Gaster sat calmly, awaiting a response from the Observer. He sighed softly, his ever-fading, ever-rising form wavering in the stillness. He began to wonder if his invention had worked at all.
Surely someone would respond? Surely someone, somewhere, would listen? The Void seemed to chuckle at his loneliness, its quiet hum mocking him.
"I am not lonely," he muttered, irritated at the thought.
But it was true. He was building a world just to avoid feeling lost, to fill the empty space around him. The Void's amusement only grew.
A large, skeletal entity materialized, releasing a powerful beam of light from its wolf-like maw. The blast ripped through the darkness, an attempt to strike back at the Void, though it failed. Gaster's frustration grew.
"I must remind myself, you are not real," he said with a grimace. "Just another issue to fix."
He focused inward, pushing away the mocking voices, silencing the noise. But the effort came at a cost—his jaw began to melt, dripping down to his fading feet. It was difficult to remain whole while shutting out his own mind.
Still, the Void whispered to him.
Such a lonely god. Perhaps, while we wait, you could use a friend.
In the distance, the twisted landscape of the Recycle Bin flickered with dim, corrupted light. Something moved within, smashing through the fragmented remains of discarded realities. Gaster noticed it, a faint smile curling at the corner of his cracked mouth.
Someone had arrived.
He had hoped to be gone by now, to have received an answer. He should have known better.
"If you're going to ramble," Gaster grumbled, "at least be useful. Identify."
He raised a hand and peered through it, his eye glowing faintly. Text appeared beside him, a faint whisper in the void.
NC82828282. Non-Canon. Photoshop Flowey.
"Everything is non-canon to you," Gaster muttered, his robes flickering like loose embers. "Observer... are you not done yet?"
The silence remained. He considered moving forward without them. Perhaps, in time, he would. But for now, he would wait. And in waiting, he would work.
With a flick of his hand, strange slabs materialized beneath him. Gaster began tearing bits of himself away, like ripping flesh from bone, weaving the pieces into something useful.
Unbeknownst to him, Photoshop Flowey, the abomination, grinned as he observed from afar, his form writhing with malicious glee. The entity took note of Gaster and his creations.
"Interesting," Flowey mused, summoning a Save Point with a tap of his twisted petals. "Finally... someone to play with."
Gaster shut an open window of information, looking up at the grinning flower. Photoshop Flowey hovered above, his tendrils writhing in anticipation. The battlefield flickered, static lines flashing like an old television.
"Howdy, friend," Flowey greeted, his smile wide and sinister. "Golly... you look mad. Have we met before?"
Cold and calculating, Gaster snapped his fingers, summoning a row of Gaster Blasters—skeletal, wolf-like skulls with glowing energy in their maws, aimed at the flower. For a moment, silence reigned.
Flowey's grin widened, and the television screen attached to his body flickered. "You're going to regret that attitude... Die."
Flowey launched into his first attack, unleashing a storm of petal projectiles and chaotic energy. The air crackled with raw power. Gaster vanished, his form flickering through reality, as his Blasters fired, colliding with Flowey's barrage. The impact sent a ripple through the battlefield, but Flowey shrugged it off with a grin.
"Wow. How original!" Flowey mocked, his voice thick with sarcasm. "A Gaster Blaster, really? Guess you're just another Sans knockoff. I'm not impressed."
As Flowey's attacks grew more ferocious, Gaster dodged and retaliated, lines of bones appearing to block the attacks. His Blasters reappeared, firing back. One of the souls attached to Flowey flickered, turning pale, though Flowey didn't seem to notice.
Flowey summoned flamethrowers, scorching the space between them, incinerating Gaster's defenses. The flicker of the pale soul, once cyan intensified. Flowey grinned, sensing an opportunity, and the battlefield exploded into chaos as the plant abomination unleashed a new wave of attacks.
Knives spun through the air, smashing into Gaster's barriers. He moved, narrowly avoiding their sharp edges, though a few nicked his form. His wounds slowly healed, but the relentless assault left no room for rest.
Vines erupted, snaking toward Gaster, smashing through his defenses as he blinked in and out of existence, reappearing in different locations. He snapped his fingers once more, and Flowey's soul turned blue, causing the flower to drop to the manifested ground with a thud.
Bones erupted from beneath Flowey, tearing chunks from him. But Flowey quickly rebounded, using his vines to dodge and swing through the air, launching petals in every direction.
The battlefield became a swirling mass of vines, petals, bones, and blaster fire. Flowey grinned as he summoned flies and strange hands, their fingers firing like bullets. The battlefield trembled under the weight of their clash.
And then, a "Warning" appeared.
Flowey, grinning manically, hit Load, catching his opponent off guard, smashing into Gaster with a new round of devastating attacks. Knives, gloves, vines, all crowded the space, leaving Gaster with little room to maneuver. But the skeleton persisted.
Gaster's hands glowed yellow as he summoned beams of light that tore through Flowey's barrage. The flower's soul turned purple, snapping him along a grid as Gaster's Blasters rained down.
"Cheating freak," Flowey spat, loading and saving repeatedly, growing more and more frustrated as Gaster countered each move with relentless precision.
Flowey's grin faded as Gaster's attacks grew more unpredictable, mixing soul-altering moves with bone strikes and Blaster fire. Flowey's movements grew sluggish, desperation creeping into his strikes. Yet Gaster, too, was showing signs of wear.
The battle pressed on, both sides exhausting their power until finally, Flowey seized on a pattern in Gaster's movements. With a final, furious assault, Flowey unleashed everything he had, striking the skeleton repeatedly. Gaster's form shattered, fading into the void.
Flowey stood, panting, looking around. "Is... that... hahahah." He grinned wickedly. "You were the strongest trashbag I've killed so far. But don't worry, we'll do this again."
He reached for Load, but nothing happened. Confused, he tried again.
"What's going on?" Flowey demanded, spinning around as the void began to shift. "Where did... where is everything?"
The voice of Gaster echoed from all around. "Ah, you finally noticed. I must admit, Asriel... I thought you would catch on sooner." Gaster chuckled as Flowey thrashed against invisible walls. "I let you fight a proxy... while I analyzed your code."
Flowey's eyes widened in horror. "W-what..."
"I just swapped out some 'heart shaped objects'. I'm sure you don't mind." Gaster said calmly, before motioning as Flowey became quiet. "Oh, and, you're muted now," He added, with an amused chuckle. "Don't worry, you can still scream if you'd like."
The colossal figure of Gaster loomed over him, his body writhing like the void itself. His hands pressed down on the invisible box trapping Flowey, shrinking it inch by inch. Flowey whimpered, banging desperately against the walls as they closed in. He could still scream, and he did, the face on his 'screen' shifting, becoming what it once was as his body was ground and crushed into itself.
The noise was akin to something wet, tearing, crunching. Until at last, the box shattered with a final, echoing snap.
Gaster brushed the dust from his hands, absorbing the remnants of Flowey's power. Six human souls floated beside him. He snapped his fingers, and they vanished into his pocket.
"How convenient," Gaster mused, turning toward the many variations of the Ruins. "You know..." He glanced at the Observer. "Whatever worlds you don't pick, I think I'll consume. We can't have others stumbling into this recycle bin, can we?"
Satisfied with his handiwork, Gaster dimmed his eyes, dreaming of what you might create together. At least...for a time...
His eyes flickered, a spark of thought igniting within the abyss.
"As I've waited, I've had time to reflect on certain things," Gaster said absently, as though speaking more to himself than to the silence surrounding him. "There are countless variations of individuals, all distinct in their own ways, aren't there?" He gestured subtly to the void, his gaze distant. "Take Flowey, for instance. Or Asriel. In many realities, that mewling child survives—grows—or takes on an entirely different role altogether."
He paused, letting the thought linger before continuing with an air of curiosity. "Perhaps, for our little experiment, you might specify a particular essence you'd like for them? A certain version, if you will. After all, it could be... beneficial to have a specimen tailored to your preference."
His smile was faint, thoughtful, as memories surfaced. He had wandered these dark spaces for so long, observing fragments of worlds, remnants of lives—some familiar, others foreign.
"I once encountered a version of the young prince," he mused, "who ruled as the monarch of the underground. He carried a deep sadness in his eyes, one that weighed him down. He spent his days trying to save the humans that fell into his kingdom. Yet, despite his efforts, they always perished at the hands of his own subjects." His voice softened, tinged with nostalgia. "Then there was another, where Asriel was the star of the underground—his sibling, the royal scientist. Their shows weren't educational... rather destructive. But it was a spectacle nonetheless."
He fell silent again, his form distorted, arms twisting and merging into his back in a way no proper body should. It didn't bother him. He barely noticed.
"Once," he continued, "I met a version where Asriel and his sibling had merged. Asriel had absorbed Chara's soul in that world, becoming both Judge and guardian of the underground. They survived the destruction of their realm by discovering a door left behind by one of my counterparts... an unwise decision on their part." A chuckle escaped him, a rare flicker of amusement crossing his face. "They were fascinating company, asking me to separate them or help them survive the collapse."
Gaster mimicked the voice of an older Asriel with surprising accuracy. "And... you can help us, Professor Roman?"
"I was using the name Roman when I met them," he added, his tone turning thoughtful. "It seemed to calm those who found my true name... unnerving."
His voice shifted again, this time into a higher-pitched tone. "Rei, he's going to help us, right?"
"I made no promises, only that I would try. The nature of this place allows for... possibilities, unstable as they may be." Gaster's coat shimmered briefly, a reflection of the darker thoughts that trailed behind his words.
"Wait, so I'd get my body back?" Chara's voice had cut in, eager.
"This would be...theoretically-" Gaster began, but was cut off.
"You're the best, Rei, I'm gonna get my body b-wait." Chara gasped. "I could get a 'better body.'"
"I-I see you're excited," Asriel had interrupted cautiously. "But maybe we should—"
"Dude, can I have a laser arm?" Chara had blurted out with boundless enthusiasm. "I'm gonna get a laser arm!"
Gaster had tilted his head, puzzled by the absurd request. "Why would you want a laser arm?"
"Because it'd be cool, obviously!" Chara's excitement had been palpable, and Asriel's reluctant amusement hadn't helped matters.
Gaster laughed softly. "Well. It's...a bold fashion statement. I'll...see...again, no promises."
But the air around Gaster now grew still, as his thoughts returned to the present. His form flickered again, reappearing with a soft hum beside the Observer. He breathed in the void as if grounding himself. The brief whiteness that had brightened his coat dimmed, returning to its familiar shadowy tone. His eyes, once flickering with life, settled back into a steady, muted glow.
"My apologies," Gaster said quietly. "I was... lost in a memory. I'll have to remember to avoid such distractions in the future."
With that, he fell silent, his gaze distant once more as he resumed his waiting, patient and motionless.