[ She lands with a grunt, squirming into a seated position awkwardly, and immediately reaches for the knots of rope around her ankles. ]

There's no point in these. [ Her voice is flat, resigned. She does not reach for the blindfold, though it'd be easier to remove than the ropes. Perhaps his threats have cowed her, or perhaps all that time in the hot sun. Ciri ducks her head, shoulders slumping as she lets out a long breath. ]

I'm hardly going to run across the desert on my own. But if I'm too sick or weak to do what you want, neither of us gets out of this.

Maybe you don't remember what humans need to survive, but food, water and rest are rather at the top of the list.