Absurdist Phone Guy Stuffed in a Suit

3 - New Life

William Afton

William woke up, the sun casting rays through his half-closed blinds. The day was stunning. It was gorgeous. He opened the door and walked down the hall, taking in the fresh morning air. He opened his office and moved the desk out of the way, opening the metal hatch below it and climbing down the ladder. He knew the animatronic would have awoken by now. That was, if it succeeded – which it did; he couldn't spare time for failure. Not anymore.

He emerged into a room resembling an office, three TVs assuring him that everything was in order in his home above. He opened the door, anticipation pooling in him like a tsunami, and gazed into the darkness. Something gazed back – it was awake, and it was a success.

"Do you understand me?" William asked the machine. It appeared taken aback by his words, slowly processing him. In a rough, garbled voice, William could make out two words: "Tha-thank y-you".

He shouted in response, his showmanship taking over: "Of course! You're lucky, you know? Very lucky. Who else could bring one such as yourself back from the brink of death?"

He paused, then looked towards the animatronic with a grave expression. "Do understand though, I have a job for you."

He knew that this one was not like the others. If he tried to force it to kill, it would refuse, and it would break. He wouldn't get another opportunity if it did. But he would convince it eventually. For now, it was in its best interest to learn how to work its improved body. To that point, it would take up the same role as its predecessor until it could be used to its full capabilities. William explained this to it, and it listened eagerly. As it should. This machine was his creation, and he'd be damned if he let it walk over him. If it resisted, he could always find a way to motivate it, but he hoped it wouldn't come to that. He couldn't retrieve more souls if it was damaged.

......

Fritz Smith

Fritz has happy. No, he was elated! He had a job. Something to do. FINALLY! How long had it been since he did anything other than stare at that stupid warehouse? But no more!

The man who saved him – William, he called himself – had somehow brought him back to life. He didn't know how, and he didn't care. He was alive! Really alive, not just imprisoned in a suit, left with nothing but his own thoughts. But that didn't matter now. He couldn't think of anything but the present, the past but a distant memory. His job would be to entertain children. He could do that. When the pizzeria had few staff available, Fritz would sometimes wear one of the springlock suits. He always hated those things; the springs slowly unwinding singing a melody to his untimely demise. Haha, too late now. But that's besides the point. He wasn't in a springlock suit – he wasn't entirely sure what he was in, but that didn't matter – and he knew how to do this job.

With his newfound freedom, hours went by like seconds. And in no time, he found himself being loaded into a van – the same one that had saved him from that warehouse, he thought – along with two animatronics: a pink and white bear that resembled Freddy and what looked like a ballerina. He was so used to seeing animal robots that that one felt... uncanny. But that didn't matter. It was time for his job. His show would be starting soon, and he was ready.

He emerged from the van, along with the animatronics. He had tried interacting with them, but they seemed... vacant. He knew they were part of the show, so perhaps they were turned off? Or maybe the night guards in them had been there for much longer than he had, hah. There weren't people in the animatronics. Probably.

Gazing towards the park, he couldn't believe that all this was for one kid's birthday party. He counted at least 4 massive bouncy castles, and over 50 people in the crowd. Straight ahead, there was a wooden stage, probably for him. These people must be rich. He followed behind the animatronics, unsure of what exactly he needed to do. It was funny – in his old job, he was responsible for training the new employees. Now, he felt like one of them. Although, that was probably to be expected with his career change. Haha, one hell of a career change this was!

As he walked towards the stage, he felt dozens of eyes on him and the animatronics. Unsure of what to do, he gave a small wave to the crowd, immediately regretting it when William seemed somewhat annoyed. He couldn't go back to that warehouse.

As he stepped onto the stage, he heard music start to play. Shockingly, the music was coming from him, as well as from the animatronics. Fritz quickly regained composure, however. He knew this show had to go perfectly. And perfect it did, anticlimactic as that was. He and the animatronics danced and sang – pretended to sing, really; he doubted the Freddy animatronic was any more talented than him – and almost as quickly as it began, the show was over. It wasn't the most exciting thing Fritz had ever experienced, but it was alright. He could do it. This was his job, and he would do it perfectly.

After the show, he and the animatronics descended from the stage, then walked forward, prepared to serve food. To his surprise, instead of cheaply made pizza, he was tasked with delivering steak to the guests – the others responsible for salmon and salad. Fritz wished he could eat as well, but just being able to walk around was enough. To his delight (and William's), serving food went off without a hitch, and he soon found himself back in the van. He felt content – more content than he had been in a long time. This wasn't the life he imagined himself living, but anything was better than that warehouse.

......

Weeks passed in a blur as Fritz lost himself in repetition. At times, he felt like he should be feeling bored, but the warehouse seemed to shatter all notions of normalcy in that department. But as he patiently waited, he felt like something was wrong. Fritz was scheduled for another birthday, but William was late. He was never late. Hours dragged by, eventually becoming days, and Fritz knew that something was very, very wrong.

He spent days pacing his room, to no avail. The doors were locked, and William was gone. Perhaps he had been abandoned? Fritz didn't know, eventually being forcefully wrenched from his fugue by a jolt of electricity. It hurt. It hurt a lot. He ran to his stage. That was where he was meant to be, William had told him. His savior was back, and he didn't want to disappoint him. He couldn't go back to the warehouse. He could see him through the window, and Fritz knew he just had to wait.

......

William never came. A day passed and went, and yet nothing. No one entered his room. But that was alright. He could wait. And soon, he saw William return once more. He waited and waited, yet nothing. His hope was draining. He didn't want to be trapped in that room – would not be trapped in that room.

......

Eventually, after what felt like an eternity of uncertainty, William came back. Fritz saw him, slowly moving towards the door and moving into the room to his left. Fritz had explored that room, but it held nothing but machinery. Yet he had no doubt that William was in a hurry to fix something, and would soon greet him. Soon, William did emerge, but instead of coming to the stage, he slowly walked by. Instead of greeting him, William seemed somewhat frightened. Something was wrong.

......

William came and went the next day. Something was wrong, and Fritz had nearly lost all hope that the man would free him. Suddenly, he heard something slam into the door on his right, dents appearing before a hole burst through, an amalgamation of wires and various electronics following close behind. The thing looked towards him, and, screeching, catapulted itself towards Fritz. He was terrified. Frankly, he hadn't been this terrified since he was dragged into that awful spare parts room back at the pizzeria. But he wouldn't die this time. He refused. Something was wrong with William, and Fritz feared that this would be the end. So, he fought – really, he shoved his body mass towards the creature. Fritz did not know how to fight, and was far too scared to think rationally, so he throwing himself at it was about the only idea he could come up with. He did it again, and again, parts of the machine coming off and leaving pieces lodged in his own body. The thing took its own fair share from him, however, claiming an eye and several parts of his head and chest. It screeched once more, than ran from Fritz, going back through the hole in the door it created.

Fritz took a moment to catch his breath. Haha, or would have if he still had lungs. As the anxiety slowly subsided and his body began to stop shaking, Fritz slowly slumped towards the floor. That was too close. Way too close. And he feared it would come back. But, as terrifying as the encounter was, his door had been opened for him. He could leave.