Steel steam and flame

The undulating sand dunes look peaceful and elegant in the dim light before dawn. They are a gray-yellow color that intersects with the light blue-gray in the sky. This is a lonely beauty.

There was no sound around, and even the wind was inaudible at this time. Everything was a still life painting of melted colors, filling the air around the body, which now contained a little moisture. With great difficulty, Cassia and Kara were finally able to take off their masks and inhale the rare fresh breath. You can feel this tiny amount of moisture on your face which is red from stuffiness.

"There's not much time until dawn. We need to hide before the sun rises completely." Kara spread out the map with both hands, and she put the compass next to the map for reference. Because of the optical sight on the sniper rifle, Cassia's vision has been greatly improved.

Kara was still closing one eye, looking through the long scope at the distance ahead where the scenery was almost the same. There was still endless yellow sand there, and the station marked on the map did not appear in front of them.

"How's it going?" Cassia opened the water bag and took a sip of water, looking at Kara who was taking back the utensil and asked.

"Of course it's terrible." Kara turned around and replied, "Let's go directly to the next target while there is still some time. Although the supply station is important, our purpose is to make a better journey. A few days ago we You need to walk more distance while your body is still in a state of excitement.”

The footsteps of the two people broke the peaceful world like a picture, and the chain-like footprints meandered along with the ups and downs of the sand dunes.

The sky became brighter and brighter, and finally a ray of light suddenly appeared in the entire desert, and then countless fiery red colors began to render the entire desert like huge paintbrushes. This is a picture of alternating shades of red and black, spreading out row after row, like a continuous wave, disappearing without a trace within a few dozen seconds.

The real sunshine came out, and the huge power contained in the rays of light could be clearly felt on the face without a mask. The increase in temperature is definitely visible to the naked eye. In just a few minutes, the moisture in the surrounding air disappears in the world of light. Dryness and heat are the main themes in the desert.

The sun came out half an hour earlier than the two expected, but in order not to disrupt their fixed itinerary, they walked an extra ten kilometers with the blazing sun climbing half of the sky above their heads. It wasn't until the temperature of the surging heat wave in front of them rose to around 50 degrees that Cassia and Kara quickly took out the tent frames they carried, set up camp behind the leeward slope of a dune chain, and then covered the entire tent with yellow sand. , thus reducing the temperature exposed to sunlight at noon.

The two of them only had one tent, and they could only simply live together during the more than ten days of travel.

The temperature inside the tent was not very low. The heat was like a steamer, without any moisture at all. Every minute and second spent here is torture.

"There is no need to allocate manpower to keep watch. No one will come in this weather. Those pitiful animals in the desert must be in the same condition as us. If they come out, they can be used as today's food." Carla has already The heavy equipment she was wearing was put aside. She leaned on it and closed her eyes. "Of course, I also hope to see people coming in this desert."

Cassia also leaned on her backpack. The size of the tent did not allow them to stretch their limbs freely. Closing her eyes, Cassia cleared her mind of thoughts, even though the surrounding was not an environment where people could sleep peacefully. But rest is necessary, and fatigue will slowly accumulate. Even if you can't sleep, closing your eyes to relax your body and mind is also a form of rest.

I don't know how long it has been, but Cassia's mind has been in a daze. The temperature had risen so much that he felt physically uncomfortable. He had tried his best to control his physiological activities so that they would not waste any more energy during their rest. Until the reed in the mechanical watch made a sound, Cassia and Kara opened their eyes at the same time.

"Sure enough, I didn't fall asleep." Cassia glanced at the watch on her hand. The time on it was six o'clock in the afternoon. They were about to get up and go on their way.

"It would be good to have a rest." Kara was already fully armed on the side. She moved to open the tent, and the hot yellow sand came in one after another. The heat wave seemed to find an outlet and surged over.

"It's a terrible temperature. I suddenly discovered that the low temperature in school is also very gentle." Kara, who got out of the tent, was looking at the sun that was slowly sinking. Her body was shining because of the sun protection clothing, and there was a dark shadow behind her.

The two of them went on the road, and soon the wind picked up. Yellow sand began to fly in the air, and the sand grains under their feet began to travel with the wind. Dust was blown into the air, causing the last rays of dusk to flicker up and down like waves.

The wind reached its maximum at nine o'clock in the evening. As soon as Cassia lifted her steps, the footprints she left were smoothed away. All traces will be completely eroded by the natural forces of the desert, leaving nothing behind.

By late night, the wind had died down. All the animals hiding under the gravel also came out at this time. While Cassia and the others are on their way, they will also choose prey to hunt. After being hungry for a day, they are in the first stage and have a great need for food.

There was nothing to make a fire, and neither of them wanted to eat bloody food. They discussed taking the meat with them and covering it in the sand at noon tomorrow to let the sun steam them before eating.

In the early morning of the first day ahead, they arrived at a place more than 200 miles away from the old station. The ups and downs of the sand dunes doubled their distance, and the physical exertion was very high, far exceeding the estimated value. And they finally saw traces of a section of highway in the desert. Following the trajectory of the highway and the guidance of the map, the second expected supply station was not spared, and was completely buried under the sand dunes somewhere.

The two of them didn't have much expectations, but their hearts became heavy.

The deeper you go into the desert, the stronger the wind and the danger. How many of the supply stations set up there can still exist, and how many of them can not be covered up by the yellow sand? The chance of this is probably getting smaller and smaller.

Continuing on their way, the two men obviously sped up. They changed their strategy and wanted to take advantage of the fact that everything was sufficient in the previous few days to go as deep into the desert as possible and cover as much distance as possible.

The route has not changed, and we are still following the supply stations set up one by one.

But in the continuous disappointment, the mood of the two people also became impetuous.

Seven days later, at night, the moon's light was very bright, and I could barely see the surrounding scenery not far away. Cassia opened her mask, her face was a little pale, her mouth was dry and cracked, and her eyes were full of tiredness. The body can still resist, but the mind has begun to feel trance-like.

The temperature at noon today reached an unprecedented 90 degrees. All the fresh meat they put outside was roasted into jerky, and the temperature dropped to a lower 20 degrees at night.

The exhaled air turned into white mist, containing precious moisture.

Now it was Kara who was walking in front, holding the scope removed from the sniper rifle in her hand. The bright red cross pupils could capture even subtler light. Cassia squatted in the back and was studying the map in her hand. It marked that there should be a large-scale supply station near here, which served as the central heart of dozens of small stations around it and served as a connecting transit. If even such a supply station is buried by yellow sand, then they will no longer pay any attention to other supply stations or bases.

"Yes!" Carla stood on the sand dune and stared for a long time. Finally, a subtle light appeared on the bright red cross pupils. It was the light of a high-pressure mercury lamp. It existed like a lighthouse in the desert sea, signaling to people who were lost that they had no choice. right direction.