The shrieks of a tiny baby erupted throughout the studio, and for broken souls like the Lost Ones, their eternal prison of misery temporarily opened the gates to explore. Not only was the sound of a baby raising flags, but judging by the sounds coming from the child, it almost sounded like the poor thing already feared these walls.
Despite their despondencies, a few Lost members were curious to find out what caused a baby to get involved. Immediately transporting themselves to where the noise was located, they quickly saw Boris drop his axe and retreat inside. When he shut the door behind him, the inquisitive ink people couldn't help but come forward. They then stood right outside the door, prying in on the cries of the child ceasing down.
How did a baby get here? Why was it here? There were so many questions, but the answers were much too complicated for their bleak minds to comprehend. Oblivious to even have the central idea that this baby was the progeny of Bendy, the former employees of Joey Drew Studios had no choice but to believe that these sounds weren't just another deceiving hallucination.
Faith was something they were desperately reaching for, forever wishing to seek back the humanity they've lost, but it seems that they're going to have no choice but to keep on waiting...
The gentle blaze of fire sizzled as it ran its course to incinerate firewood in the chimney inside a 1930's living room. A suited father sat in an armchair, his face concealed behind a large newspaper, while the mother in the home hummed the vocals of the "Alice Angel" theme song from her kitchen; The aroma of fresh homemade pie filling a good majority of the house.
As for Ben, laying on his stomach while playing with cars, this kind of life was everything he dreamed of having. A life where he had a mom and dad, where he was inside an actual house, and where nothing was made of ink. In this reality, Ben had brown hair, his skin was more vibrant, and his eyes were now a soft blue.
It was a beautiful sunny afternoon, and the sun was peeking to get Ben's attention from the window. Gazing up, the boy instantly smiled when a group of young children his age were playing across the street. He didn't know who they were, but seeing them having fun made the boy absolutely cheerful. He was eager to socialize and introduce himself so he could make his first set of friends, however, he knew he had to ask permission.
"Dad?" Ben asked as he jumped to his feet and approached his father, "May I please go play outside? There's other kids out there! Please?"
The man, whose face still remained behind the newspaper, released a soft chuckle. "Of course, son. Just don't stay out too long. Dinner will be ready soon."
Ben tried the best he could to get around the paper to see his face, but the man used his hand to wave him off. "Come on skipper, run along now! Don't keep your friends waiting!"
"Thank you!" Ben grinned, "I won't be long!"
Ben could hear the man beginning to whistle the Bendy song as he headed towards the kitchen, but when he tried to transition from the carpet to the tile floor, the boy found that an invisible barrier was holding him back.
"Huh? What's going on?" Ben asked.
"You're gonna have to go out the front door son." Ben's father specified, "You can't go in there just yet."
Ben was perplexed that he wasn't able to talk to his mother. He could hear her gentle humming, her heels clicking, and the ruckus of dishes under the sound of running water. However, for some unknown reason, the child couldn't see her. Unsure as to why he wasn't able to reach her, Ben knew he had no other choice but to call out for her.
"Mom? Hey, mom? I'm gonna go outside to play with the other kids, is that okay?"
The sound of her uninterrupted humming was the only response she seemed to give back.
"Is that okay mom? Mom? Mom!"
Ben frowned in annoyance when she still ignored him. Could she not hear with this barricade preventing him from entering the kitchen? It would seem so, but unbeknownst to Ben, the answer was one that his mind was seemingly trying its best to not understand.
"A-Alright then, I'll be back before dinner mom, so you don't need to worry about me okay?" Ben stated before turning to set out.
Taking one final look into the kitchen, Ben made his way across the living room towards the entryway of the house. Frowning at the suited man hiding behind the newspaper, Ben approached the door and knelt down to throw his shoes on. Once finished, he hopped back to his feet and proceeded to open the front door, but not before looking back into the living room and kitchen behind him.
"Bye mom! Bye dad! Be back soon!"
No responses.
Ben frowned again before shrugging and walking out, shutting the door behind him.
As Ben continued dreaming, the boy was disrupted awake when ink poured over him. After shouting in alarm, his eyes angrily gazed up at two figures standing before him.
No, not just two. There were fifteen!
"Hey, what'cha do that for!" Ben asked, agitated upon being drenched in ink. His eyes then widened when he remembered what happens when he comes into contact with ink. "Oh no! The Ink Demon! He's gonna find me, he's gonna-"
"Don't be afraid." The Lost male with the bucket stated, "You're safe."
Ben's eyes then glimpsed at the other figures standing behind the ink man, and he couldn't help but notice their nonchalant expressions. From his senses, he could tell that these Lost Ones were different from the ones he interacted with at the Harbor. And if that were the case, then these members must've been ones the boy hadn't met.
Not enjoying the feeling of being soaked, the boy wasted no second to let his body absorb the ink on him; The immediate feeling of hunger ceasing again in his stomach. Ben felt energized again, and all the discomfort he felt was gone.
The Lost One who tossed the ink wasn't expecting for the child to jump up and embrace him. The other members took a step back at the unexpected outcome, and they could only watch with alarm as their coworker whimpered and grimaced in pain as his bones cracked in Ben's hold. The boy didn't seem to notice such enhanced strength until he heard the man choke out a plea.
"Oh, I'm so sorry!" Ben gasped before releasing him. The Lost One immediately regained his composure, and the other members frowned at the boy now grinning sheepishly. "I didn't mean to?"
They seemed to take that as an apology because their gazes softened, and they turned back to the man who regained ahold of himself. "So, it's true! You're the one that belongs to the Ink Demon!"
Ben grinned nervously. "No, of course not! What're you talking about?"
"But you are!" A female Lost One jumped in, "You were the baby we heard crying that night. We thought it was all in our heads, but now we know that you do indeed belong to our almighty lord and savior!"
"He's heard our prayers! Our prayers have been answered! We're free! We're free!" Another Lost One couldn't help but bawl as he collapsed to his knees.
Ben bit his lip uncomfortably as he watched others follow suit in crying with pure joy, clasping their hands together in prayer to thank Bendy. And a few got overly curious about the young boy who was ultimately perfect in their eyes.
"You must return to our lord at once!" The male Lost One addressed as he reached for Ben. "Only then will we be set free! We'll finally be able to go home!"
Ben swallowed nervously as half of the group took immediate interest in him, and that's when he was able to sense their intentions. Knowing that these were former humans, Ben could tell that by their eagerness that they desperately wanted to take his humanity for their freedom. Since they lost theirs, what better way than to get it redeemed by taking it from a child that had it?
After all, they just wanted to be free...
Ben began to retreat back towards a corner, his face filled with terror as his eyes watched the group enclosing around him.
"Please don't be afraid," The main member spoke with his hand out for Ben. "It's time to believe."
"Y-You guys know you don't have to do this? I get you want your life back, but you don't need Bendy to get that! I-I know there's another way!" Ben shuddered as his back pressed against the wall.
"There is no other way." A female spoke sadly, "We've waited for so long. Help never came for us, so now you're our only hope."
"And you think giving me to the Ink Demon is going to save you?!" Ben asked, petrified. Two Lost Ones then managed to grab hold of his arms to keep him from fleeing. "You're wrong! I know there's another way! Hey, let go of me!"
"We must take him to the Harbor," Another male clarified to the main member, "Only there can we begin the sacrifice."
"Huh?! Sacrifice?! Whoa, whoa, guys time out!" Ben yelped as he tried to yank his arms free, laughing nervously upon the immense anxiety coursing through his mind. However, he nearly had a panic attack when he realized that he didn't have something with him.
"No!" Ben gasped, "My heart!"
The Lost Ones ignored the boy and lifted him above their heads, mummering prayers over their gratitude as they began leaving. Ben could only squirm and become frantic as his mind only thought about where his heart could be.
"S-Stop! Put me down! Put me down! Please!"
"Soon we will be free! FREE!" A member shouted in desperation. Soon enough, chants of the word "free" began to escalate repetitively.
And all Ben could do was freeze in speechless horror.
The heart Ben left behind pounded in immense fear. It could feel fear building up upon realizing its danger. It was fully exposed, no longer protected inside its shield, so that meant any impending threats could come and take the full advantage they had.
Though the organ contained traces of a demon's power inside, the heart was still capable of functioning without its owner. A pure heart is a vulnerable one, and any form of corruption will always seek to consume it.
Which is why when the shadow of a woman loomed over the organ, there was nothing more that could be done...
Every form of life in these walls shared one thing in common: seeking humanity. Though they can never return to their former lives, that didn't mean their spirits couldn't be free. And for the former music composer, Sammy Lawrence, he just wanted to be free from this freak body he has no choice but to call his new "normal".
Sammy was unaware of a baby born from an extract of Bendy, but that didn't mean he knew of there being a child around. Believing it to be a kid's soul falling victim to the same circumstances, the songwriter didn't think too much of it other than that. The last thing he wanted was to deal, or even think, about kids. They were annoying, little good-for-nothing burdens that were only good at stripping wealth out of pockets.
There had been a point in time before working at the studio where a life like that seemed plausible. But those days were long behind him – almost forgotten entirely – and all the man cared about was getting back to his normal self.
Desperately seeking for a chance to be human again.
Sammy was finishing chopping up some wooden boards, but not before he jerked his head towards the cries of a child in the distance. Recognizing the voice, Sammy ignored the situation and continued his task, slamming the axe down harder with sheer aggravation.
"Put me down!" Ben yelled.
A Lost One hurried towards Sammy and couldn't help but express the news, and the music composer grew more agitated as he continued chopping.
"We found him, we found him! We're free! Free at la-"
"Fool!" Sammy hissed angrily as he stopped and reached for the man's neck, causing him to choke in alarm. "Don't you understand?! We'll never be free! Our lord has betrayed us! Don't you get that?!"
Sammy then threw the Lost One to the ground and pinned him with his foot. The Lost member trembled and begged for forgiveness for having accidentally angered the songwriter.
"He lied to us! Said we'd be free! But have we been freed?! No! Not one speck of humanity remains for us!"
Ben could hear Sammy's yelling and lifted his head to see that the crazed man was about to kill someone. Gasping under his breath, the boy knew that he needed to do something. He couldn't let another innocent form of life die, so the child knew he had to intervene before it was too late.
"NO!"
Angry, the young boy let his body dissolve into ink in order to slip through the fingers of the Lost Ones. Stunned by the weight of the child suddenly dripping over their heads, the members could only watch in surprise as a form of ink slithered its way quickly towards Sammy and his victim.
As Sammy was about to proceed in killing the man, he was caught off-guard when he noticed a form of ink heading straight towards them. It then leaped off the ground and morphed into a child that greeted him with a fist, sending Sammy a sharp blow to the face and sending him flying back several feet.
Ben could only frown with a sharp nod before focusing back on the Lost One who panicked when the boy tried to touch him.
"P-PLEASE! DON'T HURT ME!"
Despite his heart not being present, Ben could feel it soften with remorse. Placing one of his hands behind the man's back, the young boy didn't hesitate in expressing concern to this broken man.
"I will never hurt you. You have nothing to be afraid of. Not anymore."
The Lost One's eyes shot open upon the unexpected response. This kindness, filled with an invisible light of inexplicable proportions, was something that the man thought he'd never feel again.
And without saying a word, the man expressed his thanks by embracing the child. Stunned, the young boy hadn't expected this reaction and froze. Besides Tom, nobody has ever hugged him in his life, so for someone else to express such gratitude felt so good!
The entire village then expressed their appreciation by clapping and whistling with joy. Ben grinned appreciatively at them before the man began sobbing in his arms. "Thank you! Thank you so much!"
Ben chuckled before giving him a pat on the back, "No problem."
Sammy regained consciousness and groaned before eyeing the surrounding crowd. He then gaped in awe seeing joy being expressed by the miserable village folk.
Ben could only grin nervously when he was again smothered by countless inky forms.
"You're a great kid!"
"How'd you do that?!"
"Why, if he isn't just the cutest little inkling ever!"
"What's your name bud?"
Ben chuckled as he waved off one of the hands that ruffled his hair.
"Ben," he said proudly, gazing up at each of their faces, "My name's Ben."