Chapter 13: The desert

Once they’d left the monastery Liena and friends stopped overnight at Talria. Talria and Templar the two desert towns used to be one… until one day, thousands of years ago a rift opened in the city tearing it apart and putting endless miles of sand between the two parts.  Talria, the smaller half took a new name to distinguish between the two towns, but remained under the rule of Templar, where the sultan stayed.

Much to Damien’s displeasure Liena woke him before dawn the following morning to be on their way.

“But the sun isn’t even up yet!”

“That’s the point, if you want to walk through scorched land under the heat of the burning sun then be my guest; I intend to travel as far as possible while it’s still cool!”

Once he was ready Liena practically dragged Damien to the edge of the town where Maria met them, having been to the well to fill up all their flasks and the extra few they had bought (with the last of Liena’s money) with cold clear water.

“What took you so long?”

“His Majesty refused to get up.”

“Hey, I’d have been a whole load more cooperative if you had roused me with a cup of tea and breakfast instead of jumping on me!”

“Hey-hey, time’s a wasting, if you two don’t stop arguing it’ll be noon before we even get going and we want to be at the oasis long before then!”

“(Sigh) she’s right, come on then Dami, lets go.”

The going was tough. The sand slipped from under their feet as they climbed dunes and tumbled down them again. Each of them found themselves flat on their face on more than one occasion. And despite the early start, noon was long past and they still seemed to be no closer to the oasis. They’d been walking so long even Maria’s travel-worn feet were blistered.

“Hey, pest, I don’t suppose we could stop anytime soon?”

“No.”

“Aw c’mon, it won’t kill you to rest for a bit! We could build a sand castle or bury Maria in the sand or something.”

“Hey!”

“… Sand-castle?”

“Uh-huh.”

Damien looked at the confused expression on Liena’s face for a moment before it suddenly struck him that she’d grown up on a mountain about as far away from a beach or desert as you can get.

“You do know about sand castles right?”

“No, I… I’ve never even seen sand before now… the beach on the far side of the mountain is all shingle so…”

“Dear moons you’ve missed out! Sand castles… well you built figures and sculptures from snow surely?”

“Yeah, there was a competition every year to make the best”

“Well its like that only sand. And not to scale or anything, although I suppose you -could- do that…”

“Oh. Is that all?”

“What do you mean ‘is that all’ its great fun!”

“You’ve been out in the sun a bit too long Dami.”

“I have not! Come on Maria, back me up on this!”

“Oh no, don’t drag me into it.”

Eventually the conversation died and only Liena’s will kept them going forward so when she thought she saw a snowman she finally decided it was time for a rest.
   She dropped down into the shade behind a dune and Damien and Maria slid down next to her.

“Lunch time I think…”

“Hallelujah!”

“But we’re only stopping for a little while; I fear if we stay too long we won’t be able to leave again.”

Despite the sand that had somehow managed to sneak its way into the bag and hence their lunch, the food tasted heavenly and the water- although slightly warm –could have passed as fine wine to their parched mouths. Maria had to stop herself from drinking too much lest they should run out.
   Fifteen minutes later they were on their way again and the going was just as hard as it had been before if not worse, as if the very memory of rest pained their feet. The sun was at its highest point in the sky and didn’t seem in any hurry to set.

“I think I’ve seen enough sand to last me a lifetime… and it’s so hot!”

“Three more steps to the top of the dune and then we come across the beautiful sight of… another dune! Only this one’s bigger. Maybe we’ll be really lucky and get to meet one of those poisonous desert-snakes.”

“Stop complaining you two. Look, I think I can see a track over there.”

“…A track?”

“The sand looks a lot more compacted and solid. And it seems fairly flat so yeah, a track. Well... a trail really I suppose…”

“Don’t get all technical on me Maria, will it be easier to walk on or not?”

“Well yes, its just over this next dune.”

“Thank you, come on then.”
   
Eventually Liena thought she saw the oasis ahead of them surrounded by a little grass and a few palm trees, she blinked to refresh her eyes telling herself it was a mirage but it stayed in sight, getting closer and closer. Still convinced it wasn’t real she started to walk through it. It wasn’t until she was in waist-deep and her skirt was billowing out around her that she realised it was infact the oasis they had been told about. She laughed and threw herself backwards into the miraculously cold water waiting for Damien and Maria to catch up.

“Come in! It’s lovely!”

Damien instantly jumped in splashing water all over her but Maria hung back at the edge, whether because she was a little more scared of water now or because she didn’t want to get wet she never said.

She didn’t get the chance to stay dry though. Damien turned and (winking roguishly) pulled her into the water with them.
   Naturally it turned into a water fight. Being the smallest Liena had to swim in some places where that water was deep, but as such she was the smallest target and avoided getting water in her eyes. Damien got soaked right through as it was impossible for him to duck and avoid all the water being thrown about. But that said he was also the one throwing the most water. Maria managed to avoid getting splashed, but she got plenty wet by lying back in the water and kicking her legs to send up a huge storm of water at both Damien and Liena.  The trick seemed to work as they both stopped splashing each other, unfortunately they turned on her. Or at least they seemed to. For once Damien was sure Liena was fully occupied splashing Maria he dunked her under the water.

“Damien!”

“What?”

“Let her up.”

“Do I have to?”

“Yes.”

“…Oh okay.”

Liena rose with a jet of water pouring from her mouth. She then poked her tongue out at Damien.

“Ya big meanie”

“You deserved it.”

“Oh yeah?”

“Yeah!”

“Oh brother…”

Maria rolled her eyes and headed to the bank in order to dry out. Liena followed her with ease, but Damien couldn’t move.

“Dami? What’s wrong?”

“I’m stuck! I just can’t get my feet off the floor!”

He struggled for a few more minutes all the while Liena couldn’t look at him for fear she would burst out laughing. She did however have a mischievous grin on her face, which Maria noticed.

“Liena… What did you do?”

Liena tried her best to look indignant.

“What?! Me?! What makes you think -I- did anything? He was the one who dunked me!”

“Liena…”

“(Giggle) while he held me under I made his feet sink into the sand a little…just a little hehehe”

“Enough so he can’t move?!”

“Well maybe not -that- little. I’ll just let him cool down a bit before I let him out though.”

She was true to her word and let him out a few minutes later when she had a fire going and had set out all the blankets for them to sit on without getting sand everywhere. Damien shook himself off, but made sure he was standing next to Liena when he did so.

“Hey! I only just dried out!”

“Hmph that’ll teach you to leave people stranded like that then. But why on earth do you have a fire going, it’s not like it isn’t hot enough.”

“No, but it will be night soon and it gets VERY cold in a desert at night. So if you haven’t dried out by then you’ll be glad for it.”

“For someone who’s never even seen sand before you do seem to know a lot.”

“I read. A lot.”

Indeed it was very cold that night. There were no clouds to keep them warm and the sand lost all the heat it had acquired during the hours of sunlight. Liena however seemed unaffected by the cold and fell asleep almost instantly. Probably because she’d grown up on a ridiculously cold mountain Maria thought.
   The other two however remained awake. As Damien was laying down trying to sleep he noticed Maria sitting upright against the moons. He got up and sat next to her.

“Beautiful night, huh?”

“…”

“Maria?”

“Why did you stay?”

“Huh?”

“When I asked you to dance. You didn’t have to stay with me the whole night until I left the party in the small hours”

“There was no point in leaving you on your own. Then both of us would have been lonely, which wouldn’t have been particularly friendly of me would it? Besides we would probably still be in the forest now if it wasn’t for you. Consider it debt repayment.”

“And is that why you stayed with me all those hours last night, while Liena explained how I got to the monastery? Or why you tried to save me from the stream in the first place?”

“… …Amongst other things, yes.”

“What other things?”

“… I promised your father I’d protect you with my life.” He replied but didn’t meet her eyes.

“What else?”

“…”

“Damien!”

“Oh isn’t it obvious!?”

“Liena!? D-did I wake you?”

“Yes you bloody well did. I was having a great dream and all. It was raining chocolate cake.”

“Never mind that, what’s so obvious?”
  
“Don’t!”

“He loves you, moron. Now before he cuts my head off I want a good nights sleep So if you’re gonna start acting all embarrassed -or mortified as I would- do it quickly so I can have some peace!”

Silence reigned for what felt like an age though it was only a few minutes, in which Liena glared -annoyed about being woken from such a lovely dream, Damien blushed and refused to look up and Maria sat watching him trying to get her head round it all. It was however, she who broke the silence.

“I don’t see why you’d be so mortified Liena. He is rather cute.”

Damien looked up at her then and she smiled then kissed him. Liena merely pulled a face and rolled over again to get some sleep.