Chapter I: Unique

6:03 A.M.

Though his shift had ended three minutes ago, Mike wasn't too keen on moving just yet. His heart pounded almost painfully against his chest as he sat cowering in his seat. After a moment's hesitation, he finally glanced at the camera positioned at the show stage, surprised to see that the purple bunny had returned to its original position. Still he did not move for several minutes, watching that stage to make sure the animatronics did not move again. He finally made a break for it, punching out quickly and heading straight for the front doors. The door had opened before he could even turn the lock, causing the skittish security guard to jump back in surprise.

"Oh, good morning," Phil greeted him as he stepped into the darkened restaurant.

"Like hell it is!" Mike snapped, continuously glancing towards the stage. "Is this some kind of joke?" he growled. Phil's expression changed somewhat, though it wasn't a look of surprise.

"Look, son, I understand you're a bit rattled after the last few hours-"

"RATTLED?!" Mike put his hands to his head, running his fingers through the already messy locks, which were now dampened with sweat. "You just told me the characters sometimes wander around at night! Sure, it's a little creepy, but I can handle that! Trying to stuff me in a suit, however, is a bit much!"

Phil suddenly looked alarmed. "Did they attack you?"

"They tried to! One of them, anyway! And I probably wouldn't have known what was coming if that guy hadn't left me the message!"

"What guy?"

"Your previous security guard!"

The man's face fell slightly. "Oh, you mean Scott."

"Yeah, whatever his name is. He told me these things would stuff me in a suit if they saw me! Is this how you people get your sick kicks around here? Am I being punked?"

Phil pinched the bridge of his nose as he sighed. "It's not a joke. Look, it's not like I could tell you the truth. You never would have taken the job otherwise."

Mike's expression darkened. "Have these things ever hurt one of your security guards? You better tell me the truth," he growled, pointing an accusing finger at the larger man.

"No, but Scott was a fairly close call, though not the closest we've had."

Mike could feel his face growing hot with anger. "And exactly how much did you have to pay him to keep his mouth shut?"

"Well…that's just it. No one ever bothers to say anything. They know better. Do you really think you can walk into a police station and tell the authorities about giant animatronics that come to life every night and try to kill you without having them laugh in your face? And they usually quit after the first night, anyway, so there's really no risk of them coming back with a video recorder to get proof."

"Why the hell would you even need security?!"

"We have had instances of vandalism, Mr. Schmidt. It is a concern, but…we're less concerned with keeping people out and more so with keeping them in," Phil responded firmly as he nodded towards the stage. "I…I really don't know what would happen if they got out. I don't know that they'd even try to get out. But…I'd rather not take the risk."

Mike turned away, pressing his forehead against the wall. "So I'm just a distraction for them," he replied quietly. "I just don't even understand how they're capable of anything like this. They're just robots! How is it possible?"

"Incredibly advanced artificial intelligence, I suppose."

"But they're children's mascots! Why would they need to be that advanced?" Mike groaned, rubbing his temples in agitation. He shot the other man a perplexed glance. "Why don't you just destroy them and have them replaced if you know they're dangerous?"

Phil looked away. "I can't."

"Why the hell not?"

"I just can't! They're….unique."

"Unique?! You'd seriously risk the lives of your employees because you think these things are too unique?!"

A deflated look descended upon the manager's face, and he lowered his gaze to the grungy tiled floor. He slowly reached his hand into his pocket, pulling out a black leather wallet. "I understand completely if you walk out that door and never come back. I'll….I'll pay you for the first night, though it's not going to be a lot." The man slipped out a twenty, holding it between his index and middle finger as he tried to fish out a five. Mike fell into a long silence, glaring daggers at the older man standing before him.

"Give me one good reason why I should stay," he snapped. Phil slowly looked up, his hazel eyes reflecting heavy stress.

"There is no good reason, son. I wish I could give you one." He held out the small sum of money for Mike to take. "It's your choice."

"You seriously want me to return to a job where I act as a laser dot for these things to chase around all night?"

Phil could no longer respond at this point. He just waited for the inevitable cry of 'I quit!' to come shooting out of Mike's mouth any moment. So many others had done the same. Why should he be any different?

There came a long, exasperated sigh from the younger man. "I'll come back, for two reasons: one, I need money now. I think that one was obvious. My situation has hit a critical point, and I have no other options right now. And two….I really can't stand the thought of you tricking some other guy into this mess, because I know that's exactly what you're going to do once I walk away. So…I'll be back tonight."

Phil nodded slowly, returning his wallet to his pocket. "Charlie's the closing manager tonight. He'll be waiting for you."

Mike brushed past the elder man and started through the door, only managing to get one foot onto the sidewalk outside when he heard the manager speak up abruptly:

"I do want you to protect them, you know." Mike glanced back at him, his gaze stern. "This isn't just a matter of you keeping them busy. People…People are so crazy with their conspiracy theories and getting people stirred up with crazy rumors. We have had rocks thrown through the windows and nasty messages spray painted on the walls outside. Because of idiots spreading stories around about missing children being stuffed in the mascots, one of my biggest fears is that someone's going to try and break in and open them up to see if it's true."

"Scared for the robots, or scared for the person breaking in?"

"Both."

Mike held the man's gaze for a long moment, his jaw clenching slightly. "I'll be back tonight," he snapped, continuing on his way out and storming towards his car. Once inside, he started the engine and allowed it to warm up before making his departure. He leaned back agains the cracked, leather seat, slumping into it slightly as he stared out into the darkness. "Why couldn't they have hired me as the bus boy?" he mumbled tiredly. Of course now he knew he had no reason to go on being angry about the situation. He could have walked away and never looked back, but he had chosen to stay. He just hoped he'd live long enough to question that choice.

Pulling up in front of the small brick house residing on the corner of the street, Mike slowly slid out, nearly stumbling face first into the grass. The house almost seemed further out of reach with each step he took, and he was having a difficult time trying to remember which pocket it was he had shoved his keys. After about three tries, he finally managed to get the key into the lock and open the door with a loud creak. The stuffy house was a welcome sight, even if it was in desperate need of some tidying up. He shuffled his way through the darkened hallway, content with idea of just kicking off his shoes and collapsing onto the bed, too tired to even undress out of his uniform. His eyes shifted, briefly glancing at the closed door on his right as he passed, a door that hadn't been opened in several months. He winced inwardly as he passed it. He always did.

Mike managed to maneuver his way through the nearly pitch black bedroom, kicking aside an old worn out tennis shoe that had lost its partner some time ago. He fell onto the bed with a soft grunt, sleep overcoming him almost instantly. Of course it wouldn't be the most peaceful slumber, as images of large, animatronic animals trying to kill him haunted his dreams.

ooooooo

Night Two

He didn't know why he thought the second night would possibly be any easier.

"Hello? Hello? Uh, well if you're hearing this and you made it to day two, uh…congrats!"

The urge to strangle the person who had recorded these messages was becoming overwhelming.

"I won't talk quite as long this time since Freddy and his friends tend to become more active as the week progresses."

Mike realized how true Scott's words had been when he had checked the camera just thirty minutes into his shift and noticed the bunny had already left the stage. A few searches finally revealed its location in the east hall, its frame only a dark silhouette against the flickering light hanging above. Looking away from the screen of the laptop, he did a quick scan of his surroundings, wondering if there was anything in the office that could possibly be used as a weapon if one of those things managed to get inside. He knew he was never supposed to lay a hand on the mascots, but he was now in a state of self-preservation, and he'd do whatever needed to be done to defend himself, even if that meant turning those things into a pile of scrap metal. If he got fired for it, so be it.

Despite his fear, he still watched their movements with fascination. He feared these things, yes, but he also wondered how they were able to do the things they did. How was it they were able to….look at him and actually acknowledge his presence? Even if they mistakenly thought he was a metal endoskeleton, how were they able to even see him at all? They were just hunks of moving metal with a voice box installed inside them. Even the concept of 'A.I.' didn't really sit well with him. Why would a simple little business like a family pizzeria even want high tech machines that were capable of reasoning and problem solving? Was it really neccesarry? Was this what had actually brought him back to this place? Did he just have a morbid curiosity?

"Also, check on the curtain in Pirate Cove from time to time. The character in there seems unique in that he only becomes more active if the cameras remain off for long periods of time."

It was odd to hear this portion of the message, as Pirate Cove was one of the few places he checked. He was constantly switching back and forth between the show stage, the dining hall and the hallways. Thankfully, there didn't appear to be any activity that he could see when he did check, but he still made it a top priority to check ever minute or so.

2:13 A.M.

Another glance at the show stage revealed that only one character (Freddy) now remained in place. Mike's heart leapt into his throat as he scrambled to find where the second character had gotten to. It took a few moments, but he was finally able to spot the chicken near the restrooms, its large frame almost completely shrouded in darkness. After pinpointing the chicken's location, he looked away from the screen momentarily to shine his flashlight towards the doorway, nearly jumping out of his skin when he saw the illuminated purple face of the rabbit. Mike slammed his fist against the red button near the doorway, slamming the door shut and locking the animatronic outside.

"Living in my car is starting to not sound like such a bad thing after all," the man mumbled shakily, going back over to monitor the cameras again.

4:20 A.M.

Mike checked the show stage for what had to be the fiftieth time that night, nearly taking a step back when he saw that Freddy had turned to look straight into the camera now. He snapped his head to the right when he heard footsteps approaching from down the hall. "No, you don't," he growled as he went to shut the door, a chill running down his spine as he heard the sound of fingers tapping against glass. Wiping away the beads of sweat that were now dotting his paling face, he turned back to the cameras once again, switching over to Pirate Cove. He nearly screamed.

Two glowing eyes were now peering through the purple curtains, a large metal maw full of sharp teeth hanging wide open. He let out a deep, shuddering breath. It was bad enough when he only had to worry about the three characters on stage. Now there was this guy.

"All right…what're you gonna do?" he whispered to himself as he stared back at the shadowed animatronic.

5:43 A.M.

He was in the final stretch now, though he knew anything could happen at any moment. By this point the large fox had ventured out from behind the curtains and was now standing out in the open, its head cocked to one side.

It was during the final minutes of his shift that the two most active animatronics had simultaneously made an appearance at both doors, forcing Mike shut them both. From that point on, he glued his eyes to his wrist watch, occasionally taking a look at Pirate Cove.

Five….four…three…two….

6:00 A.M.

Mike held his breath for what felt like an eternity. His entire body trembling, he very cautiously opened both doors, shining his flashlight into the doorway to make sure everything was clear. All was quiet, save for his own heavy breathing.


Author's Note: Wow, I was blown away by how much attention this story received. Over 500 hits in less than a week! Thanks a ton for all the follows and faves! I really hadn't even planned on updating quite this soon, but all the positive feedback drove me to publish this a little sooner. I really hope this story doesn't disappoint. There've been some amazing stories here as of recently, and I while I can't say this one will even come close to matching their creativity and brilliance, I still hope I can give readers something they'll enjoy and become invested in.