Momenta - The Flash

Prologue

Keep in mind, I am publishing this before I have edited it. So as the lovely readers you are, please (constructively) point out any mistakes whether it be grammar or a component of the story!

Enjoy!

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This isn't your average superhero story.

Okay, maybe it is.

But this is my story. The story of how I came to be the way I am -- how I became what some would consider a hero.

I've always dreamed of having superpowers, of being able to protect the ones I love and those who are so innocent it doesn't make sense why the world would put them in harms way.

But that's the beauty of having this gift. This gift of speed. No one can see me coming. No bad guy knows who or what just stopped them from accomplishing their mission. The way time slows down is unlike any other feeling in the world. The electricity surging through me; the white sparks flying behind me leaving a trail of blue as I run faster and faster with each day -- with each step. I can feel the energy from the lightening bolt that zapped my body into a coma.

It was just one moment in time that created the person I am today. One moment only 4 months ago.

4 Months Ago

December 11, 2013

" 'Manda!" I yelled at my roommate from the living room of our three bedroom apartment.

I absolutely loved this apartment. Being at the top floor of the building had its perks; free access to the roof, no noisy upstairs neighbors to deal with, and every so often I would sit out on our balcony and watch the sun rise behind the trees that adorned the small park Amanda and I used to visit as kids. That small patch of green made living in the middle of a bustling city a lot less stressful.

Of course I had Amanda and her family to thank for this place to call home. After my parents passed away five years ago, they became the closest thing I had to family. If I hadn't already been 18 years old, they would have adopted me. But even so, they still cared for me like I was their own especially since Amanda and I had been the best of friends for as long as I could remember. We went off to college together, Amanda majoring in Forensic Science and I in Physics Education with a passion for photography -- I loved taking pictures and having the top floor gave me a great view of the city.

How could we afford such a place? Well, Amanda's father is the CEO of his own company specializing in advanced medical equipment and her mother is a pediatric surgeon. Now we don't live off of their money if that's what you think. The only thing I let them help me out with was a portion of my tuition that wasn't covered by scholarships and, of course, a room in Amanda's apartment. But we never let it get to our heads; I live off of my own income from the bakery I work at plus the few night classes I teach at the local community college -- photography just doesn't pay the bills-- just as Amanda lives off hers -- as a Forensic Scientist for the police department in the City of Centennial, our neighbors just forty-five minutes north of our border, she makes a pretty decent salary.

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" she laughed as she hopped on one foot trying to get her black flats on so we could leave.

"We're going to miss the exhibit if you don't hurry up!" I smiled remember how I practically begged her to come with me to this small art exhibit downtown where one of my pictures was being displayed.

"I'm good. Let's go," she said shoving me playfully out the door towards the elevator.

We made it to the exhibit in twenty minutes time, right at six o'clock. Being so close to downtown we simply walked. It was something we both enjoyed doing. I smoothed down the front of my black dress that I wore for special occasions such as this and walked into the hall.

"There it is," Amanda nudged my shoulder, pointing at a splash of orange and purple in the distance.

My very first professionally recognized photo. It was simply yet beautiful still of the sunset that sat above the small pond in the park across from our building. It was a spur of the moment decision to take it and man am I glad I did. It captured a brilliant mix of purples, reds, and oranges that somehow illuminated the sky despite being seen only through the gaps between skyscrapers and buildings.

"Is this yours?" asked a woman who seemed to be in her early fifties.

"Yes, ma'am," I replied with a small smile.

"Simple. Beautiful. Well done, Miss," she said returning my smile, glancing at my photo one more time, and walking away to look at the other art.

I exhaled a breathe that apparently I had been holding and turned to Amanda.

"I'm so proud of you!" She whispered and hugged me. "But I am starving so can we please find something to eat!"

I laughed and followed her around in search of food to satisfy our hunger.

3 Hours Later

"I cannot believe how much they loved your photo, Kate!"

"Me either. I never imagined it would turn out like that," I sighed as I carried my camera bag towards the balcony. "I'm going up to the roof. I'll be back down in a bit!"

I strapped the bag around my shoulder and climbed the short distance to my special place. I sat down in the small fold out chair that I brought up here months ago and took out my camera, screwing in the lens I needed to take a picture of S.T.A.R. Labs. Tonight was the night that Dr. Harrison Wells and his team are going to launch a Particle Accelerator that would change the face of science. Of course having a background in Physics meant I was pretty excited for the event to happen, and my love for photography meant I was even more anxious to get a picture of the lab from afar.

Five more minutes and the accelerator would be turned on. I snapped a few practice photos of the lab and of the sky above it, and paused when I saw a mass of dark clouds approaching.

"Katie, there's a storm coming this way! Don't get caught out in the rain like last time!" Amanda yelled in her motherly tone.

"I won't. Just give me a few more minutes." I said while leaning over the short wall of the roof so she could hear me better.

She looked at the sky and then back at me with a worried, but knew better than to try and pull me away from a good shot. I could feel the wind picking up as my hair swirled around me and a coldness began to seep into my skin.

As if on cue, I could hear a boom sound from the direction of the lab as the rain came crashing down on me. As if from a movie, a mushroom cloud of red and orange blew up above the lab and a ray of red light seemed to be sweeping out in a circle away from the explosion. It was coming towards me, and as I began to slowly step back, my body slightly hitting against the small satellite tower that occupied the middle of the roof, lightening struck down only a few feet away from me. I jumped, frightened of what I had gotten myself into. With wide eyes, I looked back towards the approaching red beam and gripped the pole I had just been leaning against. Just as the red seemed to pass through me, a sharp, blistering pain shot through my entire body throwing me ten feet into the air.

I landed roughly on the cement rooftop, and then, I blacked out.