Joey Drew

Joey roared in fury, taking a nearby Searcher and biting its head off. He licked his lips, savoring the flavor. He dropped the Searcher's body, melting into the floor. The other Searchers recoiled in terror. Joey stomped over to the largest searcher and hissed, "Don't let them near my creation."

The Searcher whined and retreated into its ink puddle, the others following. Joey longed for better servants. These brainless slugs wouldn't last long if they were going after Alison and Tom. The Searchers had reported that they were in the area and following Henry and the others. If they teamed up with those useless excuses for perfections, Joey might not live for long, another reason why Susie should have finished them off in the first place. But no, she had been stupid enough to let them go in hope that they would work for her. They escaped, making Joey lose his trust in Susie.

Joey himself was making his way to the amusement park, praying that he would find Henry there. And he knew just how to delay them.

Linda

The four entered the hallway, taking wary glances around them before continuing. Norman was already at the end waiting for them. Linda was behind Sammy, partially ahead of Henry. They had barely started walking before Henry shouted in surprise. Linda and Sammy whipped around to see him looking around with a terrified expression. He fell to the ground, kneeling down and covering his head. He was muttering quietly, eventually turning into fearful sobs.

"What happened?" Linda asked, scared to move any closer to the horrified toon.

"Hands," he stuttered. "Hundreds of 'em."

Linda and Sammy exchanged confused glances. "This is the second time you've had a hallucination. Are you sure you should be moving around?" Sammy fretted.

"I don't know!" Henry whined, seeming to have list faith.

"Come here," Lind whispered. Henry came to her side, and she put her hands on his shoulders and they touched foreheads. "You'll be okay. As long as I'm here, I won't let you go down like this."

Henry was shaking hard, taking shallow, shuddering breaths. He nodded slightly, just enough for Linda to notice. "Thank you," he said.

"I'll always be here for you."

"Hey!" Norman called. "You guys coming? If you take any longer, I might throw myself off this cliff in boredom!"

Sammy sighed and shrugged helplessly. Linda and Henry followed him out, still holding hands. Henry was hugging himself with his other arm, still shooting nervous glances at the walls as though a monster might pop out. The three met Norman in a large room, the center revealing a massive hole like in the cavern they just came from. Something rumbled above, and seconds later the ink machine came down. It disappeared in the darkness below, its pumping gears echoing in the distance.

"Wow," Linda whispered. She'd never seen the ink machine before. It was so massive, and loud. It would be even more amazing if it wasn't the culprit behind so many monstrosities.

"Well, look who it is!"

All four of them jumped in surprise. Susie's voice loudly bounced off the hollow stone walls, amplifying it to be louder than ever. A new anger rushed through Linda.

"Don't do anything," Sammy mumbled under his breath to the other three. "Just keep going and ignore her."

As the four climbed the large staircase upwards, Henry paused again and looked at a platform that hung beside the path. It led to a large door, surrounded by candles.

"It's an exit," he said.

"How do you know?" Norman asked. He reached out to the door, but it was too far away and too high up.

"It says so, but you wouldn't be able to see it."

"Can you climb up there?" Sammy asked Linda.

"I'll try."

Linda climbed up the support beams and heaved herself onto the platform. She tried the door, but it was locked.

"Showoff," Sammy growled, though he waited eagerly for an answer.

"Locked. No way through."

Sammy cursed under his breath while he helped Linda back down.

"Well, don't be so surprised. It was exit with a question mark," Henry said with a matter-of-fact tone.

"You don't think that you could have told us that earlier?" Norman said sharply.

"Eh. It was worth a try."

"What is it that keeps you going?" Susie asked through the speakers. "Why don't you give up? There's no freedom, no escape. Unless... you're here for a little, friendly wolf."

"Where is he?" Henry snarled. He looked up, probably hoping that Susie could see his fuming anger.

"Better hurry. Wally's having trouble staying in one piece."

Linda gasped. She went to look at Sammy, but he and the others were already bolting up the stairs. Linda looked back at the possible exit one last time before following them.

Henry Stein

At the top of the stairs was a small lobby. Quiet jazz music emitted from a gramophone on an old couch. Some broken miracle stations piled up in the corner, leaving just enough room for a small table stacked with books and a narrow path to another door. Henry was about to go through when he heard sobbing from above. Everyone looked up at the balcony, where a Lost One limped away.

"He's going to find me," he cried. "He always does. When do we go home? I just want to go home."

The Lost One left, the four standing in somber silence.

"Poor sap," Sammy said, frowning. "Wish there was something we could do for him."

Henry put his head down sadly and opened the door, then gasped. There were dozens of Lost Ones, all standing with their eyes lowered. Many of them were shivering, and others were sitting down hugging themselves, crying and rocking back and forth. Someone pushed Henry forwards.

"Get a move on, will you?" Norman hissed. He pushed through the door and was a couple paces forwards before he noticed the Lost Ones. "My God," he whispered.

"There's so many. And they're so sad," Linda said. She walked up to one and looked up at it while it looked down at her. She went to reach out for it, but drew back. "He's so cold."

Sammy put a hand on her shoulder and led her away. The Lost One watched them go, then transferred its gaze to Henry. It stared at him with bright golden eyes.

"Set us free," it pleaded. Henry felt worse when he realized that the Lost One was only referring to him because he looked like Bendy. He really wanted to help them all, but the only thing to do was to keep moving. Maybe defeating Joey would set them all free.

Norman shouldered Henry aside and followed Sammy to a small vent on the other side of the room. Henry shot a final sorrowful look at the Lost One before rushing to his friends' side. Above the vent was a message reading No angels. He will set us free. Sammy was looking at it, too, then at Henry. He frowned in understanding.

Linda grabbed a flashlight that laid inside the vent and clicked it on. "Guess we go through the vent."

"But it's so... small," Norman replied, peering inside.

"So? Tuck it in and get it over with," Henry muttered.

"Well, if you're so eager, why don't you go first," Linda said snidely. Henry went to argue, but stopped. It was useless to argue with her because she always one at the end.

"Fine. I will."

Linda helped him inside, handing him the flashlight. "We'll be in soon."

Henry began crawling forwards, trying hard not to drop the flashlight. He heard someone else crawl in behind him, but he didn't bother to look to see who it was. There was an open grate in the corner of the vent. Henry strained to see where it was through the thick bars. It was just another artist's desk and a cutout. Nothing important.

"Why is it so dark?" Henry heard Linda exclaim in pain, an echoing thud sounding behind him. She must have hit her head.

"Don't worry, I'm going in next," Norman called. Henry sighed in annoyance.

"Can you guys be quiet? It's loud in here," he hissed at them. An angry silence followed. Henry looked back at the open grate and went to move sideways to continue, but something caught his eye. A shadow of Boris was displayed on the wall, and Henry's heart fluttered in hope. But it was just a plush.

"Come on!" Linda growled, poking him in the side.

"Sorry! I was just—" Henry was interrupted by a loud bang, ink spraying into his face. Joey was on the other side of the vent, growling viciously. Henry screamed and began going backwards, but was stopped by a petrified Linda.

"Come here and let me tear you to shreds," Joey roared. He reached through an open spot in the pipes and grasped for Henry, but only clutched open air. He spat and cussed, then drew back. "This isn't over," he growled, then retreated through the ink where he came from.

Henry let out his breath. He felt Linda untense behind him.

"You guys alright?" Sammy yelled. Looking back, Henry saw him peering past Norman's large projector head and Linda. He seemed worried.

"Fine. We wouldn't be if it wasn't for the vent," Henry answered, then continued through the air ducts. It seemed like forever until he saw the end of the maze. He climbed out, stretching his aching muscles. "I'm getting too old for this shit."

"You and me both," Norman grunted when he came out after Linda. He collapsed on a nearby couch and moaned.

"Claustrophobia really kicks in right now," Sammy whined. He shot across the large room and came as far away from the vent as he could. "Those things are hell spawn. I'm never going in one of those again."

"Wuss," Norman laughed. He threw his head back over the rear of the couch and turned off his light.

"Pain in the ass," Sammy panted back.

"What is this place?" Linda came up from behind Henry and looked around in wonder. A huge Bendy statue stood against the right side of the room, just surpassing the height of the one in the archives. Stairs led up to a large booth, sheltered by the open mouth of a humongous Bendy head.

"A place where Bendy's worshipped a little too much, apparently," Henry said. He looked over Norman and eyed a large steel door marked Storage 4. It was locked, of course.

"This is where Bertrum worked," Sammy told them, finally getting to his feet.

"Who?" both Linda and Henry asked in unison.

"Bertrum Piedmont. He was the designer for the amusement park. Which Joey didn't have the money for and the whole thing went downhill. No one ever saw Bertrum again after we all gave up on building it. He could have left, or he could have been one of the Lost Ones in that other room. He could be anywhere, for all I know."

"Well, if you know so much, then where's the switch that opens this door?" Henry challenged.

"Oh, that's just up there," Sammy said, jabbing his thumb towards the top of the stairs.

"Then why don't you go up there and get it?" Norman snorted. He sat up and flared his light in amusement.

"Why don't you?" Sammy snapped back. His tone was sharp, but he had a mischievous smirk.

"Why don't you both go?" Linda offered, standing between them before there was any real quarrel.

"Fine with me if it's fine with him," Sammy answered.

"Oh, of course it's fine with you!" Norman hissed.

"Oh boy," Henry mumbled. This was going to take a while.

Norman Polk

Norman wanted to strangle Sammy by the time they had finally opened the door. They argued both on the way to and back from the power switch. He was getting sick of his stupid alternative ideas. But he couldn't stay mad at Sammy for long. Something strange kept him from doing that.

Everyone was amazed at what laid beyond the huge iron doors. The amusement park was still there, though time and ink had altered its whimsical appearance to a living horror show. The huge sign that said Bendy Land was changed to Bendy Hell. A Lost One stared at them from atop a large cage. The area below them was filled with massive shelves that held hundreds of cardboard boxes, probably stuffed with toys and other things. Norman couldn't see anything else past the shelves, at least until he went down to see for himself. Something made him hesitate before leaving the last step. This place was oddly familiar to him, but he couldn't place when exactly he saw it.

There were multiple carnival game booths, but each one's window was closed. A tape from Wally laid between two of the booths, caked in a layer of dust. Linda grabbed it, staring at it for a long time before putting it in her bag. She struggled to make it fit between the dozens of other tapes she'd collected. Sammy offered to hang on to it for her, and she gladly accepted. Henry walked ahead, stopping to observe the haunted house. It, too, was shut down.

"If I was hiding something, I'd definitely hide it in a place where people are terrified to set foot in," he said. "Looks like the haunted house's the way to go."

"Of course. Why don't we all walk into the dark, scary carnival ride! And while we're at it, maybe we should bring Joey along? I'm sure he'd have a blast when he finds out that he's going with us!" Norman said sarcastically. "Let's throw in a life, too. That always spices things up."

"What's wrong with you?" Sammy asked. He put down the crate he was holding and crossed his arms.

Norman actually didn't know. Something was beginning to trigger his predatory instincts, and it began as soon as he stepped inside this storage unit. He didn't mean to sound so harsh, but he felt that if anyone can any closer, he'd tear them to bits.

"I'm not sure. Just don't get on my nerves, and I'll be fine," he lied. He knew exactly why this was happening. Joey was nearby, and Norman could almost smell the demon's rancid breath. He'd tell the others, but it would only stir up a panic.

Sammy gave him a suspicious look, but didn't question his ways. Instead, he followed Linda over to a control panel. Norman sighed and sat on the steps to the haunted house. Henry sat beside him and muttered something to himself.

"Why aren't you with them?" Norman questioned, careful not to blind Henry with his bright light.

"No reason. Just tired."

"Aren't we all?" Norman looked up at the Lost One, who was still staring at him creepily. Norman himself hadn't slept since the incident that transformed him. That was years ago. He never rested, always wary of anyone's presence.

Suddenly the windows to the gaming booths shot open. The lights in the storage flashed, illuminating the center and outskirts of the massive room. Carnival music began playing, and there were some frequencies to it that gave Norman a strange feeling. He decided to ignore it, though it remained in the back of his mind, like an annoying song that one can't forget.

"Hey guys, look what I found!"

Henry shot up from beside Norman and sprinted over to where Linda and Sammy were standing. From where Norman was sitting, he could see that there was a number of switches on the wall, each one had a long wire attached and spreading out to different locations.

"How's this going to do us any good?" Henry asked. He gestured to the games.

"If one of these can power the games, then another might open the haunted house," Linda explained.

"But the others are jammed," Sammy observed, trying the other levers.

"Do you still have that tape from Wally we just picked up?" Linda asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"He was a janitor, so he might have some answers to how this works."

"If it's not another one of his complaints."

Sammy handed the tape back to Linda, who left to a secluded corner to listen to it. She began jotting notes down on a slip of notebook paper.

While the others were fussing over the control panel, Norman began feeling awfully strange. He felt like someone was staring at him through cold eyes. No matter how hard he looked, no one else besides him and the others were here, not counting the Lost One that was in fact staring at him. But it wasn't the Lost One's gaze that was petrifying. Its eyes were warmer and more sorrowful than the one that Norman was feeling. Joey was closer than they thought.

Sammy Lawrence

"He said that the games are rigged to open the doors. Maybe inside there's something that'll activate the other switches," Linda said to Sammy, handing him the tape.

"So, we play the games? Simple enough," Henry said. He scanned the booths for one that he'd like.

"You do know that carnival games are rigged, right?" Sammy asked him. Henry shrugged, not caring, and picked up the cork gun at a booth.

"There's no way that I'll lose this. I was in the military before Joey and I started the studio."

Sammy burst out laughing. "Oh, sure. Gramps her was a nurse!"

"We don't talk about that," Henry hissed. He pointed the gun at Sammy and narrowed his eyes.

"Fainted at the first sight of blood!" Sammy continued. Linda snickered beside him. "It's no wonder Joey singled you out. He felt sorry!"

"Leave the poor guy alone." Norman walked up to them and leaned against the booth. "I'm sure he tried his best."

"Actually—" Henry began, but Norman flared his light at him; a warning to stay quiet.

Sammy suddenly felt bad. "Sorry," he mumbled. He lowered his eyes and watched Henry shoot down the targets. He was surprisingly good, only missing a couple. When he finished, something clicked. The door made a buzzing sound, and the booth closed.

"Would you look at that," Linda whispered. "I call the ball game!"

Sammy stayed behind to keep watch as the others played the games. There had to be somebody to protect them, and besides, there were only three games. It seemed like forever until the door rumbled open. Norman dropped the wire he was holding, staring at something that only he could see. He only shot a glance at the open door before striding off in the other direction. Sammy watched him go curiously.

"You guys go ahead and explore the room," Sammy said to Henry and Linda. "I'll be back."

Henry and Linda exchanged confused glances, but followed instructions and entered the dark room. Sammy waited until they were out of sight before following Norman. The projectionist had the side of his head pressed against a wall, his light dim in concentration. He slowly moved among the wall, pausing to knock on it. Sammy came up beside him and cleared his throat loudly to get his attention.

"What do you want?" Norman asked. His tone wasn't sharp as usual, but it had a bit of edge to it.

"Nothing," Sammy lied. Norman continued to knock on the wall, then froze suddenly as he hit a hollow spot. "What are you doing?"

"Looking for something," Norman replied casually. "Someone, actually."

He held a finger up to silence Sammy, then tilted his head in confusion. "That's strange." He knocked on the wall again, and this time something knocked back.

"What was that?" Sammy whispered, taking a wary step back. Norman sighed in annoyance.

"Shhh!" he hissed, drawing back from the wall. "You can walk through walls, right?"

"Yeah, why?"

Norman looked at him, then at the wall.

"Oh, no! I am not going in there!" Sammy protested. Norman went behind him and began pushing him towards the wall.

"He's not that dangerous. Just don't scare him, 'cause you'll wish you could die," Norman encouraged. Sammy planted his feet to the ground and refused to set foot in the inky passageway that had just opened up.

"Not until I know what's in there!"

"You don't need—"