The journey would take them two weeks...or so they planned. But as one of their ancient philosophers once observed, the plans of hoporils and Riotori go often askew.
The first two days, though, gave no clue of the problems awaiting them. The map of their proposed journey proved accurate. They tented on the lee side of huge rock formations that dotted the sand and hardpan of the Deth Plains. They were able to refill their water canisters from clear springs that the map promised. Desert hoporils were abundant near these springs and the twins caught several. Each rodent was a bit longer than a Riotori foot and weighed the same as a man's well-muscled forearm. Years before Gypsum had demonstrated a natural knack for delicate knife use that Feldspar could not quite match. So the older brother did the cooking while the younger did the preparing, skinning and butchering them for eating as they had been taught. The skins, of course, were saved for future use. The skulls also were useful. Once the brains (delicious!) had been removed the skulls were excellent for carrying fire coals. That gave them fire without having to use their limited supply of fire sticks.
The third night, however, brought the unexpected...
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