Chapter 2 - Xavier Pierce

Ku Yong Empire – Maide

Pierce Residence

"Xavier!!"

The shrill sound of his mother's voice reached him from the downstairs area of him home. Though he was deeply absorbed into the latest edition of Kings and Peasants, a popular book series in Maide, the urgency in his mother's voice drove him to react immediately. Closing his book, Xavier jumped from a laying position on his bed. Running from his room and down the staircase. Skipping several stairs on the way, he quickly reached his mother.

"What's wrong, ma?" Xavier asked her once he stood in her presence. His mother was ushering his siblings, two brothers and two sisters, into the basement of their home.

"Quickly! In the basement!" was her only reply.

Xavier stood there, a dumbfounded expression on his face. He had never seen his mother in such a frantic state. He had apparently angered her when he did not immediately respond to her command. She rushed to him, grabbed him roughly by his arm and pushed him towards the door to the basement. "Go!" she yelled at him with a ferocity that Xavier did not understand. He was forced to follow his siblings into the basement. As he descended down the staircase, sirens began to blare behind him.

In Maide, every man, woman, and child knew that those sirens only sounded to warn of imminent danger from natural disaster. The city of Maide was a vast one, on the eastern shore of Seras. The occasional hurricane or tsunami would strike Maide, but there were often warnings weeks ahead of time. Though is was uncommon, earthquakes would occasionally occur, but Xavier felt no tremors. There were no signs of tornados, or the like. There was no logical reason in Xavier's eyes, for the sirens or his mother's panic.

Xavier looked around to the faces of his younger siblings. Each of them, like himself, shared their mother's features, light brown skin and ginger hair. Their faces silently screamed their panic to him. Seeing their mother in the state she was in had sent them all into shock.

Xavier had always been calloused with his siblings. He had given them all the impression that he hated them. In some ways he did. After he'd spent most of his childhood and teenage years making bad decisions, his mother had given up raising him and focused on them, and he resented them for it. He could not however, let them remain the way they were. Even if the only reason for it was his own peace of mind.

"Relax, guys. I'm sure everything will be alright," Xavier said, sure to watch his tone to sound in control. Giving them a reassuring smile he gently made his way towards them. Though they were afraid of him, they seemed to be comforted by his presence. That was until their mother swiftly and loudly rushed down the stairs into the basement, slamming the door behind her.

Her actions reestablished their panic, and Xavier's youngest brother, Neko, let a small whimper escape his lips. Xavier shot him a foul look. Fucking wimp, he thought. Even more so than the others, Xavier held a deep dislike for his youngest brother. His tendency to shriek and leap meters off the ground at the sight of his own shadow angered Xavier beyond imagining.

Composing himself, Xavier tried again to soothe his siblings, this time more for himself than them. Hoping his mother had a positive answer he asked his mother,

"What's going on outside, ma?"

"I don't know," she replied, her panic still apparent in her voice. "The Emperor sounded an alarm, telling the entire empire to take shelter."

The entire empire? Xavier thought to himself. Ku Yong rules most of Seras. If the entire empire is in danger, could this be retaliation from Marris?

It was at this moment that a heavy rain began to pour over Xavier's home. The rain came down hard enough that it could be heard clearly from the basement. Accompanied by the rain were the sounds of terrified screams, filled with pain and anguish.

With his father not around since he was young, Xavier had inherently become the man of his household. As the man, he felt it his duty to assess the situation for himself, rather than just take his mother's word that something dangerous was coming. Slowly he began to make his way to the staircase leading back into the main floor of his home.

"Where are you going?" his mother asked him, an anxiousness layering her voice. Xavier was a young man of nineteen and had taken up a job to assist his mother with their taxes when he was far younger. In his eyes, he was a man, and she had no right to stop him. Rather than reply, he continued to the stairs, and made his way up into the living room area. Behind him, he could hear his mother yelling for him, until the moment he shut the door behind him.

Once in the living room area, he made his way to the nearest window to him and opened a shallow peaking hole through the blinds. What he saw shook him. The sky above him had become a dark shade of red, mired by enormous black clouds. On the streets below, there were people running in every direction trying to get themselves to shelter. The rain Xavier had heard from the basement was falling in perpetuity, and though he had to look closely to see it, the rain was dyed red, almost resembling blood.

The scenery outside his home could only be described as chaotic. As many people as there were running the streets, there were just as many lying on the ground, seemingly dying or already dead. The red rain appeared to burn some of the citizens of Maide the moment it made contact with their skin. Others seemed to be completely unaffected, but still ran for shelter in a state of panic, seeing what was going about in their surroundings.

Not far from his house, Xavier saw a man shoved aside by a group of people heading the opposite direction. The man lost his footing and fell to the ground, to be trampled by any and everyone who passed close enough to step on him. His cries for help were ignored as the people held no regard for the safety of anyone other than themselves. His voice was cut off sharply as someone had stepped on his neck, sentencing him to a premature death.

Xavier held his hands to his face in a moment of disbelief. This had not been his first brush with death. Death be it by violence or sickness was a common occurrence in the slums of the Ku Ying Empire. This was, however, overwhelming. This is terrifying. Like something straight from a nightmare,, Xavier thought as he slowly released his hands from his face.

A shrill scream that only a child could muster made Xavier's neck snap up, bringing his attention back to the outside world. There was a child, no older than twelve in the middle of the street, crying in fear. There was no parent or guardian in sight for this child, and she was out in the red rain, crying for help. It was a plea that no man would ignore. Xavier especially, who'd lived his life craving the adventure he often read about in his fantasy books, fancying himself a white knight for those in need.

It took him barely a few seconds to decide that he would go and save that child. Breathing heavily, and mentally preparing himself to go out into the midst of chaos, Xavier grabbed hold of the door knob of his front door, twisted it, and ran full sprint towards the little girl.

The moment he stepped outside his house, red rain fell onto his head, drenching him from head to foot. Relief crossed his mind as the rain, which seemed to act as acid to some on the streets, left him unharmed. Visibility quickly grew scarce as the rain and winds increased in speed and ferocity. Still, Xavier ran forward, his eyes never leaving the child in distress. To his right a crowd of people were running as a horde in his direction.

Xavier became victim to the whims of another's panic. Civilians ran for shelter franticly, as if every rain drop was an entity of death diving to claim their lives. In their panic, most of them did not notice Xavier in their path and could not avoid colliding with him. Xavier was flung to the ground, and stepped on, just as the man he'd witnessed before when he'd watched from the window.

He quickly guarded his face and chest with his arms and fists, curling himself into a ball to avoid as much damage as he could. Once the horde passed, he found himself able to stand, with no more than a few bruises on his arms and legs. He'd fared much better than the man before.

Ignoring his pain, Xavier quickly spun around, searching for the girl he'd come outside to rescue. It took him only a moment to find her, as he could hear her, still crying in desperation for help. Again, he made his way in her direction, this time reaching her safely without interruption.

Without speaking or awaiting permission, Xavier picked the girl up in his arms, turned a full one hundred-eighty degrees, and ran back towards his home. The girl stopped crying the moment she'd been snatched from her feet. Staring up at Xavier in confusion, but with a strong expression of relief. She had been saved, and she did not know or care by whom.

The added weight of the child made him run much slower than he did when he ran to her, but he and the girl made it safely to his front door. He set her down to her feet, opened the door, and nudged her gently inside. Following behind her, he quickly shut the door once inside. The moment the door was shut, Xavier was surrounded by his mother and siblings, who had all been waiting for him to return in the entry room.

"X!" his siblings shouted, simultaneously embracing him, drenching themselves in the rain still on his clothes. Behind them, their mother's face was a puzzle of emotions, ranging from anger, to relief, to confusion, then back to anger.

Still wrapped by the arms of his siblings, Xavier was suddenly embraced by his mother as well, who yelled all the while holding him.

"What were you thinking?! We don't know what's going on, and you run straight into the danger?" She chastised him. "That was stupid! Stupid!"

Releasing him from embrace, her face was one that Xavier recognized. Looking at the girl, and back at Xavier, she held a warm smile.

Pride? She may have called him stupid, but Xavier saw that in that moment that she could not have been prouder of him, who had just selflessly run into danger to save a helpless child. Knowing this brought a smile to Xavier's face. After years of constant disappointment after another, he never thought he could give his mother a sense of pride.

"Hello," Xavier's mother said, greeting the child he'd brought in from the rain. She knelt, bringing the child's eye level to her own. "I'm Mrs. Pierce. What's your name?"

"Bonnie," the girl quietly responded.

"Bonnie?" Xavier's mother asked, smiling at her wider than before, "What an adorable child you are. Are you hungry, sweetie?"

The girl nodded her head shortly in response. She was not rude, or even indifferent. She was afraid. Probably recovering from shock. Seeing that many people die the way they died at her age can't be good for her psyche, Xavier thought to himself. Turning to his mother he continued to reflect. Chaos rages just outside our door, and mom wants to save the world with a meal. Though, a meal would probably be the perfect remedy for this kid right now. At least until that red rain stops falling.

Xavier's mother and siblings proceeded to the kitchen area, leaving him to his thoughts. Now that his mother was no longer in a state of panic, Xavier decided to return to his room. Though he wanted to dive back into Kings and Peasants, he decided to shower, as he'd been drenched in red rain. He grabbed a change of clothes from his room, and went to the bathroom, ran hot water and showered, cleansing himself of the rain.

Once finished and changed, he laid down on his bed, and attempted to continue where he left off in his book. His attempt was short lived. There were too many thoughts racing through his mind to pay attention to King Itos' exploits.

The sky was red, and the rain that fell from red and black clouds was red as well. I saw skin broil from contact with the rain, He thought. There were people lying in the streets, blood coming from their eyes and mouths. Some people looked like they were losing their minds. Yet, Bonnie and I were fine. Why?

Xavier did not move a muscle as he processed what had passed in his mind, however, he could come to no concrete conclusion. While lost in thought he was reminded of a book he'd read years before. He couldn't remember the name of it, but he remembered most of the story. It was a book he'd enjoyed, so he was sure he had it somewhere around his room.

Xavier instinctually began to search for the book. Perhaps to relieve his mind of the tedious process of thinking of what he'd witnessed earlier. Or perhaps because he'd remembered a red cloud and rain from the story and felt the need to satisfy a strange curiosity.

It took him a while. Roughly thirty minutes, but he found the book he'd been searching for. The Nest, by Johan J. Emzy. He settled down and began reading it, hoping to lose himself in a fictional world. Once he began reading, the story was refreshed in his mind. A red cloud struck a city and gave a man supernatural ability.

He saved the world from danger by defeating some monster, got the girl, blah blah blah. This book isn't as great as I thought it was, Xavier digressed, throwing the book into a corner in his room.

Still, he thought, the red cloud and rain in the book, is described exactly as I saw it outside. It could be coincidence. But people often take real experiences and turn them into stories. He could only guess and speculate, which to him was no better than worrying or stressing over what's going on outside.

Just then, there was a loud bang, accompanied by screams and cries more panicked than any Xavier had heard thus far. Down the stairs, Xavier could hear his family react individually to the sound Xavier took for an explosion of some sort. Though there was no danger to them from whatever caused the explosion, the sound had startled each of them, Xavier included.

Rather than be alone in his room, Xavier decided to return downstairs to join his family in the kitchen. As he arrived downstairs, his mother was finishing her preparation of the supper the family would share with their guest. He was glad to see that Bonnie had been cleaned and given a change of clothes, though they were clearly clothes from one of his younger brother's wardrobe. The too long tee shirt and shorts that nearly touched her ankles gave her the look of a tomboy. He chuckled at her appearance, alerting his family to his presence.

"X!" Neko, Xavier's youngest brother called out to him once he'd entered the kitchen. Neko was eagerly patting the empty chair beside him, inviting his brother to join him at the table "Come, sit by me!"

With a small sigh, Xavier joined his family and Bonnie at the kitchen table and prepared himself to eat. Despite the chaos raging outside their door, the Pierce family and their guest managed to find comfort in one another, and together enjoyed a meal of beef stew, and bread.

From the kitchen table, screams and chaos from outdoors could still be faintly heard along with the consistent wail of emergency sirens. The Pierce family and their guest continued to eat, ignoring the noise coming from outside as best they could.

They ate together in silence. The only noise coming from them being the scraping sound their spoons made against their soup bowls. It was a comfortable silence. Xavier found himself feeling extremely grateful for the roof above their heads, and that they had been home when the city began to sour.

Having finished his meal, Xavier quietly excused himself from the table, and went to return to his room, hoping to indulge once more into his book. Laying back onto his bed, he reopened Kings and Peasants, and focused his attention on his fiction. A short while passed before any sound could be heard from downstairs.

Suddenly, laughter cascaded through the Pierce house from the kitchen table. The voice heard above the rest came from the family's guest, Bonnie. Xavier assumed his mother must've told her favorite joke. His siblings had always gotten a good laugh from the joke, and Mrs. Pierce enjoyed telling it to new people.

The laughter continued to echo throughout the house, making it seem almost as if the world outside their door was little more than illusion.

Suddenly, Mrs. Pierce's sweet resonant laugh became a violent cough. Xavier knew his mother to be in perfect health. Alarms began to sound in his head as her cough became heavier and more consistent, prompting Xavier once again reenter the kitchen and ensure his mother was fine.

Xavier entered the kitchen to find his mother huddled over the sink, hacking and coughing so hard Xavier feared she might cough her lungs straight from her chest. His siblings and Bonnie watched her from the kitchen table, uncertainty and concern wrinkling their faces. Xavier quickly walked over to his mother, resting a hand on her back and leaning near her, so as to quietly speak with her without alarming his siblings and Bonnie any further.

"You alright, ma?" Xavier asked.

She did not appear capable of responding to him. She instead put a hand up, silently attempting to set his mind at ease. Xavier stared at the hand in horror. It was covered in blood, no doubt spat from her mouth.

Before he could voice his concern, a fierce shudder ran though Mrs. Pierce's body, sending her in a spasm, removing her feet from beneath her. She fell to the ground with a loud ~thud~, and her breathing became more ragged, the coughing giving no sign of reprieve. She clutched one hand to her chest and covered her mouth with the other. Blood spurted through her fingers, painting her face and neck dark red.

"Ma!!" Xavier shouted, falling to the ground and cradled her head in his lap. The chaos outside rescinded into a low hum. The only clear sounds to reach his ears were his ears were the sobs of his terror-stricken siblings, and his mother's sporadic and violent cough.

Panic began to seep into Xavier's body. His hands shaking, and his stomach in a tight knot, Xavier sat on the kitchen floor with his mother as her body began to convulse, and her breathing became little more than desperate gasps for breath.

Xavier's mother removed her hand from her chest, tightly grasped his hand in it, and stared into his eyes. Her coughing began to subside, but her breathing had not straightened, and in her eyes, Xavier could see his mother's fear of mortality.

"Take care… of them," Charging Xavier with this task, Mrs. Pierce looked at each of her children's faces, passionate love for them all shining in her eyes.

Tears began to fall down Xavier's face, as life began to creep from his mother's body. His siblings each got up from their seats and ran over to fall, much in the same manner as Xavier, next to their mmother. Bonnie watched on from the family table, teary eyed, as together, the Pierce siblings embraced their mother in her final moments, each of them expressing their grief without shame, as life slipped from her.

A wail of anguish escaped Xavier's lips, as the foundation of his home trembled beneath him.