Zero

**Zero**

***I haven't taken it off in seven years. It reminds me that no matter what I'm doing, I did something good once.***

**Zero** is the main protagonist and a playable character in *Katana Zero*. He is playable in all the levels with the exception of Dragon Tape.

Zero has apricot skin, long, black hair that is usually tied into a samurai-like ponytail and brown eyes. During his time as a NULL Soldier, he retained his ponytail but wore the NULL uniform, though he notably kept his face concealed with sunglasses and a bandana. After the end of the war and during his time as an assassin, He wears a black one-sleeved bathrobe/kimono-like outfit with gold trim, black hakama pants, and brown geta-like sandals with black straps. He also ties his hair using a yellow hairband.

## Profile

Zero is a NULL who served in the Cromag War as an ally to New Mecca alongside another NULL, Fifteen. He was selected as a child to be a member of the Gamma NULL category, the most dangerous type of soldier produced by the program, because of his aggression and mental problems. While his past before the NULL project is largely unknown, it's stated that he had a normal upbringing until his involvement with the program. As part of the program, he was administered the experimental drug Chronos, which gave him incredible precognitive abilities allowing him to predict entire combat scenarios before they even happen, predict the correct answers out of an interrogation, and rewind time upon death

After the war, Zero began working as a killer for an unknown employer that is implied to be the government. Due to his use of Chronos (and a near-fatal head injury during the war), Zero soon lost his memory of much of his early life. However, he retained his abilities from the NULL program and continued to use them during his time as an assassin.

## History

Zero first appears in the Factory Hideout mission, as he's tasked to rescue a captured scientist, but not before being reminded by his handler to leave no survivors. His mission runs into complications as the captured scientist has his head blown off by V, who simply laughs in response. Zero manages to escape the Factory before retiring for the night. Zero has a nightmare of a boy playing catch in a shed before a shadowy figure bursts in and envelops the room, jolting awake in response.

His next mission assigned to him is a high value target by the name of Josh Rose, located at the Murdower Hotel. When he arrives, he initiates brief conversation with the Hotel's Receptionist, and depending on player choice, will either calmly allow him to proceed or will become infuriated and demand he go somewhere else (which still allows him to enter). Once Zero has eliminated all enemies through the Hotel, he will find Josh Rose quietly smoking on the balcony, Rose initially surprised at Zero's appearance, not believing there was 'more than one of you'. The player can extend the conversation slightly, as Josh explains that he understood why Zero had come to kill him, claiming that 'they made a lot of mistakes during the war'. Despite this, Josh Rose will die either after the end of the conversation by jumping of the balcony, before if Zero tries to kill him in the beginning, or if Zero throws something at him beforehand. As he attempts to leave, Zero is stopped by a Police officer, claiming that there were reports of gunshots in the building, and demands that Zero explain who he is. If Zero was patient with the Receptionist beforehand, she will chime in to Zero's defence, claiming that Zero is one of the 'guest's' of the Hotel. Zero can optionally defend the bloodstains noticed on his outfit as either bath products or part of his 'cosplay', after a few moments, the officer will let Zero pass, but if Zero interrupts the conversation, a fight ensues as the officer is quickly dispatched and the Receptionist will flee. Regardless, Zero leaves the Hotel and retires for the night.

His next mission is the assassination of a Underground DJ named Electrohead, who is performing at Club Neon. When Zero arrives at the club, he's required to sneak past the lightly armed guards by blending in with the club goers, after making his way through the front and to the back of the club, he's called by his handler, warning him to not talk to Electrohead, as Electrohead is noted in the mission dossier to be a pathological liar. As Zero makes his way to the back of the club where Electrohead is, the two enter a brief dialogue. Electrohead initially struggles at first to confirm if Zero is 'real' when he first arrives, despite the blade at his neck. He goes on to explain that a drug he used after buying at an auction has greatly altered his perception of time and reality. He goes to say the bottle that the drug came in was unlabelled, leaving Zero at a disadvantage for not knowing the name of the drug. The player can either kill the DJ before the dialogue, or talk to him until V shoots, which still counts towards the assassination. Zero escapes the club, before being called by his handler, if Zero talked to Electrohead, he can confront the Psychiatrist with the DJ's confession, though the Psychiatrist won't be happy that Zero defied his orders and spoke to Electrohead.

Zero's next mission is the assassination of a Mutual-Nil Prisoner named Fa Yuan. Depending on the player's interactions with The Psychiatrist at the beginning of the next mission, dialogue can eventually lead to two different starting points. **Zero** can get into a large enough argument with the Psychiatrist to completely reject being injected with Chronos, eventually leading to him leaving the office with no extra dosage of Chronos (Though these dialogue options are only available if Zero spoke to DJ Electrohead in the previous level). Should he reject the dose of the drug, he will get an entirely different dossier than the one that the Psychiatrist would normally provide; he will be given orders by The Masked Men to "kill everyone" indiscriminately. In this mission, Zero has no real enemies until he visits Fa Yuan's cell, which reveals that he had been dead shortly before Zero arrived, as his body is noted to still be warm. several armed SWAT members with different armaments arrive at the Prison, claiming Zero is surrounded, before raiding the inside of the building, forcing the player to choose between stealth and killing everyone. Depending on how Zero completes the mission, he may or may not be praised by following the orders that were provided to him. After the mission, an old veteran will beg Zero for some 'medicine'. An argument ensues, and, depending on Zero's actions, he will either automatically kill the veteran regardless of player choice (if he spared all of the enemies) or fight with the veteran over Zero's service medal (if Zero killed at least one enemy), though Zero still has the option to kill or spare the veteran.

In the beginning of the Studio 51 mission, **Zero** has a dream where a little boy is playing with a toy. After a few seconds, a scientist runs in and tells him to hide, and suddenly a shadow shoots the scientist in the head. Last, the shadow walks to the far end of the room and starts tampering with a shadowy machine, causing the dream to flash red. After jolting awake from yet another night, Zero visits his psychiatrist's office, but notices that his office is closed. Zero leaves the building and starts wandering down the street. It starts to rain and a white limousine stops near Zero. The driver tells Zero that someone wants to see him. Zero meets V and sits next to him. V says that he is a fan of Zero and interested in his opinion of the snuff tape. After that he snorts some cocaine and asks Zero to work with him. Zero refuses to work with him and calls him "fucking subhuman". The comment angers V and he throws Zero out of the limousine, prompting Zero to chase his limo to Studio 51. Now night-time, Zero emerges from the shadows at Studio 51, surprising V, attempting to shoot him with his pistol. Zero either deflects the bullet with his sword or dodges it (depending on whether Zero gives V his katana), surprising V. V is confused and runs away into the studio. Zero gives chase, as he catches a glimpse of V stopping near an elevator and closing a series of gates that require three key cards to open. To find these key cards, Zero uses the elevator to access three different movie sets filled with goons and armed with traps. After finding all three key cards Zero enters a room with V and two girls inside. V sends the girls out, and calls for backup before engaging Zero. Zero defeats V (Zero either fails four times or hits V four times) but before he can do anything, a kimono-clad woman wielding a katana suddenly appears. She dashes behind and seemingly through Zero, leaving a trail of petals in her path. She feigns an attack to see his reaction. SNOW tells Zero to go home and forget what happened in the studio before disappearing with V. Zero leaves Studio 51. Zero later receives a message from the psychiatrist that wishes Zero had a "relaxing night".

In the beginning of the Mansion Hideout mission, Zero finds himself in sleep paralysis in his apartment. He finds himself towered over by the menacing figures of The Masked Men. When he eventually breaks free from his restless sleep, he sits up and grabs his chest as he struggles to calm down. He then finds himself in the Psychiatrists office, questioning him about the Men in Masks, Zero looks around in shock and discomfort, and the player is given a choice to react with either shock or to try and express restraint. As Zero attempts to explain the grim threats, it seems like the Psychiatrist isn't listening, as he suddenly transforms into V, V then approaches Zero and instructs him to "get up"., before punching him into the beginning of the level with no instruction. Any action can be taken from there, but eventually movements devolve into a blur of nonsensical noise, as Zero is repeatedly transported back to the beginning. Zero breaks free from the previous hallucination, gaining a period of clarity in which he walks through some form of cathedral, before monologuing, as he remembers his time killing soldiers in the 'godforsaken jungle', for 28 years, claiming he didn't feel bad about killing them, and that he hardly remembers it. He continues as he mentions burning villages and watching naked peasants cry, claiming that what he witnesses isn't a form of PTSD, but rather a side effect of the drug Chronos, as he talks about his perception of time getting longer, comparing it to grains of sand in a shrinking hourglass, before asking a favour from an unknown individual. The screen fades to white, and the scene abruptly changes to New Mecca, supposedly 688 days in the future. Zero is shown begging in the street, similarly to the old veteran. The Masked Men stand near Zero and openly chide him for his withdrawal. The screen distorts, and for just a moment, a harrowing version of the Psychiatrist's office can be seen: Zero kneeling in the centre of the room, beside a violently dismembered Psychiatrist, and the Little Girl stuck to the wall behind them, impaled through the chest by Zero's own sword. Finally, Zero's hallucinations are put to an end as the Psychiatrist gives him a large dosage of Chronos to compensate for missing the previous day, while commenting on his "thousand yard stare." Zero later arrives at the beginning of the level, entering the mansion through a ceiling window, taking V by surprise. Following V, He fights through the guards inside. In the last room of the mansion he uses his precognition to kill the guards in the room. But in reality he triggers a bomb trap supposedly left by V that knocks him unconscious. He wakes up in a dark room with V prompting him to wake up. V will repeatedly kill Zero. This sequence is only ended by the player annoying and eventually insulting V until he kills Omar Al-Qasim out of rage and asks Mr. Kissyface to kill Zero. Zero escapes from the chair and kills Mr. Kissyface . Meanwhile outside, SNOW and V are discussing about their current situation. SNOW suggests that V will get a reward from “The Boss” for eliminating “The Swordsman” (presumably Zero). As Snow teleports away, V is startled by a dismembered body thrown out of the window of the building he was in before. He runs away while Zero chases him on his motorbike. After fighting his henchmen, V arrives in a helicopter, firing missiles at Zero. Zero deflects his bullets back at his helicopter, bringing it down. V, now visibly wounded and on the road, tells Zero he will kill “The Dragon” (who he assumed is Zero). Before Zero is able to kill V, The real Dragon (Fifteen) shows up and takes V away, but not before severing both of V's arms.

Zero heads to a Veteran Bar after the mission, and stays there till closing time, before heading back home. He finds himself waking up after having been asleep on the floor. Once he has fully come about, there is a knock on the door, and he opens the door to find that the little girl is there. She somewhat timidly asks if Zero is angry at her, where he generally expresses that he is not. She expresses that her father's friends came over the previous night and frightened her, forcing her to hide under the stairs with her toys Leviathan and Behemoth. Possibly feeling a bit guilty for not being able to help her, Zero offers to get her some food. He is only able to recover some edible "protein paste." After explaining that he has to leave, he makes it clear that the girl will be allowed to stay as long as she doesn't rummage around his living space. When Zero visits the Psychiatrist's office this time around, he suffers the very unpleasant side effects of his Chronos withdrawal. In his attempt to explain what went wrong with his mission in regards to Omar Al-Qasim, he becomes very unfocused and events seem to jump around haphazardly. Zero has a vivid hallucination of V talking to him about the worst of Chronos withdrawal, potentially leading to limitless mental suffering at the hands of the drug. By the time Zero snaps fully back into reality, he finds himself discussing the nature of meeting the Dragon. The Psychiatrist tasks Zero with tracking down and eliminating The Dragon, who is said to have been last spotted in a Chinatown casino. Zero goes to the casino and makes his way past the bouncer into the VIP room. Zero interrupts a meeting between The Dragon and an unknown woman, and the woman attacks Zero to give the dragon time to escape. Zero kills her in his precognition, but in reality they clash blades, the woman seemingly cancelling out Zero's prediction with one of her own. Afterwards the woman escapes using a concussion grenade. Zero takes the opportunity to retrieve the security tapes from the Mutual-Nil Prison before chasing after the dragon. Zero fights his way through a squad of police officers while chasing the Dragon, but is eventually cornered and surrounded by the police. Before Zero has a chance to act, The Masked Men appear in front of Zero and the police, slowing time to a crawl and speaking to Zero. They offer Zero the choice to die and prevent an unknown fate from befalling the little girl, or to live and keep fighting. Zero chooses to live, and the masked men telepathically kill all of the police officers. Zero escapes afterwards, aborting the mission to track the dragon.

Zero is not present in the Dragon Tape mission, though he begins the mission by playing the security tape back at his apartment. In which it is revealed that it was The Dragon who invaded the Mutual-Nil Prison and killed Fa Yuan. Fifteen is seen breaking through a Prison wall, much to the surprise of the guards that warn him not to make any sudden moves. When Fifteen enters the jail cell and confronts Fa Yuan, he will generally question him about Chronos and people associated with the NULL Project. Fa Yuan gives Fifteen a few notable names here, such as Leon Von Alvensleben and Omar Al-Qasim. He then states that he hasn't spoken to anyone but his lawyer for a number of years. Regardless of what dialogue options the player chooses at the end of the discussion, Fifteen kills Fa Yuan by slamming his face into his cell toilet with excessive force before drowning him - leading to the events of Zero's mission to the Prison.

In the Slaughterhouse mission, Zero initially makes his way to the Psychiatrists office, before receiving a call from an unknown person, who tells him the name and location of a person of interest, known as Leon Von Alvensleben. As Zero makes his way through the Slaughterhouse, he is greeted with many multiple screen interfaces that Leon supposedly uses to communicate with visitors. It's revealed through Leon that the Slaughterhouse was used to test the NULL Project. Shortly into the conversation, the screen changes to show Leon with a high power sniper rifle, taking aim at Zero. Continuing through the testing ground, Zero is forced to endure a brief and rigorous trial by Leon to determine his status as a NULL soldier, all while continuing to take aim at Zero throughout. After the trial finishes, Leon designates Zero as a Gamma NULL. Congratulating him, Leon allows Zero to proceed, As Zero proceeds to Leon's actual location, it's revealed that Leon has a stash of Chronos he has been holding on to, but is destroyed. Citing the fact that New Mecca had lost the Cromag War despite the effectiveness of NULL soldiers; also making a note that he would rather start from the beginning, claiming Zero's existence is in error, and as a result, he won't get any Chronos for his efforts. Leon continues to chide Zero he travels closer to the final room, when he finally reaches the final room however, he finds that it's mostly empty and filled with computer equipment with a cryotank. Zero opens the tank, revealing that Leon is the one inside of it. However, as a result of the tank opening, Leon immediately ages rapidly before disintegrating on the spot.

In the Penultimate final levels, Bunker and Bunker 2, Zero goes to the Psychiatrist's office, the "normal" timeline will include Zero talking about Chronos and the nature of the drug. The Psychiatrist will be generally shocked to learn what Zero already knows, but can become somewhat amiable if treated patiently. If asked the right questions, the Psychiatrist will express a bit of pity and even seemingly some empathy towards the possibility of Chronos eventually killing Zero. He will express a mixture of his and the government's view of why Chronos must be completely destroyed and forgotten; explaining that the NULL Project was a failure in more ways than the government was prepared to deal with. Zero is then tasked with infiltrating the Bunker of a previous target; Omar Al-Qasim. As he progresses through the level, he is eventually encounters the Woman that was with Fifteen in Chinatown, known as Headhunter, who had been expecting him. A fight ensues, but after Zero lands a few hits, she retreats, lining the floor with explosives, causing Zero to fall into the vault below. Headhunter is surprised at Zero's abilities, asking if he's a NULL like Fifteen, Zero can either have a lengthy conversation with Headhunter, about the nature of NULL and Chronos, revealing that She and Zero have already fought and killed each other thousands of times before this encounter, and if Zero mentions that he's not at the bunker for Chronos, like Headhunter likely is, she will initially be confused, before deducing that Zero enjoys killing, and the immortality that Chronos gives NULL soldiers like themselves. If the player does well in dragging the fight out for a significant amount of time, she will eventually remark on how the fight will never end. This is a precursor to a potential winning scenario where she may drop a knife, which can be thrown at her to catch her off guard. Zero eventually overrides her precognition by throwing her blade into a suicide vest she had strapped onto herself, severely injuring herself, allowing Zero to finish her by beheading her, using her head to bypass the retina scan.

Zero is caught off guard by what's inside the Vault, an unknown family of three, implied to be the target's of the mission. As Zero approaches the cowering family, drawing his blade, his perception begins to warp, from the little boy in the shack that he is compelled to kill, though he either doesn't or refuses. His perception changes again to the Old Men he met in the bar after Mansion Hideout, before sheathing his blade and fleeing from the Bunker, leaving the target's alive. He returns to the Psychiatrists office, the truth now revealed to him, as he confronts the Psychiatrist about the lies he was told, his questions fell on deaf ears as he is quickly dismissed as a 'goddamn junkie.' Zero quickly punches the older man, knocking him to the ground, as the Psychiatrist begins to beg, his pleas continuously cut off by Zero's assault, his pleas change and attempts to negotiate with Zero, claiming that he'll be given all the Chronos he needs if he lets him go. Zero doesn't fall for it and reaches for a stone that was used as a paperweight, the Psychiatrists final words, claiming that Zero is 'Fucking Subhuman' before being killed as Zero continued to bash the mans skull in with the stone. the perception of time changing and spinning as Zero continued. Eventually stopping and falling back to the ground, Zero goes to the desk and grabs the syringes of Chronos that lied there, dosing himself with all of them as he slumped more into the couch, the room becoming quieter and calmer as a result. He eventually gets up and, can optionally search the corpse of the Psychiatrist to find a New Mecca Government Keycard, and through his suitcase, to find a note mentioning delivery times of Chronos and a secret target dossier of Zero, revealing that Zero was going to be targeted if he found out the truth of Chronos. Zero leaves the office and heads back home, finding his apartment was broken into and was being investigated by police. Finding a note on his wall that said 'One Life for Another', revealing that the Little Girl had been kidnapped. His questions regarding the little girl quickly dismissed, claiming that there are no children in the Third District. Zero quickly flees from the scene with Police in pursuit, intent on finding the Little Girl.

Zero finally appears in a flashback, 7 years before the events of the game, elaborating on Zero's constant nightmare, revealing after the shooting of the scientist, that Zero was not the little boy in the dream, but was the NULL soldier that killed the scientist, before relaying his success back to an unknown person via radio. Zero leaves the shack, taking off his glasses and bandana, before pulling out a cigarette and smoking, throwing it away shortly after as he regroups with Fifteen, overlooking a burning village.

## Personality

Zero suffers from psychopathy, like many other NULLs, and suffers vivid nightmares and hallucinations due to his heavy reliance on Chronos. Depending on the dialogue options chosen by the player, Zero can either be a serious, impatient character who consistently interrupts others and is not interested in conversation, or can be kinder, more patient, and more willing to cooperate. Regardless of his outward demeanour, Zero is a merciless killer when on the job, capable of taking out hundreds of foes with little to no remorse.

His more human traits are much more apparent when not working. Zero is shown to be a fan of old samurai movies, his outfit being apparent of this, and has to drink herbal tea before going to bed. Zero can also be compassionate to civilians, most notably the Little Girl. While he is initially straight and to the point with her, the latter finding their initial conversations boring, the two grow closer over the course of the story and eventually develop something of a father-daughter bond. Zero looks after her where her neglectful father does not; in return, she is one of the few characters Zero can open up to. He is also capable of showing some humanity toward the Receptionist if the player chooses to be kind to her. With certain dialogue options, he can even show a bit of a humorous side, sporting a silly grin when he defeats her in an optional card game.

Despite his enjoyment of killing, Zero has been shown to have some regard for life, as he expresses hatred for V after watching the snuff tape of him killing Zero's annoying neighbours, claiming the Russian is ‘Fucking Subhuman’. It's also shown that he harbours severe guilt over his actions in the war, of which he dreams every night.

Zero's initially shaky mental state deteriorates further over the course of the game, with his psychopathy becoming more and more apparent. He ultimately bludgeons the Psychiatrist to death after finding out the truth of his situation. Other examples of Zero's mental instability include the murder of a homeless veteran for taunting and insulting Zero (though Zero can spare him if he ignored the Psychiatrist beforehand and received his orders on the Prison mission from Tragedy,) and the hallucinations Comedy and Tragedy that manifest due to his Chronos withdrawal.

## Abilities

Zero is an incredibly capable and deadly assassin who has honed his abilities to an almost inhuman peak, his abilities being complimented and even revered by many characters such as V, SNOW, and the Psychiatrist. Throughout the game he is able to dispatch hundreds of enemies using only a katana and throwable items. His signature attack is a quick slash with his katana, a blur of metal that can cleave through a near-infinite number of enemies. Zero is apparently a master of *iaijutsu*, according to SNOW, as he can quickly unsheathe his sword, strike an enemy, and sheathe it back in less than a second. Zero's strength is powerful enough to effortlessly throw objects like stone busts and bottles fast and hard enough to instantly kill most enemies. He is also fast enough to dodge bullets and lasers (represented in-game by a roll or jump off a wall), and deflect bullets with a single katana swing.

Zero's abilities are further enhanced with his precognition. This ability allows him to slow down time and predict the immediate future with almost near-perfect accuracy. However, his reliance on Chronos makes him susceptible to hallucinations, and his precognition is not always accurate, as his precognition did not foresee a rigged door left by V, subsequently resulting in his capture. His precognition can also be manipulated and overridden, especially around other NULLs.

## Gallery

Casual walkRunningRollingDancingDrunkWalking drunkZero without maskZero with maskShooting in NULL outfitDrinking teaDrawing his swordOn bike while chasing VHeavily breathingTied to chair by VSteam Trading Card artworkDecimated by a rocket launcher
## Trivia

* Zero is mentioned in his file as being 22, meaning he could have been 15 years old when the Cromag War ended (7 years before the events of Katana Zero).
	+ According to the information above, Zero started smoking before the age of 15.
	+ During his church hallucination, he mentions having been in the "jungle" for 28 years, and he notably acknowledged the side effects of Chronos withdrawal. This could mean he either died multiple times during the war, or he somehow suffered Chronos withdrawal but then recovered.
* In Zero's file, it is mentioned that he is an "executioner class" NULL.
* According to SNOW, Zero's fighting style comes from the Shinkage-Ryu school.
* Zero is said to be cosplaying a character named Shinju Sakamura from Ex vs X, Sakura reDUX 2, even though it’s likely an anime he made up, it likely exists, as during the beginning of the Chinatown mission, a Skinny Ricky will compliment him on his appearance from said anime. During the second encounter with the Receptionist in Bunker she claims she couldn’t find the anime mentioned, claiming that it must be obscure. Zero can either double down or claim that he made it up.
* The reason Zero doesn't visibly age between the end of the war and the start of the game is because taking Chronos at a young age caused it to act as puberty blocker, leaving him permanently prepubescent. This was confirmed on Twitter by Askiisoft.
* Despite receiving a gun as an optional secondary weapon in the Mansion level, Zero either cannot or will not use the gun as a firearm, instead using it as another throwable weapon.
* It has been theorised that, during the final segment of Chinatown, Zero has latent abilities similar to Fifteens Dragon Dash, allowing him to kill multiple S.W.A.T officers without even needing to draw his sword, despite the killings being framed as being caused by the Masked Men.
* Zero notably has his Saya incorrectly upside when wielding his Katana, the edge of his blade facing downward while sheathed. This makes his sword much more resembles a Tachi, a sword that predates the Katana. However, Fifteen and Snow both sheath their swords more faithfully, with the blade edge facing upward in the Saya.
* If Zero stands still on the dance floor after killing all the enemies in the Club Neon level, he will begin dancing, though the animation used is the same for blending in during the beginning of the level.
* Zero appeared in Dead Cells in 2022 as a skin, and was added to Samurai Gunn 2 in 2023 as a playable character.