Look down, the ground below is crumbling
Look up, the stars are all exploding
It was surreal, she thought, to tread through the slithering mass of searing red sand again. Few days had passed before today, and most of those had been spent drifting towards here. Even though her thoughtful touch was delicate and slow, the ground seemed to writhe beneath like a wounded serpent or floundering fish. Africa could recall all which had shaped her life before the most recent Orangemoon. The names of those she still loved and cared so deeply for- her family, here where the burnt land offered a magical existence, echoed through her spinning mind. A few faces flashed far brighter as she paused with a hinting smile though, the black and white General, Midas; the wise and intelligent Sohalia; the blunt and off putting Sultana, Kri... She remembered them fondly, mostly, for each had played a more significant role in her development.

The wall was a dark menace flanking the northern ridge of the Throat and Africa shivered beneath its eerie, supernatural glare. She noticed as she continued through its gaping jaws in humble reflection that it had grown in length- stretching both east and west, further than her naked eye could behold in the blisteringly bright sunlight.
Silas too was taken aback by the massive piece of infrastructure and hovered cautiously by his soul mate’s sweat-laden shoulder. A gentle rumbling in his narrow chest roused a tender giggle from the mare and she turned her face towards him. "Silas, don’t you remember this wall?" Africa asked playfully, blinking as her amber gaze swept beyond him to steal a final glance. She thought it to be a wondrous structure, and could only imagine the protection it might offer should a herd like the northern unicorns intend to... She looked away quickly, and hastened her stride. "Pray, I hope our family are safe." Silas detected the switch of mood instantly and lifted higher with powerful wing beats into the thick, humid air to scout beyond her position.

Ahead, the old limestone cliffs rose to form deep, labyrinth-like canyons and Africa felt the giddying desire to lift with her mate above them. Only once had she been forced to navigate through like the primitive, flightless species of the world, but that had been during the suffocating darkness.

Already thirst caused a light rasp in her dry throat, the crimson desert dust kicked up by her deliberate arrival was not whisked away by a breeze, and she could do little but inhale it.
The young horse looked steadily about her before continuing, upwards too, but only the familiar shadow of her bonded was nearby. A thundering heart yearned to learn of the herd’s wellbeing, and it ached while all seemed so strangely still and quiet.

Never the less, Africa ventured on into the canyon, below the mid-afternoon sun, always in the direction of the Oasis.