You only remembered one dream you had that night. You were running through the dark hallways from more animatronics, only they weren't the current ones. They were the old character designs from back when the place was still operated by the Funtime Friends Corporation. You found yourself cornered near a door labeled "Employees Only." Flinging it open, you found a set of stairs leading to the basement. Closing the door behind you, you scrambled down, hearing them banging at the door behind you. You stumbled about in the darkness until you heard the loud *CRACK* of the wooden door breaking. You bolted forward into the shadows, sprawling flat on your face when you tripped over a generator. You screamed as you felt a massive pair of hands grasp at you from behind.

You woke with start, immediately calming when you realized that the hands you had felt on your back were actually Jasper's. You sat up in her lap. Jasper was staring at the entryway to the kitchen attentatively. You looked up at her face. She didn't make eye contact, pretending not to notice you were awake. You smiled in amusement at her admittedly commendable effort. But finally she broke down, the corner of her lip curling up before she looked down at you without moving her head. Neither of you moved as you stared into each other's eyes, chills running down your spine.

"I love you," you said at last. You had expected to feel overwhelming relief when you told her, but instead you felt cold and afraid, wondering how she would react. But a sense of peace and of warmth washed over you when she leaned you over one large shoulder and hugged you. For a moment you forgot all of your fears, all of your insecurities, even the situation you were in.

"So I gathered," she said with a chuckle. "I don't mean to insult you, but when you try to hide things, it's just pathetic."

"Jasper," you said, rolling your eyes, "is there anything you DON'T think is pathetic? Besides, how long can you expect me to keep a secret? When you think about it, I guess I've loved you for a few thousand years."

"You're not pathetic," she replied, her cheeks turning a darker orange. "It's actually admirable that anyone could hold a candle for that long."

"Wait wait wait, hold on, when did you have the opportunity to hear that expression?"

"What do you mean? I should be asking where you heard it."

"Jasper, WHAT are you talking about?"

"That's a gem expression. If anything, humans learned it from us."

"Oh. Anyway, I think I might have a plan to get out of here! I don't know why I didn't think of this before!"

You pulled your phone out of your pocket and put in Steven's number. You didn't want to call the police, figuring they wouldn't have the equipment or knowledge to help, and could end up in unnecessary danger. You lifted the device to your ear, but you got a sinking feeling in your gut when you didn't hear it ringing. Instead, the call went straight to voicemail.

"Steven, it's urgent!" you said. "When you get this, Jasper and I are trapped in Cap'n Fishstick's. There's an evil gem keeping us here who's rigged the whole building to fly to Homeworld in a few days. I don't think we can break our way out. We need help, but be careful, there are killer robots and the ringleader possessed an innocent person somehow. Please, hurry!"

You ended the message, unable to do anything more in that regard for the time being. This was weird. It was unusual for Steven's phone to be turned off... or somewhere with no signal. You shuddered when you remembered what your foe had said. "Aquamarine and Topaz are collecting the others." Did that mean..?

You dismissed the thought and returned to the matter at hand.

"Come on," you told Jasper, standing up. "There are a couple of things we might be able to do."

You went first to where Jolly Roger lay in pieces, but saw that you were too late - the lead amethyst had had the same idea, and had already removed the gem shards from the canister inside the robot's torso. You went then to the basement door. You tried to open it, but it was locked.

"Care to do the honours?" you asked. Jasper grinned eagerly, cracking her knuckles.

"Hey, stay out of there!" said the amethyst's voice. Neither of you paid it any mind. Instead of smashing the entire thing down, Jasper punched a neat hole straight through next to the doorknob, reached in through it, and unlocked and turned the knob from the other side. The door swung open, revealing a staircase just as you knew it would.

"I thought I'd try a bit more finesse than usual," Jasper said with a shrug.

You felt your way down the stairs in the pitch blackness. Jasper concentrated, emitting light from her gem sufficient to illuminate the immediate area.

"I warned you!" the voice called from upstairs. Polly the Parrot appeared at the top of the stairs, staring down at you. You weren't even slightly afraid. You'd seen the way these things walked.

"Go ahead. Come on down. We're right here, not going anywhere," you said with your hands casually in your pockets.

"(Y/N), what are you doing?!" Jasper hissed.

"That's it. Come on," you coaxed.

The robot extended her left foot, probing for the floor in front of her but instead finding empty space. She attempted to proceed anyway. But as soon as her foot was down nearly to the level of the first step, she lost her balance and fell down the steps with a terrific crash, landing broken and mangled at the bottom, prompting Jasper to laugh aloud. She reached into the disabled machine's wriggling torso and pulled out the unit housing the gem shards, causing Polly to go still. If you got out of this situation, you hoped the media wouldn't report on you as the people who wrecked a camera, some speakers, a window, and a door, stole food, and dismembered beloved children's characters. You looked around and noticed strange machinery was installed in the basement. It appeared that the building was indeed rigged as a spaceship.

"What should I do with her?" Jasper asked, causing you to turn. She held the gem fragments in her palm.

"Try bubbling them. Form an energetic bubble around them and then press on the top of it." It took several tries, but she finally succeeded.

"Where do they go?" she asked.

"Home," you explained cheerfully, "whatever that means for the individual." You looked at something behind her. "Now then. The main power for the building is off, which means they have to be getting power for their traps and devices from somewhere else. Watch as I disable their control over the security systems, their ability to release Cap'n Fishstick, and prevent this place from taking off."

"What kind of device can do that?"

"This kind," you replied, holding up your index finger. You walked behind her to the generator and flipped the switch to its "off" position. Immediately there was the sound of machinery powering down and a cry of impotent fury from upstairs.

"I don't get it," Jasper said. "A power supply like that wouldn't be enough for the rocketry."

"No, but it sounds like I was right in thinking it was still enough for the controls."

You both went back upstairs.

"So how are we going to do this?" you called as you approached the office. Then you froze. There was no one in the chair. You thought at first that the room was empty until you heard a low moaning. A completely ordinary-looking security guard was lying on the floor, one hand clasped to his chest where the gem shards were no longer sticking in it. You ran in, the doors having opened automatically when the power went out.

"Uggh... what's happening?" he groaned.

"You don't remember any of what happened?"

"No. Last thing I remember, I was talking to the boss, sounded like I was up for promotion. And then I'm... here on the floor in the dark."

"You weren't yourself for a while. We're trapped in here and there's a hostile intruder. But my friend and I are taking care of things and help should be on the way soon." I hope, you added silently. "How badly are you hurt? Do you think you can move your hand for a minute?"

He obliged. You could see through the holes in his shirt that there were a few small flesh wounds, but nothing more serious. There was very little blood, and he was breathing well.

"It ain't too bad," he acknowledged, "but I'm totally exhausted. I don't think I've got the strength to stand."

"I can see how that could be draining. What's your name, sir?"

"You can call me Daniel. Daniel Greene."

"All right, well Daniel, you just stay put, don't try to move, and I'll see if I can find a first aid kit and then I'll bring you some food to hopefully give you some strength back."

"Well that's easy, there's one in the kitchen."

"Okay. I'll go get that and then I'll be right back. Jasper, see if you can find where the amethyst got to."

Jasper disappeared into the front part of the building while you tended to the injured man. You began to worry about her after not hearing anything for a while. Only seconds after setting a plate of miscellaneous salvageable food down where Daniel could easily reach it, you heard Jasper call out to you.

"(Y/N)?!"

"Yes?" you yelled back. No response. "Jasper, are you okay?"

"You'd better see this."

You made your way towards the sound of her voice. You found her standing in front of the stage the characters usually performed on near the main entrance. Looking now, you could see where the amethyst had designed metal trap doors from which they could emerge onto the stage. One of them had been forcibly bent open, and following Jasper's gaze, you saw the motionless form of Cap'n Fishstick himself. His chest panel had been pulled open, exposing his mechanical innards. The vessel that had held the gem shards in him was gone.

"Oh crap," you muttered.

"Yeah," Jasper whispered.

A sound no louder than a pin dropping made you slowly turn your head. Something was shifting in the far corner of the room. Then that something exploded out of the shadows towards you with a horrific inhuman shriek.

Hey folks! I don't have much to say tonight. Don't forget to look at the note I published right before this chapter to tell me what you'd like to see me write when I'm done this!