The atmosphere among the one plus five travelers was grumpy. While not everyone was annoyed with each other, when the sum of the people's mood in the party equaled negative, there was just no driving away the gloominess hanging about.

  Silently, the group moved through the Xap’yu on a boat manned by the plus one. She was an extremely amused young Arroxath boatwoman, who found the situation in her transportation quite entertaining. To her, all the people in the boat appeared to be overgrown children who refused to talk with each other after a silly quarrel. Except Naxa. Naxa was Kargos’ partner, and she was quite level headed most of the time. Naxa was also a close friend of the boatwoman, who drank together with her a lot when their free times aligned.

  They could not talk much now, however, since the boatwoman had to keep her eyes peeled on the river for crocodile swarms. If the boats avoided crocodiles that were bunched up together, they would not give chase. That was the way of Xap’yu crocodiles.

  Also, she was having some fun watching the people on the boat gazing at the river. While that wasn't unusual, the occasional pointed looks they threw each other was funny.

  Earlier in the day, Jyevodirr had gotten reading materials from Dogan. But the form in which he had gotten them was unexpected.

  Instead of giving him a lot of books as Jyevodirr expected, the old man had asked Jyevodirr for his tablet. Jyevodirr had answered that he never owned one. Dogan made Jyevodirr borrow Rraos’ tablet, where Dogan dumped the digital format of many books for Jyevodirr’s benefit. As they then had their breakfast, the old man had even demonstrated the process of making stone from wood, which involved taking a pile of broken wood and fusing them together as densely as possible using Mayyux.

  Jyevodirr had been happy.

  The trouble began when Jyevodirr asked to borrow Rraos’ tablet for reading immediately after the materials were transferred, which Rraos had outright refused. Jyevodirr asked Rraos to buy him one, but Rraos refused that as well.

  In the meantime, R’vag had his appointed duel with Kargos, and he managed to beat the older man. Kargos wanted to fight again, but that only ended up helping R’vag try out a few new things he wanted to implement into the way he fought. Needless to say, Kargos had not been happy. Even with one of the two people sullen with his loss, the total group, where Kargos and Naxa were the newcomers, started out on their journey happily enough.

  Once they had embarked on the boat, Jyevodirr had asked Rraos for his tablet again. This time, Jyevodirr was backed up by R’vag, who only wanted to fiddle with this new gadget. A tablet was a fancy gadget R’vag had never had the opportunity to hold before.

  Rraos refused again, telling them that a tablet was a device for storing information and working with it, not for playing around. Therefore, even if he were to hand it to Jyevodirr, he would never hand his tablet to R’vag. That had offended R’vag mightily. A second person was then unhappy in the group.

  Jyevodirr had assumed after Rraos’ declaration that he would be handing Jyevodirr the tablet, but Rraos shattered that hope, saying he would be giving it to Jyevodirr only after evening on days they were settled in one location. That had made Jyevodirr angry. He thought Rraos was being senseless, and so they had an argument. The conclusion of the argument was that the tablet was Rraos’, so he could damned well do whatever he pleased with it. That had been the end of all conversation, and everyone but Naxa was angry.

  In truth, Naxa was also quite unhappy, having so many senselessly offended people around her, but she was sensible enough to not let it ruin her mood terribly. What did get a little under her skin though was how Kargos was acting from the morning.

  These silly little reasons were why no one in the group was in a good enough mood to enjoy the serene ride of the Xap’yu flowing beautifully below the boat threading its sandy water. Sadly for the scenic moments, the only one enjoying herself to the fullest had experienced this journey too many times to care, finding this ridiculous tension much more delectable.

  The crossing of the Xap'yu was over too soon. Everyone got off the sun-powered boat and thanked the boatwoman. She exchanged nods with everyone in good cheer, then clasped hands with Naxa with full force. Having had the farewell, she drifted away with her boat towards her usual crossing to make money.

  Before the journey could continue, however, Naxa spoke up. She had had enough of this atmosphere.

  “Are you all seriously this immature? Will you fools really go the whole day without speaking to each other and sulking around?”

  Jyevodirr was the first to respond.

  “Come on, Qin Naxa! I only asked this goat’s-penis to give me his tablet to read! And –!”

  Before Jyevodirr could finish, or even Rraos could retaliate, Naxa interrupted him.

  “He said he’ll give it to you later, no? Ultimately, it is his property to share or to refuse, you know? He still agreed to share.”

  R’vag spoke up this time.

  “But he refused to ever let me handle it! Don't you think that's a little too much?”

  Naxa stayed silent for some time, alternating between looking at Rraos, who huffed and said nothing, and R’vag, who was fuming. Had she not understood the situation with the former Arroxath heir the day before, she would never have uttered a word. Now though….

  “You do know that our Empire is based not only on force, but understanding as well, correct? Which means when understanding fails, force is still a viable option,” she directed her words towards Rraos this time.

  “Look, I know that,” Rraos’ response was laced with irritation. “But if the three of us want to work with information, we need the tablet, don't we? Mine is the only one we have currently! So, I need to keep it safe even if he doesn't like it.

  Once we have enough resources to buy another, I will get the both of them their own tablets. Isn't it better this way?”

  R’vag’s argument died in his throat. Naxa saw this and looked at Jyevodirr, who seemed to be calming down as well.

  “So, is all the bad blood between you lot clear now?” She asked.

  The two young adults nodded begrudgingly and looked at Rraos, who sighed and raised his hand. First, R’vag went to clasp it, completing the show of trust between them. Then, Jyevodirr did the same.

  Finally, Naxa turned to her beloved partner.

  “And you,” she spoke to Kargos with a sterner note, “Just get over it.”

  Kargos’ eyes widened and his mouth fell open in outrage, but Naxa quickly went up to him and gave him a quick peck in his cheek. Jyevodirr and Rraos blushed.

  “Better now?” She asked Kargos coyly.

  His heart suddenly melted and all the sourness in him evaporated. He pulled Naxa closer with an arm, then kissed her forehead.

  R’vag whistled in appreciation. The couple turned to him in unison and grinned.

  The gloom hanging over the group had vanished like a mirage in the desert.

  The group of five walked through the riparian woods in good cheer. Along the way, they even spotted crocodiles lounging in the land. Once one of them was pointed out to Jyevodirr by Naxa, only he could perceive them with consistency. These beasts hid their presence in the world of God as well as in the physical one.

  While their presence and their scenery served to distract Jyevodirr and R’vag for most of the time, they spent the rest bombarding the couple with questions. Naxa and Kargos answered them slower than Dogan would have.

  “So what are your settlements actually called?” This was one of Jyevodirr’s numerous questions.

  “You didn't know?” Kargos asked. Jyevodirr shook his head to indicate that he didn't.

  “Well, we call them togazi.” Naxa told Jyevodirr.

  “I didn't know that either,” Rraos muttered.

  “What?” Naxa asked, unable to catch the words.

  “Nothing, nothing.” Rraos insisted.

  Naxa dropped the matter.

  “And what was the name of the togazi you two are from?” Jyevodirr asked another question, just as he had been asking for quite a while now.

  “Well, we’re from Gayan togazi, quite far north from here. Near the sand mines,” Kargos replied animatedly. “It’s actually not very far from the famed Ngixas’ togazi. If you don't know where that is, it is by the Xap’yu - Isp’rron confluence.”

  Naxa saw Jyevodirr’s puzzled look and decided to cut in.

  “I don't think that’s what he was actually asking for. He meant the togazi we were living in. If he’s asking us all of this right now, maybe he didn't get to ask old man Dogan.”

  “Oh.”

  “Yeah….” Naxa finished addressing Kargos and turned to Jyevodirr. “So, Qai Jyevodirr, that togazi he was talking about is the one we consider closest to being our home.

  We move around a lot during our life, so you may find us in different togaziza during different years. When you ask any Moyeganeni where they are from, the answer would be the togazi they grew up in.

  So, the togazi we just left was the Kirran togazi. But that is not where we are from.”

  Naxa’s answer made Jyevodirr realize how different the Moyeganeniza actually were from the people in his village. While the Moyeganeniza travelled so much that their home was different from where they were, the people from his birth-land considered wherever they had lived the longest to be their home.

  “So, you two grew up in the same togazi?” Jyevodirr asked.

  “Yes,” replied Naxa. “I was born around three and a half years earlier than him, though.”

  “Such a shame that you’re not older,” Kargos butted in, wiggling his eyebrows at his partner.

  Naxa slapped Kargos in his head, though she herself was smiling ear to ear.

  “Have you two exchanged vows?” This question was from R’vag.

  “No, we’re not Poerr and Prellith yet,” Kargos’ answer was sheepish. “We need to fight together a little more. We’re not used to each other's rhythm yet.”

  “But weren’t you two from the same Togazi, though?” Jyevodirr also joined in.

  “Yes, but I left earlier,” Naxa answered.

  “And I followed after her footsteps alone!” Kargos bragged. “Then I found her years later and showed how strong I am, and how much I care for her. She fell for me immediately!”

  “Don’t listen to him,” Naxa giggled. “It was his strength of character that mesmerized me. How he was strong enough to say the same things year after year, even though he had so many chances to change.

  So now we are thinking about working together some more, getting stronger in brawls together, then exchanging vows late in this year, or early in the next year.”

  Kargos smiled deviously at R’vag.

  “Why did you ask, though? Interested in becoming a son of the desert? I know you were hitting it in the woods with Axina last night. She is a good girl, if a little too raunchy, you know.”

  R’vag’s grin was a salacious one.

  “Oh, I know that! I wish she could come with us.”

  “Yes, how would you even survive without quenching your thirst, right?” Kargos winked.

  “Alas!” R’vag cackled.

  Naxa’s lips twitched between an amused laugh and an offended grimace.

  “You know, if you were not talking about Axina, and were instead talking about someone like Zan’vana, I would have buried you both in the sand. But then, with the way Axina is….”

  “She is fine the way she is,” R’vag firmly declared, looking back over the Xap’yu into the distance of the opposite riverbank.

  “There flies the heart of the lovestruck bird,” laughed Kargos.

  With the conversation having gone as far astray as this, Jyevodirr had lost the motivation to ask more questions. After the jokes and laughs were over, he did not ask any more questions and walked in silence. He and Rraos had ended up walking beside one another without even realizing it, and they took solace in the silence. It was comforting for the both to walk with another who had very less amorous dealings with their opposite sex.

  They walked for an hour this way, never stopping even once in between. Rraos had wanted to, but Kargos’ withering gaze had shut him up.

  After the hour, the first signs of the nearby tuvudhan came with workers rummaging around the woods. Some were recognized by either Naxa, Kargos, or by both of them. Unlike yesterday morning, when they had reached the desert for the first time, this was the perfect time for workers, making the riparian woods appear far livelier. At around eight in the second quarter, just an hour before midday, they reached the Togazi grounds where the tuvudhana were and stopped. This was a larger Togazi than Kirran, which they had just left.

  The desert couple went deeper into the settlement to talk about the situation and hire a caravan, while the three youths were directed to the common gathering for lunch.

  Lunch in the tuvudhan was a modest affair.

  Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.

  The platters were full of gayakya, the staple food of the deserts, which the people had been working with in the woods. These were dry, fluffy dishes made by boiling the water-absorbing gayakya grains, which grew in short, clumpy desert grasses, particularly by the rivers and oases in the Moyegan desert. There was also a sweet and salty curry made from dried xuyathi legumes, desert salts, and a paste of fresh date palm fruits cooked together. The last dish to go alongside these was a fried dish of the tuber eft’pla, date palm fruit paste, and salt.

  The three travelers did not get to talk with the locals for long, since Naxa and Kargos returned with another older man with sunken cheeks in tow. The man was introduced to the three outsiders as the caravan leader. The couple bade the caravan leader to bring the other three to the camels, then they headed off for lunch. Soon, the middle-aged man, R’vag and Jyevodirr got to work as the caravan leader instructed, while Rraos lounged around under the shade of an unworked palm tree.

  Once Naxa and Kargos returned, they too helped out after a short rest, and then the team was ready to go.

  Walking out of the tree cover, the people new to the desert thankfully did not feel very different. The brightness of the day was the dimmest of the whole year during this month here. The temperatures were also on the lower side, plummeting rapidly. The sky was around half visible, with the rest being filled by thick layers of patchy clouds higher in the sky.

  “Do you think it’s going to rain?” Jyevodirr asked.

  The man leading the camels shook his head.

  When Jyevodirr understood that the man would not be explaining any more, he opened his mouth, intending to question further, but Naxa quickly stopped him.

  “We are leaving water sources behind, Qai Jyevodirr. Try not to talk too much. We only have a limited supply of water.”

  Jyevodirr quickly fell silent. He wished he could ask a lot more, but he did remember that the deserts were dry. Better not do something stupid and regret later.

  The further they went, the further the landscape changed. Trees, bushes and even grasses became sparse, and the land was slowly buried under sand. Particularly striking were the long strips of sand that rose high up above them. These long strips covered vast distances and seemed to be deceptively small. The closer the outsiders got to these dunes, however, the more they realized how big they actually were.

  After five mind-numbingly long hours of walking, Jyevodirr finally understood why the people with experience had kept mostly quiet. Even though the temperatures were not too high, the air was dry. Hours of walking made him feel thirsty very quickly, and though he could keep himself going well enough, the irritating dryness still remained. He had come to know too late that thirst could only be prevented without drinking water, not cured. The desert dwellers were used to conserving water in their body using Mayyux.

  R’vag was in a similar condition, but Rraos was worse. Rraos had neither walked this far in his life, nor had he good fluency over the language of the God, Mayyux. On top of that, he had no choice but to keep circulating the vibrations of Mayyux through his body to just keep himself strong enough, which accumulated mental fatigue. He was tired, thirsty, and downright miserable. Having been talked into walking by R’vag, instead of travelling with an additional pack of Moyeganeni horses, was the worst thing he had let himself do. He even had to climb on camels a few times to rest already..

  The day was almost at an end, and the experience of crossing the desert was a strange one.

  The walk through the day had stretched on and on. It was a process of mind-numbing monotony. The desert folk did not utter a single complaint – this was how they honed their own strength.

  Jyevodirr tried to copy the same. At first, he tried to still the innumerable complaints that had bubbled up from within him. Then, the rhythmic, muffled thumps of the caravan of camels, the glances of a south-westerly breeze, and a vast, dry sea of shifting light and darkness mesmerized him for a long while. He had almost felt like he was in a trance, drifting through the past, present and the future of his life through this land of sand and dry soil. When he was in the present, he had noted the gradually worsening condition of Rraos and the equally improving condition of R’vag. It would have almost been tranquil, if not for the dryness in his throat.

  Occasionally, the sweet dry dates and salted dry xuyathi were passed around the entire group. Jyevodirr learnt that had it been a longer trip, they would even have hummed songs, or, on occasions, told old tales that had been retold time and time again.

  When the sun stopped being whitish yellow and the sky grew even dimmer, the group reached a location which had acacias transitioning to date palms. At the center of the clump of dates, there was also a tiny wooden cabin. The caravan leader informed the outsiders that this was a s’thaya, which were water sources that acted as desert camps. Jyevodirr and R’vag were confused about where the water was supposed to be, so Rraos showed them the tiny little cabin, which didn't have a living space. Instead, there was a pump that pulled water out from inside the ground.

  Once the youths were done drinking some water and exploring the area, they started setting up camp with the other three. The camels had laid down already and were munching on bales of hay.

  It didn't take much time to pitch up the tents anticipating the night. When they were done, the group climbed up a nearby dune and sat down to enjoy the sunset together. The blood red dusk did not disappoint.

  Once the sun had set completely, dinner was cooked. It was the same as their lunch, but the specialty came from the alcoholic sy’garr bottles being opened. Everyone except R’vag drank, each drinking different amounts to suit their own tastes. Then, the stories began.

  “So, did you know the story of the legendary Brank’dhaf, who crossed the desert with a herd of Moyegan Horses?” Kargos began animatedly. “Legend has it that he had crossed the entirety of Moyegan and crossed over to the distant Northern highlands, keeping pace with the herd and being led to new lands, where he discovered the origins of the Xap’yu a long time ago.”

  “How long ago?” R’vag interrupted.

  “I heard that he did it a thousand years ago!” Kargos boasted.

  “You heard wrong,” the caravan leader contested hotly. “He had done it two thousand years ago!”

  “How long ago would that have been? When the Yahwideniza were swarming those lands?” Naxa countered.

  “No, lass,” The caravan leader replied, his voice dramatized to convey the greatness of a legend. “When he moved, no one was able to oppose him! In fact, he was the one who had taught Yahwideniza how to live with their surroundings! Even the Yahwideni Durkaan bowed down to him!”

  “What rubbish!” Kargos protested hotly. “You're only saying this because he was a forefather of the Nidaxath family. Your family!”

  “That does not mean I am wrong,” the drunk man protested.

  And so, between these squabbles and disagreements were stories told - first of the legend who had travelled before anyone to the Naxt’s mountains where the Xap’yu began, then of another legend who had beaten down the armies of the Holy Empire, and then another, and another. Broken stories of legends as countless as the stars were debated about, loud songs sung, even a few poems were recited. Their thirst did not bother them as much as during the day, for water was nearby and in plenty. Nor did the gradually mounting cold deter them. The tradition of the desert – merrymaking on the night before reaching their destination – bled into everyone, Rraos included.

  When the time came to sleep, the three youths were reluctant. They roamed the tops of the nearby dune, watching the thin crescent moon go down a little more westward than the sun had.

  There was a magic to the now moonless night. It was cool – a little cold too when the wind momentarily blew stronger – but that felt soothing to the youths. The magic of the night could have very well been imparted by the openness of the world. To the north, to the south, to the west and even to the east, there was just an endless, undulating mass of plain, dry land glowing weakly in the nascent moonlight. The youths felt free and wild. R’vag even howled like a wild dog.

  Eventually, even the three travelers’ merrymaking had to stop. They went to the shed to drink water, then they returned to the tents for the night. Since they shared a single tent, there was a quick squabble to determine who would sleep in the middle. Jyevodirr had to be content to do it.

  None of the three for even a moment remembered Rraos’ tablet, which had been the cause of their morning quarrel. In this manner, their night finally came to an end.

  Early in the morning, before the sun had risen, the three youths were woken up. Even Jyevodirr grumbled a little, but Rraos was hit hard again.

  “We told you all to go to bed early, didn't we?” Complained Kargos.

  Naxa was more tolerant.

  Despite the minor hitch, the party was up and walking soon. Rraos had slept a little more on the sand as the tents were being disassembled and loaded back.

  In the predawn morning, the group walked slower than they did the previous day. Rraos threw a tantrum to ride one of the camels, so that he could have enough energy to walk again. The caravan leader and the camels grudgingly complied. Every fifteen minutes after that, Rraos was forced to shift to a different camel, which delayed the walk even more. By the end of two hours, when the dawn was golden in the sky and the sun threatened to come out, Rraos was made to get back down and walk. He was miserable again, but he had at least gathered some energy to walk.

  Another dimly lit, cloud filled day of walking stretched out in time and space before the group. No one spoke too much, but this time there was a decent amount of humming going on. Jyevodirr listened attentively to the unfamiliar melodies and let his own nostalgic tunes of the warm, dark grasslands fade away with the desert wind’s whispers.

  It was the second day of walking, but already both him and R’vag were getting a little used to this manner of crossing large distances. R’vag was even feeling calmer, more composed than he ever had felt. Everything was slower than he and Jyevodirr were used to, but it was more distinct for him. At least, Jyevodirr had also used to laze around a lot in the village on lazy afternoons. R’vag was too energetic for that. So, in this world where everything was slowed down and stretched out, he was left alone with his mind more than he ever had been.

  R’vag’s mind drifted away to the arms and thighs, bellies and buttocks, and faces and breasts of the women he had loved. Then, it ran through the open lands of his village. After that, there was silence. The silence in his mind was an echoing one that made R’vag feel sleepy. In the cavernous silence, he forced himself to be aware. He thought about the world around him and wondered if braving this silence was one of the other kinds of strength Jyevodirr had been talking about.

  Turning to look at Jyevodirr, he saw that his childhood friend looked content. Jyevodirr was lazily looking down, perhaps thinking about all the things he did and didn't know about.

  R'vag made up his mind to ask Jyevodirr about things he knew. He would make Jyevodirr explain new things to him; he trusted Jyevodirr to explain not as drily as the village teachers had used to teach.

  As time progressed from morning towards the day, the ones experienced with the desert noticed that they were walking slower than they had intended to. In around half an hour more, they should have arrived at the final checkpoint before reaching the mines. But right now, they were still quite far from the desired location.

  “We’re still an hour away from the Vrrox’ta s’thaya, aren't we?” Naxa asked the caravan leader calmly.

  The man clicked his tongue.

  “More if we continue with this pace.”

  The man didn't look at anyone after that and silently increased his pace. Kargos and Naxa looked at each other, then followed the man silently. Jyevodirr and R'vag were too absorbed in their own mind to even notice the change. Rraos, however, felt it.

  Rraos knew that he must have been the cause for this change, so he silently put more effort into working with Mayyux. He walked along with the same brisk pace as the others. He knew his mind was the only one devoid of the luxury to relax and drift away to different things. He was still not used to working with Mayyux for so long.

  Even with the faster pace, the clump of trees could be seen only after over an hour of walking. It took the group another forty minutes to get to the s’thaya, after which the desert people decided to get a short break even though they were hungry. R’vag offered to cook for everyone, and Jyevodirr decided to help him out. The mood was a little sour amidst the two desert men, but they did not complain.

  The dinner was a strange affair, where about half of the people were somber, while the other half were content. While eating, the caravan leader decided to speak up.

  “See, we will need to wait here for quite some time,” he spoke, as if it was a matter of dire consequences. “We would have waited less, but we were too slow. The camels are tired because of the longer walk.

  I think you people will not be getting there in time to have a look today.”

  Kargos and Naxa glanced furtively at Rraos, but he focused on chewing his food and nodded absently. Now that Rraos was getting some time to rest his mind, he did not want to think.

  The caravan leader sighed, then he silently finished his food.

  After a few minutes of stealing glances at Rraos, looking back at Kargos, and minding her own business, Naxa decided that Rraos may really have been suffering.

  “Are you okay, Qaiz'rra Rraos?” she asked.

  Rraos nodded his head but didn't say anything else.

  “Take it easy, young man,” she said, hesitantly keeping her arm on his shoulder. Rraos was a man of higher standing, after all. “Look, it's alright. You are trying aren't you? That, I think, is quite strong of you. In time it will also be enough.”

  Rraos felt a lump in his throat, so he swallowed it with a mouthful of food. He nodded thankfully at her.

  Kargos, who was initially irritated, looked at Naxa with a complicated gaze. The man wished that he could someday be as great as this woman. She thought he was constant and strong, but he only had a very good example in her as a child. Maybe growing up around her, maturing to admire and love her, then gaining strength in his pursuit of her did make him a better person in the long run.

  He knew that he was still learning from her.

  Kargos put aside his plate of finished food, then slapped Rraos’ shoulder in a good-natured fashion.

  “Yeah, Qaiz'rra. You're strong, you know?”

  Rraos blinked away the tears threatening to form at the corner of his eyes. He nodded thankfully. Then, he made haste to finish his food.

  After the lunch, the group lazed around for nearly four hours.

  Rraos slept the whole time, deciding on conserving his strength. Before the Arroxath youth went to sleep, Jyevodirr took the tablet from and was finally able to read to his heart’s content. R’vag pestered Jyevodirr with a lot of questions at first, having decided to learn things earlier today. Once he felt that his head couldn't take it anymore, he went to have a chat with Kargos and Naxa.

  Kargos had taken a nap on Naxa’s lap after the meal, while Naxa read a book during that time. When R’vag finally came over to talk with them, Kargos had woken up, Naxa had kept aside her book, and the two were spending comfortable moments together. After R’vag arrived, they switched to talking together. When the conversation really turned livelier, even the caravan leader joined in.

  An hour and a half later, the caravan leader decided that the camels had had enough rest.

  Rraos was woken up, Jyevodirr was pulled away from his epiphanies, and the rest folded up their chit-chat session.

  The walk this time was better paced. Rraos was able to handle his mind and his pacing far better after his siesta. He still had trouble with his mind handling the Mayyux continuously, but he had decided that being constantly dissatisfied with his new life was not going to work out well. He needed to get rid of his mental nagging first. It would not be easy, but he had to do it. If this enormous amount of hard work was the least amount of work he had to do to get the greatest amount of wealth he could, he would do it. It did not matter how disproportionately greater was his work and lesser was his profit compared to how he had lived before.

  As the group walked, the trends of the land changed. Up to the last s’thaya, the dues had been getting smaller the further they went. Now, the dunes they were crossing were getting larger again. The people in the group were progressively able to see less and less of what was in the distance due to the lines of dune. The massive sand mounds stretched from horizon to horizon. Both these gargantuan piles of sand and their continuous thin lines, raked thoroughly onto them by streams of wind, stretched far from the north to far in the south in front of the caravan travelling due north-west. This was the sign that confirmed they were getting closer now.

  Nearly two hours later, a beautiful sight greeted the group. Nestled in the low, irregular ridge between the line of dunes they were standing upon and the line of dunes up ahead of them, there were a line of trees thicker than the ones the group had left behind in the previous two s’thaya. In the center of that tangle of trees was a long line of crystal-clear water, glimmering and glittering under the dim sunlight.

  Jyevodirr and R'vag whooped in joy and clasped their hands with tremendous force, startling the camels that were the closest to them. They both turned to Rraos with joy and slapped his back and shoulder playfully, taking care not to hurt the older youth too much. Rraos smiled back at them and pumped his fist in cheer. He did not complain as he would have earlier.

  Without waiting anymore, Jyevodirr and R'vag raced off towards the oasis, cheering and shouting all the while. Rraos did not join them, though, and he kept walking with a smile on his face beside the heartily laughing couple. Kargos and Naxa enjoyed this cheer of the two youths, reminded of their own childhood days. The caravan leader could not help but smile as well.

  The group had finally reached their destination.