One month after the attack of Savitar and Aria, the Hargreeves Mansion remained under constant surveillance. The press, though more cautious, still hovered near the property, hungry for statements about the mysterious new villains.
Zero - known secretly as Savitar - remained calm under the pressure. In public, he was just another Hargreeves child, wearing his signature black coat, cracking sarcastic remarks, and keeping up the act.
On a rainy morning, with water tapping gently on the windows of the mansion, Reginald Hargreeves summoned him to the study.
"Zero, I have a task for you," the old man said, standing before a weathered map spread across his desk.
"No one else on the payroll today?" Zero leaned casually on the doorframe, wearing his usual crooked smile.
"They are not suitable for this mission. I need you to go to a small village in Wales. Something... strange is happening there."
Zero straightened slightly, interest sparked. Reginald tossed him a thick folder of documents.
"Don't trust anyone. Don't act until you know what you're dealing with."
When he arrived, the village looked dead. Houses stood quiet, coated in moss. Streets twisted unnaturally. But he quickly noticed eyes on him - from behind curtains, around corners, children and adults cloaked in dark robes watching his every step.
"What the hell...?" he murmured.
At the heart of the village stood a temple. Ancient. Massive. Carved in stone, marked with strange runes. As he stepped inside, the air grew dense. Cold seeped into his skin.
And there he saw him.
A boy, his age, sat upon a throne. White wings stretched behind him. His eyes held the void, and his skin glowed faintly, like bathed in divine light.
Was this another of their kind? Had Hargreeves sent Zero to eliminate him? Could this boy be infused with Durango? In the original timeline, those with Durango were seen as unstable - like Jennifer. If this boy had it, he was extremely dangerous.
"Welcome, traveler," the boy said, his voice serene. "We've been expecting you."
"We?" Zero's brow furrowed.
"My people. My family. This cult was built to fix what was broken by the birth of people like you. The timeline must be restored. There can only be one."
"And you are?"
"My name is Seraphiel. And you... you're a mistake."
"Yeah, I've heard that before," Zero muttered, launching forward.
Seraphiel snapped his fingers. Instantly, the runes on the walls flashed. Zero collapsed to his knees. His powers vanished - like a car losing fuel mid-race.
"What did you do?" he growled.
"I severed your connection to the Speed Force. In this temple, you're nothing. Don't worry. You'll still serve your purpose. Once I kill you and destroy the Umbrella Academy, the original timeline will realign."
Cultists seized him, dragging him into a dark, rune-covered cell. No windows. No sound. Just silence.
Time passed. Hours? Days? He couldn't tell. Then, in the dead of night, a smile crept onto Zero's face. They hadn't searched him properly.
"Classic villain mistake," he whispered.
He pressed the device strapped to his ankle.
Lightning cracked. He vanished from the cell - reappearing in his base hidden deep within the Speed Force.
Inside, Zero geared up. His jacket - enhancing his speed. A pulse gun. A rune-shatterer bazooka. He wasn't coming back unprepared.
"Let's dance," he muttered with a wild grin.
He burst back into the temple.
This time, no mercy. Walls shattered, cultists thrown aside like rag dolls. He blasted the rune pillars to pieces.
"SERAPHIEL!" he roared.
The angel descended, glowing brighter than before.
"You returned. Bold, I'll give you that."
"No. Just thorough."
They clashed.
Light met speed in a storm of chaos. Seraphiel flew with grace, launching divine energy. Zero weaved between attacks with deadly precision. Craters formed beneath them. The temple cracked.
Zero lunged, grabbing Seraphiel by the throat, slamming him into the altar. He vibrated his hand and drove it into his chest.
But no heart.
"What the...?"
Instead of flesh, Zero pulled out a pulsing crystal - radiant and warm.
Seraphiel collapsed.
The cult scattered. The temple groaned, collapsing around them.
Zero stood amidst the ruin, panting, staring at the stone.
"This... This is not a human," he whispered. "What the hell are you?"