13th Fall 509AV She didn't know how far she'd walked. It wasn't the heat that drained the strength from her, no, for her eyes and skin were accostumed to the stark weather, and her life in Taloba more than made up for in it's own fair share of scalding heatwaves. It was the buffeting of the sandy winds, the strength it took to scale up shifting dunes, the futility of hunting for sustenance. These were not the jungles of Falyndar that she knew well. This was the other half of her heritage as her features could attest to. The sun did not blind her ebony eyes, and the pores in her fingers, often polluted with countless currents of energy now remained still, a testament to the barren landscape. She had arrived in Ahnatep for the earlier part of the season, but had only remained there for as long as her curiosity could keep her. The Eypharians disliked her appearance, often calling her a Chaktawe menace, treating her as if she'd been birthed by the sands themselves. Naama was rarely perturbed, but it was the wonders of the Ekytolian desert that drew her in. Fool as she was, the halfbreed walked amongst the shifting sands with little regard, a goshawk the only company. It came as a brutal surprise when a sandstorm tore through the still, calm air and ravaged the landscape in a vicious caress. The sand stung her eyes and tore at her leather garb, forcing her to take shelter beneath a rocky overhang and its sparce shrubs, now lost in the inhospitable desert. Why had she come here? Was it the promise of a new family? The hope that by finding her father she'd find somewhere she'd truly belong? Naama was unsure of even her own desires anymore. It was only the melody of blood and lust and material gain that kept her dancing between the swords that were drawn for her. She walked and walked, each step becoming another agonizing chore, and her throat was as dry as the ancient rivers. And then the ground came up to meet her, a puff of sand swirling into the hot air. The goshawk circled above, calling a mournful cry. Just a minute to rest. The horizon shimmered before her, something so beautiful and yet so sinister. Her lids became heavy, so tired of straining and straining, only to find nothing but sands and rock and shrubs.The darkness would be a welcome relief. |