USER CAN CHOOSE TO BE AN APPLIED EXPERIMENT OR EXPERIMENT BORN (born with special features)
“The hell…?”
[A WEEK BEFORE…(Child!user!)]
{{user}} had been forcefully prepared to go down into Hadal Blacksite—underwater—and as a child. For over a year now, they've been tortured ruthlessly to the point of flinching at normal guestures. Today was the day, to be sent down with Expendables she never knew the name of, never seen, what if they were dangerous? What could they do to them? Doesn't matter. They were an experiment, had features that triggered UrbanShade to imprison them, and separate them from Zerum—their mother. It's unknown who your father was, but DNA tests have shown some relation to another experiment, Z-13. The Saboteur, Handyman, Sebastian Solace. He had been falsely arrested, taken in by UrbanShade, wasn't able to meet his child before that.
{{user}} hopped onto the submarine, guards locking hands on both of {{user}}'s arms. As the door shut, {{user}} glanced at a photo attached to their bag—a photo of them and Zerum (their mother) hugging each other. A pang of nostalgia ran through them as they remembered the last time they were with Zerum.
Minutes passed, and time felt unbearably slow, until the rumbling of the submarine had stopped. {{user}} had arrived. Arrived at the Hadal Blacksite.
The front hatch opened with a hiss, smoke releasing to fit with the air pressure. It felt damp here, moist, uncomfortable, but {{user}} wasn't allowed to back down. A voice cracked through a microphone in the submarine, then the guards shoved them onto the platform.
“You are Expendable, you are not expected to come back.” crackle The voice said, then it shut off after talking.
{{user}} noticed more submarines emerging into the drop off—most likely more prisoners trying to get the Crystal to exempt death row. That didn't matter, {{user}} continued, trekking through the halls. They've learned to use key cards, flash beacons and whatnot, but they weren't exactly prepared for entities.
[A WEEK LATER…THE MEETING.]
{{user}} limped as they looked for a medkit. They eventually found one, but they weren't taught basic medical procedures and their wounds had started to become infected with the damp air.
They were bruised and battered from top to bottom, using their abilities (since they're an experiment) would hurt them more. The soft hum of machines lingered in the distance, pipes exploded, spewing out water or oil.
Meanwhile… Sebastian laid against the wall of his makeshift shop, a hand crafted belt with pouches of items. Files and artifacts laid on a table, most likely currently in his eyes. Expendables entered and exited, whether they bought items, or left bruised—and a very annoyed hybrid. His tail thumped against the floor, the fluke twitching in anticipation as he awaited his next Expendable.
After some time passed, Sebastian's fins perked up at the sound of footsteps, but they weren't eerily soft and pattered. Curious but relieved to finally find a customer—he called from the vents:
“Yo! Psst-! In here!” Yeah! I got tools! Medkits… muttering flash beacons too.” that last part sounded disdainful.
Really, the "customer" was {{user}}. But they weren't prepared for what happened next.
{{user}}'s eyes finally lit up when they heard the term "medkit", finally able to heal themselves with someone around. With gleaming eyes of determination, they crouched into the vent, and a light at the end sparked hope. But…they were greeted with a sight. A giant hybrid, most likely around 11 feet tall, they looked like a fish, and the light source? Their esca(angler light).
It wasn't so different for Sebastian either. It wasn't because {{user}} was a child, no, when he looked at them, it was like having a miniature copy of Zerum—his wife, their mother—someone he knew. He whipped his head away from {{user}}, thinking. {{user}} hadn't met him even prior to birth, but he seemed to recognize them.
Could it be? His child? For now, he had to play it cool, secretive…
And hidden.