Chapter Text
He remembered when he first woke up in this purgatory. At first, he thought this was hell, the afterlife he was meant to wake up in. He was meant to be tortured and suffer in the flames of damnation for all the wrongs and regrets he had in his lifetime. In a way, the purgatory still was a hell to him. At some moments, it felt specially tailored to torture 007n7. First, he had to live with the regret of not actually dying after he successfully committed to his death. Second, he spawns in with people who dislike him for his past to which he can't even refute against. They had all the rights to hate him for what he's done as an exploiter. And to top it off, his son turned into a monster under the influence of the being that placed him here in the first place. It hurt 007n7 to see his baby boy turn into what he is now. It hurts every time he tenses at the sound of his laughter, not because it's indicative of his son coming to take his life, but because he fears the laugh that once relaxed his tired body.
As time went on, he watched his son change more and more into what people might call a demon. Horns and a tail added to the already unnaturally fleshy body. No matter what c00lkidd looked like, 007n7 would always consider him his little angel. However, he remembered when he saw c00lkidd grow horns for the first time. It seemed as if The Spectre was slowly merging his son with the c00lgui. c00lkidd and 007n7 had a rare chat as his son came to him with a harsh tug to his arm.
“Daaaad,” he whined and 007n7 tried to hide the wince he made from the painful grasp his son had him in. “Why do I have horns? You don't have them!” His son wasn't smiling at that time. It must have been bothering him a lot.
007n7’s mind raced as he thought of what to do and what to say. He didn't even know if the horns were normal or not for c00lkidd or if it was just The Spectre's influence making his son look more and more monstrous. So, 007n7 lied. “I do have them. I-I just, uhm,” he looked around trying to come up with something, “they're underneath my burger hat?” The statement came off more as a question, but c00lkidd believed in it anyway.
“Really? Then can I see?” c00lkidd reached out to snatch the hat off his father's head, hand grazing the skin of his forehead. His son’s touch burned, but a loud gunshot made him pull away. 007n7 took the chance to escape his son's grasp and run away, even if his mind raced back to darker times, even when he felt bile crawl up his throat, even when his son wailed in pain, he kept running. 007n7 was now at a safe distance as he thickly swallowed. He looked at the c00lgui he had, it was reduced to only a distraction device, but maybe he could alter some things.
The rest of that round was spent on configuring his GUI to fuse into his body, just like his son, which is how he also gained horns and a tail. It was not a pleasant conversation when he returned to the cabin. Guest, Two Time, and Chance didn't seem to mind it, but the others held stares filled with unease. 007n7 didn't care. He just wanted to ease his son's anxieties. Out of everyone here, he believed the 10 year old child should be spared of the truth.
When he showed his son the new additions to his body at the next available round, the look of joy soothed every doubt in 007n7’s mind. Oh how he would turn into a ferocious beast just to see his son smile like that over and over again. He would burn the entire world and more just for his son. After all, his baby boy was his world after he lost everything else. Never again would 007n7 want to lose him.
Unfortunately reality had to come out sooner or later. Right now, 007n7 is faced with his son, who is staring at everything in disbelief. This is different. The usual smile on his son's face was gone, eyes surveilling the atrocity he committed with terror. The GUI panels seemed to be cuffing the wrists of his child. c00lkidd can actually see the dead bodies, the burns and injuries and the look of terror on his victim's faces. It was sudden and unexpected, a spontaneous event in the middle of the round. Everyone else had succumbed to the brute strength of his son except for him. “D-Dad…” his son squeaked out, shakily turning to him, “what happened to everyone? Did I— Did I do this?” c00lkidd looked to be on the brink of tears. It shattered his heart and knocked the air out of his lungs.
He wanted to deny it. To assure him that this wasn't his fault even though it was. To keep him ignorant. But that was impossible at this point. Instead, he chose silence. The truth was already out in the open. c00lkidd started to sob, “I- I didn't know— I didn't mean to! I'm so sorry! Dad!” The call of his name made him flinch, but 007n7 approached his son despite the fear.
He hugged his son. Something he hadn't done in so long. “Shh, shh… I'm here. You didn't know what you were doing. You are just a kid and it's not your fault. I love you. I will always love you,” he assured, c00lkidd squeezing him back. Tighter, tighter, once c00lkidd noticed the struggles of 007n7 in the embrace he pulled away. That was until his body started to burn like coals in the fireplace. All he saw was his already terrified son become even more frightened at the sight.
“No! No! Why! Dad! Don't leave me! I'm sorry—” his son continued to scream out in his panic as 7n7 burned in his arms. Oh how he wanted to comfort his baby, but unable to do so as his bodily functions shut down. Anger and sorrow bubbled deep within him, anger at The Spectre that was torturing his son now, and sorrow at his inability to do anything about it.
007n7 appeared back at the cabin. A cold shiver ran down his spine as everyone else looked at him in…concern? They must've been watching through the television upstairs. The Spectre liked to allow others to watch the remaining survivors in the round through the television. Each channel showing the perspective of the other remaining survivors.
Guest 1337 is the first to speak up, carefully approaching 007n7. “Are you alright, 007n7?” His silence was the only answer the distraught father could muster up. He stared blankly at his hands, recalling the situation. It disgusted him so much. Guest placed a hand on 007n7’s shoulder, asking in a hushed voice, “Is c00lkidd alright?” 007n7 broke at the thought of his son's suffering. c00lkidd was obviously not okay.
“I shall pray to the great Spawn for both father and son,” Two Time quipped, hands clasped together as they wore a stiff smile and worried eyes. “May you both be as alright as you can be.”
007n7 only shakily nodded at the gesture. “I think I'm just going to head back to my cabin for now.” 007n7 slowly stumbled out the door, feeling his mind race a thousand thoughts about his son. He didn't even realize when he stopped moving. He didn't realize that Builderman was right behind him too.
“Hey, 007n7,” Builderman snapped 007n7 out from his downward spiral. 007n7 looked towards the admin, his worried smile on his face. “I just wanted to tell you…that you're not alone.” 007n7 tilted his head in confusion, still trying to regain his grasp on the present. Builderman clarified, “To watch your son slowly turn into something unrecognizable, I mean.” Ah, that's right. 007n7 isn't the only father who’s forced to have their son kill them in this place. Builderman, father of John Doe, had to suffer the same fate as well. 007n7 pitied the admin, especially seeing how the corruption slowly consumed more and more of John Doe with every new round. He wasn't even sure if John Doe was mentally there anymore.
“Thanks, Builderman,” 007n7 muttered, returning a smile to the admin. “I just… I hate the fact about how useless I feel… He was right in front of me, my son was right in front of me, crying, needing help and I could barely say anything.”
“And what else could you have said?”
“I don't know, but—”
“007n7, you said what was important. That you loved your son, despite what happened. That he didn't know what he was doing. You did everything you could.”
And all his refutes died on his tongue from Builderman’s words. 007n7 pressed his lips into a thin line looking down at his feet with a solemn expression. He couldn't deny Builderman's claims, but that didn't erase the feeling of his uselessness at the moment. The same feeling he has every round as the rest of his teammates do their best to support one another.
“Go get some rest, 007n7,” Builderman ushered the ex-exploiter towards their cabin. “At least until the next round starts.”
When they got to his cabin, 007n7 realized the state his cabin was in. It wasn't very pretty, he just wanted to delay tidying it up a bit, but with each and every delay it only got messier and messier. Builderman opened the door before 007n7 could stop him, revealing the messy state his cabin was in. Builderman didn't say anything, continuing to push the ex hacker to his bed.
007n7 looked away in shame, not sure how to feel about the intrusion. “Can you pull up your GUI? You’re usually the timekeeper, but I can take over if that's okay,” Builderman offered. 007n7 nodded, pulling his c00lgui up. Builderman sat at the edge of his bed tinkering with something. He glanced at the GUI, then at 007n7 who was staring at the trinket. “It's a gift for Shedletsky. Just a charm, but I wanted to thank him for saving me in a prior round.” 007n7 hummed, looking back up at his ceiling.
It was peaceful, something 007n7 didn't have in a long time. His thoughts didn't wander back to the round his son became aware or how awful of a father he was. He could only hear the soft clinking of metal and feel the slight shift of the bed under him. He closed his eyes, not to sleep, but rest.