Atlantis: The Next Generation

There was a knock on the door. That's odd, thought Preston Whitmore. No one usually comes around at this time of night. The door slipped open and an unconscious young boy fell through. Mr. Whitmore knew instantly that he was the one who had knocked. He looked around ten years old and starving. Mr. Whitmore had no idea how to take care of a boy, but he knew he would have to try. It wasn't hard to carry him to the elevator and then to a spare room for him to sleep.

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The boy woke up with Mr. Whitmore looking over him. Confused, the boy looked around him. Seeing himself in a bed seemed to be an enormous shock. He narrowed his eyes and stared at Mr. Whitmore.

"You're Mr. Whitmore?" he asked. His voice was shaky, but also firm. Surprised that the boy knew who he was, Mr. Whitmore studied him. Aware that he was being examined, he looked away.

"Yes, I am. Why did you come looking for me?" The boy took a deep breath and looked up at the ceiling. Gently, Mr. Whitmore placed a hand on his shoulder. "What's your name, son?"

"Michael," he replied softly. His hand slowly crept up to the crystal he wore around his neck, and looked curiously at Mr. Whitmore. He could sense the presence of another crystal, identical to his. "You have a crystal," he said, his voice hoarse. Mr. Whitmore went into his collar and pulled out the Atlantean crystal given to him by Milo and Kida many years ago.

"Yes, how did you know about that?" he said, staring at him. Michael reached into his own shirt and pulled out his own. Mr. Whitmore stared at him for a very long time and rubbed his chin in thought. "How do you have one?" Michael turned red and stared at his feet.

"I was hoping you could tell me-" he started. "I have this book, you see. It tells about a city called Atlantis and where to find it. I know it sounds crazy, but I think it's the real thing." He said all this very fast. Mr. Whitmore smiled. He'd been through this same thing with Milo. Michael grinned hesitantly and reached into his bag and pulled out an old looking book with an Atlantean A on the cover. Awed, Mr. Whitmore stared at the book.

"But isn't this book in another language?" he said. Michael nodded and shrugged his shoulders.

"So?"

"You were just talking about what it says in it," Mr. Whitmore pointed out.

"Yeah, I did. So?" he asked. Suddenly understanding, Mr. Whitmore looked at him strangely.

"You mean to say… you can read this language?" he asked slowly. Michael nodded slightly.

"Yes. It's as easy as English for me," he explained. "I can read other languages too, but Atlantean and English are the easiest for me." Impressed, he asked,

"Who taught you?"

"No one taught me to read Atlantean. As soon as I could read English, I could read it. I couldn't even tell it was in a different language at first." He smiled at this memory and got a faraway look in his eyes. A knock on the door interrupted his thoughts. A young Hispanic woman poked her head in through the door.

"Umm… Mr. Whitmore, your guests are here," she said. His face lit up and looked up at the woman.

"Where are they, Audrey?" he said. The woman, Audrey, smiled and said,

"In your study," she said, and made to leave the room, but he stopped her.

"You can take a break, if you want to, and visit with Milo and Kida. Tell them I will be down shortly." Audrey smiled and nodded as she exited. Mr. Whitmore turned to Michael. "My visitors will be very excited to see you." Confused, Michael said,

"Why?"

"That book is very dear to them, and anything about Atlantean crystals is sure to intrigue them," Mr. Whitmore replied. A look of understanding came upon his face.

"They're Atlantean, aren't they?" he asked excitedly. Mr. Whitmore smiled at the boy's intensity about his belief in the city's existence. So much like Thaddeus and Milo, he thought. With that thought, he turned around and looked at Michael. He looked like a regular kid. He had brown hair and blue eyes, skinny, probably from being out on the street for all those years. Nah, it can't be, he thought.

"One of them is," he answered with a twinkle in his eye. "You want to meet them?" Michael's eyes lit up and he nodded.

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"Milo, Kida, it's so great to see you again," said Mr. Whitmore. Milo stood up and grinned. He shook Mr. Whitmore's hand tightly and said,

"How've you been? All right?"

"I've said it before- this crystal makes me feel better than I've felt in, now, I guess nearly thirty- five years," he said. Milo chuckled and Kida smiled. Mr. Whitmore turned to Kida and gave her a quick hug. He said, "So, how's Atlantis? Anyone causing you any trouble?" Milo smiled thoughtfully.

"No, it's pretty peaceful," he replied. Then a strange look came upon Kida's face. "Kida? You there?" he said, worried. She shook her head to clear it and stared at Mr. Whitmore.

"I feel the presence of another crystal," she explained. "Where is it?" At a loss for words, Mr. Whitmore took a deep breath.

"Last night, a boy showed up around here. Looked like he hadn't eaten for days. So, I took him in. This morning, he told me that he came to find me. I asked him where he was from, and he said that he'd hoped I could tell him," he said. "He has a crystal, Kida." She stared at Milo, who shrugged.

"Mr. Whitmore- what's he like?" Milo asked hesitantly. Mr. Whitmore smiled and said,

"Why don't you ask him yourself? I'll go get him," he said, leaving Milo and Kida in the study.

"Milo, you're not saying what I think you're saying," she said. He turned and looked at her. He smiled and nodded.

"I think you know what I'm thinking, Kida," he replied. She shook her head and placed her hand on his shoulder softly.

"Milo," she started, "He's dead. I felt him die." He turned around, angry.

"How do you know your feeling was right? We never went looking for him later," he said sitting down, his body shaking, tears falling from his eyes. Kida sat next to him, her face sad. She put a hand on his arm and said,

"I don't blame you. It wasn't your fault," she said.

"Yes, it was. I was irresponsible and I paid for it- with our son's life." Milo put his arms around Kida and she hugged him back. Despite the circumstances, she could not help but smile. What if he's right? she thought.

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"Michael," Mr. Whitmore said. "Come here, I have someone who wants to meet you." Michael sat up and said,

"What if I get nervous meeting people?" he asked.

"Don't worry, Milo and Kida are good people. Milo actually asked to meet you," Mr. Whitmore said. Not totally convinced, but able to trust him, Michael nodded in defeat. He got up and left the room with Mr. Whitmore.

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"Here he is, Milo," said Mr. Whitmore. Milo looked up, his face tear- stained, with Kida leaning on him. Concerned, he asked, "Are you all right you two?" Milo wiped away his tears and said,
"Yeah, I'm fine," he said. "Just- some bad memories." Kida looked at the boy and back at Milo. They do resemble each other, but it's not possible, she thought. Milo got up and walked to the boy. Both had brown hair. Both were skinny. But the eyes, he thought. He looked at Kida. Her eyes were a clear blue, much like the boy in front of him. He is our son, Milo thought. Why can't you accept it, Kida? Michael looked from Milo to Kida to Mr. Whitmore, confused. Then he spotted Kida's crystal.

"You have a crystal," he said. She looked at him and smiled.

"So do you," she pointed out. He nodded slowly and warily. What did she want from him?

"You're from Atlantis, aren't you?" he said, his blue eyes focused intently on her. Taking one look at him, she knew she could not lie to him. She nodded and looked at Milo. Michael turned to look at him. "You look like a regular person, but you're not, are you?" Milo grinned and looked at him.

"What's that supposed to mean?" he said indignantly.

"I mean, you're from Atlantis too, aren't you," Michael said. Milo took a deep breath.

"Well, not really. The city is my home now, but I wasn't born there. I discovered it about fifteen years ago," he said. Michael looked kind of disappointed but then said,

"You still have an important place there, though, don't you," he said. Milo looked at Kida and sighed. He turned to Michael and said,

"Well, by marriage, I am the King of the city." Michael stared at him in awe, and then turned to Mr. Whitmore and said,

"You didn't tell me they were royalty!" he exclaimed.

"Did I need to?" he answered with a twinkle in his eye. Michael smiled and admitted,

"Not really." Everyone grinned and Milo sat back down on the couch, his arm around Kida. She relaxed. Whoever this boy was, she could tell he would not tell their secret.

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Hours later, after polite conversation, Michael began to wonder what these people were interested in him for. He was a street kid, worth no value to anyone. He looked at the man, Milo, who he'd noticed staring at him before. Michael stared at his feet and put his head in his hands. All I've learned since I got here is that the King of Atlantis isn't Atlantean. I came to Mr. Whitmore for answers and I'm gonna get them, he thought. He stood up and sighed. Mr. Whitmore stared at him quizzically. Michael took a deep breath and said,

"Mr. Whitmore, I came to you because I want answers. What is the book really? Why can I read it? Why do I have a crystal around my neck? Why have I never gotten sick in my life? Where do I come from?" he asked, breathing hard, almost to the point of tears. "I'm sorry, but just waiting when I'm so close isn't my strong point." He sank back down into his chair and put his head down. Milo, who had been rather intrigued by the boy's outburst, made to stand up, but Kida held him down. Understanding, he nodded and relaxed into his chair. Mr. Whitmore, who had been surprised, regained his posture and said,

"Well, Michael, I think I may know the one major reason for your questions, but some of them are beyond my knowledge." He stood up and put a hand on Michael's shoulder. His heart pounding at a million miles an hour, he gulped.

"What's the answer then?" he asked hesitantly. "Where am I from?" He said the last so Mr. Whitmore could barely hear him. Mr. Whitmore looked at Milo, who slightly nodded.

"You're Atlantean, my dear boy," he said. Michael looked at him fearfully.

"Are you sure?" he asked, his voice shaking. "But- I don't look like one. I look more like him," he said, pointing at Milo. Kida gasped audibly and Milo smiled triumphantly.

"Don't make me say 'I told you so'," he whispered into her ear. She smacked him on the shoulder and he smiled anyway, like he knew he deserved it. Michael looked up at Mr. Whitmore and said,

"How do you know? About me being-A- Atlantean, I mean." Mr. Whitmore smiled and replied,

"I know your parents, kid." Michael's face became deeply troubled and Mr. Whitmore noticed. "What is it? I thought you'd be happy to know about them."

"No. I thought they were dead, why else would I not be with them?" he asked, tears coming to the boy's face. Milo stood up and moved towards Michael. He put his hand on the boy's shoulder and said softly,

"They thought you were dead." Michael turned around, confused.

"Why would they think I was dead? What happened?"

"You were kidnapped as a baby. Your parents looked everywhere around the city for you. Just as we- I mean, they, were about to give up, they got a ransom note from a terrorist. Soon after, your mother had a horrible feeling, that your presence was no longer on this Earth. They assumed you to be dead, and, consumed by their grief, they never questioned the fact that you could be alive, something your father would have normally done." Michael shook his head and said,

"How do you know?" Milo closed his eyes and opened them. He took a deep breath and gulped.

"Because I'm your father, Michael," Milo said quietly, "and if we'd known you were alive, things would've been so different… Please forgive me…" he trailed off. Michael stood up and gave his father a hug. Milo hugged him tight, seemingly afraid to le go. Kida looked on with tears in her eyes. Mr. Whitmore smiled at the happy family reunion. As Michael released himself from his father's embrace, he felt dizzy. He sat down and closed his eyes.

Michael! No! There's nothing we can do! We have to get to the surface before they see us! Looking behind him, Michael saw Atlanteans fighting for the freedom of the city. No! He cried out to his parents. Can't you see? We can't just leave these people to their deaths! We need to help them. They have a loyalty to us. Shouldn't we have a loyalty to them?

"Michael, hey, wake up!" He sat up as fast as lightning and looked around. Milo was staring at him, concerned. "You all right?"

"The city- I saw- we need to get back there, now!" he said urgently. Kida rushed over.

"He is right. Atlantis is calling. Milo, the people need us."