Long Road to Nowhere [open]

[Mali]

Mali waited patiently for Samar to come into the burrow and continue whatever it was that she did every night after waking up, Mali had to wonder how she would get out of the desert. The water skin was passed to her and she took a few sips from it before handing it back to Samar. Samar had told her how she would be able to leave the desert and get to Ilirea; however, she didn’t know how she would survive getting out of the desert on her own.

She was then handed her share of the evening breakfast and started to eat, still thinking about travelling through the desert on her own. If only she had some fish or something. She couldn’t very well take Samar’s food and water with her. Eventually she would run out of both and would need to find some and fast to be able to survive. Was there a way to make water in the desert?

Finishing her meal, she looked over to Samar who seemed to be in deep thought about something. Thinking it right to let her continue thinking about it and give her some time to think, Mali began thinking about a kind of shelter that she would be able to build every day and hide under during the day and carry with her during the night. There had to be something that she was able to do, right?

“Thank you for breakfast Samar. I was wondering, is there a way to make water in the desert?” she didn’t want to take any of Samar’s water skins with her because she’d have no way of returning it to her after she left the desert. There had to be a way to make water or find it or something.

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[Elloria]

Hunting and water were probably Samar’s next course of action. The satchel would hold enough dried meat to last them for a while and Samar knew the edges of the desert better than she knew the interior. She ought to be able to get enough food for at least the ten-day desert stretch – she wasn’t going to bother with the longer route. While it was presumably safer, she knew that it would probably be in both of their best interests to take the straightest path to Ilirea. That would also, hopefully, cut down on water consumption. Although…if she rationed out the water skeins properly, the five she had should be enough to last them on the shorter trip. She would just need to top them up at the oasis before they left. And it would take a few days for Mali to fully recover from being dehydrated.

“Thank you for breakfast Samar. I was wondering, is there a way to make water in the desert?”

Samar shook her head slightly as she was jolted back to reality. She looked up with a slight look of surprise, having somewhat forgotten that Mali was actually still sitting in the burrow with her. It took a moment for her mind to process Mali’s question. When she understood, however, she shook her head. “Even with magic, that would be incredibly difficult. As my master explained it, magic requires energy and I am certain it requires a lot of energy to convert one substance into another. On the other side of the argument, you would need to know where to look for water before trying to magically summon it to you.” Samar shrugged. “But I would not worry about it. I do not intend to let you leave on your own – at least not until you are safely out of the desert. I would be most thoughtless if I did.”

[Mali]

Samar appeared to be shocked or surprised to see Mali. She had been talking to Samar just moments before she had started to think deeply. She hadn’t been so deep in thought that Samar had actually forgotten that Mali was there, had she?

Her ears were perked up, an eager smile on her lips before her ears drooped and a frown came to the response she’d received. So it would be difficult to make water with magic. That was an understatement as Mali couldn’t even use her magic properly. Shifting forms was easy enough because it didn’t require her to know the ancient language. However, to use most of her magic, she had to learn the ancient language first. Mali didn’t plan to use magic to make water. She thought that there had to be another way to do it without using magic. There was water in the desert; she just had to find a way of getting to it easily.

At the last part, Mali looked at her. “Will you be able to find your burrow again if you take me out of the desert?” even though Mali knew she couldn’t stay here forever and would need to leave the desert eventually, she hadn’t expected to be escorted out of the desert. She especially didn’t want to be escorted out if it would cause Samar to lose her burrow. She needed her burrow, it was her burrow after all. She didn’t want to be a bother to Samar either since she had been so kind to her.

“I don’t want to be a bother to you Samar after you’ve helped me and saved my life,” Samar had saved Mali’s life. If it weren’t for her, she’d still be out in the desert chasing sky fish.

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[Elloria]

“Will you be able to find your burrow again if you take me out of the desert? I don’t want to be a bother to you Samar after you’ve helped me and saved my life.”

Samar chuckled at Mali’s concern. The little creature must think that she lived permanently in this burrow. Not even wild animals made that kind of mistake in the desert. But why would Mali know that? She probably lived in either the woods or one of the cities – both of which were vastly different from the Moumsabi. “The burrow is only a temporary dwelling. I did not even make it; I merely found it in my travels.” She shrugged before rising gracefully. She moved to the back of the burrow and grabbed her hunting knife, wrapping its belt around her waist. She then picked up her bow and quiver. Slinging the quiver onto her back, she tested the bowstring to make sure it was both taut enough and would not snap when she hunted. Satisfied, she pulled a second skein from her water-hidey-hole before moving back over to Mali. “There is enough food in the satchel to last you for another two days.” She pointed towards the hole in the corner that held the water skeins. “And there you will find two more skeins of water. I must go to the oasis and do some hunting before we leave. But I need to leave you here while I do so, so that you can recover from your dehydration. This burrow will keep you cool during the day and warm at night.” She walked past Mali towards the burrow’s exit. She paused at the opening and turned around to look at Mali again, having just thought of something. “Do not leave, except to relieve yourself of excrement and urine – and do not stray far from the burrow when you do. Mother Wolf willing, I will return in two days time with everything we will need. Do you understand, Mali?”

[Mali]

Mali looked around the burrow as Samar admitted to finding it in the desert. So she hadn’t made the burrow, Mali had thought that Samar was quite skilled to have built a burrow such as this. Samar was probably quite skilled at other things, so the compliment still stood, however, it only made Mali curious as to who did build the burrow.

Mali watched, her ears perked up and her tail swinging casually around as she watched what Samar did with the knife and other hunting gear. Mali knew that it was hunting gear based on the fact that all she was mainly grabbing was weapons and supplies to last her for a hunting trip. Mali nodded her head to Samar. Curious as to how the burrow would keep her warm at night, Mali pushed the thought aside. She shouldn’t be thinking about that right now.

Mali had drifted off in thought, thinking about other such things when Samar called her name. She hadn’t been paying complete attention to what had been said but she had heard not to leave the burrow. She assumed that when Samar had mentioned urine that she was allowed to leave for those duties but only for those duties. She nodded her head again and smiled wide to Samar. “I understand Samar. Have a good trip to wherever you’re going.” Mali was sincere as she wished Samar a safe trip to wherever it was that she was headed.

Mali looked around the now empty burrow. If Samar hadn’t made the burrow, who had? Then a thought hit the werecat, whoever built it wouldn’t be returning any time soon would they? Panicked for a moment, Mali calmed down and decided that if any unwanted visitors showed up, she could remain in feline form. Everyone overlooked a casual house cat after all.

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[Elloria]

Satisfied that Mali understood her directions and would not stray from the burrow, Samar took her leave and headed north towards the oasis. As she traveled she sent many prayers to the Mother Wolf, asking for a successful and bountiful hunt as well as a safe journey. The faint sliver of Quien’s Lantern was just enough to see by tonight. But within a few days, even its faint light would be gone. She would definitely have to work quickly to make this journey with Mali go smoothly.

+++++++++++++++
20 minutes later:

Samar dropped to a low crouch as she approached the oasis. It appeared that someone else had discovered the oasis and had lit a fire not far from it. Whoever the idiot was, they had driven away the game with it – and probably attracted attention from any tribes in the area, signaling that someone was waiting to be fleeced of their possessions. With bow drawn, she stalked closer to see who – or what – was so foolish as to light a campfire at night in the Moumsabi instead of burrowing under the sand or wrapping themselves in furs for warmth. The fire had burned to low embers and there didn’t seem to be anyone tending it, but that could just be a ruse. She strained to hear if something was amiss and all that greeted her were the usual sounds of the night. So she edged closer, hoping that whoever it was was sound asleep. When she got close enough to really see, however, there was no one around. A slight breeze blew the smells of the camp towards her and she inhaled deeply. From what she could tell, it was mostly several human scents mingled together, but they were several hours old and faint. Whoever it had been was probably long gone – or long since dealt with. She shook her head and moved forward to smother the embers with sand. She could faintly see items scattered around the area, but she would have to mount a better investigation at dawn. Once she was done smothering the fire, she went into the grassy area around the oasis itself and settled in to wait for prey to finally return to the oasis.

+++++++++++++++
An hour before dawn:

Samar had managed to fell two addaxes of a decent size and a lizard. Not a bad hunt, all things considered. She dragged the addaxes to the edge of the oasis, near to the campsite she had found last night, and retrieved the lizard as well as the wood she had gathered in-between bouts of stalking the addax herd that had shown up a few hours ago. She inspected the campsite, noting that it had been rifled through as she had suspected. The footprints were all human, so it had probably been some human tribesmen who also normally hunted around here and didn’t appreciate someone being in their territory. She was rather lucky that she had missed them, then. It also meant that she would have to work quickly. Fortunately, the hunters had been content to just go through the fool’s possessions and take whatever they could of value, along with the fool in question – fortunate, because they had left behind a rucksack that would be perfect for carrying the water skeins and whatever food wouldn’t fit in her satchel as well as what looked like a small cloak. She could understand why it hadn’t been taken – it was thin, flimsy, and obviously not meant for the desert. The skin from one of the addaxes, however, would pad it out nicely and make it better suited for desert travel.

She spent the next several hours skinning and cleaning the carcasses, gathering some of the wood ash from the previous fire, smoking the meat and starting the process of making the skins into rawhide. And her mother had thought it a waste of time for Samar to learn how to make rawhide. Samar sent a prayer of gratitude to Tercia the Huntress and the Mother Wolf for providing such bounty and asked for Their continued protection and guidance as Samar prepared for the journey ahead. She would need all the help she could get in order to safely deliver Mali out of the desert.

+++++++++++++++
2 nights later:

Samar carefully climbed the dune that housed her temporary burrow and gently set the rucksack down. The Mother Wolf had seen fit to protect her during her preparations while Tercia the Huntress had provided a great bounty. The teen now had plenty of smoked venison, a cloak for Mali, and a new rucksack for the upcoming journey. Another quick jaunt back to the oasis to top off the water skins would be the last step and then they could take off. But Samar didn’t know what might have taken place here during her hunting trip, so she was waiting to see if anything would be moving about. Usually when Quien’s Lantern was gone from the sky, the larger creatures weren’t as active. The starlight was enough to see by for something with good night vision, but most large animals – and humans – didn’t possess good night vision. Fortunately the latter was not the case for Samar, so she could see relatively well. And she did not hear anything out of the ordinary, so she picked up the rucksack again and slid down one side of the dune. On relatively level ground again, she walked around until she was at the entrance of the burrow. She peered in and sniffed carefully. Again, nothing seemed out of place so she quietly called out, “Mali?”

[Mali]

As soon as Samar left, Mali decided that she would go back to sleep. She still worried that whoever had built the burrow would return to find her there, but it wasn’t as stressing to her as it could have been. Instead, she went back to sleep peacefully, only waking from her catnap to relieve herself outside.

While outside, Mali would spend a few minutes gazing up at the stars that she could see. She wished that she knew more about the stars. It would help pass the time until Samar returned. She would be less bored that way. It was then that she realised she had nothing to entertain herself with. What would she do when she did grow bored?

Again, that wasn’t as stressing as it should have been as she entered the burrow and went back to her catnap. She dreamed of many things, most of the time Niko and Arashi were in the dream somewhere. It was obvious that her desire to find them again was strong. If only she could just walk out of the burrow and find them within seconds. That was what she wished for the most. She just wanted to get home to her good friends. She was tired of being lost.

However, the two days seemed to drag on as her mind filled with more questions about how to leave the desert. With no one to ask or answer her questions, she stored them away for when Samar returned. Hopefully she wouldn’t be nuisance to the woman. Seeing as she was going out of her way to help her leave the desert, the least she could do was not annoy her.

Mali was taking another nap, her dozenth since Samar had left when she heard something, causing her to stir from her nap. She hadn’t heard any other sounds, other than the odd ones she made to entertain herself, since Samar had left. It felt nice to hear something that she hadn’t made herself. It took a few moments for her to realise what she was thinking and then to realise that she didn’t know who had made the noise. Sitting upright instantly, Mali looked around expecting to see whoever had built the burrow. Grabbing a water skin, Mali was ready to throw it at the person until she realised that she knew the voice.

Samar was back!

“Samar! How was your trip? Was it hard? Do you need help? What did you catch? Will it be enough to get us out of the desert? How will you get back here after we leave? Sorry if I’m asking a lot of questions, I got lonely.” she said all this while moving over to the door of the burrow and nuzzling her head against Samar’s arm. She was indeed, quite lonely.

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[Elloria]

Samar jumped slightly at the sudden loudness of Mali’s voice. The teen had never quite gotten used to loud noises or the constant loudness of cities. The quiet murmurs of the tribal gatherers and weavers were one thing. But she had been raised in the quiet of night – a world in which loud sounds signaled imminent death for someone and complete silence in one’s movements was considered the pinnacle of development. Thus this deluge of questions and nuzzling was…disconcerting to say the least. She gingerly patted Mali’s head as she moved into the burrow. “Remember what I said about calling out loudly?” she gently reminded the ryupay. As Samar moved further into the burrow, she noticed that the water skins were scattered about the sleeping hollow – two looked empty while one looked to be about half full. The satchel also looked nearly devoid of its meat and fruit. The teen would have to ration carefully if she wanted to have enough water to last them through the trip. She set the rucksack down by the sleeping hollow and plopped down onto the ground with a sigh. The rucksack was heavy with the meat and cloak – mostly the meat – and she didn’t care what anyone said. Traveling a mile with several pounds of meat on your back was not easy or fun.

And Mali was still nuzzling her and asking questions, having followed Samar into the burrow. She stroked Mali’s head, mostly because she wasn’t ready to talk yet. She was naturally a quiet individual – she hadn’t been a crier as a child nor had she been talkative. She was introverted almost to the point of being eremitic. That was all part of her reluctance to speak, yes. But mostly it was because she had just returned from a hunt. The Hunt was a sacred and highly spiritual affair in her tribe, a practice guided by Tercia the Huntress at the behest of the Mother Wolf. Anything involving the gods was something Samar took very seriously and was often difficult to pull herself out of that spiritual mindset in order to interact with the physical world. It had been hard enough giving Mali that gentle reminder about attracting attention. For now, she just wanted to sit and collect herself.

[Mali]

Mali felt the hand briefly and barely touch her head as she nuzzled herself against Samar. Maybe she wasn’t a touchy feely kind of person. The werecat fell silent as Samar reminded her of speaking quietly in the desert. She had forgotten that point and had made quite a bit of noise while Samar had been away. For instance, the odd noises she had made to entertain herself when no one was around. Those could be considered loud. She was surprised that no one had found her during that time.

As Samar made her way into the burrow, carrying all her goods from the hunt, Mali had to refrain from going through the contents. She was curious but not rude, so she kept her hands to herself. She was happy though, when she felt Samar petting her head a little bit more now that they were inside the burrow. It felt nice and made her feel comforted now that someone else was around. She didn’t like being alone for long periods of time.

She waited until enough time had passed before getting ready to ask her questions again, but more slowly this time. “Samar?” she whispered, wondering if enough time had passed that she could ask questions now. “How was your trip? Do you need any help?” Mali noticed how Samar looked around the burrow and decided that she should pick up after herself. She moved to pick up the water skins and place them back where Samar had kept them before leaving. She rooted through the bag of fruit and venison that Samar had left and pulled out the remaining four figs and rather large piece of venison. Placing them on top of their bag and in front of Samar, Mali pushed herself close to Samar, feeling proud for not eating everything.

Although, you couldn’t say much for the water skins. She couldn’t help it though, drinking so much water. She had a cat’s tongue all the time and the unique design didn’t change the fact that she got a dry, itchy throat often without constant water source. Preserving the water might be harder.

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[Elloria]

Several long moments passed in blissful silence. In a very distant part of her mind, Samar was pleased that Mali seemed to understand the need for silence right now. In the stillness, her mind slowly came back to reality. She gave a quiet, content sigh. To be able to just sit in silence was something she missed. She had been so busy with Master Clarus that there had never been a chance for this kind of serenity. She would have to speak with him about it when he returned…if he returned.

“Samar? How was your trip? Do you need any help?”

She was pulled from her thoughts by Mali’s whispered questions. While she didn’t really wish to address anything at the moment, at least the ryupay was not asking a deluge of questions like she had upon Samar’s return. Why were the pale ones so busy? Why could they not appreciate just sitting still and enjoying the world around them? They always needed to go on to their next destination as quickly as possible, always needed to keep moving, keep doing. It was so tiring.

She glanced down at what food Mali had not yet eaten. The venison was gone, save for one large piece, and there were four figs left. Well…she might have to ration the food more strictly, too. That was alright. It was no different from what her mother had done while leading the Gia through the sands of Moumsabi. If anything, it was far simpler because it was just her and Mali. Smiling, she picked up the venison and slowly began eating it. “The trip went well, Mali. After I take the water skins to the oasis and refill them all, we will be able to leave.”

[Mali]

Mali waited in silence for Samar to say something. She had just gotten back from a long, two day journey, she had to be as deprived for conversation as Mali was, shouldn’t she? Mali considered that Samar lived in this burrow by herself and wondered who she spoke to when she got lonely. Maybe Samar didn’t get lonely. Mali mentally gasped, shocked at the idea of never getting lonely. She thought about it some more and decided that she wished she could never get lonely as well. It would be better that way, keeping her out of trouble.

Most of the time that she got into trouble, aside from stealing, was because she was lonely. Wow, how different her life would be if she never got lonely, thus, never got in trouble. She tried to imagine what that world would look like when Samar answered her questions.

As she was told that after refilling the water skins, that they would be leaving, Mali felt herself tearing up. She didn’t want to leave yet. Well, she wanted to get to Ilirea as soon as possible, but she didn’t want to leave her new friend. That is, if Samar considered Mali a friend too.

“Okay, do I come with you to this oasis or do I wait here?”

[Elloria]

“Okay, do I come with you to this oasis or do I wait here?”

Samar could hear the hesitation in Mali’s voice. It made her wonder why the creature cared about whether she was going to the oasis with Samar or not. Perhaps it was a more social sort of being? That was a strange possibility. Ryupay were always depicted as being more solitary and isolated, shunning other individuals unless interaction was necessary for survival. But if Mali was a sociable individual – and let’s face it, she talked enough to be – then it was possible that she just wanted to continue being in Samar’s company. The teen would be the first to admit that she was not the best companion, but the fact that Mali seemed so very lonely pained the girl deeply. No one should have to be alone in the world, not even the servants of the Cursed Son. Well…even though it would slow the process down a bit, she would just have to suck it up. She smiled gently down at Mali. “You may accompany me if you wish, Mali. I even have a cloak for you to wear so that you will not be so badly burned by the sun.”

OOC: Crap. Utter crap. But a post?

[Mali]

Mali was hesitant to leave so quickly. She considered Samar a friend now and she didn’t want to leave her side so quickly. There was always the piece of knowledge that they would have a few months together before they would be out of the desert, but that didn’t ease her worry about losing her friend.

She smiled widely as Samar said that she could come to with her to the oasis. She was happy that they wouldn’t have to separate again, so soon, after such a long trip. She was quite lonely and being around Samar eased her pain. Although, since she was going to the oasis with Samar, she should be quiet during their trip since she wouldn’t want to attract unwanted attention from other people or animals. She guessed that she could be content to journey in silence, since she would still be by Samar’s side.

“Thank you Samar, I shall be as quiet as I can for you too!” her tail swung around, eyes closed with a pleasant smile on her lips. She was happy to be leaving the desert, but it brought a small stabbing pain to her chest to think about how they would have to part ways after this. However, it wasn’t like they could stay together forever anyways.

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[Elloria]

“Thank you Samar, I shall be as quiet as I can for you too!”

Samar chuckled. The ryupay’s enthusiasm was infectious, despite the teen’s best attempts to maintain her usual solemnity. Shaking her head slightly, she pulled the rucksack closer and opened it to pull out the cloak she had fixed up for Mali. She shook it out and handed it to the ryupay. It looked like it would be big, but not unreasonably so. A little extra material meant a little more protection from the sun – too much and you would find yourself rapidly dehydrating in the terrible desert heat. She helped Mali wrap the cloak properly for desert travel. When she was satisfied with that, she took her satchel and divided the meat between it and the rucksack before sticking the water skeins into the rucksack. Having dealt with that, she gathered the rest of her possessions together – putting the quiver of arrows back onto her back, making sure the knife was securely by her side and that she had her bow on hand – before slinging the rucksack up onto one shoulder. “Alright, then. Let us be on our way. We would not want to keep you from your home any longer than necessary, yes?”

+++++++++++++++
Ten days later:

Samar’s eyes shot open and she jerked upright, sending sand flying as she did so. Her head tilted to one side as she strained to hear a sound that her heart wished was there, but her mind distantly knew was not – the sound of a tribe waking up to a new night. She rubbed tiredly at her eyes and glanced over at Mali, who appeared to be slowly waking up in response to Samar’s own awakening. Standing up gingerly, the teen looked to the west and squinted her eyes. She was fairly certain she could see grass in the distance, which surprised her when she considered the slow pace they had been traveling at. She had expected to not see the desert edge for at least another night, but they had apparently made better time than she had initially thought. That was comforting. Mali would be well on her way home soon, though the thought saddened Samar slightly. She had forgotten how lonely the sands could be when there was no one else but the wildlife and the gods.

“I think I see the edge of the desert, Mali. Perhaps another night or two of travel and we will be out of the Hadarac.”

[Mali]

“Yes!”Mali replied eagerly, she couldn’t wait to get home. And it seemed that Samar agreed with her that time was of the essence. She liked Samar though and would be sad to leave a new friend so quickly. She didn’t know how long it would take them to get out of the desert, but she didn’t want it to be too short of a time span. She would savour every moment she had to spend with Samar as she considered her a good friend now.

~~~

Mali had been dreaming of fish and vegetables that Niko would make when she felt a sudden jerking beneath her. She had cuddled up close to Samar before she drifted off the following night, as she had done for their entire journey. She enjoyed human contact and felt sad when Samar didn’t. But Samar was the kind of person to be on her own. So it made sense that she wasn’t accustomed to all that contact that Mali craved. At least she allowed the werecat to cuddle up to her while they slept.

Starting to wake from her dream, she rubbed at her eyes before stretching, her mouth falling open in a feline-esc way. Sitting up straight, Mali looked off toward the direction that Samar was facing and thought about it. Nodding her head, Mali looked down at her lap. The time that they had spent together had been so short after all. At least she had another night or two to get emotionally ready to leave Samar.

“That’s good then, right?” Standing up, she picked up her cloak and threw it around her shoulders. She had used it partially as a blanket and partially as her cover during her rest.

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