Anomalies

The Scar

Sans didn't move for hours. He and Papyrus sat like that for hours and hours, unable to move. Too afraid to move. Eventually, though, Papyrus started to wiggle and squirm, and Sans knew they had to check at least. See the damage. See what happened to Gaster. Everyone involved. See if the world had reset... or if they were stuck like this with all his neighbors and coworkers dead. "Sans... What Happened Here...?" Papyrus asked in confusion as they came out from under the desk. Blueprints scattered across the tiled floors, the tiles uneven and some missing. Strips of paint were torn from the walls, and of course... the machine was a wreck, blasted apart, and burnt where it was destroyed. "no doc..." Sans noted, glancing around. Wait, did Papyrus not remember? Did he fail, and the world reset? But he wasn't in the house... was this a fixed point in time? "uh... i dunno bro..." It was the truth. He didn't know what happened after he fired on the machine. "let's getcha home..." Sans guided his bro up to the house (which stood untouched by Gaster somehow) and up to his room. "Saaans, I Don't Want To Sleep -"

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Despite his protests, Papyrus went to bed faster than usual. The day had been long and the night, even longer. Pap needed rest, and Sans did too, but first, he needed to know what happened. Where was Gaster? Were they safe? He called to see about Papyrus being watched by the Inn Keeper again. "Hello? Who is this?" She sounded tired, probably getting ready to go to bed herself. "this is sans. i was wondering if my bro could spend the night again?" He asked hesitantly. "Sans? My, what a unique name... are you new to Snowdin?" What? "uhhh... no? i, uh, lived in snowdin all my life." What was happening? Is she pulling my leg? "Oh! You must be from the country than, dear. When can I expect this brother of yours? A room at the Inn is 80 G." Sans sockets widened. It was like... they never met at all? "i, uhh, y-yeah. got it. be there in five." He hung up the phone, taking a moment to process before packing a bag for Paps. There was still a possibility it was just a prank. There was only one way to find out.

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"Oh my- your brother is just a-" It wasn't a prank. It was real. She didn't know them. "um, yeah. i'm raising him on my own. lost our parents recently." Sans had to explain it all again, subsequently leading to her taking him in without much care for the money. That was honestly the best news Sans had all night as he took the ferry to the lab. He had to see what else happened. Why had they been forgotten? And still, he wondered. Where the hell was Gaster? So he ferried straight to the lab to see. The doors opened easily for him, the place wasn't bustling like it was during the day, in fact, it didn't look like multiple people worked there. Sans tried not to think much about it as he headed to True Lab, down to Gaster's personal labs. It was all dark, untouched, abandoned. The only trace of Gaster was in the DT Extraction machine. He was just... gone. "what the hell...?" What about his coworkers? His own desk? Had it all disappeared with him? "H-hello?" Sans jumped as a yellow lizard monster came up from hehind him nervously.

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"C-can I help you?" She stuttered slightly and Sans could tell she was scared of his intentions. He had just waltzed on in, after all. "maybe... i was looking for doctor gaster...?" He vaguely remembered this monster. Her name was Dr. Alphys, if he recalled, a genius in technology. "I-I'm sorry, I h-have never heard of him... I-I just got this proposition so-" Sans tilted his head. "position? what position? uh- if you don't mind me asking?" Alphys only got more nervous, fidgeting with her claws. "I-I... The... The... R-R-Royal S-Scientist..." Sans blinked. Then blinked again. Then went to sit down. Alphys was Royal Scientist. Didn't know Gaster. Didn't know him... "w-well... i'm sans. i used to work here but..." He shrugged. "i just wanted to see the old place, i guess." Alphys seemed to visibly relax at that. "O-oh good, I-I thought you were a-a m-m-murderer or..." Sans shook his  head, knowing exactly why Alphys had that fear. "nah, i'm too much of a numbskull for that." He winked at her and she giggled. "i should be going, though, heh. it's late."

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Alphys bid him goodbye after that and he got back on the ferry. Sans tried to tick through what he knew. Gaster was gone. He and Pap were forgotten. Alphys took Gaster's place. Where were the others? Alphys never mentioned having help and their rooms were empty. Did they forget too? It seemed that this reset, it changed things. Left a scar where Gaster should've been. "Tra la la, Beware the Man who Speaks in Hands~" Sans froze suddenly, looking up at the Riverperson as they continued. "Beware the Man who came from the Other World." The Other World? What did that...? Sans shook his head. It didn't matter, none of it mattered if Gaster was gone and Paps, Snowdin, hell, the entire Underground was safe. It would be too soon if he never saw Gaster again, yet... he was gonna miss him. Not... not what he turned into, but the brilliant scientist who saved him from an early grave. Maybe someday, he would look into what happened, but for now, while he tried to make things work for himself and Papyrus, he was gonna let the subject drop. He definitely was never going back now.

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