Mike knew that the environment was very dangerous. So, he had taken his precious time to make lots of preparations that could, at the barest minimum, guarantee his survival.
What he never expected though, was to be pursued by one of the most dangerous predators that inhabited the mountain range.
"ha…..ha ...wh…ay…. Can't....move....faster"
The creature that was on his tail was a living calamity. And Mike had done something against it that was difficult to forgive; he had hunted down it's young.
With a difficultly taken breath, Mike pivoted on his right foot as he turned sharply to the right, using the terrain, obstacles and even other creatures found along the path he was treading, to widen the gap between the creature and himself. Yet, Despite his effort , the gap between himself and the creature chasing him seem to be shrinking.
A long time ago, Just soon after Mike found himself here , and during his risky, periodic, study of the environment, he had compiled a list of apex creatures he would rather never cross paths with and had arbitrarily given them names. And Chromo, the creature pursuing him, was number two on the list.s
With each difficult step taken , fueled by a more difficultly taken breadth, the gap between himself and the creature visibly shrunk filling him with despair and tempting him to throw in the towel. But…
"….. i...mu…..st....not...fall…..here..."
...gradually a scathing resolve filled him. He could not afford to die here because there were many questions that were still unanswered and there were many plans he had that were not yet carried out. So if the creature wanted his flesh , it would have to earn it, piece by piece. And he would make sure to prove to it how costly each piece was.