NGRI

  The walls were cracked, the color long faded. The drawings and posters that were placed on them

was shaved off haphazardly, his eyes were tired and filled with apathy.

  His movements were as robotic as the bots he was building. Years ago, he took up the job of
animatronic builder for a company that he forgot the name of. He was doing his job nonstop, especially
since he got downgraded in position. His 'home' was represented by a bunk bed inside a room provided
by the company. He wasn't alone in his predicament. Hundreds of other people were walking around, in
the same dirty clothes, with the same faces of unhappiness and all wandering around like robots.
Cody sat back for a second before smashing a hammer into a large pile of alloy. As he did, he was
provided with a memory of his life before he met 'her'.

  At Macson University, Cody Brinson was in the bathroom, washing his face. He had a football game
recently and smacked his face against the ground after he tripped. He did score a goal, so it wasn't all
bad. He was a bit annoyed that he missed the celebrations. He wanted to grab a cigarette from his
pack to calm down, but remembered the trouble he got in last time. He got out of the bathroom, thinking
the team was waiting for him to go out to get drunk. To his surprise, there wasn't anyone around at the
door. In fact, there wasn't anyone around at all. The area was devoid of noise. It was so quiet Cody could
hear his internal organs working. He turned his head to look at the world beyond the large windows. The
sky lacked color, the front yard was normal until it reached a point where the ground was cracked,
revealing pitch black.

  Cody took a step forward, creating a deafening sound. He shivered and continued down the halls.
He looked into some classrooms, finding no one inside. After a few minutes of waking, he finally
reached the front door. He grabbed the handle and pushed it. The door swung open, revealing a large
statue garden. The statues were making horrific poses. Some had their hands on their faces, some
were crouching, some were screaming, some were reaching out to the sky. Cody took a step forward
and a blind light shined on his face.

  Cody opened his eyes, to be met by a room with black walls, a scratched bed and a chair. He slowly
sat up and felt tears form in his eyes. He sighed and stood up, taking a second to readjust himself. The
rest of his team was in the room, staring right at him with frowns plastered on their faces. Cody paid
them no mind and trudged over to the locker room's door. He hesitated for a second and opened it. The
room he was peering into was a mirror image of the locker room, except it was on fire. A big pile of
charred corpses were stacked in a line near fallen lockers. Cody collapsed to his knees and begged for
some respite.

  An alarm rang out in the room. Cody felt around the table and when he found the clock, he smashed
his fist against it. "I see you had a good night's sleep." Cody looked through his tired eyes at the
source of the voice. It was his wife, Kasey. Probably one of the few spots of light in his dark life. Unlike
most things, Cody knew for a fact she was real. He had several rounds of intense therapy, giving him
the ability to distinguish environments and people's behaviors. It had a tendency to fail, but Cody
reassured himself when he looked outside. The sun shone above, people were going about their day,
cars drove alongside them. Cody looked at his wife, who was holding a tray near his bed. It had eggs,
bacon and a glass of water on it. Cody smiled and sat back in the bed.

Cody nodded and began to eat his breakfast.

  After getting dressed in some casual clothes, Cody walked out the front door and was instantly
greeted by his neighbor, Gregory. "Ay Cody! What's
good?" "Not much, just going to the store." Gregory's attention was drawn to his daughter, who
accidentally tripped and fell. He ran over to help her while Cody got flashbacks to his dream. He hurried
down the road, waving at the rest of his neighbors with a big grin on his face. Moving out of his old
town was the best idea he ever had. The fresh start it gave him was unmatched. As he continued, he came
across a large junkyard. He heard a noise coming from it. He glanced in its direction and his eyes went
wide. Dozens of charred bodies were standing next to each other. Their glowing white eyes and crooked
teeth were the only thing that could be made out of the ashen skin.

then walked into the video store and went to the clerk.

  "Excuse me, what's the latest superhero film?" The clerk thought for a second before she walked in
the back. Cody had a look around the store while he was waiting. There was a big poster advertising an
indie 'Freddy Fazbear’s Pizza' movie. 'Ron's End' it was called. Other posters included a movie about
mutant frogs, one about some money hungry bear, an adult film and a Halloween themed one. After a
couple more minutes, the clerk came back with a movie called 'The Pixie'. Cody gave her the money
and walked out. He suddenly felt a whisper in his right ear causing him to jump back and shiver. The
rest of the customers in the store turned to look at him, but he already left.

  "Please be quiet." Cody pleaded as he tried to rip out a dented rib. She giggled in his head and
made him truly wish he turned the gun on himself that day. "I'm aware of what happened. I lived it.
You don't need to repeat the same things over and over." Cody's eyes landed on the shifting shadow to
his right. Her glowing white eyes and sharp teeth was all he could make out. She did have a purple
outline, looking like a woman with pigtails. She twisted her mouth into a grin and erupted from the
wall. The ceiling was high enough for her to stand up completely. She was an utter behemoth compared
to him. Cody knew he was pretty tall, but he didn't even compare to her.

  She flew over to him and stroked his long hair gently. It would have been a pleasant experience, yet
Cody knew the outcome of this. He raised his fist and smacked himself across the face. He spit some
blood out alongside a tooth. The figure giggled and made a gesture with her hands. Cody's body got
dragged up like a ventriloquist dummy, awaiting the orders of his master. She made him walk into a wall,
then jab himself in between his ribs with a box cutter. His screams meant nothing, considering the
hell he was in. The other employees glanced at him, but no one offered him any help. The shadow
ordered him to drop the cutter and kneel. Cody was holding back tears. He didn't want to give her the
satisfaction. The shadow walked up to him and kicked him straight in the nose. He landed mere
inches away from an assortment of sharp metal parts. The figure sat on top of a table and waved at Cody.

  Why was he always awake? There wasn't any light outside. No streetlights, no lamps, no stars, not
even a moon. It was as dark as it could be. His wife ran to the pharmacy to get him a bandage. Due to
one of his 'episodes', he accidentally got his finger slit down the middle. He put some tissue over it, but
he still needed those bandages. Cody stared at his finger for a second before getting up. He grabbed a
packet of gum and popped one in his mouth. A good way to get rid of his old habit. As he chewed, he
heard a gunshot coming from outside. He stumbled over to the window and looked out. Gregory was on
the ground clutching at his stomach.

  Cody picked the phone up and dialed 911. He explained the situation and waited for a response.
The phone burst with the sounds of static, causing Cody to throw the phone away. Cody staggered
back and his eyes widened. The wall behind his bed had a different color. Instead of the usual orange, it
had what looked to be the texture of a bruise. A foul stench filled the room and Cody became dizzy.

  "Leave me alone!" Cody screamed at the figure. She didn't respond with words. She has been silent
ever since the day he saw what she was capable of. Her fingers made a gesture and Cody felt a weird
sense of euphoria. He let out a chuckle and sat on the cold steel floor. His mouth contorted into a
massive smile. It hurt his cheeks and made him cry. He reached for his face, yet his hands were stopped
midway through. The shadow giggled and made him grab his neck. He didn't try to resist. Death was all
he wanted. After everything he has been through, there was no reason to go on. He allowed the
possessed hands to strangle him. Finally, he will see them again. His friends, his family, the ones he lost.
Even if he went to the darkest pit of hell, it beat being here.

  He opened his eyes. "Dammit" he mumbled. The same murky, disgusting ceiling greeted him.
The animatronic body parts and endoskeleton pieces were waiting for his interventions. She was still
there, sitting on a table, waving at him. He shook his head and got back on his 2 feet. He walked out into
the hallway. His colleagues were strolling in a conga line towards the cafeteria. Cody sighed and joined
them. He saw her at the corner of his eyes, never leaving his side. Suddenly, he felt a hand drag him
into another room. Cody was tossed into a corner. He opened his eyes to see a man wearing a bear
mask. He was morbidly obese and carried a sharp knife. His body had holes with still burning fire
inside them. The stench was horrid, akin to a decades old carcass.

  Cody coughed and stood up. "Hello, Adam." The man stopped for a second, before nodding. He
went up to Cody and pointed at a door that was situated behind him. This was odd. The working
space was on the 10th floor in the middle of a desert. That door would theoretically lead to a really long
fall. Cody shrugged, which made Adam growl. "Fine." Cody said. The door opened without any of
them touching it. A bright light came through, followed by the scenery twisting and shattering into
piles of sharp blue shards. Adam and Cody were engulfed by a wave of voices and arms reaching out
to them. They both screamed as it all came to a stop.