Sunrise

Leaving the mines was hard for Elysia. For two years, this place had been her world. 

The tunnels, the dust, the endless toil—mining obsidian had defined her existence. It always had. 

Change was a terrifying thing, and stepping away from everything she knew felt like abandoning a piece of herself.

But Kael was right. If they stayed, they would die.

Elysia adjusted the heavy bag slung over her shoulder, her muscles burning from the weight of the supplies. 

Every step forward sent a dull ache through her back, but she gritted her teeth and pressed on. They needed to take everything they could. 

From the few glimpses she'd caught of the outside world, it didn't seem like food or water would be easy to find.

But there was so much she hadn't seen. 

The food had to come from somewhere. There had to be something beyond the wasteland—something that kept the officials fed and supplied. 

A place where people lived, where the air was clearer, where survival wasn't a matter of luck and cruelty.

The only problem was transportation. The officials always seemed to arrive out of nowhere, moving effortlessly between the mines and wherever they came from. 

Their "transport" had been nothing more than a floating metal plate, silent and untraceable, defying logic and explanation. The miners had never been allowed to see how it worked or where it went.

As Elysia emerged from the mouth of the cave, her heart sank. 

The metal plate was gone. Vanished. If no transport had been arranged for the obsidian, it meant the officials had never expected them to complete the shipment. The attack had never been about punishing them for a failed delivery—it had been an extermination.

Their intentions seemed clear now.

A gust of wind ripped past her face, dry and sharp like a blade. 

The wasteland stretched before her, vast and unyielding.The sky above was darker than obsidian.

She shivered, though it wasn't from the cold.

This was real. They were actually leaving.

The weight of it pressed down on her, heavier than the bag on her shoulders. 

The sound of movement behind her broke her thoughts. One by one, the miners spilled out of the cave, their footsteps careful and hushed, as if speaking too loudly would break whatever fragile thread of safety they still had.

Lucian was among the first, his usually sharp gaze dulled with exhaustion, his hands still streaked with blood from tending to the wounded. 

Ryker followed close behind, his expression unreadable, but his grip on his pack was tight, knuckles pale. 

Tuck moved steadily, his face lined with experience and determination, leading the others forward.

More and more miners stepped into the open, their faces a mix of emotions—fear, uncertainty, hope. 

Some clutched their supplies as if they were lifelines, while others simply looked to the horizon, as though searching for answers in the dark.

Kael appeared beside her, his presence grounding. He exhaled slowly, his breath steady despite the weight of responsibility on his shoulders. 

He was the reason they were all standing here, free but uncertain.

"We should move soon," he said, voice low. "If they send reinforcements, we can't be here when they arrive."

Elysia nodded, her fingers tightening around the strap of her bag.

No more time for doubts. No more time for hesitation.

*******

Kael took the first step forward. The others followed behind uncertainly. 

This landscape was more familiar to him than the others. After all, he had been here just over a week ago.

But what direction would he lead them in?

One wrong move and they could be trapped in the wasteland forever. 

The only option was to go the opposite direction of the lab. To move forward. Around the mountains. 

It would be a long trek. He was sure of it. But with each step, they would be closer to their new destination.

Wherever that was. 

They hiked in silence for hours, the only sound being the heavy breaths of his companions. 

Under the cover of darkness, they had the advantage of stealth. No nearby enemies would be spotting them.

Daylight came sooner than he expected, but by then, the group was over a hundred kilometers away from the mine. 

Kael came to a stop as he saw sunlight for the first time. A bright blue orb, just over the horizon. It hurt his eyes to stare at, but it was entrancing. 

Tuck came to a stop next to him. "I told you. Beautiful, ain't it?"

Kael had no words to describe it. 

For once, this desolate planet no longer seemed so scary.