"Everything that lives is designed to end."

The words spoken so long ago echoed in 2B's head. The android's OS chip whirred away heatedly as she pondered the meaning of such a pointless statement. Everything that lives is designed to end, except for her and 9S. Once more, her gaze swept over the endless dunes of sand surrounding her on all sides. How many years had it been since the two of them had woken up? 1,000? 2,000? 5,000? Either way, nothing was left. There were no machines, no androids, no resistance, no anything. The only thing that was still living yet not ending was her and 9S. Even A2 was no longer there after they had woken up.

The sudden, soft sounds of 9S' approaching footprints brought her attention to the young-looking android. His silvery-white hair shone in the harsh sunlight as he handed a small wrench to 2B. "Here, I figured you could use this to occupy yourself or something." He forced a smile. "It's a little rusty, but it's fun to imagine games with."

A soft smile graced 2B's lips as she ran a thumb over the rusted metal. How utterly human it was of him to do such a thing. Imagining games were something for children, but nonetheless she took the wrench anyway. I wonder how hard my arm can throw now that I haven't used it strenuously in so long, she thought as she hurled the wrench far into the distance. The metal glinted in the sky before falling into a sand dune in the distance.

"Wha-? Hey!" 9S protested. "I spent time getting that for you."

"Then go and get it," 2B replied with a smirk.

With a knowing smile, the android realized that it was turning into a simple game of fetch. He sped off into the distance, riding on the sand before breaking into a sprint. It had been so many years since they had bothered to do any real activities. Frankly, 2B was surprised 9S could still keep up that pace without something breaking or catching.

She waited silently for him. Though there was no way to tell the time, she counted the seconds in her head subconsciously. One minute, two minutes, five minutes, ten. Eventually, she fidgeted in impatience at 9S' delay. "Honestly, he's so slow," she sighed as she got to her feet and followed his trail. Like 9S, she found her movements swift and skillful despite all the time in which they hadn't been put to use. After a minute of following his trail, she found the android digging into a sand dune. "What are you doing?" she asked irritably as she slowed to a stop behind him.

"I think I found something," 9S answered quickly. "When you threw that wrench, it got buried over here and I stumbled over something." He unearthed a locked box, the contents unknown and alluring. "Normally I'd have to hack it, but the electronic lock died long ago. I'm sure you could bust it open if you wanted to."

Taking that as a sign, 2B kicked the box violently, flipping open the lid. Inside was a small pamphlet, the first pristine man-made thing the two had seen in ages. 2B held the pamphlet up, gazing closely at the object. On the front was a colorful picture of a family of three humans. In the center was a small child gazing up at the camera. The waxy paper crumpled in her hand. The android no longer wanted to look at things out of her reach.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing," 2B replied. She dropped the pamphlet to the ground as she turned away. "There's no point in looking at things we can't have."

"What?" 9S rested a hand on her shoulder. "A family?"

"Perhaps," she admitted grudgingly. The cogs inside her head spun quickly, pressure building with anger. They were so close to human, but they would never be human. 2B and 9S cried like humans and they felt like humans. But despite all that, androids didn't have a heart. Nor was their blood exactly like humans'. It was artificial, though very much like the real thing. The closest thing to a heart was the OS chip in their heads. Androids didn't have a heart and they couldn't have children. Yet they could fall in love and want human things…. There was nothing to live for anymore besides each other. A family would've given them something else, but that wasn't an option.

Hot tears coated the blindfold covering her eyes, but she acted as if nothing was wrong as she walked slowly across the sand. It simply wasn't fair. There was nothing left for them except for the shells of broken machines and the last ravages of humanity. No matter where the two went, there were machine parts everywhere. Their empty shells littered the ground, some half-buried in sand. Spare parts were abundant, though neither 2B nor 9S needed any of them. Both of the androids knew nothing about maintenance.

9S remained with her closely, his arm a comforting gesture against her hot skin. "We'll find something. I promise." The android nuzzled her cheek affectionately, though he had to stand on the tips of his toes to do it. "I'm not going to let this life be empty."

The empty shadow of a giant machine in the distance wavered in the desert heat. Something that big might've even been a Goliath at one point in time. At that thought, a fruitless smile painted itself to her face. Even something as powerful as a Goliath fell to dust against the entity known as Time. All the androids, all the machines, everything had faded to dust. Everything except 2B and 9S that was. "We should head back," she suggested.

9S remained close to her as the two made their way back to the city ruins. While the desert was an interesting place to wander, it was too hot and dry to stay. Besides, the two still had their room from the resistance camp. It seemed funny to remember the days long ago when they had taken turns sleeping on the single bad. There hadn't been a day since the two had woken up that they hadn't slept in the bed together. While it was depressing seeing the resistance camp so empty, it was definitely the safest and most comfortable place to stay. Since the Bunker had exploded, it had been the only place they could truly call home. Indeed, the two probably would've gone insane long ago if they didn't at least have the familiarity of a room that belonged to them.

The bed was soft against 2B's thighs as she removed the blindfold covering her face. 9S was in front of her, his face soft and vibrant. While the blindfolds were protection and she could sense her surroundings without sight, it wasn't the same as seeing 9S with her bare eyes. It was rather cheesy to say, but she felt honestly like she was falling in love with him all over again every time she took her blindfold off and saw him.

The android's fingers were tightly clenching her hand as he crawled in beside her. "It's a little early to sleep, but it's not like we don't have the time to spare."

"Don't remind me," 2B sighed as she relaxed against the pillow. The most soothing thing of all, however, was 9S' arm wrapped protectively around her waist. The familiar scent of him was calming as it wreathed around her. He smelled mostly of fresh plastic, but sometimes he had a faint air of sweat around him when they came back from the desert. That didn't bother 2B much at all though. Her partner was a neat and tidy android for the most part. A part inside of her longed to tell him she liked his scent, but she pushed it back. Even though YoRHa was no longer there to tell her to suppress her emotions, the android still found it difficult to express herself all these years later. Meanwhile it seemed 9S was the opposite right from the beginning. He was always chattering or getting excited over trivial things. She often scolded him for wondering about pointless questions.

I hope he's not dwelling on the family thing, she thought internally as she focused on 9S behind her. The white-haired boy was silent but his breathing showed he was still awake. Without meaning to, 2B's thoughts drifted towards the idea of a child. It seemed strange to imagine. Neither of them had seen a child in ages. However, the image was still bright in her mind. I would like a daughter, she thought to herself while staring out at the door. It wasn't too hard to imagine a child between her and 9S. After all, their models looked so similar it wasn't like they were really going out on a limb. Obviously, the girl would have silver-white hair. Most likely blue eyes and pale skin. She would have the prettiest laugh and could sing. Her frame would be slender but she would still be strong since she was an android.

The next thing she knew, silent tears were dripping down her cheeks. It was so cruel how close to human they were. Humanity was so close 2B could almost touch it, but it wasn't quite enough. All the wishing in the world couldn't give her a heart. Nor could it give her a child. The more she accepted her feelings, the more frivolous, human things she desired. First it was love, now a family. And perhaps if she had a family, she would have one more thing to live for besides 9S. The pretty android loved him more than anything, but the days still wasted away agonizingly. Many years ago, she would've just thought about fighting. Now there were so many other things to think about. There's no point getting upset over things you can't control, she thought sullenly as she drifted off to sleep.

The OS chip inside 9S' head wouldn't stop humming as he wracked his processors. Laying there next to 2B, he could feel every shake and tremble of her body as she cried silently. As much as she loved 9S, there was rarely a time when she had cried in front of him. Feeling the tiny shakes of her body against him sent the android's core processors into overdrive. He probably couldn't make her wish come true, but at least he was going to try. After all, it wasn't like they didn't have the time.

Yes, 9S had a plan. Or at least, the very beginnings of one. However, with that came a plethora of issues. The Bunker was gone. Technology was gone. Even the machines were gone. Not to mention he didn't know the slightest bit about how to create androids. What he did know, however, was that it would definitely require electricity. Sadly, electricity was a thing of the past. Come on, think! he urged himself. He had read hundreds of books in the Bunker on everything from prehistoric wildlife to dental hygiene. Android creation, however, was not included in the archives.

But wait. He had repaired Engels. While machines and androids weren't the same, they were made of different, interconnected parts. While there were no other androids, there were android corpses. Surely he could hijack the materials. The biggest issue was still where he'd get the power. 9S could assemble the parts but he still needed energy to revitalize it. And what about skin? A body? How did they create artificial skin and hair anyway? It was truly a miracle that androids could cry and act like humans.

I'll figure the rest of the details out later, he told himself. For now, he just had to assemble the parts. Affectionately, he stroked 2B's silver hair. Anything for you, he thought fondly as he fell asleep.