He felt Jeb and another resistor pull him off his horse, and then the punching started, then the pain and then soon the blackness. He welcomed the sweet nothingness.
But soon enough, Zero felt a boot hit his side bringing him out of the darkness. His hands instinctively went to protect his now bruising side as he looked up to see his attacker as none other than Jeb Cain.
"Get up, you're coming with us." Jeb said, turning to one of the others, with a nod, and found two men, dragging him to standing position before tying his hands behind his back. Zero did not struggle at all. He just stared at Jeb.
"Oh so that is why I'm still alive? Going to pump me for information?" Jeb just looked at him, smugly.
"Of course, what else would I want with you?" Zero smirked back.
"I'm sure you can think of something." Jeb took a quick look around, before he walked over to Zero, still being held by two of his men.
"That ship sailed the moment you put me in that iron suit." Jeb said voice low and threatening.
"And how do you think the resistance knew you were there?" Zero said quietly. Jeb just blinked at this for a second. Zero watched Jeb's eyes dance for a second, staring into them, as Jeb processed the information.
"Sir?" Jeb was visibly startled by the other man's intrusion into their staring contest, as the connection between then was broken, and he got back to his job at hand. "We got the wounded ready to go. What are we going to do with the rest of the Longcoats?"
"Take their weapons, but just leave then here," Jeb said, still looking at Zero. "We got the most important one; that is all we need."
Jeb walked away from Zero. Zero looked up to see that Cain was staring at him, from across the clearing. Zero's breath caught in this throat as he stared back at the man.
He could see that Cain was confused; he must have witness the interaction between him and Jeb. He felt himself being shoved by one of his captors, causing him to break the eye contact with Cain as they walked into the woods. It did not take them long to reach the camp.
They walked into the Resistance camp and Zero was put in a tent. One of his captors removed the rope around Zero's hands as another trained a gun on him, most likely taken from one of his men.
"Remove you armor and coat." Zero just smirked at them.
"Sorry, boys, I don't go that far on the first date. Too bad for you." Zero said, smugly. He saw the gun flying through the air before it hit his cheek. He could have stopped it if he wanted to, but he didn't want to fight the men at the moment. He just glared at the man as he went to remove the armor on his left arm. He let it fall with a crash, causing both men to jump slightly.
'Boy the resistance was jumpy.'
'They have good reason to be.' After that he removed his coat, and let it fall to the floor as well.
"See that chair over there? I want you to sit in it, with your arms behind your back." Zero did what was asked of him. The man not holding the gun went to restrain Zero with a wood stocks. The two men left him after they made sure he was properly restrained. Left him alone with his thoughts.
'So Jeb is alive, thank God.'
'And I'm sure he is going to shower you with love and devotion.'
'Of the torturing kind.'
'Well you always did like the bondage.'
"Shut up you!" He said out loud. He saw a head poke itself in, but he did not dignify them with a look.
'And you have Wyatt back too; too bad they both would rather kill you at the moment then bed you.'
'And with good reason too. I'm just happy they are both alive.'
'Look at yourself; you're so weak and pathetic. All ready to give up. It almost makes me sick.'
'What else do I have to fight for? What else is there left for me except for being killed by one of my ex-lovers.'
'You can tell them the truth, you can tell them, tell him how you still feel.'
"And how do you expect me to do that?" This time the man stepped into the tent and looked around. Zero still did not acknowledge the man.
'He will know, remember the ice palace...'
'It was like he could see it in my eyes.'
'Yes, he will know, just tell him.'
Soon after that, Cain, Jeb, the viewer and the Zipperhead all entered the tent. Jeb walked up to the man, who was still searching the tent.
"Is there a problem?"
"Ahhh no Sir, I... " He leaned in to talk quietly but it did not matter, Zero could still hear what he said.
"I think he is nuts, sir. He was talking to himself. I was checking the tent out, to make sure it was just himself, but no one else is here." Jeb turned to look at Zero, as Zero just smirked at him. Jeb turned back to the Man.
"Good work then, we will take it from here." The man nodded and left them alone.
"Raw?" Jeb said. Zero watched as the viewer came up behind him, placing his hands on his shoulders. He knew this might hurt, he seen other people been read, and had himself been read a few times when he first joined the Longcoats. He gritted his teeth in preparation but nothing came. Maybe it was not as bad as he remembered, or maybe this one was just better than the others. He did feel something, maybe that was it.
He looked around the room, first to Cain, who was staring at him, face emotionless, but there was something in those eyes of his, those beautiful baby blues, but he could not make it out in the darkness of the tent. He tried to flash Cain a look of sorrow, but he was not sure if he was getting his message across.
Then he turned to see Jeb, also staring at him, those Hazel eyes, anxiously awaiting the information he held within his brain. When they heard the viewer sigh, they all looked up at him and away from Zero.
"Azkadellia shields his mind, Raw can not see."
'Well isn't that just typical... the bitch.' He turned to look at Cain again, was that, sadness in his eyes, no it can't be. Maybe he got the message.
He saw Jeb advance on him, leaning down to talked to him, voice almost emotionless.
"I'll make these easier for you, if you tell us everything you know about the machine..." So that is what he wants. Maybe there can be something that can be done. But if I give it up too easily, they will never believe it.
Zero spit in Jeb's face as he turned to look back at Cain. He was angry at him for that, but still, his eyes almost pleaded for him to give in. Confusion washed over Zero's eyes.
'What does he know...'
He saw Jeb wiped the saliva off his face, slowly, Anger now within those hazel eyes. He stood up, slowly and turned the man on guard.
"Bring it in." Zero heard movement behind him.
'What is the little boy going to do?' He thought letting out a laugh.
'Let see how far my little angel is willing to go with this.'
'He's not yours anymore.'
"What do you got there?" Zero said out loud, looking back up at Jeb. He flashed him a smile before raising an eyebrow at him.
'Looks like little boy wants to play in the big games.'
Jeb just looked down at him, calm as can be, before raising his own eyebrows at Zero. This caused him to laugh again before Jeb walked behind him.
'He sure is playful now.'
Zero heard some metal clinking together behind him and something that sounded like a knife. Zero's blood froze at this.
'Little boy is not playing around.'
He looked at Cain, and could almost see the guilt within his eyes.
'What did he tell them?'
"What is that?" Zero asked, trying to see behind him but couldn't do to the stocks on his arms. He made a few more noises when he felt Jeb standing behind him.
"Hold his fingers." He heard Jeb say. Zero's eyes went wide.
'No, he wouldn't tell them about that.'
He felt himself getting pushed forward as he screamed.
"NO! Wait!"
'Papa please I promise I will be good.' he heard his child like self say in his mind.
"Wait! Wait! Wait!" He felt someone grab at his fingers as he tried to ball them up into a fist.
"Look No! Not the fingers!"
'Adrian, Give me your hand.' he heard his father's voice.
"Not the fingers" He started to pant heavily.
'Papa, no... please...'
"Not the fingers." Zero screamed
"Shut up!" He heard Jeb scream, first real emotion that Zero had gotten from the man. It was full of rage and angry.
"I'll tell you anything you want to know!"
"Oh it's too late." Venom dripping off his words.
"I'll TALK OK!" Zero pleaded to him
"IT'S TO LATE!" Jeb screamed back.
"Son, Let him talk." Cain turned to Zero.
"TALK!" Cain said, angrily.
'How the fuck could he be angry at me, after the shit he just pulled?' Zero thought as he visibly shook with anger and built up adrenaline.
'And you deserved every second of it.'
"The machine forms an intense beam of light." Zero blurted out still shaking.
"Why?" Zipperhead this time. Zero turned to him, not wanting to look at Cain at that moment.
"It focuses the power of the emerald at the double eclipse. Locks the two sun's behind the moon." Despite his anger, he turned back and looked at Cain.
"It will bring darkness to the O.Z. forever." He could tell that Cain knew he was telling the truth, but he was confused on why anyone would want to do that.
'Join the club.'
"Damn thing is the Anti-sunseeder." The Zipperhead spoke again.
"Sunseeder?" It was Jeb who spoke this time.
"Yeah its a little dohicky I designed to slow the suns and extend the growing season." the Zipperhead sounded almost proud of inventing the machine that was going to bring the destruction to the O.Z.
"How do we shut it down?" Jeb said to him, anger in his voice. Zero just ignored Jeb's tone, smiling slightly, as he motioned to the Zipperhead.
"Ask him." Zero said.
"Well, it sounds like what she is using it for is an entirely different barrel of monkey bats, I don't know how her machine works?" the Zipperhead said, confused. Zero was almost giddy now. He felt like he had almost gotten control of this situation.
"Part of you does, Ambrose." Zero said, smiling up at him.
'Put it together, Zipperhead'
"Ambrose?" Zero turned to look at Jeb, into those eyes of his.
"Jeb?" Cain said questioning. They turned to look at each other as he spoke.
"Our spies found out that Ambrose is the code word for the brain that runs the machine." Zero wanted to laugh at that, because he knew where Jeb got his information from, but Jeb had no clue. Zero turned back to the Zipperhead.
'Put it together.'
"My marbles are in the tower?"
'Bingo.' Zero thought as he just nodded up at him.
"Where are they?" Cain said. Zero did not even hesitate at this point.
"Brain room... Brain room, sub level 3. Look I've told you everything that you need to know, please, put that thing away... put that thing away. OK please." He said, eyes going back and forth from Jeb to Cain's as he spoke. Jeb looked at him, almost mockingly as he showed Zero the two spoons that where in his hands and clinked them together.
"Glad too." Jeb just smirked down at Zero, and he could have sworn he saw an apologetic look with in Cain's eyes.
Zero just closed his eyes, letting out a long sigh.
'They fucking tortured me with spoons.' he could hear a part of himself laughing at him again.
'Quiet you.'
'But I can't help it; the mighty Zero was taken down by two spoons.' He heard some clatter but he ignored it.
'That was only because Wyatt told Jeb my weakness, my one true fear.'
'Why wouldn't he use your weakness against you, you did the same to him.'
'True.' Before he knew it, he felt a cold, sharp metal slip under his neck.
'Looks like the boy plans to kill us after all. Good for him, bad for us.'
"Jeb, what are you doing? He heard Cain say almost panicked.
'Oh he's worried, that is a good sign.'
"Job's not done yet. Now I can finally finish this." Zero felt the sword on his throat. He leaned back instinctively as Jeb pressed it closer.
'I think someone is still a little pissed about being left to rot in that Iron Suit.' He saw Cain move from the corner of his eyes.
"Not like this. Put it away." Cain said as be pulled his son, and thank god, the sword away from him.
"This is the guy that killed mother." Jeb said angrily
'Accidentally Jeb.'
'He doesn't care anymore, he probably believes that lie you told Lonot anyway.'
"He destroyed your life and mine and you want to let him live!" Anger was rising in Jeb's voice.
'What happened to you Jeb?'
"He deserves to die..." Cain started
'And how long have I been saying that.'
'To yourself maybe.'
"Yeah!!" Jeb nearly screamed
"I won't deny that." Cain continued.
"Then what?" Jeb said.
'My thoughts exactly.'
"Killing him won't bring back your mother." Cain said calmly
'Like that is going to stop him.'
"And it won't honor her memory either." Cain finished.
'But that might.' There was eerie silents for a moment. Then he saw Jeb walk out of the tent, dropping the sword into the ground as he left.
"Thank you, Wyatt." Zero whispered out, not even sure why he said it. Cain just held up his hand to silence Zero.
"Don't, just don't." Cain said as he also left the Tent, the Zipperhead and Viewer not too far behind him, leaving Zero alone.
