Chapter V: I Need Your Help.
A tall, dark figure appeared behind Jackson. It was draped in a long cape that was a cold black on the outside, but a dark orange on the inside. Its face was an emotionless metal mask that seemed to attach to its head without any straps or ties. Deep purple light seeped out of the eyeholes. The body was a dense black canvas riddled in stitches, and broken only by the orange star on its chest. In it's left hand there was a round wooden shield, and in it's right, a sword that shone like the eyes of its wielder.
"Thou art I," it said, in the same voice that Jackson had heard in that white abyss, "and I am thou."
"The sun's light reveals a crooked path, and we shall pave it together. I am Odysseus, guardian of the sea of thy soul."
This figure was Jackson's 'persona', a manifestation of his personality capable of fighting the evil shadows.
The crowd of monsters began to crawl towards Jackson, but Odysseus acted first. The persona jumped past the three humans and swung its heavy sword at the shadows. Each shadow met the same end. Odysseus was killing them with ease, and they could barely get close enough to attack. Some of them began to transform into strange creatures, each with a different mask covering its face. But the persona took no notice, and sliced through them as if they were still a helpless blob on the floor.
"Nice!" Alex shouted over the sound of screaming shadows, "what is that thing!? It's killing the shadows!"
"I'm not sure." Said Jackson, "but I think it came from me."
"It came from that stopwatch." Sam stated.
"No. It talked to me before, when I passed out. I'm pretty sure it was me that made that thing appear." Jackson explained.
"Where did that stopwatch come from?" Alex asked, "You've never shown us that before."
"It was my Dad's. Well, it's a family air loom. Supposedly worth quite a bit. He gave it to me before I left." Jackson said.
"Oh right, because of the divorce."
"Not just that." It was looking like Jackson was finding it hard to talk about this, "My dad isn't doing very well with the divorce, and it looks like my mum might get full custody."
"And you're here for the whole trail period?" Sam asked.
"So I might not get to see my Dad again." Jackson explained, "plus, he's going to move to Germany next year, so I probably wont be able to visit him." Jackson looked upset.
"I hate my Mum, and now I hate my Dad for leaving. I like it here. It's better then returning to my dysfunctional family. Seeing this stopwatch again made me realise something. I want to stay here." There was a sense of determination creeping into Jackson's face, "It seems this forgotten frequency is real, and I'm betting the shadows are behind those amnesia cases. It's too big of a coincidence for them to not be. So, I want to use this new power, my persona, to fight these shadows. And I want to show my parents that I can survive on my own. I won't rest until I defeat every single one of the monsters, and save this town, my new home, from its curse. But.. I can't do it alone… and I need your help."
"Jackson.." Said Sam, in the caring and thoughtful way that only a friend could.
"Because I figure that it's what my Dad would want me to do." Jackson was steadfast in his determination. He knew now what he had to do and he had prepared himself for it.
Odysseus took care of the last few shadows, then looked at Jackson and nodded before disappearing into hundreds of green butterflies.
"Butterflies?" The three said in unison.
The tiny butterflies began to fly off, breaking a small part of the tormented purple skies.
Sam picked up the radio and turned it to a random station. The storm clouds began to part, and the sun shone on the city once more. Time began to start again, and anything to prove that the world beyond the forgotten frequency existed faded away. The shoppers and passers by continued as if nothing had happened and the same sense of city life resumed unaltered.
"Wow." Said Sam, "The world is back to normal."
"I don't think we were in the real world just now." Jackson panted.
"So you're saying that the forgotten frequency is a different world?" Asked Alex, looking rather confused.
"Probably. Oh, and Sam?" Jackson asked.
"Yeah."
But before he could finish he felt the same sharp pain in the back of his head. His vision became blurry, and the noises of the city began to echo. The lights streamed passed his eyes as he fell to the ground. He was unconscious once again.
***Saturday, September 20: Afternoon***
Jackson woke in a hospital room. The ceilings were a faded white, along with the walls and the majority of other things in the room. There was a sterile smell in the air and the sheets were rough against his skin. Sam was sitting by his bed, and Jackson slowly turned his head to look at her.
"Oh my God you're awake!" She said, her eyes lighting up.
"Awake?" Jackson was confused, "How long have I been out."
Sam took no notice; she ran to the doorway and called for someone.
The tall boy with dark hair came bursting in, his face riddled with excitement. "Nice! He finally woke up!" Jackson's vision was still a little blurred, but he could tell that it was Alex.
"How long was I asleep?" He asked again.
"Only like three days, dude!" Alex was being a little loud, and it was hurting Jackon's head.
"Actually, it was around two days, since he collapsed quite late on Wednesday." Said Sam.
"So it's-" Jackson began.
"Saturday." Alex finished.
"Wow, I don't even remember passing out." Said Jackson, who was trying hard to remember anything that he could about what had happened.
"You don't remember?" Sam asked.
"You saved our asses, dude!" Alex was still shouting.
"From what?" Jackson looked lost.
"You really don't remember?" Alex asked.
"No," said Jackson.
"We'll talk about it when you get your memory back," Said Sam, who was trying to take a more caring approach, "The doctor did say you might take a while to remember everything before you passed out. How do you feel?"
"Umm, okay I guess. My head hurts, and I'm really tired." Said Jackson, "and I'm confused. But I think I'm fine."
"That's great news. I'll go tell the doctors you're awake." Said Sam, "I'm really glad you're okay."
Sam left the room, and Alex followed. The doctor came in a few moments later and ran a few tests. Jackson was unaware of how to answer the man's questions, and this made him a little uncomfortable. When the doctor had finished, he told Jackson that he would be able to leave in a few days if all goes well. He noted that he had no idea why Jackson had been unconscious, and that he was completely healthy, if a little exhausted. He had likely been worried that it would be another amnesia case.
Jackson sighed and tried to sleep, deciding that it would be better for him to rest before trying to remember the events that led to that moment.
The following days went by quite quickly. Sam stopped by every day after school, but Alex only came round once out of the three days. Jackson didn't mind, because it meant that he could learn more about Sam instead of Alex for a change.
***Wednesday September 24: Morning***
Jackson's doctor woke him, and informed him that it was the day he would be leaving the hospital. The man ran a few final tests before leaving Jackson to gather his things, and meet his friends outside. The three had been given the day off school. He left the busy hospital of panicked interns, and stressed patients, and stepped out into the warmth of that familiar sunlight. He was relieved to be outside once more, and even more relieved to see Sam and Alex waiting for him.
"You look dead," said Alex.
"It's nice to see you too, man." Said Jackson, who laughed along with Sam.
"How are you feeling?" she asked.
"Not bad actually," said Jackson, "and I think I can pretty much remember what happened."
"Weird, huh?" Alex asked.
"A little, but when you consider the freak show that is California, it's not too hard to believe." The three laughed.
"C'mon, lets go." Said Sam. "We have the day off of school when everyone else doesn't. Let's not waste this opportunity.
"Good idea, and I have another." Alex suggested, "Pizza."
"Definitely!" Jackson smiled.
"Ooh! I know a great place!" Said Sam.
"Then lets not go there." Alex laughed, but the others didn't.
Jackson was glad that everything was back to normal, and he enjoyed spending some well earned time with his friends.