THE DISCOVERY
ON PLANET EARTH
TIME: EVENING
DATE: END OF WINTER
LOCATION: UNCLAIMED TERRITORY, BASE
OF HIGH NORTHERN MOUNTAINS.
SILVERN
Times were strange, very strange these days. And everyone, everything
knew it.
Every carnivore, herbivore and omnivore in the forest floor or sky knew
it. And not just in the forest and woods, but in the mountains too. High lands,
low lands and even the sea as well. But there is very little anyone could do
about it, we live along side it.
"Open your eyes and ears to see and hear, open your heart and soul to feel.
That's the key. Silvern."
This is what the man-cub told
me, and he gave me a name Silvern.
A name, a new concept. A word
or combination of words by which something is called and by means of which it
can be distinguished and identified.
Which is practical, it's very
hard trying to tell a fellow wolf you scented the one-eyed wolf when his sent
was not near for him to identify, I'd have to take him to the sight, let him
sniff around and identify who it was.
Of course, not all wolves have
mastered this abstract concept, there are other concepts which are much, much
harder, like trying to communicate across other species, especially those lower
down the food chain, even with the ones who are with you along the food chain;
it had proved impossible, what can I say, nature has her ways.
The breeze was a head wind,
coming from above the mountain. I caught the scent of the man-cub, I chased
after him.
I caught up, it wasn't hard,
he wasn't trying to avoid me.
Many a time had spring come and
left and the man-cub had grown. Mother took him back to the human, that was many
a winter ago, and now, the man-cub was growing interested in the thing by the
mountain.
Strange thing it was. It was
shaped like an upturned mushroom with a sort of stick in the middle. And it
always pointed towards the sky.
Sometimes unfamiliar unknown
humans who smelled strangely of something would come and fidget about it, then
leave. But there was at least two humans guarding it. Always.
Just once, just once I had seen
it act like an angered storm. It sent a bolt of lightning towards the heavens,
cutting a monstrous, silvery, twisted bird from the sky, tumbling falling to the
ground and with it a red flower was born. Fire.
The older human had wept at the
dieing bird.
He said it was a ship, a ship
that had tried to attack ground control.
I didn't understand anything
and left him alone. But young master did understand. And he too was troubled.
"Silvern." He greeted. I
walked beside him but kept my distance. I didn't know why, it was a feeling
deep within me, when master asked the older human he had called it instinct of
the wild.
'Is there something
bothering you? Human child?' I asked.
Indeed noticing his lack of enthusiasm.
"I would like you to stop
calling me that Silvern, I gave you a name and call you by it, why not call me
by mine."
'Very well human, I mean
Herne.'
"Herne…it's a wolf word
isn't it?" The human asked.
'It's a word all herla
use when speaking of…of him.'
"Herla?" The human asked.
'Herla is a term all
animals use when describing other species. A herla of wolves could be deer. Or
shrews or you basically.'
"Okay, who is him?"
'Him? I don't know.'
"You speak of something you
don't know about?"
'No, I do know what I'm
talking about, but explaining it would be hard.'
"I see."
I shook myself, a gesture of
annoyance, like trying to shake off a flea from my coat, futile, it takes more
than a mere shake of your bulk to get rid of the bloodsucking monsters. 'Him is Herne,
we have stories of him, stories of Blackwind toying around with Herne, defending
all wolves. It's like…fables. Almost, Herne is like a supreme wolf spirit,
easily angered, and wolves believe he lives at the top of the four sisters. If
any wolf is to stray up there, he is to meet Herne himself and die shortly
afterwards, then he would be remembered as a flower of the sky, a star, the
brightest is Herne-'
"Whoa!" The human said,
"The four sisters? As in the highest summits of the great mountain?"
'Yes,' I
answered patently, 'You asked me to go with you a time there in
spring but I told you it is winter all year on the four sisters, and-'
"But wait," He interrupted
me again, my fur bristled, "The four sisters? As in the four peeks on the
great mountain? Wait I thought they were five. Well at least the five that were
most pronounced and higher up than the rest."
'Yes,'
I said, 'But the fifth is the highest and the top could never be
seen, Herne lives there. It is told from one wolf who survived climbing right up
to the third sister, that he heard Herne himself, his song, the wolf said it was
strong, harsh and unwavering.'
"Wait. You mean Herne, the
four sisters and this Blackwind wolf, they're real?"
'No one knows.'
"Silvern." The human said
after a pause, "Is Herne a wolf god?"
'It is a term used by all
animals to call forth their strongest.'
"But did any of your pack, or
other packs meet the guy?"
'We have stories.'
"Is he alive?"
'No one knows.'
"So he is a god." The human
paused, "Do you believe that Herne is real?"
'I don't know.'
I said getting a little uncomfortable, 'Never
gave him much thought.'
"Come on, Silvern, I know
you, of all the wolves you think the most, you must have given him some thought.
Besides, I've known you to be open minded."
'As a young cub yes, but
as I grow older I am starting to become doubtful. But…but when times are hard
I recall the stories I heard from Barcc, the story teller, I find comfort in
them.'
"What about the four sisters?
The great mountain?"
'It's a long story, maybe
some day I will tell you of their stories.'
"Okay."
'You are not usually
patrolling this mountain,' I said
suddenly, 'What are you doing here?'
"I'm looking for Achivil."
He replied sadly, "He has disappeared."
I looked up at the human, 'Disappeared?'
"Yeah, I looked all over the
place for him, I…I wasn't hoping much, looking for his body actually, or a
dead carcass, he is after all, an old man…but," The human paused and looked
wistfully at the mountains, "I'm sad to see him go."
'Well that is not
unusual,' I said, 'It is not uncommon for an animal to feel disturbed
if a known one is missing.'
"No, Silvern, I'm not
'disturbed', I'm sad, I'm sad to thinking he's gone. He had been
everything, everything to me, an open window to the human soul, without him, I
wouldn't have known what is it like to be human… I wouldn't have
known…" He trailed off, looked at the stars miserably.
'They're up there aren't
they?' I asked, even though I had no idea
what I was talking about, once, Herne had tried to explain to me that the
humans, had fled to the stars, that they are up there. Somewhere.
"Yes." His voiced sounded
strange, there was a sad note to it.
'The wolves would take
good care of them.' I said, trying
to reassure him.
"Silvern, how many times do I
tell you they are not dead. They are there,
somewhere, I know they are, they…they keep trying to get here, to get back to
their home."
'What, are they lost?'
"No, their home was taken by
them." He replied patiently.
'Taken by them?' I
asked, puzzled slightly. 'By whom?'
"The humans that have a queer
aroma to them, and the strangers off the valley."
'Ah well, this is no
surprise.' I said, 'I was told
by my elders that humans often take away homes of other species and most of the
time, there is no coming back. But say, isn't it strange that humans try to
take away their own homes, away from themselves?'
"Silvern, they are not human,
the queer aroma-"
'A subspecies, another
breed then?' I supplied, 'That
would make sense.'
"No, they are humans ordinary
plain humans, but they are not at the same time."
'What are you talking about? It
is a human but it isn't?' I laughed, 'I've
seen the strange smelling humans and they're exactly like you, they have two
legs and walk erectility, just like you, they have two eyes, just like you, they
have a solid mane of fur on their heads, just like you, they have arms and five
fingered hands which they could use to manipulate objects and use tools, just
like you. What is the difference? Apart from the smell?'
"Silvern. You…you said that
your elders were leery of humans, that there are only legends about
communication between the species...you think that all of a sudden my
understanding of what you say is…coincidental?"
'No Herne. I don't know
why, but I tell you this much, it is about restoring a balance that was lost
long, long ago.'
"Twenty years ago." Herne
confirmed. "The humans that you saw are humans but you see their will…to
simplify and cut things down…they're infested."
'What?'
I asked. I trotted beside, always keeping my pace.
"They're like the parasites
that infest the skin or like the worms in your stomach."
'Sometime these parasites are
necessary, but others-'
"Are harmful, even deadly."
He finished for me. He looked at me for sometime.
'You were saying?'
"They are a sort of parasite,
they infest the brain, and use the body to command it for them."
'A substitution, making up for
their worm like bodies, they seize control of a host body…'
"They have absolute
control."
'But they don't kill
them?' I asked. 'The humans, I mean?'
"No, they live powerless."
'That is a mercy.'
"For an animal like you
Silvern, but humans…we want our brains, it is how we survived nature."
'Your adaptation; not by
physical strength, but intelligence and the power to live in large packs, I know
how you humans survive.'
I gave him a leery look.
"You knew?" He said,
looking surprised.
'This is why we feared
you.' I said, 'And this is why, as I continually tell you, to
stay away from the pack leaders, to stay away from the packs. Herne you know the
story.'
"I know, I know." He said
in exasperation, "Mother told me, 'stay away from the other wolves, they
will only bring harm in your way'."
'And this annoys you deeply?'
I
concluded.
"Why can't they
understand?"
'They are wolves, they
wouldn't understand, all they want to do is to live to see the sun rise
anew.'
"And you are not a wolf?"
The human asked, "Silvern?"
I was staring at a dense column
of trees, right by the foot of the mountains. I saw something stir. I pricked my
ears forward, strained to hear a sound.
Just another mountain goat, I
looked back at the human, 'What?'
"Are you not a wolf Silvern?"
'I am.' I
said slowly, 'But I feel as though I am different, I think more
about what is going to happen next winter than where is my next meal going to
come from.'
"You are like me, then."
Herne said.
'I'm not human.'
I said coldly.
"No, but you're not like
them either, you're not like the other wolves, if you were then why do you
spend so much time with me? If you were like them then you would have been
keeping your distance, but you're not, you don't."
'I'm not human.'
I repeated.
"No, you don't look like
one." He muttered. "And you're not sentimental. You are not human, you
walk on four legs, and you've got a tail, fur, sharp ears and a keen nose not
human."
'I don't look like one?'
I repeated his words, 'and you're saying that the humans
off the valley are not human because even though they look human, they don't
act human? Is that what I'm hearing?'
"You're a fast learner,
Silvern."
'Most wolves are, it is how we
adapt for survival.' I paused, 'Then
again, if you did think that we're not quick to adapt then look back on the
reactions of my elders, when you humans hunted them most had avoided your
species at any cost. And we don't make a habit of killing the humans either, that
would just make the angry.'
"Yet, Silvern, you are with
me. Are you stupid?"
'At the time of my elders
humans were a danger,' I replied, 'The
humans are gone, and the strangers are here, I have a human beside me that is
capable of not just understanding who these off valley strangers are, but is
able to communicate with them and bring back his species from the dead.'
"My species aren't dead,
not yet anyway, they'll come back, I'll get them to come back."
'Yes, to come back home.'
"You said wolves didn't
like humans."
'We don't like them but
we still appreciate them. Humans,' I paused, 'they help wounded
animals, they are capable of lending a helping hand to the weak, of all species
on earth they are the only ones who are capable of forming a relationship with
another animal, they are the only ones who are capable of stopping a forest
fire, they are…different, unique, and a first lesson of caution to any
half-witted animal. More than that, humans understand, they want to understand.
It is not a thing of survival, not exactly, but it brings control in one's
life…'
"I didn't know you had this
kind of view of humans."
'It's going to be hard to
convince the rest of the world,' I
muttered.
"Who?"
'The other animals, I thought
you wanted my help? You need your species back right? Well I know this much;
Earth wants her children back home as well.'
"That's sweet."
'Sweet is a human concept,
this, this is survival.'
"Survival from the
strangers."
'Restoring the order.'
I said softly, 'I have heard terrible stories, they come from the
children of the sea, the strangers are destroying areas…many animals are dead,
and so is a lot of Earth life.'
"And only humans can stop
this." Herne shook his head.
'Humans had always caused
destruction, but there had been humans at that time who work to restore the
destruction of their kind. That is human, Herne, thinking ahead, undoing errors
of others. A larger fuller understanding of the world, control over the
environment and ultimately; appreciation. There are a limited number of animals
that understand this.'
"You are one."
'That is right.'
"And the others…not all are
wolves right?"
'No, none of them, not
that I know of anyway.' I said, 'I
know of an animal that does understand, he is called Ashal; the great one of the
ocean. But he calls herself another name.'
"You've met him?"
'No…I don't know what he
looks like even, but I know that the dolphins, the little ones of the sea are a
relative of his species.'
"And what is his species
called?"
'Whales.'
"And he understands?"
'Yes.'
"He'll help us?"
'Yes.'
"Can we go there?" He
asked, "Now?"
'By the time I send word to him
and by the time he arrives and as all this happens we may make our way towards
the ocean, you can go on ahead, I have to ask a raven to call or him.'
"Sure." He hopped away.
I completed my errands and soon
I stood on an outcrop of rocks, waiting, Herne stood beside me, he too waited. I
would stand to pace from time to time, Herne was patient, any time I turn to
look at him, I see him staring at the sea, transfixed.
'What are you doing?'
I asked, my patience snapping, 'Ashal should be here by now,
what on Earth is the big one of the oceans doing?'
"You are usually patient,
Silvern, I've seen you hunt, what is wrong? Are you not at peace?"
'I'm not hunting,' I
snapped, 'he's wasting the time I could be using hunting for
deer.'
"Well, I'm at peace, say,
the ocean, Silvern, how far does he stretch?"
'Far longer than our Earth, I
tell you' I replied, I stopped pacing, 'It
is a vast place, a dolphin once told me that they too have mountains, ocean
mountains.'
"Is it a beautiful place?"
'Yes, it has a lots and
lots of food, a raven once told me that a shark told him that she is able to
feed just by opening her mouth and gliding her long body on her open wings,
floating in the sea. Can you imagine that? The raven told me its relevance is
like feeding yourself by flapping in the sky with your beak open awaiting
insects to find their way in. But for wolves, there is no food in air.'
"No, I mean, is it beautiful?
What kind of sky do they have? What are their grounds like? What colorful
creatures roam their forest beds? How large are their trees? When does the sun
set and rise? And does it display the beauty I see here? And what are their
flowers at night? Their stars, do they see planet as well?"
'I do not understand what
it is you are going on about, human.'
"It's like…" Herne
shook his head, "Never mind, forget it, you wouldn't understand the
appreciation we humans may have for the ways a forest may look."
PHMMMMMMMUR!
I jerked back startled as a jet
of water erupted for the ocean; a strong musky sent filled the breeze.
"Silvern, look!"
I did, it was hard not to, the
creature that surfaced to meet us was hard to miss.
'So this is a whale.'
I stared at the sub-island that
rose from the ocean, gray flesh, two enormous fins, and a hump.
YOU
CALLED FOR ME?
The voice was huge, just as
large as the ocean, and with his arrival I sensed him as if mentally; I could
see…no feel the depth of his insight.
The huge thing rolled on it's
side and looked at Herne with a relatively small reddish brown eye.
A
MAN-CHILD? HOW IS THAT SO?
"I am what you might say, a
real human." Herne spoke out, "I am the only human of what Achivil told me
to be free. Whale…Ashal, I need your help, I am told that you understand ways
not of the wild."
YOU ARE…
"I am not from the
strangers' colonies, Ashal, I am different than them humans, I lived in this
forest for all my life, my teacher, a great, old human named Achivil, taught me
about the strangers of the stars and about their ways, and also about my people,
the humans that fled to the heavens."
Long silence.
Ashal seemed to be thinking
about this visibly, he dove down and resurfaced.
CALL
ME NOT ASHAL, HUMAN, AND NOR YOU WOLF, FOR I MAY LOOK LIKE A WHALE, BUT WHO I AM
AND WHAT I REPRESENT IS NOT VISIBLE TO EITHER OF YOU.
"I do not understand. Asha-
what shall I call you then, I mean."
Call me Aftran, this is my
true name.
"Aftran? You are not a
whale?"
No, you said something
about strangers, about the…invaders from the stars, those that have come and
with their coming, humans fled to the stars.
"Yes, Achivil called them
Yeerks. He said they are dangerous, that they are the enemy."
I am one of them, human, I
am the enemy. But not an enemy at all.
"You are a Yeerk?"
Yes. I am a Yeerk.
I barked out a laugh, looking
at the Yeerk's mass I said, 'All this can fit into a human's
head? Tell me, Herne, just how large are your species' brains anyway?'
The significance of his
discovery, had, however, stopped him from remarking at my comment.
