The guard man led Yoongi down the hallway. The boy was practically in a stupor, trailing along with no shirt, an ugly '0' branded into his skin and a vacancy in his expression. They had made it only halfway down the corridor when the door to a stairwell burst open and several men in suits with guns strapped to their hips came racing towards them.  

Maybe they'll help me, Yoongi's brain suggested to him. Or maybe they'll shoot me dead. Though I guess that would be a help to me, too. 

"Min Yoongi," one of the men said, and the guard at the boy's side lurched to a stop. 

"Yes?" The guard responded in lieu of the dazed boy at his side. 

"He'll be coming with us," the other suited man stated. The guard nodded and took a step back, but couldn't rid himself of his concerned expression. 

Yoongi started to follow the suited pair towards the elevator, but the two stopped when the guard man spoke from where he was still standing in the corridor.  

"Did the machine make a mistake?" He asked. Yoongi felt a twinge in his chest, a strong and almost painful flash of something like hope. 

"No, of course not. The machine doesn't make mistakes," the taller suited man declared firmly.  

His partner nodded. "Please forget this entire incident," he instructed the curious guard, who bowed his head respectfully. 

The flame of hope that had sparked in Yoongi's chest was extinguished just like that. Once again, despair was overwhelming him, crushing him, squeezing the air out of his lungs. The number wasn't a mistake. He was an anomaly. A freak. Zero wasn't supposed to be possible. It wasn't supposed to exist.  

All he could do as he followed the suited men into the elevator was to fantasize about the range of possibilities for his future. He couldn't imagine anything positive coming out of this situation. Would he be exiled? Kicked out of the city and cut off from everything he'd ever known? Just plain killed on the spot? 

He couldn't conceive of what he possibly could have done to deserve this. He had strived so hard for perfection his whole life - never causing outbursts, doing what he was told without questions asked. Okay, so maybe he had messed up a few times, but surely not enough to justify this fate? Was he really that awful of a person? Of so little worth to the society?  

This must mean he was disposable. He was nothing. He was worthless. 

"Come along," one of the men said suddenly, snapping Yoongi out of his thoughts. He realized belatedly that the elevator had stopped, and that they had arrived at the top floor of the building. He stepped out into a large room with one wall made of a giant window. Area 8 sparkled below, its glittering glass surfaces looking just as they had that morning. Yoongi no longer had the energy to marvel at the scene. 

A man stood looking out the window, clad in the kind of clothing that was supposed to look casual but obviously cost a fortune, made of the finest fabrics with the utmost care. The man turned to face his new guest with a smile on his face. Yoongi didn't know what to make of this. No way in hell he could find it in himself to smile back in a situation like this. 

"Min Yoongi," the man boomed, a smile splitting his face. "How excellent to see you. Please, take a seat." 

Yoongi eyed the chair sitting in front of what he was assumed was that man's desk. He felt the need to follow the man's instructions, but his feet felt so heavy that he wasn't sure he could drag himself over to the chair. Instead, he stayed frozen in place. 

The man merely shrugged. "Or don't sit, suit yourself. But I just want to make one thing clear, since you seem a little, well, on edge, that you are in no way in trouble. We're not going to punish you, or hurt you in any way. In fact, we've chosen you for something very special." 

Those words should probably have made Yoongi feel a little better, but the zero tattooed across his torso reminded him that whatever this was, it still made him different. He was still a freak, and he would likely never be allowed to go back home to his parents and to the life he had known. 

"Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Cheon Seungho, and I am the head of New Seoul's police force. This position also puts me in charge of our special investigations department, which, I am pleased to inform you, will be welcoming you as their newest member as of today." 

Yoongi wasn't really sure he was hearing this all correctly. "I - I'm going to be part of special investigations?" His voice cracked embarrassingly. 

Cheon Seungho smiled. "Yes, we selected you based on your incredible potential, and your performance so far in both academic and behavioral terms. You've impressed us, Yoongi." 

Yoongi swallowed thickly. Some of his anxiety had faded away, replaced by confusion. There was one factor he still couldn't get over, however. "But - but the zero -" 

The other man cut off his mumbled protests. "You've already been assigned a mission, one we think that you will be able to handle exceedingly well. But it involves you going undercover, and you will need the 'zero' mark for that. Sorry to alarm you with the marking, but it's all part of your undercover disguise. You'll be re-branded with your rightful 'nine' when you have completed your mission." 

So I'm actually a nine, a swell of pride bloomed in Yoongi's chest at the thought. And I'm not a freak, I've been chosen for a special mission. 

"I suppose I should enlighten you on the details of your mission, and why it's so important, before I send you off for your training," Cheon Seungho said, turning to stare out the window once again. 

Training, thought Yoongi with a burst of excitement. There was a whole new future opening up before him, full of possibilities. He'd never really dreamed of being involved with the police force before, but it was surely an excellent job full of excellent opportunities. And to think, just minutes before, he'd thought he was facing exile or a death sentence. How quickly our visions of the future change. How quickly we accept our new fate. 

"You have been given the 'zero' for a very particular reason," the man facing the window broke Yoongi away from his thoughts, drawing him back to the situation at hand.  

"Yes, sir," Yoongi responded, gaining some of his confidence back, "and what is that?" 

"There have been rumors floating around about this for a while, but they've finally been confirmed. In Area One, there have been a few brandings of - anomalies, I suppose they could be called - by the machines. Some have been branded zeroes, but not by orders of the government or the police force, as you were. Real Zeros. And we want to find out why." 

A slight shiver travelled down Yoongi's spine. Real Zeros were certainly an unnatural occurrence, and the thought was rather unsettling.  

"The Zeros have proved to be quite adept at evading capture. So far, we have not managed to bring a single one in for questioning. Which also means that we haven't managed to find out much information about them at all." Yoongi could hear the anger simmering beneath the surface of Cheon Seungho's voice. It obviously frustrated him greatly that his force had failed in their efforts so far. 

"Which is where you come in, Min Yoongi," the man turned away from the window to look the younger man in the eyes. "We want you to befriend a certain Zero, get him to trust you, and then bring him in for questioning. We need to know more about this - phenomenon." 

Yoongi nodded ever so slightly, his mind spinning with questions to ask. But he couldn't get anything out of his mouth with the older man staring at him like that, his gaze penetrating and his dark eyes searching Yoongi's. He seemed to be looking for something, but Yoongi didn't know what. So he just stood there, and stared back, wondering if he was supposed to be giving some kind of confirmation to the other man.  

It wasn't clear whether or not the man had found whatever he was looking for in Yoongi's eyes, but he broke the intensity of the moment by turning his attention to his desk and pulling out a manila folder. Yoongi found it easier to breathe again once the moment had passed. 

"This is the file on your mission," he handed the folder over the desk, and Yoongi moved forward to accept it. He opened to the first page, and there a picture of the Zero he was in charge of awaited him - dark eyes, a heart-shaped smile, and a mop of unruly brown hair.  

Yoongi stared down at the picture, and at the name beside it - the name of the person his future rested on.  

One smiling, but dangerous, Jung Hoseok.