Forgotten Spark

Chapter 4

Jack explained the rest of our history on the way to....where ever we were going.

Apparently, after my mom had been kidnapped by a company called the Elgen (he said there would be smarter people where we were going that could explain them to me), I asked Jack for a ride to California to rescue her. This was where I infiltrated their school (where they dumped their kidnapped electric children), rescued the captives (except the other students, who were brain-washed), and escaped. After that, he said, we went on a series of missions for the resistance, who were against the Elgen. Some of these missions included destroying a major power-plant, sinking a giant, armored boat, rescuing a little girl (whom they had kidnapped) and some little stuff in between all that.

I have to admit, I felt a little overwhelmed. All these people looked up to me, and I seemed like the perfect leader in my other life (that's what I'm calling it, now--my life before I lost my memory). I didn't feel like a confident leader at all, now. They probably expected me to take the reigns and be a leader again, but I didn't think I could do it. How could I live up to the expectations I'd set for myself?

                              _____

By the time we arrived at our destination, I'd slept maybe two hours total. I was exhausted. I was eager to get there, so I could find a proper bed and crash for a while. Of course I was disappointed.

We arrived at some sort of ranch in Utah. I think Jack called it "Christmas Ranch". With the sun just peaking over the horizon, it was very picturesque. There were fruit trees, fields of crops, and a little pond with canoes by it. It looked like a perfect heaven.

There were three buildings. The two smaller ones looked to be the same size, but the larger one was huge! It looked like it could fit half a football field in it.

"That's the mess hall," Jack explained, following my gaze, "but there's also a kitchen, which is huge, and several conference rooms." He motioned to the smaller buildings next to the mess hall, "Those are the men and women's dorms. It pretty much just a giant room with lots of bunks, except it has a pretty sweet loft! That's where most of the Electroclan guys sleep. I don't know about the girls, though, we're not allowed in there." Something about the tone of Jack's voice told me he had broken the rule a few times.

As we drove towards the mess hall creating a cloud of dust behind us on the dirt road, I noticed a crowd of people in front. Many were adults, but most were teenagers. Most actually looked my age. They got really excited when they saw us driving up, and I was suddenly very nervous. I didn't think Jack sent any kind of message ahead that I'd lost my memory, just that we were on our way. What were they going to say one they found out? They would be disappointed for sure, but how long before they would accept the new me? I wasn't going to be the same person as before.

We pulled up, and the car stopped. I opened the door and got out, and I was deafened with cheering and yelling and crying. As I closed the door, I was suddenly tackled by a pretty girl with brown hair. She hugged me tightly, tears steaming down her face. "You're back," she whispered, "You're finally back. Where did you go?" But before I could respond, she was kissing me.

Out of pure surprise, I backed away from this girl. Then I got a good look at her. She was more than pretty, she was gorgeous! Her eyes were a soft brown, that reminded me of the sweetest maple syrup. There was something about this girl. Something that seemed the slightest bit familiar, like a grade-school crush, or something. She had beautiful eyes. Eyes that were now full of hurt and confusion. "Michael? Are you all right?"

"I--I just--I'm a little overwhelmed." I looked around me. The other teenagers were rushing towards us.

"Michael, Michael!" "We missed you!" "Where were you?" "We waited for you, but you didn't come!" "You just disappeared!" "We couldn't find you!" "You're back!" Voices overlapped and questions came flying. That's when Jack finally came around the car, to my rescue. A moment longer and I would have screamed.