Greek Accidents: Greek Accidents, #1

Greek Accidents

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Darrell Reeves

Copyright © 2018 Darrell Reeves.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means without written permission from the author. All characters herein are fictional and any resemblance to individuals is entirely coincidental.

Contents

Chapter 1

The Meteorite

Chapter 2

BEGINNINGS OF CHANGE

Chapter 3

Dissection

Chapter 4

FRIENDSHIP

Chapter 5 The Powers

Chapter 6 Accidental Death Transforms

Chapter 7  No More Math Problems

Chapter 8  Love and Respect at Last

Chapter 9  Maintaining Full Power

Chapter 10  Bye Bye, Brother...........................................................................................31

Chapter 11 Monster...........................................................................................................34

Chapter 12 The Girl at the Graveyard.............................................................................40

Chapter 13 Sorrow

Chapter 14 The Nurse........................................................................................................52

Chapter 15 Friendship Bonds............................................................................................56

Chapter 16 You are Special...............................................................................................61

Chapter 17 Power Seeking................................................................................................67

Chapter 18 The Body Link.................................................................................................71

Chapter 19 On Life’s High, then Low...............................................................................75

Chapter 20 The Hug of Death

Chapter 21 Beyond Control...............................................................................................82

Chapter 22 A New Life.......................................................................................................87

Chapter 23 Searching for the Body Link.........................................................................90

Chapter 24 Bouncer Bounced...........................................................................................93

Chapter 25 Plot to Kill........................................................................................................97

Chapter 26 Return to the Rock.......................................................................................100

Chapter 27 Linked in Murder..........................................................................................105

Chapter 28 Silencing a Friend........................................................................................112

Chapter 29 Death Dreams..............................................................................................116

Chapter 30 No More Conscience....................................................................................122

Greek Accidents: A Twisted World.................................................................................125

Chapter 1 Return to the Rock..........................................................................................126

Chapter 2 Pain Transferred..............................................................................................130

Chapter 1

The Meteorite

Brock

I knew the freshman field trip would be lame when they announced we were going to the Museum of History. Of course, we couldn’t get to do something cool, like a visit to the Airplane Museum where everyone gets to ride in a private jet to go to lunch with a retired astronaut. That’s what my brother did two years ago when he was a freshman. Of course, my brother gets everything I don’t, especially good grades.

I guess I should be grateful that I’m stuck here in this stupid museum. I almost didn’t get to come, which meant I would have been stuck sitting in class with Mrs. O’Grady doing pointless busy work. That’s what happens to the kids who don’t pass all their classes and can’t go on the field trip. I was so close to flunking science, but I managed to pull a C just in time to do this thing.

I shove my hands in my pockets and drag my feet across the thin carpet as I follow at the very back of the group of students. We’re being led by our teacher, Mr. Humphrey, as he stands next to the museum’s elderly tour guide, looking absolutely fascinated with everything the old man says. I don’t know how he pretends that any of this crap is interesting because it’s not. It’s all just ancient history, and we don’t live in the past. We live now.

A flash of yellow catches my eye. To the left is another exhibit, but we’ve just walked right past it because it’s closed. It’s called Greek History, but there’s a big yellow sign right in the middle of the entrance that says SORRY FOR THE MESS! THIS EXHIBIT IS GETTING A MAKEOVER. I slowed down and stared at the long darkened hallway. Only a few emergency lights are on, illuminating Greek statues.

Someone shoves into my shoulder—hard. Walk faster, idiot.

I grimace and try not to act like my shoulder hurts even though it does. Ryan Johnson glares at me as he walks past. He’s the junior varsity’s best football player and he’s never liked me.

His equally huge friend laughs. Dude, don’t use words like ‘idiot’. He’s too dumb to know what it means. He punches me in the shoulder. Isn’t that right, dummy?

He doesn’t wait for my answer and they both walk off, laughing to themselves. It’s no secret that I’m barely passing my classes. That I’ve always been barely passing my classes. The whole town knows and loves my parents because they’re so esteemed in their professions, and the whole school loves my older brother. But me? I’m just that idiot no one cares about.

I rub my shoulder and trail even farther behind the group. Soon, Mr. Humphrey and the ancient tour guide turn around a corner and I realize I’m the only one standing here. I thought that darkened exhibit would make a great place to hang out until it’s time to board the bus and go back home. I glance around to make sure no one’s watching, and then I slip past the yellow sign and into the closed exhibit.

The exhibit itself does seem to need a makeover, with dust, cobwebs, and a lot of creepy marble statues of Greek men and women standing around pieces of abandoned construction equipment. I keep walking into the center of the room, trying and failing not to feel like I have a million eyes on me as the wind from the open door causes the marble to move slightly and the wooden scaffolding to creak.

I move past the creepy statues and past a second mostly empty wing that has a sign saying ‘The Life of Alexander the Great.’ I finally duck into the back of the room, past an arrow sign that points to ‘The Land of Myth and Wonders.’

Greek mythology, I mutter to myself with a smile. Why couldn’t we have come to this boring old museum when the exhibit about Greek myths was ready? Now that was interesting! Gods, monsters, epic battles, and heroes interested me a lot and as I moved towards the exhibit, I saw it was pretty well stocked with displays and exhibits. After checking my watch to make sure of the time, I walk towards the oddest-looking exhibit.

It was nothing more than a pedestal with a massive black rock on top of it, glinting in the faint light from the flickering neon signs above me, and as I wipe away the dust from the plaque I begin to read.

This is a shard from the comet Stathakis, an ancient meteor believed to have crashed in Greece thousands of years ago. The ancient people believed it to be a gift from the gods and many legends have formed about its power.

There is a slip of yellow paper sitting just above the plaque, and I grab it, squinting to read the curvy handwriting.

This comet can gift powers in times of need, to guide or blind mankind and either give hope or fear to the masses.

I finish reading and set the paper back down. Suddenly, I need to shield my eyes because the meteorite begins to glow. I stumble back wondering if this was some new security system. The clattering of wheels makes me jump as the comet’s glow fades and I turn around to see a boy in a wheelchair gazing at me. He has red hair, black-rimmed glasses, and his blue eyes shine as I look down.

He doesn’t look like anyone from our school, or anyone I knew for that matter. Maybe he’s a museum volunteer. The boy rolls himself forward, not even looking at me as he moves towards the comet, his hand reaching out to grab the paper.

Erm... excuse me? I ask, still a bit worried that he’s a museum volunteer about to chew me out... or even worse, make me go back to the teacher and my class. He shushes me softly though and reads the paper before the comet begins to glow again, engulfing him with the same light as I turn my head.

Come on, we’d better go before those lights attract someone, I say, not sure why I’m talking to this stranger. I check my watch and notice it’s almost time to go. As I walk out, the boy follows me and we duck out of the exhibit, before going our separate ways without another word.

I slip into the line of students from my class, happy that no one seems to have noticed my absence, but not before I slap a buzzing fly that has landed on my arm.

Then I leave the museum, but not before turning to see that the wheelchair-bound boy is gone.

Chapter 2

BEGINNINGS OF CHANGE

I woke up the next morning, seeing about twenty images of my ceiling fan spinning around above me. Strange, they looked bigger than normal. I stretched and reached up to rub my eyes, only to see four appendages stretch out, not two.

I let out a piercing scream, and panicked more because the only sound that tore itself from my mouth was a panicked buzz. I scurried over towards the water glass on my nightstand, needing to see my reflection.

The bed seemed a lot bigger as I ran across to the edge while I stared at myself in the clear glass. The rest of the world wasn’t bigger, I was smaller, and the reflection staring back at me was the face of a fly!

A second panicked buzz was released from my mouth as I moved back on my six legs, struggling to keep my balance before my wings stretched out on my back and I began to flap them.

No! I don’t want to fly! I thought, fighting the raw primal instinct of the insect as I began to buzz and fly off the bed, realizing that my mind was in the passenger seat as my new body zipped through the crack in my bedroom door and out into the world beyond.

My eyes moved about, seeing dozens of everything as if I was watching the world on multiple TV screens. My dad was having his traditional morning cup of coffee while watching the news and my mother was cooking breakfast.

Buzzing filled the air as I screamed out to them, hoping that one of them could help me figure out what the heck was going on, or at least wake me from my dream. I moved closer to my dad as I kept buzzing, trying to figure out a way to communicate. Maybe buzzing in Morse code would help!

Before I could put that plan into action, my fly body moved to the side as a massive hand came down, hitting the edge of the table and causing my ears to ring as I spun away, moving upward to dodge a second blow before retreating towards the kitchen window, ducking through the crack my mother always left open to let air into the house. I breathed a sigh of relief before I heard the window close with a click. Great, now I was locked out of my own house!

Hello, there little one.

Turning at the voice, I saw an old homeless guy called Levi I normally give change to on my way to school. He was standing in front of me in all his bearded glory, clad in a faded coat and mothball infested pants, as various other flies buzzed around him. He’d been living down the street in an abandoned home for a few years, having no home of his own. Despite being a little eccentric, he was harmless and nice enough.

Now his eyes were focused right on me and I could see his creepy smiling face. It was like he was looking into my soul. Then he said, Well, you are certainly special, aren’t you?

*

With a gasp I wake up again, my hands coming up to rub my eyes as I sigh in relief; I can only see two of everything and my hands are once again human hands.

Just a bad dream, I mutter, taking a gulp of water before walking out to the living room, seeing my dad drinking his coffee and my mom cooking her breakfast like always.

I faded back into my room, got dressed for school, and tried to put the bad dream behind me. That’s all it was, just a creepy dream.

So, why were Levi’s words echoing in my head? Well, you are certainly special, aren’t you?

Chapter 3

Dissection

The school day passed uneventfully until my last period of the day, science class, where the teacher announced we would be dissecting frogs to learn more about the human body. The frogs were all mostly dead, but the teacher warned us that they might still twitch and to be prepared and careful. The teacher placed the first diagram on the screen to show us what to do.

I was partnered with my best friend Mike, who held the tools gingerly, passing them to me as he visibly shuddered. He was a large kid, but extremely loyal and one of the best friends I’d ever had. I knew it would be hard for him to hurt anything living or dead.

Don’t worry, Mike, I said while taking the tools from his trembling hands as I leaned towards the frog, looking at the diagram on the screen our teacher had made for us. I began to cut down the frog’s stomach, before using tweezers to gently pull back the frog’s skin.

You okay, Mike? I asked, watching him sit down and toss me a shaky smile.

Yeah, I’m okay. Just need a second, he whispered, his hands gripping the table as