The desert is ungracious.
The desert is hot and barren.
The desert has nothing but sand and rock.
And a river on which banks life reigns.
The clear water flows constantly. It makes its way through the sand, through the mountains to distant seas.
Here, close to the water, dragons live in the mountains and humans live in a city made of stone. Close to the mountains. The river allows them to survive here. They lead a rich existence, which the river makes possible for them. But not everyone is wealthy.
Screams can be heard from one of the stone houses. Loud and ghastly, they echo through the sandy streets of the city. In the house, a woman lies in her bed and struggles to give the world a new life. But this life still refuses to greet the sun. She curses and scolds, but there doesn’t seem to be any progress. The neighbors are there, including the woman's husband. They are trying to help.
Then, finally, a little life sees the light of day. A girl. Strong and pretty. She cries powerfully, which, according to the belief of the people, means a long and good life. The gods of the sand looked down on the girl with benevolence. The child is cleaned and handed over to the exhausted woman. Everyone is happy, especially the mother. It is her first, eagerly awaited child. A desired child. And a girl, just as she had hoped. "Hello Louise Ninon!" she greets the infant. She's about to kiss her when something unexpected happens. The shock is great. Her husband takes Louise and asks the experienced neighbor what's going on.
A second, small life announced his coming.
Again the screams rang out. The woman scolded. She complained to her husband. She just wanted one child. For now. Why had he given her two? Helplessly, he looked at the neighbor, who, however, only encouraged the woman to continue fighting. This time everything happens quickly.
The second little life was a boy. Smaller than his sister.
His cry is weak. He gets cleansed and given to his mother, who holds the child in her arms in horror.
"The child is cursed!", murmurs one of the neighbors. "You must’ve angered the gods!"
