Harmonizer's Evolution (Balancer's Soul cycle)

by Lee Morgan

  He then focused more energy beneath the solidified Pressure bubble and immediately flew straight up. He looked straight ahead, but felt Mark’s eyes on him for a few seconds. And when he no longer felt them, Connor’s eyes gradually looked down. The flight was faster than first realized because Mark wasn’t in his field of vision because he became too small to see. If he couldn’t see him, Mark most certainly cannot see.

  Connor flew up so high that the curvature of the earth was easily distinguishable. There were still no sounds, but the air inside the sphere had cooled dramatically. This altitude was very inhospitable and if it weren’t for his powers he would most likely freeze to death before dying without another breath of oxygen. Frost began clinging to the shield and that gave a sense of urgency. He needed to be quick before hypothermia kicked in. It would be foolish to heat himself with a dark blue flame because it would consume the remaining air, in half a minute.

  Knowing that time and everything was against him up here, he brought energy into his eyes to activate an ability to see aura. Using this ability allows him to see another’s energy while also allowing him to see normal everyday things. It is not like Sonar that shifts his visual perception to black and white.

  Below his feet the darkness of the earth began brightening into a wide array of colors. From the vertical flight Connor saw his dark blue aura being whisked away by the upper air currents and dissipating into nothingness. Connor concluded that following someone’s flight by looking at their aura would be useless. The wild aspects of air currents were too unpredictable to follow by flight. The main color of the land turned a pulsating green. He knew that most plant life had a green aura. There were many other smaller colors that were mostly located along the coasts of the ocean. Then there was the ocean. The water itself didn’t have a color, but the life forms, that called it home, were very colorful and appealing. He could watch this for hours if it weren’t so blasted freezing. Then he began recognizing subtle colors that shouldn’t be where they were.

  Around where there were coastal cities and almost along the entire west side of South America, was a lot of residual red aura. Connor remembered that at the Mélange when he modified a Keepers bat, his aura transferred to it, almost like a signature. From the amount of dissipating red, he concluded that from the scale of the destruction, that Ranvan’s aura was red. Crimson seemed fitting, almost like evil. For the amount of suffering you’ve caused, you’re blood will be spilled just like your aura. I’ll see to it myself if we ever cross paths.

  As Connor looked along the coast there were faint traces of a white aura. It seemed like Sorono helped save as many lives as he could without being noticed. The more he looked the more his senses told him that the energy was too old to be of any use. He needed to find fresher traces of his brother’s white energy.

  Connor spent the next fifteen minutes searching from the extreme height advantage. Then he finally caught a break. Unfortunately his instincts told him it wasn’t going to be a positive one.

  Seeing what needed to be seen and fixating the point in his mind, the high altitude was enough. He turned over and dropped straight down while searching for Mark’s aura. The further he dropped the warmer thing became. Once he felt sure that the air was safe, the Pressure bubble and residual frost disappeared with his energy.

  The silence ended abruptly as the wind passed by his ears once again. The air again blew against his face and his hair flew in every direction. Hearing is a miracle. And the warmer air entered his lungs while also invigorating his spirit. It was a blessing to no longer be sensory deprived.

  He continued searching while keeping energy in his eyes. Then a familiar aura became distinguishable between himself and the green aura of the forest. It was as if there was a moving blind spot. Moving mass of dark energy moved too strangely to be an animal. And the flight was slow and controlled.

  His legs moved as his course needed to be altered. Soon Connor headed straight down at him.

  When the range seemed sufficient he yelled “MARK, OVER HERE!” The energy flowing into his hazel eyes quelled and only normal objects could be seen.

  Mark’s black form turned to the sound of the voice. Despite the darkness Connor could see everything clearly. Mark sighed in relief and then altered his course to turn around because he was flying away from his friend.

  Soon they met and he was the first to ask “Find anything?”

  “You know I wouldn’t be back unless I did.”

  He grinned while showing off his sharp canines. “Good, but first tell me what it was like up there.” Mark listened intently to everything that he saw in the higher atmosphere. He slowly smiled. “Alright, now where is this strange place you’ve saw that doesn’t look good. Better yet, show me.”

  “Alright, follow me.” And he did as Connor began flying forward.

  The place that his instinct told him to look laid about sixty to seventy miles inland of Chile. This place was densely surrounded by trees and there weren’t any nearby human settlements. What his eyes saw were mainly blood red and white energies, along with several other smaller energies of muddy colors in comparison. The energies were located in a very small area that showed only one visible location. It was a clearing made in an unnaturally perfect circle.

  Mark and Connor flew above the trees while being in the cover of the night. His instincts were telling him that things were very safe at the moment. It was still a danger if they didn’t tread lightly.

  As they approached the clearing, Mark said “Connor, I think we should drop into the trees rather than landing directly in that clearing. Maybe that was how Sorono was tricked. That place could still have traps for any who come snooping where they ought not.”

  “You’ve got a point.” Connor searched around and pointed to a nearby open rock formation. “Over there. There aren’t any trees for us to touch down safely.”

  Mark followed his lead and landed safely on the ground.

  They were less than a quarter mile from the clearing.

  Once they began to silently approach, Mark began testing the air with his nose. As they both used stealth he whispered “Connor, I’ve got Sorono’s scent as well as Veronica’s. She must have found this place too because it’s slightly fresher.” Then his best friend’s silver eyes narrowed straight ahead as he walked on all fours by Connor’s side. “I also caught the scent of several other Keepers. The scents are faint because of a recent rain, but their scents are still lingering. This is definitely the place, Buddy.”

  After getting conformation they went silent as they passed through the buzzing forest. Mark was right. There has been at least three rain showers in the past three weeks. The ground felt soft, but not completely saturated. There weren’t any squishing, wet sounds to give away their immediate location. Even at night, this place is full of life.

  Soon Mark and Connor made their way to the exterior of the circular opening in the forest. Connor judged the clearing to be over one hundred and fifty feet across. The ground was covered in grass that hasn’t been stepped on in over a week. It seemed like the local animals were fervently afraid to come here because there weren’t any sounds, even from insects before them, but there were plenty of noise to the sides and back though.

  Connor placed a hand over Mark’s wing and spoke softly. “Wait here and let me check it out. If a trap is sprung, get me out.” Their eyes met and he nodded.

  Once the young Harmonizer cleared the forest and stepped forward, his squished upon wet and saturated ground. He hoped that his position wasn’t given away. Mark’s muscles bunched in preparation should anything happen. Connor took only slow and cautious steps. He continued walking on the soaked ground for fifteen minutes, but there wasn’t anything to really be seen or felt as a threat.

  He looked into the darkness and directly at Mark. “It is safe. Come on out.”

  Mark stayed on all fours while being as cautious as could be. He then made his way as Connor stood in the center. He looked around the silent area
and stated “Is the silence around here giving you the creeps too?”

  “Yes, but my instinct is telling me that there isn’t any danger around us.” Connor looked around and said “Let’s get to work and find something. I’ll search over here while you do the same on the other side. If we find something, we track it together, no private tracking. Who knows, maybe some trails will have traps.”

  He nodded seriously. “Understood.”

  Mark’s nose dropped to the ground as he began the search on the opposite side of the clearing.

  While in Connor’s search he found something, well several something’s to be more precise. They excluded Veronica’s fresher footprints, but she was a good of tracker as she admitted. She had found most tracks, just like she described. Apparently Sorono had been dragged all through the forest. They distinctly saw a large male Keeper footprint who drug the unconscious Sorono through the whole area. It wasn’t hard to find his drag marks because Sorono’s weight pushed the ground out of his way and his thicker tail left its own unique drag patterns. Soon Mark and Connor trailed the drag until it up and disappeared. Even Mark’s sense of smell came at a loss.

  They returned to the clearing and Mark found another drag on his side and it too turned out to be false. And then there were crossing tracks all over. This search was beginning to look like an unreadable roadmap.

  They continued working throughout the night and well into the morning. They even came across a few Keeper footprints that looked a little strange.

  Connor even used his eyes to search out aura trails. Apparently Sorono had been dragged around by about thirty four other Keepers of different color. Ranvan’s aura stayed only in the clearing like he was directing the others to carry Sorono’s limp body around the forest. Connor knew this because he hadn’t drug Sorono through the trees like the other Keepers did.

  They finally took a break under a shade tree when it became stifling.

  Mark hadn’t transformed the first time since they left the cottage. He had to be warmer than Connor from all the fur he still wore and the relentless beating of the sun. He laid on his belly while looking and glaring at the clearing. He broke the silence by stating “This search is beginning to piss me off.”

  “Me too.”

  Connor absently moved his foot and then a realization slammed into the forefront of his mind. He glanced at the grassy ground and pushed his heel in deeper. His instinct allowed him to know that this is the key to the whole story.

  Everything began to make sense now.

  “Mark, look at this.”

  His head came up in full alert. “Did you find something?”

  “Yes, watch.” Mark watched as Connor stood up and took a few steps into the forest. “Listen to this and tell me what you hear.” He made a small leap and landed heavily on his feet. He then walked into the grassy clearing. “Now listen to this.” He then leaped once again.

  Mark got up and the look in his eyes said he realized it too. He pressed his hand into each spot that Connor jumped. “Connor, why is one spot relatively dry and packed while the clearing’s ground is soft and wet?”

  He grinned. “It’s simple. Someone has disrupted the soil of this unnatural clearing. Every trail left out in the open is a diversion to make any searchers who came give up hope, like we were and just as Veronica did. I didn’t realize it because this whole place is riddled with aura and that was also part of this plot. Anyone capable of using aura will be as useless as the best trackers. The mastermind of this undertaking had forgotten one key detail. The rain is the mistake he forgot to factor in. The forest is used to rain and has developed ways of getting rid of excess water. This ground has been disturbed and the result is that the water has had a difficult time dissipating the excess.

  “Sorono wasn’t dragged away. He was taken underground and moved that way. If my suspicions are right…” Connor looked away from Mark and to the ground below their feet. His power rose instantly and released in rapid pulses, sonar was activated.

  His vision of color was replaced by black and white, but now it is possible to see everything around him and through anything. He could see through Mark and every physical object that surrounded him within a five mile radius now. But he didn’t need to focus on the surface. It was time to look subterranean. The softer disturbed earth below his feet contrasted greatly by the packed ground surrounding them. The soft soil appeared to be in the shape of a tunnel that reached close to one hundred feet below the surface. He smiled once the new path laid before them.

  He stemmed the flow of power and grinned at Mark. Connor’s vision returned to color once again. He grinned back expectantly. “I know what happened now. Sorono was kidnapped and transported underground by a tunnel that is still there. And it isn’t manmade nor is it a cave system. This tunnel could only have been made by Keepers because the structure is perfect.”

  Mark gave him a hopeful look. “Can we follow it?”

  “As a matter of fact, we can and we are going to travel through it.” He grinned expectantly as he heard the rest of the plan.

  Mark moved away when told and soon stood on the outskirts of the clearing. Connor moved a few feet away from the center and began focusing.

  The ground began trembling when his power over Terra released into it. In the center of the grass covered clearing, a hole began to reveal itself. Once it was five inches down and spread apart, he stopped using the energy. “Mark, come on. We are going for a little ride.”

  Mark jumped by his side in a second and they walked over to the six foot open circle of moist brown soil. Once they both stood on it, he began using his power again. The ground trembled as they moved lower. Mark grumbled about it being the craziest elevator of all time. Soon they were too deep and light became a top priority. While descending down lower Connor upturned his left hand and focused the outside heat to a point to create a baseball sized fireball that floated just above his palm.

  About two minutes later Mark and Connor braced themselves. Once the elevator reached the shaft, it crumbled under their weight and they fell. It was only a twenty foot drop and they easily landed without injury.

  Once inside the tunnel they were able to see, thanks to the fireball.

  The tunnel itself stood twenty foot high and made in a semicircular pattern. There wasn’t any form of light down here and even on the stone wall there weren’t any torches. It was just your basic stone tunnel with no modern commodities.

  They saw the tunnel went only in one direction because sixty feet to the back was a natural stone wall that hasn’t been reconstructed by power.

  Connor looked up the shaft that had been made. If anyone were to fall, they would most certainly be killed. Mark knew it was necessary when he collapsed the vertical shaft. Seeing the tunnels structure, the shaft’s collapse wouldn’t cause a cave-in.

  Mark walked up to the tunnel wall and raked his razor sharp claws against it. He left behind four claw marks and then asked with his back to his friend “Connor, can you estimate how long ago this was made. I’m having a hard time making my own personal estimations.”

  “Sure give me a minute.”

  He brought energy to his eyes and the tunnel walls were saturated in a crimson aura. There were also the weaker colors of the other thirty four Keepers, plus Sorono’s white. Denser objects hold an aura longer than lesser ones. Despite that, his mind already began calculating an approximate date. Using the timeline from seeing Ranvan’s and Sorono’s aura and how long ago they used their abilities… “I’ve got it, but you’re not going to like hearing in, Bud.”

  “Tell me anyway.” Mark said while walking up to him calmly.

  A sigh couldn’t be contained. “From seeing an aura and the date it was used while also calculating the dissipation rate, I’ve come to the conclusion that this tunnel was built over eight months ago by Ranvan. And it hasn’t been used in three weeks since the capture.”

  Mark went silent for a moment and then cautiously stated “Then that means that t
his has been a trap all along. Then the Tsunami was only the bait to lead Sorono here. When he found the clearing he was quickly subdued, because there is almost no sign of a struggle up there. If this has been so perfectly laid out and executed then that means only two things that I can think up. Someone is controlling Ranvan or he isn’t feral and is the mastermind.”

  Connor smiled and placed his right hand over Tool. “Those were my exact thoughts, but it feels good to know that you’ve come to the exact same conclusion as me. I knew something was wrong the moment after hearing about the tsunami and Sorono’s departure. It was too coincidental. My instincts told me there was more to this than the first glance of destruction. Now that we are here I know that my instincts were right.”

  “I know… I was there to hear you say the same thing to Veronica.” Then he blinked when he had a thought. “Now that we know that this was a trap, why did Ranvan capture Sorono? Why not kill him out right?”

  “I’ve got a feeling that something big is in the works. If I was Ranvan, I’d take out my only competition and right now that would be Sorono. Only a Harmonizer is equipped powerfully enough to take on another brother. I seriously doubt he knows about me and that will be something of an advantage. But if he captured my brother, I’d guess it would be to keep him alive to see something that will cripple his convictions. Just like how Sorono came running after the tsunami to save lives, I’m afraid Ranvan is up to something even more diabolical.”

  Mark became quiet and then turned to look down the pure darkness of the tunnel. “If you honestly believe that, then so will I. If Sorono is still alive right now I think two Harmonizers should work together and take out this homicidal reptile. We’ve spent enough time talking, now’s the time that we need to hurry.”

  “Alright, from what I’ve seen, the tunnel heads directly west towards the tsunami’s destruction. We run together.”

  Mark liked the unsophisticated idea.

  Soon they were running and he stuck to Connor’s left. He placed a small Pressure shield in front of the fire so it wouldn’t flicker out when they ran as quickly and as safely as possible. The fireball was a life saver because they were able to see a few hundred feet ahead. Luckily the tunnel was straight and perfect.