Third wiped his hand across his neck to relieve the tight tension, and ended up smearing sweat all over himself. “If it’s this hot at night, days are going to be a nightmare,” he complained to Second. The towel he’d been using to keep his face sweat free was already soaked, and did little to clean up the salty slick moisture.

“Dehydration is going to be a problem,” Second agreed. “When father said it was going to be hot, I didn’t think he meant this.” He was already on his second canteen. “How do they stand it?”

“They grew up in it,” Third shrugged. “To them, the forest is probably always cold.” Third was usually cold in the forest too, but this was too warm even for him. He planted his shovel in the sand and stared at the structure they were trying to make. “This isn’t going to work,” he said, shaking his head. “Sand isn’t like dirt. It keeps collapsing.”

“I guess it’s too much to ask for there to be trees in the desert,” Second muttered. “That would be too easy.”

“With our luck, they’re all in the town.” Third squinted out across the dunes and tried to determine if he would be able to see the wolf village or not during the day. Probably not, but if the wolves decided to take a closer look they might be in trouble. Whatever shelter was built was going to have to be covered in sand. He let out a breath and then sat on the ground. The sand was everywhere, and itched where it somehow managed to get under his shirt and in his shoes. It almost felt like fleas.

Second wasn’t giving up on the sand-cave they were trying to carve out of the dune. He grunted as he shoveled deeper, cursing as the ‘roof’ slid down into the hole he’d made and turned his cave into just another dent in the hill.

“What if I ran back to the forest and got us some wood. If we had just a few pieces and used our blankets, we could make a wall of sand. Like the snow forts we made in winter,” Third offered.

“We’re going to need a roof during the day,” Second said, throwing his shovel to the side with enough force to cut the snake sliding there in half. “Oops. Didn’t see that there. Guess it’s dinner.”

Third took a closer look. “I’d rather not. I think it’s poisonous.”

“Figures,” Second sighed. “We can do the fort, but we don’t have enough blankets for walls and a roof, and we need a roof. What if we did tent-style? It wouldn’t be very tall, but we could finish it tonight. Then tomorrow we can see if we can get some more cloth from the village. I don’t like sleeping on the sand in my fur. Feels like someone’s trying to rub my belly raw.”

Third nodded. “Yeah, you’re right. We don’t have time for a good den right now, so we should go with what we can finish tonight. I’ll go and get the wood.” He started taking off layers of clothes and shoving them in his pack, making sure they weren’t close to his clean clothes. “It’s going to take me a few hours at least, even in my fur.”

“I’ll set up the perimeter while you’re gone,” Second said. “Three meters out, all around, our typical setup. Or as close as I can get in this crap.”

Third nodded. “Ok. I’ll be as quick as I can.” It had taken them most of a day to get all the way out here with all the equipment. He was hoping in his fur and without lugging around heavy shovels and gear he would be faster.

“Here,” Second said, and held out an empty backpack. “You should be able to strap the wood to this and carry it back in your fur. Careful not to be seen; your fur’s too bright out here.”

As if Third needed reminding. Unlike his brothers, Third’s fur was a light blond color most places. His ears and tail matched his brothers so it wasn’t as obvious in his skin; it was when he changed to his fur that the difference was unavoidable. “Thanks,” he said. He made the change and let his pants fall off shorter fox-legs. His tail whipped to the side and his pants flew to cover his pack. He’d have to shake them out when he got back to make sure no snakes had decided to curl up inside the sweaty material. Nosing his way into the straps of the backpack, he took off towards the forest at a reasonable jog.

The mission had been pushed to the back of his mind with the immediate need of the shelter, but now the mindless travel across the sand pulled it back up. Easier to think about that than the way the sand felt between his paw pads, or the way even the night air seemed to weigh him down with merciless dry heat.

Black Fox was supposed to enter the wolf village under the guise of learning from the wolf ninja. Their father had somehow arranged it, which was a mystery. As far as Third knew the Forest Foxes had no connection to the Desert Devils; there was no reason for the wolves to accept the request. They were ninja, though, so they certainly weren’t doing it for nothing. The wolves would get something out of it as well even if they weren’t telling the foxes what. It would be best to avoid giving away any details if possible so they didn’t accidentally start an incident between the desert and forest clans.

Of course, if they were discovered that incident would happen anyways. There weren’t many ways to interpret searching for a weapon of considerable power in an enemy village, after all. The wolves would know they were looking for weaknesses, and looking to improve their own strength.

A wild desert fox chirped at him, curious at the intruder. Third slowed and waited to see what it would do. While most wild foxes were solitary creatures, it was breeding season for forest foxes and they would be searching for mates. Third was also incredibly curious; he’d never seen a wild desert fox before.

The fox chirped again. The sound was questioning, and Third saw huge ears flick one way and the other quickly. It didn’t look anything like a forest fox; it was smaller, without the distinctive markings of red and brown foxes. It was like Black Fox that way, except instead of black and silver fur this creature was a sandy color that blended with the dunes. As it crept closer it was immediately obvious that Third wasn’t a wild fox. He was too big and didn’t move right. The small kit didn’t seem afraid, though. It came up close and sniffed Third all over, even touching their noses at one point.

Third sniffed back, noticing the fox was female and probably looking for a mate for the spring. Her fur matched his natural fur exactly in color, and she shied away from the dyed tail and ears. Third wondered if the dye was noticeable in the desert heat; the forest foxes had never seemed to care one way or another.

A growl came from across the dunes, and Third looked up to see another desert fox with hackles raised. Probably another potential mate. Third pushed the little female towards the other wild fox and trotted away. He had no interest in mating with the wild foxes, and it was better if he didn’t interfere with their habits. Something like that would be noticed by the village.

Prime was already in the village, doing his best to blend in and seem like an incompetent rookie so they could do what they needed to. Third didn’t have time to be playing with the local animals. He had work to do as well, and that included getting wood so they could have shelter.