The night wrapped around Nneka like it knew her.
The village lights were far behind now.
No voices.No footsteps.No one is calling her name.
For the first time in her life…
No one was watching her.
But she wasn't alone.
She could feel it.
The closer she got to the Udala tree, the heavier the air became.
Like she was walking into something unseen.
Something waiting.
Her bare feet slowed.
Her breath deepened.
"I'm here…" she whispered.
The wind answered.
Soft at first.
Then rising.
Circling her.
And then—
"We know."
Nneka's chest tightened.
The voices were different now.
Not scattered.
Not chaotic.
Together.
As one.
She stepped forward.
The Udala tree stood tall before her.
Ancient.
Unmoving.
But she was alive in a way she couldn't explain.
Its roots twisted across the ground like veins.
Its branches stretched wide, blocking out the sky.
"You said I would understand," Nneka said, her voice steadier now."I don't. All I see is fear… and death."
Silence.
Then—
"Because you are still looking with human eyes."
The words echoed around her.
Inside her.
"What does that mean?" she asked.
The ground beneath her feet pulsed.
Once.
Then again.
Like a heartbeat.
"Close your eyes."
Nneka hesitated.
Every instinct told her not to.
But something deeper…
Something inside her…
told her to listen.
Slowly—
She closed her eyes.
At first—
Nothing.
Then—
Everything.
The world shifted.
The air thickened.
The silence broke.
And suddenly—
She heard them.
Not whispers.
Cries.
Hundreds of voices.
Layered.
Overlapping.
Desperate.
"Help us…"
"Free us…"
"They forgot us…"
"We are still here…"
Nneka gasped.
Her hands flew to her ears.
"Stop!" she cried. "Stop—please!"
But the voices didn't stop.
They grew louder.
And then—
She saw them.
Not with her eyes.
But inside her mind.
Figures.
Faded.
Broken.
Some standing.
Some crawling.
Some reaching out to her—
All trapped.
All waiting.
All watching her.
Nneka's breath shook.
"What… happened to you?"
A voice answered.
Different.
Clearer.
Stronger than the rest.
"We were left behind."
Her chest tightened.
"Left… where?"
The ground beneath her vision cracked.
Split open.
And beneath it—
Darkness.
Endless.
"Between worlds."
Nneka's heart pounded.
"They didn't guide us," the voice continued."They didn't remember us. They didn't set us free."
The other voices rose again.
Angrier now.
"They forgot!"
"They buried us!"
"They left us to rot!"
Nneka dropped to her knees.
Her hands were shaking.
Her mind was overwhelmed.
"I can't help all of you…" she whispered.
Silence.
Then—
The strong voice spoke again.
Closer now.
"But you can open the way."
Her head snapped up.
"What way?"
The darkness beneath the ground shifted.
Moved.
And something began to rise.
Slowly.
A shape.
Tall.
Unclear.
But powerful.
Nneka's breath caught.
"Who… is that?"
The voice answered—
"The first."
The figure stepped closer.
And as it did—
The other spirits fell silent.
Not out of peace.
Out of fear.
Nneka felt it instantly.
This was different.
This was not like the others.
This one—
Was dangerous.
"Why are they afraid of him?" she whispered.
The voice lowered.
Almost trembling.
"Because he remembers."
The figure lifted its head.
And though she couldn't see its face clearly—
She felt its gaze.
Locked on her.
"So do you."
Nneka's heart skipped.
"What do you mean?"
The ground shook violently.
Her vision shattered.
And suddenly—
She was back.
Standing beneath the Udala tree.
Breathing hard.
Sweat on her skin.
The night was quiet again.
Too quiet.
"I saw them…" she whispered.
The tree creaked softly.
"Now you know."
Nneka looked up, fear and understanding mixing in her eyes.
"They're trapped," she said."They need help."
A pause.
Then—
"Some do."
Her stomach dropped.
"What do you mean… some?"
The wind turned cold.
Sharper than before.
And the voice darkened.
"Not all spirits want peace."
Nneka's breath slowed.
Her mind raced.
"And the one I saw?"
A long silence.
Then—
"He does not want to be free."
Nneka's chest tightened.
"What does he want?"
The answer came slowly.
Heavily.
"To return."
Her heart stopped.
"To where?"
The tree groaned.
The ground trembled.
And the voice whispered—
"To the world of the living."
At that exact moment—
Nneka felt it again.
That presence.
But this time…
It wasn't distant.
It wasn't beneath the ground.
It was right behind her.
Breathing.
And a voice—deep, broken, and filled with rage—whispered into her ear:
"You will open the door for me."