(Almera POV)
The palace disappeared behind us faster than I expected.
Not all at once—no dramatic vanishing of white stone and banners—but gradually, like a memory fading under the weight of heat and distance. By the second hour of travel, the road itself began to thin, packed earth giving way to pale sand that stretched outward in every direction.
The desert did not welcome us.
It watched.
I rode on horseback beside Romulus, the wind tugging at my cloak as the sun climbed higher. The horse beneath me moved with steady confidence, trained for this terrain, its hooves striking firm where softer sands had been avoided by the scouts ahead.
Ahead of us, the caravan stretched in a long, careful line:
Cavalry riders flanking both sidesSand-runners gliding low behind the lead formationCamels moving with slow, tireless rhythm
The sand-runners fascinated me.
