Sahara Desert, Mali

Peter closed his eyes as light covered him, taking him from an artificial environment to… home.

Sand shifted under his boots as the pins and needles feeling faded. Dry heat rushed in, blasting his skin as he took a deep breath of clean air.

It smelled right.

He opened his eyes and saw sand dunes. A few sparse trees interrupted the monotony as waves of heat lifted off the ground. A perfectly blue sky filled the horizon, the sun baking away any clouds that dared try to form.

It was beautiful.

Peter laughed, turning in place to take it all in.

"So this is your world, cowboy?" Marie asked, eyebrows raised as she looked around.

He grinned at her. "Yes, ma'am. No contradictions here, everythin' will kill ya exactly as you think it will."

"Wonderful," Razan said flatly, adjusting the hat on his head.

"It's… rather warm," Sophie said, already sweating.

"Don't worry, we came in at the hottest part of the day," he told her. "It'll cool off in a few hours."

"Oh good, only a few hours," Razan muttered.

Peter pulled a map device out of his back pocket and looked it over. "The supply pad is this way. We'll walk for fifteen minutes then break for five until it gets dark."

"And after dark?" Marie asked.

"Temperature will drop, so we can walk for longer periods," he said.

Marie nodded. "Good plan. Lead the way."

Peter gave her a salute and started walking.

Sophie felt like she was about to die. She'd never experienced heat like this before. It came from all sides, from every angle. There was no shade, and even the water in her canteen was close to boiling.

"Time to stop," Peter announced, scanning the horizon. He looked… happy. He hadn't been exaggerating when he'd said deserts were his world. He was perfectly at ease in his poncho and cowboy boots.

Razan, dropping his backpack and collapsing face-first into the sand, did not look at ease. He looked like he was two seconds off from death.

Marie pulled the length of cloth they used as a tent out of Peter's backpack. She was sweating, but it was clear she was familiar with these temperatures.

Sophie sat next to Razan, pulling her hot boots off as Peter and Marie set up the tent around them.

"Are you still alive?" Peter asked.

Sophie glanced up to see he was nudging Razan with his boot.

"Eh," Razan said into the sand.

"If you stay like that sand will get stuck in your skin," Marie told him, lowering herself down next to Sophie. "At least roll over and brush your face off."

Razan did as ordered, which left a spot for Peter on Sophie's other side. Peter took his hat off and used it to fan himself.

Sophie now had a dilemma. She wanted to lean against Peter and flirt with him. But the thought of touching another person, even Peter, when her clothes were soaked through with sweat and touching someone would mean less area for the faint breeze to pass over… made her shudder. After a minute of indecision she felt a drop of sweat run down her spine, and decided to not move closer to Peter and his heat-radiating poncho.

Instead, she pulled her canteen around and drained it. They'd started with three each, and that was her second one emptied.

Marie watched her, a worried look on her face.

"Nop!" she called, looking around.

A few seconds later a bird materialized on the sand. "Yes?"

"Is it possible to get more water?" Marie asked.

"There is more water at the supply pad," Nop said.

"How much more water?" Peter asked.

"A near-infinite amount," the bird reported. "As long as you only use water for drinking, we will continue to provide it."

"Noted," Marie said, laying back against the sand. "Thank you."

"Any time." Nop vanished.

Razan stirred. "So we need to conserve water. How far are we from the pad?"

"At the pace we've been going, it should take us two hours," Peter answered. "But the sun will be down in half an hour, which will make things easier."

"I wouldn't say easier," Marie said. "Different."

"I think it'll be easier," Sophie said. "I'm much more used to the cold than the heat. I can barely breathe right now."

Razan made a sound of agreement.

"It'll be easier for a good hour or so," Peter decided. "The desert takes time getting to each extreme. Once it's cold, though, it'll be miserable again." He looked up at the sky, then smiled at Sophie. "We'll be able to see the Milky Way. There's no better place to stargaze than in a desert."

"We live in space," Marie reminded him.

Ignoring her, Sophie took Peter's hand. "You'll have to show me the constellations."

"I don't know many, but I can point out the planets," he said.

The moment was marred by the fact that their hands were sticky with sweat and covered in a fine layer of sand. It was, truly, quite revolting. Sophie pulled her hand back and made a conscious choice to not wipe her hand on her trousers.

"I wonder if we can see the ship," she said, putting her empty canteen away.

"Maybe," Peter shrugged, digging his hand into the sand. "We're at the right latitude. It might stay over Hawai'i, though."

"Has… disguised… star… astronomers… seen it," Razan mumbled.

"Can't stay over Hawai'i," Marie muttered, her voice a bit stronger. "Sailors would've seen stationary star… recorded it… used it for navigation."

"Don't sailors use the North Star because it's always visible?" Sophie asked.

Marie's eyebrows did a complicated dance, then she opened her eyes and sat up. "You're right. Polaris might be the ship."

Sophie beamed.

Peter got to his feet, brushing the sand off his hands. "When night falls we'll find the star and decide. For now it's time we keep moving."

Sophie slipped her boots back on, climbing up. Marie waved her hand for help, and Sophie pulled her to her feet.

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Razan made a long sound like a mummy rising from its tomb and rolled onto his stomach again.

"Don't be dramatic," Marie ordered.

Sophie giggled, helping Peter take the tent down and fold the cloth.

"Life is agony and the sun has made me his personal enemy," Razan told the sand.

Marie crossed her arms. "If you keep on like that the hawks might use it in the review. Meaning Innoka would see."

Razan was instantly on his feet, wiping sand from his face. Sophie laughed.

"Wow," Peter said, pulling on his backpack. "That worked really well."

"Never underestimate my ability to get people to do what I want, cowboy," Marie said, starting to walk.

"Yes, Captain."

Ever so slowly, the sun set and stars appeared. The temperature became bearable, stayed that way for a while, and then turned a bit chilly.

Marie was aware the night felt colder than it was due to her damp clothes. She wished she'd brought an extra set, not just an outer layer.

Sophie wanted to know the name of every star and constellation in the sky. Between Marie, Peter, and Razan they almost managed it. Marie knew the most names, but Peter and Razan knew the stories behind them. She'd never bothered learning why two groups of stars were called Ursa Major and Ursa Minor; that knowledge was of no help to someone lost at sea.

Razan claimed his knowledge came from studying during his samurai training. He'd learned to write by copying the legends. Peter admitted his stories had been passed down to him by his mother. And then had immediately changed the subject.

Marie recognized that tone of voice and those twitching movements. It had been obvious to her that his parents were dead, but this confirmed he felt guilty about their passing. As the night grew colder she wondered if he'd been the direct cause, or if he'd simply been unable to prevent it.

Finally they crested a sand dune and stopped. The supply pad was below them, open for anyone to walk on and raid.

"I don't like that," Peter said, scanning the horizon.

"Agreed," Razan muttered, taking a step back.

Marie smiled, proud of her crew. "It does feel remarkably like a trap."

Sophie was squinting at the pad. "There's something invisible around it," she said, pulling a compact spyglass out of a pocket.

"Where did you get that?" Peter asked.

"Stole it. There's some sort of… shimmering… shimmer. Around the area. Look." She handed the spyglass to Marie.

Marie took it and put it to her eye. The supply pad looked like someone had hung a layer of fine gold gauze around it. Or perhaps it was simply dust, hanging very oddly in the air.

"Peter, take my rifle and try to put a shot in the middle of the pad," she ordered, using Sophie to lower herself onto the sand. She laid on her stomach, watching.

The weapons had all been split between Peter and Razan. They settled on the ground, emptying their bags to load and distribute everything.

Finally Peter knelt at the top of the dune with the rifle in his hands, took aim, and pulled the trigger.

The sound echoed across the desert, alerting everyone within miles to their position. Sophie's startled yelp added to that. Marie, who'd become used to loud, sudden noises decades ago, didn't move or take her eyes off the target.

The paint bullet hit the shimmering gauze and splattered. It didn't pass through.

The other three watched Marie expectantly as she debated. If it only stopped projectiles from passing through, this near-invisible barrier might prove very useful.

"Sophie: run down there and see what it is," Marie ordered. "Razan: look north. Peter: look south."

"Yes, ma'am."

"Yes, Captain."

"Why me?"

Marie glanced at Sophie. "You're the most expendable."

The girl huffed. "Yes, ma'am." She made the word sound like an insult.

"Use that tone with me again and I will cut out your tongue," Marie said calmly, looking through the spyglass again. "Now run."

There was a brief pause, then Sophie hurried down the sand dune. It would take her a good five minutes to reach the pad.

Peter cleared his throat. "Please don't cut her tongue out. I need it."

Razan snorted.

"Fine," Marie conceded. "Tell me which of her fingers you don't need and I'll take that instead."

"Do you want me to-"

"Movement," Razan said, cutting them off. He pointed west-north-west, to where a hawk was hovering. Below the hawk was a single dark shape on the sand.

Marie looked up and saw a hawk above them, too. She both blessed and cursed these simple indicators of where people were.

"Out of range," Peter reported.

"One person," Marie stated. "The others are probably circling."

"As soon as Sophie is on the pad you two should go down," Peter said. "I'll cover you from here."

"Agreed," Marie said, scanning the dunes to the west for any movement. She handed Razan the spyglass. "Can you see what colors they wear?"

He squinted through it. "Some shade of blue or green. The moon is washing everything out."

Razan handed the spyglass back, and they waited.

Sophie reached the pad, poked at the gauze a few times, then stepped through. It took her five steps to reach the center, where she picked up a canteen. And then she turned and waved at them.

"Just in case anyone didn't know our position," Razan growled.

"She's a civilian," Peter told him. "She's never been in real danger before."

"That's not it," Marie said, slowly getting to her feet. "With the hawk and the gunshot our position was already obvious. Not to mention her footprints leading directly to us. Waving makes no difference whatsoever. If it did, I'm sure she wouldn't have."

Razan clearly wasn't convinced.

Marie picked up her cutlass and pistols. "On your feet, samurai. Peter, follow us as soon as we get to the pad."

"Yes, ma'am," Razan said, tying his swords to his side.

Peter adjusted his position on the sand. "Yes, captain."

Razan walked half a step behind Marie, keeping his eyes on the horizon. He expected an attack at any moment. She also scanned the horizon, but her shoulders drooped. They'd run out of water an hour ago, and Razan hoped they'd reach the pad before she collapsed.

A shot rang out from behind them. Razan pulled a sword from its sheath, moving closer to Marie.

"Put those away, samurai," Marie said calmly, holding her pistols at the ready. "You need a ranged weapon."

Razan looked to where she was aiming and saw a dark figure standing halfway down a sand dune. It was the same person they'd spotted before, now holding some sort of rifle. Razan put his swords away, noticing a tremor in Marie's arm. She needed water.

He bowed, holding his hands out. "Allow me to hold those."

She frowned. "You don't know how to aim them."

"The enemy does not know that."

Marie looked unhappy, but placed the pistols in his hands. "They're marked. A shoots left, so keep her in your right hand. B shoots down and has a hair trigger, so aim high and keep her safety on."

"Thank you for your trust," he said, standing straight. He aimed at the enemy, and they started walking again.

It didn't take long for them to reach the pad. Sophie met them at the edge, a canteen in each hand. Razan thanked her, still watching the person on the dune. Marie took both canteens and drained them. As Sophie went to get more, Marie took her pistols back. She walked to the other side of the pad and shot at the enemy, who had retreated.

From this distance Razan could see it was a bearded man, his outfit teal and pink. That marked him as being from the Caterpillars, but he couldn't remember anything Innoka had said about them. He wished he'd brought his notebook. He also wished Innoka were here, but that was another matter entirely.

Marie reloaded as Razan accepted a canteen from Sophie and drained it.

Peter left their dune, running easily across the sand. Razan watched for a moment, then turned to watch the Caterpillar.

The man lifted his rifle, aiming at Peter. Marie fired at him, the paint hitting within arm's reach of his position. He looked at it, at Marie who was aiming her second pistol, and took a few steps behind the sand dune as Razan reloaded the first. The man took aim at Peter again, and Marie fired. He was distracted only for a second, but that was long enough for Peter to launch himself onto the pad.

The near-invisible barrier around the pad flashed, and a ring appeared at the top. It had blue-green and red-orange stripes; their team colors.

"Supply pad's officially ours," Marie said, watching it slowly turn.

Sophie jumped, reaching for the ring, but her fingers passed by just below it.

"Stay inside," Razan snapped, frowning at the Caterpillar.

The man vanished behind the dune. Above him, the hawk circled south.

"Seems we're safe for now," Marie said, also noticing the hawk. "Everyone drink up. Is there food?"

"Yes," Sophie said, lifting a set of bento boxes. "Please say it's time for lunch."

"It is," Marie decreed. "Here's what we'll do. First, we shall eat lunch. Then we will sit, watching for attacks. Razan, face west. Peter, you will face south. I will face north, and fall asleep. Sophie, you will face east for five minutes, then grow bored and flirt outrageously with Peter."

Sophie grinned.

Peter frowned. "Is this an order or clairvoyance?"

"An order," Marie said, sitting down and taking a box. "We've seen an enemy to the north-west. The hawk is going south, so we can presume the rest of the group isn't to the north. I'm about to faint, and I don't doubt I look like I'm about to faint. I won't be of much use as a lookout, so I'll 'watch' in a direction we don't expect an attack. Razan and Peter, you both look like you know how to fight. Therefore you will watch the two most likely directions an attack will come from. Sophie is a typical teenage girl, and so will watch the only direction we're positive enemies won't be coming from." She paused, scanning the horizon. "If we only have one guard actively keeping watch, that will make the enemy travel as far out of his sight as possible. The farther they travel, the more tired they'll be. The more tired they are, the slower they'll be, and thus the easier targets they'll make. Peter also happens to be an excellent marksman, so if we can convince the enemy to come straight at him, they're dead."

"I like this plan," Sophie said cheerfully, opening her lunch.

"It makes sense," Peter agreed, failing to keep a straight face.

Razan pulled a box towards him, noticing the actual watching would all have to be done by him. "I will play my part."

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