SLAVE

SLAVE

SLAVE

The rhythmic sound in Gron's head saw no end. It would always fluctuate between whispers and downright screams, jumping from one stare to another in seconds, changing its pitch and tone, a cacophony that served as a reminder. A reminder for Gron that he signed a contract with the Devil himself and was now nothing more than his puppet. The monster he continued to work for and was now bound to forever, until the moment he goes completely insane. His work was a risky one, to make mechanical animatronics feel more alive by becoming them. Today his task was to give a performance to anticipating children in a Fredbear suit. He was told that they would be excited to see one of the main mascots of the series come to life.

It was still there when an employee helped Gron put on the sun, fitting his arms into the cold, stretched exoskeleton, working with the crank and slowly pulling the metal parts away from each other, turning each sound of the metal parts into a meticulous screech in Gron's mind, a faint wailing of the voices that wished to break free. He had to sit still in absolute silence as he got himself into a suit, listening to every creak and even every word from the employee get broken and twisted.

THIS IS YOUR PRISON

YOUR PRISON

PRISON

But Gron didn't react to him and accepted his unfortunate fate, time and time again. This wasn't the first time he put on a suit, Gron had already performed in another not so long ago, but this time it felt different. Not like a metamorphosis into one beloved character but a methodical process of chaining oneself. His hands could barely move. Every step made Gron feel the cold metal rubbing his skin. The springs were new and fresh, it was unlikely that an accident of any kind would occur, but he still feared.

After all, Gron now saw how it was exactly.

HELL FOR YOU, HEAVEN FOR THEM

He knew what was left after one such spring lock failure; the disfigured bodies put into an incineration chamber were OUR FUTURE horrific enough. He could become A LAMB TO THE SLAUGHTER, one of them any minute now, could collapse on the floor and screech in agony as his bones would get crushed one after another. Every time Gron opened his mouth, every time he beckoned for children to follow him, every time he HATES THEM laughed and entertained them, spouting yet another joke and quip…He could feel his words bouncing off the metal skeleton, his echoes getting trapped in the wires and unable to reach out for their freedom. Meanwhile, the springs would continue to rub off each other, letting out more sounds, one after another. Every creak could become his last, and some part of Gron's mind expected them to be, perhaps even yearned to. He signed himself to DEATH DEATH DEATH, a pathetic existence that will eventually drain the last snippets of his sanity. Perhaps this was just draining out the inevitable? Perhaps his end was already decided?

He could see it, just pouring some water onto the springs…Could see himself vomiting blood to the floor as all the guests stared in horror and shock. Dozens of children were traumatized for life, tears, and screams; even parents would not be able to remain calm as they watched this display. They would all have a horrific day that will forever stain their memories, but it would be a peaceful end for Gron. And what's more, it would be an accident that would stain the reputation of Fazbear Inc, perhaps even leading to independent investigators getting involved with the company. And who knows what they will find…

Gron tried to purge this thought from his mind; this was absurd, after all, absolutely scandalous and monstrous. There must have been other ways to end Fazbear Inc and bring them to light, something that did not involve mutilation. With those thoughts in mind, Gron attempted to take a break away from the children and get a breather, but it did not last for long.

"FOLLOW ME!" A demonic voice echoed from behind Gron, making him take a swift reflective turn, bumping into his own metal suit. The movements were too sudden, and Gron felt the spring extending to an unnatural length. Just a little more, and it will be broken, forcing the entire suit to collapse. Before anything drastic could occur, Gron moved his legs and finished his turn in a slow, orderly fashion, making sure that no parts would be broken. Who he saw before himself were far from demonic, there were four children standing before him, three boys and one girl, and all of them gazed up in awe. Gron quickly realized what had just happened and took a deep breath, once again hearing the air permeate the metal covering.

"Wow, it's really him!" The blonde girl smiled with joy.

"It's just someone in a suit…" The red-haired boy shook his head before smiling. "But you know, he's playing his part well!"

"Sorry…What did you say?" Gron asked, temporarily breaking his character, only to have a third voice speak up, that of a brown-haired boy.

"I was just excited because I heard they had Fredbear performing off-stage, and it's so great to see you; I love your songs, all of them!"

"Ah, of course…" Gron collected himself before smiling underneath his suit. "Of course! I'm glad that you decided to come to me because Spring Bonnie is too busy fixing up my mic, and I need someone to play with!" He made his voice deeper so as to make it sound more like Fredbear's own. "I believe I've seen you visiting our little isle before, though I don't think we ever properly met…"

"We are free pirates, just like Foxy!" The boisterous boy explained. "And we want to find the youth fountain!" This one knew their show very well, only fitting for Gron to play along.

"Ho-ho, I see you've got quite an ambition, my friend! Well, who am I to deny you such an opportunity? But before you set out on a voyage, let me give you a fair warning. It is a perilous, uncertain path that not everyone can take…But I have a very good feeling about your crew. You just have that spark in your eyes! Who's your captain?"

"Him." One boy pointed to the redhead that spoke the most.

"I should've guessed! And what is your name, your sailor?"

"Jack!" He responded.

"And what of your crew mates?" Gron asked playfully as he turned towards the other three children.

"I'm Gabriel, your biggest fan!" The brown-haired boy followed.

"I'm Jessica." The blonde girl introduced herself politely, only leaving the dark-haired boy who hadn't yet introduced himself.

"And you, my friend?" Gron noticed that the child was a little fearful and reluctant to speak. Perhaps he saw something in this costume…A small fraction of what Gron saw.

"Liam…"

"Ah, wonderful, now I know all of you! I'm sure you know me, but just in case, let me remind you, I'm A SLAVE SLAVE SLAVE" Gron immediately closed his mouth as a piercing shout echoed through the entire restaurant, a powerful, boisterous echo that was about to tear his ears apart. The voice of the Twisted one, this time especially furious and angry, a monster unchained. The children before Gron were a bit surprised by the sudden silence, but none of them recoiled, telling Gron that this voice was only in his mind. At least they cannot hear it…The jester felt drops of sweat forming underneath his clothes, slowly going down his body. They wouldn't touch the animatronic suit, but the thought of some of them getting there made Gron shiver reflexively. He didn't know how much liquid was needed to break the suit, and he didn't want to find out just yet. "Ahem…I'm Friendly Fredbear, the keeper of mysteries and the eldest of the isle's guardians, many have heard of me, but you're lucky enough to see me in the flesh! Let me tell you a tale about a youth fountain, however…"

"You've been there, right?" Gabriel spoke with excitement, eager to keep up the pretense and the role-play.

"Oh, of course! I have been there long before any adventurers visited and even drank THE BLOOD its water."

"How did it feel?" Jessica wondered.

"Oh, it was wonderful…But not at first. When one drinks the waters, they are overtaken by excruciating AGONY pain as the gift of immortality is ready to TAKE THEIR SOUL to bless them with…" Gron stuttered as he closed his eyes. Focus, focus, focus. This voice wasn't real, just a figment of his imagination and paranoia, even if it was incredibly powerful.

"But what happens after you're blessed?" Jack inquired. "Shame that it doesn't actually exist. I think I would've tried it!"

"It only blesses those FOR WHOM IT'S TOO LATE who are of pure heart and noble intentions. This was the LIE warning I wanted to pose to you, my brave sailors. It is a painful gift and the one that doesn't judge one kindly…Since I have GONE MAD and taken the waters, I was never certain if this choice was the correct one, and yet I still continue to DECAY serve and protect the land. Freddy and his COWARDS band refused to take it." He couldn't expunge the monster, the voice pressed on, and it was agonizingly unbearable. Whatever he did, the creature was still there. As Gron looked at the children, he saw their silhouettes get darker from second to second, their eyes become black, and stains of blood emerge on their bodies.

"But why A-A-ARE YOU ALIVE?" Liam's curious voice rang out before Gron, swiftly getting mixed with the cruel voice of the Twisted one.

"I…Sorry, could you repeat that?"

"Why did they not drink it? I watched the episode, but it's still…Strange. Why wouldn't someone want to live forever?"

"Ah, how can I explain…The blessing does not come without SACRIFICE side effects. I know this too well HAH, HARDLY. Ever since I became immortal, I have changed and stopped appreciating others and the world around me in the same way I did before YOU COULD NEVER COME BACK FROM IT. Perhaps when a being becomes immortal, this changes their outlook on life…I think NO YOU DON'T that Freddy made the right choice in the end; otherwise, he would've changed too, he would've ASCENDED…He would've…BECOME JUST LIKE YOU I think he…" Gron couldn't handle this anymore, the voice grew louder, and the jester felt like he could start screaming any moment now. After all this time of slowly getting better and healing his mind…All of that was undone in a single night and sent him down a spiral deeper than he had ever been I'm before. The children didn't understand. They couldn't hear the agony he went through, living in blissful ignorance with their healthy, sound mind, all while their parents gave money to fund the monstrous experiments conducted by Bairren without even knowing.

"He what?" Jack continued to push him. "I wanna hear the rest."

"I…Apologies, kids, Spring Bonnie is calling for my attention." Gron quickly came up with an excuse to leave. "But rest assured, we will meet again, and I will tell you more tales before you DIE DIE DIE continue to sail."

He couldn't look into their eyes anymore. He needed a break to collect his thoughts and breathe. For now, there was only one thought on Gron's mind, the painful unanswered question of how can it even be possible to work here when he was slowly consumed by the creeping insanity?

…

What a revolting feeling to realize that one has become a slave to a corporation which he saw as nothing more than a promising career opportunity, and all of those illusions were brought down over a single night. William was lucky to even survive that day, but whatever was to follow would be just as agonizingly hurtful to him. The evening of his first reunion with Clara, Chris, and Elizabeth after the revelation had been awkward enough already, and he knew that they already suspected that something was wrong. Perhaps it would be enough to brush a single occurrence onto having a difficult few days at work, but not if this becomes continuous. He could not leave it like this, even though his hands were tied.

Those were the thoughts that lurked in William's head as he worked in his office, focusing on the animatronic before him. Paradoxically enough, Will being consumed by his thought process and theories on how to act made the work go even quicker; this was something soothing he could do while musing. The furry carcass took shame and covered the endoskeleton, leaving nothing but eyes, teeth, and a metal hook exposed. Now for the eye patch, the last touch…And now, he was done. A rogue pirate captain Foxy stood before William with his lifeless eyes looking to the floor. He was lifeless for now, but with a little power, he would liven up, readily entertaining children around him with a promise of an adventure. It was time for a few tests.

William activated the animatronic by connecting it to his computer and entering a command. Immediately after, the robot's metallic legs moved slowly, scratching the floor beneath them and flawlessly maintaining the balance, as William hoped for. Now, time for another command, the one which he hoped would make Foxy show his voice.

"Yarr! What's up, buccaneers, what brings ye to the sea? Are ye here to find the youth fountain?"

The voice would need some refinements, yet it was a good enough transition from the show. The gruff and sturdy yet playful and engaging tone suited the sea-faring pirate Foxy, Will could see why he was Mike's favorite. As the animatronic continued to move his hands and head, looking around the room as he searched for the children to play with, William reached for the camera that lay on the table beside him. He brought it here to record the most outstanding achievements and progress in the animatronic department. Perhaps his children would like the sight of it, even if William himself could take little joy of it as he took a recording.

A spring lock animatronic, designed at Alison's behest. Created from the specific type of metal he was provided with, and only from that, he left with an opening in his suit, much like Fredbear and Spring Bonnie. Before seeing the facility, William didn't question it too much, assuming this design had a simple technical explanation, but now he would always think of his boss's ulterior motives. He had power over him and Gron, but he couldn't have been untouchable.

William's musings were swiftly interrupted by the engine sound he heard echoing from outside, causing him to quickly move towards the window and see what was going on outside. The truck was there, a similar one to the vehicle William saw a few days ago when a bundle of parts and 'cargo' was brought to the restaurant. All those boxes were taken to the back room, but they weren't there the next day…But, of course, this could only mean one thing. William didn't think; he immediately pointed the camera from Foxy towards the window to have a peak of what was going on outside. The picture was exactly the same as he remembered from the last time. There were workers waiting for the truck to park so they could begin taking out the crates.

They must have taken them to the facility, which raised even more questions. We're it truly just spare parts? It could've been equipment for the machinery they use there. After all, there has been a lot, or perhaps it could be something even worse…Alison wasn't there to meet them this time, but all other elements were in place. The crates that they took into the pizzeria, one after another. William realized that what he was doing was incredibly risky, he couldn't know if there were any secret cameras in his workshop installed, but he couldn't look away just yet. There was something going on in plain sight. Something fed into a machine of agony and suffering that prospered beneath the surface while everyone got the pleasure of enjoying their life and everything 'Fredbear's Family Diner' had to offer in blissful ignorance. It couldn't have been too difficult, it couldn't have been…

Suddenly, William's reflexes kicked in, making him turn the camera off immediately. Alison's words echoed in his head once again.

"up to and including untimely termination of a family member…"

No, this was too much. Someone must have been watching him. William paused the camera, taking a deep breath and trying to act as collected and relaxed as he could. The animatronic stopped talking, once again burying the room amidst unceremonious silence. He knew they watched quietly, waiting for him to make a mistake and punish him for it. Someone must have seen William putting the camera towards the window, could've been one of the guards, and if this person also realized that it coincided with the cargo arrival and not just William attempting to catch a glimpse of a sunny day outside, he would be in trouble. Too many thoughts ran through his head, far too many ways in which his life might just be over. For now, it would be better to simply forget about this until he got home. There was a way out of this, no doubt…

But he would have to be extremely meticulous or else regret it for the rest of his life.