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English
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Published:
2026-05-20
Updated:
2026-05-24
Words:
16,735
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3/6
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Ride the Lightning

Summary:

They say the odds of a person getting struck by lightning are roughly one in fifteen thousand over a lifetime of eighty years.

​But the odds of getting directly struck while standing inside the supposed safety of one's own home? Those numbers belonged to the realm of the impossible. It was an anomaly so rare that the universe hadn't even bothered to calculate standard statistical data for it.

Which raised the question: what cruel, cosmic joke had Kim Jongdae played a part in to deserve this?

​Or wherein: Kim Jongdae decides to finally gather the scattered ash of his youth and build a life, only for cosmic irony to strike him down at three hundred million volts. He dies as a regular human, wakes up as a walking electrical hazard, and inherits a target on his back courtesy of a cult of superpower-obsessed freaks. Tomorrow was supposed to be the first day of the rest of his life, but he just didn't expect that life to involve saving or possibly ending the world (and, perhaps, falling for someone whose very existence makes his veins spark far more violently than a lightning strike ever could).

Notes:

The title is inspired by Metallica's Ride the Lightning! ⚡️ While brainstorming, I decided to pull something from the playlist I was listening to while writing, and this song is just so wonderfully dark and witty. It fits perfectly, especially when you compare the song's meaning to what happens to Jongdae throughout this whole fic! 😉

This actually started as a one-shot! It was a total brainrot fic that I whipped up after watching Wonderfools on Netflix because my brain refused to stop overlaying EXO onto it. But during edits, I just wasn't satisfied. There was so much more potential to expand the universe and play around with EXO's superpowers (taking some major creative liberties with their lore!). And well. . . now it's a whole multi-chaptered fic.

Additionally, this is my first time using a Work Skin and HTML for one of my fics, so this one is slightly reader-interactive. Well, I hope I can keep it up in the next chapters!

As of (05/21/2026) – I'm still editing the upcoming chapters. I don't have a fixed posting schedule yet due to real-life responsibilities and work, but I'm hoping to update weekly!

As of (05/4/2026) — the chapter titles have been edited

Enjoy the RIDE! 🥰⚡️

(See the end of the work for more notes.)

Chapter 1: ⚡️ the celestial lexicon

Chapter Text

the arbor vitae alliance

purging the shadow, preserving the light

⚡︎

(Tap a folder below to access decrypted database files)

A.V.A. CENTRAL DATABASE: COMPENDIUM // OVERVIEW

DECRYPTING PROTOCOL // ORGANIZATIONAL MANIFESTO
PROPERTY OF ARBOR VITAE ALLIANCE INTERNAL DIRECTORATE

The Arbor Vitae Alliance

ETYMOLOGY:Arbor Vitae — Latin for "The Tree of Life"

FOUNDED:[CLASSIFIED]

HEADQUARTERS:[RESTRICTED // DEEP SUB-LEVEL]

GOVERNANCE:Supreme Leader SUHO // High Command


THE MISSION:To systematically detect, safely locate, and extract unregistered Celestials before public compromise or hostile acquisition occurs.

THE MANDATE:To act as the ultimate sanctuary. A.V.A. houses, shelters, and safeguards Celestials under absolute containment protocols.

THE OBJECTIVE:To weaponize or neutralize. Extracted Celestials undergo rigorous tactical and psychological training to control volatile power outputs, forging them into disciplined units for the defense of our world order.

A.V.A. CENTRAL DATABASE: SUBJECT SPECIFICATIONS // CELESTIALS

WARNING: CONFIDENTIAL // PHENOMENON RESEARCH BRIEF
BIOLOGICAL AND COSMIC ANOMALY CLASSIFICATION MANIFESTO

Subject Profile: Celestials

DESIGNATION:Celestial-Class Variant

ORIGIN:Human baselines who subsequently manifest unique anomalous metrics following exposure to [DATA EXPUNGED // LEVEL 5 CLEARANCE REQUIRED].

CATALYST:[CLASSIFIED // TOP SECRET]

I. Core Power Typology

ELEMENTAL (EL):The external manipulation, generation, or restructuring of natural forces, raw materials, and elemental matter.

SPATIAL-TEMPORAL (ST):The manipulation of space-time metrics, localized gravity, relative distance, translocation, and temporal vectors.

ENERGY-EMISSION (EE):The generation, absorption, or discharge of pure light, localized plasma, electricity, or destructive cosmic forces.

MENTAL-PSIONIC (MP):Neurological intervention, including telepathy, telekinesis, psychological manipulation, and sensory-neural illusions.

BIOPHYSICAL (BP):Genetic and physiological mutations, including accelerated cellular regeneration, shape-shifting, or extreme physiological adaptations.

II. Threat & Capability Spectrum (1–7 Scale)

Class Designation Capability Level Operational Description
Class 1 Minor / Localized Controlled Anomalous output is confined strictly to the Celestial’s immediate physical form or a negligible radius (e.g., enhanced sensory perception, micro-ignition). Easily managed by standard security.
Class 2 Personnel Moderate Capable of overpowering un-enhanced human forces within closed quarters or short-range engagements (e.g., low-yield telekinesis, localized tissue mending).
Class 3 Tactical High Capable of altering the outcome of a localized skirmish. Effective radius extends to a single structural building or city block (e.g., kinetic displacement of vehicles, brief sensory blackouts).
Class 4 Strategic Heavy Threat Capable of neutralizing a full combat zone. Output can level localized residential zones or permanently disrupt municipal infrastructure (e.g., micro-monsoons).
Class 5 Calamity Mass Destruction Military-grade threat. Anomalous output can devastate an entire metropolitan area, forcibly alter regional weather systems, or collapse major geographical features.
Class 6 Continental Extinction Level Theoretical or highly suppressed Celestials. A single unmitigated release can destabilize structural tectonic plates or instantly vaporize a massive landmass.
Class 7 Cosmic Paradigm Shifting Reality-altering scale. Anomalous signatures capable of distorting global laws of physics or manipulating celestial-level energetic phenomena.

III. Special Hazard Prefixes

When a Celestial's manifested ability exhibits high volatility, environmental toxicity, or inherent lethality, a prefix is appended to dictate immediate tactical adjustments for Extraction and Containment Units.

HAZARD: VOLATILE (V)
Highly unstable Celestials prone to spontaneous combustion, amplification under emotional/psychological duress, or an inability to achieve a complete baseline rest state. (e.g., Energy-Emission Celestials suffering from passive kinetic leakage or ambient radiation bleeding).

HAZARD: APEX (A)
Inherently lethal Celestials that bypass standard organic durability, conventional armor metrics, or synthetic energy shielding. (e.g., Instantaneous cellular decay, spatial tearing, or absolute cognitive deletion).

CELESTIAL BLACK (CB)
THE FORBIDDEN CLASS. Reserved exclusively for unregistered, corruptive, or highly anomalous phenomena. Celestials marked with a CB prefix bypass the standard 1–7 scale entirely. Upper energetic thresholds are unmeasurable, fundamentally hostile to life-sustaining environments, and pose an immediate reality-collapse risk.

A.V.A. CENTRAL DATABASE: CELESTIAL REGISTRY

WARNING: TOP SECRET // ARBOR VITAE ALLIANCE INTERNAL AFFAIRS
UNAUTHORIZED ACCESS IS SUBJECT TO IMMEDIATE CONTAINMENT SENTENCING

Kim Jongdae Photo

Kim Jongdae

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-0921

CODE NAME:921

A.V.A STATUS:Unregistered Celestial / High-Value Target

RANK:N/A

ABILITY:[RESTRICTED]

POWER TYPE/CLASS:[RESTRICTED]

HAZARD CLASS:[RESTRICTED]

Oh Sehun Photo

Oh Sehun

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-0412

CODE NAME:Zephyr

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Extraction Unit Operative (Jishui Team)

ABILITY:Atmospheric Wind

POWER TYPE/CLASS:Elemental (EL) / Class 3 (Tactical - High)

HAZARD CLASS:N/A

Do Kyungsoo Photo

Do Kyungsoo

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-0112

CODE NAME:D.O.

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Extraction Unit Operative / Team Leader (Arcturus Team)

ABILITY:Earth & Heavy Gravity

POWER TYPE/CLASS:Elemental-Gravitational (EL/G) / Class 5 (Calamity - Mass Destruction)

HAZARD CLASS:N/A

Kim Jongin Photo

Kim Jongin

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-0114

CODE NAME:Kai

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Extraction Unit Operative (Arcturus Team)

ABILITY:Teleportation

POWER TYPE/CLASS:Spatial Temporal (ST) / Class 4 (Strategic - Heavy Threat)

HAZARD CLASS:N/A

Kim Minseok Photo

Kim Minseok

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-0326

CODE NAME:Xiumin

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Commander of the Containment Unit

ABILITY:[CLASSIFIED]

POWER TYPE/CLASS:[CLASSIFIED] / Class 6 (Continental - Extinction Level)

HAZARD CLASS:N/A

Zhang Yixing Photo

Zhang Yixing

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-1007

CODE NAME:Lay

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Chief Medical Officer (Medical & Research Unit)

ABILITY:[CLASSIFIED]

POWER TYPE/CLASS:[CLASSIFIED] / Class 6 (Continental - Extinction Level)

HAZARD CLASS:APEX (A)

Kim Junmyeon Photo

Kim Junmyeon

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-0522

CODE NAME:Suho / The Guardian

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Supreme Leader of the Arbor Vitae Alliance

ABILITY:[CLASSIFIED]

POWER TYPE/CLASS:[CLASSIFIED]

HAZARD CLASS:APEX (A)

Byun Baekhyun Photo

Byun Baekhyun

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-0506

CODE NAME:The Grandmaster

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Commander of the Extraction Unit

ABILITY:[CLASSIFIED]

POWER TYPE/CLASS:[CLASSIFIED] / Class 6 (Continental - Extinction Level)

HAZARD TYPE:APEX (A)

Park Chanyeol Photo

Park Chanyeol

FILE NUMBER:Celestial-1127

CODE NAME:Phoenix

A.V.A STATUS:Active

RANK:Extraction Unit Vanguard & Operative

ABILITY:Pyrokinesis

POWER TYPE/CLASS:Elemental (EL) / Class 5 (Calamity - Mass Destruction)

HAZARD CLASS:N/A