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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 3, 2017 12:03:30 GMT -8
The Singing SandsThe vast, empty desert gets its name from the odd droning that comes from the sand. Some say that it's just the sand rubbing against itself, when knocked over or blown by the wind. Others claim that they've seen creatures in the sand, giant worms and hives of insects. Whatever the cause, it's extremely unsettling, causing some unfortunate adventurers to go mad. It's suggested that any who attempt to cross the desert plug their ears with cotton to hold off the drone of the desert.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 11:28:15 GMT -8
She didn't care much for desert scenes, but yet she found herself at another one. This one was seemingly endless, and tiresome. It was definitely hot, more so in her rugged attire. But she could muscle through it... if she could tough out the buzzing. Such an odd sound compared to a desert wind howl.
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 11:33:02 GMT -8
The odd drone didn't let up as Kiera trudged through the desert. Instead, it seemed to get louder the further she went. However, it never seemed to become unbearable...was it just a trick of the mind? Regardless of whether or not it actually got louder or not, it certainly was bothersome. As she walked, she'd spot something in the distance. It looked almost like a man, crawling on all fours through the sand. As it approached ever so slowly, she'd see that it actually was a man, dressed in rags and little more than skin and bone. He spotted her and reached a limb towards her, but was unable to make a sound.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 11:39:20 GMT -8
Kiera halted her steps as she came to realize this was a near starved man crawling towards her. She hesitated for just a moment before trudging forward through the sand to try and reach the man. He looked horrible... and lucky to even still be breathing. How long had he been out here in the desert like this? Her first instinct was to reach for her waterskin, to offer him a drink.
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 12:37:15 GMT -8
The man accepted the waterskin gratefully, taking it gingerly in shaking hands. Lifting it to his mouth, he drank deeply, clearly on the verge of death by thirst. When he was done, he handed it back, struggling to his feet.
"T-thank you...I thought I was going to die out here. I don't know what happened, I got separated from my caravan. I think the humming drove the camels mad, and they all bolted...no wonder most people use giant lizards out here. Who are you, what brings you to this god-forsaken place? I'm...Alfie. I think."
He rubbed his head, groaning.
"Ugh...my head is killing me. Probably dehydration, and this god-awful buzzing...The water helped, though."
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 12:44:34 GMT -8
She let out a breath of relief when the man began to stir with a little more life now that he had a drink - and she would attempt to help him stand with a hand under each arm. "Easy, easy," she would coax, trying to help him hobble over out of the direct sunlight if she could. Fortunately there was the occasional rock and ridge to allow a little reprieve from the burning sun overhead.
"How long have you been out here, Alfie?" she asks, trying to offer him a reassuring smile despite how weary she seemed. Between the heat and the buzzing, it was degrading on the psyche.
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 12:51:53 GMT -8
The man shook his head, rubbing his scraggly, sand-filled beard.
"I don't know...a week? It's been at least that long since I was separated from the caravan. Before that...another two weeks, I think. I spent a lot of time unconscious after I ran out of water...don't know how I woke up and made it this far."
He rubbed his head again, and sighed.
"Do you have a caravan, or a shelter? It's dangerous to travel the desert alone. Dangerous with a caravan, too, but more dangerous alone. You could get carried off by vultures, or eaten by the sand lizards. They grow pretty big around here. The small ones are pretty tasty, though. And cactus fruit. Have you seen any cactus around here?"
The man glanced around, but saw nothing but empty, blowing sand.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 12:54:31 GMT -8
The poor guy was rambling quite a bit, but at least he wasn't mad. Her head would come up to swivel, eyes scanning the barren landscape to find no other life in the area that she could see.
"No... I'm out here on my own. Traveling tends to bring me places like this sometimes. And I haven't seen anything around here besides sand, rocks... and now you."
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 13:53:14 GMT -8
Alfie stared at her, shocked. His mouth hung open for a second, before he managed to compose himself somewhat.
"You...you're here alone? How? Why? How much water do you have? Do you have a mount? A beast of burden? Sail sled? Anything at all? Where are you trying to go, anyway? Are you one of those people who believes in the shining oasis? Are you searching for it? I don't believe it exists, but some of the other members of my party did. They were constantly talking about how they wanted to search for it, and return home laden with riches..."
He chuckled, which soon turned into a dry, hacking cough.
"Can we get out of the sun for a bit? We can rest under that rock in the shade..."
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 13:58:26 GMT -8
Oasis? The idea made her brows jump up in surprise, but her first attention was to get the man out of the direct sun. She would help him move as needed until he could sit in cooler sands with a little relief from the heat.
"I can't say I've heard anything about an oasis," she says once they are settled. "I just... wander where I will. Find all sorts of things and people."
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 14:08:59 GMT -8
As they sat down in the cooler shaded sand, the man let out a sigh of relief. He leaned against the rock, closing his eyes as he spoke.
"You don't know about the oasis? Why on earth are you here, then? The Shining Oasis is a mystical garden around an oasis. The sand there is made up of the finest gold dust, and you can find uncut rubies and emeralds in the sand. I don't believe it exists, but I've seen stranger things than that out here, so I wouldn't be surprised if it did. I found a fountain, with naked statues and everything. Only...it wasn't water running through it. It was oil. Just a fountain in the middle of nowhere with oil running through it. Where did it come from? Who built it? There are so many mysteries here in the desert."
He coughed again, splattering blood on the sand beside him.
"Ugh...I guess my throat is so dry it cracked. Talking isn't doing me any good. What's your name, miss? Where did you come from?"
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 14:12:46 GMT -8
"Ah... Kiera. It's hard to say where I'm from - I've been many places. If it hurts to talk, just rest. Drink a little more," she adds, pressing the waterskin into his hands. At least she had one more tucked away on her belt for now, and if worse came to worse she could rush the sands in a mindless state for a few hours until she either died or found civilization again.
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 14:29:35 GMT -8
Alfie sipped the water gratefully, before corking it and setting it aside. Leaning back against the rock, he closed his eyes once more and went to sleep, snoring softly. The sound brought the attention of a small lizard, which stared at the pair from the edge of the rock's shadow. It stood there, unmoving except for its tongue flicking out intermittently.
A moment later, Alfie began to cough and choke, convulsing violently.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 14:48:32 GMT -8
Kiera opted to settle in the sand beside him, staying in the shade and playing look out for... whatever might be out there. Though she had trouble believing it - the place was a wasteland and barren.
But the man began to shake, seeming to fall into a seizure...? He was choking, and she had little idea what to do. "H-Hey... Hey, are you okay?!"
The best she could do was try to bring him into lying down and let the fit come and go... though she had no idea if this would be fatal or just a momentary fit. The only other thing to come to mind was to take the sack he had closed and try to run a little water over his head, avoiding his face - perhaps cooling him down might help. But she had no real idea how to help him...
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 15:47:34 GMT -8
Alfie convulsed on the sand, clearly in a lot of pain. He clutched at his throat, coughing and gagging. All of a sudden, he straightened out, back arched and head back, and let out an excruciating gurgle. As Kiera watched, something began to rise from his throat. Some sort of insect, as long as Kiera's forearm, forced its way out of Alfie's mouth, tearing his jaw open as it did so. It tore itself free, landing on the sand. Now fully exposed, Kiera would see that it was a pale, dusty yellow that matched the sand. The insect was covered in jagged spikes, and had a menacing pair of pincers on its face. Ignoring Kiera, it bit into Alfie's body, which was still twitching as he bled out. The lizard ran off.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 15:54:58 GMT -8
She felt her heart sink as the man continued to twitch - but a sinking feeling of helplessness quickly switched for alarm and distress when something forced itself out of the poor man's mouth. She scrambled back quickly, yanking her crossbow from her shoulder and making surprisingly fast work to snap a bolt into the rut and draw the tension - aim and fire upon the creature in some hopes of killing it instantly, though any hope of saving the man was almost gone.
But this thing... if it did that, she was in danger. And what the hell was it?!
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 16:05:52 GMT -8
The insect let out an earsplitting screech as the bolt struck it, sticking in one of the armor plates on its exoskeleton. Springing off the man, it fled out into the desert with the bolt still stuck in it. The insect ran quickly, speeding through the sand like a lizard, until it was finally out of sight. What could that thing possibly have been? Whatever it was, it had made a mess of poor Alfie. The man laid face-down on the ground, jaw torn wide open. Blood pooled on the sand underneath him, soaking through and staining it a brownish red. If she looked out to the distance, Kiera would see what looked to be some sort of caravan at the very edge of her vision, parked on a dune.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 16:22:52 GMT -8
She was damned surprised to see it scurry off that fast, with the bolt still sticking out of it. She watched it zip completely out of sight, her breathing heightened as adrenaline pumped - having been scared initially by the insect.
Her eyes slipped back over to the poor man now bleeding out to death in the sand... she felt her heart tug in her chest for him - he didn't deserve a death like that, and she couldn't imagine the amount of pain he had been in. That bug wasn't exactly small.
Kiera let her gaze zip around her surroundings, now on high alert for anything else that might be around... perhaps more creatures like that insect. Something was out in the distance on a dune, and she began a hard, heavy jog through the sand in hopes of getting close - and hoping like hell it wasn't something looking to eat her.
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Post by Strangers and Travelers on Jul 8, 2017 16:44:43 GMT -8
As Kiera approached, the shape would become clearer. A caravan, with covered wagons and tents. However, it was immediately apparent that something was wrong. There were no animals to pull the wagons, and Kiera would notice the distinct smell of corpses as she approached. Once she wandered nearer, she'd see huge holes torn in many of the tents, as though something large ripped through to escape. If she peered into any of the holes, she'd see be met with a gristly sight indeed: bodies on cots, all looking like they'd been chewed on by some sort of scavenger. Each one had the jaw torn open in a now-familiar manner. More bodies could be seen on the sand in the center of the camp, with the same injuries.
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Post by Deleted on Jul 8, 2017 16:55:37 GMT -8
Indeed, it was a sight she hadn't been prepared for - peering into the nearest tent would have her bring a hand up to her face as she gagged. Carnage, something that shouldn't be so disturbing to someone like her, but it wasn't something she wanted to ever become accustomed to.
And the fact they all looked like Alfie as a result of the creature...
She had to get away from here. This was a feeding ground now, and her being here would only attract the insect - if not more, should there be more than one. And she wasn't about to be eaten today. She made steps to get the hell out of dodge.
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