The nuclear war the humans had ended when the repercussions of it was taking a toll. Humanity's extinction was already slowly dragging on. It started with sickness, then with weakness, then death. As the years dragged on and the human population decreased, the animals went into a state of hibernation, a symptom of their evolution. As they slumbered, small animals grew on size while larger ones became smaller. Large animals like rhinos became the size of large men and small ones like mice the size of shorter ones.
Many years had passed and the first of the mammals had awakened. They were, unknowingly, on a newly formed country that would later be called Geruda. They awoke with their new found intelligence, awareness, and bodies. They first covered themselves up before investigating. Of the ones awakened only few had recollections of their feral days, with the recollection being minimal, like their names as pets and who raised them. The mammals sought out each other and gathered together, trying to figure out what happened in this world.
The ones with recollections of the past were the ones devised a plan for their circumstance and led the others. One group thought it best to figure out what happened to the humans and what led to their creation. The other group thought of this event as a sort of rebirth and thought it best to build a new society to live in.
Of these two groups, two factions were born. The faction of history and the faction of rebuilding. The first goal was a shared one, communication. Finding out if there were others like them throughout the world. To do so they searched in the lands they were in for a means to do so. They searched for days, finding others like them that had awoken, and others still slumbering, all while completing some sub goals on the search to complete the main on.
Weeks passed and a way to communicate was found by the two factions. A radio tower.
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"Uncle...Ferris?" Jackson looked at the bald eagle who he now knew was someone from his past.
The eagle stood up and walked towards Jackson. "Yes Jackson. I needed to meet with you so Mister Thorn let us in."
Mitch walked beside Ferris. "I know where ya keep ya spares. The guards weren't my idea though. I tried to warn him that they'd get clocked out." He shrugged and chuckled.
"But…" Jackson started. "I don't know you...yet...I know your my Uncle Ferris...that doesnt make sense though." He rubbed his forehead, attempting to sooth his headache, and felt a talan on his shoulder.
"I know. The memory you just saw was real, even if you don't remember it itself." Dauch Ferris started, giving him a warm and caring smile.
Jackson felt as though he knew that smile, in his mind and heart. "Why are you here?" He asked
"To fulfill a promise from your dad."
"My dad!?"
Ferris nodded. He looked at his watch. It read to be three twenty-six p.m. "How bout we talk at Cafe Dalton. I'm sure you have questions, and I'm willing to answer them, but I'm sure you're hungry after saving the people in that bus and finding out about your powers. I'll even talk on the way."
"Howd you-"
"He'll explain. Trust me, it's wild and I haven't heard the full story." Mitch told him. "Cmon. The car should be pulling out front." He made his way to the front.
Dauch followed behind him. Jackson stood there for a sec. He didn't know if he could trust the eagle, but felt he could, not just because of his friend Mitch, but something inside him, plus, he needed answers. He walked out of his dining room. "Oh wait." He looked to the unconscious fox and the pointer who was starting to get up. "What about them?"
"Well seeing as you knocked the crap out that fox, Jet." Ferris chuckled, "Alex will take him." He looked towards the pointer. "Alex. Take him back to the agency...and maybe to the infirmary there."
The pointer groaned and raised up, rubbing his bruises. "Yes sir." He wobbled to the fox and picked him up, exiting the house.
"I...kinda feel bad." Jackson admitted.
"Why? They attacked first. If anything I'm surprised Alex, the
Pointer, is still able to walk." Mitch stated.
"I was gonna deal a final blow but then came the fox."
"Lucky him."
They all walked outside the house, down the walkway and onto the side of the street. A black limo rolled in from the side, it had the words sky limits on the side I'm bold white letters followed by their logo of parting clouds that stood next to it. Mitch opened the doors and let the eagle and cat in before he himself entered. Mitch and Jack took on side of the wall and Ferris took the opposite.
"To cafe Dalton, Karsen." Ferris told the black lamb driver who nodded and drove. "Now," he turned to Jackson. "What's your first question?"
Jackson looked down and mulled over it. He didn't know what to ask first. How long has he been a meta? When did he forget and why? Where are these memories coming from? What are his powers? He thought that in his head and was selecting which to ask first. Finally deciding, he looked up to the eagle and said, "What's up with my memories?"
Ferris sighed. "Hoping that would be for later...your memories were sealed. The ones you saw before were fake ones created by the seal and the ones that are replacing them are the real memories."
"Who sealed them?"
Ferris looked away, distraught. "Can't tell you just yet. Later I can but not right at the beginning, it'll only add more confusion and questions."
Jackson wanted to pry but decided not too. "Ok….guess that answers the question of why I forgot I was a meta. Next question. If you know me, why is the first time we've talked? I know it actually isn't now, but you get my point."
He looked back at Jackson. "Your mother asked me not to interact with you till you rediscovered your powers."
'Should I ask now he knows my parents? Or about my powers….' He thought before deciding on which question burned more. "Ok, Guess that'll be my next question. What are my powers?"
"That's also a difficult question. I wanted to save that for last."
"Ugh, fine." He groaned. "Then how do you know my mom and dad?"
"We were close friends. You're father even worked at an agency while I was making mine. He was gonna join it when it finished."
"Ok then. Next que-"
"Were here." Mitch cut in. He pointed outside to a cafe building outside by where they parked.
The drapes of the cafe were black and the large words of Cafe Dalton were yellow and in cursive, right above it. It had large windows and a clear door. The eletric sign on one of the windows read open. The three exited the limo and entered the cafe. They were greeted by a tan feline waitress at a podium
"Good noon. Table for three?" She asked
"A private booth please."
"Sure thing!" She grabbed a few menus and walked with them in tow.
Jackson scoped out the cafe. It had a counter on the left for payment and where the food went to be picked up and taken to the tables. Behind the register there was a lift to take up food to the second floor. There were an assortment of tables and some had mammals occupying them, talking, eating, communicating via device, or reading. The color scheme of the cafe was black and red, with its tile floors being white with specks of yellow.
They were led upstairs. There were less tables and more booths that were along the walls, each having a sliding door. Some were closed with the words "Taken" plastered on it. They were led to a vacant booth and handed menus.
"What can I get you to drink?" The waitress asked.
"I'll take a Retsi." Mitch told
"Sprite please." Jackson requested
"Black tea for me." Ferris asked for.
"Alright. I'll ring in soon." She closed the doors after leaving.
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"Wanna order first before asking more questions?" Ferris asked Jackson, looking over his menu.
"Yeah, that'd be a better option." Jackson confirmed. He looked over the menu and saw what they had to offer. He expected more treats than meals and was surprised to see an even balance.
A little while later and a buzz was heard coming from the device in the middle of the table. It was spherical and lit up as it buzzed. It had a speaker in the middle of it. "Drinks are here." The waitress from before called through it. Ferris pressed one of the red buttons, telling her to come in. She walked in and gave the drinks.
"I believe we're ready to order." Ferris informed.
The waitress whipped out her notepad. "What'll ya have?"
"I'll take a hot ham sandwich with fries."
"I'll take a Dalton pot pie." Mitch told
"A fried fish sandwich with fries for me please." Jackson asked
"Alright," she wrote down what they said,"I'll get that to you as soon as possible." She left.
Ferris took a sip of his drink and turned to Jackson. "Shall we continue?"
Jackson took a swig of his Sprite before answering, "Yeah. Who else knew I was a Meta?"
"Me, your uncle Gary, and your late grandmother Alice."
"Is that why uncle Gary trained me in point style?"
"Partly, yes."
"Alright….why are these memories just now coming back?"
"The one who sealed it set...conditions, for them to return. You being in danger was a condition for you to remember your powers and for that seal to break as well."
"That seal? My powers were sealed!?"
"Yes. She had a very strong power, she sometimes used it well and responsibly." He chuckled, smiling down at his tea.
"You talk as if you know her."
"I do...but I-"
"Cant tell me til later?"
Ferris nodded
"Alright then do the other memories have conditions?"
"Yes. The seal on your memories break when something related to it is brought up. Whether it be a picture, event, or words itself."
"I guess that's why some of those blueprints in my mind were blurry? Cause they have a memory relation?"
"Maybe. Her power sometimes had a mind of its own when it came to conditioning."
"Hm…" he pondered his next question. 'I don't think it's time for the big ones yet.'
"I got a question." Mitch spoke. "Is the main reason you hired me cause of Jackson?"
"No. You being friends with Jackson played no major role. If anything it was a fortunate coincidence." Ferris answered.
"How does Mitch fit into this?" Jackson wondered.
"Well on the day Mr. Thorn came in for his interview I happened to overhear him talking to you."
"When one of the workers came to me to start it, Mr Dauch had him ask me who I was talking to, so as not to make things suspicious. Even showed him my wallpaper of you and me. On the day I started, a.k.a. today, Mr Dauch approached me, asking me about you and showing me footage of a new meta that someone caught on video after Jet Roller threw that bus over." Mitch finished.
"That Meta was me, wasn't it?" Jackson theorized
"Yea. Some mammals started recording when a meta from the Nix agency dove in, then a few seconds later, you pop out."
"I see."
There was a buzz from the device on the table. "Foods here!" Their waitress called in.
The opened the door and she walked in with the plates on a tray, handing it to them and telling them to enjoy and ring in if they want dessert, leaving them to their dishes.
Jackson grabbed a bottle of ketchup and added it to his fries before digging in.
Mitch took his first bit and realised how hot his pot pie was. "Hot hot!"
Ferris held back a chuckle while Jackson laughed. "Moron hahahaha." He called him while laughing.
They continued eating, with some silence, the only one talking much was Mitch.
"Wanna try my pie?" He asked his feline friend.
"Nah. I'm good." Jackson declined
"Suit yourself. I could use a refill on Retsi."
"It still baffles me why they didn't stick with calling themselves Pepsi."
"Cause Retsi is better Pepsi."
"It is not. It tastes the same."
"Cause your tastebuds are lame, mr Sprite!"
"What!? That makes no sense! Everyone loves Sprite! Why do you think it's been brought back from the human era?"
"Cause they ran out of ideas, duh!"
"That's bologna!"
Ferris watched the two playfully bicker. 'These two really are good friends.' He thought with a smile. 'Adison, Tania, I hope you both see this. He's been doing well….. I'll keep my promise, and help your son with his abilities.'
They continued to eat for the next few minutes, the main ones talking being Jackson and Mitch, until the last bite was taken.
"That was a fine lunch. Dessert?" Ferris asked the young mammals
"I'll pass." Jackson answered
"I won't. Ima go for the lava chocolate brownie!" Mitch said with excitement and buzzed for the waitress. The desert was a large brownie cake topped with whipped cream and filled with hot fudge.
"You do that Mitch." Jackson said with a sigh. He turned to Ferris.
Ferris turned backed, understanding the next batch of questions were gonna be the big ones.
"Ok then Uncle Ferris….I have four big questions," He held up his index finger, "one, what are my powers? Two, who sealed my memories and why? Three, what do we do from here?....and four….if my memories are sealed then….did my parents...actually die in a car accident?"
"Are you ready to hear those answers?" Ferris asked with a solemn look.
Jackson tightened his face and clenched his hands. He played the memory of the car accident.
He was on the side of the street, feeling cold, laying on a hard surface. He opened his eyes and groaned in pain. His body ached, his black t-shirt and red shorts were smudged and had small rips in them. His ears started to register sounds. He heard distant sirens, rustling wind, and crackling flames. He saw some cars and a truck drive up, his vision not focused enough to what it was. Mammals hurriedly got out and ran to his direction.
The sound of flames got louder and he felt a warmth emanating on his other side. He turned his head and his eyes widened. A small red car was on its side, crashed, broken, and covered in roaring flames. He scrambled to his feet and ran to the vehicle, ignoring the pain in his legs. He was stopped by a Moose grabbing him on the shoulders. "Let go of me!" His young self yelled. "Mom! Dad!" He called out, struggling to free himself from the Moose's grasp, reaching out to the wreckage.
"You can't go there!" The Moose told him with a tinge of sadness in his voice.
"Let me go!" The young Jackson demanded. He was lifted up but thrashed about, his eyes locked onto the wreckage. Tears welled up in his eyes as he continued to call for his parents, receiving no response. He scratched at the moose's arm, wanting desperately to be let go, hoping that if he got closer he'd wee his family.
The moose turned away and went the other direction, ignoring all the hits little Jackson gave. He looked at the young siamese cat with a heavy heart, the feline still reaching out and calling out toward the flame consumed car.
"MOOM!! DAAAAD!!" His throat burned, yet he still called, not wanting to stop, not hearing anything else, for he only wanted to hear his parents. The liquids in his eyes took up his vision but he didn't stop yelling for them, for he was afraid that if he did, he'd never hear an answer.
Jackson shook his head as the memory ended. It was one that haunted him in his sleep months after it had happened and even though it was seven years ago it was one that he could see crystal clear. Learning that some of his memories were fake, he hoped something and looked at Ferris with a determined face. "Tell me." He asked him.
Ferris sighed and Mitch's desert came in. He took a sip of his tea and answered the first question. "Your power is called creation. The blueprints in your mind are actually blueprints you scanned with your eyes. It's saved in a part of your mind where you can look through and view them. You then select one and then create it out of thin air. What you can create is limited to machines. Basic items or non mechanical ones, like swords, are seen as material by either your power or subconscious."
"So that's why I have blueprints in my mind."
"Mhm. As to who sealed your memories…" he tried to find a way to put this, "...it was your mother."
"My mom!?" Jackson was taken by suprise. Good thing they were in a private booth cause he said that loud.
"Yes. She sealed your powers and memories. Why?....I'm afraid I can't tell."
"Mom was a Meta….Hrg!" His brain ached. A memory was replaced by its original.
Young Jackson was infront of his mother. She was a beautiful light brown cat, and wore a red skirt and blue dress shirt in the memory. Her hair was tied in a pony tail too.
"Wanna see it again?" His mother said in the memory
"Yea!" Young Jackson said giddily. He was about eight years old in that memory.
His mother held a ribbon. She tied it into a bow and held it in one of her hands while the other hand hovered over it. "Seal: untying. Condition: this bow shall not untie unless blowed upon by my son." A yellow chain came out her hands and wrapped around the bow. They surrounded the bow then a lock appeared on the chains before it disappeared. She pulled the bow tightly but it didn't unravel. She held it in front of her son.
Jackson bounced on his heels then blew on the bow. The chains and lock appeared and shattered as the bow unraveled from a now to a strand of ribbon. "Awesome!" He said.
The memory ended with his mother sharing a laugh with him. Jackson rubbed his temples.
"You ok?" Ferris asked
"Yeah….was my….was my dad also a…"
"Yes. I'll tell you his power another time. These memories coming back cause a strain in the brain and I want you to have some time between them."
"Ok…." Jackson wanted to see more memories but understood. He was glad to see a vivid memory of his mother though.
"Now as to your third question. Tomorrow, I want you to come to the agency...and register yourself there."
"You want me to work as a Meta at the sky limits?"
"Yes. I ask because it'd be the best place for you to be when relearning your powers and it's where I can best help when bringing out more of your memories."
"There's more to it than that isn't there?" Jackson had a hunch.
"....Yes, but I-"
"Can't tell me yet?"
"Not till you come in…. If you come in...I don't wanna force you."
The siamese cat thought about it. It would be the best place for him to learn more about his past and powers, plus he felt something inside urging him to do so, like it's something he's been wanting to do. He acted on that feeling. "I'll be there tomorrow. Mitch will take me."
"Hm?" Mitch piqued in, fudge on his lips. "I'll do what?"
"Take me to the Sky Limits agency tomorrow." Jackson told him.
"Oh, Yea sure." He went back to finishing up his chocolate treat.
".....Uncle Ferris…my last question…"
"Right…." Ferris held his taloned hands together. He felt a weight in his heart as he thought to that day. "Your parents did die that day….but not by a car accident."
Jackson gritted his teeth. He didn't know how to feel about the news. He was hoping that maybe they faked their death and were still alive but alas, life is cruel. Hearing his parents didn't die in a car accident burned a question onto him, a question he feared to know the answer to and hear the events of it. What killed them? He wasn't ready to get that answer. He knew that and so did Ferris, yet it still burned.
"Jackson?" A concerned Mitch called out.
"...I'm fine."
Ferris placed his talon on Jackson's shoulder. "I'm sorry." He understood how Jackson felt, not completely, but close enough. They were like family to him.
"It's ok….I… I don't have any more questions."
"I see." He reached into his jacket and pulled out an envelope. "Before we meet tomorrow, I want you to look through these photos, slowly, one by one." He handed the small package over
"Ok." He took it and placed it in his pocket.
Mitch licked off the last bit of his treat from his lips. He wanted to break the tension in the air. "Hey. Mind if we stop somewhere before taking him home?"
The others looked at him quizzically.
"Need to pick up something."
"Oh right! Your figurine!" Jackson realised.
"My mom's figurine. I ain't into that stuff and you know it."
"Oh yea…." A smirk formed in Jackson's lips, "your into dolls."
"Th-those were a gift! I can't throw them away!"
"Yet you display them so proudly."
"Sh-shut up!"
The weight in the air was lifted as the two exchanged verbal jabs. Ferris couldn't help but laugh. He now saw how good of a friend Mitch was to Jackson.
"Alright," Ferris started, getting their attention "let's head out."
They all got up and left the booth, pressing a button that signaled that they were done with the booth. They went to the register and Ferris paid the bill, insisting on it. They then headed down the stairs, and through the front door, exiting cafe Dalton and entering the limo with a waiting and ready Karsen, who started the engine and drove towards the next destination.
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Next chapter: Create part 3: Artisikat