The Missing Chao - Chapter 11

"Man, the temperature is rising," Silver sighed. "Is there a bottle of water I can sip from?"

Trees and grass slowly wandered away like scared rodents and sand came in just like a packaging box. The radiation soaked the 5 Mobian's flesh and gallons of water busted out of their pores.

"Yep," Floee tugged out a bottle from her sack and handed it to Silver.

"I infer we're heading into the Bronze Desert," Blaze mewed, "where Floee was born."

"The landscape's pretty great," Shadow adored the distant mountains.

"DO WE HAVE ENOUGH WATER FOR THE HIKE THROUGH THIS DESERT?!?!?!"  Silver screeched. "We don't want to dehydrate, do we?"

"I've packed all the water bottles," Shadow responded, "so we're safe."

"Monsoons are very common in the summer," Blaze added, "so you have a chance to drink rainwater."

"Pretty bizarre," Shadow remarked.

The sand massaged their feet and the heat drew water vapor out of their body. Lack of fluids led to Team Emerald wandering like 1 MPH.

"How are we gonna blast through the Bronze Desert?" Floee asked Sunset. "I can't bear the extreme heat."

Sunset gave out the answer, "Why not be nocturnal and stay near water sources?"

"Nocturnal?!?!?!" Silver's ears perked up. "Even though our primitive ancestors were nocturnal, we're used to staying diurnal."

"Nights in the desert tend to stay cool, so you don't have to worry about the strong heat. During the day, you can nap in the caves."

:I feel like reverting to primitive state," Rouge chattered. "Sleeping in caves? Not my Mobian thing."

"Well, caves provide shade from the sun so you'll at least avoid heat exhaustion. Do y'all want me to explain how to find water in a desert?"

"Yeah!" everyone else cheered.

"In order to look for a water source, try searching for leafy areas. Shadow, I'm concerned about your black fur, since dark coloring attracts the most heat. I would strongly recommend you to wear a hat and white T-shirt."

"Let me see if I have those in my pack," Shadow immediately unzipped and searched his backpack. After a minute, he pulled out a baseball cap and white tank top, "Are these okay?"

"Of course. Now let's seek a water source."

"Hmm...." I sniff some vegetation nearby," Silver's nose twitched. He pointed southeast, "That way!"

Everyone else followed Silver as he glided across the burning sand. Although the sweat was there to rob the heat away, heat still smothered their bodies like cream.

"I can add cactus and leaf greens!" Silver hollered. The gang then ran into a garden of desert flora.

"Here, we must dig for groundwater," Sunset instructed. "I believe hedgehogs and foxes make good diggers, does anyone have a shovel?"

"I think I have one in my pack," Rouge sought her backpack and later pulled out a shovel.

"Now dig, please."

The white adult bat struck the metal tool into the sand and began to uncover the Earth. Piles of sound rose like a mountain forming. At last, stone was revealed to the air.

"We must remove the stones in order to unearth the water," Sunset ordered. Rouge carefully placed the gray, rough rocks onto the sand and one by one, areas of water were sighted.

When all of the rocks were removed, Sunset ordered," Get a pot out, scoop the water, and boil it."

Blaze tugged out a steel pot out of her pack, carefully a cup (in measuring terms) of crystal ground water out, and placed the point on the grainy sand.

"There, we have water," she purred. "However, I think we should go to a cave before boiling the water."

"I will accept that," Sunset approved.

"I can see a cavern nearby!" Shadow suddenly barked. He pointed to a distant sandstone cave.

Immediately, Team Emerald dashed towards the landmark so quickly that only a few grains of sand flew off the Earth. In only a minute, they were standing in front of the cave.

"Are there any non-Mobians animals inside?" FLoee wanted to double-check. "I really do not wish to get swallowed by a bear or bitten by a rattlesnake."

Silver sniffed, "There's none."

Once everyone got inside the cave, they prepared to lie down and get smothered by the fresh, chilly air. Blaze lit a small flame so everyone could see much better in the dark.

She hovered the pot over the orange spark, "Now I can finally get rid of the pathogens."

Once the water drank the warmth, she again mewed, "Can anyone hand me a cover so I can preserve the ground water?" Shadow offered her that and she did what she said.

Sunset announced, "We shall go to sleep and open our eyes when the MIlky Way unravels itself in the twilight sky."

"Well, how can we hide ourselves, while we put on our nightwear?" Floee wasn't sure.

"Someone can just go outside and change their clothes!" Silver suggested.

"What if someone sees us?"

"I'm pretty sure no one will, since we're far away from the civilization."

"Alright."

Team Emerald took turns wandering outside the dark cavern and donning their nighties. Once everyone was done, they were now ready to fall into Dreamland.