Journey Across the Desert
Discovery College, Maelee Baron, Fiction: Group 2
Beyond the desert in the far horizon there lay a scroll of ancient words a mystery each one.
Puffing and panting Araya and his grandson Kroy wandered through the hot dry sand of the
Ghobi Desert with only one goal in mind; finding water. ‘Only a few hot days and a few cold
nights’ Kroy thought as he gazed into the blurred emptiness of the desert. All he could see was
hot, red sand and……….
Everything in Kroy’s mind went blank and for those 2 seconds of thought Kroy suddenly
sensed something was wrong. Kroy looked up at Araya as if to say “Did you feel that too?”
but soon realized the answer was a simple ‘no’, because Araya was still walking towards their
destination, the two sand hills that slope inwards as if leaning over to touch one and other. Kroy
found these mountains very interesting and every year he and his grandfather passed these
mountains. He often asked questions like “Why do the mountains slope inwards?” and was often
annoyed that the answer was simply “Some questions are not worth being answered.”
At times Kroy, wondered what this meant? And why his grandfather would not answer his
question?. But all question and thought was lost as a sudden pang of thirst hit Kroy, as if the
world had stopped moving and time was frozen. Kroy had had this feeling many times before but
never as intense as this. When the pain went away Kroy, realized that Araya, was standing above
Kroy in what seemed to be a cave but instead of rock walls and a rock roof the roof and walls
seemed to be made out of sand.
As Araya helped Kroy to sit up Kroy heard a noise, a sort of rushing noise coming from below
his feet as Kroy looked down to where the noise seemed to be coming from, he saw a stream with
fresh water running in and out the cave splashing at his face as he knelt down to have a sip. Kroy
turned to his wise grandfather, at a loss for words as if the wind had taken his voice and hidden it
deep inside him. Araya, rushed for some odd reason said “Now hurry to your feet, we must move
further into the cave, quick!”
This was very unusual for Kroy because he had always known his grandfather, Araya, to be
wise and slow. As they journeyed further into the cave Kroy noticed mysterious markings in the
walls as if some one had been there, in that very spot before.
Kroy noticed that the light at the mouth of the cave seemed to slowly fade away. Wondering
where exactly they were going Kroy softly asked his grandfather where they were going and the
reply was somehow confusing yet understandable. This was the reply exactly…
“When I was young, about your age I journeyed through these deserts taking the same
confusing path. On the day that we found our stream of water my grandfather gave me this.”
He held up what seemed to be a map and with his two old, worn out hands pointed out where
they were and what was left of their long journey. Araya explained to Kroy that long ago these
two mountains used to be two castles one for the King and one for the Queen. Then there came
a sand storm and both castles were buried. The King took charge of the situation and decided to
knock down one castle and replace it with a mountain of sand so that anyone who wished to steal
their treasures shall have to find the scroll that showed the way first. “ If I am correct we should
find a door that leads to the castle around about here, Araya pointed ahead at the end of the cave.
