Upepo snuck out of his resting rags right after his mother’s hoarse breathing eased into the more silent snore. Putting on his muddy shoes and placing his gas mask around his neck, he ducked out of the cold, damp cave as he made his way to the surface. Although the air was cleaner in moist caves like these, Upepo longed for the vast open freedom that only the surface could give him. 

With Father Aeolus busy overseeing the filtering of tomorrow’s air and water before the journey, he knew this was his last chance to sneak up there without being chastised. Before he could make it to the exit, however, he was caught by Zephyr. Arms folded, Upepo did not need to see his face behind the dusty goggles and gas mask to know that he was not pleased.

“I’m just going to sit by the mouth of the cave… Like last time,” he said carefully. 

Taking a long look at him, Zephyr sighed.

“You asked last time,” he said. “But fine, anything moves out there you report back to me.” He looked up at the mouth of the cave as he scratched his puffy hair. “I’m sure we’ve outrun those bastards but… anyway, just promise me that you will keep that on,” Zephyr pointed at the mask and goggles around his neck. “If Nia finds out that her son is coughing because of me, then her wrath will be the last thing I’ll see.” With a grateful salute, Upepo runs out of the cave and looks upon the cool night with a breath of relief. The air was coarse and rough to breathe, but unlike the others, Upepo never once coughed when he inhaled it directly. 

At night, with the still, stale air more cool and damp with moisture, Upepo found that all the soot (there sins) that fell from the air was thinner. Like the world was, even if only for a brief while, filtering the air itself, cleansing away their past sins. 

As promised to Zephyr, Upepo sat by the mouth of the cave, placed on his goggles and simply looked up at the endless sea of black clouds. The barrier to heaven. With his goggles smeared with dirt from wiping it with his equally dirty clothes, he could not see much in the dark beyond the path they walked up to seek shelter. At the very edge of his line of sight stood a lone tree. Clenching his hands in frustration, he let out a steady breath.

He just wished that he could see further beyond the darkness that the world had placed upon them. He wished that he could stop the madness that took his friends. He wished that he did not have to keep travelling just for cleaner air, water, and food. But most of all… 

“You wish to save your mum… don’t you?” The voice came from everywhere all at once. The stale air moved  the moment they spoke, making all the hairs on Upepo’s neck stand up. The tree off in the distance moved ever so slightly… 

Wind,  the air, forever stagnant since the great fall had moved. Sensing something present, he turned to see a strange girl who glowed with an inner green light beside him. The girl was nearing his age. A young teen with ebony skin shone through the green hue that radiated off her. Her existence was impossible. With a vest that was exceedingly white and hair that was exceedingly black, even behind his dirty goggles, Upepo could tell that there was no sign of travel on her. Worst yet, it was the face of a girl he once knew.

“Oya?” he mumbled. He instinctively reached for the trinket around his neck. The girl turned to him, a look of surprise on her face. 

Before Upepo could ask anything, he heard the distant sound of spiteful creatures howling upon the still night.

Their punishers were still close by. Before Upepo could warn them, he heard Zephyr already calling his name as he ran towards the cave with a few others. Cursing to himself, Upepo turned to Oya, only to find that she’d vanished. The impossible whistle of wind broke the still stale air, sending shivers upon his skin as he held tightly onto her gift around his neck. 

~#~

For three weeks, Upepo was punished by Father Aeolus’ for stepping outside; Being relegated to extra sacred duties. For the remaining days that they hid in the cave, he partook in the air and water cleansing ritual. A cycle of work with seemingly no end in sight. Waking up in the early mornings, he burned and crushed heaps of wood into a fine powder until his arms and lungs burned from the effort. Then he would move on to filter what little water they had left until he caught himself blacking out on his feet from exhaustion. Only when he was physically and mentally drained from work, did Upepo return to the spot in the damp cave to fall asleep. To him, this ‘punishment’  was a welcome distraction. An acceptable means to atone for a sin he held long before Aeolus thought to make him an example. 

Behind him, his mother Nia coughed persistently in her sleep. A bitter reminder of his uselessness hammered into his core with her every struggle for breath. Each one a countdown to his mother’s mortality. With fresh water and air so scarce, it was only a matter of time when she too will... 

He drifted into the abyss of sleep. The daily toll of his punishment blessedly pulling him under.

~#~

They climbed down a trail from the mountain; the soot falling gently upon a muted landscape, painting the dry rocks, grass and trees a uniformed grey. The muttered waste of the old world’s strange tools (Sinful weapons) lay spread on the land like black warts. Wiping his dirty goggles with the back of his muddy cloke, Upepo readjusted the straps on his sore shoulders before making it down the earthy trail. They had been near the front of the group at the start, but now they fell behind. And although he was willing and able to make it back to the front, Upepo instead remained at a steady pace, waiting by his mother’s side until she finally relents and asked for his assistance.

When she stumbled to a stop, coughing through her mask to catch her breath, Upepo patted his mother’s back before gently removing the strap of her bag upon her back to throw over his own.

Most of the people in their group walked on by, heads bowed, with one foot dragging in front of another. Their drab, messy clothes worked like camouflage to the dusty, dying world around them. This was the inevitable fate for all who’d lived through the sins of their forefathers. Among them only Zephyr had his head up high enough to see and offer help, but Upepo nodded him away in thanks. As he comforted his mother, Upepo made an effort to not shame her struggles by pretending to not notice. In his effort to look elsewhere, his breathing through the mask became more pronounced. With the sound of his breathing being his only tether to the world, he wondered again about the Spector he saw when he snuck out of the cave. 

Oya disappeared a long time ago. She claimed to have seen impossible things. People worried if she’d inhaled too much sin. One night she simply vanished, walking off into the darkness towards the accursed city, never to be seen again. She’d not been the first. It was the weight of their forefathers’ sins that killed her; they say.

With how heavy the soot clogged the air, all who breathed it bore their sins. The masks helped,  but there was no estimate of when it would turn them mad, just the inevitability that one day the burden of this world would be too much for some to endure. And soon it will seep into your mind and-

“-head in the clouds again?” his mother said, snapping him back to reality.

“Can you walk?” he asked. She nodded. She tried to take her bag back off of him, but this time Upepo insisted. Cursing to herself, her mother finally relented.

“What were you thinking about this time? When you were looking up at the barrier, I mean,” she said, looking up at the clouds. As they began falling into pace with the others Upeop’s heart tightened as he shrugged. 

“Why’d you ask?” he said.

“You’re the only one I know who even bothers to look up anymore,” she said. 

“So?” he asked. 

“So I just wonder what prayer you were hoping would slip through the barrier this time. Cycles knows it’s been a while since I wrapped you a gift.” Thankful for the gas mask, over his face Upepo swallowed a lump in his throat.

You don’t need to give me anything, mum… 

“Nothing special. I hope that the lemon farm is still intact. I hope that the river is still drinkable and holds fish,” he lied. Perhaps sensing his dishonesty, Nia sighed. 

“If this is about Father Aeolus punishing you, then I can maybe try to-”

“-Struggle builds character,” 

“Are you sure?” Nia asked. Upepo replied by gesturing to how many bags he carried, and although his smile could not be seen behind the mask, he knew that she could see the honesty in his eyes. 

“Father Aeolus is only hard on you because he knows that you will be a great leader. I know you don’t see eye to eye on everything but… just try to be more understanding.” Upepo made a noncommittal noise before feeling the silver trinket through his clothing with a smile on his face. That levity faded  when he felt a soft breeze hit his back. Hairs stood upon his neck as he turned to see just how close they were to the back of the group. 

“Upepo, that feeling just now. Wasn’t that-”

“-Let’s hurry.” His comforting hold of her back became a persuasive nudge. Nia was about to protest until she, too, looked behind them. They needed to keep up with the others. With those creatures still lurking around, it was only a matter of time before someone was left behind and became another sacrifice to them.

~#~

They travelled the old world. The rolling of wooden carts, coughs and footfalls of his people was the only sign of life among the drab, ashen grass lands. Ash forever fell from above, misting the world in a thick fog too harmful to breathe. 

As they came down the mountain, they were confronted with more tools from their forefathers. Large carts as dense as rock that held a hollow nose longer than a rhino’s horn. Sinful snakes, Father Aeolus would call them. 

When visibility became impossible at night, they rested. Upepo found himself looking up at the barrier again. Unable to sleep, he pulled out the trinket he was gifted.

“Light shone down from up there once, guiding people even in the darkness,” Oya stood beside him now, looking up at the barrier. Her voice came as clear as a bell all around him. Upepo moved the trinket in his hand, catching its face on a distant flickering campfire. It was a compass made of silver.  

”We once had names for those guiding lights, but… we’ve forgotten them.” She said, her glowing face grew pensive. It left him spellbound. With nobody else reacting to her voice, he wondered if it was all in his head.

“Oya…” he mumbled. 

“You can finally see me, Upepo.” her pensive look turned, she smiled as she looked down at him. Her lips did not move, and yet he heard her.

Am I finally going crazy like the others? Maybe this is how it started. Calming his racing heart, he swallowed back the words he wanted to shear with Oya and instead closed his eyes and pretended to be sleeping. 

“Guess I’m finally losing it,” he mumbled. In a funny way, it was a relief. So Long as he could take care of his mother before he lost it completely then…

“If existence only counted for the things you can see, then why do you pray for the winds?” Oya said, his shoulders shuddered, he did not think that last part aloud. This was a figment of his imagination. It was stupid, and yet it-

“-You ok bro?” Zephyr’s voice hissed through his mask. Opening his eyes, Upepo saw that Oya was replaced with his friend. He was keeping watch of everyone as they rested. Slowly nodding his head, Zephyr looked at him a while longer before shrugging to himself and turning away. 

This tale has been unlawfully obtained from Royal Road. If you discover it on Amazon, kindly report it.

“Keep your mask on,” he hissed before walking away. Unnerved, Upepo put the gas mask over himself before trying to get some rest. Both times, he had the mask off before she appeared. He rarely removed it, it was something he was very careful about not doing around others. He was always mindful, but this time he did not recall taking it off… 

~#~

Upepo was summoned by Aeolus the next morning. Leaving his mum in the care of Zephyr, he moved up the line to seek out their holy shepherd. Father Aeolus was kneeling in prayer when he arrived. A few other people kneeled beside him, praying before a tree that held a wind chime made of wood. It was the grave chosen for Hraes. He vanished during their last cycle after breaking his gas mask.  

Aeolus’ ragged robes were no cleaner than everyone else’s, but even so, there was something about his presence that separated him from all the others. Something that made all survivors he’d found want to unify and follow him. 

‘Where everyone else looks down at the dirt, Aeolus looks onwards to the horizon.’ Upepo could not put his finger on it, but something about what his mother Nia said had always struck a chord with him. Ever since then, it was the closest way he could describe the difference between Aeolus and everyone else. 

As the others peeled away from paying respects to rest or attend to duties, Aeolus called Upepo forward as he continued praying. 

“To live to see another cycle and visit old friends, we should count ourselves blessed.” Aeolus spoke through his mask. Looking up at the forever idle wind chimes upon the tree, he sighed. “I just wish I could send them on their next journey,” with his arms interlocked behind his back Upepo turned away to look at the far distance, the accursed ghost city loomed before them, its lofty tall buildings barely visible in the ashen mist. It was the place Hraes was spirited off to, he was sure. Something about the city always made everyone uncomfortable. Preferring to not remember what it was, he closed his eyes. 

“Perhaps when the time is right, the barrier will open, and their souls will go to heaven on angel’s wings. Blessing us with gales of air along the way.” Upepo said, looking back at the idle wind chimes. Hearing this, Aeolus chuckled to himself as he stood up. 

“You remembered my words,” he said. 

“More or less,” Upepo said. Aeolus nodded. 

“Life, death. The convergence of the two is an important part of the cycle, if we only seek one without the other. Be that purely hope or fear. We’d have no will to keep moving forward.” He said. Upepo inwardly stiffened at his words. 

“We keep running from them like this, and soon there will be none of us left to move forward,” Upepo mumbled. To be in the group was to swear to never hold any weapon. Because of this, they have no other choice but to run from the things that hunt them. Aeolus turned to him, his eyes a mask. Soon, however, that mask broke into a humbled smile. 

“This is why I call on you. Your honesty grounds me,” he said.

“But my honesty won’t change your decision,” he sniffed. 

“Our world became like this because of our fighting. I understand you’re worried about our future survival. But that doesn’t mean we should rush to repeat our forefathers’ sins.” 

“These sins are not ours to bear,” he mumbled. 

“And yet we survive by bearing them.” Upepo looked away. There was no point. Their conversations always ended up like this. Tapping him on the shoulder, Aeolus nodded to him proudly. “Hardship builds character, you’ll see. And cycles willing, a time will soon come where it will shower us with mercy.” 

~#~

Arriving at the lemon farm, they quickly began picking what they needed for their next leg of the journey. Although they had given their hunters the slip, it was only a matter of time before they came searching one of their main locations. Upepo carried extra lemons to help remedy his mother’s coughing. And although she insisted on helping the others in the picking, Upepo could not help but worry a little. But with time against them, he forced himself to head down and offer his strength in replenishing water and catching fish from the drying river. 

The river had thinned in size since the last time he saw it. The water yet again became more thick with mud. The ripple of the river’s surface was less pronounced as it flowed more lethargically downstream. Upepo’s heart hardened at the sight. It was just another reminder of their reality. 

They're dying, suffocating world, where even the liquid life essence of the planet was beating its last. Thankfully, there were fish still swimming within the river, and the water, although more muddy than before, would be drinkable after a few rounds of filtering. For now, they will survive. For now…

But what about next time? This river will soon go dry. He could tell by how silent everyone was as they worked that they thought it, too. That they had a great run. But soon prospects will vanish and it will all be over. 

The work was rough, the thick mud sank Upepo down to his knees making each step they took taxing. Soon many struggled to even bring up water without tripping and spilling it all, or worse. This, on top of having to be on the lookout for their hunters, meant that many people, fearing that they will have nothing left in them for when the time came to run, stopped collecting the fish and water. 

Only Zephyr seemed unaffected by their thinning prospects. Being the most animated, he’d launch into catching fish and toss them up to anybody nearby. Although it all seems to be done for a joke at first, some form of organisation happened soon after. Making a line of people from the river to the dry land above, they stood their ground and handed up fish and what water they could carry to the top. 

From the mouth of fear, hope surfaced as the people pulled in their efforts to unify and help gather what they needed to survive. That was when the cries of the hunter they thought they’d fooled echoed from the trail they themselves travelled down to get here. 

The warning horn sounded as people fell into a chaos, grabbing what they could, people scrambled to get to safety. In the blind panic, Upepo violently crashed into a big man, almost causing him to pass out and be trampled upon by the frantic masses. Being helped up by the big guy, they ran onward without a word said between them. Besides his cracked goggles and slack jaw, Upepo was ok. He was able to find his mother Nia, who dashed out of the lemon farm to reach him. Together, they ran to where Father Aeolus was gathering all the people he could together in order to leave. With his leadership, all seemed hopeful until Upepo saw Zephyr still standing in the thick mud. 

Ordering Aeolus to keep his mother on one of the karts for the escape, Upepo ran back down into the thick mud to save his friend. He was down to waist height, his legs unable to move and arms too tired from bringing the water and fish. He was helpless. Pulling him up alone only made him sink into the mud further, with little difference to Zephyr. With everyone too panicked to hear him call for help, Upepo resolved to pull his friend out and not let go until he was free, even if that meant that they both got killed, even if it meant that he became stuck in  his place he did not care. 

But just as he felt that he could save him in his place, Zephyr pushed him away.

“Ask before you try something so stupid!” Zephyr shouted.

“But-”

“-if Nia knew I survived because of you, I won’t live to see a tomorrow!” Upepo could hear the creatures coming closer. And among all the chaos, Zephyr sighed before smiling at him. “Guess the night watch is all yours from now on. Take care of them.”

With tears blurring his already foggy goggles, Upepo turned and ran from the drying river. 

~#~

They ran through the open lands until they could no longer keep running. Walking onwards, Father Aeolus did a status check on missing people and provisions. It was bad. With over seven people missing, two being children. They’d failed to secure the water cart. Nia saw its contents spill among the chaos. The only water they had left was what little that remained in their own bottles. 

Everyone knew without saying it out loud that without water, they will not last a week… 

“Zephyr is gone, and for what?”

“Their souls will go to heaven on angel’s wings.” Aeolus said, touching his shoulder. He could still hear the creatures screeching behind them. Angered, Upepo turned back the way they came, his hand grabbing an old rusted combat knife sitting by the roadside until Aeolus slapped it out of his grip. “We must not condemn ourselves!”

“But-”

“-It’s our fate to endure past burdens and pray for mercy!” 

“Upepo, your mask…” Nia said, breaking Upepo’s eyes away from Aeolus. She was pointing to his face now as others began to whisper around them. It was broken. Must have happened when he crashed into the big guy. He’d been breathing the soot covered air this whole time. 

Nia pleaded if anyone had a spear mask to give her son, but all around them shamefully looked away. Upepo was going to accept his fate, that was until his mother removed her own mask and tried to place it on his face. Falling to her knees from inhaling the sin, she begged him to take it. Shocked, Upepo demanded for her to put it back on. Just as he was about to force her mask back on her face, his ears burned from a slap across his cheek. She’d slapped him.

“Stupid boy! I will not sit and watch my child die before me!” tears in her eyes, Nia thumped his chest with all her might. As weak as she was, soft as the blows felt, Upepo felt as if all the wind was blown out of him. Her stubborn, smiling mother was hurting, and it was his fault. His mind frozen, he watched as she slid to her knees, sobbing. “Why…why have the cycles forsaken us?” Upepo heard a few others stifle sobs or pull back their mask to wipe at their eyes. 

“The cycles have not abandoned us, you’ll see.” Aeolus kneeled down to help his mother back to her feet. Seeing that he got everyone’s attention again, he nodded. “We are exposed here. Let’s seek shelter first before we…”

Before Aeolus could finish what he was saying, they heard it. The horrid creatures were coming closer. The people had no more strength left to keep running. As they sobbed, scrambled. As others curled or kneeled in prayer, as Upepo watched the end unfold before him as the dust clouds of the creatures’ approach came over the horizon and his mother tried to beg him to run away he saw her again, standing behind the people facing the incoming horde.

Reaching for the silver compass around his neck, Oya turned to him. The world around her slowed. As he gripped onto the trinket, a gale of wind tasseled his clothes, causing all who felt it to freeze in awe. In that moment, a torrent of memories rushed into him, taking his breath away. 

“I understand now…” he mumbled. All this time they’ve been played. Tricked by a mastermind far older than them, older than his people, and perhaps even older than the planet itself. So many things forgotten. Some done by their own hands, others done by… 

Upepo grew very angry. A power long forgotten to them rushed to his side as he clenched the metal compass tighter. The winds roared in response. Walking past all to reach Oya’s side, Upepo wrestled with the urge to turn to the city and announce his awareness of their evil scheme. He wanted to confront them, but… Aeolus was right. 

“We must not lose ourselves in this conflict, but that doesn’t mean we just sit around and wait for some miracle.” Upepo was stopped by someone taking a hold of the hand clenched onto the trinket. 

“Mother…” he did not need to turn around to know.

“I’m not letting go,” she mumbled. Although Upepo smiled, he dared not turn to look at her. 

“I thought of a present for you. A gift for the one you both found for me.” Steeling himself, Upepo tore away from Nia’s grip before she could respond. Now standing beside Oya, he watched as Lilliths’s demons drew closer. Huge Insectile creatures whose features were forgotten the moment they looked away from them. It was one of Lilith's favorite pawns. 

“I’m sorry that I could not give you more time,” Oya said. Upepo shook his head. 

“You’ve been enduring this whole thing alone…” Upepo gave a glance at the city. “You’ve been trying to reach me all this time, right? I’m sorry I took so long to realise.” searching his memories, he realised now that Oya has never left his side since the day she’d vanished. His words seemed to have impacted her deeply since tears began rolling down her face. Before they could get a hold of her, she chuckled as she wiped them away.

“That’s right, you were always slow on the uptake,” she said with a sigh.

“I’ll try to not let that hold us back this time,” he smiled back. The demons were getting closer. The winds danced to his wishes now, encircling him like a shroud, he was gaining quick mastery of the power. But It won’t be fast enough to be useful. 

“I’ll converge and feed you all the memories our ancestors have stored upon the planet into your mind so that you can fight them. But… once I start this you will-”

“-it’s the only way forward… right?” As the demons were seconds away from falling upon them, Oya responded by placing her spectral fingers on top of the hand that held the necklace. 

“This is your northern star. No matter what happens. Keep a tight hold of it.” Holding his gaze, she stepped in for a kiss. The world bursted into a bright haze soon after, as immense power surged through him. As the trinket burned his hands like the eight cycles. Upepo’s thoughts were blown apart, shattered into a thousand pieces as their wills converged into one. 

~#~

He could hardly feel the wind now, his body becoming numb to everything. The tempest that raged within him had vanished. Leaving him wiped clean of all its burdens. They’d unleashed immense power, destroying all the demons. They saved his mother and his people, followed Lillith’s taunting voice into the demonic city and… and…

Lilith? As much as he tried, he could not remember. 

“Forget about her…” Oya’s voice sounded bitter, distant, defeated. Did he fail? So hard to remember. He was so angry just about it a moment ago. But now, he was…at peace. 

Laying on his back, Upepo turned his head towards the barrier. Oya was kneeling by his side, her glowing aura brightened with her elated smile. 

“Upepo… you did it.” Oya looked upwards at something that shone brighter than even her radiant presence. Beyond them, Upepo saw the barrier slowly peeling away its confounds. His lips quivered in awe at the sight. 

Beyond the barrier glistened countless lights like sparkling jewels. Their glowing hues were sharp, pure, it was just like the sweet air he now breathed. One light at the center glowed brighter than the rest. It's  presence felt like an all comforting guardian eye looking down at him, soothing him in its radiance. To Upepo, it felt like the world had been scrubbed clean of all impurities. 

Heaven? The sheer sight of it brought a tear to his eye. It was beautiful. Oya, still smiling, looked down at him. 

“Not quite,” Oya’s voice chimed in his head. “But thanks to you, they’ll have light that can guide them to all four corners of the world. None will have to wander in vain anymore.” He tried to say something but his body failed him. He was fading. 

“The winds have returned once again. Your mother will live.” Countless wind chimes sang their songs upon new gales. 

So it has… 

…

Upepo’s world faded just as he heard his mother’s voice call for him. Hearing her shout without a mask covering it was a good sign. He felt her familiar hand touch his, but even that was fading.

“Upepo… this is one gift. I’ll forgive you for not wrapping,” Nia’s hoarse voice whispered in his ear. His prayer was answered. With a smile on his face, Upepo passed on without regret.