Hello there. This chapter shouldn't have taken this long to write, however, in the middle of writing, I had a lot of things to do, but now I'm mostly free. Again, sorry about the delay.
"It's too dark in here. I can't see a thing!" the young voice rang. The wind howled outside. The power had been shut off. Eventually, though, a light clicked on. Jessica met Carlton's gaze, carrying her flashlight tightly in her hand, fingers touching her parted lips. She gave him an incredulous stare, shuffling back a couple of steps.
"Couldn't you just use your flashlight?" Jessica asked. She looked further down, seeing that he is indeed carrying a flashlight in his hand. Carlton just shook his head, clicking the side button of the flashlight. Nothing happened.
"It doesn't work. I guess the battery is dead," Carlton said. He crossed his arms and began tapping with his foot, angered by this.
"Just stay behind me. I'll lead the way, okay?" she asked. Carlton nodded, so she stepped out of the room and outside. It was still raining, but it was not as severe as it was before. A haze slid over the landscape, and curls of smoky air currents obscured her surroundings. The air was so dense that she could see the bright beam of light coming from her flashlight. She turned around and pointed her flashlight at the entrance to the generator room; Carlton stepped out of the building and met her gaze. His brown jacket was damp, and it almost seemed to be grayer, having less color, or washed out. His skin was paler too.
The area was much darker without the lamps to light up the park. He expected the lamps to be solar-powered, but they surprisingly were not. "So... that's that," he said. He then glanced down at his flashlight and tried flicking it on again, but to no avail. He grunted and hit the ground with the back of the flashlight, and he flinched as he saw a bright light flash in his face. When he opened his eyes again, a smile formed on his face. "Well, I guess the battery was loose."
Jessica sighed in relief. "Okay, that's good. Now come on," she said. She swung around and ran past the small oak tree in the middle and past the security guard tower and towards the entrance to Chica's Party World, and she frowned; the gate was still closed. Carlton ran up to her and saw the sealed gate too. She turned to face him. Her cheeks were burning, and she threw her head back, her hair hiding her face. "I'm sorry."
Carlton shook his head. He looked away, rubbing at his eyelids. He was at a loss for words for certain. He was unable to figure out what to do. His expression blanched, his face going pale. He then started scratching his jaw. "What do we do now? The power is out and the gates are still closed! What was the point of that?"
Jessica sighed, unsure of herself. "I don't know, but listen to me. We aren't abandoning him, okay? We aren't," she said. She turned around, glancing past the gate. There were still some bright white lights coming from the other side, primarily on the merry-go-round and the eyes of the magic rainbow. She then glanced down. "That generator only controls the lamps, the lamps that should only be solar-powered, right?" she asked.
"Yeah," Carlton said. He stared into the gate which was made of metal bars, thick enough to prevent anyone from slipping through, but thin enough so people could see inside. The light from the merry-go-round gleamed in the rippling puddle of rain. "It just doesn't make any sense. That power generator in there doesn't even control the power of the park, but instead, the lights. It's almost like it is some sort of decoy... or a red herring."
Jessica nodded. "Yeah, I think you're right. It's almost like the designers of this park anticipated something like this to happen, for someone to go inside to try to find answers, only to be locked out," she said.
"But... why?" Carlton asked. "Why spend thousands of dollars putting a power generator in that room? Why have these short wooden gates at the front entrance and then these fancy elaborate gates that block off every way imaginable to the park?" he added. He held his hands behind the back, gripping one's own wrist. His words were rushed, hinting at obvious frustration. He couldn't figure out half the things that were going on.
Jessica's eyes widened, sensing a pattern. First, there was the fence that looked like it was possible to climb, but they later found out it was impossible to climb. Then, there was the gate that looked impossible to climb, but it was possible. Then, there were the gates that were impossible to go past. They found a power generator, and they expected that when they turned it off, that the entire park would shut off, but instead, only the main lights powered off. The gates remained open. "Carlton..." she began, her words dry.
"Yeah?"
"I know the answer."
His head perked up in surprise. She figured it out that quickly? However, he wasn't going to go that route. "What is this about then? Why all the gates?"
"It's to demoralize us," she said. "Think about it. It looks like all the possible ways into the park are obvious, handed on a silver platter. And yet they all fail one way or another, and each attempt is more frustrating than the last. Climbing the fence almost killed you, the power generator isn't an actual power generator. I could go on. Their goal is to prevent us from going in, not through security, but through mind games/
"So? They hire random security guards to kill, so why are they so adamant on keeping us out?" Carlton asked.
Jessica shook her head. "I'm not sure, but if I had to shoot for a guess..." Then, her head shot up. "Wait, this town has a police station, right?" she asked.
Carlton gave her a shrug. "I don't know. It probably does, but again, this is a tiny town. There are probably only a few cops, maybe even one," he said. He then took a deep breath.
"Alright. We are going to look for it then, because I want to find answers," she said. She turned around and almost walked away, but Carlton grabbed her shoulder.
"What about finding my dad?" he asked. "I mean, seriously? You said we wouldn't leave him," he said.
Jessica nodded. "I know, I know that. Still, I don't see any way in. We either have to wait, or we have to find a way into that security office and open the gate ourselves," she said.
Carlton sighed. "Maybe there's someone in there," he said. He then walked over to the security tower and banged hard against the steel door with his fist.
"Hey, wait up—ahh!" Jessica yelped as a bright flash of light flooded her vision. She backed away, gripping her flashlight in her hand in a defensive stance, prepared to confront whoever or whatever was there. Carlton swung around, staring at the bright light which seemed to get dimmer. "Who's there?" she yelled out.
The light seemed to get brighter and brighter until it started getting dimmer again. She realized that the light came from a bright flashlight in the hand of a man that walked up to her. She then turned to face Carlton. He reached for his side, grabbing a baton weapon. He gave Carlton a deathly stare. "Step away from that door and go with that girl, understand?"
Carlton swallowed hard, nodding. He scooted away from the guard tower, and then he walked away until his back was pressed against the border wall separating the lobby from Chica's Party World. He stared at the guard; he wore a blue uniform that had a yellow badge in the top-right corner that read 'FREDBEAR'S FUN PARK SECURITY.' He felt his heart pounding hard against his chest. His face turned white, and the hair on the back of his neck lifted up. "What do you want?"
The security guard cleared his throat, taking an authoritative stance. "That's a question I should be asking you." He had a south Calfirornian accent, something they failed to notice before. "You are trespassing on private property, and then you decided to shut off all the lights so I can't even do my job here," he said. He then approached then, gripping his baton tightly in his right hand. "Now, give me one reason why I shouldn't call the cops."
Carlton shivered. "Look, we are looking for a friend that stayed late here. He called us earlier saying to look for him and that he couldn't get out, so please, let us look for him," Carlton said.
The guard glanced up at the east guard tower for a moment before then staring at them. "Fine, but you'll have to let me come with you. I can't have you two sneaking around and stealing things," he said.
"That works," Carlton said. He walked up to him and extended a hand, but then, he stared at his flashlight. "Hey, could I look at your flashlight?" he asked.
"Uh... sure?" the guard asked. He handed Carlton the flashlight, but then, he saw a hand rushing to his face. Carlton swung at his chin, and the impact caused a shockwave that reverberated through his jaw. His head turned 90° to the right in just one second, and that caused him to instantly lose consciousness. Carlton smiled, seeing him on the ground.
"Well that was easy enough," he said. He bent down, looking at his belt. He first took the baton, but he looked through the other items. He then found a keycard, so he took it.
"Are you crazy? You just knocked out a security guard," she said. "You could go to prison for doing that."
"Relax," Carlton said. He showed Jessica the keycard that was on the security guard's belt. The identification image did not look like the guard's face, but rather, that of an older African-American man. "That's not the guard, it's an imposter."
"Wow... so if that's not the actual guard, then who could he be?" Jessica asked.
"I don't know, but we don't have time to find out," he said. He ran past the west guard tower and over to the east guard tower. Jessica followed him. He walked up to the entrance, and grabbing the keycard, he inserted it inside the card reader. Then, a ding echoed from the other side of the door, and after a few seconds, the metal door slid open. He smiled. "Let's get that gate open."
Jessica and Carlton both stepped inside the elevator. The floor was made of a silver-colored mesh, and the walls were made of white-colored steel. There was a bright fluorescent light on the ceiling. On the side next to the door, there was a panel that had two buttons, an up button, and a down button. The up button was lit red, and the down button wasn't lit. Jessica pressed the up button, and the elevator started moving up, but not before the doors slid closed.
"Carlton..." Jessica began. She turned to meet his gaze. "How did you knock that guy out, anyway?" she asked.
"My dad taught me," he said. "Hitting someone's chin will always knock them out, regardless of anything."
"Huh." Jessica backed away to the railing of the elevator. He took a deep breath before sighing. "I'm worried."
"Me too," Carlton said. "I mean, we know barely anything about this park. My dad was really vague about... well, everything. I feel like it's intentional," he added. The elevator finally reached the top, and the doors slid open. "It's like he thinks the phones are being monitored, so he tells us only what we need to know to survive."
Jessica nodded. "Yeah, probably." She then stepped out of the elevator and into another room. This room in question had a black-and-white tile floor. The walls were made of a dark gray material, with a black-and-white checker pattern with a blue outline in the bottom-center area of the wall. There was a gray wooden desk lined against the wall ahead of her. To the left, there was a stack of crates, and to the right, a garbage can and a stairway that led up.
"So this is where the cameras are? I don't see anything," Carlton said. Then, he shook his head and looked down. "Maybe it's on a kind of tablet inside that desk."
"No," Jessica said, motioning to the stairway. "Maybe the security room itself is up there." She then walked up the stairs, going to another room. This room was much larger, and being much better lit. There was a wide window that overlooked the entire park, and on the other side, there was a wall of old televisions that were square-shaped, being barely in color. "This is... interesting," she said.
In the middle of the room, there was a black desk with a chair. On the desk, there was a monitor with a mouse and keyboard. Carlton walked over to the desk and sat down, glaring at the monitor. The camera that was visible was Camera 4B, in the middle of Bonnie's Rock Zone. "Here... come over here," Carlton said.
"Yeah?" she asked. She turned to Carlton and walked over to the desk, and she saw Camera 4B. It was overlooking the entrance to Chica's Party World, but it was on the side of Bonnie's Rock Zone. Though the camera was dark, she saw two lamps at the entrance and an outline of a music note. There were several large trees in the distance, as well as what appeared to be a large rollercoaster. There was a bounce castle on the left, with a bright white lamp on one of the four towers of the bounce castle. "Wow... that looks cool, doesn't it?"
"Yeah, it's also creepy," Carlton said. He stared at the three bright white lamps. "So that generator doesn't even control all the lights, just the lights in the lobby," he said.
"Yeah, but look," she said. "The gate is closed."
Carlton cocked his head up. "Huh. Well, I'll just open it." He hovered the mouse over the 'OPEN GATE' button and clicked it, and then, the gate slid open. "There... but, what the hell was this guard doing over here?"
"I'm not sure, maybe he was just flicking through the cameras," Jessica said. "It doesn't matter. Just open all the gates," she added.
"Alright." Carlton exited Camera 4B and went to Camera 1B. It showed the entrance to the lobby from the side of Vinnie's Wild West. He opened the gate, and then he opened the gate for Camera 2B, which was the gate to Chica's Party World. "It's done," he said.
"Good." Jessica walked away from the camera monitor and toward the staircase. Carlton turned around, glancing out the window that overlooked the park. Jessica walked over to him. "It looks nice at night, doesn't it?" she asked.
Carlton nodded. He saw that Vinnie's Wild West was lit just enough by the white lamps. "Yeah... it looks cool." He then turned around, walking down the staircase. He walked past the desk, and his eyes widened when he saw a phone on it. "Wait, we could call the police and ask what happened. I'm sure they'll tell us, since I'm the son of the police chief in Hurricane," he said.
"Go for it," Jessica said. She sat down in the chair on the right of the desk. Carlton sat down in the chair on the left and picked up the landline phone. He dialed in 9-1-1, and after a few seconds, someone picked up.
"Hello, you have reached the Department of Emergency Services and Public Protection. What is your emergency?" the woman on the other end of the line asked.
"I would like to reach the New Harmony Police Department. It's located in Washington County, Utah," Carlton said. He then pressed the button that looked like a speaker on the phone.
"That is well. I am transferring you to the department," his voice rang from the speakers of the phone. Then, a loud beep, followed by the voice of a woman.
"Hello, I am Deputy Chief Emily Samson of the New Harmony Police Department. What can I do for you?" she asked.
Carlton took a deep breath before continuing. He turned to Jessica, who gave him a thumbs up. He nodded. "I'm Carlton Burke, the son of Clay Burke, the chief of the Hurricane Police Department. I would like to have some details on the murders that took place in Fredbear's Fun Park last night," he said.
There was a long pause before she answered. "I'm sorry, but I cannot disclose that information to you. I am only authorized to speak of that incident with other law enforcement officials." After that, the dialtone rang from the phone. Carlton slammed the phone into the hook, grunting.
"God damn it!" he shouted. Jessica got up and placed a hand over his shoulder, her eyebrows drawing together
"Come on, you shouldn't get angry over it," she said. She gave him an inward look. His breaths were quick and shallow. His eyes were wide, with white showing around his irises. He repeatedly clenched and unclenched his fists, and he folded his body over to make himself small. Jessica tilted her head. "Carlton? Come on, what's wrong? They just said that they won't tell you."
His veins were standing out in his neck. "Look, you don't understand. I just said over the phone that I was the son of the police chief of Hurricane. I mean, if the people running this park aren't suspicious of anything yet, they are now, because they know exactly who we are!" he said. He grasped the side of his head to try and keep it upright. His hands were shaking and fluttering.
"Just calm down," she said. "Please. We have time, remember? With the lights in here out, I think it'll be a while before they discover us. Besides, what are they gonna do?"
Carlton shook his head. "I have a feeling that they will send animatronics out to 'get' us."
"Come on, just relax and come with me. We'll find your dad, and then we will all get out of here and figure out what to do next tomorrow. Got it?" Jessica asked, holding out a hand.
Carlton nodded, taking her hand. "Yeah. Let's get this whole thing over with," he said. The two then walked down the stairs and into the elevator. Carlton pressed the red arrow on the panel that faced down, and then, the elevator doors slid closed and the elevator descended until it reached the ground floor. There was a brief ding before the doors slid open. Carlton was the first to step out, followed by Jessica. He glanced to the left, seeing that the gate to Vinnie's Wild West was wide open. "So... where do we go?"
"I guess here," she said. She walked up to the open gate and walked through it, finding herself in Vinnie's Wild West. It was much colder now since it was nighttime. "I'm glad it's not too hot in here." The path was quite damp thanks to the face that it was practically loose soil, and since it had a slightly lower elevation compared to the rest of the ground, that meant that it had many puddles. The bright lamps barely lit up the area, but it was just enough to see. Jessica accidentally stepped in a puddle, and she flinched as the water splashed all over her pants.
"Wow, you rarely see rain in a desert," Carlton noted.
"This isn't a desert though, this is just an area of a park," Jessica said. She watched dirt trails slide down the path as the rain washed away the grime.
"You're right." Carlton walked past the fork in the road, where to the right of him, the clock tower was visible. He just walked forward past another wooden building until he stepped into an open area. This open area had plenty of chairs and food stands, but without food and people tending to them.
"We haven't been to this part, have we?" Jessica asked.
"Nope." Carlton walked past a small field of cacti until he reached a small area enclosed by a fence: a set of tables and chairs. "You're right. I don't remember this place." Damp footsteps reverberated behind him. Carlton swung around, and he was startled by a figure: Vinnie. He was a little damp, but his motions were fine and precise. "Oh... you," Carlton said.
"Carlton... we should go," Jessica warned. "He might be dangerous," she added, recalling the message Clay sent hours ago, warning them of an animatronic that hunted people down.
"He isn't!" Carlton said. He recalled his visit to the park, where he won a prize from Vinnie's Vindaloo. "We know each other," he began, before then turning to Vinnie. "Right?"
Vinnie smiled. "Yes, we know each other," he said in his typical southern Texan accent. He was holding his little gun that Carlton noticed earlier, the one that he used to prank Charlie, however, this gun seemed shinier than before. Jessica couldn't tell if it was from the rain, or if it was something else, though she was worried by it. "I think we should get to know each other better, Carlton." A faint click could be heard behind Vinnie.
"What do you mean?" Carlton asked. Vinnie raised his seemingly fake gun in the air and pointed it at Carlton. He expected to find the little flag folded inside the barrel of the gun, but instead, the barrel was completely empty. He pressed his finger against the trigger.
"Get down!" Jessica shouted. Vinnie pulled the trigger, but Jessica dove into Carlton, knocking him down. A loud bang echoed from the barrel, and a cloud of smoke filled the air. The bullet put a dent into one of the chairs, causing it to crack in half.
Carlton opened his eyes, feeling blood quickly pumping through his veins. "How did you know—"
"There's no time!" Jessica shouted. She took Carlton's hand and pulled him up. "We have to get out of here as fast as possible." The sound of a hammer being cocked rang behind her, and she began panicking.
"Alright," Carlton said. His eyes darted around the place, looking for anywhere to hide. "We can't run far if he has an actual gun," he said. He glanced back, seeing Vinnie turn around, pointing the gun at them.
"Agreed," Jessica said. She focused on a building that was quite close to her, and by the looks of it, it was a kind of bar. "Follow me!" She then grabbed Carlton's hand and ran inside the bar with him, slamming the door shut behind her. The bang of a gun being fired echoed behind them, and the bullet tore through the door, punching a hole inside it. The bullet smashed into an empty wine glass that stood on the bar. She shivered, but she knew that she was biding at least some of her time. She then breathed a sigh of relief. "That was close."
Carlton nodded. He felt his heart pounding through his chest. "I hope there's another way out," he said. He looked around the bar, searching for an exit or vent, but unfortunately, there was nothing of the sort.
Jessica shook her head. "There isn't. All we need to do is exhaust the ammunition in his gun, and then we make a run for it." Her voice suggested desperation, and she knew that it wasn't the best plan, but it was certainly the safest plan. Running up to an animatronic with a gun wasn't a good idea in her min.
"Are you serious?" Carlton asked. "How do you expect us to do that?"
Suddenly, a series of loud pounds rang through the door. They turned, seeing the door shake with each pound. "He might get through!" Jessica said in a panic.
"There has to be something we can do, anything!" Carlton said.
Jessica shivered in fear. "Come with me!" She turned around and ran to the back of the bar, and Carlton followed. She then knelt down, concealing herself behind the bar.
Carlton bent down too, glaring at her. "Now what?"
"Now we—"
The door burst open, the hinges ripping away causing the door to snap in half. Vinnie stepped inside, crossing his glowing red eyes. "This town's not big enough for the two of us," Vinnie said. Jessica knew that this was something Vinnie commonly said, however, Vinnie said this in a way that seemed sinister, almost as if he was threatening them.
Jessica swallowed hard, looking around the inside of the bar for anything that could be helpful. There were beer bottles and wine glasses, however, she didn't find much use in them apart from being able to throw them to distract Vinnie. The footsteps drew closer and closer, until a shadow towered over the two of them. Jessica gripped the neck of a beer bottle with her hand, and her blood turned to ice as she looked up.
"I found you," Vinnie said. He then clicked the hammer and pointed it at Carlton. He then chuckled. "I know what it's like. We were such great friends before, but we could be even greater friends if we did just one thing to you," he said.
Carlton backed away, confused by this. "What are you going to do to me?" he asked.
Vinnie smiled. "We will make you one of us."
Carlton bit his lip. He knew that his time was nearly up, and that if he didn't do something quickly enough, he would either become an animatronic, or get killed. He glanced to his right, seeing Jessica holding the neck of a beer bottle. Suddenly, an idea formed in his mind. She could smash it over Vinnie's head, but then he would shoot either me or him. He felt his heartbeat increase as he realized he had few options.
"Have you made up your mind?" Vinnie asked, pressing his finger against the trigger. Then, Carlton looked past Vinnie, and to the main entrance, and then he made a sudden loud scream. Vinnie turned around, looking at the door in confusion.
This is my chance! Jessica got to her feet and raised up the bottle, and then, she swung it into the animatronic's face. The bottle shattered, with pieces of glass flying everywhere, including the animatronic's eye. However, the entire bottle shattered in Jessica's hand, causing a cut to appear on her hand which immediately started bleeding. She gripped her hand tightly to try and ease the pain.
Vinnie staggered backward, almost as if it were blinded by the shards of glass that went into its eye. Carlton got up and made a fist, then slammed it into the right wrist of Vinnie, knocking the revolver out of his hand. He then bent down, picking up the revolver and holding it tightly in his right hand. He then turned to Jessica, seeing blood trickle from her palm. "Jessica? Are you okay?"
"No," she whined as she squeezed her palm. "It hurts a lot."
"It doesn't matter," Carlton said. "We have to get out of here before—" He suddenly felt something squeeze his throat tightly. He quickly darted his eye forward, seeing Vinnie, one eye glowing red, staring into his very soul, holding him by the throat. He then lifted Carlton in the air, smiling menacingly, squeezing his throat even harder. He tried to gasp for air, but his windpipe had been sealed shut; he struggled to breathe, and he felt the world around him begin fading away. He tried to kick and squirm, but his body would not answer his commands; he had been paralyzed.
"Stop!" Jessica pleaded. She reached for another beer bottle and tried to swing at the animatronic with it again, however, Vinnie caught the body of the beer bottle with his left hand, and then crushed it, shattering it into a million pieces. Glass shards scraped against Jessica's palm, producing even more cuts. She cried out in agony, and she fell backward.
Vinnie then eased the pressure. Carlton gasped, breathing heavily, struggling for air. His heart was beating faster than ever before. Jessica just stared, both of her hands covered in blood. "There, there," Vinnie said. "There is no need to get aggressive."
"Why are you doing this?" Jessica screamed out. "Why do you want to kill us?"
Vinnie turned to Jessica. "I want you to join us. I think you and I would make a great team," he said, then turning to Carlton, implying that he was talking about him, and then he turned back to Jessica. "They're making my counterpart right now."
Jessica cocked her head forward. "Counterpart? I thought it was just you," she said.
Vinnie chuckled. "No, of course not. It's only me for now, but they're designing a new animatronic called Vixie. She's a bull," he said.
"She?" Carlton finally said. "You want me to be inside an animatronic that is the opposite gender? You're crazy!" he shouted, squirming and trying to break free.
"I believe you have been misinformed," Vinnie began. He then glared at Jessica. "The both of you will occupy Vixie. She will be specially designed so that your souls will merge into one," he then said.
Carlton gritted his teeth, trying to kick and squirm around. "You're sick, you know that? We shouldn't be made into an animatronic, and it isn't your decision to make!" He then raised the gun in the air, aiming it at Vinnie's eye. He then pulled the trigger. The bullet smashed into the animatronic's remaining glowing eye, destroying it. Sparks flew everywhere, and Vinnie let go of Carlton. He fell back to the floor, backing away from Vinnie.
Vinnie's grin became wider. "I don't need eyes to see you. I can hear you just as well." He then stared at Jessica with his two empty eye sockets. "Now, I want you to apologize for destroying my eyes." He reached for the side, grabbing a sharp corkscrew and priming it so that the screw itself was extended outward. He then held it as if it were a knife. Jessica backed away into the corner of the bar, realizing that she was done for.
"No, stop!" Jessica pleaded. However, Vinnie towered over her, smiling.
"I just like to play with my food." He raised the corkscrew in the air, but before he swung down, a loud tune blasted from the two speakers hung from the ceiling. Vinnie covered his ears in order to dampen the sound. Jessica immediately ran past Vinnie and the bar.
"This is our chance. Go!" She then ran for the door and opened it, but she then stepped back as she saw that a figure was standing in the door frame: Chica. "No," she said as she backed away. Carlton ran up to her and saw the animatronic blocking off the door. He turned around, watching Vinnie approach from behind. "We're screwed."
"Yes, you are," Vinnie said.