Power of Zeus

"The strategic adversary is fascism ... the fascism in us all, in our heads and in our everyday behavior, the fascism that causes us to love power, to desire the very thing that dominates and exploits us."

                                                                                        -Michel Foucault

Henry Alifont's phone rang. He breathed a sigh of annoyance; he could tell by the ringtone that it was his older sister. He deliberated for a while, then relented and picked up.

“What?” He snapped. Henry was driving his father’s old car, and it was dark and rainy. It was difficult to make out the road, much less keep from sliding around.

“Hello to you, too.” She responded in a miffed voice. “Are you almost here?”

“Yeah, just hold on. Give me, like, 15 minutes.”

“Fine. No more than 15, promise?”

“Sure.” He hung up quickly before she could continue and tossed the device to the seat next to him. Concentration was critical right now. The road was slippery, and he was a pretty inexperienced driver. A bolt of lightning streaked across the angry black sky and his grip on the steering wheel tightened imperceptibly. His mind began to worry. What if-?

“GRRCHK-CHK-CHK! GRRRCHK-CHK-CHK-CHk...Chk...chhhh....”

The car rolled to a slow but sure stop. “Are you kidding me right now!?” He shouted to no one. Growling in frustration, Henry took some deep breaths to steady himself and unlocked the door. He looked back at his phone and debated calling his sister to tell her he’d be late picking her up, but decided against it. This shouldn’t take more than 5 minutes; she could wait that long. Opening the door, he hopped out and instantly got drenched with rain-water.

“Jesus Christ! It’s really pouring.” He observed. He stood there stupidly a couple seconds longer before launching into action. Pop the hood, see what’s wrong. His head inched closer and he let his eyes adjust before peered around. A bright spark of electricity caught his attention, and he saw it was some random wire that had inexplicably snapped. Muttering angrily, he reached out a tentative finger in the direction of that cable. It was dangerous, he knew. It’s an open wire...being exposed to water...IN A FRIGGIN’ THUNDERSTORM. So Henry sent up a quick prayer and jabbed his forefinger at it. Nothing happened. His mouth curved up in a triumphant grin and he began prodding around, trying to see what the problem was. Aside from the afore mentioned cable, there wasn’t anything he could readily see, so he began to explore a different area of the motor. Just as he was making contact with another electrical wire, a violent ray of lightning cut through the sky, just a few feet behind him.

A hot surge of raw energy raced up his arm, making his body convulse and spasm in terrible ways. Desperate gurgling sound were emitting from his throat, and his eyes rolled back. The force of the energy from the lightning must have somehow reached Henry’s arm, the car acting as a conductor. He couldn’t think coherent thoughts; his breathing was erratic and he had started to foam at the mouth. It was an awful sight to witness. Unconsciousness began creeping in, and Henry, being unable to endure the torment for much longer, welcomed it gladly.

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“Uhnn...” Henry's eyes struggled to open, and he had to blink heavily a couple times before he could leave them open. As his eyes regained focus and adjusted to the light, he saw a morose group of people huddled closely together, whispering anxiously. The sharp smell of antiseptic cleaners and bleach hit his nose, and he suddenly realized he was in a hospital bed. What... was he dying? His eyes wandered worriedly back to the group of individuals he had first seen, and noticed a woman who looked very much like his sister.

“Nina?” He tried to speak loudly to grab her attention, but the word came out distorted and rough. But it succeeded in getting their attention. She came over with a half tired, half angry look on her face. An educated looking man in a white lab coat and wire-rimmed glasses and a small Asian woman holding a clipboard followed her, tired and forced-looking smiles on their faces. In their eyes, he could detect worry, and Henry knew this couldn’t bode well for him.

“How you feeling?” His sister asked. The circles under her eyes looked darker than usual, and her eyes were rimmed with red. “You almost died last night. You got struck by lightning and blacked out. A stranger was kind enough to pick you up and drive you here.”

The events of last night came rushing to him. “No...,” He said thickly. His tounge felt slow and fat, almost like a clumsy slug was in his mouth posing as a tounge. Somehow, he managed to drag himself into a position somewhat resembling sitting upright. His words fell haltingly from his lips. “Car broke down...storm.”

 Nina nodded, urging him on. Henry closed his eyes, remembering how he’d been foolish enough to touch the wire during an electrical storm.

“Lightning...it hit close by. I was-outside, with the motor...”

Understanding lit in his sister’s eyes. She turned to the doctor and nurse. “The electricity must have traveled through the metal of the car and hit him while he was touching the car wires!”  Henry nodded wearily. “Pain...”

The doctor nodded. “It must’ve been a very arduous experience. We’ve put you on a series of pain medication. You’ll be staying for a couple more days, so we can monitor the progression of your health. Do you feel anything unusual, or uncomfort of any kind?”

 Henry shook his head. “Thanks.”

They all smiled at him sympathetically and left the room, taking care to not let the door slam. When they left, Henry sagged back against the pillows. His eyes slid close again; they burned. He laid still like that for several minutes. Just when he was on the brink of falling asleep, a strange tingling sensation began to form in his arm, building up quickly and making its way throughout his whole body. His fingers began to itch madly, and soon they started to lightly twitch. His eyes flew open and he suddenly felt energized all over.

“What is this?” He whispered in awe. Henry raised his hands to see them better, and he almost choked. His hands were glowing with an eerie, pale light. They felt cold, as if he had been out in freezing temperatures. The light began increasing in intensity, and the color became more vibrant: it was a light cobalt blue. The cool temperature of his hands began to warm up, and suddenly it was searing him.

“Oh, God!” He exclaimed, shocked. What was happening to him? He held his hands out away from him and a frightening burst of electricity shot from the center of his palm and struck the wall across from him with brutal force. It happened in the space of seconds, and when Henry dared to open his eyes again, he could see a charred black hole in the wall. Wide eyed, he looked from the hole, to his hands ( which were now almost back to normal), and back again. Did he...Had he just...No. It wasn’t possible. It couldn’t be.

Could it? Could the freak accident that had happened to him last night given him powers others could only longingly dream of? He held his breath and tried to imagine that tingly feeling he had had before burning the wall. His hands started glowing the same as before; Henry flung his hand out again, and the same thing happened. A brilliant light once again shot from his palm to the wall opposite him, leaving behind another singed hole as the only proof of Henry's power. He sat there, staring uncomprehendingly at his hands. Hands that had never before done anything so miraculous such as this...he began to laugh. It started as a scared, wild laugh, but soon turned to a whooping sound of crazed joy. The things he could do with this power...!

Well.

What man would not be cheered when finding out that they now posses the power of Zeus, King of the Gods?

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A/N: What's up, people! This is only my second story, so I'd love to hear your opinions and how I can improve. Don't be shy!:) I really enjoy writing, despite my obvious inaptitude, and I hope you guys enjoy reading it! Thank you so much! 6/22/2013