Chapter 10: A Fated Reunion
Tiafell and his friends stood before the ruins of an abandoned town that was thriving not very long ago. Many of the buildings were partially collapsed and others were demolished completely, with very few still intact. It was eerily quiet.
"This is.. was Gatharham.." Cirris sighed.
"I don't recognize it anymore" Mirya wiped tears from her eyes. Her brother put his arm around her.
"I'm not trying to sound morbid, but where are all the bodies?"
"I heard the Gashuan Military arrived and burned all the bodies they found. They came to look for survivors but found no one alive" Nadia informed them. The thought nauseated Cirris and Mirya. "But yet, I smell fresh blood in the air. Someone died here recently, a group of people!"
"Let's hurry to Samora's shop and see what we can find there, it may be more dangerous here than we realized" Tiafell suggested. They made their way through the ruins, taking in the sights of the devastated town. It was clearly a busy town before, but now all that was left were lifeless ruins and a deafening silence. Other than occasional animals, there were no signs of life anywhere. Various items lay scattered around the streets such as clothes, shoes, rotting food, purses, toys, and other things that people would have carried with them while out in public. There were also weapons lying around, swords, bows, arrows, staves, to name a few. Further into town, they discovered human corpses strown about the street. Mirya gasped at the sight, many of them were mangled or ripped apart.
"Who were these people? I don't recognize any of them!" Cirris asked.
"They look like thieves; they must have moved in after the military left. An abandoned town like this one is the perfect place for them to set up a hideout in" Nadia stated.
Tiafell, though sickened by the sight and the smell, examined one of the bodies. "These men were killed this morning. I also detect traces of potent demonic energy!"
"Is it still here??" Mirya was nervous.
"No, I only sense animals around us."
"Hopefully whatever killed them was just passing through and is long gone. Come on, let's do what we came here to do and get the hell out of here in case it decides to come back!" Nadia said.
After further navigating the streets of the ruined town, they reached Samora's shop. The structure was still standing but had suffered the same fate as most of the others. Every window was broken, the shop's sign was lying on the ground, holes had been blown out of some of the walls.
"We were in the Town Square when they came for us." Cirris said.
"If we had been home, the shop probably wouldn't be standing at all" Mirya added.
"I just need something that has your mom's energy on it, some of her clothes would be the best source. If I have that, I can get an idea of where she could have gone, I'm hoping her trail leads out of here" Nadia told them as they went inside. Bottles laid shattered, the counter was in shambles, and glass from the shattered windows lined the floor. They headed upstairs, finding evidence that the living quarters had been raided. Almost all their belongings were gone or destroyed, much to the distress of Cirris and Mirya.
Tiafell broke the somber silence, feeling the weight of the twins' sorrow. "Do you think that some of Samora's clothes would have been left behind?"
"Let's go and see" Nadia said as she opened a door.
They went into Samora's bedroom, which had been similarly devastated. Upon opening her closet, they discovered most of her clothes were gone, save for a few articles. Cirris and Mirya's expressions saddened even further.
"Hey, I know this is hard, but I can work with this. We'll find her!" Nadia confided to them, hoping to lift their spirits a bit. She then took a blouse and held it in her hands, closing her eyes to focus. "I've got it! I have a lock on her energy! Follow me, I'll take you as far as the trail will go!"
"Thank you so much, Nadi" Mirya smiled a bit.
Together, they left the shop with Nadia leading the way. After walking for several minutes, they entered the Town Square, the most damaged part of the town. The sun had begun to set, limiting their light.
"Her energy is all over the place" Nadia looked around as she followed the trail.
"This is where the attack started, and where we were captured. I remember we were taken down there" Cirris pointed down a street.
"Nadi? Can you tell if the trail ends here...? Mirya nervously asked.
"Just a second.." Nadia closed her eyes and focused. After reopening them, she walked to the center of the square and looked up. "From this spot, her energy goes up into the air. But how?"
"Mom flies on a broom!" Cirris perked up.
"Then that means she left!! She's alive!!" Mirya began sobbing.
"She must not have been able to see which way they took you, so it would make sense that she would take to the air to look for you." Nadia continued.
"That's possible, it was pretty chaotic here" Cirris answered.
"I'm so happy for you both!" Tiafell told them, relieved to finally hear something good after spending time in such a depressing place.
"Yeah. It seems like she flew all over the place and then went toward the mountain. I can't follow it beyond that." Nadia crossed her arms.
"I know, but this means more to me and Cirris than you will ever know. Now we must find her somehow!" Mirya smiled but Tiafell caught her attention. When she turned to look at him, he appeared to be very frightened. "Tee-Tee?"
Tiafell was trembling. His eyes were as wide as possible and his mouth was hanging open, his jaw quivering. Small whimpers escaped from his throat.
