Chapter one- The awakening

I opened one eye. Then the other. Images flooded into my brain. At first, I did not understand. Who was I? What was I? Brief images of previous knowledge flashed throughout my mind, although I could pin-point none of it.

You need to find a cure. You need to find the cure.

A voice nagged me onward, although I couldn't recognize who it belonged to, either. Was it my own?

I cleared my throat. Could I speak?

"Hello?"

So I could. The voice emerging from my lips sounded far different than the one in my head. My own voice was higher pitched, softer, scared. The voice in my head was deep, and commanding. Part of me feared it. Part of me loved it.

"Is. . . Someone there?" There was a fountain of knowledge sprouting from within my mind, continuously guiding my thoughts forward. Move. The voice in my head said. Walk.

I mimicked the movements that my head suggested, slowly managing to stand. I looked down at my hands, slowly wiggling my small metal fingers. I moved my hands away, taking in the rest of my body. My feet seemed to be made of the same material as my hands, and a dark fabric formed the rest of me. Awkward stitches spread across my chest. I ran my finger through them, wondering if there was a purpose to the seemingly random design.

My eyes began to burn. Blink.

I blinked.

And I blinked once more.

Slowly, an unconscious rhythm formed within my mind, forcing my eyelids to open and close of their own accord. I looked around me, slowly choosing the easiest path to move forward. Everything around me seemed dulled, dark.

"Hello?" I tried my luck once more. Being alone had begun to feel me with fear, as the darkness grew thicker. There was something about the darkness. Something blaring warning sirens through my newborn mind.

Find the light. Or the darkness will swallow you.

Swallow me? The words made my fear grow rapidly. I held onto the voice's advice, and began to run. My weak legs caused me to stumble more than once, but I dragged myself forward. I could almost feel the darkness chasing me, drool hanging from its half-open mouth.

Light! There it was! My heart skipped a beat, and I forced my legs to move faster. The light danced just out of reach. Fire. My mind told me.

But the fire wasn't alone. Four small shadows surrounded it. One of them turned towards me as I stumbled closer. The shadow had a strange device in his hand. The fire burned bright in the middle of a circle, and at the edges of it, small pieces of fabric hung from crosses, with numbers painted in black ink.

"Hello?" I said, for lack of anything better to say. I did not know who they were. I trusted they were better than the darkness.

The ragdoll whose eyes first fell upon me stepped closer, his eyes packed with confusion. For the first time, I wondered what my own faced looked like. The concern in his eyes told me I did not look very good.

"Hello," He finally echoed. His voice was deeper than mine. Soothing. Far too soothing to belong to the voice in my head. "Who. . . Who are you?"

I shook my head. "I don't know. I just . . . woke up. The darkness was chasing me so I followed the light. . ."

I wondered if my words sounded out of place. He didn't seem to care though. He simply nodded.

"Another one?" This voice was closer to my own. Although it was full of confidence, unlike my own fearful syllables. "I thought you were the last, 9."

9. So that was his name. What was mine?

"Me too." The smaller ragdolls moved sheepishly towards me, their eyes blinking rapidly. They scurried behind me, then began to point at something upon my back. I quickly turned, fearing the darkness had caught up with me anyway. But there was nothing.

"She has no number." The female voice said, and I turned back to face them, frowning. That's when I spotted the numbers scrawled across each of their backs. 7. 3. 4. I couldn't see 9's back, but it wasn't hard to guess what number he owned. "Do you think the scientist made her too? Or. . . something else?"

"I don't know," 9 shook his head. "We'll need to give her time."

"Well. . . We need to continue with what we were doing." 7 said, nodding towards the strange device. "We need to free their souls."

I tilted my head to the side, trying to get a better look at what 9 was holding. I reached out for it, but he flinched back, moving it away from my touch. "Sorry. . . It's. . . This is dangerous. It's caused us a lot of trouble."

You need it. The voice commanded me. They do not know how to command it. You can do much better. It will lead you to the cure.

"The cure," I echoed. "I need to find the cure."

"I'm sorry?" 9 frowned towards me. I looked at the device, my hands itching to snatch it away. I knew I was fast. I had outrun the darkness. I could outrun them, too.

"I am sorry." I said, and I was. I did not want to be alone again. But I needed the device. I couldn't ignore the voice. I reached out, snatching the object from 9's hands. 9 fell back, eyes wide.

I ran. I heard 7 cursing behind me, and I could hear her rapid footsteps as she chased after me. I forced myself to run faster. I had to get away. I had-

The ground fell away from me. I stepped on nothing but air. I heard 7 scream behind me, and I turned, reaching for her outstretched hand. But it was in vain. My body was falling, faster, and faster.

I hugged the device closer to me, closing my eyes tightly, not wanting to see the darkness finally swallow me whole.