The Desert Kid's Arc

Chapter 6 of 10

The Desert Kid walked behind Salim and the mule until the sun climbed high. His belly still ached from the bad meat. His pack was light in a way that frightened him. Dates gone. Water low. He had buried the spoiled meat under a heap of sun-bleached bones the day before, a marker so no other traveler would dig it up by mistake. They came upon a green canvas tent pitched in the open sand. A small cookfire smoked beside it. A man stood among a few thin goats, watching them approach. Aldric Stonewander. The Desert Kid recognized the herder who had given him milk. Near the tent, a woman knelt over a low cloth spread with jars, pouches, and dried roots. Maren Thornwhisper looked up as he stopped. She studied his face, then his hands. "You kept the berries down," she said. "Good. You need water more than herbs now." Aldric lifted a skin from beside the fire and held it out. "Fill what you carry. Don't drink it all at once." The Desert Kid took the skin with both hands. Maren placed a small pouch of dried berries in his palm. "For the next stretch. Eat one at dusk. Not before." He filled his waterskin to the brim. He tied the berry pouch to his belt. Salim was already moving on, the mule's tail flicking in the heat. The Desert Kid lifted his hand once to Aldric and Maren, then turned east. He was fed. He was watered. He was, for the first time in days, not alone in his calculations — and the oasis still lay somewhere beyond the next ridge.