June 23, 2016
The clock showed only 10 hours and 30 minutes, and William had already woken up. To his own surprise, not on the bed at all. The man raised his head and found that he had been sleeping in the workshop all this time, and sitting with his head on his desk. And apparently, someone from the family had already come to him, since Afton was covered with a pink blanket. William couldn't help but chuckle. There was a piece of paper lying next to it, almost completely covered with writing. There he wrote the plan of his speech, because today an important event will take place in Henry's restaurant, and he will be the culprit of this celebration. Without thinking twice, William ran his eyes over what he had written and folded the piece of paper and put it in his pocket.
- The main thing is to speak from the heart. - the man remembered his friend's words and whispered them aloud.
Such a simple rule. However, it could only seem so, because William did not like the audience. He hated it when hundreds of eyes were watching him, noticing any mistake, then starting a stupid criticism. He loved his business, his work, his modest workshop. He wanted to make a breakthrough that would allow humanity to take another step forward. And he could evaluate the result himself, finding even the smallest mistakes. However, he did not want a crowd of paparazzi waiting for him at the exit of the house. So that a white limousine would take him to a luxurious palace, which everyone would call "the workshop". And he didn't want everyone to groan and faint from the sight of every detail he attached, and then write a bunch of articles about it. William was a modest man for whom such a performance was not welcome. And yet, he felt responsible to Henry. He treated this with understanding.
- Sooner or later someone would have found out about it. - William reassured himself. - After all, what is the point of an invention if no one sees it? Henry wouldn't take it all to himself... He would have mentioned my name.
In any case, these thoughts were unnecessary now. Only what has to happen will happen. And with these thoughts, the man decided that it was time to go. William came out of the basement and slammed it behind him. Elizabeth, Chris and Naomi were playing in the living room, Michael was texting with Nina, and Clara was busy in the kitchen. It was pointless to talk to any of them, because he explained the whole situation to them yesterday. It was also important that the man also gave Elizabeth that plush Spring Bonnie. He was happy when he saw that spark of joy in her eyes. It seemed that the others were a little offended, but William promised that he would also buy them something later. In any case, today was not up to it. The man left the house with thoughts about how he would present his project. He even had to come up with a name for it. And William walked slowly towards his car, continuing to ponder his speech.
11 hours 45 minutes
Henry watched the work of his people, and from time to time corrected it. By twelve, everything should be ready for the performance, so that he could have time to talk to William. Now a small pedestal has been brought to the stage, on which, wrapped in a crimson cloth, the mechanism should stand. A microphone was located in the center, and there were speakers on the sides to amplify the sound. There weren't that many decorations. Henry wasn't going to make a pretentious performance out of this exhibition. He knew William wouldn't approve.
- Is William here yet? - Scott asked Henry as he approached.
- Not yet. - the blond man replied.
The hall was already full. Usually, it was packed with children and their parents. This time, very respected people who were looking forward to the exhibition took their places. Henry didn't mention to William that he was just as scared. Once he introduced the first version of animatronics technology in the same way. And fortunately, people accepted it with joy and surprise. The man did not know if they would be able to accept his friend's invention.
The layout was successfully placed, and by that time the clock was already showing 11 hours and 48 minutes, and he was afraid that William might be late. To the last, Henry hoped that this was not the case, and his hopes were justified when the door finally opened.
- Henry? Scott? - the voice drowned out the noise of the crowd.
- We're here! - Henry waved his hand.
William, pushing through the crowd, still got to him.
- Are we going to discuss everything right here? - he glanced cautiously into the hall.
- No, let's go to the dressing room. - Henry said.
11 hours 49 minutes
William immediately sat down at the nearest chair and took out a white handkerchief from his pocket, with which he wiped the sweat from his forehead.
- Can you give me some more good advice? - the man chuckled nervously.
Henry and Scott had never seen their friend so scared.
11 hours 56 minutes
All this time, Henry and Scott tried to calm William down by giving him some advice and helping him with his speech. They were absolutely confident in their comrade, and yet, this strange feeling of excitement did not let the three of them go.
- Well, one last piece of advice... Stop being so nervous! - Henry laughed, hoping to amuse his friend. - It's going to be all right, William. I'm sure!
- Don't worry so much, my friend! Everything will be the best! - Scott added, trying to cheer up his friend.
- Okay. Then I think it's time... - the man took a deep breath and it was clear that he was filled with determination.
- Then wait here. I will try to present you as colorfully as possible! - Henry replied and left the dressing room, followed by Scott.
12 hours
Emily came on stage. He was holding several sheets of paper in his hands, ready to make an introductory speech.
- Please pay attention, dear guests! - Henry began to speak.
The noise in the hall subsided, and the attention of the crowd turned to him. He knew that these glances would soon be boring into William, but after clearing his throat, he dismissed these thoughts.
- Not so long ago, I opened this wonderful restaurant, and presented the world's first intelligent robot capable of perceiving the environment and responding to its factors. For six months now, my wonderful invention can delight thousands of children and their parents, attracting tourists from all over the world!
Having changed the sheets in his hands, he paused only for a second.
- Today, I want to introduce to you a person who has not gained fame, and at the same time has done no less work than I have. We worked together with him and are working to this day to continue improving the technology of animatronics. What he has shown me cannot fail to cause you nothing but stupefaction. Do you want to know what exactly? Well, then meet — William Afton!
- Well, good luck to you! - Scott said to William and pushed him forward.
The audience began to clap relentlessly. Finally, someone will appear on the stage who should make a considerable impression on them. William came on stage, with a smile on his face. A business suit, well-combed hair with a ponytail and a carefully shaved face. William looked no less official and rich man than the audience of this exhibition. Henry should have been heading back to the dressing room by now, so at the end he nodded to the man, thus giving a sign of support. William looked around the hall.
- Dear guests... I certainly thank you for taking the time today to come and see the result of my long, hard work...
The crowd began to whisper, and William glanced towards the dressing room, where his friends were watching the performance. Henry nodded, and William continued.
- I don't want to brag... - he raised his tone. - However, I had to work in a dusty, damp workshop for six months to achieve such a result. I have been thinking for a long time how exactly to present this invention to you. However, then I decided that it was pointless to pull the intrigue and...
Suddenly, the door opened, and William almost choked with surprise. His whole family came into the hall. Clara even managed to drag Elizabeth, Naomi and Chris. They were all smiling, Michael even waved to his father. Only now the man noticed that there were empty chairs among the crowd, apparently reserved by his relatives. The crowd started whispering again. William lost his way, and was on the verge of panic. It was a big surprise for him, because Clara had not said that they would come. He heard Scott whisper.
- Go on.
And William continued.
- Like I said... - the crowd fell silent again. - I'm not going to pull the intrigue and I'll tell everything as it is, right away. All you need to know is that this, from my point of view, can move humanity one step further. Perhaps if the whole country finds out about this, and everyone starts inheriting this technology, we will be one step closer to the future!
The pause that followed was planned.
- Ladies and gentlemen... I present to your attention Funtime Freddy!
12 hours and 5 minutes
Two men were sitting near the window in the bushes and watching everything that was happening in the building.
- It seems that the exhibition has already begun... - Alex was the first to speak for a long time of silence while they were watching.
- Well, the eye is a diamond, and which one of them should we bang? - Richard asked.
- Naturally the one who performs! - Alex replied.
- How are we going to grab him when he comes out? - Richard asked again.
- We'll figure something out... Quiet! - Alex suddenly said.
Alex yanked Richard's arm with all his might, and together they collapsed behind the trash cans.
- What!? - Richard was at a loss.
Alex silently pointed out to him to hide as quickly as possible. Richard decided to listen to him, and crawled behind the second tank. A few seconds later, a group of people passed by the alley. Among them, Alex noticed three children, a woman in her thirties and a teenager.
- Damn, I noticed them at the last moment... - Alex whispered.
- Alex, you're an idiot! - Richard hissed. - Do we really need to shy away at every passer-by?
- Of course you need to! We may arouse suspicion.
- Suspicion of what!?
- Do you think ordinary passers-by, instead of going in or passing by, will stand and stare at the windows? At least we will be considered strange, and this is an extra attention. - the blond explained.
- Okay, you got it... - Richard decided not to continue the argument and crawled out of his hiding place.
- Come on, we still need to think of something to attract his attention... - Alex said.
12 hours and 10 minutes
With a deft movement of his hand, William threw off the fabric from the layout. The crowd gasped in surprise. They finally saw his wonderful invention. The man exhaled. While the guests will study the animatronic's head, he will have time to figure out what to do next. He immediately decided that he would not explain to them the structure of the mechanism, because there are hardly many people who can understand it. However, it was necessary to tell at least about the basics. When everything calmed down, William decided to proceed.
- I am almost completely sure that the first detail that caused you questions were these lines. - the man pointed at them. - So, now you will understand why they are needed here.
Henry came out from behind the scenes to him and, handing him the control panel, left. William cleared his throat and entered several combinations on this remote. After a few seconds, all parts of the mask opened, causing the audience to be even more stunned. He approached the mask and began to tell what exactly is unique about this technology.
- Previously, the animatronic's only moving parts of the mask were his ears, jaw and eyes. We can see this in the example of Fredbear. Because of this limitation, animatronics could only express the simplest emotions. But they did this almost imperceptibly. You may ask, what is the difference between Funtime Freddy?
Then he paused a little.
- It's very simple! - William lied. - This head consists of three main parts. The first is the mask itself. The second is additional iron plates separating the mask and internal parts. This part has the property of opening up, as in the case of the mask. The third part is the place where the animatronic's "brain" will be stored, as well as its additional sensors, a sound player and everything else.
The audience watched very carefully, fascinated by the spectacle. This pleased William. Someone even wrote something down.
- Thanks to the moving parts of the mask, Funtime Freddy can express much more emotions. In addition, they will be clearer and smoother, almost invisible. Especially in the case of children.
And again there was a pause so that the audience could successfully process the information.
- Of course, this is still an inferior animatronic. This layout is just an example of what we can achieve. It will become a template for creating a programmed bot capable of responding to the environment and contacting people.
Then the man stumbled. It was the simplest thing he could convey to the others. Therefore, he decided that it was time to finish the performance.
- I think it's worth stopping there for now. I don't want to load your brains too much, so I'll give you time to process the information.
After these words, William grinned, and the first claps were heard from the hall. Then, everyone present stood up from their seat and began to applaud loudly. Some even took pictures of the man, to which he only smiled and nodded silently. Henry and Scott came out of the wings, and they also clapped. William gave Henry a seat at the microphone, and he took it.
- So, ladies and gentlemen! - Henry began. - The main part of Mr. Afton's speech has come to an end, and the hour of the "Questions and Answers" column has come. I ask everyone to calm down a little. Let this woman ask the question first.
12 hours and 15 minutes
Richard peered carefully out the window.
- Get down, you idiot! - Alex hissed.
- Shut up, smartass. - retorted the second. - Do you think they are so interested in peering into the windows? They are extremely focused.
The answer clearly did not please Alex, but he remained silent.
- By the way... - Richard continued. - Have you figured out exactly how we're going to rob him?
- As usual! We'll stun him with something so that he doesn't twitch, and we'll take all the most valuable things. - Alex replied.
- I think it's stupid to do it in the open. - Richard frowned. - We need to figure out how to get his attention.
Alex sighed.
Suddenly, a boy in a dark green T-shirt and an orange cap about six years old came out of a shop. He didn't see them. The idea suddenly popped into Alex's head, and he called Richard.
- Look! - the guy pointed his finger in the direction of the boy who was carrying one bag of groceries with him.
- And what? - Richard frowned.
- And what!? This is our chance, dumbass! I'll bring him here now. And you stay here and keep your eyes open. Is that clear?
Richard nodded silently.
12 hours 17 minutes
After a couple of minutes, Alex came to the place with the boy. This boy looked a little scared. Richard knew that his partner was not very eloquent, which means that it is quite possible that he simply intimidated the boy.
- Meet Jeremy. Jeremy, this is Richard, my clumsy companion.
- Very nice. - the "clumsy companion" answered with a grin, and the second guy burst out laughing.
Jeremy, in turn, looked at them with apprehension.
- What do you want from me? - the boy asked quietly.
- What do we want from you? - Alex liked to repeat after his interlocutors. - I'll tell you now...
12 hours and 25 minutes
- Will there be other animatronics besides Funtime Freddy? - the man whose seat was next to the stage interrupted the others.
Most people raised their hands and tried to interrupt each other to ask a question. On the one hand, it was good. On the other hand, most of the questions were ridiculous. William had to answer every one.
- Undoubtedly they will. At the moment, about three of his "colleagues" are planned.
- Will there be mass production of such robots? - the next question was asked by another man.
- If the pizza chain expands in the future, it is quite possible. However, I doubt that this production can be called "mass".
- And when will Funtime Freddy be ready to go on stage? - now it was the woman's turn.
- I'm not sure about the exact time. The creation of a full-fledged animatronics is planned for several months. Such deadlines are due to rather complex and painstaking work. Besides, we've already started talking about other animatronics. This means that the work can be delayed even for several years. But believe me, it's worth it!
William has already answered dozens of similar questions. And he was already tired as hell. As if sensing this, Henry decided to move on to the next, final stage.
- Ladies and gentlemen, please pay a little attention! - Henry said loudly.
Everything was quiet in the hall. There were only whispers between people.
- So, Mr. Afton has already answered most of your questions, and I believe that we can begin the long-awaited inspection of this wonderful mechanism! Everyone in the lobby can now come up and inspect the layout, while being only a meter away from it! The only conditions are not to get too close and in no case try to touch the mechanism! Photography is allowed!
Henry walked away from the layout and said the final word.
- Please!
People immediately jumped out of their seats. Pushing, each of them strove to take the best place next to the mechanism. William hoped it wouldn't come to a fight. And yet, this sight pleased him.
- Congratulations, my friend! - Henry exclaimed no less joyfully and hugged his friend. - You're about to appear in all the newspapers!
- You have a great future ahead of you, William! - Scott came over and hugged them both, rejoicing.
- Anonymity was calmer. - William sighed as Scott dismissed his friends.
- Don't worry so much! We'll hire you a whole team, and you'll do your favorite thing even more intensively. - Henry replied.
- Are you sure you can help me? - William asked him.
- Of course! I already have some experience, and I will be happy to share it. In the meantime, go to your family. I think they're happy for you. - Henry said, and Scott nudged William.
- I'm going to get some fresh air first. I thought I was going to go crazy on stage there. - William replied.
Henry laughed again and pointed his friend in the direction of the back exit.
- Don't you want to look tired in front of them? Then go carefully over there. And make sure you don't get run over. - Scott said.
- I'll try. - the man smiled and walked towards the exit.
12 hours and 30 minutes
Leaving the building through the back entrance, William found himself in a small alley surrounded by houses on both sides. At the end of this alley was a dead end in the form of a brick wall. There were also garbage cans, which contained mostly pizza boxes. The man moved to the exit of the alley and soon found himself to the left of the building. Lost in thought, he took a deep breath. Suddenly, a boy of about six years old in an orange cap appeared next to him on his left. He stared at the man intently, and for some reason William felt uneasy. Also suddenly the boy asked a question.
- Sir, did you create that mechanical bear that everyone is looking at now?
- Yes... Did you want something?
The boy smiled.
- My name is Jeremy. And you?
- William Afton. - this time it was the man who smiled.
- Nice to meet you, Mr. Afton. I couldn't get into the building, because all the seats were occupied. But I was looking at the exhibition through the window. I was very impressed with your invention! Could you give me your autograph? - Jeremy replied.
The boy handed William a piece of paper and a pen. Smiling again, the man took both items and quickly signed the piece of paper.
- Here you go. - William handed the boy back the already signed piece of paper and a pen.
- Thank you very much!
The joyful boy put this piece of paper in his pocket and ran in the other direction. Only now did the man notice that there was a bag of groceries next to the exit, which Jeremy grabbed and ran away.
William was genuinely happy. He just presented his project, and he already had his first little fan. The man laughed softly at the thought. But suddenly there was a rustle behind him.
- Mr. Afton, then? - a voice said from behind.
William whirled around and saw two figures somehow standing behind him.
They were two men who were somewhere around forty years old. One of them was holding a crowbar. He was tall and thin, and clearly in the mood for a fight. The second was massive and low. He just stood aside, smiling maliciously.
- Could you give us an autograph, too? - it turned out that this voice belonged to a skinny guy.
- Who are you? - William swallowed, clearly not expecting this.
- We are the ones who came to hit the jackpot. And now, in a good way, give all the most valuable things that you have, or it will hurt.
The figures approached, and the man braced himself for the worst. He began to slowly approach the wall to his right, distracting their attention.
- Do you want to go to jail so badly? - William replied.
Both men laughed, the short blond man clenched his fists and cracked his fingers.
- So it won't be in a good way? Well, well...
The men joined the fight. One Determination against two Braveries. The robber rushed from his seat with the intention of hitting William hard. The man had already managed to stand with his back to the wall, getting rid of the possibility that the second robber would decide to go around him from behind. In his youth, he was engaged in boxing, and now it turned out to be more useful than ever. As soon as the skinny guy ran up to him and swung, William instinctively ducked, which is why the blow fell right on the wall. He abruptly took a step forward and, with all his might, hit the robber in the face. Blood spurted from his nose, and the brown-haired man fell to the ground. No sooner had William changed his position than the figure of a big man appeared on the right.
- Bastard! - there was a gurgling sound underfoot, and William was distracted for just a second. This was enough for the puny one to cut him down, knocking the man off his feet.
William tried to jump to his feet, but he was pinned firmly to the ground. Then there was a strong flash of pain when the first blow fell on the face. Others followed him, and the man no longer had time to open his eyes in time to find out who exactly was hitting him. He tried to make a blind punch, but missed.
- Knock him out! - a voice shouted from the left, and William realized that the robber, whose nose he had smashed, had long since recovered and, judging by the sounds, approached the big man who was beating William.
From multiple blows, the man was on the verge of consciousness, but still realized that it would not be possible to escape from the grip. These thoughts were cut short by the final blow, which made it dark in his eyes. It was Richard hitting William with a glass bottle.
Alex knew the sound well, so he laughed.
- That's it! - he was already starting to move away from William, but Richard was silent. - Is something wrong?
The second guy walked away and let go of the broken bottle.
- I... I killed him... - Richard said with difficulty.
- What? What do you mean, "killed"?
- I punched his skull to hell! Look!
Alex came over and made sure that his friend wasn't lying. Thick blood slowly flowed from a serious wound.
The robber sighed.
- Serves you right! Take the money, the watch, and then we're off. - Alex replied.
It seemed that Richard was slightly shocked. Although, it really was.
- Let's just get out of here!? What if they find out about it? Do you have any idea what we've done? This is murder, Alex!
- Since when have you become so sentimental? - Alex was rummaging through William's pockets. - Killed, so he was unlucky. Let's get out before they notice us.
Richard walked over to William and, feeling for his phone in his pocket, pulled it out.
- What are you doing? - Alex asked him.
- I'm calling an ambulance. And then we'll get out of here as soon as possible. - Richard explained.
12 hours and 40 minutes
Clara, happy for her husband, together with Michael and the three kids left the restaurant. At first she didn't understand why William didn't go straight to them. But then she realized that it would be hard for her to participate in such an event, and her husband, moreover, had stage fright. So it's not surprising that first he decided to go outside, into the fresh air. The children did not want to leave the restaurant for a long time, considering their father's amazing invention. But then she promised them ice cream, and they agreed to leave the building.
William was not on the street either, which seemed strange to Clara. Suddenly she felt something was wrong.
- And where is he? - Michael asked.
- Stay here with your brother and sisters, and I'll take a look around. - Clara said.
The guy nodded.
Clara really had a strange feeling. Something was beckoning her to the nearest alley. Something bad...
The woman carefully looked into the alley and was horrified. So much so that a scream escaped from his throat.
- Mom?! - three children already wanted to run up and see what happened, but Michael stopped them.
The worried eldest son ran up to his mother. Clara froze in place, but still managed to reach out to Michael, stopping him.
- What happened!? - he was very excited.
- Don't bring the kids here... Just... Just call an ambulance, Michael. And soon...
Sooner or later, it would have happened anyway.