The Land of Broken Roads

Dirt was licked awake and knew immediately it was Socks. His wide, wet tongue enveloped Dirt’s head and chest and the pup all but shouted at him, -Wake up, Dirt! Time to wake up!-

He smelled the den before he opened his eyes and it filled him with relief. He had the good sense not to try to get up, remembering just in time that both arms were broken. Looking over, he found Socks laying on the ground right next to him, close enough to poke him with his nose.

The cut that had laid Socks’ face open was now a fearsome scar that ran from ear to nose, and a few more interrupted the gray and black fur on his body. But other than that, the pup had sparks in his eyes and looked lively as ever.

Overhead, so many of Socks’ brothers and sisters leaned in to get a look that nothing was visible but wolf. Dirt opened his mouth to say something, but before he could, Socks licked him again.

Dirt laughed, swelling with the nameless joy of simply being alive. His arms ached, although much less now than before. Laughing like this made his face hurt too, but it didn’t matter.

A dozen or more wolf pups asked at the same time, -What is this? Why are you doing that?-

He responded without words, instead letting his relief and gratitude and happiness radiate out of him in every direction, strong as he could. And it was sincere—he felt it deeper than his bones. His broken ones. There was nowhere he’d rather be, except maybe snuggled right up against Socks, resting in his soft fur.

-He makes that sound when he gets too happy. He has to let out the extra,- said Socks, in a wise and knowing tone. -That is also why he bares his teeth. It is not a threat when he does it.-

“I have so much to tell you, Socks! You wouldn’t believe what I did this morning! Wait, is it still the same day?”

-It is and I was watching. I got bored, so I learned to watch farther and I was watching you most of the time.-

“I’m not even thirsty anymore. Why am I not thirsty?”

Socks was clearly amused, his good humor coming across along with a hint of affection, which Dirt returned tenfold. The other wolves gently jostled and pushed back and forth, fighting for a better position to watch.

Dirt felt himself lifted off the ground by Mother’s mind. The canopy of wolf faces parted as he rose up above them and floated toward the immense black-furred predator resting at the back of the den. All but Socks followed him, tails wagging.

He knew enough this time not to look directly at her, keeping his eyes downcast to show submission the only way he could from up here. She brought him close, hovering over her folded paws. The bare portion of the claws longer than he was tall.

It took sincere effort not to let the animal part of him panic so close to Mother, especially with him hovering helpless in midair, higher up than Socks was tall. Her hot breath blew across his skin each time she exhaled.

I AM HOLDING YOUR BONES TOGETHER. YOU WILL REMAIN HERE UNTIL THEY ARE STURDY AGAIN AND KEEP MY SON ENTERTAINED.

Mother’s voice was powerful as he remembered, just to the point a tiny bit more would cause him harm. Just enough to make it clear how much she was holding back, and how insignificant he was in front of her. Dirt wasn’t sure if he should reply or not, but there was a pause, so he sent, “I am unworthy, but I am grateful. I am eager to obey all you command.”

YOU COULD NOT HOPE TO BE WORTHY. THE MIGHTIEST OF YOUR KIND WHO EVER LIVED WAS ONLY A LITTLE STRONGER THAN MY SON IS NOW.

That surprised him. There had been a human as strong as Socks? Dirt couldn’t picture it. Jumping fifty feet in the air, running so fast the wind made it impossible to hear? Teeth to kill a goblin easy as a grub, claws to rip open that beast from the water? Just a little human doing that?

YOU FORGET CLOSING THE WOUNDS OF FLESH, MASTERY OF THE DREAM, AND GHOST SIGHT. THOSE ARE ONLY THE THINGS YOU HAVE SEEN. YOU MAY BE PLEASED TO KNOW THAT HE IS NOW THE EIGHTH STRONGEST OF MY CHILDREN.

Mother’s gaze turned him around slowly in the air, rotating him end over end before aligning him upright again. Dirt gave little thought to the treatment; instead, his mind latched on to Socks being the eighth strongest. He’d been twelfth strongest before. Did that mean—

YES, PUNY THING, IT MEANS YOU HAVE HELPED HIM GROW AND NOT DRAGGED HIM BEHIND. IN ALL THE AGES I HAVE SEEN, IT HAS NEVER BEEN LIKE THIS. LOOK AT MY OTHERS. THEY ALL WANT A HUMAN OF THEIR OWN.

Mother rotated him in the air again so he could get another look at the thirty or more giant wolf pups crowding below him, their inquisitive golden eyes locked on him, wagging their tails unheeding of who they might be smacking with them. She rotated him back to face her and he almost looked her in the eyes before he remembered to look down in humility. Right at her claws.

HIS THOUGHTS HAVE GROWN ORDERED BY THE DESIRE TO SPEAK WITH YOU AND HIS DESIRE TO PROTECT YOU DROVE HIM TO GIVE GREATER EFFORT TO HIS TASKS. YOU EVEN DISCOVERED HOW TO MELD YOUR MINDS, WHICH HAS NEVER BEEN KNOWN AMONG US. PERHAPS MY NEXT LITTER WILL EACH BE GIVEN A HUMAN, AND I WILL NOT NEED SO MANY.

There was another pause, so he sent, “I am grateful to know I might have helped. I love your son and I will help as many others as I can, any way I can.”

Mother ignored that statement, and he feared he may have offended her by speaking. But she continued, NOW YOU HAVE AWOKEN A DRYAD, SOMEHOW. THOSE HAVE NOT BEEN SEEN ON THIS WORLD SINCE BEFORE YOUR KIND FIRST EMERGED. THIS MARKS THE DAWN OF AN AGE, LITTLE HUMAN. TO THINK YOUR FIRST INTERACTION WAS TO HUG HER. YOU ARE LUCKY YOU WEREN’T RIPPED IN HALF.

Dirt smiled sheepishly to himself. She was right and he knew it.

MY CHILDREN WILL AVOID THAT FOREST UNTIL THE DRYADS LEARN TO CONTROL THEIR STRENGTH. SHE IS TEACHING THE OTHERS TO MANIFEST THEMSELVES AND SOON THEY WILL BE EVERYWHERE. SHE WOULD NOT LISTEN TO ME UNTIL I SHOWED HER A FEMALE HUMAN SHAPE. I SEE YOU HAVE QUESTIONS. FOR THE SAKE OF MY CHILDREN’S LEARNING, NOT YOURS, I PERMIT YOU TO ASK.

The first thing he asked was the question that was pressing its way out all on its own. “Home is female?”

TREES HAVE MALE AND FEMALE AS DO MOST OTHER LIVING THINGS. MOST OF THAT FOREST ARE FEMALE, BUT NOT ALL.

“When will it be safe to go back? She didn’t mean to hurt me.”

OF COURSE SHE DID NOT MEAN TO HURT YOU. SHE REBUILT YOUR DREAM BODY AND YOUR MANA VESSEL. SHE ALREADY INSISTS I RETURN YOU, BUT THAT WILL WAIT UNTIL THEY ARE MORE FAMILIAR WITH THE PHYSICAL WORLD.

Dirt struggled to pick the next question. He would only get so many, and there were a hundred things he wanted to know. What all those bodies he had were for, where to find other humans, how to learn the language of trees. Anything about who he’d been before. He was too ignorant. “What… Well… You are wiser than I will ever understand. What should I know that… that will help me be of greater benefit to Socks?”

Dirt felt a ripple in the power that held him aloft. That question seemed to have surprised her.

IT IS EASY TO FORGET YOU ARE NOT TRULY A CHILD. THIS IS MY ANSWER: ANYTHING HE TEACHES YOU, HE LEARNS BETTER FOR HIMSELF.

He started floating backward in the air and knew the audience was over. The crowd of pups parted again and Mother deposited him right on the ground where he’d been before. He would have preferred to rest on top of Socks where it was warm and soft, but the pup probably wanted him where he could see and smell him without moving.

No sooner was he laying still again than the entire litter of pups crowded in and fired questions at him faster than he could process. The mental noise made his brain hurt, but he did his best to steel himself against it instead of complaining.

-Tell us about the dryads!- said one.

-The water!- said another.

Many more sent ideas with no words attached, but one theme was common—they all wanted a story or two. Dirt wasn’t sure how to send his thoughts to so many at once, so he placed the pictures in his mind and let them watch. Once he started, they all quieted down and the closest ones leaned in, close enough their hot breath puffed against his skin.

From there, he showed them everything he could think of. The gryphon, the goblins, learning to swim, what Home’s forest was like, the fight with the tentacle monster, Home’s dryad. No sooner had he gone through everything than they all wanted to hear it again, including Socks, so Dirt started over, adding details and taking his time.

As the stories stretched on, several left and others returned from their adventures outside the den, each wanting to see everything Dirt had to tell. Halfway through the fourth telling, his mind was too worn out to continue and the story simply fell apart. The pups finally left him alone, although they would stop to sniff him anytime they walked past and look to see what he was thinking about.

He and Socks could chat quietly with each other then, free from most distraction. They did so for a long while, slow conversation full of imagination and adventure. Restful and healing. When it was Socks’ turn to nurse, Mother lifted him off the ground and floated him over, easy as she’d done with Dirt, and set him down where he could reach.

For his part, Dirt was only a little thirsty and didn’t dare ask for anything, not until he was desperate. Mother said not to talk to her, and who else could he ask? But then a ball of water appeared right in front of his face, about the size of his fist. It hovered and rippled in midair, and without needing to be told, he lifted his lips and drank.

Mother lay Socks down right where he’d been before and the pup immediately licked him again. Dirt smelled the sweet milk on his breath, something he’d never encountered before but somehow knew about, and felt a hint of envy that he quashed by remembering how lucky he was to be alive at all.

-So what should I teach you?- asked Socks.

“I don’t know. It’s hard to teach me much of anything just laying here.”

-What about this? I taught you how to speak with your mind and Mother says most humans can’t do that, so maybe we can try this.- said Socks. He pushed an image into Dirt’s mind of the world washing out into gray and black and receding, expanding to show more of the surrounding area than his mind could handle at once. It grew ever outward to include greater stretches of land, so many rocks and trees, hills and sky and air, each pushing its way into his consciousness. Before Dirt could beg for him to stop, Socks saw his distress and pulled it back. The departing vision left dizziness and a deep ache behind, both of which faded after a brief moment.

-You are very small, so ghost sight might be too much for you. Oh, I know what we can try.-

“What’s that?” asked Dirt nervously.

-Mother said your mana vessel is fixed, so I wonder if I can teach you how to fill it up.-

“What does that mean?”

-Magic. You know, so you can run fast and jump high.-

Dirt almost sat up in his excitement. “Let’s try!”

-It will be tiring, so we shall try tomorrow.-

“I can’t wait!”

-Yes you can.-