Chapter 5

Pain. It gets to the point that only so much can be taken until the receiver of such can no longer respond. No screams, no grunts; If they were cursed to still be conscious for such a thing, all they could do is wish for it to be over. That was something Mike was familiar with and constantly had to remind himself of as the kicking continued. He couldn't understand why this was happening to him. Perhaps some just love to engage in the basic human affinity to violence and will use any excuse to engage in it, no matter how petty.

Suddenly, the screaming began once again… But it wasn't Mike's. They started out loud, but soon grew quieter until nothing was heard at all. The silence only caused Mike's anxiety to grow, but that was nothing compared to the sharp increase of it when he heard the shuffling of feet; a sound that grew louder and louder with each step. Suddenly, it was silent again. Before long, a hand was thrust into his blurry field of vision as he heard, "Hey, are you okay?"

But like always, Mike could never answer that question as every time he heard it, he always opened his eyes and found himself in his bedroom.

"That dream again…" he sighed as he sat up.

But he had no time to dwell on such a recurring dream for it was time for him to prepare for work. It was only his sixth night on the job, but he already was used to the preparation stage. Getting dressed and embarking to a fairly new location to him was already standard. He would arrive at his place of employment and enter the almost vacated premises to begin hi-

"Gotcha!" Mike heard as he was immediately glomped by Spring-Bonnie.

"S-Spring-Bonnie?!" Mike exclaimed. "…Where you waiting for me at the door?"

"Mm-hmm," the gold animatronic answered, happily squeezing him tighter. "Foxy's been hogging you for the last two nights, so I wanted to make sure I got to you before she did."

Mike blankly stared at Spring-Bonnie and then diverted his gaze, thinking, "If it wasn't for what Foxy said last night, I might have taken this in a more negative light…"

A solemn sigh broke through his lips, prompting Spring-Bonnie to ask, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing. It's just… Nothing," Mike assured her.

Spring-Bonnie silently stared at the Night Guard and suddenly released her grip on him, an act that surprised Mike. She then squeezed his right hand and began to walk him down the hallway.

"Where are we going?" Mike asked.

"You'll see," Spring-Bonnie answered with a wink.

Moments later, Mike found himself lying on top of a spread of prize boxes. Soon, Marionette approached the confused young man and sat next to another prize box next to him.

"So, what brings you in here today, Night Guard?" she asked.

"Marionette, you run after-hours therapy?" Mike asked.

"Yep. I like to think of it as an extension of my day job, but instead of securing children and prizes, I'm securing the minds of my patients."

Mike silently stared Marionette with a worried expression.

"If it makes you feel better, I'm only in therapist mode when I'm asked too, so it's not like I'll be psycho-analyzing you 24/7," she gently assured him.

"Oh. Okay," Mike nodded.

"So… What brings you in here today, Night Guard?"

"Well… Spring-Bonnie suggested I come in here."

"Mm-hmm… And why do you think she did that?"

"Well… She might be under the impression that I might have something on my mind?"

"Do you have something on your mind?"

"Well… I've been having these dreams lately. Actually, I've been having these dreams for years."

"Really? What are they about?"

"A lot of them are about pain and some are just mundane but…" Mike solemnly closed his eyes as he thought about the most important factor of his dreams. "I think there's this one person who keeps showing up, but the dreams always end before I can see their face."

"Always?" Marionette asked.

"Always," Mike confirmed. "Do you have any idea what that could mean?"

"Well, I would like to think that it's just a really big coincidence but I think the fact that you keep waking up whenever you try to see this person means that they are a trigger."

"A 'trigger'?"

"Mm-hmm. I think you're subconsciously forcing yourself up every time you're about to see this person's face because your mind is trying to shield you from something."

"But from what?"

Just then, Charlie walked into the room, "Hey, heard you were in here."

"Evening, Charlie," Mike greeted.

"Just wanted to tell you personally that I'm headed out so, you know, you're in charge for the night. But you know the drill by know, you'll be fine. You're great, you're wonderful, you're the perfect man for the job."

"Charlie, you're overcompensating to alleviate your guilt and internal struggle," Marionette said.

"I know," Charlie admitted.

"Guilt?" Mike questioned.

"Yeah, about that…" Charlie awkwardly approached Mike as he sat up. "Look, I just didn't want you to get the wrong idea and think that you're a useless, unimportant grunt that I'm stringing along.

"…I don't recall calling myself 'useless'."

"Okay, I'm making this worse. What I'm trying to say is that even its only been six nights, you keep coming back despite obviously being freaked out about the job at first, had a few instances of being hurt by affection and even risked having your arm sent flying by Foxy. By the way, we have backup furniture in case of Foxy and/or BB.

Back on subject, I'm just trying to say that you're a valued and impressive employee of this franchise."

Silence interjected itself in their conversation as Charlie scratched the back of her head, "You weren't planning to quit, were you?"

"Not really," Mike answered.

"And loyal," she casually added. "…Is it kind of that we're having this conversation only on the sixth night?"

"I think the circumstances make it justifiable," Mike assured her.

"Right," Charlie agreed with a shrug. "Anyway, night' guys."

With a salute goodbye, Charlie exited the room for the night.

"Would you like to continue the session?" Marionette asked.

"No," Mike answered. "But thank you for taking the time to analyze me."

"No problem," Marionette replied with a smile. "I hope you have a more pleasant dream when you sleep later; they seem interesting."

"They seem… Marionette, don't you dream?"

"Not really. I don't really need to sleep and when I do, it's pretty much like turning a machine on and off and all I see is darkness until I wake up."

"Oh…"

"Oh, but don't worry about me; I'm sure I'm not missing much. Like I said, I don't really sleep."

"Okay, um…" Mike scratched his right cheek. "Again, thanks for taking the time to listen to me."

"No problem," Marionette once again replied with a smile.

At that point, Mike began to wander the convention. He had no location in mind, he was just walking. The young night guard could not help but feel lost and confused. Like he confessed before, he had dreams like the one he described before and even though he had made peace with them, this recent one seemed to reignite the negative emotions they wrought in the past.

Mike eventually found himself in the main stage room. With a quick scan of the area, he noticed Freddy sitting at one of the table with a book in her hands. Upon closer inspection, he could tell it was a book that he was familiar with.

"Lord of the Flies?" he thought aloud.

"Huh?" Freddy glanced up from her book, finally noticing Mike's presence. "Oh, hey, Night Guard."

"So, you're reading Lord of the Flies?" Mike asked.

"Mm-hmm. I borrowed it from Charlie again."

"It's quite a fascinating read, isn't it?"

"Yeah…" Freddy glanced down at the book, then back to Mike. "Hey, Night Guard, can I ask you a question?"

"Sure," Mike answered.

"So, this book has themes of morality and immorality and other things that would apply when stranded from society. Is this really how humans would act if they were in this situation?"

"I don't really know. It's really situational. I mean, on a basic level, our sense of self-preservation can overpower out innate goodness in times of stress and danger. It also depends on a person's true character. You can never really tell how they will react until the time calls for it."

"It's just a little weird reading a story about kids acting like this when you see how they act here every day."

"Even kids have their dark side," Mike rubbed his neck as he diverted his gaze. "Believe me, I'm well aware of that fact."

"Kids are supposed to be the pure ones. I wonder what would happen if adults were in this situation," Freddy wondered aloud.

"Best case scenario would be like the protagonist from Cast Away. Worst case would be them turning to cannibalism and worshipping their own made up demon as a delusional attempt to justify what they do."

"So… Pretty much like Jack."

"Yep."

Freddy sighed as she closed the novel. "It's kind of depressing. If humans can't get along with each other, than Bonnie's fears of what will happen if others found out about us is a real concern."

Hearing those words forced Mike to remember his own reaction to the revelation on his first night. It was a moment he regrets every time he remembered it.

"I guess it is…" he solemnly admitted. "Humans are simultaneously fearful and interested in what they cannot understand. If humanity were to accept sentient robotic girls they would need to be slowly eased into it. If not, then the likely response would be to study you girls."

"Study? Wouldn't they just disassemble us?" Freddy questioned.

"Best case scenario, they would study. You girls are highly advanced robotic beings after all. They would want to study what makes you tic and try to replicate you girls."

"Replicate?" Freddy shot a look at Mike that could only be described as disturbed and worried. "Replicate for what reasons?"

"Probably to be servants and assistants," the night guard answered.

"Oh."

"And then they'll regret it when the A.I. robotic revolution begins, leading to the first human/robot wars."

"That's really funny, Night Guard," Freddy giggled, only stopping when she noticed Mike's solemn expression didn't change. "You really think that would happen?"

"I could write my own Lord of the Flies on the subject if I was writer," Mike replied.

"That would sound like an interesting read."

"Not really if I was the one to write it. I don't understand the intricate of literature."

"Maybe you could join a class or a club for that?"

"A club for literature? Such a suggestion would have gotten the kids in my school to think I was more disturbed than I already was."

All of a sudden, the doors to the room were kicked open and a figure rolled in.

"BB's here to save the day!" BB declared.

"Huh?" Mike blankly responded to such an entrance.

"Heard you went to therapy today and I'm here to make sure that you're in a good mood," BB grinned as she raised a deflated in front of her face. She then placed her lips against the opening on the neck balloon and instantly blew it to its appropriate size. She just as quickly tied it closed and presented it to Mike.

"Here you go," she said with an innocent smile.

"Thank you," Mike said as he accepted the balloon. "Um, BB…"

"Yeah?"

"How did you do this?"

"It's part of my name. Of course I'm a master of making balloons."

"That's true. But how could you blow up a balloon?"

"What do you mean?"

"You don't have lungs," Freddy explained.

"Oh," BB glanced at the stomach and pointed at it. "I got an oxygen tank in me; the same way Freddy has a music box in her and Marionette sometimes stores prizes in her."

"Really?" Mike questioned, turning his gaze to Freddy.

"Yep," Freddy nodded her head.

"Hm," Mike remained silent for a moment, before asking, "Do any of you ladies know where Bonnie is?"

"I think she said she was going to be in Mangle's Cove for a little bit," Freddy recalled.

"Do you want to head over there?" BB asked. "Cause I can give you a ride."

"A ride?" Mike couldn't help but wonder what BB could be referring to.

"Yep," BB jumped behind Mike and began to push him towards the exit. "The same way I got here today."

The moment he was pushed through the doors, Mike found himself in front of a four-wheeled chair.

"Isn't that my chair from the security office?" he asked.

"Mm-hmm. Take a backwards seat," BB instructed.

Following the animatronic's instructions, Mike sat down on the chair in a manner opposite from he usually would. B then jumped on behind him and tightly gripped the back of the chair.

"Ignition locked on!" she declared with an eager grin. "Ready for launch in 3…2…1!"

What happened next would remind Mike how strong the girls are? Effortlessly launching them down the hallway, all he could do was hope that would not crash into anything as BB happily laughed at the ride. Suddenly, the chair started to spin as it sped down the hallway, prompting his hopes of survival to increase.

Not too far away…

"Are you sure it's not too inconvenient?" Mangle worriedly asked.

"Of course not," Bonnie assured her as she strummed away at her guitar.

"But what about the kids?"

"We got that covered, don't worry."

Just then, Mike stumbled into the room. Just by looking at him, Bonnie and Mangle could tell that he could throw up at any moment.

"Are you okay, Night Guard?" Bonnie worriedly asked.

"I'm fine. I… I just had a ride with BB," Mike said, trying to catch his breath.

"Oh…" Bonnie nervously chuckled. She then jumped off the stage and approached the night guard, allowing him to lean on her until he got his balance back.

"Hey, Bonnie…"

"Yeah?"

"I'm sorry."

"Huh? Sorry for what?"

"For acting in a way that assumes the worse at first, especially when you did nothing to incite that."

"Oh, um… You don't have to apologize about that. It's completely understandable."

"Still… I guess I just wanted to let you know that I'm sorry."

"Night Guard…" a soft smile cross Bonnie's face as she suddenly embraced Mike. "Okay. Apology accepted."

The young man just stood there, unsure if he should return the sentiment or not.

The moment was quickly interrupted though, as the three heard a loud crash outside in the hallway.

"Oops!" they heard BB cry.

"Do any of you ladies know where Charlie keeps the extra furniture?" Mike asked.