Flames salivated at the sight of him and crept into his cell slowly, sending smoke ahead to choke him, but the blue light still needed more time. He stood waiting for it. Burning the top of his ears and singeing his hair, the blaze was ready to devour him when, picked up and pushed from his stupor by all his body's instinct, Randy broke into a sudden sprint as the fire engulfed the entire cell behind him. The hallways crumbled at his feet as he ran. Dark ash flakes snowed from the ceiling and black smoke ballooned, gulping peaceful air into its hungry belly. Patients and orderlies fought among the rubble of the corridors. A convulsion hit Randy in mid sprint and bounced him off a wall and onto the ground. Dull hums ebbed and flowed in his ears, and his head rang with pain. Disoriented and exhausted he tried to stand, when a massive silence confused him. The anarchy hushed for a moment and swept throughout the sanitarium in a pulse. The calm air was eerie until the surge passed and a huge explosion followed.
