[hehehe hello again]

Everything felt like static.

Rex felt like someone had turned a faulty TV channel on and connected it to his veins. He was glad to not feel pain anymore, but at least when he was hurting he could make sense of his surroundings. The world was fuzzy, in both sight and touch. He felt like he was lying on a bed, but wasn't entirely sure. There was a lot he wasn't sure about these days. He could feel a nagging presence in one of his arms, almost as if something was skewered right through it. If you told him he had died, he would believe it- the entire world felt unreal. He didn't dare open his eyes, fearing that he may have ended up in some horrific afterlife.

Then again, he couldn't stay here forever. He felt somewhat hungry, and he didn't think that was something the undead experienced. Unless he had become a zombie, that is. In the world of nanites, anything was possible. To start regaining some connection with the planet Earth, he lifted his arm- it felt like the limb was barely even there- and tugged. If caused him mild pain, but at the moment, it was the only thing he was sure was truly real. If he could just pull at it again…

"Enough, Rex."

A familiar man's voice pulled him from his thoughts, prompting his eyes to snap wide open. He sight was immediately hit with a barrage of rainbows, translucent objects, and dark shadows across the room that fluttered around like birds.

"Q-que?" He sputtered, finding his voice to be unreasonably hoarse.

"You're going to pull out the IV," a woman's voice chimed in. "Stay still."

Oh, so that's what it was.

Rex summoned an unreasonable amount of energy just to turn his head to the side, finding himself in a room he'd never seen before. It was like a real hospital room, and not just an examination area for experiments on EVOs. Two large fuzzy figures accompanied him. One was noticeably smaller and curvier, standing next to him. The other was much taller, and further in the back. Despite how close they both were, he couldn't make out the details of their clothes or faces. His senses had never been this distorted before, and it was starting to make him really uncomfortable.

"He looks confused," the blurry woman said. "What's wrong with him?"

"He's been unconscious for two days now," the cloudy man informed her. "The IV is still distributing mind altering chemicals into his system even as he becomes more conscious. The problem will solve itself when the supply in the bag is used up."

"How long will that take?"

"According to these liquid concentration scanners, only a few hours now."

Rex groaned. "Where… am I? Who are you?"

The woman laughed, appearing to float towards the man. "Wow! How strong are these drugs?"

The tallest figure suddenly made its way toward him, making the boy nervous.

"Not even the most potent ones I have, really," the man stated, rubbing what felt like a hand through the teen's hair and down his neck. "You're in Abysus, Rex. Though, I don't believe you're familiar with this particular location of the castle. Can you count my fingers?"

Another blurry, skin colored figure was raised into Rex's vision, confusing him further. If there were truly any fingers on it, they were all melted together into one giant fleshy mitt.

"I don't see any," the young EVO admitted. "Who are you?"

"What other ruler of this country do you know of?"

Rex faltered for a moment. Then, upon remembering the man he despised, he scowled and turned his head away.

"God, I hate you," the boy muttered. "And… I'm going to guess that's Diane over there."

"Eternally ungrateful," Van Kleiss remarked. "But it shows you are coming back to reality. Or at least, your convoluted version of it."

"Come on, kid," the woman spoke up, trying to quell the tension in the room. "He saved your life. I saw it. And from what I hear, he does this a lot."

Rex scoffed. "He only does that so he can torture me some more."

"You are the only one torturing yourself," the king denied. "Another reason I had to keep you blacked out for a couple of days. You never let yourself heal because you're too busy fighting everyone."

Diane tapped her fingers together nervously. "Rex? Is that true?"

"Stay out of it," the teen snapped. "I'm not your next biggest scoop."

Rex immediately regretted his words upon hearing her gasp.

"Hey, no, wait, I'm sorry," he apologized quickly, hoping he hadn't hurt her feelings. "I'm just not… doing so good right now. Obviously…"

"Which is what I've been investigating," the king commented. "Your lesions are of such a strange nature, but regarding recent events, it's becoming harder to be shocked by anything anymore. The blisters-"

"Don't touch me," Rex snarled. "All you do is-"

"Rex, enough," Diane cut him off. "Let him talk."

The boy stared at her quietly, stunned by her words.

"I know I haven't been here long, but you really do seem to have the attitude he says you do," the woman explained. "Stop being so aggressive. It's not helping you."

Rex's eyes widened in indignation. "I told you, it's all just to torture-"

"What torture?" the reporter interrupted. "I've been here the whole time you were unconscious. Even when he dragged you back from wherever you were hiding. He's never done anything that would cause you extra pain."

Rex went silent, unable to find the words to retaliate.

Diane shook her head. "I don't know if it's the IV meds that are making you act extra aggressive-"

"It's not," Van Kleiss informed her.

"-But you need to quit it. Focus on healing instead. And be nicer to those trying to help, instead of catching an attitude."

Rex felt attacked. "You don't get it."

"Are you telling me I can't trust what I see with my own eyes?" she questioned him. "Rex, have you ever followed directions without putting up a fight?"

Rex turned to stare at her, confused as to what to say. Her facial features were slowly becoming more detailed, and he could vaguely make out a look of disappointment plastered across them. He internally cringed, hating that he had somehow created two enemies at his weakest moment.

"Whatever," he muttered.

"Not the right response," Diane chided him. "I think you should apologize."

"To the guy who stabbed me with a giant needle?" the teen retorted. "Don't think so."

"He said that he told you to stay still and that you still chose to fight," she pointed out. "And that it was sedation, not stabbing. Is any of this a lie?"

Rex said nothing, promoting her to ask the question yet again.

"Okay, fine… I guess he didn't actually stab me," he said, giving in. "But it still hurt! And he was being all creepy about it!"

"Not an excuse. Apologize."

Van Kleiss stood quietly in wonder, watching the woman break down the boy in ways he never could.

"Never," the teen huffed. "If anything, he should to me!"

Diane crossed her arms. "What for?"

"Well um.. he makes me do sick stuff if I want his help! Cruel experiments!"

The woman paused, then directed her gaze at the king. "Experiments?"

"He acts as if my intent is to kill him," the man revealed, rolling his eyes. "Everything I've ever done to him had been previously tested for lethal effects. Every warning ever needed, I provided. The worst trial I've ever given him was granting him enhanced hearing. It only disturbed him due to the influx of unfamiliar sounds, not anything remotely painful."

The woman looked back at the sick child. "Is any of that true?

Rex suddenly became tight lipped.

"There's my answer," Diane said.

"Wait, no, listen," the boy suddenly spouted. "Remember when I asked you if he hurt you when he was alone with you? That was the day he beat me up and called me delusional!"

"Yes, I wonder who instigated that," the monarch murmured.

Diane raised a brow.

"Okay Diane listen, I was trying to protect you!" Rex went on. "I only kicked him around first because I thought he did something to you! He overreacted and put me in a chokehold!"

The reporter shook her head. "So even when I told you I was fine and wasn't showing any signs of abuse, you still started a physical fight? That's what I'm hearing."

Rex's words died in his throat.

"All I'm asking you to do is acknowledge what he does for you," she continued. "What he's been doing for many months now, apparently. I've seen some of the medical records he's kept. Those span way back."

The boy let out a whine and tried to bury his face into a pillow. It was terribly embarrassing to have some of his most vulnerable moments easily displayed to a stranger.

"You're only proving his point that you're immature. We can start simple. Recognize what he's doing for you right now."

"He got into your head, didn't he," the teen said, muffled. "He's manipulating you. He-"

"If you don't start doing what I asked, I can just leave you alone with him," Diane stated flatly.

The very thought was enough to make Rex shudder. If he tried to start a fight now, there was no way he'd win, with how many drugs were pumped into his system. Hell, he didn't think he could even sit up straight yet. Whether the woman intended to or not, she had effectively trapped him.

"You both suck," he mumbled.

Diane tilted her head. "What?"

"I said fine," Rex lied. He rose from the comforts of his pillow, despite the resulting dizziness. "Okay. He stabbed me-"

"Start over."

Ugh.

"He sedated me," he begrudgingly recalled. "And brought me here. And knocked me out for a couple of days. Because my skin felt like death."

Diane nodded. "Much better. Now, you should thank him for it."

"He loves my suffering!" the teen complained. "Do I really have to do this?"

"Yes."

"Geez," Rex groaned, turning to the man on the side. "You're probably not actually satan for trying to fix me."

The reporter shook her head.

"Oh my god, fine," the young EVO moaned. "Thanks for… bringing me here and not leaving me to die in misery. Happy?"

Van Kleiss smirked. "It's a good start."

"I told you I could make him," Diane said cheerfully. "Part of my job is drilling people, anyway."

"You two were in cahoots!" Rex accused. "You-"

"Stop," Diane asserted, her tone much more firm again. "Even you can't admit that anything we said was untrue. In my line of work, the facts are the only things that matter."

The boy could only stare as she then left the room with a satisfied expression on her face, leaving him with the man who clearly benefitted from her presence. Silent tension filled the room for a brief moment, but there was nothing that could keep a chatterbox from opening his mouth for long.

"What happened to me?!" Rex asked the king, still unable to see the wretched details of his flesh. "And why did you knock me out for two whole days? You really think I'm that obnoxious?"

Van Kleiss glanced at the child from over his shoulder. "Yes."

The teen scowled. "I don't even know why you keep me here or keep treating me. You obviously hate me."

"At times, you are dislikeable, yes," the man agreed. "But I don't hate you. I used to, but now, I pity you at best."

"That's even worse!"

"Your ego, I'm sure, is taking a blow. Rex, you're almost eighteen. At least pretend to act like an adult."

The boy felt his heart skip a beat at this newfound realization.

"I'm going to be a legal adult!" Rex exclaimed, eagerly trying to sit up despite the dizziness. "No one can tell me what to do anymore! Especially not you! Woohoo!"

The king scoffed. "Legally, you are only allowed as much as I am generous with. Remember, in my country, I create the laws. No one said you will retain the freedoms established in other nations just because you pass an arbitrary age benchmark."

The child froze, then fell into a slump.

"Not that I'm planning to make your life miserable," the older EVO went on. "But you should be more aware of your surroundings. Do yourself a favor and think things through."

Rex thought for a moment, then faced his captor who was now checking the blood scanners.

"You can't control me if I'm not in Abysus," the boy stated. "So if I ever escape, bad news for you."

"I'm absolutely terrified," the king mocked. "Do you think I haven't thought of that? Even if you leave the borders, you still belong to this land. To me."

"How?!"

"All I have to do is complete the paperwork that establishes you as an official citizen of Abysus. Therefore, if you try fleeing to another country and they reject you- especially with the way hostility is rising towards our kind- they will deport you back here."

Rex was horrified. "I- I'll make sure you never get that paperwork!"

Van Kleiss grinned. "All I told you was that it needed to be completed, not that I haven't already started it. If you wish to locate the documents, you'll have to search every crevice in this entire castle. In your current state of poor health, physical and mental, I doubt you'll find the time."

The teen swallowed. "Well, I can just make myself a citizen somewhere else! I don't think they'd reject me anyway. I'm a global hero!"

"And how will you accomplish that?"

Rex stuttered, realizing he didn't know the first thing about the immigration process.

The king let go of the scanners and walked towards the boy, standing right in front of his patient's struggling body. He leaned down so they could be face to face, as he knew the medication was still causing Rex to dissociate too much to focus on anything further.

"You will never be able to escape me," the man informed him. "But you don't even have a reason to try. Diane made you acknowledge that you aren't being treated as cruelly as you think you are, and I know you believed every word you said, despite your reluctance. Why do you keep this up?"

Rex gazed into the red eyes that sent shivers up his spine, his hands grasping the edge rail of the bed as he refused to look away.

"I'm just… used to fighting you," the younger EVO answered. "Why can't you see that? Remember how we treated each other? Before all this? That was normal for us! It still should be!"

"Clinging to the past is the reason why you haven't healed."

"In case you haven't noticed, thinking about my past is kind of my thing. Y'know, amnesia and all."

Van Kleiss raised a brow. "Rex, is this really about your past? Or are you using it to mask something else? By now, you know who your parents are, your brother, where you grew up, and other things about your juvenile life. That's not an excuse anymore."

"You don't get it! The past was the best thing that ever happened to me. Everything went wrong when it changed. And the more things change, the more… things get worse."

The king looked down at the boy who was now having a small internal crisis.

"Trying to keep as much of your old life as you can is going to backfire," the man said. "You're going to have to grow up eventually. You're only keeping enemies and friends for the sake of useless familiarity, which is affecting the way you see me."

Rex sighed, then looked away. "I mean, it's not just that. I get that you try to help me sometimes but.. you also…"

The teen's next few words became too quiet to hear. Van Kleiss snapped his fingers, instructing him to speak up.

"You also scare me," came a mumbled response.

Rex then lied back onto his sheets and partially covered himself with them, feeling utterly embarrassed with himself. He had no reason to be so open with his enemy. Perhaps it was the drugs affecting his mind. He would take any excuse to claim what he'd just uttered was a lie, but he knew neither of them would believe it.

"Can we forget I just said that?" the boy asked meekly, refusing to face the man in the room. "I'll stop fighting you so much and we can just go back to normal."

The king shook his head. "Your perception of me is heavily influenced by the way we used to treat each other. I believed time would fix this, but with your trauma from the accident, you aren't able to handle multiple mental loads all at once, and therefore remain stagnant."

"Well I-"

"I'm going to make you begin a meditation routine. What you need are moments where your mind is completely still. I can tell that the more you think, the more you fuel your own terror. You need to step back from it all."

"I don't know anything about meditation," Rex whined. "Can't I just play a video game or something? I think that's the same."

"No. Now, lie still so I can-"

Diane screamed in the distance.

Then, a crash.