Return of the Titans

CHAPTER FIFTEEN

Being dead wasn't like what I had expected.

Don't get me wrong, dying was the worst pain that I've ever experienced.

I skinned my knee one time when I had tried riding a bike, and I thought that the burning sensation of my skin tearing from my body was the worst thing ever. Another time, I had a migraine that was so terrible, I actually banged my head against the wall so hard that it left a hole the size of my face. And it made the pain even worse.

But being electrocuted trumped it all. It was as if I had been stabbed by a thousand knives all in one area, knives that were also set on fire. Every muscle in my body froze completely still, the bones in my spine screaming as they curled together, and all of the hairs on my body immediately burned away, leaving me both mind-numbingly cold and scorching hot at the same time.

My blood boiled in my very veins. I could hear the fabric of my clothes sizzle and pop as they shrunk from my chest, leaving nothing but an exposed hole from where the impact was located.

But the worst of it had to have been the smell of my burning flesh. It was sickening. Imagine pork being roasted over a pit of hot coals, its succulent juices sizzling against the high heat. The alluring smell drew you in with the promise of a good meal, and you imagined tender meat meeting your palate, where its delicious flavors hooked you in and refused to let you go.

That was my chest. That was my heart. A charred hunk of muscle in a burned chest cavity, teasing me with a familiar scent but assaulting me with a horrid reality.

The only thing remotely good about it was that the sensation didn't last long. I lost consciousness after I fell back to the ground, as the force of the bolt sent me flying. Whether it was me hitting my head, or the pain being too overwhelming for my body to take, that was left to be debated. I just was glad that it was over and done with, and that I could finally be able to get some well-earned peace.

Man, if only it were that easy.

I awoke to a dark sky, completely covered by rolling storm clouds. Thunder growled from among the heavens as a chilling wind blew through the dry grass. I felt a drop of rain hit my forehead, but I was so weak that I couldn't even wipe it away.

My left arm was as stiff as a board like I had just laid on it for far too long. Static rose up and down my elbow, getting worse when I got the stupid idea to try and bend it.

My legs were the complete opposite. While I at least felt something with my arm, I might as well not have had any legs. There were useless, lying motionless on a rock and flattened grass. The only reason how I knew that I had them was because I glanced down to make sure that I still had them since I tried to roll over but to no avail.

Were they broken? God, I hoped not. But when the thought entered my mind, it did nothing to stop the tears from welling up.

"I deserve it," I told the cold wind.

My voice sounded as cracked and broken as my soul right then. I dared not to close my eyes, for fear that I might see the faces of those kids again, the ones who didn't make it. They did nothing to me except pass me on their war to class -- and for some, not even that -- yet were rewarded by either being torn apart or trampled under the chaos.

Those children, although magical, were never going to see life to its full potential. They would never ride a bike, or go to the movies with their friends. They'd never again sit down under the stars on a hot summer night, contemplating how grand the universe was and how we fit into it. They'd never see their parents again, or even become parents of their own.