Darien grunted, his body striking the hot, sandy ground of the desert. He stuck out his tongue, spitting bits of sand from his mouth as he turned to find that several men on horses had dropped him off in a random location in the arid desert. Tied up on the back of one of the steeds was Tetsu, who was still unconscious. The prince touched his temple with his palm, feeling a throbbing headache pounding inside his skull.

“We’ll be leaving you here in the mouth of the Lost Sands. You are to travel east,” a Tulgorian soldier stated, pointing to the far-off distance where there were only endless mountains of sand. “If we see that you are coming back towards Aelios you will be executed immediately. Do you understand?”

Darien squinted through the beating sun’s powerful glare. “What about Tetsu?”

“He will be given the same treatment as you. A chance at life through trial in the Lost Sands. If you come out on the other side alive then you’ve made it to freedom. But there is no chance of that.” The Tulgorian soldiers laughed. “We will split the two of you up. But who knows, perhaps you’ll meet each other once again in the desert. By then, both of you will have lost your minds so don’t look forward to your reunion, prince.” The Tulgorian tossed a canteen of water through the air towards Darien and grinned. “Take it, boy. You’ll need it more than me.”

Darien caught the canteen and frowned, realizing that it was empty. He heard the Tulgorians laugh hysterically as they began to gallop off into the distance, hauling Tetsu along with them. The prince gritted his teeth in frustration, hurling the canteen at the ground as he screamed into the sky.

Walking into the Lost Sands began with few obstacles. Besides the dunes of sand that seemed to stretch out in every direction and the scorching sun, there were no monsters to leap out and swallow Darien, as the rumors claimed. Not yet, at least. Hours of endless walking seemed to drag by and Darien wasn’t sure if he was making any progress through the wasteland. In fact, his sense of direction was completely off. He didn’t even know which way he was traveling because everything looked the same.

Darien smacked his chapped lips, hoping that at some point he would come across some mystical river that appeared out of nowhere. He raised his head to the skies and exhaled, perspiration streaking down his face. The prince now understood why it was that people believed in gods. To believe in the gods was to believe in miracles. It allowed humans to grasp onto hope even when there was none. He clenched his teeth as tears began to trickle down his cheeks. Why is this happening to me? All I wanted to do was help my friend. Now Yuu’s probably dead, and Tetsu and I are going to perish out here in this barren wasteland. Is this what I get for not believing in the gods? Is this my punishment?

The existence of magic and gods has been right under your nose the entire time.

More hours seemed to flash by and Darien had taken off his shirt, wrapping it around his head as the sun’s unbearable heat burned on his back, roasting him alive. He felt like he was Hussan’s meat, tossed brusquely onto a frying pan to cook. Darien staggered, his arms drooping lethargically at his side as his eyes fought to stay open. He tried to wet his parched, cracked lips but soon realized that even his tongue was as dry as sandpaper. He felt like a desiccated zombie, alive with no reason to continue onward besides purposeless existence. He had no destination, he had no plan, he had nothing. As he gazed blankly at the desert, Darien realized that he was not getting anywhere. He might as well have been walking in place because the never-ending dunes of sand still stretched on in all directions.

Darien fell to his knees, his eyes squinted from the crusty sand that was covering his face. The blustering breeze that blew through the desert did not comfort him and merely sliced his skin with the whipping sand. The bottoms of his feet were red, raw, and blistered from walking for hours on the scorching sand. Giddiness overwhelmed him and he collapsed onto his back, submitting to his ultimate fate. Staring up at the cerulean skies, his father’s face suddenly appeared in his view and he blinked. He had witnessed his father’s demise. Was he hallucinating?

“I am disappointed in you, son,” the king said. “A boy born of royal blood, pampered with the best resources available, and the first time you’ve stepped outside of the empire you’re giving up already. Is hope that far out of reach?”

“It is,” Darien murmured. “There is nowhere for me to go. This is as far as I dare travel and I doubt I’ve even made twenty miles into the desert yet. I’ve lost my home, my birthright, my friends, everything! All in a single hour.”

“A boy destined to be king….”

“Is that all you ever talk about, father?” Darien attempted to shout, his voice coming out as a raspy gasp. “How I’m supposed to succeed you and do a perfect job overlooking this rich country at the age of fifteen? Oh, but now you won’t have to worry about it. You won’t have to stress out in the afterlife about whether or not I’m fulfilling your legacy because all of that is gone now. I am forsaken and betrayed. Someone murdered you and mother, but I do not know who.”

“What if it was your friend?”

“Tetsu? He wouldn’t do such a thing,” Darien said and then frowned. Would he? It was possible that Tetsu could’ve felt so angry about the announcement of his betrayal that he felt obligated to murder the king and queen. There had been no one else in the room. But the Tetsu that Darien knew never would’ve committed such an atrocity.

“Facts, facts, facts. Are you letting your beliefs cloud your judgment again, Darien?” Yuu’s voice echoed in his mind and Darien turned to find his noble friend standing there beside him as well. “Think about the facts. Who should you blame for your misfortune? You must find out. After all, how are you going to get revenge if you are just sitting here baking alive in the sand?”

“I do not intend to get revenge,” Darien murmured.

“But aren’t you curious to find out who betrayed you?” Yuu asked. “Look at who the facts point to.”

“Why would I have any reason to kill the rulers of Tulgor?” Tetsu had appeared out of nowhere as well to defend himself in the argument. “Killing them would not have solved anything. Besides, they had provided for and protected me for many years. I am grateful to them.”

“But I betrayed you!” the king shouted.

“And is that your fault?” Tetsu retorted.

Silence. Darien found that he was once again alone with the howling wind smacking against his reddened cheeks. Hallucinations? Dreams? Had he been asleep or was he just losing his mind? The boy ran a hand through his sandy hair. But the manifestations that his mind had created of Yuu, Tetsu, and his father were absolutely correct. He wanted to find out who had murdered his parents, and he did want revenge.