A Flare Star for the Dramatic

[ Hot air, crumbling scrub-bushes, arid desiccation-- the pathway to the coast takes her through a gauntlet of prickly, sandy, outside. But she can already smell the sea. And, see the pointy bootprints, where they trace through loose dry soil, bend apart grabby foliage, and disturb the intricate lines of cracked, baked mud. ]