Yuuei, the Academy for Monsters

Opaque

Opaque- not able to be seen through, not transparent
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Izuku POV

It's been about three weeks since that incident and life for me had somewhat settled down. Except that it didn't.

Everything piled up. I had no "home" or true place to stay. I was on one of my many adventures when I stumbled upon a secret corridor, intrigued I carried on. The gray cobblestone and dimly lit chandeliers covered in cobwebs made the place seem... gloomy.

I walked towards the double doors made of steel with intricate carvings of what I assumed to be dragons. I was always told the best way in is to just simply knock. So that's exactly what I did.

The door creaked open and the cravings illuminated from the original dull gray into a vibrant green hue. I was dazzled by the sight and ran my right index finger over the cravings.

Eventually I gathered enough courage to actually go in. I could see nothing but for some reason I wasn't really all that bothered by it. I learned that the darkness can be comforting when everyone else has turned their back. For me the room didn't seem as dark as it was supposed to be, it was almost like I had night vision. I breathed in the dusty air and old parchment paper. There was dust floating in the air which caused me to cough.

I wanted for the room to light up so I could properly explore. As if answering my own question my right hand erupted in flames the size of a school bag. I honestly was not surprised at this point, maybe a few weeks ago I would be freaking out but this became the norm. I had strange things happen to me all the time nowadays. It wasn't really that strange considering I was a monster after all.

I knew it would be fruitless but I softly muttered, "Hello?"

There was no reply and I had seen enough horror movies to know that I needed to get the heck out of there if I heard any strange noises. So far so good.

I collected my thoughts again and looked around the large... room? It was more of a library with some added extensions. There were scales, all of various colors, on the the floor along with the cobwebs and dust. There were claw marks on the ground and on the walls. Then I saw the ash that covered the ground and the traces of fire.

The books on the ground with dried ink and feathers scattered the floor. There had once been oak wood tables but they had long deteriorated or were broken in pieces. I found one of the old gas lamps and lit it. The glass had been cracked but it worked well enough. My hand extinguised, I really need to learn how to control that.

I made my way to the center of the complex layout, there were multiple levels and I wondered if it went to the sky which I know that wasn't true but still! There were columns and flooring missing and I saw some bats (or vampires?) earlier.

I could barely make out the grand masterpiece in front of me... The portrait was bigger than any I had ever seen, at least 1,000 feet by 1,000 feet. There were parts of it worn, yellowed, even parts torn.

The portrait... why...

There... I... my heart felt like it was on fire.

Iron armor, chains mounted on her left shoulder, long straight hair pulled back in a fishtail braid, a woman. She had forest green eyes and was small underneath all that armor. Her eyes spoke a million truths, fierce, something dangerous. There was no smile present on her face but even though the portrait was old and deteriorated you could tell she was gorgeous.

She stood atop a red dragon that must have been at least the size of sixty or seventy school buses. There was blood pooling around the beast and even I had to look away but simply could not because I was infatuated. I was like a moth drawn to a lamp. The scenery from what I could make out was atop a hill of sorts with a raging storm above.

Who was she before? Was she simply a villager or so so much more? Did she have a family or a lover?

Memories fought to surface my clouded mind but like all things they disappeared. There were glimpses...

a war.

death. lots of death.

love within hate.

Revolution.

Rebellion.

Extinction.

It was then that I realized life is never transparent, often opaque, the overwhelming traumas of life far outweigh any light that tries to make it through.

There was one word repeated over and over and over like a mantra...

Mom.