Secret Society: Raising Calamity Class Disciples

A flash blinded Xavier, prompting him to close his eyes and cover them with his forearm.

Once the intense light die down, he removed his arm and slowly opened his eyes.

He was in a cozy place, with a fireplace heating the room. Aristocratic wallpapers covered the wall. The bright curtains of the windows were open, but no light came in since it was dark outside. But the chandelier and the wall-torches did their job- illuminating the room and spotlighting the lady sitting just before him.

The lady was beautiful- dazzling under all those lights. An angelic aura surrounded her. She was wearing a silver silk dress that looked as smooth as her fair skin. Her hair was long and black while her soft lips were curved to a smile.

Xavier looked into her beautiful silver eyes. Those eyes reflected a standing child with silver eyes and hair- his four year old self.

"Mo- mother?"

The moment he uttered the word- the home, the lady- his mother, everything- blurred. Warm tears wetted his cheeks.

He rubbed his eyes, trying to hold back his tears. But the damned tears kept coming out, as if a dam collapsed.

Stop crying! He ordered himself. The annoying tears were blocking the view.

"What's wrong, dear?" An extremely familiar voice graced his ears. It was akin to an angel's decree- soothing him.

The tears finally stopped. Everything became clear again. The lady sitting on the couch was leaning forward, her smile long gone. What replaced it was worry.

The dam bursted again. Tears flowed out- even more overwhelmingly than before. But this time, he did not bother to stop them. He closed his eyes and cried his heart out- letting out all the grievances he accumulated for the past hundred years or so.

Manliness? Dignity? What were those? In his life, she was the only being he could show his tears to without any sense of worry.

"Oh my! What happened to my dear boy?" A pair of soft and warm hands grabbed him. The lady pulled him into her lap.

Xavier, still crying, cozied into her bosom. Her warmth and flowery fragrance encompassed him. Being responsible as the strongest human, watching over the world, scurrying after knowledge, searching for 'it'- he could give up everything. All he wanted was to stay there- protected- forever if possible.

"Who hurt you, my boy?" The melodic voice entered his ears again. "Tell mother and she'll teach him a lesson."

Xavier finally opened his eyes and backed his head out from her body. There was a big wet spot on the shoulder of the extravagant dress of the lady, but she did not mind at all.

Seeing her son finally stop crying, a bright smile etched across her face yet again. She wiped the lingering tears with her soft hand and asked, "Feeling better?"

Xavier nodded, holding back the urge to cry again. He brought forth both of his small hands and touched the lady's cheeks. Though his hands were still wet from his tears, Xavier felt the smoothness and warmth of his mother's cheeks nonetheless.

"How… how have you been?" He asked with a sniff.

The lady raised a brow. "Are you practicing Avion, my dear?"

He nodded, even though this was not the answer.

"Well, thank you my dear. And how were you, my sweet child?" She pulled him closer, touching his nose with hers.

"Fa- fine," the young Xavier uttered. "Mother, I saw a dream. It's about the future. Can I-"

"Of course!" The smile on her face beamed brighter. "What did my child see?"

Xavier ranted on for hours- on how the Kingdom of Avarynth turned into a democracy, how steam power changed the world, how the distance between Aramon and Derbury reduced to three hours from twelve, how he made friends with the heroes of this world, and of course his own marks left on it.

"That's quite the dream to have." The lady laughed, without a tinge of mockery in it. "So, you lived for a couple of centuries?"

The child Xavier nodded. The signs of tears were long gone from his face. Only a cute smile remained.

"All praise to the Lord. May my son live even longer." She gently pinched the child's cheek. "And where was I in your dream?"

"You-" The smile on his face disappeared, his vision blurring again. But he managed to hold back the tears and force the smile back. "You were with me… watching over me."

"Was I proud?"

The young Xavier bit his lips and hugged the lady tight, his tears flowing endlessly again. "Yes. Yes. Yes. You were the proudest mother in the world."

His actions surprised the lady, but she hugged him back. There was no reason not to.

…

Suddenly, the lights went out. The fireplace, chandelier, torches- everything went silent as pure darkness enshrouded everything.

Xavier peeled his eyes wide open in horror. He remembered that this space brought forth the worst of the subject's memories- not the best.

The hug around his body tightened down. The temperature fell, sending chills through his body. The only warmth that remained was of his mother's body. The air became heavy, as if he were inhaling scent less smog. He clasped his mother's dress.

"Mother," he whispered, scared that someone was close by. "Let's run away."

But what met his words was silence- utter silence. Only the sound of her heartbeat lingered- slowing down every second.

"I am sorry, dear." Finally, his mother's voice graced his ears. Albeit, it was now a lot weaker- almost lifeless.

"Live well." The arms wrapped around the young Xavier loosened. Her hands slid down his back and collapsed.

Her chest became silent- devoid of any movements. A breath that sounded as a long sigh was the last Xavier heard from his mother.

His face was still pressed against his still mother's dress. He did not dare look up.

Not again, not again! He cursed in his mind. Tears swamped his face.

He was sure he would get some clues this time. But the cursed place just had to mess up his psyche at the last moment!

His mother's death remained an enigma as ever.

He took in a deep breath and composed himself. But he still did not dare to look up. If there was one thing he did not wish to ever see, it was her lifeless face.

It was time to get out of this hellish space. He snapped his fingers.

"Tsk. Tsk. You are as boring as ever."