Work Text:
A Beckoning Call
A Let the Old Dreams Die Short Story
November 3rd, 2023. An underrated, lesser-known YouTuber named FlashbackArchivist, whose real name is Robert Halberg, was sitting on a park bench, reading the paper, and noticing the headline.
“SPIDERMAN STOPS BANK ROBBERY”
He rolled his eyes. He didn’t like the idea of being a “real-life superhero.” Yet, since 2019, Spider-Man has been making rounds. It’s not even the right costume either; it’s the Black Venom suit.
There were other headlines there as well. Such as…
”COUPLE FOUND MURDERED”
”VAMPIRES AMONG US? OWEN MASON SPOTTED.”
”EX ROCKSTAR COMES OUT OF RETIREMENT!”
As he was reading the paper, his phone began to ring. It was his friend Donovan, who usually recommended him old abandoned places to check out for his YouTube channel.
“Hey, Hey, Rob, how's it going?” Donovan began. Robert rolled his eyes. “Not bad, just reading about Spider-Man in the paper again. What do you got for me?” Donovan laughed. “Oh ho ho, ok, so you’re not going to believe this: I got a lead on another abandoned building for you! Apparently, there’s this old Super Mario’s Pizza Arcade that’s been sitting abandoned for years, just outside of town. It’s gonna be demolished in a week, so I think now is the perfect time, as any, to go check it out! What do you say?”
Robert thought about it. He’s been at abandoned kids' places before, but they've been uninteresting, nothing of substance. It has gotten some views, but nothing too crazy. But THIS? This was an old Fazbear Entertainment location. The company that rebranded with the games, and while it’s working, few people knew the real story. It could be good for him. He had made his decision.
“Alright, I’ll do it,” Robert said. Donovan couldn’t believe his ears. “R-Really? You’ll check out that place?” Robert nodded. “Yeah, sure. Just send me the location and I’ll go there later.” Donovan grinned. “Alright, sweet! Don’t worry, you won’t regret it one bit!”
Later that day, around 4:45PM, Robert drove up to the location and got out. The sign was falling apart. The letters were on the ground, so the sign just said SU ER M RI PIZ A ARC. The Art of Mario, Sonic, Tails, and Yoshi were already faded to hell, the paint peeling off. Boards covered the windows and graffiti lined the walls. The Art of the Super Stars, Mushrooms, Fire Flowers, and others were faded or peeling off. A small broken sign sat near the locked door.
“GOODBYE! SUPER MARIO’S PI A ARCADE WILL BE CLOSING ITS DOORS ON __________, PLEASE JOIN US FOR ONE LAST ____!”
Robert sighed and turned on his camera, facing the front door. “Hey guys, FlashbackArchivist here again. Today, we’re gonna explore this…uh…abandoned kids' place, Super Mario’s Pizza Arcade. I didn’t come here when I was a kid, but I bet some of you did! Heh… Let’s just get this over with.” He walked over to the door, tried it, and it was surprisingly unlocked. “Oh! It’s unlocked! Not what I was expecting. Let’s take a look inside. Hopefully, I won’t get jumped by killer mascots.” As he walked into the building, a Navy Blue 1958 Plymouth Fury drove up behind the fence.
Robert walked through the entrance of the building, finding the broken Pirannah plant statue crashed on the floor. The streamers were on the ground, and the posters were peeling off the walls. “Creepy place. You think there's any animatronics still here? I doubt it…” Robert whispered. He stepped deeper into the building, his footsteps echoing on cracked tile.
When he got to the dining area, the chairs were flipped onto the tables, like the place simply closed for the night. The arcade machines were old and dusty, and the stage curtain had Mario’s face on it, but it was faded. Bits of peeling paint on the wall nearby caught Robert’s attention—beneath Mario’s face, barely visible, was something older. The vague yellow outline of a cartoon giraffe.
He chuckled under his breath. “Did you guys know?” he said to the camera, “This specific location used to be a Toys R Us. They just painted over most of the decals and jammed props into the walls or backrooms. But if you know where to look…” He walked over to a wall near the service counter and knelt beside a false panel. One firm knock with the butt of his flashlight popped it loose. Inside was a small dusty shelf and a box marked: “GOEFFERY GIRAFFE COSTUME”.
“Bingo,” he muttered, tucking the box under his arm. “Gonna take that with me…” He turned and walked towards the stage, opening it. Behind it was… nothing. Absolutely nothing. Not even a speaker. The stage was mostly empty but the background was still there, albeit faded and old.
“Figures. I’m not gonna be spending too much time in here today since I got something to do, but if this video does well, I’ll come back. But let’s check out the backstage. If there’s nothing there, I end the video here.” Robert muttered.
He pushed open the black door, marked EMPLOYEE’S ONLY, and stepped inside. There was an old endoskeleton and some character heads inside, along with a few crates. Old cutouts were on the walls, along with old Toys R Us stuff, but what caught Robert’s attention was something sitting under an old faded white tarp. “Well, what do we got here?”
He adjusted his camera and kneeled down, lifting up the tarp. It was… a Luigi animatronic. But that was impossible. None of the Super Mario locations ever had a Luigi. But here he was, sitting abandoned under a tarp. His eyes seemed missing, and his old green tophat was falling off his head, with the words LK on it.
“Wow, this is an awesome find! I kinda wanna take it home with me, but it's probably too heavy. I’m gonna need to come back here tomorrow or so with better equipment or with a friend.”
Robert left the building. As it was now dark, he positioned his camera toward the moon as he did his outro. “Alright, that’s the end of this video, guys. If you enjoyed it, please give a like, and if this does well enough, I’ll come back and get Luigi. Have a good night.” And with that, he turned the camera off. But before he got into his car, he noticed something.
Someone was standing behind the fence, right next to a car. He couldn’t tell the brand from where he was standing, but it looked old. They were looking at him. “Hey! Can I help you?!” Robert shouted. They didn’t reply and simply went into their car and drove off.
Robert shuddered, but shrugged, getting into his car and driving off, fast.
An hour or so after editing and uploading the video, Robert sat on his couch, reading the comments. Most of them were useless, nothing of substance. A few scams here and there. Some people were talking about how they remembered the location from their childhood.
He checked Reddit to see the comments on his post, as he sent it there too, at r/urbanexploring. But when he was on Reddit, a notification popped up, a message. He clicked it.
“Hi, I saw you’re video on Super Mario’s Pizza Arcade, and I think you’d be great for this. Is there any way to meet up?”
Robert’s brows furrowed. Who was this? And why were they asking to meet up?
“Why? Who are you? Are you another scammer?”
In an instant, they replied.
“I assure you, I am not. I actually live close by to that location. You’re an urban explorer, yes?”
Robert tilted his head. It felt sketchy, but he felt like he should check it out.
“Yes, I am. What is this about?”
The person quickly replied, almost as if typing with inhuman speed.
“Good. I got a job for you.”
“What kind of Job?”
“Don’t worry, it’s what you normally do; it’s just something on a grander scale. Can we meet somewhere, possibly tomorrow?”
“...Yeah, sure. Where and what time?”
“Sparky’s Diner, 11:40 AM. Look for me, I’ll be in a fedora.”
“Fine. You got a deal.”
“Capital. See you tomorrow, explorer.”
And with that, they stopped messaging. Robert sighed. What was he doing? It felt like he was getting into something bad, but it wasn’t every day he did something like that. So, he might as well hear them out.
The following day, Robert made his way to Sparky’s Diner, an old place originally owned by Fazbear Entertainment but purchased by a new company. When he entered, he looked around before spotting a red fedora in the seats.
He walked over and took a seat. The person was reading the paper before he put the paper down and saw Robert. “Ah, FlashbackArchivist, I assume?” Robert nodded. “Yes, and you are?” The man was wearing a mask over his mouth and sunglasses. “Please, call me Mr. Wayne.”
A waiter walked over to the table, an employee named Ness. “Hi, welcome to Sparky’s. May I start you off with some appetizers?” Mr. Wayne shook his head. “No, we’re ok, we’re not eating.”
Ness tilted his head. “Aw that’s no fun. You do realize that lunch is the most important meal of the day.” Robert looked up. “I thought it was breakfast.” Ness chuckled. “Well, some people say that, but it’s just a theory, a food theory , if you will.”
Mr Wayne looked at Ness and squinted his eyes. “You look quite familiar. You look like that Matpat guy I see everywhere.” Ness laughed. “I get that a lot. I tell everyone he’s my twin brother. Well, just call me when you’re ready to eat!”
With that, Ness walked away, and Mr. Wayne sighed. “Thought he was never going to leave.” Robert budded in. “The Job, what is it?” Mr. Wayne smiled from under the mask. “Cutting to the chase, are we? I like that. Have you ever heard of a corporation called Blackstar Directive? ” Robert shook his head. “No, never heard of it. It sounds like SCP.
Mr. Wayne chuckled. “Something like that, anyway. They have an old abandoned facility out somewhere. I want you to check it out.” Robert put his hands up. “Now hold on, I don’t just take requests like this. What’s in it for me?” Mr. Wayne smirked. “I know you aren’t doing too well. YouTube ain’t paying the bills. So how about this? I’ll pay you $200 for everytime you go into that place.”
That caught Robert’s attention. $200 wasn’t much, but every time? He could easily go in five times and make $1000. It was perfect. “...Fine. Where is it?” Mr. Wayne shook his head. “Not so fast. I got a contact I would like you to meet first. He’ll give you more information, then I’ll contact you with the dates, alright?”
Robert thought about it. This sounded hella sketchy, but still, it sounded important. If it was this important, and they were going to him about it, then they needed him for a reason. “Alright, I’m in,” Robert said. Mr. Wayne got up, motioning Robert to get up as well, handing him a card with an address. “Capital. Go see him as soon as you can. I’ll let him know you are coming.” Robert looked down at the address, but it was an address out in the woods.
When he looked back up, Mr. Wayne was gone, almost as if he vanished into thin air. He stepped outside, noticing a car was missing. Impossible. He didn’t hear him leave. He looked at the card again. He might as well give this a go.
He drove up to the house, out in the woods. The place looked abandoned, yet there was music coming from it, and a light was clearly on. A car sat in the driveway as he pulled in next to it. “Creepy place. Oh well, let’s just…get this over with.” Robert whispered.
He walked up to the door and knocked, and instantly, someone wearing a suit opened the door, wearing a tophat. “Oh hello, hello! I assume you’re Robert Halberg, right? Mr. Wayne told me of you’re arrival!” Robert nodded. “Yes, and you are- Wait, how did you-” But he cut him off. “You can call me Winston. I assume you’re here about information on the place you are going to correct? An old Blackstar site? Well, my friend, you have come to the right place!”
Winston stepped aside. “Please, come in. We have much to discuss!” Robert looked around before sighing, walking into the house.
“...What have I gotten myself into…?”
TO BE CONTINUED…