Join Us For A Bite

Given the distance where he was standing, William couldn't the best look at Ennard, but he recognized that clown mask instantly. It was same mask that was hanging from the wall in the control module from before. Ennard appeared to be waving his hand at him, as a polite greeting. Though the glass panel was quite a distance away from William, he could still get a view, just not a great one. Ennard then turned his head towards Baby, and after a quick glance, he crouched down the the floor, out of William's sight. He must've figured out how to use the vent hatchets.

A moment later, the vent hatchet underneath the module was opened, with Ennard climbing out of it. William noticed more of this animatronic's features that he didn't see on camera six previously. While Ennard was now walking towards the stage, he noticed that the animatronic seemed to shamble a few times as he walked. Its posture and body design certainly looked humanoid to an extent, aside from all the extra wires, springs and other pieces of metal sticking out of him. His appearance made William nervous, but he wasn't frightened, because he knew Baby could try talking some sense into him.

Ennard didn't approach quickly, mostly because the Minireenas were already surrounding William and Baby, and they weren't taking their eyes off of them. Meanwhile, Bonnet was still fighting with one Minireena, but she got spooked the moment she saw Ennard. She whimpered before she ran to the back of the stage with Helpy. The Minireenas didn't mind either of them, though. Finally, once Ennard was close enough to the stage, he started speaking to William.

"You will not escape here this easily. What you attempted was clever, I will say that, but I thought you might try escaping through here. My Minireenas scouted this whole facility, so I knew where the elevator entrances were. Then I made sure to keep a Minireena or two on the lookout, in case you would try to get to either elevator. I knew eventually that either someone would come down through the elevator to come get you, or that you would try to escape. So some of my little minions decided to stay here and set a trap for you, and it appears it was successful."

Ennard then turned his head to Baby and started talking to her instead.

"However, there is something I don't understand. Baby, why are you helping him escape? It doesn't compute for me. I recall that you told me you were going to bring him to me."

Baby gave Ennard a very grim look before responding.

"I changed my mind, Ennard. We're not going to experiment on him. He's my friend. He's not like the others. And I let my own desperation get the best of me. I was too busy thinking about our own escape that I didn't even stop to think about what I was doing. I'm letting him leave. Now, please call off the Minireenas so that we can talk this out."

Ennard didn't answer for a few moments, seemingly calculating something in his head. He was probably weighing his options. After a few moments, he responded.

"I'm not entirely sure about that, Baby. You see, I'm speaking on behalf of the other souls inside of me. They seem to be very conflicted about this. A few of them want this man spared, and some of them do not. One in particular wants me to rip him into pieces."

William spoke up in a sarcastic tone.

"Let me guess: Funtime Freddy?"

"Precisely. Anyway, I believe it is best to keep an extra test subject down here with us, Baby, just in case a problem occurs with Dave. If you're wondering, he's doing well at the moment. I just started my first experiment on him, but he is alive and in stable condition."

"No need to worry about that now, Ennard," Baby said. "I was wrong. I was only trying to get us all out of here and into hiding. I didn't want see William in pain, and I'm not going to let you have him. I'm making sure he gets out of this place without any...uh, without any more injuries. He doesn't deserve what Dave is getting."

Ennard seemed to be listening to what the souls inside of him had to say, and remained quiet for a few moments. After careful consideration, his voice switched over to Ballora's voice.

"Alright, then. If he is your friend, and you want him to live, then I won't get in the way of that. Minireenas! Back away from them and give them some personal space!"

The Minireenas immediately obeyed, and slowly backed away from William and Baby, and began crawling away from them. Once that was done, Ennard started walking around to the right side of the stage, going to the small wooden staircase. He entered the stage and approached William and Baby calmly, and he didn't seem as hostile as before. However, Bonnet and Helpy were still absolutely terrified by him, and were holding onto each other for safety. Kind of adorable, to be honest.

Baby noticed this, and tried to reassure them that Ennard wouldn't hurt them.

"No need to be scared of him, you two. I know he might look intimidating, but he won't hurt you if you don't hurt him."

Ennard turned his attention to William, with Ballora's voice still speaking.

"Hello there, sir. I think I saw you last night, but just briefly. There's just something about your eyes that reminds me of that man trapped in that suit. Was that you?"

"Yes, that was me. Sorry that I couldn't do anything to help you."

"That's alright. Besides, the scooper only hurt for a moment. The next thing I knew, I was merged with this new form. Odd, though. Elizabeth never told me about you. I'm just happy that my little girl is making new friends."

Baby smiled awkwardly before responding.

"Thanks, Mom. I'm glad you understand."

William, still slightly confused, spoke up.

"Wait, so I know you told me that Ennard contains the souls of the other animatronics, but how is your mother speaking to us-"

Ennard answered him in his normal voice.

"Simple. I had all of their voice-boxes installed into mine, so that I could let any one of them talk, but only if I allow it."

William nodded, seemingly understanding it now. Ennard continued.

"My apologies for acting like this. Allow me to introduce myself to you." He turned to William when he said this. "You can refer to me as Ennard. Unlike most of the other animatronics, I'm an amalgamation of most of them, but you probably already know that. Also, I have a sophisticated AI, so at the same time I have a mind of my own, and I can also hear what the souls I possess say. I admit...I don't fully understand this ability yet."

He extended his hand out to shake hands, and William thought it would be kind of rude if he didn't. Ennard, not surprisingly, had a very firm grip, and the robot's fingers and hand form made it feel like it was like a human hand. William didn't notice this at first, but he saw that Ennard's hands seemed to be covered in some dark, red, dried-up substance. Wait...is this blood?! He immediately pulled back his hand once this realization hit him. Ennard seemed to notice his reaction, so he tried explaining himself.

"Apologies. My hands are still messy from dissecting the technicians. Their blood has long dried up since then. I don't blame you for your reaction."

So that's what Baby meant when she said Ennard was making a human skin suit. But those first words terrified William. The thought of that thing dissecting two bodies completely...made him sick. Just try your best not to think about it too much. Not that it would help or anything. Baby took one look at him and could clearly tell that he wasn't feeling too good, so she tried to calm him down.

"Don't be afraid of him, William. He won't hurt you now. I know Ennard looks a little scary, but he's not that bad when he's in control. Just don't antagonize him or do anything bad to me. I know you wouldn't do anything like that, but I'm saying it anyway. Believe me, he does not take threats lightly."

"Hmm...he does look like he'd made a good body guard," William said. "I guess you are right. Sure, the bloody hands, the extra eyes and the wires still creep me out, but he doesn't seem so bad to me now."

He noticed that Bonnet and Helpy were still holding onto each other, and now it was starting to get very annoying. Baby noticed, too, and tried to talk some sense into them.

"No need to be scared, you two! Ennard's not going to hurt either of you. It's safe for you to stop now."

While they did stop holding onto each other, neither of them seemed to fully trust Ennard, as they slowly walked right behind Baby and William. Bonnet seemed to be much more terrified than Helpy was, as she looked like she was clinging on to Baby's leg for dear life. Baby tried her best to calm her down.

"Bonnet, don't worry. Ennard's not going to hurt you, I promise. You don't have to be scared of him."

The little rabbit let go of Baby's leg and slowly backed away from her, but she didn't go any closer to Ennard. She still seemed to be very shy towards the big guy. I guess she's much more terrified of him than I thought. Once that was done, Baby turned to Ennard and asked him about his progress.

"So, Ennard, how is Dave doing at the moment? Are you having any problems so far?"

"I told you before, Mr. Miller is currently in stable condition. I just recently began my experiments on him, but so far he's doing well. He's in a great deal of pain as well. He hasn't lost too much blood yet, either. So far, no major inconveniences have occurred."

"Good to hear, Ennard. Thanks for your report."

William interrupted them for a brief moment.

"Wait, Elizabeth, I know you're keeping Dave down here for your own experiments, but are you...are you going to kill him? I mean, I know he's a child murderer and that he killed your mother, but he's still your father."

Baby's expression turned cold.

"No, I don't think I'll kill him. Not now, at least. Taking him out now would be the merciful thing to do. I think it's better if I show him how much pain we've been through. That way he'll slowly pay for what he's done."

"Alright, I understand. I just think that he should be turned in to the authorities or something."

"You don't have to worry about that, William. Ennard and I will make sure my father gets what he deserves. Anyways, I think it's time we get you out of here."

Oh, you're right, I completely forgot about that. I've been so focused with this that I forgot all about the door in the back. However, there was still a small problem with the door to the visitor elevator: that is, it wouldn't open. Baby mentioned this to Ennard, and he immediately walked over to the back of the stage, and seemed to be trying to pick the small keyhole with one of the protruding wires on his arm. Surprisingly, it worked, and he twisted the door handle, revealing the entrance to the visitor elevator in front of them.

So is this it, then? Will I finally be able to go home and enjoy myself? I hope so. Although I don't know if I want to work here anymore after what happened tonight. I'm definitely going to have to explain my black eye, my scar and the large bite to Mr. Cunningham. I don't know if I'm going to get fired for sneaking in an unauthorized area, but honestly, I'd be happy if that happened, too. The only reason I would stay now is probably to check on Baby. That and the good paycheck and promotion I'm hopefully getting after this, too.

While he thought about this, Baby decided to ask him something.

"Hey, William? Uh, before you go, I just want to say that I hope you come back soon enough. It was really nice getting to know you this past week, and maybe we can try talking some more when you come back next week."

Helpy budged in and interrupted her.

"Well, that is, if he comes back. You see, he's still on terms for getting fired for accessing an unauthorized place, but I'm sure the boss will understand if you explain it to him."

Baby ignored Helpy and continued talking to William.

"Never mind him, William. I'm sure even if you do get fired, you can find some way to get back to us. I just want to spend some more time with you later. But now, I think you should go back home. You look really tired to me, and honestly, I think you've been through enough."

"Thanks, Elizabeth, but there's still something on my mind that's been bothering me. Once the cleaning crew arrives here in a few hours, what's going to happen to Ennard? I mean, someone's bound to discover him sooner or later, not to mention I'm sure someone will notice that the two employees have gone missing, and that the other animatronics are gone-"

"I told you before, William. You don't have to worry about this. I made sure to plan ahead in case something went wrong, so I have a plan. Also, now that you brought it up, I guess I didn't think about what I'll do to Dave. But I'm sure Ennard and I will work something out. He's a smart cookie."

I'm honestly not too sure about this. I can see so many things that could go wrong with this. I just hope that she knows what she's doing. Now, time to get out of here. Before he could say goodbye to Baby, Helpy barged in to ask him something.

"Hey, William, since you're getting out of here, do you mind if I tag along? I think you might want to have me around just in case you need my help later on."

"Alright, little guy, I guess you can come along if you really want to."

Helpy jumped up and down with excitement, and then ran over to Bonnet and gave her a goodbye hug. Bonnet didn't seem to mind, and hugged him back. Hard to believe they were fighting just an hour ago, and now it looks like they're best friends or something, William thought. Helpy also said his goodbyes to Baby, too, and Bonnet did the same with William. Ennard, strangely, was the only one who didn't say goodbye, and just sort of stood around, emotionless. When the little animatronics were done, he continued speaking to Baby, this time without Helpy interrupting them.

"Well...tonight was certainly not one of the best nights of my life, but...if it weren't for you, I wouldn't be here. Thanks for helping me. I promise, I'll try to come visit you more often. I...guess this is goodbye, for now."

"You're welcome. I hope you get back home safe and sound. Goodbye, William."

She gave him a big hug before he left. He thought it was best to get going, so he got Helpy to follow him to the visitor elevator. Before they both went inside, Helpy looked around inside. The visitor elevator looked very similar to the employee elevator. It had the same cylindrical shape, metal interior, several lights on the ceiling, and a gigantic fan in the middle of the elevator ceiling. The same large, red button was also near the entrance, too.

When William pressed it, the elevator doors immediately closed, but it wouldn't start just yet. Helpy seemed to know how to properly operate the elevator, as he kept saying, "Give me a boost! I can't reach the button pad!" He even tried jumping, but it was no use. William noticed that this button pad was right under the large red button, so he picked up the little guy to reach the pad. Helpy started pressing in a long password that William couldn't keep track of, but after a while, the elevator started shaking.

It felt uneasy for a few moments before it was running smoothly again, and the elevator began taking them up. Finally. Now all I have to do is get out the front door, find my car, drive back to my apartment, and hopefully get a good night's sleep, William thought. Though he heavily doubted that would be the case after everything he went through tonight. But he thought it was probably best to try and get all of this behind him for now.

After what felt like around two or three minutes, the elevator stopped moving, and William pressed the red button again, this time opening the elevator doors. It appeared that the inside of the building was completely dark. There weren't any lights on, and he could barely see. There didn't appear to be any employees around either. The doors to the employee rooms and the other rooms were closed. Luckily, he still had his flashlight with him, so he at least had a source of light.

William and Helpy took a look around to find the front entrance. He never entered through the visitor elevator before, so he didn't know where in the building he was at first. After a while, he came across Mr. Cunningham's office, and the door to there was locked. Is nobody here right now? I think I must the only other guy here, not counting Dave or the night-guard, maybe. I don't know if the night-guard is here or not. But that didn't matter to him at the moment, because after searching for a while, he finally came across the front entrance.

William gave a huge sigh of relief once he saw the glass doors, and his car in the parking lot outside the glass window panels. Finally, we're here. Now let's go home. As he was about to open the door, though, it wouldn't open. Neither one would open up, no matter how hard he pulled, and then he screamed out in frustration.

"Are you kidding me?! It's locked?!"

He fell to the ground on his knees, angry and tired. Is this for real?! All I want to do is go home and enjoy myself and I can't even do that! Damn it! He probably would've tried to break down the front doors if Helpy hadn't calmed him down.

"William? I'm pretty sure that door is not going to open any time soon. My best estimate is that someone will probably be here at around 6 A.M. at the very least, and last I checked, it was around 2:30, and given how time has passed since then, I'd say it's probably around 3 A.M. right now. So we're going to have to wait for three hours until someone comes to help us."

William didn't even respond to Helpy, and lied down on the tiles, trying not to scream. Helpy knew he wasn't feeling good, so he tried to cheer him up.

"Don't worry, buddy. It's only for a couple more hours. Besides, I'm sure you can just try to sleep until then. I'll keep watch, and wake you up when I see anyone coming this way. You just try to go to sleep for now. I'm here for you."

This strangely comforted him, and so William lied down on his side, trying to slowly fall asleep and calm down. That's it, all I need is a little rest. It took a few minutes, but by then, William had already fallen fast asleep.