Beyond The Machine (a BATIM fanfiction)

Chapter 8: In An Inky Heartbeat

Mikey woke up near the middle of a very strange room. It was huge, and the big door at the end of a big corridor was shut tightly. Near the ceiling were several screens, each one playing a looping cartoon. One played the cartoon demon dancing in a skirt; another played Alice Angel riding on a cloud; two of them played Boris the Wolf and the cartoon Demon together; and another played Charley from the Inkwell, with two other characters that Mikey assumed were Barley and Edgar.
In the center of the room was a large horned throne, and in that throne sat the Ink Demon.
"Finally awake, are we?" He hissed. "Welcome to my humble abode, little one. It's not much, really, but it's still home. Look around. So many memories, so many possibilities gone to waste."
"W...what do you want?" Mikey asked. "What are you going to do with me?"
"Oh, I just have a little proposal for you, Mikey," the Demon responded. "I'm not going to hurt a single inch of your adorable little head. I'll even let you leave this machine alive and unharmed...IF you give me that little map of yours."
"...My map?" Mikey asked, clutching his map-containing thermos tightly. "But...what could you possibly want with my map?"
"You see, I've been all over this here studio; explored every floor, destroying those who would dare attempt to escape me, corrupting every former employee of that god-forsaken liar that I can find. However, there are some places in my twisted world that I have yet to find. Some little beings that I have yet to devour. And your map is just what I need to find those places. So, what'll it be, Mikey?"
Mikey was alarmed. Army had said that the Demon had never found the Inkwell. If the Demon had the map, then everyone in the Inkwell would die. And several others that might've been hiding along the route he and his friends had taken would suffer as well, including his friends.
"...No," he finally said, pushing the thermos into his inky body so that it was soon inside of him. "I won't let anyone else suffer because of you."
The Ink Demon was silent. He then chuckled as faint, upbeat music began to build up from an unseen source. "Oh, come now, Mikey. You know there's no escaping this place. There's no escaping me. This is all just a sick, twisted show, and we're all playing parts." He then laughed manically, got up from his throne, and began to sing.

Now, I can tell you're just a scared little guy
I mean, who wouldn't be?
Now, anyone would try to run and hide
From their good ol' pal, Bendy
But I'd just like to have a little talk
Now, buddy, can't you see
That if you keep on going down this worthless road
You'll never, ever, ever be free?

Just goin in circles
That's how my game is played
It'll be just enough to drive you insane
The show will just keep goin on
The story never stops
The ink will just keep flowing
And now your heart will drop

You left me in a heartbeat
Do you really wanna go so bad
You left me in a heartbeat
Well, that just makes me downright sad
You've been wandering
Which is a terrible sin
It's time to believe you can't win
You left me in a heartbeat
And now the Demon's gone mad

"W-wait, what is happening right now?" Mikey asked, legitimately confused.
"Well, it seemed as though I wasn't getting through to you, so I assumed this was the best way to change one's mind," the Demon replied. "So is torture, but I'm feeling a little generous today."
"Sorry, but I'm not going to change my mind," Mikey stated. "I'm not giving you the map."
"I see. Looks like I'll have to do a little more convincing. They don't call me the Dancing Demon for nothing, kid." To Mikey's surprise, the Ink Demon came forward, danced a little jig, and continued to sing.

Now, I'm aware that your soul is now divine
In this underground cabaret, your soul will soon be mine
The Ink Machine is thumping
The ink's forever pumping
There's no use in running when the Dancing Demon's coming
In a way you've never seen
Can't erase the devil's swing
Wanna know who's laughing now?
Come on to Recording Town
Can you find the keys?
Pretty soon, you will believe
My ink is runnin' fast
Say your prayers, and hope you'll last
Now let me in
You'll never win
You are a sin
Now let's begin

You left me in a heartbeat
Just how deep does this inkwell go?
You left me in a heartbeat
Welcome to my horror show
Who will set you free?
Not some little sheep
That's a promise I will keep
You left me in a heartbeat
Far into the Ink Machine
Your devil darlin', Bendy
Will drag you down below

"I-I'm sorry, in what way was that supposed to change my mind about not giving you the map?" Mikey asked.
"Eh, it always works in other scenarios," the Ink Demon said, shrugging.
"Well, it won't work for me. I'm not going to let my friends, or anyone else, die in your hands. So you can just forget about it, okay?"
Faster than Mikey could comprehend, the Demon's face was suddenly inches away from his own.
"Your friends?" He sneered. "Oh, I'm afraid it's already too late for your little friends. They won't be interfering with me as they did with that worthless toymaker."
Mikey frowned. "Why not? What have you done to them?!"
"Let's just say, well...they're currently getting fit for a halo."
It took Mikey a couple seconds to realize what the Demon meant. "No," he said, his eyes welling up with tears, "you didn't. Please tell me you didn't."
"Oh, I most certainly did," the Demon said proudly. "Right now, your clingy little companions are being sent to the gloriously disgusting place known as Heaven. They won't be lonely; they'll be with several other rebels who dared to go against me, including your little angel's boy-buddy Shawn. However, killing has gotten pretty boring on my part. If you give me the map, little one, not only will I spare you, but I'll just pay your other friends a little visit. No genocide. What do ya say?"
Mikey wipes his tears away and glared. "What's to stop you from killing me and everything in sight if I DO give you the map?"
"Hmmm. Clever boy, aren't you? But I'm sure being clever can only get you so far in this twisted world." The Ink Demon grabbed Mikey's wrist. "Now as for killing you, I don't want to do that just yet. You're too adorable to kill on sight. I might want to keep you as my little pet. But since you're dumb enough to say no to me, I have more than one way to make you change your mind."
And with that, the Demon dragged Mikey out of his throne room, down an enormous corridor, and into another strange room. This one had a large, tube-like machine in the center, with a large glass chamber that was surrounded by empty pipes and valves. The Demon opened up the chamber, threw Mikey inside, and sealed it back up.
"What are you doing?" Mikey asked. "What is this thing?"
"This here is an ink extraction device," the Demon explained, turning some valves and crossing over to a lever on the wall. "Since you've placed the map inside of you, I'll just have to remove the ink around it in order to get to it. During the process, you might disappear and distill along with the ink. But when it's finished, I might use my dear machine to make a...better version of you. A version that's more obedient, and fitting for a pet."
"Wait, no! Stop!" Mikey yelled, pounding on the glass. "I don't want to disappear! Let me out! Please!"
"Well, you should've thought of that before you refused my offer, kid. But look on the bright side. You might see your friends again very, very soon."
The Ink Demon pulled the lever, and left the room as small bits of Mikey slowly began to be sucked away by his prison.