A brutal storm rocked the city with an impressive display of nature that shook the streets with deafening thunder and blinding lightning that illuminated the night sky. Hank and Connor had returned home after their shift and were now sitting on the couch watching the weather report on television, not that Connor needed to rely on the news for such information. Heavy rain bombarded the roof and strong winds rattled the windows of the house, while creating a haunting ambience of natural gusts that kept the two detectives on guard.

Sumo had wisely taken shelter under Hank's bed out of fear of the powerful storm, and had no intention of leaving until the storm had passed. It was a little amusing to see such a large dog cowering in fear under a narrow space, but neither detective disturbed him.

Power outages had been reported throughout the city as several powerlines had been downed by strong winds and fallen tree branches. It was too dangerous for eletrical crews to repair the damage at the moment, and as a result the outages were expected to remain throughout the night. In seeming response to the surrounding blackouts the lights inside the house flickered as the storm bombarded the modest structure relentlessly.

"I'm going to get some candles." Hank decided as he made his way to the hallway closet after noting the flickering overhead lights. "You can see in the dark, kid, but I can't."

Connor's L.E.D. flashed from blue to yellow as his sensors indicated that several lightning strikes were dangerously close to the house and were beginning to cause electrical interference. Rising from his place on the couch he peered out through the front window by the door to watched the sky with a childlike intrigue. Unfortunately, before Connor could react to the danger a bolt of lightning struck the power transformer at the top of pole across the street causing it to explode in a cascade of sparks and fire with a deafening blast that shook the entire block and plunged the house into darkness.

"Holy shit!" Hank shouted as the explosion shook the house and cut out the power entirely leaving him lost in blackness. "What the fuck was that?!"

Connor backed away from the window and put his hand over his chest as the air filled with a heavy electrical charge that made his biocomponents fluctuate unexpectedly. "L-Lightning strike." The deviant android answered flatly as ran a self-diagnostic over his systems. His L.E.D. flashed yellow as he informed emergency responders to the scene of the explosion. "A transformer has been destroyed."

"I'll say..." With a burning candle to light his way Hank rejoined Connor in the livingroom and peered out the window for himself. A small fire atop the pole was being doused naturally by the rain itself which helped minimize the resulting damage. A rogue powerline sparked along the ground with a dangerously high voltage and amperage wildly showering the street like a slithering snake. "We're both staying inside, neither of us gets paid enough to handle damaged powerlines."

"I... agree." Connor suddenly winced as the electricity in the air built and a strange tightness in chest formed near his Thirium pump.

"You okay?" Hank noticed Connor's discomfort, his voice becoming less gruff and softening considerably at the sight of his partner in distress. "You look like you're in pain."

"I'm experiencing some... discomfort in my chest." Connor's hand gripped at the front of his black t-shirt with a desperate grasp as he felt his Thirium pump suddenly start to beat faster than normal. It was alarming and becoming frightening. "My... My heart is racing."

"You didn't get hit by lightning, too, did ya'?" Hank asked he set the candle down on the coffee table between the couch and television before he put his hands on Connor's shoulders. "You seem like a perfect lightning rod to be honest."

"No. I am... undamaged, but-" His eyes clenched shut and he let out a gasping wheeze between his gritted teeth as lightning illuminated the sky with a bone shattering crash of thunder. Nearly falling to his knees Connor was kept upright only by Hank's firm grip. "...Something is... wrong!"

"Shit, what's going on with you?" Hank tried to guide Connor back toward the couch but the deviant android wouldn't budge. "Talk to me."

Seconds before he could utter a single response Connor let out sharp gasp of pain as he felt his Thirium pump begin beating faster and faster with a painful force. Hank could feel the intensity of Connor's heart beating just by having his hands on the deviant android's shoulders as the rapid motion made Connor's entire body tremble. Worried that there was something horribly wrong with the deviant android Hank put his arm around Connor's upper back and his other under the Connor's legs to pick him up and carry him over to the nearby couch.

"Connor, look at me." Hank ordered as he laid Connor down over the length of the furniture on his back, and put his hand down in the center of Connor's chest. He tried to measure the deviant android's rapid pulse but his heart was beating too fast for the human count. "Fuck."

Lightning filled the sky once more and gave Hank a clear view of Connor's pained face as the accompanying thunder drowned out the rain pounding against the roof with a violent cascade of nature.

"H-Hank..." Connor's eyes were shut so tight tears were beginning to stream down his face as he put both hands over his thundering heart and his L.E.D. cycled quickly in red. "It hurts!"

"Tell me what's happening, then I can help you."

"M-My Thirium pump... It's been... O-Overstimulated."

"From what? The storm?"

Connor nodded once as he took in a gasping breath as if he could somehow slow his heart then he could control his breathing. It's worked before, but there was no guarantee it'd work now.

"What did it? The lightning or the explosion?"

"B-Both... The air h-has been... el-electrically charged!"

"What the fuck can I do about the air?!"

"N-Nothing... Glitch in m-my... software."

"I can do even less about a glitch, kid." Hank watched in horror as Connor began to breath even harder and his heart raced even faster under his palm. "Jeez, you look like you're having a heart attack!"

"C-Correct."

"I'm WHAT?!"

"My..." Connor couldn't even finish his sentence as his systems were forced into a low-power mode that ceased his conscious functions "...heart." Letting out a weak pant Connor's body relaxed and went limp before Hank's eyes.

"Connor?" Hank put his hand to the side of Connor's face and tilted his head slightly to the left to look at the L.E.D. in Connor's right temple. It was still illuminated but it was pulsing much slower, almost back down to its standard rate of cycling speed. "Kid? Wake up."

Tentatively Hank put his hand back down over Connor's chest and could feel the deviant android's pump stutter a few times before suddenly stopping. As his heart stopped his L.E.D. went suddenly blank and Hank noticed immediately.

"Shit! Connor!"

Hank went to place one hand over top the other and interlace his fingers together to begin chest compressions before he realized the cause of Connor's sudden Thirial arrest was from the storm and not from trauma to his biocomponent or anything else. If his pump just stopped then maybe it could just start up again with a strong enough jolt.

"Sorry about this, kid."

Reeling back one fist high above his head he brought his fist down directly over the center of Connor's chest causing his pump to violently contract once and shortly thereafter his pump relaxed and then contracted again as his heart began to beat on its own again.

"Connor?" Lightly he placed his palm flat over Connor's chest was relieved to feel that his Thirium pump was active again, which meant his heart was now beating. The racing pump was beginning to calm its frantic pacing and eased into a steady rhythm. "Thank fuck. It worked..."

Sirens and flashing lights of red and blue outside the house drew Hank's attention to the window where he saw a fire engine and a squad car pulled up in order to tend to the downed powerline. The temptation to wave over one of the first responders was nearly irresistible, but Hank decided he'd wait to see if Connor began to respond on his own before pulling any rescue personnel from the more important task of getting the powerline under control.

Pressing his hand down firmer against Connor's chest Hank tried again to count his pulse and was happy to estimate his pulse at ninety-six, compared to its previously incalculable rate.

"Alright... That's better."

Curious about whether or not Connor could even hear him or understand what he was saying Hank carefully lifted Connor's right eyelid with his thumb and looked down at the brown iris beneath. "Connor? Can you hear me?"

Connor's eye moved slightly to look at Hank. His other left eyelid opened slowly and his mouth parted a little as if he was trying to speak.

"Good, you're still with me. Are you going to be okay?"

"Y-Yes."

"What the hell was that about?"

"S-Software glitch." Connor's L.E.D. cycled from red to yellow as he spoke and his system recalibrated accordingly. "The close proximity to the lightning began affecting my system, interfering with my programming." His hands dropped from his chest and his breathing eased as the yellow L.E.D. finally turned blue. "The solution was to fall into low-power mode which caused my system to recalibrate and reverse the effects of the inference. It appears my power level dropped too low."

"...Yeah. Sorry about punching you in the chest."

"It's alright. Your method was effective and I did not sustain any damage to my plastimetal chassis over my chest, and my Thirium pump is responding correctly."

"Earlier when I said 'heart attack'," Hank questioned with an arched brow. "you said I was right." He sat down on the arm of the couch and stared down at Connor with a fatherly concern. "How was I right?"

"Heart attacks in humans can be caused by illness, trauma and spontaneous electrical discharge." Connor tried to sit up but Hank reached out his hand and pressed it to the deviant android's torso to keep Connor laying flat on his back. "I apologize if I frightened you."

"Frightened me? You scared the shit out of me!"

"I'm sorry. It was a glitch that I hadn't anticipated."

"Yeah, I don't think anyone anticipates glitches, kid." Hank sighed a little as he felt his own heart beginning to pound in his chest. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Yes. My system has successfully recalibrated and my Thirium pump has returned to its normal rhythm. I'm not in any danger." He tilted his head a little as he gauged the concern on Hank's face. "Or pain. I promise. I'm no longer in danger and can rest without needing to be monitored."

"Okay, then." Hank looked through the window again at the flashing lights along the street. "Looks like things are getting under control and the storm is starting to pass. Get some sleep, hopefully we'll have the power back by tomorrow morning."

Connor draped his arm back over his chest as he felt his heart beating at a proper rhythm and speed. "Goodnight, Hank."

"Yeah, goodnight, son."

...next story...