CHAPTER 16 - DUNES OF RUIN

There was not much in the desert. Only a couple of things called it home. After walking for what felt like hours, Michaelah wished there was water, any kind of water. Koji was also very thirsty. They had to think of something because the city Jeff had told them about was nowhere in sight. Walking in sand took twice the effort as simply walking. They were paying for every step.

The dunes of sand were like tiny hills. Every time Michaelah made it up another hill she prayed it would be the last but to her dismay it never was. Soon they would run out of energy and be forced to stop walking. If they didn’t find water soon they might not make it out of the Lit Desert alive.

The problem was the sun. There was no escaping it. Not a cloud in the sky, it roasted Michaelah and Koji. The poor panda had to walk with his helmet off because the metal of the helmet attracted the heat from the sun. Michaelah was sweating. She had her cloak wrapped around her waist, but it wasn’t enough. They were overheating.

Everywhere Michaelah looked there was nothing but dunes of sand. Up and over another hill. The bottom of this dune ended and up it rose again. Michaelah stared at it. She just couldn’t do it again. This felt like the hundredth time, and she was so thirsty she could cry just to drink the tears. Koji convinced her to walk up one more dune before calling it quits.

“C’mon, Michaelah,”he said, “I’m beat too. Let’s just see if the city is there before taking a long break.”

“Okay, I can do one more,” she said.

They walked up the dune. Michaelah walked behind Koji and looked down at her every step. One at a time. She focused so she would not falter. They finally got to the top of the dune and there was no city, but there was a cactus.

“Cactus!”Koji yelled, right before running towards it.

Michaelah tried to keep up with him. He approached the desert tree, one of no leaves and needles instead.

“Can you hold this and be ready?” Koji asked, handing her the helmet.

“Ready for what?”Michaelah asked taking the helmet.

“Water hopefully.”

The panda walked ahead and showed his claws. Something he almost never did. He scratched the cactus up and down diagonally and then used the plunger to pop a giant piece off. Michaelah dove towards it with the helmet upside down and it worked like a charm. As soon as Koji removed the chunk of cactus skin, water poured out into the helmet. It was enough to almost fill the helmet. Michaelah turned around to celebrate with Koji and saw they were surrounded by all sorts of desert creatures.

There was a camel, a scorpion, a beetle, a snake, and a vulture. The beetle and scorpion were much larger than normal. They didn’t seem to like each other.

“Give me the water,” the scorpion demanded.

“No, give me the water,” the camel said.

“There is plenty for all of us to share,” said Michaelah.

“Just a second,” Koji stepped in front of Michaelah. “If you want some of this water, what are willing to give us in return?”

They all gave their best answers one at a time.

“Give me the water and I won’t bite you,” said the snake.

“Give me the water and I won’t sting you,” said the scorpion.

“If you give me the water I will lead you out of the desert,”said the vulture.

“With your water I will have the energy to find us all more cactus,” said the beetle.

The last one to go was the camel. It looked around. It looked at Michaelah and Koji both whispering to each other. Then it looked at the rest of the desert creatures. The camel’s eyes lingered on the scorpion and snake.

“If you give me some water, I will protect you from any stings or bites from others.”

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Michaelah and Koji stopped talking to each other and finally addressed them.

"We will give water to you three, the vulture, the beetle, and the camel, only if the vulture helps the camel stop the snake and scorpion.”

Without hesitation, the vulture flapped its wings and scooped up the snaked with its talons before flying into the air. He disappeared into the sky and returned without the snake. The camel ran over to the scorpion, turned around, and kicked it down the sandy hill. Michaelah walked the knight’s helmet full of water around and they all drank from it. The camel let Michaelah and Koji get on it and the vulture scooped up the beetle. They ventured off together and found a cactus on the way to the edge of the desert.

After the second cactus they were finally feeling better. That and the sun was on its way down. Also, the free ride on the camel’s back was a nice treat. Things were finally starting to look better for them. Michaelah popped her head up and looked behind them.

“What’s wrong?” Koji asked.

“This is usually when like the brother or sister of the snake or scorpion show up for their revenge,” said Michaelah.

“What are you talking about?”asked Koji.

“Nothing. Did the cactus water taste funny to you?”asked Michaelah.

“Yeah, a little bit. I’ve never had pink flower cactus juice before, only green needle cactus juice.”

“It doesn’t taste bad, just different. I like it.”

“I like it too!”Agreed Koji.

“I feel re-energized.”

“Me too. Should we try to make it out of the desert before nightfall?”asked Koji.

“I’m willing to try. Let’s ask the gang.”

First they asked the vulture if it was doable, and the bird confirmed. They felt a renewed sense of hope after drinking so much pink cactus water.

Before they knew it the stars were out above them and the path ahead though the dunes was dark. If Michaelah didn't feel so good she would say it looked scary. But she was a champion with her many friends, riding fearlessly into the night.

Michaelah reached for the camel's hump between her legs, and it collapsed into sand. She was no longer on the camel. She was sitting on a dune, alone in the sand with Koji. The camel, culture, and beetle were gone.

Michaelah tried standing up, but the ground was shaky. Koji laughed so hard at her legs wobbling that he rolled down the sand hill. Michaelah almost lunged for him. She already was imbalanced and that tipped her over the edge. She rolled down the sand after Koji.

Michaelah landed right on the panda and bounced off his furry belly. They laughed, but there was sand everywhere, even in her mouth. She tried to get to her feet again, but the desert was still shaking. So, she gave up and fell back down next to Koji, wiping the sand from her face.

Koji spat sand out of his mouth and then the dune below them started to swirl and disappear. From beneath it rose the tip of an old stone temple. The swirl turned into a cyclone and blew away enough sand for them to start walking down the top of the temple as it was being revealed.

By the time Koji and Michaelah got down to the bottom it looked more like a resort than a temple. There were palm trees, a beautiful pool with a waterfall in it, and even a stand for food. The window to the food stand was on one side of the rectangular pool and the lobby of the hotel was on the other side. Michaelah read the sign on the hotel, “The Oasis”but the letters looked funny.

The pool looked too refreshing to ignore and was her first stop. She walked up onto the diving board. When did she put her swimsuit on? She looked over at Koji and he was wearing a Hawaiian shirt and sunglasses. He gave her a thumbs up and Michaelah jumped off the diving board and did a cannonball in perfect form. The water splashed all over her. It was cool but not too cold. After all of that time in the desert it felt so refreshing to be submerged in water. Not before long, her stomach began to growl.

Michaelah got out of the pool and slipped on two towels, one around her waste and one over her head. She walked over to the Food Stand. Michaelah blinked and she was already walking back to their lounge chairs with two baskets of chicken tenders and french fries. She put them down in front of Koji. He looked unsatisfied.

"What's wrong?"

"They didn't have any bamboo?"

"Who doesn't like chicken tenders?" Asked Michaelah, as she showed him one and then ate it. They were still very hot. Crunchy strips of breaded chicken that were juicy on the inside.

"I'm a panda," said Koji.

Michaelah laughed and went to eat the chicken. She closed her eyes as she took a bite. But nothing was there. She opened her eyes. The baskets of chicken tenders and french fries were gone. She was getting more and more confused.

"Where are we Koji?"

"I don't know. Some hotel in the desert."

"What's the name of the hotel?"

They both looked up at the building across from the pool. There were letters above the door to the lobby but now they looked different. She could not remember the name she first saw off the top of her head, but she knew what she was looking at now was not it. These letters spelled out, "The Mirage."

"Oh, no," said Michaelah.

"What's wrong?" Asked Koji.

"I remember these from school. This isn't real. None of this is real. We're hallucinating."

"Because of the pink flower cactus water?" Asked the panda, trying to keep up with her.

"No!" Michaelah started to panic, "That wasn't real either. Nothing has been real since the cactus. We're seeing things because we are dehydrated."

And right after that, it was like a grand curtain pulled away to reveal there was no pool, no hotel, no snack stand. They were still sitting on top of the sand dune from when they first saw the cactus, only now it was night time.

Michaelah felt her lips. They were dry and cracked. Both of them were so tired they fell asleep right there on the dune, with nothing but the starlight above to keep them warm.