Disclaimer: All material of familiarity is owned, copyrighted, and otherwise credited to the parties to which it belongs, that being Roald Dahl, who penned the book from which this story and its chapters are adapted, and perhaps Warner Bros. Studios for the production of the film adaptations of Dahl's book. This story merely borrows the characters for use in a different reality...

CH I: The Tour Begins

Everyone knows the story: after years of keeping himself and his factory out of the public eye, Willy Wonka, the great candymaker, stages a worldwide contest. Five Golden Tickets hidden within five very special bars of Wonka's chocolate candy, unmarked and otherwise indistinguishable from their thousands upon thousands of fellows...by finding these tickets, five very lucky children earn the pleasure and privilege of touring the great Wonka factory. But this tour is more than an idle amusement; it is a test. Mr. Wonka is, in fact, searching for the heir to his empire, a child with the proper mind and spirit to eventually become the head of the world's greatest candy company. Four of the children do not reach the end of the tour, their own greedy and selfish natures leading them into mishaps along the way…they are ultimately sorted out with little harm, of course, and perhaps even learn a lesson. And then there is Charlie Bucket, the unassuming boy who passes Wonka's test and becomes the chosen inheritor of all that Wonka possesses.
The search for an heir, as yet unclouded by the tragedies which lay ahead, is perhaps the most famous part of the great Willy Wonka's life. The tale of Charlie Bucket has been recreated in the book Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, which has in turn been adapted twice to the silver screen. But while the basics of the light and whimsical tale are accurate, certain details were edited in the interests of the public. And while Augustus Gloop, Violet Beauregarde, Veruca Salt, and Mike Teavee did emerge from the factory, the full details of what happened to them inside have never been fully revealed...

Record 1133, Wonka Archives
(CLASSIFIED)

PLEASE NOTE THAT THE FOLLOWING CONTAINS ORIGINAL SECURITY RECORDINGS FROM THE WONKA ARCHIVES. THIS FOOTAGE HAS NOT BEEN EDITED OR ADJUSTED IN ANY WAY.

UNCENSORED MATERIAL MAY APPEAR AT ANY TIME FOLLOWING THIS MESSAGE.

Facility 01, England

"Well, this is it," the Security Chief said, popping his neck and cracking his knuckles before sitting down at one of the two chairs in front of the main monitor bank, "For better or worse."
The other Duty Officer winced as his companion's joints gave a final loud snapping sound, and the Chief sat. At the rest of the workstations around the Security Center, twenty other Oompa-Loompas were already at their posts, the room dark except for the light coming from the computer screens. The Duty Officer, for one, was uneasy. "Honestly, sir, I just hope that Mr. Wonka knows what he's doing. It makes me nervous…we have the first visitors in a decade, a bunch of kids, no less…and we don't even have proper cordons established. If just one of them should slip something into a pocket along the tour, we could lose millions…"
"Will you relax, kid?" The Chief grinned. "The boss will be with 'em the whole time. He'll keep an eye on things. And when you've worked with him as long as I have, you learn to 'walk by faith,' if you will. Mr. Wonka knows what he's doing."
"I know, but all the same…" At that instant, however, an electronic warning tone chimed over the room's speaker system, and whatever the Duty Officer might have been about to say died instantly in his throat. He dropped his headset into place and pulled a keyboard out from the monitor bank, the Security Chief doing the same next to him.
The Chief looked back at the other Loompas in the room, the digital clock above the main monitor bank now showing eighteen seconds until the exact stroke of 10 A.M. "Here we go, people…let's keep this thing smooth and by the numbers. Fifteen seconds…open all camera feeds, all rooms, all sections…route and switch primary surveillance to the main screen; I want to be following the tour group every step of the way. All other stations will keep an eye on the adjoining rooms…make sure no one wanders off, people. Ten seconds…give me eyes on the front gate…thank you…seven…six…boost the audio…four…three…two…" The view on the primary screen was now looking down from the roof of the factory, giving an expansive view of the front courtyard and the huge main gates. The murmur of the crowd gathered outside for the start of the historic tour was suddenly drowned out by the deep tolling of the bells of the enormous church three streets away, as they struck ten o'clock… "Cue main gates," the Chief said, and the immense iron barriers begin to swing slowly open. A cheer went up from the crowd outside, cameras flashing and reporters jostling each other to be the nearest to the small group of people right in the front…
"Looks like we got our hopefuls," the Duty Officer said, his tone genuinely curious.
"Let's see if we can't get a closer look." The Chief reached over to a small joystick located beside his keyboard and pushed it forward, zooming the camera in on the five children and their family members. "Damn. Can't get it to zero in enough. We'll have to wait until they're in the Atrium."
"Where's Mr. Wonka?" the Duty Officer asked, and the Chief groaned. "What is it, sir?"
"I think he's going to subject them to that horrible puppet show."
"You mean the one that gives me nightmares?"
"Yeah."
And indeed the Chief was right; the children, each accompanied by one member of their family, made their way forward into the expansive courtyard, their faces bearing a mixture of excitement and confusion. Obviously they expected a more direct greeting…when the side of the nearest building slid open, they turned expectantly, but were met by…the Chief and the Duty Officer shot each other sideways glances as the mechanical puppet show unfolded, their dubious looks mirrored on the faces of the people in the courtyard. As the puppets' distinctive "theme song" reached its first chorus, the Duty Officer began loudly bashing his face on the control panel, at least until… "Hello! I don't think that's part of the program!" The Duty Officer looked up just in time to see the first puppet bursting completely into flames, some short in the electrical system turning the entire show into a rather violent display of malfunctioning fireworks and melting plastic. And, while they were distracted, Mr. Wonka had suddenly appeared out of nowhere, now standing directly behind his guests as the puppet show came to a fiery conclusion. He startled both the children and the adults when he at last announced his presence and began to introduce himself…meanwhile, both the Duty Officer and the Chief were still watching molten plastic dripping out onto the snowy ground.
"You know, I enjoyed it a lot more that time."
"You and me both."

Just outside the main doors, Mr. Wonka stopped and shook the hand of each guest as they passed; giving every one of them a long and enthusiastic shake. No one saw the tiny flashes of light as Wonka's gloves read fingerprint patterns and sent them via wireless link to the Security Center, where they were received, processed, and matched with known databases. Almost instantly, an alert popped up. "Sir, we have something! Mr. Theodore Salt, owner and administrator of a major nut company...he has business connections to several of our competitors: Fickelgruber, Prodnose..."
"Copy that," the Chief said. "Station Two, Mr. Salt is now your responsibility. I want to know where that man is at all times...and where his hands are. He picks anything up, I want to know about it. Any others?"
"We have an old gentleman who matches up with our records; according to this, he was one of Mr. Wonka's former employees. Want to keep an eye on him?"
"Where did he go when he left here?"
"Retired, sir."
"Don't worry about it, then. Keep him on standard surveillance."
"Yes, sir."

The Chief and the Duty Officer watched as Mr. Wonka began leading the tour out of the Atrium and into the corridors of the factory, conversing cheerfully with his guests. "I think we may need another contest," the Chief growled darkly.
The Duty Officer glanced over. "Why do you say that, sir?"
"Are you kidding me? Look at them!"
"What about the kid on the end?"
"The scruffy one? Don't know about him...he hasn't gotten any coverage in the press or anything. I guess it could be him, assuming he lives up to Mr. Wonka's expectations."
"You mean if he makes it to the end of the tour."
"Yeah, basically." The Chief flashed a nasty grin, and the Duty Officer shook his head. "What?"
"Don't you feel any guilt about picking off these kids one by one?"
The Chief gave an exasperated sigh. "Look, it's not like we're going to make bad things happen to these kids on purpose. We've taken every precaution to avoid accidents, and Mr. Wonka is doing everything he can to warn them about potential hazards in advance. If anything does happen, it will be by the deliberate actions of the victim. It's a test of character."
"What about the predictions?"
"It's only a computer simulation. The probabilities don't mean anything; there's an overwhelming chance that all of them will finish the tour without any trouble at all. Hold that thought. All right...the tour is entering the Chocolate Room."
And indeed they were. Mr. Wonka gave his opening exposition, and then turned his guests loose to enjoy the magnificence of the chamber. It was not long before someone spotted the Oompa-Loompas gathered on the far side of the chocolate river; three entire shifts had turned out just to see the visitors, and it did not take long before they were laughing and shaking their heads. Mr. Wonka began cheerfully explaining the history of the Oompa-Loompas and how he imported them to England (leaving out the ugly details about customs). But there was one guest who was not listening; oblivious to all but his own stomach, Augustus Gloop was lumbering along like some sort of land-clearing machine, literally tearing up and devouring the ground in front of him.
"That's disgusting," the Duty Officer said, shaking his head slowly. "You know, I think I've had a change of heart about this. The sooner they get that one off the tour, the better."
"A hundred cacao beans says the Salt girl goes before he does."
"I'll take that bet. And I'll even raise it. Another hundred says Gloop won't make it out of the chocolate room."
"Two hundred? All right; you're on."
The implacable Augustus Gloop was steadily moving along the nearer bank of the chocolate river, but then he turned...and headed straight for it. The Duty Officer shot up straighter in his chair. "Oh...crap."
"What?" The Chief saw where his subordinate was looking, and his eyes widened.