Chapter 9: Lunar Showdown
Gregory and Roxanne continued on their journey through the dark hallways below the Mega Mall. The mechanical wolf's ears were perked up, listening for possible threats. She has to admit, she never quite understood how extensive the pizzeria was. It felt like an endless maze with hidden rooms and secrets everywhere; in a dark, twisted manner, Roxy did not even know her own home. In her search for Gregory, she found areas that were not on her internal maps.
Roxy learned about scrapped concepts that the company almost implemented but changed their minds at the last second. Like the earlier restaurants, Foxy was meant to be here. He had his own attraction and everything, themed after pirates and adventure. However, the iconic fox pirate from the old days was dropped; instead, Roxanne came along. She was not sure how to feel about that. The feeling was new and difficult to understand even with her advanced AI. At the same time, she was glad she exists. After all, it meant she could have her adoring fans, her loving family. She would have never met Gregory if they had not decided to drop Foxy. However, in a morbid way, Foxy died so she could take her place. They cast him aside to avoid lawsuits.
Another concept was that the Glamrocks could be rented out for parties and other celebrations. This one made her sad. The thought of being able to go out of the pizzeria and see the world was bittersweet. Roxanne's programming confined her to the building. If she ever left, her systems would shut down within the hour. But once again, to avoid legal trouble, they threw the idea aside. It would be too costly to constantly repair them if they were damaged during a party; furthermore, the idea was a reminder of the Circus Baby place. The one where those men were found hanging from the stages... Where a man had his insides ripped out, leaving a fleshy husk behind.
Roxy squeezed her eyes shut. Some part of her was ashamed she was part of a company with such a gruesome reputation. This is why she strives to be the best. To put her fans at ease that she would never hurt them, that even though she was animatronic, she had a soul. An artificial soul, but still one after all. She hoped that after this mess of a night, there would still be a place to call home and perform.
"Roxy?"
The wolf animatronic paused. She almost forgot Gregory is hiding in her hair, hanging onto her shoulders. Roxanne tapped his tiny hand, "I'm okay, Greg. Just thinking," she said.
Gregory seemed unconvinced. "Thinking about what?"
"Just contemplating about the future. After this night, I could go for some sleep."
Gregory's eyes glimmered. "Hey, hey! If I start living with you, where am I gonna stay?" he asked excitedly.
Roxanne tapped her chin, "I guess my room. It's really the only livable area you can hide in; you know a lot of hiding places now and I can sneak out food for you," she replied.
The answer seemed to please Greg. She turned right at a T-section and continued going down the corridor; Jesus, where's the staircase? She felt like she's been down in the Utility Tunnels for hours. But it's not 3:24 AM. Roxanne needs to hurry. They had to fix her up before stopping her friends. As gruesome as it was, she already knew what to do to... decommission them. Roxy tried not to use that word. She was only moving them out of the way where they cannot hurt themselves or Gregory. Additionally, that rabbit weirdo cannot use them against them.
Squeak. Creak.
Roxanne froze. Her metal lips pulled back into a snarl, her amber-colored eyes blazed with aggression. A malicious chuckle broke through the silence. The wolf turned around, only to be met by glowing red eyes. Gregory gasped, "Moon..."
"Roxy~ You've been a very bad pup tonight. Vanny will put a leash on you soon enough," said the dark Daycare Attendant, followed by more sinister laughter.
Roxanne lowered her body, flattening her ears. "Back off, Moon. I don't want to hurt you or Sunny," she growled.
Moon mockingly wiggled his finger. "Ah, ah, ah. Watch your tone, Roxy. I'm just following the rules; according to our opening hours, that kid should have left hours ago. He's trespassing."
Roxy took a step back, snarling. Her hair seemed to spike up, fueled by her defensiveness; her ears twitched slightly as she heard Gregory whimper. The kid must be terrified. Moon was not even supposed to be out. The generators kicked in a while ago. This Vanny person must have hacked his systems and overrode the Daycare Attendant's personality cycle. His more friendly and cheery self is trapped. Now, it did not matter if the lights were on or off. Moon would still come for them.
The lunar robot jumped from one foot to the other, then launched himself at Roxy, hands aiming for her throat. Roxanne shrieked and rolled the side, "Hang on!" she yelled to Gregory. She got on all fours and bolted down the hallway. Somewhere behind her, Moon yelled with irritation and gave chase; his joints audibly clicking and creaking as ran. Roxy made a sharp turn right, shoving some crates and boxes behind her in an attempt to slow Moon down. Gregory gripped her pauldrons, trying to hang on. He was trembling. Roxanne jump-turned and skidded to a halt, extending her claws. She was sick of hiding and being afraid. It is time to take care of Moon, for good.
She heard the ominous jingle of his bell ribbons before he jumped from the darkness. Roxy swiped her hand upwards, aiming for his face; however, Moon moved at the last second. She only managed to rip his night hat. The evil Daycare Attendant hissed, rage evident in his crimson eyes. Roxanne snapped her jaws at him in an intimidating display as she started to circle him; the other animatronic raised his fists. It was almost comical. Moon may be agile and difficult to spot in the dark, but he was not built to fight. His fragile frame was too light. If he tried to punch her, all the circuitry in his hand would shatter like glass; he was meant to be soft and cuddly for the kids. Vanny sent the weakest animatronic in the pizzeria after her.
This will be quick.
Roxanne tapped Gregory's hand and approached some crates. She gently shrugged off his hands, "Get down, pup. He's all mine," she said. Gregory quickly got out of her mane and hid behind the wooden crates. With him off her, Roxanne could do some real fighting. The wolf rolled her shoulders, "Stand down." She ordered.
"Hand over the kid, Roxanne. Otherwise, I'll just take him from you," replied Moon.
Roxanne slowly clenched her fists. "Touch him, and you'll never come out of Parts and Service."
Moon flinched at the severity of her tone. He knew Roxanne outweighed him and could fight; however, his hacked programming demanded he goes through with his commands. Even if it was practically suicide. And without thinking about it any further, the two lunged at each other. Metal and sparks flew into the air as Roxanne raked her claws across his torso, leaving deep scratches and exposing machinery. Moon punched her snout, but that only angered her further. If she were a real wolf, drool would be dripping from her maw due to the deep snarl on her lips.
She jumped on his back and bit into his shoulders, violently twisting her neck. Moon screamed in agony; he elbowed her between the eyes and shoved her off, causing her to skid across the floor. The attendant grabbed one of the gaps in her casing and yanked it off, exposing her leg's endoskeleton; Roxanne shrieked. She swung her other leg and kicked him in the chest. Moon flew across the area and crashed into a wall; one of his eyes turned white. Sunny.
"Do it! He's out of control!" he yelled.
Moon slapped himself and his eye turned crimson once more. The star-themed animatronic shakily got to his feet, and some of the casing on his leg fell off. Suddenly he felt someone tap his shoulder. With a confused expression, he looked over his shoulder... Only to get struck by a metal pipe. Once again, he fell to the floor, clutching his cracking face. Gregory stood over him, panting as he dragged the heavy pipe across the ground. Roxanne walked over and pushed him behind her, "It's lights off for you, Moon." she said. The lunar robot growled and tried to stand up but collapsed. His eyes powered off with a low hum and he stopped moving. Roxanne patted Gregory's head. "One down, three to go," she said.
"Roxanne, your leg!"
The animatronic flinched. The grey casing of her thigh and knee was gone, strewn across the floor. She was battered and scratched everywhere; pieces of her mane were missing. Roxanne groaned and tried to fix her hair, but it was useless. Just something more she needs to get repaired. Gregory dropped the pipe and leaned on his knees, trying to get catch his breath. Roxy carefully crouched down to his level, "You did good, Greg. He's down. Just breathe, little dude," she cooed. Gregory sighed and looked. His face contorted into pure horror. Roxanne raised an eyebrow, "What's wro-"
A horrible mechanical screech echoed behind her. Roxy shoved the boy away from him as a group of animatronics grabbed her tail and hair; she thrashed and snapped but the endos refused to let go. Their claws dug into her scalp as they lifted her upwards. Two broke away from the crowd and approached Gregory. Roxanne tried to pry their hands off, "Gregory! Whatever you do, don't stop looking at them! They can't move if- " one of the endos grabbed her snout and cut her off.
They lifted her over their heads and walked down the lightless hallways. Gregory stared at the endos before him, keeping them frozen in place. Tears streamed down his face as he screamed her name, unable to follow and save his friend.
***////***
Sounds of struggling and screaming echoed through the halls. Roxanne Wolf violently fought against her captors; however, as quickly as she shakes off one endo, another quickly takes its place. They carried her deeper underground. She could hear the distant cries of Gregory, but thankfully not the moving of endos; he was holding his ground against them. Now, if only she could shake off these bastards.
Suddenly, they descended a set of stairs and she found herself in a familiar-looking hallway. For a moment, she stopped struggling as the endos opened a set of red, double doors. Holy shit, they brought me to Parts & Service, she thought. The place she has been struggling to get to. Why would they bring her here? Her systems were glowing with danger symbols, due to her crumbling body as well as the threats all around her. Normally, the endos would be powered off, dangling from metal hangers on the ceiling; they would be on standby in case one of them got severely damaged and needed to be replaced. However, Vanny hacked them and is now using them to patrol the Utility Tunnels.
Parts and Service was a massive room filled with machinery and tools hanging from racks. Most of the space was taken by a large metal cylinder with glass walls. Wires hung overhead. But that was not what Roxanne was worried about. Vanny stood in front of the protective cylinder with her hands behind her back. Freddy stood right next to her, glaring daggers at Roxy. The wolf growled as the endos dropped and forced her to her knees. Then closed the doors behind her with a thunderous boom.