Across Sands and Under Stars - Prologue

I am amidst a barren, golden desert.

Endless waves surrounded me in every which way I set my gaze. Nothing could be found in all directions save for the glittering form of the innumerable dunes. The light of the overhead Sun played off of the miniscule grains of sand as they tumbled over one another. Every step I took disturbed them and sent the little stars shimmering down the side of the dune. The very rays that created this spectacle also bore with it a blistering heat. The air around me felt open and vast, inviting me to stand tall, yet the Sun's tyrannical torridity fatigued my body and bent my back. The only thing which granted me comfort was the slight breeze that swept across this expansive ocean of light, and yet my all-encompassing robes scarcely permitted me to indulge in the cool sensation.

It did little to comfort me anyhow. For many days have I traversed this desert, yet there was no reprieve in sight. My water lasted me still, but it is uncertain if it will last until the end. Every day went on in this way: my constant trudging across the dunes in a trance. When night fell, I would rest in my miserable tent silently; in fear at first, but now having not seen a living creature for gods know how long, all thought of happening upon such, hostile or otherwise, is gone from my mind.

Time has escaped my comprehension and slowly eroded away my resunve. Though determined as I am to see the end, I cannot help but briefly doubt that I will.

As I reach the crest of yet another dune, I make a routine, half-hearted glance around. Nothing still, but the golden sheen of the desert.

Then I spied something.

It is difficult to discern at first, but impossible to miss once found. A white robed figure stood upon the dune immediately in front of my own. It was a moment before I comprehended just what this meant. I saw the figure climb slowly to the very top. My throat was hoarse and dry; I could not muster my voice immediately. Just as I was about to call out, I saw the figure slowly keel over and fall to the sand, as though weightless, and plummet down the other side of the dune.

Though I would have liked to pursue this fallen traveler as fast as possible, I could not afford to waste the energy. So I descended my own dune slowly.

The journey to the next dune felt long; painfully so. My feet seemed like lead and while my body cooperated, my heart sank. It was an inexplicable feeling, like I was suddenly being watched very closely. The faint breeze which had been my sune companion for countless days suddenly abandoned me, and despite this I felt a chill envelop my entire being as though I was doused in ice water. Then all at once, as I reached the peak of the dune, the sensation was lost from me.

The breeze returned, the cold was gone, and as I scanned the forward slope of the dune, I saw no figure. There was a piece of cloth sticking out of its side, however. I approached it cautiously and bent to retrieve the curious thing. Out from beneath the sand came a large, white robe. It was crumbled and dirtied as though it had been abandoned for days. I noted how it was fiercely torn apart as though by an animal and spattered in dark, crimson stains.

I tossed the ruined robe away and turned my gaze forward once more. I now had a new aim which drove every faculty within my body. My heart beat intensely and all weariness that once hindered me seemed to have disappeared. Renewed vigor fueled my movement as I strode forth with my new goal in mind: get as far away from here as possible before nightfall.