The phone rang again, its sharp tone cutting through the tense silence.

He sighed and picked it up. "Let me guess—more bad news?"

Ollie’s voice crackled through the speaker. "Hey, hey! It’s me again. It seems like Poppy explained everything now, and she turned on Playcare’s backup power! Now the plan from here is pretty simple—"

"Oh, great. I love simple plans," he muttered, rubbing his forehead.

Ollie ignored the sarcasm and continued. "We need to restore power to the Gas Production Zone. First, go back to the Home Sweet Home building you were just in. You should be able to find a big power cord somewhere around the porch."

He blinked. "A big power cord? Like... big big?"

"Yes. Big. Kinda hard to miss."

"Alright, noted: giant, obvious cord. Continue."

"Grab it and plug it in underneath the Statue."

He made his way back to the porch, scanning the area. Sure enough, a thick power cord snaked along the ground. He grabbed it, feeling the weight of it in his hands.

"You weren’t kidding about this thing being big," he said, heaving it over his shoulder. "It’s like dragging a giant’s spaghetti noodle."

Ollie snorted. "Just plug it in."

He made his way down to the door beneath the Statue, yanking the heavy cord behind him. Entering the dimly lit room, he spotted a machine with a power slot beside it.

"Okay, found the machine. Time to give it some juice." He shoved the cord into place with a satisfying clunk.



The monitor on the machine flickered to life, displaying a diagram. A progress bar hovered at 50% power, and the screen showed several other buildings still offline.

Ollie’s voice came through, unbothered as ever. "Look at that! Remember that generator you turned on inside Home Sweet Home?"

"You mean the one that nearly gave me a heart attack multiple times? Yeah, I remember."

"Well, that was just a backup generator for that building. Every building should have one. Now you’ve just taken Home Sweet Home’s power and routed it here! We’re already halfway done!"

"So let me get this straight—first, I was a survivor, then a monster exterminator, and now I’m an electrician?" He shook his head. "I should be charging overtime for this."

Ollie chuckled. "Yeah, yeah, well, once you’re done, I’ll give you a really nice reward."

"Oh? Let me guess—another terrifying room full of things trying to kill me?"

"Bingo!" Ollie said cheerfully.

He groaned, running a hand down his face. "Fantastic. Can’t wait." He glanced at the monitor again, watching as the power meter held steady at 50%. "Halfway? Great. That means I only have to nearly die one more time. I love those odds."

"Hmmm… but where to go next..." Ollie mused.

"Everywhere is pretty dangerous around here. That Playhouse especially—yuck! So... your best bet would probably be the School. Catnap usually leaves that place alone."

That caught his attention. "Wait, hold on—usually?"

"Yep! Sending you the key now!" Ollie responded, completely dodging the question.

Before he could protest, the line went dead.

A loud clank echoed nearby as a small metal slid out from a chute on the wall. He opened it, finding a slightly rusted key inside.

He sighed, pocketing it. "Fantastic. Another totally safe, not-at-all creepy abandoned building to explore. You sure know how to spoil me, Ollie."

He exhaled, staring at the half-powered machine.

"Right. Time to go play maintenance worker in a Haunted School."

With one last glance at the monitor, he turned and headed toward the next location.

---

As the elevator platform began to ascend, carrying Poppy and Kissy Missy toward their next destination, Kissy’s gaze drifted toward the School in the distance.

She froze.

Someone was standing in front of it.

The figure was cloaked in shadows, its face obscured by a hood, but something about its stance sent a chill down her spine. It was... human?

Or at least, it looked that way.

Kissy’s breath hitched as she tried to focus on it—to get a better look—but the moment she did, the figure vanished?

A deep, unsettling feeling coiled in her chest.

Poppy, perched on her shoulder, immediately noticed the change in her demeanor. She shifted slightly, frowning.

"Kissy?"

But Kissy didn’t respond. She just stood there, unmoving, eyes locked on the empty spot where the figure had been.

Poppy followed her gaze, scanning the area below, but saw nothing unusual. Then again, she was just a doll. She didn’t have instincts the way Kissy did. She couldn’t sense a predator.

Kissy finally turned to her, a silent unease flickering in her eyes, as if trying to say something.

But instead, she just moved forward, leaving Poppy with a lingering feeling that something was very, very wrong.

---

Footsteps echoed through the dark hallway, each step slow and deliberate. Dim lights flickered weakly in the corners, casting long shadows, but much of the corridor remained drowned in darkness.



The intruder scanned the area.

The once pristine and lively School was now a ruin. Desks and chairs lay overturned, doors hung from their hinges, and windows were shattered—jagged remnants of glass clinging desperately to their frames. And blood marks everywhere...

Deep cracks and holes splintered across the walls, and the floor was littered with scattered papers, torn bags, and rusted lockers that had been wrenched open and left to decay.

Amid the chaos, the intruder’s eyes landed on a crumpled drawing buried beneath the debris.

The intruder bent down, picking it up carefully. It was a child’s messy sketch of Kissy Missy, drawn with shaky hands in bright, faded colors. A faint crease ran through it, as if someone had once held onto it tightly, cherishing it.

Then—

A soft sound came from behind.

A quiet shift of movement. Not accidental but Deliberate.

"I wouldn’t do that if I were you, Miss Delight." The voice was cool, unhurried.

Miss Delight froze mid-swing, her grip tight around Barb, the weapon poised above her shoulder, ready to strike.

She was just five steps behind the intruder. Her stance remained firm, her breathing steady, but her mind raced.

The intruder hadn’t turned around. They remained still, holding the crumpled drawing of Kissy Missy between their fingers, as if completely unbothered by the impending attack.

Slowly, they raised their hand, delicately brushing off the dust clinging to the paper.

"You still prefer sneak attacks, I see," the intruder mused. The voice was smooth, calm—too calm.

Miss Delight’s expression darkened. There was something unsettlingly familiar about that voice.

The intruder finally turned.

The dim, flickering lights barely illuminated them, but as they took a step forward, their features became clearer. Platinum-white hair curled at the ends, cascading over their shoulders. A sharp, knowing gaze settled on Miss Delight—eyes like burning rubies.

Red.

She knew those eyes.

Miss Delight stiffened. The tension in her fingers loosened for just a second.

A second too long.

In a blink, the intruder closed the distance between them.

Before Miss Delight could react, a sharp, chitinous limb shot forward, coiling around Barb like a vice. Not an arm. Not human. A scorpion’s tail.

"Now, now," the intruder said smoothly, tilting their head. "That’s no way to greet an old friend..."

The last flicker of light overhead shone down, illuminating the full extent of the intruder’s face.

Miss Delight felt the blood drain from hers.

"Yazmina."

(Cutie chibi of Yaz 😍)