Somewhere in Downtown Japan
No One's POV
Hours had passed since PIXAL had promised the others that she could track Ken's progress through the traffic cameras. She had denied Kit's prospect of a popcorn run, so the boys had to find other ways to entertain themselves. They'd had bey battles on the uneven ground, told jokes that had some of them laughing and the others either confused or angry, mostly doing ANYTHING they could to keep their minds off of the problem at hand.

When the sky started to lighten, though, Night took charge and called it quits. She told the boys to snuggle against the bricks and try to get some shuteye. Some of the hotshot boys bristled at the mention of close contact, but one evil eye from Night shut them right up. Within a few minutes, all of the boys were huddled together and snoring quietly.

The entire time, PIXAL stood off to the side with her eyes lit up. She was continuously pulling up videos from the traffic cameras, skimming them to see if they had any sign of Ken's captors, then cutting and splicing them together. She hadn't been kidding about the numerous cameras throughout the city - there were hundreds of them, and only a select handful had seen Ken. There were so many, in fact, that by the time Night had woken up from a quick power nap, the white Nindroid was STILL going at it.

The Mommy Shark sighed and carefully disentangled herself from her raven-haired son, getting to her feet and approaching the Nindroid with her arms crossed. "How's it going?" She asked in a hushed tone, trying not to wake the boys.

"I've gotta be getting close," PIXAL said in answer; her voice was tight from concentration. With nearly no one on the streets at such an ungodly time, she'd forgone wearing her Miss Piper disguise hours ago, and her chrome skin shone in the low light. "I've tracked them at least 20 miles eastward - with that make of car, you'd think that they'd at least have to stop for gas sometime."

Night nodded briskly, then looked towards the city skyline and frowned. The Sun was starting to peek over the buildings, washing the sky in tones of red and orange. "It's been over twelve hours since Ken sent the SOS, right?" She asked hesitantly. "And we've been out here all night - the BOYS have been out here all night. Maybe it's about time that we go to the police-"

"No!" PIXAL said firmly; a few of the boys stirred, so she lowered her voice. "No need - I can find Ken. I'm so close, for crying out loud."

Surprised at the Nindroid's fierceness, Night tilted her head. "Ya know, I really don't get you," She told her truthfully. "Most teachers wouldn't put this much effort into finding their student, and you're not even a traditional teacher at that. So why...?"

The video editing paused as PIXAL took a deep breath. "You're right about one thing, Miss Night," She admitted with a heavy voice. "I am not a traditional teacher. I personally view myself as something different." Her gaze didn't move, but her hand lifted to point in the direction of the snoring huddle of boys. "The Masters saved me when I was young and naïve. They gave me a home and taught me so much. How to fight, for one thing, but also how to be HUMAN. They made me a part of their family."

She sighed blissfully and set her hand down. "Long ago, I swore that I would repay their generosity and kindness in any way I could. As I viewed the Masters of long ago as my family, every generation since then has been my extended family. I try my best to infuse the idea of family into my teachings." Her hands clenched into fists at her sides and her voice took on a steely tone. "One of my students has been taken - one of THEIR brothers has been taken. So I plan on doing absolutely everything in my power to bring him back and bring those who took him to justice. Tell me, Miss Night," She addressed the speechless young woman. "What does that sound like to you?"

Night truly had nothing to say to that. Searching her mind for a reply, her gaze absently fell on the huddle of boys. Many of them had fallen asleep with their heads on each other's shoulders, and the smaller boys had sprawled over the laps of the bigger ones. Valt and Shu had fallen asleep next to each other, and Valt cuddled Ken's puppets, Keru and Besu, to his chest as if they were stuffed animals.

Looking over the adorable sleeping display, Night smiled as she realized her answer. "A mother," She finally responded, turning back to the white Nindroid. "It sounds like a mother. A damn good one at that." One of her soft hands fell from her arm and she placed it on top of PIXAL's hard shoulder. "And as a fellow mother, I can respect that."

PIXAL's gaze hadn't moved or twitched during the entire conversation, but her silver mouth twisted into a warm smile when she heard the young woman's reply.

Content with their exchange, the two mothers fell into a comfortable silence as PIXAL continued to splice the traffic camera footage. Night yawned and was debating going back to sleep when something caught her eye. "Wait - did the black van take this exit?" She asked, pointing at the picture of a street branching off from a central road.

PIXAL selected the video and played it; both mothers had a clear view of the infamous black van taking the exit. "Yes," She said in suppressed excitement. Her vision went berserk with color as she made to pull up more videos. "Hang on, I can try to track them from there..."

"No need!" Night told her, barely managing to keep her voice down. "I know that exit, and there's only one stop by the end of it!"

"Really?" PIXAL asked in surprise. When Night confirmed, the Nindroid pulled up a map search. "I'll look up the destination - you wake up the boys!"

Night was all too enthusiastic with her awakening skills, shaking the boys roughly and even slapping a few of them in order to pull them out of Dream Land. Even Jin wasn't safe from her excited rousing, and he nearly fell on his side from the harsh awakening. When the boys were all semi-awake and grumbling, Night cooled their anger with a very special announcement: "We've found Ken!"

—————

Disclaimer: this will mostly be based off of Markiplier's gameplay.

Freddy Fazbear Pizzaplex
Ken's POV
Behind Roxy Raceway is the mastermind. Those were Vanessa's weak last words as she lay in a comatose state. I relayed this to the others and asked them what this could possibly mean, all the while holding Vanessa's limp felt hand.

"Roxy Raceway is constantly being closed for construction because the track keeps cracking," Roxy spoke up; she still sounded shaken from the previous events. "Some of the maintenance workers think it's because the higher ups didn't do a proper site eval, and that we're building over something unstable."

"Okay..." I drew out, though something didn't add up. "But that's implying something BENEATH the Raceway - Vanessa said there was something BEHIND it."

Roxy glanced off to the side in thought before she moved her gaze back to me. "There's an old maintenance staircase beneath one of the main entrances," She revealed solemnly. "I don't know if it's been used since this place opened - I think only a few of the older employees, including myself, know it's there. I've never used it myself, but my guess is it goes further down into the Pizzaplex."

Behind Roxy Raceway is the mastermind.

It was incredibly vague, but it was more than what we had before. "Alright, then I say that staircase is our best bet!" I told them. I stood up and looked down at Vanessa's still body, then glanced to Freddy. "Do you think you can carry her, Freddy?"

The dirty bear blinked. "I am... sorry?" He asked in surprise.

"You want to bring HER with US?" Monty added, sounding outraged. Music Man, Chica, and Roxy all made similar noises of disapproval.

I stared back at their disbelieving faces. "Of course," I replied evenly. "Why not?"

Monty's sharp bottom jaw dropped open, along with his eyes. "Um... I don't know," He said bitterly. "Because she's CRAZY? Because she's a PSYCHOPATH? Because she's a MURDERER? Because she HACKED us and made us KILL CHILDREN?" He threw his arms out and glared at me. "You want me to keep going? I've got at least ten more reasons!"

Monty was taller than me by a good head, but the events of the night had made me bold. I drew myself up to my full height and stared unblinkingly back at him. "Monty, those large pupils of hers clearly indicate that she's under someone's control," I informed him, gesturing down to Vanessa's partially open eyes.

Monty's red eyes didn't even dart in her direction. "So what?" He growled. "Am I supposed to feel sorry for her? She's been controlling ME since she got here! She made me DECOMMISSION Bonnie!"

"Exactly my point," I told him, though I opened my hands up to all of them. "YOU of all people should now what Vanessa's going through, or what she will go through once she wakes up. What's happened wasn't entirely your doing - do you want to be held accountable for your actions even if you didn't really do it?"

"No, but that's-" Monty started, but I interrupted him.

"Not trusting Vanessa just because she was under someone else's control is like saying that I shouldn't trust you guys just because you had a virus." I said this with a pointed look at each of them, including Music Man. "You weren't yourselves, but what happened was still horrible. Do you want me to be scared of you guys because I was running for my life from you?"

"W-we didn't mean to..." Chica broke in, but I whirled on her with a finger raised.

"EXACTLY! You didn't mean the things that you did, so you shouldn't be held accountable for them," I told her, told them all. "So even though Vanessa did some pretty terrible things, chances are that they weren't her choice. We should forgive her... and help her."

The others fell silent; I guess my words had really gotten to them. I looked back at Freddy and gestured to Vanessa meaningfully. He nodded, albeit hesitantly, and kneeled down to inspect Vanessa. "She is simply too big - she will not fit in my stomach hatch," He revealed softly. "I will just have to carry her." He looped his arms around her shoulders and midsection, then stood up with his arms gently hoisting her.

With that settled, we set off to Roxy Raceway. Back through the Fazer Blast arena, a very awkward ride in the Winner's Elevator, through the gift shop, another awkward ride in the elevator to the main floor, then we exited Fazer Blast, made our way over to an escalator, and entered Roxy Raceway through the second floor entrance.

Once we were inside, I turned to Roxy. "Which way to the staircase?"

She took the lead. "This way."

She led us around the balcony towards one of the stairs to the main floor. There were still several security bots, so I moved to the center of our little herd to keep out of their lines of sight. I was actually surprised at how well it worked - the security bots just rolled past us like I wasn't there.

It's like I have my own bodyguards, I thought in wonder. Through my tired body, I felt a small twinge of guilty pride.

Roxy led us down the staircase, then took an immediate right and showed us a typical door, though this one had a faint white zero painted in its upper right corner. She opened the door to reveal what was less of a staircase and more of a hole in the floor, with numerous platforms to act as steps.

I gazed down the hole and shuddered. "Will this... support all of us?" I asked Roxy. Music Man also clicked its teeth nervously.

Roxy followed my eyes and shrugged. "It should," She said briskly, then quickly added, "I'd still suggest that we go one at a time, though."

So we did just that. It was decided that Monty was the heaviest out of all of us, to which he didn't argue with, and he tucked his tail in and went in first to test the platforms' stability. When it was clear that it would hold for the time being, Roxy went down next, and then Chica. Freddy and I had to alternate between carrying Vanessa and shimmying through the holes, passing her comatose body between us so the other could continue on.

Whenever I held Vanessa, I had to force myself not to gag on my own bile; Music Man flinched at regular intervals as well. It was obvious that she didn't wash the bunny costume very often, as I could smell the carnage and blood on the felt. I could understand the others' hesitance towards helping her, though I couldn't but pity Vanessa. I still stood by my decision that helping her was the right thing to do, but actually having the enemy travel with us was going to take some getting used to.

It took us longer than the others to transverse the platforms, but we eventually joined them at the very bottom. We found ourselves in a cavernous area that didn't look that it had been been taken proper care of - caved in support studs and large chunks of concrete stood out like poorly placed museum pieces. There were a few signs of humanity, like construction vehicles placed haphazardly, but other than that, it didn't seem like it had been used in a while.

Curious as to where we were, I pulled up my FazWatch and checked my map of the Pizzaplex. To my surprise, I couldn't even find the right floor - it kept saying that we were at Roxy Raceway. I tried asking the others, "Where are we now?"

They were also looking around in confusion. "I... can't really say," Monty supplied slowly, his head turned towards the high ceiling.

"Yeah - I don't think I've ever been this far beneath the raceway before," Roxy added, examining a forgotten lift.

The sudden sound of Chica using her voice box drew our attention. We turned to find her gesturing wildly to an open wire gate. "Guys - I think I've found an elevator!" She cried out.

Through the gate, we found a large elevator that resembled the ones we'd used down in the kitchens, but much more dated. The doors were covered with grime and scratched numerous times, and the actual chamber smelled of dust and mildew. A Freddy-head button was mounted on the wall, but that was about the only up-to-date thing that was in there.

"Guys... this elevator does not appear to follow any safety protocols," Freddy warned, sweeping a critical eye over the elevator's interior. Vanessa jostled slightly in his arms as he took in the state of the elevator. "I do not think it can survive more than one trip."

"What?" Chica asked nervously, backing away from the elevator slightly. "But then... how will we get back to the surface?"

I had been dealing with improbable outcomes this entire night, so this didn't faze me. "We're resourceful - we'll just find another way out," I told them, stepping readily into the chamber. When I turned to see that the others had not yet moved, I huffed and placed my hands on my hips. "Come on, guys - let's do this!" I encouraged them. Music Man clapped its cymbals brightly on my shoulder.

The others hesitated just a bit longer, then they collectively moved to stand inside the elevator with me; there was enough space for all of us. When we were all together, I pressed the Freddy-head button to send us downwards. The sound of the doors closing and shutting sounded equivalent to that of the final nails in a coffin.

None of us talked the entire ride. Either we were all too nervous, or we were all too confused by the glitchy remix of the Pizzaplex theme song playing overhead, I couldn't tell. But this was it. What we did in Fazer Blast was just a warm up - this was the TRUE endgame. This was the encounter that would change everything. This would END everything.

I had never been so scared in my life.

Finally, the elevator jerked to a very loud stop and the doors creakily slid open. The first thing we saw was darkness, so I whipped out my flashlight - I had nearly forgotten that I'd had it. We found ourselves at the beginning of an earthen tunnel that led to even deeper into the surrounding rock. The path was lined with dozens of hanging lights and gas cans, curiously. The ceiling stretched so far overhead, I almost couldn't see it.

My feet nearly tripped on something, and I looked down to find a multitude of wires. My eyes followed the length of the wires until they fell on a nearby generator. I pointed it out to the others and asked, "Any idea what it could be for?"

"My sensors detect a Recharge Station nearby," Freddy supplied after a beat. "Though I do not think it is active. I also sense several power sources in the vicinity - perhaps they are other generators."

"Activating the generators must activate the Recharge Station," Chica theorized.

"Good," Roxy breathed, sounding relieved. "Because my battery is nearly dead, and you do NOT want to know what I'm like when my power's gone."

Choosing to ignore that creepy comment, I turned back to the generator. "So we just need to find more of these?"

"Already found another one," Monty called out. We looked over and found him standing next to another generator only a yard or two away. "Right next to this weird, giant statue of Freddy," He added with a nonchalant jerk of his thumb over his shoulder.

We followed the motion and our jaws all dropped. Set into a large hole in the wall was what looked like a giant version of Freddy. Or what was SUPPOSED to be a giant version of Freddy - only one leg and part of his head was visible, and the head was missing an eye. The visible limbs weren't even in their respective places, with the one-eyed head down near the foot of the leg.

All in all, it was... weird.

"Freddy...?" I tried.

"Do not ask," Freddy replied, sounding tired. "I have no answer."

"Okay then," I said, turning my back on the weird statue. "Let's get these generators started."

We pulled the generators both near the elevator and near the statue; the air was soon filled the sound of their buzzing. Continuing down the path, we found another generator, along with two worryingly strung up endos. They didn't seem to move even if my flashlight wasn't on them, so we brushed their strange appearance off and kept going.

There was a concerning amount of smoke in the path, gathering to the point of vision obstruction. I was the only one coughing as we made our way through the clouds, but I wasn't alone when I stopped and stared at what was on the other side.

Nestled into the rock of the infrastructure was a small rectangular building. It had been worn down by time and misuse, but the original brickwork was still intact. Above the classic checkers-styled doors that marked its entrance was a huge arched sign lined with flickering lightbulbs. FREDDY FAZBEAR'S PIZZA PLACE was lovingly painted with red letters in the sign's center.

"Freddy Fazbear..." I said in a daze. My gaze went to Freddy curiously. "Does that mean... the Pizzaplex wasn't the first Freddy Fazbear attraction?"

Freddy stared at the hidden restaurant before lowering his gaze slowly. "That is correct..." He answered softly; he almost sounded ashamed. "There were several other attractions that boasted the Freddy Fazbear name. Freddy Fazbear's Pizza Place was the last attraction before the Pizzaplex opened. I am afraid this place, nor any of the other older attractions, were very popular." When I tried to meet his eyes, he looked away. "There have been many... ACCIDENTS at those attractions."

The way he said "accidents" made me uneasy, so I didn't press the issue. Something told me that I would end up learning something I'd rather not know.

"All this time..." Roxy said in amazement, staring at the restaurant. "And we had no idea what we were building over. No wonder the raceway kept cracking, no matter what the maintenance workers did."

"I guess SOMEONE didn't want this place to be found," Monty added; he said this with a poorly disguised glare at Vanessa, still in Freddy's arms.

It took another minute of staring at the ancient pizzeria, but we eventually noticed another generator near the tunnel we'd just came from. After pulling it, we discovered that there was yet another generator near the restaurant's entrance, though it was guarded by a nightmare security bot.

"Roxy, how many more generators are there?" I asked the gray wolf. This search was quickly getting old.

She took a few seconds to check, growling slightly as her amber eyes took in the space. "After this next one, at least two," She revealed. "Both of them are inside the pizzeria. The Recharge Station is also in there."

"So we just gotta get past this guy, then," I noted, staring at the roaming nightmare security bot. "Why is a security bot even this far beneath the Pizzaplex?"

"This just proves that there's something in there worth guarding," Chica replied, sounding unjustly excited. "What do you think it is? Gold? Jewelry?" She gasped loudly; the nightmare security bot didn't even turn in our direction, thankfully. "A LIFETIME SUPPLY OF PIZZA?"

"If there's any pizza in there, chances are it's several years old," I pointed out.

"Hey, I'm not picky," Chica promised. Her eyes were now fixed on the pizzeria hungrily.

I swallowed back my bile - I was hungry too, but not THAT hungry. Not now, not ever, hopefully. "Really Chica - NOT NOW."

In the end, we just sent Monty to deal with the nightmare security bot - the poor thing never knew what hit it. With that out of the way, we were free to pull the generator and enter the pizzeria. Through the front doors was a small hallway with hanging fluorescent lighting. There weren't any generators here, so we pushed open the doors on the other doors. Through here was a slightly wider hallway with checkered linoleum flooring, though this one had cracked glass doors on the other side. It was here that we found one of the last generators. After pulling it, we pushed the glass doors open into the main room.

Here was obviously where the magic had taken place. The room was large - plenty of space for dozens of tables with happy children looking for a show. Lining the walls was a preppy orange-red color along with a repeating band of the same checkered pattern as the floors. At one side of the room was a small stage with makeshift theater curtains. It had just enough room for at least three performers.

The original pizzeria. Where it all began.

The last generator wasn't too far from the entrance, and the Recharge Station wasn't much farther. Like Freddy had predicted, all of its lights were off. After pulling the generator, though, the familiar blue lights sputtered to life. I turned to the others and pointed at the red cylinder. "Alright - get yourselves charged."

They all took their turns in the Recharge Station; I took Vanessa when it was Freddy's turn because no one else wanted to touch her. Soon, they were all charged up and ready to go. The only problem was I didn't KNOW what to do next, exactly. There were several doors lining the walls of the main room, though my instincts told me that they were most likely either locked or just didn't go anywhere important.

There was also a large hole in the floor not too far from the Recharge Station.

It seemed a good place to start.

The hole in question was ringed with security barriers and plastic blockades; there was a gap between a couple that could allow someone to pass through. A glance downwards revealed that it was similar to the hole we'd used from Roxy Raceway - there were several wooden boards to act as platforms, though they were positioned to act as stair steps.

When I was close to the hole, I heard what sounded like a gust of wind coming from below. I cupped my ear in an attempt to ascertain the sound and realized that it wasn't wind. Farthest thing from it, actually.

It was BREATHING.

"There's something down there!" I whispered to the others; Music Man chattered nervously on my shoulder. "It sounds big, too!"

"Do not worry, Ken," Freddy told me gently; he'd lowered his voice as well. "We can protect you."

"Yeah," Chica cheered quietly; she lifted her fists in encouragement. "With all of us together, there's nothing we can't handle!"

"Just stick with us, and you'll make it out alive!" Roxy told me with a tilt of her head.

"Anything that comes our way has to deal my two fists!" Monty claimed fiercely, lifting said limbs as a threat. Music Man also clapped its cymbals as a form of encouragement.

"You guys," I whispered tearfully, gazing up at them. My allies. My friends. "Alright - one at a time, then!"

I took the lead and went down first; the others followed close behind. The entire time, I felt uneasy. Even with the light from above and from the animatronics, it was still too dark to make anything out. I took out my flashlight in an attempt to get a good look at whatever was breathing so loud.

I saw what it was.

And nearly soiled my pants.

Lurking not even two yards from me was what could only be described as a huge pile of wires. The coils of metal seemed to seethe like an ocean with each intake of breath. I could see pieces of metal that resembled human-like forms jutting out along its sides, but the shadows kept me from making anything else out. A hunk of metal that looked like a once -white cartoon bear head emerged from a peak in the wires. It bobbed up and down with every breath - its head, I guess.

I had seen a lot of things that could be described as the stuff of nightmares tonight, but THIS... THIS took the cake.

"WHAT IS THAT THING?" I mouthed to Monty, who was behind me. He didn't dare to answer audibly and shook his long head vigorously instead; his red eyes were wide enough for me to see the whites all around his irises.

No one dared to make any noise as we skirted around the wire monster - not even Music Man clapped or clicked on my shoulder. Its massive form released tendrils of silver metal along the floor, which we took great care not to step on, or even breathe next to. We all got the distinct impression that anything and everything was currently being monitored by whatever this THING was, so we tried everything in our power to NOT make any loud noises.

We'd gotten nearly all the way around the creature when we realized that there was nowhere else to go - no new holes to go through or anything. We were all looking at each other with confused expressions when a faint cracking noise reached our ears. After quickly checking to see if the current resident had heard it, which it didn't seem to, we looked underneath our feet. The floor wasn't made of concrete, but of wooden planks.

And it was breaking.

We all looked back up at each other in shock, but it didn't do us any good. A split second later, the floor gave and we were tumbling down even deeper into the Pizzaplex.

We didn't fall for long - it was probably only three seconds. We soon hit solid flooring, filling the atmosphere with the sounds of crunching metal, skin, and bones. I grit my teeth against the pain, but my previous exploits had strengthened me and I was back on my feet in seconds. As the others struggled to regain their balance, I took in the room we'd landed in. It didn't look anything like the pizzeria we were in before - the floor was cement and the walls were a sickly mustard color. Exposed wires hung from the ceiling and there were several manhole covers set into the floor, for reasons unknown. Two roll up doors were stationed at opposite ends of the room, with Freddy-head buttons to open and close them.

Even more curious was a small desk against one of the mustard walls, upon which a handful of chunky monitors had been set. From what I could see, the monitors displayed rooms I had never seen before. Above the desk was a large vent that disappeared somewhere in the walls. On the other side of the room was a makeshift bed with a comforter ready and waiting. VANNY was painted in purple letters above it.

"Where the heck are we now?" I questioned the others as Music Man struggled to right itself on my shoulder.

"No idea," Chica admitted as she stood up, brushing dust off of her knees and glancing around the new room. "But it looks like another one of Vanessa's hideouts. You remember, Kenny," She said with a imploring look towards me. "Like the one we found beneath the laundry room."

The colored paper room. Right.

"If only the witch was awake," Monty muttered disdainfully as he came to his feet. He glared at the sleeping woman in Freddy's arms. "Maybe she'd be able to tell us where we a-ARRRRRRRGGGGHHH!"

The accusation was cut off by one long syllable of pain as Monty started twitching uncontrollably, his head being thrown back from the force of his howl. The others tried to go to his aid, but they soon also fell victim to similar displays of painful convulsing. Freddy accidentally dropped Vanessa, and she also started twitching, her eyes flying open to show only her milky whites. My shoulder started shaking like crazy, and I looked over in shock to see Music Man in the middle of its own seizure. It started to fall forward, but I caught it before it crashed and set it gently down on the floor. It looked so pitiful, twitching around in a mini circle, victim to its own body.

"What's wrong with you guys?" I cried fearfully, backing away from their shaking forms.

"He is... trying to... take control," Freddy was able to grit out, grabbing his head.

"We won't... be able to... fight it... for long," Roxy added, her own head shaking back on forth on her neck.

"Who?" I asked them, not fully understanding. "WHO IS DOING THIS TO YOU?" In answer, their hands simultaneously lifted to point at something - the desk! No, not the desk... one of the monitors. I raced over to get a better look.

My blood ran cold.

One of the monitors was currently displaying a room awash with purple light. I could see a Recharge Station in a corner of the monitor, though it looked much older than the ones I'd seen throughout the Pizzaplex.

And standing in front of the station was a literal DEMON. I couldn't make out much because of the purple light, but I could tell it wasn't really human, nor was it really animatronic. Its body was covered in a metal casing like an endo, but what showed of the infrastructure within revealed strings of muscle and tendons. Half of its face mask was gone, leaving a skinless human bottom jaw on full display. I couldn't see its eyes, but two hunks of metal stuck out of the top of its head. The whole ensemble looked like it hurt.

But what caught my attention was the fact that there was also a monitor in that room. This... zombie-like creature had one of its sharp and knobby hands pressed to the screen. It almost appeared to be concentrating.

It knows we're here. And it's controlling the others.

I should have felt fear, or terror, even. But instead, all I felt was a burning rage. This was obviously the mastermind - the mysterious person who had told Vanessa to bring me here, who had controlled the animatronics through its creative malware virus. It had WANTED me here, but now it didn't have the guts to actually FACE me? Let's fix that.

"Who are you?" I asked in a whisper, then asked again in a stronger tone; I got the feeling this creature could hear everything I was saying. "Why did you bring me here - what do you want with the animatronics? With Vanessa? With EVERYTHING? WHAT DO YOU WANT?" I waited a beat before laughing slightly, my fingers curling into fists on the desk. "You brought me here for a reason, yet you can't even talk face to face with me. You just send the animatronics after me and hope that I'll fall to them before I ever make it to you. You know what that says about you?" I waited for it to guess before playing my trump card, "YOU'RE A COWARD. A SPINELESS RAT."

On the screen, the creature pulled away the hand that had been attached to the monitor. It had been curled into a knobby fist. "Oh, I've upset you, have I?" I taunted, ignoring the blood pounding in my ears that was telling me this is a bad idea. "Then prove me wrong - face me for once! Or are you too scared to face an eleven-year old?"

The creature didn't do anything for a full minute. Then slowly, jerkily, it turned its head to look directly at the camera. I choked back a gasp.

Its eyes were glowing purple orbs.

It was another thirty seconds before the creature decided to take me up on my offer. Lifting each of its feet like every step was a chore, it slowly padded out of the purple-lit room. I distantly heard the sound of heavy footfalls and a door slamming, and realized that it was closer than I thought. I kept listening under the sounds of my allies suffering. The footfalls came closer and closer until I didn't have to guess where it was. I just had to turn to my right and there it was, walking out of the right hand roll-up door. I tried not to gawk, but it was hard - the thing had to be at least two feet taller than me, and I'm tall for my age.

It turned to face me and I actually did gasp this time, taking a few steps back. On the monitor its eyes had simply been a scare, but in person it hit me full force. The purple orbs seemed to pierce through my eyes and into my soul, scrounging the depths of my being for every secret I held. I see you, they seemed to say.

I started to shake underneath its probing gaze, and it seemed to not only notice, but take pleasure in it. It tilted its head down at me and almost seemed to smirk. "WeLl?" It asked in a glitching male voice. "YoU cAlLeD mE hErE fOr AnSwErS, bOy. Do YoU hAvE aNyThInG sMaRt To SaY nOw?"

Anything smart I'd had to say had died the second this thing had walked in here. Instead, I settled for a sputtering, "W-w-who are you? W-w-what are you?"

A dry chuckle came from its chest, which was speckled with many holes that revealed even more bare muscles. "FeAr In ThE fAcE oF pOwEr. I lIkE iT," It noted amusedly. "As FoR WHO I aM, I gO bY mAnY nAmEs. ThE pUrPlE gUy. SpRiNgTrAp. SoMe HaVe EvEn LiVeD lOnG eNoUgH tO cAlL mE HONEY aNd FATHER." I stiffened. It had a family? What had happened to them? "BuT aS fOr My AcTuAl NaMe, WeLl... I gO bY WILLIAM AFTON."

When I had nothing to say, William continued. "As FoR WHAT I aM, tHaT iS mOrE sImPlE." He spread his ruined arms flamboyantly; the limbs made sickening mechanical noises as they moved. "I aM aN aNoMaLy. A sOuL cAuGhT bEtWeEn TwO wOrLdS. A GOD."

That one vain statement snapped me out of my fear and I lowered my head, glowering at him. "You must think pretty highly of yourself to believe you're a god," I snarled.

William released a rattle that may have been a sigh, lowering his arms. "Do YoU kNoW HOW I gOt ThIs WaY? HoW mY bOdY bEcAmE a MeTaL tOmB?" He asked bitterly. He didn't give me time to reply and continued. "YoU aRe FaR fRoM tHe FiRsT cHiLd I'vE tRiEd To KiLl. I hAvE sUcCeEdEd MuLtIPlE tImEs. OnE nIgHt, My AcTiOnS tRieD tO cAtcH uP tO mE. I wAs ChAsEd aNd ToOk ReFuGe In An OlD sPrInGlOcK sUiT. UnFoRtUnAtElY, I dId NoT tAkE tHe DaNgErS oF tHe SuIt InTo CoNsIdErAtIoN, aNd..." He took a dramatic pause. "IT KILLED ME.

"At LeAsT, iT SHOULD hAvE kIlLeD Me. BuT mY sOuL wAs CaUgHt By ThE sUiT aNd StAyEd. ThE sUiT beCaMe My BoDy. In ReTuRn, It BeCaMe My LIFE."

William was gaining strength in his words and he started to become more animated with his movements, combining the sounds of the others' seizures with the meaty sounds of his trapped limbs. "ThE iNcIdEnT tAuGhT mE a VeRy VaLuAbLe LeSsOn. MaN cAn DiE, bUt iF tHe MoRtAl BoDy Is AtTaChEd To A pHySiCaL oBjEcT, mAn CaN lIvE oN. CoNtInUe To WaLk ThE eArTh. BeCoMe A lIvInG GOD. Do YoU uNdErStAnD, CHILD?" He hissed, stepping closer to me; I took two steps back. "I hAvE dIsCoVeReD IMMORTALITY."

The pungent smell of his decaying body was filling my senses, but I still pushed myself to glare at him. "If you're such a high and mighty god, why continue to kill kids?" I spat at him. "You've already discovered immortality, what could possibly be next?"

William stared at me for a minute before giving me what might have been his best attempt at a smile; it was hard to tell with the skinless jaw. "A gOd NeEdS sAcRiFiCeS, oThErWiSe ThEy Go HuNgRy," He revealed, sounding pleased with himself. His head turned noisily on his neck until he was staring directly at Vanessa, where she was still twitching on the dirty floor. "AnD wHo BetTeR tO pErFoRm ThEm ThEn A wIlLiNg DiScIpLe?"

My blood felt like ice. "What did you do to Vanessa?" I asked quietly.

William answered in that glitching voice of his, "A gOd HaS mAnY fOrMs. I oNcE tEmPoRaRiLy ToOk ThE fOrM oF a CoMpUtEr ViRuS aNd InFilTrAtEd A FREDDY FAZBEAR vIdEo GaMe. VaNnY hErE wAs OnE oF tHe BeTa TeStErS." He laughed lowly. "ShE wAs PERFECT. AlL I hAd To Do WaS wAiT fOr HeR tO eNtEr ThE gAmE, tHeN I eNtErEd ThAt PaThEtIc MiNd Of HeRs."

A chill ran down my already sweaty back. "You brainwashed her against her will!" I yelled at the monster.

"I GAVE HER GUIDANCE!" William roared back at me before seeming to get a grip on himself. "AnD rIgHtFuLly So - HeR lIfe WaS aN aBsOlUtE TRAINWRECK."

"Who are you to judge her-?" I tried to say, but William cut me off.

"EvErY dEcIsCiOn ShE hAs MaDe SiNcE tHeN hAs BeEn WiTh ME iN mInD. ThE dEcIsCiOn To TaKe ThE jOb At ThE pIZzApLeX. ThE dEcIsCiOn To InFeCt ThE aNiMaTrOnIcS wItH a ViRuS. ThE dEcIsCiOn To KiLl LuIs PaLmGrEen. AlL oF iT hAs BeEn FoR ME. Of CoUrSe, I hAd To HeLp HeR oUt WiTh A fEw ThInGs."

This was even worse than Vanessa's confession, but I had to keep going if I wanted answers. "What about the animatronics? What part do THEY play in all of this?"

William gave that maybe-smile of his again. "LiKe I sAiD - wIlLiNg DiScIpLeS aNd AlL tHaT," He replied, then turned to his convulsing captives. "ThEy AlL nEeDeD gUiDaNcE. MoNtY wAs A sIdE sHoW tHaT wAnTeD tO bE tHe MaIn ShOw. ChIcA wAs A cLoSeT jUnKiE tHaT dId NoT wAnT tO lOsE hEr FaNs. RoXy wAs A sUbStItUtE tHaT dId NoT tHiNk ShE cOuLd MaKe ThE cUt. FrEdDy JuSt WaNtEd BoTh HiS aUdIeNcE aNd HiS fRiEnDs To Be SaFe. AnD tHe PROTOTYPE..." He glanced down at Music Man, sounding disgusted. "ThAt WaS jUsT a MaTtEr Of CONVENIENCE."

He turned back to me to finish. "ThEy MaY nOt ReMeMbEr It, BuT tHeY nEeDeD mY gUiDaNcE. ThEy AcCePtEd My CoNtRol WiLlInGlY. ThEreFoRe, ThEy ArE MY dIsCiPlEs. ThEy aRe MINE."

I tried to offer a retort, but Chica let out a sharp cry and fell to her knees. "Chica!" I yelled in concern.

I made to rush over to her, but William's nonchalant tone held me back. "AlL oF tHiS cOnCeRn FoR tHe AnImAtRoNiCs, AnD yOu HaVeN't ShOwN a SpeCk Of CaRe FoR tHe OnEs NoT wItH uS rIgHt nOw."

I whipped my head back to me. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN?" I hissed.

"THINK," William hissed back.

I thought back to the events of the night and came up with only two names. "Bonnie and Foxy. WHAT HAVE YOU DONE WITH THEM?"

I could hear the bones in William's shoulders pop as he shrugged. "It Is A sHaMe To DiSpOsE oF a PeRfeCtLy GoOd EnDo," He said leisurely. "So We SiMpLy DiSpOsE oF tHe ShElLs. LaSt I hEaRd, ThEy WeRe AmOnG tHe MiNdLeSs HoRdEs WaNdErInG tHe HaLlS."

My entire body went rigid. Bonnie and Foxy are still here. They're among the endos.

This bastard - there are HUNDREDS of those things!

I put my full fury into my glare, but William didn't even flinch. "So let me get this straight," I told him slowly, walking towards him. "You somehow, completely on accident, found a way to make humans immortal and start viewing yourself as a GOD..." I was close enough to see the individual tendons in his arm. "Became a virus somewhere along the line and infected poor Vanessa..." I could see my reflection in his claws. "Told her to bring you to the Pizzaplex and hunt CHILDREN for you..." I could count the holes in his chest. "Then roped the animatronics into this scheme, and DISPOSE of them and turn them into mindless husks the first chance you get?" I could look directly up where his nose used to be. "ALL BECAUSE YOU CALL YOURSELF A GOD?"

William didn't even blink as he stared down at me. I wondered if he even could blink. "YeS," He replied simply. "AnD?"

His response was met by my fist to his skinless cheek. "YOU'RE ABSOLUTELY AWFUL!" I screamed at him. I could feel that my cheeks were red, and it wasn't because it was hot in the room.

William reeled from my attack; I'm pretty sure I saw his eyes actually spin comically. He was silent for a few seconds before emitting a low growl. Before I could think about the consequences of my actions, his clawed hand shot up and slashed me across the cheek.

"HOW DARE YOU HIT ME?" He roared as I screamed from the blooming pain. As I tried to cover up my cheek, he went for my arms instead, slicing through the support tape. "DO YOU EVEN REALIZE WHO I AM?" He continued, cutting through my already fractured arms again and again. "I AM A GOD - A LIVING DEITY! I HAVE WALKED THIS EARTH FOR LONGER THAN YOU'VE BEEN ALIVE! HUNDREDS HAVE DIED BY MY HAND!" I fell and tried to scoot my way backwards for a reprieve, but he still came after me. "A MERE BOY LIKE YOU HAS NO RIGHT TO EVEN TOUCH ME!" My back was to the wall now and still he sliced at my arms. "YOU WANT MERCY? APOLOGIZE - WITH YOUR LIFE!"

I held my bloody and broken arms in front of my face - it was my only defense to keep him from reaching my head. The sounds of him slicing at my already tattered skin was drowned under the ringing in my ears and I clenched my eyes shut. First Spinjitzu Master, make it stop, I begged. I just want this night to be over - for the pain to end. I just want to go home... I want to leave and go home!

Alone?

My eyes shot open. Do I want to go home alone? My gaze traveled the concrete floor, going from the growing puddles of my blood to the convulsing forms of my allies.

Allies... I've got to stop calling them that. They're my friends.

Before, I'd just wanted to go home and leave all of this behind me - leave THEM behind me. They had started as strangers to me, so what did I care? But as the night progressed, I realized that they were much more complicated than the average robot, that they had their own desires and wishes. Along the way, they had stopped being my allies in a night full of danger and disaster and started being my friends.

I want to go home and take them with me.

Take them ALL with me.

The wish light a fire in my heart, spreading heat through my body. All of a sudden, the sound of metal clanging against metal started to follow William's attacks. He eventually pulled away with a confused "WHAT?"

I finally glanced up to see what he meant. I could barely recognize my arms from the blood covering the limbs and the torn support tape dangling from them. But where William had been striking, something else had started to form.

Metal.

As I watched and William gawked, the metal started to spread, covering my ruined arms and closing over the blood and tape. It reached my clothes, but it didn't stop there - it simply passed over the fabric and kept going. A chilling cold filled my body, though it was more comforting than uncomfortable. I felt as the metal spread over my chest, then my neck, then my face. My hair turned at least ten times heavier, and even my eyelashes felt like mini knives. My eyes felt like marbles in their sockets. The metal spread to my lower body too, covering my legs and turning my toes into small pebbles in my shoes.

When I looked down, I was no longer a boy, but a machine.

William was quiet during my entire transformation. When I stood up and faced him, he finally wailed, "WHO ARE YOU?"

My blood was pumping, invigorating by the metal. I licked my lips with my leaden tongue; I even tasted coppery. "I am Ken Midori," I announced, relishing the way my voice echoed in my chest and became a hundred times louder. "Latest in the line of Elemental Masters of Metal. You have hurt those that I care for. I will not let such a crime go unpunished.

"Prepare to die."

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