"I can't tell what it is," Crane spoke.  "We should press on nevertheless, we have time to kill, and a place to be."  Crane lightly swung the reigns, indicating to his Rehno that he wished to proceed.  The animal looked fearful, yet reluctantly agreed.  It slowly inched forward, before picking up a rapid speed.  It was almost as if nothing had happened.<br/><br/>The further he went, the stronger the scent became, until it was overpowering.  Chills rolled down Crane's spine, making the moment an eerie one.  It was his Rehno who found the source, as it lumbered towards a small dune of sorts in the plain.  Crane would have thought nothing of it, as deserts generally had sand dunes and the like.  The Rehno trotted to the dune, sniffing about, before sitting on it's hind legs.  Crane dismounted, and brushed his hand over the sandy lump, only to find that it was no sandy lump at all.  Slowly, the pile shuddered, sending a wave of fear into Crane.  The mass started to move as if it were descending into the sand, spraying Crane with turf.  Stumbling back, Crane managed to pull his sword from the Rehno's side, before it scampered away.  The ground shuddered violently, sending Crane to the floor.  The massive quake lasted only a few seconds before everything returned to the way it was.<br/><br/>It didn't stay that way.<br/><br/>A massive column of sand and skin rose from the ground, breaking through the crust and sending both dirt and stone at the party.  As it turned out, it was some sort of serpent, a creature like none he had seen before.  It looked at each of them with it's giant glowing eyes before opening it's tight jaws to release another cloud of obnoxious stench.  It meant business.<br/><br/><br/><a class="postlink" href="http://wiki.chronicles-of-blood.com/images/thumb/Creatures-Giant_serpent.jpg/350px-Creatures-Giant_serpent.jpg">[ img ]</a>((Imagine it a light brown color))<br/><br/><br/>Crane scrambled to his feet, pulling a weapon from his side and waving it at the beast.  The blade hummed menacingly in response.  Crane stared daggers at the beast as it did the same to them, swiveling it's head in the air.<br/><br/>"Guys, I'm going to need your help with this one," spoke Crane.