Six sighed, looking down at It again, the picture he's grown so obsessed with he's learned to adore it. The Source. He glances out at the throne room, where One and Eight are, though he doesn't bother showing them the picture anymore.
They've all labeled him 'insane' for seeing past reality. Six knows they can't see the world the way he can. Maybe he is crazy, but that doesn't change the fact he can see the past and future. He's tried so hard to get them to understand the meaning of his obsessive drawings, but no one understands.
One and Eight never gave him a chance to try and explain the Source, and the others just smiled at him sympathetically and said the picture looked nice, just as you would a little child's meaningless finger paintings.
Things had gotten even harder to try and get through to them. They were all for words, not images. Six was a visionary; he didn't often use words and his vocabulary was limited. Two and Five were the easiest to try talking to about it, but they could never understand. Then there was Seven, bu she hadn't stayed very long, and Three and Four had left with her. Though he'd never known the twins well, Six liked them. They never spoke once, using flashing lights and projecting images to communicate. Six wished he could do that, but drawing was all he had and it simply wasn't enough.
It hurt that all everyone did was pass off his warnings as twisted ramblings, and he knew the only reason One hadn't thrown him out into the Emptiness was simply because he wasn't threatening. Even Six knew himself he was weak and he disliked violence, so to avoid conflict, he stayed hidden away in his dark room where the walls were plastered with all his failed attempts to make them see that they needed to get the Source and keep it away from the Machine. Because if the Machine got it, they would all die.
Six rocked back and forth, staring at the ink-covered paper in front of him. It was frustrating. It looked just like all the other drawings that they failed to understand, but he didn't know what to add or say differently that would make them see.
Reality fell away from him suddenly then, as it often did. More images of the Machine awakening, building more machines, towering flames, trapped souls, a broken bridge, and finally the sensation of falling.
Six shuddered. He knew if he didn't change something and make them understand, that was the future destined for him, destined for all of them. He wanted to change it so no one would be in harm's way, but he didn't know how.
Sometimes in his visions he saw another. A stitchpunk with a nine printed on his back. He never told anyone about that though. The Source was more important to draw and he could never form the right words.
Six came back to reality at the sound of footsteps coming toward him, and looked up fearfully at Eight.
The larger stitchpunk scoffed at what he was drawing, and snatched the paper up before Six could process what was happening.
Six blinked and yelped in alarm as it hit him that his drawing was taken and he jumped to his feet. "Give that back!"
Eight just looked amused and tore the paper to shreds, knowing Six was powerless to stop him.
"Stop it! We need that! We need to find the Source!" Six insisted, pleading.
One snorted, standing from his throne. "You're wrong. We're safe here in Sanctuary. All we have to do is wait for the Beast to fall apart. Then we'll all be safe. This 'Source' is complete nonsense."
Six shook his head. "No! You must understand! The Source will save us! Th-"
"Enough!" One snapped. "One more word from you and I'll throw you out into the Emptiness like I did to Two!"
All Six could do was stare at him in shock and horror.
"You heard me! I'll leave you out there for the Beast to find and then we'll see if your precious 'Source' saves you! And when it doesn't, you'll see it'sme and Sanctuary that's been keeping you alive and would have saved you had you not been so foolish.."
Six backed away some, shaking, before turning to hide back in his dark corner, though Eight gave him a hard shove so he fell to the ground.
Six quickly scrambled to his feet and retreated to the safety of the shadows, ignoring Eight's laughter.
Six shook his head and ran his fingers through the yarn on his head, staining it with more ink. Two, Three, Four, and Seven were all gone now. Only he, One, Five, and Eight were left in Sanctuary.
Six wished he was brave like Seven. She had outright disobeyed One and left into the Emptiness. He wished he could do the same, but he was just was too scared of the Beast and whatever else was out there, so he remained here, not following One's rule, though not disobeying either.
Later that day, Six wandered up to the Watchtower with a rolled up paper, and was glad to find Five there.
Five looked away from his telescope when he heard Six approach and smiled a little. "Hey Six. Is something wrong?"
Six carefully unrolled the sheet of paper and handed it to Five, who just frowned. "Six, we've been over this before..."
"Please.. It'll save us... We need to find the Source.. We must go back to the Source..!" Six begged, willing him to understand. He knew his words weren't easy for the others to follow, but it was just too hard to explain. Pictures were easier. Pictures described while words, unless you knew their definitions, made no sense. What use did words even have? Besides, pictures were worth a thousand words, so why wouldn't everyone use them?
Five sighed and shook his head. "Six... This needs to stop... I know you can't help it, but no one knows what the Source is or what you're talking about..."
Six pointed at the paper. "That's the Source! We just need to go back to it!" He was honestly surprising himself. He usually never spoke this much in a day.
Five just handed the paper back to him. "Look, I need to go back to surveying... Who knows if the Beast can find this place.."
"B-But.. We must find it..."
He didn't get a response from Five. He usually wasn't this short tempered and always had patience for Six's cryptic words, but it seemed it was starting to run out.
Realizing he'd outstayed his welcome, Six trudged back down to his room and put the picture up on the wall with all his others.
He wished he could be good with picturesand words. Maybe then someone would listen to him.
But it clearly wasn't meant to be.
His mood greatly dampened, he sat down with a fresh sheet of paper and started drawing a circle. He knew he was defeated for now. But he would try again and again. He wouldn't show them the pictures anymore, he knew that was useless now. But he would wait for Nine to come. Then, with a fresh start, he could pass his warning onto him, and hope he would understand his message.
Satisfied with that plan, he started filling in the symbols and shapes on the circle he drew that made up the Source, the Talisman.
The one thing that could save them all.