The Broken Destiny by Carlyle Labuschagne Page A

let go and stop over-thinking everything. Constantly fighting situations I didn’t agree with was tiring. Overnight, I had become ‘wild’, acting against our teachings as future diplomats of the last humans; or were we? As we accelerated at a steady pace, I considered the horse’s rhythm. I allowed myself to relax my grip, finally coming to terms with the feeling of Enoch’s muscles flexing underneath my touch. As I felt Enoch indulge in my grasp, I felt things between us change as well. Despite myself, I warmed up to the idea of him. I took in the beautiful landscape. My heart ached at the splendor of my surroundings. On one side, a deep turquoise ocean danced around us while the white powdery glow of the three moons stole some moments through the dark purple clouds against an early amethyst afternoon sky. Dark rocks closed us off on the other side in contrast to the blues and greys hugging the shoreline. They steadily climbed the horizon and ended in dark mounds that were shooting out of razor sharp rocks. This formed the base of Mount Inja. Savoring my surroundings was not enough; I felt a great loss come over me. A blanket of loneliness wrapped its dark embrace over my inability to share my feelings with others. It was a loss I had never identified with before. There was a hole deep inside of my being, and this hole was growing by the minute. I realized for the first time what my soul had been crying out for all that time. Never before had I felt such a deep need to share an experience with someone else, no matter how enchanting it was, but in that moment I wanted to share the intensity that the scenery held for me. I wanted someone to see the view through my eyes. For the first time I had succumbed to the feeling of the need – the need to be loved and to love. The Council would disapprove of my emotions. And at that, it all fell into place – our meetings, my meetings with Kim, perhaps these meetings kept the emotions at bay? Hypnotherapy? As I looked down at the coarse white sand, and watched the horse’s hooves kick up a fine spray of water around us, I felt guilty that Sam wasn’t the one I was sharing this scene with. Sam had been my everything for a very long time. I felt out of place without her. The steady hush of the ocean was only interrupted by a rhythmic beat caused by the waves crashing onto the rocks lined up beside us. A powerful energy buzzed all around me. The smells and sounds surrounding me lifted my spirits so high, that I almost felt intoxicated. The beach provided me with the peace I had been seeking all along. When I closed my eyes and focused on the stillness it brought to my mind, I started seeing colors I had never seen before. I saw blues and greens, white and silver. I felt weightless, invigorated and mentally strong, and most importantly I felt resilient enough to just be myself. The rhythm of the ride overpowered me and I drifted into nothingness. Silence droned through my mind, for the first and last time.
    “Ava?” Maya’s voice pulled me back to reality. I must have fallen asleep as I hadn’t realized that we had come to a complete halt.
    “Hungry?” Maya looked up at me, her eyes blinking expectantly.
    She had a sandwich in each hand. She held one out to me and took a bite of the other. I swung my legs over the horse with both Enoch and Willard rushing to my aid. I blushed. Enoch glowered at Willard, pushed him aside and lifted me from the horse, his two hands wrapped firmly around my hips sent ripples of pleasure through my core. I tried not to stare at him as I descended, but I couldn’t stop myself from momentarily stealing a moment to look in his eyes. They were the eyes that had saved me from falling to my death. He held my gaze until my feet touched the ground. I then did something so unlike me; I turned and walked away, leaving him staring after me. My stomach churned – I was playing a dangerous game. Maya beckoned for me to join her on the flat surface of a