[Remedy]

The heat that she'd so well ignored before was becoming unbearable.  Her clothes itched from all the sand.  Her eyes burned and her throat hurt and she was all alone.  She was scared.  Suddenly freedom didn't feel so great.

[3.1]

[Remedy]

She looked hopelessly around.  Suddenly new colors started appearing off in the distance.  They didn't match the dull tan and pale blue of the desert.  They were darker... they were moving in a particular shape.  With vision impaired from the sand, she couldn't make out quite what she was seeing.

[3.2]

[Remedy]

As it approached, she was shocked by recognition.  It was her accomplice, the one she abandoned.  Distrust morphed into fear as she realized that no, there was no way this person was real.  It was only a vision, a mirage.  She was alone with an imaginary friend.

[3.3]

[Remedy]

They stood some ways away from one another.  Each carefully sized up and regarded the other with some amount of caution.  Then, with some difficulty, she rasped out, "What... what are you doing here?"
She recieved no reply.  Only a steady, accusing stare.

[3.4]

[Remedy]

"Hey!  She made an attempt to shout, but found it to be too painful.  A coughing fit overtook her.  When it had passed, she looked up and the apparition was gone.  Just like that, she was alone again.  Nothing to do but die or carry on.

[4.0]

[Remedy]

One step after another.  And another.  And another.
A new determination fired up within her.  It was not powered by freedom or colors, but by guilt.  

[4.1]

[Remedy]

She would go back.  Somehow, she'd find her way back.  That place that confined her for so long confined her still.  She could not enjoy her freedom with the weight upon her heart.  So she set off in a seemingly random direction, determined to redeem her freedom no matter how hopelessly lost she was.

[4.2]

[Remedy]

The sun was nearly completely swallowed by the horizon.  Finally, the heat began to subside and a cool wind blew across the sandy mounds.  In the coolness she found energy, and with that energy she climbed sand dune after sand dune.  Finally (and rather surprisingly) she was back at the rock.  Joy sprung onto her face when she saw it.

[4.3]

[Remedy]

Sluggishly jogging through the sand, she approached the rock.  With one extended arm she gently touched it.  She silently relayed her apology for leaving it all alone.  As her arm fell to her side she looked to the base of the rock.  A slight slope was left where she'd half-buried herself earlier in the day.  

[4.4]

[Remedy]

It took a bit of time and a rather lot of thought for her to recall what direction to take off in next.  She remembered approaching the rock from an angle where it didn't look as slanted as it turned out to be.  She briefly entertained the idea of climbing on top of the rock to get a view of the landscape around her.  However, when she acted upon this thought, she accidentally sliced her hand on a jagged edge.  After that plan fell through, she decided to just give it her best shot and follow her gut.

[5.0]

[Remedy]

It felt like ages.  The darkness had settled in, as with the cold.  Her feet were numb, despite the layers of clothing flimsily protecting them from the elements.  Strangely, the rest of her body did not feel quite as cold.  It felt... normal.

[5.1]

[Remedy]

Surely she couldn't get frostbite in the desert.  It wasn't cold enough for that.  So what was going on?  Why was it affecting her feet so much?  She kept walking, making dents in the sand with each staggering step.

[5.2]

[Remedy]

The winds were picking up, blowing shards of sand onto her face.  She closed her eyes as she continued forward.  It's not like she'd run into anything; there was nothing in the desert.  Nothing save for sand, the rock, that place, and her.  She was alone.

[5.3]

[Remedy]

As she continued, the environment started changing.  The sand under her feet changed to stone, but only every few steps.  The smooth rocks became more and more numerous as she continued.  It looked as if perhaps a river had run through the area long ago... at least, that was her guess.  
I don't remember this... she thought to herself, continuing anyway.

[5.4]

[Remedy]

The stones were beginning to really concern her.  She couldn't quite pinpoint why, but anxiety began bubbling up within.  Stopping, she bent down and lifted one up, turning it this way and that.  She squeezed it slightly.  To her surprise, it crumbled to sand in her fingertips.

[6.0]