Chapter 8 - Awakening(Part 3)

Alright, I'm finished packing. It was still hard to believe that I was disowned and being kicked out of the house I'd grown up in...but there was no sense in letting it get me down, I might as well get over it.

Okay, that was a lot easier said than done...I was seething with anger and confusion, I had never felt this frustrated before, and that was saying a lot.

Damn it, that old bastard...I can't believe he really disowned me just because I didn't turn out to be a Prodigy. He would probably take it back if I revealed that I'm an Anomaly, but...if that's all I'm worth to him, then screw him, I don't want to be re-inherited.

I'll do just fine on my own, no I'll do better than fine, I'll train hard and pass the X-Warrior Academy in five years...that was a long way away though, and I'll likely be pretty busy.

I'll have to study, train, and find a source of income...I'll probably have to get a job-...no, wait, I could gamble. I could hit the casinos, I'm underage but anyone older than fifteen were allowed to use slot machines. There was no risk, if I lost money, I could just use my ability to go back in time and try again. Alright, that should save me a lot of time and effort.

Well, I can work out the details later. Let's see, I've packed my clothes and belongings, should I take anything else?

I walked over to my desk and looked it over. Hm, I should take my stationery too, pens and stuff are pretty cheap, but it certainly won't hurt to be frugal with my money. I packed my pens and other stationary, pausing as I picked up a scissor.

It would be ridiculously easy to sneak up to my father and give him a few good stabs to get my anger out, and then use my ability to go back in time...nah, I probably shouldn't-...my door then opened and...my father walked in, a disdainful look on his face.

"Hm, this room is filled with trash...I certainly hope it is all gone by tomorrow. This waste of space can finally be put to good use," He remarked, acting like I wasn't here.

Did he...seriously just come here to provoke me?

"Yeah, yeah...mind getting out, I want to sleep," I replied with a sigh, swallowing my hostility.

Just play it smart and take the high road, all I need to do is not get provoked and he was bound to get bored and leave sooner or later.

"There seems to be an irritating noise in this room...it better be gone by tomorrow."

...talk about petty.

"I truly wonder how much money I could have saved if I had not invested in trash...," He muttered wistfully, kicking one of my packed bags.

Alright, that's it...screw the high road. I'm not letting him get away with treating me like this...

"<Activate Anomaly, Tier One: Save>," I murmured quietly, as he turned to leave the room.

The moment he turned his back to me, I let all my rage and animosity boil over, leaping to my feet as sheer fury took control of my body, I grabbed the back of his collar to stop him from leaving, before driving the scissor into his back, eliciting a cry of pain from him.

I twisted the blunt blade violently and pulled it out with a jerk, ducking as he swung his fist at me, his eyes bulging with anger. All those countless training sessions he forced me to go through...they were about to work against him.

I stabbed the scissor into the middle of his chest, before nimbly slipping away as he tried to grab me, and then jumping up and slamming an airborne spin-kick at the back of the embedded scissor, forcing it deeper into his chest.

"Gahh-...why, you little-!"

"Oh, so you can see me now, huh? How interesting," I interrupted in a cold voice, slamming an uppercut onto his jaw after dodging another swing of his fists, "Too slow."

"You piece of filth, if only you had never been born- arghh!" He began, before I dislocated his jaw by slamming a kick against the side of his face.

I followed it up with a couple of swift punches to upper side of his mouth, knocking out a few of his front teeth. The physical boost of an Anomaly...I suppose I should thank him for letting me test it out.

In spite of myself, I felt enjoyment and satisfaction as I took in his pained expression. I couldn't stop my lips from curving up into a slight smirk. My frustrations had been piling up for years with no respite...and now, I was finally getting the opportunity to take it all out on something...and I couldn't have asked for a more satisfying punching bag to take it out on.

I grabbed the scissor handle and yanked it out with a vicious twist, blood pouring out of the wound as I did. I then slipped my ring and middle fingers of my right hand into the handle of the scissor, unleashing a series of punches at his torso while easily dodging his attempts to hit or grab me. Each punch from my right fist pierced his skin with the scissor, while I made sure to avoid landing a fatal hit.

I had no proof, but I instinctively knew that if I killed him...going back on time wouldn't undo it completely, his injuries would be undone but the death itself wouldn't be, he'd be left in a catatonic state...like I said, I don't know how I knew that, I just sort of instinctively knew.

"Come on, what's the matter, you can scream louder than that!" I found myself blurting out, a small chuckle escaping my lips as I drove the scissor through his left cheek, knocking in a couple of teeth and piercing his tongue.

My heart was pounding and my body was trembling, I felt almost...giddy.

"Arghhhh! Y-you bashtard, I shall make shure that you- gahhhh!!!" He slurred in anger, blood spewing out of his mouth, before I interrupted him by stabbing his right eye and twisting the scissor.

"Shut up already, I'd rather listen to nails on a chalkboard than anything you have to say. Plus, you're spraying blood all over the place," I sighed with a smirk, evading a swing of his fist before grabbing it and throwing him over my shoulder, dislocating it as his back slammed against the floor.

Now, then...what should I do to him next?

Before I could decide, my door swung open, my sister and mother standing in the doorway. My mother let out a gasp while Kilella looked pretty shocked herself, before shaking her head to compose herself and letting out a sharp exhale.

"Zax...I can't say that I exactly blame you, but don't you think you've gone a little too far?" She said in an easing tone, trying to calm me down.

She was mistaken though, I was perfectly calm.

"No, I haven't...not yet, anyway. Besides, I was just minding my own business when he barged in and provoked me, and I wasn't about to take the high road and let him do as he pleased. I'll let him go after a little more-...hey!" I exclaimed, as she swiftly got me in an armlock.

Damn it, she had a firm grip on me, I couldn't move...my strength boost was certainly significant, but it wasn't enough against a Prodigy, I fall short in terms of sheer brute force. My martial arts skills were a bit better than hers, but since she had me restrained, it was too late to see if I could beat her in close combat. Then again, I really have no intention of fighting her, she's the one person I have absolutely no animosity towards, after all.

"Kill him! Kill this worthless piece of-!" Growled my father, struggling to stand up, looking like he was about to pass out.

"You don't seem to realize that you brought this on yourself! How...how could you disown your own son just because-!" Kilella retorted angrily.

"I refuse to recognize this worthless-!"

This is getting annoying, I suppose I've more or less had my fill anyway...

"Enough, already. <Activate Anomaly, Tier One:....>..."

"Wh-what-...?" Stuttered my father in shock.

"Zax, what did you just-?"

"<...Load >."

.

.

.

.

My father turned his back to me and...walked out of the room, as I tossed the scissor into a pocket in one of my bags, letting out a slow exhale as he shut the door and left.

This...this power is...freaking awesome! Oh, wow, just imagine...if I'd had this ability a few years ago, I could have-...! Well, I guess there's no point in ifs or buts, I'll just have to make full use of it from here on out.

Heh, I felt a lot better now, I had vented my frustrations quite a bit and most of my anger had subsided thanks to that. Stabbing my father had been some pretty effective therapy, who'd have thought?

Guess I should get some sleep now, I felt pretty tired now that I had gotten all of that out of my system. I took off my glasses and set them aside, before flopping onto my bed with a tired sigh...this'll be the last time I fall asleep in this room, that fact wasn't quite sinking in.

How did it all come to this, anyway...?

...

...

The next morning, I woke up early, around 5 AM. I checked my I-Watch holo-screen...looks like I'd gotten a few e-mails. I opened them one by one and read through them.

A document confirming that I'd been transferred from the Regal Campus high school to the Prosaic Phrontistery high school, a legal document giving me ownership of an apartment room in a building that was well out of the way of this house...guess my father didn't want to see me again even by accident.

Fine by me, he can go die in a fire for all I care. Actually, I hope he does die in a fire, or something else super painful anyway.

The rest of my mail was spam or irrelevant, so I shut off my holo-screen and got out of bed. I quietly walked out of my room and into the bathroom, washing my face and brushing my teeth before grabbing a quick shower.

I then went back to my room and picked up my bags, five in total. A large trolley bag, two big duffel bags and two backpacks. I was just about able to manage carrying them thanks to my increased strength after becoming an Anomaly.

I quietly headed down the stairs, spotting my sister asleep on the living room couch as I made my way down. The stairs creaked as I neared the bottom, the noise waking her up. She sat up groggily and yawned, looking a bit confused as to why she was in the living room. She then saw me and quickly stood up, nearly losing her balance with her legs still asleep.

"Zax...I'm really sorry, I...I-I just wish there was something I could do-," She began with a miserable expression.

"You've done enough, Ella, seriously...you've been my main source of emotional support for all these years, not sure what kind of state I'd be in right now if you hadn't been around. So, uh...you know, you have no reason to be upset," I replied, in an awkward attempt to comfort her.

"Of course I have reason to be upset, I'm losing my little brother over something so...so...!" She trailed off, her eyes glistening as a look of frustration appeared on her face.

"For now, and it's not like I'm dying or something. Just you wait, I'll become an X-Warrior just like you definitely will, once that happens...," I began in a positive tone, trailing off as my voice cracked and I felt a lump in my throat, along with a prickly feeling welling up in my eyes.

I never got along with my father, and my mother was always busy with work and rarely ever interacted with me unless necessary, so she was basically a stranger to me. But my sister was different, she was...she was my family, and I didn't want to lose that. But I can't be selfish, I'm not going to drag her down with me...instead, I'll just have to climb up to her level.

"Sorry, it's just me here to see you off...mother already left for work," She smiled tearfully and apologetically.

"I really don't mind, it's not like we were close or anything. I mean, I don't dislike her like I do with father, but I wouldn't say I like her either...guess I'm on the fence," I replied with a shrug and light smile.

"We had a pretty messed up family, huh?"

"Heh, that's an understatement, sis...it wasn't all bad though. If nothing else, I'm glad to have you as my older sister."

"Zax..."

"A-anyway, I should get going! If I miss the bus, it'll be an hour before the next one, so-!"

"Hold on, let me help you carry your bags-."

"No, that's okay...this might sound weird, but I think it'll be easier for me to move on without looking back if I leave this house alone. So...goodbye, for now anyway, Kilella. And...thank you for everything."

With that, as tears began running down her eyes, I turned around and headed for the front door, leaving the house that I'd grown up in for the first fifteen years of my life for the last time...

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