October 17th - 1978
Dr Brenner walked down the hall of the lab, his mood seemingly pleasant, I mean, why wouldn't it be? Today is the day a candidate will be chosen.
For the past year, Brenner has become more weary with the blonde orderly known as Peter. He feels a sense of dread when around him, as if the blonde is planning something.
Brenner didn't like this feeling, he hated the feeling of not being in control. As of this, he decided to create a new batch of tests under the name PROJECT FAILSAFE
This project will be a contingency if the orderly ever manages to obtain his powers once more, though that should never happen. It will involve one subject undergoing new tests to create a resistance to mental powers, essentially blocking people from entering the subject's mind.
However, to decide which subject is the perfect choice, a 'fight' must take place.
Brenner opens the door to the rainbow room, looking around to see the children playing different things. However, his eyebrows furrowed as he noticed two were isolated from the group.
He looked to his left to see the two missing experiments,
011 and 013
The two children were currently in the middle of what looked like a game of rock paper scissors, but 013 was lifting actual items while 011 was using her hand, while the blonde orderly watched the two with a slight smile.
"Hello everyone." Brenner greets the children.
"Hello Papa." The children greeted back, standing up and stepping into line, 011 and 013 next to each other.
"Seventeen will you hold open the door?" Brenner asks.
"Yes Papa" The child said, walking to the door and holding it open.
"Today I have something very special planned for you all." Brenner states, "Now, let's hurry up." Brenner orders
The crowd of kids begin to merge into one full line before walking outside of the room,
"After you." The older man said, holding the door for the child.
He closes it behind himself, leaving the orderly alone in the room, arms behind his back as he stares with interest at not only the kids, but Dr Brenner.
Everyone lined up against the wall in the experimentation room, as Dr. Brenner stood in the middle. He grabbed a piece of chalk and drew a large circle around his feet.
"Today, we are going to play a game." He said, finishing the circle before drawing another one
Once finished, he steps forward, standing directly in front of the line, "The rules are simple, you stay in the circle. If you step out you lose." He explains to the experiments, "The person who is in the circle last wins and gets the prize."
"Two, Nine, if you'll be the firsts please." Brenner said.
The two boys took their places in the circles, as a different orderly wrapped the blindfold over Nine while another wrapped it around Two.
013 watched from the side with boredom. He knew Papa only wanted to see how strong they've become, but he was intrigued by what the prize could be. The boy snapped out of his thoughts when Nine fell out of the circle.
"Nine, please take a seat by the door." Brenner says disappointingly.
013 glanced over at 011, who seemed to be a little nervous. When 011 looked over at him, he sent a reassuring smile towards her, hoping to ease her nerves a bit.
After that, the fights don't end, as Two flies through more kids, flinging them towards the wall, all the while Brenner just watches smiling.
After a little more waiting, he called Eleven's name, leaving 013 as the last one to fight whoever wins.
013 watched 011 and Two closely, 011 had incredible strength, she just couldn't muster it.
Sadly the fight ended with 011 being flinged out of the circle, although definitely with more power, as she hit the wall and let out a painful groan.
013 eyes widened as he rushed over to the girl, kneeling down and helping her up. The orderly's were about to detain the boy, but Brenner stopped them as he watched intrigued.
013 definitely was one of his favorites. He had immense strength almost comparable to the first experiment.
The Dr watched as the boy sent a piercing glare to Two, who smirked wickedly.
"013." Brenner called the boy, watching as 013 looked over to him, "It's your turn." He stated.
013 looked at Brenner then back at 011, hushed whispers being heard, before he made his way into the circle, glaring at Two.
One of the orderly's tried to put the blindfold on him, but 013 snatched it out of his hands and put it on himself.
"Begin."
It didn't even last a second.
013 let out a scream as he pushed his hand out, Two being sent flying into the wall hard, knocking him out.
Everyone stared in slight shock as Brenner just smiled. He motioned to the orderly's to take the experiments back to their rooms, beside 013 and Two, who had to go to the medical ward.
013 watched with worry as everyone left, 011 sending him a worried look as he sent another reassuring smile back. Little did he know, that would be the last time they would see each other for a long time.
"Wonderful job 013." Brenner congratulated the boy, slowly clapping, "I had hoped it would be you." He said before snapping his finger.
The next thing 013 felt was electricity coursing through him, before he passed out onto the ground.
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January 9th - 1979
Brenner walked through the halls of the lab before opening a door to a secluded experimentation room, away from the other rooms.
He walked inside and stood next to a female orderly, both observing through the glass, as they watched 013 sitting in the other room, bodies lying around him
"How're the tests going?" The old male asked.
"It's going surprisingly well, the kid hasn't been affected that much by any of the other's, but his abilities are slightly decreasing in strength." The orderly responded.
Brenner looked over to 013 as he nodded his head.
"Sadly, a sacrifice we must pay. We will need him to be our failsafe incase he becomes unstable." He said.
"No offence Dr, but I don't think that'll happen. He's been in our care for a long time now and has showcased no signs of wanting revenge."
"Maybe so, but we don't truly know." The male states, "By doing this, we are preventing him from escaping our control. And if he doesn't, then we have a new project to work on."
The female nods her head before sighing, "Sadly, we still have a long way to go, his 'block' is only able to stop the other's when they use little to no effort. With enough focus, they can break it instantly, or can slowly break it over time."
"What about his powers? You said they were decreasing?" The man asks, intrigued by this.
The orderly nods her head once more,"Mhm. The more the 'block' is formed, the more energy it uses from him. It also happens in reverse as well. The more he uses his abilities, the more the 'block' is destroyed."
The man rests his hand on his chin, slowly stroking it, while thinking of what to do, "I want more tests conducted, find a balance between the 'block' and his abilities." Brenner ordered.
"Of course Dr Brenner." The female said, walking away out of the room.
Dr. Brenner turns around towards the one way mirror, seeing 013 in the middle of a room, bodies of dead guards surrounding him as he looks off into the distance, staring at the square tiled wall.
013 looked at the wall, a monotone expression on his face, as he ended his test.
For the past seven months 013 has been forced to undergo painful and excruciating new tests. He's been forced to stay still while being hurt, he's had his brain modified to develop the 'block' faster and he's been forced to kill.
That's what he had to do today, he was told to kill the guards and he did, without a second though. Why? Because they made him mad, because they hurt him.
He didn't want to do this, but he had to, it's his prize, his new life. 013 looked away from the wall and down to his left wrist, the number 013 no longer there. No, that was the old him. Now it read his new number, his new life, 000.
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March 28th - 1979
000 had adjusted slowly to his new daily activities, and he hated it. He would've never have thought that it would become one of blood, death and torture.
He hasn't seen any of the other experiments since that day 9 months ago, where he knocked out Two with his powers. It's not like he cares about them, in fact he didn't care about them at all but one, 011.
He wanted to make sure she knows he's still alive. He wanted to protect her from Two and his little pack. He wanted to hug her to comfort her. But now, that seems unlikely.
As 000 sat in the experimentation room accustomed to him, he turned his head towards the mirror. He knew he was being watched, it was damn near obvious.
The 9 year old boy closed his eyes and focused, his powers had been significantly weakened to develop the 'block' in his head. Now he's only allowed to use them for a little bit before they stop working.
The boy continued to focus until a slight bang was heard against the mirror. 000 continued to focus as the banging became more frequent.
He opened his eyes as the body of an orderly broke through the mirror and flew towards him before falling to the ground.
000 stood up and walked towards the unmoving body. When he stopped and looked down at it, he could see shards of glass punctured into the orderly's head as blood dripped from the cuts. The most noticeable feature however being the fact that the orderly's eyes had popped.
000 let a small smirk cross his face, he always hated this one, it felt good to kill him. He then rushed over to the now broken mirror, breaking off the remaining bits of glass, before climbing over it to the other side.
Once he landed, he rushed to the door and quickly opened it. He exited the room and began running down the endless halls, he had been planning his escape for so long and now it's happening.
000 let a smile come across his face, he was almost free, he just needs to-
THUMP!
The boy fell onto his back after running into something, not watching where he was going.
He sat up while rubbing his head, letting out a groan of pain, before a hand was offered to help him up.
000, without looking, grabbed the hand and was lifted up to his feet. He looked up to see that the blonde orderly, Peter, had helped him up.
Peter had a look of shock and confusion, he was told the boy had died, Of course he didn't believe it for a second, but it raises the question of why Brenner wanted to hide the boy.
Before he could question it, 000 ran back the way he came, now scared that he had been caught and wanted to return to the room so no one else would know.
As he turned the corner, he was met with Papa standing there with two guards next to him.
"I'm disappointed 000." He said before snapping his fingers.
The two guards ran towards the boy, who was still in shock of being found, and knocked him out.
000 saw the blurry outline of Brenner standing over him as something was placed around his neck before his eyes closed.
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September 9th - 1979
After that day, 000 was not left out of anyone's sight. He had 3 orderly's monitor him everyday and a shock collar around his neck to prevent him from escaping. But today would be when his suffering shall end.
000 was lying on his back in the examination room, being watched by an orderly in the room with him and two on the other side of the one-way mirror, as he focused on finding a balance between his 'block' and his abilities .
The young boy glanced over to the orderly at the door, watching the man send a glare to him. 000 sighed before a loud bang was heard on the other side of the door.
The boy sat up as he looked over towards the door, watching as the orderly looked at it suspiciously before walking out the door. 000 just shook his head, deciding it was someone wanting to speak to the orderly.
He laid down on the floor, focusing on his balance, as he closed his eyes. He continued to have focus until he heard a beep. He sat up, opening his eyes, as his hands went to the shock collar.
000's eyes widened as he removed the collar. He slowly stood up, turning towards the mirror, before a scream was heard outside the room.
The boy quickly turned around to the door, staring at it for a couple seconds, before deciding to investigate the scream. He went to the door, slowly opening it, and made his way out of the room.
His eyes widened as he saw the three orderly's motionless bodies leaning against the walls of the hallway. 000 slowly backed up, wanting to go back into the room before he spotted a figure at the end of his hallway, one who he immediately recognised.
"Hello 013." Peter said, "Well. I should say 000 now, right?" The blonde orderly said, slowly walking towards the young child, a chill running down his spine as he
000 walked backwards, no longer wanting to go into the room, before he turned around and fled down the hallway, away from the orderly
He fled down a white tiled hallway, passing doors for the other experiments as he flew around a corner, bouncing off one wall, as the hospital gown he wore rippled from the impact.
The boy's chest heaved, drawing in gasps of air, running a hand across his shaved head as he forced himself to ignore the mangled bodies of guards, scientists and children scattered throughout the hallways.
"Zero..." Peter called out
Zero felt chills run down his spine, a cold feeling flowing through him. He turned his head over his shoulder to look at the source of the voice, eyes widening in fear as he saw a man with blonde hair, blood stains all over his body and clothes. He tried to run away only for his body to be forced towards the voice and frozen in the air.
"I'm sorry it has to end this way Zero." Peter told the young boy, as he tried to move.
"You are a means to stop me. I can not let you accomplish that." The man said.
Zero's eyes let out tears, he was scared for what's about to happen, he saw the dead mangled bodies. The young boy tried to move, do anything at all to escape, but he couldn't, all he could was wait, wait until his death arrived.
"I know they hurt you, I know they forced you to do unprecedented amounts of killing." The man said, wiping a tear from the boy's cheek, "But now it'll all be over."
The man closed his eyes, focusing on the young boy floating in front of him. Zero could feel his movements becoming more stricter. He couldn't move at all now, he was stuck at the mercy of this monster.
"Zero," Peter said gently, "Do not be afraid, your suffering has come to its end." He said, wiping one final tear away before closing his eyes to the point where he could just see.
Zero's eyes rolled to the back of his head as pain soured through him. He could feel his bones in his right arm slowly move on their own in ways they shouldn't
SNAP!
The boy closed his eyes as he felt all his bones in his right arm break one by one.
SNAP!
CRUMBLE!
He let out a whimper as he felt his conscience begin to fade.
Was this it?
Was this how he died?
He endured all that pain, all that suffering, just for it to end like this?
"I'm sorry about this 013, I truly am." Dr Brenner told the boy, as he had finished applying the new tatto to the boy's left wrist, "But it will all be worth it. You will be given a 'block' of sorts. It will take time to establish, but once you do, you'll be able to repel anyone out of your mind, blocking them for however long you wish."
Zero closed his eyes, ignoring the feeling of bones slowly breaking in his left arm, and focused. He could feel his consciousness fading away, as if it was being taken from him.
Suddenly, he felt a rush of power within his mind wanting to be released. With no other choice, he let the power go, causing him to let out an unholy scream, as Peter was sent flying back down the hall and into a wall.
Zero's body dropped to the floor, passing out from pain and exhaustion, while Peter stood back up with wide eyes.
The orderly walked over to the body, studying it, before speaking, "You have great strength Zero, I am honored to acquire them from you."
Peter held his hand out, getting ready to absorb the boy's life energy, before nothing happened. The blonde looked confused before trying again, the same result occurring once more.
To say Peter was pissed was an understatement, he was furious. He had played with the boy too much and, as a result, allowed him to push Peter out of his mind.
The blonde growled, deciding to leave the boy there to rot away, as he walked away to kill the rest of the lab occupants.
Though not realizing Zero was still alive
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The Present - 1986
Cal gasped before he fell to the floor, landing on his knees, as he sharply took in air. The boy was shaken from what he just saw, what he just remembered.
Vecna watched as the boy stood up, panting as he did so, before sending a glare to the creature.
"Why?" Cal asked, "Why show me that? What's the point?"
"You see, you have that 'block' still there, forcing me out of your mind." Vecna states, "I have slowly been chipping away at it for some time. Every headache you received was me, chipping away at it." He said.
"When I discovered that you still lived, I realized my plan would not come to fruition. So I had to act." Vecna said, eyeing the boy down, "I sent my creature, what you call 'The Mind Flayer', after you and Eleven, to end you both. Sadly, it failed. So I decided to take matters into my own hands."
Cal could only stand there and listen, not wanting to interrupt the classic villain speech where they explain their plan.
"I decided to slowly tear your 'block' apart, each headache being a piece of it taken away, and after two months, it was achieved to a sufficient extent. Thus began my plan" Cal became intrigued while also worried, a cold familiar feeling overcoming his body.
"Since your 'block' was still active, I decided instead of me coming to you, you would come to me. So I went for your lover, Maxine." Cal's eyes widened in fear, "In an attempt to bring you to me, and it did."
"But, but that shouldn't work. That does nothing to the block!" Cal yelled, fear still visible in his eyes. He was praying, hoping he was right.
"On the contrary, the longer you stayed within my mind that day, the more I was able to break your block." Vecna stated.
Cal couldn't feel anything, his mind being flooded with guilt. He was the reason Max was cursed. He almost killed Max.
"And now, you will get rid of the rest." Vecna ordered, earning a confused glance from Cal.
"Oh yeah? And what makes you think I would?" Cal questioned, crossing his arms over his chest, as he tried to seem confident.
"Because if you don't, I will kill Max."
Cal froze. The boy was unable to do anything, not think, not move, nothing.
"Why would you want that? Wouldn't I just be, you know, more powerful then?" Cal asked, remembering the balance between his abilities and the 'block'
Vecna stared at the boy, "You are no challenge for me."
Cal glared at the creature, "Oh I'm going to rip your head off." He said, running towards Vecna.
Vecna raised his hand, about to use his powers, until Cal used his first, Vecna's arm being thrown into the air. The young boy ran faster towards, seeing Vecna's vulnerable state.
"Eat this fucker!" Cal yelled, making a fist and pulling his arm back, before socking Vecna right in the jaw, the creature stumbling back a bit.
Vecna grabbed his jaw before sending a glare towards Cal. He wanted to end the boy right here, right now. But after that, he decided to play with his food.
"I hope you chose wisely Zero" Vecna states, quickly raising his arm up, as Cal was flown through a door.
The boy felt the familiarity of his consciousness slipping away.
To be continued...
A/N
Here it is! This chapter was kind of rushed but also not really so I hope it's up to standard and everything makes sense!
I'll probably edit this over the next couple of days after I'm not feeling super tired and change things about it to make more sense if it doesn't already
Anyways, I hoped you enjoyed this chapter! Until next time, bye bye!