Before The Dark Times
By
End Of Grace
Over the past few weeks, I have received reviews from people that clearly love this series, so I got off my butt and have written you this chapter. Hope you enjoy it.
Chapter 6: We're about to start something new…
Vikki Richson sat nervously holding her flimsy CV and trying not to stare at the large man beside her. She was thin but compared to his large frame she was a twig, a very short flimsy twig. She was also wishing she had put some more thought into her outfit, a smart shirt, jeans and her old but lucky sneakers. Winston Parker Jr was sitting up straight and smart, his suit looked old, well kept but straining to stretch over his muscles. Under his arm was a folder that had several impressive pieces of paper. They had been led to the first aid slash office by a member of staff and left there to wait for the head of Freddy Fazbear company to interview them. They sat uncomfortably as the ticking of the office clock seemed determined to drive them mad.
Vikki tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and coughed nervously "Um…is this your first time with a job like this?"
"No, second, yourself?"
"Nah…this is going to be my first job…I mean if I get it I mean, not that am I saying I will, I mean…"
"It's cool, I get it," said Winston with a soft smile as he held up his hand to stop the girl from having a verbal panic attack. Both jumped to their feet as the door opened and a man with brown/silver hair with glasses came into the room with a walking stick.
"Sorry to keep you both. My name is Mike Schmidt and I'm the owner of the Fazbear company. Ms Richson and Mr Parker right? He asked as he held out his hand for them to shake. "You're both here for the security guard job right? Excellent. Please both have a seat. Do you mind if I interview you both at the same time?"
"I don't mind"
"Me neither," said Vikki quickly, feeling that if she did ask for a separate interview it would make her look bad somehow.
"Great. Now do either of you have experience in security or fast food places?"
"I have a little experience in security sir. Guarding some VIPs at a seminar in South Africa" said Winston as he handed over one of the pieces of paper to Mike to read. Mike looked over the paper, clearly impressed.
"You have served in the military for five years as well. Quite amazing. What about you Ms Richson?"
"Er…but I have taken self-defence classes and I'm a kickboxing champ too. I got pictures!" She quickly pulled out her phone and held up pictures of her holding a medal.
"Ok. Right, so what made you both choose Freddy's of all places to work for? You first Ms Richson"
"Oh, I grew up with Freddy and the gang. My dad would bring me here or to Nightmare whenever he could. I also go to the local college as well so it can work around my lectures and I can pick up extra hours during the holiday seasons"
Mike smiled before looking over to Winston who for the first time looked uncomfortable.
"I've just come back from deployment and I require a job quickly before my wife even thinks of letting me have my kids for the weekend. I'm willing to work any hours, any shifts no matter how bad"
"I see," said Mike, feeling bad for the gentleman in front of him. "We have a special program here at Freddy's for parents. If you ever need to bring your kids with you to work you are more than welcome to, they get free food and drink for their stay here as well as a couple of tokens for the games. All we ask is that you try and give us at least twenty four hour notice beforehand, though I know things don't always work out that way…"
Winston nodded gratefully "Sounds like a good program sir. Thank you"
"Ok. Now. During the day, your main job is protecting the children, you can do this on the shop floor or by the security room with the cameras, the animatronics will work with you on this. They are equipped with a program that alerts them to known predators and they will alert you should they find one. If you are here in the evening" Mike's smile widened "….well…of course if you are hired you will be asked to do five nights…."
"The five nights test!" squeaked Vikki excitedly yet when both men looked at her she blushed brightly and looked down at the floor.
Mike chuckled "Well you are a local girl, so I shouldn't be surprised that you know about Ms Richson but do you know what it entails?"
Still blushing she muttered softly "I know it has something to do with the animatronics, something to do with them coming to life at night…like the Halloween night"
Mike chuckled "Close…but that is for me to know. So are you both alright taking the evening shift then?"
"No problems here" Vikki bounced almost excitedly, she loved doing the Halloween challenge each year, she looked forward to it.
"May I ask for some more information please?" Wilson asked, looking slightly confused.
"Have you done any research on this company Mr Parker? I would advise it. This company has a long and quite complicated history. I'm afraid I can not give you any information about what happens during the night shift but I can give you a small hint, treat the animatronics with respect and kindness. Each store has its own set of rules but that is the main one you must follow at all times as well as protect the children that visit here. For example, The Sister location has an animatronic Funtime Freddy or Frazar which he prefers to be called insists on hugging all members of staff when they start and hugs them when they leave. In the Cove, Captain Foxy has a thing of having the guard walking around during the day and insists they stay in the camera room unless it is the utmost necessary while the animatronics at Nightmare tend to try and pull pranks''
"You almost make them sound like they're alive…" said Wilson, frowning deeply.
"I guess I just see it that way and I ask the staff to respect that and follow suit" Mike smiled "Is that a problem?"
"No sir, You want me to treat the animatronics like living beings then so be it if it means I get the job"
"Good and you Ms Richson? Any problems?"
"No. All good here"
"Excellent. Well, I think you both would be a good fit around here and of course once the new mall opens you most likely will be posted there. So shall we get your uniforms sorted and introduce you to everyone?"
"Huh? Err I'm not sure I follow, does that mean you're hiring…both of us?" asked Wilson looking at Vikki who seemed just as confused.
"Why not? I need as many new people as I can with the Mall opening but I want the people there to have experience. So I want you two to have as much experience as possible and know the other guards will not want to swap. They are comfortable with their stores
"So we will most likely be posted in the Mall then?" Vikki asked "Cause I would like that, it's not far from where I live, I can practically walk there"
"I don't mind either way as long as there is a paycheck," said Wilson
"Excellent. Now if you both like to look over these…come in" said Mike as there was a loud knock on the door. The door opened and Bonnie came in carrying a tray with glasses with a jug of water.
"Here you guys go. I thought you could use some refreshment"
"Thank you, Bonnie. Bonnie, this is Wilson and Vikki. They're going to start their first week of being your security guards. Wilson, Vikki, this is Bonnie Bunny, he is our lead guitarist and one of the pizzeria's favourite animatronics" Mike beamed with pride as the bunny placed the tray down and offered his servo to them.
"It's nice to meet you. I hope we can be friends"
"Err, sure" Wilson seemed uncomfortable shaking Bonnie's servo but Vikki took it eagerly and smiled brightly up at him.
"It is nice to meet you, Bonnie"
Unbeknown to the new guards Bonnie's optics quickly scanned over them, checking memory and police files for any information on them before turning to Mike and giving a small shake of his head. They were both clear of any known misdoing but that might just mean they hadn't been caught or reported. Mike had learned the hard way about background checks with Matt, who turned out to be the killer known as the biter, so Mike decided to keep the five nights trial going and have the animatronics decide whether or not the people could be trusted.
"How are things on the floor Bonnie?" Mike asked as Wilson and Vikki looked over the contracts and sipped their drinks.
"It's quiet but then the schools will be closing soon so things will pick up quickly as they usually do," said Bonnie as he wiggled his ears. Mike bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from laughing at Bonnie's known signal for "Service". Well, it had been a while and according to Bonnie, it was quiet on the shop floor.
"Are you guys alright? Need anything? Excellent. If you both go to the kitchen and speak to Emily, she is the manager here, she will give you the tour, locker keys and uniforms. I look forward to working with you both" said Mike as he took their contracts.
"Thank you, Mr Schmidt," said Vikki as she got to her feet.
"Yes, thank you, you won't regret hiring me sir," said Wilson as he followed Vikki to the door. Bonnie went to the door and locked it before turning to Mike who was smirking as he pulled his tie loose as undid his top button.
"It's been too long," said Bonnie as he pulled Mike up from his chair and hugged him tightly. Mike hummed in agreement as Bonnie lent down and licked Mike's exposed neck. Bonnie's servos tugged out Mike's shirt, enjoying the way Mike's pale skin reddened when he touched it.
"Wait…wait…Bonnie…wait a sec…" Mike moaned as Bonnie pinched his nipple through his shirt.
"Don't want to" Bonnie undid Mike's belt and pulled down the trousers only to pause at the knees as his optics gazed over Mike's blackened thigh. Mike noticed, smiled sadly, as he patted Bonnie's head lovingly.
"Don't think about it. It won't change anything Bon"
"I know" Bonnie nuzzled Mike's neck before licking the shell of his ear. Mike moaned as he reached around and stroked Bonnie's face, enjoying the softness of the fur beneath his fingertips. Once Mike was fully undressed Bonnie laid him on his desk, admiring his human's beauty which to him seemed only to increase with age if only Mike had not been traumatised by Dahl he could at least express how much he loved his human looks. "I love you so much, Mike"
"I know. Love you too" Mike chuckled as he kissed one of Bonnie's long ears.
"Besides, I need to take care of you with our family growing"
Mike tilted his head to the side and looked confused "What do you mean?"
"The new pizzeria. The new "Bonnie" animatronic is going to be there. You said there was a Freddy and a Chica so there must be a Bonnie there too" Bonnie went to push Mike down only for the human to place his hand on his chest plate and sit up.
"Bon…er…I don't know how to tell you this but, there isn't going to be a "Bonnie" at the Mall. I've only built four for it and well…there wasn't enough room for a bunny…" Mike's words trailed off as Bonnie's ears dropped and his jaw went slack.
"But all the pizzerias have a Bonnie. The Cove has Bonnie Blu, Nightmare has Plushtrap and Bon Bon and the sister has Bonnet! The Mall has to have a Bonnie too"
"Hey now that's not fair, is it? Not all the pizzerias have a "Chica" or a "Foxy". I just felt we had enough kids, we surely don't need any more" Mike cupped Bonnie's faceplate as he tried to comfort the large bunny. "Besides if I did make him, he would be a full adult animatronic, not like our Shadow or Bonnet"
"But…"
"Besides, I don't have time to build one. I have to make the final changes to the other four…"
"I'm sure there is a spare Bonnie endo skeleton somewhere in the warehouse"
"...and we have the guards to train and then there is Mark wanting a holiday. Then there is the viewing of the Freddy cartoon for the U-Tube site. I really don't have ..."
"Please Mike! For me! Pretty please…."
Mike was going to continue protesting but Bonnie's pleading optics tugged at him, making him feel guilty for not including him in the line-up, but the Mall seriously needed five animatronics?
"I'm not promising Bonnie. If there isn't a spare skeleton then…" Mike's words were swallowed up by Bonnie's kiss as his ears and tail wiggled happily.
"Thank you, Mike. I know you won't let me down"
Mike groaned and wondered when he became such a pushover for the bunny when a large servo wrapped itself around his cock. Ah yes, that's why.
—-Line Break—-
Two men in GENT uniforms sighed as they slammed the doors of the moving van. This wasn't their job…well it was but then again it wasn't. They were meant to be working for Aperture Science but the boss, or ex-boss since he had passed away, Mr Johnson was known to lend out workers for other projects under the business name "GENTS". The two men should be back at the centre, working on cores or the latest computer GLADOS not moving crap to some old man's apartment. What the hell was that weird machine? Damn it, it was bad enough that they had to fake all the paperwork for the police to let them into the old studio to get it but now having to transport it and lug it up to some old man's apartment?
"Tell me again why we are doing this?"
"Because it was the last project that the boss funded before he died and we were sent to make sure that nothing can lead back to Aperture. From what I heard the boss and loads of other big shots put in a lot of money into that studio place only for it to the tank. The guy that ran it lost everything. The only thing he refused to part with is that weird machine"
"All I know is that the studio gave me the creeps. You heard the cops right? Something like a hundred or more people had disappeared from that building without so much of a trace? How do that many people just up and disappear right?"
"Look, we have no right to talk about disappearances when we have to deal with the volunteers of Aperture. Best not to say anything" said the elder of the two as he continued to drive. The second man sighed and pulled out a notebook and went to design and write notes.
"What's that you're working on?"
"Well, you heard that they need cores to keep Glados under control? I've come up with a core that is just well…stupid really…a bit of a moron"
The older man laughed "That would keep her in line for a change. What would you call it?"
"I was thinking about Wheatley after this really stupid cousin of mine…"
They spoke of other things as they drove along and it was nearly dark when they finally pulled up to a beat down villa in the middle of nowhere. A man in a wheelchair who looked as if he hadn't slept in months was waiting for them on the doorstep.
"Hey, boys! Can't thank you enough for doing this for me. Was it any trouble?"
"No sir. No questions asked and no answers were given" said the elder, who knew what to say in these situations.
"Good. Good. Now here is the key to the garage, once you got it in there bring it through the house until you get to the spare room. It is big enough to store in there" said Joey tossing the keys at them before wheeling himself back inside.
"Who the hell does that old bastard think he is?" growled the younger man only to be yanked back by the elder.
"Doesn't matter. We're here to do a job so let's get it over with. Besides I promised my little girl that I would take her to "Bring your daughter to work" day. She's been working on making a potato battery"
After a lot of swearing, pulling and pushing, the ink machine was now sitting in the small spare room looking completely out of place, Joey sat staring at it not even paying attention to the men leaving. Joey waited for a few minutes what felt to him to be hours as he slowly wheeled forward, his arm stretched out to touch the machine. His fingers barely brushed the metal panel when several screams escaped the large metal box. Flashes of faces twisting in agony and being smothered by ink burned into Joey's eyes. Joey jerked back violently and fell from his chair, panting heavily as he glared at the machine, black ink dripping down the sides. Joey growled and dragged himself back into his chair.
"This is all your fault! If you had only obeyed me! We could have had it all! But no! You had to be selfish! Wanting that…that…DEADWEIGHT! That worthless, heartless…."
A deep growl rattled the machine, stopping Joey in the middle of his rant and sending a cold shiver up his spine.
"Well, you can just sit there and rot! If I can't have what I want, you sure as hell can't!" Joey muttered in defeat as he left the room, slamming the door behind him.
—-Line Break—-
Wilson was not sure what to make of this job. The day shift was just as odd as the night one. It was the way the staff reacted or acted around the animatronics. He had been in the army and was used to the chain of command but when that command comes from a robot teddy bear? or pirate fox it was a little hard to swallow. It wasn't that they were impolite far from it, they were even more polite than most of the humans, save for the nighttime when they have a mischievous streak and tried to scare him. Vikki often fell for it and quickly laughed it off. She seemed to have no problems with the animatronics. Wilson put this down to an age thing. Freddy's and the Cove had been fine for the most part, He simply asked the animatronics to go back to their stations when they came to him and they had done so with a polite nod. The Nightmare place was just odd as he, Vikki, and the manager Connie were the only humans on staff and how none of the visitors even questioned this. The older animatronics were fine, even if the weird rabbit with the make-up did flirt with him, but the younger ones were indeed a nightmare. The triplet bears argued and swore all the time, JJ kept trying to break into the claw machines and the twin girls thought it was a good idea to draw on the walls. In the end, he had lost his cool and pulled rank, saying he would call Connie or Mike if they did not start behaving or even put them in a time out, something he did with his little girls. They apologized and behaved the rest of the night with the bear Freddystein thanking him for his hard work and promising to put in a good note with the boss for him. He had just arrived at the Sister location, Vikki was already there waiting for him, both having a couple of hours to work during the day before their night shift. This allowed them to get used to the place and learn the layout as well. He had learnt that each of the restaurants each has a set age or group of children they aim for. The Sister he understood dealt mostly with young children but also with children with special needs.
"Are you ready for another day and night of crazy?" Vikki asked as he approached her.
"Yep. Plus once we're done here, we have only one more night to go before we have officially become guards for the place. At least until the Mall is ready and then we got to start over"
"Hey don't think of it like that! Think of it as training for our place. Once the Mall opens we're going to know how to look after animatronics, what to look out for, how to help kids and such"
Wilson chuckled "Your right. I was more hoping to stay in stores like this one. Be better if I have to look after my girls at last minute notice if you get what I mean"
"Yeah, but the Mall is meant to be kid-friendly too isn't it? Also, the Boss seems to be flexible mostly with people who have kids, maybe talk to him and ask him to swap you with someone so you can stay in the stores"
"Maybe but not just yet, ya know? Best to make sure I'm secure in my job and all that before asking for favours"
"Yeah I get it," said Vikki looking thoughtful "You know it's weird. In most fast food places, the staff are usually unhappy, underpaid, overworked and can't wait to get another job"
"Yeah…so?"
"Well…I don't know if you noticed or spoke to a lot of the staff but no one is really like that here. Oh not to say they don't moan about stuff but the pay is really good, the boss is nice and most of the people enjoy their jobs. Someone even said there is a huge rivalry between the store staff on who's store is the best"
"That's nuts. Best not to get involved with that kind of stuff" said Wilson as he opened the door and then flinched as ear-piercing screams rang out. He glanced at Vikki for a moment before they both rushed into the store ready to tackle what emergency was happening. On the floor was a small girl about five years of age throwing a temper tantrum or at least what it looked like. The mother was standing by looking tired while others seemed to be ignoring what was going on. Wilson took a couple of steps forward when a cat butler animatronic stepped in fount of him.
"Hello, welcome to the Sister location, Are you Wilson and Vikki? Our new training guards?"
"Yes. And shouldn't somebody be dealing with that little girl?" said Wilson in a low voice as he tilted his head towards the screaming child.
"Oh, Sofia is one of our regulars and sometimes get a little overwhelmed. Fiona has gone to grab Fox to deal with her, so please don't be concerned. I'm Tony, the leader of the Sister animatronics, I'll take you on a tour while our manager Luigi is dealing with other things. Would you like to follow me?"
As Tony spoke a large pink and white fox animatronic appeared and walked over to the screaming girl and laid down next to her. The fox started to sing a song softly not once put off by the high pitch screams that seemed to stop after a while as the girl curled up against the singing animatronic still sobbing. Vikki and Wilson followed Tony as a member of staff gave the mom a cup of coffee and a chair to sit down while other staff directed people away or around the little girl.
"I'm sure you have been told the Sister is for special children. "Meltdowns" are a common thing here and usually we can spot them before they start but not always. We have a quiet room which is Fraezar 's spot. He looks after them and helps them with their drawings and such. Fraezar is known as Funtime Freddy to the children but Fraezar to the rest of us. Be warned he loves to give hugs to just about everyone and it would be advisable to just let him do it. Trust me. Now on the main floor, we have two stages. One is for the larger animatronics to perform on and the other is for Ms Fiona and Ms Bonnet, the youngest animatronics and well…"
Tony seemed to be struggling to find the right thing to say so Vikki stepped in.
"I'm guessing they're spoilt?"
"Not so much spoilt. Just…um…troublesome? Yes. Troublesome. Ms Bonnest is a diva and Ms Fiona is mischievous. Now we also have a couple of large party rooms down this hall here. We have a small party going on now actually where my sister Toni and Ms Matron are overseeing"
The two guards followed the butler down a colourful hallway until he stopped by an open door where a lot of laughter was coming from. Children were dancing about alongside a cat maid and a short purple hippo in a golden tutu, gold ballet shoes with a tiny gold crown on her head.
"Oh my god! That Hippo is so cute!" Vikki squeaked as she took out her phone to snap a picture.
"Yes, Ms Matron is quite popular and is also a brilliant first aider as well. It took her some time to learn to be a ballerina but I think she has done quite a wonderful job" said Tony tilting his head up with pride.
"Though it was really funny watching her practice"
The two guards turned as the cat butler practically ran over to a young teenager who was also wearing a security guard outfit. Tony seemed to beam with pride as he wrapped his servo and tail around the young human.
"And this is the Sister's own security guard Master Adam Edge. He is also an assistant to the good doctor with repairs and such. Why he practically rebuilt my younger brother Tomkin"
"Dail it back a bit Tony," said Adam feeling his face light up with embarrassment "It's nice to meet you both. You are both training to work in the Mall right? If you pass the five-night of course"
"That's the plan. I'm Vikki and this here is Wilson" she said as she shook Adam's hand. Wilson seemed to be a little concerned if freaked out by the way Tony was holding Adam but also rubbing his head against his own that kind of reminded him of how animals marked each other with their scent. Which was ridiculous.
"Damn I'm beat! Hey Wiskers! I'm taking a break"
Wilson turned to the masculine voice and was surprised to see the white and pink fox coming up the hall. It looked at him and sneered.
"What you looking at pal?"
"Ah…um…sorry. I just assumed that you were a…well…the colour scheme and…."
"Fox, be nice, it is an obvious mistake. He didn't mean anything by it" said Tony letting go of Adam for a moment.
"Whatever!" said Fox grumpily. "We need to talk to whoever is cleaning the floors during the day. They are not doing a good job. My fur is all sticking from laying down like that"
"I will pass it on to the manager," said Tony "Fox, this is Wilson and Vikki, they're here for their fourth day and night of training as guards. Wilson, Vikki, this is Funtime Foxy but best known as Fox to save confusion with the good captain of the cove"
The two humans said hello while the Fox only waved a servo before walking over to Adam and swinging his arm around his shoulders.
"As long as their only temps I ain't got a problem with it. We got our security guard right here. Right, Adam?"
Adam rolled his eyes "Come on Fox, you know you guys have the odd different guards now and then. So, why don't I show you guys the security room and go over a few blind spots we have?" said Adam as he tried to defuse the uncomfortable scene. "Fox you go and enjoy your break and Tony, head back to the floor, I got this"
"As you wish Master Adam," said Tony as he bowed and made his way back while Fox made his way to their break room.
"Say Adam?" said Wilson looking concerned "Are they always that way with you?"
"A little. You have to understand it like this, humans have their favourite animatronic right? Well, in the case of the animatronics of each restaurant, they all have their favourite human. Well, I'm the favourite here, Ms Connie and the baby are Nightmares, not sure on the Cove but with Freddy's, it's Mark…I think… with the boss Mike loved above all others. You'll get you to it. Come on, I've got a lot to show you…"
Vikki followed Adam happily and chatted while Wilson was wondering what kind of crazy job had he applied for.
—-Line Break—-
Ms Hannigan walked down the corridors of the orphanage, the clicking of her high heels the only sound since all the little beasts were tucked in their beds. She stopped by a large mirror and smiled at her reflection. Not a wrinkle, grey hair, nothing but beautiful. The little arrangement was working beautifully, she was handsomely paid and gifted with her youth and in exchange, a few brats disappeared now and again.
"Oh dear, the poor things must have run away. You can't help them all. You know how it is" she had said the lines so often she was surprised she didn't believe it herself. She winked at her reflection and continued to walk towards her office. She was only just through the door when the landline started to ring. She looked over at the clock, nearly midnight, which meant only one thing. She quickly sat down in her chair and picked up the receiver.
"Hello?"
"I would like to place an order, Ms Hannigan"
The voice was unrecognizable as usual. She never knew who she was speaking to and to be frank she didn't care to find out. You didn't survive in this business long if you asked questions.
"Yeah, yeah, so how many of the brats do you want this time?" she asked as she admired her nails.
"We want double the usual amount"
Ms Hannigan's heart leapt into her throat "Double? Are you crazy? We're being watched as it is…sorry but double is too…"
Suddenly it was too hard to breathe, she looked down at her hands and watched as they became frail, wrinkled, nails falling off. She reached up to her gorgeous hair and chunks of it fell through her ancient fingertips. Pain shot through her as her bones and organs started to age at an alarming speed. She could feel the cold hand of death ready to take her soul down to hell where she knew the devil was waiting for her. Then it stopped and she gasped for air, her body once again the beautiful masterpiece it was.
"I'm sorry, I don't think I heard you correctly, can you say that again?"
Shaking she raised the receiver to her lips "Double. Not a problem. When do you need them ready by?"
"As soon as possible"
"I will call you when a date has been set for you to collect them"
"Wonderful. Have a pleasant evening Ms Hannigan"
The line went dead but it didn't stop her from slamming down the receiver as hard as she could. She stamped over to her drinks cabinet and poured herself a very large scotch which she downed in only two gulps.
"Shit! Shit! Shit!" she hissed between her teeth. Double the amount? That was insane! How the hell was she supposed to lose over twenty kids within a short amount of time? Trip gone wrong maybe? An accident in one of the dorms? Fire maybe? Well, she'll get to that later, first, she had to pick out the little pests that she was volunteering to go to a better place. She went to her bottom office drawer where she kept the files of all the bad apples, runaways, abandoned kids with no families, drug addicts together and started to go through them. She wasn't completely heartless, she never sent babies or toddlers, they have always adopted more or less right away and bought money in. No, just the kids that she knew had no real future and that no one would care or miss. It was a service in a way. Less for the taxman to fork out to feed and clothe them.
"Rob? Yes, Rob will do. Mary ann? Hell yes! Yes to you, you and you" as she opened one file after another and stopped slightly at one of them and smiled nastily. "Oh Gregory, oh yes you will do nicely too"
—-Line Break—-
Vanessa was tapping away at a computer, her mind buzzing as she typed away, lines of code filling the screen. She needed to be careful. She couldn't be caught. Not now. That person was visiting today. The Mayor had given her a warning, the guard bots and service bots had to be working perfectly otherwise that person will suspect. He had that sort of mind. It annoyed her greatly that she still had not seen the face of the person the master was after. He had been covering his face with his hood whenever he came through the apartment building. He had noticed all the blind spots and was using them to his advantage. Still, she needed to know who it was she was after.
"As you can see Mr Schmidt, The Mall has been mainly designed around your animatronics," said the voice of Purohit as he was escorting a tall, long-haired man with a cane.
"Was that necessary? You made them seem like a cheap gimmick"
"Not at all! It's only a theme, something for the kids to enjoy, plus it helps parents and guards alike if each place had a name right?"
"I guess. You have no problem adjusting the place for the new Bonnie?"
"No problem at all. The children will love him I'm sure"
No problem? NO problem NO BLOODY PROBLEM! What the hell! Did he think coding was a joke? Did he think it was all shit and giggles? She was having a hard enough time programing Sunny and Moon let alone all the security for the bloody place. She shot up from her computer and was about to make her way over to the two men when something hot shot across her brain.
"Let the other one deal with it"
Vanessa slumped slightly before straightening up and adjusting her blonde hair before reaching into her pocket and pulling out of a tube of lipstick and breath mints. She quickly put the lipstick on and swallowed the breath mints followed by checking her breath before skipping over to the two men.
"HI! I'm Vanny! I'm one of the security guar…." she slurred to at a stop as the two men turned to her. Classic romantic music started to play inside her head, bright lights and flowers surrounded, the tall gorgeous man with dream green eyes and beautiful smile.
"That was quite a hello Vanny. It's a pleasure to meet you, I'm Mike Schmidt, I run Freddy Fazbear entertainment, I trust everything is going alright?"
"Dreamy" Vanny muttered as she leaned closer taking Mike's hand.
"Er?" Mike gave a confused and uncomfortable look at Mr Purohit, who quickly came around and wrapped his arm around Vanny's waist.
"I think she means everything is going brilliantly right Ms Vanny?"
"Yeah," said Vanny batting her eyelids. "Brillant"
"Oh…good. I understand you made most of the bots here including the daycare? You must be quite a genius with programing" said Mike trying to keep his discomfort out of his voice.
Vanny giggled and cupped her face as she blushed "Not really...maybe…yeah…"
"SNAP OUT OF IT YOU IDIOT!"
Vanny snapped to attention, her eyes wide with fear making both Mike and Purohit jump back in alarm.
"I just remembered I need to do something important. Please excuse me" she turned and skipped a couple of steps away before coyly turning around and giving Mike a wave. She giggled happily as Mike waved back and continued to skip away. Mike gave Purohit a look.
"She's a lovely girl just a little bit…odd. She hasn't had a lot of sleep lately. Been working a lot of overtime" Purohit muttered in a rush "Shall we look at the golf course? I'm sure you love the design"
Vanny stood in her secret room giggling away like a schoolgirl. So that was Mike Schmidt, why had no one said or pointed out how amazing he was to her? If they had she would have approached him ages ago.
"What do you think you were doing?"
"Master?"
"What were you doing? Are you trying to ruin my plan?"
"Not at all Master, I was just taken away by his looks, it won't happen again"
"See that it doesn't. We can not have that man finding out my plan"
"Yes, Master but then why are we watching him? Do you need him for something?"
"That is not your concern. All you need be concerned about is getting me a new body and enough children's souls to perform the sacrifice to transfer my soul into"
"Yes, Master. I will obey…but um…"
"Yes?"
"Once you have your new body, could I possibly have Mr Schmidt as my plaything? Pretty please?"
Deep inside of her mind, a brown rabbit with a purple bow sat down on a throne-like chair and smiled.
"Why not? It will be a reward for your service. Once I have my new body, I promise Mike Schmidt will be yours to do as you please"
—Line Break—
"Ok, Everyone settles down, please!" Mike shouted over the ruckus of the excited animatronics. It had been a while since the last get together, plus since they had two new guards as well as the unveiling of Mr Stein's first Freddy cartoon, seemed only right to throw a small party. Most of the girl animatronics were crowding Connie as she held baby James. Henry and Jeremy were making sure the projector was working with Ballon Boy, Bubble and JJ trying to help. Mark with Tiny on his knees was chatting excitedly with Adam and Vikki with Wilson leaning against the wall behind them watching everything with slight amusement. Everyone else was either in pairs or groups chatting about whatever was on their processors. With a sigh, Mike taps his cane down on the table hard enough to get everyone's attention but not to wake the sleeping baby. Everyone quickly sat down and waited for Mike to give his announcement.
"Right, first off, let's give a round of applause for our two new security guards, Wilson and Vikki, who have completed their five nights trial with flying colours"
The animatronics and fellow guards all cheered and clapped as Vikki blushed and Wilson simply nodded his thanks.
"They will be the guards at our new store the Mall. This turns out to be much bigger the originally explained but it is not a problem we can not handle. The animatronics for that store is almost ready and we will hold another get together for you all to meet them before they go off to their new home"
The animatronics clapped again but some titled their heads slightly having noticed the concerned tone in Mike's voice.
"The Mall isn't due to open for another couple of weeks so that gives us plenty of time to give Wilson and Vikki experience and for Mark to go and have his two holidays down with his mom"
"YEAH! VACATION BABY!" Mark cried out as he punched the air, making everyone but Freddy laugh.
"And Jeremy isn't that when you're taking a few days too?"
"Yeah, but it's only like a weekend thing. I'll be back pretty quick" said Jeremy as he flipped a switch on the projector. "Everything is ready Mike"
"Ok. As you know Mr Strein has made a cartoon about the old Freddy Fazbear group. Now I want everyone to give their honest opinions and we decided as a group whether or not to continue this project. Big Daddy can you get the lights? Thank you. Everyone enjoy "A Night at Freddy's"
Mike quickly took his seat next to Bonnie and Shadow, his girls seating a little further down with Plushtrap. He had been looking forward to this and hoped it would go down well. The cartoon was a simple one, a little boy had gotten left behind in the pizzeria and was amazed that the animatronics came to life. The animatronics and the boy were having fun and making sure they were not caught by the security officer, who in the morning took the little boy home. The animatronics laughed and cheered as they watched and at the end gave it a standing ovation, which made Jeremy drag his uncle to the fount to take a bow.
"So Mr Schmidt, does this mean we're in business?" Mr Stein asked rubbing his hands.
Mike looked around and looked at Freddy who gave a nod and a wink before turning back to Stein "I do believe we are"
As the evening progressed Mike had a time making sure the younger animatronics were not bothering Mr Stein with their ideas for cartoons, the worse being his own Bonnet, who was insisting on staring in her show.
"Bonnet, Mr Stein is tried now, let him have a rest please"
"But Daddy…"
"Don't you and Fiona need to talk to your papa with Tomkin about your band idea?"
"Oh yeah! Fiona, Tomkin, come one!" she cried out as she jumped out of Mike's arms.
"You love your animatronics," said Wilson as he helped himself to one of the soda's that had been left out.
"Yeah, well, technically, Bonnet, Shadow and the twin girls are my children, at least I think of them that way and they think of me as their dad. How are you finding things, Wilson?"
"The job is fine, pay is good, everyone is friendly…"
Mike noticed the hesitation and smiled knowingly "But the animatronics? You're a little uncomfortable?"
Wilson sighed in relief "I mean no disrespect sir, but it's hard sometimes to remember that they're even robots, by the way, they act. Then there is the favouritism…"
"I get it. Wilson, you do not have to worry about the animatronics, if you show them respect and politeness to them they will do the same. If they ever cross your boundaries say so to them, they will understand and if they don't report it to me and I will deal with the situation. Just like I would between human employees"
"Well that's a bit of a load of my mind," said Wilson "Though I'm a bit worried about Adam though, the sister animatronics seem….rather clingy"
"I have had words with him and them before. Don't worry, Adam knows what to do when they go too far, he's got a good head on his shoulders"
It was then Mike noticed that Adam was gone along with Sooty, Shadow and Mangy.
"Too bad, he can't keep it in his pants" he muttered to himself.
Freddy walked down the hallway when he heard Mark talking to someone in the security room. He peered in to see the man on his knees in fount of Tiny who looked like he had been crying and was now in the pouting stage.
"Don't do this to me Tiny please," said Mark in an almost pleading tone. Tiny tweeped angrily and pointed to Mark and then himself. "Tiny. I can't take you. You need to stay here and look after the kids"
Tiny lunged forward and hugged Mark tightly. He clearly couldn't think of a world without Mark in it.
"Oh come on Tiny. You're breaking my heart here kiddo. It will only be for two weeks you know"
Tiny whimpered and shook his head against Mark's leg. Mark placed his hands under Tiny's arms and lifted him with a grunt. He sat down with Tiny on his lap and patted his head.
"If I could take you I would buddy but…."
"I don't think it's a problem," said Freddy as he came into the room. "It might be good for Tiny to have an adventure, it did for Shadow and the cubs when they were smaller. Plus I know Mike has insisted that you all learn basic repairs for us animatronics, so you can fix him should anything happen"
"But I'm going by a two-seater aircraft that I'm piloting. I won't be able to watch him"
"You can fly?" Freddy couldn't help but sound surprised.
"Yeah, a friend of mine got me lessons one year and I enjoyed it. I've passed all the tests for it too. It's easier for me to take a cheap aircraft and drive across the county"
Tiny chipped and beeped, tugging Mark's shirt, leaving Freddy to translate for him.
"He promises to be good and behave himself. He is begging you Mark"
Mark sighed loudly with frustration "Ok, fine, if Mike says it ok, then you can come with me"
Tiny let out a loud screech and leapt off Mark's lap and went to find Mike, leaving Freddy alone with Mark. Mark looking quickly for something to do, turned to the security monitors and started to flick through them. As time passed the atmosphere got heavier and Mark could feel Freddy's optics burning into his skull.
"Can I help you?"
"I know I said I would wait until you came back…."
"You did"
"But I was wondering….if you have…thought about it…maybe…."
"Look, Freddy…I'm not like Mike. I can't simply decide I love a machine and marry it and make babies like REALLY build and make babies. I wouldn't know where to start" said Mark with a great deal of anxiety in his voice.
"I understand Mark. You seem to forget that I have been with Goldie for many years. I'm not quite sure I'm ready to move on. Yet, what I do know, is that this pizzeria, my home, does not feel right without you in it"
"Freddy…" Mark muttered helplessly as the bear leant forward and kissed him softly on the lips.
"When you come home Mark, we will talk…when you're ready"
—-Line Break—-
Mark ignored all the odd looks he was getting as Tiny walked happily beside him onto the airstrip. Mark carried a large duffle bag on his bag and a smaller one that had a few tools as well as Tiny's things that the little animatronic felt he needed to bring.
"Ok Tiny, The first thing we need to do, is checked over our craft before we take off. So I'm going to look over the engine and I want you to look after our stuff till I'm done ok?"
Tiny gave him a thumbs up and took Mark's bag as Mark walked over to the aircraft and started the checks. After about an hour Mark came over to Tiny with oil on his face and shirt.
"Ok, buddy all the checks are done. We're all ready to take off when you are"
Tiny beeped loudly and crossed his arms then pointed to Mark's top. He went over to Mark's bag and opened it, dug around for a bit and pulled out an old purple T-shirt that had the Freddy Fazbear logo on it.
"Oh, thanks, buddy. Guess I can't turn up at mom's in a dirty shirt huh?"
Tiny nodded and waited as Mark quickly changed tops and carried their bags onto the craft. He walked over and climbed into the cab and Mark strapped him in tightly before placing large earphones over his head.
"These are so you can hear me while we're flying as well as protect your audios," said Mark loudly so the animatronic could hear him. Tiny gave him another thumb up and chirped happily. Mark laughed as he took his seat and strapped up. He waited for the signal and clearance before he took the strip. He built up speed, slowly pulled up until they were in the sky. Tiny bounced in his seat excitedly, pointing out the clouds and their odd shapes.
"Ok Tiny, we're going over the sea for a bit, there are a couple of islands and once we are past them it's only another hour or so to mom," said Mark as he looked over the instruments.
They flew smoothly over the sea and were making good time when Tiny pointed out the islands.
"Yeah, I think they're privately owned or something, some rich dude's private paradise or something," said Mark when he noticed the compass started to spin. "Wha…"
The aircraft started to shake dangerously, lights flashing and the warning alarm screamed out.
"THIS IS MARK78H29! Over coordinates 45 Northeast oversea. The plane is out of control! I repeat out of control!" Mark tried to regain control of the craft but it was impossible as it started to go down towards a tall small island that seemed to have a mansion on top of it.
"MAYDAY! MAYDAY!" screamed Mark as he saw the large building "TINY BRACE YOURSELF!"
The aircraft crashed through the roof of the building that Mark would later learn was called The Nest and he and Tiny were going to be staying there a while.
To Be Continued…
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