While Tet enjoyed himself in Orario, the Horsemen were off doing their own thing.
Strife and Fury were on vacation with their friends and significant others. Fury had taken the rest of Team STRQ to One Piece for some fun, grinning with arms crossed as she watched Tai and Qrow marvel at the new world around them. Meanwhile, Strife took his girls to his personal plane, proudly showing it off while they all began building and decorating every corner to everyone's liking, laughter and excited chatter bouncing off the walls.
War, on the other hand, spent time at home, relaxing for once. He sat on the couch with a faint, content smile, watching movies with his wife while their dog curled up at his feet, enjoying the rare peace and quiet that softened his usually stern features.
But Death… Death was busy.
-----
In the dead of night, a lone car parked in the empty parking lot of Fredbear's Family Diner. Out of the car stepped the security guard, rubbing his tired eyes before unlocking the front door and walking inside to begin the 5th night of his shift.
As he walked past the dining area, he froze mid-step. His breath caught in his throat as he peered inside to see something very bizarre. A young boy, no older than ten, with messy black hair and dark eyes, sat casually at a table eating pizza. Even more bizarre, the animatronics were all sitting at the table with him. They were calm. Completely still… yet alive.
The boy looked at each animatronic in turn, nodding and responding to silent questions as if he could hear them speak directly into his mind.
The security guard finally snapped out of his daze. Swallowing hard, he stepped forward and managed to speak. "Excuse me, little boy… how'd you get in here?"
The moment his presence was known, the animatronics all turned toward him in unison, their eyes glowing bright red, full of murderous intent.
The boy raised his hand quickly, expression firm as he commanded, "It's okay. Everyone relax."
At his words, the animatronics immediately returned to their previous calm posture, eyes dimming back to normal. The boy looked at the terrified guard and said, with a smirk tugging at his lips, "As for how I got in? My dear friends here opened the door, obviously."
Fredbear nodded his large head happily to confirm.
The boy continued with a tilt of his head, "Does that answer your question, William?"
The security guard backed away, panic twisting his face. "I… I never told you my name," he stammered.
The boy stood slowly, wiping pizza sauce from the corner of his mouth. With a chilling confidence, he said, "You didn't have to. My new friends told me all about you, William Afton."
William's blood ran cold.
"They know you're here to dismantle them and hide the evidence of your misdeeds," the boy continued, fury burning behind his once-innocent eyes. "They know you plan to kill your old business partner's daughter at her birthday party tomorrow and make it look like an accident. They've been trying to stop you for days. That's why they called out to me. To help them."
William backed up farther, nearly tripping over himself, voice breaking into a frantic snarl. "Who the fuck are you?"
The boy smiled darkly, his tone dropping into something ancient and terrifying. "I'm Nico. But you can call me Death."
Nico's eyes flashed a demonic, bright yellow. William turned and ran like a bat out of hell, pure terror launching him into a sprint.
Nico chuckled lightly and said, almost amused, "They always run, don't they?"
He turned to Freddy and promised in a gentle tone, "I'll be back soon, okay?"
The animatronics nodded happily, trusting him fully, as Nico walked down the hallway at a slow, unbothered pace.
William, meanwhile, had made it to his office and slammed the door shut before sealing it tight. He let out a shaky sigh of relief. "Good luck getting through that, brat," he muttered.
He backed up to catch his breath and slammed into something solid.
He turned around.
Death himself loomed above him, eyes glowing like molten gold, shadows writhing around him like living smoke. William froze, unable to scream.
Death's voice echoed like a final verdict. "Your soul is mine."
He plunged his hand into William's chest with supernatural force and ripped out his soul, screaming and thrashing in spectral agony.
Death returned to the dining area, where a tall man with long black hair and a matching black beard now sat comfortably at the table with the animatronics. The air around him radiated divine power.
Death shifted form back into Nico, his childish appearance returning. "Dad? What are you doing here?"
Hades grinned widely, amused. "Can't a father visit his son at work? It was a pleasure seeing you in action, son, though it was a little cliche, don't you think?"
Nico pouted, cheeks puffing slightly. "I thought I was terrifying."
Hades nodded with a playful chuckle. "Yes, but those kinds of theatrics will only frighten mortals. You need to work harder if you want to scare the true monsters."
Nico sighed, accepting the critique quietly. "Okay…"
He presented the soul with both hands, offering it respectfully. Hades took it, inspecting its flickering form. "I see. A serial child killer. The Furies will have fun with you," he declared, then flicked his wrist dismissively. William's soul vanished, dragged screaming toward the Underworld.
Hades stood and looked around at the animatronics thoughtfully. "As for all of you, it is time to go. Rest peacefully now."
The animatronics melted away like wax beneath sunlight, and in their place appeared the smiling souls of the children they once were. Their ghostly forms shined with purity before disappearing in a flash of comforting light.
Hades smiled warmly. "Makaria will greet them kindly. She's really taken to her new job. She loves greeting new arrivals."
He turned to Nico again, eager and proud. "Where to next, my boy?"
Nico pulled out a folded list from his pocket. "Next, I'm heading to a factory called Playtime Co… and also killing someone named Leith Pierre."
(Authors Note: so a quick head's up I'm going to be making the Castiel side story regular chapters again as when I separated everything into volumes I didn't know what I was doing for my older readers you might want to go back and make sure your up to date on those so your not lost because I have updated it a bit )