509 AV, 19th of Spring Drudging through the barren land of Eyktol is not an easy task for any man or woman to do, yet so many do. The Benshiras, the solemn Chaktawe and even the haughty Eypharians know what it is like to live in an endless sea of sand. Yet few have devoted their life, or part of their life, to a pilgrimage leading them to an unknown location. But to Sayf it is his chosen path, by himself and by Yahal, not a moment in those 18 months that he has been traversing the scorching sand, the shredding wind and the blistering heat, has he looked back or regretted his choice. Faith is all that keeps his soul straight and strong, but it is strong enough to enable him to endure every trial and tribulation that comes his way. He knows that Yahal wouldn't have guided him onto this path if it didn't have meaning, he knows. Sayf had lost count of the days since he last saw the other members and the Patriarch of the Tents of Khalil, he missed them and loved them but he yearns not to be with them. They are on their paths and he was on his, fate had it that they did not run parallel, and fate was what guides him. Riding on his horse for several hours underneath Syna's sun, he could feel the need for shade and water. Riding on his Desertbred on a rather slowpace as to not use up too much energy of the horse and its rider, Sayf had packed up his camp shortly after the hottest moment of the day, 2 bells after midday, and loaded everything in the saddlebags aswell as on his back before taking off towards the curved horizon with hills and valleys of sands making it into a goldenscaled serpent dividing heaven and earth. The sun was halfway through it's downwards movement to slide out of sight and give rise to Leth's moon, but Sayf knew that the horse could no longer hold out for much longer without water. Eventhough Desertbreds could hold out much longer without water than other horses, they still needed to drink eventually. Sayf would save some of the water that he'll gain overnight from the Water Trap, which collects dewdrops and rain...he had no hope for rain though, the odds were way too strongly against him in this region heavily marked by Syna. Suddenly he saw a mirage in the distance as he rode over an inner valley's edge and he saw the rising of red stone appear before him, it kept rising fast until his horse reached the top and a large natural structure of rustcolored boulders, halls, canyons, caves and all sorts of stone formatiosn revealed itself before him. He had reached the Redstone Cliffs. While he was rather educated on the geography of Eyktol he had completely forgot about the Redstone Cliffs' existence. ' Yahal be praised. ' he said while patting his Desertbred's muscular neck. He picked up the pace and strode into the Redstone Cliffs while making sure not to venture in the deeper areas, this area was uncharted territory for him and he wasn't about to foolishly rush into some unknown canyon or cave. Mizahar, and Eyktol, was far too dangerous for that kind of behaviour. He made sure to stay on the surface-level and attempted to stay clear of narrow halls between the large walls of stone, after a while he came across a small group of some withered-looking trees, no more than 3 of those rather short trees were grouped together near the border of a steep canyon between the darkchestnutcolored rockformations. He dismounted his horse and let it rest beneath the shade of the trees. He wasn't sure but he he thought he remembered the names of this type of tree. Akaka Tree, Akatia Tree...Kakati Tree...Whichever it was, he was grateful to have encountered them. Sayf sawgthat the trees had oddly shaped yellow flowers, they were bundled together and hung from the branches like ... grapes..." ACACIA! " Shouted Sayf into the wind. That was the name of the tree, he had heard you could produce special honey from their flowers but he had no idea how to do so, instead he picked a few bundles of the flowers and gave most of it to his horse while chewing on a few of them himself. The taste was mildly sweet and the leaves were thin and tasteless enough not bother the flower's flavor too much. Chewing on the honeyflowers he walked onto a large flat part of the canyon's rocky edge and looked down into the canyon, he couldn't believe his eyes...There was a very small, trickling stream of water feeding the wet rock beneath it. There was no way Sayf would let that precious water go to waste on a lifeless rock, he was going to get down there as soon as he had recovered a bit, from today's hike, underneath the Acacia Trees. |