Chapter Text
Pressure au context
How the crew (minus bendy) got the mission
because we never established HOW they actually got to working as expendables
The escape occurred at the same time Sebastian attempted his escape. With him freeing all the experiments and prisoners from their cells, the Cupbros and B-bros could try to leave the facility while the guards tried to stop the others. Cuphead and Boris went ahead to handle the guards their way, and Mugman and Bendy stayed close to keep each other safe from behind. Unfortunately, in one of the rooms a turret was activated to stop experiments, and aimed for Mugman. Bendy, however, pushed him away and took the hit instead, getting fatally shot in the process.
Mugman tried to save him by replacing Bendy's jacket with his own to stifle the bleeding, but while he was doing that, Cuphead and Boris also faltered and ran back to Bendy, giving the guards the chance to capture all three of them. Mugman was only able to wear Bendy's jacket and leave his own over Bendy's injuries before he was dragged away to leave Bendy to 'die.' They were the only ones that were caught and secured in new cells from the escape. Mugman was quiet and hostile to anyone who approached him as he processed the death.
After some time, Oswald arrived with a deal to the three- in the facility, there was a crystal that was greatly important to Oswald (works like the map and can lead them to more dimensions for their research maybe, check in with stick for this), and he wanted it back. These three in their short time explored the facility, and could handle the monsters on the loose, so if they got him the crystal, he would give them the freedom to leave as they wanted.
Mugman immediately disagrees, not trusting a word that Oswald tries to say after everything. Being tortured, experimented on, losing his humanity to being just an experiment for them to use, and now losing one of the few people he cared about in the facility was too much. He knew that Oswald would be bluffing- no one gives such a great offer for something like that. Especially with the knowledge they had about this place, it would ruin them.
But Cuphead, desperate to leave after being stuck down in a place for so long he couldn't tell how much time passed, whether or not Elder Kettle was alive anymore, if he would ever get to be with Mugman for one day that wasn't in a cell or test tube, agreed. He didn't care if he died afterward, dying wasn't new to either of them. He just wanted to have some hope, even if it was false, that he could leave. Sure he'd no longer get to live the same, he might suffer in the future, but for now, he just wanted to try and leave with what was left of their group.
This leads them to becoming expendables for the mission- injected with the guardian's blood to ensure they always come back and finish their mission no matter what. Mugman and Cuphead would argue and fight about this decision, since it was something Mugman was heavily again. But after a while, he eventually succumbed to the situation, choosing to look for Bendy's corpse while he searched for the crystal in the hopes he could try to give him a proper burial in this place. In this time he grows a hallucination to accompany his journey known as "Lover" to torment his mind the further he explores the facility.
What Bendys been up to
Due to how time works and not being able to tell how much has passed (saying its like a month or so give or take unlike canon pressure with the 2 days) and mixed with the whole dying and coming back- bendy wouldnt be able to tell how long its been
It feels like its been a month in hell when in reality it would just be like a week
Over time his demeanor changes to dismissing to anything happening to him (like getting shot at) making the excuse that “I’m fine.”
Hes doing what it takes to be able to survive and is getting used to how life works down there
Hes seen many extendibles die— by others or by him
He wants to survive
He has to survive
He was somehow even a new chance— even if its in hell— to live and hes not giving it up easily
What "lover" is
“Lover” is like the hallucination version of Bendy, the combination of how Mugman wants to remember bendy (being a happy and carefree) and his— dead body. He works similarly to how "brother" works in motm. Mocking Mugman and trying to get him to finish the mission.
Origins
Pebble: made in the lab (robot)
Shelly: found something she shouldnt have, had to get silenced
Mugman: manslaughter
Cuphead: manslaughter + possession of drugs (lmao)
Bendy: framed for fraud
Boris: framed as an accomplice to fraud
What Species they got mixed with
Bendy: Mimic Octopus + Blot
Boris: Dogfish + Basking Shark + Otter
Cuphead: Flying Spaghetti Monster + Electric Eel
Mugman: Blue Dragon Slug + Moray Eel
Shelly: Giant Squid + Horseshoe Crab + Her Twisted form
Pebble: Manta Ray Robot
Blot Context/Origin
Bugs and mickey make blot (not originally called blot at the time) to make a cure to ortensia-- but this ends up making her worse so they make the drip. But that doesnt work and she dies
Mickey leaves the project and works on other stuff while bugs continues to work on the project
Many failures happen and Bendy is the most recent test subject
Bendy is considered a failure bc all it did was make him more inky
Bendy is about to be terminated but then the "escape" happens
he dies and gets brought back with the blot gets activated in his system and now has a fucked up eye & the "Ink Demon" mode basically