4's Abduction
Part 7
Under the Sea

4 woke up in the same chamber she dozed off in. Only this time there was a beam of morning light shining through a hole in a far wall. She glanced around to see that the ground beneath her was a colorful blanket. However, she could not see the mysterious Stitchpunk who comforted her through the night. She spied only a small pile of fine brown ashes that had been spilled on the blanket's fibers. The lost twin flicked her eyes to the shadows, but could not see anything but a reflection of the walls. She was in some sort of chest or locker that had been damaged in a lower corner. Carefully she maneuvered her way to the hole, toward the sunlight.

The giant chest was set in a spacious room inside a structure much smaller than the cathedral. She looked around the inside the building. What was is called? A house was it?

One of the walls had been collapsed either by the war or from lack of care. The space opened out to a small river that flowed not too far away. 4's round optics quickly took shots of the area and compared them to previous sights she had seen in the past. Although it still held the same feeling of emptiness as everywhere else this area was new.

She turned back to the dark chest where she spent her first night since her sudden abduction. Who exactly was this 'E' person? Where did she go? 4 decided to wonder around more and look for her. Hopefully the brief images she managed to collect in the darkness were enough for her to recognize the mysterious doll if she saw her.

The blue hooded Stitchpunk wondered along the boundaries of the house when neared the small river that flowed close to the house. In the water stirred a familiar image of black moving about beneath the current. Curiosity getting the better of her, 4 wondered away to the water. She wanted to see the mysterious creature that took her away from her family to this strange place. Her steps slowed and her moves became quieter the closer she got to the bank.

Suddenly a black figure emerged from the water and landed on the bank. Bright round optics looked over her curiously and a wide smile spread across the face. "Hey there kid! Glad to see you're awake! We were getting worried about you."

4 jumped back from the sudden splash and fell backward onto the gravel. She skittered away back before stopping to get a better look. This could not possibly be 'E'. This stranger appeared to be made completely of a shiny black material that looked dry, even though half of the frame was under the water. A small patch of same material in yellow was sewn atop of the head like a cap. Instead of a patch, a bright zipper spread from its left shoulder to right hip. On the opposite hip was an obscure imaged of a partial circle in the water. The hands and feet were most peculiar. For instead of the jointed digits and normally pointed feet of other Stitchpunks this one's were made of yellow paddles, giving her the appearance of webbed hands and feet.

The strange water creator tilted its head when it saw that 4 was starring, "Oh come on! Don't tell me you're scared after that little dip yesterday. I was just so excited to see more like us I just HAD to show you to my sisters. Sorry about that."

4 pulled herself back to her feet and timidly neared the creature.

"I'm 'C' by the way." A female voice said from the aquatic Stitchpunk, who smiled to her "E tells me your name is 4 isn't it?"
She nodded her head meekly.

"Funny name. But who am I to judge." 'C' laughed and kicked excitedly in the water. To her splashes the water churned unexpectedly and something paddled away beneath the surface.

At once 4 noticed the motion and tried to catch it with her optics. If her captor was here? Then what was that?

C's eyes followed her gaze to the brook, "Amazing isn't it. It's a whole other world in the water. So full of life…"

Life!

Quickly the lost twin knelt closer to 'C' and pointed to the water. She HAD to see this 'life' for herself. See if it was alive like the humans once were, or alive like the dolls, or the machines…

'C' seemed to understand her message, "Do you want see?"

She nodded her head.

Grinning 'C' told 4 to follow her along the bank until they found a plastic bag lying on the shore.

4 hesitated as the other doll told her to get inside the see-through sack and hold still while 'C' dragged her back into the water. She curled herself into a ball as she felt the water envelope her, but she didn't get wet. After a while a webbed hand gently shook her shoulder. 4 opened her eyes to see 'C' close by, smiling confidently. Their natural weight caused them to sink a bit but C's steadied their decent with a light kicking in the water.

The swimmer motioned her passenger to look around at their surroundings.
Her eyes flashed curiously at the water. The atmosphere felt thicker here than on land, and every motion she made caused the water to move around her. Though she sank a little bit at first descending in the water, once beneath the surface she felt almost weightless. It was strange, but wondrous.

That was when a shimmer of something silver quickly passed her.

She shot a glance to follow the creature. A sea beast?

'C' grinned and dragged her passenger further down to the river bed where a dead creature laid. 4 recognized it as a large fish from her books, and frowned to see that, like everything else in her world, it lacked life. However her perception was corrected when she spotted several much smaller fish circle around the carcass, nibbling away at the flesh bit by bit. She quickly cataloged it to her mind. Her family would be excited to know that there were ACTUAL life forms left in their world!

Together the voyagers explored the wide riverbank. They saw creatures that looked to be made of stone scuttle along the bottom and retreated in cocoons when startled. Various and colorful plant-life unseen by the mechanical eyes of the dolls greeted the travelers with their beauty.

4 took it all in as fast as possible, yet there was still more to be seen. She moved about in the sack to imitate C's movements so she could swim through the water as well. 'C' giggled and showed her some basic movements.

After a while 'C' carried her back to the surface and released her from the bag. The barrier had kept the little doll completely dry throughout the adventure. "Apparently whatever happened up here hadn't affected the water. At least I don't think so." She sighed and pulled herself further on the shore to rest. "I've tried to show my sisters all this, but they're too nervous to try the bag. Especially A. She freaks out in small spaces." She laughed lightly.

4 found herself smiling more happily then she thought possible, away from her home and family. She sat down beside 'C' and leaned closely while her eyes closed to rest from cataloging all day.

The seemingly older doll smiled and placed an arm around her. 'E was right.' She thought to herself. 'This is a gentle being. So innocent and calm as a lake…' She then frowned at what she had done the other day; taking this child away from her family in the spur of the moment. According to 'E' there were at least three others out there in the Emptiness, waiting to be found. How her sister knew was a mystery…

The little Stitchpunk frowned when 'C' suddenly moved away and back into the water, "It's easier to go upstream without passengers. Maybe I can bring your friends down here."

At once her eyes brightened and nodded her head excitedly to the idea.

'C' smiled and waved a webbed hand, "You probably should head back in the house and look for E." she said and gazed over the sky warily. "I'm sure she'd like the company."

4 nodded and turned to head back inside as 'C' dove back down in the water to retrieve her family.

Looks like the world isn't as dead as we thought 0_0

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