Steve tried to hide his fear when he walked into the room with the tank again, yet his limbs still shook with anxiety. He was wearing the suit again, yet he knew that he wasn't going to float around peacefully like he did before. This was going to be a different test. Like Brenner had told him not long before, it was going to be more physical in nature, not mental.
Instead of being led to the large tank that he was in last time, Brenner's hand directed him to a glass cage, tall enough to hold him and more. Steve's eyes widened as he saw a chain latched to the bottom of it, with what appeared to be an ankle brace on the end of it.
Whatever was going on, he knew that it wasn't good.
Brenner gestured for him to climb into the tank through a ladder that stood by it and went into it, and Steve stiffened, his feet stopping in its tracks. The doctors watched him with critical eyes, and Brenner sighed.
"Nineteen? Step into the glass box. It's your training for the day."
Steve didn't respond. He didn't move.
He really, really didn't want to go in there.
He could feel Brenner's breath on his neck, the older man no doubt getting close enough to try and intimidate him. It didn't. Steve didn't really know why.
"Get in there, Nineteen," He said, his strange tone like it always has been. "Please, do it for Papa, and for yourself. This will help you understand your abilities."
"No."
Steve felt his hands become fists, his nails biting into his palms, and stared at the floor, waiting for the punishment that would surely come from his disobedience.
Brenner sighed again, and Steve lost it. How could he think that Steve would obey him all because he was disappointed? He wasn't going to listen to Brenner. Never again. Robin had powers, as much as he wanted her to get out of here with him, he couldn't let Brenner think that he would be controlled like a dog. He was Steve Harrington. He's fought worse monsters than this.
With one swift motion, Steve pivoted on his foot and swung his fist right into Brenner's nose, a resounding crack echoing across the room. The older man stumbled back, holding his nose as crimson blood trickled through his fingers and onto the floor.
"That's how it feels!" Steve screamed, "That's how it feels to have a nosebleed, Brenner! To lose control! That was for El! For Robin!"
"Oh, child." Brenner replied, unfazed. "I haven't lost control. Papa never loses control."
With one gesture of the hand, Steve was surrounded by guards, lighting firing into his body from multiple tasers. He cried out in pain, crumbling to the floor, his hands slamming against the concrete hard enough to bruise his fragile skin. He felt a hard boot kick into his stomach, leaving him gasping for breath, curling in on himself to protect his chest.
"Stop!" He heard Brenner call, and all of the attacks ceased immediately. "Just get him in the chamber."
"But, Sir?" A female doctor asked hesitantly. "Will this affect the experiment?"
"Yes, but it will only improve the results. Put him in."
Steve groaned as he was lifted to his feet and dragged up the ladder, harshly dropped into the cage. Someone dropped in beside him, placing the bond on his ankle and climbing out. The ladder was removed from the cage, and a lid was placed on top, and the only hole he could find was a small hole near the top, completely unreachable.
Steve sat up as quickly as he could, avoiding the stares from everyone across the glass. He began to fight with the chain, trying to free himself from it. He had no clue what he would do if he did somehow break it, as he couldn't jump out, but he had to try something. He wasn't about to lay down and die. Steve looked up to see Brenner watching him carefully, a tissue pressed to his nose.
No one says a word, though Steve didn't think that there was much say anymore.
A loud clicking noise came from above him, and he realized that someone had attached a huge tube to the hole near the top, a tube that opened up into the cell and ran down the side of the outside, disappearing from his view.
Steve's stomach dropped. Was…was it a hose? It sure looked like one.
"Turn it on." Brenner said sternly, and Steve waited for something horrible to happen, yet nothing did. A few seconds later water began falling from the tube, starting in small drops but soon bursting forth with desperation. Steve jumped away from the water, the chill of it on his feet soon fading to warmth, but he didn't feel the peace that he felt before.
He realized in an instant that they were going to drown him. They were going to drown him.
The water was rising fast, faster than Steve ever thought possible, and he kneeled down, fighting with the chain once more, jerking it back and forth, hoping to break it or something. Water was soon covering his knees, his waist, and his limbs became weak from fighting. But he had to keep fighting.
How was this supposed to help him understand his powers? What good was this going to do for him? Were they actually going to kill him?
As the water rose from his chest to his neck, Steve's feet were no longer on the ground as he struggled to stay afloat, the chain keeping him from going to the top. He began treading the water, like his old swim coach had taught him, but he knew that with the chain keeping him down low and the lid above him he would be soon dead.
He took one last breath as the water covered his nose, dunking his whole head under the water, swimming back down to pull on the chain, though he knew it was fruitless. He just had to try.
Air burned in his lungs, pressure filling his ears, his chest, his heart beating faster than he had ever felt it go before. He couldn't even feel the pain from the electricity or the kick to the chest, all he could feel was the pain of losing all of his oxygen, all of his strength, all of his will to fight, all of his life.
Because that was what was happening, wasn't it? He was dying.
He didn't know how long he fought for, but with every tug on the chain his vision became darker and darker.
The chain eventually slipped from his hands, his limbs becoming numb, and he closed his eyes, unable to open them again. He knew that he was sinking to the floor, letting the water envelop him, bury him in its warm embrace, and Steve knew that there were worse ways to go.
He let out the breath he had been holding, knowing that there was nothing he could do now.
Steve waited for death to come. He knew he had been in the water long enough, hadn't he? Or had time just felt like it was passing slowly?
Nonetheless, he wanted to take advantage of this. The time.
He thought about Dustin, poor, poor Dustin, who would never know how Steve died. He thought about Robin, who would no doubt be tortured by Brenner…would she know what happened to him? Would Brenner tell her? And, El…she would find Robin. She would. But she wouldn't find Steve. He knew that the young girl's heart would be broken. He would never be able to say thank you to her for trying, or thank you to any of them.
This was his end.
He didn't feel pain anymore. He couldn't feel any pressure or pain anywhere in his body, and he believed that the water had accepted him as its own, making him comfortable for his burial. It was nice.
But it didn't feel like death. Not the death he was imagining.
Steve opened his eyes, blinking as the view beyond the water became clear, and he could see Brenner, a satisfied smile on his face. Brenner caught his eye and raised his hand to his chest, letting it fall back down, like he was trying to tell Steve to breathe. Was he crazy? He was drowning!
Yet instinctively he took a breath, slowly through his nose. Water flooded his nostrils, but it didn't hurt. It didn't suffocate him. It didn't fill him with pain or fear. He let out the breath, bubbles forming in front of his face, but he took no notice of it.
His lungs didn't hurt anymore. He wasn't in pain. He was calm.
He was breathing.
Steve took another experimental breath, in…out, and it was exactly like he was in the air.
He was breathing underwater.
He gasped, backing away from the glass, from Brenner, and pressed his body against the back wall, shocked at the realization. He rested in the water, fully covered in the warm liquid, not even caring about the chain around his ankle. Why would he? He wasn't in danger anymore, was he?
He could see Brenner speak to the doctors outside, and all of them began to write in their notebooks and watch Steve in the container.
He took another breath, waiting for the water to begin to drown him again, but it didn't. He was breathing fine.
Steve knew that the number on his wrist would change him, but he would still be human. All that would be different about him was probably some abilities and the tattoo. But, now that he knew what he could do, he didn't even feel like a human at all. He felt like a freak. Was this how El always felt? How Robin was feeling now?
How would Dustin, Nancy, Hopper, Joyce…how would all of them look at him when he got home? He could breathe underwater like a fish. It was seriously messed up. He knew that they would be disgusted by him, Steve was already disgusted with himself.
He didn't know how much time had passed, but eventually the water began draining from the bottom of the cage, bringing his body down to the floor with it. As his feet landed on solid ground, it didn't take long for all of the water to be gone. Water dripped off of his body, his knees shook and he wrapped his arms around himself, unsure about what to do now.
The metal ladder was soon dropped down the wall, and another orderly, whether it was a doctor or a guard he didn't know, came down and took off the chain. His arm was grabbed and he was dragged up the ladder, and finally his legs decided to work. He blinked, following the man up and out of the cage.
"Very good, Nineteen." Brenner said with pride. There was still a bit of dried blood under his nose, but he was beaming. "Very good. You have a good future ahead of you."
Steve didn't know what to say to that. He didn't know what to say at all.
%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%
Robin sat on her bed, closing her eyes and concentrating on the minds around her. It had been a while since she had seen Steve, and she wanted to make sure he was okay. And, she believed, or, hoped, that she would be able to talk through their minds. She could read minds, send out images and feelings, so shouldn't she be able to talk to him?
She couldn't wait to try it, but she knew that he was being tested for the past couple of hours. She wouldn't read Steve's mind without good reason, but she didn't mind reading the doctors' mind, or even Brenner's, and that's how she knew when he was in a test.
She could tell that something interesting was happening, the doctor was focusing on terms like Adaptive and drowning. Brenner seemed to be in pain, but she didn't know from what. The only words she could read from him was sick praise for whatever Steve could do, him thinking of her best friend as a number and an experiment. It angered her, it really did, but she couldn't do anything about it. She didn't want either of them to get hurt.
Finally she gathered that the experiment had ended, as the doctor she was reading began putting away the clipboard. Robin chose to wait a couple of minutes, giving Steve time to go back to his room, knowing that she shouldn't try anything if Brenner was close to him.
Then there she was, sitting cross legged and trying to find Steve's mind. It didn't take long, the worry-filled determination and protective nature was a light in the dark, yet today it was dimmed by shock.
She frowned, remembering the word drowning that continued to pop up in many minds. Did they drown him? Is he okay? Why would they do that? What purpose would it serve? Was it for his powers? Did his heart stop?
She took in a shuddering breath, forcing herself to calm down and focus. She needed to talk to him.
Steve, it's Robin. She thought, sending it into his mind. He could feel fear course through his mind, yet it dulled quickly, as he no doubt realized what was happening.
Don't talk, just think. I'm reading your mind right now.
Robin? She laughed as his voice was clearly heard in her mind, and she couldn't help but feel relieved.
Yeah, it's me, Dingus. Are you okay?
I… I don't know.
Did they drown you?
He took a second before responding. Sort of? It's hard to explain. I…I thought I was gonna die, but then I could breathe underwater. It was freaky.
You can breathe underwater? Are you一
In an instant she gasped, eyes flying open, as all of her connections to Steve's mind were cut off without warning. Her head hurt and she brought her hand to her nose, feeling blood.
Steve? Steve? She thought urgently, searching for his mind, searching for him amongst the noises, yet she couldn't hear him.
She couldn't hear him at all.