Michael Ende's desert...

The Neverending Story (Die unendliche Geschichte) is, with Momo, the most representative Michael Ende’s fantastic novel.  The novel was later adapted into several films.

The majority of the story takes place in the parallel world of Fantasia, a world being destroyed by the Nothing. The first protagonist is a young warrior, Atreyu,  who is asked by the sick Empress to set off and find the cure for their world. The other protagonist is a boy from the real world, Bastian, a reader of the novel  with the same title, for whom the story gradually becomes more and more realistic.

The book centers on a boy, Bastian Balthazar Bux, who meets a man who owns an antique book store. Bastian steals a book from the store called The Neverending Story, which he reads and soon becomes a part of.

The book begins in  Fantasia, when a  "will-o-'-the-wisp" "goes to ask the Childlike Empress for help against the Nothing,  which is spreading over the land. The Empress is ill, which is believed to be the cause of the Nothing; she sends the only person that can stop the Nothing, a boy warrior named Atreyu, to find a cure for her. Atreyu is a brave person, being considered a man even though he is a young boy of Bastian's age.

While on his quest, Atreyu meets characters such as Benjamin, Uyulala, and the gnomes Urgl and Engywook. Atreyu also meets Falkor, the luckdragon, who helped him along the way. After Falkor accidentally drops Atreyu in Spook City, Atreyu meets G'mork the werewolf, who has been following Atreyu since the early days of his quest, intending to kill him. G'mork soon dies; Falkor and Atreyu leave Spook City to find the Ivory Tower, where the Childlike Empress lives. The Childlike Empress reveals that the only thing that can save Fantasia is a human child, who must give her a new name to start again the cycle of life in Fantasia.

Bastian comes to Fantasia by naming the Empress 'Moon Child'; she asks him to help re-build Fantasia with his imagination, and he subsequently has many adventures of his own in his new world. With the help of the Auryn, a Gem that links him to the Empress, that gives him power over all the inhabitants of Fantasia and grants all of the boy's wishes, Bastian explores the Desert of Colors, battles the evil Xayide, and meets the three Deep Thinkers. Bastian becomes friends with Atreyu, although their rivalry leads to a fight in which Atreyu is wounded. Bastian thereafter is corrupted by Xayide, who drives him to a lust for power. He is defeated in his attempt to start a coup d'état against the Childlike Empress. Bastian is unaware that every wish he makes takes away one of his memories, until it is very late and he no longer remembers anything of his past.

Eventually, Atreyu helps him, and Bastian then learns the true meaning of his mission with the Auryn. After he returns home, he decides to return the book to its owner, Carl Conrad Coreander, but the book disappears after Bastian returns from Fantasia. He explains this to Carl Conrad Coreander, who is interested in Bastian's adventures and wants to keep in touch to talk about them.

Grograman, "The Many Colored Death"

By: Jessica Menn 

Grograman: is the guardian and lord over Goab, the Desert of Colors, which keeps the rapid growth of Perilin the Night Forest in check. He appears in the form of a huge lion, who changes colors much like a chameleon based on the color of sand he is treading on. He is said to "bring the desert with him", turning all life around him into sand, thus his nickname "The Many Colored Death". Bastian is protected from this effect by AURYN. Grograman turns into an obsidian statue at night in order to allow the growth of Perilin. He gives Bastian his magic (and seemingly intelligent) sword, Sikanda.