Author's Note: This chapter is the main reason why this story is rated T. There is going to be violence and a bit of gore (robotic and organic). This might fit into K+, but I'd rather overrate than underrate for things like this.

Vanessa didn't open her eyes right away. If he had kept her alive, he must have a reason. If he thought she was still unconscious, he might spare her a while longer. He lived for his victims' reactions, the theatrics of it all, and it was hard to scream if you died before you woke up.

The first thing she noticed was the smell: ancient charcoal, mold, and rotten flesh mingled with a hint of fresh blood. It smelled like death. After that, she noticed the pain. Her head throbbed, likely injured by the S.T.A.F.F. bots, but nothing seemed to be broken. She might have been bleeding at one point, but that was the least of her worries. Her hands were in shackles, keeping her propped up against the wall.

She heard breathing. She was too dizzy to count exactly how many people were beside her, but there were more than one. Someone was crying. They were trying to be quiet, but she could still hear faint sniffling. Another groaned, and she recognized the voice. Gregory was alive! She could have cried from relief, but if he was in the room, she couldn't let him see her weakness. The important part was that Gregory was alive, and so was she. She was almost certain they wouldn't make it out of here, but at least they might get to say goodbye.

She couldn't wait any longer. Vanessa opened her eyes. They were in one of the rooms under the old pizzeria, but not one that she had been in before. It was larger than most of them, but the only light came from an old lantern, which was sitting on a desk with an old computer and monitor. The room also contained an unusually quiet generator to power them, a file cabinet, and a large object being hidden under an old tablecloth. A couple more tablecloths were hanging on one of the walls.

"Vanessa! You're awake!" Gregory whispered. She turned to her right, where he was also chained to the wall. There were bruises on his face and arms, but he looked relatively unscathed. Ginger was right next to him, and there was a good-sized cut across her cheek. To her right were an empty set of chains, an overturned office chair, and another generator connected to some work lights. For some reason, this one was turned off.

Vanessa grinned as wide as her now sore face would let her. "Hey, kid. I knew you'd survive."

"W-what's happening?"

Vanessa turned to her left to see Chloe, tears streaming down her face. Next to her was another empty set of chains.

"I'm so sorry, Chloe. I should have prepared you more."

"I thought you were joking!" she squeaked. "I thought we were going to go down to a normal basement, and Sam was going to jump out from behind a giant box, and we were going to have a surprise party or something. I just wanted to see my boyfriend! I don't wanna diiiiiiieee!" She started crying louder.

"Nonono, it's ok, you're going to be fine!" If he heard her, he would know they were awake.

"No I'm nooooot! None of us are! We're trapped in the basement of the haunted murder mall, about to be killed by robots, and nobody knows we're down here except more murder bots!"

"Hey!" yelled Gregory. "They're not murder bots! It was that dumb virus that made them go crazy."

"I wouldn't say it was 'dumb,' exactly."

Vanessa stiffened, and her breathing shallowed. She had hoped she would never hear that voice again.

"As a matter of fact, I would say it was one of my best ideas in a long time."

"WHAT IS THAT THING?!" Chloe screamed.

His hideous frame was standing in the doorway, rusted metal and bone, held together by a few bolts and tendrils of charred flesh. Patches of casing stubbornly clung to him, including one three-toed foot and what used to be rabbit ears. Even hunched over, he was taller than anyone else in the room. His soulless purple and black eyes scanned the room, eventually landing on the panicked blonde.

"Well, let's not be rude. I bring you into my home, and you insult me? That's hardly any way to treat your savior."

"Savior?" Gregory scoffed. "That's a load of cr-" Vanessa cleared her throat. "-ud."

"Is it? If I hadn't stopped those savage S.T.A.F.F. bots, they would have torn you to pieces. Fortunately, I prefer to do that myself."

"We know that Gabe and Sam are here. What did you do to them?" asked Ginger.

He chuckled, hobbling over to the covered object. "Ah, I would love to show you."

He tore off the tablecloth, revealing the Daycare Attendant animatronic. They were strapped to some sort of table with built-in restraints, likely an older model of the one in Parts and Services. They seemed to be deactivated.

"So, you stole the old daycare animatronic."

"I thought it was destroyed in the storm?" Chloe sniffed.

"It was, in a way. It was split apart, but I put it back together."

"How tho?" asked Gregory.

"I will admit, it was challenging to revert it back to this form, but I have so few opportunities for intellectual stimulation these days."

"No, I mean literally how."

"I am afraid my precise methods are beyond your understanding, Gregory, but perhaps I can shed some light on this situation." He opened a large desk drawer and pulled out the ball, once again filled with the mysterious substance. "Do any of you know what this is? You must at least have some idea, my darling Vanny."

"That's not my name," she mumbled.

A light flickered on in Gregory's head.

"You're the jerk who made her kill all those people!"

"Made her what?" asked Ginger. Chloe sounded like she was trying to say something similar, but she was crying too hard to speak clearly.

"Not exactly. She only killed a couple, before I had regained enough strength to do it myself. What's the point of automation if it takes all the joy out of your life? No, she was my most reliable delivery girl, until this maggot severed my connection with the outside world." He pointed angrily at Gregory, still holding the ball in his other hand. "However, before he destroyed my livelihood, I was able to harvest a decent amount of this. This unique substance is created when a corpse comes into prolonged contact with metal during or immediately following death. It seems to be attached to the subject's emotional state, and perhaps their very soul. The more trauma the subject has been through, the more is produced. I call it… remnant." He savored the word as if it was the most ingenious name anyone could possibly think of. "Fitting, don't you think?"

"I think your mom dropped you on your head too many times," said Gregory.

"Interesting theory," he said before continuing to monologue. "I have been studying this remnant for many years, and I still have not unlocked all of its secrets. One of its known properties is creating sentient, even sapient machines, either by binding a soul to the metal, or by other supernatural means I have yet to fully realize. Thanks to my harvesting methods, the former cases have irked me to no end. That is, until recently."

He pulled the tablecloths off of the wall to reveal that it was not a regular wall, but the door of a cage made of cobbled together scrap metal. Inside the cage was a pile of old endoskeletons dotted with the shells of a few familiar Freddy's characters. Any normal person might have mistaken the blob for a scrapheap, but Vanessa knew the remains were more than robotic. What was left of the human corpses was stuffed in the center, and their tortured spirits turned the heap into a creature fueled by rage and agony. She had never seen it so calm before. It wasn't moving, and no sound came from it, not even the mechanical snoring it sometimes produced in rest.

"Another is that, when left stagnant for long periods of time, the outer layer can harden into a protective shell, hence this form, reminiscent of a crystal ball. I had theorized that enough of it could not only tether a soul to this realm, but restore the body as well. That is where your little 'friends' come in. Their situation demonstrated that it can not only restore damaged bodies, but also create entirely new ones. As you may be able to tell, this process is also entirely reversible. With enough precision, it is possible to preserve up to 97.87% of the remnant used, allowing it to be repurposed for more important projects."

"Wait, so are Sam and his brother even here?" asked Chloe, finally having a small break in the tears. If they survived, she was going to be dehydrated.

"Why don't you ask them yourself?"

He pressed a key on the keyboard, and Sun whirred to life. When he saw where he was, he retracted his rays and shivered in fear.

"Oh, h-hello again, M-m-mr. Rabbit."

"Sun! What happened?" yelled Gregory.

Sun turned to look at him, and his rays extended a bit.

"Gregory! Vanessa! What are you doing here?! And who are your friends?"

"You don't remember them?" asked Vanessa.

"Holy…" whispered Ginger.

"Not right now. I'm sorry if I'm supposed to. For some reason, all of our memories from the past month were recorded in a format we can't read. The files have been converting for hours, but they should be done soon."

"Yes, very soon," he hissed. "In the meantime, let's have a little fun, shall we? Chloe, Ginger, as newcomers, you are likely unaware that I once had many helpers around the Pizzaplex. Many were simple to control, but this Daycare Attendant was a rather unusual situation. Due to the eccentricities of its dual personality chip, I was only able to control one of its two artificial intelligences. It was not the situation I had hoped for, but it should have been enough. The 'Moon' side could grab a child or two during naptime and bring them up to its room, maybe giving them a few extra Moondrops to keep them quiet, and deliver them to me after closing. It was so simple. Do you want to guess how many children it brought down here? Do you?"

He paused, but no one said anything.

"None."

He slammed his fist on the desk.

"ZERO! It was surrounded by unsupervised children twelve hours a day, and it did not deliver one single child to me directly! Do you know how far a child can run in the time it takes to switch between modes? Far enough for it to lose track of them. If not for the others, some might have escaped entirely. If only the idiots up there had connected the lights to the network like everything else…"

He sighed and rubbed where his temples would be. There was movement to the right. Ginger was using her foot to slide a piece of rubble across the floor. Vanessa turned her eyes away so as not to draw attention to her.

"But, everyone makes mistakes, which is why I am allowing it a second chance."

"A what?" asked Sun.

"This will be a different task than previous assignments. That way, you might actually be able to complete it. You are going to rid me of this pest." He once again pointed at Gregory.

"No!" Vanessa yelled, standing for the first time. Her sore legs trembled and buckled, sending her crashing to the floor again. Ginger took the opportunity to hit "Mr. Rabbit" with the baseball-sized piece of concrete. It made contact with the remaining flesh on his leg, causing him to stagger and drop the ball with a pained yelp. It rolled into the cage, making contact with the creature. The ball started glowing brighter as a tentacle reached out and pulled it further in.

"You foolish girl, WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!" He limped over and grabbed her by the neck, slamming her against the wall. "You have just ruined years of research!"

"Glad to… hear it," she wheezed.

"Fools, all of you! There are many who have sought to take my life. They all wanted me to burn, and burned I have, but each time I rise from the flames, ever stronger. I have become more than you can imagine! I am everlasting! Your resistance means nothing! You will not be spared, you will not be saved!"

He dropped her, leaving her gasping for breath.

"You will soon learn not to cross me! New plan: leave the boy to me, kill the girl instead. She can be the first to help replenish my supply."

"I don't want to hurt anyone!" Sun cried.

"Oh, don't worry. You won't." He turned off the lantern, plunging the room into darkness.

"NOOO!" Sun screamed. "Not again, not again! Lights on, lights oooaaaAAAARRRGGHHH!"

They could hear Sun squirming against the restraints, the internal struggle for control made clear in his erratic movements. His horrible screeching was lined with static and the grinding of metal gears.

Until he stopped.

A mischievous goblin-like laugh echoed through the room. Moon turned his head towards them, revealing glowing red eyes. The stars on his hat and pants were also glowing slightly. Vanessa had forgotten they could do that.

"Naughty girl…" Moon growled. "You must be punished."

"Not this again," Gregory sighed.

"I never thought I would be killed by my favorite Freddy's character/coworker."

"When did you work withthat?" asked Chloe.

Moon laughed again and spun his face around.

"Every weekday for a while now. Do you not get it? Sam and Gabe are Sun and Moon!"

"WHAT?! HOW?"

"Will you IDIOTS be QUIET?!" he screamed.

The restraints clicked open.

But Moon didn't move.

…

File conversion complete.

Open now? (Y/N)

That was the message currently blocking Moon's field of vision. It was apparently also displayed on the screen behind him. He could barely pick up the voice of the Rabbit spewing some nonsense.

"Ah, yes. Memories of your little excursion. I could open them later, and watch you slowly realize that your 'lives' have been utterly destroyed. Or, if I open them now, you'll be perfectly aware of exactly what you're about to do for me. Either one would be just as sweet. Although, if I'm being perfectly honest with you, I've grown tired of waiting. I've been waiting, waiting, waiting to escape this bloody pit for so many years, I've lost count. So, in the spirit of, shall we say, 'living in the moment,' I think I'll give you those memories now, so that you can watch everything you 'love' be ripped from your fingertips, just as I have."

Suddenly, Moon could think again. He only had a nanosecond to celebrate before a million scenes came flooding into his head. Bright lights, nightmares, blue skies, beanies, rats, pizza, sweatshirts, movies, cherry lipgloss. A whole month of someone else's memories. It had to be someone else, right? But why did this human stranger sound and act just like him? Why did he respond to his name? It couldn't be true, but something deep inside of him knew that it was. It was all so shocking that he fell to the floor.

"…Moon? Did you see that, too?"

Sun was coming through crystal clear now.

"I think so."

He rubbed his head and glanced over at the people chained to the wall. He recognized all of them now.

"Sun, what are they doing here?"

"I don't know, but the weird rabbit thing wants you to kill Ginger!"

"What? Why her specifically?"

"She threw a rock at him and made him drop the ball into that big cage."

"Of course she did."

From what Moon remembered, Ginger was extra special. The reason why was… confusing, but he at least wanted to talk to her. They might be the last words she would ever hear.

"Gin-"

The moment was over as quickly as it began. Moon could feel himself slipping again, that thing forcing him to sit up.

"Ah, it seems to be especially fond of you, Miss Ginger. So unfortunate that you insisted on being first."

Moon's thoughts were getting cloudy, but he kept fighting. He had never stayed fully conscious for this long, so that was something.

"Can he… can he hear us?" asked Ginger.

"Maybe, but he won't be able to respond," answered Vanessa.

He felt his feet drag themselves under him. He slowly stood to his favorite crouched position.

"Are you sure?"

"Pretty sure, yeah. But if you want to try something, do it now."

Moon spun his face around and climbed up the wall. Chloe started to cry again. Gregory attempted to console her… in his own way.

"Chill guys, he's really slow. Believe me, he won't even get to us for at least a full minute."

"Ok, uh, hhhi Gabe. O-or Moon, I guess, is your real name. I don't know which one you prefer…"

Moon, now on the ceiling, perched on the nearest rafter and tilted his head. He was relieved to have stopped, but they were still too close for comfort. Ginger took a deep breath and continued.

"Um, anyways, even though I didn't know your real name until a few minutes ago, I'm pretty sure I do know you. And you're a really great guy. And, a-and I know you don't want to do this. You probably feel like you have to do this, but I know you can fight it. You're so strong. Look at that… uh…" she stared at the Rabbit for a few seconds, "…that thing. You could totally take him in a fight, with your hands or in your head. But please, you have to keep fighting."

Every word she spoke filled Moon with determination. He managed to turn his head back and look at the Rabbit.

"Would you get on with it?" he seethed.

The Rabbit hit the side of his computer and Moon's head snapped forward again. He tried to move more, but he couldn't.

"Sun? Can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear!" At least he was strong enough to talk to Sun. "And Moon, as much as I love hearing your voice, isn't saving our friends more important right now?"

"That's why I'm talking to you. I don't know if I'll be able to get full control, and if I do, it won't be for long. We're looking at a generator right now. Can you see it?"

The generator was in the corner of the room to their left. Ginger was chained up less than a foot away.

"I can't see anything, why?"

"Keep going!" yelled Ginger. "You can do it!"

He crawled from the rafter back to the ceiling. He had to make this quick.

"If we work together, I think we can override the virus, pull the lever, and turn those work lights on."

"But if I can't see-"

"It's on our left. I'll tell you when it's time to pull."

"Great! Then what?"

"Then you take that thing down, get the keys, and free everyone.

"Me? Fight that?"

"Why not? You can take that scrapheap."

"Are you sure that's the be-tzz option?"

Sun cut out for a second as Moon struggled to keep the line open. He dropped down a few feet away from Ginger. Almost there.

"I mean, if you do kill me, I won't hold it against you, but please keep trying!"

"I think it's our only one. Just focus on that pull. Good luck."

"You too, br-tzzzzt"

Just a few more steps until he was in position. Ginger squeezed her eyes shut.

"…please."

They rallied their strength for the final moment.

"One…

Two…

Three!"

Their arm reached out, grabbed the handle, and gave it a strong pull. The generator whirred to life as light filled the room. Moon clawed at his faceplate and let out a scream before changing into Sun. He gave himself a quick once-over, rays fully extended.

"It worked! Moony, we did it!"

When she realized she was safe, Ginger started laughing. Or crying. Maybe both.

The Rabbit stepped back in surprise.

"No… No!"

He started hobbling over to the lights, but Sun tackled him to the ground.

"That's it, Sun! Pulverize 'em!" yelled Gregory.

"Get off of me!"

He threw Sun off with surprisingly little effort.

"Are we really doing this?" he sighed. "Fine. If it's a fight you want, it's a fight you'll get."

The Rabbit pinned Sun down and pressed a leftover chain tight against his neck. He could feel the strain in the already overworked servos that struggled to keep his pencil-neck upright. Even if he couldn't, he wouldn't have missed the numerous warnings screaming at him from the corner of his HUD. He kicked against the Rabbit, sending him flying into the file cabinet.

"Come on, Sun! You can take him!" urged Gregory.

The others were seemingly too stunned to speak.

He stood up and grabbed a rusty section of pipe. The Rabbit did the same and swung at his head, but Sun blocked with his own pipe. He tried to retaliate, but he wasn't programmed for fencing. Both parties managed to land a few hits. The Rabbit almost knocked off one of Sun's rays, causing him to retract them completely. At one point, Moon took control of their arms and hit a vein on the Rabbit's arm, rupturing it. He cried out in pain, and a dark substance that maybe used to be blood dripped out. As the fight continued, they moved across the room towards the cell. The amalgam inside started to growl as they grew closer. Eventually, the Rabbit managed to knock Sun against the wall.

"Do you really think that any of them are going to leave here alive?" He laughed. "You can fight all you want. It did not save the others, it will not save you. As soon as I turn the lights out, you will listen to me. You are but a puppet, and this is my theater. Now, do I need to repeat myself, or are you ready to get on with the show?"

Sun noticed he was within arm's reach of the cell, which the enraged creature was trying to rip apart. Then, he had an idea. A horrible idea, but an idea nonetheless.

He tore off the base of the patchwork gate. The rest of it came falling down with much grinding and banging. Once the creature realized its freedom, it crawled straight towards the Rabbit faster than a creature its size should be able to. It growled and grabbed the Rabbit with some of its tentacles. He screamed and clawed, but to no avail. The creature tore his limbs off, one by one. There was the grotesque popping of ball joints being pulled out of their sockets, and the ripping of whatever was surrounding them, spattering more of the dark substance on the tentacles and the floor. Before succumbing to the pain, he let out one final cry.

"No! You won't get away with this! I always-"

The creature bit off his head, crushing it before he could finish, then swallowed it along with the rest of the pieces. And just like that, he was gone, his remains lost to the tangle of metal and plastic. The once rage-filled amalgamation seemed to find peace in the moment, and it gently laid down its weary head. With one final huff, it grew silent, and its segmented jaw drooped open. Everyone else grew silent, too, although theirs was to process what had just happened. Gregory spoke first.

"Lit."

"Is it really over?" asked Chloe, her voice still warbling.

"I… I think it is," said Vanessa.

Sun was staring at the heap of metallic carnage in front of him. As he slowly realized what had just happened, he grabbed the sides of his faceplate.

"DID I JUST K-ZZZZ SOMEONE?!"

Unlike most situations, he couldn't think of any substitute for the banned word. The physical shock was barely felt amidst the emotional shock. Sure, it had been to protect himself and his friends, but that didn't change the fact that he was standing in front of a mutilated corpse. A mutilated corpse that used to be a person, or at least something that sounded like a person.

"As far as I'm concerned," said Vanessa, "you killed a monster."

"I… guess that makes it a little better."

"Um, not to be pushy or anything, but could you please unlock these chains?" Ginger asked.

"Yes, of course! Hold on!" Sun rummaged through the desk drawers until he found the keys. "Ah, there they are!"

He unlocked everyone's chains, making sure to avoid eye contact with Chloe.

"There you go! All free!"

"So… Sam?" Chloe sniffled.

His rays retracted a bit. "Yes, that's me. And I'm so, so, so sorry for all of this."

"You don't have to be sorry. None of this was your fault, it was that crazy robo-rabbit thing."

"But I still lied to you and led you into a death trap."

"Technically, Vanessa led us into a death trap," Gregory corrected him. She lightly punched him in the arm. He recoiled far more than he should have, which was not at all. "Ow! I'm wounded!"

"Ok, I'll admit, I do kind of wish you hadn't lied, but if you had told me the truth, I would've thought you were insane. And I'm the one who insulted you to your face."

"It's alright, we're used to it."

"That doesn't make it any better. I'm sorry."

"And I forgive you! …So, you don't hate me?"

"Of course not!"

"Oh, that's a relief!"

"Hey, Sun? Can I talk to Ginger?"

"Sure!"

"Is it alright with everyone if we turn the lights off for a minute? I promise Moon's calm now."

"Yee," said Gregory.

Everyone else nodded in agreement. Sun flipped the lights off, and it was Moon's turn again. The switch happened smoothly now that it was only the two of them. Every part of their body changed colors, sunny yellow to midnight blue, stripes to stars, rays retracting one by one before being replaced by his nightcap. Moon forced his eyes to stay blank. Most humans were unsettled by glowing red eyes, especially when their owner had just tried to kill them.

"I'm sorry, that just looks so cool," Ginger gushed. "Does it hurt when you do that?"

"Not usually. Only when something breaks or one of us tries to resist it."

"Cool. In that case…" she pulled out her phone, "…would you mind doing it a couple more times?"

"Uhh…"

"That's fine with me!" Sun insisted. It would have been an odd request coming from anyone else, but she was their biggest fan…

"Sure. Just say when."

Ginger held the phone up.

"Ok, go."

Moon turned the lights back on. After a short pause, long enough for their systems to settle (and for him to give his rays a quick spin), Sun turned them back off.

"Is that good?" Moon asked.

"That's fantastic, thank you! So, what did you want to talk about?"

"I also wanted to apologize." Moon rubbed his arm sheepishly. "Y'know, for almost killing you."

"Honestly, you're so good, bro. I know you didn't mean it."

"Thank you."

He stood there for a moment with his hands behind his back, then turned the lights back on.

"That's all you wanted to say?" asked Sun.

"Yep."

There were a million things Moon wanted to say to Ginger. Most of them were along the lines of "Hey, could we still hang out after work sometime?" He should've kissed her when he had the chance. Ok, maybe not, but he should have done something. Maybe he didn't have all the physical symptoms of…that… anymore, but he still cared about her. Not that it mattered.

"Are you sure?"

This was probably even harder for Sun. He and Chloe were actually dating. He had actually made an effort in their relationship, and it showed. He had found someone to care for, and she cared for him right back. And now, they had to say goodbye, maybe forever.

"Yes. Is there something you want to say?"

Sun wrung his hands.

"Me? W-well, I…"

"Oh! Vanessa, we need you to quit our jobs for us," Sun said out loud.

"Of course. I'll do it first thing tomorrow."

"Quit?" said Chloe. "You mean you're not coming back?"

"No… Not that I don't want to! I would love to! I really wish I could've… met the rest of your family."

"Why can't you?"

"We would need that ball. The one that's currently in… there." He looked at the creature resting on the floor. There was no hint of light in its eyes, no movement of any kind.

"So?" said Gregory. "That's not even a problem."

"How? I doubt it could have survived-"

"Would you just shut up and look?"

"I just did! What's so…"

Everyone else looked closely at the creature. They noticed a familiar purple glow spilling out of its mouth.

"Is that…"

It was. Sitting inside the mouth was the glass ball, completely full of the glowy purple stuff. Remnant, as the Rabbit had called it.

Sun squealed in delight. "Oh my stars! This is wonderful!" He crouched down to grab it.

"Don't touch it yet!" Moon yelled. Sun pulled his hands back.

"Why? What now? Is this about the bet? …Oh no, I lost, didn't I?"

"Relax, Sun. You actually won."

"Really?! How?"

"We worded it differently, but the point was that we would go back to the daycare if the virus was back, and we would go back to the apartment if the virus was gone. I don't know about you, but I don't think the virus is going to cause any more trouble. And the truth is…" Moon sighed, "I didn't hate being human as much as I thought I did."

"So, we can go back?"

"Yes. But there's something else I want to do first. Can you turn the lights off again?"

"Sorry folks, can we turn the lights off one last time?"

They all agreed, and Sun turned the lights off again.

"What is it this time, Moon?" Vanessa sighed.

"I just want to do one more thing. Ginger, get out your camera." She immediately did so.

Moon turned away from her, twisted his torso back around to face her, did a handstand, twisted his legs back around, brought his feet down in front of him, then rolled back up to a standing position and sighed happily.

"You have no idea how much I've missed doing that." He fully rotated each joint one more time for good measure.

"I can see why. That was incredible!"

"Yes, Moon, great job, good show, now can you PLEASE PICK UP THE BALL!?"

"Don't you want to do it?"

"I don't CARE as long as it gets DONE!"

"I'm going, I'm going."

"Oh, you might want to stand back. There was kind of a huge explosion last time."

"A what?" asked Chloe.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine."

Everyone hid behind the desk, just in case. Moon picked up the ball, and…

BOOM!