Electrifying Memories
Chapter 3
--
Drake looked up from where he sat at the table in the living room. He had been sitting on the couch most of the time since they had returned home from Bushroot's Greenhouse. His mind was elsewhere as Gosalyn did all that she could to stay up any longer. She decided that it would be best if she just laid low, seeing as her dad was deep in thought.
It was true, Drake was deep in thought, but with things he had not thought about for a long time. Basically, ever since the problem with Taurus Balba, Drake's life has changed dramatically.
Before then, he was just some loner duck who dreamed of being a superhero and fighting crime, making the front page of the newspaper everyday. But it had all been a fluke. Back then, no matter how many times he denied it, he had been nothing.
But then she walked into his life. Gosalyn had changed him. He now had a daughter to look after, a house to live in. An actual house. Not some tower. He now had a sidekick who was the greatest friend one could ask for.
Before Gosalyn and Launchpad showed up in his life, he had not any real friends. Save for one, who had disappeared the night of their senior prom. Drake could remember vividly how scared he was for Elmo as he searched and searched. The loss of his friend had been hard for him.
But now, that person...One of the survivors from the explosion at S.P.E.C.. Drake was unable to grasp the idea, but he knew it was true. He expected, at least, that that would be what Elmo would look like after nine years. Just seeing him brought back so many joyous memories and the great times they had had together.
He remembered how they would fight against the bullies in school together, usually getting thrown into a locker or dumped into a trashcan in the process, but it was great times. They were still able to walk away with a weak laugh as they dusted themselves off.
He decided that the best way to handle this was to simply go and visit Elmo in the hospital and confront him. Maybe he would finally be able to get some answers as to what happened after all these years. Had he had the money at the time, he would have searched the whole globe looking for Elmo, but he had been unable to. What did it matter? He was back.
There was a crash from upstairs that brought Drake back to the present. He scowled lightly. "GOSALYN!! If that's what I think it is, you are in deep trouble missy!"
"No! It wasn't your antique vase. Why do you ask!?" came Gosalyn's reply from upstairs.
Drake groaned, putting his head in his hands. After another moment he got up and went upstairs to find his daughter trying to out the pieces back together of a light green oval shaped vase. Gosalyn saw her father come up and dropped the pieces, placing her hands behind her back and trying to look innocent.
"It was an accident, dad. Really!" she said, giving him her big eyes look. Drake was not fazed by her attempts to look innocent.
"Shouldn't you be in bed, young lady?" asked Drake, his hands on his hips.
"You never told me to go to bed."
"I shouldn't have to!" he cried. He then closed his eyes and sighed. "Listen, forget the vase and go to bed. I'll clean it up." Gosalyn was about to leave, thinking she got out scot free, when Drake added, "And this is coming out of your allowance."
"Awww, man!!" she groaned. She was about to go into her room when she turned back to her dad, who was eyeing her with a frown. "Dad, do you miss him?"
Drake blinked, taken aback by this question. He knew who she was talking about. "Yes, Gos. I miss him a lot. He was the greatest friend to me...Now go to bed..."
"I don't know what I would do if I lost you dad..." spoke Gosalyn a little more quietly. Drake smiled and walked up to her, scooping her up in his arms.
"And I don't know what I would do if I lost you..." He gave her a kiss on the cheek. "Now, off to bed with you..." Gosalyn nodded, falling gently from his arms and shut her door for the night.
Drake smiled. He may not have seen Elmo in years, but at least he had Gosalyn.
--
Beep.
There's that damn beep again.
Beep.
I hate it. I really do.
Beep.
Pain.
Beep.
My head is killing me...
Beep.
Why is it so hot in here?
Beep.
I feel like I'm burning.
Beep.
Am I burning?
Beep.
Oww...
Beep.
Megavolt opened up his eyes, being able to see nothing but a white ceiling.
'Where am I?'
He tried to move his limbs, but nothing seemed to work for him.
'Why does everything hurt?'
He heard voices from his left. He tried moving his head to see what it was, but it only caused in explosion of pain from his head. He strained his ears to listen to them. It was better than listening to that dreadful beeping.
"Mr. Mallard, you may go in and see him now if you wish" came a female voice. A lower voice started talking, but Megavolt wasn't able to understand it. Then a third voice, which was even deeper.
Megavolt took a deep breath, which hurt. It felt as though his skin was burning. He balled his hands into fists, grabbing handfuls of white sheets. He was in a bed. A white bed. A white bed to match the white room.
The sound of a door opening and closing was heard and Megavolt looked over to his left again. There, stood a mallard dressed in a plaid shirt and green vest.
"Hello, sir. My name is Drake Mallard. How are you today?"
"M'fine" mumbled Megavolt.
"The doctors tell me that you can't remember who you are" stated Drake, his hands behind his back.
"Really? I don't even remember talking to them..." mumbled the rat, trying to hold back the slight bitterness in his voice. He tried not to sound annoyed, but he couldn't help it, with the way he was currently feeling, he did not wish to talk t anybody. He slowly moved his aching body so that he was laying on his right side and facing away from Drake.
Drake just looked on as though he hadn't heard the bitterness. "Which just proves them further correct." He continued, taking a step closer to the bed. "They did say you seemed out of it. But judging by the collision you had to your head, not to mention the exposure to all the heat and electricity you had in the power plant, it's not that surprising. You're lucky to be alive." He was trying to sound encouraging.
"Really?"
"Yes."
"Why are you here?" Megavolt frowned, now getting cautious. Who was this person? How did he know him!?
"I am here to help you figure out who you are. See, I have a hunch as to who you might be... But I'm not too sure... Could you tell me your name?"
This took Megavolt by shock. He had not been expecting such an answer, let alone, that question. "M-My name...oh, it...it's...Elmo...Yes, Elmo. My name is Elmo" replied the rodent.
Drake beamed at the response. "Really? Because... I had a friend once by that name...from high school..."
"High school...right..." sighed Megavolt. He desperately tried to remember a time when he went to high school, or what high school was. It made his head ache. "All I know is, I'm in a lot of pain..."
Drake nodded. "That's to be expected. I can call a doctor for some pain medication..."
Megavolt shook his head. "No...I hate doctors."
Drake gave a wry smile. "Well, then you're in the wrong place."
Megavolt just blinked at him as he tried to get comfortable. He turned back towards Drake, knowing that this man wasn't going away any time soon. It didn't work. His skin still felt as though it was on fire.
"Speaking of which, the doctors said that you have a high temperature reading...You also have a high amount of electros in your system. Probably the after effects from being in the explosion. They told me to tell you that if you get too warm just call them." He pointed to a little button on the side of the bed. Megavolt nodded.
"I am a bit warm...but you don't have to call them..." he sighed. A moment of silence fell over the pair.
"Do you have anywhere to go?" asked Drake. He had to force himself not to get ahead of himself. He didn't want to scare Elmo by being too overly friendly. They had just met after nine long years of absence and it appeared that Elmo was having a tough time remembering who he was. He's missed his friend so much.
"What do you mean?"
"I mean, do you know where you're going after you get out of here...?"
"No. Home, I guess..."
"Oh, where do you live?"
"...Good question..." Megavolt thought, trying to remember anything that would be helpful. Then, an image appeared in his mind. The image was of a younger version of himself and a duck. They were laughing. They seemed to be having a great time as they walked down the sidewalk and away from the school building.
--
Someone was laughing. "Haha! That was funny, Drake. I can't believe you did that to Hamm! You have a lot of guts to do that!"
The duckling laughed alongside him. "I know! I can't believe I managed it! I'll admit, I was scared, but as soon as he tripped and went into the trash can, I knew that was my chance! I grabbed that trash can and let it spin!" There was another moment of laughter between the two. "You coming over to my place tonight, Drake?" asked Elmo.
"Yeah, I have nothing else better to do..." was the reply.
--
The memory faded and Megavolt was brought back to the present. Drake stood beside the bed, looking concerned for the rodent. Megavolt tried to bring more memories back, but it was no use. Either way, he now knew who this Drake Mallard was.
He looked up at Drake and blinked.
"What's the matter, you want me to go and get a doctor?" asked Drake, not aware of what was going on.
"No. Stay here, please. I….. just remembered something. It was of a kid named Drake and myself. We were leaving school. We were laughing. Something about a kid in a trash can. His name was…..oooh, I know it! What was it!?" Drake waited patiently as Megavolt sat there and tried to remember. "…..Hamm" he said at last.
Drake took a seat in the guest chair beside the bed and smiled, his eyes wide. "Hamm String. Yes. I think I know about what memory you are talking about. Hamm had been chasing me down the hallway. I dodged a trash can, but he didn't have enough time to react, so he fell inside of it. I took my chance and spun the trash can around. It made Hamm so dizzy. He threw up afterwards. You had been there. You were at your locker. You and a handful of people witnessed it. We both had found it so funny..."
Megavolt smiled. "It was funny."
Drake sighed, not knowing what to say next.
"Drake, I don't remember much, but I know it had been you. I don't remember what's happened since then. I can only remember a few childhood memories, like that one. I just remembered. I don't know where I've been all this time or who I am...How long has it been since high school?"
Drake frowned. "Nine years..."
Megavolt's eyes widened. "That long!? Where have I been!? What have I been doing all this time!?"
"Your guess is as good as mine, Elmo. You see, you disappeared the night of our senior prom. This is the first I've seen you since then..." lamented Drake, looking down into his lap.
Megavolt stared at his friend with wide eyes. "But...I don't understand...how can I have lost such a huge gap of my life?"
"I don't know. The doctors said that collisions to the head often times cause us to lose our memories. Sometimes all that can be remembered is a certain time in our lives. You've reverted back to that time and its all you can remember." Drake explained. He felt terrible for Elmo, but there was nothing he could do. He just watched as Elmo took all this in. The look of hopelessness in Elmo's face was heartbreaking. "But don't worry. I'll help you figure out everything. I promise. Since you don't know who you are or anything, you can stay with me until we figure all this out. Alright?"
Megavolt seemed to be thinking out this suggestion. He stared at the bed, as though all the answers were written on it. After a moment he looked up and smiled. "That'll work. Thank you, Drake."
"No problem, Elmo" Drake smiled back.
--
The toymaker's lair still had not gained back its jubilant fun and games. It was still dark and quiet. No toys were humming or causing destruction. Nothing.
Quackerjack was sitting on his couch in front of his half-broken TV, flipping through the channels, his eyes not really seeing what was on. Every now and then he would sniff back the urge to cry. He hadn't cried yet today, which was a record. The day before was horrible. It seemed like every two seconds he'd turn around and find something else that reminded him of his favorite playmate.
"This is no fair! I'll bet you're up there, Megsy! That place in the clouds playing with all the lightning bolts you can find while I'm stuck down here in a world of NO FUN!!" he fought back the tears as he hugged his little Megavolt doll closer to his chest.
"Maybe you'll find something on TV" called over Mr. Banana Brain, who was still up against the wall from when Quackerjack had thrown him angrily the day before.
"DOUBTFUL!!" shot back Quackerjack. "Nothing but the news is on!!" He stopped at a channel that was showing some news, just to prove his point. He was about to change the channel when a broadcast lady came on, changing the subject as a new headline came on.
'S.P.E.C. Explosion' it read. Quackerjack decided to listen to it.
"After the explosion at S.P.E.C., the St. Canard Electrical Plant two days ago, the city has lost half of its power. However, thanks to power plants over in Duckberg, the power has been restored." It showed a video from a helicopter shot of the building burning.
Quackerjack closed his eyes tightly, painful memories coming back to him.
Through the smoke, Quackerjack could see that it was the head of his Jack-in-the-Box, which must have exploded out of the metal box from all the electricity. The face of his Jack-in-the-Box melted, which horrified him as he watched the sinister eyes melt before him.
He shook his head back and forth, frantically trying to forget that night. He was about to change the channel when the woman said, "The four survivors from the explosion have been taken to the St. Canard hospital, where they are being treated for severe burns and shock." The news showed a shot of the four stretchers being put into the ambulance.
Quackerjack blinked at what he saw. There, behind the third survivor was a final one, that was being put into the ambulance next. It was a rat with a yellow jumpsuit on. The jester stood up quickly from his spot on the couch, holding his Megavolt doll closely to him like a death grip. There was no mistake. It was Megavolt. It didn't matter to Quackerjack if half his outfit was gone. The colorful clown knew his playmate well enough with or without his costume. He looked on and saw that Megavolt was out cold, just like the rest of the survivors. The footage lasted only a moment, but it lasted so much longer for Quackerjack, for it kept playing over and over in his mind.
"He might be in the hospital, but that doesn't mean he's alive" noted Mr. Banana Brain. "That might just be his body."
"Shut up, you stupid toy!!" shouted Quackerjack. He brought his Megavolt doll up and nuzzled his beak against it. "I'll find you Megsy, love, I will. I'll bring you home. Hehehehe!"
He flipped off the TV and grabbed Mr. Banana Brain from the other side of the room. He jumped on his pogo stick and cried out as he went through the door, "We're off to the hospital!!" He cackled insanely.
--
Elmo did not like feeling this tried. It made him feel useless. The blasted beeping from the machine beside him didn't help his mood either.
Drake had left to go home and 'take care of a few things', leaving him alone in the blasted white room. He wasn't angry at Drake for leaving him, for he knew what the duck was doing for him. He was bringing him into his own home to help him find out who he was. He picked at the white sheets, fidgeting. He didn't know why he was so nervous. He just was.
Someone walked down the hallway, outside his closed door and laughed. The laugh echoed through the hallway. It made Elmo shudder a bit as a more devilish laughter filled his head.
'Hahahaha!! Come on Sparky! It'll be so much fun!!' rang a voice in his head. The voice was high pitched. He closed his eyes and he swore he was able to see the colorful shape of a duck bouncing around, doing cart wheels and back flips. But the image was so faded that he was unable to get a good look at the face. It was too dark. The image faded as quickly as it had come.
Elmo sighed. Nothing made sense to him anymore. With a groan of frustration, Elmo threw his arms up in the air. As he did so, several sparks shot out from his arms. They went up to the ceiling and made small scorch marks. Elmo blinked, unsure of what just happened. He looked down at his hands, then up at the ceiling. He shuddered. He didn't have much longer to think about it, for at that moment the door opened and in came the female doctor who had been taking care of him.
"Hello, Mr. Sputterspark" she greeted. "Feeling any better today?" She was writing several notes down on her clipboard. Elmo swallowed. His throat was dry.
"M'okay."
"Have you been having any luck remembering anything?" she asked with a smile.
Elmo shrugged. "Very little...My friend Drake came in to see me though. He said he was willing to help me..."
"Ah, yes. Mr. Mallard. Yes. I think it would be wise to stay around him. He claims that you and him were once close friends. Seeing as how you have no other friends or relatives around, I suggest you stay with him. Being around familiar or favorite places often times helps bring back memories. Now, according to our tests, you have an alarming amount of electros in your system. They don't seem to be going away as the other three survivor's are." she explained.
Elmo swallowed hard again. "What does that mean?"
"It basically means that you might as well have electricity flowing through your veins" she replied stiffly.
Elmo frowned, forcing himself not to look up at the ceiling, where he knew those blasted scorch marks were haunting him. "I see..."
"Now, we would like to run some tests on you, but I understand if you don't want--" he cut her off.
"No!" he snapped. "I'll be fine. I hate doctors as it is..." She ignored his last comment.
"Well, it's your choice. Since you don't want tested, you're being dismissed today. But before that we just want one final check-up to make sure everything is all right. Please open your mouth."
Elmo did as he was told as she brought out a small flashlight and checked. "Good. You may close it." She then checked his pulse, his joints. She unwrapped his burns and applied a lotion on them to reduce the burning. She wrapped them back up with new bandages. She checked his eyes and ears, making sure his hearing was decent. Afterwards she looked at him and smiled. "Everything is fine. Now, you can either stay in here and wait for Mr. Mallard, or wait out in the lobby. Your choice."
Elmo started pushing the blankets off of him. "I'll wait in the lobby..." he decided. The woman nodded. It was better than staying the blasted white room with that blasted beeping.
"Your clothes are over there on the chair. Have a good day, Mr. X. And good luck!" she smiled and left. Elmo looked over and indeed, there were his new clothes. A simple blue shirt and a pair of black pants. As he picked up the shirt he mumbled, "I'm more a yellow person..."
Once he was dressed and out of the hospital gown, he looked down the hallway and saw a sign that claimed where the lobby was. The lobby was not very busy, save for a man and her little girl, who was sniffing as a nasty cut on her arm.
Elmo sat there, more towards the entrance of where he came, fidgeting as he waited for Drake. A good twenty minutes later, Drake arrived.
Drake pushed through the doors and was able to head for Elmo's room when Elmo spoke up, having just watched Drake go by. "Drake! I'm right here!"
Drake turned around, flustered. "Oh, they let you out already. Excellent." Drake took Elmo up to the front desk and signed Elmo out.
As they walked through the hospital doors, Elmo flinched at the drop of rain that fell of his arm. "Something wrong?" asked Drake, having seen his friend flinch. Elmo looked up at the cloudy sky.
"No...I just...I don't know why I flinched..." muttered Elmo, looking back down at the ground.
It was then, that he heard it. The faint sound of little jingling bells.
The sound of jingly bells grew louder as the colorful form quickly made its way closer. "What happened to your coffee maker?"
"I burned it" came Elmo's voice.
The memory was gone quickly, but it left Elmo with wide eyes. He had heard his own voice this time. A coffee maker? How do you burn a coffee maker?
Drake looked up at the sky, unbeknownst to his friend's discovery. "It was raining earlier. Maybe you felt a raindrop and wasn't prepared for it..." suggested Drake. "Now, I had gone home, just like I said I would and got everything ready. Eh..." Elmo looked at him. "You'll...eh, have to sleep on the couch...It folds out into a bed, so...it shouldn't be that uncomfortable."
"That's fine.." Elmo replied softly, pushing the memory away.
"Oh, and I must warn you" said Drake as they got into the car. "I have a daughter who--."
"You're married!?" exclaimed Elmo, shock all over his features.
Drake laughed nervously. "No...I adopted her last year..." Elmo nodded. "But as I was saying, I have a daughter, Gosalyn, who is rather...eh, hyper and high spirited. So, you might want to brace yourself for...well...utter chaos.."
"Is she really that bad?" Elmo found himself asking.
"Well, she can be that way. I told her to take it easy, but since when does she listen to me?" More nervous laughter. Silence filled the car as they drove away.
--
Hiding in the bushes that surrounded the hospital sat a very excited Quackerjack. His precious Megavolt was inside this very building. 'According to the news…He's someone inside this hospital…' thought the jester. He glanced up at the large building. 'Now I just have to figure out which room he's hiding in...He never was good at playing Hide and Seek.'
Quackerjack was just about to move out from the bushes, when the doors to the hospital opened. Quackerjack was about to push past them, not caring, when his whole body froze as he passed them. It was as though Megavolt had zapped him himself.
Elmo and Drake were walking outside the doors.
"Something wrong?" Quackerjack heard the mallard beside Megavolt say.
"No...I just...I don't know why I flinched..." muttered Elmo. Quackerjack fell back into the bushes. He stared with unbelieving eyes as Megavolt walked calmly outside the doors with this random mallard. He wasn't wearing his Megavolt clothes, which made him almost want to believe it wasn't him, but he knew that would be a lie. It was him and it made the jester's blood boil to see them together.
'Who is this punk!? I'm gonna teach him some playtime manners! No one takes Megsy away from me!' the clown couldn't help but fume in his mind. He watched Elmo in awe. What he really didn't understand was, why was Megavolt dressed in normal clothes? Where was his battery? His goggles? Why wasn't he zapping this stupid hospital and the stupid mallard in anger? Quackerjack shook his head back and forth several times, the bells on his hat jingling. He continued to listen.
"Now, I had gone home, just like I said I would and got everything ready. Eh..." Elmo looked at him. "You'll...eh, have to sleep on the couch...It folds out into a bed, so...it shouldn't be that uncomfortable."
Quackerjack had the sudden urge to strangle something. Anything. Megavolt, HIS Megavolt was staying with some random person!? Quackerjack was about to get up and follow them, but his foot slipped in the wet soil, making the jester fall to the ground, making his hat jingle again. When he gained his balance, he looked up again and the two were gone, lost in the parking lot.
Anger boiled in the jester's blood. "No one takes away my playmate and gets away with it..." seethed the duck, pulling out his Megavolt doll and holding it closely. "No one."
--
