CHAPTER NINETEEN: PRINCESS QUEST II

We entered the Atrium, where Roxy Raceway was. Although Gregory and I had been there not too long ago to meet up with Freddy and Roxanne, we technically didn't enter the main attraction itself. Along the way, I felt like a coward. I had found the bodies but didn't have the guts to tell them. Plus, I didn't want to waste any time explaining after realizing what this all had been the entire time. I knew what I had to do. I couldn't just wait to tell them. I had to tell them… now.

I stopped in my tracks, the others doing the same. I turned to face them. I took a deep breath, steeling myself and my nerves for what I was going to tell them.

"Guys, before we continue, there's something I have to tell you," I said. "It's… about what I found."

"We've been wondering what it was," Roxanne said. "I'd never seen you so pale before. Something truly frightened you. What is it that you found?"

I clenched my hands into fists for a moment before relaxing. I had to do this. I couldn't just hide this from them. If I did, I had no idea how I was going to live with myself, especially since I had plans to tell my father about it. I had no idea how she would feel if she found out I hid this, especially Lisa.

"You see," I began to say. "Back in your green room, I had said something about seeing something. Well, it was a little girl I had never seen before. Didn't even look like any of the missing kids from what I was able to tell. I followed after her, but as I did, I noticed that there was something strange about her. It was like she was a ghost or something.

"Eventually, I found a secret door that was marked by paint of some kind or something. When I opened it, I discovered a security room of some kind. But that wasn't what terrified me the most. What did… was what was lying in the middle of the room.

"Guys… I found them. The remains of the missing kids. If I had to guess, Vanny must've lured them there, did God knows what to them, and killed them. If that wasn't bad enough, I found pictures on the wall. All of them of the kids that had gone missing. To make it much worse, I found a picture of Lisa among them. There was writing on the back that said something about waiting for the older brother to arrive.

"It took me a moment to fully understand all of it." I aimed my attention at Lisa. "Lisa, your disappearance was planned. This was all a scheme to lure me here. She knew that I would do anything for you so she kidnapped you and waited for me to come here to come find you. All of this was a plan to kill me and do God knows what to me. All of this… was a trap."

I closed my eyes, letting out a sigh as I did. I did it. I told them what I found earlier. My shoulders felt much lighter like a huge weight had been lifted off of them. I had no idea what was going on in their heads, but if I had to guess, it was them trying to digest what I had just told them.

Honestly, I didn't know what to expect to happen. For all I knew, they could be thinking that I was kidding. That I was making this up and get angry at me. I hoped Lisa of all people wouldn't think that. She knew that I wasn't one to make things up. It wasn't in my nature to do that. That was basically asking her to lose trust in me once this was all said and done.

I opened my eyes to see them looking at me in horror. Their mouths hung open, their eyes wide open. I stared at them for a moment, wondering what they were going to do next.

It took them a moment for them to snap out of their trances.

"You… found the bodies?" Lisa asked, horror clear in her tone. I nodded my head, unable to find the strength to speak.

"I don't know what to say about this," Roxanne said, horror clear in her tone as well. "It sounds like a fabricated story, but at the same time, I don't think it is."

"It's not," I insisted. "I don't know why that girl led me there. If I had to guess, she probably wanted to warn me about it or she wanted me to find them. I can't really say for sure. All I know is that we have to stop Vanny before it's too late."

"I agree," Lisa said. "If what happened here wasn't enough, that discovery is all the more reason to stop the disappearances."

"Indeed," Roxanne said. As we stood there in silence, something came into mind that I felt was very important to mention.

"Roxanne, do you remember what you told me back in your green room earlier in the night?" I asked. Roxanne looked thoughtful before nodding her head. "Well, considering this was all meant to be a trap, I don't think you being controlled by some strange force was a coincidence. It turns out that was supposed to happen. If I had to guess, Vanny must've seen me enter the place and not long after you saw me walking alongside Freddy did she make the decision to have you and your friends under her control. After all, this was a trap to kill me."

Her eyes widened, shock plastered on her face. She stayed like that for a moment before she snapped out of it.

"That makes sense now," Roxanne said. "Judging from that, this also answers another question I've had for a while."

That caught my attention. A question she had for a while. Was there something that I was missing? I couldn't help but get the feeling that I was missing something very important. Whatever it was, I had to find out.

"What do you mean by that?" I asked, my curiosity growing by the minute.

"This happened about 2 months after the Pizzaplex opened," Roxanne began to explain, her eyes focused on me. "My friends and I were getting our routine maintenance done that day. I was the last one to get maintenance done. I was powered off for that procedure at the time. I didn't know what was going on, but if I had to guess, at some point during the procedure, someone or something messed with my programming. I know this because I felt a bit strange when I was powered back on. I asked the maintenance crew about it, but they had no clue what I was talking about. I let it go for the time being.

"However, over the course of several months, I found myself being someone I wasn't. I was acting like a… bully, Chica became starved for attention, Monty became aggressive, and Freddy acted like a spoiled brat. None of it made sense. Eventually, I was back to my normal self, but I will never be able to get over what happened to me and my friends.

"Freddy was the last one to return to normal. I asked my friends what happened to me back in Parts and Service happened to them. They said yes and they too couldn't explain what happened. To this day, I still can't explain it. It happened as fast as it started. I wish I knew what happened."

I stared at her for a moment before I thought about it. Roxanne was right. None of it made any sense. If I had to guess myself, it might have something to do with what happened at Parts and Service. I bet someone snuck down there and messed with her and her friends' programming. I didn't want to believe it, but something told me that it was… Gregory. After all, the writing on the back of his picture said something about him rebelling.

If so, how did he even get down there without anyone seeing him? I tried to think of an answer, but I couldn't. There was a mystery that had to be solved, one that I had no doubt could take a very long time to solve. However, there was something we had to do. We could think about it later. Right now, we have to find 'Princess Quest II'.

"I see," I slowly. "Very strange indeed. We can figure it out together later. Roxanne, can you lead us to the beauty salon? I don't know the way. Do you know where it is?"

"Yes," Roxanne replied. "It can be accessed by the entrance on the 2nd floor. Follow me."

Lisa and I nodded at the same time. Roxanne began heading for the stairs to the second floor. Lisa and I followed, me being eager to find that game and help the princess escape from that terrifying nightmare.

Roxanne led the way to the beauty salon the entire time. Going up the stairs, going through the entrance, and reaching the place where it was, Roxanne slowed down so that we could catch up. The entire time, none of us said anything to each other, which I was secretly grateful for. The silence was what we needed to get our heads clear and straightened.

After what I had just told them, I doubted that even if we wanted to say something to each other, none of us would even have the damn strength to do so. The shock was too much for us at that point. To be very honest, I wouldn't have said anything, even if I had the strength to break the silence. Even the idea of talking about something random didn't sound all that appealing. What we needed was to clear our heads and find 'Princess Quest II'.

Something clicked in my head as I realized something. I would have to tell Gregory and Freddy what I found. After all, they were the ones who asked me what was wrong. Despite the fact that I didn't want to repeat what I told Roxanne and Lisa, it would be the right thing to do to tell them rather than keep them in the dark. They both deserved to know the truth as much as Roxanne and Lisa did. In fact, they were entitled to it.

Roxanne led us down the hallway that might lead us to the beauty salon. I had no idea what time it was now, but I could only hope it wasn't the end of the hour. If it was, we would have a big problem on our hands.

A metal door came into view. We approached it. The metal door slid up, allowing us to get inside. We entered. I took that moment to survey our surroundings.

The beauty salon looked more like a restaurant due to the layout of the place. It looked to be in the shape of the letter 'T' with a neon sign above the front entrance that said 'The Famous Glamrock Beauty Salon' with a pair of scissors next to it. To its right was a small shop called 'Pit Stop'. It was probably a gift shop. On the floor was what looked like a small road that probably led to nowhere in this place. The area itself looked to be desert-themed, which I thought was pretty cool.

"This the place?" I asked before realizing too late how stupid that question sounded.

"Yes, it is," Roxanne replied. "Once my attraction opens in the future, this will be a place where people can get their hair styled in any way they want. They can also get makeup sessions here as well. It wouldn't be a beauty salon if that wasn't the case."

"So true," Lisa said before chuckling.

I chuckled as well. For a race track attraction to have something like this was a little goofy to me. However, it wasn't my place to judge or anything. To be honest, it sounded like a cool idea. Maybe even be fun for those who will come here once it opens.

The lights suddenly went out. Fear washed over us as we all knew what this meant. With the lights out, Moon was free to roam the Mega Pizzaplex. As if we needed something to slow us down.

"You've got to be kidding me," I whispered.

"Mihael, get to the arcade machine as fast as you can," Lisa said. "Roxy and I will distract him as long as we can."

I felt a wave of horror wash over me. The idea of Roxanne and Lisa dealing with that thing didn't sound right to me whatsoever. To be honest, it would be better if it was me and Roxanne holding him off while Lisa went and played the game.

"Lisa-" was all I was able to say.

"There isn't time!" Lisa shouted. "It has to be you. You will find it in the office in the far back of the salon. Trust me. I may not be as strong as you, but I can handle myself. Please, trust me."

I wanted to object to that, but I knew deep down, Lisa was right. If we both argued, that would allow Moon to get us, preventing me from getting to the machine. Plus, with the amount of time that we do have now, we had to make it count.

"Okay, I will trust you on this," I said with a sigh.

She nodded. "GO!"

She didn't have to tell me twice. I ran inside without bothering to survey my surroundings very much. However, I did take note that it looked like any beauty salon would, though it was messy with a few shelves turned over and there was a stage at the top right corner of the room.

I found a door that probably led to the office and kicked it open. I quickly looked around and found what I was looking for. In the far back was the machine, looking like its predecessor, with the only difference being the title calling it 'Princess Quest II'.

Just like the last machine, this arcade machine had a sinister energy emitting from it, one that felt like I was approaching some kind of danger.

I approached the machine, resting my hands on the controls that would move the princess. I pushed the button and the machine turned on. The title screen popped up immediately. The title read 'Princess Quest II'. The same theme from the previous game began to play.

I steeled my nerves, pushed the start button, and began to play the second game of 'Princess Quest'.

The princess woke up, unsure and confused as to what happened. All she could remember was encountering some strange creature at an unknown location and the next thing she knew, everything went black and certain doom fell on her. However, as she looked around, she could see that she was in some kind of courtyard. She had no idea how she had gotten here, but she was deeply grateful that she was still alive. She felt around and was relieved that the lantern was still on her person.

"Thank goodness, you're still alive," someone said behind her, the voice making her jump. She turned to see an old man holding a cane standing behind her.

"Who… who are you?" she asked, fear present in her tone. She didn't know if this man was a friend or foe, but after what she'd been through, she didn't want to take any chances.

"Do not fear, little one," he said in a soft tone. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm here to help you. I am so glad you are still alive after your encounter with that… thing."

She eyed him suspiciously. What did he know about that creature she had encountered not too long ago? Was he secretly working for it? Everything in her told her not to trust him.

"I know you are scared, but I promise, I want to help you escape this nightmare," he said, his tone still soft. "I have a gift for you, princess. It will be useful in your journey."

He removed his cloak and whipped out something from it. He handed it to her. She looked at it for a brief moment. It was a sword that shined a bright golden color. Just by looking at it, she knew that this was no ordinary sword. It possessed some kind of holy power. One that gave her a feeling of safety.

The princess slowly reached for the sword, grabbing it with her left hand. She looked at it some more.

"What is this?" she asked.

"It's the Sword of Light," he replied. "This sword is blessed with the power to vanquish the evil that resides in this place. Since you are clueless as to where to go, I will give you directions. In this place is a safe haven where you can rest before you go on to finish the rest of your journey. In order to reach it, you will have to find the key that opens the door at the far top of the room. It is located in a chest beyond the door behind you. Be careful. Those creatures you encountered earlier are here. With the sword, you will now have a fighting chance.

"Good luck, princess. I will see you again soon."

With one swift of his cloak, he vanished without a trace like he wasn't even there in the first place. She looked around for him but couldn't find the old man. Remembering what the old man told her, she walked over to the bottom of the courtyard where the wooden door awaited her.

She opened the door and went inside. She looked around to see that she was in a long dark chamber. She could see something on the other side of a large chasm, but couldn't make it out. She ventured deeper into the darkness… and felt her heart fill up with fear.

Standing before her was a group of the very creatures she had encountered, but these ones were much bigger than the ones she had stumbled upon. These were about the same size as her with eyes that seemed to be leaking and a smile that would make a demon run for its life.

She steadied herself, remembering that she had the Sword of Light in her hand. The creature charged at her with blinding speed. With all she had, she shut her eyes and swung the Sword of Light to protect herself from the creature's assault. A sickening screech filled her ears, which was quickly followed by a poof. She looked in time to see wafts of smoke dissipating in the same spot where the creature once stood.

She looked at the sword in disbelief. It killed the creature with one strike and turned it to smoke. She smiled, a wave of confidence filling her. No longer did she have to run for her life. No more were these creatures going to get the satisfaction of making her run scared. This time, she was going to fight back.

She walked around and encountered the same creatures coming after her. With the bravery of a warrior and the vigilance of a survivor, she struck back against them, watching as they exploded and turned them into smoke. Once they were gone, she ventured deeper, walking around the chasms that filled the room.

It took her a while, but she reached the end of the chamber and found a wooden door waiting for her. She opened the door and entered the room. She looked around and found herself in another dark chamber filled with holes in the floor.

Something came barreling at her. She dodged and looked around. In the darkness, she could see what looked like to be an eye shining through the darkness. Another projectile came barreling at her. She dodged it. With determination, she maneuvered around the room and approached one of the eyes. The light revealed it to be a blob that was undoubtedly a new breed of those creatures.

With one swing, she brought it down. The creature exploded with a pop. Moving up, she walked around the holes and destroyed the tiny creatures until they were no more. She moved up until she noticed the hallway turning left. She went in that direction until a door appeared at the end. She walked over to it and opened it. She went into the room and was surprised. She was back in the same room, only she was on the other side of the chasm. She found the way to get here.

She noticed a torch up ahead. She lit it with her lantern and a bridge formed, allowing her to get to the other side. However, she remembered that she had to find the key. Turning around, she went deeper into the chamber, killing more of those creatures as she did so. She was still afraid, but the desire for freedom kept her going forward. She wasn't going to give up. Not now.

She reached the far end of the room and found a door. Opening the door and stepping inside, she found herself in a large room filled with darkness. She looked and saw a treasure chest sitting on top of a large platform, the entrance blocked by a spiky gate. That was the chest the old man told her about. She looked and saw a torch nearby. Something clicked in her head as she realized getting the key wouldn't be easy.

'If I'm going to get to that, I'll have to light the torches that are scattered throughout the room,' she thought to herself. With that, she went over to the torch and lit it up.

Searching the room, she found other torches just like the one she had lit. The light from both the sword and lantern made it easy for her to walk around and find them. They saved her from falling into the holes that littered the room. Why there were so many of them was beyond her. Probably there for some poor soul to fall into and meet their demise.

After a while, she lit the last torch. She looked in time to see the gate lowering until she could no longer see it. She walked over to it, climbing up the stairs to the chest. The princess approached the chest and opened it. She whipped out a small key.

"Got it," she said to herself. "I can unlock the door and enter the room on the other side."

With that, she ran out of the room, continuing to run until she was back in the courtyard. She walked over to the door, holding the key tightly in her hand. She inserted the key into the keyhole. She twisted the key until she heard the sound of the lock undoing. She opened the door and entered the room.

The room was small with 3 torches and a large chasm in the center of the room, a door on the other side. The torches struck her as a bit odd. The one on the top was purple and the one in the center was red. She couldn't understand the meaning of it. She wasn't going to find out if she just stood there and did nothing that was for sure.

She walked over to the red and struck it with her sword. It lit up like a star. She looked to see her shadow standing next to her. She felt her heart skip a beat. How was this possible? However, it soon clicked in her mind. Maybe she could use her shadow to hit the purple torch while she hit the yellow one. Moving, she walked over to the yellow torch. She looked to see her shadow standing in front of the purple one. With a swing of her sword, she struck it. It lit up. She looked to see that the purple one was lit too. At the very same time, she watched a bridge form, allowing her to cross and reach the door. She walked across it and entered the next room.

She found herself in another chamber filled with those creatures. At the same time, she noticed a torch right in front of her. She knew what she had to do. Moving around the room, the princess lit the torches, all the while killing the bunny things that littered the room. It proved to be very difficult. With the blobs shooting a bunch of projectiles at her at all times, it was like playing a deadly game of dodgeball.

Killing the last of them, she lit the last torch. The door at the far end of the room opened. She walked over to it and went into the next room. She found herself in another room, this time empty. The sight was a relief to her. She didn't want to fight any more of those things. She had enough fighting for one day. She reached the other end of the room and opened the door, entering the next room. The door closed behind her… and a wave of surprise filled her.

She was back in the courtyard… only this time, there were torches standing in the middle of the room. Three purple ones, a red one in the center, and three yellow ones. She noticed a door on the wall that she hadn't seen before. It must've appeared while she was in the other rooms. It didn't take her long to figure it out.

'Looks like to open that door, I will have to light the torches,' she thought to herself. Walking to the red torch, she struck it with her sword. Just like last time, her shadow appeared and she began to light them up.

Once they were lit up, she saw two more of those torches appear. Astonishment filled her. The way they appear is like watching a magic trick along without the magician. She walked over to the yellow one and struck it. She watched as the torches moved on their own. It took her a moment to realize what this was. It was a puzzle. To open the door, she had to complete the puzzle. It was a guess, but she had a feeling that she had to form them into a circle.

With hesitating, she began to strike the purple and yellow torches as she tried to figure out the puzzle. The puzzle proved to be very difficult. She noticed that the purple torch moved the purple ones while the yellow one moved all of them. Despite her frustrations, she never gave up. After all she's been through so far, giving up now would be throwing all of her hard work out the window.

After what felt like an eternity, she managed to move the torches to the center. She watched in satisfaction as the door opened. She entered the room and found herself in a room that looked way too familiar. She recognized the room. It was the one she found herself in at the very beginning. The one she woke up in. How she ended up in the courtyard on the other side of the door she couldn't open earlier was beyond her. She looked to see the old man standing beside a door that looked to be glitchy.

"Congratulations, princess!" he exclaimed proudly. "It's great to see that you're alright."

"It's good to see you," she said with a small smile.

"You have done with you could," he said. "It's time to rest. Enter through this door and take a rest. You are close to the end of your journey. Once you're fully rested, you will face the last challenge that will stand in your way.

"Be careful. Once you step through that door, there will be no turning back. You will find yourself in a strange world, one far more dangerous than this one. You will have to use your wit and all you've learned to survive. The creatures won't hold back and will try to kill you wherever you go.

"I've done all I can to help you. Good luck, princess. You're going to need it."

She nodded, understanding. She was upset that she was going to be all alone once she stepped through that door, but she knew that the old man couldn't come with her. This was her fight alone. One that she will have to give her all.

The princess walked over to the door and entered the room. She found herself in a strange room. It didn't look like the rest of the rooms she explored in this place. This room had a desk filled with monitors and cabinets at the back wall.

"What is this place?" she asked herself before she blacked out, falling onto the floor on her side.

I stared at the screen as an 'ERROR' filled it. I sighed, grateful that it was done, removing my hands away from the controls in the process. The entire time that I was playing, all I could hear were the sounds of my sister and Roxanne struggling against Moon. I felt powerless, but I knew I had to complete the game if I wanted to help them stop Moon once and for all. It didn't help when all the noises stopped in the middle of the game.

Just like the last one, the sinister energy that emitted from this machine was gone, like it never existed. My heart skipped a beat when I realized something. Only one game was left. Once completed, this whole nightmare will come to an end. However, before I could do that, I had to take care of something important.

"I'm done!" I exclaimed. "I'm coming!"

I ran out of the beauty salon and back out into the open. I looked around for any signs of Lisa and Roxanne, but I couldn't. I whipped out my flashlight and turned it on. I moved the beam of light onto every single part of the place. There were no signs of them to be seen. It was as if they suddenly vanished without a trace.

"Looking for someone?" I heard a familiar ask behind me. I turned in time to see a fist coming for my face. I barely managed to dodge it in time. I looked to see that it was Moon. He had a sinister smile on his face. "You've got guts, kid. I will give you that. You have been a thorn since you've gotten here. No more. I will put you to sleep… permanently. And don't worry about your sister. She will be joining you shortly."

My eyes widened, my hands clenched into fists. I had enough. This has gone on far enough. In fact, the thorn here was him. If it were not for him, I wouldn't have to hide in a charging station and be forced to watch Roxanne and Freddy be taken from us. He had been an obstacle for most of the night. I had no doubt in my mind that he had something to do with where Lisa was.

Moon came charging at me at full speed. I was ready. I maneuvered out of the way and, clamping my hands together, slammed them into his back. Once on the floor, I got on top of him, grabbed his arms, and pulled as hard as I could. It took a moment for the sound of components being ripped out filled my ears. He screamed in pain, but I wasn't done.

I grabbed him by the back of the head, walked over to a wall, and began slamming it into the wall, screaming in rage as I did.

"I'VE… HAD… ENOUGH… OF YOU!" I screamed as I continued slamming his head into the wall. I didn't care how much it would take for the company to bring him back. I was going to get rid of him for good.

Once I felt he had enough, I dragged Moon into the beauty salon in the direction of the bathroom. I kicked the door to the boy's bathroom open and walked over to a urinal. I placed his head into it. I stood over him for a moment before I made my move.

I raised my foot and slammed it onto the back of his head. Sparks flew into the air, but that didn't stop me. I continued slamming my foot into him, screaming in rage as I did. I was letting it all out on him.

With one final stomp, his broke in half. I grabbed it and began ripping it into pieces, crushing the important compartments with my bare hands. I tossed them onto the floor and began ripping Moon's body into pieces. I didn't care. I was going to make sure he never came back. Once that was done, I tossed the pieces all over the floor before slamming my foot into his upper body, crushing the one thing that kept him powered on.

I looked at the damage I did. Moon was gone. I sighed as I walked out of the bathroom, heading to the main attraction, Roxy Raceway.