Child of the darkness

by lozzielou

Summary:

What if, a Younger Audrey was sent to the cartoon world by the Ink Machine? In this story, Audrey, a Ten-year-old little girl living in an Orphanage in 1970s new york is tricked into helping her school's creepy Janitor Wilson turn on a strange machine that resides in the school's basement, from there, her life takes an eventful turn.

Chapter 1

She stared at the clock on the classroom wall, counting the minutes until 3 pm hit, with only ten more minutes to spare. Audrey, a Ten-year-old child who was currently a resident at the city Orphanage sat in a daydream as she waited for the clock to hit three, the young girl had not remembered much about her past, she could not remember her parents or what had become of them, as far as she was aware, her parents had passed away sometime when she was really young and that she had spent most of her life in the Orphanage and to be fair, it wasn't a bad place, Mrs. Lowell, the woman who ran the Orphanage was rather strict, but she did still care for the children that resided there.

Before long, the clock finally struck three pm, and the school bell rang. Audrey gathered up her things from her desk, including a doodling of a little cartoon Devil named Bendy which was quite an impressive drawing for a child of Ten. Drawing pictures was probably one of Audrey's favorite hobbies and she'd hoped to be an artist when she grew up. After gathering up her things, Audrey took hold of her backpack before exiting the classroom, where she was greeted by the site of many students being greeted by their parents, this made the young girl feel a little sad, being the little Orphan girl who grew up without any parents. With a sigh, the child began making her way to the school exit, when she suddenly felt a hand clamp on her shoulder.

"Audrey." The little girl turned around to find the school Janitor, Wilson standing behind her and she immediately let out a nervous gulp. She had seen him skulking around many times before, and oh boy did he give her the creeps, he was a slightly old man who spoke in a raspy voice and one of his eyes was white with what appeared to e a scar running across it.

"M..Mr. Wilson, you scared me" Audrey stammered, finally summoning up the courage to speak "don't sneak up like that."

"I'm sorry my dear" Wilson rasped, ignoring the child's nervousness "I didn't mean to frighten you, I was just wondering if you would come and help old Wilson with something."

Now under any circumstances, Audrey would have been happy to help anyone when they needed it, but there was something that seemed a little...off with the creepy school janitor and she had to think of an excuse to decline his request.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Wilson, but I can't, I need to get back" the girl nervously implied "otherwise, Mrs. Lowell, the orphanage mistress will be wondering where I am." Audrey then went to leave, only for Wilson to grab her slightly roughly by the wrist, insisting that it won't take long and before she knew it, he was leading her down into the school's basement which held a strange machine and in front of it, was what appeared to be six pedestals.

"What is that thing?" Audrey questioned, pointing at the strange machine "and what is it doing in the school basement?"

"Why this old thing" Wilson replied "why this, young Audrey is an Ink machine, it was donated to the school by an old animation studio that closed down long ago, it supplies the school with ink, but it needs to be switched on, and by doing so, an item must be placed on these six pedestals" he paused, before leering at the child in a rather, sinister manner " Audrey, sweet, little Audrey, do an old man a favor and go find them will you, the images for what you need are on the pedestals themselves."

Feeling like she didn't have much of a choice, Audrey timidly nodded before collecting the things that were needed to start up the Ink machine, although she couldn't understand why, it was a rather unusual method to be turning on something when most things required a switch of some sort. Luckily, the basement was pretty small and the items, which consisted of a Bendy doll, a cog wheel, a jar of Ink, a spanner, a music record, and a book titled "the illusion of living" were pretty easy to find, and once she had found them all, she placed them all on the designated pedestals.

"I found them all" she timidly stated as a sinister smile crept up on the old Janitor's face and the little girl was beginning to get a bad feeling.

"Good girl Audrey, now, there's only one thing left to do, pull that switch." The old man pointed to a switch at the back of the room near the door and being a child that usually did as she was told, Audrey went over to the switch and pulled it, causing the room to fall into darkness as Wilson appeared at the side of her, and to her horror, Audrey realized that he was locking the door.

"It is done" he said in a sinister manner as the Ink machine began to fill the room with Ink which was rapidly creeping up to Audrey's knees, staining her white tights.

"M...Mr. Wilson, what's happening?" the child asked, her voice filled with fear, what was going on, why had he locked them in? So many questions were racing through the child's head.

"Oh Audrey, the things you've set in motion" Wilson looked back at the machine as it filled the room with its Ink before turning to face the terrified Ten-year-old girl who was now on the verge of tears, asking what was going on "the Ink is calling us my dear, can't you hear it?"

"What I don't understand" The child sobbed as Wilson slowly approached her "Please, let me go, I want to go, please." However, she now knew that wasn't going to happen as Wilson grabbed hold of her arms, pinning them to her sides.

"Don't be scared Audrey" he jeered as the child struggled in his grasp "don't fret, we're going home, now, pay attention to these last words, because very soon, you will forget everything."

"Let me go" the little girl whimpered, too scared to call out, why was this happening, why was he doing this to her, she was just a little girl, she had never done anything to anybody, she didn't deserve this.

"I'm sorry, but I cannot do that my dear" Wilson replied as the girl continued to struggle in his grasp "now listen very carefully to what I am about to tell you, come find me, Audrey, come find me and I'll show you your purpose, I'll show you, the truth."

Audrey sobbed as his grip became tighter on her, the ink was well past her waste at this point and if she didn't get out of there soon, she could end up under it, she still struggled, attempting to break out of Wilson's grasp, but he had a firm grip on her.

"T..this can't be real, this can't be happening" the child sobbed as a sinister smile crept up on the old janitor's face and the little girl got a very bad feeling that something was about to happen.

"And now, we...die" Audrey's eyes widened with fear when he said that, and before she could grasp what was happening, Wilson went under the Ink, dragging the child along with him as her world turned to Inky darkness.

Chapter 2: chapter 2

Aching, was how Audrey felt as she slowly regained consciousness and many thoughts were running through the child's head, was she dead, was she still alive, she didn't know what was happening, the last thing she remembered was being locked in the school basement with the creepy school janitor whilst the room flooded with Ink, and him pulling her under.

As her vision slowly became focused, the child found herself staring at what appeared to be a sepia-tone ceiling. With a groan, she slowly pulled herself up into a sitting position and discovered that she was no longer in the school basement, in fact, it looked as if she wasn't even in the real world anymore, but more like a cartoon one where the walls, floors, and ceiling where of sepia color. The little girl also noticed that there was a message written on the wall which read WELCOME HOME in black ink.

"W...what...what's happening, where am I?" Audrey asked herself in a panicked tone, slowly pulling herself off the floor "what is this place?."

The girl was met by nothing but silence, save for the sound of what sounded like a woman crying but apart from that, nothing, and Audrey couldn't get her head around what was going on, or why any of this was happening. Why did Wilson do this, she was just a little girl, only Ten-years-old and she never did anything bad to anyone, none of this made any sense to the child at all.

"Okay Audrey, you can't hang around here all day," she said to herself "you need to find a way to get out of this place." The girl looked around to see if there was any way to get out of the area she was currently stuck in and as she looked around, she noticed that there were multiple posters scattered on the walls of none other than Wilson, his sinister grin leering back at her, almost like he was mocking her. Also, there was a message on the posters which read the following

RELAX

WILSON KNOWS YOUR PURPOSE

THE MAN WHO KILLED THE INK DEMON

"What is your plan, Mr. Wilson?" Audrey muttered, "why did you bring me to whatever this place is, oh what am I even doing, talking to a dumb poster, I need to find a way out." With a sigh, the girl turned around and climbed up a nearby ladder which led her into what appeared to be some corridor "well, looks like this is the only way to go, just hope it leads to the exit."

Not wanting to and around for much longer, Audrey began making her way down the corridor and so many thoughts were racing through her head. What exactly what this place, judging by the Bendy posters and cut-outs scattered around, she guessed that this must have been the place where the Bendy cartoons were created, only, it appeared more cartoon-like. As the girl continued heading forward, her train of thought was soon interrupted by an all too familiar voice.

"Attention, children of the machine, this is Wilson."

"Mr. Wilson?" Audrey quietly asked, was he here too?

"Your friend, your protector" Wilson continued "for two hundred and eleven days, you've lived without the Ink Demon haunting your steps" Audrey couldn't help but shudder at the mention of the word "Demon" but continued to press on as Wilson continued to speak.

"I banished him away, so in return, I ask, just a little favour, among you is a stranger, a little girl" Audrey gulped in fear, knowing that he was talking about her "bring her to me, but bring her to me, alive."

With that, the area fell silent once again and the child continued to press on, but she couldn't help but think of what or who this so-called "Ink Demon" was, the thought of such a being made the little girl feel more scared than she already was, what if Wilson was lying about banishing them away as a ruse to get who or whatever resided in this strange world to capture her and bring her to him. Audrey proceeded to make her way through the corridor, ducking underneath half-opened gates and pretty soon, the strong smell of ink hit her nose. The stuff was streaming along the ground, like some kind of Ink River, however, despite the strong smell of Ink burning her nose, Audrey continued onward.

After what felt like an eternity of walking, Audrey soon found herself at a wall that seemed to have some kind of steps to climb up on, but there was also something else which caught the Little girl's attention, a tape player which was sitting on a nearby desk which looked as if it had seen better days, and feeling slightly curious, Audrey walked over to the tape recorder to listen to the recording.

"I just received the call. Joey Drew is dead" a voice that was familiar to Audrey spoke, it was that of Nathan Archer who owned the animation studio in the city "Arch gate pictures. The Orphanage than Audrey resided in had gone on a trip there a couple of months ago and it was there where the child got her inspiration to become an artist when she grew up.

"What a quiet end to an extraordinary life" the recording continued "Last I heard he was staying in some cramped apartment downtown. You could practically hear the rats through the telephone when he called me last April. In spite of that, old Joey sounded quite happy when last we spoke. More like the excited, hopeful young man I knew once upon a time. Ah, well, farewell my friend. What will become of your creations now?"

With that, the audio recording finished and Audrey continued heading forward, climbing up the nearby wall, and finding herself in yet another corridor.

"Oh Jee whiz, how many more corridors?" the child muttered with a hint of annoyance" oh well, it's no good standing around here all day, need to figure out a way to get out of this strange place."

After dusting off her skirt, Audrey continued to walk down the second corridor which wasn't as long as the first one, but every small sound made the girl look behind her shoulder a few times, half expecting something to jump out and snatch her away.

"Come on don't be dumb" she said to herself " there's nothing there." Despite the huge feeling of dread, Audrey continued forward until she reached a large room labelled HEAVENLY TOYS and the first thing she noticed was how run the place looked, there was what looked to be a giant ink fountain that had what appeared to be weeds growing out of it, there were fences that looked warn and rotten.

"Wow, this place looks like it's seen better days" the Ten-year-old said to herself before heading forwards, but just as she got half way towards the stair case at the end of the room, something jumped out which caused the child to stumble backwards and land on the floor. The creature appeared to be some kind of malformed cartoon character with one eye, a gaping mouth and one of it's legs appeared to be a plunger of some sorts. It cried out in what sounded like gibberish as it swung the wrench it was holding at Audrey who was now backing away, screaming and trying to fend it off.

"GET AWAY FROM ME" she cried out as the creature continue to swing it's wrench in the attempt to hit the girl who had curled up into a ball, hands over her head as she braced herself for the impact. However, it didn't come and the child heard what sounded like a woman humming, followed by the creature slinking off in the opposite direction. Audrey remained curled up in a ball, listening as what sounded like footsteps approaching her and she could hear them getting closer and closer.

"Please" the little girl whimpered as the footsteps finally came to a stop "don't hurt me."

"It's okay" a woman's voice spoke in a soft, friendly tone "I'm not going to hurt you, you don't have to be scared."

Knowing that she couldn't stay in this position forever, Audrey slowly pulled herself up from the ground to find herself face to face with what appeared to be some kind of cartoon woman, she had what appeared to be horns on her head, along with some kind of headband which resembled a halo, she also wore a brown dress that had what appeared to be ink stains covering it and she also carried what appeared to be some kind of rope and a sword.

Still feeling a little nervous of this stranger, Audrey slowly backed away, wrapping her arms around herself as the woman gave her a kind smile and crouched down to her level so that she wouldn't look intimidating to this tiny ten-year-old.

"It's okay, I'm not going to hurt you" she reassured the little girl " you look a little lost. The woman reached out to the child who proceeded to back away further, not knowing if she should trust them.

"Don't touch me" Audrey barked, her voice shaking " who are you, what is this horrible place?"

"Yeah, I remember my first day down here" the woman replied as Audrey kept her distance "I know, it's scary, but, you're actually pretty lucky, the machine could have turned you into a searcher."

"Was that the thing that attacked me?" Audrey asked, remembering her encounter with the strange creature moments before this strange woman showed up "was that a searcher." The woman shook her head and explained that it was a creature known as a Piper which was part of a gang and that she needed to be careful with them.

"Now listen, it's not a good idea to stay in one place for too long around here" the woman told the girl "head for the upper levels, it's safer up there, oh, by the way, I didn't catch your name."

"A-Audrey" the girl replied "I, don't know my last name, I'm kind of, an Orphan and I never knew my birth parents."

The woman gave Audrey a sympathetic look, she couldn't believe that this young child had been pulled into this world and wondered if she would be able to handle it, after all, the studio isn't exactly the ideal place for a child, but she knew she had to warn her of the dangers that lurked within so that she was prepared.

"Also, take note that searchers don't have legs and they tend to swarm" she explained as Audrey continued to watch her, slowly beginning to trust her "keep moving and stay close to the shadows, oh and above everything else, stay away from the Ink Demon."

The Ink Demon. Audrey had heard them mentioned by Wilson when she first arrived in this strange world and feeling curious yet fearful at the same time, the little girl asked what the Ink Demon was.

"Oh, you'll know him when you see him" The stranger warned as the child wrapped her arms tighter around herself "he likes to smile, and" she was about to mention that he kills anything that moves, but she didn't want to scare the girl anymore than she already was "well, whatever you do, don't let him catch you."

Audrey nodded, understanding what the woman had told her before asking what her name was.

"They call me Alice" she said with a sigh "I'm not very fond of it to be honest, and what did you say your name was, Audrey was it?" the girl nodded, slowly making her way towards Alice as she began to trust her "well Audrey, welcome, to the studio."

Chapter 3: Chapter 3

Now knowing that Alice meant no harm to her, Audrey edged a little close, slowly beginning to trust her and wondered if maybe this place wasn't so bad after all, maybe there were some good people here that could help her find a way out.

"Tell me Audrey, how old are you?" Alice inquired, noticing how young the child was and thinking that maybe it wouldn't be safe for her to be walking around alone, after all, the studio wasn't exactly an ideal place for a young child like Audrey to be wandering alone in.

"I'm Ten" the girl replied "so, what happens now, can I come with you to the upper levels, please?"

As much as she wanted to accompany the child, Alice couldn't help but think about her sidekick and the current trust issues they currently had with strangers, and this put her in a very difficult position.

"Oh I wish I could, but I have a wolf and well, he doesn't care very much for strangers" Audrey gave a small nod, looking down at her feet "hey I'll tell you what, take this" she handed the girl what appeared to be a walkie talkie device " that way we can keep in contact with each other, oh and if you find yourself in some difficultly, then ask one of the lost ones, they'll be able to help you out."

"The lost ones?" Audrey questioned, raising her eyebrows "who are they?" Alice explained to the child that they were the inky inhabitants that roamed the halls of the studio, how they were once people who had become inky beings whilst being trapped in this world.

"Hey, don't look so worried" the woman reassured when she noticed the worried look on Audrey's face "they're pretty friendly as long as you don't provoke them. So, will you be ok from here on out?" the little girl nodded "alright, and remember, if you ever get in trouble, then ask one of the lost ones, they won't hurt you as long as you show them that you're not a threat or just contact me on the walkie talkie, and remember what I said, about the Ink Demon, if you see him, then you find a place to hide as quick as you can."

Now trusting Alice, the child threw her arms around her waist before letting go as the the toon woman put her hand on the girl's shoulder before departing, leaving little Audrey alone once again, but knowing that she had to be brave, she proceeded to make her way out of heavenly toys and into the next area, but every single small sound made the girl look over her shoulder constantly, half expecting this so called "Ink Demon" to jump out at her, but she did remember Wilson mentioning something about "banishing" the Ink Demon away, what if that was all lies, what if they were still out, what if they knew she was there and was watching her.

As the little girl made her way to the next area, she came across a mirror and what she saw in the reflection almost made her stumble. Her clothes where stained with Ink, there was some Ink o the side of her face and her left arm was completely covered in the stuff whilst her right arm was only partially covered, but the one thing that the girl couldn't help but notice was that her eyes now had a yellowish gold glow to them.

"W..what's happened to me" she whimpered. It appeared that being transported into this strange world had transformed her somehow and this scared the young girl, she didn't know what was happening to her, could she be slowly turning into an Inky Inhabitant like Alice. Audrey placed her small hand on the mirror and let out a sigh before proceeding into the next area labelled ANIMATION ALLEY.

As the child entered into this new area, the walkie talkie that Alice had given her began to crackle and the woman's voice was just barely audible.

"Audrey, can you hear me, come in, Audrey."

"Alice" the little girl replied, speaking into the walkie talkie "I can hear you."

"Alright, can you tell me where you are right now" Alice spoke and Audrey said that she was in an area called Animation Alley "Okay good, you're on the right path, now see if you can find a way out."

"Ok" the child replied as she looked for an entrance, but when she finally found it, the girl realized that it was bolted shut and she didn't have anything to bust it down "Umm Alice, I found the entrance but it's locked, I need to" the girl was cut off as something jumped down at her from the ceiling, causing her to cry out.

"Audrey" Alice spoke, her voice filled with panic "Audrey, what's happening," Audrey screamed and swatted her hands at the Spider-like creature as it clawed at her, hissing and uttering all kinds of gibberish.

As the little girl attempted to fend off the spider creature, someone came barging into the area and Audrey noticed that they were humanoid but covered in Ink and they had seemed to scare the spider creature off as it jumped back up into the ceiling. Audrey however, hid behind some barrels, not knowing if this newcomer was hostile or friendly.

"WHO'S IN HERE, I HEARD A NOISE" the inked person yelled, brandishing what appeared to be a wooden plank "IF I FIND OUT WHO'S IN HERE, I'M GONNA MAKE THEM REGRET TRESPASSING IN HERE."

Audrey put her hand over her mouth to quiet her breathing as the Ink person stalked around, she didn't know what they would do if they found her, and judging by the plank of wood they were holding, she assumed that it wouldn't be good.

"Please don't find me, please don't find me" the little girl whimpered, squeezing her eyes shut as the sound of their squelching, Inky footsteps drew nearer and nearer to her hiding spot until they suddenly stopped.

Audrey sat with her eyes squeezed shut for a few more minutes until slowly opening them, but she could sense that something was standing near her and with a terrified whimper, the child slowly turned her head to find the Ink person standing there, looking down at her, they had found her.

Chapter 4: Chapter 4

Once she realized that she had been found, Audrey immediately gasped and began to crawl away as the Ink person looked at her in confusion before slowly making their way towards her.

"No please, don't hurt me, I..I'm just a kid, I'm not here to cause any trouble, please" the scared little girl begged, only for the Ink person, or Lost one as Audrey guessed, chuckled and crouched down to her level, causing the child to back up even further.

"Easy now kid, I ain't gonna hurt you" they replied "sorry if I scared you, it's just that well, we folks down here get a little, let's say, suspicious of strangers but you're just a kid, so you're clearly no threat to us, but can I ask this?" Audrey nodded, still a little weary "what on earth is a sweet little girl like yourself doing down here, this place isn't safe, especially for a child."

After the Lost one finished talking, Audrey explained how she wasn't here by choice and that she had been sent here more or less against her will and right now, she was trying to find her way out.

"I just wanna go home" the child said, slowly beginning to trust the Lost one, now knowing that they didn't intend to hurt her "I don't want to be a bother, I just want to find my way out of this place."

"Well, this place can be quiet dangerous, especially to a child, so you'll need some kind of defence" the Lost one stated "now there should be a gent pipe nearby, I think that will do, we just need to find one."

As the pair looked around for a gent pipe, Audrey asked if all the Lost ones were friendly and they explained that most of them were friendly as long as no one showed any sign of aggression to them before explaining that there were the odd few who had been driven mad by being trapped in the studio for goodness knows how long, so her having some kind of defence might not be such a bad idea.

"Are they all mad?" the little girl inquired, feeling a little nervous, the thought of her being trapped in a cartoon studio inhabited by Lost Ones made her nervous and since she was only Ten years old and pretty small for her age, what chance did she have if one of these Lost ones did try and attack her.

"Well not all of us" The friendly Lost one replied "but you'll still need some defence because not everyone down here is friendly, oh, by the way, I never got your name."

"My name is Audrey" the girl replied "so, what is your name?"

The friendly lost one introduced themselves as Phil, and how he could not remember his last name since he had been stuck in the place for quite some time. Audrey gave Phil a sympathetic look as the pair of them continued searching for the gent pipe but it was long before the walkie that Audrey had with her began to crackle.

"Audrey, are you okay?" Allison spoke "You've been rather quiet." The little girl assured the toon woman that she was fine and that one of the lost ones were help her find a gent pipe so that she could use it to protect herself.

"Okay but remember what I said, keep heading for the upper levels and remember to stay away from the Ink Demon" Allison instructed "if you see any sign, then you hide immediately."

"Mkay" Audrey replied before shutting off the walkie-talkie, just as Phil the Lost one found the gent pipe, however, where he had found it was not a suit thing for a child to see, it was currently stuck in the chest of a dead lost one that had been pinned to the wall with the words DEMON FOLLOWER painted in black ink just next to it.

"Kid, I found a gent pipe, but I need you to wait here while I go and retrieve it" Phil told her.

"Why?" Audrey asked, her little girl voice sounding a mixture of confused and scared "why can't I come?"

"Because there is something in there that isn't very pleasant for a young child to see, so wait h and I'll be right back."

Little Audrey nodded as Phil headed into the area where the gent pipe was and the girl sat down on a nearby bench. It could have been only a few minutes when the child began to get a tingling sensation in her head, just before her ears started to ring which was then followed by a deep, booming voice.

"Well, what is this that has wandered into my domain, a child so it seems, hmm, this will be most interesting."

Audrey was both scared and confused, she didn't know what was happening and who was speaking to her. She knew it couldn't be old Wilson since this new voice was much deeper, also, the experience had made the little girl feel light headed and it was long before she slumped across the bench and falling into an unconscious state.

Chapter 5: Chapter 5

"kid, wake up." Audrey groaned as she heard a voice and felt someone giving her a small shake at the same time " ah jeez kid what happened to you?"

with her vision slowly coming into view as she began to regain consciousness, Audrey could just make out Phil, the friendly lost one that had gone to fetch her a gent pipe, just moments before she passed out.

"Oh thank goodness you're okay" Phil commented as the little girl slowly sat up with her hand on her head "What on earth happened, I came out here and found you passed out." Audrey shrugged and stated that she had no idea what happened, only that she heard a disembodied voice and how she began to feel light headed soon after and then passed out.

"Is something happening to me?" the child questioned, her tone clearly nervous.

"Well, this place can mess with your head, make you see and hear things that aren't there" Phil explained "that's what it does to you, the Ink."

Audrey gave Phil a confused look, just what exactly was he talking about? However, she soon got her answer when he explained about how the Ink can mess with your head before eventually claiming you.

"What happens when it does claim you?" Audrey inquired and Phil gestured to himself and the child instantly knew what he was talking about "so, you become Ink creatures?"

"Pretty much, although, most of us still have our sanity intact, but there are a few of us that have been driven slightly insane from being trapped in here and they can be quite unpredictable, which reminds me, here" Phil handed Audrey the gent pipe which felt slightly heavy in her tiny hands "this will make for a great defence."

After giving her the gent pipe and wishing her good luck, the walkie talkie began to crackle again as Allison's voice desperately called out to Audrey.

"Audrey, are you okay, what happened?" She asked the child " you went silent for a few minutes."

After Allison had finished speaking, Audrey explained that she had heard a disembodied voice and how she had suddenly felt dizzy before passing out.

"Oh no" Allison replied "this is bad."

"Why?" Audrey asked, judging by the tone of Allison's voice, it wasn't good " miss Allison, what's wrong?"

"He knows you're here" the cartoon woman replied with a sigh "the Ink Demon, he must be trying to get into your head" the colour from Audrey's face drained, surely he couldn't be alive, after all, she did recall old man Wilson stating that he had ended the Ink Demon, but then again, maybe all of that was false. "Listen to me Audrey sweetie" Allison continued, distributing Audrey from her thoughts "you must not let him get inside your head, you understand?"

"Yes" the little girl replied, her voice shaking. If this so called Ink Demon was still alive and roaming around, then Audrey knew that she was in big trouble. After all, she was only Ten years old and the thought of running into this being made her feel terrified, but Allison reassured her that she should be fine if she stayed well away.

After Allison had warned her about the Ink Demon, little Audrey gripped the gent pipe tightly before proceeding into the next area where she found herself in a corridor that was flooded with ink and all if a sudden, the child started to feel nauseous and dizzy.

Whimpering, Audrey leaned against the wall to support herself as the dizziness grew more intense just before she heard what sounded like multiple voices in her head.

"You are one of us now, little one" Audrey grimaced and put her hand to her head, watching as ghost like faces appeared from the ink " the dark puddles sent a gift." As quickly as it had came, the dizzy, nauseous feeling soon went away and after taking some time to process what had just happened, Audrey pulled herself up and continued forward, the little girl not understanding how she had all of a sudden become dizzy and had started hearing voices in her head.

what's happening to me? the child thought as she continued forward why do I keep going dizzy and hearing voices, is this place messing with my head? her train of thought was interrupted when an Ink creature with a ghost like face, similar to the ones she had seen during her dizzy spell, jumped up at the door window in front of her and started to bang on it before slinking away.

"What the hey!" Audrey stated, opening the door to find the Ink creature banging on the wall where there was a message that said the following

YOU DON'T HAVE TO KILL ME

Feeling both confused and curious, Audrey slowly walked over towards the creature when she suddenly began to feel dizzy once again and the chorus of voices yet again began to speak in her head. "Free us young one, free us from this inky nightmare, use your newly found powers and banish us from this inky prison, for you now have the power of the banish."

Audrey squeaked as she felt a strange tingling in sensation in her Ink covered hand and the child looked down to see a golden swirl with a ghost like face appear right before her eyes, and it was right at that moment when she realised why the ink creature was banging on the wall where the message was, it was clearly trying to tell her something.

"Maybe, this new ability of mine, I can perhaps free the people who are trapped here" the girl said to herself "I mean, it wouldn't hurt to try."

Taking a deep breath, Audrey slowly crept up behind the ink creature as it continued to bang on the wall and proceeded to grab them with her ink covered hand as the golden swirl began to glow and the creature began to disintegrate before vanishing from existence. However, the process had made the Ten year old feel dizzy once again and thought that maybe she could rest for a few minutes before continuing onwards.

A few minutes had passed when a high pitched scream awoke Audrey from her short nap before she heard what sounded like an altercation coming from nearby.

"Stop, let me go, I...I..." the first voice sounding almost childlike, they also sounded terrified.

" Subject has entered a restricted area-a-a-a-a-a" a second voice spoke, this one sounding almost mechanical "the subject will be taken to the pit for interrogation-n-n-n-n."

Hearing something approaching, Audrey quickly jumped to her feet and hid in a nearby locker just as whatever she had heard speaking came round the creature and Audrey didn't get a good look at this thing, but from what she saw, it seemed to have a light emitting from where it's face was and it also moved in a slug like manner, also, Audrey couldn't help but notice that this thing was carrying one of the lost ones, only this one was small, clearly a child just like herself and they also appeared to be unconscious.

Audrey waited for the creature to pass by her hiding place before slowly coming out from her hiding place and continued onward, hoping that she wouldn't run into whatever she had just seen again.

Chapter 6: chapter 6

After checking that, whatever that unusual creature that had slithered by, carrying the unconscious child lost one under it's arm was gone, Audrey quietly slipped out from her hiding place and proceeded into the next area where she was greeted by a giant hole in the floor, and across from this huge hole, was another doorway which most likely lead to the elevator.

" Yeesh, that is one leap of faith I most certainly won't make" the child commented as she gazed down into the dark abyss below "guess I'll have to find another way across." Checking that there no more of whatever she had just seen go by whilst she was hiding. Audrey gripped the gent pipe firmly in her hand, ready to defend herself from any threats that maybe lurking and proceeded to head into the next area.

As the child wandered into the next area, she found a few more lists ones walking around and none of them seemed to pay no mind, expect for one female one who instantly ran towards the girl and for some reason, grabbed her in a tight hug.

"HEIDI, YOU CAME BACK!" the female lost one shrieked as she held Audrey in a bear hug and the child immediately began to struggle.

"Let me go, you got the wrong person" Audrey begged as she tried to pull away "my name is Audrey."

After telling them who she was, the female lost one instantly let go of Audrey before walking off, calling out for this Heidi person, and Audrey began to wonder if that was the child lost one she had seen being carried away by that strange, slithering creature. Not wanting to hang around any longer incase anymore, seemingly unhinged lost ones turned up and mistake for one of their missing children, Audrey began making her way down a staircase which lead to a room, and in that room was someone that Audrey was not expecting to run into.

Bendy sat on the rug in the small room, running his little wooden train along it when he suddenly heard a soft voice from nearby.

"Bendy?"

The little Demon looked up from what he was doing and was greeted by something that he didn't expect to see. A little girl, no older than Ten years old stood before him and she looked just as surprised to see him.

"You're real?" the girl asked as she slowly began walking towards him, making Bendy feel a little nervous of this stranger that he picked up his toy train and began to back away slowly " oh my, this is amazing."

Seeing him back away, Audrey could tell that Bendy was a little scared of her and not wanting him to feel that way, the child knelt down and put out her hand to him.

"It's okay, I won't hurt you" the child reassured as the little toon Demon looked at her and he thought for a minute. Surely, this new person whom he had never met before surely couldn't be a threat, after all, she was a child and wasn't much taller than he was. Slowly, he began to move towards the girl as she remained in a crouching position "see, I'm your friend, I won't hurt you."

After hesitating for a few seconds, Bendy finally plucked up the courage to approach the child and took her hand as what seemed to be an offer of friendship. However, the hand that he took was the exact same one that Audrey used for her new found abilities and with the young girl unable to control herself, accidentally gave the little Demon a slight electric shock, causing him to pull away.

"Oh my gosh, I... I'm so sorry, I..." holding his now injured hand, Bendy looked over to Audrey and she noticed that he had what appeared to be tears of Ink streaming down his face "I didn't know that was going to happen, I'm" Bendy ran off before she got a chance to finish "wait, Bendy come back, I'm sorry"

Audrey got to her feet and went after the frightened little toon, but he was already gone, it was like he had simply vanished into thin air. "Oh dang, what's happening to you Audrey?" She said to herself, she was just about close to possibly gaining a new friend and companion in Bendy, only to accidentally scare him off with her new abilities which she yet had no control over.

After the unfortunate incident with Bendy, Audrey knew that she couldn't hang around any longer, what if another one of those weird, mechanical slug like creatures she had seen earlier was lurking around and not to mention the Angel's warning about this so called "Ink Demon" and how he could show up if she hung around in one for too long. The child was just about to head forward when all of a sudden, a lost one came running towards her before grabbing her roughly by the arms, causing the little girl to squeal slightly.

"Where are they?" he asked in a panicked voice, slightly shaking Audrey as he kept a firm grip on her "my pictures, the pictures that I drew, I told them not to steal my pictures but they didn't listen, they stole my pictures and I want them back."

"Okay, take it easy" Audrey replied " if you at least let me go, then I can go and find them." Without saying anything else, the lost one let her go, but not before he started rambling again about his missing pictures, saying how someone had stolen them and despite only being a Ten year old child, Audrey tried her best to reassure the lost one who was now curled up on the floor, sobbing and whimpering about his missing pictures that she would try and find them.

As the lost one continued to weep on the floor, little Audrey made her way into a nearby area to see if she could find their missing pictures and the child immediately got a sense of danger, like something was coming, something bad. Trying not to let it play too much on her mind, the girl began to crawl through an open vent, and with her being rather small, she was easily able to fit in, however, as she exited from the vents, the little girl was not prepared for what was about to happen next.

As she crawled out of the vent, Audrey found another gate that had been locked and using the gent pipe that she was carrying, smashed it open, but as she stepped into the next area, all of the lights suddenly turned off, plunging the area into total darkness and immediately, Audrey began to feel dizzy once again as the same, deep voice from earlier, echoed in the darkness.

"The dark puddles awaken" the disembodied voice growled as Audrey threw her hands over her ears, trying to block it out as the voice let out a deep chuckle, it was almost like whoever was speaking was mocking her response "a child, an innocent soul, the Ink speaks to me, it whispers your secrets."

As quickly as it happened, the lights immediately came back on and Audrey proceeded to make her way into the next area where she saw what appeared to be a shadow cast on the wall just ahead, and that shadow did not look human, it appeared to have a horn shaped head and was crouched over.

"W...who are you, what do you want?" Audrey squeaked, her voice trembling, only to be met with a deep chuckle as the shadow ahead of her moved away, it was almost like whoever was speaking was taunting the child.

Nervously gripping onto the gent pipe, Audrey continued forward, crawling through another open vent as the deep, booming voice spoke once again, echoing throughout the open vent.

"Who are you, tell me your sweet name little one." There was another deep chuckle as the scared little girl crawled out from the vent and continued forward, checking over her shoulder constantly to check that nothing was following her.

"Don't be so paranoid, it's probably nothing" the girl said to herself as she continued forward until she found herself at some kind of doorway which appeared to resemble one of those ones you would get on a submarine and next to it, was some kind of lever and Audrey assumed that it was to open the door with.

"Well, whoever was speaking just now appears to have gone" the little girl said to herself "so I guess I better check behind this doorway, see if those pictures are behind there."

As Audrey gripped hold of the lever and began to pull it, the child heard what sounded like a low growl coming from the right and with her hand still gripped on the lever, she turned her head and saw the one being that she hoped never to encounter, the Ink Demon himself.

Chapter 7: chapter 7

Upon seeing the child, the Ink Demon's grin seemed to grow wider, watching as little Audrey desperately tried to pull on the lever and just as he was about to grab her, the door to the next area swung open and the little girl immediately darted inside, barely escaping the demon's clutches.

"Oh god" the child muttered before taking out the walkie talkie that Allison had given her, watching as the Ink Demon banged against the door as if he was trying to get in.

"H..hello, are you there?" Audrey whimpered, holding the walkie talkie in her trembling hands.

"Audrey, is everything okay?" Allison asked, a hint of concern in her voice and Audrey explained that the Ink Demon had found her "oh no, alright, listen to me Audrey, if you see him, you run and hide immediately, got it?"

"Y..yes" the little girl replied "but I promised one of the lost ones that I'd help them find their drawings that they lost."

"Okay, well you find those drawings and you get straight out of wherever you are and head to the upper levels, it's gonna be okay Audrey, just do as I say and you'll be fine."

After Allison finished talking, Audrey put away the walkie talkie before proceeding to look for the drawings that the lost one had asked her to do, however, as she searched around the room, she could hear the voice of the Ink Demon.

"My ink, swells and boils, it consumes" that quote alone made Audrey shudder, but she carried on searching "I am the Ink Demon, this realm is mine, you, were born from it, you belong to it...Audrey."

Upon hearing her name being spoken by what was possibly the most feared and powerful being in this place, Audrey immediately froze in place, clutching her gent pipe as the Demon continued to taunt her further.

"A scared child, how precious" he mocked "it is rather amusing to me, Audrey."

"H..how do you know my name?" the little girl stammered, only to be met with a gurgling chuckle.

"Oh, I know many things about you, Audrey, child of the darkness" was the Ink Demon's response "you were born from this realm, little one, you belong to it, you belong to the darkness."

Hearing those words made Audrey more nervous than ever, but she knew that she had a task to complete so she chose to ignore the Demon's taunting and continued looking for the drawings that the lost one had asked her to do,however it wasn't as easy as she hoped it would be, not with the Ink Demon now lurking around.

He would show up unexpectedly, lurking around the area ,forcing Audrey to hide and luckily, her being small made it easy for her to hide in places that he would never be able to get to. The child would watch from her hiding spot as he lurked around, hunting for her, taunting her and she could see that he resembled a more twisted version of Bendy and stood at least 8 feet tall, making him a giant in comparison to her tiny, Ten year old form.

"You cannot hide forever" he growled as he prowled around, like a lion hunting it's prey "I will find you."

After what felt like an eternity, the Demon finally retreated and Audrey came out from her hiding spot and proceeded with looking for the drawings which went a little easier now that the Ink Demon had gone, however, Audrey got the feeling that this would not be the last that she would see of them.

After what felt like hours, despite it only being maybe fifteen or twenty minutes, Audrey finally managed to find all of the drawings and making sure that the coast was clear, the girl retreated back to the room where she had met the lost one and known on the door of the room they were in.

"Who is it?" the voice of the lost one on the other side asked.

"It's me" Audrey replied "the little girl you sent to find your drawings, I...I found them." Upon saying that, the door flew open and the lost one came running out before proceeding to grab Audrey in a hug, lifting her off the floor.

"Oh thank you, thank you, I thought that I would never see my drawings again. You're a real life saver."

"You're welcome... I guess" the little girl replied "but, can you please put me down."

The lost one didn't say anything as he set Audrey back down on the ground before running off, clutching his drawings, leaving the child on her own once again.

"Well, guess it's time to continue with finding my way out of this place" she muttered to herself before tightening her grip on the pipe she was carrying before continuing forward, however, as she walked through the hallways, the voice of the Ink Demon continued to taunt her and she couldn't explain it, but every time he spoke, she felt somewhat of a dizzying sensation, almost like he was trying to make her pass out, maybe so that he could perhaps capture her and possibly turn her into an Ink creature.

"The deep abyss, remembers you, Audrey" the Demon gurgled as Audrey continued to push forward, attempting to ignore them "child of the darkness, you cannot escape your fate, little one, you belong to this realm, you were born from it."

"La la la la la" Audrey replied in a child like manner, her hands over her ears "I'm not listening, I can't hear you I..." she was immediately cut off when what looked like some kind of light source began reflecting off the walls just ahead of her, followed by what sounded like mechanical whirring and not wanting to find out who, or what it was, Audrey quickly retreated into a nearby room before closing the door, just as whatever was approaching entered the area that she was in.

Audrey couldn't see who was outside the room she was hiding in, but she could tell that there were two of them as they seemed to be having some kind of discussion, and with her curiosity getting the better of her, stood next to the door and listened in.

"Wils-o-on has informed tha-t-t a chi-l-l-d subject is wander-i-ing in t-his st-u-u-dio" Audrey heard one of them say and she recognised the voice, it was the same voice she heard back in animation alley, meaning that it was the same creature she had seen carrying away that child lost one, and from what she had heard them just say, she realised that they were talking about her "he wa-a-a-nts us to find t-them and c-contain th-em un-til h-he needs th-e-em."

The colour from Audrey's face drained, Wilson must be sending what seemed to be his minions to look for her, now she had two things to avoid, the Ink Demon, and who or whatever was outside the door.

"Should w-e-e hol-d-d them-m-m insi-i-de the pit?" Audrey heard the second one speak in the same, mechanical, glitchy voice "The-e-e-y co-u-uld be dangero-u-u-s."

"We w-i-i-ll find tha-a-at out once we-e-e find the-e-m" she heard the second one say "they mu-u-ust be ar-o-o-und somewh-e-e-re."

After who, or whatever was outside the door retreated, Audrey quietly slipped out of the room and continued forward, but with the little girl now knowing that she was being hunted down, not only by the Ink Demon himself, but also whatever was outside the room she was hiding in, she knew that she had to find a way to the upper levels, and to get out of this place as soon as possible.

Chapter 8: chapter 8

After checking that the coast was clear, Audrey quietly slipped out of the room with she had been hiding in and continued on her path to the upper levels, but now knowing that she was being hunted, not only by The Ink Demon, but also who or whatever was outside the room she'd been hiding in, the child constantly kept looking over her shoulder, expecting to find either of them following her, ready to grab her and who knows what, she didn't want to think about that right now, she was more focused on getting out of this place and finding her way back to the real world.

"You will never escape this place, Audrey" the Ink Demon's voice boomed "you belong here, with me."

"You're wrong" Audrey stated, trying to sound brave yet her voice was shaking "I don't belong here, I belong in the real world, and I will escape." The girl was immediately met with a gurgling chuckle.

"We will soon see, little one."

After everything went quiet again, Audrey gripped the gent pipes he was carrying tighter and continued onwards until she came to another area where she was greeted by a rather unusual sight.

Out of all the things she had witnessed during her time in the studio, this was quite possibly the first and maybe only funny thing she had ever seen because, right there in front of her was what appeared to be a lost one stuck in a pipe and the little girl noticed that they seemed to be wearing a pair of goggles on their head and they also had what appeared to be rope slung over their shoulders.

Audrey couldn't help but giggle a little at the scene in front of her and that caught the attention of the lost one who instantly stopped struggling and looked over in her direction.

"Oh, hello there" they said as they saw the child standing in front of them "are you looking for the way out?"

"Yeah" Audrey replied as she tried not to laugh "are you, stuck in there?"

"Well, yes" the eccentric lost one replied, a hint of disappointment in his voice "so I'm afraid that means that, you're stuck too."

"Oh dear" Audrey replied as she regained herself and stopped herself from giggling any further "can't you move at all?"

"No, not an inch" the lost one replied before getting an idea "hey, could you perhaps get me unstuck?"

"Okay, I'll see what I can do" Audrey replied as she walked over to the stuck lost one and used her glowing hand to loosen the Ink that was clearly making them stuck and they went sliding down the pipe, letting out a "weeeeeeeeeeeee" as they plummeted which was shortly followed by "come on down here kid."

Audrey peered into the pipe and saw that it appeared to be a long way down, but with everything she had been subjected to so far, it maybe wouldn't hurt to have just a little one. So, the child slowly climbed onto the pipe and then proceeded to jump down it, landing right in front of the lost one who had been waiting for her.

"Thank you very much for your help" he stated as Audrey pulled herself to her feet, dusting off her skirt "the name's Porter by the way, and who might you be?"

"Audrey sir" the child replied in her soft, little girl voice.

"Audrey, hmm? Audrey" was Porter's response as he stood, thinking for a moment before quickly shaking his head "nope, don't like it, that name doesn't suit a nice little girl like you, I think, I'll call you, Bobby."

"W..what?" Audrey replied, half shocked, half giggling as Porter crouched down to her level, taking hold of her glowing hand "hey, what are you doing?"

"Oh, I just want to give you a little something to say thank you for rescuing me" he replied before placing his hand over Audrey's and the little girl felt a strange tingling sensation as a yellowish glow emitted from between their two hands "there it's passed on."

"What has?" Audrey replied, clearly confused by what had just happened and porter explained that he had given her the power of flow and that now, she had the ability to access high and unreachable places.

"Now, you can move like me" he said with a giggle before composing himself "so, tell me Bobby" Audrey frowned at the name he had given her "where exactly are you heading?"

"Well, I'm looking for the elevator" the child replied "I was told to go to the upper levels, since, it's safer up there."

"Ah I see, well, today is your lucky day young Bobby" Porter exclaimed as Audrey raised her eyebrow "because I just so happen to know where the elevators are that will take you to the upper levels and if you'd like, I can take you to them."

Knowing that if she allowed Porter to show her to the elevators, then Audrey knew that she would at least have some company with her and maybe she'd feel a little more safer with a grown up around, even if he was a little eccentric and without hesitation, the girl accepted his offer.

"Great, well then Bobby, let us head to the elevators so you can get out of this cursed place" he replied "but first, let's try out that new flow ability of yours."

Taking Audrey's hand, Porter brought her over to the a giant hole in the ground, explaining to her that they were going to use her new ability to get across and that made the little girl feel rather nervous and the size of the hole in the floor didn't help either, what if she didn't make it all the way across and fell down to where ever that hole leads.

"I..I don't know if I can do this" she stammered "what if I don't make it all the way across."

"Oh ho ho ho, that's not likely to happen" Porter chuckled "not with your flow ability, trust me you will make it across, alright, now , watch me."

Letting go of Audrey's hand, Porter stood at the edge of the hole and for a split second, Audrey thought that he was going to fall in, watching as he put out his hand, and to her surprise, he leaped off the edge before teleporting over the other side so fast that if you were to blink, then you might have missed it.

"See, it's easy" he called over "Ok Bobby, you're turn, I believe in you kiddo."

Swallowing nervously, Audrey slowly made her way over to the edge of the hole before extending her arm out and then proceeded to jump, the child finding herself flying over the hole before reaching the other side.

"Oh Bravo Bobby" Porter cheered, applauding her efforts "see, I told you that you could do it."

"Yeah, it wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be" she replied "but I think we better get out of here, I was told that it wasn't a good idea to hang around in one place for too long." Porter nodded, agreeing with her.

"Well then, young Bobby, I think it's time that we get you to the elevators" he exclaimed and Audrey gave a small nod before heading to the elevators with her newfound companion.

Chapter 9: chapter 9

With her newfound companion, Audrey found herself back in the area she had been in just before she came across the living toon Bendy and the little girl couldn't help but wonder what became of him, the last time she had encountered him, she accidentally ended up giving him an electric shock which had caused him to run off, she just hoped that the Ink Demon or those creatures she had heard when she was hiding in that room hadn't got hold of the small Bendy.

"Over her Bobby" Porter called, snapping Audrey out of her thoughts "I found the way to the elevator" Audrey walked over and found him standing outside a door that had a sign over it saying Elevator, however there was one issue, the door seemed to be blocked off by some kind of security lock.

"Now what are we going to do?" she inquired "we can't get passed that."

With his hand on his chin, Porter stood and thought of a way on just how they could bypass the security lock, until he saw the pipe that Audrey was holding.

"I think I may have just the thing, we can use that pipe thing of yours to bypass the lock" he explained "however, it may need a little tinkering."

Before Audrey could question exactly what his plan was, Porter took her by the hand and led her into what seemed to be a locker room, where she began to hear the Ink Demon's voice once again.

"The deep abyss, remembers you, Audrey, child of the darkness."

She couldn't explain it, but whenever the Ink Demon would speak to her, she would get a dizzy and lightheaded feeling, almost like he was trying to make her fall unconscious or weaken her at least so that it would make it easier for him to possibly take her. Even Porter noticed that something wasn't right with the little girl when he noticed that she was unsteady on her feet, her hand on her head.

"Woah Bobby" he exclaimed, rushing to catch her as she almost fell to the ground "you feeling alright."

"I'm fine" Audrey insisted, not wanting to discuss the real reason behind her dizziness "think I've been overdoing it too much."

Porter didn't know that much about children, after all, it was very rare to see one in the studio, but he could tell that something wasn't right with the little girl, so he suggested that maybe she'd sit down for a little while until she felt better.

"Maybe you could do with some food in you, maybe that'll help you feel a little better" he suggested and Audrey nodded "okie dokie, well, you wait here Bobby and I'll be right back."

As Porter got up to look for some food for Audrey, the child couldn't help but shiver slightly, yet at the same time, she felt warm, feverish almost, but maybe it was because she hadn't slept for hours or days at least, and she couldn't remember the last time she had eaten. Hopefully once she reached the upper levels, she could find maybe a bed or a couch at least and take a well, deserved sleep.

"Okay Bobby, I managed to find some food" Porter had returned and he handed the girl what looked like a pack of peanuts and a couple of candy bars "sorry if it's not much, but the only source of food we have here are the ones from the vending machine and Bacon soup, but that stuff isn't very pleasant."

"It's fine, and thankyou" Audrey replied before opening the peanuts.

"Alright, well eat up and it should make you feel better" Porter told her "then we can get to work on fixing up that pipe of yours so we can bypass the security lock."

After Audrey had finished eating and gotten over her dizzy spell, she and Porter continued their way through the locker room until they came to an area which had what appeared to be some kind of work bench with some kind of strange contraption fixed to it.

"Okay now Bobby, if we're wanting to bypass that security lock, we're going have to do a little upgrade to that pipe of yours, so, would you mind just handing it over and then we can get to work" Porter exclaimed and the girl nodded before handing over her pipe and then proceeded to watch as he began working on upgrading her defence weapon "and here we go, all done" he handed the pipe back to Audrey and she immediately noticed that some slight changes had been made to it "now, we should be able to bypass the security lock and then we get you the safety of the top floors."

After upgrading the pipe, Audrey and Porter made their way back through the locker room, where they were suddenly ambushed by a group of searchers, and despite Audrey's attempt to fight them off with the pipe, more and more spawned, making it nearly impossible for the Ten-year-old girl to fight them off.

"We can't beat them Bobby" Porter called out as the young girl attempted to fight off more searchers as they spawned "there's too many of them, best thing we can do is run" he grabbed her by the waisted, lifting her off the ground before running through the locker room, dodging in and out of more searchers as they spawned. Once they were out of the locker room, he set Audrey back down on the ground who gripped hold of the pipe, clearly shaken by what had just happened.

"T-there was too many of them" she said, her voice shaking.

"Indeed, those wretched creatures have a habit of swarming when attacking their victims, it would have been impossible to fight them off" Porter explained "but anyway, I think it's time to bypass the security lock, then we can head to the elevators."

Once she had calmed a little after the encounter with the swarm of searchers, Audrey and Porter made their way over to the security locked door with the now upgraded pipe that they could use to bypass it.

"Oh, there's one thing I forgot to mention" Porter stated "if you ever need to bypass one of these locks, you'll need to have your pipe fully charged, luckily I gave it a full charge as I was fixing it up, however, once it bypasses the lock, it will need to be charged again, but luckily, there's plenty of charging stations around the studio in case you ever need to bypass another security lock. Okay Bobby, do you want to do the honours?"

Clutching the pipe, Audrey made her way over to the security locked door and proceeded to open up the power box that was attached to the locks before putting in the fully charged pipe, which then caused the power box to short circuit and break the locks.

"Wee hee hee" Porter cheered, gleefully clapping as the young girl broke the security lock "you did it Bobby, now we can proceed with our journey." Audrey gave a small nod and opened the door leading to the elevators, but as it opened, Audrey saw something written on the wall which gave her an uneasy feeling.

THE KEEPERS SEE EVERYTHING

"You don't want to run into them" Porter stated as he appeared at the young girl's side "bad news they are, dangerous, deadly folk. They usually patrol in restricted areas, looking for intruders. But they mainly reside in the old gent building that lies just beyond the sewers."

"What happens if they catch any intruders?" Audrey asked, looking up at the Lost one "what do they do with them?"

"Well, I heard that they take them to a place known as, the pit, and from what I heard, whoever gets taken there, is never seen or heard from again" Porter explained, his tone unnaturally serious "but I wouldn't worry about that too much, as long as we stay out of restricted areas, then we should be fine. But anyway, I think we should proceed young Bobby, it shouldn't be too long before we reach the elevators."

Tucking the pipe into the side of her skirt, Audrey followed Porter up a flight of stairs, where she once again, heard The Ink Demon's voice echoing through her head, causing yet another dizzy spell.

"Your journey will end as you are consumed into my dark kingdom, child" he hissed as the little girl held herself up the wall to steady herself "here, you will find meaning in your pain."

"Woah Bobby, you okay?" Porter asked, noticed that the child was yet again unsteady on her feet "you having another dizzy spell?" Audrey shook her head and insisted that she was ok.

"I think I'm just a little tired" the little girl insisted "maybe I should take a quick nap somewhere once we get to the upper levels." Porter nodded and agreed that it might be a good idea, especially since she was so young and possibly hadn't slept for hours at least.

After Audrey's dizzy spell passed, she and Porter continued their way up the stairs until they reached the next floor and Porter told the child that they were almost to the elevators, however, just as the pair of them were about to enter the corridor leading to the Elevators, a cage door suddenly slammed shut, blocking their way.

"Oh no, now what are we going to do?" Audrey exclaimed "how are we going to get to the Elevators now?" Porter let out a sigh before turning to face the girl, speaking to her yet again in a serious tone.

"Well Bobby" he said, and the little girl could tell it wasn't going to be good due to the seriousness in his tone instead of the usual, cheerful tone he had when he spoke "there is another way to get to the elevators, however, it means that we will have to pass through one of the restricted areas."

Chapter 10: chapter 10

"The...the restricted area?" Audrey asked, her tone sounding worried "but, what if we get caught, I don't want to be taken to that pit place or whatever it's called." Porter chuckled in response and patted the child on her head, assuring her that as long as they're careful, then everything should be fine.

"Okay" the little girl replied, still a little worried "but I still think this is a bad idea."

With the only way to the elevators blocked off, Audrey and Porter had no other option but to head in the opposite direction in order to get to the elevators, and that meant them having to pass through one of the restricted areas. The pair had walked up a few more flights of stairs until they came to an area known as Artist's rest.

The area looked to be some kind of large room with what looked like a smaller room that contained what appeared to be bedding and other kinds of various things. Various lost ones were walking around, a small group of them were sitting in the corner, playing a card game.

"This place doesn't look very restricted to me" Audrey pointed out.

"Yes, you are correct Bobby, however, this place isn't restricted" Porter explained "this is basically a hang out place for us lost one's, also, we need to pass through this area in order to access the restricted area, however, I think it wouldn't be such a bad idea if you took a nap, I mean, you are looking a little peaky there Bobby."

Porter was right, Audrey was looking rather pale, despite the yellowish, cartoon like appearance she had received once arriving in this world, but the child insisted that it was probably nothing and that maybe a nap wouldn't be such a bad idea, after all, she had been in this place for possibly hours now and with her being so young, it would be impossible for her to stay awake any longer.

"I think I will have that nap, I'm getting a little sleepy." The child let out a yawn, so Porter took her over to an area that had what appeared to be beds built into the walls, they also didn't seem to have much room to hold a fully grown adult, but since Audrey was only Ten years old and small, she was able to fit into the small bed area with no issue.

"Alrighty, you good in there Bobby?" Porter asked as she took off her shoes before curling up in a foetal position, clutching a tattered Bendy plush that happened to be on the bed and within minutes, the little girl had drifted off to sleep "oh golly, she must have been exhausted. Well, not surprising if she's been awake for hours at least."

Whilst Audrey slept, Porter stood guard in case any of the insane lost ones saw Audrey and tried to attack her, however, none of them seemed to notice that there was a little girl sleeping on one of the beds that were built into the wall. They were mostly just mingling around, doing various activities, such as playing cards, drinking ink coffee, gambling etc and despite it being pretty noisy, Audrey somehow managed to sleep all the way through until the next morning.

"Ah, good morning Bobby" Porter greeted dramatically as the child sat up, rubbing her eyes "that was some big nap you took."

"Guess I must have needed it" Audrey pointed out "I was awake for hours, also, have you been sitting outside the bed all night?"

"Well, it wouldn't have been a good idea to leave a little girl unattended in a place like this, not while there's some insane lost ones roaming around" Porter explained as Audrey put her shoes back on and climbed off the bed whilst still clutching the tattered bendy plush that she had found on the bed "but anyway, you ready to continue with our journey?" Audrey nodded, tucking the Bendy plush into her skirt next to the gent pipe before she and Porter headed back into the main area to continue with their Journey, but as the pair entered the main area, they saw something that almost made the child let out a squeal.

There, right in the middle of the main area of Artist's rest, was the Ink Demon himself, and he seemed to be feasting on the corpse of a lost one. Sensing that he wasn't alone, the Demon looked over to see both Porter and Audrey stood watching him, however, his attention seemed to be more focused on the little girl and he proceeded to throw the dead lost one to the side before slowly advancing to the pair.

"Audrey" he growled, slowly advancing towards the Lost one and the child, with nowhere for the pair of them to run, until Porter came up with a way that they could escape.

"Okay Bobby, I need you to grab onto my arm and hold on tight" he instructed and Audrey did so without hesitation, not taking her eyes off The Ink Demon as he moved in closer and closer, calling her name.

"Join me, Audrey" he beckoned "Join the dark puddles, little one, you belong to them."

"TALLY HO" Porter screamed before using his flow ability to fly up to the upper levels with Audrey clinging to his harm, just before The Ink Demon got a chance to grab her, and knowing that he had missed his chance to snatch the child, the Demon let out what sounded like a frustrated growl before slinking away.

"You ok Bobby?" Porter asked the child who was clearly shaken by the encounter "that was a close one huh. But anyway, I think we better press on, and we're about to enter a restricted area, and the quicker we get through, the quicker we can get to the elevators."

After recovering from her encounter with The Ink Demon, Audrey gave a small nod and said that she was ready to proceed with the Journey and the two headed down another flight of stairs until they finally came to the restricted area that they had to pass through.

"Is it safe?" Audrey whispered.

"Let me check, wait here Bobby" Porter instructed her before peeking round the corner to check that the coast was clear, and when he saw that it was clear, he signalled to Audrey that it was safe and the child joined with him "Ok Bobby, just a little further and we should reach the elevators."

The restricted area was eerily quiet, and the pair where quite surprised that it wasn't being guarded to stop anyone from entering, but both Porter and Audrey took advantage of this opportunity and hopefully they could get to the elevators without being caught. However, as the two of them made it barely halfway, the sound of tannoy was heard switching on before the voice of Old Wilson began to speak.

"Attention, this is Wilson" he spoke as Audrey froze on the spot whilst Porter looked around nervously "anyone caught in restricted areas, will be taken immediately to the pit, so be a good egg, and follow the rules."

"Do you think he knows we're here?" Audrey asked, a nervous tone in her voice.

"I don't know, but we better keep moving just in case." Audrey nodded, a worried look on her face as she and her lost one companion continued through the restricted area, and whilst Audrey was on edge and constantly looking over her shoulder, Porter seemed almost cheerful, and he was humming which caused the little girl to look at him with a "seriously" expression.

"What?" he stated, noticing the look that Audrey was giving him "I'm just trying to lighten the mood, trying to make you feel less nervous since I couldn't help but notice that" he was suddenly cut off when what sounded like an alarm suddenly went off "uh oh, looks like we've been busted, time to blow this popsicle stand."

Before Audrey could react, Porter scooped her up off the ground and used his flow ability in the directions where the elevators where, he and Audrey both diving in, Porter hitting the button to take them to the upper levels and slamming the doors shut just as what appeared to be search lights entered the area, luckily, they had both made it into the elevator before they were caught.

"Phew, that was a close one wasn't it Bobby?" Porter stated as Audrey nodded, the little girl shaking like a leaf "hey, don't worry kiddo, the sooner we get you the upper levels, the sooner you'll be safer."

The Elevator began making it's way to the upper levels, and it didn't take long for Audrey to notice a dead lost one lying on the elevator floor and Porter guessed that maybe the Ink Demon got to them.

"Don't worry" Porter reassured the child, noticing that she had that worried look on her face "he rarely ever comes up to the upper levels, so you should be fine." Audrey nodded as the Elevator continued to go upwards until all of a sudden, it came to a stop "huh, this isn't supposed to happen."

"Porter, what's happening?" Audrey asked "why has the elevator stopped?"

"I don't know Bobby" Porter replied "just lemme try and fix this, then we can get to the upper levels."

Audrey hugged herself nervously as Porter began figuring out a way to to get the Elevator working so they could get to the upper levels, when suddenly, a staticky, mechanical voice began speaking over the Elevator tannoy, and it was that voice that Audrey had heard a few times before.

"Unauthorized service elevator in use-e-e-e-e. Manual lift ejection, activated-d-d-d-d."

"Uh oh, brace yourself Bobby" Porter practically screamed, grabbing hold of Audrey as the Elevator began to plummet down and the little girl let out a scream, clinging to Porter for dear life "we're going down, weee hee hee heee heeeeeee."

The Elevator continued to plummet downwards until suddenly, it came to a stop and the elevator floor opened, right under Audrey's feet, causing the little girl to fall through it, but luckily, Porter managed to catch her by the back of her shirt.

"I gotcha Bobby, just hang on" Porter assured the girl as he attempted to pull her up, however, his slippery, Ink Fingers where making it impossible for him to keep a grip on the child.

"Don't let me fall" Audrey begged, a strong hint of fear in her voice and he reassured her that he wouldn't let her fall, however, his fingers were far too slippery and within minutes, the girl slipped out of his grasp, her high pitched squeals echoing as she disappeared into the dark abyss below "Oh no, don't worry Bobby, I'll find you, just, try not to die."

She didn't know how far she had fallen, but it almost felt like an eternity before Audrey finally hit the ground, however, as she landed, the little girl also hit her head and darkness soon began to cloud her vision, however, she could just make out a small figure slowly and cautiously approaching her, and despite her blurred vision, the child could just about make out who it was.

"B-bendy" she whispered. The little toon nervously approached the barely conscious young girl and she could just make out that his expression seemed somewhat, concerned.

Bendy, despite being nervous of the child, whom he recognised as the one who had accidentally given him an electric shock, he couldn't help but feel concerned for the current condition she was in at this very moment, but, before he got the chance to get nearer to her, something startled the toon, causing them to back up.

"Bendy...wait...don't...leave, me" Audrey begged as the scared toon ran off into the darkness, and the little girl felt someone, or something lifting her up from the floor before she succumbed to unconsciousness.

*So, who or what could have found Audrey, guess you will all have to find out in the next chapter*

Chapter 11: Chapter 11

Slowly coming back to consciousness, Audrey let out a groan, the child could feel herself lying in what seemed like a bed and the little girl tried to sit up, but her head hurt pretty bad, her body felt weak and her vision was also blurry, but she could just make out what appeared to be a man, crouching beside whatever she was lying on.

"Here now, take it easy" they spoke and Audrey could have sworn that she had heard his voice somewhere before, but she couldn't remember exactly where "you took quite a nasty bump to the head, you need to rest."

Audrey grumpily protested but it was no use, it was clear that she hadn't fully recovered from the fall from the elevator, so the girl had no choice but to fall into a deep slumber, and the last thing that plagued her mind, was what had become of Porter.

It was probably maybe hours or even days until Audrey awoke for a second time, her head wasn't hurting as much, but she still felt pretty weak, however she noticed that she was in some kind of safe house and the girl tried to figure out how she ended up there, the last thing she remembered before passing out was seeing the small Bendy approaching her before he got spooked and ran away just before someone, or something had lifted her up from the ground.

"Ah, I see you're now awake" a man's voice spoke, interrupted the child from her thoughts and she looked up to see a man, a man who seemed rather familiar to the little girl, but she couldn't think of where she had seen him before, he had short darkish brown hair, had a small moustache and he also wore what looked to be some kind of business suit "how are you feeling after that long nap of yours?"

"How long was I sleeping for?" the little girl asked "and where am I?"

"We are in my safe house" the stranger replied, sitting on the edge of the bed that she was laying on "you've been sleeping for almost a day now. Now, I have a question for you, but, do you know who I am?"

Audrey slowly sat up, her body still feeling weak slightly as she tried to figure out who they where. "You do seem familiar, wait, aren't you?"

"Joey Drew, in the flesh" he replied, holding up a lantern so that she could get a better view of his face "well, so the speak. I was the one who found you, just inside the widow chamber, and it's a good thing I did."

"Widows?"

"Mhm, vicious ink spiders, especially the King Widow, that creature has been known to eat folk" Audrey's face went white as a sheet "but you're safe now, so you don't need to worry about all that."

Audrey didn't know what was happening anymore, she couldn't understand why she had been dragged into this world, why she was being hunted, it just didn't make sense to her.

"Mr. Drew" the little girl said timidly.

"Please, call me Joey" he replied.

"Joey, what even is this place?" Audrey asked "this studio, these monsters, am I dreaming?"

"It's a cycle Audrey" Joey replied as the girl gave him a look of confusion, how did he even know her name " and Ink stained nightmare, forever stuck on repeat, well, until almost a year ago at least."

"What do you mean?" the little girl questioned as she slowly pulled herself up into a sitting position, and Joey began to explain to her about how someone from the outside was messing with what was in the cycle and Audrey began to wonder if what Joey was talking about, had something to do with old Wilson, and if so, then why did he drag her into this world, what purpose did she have for her plan?

As Joey continued explaining about the cycle and how it worked, Audrey couldn't help but think about what Wilson needed her for exactly, she did recall him telling whoever had found her to bring her to him alive, so it was clearly obvious that he needed her for something, and something big.

"Ever since the cycle was tampered with, bad things have began to emerge from the puddles" Joey continued "wicked creatures, that never came from my pen, the worst ones call themselves Keepers, dangerous, deadly folk" Audrey could feel her blood run cold, she remembered seeing that warning about these so called Keepers, about how they see everything, and she also began to wonder if it was them that caused the Elevator to plummet and for her to fall from it when the floor opened up "they've taken over the old Gent workshop just beyond the sewers, also, they've been seen patrolling areas in the studio, trying to bring what they call order to this world, freezing the cycle in place. Whatever answers you're looking for, you'll find them there."

Determined to get to the bottom of exactly what was going on, Audrey slowly got out of the bed. However, the little girl hadn't fully recovered from her fall and her legs instantly gave out.

"Hey woah woah, not so fast" Joey stated, catching her before she could fall "you still haven't recovered, you need to rest and besides, I don't think it'll be wise you going to the Gent workshop and running into those Keepers, not in your condition."

Audrey nodded reluctantly as she laid back down on the bed, but the child knew that it wouldn't be a good idea to continue with her journey, not while she was still recovering from her fall.

For the next few days, Audrey spent her time in the safe house with Joey, and during that time, he would go out and bring her food and sometimes would tell her stories about his time working at the studio.

"You know, I've always admired your work Joey" the little girl stated "I've been thinking of becoming an animator and maybe having my own animation studio when I grow up."

"Well, you do seem like a smart little girl" Joey replied as Audrey gave him a shy smile "and I've always believed, that if you really believe in something and put your mind to it, you can do just about anything."

After a few more days had passed by, Audrey was fully recovered and well enough to proceed with her Journey, however, there were so many questions going through her head, especially about the cycle and what was currently going on with it.

"So, where will you go now?" Joey asked.

"I don't know, guess I'll continue trying to find my way out here" the girl replied "besides, I don't even know what I'm doing here."

With a sigh, Joey walked over to the little girl, before crouching down to her level and putting his hand on her shoulder, looking her directly in the eyes with a serious expression.

"You're here for a reason Audrey" he told her in a serious tone "there's always a reason, even when you can't understand it. But I believe that you were brought here to put things right here."

Audrey couldn't get her head around what she had just been told, she was only Ten years old, how could she possibly fix what was currently going on, if someone was needed to fix things, why choose her, of all people, none of it made sense whatsoever to the child.

"But, I don't understand, you're the one who made this world" the young girl exclaimed "why can't you fix it?"

Still crouched at her level, Joey took her hands in his and gave her that same serious expression as before.

"Because I'm not the man, I'm just a memory."

And with that being said, Joey stood up at full height and disappeared right before Audrey's eyes, leaving the little girl alone in the safe house.

"Thank you, Mr. Joey Drew" Audrey whispered "I promise, that I will try my best to put things right here."

After gathering some supplies, Audrey took one last look at the safe house before proceeding to head for the Gent workshop to hopefully get some answers. However, the little girl was unaware of what she was getting herself in for.

Chapter 12: chapter 12

After leaving the safe house, Audrey found herself standing in front of what appeared to be some kind of shrine with the following words written on them.

Joey Drew

1901-1971

Upon reading what was on the shrine, Audrey began to wonder if the Joey Drew she just met was actually their ghost, and if so, then how could they've been physically able to carry her back to the safe house whilst she was Unconscious. However, she didn't have time to dwell on that right now, she needed to head to the Gent workshop and find out exactly what was going on in this place.

"I see your mind as the truth unfolds" The Ink Demon's voice suddenly boomed, snapping the child out of her thoughts "you will accept your fate, before the end." Audrey nervously bit her lip and clenched her small fists.

"Not if I have anything to do with it." She was then met by a deep, gurgling chuckle, it was almost as if the Ink Demon was mocking her attempt at being brave.

"We'll see about that, little one" the Demon chuckled before the area fell silent once again with only the sound of Ink dripping from the ceiling and onto the ground.

Clutching the tattered Bendy plush she had found in Artist's rest and her gent pipe tucked into the side of her skirt, Audrey made her way through a small hallway until she came to an entrance that seemed to lead into what looked like a sewer area, and there, just outside the entrance, was the small, cute Bendy.

"Bendy" the little girl called out as she began to make her way towards the small toon who upon seeing the girl, began to back away nervously "wait, don't go, I didn't mean to" the little toon was now bolting away and Audrey was about to give chase, when suddenly, she was stopped in her tracks by a group of Lost Ones who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere, and the first thing that she noticed was that they seemed to have spikes coming out of their heads.

"Well, look what we have here" one of them spoke "a little stranger has wandered into our domain."

"Please, I don't want to cause any trouble" Audrey begged "I just wanna find the" she was cut off when one of them grabbed her by the arm "hey, let me go."

"Hmm, what shall we do with you little girl?" another one cooed as Audrey tried to pull away, the child getting rather scared now.

"Maybe Amok will know what to do with her, after all, he doesn't appreciate strangers wandering into his domain" another one spoke.

Before Audrey could protest, the Lost one that had grabbed hold of her arm, lifted her up from the ground and tossed the scared and confused child over their shoulder before proceeding to carry her through what looked like a sewer area and Audrey didn't know where these Lost ones were taking her and what they were going to do with her.

It felt like almost an eternity of being carried through the Ink filled sewers, the Lost one that had been carrying Audrey dropped the child onto the ground.

"Ah, behold, the stranger" a voice spoke and Audrey noticed that it seemed to have some kind of an accent, but she couldn't quite work out what "hmm, what shall we do with you, little one."

Audrey looked up to see another Lost one, and this one seemed to have some kind of crown on their head. Audrey guessed that this was Amok that the other lost ones mentioned.

"We found her just by the sewer entrance" one of the other lost ones informed as Amok nodded before focusing his attention back to Audrey.

"Little one, do you know what happens when an unwanted guest wanders into my domain?"

"Please" Audrey whimpered as she stood up and backed away from Amok who was now towering over her "I didn't mean to intrude, I'm just trying to find my way out, I..."

"SILENCE!" Amok yelled, making the little girl whimper and back away further "you have trespassed into the lair of Lord Amok and now you must face the consequences" he turned to face the other lost ones that had brought her here "kill her, kill her now."

Before Audrey got the chance to react, the other lost onrs made a lunge for her, but with her quick thinking, she pulled out her gent pipe and used it to fend off the attacking lost ones and after a few hits, they were now laying on the floor, lifeless.

"Hmm, not bad" Amok said, rather amused "for a child, however, I don't think you'll be able to take me down." He then lunged at Audrey who was still clutching the gent pipe, and with her quick thinking, swung and hit Amok before he got a chance to attack her and before long, he too was now lying lifeless on the ground, along with his minions.

"I...I'm sorry" Audrey whimpered, catching her breath and trying to get her head around the fact that she had just murdered someone.

As Audrey tried to process what had just happened, two more lost ones cane running in, and Audrey thought they were more of Amok's minions coming to finish her off, however, the girl was caught off guard when one of them picked her up off the ground and sat her on their shoulder.

"Hail, the new Amok" they cheered.

"Wait, what is this?" Audrey asked, the child was clearly confused as to what was going on right now.

"Oh, didn't you know" one of the others told her "whoever defeats Lord Amok gets to take his place, and since you were the one who defeated him, that makes you the new Amok."

The lost one that had Audrey sat on his shoulders set her down on the ground as the rest of them began to bow.

"Hail Amok. Leader of the sewers."

Audrey was lost for words, one minute she was being carried to what was almost her death, now she was being worshipped.

"Look, guys, this is a real honour and everything, but I'm afraid that I can't stay" the lost ones immediately stopped bowing and chanting "I'm just wanting to find the way out of this place so I can go home."

The small group of lost ones stood and thought about the child had just told them before one of them walked over to the little girl and crouched down to her level.

"We understand, but we recommend that you take some supplies with you, for this place can be quite dangerous, and it can especially be dangerous to a child. Come, I'll take you to get some supplies."

Standing up, the lost one took Audrey into a room that was filled with things like food, batteries, coins etc.

"Here, you should use this to carry a few things in" the lost one said, handing Audrey a small backpack "and please, feel free to take as much as you like." Audrey nodded before filling up the backpack with a few food items, along with some coins which the lost one referred to as "slugs" and that they could be used in vending machines.

After Audrey finished up filling up her backpack, the girl put it on her back and was about to leave when she suddenly felt a wave of dizziness and noticed that her head was still hurting a little from where she hit it, she also felt warm yet chilly at the same time.

"Are you ok? the lost one asked, noticing that the little girl was clearly not right.

"I'm fine" the child insisted, however, the lost one that had came into the room with her, walked over to the girl and placed their hand on her forehead.

"I don't know, you seem to have a little bit of a fever there" he exclaimed " maybe you should stay here until it passes." However, Audrey insisted that she was fine and that it was probably nothing.

Knowing that the girl was determined to find her way out, the lost one gave a small nod before allowing her to leave the sewer area.

After she had got all her supplies and bid farewell to the group of lost ones who still referred to her as "Amok", Audrey made her way through another part of the sewers and up a ladder which lead into what looked to be some kind of train station.

"They have a train station in this place?" she mumbled to herself before heading onwards until she found herself in a room with a large glass window which over looked what seemed to be some kind of city, also, there was a message written on the large window.

A CITY BUILT ON BROKEN DREAMS

"Woah" the child whispered in amazement at the sight of the large city before her "how big is this place?" Suddenly, a noise caught the young girl off guard and she turned around to see none other than the small Bendy, standing on one of the benches that were under the window and the little toon seemed startled to see the girl standing there.

"Oh, it's you, where on earth did you come from?" Audrey asked as Bendy nervously looked around, wringing his hands "listen, I'm sorry about earlier, I didn't mean to hurt you, and, I don't think you wanna hurt me either, right?" he shook his head "good, maybe we can be friends, what do you say, you wanna be friends?"

Bendy stood and thought for a minute before giving the girl his trademark smile and giving her a thumbs up. Audrey noticed that he didn't or possibly couldn't speak, but from the gesture, she knew that he was accepting her request to become friends.

"Hey that's great" Audrey replied as she walked closer to the little toon" hey, maybe you can help me, I'm looking for something called the gent building" instantly, the expression on Bendy's face changed from being happy to somewhat scared and he instantly began to shake, his hands placed over his eyes. Audrey instantly sensed that something was wrong.

"Oh, what's the matter?" she asked "is it a bad place?" Bendy slowly removed his hands away from his face and looked at Audrey with the same scared expression "look, I know that I'm only a little girl, but I'll try my best to make sure that nothing happens to you, we'll take it slow, alright?."

The little toon hesitated for a moment, but he was slowly beginning to trust Audrey. After all, she was just a child, what harm could she bring to him and knowing that he could now trust her, he gave a small nod, indicating that he was willing to her help her.

"Alright, well then, let's go" Audrey said as she took Bendy's hand and the first thing she noticed was that he wasn't that much shorter than he was, he was practically a child, just like herself "ok, you ready?" Bendy nodded, his expression on his face still nervous "then, let's go."

The pair of them then made their way into the city, where the gent building was currently located and Audrey had no idea what she was getting herself in for looking for that building, and what exactly resided in there.

Chapter 13: chapter 13

As both Audrey and Bendy entered the city, they were met with the sound of what sounded like old timey music playing, music which sounded like it came straight out of the 1940s, even the city itself, that looked as if it was also stuck in the 1940s despite it being 1973.

"Alright, the gent building must be around here somewhere" Audrey pointed out "let's start looking." Bendy reluctantly nodded and the pair began lucking around the city.

After searching for some time, the pair finally found the entrance to the gent building, and the first thing that Audrey noticed was that there was a security lock which required an I.D card to access.

"Oh man, it's security locked" Audrey exclaimed, turning round to face Bendy who was nervously playing his fingers "we need an I.D card to get inside." Just as the pair of them were about to start looking around for an I.D card, a lost one that had appeared out of nowhere came running towards the pair.

"Here now, what ya think ya doing?" they asked in what sounded like an Irish accent "you're not thinking about going in the old gent building are ya?"

"Well, yes" Audrey replied as Bendy shifted nervously at the side of her.

"Now why would a nice little girl like yaself wanna go in there?" the Irish lost one asked whilst Bendy looked at the young girl, his facial expression clearly indicating the same thing that the lost one was asking "don't ya know that those who enter never come back out again, ya got no idea what exactly is in there."

"But I need to get in there" Audrey stated " I need to find out exactly what's going on with this place, and I was told that the gent workshop had some and besides, I can run pretty fast, I'm sure whatever is in there won't be able to catch me, and it can't be any worse than what I've already encountered. So, won't you help us?"

Despite telling the Irish speaking lost one that she wasn't scare, Audrey knew deep down that she was infact scared of going into the gent workshop, but she knew that she had to get some answers, also, she still felt rather feverish, almost like she was developing some kind of cold and if that was the case, then it would most likely be impossible for her to outrun whatever threat lurked inside.

"Well, alright, if ya really wanting to find out some answers, then I guess I can since I know where ya can find an I.D card" the Irish lost one replied " but I still don't think this is a good idea."

Despite not thinking that it wasn't a good idea for Audrey to go inside, the Irish lost one lead both her and Bendy through what seemed to be an abandoned meat store, down a back alleyway until they reached another part of the city where various lost ones were walking around, a small group of them huddled in a corner around some kind of campfire, another one seemed to be drunk and trying to pick a fight with another. Audrey could feel Bendy clinging to her nervously, it was clear that this part of the city unnerved the little toon.

"I know, I'm scared too" Audrey replied, understanding his gesture.

"Ya, this be the rough part of town" the Irish Lost one stated "just follow me and don't make eye contact with the others." He then lead the pair of them through the rough part of the city until they reached what looked to be an abandoned hotel.

"Alright, this is it" he said as the three of them walked inside the hotel "ya wanting an I.D card, then this is where ya can find one" he then quickly slipped out, clearly not wanting to be part of Audrey's plan any further, leaving the child and the toon alone.

"Well, looks like we have to find it on our own now Bendy" Audrey said as the small toon sat on a nearby couch whilst Audrey looked around to see if she could find any I.D card, however, she was unable to find one "Okay, it isn't down here, maybe there's one upstairs in one of the rooms, so we'll have to check there."

Audrey began looking for a way to get to the upper levels, however, there was no staircase, only an elevator which was currently out of order, the only way to get up to the second floor, was a hole in the ceiling, just big enough for a small child to fit through and remembering the flow ability she had, Audrey knew that she had to use to get up to the second floor.

"Okay Bendy, looks like we'll have to go up to next floor to see if we can find that I.D card" the little girl exclaimed, but Bendy didn't move from the couch that was sitting on and Audrey could have sworn she heard a faint voice speaking in her head.

You don't wanna go into the gent building, you don't know what you're letting yourself in for.

Thinking that it was her mind playing tricks on her, Audrey shook it off before crouching in front of Bendy with a sympathetic smile.

"So, I guess you don't want to come with right?" he shook is head "alright, well, you can wait here for me whilst I look for the I.D card, ok." The child then stood up and Bendy watched as she flowed up through the hole before disappearing from sight and knowing what exactly resided inside the gent building, Bendy didn't want Audrey going inside, that place was not ideal for a young child and he had to make sure that she didn't get inside, no matter what it took, and with Audrey out of site, the little toon jumped down from the couch and slowly slunk out of the hotel.

Meanwhile, Audrey found herself inside one of the hotel rooms which had a single bed and a dressing table. The eerie quietness of the room gave Audrey the creeps, however, it did have what she was looking for, and that was the I.D card she needed to gain access to the gent building.

"Ah hah, there's the card" Audrey stated as she went to pick it up, only to be startled by a voice from behind her.

"Well gee, you haven't gotten far" Audrey turned around to see none other than Joey Drew standing there despite not being in the room when she entered, it was like he had appeared out of nowhere.

"Hey, don't sneak up like that" Audrey pouted, folding her arms as Joey chuckled before walking over to her and crouching down to her level.

"I do apologize for scaring you" he said "so, how's the journey going?"

"Slow, But I'm getting there" Audrey replied "and I ain't giving up until I find my way out of this place."

"Ah ha, I see that you have your father's never quit go getter spirit" Joey replied in a rather impressed tone as the little girl looked at him with a confused expression.

"Wait, you knew my father?" she asked "I never knew him, or my mother to be exact, I've been living in an Orphanage since I was around two years old."

Joey nodded, giving the child a sympathetic look as he took both of her hands into his own, looking her directly in the eyes, his expression rather serious and Audrey got the feeling that he was going to tell her something rather important.

"I see that you have chosen to forget the past" he calmly told the little girl "I understand."

"W..what are you talking about?" Audrey asked, her expression still confused as Joey let out a deep sigh before placing his hand on her shoulder.

"Look, I don't think you're ready for this, but hold onto your lunch money" he told her in a serious tone before taking her hand "there's something I want to show you."

Before Audrey could react, Joey placed his other hand on the side of her head and all of a sudden, the room began to spin and warp right before her eyes and within seconds, the child found herself in what looked to be a completely different area, and Joey was standing next to what appeared to be an old projector. In her head, she could hear a faint voice, a voice she had never heard before.

"Alright Joey I'm here, let's see if I can find what you wanted me to see."

"Over here" Joey called from the other end of the room, snapping Audrey out of her thoughts "come have a seat, this won't take long."

Timidly, little Audrey slowly made her way over to Joey whilst looking around the area she was currently in and it looked like it had seen better days, there were holes in the ceiling, ink splattered everywhere and some of the floorboards were rotted and coming apart. Once she had reached where Joey was standing, she sat down next to the projector.

"W..where are we?" the child asked in a nervous tone.

"This little Audrey, is a very old place" Joey replied as he tinkered with the projector, switching it on "full of memories, but never mind all that, there's a little story that you need to hear, are you ready?"

Audrey nodded as she positioned herself in her seat, clutching tightly onto the tattered Bendy plush she'd been carrying around as various images began to show on the wall in front of her whilst Joey told her his story.

"Once upon a time Audrey" he began "there was a bitter old man, who had lost just about everything."

"Joey?" the child asked in a soft voice as the memory of Joey nodded before continuing the story.

"The real Joey Drew, he blamed everyone but himself for his mistakes, but mostly he blamed his old business partner for abandoning their work, years and years ago, a man by the name of Henry Stein" Audrey clutched the Bendy plush tighter as she continued to listen to the story "a great artist, and a good friend. In his anger, Joey used an evil Machine to create another world, a world made of paper and Ink, where he would torment his own version of Henry forevermore. Bit one day, a miracle happened. An Angel came into Joey's life."

"An Angel?" Audrey asked, her eyes widening with curiosity and innocence.

"That's right" Joey replied "a young woman by the name of Allison Pendle, she didn't visit often, but when she did, she saw something good in Joey no one else could, including himself. Through their friendship, he began to see the world with better eyes, so one day, in Joey's cartoon cycle of hatred, he gave Henry an Angel of his own. To guide him when things were most dark. To always provide hope."

"Alice" Audrey muttered under her breath, remembering the cartoon Angel she had met when she first arrived in this place.

"It was then, Joey decided to make something new" he continued "something he had always wanted, but could never have, a family, but not a cartoon one, something real, and after man, many tries, he created something that made him happier than he ever could have imagined" Audrey watched as an image of the real Joey Drew holding a little girl of about two years old showed up on the screen "a wonderful loving daughter, bright and kind, almost human" he turned to face Audrey "he created you, Audrey."

"What!?" Audrey replied, her voice a mixture of shock and confusion "but, I..I don't understand, I..I can't...be" she began to sob, this was all too much for the Ten year old to take in "I wasn't born from some machine, I'm flesh and Blood. I'm not some kind of Ink monster, I'm not, I'm not."

Seeing the little girl in this distressed state, Joey let out a sympathetic sigh before crouching down to her level, putting his hand on her shoulder as she continued to sob quietly.

"Listen, I know it's a lot to believe, but it's the truth" he explained "you are the child of Joey Drew, the real Joey Drew."

Audrey continued to sob before sniffling and wiping her eyes with the sleeve of her shirt before looking at Joey, asking why he had placed her in an Orphanage when she was really young.

"Well, child services deemed him too old to take care of a young child" Joey explained as the little girl's sobs subsided "so he had no choice but to place you in an Orphanage, I'm sure you understand?" Audrey nodded as she began to calm down, wiping her tear stained cheeks with her sleep.

"I want to go back now" she said in a quiet voice and Joey, without saying a word nodded and placed his hand on the side of her head as the room began to distort yet again until she found herself back in the hotel room, alone.

"I..it's not true" the little girl sobbed "it can't be."

After finally composing herself, Audrey picked up the I.D card before making her way back down to the ground floor of the Hotel, only to find that Bendy was nowhere to be seen.

"Bendy?" the girl called out, hoping that the little toon was just hiding somewhere and that he would come out once she called him "Bendy, where are you?" there was no response and the little girl assumed he had possibly got scared and ran off somewhere, so, clutching the bendy plush in one hand and the I.D card in the other, the child began to make her way back to the gent building as the creepy voice of old Wilson began echoing through the city over what sounded like a tannoy system.

"Attention, Children of the Machine, this is Wilson, the feeble uprising in Lost Harbour has been ended by the Keepers, we are save once again from the treason of the cyclebreakers! the Keepers are watching."

Audrey shuddered, whoever these Keepers were, she did not wanted to run into them as she remembered how Joey mentioned them and that they were rather dangerous folk, also, who or what exactly were these "Cyclebreakers", many thought were going through the little girl's head as she made her way to the gent building and as he finally arrived, the child took a deep breath as she gripped the I.D card.

"Okay, you can do this Audrey" the young girl told herself as she scanned the I.D card, ignoring the foul mouthed cries of the drunken Lost one that stumbled around nearby and once the scanning machine approved the I.D card, the doorway lifted halfway, but left enough space for Audrey to crawl through and once she did, the child found herself standing in front of a huge, factory like building with the following written on the front in huge letters

WE ARE THE KEEPERS

Audrey also couldn't help but noticed that there were dead lost ones being hung in front of the building with sacks over their heads and the little girl let out a gasp, stumbling back just as the Ink Demon jumped out of nowhere and began advancing towards the child, but as he did, coloured sparks began emitting from the two giant pylons in front of the building, and little Audrey felt intense pain in her head which caused her to collapse to her knees, but she just managed to lift her head to see that the Ink Demon seemed to have been affected by the coloured sparks coming from the two pylons and she watched as he began to shrink into an ink puddle, before it morphed into something that shocked the young girl.

"B..Bendy" she rasped, not believing what she had just witnessed, the Ink Demon had transformed into the little toon that had accompanied her earlier and without saying a word, Bendy limped away with a look of guilt on his face and with the pain in her head becoming more and more unbearable, Audrey's eyes rolled into the back of her head as she slipped into an unconscious state.

Chapter 14: chapter 14

Waking up, Audrey could feel her head spinning and her ears were ringing. With a groan, the girl slowly opened her eyes and despite her blurred vision, she could tell that she had been moved from the place where she had passed out into what looked to be a room with a bunch of tvs on the wall. As her vision became more and more clear, the first thing she noticed was that there was some kind of creature in the room with her, it was tall and had what looked like tentacles or pipes in place where it's legs should have been and it's head resembled that of a diver's helmet and Audrey began to wonder if this thing had found her laying unconscious outside and brought her into this room.

"Subject is now concious-s-s-s" a glitchy, mechanical voice spoke and Audrey looked up to see a figure identical to the one in the room with her appear on the tv screens "new subject, what are you-u-u, what is your purpose-e-e-e?"

As the fuzziness from her head began to clear, Audrey realised that this creature speaking to her had the exact same voice as the one she had heard in the elevator before it crashed.

"The subject is required to answer the question-n-n" the thing on the tv stated as the little girl slowly pulled herself up off the floor, clutching onto the Bendy plush she had been carrying around " what are you-u-u?"

"M-my name is Audrey, I, I come in peace" she stuttered, whatever this thing was that was speaking to her, it had a sense of danger about them "I don't want to be a bother, I just want to find my out of here, m-maybe you can help me. Also, I recognise your voice" she pointed accusingly to the screen as the creature inched closer to her "you're the one that made the elevator crash."

Without warning, Audrey felt a firm grip on her wrist as the creature took hold of it in an attempt to restrain her and the little girl was starting to get scared, what exactly did they want with her?

"I..I'm sorry" she stammered as the figure on the screen continued to speak.

"Feisty-y-y-y, erratic-c-c-c-c" they said about Audrey, despite the scared and timid nature she was displaying right now "we've not seen one like this, before-e-e-e-e, this one, is much younger than the other-s-s-s-s-s."

"I'm sure we can maybe reach an agreement" Audrey replied, trying to reason with them "look, I don't want to cause any trouble, so, can we talk, who are you?"

"We are, the Keepers-s-s-s" the creature questioning her replied in it's staticky, glitched voice and Audrey let out a small gasp, she remembered how Joey warned her about the Keepers " order, control, we serve the many, by serving the one, the machine must endure-e-e-e-e."

Feeling more scared, Audrey looked around, trying to find an escape route and she caught sight of a broken vent to her left and maybe, if she could get away from the other Keeper that was gripping her arm, she could use her pipe to break the vent and crawl through since it looked just big enough for a small child to crawl through, however, she decided to hold that idea off for the time being and maybe get some answers.

"Where did you come from?" she asked the Keeper on the TV screen who made some kind of sound that sounded like someone clearing their throat "who made you?"

"Wilson-n-n." Audrey nodded in response, she should have guessed that Wilson was the one who made these Keepers.

"Well, can you take me to him, or at least tell me where he is?" the child asked, remembering what Wilson had told her before pulling her into this world " he said I had to find him, so, can you maybe, help me find him?"

There was a short pause before the Keeper on the screen spoke once again.

"Subject is dangerous, much to dangerous-s-s-s" they stated and Audrey couldn't understand why they deemed her, a little, Ten year old girl as dangerous " this subject is without limits-s-s-s."

"I-I don't mean any harm" the little girl replied, she was starting to get scared now "I need to see Wilson, please, let me see him."

Audrey let out a pained gasp as the other Keeper grabbed both of her arms, pinning them behind her back as the one on the screen spoke yet again.

"The subject has been deemed hazardous-s-s-s" they announced as Audrey attempting to pull away from the Keeper that was restraining her "toxic fumes, activated."

"Wait!" the Keeper that had Audrey restrained interrupted before the fumes were released, turning Audrey to face them, ignoring the child's struggling " this one matches the description of the subject that Wilson-n-n was wanting to find-d-d-d. He said he wanted them alive-e-e-e-e."

As Audrey continued attempting to pull herself free, the Keeper on the screen made that clearing of the throat sound again before replying to the other Keeper that still had hold of Audrey.

"Change of plan-n-n-n, the subject will be contained until Wilson needs them-m-m-m" they announced "release sleep fume-s-s-s-s-s." Realising that they were planning to knock her out with sleeping gas, Audrey struggled more and more until she managed to somehow break free from the Keeper's grasp and without wasting another second, the little girl ran over to the open vent and managed to crawl inside before the Keeper could grab her.

Audrey crawled further into the vent and stopped halfway to catch her breath whilst trying to get her head around what had just happened, it seemed like that she had finally encountered the Keepers that she had been hearing so much about and oh boy, were they bad news, but Audrey knew she couldn't stay hidden inside the vent forever and she assumed that she was now inside the gent building, and knowing she had to find answers, the child began to crawl further through the vents.

"SUBJECT HAS BROKEN CONTAINMENT!" she heard one of the Keepers yell into what sounded like a microphone system "LOOK FOR THE SMALL SUBJECT, THEY MUST BE CONTAINED-D-D-D, LOCK DOWN ALL ACCESS TO CYCLE BREAKERS-S-S-S-S."

Knowing that they were talking about her, Audrey began to crawl faster through the vents until she came to another opening which led into another part of the building and as she little girl slowly crawled out, she noticed that there was a Keeper patrolling around the room and not wanting to be caught, Audrey ducked behind a table and thankfully, due to her small size, it was much easier for her to hide, however, she realised that this was going to be much more difficult than she thought and who or what exactly where these Cycle breakers that they had mentioned, well, whatever they were, maybe they held the answer to whatever was going on here and the little girl knew that she had to find these cycle breakers, however, it wasn't going to be easy with the keepers patrolling around, looking for her. Also, she was still feeling rather feverish, but she knew that she couldn't quit now, she had to get some answers.

"Well Bendy" she whispered, looking at the tattered Bendy plush "looks like we may be in for a stealth mission."

Chapter 15: Chapter 15

Audrey stayed hidden behind the table, clutching tightly onto the Bendy plush as she watched the Keeper making it's rounds and Audrey noticed that there was an open vent just up ahead. Maybe, she could crawl there to avoid getting caught, but she had to wait until the Keeper was out of sight before she could make a run for it, so the little girl remained hidden and waited for them to go by her hiding spot and once they were out of site, Audrey wasted no time and immediately made a dash for the vent.

She had barely crawled inside when she felt something grab her by the ankle and the child turned around to see that the Keeper had grabbed her and was now trying to pull her out of the vent.

"LET GO" she screamed as she tried to pull herself out of their grip "GET OFF, LET ME GO." The child squealed and tried to pull herself, but the Keeper had a firm grip on her ankle, attempting to drag her out and the child swung at them with her gent pipe but it was no use.

"The subject will cease struggling-g-g-g" the Keeper spoke in it's glitchy mechanical voice as the girl continued to try and wriggle free "the subject will be contained-d-d-d."

Audrey struggled so hard that once she was able to finally pull herself free, she slipped and hit her head against the vent flooring, leaving the child dazed and almost knocked out. The keeper took advantage of this and was about to drag her out of the vent but luckily, she managed to gain her senses and crawled further into the vent until she found herself in another room.

Shaken from her recent encounter and with one heck of a headache, Audrey crawled out of the vent to find herself in a small office like room with a single chair and a desk, but what really caught her interest was a strange looking tape player, and being the curious Ten year old that she was, Audrey picked up the strange looking tape recorder and pressed play.

"Experiment thirteen: The Ink Demon is successfully sedated for transport" a Keeper's voice spoke on the recording and Audrey's eyes widen with horror, they sedated the Ink Demon? "Laboratory 9 is prepared for arrival at the receiving bay. Be advised that sedation will not last long. Termination must commence immediately upon reception. Wilson will expect a detailed report of the creature's demise."

After the recording ended, Audrey's blood ran cold and remembering seeing the Ink Demon transform into the smaller and cute form of Bendy just before she passed out, the girl wondered if the Keepers had something to do with that.

"What have they been doing to him?" she mumbled to herself "maybe there's more on the recording."

Audrey hit the play button on the audio log again and the Keeper on the tape spoke yet again.

"Experiment twenty six: Frequent delays due to the Ink Demon's refusal to terminate. Keepers have administered quarter hourly sessions of physical tortures and surgical invasions to wear down his powers. All of these efforts have been ultimately unsuccessful. A new method of control must be devised. Termination impossible."

As Audrey continued to listen to the logs, she began to realize that the Keepers were attempting to destroy the Ink Demon, but every attempt had failed and the little girl wasn't all to surprised, the Ink Demon did seem what she would describe as "unkillable", however, she was interested to know what they did next, so she continued listening.

"Experiment forty four: We have successfully pressed the Ink Demon into the form designated as Bendy. He is smaller in size and harmless in this more timid state. His powers are also greatly reduced. Using lengths of steel wire to cut into the side of his body, he now registers emotional responses. There were tears of ink documented. Screams of pain. It was delightful to see such progress. The Ink Demon will remain in this small form indefinitely.

"Oh, Oh my god" Audrey whispered as she realized what they had been doing to Bendy, and remembering how he didn't want to come into this place when she mentioned about wanting to come here, now she finally understood why.

After she had finished listened to the audio logs, Audrey peeked out of a small window to check if the cost was clear and seeing that it was, the child picked up the Bendy plush and ran out of the small office and into another area where there was another Keeper patrolling.

"Oh no, not another one" she whispered as she hid behind a nearby desk "these monsters are everywhere."

Suddenly, the girl heard what sounded like an angry shriek from behind her and she turned around to see that the Keeper had found her and was now charging towards her. Without hesitating, Audrey jumped to her feet and made a run for a nearby staircase as the Keeper tried to grab her, however, due to her being a lot smaller, she was able to evade being grabbed and the little girl darted up the stairs and climbed under a small gap through a door way, knowing that the Keeper wouldn't be able to fit through, and she was right as they retreated back as soon as she crawled under.

"Y-yeah, that's right, run away" she stammered before turning around and heading further into the room until she found herself standing in front of what appeared to be an entrance with the following words written above it.

CYCLE BREAKERS

"That's where the ghosts live" a girl's voice and spoke from behind Audrey and she turned around to see a small girl lost one sitting the floor, rocking from side to side, long inky hair in pigtails and Audrey wondered where she had come from "just beyond that door, the Keeper's prison, the pit, anyone is sent in there never comes out, at least, they're never quite the same, hey, wait a minute" the girl stood up and the first thing Audrey noticed was she was around the same height as her, they were a child, just like she was "are you wanting to go in there?"

"Y..yeah" Audrey replied, the girl slightly confused as the child lost one began to bounce eagerly on their feet.

"Well, I can open the door for you, I do know how to open it, I really do" Audrey was about to thank them but the child lost one cut them off "but first, can we play a game maybe, I love playing games, my favourite is hide and seek, everyone call me Heidi because I love hide ad seek so much, so, may we play, pretty please?"

Audrey was uncertain, she was still feeling quite feverish and she didn't really feel like playing any games right now, also, she wasn't too keen on going back out there, not while they're were Keepers patrolling around, however, she was curious to find out exactly what was behind that door so she thought that maybe one game couldn't hurt.

"Alright, but just one game ok?" she stated as Heidi giggled with excitement.

"Oh goody goody" she chirped "now, close your eyes, count to Ten and no peeking." Audrey nodded as she placed her hands over her eyes and began to count whilst Heidi went away to hide.

Once she had reached Ten, Audrey pulled her hands away from her eyes to find that Heidi was now gone, and knowing that she had to back out there to find her, the child took a deep breath, clutching the Bendy plush before making her way back out into the workshop, hoping that she won't get captured whilst trying to find Heidi.

Chapter 16: Chapter 16

Audrey quickly crawled under a nearby desk as the same Keeper that had chased her moments before slunk on by, thankfully not seeing the little girl who waited until they had passed by before she could come out of hiding. She could also hear the little girl lost one Heidi, giggling nearby and it sounded like it was coming from the upper level of the area.

As she waited for the Keeper to pass by, Audrey crawled out from under the desk and then proceeded to climb up the ladder, and she knew that Heidi was close by as she could hear her giggling getting louder. Once she had reached the upper floor, the giggling was heard much more clearly now and Audrey found Heidi crouched in between two oil cans.

"Found you" the girl replied, causing Heidi to let out a squeal of excitement, causing Audrey to quickly cover her mouth "shh, there are Keepers patrolling."

Unfortunately, Audrey had spoken too soon as a Keeper that was patrolling the upper level came round the corner, obviously hearing the squeal and the two children quickly hid in a nearby room just before it caught a glimpse of them.

"phew, that was a close one" Audrey said in relief, just before she heard a low growl coming from behind her and the girl turned around to see a giant Ink creature with planks of wood sticking out of them. Taken aback, Audrey almost stumbled to the floor, however, Heidi seemed almost at ease with this giant Ink creature.

"Big uncle Steve" Heidi giggled excitedly as they lifted the small Ink girl and sat them on their shoulders, much to Audrey's surprise.

After they set Heidi on their shoulder, big Steve finally noticed Audrey and let out a low, menacing growl, causing the girl to stumble back.

"It's fine Uncle Steve, she's a friend" Heidi stated as Audrey, still feeling rather feverish slowly got up and gave a shy wave to the large Ink creature as Heidi giggled in response.

"Anyway, that was a fun game of hide and seek wasn't it?" the little girl lost one piped up "shall we play again?" Audrey instantly shook her head, stating that she wanted to get inside the cycle breaker room to see what was in there "well, suit yourself, but here, let me give you a little reminder of our game."

Heidi climbed down from Steve's shoulder and walked over to Audrey. Before the girl could react, Heidi placed her hand on the side of Audrey's head and the child felt a strange tingling sensation which went as soon as Heidi pulled her hand away.

"What did you do?" Audrey asked.

"Oh, I just gave you a new ability" Heidi replied with a giggle " now you have the ability to fast travel, just use the ink linkers that are placed out around the studio and you should be able to travel back to any place in the studio that you've already been."

"And what about the door to the cycle breaker room?" Audrey inquired "Is it open now?" Heidi nodded before sitting cross-legged on the floor and began swaying from side to side, humming to herself whilst Big Steve ate the pieces of wood that were sticking out of him "well, guess I better get going."

Leaving both Heidi and Steve to their own devices, Audrey began making her way back to the cycle breaker room and her journey back yet again turned into another stealth mission as one of the keepers was still patrolling around the area. Luckily, her small stature made it easy for Audrey to hide and she just managed to make it to the cycle breaker room without being caught.

"Phew, that was close" Audrey mumbled to herself before slowly making her way into the cycle breaker room, tightly clutching the Bendy plush.

As the little girl slowly entered the the area, she found herself in what appeared to be some kind of room that contained what appeared to be prison cells and she could hear what sounded like someone playing a Banjo.

"Huh, what is that?" Audrey whispered as she made her way to the source of the sound until she came across someone sitting in one of the cells. It appeared to be what looked like a lost one, only this one was wearing brown overalls and they where sitting on a chair that was placed right in the middle of what appeared to a summoning circle, like the kind they use in rituals, a pentagram of some kind and there was also what appeared to be a broken cardboard Bendy Mask laying on the floor in the middle of it.

As she nervously clutched her hands, Audrey wanted to ask this stranger who he was and why he was in there, but something about him unnerved the child and she couldn't figure out what. She was just about to leave when she saw something written underneath the cell window.

SUBJECT: 418

"He's a prisoner" Audrey whispered before walking away, leaving the strange Ink person to play his banjo, and as she explored further around the room, a loud shriek suddenly caught her of guard and the girl instantly looked over to see that it was coming from what appeared to be a projector head trapped inside a glass box and before Audrey could move to get a closer look, it let another shriek which seemed to alert one of the Keepers as Audrey could see it's reflection entering the area and with her quick thinking, the child quickly crawled into a nearby vent which led into another room, just as the Keeper rounded the corner.

"Phew, that was close" she whispered, watching as the Keeper seemingly punch the projector head in order to shut it up, however, she could just see something in the corner of her eye and the little girl turned around to see what appeared to be a giant, humanoid head which seemed to stare at her and she was about to let out a squeal but quickly threw her hands over her mouth so that she wouldn't give herself away. Also, she could feel a tickling sensation in her throat, like she was about to have a coughing fit and the child desperately tried to hold it in, but it was no use and before she could stop it, the girl let out a raspy cough but still kept her hand over her mouth.

Suddenly, as her cough began to subside, Audrey could see the Keeper making it's way over to her hiding place and she figured that it must have heard her coughing, so she hid inside a nearby crate, hoping that it wouldn't be able to crawl in through the vent. Audrey watched as they hovered outside of her hiding place until it retreated, seemingly giving up of trying to enter the area she was hiding in and once they had left the area, Audrey slowly climbed out from the crate, through the vent and into the area she was previously.

"Ugh, I don't feel so good" she mumbled. Her fever seemed to be slightly worse than before, not to mention the coughing fit she had just had and that indicated that the girl was not well at all, but despite that, she was determined to find out exactly what was going on here and hopefully find some answers on how she could get out of this place.

"Okay Audrey, you can do this" she said to herself before she explored further around the area, hoping to find some answers until she came across another cell with what appeared to be a man sitting on a stool, drawing in what appeared to be a sketchbook and under his cell window was the following.

SUBJECT: 414

Unlike the other prisoner that was still sat in their cell, playing their banjo, Audrey didn't seem intimidated by this other prisoner and the child timidly made her way over, clutching the Bendy plush.

"Umm, excuse me, sir" she spoke in a soft, timid voice "but, can you help me?"

Instantly, as soon as she spoke, the man immediately stopped drawing in his sketch book and replied in a rather calm yet tired sounding voice.

"You, must be really lost, to be asking me for help" he replied.

"Well, I would have asked the other guy, the one playing the Banjo, but he gives me the creeps" Audrey replied as the man in the cell let out a slight chuckle.

"Oh, you mean Sammy?" he asked "to be honest, I don't blame you, he can be a little unnerving, so, who are you?" he got up from the stool and turned around to face her and Audrey could see that he looked to be in his fifties at least, he also seemed to have bags under his eyes, like he hadn't had a decent nights sleep for quite some time "wait, you're a child?"

"Yes sir" Audrey replied as he walked up to the glass and crouched down to her level and gave the child a friendly smile which also seemed rather sad at the same time.

"What's your name honey?" he asked "and how did you end up here, this place isn't exactly safe for a child."

"Audrey, my name is Audrey" the little girl replied before explaining as best she could about how she ended up in this place" so, what's your name, mister?"

"My name is Henry" the man in the cell replied "so, what is it that you are wanting to find out Audrey?"

"Well, I'm just looking for answers, about what's going on here" Audrey replied "also, have you been a prisoner long?"

Knowing that this little girl was keen to find out what was going on, Henry explained to her that the studio ran on a cycle and that currently, Wilson and the Keepers had frozen the cycle in place and that they would lock anyone away if they deemed then a threat to their plans.

"I think they're after me, wanting to lock me away like you and that Sammy person" Audrey stated "they tried knocking me out with sleeping gas when I first arrived here."

"I don't understand why they would deem you a threat, you're just a little girl, you can't be what, nine, ten years old at least" Henry stated before he noticed the flushed complexion on her face which was clearly brought on by her fever" also, you don't look too good, I don't think you should be running around at the moment."

Audrey understood that she wasn't exactly in a condition to be wandering around, but she needed to get to the bottom of what was going on and hopefully find a way to reverse whatever was going on, and Henry told her that there was an old film reel with the words THE END labeled on it, and that she would have to get the Ink Demon to look at it.

"He himself is the key" Henry explained "if you can get him to look at it, it will reset everything. It's currently upstairs, in the pit."

"Got it, I'll see if I can break in and steal it" the child stated and after Henry wished her good luck and bid her a goodbye, the child began to make her way to the upper level where the pit was.

As she made her way to the pit, the girl came across another prison cell which was labelled Subject: 923, only the glass had been smashed, indicated that whoever was in there had escaped. All that was in the cell was a message written on the floor which read the following.

Are you worthy to walk with Angels?

Thinking nothing off it, the feverish little girl continued onwards until she came to an area with a huge door that was labelled THE PIT.

"Okay, guess this is it" Audrey implied, taking a huge breath before making her way over to the entrance of the pit, but before she got a chance to open it, an alarm suddenly began to blare out.

"Unauthorized-d-d" Audrey heard one of the Keepers shriek just before the ground in front of her opened up and the little girl fell into another coughing fit, just as a Keeper emerged from the opening in the floor and began sniffing around before turning around to find Audrey who was now on the verge of passing out and with a shriek, it lunged forward and managed to catch the little girl before she fell to the floor, lifting her off the ground.

"L..let me go" she mumbled weakly, now barely conscious in it's grasp.

"Subject has been captured-d-d-d" the Keeper who had hold of the child informed as more Keepers entered the room "prepare them for containment-t-t-t."

That was the last thing Audrey heard before she finally lost consciousness from her fever, the Bendy plush falling from her hand and onto the floor.