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Alaska and Ruog were able to make it back to the hut. Although traveling in the pitch blackness of night was dangerous, Ruog was able to safely navigate the jungle without getting lost. Alaska admired his skill. But she could not fully focus on it at the time. The shock of running into Shintiro was still on her mind. It was just too close for comfort. Ruog advises they lay low for a while at the hut and put off the search for her friends for another time.
Alaska took a deep breath, relieved to be back at the hut. The night air was cool and fresh on her skin, helping to calm her down. And she was grateful to be in a safe place, away from the dangers of the wilderness. It had been a long and harrowing night and she felt exhausted.
“Why was Shintiro looking for anyways?” Alaska asks while Ruog went to put some wood on the fire.
“It all happened very quickly. But to me, it looked like he was searching in the river for something. He was… He was looking at rocks that he picked up from the river.” Ruog tried to recall what he witnessed Shintiro do.
“Shintiro was… Looking for a stone.” It finally came to Alaska. Alaska knew he desperately wanted your stone. “So, maybe he was just randomly searching for another stone at the river? How many Guardian Stones are there anyways, Ruog? Do you know?”
“Hmm, like I’ve said before, my knowledge of the Ancients and their Guardian Stones is limited.” Ruog sits down and gets comfy by the campfire. There wasn’t much information to go by. For now, it was clear that they needed to avoid the river to not bump into Shintiro again.
That’s when a thought occurred to Alaska, “What if he finds your hut? What do we do then?” Ruog could see the panic on Alaska’s face.
“I guess it wouldn’t hurt to tell you this.” Ruog gets up and walks over to a wooden chest. He takes out a black marble-like stone.
Ruog turned around and held up the strange black stone. Alaska was confused. She had never seen anything like it before. The light from the fire danced across its surface, casting a faint glow. The intricate markings seemed to twinkle like diamonds.
“…Tell me what? What is that Ruog?”
“Ociramma…” Ruog outstretched the stone in his hand to show Alaska.
“Huh? Oci…” She scratches her head as Ruog hands her the stone. “This thing is heavy.”
“It’s the Ociramma stone. Seeing that you’re not familiar with it proves you do come from another world. I was skeptical at first. This world has many mysterious stones. However, if you search hard enough and you know where to look, you will find the Ociramma stone. Many villages use it. Humans, apes…. Even reptilians use this stone.”
“But for what?”
“Patience, I’ll get to that.” Ruog turns around and pulls out yet another Ociramma stone from the chest.”
“The Ociramma stones were found to have a strange property. When two stones touch…” Ruog takes the stone in his hand and touches the one in Alaska’s hand using the stone. “...something interesting happens. Energy comes out from both stones.”
“Wow, that’s incredible.” The stone in Alaska’s hand and Ruog’s hand began to glow for a few seconds, then the light dissipated. “What is the energy that comes out?”
“Well, the energy from the Ociramma stone is very different from, oh let’s say, a Guardian Stone. However, I’ve never really used one myself, so I wouldn’t know.” Ruog scratches his head. He trails off for a few seconds then gets back to explaining how the stone works. “Well, these two stones that just touched are now connected. You see, the energy from the stone creates a barrier. If they touch again, the barrier is gone. Any moving thing that encounters an activated Ociramma stone becomes extremely disoriented. That’s the energy of the barrier doing that.”
“Wait, disoriented… That’s how I felt when I was trying to get to the river when my leg was injured.”
“Ah, correct. It makes sense that you felt that way. I’ve set a large perimeter of four Ociramma stones around this hut. Not even the most skilled tracker can locate this hut. It’s impossible. While you were walking farther and farther away from the hut, the stones began to affect your mind. You lose track of where you’ve been and where to go. It means you were walking through the protective barrier of the stones.”
“Why didn’t you tell me this existed?”
“I couldn’t just tell everyone about these things. If someone finds where I buried the stones, all they need to do is destroy one, and that’s it. The barrier is gone.”
“But Ruog, how do you not get affected by the energy of the stone when you come and go? Whenever we leave to go to the river, I don’t feel that way.”
“That’s because I always carry this small piece of one of my stones.” Ruog pulls from his animal-skinned sack a small piece of Ociramma stone. “As long as I have this, and we're both together, we will not feel the effects of the stones when we move in and out of the huts' protective barrier.”
“Well, thank you for finally telling me.” Alaska felt a bit of relief knowing about the Ociramma stones. But the more she thought about it, the more questions would come to her mind. However, for now, she wanted to keep them to herself. She knew it was late and Ruog was probably tired of answering her questions.
“It’s been a long night. It’s best if you get some rest.”
Alaska nods, “Alright…” Alaska didn’t want to say it. But it was going to be difficult for her to fall asleep now knowing that Shintiro was so close to finding her. She curled up in a blanket on the floor, her eyes wide open. She couldn’t stop thinking about their encounter with Shintiro. After a while, she slowly drifted off to sleep.
217Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIimauAHBdM
Karaee rushes to her little brother's side, who is having difficulty breathing due to Zonda. As she watches him struggle, a royal nurse approaches and begins to tend to him. Tears come down her face as she watches “Aruvi…” Karaee whispers to herself. As you and Inkagi finally walk in you can see Prince Aruvi for the first time. He’s coughing and struggling to breathe in bed.
The nurse is experienced and skilled in treating injuries and illnesses, and she takes charge of the situation with a professional demeanor. She begins to administer medication and care, helping Prince Aruvi to breathe more easily. Karaee watches nervously as the nurse works but is grateful for her presence and expertise. She feels helpless and powerless to help her brother, but the nurse was able to provide some form of comfort and relief.
Karaee doesn’t say a word. All you can hear is her little brother coughing and wheezing. His eyes were closed as he lay in his bed. His breathing becomes labored with each breath he takes. Once the nurse administers the medicine his labored breathing eases up. The nurse gets up and shakes her head. Her eyes were full of sorrow. She looked over at Karaee. She notices Karaee’s hands now trembling uncontrollably. The nurse’s expression was sad and apologetic when her eyes met Karaee’s eyes. Once the royal nurse steps to the side, Karaee slowly makes her way to her little brother. She wipes the tears from her eyes.
You walk over to Karaee and place a hand on her shoulder. Karaee looks up at you. Her voice was breaking, and you have the impression she’s choking back a sob. You didn’t know what to say. “Karaee…” That was the only thing that came out at the time. That’s when you see the tears rolling down her cheeks. The hand she had on her brother’s shoulder was a comforting gesture. You and Inkagi knew how heartbroken Karaee was. She just needed a few moments to catch her breath. You decided to hold off on saying anything. You notice Karaee’s eyes are starting to water up again.
Prince Aruvi opens his eyes slowly sensing his older sister’s presence. They look into each other’s eyes. They both now have tears in their eyes. Karaee turns away from her brother and wipes her eyes.
King Soren and Queen Janaa are now at the door behind you and Inkagi. The moment they got there, you and Inkagi stepped to the side to let them in. King Soren and Queen Janaa enter the room, their faces drawn and concerned. King Soren steps forward but upon looking at Queen Janaa’s facial expression and her head shaking to him; he decides to step back and not say a word.
It's an emotional moment, as Karaee's little brother, Aruvi, struggles with the debilitating effects of Zonda. You can tell that this is a deeply personal moment for Karaee, and she's struggling to hold back her tears. She tries to smile as her lips tremble trying to cover her brother’s chest with a soft blanket. You can see the fear in her eyes, but you can also see the determination. She's determined to find the Helx flower, no matter what it takes, and bring it back to save her little brother. From that point on you and Inkagi knew that the mission is of the utmost importance to Karaee.
Karaee whispers to Aruvi. “Do not worry little brother. I will re… return. Just a little while longer. You’ll be better when I return. I… I promise… you.” Karaee could not hold her tears back any longer. She began to sob on her little brother’s chest.
As Karaee speaks to her sick little brother, the room is filled with an air of sadness and hope. It's clear from her determined expression that she's willing to even risk her own life to save her brother. You sense that her mission to find the Helx flower is not just an adventure, but a matter of life and death. It's impossible not to feel a sense of awe and admiration for Karaee as she stands tall, resolute in the face of adversity. You know that she's not just a princess, but a brave and selfless hero.
Karaee says goodbye to her brother as well as her father and mother. King Soren and Queen Janaa stay in the room with Prince Aruvi as you, Inkagi, and Karaee step out. You see Karaee take a deep breath. You knew at that moment she was ready to begin the long journey. A spark of determination can be seen in her eyes. You, Inkagi, and Karaee all look at each other. You didn’t say a word in the hallway, but you all knew the stakes of the mission.
You, Inkagi, and Karaee step out of the palace. Tyenx is watching from afar. He is with an ape friend. “Look at how close Karaee is with those… those humans. What does she see in them? The human climbs our tower. How is that an amazing accomplishment? I’ve defended this village from monstrous breasts. And no one invited me to a grand dinner with the royal family. But they do? Besides, look how gross they look.” Tyenx complains and just rambles on to his ape friend about how upset he is that Karaee is more interested in humans than him. “It’s not fair! I want to be a royal and mingle with all the prestigious apes. Yet, these humans just walk into our village and in just one day the royal family loves them,” He glances over at you and Inkagi in disgust. “And it’s like they want to rub it in our faces. They look stupid too! That boy, can’t you see how dumb he looks with that ugly face of his.” Tyenx’s ape friend just nods his head to everything he says. “These humans aren’t even the smartest. They make terrible weapons…”
As Tyenx sees the army apes, you, Inkagi, and Karaee march out of the village, his eyes widened. His ape friend gives him a look, then looks back at Karaee. “I don’t like the way you look at them. When your eyes are like that, you’re coming up with something crazy.”
“Exactly… You know me, Loonndi, I’m always coming up with something. Hmm, something good,” Tyenx had a wicked smirk on his face. He clenched his fist tightly. He starts to rub his chin while he thinks, “All I need to do is save the princess. Once I save her, the humans will look bad, and I will look good.” Tyenx began to chuckle as Loonndi scratched his head confused.
At this moment, Tyenx licks his lips. He saw the princess as a means to gain power and prestige for himself, rather than a genuine concern for her safety or her brother's health. He began pondering what his next move would be. “What are you planning to do?” asks Loonndi.
Tyenx responded quickly, “It’s none of your concern. Just make sure that no one knows that I’m gone.” Tyenx begins to walk away from Loonndi
“Wait, your leaving?” Tyenx turns to face Loonndi with an irritated face. He raises his index finger and points it at Loonndi.
“Of course, I’m leaving, you idiot! Luk-tmu! How will I save the princess if I stay here? Karaee will regret the day she rejected me. Get my things and Valpian ready!” Tyenx turns around and storms off. Loonndi steps back, lowers his head, and makes chimp-like noises. He didn’t want to upset Tyenx again, so he scrambled off to get all of Tyenx’s things ready for the journey.
With that, the new party sets off. The apes all know that this isn’t the first time an expedition was launched to retrieve the Helx flower. Not a lot of excitement was in the air. The troops were quiet due to morale being low. Their determination to find the Helx flower was almost nonexistent. They knew that the chances of finding the Helx flower were extremely low. And on top of that, the only reason they were told to head out was due to humans now joining the expedition. Many apes had no idea why King Soren made such an odd decision. The word traveled fast that Karaee had a lot to do with that decision, but it was clear that not many of the citizens agreed with the mission.
Karaee’s heart was filled with hope as they marched on. She wonders if they will reach their goal on time. You and Inkagi hope that the mission will succeed for Prince Aruvi’s sake and all the other apes sick with Zonda. As you all continued deep into the jungle, the group riding their Valpians were braving the harsh wilderness. You all kept a keen eye out for any possible danger.
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