Isaac stared off into space as he cleaned his sword, inattentive to the world around him. He sighed defeatedly as the rain clouds let loose again. When were they ever going to get out of there? It wasn't like they'd never traveled through rainstorms before, but these were different in more ways than one. For one, they flooded the areas the adepts planned on traveling through, and second, they reminded them of that day that was still all too fresh in their memory. Isaac stood up slowly from the stump he'd been sitting on. Maybe they should move on, in spite of the rain. Isaac shook his head at the thought. It was simply a risk and he would not operate with risks. He hefted his sword onto his back and let out a sigh, heading towards their camping ground.
-Ω-
A gust of wind took Isaac by surprise as he approached the tent. He took his hand off the tent flap and stood outside the tent, letting the wind whirl around him. A sad smile played on his lips as tears burned in his eyes. The wind brought forth bittersweet memories to the forefront of his mind. He spent a few moments reliving happier memories, before coming to his senses.
He stepped inside the tent and went about fixing himself lunch. After he finished eating, he busied himself with checking the supplies, though he knew what all was there. He'd checked only a few hours before. He could tell Garet went through this ritual as well. It occurred to him that it would be healthier if they all ate their meals together, but shrugged the thought aside. Lately, they were just too depressed when around each other. He could only hope the depression and shock would eventually fade. After napping in the tent for more than a couple hours, he got up and took a deep breath, knowing what needed to be done.
He exited the tent, trying to figure out where Garet and Mia would be. Finding Mia wouldn't be hard. She was always in the same area; it was just a matter of convincing her to leave that area. Isaac wasn't so sure he wanted to deal with that just yet. Garet would be the easier person to deal with. Garet wouldn't give him any problems when he was found; it was just a matter of finding him.
Isaac thought about his two friends for a moment. Mia continuously beat herself up over the death of their younger friend. This uncalled for self-hatred was affecting her mind in unhealthy ways. Garet was just as difficult to figure out, but on a different level. He seemed to avoid the subject at all costs, so maybe he was just trying to forget about it. Isaac wasn't too sure.
Isaac's search came to a halt as he stood stock-still, letting the rain soak him. An unwelcome thought was teasing his mind. A thought that had tried t creep up on him before, but he had always managed to push it to the back of his mind without any trouble. Now the thought wouldn't leave. It was like a leech, attaching itself to his mind, only instead of looking for blood, it was looking for an answer.
How am I dealing with it?
The thought bounced around his mind like a wild ping pong ball. Isaac decided it would be pointless to attempt pushing it away any longer. Self-reflection lent to the sharpening of the mind which led to better decisions. He sorted through his feelings as the rain continued to pound mercilessly into the ground he stood on. Though his reflections didn't allow him much insight to his feelings, he knew what he was doing. It was easy enough to figure out, after all.
He was withdrawing himself. A close friend of his had passed away, and that had affected Isaac's view of himself. He was the leader, and a decision he had made had resulted in the death of a friend. If only he'd made a different decision. If he had thought things through just a little more, maybe the outcome would have been so much better. Grim at the sour, wistful thoughts, he pushed them aside, deciding that he was really not in the mood for self-relection.
He resumed his search for Garet as he tried to collect his thoughts. He really didn't want to be the leader anymore, but he knew he couldn't just stop. The world was depending on them, even if over half the people in the world had no idea how endangered their lives were. Really, that alone, was all the more reason they had to succeed in their quest. Also, he knew Garet wouldn't allow it. He wasn't sure if Mia would even be aware of what was happening if he did try to resign from leadership.
Speaking of Garet. Isaac's eyes rested on the shadowy figure on the nearby hill. Isaac started toward the hill, not really sure if he was happy he'd found Garet or not. At least it had caused his confusing thoughts to vanish, if only temporarily. Then again, the dreaded task of finding Mia lay ahead of them now.