Dib and Gaz bent over the printed out display of the Bloaty's restaurant, the pizzeria's schematics laid out for both of them to see as Dib put a finger down, giving Gaz a firm look. "Right there is where they keep coming in. The office is where you're safest but you need to keep Minimoose from getting in and blowing the salt away. So in order to do that, we'll have to find a way to incapacitate him and keep him away from you."
"How are we going to do that?" Gaz asked. "I can't bring a shotgun in. I can't shoot up the place, I'd be fired."
"What you need to do is get a taser. Bring this in." Dib said, handing a small, black-painted taser to her. "You're good with guns. It's the same basic principle, and it'll send an electrical shock through him. You'll be able to keep him away from you, it's good for at least five powerful shocks, I've upped the wattage and the volume of how it courses through the taser to make sure it can pierce even him." Her now-cycloptic brother informed her with a firm nod, Gaz pocketing the taser. "That'll keep him back for a time and the runes and salt will keep the others back."
"The vent. We need to trap the vent. I didn't figure out he was in there until he was practically right up in my face." Gaz insisted as she pointed at the vents on the schematics of Bloaty's Pizza Hog, Dib nodding in agreement.
"Your gummies might not be able to handle the bigger targets like the Hunter, but I'll wager they can keep that little Bloaty bastard at bay." Dib reasoned, wagging a finger in the air. "You can finally put them to use properly and worry a bit less about them getting tore apart in just a few minutes."
"And then, of course, there's Bloaty." Gaz said. "I'm going to get all the knives I can and cut him open-no, no, it has to be from further away." She mumbled. "...wires. Invisible wires." She put her finger down on one point after another. "We lure him into a trap here, and then we activate the wires. They'll carve him up like a Christmas turkey."
"It'll take a while for us to get those set up." Dib remarked, scratching his head. "You only have about two hours before your shift starts, and I've no idea if those possessed animatronics won't take notice."
Gaz looked thoughtfully at the schematics on the table as the clock in the kitchen idly tick-tocked, tick-tocked, and then she glanced up at its face, an idea coming to her. "If we could trick these idiots into thinking I'm still in the office, they'll keep coming around to it, and someone else could set up the wires."
"Well, then." Dib said with a calm nod. "I think we know what we have to do."
"Yep. I'll go get you the wig." Gaz said, patting him on the shoulder and exiting the room, Dib's mouth slightly falling open.
"Wait, ME? What about Skoodge or you just staying in-ohhhh." He hung his head and sighed, shaking it back and forth as he looked over at Skoodge, who was looking sadly at a nearby bowl full of mini-chocolates. "You don't want any? Or want to say anything?"
"I'm sorry, I don't...I mean I can't really eat that." Skoodge sighed. "I'm unable to really do much. I used to, but...my options are limited."
"Thanks for telling us Bloaty's weakness, though." Dib admitted, holding out a hand for Skoodge to shake, Skoodge quietly taking it, Dib shuddering. Ugh, he felt like he'd been in a freezer for the past week. "A-A-Appreciate it."
"I'm just sorry I couldn't help Zim and GIR and Minimoose. I'm glad I could help you, though. I like being helpful." Skoodge admitted quietly. "I always have. It made me...happy...knowing someone appreciated what I did. No matter who it was."
"I don't suppose there's anything else about the animatronics you picked up on?" Dib wanted to know as Skoodge turned away and looked out the window.
"They love going after children because Bloaty hates them. I know that."
Dib rubbed his chin in a thoughtful fashion. "And Gaz said the ghost children want to help out. Maybe they can draw the animatronics away..." He mused.
"I'm surprised they were able to talk to her. Usually a ghost can only appear to those they had a connection towards. Are all of them children from Gaz and your's school?" Skoodge inquired, raising a nonexistent eyebrow up as Dib nodded.
"Yes, it looks like. Nick, Torque, Louie, I looked up all of them. They're all kids who went missing. I just don't know why the cops never figured out the commonality was Bloaty's Pizza Hog!" Dib muttered as he "harumphed" and rolled his eyes. "I mean, it was the last place they were all seen and NONE of the cops even saw fit to maybe do a sweep of the premises, dust for prints, check for blood splatter? None of that? Their families didn't bring it up? Nobody put two and two together?!"
"It could simply be that Bloaty won't let them come." Skoodge remarked softly, shaking his head back and forth. "Have you ever seen a cop within a mile of Bloaty's? Sometimes a ghost's mere presence can ward certain types of people away."
"Do you know all that because you had to contend with ghosts?"
"Well, I did put a virus into the water of the Slaughtering Rat People and it killed a distressing amount of them but...no, I haven't much experience with ghosts beyond pretending to be bust them. I, uh...apologize for that, too." Skoodge admitted to Dib.
"Water under the bridge." Dib insisted with a smile.
...
...
...
...the next night, "Gaz" was in the office, Dib prettied up, wearing sunglasses, a jacket and contacts beneath said sunglasses along with gloves and boots to try and look "Terminator Tough" as the wig slightly itched at his scalp. He kept the taser ready, hearing a sound he recognized all-too-well, that familiar faint whirring that told him Minimoose was making his way towards the door. Though the air was hot and humid, too sultry for Dib's taste because the air conditioning had broken down that night, Dib kept his cool. He calmly, ever-so-slightly turned his head to look at "Lil Bloaty" as it hovered just beyond the doorway, looking at the erected salt line.
"Oooh, what do we have here?" It asked. "Another salt line? Can't have that. Not when I wanna catch you and pop your eyeballs out so the Hunter can wear them like earrings. Though he'd really like to see how your organs look on the outside."
Lil' Bloaty bounced back and forth. "Then Bloaty'll take your bones and crush them up and we'll sprinkle them over the next pizza we serve! We always thought you and your brother were delicious!"
"Ew." "Gaz" muttered. "Degenerate pig. Literally."
"Just you wait, you'll be singing a different tune once I get rid of all this salt. Okay, truth be told, you won't be doing any singing, we'll burn your tongue out so you can't scream. Bloaty got soooo tired of them screaming for their mommies and daddies. As you might put it, "What WHINERS"-"
Dib had had enough and fired off the taser he whipped out from his jacket. It struck Minimoose's possessed form squarely in the forehead and his body jerked about like a rag doll being given a thrashing by a professional wrestler. He sizzled and sparkled, letting out an almost childlike cry before reeling back, eyes turned to dark slits.
"Clever girl." It whispered, slowly hovering away into the darkness as "Gaz" sighed and waited, looking over the monitors.
He cringed. Another murder was playing out. And this time, it was Keef's horrific demise playing out before the cameras in another foul mockery. Keef had a torn shirt, tears and snot intermingled on his face as he tried to wipe his nose on his arm, skittering across the floor of the arcade, trying to stay hidden. "I want my mommy!" He whimpered out, a voice ringing out through the air.
"Oh, Keef, why are you so afraid?" Zim's voice rang out, Keef's eyes widening.
"Z-Zim? Zim, is that you?" He asked. "You gotta help me, this crazy floating pig is trying to hurt me!" He called out, glancing left and right, the Hunter slinking up behind the arcade machine that Keef was hiding behind. Dib wished he could individually turn the screens off, wished he could block out what he knew was going to happen. He just covered his eyes, trying to ignore the unmistakable sound of Keef's body being forced onto the controls of the Vampire Piggy Hunter arcade edition, the joysticks going through his body and-
Thankfully the disgusting popping noises ended quickly. But unfortunately it was now replaced with the unmistakable sound of the Hunter's laughter as the disguised Dib turned around, seeing the Hunter animatronic standing there.
"Ahhh, yes. My finest work." The Hunter remarked, twirling his finger in the air. "You should have heard the way his brain began plopping out-oh! Wait! You did." The Hunter mused, throwing his head back and laughing insanely as Dib gripped the desk, wanting to drive the damn thing through the animatronic's head and crush it like a grape. But he had to keep him distracted.
"Where's your friends, ZIM? I mean I know you didn't have any in real life." He said in a surprisingly good imitation of Gaz's voice. "Being dead sure made you get popular!"
"Shut your mouth, you stupid little troll-" The Hunter began to hiss, trying to move forward only to be stopped by the salt circle, smoke rising off his form as he glowered darkly at the disguised Dib. "...you can't stay in there forever." He remarked.
"Get out of here." Dib snapped, looking away, arms folded over his chest.
"I will return, Little Gaz." Zim's voice mockingly intoned as the Hunter stepped back into the hallway, Dib pulling out his phone, typing into it.
"HOW FAR ALONG?"
As it were, Gaz was, luckily,left to her devices right now. The other anuimatronics all knew she was meant to be in the office and this meant being in rooms very close by. So she was free to install the spring-loaded wires on either side of the walls, and was now screwing in the ones on the left walls. She'd done the ones on the ceiling and the floor, hiding them as best she could so nobody would be able to see them, now it was time for the ones easiest to reach.
She saw she had a text, thankful her phone was still set to vibrate, and typed back "Now on walls, will go as fast as can. Try to bring them all to you and stall, maybe?"
Dib cringed as he read the text, looking at the camera that faced the main dining area. But if all of them were there, it would mean none of them were anywhere near he still had four taser rounds and the runes, so he whistled sharply. "Hey! I'm getting boooored!" He said. "I could be playing your crappy new DRM-filled video game right now, Hunter!" He called out in his imitation of Gaz's voice, Dib soon rewarded by that familiar, awful sound that signified Bloaty's fast approach.
THRAHK THRAHK THRAHK.
"Heya, kids! How's it going? Where's our special guest?"
"She won't come out of the office and she's got a taser with her to keep me from blowin' the salt away. And those gummies in the vent are spoilin' the fun!"
"She's playin' mean."
"Well, that isn't nice, is it, Bloaty?"
"If you don't play nice, you deserve to be punished." Bloaty muttered darkly. "Bloaty Boy, if you could?"
BB giggled and Bloaty's horrific visage appeared from the shadows as he began to chuckle darkly, Dib trying not to look back at him as he glanced slightly over his shoulder. "What's so funny?" He asked in that same imitation of Gaz.
"HehehehHEHEHEHEHEHE..."
And then it happened. The lights flickered on and off, Bloaty's face mockingly grinning back at the disguised Dib before it all shut down, Dib turning pale.
HEEHEEHEEHEEHAHAHAHAHAHAHA..."
Dib gripped the desk slightly, holding the taser up along with the flashlight, flashing it. Bloaty was gone. He ripped the sunglasses off, hiding behind the desk, panting slightly as he flashed the flashlight once again.
Now the Hunter was there, Minimoose's stolen form floating nearby, blowing at the salt. Dib held his taser up, trying to take aim, but when he fired it off, it missed, hitting the Hunter. It made him twitch slightly, a growl rising up...but then he smirked.
"You're not feeling pressure now, are you? No, you haven't experienced true pressure." It said calmly.
Dib put the flashlight on the desk, trying to re-aim the taser, Minimoose and the Hunter ducking back inside the dark expanse beyond the flashlight's reach as thumping came from the vent, Dib realizing just how serious this was, BB's laughter mockingly echoing through the vent grating. Without the lamp being capable of being turned on, this meant that he couldn't activate the runes, and the animatronics could get inside of the office and get to him. He quickly picked up his cell phone and began texting.
"GET POWER BACK ON."
Gaz, hiding in the women's bathroom, looked the text over. She'd figured out pretty quickly what was going on, and texted "OK" right back before slinking towards the exit, stopping when she heard the familiar sound of Bloaty coming close. She stuck herself up against the wall, holding in her breath, trying to ignore the horrific smell. It was like a mixture of rotten pizza that had been thrown out and cold iron, the stench assaulted your nostrils as she tried not to gag. Bloaty's voice wafted out through the blackness that engulfed the entire pizzeria as she grit her teeth slightly.
"Come and play, kids! Aren't you ready for Bloaty? I can't wait to PLAAAAAAAAAAAAY."
"Yeah, I'll bet." Gaz thought inwardly as she waited and waited before slowly slinking out of the bathroom, taking sight of a familiar sight-no way. That damn BB had what was very clearly the connector adapter to a power cable in his hand. She growled, diving on him and tackling him.
"You cut the power, huh!?" She hissed at him, kicking him into the nearby wall.
"Hey, no fair!"
"You're gonna talk about "no fair" after all you did? Hypocrite." Gaz snorted, pocketing the adapter just as she saw heard a horrible scraping sound and turned, seeing the sparks dancing through the darkness that came from the unmistakable sight of the Hunter scraping his sword along the wall.
"You can't escape from me, little Gaz." He whispered. "We've cut the power. Your attempt to escape is nothing but a pitiful faaaaailuuuure..."
Gaz took off running, the Hunter cackling madly, Gaz tearing down the hall, the hot, harsh air of the diner slamming into her lungs as Zim's borrowed voice mockingly rang through the air. The closet where the power was plugged into. Where was it? Why couldn't the power have been accessible from the office, where it made sense? Why so far in the back you could barely reach it?
It was then that she saw one of the ghostly children appear, his body shuddering, Gaz realizing he was gripping his head. "Please! Please, run!" He whimpered, Gaz realizing it was Nicholas's voice she was now hearing. "He's pushing us so hard to hunt you down and hurt you! We...we can't fight him anymore! RUN!" He screeched out, his mouth beginning to stretch, the blank repositories that were his eyes brimming over with blood that drizzled to the ground. "Run, Gaz! RUN!"