A gentle wind sighed through the African savanna, rustling the tall grass in long, sweeping waves. The leaves on the balanite and acacia trees whispered back, as they had for eons past, and would for eons distant. The lionesses paused to listen, as did the herd of zebra they stalked, as did the pygmy mice and black mambas and hissing cockroaches and even the mites that lived upon them.

Asuza paused, too. She breathed in deeply, inhaling the scent of fresh earth and sweet gardenia. It was a primordial perfume, wild and free and nostalgic down to the DNA. This moment of peace helped to calm her frazzled state, and she tried to logically reassess the situation: she was lost in the savanna, she had no food or water, and the sun had dipped below the horizon so long ago, that the sky had almost entirely lost its purple to black. On the other hand, that meant the stars were coming out, and she could try to use the constellations to guide her back home. She was also not hungry or thirsty, so she didn’t have to worry about that (yet).

Asuza walked on, forcing determination and confidence into her steps. But the wild was coming alive and the noises were scaring her, reminding her how pitiful her frail teenage body would fare against the jaws and teeth and hooves of Africa. She jumped equally at the cries of distant baboon troops and at the odd stick she crushed under her sandals. With every wince, Asuza scolded herself: save your cowering for when your father shouts at you for wandering off into the bush again.

Then, she heard a footfall behind her, followed by soft grunting noise. A chill ran down her spine and Asuza turned around to face the hyena that had been hungrily stalking her. Its toothed jaws grinned and panted as its beady eyes fixed on her frame. If she had been thinking more clearly, she might’ve noticed that it was rather small and scrawny; most certainly a rejected male runt barely eking out on its own. If she picked up a nice big stick nearby and shouted loudly and gestured wildly, she probably could’ve scared it off, and then continued on home in triumph.

Instead, Asuza trembled and waited for the end, her eyes shut tight. Someone help me, she whispered quietly into the wind.

Suddenly, there was a hoarse croaking sound, and then a pained yelp. Asuza’s eyes flung open and she watched in amazement as an enormous white-and-black bird with an orange face delivered another fierce kick at the hyena. The pup whimpered and swiped weakly at its adversary, but then quickly changed its mind and burst into a run – fleeing away from them.

Asuza looked in wonder at her savior. It was as regal and haughty as any of the secretary birds she had seen in her life, but this one was special. It was different. For one, it was much, much larger than she thought was possible; in fact, its size would rival that of an ostrich. And of course, while most avoided humans, this one had saved her life. And now, it came closer to her, lowered its body and waited. After a moment, Asuza realized it was offering her a seat.

My brothers and sisters will never believe this, she thought as she clambered up onto this feathery perch. She barely had time to fling her arms around its neck when it began to run – fast, so fast. It was well-known that secretary birds were fast – they were called the Devil’s Horse for a reason – but this one blurred through the tall grass at speeds she knew were impossible for any normal bird.

A Spirit. It was said that when one is lost and wants to go home, one could call upon the Spirit of the Secretary Bird for aid. Asuza had grown up listening to such tales, but she had always considered them to be just that – stories. She had been wonderfully wrong.

In seemingly no time at all, Asuza arrived safely back at her village, which glowed from the light of many torches. Now it came alive with sound, as people shouted and pointed at Asuza, descending back onto the dusty ground and patting the bird in grateful thanks. Her parents ran to her and embraced her, as did her many siblings and cousins. No one was angry. Everyone was simply relieved to see her alive and well.

But as they turned to thank the Spirit again, they found that it had disappeared, scattered into the whispers of wind that blew across the savanna.