Ember

by Madison Daniel

  “Mad Max,” I growled. My mind folded in on itself with rage and my body took over. The world washed over in a crimson hue as the inferno exploded all over me.

  Inferno_23

  ~24: Jem~

  The falling rain saturated the ground in huge fat drops, which made the Lookout fill with puddles in seconds. The sounds of screams were drowned out by the closing thunder. It shook so strongly that the piece of shredded steel stuck through my chest, began to vibrate with a low hum. Slowly I pulled my bloodied torso from it, which should have been excruciating, had the devil inside me not rose up and taken over every waking sense and instinct I had. Fire fueled by hate escaped from every pore I had and the most terrifying thing was...I think I liked it. A lot.

  I wasn’t even free of the steel shish kabob when my body started to heal itself. The flames from the burning brush were still big enough to hide this holy sight from everyone. Everyone except Asia. She was the one closest to me and the only one who knew I was still alive. Her face danced behind the flickering flames as the rain pushed its weight onto the burning brush. She looked like an angel. That calmed me enough to regain control over my actions. Slowly I rose to my feet stretching my face to the drenching rain, filling my mouth with the falling water and I felt reborn. My body absorbed the rain drops as if it were the first time it had ever felt such a creation. My shirt fell at my sides, shredded and soaked, exposing my newly healed chest. It beat heavy with life as the water washed over it. I was revitalized. I felt new. I felt strong. But mostly I felt…mad.

  The rain let up slightly as the brush surrendered its crackling wall of fire, exposing me to the last few onlookers. Sam stared in disbelief. Kai and Marcus were frozen in awe with their mouths wide open. I wanted so badly to run to Sam and take her in my arms. Kiss her hard and show her that I was all right. I wanted to high-five Kai and Marcus as we laughed about how ridiculous I must have looked spinning through the air. Finally, my eyes fell upon Devon’s spiteful glare. I wanted to end him right where he stood.

  Rain dripped from my bangs and the lightning flashed above me, scaring the sun behind the clouds. Fists tightened at my sides. The muscles in my arms flexed. My chest rose to attention with the fire of a thousand suns coursing through its veins. This was my truth. This was me, in all my glory. I exhaled a stream of smoke from my mouth as I marched forward. I was focused only on Devon’s face, with my lips pulled back in a devil’s smile.

  “Max no! Don’t do this!” Sam pleaded as loud as she could but the crumbling thunder muffled her plea. Her hands fell against my exposed chest as she pushed herself in front of me to stop my progress but it was no use now. Devon and his gang had positioned themselves and walked nervously toward me. Not even the terrified anguish in Sam’s green eyes could stop me now. She tried again but Asia stopped her this time and wrapped her arms around her. This infuriated Sam but Asia did not bend in the slightest.

  “He’ll never calm down if either one of us pushes him!” Asia scolded her. Sam only fought her harder.

  “They don’t know how much danger they’re in!” Sam spit out. Asia lost what little patience she had and whipped Sam around and stared directly in her eyes.

  “They will,” Asia said coldly and let Sam go.

  “Whose side are you on anyways?” Asia dared her. Sam retreated to Kai and Marcus. They were both still frozen and trying to see through the blanket of falling rain.

  Devon and I met about ten feet from each other. We paused for only a second before we began to circle each other. Jason and Brian followed his lead as if they were his shadow and the twins circled the opposite way. They cracked their knuckles at the same time and made cackling noises at me. I continued my cautious dance, never taking my eyes from Devon.

  “I guess you lost the race,” I laughed.

  “This was never about a race Valentine. This was about you knowing your place,” Devon spit back.

  “You owe me a bike Valentine!” Jason screeched from behind Devon’s shoulder.

  “Yeah! Do you have any idea what that bike cost?” Brian added. I only smiled bigger at the two henchmen.

  “Damn! I’m going to smash your teeth in!” Jason bellowed. He quickly ripped his ball cap from his messy, wet head. Slowly our dance continued. Our vicious circle became smaller with each rotation.

  “Now’s your chance to back out of this,” Devon warned slowly. Steam rose from my shoulders and my fingernails glowed white with heat.

  “Enough talking,” I growled.

  “Somebody help him!” Sam screamed at Kai and Marcus. Kai took a shaky step forward and I shot him a grave look. I shook my head no, water dripped from my dangling bangs. Kai slowly stepped back with Sam, placing his arm around her. She cried harder in his arms.

  “This is going to be bad,” Marcus said with a chill running down his spine.

  Their attack happened quicker than I was anticipating. The twins, Alex and Eddie, came at my sides first. Their skinny bodies whipping through the downpour. Jason grabbed me from behind as Devon’s head and shoulders slammed into my chest, crushing me between the two. I gasped for air as Brian went for my legs like a starting tackle football player. His solid shoulders plowed into my legs with a force that should have sent me crashing into the mud but the twins had a hold of my arms too tightly. Big mistake.

  My arms blazed over in a thin white hot flame, scolding their hands seriously. I grinned at the smell of burning flesh and then threw my head back, smashing it into Jason’s nose. The dull thud of wetness smacking bone, echoed in my ears as his face split open. He screamed with a choking gag from the gushing blood but was drowned out by the thumping raindrops on the ground. Devon saw this but never stopped throwing his fists into my stomach. Jason fell to the ground gripping his broken face and moaning. Blood washed down his hands in front of his face.

  Brian shook off the sight and stepped back, readying another assault on my body. He fell to one knee readying another tackle. I clenched my teeth together so hard I thought that they might shatter in my mouth and pushed the inferno down my spine. The heat and flames seared what was left of Alex and Eddie’s exposed arms and they jerked their hands from me. Their pain was massive. Eddie ran screaming back towards his truck and Alex fell to his knees, slamming his hands in the nearest puddle. He was crying feverishly and that made me pause long enough to find my footing again.

  Devon paused as well as he realized the odds had drastically changed in a matter of seconds. But he did not retreat, he only grew angrier. His giant paw of a fist swung towards my head but missed as I shifted my weight and shoved a glowing hot fist into his gut. His breath stuttered as the flames hit him. Devon fell backwards and Brian lunged again but missed me this time and slammed all of his body into Alex, who was still on the ground crying. The two tumbled over one another into the mud. Devon could not believe his eyes as he screamed holding his charred stomach.

  “I’ll kill you!” he spat through the rain. “I’ll freakin kill you!”

  “Me first!” I cursed back. My throat was caked with blood and the rain streamed from our grimaced faces like gargoyles. I inhaled a quick breath and with the swiftness of a sword, I cut through the rain and stabbed my hands into his chest and neck. He grabbed at them and gasped as they began to burn. The unleashed rage within me was now a monster. I watched as his eyes filled with fear. My face was only inches from his as my breath burned his eyes and the falling rain hid his tears. He started to lose his footing from the lack of oxygen, shrinking toward the mud. Lightning slapped the clouds around us and the wind swirled like a vortex.

  “Max…look out!” Asia warned but it was too late. I barely caught Brian with the corner of my eye before he ran up with something in his hands. I started to turn toward him when the long cold metal of the softball bat collided with my ribs and chest. My equilibrium went spinning and my flaming hands snapped back to normal.

  “How’s that feel freak?” Brian shrieked with fear. I winced as my breath left me and my grip loosened from Dev
on’s neck. Before I could get my sense of direction again the bat connected a second time, sending a shooting pain down my spine. My left arm managed to close itself around the bat and I heated it instantly, burning Brian’s slippery hands. Amazement flashed over his face as he ran back toward the truck in agony. He had easily broken almost half my ribs and the pain was crippling. Devon choked as the oxygen returned to his lungs. Jason slowly pulled himself to his feet, clutching his bleeding face with one hand and dragged Alex back to the truck with his other. His twin brother Eddie was still cowering and shaking uncontrollably.

  “Samantha belongs to me!” Devon howled with his last breath. A shooting pain blasted inside my chest and Asia screamed. The rain fell black as night, blinding everyone for a moment. My eyes fell to my chest. In slow motion, Devon’s hand pulled a 5 inch blade from a new gaping hole. The wound was horrific and spewed blood like a waterfall. He smiled at me with blood in his teeth and my survival mode kicked in again.

  My hands reached out for him and caught him by his collarbone. He cursed like a banshee as I spun him around and slid behind his back. My hands burned white hot again and fell through the skin on the back of his neck as I shoved forward with all my might. He thrust forward, with his legs flailing from behind him. He crashed into the muddy puddle below us with a thick splash. I fell to one knee and shoved even harder.

  “Stop! You’re going to kill him!” Sam screamed at me but I couldn’t hear her very well over the pulsating waves of rain and ringing in my head. When I managed to open my mouth to answer her I was cut short.

  Eddie had found his second wind and was running toward me at full speed. His face looked terrified but he moved like he was in complete control.

  “Ahhh!!!” he groaned as the tire iron connected with my face. It tore open my left cheek, slicing all the way to my ear. With one blow he had leveled the playing field and my grip fell from Devon’s shoulders as I collapsed into the mud. Rain poured over me, blurring everything around me. He stood above me screaming and laughing in hysterics when the first hint of emergency sirens penetrated the torrent of rain. I lied dizzy and choking on the falling rain.

  Sam ran up to Devon and me crying uncontrollably. As I let my eyes focus on her, her gentle hands began to help Devon up from the puddle and I snapped…again.

  “No!!!” I screamed with mud in my throat.

  Like a bullet I was on my feet again and barreling into Eddie’s skinny, trembling body. I shoved him all the way back to his truck and we crashed into the side of it with a solid thud. He squealed in pain as I realized my hands had dug themselves into his chest and were scorching his flesh. Asia ran up behind me quickly, placed her hand on my shoulder and her electricity zoomed through me like a drug.

  “Enough,” she said confidently. I broke my grip on him only to feel my rage over take me again. My hands slammed into the truck on both sides of Eddie’s shoulders. He slid down through my arms weeping like a child as I shook the bed with every bit of strength I had left. The metal surrendered to my rage, bending and vibrating.

  The sirens were almost upon us now and I felt my control slowly coming back. Asia turned me around as the rain fell away. The sun rolled from behind the clouds again, bringing much needed light again.

  “Easy Max. I’m here now,” she said as she caressed my face and her cool hands felt so soothing. Her voice was also comforting and calming.

  “It’s going to be okay,” she promised and shifted her body so no one could see my face heal itself. The skin along my face slid together in a white hot seam of fire. The last of her storm washed away the excess blood quickly.

  “We have to go Max…now,” she scolded. She led me to her Jeep with one hand. Sam had already begun walking Devon to the approaching ambulance and my heart sank. She warned me not to do this but I didn’t listen. She only glared at me through her wet blonde locks as Asia and I drove off in the opposite direction.

  “Take me home Asia,” I said exhausted. “I don’t know how I’m going to explain this to anyone.”

  “Don’t worry, you were only protecting yourself,” she sounded confident enough. I didn’t believe her.

  “Most of the witnesses couldn’t see what was really happening during the fight. The rain was too thick,” she winked. I was too exhausted to think about it.

  “Thanks,” I tried to smile.

  “Besides, if anything comes of this, I have the best lawyers on the island.” She floored it and we raced away.

  Back at the Lookout the police looked for anyone to question but everyone had already left. Devon and what was left of the four horsemen were placed in the ambulance. Not a single person said a word about what had just occurred. Sam held Devon’s bloody hand all the way to the hospital. Kai and Marcus drove Sam’s car back to the school parking lot to get Kai’s vehicle.

  “I’ve never seen anything like that Kai,” Marcus said coldly.

  “Me either brother,” Kai tried to smile but couldn’t. They said nothing else and drove home in silence.

  2:07 p.m.

  As Asia and I pulled up to my house, the weight of my actions had begun to fall on me. She leaned over and checked my chest and left cheek, then ran her slender fingers through my messed hair.

  “We make a good team,” she said coyly. I was way too tired to play any of her games. Not today…not now.

  “I guess,” I shrugged with guilt in my words.

  “Max I know I walked away but you don’t have all the facts.”

  “Lucy told me all about the phone call,” I said cold. She stared at me searching for the right words.

  “Oh,” she was soft.

  “I don’t care what your parents think about me Asia,” I spit out. She slid closer to me.

  “I don’t care either,” she whispered. Her lips pressed softly against mine. I tried to pull away but I no longer had the strength to fight the urge. As I opened the door and stepped from the truck her eyes flashed with confidence.

  “I can fix this Max,” she smiled and flipped her hair a little.

  “I can fix us.” Then she drove off.

  Crave_24

  ~Crave: Nuno Bettencourt~

  Tuesday morning – 9:27 a.m. – August 29th.

  The smell of cherry blossoms filled the air as my eyes pulled apart to the morning rays of sunlight dancing across my face. At first I thought I might still be dreaming when her dark curls tickled my cheeks and her breath swept across my lips. Finally, when her cool hand traced my stomach, I realized that Asia was here in the flesh and starting my morning off as if I were royalty.

  She was wearing a thin white top with spaghetti straps and the word ‘DAMSEL’ in bold red letters, stretched across the front of it. Her little denim shorts exposed the arch of her lower back. A much better ensemble then I was waking up in, an Aerosmith concert tee shirt and faded boxers. As my brain tried to make sense of this morning delight, a horrible thought crashed the party and I turned my head quickly. Morning breath.

  “Wake up sleeping beauty,” she whispered. She then tossed herself on the bed, only inches from me.

  “I have a surprise for you.”

  “What time is it?” I sounded grumpy. My fingers pealed the gunk from the corner of my eyes, while they tried to accept how bright my room was from the blasts of daylight peppering my window.

  “It’s time to get up. You are officially ditching school today…lets go,” her voice was cheery and light. School was the last thing I wanted to deal with today and I was sure Frank would not approve of another day off. My eyes caught the flashing green digits of my clock and it read 9:30 a.m. Crap, I was already late; I might as well take Asia up on her offer. I did find it weird that no one had swung by to pick me up for school.

  “Okay…you win.”

  I sat up slowly in my bed wondering why Asia sounded so cheery, especially after the drama of yesterday afternoon. Suddenly, I realized the sun was shining brightly and there wasn’t even a hint of a cloud in the sky. She noticed my face fill with
doubt at this realization. Her face filled with a soft smile.

  “Weird huh,” she joked as she ran her arms through the warm sunlight. It washed over her skin, warming her gently. I hadn’t seen her in direct sunlight too often, at least not like this. She was stunning. She moved like a poem. Her healthy almond skin complimented her rich dark hair, which had the faintest hint of blue scattered throughout it. We settled into a sweet, peaceful moment where I wished time would stop.

  “No…not weird at all,” I said as I rolled over the top of her and swept her hair off of her shoulders, making it fan out on the bed above her.

  “So what’s different?” I asked.

  “Hmmm…” She softly bit her lower lip and shrugged her shoulders. “Just really happy I guess,” she finished with a whisper. I could have spent the rest of my life in that moment, soaking in every ounce of her being, but I was becoming more aware of how much I needed a shower. As I rose from the bed I stretched my arms out, cracking a few bones in my back. Stumbling across my room I glanced back at her.

  “Be back in a few.” I shuffled toward my door, removing my shirt and tossing it into the dirty laundry basket by my closet. A low rumbling came from outside my window and the sun’s rays fell behind a cloud, changing the color of my room. I turned back to Asia who was now on her stomach with her legs folded up in the air behind her. They were slowly swaying from side to side and she was staring at me with her hand under her chin, looking as if she were hungry. Her eyes scanned my body and the thunder rumbled again, which made me heat up in embarrassment. I think my entire body blushed.

  “I’ll be here,” she purred.

  I climbed in the shower and cleaned my ins and outs as fast as I could, in fear that she would be gone before I was done. To my surprise, I was pleasantly proven wrong. She lied along my bed in the same position that I had left her in and she hadn’t moved an inch. Her smile greeted me as she tossed me one of my old tank tops.