Alright, even though I'm leaving on Monday, I still want to get as much of this done as possible. I hope you guys like this chapter, even if it is a bit short. Though I don't think it's too bad...but that's just me...

Red Rose

Chapter 26

Takuya sat beside Zoe, who was lying on the bed. He absently brushed her blond hair off her forehead, a grim expression on his face. It had been twenty minutes since Kouji had brought the two of them back to the house, and he had had no luck awakening the girl.

"C'mon, Zoe," he whispered into her ear. "Wake up..."

The Diclonius did not stir, her only movements coming from the rising and falling of her chest with each breath she took. With a miserable groan, Takuya pulled her into his lap and held her to his chest. He kissed her forehead, then closed his eyes as he dozed off. Zoe was having horrid visions of her own as she slept, though they were more than mere nightmares.

Ten years ago

"Oh, god.... What have I done?"

Eight year-old Zoe walked down the dark street, her clothes covered in blood. More splatters were on her face, staining her hair red. Tears seeped from her large, green eyes in thick droplets, running down her face in rivers. The tears mixed in with the blood on her face; the blood of Takuya's family.

"I-I killed his f-family," she stuttered to herself, wiping her face with the back of her hand. "My only friend...and I killed his family...."

Her heart was pounding with a mixture of exhaustion, fear, and shock. She had just run from the train station, getting as far away from Takuya as possible. She did not want him to share the same fate as his mother, father, and younger brother.

Zoe's hands were shaking and she felt slightly cold, as the temperature had dropped during the night. The sky was pitch black, though an array of stars littered the darkness. A few street lamps revealed Zoe's path as well, illuminating her surroundings.

"I...I...I'm a monster!" The young Diclonius collapsed to the pavement, sobbing. "Those kids were right...I am a freak..."

Blood and tears dripped onto the ground where she lay. A light breeze blew, causing her to shiver. She didn't care about the weather, though, as her thoughts kept going back to the train incident.

Zoe had decapitated Takuya's parents without a second thought, thick geisers of blood gushing from where their heads had been. Then the little boy whom Takuya had called 'Shinya' had been her next target. Her vectors had ripped him in half as if he had been nothing more than a mere rag doll.

Don't be so hard on yourself, her inner voice whispered. Takuya deserved it for lying to you. He lied about his friend being a boy. You saw the two of them with your very own eyes....

"Shut up!" Zoe screamed. "He didn't deserve it! So what if he lied to me?! It wasn't a big deal....

But it was, the voice chided. Takuya knew that you would get upset if you found out that his friend was a girl. So he hid it from you... I honestly think that he did deserve to see his family slaughtered right before his eyes. Maybe next time he'll think twice about lying to someone....

"I said shut up!" Zoe's cries grew louder and she began to cough. "Takuya was nothing but nice to me. When all of the other kids called me 'freak' and 'monster', he was there to tell me that I wasn't. But I proved him wrong...."

The young girl did not notice a squad of men sneaking up behind her in the shadows, their bodies covered in gear. S.W.A.T. was written on the front of their vests, and their heads were protectively encased in thick helmets.

"I'm sorry, Takuya," Zoe mumbled to herself. "I'm so sor-"

She was suddenly jabbed with a hard object in the back of her neck, sending volts of electricity through her body. The Diclonius shuddered and convulsed, before blacking out. The last thing she saw was the group of men looming over her, reaching to out to restrain her. Everything became dark after that.

"....Where did you find her...?

"...Very interesting....She seems to be..."

"...Right after the carnival! We think she was behind the massacre..."

"...I hope she's restrained tightly. Little monster..."

Zoe moaned, her entire body in pain. When she turned her head, a searing pain shot through it, causing her to whimper. All around her, the voices ceased and all eyes were on her.

"She's awake," one voice speculated. "Didn't take very long at all..."

"Has she been sedated?" Another voice asked, this one belonging to a female.

"Yes, she has been given a large dose to ensure that she doesn't try anything...."

The young girl weakly looked around, the light above her head distorting her vision. She blinked several times to let her eyes adjust, but she was still unable to make out the figures surrounding her. She attempted to cover her face with her hand, only to discover that it was strapped down.

"Wha-what's going on?" Zoe became terrified, her heartbeat quickening.

After a moment, she realized that the rest of her body was strapped down as well. Her normal clothes had been taken and replaced with a simple white, hospital gown. A plastic bracelet was around her right wrist. For a brief second, she thought she was in a hospital. However, upon further speculation, she realized that she was not in a hospital room of any sort. There were no machines, no monitors, nothing to indicate a medical facility.

"W-where am I?" She asked, unable to keep herself from stuttering. "How'd I get here?"

There was a murmur of voices around her, whispering amongst themselves. She could hear the sounds of pens scribbling against clipboards, taking notes.

"Where am I?" Zoe repeated, her eyes fillilng with tears. "Will someone answer me?!"

"You are in my research facility, my dear..."

Zoe turned her head, as it was only part of her not tied down to the metal table she was lying on. "Who said that?"

"I did." A man in his sixties with gray and white hair stepped forward, a smirk on his lips.

"Well, who are you?" Zoe demanded, attempting to sound unafraid.

"Allow me to introduce myself. I am Director Kakuzawa, head of this research facility," the man told her.

The girl glared at him. "Research facility? Why did you bring me here?"

"Well, to study you, of course," Kakuzawa responded as if it were obvious.

"Study me? For what?"

The director chuckled. "We'll find out exactly soon enough."

The Diclonius leered at him for another moment, before concentrating on her vectors. "I don't think so!"

However, as she attempted to unleash them, nothing happened. Dumbfounded, Zoe tried again, concentrating harder than before.

"It won't work, you know," Kakuzawa pointed out. "I've disabled your.....invisible appendages...."

"What?" Zoe's eyes widened and she stared at him in confusion.

Kakuzawa smirked again. "On each side of your head, we've placed a metallic disk, right at the temple. The disks temporarily disable your vectors, and you are unable to use them until the devices are shut down. They are only attached with a skin-safe adhesive, so don't worry about losing two circle-shaped pieces of skin on your head."

"How did you do that?" The blond gasped in surprise, referring to the disks' capabilities.

"Technology, young lady," he told her. "At this facility, we use only the latest technology in science. And now that you're hear, you will be experiencing out methods quite a bit."

Zoe paled a shade, swallowing in fear. "Please...just let me go...."

"I'm afraid I can't do that," he replied, feigning sympathy. "We know that you were behind that carnival killings. And the ones on the train...."

"No...it's not true," she shot back. "It... it was someone else! Now let me go!"

Kakuzawa smiled smugly. "We all know that it was you. You were spotted amongst the chaos at the carnival, walking through the crowd like a zombie. People blew into dismembered pieces all around you, while you just stared vacantly ahead. There's no point in denying it."

Zoe tore her gaze away and sniffled. "Just...let me go. I promise I won't hurt anyone again..."

"You did more than just hurt them," he explained. "You ripped them to shreds. Now, tell me....what is your name?"

"I'm not telling you," she hissed, still not looking at him.

"We're all friends here, aren't we?" Director Kakuzawa glanced at the surrounding scientists, who mumbled their agreements.

Zoe finally looked at him, her face twisted into sheer hatred. "No, they're not my friends. They're yours. You only think that I'm some type of animal that you can do experiments on, don't you?! Well, I'm not! I'm not a stupid lab rat that you and your idiot scientists can study! Now untie me and let me out of here!"

Tears were now streaming down her face in thick rivers, wetting the table beneath her head.

"I just want to go home..." she choked out. "Please...."

"This is your home now," Kakuzawa told her firmly. "Now either tell me your name or you'll get acquainted with this needle."

As if on cue, a man with shaggy brown hair stepped forward. He appeared to be in his early to mid-twenties and slightly resembled the director. In his hands held a large syringe, the needle of it several inches long. Zoe cried out in terror, thrashing at her bonds wildly.

"Now tell me." Kakuzawa loomed over her. "What is your name?"

Zoe sniffled again, regaining her composure. "Z-Zoe..."

"Lovely name," the man commented. "Now that we've gotten to know each other, I think it's time for you to get comfortable. But first, we need a sample."

"A sample?" The girl frowned in confusion.

"Yu," Kakuzawa said, nodding the the man holding the syringe. "Take a blood sample."

"Yes, sir." Yu Kakuzawa stepped forward, obeying his father's demand.

Zoe shrieked. "No! I told you my name! Please, not the needle!"

"It'll only take a minute," Yu muttered, drawing closer with the object.

"Noooooooo!" Zoe screamed as the thick needle sank deep into the flesh of her forearm. "Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhhh!"

Yu stood there for several seconds, drawing nearly a quarter of a pint of blood. Zoe's cries turned into whimpers and she simply lay there, helpless as he finished extracting the blood. He finally pulled it out of her, and a woman stepped forward. The woman pressed a guaze pad onto Zoe's forearm, before taping it down.

"Okay, I've got it," Yu said, holding the syringe up.

"Yes, I see that. Thank you," Director Kakuzawa replied dryly.

Yu shrank back against the crowd of scientists, meekly looking away from his father.

"Okay, now that that's done, I think you can go to bed right now," Kakuzawa said, looking at Zoe with a malicious glint in his eyes. "Tomorrow we will begin your sessions..."

He stormed away, leaving the group of scientists to tend to Zoe. They roughly unbuckled her straps, pulling the girl up to a standing position. Zoe wobbled unsteadily, her head spinning. She felt nauseaus and gripped the side of the table, taking a deep breath. Before she could get rid of the sick feelilng, her arms were jerked behind her back and bound together.

"To make sure that you don't pull those disks off and use your vectors," a man growled at her. "Now come on."

He ushered her out of the room and down the dreary corrider. The building seemed to be made with a metallic material, as everything was shiny and silver. She was rudely shoved into another room, where a tall, steel chamber awaited ominously.

"Wha-what's that?" Zoe trembled, her voice cracking.

"Your tomb," the scientist said with a cruel smirk. "You'll be spending the majority of your time in that chamber."

Zoe began to cry, clearly terrified of the contraption. Before she could do anything, her arms were unbound and a strait-jacket was placed around her. Her arms were shoved through the sleeves and folded across her chest. The straps were buckled and tightened, causing the girl to squeal in pain.

"It hurts!" She protested.

The man swore under his breath, but loosened the buckles just enough to take away the painful sensation. He then pulled a thick, metal helmet over Zoe's head. The girl continued to sob, the sounds echoing in the encasement.

Seconds later, the scientist pulled the chamber of the door open and heaved Zoe into it. He put her into an upright standing position, securing her in place by three steel bars. One was across her chest, one across her legs mid-thigh, and the last at her ankles.

"Sweet dreams, brat," the man sneered as he slammed the door of the chamber shut.

Zoe screamed in the darkness within the device, pleading for someone to let her go. After hours of helpless pleas, she finally succumbed to sleep, knowing that her true nightmare was just beginning...

So, what did you think? ^_^ Thought it would be cool to do some of Zoe's past. One more chapter of her past and then back to present time! Please reveiw and tell me what you think :) See ya.