Clandestine: Rising

Chapter 1: A messy blank slate

When Anne was a child she had secretly longed for an adventure like those she saw in comics and movies but now she was cursing her past ignorance. 

An adventure was not something to be longed for.

She stared out the car window, face blank as her mind raced around trying to make sense of what the doctor had told her. In short, it couldn't. So instead of facing the turmoil that was inside, she turned outwards and focused on the foreign scenery they were passing by. Tiny houses with low fences surrounded by sparse clusters of thorny trees that provided little shade from the blistering sun. It was the complete opposite of the bustling cityscape she was used to and the air here lacked the salty moisture that the seaside was known for. However, she preferred looking at the strange scenery than trying to face her mother, who sat dead quiet behind the wheel as she drove.

Her morning had been ... confusing, to say the least.

She had woken up with a pounding head and fuzzy vision like she had been hit in the head.

The first thing she had noticed after rubbing the sleep out of her eyes was that her sheets were different. They were her summer sheets. Even though when she had gone to sleep the previous night her bed had winter sheets on. She was too groggy to question it though. Maybe her mom had changed the sheets in the middle of the night. Also, her headache made thinking a near-impossible task. And any remaining logic was overridden with excitement. Birthdays always meant crumpets or waffles!

She then heard her mother call for her as she was chasing the fog of sleep from her body, "We're going to be late for your lessons, it's already 10!"

She had begrudgingly sped up the pace. Anne hadn't understood what her mother meant by "lessons" as today was a Saturday and her 16th birthday party. She and her friends would be going ice-skating and then afterwards would hit the new mall nearby. She had been super excited to go to the high-end coffee shop that had also just opened up. Daphne had been raving about it. It apparently served gelato and one of the waiters was super cute, according to Daphne anyways, but her choice of men was questionable at best.

"Anne!" Her mother had yelled, closer this time, and once again complained about her being late for lessons. "Ugh, I'm coming geez. I don't get the rush. It's still hours till we have to go to the rink. And what's this about tutoring, I'm not failing any classes." She had snapped back and staggered towards her door, only half dressed. Her headache had made her whole body feel woozy - at least her room was dark - and she swung it open.

Anne hadn't gotten any further than her doorway, however, before pausing in her tracks. She hadn't recognised the hallway or the woman standing in front of her. The lady had short ginger hair, a bare freckled face

and a slim pear-shaped figure. That... That wasn't her mother! Anne had let out a yelp and scrambled back, yelling accusations and questions. Who are you? What are you doing in our house? Where is my mom? Then the woman yelled back, just as confused, in her mother's voice, and Anne crumbled. Mom?! Tears had welled up in her eyes yet refused to come out so she sat there gasping as everything began crashing down around her. Her mother had stood there awkwardly patting her back.

So yeah, not the best way to start the day.

Anne's mom had then promptly taken her to the doctor. The visit had been a blur and overall not very useful. They didn't know what had caused her memory loss. She hadn't experienced any head trauma, it wasn't dementia or any other disease and it possibly might be a very rare form of amnesia... maybe... but they couldn't tell at this stage. The doctor gave her some Aspirin and told them to come back after 2 weeks. No one could tell her if it was permanent or not. Whether there were other side effects.