The Fallen Memory

Chapter Four ~ A Fire Burns Inside

After they left, Ryder laid there, his mind whirling with what he had just overheard.

What were they talking about? What secret have they kept from me?

A burning sensation erupted from his stone heart, spreading throughout his body, agitating his nerves. His whole body felt wired with rage and accusation. He jerked the covers off his body, throwing the silk across the room. Sweat beaded on his skin, rolling down his body as he jumped from the bed. He landed in a graceful crouch, his back arched as he withheld the scream that threatened to spill from his lips.

His legs and hands had begun to shake, causing him to fall to his knees. One arm wrapped around his chest, trying to keep his heart from exploding and pounding out of his torso. He squeezed his eyes shut, trying to block out the pain that had found its way into his head. The smell of burning wood hit him. His eyes snapped open just as his chest heaved, his breath rushing out of him.

Around his palm was a blaze of fire. Orange and red and yellow traced its way up his arm, following the pattern of his tattoo that was every shade of sunset. It was a swirling mass of flames that danced in the darkness of his room. Smoke billowed from his palm, the smell of burning oak filling the chilly air, suffocating his dysfunctional lungs. He jerked his hand away. In the middle of his floor was a charred imprint of his hand, the sides still glowing with cooling embers.

He fell backwards, knocking his head on the side of his bed. Black started to tinge the corners of his vision. He watched as the flames closest to his palm began to turn blue. Panic flooded him as he stared unable to do anything. The tattoo that coiled around his body had changed from black to orange, the edges tinged with the blue. Sweat rolled off his skin, soaking him like he had just gotten out of the shower. His hair stuck to his face, the tips curling around his head in a black halo. A fire engulfed his arm, trailing its way to his heart.

A scream worked its way into his throat, disintegrating the silence that had imprisoned his room. His back arched against the cool floor as the flesh over his heart began to rip, outlining the shape of the scar that marred his granite body for centuries. He felt the gold blood gush from the wound, trailing down his torso, staining the wood, turning it to solid gold. His eyes squeezed shut, his teeth grinding together. He tasted iron and metal as he bit his tongue.

Another scream erupted from him, shattering the glass vase that held a bouquet of forget-me-not flowers. He rolled over, bracing himself against the floor. Flames still licked at his skin, trailing their way across his body. Gold dripped from his chest, transforming whatever it touched into gold. One hand gripped his chest, trying to stop the bleeding. The other gripped the floor, his nails digging into the hardwood. The pain that had originated in his head had begun to work its way through his body.

His eyes snapped open, as a scream ruptured from his weak body. The wail felt like it was ripping him apart, shredding him into a million tiny slivers of excruciating pain.

He could faintly hear footsteps, a knock on his door. Gold light had begun to seep from under his door, battling against the darkness as it wrapped itself around him.

Someone had turned the hall light on.

Without thinking, he jumped up, almost falling from lack of energy. He stumbled over to the bay windows, his flaming fingers fumbling over the locks. The door rattled as someone tried to open it.

Somehow he had locked it.

"Ryder?" A voice floated into the dark void that had encased him.

He hesitated. His glazed eyes turned to the door as it shook with a fervent force.

"Ryder, it's me, Alyxa. Can you open the door?"

Anger boiled in him. He backed away from the window, then shifted - and jumped through.

He heard the door break off its hinges as someone screamed his name.

Glass rained down around him as he fell. He closed his eyes, relishing in the freedom he felt as he waited for the release that would take him away and into the night.