Chakra Wizard
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Reunion
“I’m so glad you’re safe. …God, I missed you so much.”
For the last seven minutes, the two had been in one another’s arms, each refusing to let go of the other. David had been only twelve years of age when his father explained to him that she suddenly had to leave…and he hadn’t seen her since. He was honestly at a loss of words as they finally ended their embrace, though his eyes remained fixated on his mother. She, on the other hand, had turned her attention over to Aristarchus.
“…Thank you so much for finding him.”
Slowly getting up from his seat, the old man chuckled before responding.
“Oh, quite a touching scene, I must say. …And not at all, my dear. Had you not told us beforehand, we might not have reached him in time.”
Somewhat confused, David looked to his mother for an explanation.
“Wait, how did you find out what happened?”
It was at this point that a small tear ran down her face as she answered him.
“Your father called me right after he finished talking to you, baby. He told me what happened and where you said you were and I immediately told Aristarchus. He rounded up two others boys and went out to look for you. …Oh, it seems they got to you just in time.”
“Hold on, …Dad knew where you were? …How did-?”
“Oh no, sweetie. …He has no idea where we are right now. But, that was only for his protection…and yours. …I’ve still been keeping in touch with him for the past four years, …just making sure the two of you were all right.”
A few tears began emerging in David’s eyes again. After all those years, it turns out his mother’s departure wasn’t of her own accord, after all. …But, the very thought of it instantly brought another issue to mind.
“…So, …you and Dad…?”
She responded with a smile, …though at the same time, she shook her head.
“Your father and I still love each other, David, …but…I never would’ve wanted him to wait until we could be together again. …Even if he was willing to, I’d rather he found happiness again than spend all these years alone. …But, he did manage to find someone else he loves…and that’s more than enough to make me happy for him, as well.”
So, it was true. …Their separation was official. …Regardless, though, he was glad they had left on good terms and decided to turn his attention toward a different subject.
“…Mom.”
“Hm?”
“Uh, …Aristarchus said his mutation surfaced when he was fourteen…and I’m sixteen, so…how did you keep it a secret for so long? I’m mean, you would’ve had to have been eighteen, at the most.”
“Hmhmhmhmhm, …exactly eighteen, baby.”
“Huh?”
“I had just graduated and moved in with your father when I finally began mutating. He was able to help me keep it a secret for the next thirteen years, …even from my parents.”
“…What happened to you?”
She paused a moment before letting out a long, deep sigh.
“…There was a blackout at the lab one night. The entire building lost power. Our team was just as unbiased as your father, so they paid it little thought, …but one of the technicians passing by in the hallway noticed that my legs were missing when your father shined a flashlight on me. …Well, we’ll just say that he wasn’t very fond of the sight.”
David lowered his head slightly, prompting Kelly to put her hand on his shoulder to get him to look back up at her. He was imagining the fear that was going through his mother’s mind during all of this.
“I got out of there with no problem at all, sweetie. I was found by a small group of Aristarchus’s boys a few days later and they brought me here. …I joined his team of scientists to express my gratitude to him.”
“…When did you call Dad again?”
“Oh, maybe the next day after I first arrived, …just to let him know that I was okay.”
“Well, that’s good. …I…”
“What’s wrong, baby?”
Before Kelly could even move to place her hand on her son’s shoulder, he jumped back into her arms.
“I’m just…so glad you’re…you’re okay, Mom.”
Returning his affection, she quickly wrapped her arms around him, …letting him know that she would never leave him again.
“…It’s okay, baby. …It’s okay.”
The entire time this occurred, Aristarchus’s eyes were fixated on this heart-wrenching sight, though a quick glance at his pocket watch caused him to stand up once again.
“Well, my dear. If it were up to me, I’d let you stay like that for the rest of the night, but…we’ve still got work to do, unfortunately.”
“Hmm, …yes, sir. …I’ll be back later on tonight, baby. Aristarchus, could you please find someone to escort him back to my room?”
“…Of course, child.”
He reached into his left pocket and pulled out what appeared to be a walkie-talkie.
“Trace.”
“…Yes, sir?”
“Doctor Pariah’s boy is here. If you could, please come down here and escort him back to her room.”
“Yes, sir. I’d be glad to.”
“Excellent. We’re in the cafeteria, so be quick with it now, you hear?”
Switching it off once again, he returned it to his pocket before turning his attention back to his new guest.
“Well, how about that? Now, if you two have no more urgent matters to attend to, Kelly, I do believe we have a few of our own.”
“Yes, sir. Okay, I’ll be back later on, David.”
“Hmm, yes. You take care now, young lad.”
“Alright. …See you later.”
Now alone inside this large, …unfamiliar room, David sat back down and waited for the man whom Aristarchus had sent for. He still hadn’t quite managed to accept everything that had just happened, but the fact that he was reunited with his mother once more had almost completely dissolved his grief…for the time being.
After waiting for about ten minutes, the man Aristarchus had called Trace appeared in the doorway. …To be honest, he wasn’t much of a man – he appeared only a few years older than David was. In contrast to David’s black, lengthy hair, his was a shade of dark brown that he hardly grew out at all. He was wearing a white tank top and black gloves at the time, which, along with his rather fit composure, led him to believe that he helped Aristarchus with storage and heavy lifting. …He had quite the friendly disposition, as well.
“Oh, are you Miss Kelly’s son?”
“Hm? …Oh, uh, …yeah, that’s me. You must be Trace.”
He stood up to shake hands with the young man before he motioned to follow him out of the cafeteria. As they walked through the halls, they were greeted by several other refugees who passed by. …They certainly weren’t alone inside Aristarchus’s sanctuary, though David never expected there to be so many others.
“Uh, Trace?”
“Yep?”
“How long has Aristarchus been, uh, …y’know, doing this?”
“…Ummm, I think he said forty years.”
He paused a moment to recollect his own thoughts. …He must have been thinking about his own troubles…after discovering that he was a Walker.
“…He’s a great man, isn’t he?”
“…Yeah, …he really is.”
Travelling up two flight of stairs, they continued walking for another twenty minutes before finally stopping in front of a large door.
“Well, here we are. Did your mom give you the key?”
“Huh? …Uh, no. …I guess that slipped my mind.”
“Hehehehe, well, I can’t blame you. …Don’t worry about it.”
Digging into a bag tied around his waist, he pulled out a large ring aligned with numerous keys, searching through them until he found one labeled with the letters ‘D-R-K’, placing it in the lock and opening the door before returning the ring to his bag.
“Well then, there you go. I’ll be sure to get a copy of this key made up, so you can get in whenever you need to, alright?”
“…Alright. Thanks, Trace.”
“My pleasure, David. Take care.”
“Yeah, …you too.”
Once he was no longer in sight, David turned his attention back to the newly opened room, stepping inside to get a first glance at the conditions his mother had been living in for the past few years. …He could only say that he was glad she was being been taken good care of. A designated space for every activity aside from cooking, the room itself was considerably large. Equipped with both a television and a refrigerator, there was also a functioning shower. …And considering it was probably not the only room of its kind, it truly placed into perspective just how much Aristarchus had put into this safehouse.
“…Yeah, …he really is a great man.”
Walking over to the enormous bed set out in the back of the room, David took a seat on the end of it before allowing himself to fall down on his back, intent on staring at the ceiling for the rest of the night…and wondering how well he would manage to adjust to his new life…as a Shadowwalker.
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Alright, I originally planned out a lot more for this plotline, but I’ve just about lost interest in going on with it, so I’ll just end it right here and look at it as more of a short storyxd Thanks to anyone who took the time to read it and be sure to check out more of my FF’s or OF’s
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