Author's Note: I don't know about you guys, but Night 3 was, like, the one I struggled with the most. Took me forever to master Funtime Auditorium (ironic, seeing as Funtime Foxy is one of my favorite animatronics), and once I came up with a strategy and could get through it easily, then I couldn't catch freakin' Bon-Bon for the longest time. Finally got a strategy for both these things and mastered it. Those strategies are what Mike uses in this chapter, so if you ever end up playing Sister Location and start struggling with Night 3, try using them. It works for me, anyway.
"Welcome back to another pivotal night of your thriving new career, where you get to really ask yourself: what am I doing with my life?" Hand-Unit's voice boomed through the elevator. "What would my friends say, and most importantly, will I ever see my family again?"
Michael gave a bitter laugh, muttering, "I don't have much family left, anyway."
"We understand the stresses of a new job, and we're here for you," Hand-Unit said. "To help you reach a more stable and relaxing frame of mind, we offer several musical selections to help make this elevator ride as relaxing and therapeutic as possible. We offer contemporary jazz, classical, rainforest ambiance, as well as a wide selection of other choices."
"Well...guess I could use some relaxation." He let out a shuddering breath. It was true; he could. Between feeling exhausted from last night, anxious over his current shift, angered by the horrid encounter with his father, depressed over lingering thoughts of the past, and pained from his injured ankle, he was already a tired, stressed mess. But just alert enough to focus on the tasks ahead.
"Using the keypad below," Hand-Unit instructed, "please type the first few letters of the musical selection you would prefer." Michael reached for his belt and retrieved the keypad, which was noticeably dented from whacking Funtime Freddy upside the head. As usual, the keys glitched around the screen.
"Ah." Michael sighed. "Why am I not surprised?" He randomly smashed the letters, and as expected, an error popped up.
"It seems you had some trouble with the keypad," Hand-Unit said.
"Big surprise." Michael rolled his eyes.
"I see what you were trying to type, and I will auto correct it for you," said the obnoxious guide. "Thank you for selecting: Casual Bongos."
Michael lowered the keypad, his eyes shifting around confusedly as the odd choice of music began to play. He shook his head. "What even are these options?"
"Now that your elevator experience has been customized to your needs," Hand-Unit continued, "and you're thoroughly relaxed, it's worth mentioning that due to your lackluster performance yesterday, your pay has been decreased by a substantial amount. Please enjoy the rest of your descent."
"Great." Michael threw his hands up. "Just what I need right now. A cut in pay. You know why my performance was 'lack-luster'? Because I was almost freakin' killed!" He lowered his arms and pinched the bridge of his nose, letting out a long breath. "Who am I even talking to? I've gotta calm down, otherwise I'm definitely not making it through tonight."
He spent the rest of the ride standing there in silence as he glared at the doors. He made sure to keep most his weight off his throbbing ankle; he knew he couldn't forever, since moving around would require him to use it. That would certainly be difficult and painful, but surely tonight wouldn't require nearly as much as last night, right? He breathed a sigh, silently wishing Charlie could be there with him. This elevator ride felt nearly unbearable without her.
As soon as the elevator stopped and the familiar cheery tune played, Michael exited. He limped to the vent, and after inhaling and exhaling to steady his nerves, he lowered himself to the floor and inched his way into the vent. Thankfully, he did not have to use his ankle much for crawling, but it hadn't stopped aching since he drove himself to work. Putting the pain to the back of his mind, he sped up and crawled through the vent at a quickened pace.
"Due to unforeseen malfunctions from today's shows, your nightly duties will require you to perform maintenance that you may or may not be skilled enough to perform." Hand-Unit's voice echoed through the vent. "It became necessary for technicians to attempt to disconnect Funtime Freddy's power module. However, they were unsuccessful."
"Big surprise." Michael climbed into the room and struggled to stand as his ankle throbbed. "Let me guess. I have to do it?"
"Allowing them to try again would be an inefficient path forward," said Hand-Unit, "as we would need to allow six to eight weeks for recovery and physical therapy. You will need to reach the Parts and Service room on the other side of Funtime Auditorium to perform the procedure yourself."
"Yep, called it." Michael moved towards Ballora's window. "At least I'll finally be using some of the information Charlie and I studied."
"Let's check on Ballora first," Hand-Unit said, "and make sure she's on her stage." Michael turned on the light. The moment he did, he jumped back from the keypad, making himself cry out in pain when his ankle nearly gave out. The Minireenas still stood in their usual positions, but Ballora? She was disfigured and broken, a horrifying mess, her pieces held up by her little minions. As the light flickered back out, he ran a hand through his brown hair, wondering if perhaps he hallucinated it. That had hardly looked real.
"Great, it looks like everything is as it should be in Ballora Gallery." Hand-Unit sounded satisfied. "Let's check on Funtime Foxy. It's important to make sure she's on her stage before entering."
Michael recovered from the shock, sending the room around him a glare. "Does that look great to you, stupid? She's fallen apart!" With a shake of his head, he went over to the other window and activated the light. It shined on the stage within the room, revealing no Funtime Foxy.
"Great, it looks like everything is as it should be in Funtime Auditorium," Hand-Unit said. "There is no need to check on Baby tonight; please refrain from entering unauthorized areas. Proceed directly to Funtime Auditorium."
"How about no?" Michael pressed the shock button. As usual, it remained grey and barely budged. He hit it several times, but to no avail. "Great." He ran a hand down his face. "So Funtime Foxy's loose." The front and right vent opened. He lifted a foot and ducked down, prepared to enter Funtime Auditorium, but he stilled halfway there. His eyes trailed to the entryway vent to Circus Baby's Auditorium. It stood open, despite the fact Hand-Unit told him not to enter. Straightening, Michael took a few shuffling steps towards it. Something about it was alluring, as if it silently called for him to go. If he wasn't allowed to, then why had it opened?
A soft girl's voice whispered at the back of his mind, barely audible. Help me... Gulping hard, he bent down and entered the vent.
"Motion trigger: Circus Gallery vent." Came the usual alerting voice.
"No," Michael whispered while he crawled, "I'm not here. You hear nothing." He kept going till he exited into the room, which was completely dark, making the eerie shapes of the control panel, keypad, and figurine look menacing. That is, more menacing than usual. Frowning, Michael glanced around. He had half expected something to be there, but the room proved to be empty. His eyes shifted down to the space beneath the desk. On an impulse, he got down on his hands and knees and crawled in. As usual, his ankle pained him, but he ignored it and shoved himself inside. After pulling sheet of metal shut, he waited in the tight space.
After a moment, he facepalmed and shook his head. "What am I doing? I need to get to work, this is stupid."
He reached to uncover his hiding spot, but his hand froze, for Circus Baby's soft voice entered the room. "Did you know that I was on stage once? It wasn't for very long, only one day." Michael drew his hand away, listening as she spoke, "What a wonderful day, though. I was in a small room with balloons and a few tables. No one sat at the tables, though, but children would run in and out. Some were afraid of me, others enjoyed my songs. Music was always coming from somewhere else, down a hall. I would always count the children; I'm not sure why. I was always acutely aware of how many there were in the room with me." She began to count. "Two, then three, then two, then three, then four, then two, then none. They usually played together in groups of two or three.
"I was covered in glitter. I smelled like birthday cake." She sounded so happy, so full of life, especially for an animatronic. She kept counting, "There were two, then three, then five, then four. I can do something special. Did you know that? I can make ice cream...although I only did it once." He smiled faintly, remembering how many times Elizabeth once blabbered about Circus Baby's ice cream function. "There were four, then three, then two, then one."
His smile faded and a feeling of unease coiled in his stomach as Circus Baby continued, "Something happened when there was one. A little girl, standing by herself. I was no longer...myself. And I stopped singing. My stomach opened and there was ice cream. I couldn't move, at least not until she stepped closer. There was screaming for a moment, but only for a moment." He tensed, his lips parting. "Then other children rushed in again, but they couldn't hear her over the sounds of their own excitement. I still hear her sometimes." His thoughts went back to the voice in his head, the one he'd heard before entering this room. Quiet, sweet, with a British accent. Elizabeth's voice. Was that who Circus Baby heard? The animatronic spoke the last few words, her voice saddening. "Why did that happen?"
Michael covered his mouth, his breaths increasing rapidly as he thought over all the information that she and others had told him. He found himself finally beginning to put the pieces together. The last time he saw Elizabeth, it was right when she and William had left for the opening of Circus Baby's Pizza World.
"Did you know that I was on stage once? It wasn't for very long, only one day." Circus Baby's words repeated through his head.
That location closed the day after its opening, which was also the day after Elizabeth's disappearance. One day of Circus Baby's Pizza World. One show. And no Elizabeth. He remembered questioning his father about it, begging him to tell him what had happened to her. Michael never did find out. She was just...gone, dead, as he had said countless times. He loved and hated the memory of her, grieved over her endlessly. Through all that grief and wishing for her to be alive, he remembered her love for Circus Baby and her ice cream, but there was something a bit odd. Even on the day of the location's opening, William forbade her from seeing the animatronic.
"Daddy won't let me see Circus Baby, Mikey. Why won't he?" He remembered Elizabeth's words from that day. One of their last conversations.
"I dunno, Lizzy. Heh...maybe it's because she's gonna eat you!"
"Hey! Baby would never do that! She's wonderful!"
"Yeah, I know. Just teasing you. You'll get plenty of ice cream from her soon enough, just give Father time. You know how he is."
"I guess. Thanks, Mikey."
He shook his head hard, begging the memories to stop.
"Something happened when there was one. A little girl, standing by herself." Was that Elizabeth? "I was no longer...myself. And I stopped singing. My stomach opened and there was ice cream. I couldn't move, at least not until she stepped closer. There was screaming for a moment, but only for a moment."
"No." He gritted his teeth. "Stop."
"The animatronics never act like that around kids, right?" His question for William, from the conversation earlier. What had his father's answer been again?
"I'm sure Elizabeth can answer that question for you."
"No!" Michael covered his face. "Lizzy..." He fought tears, all the horrid words repeating to him what deep down he'd already figured out. Elizabeth had been killed by Circus Baby, killed by the very animatronic she adored so profusely. He didn't know how or why, but it happened. The mystery was partly solved, and he was left breaking down in a tight space, his tears now flowing freely and his body shuddering with soft sobs.
Circus Baby's voice came one last time. "I'm so sorry..." He uncovered his face, choking on the sobs that rose in his tight throat. With several quivering breaths, he managed to calm himself enough to think clearly. The mystery wasn't solved completely. More was going on, there had to be. Not just with Elizabeth, but with the other location, perhaps all of them.
He clenched his fists and released a long breath. "O-okay, get back to work. I...I can think about this properly later." Still shaking, he reopened the hiding area and climbed out. As he stood, his ankle burned and he nearly collapsed, biting down on his lip to keep from screaming. He exhaled, calming himself, then got down and left the room through the usual vent. He didn't even bother to stand up when he exited, crawling straight into the one leading to Funtime Auditorium. When he emerged into the room, he saw nothing but darkness; it was even worse than Ballora Gallery now that he didn't have a flashlight. That could be solved easily.
He reached to grab the flashlight from his belt but froze as Hand-Unit's voice arrived. "Unlike Ballora, Funtime Foxy is motion-activated. For this reason, it's important to keep the room dark, as to not accidentally activate her. You have been provided with a flash beacon. Use it if you need to get your bearings and to ensure you don't bump into anything. However, use it as sparingly as possible. Proceed forward to reach the Parts and Service room."
Michael felt around his belt till he found the beacon, then he took it off and clasped it tightly in his hand. "Huh. Always wondered what this was." Gulping, he limped forward, hitting the proper button and briefly lighting up the room. He saw nothing, save the exit door which stood quite far from him. He crept forward a few paces, then stopped when soft footfalls sounded near him. Perhaps he had imagined it, but figuring he'd better be safe than sorry, he flashed the beacon. His breath caught in his throat as he briefly spotted Funtime Foxy off to the side, his threatening gaze fixed on him. Even in darkness, Michael could still feel the animatronic's amber eyes upon him.
He considered continuing on but feared that even the slightest movement near Foxy would cause his doom, so he flashed the beacon again. Funtime Foxy had crept farther away, now merely an arm. Still he waited, pausing only a moment before lighting it up again. The fox was not in sight. He shuffled forward three steps, biting his lip to help himself through the pain in his ankle. It throbbed harder with each stumbling step.
He flashed the beacon again, spotting Funtime Foxy in nearly the same position as before. He froze, then hit the button again. Foxy was still there. Gulping, Michael kept still, waiting a good five seconds before checking once again. The animatronic was nowhere to be seen. He crept forward, now blatantly ignoring Hand-Unit's instructions as he lit up the area once again. No Foxy. He went forward. Flash again. Funtime Foxy lurked off to his left. He paused, then flashed. Still there. He repeated the action. Still there. Groaning in annoyance, he activated the light, and saw only the animatronic's arm.
"No," he whispered, "I'm not taking any chances." He waited till the arm vanished, then hurried forward, going faster this time. His ankle pulsed with fiery pain. He almost tripped in the process but stopped and steadied himself. He checked for Foxy. He was near again. Michael waited, flashing a couple of times, then forged on. He was nearing the door, but it still looked far.
He soon fell into a pattern, taking around four steps, then flashing. If he saw Funtime Foxy, he froze, even if it was just an arm. After waiting till the coast was completely clearly, he shuffled forward the same number of steps, his footfalls echoing through the cavernous room. He repeated this constantly, his heart pounding and his ankle raging with pain. The door grew closer. He stopped, panting heavily and leaning forward. His grasp on the beacon loosened as dizziness spun through his head, caused by the overwhelming pain. Silently urging himself forward, he flashed. Funtime Foxy stood right in of front of him, his claws outstretched and his head twitching erratically. Michael clammed up, just barely forcing back a cry of surprise.
The next seconds dragged by, feeling eternally long as he waited to flash. When he did, the animatronic had vanished. Exhaling, he staggered forward. The grey door was closer than ever; he could nearly reach it, but he didn't dare make a mad dash. It only took a moment for an animatronic to catch him. If he had learned anything from his encounter with Ballora, that was it.
Several flashes and steps later, he reached it, flinging the door open and stumbling in. He nearly collapsed, half from relief, half from pain. His body shaking with each of his breaths, he retrieved his flashlight, clicked it on, and looked up. Funtime Freddy stood there, his metal face inches from Michael's. With a shout of alarm, Mike jumped back, his feet tripping over each other. He managed to keep himself up, a whimper of pain escaping as his ankle burned.
"Great job reaching Parts and Service!" Hand-Unit praised. "It seems that Funtime Freddy is out of power, which should make your job much easier. The release switch for the chest cavity is located on the underside of the endoskeleton jaw. To reach it, we will first need to open the faceplates. You will need to press the faceplate release triggers in a specific order, and it's important to be as precise and as careful as possible. Locate the small button on Freddy's face, just under his right cheek, and press it." Michael clasped his flashlight tighter, silently reminding himself to keep calm. He examined Funtime Freddy's face and spotted a button over each of his rosy cheeks. "For clarification, please note that I am referring to Freddy's right, not your right."
With a slight nod, Michael reached for the right cheek and cautiously pressed the miniature, white button. "Great! Now locate the button under his left cheek and press it." He moved his hand to the right and hit the next button. "Great! Now carefully locate and press the button next to Freddy's right eye." He did. "Great! now carefully locate and press the button just above Freddy's nose."
"Boop," Michael whispered, pressing the correct button once again. As soon as he did, Funtime Freddy's faceplates sprang open, causing Michael to shout and flinch away.
"Good job! The faceplates should now be open," Hand-Unit said as Michael recovered himself, putting a hand against his chest to calm his panicked breaths. "Locate and press the small button on the underside of Freddy's endoskeleton jaw."
"Right." He went closer again, ignoring his ankle as he did what he was told to. Funtime Freddy's chest opened, this time not startling Michael, much to his relief.
"Excellent," said Hand-Unit. "The chest cavity should now be open. Remove the power module from the chest cavity."
Michael immediately spotted it, its tiny red light blinking rapidly. "Huh." He tilted his head. "This is way easier than what Charlie and I did." He reached for the module, his eyes running along the winding endoskeleton of Freddy. He'd never seen one like it before, it was nothing like the endos of the toys. Though it freaked him out and he despised the animatronics, he couldn't help but be fascinated by it. Once he removed the module, Hand-Unit's voice returned. "Great work. You will now be required to remove the secondary power module from the Bonnie hand-puppet. Press the large black button beneath Bonnie's bowtie to release the power module."
"Sounds easy enough." Michael moved his flashlight up to Funtime Freddy's right hand, where he remembered seeing the puppet. Nothing was there. He blinked a few times, frowning. "Um...wasn't it there before?" He glanced around wildly, attempting to peer around Funtime Freddy, but other than the animatronic and a nearby table with tools, he could see nothing but darkness. He froze as he moved his flashlight downwards, for an unsettling noise arose, like scratching or scuffling. The soft skittering rose all around him, its origin not pinpointable. It was no doubt that Bon-Bon had become loose.
Grinding his teeth, Michael shined his flashlight along Funtime Freddy, its light glinting off the endoskeleton. As he looked up the right corner, he briefly saw Bon-Bon's small blue head, before it ducked back behind Freddy. He glanced around for a few moments, then spotted the puppet briefly appear below on the other side of Freddy's torso. The same thing happened up on his right shoulder, leaving Michael frustrated. He hadn't even spotted the button; every time he so much as moved his flashlight a few inches away from Bon-Bon, it vanished from his view.
"Press the large black button beneath Bonnie's bowtie to release the power module," Hand-Unit said.
"I'm trying!" Michael cried. Again, he spotted Bon-Bon peeking around Funtime Freddy's torso. Michael looked away as it disappeared, focusing his vision and flashlight on the exact center of Freddy's middle. Clearly, he needed a new strategy, and he might just have one that could work. Going slowly, he moved his flashlight back and forth, keeping just a bit of Freddy's shoulders in view every time his light neared that area. Soon enough, he saw Bon-Bon creeping upwards, only a small piece of blue visible to him. Michael waited, narrowing his eyes as he watched the puppet gradually rise over the bear's shoulder. As soon as he spotted the black button pass, he leapt into action, his hand shooting forward and slamming into the right area. Immediately, Bon-Bon froze in place, his lifeless purple eyes staring into Michael's panicked blue ones.
He relaxed and let out a breath as he retrieved the power module, Hand-Unit saying, "Great job. You've acquired both power modules. This completes your tasks for the night. Please exit the building through Funtime Auditorium, and we'll see you back here again tomorrow."
"Finally." He breathed, setting aside the modules on a nearby table. He made sure to secure Bon-Bon back in his proper place, then exited the room. "Just one more thing, and then the night's over." He tucked away his flashlight, replacing it with the beacon. Trying to repeat the same strategy, he advanced forward. His vision went in and out while he did, the pain of his ankle making him bend forward. Strangely enough, so far, he had not spotted Funtime Foxy. Unsettled and in pain, he fought on. "C-come on," he said, his voice strained, "just keep going. You got this." Still, he couldn't spot the animatronic. Choosing to believe this was a good sign, he focused on his steps, his limp considerably worse. His ankle felt like it was on fire, sending more aching pain up his leg. Again, he took to biting his bottom lip, sinking his teeth in farther and farther till the metallic taste of blood tinged his tongue.
His steps faltered. Shaking his head, he kept his eyes ahead, flashing, walking, flashing, walking. Soon enough, his movements became instinctual, his focus completely on getting out and fighting past the pain. His concentration broke, however, when a soft footfall came from beside him. Immediately, he collapsed to his knees, giving a cry of pain. The beacon escaped his hand as he did.
"No!" He searched through the darkness, his hands feeling around the cold floor. His heartrate increased considerably as the shadows closed in around him. Footsteps sounded nearby. He shook his head desperately, silently begging for it to go away, for himself to live. As soon as his hand found the familiar shape of the beacon, he tripped to his feet and lit up the area. Nothing could have prepared him for what he saw.
Funtime Foxy shrieked and leapt forward, its hands ramming into his chest and sending him sprawling onto his back. His head cracked against the floor as his body made impact with it. He couldn't even cry out, gasping for breath and trembling while his vision dimmed and his head pulsed with hot pain. The beacon was trapped beneath his leg, causing it to go off repeatedly, lighting up Funtime Foxy as its faceplates opened and revealed his horrifying, metal innards. A hand seized Michael's neck and sharp claws dug into his left shoulder, pinning his arm to the floor. The smallest of sounds escaped Michael, somewhere between a cry and a whimper as his eyes slipped shut, and he blacked out.
Author's Note: Poor Mikey boi. That's why you don't sneak off to a life-threatening job with a broken ankle.