Shon looked down at the three dried Camel Truffles in his uncle’s hand with trepidation. “You mean, you were the one who dried and prepared them?” he asked. “No offense, Uncle Grodin, I’m not questioning your skills as a gardener, but those are magical plants!”

Grodin chuckled. “Well technically the Camel Truffle is a fungus, not a plant, but I understand your concern. If it’s any comfort, I’ll eat mine first and you can see if I die.” When Shon’s expression only became more worried, Grodin began to laugh. “Oh, stop worrying, nephew!” he said. “Maybe you can hear my thoughts so you’ll finally believe me that I know what I’m doing far more often than you believe.”

As Shon listened to the thoughts of his uncle he really could feel the confidence that Grodin felt, and it put him a little more at ease. As he did, however, he could feel other, much less optimistic thoughts, coming from right next to him. “Are you alright, Tarun?” Shon asked. “You’ve been awfully quiet for a while now.”

Tarun stared intensely at the mushrooms in Grodin’s hand. “I just don’t understand why all of this is necessary,” he replied. “You are both willing to risk your lives for answers that I don’t even care about.”

Grodin then took Tarun by the shoulders so that he was looking straight into his eyes. “I’m not blind to your desires, Tarun,” Grodin said with a calm, serious tone. “You say that you don’t care where you come from, but I believe it is more than that. I believe that you are quite hesitant to find these answers. I’m sure that you had your reasons for leaving in such a desperate state.

“But I want you to listen to me, Tarun.” Grodin said, his tone becoming firmer, “You will never be able to be whole as a man until you learn who you really are.”

Tarun lowered his head and took a deep breath. “Alright,” he said. “I will do it Uncle Grodin. When will we leave?”

“We leave tomorrow right before sunrise,” said Grodin with a smile. “Now, let’s all go in to the house. It’s hot out here, and I need to show you what to pack.”

As they left the small outdoor garden, Shon marveled at how perfectly his uncle had positioned it to remain out of view. Not even he had noticed it before, and how long had he lived with Grodin? It would not be the last time that he would be humbled by underestimating his uncle’s cleverness.

The inside of the house was already growing warm, but being outside of the desert sun was a great relief to Shon as they stepped inside. Upon each of the three wool cots on which they slept each night sat a large pack with several pockets and flaps. The packs appeared to have some sort of frame to help the leather skin keep its shape. Around the cots and packs there were several loose items, most of which Shon recognized, but some he did not. As he further studied the quantity of items scattered across the floor, it became apparent that they would not be able to fit everything in the packs.

“All right,” said Grodin, “I’ve collected just about everything we will need for this expedition, but you two have the job of packing it all into these packs while I take care of a few more arrangements. I can see that look on your face, Shon, but don’t worry. These packs will hold a lot more than you think.”

He lifted up the pack on Tarun’s cot and looked at it. “I hope you don’t mind, Tarun, but I’m giving you the largest pack. I don’t think it should get any heavier than Shon, so you shouldn’t have any trouble at all,” Grodin said with a chuckle.

“That will be fine,” Tarun replied with a somber, defeated tone. Shon noticed for the first time that his friend was standing in the corner with his arms folded and his eyes fixed on the floor. After spending so much time with Tarun, and experiencing his usual cheerful, optimistic self, it worried Shon to see him so downcast.

Grodin made eye contact with Shon and thought, He will be fine, just give him some time. He knew, of course, that Shon would hear his thoughts when they were directed so intensely at him. Tarun then looked up at them, and Grodin broke his eye contact with Shon and cleared his throat while walking to a rack with some heavy traveling cloaks hanging from it.

He threw a hooded cloak to each of them and said, “We’ll be wearing these as well, so if there is anything you would like to have more available than the pack, you may use the pockets of the cloaks.”

“Uncle,” Shon began in a more diplomatic tone than usual, “it’s not that I don’t trust your judgment, but I’m becoming increasingly worried about the problem of heat on our journey. These cloaks would be highly uncomfortable to wear under normal circumstances, but if we will be unable to sweat, we could very likely lose our lives.”

“Of course,” said Grodin with a nod. “I said I would explain that later, and I suppose you’ve been patient. Wait here, and I will explain.” Grodin then walked out the door, retrieving his keys to the greenhouse as he walked.

Shon sat quietly in the house with Tarun sitting as silently as a potted plant. “I wonder what crazy idea he has for us this time?” Shon said weakly. Tarun just continued to look at the floor, and Shon remained quiet until his uncle returned.

When Grodin entered through the door again he hunched over from carrying a large, wooden bucket with a tight-fitting lid and sloshing contents. Grodin lowered the bucket to the floor with a grunt, and then removed the lid. A powerful scent of salt and brine instantly filled the room. Shon was so surprised by the sudden smell that he gasped and coughed, but as he looked over at Tarun, he saw no reaction or change in expression at all.

Grodin reached a hand into the bucket and pulled out what looked to Shon like black, slimy pieces of flat rope. As soon as they were lifted out of the water the smell in the room grew considerably stronger, though the air in the room also became noticeably cooler. “This,” said Grodin without breathing through his nose, “is a type of deep water seaweed called Kraken’s Embrace. It grows very deep under the surface of the ocean near underwater volcanoes. Its location has made it a necessity to absorb and release heat extremely well, and as you have probably guessed it has magical properties as well.”

“I’ve had this Kraken’s Embrace lying in cold salt water for over sixty days now, and as long as we spread them out each night to release their heat, we should be able to wrap them around our heads and bellies and stay quite cool. Though I must admit I had forgotten how powerful their odor could be.” Grodin made a face as he lowered the seaweed back down in the bucket and replaced the lid.

“You know,” said Shon with a pinched nose, looking down at the seaweed, “for a simple gardener that sells flowers and herbs to everyone else in town, you seem to know a lot more about magical plants than you’ve ever let on before.”

“A man has to have a hobby, nephew. Besides,” Grodin said with a wink, “I don’t believe I ever claimed to be ‘simple.’ Now you boys get to work packing this stuff up.”

Grodin looked at Tarun with a stern gaze. “I expect you to do your fair share, Tarun, even if you’re not excited about this trip.” Tarun looked up at Grodin, and then began furiously loading up his pack. Grodin took in a deep breath and let out a sigh. In a gentler tone he said, “We won’t go all the way back if there is any danger,” said Grodin. “We just need to go far enough to get some clues for you. Will that be agreeable, Tarun?”

Tarun stopped packing for a moment and looked up at Grodin with a calmer expression on his face. “Yes,” he said. “Thank you Uncle Grodin.” And then he went back to packing.

“Alright boys,” Grodin then said, addressing both of them, “you keep at it, and I want you to get some sleep at sundown whether I’ve returned by then or not. Remember, tomorrow we will be rising before the sun does.” Grodin then turned and walked out the door.

 

The cold morning air stung Shon’s cheeks as he, Tarun, and Grodin walked briskly to the well in the center of town. Grodin carried an extra bucket, which he sat down next to the well once they had reached it. He then retrieved from his cloak the three dried black Camel Truffles, and handed one to each of them.

“Remember,” Grodin said quietly, “it’s important that we do this one at a time. Things could go very wrong if we all suffer the same thirst at the same time. Now let’s draw up the first two buckets of water.”

They used a crank to lower the bucket of the well, waited a moment while it filled, and then raised it up. After emptying its contents into the extra bucket that Grodin brought, they repeated the process so that they had two full buckets of water at the ready. Grodin then raised his hand holding the dried Camel Truffle to his lips. “Get ready,” he said.

Grodin popped the small mushroom into his mouth, chewing three times with a bitter look on his face before he swallowed. At once he bent over to the extra bucket full of water, and began to empty its contents into his mouth with great gulps, interspersed with large gasps for air. As soon as he had finished the bucket, Tarun emptied the well’s bucket into Grodin’s so that he could then lower it down to the well while Grodin continued to drink from his own.

The process continued as Grodin satisfied his desperate thirst. Tarun was quick enough at lowering and raising the well bucket that Grodin never had to wait to have his own bucket refilled. Grodin was drinking his eighth bucket of water, when he lowered the bucket from his lips. Gasping and panting, he looked at Tarun and Shon, and said, “That should be enough. I’m satisfied.” Still panting, he sat himself down on the ground. “Just give me a moment,” he said, “and then it will be Tarun’s turn.”

Once he had recovered himself they filled the two buckets and prepared to begin the process again with Tarun. Once Tarun had swallowed his Camel Truffle he began drinking in earnest. Grodin and Shon were surprised by how quickly Tarun could guzzle the water, and he needed to take far fewer breaths between gulps. It required a combined effort between the two of them just to keep up with Tarun’s thirst. When he had finished he had consumed twelve full buckets of water, leaving all three of them momentarily exhausted.

Soon enough they had recovered, and prepared the buckets of water for Shon’s turn. He had listened to the thoughts of his uncle and friend before and after they had eaten their Camel Truffles, and it worried him how all thoughts other than satiating thirst had fled from their minds as soon as the mushrooms had been consumed. He looked at the shriveled, rubbery black clump in his hand nervously. He then decided that if he thought about it anymore, he might not have the nerve, so he popped it into his mouth and began chewing.

The taste of the mushroom was not terrible, but the texture was tough and made a squeaking sound when he chewed down on it. He chewed it five times, but no matter how much saliva his mouth produced, it was still dry and the prospect of swallowing was unpleasant. Finally he forced himself to swallow the fungus, and he instantly understood why the others had reacted so dramatically.

As the Camel Truffle worked its way down his throat, Shon could feel his mouth and throat go as dry as if he were about to die of thirst. He was grateful that his uncle was standing next to him with the bucket of water, which he immediately raised to his mouth. The cold, wet water felt incredibly refreshing in his parched mouth and throat, and he drank deeply.

After five gulps of water, Shon became aware that he would have to breathe. As soon as he had taken his mouth away from the water and inhaled, his mouth and throat burned for the water to be returned. He began gulping at the water again as soon as his lungs would let him, and continued to gulp until the bucket was drained. When it came time to refill the bucket, Shon knew that it took only moments for his uncle to pour the water from one bucket to the other, but his thirst made it feel so long and drawn out that Shon became annoyed that he was not allowed to just drink from the other bucket.

Shon continued the process with much more desperation, though with considerably less speed, than Grodin and Tarun had shown. At one point, Shon tipped his bucket back too far, and the water began to dribble down his chin and neck. Grodin had to force the bucket back down before Shon tipped it so far that it would have sent water splashing up his nose.

Finally, after he had drained six and a half buckets of water, Shon noticed that the burning thirst in his mouth and throat were gone, and his stomach felt very full. As he dropped the bucket, Shon became aware that his legs were too weak to support his weight, and he dropped to his hands and knees. “Let’s not do that again,” he said panting, while looking at the ground beneath him. “I don’t think I want to look at another bucket of water again for days!”

“We’re not quite finished here,” said Grodin as he helped Shon to his feet. “We still need to fill these before we go.” Grodin handed Shon and Tarun each two large water sacks, and gestured for them to fill them as he was filling his.

“I don’t understand,” said Tarun. “If we are bringing water, than why bother with the Camel Truffles?”

“These aren’t for drinking,” explained Grodin. “We have them in case we encounter a mirage. I’ll explain that more to you later, but for now let’s just fill these up so we can get on our way.”

The three of them quickly filled the water sacks, stopped them up, and then attached one to each side of their belts at the hip, as Grodin instructed them. Shon was grateful that both water sacks he was carrying were the same size so that his balance would not be thrown off. After that they all began to walk in the direction from which Tarun had originally entered Life’s Edge.

Shon thought of how they might become the first explorers to ever discover anything in the Endless Desert, or even find the other side completely, and he considered it strange that such an important expedition should begin with no farewell from anyone. The only witnesses to their departure that early morning were the stars themselves. When they reached the border of the town there was no shout of “Hoorah” or “Safe journey, brave ones!” The only audible signal that they had passed the invisible line that was never crossed by the people of Life’s Edge was a deep sigh that escaped Shon’s lips.

The only time that Shon ever looked back that day was when he felt the warm rays of the sun against his back. He then looked back to see the rising sun, and take another glimpse at the now-distant town of Life’s Edge.