Troy Hocker and Hugh Simpson, linemen for the Oklahoma Gas and Electric
Company, were repairing wires on top of a pole in Oklahoma one afternoon
recently. As they worked, they engaged in banter. It was nearly five
o’clock—their quitting time—but neither looked at his watch. The engineer
down at the power house saw it was ten minutes past five, time to turn
on the city’s arc lights. He pulled down the switch and sent 2,300
volts out to light the city. The men up on the pole ceased their banter.
Their bodies became stiff. Those on the ground laughed. This must be
some new prank of the boys. Then someone noticed smoke issuing from
Hocker’s shoes. Back at the power plant the amperage was fluctuating back
and forth, and the engineer knew something was amiss. He threw off the
current—but the men were already dead.
_A New Story by Julian Kilman, Master of Weird Fiction_