FIVE YEARS LATER

Fluttershy was on the verge of hunger. She could not feed all her animals and had to sell most of them to earn enough bits to survive. Her friends were all away and nopony would lend her any.  A little bunny nudged her, insisting her to give him some carrots, but Fluttershy just looked at him sorrowfully and he got the message.

The next day, Fluttershy went out to the market with a few bits to buy some food. She trotted past the dreaded Pinkie Pie’s Pizza, with a small piece of paper stuck to the window. Fluttershy squinted and tried to see what it said.

“Help… Wanted” She whispered to herself.

She trotted closer and saw the note, a simply printed piece of paper.

HELP WANTED

SECURITY GUARD POSITIONS OPEN*

WEEKLY WAGE: 120 Bits

120 were more than enough per week.

Suddenly, Fluttershy noticed the small print under the main page.

*Minimum job trial: 1 week

She sighed to herself. She had no other choice.

She pushed the door open and went to reception.

“I want to apply for your security guard job” She said to the yellow mare siting down.

“Hey Fluttershy! Why are you here?” The mare asked.

“I need more bits” She said.

“Can’t argue with that!”

24 HOURS LATER

Fluttershy had finished her job application and had slept the whole day to prepare her for the night watch. They had told her surprisingly little, Just... Watch the animatronics so they don’t run away or stop burglars from entering.

She was given a hat and a guard outfit, and a tiny Taser. Nothing else.

As soon as she arrived at the place, it was already dark at 11:40. She could easily walk there since it wasn’t far away, so she left at around 11:30.

The lights were all on, still, with janitors and staff finishing up.

“Ah, Fluttershy! You’re here! And a little early!” The same yellow mare said.

She led her through the halls of the place, until they came to a small office with rubbish everywhere.

The mare noticed Fluttershy’s disgust.

“Hey, we’ve got a smaller budget than the old place, what do you expect?”

The place had several monitors and a small fan, with a swivel chair in front of the desk.

The mare gave her a small remote control with two red buttons, one that said L and the other R

It also had two white buttons that said L and R again.

She also gave her a large tablet, wired to the floor, with the map of the place on it.

“The recorded message will tell you what to do” She said as she walked out.

Fluttershy then heard an echo.

“Pack up guys, the guard is ready” She said.

Fluttershy shuddered as she listened and looked around.

The clock hit 12 and the power came on.

Suddenly, she leapt in fright as she heard a telephone ring.

“Phew” She reassured herself and listened to the recorded message.

Hello, hello? Uh, I wanted to record a message for you to help you get settled in on your first night. Um, I actually worked in that office before you. I'm finishing up my last week now, as a matter of fact. So, I know it can be a bit overwhelming, but I'm here to tell you there's nothing to worry about. Uh, you'll do fine. So, let's just focus on getting you through your first week. Okay?

“Wait. Get through?” Fluttershy thought.

Uh, let's see, first there's an introductory greeting from the company that I'm supposed to read. Uh, it's kind of a legal thing, you know. Um, "Welcome to Pinkie Pie’s Pizza. A magical place for fillies and grown-ups alike, where fantasy and fun come to life. Pinkie Entertainment is not responsible for damage to property or person. Upon discovering that damage or death has occurred, a missing person report will be filed within 90 days, or as soon property and premises have been thoroughly cleaned and bleached, and the carpets have been replaced."

Fluttershy felt like her heart sank right into her stomach.

Blah blah blah, now that might sound bad, I know, but there's really nothing to worry about. Uh, the animatronic characters here do get a bit quirky at night, but do I blame them? No. If I were forced to sing those same stupid songs for five years and I never got a bath? I'd probably be a bit irritable at night too. So, remember, these characters hold a special place in the hearts of fillies and we need to show them a little respect, right? Okay.

So, just be aware, the characters do tend to wander a bit. Uh, they're left in some kind of free roaming mode at night. Uh...Something about their servos locking up if they get turned off for too long.

Fluttershy was really scared now. They could move around the place?!

Uh, they used to be allowed to walk around during the day too. But then there was The Bite of '87. Yeah. I-It's amazing that the human body can live without the frontal lobe, you know?

Her mouth dropped open.

Uh, now concerning your safety, the only real risk to you as a night watchman here, if any, is the fact that these characters, uh, if they happen to see you after hours probably won't recognize you as a person. They'll p-most likely see you as a metal endoskeleton without its costume on. Now since that's against the rules here at Pinkie Pie’s Pizza, they'll probably try to...forcefully stuff you inside a Pinkie Pie suit. Um, now, that wouldn't be so bad if the suits themselves weren't filled with crossbeams, wires, and animatronic devices, especially around the facial area. So, you could imagine how having your head forcefully pressed inside one of those could cause a bit of discomfort...and death. Uh, the only parts of you that would likely see the light of day again would be your eyeballs and teeth when they pop out the front of the mask, heh.

Y-Yeah, they don't tell you these things when you sign up. But hey, first day should be a breeze. I'll chat with you tomorrow. Uh, check those cameras, and remember to close the doors only if absolutely necessary. Gotta conserve power. Alright, good night.

Fluttershy was terrified now. They had the power to kill! Nopony had told her about this!

She whipped open the tablet and kept watching the show stage, noticing a small battery percentage in the corner, with a small clock on the wall.

As the seconds turned into minutes, Fluttershy got less and less afraid. This was not as bad as it may seem.

Then, suddenly, the camera cut out.

Fluttershy gasped as she checked around, to see the power come back on.

“Phew” She said.

But there was one problem.

They were all staring at the camera.

Fluttershy’s eyes opened all the way.

Their eyes were barely visible, just small pinpricks in the middle of their dark eyes.

After she got bored, 80% power hit and it was 15 minutes past 1AM.

Nothing happened for a while after that, it was already 2:30 when Twilight was gone from the stage.

Fluttershy panicked as she scanned through the cameras to find her in the dining room, staring at the camera.

Out of curiosity, Fluttershy switched to the Backstage camera, to find that same animatronic skeleton, in the exact same place all those years ago.

She switched back to the show stage camera and noticed another problem.

Animatronic Fluttershy was missing.

She scanned over the cameras until she came to the Kitchen.

What she saw next made her want to never look again.

RoboShy was hacking at a dead body with her bare hands. The victim was a grey pony in a chef suit, which was stained with blood.

The robot kept ruthlessly inserting its hand into the dead body, creating a large hole inside of it.

She stared in horror as the robot slowly turned around and lunged at the camera, cutting it off.

Fluttershy screamed as text came up on the screen.

-CAMERA DISABLED-

      AUDIO ONLY

What Fluttershy didn’t know was that the camera was utterly mutilated, but the microphone was still connected.

It was still enough, seeing the mutilated dead body, with blood splattered everywhere…

It made her dread thinking about it.

She had completely forgotten to check on Twilight.

Twilight was quite close now. Standing in a hallway less than 10 metres from Fluttershy’s position.

She could barely tell it was even her, as the hallway’s lights flickered to illuminate a silhouette every few seconds.

One she had made sure Everypony was there, she dropped the cameras to see the clock strike four, leaving her with