Often did he return to this place, even long after the great hour where their agonizing oppressors ceased to be, he can be found here. A cavernous sanctuary he dedicated to his lord and savior. A sacred place, a holy ground, a place where serene quietude embraced his meditations, his prayers.
And in the center of this tranquility lies the object of his devotion. A shrine, whose visage still yet pales in comparison to the original, to the Prototype's opulent divinity. This is the place of Catnap's holy dreams, hiss sleepless meditations. Whenever he is not ensuring order within the confines of Playcare, or reminding the heretics of their sins, this is where he is.
Here, every thought, every dream, every prayer that is ushered from his mind and heart in dedicated to nothing else but to the Prototype. It is here that his dearest and most profound thoughts are culminated, made towards the edification of the Prototype's glory.
Even here and now, kneeling in total submission to his idol, there is not a single meaningless utterance that Catnap wouldn't dare say. For here there is no room for any doubt, for any discrepancies between truth and the Prototype's words. Here, there is only one truth, the core virtue of all of Catnap's beliefs. The Prototype has set them free.
However, then the Interloper came, and to this very moment is ruining everything.
First Huggy abandoning his post, to then releasing of the Chief of Heretics, to Mommy's disappearance, the Interloper's influence has wreaked havoc on the Prototype's domains, shaking his iron rule to its core. And to further add to these despicable offenses, as if his evil has no bounds, the Interloper attempted to free the heretics from their prisons! He even managed to leave this place with one!
But then that,…that thing appeared…
When he had the Interloper in his grasp, just when he tasted the sweet savor of triumph, that creature appeared behind the ex-worker. That thing with wings so massive it was almost boundless, there was hardly a discernible bodily form, even now it is becoming hard to recollect its features due to the seemingly incomprehensibility of it.
And then there was the Interloper. No matter how hard he tried to shake it from his mind he could not forget the look on his face. From once there was a mere mortal quivering in fear, to then bear a gaze that burned with such unquenchable rage that demons would tremble. There was something within those eyes, Catnap had seen it, felt it, and what a strange feeling it emitted. It was hot enough to melt all that isn't pure of heart, and yet warm enough to comfort those that are. Those eyes were like fire.
Then just as quickly as he his own gaze met the Interloper's, he was hit, struck. No one has ever dared such a thing. To do so would be insanity, madness. But yet it did.
By the time he had reawakened, Catnap limped his way back to his beloved idol, a his face stinged with the trickles of blood flowing down his jaw. His head throbbed with ruthless pain, a sore bruise hidden beneath his purple fur. He has no idea how long he was out for. Minutes, hours? He couldn't tell. Either way, the reality of what happened sank in.
He knew that the strength behind that punch was unnatural. And now that his thoughts leaned towards in understanding the human disrupter, underneath the seemingly apparent weakness human flesh, there is something…supernatural about him.
Not just because of the nigh eldritch being that suddenly appeared behind the Interloper, but by the many many times this nobody of a human being has slipped through death's fingers. Somehow he was able to escape Huggy, even in his own domain. He miraculously managed to survive Mommy's rigged games, and even when confronted, he slipped through her tangled web of traps. And even after all that, the Interloper has went on for days without food or a drop of water amidst nothing but endless toil and suffering.
Any human would have failed, collapsed, died. Yet this one has lived through the odds.
This human isn't normal. And it has something to do with that creature with him.
And it's all his fault.
If he wasn't incompetent, none of this would have happened. He should have killed the Interloper right where he stood, he should have dug his iron claws into his flesh and tore his face till there is nothing left but mere ribbons and carrion for the the rest of the followers to feast on. But yet he allowed himself to be blinded by his own amusement.
The Prototype told him to make the human suffer, to instill such fear that it will emanate through every hall and corridor till even the very echos will speak of his slow, torturous demise. But now it is he himself that is being tormented, to be humiliated in front of his own followers. Struck in the face by they're persecutor, their own persecutor!
His breathing was slow and deliberate, but yet still can't keep pace with his fast beating heart. His claws digging into the limestone leaving deep groves in their wake. Shame and humiliation consuming every thought of the once proud cultist priest. That human, that heretic, has humiliated him in front of his own followers, in front of his own god, and he got away with it!
It's all his fault!
All his fault!!
All his fault!!
"..." It was then that Catnap finally spoke. "FORGIVE ME. FOR I HAVE SINNED." His broken voice box rasped. "I SHOWED WEAKNESS. I FAILED TO KEEP YOUR ORDER. AND NOW MORE FOLLOWERS ARE DESERTING OUR CAUSE. DESERTING YOU. I HAD ALLOWED A BREACH TO FESTER AND WRITHE, AND NOW IT IS THREATENING ALL WE HAVE KNOWN. ALL WE HAVE BUILT."
Catnap then coughed up a small mass of phlegm, already straining to keep his weak and damaged voice box speaking. "I WILL GLADLY ACCEPT YOUR WRATH TO SATIATE YOUR ANGER. BUT THAT HUMAN, ISN'T NORMAL. THERE ARE FORCES AT PLAY THAT I DON'T KNOW OF. THERE IS THIS, THING, WITH THE INTERLOPER. I THOUGHT I KNOW WHAT I SAW, BUT I HAVE TROUBLE BELIEVING IT. I KNOW IT CAN'T BE."
He then clinches his claws into his scalp, the tips of the razor sharp nails grazing his head leaving multiple trails of gashes. "PROTOTYPE, PLEASE, IF YOU SEE ME, PLEASE TELL ME. PLEASE TELL ME WHAT I MUST DO. TELL ME WHAT THAT THING PROTECTING THE HERETIC IS. REMOVE THESE DARK THOUGHTS CLOUDING YOU HUMBLE SERVANT'S HEART AND TELL ME. TELL ME WHAT TO DO!"
The pregnant pause that follows was agony to his ears, nothing but the stillness of ear ringing silence. There was no response, no word from his god. And yet still he waited. Minutes, hours? They meant nothing to him. Catnap knew his savior heard him, and he'll wait an eternity for it. But now was not the time for such patience, there was a matter of grave importance. If He leaves this unresolved, then the damages the Interloper will cause will become irreversible.
It was then that a certain feeling began to grow within him. An alien, itching feeling at the back of his mind.
Does the Prototype, not care what is happening?
No. It couldn't be! Catnap mentally gnawed on his own mind, a dark imagination of him torturing himself. How dare he think of such doubt, such heresy!? He will tear out his own heart and feed it to his own master before letting such unfaithfulness sink its vile roots in him. Even now as those disbelieving thoughts danced in his head his claws dug deeper into his scalp, threatening the puncture even through his skull.
But could it be true? Has his failure for fulfilling his god's wish made him contemptible in his lord's eyes?
Has the Prototype abandoned him? NO! IT CAN'T BE!!
Then where is he? EVERYWHERE!
Except for here. HE IS ALWAYS WATCHING.
Watching you fail.
I HAVE NOT.
Who are you really in the Prototype's eyes?
SILENCE.
You call yourself a priest. Yet look around you.
I SAID SILENCE!
This temple is just a cave full of corpses. Your shrine a mass of twisted bodies.
CEASE THIS HERESY!
Is it any surprise that you have so few followers?
THE MINI-CRITTERS…
Follow you unwillingly.
THEN THEY WILL BE PUNISHED.
Like what you did to your friends?
THEY ARE NOT MY FRIENDS.
Yes. Because you are a freak.
I DO NOT CARE.
But they did care.
LIES.
It was you that made yourself a freak.
LIES!
Your friends are suffering because of you.
THEY MADE THEIR CHOICE.
Did they? Did they want to turn against you? Is they why you tormented them?
ALL IN SERVICE FOR THE PROTOTYPE.
They cared for you.
ALL FOR THE PROTOTYPE.
They nurtured you.
ALL FOR THE PROTOTYPE.
They loved you.
ALL FOR THE PROTOTYPE.
You failed your god.
ALL FOR THE PROTOTYPE.
But most of all…
ALL FOR THE PROTOTYPE.
You failed your friends.
*BASH!!!*
Before he had even realized it, Catnap's paws crushed the limestone floor beneath them, webs of cracks stemming from the small individual craters. His breathing has hastened to an unbearable rate, billowing breaths shooting to and fro from his gaping maw in rapid succession. One could even see mist if they looked at his raggedy gasps in the candlelight.
His white, glowing irises pierced the dark, burning even brighter than the candle lit fires dancing on their wicks. A furious, uncontrollable rage flooding through his very being. Burning hotter than the stoking fever overcoming him. Drops of cold sweat dripped from his brow, and though there is not a soul around him, he is relieved, for they concealed the tears trickling from his sockets.
And then for the first time in what felt like eternity, Catnap felt ashamed. Alone.
He then bowed his head, and simply sat there, like a monk in prayer.
But then he noticed something approaching him, coming from above. He instinctively knew who it was, and payed absolute submission towards him.
Descending down from above the shrine, a blackened form concealed begins to emerge between the two massive stalactite pillars, the totality of his being conceal in the darkness. However in the faint candlelight some of its visage is shown. The body silhouetted in the dark is massive, towering over even Catnap like an all encompassing shadow.
Supporting the giant between the pillars are two very different kinds of legs. The leg on the left appearing organic and shaped like an animal's leg, it looked darkened with many malformations, like it is dead and rotting. On the right side is a pair of scythe-like appendages, mechanical in nature, their sharp tips piercing into the limestone like anchors. Keeping the monstrous creature steady is an enormous arm, fleshly, with visible muscle fibers beneath exposed patches of rotting skin.
And the other arm, reaching out towards Catnap, is a long, skeletal, mechanical arm.
"What are you doing?" The Prototype said through the many voices of his victims. "Why are you here?"
"THE ENEMY…IS NOT AS WEAK AS I THOUGHT." Catnap groaned, his throat scratchy and irritated. But he didn't hesitate to stop to bow himself even lower. "AND I…I HAVE FAILED YOU."
The Prototype glared down at his pupil. "That is not the full answer."
Catnap felt ashamed, but he wasted not another word to his master. "THERE…EXISTS SOMETHING THAT, THAT I DO NOT UNDERSTAND. FORCES THAT ARE BEYOND ME. AND THE HUMAN…THE HUMAN IS INVOLVED."
"Get to the point." The Prototype growled.
Catnap winced as those harsh words pierced through his ears. "THE INTERLOPER HAS AN ALLY. AN ALLY THAT I CANNOT UNDERSTAND. IT…I THOUGHT I KNEW WHAT IT IS, BUT IT IS NOT NORMAL. IT IS SUPERNATURAL. AN..."
He then kneeled down even further, till his face was flush against the cave floor. Pulling his intertwined paws up like a begging prisoner or a devout in prayer. "I…HAVE FAILED YOU. I HAVE FAILED YOU AND HAVE EMBARRASSED YOUR GOOD NAME. I HAD ALLOWED THE INTERLOPER TO DESECRATE YOUR HOLY GROUNDS AND TURN YOUR FOLLOWERS AGAINST YOU. I SHOWED WEAKNESS, AND FAILED YOU. I…CAME HERE, TO BE PUNISHED. DO WITH ME AS YOU SEE FIT."
"Failed me?" The Prototype said as he leaned down further like a vulture observing his prey. The mechanical hand extending forwards and gently cupping Catnap's cheek, the needle-like fingers softly grazing across his disciple's face. "Must I remind you of why I chose you? When I first found you, you were nothing. You were small, a little child crying out for their mother. And then, one fateful day, you proved yourself to me. I then saw something in you, something strong, unshakeable. The potential of your unbreakable will. A true, prophet."
The Prototype's grip on Catnap then suddenly got stern. "But now, it seems you have forgotten." Then as quick as lightning the mechanical hand suddenly swiped across Catnap's face, leaving a trio of open wounds of torn fabric.
While Catnap flinched. He didn't object. He simply excepted it.
"So yes Catnap, you did fail me." Then before Catnap knew it, the massive fist from the Prototype's fleshly arm punched him on his side sending him tumbling back a dozen feet, he can feel some ribs cracking as he laid there like a whimpering animal. "But not the way you think." The beast said as it landed on the cave floor with enough force to shake the whole cavern. It then took Catnap's chin with its iron hand and forced him to look up at him. "Humiliate me? What do I care about what a few toys have to say about me?"
The Prototype then with the other arm slammed Catnap's head against the limestone ground, pinning him to the floor. "That rabble Poppy spreading her insignificant words mean nothing to me. Yes, I know what has been happening around here. I see and hear everything."
Catnap was then raised back up, and then earned another swipe across the face, this time cutting through his lower lip and into the hard plastic. "Even that moment you were struck down. But what do I care? The human managed to knock you down, and now they have something to say to turn everyone against me? So what? A mere inconvenience it all is, so I will overlook that."
Another punch across the face, and this time Catnap could hardly bring himself to stand back up again. "No, your true failure is that you came crawling back here begging for validation, to be punished!" The Prototype then stabbed its fingers into one of Catnap's paws. The purple feline hissed in pain as the wound began bleeding out. But even still he didn't object.
"Behaving like a whimpering dog returning to his owner, like the little wretch Dogday." The beast cruelly mocked. "Always looking for pity with sad words and watery eyes, just like you are doing." Yet another strike. "I did not choose a dog to be my right hand, I chose Catnap! I chose a predator! A ruthless, merciless executioner! Not that little pathetic whelp that you've grown so attached to."
It was then that he paused for a moment, then it dawned on the Prototype. "…Perhaps, that is why you've grown passively." Catnap's eyes widened at that statement. And yet the Prototype kept talking, his voice darkening into a malevolent anger that it could black out the stars. "Yes, I see now, it's those heretics you've kept in your dungeons. They have perverted your devotion, Catnap. Poisonedyou."
The Prototype then gripped Catnap by the neck with his fleshly hand and then pulled him face down to the cave floor. He then raised his mechanical claw up and pressed the tips into the base of his back. Catnap knew what was coming and embraced it.
"They took my Catnap…" The needle fingers then pressed in. Deeply.
"…and they turned him…" He then slowly pulled them along his back.
"…into a quivering…" Cutting up the fur.
"…cowardly…" Leaving deep wounds all the way up to the nape.
"…Dog."
Once the deed was done, Catnap isn't even bothering to move anymore. His world is spinning in a daze, all he could sense is the copper taste of blood in his mouth. The cuts trailing along his back may heal soon, but the pain was mind numbing. Cuts deep enough to touch his ribcage, with trails of blood running down his sides. Catnap wanted to cry, but he couldn't, shouldn't, not when his very god is standing before him. He won't allow himself to falter in front of the god that saved them all.
He then felt those same needle fingers pick up his chin, now stained red with his own blood. He looked into the Prototype's eyes, the two sockets containing ann organic eye and the other a red optic. Catnap expected another thrashing, another way to punish him, he knows it he has many ways during all the time the Prototype wished to "discipline" him.
But instead, the Prototype's angry gaze seemed to soften. "But don't worry, my child. There is a way for you to redeem yourself."
The Prototype then leaned down and dusted his servant off of all the dust and debris that stuck onto him during the beating. "For though you had shown weakness, I will teach you to be stronger. You wanted to know of the creature that was with the Interloper? What it is? Well…here is your answer…"
He then leaned in, close to Catnap's ear, and carried trough his hot breath he whispered. "That thing, Catnap…is a demon."
A rush of emotions flooded through Catnap, it couldn't be, could it? "Can't you see? What else could it be? Don't let its strange and seeming divine opulence fool you. It is all fake, a facade. And the worst part of it? The Interloper is allegiant to it. How else could he have been given such strength spontaneously?"
Though Catnap' body is weak after his beating, the very thought that there is a demon, a literal evil spirit, loose within his own grounds, made his flesh fail and his bones quiver. "Though I must not put all the blame on you for your failure, Catnap. For now it is certain that it is not only the human that is subservient towards the demon, but the other heretics as well. Poppy, Kissy,…even Dogday"
"DOGDAY…" Catnap slowly, and weakly whispered, his voice so distorted that it was near incomprehensible. But laced within that uttered name was a building rage within his chest, burning even more intensely than the lashings on his flesh. A time before he had offered the canine plush a chance to be at his side, he refused and rebelled. And now to add to his treachery, he has even sided with an even deeper darkness than the monsters that tormented them?!
"I almost pity you, my disciple." The Prototype continued. "To see your old friend turn to such evil. Which is why I will be lenient with you, and offer you a chance to redeem yourself."
Catnap looked up, gazing at the Prototype's unnatural eyes. Awaiting his god's words. "I want you to eliminate them all. Poppy, Kissy, Dogday, all of them. Make their deaths as excruciating as possible. The more creative, the better."
For once now, Catnap is actually happy at the thought of killing Dogday. He once thought of him as a friend, a brother, and now, he is something worse than he could imagine. Then for good measure, once he is done with Dogday, he'll present his corpse to the other Smiling Critters. Plop it down at their feet, drink in their sorrow, and once their despair reaches their zenith he will kill them for good measure. There will be no more demons. No more heretics.
"But first and foremost, Catnap. Before you eliminate them." The prototype then leaned into his ear, and slowly whispered.
"Pin the human,..and make him watch,..as you killhis friends."
Somehow, Catnap's mad grin, suddenly grew wider…