Chapter 10. Disclosure of the “identity”.
February 29, 2024 at 4:36 PM
Again, we stopped at how the trio was warm in their arms. Despite the fact that animatronics were made of iron (they consisted of a certain metal alloy), and, as you know, this material has a high thermal conductivity, the boy had to feel a sharp cold, but he was warm next to them in every sense. Maybe they were just warmed up because of the work, or maybe he just liked being with them so much. Well… or both. But come on… These are all the details. Let's get back to business.
After a minute of hugging, everyone stopped hugging again and moved away from each other a little.
Gregory: «So-o… and what are we going to do next? How do we get out of here?» – he asked constructively.
Freddy: «Well… we can get out through the technical elevators that lead to our rooms on the Rockstar Row. Except they are all off except for Roxy's elevator. That is where Vanessa was going. So… we can go there!» – he said with a smile and walked towards the door with the image of a wolf, leading Chica.
Gregory: «Okay», – he said and followed them.
They climbed up the iron stairs, then went to the door with Roxanne's purple sign. While the trio were walking there, the boy noticed some boards on the walls near each door, on which drawings of eyes, hands with claws and a beak were made, along with a voice box. The boy remembered a few more inaccessible variants in the terminal when he was fixing the Fazbear. The animatronics were about to enter Roxanne's door, but they were stopped:
Gregory: «Wait a minute…» – he said vigorously.
Chica: «What happened?» – she asked with some surprise and turned with the bear to the boy, who walked a little forward.
The boy didn’t take his eyes off the blueprints.
Gregory: «What are these blueprints?» – he asked and pointed with his right hand at the boards.
The animatronics shifted their gazes to them. After 3 seconds of thoughtfulness, they began to respond.
Freddy: «Well, this…» – before the bear could finish, he was interrupted:
Chica: «Oh! This is my voice box!» – she said and pointed to the blueprint with the beak.
Gregory: «Um… And what?.. Don't other animatronics have them?» – the boy asked, looking at them skeptically.
Chica: «That's not the point!.. I just have a special one. I can raise my voice to a very high pitch! But I do not do this much, because it is so high that it can disable some equipment. And my friends are not particularly adapted to it either, and it can stun them, if not worse…» – she said with a little shyness at the end and smiled, lowering her head a little guiltily and locking her hands.
Fazbear laughed a little, and then spoke:
Freddy: «Yes… How much fun we had with you. It was really fun!» – and he continued to laugh.
Chica finally laughed too. The boy looked at the two of them in disbelief, while slightly grinning.
Gregory: «Okay… And what about the rest?» – he asked and pointed to the rest of the boards.
They stopped laughing a little and continued:
Freddy: «Uh… Well… the eyes – it is Roxy’s upgrade. She can see through walls. This was done so that she could keep an eye on everyone at her races. And the claws – it is Monty's upgrade. He used to be often met with knocked-down claws due to playing the bass guitar, so they decided to replace them with stronger ones. Well, and the hands have also been improved at the same time. Now they are stronger, and his bass guitar playing has improved since that moment», – he spoke cheerfully and joyfully.
The boy began to have even more questions running through his head. Gregory wanted to ask them too, but he knew that the more questions he asked now, the more they would appear. And time is running out, therefore the boy decided to stop this topic on this note for now.
Gregory: «Alright… I've more or less figured it out. Let's go to the Rockstar Row!» – he said and headed towards the animatronics.
They all walked through Roxy's door. Beyond it was a long and winding technical corridor. After passing through it, they came across an elevator. Gregory pressed his call button, and they began to wait for the doors to open. After 20 seconds of waiting, the trio entered a rather narrow elevator. After everyone got comfortable, the boy pressed the button for the upper floor, and after closing the doors, they moved up with the same main theme of the mascots.
All of them reached the top quickly enough, after which they “fell out" of the elevator. They ended up in Roxanne's technical room. To their left was an iron door that was supposed to lead to her main room.
Gregory: «Oh, yeah… What a trip», – he said, grinning a little.
Freddy: «Something like that!» – the bear answered him cheerfully.
It was only after these conversations that the boy heard heavy muffled crying behind the iron door. Apparently, Chica and Freddy heard him too. Everyone started up and came a little closer to the door with some concern. The crying continued for another 5 seconds and, during this time, everyone except the boy managed to feel compassion for the crying.
«It’s Roxy?» – it flashed through Gregory's mind during those 5 seconds: «Why is this upstart crying all of a sudden?»
He was skeptical about all this. Her desperate voice came from the other side:
Roxy: «I’m… Not! A loser…» – after which she made an impressive pause, thinking about something, but then continued: «Why?.. Why?!..» – the wolf spoke in anger and paused again: «That kid's just lucky! He's cheating!» – she said displeased, and then started sobbing again.
«Damn… Why is she so clogged?» – thought Gregory: «U-um, ye-eah… An interesting personality. So, wait… Is she definitely succumbing to the virus? Her reasoning and outbursts of emotion are too strange. She doesn't look infected… Or did it only partially touch her? Or…» – his thoughts were interrupted by the wolf's words:
Roxy: «Everybody still loves me… right?..» – she said in a plaintive tone, but then abruptly continued confidently: «Of course! I'm the best!» – and then, 5 seconds later, she burst into tears again.
Although she couldn't be seen, you could hear her banging heavily on something in desperation.
The boy fell back into cognitive dissonance. He began to remember again the first meeting with her through the ventilation and compare this situation with the fact that Roxy had once calmed Chica, as the boy calmed her in the kitchen. His thoughts began to race from side to side.
«What the?..» – Gregory was talking to himself: «What did she just say? Is… does she feel lonely or something? I don't understand… Is she just trying to cheer herself up in some way? Trying to… assert himself? But… Damn it!..»
At that moment, a wave of guilt and shame washed over the boy. His face changed noticeably. The boy was wrong about her.
«I was wrong!..» – Gregory thought frantically: «She's just trying to look strong and independent in front of everyone… Damn it!.. Damn!» – after that, he took hold of his head with right hand.
Gregory: «I owe her an apology…» – it came out of his mouth in a whisper.
Chica: «Gregory, what are you talking about?» – she looked at him in surprise.
The boy started up a little, lowered his hand and looked at the animatronics, who were looking at him in surprise.
Gregory: «Oh… Never mind, I'm talking about my own… Crap!..» – he whispered, and at the end he screamed a little and hit himself on the head with his right fist.
Freddy: «What is the matter with you?» – the bear whispered in perplexity.
Gregory: «Uh, I was wrong about her!..» – he said with a sense of guilt, but more calmly: «It seemed to me that she was a narcissistic egoist… and here!..» – after these words, the boy turned to the door, and then quickly turned away from it.
The animatronics took the boy by the hand and led him away from the door, after which they began to explain to him:
Chica: «She shows herself like this on purpose. After all, she is a racer according to the program!» – she said, trying to calm him down.
Freddy: «Yes!» – the bear took up her words: «She is very much loved by teenage children for this. A little bit of audacity and indifference! But so, in fact, she is a good personality», – he said serious.
Gregory: «Oh, damn it…» – the boy said in a drooping tone and curled up a little.
Chica: «Oh, do not torture yourself like that!» – she spoke and shook the boy by the shoulders, and then continued: «You did not even manage to do anything wrong to her! What are you blaming yourself for? Calm down!»
Gregory: «But I could have done!» – he protested: «I wanted to teach her a lesson first! But here…» – but he was interrupted again:
Chica: «But you did not do anything! Everything is fine! And what is “here"?» – she noticed the end of the boy's speech: «Well, you understood her and rejoice! It makes it easier to find a language with her. And so – calm down… Eve-ry-thing. Is Fine», – at the end, she gently shook the boy by the shoulders to the rhythm of the syllables.
Gregory: «Yes, I understand, but still… I need to digest this is all a little more», – the boy said with less guilt, and then, after a short pause, he continued: «Um… And how are we going to get out of here?»
Chica straightened up, releasing the boy, and put her hand to her chin, looking at the ceiling. Fazbear opened his chest cavity and said:
Freddy: «Get inside me. Let's go to breach!» – he said with a slight grin.
The boy had already forgotten about what could hide in he.
Chica: «Oh, you're a genius!» – she spoke enthusiastically, looking at the bear.
The boy grinned a little, and then climbed into it, after which the bear closed the chest cavity. Then they went towards the iron door and opened it.
Roxy: «Who’s there?» – she was abruptly distracted from crying and looked at the source of the sound.
The wolf was standing next to the dressing table with a mirror. Apparently, she was talking to herself, just like last time. Freddy was the first to come out of the door. She immediately glared at him angrily and told him reproachfully:
Roxy: «Freddy, get out of my room!»
Freddy: «I am going! I am going!» – he spoke awkwardly and hurriedly walked towards the exit.
After that, Chica came out of the door. The wolf looked at her in surprise and asked her with interest:
Roxy: «Chica, and what are you doing here?»
Chica: «It is just that our technical elevators do not work. Well, and… we used yours to get here», – she said as if nothing had happened.
Roxy: «Uh… Well… okay… Get out…» – the wolf spoke in a drooping tone, waving her hand towards the exit, and turned back to the mirror, slightly lowering her head.
Chica: «Alright!» – she answered cheerfully, then followed Fazbear to the exit.
After a few seconds, they finally left her room. The trio found themselves back on the Rockstar Row. They walked a little further away from her room and went through the gate, where there were counters. There Fazbear released the boy and put him on the floor.
Freddy: «That is it! Can relax for now», – he said calmly.
Chica: «Thank God!» – she spoke with relief.
But the boy stood silently and looked at the floor. Animatronics drew attention to him.
Chica: «Gregory, why are you so upset again?» – she asked with some concern.
Gregory: «I'm not upset…» – the boy cut off she seriously, and then continued: «Will need to help her. We have to get her back on line», – he said it softly and so as if he was reading some kind of instruction.
Freddy: «Gregory…» – he said and put his paw on the boy's shoulder: «We will definitely help her! Do not doubt it», – the bear spoke cheerfully, looking at him with a motivating look.
The boy looked back at him and smiled a little, and then lowered his head again, but did not remove the smile from his face.
Gregory: «Thanks», – he said very calmly.
After that, Fazbear took his hand off him, continuing to look at the boy and smile proudly.
Gregory finally began to rethink Roxanne's recovery plan. He was looking for the right solution in his head. The boy was more loyal to her now. If he initially wanted to restore her by teaching her a lesson, now the boy was already looking for a more correct plan. He was also grateful that something stopped him in the security office with electric doors, when he almost said nasty things to the wolf, since now he understood that she could not have these brands on herself from him. Moreover, as the boy realized, Roxy takes everything extremely close to her heart. Although, perhaps, this is all due to the influence of the virus. But in any case, Gregory already saw the direction he needed to go. All that remained was to come up with a plan…
Notes:
A mini-animation was made for a piece of this chapter to test voice AI-substrates. We did it together with my sister (BlaGreenDragon). The video itself:
Link: https://youtu.be/wm7TW9eHbLU
I hope it will be pleasant.