Chapter 10 :: Camp
Having obtained the first of three keys they were feeling pretty good, after managing to get out of the forest once again of course. Nobody was happier than Byre than the moment they got out of there. To the east was the desert where the next key would be located, and that's where they were heading.
"One key down, two to go!" said Ryu. "Who knows what we'll see next!" There was a bounce in his step, and Sori couldn't help but admire his enthusiasm. He was never like this back on the island. Sometimes close, but never this much. There just wasn't enough to the island for him to be content. He was always trying to outdo himself, putting himself in harm's way just for a sense of adventure – a rush. Sori was like that too, and it's why she was fond of Ryu, but she knew her limits. She knew her limits very well. She was the middle ground between Byre and Ryu – the glue that brought them all together.
The gloomy darkness of the forest faded, and the morning sun shone brightly into their eyes. As their gaze moved towards the horizon, the green grass faded to brown, and then there was sand as far as the eye could see. They could see the desert and its few dead bushes and cacti strewn about. Heat waves radiated upwards and made the ground look wavy.
"We should get some water before we go too far into the desert" said Sori.
"Agreed" replied Ryu. "It looks like there's a camp a ways over there. Maybe they'll let us get some." The camp had several brown tents arranged around in a circle with a fire pit in the center. Some of the tents were bleached white from the heat, and what seemed to be a well was a little ways further. They strode into the center of the camp.
"Hello? Is anybody here?" called Sori. There was no response. "Hello? We just need some water." They waited a few moments. There was still no response.
"Well, if nobody is here, let's just take some then" said Ryu. Nobody protested. They were all very dehydrated. Suddenly, something red sped by them, brushing past Byre.
"What was that?" he said, but before anyone could respond, another came speeding by Sori. Another, by Ryu, and then Ray. They were all entirely confused and looking about wildly. From one of the tents they could hear some angry, fast voices. Then, a bandit came emerged from the entrance to the tent. Its cloak was red, although the color was slightly washed away by the sand. It looked angry despite the fact it was wearing a pure white mask that covered its entire face.
"What's wrong with ya, punks? Where's your stinkin' coins?" he yelled. He had a distinct accent, and it sounded like he spoke only through his nose.
"We don't have any" said Sori, empathetically.
"I find that hard to believe. The name's Andy. Andy the Bandit. Nice to beat 'cha. Adventurers like yourselves must be loaded, so fork 'em over or we'll make you pay!" Several other red bandits came from out of the tent and stood behind what one could only assume was their pack leader, with their arms crossed.
"Buzz off! We don't have anything!" said Ryu. The bandits crept forward, and suddenly took off running, kicking sand up beneath them. Holy Shrooms they're fast, thought Ryu. They circled the group before anyone could move, and started throwing punches. It was an all-out brawl, and sand was being kicked up everywhere. In the midst of the veil of sand, a couple of the bandits grabbed Ray and took off. And with that, it was over as quickly as it began. The rest of the bandits sped off, mumbling obscenities about not finding any coins.
"Is everyone okay?" said Sori, breathing heavily.
"I'm good" said Ryu.
"A bit beat up, but yeah" said Byre. "Ray?" There wasn't any response. "Where is Ray?" Suddenly, Sori realized what had happened, and checked she still had the key. Oh no, she thought. "Where's the key?"