Day 5Ax2 - That Which Plagued The Plex

"Alright, let's get you out of here."

You place your ear upon the door. You hear nothing but the near-quiet buzzing of janitor and security bots moving around the area. Without trying to alert anyone you jiggle the handle, the door was unlocked.

Opening it as carefully as you can you peer in. You immediately notice a security bot staring at Bonnie, looking at him. It realizes the door open and darts out. You're nearly knocked over the bot rolls out.

You're immediately accosted and nearly knocked over as the bot rolls out, off in some random direction.

Nevermind the bot, you quickly close and lock the door and inspect Bonnie. He mouth was ajar but was otherwise untouched.

There was no way you were going to turn him on now before doing a full diagnostic. You hadn't forgotten about those bots that intimidated you earlier. How did the bot even get in?

Looking over the rest of the for sabotage you notice that there are a few more boxes added to the room but aside from that it looked the same. There was also a note laying upon Bonnie's head from the rep. Oh, he probably just forgot to turn off the lights and left the door unlocked. Still doesn't explain the bot though. Was the rep behind it? You figure not. He didn't seem like a malicious one. Besides, there were plenty of other forces in this plex that wanted Bonnie dead. Either way you were going to do a check over now.

It was a hefty note, a few pages long, stapled together. In Bonnie's arms was a laminate folder containing even more documents. You pull up the chair next to Bonnie and take a seat. The opening statement explained that you were expected to read all documentation here.

You start.

The representative commended your efforts so far and reminded you of your refusal to use the Fazbear repair machines but noted that you likely did a far better job than it could have done. He states that in order to 'boot' the animatronic you would have to use the machine. Alternatively he suggests you could make a defibrillator-like setup and shock him up but advised against it. He pleaded you to use the machine for that part as it has just been the way to turn on the animatronics anyways. Though the idea of supercharging your tazer to bring him to life is tempting you decide to just hook him up later and have it do its magic.

He was a little concerned about Monty's behaviour and spent some time looking through the footage. While he wasn't impressed at Monty's first actions he did say that Monty had been acting far more behaved. "He even opened his room up!"

He was astounded by Monty's actions stating that "I don't know what you did to Monty but he's completely changed! He was even playing with kids and letting them tour his green room. In all my time here he's never done that. He kept asking about you too. Wanted to know when you would come in. It's like he's a different person now."

The rep stated that despite Bonnie's revival there was no intention of decommissioning Monty. "That gator is the most paranoid of them all." He wrote he hadn't heard of any of the bands you recommended but that Monty would not be leaving the band, stating that the head honchos didn't like the idea either. "He thinks to lowly of himself. We'd never get rid of him."

He liked the idea of you running some diagnostics on Monty but stated that it should be done after Bonnie is up and running.

"Monty has had issues with past technicians so we haven't actually run diagnostics on him since the SB-9 incident. He's very apprehensive about letting anyone near his inner systems."

He concluded the report with a few more pieces of information. For one, in a separate box would be a 'technician' uniform you would be expected to wear now. Second, there was a paper in the box that had a list of all the animatronics numbers as well as watch numbers.

"All the animatronics can interface directly with the network and contact you personally but in my time here only Freddy seems to do it regularly. I'd suggest just calling their watch."

Finally, it ended with a lengthy paragraph about having retrieved the SB-9 case files in the folder and a reminder to destroy them after as they are highly classified. The rep states it wasn't easy to get them but he hopes it puts your mind at rest.

There was a P.S. at the bottom that wrote that the executives had found a hat for Bonnie but were torn on if it worked with him or not and that they wanted your opinion.

First things first you wanted to know what happened that fateful night a year ago. You put away the rep's note and open up the folder and get reading. You become engrossed by the report reading every single detail.

In summary you learned that Gregory destroyed most of the animatronics and created a sort of Frankenstein with parts for Freddy. The plex had nearly burned down, there was a serial killer, Vanessa vanished and was found later, Roxanne had her eyes ripped out, Chica nearly destroyed beyond recognition, Monty's lower half crushed and there was a secret restaurant below the plex.

There were lots of theories and scribbles in the margins about certain events that had occurred and the investigator even questioning things that happened.

The investigator had been thorough even interviewing all the animatronics and people involved following the incident.

You also read a bit after the aftermath of the plex, how it took them a while to fix all the animatronics, get everything back in order to re-open. Needless to say but there was tons of cleaning and fixing.

It stated that Freddy was furious at Gregory for what he did and ordered the parts to be removed and replaced with their originals. Monty had tried to kill Gregory upon being fixed leading to some kind of fight between Freddy and Monty. And Gregory was given some kind of platinum pass and allowed free entry to the plex for what he did.

Based on the notes in the margins most of the animatronics eventually forgave Gregory. It noted the only two who didn't were Moon and Monty (though with Monty it just said couldn't figure out if Monty was being truthful or not). Moon was apparently furious and refused to deal with Gregory in any capacity.

Some kind of armed team went into an area below the plex but didn't find anything but ruins, police became involved after certain DNA was found but the investigation was later cancelled. There was "insufficient evidence to make conclusions".

The investigator noted there was some sort of 'earthquake' that occurred towards the end of the incident likely sealing off whatever Gregory and Freddy had found down there.

"I'm sure more evidence can be found if we hired an archaeologist to dig it up." The investigator wrote. It stated that apparently the higher ups didn't see it relevant to excavate the wreckage.

The investigator appearently believed something deeper to have ocurred at the plex. While they just did their job the investigator reported that they had created an unofficial version of what they think ocurred. The detective noted it was all spectulation however.

Great, there's another version of the case lying around. You sigh.

A separate digital forensics team was also called into investigate how the animatronics lost control. They claimed to have found remnants of a virus that was controlling them, distributed using near-impossible to hear tones that the animatronics alone could pick up.

As for the origin they were not able to find. Apparently the virus had allowed them to be controlled. Though, like the origin, they never found the source. They had also determined that the virus had been present on the animatronics for half a year prior to the event and were being triggered occasionally, though the exact times and frequency was unknown.

There was a note about one of the incident response technicians getting frustrated with management that they had wiped some of the animatronics and that their investigation couldn't continue. It concluded that section with a post-it note that they checked Freddy and found the virus on his system. However due to reasons they weren't able to find it never triggered on Freddy. They chalked it to some "incompatibility" or Gregory being inside Freddy prevented it.

It noted that the only animatronic not damaged was Sun due to the daycare being far from the fire. Even the DJ apparently suffered smoke damage.

Due to an inability to get a proper technician it was up to Gregory and Vanessa to fix the animatronics. They had to do some by hand because the repair machine had been damaged, and the plex personally paid out for therapy for Vanessa and Gregory.

Regarding Vanessa's movements it just notes that she seemingly vanished halfway into the night, the investigator believing there was some kind of blip with the cameras resulting in a few hours of footage lost. She apparently re-appeared later in the night with no explanation of her movements.

Some sort of separate investigation was launched into her but nothing conclusive was found.

The night ended with fire trucks pulling up to a burning plex seeing a badly damaged Freddy carrying both Gregory and Vanessa out of the burning building, him collapsing from lack of energy just outside.

It was like a whole war had occurred, one scribble noted.

They apparently were unable to find Gregory's parents and discovered him to be an orphan. One executive proposed adopting Gregory so that he could remain close to the plex, noting that he had developed a close relationship with Freddy. He apparently also displayed talent at mechanics and that when he was old enough could become a technician.

It stated that in end it was Vanessa who officially adopted him, the two apparently having grown close in the month they fixed up the plex.

The report ended with a NDA that the parties involved all signed to not discuss the event. It stated the Plex's official statement was "A virus was found on the computer systems causing them to short circuit and catch fire. Said virus also damaged the sprinkler system resulting in the fire unable to be contained."

It also had a small note from the rep asking it to be destroyed as he had photocopied the report and wanted there to be as little copies as possible.

It was like reading a horror novel as you take in what had happened. It was a lot of information to digest. There was however, no mention of Bonnie outside of a point of an interview with Monty who claims he saw him. However it did give you a perfect insight into the events that transpired a year ago.

While thinking it over you look at your new uniform in the box. It looked to be a typical Fazbear Entertainment security uniform with some minor changes. There were black pants, white dress shirt and a black tie just like you had seen Vanessa wear. Additionally there was a blue jacket that read TECHNICIAN on it in orange letters. The inside of the jacket was a chrome colour with a flashy look. It was like those flash jumpsuits rockstars used to wear. It was the same material anyways. There was also a black and orange tool belt with many pockets for drills, nails and more. The hat present was a fedora which you presume to have been Bonnie's. It was too large for you to wear.

The inside of the jacket had straps on it for more tools and the ability to wear it like a backpack.

There was nobody else in the room and Bonnie was still out cold so you saw no issue in changing into it right then and there. Due to the clothes sitting in this dusty room all day they smelled slightly of mildew and oil but it was nothing a little of that Bonnie Ambience from yesterday could fix.

They were otherwise clean and washed. You looked yourself over, this was the technician's attire. Fit pretty well too.

There was also the matter of the hat. It was a large white fedora with a black band around it like what Frank Sinatra used to wear. Definitely a little old-school for the whole 80s aesthetic the plex had. It had two ear holes in it to fit around Bonnie's ears. You place it on him but take it off, unsure if it looks good or not. You put it to the side. You'll get Bonnie's opinion later.

It had been well over an hour into your shift and you hadn't done any work on Bonnie, a voice in the back of your head reminded you. There wasn't going to be a ton of work to do tonight anyways. All you had to do was hook him up to the machine and turn him on.

First thing you wanted to do was a once-over. With that bot snooping around you had to be sure.

Wires. Check.

Battery. Snugly fit. Check.

Endoskeleton. Check. No blemishes.

You continue looking over, trying to find anything that the bot would have messed with. Everything seemed fine. He was also still clean from yesterday. You weren't sure what that bot could have been doing. You eventually rationalize that maybe it just saw the destroyed animatronic and got enamoured by it. After all, Bonnie had been missing for well over a year now. But that didn't explain why it was looking in the mouth. Whatever the reason you determine you'd find out later. You were well over-do for some kind of 'interview' with those bots.

Bonnie was fully functional and all he needed was that final kick.

It was obvious to you that carrying him to the machine would be impossible. You find you can lift his parts no problem but trying to lift his whole body wasn't going to happen. There was always dragging him but you didn't want to scratch him on the concrete ground. You also weren't 100% sure about this machine's location anyways. Parts and services was a big area.

Looking outside you see a large black bin meant for recycling cardboard. It was large enough to hold Bonnie and was on wheels. It had some cardboard still in that could help cushion him.

"Alright, let's get you out of here." Positioning the bin as close to the chair as you could and begin moving each part into the bin. First the legs, then moving the arms up, pushing his core and letting gravity do its work.

Halfway through you realize you could just use the controls and dump him in the bin. But, like a vet to a young animal you wanted to be as careful as you could.

You mess up the push anyways and Bonnie falls forward, head smacking onto the side of the bin. You squeal and run over to make sure he was fine. A brief look-over and he seemed to have not sustained any damage. They were built to be strong, after all. You were just being over-protective.

Before leaving you grab your toolkit, just in case.

You wheel the bin outside to the familiar scent of oil. You wander around, pushing the bin until you come to a section in parts and services that looked to contain the 'machine'. Before you could look at it you fail to notice a map bot roll up beside you and Bonnie and start trying to give Bonnie a map. It was trying to hand the dead animatronic a map in vain.

You try to take the map from him but it slaps your hand aside. "Map. Have a map." It said to Bonnie. You already gotten a map, he wasn't going to give you another. Not wanting to waste time on this you use Bonnie's arm to try and take the map. The bot gives it and it falls into the bin.

"Thank you, have a nice day." It says then rolls off. So annoying, you think.

In front of you was a huge cylindrical machine that looked like a radiation chamber. It has a huge logo of the plex on the top as well windows near the top. There were massive pipes flowing into it from the ceiling. As you approach the blast-resistant door you start to get a little intimidated. Why the need for such heavy machinery?

You roll Bonnie into the chamber, the door opening for you. You hear an announcer speak that the chamber is meant to protect outside personal and to exercise upmost caution when operating. It also informs you to use a console outside to begin the procedures. You leave, finding the retro looking terminal. It was a CRT, extremely rare these days. You click through the options to position the animatronic as well as cycle a power upgrade. A claw holds Bonnie's head up.

Mechanical arms descend from the ceiling lifting Bonnie out of the bin and placing him carefully upon the chair. It attaches various wires to him and then the speaker voice informs you to step inside the cylinder and continue the operation there. You gulp, if there was any time this could go wrong it was now.

A console of 4 colours is presented to you with a small button on the corner with a piece of tape attached above reading "IMMEDIATE OVERRIDE". The speaker announces that it will run diagnostics and complete the power cycle. The colours light up informing you to press the same sequence.

One game of Simon Says later the speaker announces that the diagnostic was complete and no issues were found and that he would turned on now. You see the wires light up, electricity pulsating through them as they flow into Bonnie.

You see him tense up, eyes open but the light in them was gone.

Something was wrong.

A blistering scream emits from Bonnie dazing you. It reverberates up the pipes and into the surrounding area. You freak out, the sudden scream hurting your ears. Without even thinking you hit the override button on the console. You cover your ears. Another surge of electricity comes through the wires shocking Bonnie again. The scream is instantly cut off and Bonnie slumps down, dead again.

"Damnit, what the hell was that?" You say but are unable to hear yourself. You also barely make out the speaker saying something but your hearing's temporarily gone. It was loud. You hear tinnitus piercing in your ears as you try to regain your bearings. It takes a few minutes but you're back to normal, albeit a slight ringing in your ears.

Bonnie was out cold.

Stupid machines, I should've done it myself! You think.

What had happened? You cycle through the procedures. You were terrible at Simon Says but at least made it through the game. What went wrong? You leave the cylinder to check if the terminal said anything. A log just read that the override was activated. You scroll up. There was a warning at the start of the procedure that optical and vocal warnings were turned off for the procedure. So it was supposed to warn you?

Something was definitely wrong.

You click through the options and eventually find

As you scroll through it strikes you how old this system was. It was still using F5 and F6 to scroll instead of the arrow keys. The console was a strange piece of technology. Maybe it was supposed to be retro, to fit in with the plex. You think. It was definitely a weird thing to make retro, assuming it was the intention.

You set all warnings on, even debug ones. Better know to everything than nothing.

Assuming there was something wrong with the optical/verbal parts you decide to check it out first before testing Bonnie again. You'd rather not get your ears stung again.

You re-enter the cylinder with a stool to get a look at Bonnie's head. What could have gone wrong? Then you remember. The voicebox had an extra chip on it that wasn't present in the new one. You pry open his chest and reach into the throat, carefully unscrewing it. You examine the voicebox, sure enough the chip was still there. It was hot, indicating it had been doing something.

Trying to recall that looked like the only divergent thing you did from the parts. Could that chip have been a hardware incompatibility? That's a possibility, you think.

You remove it and pocket it. Spending a few minutes re-adjusting everything you go outside and get ready to run the cycle again.

Everything goes smoothly and as you finish the last colour sequence you see the electricity flowing again. Hoping the override didn't fry the battery you wait anxiously. You cover your ears in anticipation.

Bonnie's body tenses up again but no scream this time. His eyes light up a light purple colour as it adjusts. His is slow to move at first as his system comes online.

As the memory module loads he remembers something. Something tragic.

His eyes dart around frantically, eventually with one settling on you. The other one didn't seem to be functioning.

Bonnie was alive!

The next chapter will be called Ol' Big Ears.