He couldn't feel his limbs. His eyes closed, all he saw was black. But he knew he was still alive. He was still conscious but unable to move or do anything.
It's a strange feeling, comatose.

He didn't notice at first, but he started becoming enveloped in the sensation of little pricks everywhere on his blocks, seeing gray—from a light source—instead of black, hearing faint twinkling noises. He tried to move, but still couldn't. The sensations didn't stop. Over time, it all got more intense. The prickling was stronger, the light brighter, and the twinkling louder.
Eventually, it became a sensory overload.
The prickling turned into hot strikes all over, he was seeing oversaturated colors he didn't know existed, and he was hearing high-pitched ringing that wouldn't stop.
He wanted to shout, cover his eyes, run for shelter, anything—

Two bolted upright, one hand on his chest and the other on the debris-covered ground. All the strange feelings he had just a moment prior had disappeared in an instant. It was like waking up from a nightmare. Breathing heavily and shakily, he sat staring at the ground, trying to organize his thoughts.
"W-what.."
Taking a deep breath, he looked down at his hands.
"Wait, I'm okay?"
Memories began flooding back. The last thing he saw was Octonaughty, the last thing he thought of was One. He couldn't remember anything in between the time he was knocked out and the present moment, but a realization came to him nonetheless.
"Ah! I'm okay! One did- ONE DID IT!"
Laughing out of pure relief, he stood up beaming. "She did it! I knew she could do it!"

Only then did he look and notice the destruction around him.

The enthusiasm was instantly wiped off his face. Hissing through his teeth for a moment, he took a moment to wipe his glasses. Dust was everywhere. It was hard to clearly see more than a few meters ahead. He took a step forward, and, briefly delighted to see his balance restored, carefully treaded through the rubble.
It was dead quiet. He didn't like that..
"One," he called out. "where are you? One?"
Nothing but his echo replied.

Then he swore he saw a silhouette in the corner of his eye.
Swiveling around, he saw it standing(?) there, roughly half his height. Two smiled, running towards the figure.
"One!!"
He was about to embrace her, his arms already wrapping around her— but he just as soon realized it wasn't One.
"N-nice to see you too, Two, but I'm afraid you're mistaken." The What-Iffer chuckled. He was still only glowing fainter, just enough to stand out against the gentle dawn sky and floating dust. Hovering way closer to the ground than usual, he 'stepped' back a little.
"Oh." Two retracted his hands. "Hi! You're out! One really did it!"
"Yep. Still embarrased I wasn't able to escape myself, but I knew you all could do it. I sincerely thank you and everyone involved! They told me everything that happened."
"I KNEW SHE COULD DO IT TOO," Two blurted, still elated to see the What-Iffer free. "Ahem- anyway, what do you mean by 'they?'"
"Oh, y'know, almost everyone to Ten, plus the Terrible Twos. After my prison-thing broke, the Magic was being transported to wherever it needed to again—the invisible process of Number Magic delivery. Eventually, everyblock started waking up, and I, after gaining enough strength, managed to find them all. They're gathered in a clear spot to the right of the lair. Well, whatever's left of it anyway. I wonder what happened here.."
Two's smile slightly faded. "Why are you still here, then? Shouldn't you be with the others?"
"Aside from looking for you, I'm still looking for Octonaughty and One. I'd use my powers to find them one way or another, but- ahah- as you can see.. I'm not ready just yet."
"I'm looking for One too. I hope she's alright."
"I'm sure she's fine." Quietly adding, "might take a while for her to recover though, depending on her condition.."
"What was that?"
"Erm.. based off what I've seen, there's chance she's more affected than the rest of you. Might cause her to wake up much later. Worst case scenario, not wake up at all." The What-Iffer seemed to look around for moment. "Two, can we split up to cover more ground?"
"O- okay, of course! See you."
Two walked away, the words ringing through his head.
Not wake up at all..?

* * *

They parted ways going in opposite directions. Two continued cautiously scanning the area, calling out her name, still to no avail.
For a while, it was all he did. And he was growing more concerned every minute.
There was nothing ahead but dust, debris, broken concrete walls, fallen trees,

and something red.

Two gasped. Taken aback, he did a double-take. It was indeed a red.. cube.. with limbs.. on the floor.
He ran, heart pounding, towards it. Sure enough, it was her.
Panting lightly, he kneeled next to One, who was laying on her side with her eye closed. "One?" He gently shook her small, limp stature covered in dust and visible scratches. "One, wake up. It's me, Two! You did a great job, y'know.." She remained still as ever. "O-One? C'mon, this isn't.. this isn't funny!" Thoughts racing, he picked her up and lightly shook her again. "One? You're fine, right? You're okay?" No response.
What if she..
...
No, surely not.. right? The What-Iffer said she'd be fine..!
Two's breathing became unsteady. "One. One, wake up!" Full of disbelief, he kept trying. Each time was the exact same, no response.
Eventually, Two just fell silent, staring at her motionless figure in his arms. He didn't know what to think. He told himself over and over that she was probably fine, and that there was certainly no reason to, but he wanted to cry.

Footsteps alerted him back to his senses, but he didn't bother to look where it was coming from.
Only when a shadow he knew all too well was cast upon he and One did he look up.
It was Octonaughty, holding a bottle of Number Magic. He opened it whilst looking down at One, wearing a blank expression.
"What do you want.." Two mumbled, glaring.

"Hm?"
"WHAT DO YOU WANT?!"
Octonaughty sighed. "I don't know."
"What did you do to her?" Two scooted away from him, holding One closer. "What are you going to do with that bottle?"
"This is just Magic.." Octonaughty poured a little and sprinkled it onto One. "That should help her wake up faster." Stepping back, he stared into the bottle in his hand. With the delivery of Number Magic resuming, it was no longer sitting at the bottom of the bottle, but instead freely floating inside it. As if it was waiting to be released. "Too much of this stuff doesn't do any good, does it?"
Two, shocked, wasn't able to say a word to Octonaughty before he turned around and left. What was that? What made him change his mind?
He kept staring at the spot where Octonaughty disappeared into the bushes. Lost in thought, he almost didn't notice...

... the little Numberblock in his arms beginning to twitch.
One sat up so rapidly, her hand smacked Two right in the face. "Ow! What was that for?!"
"AH! I-I was seeing and hearing things, how did- what-.. happened?" She looked around dazed, before finally spotting Two cowering on the floor.
"I know that was you, Octonaughty..! Come back you- you... agh!" Swore Two between sharp breaths.
"Oh, Two! I'm so sorry, I didn't mean to!" She laughed nervously.
Two realized who such a cute voice belonged to.
The pair stared at each other for a good few seconds, both in disbelief and relief all at once.
"ONE!"
"TWO!!"

One practically flew to Two and he caught her in a bear hug, twirling around a little before putting her down.
"You did it One, you did it! Whatever you did, it worked! I'm so proud of you!"
"Is everyone alright? Did it- is the What-Iffer free?!"
"Yes, everything's back to normal!"
"Oh, I'm so happy to see you again! I thought I- I thought I wouldn't make it!"
"Me too, for math's sake.. don't scare me like that ever again, you bean!"
They shared a laugh before One spoke again. "Thanks for saving me, if that's what you did."
"A- well, I didn't actually.. do that. If anything, it was Octonaughty who did."
Her expression became serious, scoffing for a moment. "Wha- Octonaughty? He? Saved me?! Well, if anything," She crossed her arms, "He nearly divided me by zero! Two, you should've seen how reckless he was—"
"I'm sure he was reckless, One, but it's true." Two cut her off before she could get enraged. "While you were knocked out, I tried to wake you up. But you didn't respond at all. It, I dunno, seemed like your recovery would take a long time compared to everyblock else being fine already. Even the What-Iffer said so.
Then he came with some Number Magic, scattered some on you, left, and.. you woke up."
One's anger faded slowly into confusion. "What?"

Such a quick transition from manic and greedily evil into straight up helpful was jarring. There must be something else at play. She needed to know more. "Two, where did he go?"
"Over there," He pointed, "why?"
One was going to leave in that direction, before looking back. "I just wanna talk to him."
"One, the last time I left you alone you got caged." Two playfully remarked. "Promise you'll be back soon."
"Of course! You think I wanna go through that again?"
He smiled. "Alright. I'm gonna go where everyone else is.. stay safe!"

* * *

One had been looking for Octonaughty for a good few minutes, burnt grass crinkling beneath her feet as the sun began to rise higher into the sky.
She had taken notice of a faint track of footsteps in the debris, attentively watching them and following their lead. They got more and more obvious, and eventually they looked like fresh tracks.
Then they abruptly stopped.
One looked up to see Octonaughty sitting with his back turned to her. Beside him was his sack, opened and visibly having only a few Magic bottles left.
Strange, seeing a villanous figure, someone who tried to end you, minding his own business in silence while you're right behind him.
Getting a hold of herself, she cautiously stepped forward and quietly spoke. "What's wrong?"
"What?" He replied, turning to see her.
"What's. Wrong."
"Oh, now you care about me? Could've needed that a while ago."
One held in the immense urge to say 'me too' or throw an insult at him, taking a deep breath. "What are you talking about?"
"During your 'grand exit' you left the Terrible Twos and me on the planet. Bet you never wanted to see us again, huh!"
Intrigued, and also worried, One settled down. "Tell me everything."
"Why? It's lame."
"I don't want to blame you for this right off the bat. If you can tell me your story, that'd make things easier for both of us figuring out what to do next, wouldn't it?"

Octonaughty pondered the request for a moment before sighing. "Okay. But don't call me soft or anything.
"When you left us, the What-Iffer dropped some Number Magic and we used it to catch up. Being at such a low point and all then suddenly feeling so high, it was amazing. With that sort of power, I actually felt like I had a purpose, other than being some crappy excuse of a villain who could be defeated in less than five minutes." One looked away with a pang of guilt as he continued. "Using it wasn't enough, I wanted to prove I was worthy of being with you on the next planet. So I found a very illegal way to get more. But the more of it I got my nubs on, the weirder I felt. Numb, detached, so desperate for the goal finally within my reach, I was.. it was like a plane running on autopilot.

"Except the plane only knows the final destination and not the right path, smashing into buildings and whatever with not a care in the world.

"As you probably know.. It didn't work out, I didn't reach my goal. If I succeeded, I wouldn't have been happy either, would I? With.. everyone else gone. What's the point being the best on an entire planet being the only one alive?
"One, thanks for stopping me. I-I'm so sorry, I guess it got to my head but I've hurt so many.. even the Terrible Twos. Are they-are they okay?" He looked to her, concerned, before covering his face in his 'hands'. "Ah, why'd I even ask? They probably hate me at this point..!"

One thought about what he had said. "Well, I agree that you did petty and dangerous things—"
"Is that supposed to help?" He glared.
"Let me continue!" She cleared her throat. "But, it's not your fault Number Magic apparently does strange things to someone when used too much. No-one knew that.
And your motive is understandable.. I've felt that before.
"Being the smallest number, there are times I've felt useless or overwhelmed by others' capabilities.. but you shouldn't focus on 'proving yourself to others' because then you'll never be happy. Instead, focus on the bigger picture," she motioned a large expanse with her hands, "like how I make up every number, you play a part too. Everyone does. We all have things we're great at and things we're not so good at, but we all have value.
"Y'know, if it weren't for you and the Terrible Twos, Octoblock would have nothing to do. Without you, no-one would be enjoying those custard pies you three leave our on our windows as a prank. One of your best pranks, to be honest! They're absolutely delicious."
"Thanks, I guess." He stood, looking around. "I'm still worried about the Twos, though.."

From behind One and Octonaughty, they heard applause and sniffing.

They promptly swiveled around to see the Terrible Twos wiping at their eyes and clapping. "Wow.. wow, can we get a round of applause for this emotional moment?" The purple Two teased.
"GAH! Twos, how long have you been standing there?!"
"About.. since the part you started talking about your tragic story and motives." The blue two shrugged before sniffing again. "Right, amigo?"
"Exactly, amigo.. Wow, we're so touched that we almost wanna go back to living with the Numberblock who almost took our lives.."
Octonaughty looked slightly taken aback. "Oh- well, if you hate me that much, you can go ahead and live with someone else! It's- it's fine. I deserve it anywa—"
The blue Two burst into laughter. "Octonaughty, I never knew you were THIS GULLIBLE BAHAHAHAHA"
"Wait, you forgive me?"
"Sure! After all, you weren't yourself with all that Magic. You were crazy 'drunk'. Just promise, no more insane amounts of that stuff now!"
"And! Promise no more evil things!" The purple Two added.
"Mhm, 'cause like.. the good guys saved us and you didn't, so.."
"Oh, c'mere you bastards!" Octonaughty scooped them both up, hugging them tightly. "I promise, no more evil-y things. Turns out, being this bad of a bad guy is really, really hard."

"Woah," One snickered, "you're a softie after all."
"Shut up, you said you'd STOP THAT!! Don't ruin the moment!"
"Well, if you say so..!"

Two to Ten and the What-Iffer appear from the fog and dust, which had now faded for the most part. Everyblock expressed happiness and relief upon seeing One, except for Four, who directly ran towards the Terrible Twos and hugged them. He looked up and saw Octonaughty was already hugging them and hesitated, stepping backwards carefully, when Octonaughty pulled him into the embrace.
The four Numberblocks let go of each other when the What-Iffer approached. "Octonaughty." He called.
"Go on, punish me." Octonaughty replied, deadpan.
"I.. didn't even say anything."
"So you forgive me?"
"Well, not entirely. You did interrupt Number Magic's flow by imprisoning me for your own benefit. Not such a good idea, considering what I can do now I'm out." He said, the last sentence in a subtly more intimidating tone. "I tried to warn you that too much Number Magic would get to your head. But it isn't entirely your fault either, with it taking 'contol' of you and whatnot.. I do believe you've changed and learned an important lesson.
"I'm here to ask.. what is your next step? I could help, and as long as it's not something ill-intentioned, we could all support you."

"You guys thinking what I'm thinkin'?" Octonaughty looked to the Terrible Twos, who nodded. All three of them smiled, wearing a look somewhere between mischief and excitement.
"Well.. what One said about our custard pies did get me thinking.."

(A/N: that last scene was literally just them doing the lenny face

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also next chapter is out, now! go read it press the button now go go go)