There was little celebration in the morning after the proposal. In fact there may have even been an opposite feeling surrounding the air of the garden. 22 had found her daughter and the male of 13's twin twisted together in the morning. She was very cross with both of them and for the first half of the morning they received bad words and concerns from her. Despite her mother's speech, she felt confident to lead her troops into the wilds of the north as the sun began to rise. 24 and Miu met with one another and the female taunted her brother for the talk. While 22 had yelled at her daughter all he had received was good word from his family.

The others met with their parents one last time before they all gathered in front of the library, looking off into the Emptiness beyond the gardens. All the youth were there: 25 as the leader with her second in commands Pi and 15. 24 her lover and his twin Miu. There was H1N1, 115, 26, 37, Jack, Kayia and Tobias gathered behind with Theta, Walker and Owl. The more adult were the few that 25 had asked to assist them.

"Where are our mounts?" Pi turned to 25, asking politely. 25 smirked, "they will only arrive when we call for them."

"That's boring."

As they were preparing to take the first few steps, 0 halted them silently. 700 watched carefully with the feline 13 nearby. The two had a very vague idea of what was going on. They stood quiet in her presence and the elder looked to the leader of the expedition. "My child. Approach me."

25 quickly agreed and came near to the elder, bowing a bit before fully facing her. The two met each other's optics and 0 first pat her head. "You have done well on these journeys. I do not doubt you will return safely. But…when you do." She made a cross in the air and placed her fingers onto 25's forehead. "I grant you leadership of our people."

The others were shocked. 2 clutched his chest and leaned onto 5 slightly. The adults briefly looked to one another in confusion. 25 blinked and flashed her eyes once. "But why grandma?"

"I am getting old. Well older. I'd rather retire and let a new generation take over."

"You could've picked Uncle Walker…" "No that is not necessary my child. I believe it is you who must take this duty as your own." She pat her shoulder once and the two shared one final hug. The elder gave a weak smile and then moved to the left. "Now go."

25 nodded and called the others by a hand signal. Soon they followed with the sound of marching metal feet soft against the garden dirt. The adults stood behind, chests proud and faces emotionless. They now could only hope and pray for the safety of their children.

The gardens became desolate land and that land became the Emptiness. 37 stared about nervously with Walker next to him. They were all a bit apprehensive. The atmosphere was thick with death and the widespread calamity spread over the years. It still remained in one piece. Destruction was everywhere but so was the makings of new life. Seeds had sprouted around the graves of fallen Beasts and machines. The looming bits of the Cathedral passed them by slowly. They stepped in foot-thick ash and glanced to one another. 25 sighed and looked to the remaining clock tower. Slowly her mother had been trying to redeem this place with 10, the two had planted vines to cover the falling walls. 24 pat her shoulder and stopped her brief pause. With a wave of her head she started to trudge along once more. The path was rocky, full of rubble from the exploding bombs. A few bones were spotted every now and again. Owl rubbed the back of her neck and whispered to Walker, "This is what they will inherit?"

"Yes. But the other three missions like this fully removed the Beasts from the territory that is ours. Now we have to explore the north. My niece believes that whatever is controlling those machines still is living up there."

It seemed that even the temperature now was becoming colder.

Suddenly H1N1 stopped, her ears perking up. The others paused. She was their tracker and so when she sensed danger, her instincts would flare up. 115 turned to her and mumbled under his collar, "What's wrong?"

"Something is coming this way."

"Creator…" 25 whispered, taking out her bow and arrow. The others followed in suit, getting their weapons out. Theta was the last and silence then bore heavy upon them. A few rustles of the grass made them jump and the wind howled like a dying wolf. Then there was a pounding noise. The rubble of the ground around them started to shake. A roar filled the skies and a creature appeared, smashing its way through the rocks.

The Beast was strange for it had a long snout on its skull head but the spine extended down to a tail. The eyes were lit with red light-bulbs and it produced thick heavy breaths. From the spine six spider-like legs and its fat stomach was covered in burlap. It roared again, flailing a few mechanic arms towards the stitchpunks. "Brace yourselves! Pull together!" 25 shouted. When it swung the arm, some rolled out of the way. 115 swung his blade, cutting off a finger of it. When sparks flew the Beast roared. Pi and 15 gathered to 25, who shot arrows while flashing her eyes, trying to get information. "What is that thing ma'am?"

"It's…an Oil Beast!" She spotted a tear in the fabric where a solid black fluid was leaking out. "The weak point is the stomach. That's where it stores its energy. Find a way to weaken it and take it down."

They parted. Theta yelled as he arrived towards the Beast, tossing his staff into it. The beast growled and aimed for him but Walker blocked it with his staff. The two nodded to one another and distracted the enemy as the teens followed suit. 25 hit it with arrows as 115 sliced it in sections. H1N1 neared it from behind and used her silver claws to gash the burlap into bits. Kayia and Tobias did what they must in both attacking and distracting. She tossed knives into its skin, seeing it become torn. Jack used his giant eye to blind it temporarily, 26 and 15 were completely covered in its oil. The hide was thick and so it took a while to get some actual damage showing. But they could tell it was becoming slower, the way its lighted eyes dimmed and its "breathing" became heavy. 25 cocked her head and silently instructed 115 to give the final slice. He did so and a long stream of black blood poured out. Within it there was a lumped figure. The others gasped upon seeing a stitch-punk hand exposed. Walker came over and poked it with his staff. It flinched a bit. 25 bit her fingertips. "It's a child…"

"But why is it out here?" H1N1 asked but her ears stood on end again. The others were not prepared for the cackling that came afterwards. There was a gentle purring noise and slowly from the shadows, another stitchpunk came toward them on all fours. 25 growled slightly, knowing who it was. For they had outcast her into the Emptiness long ago. This was H1N1's twin, H1N2. She was much more scandalous in both nature and her looks. She purred, coming nearer to her sister but the others blocked her in a row. They gave her demanding glares and she giggled, "Aw isn't this cute? A band of pathetic toys trying to siege way to the North. Ha." She laughed in scorn to them, pointing to 25. "And who's this? You're the damned demon daughter of the woman who persecuted me." H1N2 started to come near to the leader but her twin stepped in the way hissing. Their tails began to flicker and they hissed at one another. "Step down sister. We all know who will win."

"Yes that will be me." She bore her teeth. "You do not understand sister. I have friends…no dare I say it." She closed her eyes and stood straight up, in front of their leader. "I have a family. And you…you are not a part of it. You challenge me; you challenge them who felled this Beast."

"Beast?" she turned to see the carnage and gasped. "Oh you little cur! You destroyed my pet!" She examined the bits and pieces of it that lie still sparking. "Oh well, it was pathetic to begin with." She sighed and saw the exposed hand. "Ugh. This must be whatever it ingested. At least it listened to me."

"You had it eat a child?" 26 asked in defense. She chuckled and turned about, "Of course. I had it eat anything that threatened me. And that little thing tried to defy me."

Walker stepped over with Owl and H1N2 stepped down. She was not intimidated by his staff alone but his sheer height was what made her nervous. The other numbers watched the daunted creature shake in terror. Walker stooped down with his wife and plucked the child from the oil. Its chest was moving very slowly but it was still alive. He sighed in relief and glanced to H1N2. She yipped slightly and tried to hide, her body flat to the ground. He rose to full height and whipped out his walking staff. "No go. Don't you ever come back here."

The evil twin nodded and glared once before dashing off in the direction the group had just come from. Little to what they knew, she stood on her legs once more and began observing their path. It was still fresh and their tracks would lead her straight back to the Library. "Oh, you'll see. The grand leader may think of me as a runt but I'll show him. I'll tear them apart from the inside out." She clashed her claws against one another and growled, starting to run off.

Owl and Walker held the child together, trying to clean it free. When exposed Owl smiled, "It's a girl." In her death-grip was a bunny made of fine cloth. She had a patch of blue on her arm from an earlier attack and leather upon a knee. Her waist bore a small dagger, still sheathed. So it was relevant that the girl had not even used this weapon to defend herself against that machine. Walker looked down on her and then to 25. She sighed, "We will make camp here tonight."

Pi groaned, knowing this was her duty. But she also understood why. Something had to be done about this abandoned doll. It had been a rule to them that all injured neutral members of the people they were found alone were to be adopted into their group. They had all succeeded as a family so far and in this technique they had found 115, a now very subtle but powerful warrior.

Darkness followed this but so did the rising of the fire. Temporary tents made of weaved grass were set up and each individual group member had protection. Walker and Owl kept the child warm, and she was doing a bit better. Her breathing had stabilized and 15 had checked her gears. Everything was working fine. Now all she had to do was wake up. The others were anticipating her awakening. They sat in a circle around the couple and talked in only murmured voices. Soon the child began to squirm. With a few clicks of her optics, she sat upright and gazed around. The sight of so many others like her made her cock her head slightly. They gave her gentle smiles and she looked over to Walker. "W-who're all of you?"

"We are a group whose job it is to set a balance of our territory. We have no names; we have only numbers and our parent's pride." 24 addressed, trying to recall what 25 had said earlier. Miu rolled her eyes and stood up, "We're friends."

"Well hello. I'm 32." She told in a soft and kind voice. It was that of a child, as was the rest of her body. Walker looked down to her, "You really had us worried."

She stared up at him and blinked a few times. She saw Owl beside her as well. "So…you two were looking after me? Even after I seemed dead?"

"We would never let that happen." Owl told in her soft, maternal voice. 32's inner optics widened. Her arms gripped Walker and she shouted, "Daddy! I knew you'd come back!"

"Wait…what?" Jack addressed first, 37 nearly slipping as he was courting Pi. All of them sat intent on the information but Walker looked just as confused. 32 explained, "My auntie told me if that anyone cared for me in sickness and death, that person was my daddy."

"But…I'm not your…" He paused himself and stared up at Owl. She had the softest look upon her face. He watched the way her eyes wavered and the shine of her zirconium ring glinting in the firelight. He held his head and smiled warmly down to 32. "Well, I…I'm sorry I was gone for so long." He held her gently in his arms, "But don't you worry now. Daddy's got you now."