Lander trudged down the pebble-stone path along with Aleka, Basil and Cadie. They had eventually exited the bar after mustering up the courage. Courage planted in the light of the sun. It was early morning.

Lander strutted in sync along with his fellow warriors while Cadie struggled to keep up with their pace. She would have been able to keep up if she wasn't letting paranoia get the best of her.

She briefly remembered how cold her blood felt while they were in the woods. It was a familiar feeling, but she couldn't place her finger on it. Something Sibyl had described to her a long time ago. She taught her to fear it which wasn't hard since the darkness it summoned was terrifying enough. 

Maybe the other elders would be able to lend a helping hand since that's where they were heading. An experience like that was not meant to be kept a secret. But it left her feeling wary of merely standing still out in the open. She frantically scanned at the heads of the trees they passed, careful not to stare too long in case she saw something she wouldn't like.

The familiar temple grounds of the elders came into view. It was their new dwelling after they left the old temple. The dirt path led up to the ancient cement building, coated in plain brick. There weren't any trees close to the building, instead, they stood far off. Cadie couldn't remember why they were that way. Her memory was blurred in some places.

She watched as Basil reached up to knock on the metal doors, but they opened with the sound of metal groaning before he could. Elias stood there dressed in a white robe with eyes so dark, they seemed to draw you into a bottomless pit. He silently beckoned them in. 

They were led to a warmly lit room. There weren't any windows in sight. Red candles stood on the walls and on almost any flat surface they could find, all lit. Mahail and Yanni, the other two elders, sat crossed-leg on cotton sheets laid on the floor. They looked up at Basil and the others with a bored expression. Cadie knew they were expecting them. She glanced around and noticed a table filled with Sibyl's items. Her heart swelled.

"What brings you here?" Elias asked. A question which would have been fit to ask at the door, but he chose to draw them in. He was next in command if anything were to happen to Sibyl. 

Basil proceeded to speak but became silent once he realized he had no clue of what to say. He turned to look at Lander and Aleka for help. Lander stepped forward, though his eyes could not meet the intense glare of Elias.

"We have made a dreadful discovery," he began with eyes cast to the ground. "We've found Sibyl." Mahail sighed with a distraught look whilst Yanni paled. Silence came upon them as Lander chose not to elaborate.

"I presume she has passed on..." Elias concluded and then pressed his lips into a thin line. He seemed more stressed than saddened as he raised a hand to run through his thick jet hair.

"No," Cadie interjected. She wobbled on the spot. "We can still help her." Her wide, walnut eyes contained a small twinge of hope. A little voice reminded her of the chilling fear she felt in the woods. No one deserved to die at the hands of that... whatever it was. All the others in the room turned to face her, completely intrigued. "Nara could help."

"Nara?" Yanni questioned with a raised brow. "She's far off performing a job that she cannot leave unattended for one second."

"Exactly," Elias agreed firmly. "Her concentration may be the only thing keeping us alive." Cadie's brows furrowed together in confusion. Why were they so unwilling to help? Her hope turned to sudden anger.

"This is sickening," she spat. "If it were any of you, Sibyl would stop at nothing to bring you back." Elias took a step forward and Cadie automatically took on back.

"At this time, you know it's best to focus on what's really at stake. Our home is about to be destroyed! Why bring her back, just for all of us to die in the end?" Elias asked, his dark coloured eyes seeming dangerously callous.

Cadie huddled closer to Basil.

"How did she die?" Mahail asked after being silent.

"Doesn't matter," Elias said before Lander could answer. "We have work to do."

***

Inside the old temple that was currently being used for rehearsals, Aria stood in the front of twelve young girls dressed in white gowns. She beamed as they all wore smiles, waiting for the metronome to queue. Music was a huge part of Aspeon's culture that was taken very seriously. All tunes were to be composed in perfection and delivered without error. Aria had taken any classes to learn an instrument but she was born talented in using her voice.

She placed a finger in the air and the girls began to sing a blissful tune in harmony.

'Down by the river by the boats

Where everybody goes to be alone

Where you won't see any rising sun

Down to the river, we will run

Oh my God, I see

How everything is torn in the river deep

And I don't know why I go the way

Down by the riverside'

Aria stopped them there. The tune was perfect but they didn't have time to finish rehearsing. It was getting late and they were all too young to be out at this time.

"Time to go, girls," she announced. They all scattered to the back rooms to change into their other clothes. All, except one named Nyssa who walked straight towards her. Her lips formed a pout.

"Why are we doing this?" she asked blatantly. "This song is so sad." Aria shrugged.

"Isn't that how we all feel right now? Music is all about expressing those deeply embedded emotions." Nyssa nodded in agreement, but Aria could have sensed she wasn't done yet.

"Yes, but this song just sounds like we've accepted our fate."

"Well, do you have any suggestions?" Nyssa shook her head. "It's okay." Aria placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. "Accepting it makes it easier to deal with. The fact we don't know the day, the hour, the minute, it's unnerving. But singing about it helps. Now go change." Nyssa sighed and went to the back to join the others. 

Aria was always worried about her. She was so different from the others. Her way of thought and insight on matters was something she admired. 

Within a few minutes, they were all out and followed Aria outside. The walk was filled with their giggles and bursts of laughter, until one by one, they departed to their individual homes.

Once Aria had walked each girl to their respective homes safely, she started her journey to hers. She could have seen her house in the distance. Everyone lived relatively close on each other.

Aria approached the bottoms stairs into their balcony. A shrub, three steps behind her, wiggled quite noticeably. She paused her left foot already on the first step. She stared at the shrub, waiting for it to make some form of movement, but it didn't. Aria proceeded up to the second step and froze at the sound of rustling leaves. She peeked over her shoulder at the shrub again. Not one leaf seemed out of place.

She continued to walk up the stairs and the sound of something of lurking behind her became louder, but she didn't dare stop. Not this time. Pity her boot got stuck at the last step as her stroll fastened into a light run, but she didn't care. She was already in her balcony. She stooped to unhinge her boot, and whilst near the ground, she pried her keys out of her pocket. Her fingers fumbled to find the right key whilst her other hand tugged at the stuck boot; the sound of an orchestra playing in disharmony raged on in her head. 

Eventually, she stood to unlock the door and came face to face with something heinous.

The scream never escaped her lips.

***

Thank you for reading. Tell what you think so far.

Taja D'amore.