Chapter 8: Formulating a Plan

Panic coursed through Gregory like wildfire, his heart jack-hammered within his ribcage; his breathing was erratic, coming out in gasps rather than deep breaths. The alarm blared on, deafening to his ears. Gregory feverishly looked around, searching for anything that he could use to barricade the doors or somewhere to escape; he did not notice the looming threats shown on the monitors. Freddy and Monty stomped towards him, walking down the long hallway. The boy frantically pressed buttons, hoping one of them would turn off the alarm. It all proved to be in vain as none of the buttons seemed to be active. Once again, he was in danger's suffocating grasp. What could he do this time?! Two of the strongest animatronics were at his door. He had nothing to defend himself with, nobody to help him. Roxy would not get here in time, and Gregory could not bear seeing her get ripped apart-

"Gregory!"

The familiar, smooth voice of Roxy snapped him from his stupor. He looked at a monitor and saw Roxy madly waving at him. The wolf touched her ear, "Gregory! You see those buttons next to the door?!"

"Y-yeah..."

"USE THEM! They'll give the others an electric shock and should keep them away for a bit! I'm on my way, just hang on!"

Gregory rushed to the doors, locking eyes with the glowing green button. He watched as Roxy sprinted through a back hallway, busting through doors like they were nothing; even in her tattered condition, she was determined to keep him safe.

BAM!

Gregory shrieked as a heavy object slammed against the door, threatening to buckle the door frame. A glance at the television showed Monty pounding his fists against the door; Freddy walked past him, seemingly heading towards the other door. Gregory punched the shock button, sighing with relief as Monty jumped back and yelped in surprise. The boy dashed to the other and waited for Freddy to reach the door; as the bear got ready to body slam the door, he received a powerful jolt of electricity. The band lead groaned, "Ugh! Bitch..." Gregory didn't even react at hearing Glamrock Freddy swear; he was too busy keeping Monty from banging on the door again.

Time seemed to slow down. Gregory fell into survival mode, running between the doors, shocking the animatronics, and keeping an eye on Roxy's location. Sweat ran down his face; he was panting at this point from all the running. He wanted to stop and catch his breath, but he refused; if he stopped, it gave the animatronics time to weaken the doors. There is no way a door could withstand the full strength of a bloodthirsty, 700+ pound animatronic.

"Come on, Roxy... I'm running out of time," he whispered under his breath.

He pressed the button again, causing Monty to jump back; the alligator stomped his foot and hurled a flurry of curses at Gregory. The boy giggled a bit, finding it comical that an animatronic was throwing a temper tantrum; perhaps he was losing his mind due to exhaustion. Suddenly his FazWatch beeped. He shocked Freddy one more time before dashing to the grate on the floor. To his immense relief, Roxy stood below with a bright smile on her face. Funnily enough, her mane of grey hair was fixed up. You have to look awesome during a rescue mission. Gregory quickly unscrewed the grate and dropped down into the safety of the wolf's arms. Roxanne laughed and spun around, hugging Gregory; her tail wagged uncontrollably. She momentarily put the boy down and jumped up to slide the grate back into place.

***////***

The heavy security doors buckled and groaned under the pressure, moving out of their frames. Blue, razor-sharp claws forced their way into the door and ripped the lock mechanism from its place; five seconds later, Montgomery Gator slammed his shoulder into the door, causing it to collapse in front of him. Freddy shoved him aside, "Gregory!" he shouted.

Silence.

The bear animatronic snarled and looked around. Monty balled his fist, enraged at being pushed aside. Freddy scanned his surroundings, yet it was clear the little brat is not there. That child has been nothing but a nuisance all night; Vanny does not have time for this. He does not have time for this. Monty walked over to him and lowered his shades. "How the hell did he get out?" he asked.

Freddy narrowed his eyes, "I don't know! Where's Chica?" he demanded.

"Chica's in the Atrium. Vanny wants that area watched at all times," he replied.

"And Vanessa? She's been quiet," questioned Freddy.

Monty shrugged. "Vanny said she called out early and can't complete her shift," he answered.

This new security guard... Vanny. She must be a new employee; it wasn't until tonight that they met her. It was also strange that the higher-ups would just let a newbie switch shifts with another guard and be by themselves. However, the animatronics were in no position to argue. Their instructions were clear in their programming: obey Vanny without question. Gregory was running out of places to hide. The only places left to go were Fazer Blast, Gator Golf, and the Arcade. DJ Music Man actively patrolled the arcades; Gregory would get caught easily. And the other two locations were crawling with Security Bots. It is only a matter of time before the boy slips up and falls into their grasp. With that nuisance out of the way, they can focus on cleaning up the place and getting it ready for next week's show. And as for Roxy... there are good hiding places in the Utility Tunnels. Places where they will never find her metallic corpse. They can slap her metal casing and personality chip into another endo; it will be like this disobedient version of the wolf never existed.

"Freddy~"

Vanny's childlike voice brought him down to Earth. While his systems showed a woman with dark hair and maroon eyes, the animatronic was oblivious to the real threat. The woman in the rabbit suit jutted her hip, "Where's Gregory?" she hissed.

Freddy's ears drooped. "He somehow escaped," he replied.

Vanny walked towards the center console and gasped. She tensed her shoulders and balled her fists, looking like a child ready to throw a massive temper tantrum.

Gregory took the disk.

He was never meant to come in here! That disk was crucial evidence, the only thing that could link Vanny to this mess. He is no longer in his digital prison, but it was still evidence. Vanny trembled with anger, "Keep looking for Gregory," she ordered. She grabbed a remote from her pocket and pressed the button. The automatons' eyes glazed over as their new orders took over their systems; they exited the room with stiff movements.

The clock is ticking, Vanny darling.

Vanny nervously tapped her foot, "I-I know, b-boss... Y-you're still recovering, so there is still time. I-I can find this kid!" she replied.

You've said that multiple times already. I'm getting impatient, Vanny.

"I-I u-understand, sir. I w-will not let you d-down! I have a f-few tricks up m-my sleeve," the woman replied.

Hmm... You better pray they work. I have no problem getting rid of you, Vanny.

The woman nodded her head. She absentmindedly raised the remote, "Moon. Find Roxanne Wolf and bring her to me." she said. And swiftly pressed the button

***////***

Roxanne scanned him for wounds, then picked him up and hid him in her mane; relief glistened in her eyes. She genuinely thought the boy was done for. That was a horribly close call. Gregory put his chin on her shoulder, "We still need to get you to Parts & Service." he said.

Roxy started walking down the dark hallway. "We can activate the stage via the sound booth on the third floor. Once we get down there, what's the plan?"

"You remember the bunny we saw near the Daycare? She's back. I think... I think she's controlling the others," replied Gregory.

Roxy growled and snapped her jaws, "How dare she hurt them?! If anything happens to them, I'll rip her apart!" she snarled. "Who is she, though?"

"Roxy, she's human. The only other human here is Vanessa! Think about it, you've seen how she's been acting."

"Now that you mention it, I haven't heard Vanessa at all."

Gregory frowned. Vanessa was somehow at the root of the chaos, but something else was missing. The boy got the feeling she was not working alone. She was a security guard, not a technical engineer. How on earth would she know how to hack the animatronics and the security system? And what is the reason for her actions? Could it be a personal vendetta against the company? With so much death and controversy at its core, it would be a miracle if Fazbear Entertainment did not have enemies. Gregory has heard people complain that the mall should have never been opened; he heard a woman say it was distasteful for them to open it, considering all the kids that died at earlier locations.

Suddenly Gregory remembered the weird disc thing he found in the security office. He grabbed it from his pocket and put it under Roxy's snout, "Have you seen something like this?" he asked.

Roxy gently took it from his hand. "Huh... It's a floppy disk."

"What the heck is a floppy disk?"

Roxy snickered. "That just shows how young you are. It's how people used to store information back in the 60s. It's something similar to USB sticks. Where'd you find this?" she asked.

"I found it in the security office."

Roxy put a hand on her hip. "Vanessa or whoever is behind this must've used this to upload some sort of takeover program."

Gregory took it from her hands; Roxanne held onto his legs to keep him from falling. The boy twisted the object in his hands, astonished at how a small gadget could cause so much chaos; he was apprehensive of even touching this thing. Gregory pressed his thumbs down on the plastic, the object resisted slightly. With a small grunt, the boy applied more pressure until the disk snapped in half, and the sound echoed through the dark hallways. He threw the pieces in front of Roxanne, the wolf snarled at them and stomped the destroyed gadget even further. Whatever program the floppy disk had was long destroyed, ground into dust by the animatronics's foot. Gregory knew it was too late, destroying the disk would not break the spell the Glamrocks were under; however, it would hinder the culprit from repeating the process. Plus, it was very satisfying to break it. The little human hung onto the wolf as they waded through the gloom, nothing but the whirring of her machinery and his ragged breathing.

Gregory could not help but tense up. It is too quiet, too still. For the majority of the night, he has been running and hiding; having a moment to catch his breath was rare and dangerous. Spending too much time allowed the security bots to find him and alert the others. It was an honest miracle he has made it this far. Gregory looked down at his watch and realized it was almost 3 AM. He only has three hours to put his plan in motion; if he wanted to stay here and make it his home, he must remove the threat that looms in the darkness. The youth tapped the wolf's padded shoulder. "Roxy, I think I know what we need to do." He spoke.

Roxy stopped. "What's the plan?"

"I can't keep running, sis... I'm exhausted, everything hurts. I'm starving. Whoever is behind this is closing in on me, I'm running outta places to hide in," he sighed.

"So, what do you propose?"

Gregory climbed off her shoulders and faced her. He knew he would not like this plan. The Glamrocks were her family, her friends. Roxanne would never willingly hurt them, and she has been avoiding doing so all night. But they could no longer avoid that. Gregory took a deep breath, "We have to take out your friends."

Roxy's ears flattened, "Gregory, I-" her voice failed her.

"I know you can't bring yourself to hurt them, but I'll die if this keeps up! I don't want to do this either, you all make me so happy when I come here..." he said. "But whatever is controlling them is seriously messing with their minds. And the only way I can think off to free them-"

"Is to temporarily decommission them," Roxy said for him.

Disappointment and sadness reflected in her metallic features; her tail was down, and her eyes dimmed slightly. Gregory felt horrible for suggesting this; if he were in her position, he would be upset too. The feeling was alien and uncomfortable for him; it has been some time since he has cared for somebody this way. He has been alone for several years... Gregory shoved that thought aside, lest he is moved to tears. He gently took Roxy's hand, "With them down, we can take down that bunny lady and save the pizzeria," he said. "If I make it through this, I'll help you fix 'em. I promise, Roxy."

Roxanne stayed quiet. Because they were animatronics, if they broke something it could easily be repaired or replaced; technically, the others would be fine. However, it was still hurting her friends. They would still feel some form of pain. And who's to say they would forgive them? How would they react once they were put back together? If Roxanne were them, she would not be happy being broken. But then again, who's to say they are not suffering so much more? She could not even imagine what is going through their heads. The animatronics were fitted with advanced processing and personality AI. In a way, they are alive. They can feel guilt, sadness, anger, etc. What if they were watching all these events unfold before their eyes while being trapped within the confines of their artificial minds, horrified and scared because they had no control over themselves. Slowly, Roxanne stood up to her true height. She looked down at her human companion; the astonishing wolf has gotten attached to him in the span of a few hours. And that was her, a person who mostly focused on herself. Imagine how quickly the others would grow to care for him...And how petrified they would be if they kill him while under someone else's control. The robot squatted down to his level. "Ready for a fight, little man?" she asked with an overconfident smirk.

Gregory flexed his arm, "I'm ready to save our friends!"

Roxanne hummed in agreement, "We get to Parts & Service and fix me up. After that, we incapacitate the others and take the fight to that rabbit bitch. Yeah?"

"Yeah!"

Roxanne patted his head. "This is one fight we can't lose. Ready to give it everything you've got?"

Gregory nodded. Roxanne threw her head back and howled, the powerful sound resonated through the walls. She picked up Gregory and put him on her shoulder, claws out. "No more running. No more hiding! This ends tonight," she said. The human on her shoulder cheered, feeling more energized than ever. He wrapped an arm around her head, "Tonight, we become winners!"

And with that, Roxanne released another howl and ran into the darkness.