He was a freak. He knew that. But he was an even bigger freak than the other freaks. A freak amongst the freaks.
Has he actually met any of the other freaks? No. At least, he didn't think so. He didn't seem to be able to remember anything past waking up in the white room. How he hasn't gone insane yet, he'll never know. Maybe he's just gotten used to his living conditions that nothing could possibly phase him anymore. Or maybe he's already gone insane and he's hallucinating. Who knows, certainly not him.
Okay, maybe he's being a bit too dramatic.
He was experiment 6. He lived with the other nine experiments in some lab in the middle of Nowhereville. They each got their own rooms, but it's really not like they ever stayed apart. 2 had somehow discovered that he could pick the locks, and they all had since spent each and every night together, before trailing back to their own rooms early in the morning before the scientists arrived.
It was better that way. For all of them.
4 was a bit shy, seemingly melting into shadows and then popping up again in a completely different area from where she had started. She seemed to trust 7 the most, though she was rather chaotic and brash. They seemed to get along the best out of all of them, which was rather surprising.
2 was the chillest guy around. He never got angry, and whenever he did, it was never for long. Usually you just let him be for a few minutes and wait for him to calm down. 6 found it kind of funny. This guy could turn you to stone as soon as you look him dead in the eyes, and he wasn't worried. Nope. Just chill. Very chill.
10 was a bit more uptight. He was kind and sweet and a little bit funny, but that was just one of his sides. If he was exposed to loud, eccentric music, he'd become 10.02, a blue skinned, flame-haired freak who spoke too loud and jammed their socks off. They loved him either way, though it could be a little bit of a headache every time he transformed into 10.02.
6 could breathe underwater. And chat with all sorts of different sea creatures. He reckoned he could talk with freshwater animals, too, but he hasn't really been introduced to any. Other than that, he seemed to be normal. But he probably wasn't. With all the things the scientists tested on him (and the others), they were probably as far from normal as fish was from land.
3 was like 2. Mostly. She was calm and collected, but, much unlike 2, nearly cold as ice most of the time, despite her fiery powers. She preferred to meditate in the corner than hang out with the others. But sometimes she would. Sometimes she would roll her eyes and stalk over, claiming to 'watch over them so they didn't do anything stupid'. He knew that she was lonely and just needed someone, anyone, to be there. He kept quiet. It was her choice if she wanted to tell the others or not. It wasn't his place to.
1 was an artistic ghost. He seemed to see colors and shapes and patterns where the others couldn't. He could see shapes and patterns at the slightest sound. He could see who was healthy and who wasn't by the color of their breath as they breathed in and out. He could see their sadness, which was smooth and flowy and slow, and happiness, which was bright and warm and swift. He could see things where the others couldn't. Maybe that's why he liked painting so much.
5 was a skeleton who was always ready to help. She, as well as 1, would sit upon the ground and sketch and paint and draw whatever was in front of them. It usually was the others, and they often hung up the best ones around the walls. The scientists never did anything. Maybe the thought that if they removed the pictures, they would start to rebel. Maybe their moods affected the tests, and they wanted the best results. Who knows, certainly not him.
8 loved plants. Maybe that was because she could control and grow them. Kinda like a nature fairy. A nature fairy with fangs and a half shaved head full of green-streaked hot pink hair. With a kind of fierce protectiveness over her friends as well as nature. She was caring and generous. 6 had seen her pass 10 a pretzel from her plate when he seemed down.
9 was invisible. 6 doesn't think anyone's actually seen him. He was still there. Waiting. Watching. Listening. Although, he was a bit sarcastic. Almost too sarcastic. But he was nice and caring, so that balanced things out.
These were his family. These were people who he felt comfortable enough to relax in their presences. Maybe that's because they were just like him. Lost and afraid and lonely.
They called themselves the 'Arrows'. They called themselves that because they were lost and waiting to find their way back. Waiting to make one little change in the world, like an arrow in a war, slicing a path towards the heart of the enemy.
Ten little Arrows. It had a kind of nice ring to it, he thought. The others seemed to agree. They sometimes got together, whether everyone was going to join or not, and tell stories about their day, like about a funny incident involving Dr. Synoka and Dr. Liften. Once, 10 had told them that Dr. Delpher's dog had died, and they'd all sat in silence for a few minutes, mourning the dog.
Okay, maybe they weren't the sanest. 6 had always thought it was because of how they were always cooped up in the lab, or the many experiments that were tested on them. One or the other. Or maybe both. He didn't know. He was just there.
The other Arrows were his friends, his family. He wouldn't trade them for the world.
He was content. Happy, well, sometimes, yeah, but he was always usually content.
And then one day, Dr. Synoka had told them they were to start a new school soon, a school where they, hopefully, wouldn't be bothered and judged for their freaky powers and stuff.
That was the event that started it all.
That was the start of the beginning of a journey that would shatter their illusion of their life in the lab and everything they thought they knew. That was the moment that every perfectly placed lie, every sentence and event that lead up to that moment, would unravel.
That was the day that everything changed.