Desert Dunes
Their lands had been fertile near to the river, benefiting from the flood plains and the more even terrain. The camel she had brought had fared well on the reasonably flat surface and she had left early enough that things weren't hot for herself or the animal, enabling her to spur it into a decent canter, covering a fair distance before the heat of the day had taken over. She had been able to ride until the middle of the day when the heat had grown unbearable, forcing her to take shelter beneath the canvas she had brought, using the beast of burden as a means to support it. She'd been able to snatch sleep here and there, the heat draining her of energy but also making it difficult to rest. She'd hooked a rope around her wrist and attached it to the animal, tugged if it decided to move far so that she wouldn't risk losing it during those occasions that she passed out.
This was the end of... her second day, yes. Strange as it might seem, she had only left the previous morning although several lifetimes felt as if they'd passed under that blazing star and the cold light of Benea. She had no idea just how many houses of travel she'd managed to achieve, had no idea how far she'd managed to travel. The land had shifted from green and yellowed grasses to loose, rocky soil to the shifting, undulating sand dunes. Distance had certainly been covered and her supplies were dwindling but she had no idea where she was, if she had moved far enough away from her home to risk heading for a river. In truth, Aziza wasn't entirely sure where the Turga was now. Direction could be worked out based on the sun and the moons provided that they weren't directly overhead but it was strange how something so fundamental to life could become so confusing and uncertain when you were so hot and so tired, the air shimmering and shifting as much of the sands during the day and the monochromatic monotony of the night equally disorientating.
With the sun setting, the teenager encouraged the camel to kneel, gathering up her accoutrements so that she could saddled them on the beast before adding herself to its burden. Positioning herself as comfortably as she could on the single hump, she cried a command, one that she had heard called many times over the years. Thankfully the animal was well trained, responding accordingly as it rose. It was a sickening sensation, the lurch and wobble as it escaped gravity's pull and unbent its thick knobbly knees. Riding one wasn't the most relaxing thing in the world either but she was more accustomed to it now, the bouncing, swaying actually quite soothing and almost liable to lull her off to sleep once again as the heat of the day still rose from the sands.
In a way, the Mugrobi was glad that the sands didn't allow her to get the animal up to any great speed, the canter she'd managed to spur it into the day prior a little too novel of an experience for her to wish to repeat it just yet. A camel in fast motion did not feel very stable, its legs seeming ready to collapse at any moment as one bobbed along on that hump that shifted and wobbled. It had reminded her of the first experience with alcohol, her limits untested and the effects of the substance far stronger than she could have anticipated. She had overdone it then, the world whirling and wobbling and unlike the camel, she hadn't been able to remain on her feet, even when she was only standing still. A few minutes into the canter, the results had been the same as that first drinking session; she'd ended up on her knees vomiting her guts up and praying to Hulali that it would stop and that the world would stop moving. Just like with alcohol - which she had vowed she'd never touch ever again - she'd gone right back and done the same thing all over again; thankfully, she hadn't thrown up again, no matter how awful she'd felt and that was possibly because she'd had nothing left in her stomach.
No throwing up since, thank the Circle, the young woman not having the supplies to cope with that level of dehydration. They'd been seriously depleted, even though she had brought so much water and had been rationing it so carefully. The last thing she needed was another catastrophe like that and as it was, there was a fear beginning to creep its way into her core that she was in serious danger even without another disaster. Aziza was somewhat lost and there were strange cries after dark, some predatory beasts known to roam the sands and not all of those were nocturnal either. There was a great deal of danger out here and while she had known it, the witch had stubbornly chosen to stick to her plan.
Aziza was sixteen now, less than a week as such but still sixteen! She was certainly old enough to look after herself and go out and explore the world. Her parents might want to stay in one place and content themselves with gaining secondhand excitement from the travellers who passed along the river but it wasn't enough for their daughter. She wanted to experience it for herself and she was more than capable of being independent, she was! The girl had attempted to leave before, a fair number of the past few years in fact but they had all been silly, childish attempts and of course da and daoa had gone out of their minds with worry and made sure that she was brought back as soon as possible. But this time, she wasn't going back! Following the river was the natural choice, the easy choice but it meant a higher chance of pursuit, swifter means to find her and bring her home. Striking out from the Turga certainly wasn't an easy path but the young witch had faith. People managed to live out here, people managed to live throughout Mugroba in spite of the oft inhospitable conditions so why couldn't she? Hulali would watch over her and was sure to provide; his waters ran deep and cropped up in the most unexpected of places.
The youth hadn't encountered any water yet but... it was only a matter of time, right?
She urged the camel on, sand shifting between its toes as it ploughed a path over the dunes, always looking a head, doggedly determined and never contemplating the idea of looking behind her. Who would find her out here? Who would be moony enough to attempt to pursue her? Besides, there was no point on dwelling on what lay behind; things would turn quite chilly soon and looking back would only make her dawdle.