by H A Tisdale
“Smells like lamb and bacon to me,” Leo answered attentively.
“Whatever it is, we have to go eat it right now,” Robin commanded as he led his tottering troops through the masquerade sea. He successfully brought us to a buffet spread filled with all of my favorite foods: braised lamb, roasted dusk, scalloped potatoes, bacon-wrapped shrimp, grilled vegetables, fresh fruit, and dozens of baked goods. We all hurried to grab plates and began filling them as if it were our final meal.
“We’re living the dream, boys!” Robin exclaimed as we guzzled down the grub. “Am I right, Benjamin?”
“Definitely,” I snickered to myself, still inwardly debating that genuine possibility.
“And if you think the wind followers’ food is good,” Robin continued, “just wait until you meet some of their women tonight. Hoooo, there are some beauties out there, Benjamin, and we are going to find the best for our sun-seeing guest.”
“Truth be told,” I could not help but brag with a haughty grin, “I already found one.”
Robin just about dropped his plate in excitement. “Who? What? Where? When? How?” he bombarded me like an investigative journalist.
With the alcohol still flooding my system, I had trouble deciding which of Robin’s questions I should answer first.
“Holey Pit, it better not be our mom!” Robin yelled belligerently. “Tell me it’s not our mom, Benjamin.”
“No, not your mom, no,” I quickly asserted. “I mean she saw me naked but—”
“Eww what?!” Ash interjected. “You were naked with our mother?”
I did what I could to undo the damage. “No, not like that! I came out of the Ancient Boulder naked, and she found me like that on the beach. I figured she had filled you in on that detail.”
“That’s really bizarre, man,” Ash stated a little disturbed.
“Hold on,” Robin yelled demandingly. “We are getting distracted from what’s really important here. Benjamin, who is this mysterious woman you’ve been keeping a secret from us all night?”
“Her name is Kecelia,” I finally answered, instantly causing every single brother’s mouth to drop. “What? Do you know her?”
“Holey Pit, this is bad, man,” Robin immediately remarked without answering my question.
“Why? Bad how?” I pressed now deeply distressed.
“Leo, explain,” Ash directed, too hysterical to explain himself.
Leo took a deep breath before breaking the bad news to me. “Kecelia is married, bro.”
“She’s married??” I released in a shallow breath as my heart dropped.
“But that’s not even the worst part,” Leo continued. “She’s married to the Windcatcher.”
“That Hive dude?” I asked, trying to remember what Robin had said about him earlier.
“Yes,” Robin answered fretfully, “she’s married to the Windcatcher Hive, and I’ve heard enough stories to know that Hive will literally murder you if he finds out you’ve been with his wife.”
“But nothing happened yet,” I quickly made my case. “We didn’t even kiss because she wanted to wait until tonight.”
“Oh, praise the Alchemist,” Robin exhaled. “There’s still some hope for you.”
“Umm, guys,” Ash stated in a panic, “I’m pretty sure Kecelia is standing right over there.” He pointed to the dark-haired woman who had just taken off her mask so that her amber eyes could more easily scan the crowd. She was sporting a revealing, red dress, which I would have described as ravishing if she had asked.
“What do I do?” I pleaded in a whisper. “I’m not sure I’ll be able to resist her if she finds me.”
“Dude, then you need to hide,” Robin instructed.
“Yeah and fast,” Leo emphasized as Kecelia advanced within our vicinity. “We’ll cover you.”
I slipped in the opposite direction as casually but also as hastily as I could. All of my jovial drunkenness had suddenly vanished, and survival instincts took over instead. Even if just a dream, I did not want to die by the hands of a jealous husband, and after weaving through people for a few minutes, I realized a tent would be the only place I could hide in order to avoid that threat. So I randomly selected one and slid inside.
By some great workings of serendipity, fate had led me into that specific tent, for someone very special lay within this enclosed, candlelit space. The tent smelled of fresh lavender, and as I entered the intimate setting, I beheld a young woman writing thoughtfully in her journal. She was lying on a bed of cushions, wearing a mask almost identical to mine, and her dark blonde hair swept across her blue dress as her neck turned to unveil her sensational amethyst eyes.
“Hi,” the young woman’s greeting chimed like music in my ears.
Instantly and utterly undone, I stared at the angelic specimen whose voice rang like the bells of Christmas. “Hi,” I breathed, forgetting all about my current dilemma.
“Is there something I can do for you?” this divine dove sang as her earnest eyes shined into my soul.
“I was just wondering if you could help me find my way,” I heard my heart spill out nonsense.
The young woman chuckled with cheer as if we were playing a game. “Where are you headed?” she inquired as the waves of her intonation continued to match the resonance of my soul.
“Though I had not discerned it previously, I now know that my course is set for the Haven where the light of the sun will never fade,” I declared with unparalleled courage and folly.
“You sound like a poet,” the young woman suggested with a gleeful smile, and with those words, I suspected who this celestial creature could be. But I did not care what obstacles might stand in our way because at the sound of her voice, all of my concerns passed away. For from this mellifluous maiden’s mouth came the most melodious tones, and I could not be drunker off this evolved form of poetry.
“Indeed, a poet I am,” I boasted passionately, fueled with liquid confidence, “though I must admit I have never had to describe such beauty as I currently see before me.”
The young woman laughed boisterously as she sat up against a hefty pillow. “Oh, bold poet, it cannot be me of whom you speak,” she protested playfully.
“Aye, goddess divine,” I appealed, taking several steps in her direction, “from my decree, I speak of thee.”
The young woman objected, “But you see not fully, for part of me is covered.”
“Truly, I see in part and not fully,” I conceded as I knelt down beside her, “but when all is unmasked, then beauty will meet its extremity.”
“You speak of my face, and maybe something more,” the young woman noted, looking down with humility, “but I speak of something with a further hidden door.”
“The contents of your journal no doubt hold the key to this veiled door; the pages of which I will ultimately adore. For I do not simply want the pleasures of the floor, but your birthstone unmasked I desire, nothing less, nothing more,” I pronounced, standing up with a reverent bow.
The woman blushed as she held her journal to her dress. “Who are you, bold poet, both erratic and free?”
“Already perhaps, you’re acquainted with my fame,” I replied, kneeling back down, “for Benjamin is my birth given name.”
“The one who has seen the sun?” she asked as her hand grabbed a nearby pillow, the wonder emanating from her amethyst eyes.
“Yes, the sun I’ve seen from afar,” I confirmed, reaching out and caressing her hand on the pillow, “though tonight I have seen one who shines far brighter than that dying star. So presently, I do humbly ask, for the beatific being’s name in whose presence I now bask.”
“I suspect you already know it, my handsome, clever poet,” she hummed as her thumb massaged my hand.
“Daughter of Reina, and by that, I mean Meina,” I whispered, leaning in to meet her nectar lips.
“Yes, I am Meina,” she breathed as she pulled her face away to deny my kiss. “And I mean to wait, to wait for the one who will bring me true l
ove’s rod, for I cannot know if this mask is your only façade.”
“Test me and prove me; give me the cure,” I beseeched, gently squeezing her hand, “for I will go to any length to show you my affections are pure.”
“Any length you say?” Meina questioned, her curiosity peaked.
“To the very depths of Lake Shale I would go, to show you my love will endlessly grow,” I pledged with a full heart.
This time, Meina beheld me, and with sternly hopeful eyes she announced, “A windy path you have chosen for yourself, my poet bold, for at the end of a long road lays our sweet page’s fold.”
“And on that path, I will endure every whirlwind,” I solemnly vowed, “if only I know your birthstone is waiting patiently at the end.”
“My birthstone is true, and if yours is too, then you have already started on that windy path, meaning you must face your first whirlwind’s wrath. For I grow tired and wish to sleep; return not tonight, this promise you must keep.”
“I will do whatever you ask; this tent I will dismiss, but first upon your hand, I ask you grant me one kiss.” Thus, I delicately laid my lips upon her fair hand as I gazed into her dazzling gems, and I wished for time to cease.
But a moment cannot last forever, and with much anguish, I released her precious hand. In return for my great sacrifice, Meina lifted her hand to her mouth and pressed her lips against the same spot I had kissed. “May you leave and face the night with courage grand, knowing that our bond has been sealed forever on my hand,” Meina’s lips leaked their final blessing.
As I stared into her amethyst eyes one last time, I slowly rose over my lovely rose, soaking in the aroma of her lavender tent. A windy path had led me to this true flower, and a windy path would now lead me through the thorns of the night.
“Goodnight, my sweet Meina,” I bid her farewell in a hush. “Tomorrow seems to torturously stretch so far away while I achingly yearn to see your face in the light of day.” So I turned and left the tent with a heart full of gold, a treasure that could not be stolen nor could grow old. In fact, this treasure would shine bright for many to see one day, but that day was not this night. Nay, this night, fate would be unaccommodating to my desires. Indeed, destiny had something else to accomplish.
I walked less than ten steps before Robin stumbled upon me, looking twice as drunk as I left him. “Benjaminnnn, my sunnn-seeeeing duuude,” he slurred with enthusiasm.
“Robin,” I laughed, “where are your brothers?”
“My brotherrs are everyyywherrrre! I havvve eighht of them, rememberrrr? Noww, come onnnn,” Robin prodded me with much difficulty, “or we’ll missss the performancccce of Pit, Breeeeze, and Flaaame!”
Without voicing my agreement, Robin dragged me across the windless valley to see the band currently playing, and when we reached the edge of the tents, we found a crowd roaring for an encore as the folk band Pit, Breeze, and Flame bowed on the wooden stage.
“Alright, alright,” one of the singers screamed, signaling the crowd to settle down, “we are going to play one more song for you, and not only for you but for the Ruakia as well. So we would like to dedicate this song to those invisible beings who faithfully move the wind, for without the wind, we would be lost. Thankfully, unlike most things in the Pit, there is no end to the wind.”
The banjo players strummed their strings first before the rest of the band joined in on beat, and the cavernous ceiling intermittently flashed down beams of colored light as it had in the Game Room:
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the winddddd, we follow the wind!
Everything will end;
All will fade away;
The day brings the night,
And night brings the day.
The songs will be sung;
The games will be played;
All thoughts will pass through,
And debts will be paid.
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the winddddd, we follow the wind!
Work gives fulfillment;
Our hands can connect;
But projects will cease,
And all paths get trekked.
Oh, food cheers the heart;
Strong drink numbs the pain;
But stomachs churn both,
And then there’s a stain.
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the winddddd, we follow the wind!
Babies grow bigger;
Toddlers want their turn;
Kids, they cause trouble,
And teens never learn.
All must admit it;
Life is but a breath;
Our days are numbered,
And we all face death.
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the winddddd, we follow the wind!
The wind always blows;
Somewhere in the Pit;
But sometimes it hides,
And that’s when we sit.
Oh, we follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the wind because there’s no end;
We follow the winddddd, we follow the wind!
We follooowww the wiiinnnnnnddd, we follow the wind!
As the band played the tune’s last note, a rushing gale swept through the myriad of tents. Everyone shouted and cheered, throwing their masks in the air for the breeze to carry them away. The wind had returned to the valley, not by chance, but by the invisible forces that controlled it, and though I had my own plans for the morning, another’s purpose would stand in the way.
Chapter 8
Storm of the Ruakia
“Get up, Benjamin, get up!” Reina shouted over the howling wind as I forced one eye open. “And put some clothes on for Pit’s sake. I’m tired of finding you naked.”
My other eye quickly opened to the sight of Reina standing over my bare body with a wind follower garment in her hands and a bag on her back. As I sat up to grab the piece of clothing, my head met an excruciating hangover pounding me without mercy. “Thanks,” I painfully uttered, holding my hand to my forehead as all my thoughts voiced their complaints of regret.
“How did you even end up like this?” Reina hastily interrogated.
“I think,” I vaguely remembered out loud as I slipped on the torn, flapped robe, “I think we went streaking. Yeah, after the wind started blowing, Robin and I took a bunch of shots with Simon and Daniel, and then—”
“There’s no time for you to recount your wild shenanigans,” Reina lectured speedily. “We have to catch the wind before it’s too late.”
“I have no idea what you’re talking about, Reina, but I desperately need some water,” I croaked with an incredibly dry mouth.
“Here,” Reina offered her canteen. “Now will you please follow me already?”
“Hold on,” I implored her before chugging the water down to the dregs. “Alright, I’m good. Now, let’s go catch that wind, whatever that means.”
Reina promptly left the tent, and I followed, immediately feeling the force of the wind pushing on my body. The current blew far faster than it had during the night, and I had to scrunch my eyes to accommodate its rapid speed. Except for some scattered tents, the entire campsite had been torn down and evacuated, but at the far end of the valley, a remnant of people stood nearby the performance stage, readying what looked like lightweight motorcycles.
“What are those things?” I screamed over the wind.
“Those are the windcycles I was telling you about yesterday,” Reina yelled back.
“Windcycles?” I repeated in bafflement, having thought she just meant wind cycles when she said that the wind followers go wherever their windcycles take them.
“I don’t know what I thought, but I really shouldn’t be surprised at this point,” I commented as I saw a couple of people whisked away by the wind when they opened the flaps on their windcycles. It then hit me that most of the camp had already left, and I wondered if Meina still remained. I had hoped to see her radiant face in the morning light and for her to see mine. After that, I had planned to ask Reina for her daughter’s beautiful hand in marriage so that my wildest dream could come true, having already concocted our celebrity couple name: #Benjameina. “Where is,” I coughed to catch myself, “where are your children?”
“Gone with the wind followers,” Reina delivered the disheartening news over the loud gusts. “I just saw them off and decided to search the camp one last time. I figured one of my kids had overlooked an abandoned tent or two.”
“You all were looking for me?” I asked tenderly.
“Of course, Benjamin, you’re one of us now,” Reina stressed over the muffling gales, putting her hand on my shoulder. Her words rooted deeply in my heart, and even with my roaring migraine aggravated by the intensity of the wind, I treasured this precious moment. “When we didn’t find you, we figured you might have left with an earlier group, but I wanted to be completely sure that we didn’t leave you behind.”
“Thanks, Reina,” I yelled through the agony of my headache. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”
Reina laughed. “You’d probably still be naked in Come Play City.” I smiled with a chuckle and said no more due to the throbbing on both sides my temple. As we trekked to the windcycle fleet, I panted with thirst, hoping I could soon replenish my body with the water it required.
Fortunately, a group of water jugs had been placed on the stage with some spare canteens kept in a nearby bin. Without me asking, Reina climbed on the stage with her canteen, grabbed another from the bin, and filled them until they overflowed with water. She jumped back down and wrapped the strapped canteen around my neck.
“Hey, don’t drink that all at once,” Reina warned as I proceeded to chug. “We have a long ride ahead of us, and you’re going to regret not having any.”