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Thal 1
Sometimes fate wove the strangest webs sometimes and he found himself caught in yet another at the behest of his Dad, It was like Kiyelt wouldn't be happy if he wasnt asking one or another son to go on some errand or quest. The man had an empire. Sometimes he felt like going on vacation, which he tended to do often during hunting seasons. He and Terr provided a lot of the families food. It was exhilarating and how he healed from some of his more crazy adventures.

He had accepted a job from crazy Hassan, a local legend. The gig was to drive 200 quhar across the outskirts of the desert to market on the coast. It was possible but it was also a huge pain in the neck.

He had borrowed a janarim for the journey because it would be too long of a jaunt in the sun to bring Myr along and Thal felt like he was on a testy bronc.

Thal 2
"Copious amounts of coin, that is why." That and it was a favour for his Dad. That was always good. The old man was an old man, better for young bloods to be out on the trail. The ranch needed Kiyelt.

Sky stretched out before them they were well and truly underway by now quhar butts as far as the eye could see, Tails waving behind this was true adventurer quite different from say a hunting trip. But he wasn't complaining. There was something fun and beautiful and fulfilling about it. Of course he worked with animals and camped for a living and so this was fun for him. The rest of the family may well have enjoyed a cattle drive to. He looked over at Reillan wondering exactly what the large Oban thought of all this. It was a far cry from what he had done previously in the Oban army. Reil was a bit of an enigma

He was kinda quiet but not silent, and thankfully he did have a sense of humor so they passed the day with awful Dad jokes behind the cows.

Thal 3
"Just wondering what a non beast tamer type thinks about all of this," he gestured at the cattle drive. "A penny for your thoughts." He stared out at the vista before them. It was rugged and barren and out here they had a very very long ways to go. At least they were being paid well for this effort which had persuaded each them.

At the end of this it was going to be the only perk to moving herd with only two outriders. They spent a great deal of time catching and driving strays back to the main herd.

But things had gotten on rather well so far. He thought quhar were not the worst creatures to herd by any means but they were rather more fragrant than most other species. But the whole process was fun and satisfying for him. He had been getting a bit stagnant, being home for 5 days straight. He had stuff to do there but it was nice to get out for extended adventures in the bush, all the better that they had unlimited food with them if stuff went south badly.

Thal 4

They raced across the sand in search of some sort of shelter. They ran the beasts pell mell over the desert, hooting and hollering. They barely they made it to a shelter in a gulch and forced the quhar and their beasts down into the shelter from the coarse wind.

The main wall of the storm hit moments after. Both riders dismounted and covered their mounts eyes to protect them. It was a terrifying, intimate moment. The quhars jostled back and forth. The janarim hissed in displeasure and sought comfort from their protecting riders. It was horribly loud. He protected his face by tucking it into Harpy's neck. He would never forget this moment. It was always in times of disaster where his mind was clearest, probably fueled by all of the adrenaline that their circumstances were creating.

They could do no more than endure. A storm would not last forever no matter how big. There was no where else to go and no where else to be but still and standing there in the middle of the storm, an outpost.

Thal 5
Eventually the storm slowed and simmered after what felt like eternity. He was able to take a deep breath finally and spat out great puff of sand.

He said "Never trust a crazy cattle master." At least they had found shelter in time. Many things could go wrong in a sandstorm they would have to count the quhar directly and make sure that everybody was present and accounted for. Although it was 50/50 that they would have survived the storm above. Shelter was usually better in a storm.

"Reillan are you alright?" he uncovered his janarim's eyes and rubbed excess sand away. The janarim appeared healthy. Its eyes were clear and unred.
Thank goodness he had been so concerned that the sand might get in there and hurt his beast in some way. They were built to handle it but accidents did happen. Eyes were so very important, a blind mount wasn't a deal breaker but it came with its own challenges and he wouldn't want any critter to loose its sight.

Everything seemed in order, now to just get the quhar in order too and on their way so this crazy adventure could end.

Thal 6

"Good. Glad you're all well. I'm pretty sure I ate more than my fair share of sand doing that. What about you?"

He sputtered, a bit more sand in his beard. There was sand in his hair. There was sand everywhere. He missed home and the convenient bathhouse that was way too far away to be of any use. His sister would love to see him now absolutely covered from head to toe. Oh well time to carry on and get the job done so they could return to life's comforts.

200 head of quhar depended on them to get out of this giant mess. A zore flew overhead a bad sign.

"We might have lost one! Look above." The great black wings blacked out the sun occasionally as the large bird swung through the air never flapping in language lazy circles. There was no need for them to rush they preferred rotten meat and for others to punch through the tough hide. He sighed. Omens had meaning in the desert sometimes, you had to be quite careful to judge it right.

Thal 7

After hearty servings of stew they settled down around the fire to yack and stare in silence out into the night. Torches were lit and scattered about making a comforting atmosphere.

There was a special bonding about experiencing something like this. The stars flickered brightly overhead, they were still moving in the right direction. Thank the desert Gods he did not relish ever being lost out here it was too hot and waterless for this kind of nonsense. Just as he was about to fall asleep with Reillan on the first watch. There was the hunting howl of a large bull janarim.

Crap.

So much for getting rest. He got up and went to his wild eyed mount. "Don't you start now." He admonished. Harpy would do well to keep an even head. A bull would be bigger likely than her and Izkierka but there were two of them, plus the riders so Thal wasn't to concerned. So long as the herd did not spook.

It would take more than two of them to keep a lid on this pot if the whole herd spooked. They would be out here extra days and that sounded awful.

Thal 8

"You know," he said as he pulled great cactus spines off of his friend and his mount. "I would be okay if this adventure didn't get any more spicy than it already has been. Is it too much to ask for a solid steady walk home?"

He wasn't old yet. But he wasn't a prentice anymore, either. The winds picked up and the herd hit a really dusty area after that.

"I'm getting really tired of this taste of brown." He missed the salty sea air of Matori. It mystified him. How his father had spent so much time here. This place was hard even on the locals. Cities were dangerous but were also a type of haven from the savage conditions of the desert. He took a swig from his canteen. The lack of sleep the night before pulling at this eyes. Ugh. He would be grateful to be in his own bed again, with Terrwyn for company. He missed her presence terribly but she had alas not been able to join them on this crazy trip, pity, he was sure she would have been a great help and a better cook.

"There I think I got them all." He flicked the long spines away and patted Izkierka on the neck for being a good girl and not flipping her lid while Reill was still up there.