Again like the path to Whack-a-Wuggy, the path before Gabe is clear and direct. Straight to the final game of the Game Station. He couldn't tell how big the room actually is but there was no mistaking how utterly long it is. The only reason he can't see the end is because of the bleak lighting and all the obstacles in the way. For all he knew this room could stretch for a mile ahead.
And if the name suggests right, this game is going to be just like Red-light Green-light, right? He actually never tried that game before, never got the chance to in his days in elementary. But now he gets that chance, possibly while being chased by yet another nightmare toy. But oh well, at least he now gets to actually play it, even though his life depends on it.
Upon entering inside the door behind him closes shut and as per usual the TV monitor nearby blares to life, displaying the game's instructions.
"Welcome, to Statues! This advanced obstacle course is designed to test your strength and endurance." The instructor plainly said. "During the test, the lights will turn off, and you may run though the obstacles. But when the lights turn on, you may look around but not move a step."
Alright, seems simple enough.
"The lovable PJ Pug-a-Piller will follow you."
"PJ? Who the heck is-." Just as those words were uttered a large face appears from the cracks in the wall. "-Oh God!" Gabe watched as the massive toy slowly crawled down some mounds of rubble before coming to a stop just yards away from him. Gazing at him with an enormous smiling open mouth full of teeth and eyes that are so black and big. The length of his segmented blue and purple patterned body must go on for dozens of feet, since there is still some of his long body hidden within the crack he just came from. The more Gabe looked at him, the more uncanny and monstrous he appeared.
"If PJ reaches you, your test is over. Reach the end of the course in order to win. That is all, good luck!"
The television then shuts off, followed by a pregnant silence.
"It was always so sad to see all the kids go." Mommy said as she looked down upon him from one of control rooms. Her voice sounding rather longing and remorseful. "They called me mommy because I was the closest they had to a mother. But they've come for games, and they never come back. They left Mommy to die alone."
"Mommy didn't deserve that." She then said in a singsong manner while wagging her finger like she is correcting an infant. "But you,…" Her tone suddenly changing. "You worked here." Her voice then shifted from saddened and longing to a tone that is laced with such venomous gall that Gabe could feel each and every word laced with heart numbing malice. "So if anyone here deserves to die alone, it's you."
Is this why Mommy hates him so? Just because he worked here? What kind of flimsy excuse is that? He didn't know anything about the living toys here, nor did he even venture anywhere outside of the manufacturing plant or even the break room! He and Mommy never met each other in any way, shape, or form, and yet she burns with such hatred like they have been bitter enemies for years.
But no time to think, no time to collect thoughts. The lights have already died and the horrible sounding music starts to play. The gate is raised and PJ is already on the move. He has to run. Running past the threshold he weaves through the castle styled walls. The lights then flickered out, forcing him to stand still. He looked over his shoulder, taking absolute care not to move a single step off. And sure enough the giant face of PJ was just inching closer behind him.
The lights then turned back off, prompting Gabe to make a full on sprint out of the winding path of walls. Out in the open, he spots a pit full of blue foam cubes and above it is a long curving bar with many monkey rings hanging from it. Taking his chance to get a boost forward, he fires a Grab-hand and it latches on to one one the rings, he then let the pulley system work its magic and it launches himself up and forwards long and far, the foam pit breaking his fall.
Just in time the lights turned on, freezing him in place. Pug-a-Piller has just left the wall obstacle and is still approaching him, slowly yet steadily. The lights then turned off and the terrible music plays again, allowing him to sprint onwards, leaving behind the foam pit. As the lights then flickered on again he looks head to the next obstacle. A series of open tubes laid before him, each with a sign above each entrance signifying its difficulty, from easy, to medium, and then hard. The first option would be the easy tube, but of course that could just be a trick, and he doesn't want to choose hard so he felt medium is the best option overall.
And when the lights died again he ran a jumped head first into the pipe. The game became more challenging as he ventured through, the tight space preventing him much needed ample movement and the lights would flicker on a bit more frequently, then when they turned off he would start crawling with fervent vigor. All the while he could hear the tiny pitter patter of hundreds of PJ's feet scurrying behind him.
Gabe then at last exited the pipe, and ahead of him is another foam pit, but this time instead of monkey rings there are large, yellow foam cubes that he can use as platforms. The lights flickered on, then off again, and he sprints away. Leaping from platform to platform, Gabe does everything in his power to keep himself further ahead each time the lights turned on. And thankfully, it seems he is finally gaining ground ahead of PJ, who is now just started crawling on the cubes.
He was feeling very sure of himself. It felt like he already has it in the bag. He will win the games, Mommy will have to keep her promise and free Poppy then give him the code, and the train ride out of the factory is good as his. He can already taste freedom. But then when the lights flickered on, he looked ahead, and his heart sank to rock bottom. For there is no exit ahead, just a massive pile of impassable rubble. It was then he realized what Mommy said earlier, this game is rigged, he is trapped with no where to go except to PJ's gullet.
He looked behind, and sure enough PJ crawls ever closer. Gabe swore he sees drool leaking from the corners of his mouth. But he knows he can't just stay and allow the giant toy to keep gaining ground, he has to keep running. But he knows time isn't on his side, anytime the lights turned on he looks for anything within the rubble, a crack, a hole, anywhere that could get him through.
But there is none.
"God help me." Gabe prayed sincerely under breath.
Gabe then spots it, high near one of the overlooking glass observation windows, is a rod that he can latch onto. Wasting not a second of thought he fires both Grab-hands up to the rod, pulled himself up, and with the force of a wrecking ball barreled straight through the glass window. Receiving a few cuts from the breaking glass shards but it was worth it. But the game isn't over yet, PJ is still coming, and it will only be a matter of time before he crawls up to where he is and corner him. Frantically his eyes dart to and fro looking for something, anything that can help. He then spots a long metal pipe lying broken at the far side of the room.
He immediately pulls it in with his a Grab-hand and takes it in his hands. He hopes that whoever the wack-job is that created this toy made him to act the way he looks. He the approaches the window he broke though and sees Pug-a-Piller is just rearing himself up to Gabe, his mouth wide and growling ready to strike and devour him whole. But Gabe then whistles, while shaking the pipe in the air like a baton.
"Oh here boy!" He playfully whistles while bringing the pipe close to the toy's face. "Stay." He ordered. PJ was taken back for a moment as the human before him started to swing their metal pipe at him. But the longer he looked at it, a familiar yet distant urge kicked in. He suddenly found himself panting. He actually started to want that stick the nice man has.
"Staaaay." Gabe said while winding back his arm, preparing to throw at just the right angle so to be sure not to hit Pug-a-Piller in the face. "Take!" He then throws the pipe out into the open course. PJ gives chase, his face alight with genuine glee. His dozens upon dozens of feet skittering along the floor in a crescendo of tapping. PJ soon caught up with the flying pipe and bit it out of midair. The giant toy then snaked around till he coils in on himself, then laid his upper front of his head and body on top of his own coil and begins gnawing the pipe away.
Gabe watched as the pug, caterpillar hybrid bites down with such jaw strength that the metal creaks and bends under the crushing pressure. He is sure glad that it is the pipe that is taking the beating instead of his femur bone.
It was then that realization hit him. He has went through the entire course and has appeased Pug-a-Piller from eating him. He did it, he won! Now all he has to do is meet Mommy get back Poppy and the code. All he needs to do is find them. He then spots a hole in the floor that is just big enough for him to fall through.
Upon landing at the bottom he can hear Mommy's voice above him. "Where did you go? You won!" She said with her tone sounding a bit frustrated but yet keeping up her happy, chirpy demeanor. "Come back and Mommy will give you the code."
Gabe looks back up through the hole from whence he came but he doesn't find Mommy up there. Maybe if he continues onward he can find a way to her. Then after swinging across a very deep gorge he hears her again, this time much more frustrated than before. Almost borderline unhinged. "Now Mommy knows that the game is rigged, but Mommy has decided you won! Hahaha! Come back!"
Now this kind of unsettled Gabe, specifically the part where she laughed. He knew that Mommy was a bit strange since the very beginning, but he didn't think to what extent. But, he is not low enough to deny giving a chance. He has been giving every other killer toy such chances the moment he stepped foot through the lobby. Maybe if he just stayed here and wait she'll come to him and-.
"Hahha! Mommy doesn't like cheaters!" She shouted. "The rules are simple! You die, Mommy gets to watch! Hahahaha!" Nope! She is definitely crazy! Gabe didn't hesitate for a second to wait around as he starts sprinting through the dilapidated halls. "Hahaha! Come back to me!"
Gabe tries to find a way out of the halls, he wants nothing more than to find Poppy and get out as soon as possible, but he won't do that as long as Mommy is hot on his trail. "ARGH!! How dare you disobey me!!" Mommy's demented rage echoed throughout the halls. "I WILL find you! I will find you. And when i do…hmhmhaHAHAHAHAHAH!! Where are you? WHERE ARE YOU!!!"
Gabe didn't so much as turn back, he knows she's not near, but the way she screamed she mind as well be feet behind him. He ran with terror shivering up every socket of his spine. He then spots a ventilation shaft to the side of the wall. Thankfully just big enough for him to fit through. He rips the grating off and proceeds through, careful not to cause too much noise as to alert Mommy if she were happened to be nearby.
After some time he arrives in a facility that he never expected the factory to have, Playtime.co's very own water treatment plant. This surprised Gabe, because as if he already knows that the factory is huge, he didn't expect there to be what is an intricate part of human civilization down here. If he doesn't know better then perhaps they are planning on turning factory into its own village. Just needs a farm down here and the factory will be no different than any town.
He can see that above the pool of water is a rotary bridge, and there is a door that can lead out to the Game Station, if he hurries maybe he could slip past Mommy and nab Poppy and the code before she even notices. Reaching to the control panel he however finds a note near one of the levers. Curiously he picks it up and reads through it, brushing it through so not to waste time. It is a transfer notice, and an assessment as well, for Mommy Long Legs.
And what he read confirmed some of Gabe's suspicions. She and all the other toys here are experiments, Mommy's being labeled as "Experiment: 1222". But strangely there is another name tied to Mommy and her experiment registration. Marie Payne.
"Marie? But that's a human name." Gabe said to himself. He try's not to think of it right now, not at least until he and Poppy are safe and away from danger.
Using the control console, he managed to get the bridge to point across to the door. He wastes no time in venturing over and heads on through. Running past the hallways, he notices that there are fewer lights left on, must either be from the lack of electricity or they are simply dead.
He finds another ventilation shaft to which he takes. He wished Bunzo were around these parts, he knows the toy bunny took to the ventilation system in order to avoid Mommy's wrath. And right now he can completely understand why. But so far there have been no signs of him, must be a good thing for him at least but he could use some guidance right about now.
But as he then reaches the end of vent the bottom panel then gave way. Causing him to fall through and land on the concrete floor with a resounding thud. Groaning he pushes himself back up, hoping Mommy did not hear that. Once he righted himself back up he takes in his surroundings, a bleak, and dark hallway with a closed gate on one side and the other a dead end. But maybe there is something around that he can use to get out of here.
Moving ahead he finds that the dead end actually does have a way out, a very tall concrete shaft that must have been an elevator under construction with another vent embedded at the side of it. Perfect! He can now get out of here and be one step closer to Poppy. He fires a Grab-hand at the bar above the vent.
Only for Mommy to jump him from above.