Jo'akith looked at Gallus with an expression that was, unfortunately, not encouraging. "As far as actual gold is concerned, the amount we have available is negligible. We took only what we had in our pockets when we fled after the attack, and we have not had any outside trading since we settled down here. It would be possible to find resources at our other outposts, but...that may not be a good idea. Only this outpost was kept out of our records. Vile's forces certainly know about the others, and may be watching, or even using them."

Ri'nakhad rubbed his mane, staring absently at the map as he contemplated the situation. "Those are fair points, Jo'akith, but it is worth mentioning that, while we do not have gold, we do have other resources that could be traded for it."

"Then that may be the way we could accomplish this successfully." Meesei commented. "If our greatest danger is the desert, then we can prepare against it. Ra'jorr, what would you say about this plan if you had more food and water available to you?"

Although Ra'jorr still seemed skeptical, his tone suggested that they could be on the right path to convincing him. "Well...those two resources would be our greatest concern. Water is the most important resource in the desert, but we can refill it completely at every oasis. We just need to ensure we have enough water storage to make every leg of the journey. Food would actually be harder to replenish. This one knows of a few locations where we could definitely trade for more, but overall, we would have to carry most of what we need for the journey. That too would take a lot of storage space."

Meesei nodded. "So storage space may be an issue. Are there any beasts of burden that can be used in the desert?"

"Yes, there are. It is not traditional for Khajiit, but camels have been used ever since they were brought here from the Alik'r. But purchasing camels would only reduce the amount of food we could buy." Ra'jorr answered.

"My pack still has a fair amount of gold from what we were allotted in Bruma, plus what we scavenged from Vile's outposts. We were going to use it for our journey back home, but we can use it to purchase these camels. Beyond that, Gallus' plan to trade for resources may work, but I do worry about the expense of hiring a ship to transport the cargo. If we could obtain the goods through Torval instead, we could simply move the entire clan closer to the city, so that no long distance transport would be needed. We would not need to divert far out of our path, and it is more than short enough of a journey that the clan should be able to make it without issue. Do you believe you could acquire goods from Torval in the same way, Gallus?" Meesei asked.

--- 

Peiter was laying in bed with Sabine, immediately following their second attempt. It had lasted longer this time, and he had not been as nervous through it. He laid facing her, staring into her eyes with a blissful smile. Despite the physical exertion, he felt energized. His heart was pounding, and his mind racing with thoughts almost exclusively about her. He simply felt [i]alive[/i]. 

"I...I wish I could think of more ways to say 'I love you.' How are you feeling this time?" He asked.