Return To The Machine

Chapter 7

The sound of a loud crash made Parker snap awake and sit up. "AGH! Lance! I told you to hold the other end!" a shout went from outside the bunk rooms. "I'm sorry! I thought you weren't ready!" another voice shouted. "Well be ready now! I've got to get these to the entrance to keep those demons out!" the first one shouted.

Exhausted already, Parker threw the blanket off hesitantly. He put his feet on the smooth and dusty ground. He noticed without his shoes on, the ground felt like hardened dirt.

Wow. This place is older than I thought it was. Out of the bedroom, he went and into the new place that he'd call home. The room was filled with the same kind of activity as it did yesterday. Just then, he was approached by Rosa. "Hey! You're up! Come on, Tom's gonna be assigning our missions!" she said excitedly. "Missions?" Parker asked hesitantly.

"Yeah, it's an all-around job that everyone takes part in. They give us areas to go into within the studio in order to collect resources. But we're not allowed to go alone unless you know the place by heart. Or if you're stupid. Which, I probably am. Although, if I didn't go along. Your sorry butt would still be trapped in that one section!" she giggled. "W-Wait- You mean we're going out there?!"  Parker asked stunned. "Well duh! There's only a limited amount of stuff around here. And it's dangerous for someone to go at it alone. The only reason we'd be allowed to go out is if there's an emergency. So you better stay in line around here." she instructed.

No one said anything about volunteering for a death job! Still, I can't risk my only chance for survival. Together the duo made it to the main gathering where tons of people were gathered.

Tom and Allison were standing up in front of them and addressed the crowd. "Y'all know the drill around here. We need any supplies we can get our hands-on. Bendy and those other goons are only getting more and more aggressive. Remember to keep a lookout for the following on the bulletin boards! If you find them, return them to the hideout! Our chances of escape will only increase if they're discovered. But don't be stupid. If you can't gather them, just keep running. Many of them are still highly dangerous and we can't risk losing more of ourselves to those lowlife soul-sucking monsters. Do I make myself clear?" Tom barked. "YES SIR!" they all shouted saluting him.

Allison then took the liberty of assigning them jobs or missions for the day. Many of them agreed before running off. Lastly, they were left with Rosa and Parker. "Huh, newbie's first day. Wonder what kind of job he won't be able to handle." Tom huffed. Allison smiled and approached the duo. "Rosa, today, it'll be your job to watch over Parker as you go down to collect ink blobs. We need them for our creation machines so they'll dispense new items. Can you handle it?"

Immediately, Rosa saluted her off. "Aye aye captain! We got this! Just leave it to us! We'll get those ink blob samples in no time!" Rosa replied. "I'm counting on you guys to do this right. Be careful. Don't go anywhere near Bendy." Allison replied. "We won't. I'll take some spare weapons and the syringes to collect ink. Parker's new so we might take longer." Rosa said. "Fair enough! Now go on! I'll see you both soon... I hope!" she said.

Both of them nodded and left the room to head back to the same place where they had entered in the first place. "I... I don't know how I feel about this..." Parker said. "Oh don't be a wuse. It'll be fun! Besides, collecting ink blobs is probably the easiest job in this entire thing."

She handed him an ax. Meanwhile, Parker made sure he had his pocket knife intact before they began their journey. Outside of the path, they came across a little place that created a replica of a homeless part of town. "What is this place?" he asked. "This is the Place of the Lost Ones and The Searchers. They built this a long time ago. I don't know how they did it though! I heard it took a couple of days. Normally, it would've taken normal people weeks- months! I just can't believe it!" she said.

Parker sighed and followed her to the docks where there were ships waiting for someone to board. They hopped on. Rosa started the boat allowing the engine to whir wildly. As soon as it was ready, they began to drive away into the tunnels where everything became dark, the only light coming from the boat's front light. They began to progress forward to watch the inky path in front of them move like water in the ocean. Together the two moved forward trying to find a path to their new mission.

The boat went down a path until finally, at last, stopped at another part of the studio. "C'mon! This way! I think Smithers built a path down this way! There's a hole!" she said. Together they lifted a huge piece of rock slab off of a hole before heading down the hole. They went down it like a slide before hitting the ground. "Over here, there's a lift!" Rosa said, hitting the button on something that looked like an elevator.

Together they went on board heading into the unknown. As they went up, Parker couldn't help but barely glace in Rosa's direction. He started to say something but stopped himself as he turned red. "S-So... How long have you been here?" he asked her. "Not sure. What year is it when you came in?" she asked him. Parker sucked in some air before breathing it out. "It's 2018. A lot has gone on lately!" he replied.

Suddenly, he watched Rosa's eyes widen as she stared at him in shock. "What..?" she gasped silently. "Yeah, it's 2018! Wait a second... How long have you been in here?!" Rosa put her back to the lift's wall and sighed. "I came here in 2015... I've... I've been here for three years?!" Parker bit his lip and stayed quiet. "PARKER!" she snapped, grabbing his shirt. "Y-Yes! I-I-I guess! I wouldn't know! I just met you yesterday!"

Rosa loosened her grip on Parker and turned around and hugged herself.

"How old are you Parker?"

"Fifteen..."

"I'm fifteen too. Please... Tell me I've been missed!"

"I'm... I'm so sorry Rosa... But... My town's never mentioned a Rosa. Or anyone else for that matter. I've never... even seen your face. Usually, we make posters if someone's gone. But I haven't seen you!"

"That can't be true! My family wouldn't just forget me! Even if... Look the point is that can't be true okay!? Parker c'mon! There's gotta be a misunderstanding!"

Parker shook his head once more. "I'm sorry Rosa... Seriously if I heard of a girl like you... I would remember..." he said softly. Both of them lightly blushed and looked away. The lift opened up to give them an exit. "Never mind... Let's just get those ink blobs..."

She walked away still standing tall but Parker could sense her sadness. I better keep up... Or else... I could have a worse fate than everyone else here... With that, he took off after her.