Die in a Fire (Across the Years Part Two)

After the Smoke Clears

Today was the day that Mike Afton was going to die.

It was Saturday. All their targets had been found, and were in the maze. Tonight, after the employees left and the restaurant closed, the trap would activate.

The entire building would go up in flames, destroying any evidence of the supernatural with it. The spirits would be freed, their metal shells melting away in the heat.

And Mike would melt with them.

Someone had to stay behind, to ensure that the animatronics didn't escape the trap. And Mike was the only person who could do it. It just made sense. He had no life outside of this quest, he hadn't since the bunker. He had to have some kind of Remnant inside him that kept him alive, Remnant that needed to be destroyed.

Mike breathed out a little. He was in the interview room right now-it was the only room the other employees were restricted from entering.

Taking the keys, he slid them out of his pocket and locked the door to the alleyway. He wouldn't need to be using it anymore.

It felt...odd, to realize that after so long, his quest would finally be over. Mike blinked, swallowing, a little emotional.

I...I'm going to die tonight.

Maybe that was why he was here right now. He was...saying goodbye, in some way.

On the table was a book. A book that was familiar to Mike, that he'd specifically requested from Fazbear storage. As Mike dropped the keys onto the desk, he picked up the pen and opened the cover.

It read Security Logbook, though the word Security had been crossed out and replaced with the word Survival. Mike smiled as he looked over where he'd written in his name, as well as the different puzzles he'd completed and doodles he'd drawn in the margins.

Then, the guard sighed.

He'd had this book on the final night, so long ago. Cassidy had communicated with him through this very book. As Mike examined it, he could still see the faint imprinted text of Cassidy's messages.

Do you have nightmares?

A drawing of the nightmarish, twisted version of Fredbear that Mike had seen in his dreams.

Did I ever thank her? For helping me through those? I don't even remember...

Mike blinked. This was common for him-he would start the process of crying, but his body couldn't actually do it anymore.

Shuddering out a breath, Mike continued looking through the pages, feeling nostalgic.

Then, he paused at one part of the text on the page, which seemed to have been edited.

It was for me.

Mike blinked, reading over those words. He...he hadn't noticed them before. They weren't written in-they were printed out, in the same text as the puzzles and activities in the book. It didn't fit in with the rest of the page, it almost seemed like one side of a conversation.

Mike flipped back a few pages, finding one line of imprinted text from Cassidy that he hadn't noticed before.

The party was for you.

Mike flipped between the pages.

The party was for you.

It was for me.

This...this was a conversation. Cassidy had used this book, not just to talk to him, but to someone else as well. And...there was really only one person who that could be.