Vaien and Zhang Han made it out from the destruction and back into the grasslands.
Zhang Han still wasn't placed down on his two feet given his injuries, but stared at the wreckage of stone in front of them with apprehension.
Everything...was gone.
Buried in a pile of rubble.
The water heater, the stored meats and fruits, the furs, his knife and laser bow...everything besides himself, Vaien, and the medical box. That and whatever meager items Zhang Han had on his personage, such as the laser gun and water flask. Even those projects he'd been working on probably were damaged beyond repair.
All his hard work over the past weeks, some so close to being finished, had been ruined with the span of a few minutes. It had never been much and it sure hadn't been long, but Zhang Han had been staring to view that dull cave as his home.
Ruined. Destroyed, just like his previous life on Gaojun, too.
Zhang Han heard Vaien giving a brief chuckle before saying, "Well, shoot. It looks like we're homeless now."
Zhang Han felt a vein pop out on his forehead...he was trying to brush off the entire event like it was no big deal? It did not help that he already had a headache.
Vaien continued, "Whatever."
"..."
"........"
Zhang Han felt his head blow up with rage at that moment.
It was a flaring anger so bad he didn't even know what to think or say, one he'd never experienced before. He pressed his palms against Vaien's chest with as much strength as he could muster, trying to shove him away.
"Let go of me."
Vaien gave a lopsided expression, his fingers wrapping into the shoulder of Zhang Han a bit more tightly in unwillingness. "Why? I…"
"Let go!" Zhang Han repeated, but this time his fist whooshed out and punched Vaien on the right side of his face. It naturally didn't have much effect on Vaien considering that Kalla could barely scratch Vaien, but it was more about the intended meaning behind it. "You dumbass."
Vaien wrinkled his brow and set him down.
Staggering once, Zhang Han managed to stand on his own.
"Look, I...didn't mean for this to happen," Vaien muttered. He believed that Kalla didn't care what happened to their home, and she was being a pest, so of course he fought back in return. "She was the one who threw a punch first..."
Zhang Han had a severe scowl over his usual deadpan expression. Why was it always violence first? Sure, perhaps some matters would only be resolved with force, but he couldn't put into words how sick of that he was after living on Gaojun. The fact that this planet's people revolved around similar beliefs made him aggravated.
He did not feel like putting up with Vaien's childish mindset, and countered, "Is that a reason to destroy everything? Of course she threw a punch, she wanted to fight with you. You just went along with it like an idiot."
"But she injured you!"
"So? Do you think it'll be easier for me to recover now that I have no where to live?" Zhang Han bit off his words, "You better have another place in mind."
Vaien felt cold sweat forming on his neck.
Er....he...didn't actually have another place in mind! This was the best spot he found for miles. Most of the other spots in the rock wall had nests of glow worms. They were annoying to deal with, tunneling in and out of the mountain without restraint.
No one would want to wake up to a long and slimy glowworm in their bed.
Thus, Vaien was silent, and Zhang Han immediately knew that there was no backup place.
Zhang Han kept a hand over his chest, it was hard to breathe as his fury grew, making his bruised lungs and fractured ribs ache even harder. It was mind numbing.
He spoke in a low and incensed tone, "I really wish I didn't have to depend on you for anything. You're irresponsible, but always act like you should be praised."
Now Vaien was pissed, too. He could barely even comprehend what Zhang Han was saying to him. It didn't help that his fuse was already short from his fight with Kalla and for some reason Vaien condemning him made him angrier than with her.
This ungrateful other-worlder! He went out of his way to save his life how many times, and this was how he thought of it all along?!
"You-!" Vaien scowled, then he sneered, that boasting visage returning in full force. That was because he knew it annoyed Zhang Han. "What, do you have the room to complain after everything I've done for you? I've saved your life countless times. I gave you what you needed. I went along with your whims. Or else...do you want to wait for my sister to wake up and then rely on her? I'm sure you'll have a great time with that."
Vaien snappishly pointed to a small pile of rubble in the distance where Kalla's leg was sticking out from dust and dirt. She was apparently buried beneath it and unconscious, but Vaien was confident she was alive and kicking. He'd only temporarily shut up that mouth of hers.
Vaien was believed that with this threat Zhang Han would calm down.
He'd realized how good he had it with him.
But Zhang Han had no intentions of giving in, not this time. He looked Vaien directly in those gold pupils. His gaze was limpid and calm in comparison, only filled with hints of calculated anger.
"I don't care. With you I might end up dead soon enough, anyway."
Vaien was stunned for a moment, then gnashed his teeth.
"...great. Just great! FINE!" His voice became more like a growl with each word, feral and irritated. "Go with her then! Don't assume I'll come back for you."
He left Zhang Han behind as he stomped through the grassland, batting away the long strands of vegetation in front of him with such force that he broke off the stems like a lawn-mower.
Zhang Han would rather go with her?! Did he even know what would happen if he entered the tribe weak as he is?
Zhang Han was always way too addicted to habit anyway. Always waking up too early, insisting on cleaning water and organizing things. And nit picky. He should forget about that waste of a workload. Vaien had traveled for years with his family when he was a child and that was what he planned to do this time as well.
Go wandering far, far away so he didn't have to listen to his sister's feeble pleads and complaints.
Zhang Han had been a fun indulgence, nothing more.
He could forget about him. Who needs him, anyway? He ought to be done with him!
As Vaien got further and further off, Zhang Han didn't bother to look at the figure of his back.
The sounds of the wind blowing over the vast field of green was sure lonelier than it had felt before, but despite the reckless choice he'd made, he did not regret it.
Not even a little.
After all, he wasn't going to praise Vaien for what he'd done today. He wasn't going to stoop that low and never would. They might as well split off from each other if Vaien couldn't even do the simple act of admitting he's wrong. Besides, a careless and arrogant personality like Vaien's irritated him to no end. If he was going to be a dick on top of that, how could he possibly have the patience?
Despite all those thoughts, Zhang Han didn't know how much longer he'd survive.
For one, he was injured. It wasn't life threatening or else he would've already died if, to say, his lungs were punctured or something, but hunting and cooking his own food would be difficult right now if he could barely manage to stand upright. Second, he had no shelter. All the previous conveniences of the cave acting as a safe zone were gone.
Oh well.
Nothing for it now. He supposed he'd try his best to get by on his own.
And yet, these were just straightforward thoughts masking the pain and weariness Zhang Han felt. Pain killers from his medical kit only mitigated the damage and would soon lose their effect. The edges of his mind were getting black spots and his ability to think turning to fuzziness. He stood up without moving, giving slow and faint breaths.
His body swayed as another gust of wind hit.
Zhang Han tried to keep standing. Just this much was ebbing away at his energy.
His eyes closed dimly before he passed out completely.
There was a soft thud and the snapping of grass as his body hit the ground.