The Storm

What if it never stopped raining?”
Brian looked at me quizzically, a bit of mustard rested in the corner of his mouth. Behind him the storm carried on, the sheets of rain pounding the floor to ceiling windows of the cafeteria like a barrage of pebbles.
“I just don’t think that’s possible.” He replied. “That’s not how it works”
Though I was safe inside, I could still feel the saturated air on my skin and the low pressure in my ears. Bolts of lightning threw themselves in all directions. As a child, I had learned to count the seconds between lightning and thunder to estimate its distance. Today, the storm seemed to be right above us, and the raging winds carried rain water across campus and into the gutters from streams running along the sides of the street.
It was dark, too dark for 1:30 in the afternoon. A shadow hung over the building, contrasting with the grayscale of the surrounding sky. A few people walking in the streets stopped to look and point above, paying no mind to the unrelenting showers coming down on their heads. They attracted others standing in the confines of shelter to come out and see. We looked up from our meals to the commotion.
“What’s going on?” A girl sitting near us looked over.
“I don’t know” I said as I stood up and pushed my chair back into place. I began towards the door and others followed. As we ventured outside, I felt the merciless rains release onto me. On the main street on the east side of campus, I saw through the iron bars of the fence, a convoy of army Humvees leaving the nearby fort and speeding down the street behind police cruisers.
“What the hell is that thing?” I heard someone say. My curiosity spiked and I cocked my head to the point of interest everyone was so fixated on.
I was shocked when I saw it; a massive, translucent orb hung gently in the sky above the fort's main building. The clouds around it parted and rotated slowly on the edges of its unearthly body. It glowed a golden tint, and veins of electric pulses danced across it. A low, ominous hum vibrated from its core.
I felt a course of energy going through me, my hair stood on the back of my neck. I was completely in awe of this phenomenon. I didn’t know whether to stay or to run, and I looked at the people around me for reassurance that others were seeing what I was; that it wasn’t some wild figment of my imagination.
I stood for several minutes in the growing crowd, not listening to their queries. I was so entranced that it took me a moment to notice the jabbering soldiers pushing us back towards the parking lot, and away from the scene of our disbelief. The rain poured off their dark green parkas, trailing along the barrels of their rifles to spout off the tip onto the ground.
“Adam, we have to go!” I heard Brian’s voice behind me and his hand on my shoulder, “Now!”
My mind went blank and my interest slowly turned to pure fear. I had no idea what my eyes had just seen. My heart pounded in my chest as my walk steadily gained pace. When we reached Brian’s car and got in, he retrieved his key and turned the ignition. Nothing. Not even the rhythmic clicks of the alternator sounded from the heart of the car. It was dead. Just like my watch and cell phone.
I replayed the events of the last several moments over in my head, trying to register my fear and disbelief, as Brian sat awestricken.
“What the hell is going on?” He said, shaking in his seat.
I didn’t give an answer, for I had none. He knew that, though I’m sure it didn’t quell his thoughts. We had to do something, anything to get away from this. The pulsing vibrations of energy were becoming more noticeable, and strongest in the direction of the massive spinning orb. I started to feel nauseous.
“We have to go on foot.”
I got out of the car and felt the rain drown me once more. It felt warmer now than before. Brian reluctantly followed me.
“Where are we going?” He shouted.
“Do you feel that?” I replied. “That tingle?”
He looked down at his body and paused for a moment.
“Yeah. Yeah I do.”
The high pitched shrill of a megaphone echoed through the sheets of rain.
“Ladies and gentlemen! Evacuate the area immediately! Walk quickly and orderly towards the south!” A tall man with an officer’s cap was standing on top of a Humvee holding the device. Soldiers lined the south wall of the brick building, weapons drawn toward the fleeing crowd. The remaining students and faculty inside the building were being quickly escorted out of the doors by more soldiers. We began running with the frantic mob, staying ahead, as not to be entangled in the mass of moving bodies. All I could feel was the rain, steadily rising in temperature, and pouring onto my head and shoulders, battering my eyes and face.
As we reached the street on the southernmost side of campus, we were met by a growing group of onlookers.
A father and his young daughter stood under an umbrella on the sidewalk. “What is that thing?” He yelled at me.
I ignored him, running across the pavement past a slowing car. The driver paid no attention to me as his silver two door came to a halt in the middle of the street so he could gaze in the northern sky.
The rains felt like a warm shower as my feet pounded and my arms swung. I climbed a hill on the adjacent side of the street and hopped over the chain link fence on its edge. On the other side was an empty lot, and an alley leading to a main street running to the south.
I must have run for fifteen minutes without stopping. I should have paced myself, my breathing was labored and my legs felt like wet noodles. I ran under a porch with a roof to escape the still pouring rain, and sat on the swinging bench hanging from the ceiling. I had to take a moment to rest, recollect the details of what had just happened, and assess my situation.
I looked around. I was alone. Brian had not followed me here, we must have gotten separated in the commotion.
I felt sicker now than I did before. Despite my best efforts to escape the orb, I still felt a tingle in the air and a ringing in my ears. It was making me sick to my stomach. I felt a trickle emerge from my right ear. I dabbed it with my fingers to look at it, and with horror saw the crimson red stain of blood across my hand.
A man emerged from the house. He was angry.
"What do you think you’re doing on my porch, asshole?"
"I'm sorry," my voice quivered, "I need help! Please..."
"What happened to you?" he yelled.
"Please sir, just let me inside..." I reached for his shoulder.
"Back off!" he exclaimed. He shoved me off of the stairs. I lost my balance, tripping off the edge of the stairs and smacking my face onto the wet pavement. Pain shot up from my nose and mouth and I tasted blood.
I stumbled to my feet and felt the rains again, now as warm as bathwater.
I didn't look back at him. I just ran, ignoring the pain in my face. My fear and discomfort was numbing my mind. I didn’t care what was happening or how, All I wanted was for it to end.
As I ran, my vision began to blur, as if it was getting darker and hazy. I felt cold, despite the hot rain coming down on me. With every breath I drew, I felt more and more nauseous. I couldn’t take it anymore, and I stopped in my place to vomit uncontrollably.
When I finally finished, my dizziness over-powered me, and I collapsed on the street, shivering. Blood was coming out of every hole in my head.
As I squirmed about in agony, I noticed loose strands of hair numbering on the solid ground. I reached up and brushed a clump of hair from my head, feeling the bald spot where it came from. My shivering turned to violent tremors, coursing through my whole body. As my vision slowly faded, so did my pain. The ringing in my ears was all I could hear now: a low, ominous hum.
I started to feel confused. I had trouble remembering what had just happened, as if it no longer mattered. I could barely feel the rain now. It was scolding hot, but I didn't care. I just didn’t care anymore. All I could see now was darkness. Spots of white danced across my plane of view like a festival of lights. Breathing was now my sanctum; In and out, in and out. It calmed my soul. I could no longer feel the tremors.
I humored myself at the urgency I had just felt. Why was I running for so long? Why was I so afraid? A blanket of silence fell over me, muffling the ringing in my ears. I felt so peaceful. I breathed in again. Deeper... Deeper...