“Ryan, Ryan, come on, she’s gone,” Mark cried. Ryan was sobbing on the drenched mud, still holding Michelle’s Dark Guiltian.
“No, please, come back!” he pleaded into the air. Mark had caught up with him and was trying to comfort Ryan.
“Come to your senses man, why are you sitting here are making a fool of yourself when you can be in action to find her?” he demanded. These words were of no avail, for Ryan continued to remain on the ground and repeat over and over the phrase, “please come back”.

In a flash of azure light, Vanya teleported past them, trying to find any other traces of Michelle and the Dark Hand. The rain poured down all around him, making it almost impossible to hear anything. The wet droning of the pelting water silenced out all else that moved. Vanya concentrated for a moment, blessing himself, but could not regain the trail. With a small sigh, he teleported back to Ryan, who was still sobbing on the ground. With a gentle hand and a glowing emerald mist, Vanya quickly healed Ryan. Though his physical injuries were gone, his emotions were still as high as ever. Together, they left the place and returned back to the caves.

The rain had subsided, leaving a light drizzle that sprinkled the jungle. The air was humid and wet, mixing in with the darkness of the jungle. Ryan sat alone by a fire in the corner. Mark and Vanya were in deep thought.

“This has gone way beyond our comprehension,” Mark said.
“Everything in my theories is wrong,” answered Vanya.
“I have never seen anything like it. It seemed to be made of pure energy!”
“I know, I saw it too Mark, but pure energy cannot grab someone and escape with that force.”
“The island is different, Vanya.”
“What do you mean?”
“I don’t know, but don’t you think all this ties together? I am a man of faith Vanya, I believe in religion. But it seems like fate has brought us all here together. When I was young, my father told me that everyone had a purpose in this world. I believe our purpose was to come here. I don’t know why yet, but I just know it. The crash, the smoke, the hand, it all tie in with our fates.”

Leaving Vanya in silence, Mark trudged through the soggy mud towards the stream to get a good long drink. Though it was still humid after the rain, Mark’s throat was parched. He reached into the water with his cupped hands and brought them to his awaiting mouth. He felt as the cool water slide through his throat, replenishing his system. It felt good. Mark cupped his hands again and reached down for another drink, but this time instead of crystal clear water, the liquid was a crimson red.

Mark gasped in horror. Blood was flowing through the stream. He looked upstream to try to find its origin, when a body floated up to him. It’s throat was cut and there were many holes in its forearms and legs, as if tubes had been stuck in them. Mark stumbled to the ground. The foul odor was more than he could bear, and he vomited into the grass. With tears flowing rapidly down his cheeks, he looked on as more bodies floated past him. It had been a massacre.

Suddenly, the familiar sapphire light sprung up beside him, and Vanya materialized in front of Mark. He swiftly grabbed Mark’s arm and teleported him back to the caves. Mark was shaking uncontrollably. He felt fear inside of him; fear for himself, and fear of the others.

Vanya brought up a bottle of fresh water and handed it over to Mark. Still shaking, he gratefully accepted and drank his fill to get the taste of stomach acid out of his mouth.

The two of them sat in silence. Slowly, the night transformed into day. Mark and Vanya watched the sun rise up into the heavens together. Its glorious beams arched through the light blue sky. The first of the tropical birds started calling. The crickets slowly subsided into stillness. In the distance, they could hear the calming waves crashing and churning up the beach. It was a beautiful morning, yet they saw no beauty in it. They knew no one else must know about this. They knew that the others were more dangerous than they estimated. They knew that it was time to retaliate.