Solar Flame

Chapter Six

Emelie woke to sunlight floating through billowing beige-coloured curtains.  There was a deep throbbing in the back of her head, and the light made her wince in pain. She saw that she was lying on a white bed, covered in a thin blanket.  Most startling was the boy curled up in bed around her, arms wrapped tightly over her midsection.  Looking at his sleeping face memories flashed into her head, first of the hooded men and being lifted into the air, then of the fall and meeting the eyes of the boy with golden-brown eyes. 

"The boy," she gasped, "he looks just like the one from her dreams, from before."

Her startle caused Matthieyl to stir. Opening his eyes slowly he smiled as he saw her figure curled in his arms. "Em..." he breathed, using the childhood name she used to go by. 

"Matty?" she asked, turning to look at him more fully.  A wide smile spread across his face, and the golden flecks in his eyes sparkled.  She had not known she knew the boy's name, it had just appeared in her mind as if it was always there. "How...what...what's going on?" she asked, starting to push away from him.  Holding a more frantic and angry tone Emelie continued, "you were all gone! You let the hoods come...and Mom and...-and Dad.  And they were dead and you said..." The sobbing had now started, and the lights were starting to flicker in the room. "And you said we would be okay! You said you wouldn't let them take me away!"

Emelie was now standing against the corner of her portioned off section in the infirmary.  Memories she never knew she had, memories that had been locked away for years were surfacing, being triggered by knowing the boy.  

Seeing her rising panic, and the steam starting to roll off her body as if her tears were quenching the surfacing flames, Matthieyl rose to his knees on the bed.  He reached out for her hand slowly.  Emelie yanked hers away just before Matthieyl reached it.  "Em," he started painstakingly, "I did everything I could! When I woke you were gone! I fell asleep clutching your hand and when I woke up you weren't there.  Someone- or something- took you away in the night.  No one could find you.  We've never stopped looking." Matthieyl inhaled a few times, trying to slow the anxiety creeping into him and his words. "I came here, to the Academy as soon as I could.  I was five.  I wanted to learn everything-to...to train- to fight, just so I could find you and bring you back.  That's twelve years.  I spent twelve years waiting and looking for you."

Matt was now crying too, and sat back onto the bed, wanting to float peacefully back to the moments where she was sleeping peacefully in his arms.  "I'm sorry," he whispered brokenly, "I tried Em, I really tried."

Something in Matt's crying face tugged Emelie from inside.  A new set of memories flashed through her mind.  Images of a young brown-haired toddler running through a familiar house that looked as if it had been turned upside down, screaming her name.  Another of the same boy, a few years older waving solemnly at a car in which his parents were driving away.  Many flashed of the boy growing older at the school, being beaten by the older kids in training, learning to manipulate magic, spending nights at the library pouring over maps while others were playing or sleeping.  The most prominent was of a little girl with bright blonde hair.  Her green eyes sparkled silver back at the boy, and she laughed overjoyed when he made a golden flower appear in her hands.  He promptly presented it to her.  These memories weren't hers. 

Emelie's eyes opened wide after the flashed stopped. "But how?" she asked, her eyes focusing again on Matt.  The last memory was the one that appeared over and over again to her in her dreams.  He was the boy, that much was clear.  "But how did these memories get in my head?" 

Matthieyl read the thoughts off her face.  "Em... I know there is a lot to understand still.  All I can tell you is that the two of us are connected.  I know you might not fully understand what that means yet, but I will try to explain everything soon.  But right now you need to rest, yesterday took a lot out of you, so please come back to bed for a while?" It was as if something had melted between them, as Em came towards him, and he pulled her close to his chest, cradling her on top of him in the infirmary. 

Further down the hall, the lightbulbs finally sizzled and popped, causing small explosions of sparks.  This time, neither of them noticed.  

-X-X-X-X-

When she awoke again Matt was gone.  Beside her on the bed written on a torn paper was a rough outline of what she assumed to be the Academy's grounds.  Written on the edge was a scribbled note saying, "Sorry Em, I had to go to training.  I will be back before long! You can find me here."  This was coupled with an arrow pointing to a room on the map.  

Next to the bed on a small table was a small bundle of fresh clothes and a towel.  After refreshing herself in the infirmary's shower, she dressed in a dark pair of jeans and a loose, long-sleeve black shirt.  

Walking through the hall's double doors, she began following the rough outline towards what was marked as the indoor training arena.  What she saw was not what Emelie had been expecting.  Matthieyl was standing in the center of the room dressed in shorts and a sweaty t-shirt which stuck to his back.  His arms were outstretched; in the air were various weights, weapons, and other students, floating dispondently while under Matthieyl's control. Em watched as simple movements from his fingers lead to the disarming of all the students one by one.

"Enough," a sharp voice sounded from the corner of the room.  A middle-aged man dressed in all black stood with his arms crossed, glaring disappointedly at his students.  His grey and black peppered hair was pulled back into a low ponytail.  With a nod of from his jutted chin, Matt lowered his arms so that all of the students and objects were returned to the ground.  "Can anyone tell me what happened there?/" The man began pacing the room, looking menacingly at each student in turn.

An average-sized male, although still fit, stepped forward.  "Sir, it is unfair for us to try to combat Matthyiel's magic when it can manipulate all of ours."  The teacher's beady eyes swiveled to turn on the boy.

"Rikelle, how surprising," the teacher snarled sarcastically.  "Rikelle would you care to explain to me how fair it would be if you had to fight a pack of shadow hoods with the power to silence the magic from within you? What will you do then? Whine and complain?"  The boy lowered his head in shame.

The teacher then turned to the entire class, now irate.  "You all need to work harder, find ways around it.  Magic isn't the only answer or the only thing you'll be fighting! You need to use your minds!"  Turning on his heels he swung to look at Matt. "And Matthieyl! You should know that you need to work more on the physical side of combat considering the completing of your connection is coming up.  You DO NOT know what that is going to do to your abilities.  Take two everyone! Then we go again!"

Matthieyl and many of the boys walked exhausted to a bench, alternating between sipping water and wiping away the sweat.  As Matt began to lift off his soaked shirt, some of the girls from the other side of the room began to giggle and chatter excitedly.  Em did not need to look to know there were balls of fire forming in her hands.  When one flew out of her hand, just nearly missing the girl striding over to talk to Matt, the class finally noticed her presence.  Matt's eyes flew u to meet Em's just before she turned to flee the room, leaving murmurs rippling through the class.