The Gift

Alex felt a sharp pain in his chest as the electric current surged through his body. He screamed and writhed on the metal table, but the straps held him firmly in place. Next to him, he could hear Leo's agonized cries as he endured the same torture.

"Stop it! Stop it, you bastard!" Alex shouted, his voice hoarse and broken.

Cyrus, the leader of the Kinetics, stood over them with a cruel smile. He held a remote control in his hand, which he used to adjust the intensity and duration of the shocks. He wore a black suit and a red tie, contrasting with his pale skin and silver hair. His eyes were cold and piercing, like ice.

"I'm afraid I can't do that, Alex," he said calmly. "You see, I need you to cooperate with me. I need you to tell me everything you know about your power. How did you get it? How do you use it? How can you control it?"

Alex glared at him with hatred. "I don't know anything, you psycho. And even if I did, I would never tell you. You can't make me."

Cyrus chuckled. "Oh, but I can, Alex. I can make you do anything I want. You have no idea what I'm capable of. You have no idea what I've done."

He pressed a button, and another jolt of electricity coursed through Alex and Leo. They both screamed louder, their muscles spasming uncontrollably.

"Please, please, stop!" Leo begged, tears streaming down his face. "We don't know anything, we swear! We're just kids, we don't understand our power!"

Cyrus shook his head. "Don't lie to me, Leo. I know you're hiding something. I know you're special. You're not like the other Kinetics. You're not like Alex. You have something more. Something unique. Something I want."

Leo looked at him with fear and confusion. "What are you talking about? I'm not special. I'm not different. I'm just like Alex. We have the same power. We can manipulate matter and energy. That's all."

Cyrus smiled wickedly. "No, Leo. That's not all. You have something else. Something that Alex doesn't have. Something that I don't have. Something that no one else has. You have the power to create."

Leo gasped. "What? No, that's impossible. I can't create anything. I can only change what already exists. Like Alex. Like you."

Cyrus leaned closer to him, his eyes gleaming. "Don't play dumb with me, Leo. I've seen what you can do. I've seen you create things out of thin air. Things that defy the laws of physics. Things that shouldn't exist. Things that only you can make."

Leo shook his head frantically. "No, no, no, you're wrong. You're mistaken. I don't know what you're talking about. I can't do that. I can't create anything."

Cyrus sighed. "You're wasting my time, Leo. And you're wasting your potential. You have a gift, Leo. A rare and precious gift. A gift that could change the world. A gift that I need."

He pressed another button, and a screen lowered from the ceiling. It showed a video of a school building, surrounded by police cars and ambulances. Smoke and flames rose from the windows and doors. People were running and screaming, some covered in blood and burns.

"Do you recognize this place, Leo?" Cyrus asked.

Leo stared at the screen, his eyes widening in horror. "That's... that's my school. That's where I used to go. What... what happened?"

Cyrus smiled. "I happened, Leo. I did this. I caused this. I wanted to test your power. I wanted to see what you could do. So I planted a bomb in your school. A bomb that only you could stop. A bomb that only you could defuse. A bomb that only you could create."

Leo felt a surge of nausea and disbelief. "You... you did this? You planted a bomb in my school? You killed all those people? Why? Why would you do that?"

Cyrus shrugged. "Why not? I was curious. I wanted to see if you could create something that could counteract my bomb. Something that could neutralize the explosion. Something that could save the day. And you did, Leo. You did. You created a shield. A shield of pure energy. A shield that protected you and Alex from the blast. A shield that no one else could make. A shield that only you could create."

He pressed another button, and the video changed. It showed a close-up of Leo and Alex, lying on the ground, unconscious. They were surrounded by a glowing dome of light, which blocked the debris and fire from reaching them. Cyrus zoomed in on Leo's face, which was peaceful and serene.

"Look at you, Leo. Look at how calm you are. Look at how powerful you are. Look at how beautiful you are. You're a miracle, Leo. A wonder. A masterpiece. You're the key to my plan, Leo. The key to my vision. The key to my new world order."

Leo felt a chill run down his spine. "What... what plan? What vision? What new world order?"

Cyrus looked at him with a mixture of admiration and greed. "The plan to overthrow the old order, Leo. The order that oppresses us. The order that fears us. The order that hates us. The order that wants to destroy us. The order that calls us Kinetics. The order that calls us freaks. The order that calls us monsters."

He spat the last word with contempt. "We're not monsters, Leo. We're not freaks. We're not Kinetics. We're gods, Leo. We're gods among men. We have the power to shape reality. We have the power to create life. We have the power to rule the world. And we will, Leo. We will. With your help, Leo. With your power, Leo. With your creation, Leo."

He pressed another button, and the screen showed a blueprint of a device. It looked like a large metal sphere, covered with wires and tubes. It had a hole in the center, where a smaller sphere was placed. The smaller sphere was glowing with a bright light.

"This is my masterpiece, Leo. My magnum opus. My ultimate weapon. This is the Genesis Device, Leo. The device that will create a new world. A world where we are the masters. A world where we are the rulers. A world where we are the gods."

Leo looked at the device, his eyes wide with fear. "What... what is that? What does it do?"

Cyrus grinned. "It does what you do, Leo. It creates. It creates anything I want. Anything I need. Anything I desire. It creates matter and energy out of nothing. It creates life and death out of nothing. It creates heaven and hell out of nothing. It creates a new world out of nothing. A world that I control. A world that I command. A world that I create."

He pressed another button, and the screen showed a map of the world. It was divided into several regions, each marked with a different color and symbol. Cyrus pointed at one of the regions, which was colored red and had a star on it.

"This is where we are, Leo. This is our base. This is our home. This is Kineticstan. The first and only nation of the Kinetics. The birthplace of the new world order. The launch site of the Genesis Device."

He pointed at another region, which was colored blue and had a circle on it.

"This is where they are, Leo. This is their base. This is their home. This is the United Nations. The last and only bastion of the old world order. The target of the Genesis Device."

He pointed at the rest of the regions, which were coloured grey and had no symbols on them.

"And this is where everyone else is, Leo. This is where the rest of the world is. This is where the weak are. This is where the powerless are. This is where the irrelevant are. This is where the doomed are. This is where the Genesis Device will create a new world. A world without them. A world without weakness. A world without powerlessness. A world without irrelevance. A world without doom. A world without mercy."

He looked at Leo with a mad gleam in his eyes. "Do you understand, Leo? Do you see, Leo? Do you agree, Leo?"

Leo felt a wave of terror and disgust. He couldn't believe what he was hearing. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. He couldn't believe what Cyrus was planning. He couldn't believe what Cyrus wanted him to do.

He shook his head violently. "No, no, no, I don't understand. I don't see. I don't agree. You're insane, Cyrus. You're evil, Cyrus. You're a monster, Cyrus.