boss monsters, so it is possible that he, himself is a boss monster too, though nobody can know this for sure, and the scientist nowadays refuses to reveal any of his past days regarding his kind, for obvious and understandable reasons. After we have suffered a terrible loss in the war, we had no choice but to surrender to the Humans. Seven of their greatest magician sealed us under Mount Ebbot, forever to be trapped in this cruel, dark prison. It is said that the power of seven human souls, is strong enough to break the Barrier. But this is all hopeless. There is not a chance a Human would ever fall down into this cursed place. We are doomed to stay down here, forever.'
Sam lowered the book. He had to stop. He had to process all of this. He had to read some lines again, multiple times. The humans were really this cruel to monsters one time? Thousands... maybe even millions of monsters slain... many species eradicated... even skeletons.
So that is why Gaster is so cautious around Kale, the thought hit Sam's mind. That is why he doesn't trust them. That is why he said Humans cannot be trusted. Sam lowered the book and looked at Kale... suddenly, he felt very, very uncomfortable to be in this presence. It's their first time meeting a human... therefor, him and Pap don't truly have a solid idea on what to expect.
What if Gaster is right? What if this is all just... a scheme? A plan, to twist their minds, only to stab them in the back in the end.
"but... gaster isn't really nice to us either." Sam thought. But yet... he remembered that conversation clearly... the strange look in Gaster's eye... the different, softer tone... the reaction he had when they accidentally saw Kale and when they wanted Kale to stay in their room... it all adds up.
"SAM, ARE YOU OKAY?" Pap looked at his brother. "YOU HAD THAT FUNNY LOOK ON YOUR FACE... YOU'VE JUST BEEN STARING AT THE WALL FOR ABOUT FIVE MINUTES."
"wha?" Sam looked at Pap, then he realized where he was. "o-oh uh..." He took an uncertain glance at Kale, who was looking at him with the same concern. Seems Pap, really couldn't read his expression. "i uh... need some air. i'll be back, 'kay?" Sam got up from the bed, leaving the book open on the bed.
"BUT BROTHER HE SAID WE SHOULDN'T LEAVE THE-!" But before Pap could finish, Sam already went out the door, closing it behind him. "... ROOM..." He just sighed, then they returned to playing with the Rubik's Cube with Kale.
Sam took the courage to walk to Gaster's office and talk to him. He soon reached the room and stood in the doorway. Gaster was working on something on his computer, Sam couldn't say what it was. He knocked on the wall a few times. "hey uh... doc?"
Gaster looked back from his work. "... 1-S? What are you doing here?"
"i wanted to uh..." Sam looked away. "... ask you something..." He said slowly, clutching the wall next to him. Gaster looked back at his monitor. "I'm... supposed to finish..." He was gazing at the CORE readings that he has not yet finished checking through last night. But then he sighed and fully turned to Sam on his rolling office chair.
"Alright, what is it?"
Sam walked closer into the room and for a few moments he just stared at the floor, with dark eyes. He was not exactly sure how he is supposed to ask this question without it sounding terribly disturbing. But since he didn't know how else he could put it, he just looked up right into the scientist's eyes, his eyes turning back to normal and asked away.
"is it true that the humans murdered all of the skeletons in the war?"
The question caught Gaster completely off guard.
"are we-... uh i mean... are you actually the only skeleton left?"
"How do you know this?" The question sounded from Gaster. Sam could feel the slight guilt being obviously visible on his face.
"i uh... read it in one of those books you gave us. monster history, i think?"
Gaster rolled away on his chair, avoiding to make eye contact. For a few moments, there was just silence.
"listen, i already know so... we can just uh... talk about it, right?" Sam asked, though with difficulty to keep his voice straight. He really has felt like he hit Gaster at his weakest spot. He expected Gaster to just command him out of his office but then... he spoke with the most broken tone he has heard from the Royal Scientist.
"It's... not easy to talk about... 1-S..." Gaster said, in a quiet tone, almost sounding like a weakened whisper. He put a hand on his forehead and let out an almost completely silent sigh, then he finally managed to look into Sam's eyes and respond.
"But yes. It's true. I... was the only skeleton to survive the war. I was... around your age, when it happened. Everyone was fighting... everyone I..." He cut himself off and once again he pulled his gaze away from Sam's eyes "They have all been fighting... except for me."
There was a certain expression appearing on the old skeleton's face. Sam has never seen anything like it. Gaster's expression was... cloudy... gloomy...
Broken...
Sam has never seen the scientist being so... emotional.
"They all died. And I lived." He said now... with the most empty voice. "And it was all my fault..."
Sam could see Gaster clench a fist.
"come on... it wasn't your fault, if you would have fought, you would have just died too." Sam tilted his head at Gaster. It was the first time that he could feel true sympathy for the old Royal Scientist.
"That is irrelevant." Gaster said, now with a tone that sounded more angry... he wasn't angry at Sam but rather... himself. Sam could tell from the tone. "If I would have done something, I could have saved them, but I sat there and did nothing like a coward."
"okay, maybe but... but you were just a kid, what was there that you could have done?" Sam continued to show facts, but Gaster looked at him with a dismissal expressions. "That is enough, 1-S."
"i bet the people would have been happy that you survived! and if it wasn't for you, we wouldn't even be here!"
"I said that is enough, 1-S. Gaster raised a hand, his volume slightly increasing. Sam went silent as he was about to leave the room.
"I must apologize... as this is not something I would have wanted you to know... it's not a story anyone would want to hear."
Gaster got up from the office chair... and for the first time, he did something that Sam would not have ever expected to see.
Gaster put his hands on his shoulder.
"But now, do you understand? Do you understand why I warned you, so strictly about humans? I once too thought, we could trust them, but that only led to a war and cost thousands of monster's lives. We cannot allow ourselves to trust them anymore, after everything they had done. Humans are cunning, vile, and exceptionally cruel creatures. Let your guard down, and you could potentially become a pile of dust in a matter of seconds, before you realize what had happened. Do you understand, 1-S?"
The way Gaster looked at Sam... it was different. There was nothing strict, or commanding about his expression...
It was a face of genuine sympathy... of genuine... concern, and care.
Seeing the doctor in such a different state of mind, Sam didn't know what to say, so he just ended up slowly nodding. Gaster let go of him, and Sam went back to the bedroom with... a strange and unusual feeling overtaking him.
"SAM! ARE YOU OKAY NOW?" Pap asked him as soon as Sam slightly opened the door.
"uh... yeah. i'm fine, bro." Sam said, though clearly lying. Luckily Pap couldn't tell, but Sam just read from Kale's expression that they knew something was up.
"Uh... are you sure?" They asked him. "You went away for a bit. Uh... do you wanna talk about what's bothering you? Or something?"
Sam didn't answer for quite many moments. He just went and sat next to his brother on the bed, then his eyes went dark.
"why do you care?" He said with a dark tone, looking down in front of himself.
"SAM! BE NICE!" Pap told his brother. Then a concerned expression settled on his face. "ARE YOU REALLY SURE YOU'RE ALRIGHT? YOU... SEEM LIKE SOMETHING IS BOTHERING YOU."
"It's okay Pap, if he doesn't want to open up... that's fine. Sorry Sam." Kale closed down the topic. Sam just scoffed then he put the book he was reading, away, and he lie down on the bed, turning to the wall. Pap just shared a confused-concerned expression with Kale, but the Human just shrugged it off, with the mindset that something just probably upset Sam. Some awkward, uncomfortable, silent minutes went down, Pap and Kale just trying to act natural while Sam was just sulking. Then, Gaster opened the door and asked Pap to come with him, leaving Sam alone with Kale in the room.
"Since I am done with the work I had to do, we will be doing one test. It may not seem like much... but it is very much significant for many reasons."
"I HOPE IT'S NOT GOING TO BE HARD..." Pap wondered aloud. Gaster led Pap to a room... a different one than usually. The room was small and there was only one long table with two chairs in front of each other.
"Sit." Gaster instructed, gesturing at one of the chairs with his hand. Pap did as he was told. After some searching, Gaster pulled out an empty sheet of paper and wrote something on top of it.
"Today's test is going to be a little different. We are going to call this, a hypothetical. You answer one of my questions gives on this paper, and depending on your answer, I will tell you how well you did."
"OH OKAY!" Pap took the paper Gaster handed him.
'A HUMAN ATTACKS YOU. WHAT WOULD YOU DO?'
Pap found the question to be rather strange, for many reasons, but he answered with his most honest opinion and idea.
'WELL, I WOULD TALK TO THE HUMAN! TELL THEM THAT IS NOT THE RIGHT WAY! CONVINCE THEM THAT WE COULD BE FRIENDS! THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO BE THIS WAY! THAT EVERYONE CAN BE A GOOD PERSON IF THEY TRY, AND I BELIEVE THEY CAN ALSO BE GOOD! AND THAT THEY DON'T HAVE TO ACT SUCH WAY! I WOULD SHOW THEM HOW TO BE NICE! I WOULD BE THE BEST FRIEND ANYONE COULD EVER WISH FOR, FOR THEM!'
Pap, after he finished writing his answer, handed the paper back to Gaster. He took a few moments to read it.
...Then he tore the paper into pieces and gave a disappointed look to Pap.
"HEY WHY DID YOU TEAR IT APART?"
"This answer... if you ever did this, you would get killed in a matter of moments. This is not the right way to deal with Humans, Subject Two."
"BUT-!"
"No buts, try again." Gaster handed the new piece of paper to Pap, writing the same question. And he did this over... and over... and over again, for several minutes.
* * * * *
Back in the bedroom... things were taking a rather intense turn.
"Uh... Sam? Are you alright?" Kale tried. Sam was still turning to the wall, his eyes still dark, and he hasn't said a word in the last several minutes.
"why do you care." Sam spat out. Rather sounded like a statement, than a question, his voice was so cold.
"Sam, what's gotten into you? You've been acting like this since you put down that stupid book!" Kale started losing patience, slightly. Sam finally rose from the bed and stared at Kale with eyes that were dark, resembling the deepest pits of a dark hell.
"maybe, i just started seein' the real picture."
"What are you talking about?" Kale's expression hardened.
"oh, nothin'. i'm just sayin' i don't wanna see a dustpile in the place of pap when i wake up in the morning!" Sam's right eye became even more dark and his left eye flared cyan. "y'know, i'm starting to get what the doc is on about you. and who knows? maybe he is right. i mean, for all we know you're just a human who came from the surface and who knows what kinda stuff you've been doin' out there!"
Kale felt the frustration getting to them. That was it. They were getting tired of this. First it was the monsters in Snowdin, then it was Undyne, then Gaster, and now Sam too? Why does everyone have to think that they're a life threatening entity, just because they are a human?
Kale stood up from the bed and their expression changed into one of real anger. "Just because I am a human, doesn't mean I am going to destroy the whole Underground with the snap of my fingers you know!"
"but what is the proof of that?" Sam got up from the bed too, staring at Kale, the intense and powerful cyan glow in his eye mixing with crimson red. "after all, the facts speak for themselves! i know what kind of people your kind are now, and not gonna lie, it makes it kinda hard to believe you wouldn't wanna harm me or my brother. what if i did some magic? would you get scared and think about dusting us straight away? huh?"
"That book just messed with your mind, you're talking stupidity! It's just a book, written about hundreds of years ago, what does it matter anymore! You know they say don't judge a book by it's cover!"
The two kids were just intensely staring at each other, until they heard the door click and that made both of them hop on the bed and completely forget about their argument.
"Failure. You are an absolute disgrace, Subject Two."
Pap entered the bedroom and it looked like he was just about to cry. Sam got closer to his brother and tried to comfort him.
"eh, don't worry bro. don't bother what he's talkin' about. we both know he's wrong about you, right? don't let him get to you." Sam smiled at his brother.
But Pap did not acknowledge any of Sam's words. In his inner mind, there was only one sentence, forever echoing.
'Failure. You are an absolute disgrace, Subject Two.'
Notes:
I didn't post last week cause I got sick but I'm back mwahaha >:D
Gaster is trying veeeeery hard to make the brothers believe Kale is a bad influence on them and they cannot trust them and seems Sam's opinion was influenced by the Human history books, but will he get over that...?
Chapter Text
"Hmm... your answers are more rational than Subject Two's. I wish I could say I am surprised."
Gaster put down Sam's paper on the table as the two were just staring at one another. Then, the words came out of Sam's mouth.
"...just because my brother has different opinions than you, it doesn't make him a disgrace." His eyes got dark. Gaster looked away with his usual tired expression. "It is not about opinions. This is about having the better judgement. He can stay true to his foolish ideals all he wants, regardless they are going to get him killed someday."
"you really think, that killing someone the second you see them counts as the 'better judgement'?" Sam tilted his head, with a judgmental expression on his face.
Gaster was ready with a response as he still kept his eyes focused on Sam's ones, leaning back in his seat and folding his arms. "You already know what humans are capable of. You have read all about them and learned about their true nature. What makes you think they are any different now, in the present days?"
"yeah, okay you got a point there but..." Sam looked down with a hard expression. He wanted to find one good reason why Gaster is wrong... but... at the same time... he wasn't all that wrong about this. He has read about humans, their history and what they have done to monsters all those years ago. It did seem like getting so friendly with a human, was a very risky move.
"You know that I am right." Gaster remarked, seeing Sam's shifting, lost expression.
"okay... but... you don't get to talk to my brother like this!" Sam spat out, slamming his tiny fist on the table in anger. He raised his head and looked at the doctor with darkened eyes. Gaster's expression was unchanged. "you don't get to just command him around on what he should say, or how he should act! maybe you are keeping us down here and doing experiments on us, but that doesn't mean you get to treat us like garbage!"
Gaster's expression hardened this time as he straightened in his seat. "I am the one in charge here. I am the one who gets to decide anything about what is right or wrong, in your actions. You are under my restrictions here." Gaster put a finger on the table. Sam's eyes just gone darker.
"oh yea? so you say? because as far as i'm concerned, you are nobody to us!"
Gaster's expression froze, as he leaned back. Sam's words of insult have never had effects on him. He never took too much concern or care for them, after all, he could sort of understand his actions. He would have done similarly, in his place. But this word... this single word felt like a low blow to him. In all of the decades he served as a Royal Scientist, nobody remarked him in such a manner. After everything he has been through in his life, after all of the pain he has endured in his life, after all the efforts he has been going through to save Asgore and break the barrier, since he created the Subjects... he has been called the one, the only thing that he never truly was.
Nobody.
Gaster repressed the red glow from trying to make it's way into his eye as he looked at Sam with a generic expression, albeit he was repressing his true feelings. Sam was staring right back at him, still with dark eyes. Gaster's voice was shaking with sudden burning anger.
"You... do not know anything about me..."
"well, maybe, but i can gather one thing. you think torturing people and making them miserable is the act that's gonna make you a great scientists? is this why that asgore guy promoted you as a royal scientist? or are you just lying to everyone around you, makin' 'em believe you are this great genius? when in reality, nothing could be farther from the truth."
The name of Asgore sounding from Sam's mouth really caught Gaster off guard, though he hid it in his expression, not letting the young skeleton know.
He gave just a simple answer, shielding his true feelings. "You spend too much time reading books." Gaster looked away, folding his arms once again. There was a smirk settling on Sam's face.
"oh yeah? are you scared i'll find out your little secrets?"
Gaster's hand clenched into a fist.
"i guess you didn't realize, giving us those books would be a bad idea. who's the idiot now, huh?"
"Enough." Gaster looked at Sam, slamming a hand on the table. This was the first time Sam has truly hit Gaster in many of his weakest points, talking about things he had little to no true knowledge about. "Get out, now."
Sam bolted out of the chair. "yeah, i don't even know why i'm bothering with someone like you." Sam stormed out of the room and after Gaster heard the small footstep noises get more distant, he went to his office and walked to one of his shelves. There it was, on the very top, a box of cigarettes. He took out one stub and went to the most distant point of the lab, to take a drag or two.
The conversation that happened about just a mere hour ago has completely been erased from Sam's mind as he could only frustratedly think about the argument that had just happened. Despite everything, Gaster had no right to treat him, or his brother with such manners. Sam knew he was right. Torturing people was not what made you a great, genius person. As he reached the bedroom door, he did not enter, but leaned on the wall, staring up at the ceiling. After letting out a sigh, Sam couldn't help but admit in his inner mind, he did go a little bit too far. But at the same time, he knew he wasn't exactly wrong either. Just who does he think he is? Despite everything, Gaster is just an apparent scientist, who showed nothing truly impressive to him and his brother. He only introduce his capability of sadism and and carelessness.
'Dr. Gaster has truly lived up to the skeleton name, as he has became the most excellent scientist of our entire era...'
Sam slammed his tiny fist into the wall.
"yeah... putting us through miserable experiments, thinking he can just treat us like trash... truly excellent indeed..." Then suddenly, Sam raised a brow as he thought... "what does excellent even mean...?"
Sam let out a sigh and entered the bedroom. Great, now he has to deal with Kale as well, the realization hit him. Pap was clearly crying, and it looked like Kale was trying to comfort Pap. Well, looked like it at least. Sam wanted to demand Kale not to touch his brother, but he did not want to say in front of Pap.
"hey, bro?" Sam sat on the bed next to his brother, and Pap looked at him with teary eyes.
"HE... HE SAID... HE CALLED ME..." Pap looked at his brother, his tone broken and weak. Sam hugged him. " i know... but you k now what i always say. don't let him get to you. he knows nothing about you. you are a better person than him, he just refuses to accept that."
Pap sniffed. "Y-YEAH... YOU'RE RIGHT... I KNOW YOU ARE... THANKS SAM..."
Pap looked away, he still couldn't smile. "I... I JUST DON'T UNDERSTAND... I... WHY IS IT SO WRONG? I ANSWERED HONESTLY... I DON'T THINK HUMANS ARE BAD. KALE IS NICE TO US, SO WHY WOULD HE WANT US TO HATE HUMANS IN GENERAL?"
Sam looked away with an uncomfortable expression, and at the same time, Kale also looked away.
"SO HOW DID YOU DO?" Pap looked at his brother. Sam's eyes widened slightly. "oh uh..." He avoided to make contact with Pap. "... fine... it was fine..."
"WHAT WAS YOUR ANSWER?"
"... doesn't matter." Sam said .
"BUT I WANNA KNOW! TELL ME!"
"it doesn't matter. i bet your answers were way better." Sam tried to dismiss the topic.
"DID HE LIKE YOUR RESPONSE? WHAT DID YOU WRITE?"
"shut up i said it doesn't matter." Sam snapped, though still not looking at Pap, rather staring at the wall. Pap's expression changed, a frown settling on his face one again.
"O... OH... OKAY... I-I'M SORRY..."
Kale stood up. "Okay. That's it." Pap looked at them Sam though, still staying in the same position. "WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"
"I'm done. I gotta talk to him. What is he doing to you both? He doesn't just get to talk to you and treat you like animals."
"U-UH HUMAN, I DON'T THINK THAT'S A GOOD IDEA."
"yeah, you shouldn't bother. with the mood he is in right now, he might just buzz off your head." Sam said quietly, still not looking at Kale, but at least his tone was slightly gentler than it has been all day today.
"SAM JUST WHAT HAPPENED IN THERE?" Pap looked at his brother again.
"nothing!" Sam snapped at Pap, raising his head, finally looking at him. "i just said what was on my mind, maybe."
"OH..."
"... Anyway... I'm going now..." Kale said quietly, leaving the two brothers be as they left the room. The lab wasn't too big, it shouldn't take too much to find Gaster and finally talk with him about this entire attitude he gives, not only to them, Kale, but Sam and Pap too
* * * * *
"I know he was right... I do not deserve you... I do not deserve someone like you to care about me... I am not as great... not as excellent, or as perfect as either of you think... I would not be a Royal Scientist, if you knew what kind of horrible things I have been doing... I would either be sitting in prison, waiting for my execution... or I wouldn't even be alive anymore to begin with..."
Gaster stood in the middle of the lab's hallway, smoking his cigarette, being absorbed in his thoughts about the heavy argument with 1-S. He took a long, long drag of the cigarette and exhaled, the thick smoke leaving his mouth and making it's way upwards to the ceiling, splattering and turning into nothingness as it reached it. It is true, that 1-S has never managed to make him so angry before, as Gaster always knew he was just teasing him and annoying him on purpose. He could mostly block out all of his insults and when he had enough, it took only one word for the skeleton to go silent. But this anger wasn't driven by the fact that 1-S was wrong.
But by the fact that he was absolutely right.
And it greatly frustrated Gaster that he knew so much, about something he actually knows so little of. The fact that the young skeleton could see through him this easily, just by reading a simple history book was... disturbing for Gaster. Though 1-S was smart, no denying that. But sometimes he is just too smart for his own good...
Way too smart for his own good.
Gaster could soon hear footsteps approaching him, though he did not turn around. Until he heard a quiet, familiar voice speak to him.
"Uh... you're smoking? Inside?"
Gaster refused to respond.
"That's uh... not very healthy... even if you are a skeleton... you know?" Kale rubbed the back for their head as they looked away.
"What do you want." Gaster said with the most emotionless tone. Kale's expression and voice hardened now.
"Would you at least look at me? It's kinda hard to communicate with someone, if we're not even facing each other, you know."
Gaster rolled his eye as he stomped away the cigarette and turned around to face Kale, folding his arms giving them his usual tired-judgmental expression, raising a brow. "Yes?" He forced as much calmness into his voice as he could manage.
But Kale's question wasn't exactly calm. "... What is up with you? Why are you treating Sam and Pap this way?"
Gaster raised his brow, higher. "... Sam and Pap...?"
"Oh uh... yeah well... since you couldn't bother to give them names... I just did it myself."
Gaster let out an annoyed sight, that rather sounded like an angry groan. "I would greatly appreciate it if you stopped making such contact with my subjects, Human. All of this is just intoxicating their mind and will get them into all sorts of trouble in the future. Not to mention how much your behavior is distracting them from succeeding on their tests."
"Excuse me, but I think the only thing that is distracting them is the physical and verbal abuse you are putting them through." Kale said with a strong voice, anger setting in their expression.
"Things cannot be abused. I am just doing what I have to."
Kale's expression got softer. There was sudden worry, confusion and fear settling in their expression, all at once. "Why do you call them... things? What does that mean?"
"They are merely just artificial beings, created following a monster's blueprint. They are... creations, if you will. They cannot be considered true living beings. There has never been anything like them before, and never will be either."
Creations? Following a monster's blueprint? All of this was really... worrying Kale. They have not spent a great amount of time down in this lab, but from what they have seen... Gaster just looked like a creepy mad scientist. To think that people thought of him as a great Royal Scientist...
"Does Alphys know about all that you are doing in here...?" The question escaped Kale.
Gaster looked away... there was a long pause. Then he just settled with a simple answer.
"It's none of your business."
Kale considered asking something else, that has been on their mind, ever since they came underground really. They did not know if it was a good idea to ask, given Gaster's secretive personality, and the fact that he could be angered quite easily, but finally, after a long pause, Kale asked away.
"Why do you hate me?" Came the short question. Kale's voice hit Gaster differently. No anger... no disgust... no fear... no disappointment...
Just genuine sadness.
"I mean... okay... I am Human... I get it... We sealed your kind Underground... I get it... I really do... but... why? I haven't done anything wrong. I didn't even think about hurting anyone, ever. I was trying to prove to you I meant no harm. Yet, you are still being judgmental and mistrusting of me. I understand, humans caused you pain. But... you really think I am a horrible monster, when you take a glance at me...?"
Kale helplessly raised a hand to their chest. The begging tone of the young, innocent child... it made Gaster feel something unexpected. After all... this was just a young, small child wondering about what this passionate, strong, burning hate meant, coming from a species they only came in contact with barely a week ago.
"Please... I can understand if you hate me... but... why?"
"I..."
For the first time ever, Gaster was truly at a loss for words. He was never expecting a human to stand in front of him with such words. Gaster could hear honest confusion and sadness coming from the young Kale's voice. The scientist fully turned to them, and took a long glance at them.
They were just wearing normal, usual clothing. Gaster did not notice before, but their vest was tattered at some spots. The expression on Kale's face was completely innocent. Maybe even pleading in a way. Gaster could see in his inner eye... the mercy button floating in front of the child. They truly did look... harmless... but still... despite that, there was a giant spark of hatred filling Gaster every time they just looked at them, and now, he could finally understand why.
Every time he looked at Kale...
All he could see...
Was Chara.
The determination. The short reddish-brown hair... the striped shirt... this human was a screaming image, of the old fallen human Chara. That child was the reason everything became terrible in the Underground. On the same day that they died, Prince Asriel has also lost his life, making the Underground lose all of their hope. Shortly after that, Asgore declared war on the Humans, and Queen Toriel has left the castle.
"It is getting late. Surely you must be tired?" Gaster finally said, completely avoiding to answer Kale's question. The Human has not said anything in response, they just nodded slowly and walked away. Soon, Gaster started walking away too, and went back to his office, collapsing on the couch, burying his face into his damaged hands.
* * * * *
"i'll be honest with ya pap. i can't blame the doc for wanting to take precautions and not wanting us to be all buddy buddy with kale."
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN?" Pap looked at his brother, lowering the Rubik's cube.
While Kale was gone, chatting with Gaster, Sam and Pap were just minding their own business. Sam had quite enough of reading the Monster History book so he rather took out a different book about advanced physics and science and was reading that, but after a little while, he put the book and was just laying on the bed, as Pap was playing with his Rubik's cube as always. Through these minutes, both brothers were completely silent and Sam only shared his true feelings about Kale with his brother now, leaving Pap confused as the question has hit him completely off guard.
"i mean... don't you remember what G said about humans? they can't be trusted... how do we really know we can trust kale?"
"OH BROTHER DON'T BE SILLY! YOU SAW HOW NICE THEY WERE BEING TO US!" Pap turned completely to his brother now. "IT'S OKAY TO BE NERVOUS AT FIRST, BUT I'M TELLING YOU, KALE IS THE GREATEST HUMAN FRIEND WE COULD EVER WISH TO HAVE!!"
Sam sat up, facing his brother. "see, that's the issue. you believe in all this. you believe in everything they say but what if they just want to trick you? we haven't even seen humans before, we can't actually know what their personality is like."
"BUT... SAM..."
Sam's eyes darkened. "... i just don't want to see a pile of dust when i wake up in the morning."
At that moment, the door has opened and Kale entered the room. Both brothers were staring at them, their eyes wide. Pap was still under the effects of what Sam has just said and couldn't come out of his shock even after Kale entered.
The Human silently sat on the bed, with a quite saddened expression. The brothers' conversation completely trailed off and they both returned to what they were doing. This time, Kale was in no mood to try to solve Paps' puzzles. After a long pause, Kale said.
"Hey... Sam?"
When it seemed like Sam was paying attention, they asked. "Do you... also... hate me?" Kale raised their head and looked at Sam. The question caught him off guard and his eyes went dark. He also looked at Kale. Pap was looking at both of them, waiting to see what they had to say to each other. Finally, Sam sighed.
"i... no way. i don't hate you. you... you gave us names... you... became our friend. you were just being so much nicer to us all this time than him. i-i... i don't know what got into me. all this time i've been acting like this jerk and completely overlooked what was the true real picture."
Sam crawled closer to Kale on the bed.
"this whole day... ever since i put down that book... i've been thinking that you were gonna stab us in the back... but... pap is right. all the stuff you did to us... i couldn't imagine you to be a bad person. at least... y'know... you can't be any worse than him, heh..." Sam winked, as he looked away and rubbed the back of his skull with a smirk. Kale smiled too.
"Yeah... I'm sorry too... I guess I wasn't being real nice to you since we... you know."
"GREAT! NOW WE CAN ALL BE FRIENDS AGAIN!!"
They both looked at Pap. "NOW YOU DON'T HAVE TO MISTRUST THE HUMAN ANYMORE AND WE CAN ALL GET ALONG AGAIN!! RIGHT?"
"heh... yeah... i guess so. while he keeps looking at the past. something that has already happened. and i almost made that same mistake."
Sam smiled at Pap and Kale. "you know? history can't be overwritten, that's true. what happened, it happened. it sucks, but you just gotta live with it and accept it. you can't just be stuck in the past all day, it just distracts you from the present. from things that could be way better than what you first imagined, originally. and that is where he is wrong. if he keeps just looking at all the bad stuff that already happened, he is never going to see the true real picture. the difference. history already happened like thousands of years ago, so... does it really matter anymore?"
"YEAH! THAT'S RIGHT! MAYBE SOME BAD THINGS HAPPENED, BUT IF YOU KEPT FOCUSING ON THE GOOD THINGS INSTEAD OF THE BAD, YOU CAN ALWAYS SEE THE LIGHT AND SEE THE BRIGHTER SIDE OF THINGS!!"
"Well... that does sound like a good message." Kale chuckled. Then they looked down with a wistful expression, but they quickly shook that away.
"BOTH OF YOU ARE THE BEST FRIENDS ANYONE COULD WISH FOR! THE MOST IMPORTANT PEOPLE TO ME!!"
"hehe yeah... you too pap." Sam let a big smile spread on his face as he looked at his brother. "you too..."
Notes:
Here is the key difference between Gaster and Sam. Sam won't let history cloud his judgments about an entire race where as Gaster is unable to let go of his hatred.
However, perhaps Gaster saw something different in Kale this time...?
Chapter Text
After the previous confrontation both Sam and Kale have been feeling a little better. Despite everything, Sam did not feel like touching the history book again, and rather joined in his brother and Kale's activities. Everything has been very normal and usual. Gaster was mostly locked up in his office, working on various things regarding the CORE and other things remotely similar to that. To put it in another way, things got a little quiet. The afternoon when Kale's encounter with Gaster happened just went with the children staying in their room, occupying themselves with whatever activities they found interesting. All the while Gaster seemed to distance himself a bit. More so than usual. Now, this was not unfamiliar to Subjects Sam and Pap, but Kale felt like they had something to do with this. Their last encounter with the Royal Scientist has left him in a rather questionable state. Gaster seemed to avoid the Human child as much as he could manage by now. He avoided any conversations with the Human and he refused to make any kind of eye contact, had the two of them got in a close range together. Though at the same time, Kale could notice that the skeleton was acting less... hateful towards them. Could it be their words actually awakened some old memories within Gaster? Or did he just took sympathy on the young human child's pleading voice and questions?
On the other hand, Gaster immediately commanded Kale out of his office whenever they tried to approach it. None of the children did really mind that things quietened down... but neither of them were really sure what Gaster was doing exactly. In the three days that has passed, the Scientist barely approached their room, only to bring them meals every now and then. Gaster was mostly absorbed in doing work on his computer, but on other times, he was going through a lot of his papers and old books. Seemed like he was planning something, but no one could really say what it was.
* * * * *
'- Determination'
'Determination is the most powerful known trait among Human kind and the most rare. As of today's history, it is speculated that only one Determined Human child is born every twenty years and for some mysterious reasons, there has never been a new Human born with a determination soul until the previous host of said soul expired of age. It has always seemed that there can only be one child possessing Determination in every two decades. It has never been experienced that two determination users lived at the same time. The reasons for this are quite unknown, Human scientists explained this by simply saying, it was just a rare trait. Even centuries ago, in the times of the War, there had barely been any humans possessing determination soul. The only Determined Humans recorded in our known history are Ancil Daddow, one of the greatest Human wizards and the former King of Humans on the Surface world before the War, and Chara Dreemurr, former adopted child of King Asgore Dreemurr and Queen Toriel. The original lineage of Chara Dreemurr is unknown, but there is no known Human born with the determination soul, ever since the first fallen child's early death. Around the times of the War, Determination users used to possess the most advanced and powerful magical abilities. It is rather hard to master your full magical potential as a Determination user, as it not only requires great talent in magic itself, but it also requires the user to truly have outstandingly powerful determination within their very blood. To put it another way, in order to master determination magic, you need to be born with the highest possible determination in your blood. If you do not have a good potential in using magic, determination users are only capable of summoning weak projectiles. If your determination is not strong enough to produce any sort of magic, users often end up losing their trait as they age. But if they master their magical abilities perfectly, they could summon fully functional magical weapons, such as swords, bows, daggers, knives, spears and many more. Determination is the only known trait that is capable of summoning completely functional weapons. Knowing it's immense magical power and rarity, there are probably many more of this soul's potential abilities are still unknown to this day...'
Gaster closed the book, Human History Vol.3 and tossed it on his desk. He folded his arms and leaned back on his seat, thinking. If Sam could master determination powers... if he could actually summon weapons with his magic... who knows what kind of potential power he could be granted with. At the same time, in order to be able to reach this level, you need to have strong ability in magic and great determination in your blood you were born with. And of course, Sam is not known to have any. His magical abilities are very poor... and there is no need to mention anything about the issue of blood.
But at the same time... it could be that Kale's powers are more than they think, they are just simply not using all their potential. Maybe they just aren't determined enough to summon any magical weapons. Gaster scratched his chin and readjusted his glasses that slightly slipped on the tip of his nasal cavity as he was reading. He turned back to his papers which he has been tediously working on last night as he was doing a check-up on Sam's soul. It was a thorough illustration of Sam's soul. If Gaster really wanted to inject determination in him, he would have to think of a way to do it safely without potential fatal side effects, as Sam's body was already delicate as it is. Not to mention, nobody has ever tried mixing determination with Monster Soul Essence before. But Gaster was not concerned by this. He was known for making experiments that had never been done before.
Gaster rolled closer to his computer on his office chair, and started typing a new entry.
Entry Number ##
It has been three days since my last experiments. The Subjects has been left alone in their room, in that time with the Human, but I always do keep a close eye on the security feeds, had the Human tried to do anything suspicious. In the last days, I have been thoroughly studying Human Determination and it's strengths and weaknesses. None of my books mention anything about Monster Magic combining with Human Determination, it is something I will have to find out myself. Given Subject One's delicate health and pathetically worthless abilities in combat, I have been considering to inject some of the Human's blood into him, mixing their determination with his magic. If the experiment is a success, 1-S could potentially become the most powerful monster known to date. Not only his abilities would be more than likely enhanced by the determination, if the Human's blood is strong enough, he could use the great magical abilities the Determination soul possesses, such as summoning fully functional corporeal weapons. However, as the Human has shown me, they do not seem capable of mastering this advanced level of magic. I will need to do some further tests to determine whether they do not have it in them at all, or they are simply not... determined enough to muster enough power for summoning weapons.
Gaster closed the entry and got up from his chair, heading for the small bedroom.
* * * * *
"GO ON BROTHER! TRY SOLVING THIS ONE!"
"oh please, that's easy, you gave me that a hundred times already." Sam scoffed and snatched the Rubik's cube from his brother. In less than a minute the puzzle was solved. On every side was a colorful O. Sam grinned as he gave back the Rubik's Cube to his brother. "see? easy. c'mon, gimme somethin' harder."
"OH YOU DARE CHALLENGE ME?!" Pap playfully raised his voice. "ALRIGHT, YOU ASKED FOR IT!!"
"yeah, gimme your worst." Sam's grin widened on his face.
For now, Kale stayed out from the excitements of puzzles and just let the two brothers have their fun. Soon the door opened and Gaster came in.
"Human, Subject One, come with me."
Kale tilted their head, confused. "Me too? Why?"
"No questions, come on."
"aww.. fine.." Sam disappointedly jumped off the bed. Pap looked at Gaster with a sympathetic look.
"UM... CAN I COME TOO? I DON'T WANNA BE ALONE HERE..."
Gaster rolled his eyes. "Fine. But stay quiet and do not interrupt." Pap nodded with a light smile. Kale was still slightly confused, but decided not to question the Royal Scientist as he already demonstrated some pretty strange and aloof behavior around them.
After some walking in the seemingly endless hallway, Kale and the three skeletons reached the biggest room in the lab. The room where they always had combat practice, where the the skeleton children could train their magical abilities. In the middle of the room was the slightly tattered dummy that they would always practice on. Kale took a closer look. Compared to the dummy in the Ruins, this one was in pretty bad shape.
The leather covering was already coming off in some bits, on others it was ragged. The cotton was sticking out in many spots on the dummy, mostly on it's head and one of it's button eyes was missing. Not only that, but the old leather also had a horrendous smell coming from it. Made Kale wonder about various things, namely: How long did Gaster have this dummy in his lab for, how often did the brothers practice on it and when was the last time the old skeleton ever washed it?
While they were occupied wondering, Pap made his way up to the podium at the top of the room next to Gaster and Sam kept looking at Kale, probably confused on why the Human found this tattered old dummy so interesting.
"Human, sit on the bench in the back there." Gaster instructed. Kale turned around and there were two long benches by the doorway. Kale sat on the long bench and Sam stepped forward to the dummy. "Alright 1-S. Fire at the dummy as strong as you can manage."
Sam looked up at the doctor with a confused-frustrated expression. "uhm... what's the point of this? i mean... every time we did something like this, we always came to the same result and you always told me that i'm pathetic, weak and worthless for anything that involves using magic."
"And on many of those occasions, you were purposely holding back just to get a reaction out of me. Do as your told."
"yeah... whatever."
Sam focused all the strength and energy he could muster and closed his eyes in concentration. Then he summoned a giant blaster above his head, and fired. The giant laser beam blinded Kale and the loud sound of the blaster echoed through the entirety of the long empty hallways of the lab. Huffing, Sam opened his eyes as he was met with the same disappointment he faced every time Gaster asked him to do anything combat related.
Aside from looking a little burnt, and now having the smell of fiery smoke along with the horrendous dirty, wet laundry smell, the dummy was completely undamaged from Sam's attack. It stayed in the exact same state as it did two minutes ago. Gaster quickly wrote something down on his clipboard. Sam looked up at him and shrugged.
"there. not sure what you were expecting, but i really gave all the energy i could this time." He closed his eyes, walked away from the dummy and dropped down on the bench next to Kale.
"Alright Human, now it's your turn." Gaster looked up from his notes to Kale. The Human raised an eyebrow in surprise.
"Me?" The put a hand on their chest in confusion. "I... I would even do worse than Sam, I'm terrible at magic."
"Maybe. Or maybe that's only what you think. You can't know if you have really experienced the complete potential of your powers."
"I..." Kale didn't know what to say. On the other hand, Gaster's words slightly took them by surprise
Gaster... believed in their abilities?
"Uh... okay, I'll... uh give it my best."
Kale stood up from the bench and walked to the dummy. For a few moments, they just stared into each other's eyes for a moment. Then Kale focused. They really weren't sure what exactly Gaster was expecting. They had no idea what kind of potential Gaster was expecting from them. The only thing they could ever achieve when it came to their magical abilities were the pathetic throwable pebbles that barely scratched the victim, let alone do any real damage. But regardless, Kale did what they were always instructed to do every time they practiced magic in school. They closed their eyes and let out a deep, long exhale.
They could hear their teacher's words echo in their mind.
'Empty your thoughts... clear your mind. Do not let yourself be distracted by even the slightest noise. Focus on what you want kind of magic you want to achieve.'
Yes well, that was the moment that Kale always got stuck in their mind. They had no idea what they wanted to achieve with their magic. Not now, not ever before. But... thinking of it now... the only thing that came to their mind, was that they wanted to... satisfy Gaster, with their abilities. So Kale thought of that.
'Then... raise your hand... let your own magical weapon or tool appear in your hand... imagine it's shape... the form... then, when you pictured what you wanted in your mind, open your eyes and if you did everything right, the desired magical weapon or tool would be right in your hand's grip.'
Kale raised a hand... a magical weapon or tool? They imagined a knife. It was just the first thing that came to mind. The shape... the form... it was all in their head...
The three skeletons waited for Kale to act, but when the Human finally opened their eyes and looked at their right hand... it stood empty.
Kale looked down and let out a disappointed sigh. Then they looked up at Gaster
"See? I can't do this... I... don't have enough."
"Try again." Gaster simply responded.
"But I can't-"
"Try again." Gaster repeated. "You need to muster all of your possible determination if you desire on summoning a completely corporeal weapon."
Kale raised a brow. How Gaster knew this remained in question especially since this is not something that was ever mentioned in school, to Kale. But regardless, they followed Gaster's advice. Once again, they closed their eyes and recalled the instructions they got in school in their mind.
'Focus on what you want kind of magic you want to achieve.'
A different thought settled in Kale's mind
"I want to summon a knife... and strike the dummy with it. Dr. Gaster believes I have the power to do that... I need to believe too... I am... determined, to improve my magical abilities."
Once again, Kale pictured the shape and form of the knife they wanted to summon. Then, soon... the next thing they know... something heavy settled in their raised right hand. Kale's eyes darted open as their head shot to their right hand to meet with a small, bright red knife.
Kale carefully raised the knife closer to their face to examine it. It was visible that the small weapon was vibrating with magic... Kale could feel... one accidental slash, and they could instantly dust any of the skeleton in this room. But they shook away the terrifying thought.
"I... I did it..." Kale's voice was so quiet and filled with disbelief that it barely reached their own brain. "I actually... for the first time I..."
"Well done." Gaster's voice echoed from the tall podium. When Kale looked up at him, Gaster had a neutral expression, but for a moment, they could have sworn they saw the scientist slightly smirking approvingly.
The two skeleton children, Sam and Pap were also mesmerized by what Kale has just done.
"WOAH!! THAT'S SO COOL!! CAN WE DO THIS TOO?" Pap looked at Gaster.
"No. This is something only Human Determination is capable of producing. Skeletons aren't capable of such powerful magic. We cannot summon knives and swords, but we have our own weapons such as our blasters. Other monsters are capable of summoning actual corporeal weapons. Monster that are much more powerful with their magical abilities."
Kale was waving the knife carefully, staring at it all the while. They were not sure yet if they wanted to try it, but Gaster nodded his head in confirmation.
Giving it their all, Kale stroke at the dummy and in that moment the dummy fell apart into little pieces, it's dust and leather pieces scattering across the spacious room.
"Uh... whoops?" The determination instantly scattered as Kale accidentally destroyed the dummy with one slash, even though they didn't mean to and with that, the knife disappeared. "Uh... I'm sorry?"
Gaster was not happy that the dummy got destroyed, but he just raised his hand in dismissal. "Forget about it, I can just get another one from somewhere eventually."
Gaster quickly wrote something in his clipboard again, then him and Pap walked down from the podium.
"Alright, that's it for today, you are all going back to your room, I have some things to take care of now."
So the three children walked back to their room along with Gaster. They sat on their bed and for ever lasting minutes they were just excitedly chattering about what had happened in the big room.
"I... I could feel that knife vibrating in my hand... I never knew I was capable of doing magic like this..." Kale stared in front of themselves, their eyes still shining with energy. "My teachers told me that creating weapons out of determination is the hardest known magic among all humans! And somehow... I just did it!"
"it was so shiny... like... it wasn't even a real knife... i could feel it was made completely out of magic and nothing else."
"AND IT JUST COMPLETELY BROKE THE DUMMY INTO PIECES IN ONE STRIKE!" Pap said this with excitement, but at the same time, there was more concern in his voice as his smile faded. "KIND OF... SCARY ACTUALLY..."
"Yeah... I-I didn't mean to do that." Kale looked away, rubbing his head. Then Sam looked away as his eye sockets became dark once again and he folded his arms.
"it's too bad i'm still as worthless as ever..." He grumbled. Pap put a hand on his brother's shoulder as a mean of comfort.
"OH DON'T SAY THAT BROTHER! YOU'RE STRONG TOO!! LOOK AT IT THIS WAY, YOU ALMOST BURNED THAT DUMMY INTO ASH!!"
"Yeah, there was smoke filling the whole room, and hey, that blaster thing you summoned was giant." Kale looked at Sam also trying their best to cheer up the small skeleton.
"AT LEAST HE DIDN'T CALL YOU OUT THIS TIME, RIGHT?"
Sam scoffed. "yeah... whatever..." But then his eyes turned back to normal and he let a weak smile make it's way on his face as he saw how his friends tried their best to cheer him up. "maybe you're right... thanks guys."
"YOUR WELCOME BROTHER!!" Pap cheered as he pulled Sam into a big hug.
* * * * *
Entry Number ##
The test has been made. Subject One, as usual showed no improvement, no surprise there. The Human however demonstrated far more powerful magical abilities than the first time I saw them using their magic. The first time the Human demonstrated their magical abilities, they could only produce small, throwable pebble like projectiles. This time however, they were capable of summoning a functional corporeal weapon... a knife. The knife destroyed the training dummy with one hit, it's tattered pieces were just flowing around the room. According to old history, Determined Humans had the ability to summon any kinds of weapons at will, though this is the hardest known magic among all Humankind and only Determination users are capable of it and still, not all of them. The fact that this Human is capable of such advanced abilities is... concerning, to say the least, but at least this confirms my theory that 1-S could potentially learn the usage of this same ability, had I inject him with the Human's blood and let their determination mix in with 1-S' magical soul essence.
Gaster leaned back in his seat and stared at the ceiling. As much as he was satisfied with the experiment, he was more than concerned about the Human's advanced magical ability. Concerning, was just putting his great fears mildly. There was basically nothing stopping the Human from whipping out a knife and killing Sam and Pap with a single hit while they were asleep. And Gaster could not do anything to strip the Human from their determination entirely in order to prevent this from ever happening. Though... at the same time... The Scientist wasn't even sure if he could even bring himself to doing that by this point.
Gaster leaned forward and put a hand on his forehead "What am I saying?" he thought. "This is a Human. What reason would the Human have to not kill either of us, now that they discovered their new abilities?"
'I mean... okay... I am Human... I get it... We sealed your kind Underground... I get it... I really do... but... why? I haven't done anything wrong. I didn't even think about hurting anyone, ever. I was trying to prove to you I meant no harm. Yet, you are still being judgmental and mistrusting of me. I understand, humans caused you pain. But... you really think I am a horrible monster, when you take a glance at me...?'
Kale's innocent pleading voice kept on echoing inside Gaster's head. He started panicking. "I CANNOT let a Human stab me in the back again... I cannot give them my trust, I cannot believe they are innocent, I..."
But... no matter how hard he tried to convince himself... in the nearly two weeks that Kale has spent in the lab, he really saw no sign of violence showing in the child. Sure, they were a little sassy, much like Subject One, but Gaster learned to ignore that over time. He could just hear their innocent voice... see the MERCY option in front of them from their conversation three days ago.
Gaster leaned back in his seat once more and he sighed, closing his eyes.
After hundreds of years...
After all of that damage caused...
The Royal Scientist would have never imagined that he would take real sympathy on the spawn of the kind that wiped out his entire family centuries ago...
* * * * *
It took quite a while until Gaster came to his senses and finally calmed down after his long concerning train of thought, but after he finally did, he summoned Kale and Sam into his office.
It was time that he finally takes some sample of blood from Kale and injected the Determination into Sam's soul.
The two children were sitting in Gaster's double bed as the doctor was digging in his drawers, looking for something. After some silent minutes, the only thing breaking the silence was Gaster searching in the drawers, the scientist finally found the items he was looking for. In one hand, he held a syringe, in the other he held a single tissue. He walked to Kale first.
"Alright, roll up one of your sleeves."
Kale did as they were told, rolling up the sweater's sleeves on their left arm.
"Now, this is going to sting a little." Gaster warned them as he took some blood from the Human. Kale looked away and they couldn't help but wince in pain as Gaster took blood from them. Then the scientist gave the tissue to Kale, who pressed it on the small wound immediately.
"Alright, now, I will inject the Human blood into your soul, 1-S."
Sam looked wary. "uh... how do you plan to do that?"
Gaster hesitated. He did not really have a way of saying this without making Sam (and himself) concerned.
"I..." He looked away... then he looked into Sam's eyes. "I will need to slightly lift your soul out of your rib cage with blue magic, to inject the blood into it."
Sam's eyes widened. "w-what!? b-but-"
"If you stay still and do not squirm, it will make it easier for me to do it properly."
"but what if that thing stabs my soul too hard or something?!"
"You will feel a slight stinging, but you will be fine."
"b-but- doc!"
"1-S just listen to me. Stay still, otherwise it will be harder for me to do this without actually damaging your soul. It will take nothing but a moment. Sit still and don't squirm."
Sam was still very hesitant, but he finally nodded slowly, looking away from the doctor's eyes. "o... okay... i guess..."
With Gaster help, Sam took down his green cloak for a moment. Kale hold the small skeleton's hand to calm his nerves a bit as Gaster did the uncomfortable process.
The skeleton man focused his gaze on Sam's small soul and slowly, carefully lifted it out of the smaller skeleton's rib cage, not too far from the body but in just enough distance so the syringe could reach it.
"Now, this might sting a little, but please stay still, you're doing well so far."
Sam only mumbled a silent 'mhm' as he squeezed his eyes shut. He did feel a very uncomfortable stinging in his soul, but the pain left as soon as it came as Sam let out a sigh of relief, feeling that Gaster finally let go of his soul. Kale, who was squeezing Sam's hand a little too strong by now, also let go of him.
"Alright, it's done." Gaster sit to his computer on his chair and started typing as he took a glance over to Sam. "How are you feeling?"
"uh... normal? my soul is a bit more uh... sore? i guess?"
"I suggest you not expanding too much energy for a while until the blood merges with your soul essence. You should rest in the bed for a while, that would be the best choice."
"uhuh, got it."
Kale and Sam jumped off of the bed and went back to their room. As Gaster advised, Sam lie down on the bed and covered himself in the bed sheet, ready to fall asleep. Since it was getting rather late in the day, Pap also lie next to his brother, hugging him as they were both ready to fall asleep as Kale lie on the other side of the bed, also covering themselves with the bed sheet as all the three children soon got drifted into a heavenly sleep.
Notes:
Sam got injected with a little bit of determination. I am sure nothing could possibly go wrong about this! Hehe... heh...
Chapter Text
Entry Number ##
I have done it. Taking a sample of blood from the Human, I have injected Subject One with Determination. I still had some of the blood left, I put away the sample for later use. If this experiment goes well, I could inject Subject Two with the Human blood as well, he would be even more powerful than 1-S with some Determination. 1-S is currently sleeping as it takes some time for the blood to merge with his Magical Essence. I am not yet sure what kind of physical side effects the Determination could have, so 1-S is currently sleeping in my office. I am keeping a close eye on him, had anything went wrong. So far, he is acting normal though it has been a few hours since he has fallen asleep. It will probably take some time for him to wake up. If it takes days, I might have to check on his SOUL in the M-D Solution. For now, he just seems deep asleep, there doesn't seem to be any problems. The possible positive or negative side effects of determination in a monster's body are unknown to us. I will need to keep closer tabs on Subject One's physical health to determine the effects. Regardless, this is a rather big scientific step. We have seen what happens with a monster when they absorb a human soul, but we had never experienced a monster using human magic before. The possibilities are endless. 1-S could be granted power that neither he, or any other existing monster ever possessed before. Perhaps Prince Dreemurr at one point... I will need to see, whether I could inject the same Determination into Subject Two.
It was four in the afternoon. It was 2 PM when Sam fell asleep and he still hasn't woken up. This was getting... slightly concerning, to say the least, Gaster couldn't deny. He repeatedly checked Sam's soul with blue magic, over and over again, but his soul always looked unchanged, therefor Gaster couldn't tell if the determination already merged with the soul essence and Sam is just still asleep, for his body either cannot take the determination well enough for him to wake up, or he just doesn't want to wake up yet, or if the determination still needs to merge with Sam's essence and his soul still needs time to adjust. But Gaster banished all his worries from his mind space. After all, he was an unparalleled genius. There was not one time when his experiment ended in failure. Well... there were some times, but Gaster only had good feelings about this.
But still...
Still...
Gaster has also risked telling about his new founding to Alphys. He didn't have time to call her, but he has left her a text message not too long after Sam went to sleep. Alphys haven't responded yet. It was a little strange, as Alphys always seems to be on the phone when there is no work that needs to get done around the CORE. Unless she is working on something else that she has not told Gaster yet.
The Scientist fished out his cellphone from his lab coat's pocket and pressed some buttons that were illegible to all who could not read the WingDings font, and found Alphys in the list of names.
14:38 - DR GASTER:
I HAVE TAKEN A SAMPLE OF DETERMINATION FROM THE HUMAN. I CAN SHARE SOME OF IT WITH YOU, JUST IN CASE YOU WOULD NEED IT FOR ANY REASON. I STILL HAVE SOME DROPS OF IT LEFT IN A VIAL.
As it was visible, Alphys has not yet responded. It was rather strange for Gaster, but if she was busy with something, he preferred not to bother her. In the next moment, the office door slowly opened with a creek. Gaster sighed and closed his eyes, turning over to the door in his rolling chair.
"... Yes Subject Two?" He asked, slightly tired, his eyes still closed as he supported his head with one of his arms, leaning on one of the arms of the chair.
This was not the first time Pap has entered the office in the spam of these two hours. In fact, the younger skeleton came to Gaster's office about every twenty minutes, to ask if his brother was awake yet. After the sixth or seventh time, Gaster got so fed up with Pap disturbing him every twenty minutes, that he yelled at the small skeleton.
'NO, Subject One is NOT awake yet, he will NOT wake up after another twenty minutes, so STOP disturbing me when I have work to do! I've had it with all your pointless distractions and questioning, go back to your room and stay there!'
Gaster was actually rather convinced that he managed to scare the living daylights out of Pap by yelling at him like that, but for the moment, he couldn't care less. He told both of them to not disturb or distract him when he has work that needs to be done. At this point he was just so tired of it that he didn't even have the energy to yell anymore.
But the voice that faintly spoke, did not belong to Pap.
"Uh... actually it's just me... I'm sorry to disturb you, Dr. Gaster."
The old skeleton slowly opened his eyes, still wearing a tired expression as his gaze met with the Human Kale's. The Human was rubbing their head in the usual shy-embarrassed fashion as they smirked a little. Gaster just raised a brow, indicating that he is listening. Kale did not want to walk in the room, so they were still just talking from the doorway.
"So uh... I've been thinking a little..." They looked on the wall next to them for a bit, gripping it with their hand. They did not know how to put their thoughts into words for a few moments. "... Why am I still here?"
Gaster raised his head and brow, his hand now settling on his jaw, staring at the child with a questioning, confused expression as if he was not sure what exactly the question meant and why would the Human ask him that.
Seeing how they confused Gaster slightly, they let go of the wall and fully turned to the Royal Scientist.
"I-I mean, don't get me wrong... it's nice here and I don't mind but uh..." Their gaze once again shifted from Gaster's eyes and instead, met with the slightly dirty, blueish-grey flooring of the office. "... before I got here, everyone tried to kill me and take my soul. I get it, you wanted determination from me. But... you got it now, right?" Kale looked up again, slightly tilting their head as they gripped the wall again with one hand. "You don't really need anything else from me anymore, right? So why aren't you... trying to kill me... like everyone else...?"
Gaster rolled away on his chair and turned towards his computer. Indeed, why is he not trying to kill the Human? He has told himself he would after he made use of the human determination... so... why? Well, the answer was obvious. The Underground would be granted one more soul, yet again... but that would only bring Asgore closer to sealing his fate. All this time, Gaster has been trying to prevent that from happening... and if he becomes the direct reason of Asgore destroying himself after he becomes godlike... that will be his, Gaster's fault. His and only his alone. But... despite that... why did it feel like there is more to it? No, no... it was just his mind playing tricks on him. That was all. He has been slightly more stressed out recently, that is true.
How could he answer this question, without letting the Human hear anything they aren't supposed to?
"I... uh..." Gaster stuttered. "I may uh... make more use of your determination later on. It could be useful for further experiments. I need you to stay alive, had I need to take determination from you, once more."
Kale knew almost for sure that Gaster was not being honest, but they just nodded in understanding, not wanting to force him to talk, if he didn't want to.
Thinking of it, the question did sound slightly inconsiderate. Before anything else could happen, there was the sound of tiny feet quickly stomping on the solid floor of the lab, making their way to the office. Gaster slammed his hand on his desk and turned to the door.
"No, Subject Two, 1-S's state is completely unchanged, he is still not awake." Gaster said in a raised voice before Pap even appeared in the door. The small skeletons head dropped.
"O-OH UH... A-ACTUALLY I WANTED TO UH... ASK SOMETHING ELSE."
Gaster sighed. "Yes?" He asked slowly, readjusting his glasses, fixating his gaze on the small skeleton, who wore a slightly guilty expression on his face, for he did not want to make Gaster angry once more.
"UHM... C-CAN WE STAY IN HERE WITH HIM? I WANT TO BE CLOSE TO HIM. MAYBE HE WANTS ME TO BE AROUND AND THAT'S WHY HE'S NOT AWAKE YET."
Gaster folded his arms and leaned back in his seat. He was more than sure that just because Pap is in the same bad as Sam, that will not fasten the process of the tiny skeleton waking.
But if that meant Pap would stop nagging him at once...
"Fine... you can stay. But be quiet and do not distract me while I work, or you're going back to your room, understand?"
"YEP! GOT IT! C'MON KALE!!" Pap and the Human jumped on the bed, Kale still trying to snap their mind back to reality after the slightly dark conversation with Gaster and the two crawled on the bed next to Sam, who looked like he was having the best nap in probably his whole life in the lab.
"And don't touch anything either." Gaster looked at the two children who both nodded. Pap found Sam's hand under the bed sheet and squeezed. His grip was strong, but gentle. Then... a moment later... Sam's left started glowing green a little.
"LOOK! HE LIKES IT!" Pap whispered, though his whispering was just as loud as a normal person speaking in medium volume. He carefully hugged his brother on the bed, Kale just watching the two as they smiled. Then they turned to their back, staring at the ceiling.
Why did Gaster avoid their question? Kale could see him hesitating. It did feel like the Royal Scientist was hiding something from them for quite a while now... ever since they had that meaningful conversation in the hallways three days ago. It was slightly confusing for Kale. They still did not understand what caused the oldest skeleton's sudden change of behavior, but he did seem more... gentle with Kale. Was gentle even the right word? Kale couldn't even tell.
They just closed their eyes, letting the world fade into black as they fell asleep on Gaster's large, warm, spacious double bed.
* * * * *
Sam did not wake up for the rest of that day, and Gaster didn't bother to wake up either of the two children, for as long as all three of them were asleep, he could focus on his work fully. However soon he had to stop around 3 am, going to sleep on the couch. Only to be abruptly woken up by his phone ringing sometime probably really early in the morning.
"OH! GOOD MORNING!!" Pap greeted him with a cheery expression. Kale and Pap were already awake, Sam however was still sleeping.
The phone was ringing on Gaster's desk. He tiredly and slowly got up from the couch, put on his glasses and took a look at his phone. It was Alphys calling him. Gaster picked up the phone.
"Good morning Dr. Alphys..." Gaster mumbled, suppressing a yawn.
"U-Uhm... h-hey Dr. Gaster."
It sounded like Alphys was anxious again as she usually was, but there was something else in her voice that gave Gaster a slightly uncomfortable feeling.
"Is something wrong?" He asked, leaning to the wall next to the desk.
"Um... w-well uh... y-you know..." Alphys hesitated. Gaster could hear her clear her throat on the other end. "I-It's uh... not morning anymore... it's uh... h-half past t-two."
Gaster's eyes widened as he almost dropped the phone. Did he really sleep for that long?
"W... What? How... how much?" Gaster lowered the phone from his nonexistent ear to check the time. Indeed, it was 14:34 PM. "I-I... I'm sorry I... I overslept I didn't-..."
"U-Uh I-I just wanted to ask if uh... i-if you were okay... e-everyone arrived at the C-CORE... y-you didn't show up... w-we've been waiting f-for... t-thirty minutes... e-everyone expects me to take your p-place and t-tell them what to do b-but I-I uh... I-I'm not... l-like you... hehe..."
Gaster sighed and placed a hand on his forehead. "I'm sorry Alphys... I'll be there as fast as possible."
"N-No y-you don't have to if you're n-not feeling well-"
Not even letting her finish, Gaster hung up.
He was suddenly so angry with himself. How could he sleep through the entire morning? Not only that, how could he be so late for work?
Then he looked at the children. "Why... why didn't you wake me up?!"
"WE DIDN'T WANT TO DISTURB YOU. YOU LOOKED SO PEACEFUL SLEEPING THERE!!"
Gaster groaned and smoothed out his lab coat. "I have to go now, you both stay here and watch over 1-S."
"BUT WAIT WHAT IF-" Pap couldn't finish, Gaster already left the office and soon, Kale heard the familiar noise of the elevator.
"WHAT DO WE DO IF HE'S NOT FEELING WELL? IF HE DOESN'T WAKE UP?" Pap asked, looking at Kale. Kale just shook their head.
"I dunno... but uh... maybe Gaster won't take that long."
Being free to do however they pleased since Gaster left the lab, Kale decided to take a little stroll around the lab. They have grown a bit tired of just sitting on a bed all the time. It felt good to stretch their legs for once. Pap insisted that he was gonna stay next to his brother. Kale went to the left of the office and explored all the rooms they haven't been to yet.
They found that old cell Gaster made them stay in that one time... there was a room with a long table and just two chairs, cabinets next to the table.
Then... there was another room... that had a different aura to it than the other rooms.
There was a giant laser. In front of the laser, was a large chair. On the chairs arms were straps. Next to the laser and the chair, was a glass covered control room. Curious, Kale went in there. There were various buttons. The buttons had writing on them in a strange, symbol language, Kale could not read it. They did not want to press anything button, even though they weren't even sure if the laser was working. They didn't want to make a mess ion this room. Gaster would not be happy if one room accidentally got destroyed by Kale, not to mention if Gaster even realized they went in here.
They left the control room and now they sat to the strapped chair. They didn't put their arms in the straps, they just sat. As soon as they raised their head, Kale could see... the giant laser was pointing right at their eyes...
The ends of the laser were glowing white... it is possible that it was actually turned on... Kale was staring at it, mesmerized. Their limbs felt heavy. It felt like they couldn't get up from the chair even if they tried to make the greatest efforts in order to do so. The room got blurry. Kale's eyes were burning from the sharp white glowing points of the laser. It felt like they were going to become blind any moment now, they had to get up.
Then, there was a noise snapping them out of it. A giant blast noise. Kale immediately bolted up from the chair. The blast came from the office. They run across the long hallway to check what had happened.
As they reached the doorway they could see.
Sam was awake, he was out of bed with Pap by his side, a giant blaster above his head. In front of them, were the ashes of something that once might have been Gaster's office chair.
"uh... whoops... shoot, i didn't mean to be that strong."
"THAT WAS AMAZING SAM!! LOOK HOW MUCH BETTER YOU GOT NOW!!!"
"yeah... i don't think he's gonna be happy that i burned up his chair though..." Sam let a grin spread across his face as he winked and rubbed the back of his skull, making the blaster disappear.
"OH, HI KALE!!" Pap greeted the Human who was still standing in the door with white eyes, quite confused on what exactly happened.
"Uh... what did you do?" They asked Sam.
"oh uh... pap wanted me to try do some magic now that he mixed my magic with that thing he got from you..." He looked in the direction of the smoking pile of ash. "yeah... i guess i got a lot stronger hehe."
"That's really cool Sam! Can you show me something too? I wanna see!"
Sam hesitated a bit. "oh uh... sure... just uh... somewhere else i guess. i don't think he'd be happy if we burned down his office."
"Heh... yeah, right."
Sam, Pap and Kale walked out to the hallway, not too far from the office, but far enough so Sam won't cause any more damage to any other untouched furniture.
"okay, watch this."
After a few seconds, Sam summoned a blaster, far greater than what Kale or Pap has seen. "and look." He pointed to the floor and the blaster fired a giant blinding white beam. The noise of the blaster echoed through the entire building and even though there was nothing on the floor, it was still letting out some smoke.
"heh. see? i guess i'm not that worthless anymo-"
*cough cough*
Suddenly Sam collapsed on his knees, coughing and wheezing. His vision got blurry and he suddenly felt really dizzy.
"BROTHER!! ARE YOU OKAY?!"
Kale and Pap both kneel down to him, both of them with concerned expressions. Kale put a hand on Sam's shoulder. Soon the coughing was gone.
"y-yeah... i-i... i'm okay." Despite saying that, Sam felt like he couldn't stand up right now. He rather sat on the cold floor and closed his eyes. He was still dizzy.
"We should get you back to bed..." Kale said, their hand still on Sam's shoulder.
"y... yeah... we should do that..." Sam nodded slowly, his voice a little week.
Pap and Kale helped Sam get back in the bed. After drinking some water and eating some sandwiches Gaster made them, for Sam hasn't eaten in over 24 hours, the dizzying feeling soon stopped.
"Are you better now?" Kale asked. They were sitting on the bed along with Pap, the latter holding his brother's right hand and gently stroking his palm.
"yeah..."
"WHAT HAPPENED?"
"i... i dunno... after i blasted... everything got blurry... i got dizzy and then... i felt a stinging... in... here." Sam put his left hand on his chest. Right where his soul was.
"That... doesn't sound too good... do you think we should tell Gaster when he gets back?"
"i dunno..."
For as long as they were alone, the two children rather spared Sam from expanding any more energy on entertaining them with his newfound magical abilities. They didn't know what time it was, but it didn't take long until Gaster finally got back from work.
He was pleased to see that Sam was finally awake... then he got mad when he saw a pile of ash in the place of his chair.
"i was just testin' my new uh... skills?" Sam put on grin that was both innocent and mischievous.
"You did that?" Gaster looked at the smaller skeleton after a pause.
"uh...yeah... i guess that human blood thing worked out huh?"
Gaster hummed, scratching his jaw. "Hmm... We will do some more tests tomorrow to see how much your abilities really improved. But now it is getting rather late, it's about time you all go back to your room. Come on."
The three children got up from Gaster's double bed and left the office, going back to their bedroom. Sam's movements were still a little slower after the... little incident. Though neither of them mentioned anything about that, to Gaster.
Gaster just had to take another chair from one of the rooms to replace his chair. That one was not rolling. He will have to ask Alphys for replacement, when he can. Hopefully he can do that without having to answer uncomfortable questions. He was mad at Sam for destroying the chair, but the fact that he was capable for destroy it like that in the first place left him more amazed than annoyed at that moment. He dug into his drawers until he found a vial. The vial was half full, with a dark red shining liquid.
It was Kale's blood.
He still had this sample of determination on him...
If the tests go well tomorrow...
... Maybe Pap will be granted some determination as well...
* * * * *
"Your soul looks the same as it did. But how are you feeling?"
"uh well... different? but... still the same? if that makes sense? i dunno it's kinda weird... i dunno how to say..."
"But does it hurt?"
"well..." Sam looked away. "... sometimes? when i... use too much energy i guess."
"Yes, well, I suppose your soul still needs to get used to the human's blood in it."
A few days have passed since Sam has woken up. Since then, Gaster had more and more sessions of combat tests. He has been pushing Sam way over his limits, making him work until exhaustion. Sam has been doing really well in the combat now. His HP did not increase, but his damage output was higher than before. So high, Gaster had to replace the dummies with bones that he summoned, since Sam kept burning the regular dummies into ashes.
"though, maybe i'd be doing better if you stopped pushing me..."
"As I already told you, we need to perform as much tests as we can, to determine the strengths and weaknesses of your new powers."
"one weakness: if i push myself too hard i'm gonna pass out. isn't that enough?"
Gaster just sighed. "Alright, come on."
"ugh... again? really? what else do you expect?"
"Today's test is going to be a little different than before." Gaster looked back over his shoulder to Sam as they were walking down the hallway.
Kale and Pap were already waiting for them in the big room.
"First, before we begin... Human."
Kale stood up from the bench. "I will need you to demonstrate how you can summon a weapon out of pure determination."
Kale grimanced.
As much as it was satisfying to summon their magic knife the first time around, such a process was quite exhausting and physically trying. Gaster read their expression before they could even say something.
"Come on."
But then something snapped in Kale's mind.
Demonstrate?
"Wait... hold on..." Kale looked at Gaster as they walked to the middle of the room. "... What do you mean... 'demonstrate'?"
Gaster rolled his eye "Doesn't matter, focus."
Gaster summoned a long, thick bone and lowered it in front of Kale with blue magic. Kale did as they did before, they closed their eyes, and concentrated on summoning their knife. After a few minutes... they did it.
For the second time, they did it.
"Hmm... good. 1-S, your turn."
Sam sighed. He stood up and Kale took the spot on the bench where he was sitting before a moment ago.
"Alright, Subject One. I want you to try to also summon some kind of weapon with determination."
Sam stared up at Gaster.
"w-wait what?! i can't do that!"
"You have the human's determination, their blood in your soul. If they can do it, you should also similarly have the ability."
"b-but... they're human! and i-"
"You will not know if you do not try."
"COME ON BROTHER!! I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT!!"
Hearing the encouraging words coming from his brother Pap... Sam smiled a bit. If his brother also believes in him... then he can't not try at least once.
Sam did not really have any clear idea, how to do such a thing as summon a weapon. Then again, as Gaster just said, it is in their blood by now... or rather... their soul. Sam did not have any real blood.
Sam thought summoning a weapon couldn't be that much different from summoning a Gaster Blaster, so he tried the same method.
But suddenly... as he started focusing... as he felt that determination... his head started spinning... he felt dizzy again... any moment and his legs would have given out.
Unable to force himself for much longer, Sam collapsed on his knees and had a coughing fit, similarly how it was, few days ago. His vision got blurry... he did not see what was happening... he did not hear what was happening in his surroundings... he felt every strength leave his body as he collapsed on the floor, the world darkening before his eyes.
* * * * *
Sam slowly woke up. It felt like he has been asleep for the longest time. He slowly opened his eyes.
"OH, BROTHER YOU'RE AWAKE!!"
Sam felt his brother Paps's strong grip around him. "o-ow bro easy you're crushing me right now." Sam mumbled. The tight grip of Pap nearly crushed his already acing rib cage. "O-OH... SORRY..."
"Are you okay Sam?" Sam heard a familiar voice from his left. He turned over to the voice and saw Kale staring at him.
"uh... sore..." Sam mustered to say these two words. His rib cage was hurting more than ever. "what happened to me?"
"WELL... YOU WERE JUST STANDING THERE... AND THEN... YOU STARTED COUGHING... LIKE BEFORE. AND THEN HE RAN TO YOU TO CHECK ON YOU. HE BROUGHT US BACK TO OUR ROOM AND TOOK YOU AWAY TO CHECK YOUR SOUL. BUT HE SAID YOUR SOUL WAS FINE. SO HE BROUGHT YOU BACK TO OUR ROOM AND TOLD US TO KEEP WATCHING YOU AND TELL HIM IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO YOU."
Sam rubbed his skull. "uh... how long was that...?"
Kale and Pap both looked away. "Well uh..." The Human tried to say. "About... five hours?"
"f... five hours? what time is it?"
"It's 7 PM."
"and you were... awake all this time...?"
"Well..."
Kale now smirked and looked over to Pap.
"Pap wouldn't fall asleep until he knew for sure you were alright and I can't say I blame him."
Pap smiled at his brother. But Sam looked in front of himself. Slightly saddened.
"WHAT'S WRONG, BROTHER?" Pap asked, trying to look into Sam's eyes, but the small skeleton avoided his brother's contact.
"... do you think i could have done that?"
"Done what?" Kale looked at Sam, who was now showing only one side of his skull to them from that angle.
"... summon a... knife thingy. like you." He turned to Kale when he said that. Kale's face fell.
"Oh uh..." They rubbed their head. "Well... I don't know... I mean... for years I couldn't do it either. It's really hard. But don't get me wrong, you're really strong and all that... it's just... it's really hard to do that kinda stuff."
There was silence between the three of them for a little while. Then something snapped in Sam's mind.
"hey guys?" The Human and Pap looked at him. "... you know that thing he does?"
"WHAT THING?"
"you know... when we were always training... he would... grab those bones he summoned. he made them glow and stuff. then they floated down to me."
"Oh that? That's called Blue Magic. I've learned about it in school."
"BLUE MAGIC?" Pap looked at Kale. Sam also turned to them.
"Yeah. You can uh... I think... this is something only skeletons can do... with that, they can make anything float. Objects... animals... even people."
"yeah, you think i could do that too? like him?"
"Of course you could! This is something all skeletons can do." The brother's face shifted a little. Kale waved their hand. "Oh come on, no matter what Gaster calls you, you are both skeletons."
"SO... YOU THINK WE CAN DO THAT UH... MAGIC THING?"
"I am pretty sure!" Kale smiled at Pap. The skeleton's eyes shined.
"OOOH I WANT TO TRY IT!! I WANT TO TRY IT!! CAN I TRY IT ON YOU?"
Kale smiled a little more, seeing Pap's enthusiasm and excitement. "Yeah, sure."
But then... Pap stopped for a moment.
"BUT UH... HOW DO I DO THAT?"
Kale's expression shifted.
"Well uh... I don't know? I'm not a skeleton." They suppressed a chuckle. They didn't want to make Pap feel embarrassed.
"well uh... you remember when he did that thing to us bro?" Sam got his brother's attention. "it feels like... he grabs your soul... and uh... holds it? really tight and stuff?"
"OH SURE! I CAN DO THAT!!"
Pap looked at Kale's chest and looked at the best angle to lift them. But no matter how hard he looked, he didn't see Kale's soul anywhere.
"uh... i'm pretty sure he said only skeletons have visible souls, bro." Sam helped him.
"THEN... HOW DO I KNOW WHERE TO GRAB KALE?"
Kale couldn't hold back a chuckle this time. "Well..." They put their hand on their chest. "My soul should be around here... hehe."
"OH OKAY!"
Pap put his skeletal hand on Kale's chest. For a few moments, they just waited for the effect.
"DO YOU FEEL SOMETHING?"
"Uh... kind of? I guess it's a little more uh... heavy? Like... pressure?"
Pap raised his hand. To all of their surprise, as Pap raised his hand, Kale got lifted from the bed and now, their soul was visibly glowing in their chest, in a bright light blue color, exactly on the spot where Pap's hand was a moment ago.
"WOAH!! LOOK BROTHER, I DID IT!!"
"nice one bro." Sam smiled.
"Man..." Kale mumbled. "This feels really weird."
"OH! SORRY!!" Pap's hand slumped down.
"I mean it doesn't hurt... it's just... weird."
"YOU COULD TRY TOO BROTHER!" Pap looked at Sam. But Sam's smile faded away. "uh well... i dunno... i don't wanna expand too much energy right now... ya know."
"OH... YEAH... RIGHT..."
There was silence again between the three of them for a while. The bedroom felt a lot darker than before. Then Sam broke the silence again. "hey... guys?"
Kale and Pap hummed in sync, both looking at Sam. Sam's expression got serious. Maybe even a little afraid. Kale wasn't sure. "... let's not tell him about this, huh?"
Kale and Pap looked at each other, then back at Sam.
"i don't think he would like it..."
"Yeah... you're probably right..."
"and uh... we should actually sleep... it's pretty late... and i'm kinda tired."
Pap lie on the bed, next to his brother and they hugged as they always did when sleeping in one bed. Kale took their spot at the end of the bed.
What the three children couldn't know... was that Gaster was watching the entire scene from the security cameras.
* * * * *
The moment Kale woke up was one of the most abrupt feeling they ever got when waking up from a long sleep. The only thing they could understand, was that Gaster was in the room and now he was trying to wake up Sans. From his voice, Kale could tell that Gaster was not particularly in a good mood, this morning.
"Come with me, both of you. Human, you're staying here."
"Wha- why?" Gaster didn't even care to answer their question, he just rushed out of the door with Sam and Pap by his side, the former so tired from the lack of sleep that he could barely stand on his legs as he was rubbing his eye sockets.
Despite how tired they were, Sam and Pap had a very bad feeling.
Gaster led them to their old cell.
"So..." He began. Sam and Pap walked in the cell and were standing being Gaster. "As I have found out last night... you have made some... experiments, trying to use blue magic."
Sam and Pap looked at each other, fear settling on their face. "It is not surprising that you could use it since you..." Gaster groaned. "... inherited it from me... So, since you are beginning to show aptitude for it, a lesson is in order."
The brother's eyes shined purple in fear. Gaster looked at Pap. "You. Stand here." He pointed in front of himself. Pap, hesitantly walked to the spot Gaster pointed to.
"So, as you already know by now, Blue Magic allows a soul or object to be affected by gravity, the source of the heavy feeling both of you no doubt experience when I pick either of you up. Those truly adept at using blue magic, can take hold of the soul and move it as they please. It is rather surprising that you did this on your first attempt, even if it was only briefly, 2-P."
Pap and Sam still had concerned, afraid expressions on their faces.
"With my expertise, I barely have to make any effort to pick either of you up. But now... let's get straight to the point."
With a snap of his fingers, Gaster closed Sam into a cage of blue bones and blocked the entrance of the cell with a gateway of long, thick bones. In the next moment, he picked up Pap with blue magic who was now staring at the doctor with greater fear. His expression was almost pleading.
"Should either of you use Blue Magic on me, for any reason..."
Gaster waved his hand to the left, slamming Pap against the thick wall of the cell. His back bones echoing as they cracked.
"...there will be consequences." The tone of Gaster's voice was the darkest, most cruel ever imaginable.
Sam's eyes widened.
"no stop!!!" He cried, only able to stare in horror at his brother as Gaster was gripping his soul.
"As you can see..."
Gaster waved his hand again. Pap slammed against the ceiling.
"At this level..."
He slammed Pap to the floor. There was a large crack on the young skeleton's skull by now.
"I do not need to raise traps on the walls, to inflict significant damage."
Another wave of his hand, Pap slammed against the ceiling once again, his backbones breaking even more.
"Just the strikes themselves are enough."
Gaster kept waving his hand, slamming Pap against the walls over and over again.
Suddenly, Kale came running to the cell. They must have heard the commotion happening. For a few moments they could only stare in confusion, but seeing the thick gate of bones, seeing Gaster use blue magic on Pap, seeing Sam cry, begging Gaster to stop, Kale could understand and their eyes widened in horror...
Gaster has found out...
"stop! stop don't-!! leave him alone!! you're gonna kill him!!!" Sam cried with the greatest desperation and fear in his voice. He was on the verge of tears by now. Gaster's expression was unchanged.
"Oh, please, give me some credit."
Snap
Pap's forearm fell off.
"I know exactly how much punishment he can take."
Bang
The top of his back almost completely broke.
"... and I know exactly how hard to make each strike, right down to the number."
Crack
His jaw broke.
"He is in no danger of death. This is merely just a demonstration."
Kale was almost at the verge of tears too, just like Sam. They could not talk from their amount of shock and fear.
But then... Sam closed his eyes...
"get..." He mumbled. Gaster didn't seem to notice what he was about to do, he closed his eyes and now his expression was filled with... rage.
"get away from my brother!!!"
In the next moment there was a giant explosion, breaking the cage of bones around Sam. Gaster turned over to him quickly, letting go of Pap's soul who collapsed on the floor, but he too, looked at his brother with frightened eyes.
Sam looked absolutely livid.
There was a ring of bones around his left hand and a giant Gaster Blaster above his raised finger on his right. His left eye was glowing an intense dark cyan color and his right was looking more dark and deep than anything imaginable.
"don't... t-... touch... my brother..."
Sam was shaking in his entire body. Kale was not sure how much energy Sam had to expand for this level of magic he was using, or how angry Sam truly was, but the sight of the enraged skeleton looked... frightening.
"i-if... i-if you want to... h-... hurt him... again... i-i won't... l-let you..."
It seemed Sam had to muster great effort and energy to even be able to form his words. Seemed like Gaster also picked up on that, because now, he took a slow, careful step towards the smaller skeleton and slowly raised a hand.
"... 1-S..."
"d-don't touch me!!!"
A wall of bones grew from the ground, preventing Gaster from getting any closer.
"i-i won't... l-... let you... a-again, i... i... i'll..."
In the next moment, Sam collapsed on his knees, all the bones and the blaster he summoned disappearing. Both his eyes got dark as his skull started melting as if it was wax under the light of a hot fiery candle.
Gaster, Kale and Pap could only stare with shock and fear.
Gaster's vision got blurry... his nonexistent ears began to ring... he could only stare at the smaller skeleton who's skull was rapidly melting, becoming more and more disfigured with each second. Pap's scared, weak cry was what made Gaster snap back into reality.
"B... B-BROTHER! W... WH-WHAT'S WR-WRONG WITH HIM?" Pap looked at Gaster as much as he had strength for nearly all of the bones in his body were cracked.
"I-I... I-I don't know!!" Gaster let out a panicked cry. He did the first thing that came to mind right now, he kneel down to Sam and started healing him to the best of his ability... but Sam's wax-like skull was dripping onto Gaster's hand... the healing was not helping at all...
"I... I need to... I need to get him stabilized..." Gaster made the gate of bones disappear from in front of the cell. "Stay here!" He commanded Kale and Pap. Kale ran into the cell and knelt down next to Pap, but by that moment, Gaster was gone.
Knowing if he kept holding Sam, he would end up melting together with the small skeleton, Gaster grabbed his soul with blue magic and ran across the hallway as fast as his legs could carry him.
"i... i-i'm... c-... c-cold..." Sam whimpered, his voice as weak, as distant as if he was close to dying.
"Just hold on!" Gaster yelled, though not even sure if the small skeleton could understand or even hear his words anymore. He soon reached one of the operating rooms and he put Sam onto the pedestal and activated the M-D Solution.
That seemed to have stopped the melting.
Gaster collapsed on the chair and buried his face into his hollow hands, panting. He felt the beads of sweat rolling behind his glasses.
He was afraid... he was terrified to look at the Soul Monitor and see Sam's condition...
Hesitantly... he turned his gaze over the monitor after many minutes...
SUBJECT ONE
SPECIES: SKELETON
HP: 0.01/1
SOUL: UNSTABLE - DETERMINATION OVERDOSE
HEALTH: FALLEN DOWN
CONDITION: DELICATE BODY AND SOUL, BODY DETERIORATING
SOUL ESSENCE: DAMAGED
"No... that... that can't be..."
Gaster leaned back on his seat and stared at the ceiling.
"God... what have I done...?"
Notes:
Gaster may be very cruel sometimes, but he knows when he went too far.
Chapter Text
"O-OW... THAT STINGS..."
"I know, but just stay still for a little longer. We're almost done."
After Sam has been stabilized, Gaster took Pap and Kale into his office and started healing Pap's injuries to the best of his ability. Gaster has never been a great healer, but he could do surprisingly much in healing Pap. He healed the cracks on his body, he reattached his jaw, and right now he was healing the cracks about Pap's eye socket. He couldn't fully heal Pap's arm, so his arm had to get bandaged up in a sling. Kale and Pap were still deeply shaken by the events and needless to say, Gaster did not exactly take it so well either.
"There... I've... healed what I could, on you. You should rest for a while now until your arm heals."
Pap nodded. The three of them were sitting on a bed. Gaster walked to the computer. Kale and Pap looked at each other, then Pap turned his gaze to the older skeleton.
"WHERE'S... MY BROTHER?"
Gaster didn't answer immediately. He sighed and shifted his hands from the computer's keyboard. "I got him stabilized... he is currently recovering in the M-D Solution."
"WHY DID HE START... MELTING LIKE THAT?"
Gaster's head dropped, he was now staring at the floor beneath his feet. "I... Sadly that is something I cannot exactly pin down the reason for myself."
Pap rattled his bones and started sniffing. "IS... IS HE GONNA DIE?"
Tears streamed down his face. Kale wrapped their arms around him, trying to comfort him as much as they could. "Hey... Hey Pap... it's... it's gonna be okay. I'm sure Sam will be fine. Don't cry... please."
But Pap would not calm down. The tears were streaming down his skeletal face and he was wailing and sniffing all the while. Gaster's chair slid against the solid floor and the footsteps were indicating he walked closer to the two of them. In that moment, Pap felt a big hand settle in his small shoulder. Sniffling, he turned up his gaze to meet with Gaster's.
The doctor's expression was... very different this time. It was one Pap had never seen on him. Those solemn eyes that were meeting with his, were of true sadness, genuine comfort, and honest sympathy.
"Listen to me." Gaster spoke in a soft voice, Pap never heard him speak in before. "Your brother will not die, as long as I have anything to say about it. I will do anything it takes to cure him. I... do not know what exactly caused whatever happened to him... but I will work hard to find out and save him."
"Y... YOU... REALLY MEAN THAT?" Pap sniffled, more tears filling his small eyes.
Gaster nodded. "I do. All of this... was my fault. The least I can do to make up for what I have done to you, is fix the problem I have caused in the first place."
"What are we going to do now?" Kale looked at Gaster. The skeleton walked back to his chair and buried his hands into his pockets.
"Our top priority right now, is to make sure Subject One will recover as fast as possible. Stay here, I need to check up on him." With that, Gaster stood up from the chair and walked out of the office, making his way to the operating room. He sat on the chair in front of the machinery and for a few moments he could only stare at the M-D Solution. The shining light blue water reflected on his glasses. There was Sam's body, still floating in the liquid. He looked so... peaceful. And yet...
Gaster took a glance at the monitor, to see his state.
SUBJECT ONE
SPECIES: SKELETON
HP: 0.01/1
SOUL: UNSTABLE - DETERMINATION OVERDOSE
HEALTH: FALLEN DOWN
CONDITION: DELICATE BODY AND SOUL
SOUL ESSENCE: DAMAGED
At least his body now stopped deteriorating... but still...
Gaster sighed. He stood up from the chair and walked to the tube, placing a hand on the cold glass. The small skeleton's body somehow looked paler than ever.
"Why won't you heal? Why aren't you getting better?" Gaster's eyebrows furrowed and on his face... settled the expression of true hopelessness.
Of true failure.
He could only stare at the shining blue liquid, staring right into Sam's soulless, lifeless dark eyes. The expression of emptiness. Of hollow.
The expression... that was so devoid of life right now.
The skeleton who was once determined, devoted and strong, was gone. The skeleton child with unthinkable bravery and care for his dearest brother and friend was gone. Had Gaster not abused Pap so hard and cruel right in front of Sam's very eyes... this never would have happened. Gaster knew that very well.
He looked at his left hand. "Is there really... nothing I could do, to fix this?" Then he turned his gaze back to Sam's lifeless body. "Is there nothing I could do to help you?"
Gaster, after staring at the glass for a few more moments, sat back down on the chair and rolled on it, facing the long hallway of the lab.
He was tired...
So tired...
And he did not dare for one second, stop the tear that slid down his face.
* * * * *
Kale and Pap were sitting on the double bed. Both of them... well, it was no secret that no one in this lab was truly in the most cheery of moods. Pap leaned against the wall, his bandaged up hand resting on his knees, and he was staring at the office's floor, trying to fight off the tears. For Kale, it was still fuzzy, what exactly happened here just some minutes ago.
They were in deep shock... they were not really processing anything that well at the time. Everything just happened so fast. A lot of smashing... a lot of cracking of many bones... then, before they even knew what was going on, Sam snapped and went absolutely livid. Kale looked at Pap hesitantly.
"Hey... Pap..."
Pap sniffed and looked at Kale. He winced slightly as there was a sting in his injured arm from the sudden movement. "YEAH?"
Kale decided to rather discard their previous question. It was too indiscreet, considering the emotional state Pap was in. "Uh... is this ... the worst thing Gaster ever did to you?"
"WELL... THERE WAS ANOTHER TIME WHEN..." Pap only raised his left hand with the metal plate drilled into his palm. The initials WDG-2P shining on it's surface. Kale immediately understood the gesture and slowly nodded. "BUT... I KNOW HE DIDN'T MEAN TO."
Kale now looked at Pap with a puzzled expression. "I... I dunno Pap. For me, it didn't really look like he hesitated in beating the crap out of you." They tried to keep their voice as calm as possible despite being absolutely enraged and disgusted with what Gaster has just put the two skeleton children through just this one day.
"WELL... MAYBE HE DIDN'T MEAN TO THAT WAY. I THINK HE'S JUST CONFUSED."
Pap, what are you saying? Kale wanted to ask, but they didn't want to hurt the young skeleton's feelings. "HE JUST NEEDS SOMEONE TO SHOW THE GOOD WAY. HE JUST NEEDS TO UNDERSTAND. I'VE ALWAYS KNOWN WE COULD GET THROUGH TO HIM. I KNOW THERE IS SOME GOOD IN HIM. HE... HE HAS TO BE GOOD... ANYONE CAN BE GOOD... AS LONG AS THEY TRY HARD ENOUGH."
Kale couldn't help but smile weakly. "You know... that's a pretty nice way of thinking. Maybe you're right." Kale sighed. "I hope you are... I mean... Gaster can't be that bad right?" Kale looked away and stared at the wall. "Even if he hates me..."
Pap looked at Kale, who was still not looking at him. "I DON'T THINK HE HATES YOU."
"Oh really... he's just been treating me like garbage is all."
"W-WELL UH... HE'S NOT... THE NICEST TO US EITHER... DO YOU THINK HE HATES ALL OF US?"
Kale sighed again and buried their hands in the pocket of their jacket. "I honestly have no idea. I just don't understand... why he would do such a thing... why would he treat you like this, just what is his deal?"
"I DON'T KNOW... WE ALWAYS ASK HIM THAT BUT HE WOULD NEVER TELL. HE ALWAYS SAID THAT... 'PEOPLE NEED ME TO DO THIS' OR 'PEOPLE NEED ME TO BE STRONG' STUFF LIKE THAT."
The two children now were looking at each other with generic expressions on their faces, but as Pap said that, Kale looked away and raised a brow. "'People need me to do this' huh?"
"I bet Alphys would be thrilled to know what kind of trash he's doing down here." A dark thought settled in Kale's mind. Kale stood up. "You know, I'm gonna be right back."
"U-UH HUMAN I-I DON'T THINK YOU SHOULD..."
But Kale didn't listen. They didn't even see where they were going, they just blindly walked ahead and ahead, until there was a loud thud noise and Kale was blinded by enormous pain.
"Ow!!" Their vision got blurry and they felt extremely dizzy, moments away from falling over. They pressed their hand against their forehead where a bump started forming. Kale grabbed onto the wall in order to not fall over and they forced their eye open. They were standing in the doorway of the operating room. In the giant tube, was Sam's damaged body floating, his eyes darker and more emotionless than ever before. In front of the tube was a long machinery, a monitor being in the middle. A chair was in front of it and in the chair was Gaster, sleeping. His arms rested on the chair's arms, his lab coat was slightly wrinkled and his head fell onto his right shoulder.
As much as Kale wanted to confront Gaster right now, they felt that disturbing the Royal Scientist in the middle of their beauty nap might not be the wisest choice. So they carefully walked around the control panel and walked to the large tube where Sam was. The shining light blue liquid was almost blinding in the dark room, but Kale didn't mind. They put a hand on the glass and sighed.
"Hey buddy. I don't know if you can hear me. Or if... you're even alive at this point. But... if you're somehow in there, if you're listening, somehow. I gotta tell you. We really miss you. Pap needs you now, more than ever. And me? I'm really worried for you... I-I hope you're gonna be alright Sam." Kale looked up, into the empty eyes of the smaller skeleton. "Don't you dare die on us you got it?!" Kale's voice broke and they felt the tears in their eyes. They had to look away, they couldn't bare staring at that body anymore. Then suddenly Kale saw Gaster move.
He woke up and readjusted his glasses, turning around on his chair. Suddenly all the old emotions made their way back into Kale as they looked into Gaster's eyes. He returned their gaze, although he was looking a little sleepy.
"What are you doing here exactly?" Gaster asked. Kale's expression hardened, their voice stronger than before.
"I need to talk to you."
Gaster looked at them with a tired-confused expression. "Whatever you have to say, I am sure it can wait as I have much more important matters to attend to right now."
"No, no it can't wait listen to me." Kale walked closer. It seemed their change of tone caught Gaster off guard, which they used to their advantage. "Why?"
Gaster raised a brow. "Where are you going with this?"
"Why did you have to do that to Pap? You... you almost killed him! An-and all those terrible things you did to both Sam and Pap before that! What's... what's wrong with you? Who do you think you are? How could you do this to them? They never did anything wrong. Just because they started to learn blue magic that doesn't mean you have to beat them to death! And now Sam is almost dead because of you!"
Gaster did not respond, though from his expression, Kale could see that their strong, honest words really caught him off guard. Then Gaster rolled away on the chair so he wouldn't have to make eye contact. His voice... was as similarly weak as it was some minutes before in the office.
"I have a duty I need to get done. People up there are counting on me. I cannot disappoint them. They are all counting on me and I need to save them no matter the cost."
"Is Alphys one of those people?" Kale folded their arms and looked at Gaster in a rather judgmental manner. Gaster's shoulders fell. "I..." But it seemed he could not find any good answer to that question.
"Yeah, so you are lying to everyone around you but just assume they would be proud of the stuff you're doing down here? Abusing innocent skeleton kids just to achieve that something that apparently people want you to accomplish?"
"It's not that simple as you think!" Gaster slammed his head and stood up from the chair and walked closer to Kale, the two looking into each other's eyes. "I refuse to let Asgore destroy the Barrier, I refuse to let him go through that fate, I will use any alternative methods to break the Barrier! I..." Gaster cut himself off, realizing how much he just said right now.
He put his hands into his pockets and closed his eyes, sighing as he went on. "Asgore is my King... everything I've ever done... I've done for him. I cannot... bare to lose him."
Gaster now looked at Sam. "...and I know, I have made a great mistake this time. This was never meant to happen. I never meant for my experiments to go this far. I... I can't deny, I have made the greatest mistake and failure in the whole project."
Gaster went silent and now, Kale's expression... softened slightly. "So... wait... all of it... was to save the King? You want to break the Barrier... for him?"
Gaster nodded. He looked away into the distance with a cloudy expression. "The Humans have taken everything from us... he... is the only thing I have left."
"But... what about Sam and Pap? They're skeletons too, right? You care for them too, right?"
Gaster didn't respond, he just kept looking away.
"Oh come on!" Kale snapped. "You care about them don't you even try to hide it! If you didn't care, you would have just let Sam die, you would have just beaten Pap to death, you wouldn't be so focused on trying to fix Sam! There is no way this is the real you! There is good in you! I know you must be a good person!"
Gaster recognized those words. It was no doubt for him, that Kale has spent a great deal of time with Sam and Pap, so it was not surprising they would listen to all the things they believe in. However... the fact that Kale said these words was enough to make Gaster puzzled.
"Why would a Human...?" Gaster looked back at Kale, still with a puzzled-confused expression. "Why do you... even care..." He buried his hands in his pockets and put on a skeptical look. "You're... a Human... Humans never cared about Monsters or how we feel... this is none of your concern."
"Nobody said all Humans have to be the same, did they? I just... want you to trust me... and I want to understand... whatever you've been through, that made you do all these terrible things to Sam and Pap. There's... there's no way this is the real you."
"I think... that is enough talking... Go on, I have work to do, Subject Two must really miss you."
For a moment, Kale wanted to protest, but then they sighed and decided to leave Gaster be. They felt this talk was needed for the scientist. At first they were angry at Gaster... but now... they could genuinely feel sympathy for the old skeleton. After all... his terrible actions cannot be excused, that is true, but he did it all in order to save a person he deeply cared about. Thinking about it, Kale would have probably acted in a similar manner. Kale was sure that Sam and Pap did not know about Gaster's true intentions... because if they did... they would have been a lot more understanding of Gaster. Made Kale wonder, as to why Gaster wouldn't open up about all these things to Sam and Pap.
Kale soon returned to the office and Pap was glad to see them. Kale stood next to him on the bed, gently squeezing Pap's injured arm without that being too much painful.
"I'M GLAD YOU'RE FINALLY BACK... I-I... FELT A LITTLE ALONE... NOW THAT SAM ISN'T HERE EITHER."
"Yeah, I know. Sorry for keeping you waiting Pap."
Kale looked down. Then... they smiled slightly. "You know, Pap... I think there is a high chance that you have been right about Gaster all along."
* * * * *
Entry Number ##
Failure... the experiment with the determination has failed. Subject One starting showing an ever more poor health after he has been injected. His magical abilities were greatly enhanced by the determination, along with his damage as well, there was no denying that. But his health was getting worse the more magic he used. Then after a while... he started melting. I had to put him into the M-D Solution as the only means to save him from dusting. He is still resting. Subject Two is really overwhelmed by the events. He is not doing as well on his tests as he should be. All this time, 1-S has been there to support him. But this time... he is alone. The Human is really trying to give him the support he so deeply desires from 1-S all the time. But it is not helping. He is constantly in a bad mood, crying for his brother all the time. It has made things all the more difficult. If Subject Two can't gather himself... we are going to face major problems. As of right now, I do not quite have a solid idea on what exactly is the problem with Subject One's health, and how could I fix it. Which is... concerning, to say the least. After all I have accomplished... I can't believe I could face such a terrible failure such as this. If I cannot cure 1-S soon... the project may be endangered as 2-P very highly requires his presence in order to do well in any of his tests.
Through the rest of the day, the mood in the lab was rather... quiet. Pap was not getting any better emotionally, no matter how much Kale tried to keep him entertained with puzzles, no matter how much Gaster tried to give him tests to keep him occupied, nothing was working. Kale, despite trying their best, could not bring the amount of support the young skeleton really needed. Gaster did not stop reading books or looking after Sam for the rest of the whole day. No matter how many books Gaster read, none of them had a slight mentioning about monster magic mixing with human magic and that just made it harder for him to get any ideas about how he could truly help and fix Sam.
* * * * *
The room was a dark one. There was a heavy feeling in his chest... in his very soul. He was desperate to escape. He was terrified. Scared for his life. He left all the hits coming.
Crack
Immense pain in his spine
Snap
His jaw was hurting more than anything in his whole life, it felt loose.
Bang
Another slam caused his right forearm to fall off.
All this time he has not seen anything clearly in the room... but now... there was something, that shined in the distance of the dark room, stronger than anything. He had an urge... somebody is in trouble. Someone really desperately needs his help. Ignoring his injuries, ignoring the pressure in his soul, he started to run towards the light. It became clearer. It was a bright cyan light. He ran faster. Someone was standing near them... it looked like their face was dripping... he had to hurry... he needs to heal them... but he ran so fast... he was so tired... every single inch in his body was aching. He slowed down his running. His running turned into walking... then he stopped and fell onto the dark floor. He raised his head up... and he saw... the distorted, melting face of his dear brother Sam. He had to get up... he needs to help him... he needs to save him... but there is something blocking his way. Something stops him from standing up. The pressure on his soul feels harder. He feels his soul is about to crack...
"GGAAAHHH!!!"
Pap darted up from the bed, panting, his face covered in sweat. His injured arm was burning with pain, but that was none of his concern right now. He leaned against the wall, still panting, trying to shake off the terrible imagery of the nightmare that he had just seen in his mind moments ago. His limbs felt shaky. He looked around the dark office. Gaster was sleeping, collapsed on the desk and Kale was sleeping in the bed next to him. Seeing as nobody was awake, Pap got up from the bed, careful not to make his injured arm ache with pain even more.
Gaster's lab somehow felt even more big and empty in the cover of the night. The echoes of Pap's tiny footsteps felt louder than in the daytime. In one of the rooms, Pap saw a light blue light coming from the doorway. He instinctively headed that way. Indeed, he found what he wanted to find.
There was a giant tube, with Sam floating in it. Pap walked closer to it. The shine of the light blue liquid filled the room. Pap sat in front of the tube and leaned against it.
"HEY... SAM..." He said, his small voice causing an echo in the unusually quiet lab. "I DON'T KNOW IF YOU CAN HEAR ME... I HOPE YOU DO. IT'S ME, YOUR BROTHER PAP. I JUST WANT YOU TO KNOW THAT... I REALLY MISS YOU... EVERYTHING IS SO HARD WITHOUT YOU. EVEN HE SEEMS UPSET SINCE... THIS HAPPENED TO YOU."
Pap sniffed, tears filling his eyes. "I... I HOPE YOU WILL WAKE UP SOON... I NEED YOU... I NEED MY BROTHER. I NEED MY BEST FRIEND. SO PLEASE... PLEASE DON'T LEAVE ME ALONE LIKE THIS SAM... YOU CAN'T... LEAVE ME NOW..."
Pap looked down and started quietly crying, squeezing his eyes shut and covering his face with the hand that was not injured.
"Subject Two?"
Pap stopped crying for a moment and looked up, his eyes meeting with Gaster's. The older skeleton's figure was highlighted by the shining blue liquid.
"D-DON'T GET MAD! I-I JUST-!"
"I know, calm down."
Gaster walked closer and sat next to Pap in front of the tube.
"I..." Pap looked at Gaster, who looked back. "WHY DID HE NOT WAKE UP YET?"
"I... still need time to find out, what he needs to be able to be safely removed from the tube."
"B-BUT... I-I DON'T UNDERSTAND!" Pap stood up as he faced Gaster. "YOU'RE A GENIUS! YOU CAN DO ANYTHING! WHY CAN'T YOU FIX HIM?"
Gaster sighed and looked away.
"Combining Monster Magic with Human Determination... is something that has never been done before in the history of the monster's known and recorded scientific history explorations. I am possibly the first person in our entire kind to ever try to combine a human's determination with the monster soul essence. I... I was reckless to proceed with this experiment, knowing that your brother has always presented especially poor health. I should have suspected something was going to go wrong. Especially since Subject One is very fragile. I've always known 1-S was going to turn on me if he had the chance and now... since I have granted him the power to make his magical abilities far stronger, he has done what I have always known he would do, if he had the ability to. I should have known that 1-S was going to use his newfound powers against me, that would ultimately lead to something terrible happening."
Gaster stood up and put a hand on Pap's shoulder. "I... I am very sorry for what I have done earlier to the both of you. I was toying with Subject One's emotions... and with your life at the same time. I was not exactly in a clear state of mind and was not thinking about the potential consequences of my actions. But of course... that does not excuse what I have done."
After a short pause, Pap launched forward and hugged Gaster's waist. Gaster did not push him away or force him to back off, though he would not return the hug either. After he let Gaster go, Pap turned his eyes back to his brother.
"CAN I STAY HERE? I WANT TO BE HERE... FOR HIM..."
Gaster sighed, not out of annoyance, or tiredness... it was rather an 'of course you were going to ask that' sigh. "You can. But I am staying here with you then, as well."
Pap sat back on his place, in front of the tube and Gaster stood in the rolling chair in front of the monitor. It did not take long until Pap fell asleep and soon, Gaster has done the same.
Notes:
Gaster's 'I'm so emotionless and don't care about any of you' mask is slowly breaking
Chapter 9: We've got each other
Notes:
I return from the dead. I went on hiatus, due to me having final exams soon, and while there is still 2 more weeks until my exams, I do have a bit more free time by now, enough so that I can continue putting up chapters of this fanfiction.
So I hope you enjoy!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Pap slowly opened his eyes as he was leaning against Sam's giant tube. Broad light filled the otherwise dark lab as the only sound breaking the silence was the beeping of the monitors that showed Sam's condition. Pap could see that Gaster was still asleep, leaning against the table, sitting on the rolling chair. On his, Pap's left was a plate of delicious cheese sandwich and as he was looking at the plate with a great hunger overcoming him, he heard a familiar voice coming from his left.
"Good morning Pap!"
Pap turned around, his eyes meeting with Kale's red eyes that were shining as rubies, their face lit up by the blue magical liquid. Their mouth was half full, and they were holding a half eaten cheese sandwich in their hand as they smiled at the young skeleton child. Pap smiled too, fighting off the slight morning drowsiness.
"GOOD MORNING HUMAN KALE!!" He tried to sound as cheery as he could, but Kale knew that Pap was missing his usual positive spirit.
"I uh... woke up and saw you two weren't in the office... so uh... I-I kinda... had an idea where you could be..." They mumbled rubbing their head as they turned their eyes to Sam's floating body in the tube. Pap's smile faded as he also rubbed the back of his skull, a small frown settling on his face.
"Y... YEAH... I-I HAD A BAD DREAM... AND I... WANTED TO COME SEE HIM. GASTER LET ME SLEEP WITH HIM TOO." Pap also looked at the tube. "I... I MISS HIM SO MUCH..."
Kale sighed. "I know you do..." After a few moments of saddened silence, Kale spoke up again. "Got you a sandwich, I thought you'd be hungry." They tried to change the subject. A small smile made it's way to Pap's face once more as he nodded and put the plate on his lap, taking a bite out of the delicious cheese sandwich. The flavor of the lukewarm melted cheese satisfied his hunger very quickly.
"Man, I love cheese." Kale sighed, smiling a bit with bread crumbs on their face. Pap looked at them slightly questioning.
"CHEESE?"
"Yeah! That's the soft melty tasty stuff in the sandwich."
"OH! THEN I LOVE CHEESE TOO!!"
In front of them Gaster snorted lightly, but did not wake.
"Man... he sure is a deep sleeper..." Kale said, a little jokingly.
"I WONDER HOW LONG HE WAS AWAKE FOR."
After quickly stuffing the rest of his sandwich into his mouth, Pap stood up and gently pushed Gaster's arm out of the way to look onto the monitor, showing Sam's condition.
SUBJECT ONE
SPECIES: SKELETON
HP: 0.01/1
SOUL: UNSTABLE - DETERMINATION OVERDOSE
HEALTH: FALLEN DOWN
CONDITION: DELICATE BODY AND SOUL
SOUL ESSENCE: DAMAGED
It was still the same. But there was something else that caught Pap's attention.
"UHM... WHAT'S UH... FALLEN DOWN?" He asked, looking at Kale. Kale raised an eyebrow and walked to Pap, looking at the monitor too. There, they could see what he meant.
"O-Oh uh..." Kale frowned slightly and looked away. They looked for the best way to phrase their explanation without making Pap freak out. "It's uh... when somebody... uh... falls into coma and they... t-they're uh..." Kale was unsure if they should finish their sentence, but Pap's curious glance did not let them to do otherwise. "When someone is fallen down... they're close to dying." Kale just said out straight.
Unfortunately the answer had the exact effect Kale was afraid of. Pap's eyes glowed a deep purple color and there were tears slowly making their way into his eyes. "C-CLOSE TO... D-... DYING? S-SAM... SAM IS GOING TO...? H-HE'S..." Pap started heavily panting, his eyes glowing purple more and more intensely as he was trying to fight off the tears. He sat down and leaned against the control panel, staring up at the ceiling, Kale kneel down next to him, slightly panicking themselves.
"Hey, hey, hey, Pap come on! C-Calm down, that doesn't mean anything, I'm sure Sam is going to be just fine." Pap squeezed his eyes shut, the purple glow darkening, tears rolling down his face. But it seemed his breathing slowed.
"There... come on. Deep breaths. Stay with me here, okay? Calm down, please. I know it's scary, I'm scared too. But I promise, Sam is going to be just fine."
The purple glow from Pap's eyes slowly disappeared as his breathing slowed down more, but the tears were still in his eyes. Kale pulled him into a tight, warm hug.
"There buddy... calm down... it'll be okay."
It seemed Pap's slight panic attack woke up Gaster, as there was a creak coming from the office chair, and when Kale looked up, Gaster returned their gaze. Pap also turned over soon and saw him. He was sniffing for a little while, wiping away his tears.
"Are you alright?" Gaster asked the younger skeleton.
Pap slowly nodded. "Y... YEAH." Then he turned his eyes onto the monitor as he stood up and Kale did the same. "WHAT... WHY IS SAM FALLEN DOWN?
Gaster hummed in a sad tone and looked at the monitor too. "Well... I suspect it is because his HP went below zero and his soul essence also got damaged by the determination. If a monster is low on soul essence, or if their HP goes below zero by... any kind of circumstances, they fall down and... well, they will die shortly after." Gaster turned to Pap, and his expression changed. "But do not worry. As long as Subject One is in the tube, he is in no real danger of death. That is why he must stay here until I find a way to repair his soul and take the determination out of it safely." Gaster leaned back on his chair and looked at the ceiling, folding his arms. "Which... unfortunately... I haven't made too much progress with yet." He mumbled, rather to himself, than to the two children.
"YOU CAN DO IT! I KNOW! YOU'RE SMART!!" Pap tried to reassure the old scientist. Gaster gave him a weak smile then looked away, letting out an inaudible sigh.
"I hope I will..." The thought echoed in his head. Then there was something else that snapped in his mind. What time is it? Gaster looked at the laptop on one of the desks that was turned on, - he was doing some work on his laptop last night before falling asleep - and he could see it was 10 am. It was about time to get some work done. Gaster stood up from the chair and looked at Kale and Pap. "It is about time I get some work done. Come on."
Pap took one last goodbye glance at Sam, then the three of them started walking out of the operating room and back to Gaster's office. The older skeleton stood on his office chair - he could get a replacement for the one Sam destroyed after some time - and started looking through the security feeds of the lab, while Kale and Pap sat on the large double bed. After making sure nothing was out of the ordinary in the lab, Gaster fished out his cellphone and saw that he had some missed calls.
TWO MISSED CALLS AT 22:16 PM FROM - ALPHYS
ONE MISSED CALL AT 8:25 AM FROM - ASGORE
An uncomfortable pressure got into Gaster's nonexistent stomach. When Asgore calls him, that is not always a good sign. He was hoping that he didn't cause Asgore to get worried about him, like it mostly happens. After letting out an inaudible sigh, Gaster got up from the office chair and walked out to the long hallway, a little farther from the children so they wouldn't overhear his conversations on the phone.
He decided to first call Alphys, the thought of having a conversation with her first made him more comfortable at the moment. After a few rings, Alphys picked up.
"Hello? This is Dr. Gaster."
"O-Oh h-hey Dr Gaster!" Alphys's nervous-cheery voice sounded from the other side.
"You were calling me last night?"
"O-Oh y-yeah! I-I just uh... wanted to ask how the uh... d-determination e-experiment is g-going, y-you know?"
"Oh... I ... I see. Well... regretfully, the experiment went very wrong." Gaster said a little hesitant, not sure how he could explain the experiment without actually going into detail.
"Oh... why? W-What happened? What did you do?" Alphys's voice shifted slightly.
Gaster paused. He was thinking for quite a while on how could he explain the details of the experiment without giving away what it was he actually did. "Well I... I had to realize, determination is very harmful to monsters. So unfortunately... I cannot exactly get too much out of that."
"Oh... w-well that's not that g-good..."
There was a pause and Alphys's voice changed into a more hesitant, concerned one. "B-But G-Gaster..."
"Hmm?"
Alphys hesitated a bit more. "Uh... w-what about the H-Human th-then?"
Gaster's shoulders fell, hearing the question. Indeed, this is something he has not thought about for quite some time. The Human has been in his lab for weeks, and he did not even think of anything to do with them, once the determination experiment was done. The only thing he knew was that he could not let the Human leave the lab, because then, either Asgore would take their soul, or they kill Asgore.
"I-I mean... I-I know you're... uh... w-worried f-for Asgore. B-But G-Gaster. Y-You know you c-can't... k-keep them with you forever, r-r-right?"
Gaster sighed and closed his eye. "Yes... I know I just... I'll... think of something, later. I am far too busy right now, to be concerned by this." Hearing about Asgore, Gaster thought to ask now. "Did... something happen? I saw that Asgore tried to call me earlier this morning."
"O-Oh, n-no, nothing happened. I-I g-guess h-h-he's just u-uhm... w-worried about you."
"... Of course he is..." Gaster said quietly. Alphys paused for a moment. "C-Can't r-really... b-blame him... h-he's... uh... n-not the only one, you know."
"Yes, I know. I better call him back now, good day Alphys."
"W-Wait! U-Uh... b-before you go. C-can I uh... a-ask you a favor?" From the sound of her voice, Gaster could tell that there was a small smirk making it's way onto Alphys's face.
"Yes, of course, what is it?" Gaster buried his free hand into the pocket of his lab coat.
"W-Well uh... h-how much uh... I-I mean... d-d-do you still have t-that um... v-vial of H-Human blood?"
Gaster raised a brow. "Well, yes but-"
"C-Can you give it to me? I-If uh... y-you don't need it anymore."
Gaster's expression hardened, slightly, worry setting over him. "What would you need that for, Alphys?"
"U-Uh, I was just uh... w-working on something q-quite special lately."
"Really? What is it?"
"I-I w-wanna surprise you! I-It's a secret!"
Gaster couldn't help but smile a little. "Alright, alright. I'll bring you that vial soon, just... be careful with it, alright?"
"Y-Yeah g-got it! T-Thanks Dr. Gaster, see you soon!"
"Good day to you, Alphys."
Gaster hung up. He searched for Asgore's number on his phone, and for a little while, he could only stare at the phone's screen. Whenever Asgore got worried about him, everything always became so much harder. He did enjoy spending time with the old King, who he loved as a father ever since he was a small boy, but sometimes, it was just so hard to bring himself to spend time with him. It made the experiments and everything else feel so much more like a burden, a heavy weight on his shoulders. He knew he did not deserve the love and care that Asgore gave him, day after day, and the King would be utterly disgusted and disappointed, had he ever found out the truth about him, Gaster. The old scientist just couldn't afford to lose, one of the only person... one of the only people who he could still think of as family. Who he could still... call family.
With a heavy feeling in his very soul, Gaster closed his one healthy eye, and sighed, pressing the call button. As soon as the ringing stopped, he spoke up. "Good day, your Majesty."
"Good morning, Gaster." Asgore deep, caring voice sounded again. Hearing his voice after only spending time in this lab for weeks... it filled Gaster with comfort. But also with utter sorrow. "You wanted to talk to me?" He asked, trying to hide the deep sadness in his voice and disguise it as neutrality.
"Yes, I simply just wanted to know how you were doing." Asgore answered in a gentle, calm voice. It all felt to Gaster, as if he was standing in front of him even in this very moment.
"I am alright. I am just... slightly more preoccupied with some important matters, recently."
There was a noticeable change in Asgore's tone of voice, the same one of the fatherly concern that Gaster has heard so often in the last months in his life. "You are always working so hard. I can hardly see you leave your lab anymore. Are you sure you're alright?"
"Yes, I assure you, I am fine. Please, do not worry so much. There are much more important matters that could concern you way deeper than I."
Hearing that, Asgore slightly paused, but then he changed the topic. "Would you mind, coming over for some tea, sometime this week? I would like to see you again and maybe talk to you about some matters and it would only do good for you, to leave your lab and stretch your legs, just for one day."
Gaster leaned to the wall, his expression turning uncomfortable. "I... I don't know... I have a lot of work to do..."
"Please, don't work so hard. Take care of yourself, Gaster!"
Gaster couldn't bare to deny, he always hated when Asgore got worried about him. He would spend so much precious time and energy on making sure he was in good shape, even though he must have many, many important matters to attend to and he must be terribly busy every day, being King of the Underground. "Well... Alright, I... suppose, I could spare just one day. But not today, I have some very important things to go over."
"Alright, take your time, but please do visit me sometime this week. I am worried about you."
"Yes, I promise, I will." Gaster nodded as he said.
"That reminds me... have you heard of the new Human who has fallen?"
The question coming from Asgore caught Gaster so off guard, that the phone immediately slipped from his hand and smashed against the solid floor with a loud clank noise. Asgore's distant voice was what snapped Gaster out of his trance and made him pick up the phone again, from the floor.
He cleared his throat and tried to proceed with the conversation in a casual manner, despite the great anxiety that came over him in these moments. "My apologies, yes I... did happen to hear some things about them."
"From what Undyne told me... they possess Determination soul."
Gaster did not know how to respond to that. He heard Asgore let out a sigh, his voice getting much weaker and sadder. "Determination... just like Chara..."
Gaster still did not respond, but now he did clear his throat quietly, clearly uncomfortable. It seemed Asgore did pick up on that, as he also cleared his throat and changed the tone of his voice. "Ah, I am sorry, I know you do not like to think about them."
"It's alright... I just..." He paused, then he pulled his hand out of his pocket and put a hand on his forehead. "... Nothing, it's nothing."
"I am sorry if I... made you uncomfortable."
"... It is alright, your Majesty... however, I do need to get back to work now."
"Alright then, good day Dr. Gaster and please, remember to get some rest."
"I will. Good day, your Majesty."
Gaster hang up and with a sigh, he leaned against the wall, burying both his hands into his lab coat's pockets, his head facing the ceiling, however his eye closed as he tried to calm his nerves after these conversations with Alphys and Asgore. After having a little moment for himself, he walked back to the office. Kale and Pap were sitting on the bed. Kale was reading a book to Pap, namely a popular children's book in the underground, 'Peek-a-boo with a Fluffy Bunny'
"I will have to go out for a little while, to get something done." Gaster said, as he fished out the vial containing Kale's blood from one of the drawers. "Feel free to go for a walk around the lab, if you do so wish but please do not wander off too far from the office."
"Okay!" Kale said, looking up from the book while Pap nodded in agreement. Kale, then noticed the vial of blood in Gaster's hand and raised a brow. "Uh... what do you need that for?"
"Well... Alphys needs it, for some reason. I do not know why, but I trust she knows what she is doing."
"WHO'S ALPHYS?" Pap asked before Gaster could leave the office. The scientist was stopped in his track in the doorway, realizing he said something he shouldn't have. He looked back at Pap from above his shoulder and after a long pause, he simply said: "... Just a friend." and he left the office.
Kale finished reading the book to Pap, - it was a rather short book - and then the two tried to think of something else to do.
"Hey, maybe we could go for a walk? Since Gaster let us do it anyway?" Kale suggested after a few minutes of silence.
"OH!! YES!! I KNOW WHERE WE SHOULD GO!!"
They walked out of the office and Pap quickly led Kale to their old cell. Kale got a very uncomfortable feeling, being there as it was the very place Sam's accident happened in the first place. They were not really sure why Pap would want to hang around in this place, out of any other room in the lab.
"Uh... Pap... why are we here?"
"WELL... I WANTED TO COME BACK... FOR OLD TIME'S SAKE, YOU KNOW?" Pap stepped forward in the cell, looking around the big empty room. It seemed this room meant a lot to Pap, despite there only being one metal plate hanging on the wall, serving as a dull bed. Despite, that this was the room where his brother nearly lost his life. It seemed to remind Pap of a lot of memories. Some good, some bad.
"I KNOW... THERE WERE A LOT OF BAD THINGS HAPPENING IN HERE. BUT... ALL THOSE BAD THINGS... THEY WERE NOT AS BAD AS THEY COULD HAVE BEEN. BECAUSE... HE WAS WITH ME... TO SUPPORT ME. HE DID EVERYTHING HE COULD, TO MAKE MY DAY BETTER, EVERY TIME I WAS SAD, OR AFRAID, HE WOULD ALWAYS CHEER ME UP AND TELL ME THAT I WAS GREAT, SMART. THAT I WAS A GOOD PERSON... A BRIGHT LIGHT IN THE DARKNESS... THE ONLY GOOD THING DOWN HERE. AND I WAS ALWAYS THERE FOR HIM, TOO. I WOULD HAVE NEVER LET HIM LOSE HOPE. NO MATTER WHAT. NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENED TO US, NO MATTER WHAT HE PUT US THROUGH, NO MATTER HOW MANY BAD MEMORIES WE COULD CONNECT TO THIS ROOM. BECAUSE DESPITE ALL THAT, AT LEAST WE'VE FACED ALL OF IT TOGETHER."
Kale did not even know what to say to that, but perhaps that was a good thing. The fact that Pap could think so brightly, about a single room in which they experienced so much pain and suffering... about a single room in which both him and Sam could have potentially lose their life... it was inspiring, and in a way, it made Kale happy that Pap could think so positively about so many bad things.
Until that moment passed.
Pap collapsed on his knees and cried out, his tears falling and leaving their mark on the floor.
"I'M SO SORRY SAM!!"
Kale dropped on their knees too, putting a hand on Pap's shoulder their expression mixed with scared bewilderment and sadness.
"IT WAS ALL MY FAULT!! I COULD HAVE HELPED YOU!! I COULD HAVE SAVED YOU! I COULD HAVE HEALED YOU! THEN YOU WOULD STILL BE HERE WITH US!! I'M SO SORRY SAM! SO SORRY!"
"Pap!" Kale crawled in front of the small skeleton. "Pap! Listen here! It was not your fault? You got it? It wasn't! You were so hurt, there was nothing you could have done! You could barely even move, you couldn't have even had enough energy to heal Sam and it wouldn't have done any good anyway." Kale hugged Pap tightly and the young skeleton hugged back, weakly. "Sam wouldn't want you blaming yourself like this, alright? I'm sure he would never blame you."
Kale pulled away from the hug for a moment, so they could look into Pap's teary eyes.
"Sam would forgive you and you know that too."
Pap finally managed to nod a little as he turned his expression away from Kale's and wiped the tears from his eyes.
"Let's go somewhere else, okay?"
Pap nodded again and the two of them slowly stood up from the cell's floor and walked away.
* * * * *
"T-Thank you for coming so soon, Dr. Gaster!"
"Of course, it was no problem."
Gaster handed the vial with the Human blood, to Alphys. "So... what do you need this determination for, Alphys?"
"I-I t-told you! I-It's a secret!"
"What kind of secret?"
"Y-You will see!"
Gaster couldn't help, but smile a little and sighed with faked annoyance. "Alright, alright, fine."
"A-Anyway I... uh..." Alphys looked away, the smile from her face fading slowly. Gaster could already tell, the conversation was about to trail off into a different direction. Alphys sat on a chair by her work desk and Gaster did the same. "W-When I asked... w-w-what do you plan to do with the H-Human... I-I was r-really expecting a s-straight answer you know?"
Alphys looked at Gaster, but he turned his face away from her eyes. "I know, Alphys... but I was honest about what I said before, I am not sure what I am going to do with the Human, now that the experiment failed..."
"A-Are... a-are you g-going to let them g-go?" Alphys asked the uncomfortable question, hesitantly. Gaster shifted in his seat and folded his arms, tightly gripping onto them with both of his hands. "G-Gaster y-you c-can't just k-keep them down there forever w-with you! W-What if someone finds out? O-Or what if they escape w-when you're not around?"
"If I let them go, I endanger Asgore's life, one way or another." Gaster finally gave a response, looking Alphys in the eye. Alphys's head fell, her expression getting all the more sad with realization. "... Oh... r-... r-right..." Then she looked up again and returned Gaster's gaze. "B-But Gaster... d-do you really think A-Asgore would agree with this? D-Do... Do you r-really think he... would a-agree with this if he knew?"
Gaster turned away now and buried his hands into his pockets. "Of course he wouldn't..." He thought to himself.
He sighed. "If I let the Human go..." He said, his voice breaking in the middle of his sentence, forcing him to pause. "I would be directly responsible for Asgore's death. Either physically... or mentally."
Alphys's expression changed, for a moment it even looked like tears made their way into her eyes.
"... G... Gaster..."
"Anyway..." Gaster stood up from the chair. "I... I need to go... I can't... spend too much more time here."
Gaster headed for the elevator that would lead him to his lab.
"W-Wait!" Alphys bolted up from the chair. Gaster looked at her. "I-I... I just want you to know... N-... N-None of this is your fault, D-Dr Gaster! A-A-And... n-nobody will be d-disappointed in you if... i-if A-Asgore..."
Alphys didn't finish, but Gaster understood what she meant. He could only nod in response, slowly, trying to keep a strong expression despite how broken he felt on the inside, at this very moment. After a few moments, Gaster turned back to the elevator and entered, pressing the LAB button and letting the elevator take him back to his own lab after some minutes of riding.
* * * * *
"What do you think of this pattern?"
"OH, NO NO! SAM WOULDN'T FIND THAT DIFFICULT ENOUGH! WE NEED TO GIVE HIM SOMETHING TRULY CHALLENGING. SOMETHING HE HAS NEVER SEEN BEFORE! A NEW SHAPE!!"
"Okay... Hmm... hey, how about this? You make every side a triangle... and then... you have to make them into X's... then into O's. How's that sound?"
After some moments of thinking, Pap's eyes lit up. "YES, THAT IS A VERY GOOD IDEA, HUMAN KALE!! SOON, YOU WILL BE JUST AS GREAT OF A PUZZLE MAKER AS MYSELF!" Pap took the cube from Kale's hands and started rotating the sides quickly.
Kale and Pap were sitting in the operating room and making all sorts of unique and various puzzles on the Rubik's Cube. Puzzles they both thought Sam would greatly enjoy, if he could actually try them. After a few moments, they heard footsteps entering the room.
"What are you two doing?"
Kale and Pap looked up at Gaster, both smiling with childish innocence. Pap held up the cube. All sides were having a triangle shape on them. "WE ARE MAKING PUZZLES FOR SAM!! I BET HE WOULD REALLY LOVE THESE IF HE WAS AWAKE!! THIS IS A NEW ONE I JUST MADE!"
Gaster walked closer and asked for the cube, to take a look at the sides. On all sides was a colorful triangle formed.
"YOU HAVE TO MAKE THEM INTO X'S!! THEN MAKE THE X'S INTO O'S!!" Pap looked up at Sam's face in the tube. "... I BET SAM WOULD LOVE THIS PUZZLE... IF HE COULD SOLVE IT..."
Gaster looked at Pap, then at Sam in the tube. Then, he smiled, softly and sat next to Pap on the floor.
"Maybe I could solve it for him."
Notes:
Gaster is steadily turning into Dadster
Chapter 10: Your best friend...?
Chapter Text
A few days have passed in the lab. Gaster was feeling slightly guilty for still not scheduling the visit of Asgore, but he couldn't bring himself to leave the lab for such a long period of time, until Sam recovered. He did not want to put the children at the risk of hours of isolation. He knew nobody could really get down here but... he preferred not to take his chances. Especially since, if something major happens to Sam while he is not around, Pap and Kale would not know what to do and they could possibly lose Sam.
'Yes... not today I'm sorry... I'm sorry I am busy today... Yes, I am alright, don't worry... I am sorry, maybe some other time...'
Gaster responded to Asgore's text messages, voice mails and calls with that or similar answers. Seemed that the Monster King was very much eager to have a day of spending time with Gaster, which only made things all the more difficult for the old skeleton. Needless to say, Asgore absolutely wanted to make sure Gaster would not forget to visit him, which was working since he and Gaster talked about three times a day. Gaster did not really enjoy this sudden unbreakable attention and worry he was getting from Asgore, and he would have rather preferred that the King would spend time on other much more important matters than to be taking care of him.
Gaster could take care of himself.
... Well... no, that was obviously a lie.
In the past week, Gaster did not even know where he was most of the times. He was close to falling asleep random occasions, for example in the middle of solving tests with Pap, while he was working on his computer, he even almost fell asleep in the CORE and he was this close to falling off the long bridge, luckily his co workers caught him and woke him up.
All of these incidents not only made the people around Gaster more worried, but it worried him, too. All these days, he has spent nothing but reading, reading and reading a lot of books about Monster Magic and Determination all the while keeping an eye on Sam. He has been working restlessly to find some kind of cure for the small skeletons dire condition, but to no avail. Not to mention him and Kale had to try really hard to keep Pap in a stable mental condition as the young skeleton was getting more and more desperate, the more days he had to endure without his brother. It was obvious he was really missing him and was worried for him. So was Kale.
... and Gaster, too.
The more days he spent with pointless research that only lead him to a dead end, the more Gaster was worried and stressed that he may never actually find any cure to Sam's condition. There just seemed to be no way to completely remove Determination from a Soul, in a harmless and stable way. Gaster did consider trying to take the Human blood out of his soul with syringe, similarly to how he did it with Kale, but he did not dare risk that as Sam's soul essence was already damaged enough and he was fallen down, too.
Despite that, Gaster had to try to his best efforts to not let Pap lose hope, although it was very hard because he had already started to lose hope himself.
'I cannot give up... I have to do it for them... I can't fail now...' He kept telling himself such things, but those encouraging thoughts soon turned into regretful thoughts, such as 'It was my fault... if it wasn't for me... I did this to him... I am a failure...'
Kale tried their best to keep the two skeletons in high spirits, but Gaster's terrible mental condition gave not only them a bad feeling, but Pap too. The two started to get more concerned for Gaster, than they were for Sam.
Gaster could count on one hand, how much hours of sleep he has been getting the past days.
This day, was just like any other... work... sleepiness... work... phone call... work... tests... work...
"U-UH... A-ARE YOU OKAY THERE? HELLO...?"
Gaster opened his eyes. For quite long, he did not even remember what he was doing, where he was, and what he was doing here. Pap was sitting in front of him with a worried expression, Gaster felt the sleepiness not only in his one healthy eye, but in every single inch of his body too. He readjusted his glasses and Pap came to help him with his short term memory loss.
"U-UHM... I-I SOLVED THE PUZZLE. LIKE YOU TOLD ME TO..."
"O-Oh..." Gaster mumbled, rubbing his eye. He finally realized what was happening. It was morning and he has told Pap that they were going to do some tests on the cube, so at least he could improve his skills at something while experiments are temporarily on pause. They were sitting in the same room where they did experiments, all day, every day.
"I... I am sorry, great job." Gaster said slowly and he looked at the Rubik's cube sitting in front of him. Every side was one solid color.
"I-IT'S OKAY REALLY! I DIDN'T MIND..."
"What... what was your time? Do you remember?" Gaster said quietly as he tried to suppress a yawn.
"WELL UH... I-I DIDN'T REALLY PAY ATTENTION BUT I THINK AROUND... THREE? FIVE? AROUND THAT."
Gaster wrote it down on his clipboard. "Ah... that is a new record. Your best time was seven minutes. Now it's gone down to three-to-five minutes. Good job."
"UH DO YOU WANT ME TO BRING YOU COFFEE?"
The question caught Gaster off guard. But then he nodded. "Yes, please." Pap got up from his chair and Gaster heard his tiny feet noises, indicating he was walking towards the office. This was another new, but regular thing that happened down in this lab every now and then. Pap getting Gaster a cup of coffee, whenever he was sleeping in the middle of a test. Some days ago, Kale taught Pap how to use the coffee machine, since he was so eager to taste coffee himself. That ended up being a bad idea, as Pap immediately spit the entire mug of coffee out and commented on how bad it tasted. But he did use the coffee machine to bring coffee to Gaster whenever he was exceptionally tired. Coffee seemed like the only thing still keeping Gaster from passing out at any given moment.
He looked at his notes. Sadly that wasn't going to tell him what time it even was. It felt like everything he did today was completely wiped from his memory. He did not even know if he got any sleep at all last night. Soon Pap returned with the mug of coffee and Gaster took a sip. Immediately, he felt all the energy flowing back into his body in a mere matter of seconds. "Thank you." Gaster said as he put down the mug for a second to face Pap. "Can you... tell me what time it is?"
"WELL... I UH... DON'T REALLY KNOW, BUT I REMEMBER YOU WERE COMING BACK TO US IN THE OFFICE SOMETIME IN THE MORNING AND YOU FELL ON THE COUCH AND FELL ASLEEP. SO WE TOOK A BLANKET AND LET YOU SLEEP FOR A WHILE. AFTER YOU WOKE UP YOU SAID SOMETHING ABOUT THE TIME AND TOLD ME TO FOLLOW YOU AND THAT WE'RE GOING TO DO SOME TESTS."
It was now obvious. It was another one of those nights when Gaster would spend the entire night reading and watching over Sam, not even getting a single minute of sleep. He was staying up all night all the way until possibly eight in the morning, when he gave up and decided to go get some sleep. That lead him to sleeping a little more than he wanted to. That made Gaster come to the conclusion that it was probably somewhere around eleven AM.
"And... how long have we been doing tests for?"
"WELL... YOU SCRAMBLED THE CUBE... THEN TOLD ME TO SOLVE IT. I WAS SOLVING IT, THEN YOU LEANED ON THE DESK AND FELL ASLEEP. SO I JUST WAITED FOR YOU TO WAKE UP."
"... How long have you waited for me to wake up?"
"UH... PRETTY LONG... AN HOUR... OR SO?"
"An hour?!" Gaster groaned and rubbed his skull. "... I suppose, that concludes all the tests for today. I... I can't focus."
"CAN I GO AND SEE HIM? PLEASE? PRETTY PLEASE?"
"Yes, you can go." Gaster said as he took one last sip of the coffee, emptying his mug with a single drag. Thanks to the coffee, his skeletal limbs finally felt lighter and it made him actually be able to get up from his chair. As he stood up, Pap did too and the two walked to the operating room. There it was, same as always. Sam's small body still floating in the shining blue liquid, the soul monitor still showing the condition of Sam, which was completely unchanged. Kale was sitting at the tube and looked up at the arrivals.
"Oh hey! Uh... you were taking a bit so... I decided to keep an eye on him for a bit. Then you took a little longer to arrive than I though and..."
"The test didn't... go too smooth."
"YOU NEED TO SLEEP!" Pap looked up at Gaster, who turned his head away to avoid making eye contact.
"I am fine..."
No, he wasn't that was an obvious lie. Even Pap saw through that. "NO YOU'RE NOT! WHY DO YOU FELL ASLEEP ALL THE TIME THEN?"
Gaster sighed. "I... I am fine! All I care about is finding some way to cure your brother but I cannot find any solutions in any of those useless books!" Gaster sat on the chair and closed his eye, rubbing his forehead. Kale and Pap both walked to him.
"Just because you want to fix Sam, doesn't mean you don't deserve any rest Gaster..." Kale said carefully and quietly.
"I just..." Gaster rolled the chair, turning it's back to Pap and Kale. "... I know this is all my fault. I did this. The least I could do is... fix what I broke. But... I can't." His hand curled into a fist and his voice cracked as he said his last words. Pap walked closer so he could look at him.
"YOU SAID... YOU WEREN'T IN A CLEAR STATE OF MIND RIGHT? YOU WEREN'T THINKING ABOUT WHAT YOU WERE DOING?"
Gaster hesitated. "Yes, but that doesn't excuse-"
"... AND YOU KNOW IT WAS A MISTAKE, TOO AND YOU OBVIOUSLY FEEL VERY BAD FOR IT. SO... DON'T BEAT YOURSELF TOO HARD BECAUSE... AT LEAST YOU ARE TRYING YOUR BEST TO FIX YOUR MISTAKE AND I BET SAM WOULD REALLY APPRECIATE THAT. IF... IF HE WAS HERE..." Pap looked down.
Gaster finally turned to Pap and the usual soft-confused expression sat on his face. All the time, no matter what kind of horrible things he commits to him or his brother, Pap never for one second stopped believing in Gaster and believing he was a good person. He could always see some kind of hidden light inside of him, a light that not even Gaster saw in himself. In a way, Gaster admired the younger skeleton for this trait, but at the same time he was worried about this, for the very reason that he himself as a child carried similar beliefs and that ultimately led him to lose his family, since he was too afraid to fight the Humans in the War.
"You... are too kind. For all of us." That was the only thing Gaster could say. Regardless, Pap took it as a compliment as his face lit up. "Stay here please, I will be back." Gaster said as he stood up from the chair. He felt like he really needed a good smoke. So he left the room, leaving the children to watch Sam by themselves.
He soon walked to the office and took the box of cigarette from the top shelf. Taking a stick, he went to a lonely corner in the lab, lighted the cigarette and took a long drag.
It felt good.
In a really unhealthy way, but it felt good.
Gaster took a few more drags and exhaled each time, watching the wisps of smoke make it's way onto the ceiling before they splattered and disappeared into nothingness. Some minutes of silence passed, when Gaster felt his cell phone buzzing in the pocket of his lab coat. Gaster stamped out the cigarette and answered.
"Yes?" He leaned to the wall as he responded. Alphys's squeaky excited voice sounded from the other end.
"H-Hi Dr. Gaster. U-Uhm a-are you busy? I-I have something I n-need to show to you!"
"Well... I suppose I could spare a few minutes."
"W-Well uh... it... it might be longer than few minutes hehe..."
Gaster raised a brow and buried his free hand into the pocket of his lab coat. "Why? What is it you want to show?"
"Y-You'll see! I won't spoil the surprise!"
Gaster sighed, a little tired. "Alphys, I don't know if I can spare too many hours right now I-"
Alphys cut him off. "Please... just... just now, you n-need to see this! I-I p-promise you're gonna like it a lot!"
Gaster didn't answer.
"B-Besides I uh... I-I uh... want to... t-talk to you. I-I'm... a l-little worried. I-I just want to see you."
Gaster closed his eye and turned his head to the ceiling. He could not bring himself to deny Alphys's enthusiastic excitement to show him something, especially if that something was made by herself and he knew that leaving her hanging and not visiting would cause more worries, not just for her, but for multiple others as well. But at the same time... what about Sam? What if something happens? What if something happens to Kale and Pap while they're all alone? Alphys's unsure voice made Gaster snap out of his trance.
"G-Gaster...?"
"I..." He hesitated a little, then he sighed inaudibly. "I'll be there shortly. Just please... make it worth it."
"Oh I will! Y-You're gonna love it! S-See you soon Dr Gaster!"
"See you soon, Alphys."
A part of Gaster couldn't believe he agreed to this. Right now, at this moment, nothing was more important than watching over Sam and trying to find a way to take the determination out of him and ensure he was healthy and safe to be removed from the tube. Another part of Gaster would have felt incredibly guilty for letting down Alphys and not seeing the creation she made that she was so undoubtedly proud of. He was deeply hoping Pap and Kale could take care of themselves for some hours until he gets back.
Still, leaving without taking precautions would not be a wise choice, Gaster went to his office. There was one drawer in his office that was always locked with a key. Gaster kept the key very well hidden. It was under the line of drawers next to his computer desk. Gaster used blue magic to fetch the key from the tight spot and unlocked the drawer.
Inside it were many, many of his personal belongings, most from either his childhood, or other items that had a close connection to either Alphys, or the Dreemurrs.
The drawer had items such as an old tattered, dusty red scarf, the picture that Pap has drawn a long time ago, some of Gaster's favorite small toys from when he was a child. In the drawer was also Gaster's first glasses that broke when he accidentally got into a fight with one of the humans in his school and there were also a lot of pictures. Most of them were group photos, taken with his family when he was still on the Surface with his family. But there was one photo that was slightly different from the others.
That pictures was the one that was taken most recently, however it was in the worst shape.
On the photo were the Dreemurr family. Asgore, Asriel and Toriel. Gaster was also on it... and there was somebody else... someone who looked a lot different. With shoulder length short reddish brown hair, with shining red eyes and pale skin, a green sweater with a single yellow stripe on it that was a few sizes too big... with a shiny golden heart locket in their neck... a locket completely identical to young Asriel's...
That was the late adopted Human child of the Dreemurr family, Chara Dreemurr.
The photo was ripped at the top. Everyone was smiling... except Gaster.
He has never taken too much liking to the fact that there was a Human child living in the house of the Queen, the King and the young Prince. Indeed, that did not end well at all after some years of the child living in New Home. They became severely ill and their dying wish was to see the flowers from their home village. As soon as they died, Asriel absorbed their soul and carried their body to the Human village. But Humans attacked Asriel and as soon as he returned to New Home, he collapsed in the garden and turned to dust.
The sudden unexpected death of the two children was still the gravest tragedy that Monster kind ever went through. Following his children's death, Asgore declared war on humanity, making Toriel leave the castle, never to be seen ever again.
Gaster wiped the one tear that was staining on his face for quite some minutes and put the photo back into the drawer. That was not what he was looking for, after all. In the drawer were also three cellphones. Cellphones that Gaster used at a time, but they were not quite working as well as his current cellphone. Gaster took out a black one, he remembered it was still good enough to make calls then he returned to Pap and Kale in the operating room.
"I have to leave for an hour or two. You will be alone for a little while. Please stay in this room and watch over Subject One."
Gaster pressed some buttons on the black cellphone, then he stepped closer to Pap and gave it to him. "This is a cellphone. If anything strange or unusual happens down here, or if 1-S is in any kind of danger of death, please make sure to call me immediately. I have already added my number."
Gaster showed Pap how to make a call on the cell, then he went and prepared some food for the two that they can eat while keeping a watch on Sam if they happen to get hungry.
"Just keep an eye on that monitor and make sure his HP doesn't fall lower than it already is."
"OKAY GOT IT!!"
Gaster walked out and went to the elevator at the end of the hallway. He entered and pressed one of the buttons that said ALPHYS in Wingdings, then he waited for the elevator to take him to Alphys's lab. It took a few minutes, but as it arrived he stepped out and Alphys was already waiting for him.
"H-Hey Gaster!"
"Alright, so what was it you wanted to show me?"
"W-Well uh... c-come!"
Alphys anxiously but excitedly lead Gaster upstairs, to the place where Alphys kept most of his machinery and tech that she worked on every now and then. In the room was one giant machine that was taking up most of the space, Gaster didn't even understood how it fit inside. It looked slightly familiar but Gaster couldn't say why. However that's not what Alphys showed first. She first showed Gaster something a lot smaller. It was something that was rectangle shaped and had dark bits of glass in a square shape on it's front. Under the square window, were multiple different buttons.
"S-So uh... t-this is something I've been working on for uh... a-a long time."
"Hmm what is it?" Gaster asked as he walked closer to the medium sized rectangle shaped thing and readjusted his glasses to examine it's features better.
"It's uh... it's a robot!"
Gaster looked back at Alphys. "You are building a robot?"
"W-Well it's not uh... w-working yet, this is only the vessel. I-I still need..." Alphys didn't quite know how to explain what she wanted to say, so she changed the subject instead. "U-Uh anyway, I call him Mettaton! I-I uh... I k-kinda wanna make him like an... e-entertainer robot! L-Like... a-a robot TV star or something hehe..."
Gaster took a closer look at Mettaton and an approving smirk appeared on his face. "Well... that sound quite interesting, this is very impressive work Alphys."
"I-I mean he's not done yet I-I still need to uh..." Alphys rubbed her head. "S-So uh... remember that determination I asked from you?"
Gaster turned back to her and his expression slightly hardened with confusion as he raised a brow. "Yes?"
"W-Well I uh... th-there is a ghost in Waterfall... w-who I am friends with and uh... I-I know he would love to perform on TV... s-so I kinda wanted to uh... make a robot that he could uh... m-move into. T-This robot is a vessel for him. I-I needed the determination so he could actually stay in this robot body properly."
"Hmm... that is a very nice thought." Gaster mumbled, his expression getting slightly softer as he buried his hands into his pockets.
"A-And! I-In case that went wrong..." Alphys walked over to the giant machine in the room.
Gaster hummed and put a hand on his chin. "I swear I have seen this somewhere before... it looks so familiar."
"U-Uh t-that's because..." Alphys started sweating a little bit as she smiled nervously. "R-Remember uh... r-remember that old project you wanted to do? Y-You said you would uh... e-extract determination from humans... a-and inject it into yourself, to try and destroy the barrier all by yourself."
Gaster looked down and rubbed his jaw. "Hmm... yes, I remember... I wanted to build a machine that could extract the determination from the humans. But the experiment failed. I could never finish the machine."
"W-Well! I-I... I finished it!" Alphys said it with more enthusiasm. Seemed this was something she wanted to share with Gaster for a long time. Gaster's eye widened with surprise hearing that, as he took a closer look at the machine, he could recognize it more as the old rejected design that he has built. Only it was in a way better shape now. Near the machine was a big control panel with many buttons on it.
"Alphys this is... this is amazing but... how did you...? How did you fix this on your own? I... I gave up on the experiment because I could never properly finish the machine, how did you do it?"
Alphys got a little more nervous as she saw how greatly this impressed Gaster. She chuckled nervously and rubbed the back of her. "Y-You know... it wasn't all me. I-I've been looking for people to help me finish t-the machine. I-It took w-weeks of work... and well... i-it's not a working prototype! It uh... still needs some polishing here and there but... it is working well, I got some people to help me move it here until I fix the small mistakes in it."
"Well Alphys I... I don't know what to say, great work, this is really impressive." Gaster smiled a little. "I suppose you have always been better with building tech than I have, it's not surprising you would be able to build such a complicated machine far better than I."
"O-oh I was just finishing what you started! I-It wasn't a big d-deal heh..." Then Alphys blushed a little and looked away. "B-But th-thanks... I uh... worked a lot on these. That one time the power went out... it was because I was just testing the DT. Extractor that night."
"You stayed up that late to keep working on it?"
"Y-Yeah! I-I was uh... w-well uh... d-determined...? Hehe..."
"Not a good idea... you can believe me when I say staying up all night to work is not a good choice." Gaster said in a more serious tone. That made Alphys's smile falter too.
"Y-Yeah... and that reminds me of w-why I... called you here in the first place..." Alphys lead Gaster downstairs and they took a seat at Alphys's spacious long desk. "I-I... I am r-really worried for you Gaster... m-maybe e-even more than Asgore is..."
* * * * *
It has been quite a while since Gaster has left. Kale was the one watching the monitor showing Sam's condition and they were also the one who had the cellphone as they were able to use it better than Pap. Pap was sitting in front of his brother's tube and he was playing with the color cube. For some reason, Kale felt so much more hungry than they normally did, so now there were only two sandwiches left from the five that Gaster left them. Not only that, Kale also felt extremely tired. No wonder Gaster was always so sleepy if this is the kind of thing he so many hours with every single day.
"Hey... Pap...?" Kale yawned. Pap looked up from his masterwork that was another puzzle incoming for his unconscious brother. "Mind watching Sam's thing for a bit? I feel so tired... I-I wanna go stretch my legs a bit."
"OH OKAY! THAT'S FINE!"
"Yeah, thanks."
Kale got up from the office chair and Pap took their place. For a few moments he was still rolling the cube's sides around, but then he put it down on a near table and leaned on the control panel, careful not to press any buttons accidentally and his expression got a little sadder.
"YOU'RE TAKING YOUR TIME HUH SAM? I MEAN THAT'S OKAY. NO RUSH, I UNDERSTAND IF YOU NEED MORE TIME... I JUST MISS YOU A LOT. IF YOU CAN HEAR US... THEN I HOPE YOU HAVE BEEN ENJOYING THE PUZZLES I'VE MADE FOR YOU. I HOPE I'VE BEEN KEEPING YOU FUN... ALTHOUGH I HAVE NO IDEA WHERE YOUR MIND REALLY IS NOW. WHEN YOU PASS OUT LIKE THIS... IS THE ONLY THING YOU SEE JUST PURE DARKNESS? UNTIL SOMETHING WAKES YOU UP?"
"Oh yeah, that is exactly what happens and I can assure you IT SUCKS!" An unfamiliar, high pitched squeaky voice sounded from behind Pap. He turned around so fast that he almost fell off the chair as he did. The chair was rolling so wildly that he needed to get off it because he was getting dizzy.
"Howdy! I'm Flowey! Flowey the Flower!"
* * * * *
"What... what do you mean?" Gaster asked in a wary voice, his expression getting all the more concerned.
"I-I mean... y-yesterday... y-you... y-you were so tired, y-you almost fell in the CORE!"
"I was just... a little sleepy. That's... that's nothing. There's nothing wrong."
"G-Gaster if we weren't around, y-you could have f-fallen in!" Alphys's voice was one of slight anger, but it was rather the anger mixed with worry. "W-What if you fall in? H-How are we supposed to c-cope with that?"
Gaster looked away. "I... I wouldn't have fallen in I... you know there is not a chance anyone would really fall in the CORE. I've just been... more exhausted recently. But I'm fine."
"G-Gaster..." Alphys tried to find his gaze, but Gaster did his best to avoid eye contact. "Y-You.. you've been working on something... w-what is it you're working on that is so... important? S-So important that you can't even sleep a-a-and r-risk yourself into t-these dangerous a-accidents!"
"I do not need sleep, I do not need people worrying about me when they have much more important matters to attend to, all of you need to worry about yourselves and I will worry about myself. There are countless things that are more important than my emotional health."
"J-Just l-look at yourself!" Alphys took Gaster by the shoulder and pulled him in front of her turned off computer. It took Gaster so much by surprise that he didn't even have time to react and when he readjusted his glasses, he could clearly see his reflection in the monitor.
There were dark circles around his eye, his glasses were really dirty as if he didn't even clean them for weeks, his lab coat had tears and dirty marks all over it. When was even the last time he took a bath? He was sure he smelled like smoke as well, given he was smoking earlier today.
* * * * *
"UHM... HELLO FLOWEY THE FLOWER... I AM PAP!" Pap tried to keep his usual tone of voice but it was very difficult given what was sitting right in front of him.
From the floor of the lab, sprouted a golden flower. The flower had a face, an obviously faked, forced smile and it had very high pitched ear piercing voice.
"Psshh... no you are not. Don't lie to yourself. Just look at your plate there." A wine crawled up on Pap's left arm and it forced him to raise his left hand. "See? WDG-2P. I don't think that means 'Pap' but whatever floats your boat, I guess. Anyway! Do you know where your little Human buddy is?"
Pap was acting very timid. Somehow... there was a strange feeling this flower gave him. "UH... HOW DID YOU GET IN HERE?" The question came from his mouth. Flowey was a little annoyed Pap avoided the question, but he decided to play along for now.
"Oh, I can be anywhere!" Flowey disappeared into the ground and appeared at the other end of the room. "Like here!"
At the tube. "Or here!"
Then he appeared right in front of Pap. "Or I can be very close and personal hehe! Anyway, I think I asked you something and you should know it's rude to answer a question with a question buddy! Where is your little Human friend?"
"U-UHM...I-I DON'T KNOW, THEY WENT TO WALK AROUND THE LAB. WHY DO YOU WANT TO KNOW?"
"Oh, always with the questions, I thought you were supposed to be a good kid! Good kids, do not ask about other people's business! You are a good kid, are you not Pap?"
"YES I AM!" Pap straightened up and a confident smiled appeared on his face.
"Then you will stay riiiight in this room and not move an inch, okay?"
But the conversation was soon forgotten as Kale stepped in the room and stared at the two with a confused expression.
* * * * *
"P-People are w-worried for you Gaster and I-I don't blame them. I-I... why are you so c-closed off? A few weeks ago... I wanted you to g-get out more... b-but now you're... e-even more distant than before."
"Alphys..." Gaster looked at his co-worker, his expression changing into a saddened one. "I... I am sorry for worrying you I just..."
"W-We just want you to be okay. W-We just want you to t-take c-care of yourself!"
"I am fine Alphys."
"But you're not... a-and... I-I want to help you. I-I want to help you feel better and... a-and be okay again. I-I know a lot of things have been stressing you but... I-I miss you Dr. Gaster."
Gaster closed his eye and looked down on the floor. "... There is nobody who can help me, Alphys. I am the one who is supposed to help people. I do not deserve anyone's help."
"B-But you're still a person like everyone else! J-J-Just because you made some... b-bad choices uh... m-maybe... that doesn't mean you don't deserve to be taken care of!"
Gaster slowly looked at Alphys. "Please... don't... worry so much. It only makes everything harder. I-I... I can't... handle it right now. Please just... worry about your own work. Your own projects. I am sure you will make many people proud with it."
"B-But Gaster... be honest... are you doing okay recently?"
There was a long pause. Then Gaster sighed.
"You want me to be honest? Well... the truth is, Alphys... I cannot even remember the last time I felt 'okay.'"
* * * * *
As soon as Kale saw that familiar plant figure, for the first time, Pap saw real anger flash in their eyes. The red shine in their eyes somehow became darker. "You again!? What are you doing here?"
"Well I am glad you didn't forget about your old pal Flowey!"
That squeaky voice, with the obviously faked cheer was already making Kale feel sick. "Get out! How did you even get in here?"
"UH... WHAT'S GOING ON?" Pap looked at Kale with confusion.
"I'll tell you what's going on." Flowey turned to Pap. "What's going on is that this can all go down either the easy way, or the hard way. The easy way can be, you go around, sit in a corner somewhere and let us take care of our own stuff. The hard way..."
Flowey's face now turned into a melted demonic one and his once cheery high pitched voice was now hoarse and terrific.
"I will kill the both of you right here with a single attack."
There were two words that resonated in Kale's mind, at this very moment.
The Save.
They had to get to the Save.
Although they knew they should tell Gaster what is going on down here... but for now, all Kale cared about was saving at the star. Without any second thoughts, Kale ran across the hallway as fast as their legs could carry and Pap followed after. However Flowey summoned a round of pellets, that they bumped straight into. The pain already scattered across their whole body.
"A-ARE YOU OKAY?" Pap kneel down to them. They heard Flowey's distorted creepy voice from directly behind them.
"Buddy, if you think you will get away that easy YOU BETTER THINK AGAIN!! I WON'T LET YOU ESCAPE FROM MY GRASP A SECOND TIME YOU IDIOT!"
Pap summoned a blaster. He was shaking really hard and his eyes were already shining a deep purple color, but he tried to force confidence into his voice "Y-YOU BETTER STAY BACK!! D-DON'T MAKE ME SHOOT! I-I-I DON'T WANT TO HURT YOU! G-GET BACK!!"
"Oh, I know you don't want to and you won't either." But by the time Pap pulled the distraction, Kale already disappeared from their sight. "Dang it!" Flowey shot pellets at Pap, blasting him to the wall and summoning a circle of pellets around him to prevent him from leaving. "Stay there you idiot skeleton and don't get in my way!"
* * * * *
"These past weeks have been... very stressful, I can't lie about that. I am sorry for making you worry about me and distracting you from more important thoughts."
"S-Some work isn't more important than you Gaster! People c-c-care about you a-and you know it!"
"They... shouldn't. I... I can't be helped. The only way I could be... at peace... is if Asgore..."
"A-Asgore w-would hate seeing you like this, you know that..."
Gaster sighed and closed his eyes. The truth is... this was not just about Asgore... this was about Sam... and Pap... He is not only failing Asgore if he fails the experiment... but he fails... them, too. If he fails them... Asgore's fate will be sealed forever. But there was no way Gaster could admit to Alphys about his true feelings. Still, it seemed like Alphys was reading his broken expression, because she looked at him with sympathetic eyes.
"If... I fail anybody... I will just commit the past mistakes. I was not able to save the people I care about. There could be a chance I will... fail somebody else, too. Someone... who isn't Asgore." Gaster was slightly hoping in his inner mind that Alphys would not exactly take the hint, for his words were genuine in the context of Sam and Pap's current state. It seemed this answer left Alphys slightly confused.
"B-But... y-you're one of the greatest monsters I've ever met. N-Nobody expects anything from you... t-that you wouldn't be able to do." Then Alphys's expression shifted and she looked away. "N-Nobody... e-e-except you, that is..."
"I can't let myself fail anybody Alphys... if I let that happen..."
"L-Listen. I-I know... y-you want to help Asgore. B-but you... n-nobody is forcing you to do something that's... not good for your own mental health. W-Whatever it is you are working on right now. I-I think you should... take a break from it. R-Rest. L-Leave it for later. B-Because I can tell you need rest. P-Please... s-start taking care of yourself more properly, Gaster."
Gaster closed his eye. "Oh Alphys... you... don't know how much I would be risking, if I did as you say..." He thought. He closed his eye harder, to prevent a tear from slipping. Then he sighed and finally looked into Alphys's eyes, that sadness disappearing from it. "I... suppose I..." Then he cut himself off. No, that was not a good choice of words in this case. "I will... try my best."
Seemed Alphys was relieved and she smiled softy. "Y-Yeah... t-thanks... a-and uh... i-if you need someone to talk to... k-know I am here."
Gaster nodded. "Yes, I know... thank you, Alphys. For... your concern."
"O-Of course! Y-You're one of my closest friends! I-It's the least I could do hehe..."
There was silence for a few moments.
"W-Well uh... I-I'm sorry if I was keeping you for too long."
"It's alright. But... I really should be going now."
"Y-Yeah! L-Later Dr Gaster!"
Gaster stood up from the chair and he entered the elevator. As it was riding him back to his lab, he finally let that one tear slip onto his face. Saying such a massive lie, right in Alphys's face made his entire soul hurt with guilt.
* * * * *
Kale slammed their fist on the Save Star so hard that it almost made their hand hurt. With their HP restored and their current position 'saved', Kale stepped outside into the hallway and soon saw Flowey who caught up to them in no time.
"Okay, you wanna take my soul? Then fine take this!"
With that, Kale summoned their Determination bullets and slammed them at Flowey. But it did no damage whatsoever.
Instead of looking unimpressed or unamused... Flowey just burst out laughing. "HAHAHAH... HAH... heheh... you really though THAT was going to stop me? HAH! You really are an idiot! Now let's just make this nice and easy and hand over what belongs to ME!"
"What are you talking about?"
"Oh, come on, surely you must have realized by now? Those stars? Coming back whenever it feels like you 'died'? Surely you must have noticed. Don't you even wonder what it means?"
There was a blast noise and soon Pap came running through the hallway. Flowey rolled his eyes. "Oh, great... I guess you do have some brain do you? Well... it can't be that much brain for a skeleton heh."
"PLEASE JUST LEAVE US ALONE! WHATEVER YOU'RE DOING... STOP IT! WE DIDN'T DO ANYTHING WRONG!!"
"You have NO IDEA what you are saying you-!"
Flowey's sentence was cut off as there was the noise of an elevator door opening. "Hphm... fine, I didn't get you this time, but trust me I WILL come back for you when I get the chance to... don't you worry."
Kale and Pap looked at each other. Soon enough, Flowey disappeared into the ground. They went back to the operating room quickly and tried to act normal. Gaster soon came to the room as well.
"Alright... I am back. I am sorry I took too long, is everything alright here?"
The awkward silence made Gaster feel slightly worried, but more confused as he folded his arms and was switching looks between the two.
"UH THERE WAS THIS TALKING FLOWER THAT GOT IN HERE AND HE TRIED TO HURT US AND HE WAS REALLY SCARY AND... AND... UH..." Pap was talking so fast that he didn't even have time to properly think through his words. Gaster was left rather confused, but then his expression turned skeptical.
"A talking flower."
"YEAH!"
"He's right!" Kale confirmed, but Gaster's expression remained that of a skeptical one.
"There are no talking flower monsters in the Underground. That is not possible. You must have been just imagining things."
"BUT WE SAW IT!!"
Gaster sighed and put up a hand indicating for Pap to stop talking. "Please, I am not... in the right mind for this..." He walked to the chair to which Gaster sat down at and looked at the monitor. Everything was unchanged. The older skeleton sighed again. "If only there was a way to... remove..."
His eyes then suddenly widened with realization. He looked at the monitor... then back at Sam... and suddenly, it hit him.
"WHAT IS IT?"
Gaster looked at Pap. For the first time ever, he had a confident, encouraging expression on his face.
"I think... I might have found the solution to saving your brother."
Notes:
Sam is going to be saaaveeeed!
Chapter 11: Save him
Notes:
I forgot it was Saturday so my post is a bit late but it's here
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
"HEY SAM... GUESS WHAT? YOU'RE GOING TO BE SAVED!! WE'RE GOING TO HELP YOU!! YOU'RE FINALLY GOING TO COME BACK TO US!! HE FIGURED IT OUT! I KNEW HE WOULD, I ALWAYS BELIEVED HE WOULD! I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU AGAIN! I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!"
"Alright, alright, it's about time you get some sleep. Don't get too excited before bed time."
Pap turned to Gaster, his figure highlighted by the blue liquid inside the M-D Solution. It has been a very late time and Pap and Kale have been sitting in the operating room, spending some time with Sam before they could finally see him again after nearly a two weeks of him being in his dire condition.
Gaster did not specifically look angry, or annoyed, it seemed he hated to pop Pap's positive bubble that has been very small and weak since Sam's accident. Seeing the young skeleton's tiny frown, he sighed and stood up, walking to the two children.
"I know, you're happy and excited for him to return. But you need to rest. We have a big day tomorrow and we have to get up very early."
"BUT... I'M NOT TIRED..."
"You will be, if you don't get any sleep and that will only make it harder for us to properly help his condition."
Pap looked at his brother's floating body in the giant tube, then he looked back at Gaster. "CAN WE AT LEAST SLEEP HERE WITH HIM?"
"Yes, you can." Gaster nodded, knowing this argument wasn't going to be one that he will win.
"By the way uh... how are we going to fix him?" Kale asked the question that has probably been in his mind the whole day after Gaster told them the great news. The excitement of Sam finally being able to properly recover, made all three of them completely forget about the mysterious talking flower's sudden appearance in the lab, not that Gaster was giving too much belief to this story.
"Well... I may have found a way to remove the determination from his soul entirely. I must be honest... it is not completely sure it's a fully functional method. But we have no other choice, we have to take our chances and try our luck."
"BUT... WHAT IF IT GOES WRONG? WHAT IF SAM DOESN'T... MAKE IT...?"
... Indeed, this was a question that concerned Gaster too. Alphys did say there were some flaws in the machine and he did not have a completely solid idea on how to use it. If they accidentally mess up, even an insignificant step, it could be that Sam is going to dust away in the extractor machine... and if that happens... all hope will be lost.
Gaster's hope of saving Asgore will be lost.
Pap's hope of seeing his brother again will be lost.
Everything will go broken. Pap would be left as an empty shell, as well as Asgore too, eventually. Everything Gaster have sacrificed for a brighter future will be in vain and Alphys and Asgore will find out who he truly is. He will lose the last people he still deeply cares about and views, in a way as a replacement family and two of his best friends. They will hate him. Everyone will hate him. They could even execute him too.
"Uh... a-are you okay...?" Kale snapped Gaster out of it, making him raise his head to see the two confused and worried expressions of the two children staring at him.
Gaster was silent for a few moments, but then he fixated his gaze on Pap.
"I swear to you. I will not make any more mistakes. I will not fail again. We will wake up Subject One, no matter what it takes and he will only die over my dead body."
A hint of gold made it's way to Gaster's socket. The sudden burning determination coming from him caught both Kale and Pap off guard, his strong weird leaving a few worries, but Pap nodded in weak confidence anyway.
"YEAH... I HOPE YOU'RE RIGHT."
"But now... it really is time for you to sleep."
"YEAH. OKAY."
Pap lie on the floor and Kale hugged him as he also lie down. Gaster sighed and rolled his chair over to his laptop.
Entry Number ##
I will not fail again.
* * * * *
The next morning, Gaster woke up at around four in the morning and the first thing he did was to head to his office. He had to get some equipment, for they needed to get something else done on Sam before they could safely remove him from the tube. He was still fallen down, which meant his magical soul essence that kept his soul together was still damaged. Gaster knew that had to fix that first, before removing him from the tube.
After some digging in multiple drawers, Gaster took out a bottle with a white, stiff liquid which was shining and pure as glass, the same syringe he used on Kale, and something that looked like a pen without a cap, thought the point was way longer and more thin, the end wasn't sharp however.
After he fetched the items required to restore Sam's soul essence, he was going to wake up Kale and Pap. But as he entered the operation room, he felt like he had to sit down for a moment. He had to take into consideration, what it was they were about to do. There were many things that actually did not cross his mind, yesterday.
After all, what he was about to do was extremely risky.
He knew he could not do everything all alone in Alphys's lab, he knew he needed a few extra hands in the process of saving Sam. Gaster knew that no matter what, he had to take Pap with him.
Outside.
Outside, to Alphys's lab.
After all these months, months of keeping the outside world exposed from the two skeleton boys, Gaster had no choice but to take Pap with him and ask for his help is helping his brother. It was going to be the first time he had to take Pap outside... and hopefully the last, too.
He knew the younger skeleton will be very excited to leave the lab for the first time and that is what concerned Gaster the most. He could wander off, get lost, meet with any strangers by accident, or he could get spotted by Alphys. Needless to say, all of those options were going to have terrible outcomes.
Suddenly, Gaster wasn't so sure if he could take that risk. But at the same time... he had to, and leaving the Pap all alone in the lab did not seem like a responsible choice, given his very, very sensitive mental condition in the last few days.
Though leaving the Human alone also did not seem like the most wise choice for that matter.
Gaster then made a decision. He put all of his equipment down on the desk and went back to the office. He opened the private drawer and fetched a small golden key from it. Locking the drawer, and tossing back the drawer's key under the desk, Gaster walked to a farther point of the lab where there was only a single locked door. Gaster entered and in it was a smaller bedroom, even smaller than the guest room where the three children stayed.
In the room were even more of Gaster's old belongings from his childhood, family photos, more old toys, gifts and other small pieces of junk he got from his friends when he was a child. Gaster walked to a small wardrobe and looked through it.
He took out a shirt with black and dark grey stripes, and light blue jeans. These seemed they would fit, but he knew that would not be enough. He searched at the top of the drawer and took out a baseball hat. A really dusty one. Gaster never liked wearing any kinds of hats as a child. The hat looked a little smaller than he wanted it to be. He tried to put it on, to see how it fits, but his head was too big for it.
"That'll do... I suppose..."
He then opened the drawer which was filled with socks and winter gloves, and took out a pair of black gloves. With the new clothes, he walked back to the operator room, locking the old bedroom before doing so. He checked the time on his phone and he saw that a whole hour has already passed. He has wasted so much time with the preparations and it already exhausted him so much too... he wouldn't mind taking a short nap.
But he knew he couldn't.
He had to wake them up...
They had to go early...
But his eye... it was already closing...
He can't stop it... it's too late... the world before him started to fade and there was nothing he could do about it...
* * * * *
'H-Hey Dr. Gaster! A-Alphys here! U-Uhm... I-I mean i-it's me, Dr. Alphys hehe... I-I uh... y-you weren't really picking up, b-but I had to leave a message b-because um t-there's a h-huge emergency at the CORE. T-They need you right away. S-So uh... whenever you hear this p-please c-come to check in. I-I c-can't... take charge instead of you... uh... thanks! See ya Dr. Gaster!'
As Gaster was sleeping on the chair, the neatly wrapped clothes all splattered on the floor and his phone also fell out of his pocket, this voice message from Alphys turning on. However, it was not enough to wake Gaster. It did cause a bit of movement on the other side of the room, however. The voice message's slight echo made Kale stir in their sleep and soon, they slowly opened their eyes.
For a few moments, they were just wearily looking around the room, confused where Alphys's anxious voice was coming from, perhaps they were dreaming. Then Kale stretched their limbs and noticed Gaster sleeping on the office chair in front of the control panel. His arm was hanging off on one side and his mouth was half open. Next to his right side, were the small pile of clothes and the phone was laying next to the pile. However, what caught Kale's attention were the strange items on the desk. The bottle of soul essence, the familiar syringe and the small pointy ended pen like object.
Kale took the strange pen and lightly poked the end. It was not at all sharp. Seemed like the end of the weird pen was made entirely out of plastic. Kale then carefully took the large bottle, filled with the shining white essence. Even if the substance in front of their eyes was unfamiliar, even if they weren't the best at chemistry they could gather that this was obviously soul essence.
Made them wonder, why Gaster would need these items. None of them really looked like they could remove solid determination from one's soul. Kale also wondered why Gaster would need that pile of clothes, especially since the clothes looked like they would rather fit them, than Gaster if he wanted to get a change of clothes.
Gaster then moved in the chair and Kale quickly sat down on the floor next to Pap, knowing what Gaster was like when they were touching things they weren't supposed to. Gaster soon opened his eye and looked around.
"Ugh... I can't believe I fell asleep again... what time is it, even...?"
As Gaster stood up from the chair, he successfully stepped on his cell phone, permanently breaking it with that movement. He looked down and picked up the damaged device.
"... Great. I'll have to ask Alphys for a new cell phone as well... again..."
"Uh... I think it could be around uh... eight? Ten? Around that time."
Gaster sighed and facepalmed. "Perfect, just what I needed... now everything is out of order, hopefully nothing will go terribly despite that. Wake him up, will you?"
Gaster walked out of the room, presumably getting some coffee along with some kind of breakfast for the three of them as Kale woke Pap up.
"Hey... Pap. Wake up, it's morning."
"HMM... WHA...?"
"It's morning Pap. We will save Sam soon."
"OH..." It took a few moments for Pap to register what Kale has said as he yawned. But when he did, a bright smile appeared on his face. "OH!! YEAH!! THAT'S RIGHT! I CAN'T WAIT! I MISS HIM SO MUCH! I CAN'T WAIT TO SHOW HIM MY PUZZLES! AND TO TALK WITH HIM AGAIN ABOUT A LOT OF STUFF! AND-!"
"Yeah, yeah I know." Kale chuckled a little as they tried to calm Pap's excitement. Gaster soon returned with a cup of coffee and a plate with two sandwiches which he lifted to the two with blue magic. Then he sat on the chair and started sipping his coffee.
"AREN'T YOU EATING?" Pap asked him before getting to his own sandwich.
"I am not hungry." Gaster gave the simple answer as he sipped into his coffee another time. "After you finish eating, we will start the operation on 1-S. We need to perform surgery in order to properly mend his damaged soul essence."
"... SURGERY?"
"What kind of surgery?"
"Do not worry, it is safe. We just need to restore his soul essence. If we don't do that, he will remain fallen down even with the determination removed from his soul."
"I didn't know monsters could have surgery." Kale hummed with a curious-lit up expression on their face.
"Yes well... it is more complicated than you would think and not many monsters know how to perform a surgery correctly. That is why monsters mostly pass away after they fall down. But there is a way to heal this condition... although, it is risky work that needs careful concentration."
The conversation then died down and there was silence while Gaster finished his coffee and the kids finished their meal. Then Gaster stood up.
"Alright now, come here."
Kale and Pap did as they were told and they stepped to Gaster. Pap's eyes were suddenly glued to the pile of clothes that he did not yet notice. "OOH WHAT ARE THESE CLOTHES FOR?"
"Those are for later. Let us focus on this for now. You, grab this." He gave Kale the bottle of soul essence, then he looked at Pap. "Alright Subject Two, listen carefully. You need to try and lift that cloak off from Subject One with your magic. We cannot take him out of the tube yet, but I need his soul to be visible. You understand?"
"UH... OKAY! I'LL TRY!" Pap nodded after he understood, what it was he needed to do.
"Careful not to lift him." Gaster added.
Pap quickly nodded. He raised a hand and focused his magic on Sam's green cloak. Then after a few moments, the cloak was slowly rising. After Pap was sure he had a good grip of Sam's cloak with his blue magic, he lifted it out of the tube and dropped it on the floor.
"Alright, good. Now Human, hold that bottle tightly."
Gaster carefully took off the cap of the bottle and filled the syringe with the white substance.
"Good. Now... for the hardest part."
Gaster summoned a magical hand and took the syringe with it, slowly lifting his hand into the tube. With his other magical hand, he used blue magic on Sam's soul to carefully lift it a little farther away from his rib cage and Gaster started carefully injecting the soul essence into the smaller skeleton's soul.
"U-UHM... THAT... DOESN'T LOOK SAFE." Pap said uncomfortably as Gaster carefully injected the soul essence into Sam's damaged half empty soul vessel.
"Don't worry, he can't get hurt in there, that's why we are doing this in the M-D Solution."
After Gaster finished injecting the soul essence into Sam, there were visibly still a few patches in the soul. "Alright now... time for this." Gaster lifted the syringe out of the tube and put it on the desk, taking the small pen-like object.
"What is that thing?" Kale asked. Pap also curiously turned to him.
"Well... this is like a needle, but not very sharp. It is mostly used to mend damaged souls."
"AND HOW DO YOU USE IT?"
"You will see in a moment." Gaster answered Pap as he took the needle and tipped the end of it into the soul essence. The substance, being so stiff did not drip off from the end of the needle. Gaster used his magic hand to now lift the needle into the tube, his other magic hand still holding onto Sam's soul and he carefully drew small lines with the needle to fill the patches that were in the soul. After that, Sam's soul was fully intact again.
"There. It is done." Gaster put the needle back on the table and made both his magic hands disappear. Kale also put the bottle of soul essence back on the desk and put the cap back on. Then Gaster looked at Pap. "Now, listen 2-P. I will now turn off the M-D Solution so we can take 1-S out. As soon as the machine turns off, you need to heal 1-S to the best of your ability, fast. He is not fallen down, but his HP is still below zero, so it is up to you to heal him up to maximum HP. Understand?"
"YES. I GOT IT."
"Alright, good. Get ready." Gaster typed something on the keyboard and the M-D Solution turned off. As it did, Pap ran to his brother and hugged him tight, healing him as powerfully as he could manage, filling the room with a green aura. As he was healing, Sam's skull started to turn back to it's normal shape, for it was still deformed after the incident.
"Alright, I believe that is enough, good job 2-P."
Pap stopped healing and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "WILL HE WAKE UP NOW?"
"Well... we still need to remove the determination from his soul. But I have something for you. Human, please clean up 1-S in the meantime, there's some towels at the tube."
"Yeah, will do."
Gaster helped Pap took off his cloak and then he put up the grey-black striped shirt.
"Alright, put your arms up."
Pap silently obeyed and Gaster helped him put on the shirt.
"OOH!! THIS FEELS REALLY NICE! AND WARM!"
"Now... give me one of your legs."
"WHY?"
"You will see in a moment."
Without further questioning, Pap let Gaster grab his left feet and Gaster carefully put slid his left feet into the pants, then he did the same with his right leg. "Done. How does it feel?"
"IT FEELS REALLY GOOD!! YOU SHOULD GIVE US CLOTHING ALWAYS!"
Gaster also put the gloves onto Pap's hand and put the cap on his head. He purposely slid the cap very down so it would hide most of Pap's face.
"UHM... I-I CAN'T REALLY SEE LIKE THIS..."
"Just... get used to it while we are doing what we have to."
"Not like it's not cool to see you dressing up Pap, what's your point exactly?" Kale asked Gaster as they walked closer to the two skeletons.
"We... will get to that later." Gaster avoided the answer "But we are going to have leave you alone for a little while."
Suddenly, deep fear set in Kale, remembering what happened last time they were all alone in the lab. "No! No... I uh..." Kale tried to calm their nerves. "I... can I come too? I don't want to be alone."
Gaster sighed. "Human this is only going to-"
"Please?"
"YEAH!! CAN THEY PLEASE COME? I DON'T WANT MY FRIEND TO BE ALONE WHILE WE'RE AWAY!" Pap didn't seem like he caught on what Kale was thinking, the Human couldn't decide if that was a good or a bad thing. Gaster knew that this was a fight he clearly wasn't going to win, so he reluctantly agreed.
"Alright, fine, but I will have to tell you something before we leave." Gaster put the cloak back on Sam while he said. Then he took him into his arms and carried him like that. Knowing his soul must have still been sore and weak after the operation, he didn't dare use blue magic on him until they knew for sure he was going to be alright. As they walked down the long hall, Gaster began explaining.
"Now listen. We are about to go to an unfamiliar location. In order to be able to take the determination out from 1-S, we will need to go... somewhere outside." Gaster hesitated slightly, to say the last two words.
"WAIT... OUTSIDE?! WE'RE GOING TO GO OUTSIDE!!??" Pap's cap almost fell off in his excitement.
"Yes, and that is why I need you to listen to what I am going to tell you now." Gaster said, still keeping the same serious tone. In the meantime, they reached the elevator and stopped at it's door, Gaster finally being able to look at the two. "I need you to not wander off anywhere. Stay very, very quiet and stay by my side, no matter what, you understand?"
They both nodded.
"Good... I repeat, do not leave my side no matter what happens, only if I tell you to." The trio stepped into the elevator and Gaster pressed one of the Wingdings buttons that said ALPHYS and the elevator began moving. After about five minutes, the three of them entered Alphys's great, spacious lab. Gaster still carrying Sam.
"I hope isn't here right now..." Gaster made a mental note to himself. Pap almost tripped because of the cap covering half his face.
"WOAH!! THIS PLACE LOOKS SO COOL!! I DIDN'T KNOW THERE ARE OTHER LAB PLACES!!!"
"Quiet, remember what I said."
"OH... YEAH, RIGHT."
"Follow me."
Gaster Kale and Pap walked upstairs and they reached the determination extractor machine.
"WOAH!! THIS IS HUGE!!" Pap, despite his excitement, tried to fight off the urge to ask Gaster about everything he could see with his eyes covered by a cap, but the extraction machine was not something he could take his eyes off of.
"Yeah! What is this?"
"It's a Determination Extractor. It's... something I wanted to finish a long time ago. If I'm right, it's working and we can use it to take the determination from Subject One."
"AND... WHAT IF YOU'RE WRONG?"
Gaster ignored the question, which did not make Pap any calmer. The scientist walked to the control panel next to the Extraction machine. Luckily it seemed like Alphys had written instructions ready, perhaps she wrote them for herself, knowing how clumsy she could be. But this was the perfect thing Gaster needed right now.
With a press of a button the extractor closed it's huge doors, wearing a giant echo in the lab and Gaster put Sam body in there. The next step on the instructions was to press the extract button and watch the progress bar on the monitor and press the stop button as it reached 100. If the person stays too long inside, they could be in dire danger. Gaster was about to activate the machine, when they heard a door opening.
Kale and Pap looked at him. He knew exactly what this meant. Alphys has arrived. For a moment Gaster panicked but then he calmed his voice just for a moment to explain to Kale and Pap, what they needed to do.
"Listen... you need to press this button, watch carefully and take 1-S out as soon as this bar hits 100. Do it carefully, if he stays in there too long... I'm afraid it will not end well. I need to... do something."
"WHERE ARE YOU GOING?" Pap asked as Gaster headed for the stairs.
"Stay here." Gaster said half quiet. Kale suspected what Gaster was up to and they convinced Pap to stay by the machine until Gaster got back.
As Gaster headed down the stairs, he saw Alphys coming in the lab.
"O-Oh! H-Hey Gaster. I uh... wasn't expecting you here. What are you doing here?" Alphys looked at him as she came in.
"I uh... I am sorry for intruding I just..." Gaster couldn't really come up with a good excuse, but that wasn't a problem because Alphys smiled a little and spoke up.
"U-Uh i-it's okay..."
Gaster walked to the wall, far away from the stairs and leaned on it. He did not want Alphys to be anywhere close those stairs, knowing Pap and Kale were right up there. "B-But Gaster... w-why didn't you come for work?"
Gaster's nonexistent heart felt like it skipped a beat.
"There... was work today?"
"U-Uh... y-yeah... I even called you t-this morning. T-T-There was a h-huge emergency in the CORE... I-I had to... t-take charge for you. Y-You didn't come."
Gaster put a hand on his forehead. "I... I am so sorry Alphys I... I overslept today I must have... not got your call."
"I-It's okay uh... a-are you alright though? W-Why didn't a-answer?"
"I uh... broke my phone, sadly." This was indeed true, not a lie.
"O-Oh... a-again? W-Well I-I could uh... fix it for you, if you wanted."
"Well... yes I would appreciate..."
Gaster cut himself off as suddenly there was a loud noise filling the room. The extractor has been turned on. Alphys got nervous as she looked around.
"W-Wait what? I-I-I was sure I turned it off... I-It's not supposed to..."
She tried to walk to the stairs but Gaster stopped here. "I uh... I came to uh... test it, to see if it works."
"O-Oh! O-Oh and uh... d-does it work? D-Did I get it right?"
"Well... yes, it works great." Gaster said, although he wasn't yet sure how exactly the machine was working, he was sure Alphys did a good job.
"A-And uh... h-how are you feeling? A-Any better than y-yesterday?"
"Well uh... yes I am uh... much better now. Just... slightly overslept, it happens."
"U-Uhm... y-yeah... I-I guess..." Alphys looked away, then her expression turned confused. "W-Why aren't you b-by the machine, i-if you want to test it?"
"I didn't want to... scare you or... catch you off guard, I thought I would come down to explain." Gaster tried to say with a straight face. He was then having a very hard time to keep quiet as he saw that Kale and Pap were heading down the stairs, Pap holding Sam in his arms. Or rather, it looked like Pap was going down the stairs and Kale tried to keep him from doing so. As the smaller skeleton met Gaster's conflicted gaze, he stopped in his tracks.
"Oh my... god what in WORLD ARE YOU DOING?!" Gaster could barely keep himself from screaming this out loud as he could only stare at the two figures, making Alphys very confused.
"U-Uh... a-are you okay?"
Gaster quickly turned back to Alphys. "Y-Yes I'm sorry I just... I was just thinking, it would be a good idea to... go down. A-And uh... to do it... quietly." He was forming the words down and quiet very, very carefully and took glances at Kale and Pap, but it didn't seem like Pap got the hint. Not to mention, Alphys also got very confused with what he was talking about.
"W-What do you mean?"
"I uh..." Gaster really did not know how to save the situation... Alphys was headed for the stairs... She was going to see them... then, it will be over...
Having no better idea on how to act, Gaster purposefully tripped on his own lab coat and bumped right into Alphys, making both of them fall over.
"O-Ow!"
"I... I'm sorry I tripped..." Gaster mumbled as he was taking glances at the stairs. Pap and Kale was still standing there and he made wild gestures with his hand, in a way to tell them to go down the other side of the stairs and wait for him at the elevator. It seemed, now they got the hint because Pap nodded and they both quickly disappeared up the stairs.
"Are you alright?" Gaster asked as he helped Alphys up.
"Y-Yeah! I-It's fine! I-I'm okay."
"I am, sorry for that." Gaster rubbed the back of his skull and looked away, trying his best not to look nervous.
"Y-Yeah uh... i-it's okay, I-I'm pretty clumsy too, haha..."
"Anyway Alphys, it's best for me to get back to my work now."
"B-But w-wait! T-The machine!"
"I am sure it was working great, but I really must be going now."
While Gaster was approaching the elevator it seemed like Kale and Pap hid at the corner of the table to be out of sight. Gaster kept his gaze fixated on Alphys, so she would focus on him until he got to the elevator.
"Thank you, Alphys! See you later!" He practically shoved Kale and Pap into the elevator as he opened it, really hoping he could block out the forms of the two. Alphys was still looking at him confused, but then she smiled lightly.
"Y-Yeah uh... l-later Dr. Gaster!"
Notes:
Smooth Gaster, I'm totally sure she doesn't suspect a thing
Chapter 12: Almost there
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The elevator door closed and Gaster with sweat on his forehead, glared furiously at Kale and Pap, the latter still holding his brother's unconscious body in his arms.
"What were you doing?! I told you to stay by the machine until I comeback!"
"Uh, no offense Gaster, but it didn't sound like you were going to come back any time soon." Kale added with a little bit of firm in their voice, folding their arms and looking away.
"But she almost saw you, you should have stayed put!"
"I... I DON'T REALLY GET IT, IS IT THAT BAD?" Pap tilted his head, gripping his brother's cold arms a little tighter and pulling his body closer to himself. By now, the cap was no longer covering his eyes, so his expression was completely visible. It was one of confusion and slight worry, as Pap never felt too brave whenever Gaster seemed genuinely angry. "I MEAN, THAT PERSON YOU WERE TALKING TO... SHE SEEMED NICE."
Gaster sighed and wiped the sweat from his forehead as he turned his back to the two children. "You really don't understand..."
Kale rather preferred not to say anything as Pap was currently present, but they would have very much liked to ask Gaster, how long is he going to keep the brothers' existence a secret in front of his close friends like Alphys. It just seemed to make everything way harder than it needed to be and surely in the long run, it would be better for Gaster to tell the truth rather than to keep living this secret double life that nobody seems to know about.
"Did you extract the determination from him properly?" Gaster looked over at the two above his shoulder, his voice more relaxed now. Pap eagerly nodded.
"YES! WE TOOK HIM OUT AS SOON AS THE THINGY HIT 100"
Gaster nodded. "Alright, good. I still need to check on his condition, just to see if he really is fine."
After some more silent minutes, the elevator finally stopped and the dark underground lab greeted the trio as the door opened. Gaster took Sam from Pap, still carrying him with his hands as using blue magic was not advisable given that it was the blue magic that got them into this situation in the first place. After some walking, they reached the operating room and Gaster put Sam back into the M-D Solution. Sitting on the office chair, he looked at the monitor showing his current condition.
SUBJECT ONE
SPECIES: SKELETON
HP: 1/1
SOUL: STABLE
HEALTH: COMA
CONDITION: DELICATE BODY AND SOUL
SOUL ESSENCE: STABLE
Gaster closed his eye and let out an inaudible sigh of relief, then he turned to Kale and Pap, both of them eagerly waiting for him to speak up.
"So?" Kale was the first one to speak, anxiety setting in their voice.
"He is alright. He is still in coma but... I am sure he will wake up soon. He just needs some hours... maybe a few more days at most."
Pap's expression lightened up. Then, came the happiest expression Kale and Gaster saw from him in weeks.
"HE'S... HE'S OKAY?"
"Yes."
"HE... HE WILL COME BACK?"
Gaster nodded. "He will."
"I... I WILL SEE HIM AGAIN?! HE'S GOING TO BE AWAKE AGAIN?!!?"
Gaster couldn't bring himself to suppress a smile at that point, seeing the young skeletons raising happiness and excitement. "It will take a few days. But yes. Soon, he is going to wake up again and he will be... mostly healthy." He said the last two words a little more quietly, after all it was hard to call Sam healthy given his condition.
Pap's eyes then turned bright orange and a big smile widened on his face as he jumped up with happiness, making his cap fall off of his head. "YES!!! FINALLY!! I CAN'T WAIT!! I MISSED HIM SO MUCH!!"
"I know, I know." Gaster stood up, smiling at him as he put a hand on his shoulder. "But don't get too excited."
"UH... Y-YEAH, RIGHT SORRY... NYEHEH..." A small guilty smile appeared on Pap's face. Gaster turned off the M-D Solution and took Sam out of the tube. His eyes were still dark and his face was still expressionless, but his bones looked like then had more color on them and as Gaster held him, he could feel Sam's skull to be more solid than before. Indeed, after almost two weeks of being unconscious, Sam was finally recovering.
"CAN I KEEP THESE? THEY FEEL A LOT NICER THAN THOSE ROBES YOU MADE US WEAR!" Pap looked at Gaster, gesturing towards his new clothing.
Knowing these clothes were only collecting dust for years, Gaster shrugged it off and nodded. "Yes, you can."
"WHY DIDN'T YOU MADE US WEAR THESE BEFORE?"
"I... I am not sure..." That statement was a lie. The real reason, was because Gaster always meant to treat Sam and Pap as things, objects. Not real living creatures. Giving them the robes instead of normal clothing was one thing that made it easier for him to pretend that they were indeed, not real children. That is also the reason as to why he drilled those metal plates in their hands, forever labeling them with those code names, 1-S and 2-P.
Kale must have been good at reading expressions, because they did not entirely seemed convinced by Gaster's answer. But they remained silent as they did not want to ruin Pap's moment of joy.
"You will all be saying in my office. Even though your brother is going to wake up any moment now, I still need to keep an eye on him and make sure he will be alright. Try not to... interact with him too much while he is in the coma, his body might be more delicate right now than ever before."
Pap and Kale both nodded. The three of them entered the office. Gaster tucked Sam into bed, then Kale and Pap sat next to him. Pap found one of the hands of his brother under the blanket and gave it a tight but gentle squeeze as he stared into his dark, seemingly lifeless eyes and smiled at his expressionless face gently. As Gaster sat down on his office chair, he sighed and looked at Pap.
"Now what did I just say?"
"OKAY... OKAY... SORRY." Pap let go of Sam's hand and was just looking at his comatose brother with a gentle, comforting expression, glowing his eyes in a warm orange color.
In the meantime, Gaster started to work on his computer.
Entry Number ##
Thanks to Alphys, we managed to remove the Determination from Subject One's soul. His condition is completely stable now, safe for the fact that his weaknesses did not change. Seems his HP is still the same as it was before. I am glad this is the case, any major changes in his health condition might not be for the better. He is still in coma at the moment, but I am sure it will only be a matter of moments before he wakes up again. Days, at most. But I am sure it will not take another full week for him to awake. Took Subject Two outside of the lab for the first time, hopefully it will be the last time I have to do this, as well. Alphys has almost caught sight of him and the Human and the consequences would have been unimaginably dire if that happened. With Subject One soon awake, I am sure Subject Two's mental health will increase. It is unclear, how much 1-S remembers of what happened to him. Either, I am afraid many things might not be completely the same with either of the chil Subjects.
"Hey!" Kale suddenly spoke up. "Gaster!"
"Yes?" The scientist turned his gaze towards the Human child, who was now standing near the doorway.
"Can you see this thing?" Kale pointed at the wall next to the door.
Gaster raised a brow in confusion. "See... what, exactly?"
"This... thing! Right here!" Kale was waving their hand in front of the wall, in a circular motion. Gaster tilted his head and folded his arms. "... Don't be ridiculous, Human. There is nothing there."
"Just... come look! Look closer!"
Gaster suppressed a sigh as he stood up and walked next to Kale, burying his hands in his lab coat's pockets. "... Yes, it's a wall." He said in a slightly mocking tone.
"No it's- it's not the wall! It's right here you seriously can't see it?" Kale stuttered trying to suppress the annoyance that was trying to break free through their calm tone.
"What on Earth are you talking about?" Gaster looked at Kale and from his expression, it was clearly visible that he did not find any humor in the joke Kale was trying to pull, if it was even a joke.
"I UH... I CAN'T REALLY SEE ANYTHING EITHER... WHAT ARE WE LOOKING AT?" Pap spoke up from the bed at the other end of the room.
"You... really can't see it?" Kale's voice got a little calmer as they looked at Pap and Gaster, Gaster having a skeptical look on his face while Pap looked more confused. "I uh... there's a... yellow star here."
"A yellow star?" Gaster asked, his tone just as skeptical as his expression.
"Yeah! I don't know... what this is but... I uh..." Kale did not quite know how to put their current thoughts into words. Saying that the yellow star 'saved them from dying' sounded really morbid in their head, so now they were looking for the best way to describe what the star did to them. "I can uh... save? With this? I uh... don't really know what that means, but yeah I can do that."
"Hmm that's... interesting, I suppose." Gaster said, raising a brow. It was quite hard for him to give validation to the Human's words, about something he could not even see but he decided to just leave them to it.
"WHAT DOES THAT EVEN MEAN?"
"I really don't know." Kale repeated. "But uh... it's cool, I guess." They just shrugged it off. Gaster went back to working on his computer and Kale sat back on the bed next to Pap and Sam. Gaster decided to take a look at the security feeds, see if anything happened in the lab while everyone was absent. Of course, that was mostly impossible, Gaster would have known if somebody came down here, but it wouldn't hurt to make sure, he just thought.
Everything looked normal... except that in one of the cameras, at one point of the lab near the operating room, there were obvious burn marks on the wall, signs of a Gaster Blaster going off.
"Subject Two, have you been practicing with Blasters in the halls?"
"OH! NO, THAT'S NOT IT. I HAD TO UH... USE THEM WHEN THE FLOWER CAME."
"What... flower?" Gaster slowly looked at the younger skeleton.
"YOU KNOW, THAT TALKING FLOWER WE TOLD YOU ABOUT."
"Mmhmm..." Gaster quietly mumbled as he turned away from Pap. Again, with that so called talking flower. It sounded too ridiculous and unrealistic to Gaster, it did not allow him to think clearly about the possibility of a talking flower existing in the Underground. Then, Gaster remembered that he is still supposed to also meet with Alphys today, to get her to fix his cellphone. Knowing that, Gaster got up from his chair and looked at the two children.
"I will have to leave for a little while again, stay here and keep watch after Sam-... after... Subject One until I come back. I have some matters to attend to with Alphys." Gaster mentally cursed himself for accidentally calling the smaller skeleton that, but thankfully Kale and Pap did not seem to notice. However they looked more worried, at least Kale did. Knowing Flowey showed up last time Gaster left the lab, they did not feel completely safe about being down here all alone again.
"Can we... not come?" Kale asked carefully.
"No. There was enough trouble with you coming just a little while ago, I am going alone. I will not be long, anyway. Surely you can handle about fifteen minutes alone down here, can't you?"
"Uh... yeah... I uh... you're right."
"I will be back shortly."
With that, Gaster walked to the office door, but before he could exit it, Pap spat out.
"WAIT!!! DON'T GO YET?"
Gaster hesitated for a little while, before he turned around. "Yes, Subject Two?"
"CAN WE GIVE HIM CLOTHES TOO? PLEASE? I WANT HIM TO LOOK GOOD LIKE ME AND NOT IN THIS DIRTY ROBE!!"
Gaster looked at the smaller skeleton. Indeed, Sam's robe was quite dirty, there were patches of magical liquid from the M-D solution and there were also grey stains on the robe, reminding Gaster of the time he started to melt away. He sighed and gave in to the request. "Alright, alright. You can. But be careful while you put the clothes on him."
"YES WE WILL!"
"Then, give me a moment, I will be right back."
Gaster quickly searched for the two keys making sure the two children did not see what he was doing, then he now actually left the office and walked down the hall to get to the room with the closet. But when he reached the closed door, he stopped for a second and stared up at the ceiling.
"... Subject Two?" He said without even needing to turn around.
"I-I'M SORRY I JUST... WANTED TO ASK YOU SOMETHING. SINCE WE CAME BACK."
Gaster turned around and folded his arms, looking down at the younger skeleton. "Yes? What is it?"
"SO UH... DOES THAT PERSON YOU TALKED TO..."
"Alphys?"
"YES HER... UH DOES SHE... NOT KNOW US? ABOUT ME AND SAM?"
Gaster took a moment to process Pap's question, then he looked away. He did not want to talk about it at first. He was already starting to regret, making the choice of taking Pap outside with him and letting him get his first glimpses of the real world. The only time Gaster got asked about something like this, was a very, very long time ago, during the first few weeks when Subjects One and Two were out of the M-D Solution. Back when they did not even have the plates drilled in their hands yet.
That time, Sam asked Gaster why they were not seeing anybody else down here, questioning if they were some kind of secret, hidden from the outside world. Gaster refused to give an answer back then, but this time felt different. He did not know how Pap could catch on this, though it was very possible that he did not even know what kind of question he was really asking, or the weight of said question.
"You are right... she is not aware of your existence."
"AND... WHY?"
Gaster did not know how to respond to that. There were many statements setting in his mind all at once. For one, Alphys would obviously hate him and never forgive him, if she knew what kind of horrible things he has did to two innocent, young skeleton children. If Alphys knew, the project would have to be canceled, and Gaster would no longer have any chance at saving Asgore from his fate, therefor leading him to ultimately losing the only person he can still call family.
"IT'S BECAUSE... YOU ARE SCARED, RIGHT?" Pap suddenly spoke, breaking the silence that Gaster's lack of answer left. Gaster did not quite understand what Pap meant and looked at him, with a confused expression. "I MEAN... I KNOW YOU DID SOME REALLY BAD THINGS. WHICH DOESN'T MAKE YOU BAD!!" Pap added nervously. "BUT... IF I DID SOMETHING REALLY BAD, I WOULD PROBABLY BE REALLY SCARED TO TELL SAM. THINKING THAT HE WOULD REALLY HATE ME FOR IT AND HE WOULDN'T THINK OF ME AS THE SAME PERSON ANYMORE. I WOULD LOSE HIM... AND... HE WOULDN'T LOVE ME ANYMORE."
Pap looked at Gaster with an expression that has never appeared on his face yet, Gaster couldn't quite describe it. "THAT'S HOW YOU FEEL, RIGHT? YOU ARE SCARED TO TELL YOUR FRIENDS, ABOUT WHAT YOU DID. YOU THINK THEY WOULDN'T LOVE YOU ANYMORE, IF THEY KNEW. RIGHT?"
Gaster's expression became lighter. The sudden great surprise on his face was noticeable. Then he leaned against the wall behind him and closed his eye.
How, just how was it possible for someone so young... to be so wise? So empathetic. He was talking about a case that he himself has never experienced, but Gaster is going through it every day, and the fear he just described is exactly the kind of fear Gaster feels every day he chooses to keep on with the project. He knew Asgore and Alphys would no longer think of him as the great, perfect and flawless Royal Scientist who has done many great things for monster kind. No, they would rather think of him as a disgusting, selfish and merciless monster who does not deserve anyone's care, sympathy or love.
All the things that Gaster thought of himself for many, many years in his life.
All the things that made Gaster fall into his deep, endless depression.
After all, no matter what anybody said, Gaster was nothing more than a pathetic, weak, cowardice person. A selfish failure of a person, someone who was not truly good at anything, aside from causing pain to those around him. Gaster felt the tears slowly making their way into his eye, but he refused to let them form. He could only speak up in a sad tone, his eye still closed not even looking at Pap.
"... How? How do you... manage to be so... good? You are... too good. Too good for many of us. Too much, for your own good."
"I MEAN... I KNOW YOU ARE NOT A BAD PERSON. AND I KNOW YOU REALLY LOVE THE PEOPLE YOU CARE ABOUT. I... REALLY CARE ABOUT SAM. HE IS MY BEST FRIEND IN MY WHOLE LIFE. AND... THINKING ABOUT LOSING HIM... THINKING ABOUT HOW I ALMOST LOST HIM. I CAN UNDERSTAND, WHY YOU WOULDN'T WANT TO TELL EVERYTHING TO THE PEOPLE YOU CARE ABOUT."
"It's... not quite the same, Subject Two." Gaster said quietly, folding his arms, having a strong grip on both arms as he looked away with an uncomfortable and saddened expression.
"WHY CAN'T YOU TALK TO THEM? MAYBE WE COULD HELP YOU!! I AM SURE IF YOU EXPLAINED TO THEM, WHAT THE PROBLEM IS THEN... THEY WOULD UNDERSTAND!! AND I'M SURE THEY WOULDN'T HATE YOU! THEY WILL BE A BIT ANGRY... THAT'S FOR SURE... BUT I AM SURE THEY WOULD NOT HATE YOU FOR WHAT YOU DID."
"You... really think that?" Gaster opened his good eye a little, looking at Pap.
"YEAH!! ANYTHING CAN BE SOLVED IF WE JUST TALK ABOUT IT! RIGHT?"
"I... am not sure I can believe that, Subject Two."
For a few moments, there was silence, then Gaster remembered what he wanted to do and turned to the door and opened it with the key.
"WHAT'S THIS ROOM?" Pap said a little quietly. Seemed he was not quite satisfied with what Gaster responded to him, but tried to change the topic instead of worrying about that.
"A... room with my old belongings." Gaster said slowly and quietly.
"WOAH!! LIKE STUFF YOU HAD ON THE SURFACE?"
"Yes."
"CAN I SEE?" Pap said enthusiastically. Gaster could not bring himself to say no, so he agreed and as he opened the door, he let Pap enter first. The room was dimly lit, full of old toys, old drawings, old photographs. There was a giant cabinet that took most of the space in the room. Gaster walked to it and started looking for appropriate clothes that Sam could wear. Considering how small and short he was, it was not exactly an easy task to find shorts that would fit him. Eventually Gaster just settled with a T-Shirt and a denim shorts. He knew that these would be too big for Sam, but not to an extent that he would feel uncomfortable in them.
"OOH WHAT IS THIS? WHO ARE THESE PEOPLE?" Pap asked Gaster. As the scientist turned around, he saw that Pap was holding something that he did not ever want to get into his possession. An old photograph. The only photograph that was still in a good enough condition for it to be clearly visible. That photograph, was of Gaster and his parents. The picture was taken back in his youth. He has kept it ever since, but he rarely brought himself to actually take a look. The frame was incredibly dusty, clearly it hasn't been touched in decades.
"IS THAT YOU?" Pap pointed on a medium-height skeleton, with one eye closed, wearing a bright red scarf and the same grey strapped shirt that Pap was wearing right now. "WOAH AM I WEARING YOUR SHIRT?"
"Erm... yes... that... that is me, indeed. I was... around twelve, when this picture was taken."
"AND WHO ARE THE OTHERS?"
"I don't want to talk about it, 2-P. I got the clothes for Subject One, please let's just... move on now."
"UH... OKAY!" Pap put the photograph back on the small table where he picked it up from and following Gaster, he went back to the office. While they were walking down the hall, Pap took curious glances at the pile of clothes that Gaster was holding. When they reentered the office, Pap ran to the bed to Kale, who stood up and looked at Gaster curiously.
"Alright, you may put these clothes on him, but please be careful with him. He could get hurt more easily than before." He put the pile of clothes on the bed then walked to the doorway. "As I mentioned... I have some matters to attend to, so stay here and take care of Subject One, it will not be long before I come back." With that, Gaster left the office and for a few moments, there was great silence setting in the spacious lab of the old Royal Scientist.
Notes:
Is Gaster ready to confess...? :o
Chapter 13: Validity
Notes:
I'm sorry, I keep forgetting, but thank you guys for over 500 hits now
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
"SO UH... WHAT DO WE START WITH?"
"Well maybe we should take off his cloak first hmm?" Kale smiled, trying to contain their laugh that was about to burst out. Somehow, Pap seemed very excited about dressing up Sam in proper clothes. It was funny and nice to see.
"Now uh... we need to hold him somehow... Can you uh-..." Kale lifted Sam from the bed, holding his left arm and then they gave both his arms to Pap. "Just uh... hold him. Okay?"
"OKAY!"
But with Sam's arms in Pap's grip, it was very hard to take the cloak off of Sam.
"Uh hey... maybe this might not be the best idea, but... can you try and lift him with blue magic, so I can take off his cloak?"
"BUT... WHAT IF HE ACCIDENTALLY GETS HURT? WHAT IF I DROP HIM?"
"Lift him... above the bed. Even if you do drop him, he will be fine. But I know you won't. You're an expert at blue magic, Pap." Kale winked at Pap. The young skeleton pinned his eyes onto his brother's small body and lifted him above the bed with blue magic. Kale took off their shoes and stepped on the bed in front of Sam's body.
"Okay, good hold him still."
Kale carefully took Sam's left and right arms. It still was very difficult to take off the cloak, but after some pushing, Kale finally got Sam's arms to stay straight just until they could take off their cloak.
"Okay, keep holding him." Kale then grabbed the black T-Shirt that was laying on the bed and with slight difficulty, they carefully put the shirt on the smaller skeleton. "Uh doesn't this look a bit... big?"
"YEAH... KINDA. BUT I'M SURE HE WON'T MIND! I DON'T THINK HE HAS CLOTHES HERE THAT WOULD FIT HIM PROPERLY."
"Good point. Okay, you can put him down now."
Pap carefully dropped Sam's body on the bed. As he was laying, Kale grabbed one of his feet. "Hey can you uh... grab the pants?"
"UH... WHICH ONE IS THE... 'PANTS'?"
"This." Kale gave Pap the pants with their free hand.
"OH OKAY."
"Now grab the left uh... hole? And uh... try tucking Sam's feet in it."
"OKAY?"
Pap pushed Sam's left foot into the pants, then as Kale held his right foot, Pap tucked his right foot into the pants' hole too.
"Okay... now uh... take his left arm."
Pap grabbed Sam's left arm and Kale tucked his arm into the sleeve of a grey hoodie, then together they got Sam's right arm into the right sleeve of the hoodie. Kale knelt on the bed and carefully made Sam sit, so they could see his clothing properly.
"I think this suits him, don't you?"
"YEAH!! IT LOOKS NICE!" Since the oversized cap was still blocking out most of Pap's vision, he took it off and threw it on the bed. "AH THAT'S BETTER."
"Still don't know why he insisted on that giant cap."
"DO YOU THINK WE SHOULD GET HIM THESE?"
"Uh what?"
"THESE." Pap started pulling his gloves, as a means of gesturing them.
"Oh well uh... I don't really know where Gaster keeps the clothes around here so..." Kale folded Sam's cloak and threw it into the corner of the room, since there didn't seem to be a laundry bin in the office. Taking a closer look at Sam, his face looked quite dirty, there were possibly marks left on his face from when his skull started melting.
"Hey, actually... maybe we should get him a bath."
"UHM... WHAT'S A BATH?"
"You know when... you uh... wash yourself? Surely Gaster gave you baths at one point? Right?"
"IS THAT WHEN WE SIT IN THE WATER AND HE TAKES A BIG ROUGH BRUSH AND BRUSHES OUR BONES?"
Kale tilted their head. The scenery that Pap just described looked quite questionable in their head. "Uh... I-I guess? Yeah? A-Anyway let's uh... go. Surely there's a bathroom here?"
"OH YES THERE IS! I REMEMBER WHEN HE GAVE US BATHS."
Pap grabbed Sam with blue magic and they went down the hall until they reached a bathroom. Then... for a moment, Kale stopped and looked at the bathtub, then Sam, then Pap.
"WHAT IS IT?"
"I just realized..." Kale's shoulders fell. "We're gonna have to take down his clothes and then dress him up all over again..." They whined.
"OH... RIGHT..."
After at least ten minutes of shoving and sweating, trying very hard to remove Sam's clothes, Kale and Pap succeeded. Then, Kale made Sam sit on a chair and folded his clothes, setting them on his lap. In the meantime, Pap turned on the tap and the lukewarm water started filling the bathtub.
"Well, now we wait." Kale said, staring at the bathtub as Pap stood next to them. They also pulled up the sleeves of their jacket while they were undressing Sam. "In the meantime... I'm kinda hungry, you want something?"
"HMM... YEAH! THOSE NICE CHEESE SANDWICHES ARE GOOD!"
"Yeah, I'll make some sandwiches, be right back."
As Kale walked out of the bathroom, Pap leaned to the wall next to the chair Sam was sitting on. For a few moments, the water filling the bathtub was the only thing breaking the silence.
"HEY SAM... I HOPE YOU ARE FEELING BETTER ON THE OTHER SIDE. AND I HOPE YOU CAN HEAR ME. YOU'RE ALMOST BACK... YOU'RE THIS CLOSE TO COMING BACK AND I'M SO EXCITED TO FINALLY SEE YOU!"
Pap looked away, gazing out at the long, seemingly endless hallway of the giant lab. Then his eyes shifted to the floor and he sighed.
"YOU KNOW... I KNOW YOU NEVER REALLY LIKED HIM, OR BELIEVED IN HIM. BUT HE ACTUALLY CHANGED. HE CHANGED FOR THE BETTER! HE'S ACTUALLY BEEN NICER TO US! AND HE'S BEEN WORKING REALLY HARD TO FIX YOU! I THINK HE WAS THE MOST WORRIED ABOUT YOU COMING BACK... HE WAS EVER MORE WORRIED THAN ME..." Pap's expression changed into a sad one. Then he turned his eyes to the top of Sam's skull, for his eyes were staring at the floor right now. "I JUST HOPE YOU ARE READY TO GIVE HIM A CHANCE... I REALLY FEEL LIKE HE'S CHANGING FOR THE BETTER. MAYBE THINGS WILL BE A LOT NICER WHEN YOU FINALLY WAKE UP!"
Shortly after, Kale walked into the bathroom. They were holding a small plate with two sandwiches on it. "Pap! The bath!"
Pap's eyes shot towards the bathtub. While he was talking to Sam, he did not notice that the bath was close to overflowing. He quickly ran to the bathtub and turned off the sink.
"Well... this may be a little too much water for Sam, but it should be fine."
"SORRY..." Pap let an embarrassed, guilty smile spread on his face.
Kale and Pap both leaned on the wall next to Sam and they started eating their cheese sandwiches. "HEY UH... KALE?" Pap spoke after a few silent minutes.
"Yeah?"
For a few moments he hesitated in asking his question, but then he asked.
"DO YOU THINK SAM WILL BE MAD AT HIM?"
For a few moments, Kale didn't want to answer, for the answer seemed far too obvious to them.
"You want me to be honest?"
"YES, PLEASE."
Kale looked away and for some moments they only stared at their half eaten cheese sandwich before they inhaled and let the words come out. "Listen Pap... Sam already seemed to really hate Gaster. I wouldn't be surprised... if he hated him even more. I mean, I do understand Gaster better now than I first did, but I still hold some grudge against him for what he did to the both of you."
"BUT YOU CAN TELL HE REGRETTED IT, RIGHT?"
"Of course. But just because he regretted it... doesn't mean it justifies his actions, you know?" Kale looked at Pap, who returned their gaze, their expression turning solemn. "Just because you regret your actions... that doesn't make them less horrible. Actions speak louder than words, sometimes your actions matter more than your words."
There was silence for a few moments, then Kale looked down at the floor and closed their eyes.
"Hell, I still hold grudge against my mom even after she disappeared seven years ago."
Pap's eyes darted to Kale after they said that and soon the childlike confusion appeared on his face.
"U-UHM... WHO'S MOM?"
"Oh uh... a mom is... someone who... gives birth to you. And takes care of you..."
"DOES THAT MEAN DR. GASTER IS OUR MOM?"
"No, no." Kale tried to suppress their sudden urge to laugh. "Your mom is... female. It's like... you have two parents, a mom, and a dad. Your mom is who uh... gives birth to you, she is the reason you are... alive, I guess. And, you could say Gaster is your dad, I suppose."
"DO WE HAVE A MOM?"
"I... I don't know that."
"AND WHY DID YOU HOLD GRUDGE AGAINST YOUR MOM?"
Kale turned their head away, staring down at the long hallway.
Ever since their birth, their mother has always been very strict with them. She barely talked to them, she barely paid any attention to them and when she did, it was like she didn't even want to try to be nice to them. That is why Kale has always preferred their father, for as long as they could remember. It always seemed like Kale's mother was judging them for something, but Kale couldn't know what. Then, shortly after their seventh birthday, their mother did not come home from work. Not even in the morning. Kale's father tried looking for her, but he did not find her anywhere and soon, news spread that Anastasia Nova went missing.
That day completely broke Kale's father and they grew more distant than before.
"I... Ever since I was born... my mom never really cared about me. She would barely talk to me and when she did... she wasn't being too nice to me. Then a week after I turned seven, mom said she was going to have a long day at work. She really didn't come back, even at late night hours. She didn't come back in the morning either. And soon... some days later... the news were saying she was ran away from work and went missing... I haven't seen her since..."
After finishing their sandwich, Kale sat on the cold floor, tears filling their eyes. Pap sat next to them on the floor and tried to look into their eyes, but Kale avoided the contact.
"THAT'S... THAT SOUNDS AWFUL, I'M SORRY."
"I just... I was never in a good relationship with her, and now I never will be and I'll never understand why, I wasn't good enough for her, what made her hate me so much."
"I'M SURE SHE DIDN'T HATE YOU!" Pap's words were more positive than his tone of voice or expression. "SHE JUST..." But he could not find any good explanation to what he just heard about Kale's mother's behavior.
"Yeah? See?"
"AT LEAST YOU MET US AND WE COULD BECOME FRIENDS!"
That finally made Kale smiled a bit. "Yeah, I guess." Then Kale looked at Sam and the bathtub and they realized why they were even in the bathroom in the first place. "We should really give Sam that bath. The water must have really cooled down by now."
"OH, YEAH YOU'RE RIGHT."
As they stood up, Kale poured the bubbly soap into the bathtub and the tub was soon filled with bubbles. Then, Kale and Pap put Sam into the bathtub together and they washed him together.
He really wasn't that dirty, but his face definitely needed some washing. After the bath was all done, Sam did look and definitely smelled a lot cleaner.
Then what came after was an exhausting process.
Trying to put the clothes back on Sam.
After about ten minutes of dressing up Sam again, Kale looked at the bathtub, then back at Pap. "Uh hey... you can go back to the office, I'll catch up in a bit."
"UHM... OKAY!" Pap said without too much thinking. After Kale made sure he left with Sam, they sighed and removed their jacket.
After almost a month of being underground, a fresh bath was going to feel like a blessing.
* * * * *
The elevator door opened and Gaster once again found himself in Alphys's lab once again. She was seemingly working on something on her computer. As she saw Gaster approaching a nervous smile appeared on her face.
"A-Ah! H-Hey Dr. Gaster!"
"Good day, Alphys. As I mentioned... I came to bring you my cellphone to fix."
"O-Oh y-yeah right. I-I totally forgot haha..."
Alphys stood up from her chair and walked to Gaster, who pulled out the broken cell from his lab coat's pocket. It looked like it was in a really bad shape.
"Y-Yeesh... what did you do?"
"Oh I uhm... accidentally stepped on it this morning. I did not notice it fell out of my pocket."
"A-Ah a-again? Hehe... y-you really b-break your phones a l-lot d-don't you Dr. Gaster?" Alphys's smile widened slightly. She was not half wrong and that made Gaster feel slightly embarrassed.
"Yes well, I am... really clumsy sometimes."
"I-I think I can fix it. I-It's going to take a few days though."
"That is alright, thank you Alphys."
"Y-Yeah n-no problem!"
For a few moments, there was silence, then Alphys's expression shifted and she looked away, beads of sweat being visible on her forehead. Gaster already suspected what Alphys was thinking about, given the very suspicious and risky operation of Sam earlier today, but despite knowing what was on her mind, Gaster dreaded to ask the question that was about to leave him.
"Is... something wrong?"
"U-Uhm Dr. Gaster?" Alphys looked up, Gaster raised a brow, trying to keep his expression neutral.
"... Yes?"
"Y-You know I f-found something really w-weird after you left."
Gaster folded his arms and looked away. He knew if he looked away now, when Alphys was talking to him that would be extremely rude, so he only tried his best to keep his expression generic. "That is?"
"S-So uh... th-the machine. S-Somehow it turned itself off. I-I know it doesn't turn off by itself."
"Hmm... that is strange. Maybe it overheated?" Gaster couldn't stop himself from looking away this time. He was trying to form his words smart, to not even give a single hint to Alphys that there were in fact other people in the building besides the two of them.
"I-I checked, th-there was nothing wrong with it!"
"What were the results anyway? Did the machine work properly?"
"W-Well uh... y-yeah but... w-what did you even put in there? N-Nothing was in it..."
Gaster didn't know what to answer anymore, he just stayed silent and dug his hands into his lab coat's pockets and insisted on staring at Alphys's polished white floor.
"H-Honestly Gaster..." Alphys fidgeted with her fingers and looked down too. "I-It just feels like you're hiding something." She looked up and tried to smile at Gaster, who still refused to look into her eyes. "Y-You know you can t-trust me! Y-You can tell me if there is anything u-uh... w-wrong!"
"It's... fine, Alphys." Gaster mumbled quietly.
"D-Does this have anything to do with... o-our... o-our last talk?"
Gaster didn't answer.
"I-I'm worried, G-Gaster! A-And Asgore is too! Y-You're not answering calls! I-If ... if this t-thing you're keeping as a secret is h-hurting you... you have to tell me. T-Tell others. P-People care about you and t-they only want to help!"
"Alphys, please." Gaster finally looked up. He knew he couldn't form his thoughts into words in front of Alphys... but all this caring, all this concern just made everything all the more harder for him. It did not make it easier for him to admit the truth, only harder. Because the knowledge that someone is so immensely worried for his health... someone who would obviously hate him if she knew who he really was, what kind of things he had done in his lab... it hurt.
"D-Don't tell me it's fine, please. I know it's not."
"... Yes... I admit. I haven't... exactly been truthful about everything, Alphys. But I can't tell you. If I do, you will hate me and you will stop thinking of me as... as the great, flawless scientist that everyone sees in me."
"D-Don't say that Gaster! Y-You are one of the most amazing people I-I've e-ever met!"
"But... I am not. Nobody knows what kind of person I am, in reality." Gaster took a step back, his expression shifting. "Please... stop... caring about me. It just... makes everything much harder. I can't... handle it anymore. I'm undeserving."
"G... Gaster..."
"I... will come back for the phone... when you fixed it..."
Without even saying another word, Gaster was about to leave, but Alphys wouldn't let this end like this. "Y-You aren't the only person to make mistakes, Gaster. E-Everybody makes mistakes. J-Just look at Asgore. He... h-he made mistakes too, but t-that doesn't make him any less great a-and that applies to you too-!"
Gaster squeezed his eye shut and turned away from Alphys.
"Y-You need to listen to me!"
"I told you just STOP IT!!"
Without thinking a wall of bones suddenly bolted out of the floor. Alphys was caught off guard and was pushed back by Gaster's bones, her lab coat tearing in the process. There was a mix of red and gold shine filling Gaster's left eye as he was shaking, with anger, but rather with pain. Alphys slowly stood up and she could only stare at Gaster, her expression filled with shock and fear.
After a few moments, the red and gold glow left Gaster's eyes as his face fell. He stared at the wall of bones he summoned... then his eyes turned to Alphys. He saw her scared, nervous expression and the tear in her lab coat.
"N... No..." Gaster's scared thoughts echoed in his head, his expression now turning into one of fear. He stared at his hands, which had the perfectly cut holes in them. Suddenly, something flashed in front of his eyes. A memory, from a very long time ago. His smaller, undamaged hands were covered by shining red blood. A strong purple glow made it's way into Gaster's eye, as he heard his child self's panicked cries.
'I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I didn't mean to, I didn't mean to, what have I done, what have I done what have I done, what have I done...'
Gaster started panting and leaned to the wall. He couldn't keep the tears from leaving his eye socket. Alphys didn't know what to do with him in this current state.
"G... Gaster..." She mumbled, her voice weak and uneven.
"I... I'm so sorry Alphys..." Gaster said, his voice breaking as he rushed into the elevator. After pressing the button labeled 'LAB' he collapsed on the elevator's floor, covering his face with his hands as he cried. He stayed there, even minutes after the elevator's doors have opened.
* * * * *
After their satisfying bath, Kale has returned to office and saw Pap sitting on the bed next to Sam, making new Rubik's Cube patterns. Occasionally he even asked his brother if he enjoyed the puzzle, or if he liked the patterns he made, which made Kale slightly smile, but ultimately it felt more depressing. The Human child sat next to the two skeletons on the bed and for a few moments, Pap rotating the sides of the cube was the only thing breaking the silence.
"YOU TOOK SO LONG!! YOU MISSED MY GREAT PUZZLE CONSTRUCTIONS!"
"Heh, sorry Pap I just wanted to take a bath too." Kale dug their hands into the pockets of their jacket and looked away. "I... haven't had a bath in almost a whole month, it felt good for a change."
There was silence again for some moments, then Kale slid closer to Pap and Sam, taking curious glances at Pap's cube. "Sooo, how's the puzzle master rolling?"
"OHO I AM MAKING EVEN MORE NEW PATTERNS!! ONE DAY I WILL MAKE SUCH AN INCREDIBLE PUZZLE, NOT EVEN THE MOST CRITICAL MINDED MONSTERS OR HUMANS WILL BE ABLE TO SOLVE IT!! NYEH HEH HEH!" Pap's confident smile then slowly shifted and turned into a bittersweet smile as he looked at the empty face of his unconscious brother. "I CAN'T WAIT TO SHARE MY NEW PUZZLES WITH SAM... I'M SURE HE'D LOVE THEM."
"Yeah, he will, I am sure of it." Then, Kale looked up as if looking for a clock that they did not find on the walls. "Gaster is taking a bit... he said he'd be back shortly."
"I HOPE HE'S OKAY."
Right on que, Gaster barged into the office and collapsed on his office chair. He took extra care, not to let Kale or Pap see his face.
"OH HERE YOU ARE! WE MISSED YOU!"
"Mm..." Gaster turned his back to the two of them and stared at the ceiling. "How is Subject One?" His voice sounded very devoid of emotion.
"Uh he's okay. We gave him a bath, if that's alright."
"Yes, that was a good idea."
"WHEN IS HE GOING TO WAKE UP?"
"I don't know, it could be some days yet." Gaster said, his voice quiet and very toneless.
"UH... ARE YOU OKAY?" Pap asked Gaster carefully and slowly, perhaps suspecting something was not quite right, based on the change in Gaster's manner of speech.
"I'm fine." Gaster answered a little too quick with a little too much frustration in his voice.
"UHM... A-ARE YOU SURE? YOU DON'T SOUND-"
"I'M FINE!" Gaster turned around on the chair fast and bolted up from his seat, accidentally summoning a bone that flew right where Pap's head was. Pap quickly moved his head, so the bone hit the wall instead. Both Kale and Pap had a shocked, scared expression on their face as the same anger sat on Gaster's like in Alphys's lab.
Then he sighed and collapsed back on the chair. He closed his eyes and put a hand to his forehead. "Please... stop. Asking me."
"Uhm... you're... not really fine... huh?" Kale asked slowly, keeping their eye on Gaster in case his sudden burst of anger would come out again.
There was silence for a few moments. Then Gaster opened his eye and stared at the hallway outside of the office. "No. I'm not. I don't even remember what 'being fine' even feels like anymore."
"UH... WHAT HAPPENED UP THERE...? DID SOMETHING GO BAD?"
Gaster didn't answer. Instead, he stood up from the chair and took a cigarette from the box on the top shelf. "I need a moment. Please... don't come after me." With that, Gaster left the office and walked far down into the hall. There, he lit the cigarette and took a long drag, then as he exhaled, small cloud of gray smoke flew into the air, splattering as it hit the ceiling of the lab.
Gaster has not been getting bad memories about the war for... a very long time. The last time he got any memories of the war, was over a hundred years ago when he was still just a child, not long after monsters were sealed Underground. Thinking about his youth... sometimes it felt very pleasant. Other times, he would rather wipe out every single memory he had of the Surface world.
Despite being very unhealthy and bad, the cigarette helped calm Gaster's nerves. The stress and the sudden anger he was feeling ever since he left Alphys's lab was slowly washing away. As he closed his eyes, he let himself become a child again, innocently running in the fields of the Surface.
It was a beautiful day. Birds were singing. Flowers were blooming. The sun felt like it was shining more, than it ever did. It was a very pleasant summer day. Gaster could feel his red scarf flutter in the soft, calming wind. His favorite black and gray striped shirt felt more comfortable than before. In a way, he wished he could enjoy this more in his childhood.
The sun, the wind, the smell of flowers...
The sounds... of the rain...
But he couldn't. It was all over. After all, hundred and thirty-eight years have passed since he was an innocent twelve years old child on the Surface, and now here he was, hundred and thirty-eight years later, as a hundred and fifty year old grown man, standing all alone in the dark depths of his old lab.
Gaster opened his eyes, returning from his fantasy back to his old lab. He sat on the cold dusty floor and continued smoking. After this encounter, Gaster wasn't sure if Alphys will ever be able to forgive him. He might have just made sure that Alphys will never trust him ever again. She could even tell what happened to Asgore and then, everything would be looking even more grim for him, Gaster.
"... I told you not to follow me." Gaster said, as he heard footsteps approaching.
"Yes, I know..." Said Kale quietly. "... but... Gaster..."
"Hmm?" Gaster turned to Kale with a tired expression.
"... Sam is waking up."
Notes:
With all this sleep deprivation and constant stress, Gaster is really starting to lose his composure
Chapter 14: Reunited, at last
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
It was strange.
It felt like he had been out forever.
In fact, he felt like he has just been awakened from literal death itself.
He felt alive, for the first time in what felt like years.
Despite the fact that his eyes were open, everything looked blurry. It was difficult for him to properly sense where he was exactly. The only thing he felt right now, was the warmth of something soft under him. He also felt that someone was holding his hand, tight.
The grip was tight, but not uncomfortable. It felt familiar.
After blinking a few times, the first thing he saw was a giant light shining into his face which made him wince and look away.
Slowly, he got up into a sitting position.
Pain.
Every single inch of his body ached with burning pain, and as he sat up, he felt a heavy dizziness coming over him. He blinked yet again a few times, until he could properly see where he was.
The room was familiar.
It was Gaster's office.
Before any other thoughts could come to his inner mind, that was still foggy, he felt a pair of arms locking themselves around him tightly, a familiar voice greeting him with cheer.
"OH BROTHER, YOU'RE HERE, YOU'RE FINALLY AWAKE, YOU'RE FINALLY BACK!!! I MISSED YOU SO MUCH!!"
As much as he was happy to hear his brother's voice again, after his mind has been nothing but abyss for a long period of time, Sam couldn't help but wince in pain from Pap's tight hug.
"b-bro! i-i'm glad to see you too but- y-you're crushing my ribs!" He coughed and Pap let go immediately.
"OH UH... RIGHT... NYEH HEH... BUT- BUT YOU'RE HERE!! YOU'RE BACK FINALLY!!"
Sam turned his head to look into his brother's bright happy face and he too, managed to let a weak smile spread on his round face.
"... yeah... guess i am..." He rubbed the back of his skull. His skull felt like it was being pierced by hundreds of sharp daggers. He leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes for a bit, hoping the pain would cease.
For a few moments, there was silence until the echoing sound of approaching footsteps filled the hall. Then, the footsteps became louder as Sam briefly saw someone running towards him.
"Oh Sam you're here! You're actually awake I'm so glad you're okay!"
"uh... yeah let's say i am." Sam mumbled, looking at Kale.
There was another figure standing in the doorway. He was smiling too, but his smile was rather weak. It was obvious, Gaster was happy, but also sad at the same time, knowing what he put Sam through about a month ago.
As the smaller skeleton looked at him, his eyes immediately darkened and he looked down. He felt his hand, which was under the blanket tightening into a fist. He tried to hide the anger and hatred from his expression, for he did not want to bring down the moods of his two best friends.
Gaster walked closer into the room and looked at Sam, who however refused to return his gaze.
"How are you feeling?" Gaster asked, after a few moments of hesitation.
"... why do you care?" Sam said in a strong voice that was filled with hatred and disgust.
Gaster closed his eyes and suppressed a sigh. Of course. He expected this. Sam already felt an immense amount of hatred for him, for what he had done to him and his brother before and now, after the incident that occurred last month, it seemed only justifiable that Sam would resent him and hate him even more than he already did.
Before Gaster could say a word, Sam's eyes turned back to normal and he looked at Pap. "i'm really hungry, though." He stood up, but as he did, he immediately felt his legs shaking intensely, making him almost fall over if it wasn't for Pap quickly standing up and catching him.
"... yeah, i don't feel like i can walk right now."
"IT'S OKAY, JUST SIT DOWN AND REST!"
"Yeah... you need to rest, hold on we'll get you some food from our room, c'mon Pap." Kale and Pap stood up and walked out of the office. Gaster used this opportunity and sat on the bed in front of Sam, the young skeleton's eyes turning into dark black holes, once again. He again, looked away so he wouldn't have to look into the old scientist's one healthy eye.
For a few moments, Gaster didn't even know how to begin. After everything he had done, he didn't even know what he could say and besides, he knew... nothing he could say would really be able to make Sam feel better, after everything he had done. But right now... that did not matter, all that mattered to him is to be honest to the small skeleton and tell him the things he should have told him months ago, say the words that he wanted to say ever since his accident happened.
"I... owe you an apology." Gaster said, looking at Sam who however still did not look back. He folded his arms around his knees, responding in a dark tone.
"i. don't want anything. from you. what do you want from me? don't you think you've done enough?"
"Yes, I know, simple words will never be able to undo the damage I have already caused. Or mend the scars I've given you, both mentally and physically. I do not expect you to forgive me, and I understand if you don't. I just want you to understand... that I am sorry. What happened in the cell... was not my intention. I did not mean for that to happen."
"oh really. so nearly getting me killed wasn't your intention, but beating my brother into a pulp was?"
"I was... not in a right mind. At that moment, I did not think about the possible consequences of my actions."
"you don't say!" Sam finally shot his gaze at Gaster, his brows furrowing with anger. "so that's your apology? that's all you are apologizing for? what about this?" Sam glowed his eye, pointing on his broken right eye that was not able to glow anymore, for months. "or hmm i dunno, maybe this?!" Then he held up his left hand, pointing on the metal plate drilled into his palm. "you don't feel bad for these? you only feel bad because you didn't manage to break every bone in pap's body?"
"... Subject One..." But before Gaster could say anything else, Kale and Pap returned and brought a few half eaten sandwiches to Sam. He then stood up and sat on his office chair.
"Here you go buddy!" Kale sat next to him on the bed as they gave him the small plate. Sam's eyes turned to normal and he smiled a bit.
"thanks." He then bit on one of the half eaten cheese sandwiches.
"OH BROTHER, I CAN'T WAIT FOR YOU TO SEE ALL MY NEW PUZZLES!! I CAN'T WAIT TO SEE YOU SOLVE THEM!"
"heh, yeah, i bet they're really cool, bro."
"COME ON LET'S GO AND SOLVE THEM RIGHT NOW!!" Pap stood up and grabbed the Rubik's cube enthusiastically.
"uh yeah i'll uh... join you when i finished eating." Sam said as he bit into the other half eaten sandwich, a chicken sandwich. "you go on ahead, i'll catch up in a bit."
"Uh... are you sure you can walk?" Kale looked at him as they also stood up, next to Sam.
"yeah, i'll be fine, don't worry." Sam forced a smile on his face. A little hesitantly, but Kale and Pap left the office once again. Sam stuffed the half chicken sandwich into his mouth and put the plate on the floor. He slowly crawled forward on the big bed and tried to stand up. As his legs were intensely shaking. Gaster turned to him, maybe to ask if he needed help, but Sam leaned to the wall and limped to the door on his own.
"... and just so you know..." He turned to Gaster before leaving. "... i do have a name, it's sam." Then he limped out of the office and a few minutes later he joined his brother and Kale in their small bedroom.
"UH... ARE YOU SURE YOU ARE OKAY WITH WALKING LIKE THAT?" Pap looked at his brother with a concerned expression, as the latter sat down on the bed.
"yeah, i'm fine, don't worry bro."
"OKAY SO UH... I GOTTA SHOW YOU THE NEW PUZZLE PATTERNS I MADE WHILE YOU WEREN'T HERE!"
"... uhuh. cool."
"CHECK OUT THIS!!" Pap showed the cube to his brother. The sides were in a different patters, it looked like he tried to make the sides in a triangle shape. Well... tried, but it was actually very hard to make out the triangle. "SO UH... THEY'RE TRIANGLES! AND YOU HAVE TO TURN THEM INTO X'S! THEN INTO O'S! NEXT LEVEL! NYEH HEH HEH!!"
"uhuh, yeah that's cool. can i try?"
"OF COURSE!!" Pap gave Sam the cube and for a few minutes, the sides of the Rubik's cube rolling and Sam's occasional thoughtful mumbles were the only thing breaking the silence. Kale and Pap both watched him with great interest.
About five minutes later, the Rubik's cube's sides were all in an O shape.
"done!" Sam smiled with pride. "you did well on this bro, it actually took me some more thinking to solve." He handed the cube back to Pap.
"YES!! MY PUZZLES HAVE OFFICIALLY EVOLVED INTO ADVANCED MODE!!"
"it's cool you had something to do while i was... uh... not here." Sam mumbled and looked away.
"I... DID MISS YOU A LOT..." Pap said, his face shifting a bit.
"I'm just happy you're okay Sam, I uh... was worried you'd..." Kale's sentence trailed off as they looked away, but Sam knew what they meant. "... yeah..."
"BUT UH!! YOU'RE HERE!! AND THAT'S WHAT MATTERS!! ALSO BROTHER, DO YOU LIKE MY NEW CLOTHES?"
Sam looked at Pap. He only just noticed his brother's new clothes now. He was wearing a dark grey striped sweater, and light blue jeans.
"oh... yeah look cool! really suit you!"
"And... are you clothes comfortable?" Kale added, making him Sam realize that he was actually wearing different clothes too. He was wearing a grey hoodie, black T-Shirt and black pants. The clothes were really overgrown on him.
"uh well... they don't really fit... but i guess it's better than nothing."
"YEAH!!"
"did you steal his clothes?"
"UH... NO..." Pap smiled a little nervously. "HE ACTUALLY DRESSED US UP!! I MEAN UH... HE DRESSED ME UP, THEN I ASKED HIM IF WE COULD DRESS YOU UP TOO."
"... oh... did he... why?"
"Meh, it's a long story." Kale shrugged it off, knowing Pap probably wouldn't be able to explain the details of the DT extraction machine.
"UH YEAH... BUT IT'S COOL HE LET US HAVE CLOTHES THOUGH!"
"yeah, i guess."
"By the way Sam... how are you feeling?" Kale looked at him, referring back to Gaster's question that he asked before in the office.
"uh... dizzy? everything hurts like hell? yeah not that great. but hey, i guess i'm still alive, that's something."
Both Kale and Pap decided not to say anything about Sam's dark comment.
But then, he went on. "it only took him to nearly kill both of us before he finally started havin' some regrets. that's pretty impressive."
"SAM..."
"what? i'm kinda proud of him. i mean damn i thought he would actually kill us by accident before he starts regretting the stuff he did and realized how much he screwed up."
"Sam... please don't say that. Don't even joke with that." Kale started getting slightly uncomfortable with this conversation.
"... whatever."
"HE REALLY DID FEEL REALLY BAD AFTER YOU... YOU KNOW."
"did he." Sam's voice sounded emotionless, his sockets turning completely pitch black."
"YEAH! HE APOLOGIZED AND SAID HE DIDN'T ACTUALLY MEAN FOR UH... THAT TO HAPPEN TO YOU!"
"did he apologize for literally anything else though?"
"UH... NO BUT... BUT HE WAS WORKING REALLY HARD TO SAVE YOU!! REALLY, REALLY HARD!!"
"He actually did, he didn't even sleep for weeks and he's been really stressed out ever since it happened." Kale added, since they were starting to feel a little uncomfortable that there was nothing they could add to the conversation.
"he tried so hard to 'save me' for himself. not for me." Sam looked away. "he doesn't care about us and he never did care about us. if he did, he would have started having regrets earlier, not in the last minute when he had already made his worst mistake, when he had already done too much wrong."
There was silence. Pap did not know what to say. It was clear, Sam had a lot of hatred boiling inside of him, that was not surprising. Pap knew that his brother has never liked Gaster, nor believed that Gaster could be a good person deep down like him, but right now, when it looked like things were about to change, he did not want to let his brother lose hope and still believe that Gaster is the horrible monster they thought him to be.
"There was one time when I talked to him." Kale spoke up after minutes of silence. "He said... he did everything to you, because he wants to save someone. Someone who means a lot to him. He cannot bare to lose that person." Kale thought it would be wiser to avoid using names, but this did not seem to get to Sam either.
"yeah, seems like he cares about that person more than us. no surprise there."
"BUT... HE'S BEEN ACTING NICER TO US SINCE YOU GOT HURT."
"i don't care, it's too late!" Sam's hand tightened into a fist. "i don't care if he feels bad, or whatever, he's done too many crap to us already and he can't just go feeling bad about it and regretting it when he already caused so much trouble anyway."
"I get what you're saying Sam, but... he is willing to make a change. That's what matters right? At least he is trying, right?"
"i'll believe it when i see it."
"UH... SAM?"
"what?"
"YOU KNOW... WHILE YOU WERE IN THE TUBE... SOMETIMES I WAS TALKING TO YOU." Pap tried to change the topic as fast as possible, for it didn't seem there was too much point in talking about Gaster to Sam right now.
"uh... you were?"
"YEAH! I-I THOUGHT MAYBE... YOU HEARD US... DID YOU?"
"uhm... no. i don't remember. sorry." Sam looked away and the question that set in his mind right now made him a little uncomfortable, but he had to ask. "i uh... don't even remember... what happened to me?" He looked at Pap.
"UH WELL..." Seemed Pap did not know how to explain, either that or it was very uncomfortable for him to remind himself about the events of that specific day.
Seeing that, Kale began explaining. "Well... you sorta had this... rage burst. You were really angry, it was actually pretty scary. You could barely even speak, you were really really shaking. Then uh... your face... it... started melting away. Then Gaster tried to heal you but it didn't work... so he took you away. Then he took us back to his office and started healing Pap and told us you were gonna stay in uh... that tube thing."
"UHM... WHAT DO YOU REMEMBER? WHAT WAS IT LIKE? DID IT REALLY HURT?"
"it didn't hurt... it was just... cold. and... empty. i-... i actually thought i died for real."
"But hey, you survived and you're here, that's what matters."
"... i guess..."
"Maybe you should... sleep on it. You need your rest. Don't you think?"
"yeah, i'm pretty tired."
"Maybe we should take a nap too, it's getting a bit late in the afternoon, what do you say Pap?"
"UH... YEAH I GUESS, EVEN THOUGH I'M NOT SLEEPY."
Kale Sam and Pap buckled under the blanket comfortably and Sam fell asleep immediately. Kale and Pap were having a bit of trouble with sleeping, for it was still only 4 pm but it was just the two of them for far too long, Kale felt like sleeping would do good for them too.
* * * * *
He was standing in a pitch black room. He could barely even see anything. But he could still see his arms and legs. He saw that he was once again, wearing the green robe that Gaster forced him and his brother to wear. For a few moments, he didn't understand where he was or what he was doing here. Wherever here even was. Sam rubbed his skull and looked around. He took a small step in the room. Despite the emptiness, his footsteps didn't echo. He started to run. He didn't know where he was running, he just wanted to find a way out of this place. But it seemed like this room was endless and there was nothing that could break the darkness.
Suddenly, as he ran, there was the sound of a light switch and there was a giant shine across the other side of the room. Sam soon saw that the source of the light, was not a lamp, but it was a figure. The figure was tall and was wearing a white shirt with orange sleeves, blue jeans, and scarlet scarf, gloves and boots. Sam ran to the figure and as he reached them, he recognized that it was his brother standing in front of him.
Pap looked a lot taller than he did in the current now. Sam had to stare up if he wanted to look into his eyes.
"HEY, SAM." Pap spoke, his voice echoing through the endless black room.
"hey, bro." Sam responded. His voice did not echo around the room, it was actually very faint, very quiet.
"IT'S GOOD TO SEE YOU AGAIN. IT HAS BEEN A VERY LONG TIME, HASN'T IT?" The voice of Pap was very different sounding. There wasn't a hint of the energy and enthusiasm that was always inside him at other times.
"uh... has it?" Sam furrowed his brow in confusion.
Pap turned to face Sam, his eyes were glowing orange as a color of comfort. Sam wanted to glow back in blue, but he found he couldn't.
"IT'S OKAY, YOU DON'T HAVE TO FORCE YOURSELF. I KNOW YOU ARE BARELY KEEPING YOURSELF TOGETHER. IT MUST TAKE A LOT OF EFFORT FOR YOU TO EVEN STAND HERE RIGHT NOW."
In that very moment, Sam felt his legs shaking, but he tried to his best effort to not fall over and he ignored the pain.
"pap... what's going on?"
"WELL... IT IS HARD TO EXPLAIN." The comforting orange glow disappeared from Pap's eye and he looked down. "YOU SEE, DR. GASTER DIDN'T SAVE YOU. HE DIDN'T ACTUALLY CARE IF YOU DIED OR NOT, BECAUSE HE COULDN'T FIND A WAY TO CURE YOU. ME AND HUMAN KALE HAD TO ATTACK HIM TO ESCAPE THE LAB, IF WE WANTED TO SURVIVE. IT WAS JUST THE TWO OF US. I HAD TO GROW UP WITHOUT YOU. IT'S BEEN TEN YEARS SINCE YOU DIED."
"t-... ten years?"
"YEAH. ME AND KALE HAD TO WORK HARD IF WE WANTED TO SURVIVE ON OUR OWN. FOR MONTHS, WE WERE LIVING ON THE STREETS. WE DIDN'T KNOW ANYONE, IT WAS HARD TO MANAGE. SOMETIMES, KALE EVEN INSISTED THEY WOULD TRY AND STEAL SOME FOOD FOR US, WHEN IT GOT DESPERATE. BUT SOON, WE FOUND US A NEW HOME IN A PLACE CALLED SNOWDIN. I AM A ROYAL SENTRY, I EVEN HAVE AN INTER WHO WANTS TO JOIN THE ROYAL GUARD JUST LIKE ME."
Pap took a step closer to Sam, who's legs were still shaking, he knew it would only be a matter of moments before they give out.
"I REALLY MISS YOU SAM. I WISH YOU COULD BE HERE WITH US. EVERY NIGHT I SEE IT OVER AND OVER... THE WAY YOU DIED... AND I FEEL THE PAIN IN MY BODY THAT HE CAUSED. I SUPPOSE YOU WERE ALWAYS RIGHT, HE WASN'T ACTUALLY A GOOD PERSON AFTER ALL. BUT HUMAN KALE ALWAYS HELPS ME THROUGH THE HARD TIMES, THEY ARE A GOOD FRIEND."
In that moment, Sam's legs finally gave up the struggle and he fell on his knees.
"YOU DON'T HAVE TO STRUGGLE, BROTHER. OUR TIME WAS CUT SHORT. IT IS TIME FOR YOU TO GO."
Sam felt his face melting. All the warmth left him, his vision getting blurry.
"n... n-no... p-pap... h-help me, please i-i'm... c-cold..."
"I AM SORRY SAM. THIS IS HOW IT IS."
Sam's vision got even more blurry, tears collected in his eyes, he felt the melting of his skull and desperately looked after his brother who was getting farther and farther.
"GOODBYE. BROTHER."
"p-pap!!"
But Sam couldn't do anything. He couldn't stand up, he couldn't move, he couldn't even hear his own voice. The bright light of Pap's figure disappeared and Sam collapsed on the floor, coughing as he felt like his consciousness was leaving him within every second.
In that moment, Sam bolted up from the bed, his eye glowing an intense purple color mixed with yellow as he was panting and felt the sweat all over his face. He had to tap his face multiple times to make sure he was not melting. His face was fine. Aside from the headache that made him feel like his head was being broken into two, he was alright.
He quickly glanced to his left and right. Kale and Pap were next to him. They were alright. They looked the same as always.
But despite that... Sam wasn't sure if he was actually awake, or if this is just some kind of afterlife he has just entered after dying in front of his future brother.
He kept panting, then he rested a hand on the wall.
"c'mon sam... pull yourself together. this is real. you are awake. you are alive. this is who you are!"
Sam leaned back and took a few deep breaths. That calmed him down a bit. However it felt like his head was about to explode, he had to go get a cup of water. He didn't know where the kitchen was, but for now that didn't matter to him. His legs didn't feel as weak as before, but he still had to lean on the wall to not fall over.
As he limped in the hallway, he heard Gaster.
"1-S? What are you doing?"
He just noticed he was standing right in front of the office. Gaster was looking at him with folded arms.
"nothing." Sam said as he leaned to the wall to keep his legs from giving out.
"Are you alright?"
"yeah, like you care."
There was silence for a few moments, then Gaster sighed. "Listen. I still want to talk to you about... things."
"cool, i don't."
"We will not move forward with all this, if we don't try solving the problems together."
"says the guy who tortured me and my brother for months and ignored all of pap's attempts to reach out to him."
"Look. I know... I made mistakes. I know, you reason to forgive me. I do not-"
"yeah, yeah, yeah, i've heard that already. look doc, the thing is you are apologizing for things that were all so god damn obvious anyway! we are aware you screwed up. you are the one who needed to realize that, not us. i get it. you made bad choices and you started to feel bad when you realized you went too far. but that's just not enough."
Sam finally looked into Gaster's eye. His expression didn't show any hatred, he was just speaking honestly this time.
"you're apologizing for that accident. but that's not enough! what about sorry, for breaking my eye? what about sorry for always treating pap like he was dumb and incapable for anything? what about sorry for telling me all the time that i was completely worthless? what about sorry for all of those torture sessions you put us through? what about sorry... for drilling these damn things in our hands?"
Then Sam looked away and folded his arms. "then again... even that wouldn't really matter. it's your actions that matter more. not some words that you are saying just because you know you have to."
It took a few moments but after hearing everything that Sam had to say... he had to realize, he was actually right. Apologizing for false move is never going to be enough. An apology in itself is worthless, after everything he did but Gaster knew that already. Words do not mater, if your actions are not right.
"You are right. I could apologize over and over but that would never make up for what I did. My words do not matter... as long as I don't actually show that I am trying to change things for the better."
Gaster took a step closer and placed a hand on Sam's shoulder. Sam wanted to shove him away but instead his eyes turned dark and he looked away. "So... how about this? We together... will make things better."
"huh?" Sam looked at Gaster with genuine confusion now.
"I will do anything I can, to make it up to you and your brother for what I had done in the past. And you can help me with that. If you just ask me to... if you ask me to do something, the way you would like, if there is anything you want from me that would make you feel better, I will not hesitate to deliver."
Sam looked down, thinking about this.
"So? Is there... anything you want from me?"
"... well... you could call us in our names, for start y'know."
Gaster couldn't help but smile a bit. Then he nodded. "Of course." Then Gaster took his hand from Sam's shoulder and dug his hands into the pockets of his lab coat. "What are you doing here, anyway? It is rather late you know."
"oh uh... i just had a bad dream. i uh... wanted to get a drink, my head hurts."
"I could give you some painkillers, if you want."
"oh... yeah?"
"Yes, I am struggling with headaches quite often too."
Sam stopped for a moment to think. "uh... what's a pain killer?"
"It is... a type of medicine people take, when they're struggling with headaches."
"oh... yeah that'd be cool. thanks."
Gaster started walking in the office, Sam tried to follow him. "You need help?"
"nah, i'm good." Sam said as he leaned to the wall.
Gaster and Sam walked into the office, after Sam had a good drink and took the medicine Gaster gave him, he slowly limped back to the bedroom and fell asleep again.
This time, there were no nightmares to disturb his sleep.
Notes:
Sam may be awake, but there are still loose ends to tie up.
Chapter 15: Freedom
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Another three days have passed in the lab. Not much has happened. Despite Sam and Gaster's previous talk, neither of them were really putting in that much effort of fixing things together as they claimed. Although Gaster was trying, at times, the same couldn't be said about Sam. It was understandable, the smaller skeleton didn't want his efforts to go in vain, and therefore only wished to show any change in his behavior towards Gaster, when the latter has really proved that he is worthy of that.
"hey, i just don't want my efforts to go in vain. i mean, so far he didn't really do much to prove that he deserves me tryna be nice to him."
"Sam... this can't just work on one side, the change needs to happen on both sides. If you expect him to be nicer to you, then you must do the same in return."
Sam folded his arms. "why? it's not like i am the one who did anything wrong."
"BUT IF YOU'LL BE NICER TO HIM... HE WILL SEE THAT HIS EFFORTS ARE WORTH IT!!"
"whatever..." Sam turned to the wall and showed his back to Pap and Kale.
"Uh... how are you feeling by the way?" Kale tried to change the subject to something else. Since it was still morning, it has not been long since the three of them woke up.
"mm... sorta better i guess. less uh... sore? less dizzy?"
"WELL THAT'S NICE!!" Pap hugged his brother lightly. "I'M GLAD YOU'RE WITH US AGAIN, SAM."
"yeah... me too..." Sam looked down as Pap was hugging him. He has not told his friends a word about all the traumatizing nightmares that he was having more and more frequently. Nightmares that regularly featured his tragic, untimely and sometimes brutal death. Sam also refused to share his experiences with Gaster. It WOULD have been a wise choice, but Sam still didn't give enough trust to talk about something so personal with the Royal Scientist.
"UH ACTUALLY SAM... YOU KNOW WHEN WE ARE SHARING DREAMS?" Pap asked as he let go of his brother and backed away to look into his round eyes. Sam returned his gaze, although a little worried about what Pap had to say.
"uh.. yeah?" He tried to keep his tone casual.
"UH SOMETIMES... UH I FELT LIKE YOU WEREN'T FEELING TOO WELL WHEN WE SLEEP TOGETHER..."
Sam looked away, his eyes turning dark. "it's nothing... i don't want to talk about it."
"B-BUT UH... IF YOU'RE NOT FEELING WELL-"
"i'm fine." Sam carefully stood up from the bed. After some days of resting, his legs no longer started shaking intensely, but they felt very sore, so it was still a little difficult for Sam to walk. But it was easier now than it was a few days ago. "i'll go... get some air."
"Sam, don't you want to rest a bit more? It's still pretty early." Kale sat up on the bed. Sam turned around to face them.
"it's cool. he told me to 'stretch my legs' anyway, so they won't feel as sore." Then Sam left the bedroom.
He walked around a bit in the lab. These kind of moments were the only moments where he could finally feel free to think and say whatever things he wanted, without anyone but him overhearing his words.
As much as it was great to see Pap and Kale again, Sam didn't quite feel right ever since he woke up. Though... he didn't blame Kale, nor Pap for that. He rather blamed Gaster.
Since their conversation in front of the office, everything has gone more... quiet. Despite their conversation, despite Gaster saying that he will do anything Sam wishes from him, in order to gain his trust, Sam was still uneasy to talk about anything with Gaster.
The truth was... that he did not know what he wants. In a way, he felt like Gaster was just pressuring him, because he himself wasn't strong enough to prove to Sam that he is a different person. But at the same time, Sam was fully capable of forming everything he wants in his mind. He wants to take off the plates, he wants to leave this cursed lab once and for all, he wants to see the outside world...
And most importantly... he wants Gaster out of his life.
Despite everything, Sam could not bare spending any more time around Gaster. His hatred for the scientist possibly became even stronger than ever before.
Sam felt especially infuriated by the fact that both Kale and Pap managed to forgive Gaster so easily. As if he had not done anything in the past. As if his horrible actions were nothing but tiny mistakes. But Sam knew, they were not mistakes. Sure, Kale had no idea what kind of hell Sam and his brother have been through in this cold, monochrome, empty, lifeless building deep under Hotland.
But Pap...
Well, Pap was always capable of forgiving someone, almost instantly, which was another thing that puzzled Sam.
Gaster just did not deserve someone like Pap to care about him.
Surrounded in his frustrated thoughts, Sam didn't notice that he was walking so fast and he tripped in the leg of his oversized pants and fell face first to the floor. The room was spinning with him as he felt dizzy again. Lying on the cold, dirty floor, he rolled to his back and stared at the ceiling until his vision cleared. As he felt the dizziness leave him, he slowly stood up, only for his gaze to meet with their old cell.
It felt like he has not seen this room in forever. And there weren't too many fond memories that came into association with this old room.
Sam walked into the cell and set on the cold metal plate attached to the wall, that he and his brother would use as a poor and uncomfortable bed, time and time again. As Sam sat on the plate, he stared up at the wall. Everything felt so different now, yet... basically the same. Gaster, no matter how hard he is trying, still haven't changed that much ever since the accident with the determination.
It just felt like every day was the same.
No more tests, no more experiments.
The days were more relaxed than before.
Yet, it just all felt pointless.
What is the point of them still being down here, if Gaster is not even going to do anything with them? Why can't he just let them go already? Let them leave, so they can finally start forming their own life? What else does he want from them?
Maybe, this was his way of making them insane. He wouldn't let them out of the lab, he would stop interacting with them, he would stop putting them through the excruciating experiments and the overly exhausting tests, until they go mad from all of the days being the same, over and over and over again.
Why are we still taking all this? Sam thought. For how much longer is this going to last for...
Sam didn't feel comfortable sitting in the old cell anymore, so he got up but as he was walking out of the cell, he suddenly heard a crack noise.
He turned around.
Only to see that nothing has changed in the cell.
Then, he heard another crack. Voices started resurfacing in his inner mind.
'Oh, please, give me some credit. He is in no danger of death. This is merely just a demonstration.'
"don't... touch... my brother... you..." The thoughts echoed around in his head. Suddenly his soul started hurting with immense pain as he fell on his knees. He started coughing. The room felt so much darker. Sam couldn't even process the faint sound of a familiar voice.
"Can you hear me Sam?!"
"... what..." Sam whispered with a weak voice as he was snapped back into reality. He looked around. He was still in the cell, still sitting on the metal plate, his round skeletal face covered in sweat. Gaster was standing in front of him. " ... what..." He repeated.
"I suspect you must have had some sort of bad dream, as I have heard you screaming in here."
"... oh... right..." Sam's eyes turned dark as he looked down.
"Are you alright?"
"yeah, fine, whatever." He folded his arms and leaned back in his seat. Then he looked at Gaster, his eyes turning back to normal. "you... called me..." He said in slight disbelief.
"Since you asked me to call you your... names, I will do as you wish."
Sam's eyes turned dark again as he looked down.
"do as we wish, huh?"
There were a few moments of silence.
"then tell me... doc. if you really do everything as we ask you to..." he raised his head, his empty, pitch black sockets staring into Gaster's healthy eye. "... then when are you gonna let us go?"
Gaster raised a brow. "Excuse me?"
"we're still down here. no experiments, no tests, whatever. i mean i guess that's cool but... what is the point of this again? what do you still want from us?"
That question was one Gaster did not see coming and indeed, it was a good question. He was so caught up in trying to find a way to heal Sam, save him, trying to be a better person to Pap and Kale that he did not even stop for one minute to think what exactly the future stores for these children.
Or what the future stores for him...
He no doubt knew, if he was to let Kale free, they would be killed. Either by the monsters of Hotland, or by Asgore. The idea of letting Kale outside of the lab was still not one that he would feel safe with doing. As for Sam and Pap... If he were to let them go, he would have to admit the truth to Alphys, Asgore and all those other people he has lied to for nearly a year. He would have to confess about all the monstrous acts he has committed, he would have to admit that he in fact is not the amazing, great, brilliant and flawless Royal Scientist everyone has viewed him as for the longest time.
As for Asgore and Alphys specifically...
He would most probably get sacked from his position as Royal Scientist, he would maybe even get executed by Asgore. At least, if he was fired, Alphys would earn his position most likely. She does deserve it more than he. She has always been a brilliant mind with too much lack in confidence.
And speaking of Alphys... it is unspeakable how much she would be disgusted and disappointed at Gaster's horrible actions. She out of all people would be the first one to stop viewing him as the greatest, smartest monster this Underground world has ever seen.
Noticing his long silence, Sam stood up.
"hold on, let me guess. you are too weak to accept the consequences of your actions. you are too weak to admit the truth about what kinda stuff you did to all those people out there. isn't that right?"
"Not... exactly..." Gaster said as he closed his eye and sighed, his expression turning tired and worried at the same time. "I am ready to take any consequences for my actions. But I do not know what would happen to you all alone, if I was gone."
For once, Sam looked genuinely confused. "what do you mean?"
"I could possibly be executed for my actions. Though... probably... you would be taken care of by the King, in that case until you are old enough. Then again..." He looked away. He didn't want to say, but if things really were to happen in the way he has just explained, then Asgore would ultimately find out the whereabouts of Kale and they would be killed, leading Asgore to taking the 5th soul.
"uh... i'm sorry but what does executed mean?"
"Ah, yes, of course you wouldn't... ugh." He facepalmed and faced Sam. "Execution is... a death sentence. If a person has committed terrible, unforgivable crimes... they can get death penalty as a punishment."
"...and... you think... that's going to happen to you? if you admit everything you did, to all those people out there?"
"There is... a possibility..." He said, his tone turning slightly uneasy.
Sam looked down.
The idea of Gaster getting a death sentence for all of those things he has ever done to him and his brother... for some reason, it didn't fill Sam with satisfaction. In fact, it made him feel quite disturbed. He knew that Gaster deserved some kind of punishment as the consequence of all his horrible actions. But...
"and you really think you deserve that?" Sam looked up to face Gaster.
"I would think you would not be bothered by the possibility of me possibly getting a death sentence, after all those things I have done to you and your brother." Gaster folded his arms, giving Sam a skeptical look.
"i mean, don't get me wrong, i hate everything you did to us and it makes me mad, whenever i think about all those things you did to my brother and i do think you deserve some punishment for what you did. but... is it really right, to kill someone for the stuff they did? i mean even if a person did something really terrible... killing them... that's... not the solution. that won't fix anything."
Gaster, hearing those words come from none other than Sam, was suddenly silenced and could only look into the smaller skeleton's round sockets. The fact that even Sam, the person who probably hates him the most would show mercy to him... would not ever come to the conclusion that he deserves a terrible and painful death for his actions...
"That's... debatable..." He mumbled, clearly uncomfortable. Sam seemed to notice this as he did not seem like he wanted to discuss this topic any further.
"well i'll uh... go back to the room."
Gaster nodded. "I have some things to attend to, I will be gone for a while. Stay in your room and do not wander off anywhere in the lab, you understand?"
"yeah, got it." Sam said as he walked down the hall and back into the bedroom. His legs did not feel sore anymore.
"OH BROTHER, YOU'RE HERE!! YOU WERE GONE A WHILE." Pap looked at Sam as he entered the bedroom and sat on the bed next to his brother, who was working on another complicated puzzle on the Rubik's Cube. "uh... yeah, sorry about that i uh... accidentally took a nap in our old cell."
"Are you alright?" Kale looked at him.
Sam finally managed to smile a little as he looked back at Kale. "... yeah. feelin' way more uh... fresh i guess."
Hearing that, Kale smiled too. "That's cool to hear."
Shortly, Gaster came in the room for a minute.
"I will be gone for a while, stay in here and do not wander anywhere. I will be back before you know it."
They all just nodded and the three children turned their attention back to Pap's masterwork on the Cube. After Gaster left the bedroom, he walked down the corridor, leaned to the wall and sighed, closing his eyes.
Since Sam woke up, Gaster has not talked to Alphys at all. Not even in work, he did not dare to face her. Not after what he had done to her, the last time they were in her lab. He still felt extremely guilty for hurting her by accident, so now he intended to apologize. He would need to visit her now anyway, to retrieve his cellphone that Alphys has hopefully fixed by now.
After gathering his thoughts, Gaster walked down the corridor until he reached the elevator at the end of the hall. He entered and pressed the button labeled 'ALPHYS' in Wingdings and let the elevator take him up to his dear friend and colleague's lab. Seemed Alphys was working on something, perhaps she was trying to make blueprints for her new robotic works.
Gaster was a little hesitant to enter the lab, but after letting out an inaudible sigh, he stepped inside and approached her.
"Good morning, Alphys."
"O-oh! G-Gaster! Y-You're here! Hey! How are you? Are you okay? Are you feeling uh ... any... uh... b-better? Or- or anything?"
"Calm down Alphys, please I am fine." Well, no he was not, that was a lie. "I am really really really sorry for what happened before... I didn't- I wasn't- I-..."
"O-Oh uh... i-it's okay... a-accidents happen, haha... I-It wasn't that bad, I-I just uh... had to throw out that coat heh... a-and I had to do some cleaning too..." She looked away and blushed a little. Gaster looked at the floor and he saw some scratches on the floor, and shining paint that was yet to dry. Remembering the moment of his outburst made him wince, so he rather tore his eyes away from the floor and faced Alphys.
"So uh... did you manage to fix my cellphone?"
"A-ah yeah! It's all done! I-I did need to completely reset it s-so uh some data might be lost. B-But it should work fine now! A-And I managed to re-add some numbers from my cellphone!"
"Alright, that's good, thank you Alphys." Gaster put his old blue cellphone into his pocket.
"A-And speaking of uh... A-Asgore is uh... k-kind of worried about you... k-kind of really worried."
Gaster's shoulders fell. "... Right... I-I did promise to talk to him weeks ago I ... really need to visit him now."
"U-Uh yeah! Y-You two uh... I-I hope you'll have a good time!"
"Well, good day to you Alphys."
"B-Bye Dr. Gaster!" Alphys waved at him as he was walking to the elevator again. This time he pressed the button labeled CORE and the elevator took off again. This elevator ride was longer than the others, obviously it would take a while for an elevator to take a person from the beginning of Hotland all the way to the CORE. While the elevator took him, Gaster took a moment to think. Specifically, to think about the talk he had, with Sam.
Should this be the time, when Gaster admits everything, to Asgore? Should he now... finally tell the truth to his King about his horrid actions and the terrible choices he has made? When thinking of what Sam said to him before, Gaster had to admit, he no longer had any right to keep the brothers down in his lab. It is true, the right thing to do in this case, was to set them free and let them live their life outside. But then again... Gaster could be executed, he could lose his job as Royal Scientist, Kale could be killed and that could lead to Asgore collecting the 5th soul, being one step closer to becoming a god...
Before any other thoughts could cross his head, the elevator opened and Gaster has entered the CORE, immediately feeling the change in temperature. But now that did not matter, he knew he had to go to the top of the CORE, where he would take yet another elevator that can take him to New Home. There, he would finally be able to talk to Asgore, like he promised week before. After some walking, Gaster did indeed arrive to the top of the CORE and he took the elevator. The ride took a while, but after about fifteen minutes, Gaster has found himself at New Home.
* * * * *
Sam Pap and Kale were doing more puzzles on the Rubik's Cube. Out of the three of them, Sam wasn't really paying attention. He couldn't stop thinking about his talk with Gaster. His need... to escape...
"uh hey bro?" Sam slowly turned his head to Pap.
"YEAH?" Pap looked away from the Rubik's Cube to face his brother.
"remember how uh... you fixed me?"
"WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"
"i mean uh... how did you make me wake up?"
"OH IT WAS REALLY COOL!! WE WENT OUTSIDE, THERE WAS THIS GIANT MACHINE WE HAD TO-"
"wait outside?" Sam's eyes shined. "did you... actually go outside?? for real?!"
"YEAH!!"
"Uh... it was kinda messy though, since Gaster didn't really want anyone to see us." Kale rubbed the back of their head, joining in on the conversation. They didn't quite have a good feeling about this, for some reason. "We had to use a machine to take out the determination from your soul."
"and what was it like?" Sam looked at Pap.
"OH IT WAS VERY UH... BRIGHT. AND WHITE."
"Uh we were... in someone else's lab."
For a few moments there was silence. Just before Pap could continue making a puzzle on his Rubik's Cube, Sam looked at him again. "and uh... how did you get out?"
"OH! WE TOOK THE UH..." Pap looked at Kale for help.
"... Elevator?"
"YEAH!! THAT!! AND IT TOOK US OUTSIDE, IT'S AT THE END OF THE LAB!!"
"Uhm, yes but Gaster did tell us to stay put though!" Kale said a little more loud. But what they thought would come now could not be prevented any longer.
Sam stood up from the bed and stood in front of the door. "then let's get outta here."
"WAIT WHAT? WHAT DO YOU MEAN?"
"let's get outta here! the door is right there! we can just leave! he will never even know, we should just escape while he is not around!" Sam's voice was vibrating with excitement, but Kale and Pap looked at each other with worried expressions.
"Uh Sam, I understand that you... would want to be free but... Gaster..."
"HE WILL BE REALLY MAD..."
"who cares!? this is our chance at last we can finally escape and nothing stands in our way!!"
"BUT... HE WILL FIND OUT AND HE-"
"he won't! he'll have no idea! by the time he gets back here we will be long gone!"
For a few moments there was just unpleasant silence, then Sam walked closer to the bed and looked at Kale. "you wanna get out too don't you? just look at how long he's been keeping you down here for no reason." Then he looked at Pap. "and bro. we wouldn't have to be stuck here anymore, we can be free, free to make our own choices, our own life!"
"BUT... SAM..."
"We have no idea what's out there, what are we going to do?"
"we can do anything! i know... it kinda seems hard but what could happen? anywhere is gotta be better than here!"
There were more moments of silence. Both Kale and Pap couldn't lie, it would be good to at least finally get some fresh air, get to enjoy the outside world... but if Gaster found out...
"we can just get out fast. and then he wouldn't even know. come on what are we waiting for?!" Sam walked to the door again and grabbed the doorknob. The excitement disappeared from his face and he turned serious. "fine, if you so insist on staying trapped down here with him, you can do that. but i am getting out of here."
After a few more wordless moments, Pap finally stood up.
"I'LL STAY BY YOUR SIDE... NO MATTER WHAT BROTHER..." Pap seemed very hesitant in agreeing to this, but he did not want Sam to be all alone out there without him. He didn't want to lose his brother again. "I JUST HOPE YOU'RE ACTUALLY RIGHT."
Kale sighed and they also stood up. "... Okay... fine... let's do it."
"then come on!"
Sam opened the door and ran down the hall, Kale and Pap following behind. Soon they reached the elevator and they entered.
"so uh... which button is it...?" Sam asked his brother, staring at the control panel with confusion.
"UH I THINK IT WAS THIS..." Pap said, pointing at the Wingdings labeled button 'Alphys'
"Guys... are we really doing this? Are you sure about this?"
"i have never been more sure." Sam's eye shined blue as he pressed the elevator's button. No turning back now. From this point, they were on their way to Dr. Alphys's lab.
* * * * *
"Ah! Dr. Gaster! How great to see you, on this lovely day."
"Good day, your Majesty." Gaster walked further in the throne room. The beautiful golden flowers crumpling under his steps.
"Would you like some tea?"
"Yes, thank you."
Gaster and Asgore sat at a table as Asgore poured tea in two cups. "I have not heard from you in weeks, I am happy to see you again my dear friend."
"Yes, I am sorry I have been putting off this meeting for so long, I have just been terribly busy these last weeks..." Gaster avoided making eye contact with the King.
Hearing that, Asgore raised a brow. "Is that so?" Then he frowned and looked down. "Then, maybe you should rest later today. You do not look that well."
Gaster indeed has seen better days. There were circles under his eye, his lab coat was dusty and wrinkled and his glasses could have used a little bit of cleaning too.
"Please, do not work so hard. Take some rest, sometimes!"
Gaster sipped his tea, still carefully avoiding to look into Asgore's eyes. "I... did not really have a choice. I had to work hard..."
"Nobody is asking you to work so hard, Gaster." Asgore's face shifted as he gripped his tea cup. For a few moments there was silence, and Gaster looked into the old king's eyes. "To tell you the truth, your Majesty... there are many things, that I have not quite been honest about."
Asgore turned his head. "What do you mean, by that?"
"There... are many terrible things that I have committed. Things that I have not told you, nor anyone. Terrible... unforgivable things. I... I am not as great of a person as everyone thinks I am." The words seemed to be flowing out of Gaster's mouth on their own. Many unsaid thoughts are escaping his mouth in this moment and he knew. Gaster did not notice, but his hands started quivering, his grip on his teacup tightening.
"Gaster..." Asgore's voice turned saddened as he had a worried expression on his face.
Gaster's expression was even more broken, as he stared up at the face of someone he has considered a father figure, for the longest of times. "Asgore... Would you believe me if I told you... that I have tortured young, innocent people for months?"
* * * * *
The elevator arrived and Sam, Pap and Kale have been transported to Alphys's lab. The bright whiteness of the building made especially Sam wince. But for once. They were outside. Out of Gaster's lab. They were no longer there anymore.
"WELL... HERE WE ARE, BROTHER!" Pap couldn't lie, his excitement started rising as he saw the familiar lab once again.
"it's so... bright... and different."
"It's not late to turn back, guys." Kale quietly added.
Alphys was still sitting at her desk, still seemingly working on something. Hearing the new voices, she turned around. Her eyes widened with shock and surprise as they met with the two skeletons and Kale. She got up from her chair and walked to them. "O-Oh... u-uh... o-oh my uh... hello? Who are you? I-I remember you-" She added as she looked at Kale, who awkwardly waved at her. "-but... who are you two? A-Are you... uh... skeletons? Y-You ... you look like ones but... no but that's... impossible how are you-..."
"UHM HELLO MISS!! MY NAME IS PAP AND THIS IS MY BROTHER SAM!! AND UH THIS IS OUR HUMAN FRIEND KALE!"
"uh... hey." Sam waved at her, his hands not visible in the sleeves of the hoodie he was wearing.
"W-Where did you come from? W-Where were you all this time?" Alphys walked to Kale.
Kale looked away. "Well uh... it's a... long story..."
"WE CAME FROM DR. GASTER'S LAB!!"
"...yeah..." Sam mumbled as he looked down, his eyes darkening. Alphys raised a brow and tilted her head in confusion. "D-Dr. Gaster? B-But no you c-couldn't have... he... he would have told me... I-I would know if..."
Sam shrugged. "meh. i think he lies to a lot of people. it's not surprising he never told you we exist." His expression was empty, his eyes still dark.
"W-What?" Alphys looked at Sam. He looked away. "ah nothing."
Alphys walked back and leaned to a wall, putting a hand on her forehead as the sweat collected on her face. "I-I... I-I don't understand... w-who are you? W-Why is Gaster keeping little skeletons in his lab? A-And w-why... d-does he s-still have the Human?" Alphys fished out her cell from her lab coat and walked upstairs. "Please stay here for a bit, I'll be right back!" She looked back at them above her shoulder.
Pap and Sam didn't seem to understand what exactly she wanted to do, but Kale got a very, very bad feeling about this.
* * * * *
"You... what? What are you saying, Gaster?"
"I have made terrible choices Asgore. I am not as great of a person everyone believes. I do not deserve anyone's love after what I have done. I have made two innocent people's lives miserable and gave them scars that could never be mended... put them through such misery... that nobody deserves to experience."
"Gaster..." Asgore's expression now was one of worry mixed with confusion... and slight fear.
But before Gaster could say anything else, he felt his cellphone buzz in his pocket. He took it out and saw that Alphys was calling him. "Uh... Excuse me, give me a moment, it's Alphys."
"... Alright then..." Seemed Asgore had a lot of trouble processing all those things Gaster has told him. Gaster walked a little aside from the table and answered.
"Yes, Alphys?"
"G-Gaster! T-There are-! U-Uh... there are uh... s-skeletons a-and the Human a-and they say they came from uh... y-your lab and uh-"
Gaster's eye widened and almost dropped the phone. "What?! Are they... they are... no that can't-... I-I'm coming over there right now!" Gaster hung up. Asgore stood up from his chair and walked to him. "Gaster, is everything alright?"
"I am sorry your Majesty, but something urgent happened at my... m-my lab, I need go over there right now."
"But Gaster!"
"Thank you for the tea, I am sorry I have to go!"
Gaster rushed out of the throne room, leaving Asgore alone who could only stare in front of himself, puzzled by all those things Gaster has just told him in the past twenty minutes.
Notes:
Lovely cliffhangers
Motivation is being a bi
Chapter 16: Revelation
Notes:
Had to take off a week, due to low motivation but I am back now. Don't forget to leave a comment to share your thoughts if you want, it helps out a lot to keep me motivated.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
As soon as he left the throne room, Gaster ran as fast as his legs could carry him all the way to the elevator. He knew they were with Alphys, he knew she already found them, but still he had to make sure. He did not want to believe they managed to escape. He did not want to believe they made the decision to escape.
Right under his nose.
Right in the moment when he wasn't available to watch over them.
He knew Asgore is going to get even more worried, and will severely question the things Gaster has said to him in this conversation, but at that moment, that did not matter. As soon as the elevator door opened, letting Gaster enter the CORE Branch, he rushed through the building to find the elevator in the main hall and went straight for his lab.
Even if they did manage to escape, even if this was not just a bad dream, a horrific fantasy about the future Gaster dreaded so much, he had to find out how they managed to do that. After some minutes of waiting that felt like hours in this tense moment, Gaster was transported down into his lab.
As soon as he reached the bedroom, he already saw that the door was left open and the room was completely empty.
That means the Human is also accompanying Sam and Pap. All three of them escaped.
Since he absolutely made sure the children indeed left the lab, he ran back to the elevator and after around five minutes, he was back in Alphys's lab.
There they all were.
Sam and Pap, looking a little confused, Kale obviously slightly nervous, and Alphys waiting for Gaster to arrive, anxiousness being very visible on her face. As soon as he saw them, he rushed in front of them, a small red flame immediately appearing in his left eye socket.
"What on earth do you think you are doing?! I told you to not wander off anywhere!"
Immediately as they saw Gaster, there was a form of worry appearing in Kale and Pap's eyes.
"U-UH! DON'T BE MAD! WE UH... WE WERE GOING TO GO BACK!! SAM INSISTED WE GO OUTSIDE!!"
"hey don't just blame me!"
"But it was clearly your idea though, we both told you this was going to go bad. Yet, you didn't listen." Kale looked at him, folding their arms.
"yeah, maybe because i didn't want to stay trapped in a dark room forever!" His eyes darkened.
Gaster rubbed his eyes in a tired manner and sighed. Alphys stepped closer to him.
"G-Gaster... what... what is all this? W-Who are these... um... s-skeletons? W-Why didn't you uh... s-say anything about this?" Alphys looked at the trio, sweating anxiously, clearly feeling very confused at the same time. Gaster opened his eye and looked her in the eyes when she turned back to face him.
"Alphys I... I will explain all this... first thing in the morning, tomorrow. I will... answer anything you wish to know."
It took a few moments to process for Alphys what Gaster said, but then she nodded. "U-Um... o-okay then!"
"But for now I... need to get back to my lab." He looked back at the two skeletons and the Human. "Now c'mon."
"U-Uh s-see you later Dr. Gaster!" Alphys waved after them, trying to force a smile on her face. The four of them walked back into the elevator. There was a very intense silence. Sam's sockets were pitch black as he was staring down at the floor in front of himself, Pap clearly had fear and worry on his expression and Kale... seemed to be having a lot of mixed emotions about this situation.
As the elevator took them down to the lab, Gaster stood in front of the trio, folding his arms giving them a stern glare. "So... care to explain yourself?"
"Well... it all started with Sam... he said..."
"you wanted to leave too don't try to hide it!" Sam looked back at Kale with anger.
"You were just going to drag me and Pap along, just because you suddenly wanted to leave because Gaster wasn't here! Take some responsibility!"
"do not lie you wanted to leave too! yeah, it was my idea, but not like you didn't wanna be stuck down here either!"
"PLEASE DON'T FIGHT..." Pap quietly said.
"Just get to the point, when did you leave and why?" Gaster interrupted their arguing. For a few moments there was silence, then Sam's eyes got dark and he looked at Gaster.
"guess... about time, huh?"
Gaster raised a brow. "... Excuse me?"
"you're actually gonna admit everything you did to us to that person we saw up there?"
Gaster looked away. "Yes. I... owe her this... for a long time..." He said quietly. He knew Alphys deserved to know the truth, given what had just happened... and he knew... Asgore deserved to know the truth, too. He was just about to tell everything to him... but then...
Despite being so ready to admit everything to Asgore, just some mere minutes ago, Gaster did not feel ready in this moment, given the current circumstances. He was just hoping Asgore would not get too worried about it for a little while now.
"well... took you long enough."
"So that was your reason?"
Sam looked away and refused to answer. He did not want to talk to Gaster about the fact that he was so tired of being trapped down in this lab. He knew even if he told this to Gaster, it would be pointless, for Gaster would not care.
After a few moments of silence, Gaster buried his hands in his pocket and looked at all of them. "Now... you are going back to your room... I have some things to take care of."
They all wordlessly agreed and when they walked back to the room, Gaster looked back at them before he left. "And do not attempt to leave again. Or I will know and the consequences will be even more dire to all of you."
None of them failed to notice the 'even more' phrasing Gaster used, but they did not want to question. All of them knew already, that they will receive severe punishments for today's little adventures. Sam and Pap knew that especially.
All three of them entered the bedroom and sat on the bed, staying quiet. Pap did not even feel like continuing making puzzles, but he looked like he was going to cry, knowing what kind of severe consequences him and Sam are going to face tomorrow, thanks for their 'experience'.
Sam sighed and folded placed a hand on his knee. The hand which still had the hand plate on. He clenched his right hand into a tiny fist, then he looked away and stared at the wall. "... i... i'm sorry bro. if he does anything to you... it'll be my fault."
"You should have thought of that earlier." Kale remarked. "I mean, no offense Sam but it was obvious Gaster was going to find out sooner or later and then we would have all been punished either way."
"i thought we could just run away! then he wouldn't know!"
"Uh hello? Even if we do run away and get far he would still find out? And I'm still a Human, people would still be out to get my soul, haven't you thought about that maybe?"
"U-UH IT'S OKAY SAM! I UNDERSTAND YOU WERE JUST TRYING TO DO GOOD FOR US. I ADMIT I WOULD ALSO REALLY LIKE TO LEAVE THIS PLACE... IF WE COULD." Pap tried to change the topic quickly.
"... yeah." Sam quietly said. He did notice what Pap was trying to do, so he decided to just stop the conversation here.
In the meantime, Gaster went back to his office and sat on his chair. For a few moments, he was just staring at the ceiling. Then he slowly fished out his cell phone from the pocket of his lab coat. He was staring at Asgore's number with hesitation. He knew it would be appropriate to call him back and explain a little about what he said in their previous conversation, or at least assure him that he will elaborate on what he wanted to talk about another time. But now, Gaster did not find the strength to call Asgore. He tossed his cell onto the desk and took a cigarette from the top shelf, then he walked to a more empty and quiet bit of the lab.
He leaned against the wall and lit the cigarette, taking a long drag and exhaling, letting the cloud of smoke leave his mouth. He already felt his nerves calming after a few drags.
But despite that, he knew what talk he had coming up tomorrow. He knew, facing Alphys tomorrow will be extremely difficult. He really has no option to back out now, he has to admit the truth to his old colleague and friend. The truth of which he had been lying about for so long.
He was not sure what kind of consequences this would have, what Alphys would think of him after he reveals, he is indeed not a great person, nor great scientist, at least not one everyone assumed he is. But he knew that whatever the consequences will be, he will deserve all of it. He never even deserved someone like Dr. Alphys to care about him in the first place, from the very beginning.
* * * * *
Throughout the rest of the afternoon, not many things have happened. All Gaster knew the next day, was eight in the morning, that he had one missed call from both Asgore and Alphys, and that he seemed to fall asleep without being aware of it once again. But he knew what he had to do now. He knew he had to get something done before he left to talk with Alphys.
He went to the bedroom and woke up Sam, Pap and Kale.
It was rather easy to wake up the latter two, but Sam, not so much.
"mm... just... five more minutes..."
"Sleepyhead." Kale quietly remarked, a smirk appearing on their face.
"Sam? Are you willing to wake up anytime soon?"
Sam rolled around in the bed for a bit, before he opened his eyes and tiredly looked at the faces of Kale Pap and Gaster who were all looking at him.
"Well... I have some things to take care of outside. I need to talk to Dr. Alphys after your... great entrance... To put it simply, I will not risk leaving you all alone here again, without any precautions. Come on."
After Sam got out of the bed slowly, the three of them followed Gaster.
Gaster led them to their old cell.
After a few moments, Sam looked at Gaster. "... really? you want us to go in there?"
"After what you did yesterday, I do not trust you that you will not try to leave again without me being aware. I will decide what to do with you later, but for now, all three of you will stay in here until I return."
Clearly they did not want to, especially Sam but having no choice, the three of them entered the small, empty cell. Gaster touched the panel on the wall to activate the force field.
"Now you will stay in here, until I am back." With that he walked away.
The three of them could only stare outside with blank expressions.
"Well... I guess there goes our old room." Kale quietly said as they sat on the cold metal plate attached to the wall.
"AT LEAST... HE WILL LET US OUT WHEN HE IS BACK!! RIGHT?"
"I'm... not so sure Pap." Kale looked down. Despite saying that, Pap's spirits didn't seem as dampened. He sat next to Kale while Sam sat in a corner of the cell staying completely silent all the while.
Gaster went for the elevator at the end of the hall and opened it's doors, pressing the button that will take him to Alphys with shaky hands.
There was no need to deny, he was worried. He was scared. He was just about to tell Alphys about all of the monstrous things he has done in the past months. There was no telling what Alphys would think of him, after he admits the truth. Gaster knew however, she will be angry. She will be disappointed and she will definitely not look at him in the same light ever again.
He will receive no forgiveness.
For he doesn't deserve any, either.
The elevator door was opened, and Gaster leaned back against the wall, letting out a shaky sigh. He knew, it was time to be brave.
It was time, to be strong.
He was hoping Alphys would be at her lab at this moment and he has not mistaken either. She seemed to be just as nervous and scared as he was. She was just sitting at her work desk, sweating with shaking hands, waiting.
Gaster stepped a little closer and cleared his throat. "Good morning, Dr. Alphys."
Alphys jumped a bit as her eyes darted to the old skeleton standing in front of him. "A-Ah-! H-Hey Dr. Gaster... hehe..." Her nervous chuckle was humorless, forced. It sounded different than in other times. "U-Uh sit down!" She pulled him a chair. Gaster nodded and sat, and for a few moments both of them were just looking in opposite directions.
Gaster had no idea where to start, and Alphys had no idea what to ask.
Finally they both looked at each other.
"So now, I will tell you-"
"S-So uh a-are we gonna talk about-"
As they both spoke at the same time, they were both immediately silenced, Alphys looking away and blushing a little in the process.
Gaster sighed again and quickly gathered his thoughts. "... Alphys. As I said yesterday... I will explain everything about... those two skeletons you have previously saw. But I must warn you, what you will hear, will not be nice. You may have a hard time believing it, but I..." He paused for a moment and clenched a fist hidden in the pocket of his lab coat. "... I have done terrible things in the past, Alphys. Horrible things. Unforgivable things. I am not... not a great person. I am not that unmatched, flawless genius everyone thought I was for the longest time. I have committed terrible, unthinkable actions..."
He paused for a moment to see if Alphys had any questions she wanted to ask, maybe question why he was even saying such things in the first place, but Alphys just listened with tense attention.
"For quite a while now, since Asgore captured the 3rd soul, I was making a lot of research. I was trying to find some other method to breaking the Barrier. I thought, maybe there was some other way to do it. Without having to use Human Souls."
"A-And what did you find out?" Alphys dropped in the question.
"Well, I have not managed to find any clear method, but I was determined. So I have decided to create tools. Tools that are strong enough to destroy the Barrier on their own, without having to use Human Souls. But then I thought, what if those tools... were living beings?"
Gaster paused for a moment. He could see from Alphys's expression that she was starting to put the pieces together, but her expression also showed some disbelief. Gaster, seeing that, nodded.
"Yes, I have created them for a purpose. For a certain goal."
"Y-You c-created them? How?"
Gaster then showed both of his hands to Alphys. Both hands had big perfectly cut circular holes in them. "I needed to use some pieces of my own body to get enough magical material required to make them. My hands... were the easiest solution to work with."
"B-But... y-you told me it was... a-an accident." Alphys said, holding one of Gaster's damaged hands in her palm.
Gaster closed his eye and slowly nodded. "Yes. That was... one of the many other lies I have told you through a long time."
"S-So you... p-purposely punched holes in your hands? A-And... y-you made those two?" Gaster nodded in confirmation. "S-So uh... then what did you do?"
"Everything I have done after that, was just worse and worse. After I created them, I kept them in the M-D Solution for some months. I have accelerated their growth, in an attempt to try creating them with the mind of an adult. But I failed at that. After they were big enough, I took them out of the tubes. At first, for some more months I was teaching them basic things. Movement... speech... I gave them various tests and exercises to expand their knowledge. But I had to realize after a while, this was not the purpose I have created them for. So... in order to prevent me getting attached to them... in order to prevent my project from derailing... I have drilled metal plates into their hands and labeled them as objects. Treated them as objects. As... things. Instead of actual, real, sentient beings. After that day, I acted inhumane towards them. Day after day, I abused them both mentally and physically, I gave them scars that they will never be able to heal from."
Gaster had to pause for a moment, to ready himself for what he was about to say. He stared up at the ceiling as he went on.
"I have shot lasers into their eyes, traumatizing them. I trained their combat abilities, I forced one of them, Pap, the taller one to kill a creature and raise his LV, I kept telling Sam, the shorter one that he was completely worthless and expandable, whenever he did something bad, his brother would receive severe, scarring punishments. Sam has low HP, therefor I always used his brother as a way to punish him if he did something wrong. I have... robbed them. From a healthy childhood. A healthy life. I even got both of them almost killed multiple times. Sam completely, utterly despises me. Pap... for some reason... he has always been capable of forgiving me for my horrible actions."
Gaster finished saying his monologue and wait for Alphys to process every word he just said. He did not need to look at his old colleague to be able to tell that she was... indeed... extremely disappointed in him.
* * * * *
As the three of them were sitting in the cell inside the lab, completely silently... there was one thing breaking the silence.
Something that sounded like... sobbing.
Sam was curled up in a ball, in the corner he was sitting in, hiding his face from Pap and Kale. They both stood up and walked to him.
"... SAM?"
"i... i'm sorry bro." He sniffled. "we... we're in here again. and when he comes back, he's gonna hurt you again and if he does, it'll be all my fault!"
Pap kneel down next to his brother. "SAM... I'M NOT BLAMING YOU. I KNOW YOU WANTED TO LEAVE... I UNDERSTAND."
"this close, we were this close to get out! we were already outside! we were this close to finally get out of this hell but then-!"
Pap wrapped his arms around Sam. "SSHH... I KNOW... I KNOW."
Kale could only watch them, unsure of what to say in this moment.
Until one... very unpleasant... and awfully familiar voice filled the room.
"Well, this is just lovely innit?"
Pap and Sam stood up and all three of them turned around to face Flowey.
"Ugh what do you want here again?" Kale groaned. Pap was looking a little worried.
"UH NOW MR. FLOWER... UH THERE IS NO NEED TO HURT ANYONE HERE... WE ARE ALL FINE! SO UH... HOW ABOUT YOU LEAVE US ALONE?"
"How rude! Anyway I was just about to tell you kid..." He poked Kale with a vine. "That you are an idiot!"
For a few moments there was just silence. Then Kale gave him an unimpressed look. "Really?"
"Oh don't you get it! All this time, I've been trying to get back the power that I and only I own! My power! From you! But you don't even know what kind of power I am talking about, do you?"
"Uh..."
"Man you really are an idiot!" He let out a hysterical laugh. "All these shiny flickering little stars, you noticed them haven't you? Well they are there for a reason! There is a reason only you can see them!"
"uh... whatever you are talking about, how 'bout you get out? like now?"
"Yeah what are you talking about?"
"I am saying that you!" Flowey went closer to Kale and faced them. "You! Are special! There are very few people in the world like us!" His face then turned into a horrific demonic expression. "And you have taken something from me... so be ready, because I will do whatever it takes to get it back. I'll be watching you, buck-o." He let out another hysterical demonic laughter and disappeared into the solid cold floor.
For a few moments, Sam and Pap didn't seem like they processed what just happened.
"uh who was that guy?"
"HE IS SOME REALLY MEAN FLOWER WHO IS AFTER KALE FOR SOME REASON..." Pap said, clearly being unsure of his own words.
"and what was he talking about?"
"Well... What he was saying wasn't actually all nonsense..." Kale quietly said. "I... am pretty special." Kale walked to a wall and leaned to it, Sam and Pap looking at them. "... Both of my parents are traitless."
Their words didn't have the desired effect. Both brothers just stared at them with confusion.
"WHAT'S TRAITLESS?"
"Uh... it's like... you know I have a Determination soul right? My soul is red?"
They nodded.
"Well... my parents... they don't have a trait. My mom lost her trait after I was born and my dad... well he lost his trait after mom left. For years, I was the only one who could do magic and for a long time, I am the only person with a Determination soul, too." Kale dropped on the floor, staring in front of themselves. "But I don't feel special. I'm terrible at magic!" They looked at their hand. "... and who am I anyway? I'm just a stupid weirdo..."
"DON'T SAY THAT HUMAN KALE! YOU ARE A GREAT PERSON AND A GREAT FRIEND!"
"i mean look, i'm not good at magic either. right?"
Kale looked at Sam and a tiny smile appeared on their face. "... Yeah I guess."
"YOU ARE A GREAT FRIEND AND WE WILL ALSO BE GREAT FRIENDS TO YOU!!"
"Yeah, I know you will." Kale smiled. They knew they should be a little more worried about Flowey's threat, but for now that did not matter. All that mattered, was that they were in the presence of two of the best people they ever made friends with.
* * * * *
Alphys seemed genuinely stunned. It really seemed she was taking her time trying to process every word Gaster just said.
"I can assure you. Every word I said is true. From beginning to end."
"S-So you... you created those two skeletons. T-Then you were e-experimenting on them... a-abusing them... w-wanted to use them to b-break the Barrier?"
Gaster nodded.
"How could you... do all that..." She said quietly, almost whispered. But then she stood up from her chair, her expression being one that Gaster has never seen on her face. Her expression was filled with disgust and disappointment. "How could you do that?! W-What on earth is wrong with you?! Y-You used kids for your experiments? You wanted to use k-kids to break the Barrier?! How could you done such a thing?!" Her eyes filled with tears as she kept screaming with anger and disappointment, her voice growing stronger and stronger, that usual anxiety long gone. "I-I... I thought you were working on g-great things in your lab! I thought... y-you were... going to do a-amazing things! But a-all you did was t-torture innocent children and make their life hell! A-And y-you lied to me, the King to e-everyone!! W-We all trusted you! Thought you were going to do great things! But you spent months putting innocent kids through suffering!"
Gaster closed his eye just so he wouldn't have to look into Alphys's. "I know... I know and I am sorry. I have felt ... terrible for my actions. I felt horrible for everything I have ever done since, but I refused to quit, I refused to give up on my goal. All I wanted was to help Asgore... I couldn't have bared loosing him too... I know I should have stopped long ago, I-I know I should have told you and Asgore from the beginning, I shouldn't have done all this. And I know an apology will never excuse any of the horrible things I did. I do not deserve anyone's forgiveness. I do not deserve someone like you to be my friend." His voice was breaking more and more, the more he talked and he had to squeezed his one eye shut just to keep the tears from falling.
Seeing how... how broken Gaster looked at this moment, Alphys's expression softened and she sat back down on her chair.
"After you brought that Human to my lab... I used their determination and injected it into Sam to try and enhance his magic. But... the experiment failed... When both of them started to learn about blue magic, I beat up Pap in front of Sam's eyes to scare them and make them never want to even think about using blue magic ever. But then Sam snapped. He tried to stop me... but because of the determination, his body started melting. I tried... for weeks to find a way to fix him. To help him... and thanks to your work on the Determination Extractor, Alphys, I did it." Gaster looked at Alphys, his expression looking more broken. Alphys's expression now also started changing more and more, seeing Gaster in this state. "I spent weeks... sleepless nights to save Sam... and that was the point when I realized how horribly I have been treating him and his brother. Since the accident I have been trying my best to be a better person to them."
There was silence following Gaster's words. All that disappointment and disgust disappeared from Alphys's eyes and were replaced by pity.
"Now Alphys... please tell me honestly." He straightened up and looked straight into Alphys's eyes, who looked back. "Do you hate me? I understand if you do. I have not been a great person, nor great scientist, nor a genius, I am not any of those. Never was. All I am, is a coward who keeps making other people's lives hell and keeps letting down everyone just to achieve my own goals and I-"
"But Gaster. I-I don't hate you."
"... What?"
"I-I mean... I-I am very d-disappointed. D-Disappointed that t-this is the kind of t-thing you have been doing for months... a-and k-kind of hurt that you lied about all this for so long. B-But despite all that... y-you are one of the g-greatest people I have ever met! I-I have always looked up to you, Dr. Gaster a-and nothing you ever do could ever make me hate you! D-Despite that you d-did some... really bad things... I-I will still always think you are an amazing person!"
"... And will you continue to look up to me... to think of me the same way after all this?"
"O-Of course! I-It might be... a-a bit different, i-if I speak honestly. B-But if what you said is true. I-If you are trying to be a better person to them... a-and uh... if you r-really just did this... t-to help A-Asgore. I can understand."
"Speaking of Asgore... I have one request of you." Gaster stood up from his chair as he spoke and Alphys did the same.
"Y-Yeah?"
"Please... don't tell him anything yet. I promise, I will tell him all this myself I just... need time... and I need to get ready."
"Y-Yeah I understand. I-It's okay. J-Just... d-do tell him, he should know."
"Yes, yes I know." Gaster nodded. He looked into Alphys's eyes and put a hand on her shoulder. "Alphys... Thank you. For everything."
Alphys blushed a little, but then she smiled. "Y-Yeah! A-Anytime Dr. Gaster!" She chuckled and Gaster couldn't stop a weak smile from appearing on his face too.
Notes:
The truth finally comes out. But now, whatever awaits the kids after this?
Chapter 17: The breaking point
Notes:
Ayo, the fanfiction reached almost a thousand hits?? It's only been about a month since it got to 500. I didn't expect it to get this much attention but thank you, whether you have been reading from the beginning or stumbled here just randomly. Hope you are all enjoying the story. Make sure to leave a comment if you wish as I'd love to hear your thoughts.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Gaster returned to his lab and as the elevator door opened, he let out a long sigh and leaned against the wall.
In the past two days he has been feeling so... tired.
So exhausted.
Both physically and emotionally.
While the conversation with Alphys and his admitting of the dark truth about what kind of things he has been doing down in this lab went way better than he expected, while he knew Alphys would continue to support him and be friends with him despite what he did... those thoughts alone couldn't ease the emotional stress on Gaster's mind.
Because he knew, after what happened yesterday... he would have no choice but to tell everything to Asgore as well.
While he knew it was the right thing to do, he knew there would be severe consequences to pay for his actions. He was ready to face said consequences, yes but thinking about what they would do without him... thinking of what could happen to them without him... that was what really made him feel anxious.
Gaster snapped out of his trance and walked into his office, sitting on the chair. He wearily rubbed his forehead and leaned on his left arm as he fished out his cellphone from his pocket. He was scrolling through his contacts and a war of debates started in his brain as he reached Asgore's number.
He knew the old King was probably still confused and had major concerns over his previous conversation with Gaster. If it wasn't for the three of them breaking out of his lab right in that moment... he could have put an end to all this deception at once... he could have just spilled the truth to Asgore, told him everything, every single fickle detail about all of his terrible actions in the past months.
The fact that he almost caused the deaths of two innocent children not long ago.
After the long war of debates ended in his mind, Gaster finally pressed the button to call Asgore.
"Good day, your Majesty?"
"Ah, Gaster... it is good to hear from you. How are you feeling?" He could hear the concern coming from his voice even now.
Gaster rubbed his eyes. "Well... If I am being honest I'm... tired..."
"Hmm yes, I am not surprised... is there anything you want to talk about?"
He lowered the phone for a few moments, hesitating before starting to speak again. "I know our last conversation... did not end on pleasant terms, I do apologize for my absence, I just had something urgent I had to get done."
"Well, it is alright. I hope the issue has at least been resolved?"
"Yes..." Gaster said slowly.
"I have to be honest, I have been worried for you Gaster. If there is anything that is causing you troubles, please feel free to tell me and let me know if I can help in any way."
"Yes, yes I know..." His voice weakened slightly before he got a grip. "... which brings me to why I have called you now. I ... well I assure you we can talk about all this soon, more properly. But for now I just ask you to please, give me some time. If I can ask you."
He heard Asgore sigh on the other end. "Alright. Take your time. If there is anything you need to get off your chest, do not hesitate to call."
"Yes, thank you, your Majesty for... for all this."
"Of course. Have a nice day, Dr. Gaster."
"Good day, your Majesty."
Gaster put his phone back into his lab coat's pocket and he decided to head for a smoke break. He walked further down to the more emptier part of the lab.
* * * * *
"Well, this is pretty boring..." Kale mused, as they were sitting on the cold floor. All they could hear that broke the silence was the buzzing of the bright blue force field that kept all three of them trapped in the spacious yet small cell.
Ironically, Kale did have a feeling as if they were locked in a box.
"yeah... hey guys?"
"... YEAH?" Pap stood up and sat a little closer to Sam who was sitting in a lone corner.
"i... am sorry. i guess it's kinda my fault we're here now."
"Hey, it's fine Sam. I guess I'm sorry for being rude. It can get pretty boring in this lab for so long, I imagine."
"YEAH... IT IS, SOMETIMES. BUT AT LEAST WE HAVE EACH OTHER! RIGHT?" Pap smile at Sam, who after a few moments smiled back and slowly nodded. Kale dug their hands in the pockets of their jacket, staring in front of themselves. Something touched their fingers in their pocket. Kale grasped it and pulled it out.
Oh.
Papers of monster candy.
Those non-licorice flavored candies really did taste good. Too bad Kale only took two of them back in the Ruins.
Thinking of those candies made their stomach growl.
"Man, I'm hungry. It's already like what noon? We still haven't eaten anything."
"i'm hungry too..." Sam mumbled. Pap shot a glare at him. "YOU ARE ALWAYS HUNGRY BROTHER!" But then his expression shifted as he rubbed the place where his stomach would normally be. "... BUT YEAH, I AM HUNGRY TOO."
"I hope he comes back soon. Since uh... I don't think we can get out and make food..."
"yeaah those beams aren't something we can just pass through."
Kale pulled a bit closer to Sam and Pap and leaned to the wall again. "Man... that just reminded me, I haven't had a nice carrot soup in like a month."
"a what?"
"Ah you-... you don't know what a carrot soup is?" Kale shot their gaze at them.
"UH NO. WHAT IS IT? IS IT SOMETHING TASTY?"
"Oh guys you're missing out! So uh... we have a garden at home... where we plant vegetables. Sometimes I cook soup at home. Carrot is my favorite." They shrugged. "Soup is a really good hot uh... liquid... food."
"hm sound cool... and now i'm even more hungry..."
"Yeah..."
"I'm here, I'm here." Gaster was walking to them and disabled the force field. He led them to his office and gave them food there. He could have feed them in the cell, but he wanted to talk to them for a few moments. For a few moments the only thing breaking the silence was the three of them eating their sandwiches as they were sitting on the bed.
"Well..." Gaster turned to look at them. "I have some things to talk about..."
From Sam's expression it was clear he wasn't very interested in what Gaster had to say, but what he started to talk about was actually not what he expected him to say. "So... you remember you have met Dr. Alphys yesterday... and I have... told her everything about what I have done in this lab."
Sam looked at him. "... you really did? for real?"
Gaster nodded. "Yes."
"And uh... how did she take the news?" Kale carefully asked.
Gaster leaned back and folded his arms, looking away. "Well, needless to say she was disappointed and shocked. But... she was not particularly mad at me." He sighed. "For... some reason." He added quietly.
"WELL HEY! THAT'S... THAT'S GOOD, RIGHT? I-I MEAN UH-!"
"I cannot exactly wrap my head around it but... I suppose you can say that is good." For a few moments there was more silence. Gaster waited for all of them to finish eating, which did happen in a matter of moments. He looked at them and Pap and Kale returned his gaze. Not Sam, however. "You may... meet her sometime properly, if you do so wish."
"Well I kinda already did..." Kale laughed a bit, blushing and awkwardly looking away.
"well, that'd be nice... i guess."
"YEAH! IT WOULD!"
Gaster nodded. "But before that... there is... one important thing I need to get done. I will have to tell the truth to another person... someone who is also important to me. I am... not exactly sure what my fate will be, when I do, but I know that regardless of what happens, you will be in good hands."
"UH WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?"
"... Don't worry about it..." Gaster dodged the question. He really did not want to raise any worry in Pap. He did not deserve anyone to be worried for him anyway, especially not someone like him. Kale however was mildly concerned with what Gaster said.
So far, the only thing that stopped Flowey from going out of his way to get Kale's soul, was the fact that Kale was still in the Gaster's lab and the ambiguous flower seemed to be trying very hard to stay undercover as much as possible.
Possibly so that no one can interfere with his plans... whatever plans Flowey even had with Kale's soul. The human child still did not have a clear idea on what Flowey was referring to, telling them that they were... 'special'.
"Now I do apologize, but given what has happened recently, I do not think it is a good choice to let you all be together in the same room."
"what's that supposed to mean?" Sam's eyes darkened.
"It means..." Gaster walked closer to the three of them on the bed. "You, stay here." Gaster looked at Kale. Then he turned to face the brothers. "You two, come with me."
"UH OKAY..."
Sam and Pap hesitantly stood up from the bed. They went back to the cell. "You, here." He looked at Sam.
"wait what...?"
"Stay in the cell."
Sam really didn't want to.
But then he rolled his eyes. "... yeah whatever, fine."
As Sam entered the cell, Gaster activated the force field and lead Pap back to their bedroom. "You will stay in the room."
"... ALONE?" He looked back at Gaster with an uncertain expression.
"Alone." He nodded at him.
"B-BUT..." Pap looked down. "... OKAY..."
"The key will be in the door. But do not leave the room unless you absolutely need something, you understand?"
"UH... YEAH... I GOT IT..." Gaster started walking out of the room but Pap stopped him for a moment. "WE ARE SORRY FOR LEAVING... SAM WANTED TO GO OUT ALONE IF WE WEREN'T GOING TO COME WITH HIM, WE COULDN'T JUST LET THAT!"
Gaster sighed and looked back at him. "I understand. But your actions have consequences. You will only be separated for a few days until I... resolve all this with the people I need to."
"MM... OKAY..." He looked down. He tried not to be sad, but knowing he will spend days alone in this room without Sam or Kale to keep him company... well, that couldn't really put him in good spirits at the moment. Gaster closed the door behind him as he left.
But as he walked down the hall and passed the cell, he heard Sam's voice.
"what's the point of this?" He stepped closer to the force field. Gaster stopped in his tracks and looked at him.
"Your actions have consequences."
"... yeah, says you..." He folded his arms and looked away with dark eyes. "so much for the... how did you say it again? 'you will do anything to make up for me and my brother'? yeah... so much for that..." He flopped on the floor his eyes still dark.
Gaster sighed. "This will only be for a few days until I've resolved everything... and as I said, I am sorry but you have left me with no choice."
"whatever..." He looked away.
Gaster returned to the office where Kale waited.
"Hey uh... Gaster?" They looked at him. Gaster in the meantime sat back on his chair, rolling on it to look at them. "Hmm?"
"Are you uh... mad at us?"
He put a hand on his forehead. "I am not... mad. I just..." He closed his eye for a moment, then reopened it. "As you probably gathered, I have not exactly been in the best condition lately... I can say that is true both physically and mentally. I am tired and... I was ready to take full responsibility for my actions and end all of this for good. Neither of us wants this to go on like this anymore. But with your little... adventure... my conversation with Asgore got cut off and now... I just feel like it will be harder to talk to him about this than before."
"I mean... what would happen if you told Asgore about... all of this?"
"A lot of things." He looked down. "I could be sacked from my position as Royal Scientist... I could be imprisoned... executed..." He buried his hands into the pocket of his lab coat, his expression turning into one of gloom. "... but I suppose, the thing I am most afraid of, is losing one of the people I most care about and cared about for over a life time. He is either going to be extremely disappointed with me, or he is going to end up collecting those seven Human souls... and will be forced to commit a terrible act for Monster kind."
"But maybe it's... gonna be okay?" Kale tried to reassure him but in their voice... it was notable they were not really sure about their words either. "I'm sorry I... am really not helping here..." They looked away, rubbing their head.
Gaster sighed and raised a hand, closing his eye. "It's alright. You don't have to worry about it. This... is my business to deal with and mine only. I am not sure what will happen to you, however as Asgore will... probably be set on taking your Soul. You are... unique, as you probably know."
"Uhm yeah... I-I guess I am..." Kale looked down. For a few moments they were just staring at the surface of their hands... "My parents are traitless... I am the only one with a trait out of three of us. I guess I've always been special. I just sometimes wonder... 'why me'?"
There was silence for some moments.
"I have met some traitless people back on the Surface..." Gaster said quietly. "They had no more magic, they could no longer feel extraordinary or special. Yet, they were full of life and energy. It was... fascinating in a way, to see not all Humans really needed a trait to be happy on the Surface. Because we all had... something that was already extraordinary by itself." Gaster looked up at the ceiling with a soft expression. "... The sheer gift of all of us being able to coexist on the Surface."
Kale smiled a bit. "... The Sun... the smell of flowers... all that... right?"
Gaster nodded. "... The rain... I've always liked the rain."
"To be honest, I am kind of... tired of staying in this lab for this long time."
"And that is, very understandable. I do apologize for keeping you down here for so long... but trust me, it is for the best. At least, for now."
"Yeah, I know. Not many monsters are fond of Humans. I've figured." Kale said sarcastically. There were a few more passing silent moments, then Kale rubbed their stomach. "Dang I'm still hungry... I wish I could just have a nice bowl of carrot soup right now."
"Carrot soup?" Gaster tilted his head. "I... never had."
"Oh really? Man you should try it's really good! W-Well I mean if you like carrots, I guess heh..." Then suddenly Kale got an idea. "Hey you have a kitchen right?"
"Yes?"
"I could totally make some carrot soup! If uh... you have carrots..."
"You can cook?"
"Yeah! I used to cook soup a lot back home and since I'm still hungry..."
"Well, alright I suppose we can take a look."
"Cool!"
Kale stood up from the bed. Then they suddenly looked at the save star. Well... it has been quite a while since they saved, they quickly touched it and they walked with Gaster to the kitchen.
As they walked along the hallway and reached the kitchen, Gaster walked in and looked in the fridge.
"Hmm... no carrots."
"Ah dang, that's too bad... I guess I'll stay hungry..."
"You know you can always-"
"Nah it's fine." Kale shrugged it off. They weren't really in the mood to eat another sandwich.
"Well... alright then..." Gaster mumbled. He closed the fridge and him and Kale were ready to return to the office. Gaster checked the time, just out of curiosity. It was 3 PM. While they were walking down the hall, Kale and Gaster passed Sam's cell. Kale stopped for a moment. Sam looked at them.
"Uh... go on ahead, I'll catch up in a minute..."
"... Alright, fine." Gaster walked on without much fuss. Sam then got up from his sitting position and walked closer to Kale.
"hey so uh- you know how he touches that panel thing?"
"Uh yeah?"
"how about you try turning it off? then we could just go back to pap."
"Sam..." Kale shot a disappointed gaze at him. "You know if we try to leave, Gaster will know. We aren't going to achieve anything with trying again, especially not now."
"i'm just asking you to turn off the beams so i don't have to sit is this damn cell alone." Sam folded his arms and looked down.
"Okay, okay fine. So uh... what do I do?"
"just uh- try touching that panel thing and turning it off."
"Uh okay?" Kale looked around a little until they spotted a strange looking control panel on the wall. They put their hand on it, but nothing seemed to happen. "Well... it's not really working."
"It only recognizes magical signature which you do not have, as you are a Human." Gaster returned. It seemed he was perfectly aware of what Kale and Sam was trying to achieve and he did not go that far because of that.
Gaster walked closer to Kale. "Now... come on."
Kale for a few moments, did not move. They looked at Sam for a second. It looked like... there was some kind of shine in his eyes. Like he was getting an idea. Kale tilted their head with confusion, raising a brow, still keeping their gaze pinned on Sam.
"Human? Are you coming-"
But in that moment Kale suddenly was forced to jump away as Sam grabbed Gaster's soul with blue magic and pulled him into the bright cyan force field. A bright light blinded Kale.
Even though they did not see what exactly happened...
Even though they were lying on the cold dirty floor...
Kale was terrified to look up.
They were terrified to stand up.
But Sam's voice already confirmed what Kale did not want to witness.
"kale! c'mon! get up and get his hand! turn off the beams, we can grab pap and get outta here!"
Kale slowly sat up and as they did, their eyes widened with horror. Gaster was out cold, lying on the floor, scars across running across his skull. Kale wasn't sure, but for a few moments... it looked like Gaster's hand actually started to turn to dust...
"S-Sam... what... What did you do?!"
"just! grab his hand! and we can finally get out of here! he won't be able to stop us anymore, come on!!"
"But Sam he's-!"
"who cares?!!? grab his hand already and turn off the beams!! please! this is our only chance of getting out of here, please help us!"
"No..." Kale backed away and turned their eyes from the horrific sight. They felt their limbs shaking.
"kale! please! i'm begging you please!"
Sam's voice didn't seem to make it to Kale's inner mind anymore. Their ears began to ring.
They never really felt that attached to Gaster... but they knew... they cannot let this happen...
They were standing right there. They saw Sam was planning something... they had enough time... if only for a few moments... they could have stopped all of this. At any second they could have stopped this.
They cannot let this happen...
They cannot let this happen...
They have to go back...
But they knew it wasn't possible...
All Kale wished for right now... was to be able to go back... to go back, to prevent this from happening. To try and do something to not let Sam do this... anything...
Kale felt like they were back, fighting Undyne all over again... that moment of adrenaline, that moment of rage filling them that caused them to strike at the leader of the Royal Guard making her severely wounded. This felt exactly like that situation. Kale did not even want to look, they closed their eyes shut and knelt down as they were starting to feel very dizzy.
They weren't even sure if they were even there anymore, their mind felt like it was distanced. But Kale could almost hear their inner mind screaming 'go back' over and over again.
"Are you listening to me, Human?"
"Wh-... what?" Kale asked, their voice hoarse. They looked around the room... they were back in the bedroom... back at their... 'save point.' "Where am I...?" Kale thought. They... they did not die... did they? Did Sam pull them into the beams too, out of frustration for not doing what he asked?
Kale knew the save star would only take them back to other rooms if they died. But they did not feel like they have died.
What just happened?
Did they... actually... go back?
"Are you... alright, Human? You look... confused."
It took a few moments for Kale to realized Gaster was speaking to them. "But... wait you're here? But you were- I-I saw..."
Gaster was looking more and more confused with each second. That's when Kale realized...
Go back...
Somehow... they did go back, before it even happened. Kale gathered their thoughts and pinned their eyes on Gaster with a serious expression. "Okay, okay look. Uhm I think... If you go outside this room... I-I feel like something terrible is going to happen."
Gaster raised a brow, with a clear skeptical expression. "What?"
"Just! Trust me! I-I saw it something horrible is going to happen if we go down that hall!"
"What on Earth are you talking about?"
Gaster sighed and rolled his eye and walked away. Kale rushed after him. "W-Wait Gaster-!"
But before they could really think, it happened. Sam pulled Gaster with blue magic again. Kale could react this time. They had to act fast.
Without really thinking about anything but to stop Gaster from dying, Kale stood in the way and stopped Gaster from reaching the force field.
They felt it that they lost their balance... there was a burning sharp pain in their spine...
Then, it all went black.
Notes:
When things take a turn for the worst. Surely Kale will be fine...?
Chapter 18: We choose Mercy
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
Gaster felt completely blinded for a second as there was a sharp burning pain running down bellow his right eye which he was already blinded in anyway. It took a moment for his immense headache and dizziness to disappear so he could properly process what had just happened.
Kale was lying on the floor unconscious. The force field made a terribly nasty burn mark on their back... though they were not bleeding... it was not clear if they were alive or not...
Sam stared at the Human with wide, fearful eyes.
"i-i... that's not... i didn't mean to..."
Gaster didn't even properly process the fact that Sam has just made an attempt on his life. He could only stare at the young Human's unconscious body lying across the solid cold floor.
What really shocked him...
... was that a Human was ready to give up their life for him...
Just like that...
Sam, still struggling with a slight panic attack, unsure of whether he has just killed Kale for no reason or not, now looked at Gaster. It seemed like he was just ... waiting...
Waiting for Gaster to yell at him.
For Gaster to get mad.
For Gaster to immediately take him away and do something terrible as a punishment.
But... nothing...
The current expression that sat on the old scientist's skeletal face, was the same one of shock that Sam was wearing... though the former's expression also showed not a few amount of fear and confusion... he did not understand why Kale would do this. Why Kale... would directly attempt to save his life, throwing away their own. For him.
Then Gaster did something which Sam least expected.
He disabled the force field and picked up Kale's body with blue magic. Sam took that as an indication that he should follow him. Together they walked into the office. Gaster set Kale down to the bed and sat on his chair.
"Go and... get your brother..." He said, his voice sounding... very exhausted right now. Sam was unsure of whether that was because of what had just happened, but in any case, he obliged as he walked down the hall and walked to their old room.
Pap was lying in their old room, sleeping. Seemed the younger skeleton really couldn't be at peace when he was forced to stay in one room for all day long. Sam was sure, sleeping was the only way for his brother to keep himself from having a panic attack, from the weight of just... being forced, to stay alone.
Sam actually didn't want to disturb his brother's peaceful sleep, so he sat on the bed next to him. He himself also needed to take a few moments for his mind to properly process and understand what had just happened there at the cell.
Well it was clear. He was frustrated. He was still really frustrated about what had happened yesterday. They were this close... this close to escape... so he had the idea... if he would pull Gaster in the beams with blue magic while Kale or Pap is around, they could use his hand... disable the force field... and then they'd finally be out. They would have finally escaped. They would have finally been free.
It was this close.
This. Close.
But Kale... Kale had to ruin it...
Because Kale just didn't know better... somehow, they were ready to throw away their life for someone like Gaster. They did not consider any of the consequences that would regard them, all they cared about was saving Gaster. Something which was beyond Sam's understanding. After all that he did... why would Gaster deserve his life to be saved, by someone like Kale?
Suddenly... there was a distant memory echoing through Sam's mind...
'i mean, don't get me wrong, i hate everything you did to us and it makes me mad, whenever i think about all those things you did to my brother and i do think you deserve some punishment for what you did. but... is it really right, to kill someone for the stuff they did? i mean even if a person did something really terrible... killing them... that's... not the solution. that won't fix anything.'
His own words which have been spoken to none other than Gaster, echoed around his mind, haunting him like a terrible nightmare.
But ... this act... it was for the greater good right?
This was just for the sake of the three of them, Kale Sam and Pap being able to get out of this lab... right?
But despite that... thinking of those words Sam had spoken at one point in time...
It just made him feel like he was such a... hypocrite. He was just so... selfish...
Which, in reality meant, that he really was no better than Gaster in this case.
Sam suddenly became so angry at himself for what he had just done, he clenched his tiny hand in a fist and hit the bed in anger, his eyes turning dark. But it was not entirely his action that made him especially mad at himself... it was rather the fact... that despite everything that has happened in this dark, old lab... he still felt bad for Gaster. He felt bad for what he had just attempted to do to Gaster... and he hated this fact. He did not have any reason to really feel bad for Gaster, yet he still did.
But in that moment, Pap tiredly groaned and woke up.
"NNHH BROTHER? HE LET YOU OUT?" Pap slowly sat up and tried to look into Sam's eyes, who turned away his gaze, his eyes still as dark as the night sky in the midnight hours. "BROTHER ARE YOU OKAY?"
"why? why do i feel... bad?!" He spat out in a broken voice. "he doesn't deserve it but i still feel bad for him, i-i still feel like he doesn't deserve to die despite what he did and- and-"
"BROTHER WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" Pap quickly bolted up.
"i... i tried to... pull him in the beams..."
"YOU... WHAT? DID YOU REALLY?"
He slowly nodded. "but... kale stood in the way... i-i don't even know if they're still alive now i-..." Sam cut himself off as he closed his eyes, trying to fight off any tears yet to come.
"BROTHER..." Pap tried to hug him, but for the first time, Sam pushed him away. "... WHY?"
"i just... i-i don't know i just felt so mad suddenly. i wasn't really... thinking. all that was on my mind... if i pulled him in the beams... if i... killed him. we could get out of here finally and we'd never have to come back here."
"SAM..." Pap looked at him, his expression showing sadness mixed with fearful surprise.
Sam calmed down with a sigh, his eyes turning back to normal. "... sorry bro... we should ... go see them."
"UH... RIGHT..." Pap was seemingly caught off guard by the sudden change of topic but he was also relieved to see that Sam quickly calmed his anger. The two of them stood up from the bed, Pap grabbing the Color Cube as they did and they started walking down the hall.
Gaster was looking at his face from the reflection of his monitor, seeing the crack that ran down bellow his right eye. It stung when he carefully ran down a finger on it... yes, this mark will definitely stay there which did not fill Gaster with too much good emotions, obviously.
The two brothers in the meantime entered the office and sat on the bed. Pap could only look at Kale with fearful and worrisome eyes.
"Sub-... Pap... could you heal them?"
"UH YEAH... I CAN DO THAT..."
Pap put a hand on Kale's burnt back and started healing them. Pap's eyes and hand was emerged in a green light, as the burn mark on Kale's back was slowly disappearing, the wound carefully healing with each passing second. Sam hugged his knees and curled into a ball on the corner of the bed, his eyes turning dark once again.
"... so..." He said, his voice cold and emotionless. His word was directed to Gaster, though he would not look at him.
"... So..." Gaster responded in an almost similar manner, obvious that he himself was having very strong and mixed emotions of the event that had just happened.
"i guess this happened huh?"
"... Yes..." Gaster said quietly, looking down at the floor beneath his feet. The scar running down his right eye somehow made him look even more old and tired than he usually looked. The lack of sleep and the dark circles under his sockets certainly did not help either. It was clear that it has been a while once again since Gaster got some quality sleep.
"so what's gonna happen now?" Sam finally turned his round head to the scientist, tilting his head in a curious yet worried manner as his eyes turned back to their normal state. He was not exactly worried about what Gaster would attempt to do to the both of them after he had just done, he was rather worried for Kale.
"We will wait for them to wake up, for one." Gaster mumbled in a voice that was still vibrating with exhaustion.
"ARE... THEY GOING TO WAKE UP THOUGH?" Pap looked at Gaster with worried eyes as he finished healing the Human child. Gaster didn't say anything in response, instead he pulled out some drawers and grabbed the familiar soul scanning device. He walked to the bed and carefully scanned Kale's soul, a small beep noise indicating the success.
SPECIES: HUMAN
HP: 10/20
LV: 1
HEALTH: UNSTABLE
CONDITION: COMA
MAGIC: STABLE
POWER: MODERATE
"They're alright... it's probably going to be a few hours, but they should wake."
"so... what happens after they wake up, though?"
"I... am not sure yet..."
Gaster's words were followed by silence, as Sam looked away, his yes turning dark once more. Pap tried to do some puzzles as a means to distract his mind from this current situation and Gaster tried returning his focus on his work.
"i... i don't understand..." Sam finally spoke after quite some minutes of silence. "i just don't get it!" Pap and Gaster both turned their eyes on him by that point. Sam was already on the verge of tears. "i. want to hate you. but i can't! i want to hate you for everything you did to us but i can't! and now i... i don't even get this, why should i feel bad after everything you did?! why do i feel bad after everything you did to us?"
"BROTHER..."
Sam stood up and pinned his eyes on Gaster.
"and why aren't you doing anything?! i just tried to kill you for god's sake and you're... fine with it! why aren't you mad, why aren't you trying to do anything about it, why are you so... calm about this!?"
"Because... I never said your actions were not well justified." Gaster stood up and slowly walked to him. "After all of the agonies I put you through, after all the traumas and scars I have given you... both of you, it is not surprising you would... attempt such a thing." He then looked away, his expression shifting. "It's not like I'd never deserve it..."
"but ... why do i feel bad now?? i don't want to like you!" As he said that... Sam looked away. "i-... i guess... that's what's wrong with me. you've... been trying. you-you said you will be trying. and i'm not trying at all..."
"Nothing. Is wrong with you, Sam. Please, believe me when I say... I understand you."
"why? why are you suddenly being... so... nice??" He finally managed to say it. "after all... you never cared for us! you never wanted to care for us! you never wanted to be nice to us! why now?"
"As you have just said... I have been trying."
Gaster sat on the chair and Sam sat back on the bed. The older skeleton turned his eyes to the two of them. "And now please, both of you listen carefully for what I am about to say."
They both turned their eyes to Gaster, who let out a long sigh, closed his eye, then reopened it, his gaze turning solemn. "I know, you both believe and believed that I did not, nor never cared for you. For the longest time." Gaster looked down. He stood up and walked closer to the two of them. Both skeleton boys returned his gaze at every second. "But that is not true. I-I know... my actions mean more than my words. I know that because of my previous actions, neither of you have any reason to believe it. But I have always cared for you. Deep down, I did always care... and when I successfully made you two... I... was happy. For the first time in years. Because both of you mean everything to me now. You are my top priorities now. I have put you through excruciating experiments... and in that moment when we nearly lost you Sam, that is when I realized all of what I have been doing... was not worth it. Because... I was loosing... my only, my last, chance... at rebuilding my family."
"... FAMILY?" Pap looked at him like he barely believed his words... Sam, too.
"I ... am your father. I... created you, I ... gave life to you, shall we say. So that does make me your father. But you have no reason to truly view me as your father. I understand if you don't, after everything I have done to you. But please know, despite my horrible actions... I did always care, even if I didn't show it. Even if I repressed those emotions for the sake of something, that I believed to be the greater good. I am not asking you to forgive me. But just know... Sans, Papyrus, I... could not even begin to put into words... how terribly sorry I am for all of the horrible things I have put both of you through. I am so... so sorry for ruining your only chances at a healthy childhood."
As he finished his sentence, Gaster's voice broke and trailed off as he looked down with a broken expression.
"what... did you call us?" Sam himself was struggling to keep his voice straight after all that Gaster just said.
"I... was meant to give you names, when I first made you."
Gaster walked to one of the shelves and pulled out a single piece of paper from one of his files and gave it to them. On the paper were three scratched out words.
Comic Sans
PAPYRUS
"so my... real name, is comic sans?"
"AND I'M... PAPYRUS?"
"Yes. Your fonts. I... discarded these names and decided to drill those plates in your hands instead."
Sam now looked at his left hand. Indeed, the shining metal plate with the initials WDG-1S was still drilled on his hand.
"It is entirely your choice if you do wish to use those names instead of what he Human has been calling you both."
Finally, Sam manged to smile a little. "they're actually... weirdly similar. aren't they?"
Gaster smiled a little too. "Yes, I was... quite surprised, the Human managed to give both of you such fitting nicknames despite not being aware of your real names."
"I... I KINDA LIKE BOTH. I THINK I'LL USE BOTH!"
Sam looked at Kale, with a guilty expression. "well i... think i'll just stick to sam, for now..."
Gaster nodded, catching his gaze. "I understand."
After a few moments of silence, Papyrus looked up at him. "DID YOU... REALLY MEAN ALL OF WHAT YOU JUST SAID?"
"I did. I am completely honest when I say... I have always cared for you, and I have always loved you deep down. You are both the greatest thing that happened to me in my entire life." Gaster closed his eye. "I know... an apology will never truly excuse what I have done to the two of you... but I am just so, so, so sorry... I am so sorry for all those times I've hurt you, for all those times I have treated you in the most horrible ways, for all those times I said the most cruel things about both of you."
Without even a moment of hesitation Papyrus bolted out of his seat on the bed and hugged Gaster to the best of his ability.
After a moment, he took a glance at Sam "C'MON BROTHER!! COME AND JOIN THE HUG!"
"i-i'm really not a-"
"BROTHER!!"
"... okay, okay i-i guess..." He walked closer and went to hug both Gaster and Papyrus.
Despite how distanced he always felt himself from the Royal Scientist, even in these very moments when he spoke his solemn statement... for the first time in his life... Sam felt comfortable in Gaster's presence.
And for the first time, Gaster did not hesitate for one second to return the hug.
* * * * *
There was light.
After the sharp, burning pain and the empty blackness that they saw for a long time, there was finally light.
In that exact moment... They felt so sure that they were dead.
But somehow, Kale was able to open their eyes.
They blinked for a few moments, twinkling not realizing that they were staring directly into the burning white light in Gaster's office.
"OH YOU WOKE UP!! HI KALE!! HOW ARE YOU?"
As Kale's vision became clear, they could notice Papyrus was staring right into their face. "Oh uh... hey Pap... I guess I've been better." Kale tried to get up, but Papyrus pushed them down. "DON'T GET UP... YOU COULD GET MORE HURT."
"Uh... okay..."
"kale you're awake, i'm so sorry, i swear i didn't mean to hurt you i just..."
"Hey Sam, it's okay... I mean... I'm fine now. That's what really matters, right?"
"uh... yeah... b-but i almost killed you i-!"
"It's fine... you're heh not the first one down here." Kale smiled a little. Hearing that, Sam also managed a small smile. "yeah i... i guess you're right about that huh..."
"How are you feeling?" Gaster also looked at them. Kale turned their head to look at Gaster. Immediately, they noticed the crack going down Gaster's right eye but they choose not to say anything about it. "I uh... pretty good I guess, considering I fell into a laser wall."
"Mm... yes..." He mumbled as he looked away, readjusting his glasses in the process.
"So uh..." Despite what Papyrus just said, Kale did try to sit up a little more and leaned their back to the pillow on the bed. While Papyrus did manage to completely heal the burn on Kale's back, it was still very sore. "... what happened back there? I don't remember too much."
"well i uh... when you and gaster were walking down the hall... i tried to pull him into the beams. but you... stood in the way. so you got really hurt instead."
"Ah... right... I only remember that it really hurt. Then everything just went black."
Sam looked away with a guilty expression. "i... i'm really sorry for doing that. i just... all i could think of in that moment was... how much i wanted us to finally get out of here. then i-i just saw that as a chance. but i didn't want to hurt you." Slowly, he turned his skull to look at Gaster. "... either of you..." He quietly added. "i didn't actually want to kill either of you i just-"
"Well, do not worry. I... have a solution for that." Gaster stood up and faced them, Kale Papyrus and Sam returning his gaze. "I cannot lie, I have been... a coward. For a long time. But now it is time I properly take responsibility for my actions. Tomorrow... I will talk to Asgore. I will tell him the truth. About everything I have done to you two. I am... not sure what will happen to me... what kind of punishment Asgore will give me. But that does not matter. All that matters, is that I will have paid for my actions and you... all three of you... can finally be free. You can finally be let out of this lab."
"OUT? OUT OUT? WE'RE REALLY GOING TO GO OUT NOW?!"
"and we won't have to stay down here anymore??"
The brothers's voices were vibrating with excitement, like never before. Gaster nodded. "Yes. It is about time I let you out of here. I have gave up on the project a while ago. Now I have no reason nor right to keep you stuck in this old lab anymore... once I have told the truth... I am unsure of my fate... but I will only get what I deserve."
"BUT... WHAT IF SOMETHING BAD HAPPENS TO YOU? REALLY BAD?"
"I know Asgore will make sure you are all in safe hands, regardless of what my fate will be after I tell him the truth."
Hearing that, Kale looked away, a little uncomfortable. All this time they've spent Underground... everyone always kept telling him, Asgore needs to claim their Soul. Because of that, Kale did not exactly have any good feelings about meeting Asgore in person. Gaster seemed to read their mind as he took a look at them, but Gaster did not bring it up for now. He focused his eye on the brothers. "Now Sam... Pap... please go back to your room for now. I... want to talk to the Human. Alone."
They looked at each other, before they both nodded and stood up. "OKAY!!"
After they left, Gaster sat on the bed so he could properly face Kale.
"So... I must ask you... why did you do that?"
The question surprised and slightly confused Kale. "Uh... do what?"
"You... stood in the way. You fell into the force field instead of me. Why? Why did you do that?"
"O-Oh... uh..." Kale looked down. Their expression turned into one that was a mixture of sadness and fear. "I-I don't know I just couldn't-..." Their sentence trailed off as Gaster cut them off.
"You... 'couldn't'..." Gaster looked up. "I-I... I don't understand. Why ... Why would a Human... after all of the things I've done why would you..."
"Hey... look. I know you did some messed up things. But that doesn't mean I ever wanted you dead, you know?"
Gaster turned back to Kale, his expression currently showing a lot of emotions at once. Kale was returning his gaze with solemn eyes. But then their expression turned back into one of sadness. So much sadness in fact, that they looked like they would just cry. "Though I... I have to be honest with you... about something..."
"Hmm?"
"I... Please don't hate me for this but... I did something terrible."
"... What?" His expression turned a little wary.
"I ... so uh you know I passed through Waterfall?" Gaster just slowly nodded in response. "I uh... I met with Undyne... the head of Royal Guard... and she kept chasing me trying to kill me. Just before I could get out of Waterfall... we had a fight. I... I was so tired and-and it was so... fast. I-I didn't mean to do that, I didn't mean to hurt her, I was just so scared and I had no idea what to do and I-"
"Now slow down." Gaster raised a hand in a calming manner. "Did... something happened with Undyne?"
Kale nodded slowly. "I-I... I panicked. It was so fast, I didn't realize what I was doing. She was... about to finish me and I... hit her... really hard..." Kale swallowed and closed their eyes, trying to push back the tears that wanted to come from having to remember the terrible memory. "I know she didn't die but... I felt so horrible about it! I swore I would never even think about hurting any monster again! And... in that moment, when I saved you... all I could think of... was how I almost got Undyne killed even though I didn't mean to, I couldn't just let you die then!"
For some moments there was silence. Gaster knew... Humans possessed incredible power against monsters. Even a single strike coming from a Human, could kill a tired out monster. But... that was not exactly what Gaster was thinking of in the moment.
His mind traveled back... way back... to over a hundred years ago. The dreadful sounds of a battlefield echoed in the back of his mind. As if he was right back there, on the scene, he felt the warm scarlet blood on his hands and clothes all over again.
"I... understand." Gaster slowly said. Kale gave him a look of surprise. "You... you do?"
"Yes. Believe it or not, I understand what that situation feels like. I understand you didn't mean to cause pain... but you were fearful for your life... and so you acted out of instinct."
Kale just slowly nodded in confirmation.
"... I have been in that position. And the instinct action made me get a Human's blood on my hands, for the first time in my life. I do not hold you responsible for what you did, it was self defense and Undyne... can be very vicious with Humans. So I understand why you did what you did. The point is that you did not kill her and you did not die either."
Kale slowly nodded again. "... Yeah... I guess you are right..."
"So do not let this guilt follow you. Because both of you were just fine after that." He closed his eye. "Which is more than what I could say for my case..." He looked down, his shoulders slumping.
"One more thing..." Gaster turned his eyes back to Kale and listened. "Uh you mentioned... Asgore..."
"Yes... I know you must be scared... I am too. I am... afraid of the consequences for when you get to face Asgore, I cannot lie. But we both know you cannot stay down here forever."
"Yeah... I know..." Then, that typical determination shined in Kale's eye. "But! It's gonna be fine! I know it! I will do everything I can to make sure everyone comes out of it okay, in case anything happens!"
Gaster smiled a little.
Indeed, thinking of Kale possibly facing Asgore... the thought did scare him, since one of them could end up dead in the process...
But for now...
That did not matter.
Because now, Gaster finally felt like he can give his trust to a Human for the first time in over a hundred years.
Notes:
Things will get worse, before they get better and even then... sometimes, the bittersweet end is inevitable.
This will be the last chapter I post for a little while as I'm going on vacation next week. Expect the next chapter around August 20th
Chapter 19: Raining like an avalanche
Notes:
I return from vacation and present you with a new chapter. Hope you will enjoy. Thanks for 1k hits also!
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Even the late afternoon of that day went strangely silently. More so than usual. Sam, Papyrus and Kale were still heavily affected by the events that have happened today. It all just felt like a very long, never ending rollercoaster that was filled with huge drops. The three of them just sat in their bedroom, like usual, trying to bide their time with something just to distract their mind from all that has happened.
Sam and Papyrus has also explained everything of what Gaster said to them, to Kale.
It was clear... this was the moment Papyrus has been waiting for all his life. So of course, he did not hesitate to immediately make the choice of forgiving Gaster and accepting his confession.
Sam however... was having very mixed feelings.
But the strongest feeling he was currently experiencing, was very very heavy denial. He was just having trouble believing every word of what Gaster said... believing that he did mean every word of what he had told them in the office.
And he did not hesitate to share his thoughts about this, to his two friends.
"I mean... of course you'd have a lot of trouble just... accepting all of this. This is a big game changer for you guys and I can't really blame you for having a hard time believing it, after everything you've been through." Kale looked at Sam, from the left side of the bed where they were sitting. They were feeling significantly better by now, after what happened with the beams earlier that day.
Sam was sitting next to his brother, Papyrus on the left side of the bed, closer to a corner. He shifted in his seat and looked away his expression from Kale. "yeah... i-i just. i just don't know if he actually meant it. for real. everything of what he said."
Papyrus wanted to say something... but he looked away. Knowing how Sam has completely different views on the whole situation, knowing that his brother was clearly not ready to forgive Gaster yet... he felt like expressing his own viewpoint of this case was not going to be of too much help right now. Instead he looked up at his brother and lightly, affectionately placed a hand on his shoulder. "IT IS ALRIGHT, BROTHER. YOU CAN TAKE IT SLOW. I UNDERSTAND WHY YOU LOOK AT IT DIFFERENTLY THAN ME. THIS IS A ... LOT... RIGHT?"
Sam slowly nodded. "... yeah. thanks, bro. really, that..." He finally managed to let a small smile spread on his round face as he looked back into his brother's eyes. "... that actually helps, heh..."
"WELL I AM GLAD IT DOES! NYEH HEH!" But then his smile faded. "I AM SORRY THOUGH, SAM. I KNOW I'VE BEEN PUSHING YOU A LOT... TO CONVINCE YOU HE WAS GETTING BETTER. BUT I GUESS I CAN'T MAKE YOU SEE IT THAT WAY, IF YOU'RE NOT READY."
Sam just slowly nodded again.
Papyrus handed him the Rubik's Cube. "PUZZLE?"
"nah, sorry not feelin' it right now..." He lightly shook his head.
"OH..." Papyrus looked away a little, again.
"I'll solve it, though." Kale smiled at him. Papyrus did brighten up a little at that, and handed Kale the cube. The Human was taking their time in solving it. While those two were having fun solving puzzles, Sam stood up. "i'll uh... be right back."
"UH... OKAY!" Papyrus looked at him. Kale just nodded. With that, Sam opened the door to the bedroom door and walked down the hall. His small footsteps were echoing in the long hallway of the now very, very unusually silent lab. Well... it has always been silent. But in this very moment, it felt different. Not as normal, as usual.
* * * * *
Gaster himself was also going through many emotions in these last hours. Though, the most significant of those emotions... was a slight tinge of fear.
He knew that tomorrow... is the day.
That fatal day.
The day he knew would forever change him when it comes.
Without a doubt, Gaster knew if he wanted to start giving a proper life to the brothers, if he really wanted to come clean for good, he will have to finally tell the complete truth, to Asgore.
No more lies.
No more false words.
Just the honest, cold... dark truth.
Gaster did not really fear the consequences regarding him, aside from the fact that he could potentially lose Asgore. For good. The King will be immensely disappointed once he learns of everything Gaster had done. He knew that, very well.
He also knew... that if Asgore does decide to give him any form of punishment, in means for him to pay for his actions, he would not have the chance to stay with Sam and Papyrus and give them that better life they deserve. But to tell the truth, that did not concern him as much. Because he knew, no matter what happens to him, the brothers will be in good hands and they will end up having a better life and that is really all he wanted for them.
They deserve to be happy, after this immense torture and agony he has put them through for all these months.
At the moment, Gaster was once again smoking. In a poor attempt, to wash away that anxiety and fear that was hanging over him without a moment of rest. He kept inhaling and exhaling, as the small clouds of smoke continuously made their way to the ceiling where they splattered into nothingness.
For a few more moments the silence just remained.
"... uh... hey... doc?"
Hearing Sam approach, Gaster stamped out the cigarette and turned around to face the small skeleton. "Yes?"
"can i uh... ask you something?"
"... You just did." Gaster said quietly, half joking. "But yes, go on."
"u-uh..." Sam, for a few moments hesitated. He turned away his round head, so he won't have to look into the older skeleton's eyes. But he then looked down at the floor beneath his tiny skeletal feet and asked away. "did you... actually mean what you said?" He finally said, his voice very small. It hit Gaster different than normal, whenever Sam talked to him. "i mean about you... caring about us from the start. and when you said you actually... loved us...?" He finally slowly raised his head, to face Gaster.
The old scientist sighed and took one step closer to Sam. "I know... it must be very hard for you to believe. I do not blame you for it. No one who loves you would ever put you through such agonies, as I did. No one who really cares about you would carry on with putting you through such agonies, as I did. I must admit I was... not in a right mind when I was planning to drill those plates in your hands. I was... extremely determined. Determined to carry through with a specific goal I had in mind from the beginning. Determined to the point, that it made me sickly obsessed. I refused to accept my true feelings about it all. I knew what I was doing, what I was going to do was very, very wrong. Yet, I still carried on with it... for a purpose of greater good..." He looked away and sighed. Then he knelt on one knee, so he could properly see eye to eye with Sam. "... Do you understand what I am trying to say?"
Sam lightly shook his head. Surprisingly, there was a small smile spreading on Gaster's face. But that smile did not show any true happiness or joy. It was rather a smile of shame and misery. "I repressed and bottled up my true emotions and pushed them deep down. Because if would not have done so... I would have made the decision to refuse to carry on with the entire project and give you two the life you have deserved from the very beginning. Do you understand Sam? I tried so hard to pretend I did not care about you two. I tried so hard to convince myself that I did not care about you, so there would be nothing standing in my way, that could stop me from keeping up with the terrible acts I was doing." He let out a laugh, although it was humorless, lifeless. "... Needless to say, I failed miserably."
"so you... drilled those plates in our hands... you always appeared so... emotionless... so you could convince us and yourself you did not care?"
Gaster nodded. "Exactly. I had to do all those things to be able to carry on with my plans. That's how hard I had to try, to prevent myself from caring about you both. I did care about from the very beginning. I always did. I simply tried to the best of my ability to pretend that was not true, to myself and to the two of you." Gaster closed his eye, his expression breaking. "... But the more horrible things I have done, the more terrible I have felt for my actions. Until in that moment when I accidentally almost caused your early death... that was the moment when I finally came to my senses. That was the moment when all of those emotions I have repressed, managed to break through. That was the moment I have realized that I have gone way too far, and I decided that either I stop all of this at once... or I will become an even greater monster than those who claimed to have Humanity in themselves in the War, over a hundred years ago."
Sam looked down. It took him a few moment to properly process everything of what Gaster said. But when he did, after a few moments of silence, he turned his eyes back to Gaster. "so you tried everything you could, to pretend and convince yourself you didn't care. and uh... it didn't really work out."
He nodded, once again. "Yes. Instead of trying to be a better person to you, I put all of that effort into trying to be a terrible person to both of you... But despite all that, you have always made me happy and proud deep down. Seeing you care about each other so much, seeing you stand up for each other whenever I hurt either of you in terrible ways, seeing you become stronger and smarter every day, being so willing to prove your worth, to show your greatest traits to me on all those tests, helping each other through the hardest of situations and sticking together no matter what kind of suffering I have put both of you through, day after day... I have always been proud of that, even when I tried so hard to hide it." For the first time in a very long time... Gaster's eyes glowed green as he continued talking, a real smile finally spreading on his face. "... and I love both of you for it. I love you, for the special, unique and wonderful monsters you both are. You are both smart, strong... you are the two most incredible monsters that have ever been part of my life." He squeezed his eyes shut, the green glow disappearing. "And I was this close... this close to ruin your brother's life and rob you from yours by an act that was driven out of my own cruelness..."
Sam didn't even notice... the small tears that were filling his eyes, the more Gaster talked. Gaster put a hand on his shoulder as he reopened his eye. "So to answer your question simply. Yes. I care about you and love both of you to the very bottom of my heart and I always did. Even when I did such a terrible job of trying to hide it."
Sam sniffed as he wiped the small tears from his eyes. "i-i... i had no idea you actually... i never even thought you would..."
"I know. Believe me, I know. I do not blame you for it, and I will hold no judgement against you if you feel like you cannot forgive me after everything I have done to both of you. But just know... I will always feel terrible for all my actions and I will and always have cared for you."
"i mean i... i can try..." He smiled, weakly. "... i should do somethin' too now that you're... actually changing everything for the better."
"You do not owe me anything and you have no reason to forgive me."
"i know but... why not? right? hehe..."
Gaster looked away smiling a little. "... I suppose."
"and uh... that reminds me of... somethin' else. can i ask one more thing?"
"Hmm?"
"so uh... you said you bottled up your emotions and hid them so nothing could stand in your way in trying to achieve your goal... what was that goal you were so determined to achieve? why did you make us?"
Gaster looked down. "Indeed, it is true I have created both of you for a purpose in mind. As I am sure you remember reading about it, in the history books I put in your room, Humans and Monsters had a great War on the Surface. We lost. We lost, and were sealed Underground, with a magical Barrier. A Barrier which could only be broken with Seven Human Souls. Long before I created you, I made a lot of research on Humans, to try and find a way if I could recreate their power for monsters to use. That, is why I created you both. I wanted to use you as... tools. Tools to breaking the Barrier. That is why I drilled plates in your hands, that is why I addressed you as subjects, artificial beings... things... But that was never true. You are sentient beings, living skeleton children. Not things."
Sam only just nodded slowly in response.
"Is there anything else, you want to know?"
"no. that's all."
Gaster stood up. "Well then I... better get back to work."
"yeah..."
After a few moments, Sam started walking away. But then he turned around to face Gaster again. "and uh doc..." He smiled. "... thanks. for... everything you're doing now... and for everything you just said."
"Of course, Sam. Of course."
* * * * *
As usual, Gaster woke up in his chair the following day. There were very rare occasions when he could actually fall asleep properly on the bed in his office. Being drowned in work at night hours tend to do that. For now though, he wasn't actually wearing his lab coat. It was lying on the couch. Now, Gaster only wore his dark gray pants and turtle neck with his black shoes. As he was slowly stood up, he looked at the time on his cell phone. 10 am. He did sleep for quite a while. But... none of that mattered at the moment. All that mattered... was that it was the next day.
The day... when he would finally do something that should have been done a long time ago.
He scrolled through his contacts on his cell and after a few moments of hesitation, he dialed Asgore's number. He leaned to a wall and let out a long sigh, while waiting for the King to pick up.
"Good morning, you Majesty. It's Gaster."
"Ah, good morning Gaster. How have you been?"
Gaster breathed out. "Well if I am being perfectly honest... it is difficult to explain."
"Hmm... how so?" The concern in his voice rose. Gaster made a solemn swear to himself that even through the phone, every word of what he will say to Asgore will be completely honest.
No more lying.
"There have been a lot of things happening. But that doesn't matter now, I am calling you because I want to talk to you... in person. I need to tell you something important. Is it alright if I come now?"
"Yes, yes of course. If you have something important you want to talk to me about, you are always welcome, no matter what hour it is." He paused. "But Gaster are you alright?"
"I... I am just slightly stressed... but I will feel better after I talk to you, trust me."
"Alright then. I will wait for you, see you soon Dr. Gaster."
"Yes, I will be over soon you Majesty."
Gaster hung up and put the phone back into his pocket. Despite everything... he could not fight off that feeling of anxiety. He was still feeling a sense of fear about his talk to Asgore. In fact... it felt like he was about to face his biggest fear.
But this time, he knew it was time to be brave.
This was all for them.
He had to do this for those boys that he loved so dearly.
If he really wants to pay and make their life better, it is time to do what is ultimately inevitable and tell the truth to Asgore.
Gaster didn't even bother to try and get some coffee this time. He just went to the bedroom of the three children and opened the door. Luckily, they were all awake. They all turned to look at Gaster. "I have to leave now. You will be alone for a while. Dr. Alphys will stay with you until I come back."
"AH OKAY...?"
"... and what if you don't come back?" The question slipped from Sam's mouth.
"... What?" Gaster asked back as he took a step inside.
"i mean... you're gonna talk to asgore right? like you kept saying... what if you don't come back?" He kept his eyes on Gaster. "and you know what i'm talkin' about."
Gaster's shoulders fell and he sighed. "That is why Alphys will be with you."
"... oh..."
Papyrus looked a little confused, but Kale seemed to understand immediately. "UH... WHAT ARE YOU TWO TALKING ABOUT?"
"Don't... worry about it, Papyrus... it's nothing for you to worry about." Gaster said hesitantly, looking away.
"He's probably right Paps..." Kale quietly added.
"Anyway... I... will be back. I... I promise."
All three of them just nodded as Gaster left the bedroom. The old skeleton walked down the hall and entered the elevator. He pressed the button that will take him to Alphys's lab, and for around 5 minutes the elevator rode until he entered Alphys's. She was there, as always.
"Good morning, Dr. Alphys." He said as he approached her.
"O-Oh! Uh! H-Hey Dr. Gaster!" She said as she clumsily stood up from her desk. Then her eyes widened with surprise and slight worry. "U-Uh w-what happened to your f-face??"
"What?" He tapped the crack under his eye. He completely forgot it was there. He looked away. "Ah... that... don't worry, it's nothing. I just had an... accident... in the lab."
"O-Oh... d-did something happen?"
"No, it's nothing... don't worry about it. I just came to ask you a favor."
"O-Oh o-of course! A-Anything!"
Gaster hesitated for a few moments. "Well... I am going to talk to Asgore now. I will tell him everything. Like I did with you." He paused and looked away. "...I am not sure what will happen after I tell him everything... So I just want you to watch over them... in case I do not get to go back to the lab."
"O-Oh..." Alphys was slightly saddened to hear this... the way Gaster explained. But then she smiled weakly and nodded. "Y-Yeah! S-Sure! I-I can do that! A-And u-uh d-don't worry! I-I am sure nothing will go wrong. A-Asgore will understand!"
Gaster didn't answer to that. He didn't want Asgore to understand. He doesn't deserve to get away with everything he has done without any consequences. "Thank you, Alphys. They are in a separate room in the lab. When I call you... take them to us, to New Home. Or take them, if I... do not call you after a long time."
"U-Uh... a-alright... g-got it. W-Well uh... g-good luck D-Dr. Gaster."
Gaster just nodded. Alphys went to the Elevator while he walked out of her lab and walked through Hotland, to get to the CORE. In the CORE was an elevator that could take him straight to Asgore's castle. Then... he will do what needs to be done.
* * * * *
After some minutes Alphys arrived down in Gaster's lab. "U-Uh... h-hello?" She walked down the hall for a while... until she found a closed door that seemed strangely separated from all of the other rooms. She slowly opened the door and peeked in.
There they all were, sitting on the bed. Papyrus was rolling around the sides of his Rubik's cube while Kale and Sam watched with interest. They all raised their heads however as they saw Alphys poke her head through the door's small opening.
"H-Hi!" She awkwardly waved at them, trying to manage a friendly smile. After Gaster told her everything about these two boys... it felt even stranger to see them again.
"OH!! HI!" Papyrus waved at her.
"S-So uh... I-I'm supposed to s-stay with uh... y-you three. F-For a while..." There was silence for some moments as Alphys sat at the end of the bed.
Sam's eyes suddenly darkened. "so... guess... we won't really see him anymore huh..."
"WHY DO YOU SAY THAT BROTHER?" Papyrus looked at him.
"i mean... if anything happens to him now that he tells the truth to the uh... king..."
His words were followed by a little silence.
"I ... do get the way you feel Sam..." Kale quietly said.
Alphys looked away, sweating a little as she nervously smiled. "D-Don't worry! A-Asgore is r-really nice! I-I am sure y-you will see G-Gaster again, e-even after they're d-done talking!"
"i... i guess..."
"BUT NOW IT'S PUZZLE TIME, SOLVE THIS BROTHER!!"
Sam smiled a little. "okay, fine watch me."
"O-Oh w-what is that?" Alphys tilted her head, looking at the cube with curiosity.
Papyrus looked at her. "OH THIS IS MY COLOR CUBE!! I MAKE MY GREATEST PUZZLES WITH THIS!!"
"and now i'm gonna break a record solving this one." Sam grinned.
"OH TRY IT!! WE WILL SEE ABOUT THAT BROTHER!!"
Alphys's smile got a little wider as she and Kale watched them with great interest.
* * * * *
After the little while of Gaster reaching Asgore's castle, the two of them were now sitting at a table in the living room. Gaster was still gathering his thoughts. A part of him still couldn't believe this was happening. He was sitting here... ready to talk with Asgore... but this walk was going to be unlike any other.
Gaster did not look at Asgore, who however was just waiting for him to finally speak up.
"So... You said you wanted to talk to me about something important? What is it?" Asgore finally asked. Gaster slightly jumped, hearing him suddenly speak. Then he let out an inaudible sigh and looked into the old King's eyes.
"Yes... but first... could I ask you something?"
Asgore slowly nodded, him also looking into Gaster's eyes, not for one second breaking their contact. But only now that Gaster looked up, could Asgore finally notice the crack running down his eye.
"Gaster... your face is..."
"A-Ah I-I... I know... I will...-" Whatever he was going to say then was forgotten as he cut himself off. "... It doesn't matter now..." After a few moments of silence, he got to the question. "Asgore... if I told you I have done something... immensely horrible. Something unforgiving. Something inhumane in these past months. Would you believe me?"
Asgore tilted his head in slight confusion. "Why do you ask that?"
"... You must remember the last time we have talked... when I asked you if you would believe me, that I tortured innocent people for months?"
The question caught Asgore off guard. Then, remembering that afternoon suddenly... his expression turned sadder as he slowly nodded. "... Yes... I do remember. I still do not understand what you meant when you said that."
"Well... I asked that for a reason. Because that did happen."
"What?" Asgore suddenly looked at him.
"The real truth is Asgore... I have been lying to you. To everyone. For a very long time. I have done terrible things in the past. Things that are unforgivable. I have became an even more terrible monster than those Humans who have slain our kind up there in the War..."
In that moment the living room door blast open, the noise sounding like a gunshot in the emptiness of the room. Both Asgore and Gaster shot their gaze at the door and saw that it was Alphys bursting in with Sam and Papyrus by her side.
Notes:
And then, everything escalates.
Alphys did not get any calls from Gaster which just made her anxiety spiral resulting in... what happened here. No worries, Kale is still with them, they are just outside the house since Asgore seeing them would not be very ideal at the moment.
Chapter 20: It all comes out
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
The room fell silent. Confused, questioning, surprised, worried and other such emotions were notable on the expressions of the five monsters in the room.
Gaster's eyes immediately went wide as he saw Alphys barge in with the two young skeleton boys by her side. Alphys's expression looked similar as she seemed to realize the situation. Carefully reading the expressions of both Asgore and Dr. Gaster, she started to realize maybe this wasn't the greatest time for her to come.
The two boys, Sam and Papyrus were clearly lost. All these sudden events were a lot for them to take in. Leaving the lab and traversing through Hotland and the CORE to arrive at New Home. Unknowingly interrupting the King and the Royal Scientist's inevitable and very important discussion.
"Y-You... y-you're still... I-I thought-" Alphys struggled to collect her thoughts but it was obvious she did not mean to break into the scene like this. Drops of sweat were shining on her head as she pinned a gaze to Dr. Gaster nervously. "Y-You... Y-You d-didn't c-c-call I-I-I thought-..."
"I... know Alphys..." He raised a hand, closing his eye. His expression suddenly became... broken. But also tired at the same time.
"Gaster...?" Asgore lightly tilted his head, looking at the old Royal Scientist slowly starting to put the pieces together. Sam and Papyrus were standing behind Alphys, taking nervous glances at both him and the King.
Then Gaster stood up from his seat and walked to the three of them. "Can you... please... wait outside for us, Dr. Alphys?"
"R-Right... o-of course..." She left the room, closing the door behind, leaving the three skeletons alone with the King. Asgore stood up too and he could only take glances at the two smaller skeletons standing beside Gaster. For a few moments, the oldest skeleton could not bare to look up at the face of someone he in a way always identified as a father figure. The two boys both returned Asgore's gaze. Papyrus even managed to slightly wave a hand. "UH... HELLO!" He tried to keep his tone as optimistic and positive as ever, but it was clear the tension was filling the room, as if the four of them were standing in a room about to be turned into ashes by an unstoppable hellfire.
"Gaster, where did these two children come from? I thought you were the only skeleton left." He turned his expression back at the doctor. The latter finally turned up his head, keeping his eye closed for a few moments before he reopened it and his sockets met with the eyes of the old goat monster.
"I made them." He gave the simple yet powerful answer. "I ... created them." He quickly corrected himself. Papyrus couldn't help but rub the metal plate on his left hand that was right now invisible because of the gloves he was wearing. Luckily neither of the two boys need to be told to be quiet. They already felt the weight of the situation and both knew this was not the moment for them to speak.
"You created them?" Asgore echoed the statement. For a swift moment his eye shined with amazement. "That's... incredible. That's really impressive!" Then he paused pointing to the obvious question at hand. "But... how did you manage to create them? When did you do so?"
Gaster couldn't help but close his eye again. He did not give a response, instead he silently held out both his hands for Asgore to look at. Both hands which had the permanent perfectly cut circular holes inside of them. "That... was my first lie. My first, of many." Gaster finally spoke. Asgore raised a brow at him in confusion, but slowly started to put the pieces together. He looked at the holes in Gaster's palms, then at the two boys behind him.
It started to become clear.
Two holes...
Two little skeletons...
"That, was no accident that day. I did this to myself. By my own choice. I willingly cut these holes into my hands."
"But why... would you do that, to yourself?"
"I needed to tear down pieces from my own body, to be able to create these two boys you see here. My hands were... the most easily accessible parts of my body. I also knew, the damage would be least significant if they were made in my hands. There would be limits, but those limits would be easy to overcome. I wasn't going to let anything stop me in achieving my goals that I had in mind and I especially regarded little care to no care for my own emotional and mental health."
"When did you create these two?"
"Several months ago. I altered their growth using the M-D Solutions. I wanted them to be born with the minds of an adult. That however... was not much of a success." Sam couldn't help but let a wry smirk spread on his face, though he looked away so nobody could see. "All this time I have kept them down in my lab."
It took a few moments for Asgore to register Gaster's words but when he did he slowly nodded. He took an awkward glance at the two boys. "Gaster would it be alright if the boys waited outside of the room, with Dr. Alphys while you properly explain to me... about this whole case."
Gaster couldn't not notice the pause Asgore made in the middle of this sentence, but he was not bothered by it. "Of course." He nodded. "You two just stay outside in the hall until we are done talking." He said, turning to the two boys. They both nodded and opened the door, leaving the room. After they did, both Asgore and Gaster sat back down on their chairs to the table, they both set their hands on the table. Gaster still mostly avoided looking into Asgore's eyes.
* * * * *
Alphys, Sam and Papyrus both went outside to the front porch where Kale was sitting. Alphys specifically asked Kale to stay outside of the house for now, since if Asgore saw a Human in this very moment enter New Home... that would not have any good outcomes whatsoever.
"HEY." Papyrus greeted Kale. The young Human was just staring at the ground as they sat on the porch, but looked up when they heard their optimistic skeleton friend's voice. A small smile spread on their face. The two boys sat next to Kale on the steps of the front porch while Alphys kept standing next to them.
"This place is nice." Kale remarked, looking at the cozy garden in front of the house.
"YEAH IT IS..." Papyrus said. Despite his best efforts, his voice right now was not filled with energy and joy like it mostly is. He looked at his brother. Sam had his sockets dark and his round head was turned away from everyone, so he could avoid having to look into anyone's eyes. "DID YOU SEE THE WAY HE WAS LOOKING AT US, SAM? HE LOOKED SO CONFUSED AND... WORRIED. IS SOMETHING WRONG WITH US?"
Sam sighed. "you know we're not exactly... normal. right bro?" He shrugged. His eye sockets were still pitch black. He clenched his left hand into a fist as he could not stop looking at the shiny metal plate still drilled onto the back of his left hand.
"D-Don't worry! N-Nothing is wrong with you! I-I-It's just... w-we haven't really seen a-any skeletons in a v-very long time. W-Well besides Dr. Gaster. S-So this is just uh... r-really unexpected to see you two."
"hm. yeah." Sam said in a cold voice. "guess... so much for a happy ending, huh?"
"SAM..."
"I'm... sure it's... gonna be okay." Kale tried to reassure. But they could not hide the tinge of fear from their town and of course, Sam immediately noticed that.
"you're scared too."
Kale sighed but didn't say anything. Sam still refused to turn his head to look at anyone.
"H-Hey d-don't... b-be like that guys. I-I am sure it's a-all going to go j-just fine!" Alphys smiled nervously.
"yeah? what will even happen to us after this?"
Then the lizard monster's smile slowly faded. "I-I am n-not uh... th-the one who d-decides..."
Papyrus then got up and went to Sam to hug him. "WE'RE GOING TO BE OKAY BROTHER. NO MATTER WHAT HAPPENS. AND WE WILL ALWAYS BE THERE FOR EACH OTHER. NO ONE WOULD EVER TEAR US APART."
Sam finally managed to let a real smile spread on his round face as his white pupils returned into his sockets at last. "yeah... i guess, that's right." He faced Papyrus and hugged back.
* * * * *
The silence was tense. Despite everything, the words just refused to come to Gaster. Despite the fact that Asgore has already seen the two skeleton children with his own eyes... somehow that just made all this even worse. Gaster simply wasn't ready to introduce the boys to Asgore yet. They weren't ready to meet the King yet.
He wanted to explain first.
Then get the three of them to meet.
But everything just collapsed on each other and Alphys showed up with the brothers sooner than expected.
Somehow this event managed to shatter Gaster's confidence even more. (Which already was not that great.)
"Gaster? Would you please tell me more about those two boys?" Asgore finally broke the silence. Gaster slightly shuddered, hearing his voice break the cold eternal silence of the room. He did not look up, he was just grasping his hollowed hands as he kept staring at the table with a blank expression. An expression that in fact was hiding a lot of emotions.
Fear.
Anxiety.
Worry.
Nerve.
It felt as if he was already sitting in a court room and Asgore was questioning him about his crimes, before he ultimately got executed no matter what he has to say in his own defense.
Although his execution was really not what concerned Gaster the most.
It was rather that...
He just couldn't do enough.
For Sam.
For Papyrus.
For Alphys.
For Asgore...
But finally, Gaster managed to speak, though his voice not particularly strong. It was rather small.
"As I have told you... I have created them, with a specific purpose in mind. A specific goal."
"And what exactly is that goal you keep referring to?"
Gaster sighed and finally looked up at the King's eyes. That hard expression he looked into... definitely didn't help with his lack of confidence. "Shortly after the Queen left..." Asgore couldn't help but flinch sadly at the mention of Toriel. "I felt like I had to do something. I felt like I should have done something. I failed both of you already by that point..."
"Gaster, Tori-... her absence was never your fault. I am and always was the only one responsible for that."
"... I felt like I desperately had to do something. I couldn't bare to loose you too, Asgore. Not after everything that happened." Gaster's expression shifted into a broken one as the words suddenly seemed to flow out of him on their own. Though the doctor would not stop shaking as he kept speaking. "I couldn't bare to fail you again. So... I started doing long research. I wanted to find out what is this power... this power that Humans possess. This power that makes them so much stronger than us. Then... I was thinking of a way to recreate this power. I was thinking if there was a way... a monster could possess this power. I was... blindly determined. I was not going to let anything stop me. I kept telling myself, this was the only way. That there was no turning back. That I was the only person who could do this. Who will do this. I was trying to recreate the Humans' power inside a monster, to be able to break the Barrier without having to use any Human souls."
"Gaster..."
"I wanted to spare you from having to kill Humans against your own will..." Gaster paused for a moment, but when Asgore did not say anything, he went on. "So, I have created those two boys you have seen just moments ago. I created them with the purpose of using them as weapons to break the Barrier. I wanted to train them, give them the power of Seven Humans Souls so they would be capable of destroying the Barrier without any real need for any Human Souls. I knew I had to take steps, to prevent myself from getting attached to them. I had to convince myself I did not care about them, if I truly wanted to carry out the project."
He paused again, taking a shuddering breath. He had to close his eyes once again as he continued.
"So... I choose to drill metal plates into both of their left hands. I choose to label them as test subjects. As objects. As... things... and I refused to acknowledge them as real sentient living beings. But... despite all my efforts... I could not stop caring about them from the start. I felt more and more horrible for my actions, the more I did." Gaster's hands clenched into fists. His voice was trembling as he went on. "I have put them through agonies, unforgettable torture and pain, when they never deserved it, I scarred them for life, both physically and emotionally and gave them such scars that they will never be able to heal from, I have ruined their childhood, I have ruined the rest of their life, because I know, no matter what I do, no matter how hard I try, I will NEVER be able to make up for everything I have done to them and they will ALWAYS carry the scars I have given them, the scars I am responsible for!!"
"Gaster!"
Gaster was loosing himself he slammed a hand on the table before Asgore's voice managed to snap him out of it. The red glow from his eyes disappeared as he took a long breath to calm himself.
"So what made you change? Knowing what you have told me before and just now... I assume there was a reason to make the decision to tell everything to me and presumably Dr. Alphys before."
"I... last time when we talked... they escaped from the lab. Alphys found them. The small-... little one, Sam. He... was feeling trapped in that lab for a long time now and he convinced Papyrus to come along with him and escape... before I would have the chance to find them."
"Is that when you told all this to Alphys?"
Gaster nodded. "Yes... and I knew... I had to tell you everything soon, know that Alphys knew. I... you deserved to know the truth. The truth of what I have done. The truth... that I am no great scientist. I am not an unparalleled perfect genius everyone knows me as. I am nothing but a coward. A selfish disgrace. I have put innocent children through unimaginable torture for the sake of achieving my own goals, I..." He cut himself off. He lowered his hands under the table, his head even lower as he was now staring at the floor with complete shame. "If you wish to fire me from my position... if you wish me to spend a life time in jail... if you want to execute me. I will understand. All I ask you, is please, make sure Sam and Papyrus will be happy and in good hands. I know... they do not really need me to have a good life. After all I have done to them. I do not deserve them either, after all I've done."
Gaster specifically made sure to leave out any details that could even hint at Kale. For a few moments there was silence. "Could you please let them in?"
"What?" Gaster looked up.
"I want to talk to both boys in private. Then, I will make the decision what happens to you. All of you."
Based on how he said his last words... Gaster knew that included Alphys as well. "Please, do not hold Alphys responsible. I asked her to not tell you a word about all this. I wanted to tell you everything personally."
"Yes, I understand that."
Gaster just stood up. "I will... get them for you."
Asgore nodded in response. Gaster walked out of the room. After finding all bedrooms empty he went outside to the front porch. There they all were. Alphys, Sam, Papyrus, and Kale.
"The King wants to talk to you two." He said, directing his words at Sam and Papyrus. The brother looked at each other and stood up. "UH... OKAY?"
They held each other's hand gently as they walked in the front door. It was now Gaster's turn to sit on the steps. He looked down at the ground, letting his arms rest on his knees. "So you are here." He said, his sentence directed to Kale. "Ah... yeah... I've been staying out here."
"I-I d-didn't want Asgore to uh... y-you know." Alphys fiddled with her fingers. Gaster nodded slowly in response. For a few moments there was just silence. "I-I'm so sorry Gaster! I-I know I sh-shouldn't have b-brought them yet, b-but y-you weren't c-calling and I-I thought- we-we got worried a-and..."
"I know, I know... do not worry about it, Alphys. I should have... been more careful with my wording..."
"S-So uh... h-h-how did it go, by the way?"
Gaster shrugged. "I have told him everything I needed to tell. Now... what happens next is beyond my control. It will all be up to him." He looked up.
Kale looked away. "I'm sorry for-"
"No, no." Gaster raised a hand. "No apologies. I do not want any apologies from anyone, to me... Besides, you never did anything wrong."
"But I-"
"I used your Determination, I caused all of that from the beginning, you had no control over anything that happened. You have nothing to apologize for. I however am sorry for the way I have been acting towards you."
"It's... it's cool. I-I mean... I understand why you did. Not like others didn't try to kill me before I met all of you." They smiled a little.
"By the way... Asgore will want to talk to you as well, Alphys. When he is done talking with them.
"O-Oh... m-me? B-But- w-why me?"
"I don't know... we will have to see."
* * * * *
Sam and Papyrus entered the living room. Asgore was waiting for them, still sitting at the table. "OH UH... HELLO MR... KING, SIR!" Papyrus spoke up, a little shy. Sam had his eyes pinned on the floor, his sockets were pitch black.
"Howdy, you two. Please take a seat." He pointed at the two chairs. The two walked to the table and sat down. Sam didn't stop staring at the floor with eyes that resembled the darkest skies at a late hour.
"Are you alright, little one?"
"UH OH DON'T WORRY ABOUT HIM HE'S JUST-!"
"i'm fine." Sam suddenly said, his eyes turning normal again. "what's gonna happen to us?"
"Ah... well I have yet to determine what exactly will happen. But I assure you. No matter what, you both will be safe and in good hands." For a few moments there was silence, so Asgore went on. "I have talked with Dr. Gaster and he has told me about what you two have been through down in that lab. May I... see your plates?"
The question caught both of them off guard. Papyrus, hesitantly but took off his glove from his left hand.
Sam did not move an inch.
"COME NOW, BROTHER..."
After some moments, Sam also put his left hand on the table. Asgore examined the shining gray plates drilled on their hands.
Plates with the initials, WDG-1S and WDG-2P.
They were notable drilled into their hands with screws. Didn't look like they could be easily removed.
Asgore just hummed quietly, seeing them. As he seemed like he was done looking at them both brothers lowered their hands.
"IT WAS REALLY... SCARY... AND IT HURT A LOT..." Papyrus quietly said. Sam just kept looking away with a dark expression.
"I... can imagine. If I am not asking too much, could you tell me about what kind of experiences you had down in that lab?"
There was silence for a few moments, once again.
"yeah well, kinda sucked. mostly my bro had to pay the price for everything. even when i did somethin' wrong. i have a ... delicate body and soul. or somethin' like that."
"Hmm... and what exactly does that mean."
Sam shrugged. "one small hit and i'm gone."
"Ah..."
"IT WAS REALLY SCARY SOMETIMES DOWN THERE... SOMETIMES HE SHOT LASERS IN OUR EYES... OR DID OTHER SCARY EXPERIMENTS."
"or broke paps' bones just to see what happens..." His eyes turned dark. "one of those times almost got me killed."
Papyrus looked away really uncomfortably... remembering that horrific day.
"I... see..." Asgore slowly said, his brows furrowing. "Well... I can really tell you have both been through a lot."
"UH BUT! THOUGH! HE HAS BEEN NICER TO US SINCE! UH MY BROTHER UH... ONE TIME HE GOT REALLY HURT. AND HE WAS WORKING SO HARD TO FIX HIM AND SAVE HIM AND FIND OUT HOW TO CURE HIM. HE... HE DIDN'T GET SLEEP FOR DAYS. AND HE LOOKED REALLY STRESSED AND TIRED ALL THE TIME. AND WHEN MY BROTHER WOKE UP HE APOLOGIZED TO US AND TOLD US HE ACTUALLY CARES ABOUT US AND LOVED US AND HE SAID HE WILL LET US GO OUTSIDE AND LET US HAVE A BETTER LIFE AFTER HE'S TALKED TO YOU!"
All of this at once, Asgore took some moments to properly register everything of what Papyrus said. Knowing that Gaster did try to make amends with these boys... that he did try to make things better for them at one point, even if it led to them having to endure a lot of suffering and pain before that could happen. That was something that in a way was reassuring to Asgore.
"sometimes i... don't really get him. i was kinda doubting it was true till he... told me a bunch of stuff."
"Well yes, given what I have heard about you both, I do not blame you for that. But now, I can assure you everything is going to change for both of you, for the better. Nobody will hurt you anymore."
"YEAH!! IT'S GONNA BE SO MUCH BETTER, RIGHT BROTHER?"
"... yeah... guess that's right."
"If you can tell me, what exactly happened to your brother that made him get so severely injured?"
"OH WELL HE USED SOME-"
Sam nudged Papyrus under the table. "eh we don't need to bring about that. it's a pretty nasty memory." He, unlike Papyrus had a feeling that talking to Kale about Asgore in this moment would not be a very good thing regarding their dear Human friend's safety. On the other hand it was really not a nice memory that Papyrus or Sam fondly thought of. Especially since Sam still got frequent nightmares about that day. "but uh yeah he did a pretty big screw up accident in one of his experiments. i guess that was the moment he realized he's not really been nice to us and decided he no longer wanted to torture us and stuff." The smaller skeleton shrugged. "but meh. didn't see too much of that, paps was the one who was really there."
"Hm I see..." Asgore was silent for a few moments, then he placed his big paws on the table looking at both boys. "I see that you... all three of you have been through a lot in these last several months. You both must have endured some very terrific moments in your life... at such a young age, as well. But from what you and Dr. Gaster have told me, I can see that he did have a change of heart regarding his... experiments with you two. And I can see you are both two innocent, young, wonderful minds that of course deserve to get a healthy and happy life."
The brothers looked at each other, then looked back at Asgore. The King stood up. "Please, stay here I will be a moment."
* * * * *
After a few moments, all five monsters were gathered in the living room. Sam Pap and Alphys were standing beside the table at which Asgore and Gaster were sitting at, facing each other. Gaster and Alphys both specifically remarked for Kale to stay outside so they were still out there, sitting at the front porch waiting for the long conversation inside the house to end.
Asgore then spoke up, breaking the silence. "So, after I have made some important conversing with Dr. Gaster and these two young boys and of course, after some long and careful thinking, I have came to a conclusion that regards all four of you." His gaze ran through everyone in the room then he stopped at Gaster who looked back at him. From the scientist's expression it was clear he was still filled with fear and anxiety. But after telling the full truth to Asgore... he felt slightly lighter. The hardest part was done. Being honest. That part was done. So now, all that was left is pay the price for his crimes and he was ready for that to happen through several months.
"Gaster. After what you have told me and what I have heard from your boys... It is clear you have done some indeed gravely terrible acts. For one, you have greatly disobeyed my direct orders. I have told you many times, as King of the Underground and Monster Kind, dealing with the Barrier is my and only my duty and responsibility. Yet, you have secretly created two children and illegally tried to use them for the purpose of destroying the Barrier despite me telling you countless of times, the Barrier is not your concern, but mine."
Gaster just closed his eye and looked down in shame.
It was time.
Those words of disappointment coming from Asgore felt like a sharp, merciless stab through his very soul. But he knew he deserved all of this and this was a long time coming for him.
"So, you have not only disobeyed my orders, you have lied to me and several others for many months and you have also illegally locked up two innocent young children into your lab for countless months and used them as your experiments, treating them as objects and undeservedly putting them through agonies, such no one can imagine AND you have put yourself through severe mental trauma through your project and you showed little to no concern to not only these two children's proper health, but for your own as well. Until you were forced to realize the wrong in your actions after an accident."
Gaster just slowly nodded, miserably.
"Yes... your Majesty."
"In such a case, the most logical thing I should be doing is at least removing you from your position as Royal Scientist and sentencing you for jail for a good while."
Gaster shuddered. It was time. Now came, what had to come.
Alphys, Papyrus and Sam shared worried glances, switching looks between Gaster and the King.
"... However-"
"NO!! YOU CANNOT DO THAT TO HIM!!" Papyrus suddenly stepped forward. Everyone shot their eyes at him.
"... Papyrus..." Gaster tried to interrupt, but there was a shine of determination in the young skeleton's eyes as he straightened up and kept going.
"YES, HE DID SOME VERY, VERY, VERY, VERY BAD THINGS! REALLY TERRIBLE THINGS! BUT HE NOTICED HIS MISTAKES, HE SAW WHAT HE DID WRONG AND HE WAS KIND AND NICE TO US WHEN WE MOST NEEDED HIM TO BE!! HE APOLOGIZED AND PROMISED US THAT HE WILL BE A BETTER PERSON TO US AND HE HAS BEEN TRYING REALLY HARD!! SO HE DOESN'T DESERVE EVERYTHING TO BE TAKEN FROM HIM NOW, WHEN HE'S ONLY JUST STARTED TO BECOME BETTER!!"
As Papyrus stopped talking... surprisingly... there was a warm smile spreading on Asgore's face.
"Do not worry, little one. I, did not have any real intention of carrying out any of the said punishments, to Gaster."
Suddenly Gaster turned away from Papyrus to look at Asgore with wide, surprised eyes. "... What?"
"After all that I have heard, and as the little one explained here, I can see that you have realized your grave mistakes and are desperately want to try and fix them and you put a great deal of effort into that."
"But, your Majesty I-"
"Furthermore, all three of you are looking towards a brighter and better future. Even as King, I do not have any rights to rob all of you from a better life, after the mental traumas you have all endured."
"But I-"
"And finally." Asgore raised a hand as he kept going. "Gaster... who on Earth says I am any better person than you?"
Hearing that finally made Gaster's mouth close as he started at Asgore.
"Gaster... I have killed four innocent, young Human Children with the purpose of breaking the Barrier. You have put two innocent skeleton children through horrific experiments with the purpose of breaking the Barrier, but in the end you have stopped and started to show them more kindness, thanks to your better judgement and your golden heart that you have always had since your childhood, even if you tried to deny it so many times."
Gaster looked down and placed a hand on his chest as Asgore said that, his expression turning into one of sad nostalgia.
"So... you are clearly not worse than me, and I am not better than you. While I admit I am severely disappointed that you have lied to me and put yourself and these two boys through a great deal of trauma, accomplishing such horrible actions that I never even thought you would ever do, playing around with my and many others' trust..." He smiled again. "I can see that you have learned from your mistakes and are working steadily to become an even greater person."
"But... your Majesty... don't you..." Gaster slowly looked at him. "... Hate me now?"
Asgore's smile faded.
"As you said... I lied to you! I lied to everyone! I've put two innocent children through horrible experiments, I have deceived everyone in this room I am a monster!" At this moment... Gaster could no longer hold back his tears... "... Why are all of you being so ... n i c e ... to me?"
"... c'mon doc..." Sam finally spoke up. At this moment... he could not bare not feel bad for his creator, his... father... who looked so miserable right now, in this state.
"G-Gaster... p-please... c-c-calm down. I-I-It's alright." Alphys approached him.
"No it's not alright. Nothing I ever did was ever alright. I never deserved people like you in my life."
"Gaster." He felt a big hand settle on his shoulder. He looked up with a tear stained face, for his expression to meet with Asgore's. "Even though, punishing you for your actions would be the right and logical choice here, you have been through enough pain in your life as it is. I do not need to add to the pile. Most importantly. Nothing you could do, could ever make me hate you, Gaster. You have always been one of the most important people in my life..." He looked away. "And you are the only one I can still consider family... ever since Tori left..."
He just sniffed, wiping away his tears. "... But I-..."
"No more buts. Please." Asgore tilted his head, looking at Gaster with a compassionate expression.
Asgore let him go and Gaster wiped away his tears, standing up from his seat. "So... what will happen now?"
"Well, if it is not too much to ask, I would like you and the boys to stay here for a while. At least until you know where you want to go with them, to live."
Gaster looked at the two. Then... he finally smiled, weakly. "Well... that can work."
"I am glad." Asgore smiled too. "Furthermore," Asgore went on. "I want to ask you. Please... do not harm yourself anymore and do not lie to me again. Alright?"
Gaster nodded. "Yes, of course, your Highness."
"A-A-And uh... y-your Majesty... w-what about me? Y-You w-wanted to uh... t-tell me something too, right?"
"Ah yes, Dr. Alphys. I would like Dr. Gaster to now share his lab with you."
"What?" Gaster's eyes went wide.
"What??" Alphys's expression turned the same as both her and Gaster looked at the King. A soft smile spread on his face.
"You are both the greatest scientists the Underground could have and from this day forth, I want both of you to work together in one lab. It is clear, you are both capable of extraordinary things, if both your brilliant minds are put together." His expression turned a little more stern. "Also this could... prevent you from trying to hide dangerous illegal things in your lab." He told Gaster, with a bit more of a firm voice.
"Yes, your Majesty."
"U-Uh! Y-Yeah! T-That uh... c-could work... I-I-I guess... ehehe..." Alphys started blushing as she looked away.
"Well then, I am glad we could settle all of this." Asgore stepped closer to the skeleton brothers. "So for now, you two along with Dr. Gaster will be staying here. Papyrus... and...?" He looked at the smaller skeleton. He looked away for a moment, but then turned his gaze back at Asgore.
"... sans. it's sans."
Notes:
It was hard for Gaster to get to this point... But now, things might finally be looking better! Right...?
Chapter 21: The fallen crown
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
"IT'S REALLY NICE IN HERE... THE BED IS SO SOFT AND WARM. AND LOOK AT ALL THE STRIPED SHIRTS!!"
"yeah... it's nice."
It has been a little while. A few days passed in New Home. Gaster was mostly either in his lab, now accompanied by Alphys, or staying in Asgore's room when he could.
The two brothers, Sans and Papyrus were staying in the old room of the two fallen Royal Children, Chara and Asriel Dreemurr. There were two soft beds... wardrobe full of striped shirts all very similar... lot of toys, interesting children's books. But somehow... something just didn't feel right.
Somehow all this just didn't feel right, to Sans.
Not just to Sans, but Papyrus either. But of course the younger skeleton would never admit that openly.
Not to mention that the two of them have not even see Kale once in the three days.
It just felt like their Human friend just... vanished. Without a trace. Without any explanation.
But well... Kale was still in the Underground. They were forced to stay in Alphys and Gaster's lab. For if they ever came to face Asgore... the end results could be dire. But the two skeleton brothers couldn't know that.
Papyrus was reading a book right now, while his brother Sans was curled up into a ball on the right bed that he was sitting. Papyrus stood up with slight tinge of worry, looking at him. "ARE YOU OKAY?"
"i..." Sans looked away. "i dunno."
"... SANS?"
"i mean..." He stood up from the bed and looked around the old bedroom. "this is all really nice an' stuff but it feels a bit... empty. lonely. i mean it's just been us in here. asgore, G, me and you. do you feel it too? or is it really just me?" He sat back down on the bed and rubbed his forehead. "what's wrong with me..."
"NOTHING IS WRONG WITH YOU BROTHER!!" Papyrus said with a little sharper voice than intended. "I UH... KIND OF GET WHAT YOU MEAN...?" He sat next to Sans on the bed.
"really?" Sans looked up at him as Papyrus sat down next to him.
"UH..." Papyrus looked away and smiled a little guiltily. "OKAY NOT ACTUALLY... I DON'T EXACTLY GET WHAT YOU MEAN. BUT WE CAN TALK ABOUT IT! YOU CAN TELL ME WHAT'S WRONG AND MAYBE I COULD HELP!" Papyrus closed his eyes and smiled, proudly placing a hand on his chest. "USING MY PERFECT SKILLS OF EMPATHY AND ENCOURAGEMENT AND MY COOL CHARISMA!! NYEH HEH HEH!"
Sans finally smiled a little. "yeah. you're the coolest bro." But then his smile faded and he looked up. "i guess what i'm try'na say... whose room are we in?"
"HUH?"
"i mean... we've been staying in this room for a while and sleepin' here... playing with the toys, reading old books. there are even clothes in the wardrobe. it feels like we're in someone else's room. but we haven't seen anyone here. know what i mean?"
"OH... WELL... WHEN YOU PUT IT LIKE THAT I DO GET IT. KINDA. MAYBE THEY'RE ON HOLIDAY?" Papyrus then raised a brow and looked away getting confused by his own question. "... DO MONSTERS GET HOLIDAY?"
"or maybe they're not around anymore." Sans muttered with dark eyes.
Papyrus didn't seem to completely understand what he said. "WHAT?"
"eh, nothin'." Sans shrugged, his eyes turning back to normal as his permanent grin appeared on his face. "let's get somethin' to eat, i'm really hungry."
"OH YEAH, ME TOO!! MAYBE THERE'S MORE COOKIES!!"
They stood up from the bed and walked into the living room. Asgore was sitting in a great reading chair, reading a book. It was one of those early afternoons when Gaster was working either in the lab with Alphys, or in the CORE, so it was just the three of them in here for now.
"Ah, howdy little ones! Is there anything you want?" Asgore looked up from his book.
"we were just a bit hungry." Sans said as they both sat down on the chairs by the table.
"Ah well what would you like?" Asgore set the book down, standing up.
Papyrus's eyes shined. "OH!! ARE THERE ANY MORE OF THOSE NICE COOKIES?" Asgore smiled. "Yes, I am sure there are still some left."
"i guess i'll go with cookies too." Sans shrugged. He really didn't mind what he was eating as long as it cured his hunger.
"Would any of you like some tea?"
"I DO! I WANT SOME!!"
"Alright, I will be back soon."
Asgore walked to the kitchen while Sans and Papyrus just patiently waited at the dining table. Sans sighed. "then again bro..." He started twisting back to their conversation in the bedroom. "maybe i'm just... not ready."
"NOT READY FOR... WHAT, SANS?" Papyrus tilted his head in slight confusion.
"not ready to..." Sans paused. It was a little hard to put into words, what he wanted to say. "well... if i'm gonna put it simply. i guess i'm not ready to... move on, you know?"
"HUH? WE'RE FINALLY OUTSIDE NOW! AND WE'RE HAPPY!! THAT'S EVERYTHING BOTH OF US WANTED ISN'T IT?"
"yeah, yeah i mean... not like that it's just... it's hard to let go of everything that happened down there all of a sudden." He took a dark glance at the metal plate on his hand. "this is still a lot to take in. at least for me. i mean a few days ago i was just wakin' up from a coma that lasted like weeks, then... next thing i know suddenly he is telling everyone everything about all that's happened to us and we're having a normal life at last."
"HMM... YEAH, I DO GET THAT. AND I MEAN IT THIS TIME!!" Papyrus held Sans's right hand under the table. "BUT DO NOT WORRY SANS. YOU WON'T HAVE TO GET OVER IT ALONE. BECAUSE I WILL ALWAYS BE BY YOUR SIDE. I WILL ALWAYS HELP YOU GET THROUGH THE HARD TIMES. WE WILL ALWAYS BE INSEPARABLE!!"
A warm smile spread on Sans's face. "... yeah... i guess that's right. thanks bro."
"OF COURSE, BROTHER. ANYTIME."
Asgore soon returned with the cookies and tea. Papyrus and Sans after eating them and drinking the tea both stood up, ready to go back to their bedroom.
But Sans fell behind for a moment.
"hey asgore, can i ask somethin'?"
"Yes?" He looked at Sans. Sans fully turned back to him. He stared down at the floor with dark eyes before asking his question. "... whose room are we stayin' in?"
"... Excuse me?" Asgore tilted his head with slight confusion, seemingly not fully understanding the question.
"i mean, y'know all that stuff musta belonged to someone. just wondering whose that room was before we started stayin' there." Sans shrugged it off and tried to act natural.
But to tell the perfect truth, Sans did have a slight hunch. He remembered... reading those old history books in Gaster's lab. In the book Asgore's name was mentioned several times. It has also been mentioned quite a few times, the King and Queen did have children. But Sans felt like asking about the children directly would be mildly indiscreet.
Asgore looked down. "Ah... yes indeed." He paused for a moment. "Do not worry. That room is yours now as long as you stay here."
"is it because they're not around anymore?"
Asgore was slightly surprised hearing that and was a little confused to what Sans meant exactly. The smaller skeleton awkwardly rubbed the back of his skull and looked away. "uh sorry it's just... i've read like... history books, down in the lab." His eyes turned dark for a moment. "was just wondering... if it was all true."
"Ah.." Asgore's expression turned saddened. "Then... you must already be aware."
Sans nodded after a few moments of hesitation. "... yeah. i'm sorry if i'm being a bit uh... nosy. it's just... kinda grim. stayin' in the room of two kids who..." He didn't end up finishing what he wanted to say. But Asgore nodded in understanding.
"Yes, I know. It has been very hard in this empty house. I am just glad you two are staying, for now."
"... yeah... it's cool." Sans then buried his hands into the pocket of his pants. "welp i'm uh... gonna catch up to paps now."
Asgore nodded. "If either of you are in need of anything, I am here."
"yeah, cool." Sans waved and walked back into the bedroom, lying on the bed on the right side. Papyrus was sitting on the left bed, still reading that book he left off.
"there may have been two kids in this room who are dead now." Sans thought. He rolled over on the bed. "but heck i like this room." He smiled, closing his eyes and soon falling into sleep, after his nonexistent stomach has been filled with delicious, crunchy chocolate chip cookies and a nice hot cup of tea.
* * * * *
The lab was silent. Mostly silent. Gaster and Alphys were both doing different work on their computers in the office. But... the two monsters were not alone either.
In fact... in the past days, Kale has been forced to stay down in the lab. Sans and Papyrus spent all days in New Home. Gaster and Alphys were working... and Kale...
Was just staying in the lab.
Alone.
Day and night.
As much as they tried to repress this feeling, they were getting sick of this isolation. Being held in the same building for days, like an endangered prisoner.
Not only that, Alphys seemed to notice something was up, too.
It was as if...
Gaster didn't want to make any effort at giving a different home to Sans and Papyrus.
In his eyes, the two boys were just fine all on their own. The two of them, with Asgore. Gaster knew... those boys did not need such a disgrace like himself in their life, especially not after what he has done to them in the past.
Right now... Gaster just wanted the two of them happy.
Even if he's not happy, they are and that was all that mattered in his eyes.
Asgore and Kale were both safe, neither of them being in a life threatening situation. Neither of them being endangered by the other's presence. Neither of their souls were going to be claimed anytime soon.
It was strange... Gaster would have never imagined he would get so concerned with a Human's safety.
But right now, all that mattered to him, is to keep those who he holds dearest to his heart safe. To make sure the people he cherished the most were happy.
That was all that concerned him.
He was already feeling terrible about himself, for Asgore not punishing him.
He did not deserve such mercy from anyone, certainly not the King.
But he took extra care to repress these thoughts and not show them to anyone.
"Uh... Gaster?" Kale broke the long everlasting silence that seemed to never have an end down here lately.
"Hmm?" Gaster did not look at them, but Kale stood up from the bed.
"... So... when can I leave...?" They carefully asked.
But Gaster gave no response.
Alphys just took a nervous glance at the two from her work.
Kale... tried their very best to stay cool through all this.
But this was just enough now.
"I mean look. I tried to act like I'm fine with this. I swear, I really did. But this is not fine anymore! Just... what are you even planning now? You told me, we both agreed I cannot stay down here forever but you just keep me here anyway?? Where are you going with all this? When can I leave? I've been down here for so long, I want to go home!"
Gaster seemed to pause. But he did not say anything for now. Alphys however could not ignore the situation for longer.
"I mean... everyone got their closure right? They're all fine. So... why can't I get mine?"
"It is not about you. Really." Gaster suddenly spoke up, placing a hand on his forehead as he finally looked at Kale. "The problem is with me. It always has been."
"... Huh?" Kale now tilted their head in a confused manner.
"W-What are you t-talking about, G-Gaster?" Alphys also looked at the old skeleton.
He let out a sigh. "I ... I just want everyone to be happy. I just want them to be alright. But I am just... not good enough for them. I do not deserve them and they deserve someone that is better than me. Someone like Asgore. He also deserves better. He never deserved any of what happened to him. I have no right... to take from them, something that already makes them happy."
"B-But ... G-Gaster... what if they w-want you though?" Alphys stood up and walked to him. "I-I mean... A-A-Asgore is r-really nice but... w-what if i-it's really y-you they need?"
Gaster looked away. "Why on Earth would they need someone like me? Why on Earth would they... want... someone like me?"
"Because for one..." Kale suddenly spoke up. "Papyrus believes in you. For two, Sans was willing to give you a second chance to see if you can become better. Sure you gave them a pretty content life now but... you don't really show them what is great about you, you know?"
"Nothing. Nothing is great about me. I have nothing to show them. They are better off if I am never a part of their life from now."
"That is not true." Alphys walked closer to Gaster. "L-Look! I-I get that you feel bad... b-but... i-it all worked out in the end, r-right? I-I mean... s-something ch-changed. B-But only for the b-better. N-Now y-you have a chance to r-restart with them. B-Be b-better for them. S-So! Y-You d-don't just... g-give up now! N-Now when things are starting to look b-better!"
"But... Alphys..." Gaster closed his eye for a moment. Then he reopened them. "You know. You know, what happens if I let them meet Asgore." He looked down. Gaster looked down at his hands with the permanent holes in them, his voice turning broken. "I cannot... let it happen..."
Alphys looked away with an expression that also looked saddened, suddenly.
"I won't hurt him." Kale reassured. "I promise. It'll all be fine."
"No, that's the problem..." Gaster muttered in a cold voice. "If you do not fight. You will be killed. Then... that is another soul for Asgore to collect. This has already happened four times. The fifth time is not going to be any different..."
"But... I-I..." Kale tried to deny Gaster's words. But... somehow, right now... they really couldn't. They really didn't have anything to say.
"Exactly." Gaster responded to the silence. He sighed again and looked back at Kale... this time with an expression that showed slight curiosity. "Tell me, please. Why would you come down here? Why would you climb this cursed mountain?"
There was a moment of pause.
"Everyone who climbs down disappears, am I wrong?"
"I... actually..." Kale looked away a certain sadness appearing on their expression now, as well. "... climbed down because of that. My... my mom. She disappeared years ago. I thought maybe she... climbed down here. Maybe that's where she was gone. But she... wasn't down here... so..." Kale was left silenced. Gaster and Alphys couldn't say anything either. "I just want to go home... please. I don't care what happens if I meet Asgore. I want to go home. Or I'll die trying. I don't even care anymore."
Gaster let out a sigh... defeated. "... Alright... alright. I suppose you are right. I cannot keep you here forever." He stood up from his chair. "But you both please stay here for a little while. At least let me tell Asgore you are down here myself. That is... another lie, that I need to uncover."
"U-Uh... a-alright. G-Good luck."
Gaster nodded at Alphys and stopped for a moment to look back at Kale. "Please... come talk to me before you go to face Asgore."
Kale slowly nodded. "... Sure."
"You will know when you can come, Alphys. I am sure of it."
"Y-Yeah... alright."
With that, Gaster left the office.
Kale for now just sat back down on the bed and Alphys sat on a chair too.
"Is... it gonna be that bad?" They looked at Alphys. "What's going to happen?"
Alphys looked away. She forced a reassuring smile on her face. "D-Don't worry! G-Gaster just worries a lot. B-But! I-I am sure you can talk to Asgore and a-ask him to let you go home! T-Then... you can p-pass the Barrier! W-With your powerful Human soul!"
"Really? That's all?"
"Y-Yeah! S-So! D-Don't worry! It's all going to be okay!" He smiled faded as her eyes stared down at the dusty floor. "I-It... will all be fine... ehehehe..."
* * * * *
In an unexpectedly short amount of time, Gaster already found himself in New Home and before he could really process what was happening he was already standing in front of Asgore, ready to talk to him. As if his conscious mind has left him for a good while and only just returned to him now.
"I... am listening, Gaster you said you wanted to tell me something?"
"Yes I..." Gaster quickly said after his conscious mind returned to him. "There is... one last thing I was not completely honest about, Asgore. I am sorry..."
"... and what is that?"
"It's about a Human." Gaster said it, with no holding back, no hesitation. Just said it.
What would come after this, would not involve Asgore anyway, might as well just get this conversation done, fast.
"A... Human?" Asgore asked with slight wariness and concern in his voice.
Gaster nodded. "I... kept them hidden. I didn't want..." His sentence trailed off... but Asgore seemed to understand.
"I... see. But you know, what must be done when a Human falls down."
"Yes... I know." He gave another deep nod.
"... Where is this Human now?"
"In the lab... with Dr. Alphys."
Asgore only just silently nodded. He slowly stood up from the chair he was sitting and took a step closer to Gaster. "Well now... we both now what will happen."
Gaster closed his eye... and silently nodded once more. He was at a loss for words.
"I... will be alright..." Obvious lie. But for now... that did not matter. Asgore did not want Gaster feeling any pity to him before this inevitable moment.
Gaster this time... did not nod. He just walked away into an empty bedroom.
"Yes. You will be alright. Because it is not your soul that gets claimed this time."
* * * * *
Before they really knew what was happening to them...
They were already standing outside of New Home, hitting a new save star that would save their location.
Flowey said they were special. That was why they were capable of saving. Of... RESETting...
Kale did not exactly understand, even now what made them so special. But in this moment, it did not matter. They stepped forward into the room where Asgore was awaiting.
By none other than the Barrier itself.
The Barrier... which seemed like a wall up close. A mesmerizing endless wall.
"This... is the Barrier. This is what keeps us, Monsters trapped Underground." Asgore paused. From where he was standing, Kale could only see his back and yet there was a certain weight in the situation. There was a certain pressure in the room. In the room that just looked like an endless black hole than sometimes ran into white, then back to black, over and over. "I assume... you are already aware of what we must do."
"Um... yes..." Kale said in a small voice.
There was another long pause.
"If... If by chance you have any unfinished business... anything you wish to attend to... anything you wish to get done... please, do what you must."
Kale took a moment to think. On the second thought... it wouldn't hurt to say goodbye to Sans and Papyrus. Kale did very much doubt that they will ever get the chance to come down here. To... see their dear skeleton friends again. This could very well be the last time they will ever talk.
And... Kale did not talk with Gaster, like he had asked.
"I uh... actually do want to... just... say bye to Sans and Papyrus."
Another long pause.
"I understand. Please do what you must."
Kale left the room and returned back into New Home. They entered the rooms of Sans and Papyrus and tried to force a weak smile on their face.
"Hey... guys..."
"OH!! KALE!! YOU'RE HERE!! WE HAVEN'T SEEN YOU IN SO LONG!!!"
"Heh, yeah I-I know..."
"uh hey... you okay?" Sans couldn't help not notice Kale's saddened expression.
"Well I actually came to... say goodbye."
Sans's expression darkened. "... goodbye? you're leaving?"
"ARE YOU REALLY LEAVING?? BUT WHY?"
"Look... I loved being here. This whole world is so wonderful and you two are the best friends I ever had. But... I have to go. Back to the Surface... back to my... own dad, my own home. You know?"
"OH..."
There were some moments of silence.
"i guess this is really goodbye then, huh?"
"Yeah... I guess..."
Sans looked up. As much as he wanted to try and force a smile... he really couldn't. "well... we'll miss you. thanks for everything."
"Yeah, I'll miss you too. Both of you."
Papyrus gave Kale a big hug and Kale did not hesitate to return it. They finally managed to let a real smile spread on their face. "Bye, guys. I... I loved meeting you. I hope stuff gets better for you up there."
"GOODBYE, HUMAN KALE..."
"... yeah... see ya around, i guess."
Kale waved their hand with a small smile as they left the bedroom.
Now... they knew Gaster also wanted to talk to them. So Kale went to the room at the end of the hall. Gaster was indeed there, waiting.
"Ah, good. You are here." He said as he saw Kale entering the room.
"Uh yeah, hey Gaster."
"So... you must wonder what I wanted to talk about."
"Uh... yeah...?" Kale looked away a little. Gaster walked closer to them and his expression turned into one of... just pure emptiness. "You cannot go home." He said bluntly in a cold voice.
"What? Why?" Kale looked at him confused. Also a little worried.
"Because... a Human on their own cannot pass the Barrier. You need... a Monster's Soul."
There was long moment of silence in the room. Kale had to take their time to fully process... what exactly that meant. "But... that means..."
"If you fight with Asgore. One of you is going to end up dead."
"But- I-"
"So..." Gaster interrupted. "Do it."
"Um... what?" Kale did not really process the words coming from Gaster.
"Kill me. Take my Soul and leave."
When Kale realized what Gaster was saying their eyes widened with shock. "Wh-what?? No way! I can't do that! I don't wanna kill you! I don't wanna kill Asgore, I don't want to kill anyone!"
"If you do not kill... you will be killed. Asgore does not deserve such fate."
"And you do?? What about... Sans? Papyrus? What about making it up to them, what about... what about... is this how you want to give them a better life? You can't just run off and give up you-"
"If you want to leave the Underground, you must absorb the Soul of a monster! Asgore does not deserve to die. Just kill me! Strike me down, take my Soul, I deserve this more than him! All of this is my fault, I let things escalate so far in the very beginning, I was NEVER even supposed to be alive, I was supposed to die over a hundred years ago in the War!"
"B-B-But I-I-I can't just-" Kale was already struggling to fight off their tears. They wanted to run. They wanted to just end this. Face Asgore and let this end at last. But when they tried to run through the door, Gaster blocked the door with blue bones.
"No! Take my Soul not his!!" Gaster closed his eye, his tone changing into a broken one. "... Please..."
"I..." Kale sniffed and looked at the door "I am sorry Gaster. I won't kill Asgore, I promise. It will all be fine!" Without hesitation they punched their way through the blue bones. They disappeared from their path and Kale already felt their hand burning with pain but right now, that did not matter. They just wanted to get out of the room quickly before Gaster could stop them.
Then, they ran down the hall until they reached the save star again.
They did not know how enraged or broken Gaster must have felt right now from what they had done... but for now... Kale did not want to think about it either.
All that lingered on their mind... was what Gaster said.
They had to kill Asgore.
No matter what...
If they wanted to go home... they had to become a murderer. They had to take Asgore's soul.
But... Kale knew...
At one point in time, they swore not to harm any monster.
They were unsure of what was going to happen.
But they knew ... no matter what really happens.
They will not try to fight.
Even if that is going to cause their death.
After wiping away their tears, they stood up and walked to the Barrier.
"... Ah... back so soon?" Asgore asked quietly after a noticing Kale's return. He did not wait for a response, he just bowed down his head. "Are you ready?"
"No." Kale suddenly answered quickly but very much honestly.
"Do not worry." Asgore responded, his voice still quiet. "I, am not ready either."
Asgore turned to face Kale. Then suddenly, five glass displays appeared. Four of them had a Human Soul in it, all different traits. The fifth one... was empty.
Asgore pulled out a giant red trident that looked like it was glowing in the emptiness of the Barrier.
Before they could process anything else of what happened, Kale felt extremely hot. Balls of fire filled the entire room, some of the fireballs flying towards Kale at full speed. Kale did what their instinct first told them to do. They ran. As fast as they could manage, in the endlessness of the Barrier. As the flames were closing in, Kale dropped down and slid on the cold floor as the flames passed over their body. They could almost feel the fire running down their back.
As they tried to catch their breath, Kale suddenly had to roll on the floor to dodge a hit coming from Asgore's trident. Being completely helpless, they summoned a red knife to try and block the next incoming hit, but all they achieved was that there was now a nasty deep cut running down their right arm.
"W-Wait, wait please I don't want to kill you!!" Kale desperately cried to Asgore, but their words fell on deaf ears. Asgore did not say a word to Kale's plea, but the Human could swore they saw his hands tremble for a moment. In that next moment there were more fireballs raining down at Kale. All they could do was run, trying to avoid it. But the immense heat that filled the room made them so exhausted, made it so hard for them to breathe that they fell over and they could barely avoid the balls of fire to burn them. One of the fires set the left arm of their jacket on fire, Kale was forced to take it off and throw it away, leaving them with only wearing their red sweater with light brown sleeves.
"C-Can't we just... talk... please? I-I just want to go home!" Kale struggled to form their words as the room was filled with fire that tightened their lungs. Asgore's giant towering figure in the shadows of the endless fire rings looked strangely menacing in this moment... but at the same time... Kale knew Asgore didn't want this.
They just... hoped they knew right.
If they could just kept stalling...
Kept talking...
But... there was nothing that came to mind anymore.
They had no idea what else they could say that would convince Asgore to STOP fighting.
Before they could even move more, Asgore's trident struck yet again. Kale could only barely dodge the strike. The hit grazed their chin, blood starting to drop down on their neck. Asgore's strikes kept coming blow after blow, Kale managed to avoid some of them, but while trying to jump over the tremendous sized trident, they tripped and some fireballs targeted them yet again, making them roll on the floor. But they were forced to stand up and run as fast as they could manage as rings of fireballs kept coming without stopping for one moment.
Kale ran and avoided the flames with the best of their ability... but it was too much... they couldn't breathe. Their lungs tightened up. They collapsed on their knees, coughing, trying to catch their breath. They felt excruciating burns on their skin all around, all inch of their body was aching with immense pain.
The pain has almost blinded them.
They had no idea where they were... if they were even alive anymore.
Please, let this be a bad dream, Kale thought. Just let this end. Anything is better than this. They just wanted this to end... they just wanted to die, rather than burning in this endless hellfire.
Kale summoned a knife... they swung it around in a worthless and pathetic attempt to fight off the flames.
Suddenly a burst of energy came to Kale and they bolted up onto their feet and threw the knife at full force, hoping it would pierce through the merciless frames that kept flying towards them like missiles.
But...
They threw the knife directly at Asgore.
The knife however, didn't seem to do much. Even if it did... Asgore did not seem to react to the hit in anyway. As if he was expecting it.
But then... before anything else could happen, a round of petals circled around Asgore, closing in on him and hitting him with a powerful blow. Making his drop his trident and fall onto his knees.
Kale could only stare in shock. One thing they knew, they weren't the one who did that.
Before they could think of what to do, the worst has already happened.
Asgore's body turned into a pile of dust, his white monster soul helplessly flowing in the air.
But moments later, the soul was also destroyed by a pellet.
In the next moment, Kale no longer cared about not killing. They wanted to let out an enraged cry and strike with everything they've got.
Because in the next moment... over the dust... the remains of Asgore... appeared Flowey, the Flower.
As soon as he saw Kale he let out a terrible demonic evil laughter.
"Oh boy! You are such an idiot! HAH!! You have played for my hand you stupid idiot! This is exactly what I have been waiting for! I have been waiting to finally get rid of that old FOOL!" He popped in closer to Kale, his face turning into his distorted demonic expression. "And now you are finally all alone... you are mine now... NOBODY CAN PROTECT YOU NOW!!"
"No! Get away right now or I'll not be afraid to kill you this time you hear me?!!" Kale summoned another knife, their red Determination eyes burning like true fire from the deepest pits of hell.
"Aww but I thought..." Flowey's voice turned mocking, trying to mimic Kale's. "You didn't wanna kill anyone... you're the nice good guy who swore not to harm a single monster." He laughed again. "Well I told you in the beginning BRAT! This world is Kill or Be Killed!" Before Kale could attempt to strike at Flowey, they were held in the air by Flowey's vines as they struggled to escape. "NOW IT IS TIME I FINALLY RECLAIM WHAT IS RIGHTFULLY MINE!!!"
But before Flowey could do anything else, there was a giant blinding blaster fire filling the room, making him drop Kale onto the ground.
Notes:
Gaster was about to come, stop Asgore and Kale but... it was already too late
Chapter 22: Losing hope
Notes:
As you can see, content rating has went up. Please be aware, this chapter contains scenes of attempted suicide, also heavy depictions of depression and self loathing. If you are sensitive to these kind of things, please do read with caution.
(See the end of the chapter for more notes.)
Chapter Text
Kale fell on their knees as the glowing white light filled the room. They did not know what happened and they were shocked to see Gaster approaching them, looking startled. Flowey let out a distorted growl and approached Kale with a melted demonic expression.
"Alright listen here, you brat. I give you exactly 48 hours. In two days. We meet alone in this same room. At this EXACT same time. If you do not give up your Soul I WON'T hesitate anymore to kill any of the idiots who stand in my way. So you better show up if you really do care about all these witless morons." With that he disappeared into the ground.
"... What are you doing here?" Kale looked at Gaster after coming out of their shock. Gaster suddenly seemed paler than usual.
"I... just..." But his eyes went wide, glowing white with complete shock. Kale followed his gaze... only to meet with a large pile of dust, with nothing but a crown sitting on it. At that moment, Kale remembered where they were and what had just happened.
Gaster saw, Kale with only their sweater on, their jacket was burnt on the ground. Burn and ash marks were stained on their skin... looking at the dust... it all became obvious. "No..." Gaster whispered, his voice hoarse. He put a hand to his mouth his eyes growing wider and soon filling with tears of panic and desperation. "No, no, no, no, no, no..." Gaster collapsed on his knees on the ground and buried his face into his hands as he was silently grieving over the King, and the one person he has viewed as a father figure for countless decades.
"I... I'm so sorry..." Kale walked to him their eyes also filling with tears. "I'm sorry, it's all my fault... It-it should have been me... I caused this... I'm so so sorry..."
But Gaster didn't even seem to hear Kale's words. All he did was sit on the ground with his face buried in his hands, tears rolling out of his eyes as he quietly called out Asgore's name over and over. Kale had no idea how to deal with this. They just sat on the floor too and curled into a ball.
This was all their fault.
They knew it crystal clear.
If they hadn't summoned that knife...
If they hadn't threw it...
Flowey would have never gotten that opening.
He never would have had the chance to strike Asgore.
They should have been the one to go down. They should have died.
Suddenly the sound of small feet tapping against a solid stone ground broke the silent despair at the Barrier. Papyrus was going front with Sans following behind him.
"HEY, WHAT'S TAKING YOU SO-..."
The two of them noticed the dust sitting in the room... with the crown in it. They saw Kale, curled up into a ball with their eyes squeezed shut, Gaster kneeling on the ground letting out broken sobs with every passing second.
"... OH..."
Sans seemed to realize the situation faster than Papyrus. "what... the hell happened here?" His eyes went dark, his expression showing a form of disbelief. Not really believing what his eyes were showing him. Papyrus looked confused and scared, simultaneously.
Suddenly in that moment Gaster stood up. He kept staring at the floor his eyes still whiter than his very bones.
When he spoke up, it was obvious he was struggling with forming his words. "... Come on. You shouldn't-..." He cut himself off and began to walk away from the Barrier, with Sans and Papyrus and eventually Kale too, following him behind. The pure shock and extreme guilt was still very visible on Kale's face, while Gaster's expression was completely zoned out and devoid of life. The brothers just looked at each other, confused but at the same time worried. The four of them just headed back inside the house and up the stairs.
When they reached the main hall, Gaster stopped and was still staring at the floor, his bones continuously rattling with every passing second amid the silence.
"can someone explain what the hell happened?" Sans was switching looks between Gaster and Kale, having very bad mixed feelings about this entire situation. As if he already sensed something seriously horrible must have happened that shook Gaster so deeply.
"... It was my fault.... All of this is my fault." Kale finally spoke up breaking the silence.
"... WHAT?" Papyrus looked at them.
But in that moment Gaster summoned a bone and hit Kale across the room, a golden glow flaming in his eyes. He summoned a blaster and was ready to fire.
While Kale was caught off guard... they just accepted it.
They deserved this.
After all they have done.
At least, if they come back, then they will be able to avoid this. Kale just closed their eyes waiting for the blow.
"W-WAIT WHAT ARE YOU DOING??!" Papyrus shoot his gaze at Gaster.
"... Why?" Gaster kept his eyes pinned on Kale. "Why didn't you... he never deserved that. I was going to let you take my Soul. I should have been the one to..." Gaster looked down and lowered his hand, making the blaster disappear. He closed his eye, his shoulders slumping. "... But what would be the point now... He's gone. Even if I killed you here... nothing would change." He then walked away into one of the rooms, slamming the door behind him.
Kale kept sitting on the floor. Sans and Papyrus walked to them and kneel to them.
"UH HUMAN. I SEE YOU ARE BOTH REALLY UPSET. AND UH- THAT'S NOT SOMETHING I LIKE TO SEE! SO IF YOU KNOW OF ANY WAY WE CAN CHEER YOU UP, PLEASE SHARE BECAUSE I DON'T WANT ANYONE TO BE UPSET!!"
"I KILLED HIM!!!" Kale cried, tears streaming from their eyes and dropping onto the dusty wooden floor. "I killed Asgore!! It's all my fault, I did this to him!! I-I-... it should have been me! I should have DIED long ago!!"
"N-NO HUMAN DON'T SAY THAT!! BUT UH... WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT, I DON'T UNDERSTAND. YOU SAID YOU WERE GOING HOME RIGHT?"
Kale slowly nodded. "... Yeah. B-But... Gaster... he said if I wanted to go home... I-I had to take Asgore's Soul. H-He wanted me to kill him instead. B-But I didn't want to kill anyone. But I just killed Asgore this is all my fault!"
"wait- but, no! that doesn't make sense you couldn't have-" Sans's eyes gone dark. "why would you do that??"
"I-I just... I was so scared, I didn't know what to I didn't even see anything, there was smoke everywhere and I-I ... I accidentally..."
"b-but... it was an accident right? you couldn't have-"
Kale looked away. "Well... technically... I didn't kill him." Then they looked back at the skeleton brothers. "You remember... that weird, creepy flower from the lab?" They looked at each other for a moment, then both nodded slowly. "W-Well I... I accidentally hit Asgore... too hard. Then Flowey... he saw this as an opportunity and ... killed him."
"then... it wasn't really you who killed him." Sans tilted his head in confusion.
"But he would be alive if I didn't-!"
"i... think that flower guy would have found a way..." Sans looked away with dark eyes.
"SO... ASGORE IS ... DEAD?"
"... I'm sorry Pap... it was my fault. I caused this... I gave Flowey an opening and..." Kale didn't finish their sentence. They cut off. their sentence.
"what are we gonna do with him?" Sans looked around the three of them with an uncertain expression.
Kale then looked down, their expression turning empty. "You don't have to worry about that. In two days, he will come back." Kale clenched a hand into a fist. "... I'll face him. Give him up my soul. Then he will finally leave you alone."
"WHAT?? KALE YOU CAN'T DO THAT!! WE CAN'T LET YOU-"
"Look, if I don't he will kill anybody who tries to stop him from taking my Soul!" Kale shot a gaze at Papyrus, the fiery determination burning in their ruby red irises. "I don't want anyone to risk themselves for me... I don't want anyone to be endangered because of me."
"but if that guy went out of his way to kill asgore, what makes you think he will stop after getting your soul? what if you just end up getting yourself killed over nothing and that flower just gets everyone endangered?" Sans's eyes turned dark as he looked at Kale.
... As much as they wanted to deny... Sans had a good point.
They had no reason to trust Flowey and who knows what kind of things he would do.
"I... I don't know... what other choice do we have?"
"well i think we should all just be there by your side and get rid of him at last!"
"But Sans he-!" But Kale cut off their sentence. They knew... they could attempt a Reset. But... Flowey already knew how special they were. He already knew of their powers. He would anticipate it. But if they wanted to deal with Flowey without driving Sans and Papyrus in danger... "I think..." Kale spoke up after their train of thought. "... we should just... take care of Gaster for now. I think... he needs us the most right now. We can worry about Flowey later."
Papyrus and Sans both stared down the hall and looked at the door which Gaster disappeared through minutes ago.
"... RIGHT..." Papyrus said with a weak voice that lacked the same optimism and energy he always carried.
* * * * *
The pain that his Soul currently experienced.
It was unbearable.
He hasn't felt such excruciating pain in so many years. The last time he experienced such great deal of pain... was probably around the time of the War. When he lost his family and friends. But back then, he also felt not a few amounts of fear. Right now, what he felt was ... just pain.
Pain.
Grief.
Immense guilt.
He knew all of this was his fault. Time and time again he failed Asgore in the times when he needed him the most and now, the failure truly became the worst. This was his last and worst mistake. Because now, through his failure, Asgore actually lost his life.
He has failed Asgore.
He has failed Alphys.
He has failed Sans and Papyrus.
He has failed the entire Underground.
He has failed... Queen Toriel...
In the silence, there was the sound of a door opening.
"... heya, G." Sans walked in the room. "i uh... hope you don't mind me comin' in." He smirked and rubbed the back of his skull.
Gaster was just lying on Asgore's massive bed. Staring at the ceiling. He did not say a word, he did not even seem to realize Sans came in. The smaller skeleton sat down on the bed... and for a few moments, there was silence. "so uh... yeah this is terrible..." Sans looked down. Not a single sound escaped the Royal Scientist. He wasn't even mad, or annoyed.
He was just... there.
An empty husk, completely devoid of emotion.
"... c'mon G." Sans turned his eyes to Gaster's blank face. "i know this is... horrible, but... you gotta get it together."
No response. Gaster wasn't even blinking.
"... i know asgore would hate to see you like that. and you know it too."
"It hardly matters. He's gone." Gaster finally gave a response, although his voice was the most empty and emotionless Sans ever heard from him. "I have failed everyone. I let everyone down. The entire Underground. I failed to find a safe way to break the Barrier. I am just a walking set of immense, unforgivable failures."
"see- this is what i'm talkin' about." Sans now stood up, still keeping his gaze on Gaster. "i know... he's... gone. it... really sucks this happened but... you can't just give up like this. he wouldn't want you to."
"It doesn't... matter. He is gone. Nobody knows what he would think because he is no more."
"and you're more than just failure, you're the royal scientist, you created a bunch of great things like the core, you went out of your way to try and break the barrier, you created me and my brother for crying out loud!"
"... So what? None of that matters. Everything I have ever done. I've done for him. But now, it doesn't matter anymore after he is gone."
"it matters because we are here. me and papyrus. and we wouldn't be without you." Sans dug his hands in the pockets of his pants and looked away. "look. i get how you feel. if... i lost papyrus, i would probably feel the same as you. but even if it would hurt... even if it would break me... i wouldn't give up. because i know, if my brother was with me, he wouldn't want me to give up. he would want me to keep going no matter what. because no matter what happens, he always wants other around him to have a smile on their face. and i know if i didn't try to stay positive, for him, then i would truly let him down."
Gaster finally sat up. He rested a hand on his knee as he looked at Sans. "... Why? Why are you being... nice to me?" The hand that was resting on his knee clenched into a fist. "After everything I have done to you... All the things I took from you... All those times I've put your brother through agony. After all of that... how do you still manage to be nice to me?" He looked away. "You should be hating me..."
"oh, don't get me wrong i does make me really sick whenever i think about what you did to us. and... yeah i'm still angry with you for what you did to us, i can't lie. but you've come clean. you apologized, you told the truth to everyone and you actually... helped us have a better life." Sans then looked up to the ceiling... his eyes filling with small tears. "at least... it was good while it lasted..."
Gaster turned his expression from Sans, facing the white wall. "In my entire life, all I have done was cause pain and suffering to the people around me. First ... it was... them. Then it was you two... now it's Asgore..."
"asgore's death wasn't your fault G." Sans's shoulders fell as he slightly tilted his head with a sympathetic expression.
"Of course it was!" Gaster suddenly stood up red glow filling his eyes. "Don't you get it?! It wasn't the Human... it wasn't anyone, I am the only one responsible. Because I didn't do enough. I was too late. I couldn't do enough in time until it was too late and now Asgore is DEAD!" Gaster looked away, the crimson glow fading from his sockets. "... Because I failed him. Just how I failed everyone in my miserable existence..."
Sans sighed. "look, doc i'm sorry-"
Gaster raised a hand, tiredly closing his eye. "No, no please. You really have absolutely no reason to be apologizing. You weren't the one who did anything wrong. You couldn't have prevented this, either. Only I could have. But I wasn't strong enough to do anything."
Sans looked down, his hands still hidden into the pockets of his pants that were actually a few sizes too big, but not as big as Gaster's clothes. "just... think about what i said, 'kay? you shouldn't be... carrying this on your own and shutting yourself off isn't gonna solve anything either."
Gaster didn't answer, he just sat back down on the bed and kept staring at the old dusty floor. Sans let out an inaudible sigh of defeat and he just hoped that his words had some effect on Gaster.
As Sans returned to the bedroom, Kale and Papyrus were sitting on the beds, Kale on the right and Papyrus on the left. Sans sat next to his brother on the bed.
Kale tried... they repededly tried over and over to RESET... but in this very moment, they just couldn't muster enough determination to do it.
"I'm so sorry guys... I have ruined everything for you..." Kale couldn't look at the skeleton brothers.
"hey, stop saying that. you said you didn't... do that. so it's not your fault."
For a few moments there was silence. Despite Sans's words, Kale couldn't stop feeling bad. Even if it was Flowey who delivered the finishing blow, it was Kale who even gave him that opening in the first place.
"... WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO NOW?" Papyrus looked at Sans with a sad... hopeless expression. "IF HE'S... ACTUALLY..." Tears made their way into his eyes. Sans hugged him although struggling to keep his own composure. "i... i dunno bro. but hey... i-i'm sure we'll be fine. he just needs some time..."
Papyrus just slowly nodded and hugged back.
"... Don't worry guys..." The thought went through Kale's mind. "Sooner or later, but I'm gonna make this right..."
* * * * *
Gaster woke up rather late the next day. He knew this would probably be the last day he'd see the walls of New Home. He fished out his cell phone from his pocket and for a few moments he just scrolled through his contacts. Seeing Asgore's number made him wince. Finally, he found Alphys's name.
"... Alphys... If you are hearing this message... you may already be aware what happened. Asgore... is gone. I must apologize. I am sorry for failing not only you, Asgore but everyone else in the Underground. Everything bad that has been happening in the Underground, was the result of my own inaction. I am responsible for the damage already done. It was my responsibility to serve everyone with a peaceful future and I have failed. I am sorry I could never be that great scientist you have seen in me. I am sure you will be a great successor of mine. All I ask you, is please... give them the life they deserve. Give them the life I have failed to give. Thank you Alphys, for everything. Goodbye."
Pressing the button to end the voice message, Gaster buried his cell phone back into his pocket. He put on his lab coat, his glasses were still taped to his face and he stood up from the bed. He felt very hungry. But in this moment, that didn't matter. As Gaster walked down the hall of New Home, he stopped at the bedroom door for just a moment.
He heard the voices of Kale, Sans and Papyrus in there.
They were already awake.
Well, regardless at least they wouldn't have to see him like this.
* * * * *
"IT'S... REALLY QUIET NOW..." Papyrus said as he and Sans were reading a story book.
"... Yeah..."
"so uh kale..?"
"Yeah?" Kale sat up on the bed to look at Sans. Sans turned his eyes up from the book. "... you were saying that flower guy is gonna come back for you tomorrow."
Kale slowly nodded. "... That's what he said anyway."
"and... how are you gonna sort that out?"
"I... may have an idea... but it's kinda weird to explain."
"CAN WE HELP?" Papyrus asked the question while also turning his gaze away from the book.
Kale looked a little uneasy at the question and looked away. "... I don't want you guys to be endangered by him. This is just a... me thing." He turned to them and managed a small smile. "Don't worry though. I'll... sort it out. Somehow... It'll be fine." They then stood up from the bed, stretching their limbs. Anyway... I don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty hungry.
"mm... yeah me too."
Papyrus looked away. "IT... FEELS A LITTLE WEIRD... A-AND SCARY... THAT HE'S NOT AROUND ANYMORE..."
"I... I know..." Determination shined in Kale's eyes. "But I'll fix all of this. Don't worry."
Papyrus just nodded a little uneasy. Him and Sans carefully set down the book as all three kids walked out of the bedroom.
"SHOULDN'T WE GET HIM..?" Papyrus turned his eyes to the bedroom where Gaster has been staying as of late.
"... I-I think... we shouldn't disturb him right now..."
"... R-RIGHT..."
As the three of them entered the living room, they noticed there was a note on the dining table.
In that moment, Alphys burst into the building. She looked like she was running really fast because she looked really out of breath. Kale, Sans and Papyrus all looked up at her, confused and surprised.
"G-Gaster... w-where is Gaster?" She tried catching her breath.
"U-Uh... I think he's in the bedroom...? Why?"
"H-He uh... s-sent me a message... j-just a-a few minutes ago. H-He was s-saying a-a b-bunch of things I-I-I'm r-really worried, I-I just wanna know if he's okay..."
"... well... he's not really okay right now..." Sans rubbed the back of his skull.
Alphys's head fell with sadness. "S-So... i-it's really true? A-Asgore..."
Kale sighed. "I'm so sorry... it was my fault, I caused it, if I hadn't-"
"... H-Hey..." Alphys took a step closer. "Y-You just did... w-what you n-needed to do... I-I'm sorry for lying... a-and for..." As Alphys turned her gaze she saw the note on the table. "... w-what's that?"
Kale picked it up. "Uh... this is... Gaster's handwriting... I-I can't really uh... read this. It's in those weird hand symbols."
"lemme try."
Kale gave the note to Sans. Sans cleared his throat and started reading.
'Sans, Papyrus, Kale... I owe you all an apology. Especially to you two, Sans, Papyrus... I couldn't be the person you needed me to be. I couldn't give you the life you wished for, the life i should have given you from the very beginning. I wasn't strong enough. In my whole life, all I did was let people down and cause irreversible damage and unforgettable pain. And now I have made the biggest mistake in my entire life. I let Asgore down. and now he is gone, because of me. I do not deserve anyone like you. I do not deserve to even live. You will all be taken care of by Alphys, as I asked her. I am sorry I have failed you yet again and I am sorry for every terrible thing I have put all of you through. I just hope your lives can finally turn for the better from here.'
'- Gaster'
"this... is bad."
"O-Oh ... no..." Alphys's eyes widened. "I-I ... w-wherever he is w-we need to find him and fast!"
"I... I DON'T UNDERSTAND..."
"C-C-C'mon... we... w-we need to move! Q-Quick!"
* * * * *
Gaster felt his cell phone buzzing in his pocket. But he paid no attention to it. He had no doubts it was Alphys, who tried to call him... but he paid no attention to it.
He was walking very slowly through Hotland. He was getting his final sights of the Underground, so he might as well take his time. He might as well take his time to enjoy it while he can, before he ultimately bids farewell to this world. To the Underground.
Forever.
This is all that he deserved, after all.
He should have just died in the War all those years ago.
Finally... after what felt like moments of endless walking Gaster reached the beginning of Hotland. He stood on the long bridge that separated Hotland from Waterfall. He looked around for a moment. Didn't seem like anyone was around.
Good.
Nobody would have to see what he was about to do.
Gaster stood at the edge of the bridge, staring down into the hot boiling lava.
He let out an inaudible sigh as his very last thoughts swam through his inner mind. "Asgore... Papyrus... Sans... Alphys... Toriel..." He slowly closed his eye as he raised one foot.
"I am sorry for failing all of you."
Gaster stepped off the bridge.
With his eyes closed, he waited.
For his inevitable fate.
Only... it never came.
Instead he felt a heavy weight on his Soul... is this what death felt like? This pressure is what's going to crush his soul until it ultimately breaks?
It could be, Gaster thought.
Soon all weight disappeared from his body and he truly did not feel like he was standing on his legs anymore. He did not for one moment, open his eye.
Until... he felt the ground once again.
That finally made Gaster open his eye.
At first he was confused. Then he saw them...
Alphys, Kale, Sans and Papyrus walking into view.
That made Gaster realize he was sitting on the warm dirt ground of Hotland. He was still alive. He did not jump. He did not die.
"What are you doing?!" Alphys screamed at him with tears in her eyes as soon as they reached him.
"Alphys- I-I..." He looked away. He stared back at the bridge behind them. "... Why..."
"if you think you're gonna get away that easy, you're wrong, pal." Sans shrugged with a small wink.
That did make Gaster smile briefly for just one moment as he awkwardly rubbed the back of his skull.
"G-Gaster..." Alphys looked at him. "I-I know i-it's hard... I-I'm... I-I can't even believe it Asgore is really..." She cut off that sentence. "B-But p-please... w-we c-can't just lose you too..."
"But... It was my fault! After all that I did-!"
Gaster was unable to finish his sentence as he felt two arms wrap themselves around his waist.
He looked down only to see Papyrus hugging him with teary eyes.
"... DON'T SCARE US LIKE THAT AGAIN... PLEASE..." He sniffled.
Gaster sighed and returned the hug.
"And Gaster..." Kale interjected. "I don't care what you say." Their red eyes lit up. "I... I screwed up. NOT you. I was the reason Asgore..." The determination in Kale's eyes only became stronger as they looked up. "But... I think... I may have an idea on how to fix all this."
Notes:
It was not easy, but... perhaps Kale can finally make things right?
The next chapter will be the finale of this fanfiction. Honestly, did not think I would make it this far or this platform. But I won't ramble too much, for now.
Chapter 23: One last run... (Season finale)
Notes:
(See the end of the chapter for notes.)
Chapter Text
... Before they knew it, Kale was already sitting on the cold floor just before the Barrier. The warmth has returned to them as they were once again wearing their unburnt jacket. There were tears staining on their face... Kale had to remember what exactly happened before they hit their save.
This was just after Gaster had asked them to take his soul, instead of Asgore's, so they could go home.
"... Maybe I should have listened ..."
Kale shook their head.
"No..." They thought. "Nobody is going to die this time..."
Knowing Asgore was still waiting on them... Kale gathered all their confidence and stood up from the cold floor. They walked back into the house and approached the room where Gaster was, with a slight tinge of anxiety.
They lightly knocked on the door.
"... Gaster...?"
No response came... Kale just entered.
"... What?" He asked quietly. He looked at Kale with slight confusion after they entered. "What are you doing here?"
Kale looked away for a moment before returning Gaster's gaze. "Look... I don't know if you remember anything... but I have something crazy I need to tell you."
Gaster tilted his head slightly, raising an eyebrow.
"I... can... reset time...?"
"... What." Gaster's shoulders fell, that familiar unamused expression appearing on his face.
"It's true! I... it's kind of hard to explain but... I promise!"
Gaster still didn't look convinced.
"Look, how else would I have saved you back in the lab?" Kale gestured with their hand. "I saw how Sans pulled you in the beams and I was so scared, I didn't know what to do I ... I just wanted to... go back. To stop that from happening. Then somehow, I was just back. Back at my... 'save point'." Gaster said nothing. Perhaps it was out of confusion or skepticism, it wasn't sure. But Kale went on. "I... I even tried to tell you what was going to happen, remember?"
In that moment, Gaster's eyes dilated with realization. "I..." He thoughtfully put a hand to his jaw. "I... think I remember... you said something horrible was going to happen in the hall... I didn't understand what you where talking about, but-"
"But it did happen! Right?"
Gaster exhaled, putting a hand to his face. "... How on Earth is that even possible?"
"I... I don't really know. I didn't know I could do such a thing."
"This... changes everything. Everything we've known about Human Determination all this time." Gaster looked back at Kale. "... Why didn't you say anything about this before?"
"Uh well, I... it's still pretty new to me, I'm still trying to understand in too. The only time I tried to explain it, you... didn't really listen, you know..." Kale looked away uncomfortably.
"... Right. So, how... does it even work? How are you able to... reset time?"
"I... uh... I dunno." They shrugged. "I kept seeing these... flickering yellow stars all around the Underground. I touch them... and they they sorta... 'save' my position. Every time I... well... died... I ended up back there. Or every time I try to Reset... I just focus, then I'm just back. Like that."
"I... see... I think I understand." He sighed. "This is all... really... confusing though."
"... Yeah, I know. Sorry I only mentioned now, I guess." Kale looked down.
"It is alright. Not like you really had any good time to bring it up... well, aside from now." Gaster rubbed his chin in thought. "... Can you demonstrate it? The... Resetting?"
"Uh... not really...? Every time I Reset, it's like everyone else forgot what I happened. Like... only I can remember."
"Hmm... I see... I suppose, that does make sense in a way. If you are telling me this now... you must have a good reason, I assume?"
"Yeah, uh... about that. Last time... I actually tried to fight Asgore... but something terrible happened."
"... What?" A hint of worry made it's way into Gaster's tone.
"I-I... don't want to go into detail, if that's okay..." Kale looked away uncomfortably.
"Well, alright, I can understand."
"So uh... there's more. Remember... a while ago... when me and Papyrus tried to tell you about a talking flower?" Kale tilted their head as they looked at Gaster. He raised a brow. "... I do, but-"
"Listen, that flower exists. I know it sounds... dumb. But... trust me. Last time, he did something really bad and I had to Reset to be able to come back here and stop that from happening."
Gaster folded his arms. "So... a talking flower. Who is... 'he'?"
"I met him when I fell down. He was... kinda nice at first, but then he tried to take my Soul. After I entered Snowdin, I haven't seem him at all for a while. Then... some days after Sans's uh... accident... he came back. It was when you weren't around. He wanted to find me, he even hurt Papyrus to try and take my Soul. But... you came back just in time so he had to leave. But he came back on the day when you were away, telling Alphys about the whole truth. He kept telling me about how I was special, how I 'stole' his power. I guess... before I came, he was able to use this same power I did but... I don't... really understand even now, what he was talking about..."
"Hmm... I, may have an idea."
"Yeah?"
Gaster rubbed his chin. "If he claims he possesses this same power that you have, then either he possesses Human magic or determination. There are no talking flower monsters in the Underground... therefore, it is not foolish to assume he may possess some amount of Human determination. But... how, I am not certain."
"Uh... yeah... I guess that kinda explains."
"So, what else happened?" Gaster pinned his eyes back onto Kale.
"Uh yeah so... before I Reset just now, he..." Kale really didn't want to have to talk about Asgore's death to Gaster, remembering how severely it broke him, before the Reset. "... u-uh nevermind, that doesn't matter now. What matters, is he did something really horrible and I had to Reset to stop that from happening. He knows about everything I can do, he knows that I can Reset. That's why he's been after me. I'm sure once he realizes what I did, he will come after me again and everyone around me will be endangered, until he can get my Soul. So we need to act fast before Flowey can realize things aren't going the same like before."
"... I see..." Gaster clearly had to take a bit to process all of what Kale has just said. "Then, we definitely need to act fast, I doubt we have a lot of time on our hands. Do you have any ideas, on how we could stop him?"
"W-Well uh... maybe... but first, I need to tell about this, to the others too."
Gaster nodded. "Yes, right."
"We'll uh... meet in the living room."
* * * * *
After getting everyone, including Asgore to get together in the living room so Kale could properly explain everything to them about their Reset powers, with the help of Gaster as well, they now had to find some way to deal with Flowey's lust for Kale's Soul, all the while making sure nobody would be in severe danger in the process.
"What exactly does this... flower look like?" Asgore asked the question.
"Well uh... he was..."
"GOLD! AND SHINY!"
"like the flowers around here." Sans nodded.
Sans and Papyrus could also help Kale with confirming Flowey's existence as they have personally seen the talking flower with their own eyes.
"Yeah, I think he's a golden flower like all the other flowers in this place."
"I see... that is an... interesting coincidence." Asgore hummed. "Now, as you and Dr. Gaster have explained... this creature is capable of using a specific form of determination magic?"
"Well uh... kinda like... he can do this time-reset-rewind-thingy that I can, somehow. I uh... don't really know how it works too much, but yeah."
Asgore nodded. "I understand, what you are trying to say, although it still puzzles me why you neither of you said anything about this." He looked at Sans and Papyrus too.
"I didn't expect him to just show up again like this... and nobody can remember those Resets aside from me, so nobody would have known he came back. A-Aside from... me."
"and to be fair, i only saw him once." Sans shrugged.
"I do also have to take some blame I... didn't exactly believe them when they tried to explain to me about it the first time." Gaster looked away.
Asgore straightened up. "Now, that is not the thing we should be most concerned about. This creature clearly poses a threat to everyone who tries to stand in his way, so we must find some way to prevent him from causing any more harm."
For a few moments, there was just silence. Nobody really had any ideas.
Gaster cleared his throat. "I may have a theory to solve this problem. The Determination extraction machine that I attempted to build several months ago is now in full, working condition thanks to Dr. Alphys and several other of my coworkers. If the flower creature truly has determination in it as we suspect, then the machine could be perfect to extract all of that determination and make him a completely harmless flower."
"... and what if that's not gonna be enough to stop him?" Sans asked. "i mean... sure maybe he'll lose all the weird time-rewind-thingy powers that kale has but... what if that's not gonna be enough to stop him and he's still gonna wanna kill kale and take their soul?"
"... Then, we will just have to turn to other methods." Gaster gave the simple answer.
"Oh come on I-..." Kale looked away, rubbing their arm. "I don't want everyone to risk themselves just for me..."
"BUT YOU'RE OUR FRIEND!! WE CAN'T JUST LET SOME MEAN FLOWER TRY AND KILL YOU!!"
"But... don't you need my Soul anyway...? To... y'know... break the Barrier?"
Asgore sighed, a sad smile appearing on his face. "That is true, but I must be honest with you little one. It was never my intention to kill Human children. I... did make the decision and I did declare, all those years ago that all Humans who fall should be killed. But as you may gather, it was a poor decision. Now, it is too late for me to turn back, after all the hope I have given to my kingdom..."
"Oh..." Kale looked down with a saddened decision.
"But now, we must do our best to protect the people from this creature you three have told us about."
"I will inform Alphys and tell her to get the Determination Extractor ready." Gaster stood up.
"i think we should all be real careful in case that guy realizes something's up..."
"Indeed." Asgore nodded.
"Well... I will return shortly. After I talk to Alphys, all of us should do our best to build a proper plan to lure that flower into Alphys's old lab, so we can use the machine on it and extract all of that determination."
* * * * *
After a little while, Gaster returned to his and Alphys's lab. He was sure for a fact Alphys was still here, since it hasn't been all that long since him and Kale left for New Home, so Kale could ultimately meet Asgore.
... Little did any of them know, in what direction all of this was going to head into.
What was about Kale, wanting to go home, trying to talk to Asgore, has turned into all of them gathering together, talking about a psychopathic flower that they need to stop not only to ensure the safety of Asgore, Papyrus, Kale, Sans and himself, Gaster, but to possibly ensure the safety of the entire Underground as well.
Who knows what that flower could do with the Reset powers Kale has explained to him earlier.
Being able to go back...
Do whatever you want...
Then Reset all of it, so nobody remembers any of what you have done, except for yourself.
The sheer thought made Gaster shudder, so he just shook it away.
After some walking down the hall, Gaster reached the office which he now shared with Alphys. Alphys was still there, seemingly very anxious. That was no surprise either, considering what went down earlier in this lab and considering, that according to Alphys's knowledge, Kale and Asgore were having a clash of life and death at this very moment.
"Alphys..." Gaster spoke up as he entered the office. Alphys shuddered as he heard Gaster's voice break the silence.
"O-O-Oh! H-Hey Dr. G-Gaster! U-Uh..." She looked away, with sweat shining on her forehead, the worry and fear being obvious in her expression. "S-So uh... h-how'd it go?"
"Well... there is a slightly... very big problem on our hand right now."
"W-What?" She warily asked, looking at Gaster.
"The Human, Kale has told us some... unexpected information."
"L-Like what...?"
Gaster paused for a moment. Then he sighed and rubbed his face. "God, how can I even explain it properly..." He cleared his throat and looked at Alphys. "They have explained, that there is a special kind of magic that comes with their determination. Something that we... have never recorded any of our Human history books. Something I certainly have never heard of. The power of... Resetting time."
"W-Woah..." Alphys's eyes shined. "L-Like... proper time travel?"
"In a way, I suppose that's one way to put it. But they have explained... that there has been a talking flower, possibly possessing determination and was able to use the same time Resetting powers before the Human, Kale fell down. Now the flower is after them, for their Soul, to be able to regain this power and he does not hesitate to harm anyone who tries to stop him."
"... A-A... t-talking flower? W-With determination?"
"Yes." Gaster nodded.
"Ah... ahah... ahaha!! Ah uh... I-I..." Alphys turned away from Gaster. "N-No... n-n-no there's no way... i-it's just a coincidence. I-It-... t-there's no way it can be what I'm thinking... eheheheh...."
"Alphys...?" He tilted his head, taking a step closer.
"U-U-Uh... I-I'm sorry... uh..." She turned back to Gaster. "P-Please... d-don't get mad... I-I mean I understand if you get mad, you'll have every right to-!"
"Alphys... do you... know something I don't...?"
"W-Well..." She rubbed the back of her head, looking away. "S-So here's a funny story... B-Back w-when uh... y-you started to r-research Human magic... I-I ... k-kinda wanted to ... uh... t-try something similar...? I-I was studying a lot about Human determination. A-And I was wondering if t-this kind of power could be given to monsters." Alphys looked down as she rubbed her arm. "The... t-the vessel I used was... a g-golden flower. A-And one time... it escaped."
For a few moments there was silence.
"Alphys..."
"I-I know t-this is all my fault now! I-I'm sorry I never told you, i-it was just a very long time ago, w-we d-didn't really uh... know each other that well, back then a-and I-I thought it was going to be okay I n-never-!"
"Alphys." Gaster walked closer to her. "I am not blaming you, nor am I angry. But... why didn't you say anything?"
"I-I... I never thought that flower is going to come back. I-I thought maybe it just... w-went back to the Surface or something."
Gaster sighed. "Well now that doesn't matter. We have to put an end to it, because we are facing a potential, grave danger. We need the Determination extractor to be able to do so. If we can take out the determination from it, it should never be able to possess any magical powers regarding determination." Gaster stopped for a moment to think. "... If you used the flower as a vessel, it might even turn back into an ordinary golden flower once the determination is removed."
"S-So... t-then... what are we going to do?"
"We... are still working on it. But trust me, I will inform you as soon as we have a stable plan."
"O-Okay! I-I'll be waiting here then!"
"Tonight I will definitely stay in the lab with you, so we can both keep an eye on the machine."
"Y-Yeah. T-That sounds good."
"So... I will see you in a bit, Alphys."
"O-Okay! B-Bye Gaster! G-Good luck!"
Gaster nodded in response and left the lab, returning to New Home.
After he returned to everyone, Asgore, Papyrus, Sans, Kale and Gaster built up a proper plan that could be the perfect way to stop Flowey in his scheming for good. As soon as they rethought the plan and made sure everything was going to go smooth, Gaster went back to the lab to inform Alphys and from then on, all of them just waited for Flowey to show up at any moment to execute the plan.
* * * * *
Well... it did not exactly go as smoothly as planned.
Flowey did not show up for the entire afternoon. It was unclear, whether he's been just unaware of the Reset, or if he was planning something else, maybe waiting for the perfect moment when Kale would be all alone, so nobody would be able to protect them, but after some waiting overnight, Asgore, Sans, Papyrus and Kale just all decided to go to sleep and regroup with Alphys and Gaster in the morning, so they could decide their next move from there.
Sans and Papyrus were sleeping in together in one bed on the left, while Kale slept on the bed on the right.
They slept soundly... but as they slept they could feel something... tickling their arm. They rolled in their sleep. The tickling changed and now it really felt like something was grasping Kale's entire body. Kale rolled on the bed one more time, but as they rolled, they fell onto the floor and woke up.
As Kale tiredly raised their head, their eyes met with someone they least expected in this moment.
Flowey was in front of Kale in the dark bedroom and before they even knew, Kale was already wrapped up in Flowey's vines as he pinned them on the wall.
"You stupid, gullible, idiot." Flowey chuckled. "Did you REALLY think I WASN'T going to notice that you Reset? I must admit, at first I did find it a little strange you wouldn't save after I got rid of that old fool. But then I realized you obviously wouldn't want to save that event now, would you..." Flowey tickled Kale's chin with the tip of one vine. "But then it became so obvious! You thought you were smart, but I could see it from a mile away! I knew you were going to Reset! Well guess what, buddy, pal..." Flowey crawled closer to Kale, his face turning into it's distorted, demonic version. "If you really thought your worthless Reset was going to stop me from taking your pitiful Soul, then you are an even bigger fool than I possibly imagined!" Flowey crawled even closer. "And now I have you right... here..."
As they were pinned on the cold wall, the vines tightened around Kale's body. They were holding them tightly, like hundreds of merciless snakes. Kale felt the vines tightening around their neck, making it momentarily harder and harder for them to breath. "Don't worry... I will take your Soul before you even have time to Reset you brat!"
"W-Wait..." Kale coughed, struggling to breath. They tried to look at Flowey, but the vines made it difficult for them to even move their head. "I-I... i-if you just wait for the morning... I-I'll give up my Soul! I-... I promise..."
"Oh, you really expect me to believe that, after you had the chitty-chatty with all those pathetic morons! I know what you are planning, I'm not going to fall for your stupid trap for one second!"
Flowey continued squeezing Kale with the vines. The Human's eyes teared up asFlowey continued squeezing Kale with the vines. The Human's eyes teared up as they felt the vines choking them harder and harder with each second. They felt dizzy... everything got more and more dark with each second... this really was... the end.
But suddenly the room shook from a powerful blast as Kale heard the noise of an ear piercing Gaster Blaster. They heard Flowey's pained scream as they vines finally let them go.
Kale fell on their knees to the floor, coughing and rubbing their sore neck as they looked up to see both Sans and Papyrus standing in front of Flowey. Papyrus had a great Gaster Blaster summoned above him.
"I USUALLY DON'T WANT TO HURT PEOPLE, BUT WHEN SOMEONE IS HURTING MY FRIENDS I CAN'T STAND BY AND WATCH!"
"Heh... so you actually have the guts to fight, you bonehead?" Flowey looked at Papyrus with a dark smirk. "But do you have the strength to really kill me?! Or are you actually the same old coward that you have always been?"
"honestly, killing you seems like too nice of a treatment at this point." Sans remarked, folding his arms as he looked down at the golden flower.
"Heheh... really? What else could you do to me? In case you didn't realize, all of your are PATHETIC WEAKLINGS compared to what I can do!"
"Sans... Papyrus..." Kale stood up. "I think it's time to move."
"W-WHAT? RIGHT NOW? BUT-"
"Well what else can we do now??"
Flowey looked at all of them with a sick smile on his face. "What makes you think I'll let you get away that easily?" Flowey summoned more vines and completely blocked the bedroom door.
"... Okay, so you wanna do it the hard way then. Fine." Kale summoned a shining red knife, their crimson irises burning with determination.
"Oh try me..."
Kale ran at Flowey, attempting to land a hit on him, but Flowey shoved Kale into the wardrobe with his vines. In that moment Papyrus attempted to blast at him but Flowey dodged it this time.
"Like that's gonna work on me a second time, idiot!"
Sans summoned a bone at hand and ran at Flowey, attempting to hit him with full force but Flowey took a hold of Sans's wrist with a vine before he could hit. "Do you really think you could do anything to me?" His face distorted. "YOU ARE COMPLETELY WORTHLESS FOR COMBAT, YOU KNOW THAT TOO, DON'T YOU?" Flowey roared.
Sans's left eye shined in a shade of cyan. "i don't care what you say! you're wrong!"
While Flowey was distracted with Sans, Kale managed to run up and slash at Flowey, actually landing a hit this time, forcing him to let go of Sans. Flowey did a sharp turn to his left to notice Kale. "Oh you little..." Before Flowey could move to do anything Papyrus managed to summon a set of blue bones to stop him from moving. Flowey attempted to toss some pellets at him, but Sans threw the bone in his hand to retract the pellets into the wall.
Flowey disappeared into the floor to get out of the cage of blue bones.
Kale ran to the door and awaited for Flowey to appear again, at any second. Papyrus was also on guard with his Gaster Blaster still summoned.
In the next moment, Flowey appeared in the middle of the room and before anyone could react he grabbed Sans with his vines and pinned him against the wall.
"Neither of you move an inch!" He looked at Kale and Papyrus. "Just one sudden move..."
"SANS!!" Papyrus's eyes darted on Sans, his Gaster Blaster disappearing. Sans was painfully held at the wall by Flowey, barely being able to move an inch.
"Just one... slight... squeeze... is enough to make him dust." Flowey whispered in a sick voice, pressing the vines on Sans stronger.
The smaller skeleton flinched as the vines were pressing against his bones.
He knew just one small crack was enough...
Then he would surely die.
Papyrus and Kale were frozen in place, unsure of what to do.
"So, either you give me your Soul at will or these two boneheads will become a pile of dust in a very, very, very short timespan."
"K-KALE...?" Papyrus glanced at them. Sans was being held by the vines so tight, he couldn't even make a sound.
Drops of sweat rolled down on Kale's forehead as they were switching looks between Sans, Papyrus and Flowey.
Finally, their mind snapped with an idea.
As quickly as they could, Kale cut an opening in the vines and kicked the door open, throwing their red knife right into Flowey's face.
"AUGH YOU LITTLE-!!!" But before Flowey could act, Kale already ran out of the room. "UGH! You two IDIOTS stay here!!" He wrapped up Papyrus in a set of vines too and disappeared into the floor to follow Kale as fast as he could manage.
Kale ran like never before in their whole life. They ran as fast as they could just manage. They knew Flowey would be able to catch up with them at any moment, so they ran as fast as they could to the elevator that took them to the CORE. None of this was going according to plan anymore, but Kale knew they had to run to Alphys and Gaster as fast as it was humanly possible.
As they reached the elevator to take them out of New Home, Kale kept mashing the buttons impatiently, checking behind themselves every now and then to see if Flowey was coming.
The elevator door soon opened but Flowey was already behind Kale.
He threw a set of pellets as Kale jumped inside the elevator to evade them and pressed the button to take them to the CORE as fast as possible.
* * * * *
"... UGH... S-... SANS..?" Papyrus whimpered while being held by the vines. Since Flowey lost focus, the vines' hold wasn't as strong as before. "W-WHAT DO WE DO? K-KALE IS ALONE...!"
"mph... h-hold... on paps. i-i think i... have an idea."
Sans tried to free one hand from the vines as best as possible. When at least some of his fingers were freed, he pinned his eyes on the knife that Kale dropped earlier and used blue magic to carefully lift it into his free fingers. When he did, Sans freed his hand holding the knife, then he freed his arm and moment later he was out of the vines' hold. As he hopped on the floor, he quickly cut Papyrus's vines too.
Papyrus quickly stood up properly and hugged Sans.
"THAT WAS GOOD THINKING SANS!!"
Sans threw the knife on the floor.
"ugh... never wanna touch that thing again..." He shuddered.
"NOW COME ON! LET'S HURRY AND HELP KALE!!"
"yeah, let's go!"
They ran to the door and tear the remaining vines then ran out as fast as they could.
* * * * *
Minutes later Kale was already running in the hall of Gaster and Alphys's lab. They had a hunch that thanks to the quick elevator traversing, Flowey momentarily lost track of them. They could only hope Sans and Papyrus managed to free themselves from those vines and are now heading for Alphys's lab in hopes of maybe being able to properly complete the plan.
Thankfully, Gaster was still sort of half awake by his computer. Kale ran in the office as fast as they could.
"Gaster!!" They ran up to him, making him immediately snap awake.
"Human what- what are you doing here?? Do you have any idea how late it is-"
"It's Flowey! He found out! He's almost got us, he's after me, somewhere he could be here any moment he-"
"Alright, calm down." Gaster quickly stood up. "We... we need to act fast. Really fast. We need to get the machine working. Where are Sans and Papyrus?"
"Uh... Flowey got them... wrapped in vines. B-But I think they're okay..."
"... Alright then, we better hurry if we want to make this work, come on."
"W-Wait but- Alphys."
"There's no time, we need to move fast!"
Kale followed Gaster down the hall as they took the elevator back into Alphys's lab. Gaster impatiently tapped his feet. For once this five minutes that it usually took to get from Gaster's lab to Alphys's, felt way longer. Finally as the elevator door opened, Gaster and Kale entered as Flowey was already in there.
"HOW LONG ARE YOU GONNA KEEP EVADING ME YOU IDIOT!!" Flowey shot his gaze at Kale.
"... As long as you're stupid enough to let me slip by." Kale shrugged.
"Oh I'm gonna make you regret every single word..."
"hey!! vine face!"
Gaster and Kale looked back as they saw Sans and Papyrus by the backdoor.
"Oh great, just what I needed..." Flowey rolled his eyes.
"Gaster, go for it, we got him from here..." Kale quietly mumbled to Gaster. He took the opportunity and went upstairs as fast as he could manage while Papyrus and Sans shot one giant blast together as in means to distract Flowey. Kale summoned a knife that they threw directly at him while he was still stunned from the shot.
Using the short time that Flowey was stunned for, Kale looked back at Sans and Papyrus.
"Guys! Come on! We can make it!" The brothers ran forward up the stairs as Kale shot their gaze back at Flowey. "You want me, creep? Well come and get me!" Kale ran up the stairs all the while keeping an eye on Flowey.
The Determination Extractor was long turned on by now. Gaster was standing in a corner while Sans and Papyrus were in the other, waiting for the two of them to come upstairs.
"What are you playing at, idiot?" Flowey looked at the extractor machine.
"You know? Nothing." Kale dropped their knife. "Here. I'm all yours." They put their arms out. "Take my Soul."
"... Is this some kind of sick joke?!" Flowey growled, his expression turning melty and distorted with anger.
"Nope. I'm completely serious." Kale walked closer to Flowey and sat on the floor in front of him.
"What the hell are you doing?!!" Flowey's distorted high pitched voice echoed through the dark, empty lab. His face got all the more distorted the more angry he got.
"Nothing... just this!!" Kale jumped at Flowey and kept holding him as strong as their arms could possibly manage. "SANS, PAPYRUS, NOW!!!"
"G-GET- GET OFF ME YOU--!!"
But Flowey was helpless to do anything. Kale felt their Soul turning blue as Sans and Papyrus threw Flowey into the Determination Extractor with full force, using blue magic together.
"now G!!"
Gaster smashed the button and the machine started running immediately, sucking all the determination out of Flowey...
... and of Kale.
After some moments, the machine was done. As it opened up, Kale fell out of it along with Flowey.
Well... what was left of Flowey.
He was Flowey no more. He was just... an ordinary golden flower.
Sans, Papyrus and Gaster walked to the two of them.
"WE... DID IT?"
"i... i guess we did!"
"HEY KALE WE DID IT!!"
... But no response came.
"... KALE?"
Gaster carefully turned them over to their back. Kale had their eyes shut while they were still holding Flowey in their arms. Gaster gently took the flower out of their hands. "... They seem to be unconscious..."
"ARE... THEY OKAY?"
"They will possibly wake up later..."
Sans exhaled. "speaking of... this all really made me tired."
"YEAH... I'M KINDA TIRED TOO."
"Indeed, this was not exactly going according to plan. We should head down to the lab."
"... what about... that thing?"
Sans pointed on the golden flower. Gaster looked at it for a moment. Then he took the flower with one hand and floated Kale's body with the other, using blue magic.
The three of them walked out of Alphys's lab, out into Hotland.
There, Gaster took the golden flower...
... and tossed it into the lava.
"... i guess that works." Sans chuckled.
"IS THIS IT THEN?" Papyrus looked around at all of them.
Gaster carefully looked lifted Kale as he looked at the boys. "Yes, hopefully. I think we could all use some rest now, yes? It is terribly late."
"yeah, i'm totally wiped." Sans nodded, yawning in the process.
"ME TOO..."
"Well then, let's go."
They headed back down to the lab. Gaster set Kale down on the bed and sat on the couch in the office while Sans and Papyrus lie together on the bed and soon enough, all of them fell asleep.
* * * * *
In the morning, Sans, Gaster, Papyrus and Alphys all woke up together in the lab. They of course had to explain what happened overnight, to ease Alphys's worries.
"Overall, we are all okay and we have dealt with the flower as planned."
"WELL... MOST OF US ARE OKAY..." Papyrus looked at Kale.
"I ... should check on them." Gaster took the old soul scanning device from one of the drawers and scanned Kale's soul.
There was a little noise, indicating the scan was successful.
SPECIES: HUMAN
HP: N/A
LV: N/A
ERROR
UNABLE TO LOAD FURTHER DATA
Gaster raised a brow. "That is... strange. Alphys, would you mind keeping an eye on them? So at least we can know if... they're okay."
"Y-Yeah! O-Of course!"
"We should all get back now."
"yeah... i'm hungry."
"AS ALWAYS..." Papyrus looked down at Sans who just shrugged in response.
"B-Bye for now!"
"I will be back soon, Alphys." Gaster waved at her as they left the lab. Shortly after, they were all back in New Home. Asgore was already in the living room and it seemed like he was already aware of what might have happened in this house last night.
"Well, I think you all had a very eventful night."
"uh... yeah. it kinda didn't go as we planned but, we're okay."
"Everything has gone... mostly according to plan, aside from the fact that the Human has lost consciousness..."
"AND WELL UH... ASIDE FROM IT ALL HAPPENING IN THE MIDDLE OF THE NIGHT NYEH HEH..." Papyrus tried to brighten the mood. A small smile spread on Asgore's face.
"Yes, well I am glad the issue is resolved. Although it is unfortunate that the Human didn't make it."
In that moment, Gaster's cell phone went off in his pocket. It was Alphys calling him. He turned the phone to speaker mode so everyone could hear. "Yes, Alphys?"
"G-Gaster, I-I looked at Kale's Soul. T-They... lost their trait..."
"Ah... r-right. Of course, I should have suspected that would happen..."
"T-They're... k-kind of in coma. I-I don't think they're going to wake up anytime soon..."
"Maybe there is ... something we can do for them yet. Thank you for informing me, Alphys. I will be back in the lab shortly." He hung up.
"That is... very unfortunate news..." Asgore said quietly.
"Yes, but... we can possibly do something for them yet." Gaster glanced at Sans and Papyrus. "Asgore, is it alright if I talk with them in private for a moment?"
"Of course, go ahead."
They went into the bedroom. Vine pieces were still hanging off the walls here and there.
"Now Sans, Papyrus. I have to tell you... ever since I've brought you two here, I haven't quite been trying to make an effort to... spend more time with you. I... just felt like I wasn't going to be good enough for you. But now... that is about to change. I feel I have no reason to distance myself from you and I should be the one to give you a better life, not anyone else. I owe you this much, at least."
"... so we're... leaving?" Sans looked at him.
Gaster nodded slowly. "Yes, but we can always come back to New Home and visit Asgore at any time. I am sure he would be delighted if we did, every now and then."
"AND WHERE ARE WE GOING?"
"I have an old house in a different place called Snowdin. It is still in a good enough condition, we can stay there." Gaster looked down, but then he faced both of them and smiled. "From now... it is time for a new beginning for all of us."
"... WHAT'S... COMA?"
"Hmm?" Gaster looked at Papyrus.
"DR. ALPHYS SAID KALE WAS IN... COMA. WHAT DOES THAT MEAN?"
"Oh..." Gaster looked away. "Coma is... a state, when the person is unable to wake up for a longer period of time."
"... so kale won't wake up?"
"I... don't know, honestly. But maybe me and Alphys can do something for them yet."
Sans and Papyrus looked at each other with worry. Gaster put a hand on their shoulders. "Do not worry, we will try our best."
"OKAY." Papyrus smiled back.
"But now, I should really get back to work with Alphys."
"'kay. see ya later then doc."
"Yes, I will possibly be back be evening. We will leave tomorrow. I feel like we could all use a bit of a breather, after what went down last night."
Gaster left the bedroom and with it, New Home to return to Hotland.
These near three months have put him through a lot... and not just him, but of course, Sans and Papyrus as well. They weren't even called Sans and Papyrus at one point. They were just called Subjects 1-S and 2-P. That dark time, when he still treated them as objects and refused to acknowledge them as his... real sons. But... that was all in the past now. There was no other reason to think about it anymore.
By today, Dr. W.D Gaster has become a very different person and has changed in a lot of ways, certainly for the better.
But... the biggest change that possibly made Gaster the happiest, aside from of course, becoming a better person to Sans and Papyrus...
... Was that he was finally able to give Humanity a second chance after so many decades.
Notes:
Well... holy crap, here we are. The end of this book. Honestly there are a lot of things I did not expect, like the 1k+ hits or the nearly 50 kudos. There are a lot of things that surprised me with this fanfiction. I definitely did not expect it to gain the amount of attention it got. So I thank you all for your support.
You may be wondering what comes after this, what happens with Kale, how will Gaster raise the skelebros?
Do not worry, Season 2 is planned. I am not sure when I'll start posting it yet, but it will come. So be on the lookout for that. Once again, thank you all for your support and stay determined folks!
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Chasm_Azh_Here on Chapter 1 Wed 08 Mar 2023 01:43PM UTC
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HPUTFan on Chapter 6 Tue 18 Apr 2023 12:26PM UTC
Last Edited Tue 18 Apr 2023 12:27PM UTC
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