Gerhard offered a warm smile to Dan, as the guy grew ever more excited about his new abilities. "Not a bad start." He thought to himself. Gerhard sheathed his hunting knife as easily as he had drawn the blade, and patted Zuine on the back. They then conversed for some minutes, and then Dan left to go tell the good Dr. Amato, leaving Gerhard alone in the commons area once more.<br/><br/>The evening stretched on into night. It seemed as though all of them had already slept an entire day and a half, yet still Gerhard raised his arms above his head, and let out a mighty yawn and stretch. He stood up off of the couch, and went about the corridors until he found an exit passage.<br/><br/>As he left the tent, the desert air suddenly washed up around his face, his arms and hair. Gerhard found an unconscious shiver run down his spine, as he suddenly realized just how stuffy the inside of the tent had been. A massive wooden pole jutted straight from out of the ground. Wires ran up the side, and at the top was a yellow halogen lamp, giving off a small bit of light in an oppressive darkness.<br/><br/>He once couldn't believe it himself, but the desert was brimming with life in the night. It was cold, and as he walked around the perimeter of the tent he felt the temperature drop at least several more degrees. But at the same time... he didn't necessarily feel like returning to the tent. He could see his breath in front of him, whisping away like the smoke from some long forgotten humidor.<br/><br/>"My god... it is cold, isn't it?" He thought to himself. He knew it was cold, in fact, but for some reason he did not seem as bothered by the temperature as he knew he ought to be. Gerhard suddenly became aware of a crunching sound, following in step with his footsteps. He immediately halted. Staying perfectly still, he listened, but the soft crunch of boots stopped the moment he did.<br/><br/>Gerhard then looked down, and realized that his feet had broken through the long sun-baked crust of the desert floor. "The hell...?" he took another step back, then continued hurriedly around the perimeter of the tent. The thought flashed over and over in his mind, and quickened his pulse, "What was my chip supposed to do? What was my chip supposed to do!?"<br/><br/>In his haste, however, he tripped over something in the darkness, and fell onto something. Or rather, someone. He couldn't see who it was, but the body was fleshy and soft. He felt hair, and then heard a loud curse. Immediately recognizing the voice, Gerhard let out a loud laugh. "Oh. Theadora. Fancy bumping into you out here. You wouldn't know where the next tent flap is, would you? I need to talk to the good doctor Amato, if you will."<br/><br/>Gerhard continued to grope in the darkness, "Oh, wait... what's this? It's kind of squishy."