Home Again.
"Setting auto-pilot for programmed nav-data now," Spark says while turning to face the man at the controls. "Not that there's anything wrong with your driving!" she nervously clarifies.
"No offense taken," the man says with a chuckle.
Below the clouds, Klutz observes the dark, sunken city. A swampy graveyard full of nothing but danger and deadmen.
It was to be his final resting place.
"Hey, Spark." the man says, breaking a peaceful silence as they fly through the sky, far away from the hellish ruins of Old Chicago.
"Yes?" she replies, eager to answer any question.
"Back at the hanger, before we found this thing," he says, motioning his hand around the jumpship's cockpit. "You said 'nothing had gone as you expected' and I've been meaning to ask, am I what you expected?"
Spark looks a little surprised and the sections of her shell spin curiously.
"You said you looked for me for years, so I'm sure you had to have expectations," he says while removing his boots and soggy socks.
Spark transmats the footwear to the ship's storage and hovers down directly into the man's view to answer. "I won't lie, I had pretty high expectations. I've heard many stories about the heroic accomplishments of other Lightbearers so many times. I've dreamt of finding my own Lightbearer for as long as I can remember… I dreamt of finding you."
The words warm the man's heart and he can't help but let out a small sincere smile.
"Of course, you aren't exactly what I pictured. I thought you would be a little more coordinated," she jokes and they both let out a chuckle. "Falling down the side of a building to your second death was definitely a strange first impression."
"A painful one too," the man chimes in while rubbing the back of his head.
"I don't doubt it," Spark says lightheartedly. "It took some time for you to find the Light as well."
"I'm sure my late blooming had you worried for a while there," the man says as he rests back in his seat.
"Not at all," the Ghost corrects gently. "You may not be exactly what I expected, but like you said 'the unexpected can be a good thing.'"
Klutz smiles again as his eyes get heavy.
"I was right about one thing," Spark says as she rests herself on the man's shoulder. "When the time came, you became something much greater than just a Lightbearer."
The man slowly closes his tired eyes and asks, "Yeah? What's that?"
Spark looks out the window as The Last City appears on the horizon.
"You became a Guardian."
Author's Note: Thank you for reading my story. This is my first serious go at fiction writing and I really hope you enjoyed it. I would love to hear your feedback, no matter how scathing! I received a few words of encouragement and I want to improve going forward. Thank you again for your time and for letting me share my story with you.
Update: I'm happy to say I've completed and posted a follow up to this story titled, 'A Spark Is Enough.'
This sequel is quite a bit longer, but I also see it as a huge jump in quality!
Thank you again for reading this and I hope you enjoy the next story!