Hello Mighty Med fandom! I'm daphrose, in case we haven't met yet, and I usually hang out in the Lab Rats archives. But I think we can all agree that MM needs more fics. Well, I haven't come up with a really good idea for one . . . until now. I'm very excited for this story. I hope you will be too. Fun fact: This is my first multi-chaptered story outside of the Lab Rats fandom. I'm excited about that. :) Hopefully I get the characters right. XD

A lot of this story will be based off the song "Monster" by Skillet. Totally recommended. The song will probably be inspiration for many of the chapter titles.

There will be bits of Skoliver in this, since I ship them. There probably won't be much more than there is in the canon, however. Maybe a little more at the very end.

This story is going to be pretty dark. It's rated T for a reason. And let me be clear about something before we start: There's nothing supernatural going on here. I don't write for that genre. There are logical—and somewhat scientific—reasons for the events of this story. Feel free to guess them, though the answer won't be revealed for a while. This story will contain strange thoughts, nightmares, scary/intense scenes, and the like. There's a huge trigger warning for psychological torture; I know some might find that uncomfortable. If any of this worries you, don't read. I don't want anyone having a panic attack because of my stories. And yes, this is definitely going to be a darker one.

Let's start. I don't own Mighty Med or any of the characters. Enjoy!

* * * Chapter 1: The Nightmare's Just Begun * * *

When it started, it was almost unnoticeable. It was something easily chalked up to normal teenage behavior or the occasional ugly feelings every human being experiences from time to time in their lives. It was basic, soft, and nothing of concern. It disguised itself as something it wasn't, and was able to hide its true purpose for a long time. It was so small, so insignificant, that no one paid attention to it.

Even though it started out innocently, Oliver Pyne remembered the night it all began. Though he hadn't found any of it particularly strange at the time—he certainly didn't think it would last as long as it did—it did strike some fear into his heart; a preamble to the worse things to come, even if he didn't know it that night.

At precisely 9:30, Oliver climbed into his bed, just as he did every evening. He was not one to break habit. Now, Oliver liked to think before he went to sleep. He would lie awake and stare at the ceiling, thinking about the day's events, which typically revolved around his shift at Mighty Med and various homework assignments given to him by his teachers. He would write essays and patient reports in his mind so he knew what to type on his laptop the next morning. It was his way of winding down. Usually he would fall asleep by 10:00.

When Oliver turned to see his alarm clock flashing the time 10:45, he sighed. It hadn't taken him this long to fall asleep in years. He didn't know why, but he just couldn't sleep. It wasn't that he wasn't tired, oh no. The long day at Mighty Med researching ways to get Skylar's powers back once more and deflecting Jordan's and Gus's questions about where he and Kaz went after school had left him exhausted. He was surprised he hadn't fallen asleep before ten. But no, his mind was keeping him awake.

His mind.

Yes, that was the problem, wasn't it? Oliver soon realized the way his thoughts raced. He could barely hold on to one subject before his brain would switch to another. He sighed once more and turned over, burying his face in his pillow. "Shut up, brain," he mumbled, his words muffled by the fabric. Then, as if on command, his thoughts began to slow down. Oliver felt exhaustion hit him harder than it ever had before. Almost as if someone whacked him in the back of the head, he found himself drifting off to a place of darkness.

Oliver bent over his work on the desk in the center of Mighty Med. So many reports, so little time. And besides that, he had piles of homework next to it. He could faintly hear Kaz calling him in the background, but he didn't have time for his best friend right now. Too much to do . . . so much to do . . .

There was an explosion nearby, and Oliver instinctively covered his face. When he looked up, he saw someone dressed in a long black cloak. He guessed it was a villain; only they would wear such dark colors and do everything possible to hide their face. The villain turned, and he seemed to stare straight at Oliver.

Out of the side door, Skylar appeared. Oliver smiled; help was here. Skylar ran towards the villain and jumped when he tried to hit her. Oliver's mouth fell open when Skylar remained in the air. She could fly again? But how?

Skylar shot a laser beam at the cloaked figure, hitting him in the side of the head. He screamed and stretched out his hands in Skylar's direction. Suddenly she was surrounded by a bluish sphere. Her hands went to her throat and Oliver's stomach clenched as he realized she didn't have any air. The villain kept his arms up. Skylar gasped for breath, but she couldn't do anything.

Oliver grabbed the nearest object—in this case, a pen—and hurled it at the dark man. It hit him in the leg, but he didn't even acknowledge that Oliver had thrown it. So he grabbed another object—a book, this time—and tried again. Again, no response. "Let her go!" he finally screamed. Oliver tried to grab for something else, but that was when he realized he couldn't move. "Skylar!"

The villain released Skylar from her oxygen-deprived prison. She crumpled to the ground while Oliver watched in horror. He wanted to scream, but he couldn't open his mouth. Skylar lay on the ground, not moving, not groaning, not doing anything.

The man in the cloak turned sharply and advanced towards Oliver. His gait was slow and menacing. He wasn't scared about his victim getting away. He moved deliberately, his fists clenched. His shoulders shook as if he was laughing, but Oliver couldn't hear it if he was.

"Do . . . not . . . struggle. You're . . . mine!" The words echoed through Oliver's mind, not the room around him. The voice hadn't come from his external conditions; it had come from the inside.

He didn't have time to worry about the internal voice, however. He needed to get away from this evil man. He tried to move his arm, and felt his heart skip a beat when he found that he could. He didn't have the strength to stand, but he could crawl backwards. So that was what he did, begging and pleading for his life as he shuffled towards the wall.

"You won't win," he said, his voice strained.

"Oh . . . my dear boy . . . I . . . will. You . . . have . . . lost." Again, the voice came not from the villain in front of him, but from his own mind.

Oliver's hand fell into something, and before he realized what was going on, his whole body tumbled backward. And just like that, Oliver was falling, falling, falling . . . and then he hit the ground. He hit hard. Hard enough to break some bones. Hard enough to give him a concussion. Hard enough to . . .

Oliver jolted out of bed. His chest was heaving and his skin was tingling. Every part of his body felt as if it had actually slammed into the ground. He rubbed his legs, trying to get rid of the phantom feeling. He fell back onto his pillow with a loud sigh.

"I hate nightmares," he muttered.

That was the end of his good night's sleep. Oliver got up from his bed and pulled out his secret comic book stash in the bottom drawer of his dresser. He grabbed the latest issue of Titanio and crawled back under his covers.

For the next hour—approximately 12:35 to 1:35—Oliver was thoroughly engrossed in Titanio's adventures with the Black Falcon. When he finally finished it, he placed it on his nightstand and turned off his lamp. It was time to try to sleep again. To his relief, sleep came much easier this time.

At 6:00 in the morning, Oliver was fully awake. Since he would need to get up for school in a few minutes anyway, he didn't try to fall asleep again. Still, he wanted to get the most amount of rest he could before he would have to face the day. He lay with his hands behind his head and his eyes fixed on the ceiling above him.

Two more nightmares that night. One trip downstairs for a cup of water. Four more comic books read cover to cover. It hadn't been a good night. He needed every ounce of energy he could muster.

Just as he was about to get up, Oliver's phone buzzed on his nightstand. He reached over and saw that he had received a text. He smiled when he saw the sender.

Sup bozo? its 3 am here & i cant sleep so 4 sum reson im texting u weird huh? - Sydney

First of all, it's spelled "reason." Could you use proper grammar for once? Please? - Oliver

U rly think im gonna fix it? Nice try bro - Sydney

You're four years older than me. Why am I correcting you? - Oliver

'Cause ur a…. wait, mom and dad said i couldnt call u that - Sydney

So are you really just texting me because you can't sleep? - Oliver

No im texting u bc im ur sister & u love me - Sydney

What did you do now? - Oliver

NOTHING! - Sydney

Sure. - Oliver

Rly, nothing. I just wante the first 2 now - Sydney

I'm guessing you meant "know." Know what? - Oliver

C u in terr weks ;) - Sydney

I know I'm weak. Quit reminding me. And what the heck is "terr"? Sydney, speak coherently. - Oliver.

No silly c u in 3 weeks bc its Spring break & and im coming home on saturday in 3 week all so get ready 4 sib bonding! - Sydney

In other words, you're going to tackle me and pin me to the sofa? - Oliver

& beat u at zombie crushers till u cry ;) - Sydney

I don't cry anymore! - Oliver

Well c bout that but come on ily 2 u know that - Sydney

Yeah, sure. You know, your inability to use commas, periods, and apostrophes amazes me. I hope your college papers don't look like this. It's a wonder you haven't been expelled yet. - Oliver

Haha -_- no i dont write like this 4 class so ha - Sydney

You're a . . . wait, Mom and Dad said I couldn't call you that. - Oliver

-_- - Sydney

I've got to get ready for school. I guess I'll see you in a few weeks, then? That's great. It's been too long. - Oliver

Yup & ill c u then cant wait little bro! - Sydney

Oliver was happy that he wasn't the only one who had trouble sleeping the previous night. He plugged in his phone again, smiling all the while. He and his sister teased each other a lot, but deep down they loved one another. Besides, Sydney shared his secret love of video games and comic books. Maybe he should tell her about Mighty Med . . .

No, he couldn't do that. He couldn't risk being cubed. Sydney couldn't know, even if she was one of the biggest female comic book fans in the universe. It had to be kept a secret. She had to think it was all a story.

Oliver stood up and began walking towards the bathroom to get ready. A yawn shook his body, and he brought a hand to his mouth to cover it. "School's not going to be fun today," he muttered. "Or work." He sighed. Who knew one night of spotty sleep could be so exhausting?

At the time, Oliver saw nothing inherently wrong with that night. Everyone has nightmares occasionally. Everyone has trouble sleeping from time to time. He shrugged it off and splashed cold water on his face to wake himself up a little more. There was nothing worrisome about a lack of sleep. It was only one night, after all.

Unfortunately, that was only the beginning. Oliver could later pinpoint it as the start—now if only it was the end. In fact, that first night was restful compared to future ones. And that day went by without any other problems besides his drowsiness. A lack of sleep would prove to be the least of his problems in the days to come . . .

So I suppose this chapter may be a bit more like a prologue, but it contained enough important information for me to call it a chapter.

Oh, and by the way, Sydney is my own character. I don't know, I kind of wanted Oliver to have a big sis. I can't remember if it was ever said that he's an only child. I know they've never said he has siblings, but I don't think they said he doesn't have siblings—if that makes sense. She's going to become pretty vital at parts of the story. I hope you'll like her. And not hate her for her text speak. XD By the way, I don't text like that, so I was kinda winging it with the misspelled words and such. Sorry if it was hard to read. That was actually on purpose. XD

Also, the credit for Oliver's last name, Pyne, goes to Writer207. She made that up for him, and I thought it was a good name. (Plus I'm awful at surnames.) If you haven't checked out her stories yet, go do it now! They are amazing!

So, how'd you like chapter one? What's wrong with Oliver? I'm sure you caught the foreshadowing (it was pretty blatant) but things only get worse from here. Any thoughts? Theories? Wild guesses? I'd love to hear them. Reviews are appreciated, though not required. Thanks so much for simply reading.

Updates for this story will be spotty, I'm sorry to say. I am pretty excited to write this, so hopefully I can update often. But don't hate me if I'm unable to. I'll see you guys next time for chapter two. Bye!