Veil of Shadows

Chapter 38. Point of No Return

Ranger stared down at the stone path in absolute despair.

She watched as the group came closer and closer to the truth, to understanding everything. And Ranger hated them for it. She knew that it was unreasonable, but Ranger hated them for not knowing how much pain she was about to go through.

Of course, though, she hadn't told them. Not one of them knew. Ranger hadn't dared to tell, hadn't trusted them enough to give them that. Now, she wished she had told them and gotten it over with, so that she didn't have to deal with the moment she knew was drawing closer with every passing second.

When the stone path got to the point where it started to look as if it hadn't been used in years, Ranger's breathing quickened, and she tried to focus on her horse.

When they reached the towering stone gates, Ranger could feel something inside her, slowly fracturing. Perhaps it was her heart. Perhaps it was emotion. Perhaps it was her sanity. Most likely, it was a combination of all three.

When Ranger saw that there were no guards atop the gates, she wasn't surprised. She expected it - knew what was going to happen. The others exchanged looks of confusion. It was as if the town was abandoned. From the outside, the tall stone walls blocked any view of the town inside.

And Ranger was so, so grateful for that.

Blaze and Jaddie moved forward and, together, managed to open the two massive walls of wood that comprised the gates. When the gates were halfway open, they both stopped in unison and stared into the town.

Ranger braced herself for what she knew was coming.

"Holy god..." Wolf whispered, eyes wide, staring at it. Ranger's gaze was fixed on the stone road, knowing that if she looked up, she would well and truly lose her grip on sanity.

The town was in ruins. The scattered remains of the building that had once stood tall now lay in crumbling heaps. Bones - human bones, from human beings - littered the ground. Blackened scorch marks made it obvious that whatever had destroyed the town had involved fire. No, not fire - nothing was burnt or melted.

But something with heat. Something that wasn't fire, but contained a great amount of heat. They all came to the conclusion at the same time. It was energy that destroyed the town.

Ender Energy.

Ranger's desperate pleading for them to go around Greenvale.

Slowly, they all turned to Ranger, who didn't dare meet any of their eyes. Beneath the hood of her cloak, which nobody could see, tears streamed down her face.

She knew that they all understood the significance of what had occurred here, and who had caused it. Ranger had always known it would eventually come to this. Just hadn't known that it would be so soon, or so unexpected. There was no chance to offer a reasonable explanation.

All she could do was delay the inevitable. And the inevitable had been reached.

This was the point of no return.

"I was responsible for the destruction of Greenvale." She said, her voice shaking uncontrollably.