The New Gods

Chapter 2

-The Symbol-

Adira awoke with a start. Her vision was blurry. She had to squint at the bright blue sky that came through the trees. She was on her back, the forest floor beneath her. She sat up. Birds chirped. The green of the life seemed more enhanced than ever. Things are always so beautiful after a storm.

It took a moment for Adira to remember. Why had the feeling to touch the orb been so strong? It seems insane now. It just feels like a dream. She had been feeling bad that night, so maybe she had been hallucinating. Yes, she thought. That has to be it.

But then she looked at her arm. On the inside of her wrist was a symbol etched into her skin. A lightning bolt.

Adira stood. She couldn't make sense of what she was seeing. She moved her thumb over the marking. No bumps. It was as if it had always been a part of her. Adira forced her arm down. She just needed to get back home.

She realized she wasn't sick anymore or light headed. She actually felt more rejuvenated than anything. She began walking back through the woods, still having the weird dream feeling. It felt as if she had waken too early from a nap and had to go for a jog.

She finally made it back to the road and down to her house. Adira stood in front of it, looking up at her home.

"ADIRA!" she heard her dad yell from the doorway. He ran down the steps of the porch and embraced her into a rough hug. Adira was taken aback by the movement. How long had she been gone? "Where have you been?"

"I, uh, I was out in the forest," she replied. She didn't know what else to say.

"For three days? You must be starving," her stepmom interjected. Adira's breath caught in her throat. Three days? She had been lying unconscious in the middle of the woods for three days? She looked back at her parents. What the hell happened?

Adira stood in front of her mirror. She went to her room to clean herself up. Her parents didn't grill her with a ton of questions, which was a relief to her. She really didn't know how to answer them. How was she supposed to explain about a white orb?

Adira pulled off her dirt covered top. She stopped with the shirt still in her hands as she looked back at the mirror. A lightning strike scar ran from the lobe of her ear and trailed down her neck, right shoulder, and ended just below her rib cage. She traced over it with her fingers. Adira remembers the lightning. She remembers it striking down on her in that little forest clearing with the orb. The feeling of curiosity erupted at the thought. And a taste of the urge came back. Now she has a lightning bolt symbol and a lightning strike star inscribed onto her body forever. Great.

She shook off the feeling and got into the shower. She breathed a sigh of relief as the warm water hit her back. It felt wonderful as she scrubbed away all of the dirt and forest floor that had made its way onto her. But even still, she couldn't help her eyes from watching the new scar and her hands rubbing over the symbol on her wrist.

Later that night a police officer came to the house to file a report on Adira's story. She had been missing for three days. Search parties had been sent out. Posters had gone up. It was a weird feeling, having been gone days without even noticing.

"So, walk me through the point you last remember," the officer said, a notepad and pen in his hands. He was dressed in uniform, dark hair and a stubble.

Adira told him the story, but left out the orb and feeling she had gotten from it. She explained that she thought she heard someone calling for help in the woods. And as she was running towards the noise, lightning came down and stuck her.

"Wow. It's incredible that you even survived," the officer commented and gestured to the bit of the lightning scar peeking out of the collar of her shirt. "And that you didn't even need any medical attention."

"Yeah, it is." Adira put a hand on her wrist were the symbol was. She had covered it in makeup. She didn't want anyone to see it. How was she supposed to explain what it was when she doesn't even know herself?

"Well, that's all the information we need to fill out the report. You weren't attacked or seemingly injured so we shouldn't have to bother you any longer."

The officer spoke to Adira's parents for a moment before leaving. Once he was gone the house fell quiet again. There was so much unknown about what had happened. Usually Adira likes the mysterious. But this was just confusing.

Her parents moved cautiously. They didn't press too much on the matter, and they sometimes would stare at her with silent questions. And Adira was asking them too. "I...I think you should stay home tomorrow," her dad suggested as they sat at the dinner table. Her stepmom, Rosa, made tomato soup and grilled cheese.

Adira nodded. She understood. If she went to school tomorrow, there would basically be a huge spot light on her. Everyone would want to know what happened to the new girl who went missing for a few days. Also, Adira needed a day to recollect her thoughts and delve deeper into the mystery of the symbol on her arm.

She fell asleep that night. And she did not dream.

Adira sat on the gray-blue living room couch. The early morning sun was shinning through the windows and brightening the space with an almost glow. Her parents were at work. Her stepmom was coming home at 1:30 for her lunch break to check on Adira. But till then, she was on her own.

She scrolled through websites and articles and pictures on her laptop for anything on strange symbols. Adira tried searching "symbols from lightning strike" or "lightning symbols" but all that came up were tattoos or lightning strike scars. At least she could prove that wasn't crazy. But why the symbol?

Adira sighed in frustration and closed the laptop. Maybe she just needs to relax now. Just slow down for a minute. Don't think. She leaned her head back on the couch. Don't think. She closed her eyes. Don't think. She took a deep breath. Don't thi-

Her wrist began burning in pain. Adira sat up, her mouth open at the sudden intense sting. She held onto her wrist as she looked down at the symbol. It was glowing. "What?" she breathed as she stared at it in confusion. It throbbed and there was another wave of knifes stabbing into her wrist. She yelped and hurried over to the kitchen sink. Adira turned on the faucet and held her arm under it. She didn't know what she was doing.

The pain stopped. The glow faded. It felt like she was put into a blender with all of the world's most confusing math problems. She just didn't understand. How could anyone understand this? Then there was the growling.

Adira pried her eyes from her once throbbing wrist to the location of the noise. The basement. The door was closed, but a red hue came from beneath it. Her breath caught in her throat. Fear settled on her shoulders and trickled down to her knees. BANG. BANG. BANG.

Before Adira could even blink, a giant figure blasted through the door. Her senses finally snapped back to her, and she ran. She didn't take the time to find out what the creature looked like. All she knew was that it was big, hairy, and deadly. It roared, shaking the house. The creature was on her in a instant. She fell to the floor, the massive thing now on top of her. Adira closed her eyes, feeling the warmth of the breath and the deep growl that came from the pit of its horrifying stomach.

She didn't want to die. Not yet. She got struck by lightening and survived. Not many people are that lucky. This is not her time. Not yet.

"NO!" Adira yelled as she put her hands up and flung open her eyes. The creature wailed in pain as a flash of light came from her palms. The creature flew across the room and through the wall, landing out on the side lawn. She stared at the gaping hole in shock. Slow tears fell down her eyes without her control. She looked at her hands. What had she done?