Warnings for this Chapter
Language
Questionable Characters

Father's Blessing
Chapter I.
"The truth is rarely pure and never simple."
-Oscar Wilde

"W-What?" Dark-gray eyes stared at the drunken man with slight offence in them.

"What? I gotta repeat myself? You. Were. Adopted.” He took a large swig straight from the bottle as he finished with his sentence. Kitai stood shocked, glad he had been born with weak lungs instead of a weak heart. He, on the more of his sixteenth birthday, was just told that he had been adopted.

Why would the man he had thought was his father tell him this? On what was supposed to be a good day of what little happiness Kitai got from life? He breathed a little uneasily, holding his chest for a moment, which earned a glare from his adopted father. “Don’t you dare be having one of your attacks around me.” The gray-haired boy took a steady breath this time then looked at the older man.

“It’s fine. I-I’m sorry.” The boy bowed his head in a shamed motion and breathed uneasily again, “I’m going to school now…” Normally he would have said father with at least a little cheer in his voice. But… now that didn’t really seem worth it. A man who he had been suffering under for the last sixteen years of his life because he thought that a child was supposed to suffer like this under a parent’s guise, wasn’t really his father. This man was just a bully, like the rest of the world.

Kitai ran out of his house, making sure he had his inhaler in his pack and started to make his way to the school bus stop. He paused at one place, a mansion that hung all over the city somehow with its strength and stretching perches. He has always stopped by even when he was younger to stare at the building, as it had an unnerving drawing power to it, but at the same time it made the body chill and warn itself to stay away.

It had been rumor that the mansion had been built just for the sore purpose of keeping people out of it with an outrageous price on the land and building itself. Nobody knew what was beyond the mansion’s front yard but it had also held rumors of treasures beyond the human’s comprehension. Kitai then shook his head, walking a little faster away from the mansion and the darkness that filtered through the capacity of the mansion.

Kitai had reached his goal of the bus stop but then flinched, realizing that he had arrived too early, considering the staggering amounts of boys that he knew liked to pick on him especially. The dark-haired boy tried to hide but winced when someone tugged harshly on his ear.

“Ahahaha, well here’s the little shit!” As soon as they surrounded him, he stopped being a victim of ear-tugging, only to tug on both of his earrings (both earrings were ‘gifts’ from the on slaughter of bullying and they decided that he looked too queer for their tastes and forced an earring in his ear only to debate which ear was actually the queer ear and forced earrings on both and Kitai had been too afraid of an ear infection to ever take them off) as a nervous habit.

“Excuse me.” He asked, knowing it would not work at all. As an answer to his politeness he was punched harshly into the gut, forced to cough out his little air supply as he landed on the ground, with a brute force.

“Ah man, the little shit bleeds purple, like you said.” Fear crossed his eyes for a quick moment, realizing that the brunt of the damage came from hitting the concrete on his head.

‘Oh no,’ he thought, forcing himself to try and get up only to be held by his neck with his face facing his own blood. “I-It’s just dark, that’s all. It’s still early, I bleed red like everybody else.” Kitai tried to calm the bullies, but they just chuckled loudly.

“Yeah right, you little freak. You must be freaking blind too.” The dark-haired boy tried again to get up, only to choke on the brute force gripping his entire neck.

“Let go of him, right now.” A voice spoke from beyond the masses.

“Shit.” One of the bullies cursed back but he felt the torturous grip on his neck release and he sat up, taking deep breaths that he didn’t know he lost. The boy pulled out his inhaler as the group of bullies went to their side post that they usually hung around for the bus stop.

“Kitai, are you okay?” He looked up after catching his breath and saw a familiar face. A school nurse who took the bus for reasons unknown, she had long ‘nurse’ like hair and square glasses. Kitai had been used to seeing her as his lungs were rather spastic about the times when they would have panic attacks and he wasn’t allowed to carry his inhaler with him.

“I’m fine Nurse Nehimer.” He forced himself to get up and looked away in shame. It wasn’t enough that he was saved by a school official, but did it really seem that he was so weak that he had to accept help to get up? The nurse smiled kindly at him and then glanced over in the direction of the gang. Whatever look they saw on her face, it made them scramble away further. “Nurse, my blood isn’t that strange is it?” He asked quietly as they both stood, waiting for the bus and other people.

“…I can’t say for sure Kitai. I’m not a scientist, just a doctor, and according to normal research, your blood’s completely normal. Chances are it bleeds a different color because of the oxygen in the area.” The nurse adjusted her glasses for a moment, “There may be something wrong with this world and your body just happens to notice before anybody else’s.” She finished. The boy blinked lightly then shook his head as more people crowded the area and the bus started to reach its destination. Kitai took his place on the bus (as far away as other people as possible) and started to rest.

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School had been interrupted for him as usual, with his lungs acting up and the aching feeling as though he was suffocating and his body was about to explode coursed through his body and he was dragged to the bed of the nurse’s office by his usual escort (and in a wheelchair). Damn, he had hoped that today he wouldn’t have to feel like this. His birthday was just getting worse and worse, wasn’t it?

“Nurse Nehimer?” A soft voice spoke as they entered through the bolted door. Kitai’s breathing had finally calmed down as this point, but he still felt too weak to even move his head, so he just listened carefully.

“Oh, you’re that foreign exchange student? Weren’t you? Hello there.” The nurse cheerfully spoke from her desk, after finishing typing up something (which Kitai had his suspicions was an instant message as he had been hearing the annoying ‘ding’ that was usually accompanied by those who weren’t paying attention to their chats).

“Um, yes. I need…” there was a pause, as though the foreigner didn’t know what to say, “some…medicine?”

“What kind of medicine?” Nehimer offered patiently.

“For…headache?”

“Ah yes, I’ve got something here. But don’t tell them at the office I offered, officially you need a signed consent from your parents.” She blabbed and the click-clack of her high heels echoed on the tile floor as she shuffled to get the medicine. Four seconds later she was back to the foreigner and offered the medicine. “Take this with some water, there’s a facet by Kitai over there.” He offered a groan in response to be pinpointed out.

The foreigner came by and Kitai heard the faithful ‘pssssh’ of the water facet. His gray eyes opened as though he heard a whisper through his ear. He glanced up and jumped a bit inwardly as he saw the foreigner sneering at him.

“Excuse me.” The foreigner offered and Kitai found his eyebrow raising. Who was this kid? He looked Middle Eastern, with his dark black hair that seemed to have somewhat natural curls to it, his dark skin, and his dark eyes. Kitai gulped inside, dammit, was this another potential bully? At the very least, he was sure he wouldn’t be seeing him that often. The foreigner walked off and the nurse advised that he take the pills quickly.

“Hehehe, what a cutie. He’ll make the ladies drop dead further in the future.” The nurse giggled even more and Kitai did his best not to roll his eyes. But that had been really strange, why would that boy just glare at him like that? “Kitai, are you feeling better?”

“Yes ma’am.”

“Okay, get going back to class then.” She then sighed and Kitai slowly sat up from his bed, he looked as she was staring at his inhaler with a sad kind of look.

“Is something wrong Nehimer?” She jumped, not expecting him to get up as fast as he did. The dark-haired lady stared at him for a while longer then shook her head with a subtle smile,

“Nah. I was just wondering if we should boost the dosage in this inhaler or not though. Guess not though.” She grinned and then banished Kitai away back to his History class for five more minutes before the bell rang. Was it already lunchtime? Kitai swayed off to get in the lines early (only to be pushed back further away easily enough), when he had finally got his lunch he jumped to his lonely spot underneath a tree that no one seemed to want to go near.

Probably from the rumor it had been haunted long ago. Kitai tended not to believe such rumors when he felt nothing but comfort from the tree’s bark.

“Kitai! You little shit! Get over here!” He gave a dull glare, taking a breath to calm his nerves, and then boldly shook his head. He wasn’t stupid or spineless enough to obey every whim the bullies of his life had. So he just went on to eat his sandwich when a shadow overcast him. Fear pulsed through his heart and he glanced up to see the foreigner he had first met in the nurse’s office.

“…Hi?” He carefully inputted then jumped as a knife clung to the side of the tree and right by his face. His eyes widened.

“So you’re still alive?” He commented, and Kitai stared as the boy’s eyes started to glow a violent reminding red. A red that looked an awful like the kind of red you would see during a surgery on a doctor’s show. The knife that had previously been dug into the tree’s bark was taken out, and he could only watch as the dagger slowly started to dig into his flesh right over his left forehead and down to the top of his left eye. The pain came immediately after the knife lifted away from his skin.

His scream echoed in the air, sounding like the screech of a crow on its deathbed. The foreigner just smiled and as others came to see what was happening, the knife had disappeared and Kitai was too busy holding his newly bleeding forehead with the purple gunk blackening his vision. WHAT THE HELL!? WHAT THE HELL!? His entire body stopped, his lungs bunched in on themselves and his breath entirely escaped him as he collapsed. Not again! Not again!

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“Kitai, are you awake now?” His eyes felt like they swirled for a moment and everything was off balance. They flickered into the light to get a form of focus then back to the concerned person in front of him. It was a doctor, or more precisely a surgeon with a mask over his face. Though if the man knew him by name, it was probably his consultant Dr. Harry Ulop.

“W-What happened?” He questioned, only for it to come out more like ‘Mat Hal dimmed’ and the surgeon shook his head lightly,

“Try not to talk. The anesthesia will have you groggy for a few hours, but we got you in time. You bleed quite a bit be we got that stitched up just right. Well, at least now we know that anesthesia doesn’t effect your body, does it Kitai?” Well that may had been good news from a bad experience, but… Why had that happened in the first place? What was that kid? Why did he just suddenly attack him like that? And why had no one reacted to it? Something was wrong here?

Why did this have to happen to him on his birthday? Kitai wasn’t one for whining or sulking because he knew life sucked, that was just the nature of survival of the fittest. But you would at least believe that you would have at least one thing of good luck on your birthday, a special one at that. “Whaddya say about planning that surgery on your lungs, now that you know you don’t have to be afraid of anything?” Yeah right, afraid of nothing? Luckily he knew he couldn’t talk, so he just numbly shook his head.

He was left alone after a few minutes with the surgeon going to talk to his guardian, alone to ponder the Hell he had just gone through. That was so weird though, he had been hurt before, but it had never hurt as much as that had. He glanced around the room, seeing it as a normal hospital room with another crowded bed and then glanced out to the window. His heartbeat jumped as he saw the overcast mansion of darkness.

“Cursed one…come back to us…”

Kitai shook his head (only for it to actually be a forced movement of his head flopping over) and ignored the strange eerie voice that popped up. There was a door shutting noise and he lazily looked over and saw his guardian who gave him a disgusted look.

“You just had to get yourself in some kind of fight again, did you?” He made no reply back, only stared with dull gray eyes. “You’ve been suspended from the school,” the drunkard of a man sat next to his bedside and Kitai felt his heart slow even more. Suspended? But…he was the victim! “Well, we’ll just get you’re a job to work all day for. School’s worthless for a little shit like you anyway.” Worthless? No. He liked school, it entertained him, and he learned a lot of things even on the dull, boring days.

The adopted father took a cigarette out from his pants pocket, giving a firm glare over to the frozen Kitai, “Probably some kind of bagger job though, so you won’t make much at first, not that, that matters, you’ll be giving me all of your money anyway.” Was this man always like this? Why was it he didn’t notice until today? With a yawn, the drunk grabbed his drug and put it out next to Kitai’s sheets. “Well, see you tomorrow morning, they wanta keep you here for safety.” He waved and walked out of the room.

Leaving Kitai alone with his thoughts.

And soon the foreigner.

“You have a visitor.” The nurse spoke with delight, a blush on her face as the strange boy was right behind her. Kitai froze even more, trying to become wary and cautious without the drug’s interference in his system. “Don’t mind if he doesn’t talk a bit,” she addressed the boy, “He’s just gotten out of major surgery.” She left with those words and left the two teenagers alone.

“What do you want?” He asked, only for it to come out as ‘Mat day moat’. The stranger looked over for a moment, and then shrugged as though he didn’t hear Kitai at all. The foreigner than went to Kitai’s bedside, staring at the connecting wires that kept his pulse readable to a doctor’s eye.

“Poor stupid soul. I know they did a good job getting your mother…but I guess they failed to kill you. How strange.” He just shook his head after stating that life-changing statement. Kitai found himself staring. His mother? What? “But it seems you haven’t awakened at all, it’d be a shame not to inform you of the situation.” Kitai froze up a bit as the stranger sat down next to him. “My name’s Albert.” Ah…so that was the stranger’s name…though that really made it even more strange considering his dark skin, especially since he was specifically a foreign exchange student.

Ewww…he was getting closer…Kitai tried to scootch away and Albert just gave a very strange distinct laugh. “Sorry if you may be uncomfortable, but this is information that I’m not allowed to really speak of out loud.” As he finished that sentence he came in even closer. There was just something freaky about this guy, that’s all Kitai could feel. Something wrong, entirely wrong. “Don’t even think of trying to run, I’ve already cursed you.”

“Curse!?” The only word he spoke that actually sounded like what he wanted it too came out with a fierce yell and he nearly fell over if the wires attached to him hadn’t been holding him up.

“Hush now, you little idiot.” Kitai’s mouth immediately shut, but not of his own violation. The new scar on his forehead started to bleed (a stitch had come out) from a pulsing force that came from Albert’s eyes glowing that evil red again. Kitai tried to open his mouth, but it felt like it had sewn shut. “Now where was I?” He looked over to Kitai as though the boy would answer back. “Oh yes, explaining everything before I completely destroy you.”

Oh God.

Oh God, oh God, oh God.

Was he serious? “Now…the laymen’s terms for what you are…Ah yes. You’re a weapon, just like I am, and just like a few other people in this world.” A weapon? “You’ve seen that mansion in your town, correct? I’m sure you have. Well, that mansion’s a doorway to the other side of our world.”

“You see, long ago, sometime during World War I, I believe, they made weapons that were considered primeval at best, but were easily transportable. However when they put these weapons in younger hands, the potential of the weapons burst into something entirely different. They feared this power and locked it away here in America.”

“However that didn’t stop the potential of those who could use those weapons. It became those with bloodlines actually had those weapons assigned to them at birth, even if they didn’t have the weapons. So it went on that those with the bloodlines continued developing and being born.”

“However at the end of World War II, when Hitler committed suicide, it was discovered that those weapons would go to those they had been born to at a certain time and age, therefore marking those born dangerous beings. What was worse was that the bloodline wouldn’t weaken at all; it just got stronger and stronger through the generations. So by what you all call the Watergate Incident with President Nixon happened, that mansion in this town became an official seal to put all of those with that bloodline in and no one can get out.”

“Of course, not even the entire world cooperating behind the scenes could get everyone, but the one’s that are still out they’ve been hired by the government to eliminate all those who won’t work for them. But they’re not the only one’s working, especially since there’s a prize in that mansion that’s beyond comprehension. The power of resurrection.” Albert’s eyes started to glow again, in a strange demented way. Kitai had to swallow his Adam’s apple, just listening to the rant that had come from the boy’s mouth. None of this could be real? Right?

That’s just insane. Weapons? A hidden world inside that mansion? The government? What did this have anything to do with Kitai? There was no possible way he could be this kind of person with a bloodline that summoned weapons, no way! He was just a normal weak boy who had apparently been adopted!

But what if it was true? And the government killed his family? His mother? Or was it a different sort of group? A group after a ‘weapon’ with the power of ‘resurrection’. What was so great about that? Why would you want to revive something that died? Kitai was actually a pretty normal God-fearing Catholic, so just the thought of having powers and weapons that could go against the natural law was terrifying. Interrupting Kitai’s thoughts, Albert continued, “Anyone who can completely be King of the Weapons can rule over the world. Create beings beyond comprehension; make an order that everyone has to follow! Order, chaos, anything, it’s all in your power! Even the very knowledge that God Himself doesn’t want us to know, all of it all in the holder of the King of Weapons!”

“You’re insane.” When he had got his power to talk back, Kitai didn’t know, but he stared at the crazy looking boy he only felt fear. Utter madness that could easily disturb even the happiest person in the world. It was kind of like looking in the face of a madman that just carved open two children and hung their decrepit bodies from nooses for the parents to discover. “You’re crazy.” Kitai finally started to move, forcing the wires around him out of his pulse, flinching slightly as the black ooze poured out and he screamed as his temple pulsed violently once again.

“Insane I may be, but better insane than dead.” Albert grinned. “Your blood’s a little too strong after all. Able to sense how ugly the air is now in this century, it’s too powerful. Of course we knew that your mother had been strong, s’why we took her out when she was pregnant with you.” Albert held his head in his hand, holding out his other one which seemed to make Kitai’s head pulse even harder. “How you survived, I can’t possibly fathom.” He laughed in his hand, as though the thought was purely amusing. “But it doesn’t matter. I’m going to go ahead and finish a job they couldn’t.”

“Sorry, visiting hours are over.” They both turned over abruptly to the nurse, who blinked and jumped. “You can’t be doing that! What are you doing out of bed? AH! ONE OF YOUR STICHES CAME OUT! DOCTOR!” The nurse cried out, running out and a scowl came over Albert’s face. The dark-skinned man then shook his head and walked out, but before he walked out entirely, he gave a wink to Kitai and the boy had no choice but to throw his head back and cry as the scar pulsed once again with a lightening like pain.

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Late at night, Kitai struggled again as there were more drugs in his system, but he knew he had to get out of here. There was no way he was going to be killed by some strange guy who thought he had some kind of power over some kind of weapons! The gray-haired boy grunted lightly and in a dizzy motion as he threw the pulse reader out of his skin again, breathing lightly as he didn’t feel any pain this time. The teenager then stared at the hallway, ducking back into his room as a nurse on the night shift passed by his room. A few moments later, Kitai decided it best to struggle his way out.

Where was he going to go? It would be useless to go back home, there wasn’t anything waiting there for him it seemed. Damn, this day really sucked. He didn’t even get a present this year, did he? Ah…Kitai continued and breathed in a relieved motion as he exited the building of the hospital. Ah…it was getting harder to breathe, he didn’t have his inhaler, did he? Damn it. The teen continued, not sure at all what to do when he stopped, looking from the gateway of the mansion. Was it true? That mansion lead to a place that sealed people that had amazing control over weapons?

The gate made an irritating screech as he opened it. The black front lawn looked even darker entering into it, and he breathed uneasily, holding his heart unconsciously. This place really did reek of evil, and it really did feel like it was calling to him. Kitai then found himself in front of the door, staring at it with a sense of uneasiness. The door to the mansion was as huge as the mansion itself with strange decorations of what looked like angels. Kitai stared at the carvings even longer, noticing that there were ancient words around them.

He shook his head after staring a little longer, growing dizzy because of the motion. One last breathe and he grabbed the knocker on the door, slamming it down to knock it. It made the loud ‘thunk’ expected, but not so surprisingly, nobody answered.

“Hah…just a bunch of crap…yeah. I knew it. That guy…he was totally lying…” Kitai smiled, though even to him it was a little strained. He wasn’t hopeful or anything, but he had thought there would have been some mild form of answers to anything he could have asked. Kitai then turned around, and jumped.

“I told you not to run, I already have you cursed.” Immediately the scar pulsed angrily and Kitai screamed, holding his head in pain, he slammed his back into the wall, hoping that it would diverse some of the pain away. However as he did that, he fell backward unto the floor instead of the door. Even that motion made seemed to shock Albert. “Wha?” The other teen blinked and Kitai immediately got up and ran into the mansion. “HEY! WAIT! YOU DON’T KNOW WHAT YOU’RE DOING!”

“I’M RUNNING AWAY FROM YOU!” Kitai yelled back, grunting as he forced his body to ignore the cries in his lungs and the tiring call from the drugs and continue to struggle foreword. Kitai had been greeted by a long aching hall that seemed to repeat itself for over a mile’s worth. He could hear Albert chasing after him, but he continued, desperate for his life. He spotted stairs up and ran up, feeling it the right thing to do when he felt a violent change in the air.

“FIRE!” As Kitai stood on the last step, he fell backward down the stairs and hit them as a black tipped fireball passed where he had been a few seconds earlier. “Unlucky you Kitai! We’re in the perfect area to use weapons!” Unlucky indeed.

“STAFF!” Kitai watched as something flew past his uncomfortable position on the coupled steps of the stairwell. He struggled and turned around to see the back of somebody hitting Albert on the head with a long, rough, wood looking staff with a stone at the end of it. “Albert! What have I told you about coming to our side of the mansion? You were banned!” Kitai stared, rubbing the back of his head as the numbing sensation was fading.

“Freedman.” Albert hissed and the person just glared, pointing their staff straight at Albert.

“Go away now, before I summon up another one of my weapons. After all, I bet you only have ‘fire’ on you, because you’ve been to the outside.” Albert gave a stubborn glare to this Freedman then nodded and bowed.

“Very well, I am sorry that I have violated the banishment.” Albert then stood up, giving a straight glare over to Kitai, and the boy felt a shudder down his spine. “Forgive me, may the next time we meet be on good terms.”

“Like Hell it’ll ever be on good terms!” Freedman yelled, continuing to point the staff out the way that Kitai and Albert had came through. “Now go!” Albert started to walk away and the staff that Freedman had disappeared into a strange mist away. The stranger sighed and turned around and blinked. “Oh…hello.” As they came up, Kitai got a better stare at them.

It was a woman.

“Who…are you?” He asked slowly, his eyesight couldn’t help but wonder down a bit. ‘Big’, he thought. The woman blinked and smiled lightly,

“Natalie Freedman’s the name, protecting the East-Southern wall of our world is my game, how ‘bout you?” Her dark-hair and outstanding one blue eye seemed to grin with her smile. It was much more relieving then the foreigner Albert.

“Your…world?” She blinked then jumped, glaring at him.

“You poor thing! You’re cursed! Come on, let’s get you cleaned up!” Natalie had no problem lifting him, and even less problem with heaving him over her shoulder, despite the fact she didn’t have that big of shoulders. Unbelievable, was he really that small compared to normal adults?

“W-Wait, I,”

“Don’t worry, you can trust me. I won’t let anybody hurt you, especially that asshole Albert.” Kitai stared as slowly the mansion’s décor changed from dark and depressing with fabric to smooth, clean, clear, stone walls and sunlight pierced his eyesight. Kitai focused on Natalie’s shoulder and stared around in awe.

Streets of cobblestone were full of people; all of them wearing all kinds of strange clothing like Natalie and it was like walking into a medieval fair. He couldn’t believe it, he continued to stare and Natalie continued to carry him, and nobody seemed to give her a second look in carrying a normal boy.

To be continued...