Breaking The Balance

Breaking The Balance - Dark Beginnings Will Have Dark Ends

Have you ever sat down somewhere and just thought about the reasons why you were there? Just allowed yourself to think about the events that led up to this moment and wonder why they occurred, what their significance in your life was and what the world would be like if everything had turned out differently. In this case, Jordan allowed these thoughts to drift through his mind as they flew through the air – heading towards the small village where Mianite did his old experiments. Nobody spoke directly about where they were going, knowing that it would only set off another argument between Caitlin and Mianite, who had clearly not left these terrible events behind them and moved on.

Each of them had their own angel wings and were gliding through the night sky as a group, flanking one another as if they were a legitimate flock of birds migrating as the weather turned cold. Jordan flew at the back, claiming to be guarding the rear but really just wanting some time for himself where no judging eyes could watch him. It was strange for Jordan, flying without Ianita on his back – giggling and laughing at the various antics of the animals under them or quietly marvelling at the beauty of nature as Jordan pointed it out. A sad smile haunted Jordan's face as he scanned the landscape beneath him, his gaze sweeping the savannah in search of the tell-tale mountain range that Mianite said marked the entrance to the village.

Nobody cared to admit it but they were all worried about one another, with the focus of concern being Ianita and by extension Caitlin. The blood pact with Ianita was clearly affecting her more than she wanted to let on, with the beats of her wings becoming slower and more sluggish as the flight drew on – her face blank in order to conceal her emotions but her eyes screaming with pain with each minute that went by. Sonja flew close to her, waiting to catch her in case she passed out and tumbled out of the sky. They couldn't afford to lose the only link to Ianita's location as Tucker said. The range of scars on Caitlin's body worried Sonja a great deal, with her struggling to tell which ones were fresh and which ones were from previous encounters and battles. Tucker and Mianite flew side by side, discussing battle plans and offensive strategies to make the most of the spare time they had as they flew. Wag and Martha flew in silence, forced next to one another by the formation but Martha refused to speak to Wag, still not comfortable with his crimes and brushing off his attempts to start a conversation.

"There are the mountains! Let's fly down, circle the area and find a safe spot to land – do not break formation."

Moving in unison, the group flew down and circled the small village – the site of abandoned buildings eating away at their confidence and fuelling their unease as they landed just outside the forest that circled the town. The trees would hopefully shield their landing but there was no way to be sure that the Shadows did not have eyes everywhere. Judging by Caitlin's current state, the demonic creature was occupied with Ianita and so would not come after them. That didn't stop the group from jumping at every shadow that moved in their peripheral vision. Jordan grabbed his sword from its sheath and held it carefully by his side, his arm in the prime position to strike if anything attempted to jump out at them. Walking as a unit, with people covering all angles, the group made their way into the village – checking nook and cranny but finding no signs of life. The village was completely deserted and Mianite didn't look surprised.

"Where is everyone?"

Mianite gestured for the group to follow him, making his way past the empty houses and venturing behind what the group had guessed to be a small church. Behind the church was a graveyard. There were hundreds of graves, all neatly dug and given makeshift gravestones made out of stones – each of them saying the same thing: "I'm Sorry."

"How does showing us a graveyard help us find where Ianita is being held?"

Tucker spoke up at this point, an uncomfortable expression crossing his face – clearly, graveyards creeped him out. Mianite merely shook his head and grabbed a shovel, heading towards the centre grave and beginning to dig it up. Jordan winced at the thought of having to move a dead body out of the way but thankfully the grave was empty – except for a staircase. If that wasn't a major warning sign that something fishy had been going on down there, then Jordan wasn't sure what would be. They all walked down the stone steps, their shoes slipping on the mildew and the damp walls sending shudders down their spines each time they had to grab onto it for support. The staircase seemed to go on forever, descending further and further into the earth until all the light they had to see by was the torches they had hastily made.