Last Hope
"What's wrong with Carius?"
Sicarius held onto Agatha, making it clear that he did not plan to let go at all. Hanzel watched him with furrowed brows and a tilted head.
Agatha smirked, "I guess he's just showing us who's his favorite parent."
"Huh!?" Hanzel gasped, "That can't be! I er- try to get him to talk more often!"
Sicarius merely stared at them. He kept his tight hold on his mother's hands.
"I have to go to work Carius," Agatha's smile turned less smug and more motherly as she patted Sicarius's head, "We'll play when I'm home."
"I want to come with you to work." A clear concise string of words. A fully formed sentence. And it was told by a tiny high-pitched voice that came from no one else but Sicarius. A minute passed but only silence followed. Sicarius eyed Agatha and Hanzel who were both wide-eyed looking at him in astonishment.
"HE SPOKE! HE SPOKE" Hanzel roared, "IS THIS A DREAM?!"
Agatha started mumbling prayers, "Thank the lord that he is not deaf nor is he mute! I will go to church every Sunday I promise you."
Sicarius forgot that there was an importance to a child's first words.
"Carius, if you understand me, say that again!" Hanzel pleaded,
"I want to go to school with mother," Sicarius repeated,
"Honey, you take him! Those are his first words, you can't possibly deny them!" Hanzel had tears in the corner of his eyes as he made his request. It seemed like the man was granted a wish that he had longed to happen for a long time.
"You don't have to tell me that, Hanzel!" Agatha turned to Sicarius and held both of his hands, "Say your goodbyes to your father, I'm gonna take you to school just as you want my little baby."
"Goodbye, father," Sicarius muttered,
"GOODBYE, MY SON! OH THANK THE GODS!" Those were the last words Sicarius heard as his mother yanked him outside and into their car. This was the first time Sicarius had allowed himself to be taken beyond the vicinity of their property. The surroundings were new but not quite, it reminded him of another past world. The skyscrapers, the floating masses of land, the architecturally designed structures, and the mass of people. The people along the streets seemed happy, happier than they should be considering that their world is half in shambles. Then again, they were in a continent not yet dominated by the Sins.
These people will never reach the top, but at least they can say that they enjoyed the last moments of their near-ending lives.
Sicarius directed his sight to his mother, who had a grin that can disturb any man with the ability to look. Agatha was quite an intimidating woman, she had the looks of a fairy and a temperament as cold as the darkest abyss in space, so when they arrived at the school with a grin stuck on her face, everyone felt like something was amiss.
While everyone was alerted by Agatha's grin, Sicarius focused his attention on the structures of the Last Hope. The very structure seemed like a fortress instead of a school. It was shaped like a dome but it was as tall as a skyscraper and wider than a colosseum. There was no sign, no lettering announcing to the world it was the Last Hope. The very structure itself seemed to be the symbol of it. A structure that goes over the clouds, as sturdy as the Earth itself.
"It's quite an amazing structure, isn't it, son? Made by the original powereds, The legendary status 7's. "
Status 7, when a powered is able to wipe out a country of Sins. Sicarius will surpass that level someday so it didn't make him swell in adoration. He simply anticipated all the possible benefits that a structure such as this could provide him.
He held his mother's arm and they proceeded inside the massive structure through one of the few entrances where multiple guards were posted. A shiny metallic rod was noticeably stuck to the wall by the entrance. Nods and stiff smiles were exchanged as Agatha passed by the guards.
Inside the structure was a long corridor filled with people that led to multiple halls. Various posters and notices were displayed on multiple tv screens hanging by the walls. On one, was displayed a map to traverse the school, or rather to traverse the first floor. They walked straight through the bumbling students and eventually reached a tall doorway which was opened to reveal an enormous auditorium.
Rows of people as far as the eye can see. It reminded Sicarius of gigantic armies lined up for battle, however, these were mostly students in their young adolescence and the school faculty, not battle-trained soldiers.
Despite the massive amount of people within the auditorium, there was quite ample space to move around. The crowd was parted in the middle forming two massive groups. In the middle of the groups seemed to be a horizontal escalator that went forward and back in a loop. Noticeably, the faculty of the school was the only one allowed to use this.
Agatha brought Sicarius to the middle and stood still as they were being transported to their seats.
"Today is the start of a new school year, Carius. The capable powered youth from all over the safe zones are sent here to be trained to protect the weak and help those in need." Agatha explained,
Sicarius merely nodded in response and remained silent as they eventually reached their seat alongside the other school faculty.
"Well, who's this charming little lad?"Said a woman that reeked of the scent of blood. She had long dark robes like a witch that covered most of her body, if she wanted, Sicarius felt like she could hide a lot of weapons within her clothing.
It highly contrasted what Agatha wore. Agatha seemed strict, conventional, and proper while the woman seated beside their seat was loose, uncaring, and unprofessional.
"This is the joy to my life, my son," Agatha said as she sat then lifted Sicarius to sit on her lap.
"He seems adorable, unlike his mother." Said the witch-like woman as she smiled at Sicarius, "But why would you bring a child here to be bored to death?"
"Because I can. If you fixed yourself and tried to seem presentable maybe you would have been married with a child of your own that you could also bring and bore to death. Then maybe you won't bother me."
It dawned on Sicarius that whoever made these seating arrangements needed to be fired. The two seemed to be at odds which each other, bickering endlessly so that they didn't notice that the principal was already talking.
Sicarius felt like it was a waste of time to remain. However, he could not find a reason to leave. At least, until Agatha was called to the stage to give a speech.
"Just stay here, Carius. Watch mother be great." Agatha said, to which the witch lady scoffed.
"Your mother's such a showoff, what was it? Carius." The witch like lady said as she patted Sicarius's head, "Don't worry big sister's gonna watch over you for now."
Sicarius simply stared at her face, "I have to go piss."
He hopped off his seat and started to step towards the horizontal escalator, before being held back by an invisible force. Sicarius couldn't move at all. He felt powerless and weak. A feeling that he hated the most.
"You're gonna piss? Your language is as crude as your mother's."
Sicarius couldn't turn his head, but his lips were another matter.
"Do not worry aunti-" Sicarius paused, "Do not worry big sister, I know the way to the bathroom and I'll come back in a few minutes."
He said lies like how he says he can murder the whole population. Naturally, as if his word were facts.
"I don't want to piss here," Added Sicarius.
"Did your mother teach you to speak like that? Gosh, you sound so plain and dead inside." The witch lady pursed her lips, then nodded "Fine, go, but if you're not here after 5 minutes, I will hunt you down and drag your ass back here!"
Sicarius nodded and quickly stepped away before he was restricted once again. He speculated that the witch had powers of the mental realm based on experience, there are only a few main realms of abilities. Sicarius has seen it all. Once he gains ample resources to grow no witch can hold him down like a spider trapped in a box.
He felt the witch's gaze fixed on the back of his head. She should take a good last look because had no intention of coming back in five minutes. He had seen the layout of the first floor from a monitor earlier, he headed towards the elevators to head up further through the building, looking at the monitor placed in the middle of the hall, as it showed the layout of each floor. He did so until he found a library that was located on the 10th floor.
Since most of the school staff and students were down at the auditorium he waltzed into the library as if he owned the place, not noticing the eyes watching him from one hundred floors above.