Mouzer’s™ Beginning

A mouse. Not just any mouse. Not just a tiny scurrying mouse. But a mouse with a purpose. Tiny roots whispered to each other as it scurried about, its wrinkling nose sniffing the gentle breeze. Safe, unafraid, it moved with intention, guided by something unseen. The breeze carried with it a faint whisper, and a branch swayed softly, as if an orchestra director pointing and probing.

The Elder Elm was calling. The tallest of trees in the forest, it stood as a fortress, its trunk so massive that ten grown humans stretching their arms could scarcely encircle it. The protector of life. The beginning of life. The provider of life. There was no escaping the call from the Elder Elm. It had chosen not a victim, not a prisoner, but a protector—even if it was just a mouse. Past, present, and future lay preserved within the giant trunk, buried deep inside to guard the life force within. Around the Elm, new beginnings pulsed in tune with the crystal, creation sparked with every heartbeat.

A fern swayed here, a petal brushed there, forming an unseen path that sent the little creature scurrying toward the Elder Elm. The forest seemed to conduct a symphony, reaching a crescendo as the mouse moved. It swayed, not in rhythm with the music, but with the guiding force of the forest, nudging it forward.

Before the mouse stood the giant elm, a wall of bark stretching into the clouds. At its base was the tiniest of holes, glowing faintly. No fear crept into the mouse’s heart. Cautiously, it sniffed the air, drawing closer with each step. A warm feeling washed over it, comforting both inside and out.

Calmly, it entered, following the soft glow that trickled down through the maze of roots at the base of the Elder Elm. The roots twisted and intertwined, forming a labyrinth of wooden veins pulsing with the heartbeat of the forest. Each step felt like a descent into a world unknown, where time became slippery, stretching into eternity or perhaps shrinking into mere seconds. Mouzer could sense the enormity of what lay ahead, even if he couldn’t fully comprehend it.

The air grew warmer, heavier, infused with an ancient energy that vibrated through his small body. The glow was faint at first, a mere glimmer between tangled roots, but it grew stronger, drawing him deeper and deeper. Shadows danced along the twisting path, but he felt no fear. Every step seemed preordained, each tiny footfall guided by an unseen hand.

The path widened, leading to a cavernous chamber hidden far below the forest floor. Here, at the heart of the Elder Elm, he beheld the source of the light—a massive, pulsing crystal suspended in the depths, cradled by the thickest roots of the great tree. It hung in the air as if held by invisible threads, a steady, gentle glow radiating from within. The sight captivated him, filling him with awe. This was no ordinary seed; it was the essence of life itself.

He crept closer, captivated by the steady, soothing rhythm of the crystal’s glow. It pulsed in time with his own heartbeat, and he felt a strange unity with it, as if they were bound together by an invisible thread. Warmth radiated from it, seeping into his bones and filling him with knowledge—of the past, of the present, and of countless futures yet to come.

He didn’t know how long he was there. But he did feel a change take over. A sensation, sensing things. Knowing things. Things he could now conceive and convey where before it was just a sense of smell. Now it was all encompassing. His body changed. His tail now part of his sensory. His ears picking up the tiniest of hints. His eyes, now bigger, human like, seeing things that were once shadows – or what seemed to be shadows, now in full view.

 
The whispers kept coming. More frequently. He heard a new sound – Mouzer. Over and over he had heard it. It became embedded, it became him – Mouzer. The whispers carrying his name – Mouzer here is knowledge, know this. Mouzer this is your duty. Mouzer was now his name. The whispers carrying with them and filling him with knowledge.

No longer just a mouse. He was Mouzer. Knowledge of things flowed through him. Wisdom. He now had purpose. Duties to fulfill. A protector of the Elder Elm. Holding the secrets. Ready to carry out.

 
Mouzer didn’t know how long he was there. Seconds, minutes, hours, days, or years. He was transformed. No longer a tiny little mouse. His tail had grown longer. He grabbed in in his paws, no not paws, his fingers. He grabbed it in his fingers and looked it over. A new He could “sense” new things. It was giving him new information. He could sense new spaces that he could explore, tunnels. It was returning information to his senses. Dark, light, heat, cold. The rhythm of the world pulsing through it. It was a a pinkish thin, but very solid, extra webbing at the end like that of a moths wing, but in the shape of a quarter moon, a thin membrane that was receiving information and passing it through to his brain.

As Mouzer was was looking at his new tail with th he realized he had grown. Not taller necessarily but longer. His body now sleeker. His ears like small antennae now, standing up, the same type of pink membrane on the end of his tail. He could swivel his ears in various directions. He could focus the attention to a corner, down the shaft that was off to his right, he could hear the wind, the whisper of the roots. He could focus his hearing on one thing or many.

 
He was no longer a mere mouse; he was Mouzer, bound to the Elder Elm’s call. As he turned to leave, he felt the roots gently parting, guiding him back along the path. The light behind him dimmed, but he carried its glow within him, a beacon of purpose that would never fade.