Rise of the Mafia Lord

Xavier Hale stood at the periphery of the grand party, his eyes sweeping across the room with a mix of disdain and longing. The lavish decorations, the cacophony of conversation, and the clinking of glasses seemed to mock him, a constant reminder of his position in his family. His mother, Alicia, a stunning woman with piercing green eyes, laughed and chatted with the other guests, her beauty and charm captivating everyone around her. But Xavier knew the truth - she was a mistress, a mere plaything for the powerful Mafia lord, Donatello Hale.

"Xavier, darling, come join us!" his mother called out, her voice dripping with sweetness, like honey. Despite all the mistreatment she received from the other women in the Hale family, she still treated Xavier like a treasure that could not be exchanged for anything.

Xavier hesitated, knowing he didn't belong. The weight of his mother's expectant gaze forced him to move forward, his feet heavy with reluctance, as if trudging through quicksand. As he approached, a group of kids his age, all sons and daughters of high-ranking Mafia members, snickered and whispered among themselves, casting dirty glances his way like daggers.

Xavier's jaw clenched, his fists tightening in his pockets like a vice. He was used to being an outcast, but it still stung, the pain of rejection and humiliation simmering just below the surface.

"Hey, bastard, what are you doing here?" one of them sneered, a tall, muscular boy with a cruel grin, his voice like a rusty gate scraping against Xavier's nerves.

"Just enjoying the party," Xavier replied, his voice even, but his heart racing like a wild animal trapped in a cage.

The boy laughed, a harsh, mocking sound. "What does a bastard and beggar like you have to enjoy in a party meant for true Mafia scions. You don't belong here. You're not one of us."

Xavier's eyes flashed with anger, but he knew better than to fight back. He was alone, and the Hale family wouldn't hesitate to crush him like an insect under their heel. For the sake of his mother, he must remain docile.

Suddenly, a hand clamped on his shoulder, spinning him around like a puppet on a string. Xavier faced his half-brother, Marco, a sneer twisting his face like a grotesque mask.

"You don't belong here, bastard," Marco spat, his voice low and menacing, like a snake slithering through the grass.

Marco's eyes blazed with contempt. "You're nothing but a dirty secret, a reminder of our father's weakness. You're a stain on our family's name, a bastard child who shouldn't even exist." Marco's words stung him real deep. Shame and anger danced around Xavier's heart.

Xavier's mother appeared, her eyes flashing with anger. "Marco, leave him alone!" she demanded, her voice firm but trembling with emotion. Xavier could she was scared but still stood up for him.

Marco sneered at her. "You're just as guilty, whore. You and your bastard son are a disgrace to our family. You're the reason our father's lost respect, why our family's reputation is tarnished." Marco didn't hold back at all.

The room fell silent, all eyes on the tense scene unfolding before them. The guests were a bit excited as they anticipated a good show. Meanwhile Xavier's face burned with shame and anger, but he knew he had to keep his head down, to survive.

"Enough, Marco!" A voice full of power and authority boomed out. Donatello Hale, tall, muscular, handsome, with eyes cold and hard as steel. "Leave Xavier alone. He's still a Hale, after all."

Marco's sneer faltered, but his eyes still burned with hatred. "For now, he's still a Hale," he muttered, before turning and disappearing into the crowd like a snake slithering into the shadows.

Xavier's mother placed a gentle hand on her son's arm. "I'm sorry, darling. I wish things were different."

Xavier shrugged, his heart heavy. "It's okay, mother. I'm used to it." But deep down, he knew he couldn't take much more of this life, always living in the shadows, always an outcast. Something had to change. He needed to change his life and that of his mother's.

Donatello Hale approached them, his presence commanding attention. He was the current helmsman of the Hale family, and thus he commanded much respect from everyone. "Xavier, come with me," he said, his voice firm leaving no room for questions or discussion.

Xavier followed him, his heart racing with anticipation. What did his father want from him?

As they walked, the crowd parted, whispers and stares following them like a dark cloud. Xavier felt like a specimen under a microscope, examined and judged by everyone around him.

They reached a private room, the door closing behind them like a trap. Donatello Hale turned to him, his eyes piercing.

"Xavier, I know you're not like the others. You have a fire in you, a spark that can be fanned into a flame. I want to help you cultivate that spark, to make you a true Hale."

Xavier's heart skipped a beat. What did his father have planned for him?

"There's a business transaction I want you to oversee. Do this successfully and no one would ever look down on you ever again." Donatello said.

"Really father? What sort of business transaction if I may ask?" Xavier asked in curiosity, this was exactly what he need - something to prove himself as a capable Hale. But instead his father's brows creased as if he had committed a crime.

"You have no right to know. But I will tell you this, the merchandise is of great importance that even ten of your lifetime isn't enough to redeem it should you fail." His father said in a stern tone.

"Yes Father. I will not fail you. I will not throw away this opportunity you have given to me." Xavier said and bowed his head.

"Go and prepare, you leave at once. Edgar will drive you." His father said, dismissing him. Xavier bowed again and left his father alone in the study.

Seeing that Xavier has left. Donatello brought out his mobile phone and dialled a number.

"He's on his way. Make it swift and clean. He will be with a driver, you have my permission to clean off all witnesses." He then hung up.

"I'm sorry Xavier, but even I can't tolerate this anymore. I assure you that in two years your mother will join you and keep you company." Donatello said to himself with an emotionless face.

Xavier made his way to the garage, his mind racing with questions. What was this business transaction his father wanted him to oversee? Why was it so important? And why did his father seem so cold and calculating?

As he approached the car, Edgar, the driver, greeted him with a nod. "Ready, sir?"

Xavier nodded, getting into the car. "Let's go."

As he got into the passenger seat of the car, his mind couldn't help but go back to what his father said about clearing away the shame by completing this mission, but still, somehow he felt uneasy about everything.

Edgar drove through the winding roads, eventually leading them to a deserted warehouse on the outskirts of town. Xavier's instincts told him something was off, but he pushed aside his doubts.

"Wait here," Edgar said, getting out of the car. "I'll go check if everything is ready."

Xavier watched as Edgar entered the warehouse, his heart pounding in his chest. Suddenly, he heard footsteps coming from the shadows.

"Xavier Hale," a voice called out. "Welcome."

Xavier turned to see a figure emerging from the darkness. "Who are you?" he demanded.

"I'm someone who's been waiting for you," the figure replied, its voice dripping with malice. "You see, Xavier, your father has made a deal with us. A deal that involves you."

Xavier's instincts screamed at him to run, but his feet seemed rooted to the spot. He wanted to know what this was all about.

"What kind of deal?" he asked, trying to keep his voice steady.

The figure chuckled. "Oh, you'll find out soon enough. But for now, let's just say that you're in our hands now."

Suddenly, Edgar appeared beside him, his eyes cold and hard. "Sorry, Xavier. I had no choice."

"What do you mean you had no choice? What's going on." Xavier asked in confusion.

"There was never any merchandise to pick up. I brought you here to die." Edgar replied with the same expressionless face.

Xavier felt a wave of betrayal wash over him. "You're in on this too?"

Edgar shrugged. "I'm just following orders."

The figure gestured to a group of men emerging from the shadows. "Take him away."

Xavier struggled against his captors, but they were too strong. They threw him into a dimly lit room, the door slamming shut behind him. The sound echoed through the space, making Xavier's heart race.

"Welcome, Xavier," one of them said, their voice devoid of emotion. "Your father sends his regards."

Xavier's eyes adjusted to the light, and he saw Edgar standing in the corner, his eyes downcast. Xavier's mind raced with questions. His mind still refused to believe that his father and Edgar would set him up. If they wanted him dead so much, why didn't they just kill him back at the mansion, why go through all these trouble? All he can do is hope that whatever this man was saying is wrong, and Edgar would find a way to help him out of here.

"Edgar, what's going on?" Xavier asked, trying to keep his voice steady. "Why are you here?"

Edgar didn't respond, his eyes fixed on the floor. Xavier's anger grew. Was Edgar really betraying him too?

The captor who spoke earlier stepped forward. "Your father wants you taken care of, Xavier. Permanently."

Xavier's heart skipped a beat. His father had ordered his own son's execution. He couldn't believe it.

"Why?" Xavier asked, trying to stall for time. "What have I done?"

The captor shrugged. "You're a liability. And after we're done with you, Edgar here will be taken care of too."

Edgar's eyes flickered, but he still didn't speak. Xavier knew he had to act fast. He had to escape, and he had to protect Edgar. He knew from Edgar's downcast expression, he didn't want this to happen, but had no choice as he had to follow his father's orders.. a low-level mafia member is a pawn, a chesspiece that can be discarded as trash whenever the big boss wishes, and the pawn can't do anything but accept. But what about him? Would he, Xavier Hale, accept this?

"You're not going to get away with this," Xavier said, trying to sound braver than he felt.

The captor laughed. "Oh, I think we will. Your father has paid us well to make sure this is a clean job."

Xavier's mind raced. He had to think of something, anything, to get out of this situation.

*

Xavier's captors tied him up, his wrists and ankles bound by thick rope. He struggled, but it was no use. They dragged him out of the room, Edgar's lifeless body following behind. They had killed Edgar because they felt he might prove difficult later on, so a bullet to his head solved their problem.

"You're a foolish boy, Xavier," one of the captors sneered. "You should have stayed out of this."

Xavier spat at his feet. "You'll pay for this. My father will make sure of it." Till now, he chose not to believe his father had a hand in this.

The captor laughed. "Your father's the one who ordered this. You're just a pawn in his game. What's so difficult to accept?"

They reached the car, the same one Xavier had arrived in with Edgar. The captors tossed Xavier into the backseat, Edgar's body thrown in beside him.

"Please," Xavier begged, "Don't do this. Just let me go."

The captor just smiled. "You're going to be a nice little bonfire."

One of the captors poured fuel around the car, the smell of gasoline filling the air. Xavier's heart raced as he realized their plan.

"No, no, no!" Xavier screamed, thrashing against his bonds. "You can't do this!"

Just as they were about to light the fuel, gunshots rang out. A gang fight had erupted nearby, the sound of shouting and screeching tires filling the air.

"What the...?" one of the captors exclaimed, momentarily distracted.

That's when a stray bullet found its way to the car, piercing the fuel-soaked metal.

The car erupted in a blaze of fire, Xavier and Edgar's bodies trapped inside, while his captors were blown away to kingdoms come. Xavier's screams were drowned out by the roar of the flames, his world consumed by heat and darkness.

"No!" Xavier shouted, his voice hoarse from smoke. "Mother!"

But it was too late. The flames engulfed them, and everything went black.

In a starless void of darkness. Xavier floated away. His mind replayed the events of what had happened over again and over again. He was overwhelmed by the emotions of regrets, anger, loss. He had refused to believe what those men said about his father being behind everything that happened, but deep down he knew it might just be true. Edgar didn't dispute what those men said, and Edgar himself said he was just following orders, that only meant his father planned all these..

but why? Because he was the son of a mistress? Because he had no significant place in the family? Or because his mother was once a maid? Were these reasons enough to kill him? Hadn't he been laying low, taking in all their abuses and insults without any form of retaliation? Why would they still plan to kill him, and without even letting him say goodbye to his mother! If he was allowed to live, perhaps he could become a Mafia Lord one day.

"WHY!?" Xavier screamed to the starless void. The more he thought about it, the more anger his mind brew.

«Ding!

Data collection complete!

Fusion successful!

Host's health is currently in a critical state. Injecting revitalization serum!»

Xavier heard a female mechanical voice. He immediately turned around but saw nothing except infinite darkness.

«Ding!

Host's emotions are a mess! Injecting Ever-Calm serum!»

Xavier felt his mind calm as a cool sensation ran over him. He began to rearrange his thoughts, but first thing first, what exactly was that mechanical voice earlier.

«Welcome Host, I am Erebus. Earlier I detected an attempt of brainwash on the host, thus I made use of the Ever-Calm serum on the host.» the voice spoke again.

"Erebus, huh? Who or what are you?" Xavier asked.

"I am an Artificial Intelligence System, you can think of me as your personal assistant. Needless to say, I am not of this backwater world of yours. I was soaring the data airspace when I felt a pull to you. I felt your unbridled desire to make a change at your life, thus I am here to help.» the mechanical voice said with a hint of glee in its voice.

"And how will you be able to help me?" Xavier questioned the system. In the past he would have been fretting, but now his mind was as calm as the sea.

«I can grant the Host sets of skills and monetary rewards should host walk in the path of accomplishing his goal.» the mechanical voice replied.

"Like those Systems in Lightnovels that make their protagonist so OP? Hmm, fine. But where exactly I'm I?"

«You are in the void, an airspace between the Living and Purgatory. Host should awaken in ten minutes.» the system replied.

"Alright. Since you said you're a system and I'm the host, can you show me my stats?"

«Ding!

STAT (System for Transfer and Analysis of Tactical data):

Host: Xavier Hale

Age: 18

Status: Comatose

Attributes:

Strength (STR); 10

Intelligence (INT); 25

Agility (AGI); 10

Vitality (VIT); 25

Endurance (END); 25

Charisma (CHA); 15

Combat stats:

Attack power (ATK); 10

Defense (DEF); 10

Health points (HP); 100%

Mana points (MP); 100

Accuracy (ACC); 0

Evasion (EVA); 0

Performance metrics:

Experience points (XP); 0

Level; 1

Skills:

Revitalization (passive, upgradable)

Ever-Calm (passive, non upgradable)

Gold or currency; $0

Kills or deaths; 0 kills, 1 death

Win-loss record; 0

Goal: To be a Mafia Lord.

(System suggests host to level up ASAP or host's goal will just be nothing but a pipe dream).»

Xavier was stunned by his stats, he didn't know he was this weak. But when he saw the Mana point and the skills, he got a bit confused.

"Hey system, what's with Mana point? Isn't that part of a game-like stat for mages and spellcasters? Why is it amongst my stat?"

«Host is correct. But in this case, the Mana point helps you to perform certain active skills which you will acquire in time. With the Mana point, you can perform some skills that can enable you dogde bullets, shoot in a curved manner, read lips and other excellent active skills.»

"That's really cool. What about the two skills there, Revitalization, what does it do and why it is upgradable?"

«Ding!

Revitalization will aid the host to recover from any wound, illness, or poisonous state. Also when upgraded to a certain level, host can even regrow a severed limb and recover from even a bomb attack. Nevertheless, that will cost lots of Mana point.»

WHAT!?

"Hold on! Are you saying that with the right amount of Mana point and revitalization level, I can be said to be immortal!?"

«You could say that.»

"This is so damn OP, I feel like I'm a protagonist in a light-novel."

«Ding!

Host will awaken in sixty seconds. Host is currently in a facility. System detected traces of attempted brainwash earlier but terminated it by injecting Host with the Ever-Calm serum. System suggests Host to act brainwashed as Host is currently too weak to defend himself against whatever the unknown individuals will do. Again, System urges the Host to find a way to level up quickly, else host's goal will never be achieved.»

"Huh!? What!?"

«Host to awaken in 5.. 4.. 3.. 2.. 1..»

*

"He's coming around!"

"He's regaining consciousness!"

"Quick, get Doctor Ambrose!"

"Get some guards in case he goes berserk!"

Xavier could hear a cacophony of voices as his brain and eyes tried to adjust to the new surrounding. He felt he was laying on a soft bed and wearing a strange helmet on his head, also there were a lot of tubing attached to needles that had inserted into him.

He didn't know where he was, but he had a feeling this was exactly where the system told him about, and he remembered the system telling him to act brainwashed in order to stay alive.

Sigh!

"Even with after being revived and given a second chance in the same world, I'm still weak. It won't be long though."

Soon Xavier heard hurried footsteps, he could tell there was more than ten persons coming. Then he saw a clean shaven middle-aged man in a white medical coat that came and stood near him.

"Welcome back son, from now on, your name is X, and you serve the Continental."