Master Of None

Since Walker didn't want to waste time he had listened to Su and stored the venom spike scorpion quickly. He watched the eternal orb float next to him in spear form. He had never considered that using the right mana he could allow it to continuously float even though it was not in the orb form. It would make him similar to flying sword system users in a way. He even thought he might get another new skill. Unfortunately, this didn't seem to be the case. Walker could only think that there were more conditions to having a flying spear manipulation skill. 

"It looks like we are getting closer. But we need to top." Alma didn't sound like she would let them make any other moves. 

"Why? We don't have time. We have to get there faster." Walker wanted to just push on and forget any thought of resting. 

"Really? You're both going to look at yourselves and say you are the perfect picture of health that can walk through the night?" Right, that second Walker and Su glanced at each other. They saw sweaty and sand covered faces that were slightly red with sunburn. The heavy breathing they found in their chest with the pounding of blood in their heads made them understand that they were overworking themselves both physically and mentally. 

"It takes a lot to say this, but we need to stop for the night. We have never been here and we do not have a full party. I don't know how the cold of the desert will hit us but I know that it is supposed to be colder than any frost we have where we live." This was some small information that Su had read in the library. It was the same book Walker had read which was why he was nodding along. 

"We will rest and start a fire. I don't know if we should start a fire though. The warmth will be necessary but there is nothing to hide the light in the desert…" They could make some sort of earth shelter but if they did they would lose visibility which was also an issue. It was a hard choice to make but at the end of it all, he knew that keeping warm was worth the risk of having a fire. 

"I think we can avoid the risks of cooking. I know you have enough food sitting in your storage for us to eat." As much as Su and Alma wanted fresh food they both knew that it would be better not to risk attracting anything with the scent. 

They worked together to set up the camp. It was lucky that there were no winds but that both made them feel more comfortable and also a bit more uncomfortable. "The quiet here is rough." The sounds of grasses brushing by in a breeze or of animals around were nowhere to be heard here. Walker felt that he was in a completely different world. It was completely alien to them. 

"I know what you meant. I never thought that silence would be so suffocating." Since Alma was very used to the trees blowing in the wind, she was much more uncomfortable with the silence. On top of this, she didn't even hear any leaves crackling as small animals snuck around in the dark. Every single forest elf would be feeling the same as her. 

"Silence might be better in this situation. We can all hear anything dangerous coming near us. Not that the sand will make any noise but the worst predators around here have bodies like that scorpion earlier. That made enough noise to do more than alert us." Walker was sure they would hear something coming. Therefore, Alma took the first watch so that he and Su could sleep, he was not worried at all. 

Unfortunately for Walker, he had forgotten the biggest enemy in the desert; sand. All three of them had fallen victim to the sand that worked its way n to their boots, cloaks, and even socks. Each time they woke up or shifted in their sleep more sand fell on to the bedding Walker had in his inventory for them. On top of that, they also began to find that the wind had picked up by morning. 

"I know we are just starting to warm up, but I would prefer the cold. I think we could swim through the air now that the sin is rising." There was no slow heat up in the desert. The moment the sun breached the horizon the small frost crystals evaporated and took to the air. Su was feeling the pressure in the air with every breath. 

"This is good though. I was able to refill our water supply from all the water that condensed over night and started to evaporate this morning. Taking the last watch world out perfectly." This was the only upside. Alma had a different opinion. 

"I tried to sense if there were any seeds worth controlling around. If the sand was damp then it would have allowed them to germinate. But it wasn't long enough to start anything. I might remain useless until it rains. I don't want to be here waiting for that." The useless feeling was weighing on Alma more so than before. However, all three felt useless due to their failure to protect the city. 

"We are the only hope to rescue everyone. If we were useless then we wouldn't be here. We wouldn't be pushing to get to that tower and explore. And we definitely wouldn't be able to fight a spiny toad." The last comment was enough to make everyone fall in to battle stances. Walker was looking at the large sand colored toad in front of them. He knew very little about it other than its name and general appearance. 

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