
They had traveled for quite away, quiet save for the occasional traded snipe. The blazing heat was constant, everywhere, with no escape but for the cool night when the sun rested. It was such that Cypress was able to tell the approximate passage of time by the temperature. A red hand curled around the staff that Ulanan found for her, though it was nothing more than a glorified walking stick. It was useful, dried splintery wood though it was, it allowed some measure with which to test the ground before her. A measure of stability when she stumbled on some unseen stone.