They walked straight back through the kitchen–Gregory hiding in Monty to evade Chica–and through a few doors and hallways clustered with boxes and shelving units. A recharging station pressed up against a corner beside a huge, industrial elevator. It opened from the middle like a set of jaws, its tooth-shaped, double-layered metal doors opening at a delay to one another to allow them entrance.
Roxy had vanished from the atrium floor when they came back, which was good for him, he supposed. But at the same time, he had no clue where she was, now.
Monty said as they walked, "You can get to the Prize Counter through the Super Starcade, which is locked tight. So, you'll get through El Chips. But the fire escape should be right next to the Prize Counter. We got this."
They climbed up a set of escalators to the carpeted first-floor balcony. El Chips, Gregory found, was on the third-floor balcony in the middle of the east wing.
Stairs.
Why couldn't the Starcade be on the first or even second floor? Main floor?
They passed fake potted plants and clusters of arcade cabinets as well as a large menu stuck into the floor in front of El Chips. When Gregory stepped up to it, it opened a couple feet, but no more.
Monty sighed. "Yep, that's what I was afraid of." He got down and shoved his head under it and then pulled it back. He heaved in the effort it took to attempt to push the shutters further. They creaked, and his claws dug shallow marks into the metal, but they didn't open any further. He released the shutters, sat back, and adjusted his glasses. "I'll just have to go the long way. See you there, Little guy! Stay out of trouble, huh?"
Gregory blinked and then laughed. "Yeah, you, too!" Look at those gouges! He could have cut straight through that if he wanted to!
"He's strong, and those claws of his make him stronger."
Gregory ducked under the slightly warped shutters and stood up in a warm-colored, tortilla-chip-and-beaver-themed restaurant. Shelves of chips lined up beside him and a counter with soda fountains–all dark–lined up beside a cash register under a few menu signs. A huge beaver with a sombrero stood at the far right wall. Further in the L-shaped space, a single S.T.A.F.F. bot plain of color save for its characteristic blush marks and buttons slowly pushed a mop over the orange and maroon tiled floor. The bot didn't mind the borderline useless flashlight on it.
Gregory avoided it and the wet floor as he made his way to the orange with yellow zig-zagged lines and black-and-white checkerboard shutters, which opened up all the way for him. The curvy hall lined with red couches and neon cacti with sombreros led to a set of confetti shutters and then a wide space with more shiny maroon and orange tile with a mop bot. When he stepped out, he only saw some couches, chairs, tables, and mild decorations. A few air hockey tables stood to the side.
Beep! [Hey, you made it to the East Arcade! The Prize Counter is through the security office. That's the door with the badge symbol on it.]
This was the arcade? It looked more like a lounge than anything else.
Then, Gregory walked deeper in.
He passed up some wide area of counters with soda fountains and silverware on them, and a few kiddies carts nearby. Clusters of arcade machines, games, and fewer decorations to block his view of possible places to spend his limited money he really shouldn't be spending spread out over the floor glinting in the scant neon lights, his own flashlight, and the sole flashlight of the security bot rolling around.
Roxy called from deeper in the arcade behind him, "Hey kid, come on out! We're only trying to help."
He jumped and looked back and then forward at where a door with a security badge painted on it stood. Thank goodness I don't need to risk going back there. He walked up to the door, careful to stay quiet and not get in the way of the patrolling security bot. He reached up to the door handle and–
Click.
Gregory's heart sank. "Monty? The door won't open."
Beep! [Guessing you don't have the security clearance. There happens to be a roll-up door thing on the other side of the Starcade leading right to it.]
Gregory grimaced, turned, and walked straight back in the direction he'd come. Roxy goaded, "I bet you don't even have friends."
Okay, rude.
He untied his coat, slipped it on so it wouldn't drag on the ground, and crouched down low. Gregory pocketed his flashlight and snuck around the edge of the Starcade, keeping toward the walls and making sure to keep clusters of arcade cabinets or various attractions like basketball throw between him and her as much as possible. He really had to squint and search for his way, but the light given off by a second security bot's flashlight near his destination helped with his direction. He squeezed between the cabinets and wall near the end, passed by an open vent, and got to the slim set of confetti shutters that refused to open. "Locked again?" he hissed. "Why does a pizza place need so much security?"
Beep! [They're required after past events. I don't know too much about it myself. Maybe there's another way in.]
There has to be. Gregory glanced back at the wall where he'd seen the open vent and walked back to it. He shifted Bonnie under his arm and pulled out his flashlight. Well, may as well try.
He crawled into the metal vent, leaving the glittery arcade and its patrolling bots behind. The scrappy little Mini Music Man crawled down from a vertical vent above. Gregory bristled and began crawling again, this time faster. The thing scuttled after him, clanging its cymbals and gnashing its broken teeth. A few turns and a short incline later, he found freedom.
Gregory pushed himself out of the vent and landed deftly on the ground. A wall with a security badge and a security door faced him. Rather, it was a wall to a smaller room within the room he now occupied with tables, desks with multiple computer screens, shelving units, boxes, and an arcade cabinet.
He passed through the security door and into a smaller, more cluttered office. This one had a Freddy head badge holder resting on the desk. He pressed its nose. It slowly opened until it was wide enough for him to take the card before snapping shut.
Gregory bristled as an alarm squealed. The security doors opened. The intercom above stated, "Emergency Lockdown activated. This area is off-limits to guests."
"No, no, no!" Gregory squeaked. "Monty! I don't know what happened! All I did was take the badge."
Beep! Gregory checked his chat log. [Don't worry! I'll help ya out. Just gotta disable the alarm, uh, somehow.]
Gregory looked at the closed doors. Roxy's heavy footsteps thudded outside. "You don't know how to shut off the alarm?"
Beep! [I never said that! I know how! It'll just take me a minute. Make sure to keep those doors closed and stop them from getting in, alright?]
Roxy yelled, "You are nothing!"
Gregory took a deep breath. "Okay. Yeah, I'll do that."
Gregory looked at the security doors. Power bars sat beside each one.
Roxy stalked up toward the right door.
Gregory darted over to the door and pressed the Freddy head button. The door slammed shut. The boy hid from sight from the window beside it and winced as he heard Roxy's fists clanging against the door. Her sharpened claws screeched against the unyielding metal.
The power bar slowly drained.
Gregory tapped his glasses and looked at the CAMS tab. Eventually, the animatronic wolf gave up and continued patrolling. The boy took this opportunity to open the door again.
Roxy came in around the other side. He raced to the other door and slammed it shut. She started her assault on the only barrier between her and her to-be victim. Eventually, Roxy gave up and continued walking.
Gregory switched doors, opening the recently battered one and closing the necessary one.
He flitted from one side of the room to the other. For the most part, he either had one door closed or they were both open as the animatronic loitered and stalked around, looking for a real opportunity to strike.
Roxy said, "Hey, Kid, come on out. We're only trying to help."
Then, he stood by the wrong door a little too long.
Roxy charged straight through the open door. She grabbed him and yanked him off the ground, her glowing lavender eyes glaring into his. He screamed and tried to grab her muzzle, dropping Bonnie in the process, but she shook him off and shoved her face forward. The last thing he saw was her endoskeleton's second set of teeth. Hard, rounded material pressed down on either side of his head.
Gregory blinked and jerked his hand back. His head whipped back and forth, and he ran his fingers through his hair, dislodging his knitted hat, finding neither Roxy's teeth nor any cuts left behind by them in his head. The air conditioner quietly whirred overhead, and technology beeped and hummed. Both doors were at full power. "What the heck?"
"Oh my God you almost died."
But I did die? What happened?
"I don't know! Roxy killed you!"
But I'm still alive! He checked the time. And it's still four-fifteen! What's wrong with this place?!
Beep! Gregory checked his chat log. [Did something happen?]
Gregory started to speak and then hesitated and said, "No. I just have a bad feeling that this is going to set off an alarm."
Beep! [You're probably right. I'll get ready to disarm it. Hold on for a moment.]
…
Beep! [Okay. It'll take a few minutes, but I think I know how. When you're ready.]
"When I'm ready," Gregory echoed and sighed. He set Bonnie down. Did he even want to pick up the badge now that he knew Roxy could come charging in and kill him?
Well of course he knew Roxy could kill him; why else had he been avoiding her so far? If he was going to get out and away from Roxy and the white rabbit, he needed a higher security level. The way to get a higher security level was with this, that was that. So, he took a breath to steel himself, and pressed the nose on the Freddy head.
He took the badge once it was presented to him.
Alarms blared and the doors opened. Gregory changed the tab on his glasses from the chat log to the camera tab. He worked much harder to keep Roxy out, staying on his toes and darting from door to door, not staying at a closed one for longer than absolutely necessary.
Then, the doors shut on their own. The power bars stopped draining. The alarms shut off.
Roxy, at the door, spat and stalked off.
Beep! Gregory switched to the chat log on his glasses. [There we go! Knew I could do it!]
Beep! [I mean, I knew we could do it! Now just head on down once the coast is clear.]
Gregory rolled his eyes. True, it was a team effort. Gregory had been the one in danger, though. He picked up Bonnie and snuck out of the security office into the back room of the Prize Counter filled with shelving units of various merchandise and containers. Many of the containers had a weirdly disproportionate amount of Freddy plushies, but of older models. He went straight out the door Roxy left through.
Toys and objects sat on shelves and hung from walls. Posters decorated the walls. A huge one of a yellow jester with a sun-shaped face stared down at him. A blue jester with a crescent-moon painted face was not far behind. Their plushies and dolls intermixed with the bands'. ATM machines and a few counters made ample hiding places as he heard Roxy stalking around the circular room with a huge elevator in the middle. "MEGA PIZZAPLEX" in neon lights stamped above it. He suspected that the elevator would go down, and he didn't need to go down. He needed to get to the fire escape. Every building had a fire escape, after all.
A pair of shutters behind the elevator did not yield to him, so he had to walk around to the hall beside it, whose yellow foldable gate pushed back until it was completely folded.
Gregory kept an eye on the cameras and one on his surroundings as he listened for the she-wolf. He did have to wait, hiding behind walls or inside the single kiddie cart sitting in the dome room until she passed. But when he got to the door labeled "FIRE EXIT", he found it flanked by two wet floor sign bots, red rope, and a scrubber machine resembling a push-able lawnmower.
Worst of all, when he went to open the double doors, they did not budge.
"What kind of fire escape is locked?!" he exclaimed and then winced and whipped his head around to look up and down the hall and make sure Roxy hadn't heard him.
Beep! [Seems like you're not… VIP enough? Who's not VIP enough to escape a fire? You'll need a much higher security rank… hold on while I pull a Freddy.]
Gregory snorted. "Pull a Freddy?"
"He probably means 'Do something good or in someone's favor' or 'fix a glaring issue' but doesn't want to admit it."
Beep! [I lodged a formal complaint. Come back to the Prize Counter, I know a good way out!]
There was an elevator by the Prize Counter, wasn't there? Gregory backtracked. When Roxy stalked up the colorful, gently curved hallway, he hopped into a laundry tub thing and hid until she passed. He made it back down the hall and through the star-dome room before getting to the Prize Counter with the elevator in it. The elevator itself was surrounded by a few layers of glass with a hole cut through for the door–likely to keep people safe as they observed the Pizzaplex on the way down. Just as he hit the button to call it, a hand–organic and just larger than his own with fingers free of gloves–grabbed him by the arm. "Gotcha!"
Gregory screamed and spun around. He immediately lashed out at her, but she grabbed him by the arms, still holding her bulky flashlight precariously in a few fingers, and kept him from fleeing. "Kid, hold on, I'm trying to help you!"
Gregory snapped back, "Well it doesn't look like it!"
Grrrraaaaaarrrrrrrr!
A loud, snarling roar emanated from the other side of the room. Monty rushed out of the hall and into the room, head down and muzzle tipped up to bare his teeth. Officer Vanessa jumped, and her grip reflexively loosened enough for Gregory to break free. Gregory wheezed out a breath and took a few steps back out of the security officer's reach. She didn't pursue him and instead stayed facing Monty.
Monty's eyes tracked Gregory. He snarled and bent his head a little further down. He twitched and opened and closed his claws.
Beep! Gregory touched his glasses. [Run! Hide!]
Gregory spun around and ran, minimizing the chat box as he went. Beep! He considered opening the chat message but decided against it. It took up too much room in his vision.
"Run, run, run!" Monty roared behind him. Gregory looked back and his heart stopped seeing his once-umber eyes glowing a sharp lavender. Monty leaped straight over Officer Vanessa, who also gave chase.
Gregory took a corner and raced into the star-dome room.
"You are nothing!" Roxy barked from the fire escape hall.
Gregory stopped and jumped into the kiddie stroller. He slapped a hand over his mouth and curled up as tightly as he could. Monty rushed around the other side of the dome and Vanessa ran straight past Gregory. He slowly let go of his mouth and took slow, deep, quiet breaths. Roxy snarled at the two newcomers. Officer Vanessa prompted her about Gregory and got a defensive answer in return.
Gregory popped open the top of the kiddie stroller, slipped out, and snuck back toward the elevator.
"There you are!" Monty yelled.
Gregory still had quite the distance between him and the elevator. He took out his camera, spun around, and flashed it. Monty ran straight up to him and snatched him off the ground.
"Why didn't that work?!" Gregory yelped.
"His glasses, Gregory!"
Oh. I'm dead. Gregory stuck the camera in his coat and grabbed the alligator's snout. "Wait, Monty! You're supposed to be my friend!" he pleaded. "You taught me how to play min-golf, remember? You said you'd help me escape! You said you wouldn't hurt me!"
Monty's victorious growl tapered off. He blinked. "Gregory?"
Roxy charged in behind him. "Hey! He's mine! I was here first!"
Monty snarled back at her and ran, holding Gregory one armed and using the other arm and his tail for balance. Roxy stopped chasing him. Monty threw himself out onto the balcony and between some potted plants and a coin-powered car ride and staggered so he hit the rail.
"Monty!" Officer Vanessa barked, stalking out of one of the shutters to the Prize Counter.
Monty turned on her. He crouched, set to run, but strangely didn't move.
"Set the child down. Now."
Gregory looked up at him but couldn't see anything above the bottom of his chin. "Monty, we need to get out of here!"
Officer Vanessa stated, "That's an order, Monty. Release him. Now."
Gregory crossed, "Don't listen to her!"
Monty snarled, "Shut up! Shut up, I'm tryin' to think!"
The security officer stated, "Don't think! Set the child down!" She was within feet of them now.
Gregory yelped as Monty's claws dug into his arm. "Ow, ow, ow! Monty!"
Monty's head whipped down, and his claws relaxed. "What–?"
Officer Vanessa lunged forward. A barbed black box on a stick appeared in her hand. Monty released Gregory before it even touched him. It hit the animatronic alligator's thigh and he let out a short roar that was very quickly cut off. His head bowed and arms dangled. The security officer grabbed Gregory, slamming into Monty as she did so. Something cracked and metal creaked.
Gregory was pulled forward. He gritted his teeth against the pain in arm and clutched Bonnie tighter. Warm wetness trailed down his bare arm. "Let me go!"
The security guard continued to move, walking straight past some overly complex music place on an overhang and to a set of stairs. "Oh, no. You've caused enough trouble tonight, Buster. You're going to sit in Lost and Found like a good little boy."
Gregory tried prying her fingers off, but it was quite the task one-handed and jeez was she made of steel? "Monty!" Gregory yelled.
Behind him, Monty growled to life. "Hey! Li-ittle–!" The animatronic alligator, who'd been leaning heavily on the awkwardly bent railing, woke up and immediately tried to move only to throw himself off balance further as he didn't right himself first.
Monty fell, screaming, off the third-floor balcony.
Crachhunk!
Gregory's eyes went wide as he watched his purple feet and yellow and green banded tail vanish below the floor. "Oh, no, Monty!"
Officer Vanessa stopped and looked back. Then, she continued moving, pulling him onto a frozen escalator. "He'll be fine; Parts and Service will pick him up in the morning."
Gregory followed her, staring numbly after the place the alligator had fallen and must currently be, though he couldn't see him, even from the stairs. Not with the security officer blocking his way.
He looked up at her as they got near the elevators. No, no, no he couldn't follow her. No matter what she did, she couldn't "have his best intentions in mind". She didn't even care Monty was hurt!
Gregory pulled his arm, and thus hers, toward himself and bit down on the side of her hand hard enough to feel the bones beneath her skin. She yelped and dropped her flashlight. Officer Vanessa, rather than releasing Gregory or pulling his hair as he expected her to do, grabbed Bonnie by the ears and yanked him free.
Gregory let go of her. "Bonnie, no! Let him go!"
Officer Vanessa held the rabbit out of arms reach, her knuckles white with how tight she squeezed his aging ears and her emerald eyes burning. Pale lavender flecks pierced the green of her irises. Gregory flinched and shrunk back into himself.
"That seriously hurt," she stated slowly, hissing the words through her teeth. "Don't bite me again. Do you understand?"
Gregory nodded.
Officer Vanessa closed her eyes. When she opened them, some of the tenseness left her, though there was still that sharp glare in her clear green eyes. "You're going to come with me and sit tight and wait for your parents or the police to arrive. Then you'll get your toy. Got it?"
"Please don't mess with her, Gregory. I don't want to be with her."
Gregory nodded again.
"Good." The severity left her tone, and she lowered Bonnie to her other side. She picked up her flashlight, balancing the hefty thing in her remaining fingers and palm, and said offhandedly as they walked, "Monty's going to be fine. I'm sure if your parents take you here, you'll see him on stage or in the golf course again. Good as new."
Gregory glanced back at the balcony. Monty still hadn't made a noise.
The elevator beeped and opened.
Officer Vanessa kept him in a death grip the entire time. A crescent shaped set of dents and pealed skin marred the surface of her hand, just behind her knuckle.
Behind the counter of the help desk, a door led to a stairway right and up, but there were two other doors there as well–one directly across from the entering door and one to the left, across from the stairs. Vanessa opened the left door, pushing down on the handle with her elbow. Then she flipped on a light within the small room as they entered, causing him to wince. Shelves cluttered with boxes of various colors and a few objects lined one wall, while a cluster of four monitors perched over a desk on the opposite wall. An amalgamation of novelty gifts sprawled out beneath them.
She clicked off her flashlight, shut the door with her foot, and released Gregory.
He pulled his arm back. It took every fiber of his being not to retreat further. Officer Vanessa set down her flashlight and held out Bonnie for Gregory. He immediately, gently, took the rabbit and ran his hands over his ruffled ears. "You're okay," he mumbled.
"Thank you for not leaving me."
"You're my best friend; I'm never leaving you."
Gregory jumped as the woman reentered his vision and took a step back. She held up one hand in a signal of submission. "Hey, I'm not going to hurt you. Look, I need to clean your arm. I'm no paramedic, but I know how to use a Walmart med kit." Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the first aid kit in her other hand. He wanted to argue, to shake his head and flee. But he knew better. Gregory had no place to run. She knew that. Why else would she let him go?
So, he didn't move.
He winced as she wiped off his arm. He couldn't help the feeling of alarm upon seeing the ragged gashes in his arm. They were thin and short, but immediately upon being disturbed they started to bleed again. Though she wiped off the blood from around the puncture wounds, more dried blood dribbled down his arm and coalesced at the bottom. It must have been dripping at least a minute or so prior. How had he not noticed that?!
"He didn't mean it," Gregory said without thinking. "You made him. He was just holding me."
"This was an accident," she pointed out. "I know that. Why do you think I didn't want him holding you? He's been acting strangely all night. He could've done much worse to you than that if I let him run off with you."
"Nuh-uh. Monty's my friend," Gregory emphasized.
"He's your friend when he's functioning properly," she corrected, cleaning off the last of the blood and wrapping his arm in gauze. The roll ran out just as she got past the edge of his wound. "They never refill these things," she mumbled to herself and released him. "Now, wait here." With that, she clipped shut the first aid kit, hung it up, grabbed her flashlight, and walked through the door. She hesitated in the doorframe. "Really, I'm not the bad guy, Gregory. I'm trying to help you. It's dangerous for kids to be here at night."
She closed the door.
The time was two am.
What the heck was with time–whatever, not important right now! Chat logs first!
[Never mind, don't run! Don't run!]
There were the things he'd said out loud, which Gregory skimmed over. And then… nothing else. Nothing else? Oh, not good, not good! He tapped out of it so he could see his surroundings more easily.
"Monty? Monty are you there?" he called as if he could summon his animatronic friend if he searched hard enough. Could he even get here at all? Gregory could see a red-and-blue security door and a large vent in the wall by the floor, but he neither had a high-security pass nor a screwdriver. "I'm trapped."
"We'll think of something. There has to be something."
Gregory squeezed Bonnie tight in a hug, and that helped with his anxiety. His arm stung a little, but whatever goop she put on it before wrapping it eased any actual pain. "I don't know. How?"
The cluster of monitors, once showing nothing but static, flickered to life. A patchy, off-white bunny mask with wide red eyes and slit pupils stared straight at him through the screens. Mangled whiskers popped out of her muzzle and her wide smile felt dim beneath her glowing eyes. His blood turned to ice. The screens hissed with static so he could barely see the image. "Hello, Gregory!" Her soft, cooing voice caused a chill to run down his spine. "All wrapped up like a gift. Sit tight, little gift; I'll see you soon~!" Her voice crackled near the end.
The monitors fell back into a hissing, warping static.
Okay, so, Monty wasn't responding to him, Officer Vanessa thought he was safe and was not likely to come back, he didn't have the security clearance to open the door, and that rabbit lady knew where he was! Did he even trust Officer Vanessa to open the door for him? …yeah, she threw Monty off the third story for thinking he was going to hurt Gregory. She'd probably do the same to some psycho child-stealing rabbit lady.
Gregory searched through the room, skimming over the pile of junk, and sweeping over boxes until he found a few tools lying discarded on the floor. One of them happened to be a small, red screwdriver. With a victorious hiss, he snatched the tool and ran to the vent.
A melodic hum, this one organic from a human and not a machine, grew loud enough for him to register.
The boy looked up. Through the window, he saw wide rabbit feet–one silver, one muted tan–skipping down the stairs before the room. He unscrewed the vent register as quickly as his shaking fingers would allow. The white rabbit stood before the translucent window of Lost and Found, her big red eyes staring down at Gregory and her hand raised in a wave. His head hurt, and his mind went fuzzy as his ears filled with static.
The boy grabbed Bonnie, pushed himself through the vent, and out the other register. He stumbled to the polished checkerboard floor and took off at a sprint, stumbling over his clumsy feet at the sudden acceleration. His mind was clear again, and he wasn't about to let that change. Behind him, the footsteps became quicker and farther apart. As he rushed up the stairs, he dared a glance back.
The rabbit chased him. Her ears wavered in the air as she raced out of the hall and to the stairs. By the time her fluffy feet hit the stairs, Gregory was already on level ground.
He slammed full force into the left, inactive elevator. Gregory squeaked a mild swear and rushed to the right elevator. He fought to get it open faster and darted inside. He winced as the static came back and tried to block out his senses and thoughts. The doors hadn't opened all the way before he slammed the button.
The last thing he saw before the doors shut was a pair of red eyes way, way too close.
The elevator whirred and ascended.
Beep! Gregory immediately checked his chat log. [Gregory, if you're getting any of these messages, meet me by Fazer Blast.]
"I just got your message!" Gregory reassured him and took out his tiny flashlight. "I'm going to Fazer Blast!"
The elevator stopped. Gregory darted off the balcony, onto the main atrium floor, and started to run to Monty Golf before changing directions and running in the opposite direction. A large platform with a rocket stood before the "FAZER BLAST" attraction. He dipped under the party shutters and stepped into a different kind of alien world than that of Monty Golf. His shoes fell upon the purple, cosmic carpet. A huge, cartoon rocket ship statue dominated the center area, while alien ships scattered around the fringes too high up for Gregory to climb–including a Ferris Wheel with UFOs instead of seats. A small shop with stairs leading atop it sat on the right side. Green neon lights lit up the pillars flanking the elevator in bars while a few neon space-Helpys spattered the walls. A hallway to the right led to some other attraction, probably, he didn't see in the dark. A ticket bot standing before the elevator blocked his entry.
The shadows shifted to his left and he perked up. Gregory turned to the corner with his flashlight and gasped. Monty sat in the corner, his head bowed and a good amount of the shell in his side and chest caved in. His jaw was crooked, and throat caved in, and his tail bent at an awkward degree. His cracked glasses managed to stay on his snout, at least. Worst of all was the fact he was holding one of his arms on his lap, completely detached.
The time was two-fifteen am.
"Monty? Are you okay?" Gregory asked dumbly and nearly slapped himself.
When Gregory approached, he snarl-growled, hesitated, and then growl-grunt-huffed. Monty bent his head again. Beep! [You're alive! That's what's important, Little guy. I'll be fine. Just need some repairs done.]
"Is there anything I can do?" Gregory asked.
Monty nodded. Beep! [Help me get to Parts and Service.]
Gregory nodded sharply; gaze set in determination. "Of course, I will! How will I get there?"
Beep! [It's down under the main stage. Normally the lift takes us there after every concert. I'm not normally responsive any other time I'm sent there. You can use the door beyond that hall in that room under the Racetrack Hall to get to the Rehearsal room and get a Backstage Pass and turn on the lift.]
Beep! [I believe in you, Little guy. You're real smart! I'll be here if you need me, but my claws are a little damaged at the moment.]
Gregory nodded. "I-I understand. Okay. I'll do my best." Gregory got up and turned to the hall. With one last glance back at Monty, he walked straight through the lesser decorated room and to the blue door that would eventually lead to the rehearsal room. He took a deep breath to gather his resolve and pushed through.