noon
The pack was hard to hold , and Sage King fretted at the monotonous walk . The hours dragged . The sun grew hot . And it was noon , almost , when she reached the point where she cut off the trail to the left . Thereafter , with the monuments standing ever higher , and the distance perceptibly lessening , the minutes passed less tediously . At length she reached the zone of lofty rocks , and found them different , how , she could not tell . She rode down among them , and was glad when she saw the huge mittens -- her landmarks .