"We wanted to create an animatronic character that would be able to roam freely around an amusement park and greet children. Ruyt was our first prototype, but kept bumping into stuff, so we gave it a sort of intelligence so it could detect and avoid obstacles. When we revealed it to the higher-ups, they didn't like the design, so we scrapped the whole robot and had to design new mascots, more appealing to children.

We used the same type of intelligence that we implemented on Ruyt, and during the tests their AI started developing on its own without any outside influence. The animatronics started showing signs of consciousness, becoming overprotective of children and never letting anyone get near them, and even started panicking when they were left alone or when they were about to be shut down. When we started them up again, we found they had somehow been conscious the whole time, blind, numb, and only able to hear only the echoes of their own insanity, making them more unstable.

The higher-ups were creeped out and decided to cancel the project. All of us were fired and the robots were dismantled, gun shots directly to their cores so they wouldn't have to stand their screaming. They allowed us to keep our plans and all the metal cadavers, but Ruyt was nowhere to be seen. It wasn't mentioned ever since it was scrapped, and it had the same program as the other robots, so surely it must be conscious? I tried to enter the building again, but they kicked me out and threatened a lawsuit. When I called to ask about a missing animatronic in some closet, no one answered.

It's been 30 years. Dear God, Ruyt... I wish I could ask if you're alright, but I know for a fact you're not. As grim as it is, I hope you're found wherever you're trapped in, and the eternal echo of your own madness resonating within your circuits is put to an end soon. It's probably the happiest ending you could ask for."

Inspired by Backup Missingno's Gogos redesigns, and on my own Ruyt which had the paint in its face scraped off.