You Don't Want Help, Do You?

Chapter Seven: Dance Floor

Gregory was admittedly a little peeved he had to go all the way back to the kitchen to turn on the lights, but he managed it and went to the West Arcade all the way up on the third floor on the west side, opposite the East Arcade.

He considered his options as he walked. He needed to get Chica's help and convince her to let him have or borrow the Party Pass. After all, they didn't destroy the Party Passes at the attraction, right? Didn't they just take them? But currently, Chica didn't trust Gregory, and he wasn't sure how he would gain her trust. Roxy might be easier to get through to, but at the same time her vulnerable state might make her defensive and she would attack him out of fear of his reaction or rejection more than anything else. He didn't even know Monty outside of his apparent destructive behavior.

Freddy and Moon knew Chica, though. Maybe he could get their help. If she saw Gregory with either one of them, she might at least hear him out.

Gregory stopped in front of the elevator leading to the West Arcade. A S.T.A.F.F. bot with a dead electric sign lay on the floor. When he tried to open the elevator, it refused to budge. So, he waved the Dance Pass in front of it. After a few attempts of trying to open it to no avail, he gave up and inspected the bot. It had a key on it. He had to stick the Dance Pass into a slot in its closed fanny pack to unlock the key, which he used to unlock the elevator doors.

The doors opened to him.

When Gregory entered the elevator to the arcade, Freddy said, "I must stay here. I wish I could join you, but after tonight's–er, my last stage incident, I am not allowed to perform. When I step onto the West Arcade dance floor, I cannot stop myself. It is a programming bug."

Gregory sighed and pressed the elevator button. It whirred as it went down.

Freddy continued, "Head to the security office in the utility hallway. You will find another security pass there." His voice upturned. "If you see the DJ, say 'Hello.' He is such a nice fellow."

The first thing Gregory noticed upon stepping out was the giant golden statue of Freddy and Friends, Freddy standing on top of giant speakers.

Lights above glowed over the dark floor and walls crossed with glowing neon lights and vibrant colors. To the right, the room opened into a huge checkerboard dance floor. All of the squares were lit up in random colors. On the stage before it lay the largest machine Gregory had ever seen. Its round, white body stood higher than Sun from his feet to the spoke on top of his head. Its giant, square head attached to a comically thin black neck lay on its hands–two of six, of which the last four lay beneath or behind it. Pinks and blues colored his otherwise white face and red and gold headphones sat atop his head. His teeth were black and white like keyboard keys, but the inside of his mouth varied in color, changing like light shimmering off a dark pool with antifreeze. It almost reminded Gregory of those little spider things in the vents. Was it... breathing?

Beside him was a platform with a metal safety railing interrupted by a short set of stairs. A breaker switch clung to the wall.

Gregory took a left into a compact, round area packed with arcade cabinets, most of which flickered but some glowed strong. A spiral staircase with a landing holding more arcade cabinets and a dead S.T.A.F.F. bot led up to a second floor. A bridge spanned the two sides of the second floor. Beeps and whirrs of music from above and the arcade cabinets broke the silence he was sure once reigned.

After the spiral staircase, he had to weave through a maze of arcade cabinets, passing small rooms with mic stands and TV screens full of static until the end with an "EMPLOYEES ONLY" door.

The cement hall with plain white lights beyond contrasted the vibrant in-your-face arcade harshly. The first and only door stood on the left. Within, what looked like a repair machine filled most of the middle of the tech-covered room. A vent with a broken-off vent register marked the wall at its base. Gregory hesitated on his way to the security badge holder he spotted on the opposite side of the room. There was no way taking that badge wouldn't activate an alarm of some sort. An alarm would force him to move, and he wouldn't get to see what was in the vent.