Disclaimer: I don't own '9' or any of the characters from the movie.
Hey! I'm not dead!
For those who don't know, I'm BeachCat. I kind of fell off the fan fiction map for a while, but I found my way back.
So, I had an awesome description of who I am and what I'm working on but my computer twitched and it went away. -sad face- So here is a summary of what I had said.
I used to write Detective Conan fan fictions 'til I fell in love with '9,' blah blah blah, I am working on many fan fictions currently including the sister story to this one and two Despicable me fan fictions. Sorry in advance for irregular posts, I will work hard to make them enjoyable, yada yada yada, Enjoy!
Flowers to Dust
Sad.
Broken.
A world in ruins.
Dusty and moldered.
Gray and depressing.
Silent.
… Emptiness …
These words would be the first used by any person to describe this place.
The remnants of the buildings of a once-great city stood like shadows in the dull glow of morning. Crumbled and decayed with the wear and tear of time. Like teetering headstones for those that lay dead in the streets, on the verge of tumbling down and crushing the human remains. Dry, dead sticks – once fragrant, blooming trees – stuck out of the ground with snapped and jagged branches. Chunks of brick, shattered glass, twisted metal, and splintered wood lay where they had fallen so long ago. Rusted automobiles sat, broken down in the dusty roads, and blended with the general scene.
Yes. Any person would describe it that way… if there were any left alive.
The last words to use for such a place would be beautiful or familiar. Last of all: … Safe.
One would think that were the case; however, there were some – four exactly – who found those words suitable for their environment, their home… More or less.
9 sat on the cracked steps of a small shop – one that had been lucky and was still mostly intact – and watched as the twins, 3 and 4, dashed about examining and cataloguing everything and anything that looked different or interesting in the general vicinity where the small group had stopped to rest the night before. Across the clearing in the debris came a shuffling and a shifting of stones. He smiled and waved when a familiar pale stitchpunk climbed over a pile of rubble and into view.
"7!" He called to catch her attention.
7, jumping down from the pile, lifted her bird-skull helmet and waved in return.
The twins, who had heard 9's shout, rushed towards the pale warrior carrying with them their latest find. 7 laid her spear against a nearby brick and greeted the twins with a patient smile as they excitedly shoved the paper object into her arms. 4 then ran up to the side of the steps beneath 9, quickly followed by 3. A flickering light shot out of 4's optics and 9 jumped down from his seat on the step and stood beside them to glimpse the image. On the stone step shone an image of a strange drawing. It looked like it came from one the twins' library books, though 9 had never seen anything like it before. It had one leg – that was the only thing 9 could think to call it – that attached directly to the top of whatever it was. The top had a strange, bowl-like object sticking out of the middle and partial oval shapes encircled it. Scribbled on the top right corner of the faint image was the word "Daffodil."
4 fell limply into 3's arms as the image faded away with slowing clicks.
"Is this supposed to be like that?" 7 asked, indicating the image on the paper. The image there was somewhat different. It still had the one leg, but at the top there was no bowl-like object; instead, there was a round button-like object surrounded by many white ovals.
Both 3 and 4 nodded. 3 took the object and – to 9 and 7's surprise – ripped the top off of it. As it turned out, the paper object was a package of sorts and the twins each reached inside and brought out a small, flat object. 4 pointed to some text next to the image.
"Daisy seeds," 9 read aloud. "So those seeds become a daisy like that. How?"
The twins looked at each other, quickly having a mute discussion with the flickering of their eyes. When they turned away, 4 knelt down and began scratching a hole in the somewhat moist ground and 3 ran off towards a puddle. Once the hole was finished, 4 placed a seed in the ground. 3 came back holding water in a curved piece of broken glass and poured the water on top of the seed. For a moment, 9 thought he saw a shimmer of green lights but the water was soon covered by the twins and he could not be sure.
"Is that all?" 7 asked as the twins patted the loose earth flat.
The twins pointed towards the partially hidden sun and back to the ground.
After a moment's hesitation, 9 asked, "Will it grow?"
The twins stood, glanced at each other, and shrugged sadly.
"Wouldn't it have been dead already? Everything else is." 7 asked gently.
The twins blinked and gave a bewildered shrug. They hadn't thought about that. 3 poured the rest of the seeds on the ground and blinked at 4. 4 nodded and began digging another hole while 3 fetched more water. Regardless of their doubts, it seemed the two wanted to finish planting the rest.
9 smiled, "Maybe they will grow," he said – more to himself than anyone else.
"At least it gives them something to do besides cataloging." 7 picked up her spear and climbed up to the top of the stone steps for a better view. "Outside their books, outside the library, it's all dust." She sat with a contented sigh and laughed as 3 flicked some water at 4 who began chasing the other. "I suppose they still like it."
The twins suddenly ran beyond the small valley between the piles of rubble, out of sight. 9 shifted uneasily but 7 patted the spot next to her, beckoning him to join her.
"They'll be fine. I didn't see any sign of Creepers." 9 clambered up the steps and sat beside her while she continued. "I haven't for a while now. The last time we found one wandering around was," she paused to think, "about a month ago. And it was alone."
9 nodded. Back at the factory, there had been hundreds, but most of them were caught inside when 5 blew it up… His heart weighed down for a moment at the sudden reminder of his friend. He shook his head before the memories could surface.
Some of the Creepers had been outside the factory and survived the explosion. They were the only real threat to the remaining stitchpunks after the Fabrication Machine – 9 gave an involuntary shutter – was destroyed; however, they didn't attack in swarms anymore. There were only wandering individuals. 9 figured since the B.R.A.I.N. had been destroyed there was nothing guiding them and keeping them organized.
There were also the Seekers, but they were harmless. They usually floated around doing nothing in particular. The Seekers were only bothersome when they followed them around and sounded their alarm. Usually, they only did that if you bothered them. Their alarm was deafening and, when 7 finally lost patience and killed one, the silence following was just as deafening if not more so. Just another reminder of how alone they really were in this world.
9 was jerked out of his thoughts when 7 suddenly shifted closer to him and her hand slipped into his. He relaxed – had he been tense before? – and sighed contently. He stole a glance of her out of the side of his optic. She looked pinkish in the early morning sunlight. Everything about her looked so smooth, even her skull helmet seemed softer; all evidence of her rugged life seemed to melt away. The red patch glowing faintly on her back and the sewn spot on her right thigh were all of what was left and they made her all the more… beautiful.
9 looked away and nervously grasped the top of his zipper. That fluttering in his chest had come back again. It had happened a lot since the rain started falling. He wondered if that was what was causing it… though it only happened when he was like this with 7 – he had an idea why that was. Kind of like the time he sat with her on the sound maker just before 5 … No, those were memories he didn't want to think about right now.
"It's so peaceful…" 9 heard 7 whisper.
He looked at her only to find her smiling to herself. She seemed happiest out in the Emptiness. Exploring, venturing out into the unknown, living… She was more than delighted that the twins decided they wanted to explore too.
9 had been able to tell she was getting antsy staying inside the library all of the time, especially after the rain started falling. So, when the twins were within earshot, he accidentally wondered aloud how many libraries the world still had. They quickly went to 7 and 'told' her they wanted to see what was left in their world. The small group of stitchpunks had been wandering around for two months. Of course, with all the things the twins wanted to catalogue and the adversity to going near the remains of the Fabrication Machine, they hadn't gone farther than the few towns and what used to be farms surrounding the city. Regardless, the chance that they may find something new it gave them something to look forward to.
Knowing the twins were happy roaming certainly made it easier on 7; she was miserable stuck indoors but she wouldn't ever leave the twins for too long.
9 suddenly realized 7 was looking back at him and he blinked in surprise. How long had he been staring?
"What?" she asked with laughter in her voice.
"N-Nothing!" 9 stammered. He rubbed his shoulder with his free hand and looked around for the twins, "Sh-shouldn't we make sure 3 and 4 haven't wandered off too far?"
7 sat up a little and looked around. There was a small crash nearby coupled with vigorous clicking and flashing. She smiled and shook her head. "Don't worry, they didn't go off far." She nodded towards the corner where the twins had initially disappeared. The two blue hooded stitchpunks jumped out, 4 tumbling over 3 when the latter suddenly stopped. As they came running, 7 stood, grabbed her spear, and jumped down to them. 9 followed suit, grabbing his new light staff that he laid nearby. He couldn't help but feel somewhat disappointed and relieved at the same time.
By the time 9 caught up to 7 the twins had caught their breath and were pointing and flashing excitedly from the direction they had come from.
7 gripped her spear tightly and knocked her skull helmet back into place and asked, "Was it a Creeper?"
The twins shook their heads in unison causing their hoods to flap back and forth wildly. 3 took 7 and 9's hands and 4 ran around the two and pushed them from behind, herding them towards the rising sun.
"What is it?" 9 asked as he stumbled along.
3 only pulled harder while 4 stopped pushing and rushed ahead, pointing the way.
When they had gone a considerable distance – 9 wondered how the twins had made it this far and back in the seemingly small amount of time they were gone – the twins clambered up to the top of a large pile of debris and beckoned 9 and 7 to follow. 7 jumped up, avoiding a half-buried human hand, and 9 clambered after her somewhat clumsily. When the two reached the top the twins flickered and motioned about excitedly to each other. They both finally chose a single hand movement which 9 and 7 understood immediately.
"What are we listening for?" 9 asked as the twins let their cupped hands drop from the sides of their heads.
"Shh…" 7 cupped a hand by her head, her brow furrowing in concentration.
The four stitchpunks stood in the silence, the early morning light becoming a brighter shade as the sun continued to rise, but that was all there was. Silence. A light breeze blew what little dried dust lay about, producing a soft shff, but the only other audible thing was the shifting feet of the twins.
9 closed his optics, trying hard to pick up any different noises, but failed to hear anything out of the ordinary. 7's shoulders relaxed a bit as she let her hand drop back to her side.
"Whatever it was seems to be gone." She stated. Looking to the twins she asked, "What was it you heard?"
3 and 4 skittered over to the nearby wall on which the pile of debris was leaning and 3's optics began to click and flicker as the projected image came into focus.
Upward movement. 7 seated and facing away. A roaring fire and billowing smoke rose from the remains of the distant factory. Downward movement.
The image cut and resumed.
Again upward movement. The view partially obscured by a blurry, blue hood. 7 turned suddenly with a shout. Her shout was muted, though, by the noise coming from the Phonograph's blossoming horn.
Somewhere over the rainbow…
3 fell back into 4's arms but quickly recovered, as if too eager to wait for a short rest.
"You heard Sound?" 9 asked almost incredulously. That was what 6 had called that type of noise, and they hadn't found another word that was suitable for it.
The twins nodded enthusiastically, smiling a little.
"From where?" 7 asked. She seemed happy to have a challenge, even if it was just finding the source of the Sound and being done with it.
3 flickered at 4 and 4 flashed back. Both pointed just below the risen sun.
7 elbowed 9 gently. "What are we waiting for?"
9 smiled in response.
"Let me just get out my supplies; I haven't made a map of this area yet." He said, taking his map making supplies – a piece of rolled up and slightly wrinkled paper and the tip of an old broken pencil – out from behind his zipper and strapping his new light staff across his back. 9 had been mapping out the places they explored since the first rain. Almost all of 5's maps burned with Sanctuary and the few left in his pack were lost during their flight from the Fabrication Machine. It was difficult at first, but 9 had gotten the hang of it.
When he was ready, all four stitchpunks jumped down from the pile and scrambled their way down the decrepit street.
3 and 4 scampered ahead closely followed by 7. 9, though just as enthusiastic as the others, quickly fell behind when he paused to make an occasional mark or note on his map draft. He continued his slow pace for some time; he knew that the others wouldn't go too far ahead and he could easily make up for his sluggishness.
"Keep up!" he heard 7 shout in the distance.
Looking up, he discovered that the other three had covered more ground than he originally believed.
"Hold on! I'll mark my place!" he called back.
9 looked around and spotted a hollowed out, broken down car painted a once-sleek black. He noted it on his newest mark and stuffed the map back behind his zipper. After all of his supplies were back in their place, he took out one of the long nails he carried on his light staff's pack. Tying a piece of yellow ribbon to the top, he embedded the nail in the ground next to the car. Now when he came back to the spot, he could continue his map where he left off.
"Come on!" 7 called playfully, "We'll leave you behind!"
The twins fidgeted beside 7, desperate to continue searching for the mysterious Sound. 9 couldn't help but to chuckle at their energy even though he himself had a similar fervor when it came to finding truth. Ever since the first rain, he had showered 3 and 4 with questions – he had the time to do so now. They were happy to answer or find the answers to his questions. 7 would join him with her own questions, but she knew much more than 9 and occasionally answered a question before the twins could. After their departure from the Library, they made these gatherings a nightly tradition.
9 checked to see if his light staff's pack was in order then, after confirming nothing was missing, ran to catch up with the rest of his little – what had 3 and 4 called it? Oh yes – family.
Said twins had already rushed off by the time 9 made it to 7.
"Someday, I'll… be able to keep up." 9 huffed, leaning forward with his hands braced against his knees.
7 shook her head smiling, "You wouldn't have a problem if you didn't carry all of this with you." She poked his pack playfully.
"Someone has to." He said shrugging easily.
Both he and 7 turned when they heard the quick tapping of 3 and 4's feet. The twins rushed up and flickered excitedly, pointing at a building on a nearby corner.
"You found it?" 9 asked, smiling.
The twins nodded and ran off again with 7 and 9 at their heels.
The building was like many in this city: decrepit, crumbling, and covered in dust. There were a few differences that made it stand out against the others. It was a smaller building than many on this street; the front was merely twenty feet wide and only had one doorway and a few small windows. What was far more noticeable was that this building was still mostly intact with the exception of the upper right corner on the second floor. A 'dead' Walker leaned against that corner and a large hole had been knocked into the wall where the head of the Walker broke through.
A soft breeze blew a cloud of dust passed the small group and a soft jingling filled the air.
"Wait," 7 whispered as she pulled the curious twins behind her before checking the source of the noise. After a moment of looking around, 7's gaze stilled and her brow furrowed in slight confusion.
9 followed her gaze, his lens-like pupils shrinking slightly as the sun reflected off of the metal of the Walker, but he couldn't find… wait. A small flash of light reflected off of metal caught his eye, but it wasn't from the Walker. Hanging off of the edge of the hole were strings and small bells – not unlike the bell 1 had on his staff – were dangling from the ends of them.
"Probably left by the ones who lived here before," 9 muttered. It wouldn't be the first thing some person left behind. In places where there had been organized fighting, weapons stuck out of the ground and rounded helmets were placed on the top and two sticks or bits of metal tied together to form a cross with various items draped across the tops could be found scattered alongside the sandbags. There were even places that were dedicated to those memorials; though, in those places, they were made of stone and had names carved into the front. They seemed to be very solemn places, like Sanctuary had been.
The twins ducked under 7's arms and, much to the discomfort of 9 and 7, jumped up the few steps and ran through the empty doorway.
7 shook her head but smiled.
9 relaxed. 7 had always known when danger was close; if she was comfortable, then chances were there were no threats nearby. Adjusting the strap of his pack, he watched as 7 lightly made her way up the stairs and through the doorway.
"9! Come look at this!" suddenly came 7's alarmed call.
9 – forgetting his small battle with the twisted shoulder strap – dashed up the steps and …
"Oh…" he wheezed.
The inside of the building was dimly lit and hollowed out – at least the first floor was. The only traces of the missing walls were the few support beams that seemed too thin to hold anything. There were three wooden tables of varying heights placed randomly about the long room. A ratty couch sat against the right wall; fluff spilled out of the tears in the course fabric and littered the floor. Next to the couch was a large wooden bookcase, and on each shelf there were books, papers, skulls, and an assortment of odds and ends. But that wasn't the only thing covered with books. Books and papers covered most of the tables, couch, and floor. Pen and pencil filled jars were placed on top of piles of books, under the tables, on the inside of the window, and on the few steps of the staircase that weren't broken.
Then there were the posters. 9 couldn't count how many posters were plastered haphazardly onto the left wall. Each had the same man's face – he looked so familiar – or a Walker on them. Painted words had been haphazardly smeared across most of them.
9 walked over to one that had fallen onto the floor.
"Rebel…" he read in a whisper. He blinked. There were four long, ominous tears across this poster. He knelt down and examined them, tracing one of the tears with his hand. "What could have –?"
Suddenly, 9 was grabbed from behind by two very excited hooded stitchpunks.
"W-wait a second," he stammered as he was hauled towards the back of the room. The twins stopped and both of their faces fell. "Ah! Did you find the Sound?" 9 asked hurriedly, not wanting to upset them. 3 and 4 immediately perked up and pulled him farther back into the room.
Leaning up against the back right wall was a ragged desk. It was partially hidden from the view by the crumbling staircase. The twins clambered up the decaying stairs beckoning 9 to follow. He reluctantly climbed up after them, careful to stay close to the wall where the stairs were sturdiest. It didn't surprise him when the twins jumped off the back of the step and onto the desk. The gap between the underside of the ladder-like steps and the top of the desk was only a few inches wide but 9 still managed to topple over after clearing the jump.
"They found it."
9 stood and brushed the little bit of dust off of his knees before looking up at 7. She was right. Unlike most of the room, the desk was rather clean and had only a few extra objects resting on it. The most noticeable of said objects was the large phonograph sitting at the far end of the desk complete with its large flat record.
Setting his pack against an overturned can, 9 walked over to 7 who had jumped on top of the phonograph for a better look.
"It looks like it's in working condition." 7 mused.
"Whoever lived here before must have taken good care of it." 9 said nodding, but there was this strange feeling that something was off… "Wait," 9 turned to 3 and 4, "Are you sure you heard this one?"
The twins looked at each other before nodding affirmatively. 7 jumped lightly down from where she stood and strode to the end of the desk near the gap in the stairs, seemly ignoring the others' conversation.
"These only make Sound if you turn that, right?" 9 asked, pointing to the winding bit. Again, affirmative nods. "…Then what made it –"
"Shh!"
7 had her spear in hand and had knocked her skull helmet in place. She backed up slowly, her eyes never leaving the open doorway.
"Get behind that," she whispered, nodding back to the phonograph.
Without question, 9 motioned to the twins to follow him and hid in between the back of the phonograph and the wall. The twins each put a hand on his shoulders as they hid behind him and only just dared to peek over his shoulders.
"7!" 9 risked a whisper but was cut off.
Crunch… crunch… crunch … crunch…
The uneven sound of crushed dirt was getting louder, closer. The high pitched scraping sound of metal limbs joined the already frightening noise of the footsteps. There were strange clicking and whirring noises every time the footsteps and scraping paused.
9 desperately wanted to motion for 7 to hide as well, but her back was turned to him as she faced the doorway, tensed for whatever was making those horrendous noises.
Crunch… crunch… cru – thump.
9's optics widened in fear when he saw the size of the shadowed silhouette in the doorway. The thing stood tall, taking up at least two-thirds of the height of the doorway. It was almost completely covered in sagging, ragged, coarse cloth that swayed back and forth as it looked about the room. The only things not covered by the cloth were a single large, black, empty optic that extended and retreated with whirs and clicks and a long, frightening metal arm. At the end of the arm, three claw-like fingers and thumb twitched with short, soft scraping noises.
7 slowly backed into the corner beside 9 and the twins.
"We have to get out of here!" she breathed.
9 nodded, but could see no way out; the beast was still too close to the doorway for them to get out through there unnoticed. But the door was the only way … the hole! The stairs went to the second floor where the hole in the wall was! If they could make it up there, they could climb down the Walker and escape. It was possible that they would be seen, but hopefully the beast wouldn't be able to follow them up the decaying steps.
"Up there!" he pointed towards the upper floor.
7 nodded.
When the beast turned away, the stitchpunks ran quietly forward, ducking behind the few books that sat on the desk to keep out of sight. 9 looked over the overturned can he was hiding behind before signaling 7, 3, and 4 to go to the stairs. He tensed as they jumped across the gap – hoping that they would go unnoticed – and breathed a sigh of relief when they had all made it across and hid behind one of the many pen cups placed on the steps.
Slowly and carefully, he picked up his pack that he had left against the can and slipped it on. The beast seemed preoccupied with examining the posters on the left wall, so 9 just had to go around the can without –
Tp! … Ro ro ro rooo rroo – Clang!
9 froze, his back turned to the can. One of the nails on his pack had come loose, rolled across the desk, and fallen onto the floor… loudly.
A low growling emitted from nearby … and 9 knew what it came from.
The beast was no longer occupied by the posters. Instead, its one black optic was glued in his direction. 9 held completely still as the beast swayed back and forth, searching. Glancing up with his eyes only, he saw the twins hiding behind a horrified 7, each holding their breaths. 7 was gripping her spear tightly, looking ready to jump out and defend him. 9 barely shook his head hoping 7 would take the twins away if worse came to worse.
Click… The beast had stopped swaying. Its optic went from the nail on the floor to the stitchpunk on the table. Its metal fingers twitched momentarily before that too stopped.
Then it attacked.
I know, I'm evil. But hey! The more reviews I get the more I want to write. So press that nifty button down there and bang on the keyboard until you form a coherent sentence! Yay! Feel free to critique, this is my first '9' fan fiction after all.