205 Player To NPC

Irade

June 22, 10:33 am BT – 8:33 am UT, Outskirts of Hotan Prefecture

"She's...in there?" Irade asked, her voice full of doubt.

There wasn't a single cloud in the sky, and the air was still. The sun beat its heat mercilessly onto the Earth, the yellow sand soaking it up with gusto. A slow buzzing permeated the atmosphere, the sound of nature all but silent for the insects.

Irade, Käwsär, and Black Wind had travelled a lot in the past few days. They had passed by a busy highway and a surprisingly large river, and were slowly making their way into the Taklamakan Desert ("it's actually called the Taktimakan Desert," Käwsär had grumbled). Apparently, that was where the Night Lover was.

It made sense to Irade. After all, the Night Lover appeared to be in the desert in her dreams. So Irade wasn't all that surprised when all the buildings started to fall away and the scenery gave way to more orange rocks and cactus-like vegetation.