Outside the Gates of Eden

In another desert on the other side of the world, a figure stumbled and then leaned heavily on a staff. He was long-haired and bearded. Salt sat in flecks on his face. Lifting his head to the sky, which was cloudy, he gazed at the bright luminescence that gave evidence of a light source somewhere behind the mist. Then he looked at the four corners of his world. It was a frightening landscape of white sand that stretched in every direction. So flat that he could see for miles, the view only emphasized the nothingness of the southern Plain of Sotami. Somewhere to the north, near Ghalib’s Land, the plain became a grassy veldt with winds that came down from the heights and, though sometimes cold, brought some relief. Where he now trudged, several hundred miles to the south, there was nothing. Not a blade of grass grew, and sand snatched at the footsteps of the unwary.

Andreas had learned to depend less on his eyes and more on his mind sense. This turned out to be a good thing. Some time ago, he approached a patch of sand that looked much like any other but which felt wrong. Grabbing two handfuls of sand, he had thrown it forcefully on the ground in front of him, watching in fascination as the ground moved, falling smoothly away from the surface, dragged down by the shifting sand below. Andreas had scrambled back to avoid being sucked in. This was a land of innocence and danger.

Now, he stood, allowing his mind sense to search the land, seeking the one thing he desperately needed—water. His water bladder was almost empty, and staring at the bone-dry, uniform whiteness around him, Andreas felt a flash of fear. Then, the archeologist in him wondered at the sand’s whiteness.

“This must have been all below water at some time in the past.”

His voice surprised him, and shaking his head he moved on. Water was out there somewhere. Malaia had said there were caches all over the desert. He had only to trust his mind sense, and he would be all right. Andreas did not worry about predators. Nothing lived there except death, which awaited those stupid enough to venture this far into the southern Plain of Sotami.