(Warning: there is an abusive scene and suggested violence)

The sun reached its zenith an hour ago. Parching down mercilessly on a lone wanderer in the wastelands. The air is dry and hot and her bottle of water was emptied miles ago. Her feet are heavy as lead and there’s nothing in sight that could throw a shade for some rest. She kept moving, walking at a slow pace to save as much energy as possible. In the corner of her eyes she can see the glimpse of water, a lake or a pond, not too far away. Alas, she’s aware of the mirage in the distance and as tempting as it would be, to splash the clear water of a lake into her face and quenching her thirst, she kept moving.

She regained consciousness after the sun was already setting. She was in a tent and a man sat outside tending to his fire, cooking his meal. He noticed that she woke up and offered her water and food so she can regain her strength. They spent the evening together sharing stories about their travels.

And after a good night's rest, covered in thick blankets, he filled her bottle of water and gave her directions to the nearest town. The sun began to scorch her skin again and she kept moving.

The path she got sent down meanders through dunes. It’s not as brutal as her recent pilgrimage, since there is scattered vegetation along the way. She also noticed a slight descent and the farther she kept moving from the last outpost with the strange man, the more she noticed the terrain changing. The sand gets gradually replaced by rugged stone. The sparse vegetation with trees scorched by the intense sun look more alive and even patches of grass survive in the shades of the rocky landscape.

She ended up at a fork in the road. One road continuing with a rather steep descent and the other ascending in a slight slope. A voice from close behind her advised her to pick the canyon over the ridge, since there’s a steady stream down there. She almost lost balance over how startled she was. It was the man from the camp, who silently appeared out of nowhere. But when she was about to tell him she’s not looking for a travel companion, he was gone as if he never were here in the first place. She wrote that off as hallucination due to dehydration. She choose the steep descent to fill up her water bottles, still convinced it was a mere illusion. Afterall. There is no way a man could follow her without her noticing.

At the bottom of the canyon she decided to rest here for the day, which just meant gathering water and finding a spot that's not as hard as the rest of the ground covered in rocks, since she does not carry anything else with her. When she was done drawing water and refreshing herself she couldn't believe her eyes.

The man that gave her directions was down here too and he already had set up camp and greeted her with the wave of a hand. Something about this man has to be off, so she approached very cautiously. And indeed, when asked about it he told her that he's not human. They would call him a djinn or dervish. He apologized for following her, but he watches over all beings passing through, offering guidance and occasionally help.
She wasn't entirely convinced about him having no ulterior motives, but was too hungry to turn down his help. So they went searching for a lizard to turn into their meal and continued talking about their travels.

Following the stream downwards, she found the town the dervish told her about. She didn’t stay long, as she was only getting proper gear for traveling and buying rations for her journey. She asked the locals about ruins that should be located nearby, but their answers left her none the wiser. Continuing her trip along the stream she sharpened her senses, as she was sure the dervish would follow her every step again. He ought to know where she finds the ruins she’s looking for.

Four days went by with no sign of him. She passed various settlements along the now deep running river. They had various tales and lore about a temple to the west, leading away from the water. But since that was her only lead she stocked some extra skins of water.

In the third night she was ambushed by desert folk. Thieves of the sand, raiding adventurers looking to make a fortune. They surprised her in her sleep and captured her, wanting to sell her to the next slaver. The raiders didn’t last to see the rise of the sun over the dunes. She didn’t knew if she should be embarrassed at herself, getting snatched by man so easily or about falling for such an obvious trap. Getting sent into the desert alone by the folk in the settlements.

Before the raiders were put down, they feasted on all her rations. She gathered everything still useable and started turning east, as she had lost all means of direction and where she is. As she was about to start marching, a gust of wind carried a familiar voice to her, guiding her steps north. Even tho slightly upset about the dervish’s absence, she headed north and as the second night dawned, she reached rubble in the sand suggesting that she reached her searched goal. The ruins of Shakan-Rhashi.

When she set up her sparse camp, roofed by a former wall, the dervish would finally appear before her. She was lashing out on him, for disappearing for a week and letting her getting taken hostage. He awaited the end of her tantrum and calmly replied that there were other travellers in the sands that needed protection and that she had everything pretty much under control. As a little jab on top he reminded her that she herself told him she wasn’t looking for a travel companion.

As she found composure again after eating her own words, he tended to her wounds. And afterwards they talked about their travels and she asked the dervish if he could stay by her side just a little longer. As she could need some company right now.