Number Zero- The Umbrella Academy (Book 1)

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After their family meeting, Zero decided to head up to the roof to clear his mind. Once he made his way up, he took a deep breath, trying to clear his mind of all his problems, but as usual, it wasn't working. He was never one for meditation; his mind would only race faster whenever he tried to sit in silence without a task to complete.

Knowing that he wouldn't be able to clear his mind by meditation, he finally pulled out two Five-SeveN handguns from his side holsters, his Zeus x27 taser from his vest pocket, and his combat knives from his socks and the inside of his suit jacket.

He knew he had a lot of weapons, but he never knew when one might come in handy. Maria had always teased him for having so many hidden weapons saying that he was practically a purse that held anything even if it was useless for most missions. Zero would always counter that he was her favorite purse which often earned him a blush from the girl, much to his amusement.

Zero started taking his gun apart before he began cleaning the different parts as he let his mind drift to his first memory of touching a firearm.

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Twenty-five years ago...

Zero was only six years old when his father called him into his office one day.

At the time, the boy had been in math class with his siblings, their mother encouraging and helping them whenever they made a mistake. He had been in the middle of assisting Vanya with a difficult equation when Pogo had walked into the room and announced that Zero was to follow him.

Pogo walked the young boy towards the office in silence while the small boy was left wondering what he could have done wrong to get called into their father's office so suddenly. He knew it must've been something terrible if he was allowed into the office since no one but their father was allowed there.

Pogo knocked on the study doors before a stern voice inside answered.

"Enter."

As Pogo opened the door and gestured for the boy to go inside, he gave Zero an encouraging nod. Zero hesitantly walked into the room, afraid he would get punished if he made one wrong move.

"You called for me, father?" Zero asked, his soft voice trembling slightly once he stood in the doorway that led into his office. He stood there for what seemed like hours before his father stopped writing in his journal.

"Yes, we have important business to discuss. Number Zero, take a seat." The man said sternly, causing the boy to stiffen.

Making his way toward the empty chair in front of the desk, Zero took a seat, letting his short legs hang as he resisted the urge to swing them back and forth nervously.

"I called you here because, from this day forward, you will be going through a different training method than the others while still participating in group training." His father told the boy as if the matter was something that should've been discussed long ago.

Zero didn't understand what his father was telling him, and how could he? He was only six years old. "I don't think I understand, father." The boy spoke up.

Zero wondered what his father could mean by more training, he knew that he and his siblings were pushed to their limits at times to further strengthen their powers, but the boy didn't understand why he had to receive different training.

The man looked at the boy sitting in front of him, "I don't need to explain myself to you and I forbid you from speaking of any of this to anyone."