Michael and Charlie laughed and talked together as they strolled towards the elevator. After such a simple night, they were more than ready for their next shift. Earlier that day, they met up and spent the afternoon hanging out and awaiting their next night of work. Though a bit reluctant, Michael went along with Charlie and her friends to the same fair she had visited the day before. They were nice and enjoyable to be around, like at the bowling alley, but this time Michael had more fun and didn't abruptly leave. It seemed all his time around Charlie truly was improving his mood and his ability to make other friends, which was a thing he hadn't experienced since before the incident. One thing that rather confused him, however, was the fact Charlie's friend Jessica kept sending Charlie rather smug looks and whispering something to her, something that almost always made Charlie giggle nervously or blush. He had no idea what that was about, but other than that, everything felt relaxed and enjoyable.
"So today was pretty fun, huh?" Charlie said as they opened the elevator.
"Yes, surprisingly." He nodded.
"See? No reason to be so antisocial." She teasingly elbowed him in the side. "I make good friends."
He gave a light laugh, stepping into the elevator. "True."
"Oh, by the way—" she frowned— "apparently, I'm not getting a shift tomorrow night."
"Yes, I heard I'm on my own." He rolled his eyes. "If tonight and the next night are anything like our last shift, I should be fine by myself."
"Alright." She sent him a relived smile as the elevator jolted into action.
"Welcome back for another night of intellectual stimulation, pivotal career choices, and self-reflection on past mistakes," Hand-Unit began. "We're committed to creating a unique and fulfilling work experience. One part of that commitment is to ensure that you don't get tired of the voice that you're hearing right now."
"Yeah, it's a little too late for that," Michael said, earning a giggle from Charlie.
"Using the keypad below, please select a new companion voice," Hand-Unit said. Michael detached the device from where it hung on his belt and lifted it, his hands poised over the glitching keypad. "For male, press 1. For female, press 2. For text-only, press 3. For other options, press 4."
He blinked down at it repeatedly. "What the..." He shook it rather angrily. "This doesn't have numbers. This literally has no numbers!"
"Oh, um...maybe he means a, b, c, and d?" She reached over and hit a key. Immediately, the familiar error message popped up.
"It seems that you had some trouble with the keypad," Hand-Unit said. "I see what you were trying to type, and I will auto correct it for you. Thank you for choosing: Angsty Teen." Michael lowered the keypad, sending Charlie an exasperated look. She laughed at his expression, shrugging off the odd choice.
They talked normally till the elevator halted and the same cheery music from the prior night filled the area. Immediately following it came a teenager's voice, which most definitely sounded angsty. "The elevator's stopped. You know the routine. You can get out now or...whatever. Stay here if you want." Now both Michael and Charlie were laughing.
"Why is that even an option?" Charlie opened the elevator doors.
"I have no idea," Michael said, recovering from the laugh attack. "Let's go." They climbed into the vent, Michael going first.
As they began the lengthy crawl, Hand-Unit's bored teenage voice returned, saying, "So, funny story, a dead body was found in this vent once." Michael froze, his stomach flipping and churning while his eyes flicked around, as if he could actually see the body. "Okay, so, not that funny, but it's a story." With a shiver, Michael continued on, Charlie doing the same behind him.
"We really didn't need to know that." She sounded anxious.
He gulped and nodded. "No kidding." The vent ended shortly, and they crawled out into the primary control module.
"Okay, let's start with your nightly chores," said Hand-Unit. "You should check on Ballora and see if she's on her stage, but...whatever." Michael pressed the designated button, lighting up the stage within the gallery. Charlie made a disturbed noise, for all they could see was Ballora's large, eerie silhouette looming across the purple curtains. There was something rather chilling about it. Michael exhaled in relief the moment the light flickered back out.
"Huh. I guess Ballora has better things to do," Hand-Unit said. A gleeful tone entered his voice. "Let's zap her. That should be fun."
"Reminds me of you when you were a teen." Charlie put her hands on her hips, sending him a smug smile.
"Oh, hush." Michael rolled his eyes and electrocuted Ballora. Their amused expressions dissipated the second that the sparks vanished, for an odd, frightening sound came from the room. The distorted noise vibrated the floor beneath Michael's feet and filled him with a sudden sense of dread. Whatever made the noise, well...it almost sounded like it was in pain. An unnervingly long silence followed this. Michael and Charlie exchanged disturbed glances, awaiting the command to light up the room. It didn't come.
"Let's check on Funtime Foxy," Hand-Unit said. "Make sure he's ready for showtime tomorrow." With a frown, Michael tried the light of Ballora Gallery, though the button still appeared grey. It didn't do a thing. Saying nothing, he went over to the other keypad and hit the light of Funtime Auditorium. Just like Ballora, all that could be seen was Foxy's intimidating shadow.
"This is getting sort of freaky." Charlie edged closer to Michael.
"My thoughts exactly," he said.
Hand-Unit's voice returned, distorted and barely recognizable. "Great...great...great..." The glitched, repeated word ended there.
"Yep." Charlie moved even nearer to Michael. "Definitely freaky."
He sent her a comforting smile but said nothing as the original voice of Hand-Unit arrived. "There seems to have been a problem with the voice synthesizer. Default settings have been restored. Please proceed through the vent ahead of you to Circus Baby's Auditorium."
"You doing okay?" Michael asked.
"Yeah," Charlie said, waving a hand, "these are just normal system malfunctions. Everything's alright."
"Good." He gave her shoulder a pat, then obediently entered the vent.
They crawled through it to the control module where Hand-Unit returned, saying, "Circus Baby had a busy day today! Let's check the light, and make sure she's in proper working order." Michael did, and as expected, they could not spot the animatronic. "Oh Circus Baby, we aren't here to play hide and seek. Let's encourage Baby to come out of hiding with a controlled shock." Michael pressed the red button, expecting the usual electrocution. Nothing happened, except a small, warped noise. "Let's try another controlled shock." Michael pressed it again, receiving the same sound and no shock.
"There seems to be a power malfunction that is affecting our ability to properly motivate Baby," said Hand-Unit. "Please stand by, while I reboot the system. I will be offline momentarily during this process. Various other systems may be offline as well, such as security doors, vent locks, and oxygen. Commencing system restart." The flickering lights of the room powered off, along with the various blinking controls and the glow of the keypad. Michael and Charlie didn't react for a moment, standing in a stunned silence.
What broke the silence was the feminine, robotic voice that came whenever a vent or room was entered. "Motion trigger: Entryway Vent. Funtime Auditorium Maintenance Vent opened. Ballora Gallery Maintenance Vent opened." Michael's breathing quickened, while his heartrate did the same. A long, frightening silence followed, only interrupted by miniature, unrecognizable sounds from unseen areas of the darkened room.
"It's okay," Charlie whispered, her voice quavering. "It's all just normal stuff. We're going to be alright."
He nodded, recognizing the fear and worry in her voice. He reached through the shadows and took her hand. "Of course we are. Things are just scarier in the dark. Nothing's gonna happen."
She gave his hand a small squeeze. "I know."
They fell quiet...but this silence did not last long, for another voice entered the room—a soft, feminine breathy one that made Michael stiffen and grip Charlie's hand a bit tighter. "I don't recognize you two," it said. "You are new. I remember this...scenario, however. It's a strange thing to want to do, to come here. I'm curious what events would lead a person to want to spend their nights in a place like this...willingly. Maybe curiosity, maybe ignorance."
"Circus Baby..." Michael whispered, his words barely heard as the animatronic went on,
"There is a space under the desk. Someone before you crafted it into a hiding place, and it worked for him. I recommend that you hurry though. You will be safe there, just try not to make eye contact. It will be over soon. They will lose interest."
"Michael," Charlie whispered, "what does she mean?"
Michael swallowed hard, calming his ragged breaths. "I think we should get under the desk. Now."
"Wait, but that's an animatronic," she said. "What does it know? Nothing's going to hurt us here, there's no reason to hide." She hesitated. "Right?"
"I think we should hide," he said. "It's a bit tight, but we can squeeze in. Hurry." He released her hand and got down on his hands and knees. Hastily crawling into the space beneath the desk, he motioned to Charlie. She followed, squeezing in beside him. Indeed, it was tight; the two found themselves pressed up against each other in the enclosing area, Charlie practically sitting on Michael's lap. He bit down on his lip, his cheeks warming up. He ignored the sensation and pointed at a metal door of sorts off to the side. With a nod, Charlie grabbed it and began to slide it shut, nearly elbowing him in the face as she did.
As the door neared him, he helped pull it the rest of the way shut. The flimsy sheet of metal just barely covered them, and it was peppered with tiny holes that made Michael shudder and lose some sense of safety. The two said nothing while they sat there, uncomfortably enclosed and near to each other. His heart pounded, half from the intensity of the situation, and half from how much Charlie pressed against him. Recently, he'd discovered he felt a lot more bashful around her, much like he had started to feel shortly before he originally broke off their friendship. He convinced himself that this was nothing, but deep down, if he was being truly honest, he knew why he acted that way around Charlie. Just didn't want to admit it.
His thoughts on the situation ended when odd and echoey banging noises vibrated through the space. Something climbing through a vent perhaps? Maybe banging on the door? He couldn't be sure, but it left him with crawling skin. The next sound that followed it was much worse, making him seize up and nearly gasp.
"Hello in there..." A childish, whispery voice came from outside the desk. Small grinding sounds followed, as if something clawed at the door. Something...small.
Michael swallowed repeatedly, feeling Charlie press against him more. She gripped his arm, her hand trembling slightly. He could do nothing to comfort her as he sat there in stunned silence, unable to look away from the holes in the rough metal. His own hands shaking, he retrieved the flashlight from his belt and moved it along the door, making sure that whatever was outside couldn't get in.
"Someone is inside," whispered another voice.
Two.
There were two in front of the desk.
"Is it the same person?" the second asked. The first did not reply; Michael could only hear grinding and scratching. He continued to move his flashlight along the door, practically waiting for something to happen. As he did, he briefly spotted a mechanical, blue eyeball peeping at him through a hole. He jerked his gaze away. Almost immediately he saw the same eye leering through another hole. He forced himself to look the other direction, his heart hammering against his ribcage and in his ears. He didn't remember ever being able to hear his own heart so loudly. He almost warned Charlie about the eyes, but kept quiet, knowing a single move such as speaking could spell their doom.
Banging arose, high-pitched and loud. It quickly came and went, leaving them in an unnerving silence. Michael trained his eyes and the flashlight on a lower corner, only one of the holes visible to him. No eye appeared. He began to relax, thinking perhaps this wasn't as difficult as he thought.
He was dead wrong.
"Knock, knock..." whispered one. The sound of grinding filled the air. To his horror, the sheet of metal began to gradually slide open, pulled by an unseen intruder. Stifling a gasp, he grabbed it and yanked. The small animatronic fought back, forcefully opening it as he struggled against it. Despite the strength difference, he got it shut. Gulping, he exchanged a frightened glance with Charlie who breathed even harder than him, her body pressed against his and her hands clutching at his arm. He briefly put his forehead against hers as silent comfort, then went back to watching the holes. He spotted an eye and averted his gaze.
"We always find a way inside," a chilling voice whispered. Immediately, the desk started to open once again, this time faster. Michael just barely grabbed it in time, his muscles straining as he tugged. It didn't give, still opening as the animatronics pulled back. Just as he saw a hint of a sinister, mechanical face, Charlie dove into action, joining him and pulling with all her might. The sheet opened halfway before they gained the advantage and yanked it back shut. As soon as they did, Michael wrapped one of his arms around Charlie who hugged back, burying her face in his chest. They both breathed heavily, tense and shaky as they clung to each other and listened to the animatronics' whispering.
"She's watching us," said one.
The other gasped. "We have to leave now." Its voice took on a light, teasing tone. "We'll see you again soon!" Tiny, retreating footsteps came, then silence lay heavily over the area. Michael lowered the flashlight, shutting his eyes and letting out a long breath as he rested his chin on Charlie's head. Neither said a word, their arms kept firmly around each other, comfort after such a fright.
Circus Baby's voice filled the room, making them jump. "When your guide comes back online, he is going to tell you that he was unsuccessful, that you must restart the system manually. He will then tell you to crawl through Ballora Gallery as fast as you can to reach the Breaker Room. If you follow his instructions...you will die. Ballora will not return to her stage anymore, she will catch you." Michael tightened his embrace, his heart sinking like a rock in his chest. So their lives were in danger. "The power will be restored shortly," Circus Baby said. "When you crawl through Ballora Gallery, go slowly. She cannot see you and can only listen for your movement. When you hear her music become louder, she is growing near, listening for you. Wait...and be still."
A glitched sound came, then Hand-Unit's voice returned. "Thank you for your patience. It seems that the power system cannot be restarted automatically; you will need to restart the power system manually. Please return to the primary control module."
Michael opened his eyes. With a sigh, he released Charlie and nudged her. She lifted her head, briefly meeting his frightened gaze with one of her own. Without a word, they both opened the desk, then climbed out and stood in the shadowy room, silently holding each other's gazes.
Michael was the first to speak, saying, "Are you alright?"
Charlie paused a moment. "Yes, I'm just...scared. Wasn't expecting that at all, I just—" she sighed, looking down and back up— "I don't know why that happened or what's going on. Do you think those animatronics were going to kill us?"
He nodded grimly.
She stared, then rubbed at her arms. "I don't know if we can leave, I'm not even sure why this is happening." She began to visibly panic. "If our lives are really in danger, this could be the end. What...what if Ballora catches us? Why are they even doing this? I didn't know animatronics were violent or were even capable of any of this! What's going to happen to us, Mike? What are we gonna do?!"
"Shh." He gently pulled her into a hug. "This is terrifying me too." He hugged her tighter, fighting back his panicked breaths. "But...I think we have to continue. We can figure out what's going on after tonight, but for now—"
"We have to work together and struggle on," Charlie finished, hugging him back. "I know. At least we're in this together." They embraced for a few moments as they both gradually recovered from the near-death experience. Finally, she drew away from him, setting her jaw. "Okay. Let's go kick Ballora's butt!"
He managed a grin. "That's more like it."
They entered the vent and climbed through, all the way to the primary control module, where Hand-Unit's instructions greeted them. "You will now be required to crawl through the Ballora Gallery using the vent to your left to reach the Breaker Room. It is recommended that you stay low to the ground and reach the other side as fast as possible so as to not disturb Ballora. I will deactivate myself momentarily, as to not create an auditory disturbance. Deactivating." Hand-Unit's voice disappeared as the proper vent opened. Exchanging a scared yet determined glance, Michael and Charlie slipped through the short vent and exited into the pitch-black room.
Turning on their flashlights, they lowered themselves to the floor. Michael exhaled slowly, attempting to calm his quickened heartbeat and breaths. The duo sent each other encouraging looks, then crawled their way forward. Darkness closed in around Michael and the cool floor stung the palm of his hand. He kept his flashlight gripped firmly in his other hand and his eyes trained ahead, not daring to look around. The room was silent and full of creeping shadows, the only sound the pitter pattering of their sluggish pace.
Although...it wasn't quiet for long.
Soft music echoed through the room, like a music box chiming a sweet, yet chilling tune. Michael froze, Charlie doing the same. The music became louder, then vanished. He couldn't even see Ballora, had only heard her. Perhaps both they and the animatronic had the same disadvantage. Blindness. They kept going, his fear growing with each inch they progressed. The music came again. They stilled. It faded. They continued. Farther and farther they went, inch by inch, step by step. Michael trembled faintly, trying to steady his breath as the haunting tune came again, closer than ever. It vanished; he went on, Charlie by his side. At least, in the midst of this horror, she was here, like an anchor in the middle of a storm.
Ballora's music neared. They stopped. Again, it vanished, and they went on. It felt like the moments dragged on, as if this treacherous journey across the expansive room would never end. What made it is worse was when Ballora began to sing,
"Why do you hide inside your walls
When there is music in my halls?"
Michael stilled, terror freezing him in place and locking up his muscles, though Ballora remained distant.
"All I see is an empty room
No more joy, an empty tomb."
He tilted his head as the fear faded and his thoughts drifted. There was something almost comforting about the tune...the lyrics...the voice, even.
Though it chilled him, he felt this deep, strange pull to follow it.
"It's so good to sing all day
To dance, to spin, to fly away..."
"Mike," Charlie whispered, giving him a gentle poke. He snapped out of his thoughts and struggled on, ignoring the shiver that ran down his spine.
As he did, Hand-Unit's sudden voice boomed through the room, startling both him and Charlie. "It seems you are taking a long time. Please proceed as quickly and as quietly as possible." Michael rolled his eyes, muttering rude words under his breath while he went forward. Time continued to drag on. The music became faint, then loud, far, then close. Past the glow of the flashlight, Michael could see the exit approaching, a flag holding the picture of Funtime Freddy greeting them. He set his jaw, picking up his pace just a bit. They neared the exit.
Out of nowhere, Ballora's music grew louder than ever. Michael froze up, his breath catching in his throat. For the first time, he saw the ballerina, her spinning shape gliding right in front of them, so close he could practically touch it. His lips parted as he forced himself not to jerk away from her. One move, and they were dead.
Ballora vanished, as did the music. Briefly glancing at Charlie, Michael kept crawling. They only stopped a few times before finally, finally they reached the door. His entire body quivering, he shakily rose. He didn't dare look over his shoulder as he motioned for Charlie to enter before him. She nodded and opened the door, then stepped inside.
Michael took a deep breath. As he lifted his foot to follow, a sudden cold hand grabbed his ankle. It yanked him back; a snapping sound came and pain burned through his ankle as he careened forward. With a cry, he crashed to the floor. Another hand ran up his leg, then seized him by the back of his shirt. He struggled against the animatronic's iron grip, throwing his hand forward and breathlessly calling out, "Charlie! Help!"
Author's Note: Oops! There goes Mikey.