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The desert was just as he remembered it, hot and dry. Upon reaching the area Jon pulled up his hood for some sense of shade. He brought the horse steadily through the terrain. The city was hard to find and most never did, but Jon remembered. One thing that made the trip somewhat bearable was the wind that was coming through the sand. It wasn't bad enough to cause a storm but it allowed Jon to remain somewhat comfortable. Mori had to be burning up if Jon felt warm. the trotted through the sand for a little while surrounded by the large rock formations and what little plant life there was as the relentless sun pressed down on the two of them.

Jon made the horse trot on forward and checked an old metal compass every five minutes or so that they traveled to make sure that they weren't off course. "It gets colder at night, perhaps even colder at night. When it rains the land floods because there is nothing to absorb the water. No one seems to mind that too much though because that is when they can refill their jugs and water supplies easiest." A shadow seemed to grow over them as they moved into a canyon. Soon a few buildings could be seen carved into the sides of the canyon. The buildings grew more frequent until they started to be seen not only in the canyon walls but also on the floor until the area was crowded with not only buildings but people. "Home sweet home." Most of the people wore hoods and many men could be seen with chains of office around their necks or holding capes. There were more camels here than horses and many trophs of water for the animals. The buildings were all made of stone with flat roofs and open doorways. Few possessed windows for the sake of keeping in what heat or cool they needed to. Many men in the crowd wore what appeared to be a white uniform with a hood and a black and red sash. They were the city guard, some of Jon's best friends. He remembered making them all look like fools as he ran through the city. Some of them he could tell recognized him on the horse with the girl.

"Alright Jon, where did you steal the horse from?" A larger more muscular figure than the rest of the guard spoke. He wore a silver chain to symbolize that he was the captain of the guard. His hand was on the pommel of a scimitar as if he was looking for a fight, "While we're talking about stealing, what about that bow and quiver, did you steal that girl too? Come on Jon I at least thought you drew the line at kidnapping." The scowl on Jon's face showed how he felt about the man below him and his thoughts showed it too in flashes of images of the man chasing and threatening Jon at the head of the guard pack.

"Listen Ramses, I haven't stolen anything in years not since last time. This horse is the girls. I'm just helping her because she can't ride that well. My bow was a gift as well as the quiver, and don't even think of drawing that sword because I have a knife, an ax, and the Striders that say I'll win." He might have been overdoing it with the strider part, because let's face it he was only a third class soldier, not a major loss to the Faction really. But the threat did it's deed and the captain of the guard removed his hand from the pommel.

"If I hear anything about you and your vagrant friends stealing again I'll be sure to hunt you down personally." The man growled between clenched teeth.

"For some reason Ramses, I'm not afraid. You'd have to catch me first." Jon kept is eyes on Ramses' back until he disappeared in the crowd.

Jon dug his heals into the sides of the horse to get it moving, "My mother was a mother in blood only. The only thing she ever did for me was introduce me to the Striders. Other than that I spent my life just trying to get by and well, when you have the option of breaking the law or dieing, the lines between right and wrong get a little blurred." That was all he cared to say at that moment. Jon was looking for a place, hoping it would still be there. He soon turned the horse towards a familiar alley that was semi dark and cooler than the streets. The wall at the end of the street had a hole in it hidden by a false wall that would lead them into a cave that had been carved into the canyon wall, where Jon used to call home.

Jon slipped off of the horse and proceeded to open the false wall into the cave. He held the reigns and led the horse into the cavernous room. Inside it was a comfortable temperature constantly. The room was richly decorated with art and ornamentations that had been stolen. The room was furnished by a large number of cushions and low tables. The room seemed to drop back into the wall of the cave forever. Make shift walls were made from cloth on line and anything else that would stand, "A thieves camp, I know it isn't preferable company but they took good care of me when I needed it and no one in the world knows this is here except for it's inhabitants."

A young man who seemed to be close to Jon's age looked around the corner at the two of them. "Jon is that you." A broad smile formed on his face as he came up to the two of them, "I never thought you would come back. How are things on the outsi... Well well well, Jonny got himself a girl."

"Ivan?" Jon was happy to see a familiar face. Ivan came up to Jon's brow and had shaggy black hair with a thin face. "I'll explain later, do I still have a place here."

"I see, we can catch up later. You're plot is just as you left it." He pointed over to a cubic segment near the cave wall.

Jon led them over to his old home. Some soft cushions covered the ground with a thin layer of dust covering them. A low table sat with a few cups on it. "I know it isn't much but it is what I earned when I was younger. The cushions are quite comfortable and I'll go get us some tea and water. Food shouldn't be much of an issue either, in truth this place is like a small village within the city. After we get settled we need to go see the chief of this group, though I imagine his son is in charge by now." Jon laid his pack off to the side and pulled the water jugs off of the horse and placed them near the cave wall that ran up against the table. He placed it there to keep people from reaching under the wall and stealing what was on the table or the water.

Jon laid back on the cushions, he was tired from the trip and was slightly considering a nap before their visit, "No he shouldn't, his son and I were childhood friends and if my calculations are right his son should have taken his place by now." His muscles were slightly stiff from the ride and they had finally started to relax a bit. e laid his head on a cushion and almost instantly started to drift of to sleep after muttering, "Wake me when you're ready to go see him."

It was that dream again, the one with the man standing next to his mother with the blurred features. It could have been anyone, even his stature was indeterminable. It drove Jon crazy not being able to tell who it was or to get closer to him. He was so helpless and unable to see what he sought. Jon felt like ramming his head into a wall until he saw some distinguishing feature of the male figure.