The sun beat down heavily upon the earth, the white sand reflected it's light making it almost unbearable. A young woman, was running, shielding her eyes from the bright glare of the light. Stumbling upon a stone, she fell face first into the sand but soon she picker herself up running along. Most people would think she was insane, running and wasting her energy but the sand was misleading. It was burning hot. Her white hair flew behind her, tears of pain ran down her face. Soon she ran splashing into the river, the water seemed to burn her feet. It was ice cold. She tried to breath, it was difficult especially if you had just run full speed, in a skirt. She washed away the dirt from her face.

Ranewen was upon the back of Isilme Isto, her winged unicorn. They were above the san d only a few ways and the unicorn’s feet pressed down against an invisible ground as it slowly followed a girl was running. Ranewen wondered what a young woman like her was doing out in the desert without any shoes on. She raised an eyebrow and let the winged unicorn stop on the ground near the river. Ranewen dismounted her horse and led the large stallion to the water and lowered his head to drink from the water. Th e Vampiress was weaker in the daylight, but she ignored it. She had full energy, yet her fangs had dulled into normal teeth. She actually felt human. She looked over at Xena and smiled lightly. “Hello… May I ask what a woman like you is doing, running across the sands of the desert without any shoes on?” she asked coldly, trying to hide her own alignment with a light smile.

Xena did not reply straight away, she brushed her hair away from her face then looked up at the stranger, not meeting her gaze. "I was chased here, or so I thought. Maybe he was just a fragment of my mind, an invented character ready to cause pain." She shook her head, nothing was clear. Only the pain. That had to be dulled away first, 'Locate the center point of the pain, concentrate on it hard enough, and it will go away.' A voice said in her head, it was just a memory but a strong one. She focused and found the center of her pain, at the back of her head. What felt like a few seconds passed, the pain was just a dull throb.

Ranewen raised her eyebrow and looked back across the desert. No one was there. And when she had been following this young woman from the beginning of her run, she hadn’t seen anybody then, either. “You’ve been exposed for the heat some time, haven’t you? It must’ve been a mirage, for I didn’t see anyone while I was following you since t he beg inning of your run. Or, you couldn’t seen the shadow of Isilme Isto and me.” She shrugged her shoulders and walked into the river and bent over and cupped her hands. She pushed them under the waters surface and sipped the water after bringing it up to her mouth. She then reached into her pouch and pulled out a canteen. She took off the top and emptied the warm and muddy water (due to a recent sandstorm) and refilled it in the oasis’ river. She was grateful for them. She then stepped out of the water and looked over at Xena. “Do you see t his ‘ person’ anywhere around you?” she asked and looked around, wondering if the girl was mad, paranoid, or was just seeing a mirage.

"I'm sure it was one man, not too far. I could see his eyes. They were so real, my imagination sucks, he couldn't possibly have been my invention. Cold, black eyes. He ran so did I, so long I ran. Away from the shadows, away from civilization." Xena said, shaking her head. She could heardly feel the pain anymore but a new worry had entered her growing pile. Maybe she was going crazy or maybe someone was stalking her.

Ranewen looked around once more. “It’s highly possible, if you ran anywhere from near Kellen to here… From where did you run? It could’ve been a thief that was after you.” She shrugged her shoulders and looked around the desert. No one was around. But she could recall plenty men with pure black eyes. He could have been missing one, or his eyes just could happen to be black. She shrugged mentally and looked back at Xena, wondering if she was to answer or not. Ranewen would not blame her if she did not answer immediatly. It was hot out, and it might have to sink into her brain before she would be able to answer.

"I don't know the city's name." Xena replied slowly. "Pretty much from over there." She pointed in the direction from which she had run from. "Small town, but still quite a lot of people." Her pain wasn't there any more. She couldn't feel anything but the suspicions that filled her mind. She couldn't possibly be crazy could she? The idea of someone stalking her seemed more believable to her but concidering her past maybe she just was insane.