Software Error

Encounter

Parts and Services is still very unknown to me. I never had a reason to go or commit it to my memory so I'm rather blind as far as a sense of direction goes. Do I even know what time it is? What day? ...what year? Who's really to say it hasn't been so long. Those thoughts scare me though, so I'll just push on without minding them. It's very dim down here, I'm hardly able to see with my "new" vision. And I've definitely experienced the feeling of being "creeped out". I don't know what it is, but the shadows seem to be moving or hiding something sinister. But alas, I am lost. I've no clue of where to go here, I've found an elevator, but I can't seem to get it to work. Maybe I'm not registering for it anymore.

As the seconds crawl on, I find myself wishing, no, needing the ability to tell the time. Concerns over it hit me in waves and make me feel levels of dread I didn't know I could feel. Has this place been abandoned? Am I stuck? Those thoughts are like little droplets, weathering down the rock of the grand canyon. By now I have a basic idea of the layout of this place. It's not too confusing if you focus on mapping it instead of a creepy feeling. But did they have to leave spare endo-skeletons around just standing around? There's no way no one wouldn't think of it as anything but anxiety-inducing. Maybe it was just a prank done by some random technician, and they just decided to leave them there because they added "personality" or whatever.

You don't think about it much, but staying in the dark for this long. There's something about it. It makes you worry. You start feeling negative about everything, the unknown becomes suspicious, and the known becomes wrong. Time is but an illusion in these halls, I tried to keep count but I don't think any person could possibly manage to keep track of time down here without a way to measure it. I feel a strange... sort of emptiness. More specifically around my stomach, not hunger, or... at least not the physical kind of hunger. I guess I can say it has given me a brand new perspective on certain things. Every possible exit I've found either doesn't recognize me as fulfilling its activation conditions or is outside the realm of my physical being. I'm much too big to crawl through those vents. I'd just get stuck.

I take a seat in a random spot in one of these rooms. Rationally, I think to myself that I haven't been conscious for too long. And this place looks maintained. There will be people coming here soon enough, I know I'm overreacting it's just... I sit down with my knees close to my chest, my head buried in them. I'm just so dreadfully confused and lost. Something's wrong, and it's not just some software error. Is it me that's wrong? My creators? This establishment? Why won't anything answer my questions? Why won't I answer my questions?

As I teeter on the edge of a nervous breakdown, I hear a soft pitter-patter. Footsteps, presumably from a child. What is a child doing down here? This isn't where they should be. Especially alone. I pick myself up, maybe they just got lost. I don't think the doors will open for them either, but they should be able to climb through those vents. The child enters the room I was currently sitting in. We both look at each other for half a second, but they look horrified before trying to run away. I must have scared them. What on Earth is going on to make a child consider me something to run away from?"W-wait! What's wrong? Y-you shouldn't be d-down here, kid." I put my mouth to my throat, I think my voicebox got damaged a little bit. Maybe I'm damaged so I look scary? They must've used me for spare parts.

"You... aren't here to hurt me?" I do not like the connotations of that sentence. "Oh no, no, no. W-who's here to hurt you? You're just a k-kid, why would I want to hurt y-you." It still feels weird but I'll get used to it. "What's with your voice?" The kid asks me suspiciously. "I-i do not know. I remember p-powering off b-before waking up here." "Okay..." The kid gives me a weird look. "O-oh right! I need to introd-duce myself. I'm L-Lyle. I'm supposed to be the dayc-care attendant." The kid looks at the Freddy-shaped watch on their wrist. I think it was called a Faz-watch? "Freddy, there's an animatronic down here calling itself Lyle. Do you know anything about that?" "Lyle? But Lyle should be in the daycare..." Why should I be in the daycare? I guess they must've made another "me" with my copied data. The kid looks at me confused. "Shouldn't you be in the daycare?" "I-i should be. But Vanessa brought me down here for maintenance before I powered o-off midway through it." "Ah, right! Gregory, they had to make another Lyle after the old one refused to power on after a maintenance check a couple of weeks ago. I had nearly forgotten. Wait, the old one is on? How strange. I remember them taking away all of his power."

Gregory takes a couple of steps away from me. It hurts my heart to see it happen but I can understand why. I do seem incredibly suspicious even from my point of view. "Well superstar, I don't know why exactly Lyle is up and about, but he hasn't tried to get you yet has he? It's in his programming to help kids. He'd be an excellent help to getting you out of here." Gregory seems a little hesitant. "I-i don't know what's going on. But, l-let me help you. I'm also v-very confused, but y-you need help. And I'm h-here to give it." I try to be as sincere as possible. "Okay, well, can you take me to the way out of here?" I walk up to Gregory. "Y-yes, I explored as much as I could ear-earlier. Un-unfortunately, I will not be able to join you on the way out. I-i do not fit in tho-those vents." I grab Gregory's hand to start guiding him, but he wrestles it out of my grasp. "S-sorry. It w-was instinct." I walk ahead of him and he stays a small distance back. "Hey, Lyle." "Y-yes?" "Freddy's wondering why you aren't getting his message." "F-for some reason I can't use any of my features or s-software. I-i do not even think I'm c-currently charged." "Then how are you moving and talking?" "I-i do not know the answer to that q-question." "Oh."

We walk kind of silently for a bit after that, I think Gregory has decided to trust me a bit more because he is walking closer to me. "H-here we are. T-this is the vent, I-i wish you a safe trip. A-and if you could, I would ap-appreciate it if you g-got me out of here. I do not like it d-down here, but p-please try to leave first. The m-mechanics can get me in the morn-morning." I lift Gregory into the vent. Gregory gives me a nod of confirmation before heading down the vent. Looking down it makes me wonder what forced him to have to go down here in the first place.