//------------------------------// // I'm not one, nor two, nor three! // Story: I Am Me // by APStories //------------------------------// Day 3 When Boris and Fluttershy left the elevator, they found someone covered in ink quaking in fear. "H-He's going to find me! He always finds me! Oh, no! I just want to go home! When do we go home? WHEN DO WE GO HOME?!", the person cried. "Hey... that's that Lost One I sometimes see in the Safehouse!", Boris said. "I think he calls himself the Patron." The Patron turned towards the duo. "Boris. I didn't see you there. Who's your friend? She looks... unusual", the Patron said. "This is Fluttershy. She's... not from around here", Boris answered. "Who's looking for you?" "Bendy", the Patron answered. He handed Boris a Gent Pipe. "You need to defend yourself against Bendy. Sammy will help us. We just need to find him. Every day, Bendy gets stronger, faster, smarter, and deadlier. Since Sammy is a former disciple of Bendy, he has valuable information about defeating Bendy." The Patron formed a sword out of ink. "Fluttershy, that's Sammy's axe. He's been looking for it." "Come on. We need to find the Scrap, Sammy, and the items", Fluttershy said. The trio went in different directions. Boris found two bones. Meanwhile, Fluttershy was fighting Bendy. "What do you want with me?!" "You have something I need: a body", Bendy answered. "I need an escape vessel made of flesh and bone. Once we're one, I can escape! I'll finally be alive! Immortalized!" Suddenly, someone body-slammed Bendy to the ground. "BETRAYED!!! ABANDONED!!! I trusted you! I gave you everything... and you left me to rot! Why? WHY!?", Sammy Lawrence asked. Fluttershy gave Sammy his axe back. "Because you're not worthy!", Bendy answered. "Well, I'm going to cut that smile right off your face!", Sammy replied. The two ink creatures fought as Fluttershy found a radio and a wrench. She also found a Safehouse Scrap. "Come here and put your face in my axe!", Sammy yelled as he swung his axe at Bendy's face. "You lied! YOU ALWAYS LIE!!! You said you'd save me. You said you'd set me free! Now I have nothing! NOTHING!" "SHUT THE HELL UP!", an annoyed Bendy screamed as he grabbed the axe and whacked Sammy with it, sending his mask flying. "My lord! Why have you forsaken me!?", Sammy asked. "I already told you: you're not worthy!", Bendy answered. "You lied to me. You said I'd be free. Well, I'm going to free you now. Free your head right off your shoulders! Sheep, sheep sheep... it's time for... sleep!", Sammy replied as he grabbed his axe and decapitated Bendy. He put his mask back on. He gave Fluttershy a Tommy Gun. The foursome regrouped at the elevator. The Patron found two spoons. In the Safehouse, Fluttershy put the Safehouse Scrap up on the wall. Fluttershy played the song on the radio. "Our lives are on the line", Sammy said. "Bendy is coming for us, and there's nothing we can do about it." He revealed an audio log dated June 16th, 1935. Every time I turn around there's more work to do. Four cartoons almost complete and all of them need a tune by tomorrow. Typical Joey planning. I'm working so much I’m starting to see Bendy in my sleep. That smile… he's always watching me. Few more months of this, I wouldn't be surprised if that grinning demon drove me completely insane. That smile… something's just wrong with that smile. Can't put my finger on it. Shake it off, Sammy. Best get back to your songs. Someone has to keep the little devil happy... "The Patron, Boris, and I are far more older than you think", Sammy said to Fluttershy. He revealed another audio log with an unknown log date. So first Joey installs this Ink Machine over our heads. Then it begins to leak. Three times last month, we couldn't even get out of our department because the ink had flooded the stairwell. Joey's solution? An ink pump to drain it periodically. Now I have this ugly pump switch right in my office. People in and out all day. Thanks, Joey. Just what I needed. More distractions. These stupid cartoon songs don't write themselves, you know. "Wait a minute. Why would there be a built-in drain into a staircase?!", Fluttershy asked. "Hey, don't ask me. I'm just the songwriter", Sammy answered. He then remembered a message that he wrote in the Joey Drew Studios Employee Handbook. Musical Instruments aren't just for fun. We do serious work here at the Music Department. While I know it may be tempting, please refrain from playing musical instruments in our corridors. Just last week I had to rerecord a song just because someone was plucking a banjo just outside the recording studio. Whoever it was, please stop it. And please, everyone, stop making so much noise in general. No more loud shoes, whistling, humming, or gum chewing by the Music Department. You have been warned. "Around 1946, I stole a huge number of ink bottles that were used for the Ink Machine, proceeded to drink them day by day as some kind of addiction and ultimately transformed into... this." "Why?", Fluttershy asked. "A workplace accident in which a drop of ink landed in my mouth", Sammy answered. "Uh... that doesn't answer my question", Fluttershy replied. Sammy looked at Boris. "Are you... another clone?", Sammy asked. "No. You might not remember me... but I remember you. I'm Daniel Lewek, but I'm normally referred to as Buddy", Boris answered. "When we first met..." Boris gripped his Gent Pipe. "...you ordered me to clean up an ink spill I didn't make. You kidnapped me, Jacob, Richie, Dave, and Dot! You sacrificed Dave to Bendy!" "Is that true?", Fluttershy asked. "Yes. It's true", Sammy answered. "This place is a hellhole. Some say dreams come true in this place, but they don't. One way or another, you'll become a victim of the ink like me, Boris, and the Patron." "How did you get here in the first place, Fluttershy?", Boris asked. "I don't know. It just... happened", Fluttershy answered.