It has been one week since we departed. I would like to say that the trip was smooth sailing until now but I would be lying. We were prepared for hardships, sure. But the intense sandstorm we faced on the second day was kind of a slap in the face. We have been roughed up the whole day, battered by limitless amount of sand. We were delighted to pitch the tent when the night fell and the storm finally quelled. We all fell asleep the moment our head touched our sleeping bag. This night was dreamless for all of us.

The desert set itself the goal of testing our determination in the next few days. The temperature only kept rising day after day. We soon became obliged to travel early morning. Then take a break at noon, under shade if possible. And push forward one last time in late afternoon before camping.

The scorching sun besieged us during our walk on the dunes who could get as high as twenty meters in some region. The blazing rays tried to cook us under our turbans. Strange scarf made of medium quality fabric that most likely already saved me from multiple insulations.

The constant assault of the flying sand combined with my sweat produced an annoying combination. The itch was real and there was no way to defend myself from the seeping sand. At a certain point in time, I may have been so dirty that I got an armor of crass that helped with the tingling sensation. Disgusting but effective.

Breathing was hard under the sun. It was almost a meditation, only rarely interrupted by my companions. We didn't possess vast amount of water and it was necessary to save it. Hence the scarce discussions. It was a tip of hardened adventurers to keep your mouth from drying.

Like Shara predicted it, we didn't get across an oasis. But we still looked around every morning and evening. Trying to spot birds who often circled around natural basin. For now we didn't get lucky. We could only use the good old morning dew method.

You must dig a circular pit, with your flask at the center and a stretched fabric all around. The fabric was waterproofed with a kind of unknown grease. It allowed us to harvest a minute amount of water every morning.

This technic is also all but safe. The desert is inhabited by all sort of critters that bite or sting. Scorpions, centipedes, spiders and snakes for example. Some can even kill men if no medical support is nearby. Those creatures spend the burning hot day hidden under the sand or rocks. And obviously, when you dig the desert, you always have a chance to disturb a sleeping critter...

We were also starting to get tired after the unpleasant days of walk because we didn't have camels. It may have been a good thing because they could have fled with all our stuff during the sandstorm. It was harder but more secure for our supplies.

Today we deviated a lot from the chosen path. We came across an enormous crevice between the dunes. It may have been possible to cross it with a jump, but Shara deemed it too dangerous. So here we are, following the rift for the biggest part of the day. It was almost night time and we would finally have some rest.

We set up camp for the night in a practiced manner, made a fire with the dry wood collected along the way. We ate the same travel ration we had yesterday and all the day before. Sand seemed almost more appealing to me now. We also boiled the water we had collected yesterday night to make sure it was drinkable.

Ina and Shara were exchanging while pointing a few stars. Trying to calculate the impact of our day of walk. We were not lost, far from it but it could cost us two days of travel if the fissure continued way farther. I was the first one to go to sleep, it was not my night watch turn, I will have time later in the night to ponder on those questions.

I was expecting Kain to wake me up with a hit in the boot like always but not this time. I woke up because I heard a munching sound. I doubt it was Kain having a midnight snack so I got up to check the surroundings.

That's when I saw IT.

Some kind of sand dune cat, but way bigger. His fur was pale and marked by a few brown stripes. The animal, or monster was producing pleasing munching noises while feasting on the rations in Kain's backpack. For a second I got concerned about him, hopping he had not been devoured by the cat. I was soon reassured, when I heard him snore not far from the crime scene. You are so screwed, Shara will never let it slide.

I got out of the tent and faced it. It growled, before perceiving movement in the other tents. It stopped, looked around, bite the backpack, heaved it and looked at me in a taunting way. It then made a U turn and fled at an impressive speed.

"Fuck... Everybody wakes up. We have a problem."

At those words Ina and Shara got up and saw a deeply sleeping Kain. Ina frowned before knocking him on the head. He was sleeping on the log where he was supposed to stand watch. The first thing he noted was three angry glare, at least he didn't try to defend himself. He merely smiled wryly. I interrupted this moment, recounting what happened.

Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation.

"A big cat stole Kain's backpack and fled in the night."

Ina was the first to respond.

"Well, we are in deep trouble then. We were already limited in travel rations. With one-fourth of our rations lost it will be hard to get to the end of the trip. We need to get them back."

"I saw the direction it ran to, but we will need to depart now and follow it's footsteps with torches."

Shara massaged her temples before ordering.

"We move, now."

We tidied up the camp quickly, in a moody atmosphere, before setting out.

We moved neither quickly nor slowly, following the fading footsteps, while being wary of our surroundings. We were lucky enough to not cross the path of a predator.

Ina constantly kept watch of the stars. She wanted to be able to guide us back to our previous position after we retrieved our precious provisions.

After an hour or so, we arrived in an enormous valley. The tracks came to an end. We arrived on a dry argillaceous soil that didn't retain the footprints. We could only investigate the area the old way.

We explored every nook and cranny of the clearing, trying to find where the beast fled.

"I discovered something !" Kain yelled

Humph, at least he was a bit useful.

We converged toward this place and saw a gaping opening. Our torch didn't allow us to see deep in the abyss.

"Are we going in ?" I asked.

"It could be perilous, this tunnel have been dug out. It may be the beast that stole our supplies. If it's his hideout, there could be more than one. We need to be combat ready." Answered Ina. She then looked at Shara.

"We need to be careful, I heard there are a lot of flash flooding in the desert. The last thing we want is to drown in an underground maze."

"Flash flooding ? In a desert ?" I asked perplexed.

"Yeah, the soil doesn't soak up the water easily so it can produce floods or landslides. This is another reason the merchants convoys avoid this forsaken place."

"Do we have a choice ?" Ina asked.

"Not really... Well, the faster we go in, the faster we come out. Are you prepared ?"

We all confirmed.

"All right, let's go !"

----------------------------------------

We proceeded in the narrow tunnel, sinking deeper in the depth of earth.

We were fortunate, the path was straight and didn't have other ramifications. It was smooth sailing for the first half-hour. It was more annoying for my comrades, the tunnel was not tall enough to allow them to walk while standing and they needed to crouch in a few places.

The hole opened on an enormous perpendicular hallway. The left side was obstructed by an old cave-in but on the right side the corridor extended indefinitely.

"Wow, I must admit, I was not expecting something like that."

Kain was the first one to break the silent contemplation of the group. I did agree with him, the wall were extravagantly adorned, dead torches were suspended every twenty meters and the celling of the corridor may at least be around fifteen meters heigh.

"Kain, Ina, Thann, focus please. We don't know what could be lurking around. We will continue in formation."

As always, I took the right side. Shara was in front of me. Ina on my left side and Kain was bringing up the rear. We walked slowly, cautious of every noise.

I took the time to examine the murals. They were beautiful, finely carved and the coating paint was still vibrant. My torch brought the drawings to life. It was some kind of story, maybe an historical reconstruction.

It started with a lot of color. The wall were green for the most part. There was an abundance of vegetation and lots of historical events. Few important figures births and deaths annotated by un unknown but familiar alphabet.

There were some depictions of crimes but they were scarce and very distant. The country depicted seemed to be predominantly in peace.

Until this point in time. The color changed abruptly and an event captured my attention. A blood moon appeared, and it was the starting point of a long and terrible bloodbath. The peaceful scenes were replaced by combat and killing. Humans were slaughtered by absurd looking beasts.

My heartbeat accelerated and my hand tightened in a fist unconsciously. I didn't know why but the scenes illustrated affected me. It made something in me resonate. Wrath and indignation were overflowing. Lost in my mind, I followed my comrades.

What I saw next draw me to a stop. Kain said something and everybody looked at me curiously but I didn't heard or cared. I was absorbed in the carvings. Some sort of warrior intervened in this war and single handedly drove back the enemies. The most remarkable thing about this warrior was the gold paint used to depict his aura, his blows and more importantly, his hairs.

I was incapable of looking away from this picture. I caressed it from the tip of the fingers, expecting something, but no. Nothing happened. I sighed, more tired that I remember myself to be. I finally heard the group inquire if everything was fine.

"Yes, I think so..." was the only answer I could muster.

I was not oblivious to the curious look they were giving the painting and me, but they didn't probe further. They knew the subject was a sensitive one and that I would tell them if I recalled something. I proceeded deeper down the hallway without peeling off my hand from the mural.

I examined everything that happened as if I was there. The hardships, the multiples battles, the useless death... It carried on and on, indefinitely. When the warrior had finally triumphed, there was nothing to protect anymore. The luxurious forest had been devastated and the scorching sun finished the job.

Without their precious forest the locals found it impossible to feed themselves and famine soon knocked at their door. They sheltered themselves from the sun by digging and living under the surface. They scavenged for every resource and survived to the best of their abilities. They endured the war, but still succumbed to the aftermaths.

It was sickening, I don't understand why it was affecting me so much. I guessed that it didn't end well for this civilization. I felt nauseous.

I wanted to know more about these people. But it was impossible, I would not obtain an answer to my questions, the murals stopped abruptly. It was the end of the hallway.

Hopefully, my questions would be answered.

I heard Ina gasp, and indeed, it was a sight to see.