All of this wandering started to get devoid of meaning. William couldn't walk to Hurricane on his own, and after a while, he began seeing the same buildings over and over again. Leaving the town would be foolish; he would no doubt be lost in the wilds long before reaching Hurricane.

Until, finally, a stroke of luck.

On the edges of New Harmony, Will found a huge truck in one of the parking spots, perhaps readying to depart. It was without many other cars surrounding it, and without people whatsoever, he could easily hide among whatever it was transporting in the back. Springtrap also peered into the window to see a half-asleep middle-aged man. The driver who could get him to the town…And who hasn't seen him yet.

He will make him cooperate.

By the time William approached, the echoing sounds of his heavy steps finally made the sleepy driver open his eyes. When he realized that a non-human mechanical being stared right into his eyes, the driver recoiled in horror.

"Yo, what the…Jesus fucking Christ!" The man shouted and shook, but William didn't worry too much. No one would hear him from here anyway. He rubbed his eyes while still dreamy. "Are you…Come on, dude, it's not Halloween yet. You got to go around and scare people like that?"

"I need your help." William took another step and spoke in a robotic voice, which must have finally broken the driver's trance and made him realize just how much of a threat he was.

"I…Stay away! I'll call the police, I'll shout, I'll…"

Springtrap didn't let him finish; he grabbed the man's hand and pulled him to the window before closing his mouth with another hand.

"Now listen to me. You will do what I say and follow my every instruction…Or I will kill you here and now. You can see that I am more than capable of doing that. Understand?" The man nodded in response. "Good. Drive me to Hurricane. I'll tell you the address on the way."

…

Run, run, run.

After what Jim witnessed in the church and had to run away from a vengeful, possessed animatronic speaking as if he was the reincarnated spirit of Chris, the boy he killed, he had enough. This place was tainted, and whatever this monster was, it wouldn't stop until it had claimed Jim's life. He wasn't sure why it hesitated, but at least it gave him some time.

Jim returned to his hotel room and began to pack his things as swiftly as possible while keeping his firearm as close as possible all the time. He would collect all of his belongings and drive away, perhaps to Hurricane, perhaps somewhere else, wherever this demon wouldn't find him, and then pray for forgiveness and salvation. This was the only way…The last desperate attempt to cleanse himself of the sin. Clothes, bag, money…

It was too late. Jim could already hear the echo of his claws grasping at the wall; Ennard was getting close. Of course, he would find him soon. To think otherwise would be foolish. Jim had an instinct to run away as quickly as he could and not look back, but there was no point. There's no point in even shouting. Even if someone heard and came to help, Jim would endanger innocent lives by putting them between him and this creature, who could've been more than comfortable with killing anyone in its way.

He simply clung onto his firearm and looked at the window, and Ennard climbed inside, barging into the room as his metal, skeletal body went through the window frame. He was limping, with one of his legs moving far more slowly than the other. This was the opportunity for Jim to shoot, but he was too overtaken. Mesmerized by this creature existing between life and death, trying to find its way and stand tall. In those actions, it behaved no different than a scared, weakened child. Ennard reached out and grabbed Jim's weapon, pulling it from the priest's hand. The pushback was so great that the man fell on his back, cornered at a nearby wall, now staring into the eyes of a boy he once killed.

"Are you scared, Jimmy? Good…You thought you could run from me…Hah!" Ennard chuckled as his mechanical eyes shimmered before Jim's own. The priest wondered about just how puny he looked before the animatronic killer. "You got luckier than others, you know, much luckier…But it doesn't matter now. You're mine…Hear me? Mine!"

"Is that…Is that you, Chris?" Jim finally braced himself for the main question. "Chris Afton?" He made the animatronic recoil slightly, which gave out all the answers he needed already.

"So you do remember…Good. And here I thought only Mike would know who I am before he dies!" Ennard said with supposed joy in confidence, yet his voice still wavered.

"H-how?" Jim's lips quivered in fear. "How is it possible? I have never encountered something like you…It defies both science and religion! What…What are you?"

"Why would I explain anything to you when you're about to die?" Chris clenched one of his metal fists. "It will take too long, anyway. I don't even fully understand all of it. You won't understand it either…It's pure magic, but not a good kind of magic. I'll still take it, though…It allowed me to get to you. To all of you…I wanted you all to stop; I cried and begged, and you? You laughed at me, you humiliated me, you hurt me, YOU KILLED ME!" He shouted with fury. "And I have come to kill you, now…An eye for an eye! And you…You deserve it!"

"Please…" Jim looked down in an attempt to hide his horror. "Just make it quick."

"Make it quick, huh? Like you did?! Like you, who humiliated me in front of everyone?! I died in a hospital, sloooowly and painfully! I had my father, brother, and sister stand before me and cry, trying to talk to me while I…While I couldn't say anything! You…You don't deserve a quick death!" Chris waved his metal hands in yet another fit of rage, this time pushing some of Jim's things off the table. Among a couple of pens and a copy of a Bible, there was a small photograph of Jim in his robes of a priest standing together with five young boys of Chris's age, one of the memories the young man cherished and always carried with him.

"What is this?" Ennard took the photo and looked over it with interest. "You didn't learn that you shouldn't come close to children from that time?" He stared at the photo, unable to move his eyes; Jim wondered if those children reminded him of himself, once again unmasking who he truly was.

"I…Wanted to make this right." Jim spoke up. "After you died after Mike and Lamar died, I…I thought that I could compensate for it. Those boys all come from under the roof of a charity for heavily ill children…They didn't have enough money to pay for the necessary procedures, and I shared as much as I could. I tried my best to never stop helping those in need, those like you…"

"And you think this absolves you?! Just because you saved someone else, that gives you the right to let go of my death?" The animatronic dropped the photo, once again switching his focus to Jim.

"No…Of course not. Some sins can never be washed away, and you spend a lifetime repenting for them. Taking a life is one of those. In the end, I guess it's all because…"

"Because what?"

"Because I'm afraid." Jim let out with shame in his voice. "I want to say that I am not afraid to die for my sins like a martyr would, but I am…I'm terrified. I know I…I know I don't deserve to go to Heaven. That stopped being an option for me the moment I supported Mike's 'prank'…" Jim's lips quivered in fear. "And I know what lies the other way. Suffering, pain, and despair. The Devil is waiting for me to walk right into his embrace, and I don't want to look him in the eyes…I did not want to face my sins, but here I am with no other way out. I'm sorry that I can't offer anything except empty words…I'm sorry that I can't undo the pain that I inflicted. But most of all, I'm sorry for that fateful day…For taking your life."

…

Why wasn't he dead yet?

Chris could do it at any moment. Jim was defenseless without his weapon; all the vengeful animatronic had to do was reach out and end him. But for some reason, he could not do it. Could not force himself to extinguish life from his frail body. He didn't have to listen for his apologies, yet he wanted to hear every word the lone preacher would speak. And while he spoke, Chris hesitated, unable to force himself to kill him.

"I do not expect forgiveness, and I don't ask for it…" Jim looked up as Chris saw tears fall from his eyes. "All I ask is that whatever you do, do it quickly and painlessly." He didn't hide his simultaneous terror and acceptance of this inevitability any longer. He felt powerless, just like Chris did beneath Fredbear's shadow less than an hour ago. To Ennard, Jim, Fredbear, and Blake were all the same villains and monsters that made his nightmares come to life, but their auras couldn't be more different. Jim's soul was on a path of repentance; the burden of guilt consumed him entirely, making each day of his life a painful reminder of the sin he couldn't undo. As much as he despised it, when Chris looked into Jim's eyes, he saw a good, honest man.

A man who didn't deserve to die.

He apologized and trembled beneath Chris, just like I did years ago. The boy didn't believe his sincerity and gutted his own brother without giving him the opportunity to atone. Now, he remained locked deep within one of Alison's bunkers, unable to see the light of day and subjected to an endless cycle of torture. He, meanwhile…He looked into the eyes of the one who got away, the one who got the opportunity to live only by dumb luck and stayed true to it even long after Ennard's disappearance. He was blessed with a chance of which Chris robbed Mike, ending up forcing his family even further into the cycle of pain and decay.

"It's never too late to stop…"

Father's words echoed in his mind as Chris raised his hand, allowing its shadow to fall over Jim. Finally, he was almost ready to take his opportunity for an attack…Almost. It resulted in nothing more than an empty scratch on the floor.

"I…I can't!" Chris shouted with hatred, this time directed at himself, as he fell on the floor and shook. Just like every time Mike scared him, every time he succumbed to his fears and was left alone to cry. Always so weak and pathetic…Even after death. He moaned in uncontrollable pain that spread through his soul, the pain he shouldn't have felt but the one that was completely overwhelming him now, all before a former bully whom he wanted to murder. "I CAN'T…I CAN'T!" He continued to shout until he saw Jim sitting beside him and letting out a deep breath.

"It's okay…It's okay." He wasn't sure whether he should've accepted the priest's embrace, but he did it nonetheless.

It wasn't okay, but it was the only way it could've ended. Now, Chris understood this.