â¨Zari Mahira DâSouza | Maze Runner OCâ¨
Alias:Â Subject 0:Â The Control
Fandom:Â Maze Runner
Faceclaim:Â Kaviya Sambasivam
Name:Â Zari Mahira DâSouza
Light brown skin, warm undertone
Long, thick, wavy black hair down her back
Expressive dark brown eyes, long lashes
Plump pink lips, high cheekbones
Always smells like vanilla + clean soap
Style: fitted tanks, ponytails, dainty necklaces
⨠Fun, bubbly, sunshine coded
⨠People pleaser, but not naive
⨠Reads people well, deeply observant
⨠Optimistic, but terrified of loneliness
⨠Will do anything to protect the people she loves
Medical triage, injections, bloodwork
Fast runner, strong swimmer
Basic coding, security override knowledge
Zari was created to be genetically perfect, using DNA from both of her biological parents. A surrogate named Amira carried her to avoid complications, and Zari was born on August 4th in the Last City (Denver, Colorado).
Her biological parents, Drs. Rhea and Malik DâSouza, were high-ranking WCKD scientists who kept a close eye on her from the moment she was born. During Zariâs newborn stage, Amira was the only one who gave her constant attention. She wasnât supposed to get attachedâWCKD made that clearâbut Amira couldnât help it. Unlike Rhea and Malik, who treated Zari as part experiment, part child, Amira saw her as her baby.
As Zari grew, WCKD forced Amira to step back, allowing her to stay only for breastfeeding and basic soothing. But Amiraâs attachment grew, and she couldnât stand the thought of Zari being raised as a lab project. So, on Zariâs first birthday, Amira tried to run away with her, making it to the edge of the Last City before WCKD guards caught up and killed her, leaving Zari crying in her arms.
From that point on, Zari grew up knowing nothing about Amira. She was raised to believe that Rhea was her mother, and to the outside world, she was. Rhea and Malik treated Zari like a daughter, but there was always a cold distance. She didnât get kisses or hugs, and âI love youâ was never saidâbut she got âIâm proud of you,â and they trained her in everything they knew.
Zari was raised to be a little genius. By seven, she could name every element on the periodic table and explain its properties. She was a quiet, sweet child who never cried when she didnât get her way and never whined for things she couldnât have. Everyone loved herâeven people who hated kids liked Zari. She was bright, charming, and always tried to make others smile.
In her teenage years, Zariâs life was just as carefully controlled. She didnât get acne, she handled puberty quietly, and she grew into a beautiful young woman. She was allowed skincare, makeup, ballet classes, and fine clothes, all part of WCKDâs plan to make her instantly likeable. Zari was never meant to be someone people had to âget to knowâ to likeâshe was designed to be likeable on sight.
Despite being surrounded by adults who adored her, Zari was lonely. She had so much kindness and love to give, but there was no one her age to share it with. The area of the Last City she lived in, and the WCKD compound, were empty of kids her ageâat least, kids she was allowed to meet. Her closest friends were the nurses and her parents.
She knew about the Maze, of courseâeveryone did. It was all anyone talked about, âthe big experiment.â She didnât know details, but she grew up hoping she could one day be part of the project that would save the world.
But when she turned fourteen, everything shifted. She started hearing whispers about âlostâ subjectsâthe kids her age who went into the Maze and didnât come out. It made her wonder:Â If WCKD is good, why are kids dying so needlessly?
That question led to more. Why werenât there any kids her age around her, when clearly they existed? Why couldnât she meet them? Why wouldnât her parents ever talk about their past, or anything outside of work? Why did the nurses hug her more than her mother did? Did her mother even love her? No one had ever said it.
Driven by these questions, Zari started digging into the records at the compound. It wasnât easy; someone was always watching her, but she was determined. By the time she turned seventeen, she finally discovered the truth about Amiraâher surrogate mother, who had died trying to save her, shot dead by WCKD soldiers with baby Zari in her arms.
Coupled with the whispers of Maze deaths and the cruel games WCKD forced kids to play in the name of a âcure,â Zariâs belief in WCKD began to crumble. She realized that this project, which had been going on for over twenty years, was wasting lives in the pursuit of a cure that might never come.
When Zari was selected to leave the Last City and intern at Dr. Crawfordâs facility in the Scorch, near the Mazes, she was excited at first. It was her chance to finally see the world beyond sterile labs and silent halls. But she went there no longer believing in WCKDâs mission, but ready to see for herself what they were really doing.
Big thank you's to @newtsbaee for helping me develop Zari further and giving her opinions and thoughts on her backstory!! Credit to you queen!! đđđ
Zari x Minho fic coming soon perhaps????