60 Desert I (1/2)

The crew was noisily taking down some stuff from the ship to the shore, but Ling was still curiously staring at the distant land surrounded by a yellow 'haze'.

According to Mayari, it would still take more than three days of travel for them to reach that land. However, the 'haze' was too big that it could already be seen from this far.

From what Mayari has further told him, that land was a desert that became so because of many deaths. It could be from wars or famine. Then, later, the travellers who ventured through were also killed as their decaying bodies remained trapped in that land.

The 'mists' from all these deaths converged to form this 'haze' for years. It later solidified into grains which was the sand formed around the area. This was what they would be collecting for the Sikat troupe to use for the effects and illusions in their shows.

Unlike the life 'mist' he knew from the forest beside his small village, the 'mist' they would get from this would generate harmful illusions of death and suffering. It was different from the red 'mists' the dying beasts exude though, so maybe the 'mists' here have some slight distinctions from those deaths.

Mayari already warned him that they would not to go deeper into the forest or they might be influenced by the 'haze' too. Rather, they would collect the sand in the land's borders only. It might be weaker than what they could collect deeper in the land, but that was why they would get sacks of it to last for the year.

”Ling! Maga! Can the both of you carry some of these bags of food? We will be catching beasts around the area for food but we still have to carry some packed food.”

With a last look at the yellow 'haze', Ling followed Maga as they ran over to the crew.

They spent the first night in the nearby beach. They laid down their blankets to sleep under the stars, with the night breeze cooling their skin.

Ling could smell the sea as he stared at the stars above him. When he closed his eyes, he could only hear the quiet waves and the loud snores of his companions.

It was his first time experiencing this, sleeping at the beach under the stars, not sleeping beside a snoring companion. Before, since the large trees usually block the sky when they hunt in the forest, he was unable to look at the tiny stars illuminating the sky. It was really beautiful, especially without the moonlight subduing them.

However, Ling thought he still preferred to see the leaves above him when he laid on the ground. He was also partial to the darkness in a cave, with the sounds of the small animals scurrying around. What was the best though was sleeping in a soft mat instead of the hard ground.

The movement beside him made Ling open his eyes. ”You also can't sleep, Maga?”

Hearing Ling's whisper, Maga lifted its head and pushed its nose near the boy. It let its tongue out to lick the boy's cheek. The action made Ling giggle but he tried to suppress it to not wake up the others. ”But we have to wake up early tomorrow since the walk was long and tiring. We really have to rest now.”