Swamped

You're just about to give up and start looking somewhere else, when you happen to catch sight of a large lizard stopping at the water's edge.

It dips its forelegs in, and then seems to be struggling to get away.

Now that's weird. You ride on over to check it out.

The lizard's about half the size of a croc. You didn't know they could get this big. But more importantly, the water's a lot less transparent than it is at the other oases you've seen.

And a little prodding into it with your mudpike lets the lizard loose. It scurries off, clearly not wanting to deal with this strange water.

When you pull your pike out, you find exactly what you expected: a pile of muckweed.

This "oasis" came from the swamp. It's a lot of water to go missing, too. This must be why the greblings didn't know about it... and if Rider did, then it's very likely to be the specific oasis he was looking for.

But he isn't here now. Has he been here and left already? Did he suddenly change his plans? Or could it be your desert horse let you get here before he did?

Well. Whether he's been here or not, maybe you can find some clue as to what he'd want to come here for, at the very least.