Endless Desert (1)

Having decided on their plan, they headed north. The horses and carriage raced north along the border. There weren't many people that from Middle Kingdom that lived there because of fear from raids from the desert tribes.

But there were military outposts. There were stationed guards at forts to guard against the desert raiders. They ignored the carriage though. It was not a threat to them or middle kingdom.

At the outposts, Lael would have them stop and ask if any tribes had been spotted, but the answer was always the same. No one had seen them at all in recent days. It was like the desert tribes had gone into hiding. They weren't even showing up at normal trading spots.

The party continued north, but were growing more desperate by the day. If they didn't find a doctor by tomorrow, Elon wouldn't make it. They had run out of the medicine which was holding back the poison, and the poison was begging to flare up.

In the middle of the road Lael halted his horse. Seeing him stop, everyone else followed.

"Lael what's happened?" A-Narah asked from inside the carriage. She was afraid that they were being attacked again. If they were attacked, they were in no condition to fight back.

"Nothing my Lady. I just think that we need a new plan. If we continue heading north, we will end up in the ice field and in the territory of the white devils. We don't have any time left either," Lael paused to take a deep breath. His face was haggard and he had lost a considerable amount of weight, they all had.

The once proud guards of an esteemed family now looked like starving beggars, but none of this had ever crossed their minds. Their brother was dying, and that was their only thought.

Launch was the worst off of all of them, but even though he felt like he could faint at any moment, he stubbornly held on. This entire time he hadn't been able to keep anything down. He knew he was in a bad condition. He could feel his body wanting to shut down. Death was staring at him from around the corner.

"Then what should we do?" A-Narah asked.

"We need to take the gamble. We have to enter the desert." Lael was worried. This gamble could mean the end of them all.

"No," it was surprisingly the feeble Launch who spoke up. "We have our mission. We cannot risk the Lady's life; we all are willing to sacrifice our life for her and that includes Elon."

"You bastard!" shouted a livid Uzzi. "How dare you give up on your brother like that and sign us all off to die." He knew that Launch spoke the truth but he was unwilling! He was unwilling to let any of his brothers go. These were the men he had grown up with and fought beside. They were closer to him than most real brothers were, they were his best friends.

"Trust me I understand how you feel. I do as well, but our lives were sworn to obey the orders of our lord. We cannot break that oath," Launch steadfastly said. After saying the words, he looked even worse, his face was as white as a sheet of paper.

Uri came over and patted Uzzi on the back. Launch was right they had sworn an oath and couldn't abandon their honor.

"My Lady, I suggest that we make camp here and wait for…wait for Elon to move on. We can hold a burial and send him off properly," Lael said. With his words his heart clenched in his chest and he closed his eyes so that others wouldn't see the deep grief in them.

A-Narah had been quiet in the carriage and then her voice emerged, "No."

"What did you say my Lady?"

"I said no. This is an order. I am your master and you must follow my orders. We will continue to have hope until there is nothing left to hope for. Take the gamble. Lael lead us into the desert. If the gods smile on us a miracle might just come our way."

"My Lady…" Uzzi sniffed moved by her words.

"I cannot agree to that my Lady. We must deliver you safely and we cannot risk your life," Lael refused.

"I don't care if you disagree. You no longer listen to my father you listen to me. We will take this gamble. If you will not help me then I will carry Elon on my back myself and enter the desert. So your options are to either watch from here as I go to save my brother, or to join me."

The guards still felt conflicted. They wouldn't lie and say that weren't moved by her gesture and her care for them, but they knew Elon would not want them to take this risk if he could speak.

"Please, please. I already lost one family. I do not want to lose another." A-Narah said with tears in her voice.

Finally, the Lael and Launch yielded. They couldn't bear to see their brother die and they couldn't bare for this little sister of theirs to even shed a tear. With their minds made up they entered the Endless Desert, home to a thousand poisons.

What they didn't know was that someone had been watching them as they entered the desert. When one of the observers saw the small party head in a certain direction, he ran off to report. His partner, picked up his spear and followed the unaware party. Their intentions unknown.