Chapter Sixteen
Fixed and Broken
Freddy was very quick to get to them. He expressed some shock upon seeing Monty, but after Gregory pointed up at the catwalk, he nodded in understanding and picked Monty up by the shoulders. The gator's head lolled back and rested against Freddy's forearm. Gregory forged ahead, diligently holding Monty's purple star-shaped glasses and one arm.
The protective cylinder in Parts and Services opened. Monty did wake up, but by that point, he'd been dragged into the protective cylinder and the computer shut him off again. Freddy backed off immediately. Gregory ran around to the computer stationed outside and pressed a button to turn it on.
"Welcome to Parts and Service. Please select your desired procedure," declared the bot. A list of upgrades showed, but Gregory wasn't quite sure he wanted to upgrade Monty. Gregory pressed the down arrow and it flipped to the next screen. The computer announced, "Preparing for repair procedure." A pause. "You may now enter the protective cylinder."
Gregory forged into the cylinder he'd previously used to help fix Freddy. Something else was done to him that Gregory had not been around to see, but the bot told him what needed to be done before, right?
The robot said, "It seems that Monty is under the weather. We can fix that later. For right now, we can focus on the arm. To access the endoskeleton, we must first open Monty's arm casing. Please remove the arm casing."
The boy looked him over and tried to pry his fingers beneath the warped plate. The metal wouldn't budge.
"Oh no," the robotic voice continued with little emotion. "It looks like Monty's shell is too damaged to open. Let's try again."
Gregory took a step back as one of the robotic arms swooped down and cut open the latches with a laser. Another arm picked up the broken plate and set it down.
"It is time to disconnect the broken endoskeleton. Disconnect the colored cables to remove the old endoskeleton pieces. It is important that you match the pattern correctly."
The boy moved around to see the broken parts of Monty's endoskeleton more easily. Beams and wires crossed his vision. However, in the elbow, he saw some warped or broken metal. A few wires connected them to the rest of the animatronic. A few buttons near the wires flashed their appropriate colors. Nervous but committed, Gregory poked the buttons in the order commanded of him. Individual wires–some broken, but most intact–popped out. The buttons darkened once pressed, losing their color. Eventually, once all the wires had been taken out, the bot congratulated him, and a laser arm came down and removed the broken joint. The arm set down a piece of metal resembling the joint and welded it into place.
"With the new joint inserted, please reconnect the colored wires."
The dark buttons flashed with color and glowed again once pressed. A few of the wires were still broken, but as he had no idea what to do with them, he left them alone.
"Great job. Now close the casing."
Gregory looked up, confused. What ca–oh! He stepped back as a robotic arm picked up the new casing from the floor and stuck it into place, just narrowly missing Gregory's fingers as it did so. Another arm came down with a pad on it. Four colored buttons popped out of this one in a diamond pattern.
"Good job. Now use the testing console to run diagnostics and complete the procedure."
The buttons flashed in a repeated order, starting with one and then two and continuing until a pattern of five flashed. Each button caused Monty to twitch a specific finger.
"Testing phase complete. There is no need to fix the other arm as the auto bot did it for you. Scanning for irregularities."
…
"Scanning complete. It seems Monty's basic security protocols have been tampered with. A report to the main office has been filed. For liability reasons, Monty will now be disconnected from the main network until further notice. Activating safety protocols. Rebooting in safe mode."
The cylinder opened behind Gregory. The boy retreated and confirmed with the computer that the repair was done. Although Monty didn't look fixed–parts of his shell were still missing–he was probably able to move around again.
The robotic alligator growled as he got up and pushed himself outside. He couldn't punch through the protective cylinder, but he ducked under it to get out faster. He pushed his jaw back into place as he went. His umber eyes turned on Gregory and narrowed. "Hey, kid…" He took a step forward so he was in front of Gregory and bent down so, though he was still above Gregory, it was easier for the boy to look him straight in those big, glossy, robotic eyes.
Please be better, please be better, please be better! Gregory gave him a nervous smile and held out his cracked and dented glasses.
Monty put on his glasses and then back at Gregory. "You fixed me. Thank you, little guy!"
Gregory's smile widened as hope fluttered in his chest. "Yep! I fixed you!"
Monty grunted and, with a long look at his arms and testing movements, stood up straight. He ran his left hand over his head, fingers skirting over his messed-up mohawk. "You were the security threat, huh?"
Gregory nodded. "Yeah."
"You're just a kid."
"I'm a kid, yeah."
"Well, uh… thanks for… not taking my claws, I guess." Monty still didn't look at him. "Freddy. You know this kid?"
"Monty! Yes, I do," Freddy announced. "I am glad to see you are better."
Gregory couldn't help but ask, "So, uh… why were you after me?"
"She told me to," Monty stated simply, now returning Gregory's gaze. "She, uh… she told us to. Course we list'ned to her."
"The security guard?" Gregory asked.
Monty grumbled something to himself. He finally said, "I don't know, little guy."
The boy asked, "So, does that mean you're not after me, anymore?"
"Uh, don't think so. I feel like keepin' my legs. If you need me, I'm going to be lookin' around for whoever she is. You have a Fazwatch? Good. You or Freddy can contact me there, a'ight? If somethin' needs smashin'…" He hit his fist into his open palm. "I'll be happy to help."
"Okay! Thanks! Um, we saw Vanny's hide-out above Fazerblast," Gregory said.
"Above Fazerblast?" Monty echoed. "Hmm… I could look there. Good luck, little guy, Freddy." His neck squeaked as he nodded and gave them a short wave of his hand.
After a short goodbye from Gregory and Freddy, Monty ran up the stairs and left through Roxy's elevator.
Gregory said, "Okay. We freed Chica, Roxy, and Monty. We need to get Sun in here. But I bet he's in the Daycare and he can't come out. So, we'll just need to find Vanny instead."
Freddy stated, "Gregory, do not seek a fight."
"I'm not seeking a fight," Gregory puffed. "I'm ending a fight. She's going to hunt me down no matter what! Don't you see? We need to find her first!"
"Gregory, I will aid you in finding her. But you must promise me something first."
"Oh?" Gregory prompted. He could find Vanny on his own. Probably.
"Do not choose revenge. If you can, stop her but not out of revenge or anger. Do you promise me this?"
Gregory sighed through his teeth. "Yeah. Fine. I just need to stop her from hunting me down or killing the other kids."
Freddy hummed. "That's good to hear! Now, what are your thoughts?"
Gregory supposed they could look for Vanny's evil lair. But where would they start? He looked up at the bear. "Freddy? What do you think about Vanny's lair?"
Freddy stated, "It has to be in Fazerblast. Chica is going to look there. Do you want to join her?"
"Sorta, but not really," Gregory said. "It might be there, but there's an entire mall here! There have to be places we haven't looked."
Freddy nodded. "That is true. However, Fazerblast is the only place with her mark in it."
"Then that's where we're going," Gregory declared. "We'll find her hide-out in Fazerblast and then end this."
"We will find a way to protect you, Gregory, and stop her."
Gregory smiled.
The walk from Parts and Services to Fazerblast was not very long. However, S.T.A.F.F. still patrolled the atrium and the entrance to the arena.
"Climb into my stomach hatch. They will not detect you while we are together," Freddy invited.
Gregory obeyed. A feeling of safety crept up on him. Locked up in the tight space, he knew he was safe with Freddy.
Freddy hesitated for the slightest second at the threshold of the arena but kept moving. "We are not playing. You are not cheating," Freddy rumbled.
Gregory, wary of Freddy's power, stopped him and climbed out. "Is Chica here?"
"I do not know," Freddy admitted as they passed through the orange hall. "We will find out when we get there. But she must be there."
They paused only to go into the "elevator" that turned on the arena. Gregory winced as they walked inside. Yeah, no. They weren't sneaking up on anyone.
Stupid, clever rabbit.
Gregory ran through the maze, Freddy at his heels, and up the ramp to the middle landing. Gregory stopped halfway up the ramp to the flag. A few S.T.A.F.F. bots without alien hats rolled out of the glowing maze up top. Their eyes glowed red and focused on Gregory.
Freddy got around Gregory so that he was between them, fists up and one foot back.
Gregory looked around the maze, but he couldn't see even a single pink-tipped feather! Where was Chica?! Wasn't she supposed to be here? Wasn't she… oh no. Did… Did Vanny know Chica was his friend? Did Vanny hack her again? He bristled upon hearing more bots and darted away.
Freddy looked up, tipping his head back to quite the degree to look up into Vanny's hideout. There the rabbit stood, a plain remote with one large, Freddy-head-shaped button in her hand.
She announced in a sweet voice pitched with glee, "Neutralize Freddy."
The bots' shining eyes raised to Freddy.
Gregory heard a horrible thud!
The bots that tried to creep up on Gregory from behind shoved Freddy off the landing. Gregory couldn't see his bear friend through the maze. He heard Freddy's call, cut off too quickly for Gregory to discern any words.
He ran. Unfortunately, the elevators were locked. He couldn't go back, he wasn't a winner, and, despite feeling like it, he wasn't a loser. However, along the wall, there was a door. Darkness showed around the edges where it was left cracked open. Gregory fled inside.
After a short metal hall, he came upon a room mostly filled with a few metal storage units. He passed those into a lavender hall when suddenly he ran into something tall and hard.
Gregory squealed and jumped back, his Fazerblaster in his hand, and pointed up.
Chica gasped and held up her hands. "Gregory! I didn't see you there! I was just coming back to tell you two. Vanny's lair is up there! Accessible by this door in Fazerblast. Where is Freddy? I think he should confront her. She is very dangerous."
"H-he's out there!" Gregory pointed back. Tears gleamed in his shiny brown eyes. "V-Vanny told the bots–he's not okay. I need to get to Vanny and stop her!"
Chica croaked out a few weird noises before landing on something intelligible. "Is Freddy…?"
"I don't know," he whined.
"Go get Vanny!" Chica ordered and ran past him. The door slammed open.
Gregory ran in the direction Chica had come.
The hallway zig-zagged a few times before opening into a room made of machinery. A S.T.A.F.F. bot with a weirdly painted face made to look like a smile with jagged teeth rolled up to him, its flashlight illuminating its dirty features and the "IN YOUR DREAMS" that was painted on its chest.
Gregory skidded as he nearly ran into the thing.
Before it could lunge at Gregory and betray his presence, it was slammed into the wall of machinery, which bent and crackled. Roxanne grabbed it by the neck in her teeth and yanked it out of the way, pulling at its arms with her mangled hands. "You will not touch my friends!" she shrieked.
As Gregory ran past, he saw a warped, decapitated head on the ground akin to the S.T.A.F.F. bot Roxy now tore into.
Maze walls whose lights were out along with various small machines like the kiddie rockets scattered through the long, dark room. His flashlight dragged over the maze of items, falling on dead ends and loops and finally a large pair of stairs.
"Are you having fun yet~?" Vanny's horrifying coo sang through the cluttered room.
Gregory couldn't see a thing as he ran up the stairs and needed his flashlight. Then, he saw neon lights. He passed through the floor and to the maze, which was barred off both through the actual maze walls and some metal railings.
Chica's anguished wail murdered the whirring of machines. Her voice became very high-pitched.
Gregory winced and cupped a hand over his ear. He looked down as he'd run up the stairs so he could see over the arena. The bots around Chica shivered in place. Those holding anything dropped their items. The ones on the metal walks above fell off and slammed into the floor. Chica turned on the one nearest and pounced. Gregory wanted to warn her of the others he knew were nearby and he wanted to help her. However, he knew he wasn't a match against those bots. Chica had that special voice box. Maybe she could take them down. Maybe Roxy would extend her rampage into the maze itself.
If she couldn't…
Bells.
Gregory, panting, made it to the catwalk above and through the once closed gate. He continued his run through the green and red catwalk with small lights on the floor set up at various intervals. He couldn't see anything but the door ahead. Nothing else mattered. Not Chica's yells, intermingled with Roxy's. Not the S.T.A.F.F. bots. Not the glowing lights of the maze or whirring of machines.
Gregory ran through the open security door to the security office turned nest. He barely cleared the door before a pair of large hands snatched him off the ground and pulled him back. Gregory screamed and struggled and punched and pushed as hard as he could, but nothing would force the Daycare Attendant's fingers open.
"Let me go!" Gregory wailed and turned on him. "Why?! Just let me go! She's going to kill me!"
"I-I–I need to bring you to authority," Sun stated.
Gregory growled and punched his arm. "Fine! Why don't you just turn off the lights and let Moon kill me? At least he's straightforward about hating me!"
Sun flinched.
Gregory stopped struggling. "Vanny probably just killed Freddy and you don't even care, do you? Freddy helped me so much tonight. He-he's my best friend. And you're just gonna let that slide?"
No response.
Gregory glared at the door, struggling fiercely to just not cry. Don't cry. Don't cry. Don't cry.
Gregory looked at his watch on the hand still braced against Sun's. He pulled up his watch and pressed a button. He glared back at Sun. "Let me go."
"I-I can't."
Thump, thump, thump, thump!
"Grraaaa!"
Gregory yelped as he was thrown sideways. Sun immediately clutched Gregory to his chest and twisted so he landed on his back.
Roxy got to her feet and grabbed Gregory. She glared with one eye. Wires and scraps of plastic dribbled from her mouth like the flesh of once-struggling prey. More dents scored her already battered body. Sun kicked and curled up around Gregory despite the boy's struggles.
Roxy spat, "Let him go, jester!" She took him by the neck and dragged him outside.
Sun gasped.
"Let him go or I'm tossing you both over," Roxy growled.
"Y-you'll hurt him!"
Gregor squeaked, "Yeah! I kinda agree with him on that!"
Roxy snorted. "Fine. I won't toss you. One last chance. Let him go."
The boy took a deep breath. "Please, Sun. Please."
Sun slowly unraveled.
As soon as Gregory had the opportunity, he squirmed free. Roxy yanked him out of Sun's grasp and held him under her arm like a football. "Alright. Let's get you out of here!" She rushed down the catwalk and to the stairs.
"Where's Freddy?" Gregory asked.
"Don't know, kid. The bots took him somewhere."
"How about Chica?"
Roxy growled. "They got her."
"What?! Is she–?"
"No, kid. She's not gone, gone. But they messed her up."
Gregory winced as Roxy shouldered through another set of doors. "Where are you taking me?"
"Front of the building," Roxy stated simply. "It's too dangerous for you, now."
"What?" Gregory grimaced inwardly at the frail volume of his voice.
"Come ba… don't come back." Roxy stopped at an elevator. "You're a good kid, got that? We'll go through some repairs and come back. As long as you're here, she won't stop hunting you."
"Then we have to stop her."
Roxy ran through the Fazerblast entrance, which immediately yielded to her, and made a beeline for the stairs to the elevators. "Plan A didn't work, kid! Time for Plan B."
"Roxy! Gregory!"
Roxy faltered at the sound and they both looked left.
Freddy ran from the direction of Roxy Raceway. "There you are!"
Gregory laughed. "Freddy! I-I thought you were hurt!"
Roxy set down Gregory at the top of the stairs. "Big guy! You're okay!"
The boy bounced on his heels. "How'd you get away from Vanny?"
Freddy slowed to a stop before them. "I could not allow her to harm you."
Gregory's heart skipped a beat.
Freddy stared down at him with glowing lavender eyes.
"Roxy!" Gregory yelled and backed away. "Sh-she got him!"
"What?!"
Freddy looked between them. "Gregory, what are you talking about?"
"Vanny got him," Gregory stated firmly. "The bots pushed him off the ledge in Fazerblast and then he vanished. Now he's back here all better and stuff? She did something to him!"
Roxy turned on Freddy. "Is that true?"
Freddy shook his head. "No, there is a misunderstanding. I escaped. I do not want you to be confused."
Gregory narrowed her eyes. "This is her doing. I know it."
Freddy said, "Gregory, we need to get you out of here. Come. I will help you."
Gregory looked at Roxy and then at Freddy.
Gregory ran straight for Roxy Raceway.
Vanny had to be wherever Freddy just came from, right?
Two sets of heavy feet thundered after him.
Gregory glanced back quickly enough to see Freddy catching up and Roxy chasing after him. He took out his camera and took a picture of Freddy.
"I cannot see!" he yelled. Roxy barked and went limp standing up.
Although Freddy recovered first, Roxy tackled him and forced the bear to the ground.
Gregory slipped into the elevator and put away his camera.