“Air, I should explain, becomes wind when it is agitated.”

- Titus Lucretius Carus, On the Nature of Things

"So, how is it that you found yourself in my gales?" the man asked as he carried himself and you down towards the sandy ground. You eyed him carefully as you tried to get your heart rate to decrease, breathing in long increments. "We- my friends and I, were attacked by these birds," you answered in a raspy voice, almost stumbling over your words. Your body was frozen in shock. Yes, you had hoped to some how survive the plummet, but not in such an unexpected way (like a stranger cushioning your fall with wind). "Ah," the man exclaimed, nodding his head slowly as he settled you both on the sand, "Yes, that's how most people find themselves out here. It's not like anyone really wanted to come visit us." You blinked and reached a hand out towards him, a frown on your face. "I-I'm sorry. I didn't mean it like-" "Hey, I'm kidding," The man said, cutting you off quickly. 

Feet landing on the sandy floor, you nearly fell over. Both your legs were unstable, unbalanced from your fall. Your body lurched forward, and had it not been for the man grabbing your arms speedily, you would have most definatly landed face first into the ground. He steadied you on your feet, his hands moving from your arms to your shoulders to help maintain your equilibrium. Your head was still spinning. "Whoa, careful. I just saved your life, and it would be a shame for you to pass out right now without you telling me your name first," he said with a deep chuckle. His eyes, a deep shade of brown and caramel, danced playfully as he looked at you.

"I'm Kora, of the Tribe of Iren. Thank you for saving me." you told him in a soft breath. "I'm Sehun, of the Tribe of Lasim. My pleasure," the man replied, the outline of a smile forming from behind the cloth covering his mouth and nose, "Things were getting boring out here anyway." The sun glinted against your eyes, so you pulled your gaze away from him to look at your surroundings. You suddenly noticed that the storm of wind and sand that had engulfed you earlier had disappeared, leaving you and the man, Sehun, in the middle of a sandy wasteland. There was nothing in sight but miles and miles of sand. So much sand. "And where exactly is 'out here'?" you questioned, making quotation marks in the air with your fingers as you repeated him before leaning down towards the ground.

You grasped a fistful of sand in one hand, planning to let it slowly slip through your fingers. That probably was not the best idea since the sand was extremely hot, causing you to drop all the sand out as quickly as possible because it burned your palm. You hissed in pain, pulling your hand to your chest as you tried to lessen the pain by cradling it in your other hand. Sehun began laughing, covering his cloaked mouth with back of his hand in an attempt to quiet the sound. You hissed at the burning sensation, which your feet were experiencing as well since your foot wraps had become loose from the aerial drop. In response you tried to burry them in the cooler sand beneath the initial surface, which worked somewhat effectively. "This place is called many things by many people: Nowhere, somewhere, anywhere, beyond the gate, you name it." Sehun answered as he gazed out upon the terrain, "But my people call it the Ökenna." 

"And the Ökenna is... a desert?" You asked him, following his line of sight. There was absolutely nothing in view besides variously sized dunes of sand with the occasional gust of wind creating small peaks in the sand or miniature twisters. "More or less," Sehun replied with a shrug of his shoulders. "Wait, where are my friends?" You said suddenly, eyes widening as you ran away from him and looked about trying to find any indication of your friends' presence. Nothing. There was absolutely nothing, except for endless waves of sand shifting in the wind. "Luhan? Suho? Kris, where are you?" you shouted, running all around as you began to scream louder, "Kai? Are you here, Tao? Baekhyun? Lay?" Suddenly a hand was pulled over your mouth and another against the back of your neck, muffling your screams. It was Sehun, who held a fiery and serious expression on his face. "Quiet!" He hissed, "I just saved you, and that'd be such a waste of my time an energy if you get both of us killed!"

You screamed against his hand. He was defiantly too close for comfort for you, and you had half a mind to clock him in the face. But he hushed you even more, grumbling to himself about how frustrating you were becoming. "I said be quiet!" he snapped, finally getting you to quiet down. You chest heaved up and down, gasping for air through his fingers as you looked up at him. He was significantly taller than you, and perhaps you went silent slightly due to the fact that you were captivated by his height. He sighed and looked down at you, "I know you're worried, okay? I would be too, but you yelling isn't going to help the situation, all right? There are deadly things that live in the Ökenna. Nod your head if you understand." You stared at him before slowly nodding your head. Sehun exhaled softly before removing his hands from