The two scouts sat silent on their camels, tilting their heads this way and that as they considered their discovery from the top of a large dune.

“Hmmm.” Omid was the first to break the silence while staring at their discovery.

“You’re right.” Taljir quickly agreed with an all too enthusiastic nod.

“Huh…” Omid said as his eyes narrowed.

“There’s just no denying it.” Taljir concurred, a hand to his chin in serious thought.

Omid groaned, leaning back in the saddle slightly. “Just an outcropping of rocks. Not even large ones.” He sighed loudly. “Maybe we’re...far back and it’ll be larger up close? Large enough to be useful?”

“No.” Taljir quickly cut in, his face still showing concern and his voice dead serious. “Trust me, that line never works on the ladies.”

It took a moment for it to hit, and it was preceded by a look of shock and bewilderment as he processed it, but when it did Omid burst out laughing to the point that he had to steady himself to not fall off of his camel. Taljir gave a wide grin, shortly before contracting the contagious laughter born of several days worth of nerves boiling over.

Both young men kept up the laughter until their camels started bleating to complain, which sounded enough like laughter to take the top spot of ‘funniest thing in all of creation’ to the two. Which led to even further howling laughter until they had contained themselves enough to look back down to the group of large rocks. 

Really they were nothing but a completely normal grouping of rocks in the middle of The Great Desert. Unremarkable in any way. Larger than a man, not large enough to provide any decent shelter. Perhaps large enough to let small animals hide amongst them, not at all numerous enough to provide a bit of meat to eat. The stone itself was completely average in composition and color. A dull, sun-washed gray that had no rough edges left after possible aeons of sand blasting.

It was all completely and utterly unremarkable, when they so desperately needed something even somewhat remarkable.

Something that was, preferably, not also an ill omen that they wished to forget about.

The levity provided by a well timed crass joke was beginning to wane slightly as they once again looked down to the completely unremarkable rocks.

“Thank you, for that.” Omid said as he used his green scarf to wipe at a tear. “I needed humor back in my life.”

“Think nothing of it, we both needed that! Now, why don’t we go investigate? We could get lucky still. Might even find a small cave!” Taljir beamed, still revelling in having made the stoic laugh.

Omid resumed tilting his head, raised eyebrow only just visible under his scarf. “First a problem with size and now you can’t find a cave of wonders? That can’t be a good look for you.” He said with a slight click of his tongue. “For the ladies.”

Taljir’s eyebrows did a complex dance of raising all the way off of his face and to the moons and pressing together so hard as to fuse into one while his mouth hung open so wide that if it were not for his own scarf covering it an entire rukh could probably fly in. “That was...you...hey!”

Omid’s smirk was mercifully hidden by his scarf as he commanded Masel to start making his way down the dune, with Taljir taking several moments of recovery before he followed suit.

“You wound me.” Taljir finally responded. “I try to lighten the mood with a finely honed joke that was clearly fictitious in nature and you strike as soon as you smelled blood.” He took a hand from Nazer’s reigns to put it over his heart in indignation. The facade quickly cracked. “Truly, I am impressed. But where were you hiding a sense of humor under all those layers of seriousness and gloom?”

Masel bleated further as Omid steered him down the sloping dunes. “I’m not gloomy. I just...try to temper my expectations with likely realities.” Omid retorted.

That Omid was up ahead of him was the only thing that could hide Taljir’s eye roll. “That sounds like gloom to me. Of all the things we could find out here and you’re focusing on the bad ones.”

“The bad ones tend to prevent finding the good ones. They tend to prevent anything good ever happening to you again.” Omid said with a shrug. It was something he had already thought plenty about, and by now it was a simple fact to him.

“Bring back funny Omid.” Taljir complained as the pair made their way down the dunes towards the rocks. “I only saw him for a bit but he seemed like the kind of guy who could figure out that worrying that much makes it harder to do things that involve not worrying.”

Omid thought for a bit, wondering if Taljir actually had a point there in somehow sounding profound or if the heat was just getting to him that badly. “I will...try to consider that when planning for possibilities. In the meantime, we investigate those rocks and when we don’t-....when we are done we, we rest in the shade for a bit.”

Omid had caught himself in the middle of being ‘negative’ again and corrected himself. Sure, there was likely to be absolutely nothing among the rocks but that also meant nothing bad. And most importantly it would be a very poor look to be a living parody of oneself all in one sentence and though his sanity was being incinerated here in The Great Desert, Omid had to cling to the last bit of it as though his life depended on it.

“There you go! Look at those positive outcomes in the face of there possibly not even being any shade!” Taljir said with clear pride, before quickly realizing his mistake. “Wait-”

“You’re trying. I’ll focus on that if you focus on me trying to be positive.” Omid politely yet quickly cut in before Taljir could stumble through trying to correct himself any further.

“And trying you are! Wait, I don’t mean that you’re not succeeding just that you are trying. No...no I didn’t mean that you were trying to succeed but you aren’t, I meant-”

“Taljir if you’re trapped in a pit and someone throws you a rope, you take the rope and pull yourself out not hang yourself with it.” Omid said, punctuated with a loud sigh of exasperation.

“Nonsense!” Taljir retorted. “I was simply lulling that rope into a false sense of security to think that it had gotten the best of me, biding my time for the right moment to strike!” He said with a look of pure determination.

Omid turned in his saddle again, once again giving a look of pure confusion to Taljir. “I have absolutely no idea what you are even talking about.”

Taljir shrugged. “Honestly? I myself lost track several sentences back. But that’s not the point.” Though it was at this point that Omid brought Masel to a halt, a single eyebrow raised and not wanting to miss the no doubt enlightening explanation that was to follow. And the likely possible confusion it would induce that he didn’t want to lead to falling off of his camel.

“The point is that even when things seem dire, and there’s a metaphor rope around your neck, you don’t give up!” Taljir’s smile was hidden by his scarf, but the fact that it spread to his eyes meant he was being genuine.

To Omid, it was honestly more amazing that he found himself seeing a point in Taljir’s words. It was a point buried deeper than the most ancient and lost of cities, but it was there. Just how much it was buried and how Omid still thought it made even a bit of sense may have been down to how long they had been out here being driven mad by forces known and unknown, but it was still there.

“Why does that make sense…” Omid shook his head, quickly raising another hand to stop Taljir. “No...no, don't answer that for now. Let’s just check the rocks for anything.”

Taljir was actually thankful for that grace, as he himself did not have an explanation. It wouldn’t have stopped him from trying to give one, but they had been out here for too long now and everything seemed more difficult. Dismounting a camel, finding a spot to camp for the night, thinking clearly for extended periods of time, being able to tell if that shadow was real, wondering if the sand was like that the last time you looked at it.

It was something neither one wanted to admit to, as that would show the other that their minds truly were starting to slip. The alternative was too unbelievable, that the things they were seeing were real. That as inexplicable as it may seem, it was really happening. Instead, it was just paranoia and exhaustion creeping up on them. All it would take is a few good nights of sleep, preferably after having found something worthwhile to take the pressure off of them.

They kept telling themselves this as they dismounted their camels, overthinking if this time when they had done so it had been rougher than previous times. Both saw either a shadow moving or sands shifting for the briefest moment out of the corner of their eyes as they finally stood on their own two feet. A small skittering sound quickly drew their attention and their heads whipping around to see its source.

The small lizard that paid them no mind as it sat for a moment, and scampered off into a small crevice in the rocks could not accurately be described as mocking them. Instead, it was what dignity and hopes they had remaining that mocked them for jumping at every little sound.

“I’m calling it now. Treasure chest full of gold and gems hidden in the rocks by bandits who were forced to leave it here and come back for it after they resupplied, but they were lost in a sandstorm so we’ll have to fight a pack of sandwraiths for it.” Taljir dryly speculated as he walked over to Omid’s side.

Omid stared at where the lizard had vanished into the rocks. “Hmm, close but...see it’s really the very top of a buried mountain range. Just around that rock over there we’ll find the hidden passageway into the mountain kingdom that was buried by the sands. Even now, a husk of their former selves they lay desperately clinging to existence under The Great Desert. They send out seemingly innocent lizards as scouts, looking for those who could be trusted to aid them in their return to glory in a world that has long forgotten them.”

Taljir stood unmoving with Omid, listening to the wind whipping and sand and stone alike as he looked over to where his companion had promised an ancient kingdom. “It stands to reason that such a vibrant culture would have a lovely princess who now seeks the help of the outside world against her father’s wishes. It stands even more to reason that she would be a fierce warrior because a dying kingdom can’t really afford for anyone to just sit around. And she’s no hypocrite when she says her father is too stuck in his old ways. No, she’s trying to lead her people by example and needs some devastatingly handsome stranger with emerald green eyes to save her kingdom. And luckily for that devastatingly handsome stranger, his dark and mysterious type  partner is an aspiring mage who is going to learn ancient magic from her best friend, the quiet librarian who has all sorts of old scrolls and things.

“And things?” Omid looked over to Taljir with a cocked eyebrow.

“Yeah, you know like uh...magic...stuff and uh…” Taljir gestured vaguely with his hands, searching for the answer.

“Artifacts.” Omid helped him along, hiding a grin.

“There we go, artifacts. Anyway you two learn about magic and love while that resourceful and incredibly good looking stranger has attractive adventures with the impossibly beautiful warrior princess.” Taljir nodded to himself, satisfied with the reality the two of them had constructed.

Omid crossed his arms. “Well that’s that then, sounds like….no...no we’re both forgetting something…”

Taljir looked over to him with a bit of worry. “What’s that?”

“Well we’ll just never be able to take an entire magical ancient forgotten subterranean mountain kingdom back with us on only two camels.” Omid hung his head in defeat, shoulder slumping as he did.

Taljir kicked at the sand in anguish, sending a small cloud toward the rocks. “They wouldn’t even have some we could borrow…” He let out a long sigh. “Camels don’t live underground…”

The two stood in defeat, finally looking over to the rock that hid an ancient kingdom they tragically lacked the means to bring back with them.

“Well I think that proves we desperately need to take a good long rest in the shade.” Omid said, finally looking up and stretching his limbs a bit as he started finally walking towards that rock they had foisted so many delusions upon.

“Yeah, even Nazer is complaining about needing a rest.” Taljir said with a protracted groan.

Omid looked over his shoulder back to him as he walked. “I’m not sure I heard that part, but I don’t think anyone here would debate that.”

As soon as he said that, a part of Omid expected someone to speak up and disagree. Not Nazer, as that was just Taljir just being Taljir and hopefully not his mind going. No, as he looked from Taljir to Nazer and Masel sitting just behind them he took the time to catch a quick glimpse around. For the moment, there was no one. But there were many more moments starting to pile up in which he felt as though there were someone else there with them.

Not in the divine sense, in which case he actually did hope that one of the gods had him in their grace at the moment. More in the sense of someone unseen lurking in the shadows at the edge of his vision. Someone who may or may not exist, but for the moment did not announce themselves. His vision returned to just ahead of him, having failed to detect a possible watcher and instead focusing on the imagined location of a long forgotten kingdom that they had both imagined out of a shared delusion.

Just around that rock at the edge, there in fact turned out to be nothing. There was a tiny bit of shade, which would have to be enough. The two scouts quickly circled the rocks, and after a moderate amount of scrambling over them to the highest point they were able to surmise that their worst fears were correct and the rocks were possibly the most unremarkable rocks in the whole of The Great Desert.

In brighter times, this would have been remarkable in and of itself. In these bleak times, not a single word was said about it as they led the camels into the shade to rest for a while.

“It's a test, you know. Just like back at the caravan.” Omid said while reclining against a shaded stone and stretching his legs out. “We have to not want to find a magical ancient kingdom before we can be allowed to find a magical ancient kingdom.”

Taljir nodded in between drinking from his waterskin. “I’m pretty sure that makes sense. We should just focus on...hmmm...well how about why we signed onto the caravan to begin with? That involves something we really want.”

Omid sighed, taking a quick sip of water before responding. “I...suppose. Well what did bring you here?” He asked, quickly shifting the conversation onto Taljir.

Taljir roughly pulled his red scarf from his head, letting out a long sigh at the relief of feeling the ever so slight breeze against his now uncovered face and through his shortly cropped hair. He blinked slowly a few times, green eyes weighed down with heavy lids from the moment of peace before finally responding.

“I told you my uncle raises camels. It’s a good business, good enough that most of my family is in it.” Taljir leaned his head against the rock, looking up to the clear blue skies for a time before continuing. “Or at least it was until last year when my uncle was making a large delivery of camels to another city. Just far enough to make trekking through The Great Desert the best option. Just lucrative enough and with the right noble to mean there was just no turning it down!”

Omid pulled his own scarf from his head, freeing his own shoulder length braids. He visibly winced as he listened to Taljir’s story. “I’m guessing this is the part of the story where something goes horribly wrong?”

“You would be correct!” Taljir answered far too enthusiastically, catching Omid off guard. “My uncle was taking a tried and true path, with enough guards just in case something went wrong of course. Well of course something goes wrong and of course there were only enough guards for most of the people to make it out alive. The camels? Not so much. Such is to be expected when you find the desert has swallowed up the oasis you were counting on and in its place find enough salt snakes to make fleeing for your lives as fast as you can the only viable action.”

Taljir kept staring at the sky in a rare moment of silent contemplation. He still bore a smile, but to Omid it was obviously masking pain. Omid patted at Taljir’s shoulder, which quickly broke him from his reverie as he blinked and shook it off.

“I wasn’t able to go on that trek with them, but I did get to see the results. So, actually going out on a trek and finding riches to save the family business all while making a difference instead of just arriving to find the ashes sounded like a fantastic time.” Taljir said with a characteristic grin and a shrug, showing he was either back to his normal-ish self or clear headed enough to put on a front of such a state.

“Well, turns out we’re here for similar reasons I suppose.” Omid said.

“You mean you too are trying to help your family out with their financial and political ruin?” Taljir said while turning to look at a now surprised Omid.

“What? No I meant- wait, what do you mean political? Just how angry was that noble for not getting their camels?...and which noble are we talking about here?” Omid’s eyes narrowed, wondering just who his companion may have been this whole time.

Taljir coughed into his hand while looking away. “Well, as you can tell from Nazer we have only the finest camels. So really it makes sense to have one noble take notice of some rising star camel breeders, purchase many of their camels and have said family prove themselves while making that delivery of camels to a head of another country-”

“Just how embroiled in a diplomatic crisis is your family?” Omid asked with a wince and a grimace.

“Oh goodness. None at all! I think…” Taljir frowned, looking down to his tan trousers and flicking away a tiny bit of fuzz from his knee as he put his hand to his chin. “They started ‘hinting’ that they were going to have to find me a wife soon, one from the kingdom that we were supposed to deliver all those camels to. I told them that obviously I have no problem finding one on my own, and you know why limit yourself to one place? And really why would they be thinking about me finding a nice girl if things weren’t going good?”

Omid forced a smile over his jaw clenching, closed eyes to cover up  the internal screaming, and a quick series of nods to cover up whatever pained reaction his body wanted to respond with. He had to think quick, and in doing so even thought up a possible solution for the poor fool.

“You know, you’re right Taljir. I think they’re just really happy for you going on a desert crossing like this and being on a scouting team. Your parents probably just can’t wait for you to make a name for yourself out here. A good strong name for yourself that commands respect. And if not riches? Well you’ll have established yourself as the best guide for avoiding the myriad dangers of the desert. You would have proven your self worth, your weight in gold no matter what by that point.”

Taljir listened intently with a frown, looking up and off to the sky as Omid’s words made more and more sense. A renewed sense of purpose and motivation lifted his spirits, and with it his frown returned to a broad smile. “Well then, it's a good thing we got lucky and already found that ancient kingdom!” He said while quickly pointing to the completely unremarkable rock that the two had decided must hold secrets long lost.

The rock ignored their pleas as it continued to exist only as a rock, and nothing more.

The two young men blankly stared at its brazen defiance of their desperate wishes before looking back to one another again, wondering for the briefest moment just how far gone they must be right now as they tried to not mentally answer such a question and continue with their conversation instead.

“Yes well…” Omid cleared his throat. “I suppose that means I have to go next since the test seems to require both of our accounts.”

Omid glanced back to that stubborn rock, double checking that somehow the two had not willed a lost civilization into existence yet. It continued to just be a simple rock, and Omid continued with his end of talking about their pasts.

“When I said we were here for similar reasons, I meant that The Great Desert has also impacted my life.” He said while looking off to where endless dunes met blue skies. “I live in a small city with my grandparents, known for the green dye you’ve seen.” He said while holding up his scarf. “I say with my grandparents because my parents…”

He trailed off, losing track of how long he did so for as Taljir patiently waited for him to continue. “Well, my parents were scholars in the business of exploring old ruins. They settled down to a quieter life of working at one of the great libraries in the city. And when I was still young, shifting sands revealed some ruins that were too hard to pass up. Think...the kind of a discovery that would uncover the likes of moon jars, lapis lazuli compass, or even something like crimson root growing there. So of course they go with a team, because how could you not? And of course only a few of them make it back alive, because why wouldn’t it be crawling with half the horrors of the desert. At least that’s how the tiny handful of survivors tell it.”

Taljir twiddled his thumbs a bit, the story being heavy and in such times when doing nothing else he forgot what to do with his hands. Finally as it seemed to come to a close he returned Omid’s kindness and offered him a pat on the shoulder. “I understand, searching the desert for traces of your parents?”

Omid offered a polite smile but shook his head.

“Oh...I don’t understand then? Sorry?” Taljir offered his apology with a small shrug.

Omid simply waved it off. “I had dreams of such a thing years ago, until I sought out one of the survivors and asked for a more complete story rather than the one you would tell a young child. He tearfully told me he had seen them killed with his own eyes, but I only thanked him as now I wouldn’t spend my life hopelessly searching for them. Instead, I want what they want. I want knowledge, the knowledge to help people of any land get some measure of control over the ever shifting and expanding sands. But I am going to be careful about it, and so I’ve spent much of my life working in libraries or schools or temples learning everything I can.”

“Okay now I understand.” Taljir quickly responded. “Which means it's a good thing for both of us that we found this ancient kingdom!” He said as he turned and once again pointed to that same rock.

The two stared at it, as it failed to be anything more than a simple rock.

“Taljir, I think we should move on. Would you really want to be part of an ancient kingdom that’s so picky?” Omid said with a small smile.

“Nah, we can do better. And Nazer’s right, an ancient magic kingdom in the clouds would have a much better view anyway!” Taljir said with a measure of triumph as he stood up and dusted himself off.

Omid gave the slightest of frowns as his dark eyes narrowed, putting aside questions of just how seriously Taljir was taking Nazer to instead focus on the good will of the moment. “You know, I haven’t read about any of those but if they’re less picky than ancient mountain kingdoms buried under the sand I don’t see why not.” He said as he too rose and started refastening his scarf over his head.

The sensible decision would be to stay here a bit longer in the shade and rest. Mentally, the best course of action was to get far away from the imagined discovery whose absence now mocked them. Foolish as it may have been, lingering here any longer would drive them even more mad than they feared they were already going.

Taljir silently promised himself that as the leader today, he would call an early night to make up for leaving the shade too soon. That the extra rest would do them good and clear their heads. 

Omid silently promised himself that he wasn’t even going to look at those cursed rocks ever again. His promise was broken mere seconds later as he gave a small jump at the skittering sound returning once more. No, not skittering. Walking. Footsteps on rocks. From something much larger than a small lizard.

But when Omid turned toward it, there was nothing but questions as to whether or not the smaller looser rocks near the edges of the formation had been arranged in that way just a moment ago. His head whipped around to look to Taljir, finding him still walking over to the camels as he seemingly heard nothing. Omid dared a final look back to the rocks after a brief moment of wincing at possibilities as they ran through his head.

Only rocks, that were the same completely normal rocks that now tormented him. He frowned, being thoroughly done with them as he turned back around to make his own way to the camels as he was disgusted with himself for driving himself mad. As he turned, that same shadow that had now haunted the edges of both his vision and reasonability for too long made another appearance.

Omid refused to look back any more as his blood ran cold. He was doing this to himself, he thought. Of all the things he had read about that could be doing this, it stood to reason that it was simply paranoia and a lack of sleep after having been out in the middle of the desert for so long. He told himself he would sleep it off, as though he had slept well at all in recent memory. As if even his dreams had been an escape and not further torment.