Hidden Family
Hidden Family
Greenspan Academy, it appears it hasn’t aged a day since you stepped inside its welcoming doors. Sure, there might be different people here, but you still received the same misleading and unfriendly atmosphere like you did many years ago once you first step foot here.
Despite the high praise the school received over the years it was just a cover up for the dark truth the school tries to hide every year, and somehow after every that passes by their secrets aren’t revealed. The sights you saw in that school were pretty horrible, and everything you hate about Greenspan would need a list longer than Santa’s list of presents.
As you were thinking about your past at Greenspan the rain was getting pretty heavy, and it was quite the burden. Out of all the days you were broken out of jail the weather decided to be your number one hater.
The days where the elemenians controlled the weather must be long gone by now, and nature was able to get it’s revenge.
Once you made it to the bridge you rushed towards the entrance of the school expecting to have to rush through the doors full force like a raging bull. Around this time of year no one is usually around these parts. Everyone in the village is asleep at this hour, so it was a perfect time to come excluding the weather issues.
However, there was one man you knew was waiting for you, and you couldn’t wait any longer to embrace that man again. He wasn’t family, nor a friend, but your favorite teacher in the world. He was like the only light in the world despite what he teaches, and over the years you have only warmed up to him even more.
“Well look who decided to show up after all these years. I thought you would have rotted away in jail by now.” You heard a deep voice mutter, and once the drawbridge was brought down you knew whose familiar voice belonged to.
“Wow, that’s the first thing you say to your favorite student after not seeing him for almost a decade. You’re as thoughtless as I remember.” You teased the professor who gave a quick eye roll with a smile.
Mr. Secretus was a guy that taught his students with the utmost seriousness and intelligence, but behind the scenes he wasn’t the same guy. Sometimes he could make a dark joke or two, but he was a great man to you.
You both giggled and just looked into each other’s eyes thinking back to the good times and what is still yet to come. Your life has finally taken a positive turn. After so many years you’re finally free, and in your opinion ready to make the right changes.
“Oh, Layton just get in here. It’s colder than an ice age out here.” Mr. Secretus said and you ran inside the building to get out of the freezing rain.
It didn’t look like it was going to end any time soon, so you were glad to be inside a warm room. Even though the stigma from your youth is very apparent.
You were in that prison for almost nine long and agonizing years. It felt like you were a slave to the guards. You were assigned hard labor every single day, and when you literally had only one minute to take a break you cherished it like it was a miracle sent from the heavens, or in your case the devil after all you have done in your almost forty-eight years of life… Not even the other inmates talked to you because they all hated your guts.
“So, have you heard anything about Amelia lately? If I try to contact her I will probably get blocked, and if I am being serious with you the world will end before I get the shortest of responses.” You mentioned.
The last time you saw her face she was in literal horror of what you became, but she didn’t understand your intentions. You just want equality there is nothing wrong with that ideal at all.
For many years people with white, gray, black, or any other irregularity colored hair were discriminated against because of their involvement in a war between races thousands of years before you were even born.
“No, but I heard plenty of things about your superstar n- “
Mr. Secretus was interrupted by a sudden cough, which he countered with a sip of water which caused the coughing to subside. It seemed like the spirits he summons couldn’t help him with his health.
“Do you want to take a seat Layton?”
“No, I’m good.”
“Ok then, but anyway Alyssa has gotten pretty famous at this rate. You have to listen to her voice. She sounds like an angel.” Mr. Secretus described her to you, and you were shocked that someone in your family got famous.
However you had a feeling if someone were going to get the prize of fame it would be her out of anyone you knew. Alyssa was one of the few members of the family that at least pretended to be nice to you. These days she probably hates you as much as your sister does, so it was nice in the short run.
“Alyssa? She is as confident as a lion hunting its prey. She may hate me, but at least she can’t stop me from listening to her music.” You replied, and he slightly giggled again.
“Hey, do you actually miss them? Your family might hate you, but at the end of the day they are still your f- “
“No, not one bit. The moment they turned their backs on me it was over. I bet they brainwashed those kids to forget about me. I wasn’t ever around anyway, so what’s the point anymore. The Prenter family’s blood has been contaminated with Ainsley blood, so there is no point in even trying to talk to them.” You scoffed with an annoyed expression on your face that you failed to cover.
“I wish I had a ghost with me to scare your secrets out of you, but you had your fair share of experiences with them already, haven’t you?” He messed with you, and you can’t help but reflect on all those times this man has made you smile.
“Anyway, let’s get down to business. Have you heard anything from Amiurt? She will hear I broke out at some point.” You asked.
“The last time I heard from her was back in July. The past few months she has been trying to build an army. If she didn’t know how to erase memories she would have been caught in an instant.” Mr. Secretus explained, and you could understand why she would have to use that so much.
If Amiurt took over, you already know what would even happen. The monarchs would be executed, whoever turns against her will be exiled to one of many abnormal planets she created many decades ago.
Amiurt had plans to create her own planets with her powers, but without the divine powers she won’t be able to make any changes to them.
She wanted everyone that looked up to her to be transported there if she had any plans to exterminate the elemenian race excluding anyone on her side. It was morbid, but as long as it was equal the new planets would have been paradise.
Other than that everything would be in order in your eyes at least. This is what those buggers have requested after all the crap they have pulled.
“Makes sense, but I wouldn’t be surprised if she didn’t come here any minute now. We both know we are her favorites.” You inferred to him.
“Well, I hope so. If not, then me and my mom will have serious issues to discuss.” Mr. Secretus said with some nervousness in his voice.
“I am still confused on how you became a teacher at such a young age though. It was like you were like one of us, and you were mistaken for a student so many times over the school year. I was sixteen and you were only twenty.”
“That conversation is for another day, anyway, let’s go to my classroom and I will give you a breakdown on what you have missed out on.” Mr. Secretus persisted, and you took the familiar route to his classroom on the third floor of the school, it was like you were following a rainbow to a pot of treasure.
The school’s interior was almost the same as it looked many years ago, and whenever you climb these stairs, you can’t help but reflect on the many memories you had here. Most were pretty awful, but there was that one person that made the experience much better other than Mr. Secretus of course.
Many years ago, you remember the first time you met the girl that would change your life forever. Her name was Trixie Xenoson, and she was the girl who stole your heart, and if that robbery wasn’t successful you would be in a different position today. You can recall her sparkling blue eyes and hair that looked even darker than ink, and especially her effort to keep going despite all the hate she received from the other Greenspan Academy students.
It was on these very steps you first locked your eyes with the woman.
She was constantly getting bullied and every time she was hurt it felt like you were being kicked in the shin, and at times you wanted to step in, but you were too afraid of the consequences.
One day you finally cracked and decided to finally stand up for her, since no one else was going to anytime soon. So, what if she had black hair? She doesn’t look like she could even hurt a fly. In brutal honesty the fly would hurt her first.
You took out your anger at the bully, and you think you overstepped it, reflecting on it these days because you threw her into a whirlpool with a spell you learned and threw her outside into the moat. The girl was in the hospital for days, and she hated your guts for the rest of your time at Greenspan Academy. It was funny until the teachers caught you, but the days of detention were worth it in the long run. You may have lost your respect, but helping out Trixie set forth your destiny.
“Oh hey, I know you are thinking of her. Trixie was a very timid woman, but over time she blossomed like a flower. She was one of our strongest members by the time Amiurt had her second revolution. She just didn’t know to admit defeat at the time.” Mr. Secretus reflected, and he was on point.
That day was pretty awful, and you think about it almost everyday of your life. Not just that, but the whole week was in general. If you could skip a part of your life that week would be erased from your consciousness in a heartbeat. You regretted everything that happened, and you thought of many ways you could have stopped her from meeting that horrible fate.
After learning about Amiurt’s defeat the army fell apart and went into hiding with all hope lost. You and your wife were planning on fleeing to Graystone village, and resuming your life until that day came and Amiurt somehow made a return. Sure, almost everyone there had gray hair and were not the nicest people, but at the time that’s where almost everyone went, and rumors stated they overwhelmingly believed in her army’s efforts.
However, for your family it was very unlikely you would make it there before the army caught you. When everyone woke up it was like a hunt for all former dark soldiers.
There were bounties placed onto your whole family, and no matter what happened you always had the feeling something bad was going to happen. It was like you were trapped in a different cell. One full of doubts and insecurities, and the key to unlocking you from the space was a key of hope that wasn’t even crafted yet.
Even though you were with Amiurt for only a few months you caused more havoc then almost anyone, and no one and not even yourself could count how many people’s lives were cut short because of your actions. If you had to guess it would be in the mid hundreds.
In search of the order that would cause everyone to go asleep Amiurt had no clue where it was, other than the fact a giant village was guarding it. Three men somehow didn’t fall asleep. It was like they had a vaccine against a plague. However, at the time no one knew.
Amiurt was invading some villages while you went ahead and started attacking others that she didn’t lay her eyes on yet. It was like you were the vice dictator. You never did the killing yourself, but the few soldiers with you had to, even though you were mostly guiding giant cats. Of course you killed a few pedestrians when you were bored or they got in the way.
Trixie had killed a few people, and your daughter Autumn was forced to raid a few places, and even had to knock a few people out. However, she wasn’t one to kill anyone, and every time you saw her in combat, she had a regretful look in her eyes you wished you had noticed sooner than you did. Because she was one of the main reasons your future was scrapped away from you.
On the day you decided to flee to Graystone your trek was interrupted by an abundance of soldiers who were showing no mercy and they had fired an array of arrows at the both of you. Luckily, your haste and expert dodging skills all of them just flew right by you.
Despite your efforts one of the men caught up to Autumn, and instead of jumping over to attack her. Autumn had jumped off her horse and joined him with no struggle. It was like your expectations flipped upside down. You were thankful they didn’t hurt her but-
You couldn’t believe your eyes. Your daughter had an upset look on her eyes. You can’t even explain to this day the sadness you felt. You regret putting her into such a wild ride she was only seven years old at the time. If you had one major regret to pick it would be not treating your daughter right.
You should have just given her to your sister, but she already had four kids to take care of and Autumn would have stuck out like a sore thumb in that village. Besides she would only get discriminated against in the first place.
The carriage took Autumn away and all you could think is what to even do after that. Go after Autumn and leave your wife or leave Autumn and protect your wife. You couldn’t pick between the two of them, and you couldn’t pick one above the other!
However, the choice was easier to pick after what happened next. It was no use because you couldn’t leave your wife alone with these men.
The men had caught up soon enough and you were apprehended on the spot with no remorse. Autumn was long gone by this point, and you could already see yourself in a prison uniform the moment you were apprehended by the men.
They were treating the two of you like you were wild dragons that had just burned down a whole village, but somehow you managed to cause more mayhem than that.
However, your wife would never go down without a fight, and what would be her final moments. She did everything in her power to defeat the soldiers, and to mainly protect you from a terrible fate you knew you never deserved.
She had fired several beams at them that were supposed to poison them and knock them unconscious, but the men knew that your wife had a trick or two up her sleeve, and later you found out they swallowed potions given to them by the headmaster of Greenspan to prevent the normal symptoms of poison to take effect.
Whatever your wife fired at them nothing happened, and once she realized this error. She got desperate and decided to pull out her fists and defeat the men with only her bare hands.
She had no chance of defeating them, but she wasn’t even thinking straight.
She charged at one man with a gray beard, but all that happened was she was blocked by his shield and she rag dolled onto the floor. However she wasn’t going down that fast.
Your wife stared at them while breathing in and out almost out of energy, but that wasn’t the case at all. This was only the start of this confrontation.
Trixie had enough of the men at this rate, and she looked like she was going to slaughter them all in a matter of seconds was how enraged she looked.
Trixie suddenly started to levitate in the air and a dark ring appeared around her. The guards decided to group up and had their shields up in front of their chests, although with confused looks on their faces. It was like an angel just gave her sacred powers.
Suddenly in the back of the ring what looked like white charms formed, and once they were in front of Trixie they charged right at the men. They tried to block the attacks with their shields, but the shields didn’t last too long, and they broke apart like they were just glass. It was like they were all on a wire and the opening made them all fall off and charge into the unexpecting men. The shocks zapped through their bodies, and killed them internally. They smelled so bad, and you could recall that disgusting smell to this very day because it was that abysmal.
Trixie gave the men no mercy, and her eyes looked like they were bloody red in rage. The men decided to slowly back away struggling to dodge the charges that were very similar to bullets coming out of a gun.
There was blood all over the place when a charge hit the man it was like an earthquake inside their body. Cruor scattered everywhere and the men were getting weaker and weaker by the minute. They could barely even mount their horses, and if one of them fell off they would have probably just laid down and died in the middle of the battle.
Trixie slowly put her guard down by the ring, suddenly blowing up into a thousand pieces and disappearing like it was never there. Your wife slowly brought herself down from her battle stance and glared at you.
“Why didn’t you help me, but more importantly where is Autumn?!” Your wife asked and you pointed to the direction you saw the man take her.
“Autumn didn’t even struggle, it was like she was under a mind controlling spell by them! It all happened so fast I thought I was dreaming.” You replied with a worried look on your face.
Your wife sighed and gave you a quick glare before turning around and approached her horse again.
You both glanced at the horses, and without thinking you both hopped back on, but that’s when your life changed forever.
You heard a scream coming from your wife and when you turned around to see what the problem was. There was an arrow that was sticking out through Trixie’s body. Blood had splattered onto your back and onto the horses and you couldn’t believe what you saw.
Trixie was looking for you straight in the eyes in horror and disbelief. She must have known what was about to happen. Your heart began to run a mile a minute, and you were in so much shock you couldn’t even move a muscle.
“I… What is this… Why is there a-a-an-a-arrow in m-my heart…” Trixie muttered now staring at the arrow and the blood pouring out of her chest.
An arrow was sticking out from where her heart sat, and blood splattered everywhere, and your whole world collapsed the moment she was hit.
“I- I- I don’t know… I love you… Please don’t die...” You begged her not even knowing what to say in the situation.
Trixie didn’t reply to that comment because she was too weak. She slid off the horse and onto the ground with the arrow still lodged through her body.
You jumped off your horse and hurried over to your injured wife. She was coughing and was losing a lot of blood. You had to get her to Graystone, but that’s when you realized who was behind this, and at that point it was all over.
“It’s over, Layton Prenter. Put your hands up.” You heard a female voice say with an outraged tone, and you saw the woman with a crown on her head.
It was the queen of the empire. Beside her was Autumn who also couldn’t even believe what she was seeing right now, but she didn’t say anything, and wept with her hands to her face so you couldn’t even see her.
Anger. Raging anger and deep sadness was crackling inside your brain.
“YOU KILLED TRIXIE YOU KILLED HER! YOU KILLED HER YOU KILLED HER YOU SON O-“
“SILENCE! It had to be done! She killed so many people, and if she were alive for even another day, she would have probably ended many more innocent lives. Now put your hands up or I will shoot.” The queen explained while pointing an arrow at you with her quiver.
You didn’t see any way out of this. Trixie was probably dead or will be dead any minute now.
“You may have won now, but I will come back some day. I will never forget this day, and your face. Go to hell.” You glowered to the queen resisting the urge to rush toward her and show her your true anger.
With one final eye roll you put your hands up, and you were accepting defeat despite your true demeanor for fighting and never giving up.
You looked at your daughter who seemed to have muttered a sorry to you.
She must have given you guys up to the guards, but you know deep down she didn’t know they would kill Trixie.
As tears were streaming down your face. The queen picked up your wife’s body and threw her into one of the carriages carelessly. No one even bothered to attend to her, and whenever you protested, you were told to stay quiet or die.
Your daughter was taken into another direction. You didn’t know to feel bad for her or have extreme hatred for her. You didn’t know what to make of these and all emotions were off the table but utter despair, and anger.
That is probably what you made your countless victims feel. The irony in this situation is sad, but you just didn’t give two craps about anything anymore.
That’s what you thought back then. You thought the lord was long gone, and you were going to rot in prison, but that’s when the miracle came today.
That day in 2013 was awful, but now you’re out and you are pretty sure where to find your daughter again. It was obvious where she was going in only weeks from now.
“Thinking of that day aren’t you Layton?” Mr. Secretus asked with concern plastered onto his face.
“Yes, but anyway let’s go upstairs. Whenever I think of my sister, wife, or daughter, I can’t help but feel like I am making myself feel worse. I will be seeing Amelia and some of the others in the next few months. Promise to take care of them for me.” You asked your professor, and he nodded his head, and you entered the familiar classroom with a dark presence, but the energy that you were about to have a fun time.
After tonight will be the trek to find your daughter once again. So, what if the news reports this. Autumn will have a hard time leaving her adoptive home you assume, so you may have to be very sneaky.
Even if you don’t find her, she is sure to come to this school in September, so everything is just falling into place the way you like it. Even if one little thing goes wrong another piece will just fall in its place. No one can stop you now.
