It had been 2 months since the B.R.A.I.N. was defeated. 3 and 4 scurried along down a dilapidated hall, their optics clicking frantically. 7 sharpened her staff in her room. 9 sat on a small ledge on the top floor of their new home, a mostly intact two-story house.
Ever since the stitchpunks blew up the factory there hasn't been much to do, no monsters to fight. The silence grew deafening sometimes.
Suddenly the twins popped up behind 9, flickering their optics anxiously. They tugged at his fabric to get him up and fallow them. They were scared of something, 9 could tell.
"What's wrong?" he inquired as he fallowed the two down the hall.
3 stopped and started to project his memories on the wall. It was of the barren wasteland outside of their home.
Why are they showing me…? 9's thoughts were interrupted by a sound from the memory. It was like a yell or a small roar. A tiny dust cloud of dirt drifted up from behind a pile of rubble, the yell sounded again, then the memory stopped.
"What was that?" 9 asked, his mind buzzing with questions. "7!" he called out.
A figure appeared in the doorway of one of the rooms, her sun bleached fabric clashing with the grey wall. "What is it?"
"3 and 4 saw something outside. I think it might be a monster."
"Finally! Some entertainment!" The warrior flipped down her new bird skull helmet and gripped her staff tightly.
"Be careful," 9 called.
"Don't worry, I'll be fine!"
The emptiness was even emptier now that the monsters were destroyed, or so the ragdolls had thought.
7 crept along a soldier's helmet and peered over at the other side. She heard the yell and thump that the monster was creating. She looked over the rubble to see a figure covered in metal scrape the ground with its claws and yell once more. 7 readied herself to pounce.
Swiftly, she jumped into the air, poised to cut off the creature's head, similar to the way she had done with the cat beast, only to be stopped by a piece of wood. She tried again, this time a slash to the side only to be blocked again. Even though the creature was bent over it was still able to protect itself extremely well. For the third time, 7 tried to harm it in some way only to have her metal blade meet wood once again but this time with a struggle. The monster had to use both arms to stop the blow.
"You are very good," it whispered, pushing the white ragdoll back.
7 was surprised to hear the creature talk. She looked up at its hooded head only to have her optics meet the ones of smiling stitchpunk.
"Hi," he said, sitting up.
"Um… hi," replied 7.
"You're a good fighter. That's one sharp blade you got there!" he praised, fingering the cuts in the wood.
"Thanks."
"So, are you the only one here or are there more?"
"Huh?"
"Are you the only stitchpunk here?"
"Oh! No, no. There are three more other than me."
"Great! Can I meet them?"
"Um, ok." 7 was a bit uneasy about this stranger.
"Awesome," the boy said, shakily getting up.
7 gasped when she saw him stand. His right foot was twisted completely backwards and his posture was greatly affected by it and he was already short to begin with; shorter than the twins. He had to use crutches to walk steadily. 7 felt guilty for attacking him now because the wood he used to protect himself was one of them. He was also covered chest-to-ankle in metal plates.
"How did your leg get like that?" she inquired, looking him in the optics. "And your optic too!"
The ragdoll's left optic was cracked and crushed, the pupil faded grey. Looking away, he lowered his makeshift hood over the lens. "Um… well… that's a long story and… um… uh…. D-did I ever catch your name?" he stuttered.
"I'm 7 and you are…"
"10. It's nice to meet you 7." The boy held out his hand.
7 shook it slowly and gestured for them to head back to her base. 10 seemed antsy along the way there, just like a little kid with too much energy. He reminded her of the twins, with their childish behavior. It wasn't until they got to the house did he actually talk though.
"Wow! This is a great place you got here!" He hobbled about, marveling at the house's great condition.
Suddenly, 3 and 4 came from out of nowhere clicking there optics at the newcomer.
"GAH! What the hell?" Caught in the twins cataloging frenzy, all he could do was fall over with a loud thump!
As 10 verbalized his pain, 9 came from his workshop.
"Who's this?" he inquired 7.
"That's the monster 3 and 4 showed you," she giggled.
"This guy? He can barley stand up!"
9 laughed but 7 didn't join in. She felt bad for the trembling boy being bombarded by the four flashing optics. One twisted leg stuck out from his fetal position. The twins finally succumbed to their own cataloging when they flashed themselves too many times in the metal plates the stranger wore.
"You know you can take those plates off if you want, there isn't anything that's going to harm you here."
10 nodded, steadily got up, and walked over to 7. Snatching up her staff, he started to cut the thin rope that held his "armor".
When the last plate clattered to the ground, he removed his hood and looked at the four shocked expressions.
"Y-you're all ripped up, and your leg's twisted, and your optic's cracked!" 9 exclaimed. "How did this happen?"
The boy smirked. "I'll tell you that story when I'm all patched up, there's a nice fire going outside when it's dark, and there are many opportunities for me to scare the SOUL out of you!"
3 and 4 cowered behind 7 and 9.
10 laughed, smiled warmly at them and gave a kid-ish giggle. The two slowly came up to him and clicked and flashed cautiously. They examined the three diagonal rips in his chest and twisted leg and flashed at each other in their mores-code-type language.
We'll need a needle and thread for the rips in his torso, 3 clicked.
Yes, I agree, but how do we fix his leg? Flashed 4.
Hmm… maybe he would know. He's the one who got the injury.
4 nodded and scurried of to get a needle and thread while 3 lead 10 to 9's workshop where 9 had a few gadgets he was working on. He gestured to a small table where they would sew him up and within a few seconds of laying down on it, 10 was fast asleep.