Chapter 10: An endless desert.

They are faced with three huge mountains and two narrow gorges. They look at Faust, who tells them without hesitation, which one to follow, while protesting because his suit is dirty, torn and is the only thing he has. You feel bad that you have lost all elegance and glamor. A few meters from there, they are surprised by another group called "New Nation."

"Genomes claim the beast! "Says a woman who seems to be the one who commands the others -and we will take the young woman -she affirms.

The men carry unknown modern weapons. John, move towards them. He wants to make them see reason with his peaceful arguments, yet he sees hatred and the desire to fight in their eyes. But he's not willing to give up Lorraine for the world. If necessary, he will die for it. They are ready to shoot him, but our friends have Slok, who with his mind puts them to sleep, allowing his companions and himself to leave.

"How good that you are with us, friend! " John says hugging him.

The night returns to its heavy milky gloom. In one of the passing villages, they buy a tent to sleep in; At last they will be able to rest under blankets and blankets! Geranio does not mind sleeping outside and Faust Rocker finally stops complaining; Blackie huddles between Lorraine and John, indulging in his well-deserved doggy dream. The two young men talk until they fall asleep. Time passes too fast when you are together and apart from each other. The next morning.

How nice that we can eat something hot! -John says while with a big smile, spread a toast with a sausage paste. It was time to enjoy a different meal now that they seemed to have a break.

"Geranio likes hot food! "Exclaims the Cyclops, waiting for his portion. Slok prefers raw meat, Lorraine, vegetables, Faust, eat with John, and Blackie gets a succulent bone in meat.

According to Faust, they are already close to Neo Genova. - You only have to cross a long desert, so water will be essential and in quantity.

"You want to tell me, what am I doing here with you? At this point I think they can go on alone - says Faust, and Geranio hits him again - I already told you not to hit me anymore!"

"Would you rather jail over this?"

"It is true, yes. By God, what torture!"

"Think how you would face alone all that we left behind - John reminds him. And it's enough for Faust to be silent for the rest of the day."

They set up camp. As they get closer to the desert, the landscape becomes more dramatic; upholstered by hundreds of planes, wrecked, fallen during the war, it looks like an abandoned cemetery. The sun punishes without respite, the ozone layer is so thin that it does not offer any defense to the heated adventurers, who must protect their skin with high levels of protector against ultra violet rays, and the water intake is continuous, to avoid dehydration.

"The sun is killing me," Lorraine complains. "Can we stop for a moment?"

"Sure," John says, helping her find a place to sit. The only thing there are some large rocks that make little shade at that time of noon. The sand is so hot that it seems about to melt. They wet their heads and handkerchiefs seeking relief, when suddenly the ground begins to shake, the sand slides towards the center where a huge radioactive worm appears to the astonishment of all.

They look at each other and no word is needed to act, a kind of symbiosis has been created between them, and thanks to the help of Slok and especially the strength of Geranio; John manages to defeat the creature with his sword.

"Undoubtedly it is another confirmation that "unity is strength" - says Lorraine.

The journey through the desert is endless. Added to the infernal heat, they take very unpleasant surprises that seem to await them at every step. An adventure full of risks.

As they advance, they hear again noises coming from the dunes, from where some beings half man half scorpions appear, accompanied by humanoid goats and giant scorpions.

"We are; "Those of us who come from the sand." And we want everything they carry."

John wants to avoid the fight. For a moment there is a smile; It is comical to him that each group presents itself with such a bombastic name.

The invaders are restless. They actually perceive the energy coming from Lorraine, as they can see beyond. They fear those forces that it generates and seems to float above their heads.

"Who is this woman? "They ask

"Her name is Lorraine and she is my friend."

"If they want to pass, without paying, they must do us a favor "said the leader, trying to negotiate.

"What is it about?" John asks, recognizing a minimum danger in these subjects, and decides to play their game.

"In the desert there is a sect called, "The dark saints", they are shamans. They intend to eliminate us and then expand throughout the world. They are extremely dangerous, they constantly hunt this race" he says pointing to the goats "With their skulls and bones they make masks, weapons, and sometimes they sacrifice them to offer them to evil spirits."

"Agree. We'll help you, "John says.

"Are you crazy?" Says Faust "Those beings are very dangerous! " And he adds: "You have an incredible virtue to get us in trouble! We will also be late in reaching our destination."

"The lair of "The dark saints" is in the northwest of the desert" they inform to him.

Upon arrival, they verify the reality of what they were told. The entrance is adorned with goat skulls and other items of the same material. Suddenly an arrow sticks in front of Faust Rocker, who, unable to contain his fear, wets his pants.

The place is darkened by the evil spirits that fly over it with their deformed faces and their musty smell.

"This is getting really ugly!" Our friends think.

"Whoever they are, death awaits them!" A voice announces.

"We are sent from your god," says a Herculean being. "I'm the boss of "The Dark Saints." They will die, for daring to invade our territory!"

"We have no intention of hurting you, or disturbing you - says John - We only want to promote peace between you and the tribe "Those who come from the sand." The man laughs, his subjects too. Surprisingly, a huge slug with more than ten limbs, the spirit of a legendary demon, creeps closer. - If they want it that way, it must be like that! -He says, while at an incredible speed he ties them hand and foot to the sticks that hold the masks of hundreds of goats at their upper vertex. Even with the effort adventurers put into defending themselves, nothing seems to work; the spirit of that repulsive demon goes beyond what they can face. The end seems not far away and again, before the astonished gaze of the opponents, the strange metamorphosis occurs again. Lorraine, takes her feet off the ground and rises while her angelic features are transformed into those of a demon. His whole body shudders and changes color, as if he cannot control it, and his gaze radiates red, blue and silver flashes that hurt the retinas.

"My name is Lilith, I am the goddess of destruction!" she says in a metallic and deep voice.

Paralyzed, John does not understand who Lilith is, and it is at that moment that he remembers Lorraine's words and the experiments that her father did with her. You have no doubt, the drug Deutamine is a poison. And for now only Max, her father, can save her from this danger.

But how should you act here and now? John uses common sense and trusts that his voice will make her react. However, he must wait for the right moment. Lilith floats in the air, standing upright in blue flames. The head of the sect watches her and suddenly seems to recognize in her one of the most diabolical legendary demons. With no escape and already on the verge of being overtaken by the power of Lilith, he exclaims:

"We give up!" and falls to his knees.

"It's too late to give up! - Lilith shouts, with a voice that is not Lorraine's, and tilting her head and arms back; ready to finish him off, a scream from John brings her back to reality.

-"Stop it! Lorraine! ... Come back!"

Something inexplicable happens inside Lilith. John's voice exerts a very strong power in her, she listens to him in the deepest part of her being and stops, and this time it is she who shouts - release me! And in five seconds her face begins the transformation in reverse, returning her angelic features, and it is again Lorraine, the one everyone knows, only a little battered, the one who descends and while she does so, her appearance changes. Look around; she meets the astonished eyes of those who observe her and seconds later, she rests sitting on the ground with her head on her knees and her arms at the sides of her body. Her breathing normalizes and she stands up, as if nothing had happened, although John feels that with each transformation, Lorraine grows weaker and Lilith grows stronger.

Once freed, the adventurers keep their gaze fixed on a distant point or look at the ground. None of them dare to ask. It seems that there is a collective commitment to silence. Lorraine's metamorphosis is a matter that they neither understand nor dare to investigate. They are only astonished witnesses of the phenomenon that they have to live in that journey.

Suddenly, the dense atmosphere breaks

"Very well! You see, we kept our promise, now I suppose they will let us pass". - says John

"Are you crazy? You are our prisoners. Thanks for did an excellent job of getting rid of our enemies, but the reality is this."

"My friend made a great effort to end this. We're leaving now, or I swear they'll pay for it with their lives!" Terrified to see the robot with which John threatens him, the leader of the sect, makes way for them.