I’m so sorry I haven’t been able to update. I had test period and spring break. Eeeeeeee the story is finally going to the deep plot. My stories never let a moment to breathe ;)

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Ten’ll never forget the moment that frase the word escaped from his lips.

Yuta screamed as he fell to his knees, laughing, crying, yelling his joy. Sicheng hugged said one tightly, kissing his forehead. 

“We’ll be free, love,”, Yuta cried, “you can go back to growing your plants in our home. We can go back to our plans. We can live.”

Sicheng’s eyes stung with tears, rolling down his cheeks. “Yes, yes we can.”. They cried happily as they held tightly. Ten felt like an intruder witnessing this. 

“Finally,” Yuta breathed, “happiness.”

John’s shoes clicked as he walked that old, dirty, smelly cellar. Doyoung and Taeyong called it “Holdment” saying they were just holding them for some time, but no, John thought of them as cellars, it was treated like one, and its habitants were treated like animals.

The smell of death and vomit were covered by his gas mask, and it still smelled horrible. He didn’t want to know how it smelled without it.

He heard cries, moans, groans, of the dying mutants in the cells, some begging for help as they watched John walk by. His heart clenched as he heard them. He couldn’t help everyone, save everyone. It’d start by small, little steps. 

The cellar, unlike the rest of Neo’s facilities, was a color gray, tall ceiling. The cells were no more than twelve meters squared, each holding atleast three mutants, nothing compared to the N. Rooms. 

He kept walking until he reached that particular cell. 

“Huang Renjun, Kim Jungwoo, let’s go.” Said boys were a mess. Filthy, malnourished, looking like they were a step away from death’s door. 

“H-hyung! You came back!”, said Jungwoo, eyes filling with hope. John’s heart clenched once more. 

“I promised I would, didn’t I?”, he smiled, even if it was hard to. “Come on, let’s get you out of here.”

He took out the keys he had... “borrowed” from the guard keeping the cells. He wouldn’t be needing those anymore. 

He handed them gas masks once out of the cell. 

“You’ll need this.”, he simply muttered.

He led them out of that haunting place, hearing the other mutants scream in agony, also wanting at least a taste of freedom. 

John fought back the urge to cry. He wouldn’t, he wouldn’t show weakness in front of these people who believed in him. 

“Put on your gas masks.” He ordered. They did. 

They walked out the cellar, and ten guards with their guns aimed at them were waiting outside, the bloody corpse of the previous guard on the ground.

“Put your hands up!”, one of them screamed. John could practically smell their panic and fear. They were right to be so. 

The mutants didn’t even budge a muscle. John could tell Jungwoo was beginning to feel nervous. He didn’t have to, after all, mutants are superior. 

John smiled, it being covered by his mask but still reaching his eyes. “Or what? You’ll shoot me, you filthy human?” 

Their eyes widened. “Watch your mouth bo-“ 

It all happened too fast. Suddenly, Renjun was shifting into a wolf, biting and tearing the guards’ limbs into shreds. Jungwoo’s eyes turned completely black, looking straight at the guards’ eyes, sending them into illusions, illusions that’d end in their deaths.

John grinned. He didn’t even have to lift a finger. His original plan was to gas them to death, but they took care of everything. The gas masks turned completely useless. 

The ten guards dropped dead in no time. Some with missing hands, legs, or ears; the others with foam in their mouths, eyes and mouth wide in horror. 

“Perfect,” John muttered, “this is absolutely splendid.” 

“So.. what’s next?”, Renjun asked, once again shifting into a human.

John smirked, and motioned for Jungwoo to open the door to the cellar. He did as asked.

“Listen to me brothers and sisters! We have lived in injustice far too long, we live in disgrace, living in conditions we do not deserve. Today, marks the day of the new era!”, John screamed to the mutants in the cells. Some cheered, some whooped, some shouted encouragement. 

“I, John Seo, mutant with the ability to create gas fumes from my pores, along with mutants Kim Jungwoo, mutant with the ability to create illusions, and Huang Renjun, mutant with the ability to shape shift into any animal, swear we will bring the mutant race to the top of the food chain!” 

They slammed at their cells, fired up, screaming and shoving each other. 

“The start of the new era...”, he whispered. 

Ten explained what went down. From the... ‘encounters’ he had with Taeyong, to their fight, to his reveal, to his decision.

Yuta was wide eyed by the time he had finished explaining, lost at words.

“So the bastard is one of us...”, Yuta shuddered, “Can’t even wrap my head around it. What did you say his ability was?”

“Fire ability.”, responded Ten.

“So the guy that made our lives hell, is one of our own? That’s ed up.”, Jeno said.

Jeno had arrived just a few moments ago, Sicheng quickly filled him in. His expression mirrored Yuta’s previous one. 

“The guy started killing at thirteen years old, I don’t find it weird he’s like that.”, Sicheng said, “he’s a monster.”

Ten wanted to deny that, so so badly, but he couldn’t deny the truth. Instead, he whispered, “He’s trying to change...”.

“You’re... defending him? Ten, what did he plant in your head?”, Yuta spat. He looked shocked, disgusted even. He stepped backwards, still eyeing him weird.

“I didn’t mean it like that. I know well that he’s a monster, a murderer. I’d never deny that. I’m all saying is that he’s trying to change. No more, no less.” 

“You better, Tennie. He has made all of our lives a living hell. Take me, I’m scared to go into the sunlight, because of all the sun I’ve been forced to take! We can’t start to feel sorry for that bastard.” 

Sicheng placed a hand on his shoulder, “It’s alright, Yuta, calm down. Ten isn’t defending him, he’s just stating something.”

He looked down, ashamed. “You’re right, love. I’m sorry, Ten.” 

He nodded, “It’s not important.”

“So, when are we exactly being set free?”, Jeno broke the awkward pause after the argument.

Ten shrugged, “I don’t know. He just said he needed to dissolve the company.”

“I hope it’s soon.” Jeno said, “I’ve been missing my walks with Jaemin.” 

Ah right, Jaemin. He hasn’t returned, and Jeno seems more anxious by the second. Ten didn’t know what to expect from him. He had yet to meet him in person, he only knew of him because of Jeno’s stories. Would he be a nice person? Would he be reserved? Talkative? Pessimistic? He hated to admit it, but he meeting new people wasn’t his thing. To say he was extremely nervous was an understatement. Jeno was like a little brother to him, after all. Maybe even the closest thing he had as a parent. 

Jeno had said that, Jaemin suddenly being changed to N.000 raised some eyebrows, since his ability was to control the clouds, they called him the weather man as an insult. Nothing like creating things from your bare skin, being indestructible, being able to create flowers from anywhere desired, and being able to control blood. To some scientists, other mutants as John Seo or Kim Jungwoo were much more suitable to a spot in N.000. To mutants though, they just shook their heads in pity.

“Poor kid,” they’ll say, “his ability isn’t one made for combat or interesting enough test purposes.”

“He’s just a kid, he probably can’t control his ability that well.”

“N.000 gets treated better than the rest of the whole mutants here, even the other N. Rooms, why would they put someone like him there?”

Ten pushed all of his thoughts away, and focused on the current dilemma. The freedom of the rest of the mutants. After freedom, where’d they go? How’d they live? Would they even live long enough for it to be considered, a “free life”?

“The other mutants,” he spoke, “what would they do after freedom?”

Jeno pulled a face, “Worry about yourself first. You got plenty of going on for you to be worrying about other mutants.”

“Jeno,” someone said, “that wasn’t very nice of you was it? Everyone deserves help.”

It was Jaemin.