"Can we have another drink?" Robb asked, gasping for a short respite from the heat. It only dried him out quicker. Further behind trailed Darid, with the merchant and company.

"We'll stop in that shadow for a moment and ration out a cup of water for each." I pointed at the meager shade of a small rock.

Morning had come and gone without us seeing the sleeping-lion rock. Even now, in the evening sun, I couldn't see it anywhere. I couldn't be that off with the distance. It had to be somewhere around here!

"No more," huffed the merchant, as their group finally caught up, flopping onto the ground and staying here. "I'm taking not a single step further."

"Aww, it's only a bit of heat, what's the problem?" asked Darid with his happy nature, earning the deadly stares of of the others.

"One cup of water for everyone. Not more."

"You torturer! A single cup? Our throats are parched!" cried one of the thief-guards.

"I may be obliged, under the Desert Laws, to share my water with those in need, but not with the ungrateful," I told him steadily, rationing out the precious resource, but my mind was elsewhere. 'Where is that rock?'

I handed the thief-guards their water and turned to Lizia the Cursed. A grunt from behind and the shuffling of heavy boots on a mix of stone and fine sand was all the warning I got - and needed. The thief-guard tackled me as I swept around and landed a punch to his eye. The open water bottle slipped from my hand as he threw me to the ground. Somewhere, Polly squawked furiously.

He tried to restrict me with his weight and greater body mass, but he was weak. Exhausted from walking under the sun for just half a day. With ease, I caught one arm and slipped out, locking his arm behind his back and kneeling on it to increase the pressure. He howled and flailed, like a Fire Scorpion skewered by a spear. Trying to shake me off, but knowing that he had no chance.

The water bottle landed on the ground with a hollow thud, its contents uselessly spilled on the ground and quickly drying up in the remaining heat. I looked at it as the struggles beneath me died down, and the desperate screams from wherever were growing weaker.

"What a waste," I said blandly. Down to two bottles. And however many I could fill during the night. Didn't these barbarians know that water was precious? Not to be wasted?

The ensuing silence spread.

Just to be sure, I checked my attacker, but he was too exhausted to move, probably even near unconsciousness. I put pressure onto his arm and he twitched weakly. Standing up, I looked around.

The merchant cowered against the rock, looking at his other thief-guard in fear. Or at my stupid bird, that had gouged deep furrows into his face and hands.The thief-guard was whimpering on the ground, a blank sword next to him. The four Cursed had their hands on their weapons, their wary eyes on both me and the thief-guards.

"We're making camp here. Polly, leave that barbarian alone." For once, she listened, landing with her bloody claws on my shoulder. "Robb, you set up 8 water traps. And someone take care of that barbarian's wounds."

I stepped back, half expecting the Cursed to object and attack like the thief-guards had done, but they did as they were told - after Darid let go of his sword and nodded at them. Korvax took care of the wounded and Lizia set up the tents without much grumbling. Darid walked towards me and stopped two armlengths away. My tense shoulders relaxed slightly.

"What do we do now?" he asked.

"Excuse me?" I had expected anger, reluctance, maybe an apology? But a genuine question like that?

"Man, I'm not good with numbers, but even I can see that we don't have enough water to survive another day. Not even your water traps or your magic holes can give us enough water to keep everyone alive until we reach Rovia. We're drinking too much." Darid scratched his head. "And we've got at least 4 more days to go. So, what do we do now?"

"Die miserably," croaked Polly. "Then I get idiots for my last meal!"

"Wha?!"

"Yes, yes! That's what we'll do! And then I'll fly off to greener lands! Wait, no. I can't go without Drake." She stared at me with one crazy eye. "I'll feast on your bones, and yours only. The idiots can rot away for all I care. And then I'll carry your soul with me to greener lands. That's a good plan!" Polly started cackling. I grabbed her and threw her as far away as I could, listening to her squalling.

"What in the name of the Lithic Golem was that?" blubbered Darid.

"That? That was Polly." I shrugged, checking the surroundings. "I saw a promising spot that may hide a surface spring."

"That sounds great!"

"But without finding the sleeping-lion rock, we have little hope of getting there," crushing his budding hope, I continued: "And it's not guaranteed that there will be water."

He was silent for a moment.

"Then how do we find that rock?"

I knew two ways. One was simply looking around. The other was climbing a rock. And I couldn't trust the Cursed. 'Maybe we can't find the sleeping-lion rock because of their curse. Because of their bad luck. By all the rotting, lice-ridden mummies!'

"I'll take a look around with the camels. If I find water, I'll bring back full barrels. You stay here. Stay in the shade and don't move around too much. Your bodies will loose more water, if you move too much."

I took his silence as consent and headed towards my camels.

"Wait! Lizia, go with Drake. She has good eyesight. She could be helpful," Darid smiled apologetically. It wasn't surprising that he didn't trust me either.

And it had briefly crossed my mind, to just abandon them here and be on my way. But then I would never get rid of their bad luck.

I inclined my head towards Darid, then checked the gear. Except for the basic necessities for a desperate foray into the desert, I unloaded everything and stacked it between the tents and the large rock. The camels sighed audibly, kneeling on the ground. I led Lizia to mount one of them, before sitting in the saddle of the other.

"Forward."

The camels came to their feet in their awkward fashion, nearly throwing of Lizia, but she hung on admirably. Then we were off, swaying left and right, as the camels trotted away from the setting sun.

"Where are they going?" cried someone from behind.

"Looking for water, of course," answered Darid.

"Looks to me like they're running away and leaving us to die!" The outrage was followed by a thud.

"How dare you say one of my party to be a deserter! They'll come-" the rest was carried away by the wind.

The sun vanished, leaving us no light to go by, until the stars broke the darkness of dusk. With the light of the stars guiding us, we searched in a wide circle around the camp.

=====

"I can't see anything that looks like a large sleeping lion."

"Me neither. Let's widen the circle."

"I don't think that will help, Drake."

I gnawed on a date, ignoring her and leading us into an even wider circle. It had to be around here somewhere. Either the sleeping-lion rock, or the spot where I had seen the birds. There had to be water!

"This is nonsense. Point the way for me and I'll return alone. You can find enough water for yourself and reach Rovia. You shouldn't have to suffer because of us."

"Huh?" I stopped my camel and looked back at her.

"I have eyes in my head, idiot. You drank next to nothing the whole day, and you had to put up with those idiotic guardsmen. And now you're volunteering to find water for us? You didn't even try to run away! That's just stupid."

"Stupid idiot," echoed Polly.

"It is not stupid," I told her. "That's the way it is."

"No, it's not! Any sane person would've run away as soon as the water got scarce. Heck, they would've run the moment they saw the lamia!"

I shook my head. Uneducated barbarians, the whole lot. "It's how the White Desert works, but a pale barbarian wouldn't understand it." I got my camel moving again. Lizia's followed.

"What do you mean by that? I'm not a barbarian! Hey! Explain it!" she shouted, flouncing in her saddle.

I gave her a sidelong glance. "Long ago, when the Holy Flame formed the White Desert, it laid down the Desert Laws. Anyone who goes against them will die a horrible death. There are a host of stories about people led astray by mirages, or stumbling into ancient tombs and getting eaten alive by mummies. Of those carefully being hunted to the border of exhaustion by a sphinx for months, before they were finally killed."

"That's utter nonsense."

"These ancient Laws bind us and keep us alive. If I run here, I would break them and die an ignoble, and much more horrible death, than simply dying of thirst."

"You really believe that nonsense," mumbled Lizia.

"Thou shalt not fill the waters with blood. It's a gift of the sands and the sands may take back what belongs to them. - It's the first and most important Law. And yet, three centuries ago, there was a war over an oasis. Two tribes of nomads fought over the ownership of the oasis. In the end, the oasis was drowned in the sands and both tribes died of thirst. It's said that their ghosts are still haunting that place." It was the most famous story about the Desert Laws.

"I still think it's nonsense." And still she denied it.

"You wanted to know why I didn't run. If you're not satisfied with the answer, that's your problem."