The earth is careening straight down the tracks to hell and the humans are at fault.
Trapped in the dungeons of an ancient burial grounds and tortured to the brink of insanity, the God and Goddess of balance have been separated, unleashing a terrib...
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Gathering up their belongings, the three of them sling packs over their shoulders and start to climb through the brush. Daniel takes lead, Theron a few steps behind and Remi beside me.
We walk a similar pace, but I also get the feeling she's only waiting around to ask me something. Even still, we keep up nicely and jump over fallen logs and decaying forest floor.
It's broken, empty, the sanctuary growing distant and far away. Hopefully, the life restored will nurture further sprouts and blossoms. Though, in this location, there didn't appear to be many flowers. Simply grass and overgrown moss. Lush life to house many fuzzy creatures.
Not that I was any Snow White.
It almost felt like a tired march, watching these three try to traverse the thick wooden graveyard. Death at every wake and turn.
Remi begins humming to herself, wringing her hands together in some form of consolation which didn't appear to be working. Her eyes, full of water and pain, glisten in the rising gold light. Her steps wander closer and closer to me until our shoulders brush. She panics a little, pulling away with hesitation in her eyes.
"What's wrong?" I whisper quietly, gesturing for her to come back.
Remi closes the gap but doesn't say anything, fingers brushing subconsciously against her legs. They twitch each time, her mentality writhing more. Whatever thought process it is, is consuming her.
Instead of pushing, I just breathe and look out over the fields in every direction. Even burnt, several strands of grass tickle my ankles within a few steps. Naked, none of this bothers me. My feet do not hurt with the sharp rock and dirt below, nor do I notice the intensifying heat with the suns gentle glaze.
We make remarkable progress within the first hour.
"This city's uninhabited," I say loud enough for the boys to hear me, taking another sniff and trying to listen. "It's either been ransacked or something killed everyone."
"Thanks Genius," Theron replies with a dramatic show of hands. "Look around you, Iridian. Everything is dead. The trees, the plants, the people... Nothing was safe back then and now it's all dead."
My jaw clicks in frustration but I lift my chin and decide to ignore the comment.
Daniel takes a moment before looking back at us. As I watch his disposition shift, I make note of his eyes. Every single time they graze over me, he locks onto my own and does not wander.
He shrugs, irises turning dark. "You've been missing for 96 years, don't listen to him."
A laugh bursts out of me. "You think I've listened to him once?"
The small smile returns and I feel the comfort and the warmth reverse the ice in his eyes. Daniel glances playfully in Theron's direction, the brooding male hardly fazed. "You're right, it sounds like static most of the time."
