inFAMOUS

Hope in the Eyes of the People

Prologue

I pushed myself off of the ground, my entire body hurting like hell. Every bone ached, every muscle threatened to fall from my body, but I forced myself to get up. I guess it was instinct; it could've been me being stubborn.

I peeled my eyes open and looked at my hands. They were burnt to a crisp. I couldn't even imagine what the rest of me might've looked like. I used an exploded car to help me to my feet, my clothes just barely on me, hanging in tatters.

Using the wall, I guided myself out of there. I tripped over an exposed metal wire and fell to the ground, but it collapsed beneath me. I hit the ground hard, a few pieces of the concrete jutting into my stomach, the rest falling on my body. I couldn't move; I'd lost my will.

"Hey! Over there!"

Well, my will came back. I pushed my arm up, signalling that I needed help. A ton of people came over and helped me out of the rubble, then carried me over to an ambulance. Immediately, a breathing mask was put on my face and needles were shoved into my veins, filled with stuff I'd rather not know about.

One of the guys from the ambulance covered my forehead with ice. "Try not to talk! Focus on breathing!"

I grabbed his hand, which I knew freaked him out a bit. I knew what I wanted to say. I knew what I was looking for in that garage before I'd fallen. But somehow I couldn't say it. I couldn't. It was like I'd suddenly become a mute.

I released his hand, and tried to say it again. I couldn't. Tears stung my eyes. Why couldn't I? I should've been able to!

"Please, don't talk!" was what the ambulance worker told me, placing my hand by my side. "If you try to talk right now, the after-effects of the shock will probably stop you! I assure you, this is temporary!"

I watched the doors close and the ambulance drive away from the concrete garage. That word—no, that name—was resounding in my head. I wanted to scream it as I watched us go, but I couldn't.

I'd never felt so powerless in my entire life.