Version:1.0 StartHTML:0000000167 EndHTML:0000006391 StartFragment:0000000457 EndFragment:0000006375
The dark hallways stung with the scent of decay, which was so frequent that those passing through often didn't even notice. Loud, inhuman noises emitted from many barred off areas within the building and echoed into every otherwise quiet room. A tall figure passed though in silence as he carried a small package close to his chest. He soon reached a white door at the end of the hall, and his hand waved over the padlock. It opened immediately, and he hurriedly made his way inside before locking the door behind him. Along the walls were cupboards and cabinets that matched the door and walls, though some were stained with splotches of red.
"Alright, calm down," he muttered to himself as he shakily opened the box. Inside were two carefully wrapped needles, each containing an odd red liquid. He placed the box on a nearby table, which other than a small potted flower had been clear. It was slightly hunched over from the lack of sunlight, and seemed to stand up as it was injected with the contents of one of the needles.
"Gaster," Alphys mumbled shakily as the door swung open. She quickly stepped in and closed it, and despite the look of relief that met Gaster he was still notably overwhelmed with nervous tension.
"You're just in time Alphys," he said in reply, "I figure it'd be safer with you around. I'm sure you heard of my... passed test subjects... but I'm changing it all. I'm sick of hurting all these innocent people in an attempt to free others..." Alphys gave him a weird look as he took out the other needle.
"What is that stuff? What exactly have you been doing in here?"
"It's determination, Alphys. If monsters can obtain the humans' trait, we could gain even more power. Perhaps, even enough to break the barrier once and for all..."
"W-what?! Gaster, they'll kill you if they find out! You know that!" Her brow furrowed in concern.
"I don't care what they will do. Alphys, dear... You are still young. You have much more left for you, more to have put on the line for a risk like this. I'm getting old. All I have left is my research."
"Gaster, I-"
"I beg you, keep this between us... You'll have to forgive me for this," he muttered softly as he raised his shirt, stabbing the second needle into his own soul. Alphys's eyes went wide in shock as the doctor dropped to his hands and knees, groaning in pain. She reached forward to help him up, recoiling suddenly when he let out a low growl in reply. His hands grabbed the edge of the table, seemingly melting onto it as he attempted to stand. Yet, after a few moments, he managed to settle and reform himself properly. Alphys stared at him with wide eyes as she trembled before running out of the lab. Gaster meekly let out a sigh and closed his eyes, laying himself there on the floor to think.
While the first few DT experiments had been easy enough to recover from, Gaster's physical state began to wear down each time. Within three months the damage was more than apparent. Cracks had formed in his skull, his right eye sat in a permanent half-closed state, and large holes had formed in the palms of his hands. Even so, he continued to push his limits. After all, he had been the first to survive his own testing. He wasn't prepared to end them just yet.
Gaster had begun traveling to the Underground at the few times Toriel wasn't keeping watch over the barrier. At first the humans attacked him in fear, but over time they saw his lack of will to fight and accepted his presence with relative peace. While his research continued to improve from all of this, it didn't come without consequence. Alphys received great amounts of stress as she desperately covered for him, and even the slightest mess up from either of them would cost Gaster his life.