Joseph suggested they get a car in the next town to drive to Saudi Arabia, and a nice one too. It was even big enough to give them some leg room as well as decent comfort for a car. The teens in the back was so sick of being cramped
Kakyoin sat by the window with eyes shifting around outside, He was a little uneasy, like someone was watching them Ever since they left the hotel he's been feeling paranoid.
"Hey, Kakyoin, what's up?" Jotaro noticed Kakyoin looking rather unsettled. He perked up, "Oh, I was just enjoying the view. It's so nice here and if we're about to be attacked, we'd surely spot them. However, I feel as if we're being watched and I couldn't help but keep looking back." he sighed looking back out the window.
"I don't blame you." Polnareff claimed.
"With that in mind, I was thinking about our route. Yarpline is the nearest town from here but the roads are heavily curved and it'll take two days to reach it by car. At a nearby village they sell Cessnas. That's how travelers get across the Saudi Arabian desert. I'll pilot the Cessna and it'll shorten our travel time." Joseph explained.
"What's a Cessna?"
"It's kind of plane. It's usually used to travel small distances." Kakyoin explained to Charleigh next to him wearing a headdress they had got from the market in the village. At the time, she had to just like the other women in the country. It was the law there and Joseph doesn't want to risk it.
"I don't think I want to ride a plane with a man who's been in three plane crashes." Jotaro groaned and received a menacing glare from Joseph. Not after last time plus the stories he's told.
"Anyway...once we cross this desert first. We'll travel on camel back so it only takes a day."
"Camels? Never rode on those." Polnareff commented.
"Leave it to me, I know how to ride them and I'll teach you." Joseph chuckled moving his eyes back to the road.
The three teens sat back and watched the outside zoom by. Kakyoin still alert the entire time. Something wasn't right. Maybe they weren't being watched, it could be the lack of sleep they were getting. Well, him anyway. The others seem pretty fine. Pushing it to the back of his mind, he closes his eyes to sleep for a little bit.
They watched the camels stare them down while chewing its hay. God they smelled so god-awful they kept their distance from them.
"Camels? They're way too expensive and hard to care for. Are you sure?" the Shepard asked after hearing Joseph's offer. Joseph smiled kindly. "This is a life and death situation. You must understand. Here, how about we trade for this nice car?"
"What? Joseph we just got it!" Polnareff protested with the rest of the company. "Not to mention its the nicest thing we got!"
"Hey, here, trading is more effective. Besides, how else are we going to give payment?" But why did he have to get a car so nice in the first place? What is this shepard going to do with it?
He shook the man's hand, "To make it even, I'd like to take those water tanks over there. Of course we need those."
The man's eyes lit up when eyeing the car. It was pretty nice. He considered ten smiled. "Well, alright. You sure are an odd man." the shepard took the deal and traded. Even he found it odd he was trading a car fit for a celebrity for a few camels, but he couldn't refuse that generosity.
"Alright everyone, saddle up!"
If that was possible. Polnareff refused to breathe around it and Joseph couldn't even make it sit. He tried numerous times but never seemed to succeed. Turns out, he's never ridden one but has seen it in movies.
"You've never ridden one?!" Polnareff yelled out.
"I've only watched movies but trust me I know." That was just before the camel spits all over him. He froze in place. His disgust and frustration clear on his face. The others cringed in disgust.
Joseph crossed his arms after wiping the slobber off his face, "Well, another way to mount them is to understand the animal, and the only way to do so is food." he chuckles pulling out an apple from his bag. He loured the apple down so the camel sits. Carefully, Joseph mounts the camel's back and reached for the reigns. The animal grunted and stood before he was prepared. He leaned forward and clung to its neck. This freaked out the beast. It got up and thrashed its head and neck about kicking wildly to get the man off.
Joseph was being flung around like a others watched in silence while the shepherds watched in silent amusement until they decided to assist him when the camel calms down.
They finally were properly mounted on their camels with the help of the shepherds. Polnareff finally snickered looking back at the entire incident, "Okay, I've got to admit, that was kind of funny." he huffs to Kakyoin beside him who lightly chuckles as their animals stood up. Kakyoin settled and looked around once more. That paranoia is coming back.
"All right. Now that everyone's mounted nicely we should head off. Onward to the northwest!" Joseph announced after finally getting used to the feel of the camel's back.
The company rode on across the hot desert. They used palm branches to cover their tracks as the go along. "Ay, Kak, something up?" Charleigh rode beside the other redhead who seemed to be deep in thought.
"I still feel as if we're being watched again. I couldn't help it."
They both looked back. Charleigh looked for anything wrong. All she got was the sky. She did note that it looked a little dark for the sun to be out. She thought she'd point it out but assumed they all noticed it.
"I think you may be a bit too worried Kakyoin. We have our tracks covered." Polnareff said.
"Actually I feel a bit paranoid myself. I feel another presence." Jotaro grumbled while looking about. Kakyoin did feel a little relieved he wasn't losing it. Jotaro stopped and looked through a pair of binoculars to try to find something. He even used Star Platinum to see further.
"Anything?"
"No."
Joseph looks back at them. "We'll ride until sundown, then we put up our tents. It's very dangerous to travel at night."
"But it's so hot out."
"It is usually hot at this time of day-" Joseph checked his watch, "E-eight PM? Jotaro, what does your watch say?"
"Ten after eight."
"What? How?"
"Why isn't the sun going down?"
Charleigh thought, "I thought so. Look at the sky. It's dark. If the sun was out it'd be blue?"
The three considered her question. "I mean, I thought it was a stupid thing to point out. I thought you guys noticed too." The so called 'sun' rose slightly and so did the heat. "Are you sure that is a sun?"
"Could this sun possibly be a stand?!" Polnareff squinted while wiping the excessive sweat off his brow. It was the first suspicion. It would make some sense at least. What else would it be if not the sun?
Charleigh rubbed her face, "Oh my God I can't believe this! We're in the middle of the desert for fuck's sake!" She complained as they dismounted their camels and took cover behind some rocks nearby.
"We were careless! How did we fall for this?"
"All this time I felt we were being watched. I didn't see it at all." Kakyoin shook.
Jotaro growled and lowered himself behind the rock, "Well it isn't like we expected the fucking sun to be a Stand."
"How long are we going to be boiling out here before we're cooked?"
"Not long. It's dangerous to be in a sauna for thirty minutes." Joseph replied dryly.
"The only way to beat this Stand is to find the user, and take him out." Jotaro sat back. The user had to be somewhere nearby. He would have to be hiding away from them the whole time. What if it was a user like The Lovers, a remotely controlled Stand? They watched The Sun cackle and sizzle overhead.
"A weak Stand can be controlled from a distance, this is no weak Stand. The user must be nearby."
The camels collapsed from the heat. There goes their form of travel. Charleigh buried herself in the shade as best as she looked at the canteen by Joseph and reached to grab metal on it was blistering hot she quickly retreated her hand to her side. The canteen fell onto the rocks, spilling little water out. Much less than there was before. "It's getting so hot, the water's evaporated."
"I'll use my Hierophant to look around." Kakyoin stood up. Joseph tried to stop him.
"We have no choice but to find this user." With that he pulled out Hierophant Green and let him slither up into the open. He got closer and closer until they noticed something was wrong. "Emerald Smash!" he called out a move but The Sun burnt the projectiles while it launched lava at the group they ducked as the molten rock splattered across the dry ground.
"It's no use! This Stand can't be touched." Joseph said shielding himself. The heat was rising quickly. They were ready to pass out. They all observed the Stand and surroundings around it. Joseph felt dizzy from the heat. His eyes struggled to stay open and he tried to breath. The heat was getting to him. That's when Kakyoin started to cackle. He just lie there quietly as they all begin to laugh. Joseph looked at them out of confusion. They must be going mad! This is bad. Even Jotaro cracked and was laughing hysterically. "Guys! Hey! S-snap out of it! We need to stay together." he couldn't even acknowledge what was really happening. Kakyoin held his shoulder to calm him down. Re chuckled recovering from the laugh attack. "No Mr. Jostar, we're fine. It's just that-that we noticed the rock over there. It's the exact same as that one over there." He pointed to two rock formations parallel from each other. Joseph twitched. It was odd but what are they laughing at it for? "It's like a mirror! It's so stupid and we didn't catch it until now!" Polnareff wheezed. Jotaro settled down and brought out Star Platinum. "If it's like a mirror, then let's see if I can shatter it." Star Platinum took a rock and chucked it far between the rocks. It shattered something in the sky…or not the sky? The 'sky' slowly faded into a starry, normal sky. The moon was shining above them as the stars painted the the night.
A hole still remained in the air, cracked like a broken glass screen. Is that what they were trapped in?
The group approached it, then found a chair behind it. There was a man lying there in the sand by a chair. "Take a look. Check out the machines behind this mirror. It's pretty comfortable. It even has air conditioning." Kakyoin points out.
' Okay, but how did this guy manage to follow them all the way here?" Charleigh squinted as she hogged the air conditioner. "Forget that, we beat him didn't we?" Jotaro snorted. They found a tank of water. Cold water to their convenience.