Rune Wielders

Chapter Seven

She usually liked the heat. She loved to feel the sun on her back and heat up her skin. This...this wasn't the type of heat she liked. No, it was not. Blistering, scorching heat did not bring her enjoyment.

Colbie stepped forward, her foot sinking down into the sand. She could feel the burning sand form around her but she didn't feel the searing pain of a burn. The suit might've been thin to try to reduce the heat, yet it still protected her skin from the malicious rays of the sun above and the burning sand being spit at her from the wind.

She raised her arm and went a random direction, hoping that she was going the correct way. Eugene didn't even tell her where the hell the shrine was or what it looked like. She gritted her teeth, stomping through the sinking sand. Each time she took a step, her foot would be sucked down underneath. It felt like she was walking through powdery snow--except worse.

She couldn't stand still for long or she would sink down. Even if the suit protected her from the intense heat from the sand, it would hurt if she kept her foot there long enough. Just another thing to worry about, besides dying from dehydration or heat stroke.

Colbie kept stomping on, curling her hands into fists. Sweat dripped down her back and her long hair was plastered against her forehead and neck--she was pretty sure that her deodorant had stopped working the moment she stepped outside.

She was going to kill that old man as soon as she was done with this ridiculous task. She panted, staring at the rolling dunes of red as she walked.

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After an hour of searching through the desert wasteland, Colbie was certain, no positive, that she was going to die.

Her throat was so dry and her skin felt as if it was going to flake off. She was going to fail this damn test. Colbie felt like her eyes were going to fall out of their sockets, unable to water anymore from the intense light shining on her all the time. The sand didn't help much, either, with the wind being so blistering as it kicked up sand to spray in her face. It was just as bad as standing in a single spot.

Colbie landed onto her knees, putting a hand to shield her eyes at something in the distance. Her knees were burning through the suit.

In the distance, she could see something shimmering against the heat rising up from the red sand. It looked to be like a monument. Or something. Her heart rate increased and she scrambled up, tripping through the sand to get to whatever was in front of her. She barely had any energy to move, but she had to get there. Somehow. Her body was starting to protest her movements.

Please be the shrine, please be the shrine, she thought, getting closer to the monument.

She stopped when she didn't feel the scorching sand on her feet anymore--it was stone, hard and rough. She flexed her toes, feeling relieved that she had reached something that wouldn't suck her in. It was still hot and it would burn her if she stood still too long, but was better than being sucked down into a constant quicksand pit.

"Oh...oh thank god!" Colbie shouted, throwing back her head and laughing. Her scratchy throat rubbed together, making her laugh sound like a wheeze. She took a step forward, trying to stare at the monument. If this wasn't it, she was done for. She couldn't go on anymore.

She pressed a hand to the marble and unsurprisingly it was burning hot. She snatched back her hand and looked at it. Something about it seemed really familiar.

It dawned on her. She pulled back her suit and held up her arm, the purple tattoo glowing against the harsh sunlight that tried to scorch her skin. It was identical. The two circles, the shield, everything.