Chapter Text
The alarms blared shrilly as everything plunged into chaos. Red lights bathed the area, but they were dulled by the blood splattered on the walls and floor, and the screams of her colleagues being massacred.
Y/n Preston, one of the high-ranking scientists, was hiding under one of the laboratory tables, pressing her palms against her ears, trying not to hear the slaughter outside the room; but the screams filtered through her fingers, making her heart beat in agony.
Outside, she could hear the experiments running, but not to flee. It wasn't the thundering of feet running toward freedom, nor the joy of the oppressed breaking their chains—it was the sound of flesh being torn apart, the sound of a rebellion.
Suddenly, a violent blow shook the reinforced door of the laboratory.
"HELP! Open the—AAAAAAHHH!" The plea of a colleague was cut short by a scream of terror, which transformed into one of pain until only wet gurgles remained. From under the door, a dense, hot stain of blood began to spread across the white tiled floor, creeping inward with agonizing slowness.
"No... This wasn't supposed to be like this..." she whispered to herself, her eyes fixed on the shadow visible under the door. "This wasn't the deal."
The plan had been clear. She, Y/n, and a group of dissidents had spent months sabotaging the security locks. They were supposed to open the cells, the experiments were supposed to escape in unison toward the upper levels, and in the chaos, justice would finally fall upon Playtime Co. If some guards died trying to stop them, it was a price they were willing to pay. But this... this was indiscriminate carnage.
From her hiding spot, Y/n saw the shadow of a pair of legs in the company uniform being dragged violently out of the view provided by the small slit under the door. Then, she heard a dry crunch of bones breaking, followed by a sound of suction and chewing that turned her stomach.
They weren't fleeing; they were hunting. Even their own allies, those who had risked everything to free the creatures, had been screaming over the radios, being devoured alive while shouting the names of the monsters they had just released.
This was NOT supposed to be like this!!!
The betrayal burned in her chest more than the fear. They had been used.
THUD. THUD.
The metal began to dent inward. They were trying to get in; she could hear the giggles and see the color of cloth paws through the slit in the door. Y/n snapped out of her stupor, her paralyzing terror replaced by a surge of pure adrenaline.
She turned her head frantically, looking for something to defend herself with or a way to escape. Finally, from the nearest dissection tray, she grabbed a scalpel and squeezed it so hard her knuckles turned white. It was a ridiculous defense against what was outside, but it was the only thing she had; the other instruments would not be easy to handle in this situation.
With movements clumsy from panic, she crawled toward the back wall where a ventilation grate mocked her from the bottom. She used the tip of the scalpel to force the screws, then used her fingers. The door continued to be struck with threatening force, and Y/n hurried, unbothered by her nails breaking in the process. Finally, the grate screeched and gave way.
Y/n slid into the metal tunnel just as the bolts of the main door gave way with a metallic screech. Y/n turned around frantically and, with trembling hands, fitted the grate back into place from the inside.
She remained motionless, pressed against the cold metal, not daring to breathe. Through the slots in the grate, she saw elongated, deformed shadows enter the lab. They were silhouettes she knew well, beings she had once looked upon with pity, but who were now living nightmares.
Y/n hurried to move away as silently as she could. She had to get out of there.
"Come out, come out... Don't hide!" the voice of one of the toys echoed alongside the crash of a stretcher being thrown violently against a wall. "The Hour of Joy has begun! And everyone must participate."
To be continued...