The Machine Must Endure

Chapter 4: Dad?

Soft music filled the room causing me to awake from my slumber. My eyes adjusted to the low light environment. A yellow light shone from the floor. I tried lifting myself off the bed. My wrist ached in pain. I finally got up from the bed after several attempts. My vision is blurry and my balance was off. My left wrist is covered in a homemade cast. The soft fabric covered with dark red blood. I limped my way out of the room down a hall. A man sat in a chair. The man rushed over to me and held my face. 

"My Lillian, my baby." 

"Dad?" I asked. For a second I couldn't recognize my father. He had a rugged beard with its musk, tired eyes dragging his face down like weights, rough hair lining his face. A giant metal door opened and a tall wolf walked in. 

"Who's that? Wait a minute." 

Bendy was baking a gingerbread man in the oven. He happily waited as the gingerbread man baked. He pulled the gingerbread man out of the oven. Then when he turned around Boris had already eaten it. The screen zoomed on Bendy's disappointed face. 

"Boris?" Boris set a box down on the floor then closed the door. 

"What? I'm so confused." I said. 

"If Boris didn't save you from Sammy well, you would be dead," Dad answered. 

"You're lucky to be alive with your injuries. He broke your wrist, and attempted to break your skull." Boris added on. I touched my head feeling the bandages.  

"This is all my fault. I've ruined everything." Dad broke into tears. 

"I'll never leave this loop."

*   *   *

"Don't you see it, Henry? She's our answer!" Boris exclaimed. 

"I'm not putting her through the loop," I replied. 

"She doesn't know a single thing about the studio. She can defeat the Ink Demon and set us free. Isn't that what you want?" 

"Don't turn the blame on me, Boris. I am not putting my daughter through the loop. That's final." Boris turned away from me. 

"I was never meant to be alive. None of this is supposed to be possible. To question everything about your existence takes you to the darkest places in your mind. Henry, you broke our promise." Dread filled his voice. 

"I had to! I wasn't getting anywhere! I thought I was the good Bendy only to figure out I'm not! Rotting in this hellhole to realize I'll never get out!" Boris titled his head. 

"Then let her keep it. Let her keep the promise."

*   *   *

"WHY DOES THAT SORRY EXCUSE FOR A WOLF HAS TO RUIN MY PLANS?!" My voice boomed like thunder. A storm ready to destroy everything in its path. 

"Such an overthinker," Norman whispered loud enough for me to hear. I couldn't help but glare at Norman. Annoyance radiating off me like the bright glow of the studio lights. 

"Sorry, continue." Norman gestured. 

"That Boris always ruins everything! How am I supposed to please the Ink Demon without her?!" I pulled myself up sitting on top of my desk. I crossed my legs letting them dangle. I let my hands balance my weight on the desk. I stared up at the ceiling of my office. 

"I've lived in this body for so long, now I don't know what living is anymore. Is all this real? Are we living inside of Henry's delusion?" I asked into the air. 

"I was so talented."

*   *   *

Boris applied new bandages on my head. His soft paws glided peacefully on my head. 

"What happened to you? Well, all of this?" I asked. 

"You're a curious soul like Henry. Well, what he used to be." Boris paused. No sound came from him. Only the sound of grinding gears and pumping ink in the distance. Boris took a deep breath. 

"This studio is hiding something...demonic. Not just the Ink Demon himself. Henry tried to defeat him but he's stuck in this loop. Once you're in the loop you can't defeat the Ink Demon. I don't know what it is but I think you have something that could stop all of this." 

"Me? What would I have to do with any of this?!" I replied. I turned my back to look at Boris's expression. Boris sat on a stool waiting for a clear response. I looked at him in detail. His smooth nose, cartoon eyes, and droopy ears. Just like the old cartoons. Yet, his eyes bestowed fear. Uncertainty lies within his soul. 

"I shouldn't be alive. One moment I was thought then animated on paper. I didn't have a free will or thoughts unless if they were written for me. Next, I'm breathing in this whole new world."

"I don't even know what a loop is. None of this makes sense. I...I just need time to reflect." I walked to the bedroom. Well, it's just a cot with two hammocks. I sat on the cot reflecting all of this. I must be dreaming. I'm probably passed out and this is some peculiar dream. Yeah, I'm sure I'll wake up. I pinched myself. 

"Ow!" I cried. No, this can't be. No, no, no. I pinched a vein on my arm. 

"OW!" I cried again. This is real. I'm not dreaming. 

*   *   *

I knocked on the door. My knuckles pounding on the door. Come on, open the door! Sweat drizzled down neck. Splinters seeped into my skin. Please be here Mrs. Stein. The door finally opened. 

"Lillian, what are you doing here?" Mrs. Stein asked. She wrapped her bathrobe across her chest. 

"Mrs. Stein, is Lillian here?" I asked. 

"Do you know what time it is young lady? What are you even doing here?" Mrs. Stein asked. My whole body started to shake. I couldn't even form a word. Mrs. Stein must have seen the look on my face because she let me inside. 

"Lillian?!" I called out. I walked to Lillian's room. The door is slightly open. I barge in Lillian's room. The door slams against the wall. I yank the sheets off of the bed. NOOOOOOOOO! 

"Ashley! How dare you come into my home and make this mess!" Mrs. Stein yelled. 

"Mrs. Stein you don't understand! Lillian is in danger, she needs our help!" I frantically waved my arms around. 

"What happened to Lillian?" 

"She went back to the old workshop. If we don't act now she'll be dead." 

"Are you listening to yourself, Lillian? That workshop is abandoned. Nothing but a rotting building. How could Lillian be in any sort of danger?" Mrs. Stein wasn't buying it. 

"Please, believe me, Mrs. Stein. Lillian is in grave danger. There is an Ink Demon that is after her. We need to get her out of there before-" 

"You're just like your uncle! Spreading stories into the air like they're facts. I guess that's what happens when a lunatic raises a child in a sweatshop." Mrs. Stein's face turned red. 

"Not like you were much of a mother anyway. Lillian was always at my house while you were too busy destroying your husband's dreams. Lillian was never wrong, Mrs. Stein, you are."