"There's no doubting what you've achieved on a technical level." The guy speaking seemed kind of concerned but was trying to keep everything professional. "These are clearly state-of-the-art. There are just certain... 'design choices' that were made for these robots that we don't fully understand. We were hoping that you could shed some light on those."

The male who the speaker was talking to straightened his tie and stared coldly with his brown eyes.

"She can dance. She can sing. She's equipped with a built-in helium tank, inflating balloons right at her fingertips. She can take song requests. She can even dispense ice cream."

The speaker shifted a little awkwardly. "With all due respect, those were the design choices we were curious about, Mr. Logan."

———
Daddy, why won't you let me play with them?

"Welcome to the first day of your exciting new career!" Greeted an almost monotonous voice. "Whether you were approached at a job fair, read our ad in Screws, bolts, and hairpins, or if this is the result of a dare, we welcome you. I will be your personal guide to help you get started. You can call me 'Google'. Your new career promises challenge, intrigue, and endless janitorial opportunities. Please enter your name as seen above the keypad. This cannot be changed later, so, please be careful."

A young man, most likely in his early twenties, stared at the malfunctioning keypad.

He tried to type the name "Dee".

"It seems that you had some trouble with the keypad," Google noted. "I see what you were trying to type, and I will autocorrect it for you. One moment. Welcome Eggs Benedict!"

Dee heaved a sigh and shook his head. These would be a long few days.

Some elevator music started to play.

"How are they able to afford music in this elevator just for security and technicians, but they can't raise my paycheck?" Dee asked himself.

"You can now open the elevator using that bright, red, and obvious button. Let's get to work!"

Dee gave the entrance a suspicious look. It was roped off by yellow police tape.

Dee sighed again. "Oh, well. Society is overrated anyway. Laws? Never heard of her."

"Allow me to fill this somewhat frightening silence with some lighthearted banter. Due to the massive success, and, even more so, the unfortunate closing of Dragon Prince's Pizza, it was clear that the stage was set (no pun intended) for another contender in children's entertainment."

Dee nodded and rolled his eyes a little. He knew this all already. His father had co-owned that place after all.

"Unlike most entertainment venues, our robotic entertainers are rented out for private parties during the day, and it's your job to get the robots back in proper working order before the following morning."

Of course. Not only does he have to stay at this dark and creepy robot place alone, but he will have to get up close and personal.

Up close and personal...

Dee shook his head. He couldn't think about that now. He had to focus on his task.

"You are now in the primary Control Module; it's actually a crawlspace between the two front showrooms," Google explained "Now, let's get started with your daily tasks. View the window to your left. This is the Host Gallery: Party Room and Dance Studio, encouraging kids to get fit and enjoy pizza! Let's turn on the light and see if Host is onstage. Press the blue button on the elevated keypad to your left."

Dee looked around the room. There were some weird robot baby-looking heads in the corners, along with a creepy clown mask on the wall above where he entered. In between the mask and the entrance was a very large fan. Dee went over to the right and booped the baby-robot's nose. It let out some weird goose honk, causing Dee to jump slightly.

He walked over to the keypad. There was a blue button with a sun-like thing on it. There was another button underneath it; a red one with a lighting bolt. He tried to press the red button, but it didn't seem to work. Finally, Dee presses the blue button, like he was instructed to do.

There was a small stage that was lit up. It didn't seem like there was anyone, or anything, on it.

"Uh oh!" Google said. "It looks like Host doesn't feel like dancing. Let's give him some motivation. Press the red button now to administer a controlled shock. Maybe that will put the spring back in his step."

"What were these designers thinking?" Dee asked aloud.

These 'controlled shocks' probably wouldn't make the robots too happy.

But, the robot instructor guy had told him to do this. So...

Dee rammed his finger down, causing a huge visible shock to go through the Host Gallery. Seems like it worked now.

"Let's check the light again."

Dee did as he was told. He saw a robot with a weird bandage around his eyes and a beige trench coat twirling around. There were some strange ballerina clay dolls around him.

"Excellent. Host's feeling like his old self again and will be ready to perform again tomorrow. Now, view the window to your right. This is the funtime auditorium where Marvin the Magnificent encourages kids to play and share. Try the light! Let's see what Marvin is up to."

Dee pressed the light button on the other keypad thing by Funtime Auditorium. Just an empty stage. Again. Why weren't they on their stages to begin with?

"Looks like Marvin is taking the day off. Let's motivate Marvin with a controlled shock."

Hopefully these robots didn't hold heavy grudges. Shooock!

The stage was still empty when Dee presses the button to light the room up.

"Let's try another controlled shock."

Dee did.

When he pressed the light, he finally saw an occupied stage. There stood Marvin with his mask, cat ears, and tail; all mainly white. Dee has always wondered whether the ears were a part of the mask or were just cat ears. Marvin held a magician wand in one hand and a few playing cards in another. He had a blue shirt and a black cape.

"Looks like Marvin is in perfect working order. Great job! In front of you is another vent shaft. Crawl through it to reach the Circus Gallery Control Module."

Dee dreaded this part. He didn't really like the robots, besides Anx, all that much. But he had a special hatred for Princey and Circus Baby.

"On the other side of the glass is Circus Baby's auditorium. Let's check the light and see what Baby is up to."

Dee, for what seemed like the thousandth time, pressed the light button. And the stage was empty. Of course.

"Looks like a few of the lights are out, but we can fix that later. Let's encourage Baby to cheer up with a controlled shock."

Dee really didn't like that. But it wasn't like he had a choice. When he lit the room up, the stage was still empty.

"Let's try another controlled shock."

Again, he pressed both buttons. Surprise surprise, Baby was still absent.

"Great job, Circus Baby. We knew we could count on you!"

Dee looked up at where the voice was coming from, confused.

"That concludes your duties for your first night on the job. We don't want you to leave overwhelmed; otherwise, you might not come back. Please leave using the vent behind you, and we'll see you again tomorrow."