Harmonizer's Evolution (Balancer's Soul cycle) (40 page)

“Mark, I believe he was captured.”
Mark’
s
bulky head looked at
him
strangely
while his pointed ears slowly fluttered in the reduced wind
.
“Think about it. Somehow he is weak, but still alive. He is being treated
exactly
like someone who has been arrested and sent to an immortals prison. They are keeping him weak so that he cannot escape of his own free will. Somehow they are also using something that
even
his raw physical strength cannot break and there is only one thing on the planet with that level of
density
, Dark Steel. Besides that, he was
undoubtedly
ambushed. Remember on April Fools when Kara caked me in
that green
slime. Well I believe that was how Sorono was ambushed
unaware
.

“You see, Kara has finally found a way to use my instincts to her advantage. She sat up a double trap. When I triggered the first one and avoided it my instinct w
as
still warning me, but my mind was only focused on the first bucket, the second one got me
. T
hat being said, Sorono was ambushed
and set up by a double
trap at the very least and then they somehow found a way to make him go unconscious
before he got himself out of the situation.

“Most likely they transferred him to a secure location
, away from the extraction point
and also set up
several
false trails to deter any who would try to follow
after
him.”

“Well it makes perfect sense when you put it like that.”
His
best friend admitted after flapping his wings once.
“W
e had better be prepared for any eventuality then. Since you said
they
ambushed Sorono, I’m guessing that you
believe
that there is more than one suspect besides Ranvan.”
Connor’s
mental voice
went
silent.
“I thought so. Let
’s
be
cautious
then, Buddy.”

“Since we’ve got each other’s back, they should be the ones prepared.”

Mark grinned and streamlined his body and
they
redoubled
their
speed without
exerting
too much effort.
Having a wingman eased many burdens, even if Mark thought he didn’t need the help. Connor sighed in relief, knowing he’d have his best friend on this arduous task, even with the danger it would entail.

They
passed state after state and saw the habitats in nature change the further
south
they
traveled. After two and a half hours
they
crossed the border between the United
S
tates and Mexico.
Then Mark and
Connor
started heading south
west and not long after
,
spot
ted the Pacific Ocean. They
then followed the
reflecting
blue water that touched the South American landmass.

Then
they
passed over a city hit by the waves.

The destruction was difficult to describe. It wasn’t only the cities either. Many thousands
and thousands
of acres were destroyed
along the coast. In many places the ocean’s water penetrated a
bout
two
mile
s
or more inland. The cities were all pretty much obliterated and there were many
makeshift
shelters. In most places
,
Mark and
Connor
saw rebuilding projects all over the city and even the costal villages were already underway to being rebuilt.
Nonetheless, many tarps and tents scattered over many open areas from those who lost everything.
Only after a little over two months
from the watery destruction
,
people were showing their strength to overcome adversity. Over time the destruction and the loss of life will only become a bitter memory for those who had survived.

Mark and
Connor
were both speechless as
they
passed the destruction.
They
could see the anger in each
other after seeing just what his
brother was capable of.

An hour later it had
only just
begun to get dark when Mark asked
“By the way, how are we supposed to find a clue as to the whereabouts of Sorono? South America is
quite
a large place and my sense of smell can only do so much.”

Connor
flashed a smile at him.
“We are going to find him the same way he can find me. It took me awhile to figure out what Sorono’s words meant last year. I asked him how I could find him if there was a need. He said that I would figure it out, and like most things
in life,
it is simple
in hindsight
. I can use my abilities to see the aura of any living thing. Every creature and plant has its own color that is slightly different from anything else.
It is the same way with you. Your aura is black whereas Kara’s is a blondish brown. Even my in-laws have separate colors.
Jillian’s is bluish and Jack is a reddish orange. Only Harmonizers share the exact same color with their mate.

“
Let’s go down into the forest and relax until nightfall. When it
’s dark or at nighttime, auras appear easier to see
. The contrasting colors are more defined.
E
ven from a distance it will look like a beacon in the middle of the
darkest
night.”

“Sounds good. I’ll also try to find us a place that has
some
fruit trees.”

They
both went into a nose dive and soon saw the ground becoming clearer.
They
dove through
dark rain
clouds and pulled up a few hundred feet from the ground. Mark’s nose went to work and he soon found a hidden
and isolated
spot in the forest that was layered in
a grove of
banana trees and thei
r fruits were perfectly ripe. They
then finally landed after
they
each grabbed
an arm full
.
Mark didn’t transform as they
sat together and ate
the fruity
meal while the sky darkened.

While they
waited
,
they
didn’t speak because off all the amazing sounds and sights the forest had to offer. The forest
i
s beautiful despite the
lingering heat and humidity. Connor
found a cacao tree and ate a few pods.
He even
stuffed two seeds in
his
pocket
after drawing out any moisture that laid within
.
The
kids would love to see what raw chocolate tas
te
s like before
being
refined. His
gr
in began growing more defined at
the anticipation for their faces to cringe from the taste.

Thanks to Mark’s sense of smell he guessed that it has been months since any humans have even been remotely close to this area. Judging from the residual footprints
and animal tracks
he was correct.

Mark even played a bit with the bone sword that
his mate
had given him. He
remained
an adept swordsman
over the centuries
, even in his Fwen form. It took some time, but he found a way to equip the sword in
such
a way that he could fight while
also being
on all fours. He held it in his left hand
,
with the blade pointing away from
his thumb
,
just like Connor
taught Sarah how to use her daggers
in a fight
.
Mark could move with barely a noticeable change to his gait while on all fours
and holding his weapon
.

“Alright, I think it is dark enough.” Mark said in his animalistic voice. He stood up and tethered the sword to his hip again.

Connor
looked up past the tree canopy and saw the twinkling stars
of the clear night sky
greeting
them
. “Your right, but I need to tell you now that where I’m going you cannot follow.”

Mark stopped cold and his silver slit pupils seemed to darken. “What do you mean that I can’t follow you? We are in this rescue
mission
together.”

Connor
stood up and placed a calming hand on his shoulder. “Listen, Bud, you said it before, South America is a big place. What I need to do is go into a higher altitude
and be able to see more landmass. That means the air will be too thin for you to breathe. I’ll be going higher than
even
I’ve ever attempted.”

“If
I
cannot breathe at such a height, how can you be expected to?”

“Remember the Pressure shield I put in front of us on our journey here?” His large head nodded curtly and his ear
s
twitched. “I had to intentionally leave a few holes or small gaps
in it
so your wings could have enough wind to achieve lift.
Without them you’d plummet like a bowling ball no matter how wide you grew your wings.
What I’m going to do is seal of every gap
with solidified Pressure
and contain as much oxygen in a Pressure shield as I can
,
and keep it together. We can fly together for a short time, but once I go up and find something, I’ll fly back and let you know.”

Mark
’
s large jaw muscles were clenched as he
thought through
this
plan. Once he made up his mind he stated “Alright, but if you try to ditch me and go searching off by yourself
,
I’ll
find the nearest phone and call
home and get everyone that’s strong enough to come find you
and haul you back
. That means Sarah will be right on your heels in an instant.
We both know she won’t
even
need to be asked again.
”

“Point taken.”
Good grief, I didn’t ev
en consider leaving
.

Mark knew he wouldn’t be left behind, but he still had to
deliver that
simple
warning. He then smiled and found a break in the trees. He used that opening to unfurl
his wings and take to the sky. Connor
followed right behind.

As
they
flew higher, the cooler air felt great. As
they
continued gaining altitude
he
could still feel that Sarah
remained
upset, but her emotions were dulled. It was about this time that Pearl and Darrel were
getting a telepathic lecture.
Connor
wanted to go back home and be close to
his
love and children, but someone’s life
i
s in danger. His importance
i
s more pressing than
personal
feelings.

Once
they reached
the
midway
point
,
he
slowed to a stop
.
Mark understood
this
and banked around to hover in front of
him
. “I’ll be back soon
, Bud
.”

Since there was plenty of air around
him, it became his
only
lifeline.

In
the quiet of his
mind
there was a mental picture of his body and around the
body
waited
the oxygen that would
sustain his life. He
imagined a perfec
t spherical bubble surrounding himself
. The bubble had to be escape proof so that nothing could enter or exit the sphere. Its size had to remain fixed
or else it would rupture. Nothing could pass through this defense.