Chapter 1:

Forewarn


Light and dark, good and evil, right and wrong, everything came in opposing pairs. Similarly, how he viewed himself and the world came in two opposite forces: a light, lively view, and a dark, wretched view. When either mindset took over, his mind morphed into a landscape that he imagined himself residing in, and each landscape would make him feel different. The light made him optimistic and happy while the dark made him self-conscious and gloomy. At this moment. these images of darkness and light were transforming and clashing inside his head, changing the attitude and the mood of what seemed impossible for a mere machine such as him to obtain – enlightenment.

Freddy, who was lying on the blue carpet floor decked with doodles of his face, contemplatively stared at the giant blue star hanging on the ceiling. It was outlined with a hue of neon blue, emitting an aura so calm and peaceful that it made him want to close his eyes and let his consciousness slowly drift away unknowingly. But the tranquillity of the sight itself wasn't the main reason why he was moments from oblivion, but rather the fact that it came from the sound produced by the light – the humming of the neon glow. It was the mysteriously buzzing that acted as a great distraction separating him from the material world, that drove him seconds from reaching nirvana, that hypnotised him to do whatever it commanded…

And it made him wonder: What could science possibly explain to him about this strange and extraordinary feeling that he was experiencing right now?

While he was enjoying the mood, came a knocking on the door.

"Freddy? Are you there? It's time for our weekly maintenance.", said a robotic voice. It was Chica's.

"Hold on, I am coming.", he replied.

Freddy then stood up; he could hear the joints of his exoskeleton whining and creaking inside his shell whenever he tried to rise up from lying on the floor for more than half an hour. He was sure that he wasn't designed to sleep like any human person since he would always do it upright so that he could fit inside a charging station. Having lied down for a long amount of time had made him worried about potential component compromises, yet he could not help but be tempted by the humming melodies of the neon lights. Perhaps, he should stop doing this more often.

The door slid to the right, revealing a white animatronic chicken dressed in pink. She bore a face that seemed to always be in a state of blissful excitement and pure enthusiasm that he thought he might never be able to express no matter how advanced his personality chip was. Only by seeing her everyday was more than enough for him to keep fighting. Not that his life was miserable, it was just that she was the reason why he was still here, why he was still performing and celebrating birthday parties. She was the reason for his existence. Sure, he had others, too: Roxanne and Montgomery. But… she was different.

"Wow, Freddy, you look like you have just had a mood.", remarked the chicken. "Got any tips to share?"

"It is what I would rather keep to myself.", he smiled. "Deepest apology."

"Alright, Mr Fazbear, whatever you say. You are making me curious now, and you know that I won't stop probing until it is fulfilled."

The two gave each other weak chuckles as they made their way to Parts and Services. Upon arriving, they saw the wolf and the gator had already arrived before them, they were exchanging gossip with one side constantly rolling their eyes while the other could only do so much as crossing their arms.

"Looks like they're having a quarrel again.", mused Chica, who went to interrupt their childish wrangle, only to be kicked out shortly after.

"Do you really have to do this every time you see us talking?", huffed Roxy. "We are having a serious discussion right now."

"A discussion, you say?", Monty rephrased amusingly. "And here I thought this was a debate."

"Debate? What debate?", asked the chicken.

"To see who is the better musical instrument player that is.", replied the wolf as she pointed at herself in a prideful way. "Obviously, I'm the best since it requires much more time and dedication to fully master playing a keytar. It's not that easy to remember which key is which while running around on the stage.", then, she directed it at the gator's chest. "On the other hand, your electric bass only has four strings, I don't see how one would have difficulties playing it."

"Actually, you need special types of claws in order to play the bass guitar perfectly.", rebutted the gator as he raised one of his hands up. "Aside from that, if you want to master it, you will need flawless tunning, precise timing in tempo and where you specifically put your fingers. Unlike you, who mindlessly press keynotes to create a song and call it a day, even a kid knows that I am better."

The two animatronic menacingly growled like wild animals. Before they could get themselves in another meaningless fight, Chica once again came to save the day. "Come on, guys. Everyone has their own talent. What's the point in comparing who is better when you all play different instruments? How about using the same one, like my electric guitar? Or maybe a singing competition? That way, we can see who performs better without violating any rules!"

The grey canine and the green lizard diverted their gazes towards the energized white chicken with perplexing eyes.

"Oh, no no no!", exclaimed Roxy. "Monty would have no problem playing the electric guitar since he already knows how to play the bass guitar. How is that even fair?"

"Are you air-headed?", added Monty. "Roxy is going to win before the I can even have a chance! Why? Because I can't sing that is!"

The chicken giggled nervously, she seemed to be stuck in an awkward situation. Seeing his friend being trapped in such a ticklish dilemma, the bear could not help but decide to step in.

"I suggest leaving this matter aside for a while.", he said with the most possible relaxed tone of voice. "We are about to have a weekly maintenance check; I do not think Vanessa is going to be pleased with your attitude."

Upon hearing that, the gator immediately shot him a threatening glare along with an irritated huffed and one full eyeroll. Up until now, for some reason, he remained clueless as to why Monty would always act unfriendly to him most of the time. Of course, attempts were made in the past in order to get along with him. Of course, as expected, he failed, miserably. And of course, he was still clueless. These were the times when he would sit down on a couch and begin doubting his ability to befriend everyone he met. Since he was practically designed to be cheerful and talkative, with a charisma score as high as the sky, surely he would have no problem gaining first impressions, right?

Eh…. Not really, though.

"Ahem. Can we get started already?"

A feminine yet stern voice came from behind, making everyone jump, including him. "O-Officer Vanessa! I… did not notice you standing there.", he turned around, feeling embarrassed.

He looked behind the woman, there was a man standing behind her. The man had the appearance of one who had learned the look of confidence as a survival skill: relatively short, red-brown hair along with a messy bang a full beard, making his face cosy and tactile; a black and red checked shirt with both of its sleeves rolled up to the elbow, revealing arms covered with a considerable amount of hair; dark blue jeans and a pair of brown boots, perfect for those who wanted a hiking trip in the evergreen woods.

"Hello, Mark!", the chicken cheerfully greeted.

"Hi, Chica." the man waved back.

Having known each other for years, it wasn't surprising for any of his friends to see the man as a family member of him. Heck, the man was his first human friend for two years until Vanessa came along and became the new security guard of the Pizzaplex, joining his family shortly after. Two years wasn't short, it was very long, long enough for their bonds to be so tighten that nothing could break or tear it apart. He felt as if he should call the man his "father" due to the incredible age gap, but when he told that to him, the man just laughed it off as a joke. Perhaps, only by equating himself, he could express all the feelings and the sensations freely and wholeheartedly without being pressurized by the "respect the elders" rule.

"Is everyone ready for maintenance checks? I heard that there was a big show tonight. How did it go out?"

"Oh, it was perfect!", he replied. "Everyone loved our performance!"

"Great! Looks like all my hard work has been repaid. Welp, time to see if any of you went too hard and accidentally destroyed any important parts."

After that, everyone went inside Parts and Services. Thanks to the help of auto assistance, a maintenance check usually lasted around fifteen minutes if there wasn't any problem in the programming or malfunctioned parts of the body.

Chica was the first to go inside the protective cylinder, Mark checked her stomach cavity, only to find nothing, which was rather surprising since there would always be a few unfinished pizza splices stuck around the inner part of her shell. Yes, Chica had a fanatic craving for pizzas, for some incomprehensible reasons… Even the man was dumbfounded when he first knew about her gluttonous desires. Attempts were made to reprogram her, only for the man to realize in the end that it wasn't a bug in the programming, but rather the fact that it was actually independently developed through time. He remembered hearing the man murmuring something to Vanessa in private, something about… becoming "deviant".

"I'm surprised that there isn't any food stuck inside you.", remarked the man as he used a tiny flashlight to examine Chica's stomach cavity.

"Well, I had to be fully prepared for the show, so I tried my best to hold back the desires.", said the chicken pridefully.

Next was Monty, there wasn't much to say since all of the gator's parts functioned normally. As a matter of fact, despite having a short temper, Monty had always been the one to be in near-perfect condition whenever he was put on a maintenance check. Because of that, being the animatronic that used to earn the title of "the hardest to fix", Freddy admired him similar to how the children looked up to him. Although, he could have been in near-perfect condition as well if he tried to stop lying on the floor and keep walking around the building to prevent rusting, which was seemingly impossible at the moment due to him being constantly mesmerized by the humming sound of the neon lights.

"Near-perfect condition as usual! Keep up the good work Monty.", said Mark as he dusted his hands after finishing checking.

"Got it, boss.", said the gator

Next was Roxy, once again, there wasn't much to say aside from her messy hair which she had gotten after the show. You could say the wolf was the most active as she had taken most of the important spots where he should be standing during the performance. People didn't seem to notice back then, so then went on cheering her anyways. Honestly, he wouldn't mind if his friends wanted to be the main star, he had already received fame more than one could ever imagine. Besides, how could he not let them achieve their dreams? Shouldn't that be what a leader does – helping and supporting his people so that all could reach their goals?

The man softly stroked the wolf's hair strand, checking if there were anything trapped between them. "Not going to lie, your hair looks perfect. I don't see the reason why I should fix it. It really suits the 80s Glamrock theme of yours."

With a concerned gaze, the wolf stared into the mirror being held by one of her hands while the other wouldn't stop combing her hair, especially the part where there was a single strand poking out. "My hair is everything I have! I can't let my fans see me in this horrible look!"

"Okay, alright, I will fix it. Vanessa, help me clean up this abomination."

When it came to fixing Roxy's hair, professionals were required to carry out such a procedure that held the power to significantly impact the near future. This included the number of children and adults alike visiting the Pizzaplex as well as the company's total income. He knew very little about humans' economy, perhaps nothing at all. Questions were asked in order to be enlightened, but not everyone was specialized in the subject, so he taught himself by reading magazines about the world's economy. It was all fun and games until he accidentally stumbled upon one talking about "non-fungible token", which was when his system decided to stop comprehending the given data in order to prevent him from having potential short circuits.

Roughly ten minutes later and it was his turn for a maintenance check. He stepped into the cylinder and sat on the chair specialized for supporting heavy animatronics like him, who could effortlessly crush a child or even a grown-up were he to accidentally fall upon them. As usual, Mark checked his overall movement to see if there were any rusted bolts that needed replacing. Then, he quickly went through with the programming to scan for bugs and errors in the coding. So far so good, there seemed to be no problem asides from the faint screeches being produced whenever he moved his upper part of the body. The man told him to do exercise more often to smoothen the bolts and reduce rusting before finishing check-ups.

Just before he could stand up and leave the cylinder, his feet felt tickling… and a faint rumble could be heard through his sound perceiver. He directed his gaze at the ceiling light hanging from above – since when there were winds in the Pizzaplex? The sound of a screwdriver falling onto the hardened floor startled everyone, it bounced a few times before rolling in circles and stopped by the gator's feet. He looked at his friends, who were as confused as him, then turned to look at the man and the woman standing inside the cylinder, who were greatly troubled by the sudden tremble of the ground.

Ten seconds later, it stopped. Everyone could only give each other questioning gazes.

"What was that?", Roxy was the first to speak up.

"I… do not know.", it was the only answer he could give.

Freddy stared at Mark again, the man had this face of total disbelief and fear. He had never seen such emotions coming from a person like him before. Vanessa was the same, but her expression was multiplied by a factor of ten: disrupted breaths along with a panicked response to every sudden noise made by fallen objects. Judging from the reaction of the people who knew about the outside world more than him, what had just happened forewarned something ominous and life-threatening.

"Oh my god…", Vanessa was at a loss for words.

He walked to the woman to scan for any injuries. "Are you alright, officer Vanessa?", only to receive a waving hand, indicating that she was not hurt. He then turned to look at Mark again, "Are you alright, too?"

The man didn't answer, instead, strange new words came out of his mouth in loud mumbles. "Earthquake…"

"Pardon?"

"Don't you think…", the woman slowly trailed off.

"I hope not.", responded the man. "Maybe the media will talk about it this next morning."

They went on talking as if he was an invisible figure to them.

"Excuse me but… could you tell me what had just happened?", he might not like interrupting people's conversation, but this was for the sake of safety precautions and perhaps a bit of curiosity as well. "Mark, I heard you muttering something about… 'earthquake'. What is an 'earthquake'?"

The humans exchanged their worried gazes, soon after, the man decided to answer his questions. "What you have just felt, the trembling, that was an earthquake."

"Is it dangerous?", he probed.

"Usually, they are. Lucky for us, this one isn't that dangerous, probably somewhere around three to four on the magnitude scale, so it can only be felt by people in the affected area and doesn't cause much damage.", then, his face darkened. "But… there are chances that these kinds of earthquakes forewarn a bigger and more destructive event. The ones with a magnitude from seven to eight can cause buildings to collapse and death to many. If it happened in a city situated next to the sea, which is where this Pizzaplex is built, chances of a high tidal wave hitting the shore are alarmingly high. You might be lucky to survive an earthquake, but there won't be any second chance when falling into water…"

This was rather… worrying. He didn't know. He didn't know that there would be such disasters capable of singlehandedly demolishing an entire city within a span of under five minutes. Sure, he had been told about hurricanes and thunderstorms and experience their unholy power before. They were like winds, but so much stronger and faster that they could lift off house roofs and fling metal pieces in the air like leaves drifting in the breeze. And the fact that they could blow away a human person… Oh, yeah, it was one of the reasons made by his self-consciousness as to why it was incredibly dangerous for him to step into the outside world.

Mother nature could be wrathful sometimes.

"It can be predicted like weather forecasting, right?", asked Chica nervously. "Humans can predict whether it will be raining or snowing tomorrow, so maybe they can know when an earthquake is going to happen, too?"

"No, even with current modern technology, there hasn't been any effective and reliable method to predict an earthquake. There are actually a few other ways, most notable is that animals have certain behaviours moments before an earthquake strikes. But since you guys are staying in the Mega Pizzaplex, it's basically impossible to know when it will happen unless you are informed from the outside."

"So… it's just going to happen one day, and we have to be ready at any moment?", said Monty.

The man sighed heavily. "I'm afraid so… Don't worry, earthquakes like these rarely occur. If there's anything on the media, I and Vanessa will tell you guys about it next morning."

The animatronics blinked, one looked anxious, one remained optimistic, and one didn't seem to care at all. How daring. Everyone stayed to talk more about natural disasters and what to do in each situation. After that, Mark waved goodbye and returned home, Vanessa continued to her usual patrol around the building while the band went back to their own green room for charging in order to get ready for another week.

During their trip back to the Rockstar Row, Freddy couldn't stop thinking about what had happened back then. While his friends were 'sleeping' in the charging stations, here he was, still lying on the carpet floor, eyes staring at the neon lights above. With his head being surrounded with countless questions to satisfy his own curiosity side, he could only hope that this would be his first and last time experiencing an earthquake. Not all was worth seeking for an answer, he mustn't risk his friends and everyone's lives for the sake of his selfish desires.

After a while, he finally decided to go into his charging station before entering rest mode.


The building had architecture the schools and hospitals could only dream of. The ceiling was domed higher than any cathedral and made of the sturdiest material to keep the upper floor intact. The walkways flowed like tributaries to the main rivers of people, not a sharp angle to be seen. It smelt like heaven in a handbasket and the floor shone like the surface of a lake at sunrise. In the background was hardcore music to vibe along, adding power to the already intense atmosphere that swirled the entire place. In a world so chaotic, it was order. In a world of pollution and desecration, it was clean perfection in bubble wrap.

The building was the same temperature inside no matter what the season was. The light was the same, the scent, the polished floor, the excited and energized faces of the guests. Only the piped music and the fashions changed. People weren't people in here, they had become competitors of an aggressive antagonism. They viewed one another as obstacles, testing who would be the first to lay hands on the precious Photo Pass. The only smiling faces were the ones who sold, their humanity used like a crude fishing line to real the buyers in. It was a friendly enough place if you've got digits on your card, if you could line the pockets of the purveyors...

It was another day at the Mega Pizzaplex, where children and adults of all ages came and leave at an unchanging pace. The air was robust, filled with constant chattering and occasionally terrific screaming could be heard on the other side of the hallway. In that place, one could be anyone, or perhaps no one at all. The people flowed like rivers, never stopping for obstacles but swirling around them. The crowd was a river of people, everyone moving in the same direction. There were only joyful faces as they headed toward Rockstars row to see in person with their biggest animatronic idol, to fill themselves with chock full of adrenaline-pumping happiness. They moved not like pebbles in a jar, but like water molecules flowing smoothly past one another, friends staying together with fingers entwined.

One misstep and you might get lost in the sea of people.

Freddy blinked, he firmly stood in front of the table, where a birthday cake was situated in the middle. The birthday cake was rainbows on rainbows. It was layered rainbow-hued cakes in rainbow-hued buttercream and rainbow sprinkles on top as well as chopped up candy bars and sparklers to light. And of course, chocolate. He raised his left index finger and flipped the top, revealing what seemed to be a tiny tube. Moments later, it ignited vigorously in a span of a second until shrinking down into a calm and stable flame.

Everyone else in the room was staring at him with attentive and thoughtful eyes, especially the children. Some widened their eyes upon seeing his fingers doubled as a lighter, some gaped their mouth so much that they might even dislocate their jaws. Meanwhile, the adults were whispering something to each other, mumbling words that he could not quite grasp their meaning despite not being able to hear what they were saying at all. It was a common sight that he had been observing for years every time he did the lighter thing. Perhaps, not everyone had a chance to witness an animatronic bear throwing a birthday party, let alone the fact that his finger was in fact also a lighter.

Using his fiery finger, the bear carefully hovered them near the tip of each candle until all had been lit. With that being done, the lights were turned off, dim enough to see their feet, faint enough to observe the dancing spirit of the burning bright flames. The ceremony had yet been completed as there was one thing left to do before one could make a wish. And so, everyone sang the "Happy Birthday" song with which he joined along. In singing, he could feel the electrical current making its way through his voice box, creating the voice so robotic and monotonous, yet so soft and charming to those who loved music. It felt strange and euphoric at the same time, as if his system were in a steady elevator. Although the concept of feeling would always be out of his grasp of understanding, being able to sing had already been blissful enough and he could not ask for more.

"Come on, make a wish!", said a boy from across the table.

The girl was surrounded by many figures as her eyes glued at the birthday cake situated in front of her. She turned to look at him with excited eyes, which he could not help but return her an encouraging smile. The girl giggled, she then diverted her attention back to the cake, once again staring at the candles.

The candle gave far less illumination than the meanest of electrical light bulbs, yet it was more than enough to outshine the darkest pitch of black. By the flickering yellow, the room was dark, the shapes of the furniture were discernible, but the colours were so muted that they were almost grey. It reminded him of the mighty fireball of legend, the one that hung so high in the blue sky which he had never seen before, the one so common and normal to every single human being yet so majestic and thought-provoking to an animatronic bear like him. It made him want to reach out and finger to the baby flame, to feel the warmth and half-smile, half-break memories, warm and cold all at once.

In a single inhale, the girl sucked up the air into her mouth before delivering a blow, instantly extinguishing the lit candles as the only thing left of them was their smoky remnant, which soon faded away into nothing. Everyone clapped their hands in joy as the light was turned on.

"Mr Freddy, could you lift me up?", said a little boy whose hands were raised up high.

"I want to be lifted, too!", said another boy as he shoved his body between the crowd.

"Hey, I asked him first!", the girl standing next to him pushed the boy away, claiming the spot.

Wow, children sure were obsessed with being held by him, but right now, he didn't feel like playing anymore. During the past two days, his mind wouldn't stop being in a state of precaution for any sudden earthquakes, which caused him to be distracted whenever children called out to him. Despite being informed that the earthquake which had happened a few days ago didn't cause any serious damage or injured anyone, the fact that the probability of that earthquake acted as a forewarning for a bigger and more destructive disaster had forced him to always be on alert. Chica told him not to push himself too hard when all he could do was wait for instructions and acted out in accordance.

Maybe she was right, he shouldn't drive his system to overwork.

"Alright, children, line up! If you keep fighting over the first spot, then I will not hold anyone."

Upon hearing that, the children immediately started lining up, forming a curve line since the room wasn't big enough for all of them to stand in a straight line. One by one, he held up each child, moving them up and down like airplanes flying in the sky. Some screamed because they were too afraid of heights, while some yelled in pure bliss because they were having too much fun. This made the other children become more excited and eager to be held up by him. Some even stole the other's spots whenever they get distracted or left their place. Who could blame them for their out-of-bound acts when they were about to hang out with the one and only Freddy Fazbear?

One last child and then he would lie down and take a break with the children. But before he could even hold the girl, voices of the other adults could be heard speaking from the tables.

"Wait, everyone, look!"

"The tables… they are shaking!"

"Oh my God. It's happening again!"

Having no time to even react, the ground shifted momentarily before it began trembling, causing him to fall onto the child of whom he was standing in front. Fortunately, he was quicky enough the use his arms to support his giant metallic body else the child would have been crushed by now.

"Everyone, get under the tables!", he turned his head at the crowd as he shouted in desperation and panic.

The children were taken aback upon hearing that, probably due to not hearing him yelling at people before. Nonetheless, they listened to him anyways. Then, he returned his gaze at the girl, who was lying under him, she was moments from bursting into tears.

"Are you alright?", he asked, to which he received a nod as an answer. "Hurry, go to the tables and hide under there with your parents. Do not worry, I will be here protecting you and all your family and friends."

The girl began sobbing. "Promise?"

"You have my word."

The girl gave him a hopeful smile before dashing into her parents' arms while he stayed behind to keep everyone else safe from falling objects. Besides, it's not like he could fit under the tables anyways…

There were screams, primal screams, screams of the mouth and lungs. It was the kind of scream that bypassed the ears to speak right to the heart. It had a raw intensity to it that told of urgency, of desperate need. The scream was pain put into the air; writ large for anyone who cared to help end it. They came from a place of terror, telling of a mind lost in absolute anxiety. Fear and panic overwhelmed the dry and cold air as the only thing he could hear and feel was the frightened voices of the people and the trembling of the ground beneath.

Cups, dishes and decors started falling on the shelves and tables, causing more children to scream in desperation. The intensity was definitely more extreme than the last one, strong enough to knock objects onto the floor full of spoiled food. He made his way to the shelf nearby, using his body to stop it from falling onto the tables where the people were hiding under. He closed his eyes, wishing the dreadful moment to go by and leave behind no significant damage and casualties.

A minute later, it stopped.

It was roughly thirty seconds later until one could dare to move their head out to see the chaotic mess as the aftermath. Some children were still terrified as he could hear their muffled sobs when they hung onto their parents' care.

"Is everybody alright? Is anyone hurt?", he asked.

"We are okay.", said one of the adults.

He let out a relieving sigh and gave them an approving nod. "That is great news…"

"Okay, everyone, let's get out of here. Watch your steps for any holes on the floor or leaked wires.", said another adult as they guided everybody else to move out of the room, with him being the last one to leave.

It was then he realized something… his friends. What happened to them? Would they be okay? He wasn't sure, but he could only hope so. They were told what to do in a situation such as this, so if he could do it, then they might be able to do it as well. Hopefully, the other parts of the Pizzaplex weren't as badly damaged as this place.

Thus, he set out to look for his friends.


"We live in a dangerous world, and world we live in is surrounded by the dangerous space."


A/N:

This is currently a one-shot. When I have completed my current project, I will start with this one.