The Watchers and the Balance

Once, so many years ago, a group of men found a paradise on Earth. A valley with rich soil, bountiful game, and clear freshwater springs and rivers flowing through it formed a beautiful place with nothing but peace found within it. It was perfect to build a new home and start a new life, far better than wherever they may have come. They began farming under the shadow of a mountain, a great mound of earth whose peak reached high into the sky. The valley proved better than anything ever found before. Little did these simple farmers know, however, that from top of the mountain they were being observed...

Two men, or what appeared to be men, sat between a small balance. The man of the right was covered in tattered brown robes. The one on the left was dressed in a similar manner, only his robes were a spotlessly clean light blue. From upon the heavenly vantage point they watched, glancing occasionally at the balance between them. The scale, with no visible weights, was balanced perfectly.

The two watchers sat there, waiting...

Years went by, and the men grew in numbers. Families flourished, crops grew bountiful, and the men soon began to form townships along the valley. The men watched over each other, save the occasional ruffian or traveler.

The watchers continued to watch...the balance stayed level

One dark night, the balance leaned to the right ever so, and a scream was heard piercing the peaceful quiet of the dark. For the first time, blood of man was spilled by his fellow in an act of murder. It was never really known if the act was committed in cold blood or heated passion was unknown to the watchers on the mountain, in all honesty did they really care; all they seemed to care about was the uneven balance. As they watched with concern the killer forced from his home and tried for his crime. A hanging took place not long after, and the scale readjusted.

The watchers smiled, and continued to watch the men with eager anticipation...

In time more murders and other numerous crimes were committed, and in due time they were punished by the laws of Man. The townsmen soon formed groups dedicated to controlling the crime, with usually high success rates. This, however, was changed one day when the murder took place among the very men attempting to control it. These man escaped the law, using their titles to hold the noose back, and the scale slowly began to tip without correction.

The watchers frowned, but continued to wait....

Soon the very men who were assigned to control the chaos were the ones causing it. While they harassed innocents crime began to fester in the towns and country. Not only that, but the land itself soon felt the stress of Man's presence. Forests were cleared for wood and farmland, rivers tainted with the careless waste disposal of large townships, and the land was torn apart looking for ores. Some men tried to turn the tide, attacking and imprisoning any they saw as a threat. Even then some men used this for their own gain, falsely imprisoning anyone that they felt threatened them. All the while the balance began to wobble left and right, very rarely did the balance ever even out.

The watchers' frowns  grew, but they still waited....

As time went on the once beautiful valley became more and more ugly. Graveyards of the dead grew as more and more men, women, and even children were killed by the evil growing in their land. Violence became common, as men not willing to work with their fellows instead stole from them. Even in the towns the people became divided by wealth. Where once people worked together they simply asked, "Why can't I have more?" The poor grew poorer as the rich continued to grow richer. In a land that once say endless bounty saw for the first time famine, pestilence, and hatred.

All this time, the watched waited....

The boiling point was reached when the poor no longer took the abuse, riots and fighting ensued. Bands of Men ransacked the rich and poor alike, demanding they be compensated for their suffering. Massacred became common as hordes of rioters swept the streets and homes on anyone not known to them, it was at this time the balance began wobbling dangerously. It finally broke under the stress, and with it the fate of the valley was sealed.

All this time, the watchers waited...this time they were not alone.

A man garbed in black was behind them, staring at the chaos below. The black watcher was not frowning; he simply stared blankly at the mass killings and turmoil that erupted below. He then nodded his head in disappointment; it was time for this little game of watchers to end. With a shake of his hand it began to rain. The rain grew harder, and the rivers and streams in the valley swelled rapidly. The rivers consumed the rioters, then the towns and farms in the lowlands. Mudslides soon tore down the walls of the valley, smashing anything that blocked their path. Soon the entire valley was decimated by the black watcher's rain, not a single thing remained when the sky turned blue days later.

And for all this time, the watchers simply waited...

In time the black watcher walked away, never uttering a word to his companions. The valley was now in ruins. The towns and villages that once dotted the land were gone, washed away by the waters and mud that were unleashed upon them. No sign of life remained, and it was to be like that for many years to come.

And for the first time...the watchers got up, showing no emotion as they looked back upon the ruined land below. After taking the remains of their broken tool, they left the peak.

It is unknown what they watchers wanted out of this. Was this some experiment? Did they create this land just for the sake of watching it all unravel? Perhaps it is in human nature to fall out of balance, as not one of the many paradises the watchers created and examined ever seem to stay that way when Man got involved. In the end it never really matters to these two, it just simply meant they would have to try again...perhaps one day the balance would stay still.