The Journey

Sand walked he had not slept last night not sleeping was becoming a habit and it wasn't a pleasent one. Sand looked up he normally stared at his feet whenever he traveled his cloak normally parted the sand from his feet as he walked and it seemed to be a sign that the desert was not completely unkind or unfair. He looked at Last Mountain making sure he was still making progress thought he highly doubted he was. He was at the to of a sand dune he noticed looking down. He took a step and his robe parted the sand he stopped "hmmmm" He started to think.

Aerie was wandering along the desert. Sometimes it seemed as if it just went on forever. At least she wasn't getting sunburned though, with her long clothes and hair that protected her actually rather pale skin from the sun's rays. She stopped and shaded her eyes with one hand as she noticed something at the top of one of the nearest sand dunes. The other hand rested on the empty katana sheath that she always kept with her.

Sand looked down the way he had intended to go then he noticed the figure of a person. Sand sighed they were always illusions thou he had never seen a one quite like this. Sand slide down the sand dune his robe parted the sand and Sand picked up speed majorly. " OH YEAH!" Sand had very few pleasures in his life this was now one. Sand bent his knees he wondered. Sand pushed off the ground and shot into the air. His robe ruffled and he slowly drifted down to the ground he didn't notice but he was very close to the human figure he could see a sheath thou he didn't have any knowledge of what that was so he assumed it was something to collect rain with.

Aerie watched as the figure from the top of the dune moves towards her. She didn't move a single step as it slid down the dune then leaped into the air. However, she did realize, as it was making its way towards her, that it was a human.
As the human landed near her, she slowly began to walk towards him.
"Hello?" she asked, judging from his size that the human was young. He had to be aged below ten at least.

Sand stumbled back as the person spoke. They they never speak Sand thought to himself. He tripped as his robe moved the sand away from his feet. Sand's voice was weak and underused " Um hey?" Sand coughed he shouldn't sound so stupid. " I mean who are you?"

The child's voice seemed almost like it was cracking because it hadn't been used much in this vast desert. Obviously he had been traveling alone for at least a short while.
"Aerie Blackwing." she replied, deciding not to drag it out.
"Who are you?"

" Sill, Sand Sill." Sand said. He pointed to the mountain. " I'm headed there don't try to stop me!" His parents had told him before they had left him to never trust anyone he saw. Sand having just made a challenge stood up.

Aerie blinked, the hand that had been shading her eyes was now by her side.
"Why would I try and stop you? Everyone knows the mountain is humanity's last hope of finding anywhere remotely habitable."
Her voice seemed to carry no emotion, despite the obvious sensitivity of the topic from the child's perspective.

Aerie then turned to carry on walking.There was no point in just standing here wasting time when they could still be moving.

"HEY!" Sand snapped. He had almost lost his nerve to speak when she had turned so blank. HE started to move behind her the sand parting for him but pushing itself into her feet he hadn't noticed and followed. isn't it dumb to both walk the same path? he thought to himself

As she walked, she felt the sand being pushed up against the back of her feet. Instead of complaining or yelling at the young child, she moved so that she was walking beside him, though with about a meter's distance between them.
"I would have thought someone as young as yourself would be traveling with parents."
It was true that Aerie didn't talk much, even when she was around family, but this one question kept nagging her.

"Well yeah I guess I would be..." Sand looked to his feet again. " But they aren't around any more I'm never seeing them again." Sand looked to Aerie. " Your not that old either." He pointed out.

"I'm fifteen. More than old enough to look after myself," she replied, obviously confident about her own abilities. All of a sudden something caught her eye and she whipped out the katana sheath from where it was usually kept by her side. She leaped after the small lizard that she had seen, using the sheath to pin it down into the sand where she could pick it up.
The way she held the creature made sure it couldn't bite her and it's tiny claws weren't powerful enough to draw blood, but it tried to escape none-the-less.
Aerie watched it with her bright blue eyes. It was almost as though she was saddened to think that she might have to start killing these creatures if she wanted to stay alive in this vast desert.

Sand stopped. " Oh so that things used to catch food?" Even in the desert his curosity never ceased thought he did have an idea from seeing the lizard. " Hey think it's nest is near?" He knew from his father that the desert lizards normally lived under the sand's surface not to be easily spotted. " if it is we can find it." HE said grinning now but caught himself wait since when was there a we? He was already putting himself together with her not good he didn't want to travel with anyone not after what happened to his parents.

"I wouldn't have thought it would be far. They're to small to travel long distances away from their nests...."
She ignored the comment about the katana sheath, deciding that she'd rather not end up delving into its rather long history. However, the kid was right. It's nest could very well be not even two meters away from where they were stood.

"Alright stand a little away." He instructed and started to run in circles sand rushing away as he did. soon a hollow in the ground was seen it had several baby lizards. Sand kneeled down. " Gimme that thing I'll knock'm out." The lizards had hatched not long ago they were barely able to moved slowly away from Sand. Sand seemed to lack compassion for the desert crawlers after all he had not been taught any better his whole life and meat of any kind was a treat he had lived off catus for a long time.

Aerie didn't seem to react to the display that Sand made as he moved the sand in search of the nest. When it was revealed, instead of handing him her sheath, she quickly bent down and scooped the baby lizards into her arms, along with another adult lizard.
She handed two of the slower, baby lizards to Sand.
"Do what you want with those."

Any normal person would have just killed the lizards on the spot and eaten them, but Aerie was one of those people who preferred not to kill and eat the creatures. Instead, she tended to gather them and keep them with her until there was no other choice. She grabbed one of the empty jars that she carried with her and dropped all but one of the rather small lizards into it. There were tiny holes in the lid, enabling the lizards to breathe. In one of the other jars, a smaller one, there was a variety of insects that she had collected during her travels.

Without a word, Aerie tied the jars onto her katana sheath, where she could more easily carry them. The final lizard, she kept in her hand. It just sat there for a few seconds before trying to escape again. Of course, Aerie didn't let it escape, she just caught it in her other hand.

"HEY!" Sand again had almost lost his nerve to speak seeing all the insects she had collected. " I found those there mine you should be lucky I'm letting you even have some don't wast them."
Sand broke the two lizard's necks and slipped them into a pocket he had in his trouser he wore. Those would be his meal tonight. He grabbed his flask he'd fasted yesterday and not drank or eaten he'd had some early this morning but he really wanted a drink now. He opened the cork top and tipped it back nothing came out. " NO!" Sand inspected the flask it indeed had a tear. Sand fell to his knees. " WHY?!?!?!" HE screamed mostly just being dramatic but still he had no water.

Aerie didn't make any move to yell or scold the child for being to selfish, instead she just glared at him with her piercing blue eyes whilst she made sure that the lizard in her palm didn't run away.
As Sand inspected his flask and found it was empty, Aerie rolled her eyes. There was no need to be melodramatic about a problem that almost every human in existence was no doubt going to run into at some point.
"Instead of just feeling sorry for yourself, look for some more water. Even deserts have some of it."

Sand stood and brushed the sand away. " Why are you so cold anyways?" He started to walk up another sand dune. This one will have water the lizards would need a source so there has to be water here. Sand reasoned. Sand dunes were the worst part of the desert the upwards incline slowed progress and you could easily slip and fall back down it. Plus the one down side to the robe was that while on a sand dune the sand that was pushed away would fall back onto Sand.

"Why do you have such a boring name?" she asked in reply, deciding not to answer the child's question as she continued walking. She used her katana sheath to keep herself steady as she walked up the dune, stabbing it deep into the sand before lifting it out and stabbing it further up to haul herself up the pile of sand.

" Well there wasn't exacatly anything to name me after was there?" He answered back. " If your not gonna answer my question then don't ask one." He said grumpily as he tripped and started to fall down the dune.

Aerie rolled her eyes again. "It's my choice whether I want to answer your questions. You had the exact same choice, you just decided the opposite to what I did. Don't get snappy with me."
She replied in the same cold tone as before. She stopped as Sand tripped and started sliding back down the sand.
Fighting back the urge to roll her eyes a third time, Aerie pulled the katana sheath out of the sand and turned around to help the child get back up onto his feet.

Sand grabbed it gratefully and pulled himself up. " Thanks!" He said. HE started to run up the sand dune after getting his feet. I just have to beat the sand then I can slide down the other side! Sand raced up the dune still not making good progress. He stopped again and thought a second then started to crawl up the dun instead he robe didn't react the robe's sand pushing pushed his hands forward and he moved faster then if he were running.

Aerie didn't look bothered by what the child was doing. Instead she just continued walking back up the dune in her steady pace.
Stick katana sheath deep in the sand.
Haul self up.
Repeat.

When she finally reached the top, she shaded her eyes again as she glanced across the vast desert, attempting to find some other sign of life.

Sand propelled up the hill at an alarming rate of course he was still behind Aerie but still good for not having to move at all. He arrived at her side seconds after she made it up. He looked over the horizon and squinted the sun was directly over head it was messing up his vision. He pulled the hood of his robe up almost covering his eyes it set in such a way that shadows covered his face completely and he looked out. " LOOK!" he pointed to a catus. " I can get water!"