Oh, god. My head hurts so much...
I opened my eyes to see rough, wet cobblestone under my knees, which were scrapped and bloody.
Wait, bloody? I haven't bled in forever...
What's happening?
"Zero?" I heard a voice from a couple feet away ask. Why did it sound so familiar? And since when could I hear?
"Zero, is that you?" Another voice questioned. My ears were ringing by the sudden volume.
I pushed myself up, head still facing the ground, my now wet hair in front of my eyes. I pulled myself in a sitting position, trying to take in my surroundings. I clenched and unclenched my fists, trying to ground myself by grabbing onto the black fabric of the dress I was wearing.
"Zero?" A soft voice closer to me cause me to snap back to reality and look up.
"Mom? Is that you?" I tried to stammer out, my voice breaking halfway through the question. I clutched my throat, which hurt at the sudden strain.
"Would you like something to eat, Zero? You seem upset," Mom said with a sweet smile, holding her hand out to help me up. I looked at it incredulously for a moment before taking it and heaving myself up.
"My dear, you're shivering, are you alright?"
"Well, considering I haven't been in this body for 17 years, I'd go out on a limb and say no," I croaked.
"Why don't I get you a blanket and a cup of tea, you sound like you have a sore throat dear," she offered, a placid smile still present on her face.
I just started slowly putting one foot in front of the other, and finally looked around to see five people staring at me, completely in shock. I took a moment to process their faces.
"Number 1? 2? 3? 4? 7? Is that... you guys?" I asked weakly.
"Yeah, yeah that's us, we're here," breathed Number 3, running over to me to cup my face. Gosh, she looked so grown up. "You're back, you're- you're actually alive and here!" She said happily, pulling me into an unexpected hug. "What happened?"
"I'll tell you about it when we get inside. I haven't eaten in a while," I whispered, linking my arm with hers for support.
* * *
"So, are we going to talk about what just happened?" I heard Number 1 ask. He grew giant, I had no clue what in the world happened to him.
"Shh, keep your voice down," I hissed, a bit annoyed. "I haven't heard anything in ages, and my ears are already throwing a hissy fit."
I was wrapped up in a blanket, curtesy of Mom, and clutching a warm cup of tea in our kitchen. The rain continued to pour outside, and my siblings were currently trying to understand what just happened. So was I, in all honesty.
"Where have you been?" Number 7 asked softly.
"Thank you, someone knows how to lower the volume," I sighed. "To answer your question, I've been in the Catacombs."
"Where? What kind of name is that?" 2 asked.
"My own head, far as I know. I named it when I was thirteen, don't judge. It was a space that my consciousness existed while I was in the coma. I could summon anything I needed, I had access to almost limited knowledge-" I started to explain.
"Sounds like heaven, why'd you wanna leave?" I heard 4 interrupt me. Judging by the bottle in his hand, he was probably drunk. Or high. Or both.
YOU ARE READING
The Catacombs
Fanfiction"It sounds like heaven, doesn't it? Then you start to notice the little details..." Number Zero was a student of the inaugural class of the Umbrella Academy. But one fateful day, she was gravely injured during an accident on one of their missions. S...
