This story is part of the 'The Banishers' universe, and takes place during the events of Armageddon: Let Me Breathe and Strangers But In Dreams.
Disclaimer: I do not own Five Nights at Freddy's. Five Nights at Freddy's belongs to Scott Cawthon. I do NOT own any of the characters currently featured in this fic, apart from Sonia, Martin and Jane.
Enjoy the chapter!
Chapter 12
Dark Matter
"Shit." Charlie froze as Carlton called her name. As they stared at each other, she was filled with a realisation of what was happening.
He knows.
He saw.
He'll tell Clay.
Shit, shit, shit…
"Charlie." He repeated, and she snapped back into what was happening.
"No…no way…" Charlie whispered to herself, looking down at the mask she was holding. "I knew I shouldn't have taken it off."
"Charlie, what are you-what are…" Carlton was babbling now, his suspicions confirmed. Charlie was Springtrap. That meant that Jessica was The Mangle, and that her boyfriend, whatever his name was, wore the mask of the third member of The Scourge. The picture, all those stories his dad told him…all those stories were true.
She's gone now. She's changed. Something's happened.
"I…" Suddenly, Carlton pulled his gun from his back pocket, and pointed it at her. "I'm sorry." Charlie stared at the barrel of the gun, and a new feeling rippled through her.
Anger.
"You can't." She said angrily, and took a step forward.
"Stay back!" He yelled, keeping it trained on her chest. "Don't make me shoot you?"
"What's stopping you?" Charlie growled, spreading her arms wide. "You've got a clean shot. I bet you've killed someone before, Carlton. What's making it so hard this time?"
"Stop it! Don't come any closer! Please! I don't want to-I don't want to…" His voice faltered as Charlie stood in front of him, her eyes blazing anger. "I'm right here, Carlton, I'm right here. You could pull that trigger, and I'd be dead. So why don't you?"
His finger was around the trigger. All it would take was to pull it. And then the town would be free of the deaths, the murders. Maybe The Scourge would destabilise without their leader. Perhaps they'd even disband.
Pull it.
No.
Pull it.
I can't.
Pull it.
NO!
Carlton threw the gun to the ground, and slumped over.
"No." If Charlie was surprised by this outcome, she didn't show it. Calmly she walked over to the gun, squatted down and picked it up, examining it.
"Well, either you didn't want to shoot me, or you were hella angry with yourself." When he looked at her with a confused expression, she tossed the gun back to him, standing up. "It wasn't loaded." She giggled as a dumbfounded expression took over his face, and he looked at the gun.
"No fucking way."
"Way." Charlie looked at Carlton, and sighed. "Well? What are you going to do now?" She asked him, and he frowned. "I…" He stared at the sky for a moment or two. "What happened to you, Charlie? I remember what you were back then, all those years ago. You weren't like this. What changed?"
She thought for a moment, and sat down on the road, crossing her legs.
"I guess I...I wanted to do something that would change the world for the better. Whether that change was against the law didn't concern me at the time. Nothing about me changed, Carlton. I just figured out who I am. I figured out who I'm meant to be."
Carlton joined her, and fingered his gun, repeatedly pulling the trigger.
Click. Click. Click.
"You did, Charlie. You changed this town. Hurricane…The Scourge has changed it." He turned towards her, and frowned as he said his next words. "And I don't think it was for the better." Charlie shrugged, and tucked her hair behind her ear.
"We changed it. I did what I did because I had to. I did what I did because he-"
Because he told me to.
"He what?" Carlton asked. "Who's he? What did he do?" What exactly had William done? He'd told her something, all those months ago.
"He told me to right his wrongs." Charlie looked back briefly at the bodies of Johnny and Blake, and swallowed. "Do you know who the first person I killed was?" When he shook his head, she tilted her own, and looked down at the Springtrap head clutched in her hands. "I went out for dinner one day. And then I made the stupid mistake of going down the alleyway. Like, who the fuck goes down alleyways anyway?" She laughed, pausing for a moment.
"A man came out. Looked pretty banged up, like he'd just taken his drugs for the week. Asked for money. With a knife. I should have run. I really should have. But then I remembered that I had the mask in my bag." Carlton gulped as he realised where this was going. Charlie breathed deeply, before continuing. "I turned around, fished around inside, and pretended to look for my non-existent money. Once he was right behind me, I-I…I slammed the mask right onto his fucking face. I fucking slammed it, so that the blood spurted before the locks even tripped. And when they did, I didn't try to stop them. I watched those things cut into his neck, and then I watched him bleed to death."
"You…you did what?" Carlton gaped as Charlie looked at him, passing him the mask. He held it for a few moments, staring into the head's empty eyes.
"That night, I felt a new part of myself, Carlton. It was something I'd never felt, a pleasure which before I had only dreamed of. It wasn't power, or bloodlust. No, this was different. I…I felt change. Not of me, but of the entire world. Like killing that man had somehow triggered an event, something that hadn't arrived yet, but would be here soon. And I don't think I was that thing. I was just a pawn in a universal game of chess, an expendable soldier in a raging battle. But I found my place in the universe. And I'm staying. I'm going to do what I need to do."
Charlie took back the mask, and hugged it against her chest.
"I'm gonna make it right. Everything's gonna be alright in the end." Carlton frowned, and looked at the sky.
"I won't tell dad. But I won't help you, either." She shrugged as she stood, placing the mask back on her head. "That's fair. I'll see you around."
The springs in Charlie's legs began to coil, and then they released, launching her over the buildings. Carlton sighed, and pocketed his gun as he took one last glance at the bodies in the car. Next time, he'd make sure it was loaded.
xXx
"Wait, so he knows?"
"Yeah."
"Isn't that bad?"
"He said he wouldn't tell. He's not that bad, Arty."
"I don't trust him."
"You don't know Carlton. Trust me, he's a man of his word."
Charlie stared out the window dreamily, ignoring Arty's accusations. It was a nice day today; the weather wasn't too bad, and the clouds were non-existent. She took a bite out of her toast as he continued to ramble on.
"You don't know if he's changed at all, over the past 10 years. You changed. Jessica probably changed. For all you know, Carlton's developed the ability to lie as well as you do." She chuckled at that, leaning back a little as she looked back at the restaurant, countless happy families enjoying their meals.
"Yeah, as if. Listen Arty, I get that you don't trust him. So trust me. And I promise you, he's not a bad guy. He'll keep his promise, even if it means taking the secret to the grave. Like, killing himself. Not a joke."
"Well, if you insist." Arty muttered, sighing. "I'll bear with him for now."
Suddenly the door to the restaurant opened, and Charlie smirked.
"I'll hold you to that promise." He turned around, and scowled when he saw who was walking in.
"You called him here?" She snickered, shaking her head at his question. "Nope. But I do love coincidences."
"Hey Charlie." Carlton said awkwardly, glancing at Arty. "Uh, who's this?"
"Carlton. Uh, this is Arty."
"Boyfriend?" He asked, and both of them laughed. "Uh, no. We're not…officially dating." Arty snickered at the look on Carlton's face, as he tried to imagine what he was thinking.
"What are you doing here anyways?"
"Breakfast. Like you, I'm assuming." Charlie gritted her teeth, and looked around the restaurant.
"Shit, Arty. He's gone." Arty's whipped around, a scowl on his face. "Crap, uh..."
"I'll go." She told him, before taking off out the door.
"Hey what's going on?" Carlton asked, and Arty frowned. "You already know, right?"
"You mean the vigilantism? Yeah, of course."
"Yeah. So we've tracking a serial rapist for the past week, and we happened to see him come in. So Charlie said we should go inside and follow him, so we sat down and ordered some food. And of course she's ran off now, so I'm the one left with the bill." He spread out his hands dramatically as Carlton sat down, accidentally getting himself hit in the face by Arty's hand.
"Wow. You mean the guy from the motel? You're kidding." The only answer he got was a smirk, and a knowing shrug. "How did you even find out what he looked like?"
"Ah, that? Well, your firewall is the weakest I've ever seen. And I haven't exactly seen properly for a long time, but you get my point. I even let William do it, and his hacking skills are worse than Charlie's." Carlton blinked at the response, trying to figure out what he was talking about.
"Ok, so first of all, what do you mean by you not having seen properly for a long time? And who the fuck is William?" Arty smirked and looked out the window, and laughed. "Looks like she's caught our rapist." Carlton turned to see what he meant, and gaped at the sight of Charlie dragging a man by the leg, his arms flailing as he screamed something incomprehensible. Her forehead was covered in blood, but the wound didn't seem to affect her as she tossed the man aside and walked into the restaurant.
"Call your dad." She flashed him a smile before running back out, Arty right behind her. Sighing, Carlton dialled his father's number, waiting for him to pick up.
"Hey there, kid. What's up?" Clay asked over the phone, and he bit his lip. "Dad, we…uh, we've got our rapist." There was a spluttering sound, as if his father had just spat out whatever he'd been drinking. "You're kidding. How'd you catch him?"
"Uh, I didn't. Charlie did. She saw him and tracked him to a restaurant. I'm in there right now."
"How did she know it was him?" Clay questioned, and Carlton shrugged, before remembering his father couldn't see him. "I haven't asked her. She ran out of the restaurant right after realising he wasn't there." His father laughed, and it sounded like he was taking another sip of whatever he was drinking. "Alright, I'll send some men over there. See you in a bit."
"Alright bye. And dad?"
"Mm?"
"Stop with the booze. You sound drunk." There was a pause on the other end, before his father hung up the phone.
Carlton sighed as he looked outside at Charlie talking about something with Arty, as the man continued to try and crawl away. Every time he moved, she would step on his back, causing him to smirk just a little.
God, Charlie. I wish I hadn't seen you last night.
Last night everything had changed. He'd seen her for what she truly was. A murderer. And yet he couldn't stop himself from loving her, even if she didn't love him back. She had a boyfriend now. Or, a 'sort of' boyfriend. Either way, she was in love with someone else. It was time to move on, past his stupid crush which had lasted from his childhood. When Charlie had left, he'd fallen for Jessica. And they'd had plenty of good times together, sure. But then they'd broken up, because he'd been a stupid idiot.
A crash resounded from the kitchen, and Carlton jolted in his chair, snapping his head around. A dark mist was now emerging from the kitchen, and the lights of the entire room were beginning to flicker randomly. More crashes were heard, as a brawl apparently continued to rage on through the dark mist.
As he stood up to get a better look at the darkness, a light began to grow from its centre, blinding him.
"What the-" And then the building exploded, sending Carlton, along with almost everyone else, smashing into the walls. And then there was darkness.
xXx
"Crap! Arty, take care of him!" Charlie charged into the flaming wreck of the building, taking note of the damage. A few lucky people had been blown out of the windows, but several of them were still inside. Frantically, she ran inside and began to search for bodies in the dim light.
There's no way that it should be this dark. It doesn't make sense.
Finally she came to an arm, sticking out of a pile of rubble. Charlie began to pull off the broken boards and cracked tiles, and realised who she was uncovering.
Carlton.
His face looked lifeless, his eyelids shut and a fresh cut bleeding on his cheek.
"Fuck. Shit, no, please don't be dead…" She muttered to herself as she worked, digging away at the rubble until she could see his chest. Wrapping her arms around him, Charlie pulled with all her might, ignoring the pain in her arms as the building continued to burn around them.
"Come on! Don't die on me! Help me out here a little! Please!" She clenched her teeth as someone ran past her in the darkness, carrying someone. At least a few people were getting out.
"Argh!" Finally his body pulled away, and Charlie thrusted him onto her back as she began to head outside, her heels digging into the floor as Carlton's weight continued to dig into her. As she reached the door, she could see Arty running up to her, still pulling the man by the hair.
"God, Charlie! Are you alright?" He asked worriedly as she set down Carlton's body, staggering a little.
"I…need…" And then she fainted, her head hitting the ground with a crack.
"Fuck. Fucking hell, no…" Arty rolled her over, and gaped at her appearance. The wound on her forehead was bleeding rapidly all over her burnt face, and her green jacket was singed. Her left arm looked like it was broken, and her white shirt and jeans were ripped open. Luckily she was still breathing, but it sounded strained.
Sirens sounded from the left, and Arty watched as several police cars pulled over at the wreckage, red and blue light flashing bright. One of the men rushed right out of his car, and ran to Carlton's side.
"Shit. Carlton, come on, kiddo." His eyes slowly fluttered open as he was tapped on the side of his face.
"Dad?"
"Oh, thank god." Carlton found himself pulled into a massive hug, as Clay muttered words of apology. "Jesus dad, you're crushing me." Suddenly his eyes turned to Charlie's body, and his face fell. "Fuck dad, look at Charlie."
Clay didn't need to ask as he turned his head towards her, and gasped.
"Oh god." He ran over to her, and sighed. "Why does this stuff always happen to you?"
"Disaster always hits the people who don't deserve it, huh?" He looked up at Arty, who was stroking her hair. "You know, she wasn't even in the building when it blew up. She just had to run in there and pull Carlton out of the flames."
Clay stared at Charlie's face, and swallowed.
"She pulled him out?" He muttered to himself, and Arty sighed.
"Yeah. She always had to be the bloody hero all the time. I would have helped her, but she told me to take care of this idiot." He motioned towards the man, who was still struggling against his grip.
"Is that…?"
"Uh huh. The bastard from the motel." Clay rose, and walked over to him. "I'll bring him in. The fire brigade and ambulance will be here soon. I trust you'll take care of her until then." Arty nodded grimly, and let go of the man's hair. Clay promptly grabbed him, and started to drag the struggling man away.
"How long have you two been dating anyway?" Arty chuckled, and looked up at him. "We're not. We owed each other one kiss. That's all that happened."
"Huh. What's your name, kid?" He gave him a blank face, then went back to stroking Charlie's hair.
"My name's Arty. Arty Bishop."
As Clay walked away, pulling the screaming man behind him, his mind went to searching up that name, and what he might find when he did.
xXx
When Charlie could finally see again, it was difficult to tell. The floor and the walls were still dark, and she could hardly move. Every time she tried, pain shot up her body, and even then she could only wiggle. She wasn't lying down, she realised; she was being suspended in mid-air, by dark tendrils of mist which were wrapped around her body, pinning her arms to her sides.
The only sources of light in the darkness were two glowing white orbs, a few metres in front of her. Every 5 seconds or so, they would blink out in perfect unison, then reilluminate. Almost like…eyes. Charlie froze as the orbs began to move towards her, revealing the figure who'd been in front of her this whole time.
It was a rabbit, like Bonnie, but its body looked smoother. The plastic costume shell which it bore was pitch black, allowing the rabbit to blend in perfectly with the darkness. The rabbit opened its mouth to speak, revealing a glowing row of white teeth.
"You know, he told me you'd be harder to catch. But I guess people get paranoid in old age, eh?" The 'Shadow Bonnie' told her sweetly as he strode forwards. "You're a lot less intimidating that I thought, I've got to admit. She's super powerful, and she can wield the power of souls, or something like that. Or I think that's what he said. It was a few days ago." Charlie shifted uncomfortably as the tendrils tightened, and the Shadow Bonnie chuckled.
"Sorry, does it hurt? You know, I don't like killing people. But you see…" He reached for her head, and pulled her towards him. "I was given a chance to set things right. And I'm not going to screw this up."
"W-Who…who are you?" She asked him. Suddenly the orbs went black, leaving her completely in the dark until he began to speak. "You know, Charlie dear, I thought you would know who I am the moment you saw me."
"Don't call me that." She growled. In response, the Shadow Bonnie clicked his fingers, and the tendrils squeezed a little tighter, a smaller one wrapping around her throat.
"Alright then, if you're gonna play that card, play it. I've got a few of my own. Charlotte, say my name." the question seemed insane. How could she know who this person was? He could be anyone underneath that mask. "Come on. Say my name. I know yours, I bet you know mine." Charlie screamed as he placed his right hand against her temple, and pain surged through the bone.
"I said, say my name!"
"I DON'T KNOW IT!" She yelled, and the Shadow Bonnie drew back his hand. "I don't know what your name is! It could be Ben, or Dave, or RWQFS-" He held a single finger to her forehead, sending bolt of pain through her body and cutting her off.
"I'm going to say a first name, and then a last name. Gather what you can from them." He placed his mouth next to her ear, and whispered. "Brandon Brown."
Brandon Brown.
Brandon had been one of the victims of The Missing Children Incident. William's 4th kill, if Charlie remembered correctly. What did he mean, saying Brandon's name? He was long dead, his body stuffed inside of Bonnie.
"Brandon Brown is dead." Charlie said shakily as the Shadow Bonnie gave her a sickening grin.
"Brandon's dead. You're right. He was robbed of his life in the restaurant that your father built."
"And you're what, his brother?"
"Smart, smart. He told me that too." This person the Shadow Bonnie kept referring to was beginning to drive her crazy. "What do you want?" Charlie growled. "And who the fuck is 'he'?" The Shadow Bonnie laughed, and for a moment his eyes glowed brighter.
"What I want, is justice. Justice for my brother, and for all those little souls trapped in one place. And you know how I get that justice?" He asked her, and prodded her cheek.
"I'm guessing that it involves you killing me." Charlie guessed, and the Shadow Bonnie cackled. "I was too obvious, wasn't I? I'm a little new to this."
Suddenly the tendrils of darkness loosened, and the pull of gravity shifted to the side, dragging them along.
"What the hell?" Charlie cried out, and the Shadow Bonnie screamed angrily.
"I won't let them wake you up! You'll stay with me in this nightmare, forever!" He screeched as he launched himself through the air. She rolled out of the way as the gravity shifted again, and they tumbled around like clothes in a washing machine.
Charlie! Charlie!
Someone was calling her name. It sounded like Jessica.
Charlie!
"No!" The Shadow Bonnie lunged at her, whipping one of his tendrils at her. Charlie jumped over it as the cries grew louder and louder.
CHARLIE!
Charlie shot up as the darkness crumbled away, looking at Jessica's worried face.
"Charlie?" She said worriedly. "What happened?" Charlie pulled her into a hug, confusing her.
"God, Jessica. I think you just saved my life."
