Tower of Paradise

Chapter 2: My life now (2)

I found myself in a dark space, defenseless and vulnerable. Our new home was a simple construction of poorly arranged planks that barely protected us from the elements.

Water filtered in mercilessly every time it rained, and the wind whistled through the cracks as if mocking our misery.

From my limited perspective as a baby, I could observe the deplorable state of our possessions: a few worn-out rags that served as blankets and a couple of rusty tin bowls that constituted all our dinnerware.

The walls, damp and neglected, served as home to countless black insects that crawled endlessly. Mud dripped from the ceiling with an irregular rhythm, mixing with the creaking of the tiny legs of those unwanted invaders.

The stale air made it difficult for me to breathe, but I had learned to live with it. I had no other choice.

The sounds of those creatures that shared our space had become a macabre symphony that accompanied my days and nights.

When hunger became unbearable, I began to cry, knowing it was my only form of communication. As expected, I heard my mother's sweet voice:

—Oh, it seems our baby is hungry again.

I felt her warm arms wrapping around me gently, and I stopped crying immediately. Why continue wasting energy when I had already gotten what I wanted? Crying was exhausting, and with my hunger, it only made my condition worse.

—Hoho, I think you recognize mommy.

I suspected my mother was an angel because I had never known someone so kind and warm.

While they carried me on their back with a sort of baby cradle strap, I accompanied her to what she called the district.

To feed us, she secured me to her back while collecting mushrooms and algae that grew in the perpetual darkness and humidity of the underground tunnels.

This place, I gradually understood, was an underground shelter, far from the sunlight and blue sky that I only knew in my memories.

From my privileged position on her back, I observed the pure earth floor, devoid of any vegetation and full of potholes and rocks. Instead, we were surrounded by artificial and colorless constructions that were lost in the darkness.

When I looked up, instinctively searching for the sky, I only found absolute blackness, deeper than any night I had known. It was a darkness that devoured light, so dense that I could only compare it to the void itself.

The streets we traveled through were crowded with people who, like us, wore light and ragged clothes despite the persistent cold.

The dwellings, small and precarious, were piled up along the sides of the narrow paths that meandered through the tunnels of the underground district.

They were makeshift constructions with cheap stones and various materials, silent witnesses to the daily struggle for survival.

—Oh, it seems Adelaide had a great harvest today.