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The story begins in a land where extreme heat and sparse nutrition prevail. Everything was hot to the touch, from the ground walked upon to the surface of clothing. Hopefully those who trek these lands came well prepared... There were rumors floating around that a devilish 'demon' who goes by the name Tsu-Ran-Go plagued these barren lands. Some say such a beast does not exist that it is just an illusion and the bodies found by travelers were just the remains of unprepared voyagers pecked to the bone by any avian carnivores. The sand layering the miles and miles of emptiness is white, reflecting back significant amounts of heat. Beasts that have adapted to the intense heat and reflective light from the white sand inhabit both land and air. With how sparse nutrition is, these creatures tend to be very aggressive.

Speculation nevertheless, however one particular individual found an interest in such a devilish rumor that he hired three individuals to see to it that the rumor is.. well.. just a rumor.

"I'm curious about this Tsu-Ran-Go fella. Some say he's real, others are in disbelief. Who knows! And I have to admit that one weakness of mine happens to be curiousity. Do go out and see to it the rumors and put an end to my curiousness here. You will be paid well if you come back. IF, you come back."

Only certain supplies were offered to the adventurers, whether they took them or not was absolutely their choice. Goggles and a vehicle with JUST enough fuel to make it to the destination and back. Due to the dog being apart of those whom the individual recruited, a particular vehicle was supplied as well.

"You see. They say this Tsu-Ran-Go only appears around a particular area where this Oasis of sorts stands alone on a single spire of land that has been eroding over the centuries so who knows how much time that Oasis has left as well as this rumor? Then again.. I feel there is more to this than just a measly ol' rumor. Go now! I hope to see you all back in one piece! Some could-be imaginary creature isn't the only thing out there."";

Standing amongst those chosen, Crow stood, fidgeting with her wide, dirtied, three-cornered hat. Her fingers were bared against the brim of the hat, pale as the rest of her complexion, and the coarse leather fabric that covered her forearms matched oddly enough with the ripped and multi-layered robes that she wore, which varied in shades of grey. Crow's expression was unchanged from the casual and uninterested as she says, "I do not require a payment. I am here for my own purpose, and my own purpose only."

Crow's yellow eyes drift to the sands, squinting. Then she walks over and takes one of the pair of goggles, lifting them upwards and fixing them to shield her eyes. {Pull the lever, Krunk.} Tightening the band behind her head, "I do not see why we need a dog, either. Does it have a specific purpose?" Crow's head turns to locate the dog, where it may be, and her lips form a curt frown once she spots it.

Crow's coarse leather boots bring her closer to the offered vehicles, and upon spending time observing, examining, and circling it, Crow places one coarse boot upon the vehicle and places the other upon the vehicles seat. Soon standing upon the seat, Crow rotates to face the handlebars, leaning forward to place her coarse gloves upon them, and in one swift motion, her form drops its boots upon the lever to the right, and the vehicle starts up. Seating herself upon the seat, Crow gives the right handlebar a few pulls, the engine responding with increased and decreased revolutions.

Beau shifted weight onto his leg to refrain from tapping his foot anxiously. He was ready for this mission to take off as soon as possible. The faster they found this Tsu-Ran-Go the faster he could hand his reward over to the people who really needed it. He untied the maroon bandana from around his forehead and secured it around the back of his head, covering his mouth. He'd already breathed in enough hot sand and the adventure hadn't even begun.

The young man stepped up to where the items were sectioned off and picked a pair of goggles out for himself. They were certainly eccentric enough, much fancier than anything he'd ever been able to grasp back at his hometown.

He walked up to his designated vehicle, whistling with wide eyes as he took in the sight. The automobile looked fit for royalty, not riding through such a harsh climate as this! Even the seat sectioned off for the dog was made of better material than Beau had ever seen in his life. He had to complete this job, that was for certain. If this person was willing to hand out such luxuries as these to his employees, their compensation would surely be enough for his family to live off of.

The curly haired blonde dusted off his worn, leather boots before placing one foot on the front tire in admiration.

Ru lay on the ground next to one of the vehicles,panting a little from the heat. When the female looked at him he tilted his head a bit in confusion. Ruawyn shook his head, his floppy ear slapping against his cheek and head. ~ if only you knew my secret people~ he thought yawning a little bit, getting to his paws he jumped into the side car, giving a small bark of annoyance. The oddly colored wolf dog hand a pare of goggles around his head but he was unable to move them to where they belonged.

Crow's goggled gaze glances over at the others, her head shaking softly. Her hands reach up and pinch the brim of her hat, sliding outward till the entire brim was touched. The hat's dirtied fabric sprouts tiny hands that grasp Crow's pale ears, just beneath the neatly trimmed, short-white hair. Crow's right hand squeezes on the vehicle's throttle and it starts its propulsion with a short burst of sand, before settling into a speedy pace. Crow stares ahead, occasionally sending a few glances to her sides.

Ru watched her go sneezing from the sand that drifted into his nose, he then looked at the other guy and wimped softly wondering when they where going. Ru sat there still panting, feeling a bit over heated with his long fur and the heat.

Beau coughed out some of the sand that managed to make it past his bandana and positioned his goggles into place over his eyes. He figured his partner wasn't one for idle chit-chat, but shouldn't they at least introduce themselves? He stared down at the smallest member of the crew, and pet him lightly over the head if he'd allow it. He moved the dog's goggles over its own eyes and gave him another light pat on his back.

"Gue-Guess it's you and me for now, huh? C'mon, l-lets go catch up."

He hopped on the seat of the bike, taking a moment to clench his hands over the throttle and brake before revving up the engine. He waited for the dog to jump in the adjacent seat, figuring if it was smart enough to go on a mission like this, surely it would know when it was time to move out.

(Does Ru have a collar on so that we know his name?)

The gentleman that had been there to personally brief them on their objective gave his farewells in momentary waves as a small aircraft descended from the sky above, lowering from its side a ladder in which was grabbed to hoist him up into the air. The sputtering sound of the propellor blades filled the air around.

"Try not to spend too much time dawdling, hm? Some of the predators out here might mistake you for lunch! Your friend had the right idea in leaving just now." Shouting over the noise of rotating propellers as it re-ascended into the air. This was a judgement being made off of the nearing avian creatures spotted in the distance.

From just a moment's glance in the southern sky from any of the group members could already spot seven large beasts making their way to scout for morsels to devour. For any late arrivals as only three of the four had made their appearance, the other set of goggles were left on the tabletop for later attainment along with the vehicle.

The further Crow went to the target destination, the more sand duns were becoming apparent varying in size making for quite the bumpy ride. Every so often the sand would shift en masse, creating pockets of sinking sand that were filling large divots underneath the visible layers.

Crow's right hand squeezed on the throttle of her vehicle more when she went to move up the sand dunes, letting her speed dwindle near the peak of the dunes. Her goggled gaze snaps between each hill and the section of sand between the dunes. Crow's mouth remains shut, though her body does rise from the seat as she nears the peaks of the dunes, and lowers itself back upon the seat as she descends the sloping sand. Though there may be sinkholes about!

Ru saw the beasts in the distants and lay his ears back, growling softly. He looked at the guy beside him and barked once, the dying sun glittering off the silver name tag on his teal collar.

Looks like their wouldn't be time to test the dog's intelligence. Beau lifted up the canine and planted him firmly in his seat before revving the engine and taking off. Sand spluttered all around the pair, but it subsided as they gained momentum on the hot earth.

Beau hooted and screamed excitedly as the bike soared over hills. He momentarily turned to gauge the hound's reaction, trying to figure out if he was going too fast or if the companion was enjoying himself as well. He desperately wanted to catch up to the mysterious white haired girl, though.

I'm sorry, I posted in the wrong chat! ;_;

With the constantly shifting earth it was hard to tell which section of the sand was pouring in on itself into what may lie underneath. As Crow descended one of the duns her path was met with an opening divot, however a passing sandworm within this opening provided the terrain necessary for 'safe' passage over its rugged shell. Hopefully the group is aware of the probable dangers that lie underneath the shifting sands.

While Beau sped across the sand with ease in his excitement treating each dun as a ramp in his haste to catch up to Crow a large elongated beast sprung forth from the pale grit. Knocking up a flurry of sand as the sandworm arched itself from one point in earth, arching over the cyclists with an echoing roar and plummeting onto the other side. Sure enough their speed was enough soon leave the creature behind, but just how many reside here?

Crow's goggled gaze doesn't stray from the vehicles sides, even as the vehicle bumps back and forth, treading over the beast's outer shell. Her right hand squeezes the throttle more, increasing her speed as she goes up another slope, and down another. Crow's hands turn the vehicle's handlebars to the side, and her vehicle starts ascending the corner slopes, and descending the corner slopes, Crow's vehicle alternating in diagonal directions.

Beau revved on the gas even more after seeing the giant beast, praying he'd have enough speed to avoid them all for now. He knew that inevitably he may have to best one or two, but he was focused on purely distance at the moment.

He jumped off of one particularly steep dune and landed somewhat wobbly, taking it as a sign to cool his jets. If the rumors were true this Tsu-Ran-Go surely wasn't going anywhere.

Ru yelped as he was nearly trow from the cart. it was just a good thing his harness had managed to get tangled in the seet belt and it kept him from falling out.

Surely enough with how fast Beau was hurdling over the duns should be find himself within a reasonable distance of Crow. At the peak of the duns the group could spot a shadowy figure in the distance surrounded by a massive black ring. The shifty vision caused by the rising hear glazing over distant objects left what the larger of the objects to be determined, however it was clear enough that the smaller of the two in its epicenter was the foretold Oasis.

Soon after a few more duns the group was to come across a less 'hilly' span of motionless sand, clear of impending divots. From just the sight of the destination could provide relief to the mind of having achieved something, however there was more to be conquered than just a few ups and downs of accumulated sand. Just as the two vehicles descended the last dun, a sudden explosion of force erupted from beneath them. One of the larger sandworms was not going to let a meal slip away so easily.

The beast roared in its forceful uprising propelled the vehicles forward. The worm after having reached its vertical peak fell onto its side with its enormous mass sending a powerful concussive accompanied with wave accompanied with a flurry of loose sand and dust through the solid layers of earth which sent a fissure zig-zagging about a halfway down the five mile stretch between the general terrain and the rocky land bridge to the Oasis. The worm began to shift and squirm its mass toward the cyclists along this now solid terrain roaring and screeching.

Crow's vehicle leaves the ground momentarily and lands upon the ground forcefully, the vehicle's back wheel swaying dangerously back and forth. Crow's form bends forward, putting her chest closer to the vehicle, her right hand squeezing the throttle all the way down as the vehicle balances out. Crow's goggled gaze made a quick glance backwards, before her form became upright once more.

Crow's hands pulled back from the handlebars until they seamlessly detached themselves from the wrist up. The vehicle's throttle and other handlebar were held straight, the right hand unmoving from the full-throttle position. Crow's lips move, but with the howling and screeching, her voice is near silent in comparison, as sand billows about her form, until she breaks free from the barrier of sand, her goggles speckled and her lips crusted, her robes leaving a trail of sand behind her, as the wind slowly cleaned them.

Beau and his companion landed the bike with a large 'thud' which would've been audible had it not been for the sounds of raging ripples of sand whipping at their ears. He squinted behind his goggles, trying to find an escape through the treacherous screen of dust, until he saw a glint of Crow's bike and followed behind.

Once out from the curtain of sand and driving at a safe speed, he found that he was parallel to the white-haired stranger.