Fata Morgana

Daniel and Laura rent an off-road vehicle to explore the Moroccan desert. At a gas station they meet a shady stranger who offers to guide them, but they refuse his help and continue on their own. They share a spontaneous moment of intimacy on a dune before discovering that their car won't start.

With the engine dead, they set out on foot and quickly realize they are lost as the wind blows their tracks away. They search for a way back to safety but struggle to read the landscape.

A tight-lipped stranger suddenly appears and offers to help repair the vehicle and to show them the way out of the desert. He leads them on his motorbike with their car in tow, and they follow him deeper into the sands. Suspicion begins to creep in as his route seems to steer away from the road.

The couple grows uneasy as it becomes clear the stranger is guiding them away from the visible road. The relationship strains under the pressure of the strange mission and ambiguous motives.

An argument drives Daniel away from the vehicle, and the stranger seizes the moment to seduce Laura. The couple's fragile trust collapses as a rift forms between them.

In a heated confrontation, Daniel punctures the stranger's motorbike tires with a knife. They resume driving, their voices raised as they quarrel on the dusty desert track.

The trio arrives at an ancient, deserted town in the middle of the desert. Laura walks away and Daniel searches the narrow alleys, only to discover that the stranger may have followed them into the town.

The stranger draws a knife on Daniel, but is quickly disarmed. Laura intervenes and strikes the stranger with a stone, tipping the balance in their struggle.

They try to carry or transport the injured stranger toward a hospital, but ultimately abandon him in the desert after agreeing he is likely dead. The decision marks a grim turning point in their journey.

Following the power poles, they drive back toward the road, hoping to put the ordeal behind them. The road offers a path to safety, but the memory of the encounter lingers.

A few days later they return to the place where they left the stranger. They find only a bloody bandage and footprints leading away from the site, suggesting the danger may not be over.