A/N: Three exams last week, fuck life amirite? Though maybe I shouldn't be complaining, considering what the family is now facing…
You should probably expect the 2-week gaps to continue, with how busy my life has become. Just FYI.
Ghostlyassassin Jesse: Thanks for finding the typo, it has been fixed!
SleepDeprivedIntrovert: I feel like if I tried to describe the Nightmares' true forms I would fail completely (or worse, end up detracting from their horror) so I'll leave it to your imagination.
Ponymonfan: I unfortunately don't have the tech to play it but I'm definitely interested!
A couple of people: I haven't forgotten Nightmare Mangle, I just haven't chosen to introduce him/her (at least, not yet). Also, the Nightmares and Jack-o's are one and the same (whenever they burst into flame I call them Infernals).
Greenden: No, Nightmare Springtrap will look more like a Nightmare version of FNAF3 Springtrap (at least on a foundational level).
Guest: I should have clarified that major characters relevant to this arc would be from FNAF. Vucarik doesn't really have much role to play outside of giving me an excuse to get William on the loose.
Chapter 72 – Preparing for the Storm
Mike stared blankly at Nightmare, his mouth hanging open slightly. "I…I'm sorry," he shook his head. "Did I hear you right? Did you just say that William Afton escaped Hell and is making his way to Earth?"
"TO MY DISPLEASURE, THAT IS INDEED THE CURRENT STATE OF AFFAIRS," Nightmare confirmed, the images of the wounded Nightmare children still in the back of his mind.
"Okay…asking as courteously as I possibly can given what I've just learned, would you mind please telling me how in the FLYING FUCK that happened?" Mike exclaimed.
Nightmare gritted his teeth, though since he shared Mike's frustration he decided to let the moment of insolence slide. "THE COWARD COOPERATED WITH AN ENEMY OF MINE AND HAS STOLEN SOME POWER FROM ONE OF OUR OWN. THOUGH HIS POWER IS A MERE TRIFLE COMPARED TO A TRUE NIGHTMARE, IT DOES NOT CHANGE THE FACT THAT A DAMNED SOUL EMPOWERED WITH DEMONIC ESSENCE WILL SOON BE ARRIVING ON EARTH, WITH FREEDOM HE MOST CERTAINLY DOES NOT DESERVE."
Mike's eyes widened in horror. "Oh, fuuuuuuuuuuuuuck…" he gasped out. "Who knows what that bastard can do now that he's free? He could slaughter everyone he comes across, try to make more killer robots, throw the entire town into chaos! Holy fuck, what if he possesses an innocent person and forces them to kill just like he did?"
Nightmare shook his head. "I DO NOT THINK YOU HAVE MUCH TO WORRY ABOUT ON THAT SCORE," he replied, "FOR I BELIEVE THAT WILLIAM AFTON WILL HAVE A VERY DIFFERENT GOAL IN MIND."
"What…kind of goal?" Mike asked carefully.
Nightmare's eyes narrowed on the mortal. "MY KIN AND I HAVE SPENT MANY YEARS TORTURING WILLIAM AFTON IN THE DEEPS, AND OUR TORTURES ONLY INTENSIFIED AFTER HE LOST THE WAGER THAT GRANTED HIM HIS PROTECTIONS. AND AS WE TORMENTED HIM DAY AND NIGHT, WE HAVE HEARD HIM MUTTER OATHS AND CRIES FOR VENGEANCE AGAINST YOU SPECIFICALLY, MIKE SCHMIDT," he explained. "HE KNOWS THAT YOU ARE THE ONE RESPONSIBLE FOR HIS INCREASED AGONY, BOTH THROUGH CAUSING HIM TO FAIL HIS WAGER AND THE LIST OF TORMENTS YOU GAVE ME AFTER I REVEALED MY TRUE PURPOSE ALL THOSE NIGHTS AGO. HIS HATRED FOR YOU IS MATCHED ONLY BY HIS HATRED OF US, TO THE POINT THAT THE CHILDREN HE MURDERED HAVE BEEN ALL BUT FORGOTTEN BY HIM IN COMPARISON."
"That feeling is more than fucking mutual," Mike snarled, "but I'm having a hard time believing that he only really cares about me and not fucking around with my kids even more than he already has."
Despite the mood, Nightmare couldn't help but smirk. "IT'S AMAZING WHAT A YEAR OF NEVERENDING, HORRIFIC TORTURE CAN DO TO THE MIND," he replied smoothly.
"I see your point," Mike admitted. "So the fucker wants to kill me? Let him. I've lived a good life and I don't have any regrets. And the moment I die, the kids get set free. So let's see what good ending my life does for that piece of shit."
"IF ONLY IT WERE THAT SIMPLE," Nightmare interrupted warningly. "BUT HE KNOWS THAT KILLING YOU WILL RELEASE YOU AND YOUR CHILDREN'S SOULS TO HEAVEN. HE KNOWS THAT THIS WILL NOT ACCOMPLISH WHAT HE WANTS. HE WANTS TO MAKE YOU SUFFER, AND TORMENT YOUR CHILDREN THROUGH YOU."
Something about the way Nightmares said that immediately put Mike on edge. "What do you mean by that?" he asked warily.
"THERE ARE WAYS FOR WILLIAM AFTON TO GET HIS REVENGE ON YOU WITHOUT KILLING YOU AND SETTING THE CHILDREN FREE IN THE PROCESS," Nightmare explained. "I HAVE HEARD HIM UTTER HIS PLANS IN THE MIDST OF HIS AGONIZED SCREAMS, FOR IT WAS THE ONLY COMFORT THAT HE COULD FIND FOR HIMSELF, WRETCH THAT HE IS. THE FIRST IS FOR HIM TO CRIPPLE YOUR BODY, TO TORTURE YOUR FLESH AS HORRIFICALLY AS POSSIBLE WITHOUT BRINGING YOU PAST THE THRESHOLD OF DEATH. YOU WOULD REMAIN A CRIPPLED SHELL OF A MAN FOR THE REST OF YOUR DAYS, AND YOUR CHILDREN WOULD HAVE TO SPEND EVERY REMAINING MOMENT ON EARTH CARING FOR THE BROKEN MAN IN CONSTANT AGONY WHO WOULD BE ALL THAT IS LEFT OF THEIR FATHER."
Mike instantly felt nauseous at what Nightmare was describing. "And the other?" he was almost afraid to ask.
Nightmare stared straight into Mike's soul. "HIS OTHER PLAN IS TO INVADE YOUR MIND IN A MANNER SIMILAR TO POSSESSION AND ATTACK YOUR SOUL."
A horrific chill descended on Mike as he realized the implications. "He can…he can destroy…destroy my…"
"NOT…PERMANENTLY…" Nightmare explained. "GOD CREATED THE SOUL TO BE WHOLE AND FUNDAMENTALLY INDESTRUCTIBLE. IT IS ONE OF THE REASONS WHY THE CONCEPT OF ETERNAL SUFFERING AND DAMNATION WORKS, AFTER ALL. NOT EVEN HELL'S MOST POWERFUL DEMONS CAN PERMANENTLY DESTROY A SOUL, AND A WEAKLING LIKE WILLIAM AFTON MOST CERTAINLY WOULDN'T BE ABLE TO ACCOMPLISH IT. YOUR SOUL WILL EVENTUALLY HEAL THE WOUNDS ON IT AND REGENERATE, BUT THAT WILL BE OF LITTLE COMFORT TO YOUR CHILDREN."
Mike pieced the reasons together. "If he attacks my soul, I'll be a vegetable until he regenerates, won't I?"
Nightmare nodded. "I AM PLEASED TO SEE THAT YOU UNDERSTAND THE SEVERITY OF THE SITUATION, SCHMIDT. YES. UNTIL YOUR SOUL REGENERATES, YOU WOULD BE A MINDLESS VEGETABLE, UNABLE TO INTERACT WITH THE CHILDREN YOU HAVE GROWN TO LOVE IN ANY MEANINGFUL WAY. AND THEY WOULD SPEND THAT TIME TAKING CARE OF A MINDLESS SHELL, BEGGING FOR THEIR FATHER TO RETURN. IT MIGHT TAKE MONTHS, YEARS, EVEN DECADES FOR YOU TO REGAIN CONSCIOUSNESS, AND THERE IS NO GUARANTEE THAT YOU WOULD EVEN RETAIN YOUR MEMORIES OF THE ONES YOU LOVE IF THE DAMAGE THAT WILLIAM AFTON INFLICTED WAS GREAT ENOUGH."
Mike closed his eyes and took a deep breath. Yes, he could almost certainly imagine William Afton, a man with absolutely no morals to speak of, inflicting that kind of hideous fate on him and his children. He didn't want to imagine how his children would have to endure such a life; Liz especially would be devastated. "So what do I do?" he asked quietly. "I will fight to the bitter end, but I'm just a mortal man against a demonically empowered damned soul. I'm not going to bullshit myself; this is not a fight that I can win. And there's no way in Hell I'm going to make or even let the kids fight this battle for me, I'm not a coward like he is."
"NO, SCHMIDT, YOU ARE NOT," Nightmare agreed. "AND YOU ARE CORRECT. IT IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR YOU TO DEFEAT WILLIAM AFTON…BUT ONLY IN THE REAL WORLD."
Mike instantly jerked his head up to stare at Nightmare. "What the hell are you talking about?" he asked.
"YOU DO NOT HAVE THE POWER TO DEFEAT WILLIAM AFTON IF HE CHOOSES TO MERELY ATTACK YOUR BODY," Nightmare explained, "BUT IF HE DOES WHAT I BELIEVE HE WILL, AND CHOOSES TO ATTACK YOUR SOUL, THEN THAT CHANGES THE ENTIRE GAME. BY INVADING YOUR MIND, HE WILL ENTER A MENTAL LANDSCAPE WHERE YOUR SOUL RESIDES, AND INTERACT WITH YOU IN A WAY QUITE SIMILAR TO HOW YOU AND I ARE COMMUNICATING NOW. AND UNLIKE THE REAL WORLD, THE POWER YOU POSSESS IN THE MENTAL WORLD IS DETERMINED ENTIRELY BY YOUR STRENGTH OF WILL AND THE DEPTHS OF YOUR CREATIVITY."
Mike's eyes widened. "I get it…" he gasped out. "In the world of my mind and dreams, I have power and strength that I wouldn't have in the real world."
"AND YOU ARE NOT ONLY A LUCID DREAMER, BUT ALSO A LUCID DREAMER WHO IS ABLE TO ACTIVELY INFLUENCE AND CONTROL THE FABRIC OF REALITY IN YOUR MIND, WHICH IS AN ADVANTAGE THAT CANNOT BE UNDERESTIMATED." Nightmare gazed straight into Mike's eyes. "THERE IS POWER WITHIN YOU, MIKE SCHMIDT. A MIGHT AND STRENGTH OF WILL THAT, IN A WORLD OF THE MIND WHERE THE LAWS OF REALITY DO NOT APPLY, WOULD BE VERY FORMIDABLE INDEED. IF I WERE TO INVADE YOUR DREAMS AS I HAD DONE TO OTHERS, INCLUDING YOUR CHILDREN, YOU WOULD BE ABLE TO RESIST WHEN OTHERS WOULD BE ENTIRELY HELPLESS. IF YOU GOAD WILLIAM AFTON INTO ATTEMPTING TO ATTACK YOUR SOUL INSTEAD OF YOUR BODY, THEN I TRULY BELIEVE THAT YOU HAVE A VERY REAL CHANCE OF EMERGING VICTORIOUS, OR AT THE VERY LEAST HOLDING HIM OFF UNTIL I ARRIVE TO DRAG HIS SCREAMING CARCASS BACK INTO THE ABYSS WHERE HE BELONGS."
"Why are you telling me this?" Mike asked, his brow furrowed with confusion. "Why are you helping me? And if you want William Afton back in Hell so badly, then why haven't you come up here already to stop him before he can even do anything?'
"BECAUSE WILLIAM AFTON DARED TO COMMIT A GRIEVOUS INSULT AGAINST ME AND MY KIN, AND I WILL SEE HIM AND HIS PLANS BURNED TO ASHES AND RUIN AS THEY WERE ONCE BEFORE," Nightmare growled, his scarlet eyes burning with an unholy rage. In the depths of that malice, Mike could see the barest trace of well-concealed grief and justified fury, and he realized that William Afton had attacked someone that Nightmare had cared about to get his demonic power.
And though he wouldn't ever trust Nightmare to give him the full story, Mike realized that every word that Nightmare had spoken so far had been the absolute, unadulterated truth. Both in letter, and in spirit.
"AS FOR WHY I AM NOT PROVIDING ANY FURTHER ASSISTANCE TO YOU, THE DEMON LORD WHO WILLIAM AFTON COLLABORATED WITH HAS LAUNCHED A CIVIL WAR THAT IS RAGING THROUGHOUT THE LOWER CIRCLES OF HELL," Nightmare continued, seemingly oblivious to Mike's thoughts, "AND I MUST FIRST CRUSH THE FOOL WHO DARED TO INSULT MY FAMILY'S HONOR," his eyes narrowed menacingly, "UNLESS THAT IS A PROBLEM FOR YOU?" he added with a hiss.
Mike shook his head. "Nope, not at all," he replied. He wasn't sure how he felt about that excuse, but he wasn't about to risk losing the goodwill that the demon lord seemed to have for him currently, even if that goodwill was based entirely on the loathing that both of them shared for William Afton and anyone who associated with him.
"TO ASSURE YOU THAT I AM SPEAKING THE TRUTH, I SWEAR TO YOU, ON MY HONOR AS A DEMON LORD AND NIGHTMARE, THAT IF YOU OR YOUR FAMILY ARE STILL FIGHTING AGAINST WILLIAM AFTON WHEN I ARRIVE ON EARTH, I WILL COME TO DELIVER YOU FROM DEFEAT BY HIS HANDS AT YOUR MOMENT OF NEED." Mike's eyes widened at the oath being spoken by the demon lord and the gravity that emanated in his words, but before he could comment Nightmare continued. "THOUGH I INTEND TO SILENCE VUCARIK'S HISTRIONICS AS SOON AS POSSIBLE, I CANNOT INTERVENE BEFORE THE CIVIL WAR IN HELL ENDS, SO IT FALLS ONTO YOU TO WITHSTAND HIS ASSAULT UNTIL I ARRIVE. YOU HAVE ONE OR TWO DAYS AT MOST TO PREPARE FOR WILLIAM AFTON'S ARRIVAL. I ADVISE THAT YOU SPEND THAT TIME WELL."
Mike nodded. "I will, Nightmare. And thank you. If what you're saying is true, and if you've just helped us avert a massive catastrophe, then I forgive you for attacking my family last year."
Nightmare sneered. "I DO NOT NEED YOUR GRATITUDE, MORTAL. I AM WORKING TO SERVE MY OWN INTERESTS, AS I ALWAYS DO. BUT BEFORE I DEPART, I AM CURIOUS TO KNOW JUST HOW POWERFUL YOU ARE CURRENTLY. GO AHEAD AND GIVE ME YOUR BEST…"
The demon lord didn't have time to even finish his sentence before a lightning bolt, tinged with a dark purple hue, blasted out of the fog surrounding them and struck him straight in the end. Nightmare snarled in surprise, as he had not only been completely flatfooted by the surprise attack, but had also felt actual pain from the lightning strike. He glared at Mike, only to see a smirk on the mortal's face.
"You asked me for my best shot," Mike replied. "But number 1, what I just did right now isn't even close to my best shot, and number 2, do you really think I'd let my enemies see my best shot coming?"
Nightmare stared at the mortal for a second, then grinned. In that one move, Mike had already proved himself to be both a strategist and a fighter at his core. If William Afton thought that Mike Schmidt would keel over and die like all his other victims, he would be in for a very nasty surprise.
/
"Dad! Dad! Wake up, dad!" Charlie frantically shook Mike's slumbering form.
"What's wrong with him?" Liz asked worriedly. He was still sleeping when it was 10 am, which was admittedly a bit odd. But that didn't explain why Charlie was so scared.
"I felt…a presence…in the house, for a split second," Charlie explained nervously. "But I could have sworn I felt Nightmare's aura in dad's room."
Liz's eyes widened in horror and she joined her sister in shaking Mike. "Dad!" she all but shouted. "WAKE UP!"
"Urrrrggghhhhh…" Mike's eyes flickered open and he groaned. "I'm up, I'm up…"
Both ghost girls breathed a massive sigh of relief. "Maybe I was just imagining things, then," Charlie muttered. "I could have sworn I sensed Nightmare in your room, but maybe I was just panicking…"
"Well, you weren't wrong," Mike muttered. As his daughters stared at him in renewed horror, he got up from the bed. "Charlie, Liz, get the rest of the kids and meet me in the dining hall. I have something very important to talk to you guys about, and it's very, very bad news."
/
Mike sat down heavily onto a chair at the dining table, the ghostly children next to him or across from him. "Charlie said that there was bad news, dad…" Jeremy was the first to speak, and he was clearly worried. "What's up? What's wrong?"
Mike sighed and rubbed his head. "There's no good way for me to say this, so I'm just going to say it," he declared. "I was visited by Nightmare in a dream last night." The ghosts all immediately tensed up at the mention of the demon lord. "He wasn't there to attack me, though. He was there to warn me. Somehow, William Afton cooperated with another demon lord to get demonic power and escape Hell."
Pandemonium erupted at the news. "ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME?" Gabe shouted in horror.
"HE ESCAPED HELL?" Susie shrieked.
"HOW IS THAT EVEN POSSIBLE?" Jeremy demanded. "I THOUGHT HE WAS GONE FOR GOOD!"
"CAN'T THAT FUCKER JUST GIVE UP AND DIE ALREADY?" Fritz yelled.
Liz floated silently, her very essence overwhelmed by sheer horror and nausea. She remembered how she had once idolized the father and the evil he embodied…and the idea of encountering him again, now that she knew the difference between right and wrong, made her feel sick to the core. Charlie noticed her sister's terror and tried to comfort her by bringing her close in a side hug…but even she felt a black dread at what was to come.
"WHAT ARE WE GOING TO DO?" Cassidy screamed. "WHAT CAN WE POSSIBLY DO?"
"We?" Mike's voice somehow managed to be heard amidst the chaos, and his voice silenced everyone else. "There won't be any we here. Nightmare told me that William Afton will be coming for me specifically. I'm sending you guys over to either the Marshalls or Melody until this shitshow blows over."
"ARE YOU OUT OF YOUR FUCKING MIND?" Jeremy exclaimed, and the nods from the rest of the ghosts made it clear that they all shared his mentality. "No! FUCK no! We're staying, and we're fighting!"
Mike's eyes widened. "Are YOU out of your mind?" he shouted, one of the few times he had ever raised his voice against his kids. "You actually think I'm going to let him anywhere near you so that he can hurt you guys again? Even being around him is probably going to be enough to remind you about the pain you suffered all over again, and that's assuming that William doesn't decide to just flat out attack you! What the hell would that say about me as a parent if I let that happen?"
"And what does it say about US if we let our murderer attack someone who isn't just our father, but also one of the innocents that we tried to attack and murder?" Gabe retorted. Mike opened his mouth to speak, and Gabe cut him off. "For years, we attacked innocents just so we could get our revenge on the bastard who killed us, never realizing that we were murdering the wrong people all this time. This is our chance to redeem ourselves, and to prove that we really do deserve to be forgiven by standing against the true evil and protecting you the best we can."
"You guys HAVE been forgiven, though!" Mike wasn't done arguing. "I forgave you guys the moment I accepted you into my house!"
"YOU forgave us," Gabe corrected. "But how do we know that Heaven has? How do we know that Heaven isn't testing us right now? What if, by running from William Afton and leaving you here alone, we fail the test and are forced to roam the Earth again or just get flat-out sent to Hell for not even trying to protect you?"
"Heaven wouldn't do that…"
"How do you know?" Gabe challenged, floating up to his father and glaring intently in his eyes. "How do you know?" he repeated more quietly. "Maybe William Afton will attack or even hurt us. But any pain that he causes us will be nothing compared to either eternal damnation, or the knowledge that we fled like cowards when we could have at least tried to stop him from getting to you."
Mike tried desperately to come up with a counterargument, but to his utter frustration he couldn't come up with one. For all he knew, maybe Gabe was right and this was the ultimate test for the ghost kids. He couldn't bear to see the kids get hurt again by William Afton, but it was clear that not allowing them to try and defend them could have consequences that, at least in their minds, were just as devastating.
And that was assuming that the ghost kids obeyed his command not to interfere. Considering how close they had become, it was more than likely that they would try to stop William Afton anyway without his permission, and he wouldn't have any control at all over how to stop them from getting hurt if that happened.
If he couldn't stop them from trying to protect him, he could at the very least control the circumstances to minimize the possible harm William Afton could cause them.
"…here's how we're going to handle this then, if you ABSOLUTELY INSIST on fighting William Afton and there's not a damn thing I can do to stop you," Mike decided after several seconds of tense, thoughtful silence. "You will fight him in the Rockstars and ONLY in the Rockstars. In theory, they'll act as a kind of armor to protect your souls from William Afton's attacks. I don't know what he looks like, but I imagine it'll be a nightmarish form of Springtrap or whatever the hell he's called. If Afton destroys the animatronic you're in, then you get the hell to safety. You stop fighting, you are DONE. This is going to be one of the few times that I DEMAND your obedience, and I want your word that you obey this command. Otherwise, I'm going to forcibly banish you from the house until this whole shitshow blows over. And if that isn't good enough for Heaven, I'm going to go up to God's face and tell Him and His entire court to go fuck themselves."
The ghosts looked at each other uncertainly, some of them looking like they wanted to keep on fighting.
"Your word. NOW."
"We promise," each and every ghost reluctantly conceded.
"Okay," Mike let out a breath he didn't know he'd been holding. "Now then, Nightmare and I came up with a plan for me to actually beat Afton, and he promised to bail us out after he took care of some shit down in Hell."
"Wait…he's helping us? And you actually trust him?" Cassidy asked incredulously.
"As strange as it might be for you to believe, yes, I do trust him," Mike affirmed. The ghosts clearly looked uneasy at the idea of depending on Nightmare especially after what he had done to them last time, but they trusted their father, and so they would follow his word. "And even if he was lying, from a purely practical standpoint, the consequences of preparing for an attack that won't ever happen are nothing compared to the consequences of not preparing for an attack that actually DOES happen."
"That's a good point," Charlie admitted.
He got up from his chair. "Let's get you guys suited up in the Rockstars. You might know how to move around in them by now thanks to our little game, but actually fighting in them is going to be a whole 'nother matter entirely. The sociopathic dipshit will be knocking down our door soon, and the more preparation we get in, the better."
As the 5 MCI kids left the dining room, Mike asked Liz and Charlie to stay behind. "Liz," Mike spoke to the orange-haired girl first, "I know you have your Scrap Baby form, and I know I've worked with you a bit on improving how to fight and defend."
Liz clenched her fists and stared into her dad's eyes. "I'm ready, dad."
Mike shook his head. "I know what you're thinking, and it's not fucking happening. ONLY use your Scrap Baby form in the event of emergency. Do NOT seek out a fight against your old dad in that form. Don't even fucking think about it."
"But…" she started to protest.
"Do I make myself clear?"
"Yes, dad…" Liz muttered. Mike could tell that she wasn't happy about not fighting against her former father and betrayer with everything she had, but he would've been more suspicious if Liz had simply agreed without expressing any discontent at all.
He dismissed Liz and turned to face Charlie. "Hope you've gotten some practice with your magic in, because we're going to put it to the test now. I need you to set up some wards around the house to keep William Afton out as long as possible. I don't think they'll keep him out for too long, but the longer we delay, the more time Nightmare has to deal with whatever shit is happening down in the basement, if you get what I'm saying."
Charlie grimly nodded. "I'm ready to do my best, dad."
Despite the dangerous situation they were in, Mike smiled. "That's all I'll ever ask of you, Charlie." His eyes narrowed. "Let's show that asinine douchebag that we're not going to go down without a fight this time around."
/
In an old, abandoned restaurant, a shadowy bear and a ghostly man met in an office that had once been a hunting ground for animatronics and vengeful spirits. "This is a rather…interesting place for us to meet," the man commented dryly.
"You and I both know that neither of us can let ourselves be seen by mortals. The dead do not mingle with the living, barring an exception that both of us are very familiar with," the bear replied. "This place has long since been abandoned; nobody will find us here."
"True enough," the man agreed. The amusement in his eyes faded away and his smile disappeared. "We've both sensed it, haven't we? He is coming. The one responsible for so much despair and death in a sanctuary where kids should've been safe."
"We both know what he plans to do," the bear answered, "and though we might have failed to stop him in the past, I won't sit back and let him taint the happiness of his victims again. Especially her. Not this time."
"And neither will I," the man extended a hand. "We might not have the power to outright defeat him, but we can and will do everything possible to make sure Nightmare drags him back to Hell where he belongs before he can do any real damage. Together."
The bear nodded and shook the man's hand. "Together."
/
A/N: A small hint for what is to come in the future 😉
Some of you may be wondering why Nightmare and Mike seem so willing to get along with each other when their last encounter was mostly hostile. Here's the thing: the relationship between Nightmare and Mike is far from ideal. The last time they crossed paths, Nightmare was tormenting Mike's children with the guilt from their past sins. Though they might have cooperated briefly with coming up with ideas for William Afton's torments, Mike has good reason to still hold a grudge against Nightmare, and demons by their nature tend to sneer upon humans as inferior beings.
But whatever ill will might linger between them, it is nothing, NOTHING, compared to the sheer overwhelming HATRED that both of them have for William Afton. And both of them will happily ally with the other to see that fucker taken down without even the slightest hesitation. There's also the fact that Mike knows that (a) Nightmare is a hell of a lot more powerful than he is and (b) is being unexpectedly generous, so he knows full well that it's in his best interests to be polite regardless of his personal opinion of the demon lord. Nightmare gave Mike the knowledge he needed to turn the tables on William. Now, it falls to Mike to use that knowledge the best he can.
I was originally going to have the last segment of this chapter be the battle in Hell with Nightmare "taking care" of Vucarik and the Civil War, but I figured that that would be a bit to sudden after Nightmare just spent the better part of this chapter warning Mike and telling him that he can't interfere too early. So instead, a sneak peek in two other characters whose histories are VERY much intertwined with the dark past of the Fazbear franchise. You've seen them before 😉
For those of you who are still waiting for William Afton to make his appearance, don't you worry. He'll be showing up next chapter, and he is every bit the sociopathic, irredeemable monster you'll expect him to be.
Anyways, hope you guys enjoyed!
