Private Tales After the Storm

[Alistair Wren]

The storm had quelled to a calm.

Miles from the Shah's camp, Alistair trudged through the desert with Maho's staff, the map he had given him and a baby dragon on his shoulder. A few feet ahead, a young warrior from the Steppes scouted for any enemies they might run into. Alistair had run into her just after he had escaped the fireball that hit the stables, and they had run into the desert together. Her name was Niyu, and she had fought for the enemy. That didn't matter all too much to Alistair, who was just happy for some company after the traumatic ordeal.

Orange dunes rolled for miles, a gentle breeze shoving sand over them, the rays of the sun beating down like a seared drum. Alistair breathed in, his throat parched and dry. He raised his water flask to his lips, only to find there was nothing there. Niyu and himself needed to find water and a place to rest, or they might not make it another night.

Pulling his feet through the sand, Alistair walked up to Niyu and fell to his knees. Alzros, the baby dragon on his shoulder chirped and growled. He was probably hungry, but there was no food around that Alistair could feed him. Hanging his head, Alistair sat in a heap, his once pristine robes burnt and soaked with the blood of his master. Eyes bleary, he slowly raised his head and looked up at Niyu, the line between the sand and the sky fluttering behind her. He could have sworn he saw water, but it was just the heat distorting the view of the sand. Squinting, he peered behind Niyu, only to withdraw and sigh when he realized there was nothing there.

Nothing but sand for miles.

"If we don't find water soon, we're done for," Alistair groaned.

"Ugh," groggily, he pulled himself to his feet and brushed down the front of his robes, the sand clinging to the dried blood. He walked up beside Niyu and squinted, peering at the horizon. He had learned little about her since they met, apart from who she had fought for and where she came from. Alzros chirped and moaned, then flapped his wings and flew off Alistair's shoulder.

"See if you can find us some water, Alzros," Alistair instructed, then sent the dragon flying off with a wave of his hand.

Raising a hand to his forehead, he shielded his eyes from the sun and gazed up at the sky as he watched Alzros fly over the dunes. The dragon disappeared, leaving behind only a black speck against a sea of blue. Withdrawing, Alistair slumped his shoulders and sighed, then turned to face Niyu. She still didn't know that he had been on the Shah's side, and wasn't sure when he should tell her.

"So where's your brother?" He asked. He did know she had a brother who also fought for the Sultan, and was curious to know if he had been in the battle as well.

 

[Niyu Temuha]

The move had been made and her actions committed. Niyu now found herself wandering the desert aimlessly after her companion dragged her by the hand out of the battle and into the sea of sand. Her helmet protected her from the harshness of the unforgiving sun, but she suffered from thirst just like any other. She’d tried to scout ahead in a bid to see if she could spot anything other than just endless desert, but all her efforts so far had come to naught. Alistair was distraught, and with good reason. Without water, they would both soon perish. This wasn’t how she’d thought her life would end, and she wouldn’t let it be so. She wasn’t going to end up dead in the desert, dying a dishonourable death. Although she agreed with Alistair, she didn’t say anything when he bemoaned their futile efforts of finding water.

There was no point expending any more energy than necessary. The little dragon on Alistair’s shoulder flapped off into the sky, and as she watched its form get smaller and smaller as it got further away, she hoped it would fare better in its efforts than the both of them. Taking a seat on the warm desert sand, Niyu glanced at the mage as he asked about her brother.

“He’s probably at the battle, somewhere, dealing with the Sultan or what not about the remainder of the payment for our services in battle. It should be honoured in full considering the fact that we won. A search party would be sent out to find me as soon as my disappearance is noted, but my brother wouldn’t keep it up for long.” She paused for a minute or two before she continued.

“He’ll return with the payment and report to my father about my disappearance. If he’s in a good mood, he’ll leave a rear party to continue the search for me for a while longer before they too made the journey back home to the Steppes.”

 

[Alistair Wren]

Head lowered above the sand, Alistair took in a hoarse breath, his throat parched and dry. Out of the corner of his eye, he watched Alzros fly off, silently praying that the baby dragon had more luck of finding water than Niyu and himself. The young warrior took a few steps back and sat down on the sand beside Alistair, who pulled his head up wearily and faced her.

Niyu told him that her brother was most likely still at the battle, dealing with the Sultan, to which Alistair withdrew a breath. He didn't know whether to tell her that he had been on the enemy side or not, but kept quiet about it for now. The heat made it difficult to hide his apprehension, and he shifted his eyes, his mouth hanging open as he beheld her.

"I hope he's alright," was all Alistair could say.

With a sigh, he flopped backwards and sat on the sand, wrapping his arms around his legs. A gust of wind blew sand past his face and he breathed some in, sneezed and scratched his nose. Niyu spoke of the payment her tribe would receive for lending their swords to the battle, and he nodded in response, "so Gerra was victorious?" He had meant to just think the question, but it came out in words.

Niyu said that a search party would be sent out to find her, and Alistair shifted his eyes. He wondered if they would run into him as well. Would he be captured? Taken to the Taagi Baara? Brushing sand away from his face, he breathed in and relaxed his shoulders, his chest deflating at the thought.

"Is there any chance of them finding us?" He asked.

 

[Niyu Temuha]

“He’ll be more than fine. He’s a proven warrior and he has the rest of war host and their supplies with him. I’ll be more worried about us than him. It is we that are alone and have to fend for ourselves.” Niyu voiced her concerns to Alistair, indicating that their worries should be ourselves and not of any other. He began to lie on the warm sand and a brief moment passed between them before he spoke once more, asking if the Sultan Gerra had won. Niyu had no confirmation of the victory but she was certain that he had indeed won, but the odds had been very much in their favour when the two of them left the battlefield.

The next question came soon after she finished, this time about the search party that she mentioned. “I cannot say for sure. They will either find us or they will not. There is no certainty about this. It is a big wide desert.” She found herself concerned about the way he lay with his face exposed to the harsh sun. If he kept it up, more than sand would get in his way. Water loss was a big concern for them, especially him. “You should cover your head with some cloth to prevent further water loss from the sun. It will help you conserve what we can until we find a drinkable water source. It is known.”

 

[Alistair Wren]

Niyu assured Alistair that her brother would be fine, to which he nodded. Her brother and his troops may be alright, but Alistair could not say the same about Niyu and himself. Breathing in and out, he swallowed to dampen his throat and picked up his water flask. There was nothing there, much to his anguish. Closing his eyes, he contorted his features and silently wished he knew how to conjure water, but even if he could, he couldn't cast water unless he was adequately hydrated.

There was a moment of silence after Alistair asked if Gerra had won. Niyu did not seem to have any confirmation and said nothing on the matter.

Alistair sighed. Hanging his head, he rose to his feet and walked a few meters away from her, raising his hand to his brow to shield his eyes from the sun. The Steppe warrior said she did not know if the search party would find them, which Alistair was silently thankful for. The last thing he needed was to be taken prisoner by a horde of Steppe warriors and taken to the Taagi Baara. Turning around, he nodded in acknowledgement and brushed hair out of his eyes.

Reaching down, Alistair undid his belt and took off the sash from around his waist. It was bloodied and burnt, but would do the job. He put his belt back on and wrapped the sash around his head like a scarf. Walking back to where he had left Maho's bag, he picked up his staff and hauled the bag over his shoulder.

As he walked up to Niyu, he shifted his eyes, having thought of an idea.

"You know, there is a way I can make water, but it's gross, and could be risky if I'm not properly hydrated, but if it works, we'll have plenty of water until we find shelter," Alistair said, his tone drawn out apprehensively. He had learned the technique in a few of the transmutation lectures he had taken with Selina, and it might be a good change to practice his hydromancy.

He also had to pee quite badly. He hadn't stopped to rest since the day before when the battle began.

A crooning squawk echoed across the desert. Looking up, Alistair saw the wings of Alzros emerge and the baby dragon came flying across the sky. In his mouth, he held a palm leaf, telling Alistair and Niyu that there was an oasis somewhere out there, although Alistair had no idea how far away it was.

"Good boy, Alzros!" He called, and raised his arm, letting the baby dragon sit on it, "did you find water?" Alistair asked.

The dragon chirped and shook his head.

"Damn, but you found shelter, right?" Alistair groaned, then asked again, an eyebrow raised in hope.

Alzros chirped and nodded.

 

[Niyu Temuha]

Niyu watched as Alistair listened to her advice, fashioning a headscarf from his belt and sash to protect his head from further loss of rapid dehydration from the unrelenting sun. He then mentioned that he had a gross water of making water, and although she didn’t know much about magic, she had a little idea of what he might be proposing. He possibly wanted to extract the drinkable water out of their urine, and she had heard about it once or twice being performed by the mages back home in the clans. She didn’t have much time to respond before they were interrupted by a squawk across the clear sky of the desert.

At first she thought that it was some kind of lone bird, lost or something, before she realised that it was actually the baby dragon, Alzros who had left to search for water earlier. He came back with a palm leaf, which was good news as it meant that there was more than just desert and sand out there. Somewhere out there, there was an oasis filled with plants, and their salvation would first be achieved there.

She waited for Alistair to finish conversing with the little dragon before she spoke, asking the mage if it had found any water sources nearby. “How did it go? Did it find any water nearby?”

Once nightfall arrived, they would have a new set of problems. The desert was scorching in the day, but once the sun set, the temperatures would begin to drop rapidly, bringing a chill most would be unfamiliar with. Born in the Steppes, she would be no stranger to such cold.

 

[Alistair Wren]

Alistair and Niyu walked on and on, the heat beating down on them. A breeze brought them into a cool shade, the onset of night beckoning. Soon, the temperature would plummet and they would have the cold to deal with. Alistair had an idea about how they could make water, but he wasn't sure if it would work or produce enough. Pulling his feet through the sand, he gripped his burnt, bloodied robes and walked up beside Niyu.

A squawk sounded over the horizon, and Alzros returned.

Alistair let the baby dragon rest on his shoulder while he asked him if he had found water. He had a twig with leaves on it on it in his mouth, telling them that there was vegetation nearby, but the dragon shook his head when Alistair asked him if he had found water.

"No, he only found trees, unfortunately," Alistair said regretfully, shaking his head.

With a shove of his shoulder, he let Alzros fly off into the air. "Go on, buddy, show us where the trees are," he instructed.

Alzros chirped and growled, then flew off, leading Alistair and Niyu to where the trees were. Grabbing his robes, he hauled his feet through the desert and walked after Niyu. The two of them walked side by side, until the sun quelled, giving way to a dark blanket. Night was falling, and they needed to find shelter soon or they would be in trouble. Still, the drop in temperature was a relief from the blistering heat they had been experiencing hours ago.

Holding onto his headscarf, Alistair walked after Niyu as the pair of them followed the dragon. He roared in the distance overhead, where specks of green dotted the skyline. There were trees, surrounding what appeared to have once been an oasis.

"Thank the stars!" Alistair called out, overjoyed.

Gripping his robes, he ran past Niyu and followed Alzros to the patch of shade. Palm trees and shrubs surrounded a patch of dirt where water had once been. Sighing with relief, Alistair laughed as he ran to the trees, then threw himself down in the shade. Alzros landed on the ground and came scuttling over to Alistair, then licked his face.

"Good job, buddy," he said to Alzros, stroking his head, "now..." He said, his words trailing off.

"We need to make water somehow," groaning, he pulled himself to his feet. He hadn't properly rested since the day before the battle and was desperate for a piss. Pulling off his headscarf, he used it to mop up the sweat on his neck and forehead, then walked over Niyu.

"I might uh," he said awkwardly, his eyes shifting, "need to use your helmet." He shrugged, hiding his embarrassment with a sheepish bout of laughter.

 

[Niyu Temuha]

The fact that the twig the young dragon brought back had green leaves on it meant that the tree it belonged to was still living. The fact that it was still living meant that somewhere underneath all that soil was water. She understood that basic concept, but had no idea how far down she would had to dig to even have a chance of finding water. The young girl had never done this before. She’d heard tales of the people from her clan talking about it, but actually watching and doing it was altogether a different story.

Without understanding what she was doing, she could end up expending all that precious energy for all their efforts to come to naught. Failure would most definitely be suicidal. Putting the idea at the back of her mind, Niyu followed close behind Alistair as be began to ask his dragon to lead him to place he found the twig.

She eventually caught up, and walked side-by-side her unexpected companion as they headed further into the unknown. As they travelled, the sun slowly began to set, descending from its throne in the sky as the moon rose from its slumber to reclaim its nightly seat of power in the among the coming darkness. They finally approached their destination, a cluster of green trees and plants around a dried up pond.

The pond may have dried out, but seeing as how the plants were still green, the presence of water had not yet deserted the former oasis. With the approaching darkness came the stars, and when all the light of day left them, all they were left with was the cooling desert sands and the stars of the night sky which were as plentiful as the powdery sand under their feet. Alistair began talking once more about making water and this time he made a peculiar request, mentioning his need to use her helmet.

She gave him a shocked look as realisation dawned upon her, as her sinking feeling earlier about the water-making he mentioned earlier was going to be proven true. She had no doubts that her helmet was about to become a piss bucket. Aghast, she replied hesitantly. “There has got to be another way right? My helmet is not meant to hold any water coming from there!” She pointed, gesturing towards his groin.

 

[Alistair Wren]

As Alistair and Niyu arrived at the dried up oasis, Alistair sighed with relief, his energy spent. He needed water, and a good rest, the events of the battle still fresh in his mind. When he asked Niyu for her helmet, the Steppe warrior retorted apprehensively, refusing to let him piss in it. Alistair spun around and glared at her, frustrated at first, but then he saw the trees. If there were leaves on the trees and vegetation, then there must have been some trace of water still in the soil.

"You want to die of thirst?!" He shouted, then withdrew, a finger held to his chin in thought, "wait, hang on," he thought aloud.

"Hang on," he muttered, scurrying over to the bed of the oasis.

Alzros sat on the bank of the pool and chirped. Muttering, Alistair leaned down and placed his hand against the dirt, which was still squishy. Withdrawing a gulp, he swallowed, and sat down in the middle of the pool. He coiled his hands above the soil and turned around to look up at Niyu.

"I might still need your helmet, Niyu," he said with a nod of his head.

 

[Niyu Temuha]

To give Alistair credit, despite the retort, the mage still made an effort to explore other methods that did not involve dirtying the interior of her helmet. Niyu watched as he scurried over to the dried up bed of the oasis and worked his magic on the cracked sandy sun-baked ground. A few minutes passed and nothing changed and when he turned back to face her, she knew what it meant.

The water in the ground must have either been too deep, or his powers not adept enough to draw it to the surface, and so the pair-or trio(if they counted the dragon) were back to square one again, and her gaze caught his as they drifted back towards her helmet. Looking back at him with a forlorn expression, she took the helmet off, freeing her twin dark jet-black locks which had been tied in the usual steppe fashion.

She tossed the helmet to him, still very much bitter about the whole ordeal and losing her only protection from the sun and the cold. “Here. If you’re going to sully it, this had better work. I don’t want to have given up this for nothing.” Niyu crossed her arms as she watched what the mage was planning to get up too.