Day 3x3 - Down the Lane

"That's how it's done!”

You feel this is a good time for questions. Maybe not with Bonnie but there were other things in the plex you weren't clear about.

"So what's the deal with Gregory? Who is he?"

"He's a friend of the plex. There was an incident last year, but Gregory managed to save us and the plex. Since then he's allowed to come whenever he wants. He was-uh---is-related to Vanessa." You could tell from his body language that he almost revealed some secret about Vanessa and Gregory but chose not to pursue it further. Asking that almost threw off Freddy's concentration.

You vaguely remember seeing something about the plex having an earthquake or something when you were sifting through those headlines but didn't read the full details. That must what he's referring to.

Freddy's ball rolls down the lane slowly moving to hit the lone pin on the side. It collides perfectly with the pin knocking it to the side. The pin then hits the two pins on the right clearing the board for a spare. The shot looked like something out of a movie. You had no clue how Freddy pulled that off.

A strange animation of a white and blue Freddy with a puppet of what seemed to be Bonnie plays. Bowling animations were always weird to you.

"That's how it's done!" Freddy glees.

The pins clear and the machine sets up for your turn.

It was your turn now. Picking up a dark red ball you get ready at the lane. Your shoes were hardly made for the smooth floor but you can manage. Being extra carful you jerk your arm back and let the ball roll down the lane fast.

It goes straight down until the end when it swerves slightly and knocks most of the pins on the right.

"We lost most of the band at that time. I was the only one left. They managed to fix everyone though, with Gregory's help. It took a while."

"What happened?" You pick up a ball as you wait for the machine to get ready.

"I. I would rather not speak about it." Freddy looked away, guilt filling his face.

"I couldn't talk to Gregory for a week when I found out. But he had to do it. I made sure he fixed everyone up though. Even got rid of my upgrades."

You had no idea what he was referring to but it seemed to have been resolved. Maybe Gregory destroyed the animatronics for some reason? You figure you'll just ask Vanessa later. Maybe even Gregory if you got a chance. Either way it was a tough topic for him.

You ready your shot. "Well, at least they're all fixed now." You shot hits most of the pins but leaves 2 left. "Darn." You say.

"The plex was closed for a month as we all fixed everything, Me, Gregory, Vanessa and many other people. There was a lot of work to do."

Freddy seemed to be lost in thought, he didn't even notice your screw-up.

"Uh, Freddy?" You ask. "Oh. Sorry. I was just thinking." He noticed your score. "Ah, don't feel so bad. I've had plenty of time to practice." He picks up his trademarked Freddy ball and gets into position. You take a seat by the console.

"The others were mad at Gregory for a while but they eventually understood what had happened. Even Sun." Freddy said.

He genuflected and took his shot. It rolled perfectly down the centre hitting and knocking out all of the pins. It was a strike.

A bizarre animation of a whole slew of animatronics you didn't recognize played. You saw primitive versions of what seemed to be the band dancing. The whole thing looked eerie. Nothing like the Freddy and the band you had seen so far.

"Would you look at that!" Freddy said cheerily. He was enjoying himself.

"How in the-" You said, surprised at his skill.

"Whatever, you got lucky." You said baiting him.

"Yeah, okay." Freddy said. Did he just snort? It was kind of cute.

"I'm just that good, (Y/N). I've had tons of practice over the years." Freddy said smugly.

You pick up a ball and got ready for your turn.

"I saw Roxanne earlier. She was chasing something and running around the race course. Is that? Is that normal? She looked to be really into whatever she was doing."

"Hmm. Oh that was when she was playing with Gregory. They do hide and seek sometimes. They turn the lights down too."

"Huh, Cool." That explained the lights. "Is that, y'know, safe?"

"She is very careful."

You take your position and begin to throw. Just as you let go of the ball you slip and drop it. It rolls into the gutter missing all the pins. You land on your chest.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

"Haha, ahhh." Freddy laughs at your predicament. He seemed slightly concerned and at least got up to help you off the ground.

"Thanks." You say dusting yourself off.

"Sorry, I don't have the key to the shoe rack otherwise I would have gotten you some."

"Ah, it's okay. I'll get used to it."

You heard movement behind you. In a flash you turned and saw the two endoskeletons from earlier. They were looking over the railing at you and Freddy. For a split second you saw them stop their movement when you turned.

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Freddy saw your sudden action and looked to.

"Were those...were those always there?" You ask.

"No. They weren't. We call them endos. They're mostly harmless."

"Here. I'll get rid of them." Freddy started to go towards them.

That reminds you. Ask Freddy goes to shoo them away you ask him. "Hey, last night...did you send bots to find me last night?" Stopping, he turned to you. "I am not capable of that, no. I didn't know where you were keeping Bonnie anyways."

"Huh, alright." It must have just been a random occurrence, you think. A strange one, but random nonetheless. Maybe you imagined it, your mind playing tricks on you.

You check your watch. You had taken a far longer break than you should have. It was a good time to resume your work at least.

"Actually. I should probably get back to work. It's been a while."

"Are you sure? We could go another few rounds, if you want." Freddy said. He wanted you to keep playing. As tempting as it was to keep losing you decide against it. There would be time later.

"Yeah, I don't want to get in trouble. We'll play once I fix up Bonnie and everything."

"You promise?" Freddy gave you a puppy dog look, his eyes seemingly drooping down."

"I promise."

Freddy walked up to you, pulling you into a bear hug. You hardly expected the motion and were caught off guard. You decide to hug back, it's not like he was trying to kill you anyways. You feel safe.

"Thank you." He whispers. He puts you down and turns his attention to the endos nearby.

"Alright (Y/N). I'll clean things up here. Please. Fix him." Freddy says, waiving you off.

You waved to Freddy and walked up the stairs leaving. As you were Freddy did not stop staring at the endos. They were just looking back at him unmoving. It was creepy as hell, but you weren't going to question it. Now if they came to your area there would be issues. At the back of your mind you wonder if you could use one of those for extra parts if you were having trouble with Bonnie.

On the way back you make a mental note to check back at Bonnie's stage later for extra parts in case you couldn't get any. Bonnie's private area surely had some stuff that could help right? Maybe it had some of his old parts still lying around.

Looking around there were still some small signs of this being Bonnie's area. The fact that management had left some signs up must have meant they were holding out for him, right?

Either that or they were just cheap.

It was early in the morning now with most of the plex empty. The bots had finished their work for the night and were awaiting the opening staff to begin work.

As you walked back to parts and services it occurred to you.

What if you couldn't fully fix him up? What if he was unrepairable? Sure the endoskeleton had been fixed but you had no idea about if it would power, or if Bonnie would even retain his memories. You hadn't really examined his cranium yet. Sure he was missing an eye but what about the whole "AI part"?

Not to even mention you still subscribed to the theory that he was murdered. Who did it and why?

What if it was impossible? No.

You cast your doubt aside.

You were going to fix Bonnie.

If not for the money but also for Bonnie and Freddy and the whole band's sake.

You enter the work room and look over your work so far. You've repaired harder and fixed stuff that was even more destroyed than Bonnie. With newfound fervour and determination you get to work.

The rest of your shift is a blur. You had finished all the endoskeleton wiring, gears, servos and bruised metal limbs. Bonnie's endoskeleton was good as new. All that was left now in the body was to fix the spring cavity (which you had broken earlier); clean the remaining parts of rust and acid damage and put in a new battery holder.

It was nearing dawn now.

You hold off on adding a new battery to Bonnie just in case he turned on. You needed to examine his head as well as any documentation on turning them on/off.

You begin your report. You note that the interior is mostly finished and now you needed parts for the exterior. You recall what the rep said earlier about them having some kind of machine that can easily replace exterior parts so you note that too. You write the rep that you think you can finish by the end of the week, requests for replacement parts and paint you needed, if the plex way was better than doing it manually and a bunch of information about diagnostics and what you needed to test if he was functional as well as AI documentation.

You end the report with a note stating that you observed Roxanne repairing a kart herself. You note that if the plex needs you wouldn't mind a full time position if they are hiring. Even though the place was spooky, it had a charm to it.

With that you sign the paper, say goodbye to Bonnie and shut the lights off. You leave the plex without any fanfare telling Vanessa to have a good day and "I'll see you tomorrow night."

Having spent a few days now with the various animatronics your mind harkens back to what Vanessa said about the animatronic AI. It was extremely advanced. You weren't going to question it but you were glad you heeded her warning first. It would not have gone down well to treat them like inanimate objects.

Even if they weren't fully human you resign to treat them as if they were. They were clearly capable of higher thought, as evidenced by Freddy's range of emotions tonight and memories. Had the singularity been reached? You weren't sure, nor did you care. Just treat them like humans, was the motto for this job.

There was still the matter of what happened to Bonnie in the first place. It occurred to you that if he was murdered by a staff member or one of the animatronics then what is stopping them from doing it again? You run through all the possible suspects. Chica and Freddy seemed genuinely excited that Bonnie would be coming back. Chica couldn't have been strong enough to take on Bonnie. You didn't have her testimony though.

Freddy and Bonnie were way to close for him to suspect you. Roxanne and Monty were still filled with mystery, the latter of which you hadn't seen at all. Then there was also the matter of the few animatronics you hadn't personally met yet. Those being Sun, Moon and the DJ. You decide that before you turn on Bonnie you needed testimonies from all the animatronics. If his killer was still lurking then Bonnie would not be safe.

And with that your 3rd day of plex adventures came to a close. Desperately hungry you find the nearest fast food breakfast joint and order yourself some food and rest for the day.

There would be lots of work tonight.