Chapter Nine
Having a Blast
Gregory stepped out of the now-open elevator into a dark… supply area. Except, there weren't a lot of supplies. It was more of a wide hallway between a whole bunch of different doors and thin hallways leading between rooms. When he went to investigate the rooms, he found they were the lame food stands in "Salads and Sides". At least that meant he was back in the atrium!
Roxy still patrolled the atrium. This time she was far away. So, he slipped out into the dark floor and crept past the shops until he got to a set of shutters barring the rest of the atrium from a well-lit attraction.
The shutters opened.
His shoes fell upon the purple, cosmic carpet. A huge rocket ship statue dominated the center area, while alien ships scattered around the fringes too high up for Gregory to climb–including a Ferris Wheel one with UFOs instead of seats. A small shop with stairs leading atop it sat to the right side. Although there was a hallway to the right, it stopped due to a construction sign. A S.T.A.F.F. bot standing before the elevator blocked his entry.
Roxy growled and looked around the small lobby. When he didn't immediately appear within her sights, she turned and stalked off and called for his attention again.
The boy took a deep breath. He marched up to the S.T.A.F.F. bot before the elevator that immediately barred him entry. The boy showed it the Party Pass, which the bot took. It tossed a bunch of confetti in the air with a short dance and then promptly ignored him. Gregory walked inside.
He strode into an alien-centric elevator and pressed the entry button.
The elevator quietly went down.
…
Eventually, the other door opened, and Gregory strode out into the room whose major light source was the absurd amount of neon lights. Space and aliens scattered about the fairly dark room along with pictures of the glamrocks in space suits with laser guns. In a shop to the left behind a rocket, there was merchandise on shelves and clothes hung up and a few ATM machines sat against the wall. He couldn't find any food around, not even snacks. Chica must really be a problem if they were this strict about food.
To the right of the elevator stood a glass case with awards and a sign-up desk before it. Between the desk and a whole few rows of arcade cabinets was a blue futuristic door that slid up when Gregory approached. A bathroom sign with Freddy's and Chica's symbols stamped on them was above it. The desk beside that was also cluttered with things, including a black security cap and some walkie-talkies. What would happen if… Gregory put on that hat?
…
Nothing. They would know he wasn't a security guard. The only human security guard was Officer Vanessa, probably. Oh well. Though, the thought of wearing the biggest red flag he'd search for when out and about did cause him to chuckle. He popped the cap on his head and brushed some of his hair to the side to keep it out of his eyes. He had to tip the hat back so he could see properly, but otherwise, it fit… okay.
From behind the desk, he caught sight of two doors on the opposite wall. One said "NO ENTRY" while the other had a security badge above it. Gregory ran around to the "NO ENTRY" door. There wasn't exactly a scanner, so it probably wasn't an employee door. Darn. A small "L" shaped hallway was behind the other door, with one door inside leading to a bathroom with a single toilet.
Further down the hall was a metal door with another Security Badge sign beside it.
The room went dark as soon as he entered.
"Gregory!" Freddy's voice chimed in immediately. "They know you are here! Get the security upgrade and get out!"
Gregory found the little security Freddy head and pressed its nose. As it slowly opened, he searched the small room. A duffle bag with a chip talking about hiding Monty Mystery Mix in ice cream storage was there. An empty pizza box stood out amongst the clutter. Too bad it was empty. However, there was a cyan and lavender bowling ticket on it.
"What amazing luck!" Freddy exclaimed. "You got an annual Bonnie Bowl unlimited pass. Free bowling for a whole year!" He went on quickly, "Mega Pizzaplex entry not included. Shoe and ball rental fees still apply."
Gregory grabbed the security badge and indeed got out. However, when he went to open the door, he stopped dead.
Chica wandered around the place.
Gregory got out and hid behind the rocket ship as Chica looked his way. Curious, she approached the door and went inside. Gregory rushed into the last blue door, this one leading to the arena.
After a short "L" shaped hallway, dark with neon arches like a rib cage around him, he entered a room only slightly wider than the hallway. A whole big row of black seats lined the left wall. A S.T.A.F.F. bot with Fazerblast gear stood up on a stage on the other side. The lights turned on here.
The bot droned, "You must be the new Fazerblast recruits, and from the looks of you, the orange-slash-blue team hasn't got a chance. Soon you will be fighting for your lives. I am here to tell you how to play Fazerblast. There are two rules you must follow at all times. Rule One: No running. No jumping, hitting, kicking, pushing, shoving. No shooting Fazerblasters in, or close to, other players' eyes. Being flashed in the eyes may induce seizures, blindness, or semi-permanent paralysis. If you are flashed in the eyes, immediately flush your eyes with soap and water and then blink repeatedly until vision is restored. Rule Number Two: Have fun."
Gregory ran through the next door through an "L" and into another small room, this one lined on either side with vests and two tables with helmets. One side was orange, the other was blue. A male robot stated, "Before you enter the arena, grab a helmet and Fazerblaster."
Gregory took off his security guard cap and fitted an orange hat on and grabbed the lone laser gun beside all the other helmets. The helmet's visor went over his eyes. It was so clear and light that he could barely notice it being there at all. That was until the HUD appeared. "SCORE" "0/3" popped up in blue letters at the left edge of his vision. "HEALTH" with six short bars under it glowed green on his right.
Whoa… Gregory once got to put on a VR headset when his friend's older brother wasn't home to stop his little brother from borrowing it. Gregory had been astonished by how real everything felt, about how he could just touch something if he wanted to, though he knew his body wasn't there and he was holding controllers and wearing a mask. But this time he was here, and he had hands and now gripped a laser gun.
He couldn't help a joyful squeak and held the gun tighter.
The doorless entryway led to an actual door flanked by two other doors a few feet away. Both other doors said "NO ENTRY." So, he went in through the middle one.
He got to the end with three doors. The robotic voice stated, "You are on the orange team, soldier. Report to the orange hallway."
The left door, glowing with bands of orange lights, opened for him. At the end of the long "L" hallway stood an extravagantly designed elevator that glowed with futuristic lights and patterns both carved and made of light. He half wondered if there were alien props that would go around yelling "boo" or something.
The lights shut off.
Gregory jumped and looked around as a red light became his only aid in sight. The other door opened, leading him into a neon-and-blacklight maze of barriers and vibrant carpet. A few boxes reached up, stacked like rooms without ceilings accessed by stairs. He checked his Fazwatch. Cameras showed the absurd maze, a few boxes he could climb into, and three separate flags–one of which was at the top of the room stack in the center of the arena. He looked up, finding a single catwalk, and then down again. He checked his watch and forged on to the first flag.
Another set of words appeared on the right side of his "Health Bar": the word "TEAM" with the numbers "1/1" under it, both in blue.
Gregory had been partially right about the alien posters yelling "boo!", but only as S.T.A.F.F. bots wearing alien helmets and wielding guns rolled out from around barriers. He shot them down before they could shoot back. Weirdly, some lurched forward and fell limp, like Roxy when he flashed her with a camera. A few others stopped and exploded.
…neat.
Each time he shot, one of the six glowing blue bars on the top would go dark. If he stopped shooting long enough, the bars would refill. Words like "NICE SHOT", "AMAZING", and "5 IN A ROW" appeared if he shot them in a certain way or a certain number of bots in a row well enough. He smirked to himself. Heck yeah, he was amazing.
The first flag was in a corner near the door. A ceiling was overhead on this section, weirdly. A button on a pedestal beside the flag glowed green. He ran up and pressed it.
Computer bot announced, "You have captured the flag!"
"00:28" appeared in purple letters at the top of his vision.
A S.T.A.F.F. bot nearby announced in a monotone voice, "Capture the flag!"
Gregory shot it.
Computer bot said, "Time to defend."
The "aliens" that tried to sneak up on him or flat out charged missed and got shot by Gregory quickly after being spotted. Bots continued to say things such as "Die Earth scum", "Stand still so I can shoot you", and "Intruder alert" as they attacked. Once the timer ticked down to nothing, "AREA CAPTURED" appeared in green letters on his visor and the computer announced, "You have successfully defended the station! Move on to the next one, Space Cadet!" The "0/3" at the top-left of his screen went up one.
Heck yeah!
He found the next flag on the ground. He nearly forgot he was in a life-or-death situation and the only reason he was even playing was to get something that could help him defeat Chica. Then, in turn, it would help him either escape or help Sun and Moon or, preferably, both.
"FLAG LOST"
Gregory looked around, confused. It still showed "1/3" at the top of his screen. Orange lights still surrounded the flag behind him. Whatever; it was probably programmed to say that or something if there wasn't a second team and he took too long.
"This one is for Stewie," a S.T.A.F.F. bot announced before getting shot.
He checked his Fazwatch a couple of times. That's when he saw her. Officer Vanessa, in a blue Fazerblaster helmet, her flashlight replaced by a Fazerblaster in their neon-lit environment, climbed the steps to get to the next flag, her head swiveling back and forth as she stopped to look down walkways. She didn't say a word.
Gregory hid behind a wall and watched with his own eyes as Officer Vanessa passed. She stopped upon looking down his hall. He shrunk back and then looked down at his gun. You know what? He leaned out of his hiding place and pointed his gun at her. She shot first, aiming for his chest piece. His "health" went down a little. He immediately reciprocated. Although she tried to move, he still got her.
"My eyes!" she spat and stuck one of her hands under her helmet, pulling it back so that her hand could fit. A little bit of Gregory hoped she wasn't going to go blind or have semi-permanent paralysis. But the part of him wanting to survive overshadowed it.
He ran around to where the other flag was, careful to lose himself in the maze in the direction of the stairs. On the wall, he spotted a plain elevator door. However, it was blocked off. Being similar to the one he went through with little fanfare, he could assume this was the loser's elevator. Why was it blocked off? Whatever. He was going to win this, anyway.
The other flag on the floor glowed with blue lights.
He pressed the button beside the flag.
Computer bot announced, "You have captured the flag!"
"00:28" appeared in purple letters at the top of his vision.
A S.T.A.F.F. bot nearby announced in a monotone voice, "Capture the flag!"
Gregory shot it.
Computer bot said, "Time to defend."
Gregory backed up and shot anything that dared get close. For a second, he could've sworn he saw something dark moving, but when he looked back, he only saw barriers.
The timer ran out. "AREA CAPTURED" appeared in green letters on his visor and the computer announced, "You have successfully defended the station! Move on to the next one, Space Cadet!" The "1/3" at the top-left of his screen went up one. Blue turned orange around the flag.
Now he approached the stairs. Hopefully, she learned her lesson in getting too close. Hopefully, he could capture this flag up top!
As he climbed the stairs, the walls became scarce. There were a few walls on the landing and the top was ringed with them. But here, on the slope up glowing with lights, he was vulnerable.
His health went down, and a bullet hole appeared in his vision. Gregory jumped and looked around. Officer Vanessa stood at the bottom of the stairs.
Gregory sprinted up, hissing as he was shot again. One more, and he was going to lose. He would lose and then he'd be trapped with her.
Gregory captured the flag in the center and hid behind one of the walls.
As the clock ticked down, S.T.A.F.F. bots rolled into his vision.
"FLAG LOST"
"AREA CAPTURED!"
"2/3"
Gregory spat and looked at his Fazwatch. Her original flag's area glowed blue again. She stood by it and then ducked behind a wall so he couldn't see her on the camera.
He lowered his watch and ran down onto the main floor. He checked his cameras, but he still couldn't see her. What, did she memorize the camera layout?!
…dummy, she's a security guard.
Well, he had one hit left to go before he lost. He had one more flag before he won.
He did consider checking the other flags, but he only bothered a glance. Clear.
Gregory crouched and slowed down as he neared the last flag. His eyes darted from place to place, shadow to shadow. She didn't poke her head out of wherever she hid. He eyed the flag. If he could just get there and press the button, he could wait, and she would be forced to act.
But what if he got shot?
Gregory gritted his teeth and stalked around the walls. He stopped upon seeing a dark shape. Officer Vanessa stood behind a wall with a square cut out like a window.
The boy shot.
She jumped and turned on him. "There you are!"
Gregory immediately darted out of her line of sight, pressed the button on the flag, and ran back to the safety of the walls. He winced as a beam of red light shot past him way too close.
As the timer ticked down, Officer Vanessa abandoned him for the flag. He landed two shots on her before she shot back and retreated.
"YOU WIN" blazed across his visor in blocky, electric, green letters and yellow stripes with thin stripes missing above and below with green furls on either side.
The computer bot said, "You have defeated the alien army! Good job, Space Cadet! Proceed to the winner's elevator for your reward."
Gregory laughed and ran.
He found the Winner's Elevator with a "Blaster Return" box next to it. So, he didn't get to keep it, oh well. There was probably another he could take.
Officer Vanessa came up from behind. Gregory abandoned his weapon, stuck his tongue out at her, and opened the door.
Once he was inside the elevator, Freddy cheered, "Well done, Superstar! You won the Fazerblaster. Now, go collect your prize from Superstar Lounge."
The next door opened, showing a hallway lit with green lights that he ran through. The blue door at the end opened up to another couple of doors with an empty doorway on his right leading to a small lounge area. The first thing he noticed was an empty pizza box… and some unopened chip bags beside consumed coffee cups ringing the table. He snatched the bag labeled "MEAT BITES XL" with meatballs on the package.
He gathered the other two bags of plain chips and sat down by the empty pizza box to claim his real prize.
All three of the cheap, paltry bags were empty within a minute. As though the snack only made him hungrier, he searched around. A few small, red couches and benches ringed the small room overlooking the arena. A Freddie plush sat on a couch. He snatched the golden Fazerblaster and passed through the Superstar Lounge into the door at the end. He took off his helmet and, with a forlorn look at the visor, set it back down and walked to the exit on the right, next to the entrance hall. He put his security cap back on. Maybe he would meet Officer Vanessa again and get her input on how great the hat looked on him.
The open doorway leading into a neon tunnel, helpfully labeled "EXIT" took him down and through the "NO ENTRY" door he saw in the entrance area. The S.T.A.F.F. bots still roamed, but he didn't see Chica.
Gregory walked into the elevator and immediately pressed the button out.
Officer Vanessa wasn't out on the first floor of the atrium, that Gregory saw or heard. However, he did see a handful of S.T.A.F.F. bots on patrol.
He had a laser blaster and a bowling ticket. With Officer Vanessa outside, it was even more important he found her hiding place. After all, she was probably trapped in the laser arena since she blocked off the other exits.
Chica went crazy for Monty's Mystery Mix, which he would find in the Bowling Alley. Time to go.
Only a few bots patrolled the second and third floors, he found as he climbed the stairs up to the third floor. Though, as he climbed the set of stairs opposite of Roxy Raceway, he looked down at Gator Golf and then at Kid's Cove… and then at the walkway leading further in.
Curious, Gregory backtracked and then walked between the two attractions and through a set of shutters.
The walkway was long and fairly barren with just a few electronic stands and a couple of kiddie rocket rides and advertisements filling the place. He walked through a set of shutters. A handful of S.T.A.F.F. security bots roamed the shiny tile floor of the dining area around the kitchen building. Beyond that, through a door, was the factory itself with a giant cupcake and conveyor belts.
Gregory slipped into the kitchen. Nine inactive kitchen bots stood around. Near the door was a list of random stuff, and then a website for online ordering of cupcakes. That sort of sounded like the online pizza delivery, didn't it? He looked over the list more closely and found plenty of phrases referring to delivery, in-factory baking, personalized ingredients, and controlling the bots. On the right wall was a large oven set on the counter itself with a cupcake icon. The thing could fit Gregory! Which, it wasn't going to do that. Beside it was a box connected to the front of a vat beside the cupcake machine. "SECRET INGREDIENT" was printed on the box.
Well, he found where he was going to put Monty's Mystery Mix.
He decided to continue his investigation for a little longer. He would need to come back here to add the "Secret ingredient" anyway, but it never hurt to check.
In a small storage room off the main kitchen, he saw a few tossed objects including a grey hoodie.
Gregory picked it up and looked it over. He took off his cap, slipped the hoodie on, and donned the cap again. Gregory, grinning, ran into the bathroom to try to get a look at himself. He needed to drag in a box to stand on it and properly get a more complete look at himself. With the hoodie on the hat tipped down, Gregory was unrecognizable. Maybe the security bots wouldn't notice him?
…nah. They would totally notice him.
At least the hoodie looked cool. And now he could put stuff in his hoodie pocket, which was obviously the best pocket.
Gregory hopped off the box and left Chica's Cupcake Factory.