Chapter 71: Day’s Trek
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Darius was out there, presumably forging new schemes or he is on his way back to ant kingdom. Who knows! And the star crystal mine, now partially collapsed, hid secrets that might have changed all their lives. Kai alone holding the stolen star crystal liquid inside his expanded storage, plus the star crystals he had gathered.
With stony resolve, Kai stared across the sunrise-hued horizon. "I’ll get stronger," he muttered under his breath, recalling the betrayal and Lomar’s final sacrifice. "I’ll kill that bastard with my own hands." He repeated. He would not let it go unpunished.
Turning to Vexor, who cradled a small portion of water for himself, Kai tried to keep his voice strong. "We need to keep traveling," he said. "Renna may wake eventually, or maybe not. But we owe it to him to try and find real treatment."
Vexor nodded, sorrow clouding his eyes. The road ahead looked daunting, but neither Kai nor Vexor hesitated. Their battered hearts refused to let despair claim them.
Thus, under the warm dawn light, Kai carefully lifted Renna again, carrying the unconscious male ant on his back. Vexor trudged along beside him, glancing frequently at the forest’s edge. Each step away from the shattered hillside was a step closer to confrontation with Darius or the unknown. But they had no choice.
The only path was forward, forging through the wilderness with a thirst for vengeance and the flicker of hope that at least one friend might still be saved.
No final celebration or rest awaited them, only the tireless call to keep marching, to keep living. And so they set off, hearts steeled by sorrow and anger, determined to rewrite the fate that had nearly entombed them all.
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