Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Space is a cold place. But that's all X has known. His family, the variables, have lived in space for generations. However, they had never experienced something so…scary. They were losing power. And there was nowhere to get any more. But he didn’t think it would be an issue he would be involved in. Apparently, he was wrong.

“Everyvariable, get in a pod! There isn’t time to dilly-dally!”

Hehe, dilly dally. That’s a funny saying.

“And I mean you too, X! Get in a pod!”

“Ah-! Suh--sorry, Mx!” He scrambled to a portable pod, opening it and stepping inside. He was sprayed with air, then a strap was flung out of place, ready for. He quickly buckled himself in, squeezing his eyes shut.

“The planet below seems to be habitable, despite its harsh circumstances. We will descend to the surface, find a substantial power supply, and in time be back on the ship to survive whatever we may face below! An air mask will drop in a moment. Once doing so, please use it! We will regroup once we land, good luck to you all,” A commander variable spoke, stepping into a pod as well.

“The few that stay will keep contact and keep our home in order while we are gone! When you land, you will have a radio that is connected to the home ship, and all other pods. Please use it if anything happens. That is all for now, see you all soon after departure,” They spoke, closing their pod. All air masks dropped in front of the variables, X struggling to grab his in a panic. Once he got it, he pressed it to his face, taking long, slow breaths and savoring the air. He heard a countdown from far off, but he blocked it out, closing his eyes.

There was a jolt, then a falling feeling. Then, he felt like he was floating. After the small bliss, he felt his body hit the wall of the pod, blacking out. There was a long silence, followed by cold. It felt humid, and strange. Then, after what seemed like a few minutes, he came to. He shuddered, rubbing his nub in discomfort. He didn't feel like he was falling anymore, so he checked his descent rate. It said he arrived.

X pressed his seatbelt, and it dropped him to the bottom of the pod. He groaned, his eyes threatening to fall again. However, he heard chatter and static from his radio, so he sat up again. He lazily pressed the button to open the pod, hearing it hiss as the doors slid from opposite sides. And when it opened, there was light.

And my math, it was beautiful. The light shone yellow, seemingly early daylight. He observed his surroundings as he crawled out, feeling the grass beneath him. Grass. It was soft. Light dustings of bushes and thin trees lined the area. He stared in awe, his mouth open, and his eyes sparkled. Then he heard his radio again.

“Hello--GHSHHH- H-hello? Is anyone-SHHHHHHHHH-There?” A familiar voice sounded from the other line. X scrambled to grab his radio and turned it on.

“Yes, Y I’m here! Where are you?” He exclaimed, relieved to hear a friend.

“Is Z with you?”

“Nope, -GHHHHHSHH- nowhere in sight, X. And to be honest, I don’t know where I am,” Y sighed, seeming as exhausted yet alarmed as X was.

“Right, right, sorry…Isn’t this place cool?” He asked excitedly.

“Damn right it’s cool. Too bad we -SHHHHHHH- aren’t sure where we are, or else I would be enjoying this wayyyy more,” Y groaned. X giggled. He searched through the supplies given in the pod, grabbing a map. He traced his finger along the words and marked trails, finding what seemed to be ruins. He was told it was a meetup spot; it was the closest one that was instructed to go to. He tapped it, determined.

“You're gonna head north too, right?” X questioned.

“Or are you closer to another meetup spot?”

“Yeppers, going -GGGGHHHHHSSS- that way too, X. See you there,” Y concluded, turning off their radio. X nodded to nobody, then put his radio in a given backpack. He observed the map a bit longer, then started walking.

The sun felt warm against his skin, something he had never felt before. He walked for hours, but it only felt like minutes. He felt at peace.

There came a small clearing, and it seemed he was pretty close to the mark. He heard walking from his right, so he whipped around. Y wandered aimlessly, seeming startled by his presence as well. He blinked in surprise, then sprinted to them, jumping into their arms.

“X! You’re here!” They cheered, wrapping their arms around him. He snuggled against them as they spun him around, then put him back on the ground. More footsteps, and Z was in the clearing as well.

“Z!” They yelled together, rushing to her. She stared back at the two of them, seeming annoyed.

“Yeah, yeah, I’m here,” She mumbled, stepping away from them. She pointed to a bunker of some sort.

“Looks like that’s our meeting point. V and W might show up here too, so let's head in,” She stated, starting to walk there. Y and X nodded and followed. That is, until X fell onto the ground unexpectedly. Y and Z turned to look at him with concerned and disappointed expressions.

“X, look, I know you’re clumsy, but-” Y started, but was cut off by a dart hitting their top nub. They fell as well, moaning in pain. Z jolted and looked at the two of them, panicking.

“Ambush! Shit-!” Z screamed, ducking. A dart still hit her top nub, though, making her go numb. She fell limp to the ground, her eyes darting to find the culprit. And all X could think was, “Who could’ve possibly shot those? I thought nobody lived on this plant?”. But his thoughts quickly slipped away from himself as he went unconscious.

When X woke up, his head hurt. He felt dizzy, and not the ‘I just woke up from a nap’ kind. He also felt sick to his stomach. He felt like he was being squeezed but also felt warmth against his back. He opened his eyes to observe his surroundings.

It looked like a laboratory, or maybe some kind of station. There were vines all about, the place slightly overgrown and unkept. There was also the sound of drilling. And a printer. And a person standing near the printer- Oh my math! A person near the printer?

His eyes widened at the person. He looked to see if there was anyone else in the room. Y and Z sat on opposite sides of him, still unconscious. They were sitting on chairs in the middle of the room, tied together into a big ‘ol variable sandwich. Hehe, variable sandwich.

“Hey, variable. Your friends still asleep?” The figure asked from the printer. He turned to look at them.

“Yeah…figures, I was the first one darted. You don’t sound like one of my friends, neither V nor W. Who are you?” He said unsurely. His voice trembled, still making eye contact as he squirmed against the restraints.

“Better question, where did you come from?”

“Space!”

The figure jumped at the sudden entrance of new people, X jolting as well. He craned his body to look at them. Two new people, actually, none he had ever seen in his life. Integers..

“Pretty cool, eh?” A green integer spoke, leaning against a door X hadn't seen before. Light streamed through the crack.

“We found pods scattered along the borders of our territory. I assume there’s more, though, so I might have to radio the three stooges. If the worst comes to the worst, we can send a letter to One, and she can handle things from there,” The second integer spoke. They seemed gruffer compared to the first one, and their words made X shiver.

“Are they awake yet?”

“Knock next time,” The printer integer scowled, seemingly crossing their arms.

“But one of them woke up. X, right?” They asked, turning to face him. Sweat beaded his forehead as the metaphorical spotlight was put on him.

“Uh..yeah?” X responded slowly, looking at the floor. Not much to look at, anyway.

“Why didn’t you turn on the light? It’s pretty dark! Here, where’s the light switch…” The first integer spoke, followed by clatters and crashes. X winced at the loud bangs, curling in on himself. Then, brightness flashed on, making X whine. He opened his eyes once they readjusted, blinking. There were three integers now in front of him, staring back. They were a colorful bunch, that’s for certain.

The first one was blue, with an eyepatch and a black eye underneath. They had wrapping on their arms and three nubs on their head, two on top and one on the side. The second number was green, with a cheery smile. Their head were adorned with goggles, and they had a chunky backpack behind them. And lastly, a red one. They had three nubs on one side, a scar on the opposite side of the eyepatch on the blue, and a fanny pack wrapped around their waist, decorated with pins and knick-knacks.

X stared at them in awe, taking in their figures. The blue one put their hands on their hips, looking at the green one.

“Two, what exactly are we even planning to do about this?” They asked. Two looked at them in confusion.

“I-I don’t know? It was Three’s idea to tie them up! Ask him!” They both stared at ‘Three’, looking desperate.

“Because! We don’t know why they’re here! Most likely to do something bad, obviously,” Three sighed, rolling his eyes. They turned back to look at X, their eyes piercing through him. The blue number grabbed X’s rope that was tied around him and jerked him forward.

“What are your motives?” They grunted. X whimpered and looked away.

“Leave that little guy alone, Four! … Maybe we can interrogate them without being mean?” The green one stepped in front and pulled ‘Four’ back slightly. Four pushed them off with a huff.

“Okay, what are you doing here, X? Why are your friends here?”

“Hmmm…Well, we didn’t think anyone was living here, for starters. But also, we needed an energy source for our ship,” he said, looking up to recall. Then, he felt a sharp pain in his ankle. Someone had kicked him.

“X, what are you doing?” Z hissed angrily. His eyes widened.

“Z, you’re awake?”

“Yeah, and pissed. Why are you telling strangers, our kidnappers, why we’re on this planet?” X looked at the strangers in front of him, and something in him didn’t feel fear. Something, but he was still afraid. It was a mixture of both emotions, he assumed.

“I don’t know…” X whispered, keeping his eyes low. He felt a hand on his and looked to the other side.

“Hey, it’s fine. We’ll get out of this,” Y said with a concerned tone. They smiled at him. X smiled back hesitantly.

“Okay, well, consider this, we might not get out of this, because we just gave all the needed info we could give. And who needs useless hostages?” Z growled, struggling against the rope. Two looked over at Three, him shrugging. Then they looked over at Four. Four looked at them in thought, then stared at a map pinned on the wall. X was surprised by how full the map looked compared to his, perhaps his was inaccurate.

“We might need you to communicate with your other friends. Don’t wanna escalate the situation by doing something rash, anyway,” they said with a sigh.

“But we will need to check you for weapons. You’re still our hostages,” They concluded, then walked back over to the printer. They picked up the papers that had fallen on the floor and organized them.

“Don’t say hostages, it makes us sound like kidnappers,” Two faltered. They took off their chunky backpack and zipped it open, looking through it. Three walked up to the variables and put his hands in their pockets, sifting through them to find anything. They pulled out a pocketknife from all three of their pockets, chuckling slightly.

“I know damn well these aren’t supposed to be weapons. You wouldn’t survive a single integer with these,” He joked, then used one to cut the rope. X rubbed his arms to get rid of the uncomfortable feeling left from being tied so tight. X hobbled to the ground, dusting himself off. Suddenly, a radio was chucked at his face.

“Catch!” Two chirped. He took the radio in hand, observing it. It looked nothing like the radio he had. He might have to remember that.

“Look, we still have to regroup from our last outing, but promise we’ll be out the door at most twenty. Can you turn the radio on? We gotta tell our buds about yours, or else they might act worse than us! Sorry about this first impression by the way, rangers aren’t the brightest,” They explained, taking out some wrappers from eaten food and tossing them in a nearby garbage. X nodded and turned it on, putting it next to Two for them to speak.

“Hello? It’s Two, Three and Four. Aka, Mathsnacks. Ya copy?” They grinned. X giggled at the nickname, or codename.

“Copy, Six here. What’s up?”

“We got some friends comin from space, so be nice. Got some with us right now,” Two replied.

“Friends? What does- clarification, Two. Three and Four said they were helping you with that,” Six said, and X could feel them rubbing their nonexistent nose bridge from the other side of the radio.

“Oh, right. So uhm, the variables are back. Funny right?”

“WHAT? W-okay. Thanks for the heads up. What’s the plan?”

“Bring ‘em to One personally. She can deal with things from there,” They said.

“Alright. Anything’s better than being stuck in this bunker with these bozos,” Six finished, then followed by some chatter in the background.

“Over and out, Two,”

“Over and out.” X turned off the radio, questions immediately buzzing in his head. Two zipped up their backpack, finished unpacking and packing. They hoisted it over their back, then stood.

“Hey X, if you or your friends are hungry, there's some food in that crate,” they said, pointing at a large box in the corner. He nodded, walking over to the crate and opening it. Inside, there was bread, apples, canned soup, and water in glass bottles. He took some bread and an apple, then some water to wash it down.

Y approached from behind him and looked inside, grabbing some rations as well. Z glanced at the box but seemed hesitant.

“Oh, and this walk will take approximately… Two days? Hey, Mr. Mathematician? Does that sound about right?” Two asked sarcastically. Four tucked his papers into a folder and put it on the desk beside him, then looked at Two with an annoyed expression.

“That's about right, yeah,” he said, eye twitching.

“So, eat up. We’re not eating ‘til dark, when we set up camp. And it's currently noon, by the way. We have some extra backpacks by the restroom, you can pack your fair share in those,” Two hummed with a smile. X smiled back slightly.

“Thanks. You guys aren't the worst kidnappers,” he said. Z walked up to the crate and shoved Y aside, then grabbed some canned soup. Y stumbled, wailing loudly. Once they regained their balance, they frowned at her. But after brooding, they walked over to the hung-up backpacks and tossed them to X and Z.

X caught his backpack and put some food inside, then took his original meal and ate it with haste. Z inspected her food but didn't eat it, just putting it in her pack. X looked at her in worry.

“Why aren't you eating? You feel sick from the darts, too?" X quietly questioned.

“Why are you being so calm about this?” She hissed back, then glared at Y, who was devouring his food without thought.

“We can't trust these guys. They are bringing us to their leader, who knows what they’ll do to us after that! They might be trying to drug us with this food, too!” Four walked over to the crate and took an apple, crunching into it lazily. She blinked and blushed slightly, but sighed.

“Ugh-never mind, just... Look. Maybe there's nothing wrong with the food. My point is, don't get too comfortable. We’re still in danger,” Z whispered. Then she took an apple and ate it slowly, chewing it with care. X took in the information, nodding slowly.

X watched what the others did, trying to remind himself that these were people not to be trusted. Maybe something they did would give it away? He watched as Three leaned on a desk next to Two, saying something with a smooth voice. Two chuckled, then playfully shoved him away. Meanwhile, Four was looking at papers as he slipped them into his backpack, groaning at whatever Three had said.

X didn't see anything fishy from what they were doing. It almost looked like they were family, funny enough as that was. Even though they acted like they didn't enjoy each other's company, he knew they did. It reminded him of his friends, and he smiled to himself. He hoped the walk was gonna be as peaceful as this.

“Alright, is everyone ready? Got food to eat, and have already eaten some before we leave?” Three shouted, making a few people flinch. There was some mumbled agreement, but Y piped up after it got quiet.

“... Hey, uh, random not an important question, but do you know where our stuff went? Like, did you take it, orrrr…?” Y trailed off, Four looking surprised before turning away. Two and Three looked at each other, then looked back at Y.

“We left Four to deal with you guys, so we don't know," Three grunted, crossing his arms. Y looked over at Four, X looking as well with interest. Z glared at them.

“.. Don’t know,” Four murmured.

“I think you guys dropped it when we darted you,” they said. X blinked at them but sighed, thinking about how they fell. Their stuff probably fell out as they flopped on the ground limp, he thought.

“Okay, thanks anyway,” Y replied. Two walked to the door and opened it, light flooding into the bunker.

“Alright, if everything's settled, let's get going. We can check for your stuff on the way,” Two chirped. They trotted out, Three following. Four turned to look, then quickly jogged to catch up with them. Y and X joined them, then Z was the last to leave, reluctant.

They gathered around where they got darted, staring at the ground. It was only a few yards away from where they were.

“Nothing here,” X sighed, looking at everyone standing in a circle. Three started walking along a trail, waving at everyone to follow.

“If there's nothing, then let's get going. The quicker, the better,” he called from ahead. So, the group started walking. It would be a while, so X decided he was going to try to enjoy this. No dilly dallying though. Heh, dilly dally. Hehe, he liked that saying.

Chapter Text

The small group made large progress getting across land. They had already walked at least six miles, but X’s feet felt oh so sore. Y and Z walked in front of him, talking about how much better the food on this new planet was compared to the ship. Two and Three were talking in front of them, chatting about writing a report of some sorts, seeming excited. Four walked in front, the current leader with the map in hand. X ventured to the front, looking for a distraction from his aching feet.

“Hi! Four, was it?” X chirped, eyeing the map Four was focusing on. Four didn’t give as much of a glance to the person beside them, continuing on.

“Variable. That is correct,” Four responded, monotone. X faltered, chuckling awkwardly.

“I’m X,” he said, feeling embarrassed.

“I know,” Four shot back. They glanced up and noticed a branch, then held it up for X, letting him pass. He did so quickly, before Four let go, whacking Two in the face, interrupting whatever they were saying to the red number. Four received a stomped-on ankle in response, making them stumble and giggle. They regained their balance and went back to walking. X observed, smiling a bit. Whatever this all was, he wished to be a part of it.

“You guys are funny,” X hummed, gaining a glance from the blue integer. They gave an interested blink, then put back on their usual moody face and stared at the map below.

“How so?” They mumbled. X was caught off guard by their interest, coyly staring at the ground. Math, the grass was beautiful. They hoped to lie in it sometime, or maybe roll around in it? Like rolling down a hill, but he guessed he wouldn’t be able to do that. He had too many responsibilities now.

“..Like, you numbers act like family. It’s kind of refreshing, and in a way, I wish I had that,” X admitted, rubbing the back of their nub. Four raised an eyebrow.

“That’s a little personal for an icebreaker,” Four commented, still staring down. X felt his face heat up.

“O-Oh, really...? I didn’t realize, I say stuff like that all the time,” X spluttered, fumbling with his hands. Four traced their finger down to where they were supposedly, then stuffed it into their backpack behind them. They stared ahead, making sure not to make contact with X.

“Here’s a better icebreaker; What’s your opinion on math?” They questioned. They heard an immediate laugh from behind them, making Four whip around to glare at them. X turned to see Three cackling, Two nudging him in the side to make him stop. After a moment, he let out a loud final sigh, rubbing a single tear from his eye.

“Oh, that's classic!” Three gasped out, throwing another laughing fit. Four turned their attention back to the trail, ignoring X’s confused and pleading look. Then, once he thought about Four’s question, he looked at them. They still looked slightly upset from the earlier experience, but X tried to ignore it for their sake.

“Uhm…Math is hard. Back on the ship, it was a one-and-done kind of education, kind of. But I think it’d be cool to learn it, or even my value. We couldn’t do that on the ship, either,” X responded, catching Four’s attention. They looked at X for a moment, a smile almost twitching on the corners of their mouth. They glanced away.

“That’s fair. I like that response,” Four responded calmly. Three snickered slightly. X waved to Four.

“Talk to ya later, Four,” X offered.

“Later, Variable,” Four said back, losing interest and going back to focusing on the path. X slowed down to join Three and Two’s clump, interested in their previous conversation.

“Hey Two, hi Three,” X chirped, giving a warm smile. Two returned it, Three smirking. X trotted along with them.

“What were you two talking about earlier?” He inquired, his eyes trailing along to look at the scenery again.

“We like writing. Two especially,” Three pointed behind them with a roll of his eyes. Two shoved Three on the shoulder, making him stumble. He laughed, pushing back.

“Stop rough-housing, children!” The blue number in front shouted. Three groaned, bending down to grab a pebble. He chucked it at the back of his head, making Four twitch.

“Says the youngest one here! Also, the newbie threw that,” they said, pointing at X. Four turned to look at who was being gestured to. They glared at X, then Three, then looked away afterwards. X whimpered. Great, now their leader hated them. Wait, what was that about being the youngest?

“Anyways, they and I like to write. We were excited to get to write a report on variables since you guys don’t have solid values. I wonder if you have power like us?” Three pondered. X was suddenly struck with the same fear he felt while tied up.

Two shoved Three again, but it was a warning nudge instead of a playful one. Three gaped, his jaw tightening awkwardly. His walking stiffened, and he walked farther away from both X and Two. X gave an uneasy look to Two, who chuckled and waved at nothing.

“Power…? -”

“Nothing! Nothing, that's nothing! Don’t worry about it! He meant, erm…physical power! We’re pretty able-bodied, right, Three?” Two asked, shooting Three an angry look. Three nodded vigorously, catching up with the two again.

“Yeah! I’m strong! Watch this!” Three shoved X mid-walk, making them fall. X tumbled into a bush, which happened to be on the edge of a hill, which also had thorns. X rammed into the thorns, then skid down the hill. He heard shouts out to him, but he felt too dizzy to notice what they were saying. Once he reached the bottom, he fell on his face.

Well, that’s not how he wanted to go down a hill. He’ll have to re-do it another time. He felt a bunch of his body burning.

Moments later, he felt hands lift him and drag him back up to the trail. When he cracked his eyes open, he saw Y and Z carrying him. He smiled gently.

“That hurt,” X coughed. He was put to his feet, then held up slightly by his friends. They kept him up by wrapping each arm around their shoulders, then started walking again. X groaned. Three turned to look at them as they walked, looking guilty.

“I am so sorry, I did NOT mean to do that!” Three cried.

“It’s okay, I’m not too hurt, I think,” X said, then looked down to see the damage. Oh. Yikes.

There were lots of scratches. Big ones, almost like gashes. They ran along his body, leaving a tiny mess behind him with each step. Red dotted the trail. The injuries burned, too, unclean. The sight made him dizzy. He fell forward but was caught.

“Great! This is why we don’t roughhouse on the trail,” Four retorted from the front. Two sighed.

“We can set up camp soon. The sun’ll set in an hour or two anyway,” They offered. Four turned to look at them, then looked at the ground.

“Uhm…Hmmmmmmmm…”

“We could all eat,” Three added. Four put a hand on their chin.

“HMMMMMMMMM..”

“You could work on your math worksheets,” Two said with a grin.

“Okay,” Four finally said with a sigh. Collective small cheers from everyone followed, and they started to unpack. Two pulled out a tent from their backpack, same with Three, and Two. Once Z and Y put X down to rest, they found a tent in Z’s backpack. Y and X glanced around confused.

“We’ll do Two people per tent,” Four spoke, gesturing to the three tents on the ground.

“I’ll let you guys make your groups, since I don’t care,” They announced. Then, they started walking away to do something no one was sure of (since they didn’t tell anyone). Two and Three immediately got into a group, holding hands. X looked over at Y and Z and noticed that they were a group. Confused, he frowned and stared at them. Y looked sad, but Z seemed almost relieved.

“Why didn’t you wanna be partners like last time?” X asked.

“Do you remember last time?” Z scowled. Oh yeah, X recalled now. He and her were partners for a training camping simulation back on the ship, so they walked around, ate berries, and slept in a tent. In said tent, they stayed the night. X, tired yet freezing, ended up cuddling Z. And Z was not a cuddler. The next morning, he was woken up to getting shoved, and he jolted, then hit his face on the lantern next to him. It gave him a black eye. For the next week, when people asked how he got it, he had to tell the story. It was very embarrassing.

“Oh. Right,” X said dejectedly. Well, he was going to sleep in a tent with Four now. He wondered how they would react.

“Four’s checking the perimeter, by the way. They say it’s to make sure that we have good shelter, an exit point, so on and so forth,” Two explained. They were already halfway done building their tent by now, with Three’s help. Z and Y had just started. He felt a bit embarrassed that he wasn’t helping, so he stumbled to his feet. He grabbed one side of the tent and tried to maneuver it but failed. He hadn’t made the tent during the training. He never had to tell them that, though.

After about five minutes of misery, Two walked onto the other side of the tent X was trying to make and started helping. X smiled wearily.

“Thanks Two,” They chirped. Two smiled back and continued, and soon enough it was finished. The tents weren’t the best, pretty small in size. But there was a small bug net window for fresh air, and even a small curtain for said window. There wasn't any bedding yet, though. Luckily, there were sleeping bags in everyone's backpacks, so they didn’t need to share that, too. X didn’t know what he’d do if he had to share a bed with Four. His face heated up slightly, for some reason. Yikes.

After all the tents were set up, darkness was beginning to envelop the ground and sky. Once blue, now fiery reds and oranges. On the opposite side of the horizon, it was a dark navy blue with stars freckled against the night sky. It was beautiful, like this planet so far has been. The two integers and three variables sat in a circle near their tents, open bags on their laps. Two chewed on a chunk of sandwich in their mouth, Three crunching on something crumbly and spicy. Z drank soup in a can, slurping on it. Y took large juicy bites out of an apple.

Two noticed X wasn’t eating. He didn’t feel right, light-headed and woozy still. Nothing like this ever happened on the ship. Well, at least he never experienced it. He got beat up a lot, sure. He wasn’t the most popular variable. But he was never really scratched, never scratched by a plant of all things. Two gave an empathetic look to him, X barely returning it.

“Hey, need any help patching yourself up?” Two offered. X smiled and sighed with relief.

“Yes, please,” he hummed. Two scooted closer and pulled some gauze from a pocket and began to wrap some scrapes, then added some Band-Aids to small injuries. X watched in interest.

“You’re pretty good at this,” X commented, Two pulling away once they were done. They went back to eating, X grabbing his backpack to find something to eat as well. He wasn’t too hungry, so maybe some water would be good instead. He pulled out the glass water bottle and swallowed some, savoring the cleanliness. He exhaled once he was done, setting it next to him.

“How’d you learn?”

“Oh, me? Kinda had to,” Two said, shrugging. They handed their excess sandwich to Three, who took it without needing another word. They devoured it quickly. X hummed in question.

“Well, you see…I’m not the most able-bodied of our patrol. I bring stuff with them, basically a walking crate. Look out if I’m lucky. But they aren’t very good at staying safe, and that’s my strong suit,” Two said. They stretched, yawning. They looked over at Y, who was currently picking at the grass.

“Hey Y, could you get some wood together? Four will most likely make a fire. It’s cold out here,” They whined, leaning against Three, who looked like a thermal heater (and most likely felt like one). X shivered.

“On it!” Y cheered, scrambling to get sticks. Once they left, Z got up to follow.

“Gotta make sure they don’t die,” Z said plainly, then disappeared along with them. X turned back to Two and Three.

“Ooh, here’s a fun story! This one’s about your tent buddy,” Two piped up. X felt their mouth twitch into a smile. They scooted closer to Two and Three, intrigued.

“So picture this, it’s the bunker we were in, and it’s early morning. My buddy and I here are still as drowsy as a symbol, and Four is wide awake, printing more sheets, like always. So, I, like usual, ask them how many they’re printing! And you know how many they say...?” Silence. Two grins, and Three looks like he’s about to lose his mind.

“‘Two hundred!’” Two exclaims, then sitting up to throw their head back, laughing. Three groans, covering his face. X laughs along with them, their combined laughter echoing throughout the forest. Two finally calms down, wiping a tear away from their face.

“Obviously, the printer caught fire. It was old, so don’t worry, it’s good now,” Two ended, waving in the air to get rid of any doubt. X’s giggles stopped, and he nodded.

“The fire got on Four though, and it hurt like-...uhm,” They stopped mid-sentence, giving an airy laugh.

“It hurt worse than being multiplied by zero!” Three joshed. Two nodded, snickering.

“Yeah. I had to make Three leave the room because Four was pretty upset, and didn’t want Three knowing,” Two stated. Their face contorted from calm to embarrassment immediately after, realizing what they said. Three laughed loudly, and Two sighed. Before anything else could happen, Four joined them, silently slipping next to Two. There was some silence until Y and Z showed up as well. They both dumped a pile of wood on the ground, Z also making a circle of rocks to resemble a fireplace. Four grabbed two rocks, then gestured to Three, who took them, then crashed them into each other. After a few tries, they got a spark, and the fire began to burn. Warmth was emitted from the combustion, and everyone smiled with contentment.

After the fire was lit, there wasn’t much conversation. A story or two, a joke, a comment. But nothing was too interesting. After about an hour or two, everyone was prepared to go to bed. X, Y, and Z changed out of their spaceship uniforms, putting them in their backpacks. Once they were done, they choked out the fire with lamps in each group's hand.

“Okay, if there’s any trouble, come to us,” Three said, then entered the tent with Two inside. X hugged Y and wished both his friends goodnight before Y and Z got settled as well. X and Four stood alone, awkward.

“Just us again, huh?” X chuckled. Four glanced at them, unzipping the tent’s door flap. They hummed in acknowledgement.

“Were you expecting me to be your tent buddy?” X asked. Small talk aside, he didn’t want to be embarrassed by going into a closed and small space, silent. Four shrugged, then stepped inside. X followed hurriedly.

“...You're not too disappointed, right?” X lamented. He sat down on his sleeping bag. He watched as Four rolled theirs out, getting rid of any lumps by patting it down.

“No. I’d rather get stuck with you than with my idiots of friends. They like to talk a lot,” Four said. X nodded, their eyes widening slightly.

“I’m not...bothering you, am I?” X asked once more. Four frowned at them, then climbed inside their sleeping bag. They shook their head and moved the lamp away from themself. Four stared at the lamp unmoving for a second, but X didn't question it in the slightest. X moved it and placed it on his side, understanding.

“...No. Two talks a lot more,” Four muttered. They shifted in their sleeping bag, trying to get comfortable. They lay with their back towards him. He hummed once he got comfortable, looking at the others' back.

“Oh…That’s good. Also, sorry about the rock earlier, but I swear it wasn’t me,” He whispered. He noticed how eerily quiet it was out here in the forest. It was never this quiet on the ship. With constant buzzing, pipes with flowing air and gases, it was very loud.

“I never thought it was you. You’re too cowardly, Variable. …Sorry you got hurt on your first day on the Valley,” Four said sleepily. X smiled.

“It’s…okay. This hasn’t been the worst day,” X hummed. He felt the other lighten up slightly. He sighed with relief.

“...That’s good,” Four yawned. After that, X felt drowsiness take over, his thoughts fading into comfortable silence. He fell asleep, the night consuming him. He felt, for once, at peace. There wasn’t anything to be afraid of. For now.

Chapter Text

At first it was a fuzzy warmth. That of an animal, or a person. A mother. His mother. Suddenly, he felt young again, trying to grab at her face, but to no avail. Happy tears burned in his eyes. Warm colored light shadowed her smiling face. The nostalgia began to fade, his happiness fading as well. He felt alone, and everything went dark.

Then, there was cold, slick water that hit his head, and ricocheted to the ground. Water ran down his legs. There was grass beneath his feet. He felt his nervousness eat at his flesh and bones, making him weak. He fell to the ground. There was a… Symbol. He wasn't sure what it meant. A cross, a multiplication symbol, or maybe even a plus.

He felt somber, too. Like his heart had been shattered. As he tried to know what he was heartbroken of, his head suddenly began to hurt. He doubled over, squeezing his eyes shut. He squinted to see who was in front of him. He looked up to see a person covered in flowy blue fabric, and a sharp golden crown with a rock on top.

What did…?

X jolted awake, seeing sunlight streaming through the window. He whined, exhausted. Now was not the time for nightmares. He was losing enough sleep as it is.

He felt warmth against his body. Unsure, he looked to find the source.

Oh math-

X scrambled away from Four, feeling his face burn. He panted, putting a hand on his mouth. Four was frowning as he shuffled, seeming surprised by the variable's sudden commotion. They pulled the sleeping bag off themselves, then glared at X. X chuckled, embarrassed out of his mind.

“Hah-uhhh…I’m so sorry about that, I just...” He glanced down and away from them, trying to ground themself.

“I had a nightmare, I guess. Maybe it was cold, but it didn't happen on purpose, Four, “X stated. Four softened his glare, but didn't say anything yet. They re-adjusted their eyepatch, making sure it was covering whatever they were hiding. Possibly a black eye?

“Yeah, I could tell.”

“Oh-”

“Don't be weird about it, variable," Four said, annoyed. They got up, unzipping the tent's front entrance. X hurriedly got up and followed. Golden rays covered the lush ground and brush above. The sky was bright, and filled X with excitement with the day to come. Three and Two were making breakfast over the fire, and Z argued with Y over the things that had happened that night. There was a familiarity already within the group as everyone moved freely in their own activities. X walked over to his friends to ask what had happened as Z barked at Y with fury. Four joined Two and Three to update them on the shenanigans the morning had brought, and what had happened before X had woken up.

It was calm before the storm type-feel to the day, but X couldn’t quite sense the storm yet. The soft rustling of leaves didn’t reveal anything either. There was a breeze. But then there was more rustling. More. Then a battle cry as an algebralien fell from a tree above. The camp froze and jolted. Everyone shifted from passive to offense.

“STOOOOOOOP RIGHT THERE!” A squeaky voice screamed as they flopped onto the grass. They fell limp, trembling. Immediately, the integers and variables we all know calmed. Except for Y, who began to beam.

“N?” Y cheered. The russet variable lazily looked up, then smiled as well. They grinned.

“Y!” They jumped up and hugged Y, getting spun around a few times before getting put down on the ground again. N nuzzled against Y, chirping happily. X’s face warmed at the scene in glee. N giggled and glanced over to Z, then X. E jumped down with M and they all gathered near the original variable group. They specifically stared at E.

“Uhm, E…What're you doing here?” Y asked. E laughed loudly and awkwardly.

“My uh…my pod, it-uhm. It didn’t land right. Went in the wrong direction and ended up on the same side of the planet as you guys,” He stated. E’s green face got paler.

“The oxygen started running out. I heard D and F malfunction too; they were screaming on the intercom. Apparently...” E leaned in closer, the circle of variables doing so as well. Four, Two and Three glanced at the group in confusion, Four with annoyance.

“There was a fire in D’s pod. Rumor says he burnt his leg, and in a panic got it stuck in some of the machinery and wires. When it landed, he crawled out and…had to rip his leg out,” E whispered. X gasped. Despite having an extraordinary time on this planet, he was still worried about his friends and family out in the unknown. What they might be experiencing. E stared at the integers staring back, seeming on edge. He glanced over to M and N with a knowing look, then back to X and his friends.

“Hey X... Uhm, who's your…friends?” E vacillated. X blinked.

“Oh! Yeah, that’s Four, Two and Three. They were taking us to their city or something,” X answered. N smiled and waved, Two returning it with a coy grin. Four crossed their arms and tapped on their forearms in impatience.

“Are you sure they don’t have malicious intent?” M murmured. X faltered. He didn't really have time to worry about it. He chuckled nervously, Z shoving him aside to answer for him.

“I’m pretty sure they do,” She whisper-shouted. She glared over at Three, who was whistling and staring up at the sky.

“They mentioned how we were a problem. Wanted to handle the situation. Radioed their buddies to keep an eye out. Bring all of us to one place, so they must wanna snuff us out. All at once,” She stated darkly. X shuddered. He didn’t want to be snuffed, or something. Why’d they want to hurt him?

“Why don’t you come with us? N could distract them,” E offered. X felt nervous. On one hand, he trusted his friends more than those integers. But on the other hand…what if he got darted again? Or what if he got punished worse for trying to run? Y put a hand on X’s shoulder, looking empathetic.

“Look, if you can’t decide right now, we can think it over. Breath...” Y said calmly. X took a deep breath and then exhaled. He sighed and hugged Y. He didn’t think and eventually let everyone's talking disappear. Suddenly he realized how quiet it was and looked around. They were gone. Z and his friends. He looked over to see Y staring longingly into the forest. X blinked, slightly embarrassed. Four scowled behind them, storming over.

“Where did they go! Why’d you let them leave?” They shouted. X looked around some more. Where did they go?

“I couldn’t stop the whole group, everything just happened so fast!” Y babbled. But X could see right through them. X was their best friend, so he knew when they were lying. Y was a good liar. Four growled and rubbed where the bridge of his nose would be.

“Wuh-whatever. You two still have to come with us though,” Four said. X and Y nodded in unison. Everyone began to pack up their stuff, taking apart the tents and putting their sleeping bags in their backpacks. X felt abnormally more nervous than usual about the situation (and his dream too, but he couldn’t say that). He glanced over at his friend, them not seeming bothered. They shoved food into their bag, then took out an apple to chew on. X inched closer to them.

“Hey, Y,” X asked with hesitation.

“Yeah X?” Y responded. X looked over at Four, then glanced away. He let out a slow breath.

“What happened? What’s the plan?” X said under their breath. Y frowned as they bit into their apple, thinking over an answer. They looked over to see Two’s bag being thrown, and a mouse flinging out of it. Two screamed, hopping on their tippy toes. Three chased it down. Y refocused on their friend beside them.

“We decided that if we’re gonna meet up there anyway, then there's no point in leaving this group. They provide protection from whatever's on this planet. Other than thorn bushes, of course…” X glanced down at his slightly scarred skin, then looked back up with a giggle. He grabbed his backpack and slung it onto his back. Y grabbed theirs as well.

After the mouse got away, Three decided to share their food with Two. Four packed their food back into their backpack, then stood up again. They glanced around at the group, then swung his bag behind their back.

“C’mon guys, no time to lose. If we start walking now, we’ll be there by One’s hour,” Four stated. He readjusted his eyepatch as he spoke. X wondered if their black eye was actually a black eye. It was the first time he really noticed the patch, or the blemish peeking out from under it. He wondered if or when it would heal. It actually kind of looks more like a scar-

“Don’t stare,” Two whispered to him. X jumped, immediately glancing away. He felt Four’s glare piercing him. Two winced. The blue number huffed, sharply turned, and began to walk along the trail. Two sighed somberly, then patted X’s back. They gave him an empathetic smile.

“Hey, don’t worry about it, X. Everyone’s done it before,” They stated. X frowned at the implications of what Two said but chose to ignore it. He began to walk, following the group. X chatted with Y all the way, for hours on end. He must say, he enjoyed himself.

***********

Slowly, the forest began to clear. Then, the sky, which was darkening, showed less stars. X noticed a small amount of light pollution. Huge gates, wood with chains and integers towered above. X faltered slightly. He had never seen anything like this before. He watched as Four walked up to the gate, banging on it ruthlessly. There was silence, then murmuring from the other side. Then, a light was shown above, blinding the group for a moment. Four hissed, then glared up at the figure shining the flashlight. It was a purple number, who groaned upon realizing who it was. They seemed flustered by the presence of the variables, though. They hurried down from the top of the gate, then slowly opened it. The group was ushered inside.

“Took you long enough, Five,” Four said with a scowl. Five stared back, half lidded and uninterested.

“Got a lot of visitors today, wonder boy. Give us some slack,” Five retorted back. She led them through the highly protected part of the…town? City? Math, where were they?

“The plaza’s been pretty barren up until this point. The market is crawling with people now. However, you will have to go through there, since we set up an armory on the east and west side of the valley,” They stated. Four nodded. They followed, Y looking around excitedly. X did so as well, only because Y was doing it though.

“Plaza?” X inquired. He looked up and saw string lights lined along shops. Integers of all colors stood and sold at the shops, laughter and chatter filling the air. Smells of street food filled the air. Sizzling oil popped and crackled, along with sparklers held by younger numbers. Live music played from far off, harmonizing and instruments humming in the air. It tingled X’s ears, making him sigh with comfort. This place is nice… He wonders how long he’ll be here. He saw striped colors, red and white. And he saw a flag, finally. With three colors, purple, white, and yellow.

“That’s right. Integer plaza,” Five said. She said,

“Biggest valley around. We have great soil, and a river with fresh water nearby. Our ancestors, not very long ago, settled here. The Priest was there too.”

“The Priest?” X tried further. Five gave a dark look, sighing.

“The Priest is the higher up out of all of us. They’re stronger than us too, we know that for…certain. We’ve seen it. They’re in the tower in the center of the valley, watching over us. That’s where your friends are, too. That’s where we’re going,” they said. X nodded, intrigued.

After a bit of walking, Five stopped in front of them. She put her hands on her hips.

“This is as far as I can take you, or want to take you,” They addressed. Four hummed in acknowledgement, then looked back at his group. He glanced around at his friends- and variables- faces. Everyone looked exhausted, and hungry. They grinned slightly.

“Wanna grab some street food?” They asked. The group collectively smiled back. So, instead of going straight to the tower, they explored the market. Two recommended a food spot farther down, so they walked further north. At one point, they stopped to look at a paper shop. Two was enamored with the beautiful envelopes, practically begging Three to buy some. But once denied, they let it go with a disappointed sigh. Y made them stop at a gimmicks shop, giggling to themself as they hit a ball connected to paddle with glee.

Finally dragged away, they found the food hut near a darker part of the market. Less beads and stringed light were found, but it wasn’t ominous. It was more calming in a way. Integers hung along the felt tents with food or maps in hand, minding their own business. The number behind the counter smiled calmly at the group. They grabbed a notepad, then glanced over at Four (who was still leading).

“What could I get ‘ya today, kids?” The integer asked. Four blinked at them with a shallow stare before responding,

“Sandwich, number three,” they said. The number wrote quickly on their sketchpad, humming a quick tune while doing so. Four looked behind him to see X first. What could he say? He liked talking to them. Anyhow, his eyes widened slightly at the attention, coming back to reality. He stuttered.

“I-I, uhm,” X gritted his teeth. Four raised an eyebrow at him but looked past him instead. Two chuckled as they stared at them. They glanced at the menu one more time before regaining eye contact.

“An elephant ear, to share please,” Two requested. The cook nodded, writing it down. Three gently moved Two out of the way to get closer to the person behind the counter.

“A burger for me as well, thanks,” he said. The pencil quickly moved against the pad, making a loud sketching sound. They looked up again. Y smiled up at the integer.

“A hot dog for me, anddddd…A number five sandwich for X,” They deduced. The number finished the order, then grinned at the group as they began to work. Oil began to sizzle, and meat began to be grilled. They glanced at the group, who was standing rather silently, almost waiting for the question the cook wanted to ask. The integer took that chance.

“So, variables huh? You other ones some rangers? Your friends have been visiting,” They spoke. Three walked in front of Four, telling them that they didn’t need to lead this time. Four sighed, but waved both their hands in defeat, going to talk to X. The conversation practically closed in on the cook and Three, with him glancing around before talking once more.

“Yeah, that’s us…Has One been saying anything?”

“Yeah, they've been sayin’ lots. One said that the variables aren’t going to be a permanent problem, that they’d handle it. Is that what they told you?” Three blinked in surprise but lowered his eyes.

“I-...No. She hasn’t said anything to me yet,” Three mumbled.

“I’m surprised,” The cook began. They flipped the burger, then began to butter the bread for the sandwiches.

“Aren’t you buddy-buddy with them? -” They said, until Two walked up to Three. They tapped him on the shoulder, a coy smile on their face. Three nodded, a silent promise to join the group in a moment. Two left their hand on his shoulder for a bit before walking away again. Three exhaled sharply once they were far enough away. The cook chuckled.

“We don’t need to be talking about that stuff right now…Who’s that friend of yours? I think I recognize them,” they said, leaning against the counter to see the group. Y was saying something loudly, Four was practically screeching at them, Two was trying to calm the situation, and X’s face was hotter than the sun.

“Two? They’re my- uhm…friend,” Three said. The cook smirked at him.

“Actually, I think I should go join them,” he said quickly, slapping money on the counter before speed-walking back to his friends. Upon return, the bicker subsided and everyone calmed down. Except for X’s, who was still steaming out his ears. Y hummed, staring at the once yellow face. They patted him on the back, giggling childlike.

“X, you know I was joking! You couldn’t have cuddled with the blue boy with your sleeping bag on, so calm down! It’s not like it would’ve mattered, anyway,” Y concluded. X managed a smile back, chuckling awkwardly.

Soon after, the cook called everyone to the stand again, handing them their correct foods. X gingerly took his sandwich. Eating it with delight, he noticed Four’s sandwich as well. He asked what was inside theirs, to which they responded with cheese, lettuce, tomato, and turkey. X told them his ingredients, and they talked about how good it was while eating. Meanwhile, Y chewed on their hotdog with glee, Three chomped on his burger, and Two shared their elephant ear with him. They enjoyed their food with little conversation.

Once they were done, they threw out the damp with oil wrappers and napkins. They said their thanks, the cook waving as they made their way. They walked through the night, the lights in the market still ever glowing in radiant neon colors. Signs and merchandise caught their eyes as they traveled to the center of the plaza, then going into a new area. X saw the colorful lights disappear, being replaced by the lights of windows in homes. The mutters of families in huts and small buildings filled the quiet air. Suddenly, Four stopped at a hut close to a big, towering building in the square middle of the valley. X’s eyes widened at the sight.

“That big place…Is that where The Priest lives?” X whispered into the cold. Four looked up at it warily, sniffling. They reajusted their eye patch.

“Yeah. We’ll be staying here, though. My old home, before the ranger base,” Four said. X looked at the hut again. It was blue in color, which made sense, with a singular window in the front. There was a sign in the front of the house that read “Four Integer” on it. Four slowly went up the steps, then opened the door, leaving it open for the others. X followed first, intrigued.

The house was dark, and felt unlived in. But as he made his way through, he saw pictures on the walls. Some were of Two, or Three, or…some black integer. X didn’t recognize them. But there were mostly pictures of Four when he was younger, littler. A dark blue baby wrapped in soft cloth, with a sleeping expression. X touched the picture, running his finger down the glass in comfort. He stared at it a little longer, then continued following the blue number.

Some of the pictures were rotted though, X saw. He tried to ignore it and follow Four further. At this point, the others were in the next room. But the disintegrated images hanging on the wall felt purposeful. Like they were trying to erase something… Or Someone…

…

“Variable, keep up!” Four hollered, making X squeak. He hurriedly jogged into the room where everyone was, panting. Y gently guided him to a more comfortable spot, a bed. X, confused, tilted his head slightly.

“We need to rest, since you and your friend are going to be presenting to the Priest. Sleeping arrangements can be the same as last time, so you are staying with me in my bed,” Four stated, then looked over at Two and Three.

“They will sleep in my old bed in the other room, down the hall,” they said. Two smiled, and Three snickered.

“And variable number two will sleep on the couch, by themself,” Four muttered. Y whined, but nodded, leaving the room. X waved to them, chuckling at the antics. He sighed as he laid back, settling into the bed with ease. He tucked himself in, his eyes fluttering shut. Four got into the bed as well, nuzzling into the pillow. X looked at him as he did so, blinking. Then he looked away, going to turn off the light.

“Hey Four?” He asked as he reached for the string on the lamp.

“Hm?” They hummed back.

“Do you ever take off your patch before going to bed?” X asked. There was a silence that lingered after the question, and it was tense. X almost regretted asking, though he was told he wasn’t too much of a bother earlier, so he hoped that still was true. Four sniffled and pulled the blanket up to cover his lower body completely.

“Yeah, sometimes. But I can’t right now,” They responded quietly. X hesitated on turning the light off now. He wanted to look at Four while talking to them. For respect, of course. This was a serious conversation, anyways. He laid back down slightly, looking at Four’s expression as he spoke.

“Why not now?” He began, feeling a blush creep up his cheeks. Four’s eyebrows furrowed, his expression looking like a wounded dog. Then, they turned away from him, pulling the pillow over their head.

“...Let’s go to bed, Variable,” They mumbled. X stared at them in disbelief and shock for a second but sighed. Who was he to ask such things of a stranger? He didn’t even know why he asked in the first place. Blatant curiosity, he supposed. He reached for the beaded string finally, pulling it. The lights flickered out. X laid in bed, closing his eyes again. Maybe he wouldn’t have silly dreams tonight. Maybe he could truly get some rest, just for tonight.

Chapter Text

X shifted in bed, flipping to another side. He yawned, stretched, and looked to the left of him. Four was still facing away from him but was hugging the pillow to his body. X smiled and gently tapped his shoulder. Four whined and squeezed the pillow closer. X chuckled and rolled his eyes, then hopped off the bed. He covered Four back up, his eyes going half lidded. Then, he silently left, closing the door carefully behind him. They slowly walked through the house, looking at the pictures. Then, he arrived in the kitchen. Two and Three were already awake, talking to each other quietly. They had their hands interlocked. X raised his eyebrows at the situation in surprise.

Upon noticing X, they froze. Three yanked his hand away very noticeably, while Two stood shellshocked. Then, Two went from blankly staring at X to smiling gently, relaxing.

“Mornin’ X,” Two chirped. Three grinned, waving a hand. X waved back softly, then walked over to the fridge. There were fridge magnets and children’s photos stuck on it, along with some recipes and to-do lists. He gripped the handle and yanked the fridge open, peering inside.

“Anything to eat?”

“Infinity, I hope not! it would be at least a year old,” Two said with a shudder. X giggled and closed the fridge. Three put a hand on X’s shoulder and smiled down at him.

“We can get some breakfast in the market. You wanna?” Three asked. X grinned from ear to ear and nodded. After, Three grabbed his fanny pack and put it on, while Two put on their backpack, and they left. X felt the warm rays of the sun on his skin. He hummed in comfort at the feeling. It was like a hug from space! He didn’t pay much attention to where he was going, only following the two integers in front of him. He noticed that there were only older numbers up yet. He could tell by the small wrinkles on their faces and the color faded from their skin.

Variable color never seemed to fade, nor gain wrinkles. He wondered if it was due to being a slightly different species or if it had to do with their ever-changing value. Now that he thought about it…If they never got old, where did all the parents go? His mother is gone now. Where did she go? It kind of gave him a headache to think about. He also knew that their captain was the same since the ship was made, how did they never disappear?

He decided now was not the time to think about such things. Now was the time for food, which reminded him of what he was going to eat. Yesterday he learned that the integers ate meat, which they never had on the ship. Well, they had it once, a long time ago, but he never got a taste since he didn’t exist yet. His head hurts even more now, yikes. Maybe he can just have another sandwich.

“Hey, silly, what do you want?” Two piped up, X realizing he was standing in front of a food hut. He froze for a moment but took a deep breath to calm himself. He looked up at the kind number, staring at him with a paper and pen in hand.

“Uhm, sandwich please,” X said. The cook smiled and wrote it down, getting to work.

“Hey X?” Two asked.

“Hm?”

“Why’s your go-to food sandwiches?” Two pondered. X shifted in his stance, looking up at them.

“Uhm, well. When I was on the ship, we didn’t have meat. So, we ate a lot of sandwiches,” X explained. Two chuckled and nodded with an endearing smile. They stood in silence as the food was made, waiting. Finally, it was wrapped in paper and handed to Three, who tossed it to X from afar. X fumbled with the item, it slipping out of his grip for a moment before catching it. He quickly unwrapped it and bit into it, sighing with relief. He chewed on it slowly, savoring it. As he ate, he was led back to the hut.

Now that it was brighter, he could get a better look at the area. It looked like a neighborhood, with lots of housing lining the dirt path. Streetlights were also along the path, with bushes and lush trees. The grass here was less green than the forest he had come from, but he didn’t care. The houses looked old, compared to the huts near the market at least. The huts were all colorful, though, just a bit dull.

When they got inside, Four and Y were standing awkwardly next to each other. Four had his arms crossed, and Y looked embarrassed. When the group was noticed, they both seemed calm. Y walked over to X and gave him a tight squeeze, making his body involuntarily squeak. Three chuckled at the noise, then gave Four a pat on their back. Four frowned but didn’t say anything.

They watched as X searched the room for a garbage can to throw away the paper from the previous sandwich. He grumbled to himself for a second before asking,

“Did you bring more food?”

Two nodded and searched through the bag that was in their…hand. When did Two get that? Was X that focused on a sandwich? … It was a good sandwich. Anyhow, Two pulled out wrapped food, oval-shaped, and gently handed it to Four. They accepted it, unwrapping it and biting into it. His face was contorted in confusion.

“Breakfast burrito?” They inquired with sarcasm.

“Yeah, we got burritos for everyone. ‘Cept the prisoners.”

“Stop calling X and Y that!” Four and Three snickered in unison, Three grabbing himself food as well. They chomped down on the burritos crudely, making Two sigh. X giggled quietly at the group, Y smiling as well. After, Two grabbed the last item in the bag and ate as well, humming with delight.

They all stayed like that for at least ten minutes, enjoying each other's company. Soon, though, Four excused themself. They said they needed to grab something and beelined it to the bathroom. X waited, watching as Two packed up their things again, along with Three. Y noticed and did the same. As they packed, they looked over at their friend and gestured to the room he had stayed in that night. Right! His stuff, he needed that. Not like he had much, but still.

X trotted down the hall and into the room they had stayed in. With it being brighter in there too, he could get one last look at this place. He might not ever come back, most likely not. He might as well try to memorize it.

The walls had blue decorative wallpaper, and intricate designs on it. The bed had a golden colored bed frame with bulbs on the top, which contrasted the room. The quilt looked handmade, with some imagery on it…He tried to focus on what it meant, but it hurt his head. Weird.

There was a bookshelf on the corner, along with a dresser. The bookshelf had math books, world books, and scrolls inside. The dresser had jewelry and native looking paints on the top, out of reach.

Something in him wanted to take something. That would be quite rude considering he was a guest, but it was a…Souvenir, yeah. A souvenir. He walked up to the bookshelf and traced the spines of a few. He rubbed his fingers together, feeling the dust. He observed the names of the books. Then, he reached up and took the farthest-up scroll he could grab.

He yanked it as carefully as possible, then gently brought it down. He cradled it in his hands, then placed it in his backpack. Four wouldn't notice. Probably. Four was taking a while. What were they doing in the bathroom for so long? Who knows, probably just Four being weird. He grabbed his backpack and took it with him back to the kitchen.

When he got there, everyone was ready, except for Four. They had just left the bathroom, walking over to the bedroom to get their things as well. Soon enough, everyone was done packing, already walking out the door.

“So, uhm. What’s the plan?” X asked as they left.

“Well, when we get to the tower, the other variables will most likely be there. Once settled, the Priest will come out and give a speech, and when that’s done, we’ll see from there,” Two said.

“What about you guys, though?” X inquired once more. Two blinked, then put a hand on their chin in thought.

“We, well… We’ll be heading back to the base, I suppose,” Two responded, frowning slightly. They patted X on the back sympathetically yet confused.

“You didn’t think we’d be sticking together for long, right? We’re strangers,” Two ended with a light chuckle. Right, stranger. These were…Strangers. Why didn’t it feel like it, though?

The group walked for a short time, only about fifteen minutes, but it felt long. The tower, in view from the beginning, just kept getting bigger and bigger the closer they got. X felt intimidated, to be honest. What was to come? He had no way of knowing as he walked up the stairs to the entrance. Big gate-like doors stood elegantly in front of him, slowly creaking open. It’s old age apparent, more symbols with oncoming headaches. Stained glass windows and overgrown walls made of brick. When he got inside, the first thing he noticed was the guards lining the walls. They stood ever so still, not moving an inch nor glancing at them as they entered the building. The floor was clean and shiny, and X felt as though he was ruining something so sacred.

Then, he heard the voices. Loud, like a crowd rumbling in the distance. He recognized the harmony as one of his own and felt excitement flooding his face. X’s face brightened with glee, speeding up his walking. Paintings flashed past as he ignored all else, impatient to see familiar faces. He burst into the room, immediately seeing at least ten people he knew. The group, upon noticing X, cheered. They swarmed him, grabbing at his squishy flesh and poking crudely. Conversation loudened, and people asked questions. Y joined as well, making X feel a little better as the variables backed off.

Y embraced N, then Z. X did the same, but was pushed off Z with a grunt of disapproval from her. E waved at him, along with N and M, who were chattering. But after a moment of euphoria, X remembered something. He began to search the area, looking for someone. E caught on, gently tugging on X’s shoulder. X looked at E with confusion and tension.

“Are you looking for D?” X nodded slowly, feeling embarrassed. He just had to know if the rumors were true. Plus, he was an original variable, almost as old as their captain, or B, a high member of the ship's court.

“Not here. We were told he was sent to a care center, so I’m pretty sure the rumors were true. Pretty crazy, right?” E exclaimed, dragging X back into the swarm of variables. X chortled quietly, looking at the floor as it moved beneath him.

“Uhm, yeah. I feel bad for them,” X replied, being surrounded again.

“What was it like being held captive?”

“Did they hurt you?”

“Are you hungry, baby? I brought my homemade sandwiches! An integer helped me-”

“Did they do that to you?” A letter pointed at his scratches. X gasped at the finger, then looked down. Oh yeah, that.

“Nuh-no. They didn’t do that. I…Fell,” X muttered.

“Were you scared? You always were scared during the camping training!” N squealed. X flushed.

“Well- uhm, yes,” X mumbled under his breath. The rest of the things being thrown at him were muffled out. He ignored it and pushed past the group, letting them question Y instead. As X wandered further away from the others, he felt calmer. He began to observe the previously abandoned paintings.

There was a figure in most of them, tall and celestial. They had four arms, two on each side. But they weren’t real hands, just illusions or something along the lines of that. They were covered by a cloth, almost like a robe. It had the moon on it, with an eye-like shape in the middle. Stars dotted the bottom of the robe. But the most prominent part of their figure was the large, sharp crown that lay on their head. Jewels adorned the peaks of the spikes, except for the middle top one, who had a…rock on it? Purple in color, with yellow speckles.

In every tapestry, they towered over the other person, mostly due to their platform sandals that adorned their blue feet. As he observed, he heard clicking, clacking on the clean floor. X flinched and turned to see the person in the tapestry far up, on a throne-like seat. The variables stopped talking to see the figure, gasps filling the crowd. They quieted down, making a line, per the guard's request. X joined the line hurriedly. The figure readjusted its crown.

“Welcome, variables,” The person said, their voice echoing. It made the tower practically tremble. Their voice, feminine but loud and strong.

“Thank you for all your obedience. I feel pride in having been here, in front of you. My name is unimportant. I am the Priest. That is what you will know me as,” they said. X’s eyes widened slightly. This was them! Wow, this is…Scary.

“Let me get to the point, I don’t wish to keep you waiting! We want you all to be very comfortable. So, for the time being, we will have you sleep here, in my very own tower. We will keep you fed and bathed, and in time, we will have a celebration. A celebration of your arrival and safe return. We know what you need, variables,” The Priest spoke.

“We will give you what you need.”

And with that, the Priest left. The guards bowed, along with the rangers, and the variables caught on and did so as well. Once the Priest was gone from sight, the murmuring began again between the variables as they talked about what had just happened. X sighed, letting himself exhale. He had been practically holding his breath. Soon, the guards came up to the line of variables. They had a serious, but slightly more laid-back expression.

“Come with us, we’ll take you to your rooms,” they said.

“And the rangers will come with us, too.” X smiled, for some reason. He wasn’t sure why. Maybe it was because he was with his friends? Yeah, it was probably that.

They walked upstairs. Lots of stairs. X was a panting mess by the time they got to their floor. He wondered how many people had to go up and down these stairs every day. The floor they proceeded on was less fancy than the first floor. The ground was less shiny, and the walls were more overgrown, but it wasn’t bad. And there were rooms for days. X gawked at the number of rooms, jaw dropped. Y giggled at him and nudged him in amusement. He was brought to a room, along with Y and Z, and told to get comfortable. X began to unpack, throwing his things around and on the bed for himself.

The sheets were white and clean, soft cotton specially made. The pillows were fluffed out, and the windows had stained glass. X almost felt guilty for sleeping in here, it was luxurious. He wondered if people came here often, or if the Priest kept it to themself. He wanted to find out. He stepped out of the room and flagged down a guard, waving them over. The number was black, with a grin on their face.

“Hey, Mx?”

“Hm?”

“What are these rooms used for?” He asked. The integer glanced around at the rich rooms, thinking of a response. They blinked, then looked back at X.

“These rooms are used for people who…Have attendance with the Priest. We like to treat our guests well,” they said. X, confused, raised an eyebrow.

“Actually, back in the day…We used to keep prisoners here. It wasn’t a jail, though. For the people who got stuck in deals, this is where they stayed. But they weren’t in massive groups, like you all. There were only about five or six people,” The number whispered, glancing around with caution. X frowned.

“-...And why are you telling me this?”

“Well, because you asked what these rooms were used for. Just sayin’, you might find some notes or markings left behind by those people. I haven’t looked myself, but believe me, they’re there,” The guard stated mysteriously. X nodded, intrigued.

“Oh, okay, thank you. …Say, what’s your name?” The guard looked surprised but smiled more.

“Me? Oh, uh, Seven. My name’s Seven. And lemme guess….X?” Seven asked. X smiled softly back.

“Yeah, that’s me, haha,” X laughed airily. X backed up slowly, beginning to wave.

“See you later or never, Seven!” X hummed. Seven grinned back and put his hand above his head, waving back wildly.

“See ‘ya! Make sure to get to bed early, the wake-up time is early!”

X turned and walked back into his room, immediately going to investigate. He wanted to find some notes, or markings from old people, because how cool would that be? It would be awesome! He scanned the walls with his eyes, crawling across the floor in desperate excitement. Z looked over at him in disgust, turning away to continue unpacking.
“So glad I’m back with you guys,” Z retorted sarcastically. She sighed and crawled onto her bed. Y was still grabbing their things out of their bag, chuckling at X’s antics.

“Wah-what are you doing?” Y snickered. X mumbled something incoherent, then turned to his friends.

“Someone working here told me that there might be secrets in here. I wanna find ‘em,” X said. Y gaped, then smirked, practically pouncing on X as he jumped towards him.

“Treasure hunting without me? No can do,” Y says as they drag the closet away from the wall. They gasped in unison as they saw a paper swiftly fall to the floor, dirty and torn. X and Y grinned mischievously and snatched it from the floor. They held one of the sides for the other, staring at the note in confusion. Y sighed and let it go, walking away. On the paper, read a language that they didn’t understand, but saw around them. It was on a lot of signs when they walked through the market, and was on the math papers that Four had printed out. It must be their native language, he thought. Weirdly, he doesn’t remember even hearing about it on the ship, though.

Then again, he didn’t know there were integers when he was on the ship.

“Lame! There was a note, but we can’t even read it!” Y whined from behind him. X blinked, then put a hand on his cheek as he thought.

“How many days until the event?” He asked. Y shrugged, opening his neat sheets on the bed to get inside. They groaned in comfort as they pulled the blanket over themselves. Z quirked her head to look at X, frowning.

“About three days, if I remember correctly. Don’t take my word for it,” She responded. She flipped on her side, her back facing X and Y.

“This whole thing seems sketchy to me,” Z mumbled. X didn’t want to feed into her skittish view on everything, but he almost felt the same. So, prompted by the silence, he spoke up.

“..How so?” She turned around to look at him, then glanced over at Y. They were fast asleep, mouth open as drool fell on the pillow they were lying on. She snickered lightly but focused back on X as he stared at her with exhaustion. She motioned for him to get into his bed. He smiled and laughed airily, then did as she wanted. When he lay down, he blankly looked up at the ceiling.

“That Priest guy said they knew what we wanted, right?” She murmured. X nodded, eyes fluttering shut.

“Well, how could they have? The only way they would know is if one of us told them, and I sure hope no one did,” They stated. X sucked in a breath. It was true, they shouldn't have known. The only person who was pathetic enough to give away why they were here was… Well, if they knew because of him, that would mean…

X sniffled to himself, rubbing his upper arms. He reminded himself that the people he had spent the last few days with were strangers. He sucked in the air, looking for a better explanation for himself. He didn’t do anything wrong. He hoped…

“Maybe…Maybe they knew because of our history. They already knew about variables, - us -so they must have known we were in that ship. It’s only common sense to realize why we’re here,” X got out. Z rolled her eyes and turned away. X knew she was standoffish and should have expected it by now, but it still hurt to be dismissed so coldly.

“Whatever helps you sleep better at night, X,” she said, then turned out the light beside her on the nightstand. X’s chin quivered, squeezing his already closed eyes shut. He pulled the blankets over himself. If anything, bad happens, it’ll be his fault. That’s what helped him get to sleep tonight. That’s what's helped him sleep most nights.

Chapter Text

Back on the ship, the lights flickered. The rooms, quiet and vacant, the corridors and halls silent from the small to no algebraliens inside. Now, the only people who roamed the halls were the people of the council, marching along the walls. They had nothing to say, merely awaiting contact from the world below. But with the radio silence that came from there, too, it wasn’t looking too good from here.

The ship slowly orbited the planet. There wasn’t much to see, but with enough movement, they were finally able to see the valley. Upon being noticed, the captain was notified. Or at least, was about to be notified.

“I haven’t seen her in forever,” B whispered to C, slowly creeping to the front of the huge ship. Their walking echoed through the halls. Click clack click clack.

“Does she even eat? Or is she just rotting away in the captain's chair?” C murmured back, judgingly. She smirked at B. B sighed back at them, rubbing a hand against his eyes.

“Her child brings her food from a cafeteria. Or are you too dense to see that too?” B snarked back. C’s face dropped slightly, but she was still laughing lightly.

“Chill your beans, dude. It’s not like A would even care if I said something like that. We go way back, remember?” C said with a chuckle. B stared at her for a moment before grumbling, crossing his arms.

“You say that, but you haven’t seen her since Era D. She’s changed.” He shivered. A used to be such a kind number. Having a kid must have changed her, he thought. That couldn’t have been the only reason, though. He had a child as well.

“Where is her kid, anyways?” C asked, glancing around like they would just appear in front of her magically. When they didn’t, C focused back on B. B chewed on their cheek in thought.

“a’s been in their room. They don’t leave there often,” B responded after a moment. He blinked down at the floor, shiny and clean. It was cleaned every day, even though it was barely used. Not many people even communicated with the captain, despite supposedly needing to be in the loop. They just knew what was going on. Slowly, they approached the door. C fluttered her eyes and chuckled nervously as she reached for the handle, the corners of her mouth twitching. She exhaled sharply, then opened the door.

Light crept through the crack, illuminating the dark room. In front, a huge window shows the ever-growing space, with stars and planets visible. Hundreds of buttons and dials sat in front of a huge chair, swiveling but moving lazily. The room was open, and there was barely anything inside except for a photo of the captain and her child, a, on the floor, practically withering away with age. C trembled as she stood, feeling out of place.

“Come in,” A ragged voice spoke from the chair, making both C and B jump. They both did as she said, stepping in with their hands tucked behind their back. C watched as B wiped beads of sweat from his forehead. She looked at the windows, enamored and mostly unbothered.

“Captain A, we come with news,” B said softly. A scoffed at them, moving the chair slightly to where they could see the tip of the captain's hat, military green. She made sure not to let them see her face, almost like it was a privilege. B felt inferior under their gaze, a once welcoming one.

“‘Course you do. Go on,” She spat, swiveling back to look out the window. She pressed a button beside her, and on command, the doors behind the two variables closed, trapping them inside. Air hissed out as it snapped shut with a clank. C squeaked out in alarm but shook her head. She focused on the singular, deranged eye in view, sharply staring through her.

“I-I, uhm…The mission, it may not go as planned, A,” they said, bringing their hands in front and fiddling with their fingertips.

“The integers are still alive down on the planet's surface, we assume. I don’t suppose the polygons or polyhedrons are the ones that are civilized down there,” B added, shooting C an annoyed glance.

“You address me as Captain, C. And of course they are,” A spoke. B’s eyes widened in surprise, faltering their stance. C swallowed hard, shifting in place.

“Then…why’d you send them down in the first place? You do realize how dangerous integers are. You practically sent our people to their doom,” B stuttered out, clenching his hands into fists. A sighed, then gripped her armrest.

“You don’t seem to have much faith in our people? Shame,” Captain A commented plainly, raising their eyebrows. B shifted, sucking in a breath. He shook his head in a silent apology, but didn’t have time to get another word in before C stepped forward in the challenge.

“It doesn’t matter how powerful you think our people are, it was still a bad idea! We are extremely outnumbered,” C hissed back. A snorted at the unintended pun, but slowly let the smile drop into a nasty glare. Both variables felt the confidence they once had left disappear in an instant.

“Don’t worry your pretty little heads off, things will go as planned. We have more things to worry about other than this ship, or our fellow variables down on the surface. Like meeting an old friend,” A said, then finally turned to look at the two very concerned variables. She smirked at them, but upon seeing their confused and scared faces, she frowned. They stared at the five dots under her eye, symbolizing the power difference between her and their mere three dots. She was completely in control.

“You are dismissed, B,” Captain A almost shouted, then looked over at C.

“And C, we need to chat.” B glanced between the two of them, then shuffled out of the open doors. Once the doors clamped shut once more, C felt anxiety rush through her. She stepped back, her body hitting the wall. She couldn’t escape. Her tangerine face got pale as she stared at the shadowy figure in front of her. She sucked in a breath.

***********

In a far-off room, but first in the living corridors, lay a pink variable, groaning. They rolled over onto their back, staring up at the tubes and pipes that ran through the ship on the ceiling. a slowly pulled themself up and looked around for something to do. Drawings lined the walls of their room, ones they made. Despite not having arms, they were a good artist, if they said so themself. Not that they could get an alternative opinion now. Ever since the others their age left, they were bored out of their mind. Usually, they could at least complain to someone, but now they could only talk to themself. And complaining to themself was pointless.

“I’m bored,” they said quietly to no one. They frowned and whined. They got up and looked out the window of their room. They couldn’t leave unless their mother told them so. So, they got off the floor and lay in their bed instead. Suddenly, they heard a knock on the door, making them shriek. They buried their face in their knees in embarrassment for a moment, but then got up to see who it was. b stood there, blinking.

“Hey a, wanna walk?” b called from outside the door.

“No, because I hate you!” a shouted back sarcastically. They heard b gasp for air.

“Whaaaaaat the heck, man!” b said as a opened their door, meeting face to face. They both giggled at each other. a stepped out and began to walk with b.

“Wait, so can you go on a walk?” a blinked at them, then looked up and pretended to seem uninterested.

“Nooooo…But I don’t really care,” a murmured back. b looked surprised but didn’t say anything back, humming in response. They walked along the halls, stopping to look out the small number of windows when possible. Despite having always been in space, it was still beautiful. a drew it sometimes, but it was hard to do without much reference. They also drew their friends and mom, but there wasn’t much to draw other than that. Maybe one day there will be something new to see. Sometimes a felt trapped in the ship. But maybe everyone felt that way. b did too, at least.

Eventually, they found something that made both of them smile with excitement. A DJ box! Which was a small box with almost infinite songs on it, or so it seemed. When all the others were on board, they would sometimes make groups on their separate breaks and listen to the songs. It was one of a’s favorite things on the ship, other than drawing.

They walked up to it and pressed the ‘On’ button. Suddenly, the lights turned on, and the menu for songs popped up. They strained to pick a song, using their foot to press the button. b, knowing the song, smiled.

“I know this sooong,” b hummed, making their voice deeper comically. They both laughed again, sitting down next to the machine. b rocked rhythmically with the song, bumping into a. They listened in silence, just enjoying the sound like a delicacy. Then, they heard footsteps rapidly approaching them. They both shifted in confusion, then watched as B strode towards the two of them, ready to investigate.

“What are you two doing here? It’s room hours only right now,” B stated, seeming frazzled. b looked up at their father and glanced away.

“Oh, sorry,” b said without much remorse. a looked up at the upset older variable, squinting.

“Did you just go see my mom?” a asked. B’s frown twitched as they stared down at the younger variable, color filling their cheeks with embarrassment.

“I- What? Look, it doesn't matter. b’s coming with me, though,” He spoke hastily. He pressed a hand against their child's back, beckoning them to follow. b looked back at a and smiled, waving with their foot. a did the same back, still sitting. The two b variables walked away, making small conversation as they walked down the hall until they weren’t visible anymore. a sighed and got up, beginning to walk back to their room to draw. The music might’ve inspired them. They walked for quite a while; b and they must’ve gone pretty far.

a found their room and reached to open it. But upon trial came failure, they didn’t have their keycard. Shoot. Now they need to get Mom. Dammit. They stood there, groaning allowed.

“I’m tired,” they said to no one once more. But as they stood there, considering their next action, they heard panting and whimpering. And liquid. a felt themself shiver slightly. They looked up to see C. She was limping down the hall to her room. Her face was dripping with her blood, ruining the clean floor beneath her. Her face was torn and gushing. She sobbed as she walked, her eyes going lidded sleepily. The tears only made it worse for her, as the salt burned her wounds. She moaned louder as her tears stung her. Then, she fell to the ground.

a watched, feeling horrified. They felt frozen, then proceeded to scream. Afterwards, they panted and jogged far away from the limp body, not spending another second looking at it. They ran down the hall, then stopped in front of the same door they walked in every day. Not needing to knock, the doors opened for them. Their mother sat on the captain’s chair, gazing down at them. Their hand and ship uniform was covered in blood that wasn’t theirs, scarlet against their soft pink hue. a stared back at her in disgust. A scowled and wiped the liquid off their fist.

“Uhm…?” Is all a could mumble. A raised her eyebrows and turned away.

“I had to put C in her place, hon. Get used to it,” the captain shot back without giving the words time to linger. a gawked at the scene for a second, but recovered quickly, sharply turning away. They thought about the shared marks they had under their eyes for a quick moment, then remembered they needed to get to bed.

“I need another room key, Mom,” they muttered quietly, shamefully. There was a disappointed silence that followed, one that was expected. A huffed out her nose as she grabbed an extra room key and tossed it to her kin. They grabbed it and began to leave.

“Hurry back. It’s room hours,” A said, then went back to cleaning herself. With that, a left. They slowly walked through the halls aimlessly. They glanced at the one or two windows that they came across until they made it back to their room. They used the keycard to open the door, and the door clicked. A small red light turned green, and a stepped in. Once inside, the door closed again. a dimmed the lights but decided to stay up. Right, they wanted to draw. They pulled out a paper from the stack. They pulled out a drawer and snatched out normal and colored pencils. Finally, they lay down on the floor and began to doodle.

They drew b and them next to the DJ box, laughing. They had drawn b time and time again, but it was still fun to color in their teal color and cheesy smile. They drew poor C, with a wrapping around their face. They hoped she was okay and wasn’t unconscious near their door. They drew a few other friends they had, like an Omega variable. They drew the moon but made sure to hide it under their bed afterwards. Their mother didn’t like their moon drawing, for some reason. It made her angry. And finally, they drew themselves somewhere in space. Somewhere other than here. Anywhere other than here. The others were lucky.

a crawled into bed after they were done, sprawling out and taking up most of the room in the bed. They fell asleep quickly, exhausted from the things that had happened today.

C awoke to their head throbbing, but half of their head was covered. She moaned in pain, rubbing her forehead. When she fully came to, she was in the nursing area of the ship, which was far down. She leaned up to see who had fixed her up, only to find B. He was rubbing the sweat off himself with the back of his hand. He noticed her waking up and blinked in surprise, but with relief. He rubbed her forearm in comfort, and she lay back down with a sigh. She stared up at him tiredly.

“What happened?” She asks groggily. B peers back down at her.

“A- hmm mmh, captain A happened.” He cleared his throat. She frowned and rested her eyes slightly. B patted her shoulder and got up. He brought her a sandwich and placed it in a little plastic Ziplock bag. He rested it on her lap, then stepped back.

“Not my best work, but I must go to my room. I’ll check on you tomorrow, okay?” He asked, giving C a thumbs up. C held her arms out in silent protest, B stopping in his tracks. He hummed in question. She frowned and sighed, rubbing her upper arm.

“I-... What are we going to do, B?” They asked groggily. B furrowed his brows at the question. They shuffled back over to her and patted her hand in comfort. She smiled lightly.

“We’re gonna…We’re gonna do what we’ve been doing. We’ll survive C,” B murmured. She nodded, and with the recurrence immediately fell back asleep. B chuckled at it as he walked away. But as he walked, it got him thinking about A. He feared her. He feared how powerful she was. What was she planning? Was she even thinking? But…Old friend? What could that possibly mean? Was it a variable, or…An integer?

***********

Back in the tower, variables of all colors slept in the calm of the night. The lights of the looming ship in the sky dimmed, and the valley's lights were almost all out. Most of the light that was left was from the moon, which shone big in the sky. Milky color flowed through the stained glass of the large building, making its way to the top, in the most important room there was. In there stood the Priest, walking slowly from the king-size bed with flowy garments to the balcony. Their robe blew in the soft breeze as they stepped lightly, their shoes clicking. Once they arrived at the edge, they laid their top layer of arms on the railing and let the others sit idly against their side. They stared up at the moon and stars, admiring it for all its glory. Then, they looked at the ship they could just barely see to the west.

Their wanting gaze grew angered at the sight, turning away from the sky. They vigorously walked away from the balcony, huffing. They reached above their head and grabbed hold of the crown that lay on their head, bringing it down to admire. The jewels were pretty and all, sitting on the small spikes of the crown. But that rock that the others saw as ugly or useless on top was the most important. The variables just didn’t know it yet.

“You need a power source, hmm?” The Priest hummed mockingly, caressing the golden headpiece. They dragged their fingers down the smooth gold, feeling the ridges.

“Well, I’m afraid you’ll have a much harder time finding it than you thought,” They concluded. They walked up to their bed, placing down the crown on their bedside. They pulled aside the curtains on their bed and sat, then slid off their tall shoes. They gave their crown one more glance.

“I’m a little selfish. I hope you all understand. Everyone’s allowed to be a little selfish,” they said, closing the curtain as they lay down. They smiled under their clothes.

“It’s only fair.”

Chapter Text

This dream felt the same as the last one, without the calming beginning. X felt unsafe and nervous, the air around him thick with anticipation. Then, he saw the person in the cloth again. He now knew their name was the Priest. But he still couldn’t make out what the symbol meant. It could mean anything. Maybe he could ask Four? As he thought about Four, their face flashed in his mind. Their cold, but thoughtful gaze made him shiver. They confused him. Their actions, and the things he felt because of them. He felt…Embarrassed around them. And sweaty. Maybe it was because they were so closed off, he didn’t know them. He wanted to though.

“Get up! Time to wake up, variables!”

X jolted awake, flying up in his bed. There was a knocking on their door, followed by the person responsible walking away. He whined as he realized it was just a dream. Well, he knew it was a dream but… Well, he got a little carried away. Anyway, he groaned as his eyes drooped. He slowly turned to look at his friends, seeing Y in the same conditions as him, but Z seemed completely unbothered. He raised an eyebrow at her but shook it off. He slid off his bed drowsily, yawning aloud. He stumbled over to Y and tugged on them. They mumbled something incoherent, then turned away. X frowned and looked over at Z. She went from a blank look to a smirk, hopping off her bed. She snatched their top right nub and yanked them out of bed, huffing. Y yelped and face-planted, resulting in X and Z’s laughing fit.

X cackled as he fell over, his body shaking. Z covered their mouth as they laughed, coming out in monotone chuckles. X sucked in a shaky breath to stop himself, crawling over to Y. He tapped their shoulder, still letting out childish giggles.

“Wuh- hehe…Wuh-Y?” X asked. Z snickered. Y said something muffled as they lay, refusing to get up. X rubbed his eyes, not out of tiredness but because there were tears in his eyes. They let out a final sigh, getting up. Their yellow face was flushed beyond cherry. X blushed rather easily. He hummed and began to walk into their bathroom, getting ready for the day.

“When you’re ready to be a constant instead of a flake, I’ll be in the bathroom, Y!” X called, giggling at his pun before closing the door. He moved slowly to the sink, looking at the guest toothbrushes and soap that were fresh and unused. He was glad they even used that stuff here. He wasn’t sure, he hadn’t seen his frie-...He hadn’t seen the integers he was with do that stuff. He needed to get his head right. He turned on the water and splashed his face, then dried it with the hand towel beside him. He looked up at the mirror and saw himself.

Yes, he knows you’re supposed to see yourself. But he hadn’t gotten a good look at himself since he was on the ship.

The first thing he noticed was his scratches that plagued his soft looks. Some looked deeper than others, maybe even scarring, but most looked harmless. His spacesuit, or suit from the ship, was dirty. Grass stains and dried mud splattered on his clean white suit. He looked down at the patches on it. There were quite a few there for recognition. An ID image of himself, and a lot of barcodes. His name, X Variable, his name was capitalized to show he was the only X. And for the most identification, three dots under his right eye. It meant he was a normal class worker, just a small part of the ship. Unimportant overall. But he tried not to let it bother him.

He brushed his teeth after and used some other utilities supplied for them. Once he was done, he strolled out of the bathroom and grabbed a small bag of things. A bag he could sling over his back with ease. He packed the note he couldn’t read, hoping for some help on understanding it later. They also packed a map, some currency (despite not knowing if it would even be eligible here), and some band aids. You could never know what might happen! He has enough boo-boos already.

By now, Y had gotten up and made some room service coffee. For a place that seemed so old-timey, it was filled to the brim with technology. Must’ve just been the aesthetic, X supposed. Or to keep the planet clean and healthy. X was beginning to wonder why the variables weren’t already living here. He was beginning to wonder what the captain knew. He noticed Z packing a normal amount of travel gear, glancing at the door. With a shrug, she began to walk over to it.

“See you guys later, I’m meeting up with some other friends,” she mumbled quickly, waving as she stepped out. X blinked at her, sighed, and made his way over to Y. They were whimpering and sticking their tongue out, clutching the mug like it killed their mother or something.

“Ouch-”

“Didn’t let it cool down?”

“Uhm, yeah,” Y pouted. X giggled and gave a sideways smile. Y gave an airy laugh back. X lightly pointed at the door, almost asking to leave along with Z. Y faltered, fluttering their eyes. But with a frown, they waved a handout to signal their approval. With a quick hug, X bolted out the door without a second thought. Y grinned at their eagerness, taking another sip out of their mug. Upon realizing it was as hot as before, though, they spat it out.

“OUCH!-”

X jogged down the hall, waving at Seven who was chatting with Five. Seven waved back, and Five raised her eyebrows in surprise. They rolled their eyes as X face-planting on the freshly cleaned floor. Seven hooted, and Five’s shoulders shook in suppressed laughter. X quickly got back up and slowed their movement as they went down the spiral of stairs. The wind gust in their face as they went down, and it felt nice. There never really was wind back on the ship. Unless you were running. Or if you were standing in front of a fan.

When he arrived on the first floor, he noticed people were clustered in small groups, talking. Much to be expected, he noted. But his eyes lit up as he noticed a familiar blue nubbed head near the doors. For some reason, that’s where he wanted to go first. He bounded towards them, ignoring the worried look on the integer's face. Two was next to them, even better! They were muttering soft words to the blue number, rubbing his arm. X smiled warmly at the scene.

“He’ll be back soon, don’t worry. Nothing bad will happen, she’s changed since- Oh!” Two exclaimed upon the variables’ entrance. They tapped on the arm they were coddling, making Four look up. When they saw him, their hard stare softened for a moment. Then, they glanced away.

“I- what are you doing here?” They muttered. X stared into their eye that refused to connect with theirs, looking for any emotion they could drag out of the stubborn number. But after almost a minute of pure silence, they came to.

“Uhm…Hi!” X cheered back. Four looked at them finally, with confusion. Their eyebrows, knitted together previously, came undone at the sight of the variable in front of them. Their annoyance practically sizzled away. And Two seemed almost as surprised as X was.

“Hi,” their nasally voice just barely muttered back. X chuckled and looked over at Two for any kind of comment. Two looked properly amused by the whole ordeal taking place, softly retracting the comforting hand that was still clutching Four’s lower arm.

“X, they asked why you’re here,” Two whispered with a warm smile. X blinked at them for a moment before their face heated up, tangerine orange. He was never very good at making conversation, embarrassing.

“Ah! I-I, uhm…Yikes,” was all he could say in response. There was more silence that followed, Two shaking their head with the most dumbfounded and amused look on their face. Four’s gaze flickered across X’s flushed face, and then they smiled. They laughed, pulling a hand to cover their mouth. It was loud, gravely, and rough. But X didn’t mind. He liked it, actually. He chuckled along with them, putting a hand on the chest area of his body.

After a minute of chortles, they both calmed down. Four wiped his single eye, visible, their mouth twitching. Their cheeks had a light hue of purple on them. Two, almost knowingly, began to walk away. When Four noticed, they frowned at the green integer. Two turned to look, eyebrows furrowed with a tight smile on their face.

“I’ll be right back, don’t worry! I’m gonna go check on Three,” They called out before slowly sauntering towards the stairs. Four looked away and huffed, frustrated. X sighed with relief as the laughing fit left their system, leaving them with a slightly sore stomach. He stepped forward, making Four focus back on him with a widened eye.

“I’m sorry, I should’ve answered your question,” X chuckled. Four nodded but shrugged afterward. X exhaled softly.

“I’m here because the Priest- oh wait, you already know that.” Four raised their eyebrows, crossing their arms. They rolled their eyes at the stupidity of the statement. X bit his lip. He couldn’t screw this up, or else Four might not want to talk to him again!

“You’re asking why I came over here, to talk to you?” He asked. They nodded slowly back, waiting for the conversation not to be dragged on so slowly.

“Right, well, I…I recognized you, I guess.” I saw you upset and wanted to know why. They looked at the other variables. X followed their gaze.

“Yeah, uhm. Ha, I guess I know them better than you, right?” I didn’t want to talk to them; I just wanted to see you. Four stopped leaning against the wall behind him, shifting in stance to seem more formal. X kept eye contact as they stepped forward once.

“...Well, since you’re here, I was wondering if you wanted to…Walk around town. For just today. I could show you around, I don’t want you getting lost, or something,” they said. X’s eyes lit up, causing them to bite their cheek.

“Don’t be…Weird about it, Variable.”

“Does ‘Variable’ work anymore, with all the others here now?”

“Yes, because you’re the only one I hang out with.” X knew it wasn’t meant to make X happy, but it did. And he was told not to be weird about it, but he still was. He blushed once more. Before he could say anything else, footsteps crept up from behind him. Suddenly, he was pulled backwards and upwards, making him squirm in alarm. His body squeaked.

“X! You came back! Infinity be damned,” Three cackled as he hugged X from behind. X tried to smile his squished face, nuzzling against the arms holding him up. Three sighed into the hug.

“I told you I didn’t scare him away, Four!” He shouted. Four scowled and began to walk away from the scene. Three sputtered dramatically.

“Pfft, wah-? Where are you going? I thought you were worried about me!” Three called after them. Four hunched over and stiffened, getting even more frustrated. They whipped around and stared Three down with a glare before continuing their leave. X whimpered in urgency as Four disappeared from view. He wiggled his way free of Three deathly grasp, panting. He gave Two a quick hug before running off to follow Four. Two watched this all take place, a soft and relieved grin on their face. A tired one, almost like they were waiting for something like this to happen, but nonetheless happy. Three intertwined their fingers.

“Wanna go back to that envelope and paper shop? I have money now,” Three hummed. Two brightened up, looking him in the eye.

“Yes!”

X sprinted without barely looking forward, flying into the blue integers back. They grunted and stumbled forward, and X cried out loud as he fell backwards. He whined on the ground. This wasn’t the soft grass he had fallen on the other few days. And the floor, like earlier, hurt much more. Four stared down at the yellow number on the ground, an eyebrow raised.

“You’re clumsy, Variable.” X whimpered as he pulled himself to his feet. He huffed in frustration as he continued walking slowly. Four didn’t say anything, though he seemed…Endeared by their anger? X frowned. Four looked around their surroundings, calculating where to go first. X squinted at them.

“Well, if I remember correctly, there’s a Library nearby. Then, we can go to the Valley’s park. Then maybe the bar..?” X softened his glare, blinking in confusion.

“Bar?”

“-Wait, how old are you?” X scoffed and crossed his arms.

“Old enough to do whatever. At least forty,” He retorted.

“Older than I thought, we’re actually around the same age. You don’t know what a bar is?” X frowned harder at them but accidentally let enough of his confusion onto his face. Four raised their eyebrows at his confusion, looking somewhere else.

“I-I… The ship wasn’t filled to the brim with fun. We didn’t have much to do other than work. I had never even thought about eating meat until yesterday!” Four snickered.

“Okay, okay, chill it. We can go there for some food after the tour,” they said. And before X could even realize it, they were in front of a huge building. There were pillars on the front, white. It looked old, and there were lots of stairs in front. There were large windows along the sides of the building. They slowly stepped up and went inside.

Inside, there were tons of algebraliens. But despite the amount, there was almost pure silence throughout the building. Huge stacks of shelves filled the place, and inside those were an incomprehensible number of books, of all colors. The signs above showed different kinds of books, genres consisting of fantasy, history, romance, horror, with lots of others. X stared in awe. There were also computers, with catalogs and other handy purposes. There were lots of chairs and couches for reading, studying, and resting.

X immediately went for the computers. Not because he hates books. But he wanted to see something. He turned it on and watched it boot up. Four followed, calmly watching from a short distance behind. He searched through the functions and finally found the function he was looking for. Translations.

He dug through his bag for a moment, sticking his tongue out. Then, when he felt the paper, he pulled out the note he had found previously. He took the book scanner, also used it for picking up words, and rolled it across. When the words appeared on the screen, Four shifted closer. He peered over from X’s shoulder. X pressed the settings, went to translate, then picked English instead of…Whatever they spoke. Suddenly, the words that were previously nonsense turned into what he could read. He closed his eyes, sucked in breath, and began to read.

Dear Infinity,

May this message be found. These are my last words before I die, and I wish for it to be known. When I sit here alone, I regret my previous decisions. My mistakes may be the death of us all. And if that is true, please do forgive me. I truly never meant any harm. I just wanted to live free, but I was foolish. So naive. I don’t have the answers, and I honestly never knew the problems, but at least there is something to blame. Someone to blame. And maybe someone will find comfort in that. I humbly apologize for my wrongdoings.
And to my son, I wish you the best. Remember to be true to yourself, much as I. No matter what it takes. I left you with homework and all my things. It would be selfish to keep it all to myself. To keep yourself busy, to keep you distracted from my absence. Please don’t forget me. I love you.

And with all my love, -

X gasped, eyebrows furrowing. He looked down at the paper, and with its old age, it had torn at the bottom. Great! Now he would never know who made this. Four sighed, walking away once X was done reading aloud. They ventured their way over to the history section, X following shortly after powering down the computer. Four walked further and further back until they were in a part where practically all the books were decaying. The smell of must and dusty paper filled the area. Four crouched down and plucked a book from a low shelf that was barely even working anymore. He handed it to X with calmness, making sure it wouldn’t fall apart upon being moved. X took it in hand, flipping it in interest.

“This is a book of everyone who’s ever been a resident in the tower. Written in English and…Well, our native language.” X smiled slightly at Four, making them glance away.

“I’d be careful with that, though. Weirdly, every picture of a resident has withered away. The book still has blank pages, since there were supposed to be more residents added; however, with the way it's been destroyed, it isn’t really used anymore. Flip through it and try to figure out who wrote that note if you want,” Four concluded. They began to walk towards the large doors of the library, waving X to follow. X did so, and they continued their quest.

***********

“This paper is specially made by an artisan, and has high quality. Is the paper you’re looking for for high-quality reasons?” The seller hollered. Three sighed and passed a large bulk of cash in the papermaker's direction, making them close their mouth.

“Sure is. Don’t you recognize my face?” Three hummed with a grin. The number looked over the counter to observe Three, then gasped upon recognition. They chuckled loudly in embarrassment.

“Oh, ho ho! I do! My apologies!” They shouted. Three snickered as Two frowned. Three’s smile dropped, and they grabbed the product, beginning to walk away. He grabbed their hand once they got far enough away from the stand. Two sighed, putting a hand on their hip.

“Are you mad at me?”

“...Yes.”

“Why?” Two made eye contact with them and stuttered as Three seemed genuinely remorseful. They groaned, feeling like they had overreacted already without needing to say it. But they did anyway.

“Well, because you used your ranger privileges to get that paper, Three.”

“They didn’t want to give it to me without a reason! They shouldn’t have discriminated against me. I just wanted to make them realize that.” Two pouted before exhaling, giving a brief nod of understanding. Three grunted in triumph, grinning. Three pulled their held hand and gave it a quick peck, making Two babble and pull it away. Their cheeks blushed a warm, forest green color.

“Don’t kiss my hand! You have a gross mouth,” Two yelped. Three frowned for a second, but it quickly turned into laughter.

“I- what? You’re joking!” Two smiled, letting the act leave their face for a second before remarking,

“You have a dirty mouth! You swore in front of X earlier!” Two chortled along with Three as they sat down on a bench, barely being able to stand anymore. Integers and variables walked past with confused and annoyed expressions on their face, but the two of them ignored it. It was just the two of them, for once. Three kicked his feet into the ground, and Two fell backwards into Three’s shoulder.

“Well, your mouth is grosser! It tastes like tea,” Three shouted back, rubbing their eyes as tears threatened to spill. Two gawked and shoved Three away, then pounded on their shoulder.

“You liar! I haven't had tea since we were back at the base! I left all my tea bags there. You’re just saying that” Two whined. Three’s breath shook as he tried to gain composure. He blinked the tears away.

“Heh- okay, okay, you caught me. Hmm…How about that? We can go buy some new tea bags, and brew you some at Four’s hut, yeah?” Three replied. Two giggled slowly but nodded. And with that, they began to walk to another market stand, with herbal plants and tea.

Four led X to a green area with a gate, with sharp ends on top. Inside, he could see huge, bulky trees and bushes with flowers. The grass here was thick, like where he had first landed in his pod. There was a sign that read “Do Not Litter” in front of the gate. He didn’t know what littering was, so he was hoping he wasn’t going to do it. Four slowly opened the gate doors, then gestured for X to go in. He nodded and made his way inside with short steps, taking in the view. The air here felt cleaner, too. He felt like he could breathe better.

Four, once inside, closed the gate softly behind them. They followed X as he wandered, unconsciously walking along a trail. After a while, there was a bench to sit down on. Prompted, the two of them sat down to catch their breath. X slumped in his seat, humming a tune as they waited. Four nudged X with their elbow, making him look at them. They stared at him without expression, though he could tell they were excited.

“Wanna see something cool?” They asked. X blinked in confusion but nodded. They held out their hands, and in an instant, an uprooted flower appeared. X’s eyes widened, his face going pale. His mouth hung open in surprise, looking like a deer in headlights. Then his eyes sparkled with delight. He scooted closer to get a better look. In response, Four froze and leaned their body away.

“Oh- right- sorry,” X mumbled quickly. Four nodded but handed the flower to him. He held it with thought, running his finger along the stem. He brushed his hands up against the petals.

“You…make flowers?” Four’s eyes went half-lidded.

“No.” they said plainly. X blushed slightly at the mistake, handing the flower back. They accepted it, gripping the stem.

“Oh,” Is what he could mutter.

“I can teleport things. It’s one of my powers,” Four hummed. They closed their eyes and focused, and suddenly the flower was gone. X assumed they replanted it back into the ground where it came from. X felt slightly nervous about the information just given.

“Puh…Powers?” X stuttered, scooting farther away. Four raised an eyebrow at them with confusion, then it clicked in them. They grimaced and glanced at the ground, with an emotion X couldn’t describe wiped across their face. They sucked in a breath through their nose.

“It’s fine, Variable. Calm down. …Let’s just, let’s go get some food. I can walk you back afterwards,” they said quietly. Four sniffled and got up, waving. X shook their head and refocused, hopping off the seat. He followed as they made it to the gate once more.

“Uhm, Four, What about the ‘Bar’?” X asked. They opened the gate for the variable, which he accepted. They walked towards a food truck nearby.

“I changed my mind. I don’t think you’d like it there,” Four mumbled quickly. X could sense they were upset again, but wasn’t sure what to do. Last time, he just made a fool of himself, and that seemed to work. So, he tripped. Although it was slightly on purpose, it still hurt. His face slapped the ground as he fell. X heard the footsteps in front of him stop, then a shuffle as Four turned around. X looked up and gave a smile. Four frowned down at them.

X, having failed, groaned as he got up. He was going to be so sore tomorrow… Maybe he just needed to change the conversation. Right! But he wasn’t the best conversationalist. Oh well, all he could do was try.

“Uhm, well, what do you like about that place? Is it like the library?” X could practically feel the mood weighing the two of them down. This sucks.

“I don’t wanna talk about it, Variable,” they said through gritted teeth. X blinked at them for a moment before he stopped walking. He watched Four walk quickly, but slowly they realized they weren’t being followed anymore. They stopped and slowly turned around to look at the variable. X gave them a sad look.

“...What were you sad about earlier, then? Is it the same as…This?” Four huffed and crossed their arms. X took a step forward, a small and, offering one.

“I wasn’t sad!” Four whined as they threw their hands up. Then, they took a deep breath and clenched their fists to their sides.

“I don’t get sad,” they muttered bitterly. X stared at their sour expression, their jaw clenched. He lifted a hand, an offer. To be vulnerable.

“Then what do you get, Four?” X asked softly. Four glared at the soft eyes looking into theirs. But then their shoulders fell, and their hands unclenched, and their face un-pinched. Their eyes, shiny and lonely. Now this was a face X had seen before. And now, he thinks he understands it. Maybe not fully, but enough to know this is what he wants to have with them. Vulnerability. But soon after, their head moved away from him, and that short moment was gone.

“...Not right now,” they said as they turned. X hummed and retracted his hand. While he wanted to feel betrayed, part of him knew he wouldn’t get very far. He was already breaking some form of boundary he didn’t know about. He was just surprised he got that out of them. It was good enough for now. He wouldn’t get there right now, no, not right now, but maybe later. Hopefully later.

X began to walk again, slowly but steadily. Four waited until they were side by side to walk again. X, very calmly, looking at Four’s face. They were looking down at the ground, and their face was purplish than before. They glanced at X’s calm face and seemed surprised by how unbothered X looked. They opened their mouth to speak.

“...I’m s-...” they started, before cutting themself off. They looked embarrassed and disappointed. X brought their hand up slowly and, for a brief moment, touched their wrapped-up arm. Not for long, though. Then, they retracted it and put it back beside him. He remembered that’s what Two did earlier, softly touching their arm. He knew what it meant, or at least what it said. I’m here.

Finally, they arrived at the food hut. Four put on a smile and looked up at the person behind the counter, then glanced over at the menu. They turned their head to look at X, who whispered what he wanted into the side of their nub. Then they looked at the number.

“Two number threes, please,” He hummed. The Integer nodded, but not before glaring at X. X faltered and inched backwards, sucking in a breath. The number went to work, so Four motioned him to move slightly away from the tent. The two of them slinked away, then rested against the side of a large pole. X sighed as they did so, still feeling upset by the interaction a moment ago.

“You asked what a bar is like, right?” Four asked. X blinked in surprise.

“I- uhm, yeah,” X responded.

“Okay, well it’s uh…It’s a building, kinda like a restaurant. With some games, like pool,” they said, gesturing to the air like it was there.

“Anyways, the main thing about it is that they usually serve drinks. Not much food there, actually. The drinks make you…sick? They make you dizzy, and they make you forget. They’re made out of bugs, though.”

“Ew!” X stuck his tongue out dramatically, spitting out air. Four sniffed, their shoulders shaking lightly.

“Yeah, I don’t know why I thought you’d wanna go. Got ahead of myself, I guess.” Four said with a shrug. They wandered quickly over to the hut and grabbed two wrapped sandwiches, giving one to X. He bit into it, smiling with delight at the flavors. He looked up to see his friend grinning too. His…wait. His what?

“Eat while walking, okay?” X nodded quickly, trying to immediately forget the problem he had just found out about. He just spent the entire day with Four, talking and reading! And Four showed him a flower, and they had a heart-to-heart (well, not really), and he wanted to know more about this integer! This integer! Oh no, what was Z going to think? She is going to hate him! More than she already does!

“...Why would anyone wanna drink stuff that doesn’t make you feel good?” X asked in between his existential crises.

“I uhm…Wouldn’t know. Some wouldn’t say it makes you feel bad. Sometimes forgetting is nice,” they responded. Four readjusted their eye patch. X was beginning to notice a pattern. Wait, he shouldn't be noticing a pattern! Math!

The two of them began to walk up the steps of the tower, just finishing their meal. Two and Three stood near the entrance, and upon being noticed, waved at Four and X. X smiled warmly and waved back. X walked up the steps and waited until Four, Three, and Two were done chatting. Then, Four walked up to X. The sun was just about to set, the sky warm and pink. X thought it was beautiful. But the number in front of him was…Never mind.

“Hey, uhm…Wanna do that again tomorrow?” Four mumbled. They put their hands on their hips. X blinked up at them, a smile making its way on their face. His cheeks felt warm. He tried to ignore it.

“Hm…Sure!”

Chapter Text

“That no good, stupid, selfish, annoying son of a-”

“Woah, calm down, bro!”

Two integers bickered as they walked in a forest like one we’ve seen before. Six and Nine walked down a trail that had become overgrown. Bushes had to be dodged as they trotted down the path. Roots could be easily tripped on, and vines overhung. It was night, and they had been traveling the entire day up until this point. Six huffed and pulled their beanie down in frustration. Nine frowned at their agitated friend, who was turning red. Nine shook their head in disapproval.

“You did tell Seven to go, man.”

“Pfft, well yeah! I told him to go away, he was messing around with the supplies and pissing me off! I didn’t mean leave before us,” Six shouted back. Nine patted Six’s back sympathetically.

“Uhm, at least he made it before the ceremony. Or whatever One did for the variables,” Nine added, smiling slightly. Six blinked at them before sighing with defeat.

“I guess that’s true. We wouldn’t have made it,” Six replied with disdain. Nine nodded with approval. After that, they walked in silence for a while. The only sound came from birds or the bushes rustling from their movement. That was, until their radio began to crackle. Six raised her eyebrows in question, glancing at Nine, who seemed as confused as her. Six whipped around and pulled out their radio, turning it on and standing still. More sizzles sounded, followed by a rusty voice.

“TTSSSSSSST- Nine, Six, where are you?” A gray integer spoke. Six hummed in thought, then handed the radio over to their companion. Nine, with confidence, pressed the speak button.

“Still walkin’ there, dude! How was the whole-...whole uh, speech thing? Over!” Nine asked with glee. There was silence, some static, then a new voice.

“It was good! CHHH- Although, One asked them to hang out at the tower? Pretty weird,” An orange integer said. Nine glanced at Six with a hesitant look, mouth open. He pressed the button.

“For how long, bro? Over.”

“SHHHKKK- For a few days. How long until you two get back here? It’s kinda crazy in the plaza right now,” Ten responded. Six frowned and took the radio from Nine, turning it on.

“Only an hour or so. Where has Seven been? He left before us,” Six asked hastily. There was a little more silence, in which Six and Nine began to slowly walk again, reminded by their friends. Nine fidgeted with his Davy Crockett hat.

“Oh, uhm. Seven’s been in the castle, looking over the variables. And bothering Five of course,” Eight said. Six gave a victory fist pump at the second news, squeezing her eyes shut. But afterwards, they refocused. They stared down at the item in hand like it was eye contact with Eight and Ten. Six also heard a grunt from behind them but ignored it.

“So…What’s the plan?” Nobody responded, this time deliberately. In the quiet, Six looked back to see Nine had fallen. They groaned, rearranging their goggles to fit their face right as they tried to pull themself to their feet. Six snickered. Abruptly, there was static from the radio, making both jump.

“We don’t know, Six. One hasn’t really informed the rangers of anything. Well, except their favorite integer, but whatever,” muttered Eight drowsily. Six rolled their eyes at the information.

“‘Kay, sounds about right. See you in a bit,” Six mumbled, turning off the radio. They reached around and put it into their backpack, then turned to help Nine up further. They offered a hand, which Nine took rather quickly. Nine was hoisted up, making them stumble, then regain balance. They walked side by side again, with more speed at the idea of missing out. Six exhaled hard as they quickly made their way along the trail, Nine babbling nonsense to make them slow down. She glared over at them as they panted.

“Hey, Sixer-” He breathed out. Six blinked at them.

“Hm?” He looked over at her, a genuinely worried expression laced on his face. Six faltered at the look, dropped their hard look into a softer tone.

“Do you think this will end well?” Six didn’t say anything as Nine crossed their arms in discomfort. They slowed their walk, keeping eye contact as to almost ground each other. Six seemed as disturbed by the question as Nine was asking it.

“I-I…” Six stuttered, trying to find the words.

“I hope so. We’ll be fine.”

***********

A day earlier, three integers had gotten up extra early in the morning. Three had been called upon by the Priest for a personal meeting, and despite their somewhat friendly relationship, he was still worried. Scared, even. But did he say that to his friends? No. Of course not. Two was counting on him to be the confident, smart, and determined number he was supposed to be. And Four was already scared of the Priest. Did they ever say that? Also no. But when you live with someone for almost your whole life, you can tell. He didn’t want them to worry about him. They already had enough troubles.

They gathered around a pillar near the front entrance, on the first floor. Two held Three by the shoulder and gave him a quick squeeze before shuffling back to be near Four. Said integer seemed weary about the ordeal already, keeping eye contact with the much more interesting ground than even sparing Three a glance. Three groaned at their nervous expressions. He could play this role.

“Chill your beans, people. Unclench your glutes,” he said with a jab to Four’s shoulder. Four flinched at the contact, spooked. But they groaned as Two cackled at Three. Two shoved Three back, making him stumble. He snickered, but prompted to move, he began to walk back towards the stairs.

“Make sure the kid doesn't have a panic attack!” He shouted as he left. Four whined loudly, and Three laughed about it as he climbed up the spiral. He wiped his forehead as he trudged on. And after what seemed like years of climbing, he made it to the top. Big doors, with intricate designs and blue color, lay in front of him. Most would be nervous to even see such an important landmark of the Valley, but Three was merely unfazed. He swung the doors open.

Inside, lay a huge bed with fabric covering the inside, making it private and secretive. The balcony was covered by curtains, and the only mirror in the room was shattered, which was new since the last visit. In the middle of the room lay a table and two chairs, one farthest from the door, with a person sitting in it. Their legs were crossed, and they wore their usual attire.

“One. Hey,” Three said casually, giving a lazy wave. It was not returned, but a cup of tea was set in front of his chair with their powers. Three swallowed harder than they wanted, making a beeline for his seat.

“Three! Welcome back!” One hummed.

“Get comfortable, I’ll do the same,” she said as she uncrossed her legs. Three nodded slowly, leaning back against the cushion. He hummed in comfort, the smooth fabric soft against his tired body from the previous activity. One slowly took off her robe-like cloth that covered her frame. They threw it aside, grinning at the red number.

“It’s been a while, Three,” They noted, using their powers to drink their tea. Three chuckled.

“Yeah, it’s been long enough for you to have forgotten I don’t like tea,” Three retorted. One fluttered their eyes for a moment, then scoffed half-heartedly. They dragged the cup away from him, and with a snap, it disappeared.

“Ah, that’s right. My apologies,” One muttered. In place of the cup came a mug, one he had drunk out of with every meeting. Inside, there was coffee. He grabbed it by the stem and took a short sip.

“At least you remembered I like coffee,” He responded. The Priest nodded and glanced at the mirror. Then their stare became more serious, making Three nervous.

“It’s been hard to remember things when all of…This has been happening,” One said, their eyes downcast in a sort of glare. Three shifted, almost feeling bad. For what? He didn’t really know. He just felt sad for her.

“What’s the plan, One?” He asked. They locked their eyes after his question, their eyes blank. She frowned and got up, leading him to follow. They opened the curtains and the doors, swinging them back. Three walked slowly out to the balcony, the wind slowly blowing a cold into the room. The Priest walked to the edge and leaned over to look across the Valley. Far, far away, the barrier shone, and the forest lined up the wood gates. Beyond were mountains, their silhouette behind clouds. Green tree caps made it almost impossible to see below the forest. Closer to the tower lay the market, bustling as usual. Then there was the valley’s park, another place barely seen. One’s eyes flickered across the area, almost admiring it.

“I built all of this from the ground up, Three,” They began, still looking out into the plaza. She glanced in Three’s direction just enough for him to feel noticed.

“I don’t know what I’d do if it were taken away from me. So, I’ll do anything to keep it safe. To keep my people safe,” She went on. They used one of the four fake hands to run their fingers along the railing.

“Those variables are a danger, Three. They just want power, and once they know the power we have, they won’t leave. They’ll want it. They’ll want to steal it. I can’t let that happen,” She stated with vigor. Three blinked in surprise. Before One could speak further, he interrupted them.

“B-But they don’t know we have power! And if they did, they would be afraid of it,” Three reasoned. One gave him an annoyed but also intrigued glance.

“And how do you know this?” They asked in an almost mocking voice. Three sputtered for a quick answer, searching in his memories for evidence.

“I was with two of them. One of them almost caught on, but they didn’t. When they were about to, though, they were afraid of…It. Honestly, I was surprised he didn’t know what powers we had,” He explained, although the last sentence was more to himself than anything. One blinked, then something clicked in her mind.

“...So, if they didn’t know about our powers, then they don’t know about Yoylight, am I correct?” She asked, a grin making its way on her face. Three put a hand on his chin in thought.

“Mhh, probably not.” Then she smiled wider.

“...What about Operators?” They asked, and excitement ignited in their voice. Three didn’t fully understand why, but it worried him further.

“I- I would say probably not,” He began. One turned and used another fake hand to spawn a book. They flipped through it quickly, searching for a specific page. Three watched. Finally, they found the right page, which had to do with how variables worked in equations. And how to remove them from the equation. Three’s eyes widened in realization.

“You-You’re not seriously-?” Three cut himself off as the sharp smile on the Priest's face was present. He backed away slightly, beginning to feel slightly nauseous. He wanted to run, leave this behind, and tell his family. His friends. The kind strangers he met the days prior. But he couldn’t. He breathed a hard breath through his nose. One turned to look at his petrified face, an amused one on theirs.

“I think I have a plan now,” the Priest hummed, putting two of her other hands together in a sweet pose. Three frowned, swallowing hard.

“I know how to help. And I can keep us safe, Three. All you must do is keep your mouth shut. Okay?”

Afterwards, Three slowly opened the doors of One’s room. He felt more afraid than he had ever felt. More afraid of what she could do. Even more afraid than what she did to Fo-

“Three, are you okay?” Two, babbling, rushed over to him. He felt winded by the sudden attention, putting a soft hand on Two’s chest to usher them away. Two backed off but kept a worried hand on their forearm. Three began to walk down the stairs, Two keeping him close.

“What happened in there?” Two mumbled softly. And Three wanted to tell them, he really did, but… Well, he’d rather only have one large scar on his eye than two. One had a bad temper. Not as bad as him, but still. He would rather stay on their good side.

“One gave me tea instead of coffee. Disgusting!” Three exclaimed, sticking his tongue out. He gagged in the air, coughing. Two retracted their hand and scoffed, rolling their eyes.

“Infinity, curse me for ever worrying about you again,” Two groaned. Three snickered at the tone change.

“I hate you so much. I should’ve just stayed down there.” Three blinked in realization.

“Uh, yeah, why were you up here? Four get mad at you for babying them?” Two grimaced and put a hand on their hip, the other pointed.

“I don't baby them, thank you very much. Their friend came over to talk. I thought I’d give them privacy, something you very much don’t deserve since, apparently, you find my interests and likings unbearable!” They shouted, throwing their hands in the air.

“Seven?”

“No, X,” Three raised his eyebrows in bewilderment. They looked down the stairs, being on the last whirl around, and saw the variable chatting with Four. He hummed, acknowledging his presence. Then he smiled.

“I’m surprised, I thought Four scared the little guy off. Or I did,” Three said almost sarcastically. When the two of them arrived at the first floor, Three full-on sprinted to the variable. He skidded to a stop and wrapped the variable in a hug, squeezing them. Their body made a squeaking sound, and X whimpered in small discomfort. Four looked at Three, offended. But there wasn’t much malice behind it. He seemed more relieved Three came back in one piece. Three shrugged at their stare.

“X! You came back! Infinity be damned,” Three laughed into the hug, feeling the soft number try to lightly reciprocate. Four just stared at the situation with a small amount of annoyance.

“I told you I didn’t scare him away, Four!” He shouted at the younger one jokingly, purposely trying to embarrass them. It worked as he snarled like an angry animal and trudged away from the scene. Three giggled and shook their head, rolling their eyes. Two looked like they felt bad for Four, but didn’t do anything but stand there, observing.

“Pfft, wah-? Where are you going? I thought you were worried about me!” Three called after the blue number. Four gave one last glare before continuing their leave. X squirmed in his grip, and he relented, letting X get out of his hold. X gave Two a quick hug before chasing the grumbling integer. He looked over at Two again, seeing their more content expression, and Three felt warm in his stomach. But it was quickly replaced by guilt and fear. He felt his heart ache in his chest. Everything is going to be fine. It’ll be okay. He just knew it. It had to be okay.

Chapter Text

When X got to his room, he flopped onto his bed. He lay boneless, groaning. The day had been exhausting. Yet, he was still barely tired. He was worried, and anxiety racked his brain. So he lay with his eyes open. The door had opened a little later after he had arrived, with a green variable and a greener variable following. Z hopped onto her bed with a yawn and a stretch, then glanced over at the sleepy yellow being who was staring up at the ceiling.

“Long day?” She asked. He nodded without even sparing her a look. She bit her cheek as she grabbed something out of her bag, then tossed it over to X. He turned to his side and snatched it, looking it over. It was a coupon for a restaurant. A…what?

“It’s like a food tent, but a building. It was pretty neat, but not my kinda style. The hut works fine enough for me,” they said in response to his confused expression. He looked over at Y who was already digging through his bag. X blinked, then frantically pulled his bag away from them. Y whined in confusion.

“Have some respect, man,” Z muttered with a shake of her head. Y frowned but nodded and gave X his bag. X smiles slightly at the silliness of his friend, although slightly offended. He opened the bag for himself and got a glimpse of a book's spine, which reminded him he had, in fact, gotten a book from the library that he wanted to read. He slipped it out of the bag and threw the item aside, opening the falling-apart piece of literature. Dust filled his nose, making him sneeze. He sniffled and wiped his face, then flipped to the next page. There were different chapters for different time periods, some of them from a hundred years ago, to ones around seven to eight months ago. He looked at the note again, memorizing a few words' meanings.

He flipped it over after skimming the letter. And lo and behold, it had the date written on it. X gasped in surprise, but with some decoding, he found it was made around forty years…ago. X fluttered his eyes as he read it. But he shook his head, refocusing. He then flipped through the pages of the book, finding the fifty-year mark. Then he slowly grazed over the words in English, trying to find anything that could be a key factor as to who wrote the note. But nothing helped. All he saw were numbers he already knew? In the forty-year section, he saw the names Two, Three, Five, Seven, and even Four? X’s jaw tightened in confusion and despair. He just didn’t…understand. He couldn’t. It didn’t make sense.

X closed the book and slid it away with care. It would make sense at some point. Sometime in the future, perhaps. By the time he was done reading, the lights were out without him realizing it. His two friends were already asleep. He felt fondness at the sight, gazing soothingly at the slumbering variables.

“I should go to bed too, hm?” He whispered to no one. His eyelids felt heavy, so he tucked himself under the heavy blankets and shifted into a comfortable position. He hummed sweetly, then let himself fall asleep.

Per usual, the same dream occurred. Fear shot through X’s body at the sight of the symbol and the large, cloaked body towering over him. He stumbled back and fell. X quickly pushed himself away from it and began to crawl away. But like how the dream always ended, or at least since the other night, he didn’t escape in time. He felt his skin prickle and burn, and his body began to sizzle, like he was in a frying pan. He shook, screaming as he held his body, trying to comfort himself through the agony. But it wouldn’t cease. And after a quick moment, he disappeared. His body was gone, and he was gone. The shouts of his name from familiar voices were gone, just an echo in his ear. The name no longer existed, his thoughts didn’t exist, his memory in others' heads didn’t exist. He was merely just a dark roasted spot on the ground, waiting to be cleaned up. He would never experience anything ever again. He was erased.

X shot up in his bed. He was sweating from the heat of the dream. They immediately burst into tears, bringing shaking hands to his eyes. He wasn’t a fan of nightmares. But this felt different. He felt like it was going to happen. He didn’t like thinking that. He cried into his hands and quickly felt warm arms around him. He pressed himself close to the body with no hesitation. A green hand pried his hands away from his face. Y rubbed his back soothingly, whispering something he couldn’t quite understand yet due to his incoherent babbling. But they didn’t seem to mind, just pulling him closer. X’s labored breath hiccupped in their hold for a while, until he slowly calmed down from his dream.

“Nightmare?” Y hummed casually, seeming unbothered by their friend's embarrassment.

“U-uhm, kinda,” X sputtered back. He glanced at Z, who was staring sympathetically. Despite her cold nature, she truly did care. Her soft and calming stare showed him that. He breathed out a long and non-stuttered breath, regaining his composure. X pulled away from the hug with a soft push to Y’s chest, moving backwards. He sniffled and rubbed his stained cheeks. Y stared at him, waiting.

“...So, what was your ‘kinda’ nightmare about?” Y asked with a soft, cheeky grin. X rolled his eyes with a smile as well, blinking away more oncoming tears.

“It was about…Uhm…Dying, I think,” X responded with a shrug. Y scoffed and shook their head.

“That’s weird,” They respond before getting up quickly, grabbing X a mug. They offered it to him.

“Coffee?” And X shook his head. Y sighed dramatically, handing it to Z, who seemed to have won something X wasn’t aware of. Her previously sweet expression turned smug, a smirk tugging on her lips. She silently pumped her fist. She chugged it down, then headed to the bathroom. X raised an eyebrow at Y, who continued to pout.

Suddenly, there was a knock on the front door.

It wasn’t the same knock from yesterday; it was softer and more inviting. It didn’t seem like the type of knock to wake someone up, but to be offered inside. X glanced at Y, who merely shrugged and turned to find something to eat. X sauntered to the door and peeked out, only to find…Four! X’s eyes softened at the sight. He opened the door wide open for the number. They were hunched over slightly, fiddling with their fingers. X was surprised by this. He ran his palm against the dots under his eyes. His cheeks already felt warm again, how embarrassing. He probably looks so dumb right now.

“Hey, variable,” Four croaked. They frowned at the innocent eyes staring up at them. X, realizing this interaction may take a longer time than he originally thought, began to lean on the doorway beside him with one arm. He put all his weight on one leg and awaited whatever the blue number needed. They seemed to need a lot of willpower for what it was, though. They puffed up their cheeks.

“I’m…Sorry, about yesterday,” Four said behind gritted teeth. X shifted slightly in more surprise. This morning is already a doozy.

“It was okay, honest! I’m sorry for pushing so hard,” X reasoned. Four nodded back but still seemed bothered. They were scanning his face up and down, which made him falter. He grinned nervously.

“I-I’m not fibbing, I swear!” He spoke. Four raised their eyebrows at their reaction but flushed slightly as they realized their staring.

“No, not that,” They mumbled. X looked back at Y, who was watching the scene in wonder, yet confusion.

“Oh,” X sighed with an airy chuckle. Four pointed at their cheeks, or more at their eye. For a second, they kept their finger on the dots under his lashed eye. They seemed confused. But then they refocused and pointed at his redder eyes, still puffy.

“You were crying,” They stated. X bit his lip and rubbed his eye. They were still slightly wet too, oh math! X made a dismissive sound, fluttering his lips. He waved his hand after rubbing his face.

“Pfft, what? Oh-aw, come on Four! I, what? No! Nuh-uh, mhh-mhh,” X whined, shaking his head vigorously to make his point. Then, finally, he lost his balance as he stuttered, and fell backwards with a loud, audible ‘Oof’. Y blinked in surprise, then burst into loud cackling laughter. Z, who had joined them quietly and recently enough to watch, began to laugh too. X would’ve been upset by the ordeal, but he heard Four’s sweet laugh from above him. And that made it better.

X pulled himself to his feet, dusting himself off. He crossed his arms across his chest and sharply turned to glare at his friends. Z cut off her snickers and loudly sipped coffee to seem more innocent. Y continued to giggle despite the very obvious threat they were receiving from the yellow variable. X looked back at the blue number, who had a shade of violet painted across their face. X smacked his face.

“I am such a klutz,” He muttered. He looked up at the number again.

“So, uhm, why’d you actually come here? I hope not just to apologize, that would be pretty dumb,” X said. Four put their hands on their hips, frowning with closed eyes.

“I am not dumb. But anyway, I came here because I wanted to take you somewhere else today. So, uh…what’s one thing you wanted to do while here, in the Valley?” Four said quietly. X looked at the floor as he put a hand on his chin. He thought back, there was something he wanted to do super badly, but what was it…? …Oh! Right!

“I wanna roll down a hill. With soft green grass, I want to sit under a tree. The plaza is nice, but the last hill I rolled down wasn’t the best. A do-over, right?” X asked, kicking his foot back and forth, waiting for an answer. Four cracked a smile and nodded. They stepped back, ready to leave. They trailed their fingers down the edge of the door.

“Meet at the same spot as yesterday in a bit, okay? I’ll be there.” X stared at them with half-lidded eyes and nodded back, smiling ever so softly. Four’s eyes widened at the expression, and he slowly closed the door. X heard the footsteps quietly pitter-patter away. He turned and leaned against the door as Y grinned devilishly. They cooed knowingly over at X, making him frown. Z scoffed and smacked Y’s shoulder.

“Ew, stop. That’s weird.”

“How so?”

“They’re completely different things. We can’t just-...Do that! It’s…Wrong.”

“I beg to differ,” Y hummed back.

“Of course you do.” Z turned and began to pack for the second day. She sighed as she shoved things in her bag, annoyed.

“It’s not like we’re staying here forever. We’ll be home in two days, tops. Unless the integers aren't going to go through with their word, which is likely,” She added before slinging the bag behind her. X rubbed his arm, the shame starting to creep in at her words. But he pushed it down. She didn’t really mean it, right? She would be accepting if he told her, right? He didn’t want to think about it.

He packed quickly, eager to meet up with his…His friend. His friend. X ran up to Y and gave them a quick squeeze before bolting out the door, just like yesterday. And like yesterday, Seven and Five were chatting near the stairs. X waved at both. Five smiled warmly at him, and Seven waved back. X jogged skillfully down the staircase and slid to a stop on the newly cleaned floors. He panted and hunched over in front of his blue friend once more. When they made eye contact once more, Four had an entertained expression slapped on their face.

He pulled out the coupon that was handed to him earlier and pushed it into their hands. Four was mildly startled by the action but focused on the slip in their hold.

“It’s a, uhm…’ Restaurant coupon’? I don’t know…I just, I just wanna go there with you…” X muttered. Four’s face above dialed up a good thirty degrees. Their lips twitched as they covered their purple face. X blinked in confusion but straightened his posture to appear calmer.

“Two and Three can come too, if they want- or if you want, I-I don’t mind either way. We’ve eaten food together before anyway,” X explained, making gestures with his hands. Something clicked in Four’s mind, and he exhaled shakily. Their face cooled back to a normal shade of blue.

“So, it’s…Not a date?” Four asked half-hazardly. They squinted at the variable in interrogation but was given yet another confused look.

“Date? Oh math, what’s that? Is it like a bar?” X asked hastily. Four looked slightly offended by the comparison but understood rather quickly how unknowing X truly is. They merely shook their head.

“It’s an event, not a place,” They responded. X hummed in thought for a moment.

“...Like a birthday party? Or a release ceremony?”

“Uhm, kinda. What’s that second one, though?” Now it was X’s turn to squint. He glared at Four like they had just made a cruel joke about him. Four wiped a sweat bead off their head, despite not looking very bothered by the piercing stare.

“The release ceremony is where the original number our value came from is gotten rid of from the ship. My mom, Negative X, was released because we can’t have two X’s, right? Well, actually, I was told she was sick, and it would be too much work to help her get better. She would’ve just been suffering. I miss her sometimes, though,” X ended somberly. Four looked baffled by this information, crossing their arms across their chest. They adjusted their patch.

“You have-...You had a parent?” Four muttered.

“Well, of course. Everyone comes from somewhere Four!” X said with a giggle. But Four didn’t like the information they were given. They actually seemed disturbed by the presence of it. They furrowed their brows in annoyance.

“W-Well, I don’t. I never had a parent,” Four quickly shot back. X shook his head.

“You have to! It’s just simple math that I learned in my school days. If you have a value, you got it from an equation. My equation was rather simple! Negative X is equal to X, and boom! Me!” Four sighed and shook their head, making X’s face drop.

“I get it, Variable, I understand it’s just…I can’t remember them. It hurts my head,” they said warily, rubbing the side of their nub. He nodded in understanding, dropping the subject quickly. He figured out that was one of their boundaries, and based on yesterday's events, he knew not to cross them. He glanced around at the more rural environment. He noticed the gates, the same as yesterday, to the park. He smiled.

“Is there a hill there? And long grass, like out there?” Four tilted his head and chuckled lightly. With a light eye roll, they responded,

“Of course there is! I wouldn’t have taken you here for nothing.” X bounded in front of Four this time. With the information from the previous day, he opened the gate for his friend. They stared at them in surprise for a moment before doing as X wanted. X followed them once they arrived inside. The two numbers went down a separate path from the one before, a less-walked-on one. Roots and weeds grew on the sides, and the ground was firmer. X observed as the overhand began to get more in the way, making him duck past vines. Eventually, he almost had to crawl past the overgrown leaves but was yanked out of the forest.

When he recovered from the new extra sunlight, he un-squinted his eyes. What lay in front of X was, for lack of words, beautiful. A large hill lay at his feet, with lush grass that twisted and turned with the wind. Wildflowers were scattered along the bottom of the mound. The area was like a circle, a forest surrounding the edges, and one singular tree in the center, one he was not familiar with. But it was pretty. Instead of a bushel of leaves, it lay like a blanket, swaying softly. It was almost like an umbrella with coverage. X was mesmerized by the sight until a hand grabbed his upper arm. X blinked at the giddy blue integer, who nodded his head towards the steep land in front of them. X gaped at the realization but then smiled along with them.

“You ready to roll down a hill that doesn’t have thorns at the bottom?” Four asked gingerly. X smiled warmly, and with confirmation, Four recklessly flopped to the ground and began to barrel down it. X lost balance because of it and tripped, per usual, and limply rolled down with them. X babbled and laughed with an unexplainable thrill, feeling excitement rush through him. The sky above and the grass beneath swirled in his vision, and he giggled as it tickled his body while he toppled. Then, his body slowed down as inertia decreased, and he landed on his back beside a laughing Four. X’s hand lay on their chest, feeling their chest vibrating with their chortles, and it made him feel warm in his chest.

He pulled himself up, lightly giggling as he offered a hand to his friend. They took it mindlessly, without thinking. They didn’t seem very tense anymore. And X found that it was better than rolling. Don’t get him wrong, it was fun. Life changing, even. But the unfiltered gasps of air from the usually stoic number he knew was much more enjoyable.

With both on their feet, they slowly strolled through the field to the tree. Four asked how much he liked the experience, and X gave a quick thanks. They stopped for a moment to pick a few wildflowers and sniff, but other than that, they walked straight to the tree. When the two of them made it there, they sat, leaning against the tree. X ran his fingers against the bark, feeling its roughness. X looked up at the leaves above.

“What type of tree is this? I’ve never seen one like this before, although, aheh, you know,” X said with a soft shrug. Four leaned further against the trunk and stared up with wonder.

“Willow tree. There aren’t many around anymore. I forget why, though,” They hummed. X’s sweet expression turned into a slight smirk at the idea of a comment.

“All knowing, smart, and dorky Four doesn’t remember? How could you?” X said with a dramatic gasp. He left his mouth open for further shock. Four frowned and crossed their arms.

“Mmhhhhhh yes, but I only forgot because I don’t care about it. Are you referring to my love for mathematics?” Four whined back. X gave a waiting look. Four continued.

“Well, that doesn’t necessarily make me smart. I’ve always been told I’m book smart, instead of street or emotionally smart. That’s what Two says, at least,” Four said, waving his hand almost to excuse X’s mistake. X’s eyes glanced along Four’s unfocused expression.

“...I think you’re pretty smart. All kinds of smart. If that… Means anything,” X said, barely a whisper. They were silent for a moment, their eyes widening. But they forced their face to go back to normal.

“It doesn't, Variable,” Four said quickly back. But the lavender shade against their cheeks said otherwise. X managed an airy chuckle and, very slowly, leaned his shoulder against theirs. They sat like that for long minutes, X absorbing the warmth emitted from Four’s body. He hummed with comfort. After some time passed, a time which felt long, X heard a pencil against paper. He opened his eyes to investigate. Four was writing in a book with equations. They were focused, squinting as they crossed out no longer important numbers. X became confused for multiple reasons.

“Where’d this come from?” He mumbled. Four glanced at him, then back at the paper.

“I teleported it here.” Four felt X tense up against their shoulder and pull back. They sighed sharply and stared X down, making them settle slightly.

“Lemme ask you this, what were you taught about magic? What do you think it is?” Four spat. X tightened his lips, then swallowed. He fluttered his eyes, then looked down and leaned back into Four. X fidgeted with his fingers.

“I was told that it was dangerous, no matter what type. And that it is used to hurt others. The only reason that variables don’t find their value is because it can help you gain powers and then hurt others. That’s what I believe,” X mumbled in embarrassment. Four quickly responded.

“Well, you’re-...Not fully wrong. It can be used to hurt people, that is true. I’ve been hurt by it and…Hurt people with it.” They took a deep breath and looked at their hands, then subconsciously readjusted their eyepatch.

“But it wasn’t made to hurt. And it doesn't always hurt others. That flower I teleported yesterday; it wasn’t to hurt you. And now, I got this book by teleporting it as well, and it didn’t hurt anyone. It depends on who’s using it and what it’s for. It was given to us by Infinity for a reason,” Four finished, smiling at X. He faltered when their attention was brought to them, looking away. Heat burned his face, and he mumbled something even he didn’t understand. He took a breath, then continued the conversation.

“I’ve heard that name before. Is Infinity a god or something?”

“Infinity is the god. They created us, our magic, and symbols. All powerful, stuff like that.”

“W-well, how do you, uhm, know?” X asked in uncertainty. Four frowned but replied,

“Because I’ve seen them. And almost everyone else has too.” X nodded, then observed his own hands. He thought. He thought about learning his value, using powers he knew he had. Training with Three, Two, and Four. And using a…A symbol? What’s that?

“A symbol, what’s that?” X mimicked his thoughts.

“Is it different from the symbols on this paper?” He pointed at Four’s still-open book. Four snatched it away possessively but focused on X’s words with a blank stare.

“Oh, uhm, not really. Just bigger versions that work on us as equations on paper. I thought you knew, you told me about your equation!” They exclaimed. X blinked, then cracked a small smile.

“That’s true, I…Never really thought about it. That’s what created me, huh? Well, there’s other symbols too, like division or multiplication, right?”

“Of course! You can fuse and turn into one number or get split into two. But then there’s also bad things multiplication can do.” Four’s face turned more serious the further they spoke, which made X more worried. He lightly put his one hand on the arm he was leaning on.

“...How so?” He whispered.

“Ah, uhm, well, as you know, to be alive, so to speak, you need a value. Being part of the equation of life is a way to think about it. But if you multiply by a Zero, well…You don’t have a value anymore. You aren’t part of the equation. You’re just…Erased. Gone,” Four muttered sadly. X’s grip tightened on their forearm as the idea solidified in their mind. So there is a way to die, so to speak. Four got up, and X stayed clinging to them as they began to walk back. They had been here for a couple of hours by now, math, time flies by! Four led them up the hill and through the forest, keeping their arm at reach for the yellow number.

“Could I get multiplied by Zero?” X asked frantically. Four shrugged.

“I think so. You have a value, although changing constantly.”

“Am I safe?” X wailed.

“Of course you are! Stop being dramatic, Variable. The only ones that are allowed such symbols are numbers who want offspring, the high guard, and the Priest. And no one wants you dead,” Four said between gritted teeth. The path became clearer the further they walked.

“You don’t?”

“No, I don’t. I might’ve before, but not anymore,” They whined with a frown. X, despite feeling offended by part of the statement, was relieved by that more than the rest of the comfort. Four didn’t want him dead. Not the best thing to be told, but to be told at all made him feel better. Happy, even. The rest of the walk was filled with more comfortable silence from X’s part, and his happiness softened the stiff air for Four as well. And after a while of walking, now hand in hand, they arrived at the restaurant. X smiled awkwardly at the building in embarrassment.

“I uh, forgot we were going here,” He muttered quietly. Four rolled their one visible eye.

“Well, I didn’t. You still have the coupon?” X nodded without a word, handing it to the blue number. They took it and held it in their fist, leading X inside.

“And we’re only doing this as friends, okay?” Four reminded him. In response, X’s eyes got big and dilated, light shining through as he smiled from ear to ear. Four groaned and pulled him inside, but looked amused despite it all.

“Variable, don’t be weird about it.”

***********

Three stood on the balcony of One’s room, staring out into the Valley. The sun was going to set soon, and the sky was just barely a light shade of pink amongst the blue. He sighed as he heard the clacking of shoes behind him come to a stop.

“The symbols are arranged in the ballroom, and the Zeros are fed well. Our guests will be gone by tomorrow, how exciting!” One hummed, throwing her top two hands in the air. Three pouted and balled his hands into fists, sighing. The Priest went from celebrating to staring at Three’s solemn face, and she groaned aloud.

“You are no fun anymore, Three! It’s not that serious. It’ll be done easy-peasy, and quickly too! I’ve never been multiplied by Zero, but I’m sure it’s painless!” She exclaimed. She went next to him and looked over the railing as well, smiling. Three shook his head and crossed his arms. He hated how easily she could read him. No one else could tell what he was thinking but her. And maybe Four if they literally read his mind.

“I-It’s uhm, not that. What if it goes wrong? What if people panic, and the variables escape? Tsh, what then, are we gonna wrangle them up ourselves like sheepdogs? There’s no logic in even trying,” Three muttered bitterly. One hummed and tapped her chin with her extra hand, then grinned.

“It won’t. However, if it does, though, I’ll have you. You can’t just leave, remember?” She grinned and teleported a paper in her hand, shaking it to get his attention. He scowled at the deal being flaunted around, and she chuckled lightly. With a snap, it was gone again. Three rested his face in his hand in despair.

“It’ll be you and me if something goes wrong. But what’s so bad about that? You’ll be helping the Valley and the Plaza stay safe. You’ll be keeping Two and …Four safe. Isn’t that all you want anyway?” She reasoned, putting a hand on his back. Three sighed in defeat.

“You’re right, but…Killing isn’t protecting, One. I thought you’d know this by now.”

“Sometimes it is. And if you can’t see that, then you’re obviously not as mature as I am. I am older than you, it’s to be expected,” she said before walking away.

“You can go home now. I’m sure Two’s waiting for you,” One hummed. They opened the door for Three to leave. He turned and watched her do this, and did as she pleased, sauntering out slowly. The door was slammed behind him, and he grunted, holding himself. He knew now, this wasn’t going to end well. No matter how much he wanted it to.

Chapter Text

When X left the restaurant, he was originally going to be walked back to the tower by Four. However, just as luck would have it, two green integers had walked past the building and spotted him in the dark. So, without much arguing, X walked home with his two friends instead. X had offered Four a hug before leaving, but they refused said offer. With a shrug and grabbed onto Y and Z’s hands and began to walk down the less crowded path due to the late time. Streetlamps illuminated the path, with only a few civilians left on the sides of the path. X watched their uncomfortable expressions as his friends, and he passed. He sighed.

“Do you think that if we did stay, we would be accepted by them?” He asked half-heartedly. Y hummed without thinking. Z grunted and frowned.

“Most likely not. But who cares? It’s truly not an issue. I don’t accept them either,” She murmured. X’s eyebrows furrowed. He cared. But alas, he did not say such things in front of her.

“I just don’t like being stared at like that,” He whispered back. And in response, Z’s face contorted from annoyance to some form of sadness. Maybe empathy? He wouldn’t know. Her grip tightened on his hands in silent comfort. It worked, somewhat, and he smiled softly at her. She cracked a smile back, a tired one. Y gripped X’s hand, which made him babble in surprise. Z giggled and rolled her eyes.

“It’s us against this world, right?” Y beamed, giving a light and playful shove to X’s shoulder. X laughed heartily, pushing his body into theirs to return to shove. Y wailed and cackled.

“Isn’t the term ‘Us against THE world?” X asked. Y shook their head quickly with a comical frown.

“There’s other planets. This is just one we decided to go back on! It’s us against THIS world,” They retorted, pointing their index finger up to solidify their statement. X, defeated, shrugged with a light groan. Z groaned along with him, which amused Y further. Z quickly moved on from it, though.

“I- look, I know Y is stupid-”

“Hey!”

“-And annoying. But they are right, X. We care about you. You’re our best friend, and I wouldn’t have it any other way,” Z said, scratching her face to distract from her lightly colored cheeks. Y beamed before X even had the chance to.

“Awww, you love us!” They cheered, rubbing their cheeks with closed eyes. Z snarled.

“Oh shut it, you meathead! Actually, I'll take it back! X and N are my best friends,” Z shot back. Y gasped then looked hurt for a moment before pouting.

“Leave N out of this! They have done no wrong,” Y shouted back.

“I know! That’s why they’re better than you!” Z shrieked, pointing at them from around X. And despite the situation looking bad, or even uncomfortable from someone else's perspective, it was actually quite nice. Nostalgic, even. X closed his eyes, and if he thought hard enough, he was back on the ship.

“That’s the wrong wire, Y! Read the pamphlet again while I do it and maybe don’t screw around next time,” Z whined as she connected two wires together, and with a flicker the lights in X’s room turned back on. X sighed with relief, his anxiety subsiding for a moment. He got to skip his duties for this hour to fix said problem, and with it done in only twenty minutes, he had the rest of the time to himself.

“Maybe I couldn’t read it because the lights were out, Z! Mhghg whatever, I’m gonna spend the rest of my free time with N. They said we could get food together and take it to their room,” Y said, throwing their arms up before trotting out. But as quickly as they left, they peeked back inside and hugged X.

“Love you, see you in…Thirty minutes!” Y said with a pat to the head. X giggled and, when they left, flopped on their bed. For a moment, they just lay there, calm. Then they got up and found some water. He poured it into a watering can, then hydrated the plants in his room. Z gave a quick wave and then left as well. And despite their absence, he still felt the warmth and care from the interaction in his chest. But part of him felt the absence of something else. He felt warmth that others felt, but he hadn’t discovered. So, despite having friends, he still felt…Lonely.

X opened his eyes again and found they were walking up the steps of the Tower. Infinity, he was out for a minute! And he also says…That, now. Anyway, when the group made it up the stairs, they all let go of each other's hands. Y and Z went to their shared room quickly, saying how tired they were. But X had slightly different plans now. He walked up to a familiar guard and tapped them on the shoulder. They turned and smiled at the variable.

“Oh, hey X! What’s up?” Seven asked eagerly. X returns the smile and shifts in stance.

“The event for us to get power is tomorrow, right?” X asked. Seven nodded casually.

“Yep. Everything is prepared, I think. So I’ve heard.”

“...So you’ve heard?”

“Psh, well yeah…I’m not high court material, they wouldn't let me near whatever they’re doing! Five might’ve seen though, but I haven’t seen her since yesterday morning. They shut themself in their room after going to the ballroom, said something about feeling sick,” Seven said with a worried tone. He puts a hand on his chin before adding,

“I should go check on her.” And with that Seven ran up the stairs. They hastily climbed up the spinning architecture, then disappeared from X’s view. X blinked in surprise but decided to try not to think about it. It worried him, though. But it most likely meant nothing. After that, he joined his friends and went to bed. Sleeping would make him feel better, most likely.

***********

Sleep did not make X feel better. He woke up the same way as the day before, with tears rolling down his face. This is becoming a problem, isn’t it? Oh well, he’ll fix it tomorrow when he’s back on the ship. He rubbed his cheeks and got out of bed after a few bangs on the door. He went into the bathroom and washed his face with cold water to wake himself up. He dried his cheeks with a towel and stared at his reflection one more time before such an exciting day.

His scratches were mostly healed by now. There was a small scar like a spot on his knee, but it wouldn’t matter since he had his ship’s suit to wear. Speaking of his suit, it was quite dirty now. Once a dull white shade, now covered in dirt and stains. He hopes Four won’t notice. He wonders why he would hope for that. He leaves the bathroom and grabs an already-made sandwich near the coffee maker and unwraps it, then eats it. Y and Z are awake now, doing the exact same thing as him. Y looks slightly worried at X.

“This nightmare thing is a problem,” They state, making X sigh loudly.

“Those eyebags are pretty gnarly, X. Are you tired?” Z added on. X only nodded pathetically. Z grabbed her bag and sorted through it for a moment, then gave X a bottle of pills.

“I snuck these with me from home, it should help.”

“I-...Energy medication? Why do you have these?”

“For energy, dummy. I don’t get much sleep either. However, these beds are way better than the ones back home. I haven’t slept this good in ages. I think you need it, even if we aren’t really workers anymore,” Z finished before getting up. Y nodded to X, and he mimicked them as he took a few pills with some water. Just a picker-upper, he told himself as he did so. And soon after, another knock. Not from Four, though, it was like the same sharp knock, albeit it was softer than the one from earlier, which left X curious. He walked up to the door and was surprised to see two numbers he didn’t recognize. A dark grey one, and an orange one, holding more medication. Oh, come on!

“The Priest informed us to give these to all variable guests before the event,” A rough voice came from the grey one. X raised an eyebrow as the bottle was moved closer to him in an urging manner.

“...Why?” X asked in an almost exasperated tone. The orange one laughed awkwardly.

“We don’t know, we just take orders. We’re not the high court, after all!” He exclaimed, his mouth twitching uncomfortably.

“Well, who is the high court? I’ve heard so much about them!” X whined. But still, he took the pills and took them despite still being annoyed.

“Oh, the high court is the people who have life-binding contracts with the Priest, so…Well, Three. And Two, I’m sure,” he said, making X gasp.

“There were older high court members a while ago, but they all uh…Disappeared, or something. The Priest doesn’t like sharing their past often.” X took in this information like it stabbed him, yet also a delicacy. He didn’t really know what to think of it all just yet, but for now, he just let it settle in his mind.

“Y! Z! Pills!” X shouted, and groans proceeded. He giggled as two disappointed variables took some medication. Z, most of all, was displeased, glaring at the more nervous integer in front of her.

“If I, like, become numb or something because of these pills, you two are both dead,” Z threatened, pointing two fingers at her eyes, then theirs. The orange one frowned, scared and sad, and left after confirming they had both swallowed the medication. Soon after, they all left and, with the guidance of Seven, made it to the ballroom. They stood in a line and got let in one by one by Five, who still looked on edge. The line moved slowly due to her uneasiness. When they finally got inside the room, it was pretty empty, except for the huge symbols on the ground. That stood out the most to them. But something weird is that X’s friends, and all the others were tired. They were so sleepy that they leaned on him for support. X had to carry Y and Z at the end of the line as they put their full weight on him. Z groaned.

“I bet thhhey drugged us…” She murmured. She poked X in the back, making him yelp and jump slightly.

“Why didn’t it work on you? Oh, rightttt,” She asked through a slurred voice.

“U-uhm, why would they drug us?” X asked. The medication he took before balanced out the effects of the pills, but he was experiencing a headache that made his vision blur.

“Wuh-Why wouldn’t they? They’re probably gonna try to kill us or-...something!”

“We can’t die, Z! I mean…Right? Negative X was just sick! She just got shot into space! I think,” Y mumbled from X’s other shoulder. X scowled at them.

“Stop talking about my mom!” He yelped. That got both of them to stop bickering rather quickly, as X didn’t raise his voice very much. But it wasn’t very long before the bodies were removed, and Zeros carried them away. X, without a distraction, quickly took in the environment. Stained glass windows, murals, and a high area on the wall with an entrance, a lush chair for someone to sit on. On the walls, stained…Something. It looked like paint, as it was colorful; however, it just felt disgusting to look at. It made him feel sick. The area was huge, and the halls of their living quarters looked tiny compared to this. But it made sense, as they needed room for…Whatever this is. Wait, multiplication symbols…

X suddenly felt his hands get taken behind his back and tied up. X shrieked and wiggled, trying to get free. The number from behind quickly released him, and he fell to the floor. He whined as his hands were immovable. On the ground, he rapidly looked for someone he recognized other than the limp variables all beside him. And as he looked, he saw his one ray of hope. Far from the scene, behind a fenced-up area, was Four. Two and Three stood beside them, holding their arms tightly. Two and…Three. Two…And…

“Okay, let’s get to the chase!” A booming voice called from above. X’s eyes darted to see the Priest in uniform, on the throne high up. The voice seemed amused, yet serious. With the flick of their wrist, they snapped at a door, and some not-so-happy Zeros walked through a door.

“I…Lied. We cannot give you what you need. You variables are not to be trusted. I would know,” They muttered. They stood and gave a light bow.

“I apologize. But I must-”

“I don’t wanna die!”

Silence followed. The Priest looked down at the source of noise, at X. Their stare, hidden behind the fabric of the cloak, still burned through him. His eyes snapped from them to Four, who was frantically trying to get out of the grip of Two and Three. Two looked exhausted already.

“Four! Please!” X screamed. Four grunted as Three was holding them from behind. But the whole time, X noticed, he had his eyes on the Priest. A begging look, an unhappy look. A desperate look. The number in power ignored them, though with a quick hand wave, then continued.

“I must get rid of you from the equation. And for the love of Infinity, don’t fight it. It’ll be quick and painless!” They cooed, putting their hands together like a mocking plea. By now, the variables were getting their feelings back and attempting to get up, so some zeros ran into place. And X watched in horror as E screamed, and suddenly…Gone. The symbol had glowed, and in less than ten seconds, E was a burnt spot on the ground. The panic set in. He watched as Z frantically tried pulling herself up from the floor. Another few screams, F and G, through the screams of X’s friends and family, disappeared. Suddenly, a door flew open behind X. N shuddered and panted, still slightly weak from the pills. They held the door open for the others. More zeros ran in.

“RUN! GO GO GO!” N shrieked. Y, in an instant, flew to their feet. They darted out the door, same with a few others. X watched the scene in horror, frozen in place. He didn’t know what to do. His head was spinning as symbols glowed, integers ran and grabbed, variables squealed and fought back. He was so overwhelmed that he didn’t see the zero run in front of the symbol next to him. He blinked in shock as the symbol glowed and began to activate.

Suddenly, everything felt all too familiar. Was he even awake? Was this really happening?

“X!” He heard someone scream. He looked to see the culprit, but before he could even process who it was, they teleported in front of him, shoving him and them away from the symbol. In response, the whirring of the object stopped, and it deactivated. X sniffled and covered his eyes. Maybe he could wake up. He wanted to so badly. He wanted the cold tiles below to be his warm bed. He wanted the body cradling him in their arms to be his blankets. He wanted the yelling to be the laughing of his two friends as he tried to sleep. And most importantly, he didn't want to be in danger. He wanted to be safe. Just like he had always been.

“X? X! X you gotta help me!” A shaken voice whined from above him. X cracked his eyes open to see Four holding him, looking more afraid than ever. Their chin quivered, but their eye softened as X finally opened his eyes to see them. Variables ran past, though many fewer than what had been there originally. Four nodded to him, and X, surprised but understanding, grabbed them for support. Four hoisted X up and, with a few glances, began to leave with the others. X didn’t pay as much attention as he was, for the time being, mostly safe. Only after a short time of moving did they stop, though.

“Four! Four, come back!” Two called out. Four instinctively stopped at their voice, turning to look. Their face looked angry and unforgiving, but couldn't keep the malice as the green number softly gazed back at them. Two slowly approached the two, and with a warm but tired smile, asked,

“Is he okay?” Four glared at them and held X closer, but he dropped his anger quickly again.

“Of course he’s fine.”

Suddenly, Three ran to the group. He looked the worst of them all, with scratches and bites from Four’s previous struggles covering his arms. When he made it to them, he, without thinking, pulled Two into a hug. Two was obviously startled by the desperate gesture but reciprocated. When he pulled away, he and Four made eye contact. Then, to avoid the blue integer that was giving him, looked down at the frowning X.

“I’m sorry.”

“What the hell is wrong with you?” Four shot back with a snarl.

“I didn’t have a choice!”

“Do you have one now?” They shouted back. X whimpered and covered his ears. They both shifted, then pulled gazes apart with a sharp spark of anger. Four huffed out a shaky breath, and Three rubbed his upper arms softly.

“We will discuss this later. What are we gonna do now?” Two reasoned quietly. They slipped in between the two bodies to further de-escalate the situation. There was silence as they collectively thought together.

“We will leave. X can’t stay here. We can go back to the base or…Somewhere else. Just far from the Plaza, or the valley. And from One,” Four muttered. Two nodded quickly, ushering them to walk.

“Sounds like a plan, or enough of a plan, to me!” But Three stopped to look back. Through the open doors, he could see her. She had thrown off her cloak and watched as they left. He stared into her eyes, and before he turned, she held up a paper. Then, a second. Three’s eyes widened, and he choked out a sob before sharply turning to follow. He could leave for now. But not for long.

***********

Far further and deeper into the plaza, variables stampede. They scattered, ran, hid, and tried to escape. Huts and shops were ruined in their panic. But more importantly, the integers of the plaza were as unknowing as they were. So the further the stampede went, the more integers followed and began to flee. But despite the destruction, few places stayed a haven, either due to the fact that they were a building or weren’t in the way of the crowd.

A big building with pillars and stairs lay untouched. And within, many scared algebraliens lay as well. Specifically, two green and one red variable. When they found this sanctuary, they were at first wary of others being inside. But to their surprise, no one was. The lights were out, and though it was day, it was still dark. They huddled into a corner with a couple of snagged pillows from the chairs and couches in the library. Along with a tissue box. Sobs echoed throughout the library.

“Hey hey hey, it’s okay Y…” N hummed sweetly, hugging them close. Z was farther away from the two, hand clutching her mouth to not show her emotions. Y’s breath caught in their throat as they choked on themselves, coughing before crying louder.

“H-H-He was just…Sssitting there, and I-I…I-” Y babbled, then covered their eyes. N looked down at the floor, trying to recall the previous events.

“I-I’m sure X is fine. Actually, I’m…Not sure, he couldn’t get up I saw, and I saw that the symbol, it…” N trailed off, their stomach tightening.

“X is fine,” N said, this time trying to reassure themself.

“Stop talking about him!” Z hissed back, clenching her other fist. She squeezed her burning eyes shut. Her chest began to hurt, stabbing against her clothes. She unzipped her suit to get more air, but it felt like it was being sucked from her mouth and lungs.

“We’ll…We’ll find him. Now,” She growled, pulling herself to her feet. Without looking back, she trudged to the library doors. Y opened their eyes and watched, then scrambled to get up. N followed them, still trying to keep calm.

“We will find him,” She repeated as she swung the doors open. She began to walk down the barren streets, and quickly, the two other variables caught up.

“W-where are we going?” Y asked, their voice raw. Z looked up and saw a hut on fire. The fire was beginning to travel along the stands and other buildings, spreading quickly.

“Anywhere but here. Somewhere safe. X likes to be safe, remember?”

Chapter Text

When the two had first met, Three was pretty fresh off the block. His motor skills still needed to be refined, his anger issues made him almost an immediate recluse, and with no specific parental figure (or one he remembered), he wasn’t doing so great in the world alone.

Then, he met One. And she was just brilliant. Her powers were unmatched compared to anyone else. The Yoylite on her crown made her practically unstoppable. And she was old too. Much, much older than him, or most integers around. She had seen the world spin ‘round, that's for sure.

But the best part? Her charm. She had the confidence in the room that could take your breath away. So naturally, he tried to be under her wing. And with some rather pathetic smooth talk, it worked! He trained in her tower with the other trainees to be rangers, numbers who basically had free will. He wanted to be free. In training, he met two other integers. One, name Two. Cocky, witty, green, yet compassionate. When he laid eyes on them, he knew that's who he wanted to be. And the other was Four. Brainy, whiny, with some shyness, yet a temper. And he saw himself in the younger one.

They were his best friends at the time. And it was all thanks to One. She made it all possible, and he had nothing but gratitude for her.

That was, until the incident.

Afterwards, not so much. Instead of respect, it was fear that drove him to continue companionship with the number. And a deal. A deal to never let something like the incident happen again. In said deal, Three agreed to work with One for life. And maybe it wasn't the worst. Though the consequences of the incident remained.

Three, Two and Four had finished training, though Four struggled the most. As a reward, like promised, they received a bunker, and a Ranger Station all to themselves. And it was perfect. Except for the back and forth walks between the base and the Plaza. That was pretty exhausting.

We can skip over some other unimportant details, such as Two and Three’s friendship becoming something slightly different, or Four and Three’s friendship crumbling over time after the incident. Now what's more important is the second deal he made later on. A deal that his two closest friends weren't aware of. That he wouldn't let them know about.

“Why did you call me here?” Three had asked.

"It's a little earlier than our usual monthly visit. I don't mind, though; I need some new parts for the printer you sent. It broke again," He muttered with a light and awkward chuckle. One stared at him blankly before motioning him to his chair. He sat down.

“Three, as you know, my powers are for keeping the Plaza and the whole Valley safe, correct?” Three nodded, crossing their arms. One grew a coy smile, hooking one leg over the other.

“So anyone who holds more power than me is a danger, right?” One continued. He faltered at her words, squinting.

“I-I, uhm. I suppose. Where are you going with this? Get to the point,” Three hissed out. She rolled her eyes, and, with a snap, a paper appeared in front of him. He shuddered at the sight.

“Not again…”

“Two. You care about them, yes? And it would be a shame if they just…Somehow, I don’t know, disappeared from your memory? From this world?” The Priest sneered, nudging the paper closer.

“Or maybe they just somehow lost the one thing they’re proud of, their powers?” She hummed, looking up at the ceiling. Three scowled at the threat and almost shot up from their seat. But, remembering his place, huffed and got comfortable again.

“What do you want from me? I-I’ll…I’d do anything for them,” He murmured. One cackled, amused.

“Anything? What a romantic,” they said, sipping on some tea. Three’s face darkened.

“Enough of this! Please, just…How do I keep them safe?” Three mumbled, their desperate tone becoming somber. One’s face, for a moment, contorted into something else. She blinked, her mouth slightly agape. She almost looked…Empathetic? He didn’t pay much attention at the time, but reminiscing made him more curious about it.

“I want some of your powers.” Three’s eyes, previously staring at the floor, shot up. He stared in horror at her. He trembled slightly, bringing his arms up to hug himself.

“W-What…?” They barely got out, swallowing hard. One frowned.

“It’s simple. Four’s been taught their…Lesson. So, they’re less of a concern to me. But Two? Well, they’re not the sharpest tool, but most definitely useful. More useful than I had thought previously. With some of your powers, I would be stronger than them. Then, Two wouldn’t be a concern. You two could live your sappy ‘happily ever after’, and Two wouldn’t be in danger,” she said, pushing the deal closer. Three warily looked over the terms, and in it stated all that she had explained. His eyes burned. And, after a moment, a pen spawned in his hand. Three, with watery eyes, wrote his name on the paper, sealing the deal. It was teleported away immediately after. And with it, Three felt dizziness overcome him. He leaned against the chair's arm harder, just barely keeping his eyes open.

“Sorry, fatigue is a side effect of power transfer. You may leave when you want, Two will be alright,” The Priest confirmed. At the words, Three drowsily smiled. But he also felt like he couldn’t get up.

“Ccccould you…Teleport me back?” He asked. One grimaced at the request, but then, quickly after, a cheeky grin appeared.

“Actually, I think I could do that for you!” She cheered, then closed her eyes. In an instant, he was outside the base. He groaned loud enough for the numbers inside to hear, and after being found, he was dragged inside and put to bed.

“What happened?” Two asked frantically. Three closed his eyes and sighed out a breath.

“I-...IIIII’ll tell you later,” He slurred.

Later, he told them the food wasn’t very good, and he felt sick. One, not wanting to deal with him being sick, teleported him home. When asked how he had been brought home so far, he simply said One had honed her skills. And they believed him.

Three warily opened his eyes, the fogginess of sleep leaving him. He observed his environment. They were in some caves a little far off from the trail that led to the base, with some blankets serving as beds. Below him was Two, who had their arms wrapped around his core. He had his arm behind their head to give support and comfort. They shifted in sleep as he woke, but did not do the same. It was early morning, so Four and X were already awake, but sitting in awkward silence. Three watched but did not move or speak to disturb them. X had a tired and somewhat angry look on his face. Four just looked tired due to lack of sleep.

“Did you know about it?” X asked with a scratchy voice. Four frowned at the reference and glanced away. There was a silence that followed, a tense one.

“...Of course not. I would have told you if I did,” They responded, looking away as the accusation settled in their mind. X’s eyebrows furrowed, and he stared far away, refusing to glance at them.

“Would you have? Not a single person even tried to tell me. Not Three, not Two,” he said with a sarcastically unserious shrug. Four glanced at the unhappy variable.

“Two wouldn’t have known, X,” They responded. X scowled.

“Well, Ten and Eight said that they-”

“X, Eight and Ten are idiots. They know nothing.”

“You say my name now. What changed between then and now?” X asked, his voice softening mildly. Four’s stare softened as well, sucking in a breath. They glanced away, their lips a thin line.

“I told you that you’re the only variable I hang out with, and that’s why I just called you that. B-but now, I…You’re the only variable I care so deeply for. And the only person I respect right now,” Four whispered, fiddling with their fingers. X’s face grew angrier once more.

“Is that why you only saved me?” Four’s eyes widened slightly, blinking as he stared, bewildered.

“I tried to help, X! Can’t you see that?”

“W-well, obviously you didn’t try hard enough. I watched people I’ve considered my family my entire life die! A-and, now here I am, hiding like a coward!” X said behind gritted teeth, tightening his hands into fists.

“But I can…I can fix this. I can go back and get the captain. They can help me,” X mumbled. He pulled himself to his feet and began to quickly leave. Four’s eyes widened further, he gasped, and he scrambled up, trying to catch up to the stormy variable. He lightly grabbed the others’ shoulder, making them turn around.

“Don’t leave, please, I can help! We can help. You just need to- need to stay,” Four said with a trembling voice. X stared at them, and his upset face shifted from anger to sadness and confusion. He led their hand off their shoulder. He sighed and looked down again.

“I don’t get it, Four.”

“Don’t get what?” They whined back. X sniffed and stepped back.

“Why are you doing this? Why do you want me to stay?” X mumbled at them. Four began to back away, too, like X had just practically threatened them with his words. Four chuckled airily, putting his hands up.

“W-Why does it matter?” They asked, their voice shaking more. And now, with the question, X held the high ground. He held the dagger in his hands, but in reality, it was only in his eyes. The dagger was a question, and one Four wasn’t ready to hear. Yet, X took it and stabbed it into their heart.

“What are we?”

…

Four stared at X with despair. Their eyes got wetter, and they stared at him. Their chin quivered, and like a couple of days ago, they looked defeated. Like a stray animal thrown out. Four stumbled back, glancing at the people behind them who still looked asleep, then at the surprised variable in front of them. Their expression was pinched, and they covered their eye patch sharply.

“I don’t want to…Know,” they responded harshly, their throat raw. X inhaled sharply, looking betrayed for a moment before looking disappointed and almost disgusted. He turned again to leave, and Four didn’t have the energy to try and follow this time. X stood alone for a moment but then spoke.

“Well, then…” X sighed, looking at the light flowing in the cavern.

“Goodbye, Four,” He mumbled. He heard the other whimper at his words. But he didn’t mind. He left, slowly walking out of the entrance and far, far away. He was out of the integers' view now. He found the trail he had walked on before and followed it back. He didn’t stop, refused to stop, even after the sun had set and the only light for the trail was the flashlight from before. And, when the sun began to rise the next morning, X arrived at his pod. He looked at it somberly, memories of everything flooding back into his mind. How beautiful the world looked when he first landed. His pure and unfiltered joy as he saw his friends, their tired but happy faces flashing in his head. He covered his mouth and crumbled to the ground, tears beginning to prick his eyes.

When he met Two, Three, and Four for the first time. Two’s charming and comforting voice made him weak and yet also felt safe. Three’s rambunctious actions and confidence that never failed to amuse him. And Four’s… Four’s cold and unforgiving personality that had slowly become so warm and loving. Loving? Was that the right word to describe it? By now, salty water ran down X’s cheeks, his breaths coming out short and labored. Nobody was left to comfort him now. Y and Z, nowhere to run to and be held by, the ones who knew him better than himself. His closest family he has ever had.

He sobbed as he picked himself up and dragged his body to the pod, strapping himself in. He wiped his still-falling tears from his face. With blurry vision, he put in the coordinates to the ship and strapped himself back in. Quickly, after the coordinates were set, a timer ticked down the seconds, ready for departure. He was going home.

Three…(Three?...)

Two…(Two…)

One. (?...)

***********

Six, Nine, Eight, and Ten hid out in a separate area, eating breakfast with unhappy chatter amongst them.

“I can’t believe this all happened. We’re so fucked,” Six sighed, biting into a sandwich. She rubbed her eyes with annoyance. Eight idly had a frown on his face, and Ten hadn’t had a non-guilty look on their face since the day before.

“I can’t believe One would do this… I-I didn’t know those pills- Why did-?” Ten began, but Eight patted their back.

“So not cool. And we don’t even know where Seven and Five are! Even the high court is missing!” Nine babbled, throwing his hands in the air. Not wanting any more of their food, they offered it to Ten. Ten shook his head vigorously, looking nauseous from stress. Nine shrugged and nudged the food in Eight’s direction, and he took it without care.

“So, what should we do?” Six asked idly. They began to put their gear back on. She took Nine’s hat out and roughly put it on his head, rubbing it like ruffling hair. Nine chuckled, and Eight hummed aloud in thought.

“Hmm…Find Five and Seven, then Three?” Eight reasoned. The others looked at each other but slowly gave unsure nods. Eight smiled slightly.

“We’ll do better in a group. So, is everyone ready to go?” He asked in his usual rough voice. Again, nods, but less hesitant this time. They got up and began to leave, walking further through the Plaza. The smell of fire began to get stronger throughout the Valley, and ashes sprinkled the remaining standing huts. Ten coughed in the sharp air. The Plaza was empty, silence enveloping the group in the unusual quiet. But eventually, a soft noise came the further they walked. Some trash cans fell over suddenly, causing the group to stiffen. They looked towards the source of the noise.

A green variable peeked out from behind the trash. Their eyes widened when they saw Eight and Ten. Then they glared at them. Ten frowned.

“Uhm, I’m sorry for accidentally drugging you guys, I swear we didn’t know!” Ten apologized frantically. Y stopped frowning and stared at them, confused. Six and Nine turned to look at them, baffled too. Eight rubbed his neck.

“Yeah, sorry. We just followed orders.” Y looked sad at the reminder, but less angry. They began to walk out, although two voices and hands behind them tried to stop them. They looked nervous, bringing their hands up to their chest. They looked weary at the group, eyebags apparent.

“Have you seen X…? A small yellow variable with a sweet smile, a bit smaller than me…” Y asked quietly. Eight and Ten exchanged glances.

“Not specifically, however…” Eight looked at Ten to answer. His eyes widened as he thought for a second.

“We did see a yellow variable being carried by Four. Did X know them?” Ten asked. Y smiled, a tired but amused one. They chuckled.

“Hm, yes. He and they were uh…Friends,” Y answered. Ten smiled back.

“Then he’s probably alive. I saw them leave the Plaza and go near the outskirts of the Valley. We were gonna go there after we find some other friends. Wanna come with us?” Ten said, offering a hand to the dull variable. They considered it for a second, looking relieved by the gesture, but faltered and retreated backwards.

“That’s alright. We’ll go on our own. Thank you,” Y responded. Ten nodded, and the group began to walk further. Y stood there alone for a moment before Z and N popped their heads out. N put a hand on the brighter-looking variable.

“They might be wrong, you know. Not to be a bummer, just…They didn’t actually see him,” they told Y. But Y was already smiling, rubbing their chest.

“I know. But I believe them. X wouldn’t give up easily. And we’ll find him,” Y said with more confidence. They began to walk as well, the group smiling lightly to themselves. Hope always finds a way.

Chapter Text

Y held N’s hand as they walked. There wasn’t much conversation, as Z made sure they kept a good pace as they moved. Staying in front, she peeked around corners and held a warning hand out to the other less-bothered variables. But more importantly, they kept their pace due to the fire that was moving forward with every passing day, every burning second they rested. It was like a predator, hunting the weak prey left behind. But Z wouldn't let it get them. No, she would keep them safe. For her, for them, and for…And for X. Who she hoped was truly out there. Despite her rational thoughts telling her not to, she had hope. Maybe that’s what he would’ve wanted.

“Z, are the front gates open?” Y called from behind, snapping Z out of her thoughts. She whipped around to look at them, but quickly went back to look at the gates, which were…Gone? There was a big hole in the wooden walls surrounding the Plaza, with claw marks also scattered along it. No traces of what had happened were there, but it was pretty obvious what had happened. Z furrowed her brows in disgust and mild fear. She turned around quickly but kept her eyes in front of her to stay alert.

“Well, it uh…Doesn’t really matter,” She shouted back. With a quick nod, they followed further. They walked through the hole in the barrier and continued in the general direction of the footsteps left behind. They walked for a few hours, with not much conversation happening due to their tiredness and alertness. As the forest began to sizzle out into small fields, Z waved Y and N closer. They huddled.

“The sun is at its peak, so we can take a break for a while. I have some water,” She mumbled, sitting down on a steeper part of the land. She brought her backpack in front of herself and pulled out a flask and a couple of sandwiches. She handed one to the two of them, Y deciding to eat it. They nibbled on their food and sipped on their drinks in silence. But after a short time, N exhaled loud enough to get the other green variables' attention. They locked eyes with Z. Y leaned back to let it happen with a surprised look on their face.

“Hey Z, what’s the plan here? Follow the footprints until we find the owner of them? W-What if it’s the integers…?” They whimpered. Z blinked, almost offended by the question, but quickly shook it off as N’s face only showed her worry. She peered back into the others' deep pools of eyes.

“I- ahhm, I mean, what else are we supposed to do? I was hoping, variable or not, they would have an idea of where X is. And this is hard enough, putting trust in others for me, you know that right?” She whined. N frowned but looked like they understood, their stare on the grass below highlighting the bruises under their eyes. Z wrapped her arms around herself.

“And, if we don’t find X,” They began, clutching their arms tighter. She frowned at the thought. But before she could say anything else, Y interrupted.

“We will find him!” Y exclaimed sharply, cutting through the atmosphere like a blade. Both variables shifted to look at them, their eye contact ending with each other. Z nodded sympathetically.

“We wuh-We will,” N responded. Z quickly got up.

“Speaking of, let's get going again. I have a feeling we won’t have to go much farther,” she said. N’s face lit up as they followed suit, offering a hand for Y to take. They yanked them up and held their palm as they walked.

“What makes you say that?” Y asked, a smile beginning to form on their face. Z looked up over the treetops, smoke flowing not even a mile away. She grinned and looked back for a moment, shrugging.

“Just a hunch. I bet X is here.”

“X isn’t here?” Two asked, rubbing their still-tired eyes. Four was on the ground, facing the mouth of the cave, back to the number. He refused to look back, his shoulders shaking as he silently whimpered. He sniffed and wiped his cheeks, though Two couldn’t see their face.

“He left. I begged him not to,” They spat back. Two’s eyes widened as they listened to his tired voice, it being more scratchy than usual. He hiccupped. Two stood there in silence for a moment before shuffling slowly and carefully towards Four, making themselves loud enough to be noticed, and so Four was aware. They didn’t do anything to stop Two. They continued their journey and slowly bent down on one knee, putting a hand on their upper arm. He flinched ever so slightly, but again did not stop them. Three watched from the spot where he had been sleeping, eyes flickering between Two and Four.

“I pleaded for him to stay. I don’t know why, though,” Four murmured. Two hummed with a mildly confused yet somber expression lacing their face.

“Well, because X was your friend. And uhm…” Two trailed off, feeling awkward. They rubbed their neck. Four seemed to wince at the word friend, like it stung or something. Two sighed, their eyebrows knitted together in a pained look. They shuffled closer and hugged Four from behind. He sniffled in the silence as he was embraced, curling forward as he held their hands against his body. Then, when his breath stabilized, he stood up slowly, like he was mustering up the courage to speak again. They wrapped their arms around themself, looking back at Two and Three, determined this time. The sadness was still apparent on their face, but they stood strong.

“X was…X was right. He may have been wrong about me trying, but I can prove him wrong. I’m gonna, uhm…” His confidence sizzled out slowly, but with an inhale, he continued.

“I’m gonna rally people up. And when I do, we’ll stop One. Variables and Integers work together to stop a common enemy. How could anyone see One the same after what they did?” Four said, clenching his hand into a fist. Their gaze went from Two’s light smile to Three’s unhappy frown.

“And when X comes back, I’ll make sure to be ready for him. Even if he doesn’t like me anymore,” They finished, putting their hands on their hips. Two nodded, looking over for Three’s confirmation. But he scoffed instead.

“What are you thinking?” He shot back, to Four’s displeasure. Two raised an eyebrow.

“I’m thinking about trying to help others! What are you thinking about?” Three sighed, shaking his head and rolling his eyes.

“I’m thinking about our safety! We don’t need to leave," he reasoned. He got up, using the wall behind him to pull his body up. Four shifted their weight, crossing their arms.

“No, you’re thinking of your safety. I have nothing to do with that,” They shot back. Two looked between them worriedly, then took a step back. Their stare sharpened on both ends, causing the air to feel heavy with tension. Two shivered in the silence. Four scowled.

“You have everything to do with that. I’m not only thinking about myself, you know,” Three said. Four took a step closer, but their expression stayed the same, frustrated and uninterested.

“Let me do what I want! You can stay here and wallow, but I want to help people. Is that so much to ask?”

“That is too much! What if they do what they did to the variables, to you? What if I’m not there to protect you?”

“Why does it matter?” Four whined back. Three huffed and stomped forward.

“Because last time I didn't protect you, this happened!” He shouted, pointing at Four’s eyepatch. Four’s eye widened, slapping his hand over the eyepatch like Three’s pointing burnt. Two gasped but refused to intervene. Three blinked in surprise at his own words before stepping back, pulling his hand back and to his chest. The cave was silent, each number processing the words spoken by the other. Three took a deep breath before adding,

“And w-what she…Did to my eye too.” Four sharpened his afraid look into a glare, scoffing at him. They turned to leave. Two scrambled to follow Four but looked back to see Three watching without moving. Their eyes widened at the realization. Their arms fell to the side as they stood, looking into each other's eyes. Two reached a hand out, like a last resort to invite him or encourage him to come. But he didn’t.

“Three…” Two whimpered. Three lowered his eyes.

“I’m a high court member, Two. I shouldn’t have even left the ballroom. I have to…Go back now.” Two looked at him in despair, rubbing their eyes of any wetness before giving a tired smile. They smiled warily back, giving a light wave. Two quickly ran to hug them, holding them tightly. They released quickly and followed Four out of the cave's entrance. When he saw their shadows disappear, he got up and began to walk back to the Plaza. The sun began to be slightly overcast as he walked towards the wooden walls of the town. But after peering in and seeing the flames engulfing the place, he sighed and sat down. And before he even got the chance to fully rest, a cold and unfeeling hand was placed on his shoulder.

“I knew you’d come back.” One sneered with a grin. Three kept his eye contact away from her.

Four pulled out a map and traced his finger along the lines, then pointed at a Ranger base farther away, the most isolated one. Four looked over at Two, and they nodded, so the two of them set off further, walking deeper into the forest. Then, the forest began to dissipate after a few hours. And then, in a field, they saw smoke. Four smiled and took Two’s hand, and they wandered into the area. Four gaped at the sight.

There was a cabin, the ranger base for this unit, on the far side. Tents were camped up, from twenty to thirty-five in the area. A bonfire sits in the middle area, and variables and integers sit together enjoying the warmth. There was a cooler near the bonfire, but far enough away not to cause problems, with drinks and food inside. Fifteen stomped her way through the area with wood on her arms, throwing it into the fire before making her way back to the cabin. Fourteen glanced out at the new people while licking his lips but was dragged inside the cabin as well. Two specific variables caught Four’s eye, though, two green ones. Suddenly, one of them ran over to Four, looking wide-eyed.

“Is X with you?” Y asked desperately. Four looked down at them sadly.

“N-no, well, he was, but he uhm…Left,” Four muttered. Y looked upset by the information, but happy to know he was with them at least. Z walked up behind Y, her face mildly flushed from something Four couldn’t know, and she looked as disappointed as Y was. But she opened her mouth to ask instead,

“Where’d he go?” Four blinked, then looked down at the ground, recalling.

“He said he was going to ask the captain for help back on the ship. I think he went back to his pod?” Four asked, unsure. Z and Y exchanged unreadable glances before looking back at them.

“We can get you settled in if you want?” Y offered. Two smiled tiredly and nodded.

“I’m pretty exhausted. Same with Four,” they said as they were led to a tent that was already set up. Two took off their backpack and set up the lantern in the tent, then got out some food since they hadn’t eaten yet. They both sat down in front of the tent and ate, the sky beginning to darken. They people-watched together, seeing the variables talk together, and some numbers cried. Some laughed, albeit not much. Sometimes, there was silence from everyone, as they hurt from the days before stung the camp all at once. And sometimes algebraliens sang. Four listened as Integers held hands in circles, singing in their native language about wars from hundreds of years ago, to show their comparison from then to now. Sometimes they sang songs about love, or sang about their differences with others. Of betrayals and friendships, they sang. And eventually, without knowing the words, the variables sang along as well. Their harmony, so beautiful despite not being true harmonious words.

Four thought about their music, and then about him and X. How, despite not fully understanding each other either, they still cared for each other, still got along, and still…Still loved each other. Is that what it was? What he didn’t want to admit before X left? That he loved him? Or was it simpler than that? Did he just not want to have trust and comfort in someone he knew could leave? He decided it was a mix of both, even though he didn’t know how he felt about loving X. Could he love X? Or would he be punished, abandoned, and forgotten about if he did? Would he be accepted? Would…

Would X love him back? Does X even know what love is? Or is he just as clueless as Four is?

Maybe he shouldn't dwell on these things. But all he wants, and this he does know for sure, is to see X again. It’s all he thinks he’s ever wanted.

Chapter Text

When X’s pod connected, it awoke him from his first actual sleep in days. It clanked back into place, the parts reconnecting, and the pod began to charge. X was sprayed with air, accompanied by a hiss, then another clank as the doors began to open once more. His seat belt loosened, and he unclipped it, stumbling out of the pod. He felt mildly dizzy as the change in gravity took effect (and the blinding lights of the ship didn’t help), but he regained his composure as he began to walk down the hall. He noticed how desolate it was compared to when he was last here, when everyvariable lived here. He wondered how many had actually been killed that night. Maybe if he had tried harder. M-Maybe, if Four tried-... No. No, that’s where he was wrong. They did try. But he still accused them of not doing so. He accused them of many things.

He should apologize when he sees them again.

X trotted down the halls, looking down at the planet through a window occasionally. He noticed an orange dot that was spreading along the planet's surface. He thought about the smell of fire as he was carried through the plaza. He wondered if it was ever put out. After he stopped to stare for a while, a familiar ding went off. It told every variable on deck that break time was over, and they had to return to their stations. But with everyone gone, why would it still go off? It must be in the protocols, he assumed. He wandered further into the ship, looking around for the captain's quarters. He caught a glance of someone peaking around the corner of a hallway. He felt nervous but called out.

“Hello? Who’s there?” X yelled, his high-pitched voice echoing throughout the ship. For a place he used to consider comfortable, it was pretty bland. And maybe even creepy, if you would go so far. There was no response, but he followed where he saw the figure anyway. When he turned the corner, a pink variable stood there, staring at him blankly. X faltered at their gaze, taking a cautious step back.

“Hey,” a said, startling X further.

“Hello?” X mumbled back. a looked at his suit, then at some of the small scratches still on his body, and then at the dots under his right eye. He stared back at the five dots under theirs. X glanced away and around, not making more eye contact.

“Where is the captain?” He asked, looking at a nearby window. They looked in the same direction, then turned around. X focused back on them.

“This way, X,” they said. a began to walk slowly, letting X get their pace before speeding up. They walked for what seemed like twenty minutes, X getting a glance at his old room. Part of him wanted to go back in and look at his things, his plants, and clothes. His bedsheets, and small posters and drawings he hung up. Pictures of his friends. But he hoped that he’d get to see it later. But he had a mission right now. He had to get the help of the captain. And that’s what he’ll do.

a stopped in front of a one-way hallway. They watched as X chuckled awkwardly, already feeling the anxiety of seeing the captain. But with a quick inhale, he began to walk towards the door.

“Good luck! Hopefully you don’t die!” a shouted, making X stop for a moment. But after another deep breath, or five. Or maybe ten, he walked up to the door. It opened automatically, making him jolt, but he stepped inside. The door behind him closed shut with a loud snap, and then without hesitation the captain's chair swiveled around. Captain A sat upright, her gaze already piercing through him. He straightened his stance as well, putting his hands behind his back and fixing his variable ID. He brushed some dirt off his suit, making the captain's eyes squint.

“X,” She stated. X nodded, unsure of what to do.

“You came back,” She murmured. He nodded again. Sweat began to drip down his face, but he wiped it off. He stepped forward once.

“Of course. And I wanted to tell you that I…That we need your help, Mx. The Priest hurt us, and some variables were…Killed,” He mumbled. She grinned, an amused yet annoyed laugh ripping through the air.

“So that’s what One calls herself now? What a joke,” They sneered. X’s eyes widened slightly.

“You know them?” He asked, just barely over a whisper. A chuckled.

“Know her? Hmm, I suppose.” X raised an eyebrow at his captain's statement. She didn't elaborate further, which made X sigh. He gestured for her to continue. She frowned, looking away. She swiveled back around and looked out into the distant and bleak galaxy. She sighed.

“I’ve been around a long time, X. Much, much longer than you. I’ve seen some things. And people. I’ve met many people,” They stated calmly, their voice almost longing.

“Me and One were…Friends. You could say. And honestly, I was thinking about helping,” She trailed off. X blinked, growing slightly frustrated. He looked around at the mess surrounding the captain's chair, broken paintings and letters strewn about. It was almost like the ballroom paintings and tapestry, except…Less elegant. And more worn down from old age. X looked back up at the chair facing away from him.

“...But?” X egged on with a strained voice. Captain A circled back around. Her stare sharpened, and she gazed down at him like a blade pressed to his chest.

“But after having a few days to think about it…I don’t want to go back down to the surface. The Integers are a species I best not deal with again.” X’s frustration grew further, but as he thought about his next words, he calmed down. His anger sizzled down but quickly turned into fear at the situation at hand. He shuddered, his skin prickling.

“T-Then, what are we going to do? How do we win?”

“Win what? Yoylite? If One has the last of the Yoylite, then we may need to get other forms of power for the ship instead…”

“No, the war! How do we win against The Pr- One!” X shouted. A scowled back down at him.

“There’s no winning against the Integers, X. Believe me, I’ve seen this ‘War’ time and time again. It’s nothing new, really,” She hummed with a shrug. X stared at her, bewildered at first, his eyes desperate. Then he straightened out his strained body once more, but his hands stayed fists against his side. His stare settled tiredly on the ground, the room's darkness almost enveloping him. Then, he muttered, just barely audible,

“So, what now? Are you just going to hide here?” A’s face contorted from victory to fury, her cheeks burning a bright red. Her eye twitched at the statement, which surprised X to some extent.

“Do you have any idea what Integers have done to us? What they have done to me?" She screamed, making X jump. He shook but then looked at his captain. Her face cooled, her mouth open in shock at her own words. Then she grumbled something under her breath and turned away from him again. X turned away too, feeling there was nothing more to be said. He slowly pulled his hand towards the door, motioning for it to open.

“How much has her color faded?” A quiet voice asked from behind him. He paused but did not move further.

“Does she still wear that pearl necklace, the one I made her? And her high court, is that blue number still with her? What was their name.. Tuh- Tiv… Oh, Negative! Negative Four, is she still there?” X reacted this time, retracting his arm away from the door. He turned around to look at Captain A’s face, but they were still facing away from him. He sighed.

“Yes, a-and no. I don’t know who that…Is,” He mumbled. From his view, he could see her grip on the chair's armrest lighten. And for a moment, there was silence. The lights hummed and buzzed, and a sound of electricity flowing through the wires filled the room. A quiet beeping of a button, a piece of garbage falling from a pile aside, the whirring of space flying past the hunk floating metal they called home. Then, with the exhale of the captain, she spoke.

“X, you are dismissed. Please leave,” She asked quietly, practically pleading. X nodded somberly. He turned to leave but glanced at the pile closest to him. He noticed an image that had the most rot, yet didn’t eat away at the image. An image of One and A hugging, their colors bright and wild. X blinked at it, and compelled, took it. He walked to the door, and it opened due to motion sensors. He left, tired and disheveled from the interaction. He wanted to go back to bed. Maybe when he gets back down to the planet's surface? But, before that, he must do one more thing!

X changed his pace from a walk to a light jog, remembering the hall's names and numbers as he traveled. He skidded to a stop in front of his room name, room Seventy-seven, and sifted through his pocket. He stuck his tongue out as he searched. Then, he felt his room key graze his finger. He snagged it and yanked it out, then used it to get into his room. When he opened it, familiar smells flooded his nose, clean smells. He saw his plants, aloe vera, but they weren’t looking the best. He’d have to water them when he…Comes back. Hm.

X bent over in front of his bed, looking into the dark depths below. He plunged his hand underneath, grunting as he felt around blindly. When he felt a book, he grabbed it as well, sliding it against the smooth floor. He brought it to his lap and opened it, immediately delighted with images he had pasted inside. Images of Z and Y hugging, him getting pulled in as well. Y and N eating food on their own…What was that called? A date? That’s what Four thought they were doing together. X realized Four probably thought it was romantic. His face heated up. But maybe it was? Oh, not this again! X flipped to a different page. This one had Z and N arguing. He didn’t like this page. He flipped to the next one. Y and Z fighting. Flip.

This one had Negative X. X blinked at it for a moment. She was very pretty, with an almost white color. She had a mild yellow tint to her, and longing eyes. Maybe she got tired of being on the ship, just as X had realized he was, too, while on the planet's surface. Or, well…Realized now, he supposed. He wondered why this photo hadn’t faded like others did. Which reminded him, Negative Four? What was that about? He flipped to another page.

Oh. There weren't any other photos. Maybe he should get more.

X got up and grabbed his camera, then headed for the door. He looked back at his old room for a moment. He almost felt sad to leave, like saying goodbye to an old friend you don’t talk to anymore. But he thought about Four’s sweet smile, and laugh, and how scared they looked as he left. He had to leave. He wished to see them again.

He walked out the door and down the hall, then another, and then another. And finally, he found the pod station. He trotted in and saw that his pod was completely charged. He stepped in, strapped in, set aside his camera and book, and closed the door. The pod began to get ready, noises emanating from its core. Then, the option to descend made its appearance with a flashing green button. X looked down at it and felt a wave of Deja vu.

Familiar, huh?

He chuckled slightly. He pressed the button, not feeling fear, but relief. He was choosing to fight, and maybe that was better than being afraid. He still felt afraid, sure. But free. And he knew what he wanted to do now. He was ready. As he descended, he fell asleep. It was nice to get more rest.

***********

X opened his heavy eyes, looking around at his surroundings. His surroundings, the same as before, but gravity weighed him down again. He rubbed his eyes and unbuckled himself, falling face first against the pod. His falling pressed a button, and the pod's door opened, causing him to fall further. They groaned against the dirt. He pressed his hands against the ground and pulled himself up, noticing his ship’s suit getting damaged. He shrugged it off, then got up slowly. The first thing he noticed was that it was night. He wasn’t sure if it was early morning, or if the sun had set recently, but he didn’t mind either way. Then, he noticed that the radio connected to his pod, separate from the one he was given previously, was receiving static due to a message. He scrambled towards his pod again, crawling inside to turn the dial on the machine. A number's voice got clearer as he turned the dial.

“SHHHGGGH- Hello? Hello! Hi, I’m N. I’m here with the rangers Fifteen and Fourteen. If there are any survivors, integer or variable, please come to-” X gasped, pulling out a map from his bag. As N spoke coordinates, X traced the numbers with his finger. It landed on another ‘meeting spot’ from when they first landed, which made X assume it was another ranger base. He rolled his eyes at the stupidity of his and Four’s meeting before listening back in.

“Please come here and help us! We will be safer from One’s wrath as a team! We’ll have power in numbers! Hehe. But uhm, please also bring supplies. Over and out,” they said, then the radio began to sizzle with static. X turned it off and looked around, noticing that in the dark it would be hard to travel. But he didn’t care, he just needed to be with the others as quickly as possible. So, using the moonlight, he began to walk towards

After a few hours of walking, he began to feel tired. X’s legs trembled and burned with exhaustion. His vision began to blur, and it was hard to see in front of him. He looked back, and he swore he saw flames. Petrified, he ran forward without thinking. He moved in the cold air for a while, the night making his sweat barely able to stick to his skin. Then, he struck a tree, making him fall over. As he fell, he felt a vine, or maybe a string, below him snap, and suddenly he was pulled upside down. He panted, his eyes searching for any sign of someone to set up a trap, but there was no one. His breath shuddered. He closed his eyes. Sleep enveloped him.

Chapter Text

When X awoke, he wasn’t dangling off a vine with his ankle anymore. That was relieving enough, but added to that, he felt a fuzziness covering his body and warmth against his face. Light chattering came from a room away, but it got closer. He wanted to be afraid, but this was the first time he was relaxed since…Only two days ago? It was a long two days. His eyes didn’t shoot open; they fluttered open slowly, and he yawned. As his mouth opened, the pain in his face hit him. Just like that tree the night before. He groaned, then rubbed his eyes. The first thing he noticed when his eyes opened was the fire. At first, he flinched at its presence, but then noticed the fireplace surrounding it. He sighed in relief.

He looked down at the fluffy weight on his chest and legs to see a blanket. It looked like it came from an animal hide, the fur soft yet rough. He smuggled into it for a moment, savoring its authenticity compared to the beds back on the ship. Then he looked around the room. It seemed to be a cabin, made mainly out of wood, and the furniture was handmade as well. There were paintings up on the wall, but as usual, a part of them were rotted, hiding faces that didn’t want to be seen. Or couldn't be seen.

“Hey X, you awake?” A scratchy voice cut through the silence that had settled at some point. X gasped and shot to look at the…Integer? Who he assumed to be an integer.

“Uhm, yes. Do you work for One?” He asked quickly, not thinking about his words further. He noticed other integers, too. A pink number and a blue, then a grey. He felt mildly intimidated by how outnumbered he was. Outnumbered. Heh. Number pun. Oh, wait-

“Mmmhh, no, not anymore. They didn’t even bother trying to get us when it all happened! So rude.” X blinked at them, then raised an eyebrow.

“What happened? Where am I?” He questioned, his voice low and overall monotone. The number frowned slightly.

“Well, first things first, I’m Pi.” X opened his mouth slightly, then looked over the purple numbers' appearance further. Then he flushed, realizing he hadn’t noticed that in the first place. They were irrationals! He didn’t learn much about them in his school days since he only dealt with fixing wires and being of assistance to Z, so he wasn’t very informed in math other than the basics.

“This is Square root of two, Euler’s number, and Tau. I is still in the kitchen.” X’s eyes widened.

“I? L-Like, the variable?”

“No, the invisible number!” X’s smile fell into a straight line, but he nodded.

“Anyway, what happened is you ran into one of our traps we set in our forest. We set it up for any enemy rangers, but caught you instead. You are currently in our cabin, aka the best ranger station!” Pi said with a grin. Square root smiled and nodded with giddiness, giving a toothier grin.

“I made ramen! Want some?” she asked. X nodded, feeling his stomach rumble at the idea. Euler gave a thumbs up and set his bowl down, going into the kitchen to grab it. There was silence as the others settled in, Pi sitting on the couch that X had been sleeping on, Square root settling on the floor in front of the table, and Tau dragging a beanbag to sit next to the rocking chair near the fireplace. Euler strolled back in, handed X their bowl, then sat on the rocking chair after grabbing their bowl of noodles. X grabbed the chopsticks and tried to pose them in his fingers, but whined as he dropped them back into the bowl. He begrudgingly used the fork, flushing with a bit of shame. They only really used spoons back on the ship.

He slurped on the warm soup in the bowl before eating some of the noodles. X glanced behind himself to see a window, light streaming through. He looked at the calendar near the door and noticed it had been a day since he woke up. Maybe he hit his head a little too hard. He’d rather just be asleep than have to deal with a concussion. He ate the noodles quicker, his hunger still apparent. The noodles were a bit overcooked, but they were still good. Nice and salty, with chicken broth. There were a few vegetables inside: carrots and broccoli. He chewed on the food gracefully.

“What do you think? Not too bad, right? I used to be horrible at making pasta! You could ask Euler; he would tell ya!” Square root cheered from below. X looked over at the grey number.

“They wouldn’t look at the cook time on the recipe. Why was that? Because they wanted to trust the process or something,” he said with a shrug.

“I didn’t trust the process one bit. Or the final product, either,” Tau spoke up after a slurp. X giggled lightly, chewing on the ramen. After that, they didn’t speak much, just enjoying their food. The sounds of sips and drinking filled the room, accompanied by the crackling of the fire. The orange colors swirled and danced; yellows and blues being seen as well. The fire rose and fell, jumping high then faltering as it blew more slowly and tiringly before rising once more. X watched, his nervousness fading as he watched it more. It reminded him less and less of fear and hurt, and more of beauty. Passion. Maybe even freedom. Was freedom something he wanted? Well, now that he thought about it, it was something he needed.

He needed to wake up and decide that he was somewhere he belonged and wanted to be. He needed to know he was safe, that he didn't need to run away and be afraid. He needed to be able to sleep without the fear of being hurt or dead by the next day. And most of all, he wanted his loved ones beside him. N, Y, and Z being a room or two away, or a house away. Just somewhere close, never too far. He needed to have Four next to him, in his grasp. To never be torn away from him again. He needed to know every ounce of their being, all their thoughts, every emotion he was capable of seeing. He needed it all. And he needed Two and Three to be okay. He didn’t know why he cared about Three. Maybe they were manipulating him this entire time, keeping secrets and plans hidden from him, but… He knew what it felt like. Everyone had secrets. Everyone felt shame. And something about how Three seemed so sad, so scared, like X himself was that night, made him think maybe they weren’t that bad. Maybe.

He’d have to ask them about it when everything was okay again. What a mess this all was.

“Why haven’t you left this cabin yet? To join the…Rebellion?” X asked without realizing he even said anything. Some of the numbers stopped slurping on their food, but Square root continued to do so without the smile leaving her face. Pi frowned slightly but cleared their throat to speak.

“Why would we leave?” They said, prompting X to answer. But he almost couldn’t think of one.

“W-well, because- didn’t you hear what N said? We’re stronger in numbers? Heh, numbers,” X said, then giggled afterwards. There was a silence, Euler for a moment looking like he was considering something before speaking up.

“In theory, it seems smart, but getting everyone in a small space is what caused the last big bad thing,” he said, rubbing his back.

“Oh, that night?” X asked somberly. Euler nodded but then put a hand on their chin.

“Well, yeah, but not just then. Throughout history, from what I know and remember, large groups of people have always had falling outs. Integers and variables have always been at each other's throats. Back, and I mean way back, there were shapes too. Polygons and Polyhedrons. They died out, though. The last falling out I remember was in a different Valley entirely. There was a plaza and a tower there, too. But fear and desperation always win, and fear can cause anger.” X blinked, then nodded along as Euler spoke.

“There was a couple that was an integer and variable once, I think. It was unheard of. But I think one of them betrayed the other. That’s just the word of the Zero’s, though. Those guys are pretty old,” Euler finished, going back to eating. X digested their words slowly, then slowly opened his mouth, unsurely.

“So, could a variable and integer ever be in…Love?” X asked. Pi looked at him, then at the others. Square root grinned at him deviously, but it almost looked sincere.

“Eh, who knows! Unless you do,” She hummed, leaning slightly over the table. X blushed and shook his head quickly, his mouth open and quivering.

“What? No! I’m just asking for a- a friend!”

“I can’t believe myself. What would anyvariable say if they knew?” Z asked behind gritted teeth. Y laughed out loud, N covering their mouth so as to not get punched.

“You are such a hypocrite, Z,” Y giggled, getting punched in the stomach. They gasped and then groaned but still laughed.

“You made X feel all bad about his crush, but now look at you! ‘Y-yes Fifteen, anything for you Fifteen, HAH!” Y beamed, then fell backwards in a fit of laughter. Z went from frowning out of embarrassment to looking slightly guilty.

“What crush? X had one? When?” She asked, making Y immediately cease their chortles. They sat up and looked at her in surprise. Their wide eyes didn’t make her realize anything as she stared blankly back, making them even more surprised.

“X’s crush on the Four integer!”

“That’s what that was?” She asked loudly, making a few passersby stop and stare. She glared at them, and they skittered away hastily. Y rolled their eyes.

“Yes! Could you not tell? I thought you were being passive-aggressive on purpose!” Y said, throwing their hands in the air.

“I could not! You should know how I am when it comes to emotions, Y! X confuses me sometimes. And I might’ve not been very supportive if I knew, but I wouldn’t have been mean to him! He’s our best friend!” Z slapped a hand over her face.

“I should apologize when we see him again.”

“That’s the attitude I was waiting for!” Y said happily, standing up. They offered a hand to her, which she took. They began to walk hand in hand, N following shortly after. They handed an axe to her, then gestured over to Fifteen, who was walking into the woods with an axe in their hands. Z nodded and began to follow them quickly, then quietly asked them to join them. With a brief nod, the two of them walked into the forest. Y looked over at N and grinned, and the two of them walked over to the cooler to enjoy a cold drink together.

X had led the group of irrationals through the forest for a while, looking for something. X felt almost defeated as he couldn’t find it. He looked back and forth between the trap he was in two days earlier and the direction he was running from.

“I swear I saw a fire,” X mumbled, rubbing his upper arm.

“It’s okay! I have hallucinations all the time as well!” Square root beamed. X grimaced at the pink number before looking away, back at the area he swore had a fire.

“I-I was pretty tired, I suppose…” X muttered back, his gaze flickering back and forth, still silently looking. Pi put a hand on his shoulder.

“It’s okay, it happens to the best of us, right?” They asked, looking over at Euler and Tau. Euler squinted, then looked over at Tau, who was shaking their head. Pi sighed and rubbed their face, then looked over at the upset variable. X thought back on it, and while it looked real, maybe it wasn’t. He had seen a fire as Four had carried him away from the crime scene at the ball. Maybe it affected him more than he thought. But the fire…He could smell it, and when he breathed it in, it burnt his throat. But he was also running as fast as his short legs could take him; that was a lot of work. He groaned, but as they stared, there was a slightly orange color at the edge of the ground. X’s eyes widened, and he stepped back. Pi stared, then gasped. They looked over to see their friends' slightly scared faces.

X was the first to run into the cabin, searching the room, and then scouring the area. Pi followed, looking around for their backpack as well. The others tried to get inside all at once, resulting in them squishing together at the door. Pi scowled and pulled Square root inside, cueing all of them to topple in. X whimpered as he couldn’t find his backpack. Pi ducked under the couch and grabbed X’s bag, then threw it to him. X tried to smile, but couldn’t, so instead he gave thanks as he babbled to collect his belongings. After a minute of rushing around, though, the group had already collected all their important personal belongings. They stood at the door for a moment, although X was already beginning to walk in the direction of the rebellion’s station.

Pi waved at the cabin, beginning to walk away. They glanced at the red color over the horizon as it began to get closer, then began to follow X. Euler and Tau followed after saying goodbye, and the last to stay was Square root, who was standing there silently. She muttered a quiet goodbye to the cabin, then turned around.

“Come on, I! We have to go!” She shouted, then nodded at no one and began to walk. X pulled Pi closer to himself to show the direction and place they were supposed to go. They nodded. They walked for hours with no conversation, except for occasional consolations between one or the other. X was just glad none of them were angry at him, or at least didn’t say anything about him. And as the forest began to clear, he saw smoke coming from the trees. At first, he was afraid the fire was there too. But as he walked closer and closer, he saw the bonfire and numbers surrounding it. There were some holding hands and singing in a language he didn’t understand, but he knew it was a happy song. And he knew that they were healing, too, as variables sang along as well. He smiled.

Then, a tent near him shuffled open, and the color of the number caught his eye. Green. Not a green he used to live with, though.

“X?” A British voice asked nervously. He looked over to see Two’s tired gaze, and a smile stretched across his face. They smiled back as they saw his soft one, getting out of the tent fully to stand in front of him. X felt tears almost burn in his eyes, but he blinked it away, jumping into their arms. They gasped at the action, mildly confused, but they reciprocated, holding them tight. He kept his eyes closed as he embraced them, letting his feelings take over his senses for a moment. He nuzzled against them, then slowly loosened his grip to end the hug. Two’s face seemed less sad and more energized after the hug.

“X! Oh, Y and Z will be ecstatic to see you! Four too. I am, too, of course,” They chuckled, X laughing back.

“I feel like I shouldn't have left. I caused so much damage and got nothing because of it! Captain A, they didn’t want to help,” X said quickly, all his previous thoughts rushing back to him. Two put their hands on his shoulder.

“No, it was probably better that you left. You needed to try, at least. I’m proud of you,” Two hummed, making X’s eyes water up again.

“You have no idea how much I needed to hear that,” X said through wobbly laughs. Two nodded.

“I know.” Then they looked up at the irrationals in surprise.

“You brought more rangers? I’m shocked! I assumed the others would be too stubborn.”

“We only came because a fire was about to destroy our cabin. The little guy told us about how it started in the plaza, it’s come so far, I don’t think we can stop it,” Pi spoke up. Two blinked, then looked at the ground. They hummed in thought.

“Not anyone I know can stop it either. But before we figure that out…We’ll need the other rangers back here with us. I can get them. I’m not much use here, anyway. I’ll leave tonight,” Two said, their eyes half lidded and mildly somber. X thought back to one of the conversations he remembered having with Two and cupped their face slightly.

“You’re useful anywhere, Two. Remember that, okay?” X said, making Two’s eyes widen again. Then they smiled again.

“Four’s waiting for you, X. But…Thank you for that, silly boy,” Two said sweetly, giving him a light pat on the head. X giggled, but the thought of their words sent shivers down his spine. He looked around the camp, then back at Two.

“He’s in the cabin, riling up a crowd. Good luck,” Two said, motioning to the irrationals to follow them. They began to chatter as they walked away, Two explaining where everything was and showing them around. X took a deep breath as he looked at the cabin, then began to walk towards it. This was going to go just fine. At least, that’s what he hoped for.

Chapter Text

As X walked into the building, smells filled his nose. There was food and drinks. Cooked meat and fragrant liquid were the first things he smelled. Then, he noticed that the cabin was much warmer than outside. The movement and large number of bodies made it groggy, but everynumber except him didn’t seem to notice. Then he noticed how loud it was. Laughs and singing filled the air. There were also cheers from another room that he wasn’t sure how to get to. He stumbled inside.

In the dim yellow lighting, he noticed the drinks stacked about. Those drinking specific ones in bottles had lidded eyes and a green tint to their cheeks. Their mumbles sounded less coherent than the rest. X walked around the room awkwardly, trying not to bump into anyone as he tried his best to find a door. He failed, eventually finding a wall to lean on. He sighed.

“W-wass wrong?” an integer beside him asked. He looked over at them.

“I want to find someone, but I don’t know where they are,” He whispered, pulling his knees closer to his chest.

“I haven’t been in a crowd like this since…” He stopped, then closed his eyes. He crossed his arms over his knees, then breathed more slowly. He then felt a warm hand on his shoulder.

“A friend offff us is a friend of mine!” They cheered, throwing a hand in the air. X giggled slightly, shaking his head, not understanding. But he was pulled to his feet swiftly and pulled through the crowd. X babbled as he was pushed through people, but they didn’t seem to mind. They were all too happy and loopy to care. He sighed a little in relief. Then, he watched as the door swung open, and he was pulled inside. The lighting changed slightly; the room grew darker as the only sources of light were candles and a not-so-elegant chandelier. He looked around, noticing people he recognized. He scanned through the crowd, looking for that familiar blue that he had become accustomed to. But to no avail.

“Who’s your ffriend?” The integer, still grasping his hand, said. He gently took his hand away from theirs, holding it to his chest.

“Four…” He said, not as a response but as a quiet call. The number beside him brightened up, though.

“Uhhhh-...Oh! That one! He’s up there!” They said, pointing at a table near a row of stools. X looked in the direction, then blinked, not believing his own eyes. They were right! Four sat along the edge, legs crossed as they said something loudly to the people in front of them. There were some noises of agreement amongst said numbers. X’s face warmed at the sight, then he smiled. He pushed forward, trying to get to them. He shouted his thanks to the person, and they nodded. He continued to softly shove, getting closer to the table. Four climbed up, then stood on the table, hands on their hips.

“Oso gonplei nou ste odon,” Four said, making a hand gesture. There were cheers. X grunted as someone jumped, making him fall backwards. Two hands from behind him picked him up and placed him back on his feet. He expected it to be someone he knew, but it was yet to be another stranger. They smiled at him. He smiled back.

“Oso throu daun ogeda,” Four said, a bit louder. In response, the cheers were louder. Four smiled, proud of themself. They listened to what the crowd said, some voices louder than the others. X was shoved slightly out of the crowd, but in the direction of the farthest end of the table, where no one got in the way. He huffed as he tried to pull himself up. But with no luck, he sighed again. Then, someone picked him up and placed him on top of the table. He looked back. Another stranger. He waved at them, and they gave a lazy wave back. He scrambled to get up.

“Skaikru, yu-”

“Four!” He cut them off. They paused, their eyes widening. Then they looked over at the direction of X’s voice. They muttered something under their breath that X didn’t understand, but they shook their head, correcting themself.

“X?” Four called out, their voice raw at the name. A smile tugged on X’s mouth, and he ran forward, barreling into their arms. Four gasped, the air almost getting knocked out of them, but they instinctively grabbed back at X, cradling him closer. X held their neck and nuzzled into their chest, tears pricking at his eyes. And as the hug continued, calm flooded X. He exhaled shakily, gripping the other so he could tell he wasn’t dreaming. But he knew he wasn’t when he felt them nuzzle back on his top nubs. The crowd had quieted down slightly, focusing on the scene. But X didn’t care. After a minute or two, he slowly pulled away, looking at their face. Their bottom lip twitched, and their eyes were watery, still holding X’s body as their eyes met.

“It’s good to see you, Four,” X hummed, his voice honeyed. Four huffed back in admiration. But slowly their joy subsided, and their face fell. X raised an eyebrow, slowly bringing his hands to cup their face. Four’s face felt warm, still flushed from the excitement despite their somber expression. They inhaled slowly.

“I’m sorry I wasn't good enough…I’m sorry I didn’t try hard enough to help,” Four spoke up. X’s eyes widened slightly, his shock not being hidden one bit.

“I'm trying to make up for it! I-I just-”

“No! No, don’t be sorry. I’m sorry. You tried your best, and I couldn’t see that at the time, but I do now. I was just so upset!” His voice was strained, his emotions burning his throat. He swallowed hard, his eyebrows furrowing.

“I forgive you, Four. I missed you.” He hummed in a hushed tone. Four blinked, then their eye got half-lidded as a smile returned to their face.

“Thank you…” They whispered. X’s face got warmer, fluttering his eyes. He wanted to hug them again, to show their affection, but a hug didn’t feel like enough, so… He squeezed their cheeks that were still in his hands and guided their face forward. Four’s eye widened slightly at the action, whimpering lightly, but they didn’t object. They closed their eye, and X did the same as their lips touched. Four’s fingers twitched against X’s arms as their face heated up further. The kiss didn’t last long, but when they pulled away, Four’s pupil was blown. Their face was a pretty shade of violet as they blinked slowly at X. X stared back the same, albeit a small smile sneaking its way back on his face as Four observed him. And before the quiet moment felt like it even began, it ended. Cheers erupted from the crowd, making both numbers flinch. They both looked at the group of happy numbers, confused.

“We will fight for freedom!” a variable squeaked. And an integer piped up next, shouting,

“More importantly, we will fight for love! And the freedom of love!” X cocked his body slightly but smiled further. It almost felt like a dream again. But it was real. He had found his people. That was the dream.

“Variable and integer, side by side! Sha!” Another integer screamed. Four chuckled slightly. They took X by the hand, and they made their way off the table as the crowd continued to hype themselves up. Four took X through the door he had entered, then out the front door. The sun was just beginning to set now. Four sat down on one of the steps that led up to the cabin, so X did the same. They didn’t let go of each other's hands.

“It was loud in there. Those numbers were extra rambunctious tonight, yeah?” X asked. Four snickered and shook their head.

“Most of them were drunk. But yeah, high off the energy, I suppose,” They responded with a shrug.

“I’m surprised you didn’t hit ‘em with the Four special,” X tried.

“Mh?”

“‘Stop rough-housing, children!’ Right?” X asked. Four gaped, then laughed aloud. X chortled but tried to hold it in to hear their noises instead. They rubbed their eye.

“Oh man…! I forgot about that,” Four said, their smile fading slightly.

“I uh…I’m sorry about all of that, too. I’m not the best with people,” Four said, rubbing the back of their neck. X squeezed their hand and shook his head.

“No, that’s alright. I wasn’t either,” X said quickly. Four huffed with a grin and closed their eye.

“Funny how that was only like, a week ago, right?” Four asked, but X ignored the question, something dawning on him. He glanced around, then said,

“Where’s Three?” Four looked surprised, then mildly disappointed. Then, they looked almost indifferent.

“He left with…One. She has a contract over him. A pretty powerful one. And it’s my fault, so I don’t really blame him for it. I just hope he’s okay,” Four mumbled quietly. X gave them a sympathetic look and nodded. After a brief silence, X spoke again.

“Do you feel comfortable telling me what happened?” X asked quietly, rubbing circles into Four’s hand. They looked up from wherever they were looking before, then glanced over at Two’s tent. They sighed, then nodded, making X smile lightly.

“Y-Yeah, I do…So, uhm, back when I was in ranger training, there was…-”

“X!” He gasped and looked up, seeing a green number sprinting towards him. He heard their ragged breaths as they sobbed, their features getting clearer as they got closer to X.

“X!”

“Y?” The green variable jumped into X’s arms, making him fall backwards. They gripped him hard, sobs loudly tumbling out of their mouth. X felt wetness on his back, so he rubbed their back soothingly. They babbled incoherent things loudly. He heard footsteps and assumed it was Z. Y pulled away, and X watched as tears flowed down their face. They sniffed, then rubbed their face.

“Eh-X! We didn’t mean to leave you, I swear on my life! I swear on all math, on Infinity’s name-”

“Watch your mouth!” Four interjected. Y faltered, then laughed slightly as they realized how non-serious everything else was around them, and X’s relieved face instead of anger or sadness. X pulled Z into a hug as well, and despite her quiet protests, he knew she was glad. There was a silence that followed, but not a sad one. N ended up joining them shortly after. All four of the variables, plus Four themself, sat on the stairs now. They chattered a little bit, X telling the story of all that happened after the ballroom massacre, keeping little details out of the conversation about the next day's events, and then how he went to the ship. He told them about A, and her suspicious dialogue along with the picture he had snagged. Then, how he had smacked headfirst into a tree and had gotten taken care of by the irrationals. Four looked surprised at the mention of Pi, but X would ask him about it later.

Then, X told them about how the fire had driven the irrationals and him to find the camp. How he had reunited with Two, then made his way up to the cabin. He left out the things that happened inside due to his fear of what Z would say, or even what Y would say. He would tell them that stuff later, too.

“Have you gotten settled in yet?” Y asked a little later, as people began to walk out of the cabin. X noticed all the tents, and he hadn’t gotten one yet. Four raised their hand to chime in.

“I-I uh, have room in my tent. I was saving space, same as Two. X could join me, if he wants to,” Four mumbled, looking away with colored cheeks. X chuckled and nodded. Y looked between them, then smirked, jabbing at Z. She gasped, then took a deep breath.

“I RESPECT WHATEVER DECISION YOU MAKE, X! I THINK YOU GOING WITH FOUR IS GREAT!” She shouted affirmingly, leaving X winded and shocked. Four frowned slightly but gave a thumbs up as they began to walk down the stairs. X followed suit, almost tripping once or twice as he went. Then they arrived at the tent. Four opened it for him. He climbed inside and was thrown a sleeping bag. He responded with a muffled thank you and removed it from his face, putting it beneath himself. Four climbed inside and zipped up the tent. As soon as it closed, Four leaped back into X’s arms. X laughed airily, holding them close. And almost as quickly as Four settled in his arms, he felt their weight grow slightly heavier, and their breathing even. X hummed, mildly amused by how quickly they fell asleep, before getting into a more comfortable position to still hold them. He fell asleep content and warm, with a smile idly on his face.

Chapter Text

Two had been walking for a few days, their onslaught not changing pace as they traveled. They had said their goodbyes that night, although they quickly closed Four and X’s tent upon realizing their intrusion. They said goodbye to Fifteen and fourteen, who didn't care one bit, except Fourteen seemed rather sad their future meal preparations had to wait. Why was fourteen a ranger again? Whatever. Two said goodbye to the settling irrationals, and then to the variables as well.

The variables told them how they had talked to a few ranger friends of Two’s, which made them more excited about the journey. And when they started, they were rather determined. They had a large backpack slung over their shoulders, filled with plenty of food and drinks.

But the backpack was heavy, so they ate a little more food than they needed. It did help their strength, but it just meant fewer supplies. It was a win and a loss. But they made it to their first stop: the Valley!

…

Or uhm. What's left of the Valley? Two looked at the miles upon miles of flames in worry. But with a vulgar gulp, they dashed through the fire and around the plaza’s walls. They didn't need to go back to the village. They needed to go behind it. But that was not as easy as it seemed. The fire had, in fact, spread. Two had to hold their bag to their chest as they jumped over fallen trees and blazing grass. Heat scorched their face as they went. But after a few hours of said mild torture, they found a very destroyed landmark.

A ranger bunker, with a flag still flapping in the wind, not touched by the fire. Two nodded to themselves, then searched through their bag. They paused as they caught a glimpse of a picture of Three and them, but they could mourn their partner later. Now was the time for saving numbers. Two grabbed a very chunky key and placed it into the keyhole, unlocking it with a scratchy crunch. They opened the hatch and hopped inside, coughing as dust entered their lungs. Darkness enveloped them for a moment, which was then followed by an echo, and then a laugh.

Two stumbled forwards, the tips of their fingers feeling up against the sturdy walls. They followed their hands along the hallway, feeling around clumsily until they saw a dim light at the end of the hall. Their eyes fell on the purple color first, but then they noticed the darker number sitting next to them. So engrossed in their feelings, Two sat down in front of them and just stared, enamored.

Five blinked back, their eyes adjusting then widening at the sight.

“T-Two? What are you… I-” She paused before letting her sentence fall flat. She shook her head.

“Hey dude,” Seven said with a grin. Two chuckled back slightly. But before they even gave thought to socializing normally, they let their questions be known.

“What are you two doing here? Why weren't you in the ballroom? A-and more importantly, how did you, uhm, make it here?” they asked. Five rolled their eyes.

“All touchy topics. But yeah, we weren't there because I felt sick at the sight of the bloodstains on the walls. Why doesn't One clean that stuff up? Is it- like a prize to her or something?” She asked, frustrated. Two shook their head.

“I don't think so. I assume it's to somehow keep track of numbers who were multiplied by zero, since their track record is erased with them. Although I wonder how the blood is preserved. Maybe with a protection spell?" Two pondered aloud but stopped as Five looked like they were going to hurl again. Seven rubbed their back soothingly. His face had dropped back down at Five’s sick expression.

“We got here because the chaos allowed us to just- Bwoooop! Snuck right past One. She seemed too focused on flaunting her deals over Three to care."

“Deal. He has only made one.”

“‘Looked like two to me!" Seven hummed, their voice laced with honesty, yet blunt, which made Two blink. More than one deal? Pshhht, no. Nope.

“Anyway, do you want to join the rest of us? The rebellion? We could work together to stop One, and help the variables,” Two offered softly. Five’s eyes softened at their words, and her face looked somber, recalling something. Then a tired smile made its way on her face.

“Hmph…Helping the variables sounds nice. Right Seven?”

“Yeah! They seem cool!” Five suddenly looked like they remembered something.

“And we’re doing this for survival! Safety in groups is what they say, I've read about it.”

“Sounds good to me!” Two chirped back.

One down. A few more to go.

After giving the two directions, they had decided to travel across the Valley, and in the opposite direction from the bunker. There were some very important integers Two was hoping to find in a ranger station near theirs. Two walked carefully around the fire, although at some point to get across a specific area, they elbowed a burning log. They hissed as they felt the sting, and then the numbness, followed by tingling and sharpness. When they found an area not constantly burning, they knelt and grabbed first aid, hushing themself as they poured cool water on the wound, then wrapped it.

“Not the worst burn I’ve seen, or treated,” They muttered to themself. Two shuddered at a memory that invaded their thoughts.

“Especially not after-” A tree fell behind them, and they hollered as they jumped. They whined and put their backpack back on, quickly picking up their walking speed. They sighed and closed their eyes tiredly.

“Forget that, I have more important things to deal with now,” they said, continuing their walk. They went far, far enough to start seeing wildlife they recognized from their land, although damaged from the decay of it all. They looked down and saw footprints, and, determined, followed them. Two’s curiosity paid off, though, as they came across a cabin. They sauntered up to the front door and knocked. They heard mumbles from inside, which excited them. But the mumbles seemed nervous and unhappy. Bordering afraid, even. Two stood their ground, though. The door opened meekly, and as quickly as it opened, a weapon was pressed against Two’s body. They gasped and backed up, their teeth clenching hard. The nervous integer calmed slightly at the sight of the green one but also stood their ground.

“I-I, uhm…What are you doing here, court member?” Zro mumbled, their hat covering their face. But the corners of his mouth twitched with uncertainty. Two thought back on how uncomfortable the zeros looked in the ballroom. They wondered if Zro was there too.

“I’m not a high court!” Two exclaimed, putting their hands up in surrender. Zro frowned.

“You aren’t? But…” He trailed off, then hesitantly pulled the weapon away. Their frown stayed, but it changed slightly. He looked more confused than afraid or angry now. Two breathed out as it was lowered, slumping forward. They noticed as a few other zeros peeked out from behind Zro, their gazes as tired as Two’s was. Two felt bad; they did not realize how horrible that day must have been for them. They wished they could have protected them all. Must be in their nature, they supposed. To protect. They were a medic, after all.

“Look, I have only come because I wanted to propose that you join the rebellion. We…Need all the help we can get. And we wouldn’t make you do what the Priest made you do,” They mumbled, looking to the floor. Zro’s face contorted from a frown to a straight line. They glanced back at the other zeros, then at Two.

“What is the point in leaving? It’s safe here," they said. Two nodded in understanding.

“But it won’t be soon. The fire that started that night is burning quicker than it can be stopped. And it’s heading here next,” They responded. A zero from behind him whimpered in fear. Zro sighed in mild defeat but opened their mouth again.

“I- well, we…I don’t have a value. What use will we be if our only purpose is to be used to hurt others? I have no purpose. -I mean we!” He stated, crossing his arms. For a moment, Two was caught off guard by his words. Then they thought back to X’s words, and a smile found its way on their face.

“You’re useful anywhere. You uhm, do have purpose. And if you don’t think you do yet, you’ll find it eventually,” Two offered, then slowly outstretched a hand. Zro’s eyebrows raised, and he looked down at the hand for a moment. Then, he took it and nodded.

“You’re right. We’ll join. And I’ll help,” Zro hummed, his voice still quiet. He went inside, and Two watched as they began to pack up some things. They strolled inside and put a pin on the location of the rebellion's base. The other zeros looked at the map's pin, then snickered as Zro stared at the placement for a moment. Then, upon realizing his giggling friends, flushed. He kicked at the ground as he turned his back and headed out the front door with the map, and Two followed. The Zero Gang waved to Two as they began heading in the right direction.

Two more to go.

Two wasn’t sure where they were heading this time. Eight and Ten could be anywhere by now, same with Six and Nine. Six and Nine might not have even made it there; Two doesn’t recall seeing them. They just hope the two groups are together. It would make the search much easier. They decided they’d just walk around the valley in a big semicircle. The other side of the Valley was impossible to get to, because of the radiation One said was there.

One…Two wonders where Three and her are. Their heart aches slightly.

Two walked through a marsh-like area for a while. Their feet sunk into the wet ground, getting stuck before getting shoved out. Then shoved back in. Two grunted as they continued. Mud coated their feet, along with grass blades and small scratches. They brushed themself off and sat down on a log, slumping forward. They pulled out a sandwich made by Four and chewed on it lazily while resting. The sandwich was pretty…Good! Amazing, it was a good sandwich. Like seriously. They would make a good chef. Two hummed as they ate, until they heard footsteps approaching. They brought their hand in front of themself and curled their fingers, colored powers snapping into existence with the movement. They squinted and looked around. Suddenly, a blue integer stepped forward.

In an instance, Two let the power dissolve in their palm. The integer raised an eyebrow at Two, then smiled slightly.

“A Mathsnacky?” Six mumbled sarcastically. Two chuckled brightly.

“A singular stooge! Why hello, Six,” Two greeted, giddy. More about not having to look too far for them, and less that they were called such a silly name.

“Bookclubbers too. Have you by chance seen Five and Seven? We’ve been looking for them,” Six asked. Two nodded.

“Sent them on their way to the Rebellion's camp. Wanna join?” Two responded quickly, not leaving space in their back-and-forth talk. Six groaned but shrugged.

“Doesn’t sound like we have a choice,” Six muttered, then walked in the opposite direction. Two was quick to follow, getting up and shoving the beautiful sandwich in their side pocket for later. They went to a tent, which had Eight, Nine, and Ten inside, playing cards. Nine gaped at Two as the tent’s zipper opened, then they smiled.

“Sup bro!” They cheered, waving. Two waved back gleefully, then looked over at Eight and waved the same. Eight nodded, and Ten greeted Two as well.

“Two, oh wow! What are you doing here? I would expect you to be with One and Three,” Ten said, trying to add,

“Cause you’re a high court memb-”

“I am not!” Two whined back. Ten looked confused, and Nine just frowned at both. Eight ignored their conversation and placed a card down. Nine smiled and placed a better card down, expecting a reaction. Eight blankly stared at Nine.

“But I thought-! But the deal!” Ten babbled.

“I told the little X guy you were!” They said, which frustrated Two further.

“Does he still believe that, you think?” Two asked, putting their hands on their face. Ten hummed in thought, placed a card without paying attention to what it was, then responded,

“If Four’s his friend? Probably not.” Eight groaned and Nine squeaked as they both lost at once to Ten. Six laughed aloud, taking Two out of their thoughts and focusing on the fact that they were, in fact, playing a card game. Two slapped their face in correction, then asked the usual question to them as well.

“Do you want to join us in the rebellion? There’s- uhm. Lots of people there. You could play cards with them. And other stuff, I don't know,” Two trailed off, sounding defeated. They all shrugged slightly.

“Five and Seven are there now,” Two added, making all of them immediately seem to change their minds.

“Seven bro is there? Well dang! We were looking for him,” Nine sighed.

“I don’t care where I end up, as long as people don’t cheat at Go fish,” Eight said. Ten nodded along with both and then got up, stepping out of the tent.

“Let’s get ready to leave then,” he said. Six and Ten began to undo the tent, along with Two’s help. Nine and Eight cleaned up the cards and packed up food. The five of them left after, as the sun began to set. They would get there in the morning. Two was just relieved they finally did something worthwhile and could relax after.

Chapter Text

After what seemed like a hundredth war Variables and Integers had had, they separated once more. Integers found on the other side of a river would make for a good village, so with little tools they had left, built huts and tents. Amongst the numbers was a small blue one, with a little too much curiosity. And one day, they crossed the river they had traveled over years before. She hummed as she strolled along the water, hopped across the rocks, and landed on the other side. She followed birds as they chirped, laughing as they spun in the air. The integer followed their movements, spinning over and over until her head ached. She fell to the ground and groaned, but realized that she couldn't get up. They whined, until they saw a blurry figure in front of them. They squinted, but still couldn't tell what number it was. A hand was outstretched to them. But then they gasped slightly.

“You don’t have any arms,” They mumbled. The blue integer scowled.

“I-I wasn’t judging! I don’t think it's a bad thing!” They added quickly. They grabbed her by the side and helped her up, setting her to her feet.

“I’m A, by the way,” They said. The integer looked the pink variable up and down for a moment before raising an eyebrow.

“You should be able to tell what I am, so I don’t need to introduce myself,” The integer stated. A shook her head.

“Aw, come on! Introduce yourselffff!” A pleaded. The integer frowned, but due to A’s tone tried to stop the smile spreading across their face.

“Okay okay, I’m One,” One said, swallowing hard. A nodded and grinned, then crouched before plucking a flower from the water beside them. A pressed the flower atop One’s head with a giddy smile. One smiled back, but was slightly confused.

“What was that for?” One asked, giggling lightly. A blinked, and then her eyes widened slightly.

“The-...The flower? It was for you introducing yourself I guess,” A said, rubbing their neck.

“I’m sorry, people don’t talk to me much,” A said under their breath. One shook her head, shuffling in place. She gazed down at the flowers, then smiled softly back at the variable.

“I like flowers. I think they’re pretty, and look pretty on numbers, and should belong to pretty numbers, cause my mom wore flowers all of the time and stuff,” A rambled, kicking at the grass below. Suddenly she flushed, but didn’t correct herself. One hummed in understanding.

“I like pearls. They kinda look like the moon,” One responded after a moment, making A relax.

“But there aren’t many since my village isn’t anywhere near the sea,” She added, looking back at where she came from. Then, very casually, she looked back at the still rosy variable and smiled wider.

“Which reminds me, I have to go back. See you later, A,” They said, beginning to walk away. A froze in her spot, then her eyes widened.

“L-Later? Like later-later? Or later?” A shouted. One rolled her eyes slightly, but kept their back to A.

"Tomorrow, A. Okay?" she shouted back. A nodded eagerly. So the next day, they met up in the same spot. Then again. Then two days after that one. Then the day after that. And so on, so forth. Their meetings varied from daily to sometimes not speaking for a week at a time. But as time went on, their bond grew. And maybe fondness grew into something else.

One day, they decided to do something different. Instead of staying at the riverbank, they followed the water. The two of them walked for a while and chatted about their villages, the people in them, and the annoying rules they had to follow. One in particular made them both upset. They weren't supposed to be seeing each other. It wasn't accepted for them to see each other. But they would keep it a secret. For now.

After some time, they came across a field and a hill. They watched as the river flowed down the hill and swerved into the distance. One and A smiled at each other, then, hand in hand, rolled down the hill together. Laughter filled the air as they tumbled, and when they landed, they were on top of each other. A snickered and snuggled into One, making them giggle as well. After that, they sat together, looking up at the sky.

"That one kind of looks like the moon," One said, pointing with her foot. A hummed, then suddenly shot up.

"Heyyy, that reminds me of something! I made you something," A said.

"But I left it back in my hut. Can we... go back? To our meetup spot?" she asked, and with a glance of agreement from the other, began to leave. They walked back to the meeting spot, and A waved as she walked in the separate direction from where One would go. After what seemed like an hour of boredom, A returned, hands behind her back. One immediately tried to look, spinning around and stretching to see behind A. She chuckled and pushed One away, shaking her head. One frowned but sat down on a log near the river instead to allow A to present.

"So, you mentioned how your village is far away from the ocean. But mine isn't! So I, uhm, went to the beach and spent a few days looking for stuff," A mumbled, making One gasp.

"Ohhh, that's why you didn't show up for a while," One whispered, then shut their mouth so A could continue.

"So, I made you a, uhm... a pearl necklace," she said, thrusting her hands in front of herself. In her palm lay a necklace made with twine, with rather wonky-looking pearls on it. One observed it with a smile, her face warming slightly. A, noticing this, blushed as well, giving an awkward laugh.

“I could put it on you, if you want,” A mumbled, shrugging. One nodded, so A obliged, hooking it around One’s neck and clipping it on. A pulled away and stared at One for a moment before their smile widened further.

“It looks great on you, One.”

That night, A had gone home confident in herself. So, she decided to tell her parent-variables about her discoveries—that integers weren't so bad, and they didn't always use their powers for evil. She was so confident, in fact, that she told them that they were living right across the river from them, and had not once attacked the variables or noticed them, like the variables did. And when she was done, she proudly walked to her tent, a smile splayed on her face.

The next day was very quiet, though. When she woke, her family was gone—no note nor footprint to give away where they had gone. A was worried, sure, but she was too blinded by happiness and other emotions to care. That day, A had set out to collect wildflowers. She had followed a dirt path made by the animals that naturally lived there and made her way to a riverbank. She knelt along the side, plucking Crested Iris as she hummed a sweet song of love. When she was done, she took the flowers and bundled them in her fist, then marched out of the misty area and back where she came. She then went to her and One’s meeting spot, but to no avail found them. She huffed and sat on a rock and waited.

Time passed, but One showed no signs of coming. A stood and, with a sigh, left their meeting spot. They made their way back home to the variable village, only to find the villagers missing. Fear settled in her chest quickly, and she ran far, far away from her village, crossing the river and running through the fields. When she came to the integer village, it could barely be called that. It was in ruins of what once was a village.

Fire soared from the huts, vibrant colored liquid stained the grass, but no bodies were to be seen. There were several symbols strewn about—multiplication symbols and division, with a few addition as well. A quickly dashed through the flames in search of their friend, or of anyone, but again they could not find her. But right as A was about to give up, a snippet of blue was seen amidst the orange and yellow. A quickly ran to her side, seeing her battered and burnt condition. She tried to pick them up, but before she could, they kicked. She fell to the ground with a grunt.

“Guh—Get off me!” One spat, shoving A away. A sucked in a breath but did as the other said, getting up and shuffling away. One cracked her eye open to see A, and for a moment almost looked relieved. But that relief turned into sadness, anguish, and anger. One got up and approached A, her eyes fierce.

“What did you do?” One screamed, stomping her foot down. A threw their hands up and shook their head, backing away slowly.

“I didn't do anything! I swear! One, p-please, just listen to me!” A babbled, tears burning their eyes. One scowled, ignoring their pleas.

“I don't get it. I thought we were... I thought we were friends!”

“We are!”

“Were we? This is your fault! All of this! My family, my other friends, where are they? Are they dead?” A’s still wide-with-fear eyes flickered across the scene, still taking in the destruction that had happened. She shuddered.

“I don't... I don't know. Why would I know?”

“Because you caused this! You told them I was dangerous, didn't you? You told them I was too powerful,” One accused. And then her face shifted from anger to sadness once more, her lips twitching.

“But I'm not powerful at all. I'm powerless. I couldn't save them. I couldn't keep them safe...” She trailed off, dread dripping off her words. A trembled and shook their head.

“But that wasn’t your responsibility, One! This isn’t your fault!” They tried to reason. One’s face shifted back into anger.

"You're right. It’s yours,” they muttered darkly. A felt their tears finally spill down their face, warm water staining their cheeks. They covered their mouth as One approached her further. She backed away, shaking.

“Wuh-One…” she hiccuped.

“I love you, One,” she said, causing One to growl.

“You’re lying!” she screamed, rushing forward. With one strong kick to the leg, A yelped, falling to the ground. One backed up away from them, only to stumble over a rock. No, a crystal? Neither, actually. What is this? One pressed her foot against it and felt the power flowing through its thick and jagged edges. She gasped, touching it further. She focused her thoughts on the power, and with a rather painful surge of heat, she felt the power transfer from the rock's body to hers. She sighed as she felt bigger and better, but there wasn’t much of a physical change. But now that she thinks about it, maybe she can change her body.

They put a thought in their mind, arms, and hands with fingertips, just for them. And when they opened their eyes, it materialized, connecting loosely and liquid-like to their body. They smiled in accomplishment for a moment, then looked back down at the terrified variable at their feet. They pulled back their arm, then threw their fist into the pink one’s cheek. The impact forced her further down into the ground, and she whimpered, eye twitching. One’s face twisted angrily, and they pulled their other arm back, punching A again. And again. And again. A grunted and groaned at each punch, and when One stopped to breathe, A coughed. She sniffed, but maroon blood began to drip from her ‘nose’. She pressed her hands weakly against One’s chest, a silent plea to make them stop. One growled behind her gritted teeth and slapped A. In response, they let out a choked sob.

“I lost everything! All because of some stupid variables!”

“Wwuh-O-Oh-One-”

“Don’t say my name!” she yelled, punching their stomach instead. A gagged, then gasped hard for air, holding her stomach. She tried curling in on herself, but One straddled her and pushed her arms down against the grass. Tears rolled down A’s face and onto the ground. She squeezed her eyes shut. One snarled like an angry animal and squeezed their wrists down against the land below, losing her vigor. She huffed out a breath, then shook her head, slowly getting up. A peeked one eye open to see One towering over them, their eyebrows furrowed. Suddenly, a water droplet landed in their one open eye, making them hiss. A rubbed their eyes, then felt more water droplets sprinkle down on them. One began to walk away.

“On- I mean-...” A started, slowly reaching a hand out. One paused, their back to A.

“...Where are you going?” A asked tiredly, their voice gravelly. One shook their head at first, not wanting to even waste her voice on the other. But another part felt bad, maybe even guilty for what she did. She felt sick.

“Somewhere new. Somewhere where I can get stronger. Somewhere where I can protect my people,” One answered quietly. A’s eyes widened, and she tried to get up, but her leg was barely able to move. Rain began to fall harder.

“You’re just gonna leave me here?” A asked, another sob getting past their lips. One stayed silent, taking another step forward. Then another. And then another. Water sprayed off One’s body like a rock in a river. A shook her head.

“Don’t leave me,” A started softly, pulling their body towards the blue integer. They fell back down pathetically, heaving out a sharp breath.

“Please don’t… Leave me,” she asked again. One’s body was becoming blurry in A’s vision. A closed her eyes, getting one last crawl movement before collapsing.

“One… Please don’t… Leave me!” she shouted. But by then, One’s body was already gone.

As One walked, the last thing she heard from the scene she was leaving behind was the quiet sobs from the weak variable, still reaching out to her. She huffed as she walked, tears beginning to spill from her eyes as well. The rain soaked her body as she walked in the night, under the moon.

One and Three walked through a dark forest, the evening night cool on their skin. Three shuddered, wrapping his hands around himself. One pulled a tree’s brush out of the way for herself, then let it whack Three. He grunted, then said behind gritted teeth,

"One, what are we doing here? I thought this place had radiation? Are you just going to– going to teleport out of here and ditch me?" One scoffed.

"That's just cruel and–"

"Not too cruel for you."

"–cruel and stupid, Three," One hissed, frowning.

"Unfortunately, we need to get symbols from somewhere other than the Plaza, or anywhere in the Valley for that matter. My old village has some symbols, if I'm correct," One hummed. Three noticed they were walking along a river, and he watched as fish jumped through the rushing water, jagged rocks poking out from underneath.

"Your old village? What's that about?" Three urged. One huffed back.

"What's it with you and questions? Do you not realize how obnoxious and annoying it is?" She spat back, making Three close his mouth. They silently walked for the rest of the trip, and when they arrived, Three observed the burnt and crumbled huts. He saw how One looked at the remains, a glimmer in her eye that he hadn't ever seen in her. But he didn't mention it. She wouldn't want him to anyway.

Chapter Text

Large doors swung open, and almost golden light blinded X. He covered his face and whimpered, and Four grinned with pride as the light subsided. X cracked his eyes open meekly, then stared in awe. Four giggled slightly, then put their hands on their hips.

“Tah-dah!” Four cheered, watching X’s reaction. He blinked, gaping at the area. The sun shone brightly on the area, the clouds leaving the sky for the occasion.

“It’s a training arena! Yeah! For erm, now,” Four mumbled near the end, slumping slightly. X slowly trotted inside, looking around. There were gates and weapons along some of the lined areas, and numerous medical kits were on standby. X stumbled away from a few numbers, sending blasts of colors left and right. He watched as one tumbled on top of the other, grunting and whining as the other was pinned down. With the other on the ground, the number put their hands up and cheered. There were claps heard from the side of the circle, and X turned to see who was making the noises. Two sat beside a panting Y, hands colliding in the air. X brightened slightly.

“Two?” X asked, making Four turn quickly in the direction X was staring. Two looked surprised by the mention of their name, but quickly got over it with a shake of the head.

“X! Hello!” Two hummed with a wave. Four quickly dashed to their side and hugged Two, stuffing their face in the crook of the other's neck. Two pulled Four closer, then nodded at X. He walked closer to the two and waited for their hug to end, which didn’t take long as Four grumbled with embarrassment and pulled away. X nudged Four and pointed to the weapons, then muttered,

“Are those for training?” He hissed, making Four laugh quietly.

“Integer regeneration powers are pretty simple, X,” Four responded.

“Albeit it being rather painful, and not always working on big injuries,” They finished. X nodded at their explanation hesitantly. There was a brief silence as the three watched the two integers disperse from the area, their black and purple bodies disappearing from the numbers vision as they left. Two turned to Four and X with a tense face, their mouth twitching with nervousness. Four raised an eyebrow.

“I-I was…I was thinking that I could…Maybe try to…Find Three,” They whispered. Four stared at them, then glanced over at X. He seemed unfazed, and then slowly they nodded back to Two.

“Well then I want to come with,” Four said. X put a hand forward, surprising the both of them. There was a tired, but warm smile on his face as he had his hand forward.

“I want to join too. I want to hear what Three has to say for himself,” X added. Two seemed to wince at the words, but then gestured to the ring.

“Then I suggest you two train. I can’t protect you on my own,” Two said to Four specifically, then lowered their gaze. Four’s eye widened slightly, and they breathed out shakily. But despite that, they kept their voice unshaken. X looked at the integers, confused.

“Wanna train with me, X?” Four asked casually, offering a hand. He looked down at the hand and took it quickly, a smile creeping up X’s face coyly. X ran towards the weapons and grinned over to Y. Y was still lying down against the barrier, out of breath.

“Hey, Y!” Y perked up from panting, swallowing hard.

“Hm?”

“Make sure to cheer me on!” X called, and as though it were magic, their grin spread to Y as well. They nodded back to X wildly, giving a thumbs-up.

“You better beat that integer, Graph buddy!” Y shouted. Four huffed and frowned but didn’t actually seem too displeased. They pointed at the weapons still on the stand. X grabbed a sword and ran his fingers along the sharp ridges, then focused back in on the number in front of them, but a ways away. X walked near the middle of the arena.

“Let’s go through the basics in one-on-one combat first,” Four stated, their voice monotone. Their voice sounded formal, too, like when X had first met them. Hm.

“There are rules?” X asked loudly back, to which he got a brief nod.

“Okay…”

“First things first, you do not attack first. Always wait for your opponent to strike,” they said, getting into a more secure pose, with one leg out and their knees bent. X mimicked them, making sure their form was the same as the other.

“Why’s that?” He asked.

“Because if they won’t attack first, there’s probably another option other than fighting.” Four pulled their hands out, their fingers twitching in place. X blinked and watched small sparks flicker from Four’s hands.

“Secondly, while waiting for their strike, take in their features. Figure out their weakness before having to exploit it in battle,” Four said, their gaze flickering across X’s body. X whimpered slightly, feeling exposed. But he instead did the same to Four, looking along their body and their face. But despite it, he still felt slightly lost. He crossed his arms and frowned. Four’s face softened slightly, then they cleared their throat and looked away.

“If…-If you couldn’t find mine, it’s my face,” They muttered quietly. X gasped lightly, then looked at Four’s face. Their eyepatch.

“Your eyepatch causes a blind spot!” X cheered but cut himself off at Four’s strained face. X flushed.

“Correct. So, when you strike, go for my blind spot. My arms are also a weakness, since they’re wrapped up. Three’s other eye is his blind spot, since he can’t see out of it. One’s weakness is her arms; she doesn’t have any. Yours is your body, it’s still weak from all the damage it’s gotten from this past week that you haven’t been able to recover from. I would take this information too, since I may go for your weakness,” Four said, squinting.

“Another weakness of yours is you’ve never engaged in battle, I assume.”

“And how do you know that?” X whined.

“Y told me,” Four said with a shrug. X shot a glare at their green friend, who merely shrugged on as well. X huffed out a sigh.

“Okay, okay…What’s next?” He asked, a frown still apparent.

“Next? Well, now, we fight. Are you ready?” Four responded.

“Yeppers,” X hummed with little to no confidence.

“I’ll go easy on you, okay? When you get the sword to my throat, it ends. Or I get you off your feet for more than five seconds.” And after X nodded, Four rushed forward. He shoved his hand in front of himself, sending a zap into X’s direction. X gave a wobbly dodge, then stumbled backwards. He strained himself backwards as another blast was sent towards his face. While leaning back, X took his sword and stabbed it into the ground, using it as leverage. Another blast was sent, but this time it was towards his sword. X dragged it out of the ground and dashed to the side, making the zap collide with the barrier behind the variable.

Four grunted, taking a few steps backwards. In their downtime, X pushed against his back heel, pushing his body forward and slashing the sword. Four dodged, leaning back. They then pushed the sword out of X’s grasp, making it clank to the ground. X whimpered, then gasped as he was pushed back. He kneeled, then brought himself back to his feet. X stared at the setup presented to him, his sword on Four’s good-eyed side and near their grasp, while their hands began to spark with power once more. X hummed in thought for a moment until he noticed Four reaching for the sword. X felt his heart spike, so, without thinking, he slid, grabbing ahold of the sword as he did so. Four’s mouth hung open, but quickly shut as X got behind them. They whipped around to see the variable, but X was nowhere in sight. They glared at the arena as their gaze swiftly flowed from one corner to the next. They quickly turned around and got a blur of yellow, but again missed him. They groaned.

Suddenly, they felt cold metal against their chin. Four blinked in mild surprise as they turned their head enough to see X on his knees, the sword being held up against their throat. They stared at the variable briefly before grabbing the sword and throwing it to the side. X sucked in a sharp breath, expecting a blow to the face, but instead felt warm arms wrapped around them.

“Mnhghh good job, X! That was pretty good for your first run,” they said, nuzzling against X. Y whooped and cheered from the side, along with Two. X smiled warmly, pulling Four closer. He sighed with relief.

“How about a few more rounds before we go? We may have to teleport, Four!” Two called.

“M-More rounds?” X babbled. Four gave a thumbs up to Two.

“Yeah, come on, X! Just a few,” Four reasoned. X whimpered, but nodded, getting up and into a stance again.

_____________________

Four panted, slumping forward. X lay on the ground, huffing for air as his face was a bright orange. Four shook their head at the sight. They stood there for a moment until they felt a hand on their shoulder. Four jumped and cried out loud, sending a zap to somewhere far off. Two jolted and stepped back, then gritted their teeth.

“Oh! Sorry Four, I forgot,” They muttered, pressing their fingertips together. Four trembled slightly but calmed their breathing.

“I-It’s okay. Is it time to leave?” They asked.

“Where are we even going?”

“What place makes the most sense to go to?” Four stared blankly back at Two.

“The Tower! Infinity, you’re dense,” they said with a shake of their head. Four frowned.

“But the Valley! Isn’t it in ruins?”

“The Tower most likely has a protection spell. If not, then the materials inside aren’t particularly flammable. It was intact from what I saw,” Two hummed. Four nodded, then looked back at X, who was getting to his feet. Sweat covered X’s face, and he wiped it off with the back of his hand.

“You said something about teleportation?” X asked.

“I was thinking we could just fly there instead, actually,” Two added.

“Sounds good,” Four mumbled, snapping X’s and their bags in front of them. X slid it on his back, then found his way in front of Y as Two and Four continued. X wrapped his arms around Y’s neck and pulled them close.

“I’ll be safe, promise,” X whispered. Y chuckled and nodded into the hug, pulled X’s back closer to them.

“I know this time,” Y answered, sniffling lightly. X released their body and waved, them returning it sweetly.

“See ya, X!”

“See you.” Four skipped towards X and interlocked their hands, then bent their knees. X tried to mimic them, but quickly couldn’t feel the ground beneath them. Wind rushed against his face. He squeezed his eyes shut as Four grabbed him by his bottom nubs, feeling his face pressed against their chest. He felt their chest rumble as they laughed, swirling X around slightly. X peeked one eye open to see them in the sky, the camp far below. He screamed loudly. Very loudly. So loud he wasn’t sure if he ruined the mission entirely, maybe One now already knew they were coming! Four lightly put their hand on X’s mouth to quiet him, which worked overall well.

“X, calm down!” Four chortled between their words, making X blush in embarrassment and maybe endearment, but mostly the first reason. X felt tears burn in his eyes due to the cold air, but quickly blinked them away.

“I-I…Why haven’t we-!” X babbled, still very much scared but more confused now.

“Takes a lot of energy,” Four said, and slowly X opened his eyes to observe. He could really see the whole planet from here! He watched as he could see the tower straight ahead, then he saw a thick forest behind it. He could see a small river, but more importantly, he saw the fire. It was big, very big. It overtook the valley, and some locations X knew to be ranger stations.

“The last time a flew was in the ballroom, when you were…” Four continued but trailed off slowly.

“It takes a lot of concentration too, and balance. I have some depth issues due to my eyepatch, but Two flies just fine. Why don’t you fly as much?”

“Same reason I guess,” Two responded quickly. They turned on their back and started peddling with their legs and arms like backstroke.

“Not enough practice. Three can’t fly well, says it hurts him more than me, so I just don’t do it,” They added, their brows furrowing.

“Hm..” They hummed afterwards. X’s eyes focused on the fire beneath them, wincing.

“It’s so bright,” X said in a whisper. Four held him closer, their face wary. X looked up at the integer’s face instead of the hell below, since it hurt his eyes. And…Wow. The way the warm lights hit their face, hugged their features, softened their hard expression. Their eye had a single orange highlight that flickered with the light below. And how Four’s face remained mildly flushed due to the work they were doing, the gradients from blue to pink on their face were beautiful, for a lack of words. Pretty.

“Pretty…” X mumbled, a loopy smile making its way on his face. Four raised an eyebrow at him.

“What?”

“Nothing!”

“Let’s land here,” Two said, pointing down to the stairs of the Tower. Four nodded and breathed out a slow and calm breath, lowering X and their body down. When their feet touched the ground, they set X down. He wobbled in place at first, but gained stability as he followed Two inside, who was strolling in eagerly. Four’s eye widened.

“Two, m-maybe we should think about thi-”

“THREE?” Two shouted. Four slapped a hand over their face. X stayed silent as he looked around the room. He looked over to a pillar and recognized it from when he and Four would meet up there. He looked over to the spiraling stairs and how they were starting to become crumbly. But Two didn’t seem to care as they ran up the flight. Four and X chased after them, seeing as they frantically went past each level, calling out Three’s name. They came to a stop as they reached One’s room’s level. Four whined and hunched over as they huffed, although Two didn’t seem out of breath.

“Two…Ughhh…Maybe Three isn’t…”

“The ballroom!” Two suddenly spat, making X shiver. They got up and ran back down the stairs. Four followed, albeit slower. X hesitated, looking down the stairs and then back at the door. He then, curiously, opened the door. The smell of fragrant tea’s filled his nose. He took a few steps in, taking note of the two chairs in the middle of the room and the freshly brewed drink, still steaming. He also took note of the two papers in front of the red velvet chair. Before he could get any further, there was a shout from Four, and he frantically left the room. But before he did so fully, his eye caught on a necklace of pearls left on the table as well. He swiftly entered once more, grabbed it, then ran down the stairs.

When he got down a few flights, he noticed the door he had recognized before and ran to it, as it was cracked open. X slipped inside, and what he saw was…Well.

He saw the bloodstains on the walls. He realized that’s what it was now. There was a substance atop it that made it glimmer slightly, which confused him. But more importantly, he saw the symbols stacked in pile upon pile. Multiplication and division, at least twenty of the structures. X sucked in a sharp breath at the sight, then saw green from the corner of his eye. Then red. He looked beside him to see Four standing close to him with their arm out to press against his chest, almost like a seatbelt.

“Three?” Two asked hesitantly. Three stared back at Two with dilated eyes before shaking his head.

“Two…” Three murmured back, then frowned.

“Go back,” he said, pointing to the door. Two shook their head back.

“Come with,” They reasoned, their voice soft. He took a step back in response.

“You know I can’t do that,” he said calmly, shrugging lightly. Two muttered something, reaching out, but before they could take another step, a door from above slammed open. And the same place that One was before, she was there again. All eyes shoot to the number above, the air thick with tension. One eyes the scene below, her face already showing her annoyed state.

“Two? Four? …X,” One mumbled, their gaze flicking from one number to the next. It landed on the variable being slightly hidden by Four, her slack mouth forming a slight smirk.

“You must be a severe fool to bring a variable here,” She stated, chuckling. Suddenly, she was down beside Three, and her hand on his shoulder.

“Unfortunately, I’d rather not deal with you all for now. So could you just…Go?” She hummed, motioning for the door. Two scowled, planting their heels deeper into the ground. Four’s eyes widened at Two, then whispered something towards them that X didn’t understand. In response, they muttered something back, which made Four gasp, then whine.

“I’m not leaving unless you make us go,” Two stated, their hands clenched into fists. One made a face at Three, then turned to grab a symbol and walk away.

“Two, I can’t leave,” Three said again, glaring at the ground.

“But we can help you! That deal, it’s bound to be broken on One’s end soon with what she’s doing! You’re powerful, Three. Why can’t you just see that?”

“Because I’m not!” He shouted, his eyebrows furrowing. Then he crossed his arms, thinking over his next words.

“I’m not because…Because I was afraid of her. A strong person wouldn’t do that,” he said.

“I’m strong and I’m afraid,” Four chimed in.

“Well, that’s because- No, never mind, I’m sorry.” Four glared at Three. X tapped on Fours' arm.

“Because of what?” X asked.

“Later,” Four hissed back.

“But you said-”

“I need you, Three!” Two shouted. All the numbers froze for a moment, their eyes going back to Three. Two’s face was a warmer color, and they stepped back, leading Three to put a hand out to offer comfort, but quickly pulled it away.

“No…You need to leave,” Three said through a scratchy voice. X finally felt himself listen to the conversation, the words processing in his head. He stepped forward, pointing at Three.

“Why are you so afraid?” Three’s gaze snapped in X’s direction. His eyes twitched.

“I already said-”

“No. You said you are afraid of One. But I think you’re afraid of more than that,” X stated, his voice low. Three’s eyes widened at this, his mouth opening. But before he could speak, One walked back into the room. She glowered at the sight of the numbers still there.

“Times up. If you couldn’t make them leave, then I will,” she said, sending a zap in X’s direction. He dodged, and thank math he did, since it burst through the wall behind them. Two gaped at One before powering up a zap themselves. As they aimed for One, Three hurdled himself into Two's body, knocking them down. Two sputtered and pressed their hands against Three’s chest, unsure of how to react.

“Th-three!”

“This is for your own good, Two!” He whined back. The couple wrestled on the ground, Two not able to get up in their position. Four noticed this, so they thoughtfully approached One with some zaps of their own. Buzzing rang through the air as electric lighting-like bolts were shot between One and Four. X watched awkwardly, unsure what to do other than that. He watched as a zap hit One’s face, knocking her crown clean off her head. And that ugly little rock snapped off, tumbling against the smooth floor. It caught his eye, so in a desperate attempt to help, he scrambled to grab it.

By now, One and Four were face to face, Four scratching her face and lower nubs. She groaned and grabbed his hands with one pair of hers. With the other, she sent a punch into his cheek, the blow making a crack sound in the air. Four screeched, and One backed off, her head pounding. Four pulled back aggressively, wiping their mouth. Violet fluid stained the back of his hand, so he spat the other blood to the ground. X hobbled at the screech but was easily able to grab the item while everynumber was distracted. He felt the warmth of power tingle his fingers as he held it, his eyes widening at the feeling. Pure, raw power at his fingertips. This was what he needed to power the ship, wasn’t it? This Yoylite, that’s what Captain A said, right? This was the reason why he was here in the first place, why all of this happened.

At first, he felt an almost euphoric sensation. Like he just concurred a god. And in a way, he did, having stolen this under One’s nose. And part of him wanted to take the power, store it, make it his. To feel like he was on top of the world. But… This isn’t why he was here now. This power isn’t why all of this happened. He was here because he wanted to stay by Four and his friends’ sides. And this happened because of One’s greed. Or something else that caused her to hoard power…To have such disgusting pride in such foolish beliefs. Maybe pain caused it, X wondered. Maybe it was pain and fear. That was the most likely reason.

By now, One had recovered from the screech. She turned to the still squabbling Two and Three, although Three was becoming tired from holding Two down. His grip wasn’t very hard anyway. She then turned to see X holding the Yoylite, her face going pale. They shook their head in disbelief for a moment before yelping in alarm. Four noticed this and X, and braced to fight her again.

“You- …You brat!” They shouted, powering up a zap. Four grabbed the hand she was using to zap and pushed its aim to the ground, shaking the ground beneath them. Four stumbled back and fell, grunting. They turned slightly towards X.

“X-! Just go!” He shouted. X stared, feeling stuck. He didn’t want to just leave Four! But they were telling him to, so… He turned to leave. One shook her head harder.

“Oh, no you don’t!” She shouted at him. They grabbed Four by the neck, pulling him upwards. He kicked his legs in protest, arms gripping One’s to release tension. But then she took another pair of hands and brought them to their face. X had stopped moving by now, dropping the rock in his hands instinctively.

“Four!” He screamed. Four choked on the hands, then felt one hand steadying his face and the other on his eyepatch. Upon realizing what One was trying to accomplish, Four coughed, trying to speak. To beg her to stop. But he couldn’t. Three had stopped pinning Two down and just watched in horror, Two pulling themselves to their feet. One pulled the eyepatch forward hard, but it didn’t break, snapping back. Four yelped and kicked again, knocking One slightly. She huffed and yanked at the eyepatch again.

The string snapped, and the patch fell to the ground.

One dropped Four from her grasp, her face emotionless. Four fell hard, their head hitting the ground with yet another hard crack. X rushed forward to their side, his hand immediately coming to Four’s back. He felt their shoulders shaking, and their back tremble. And he could hear their…Sniffles? Their breaths hitched.

“Four?” X whispered, pulling one of their cheeks to look at Four’s face. His eyes widened as he saw their face. Their right eye was barely open, and a huge scar covered their face. It looked like part of their face was melted or burnt. They slapped a hand over their face and turned, and X could see the tears dripping down their face.

“D-Don’t look at me…” Four croaked, their fingers digging into their face. X blinked, then slowly looked away upon their command. He ran his hand along with back in slow circles as Four sobbed. X looked up to see One staring down at them from afar. Her gaze lingered on the variable before she teleported the Yoylite back into her hands. She snapped at the dazed and unresponsive Three, who was staring at Four with pure terror. Two just seemed worried and upset for Four, finding their way to his side. A hand tugged at Three, dragging him towards One.

“I’d leave now,” One mumbled to them, turning away with Three still being taken. X watched them disappear into the next room, then turned towards Four again. Their breathing got more irregular as they sat and cried, beginning to cough and gag on thier tears. They quickly snatched the patch that was on the ground and pressed it to their eye, but with it limp, it didn’t cover much other than their eye itself. Two slowly stood after a few minutes, pulling Four to their feet as well.

“We should leave before…One comes back. I’ll see Three eventually, but…” They looked down empathetically at Four, who was still covering their face and whimpering.

“But this is more important,” they finished, beginning to walk. X picked himself up quickly and followed, keeping his gaze on the blue integer in front of him. They went down the stairs, down to the front of the Tower. Two looked around, then closed their eyes, grunting. And before X even realized it, they were teleported into the forest. X stumbled, then fell forward. Two panted, hunching forward. They leaned against a tree for a moment before adding,

“We’ll have to walk the rest of the way back.” X nodded, hesitantly looking at Four. Their eyes were dead, not a flicker of light in their pupils. X sucked in a breath, frowning. But despite it, he very slowly reached for their hand. Their eyes watched silently, and they almost looked surprised, but did nothing to object. X interlinked their fingers, and when Two was ready, led Four along. They walked for hours in silence, not a word coming from anyone’s lips. X hopes they get to the camp soon.