"We sing because the scream isn't enough
and neither the crying nor the anger
We sing because we believe in the people
and because we'll defeat the defeat"

¿Por qué cantamos? (Why do we sing?) Mario Benedetti

Art, dreams, life, all of them words without meaning. In a world drowned in darkness people were forced to forget what protected their hope.

One after another the villages fall, eaten by monsters no one knew. They came unannounced, covered in the mist and leaving nothing more than sicknesses behind.

Families lost their members in the embrace of the monsters, but the ones who suffered most were those who cared for "the missing". Some nights the beasts visit the villages and take people in complete silence, they never came back, they were never found.

Rumors said the creatures loathed books, poetry and music. Any form of creative expression would lure them in. The only way of keeping them away: to forbid art. All the material sentenced to be burned, the citizens threatened to never mention it. Sacrifices must be done to survive, the men in power concluded that losing part of their identity was better than facing death.

In a little house in a secluded village lived Melody. The young girl couldn't understand why the monsters hated the greatest treasure of humanity. Her father, a wise man, said that art had the power to convey ideas and keep the memory alive, an ability that can be dangerous for those who desire to control  society. Melody's parents decided to share everything that was forbidden with her since childhood. At ten years of age she showed an immense interest in poetry and music, her two favorite forms of expression.

A cold cloudy morning the sweet girl distracted herself with a new song she just learned when horrifying screams travelled all around the village. The monsters were coming.

Taking the form of gigantic humans they walked surrounded by darkness, consuming everything that standed in their way. Melody saw a portion of the village being trapped in the dark. A big pitch black mist slipped across town, people sucked into it got lost in a never ending void. Fear could be seen in their faces and heard in their screams. Crying for help, most of the villagers tried to escape.

A familiar hand took the girl and dragged her in direction to the woods. She couldn't understand what the voice was telling her, the sounds drowned by the horrors of reality. Warm returned to her body, light blinded her eyes. Safety reached the humble family, they were protected inside the secret cabin built for all the villagers. They let emotions flow, tears filled their faces. Their embrace, the only comfort they could find.

Time moved along and other inhabitants arrived. All of them were devastated and terrified. Several minutes were necessary before they calmed. After that silence became  their refuge.

"It's that girl's fault," A woman screamed pointing to Melody "I heard her sing."

"She must've brought the monsters!" Someone shouted.

"We should send her out with the creatures, maybe they'll spare our lives."

"I'm not sending my daughter out just because you're afraid." Her mother interrupted.

The fragile situation didn't find a solution, compassion forgotten once the people realized their lives were at risk. So, in the middle of the night Melody and her parents came back to the woods. Both adults showed concern about the imminent arrival of death.  The kid, on the contrary, was elaborating a plan, a strategy to defeat the enemies.

Melody waited until her mom and dad lost the battle against tiresome. It took less than half an hour for them to fall asleep against the tree they used as cover. Making her best effort to maintain the silence the girl walked in the direction of the village.

One enormous black void stood in the spot where her home used to be. Any other person would experience an immense fear in the face of the most dangerous monsters of existence but she trusted her instinct. No creature is invincible, that includes the destructors who ruined the world.

Murderous gazes center on the small figure of the newcomer. Bodies made of pure evil got closer, already tasting the meal they were about to get. Melody let braveness control her actions, she didn't hesitate even when the darkness swallowed the air next to her. The girl allowed the shadows to dominate her existence and ,in the instant she sensed them winning, a song slipped through the space.

Light emerged from Melody's body winning the battle against the dark. The words held a massive amount of power that hasn't been summoned in a long time. They carried identity and memories, they brought hope in a moment of despair. For the first time the beings inside the shadows seem afraid, a simple little girl and her music turned into their weakness.

In the middle of the woods, inside the cabin people were awakened by a beautiful sound. The villagers decided to  follow it, in their way they reunited with Melody's parents who led the group to their daughter.

Those who remembered the words that traveled in the wind began to sing along. The strength of the people turned into one and the light grew reclaiming the place that belonged to them. The monsters retreat as the humans advance. In the end the creatures were defeated.

The village recovered with time but the ones who died in the hands of the monsters or the ones who were never found still lived in the memory of the survivors. They swore to protect their art and to always remember what the monsters did so it would never happen again. Never more.