Title: His mission

After The BRAIN is destroyed, the world begins to settle once more, everything heals and life begins to grow. One of the fallen gets a second chance to revive what was lost in battle. But can he succeed?

I Still Own Nothing!

_-_-_Part 12: Control_-_-_

The next time 5 awoke the small cavern would be faded in color, it was dusk and light was fleeting slowly within the small area. His optic slowly clicked as his gears whirred when they regained their normal speed. Sitting up he reached with his left arm to hold his right shoulder. He lifted it up and down and then back and forth, testing out the joint to see if it was fully in place. There were a few snags; pieces of burlap stuck within the once broken arm that jammed when he tried to move. He needed a thin sewing needle to get the remains of the material out.

As soon as he was done he dragged himself into a sitting position against the walls of the cave. Looking around he tried to see if 2 was anywhere in the cave or even anywhere close to him.

"2?" he asked out loud, his voice still crackling a bit. He looked to his chest and saw that the metal plate that he used to cool his gears from overheating was still crammed inside. Reaching into the opening he pulled the metal out and looked as far as he could in, he moved his hands to the small machine so he could make repairs.

It would take a while of adjusting the wires and fiddling with the mechanism before he was able to get the crackling to stop, though when he raised his voice to high it still seemed to crack. He guessed it would never heal fully, but at least it was better than before.

Leaning against the wall once more he sighed and looked to the cylinder. He had already taken out the things he needed to sew his arm up, but was curious about his mentor. He reached for the meter and held it close, looking at the spots that monitored the souls. He could see where he was, and he knew where 6 and 8 were, but 2's location shocked 5.

2 was at the farthest point possible on the meter, nowhere near where he was. He looked saddened as he put the meter down. He found himself overwhelmed by happiness when 2 saved him. He thought 2 must have been happy too, but he had to second guess his answer given how far away 2 was from him now.

Putting a hand on his head he turned to the needle on the floor and grabbed it once again. Threading it he set it aside as he moved to measure and cut the material to go over his arm. Once he had it he turned the material and sewed down the side, making sure the stitches were of good length before he turned the sewn material inside out and slid it over his metal arm.

He would sew the stitches at his shoulder tight; it wouldn't take long, maybe twenty minutes to fully stitch the whole thing together. He cut the thread as he finished and then bound the material at his wrist with some wire. He moved his arm up and down with his new 'skin' to see how it reacted. Bending his elbow and lifting it up as he checked little things here and there.

After he was satisfied with the results he slowly got up, groaning as a wave of dizziness overcame him and he needed to lean against the cavern walls to support him, before he fell and hurt himself more.

He moved to the entrance of the cavern and looked down, making a pained sound as he saw how far it was to the bottom. He then looked across the canyon to the top and saw that it wasn't that far from where he was and if he could find something to assist him in climbing it shouldn't take that long to get back up again.

Leaning against the wall of the cavern he sighed and looked to the sky; it was turning colors with the lingering sunset. It reminded him of how the clouds often looked in the watchtower. He smiled as he remembered all the time he and 2 spent up there, inventing new things and just spending time together. When 2 had saved him, he felt like he did back then, like everything was going to fit together again. But now that 2 was once again gone, he didn't know what the future would hold as it once again seemed uncertain.

Looking up to the sky he smiled, he didn't know why he felt sad. Even if it had only been for a small about of time, he found 2. He knew it wouldn't be the last he saw of his mentor either. This only gave him new hope for his job and his hardships ahead.

"Thank you 2." he smiled and turned to go retrieve his cylinder. Packing up all of his sewing items he put them away and hoisted the metal container onto his back. He took once last look around, double checking that there wasn't anything he could take for future use. He saw the metal plate he had used for his overheating body and saw it was in decent condition. Taking it he slipped it under the straps on the container and moved to the entrance once more. Looking as he peaked out to see if there was anything around to climb on.

He never got to see the bridge before; He didn't know that this was the exact spot where 6 had lost his life over a year ago. He looked directly up and saw the remains of an old bridge and he thought out a plan on how to get up. There were heavy metal bars, rusted over and broken. The canyon walls offered rocks and debris that made it possible to get over to the fallen bridge.

He dug his right foot into the compacted mud and took hold of a piece of glass sticking out of the side of the canyon, tugging it a few times to see that it was loose. When he was sure it could support his weight he pulled himself out of the safety of the small cavern and into the wide open space.

He was shaking as he did, even though he knew that he was checking each of the items to step on he knew he could still lose his balance and fall at any time. He tried not to think about it but it was hard to ignore with his current position.

One of the pieces of debris fell under his feet and he jerked as he slipped, clutching tightly to the piece of metal he was currently holding onto. He made a pained sound as he pulled too hard on his right arm and he could hear his voice echo off of the canyon walls. Groaning he looked to see that when the item fell from under his foot it had left a small hole and he placed his foot into it, regaining his balance.

Sighing as he held there for a moment he closed his optic. He might have looked calm on the outside but he was panicked on the inside. He tried to keep his body from shaking. He knew if he shook his foot might have come loose from where it was held and he could fall again, and he doubted 2 would be there to help this time.

Pulling himself together he lifted himself up closer to the metal bar that was hanging down. It had bullet holes in it, and he knew once he reached them he could have a secure spot where he could hold tight and wouldn't have to worry about falling again. He continued to pull himself up, step after step he moved closer to his goal. He was almost within the distance to grab the metal, just a little more.

Within the last few inches he felt the dirt surrounding the rock he stood on collapsed under him, his grip soon followed and he felt himself slip. He cried as he began to fall, his mind began to frantically think of what to do. He looked down and saw that the rock was falling but it was still somewhat in the wall.

Clutching his fists he pushed against the rock as it fell, jumping up as hard as he could. He stretched out his arms he reached as far as he could and grabbed the metal bar of the bridge, holding as tight as he could as he listened to the sound of the area that surrounded the rock gave out and crumbled down into the river.

Panting he closed his optic before opening them and looking down. He watched the dirt crumble and sighed. Looking up he reached for the first bullet hole and lifted up, slipping his foot into another hole he began to climb up the metal. He was still cautious of the broken bridge as he knew it could very well fall as easy as the rock in the wall.

After climbing up the rusted metal he finally made it back up to the top of the canyon. Throwing himself onto the ground he moved as far from the edge as he could, holding his chest as his gears moved erratically inside of him. He sat there, holding his right arm as he checked it for damage. He was sure that it was fine but didn't want to risk its harm once again.

Looking up from himself he saw the factory that once held the fabrication machine. He stood up on shaking legs and jumped as he heard the sounds of a machine echo from inside of the broken building. Looking on he clutched his fists, remembering that 3 and 4 were still there somewhere.

Fear overcame him as he began to run for the factory, staying aware of the surrounding areas for machines. He knew that the twins wouldn't be able to protect themselves against the machine that they had seen earlier, and if it still held its control over 8 he knew that they needed help.

He picked up speed as he ran, knowing that he couldn't waste any time.

_-_-_

Upon reaching the factory he made his way through broken pipes and tunnels until he reached the inner chamber of the old factory. Every step he took the sounds of mechanics became louder. When he reached the clearing where the fabrication machine used to be he gasped and hid himself behind a bit of broken metal. He had only seen it for a moment but the machine was sharpening the needles that its skin was composed of and he saw 3 and 4 clearly for the instant that he looked out. They were both tied together with rusted wires and hanging from a ledge, hands clasped tightly together below the bindings that held them.

5 closed his optic and tried to think of what to do next. The twins were too high up for him to get to without the machine noticing, and the beast itself was too close to the twins for him to try and get to them first. If he ran for 3 and 4 and the machine saw him coming, he didn't know what might happen to the twins in the time that it took for him to get close to them.

Looking out from his hiding spot he saw 8's soul, moving around as if patrolling the area. He looked down and turned away from the corner, no more time to waste, he had to do something now. He got up and took his bow out of the side straps of the cylinder and loaded it with a needle. Holding it over the corner he looked around before spotting something on a faraway ledge.

He took aim and fired at the item, which turned out to be a container of nails and bolts. He watched as the needle knocked over the container, spilling the sharp objects over the ledge they were on. The sound the nails made when they fell was almost like listening to the rain, small plinks rang out as each hit the ground, pooling around the area on contact.

This caught the beast's attention as it turned to inspect the area. It stomped off in a whirl of steam and smoke, moving farther from where the twins were hanging. 5 moved from his hiding spot and ran to a pipe that was propped up against a long line of collapsed machinery, running up it as he reached the twins. They both looked to him and 5 smiled softly, reassuring them that nothing was going to happen to them. 5 could see the instant relief flood over them as he moved to unhook the metal surrounding them.

He worked fast, his hands moved quickly as he worked the metal around 3 and 4's temporary prison. He was used to quick movement from all the days that he spent working with 2. As soon as the last binding was done he hoisted them both up and pulled them to run for cover. They ran down the piping and almost made it to 5's hiding spot before metal came falling down from all around them. Dust began to rise from around them as they turned around to see the glowing eyes of the machine.

5 gasped and pushed the twins behind him as he loaded his bow; pointing it at the beast he fired it into its shoulder. He could see it lodge in but the beast didn't look like it noticed, or even cared. Backing up he held 3 and 4 in place as he looked around for a safe spot. He looked down to his feet and noticed that there was a large hole in the ground, no bigger than a can, but still just about the right size.

In one movement 5 pushed 3 and 4 into the hole, and they fell for a few inches before landing at the bottom. They both looked up to 5 and flashed their eyes to get his attention. Holding onto each other they looked worried as he gave them a reassuring smile, and then took off.

5 ran from the machine, it soon followed. It didn't seem preoccupied of the fact that it just lost two youngish souls that it could have very well devoured. It seemed smugger now that it had someone worth chasing. It began to stomp over to where 5 was running and it seemed to do so with little trouble.

5 ran up the ledge that he had used to reach the twins and got on; keeping his eye open for 8 he pulled out his bow once more and fired a spare needle, this one landing right through part of the beasts face. It screeched in agony as it tried to hold on to its face. He knew that the monster couldn't fully hold on without the adhesive areas catching hold. 5 took this instant to jump off the ledge onto the ground, running as far as he could as the monster pulled its hands away from its face and grabbed 5.

The twins peeked up from the hole and 5 knew if they could make any sounds they would be crying out for him. He cried out as the monster held on tightly and sparks erupted from around its eyes; it looked angrily at him and 5 swallowed hard, trying to break free of its grip.

He saw the wires in the monsters arms tighten as they made the hands constrict around him, the adhesive material fully sticking to 5 as he was held. He yelled as the monster began to crush him, feeling his inner workings tighten with each second. He barely yelled out a 'help' before the monster threw its head back in agony. He looked as he saw 8's soul run through the machine. Through attacking 5, the machine forgot its control over 8 and the large stitchpunk soul was allowed a few moments of sanity.

5 gasped at 8 as he watched the other helped him to destroy the machine. Groaning 5 reached back and pulled the large metal plate out of the straps of the cylinder before jamming it into the machines grip, tearing through the bindings that held him as he pried himself loose. He climbed from the beasts grasp and jumped, falling face first on the ground as he shielded his face with his hands.

As soon as he hit the floor he scurried to grab his bow, firing at the beast as it made the most hideous sounds of pain. Steam and oil erupted from its body as it wobbled and fell to the ground with a monstrous crash. 5 moved from the area before he could be crushed and watched as 8's soul went through the creature a few more times, making sure it would stay dead.

Watching on as 8 continued he got up and ran to the twins, helping to pull them out of the hole with a groan. He strained his right arm a bit between the machine crushing him and all the strain that was put on it before hand. Both 3 and 4 noticed that the burlap material covering 5's right arm was a bit lighter in color and fresh compared to the rest of his body and they quickly catalogued it, flashing as they lifted his arm up and recorded every change that they saw before looking to him concerned, smiling he pat them both on their heads.

"I'm ok… it's alright now" he said reassuringly. Both of them didn't seem convinced but nodded as they both wrapped their arms around him in a tight hug. He smiled as the wind seemed to be knocked out of him as he returned the hug. Looking up as he saw 8's soul approaching 3 and 4 pulled away and looked at him before flashing at him, questioning him in their own ways.

5 moved to the machine and put the cylinder down. He looked at the lower half of it which was dented and sighed. He felt relieved that he was able to get out of that grip when he did. If he didn't the beast could have destroyed the meter and the cylinder. Thinking about it, 5 found it funny that he was more concerned over the container on his back then of himself.

Opening it he brought out a small blade and moved to climb the machine. He found 8's body and began to cut the wires that bound it to the cold mechanism. He was careful not to disturbed any of 8's inner frame work, or more so what was left of it. He would need the most work as he was in the factory when it exploded and he would have to rebuild it as soon as he could.

Dragging the body from the machine he pulled it to where 3, 4 and 8 were. Carefully laying it out as he ran to retrieve the cylinder. 8 seemed to watch in fascination as 5 began repairs, and the fifth noticed the worried look on 8's face. It surprised him to see such an expression on the tough guy's face. 3 and 4 saw it too and flashed to him before waving for 8 to follow them. 5 smiled; they would keep him busy as he did the work on him.

_-_-_

It was midnight, or so 5 supposed by the position of the moon above the wreckage that could once call itself a factory. He had lit a candle and the light glowed around him as he screwed together the pieces of metal with the small screws that fit into the joints. 3 and 4 were fast asleep beside him, and 8 seemed to be off somewhere else at the moment. 5 used this time to stop to take a breather. Sighing he got up and stretched his tired joints moving away from the little camp ground.

He moved to the ledge that he rescued 3 and 4 from, sitting as he lay down to watch the moon. He found it relaxing, and even though he could have died almost every other moment today, he felt at peace with himself. He smiled as he watched the stars, feeling a presence near him he turned to see 8's soul sitting not too far from him. There was silence for a few moments before 8 said something.

'Sorry,' He said in his rough voice 'I didn't mean to drop you.'

5 looked to him and smiled, sitting up he shook his head. "There was nothing you could have done…it's alright…" he started, still afraid of the other much as he was when they all lived in the cathedral. "You did try to fight it…I saw you."

8 didn't respond to him at first but soon looked to him. 'What are you going to do with that?' He asked as he pointed to his body.

"I'm going to try and help you…" He smiled and yawned. "I just came to take a break…the mechanics inside of you are close to 9's…you both have such advanced gears that it's taking me along time to figure out how to rebuild it."

It came with being the scientist's most recent creations. They both were more sophisticated in their makings that 5 almost didn't know what to do. He was thankful that he read and studied the papers and blueprints before leaving the building, otherwise it would be impossible for him to rebuild.

'No one's ever called me advanced.'

5 stopped and looked at 8; he knew that it was true. No one would ever connect 8 to the word advanced mainly because he wasn't as bright as the others, 5 even believed that and 8 looked like he knew it too, but there was something in the others optics that looked as though they were happy if not relieved.

Smiling he got back up and moved to run down the metal pipe. Going to 8's body he continued his repairs. As soon as he saw 8's face he knew that he would be able to continue his work. The other was innocent, pure. No one would cross that with 8 but 5 could see it now, and it refreshed his tired body and mind to know that he was helping the other like this. Suddenly the past didn't matter, all the horrid memories of how 8 treated him and the others faded away as he worked on his body.

He would still be working late into the night and then early into the morning on the other. As soon as day broke, and the first glows of sunrise appeared in the sky, 8's body would be fully repaired. Though the eighth stitchpunk would have to wait to be put back into place at the moment.

5 had fallen asleep next to 8. He was curled up on his side as he cradled his right arm, the soft buzzing and whirring of his gears were the only sounds that filled the air.

_-_-_

When 5 woke up the twins would be off in the distance cataloging the large beast. Overnight all the oil had drained from its body leaving a large stain on the ground. 5 sat up and looked around for 8, who he found sitting with his back against the metal that they had used for shelter. He got up and pulled the cylinder close to 8's body and waved for the soul to come closer.

8's soul moved to where 5 was and stood beside it. Taking the meter off of the cylinder he placed it on top of 8's physical chest. He pressed on it softly and the symbols began to glow. 3 and 4 saw the glow and quickly moved to where the others were watching and cataloging as they always did.

Soon the whole body glowed and 8's soul began to fade, it was pulled to the meter and soon was sucked in fully. 5 waited for a moment as the meter flashed and soon faded back to its original state. Pulling the meter off he looked at 8 as the large stitchpunk began to move, groaning as he sat up and blinked a couple of times, adjusting to the light.

5 smiled as he watched the other lift his arms and twist his joints, they all moved like rust and the new material that covered him was tight compared to what he was used to, but he wasn't complaining. He looked around and smiled to 5 before he let out a sound when both of the twins tackled him over, hugging him tightly.

Standing, 5 moved to back up all of his tools. He set up for the trip home, watching the three stitchpunks off the corner of his eye. 8 had stood up, his legs still felt funny under him and 3 and 4 were helping him to walk around, letting the other use them as a crutch. Soon though he was used to moving and picked both of them up, their faces full of excitement as he spun them around, just as 5 remembered them to play when they were all together in the cathedral.

Soon though they would have to stop playing as it was time to leave the factory for good, and everyone seemed relieved to be able to leave the place and not have to think of ever coming back. In the time that 5 used to gather supplies, 8 had found some broken metal that he was able to bend into armor. When 5 returned he smiled as the others were ready to go. 8 had told them of a bridge that was on the other side of the factory that they would be able to cross on and soon they were off into the brisk morning air.

3 and 4 skipped ahead with 8 close by, watching over the two older stitchpunks as they went on their ways. 5 stayed behind and looked at the area surrounding them. He thought of 2, the beasts and everything that had occurred in the past day alone. There was so much that he was overwhelmed by it all. He relaxed his thoughts and soon concentrated on the soft sounds of the wind.

/'Goodbye, 5'/

5 froze and turned around, fear in his eye as he looked for where the sound had come from.

"2…?" He stood in place, his body felt numb, fear was slowly working its way into him though he was soon brought out if it by 3 and 4 tugging at his arms, questioning him. It appeared that they hadn't heard the voice and he shrugged.

"It's just the wind" he said to them and they looked confused as 5 began to walk once again. "It's nothing…I just thought I heard something, that's all."

The twins looked at each other before following 5 to 8; soon they would be on their way back to the others.

Even though 5 put on a face for the others, his mind continued to go back to the voice he had just heard. For the whole trip back he would try to figure out what it meant. Well, he knew what it meant but didn't want to admit that it was what he thought it was. He still had time after all, two and a half months worth of time.

They reached the scientist's building by mid afternoon; greeted by all but 6. 9 and 7 stood together as 8 grinned at them and 1 stood close by. 5 could see 1 swallowing his pride as he moved to 8. Looking up at him 8 stopped smiling and looked at the other.

1 let out a tiny smile and even 5 could see the words the elder was saying. He was apologizing to him, and 8 understood, knowing 1 would never say it out loud. He accepted the simple apology and they all moved inside. It seemed to be a reoccurring thing for everyone to stand outside to greet the ones who came home. 5 found that he liked it like that and followed the others in.

_-_

It was later that night that 5 was sitting on his bed in his container when a sudden noise from outside gained his attention. Moving to the opening he left and climbed to the desk, looking over to the top as he traced the sound to 8 moving to 6's little corner. The small soul moved from his area to stand in front of 8, both smiling to each other.

5 smiled to the two and moved back down. It was as it was when they were freed, he was sure that 6 and 8 could be friends, as they both seemed challenged in certain ways that they could both relate too. He moved back to his bed and laid down looking up at the top of his container. He tried to find rest but he felt the chillingly familiar words haunting his mind. It chilled him and made him shutter as they repeated over and over again.

//Goodbye, 5//

_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_-_

Part 12 done.

Collapses after writing and gasps for air. This part is over 5000 words including the intro and the end comments. I'm almost dead after writing all this! There were a few times that I wanted to end this chapter but it didn't make since to me to cut something off right in the middle, especially since the last chapter was a semi-cliffhanger. So this turned out to be an ultra chapter, weighing in at the most words out of the 12.

Thank you for all the reviews! I'm happy that so many people enjoy this. Please review and comment on anything you don't understand and I'll write you to explain anything you need to know, same with any comments about writing and such, I'd love to know what you think! Next chapter will be up in a few days depending on when I get time to write. Thank you so much!!!