My eyes open to a pallet of soft, warm yellow: the expanse and the setting sun transforming any recognisable objects into paint strokes across the screen. The sand is almost velvet beneath my legs as I stand up straight, readying myself for the long trek ahead.
Only a setting sun and a couple of distant pillars differentiate themselves from the panorama of rolling sands and so I must chose one to head for; the pillars seem the most appropriate. And with that thought and first step I am off. As the crest of the dune creeps closer with every step two long pieces of fabric can be made out being caressed by the wind atop the two pillars. As I reach my first summit an ocean of yellow reveals itself down the side of the dune I have just climbed; my first landmark reached: I am ready to being my Journey.
I slide effortlessly down the large dune towards grave-like pillars and see a bright vertical beacon way off on the horizon that I just know I must head for, no matter what other challenges present themselves on the way. An eroded structure of some sort is up ahead and appears to be the most sensible of immediate destinations. I climb each piece of rubble slowly towards pieces of cloth – the same colour as my robe – that are dancing around a stone with a glowing glyph that is suspended in mid-air. Metres away from the glyph and its powers seems to flow straight into me, materialising a narrow cape upon my robe before fading into a faint twinkle. Filled with energy I jump into the air as if gravity has let go of me, but as I do the tapestry of my short cape fades and I float back down to earth. My short lived jump skyward does not end in sadness however, as the dancing cloth pieces lick power back into my cape and reinstate the tapestry upon its weave.
I slide further across the ocean of sand as I following dancing pieces of fabric that are swirling around decrepit structures, both big and small. I come to a larger building with four of these small grave-like pillars in front of blank stone wall. I move closer to the left two pieces of stone and the circular horizontal openings of the two suddenly light up. I move to the remaining two and they do the same which triggers the blank stone wall to spurt to life, painting what looks like a burial chamber of individuals robed exactly as I am now. The unexplained image remains as the lit pillars fade.
In a small valley I see an octagonal (or close to that many sides) building surrounded by large structures that appear to be either building into the massive dune surrounded them or have been completely covered over on the side facing away from this building that I am drawn to. I pass some more fabric pieces as I circle this large broken down structure, trying to find a low enough piece of fallen stone to climb up. Each large piece of rubble takes me higher and higher before I am able to see four long, weathered cloth pieces that are attached to small grates, that are being blown, by some contraption, straight up.
I stand in the centre of pieces and I am told by some mythical to hold a button now I am here. The results are incredibly bazaar as a spherical beam of light burns from my body and a glyph appears above my head. This was obviously an excellent thing to do as each piece of fabric lights up and disintegrate away before a centre grate slides open and about forty or fifty small cloth pieces whoosh out and dance around the air above me. I jump with ease into that very air but fall back down some moments later as the energy is trained from my cape as before. I try that peculiar sphere of light that I used to activate the grate and the beam sparks the dancing pieces into a frenzy! They fly for my feet and shoot me straight up like a flock of bird that have the power to transfer their power of flight to whoever commands it be so. As I float back down to earth I see another glowing glyph on a small hexagonal platform closer to the sand and decide this would make a perfect first destination for my newly discovered power. I land gracefully and, just as before, the glyph lights up before flowing into me and, as before also, it lengthens my narrow cape. I go to use my flying power only to have no bird-like pieces of tapestry whisk me away – the beam of light must have to pass over each fabric piece for such an awesome ability to activate.
I spot one more glyph on the side of the octagonal structure that I missed and jump up into the air to see if I can reach it. To my surprise I fly up for longer and it appears that the pattern and power is not drained from my cape immediately but fade away at a moderate pace. I now see the immense value in collecting these glyphs to further increase the length, and thus, the duration of my effortless leap. The glyph awards its power unto me and my now flowing cape, although still narrow, flaps triumphantly on the breeze.
A large column of light indicates the next goal that I shall have to complete but is too high to jump to. There looks like there was a bridge at one stage leading to it from the octagonal roof that I now stand but that has long been destroyed by the harsh desert winds. I look up and remember the dancing flock above me: eager to recharge my cape and be the wings. A strong burst of energy and I am away, soaring through air like an angel, I drift down and land without a sound on the bridge remains on the other side.
Before me lies a large chiselled rock of unknown significance surrounded by six of the same pillars that lay before the black stone wall. I light each one in turn and as the final is filled with power the all release tiny glyphs before the aforementioned rock forming a glowing circle just in front of where I stand; the rock lights up with the same strange power. I take a step into the circle and sit peacefully: unsure of what I have accomplished but feeling accomplished nevertheless. I am swallowed by the light.
In a world of white a tall figure wearing the same style robe as me stand before me. A step forward and white engulfs me once more. THE BEACON! I see it as it is painted in the same style as the tomb painting upon the seemingly black stone wall. It comes to life with light as it paints tiny glyphs, all different, into the stars of the night sky. The twinkle down until some becomes birds, flying above the desert floor, as plants and robbed figures are painted side by side; the light, warm yellow of the circle of light fills my eyes once more and I am back in the desert once more. The light fades from the circle and the rock before me and a massive door made of a metal grate slides open.
Invigorated by an unknown force, I run through the newly created path down a humongous hallway toward the light at the other end. Not halfway down the long corridor and the light swallows me once more.
(It continues)…
