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"Hurry! You have to get in here!" the young man called out to the group of three running through the battlefield that was once their hometown. The three rebels, consisting of two young men and a young woman, rushed as fast as they could to the hidden entrance where the fellow rebel waited. They had tried their hardest not to have been spotted, and had succeeded so far. Quickly, they dived into the entrance that led to the underground shelter before they were noticed by a Walker unit. The three panted, exhausted from their journey. The young man who had waited at the entrance looked at the woman with a hopeful look on his face. "Did you get it?" he asked.
The young woman looked up at him and smirked. She opened a pocket on her uniform and took out a circular object barely bigger than the fingers that held them. On the front of it were three symbols used in the process of alchemy. "Come on Elliot, was there ever any doubt I wouldn't?" she said.
The young man named Elliot smiled. "No, Jessica, there wasn't." He helped Jessica up and brought her to the main room of their base. The two of them were a small part of the Rebels, a group who had opposed the Chancellor and his so-called "machines of peace". Even when the State turned on the innocent Scientist and his colleagues, who had been forced to make the machine that had started all this in the first place, they were willing to stand by him. Their recent mission had been to steal the small talisman back from the Chancellor and the factory. Professor Oppenheimer had told them that he needed it in order to help save humanity. And now they had it in their hands. All they had to do now was deliver it to him.
"So what do all these symbols mean?" Elliot asked, pointing at the device. Jessica swatted his hand away before he touched it on accident.
"Elliot, you're still a curious rookie." Jessica said with a laugh. "The professor says they're meant to transfer life."
"Transfer life?" Elliot asked. "But how?"
"With this little thing," Jessica began to explain, "One can transfer their soul into another body. It's usually just a piece of the soul though, since a full transfer would kill the one doing the process." The two entered the living quarters of the young woman as she continued to explain. "The professor wants to use this to transfer pieces of his soul into creatures that he calls 'stitchpunks' in the hope that life will continue."
Elliot looked confused by the term his friend had used. "What's a stitchpunk?" he asked.
Jessica walked over to a small drawer and took out a doll-like item. It had eyes that looked like camera lenses, and the body was made of a light purple fabric. The back of its head was not yet properly stitched up, a few strands of string hanging down the back. "This is a stitchpunk." Jessica said as she placed it down on a small table.
"How did you get this?" Elliot asked.
"The professor gave me the basic skeleton and other components before the war became too serious. I guess he wanted me to be sure that the process worked before trying it out himself." Jessica answered. "And I doubt he wouldn't trust me with it if he didn't think I knew what I was doing. He did give me instructions."
Elliot smiled. "Sometimes I wonder why you joined the army in the first place." he said.
Jessica gave him a light punch on the shoulder. "Hey, if I hadn't joined then I wouldn't have met you or Fredrick or..." she trailed off. "...Dominic." she finally spoke. Elliot placed a hand on her shoulder, the two remembering her lover and his best friend. He had been one of the first casualties in the war, leaving his family and the two of them in distress.
"So, what are you going to do with it?" Elliot asked, breaking the mournful silence.
"I'm going to finish her up, and then try bringing her to life. After that, we'll deliver this device to Professor Oppenheimer so he can carry out his plan." Jessica explained. "I just need to add a little personal touch and she'll be ready."
"Does she have a name?" Elliot asked.
Jessica stopped for a moment and thought to herself. "I'll name her before I bring her to lie." she said. "Now get out of my room, rookie." she joked.
"Well fine, I know when I'm not wanted." Elliot said, playing along. He left the small room to go inform the others of the plan.
Jessica looked at the strings on the back of the stitchpunks head. She knew she wanted to add something there, but her mind wasn't coming up with any ideas. Then she remembered the necklace. She took the necklace out from under her army shirt and off of her neck. It had been a gift from Dominic, and one of the few pieces of jewelry she ever wore in her life. The necklace had seven strands of beads in various colors. She knew just what to add for the final touch.
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Jessica fell to the floor, the transfer process taking more out of her than she thought. She rubbed her head and got back up. On the table stood the purple stitchpunk, a rebellious but confused look on it's face as it wondered where it was. She looked at Jessica, taking a defensive stance to protect herself from the giant creature. Jessica simply smiled.
Elliot ran into the room, having heard the fall. "Jessica! Are you alright?!" he asked. His attention turned to the small stitchpunk, which had noticed him in turn. She was surprised to see another creature, but wasn't about to back down. "So it actually worked." Elliot said.
"Yep." Jessica said. She turned to the newly awakened stitchpunk. "Hey, you can calm down. We're not going to hurt you. We're friends."
The stitchpunk looked at her, slowly losing the defensive stance and a small smile on her face. "Friends." she repeated. Elliot was surprised that she could talk, but didn't say a word.
"Elliot, write a letter for me to bring to the professor. Write down that the process was a success, and that 11 is alive."