Guardians (DISCONTINUED)

As she awoke, not a single glimmer of light showed in her deep blue eyes… Named Marinette from childhood, the young woman was dressed in a gray coat covering a sleeveless light-pink shirt, as well as more vibrant pink pants and black boots. Her coat was stained red from the blood that dripped down her cold face, cut up and full of bruises. Her hair was a deeper blue than her eyes could ever be, tied into two low ponytails.

Looking around, she found herself back in the same, old rubble. The place was underground, filled with the burned remains of a building. As she drifted back to sleep, she started to remember back in the better days… How she’d sneak away every night, hanging around in the forest with a friend as the cool breeze went past them both. The moon shining bright as she’d sadly go back home every day, back to the living hell that she knew to be her parents. Her younger, rebellious brother, hugging her as her mother and father held knives and-

Just then, the man behind her woke up. “So… mind letting me free, eh?” He sneered, as the usual.

When will this man quit it? She thought, as she annoyedly mumbled “You already know my answer…”

He was an older person, yet more energetic. With what he wore, no sane person would suspect him to be a killer from first sight- but then again, many poor kids did suffer at his hand. He wore a suit that looked similar to a yellow bunny. The ‘yellow rabbit’ suit had on purple suspenders attached to a gray and purple pair of jeans. The suit head was a duller color than the rest of it, but the eyes were a glowing purple, with a hypnotic illusion on them. There were ears on top, though somewhat broken. More importantly, on the chest of the suit was a white sticker reading, “William Afton, Co-Owner of Freddy Fazbear’s”.

'Damn William,' Marinette hissed in her head. 'For all I care, he should’ve just stayed in Cassidy’s hell. That would suit him a lot better.' William was starting to sneak away from his little cage.

“Sit back down, you f#cking psychopath. This is surely better than what I would’ve done, so watch it.” Marinette snapped, still annoyed at him.

“Since you’re fully awake, how about we… talk? Maybe about some music, or taking a walk, or maybe that- uh, that friend of yours?” William asked, hesitantly, as he backed to his original spot.

“Maybe we should mention that you kill children for ‘fun’? William, you and I both know we aren’t leaving this place, so how about you take a nice long nap.”

“Nette- I mean, Marinette, I killed because Glitchtrap controlled me, don’t you know already? Can’t you just let me out for once? I’ll come back here, I promise…”

“Afton, I already know that you created Glitchtrap after killing in order to preserve your conscience somewhere else, you can’t fool me as easily as you might think. Do you really think I’m just gonna forgive you and let you free now?”

Marinette couldn’t help but practically growl at the guy. This is the fifth time this hour that he tried to talk to her, and normally he just sleeps for days. Though, thinking about it, she found herself cringing at the situation. Really, growling? Couldn’t I have at least done something like make him shut his trap? What’s even up with this old man today?

But that’s when she heard something… Looking behind her, she could see someone clearly behind some wreckage. They looked to be a young boy, wearing a blue, striped shirt and brown trousers, with some leather shoes. She could see some of their hair, short and light brown, but very messy. The arm of his that stook out was an extremely light brown, and he wore a watch in the shape of a bear head. When William mentioned a friend, was this who he mentioned? When she looked back for William he wasn’t there. It was a matter of milliseconds for her to know where he went.

One quick blow is all it took. Afton was about to attack the young boy when Marinette punched him straight in the face, throwing Afton back quite a few feet and knocking him unconscious for the moment. His little identity sticker was probably covered in the black ashes by now. Turning around, Marinette could see that the stranger she just saved was about half her height, and had hazel-colored, medium-sized eyes. His hair wasn’t nearly as messy in the front, but a group of hair stuck upward, while another few strands hung in front of his face, going past his eyes.

“Who the hell are you?” Marinette asked, sounding angry. She wasn’t- if anything, she was genuinely concerned. After all, what kind of kid would want to explore the ruins of a pizza place that exists underground when all the backstory was already known, and it was likely off-limits?

It was clear that the child heard her… but instead of responding, he just ran off. What kind of kid would just run off like that?, Marinette was thinking- until she looked at herself. Her clothes were soaked in blood, and a knife had stabbed her in the side. Oops. But by then, she found herself with another knife in her chest. And with that one, Marinette took a little… nap.

As Marinette- that bloody girl- fell to the floor, behind her Vanny revealed herself. 'Wh-What is Vanny doing here…?' The boy thought, watching from behind some more rubble. This young boy was none other than Gregory, a young orphan who lives ‘secretly’ in the pizzaplex. Vanny turned around, then sprinted off towards the guy that the blue-haired girl knocked out.

“Glitch?!” Vanny yelled. Her voice was slightly shrill, and echoed through the cavernous place. Who even is ‘Glitch’? More importantly, who’d name their child after a computer bug- Gregory couldn’t help but gain a slight smirk. But that wasn’t the main thing on his mind. With Vanny distracted, he could probably lock the bunny in the ‘basement’.

By now, the guy- ‘Glitch’ or whoever- was starting to get up. He’d better hurry. Before either could turn to look at Gregory, he started his mad dash to the exit. Turning his head to look back as he ran, it was clear that both adults were chasing him, and beginning to catch up. Just a few more turns, Gregory muttered to himself as he swerved through the burned up material.

Gregory both felt and heard a giant crash behind him, but didn’t care all that much- he finally reached the door that got him there. Gregory blasted through the door, then shut it seconds later. Barricading the door with a bunch of broken pieces of wooden planks, Gregory sneaked away, not wanting to add more noise to the banging and shouting behind that door.

A few minutes later, Gregory found himself hiding behind the reception desk in the pizzaplex. a few feet away, he could hear large footsteps, seemingly running towards him. Suddenly, he found himself looking at… Freddy? The friendly bear animatronic he knows was battered up, scratches covering his body. A part of his left hand was taken off, and a bunch of wires stuck out of the opening.

“Hey, Superstar!” Freddy said in a loud voice. That would’ve definitely reached Vanny’s ears.

“Freddy, be quiet!” Gregory whispered, getting Freddy behind the counter. It was a good thing he did- both Vanny and ‘Glitch’-whatever had just entered the room. With a now clearer view, Gregory could take in the detail of the suit. 'That’s who I’m up against…? This Glitch-rabbit-person is a dehydrated-pee-colored evil rabbit.' (To be fair, Gregory can’t be blamed for calling William that- it’s a wonderful description, after all.)

“We should split up. That way, we’ll be able to find that b---- faster.” Vanny said in the echoing room, as she stared intensely into her knife.

“No, we’re not. I’d prefer to have some… fun. He’ll slowly crack. My order, it’s final.” The “dehydrated-pee-colored evil rabbit’ said. Unlike his more vibrant costume, his voice was gruff, not at all a friendly seeming type.

“Hey, Superstar, do you know what this is? I can’t recognize either one of them.”

Turning, Gregory faced Freddy again. He had almost forgotten that the friendly animatronic had been sitting next to him the whole time.

“The yellow rabbit is Glitch. And no, unlike Vanny, I don’t know their identity behind the mask- I just heard their name get called.” Gregory said, in an even lower voice than he had ever before. To think that there were two of them…. This ‘Glitch’ person probably -inspired- Vanny’s spree.

“-yes boss, I understand…” Vanny was saying, catching Gregory’s attention. So the pee rabbit is her boss? So that means-
Cutting off Gregory’s thoughts, a crashing noise came from nearby. Coming from the noise’s source, the same blue haired girl from underneath the mega pizza plex emerged. Unlike before, her clothes weren’t completely soaked in blood, and the knife from before was gone.

“Marinette..” Glitch said- more like growled- in a low voice. So that’s her name, Gregory thought. 'Isn’t that a name meaning ‘of the sea’, coming from French?'

“Either you come back down with me at your own will, old man, or I force you. Which one will it be?” Marinette calmly spoke. Unlike before, her expression remained blank, and had a calmer tone.

Within a flash, the ugly dehydrated-pee colored glitching rabbit seemingly disappeared before Gregory’s eyes. Expecting more blood to be spilled, Gregory quickly turned away, back hiding behind the reception counter. Yet, blood still got on him- but as he peeked his eyes open, a knife was there along with it. Looking back, he saw what looked to be ‘Marinette’ holding a knife in one hand, and holding ‘Glitch’ in the air with the other.

Then in just a second, the yellow rabbit was across the room, smashing into a wall. Meanwhile, Vanny was just standing there, dumbstruck. Marinette and William clashed again, but both held their ground this time. Vanny seemed to get out of her little trance, as she stuck Marinette with something shiny- though this had little effect. Both rabbit suited people (Glitch and Vanny) were thrown back yet again. Marinette was now leaning towards her side, seemingly injured. Gregory turned to see Freddy, who was about to run towards Marinette, but Gregory quickly took Freddy’s hand.

“No, it’s not worth it to go there right now. Let's go when at least Vanny or the other guy is knocked out.” Gregory said, the frustration in his voice slight. What the h___ is happening???

Looking back, the fight was quite different compared to before. There was more blood staining the floor, as a gash in Vanny’s suit leaked it- as well as strange purple and black liquids. The yellow rabbit now had human hands where the two ‘front paws’ once were- the suit was definitely broken now. ‘Glitch’ was seemingly about to charge straight for Marinette again, but then Vanny stepped right in front of him. Glitch gave her a genuine death glare- at least, as far as Gregory could see.

“Why the hell do you fight us? And why him? What did he ever do to you, huh? YOU HAVE NO CLUE WHAT HE’S BEEN THROUGH!” Vanny’s hissing turned into shouts. The maroon red eyes of her suit now glowed more than ever, more than Glitch’s eyes.

“Oh yeah, he did absolutely nothing,” Marinette said, sarcastically. “After all, all he did was abuse, torture, kill, and sell kids, including his own. OF COURSE HE GOD D___ DID SOMETHING!” Marinette yelled, her expression so furious it looked like she was about to burn the world to the ground. Her feet were planted to the ground, gripping it so hard that Gregory could see the contents beneath the cracks from where he hid.

“AND IF HE DID HOW WOULD YOU KNOW!” Vanny screamed, creating an echoing noise so loud that Gregory thought his ears would start to bleed.

This pee rabbit is… an abuser? And he had kids? Based on his looks, he definitely stayed there for quite a while- what if the blue-haired girl IS his kid?! But they look nothing alike… Gregory’s thoughts were running overload, as Freddy stared at him. But then, Gregory came back to such with one, main thought in mind- the battle had to be over. After all, not a single noise was coming from the place now, and as far as he could tell without peeking out again, no blood was streaming down. So, taking the daring move, he ran right towards the three others, and Freddy followed close behind.

“Why the h___ did you come here? You should know very well that this is a dangerous place to be. After all, you’ve been watching this entire fight, or am I wrong?” Marinette spoke cautiously, yet her frustration oozed out of her voice through her words.

Vanny was looking down at the ground, the eyes of her costume shaking small dots. Next to her, Glitch was on the ground, injured. On the opposite side was Marinette, clenching her fists, giving Glitch a deathly stare. Something definitely happened while I wasn’t paying attention…

The yellow bunny head was gone. Instead was the face of a very unfriendly human. The man was extremely pale but blood covered his body. His hair was made of tufts of hazel-colored hair similar to Gregory’s- but tainted purple, and longer in the back. One of his eyes was gray, but the other was a glowing, hypnotic purple, just like his suit’s head. He had a gruff, seemingly heartless expression plastered across his face.

Vanny shakily turned to look at Glitch. “So you’ve been William the whole time… And to think that I had been looking for you for so long…”

“What..?” Glitch got up, clearly confused- sharing the same thought as Gregory. 'What does Vanny mean by that…?'

“It’s been me the entire time… Vanessa, your sister. I’ve been searching for so long… and yet this entire time, you’ve just been manipulating me to do whatever you want..?” A waterfall of water pouring out her eyes, Vanny threw the bunny head she wore on to the ground, revealing her long, untied, golden hair. She stomped down on the bunny head with an almost satisfying crack.

“I’M DONE GOD D___ LISTENING TO YOUR S___, WILLIAM!” Yelling, Vanessa sprinted away, disappearing from the sight of the others. Turning his head to the same direction, William chased right behind Vanessa. Marinette started off to follow, but then fell to the ground.

“Hey… Come back, here…” She tried to shout as she started off to follow the b____ (William), but it came out as only a mutter. Her head started spinning, as her dizziness grew exponentially. Next thing she knew, her head had just hit the ground. Slowly rising from her fall, she could feel sharp, cold pain in her side, where she could feel a knife prodding at her rib cage. 'That wound is nothing… How is it affecting me, though? Unless- s___, poison’s work.'

“Huh? I do not recognize you- you aren’t in my system either?!” said a loud voice.

Marinette looked up. In front of her was a large bear animatronic- a Freddy one for certain- and the little boy from just before.

“Your- your vitals…?!” Freddy said, clearly in dismay.

S___, he can read my vitals?! If too many people find out- Marinette silently took a deep breath. No, he wouldn’t tell too many… right?

“What about my vitals?” Marinette said, keeping her confusion and frustration in check. “Is there anything wrong?”

“You don’t have any! How are you alive-” Freddy was definitely going to make this a problem- with how loud he was speaking, anyone in the pizzaplex and a 30 meter radius would definitely hear. But then he stopped, and shut down- he was out of power.

“I don’t know who you are, but make sure to keep this a secret- it’s necessary.” Marinette quickly spoke, then ran.

The rooms in the pizzaplex were much larger than Marinette was used to, and difficult for her to navigate- especially considering how fast she was dashing through them. However, she still found the way back down to her one place left- back into the deep, dark pit that she has had to refer to as her only home for so long. To a place devoid of life, the ruins of something that could have reached greatness, had it been guided in the right direction. Sealing the door behind her completely, Marinette walked back into her so-called home.

Now that there was nothing and no-one to make sure remains inside, Marinette decided to roam around- for once. After all, standing around in almost the exact same place for several years was going far too hard on Marinette’s head- she really needed to take a break from all that. As she walked around, Marinette could find some more detail in the wreckage. The little, burnt hats that were once full of color. The pieces of glass sprinkled everywhere on the ashy ground. There was a picture frame in an area of the rubble as well, though its photo was turned to ashes, and it had been charred to the extremes.

It was about an hour before Marinette saw something that she thought she’d never see- an unburned, white mask. More specifically, the exact same white mask that she remembered from that day. The- the night guard's mask.But that should’ve completely burned up along with everything else! Quickly turning around, there was a… figure, now standing right in front of Marinette.

Short, blue hair… purplish, rotting skin, brightly colored blue and yellow top… brown, leather pants… brown eyes- it can’t be! “Kagami..?” Taken aback, Marinette was surprised. 'But- but she burned in the fire for longer than anyone- how is she still here?'

Within only a moment, the two embraced. It was no wonder that they were so quick- after all, the old friends hadn’t seen each other for a very long time. But it only lasted for a moment. The hug parted almost as fast as it came- but for a much different reason. Something cold, and hard, pushed Marinette away from Kagami. Looking like an entire giant bundle of burnt spaghetti, the animatronic pile of wires from Circus Baby’s Pizza World (CBPW), Ennard, grossly came out of Kagami. Marinette could see what was left of Kagami’s insides, it was that disgusting. Actually burnt enough to be mistaken for spaghetti now, however, the animatronic fell to the ground- even though it clearly intended to harm Marinette. It was too greatly damaged to function- which was definitely for the better, considering it was made to kill.

Despite the disgusting scene, the two weren’t all that fazed by the event at all. Instead, the two started off to walk together, talking about their experiences. Though then again, neither had all too much to tell, so it may have been more enjoyed with the silence.

What looked to be an extremely bright light was close, as they continued walking. The two had entered a small tunnel a while ago, exploring areas neither had gone to yet. Squinting, each saw the same scene, one they hadn’t seen for years upon years on end- the outside. It turns out, Marinette and Kagami had ended up venturing into a large sewage system, and now the only thing separating them from freedom were a few weak, tiny bars. It would be easy for them to pass through.
Before they leave, though, they would have to at least look back at the place that had sheltered them for so long. And it was in these few moments that Marinette ‘transformed’.

“Oops-” Marinette said, completely innocently. Definitely not the tone for when you get revealed as an animatronic. “Maybe I should’ve been paying attention to my illusion disk.” Marinette unemotionally stated.

The animatronic she became was very much charred up and blackened by the fire and ash, but Kagami knew it was Lolbit. Lolbit was a malfunctioning fox animatronic from CBPW. It was originally colored mostly white, with orange and purple highlights, tints, and gradients.

“Oh yeah, I forgot to give you one-” Marinette touched Kagami’s cheek with something that stuck on, and then tapped the area. “Now you don’t look like a living breakfast!”

Ignoring Marinette’s little wisecrack, Kagami took a look at herself (for once). Her features were almost the exact same as how she was before death. She had a lighter skin tone- though not white- with a few freckles on her face. Her eyes were a dark brown, and she seemed to stand tall, despite how she actually slouches. But now, it was time for the two to take a step outside. Marinette had already changed her looks back to the ones of a normal person, and so both were ready as they passed through.

Compared to the dark ruins Marinette and Kagami had gotten used to, the area was beautiful. The specific area they came out of was surrounded by some trees, and right outside the little park area was a big city. Imagine what would’ve happened if we didn’t use the disks. Kagami couldn’t help but laugh internally on her little thought- like, just imagine a human shaped grape and a glitching entity walking across the city streets of the modern age as if they’re completely normal to the place. For those who can’t seem to imagine it, just know that it really does seem completely hilarious the way Kagami imagined it.

As Marinette walked along the sidewalks and Kagami followed suit, there would be one big problem to deal with- shelter. The two currently had no clue where the place they’re in is even called, no clue of the currency- and no money either- and they would look too young to work decent enough jobs. Plus, who would trust two random teenagers who appeared from seemingly nowhere?

As Kagami began to think about their problem, Marinette randomly walked up to a couple walking on the streets. It took a few moments before Kagami also came by.

“Hey, could you tell us where we are?” Marinette asked in the nicest way- Kagami could see a vein on her sticking out due to just how annoyed Marinette was. Considering the fact that one of the two people she asked somewhat resembled the kinder features of William’s face, it made sense.

“This is… St George City, in Utah. Since you’re here, shouldn’t you know? Or are you lost?” The blue haired person said. They had short, dark blue hair that was the same color as Marinette’s. She was somewhat short, and on the chubby side, and wore a… kimono? The other, the one that resembles William’s friendly features, has dark brown tufts of hair. Their face structure was slightly larger William's, with eyes matching the killer's old look, and only a slightly bulkier form than William in the past. They wore a blue shirt and brown pants.

“Uhm- we’re kind of lost-” Kagami butted in.

“Well then, I guess we can help you,” The blue-haired stranger stuck a look at their partner. “I’m Sabine, and this is Tom.”