The Early Chronicles Book Five: By Desert Divided

Chapter 6

The next morning, the company was weary to leave Anvard and an uneasy feeling seemed to settle over all of them.  Today they would reach the desert.  Swanwhite dressed in a light airy white tunic and arranged her hair off of her neck to keep as cool as possible.  

"Here."  Sir Ethan handed Swanwhite a handful of a peculiar-looking leaf.  She took it from him and examined the leaves.  They were a very dark green, almost black, and very round and thick.  She looked at him questioningly.  "Parrow leaves.  Rub them on your skin when we are in the desert and they will give you some protection against the sun."  He said.  She nodded and packed them in her saddle bag, grateful for the extra protection.  She glanced at her pale skin and white-blonde braid and knew she was not made very well for a trek across the desert.  Just as they were finishing the preparations, the harsh and sweet sound of an Archenland trumpet blew from the palace gates.  A glorious sight of gleaming armor and tossing manes signaled the readiness of the king's army.  A similar array of colors as the procession that the king led surrounded the company and the earth shook with the pounding of the chargers.  Swanwhite felt a surge of relief at the sight of the war-hardened men prepared to travel with them.

"This completes my Archenland regiment.  The rest of you must mount up, and we depart!"  King Rynard shouted.  The men obeyed, and there was a chorus of saddles squeaking and armor clanging as the rest of the company mounted their freshened horses.  With a signal from the king they were off, and the countryside was once again racing by them.  Swanwhite had to hold Kismir steady to control the stallion's urgency.  Though the weather was fine and they were physically refreshed, Swanwhite felt a foreboding sense inside her.  All the men around her were quieter and more serious.  They no longer seemed like companions on a holiday across the countryside; they were now warriors charging towards adventure and a challenge.  

"When I traveled to Calormen with Cygnus, we covered many leagues and reached Tashbaan in a day."  Swanwhite chuckled to Goran when their pace slowed.

"Indeed.  Traveling by sea would have also been quicker."

"I certainly hope we have chosen wisely."

"Don't worry.  I am confident that we have."

Swanwhite looked ahead at the king surveying their surroundings and talking with Lucius, his general.  Lucius had been appointed to join them on the journey since the greater military threat was in the desert and not near Anvard yet.  "King Rynard is brilliant.  I wish I could have known him before now."  Swanwhite commented.

"He is like a father to me.  You'll never meet a kinder or wiser man."  Goran looked wistful.  

"We'll stop here to water the horses."  King Rynard raised his hand to halt the company.  Swanwhite was grateful for the chance to dismount at the hottest part of the day.  It now felt like one of the hottest days of a Narnian summer and she was grateful for her light clothing choices.  She swiped her hand across her sweaty brow and retreated to some shade while the horses drank from a small pool.  

"How far until we reach the desert, my lord?"  She asked King Rynard as he passed.  He looked at her with a serious expression.

"Before the hour is out.  That is why I wanted to water the horses.  They will not get a proper drink for some time."  He said.  Swanwhite tried to conceal her worry and shock that they would reach the desert so soon.  She simply nodded to him and looked towards the direction they headed.  The terrain had not changed much aside from the temperature, and rocky crags and hills still surrounded them.  She had a hard time believing the desert was almost in sight.  

Water and food supplies were refreshed as much as the horses could carry, and soon they set off at a brisk pace.  They climbed some steep inclines for a while and passed through some rolling hills, and then they began a great descent.  Trees and boulders blocked Swanwhite's view of what lay ahead, but she felt like they were going downward forever.  It seemed much farther down than she remembered going up, but then she remembered the desert was at sea level and Anvard was nestled in the Archenland high lands.  In some places the descent was very steep and Swanwhite had to lean far back in the saddle and hold Kismir's head up.  

When the ground finally leveled out and the trees cleared, the entire company stopped short.  Swanwhite gasped and nearly choked on her own air.  Behind her and beside her lay wildflowers, trees, and grass.  The sky above was clear and bright, but meeting the grassy terrain in a strict line, was a rolling sea of red and gold sand.  The sand was rippled with fixed ridges from the wind, and it looked like a perfect, untouched scorching blanket.  The sky was also changed above the desert.  Instead of clear blue, it seemed to be a slightly darker and redder sky, as if it was reflecting the sand below it.  Some dark auburn clouds could be seen, and the sun cast its fiery streaks towards them.

"Remember, gentlemen.  Slower pace, and ration your water."  The king called.  Goran leaned in towards Swanwhite from Valeon.

"Courage,  Swanwhite.  We'll make it through."  He said softly.  She thanked him with her eyes before urging Kismir forward.  For a few steps, it was still the hard clip-clop of his hooves on the bedrock, but soon it changed to a soft thud-thud of his hooves on sand.  The rest of the horses sounded the same and Swanwhite felt the heat of the sun from above and the sand from below.  She looked behind them one more time at the safer, milder terrain they had left behind.  Taking a deep breath, she looked forward again at their new harsh surroundings.  Sometimes a wind gust would blow sand around them and she had to shield her eyes to prevent particles from getting in her eyes.  They said very little to each other as they traveled, not wanting to parch their throats sooner than necessary.  Their water supply was precious and limited, and it had to be shared with the horses.  They had brought a few canopies that could be raised up on flag poles or spears and provide shade for them to rest in so they weren't in constant sunlight.  Swanwhite watched her skin turn redder and darker throughout the day and she quickly remembered the Parrow leaves she'd been given.  On their next break in the canopies she pulled out the thick leaves and rubbed them on her skin.  They left a strange scent and a very thin residue, but they did seem to help with the sun exposure.  

"Genevieve told me there was an oasis somewhere in a gorge somewhere between us and Calormen."  Swanwhite told Goran when Valeon was riding beside Kismir.  Goran's skin looked slightly darker from the sun and his tunic bore patches of sweat.

"Let us hope we find it."  He said.  

"We'd best make camp for the night."  The king called out, whose voice was slightly hoarse.  

As scorching as the heat was during the daylight hours, the night brought chilling temperatures that made Swanwhite shiver when the heat from the sand subsided.  She was grateful she had brought her cloak and she slept with her back against Goran's for extra warmth.  It amazed her that a place so unbearably hot during the day brought such freezing temperatures at night.  It truly was a ruthless place.  

The moon rose over the desert and cast an eerie glow on them.  Swanwhite found it very difficult to fall asleep.  She felt an anxiousness growing inside her that she couldn't explain.  She looked around and half-expected a monster or other loathsome creature to rise up out of the sand like the Sky Viper she had encountered years ago.  Something about the South cast a shadow on them.  Even the sky was darker here.  She remembered the faces of some of the noblemen she'd met in Tashbaan; cruel and piercing.  She remembered the horrific statues of their god Tash at the temples and palaces.  The more she thought about it, the more she realized they had left behind the friendly lands of Aslan, and these were the lands of Tash.  Squeezing her eyes shut, she listened to Goran's steady breathing behind her and eventually fell into a light sleep.