Chapter 16: Sins of the Founders

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Wow this was fast but this is just a prelude to a longer chapter. Stay tuned.

Location: Lift Area to Parts and Service

Time: 12:01am

With his battery fast depleting and his systems near failure, Freddy Fazbear heads towards a wide lift (capable of fitting at least 2 animatronics inside) that will bring him as close as possible to the Repair Room in Parts and Service Area. However, Freddy finds that he can't walk there anymore and needs to rest, just for a bit, and then he can continue onward. He places an unconscious Gregory on a table before collapsing in an area backstage.

"Sorry, I need to go on Standby Mode for a while." The giant bear says to the ghosts as he places the child's limp body on a nearby table. "Tell me when he wakes up and Please don't use me to hurt him. Either of you."

With that, Freddy gently slumps to the floor as gently as possible and shuts his eyes. Micheal and Henry manifest and stare at the two individuals who were out of commission.

"Henry. I felt HIS presence infecting Monty." Mike informs the older man suddenly.

"Who?"

"My Father. The real one. Something was different about him though….his soul didn't feel like a human soul…it was unnatural, incomplete …Like His." Mike points towards Gregory, "You noticed it too right? The first time we met the boy?"

"I did. Do you think something went wrong with William's new resurrection?"

"Such as?" Mike asked, requiring more elaboration.

"What if William split his soul into two somehow…maybe by accident when he tried to create this clone? Do you think that William wants Gregory not only to be reborn but have his soul complete again?"

"Beats me." Mike shrugs, "That's the even weirder part. That boy's soul is William's and yet at the same time not really…"

Micheal groans, "I don't want to think about this anymore. I'm going to kill him right now."

Henry grabs Mike's wrist tightly. He's not letting him do as he wants that easily.

"Micheal, I hate to keep stopping you like this but…do you really want to be a murderer like your father?"

"Don't you dare compare me to him, Henry!" Mike shouted at his father's former partner with a fiery gaze, "He killed people for his selfish ends. I'm doing this for the greater good. The world doesn't need another William running around, believe me".

"What if Gregory was just doing it in self-defense?" Henry tries to reason with Mike again, "That robot was trying to capture him after all?"

"Stop lying to yourself Henry! You saw it too: He kept stabbing that thing long after it seemed to have stopped functioning like a fucking psycho. And that face…I don't like that look he had on his face at all. Have you seen William like this before Henry?"

"Only once." Henry admitted, his eyes looking away from Mike with feelings of guilt.

"Once? Wait…don't tell me…you saw him kill the children." Mike comes to a realisation.

"It's worse than that." Henry lowered his head, "I have blood on my hands too, Micheal because indirectly … I helped your father kill those children by covering up the evidence."

"You WHAT!" Mike rushes at Henry, closing distance until he is face to face with the man.

"Hear me out Mike!" he places his hands in a surrender gesture before lowering them seconds later, "I only did it because he promised me that would resurrect Charlie. Back then, I hadn't known what he did to her and I…was at a very low point in my life after she died. He told me of his research with "Remnant", about how if he could get enough data on this substance, he could find a way to resurrect my daughter. However, to do that, lives would need to be sacrificed".

"And you just let him murder those kids?!"

"Believe me, I was very reluctant to let William do this but then he added that he needed to so that he could also find a way to resurrect your other siblings. When he said that, I felt sympathy for him because it made me realise that he too was grieving for his dead children and I assumed he wanted them back as badly as I did".

"He wanted to resurrect my brother and sister?" Mike questions feeling astonished, "That seems bizarrely out of character for him…"

"Yes but I was blind and a fool to the liar he really was."

Henry continued, "Anyway, because William and I both lost people close to us, I let him kill those children in a moment of weakness in exchange for a shot at bringing my daughter back. I helped him clean up all those bodies and bloodstains but nothing came out of it and both of us were fired for being suspected of the vanishings. It was a risky decision that didn't pay off, a decision I came to regret forever".

Henry looks upwards, staring directly at Mike with green eyes now full of sorrow. "I'm sorry Mike. If you want to be angry, be angry at the both of us. Don't push the blame entirely on William".

Mike backs away from Henry, slowly comprehending why a certain event occurred. "My father lied to you as he always did to me and everyone else…And you felt so much guilt after all that time...that's why you lured and trapped us all in that place and tried to burn everything? Even yourself?"

Henry nods.

"How long did that guilt weigh you down?" Mike asks.

"Years." Henry confessed with great sadness, "But after I was fired, I changed my name, moved on and began a new life in another town. I got married again, had another child but it seemed the past couldn't leave me alone. He came back and so did you. I thought I could put an end to all of this but…I couldn't."

He sighs in defeat.

"Maybe I'm destined to be stuck here because I don't deserve to go to either Heaven of Hell".

Mike turns around and looks at Gregory. He's quiet for a long while…

"I'll be honest…" Mike starts to speak again, "I wasn't expecting this. That you helped my father but still…You aren't a monster. You were only tricked by one. My father on the other hand, he's the real monster and you saw how 'Gregory' over here tore that robot apart just like what he did with those children I bet!"

Mike then turns to face the boy who is still lying unconscious, "Open your eyes Henry! This clone has the traits of that very same monster stamped all over him!"

Mike strides over to Freddy Fazbear.

"It won't be easy but we can destroy both parts of my Father's soul with or without Gregory. If we do this, William Afton will be no more. The children, whenever they are, will be free and more importantly, all of us can rest!"

"Michael!" Henry cries out.

"I'm done talking to you Henry. I'm going to kill this boy right here and right now!"

Mike enters Freddy's body and possesses him, transforming the bear's white pupils to a glowing lilac color. Using the broken metallic body, he makes it stand above Gregory who is slowly starting to stir. The boy sees the Giant bear with lilac eyes again and recalls that he got choked the last time he saw Freddy like this. He quickly rolls off the table and onto the floor below.

"Ow.." The boy falls onto his back.

Micheal winces and takes a few steps towards until he is right in front of the cowering child.

"Wait…Wait… If this is about earlier…I'm so sorry about what I did. I couldn't help myself." Gregory apologised.

"Of course you couldn't. You're sick in the head. Like him." Mike retorted, taking one step forward.

"No. You don't understand, I was trapped in one of William's memories…"

Mike took another step towards him. Gregory gulped in fear, knowing he had to explain. Fast.

"Sometimes, when I get memories of being William, some of them tend to take control of me and I…I'm forced to act out what William does in them." Gregory explains hurriedly, "I didn't want to hurt that robot that badly. I swear. It didn't feel good, at all."

That was a partial lie. Gregory doesn't mention to them how the feeling of violence did feel a little genuinely exciting to him, especially since he feared how Mike would have reacted if he said this. He felt so conflicted inside.

Mike takes a third step forward.

"So what you're saying is that back there, you had no control over yourself because you were acting out one of his memories?" The man in a purple shirt surmised.

"Yes. I tend to repeat what William says and does whenever it happens." Gregory clarifies.

"Right. That's all the proof I need to kill you".

Before he can strangle him again, Henry takes control of Freddy as well, taking possession to stop Mike from doing something reckless. One of Freddy's eyes turns green.

"Micheal," he grimaces, "Final Warning: I'm considering making you leave Freddy here if you keep being this uncooperative."

"Make me." Mike grins at him threateningly.

THUD THUD

There's a noise that comes from above them. Something or Someone is nearby. Something large. The three men turn their heads towards the noise and see the Daycare Attendant, in his Moon form, descending downwards from pipes that he had been hanging from.

'Just how long has it been watching us?' Gregory wonders fearfully.

He drops down, looks at Gregory first before suddenly shifting his head and then staring at the damaged and unconscious Giant Bear.

"I'll come back for you later." The Moon faced Attendant rasps, "Right now, I must bring Freddy to repairs first. Clean up. Clean up…"

The Attendant rushes and scoops the Giant Animatronic in his arms with a strange ease before carrying him into the already wide open lift just ahead of them.

"Wait!" Gregory chases after them but before he can reach, the doors shut, bringing them both Freddy and the Attendant downwards into the depths of the mall.

"No No no!" Gregory bangs on the door and sinks to his knees. "How am I going to find them now?"

He checks his watch. It tells him where the Parts and Service room is but not exactly how to get there. Shame this watch didn't come with a built in GPS.

"Guess I'm going to have to find them on my own."

"Not exactly." A gentle voice reassures him.

Gregory looks to his left to see Henry standing beside him.

"Henry? Why - How are you still here?"

"I detached myself away from Freddy and possessed your Fazwatch. Mike is with him though."

"Why?"

"We had an argument that went on and on before you woke up and I would have rather not have stuck with him due to our currently disagreeing viewpoints. Also, he's going to serve as our tether to Freddy because right now, I can track where they are by focusing on Mike's soul. However, we have to hurry as if we stray too far from Mike, I'll lose track of where they are completely".

"Is this why you can't track the missing children?"

"Unfortunately, yes Gregory. As soon as that lift comes up, we'll go after them alright."

Gregory nods silently as he presses the lift button and waits for the lift to return to the top.

Chapter 16 End

Chapter 17 Preview: Tag, You're it!

Summary: Gregory and Henry chat about nostalgic memories until they eventually encounter an odd threat down below.

Wow…what a revelation huh? Henry wasn't blind to William at all.