Dead
Forbidding spires of grey rock rise against the yellow sky, viciously punctuating the stark, jagged skyline. Gravely hills surround the campsite, shimmering and shifting with the heat that radiates off the dark stone. A giant red sun beats down on the landscape, shedding the last of its energy in baking this world to a crisp. All five travelers are draped in cloth, pouring with sweat in the baking heat of this arid desert. The burning rays of the dying star are too much to bear.
But what really unnerves them is the silence. There are no birdcalls, no insect noise, no plants growing in the sandy earth. Mokona hasn't sensed a single molecule of life, let alone a feather full of vibrant memories. Not even Acid Tokyo was this quiet.
It's the princess who finally voices what everyone has been thinking all along.
"This world is dead."
