"AAAAHHHH!" The familiar scream shattered the silence, and instantly woke Atlas and P-body from sleep mode.
"Not again..." P-body beeped worriedly, getting out of bed.
Atlas, still a bit groggy, followed as best as he could down the hall and into the room next door. It was Kronos again, he had awoken from another nightmare. He sat up in bed, rattling from fear and covering his optic with his hands. The two wasted no time in rushing to his bedside to comfort him.
"It's okay, we're here." Atlas sat down and patted Kronos' back gently.
P-body sat with them, and held the little quivering bot's hand, "Just calm down, tell us what you saw."
"Th-the...severed b-body parts...w-wires a-and oil spilled...a-and th-that m-man..." Kronos stuttered out incoherent words, his trembling body still making an awful rattle.
"Just calm down, everything's gonna be alright..." Atlas reached out and pulled his son into a gentle and comforting hug. He felt the little bot's arms barely capable of wrapping all the way around his core, but he still clung to him like a magnet.
Soon the heavy breathing and murmuring was replaced with whimpers and sobs. Both adult bots felt something in their cores ache with guilt. Neither of them had ever seen Kronos cry after a nightmare before.
Kronos' nightmares were becoming more frequent. He would be in his dark room, where the eerie shadows of the facility would be around him. It was then that they would come. Hideous monsters from beyond his stimulated imagination's capability to create. He would run, and they would pursue him relentlessly. Sometimes, a claw or three would take a swipe at the air behind him, as he ran for his dear life. On the rare occasion, one of those things would actually make physical contact with him, and he would wake up screaming. Not once, did he allow himself to cry. He didn't want to hear GLaDOS call him a "big baby" or a "scared marshmallow" again.
But tonight, he had reached his limit. He couldn't take it anymore. He squeezed his optic shut as his body shook with sobs. Atlas warbled softly and gently patted Kronos' back to soothe him.
"It's okay, Kronos." P-body cooed, still rather exhausted, "Try to calm down and go back to sleep."
"I-I can't...th-the monsters will come back..." he cried.
Atlas played along, "We won't let any monsters get you..."
Kronos seemed to calm down a bit, "Really?"
Atlas looked down into the little bot's eye and nodded, "Really. We'd never let anyone or anyTHING hurt you..."
P-body smiled at how much affection Atlas was giving the little bot, and wrapped her arms around them both. Kronos gave a content sigh and snuggled in between them, feeling much more safe in their presence. But that feeling quickly vanished when they drew their arms away.
"Now try and go back to sleep. You need to rest." his mother beeped as they got up and headed for the door.
"W-wait! Don't leave, please!" Kronos jumped out of bed and rushed over to them, "I-I don't want to be alone...it's dark and scary in here..."
P-body looked down at the child in surprise, "We can't stay for the whole night..."
Atlas suddenly had an idea, "Maybe he could stay with US for the night."
Kronos' widened his optic and looked up at his mother, "Can I...?"
P-body was about to say no, when she saw Kronos. The look in his eye was enough to warm even the coldest of hearts, and it made hers melt. "Okay, you can spend the night..."
The little bot's optic brightened happily, he held up his arms to her. She knelt down and picked him up, snuggling him against her core, "Let's go."