"The Infection" by TheJournal4
Ø scanned the wasteland for any of the Cat-Beasts. He saw none. He looked back at the Rebels fighting against the machines, they weren't winning. He watched as the machines tore them apart like paper in water.
24 came up behind him with her spear in hand, her optics flashed brightly. He turned to her and the rest of his companions: 72, 85, 12, and 48. He flashed a message with his optics. "No point in trying to help them. Cat-Beasts and other horrors are on the prowl."
His companions flashed their optics in an understanding way. Ø held up his metal hand. His sensors picked up something closing in on them. 24 and 12 raised their spears and got back to back.
85 and 48 clenched their knives tightly. 72 came to Ø's side and handed him his long knife. "Thank you," he flashed. He looked back up just as a Cat-Beast ambushed them. Ø threw his spear into the Cat-Beast's side, it didn't do much.
48 flashed a message to Ø as the beast attacked them. "There's more! AMBUSH!" he flickered in a panic. Ø and 72 watched in horror as more than ten Cat-Beasts attacked them. They could do nothing as they were picked apart one by one.
72 fended off one of the Cat-Beast with Ø right behind her. He watched as 85 tried to fight a Cat-Beast. When he swung his knife with all his strength, the beast jumped away to reveal one of the bullets from the war-machines.
85 struck the bullet and it exploded, Ø didn't see 85 move after that, he just was a motionless Stitchpunk burning away. He looked at all his friends be torn apart. 48 was snatched up by a Cat-Beast then carried off to the factory. 24 was dragged away by many Cat-Beasts.
He couldn't find 12 at all, she vanished amongst the ambush. He looked back at 72, heavily wounded and barely holding her spear. He ran up and took her spear and held it in his right hand with his knife in the left.
He made loud clinging noises with his weapons and flashed," Hey! Big ugly! Come on get me!" then ran into the wasteland. The Cat-Beats abandon the last Stitchpunk and chased after Ø.
72 looked at Ø as he leads them away from his companions. She heard a large whistle in the air. She looked at the sky as one of the Rebel artillery shells came down. She realized that it was going to hit Ø and the Cat-Beasts.
She flickered her optics, trying to warn him of the incoming shell. But as she sent the message…the shell hit the ground. Chunks from the Cat-Beasts went flying. She sat against the rocks, her friends were gone. She was alone.
Her spear came crashing down from the air into the ground at her feet. She looked up at it as it was burning from the explosion. "Ø…" she thought and her head slumped down sadly. She heard the clunking of feet coming towards her. She raised her head and saw 12 hobbling towards her, missing an arm.
12 sat next to her. "They're gone. We're alone," 12 flickered with her optics at 72. "But we're alive," 72 flickered back. They watched as the toxic gas filled the city and killed everyone. The Rebels who launched their final attack shot into the Fabrication Machine's domain then were mowed down by the machines.
They were the 2nd Generation of the Stitchpunks, created by a close friend of the Scientist who gave him a copy of his work. They were sent to gather intel on the Factory but they failed. They were ambushed and nearly all the Stitchpunks sent were eliminated.
Ø, the Professor's first and basic son, had overseen the team. He had chosen the first of the 2nd Generation to be part of the team. No more Stitchpunks were made after the ambush, Ø had the second talisman but it was lost in his demise.
Years later, after the destruction of the Fabrication Machine, the 2nd Generation emerges from their hibernation. As they emerge, a new threat rises from the ashes of the past of the 2nd Generation. An infection. A virus. Designed to turn them against each other. But who made it? Who unleashed it?
The world is now theirs, and they will fight to keep it that way.