The River and the Wood

Trees were leaning into the bank of the river. A flood had run though the area a few days prior. The dirt along the bank had become compacted into a think, soft mud, and had slowly been slipping away, falling into the river. Roots of ancient trees are now exposed. The river, now, flows serenely. The morning sun’s warmth had yet to reach the ground, and a sharp breeze was in the air. A man and a child were walking across a bridge and stopped to look down at the flowing water.

           A voice came from the forest, along with a burst of wind. The voice seemed to be a result of the rustle of the leaves. “Are you done with your tantrum?” A transparent, glowing green ball of dim light appeared from out of the forest.

           Water from the river began swirling up in the air. The water formed a ball, similar to the other one, but tinted blue, and a bit dimmer. A second voice replied, coming from the flow of the river, “What are you doing here?”

           The green orb gestured to the exposed roots, “That is why I’m here.”

           The blue orb grunted.

           “How long has it been, Ogwen?” The green orb asked.

           “20? 25 summers?” Ogwen replied.

           “Something like that.”

           “I’m sorry about the trees, Brenin,” Ogwen said, their voice quiet and with just a hint of guilt.

           “It’s fine. You didn’t kill any of them.” Brenin gestured toward the exposed roots, and dirt appeared from seemingly nowhere. The floating dirt slowly moved to cover the exposed roots, and then replaced all the dirt that had been swept away by the flood. “There,” Brenin said, chipper, “They needed some fresh soil anyway.”

           “I’m surprised you can still transport earth like that,” Ogwen said, slightly taken aback.

           “What would I be, if I couldn’t tend to my forest?”

           Ogwen took a few moments pause. “I can barely keep the water flowing,” they said, quietly.

           “That flood seemed to flow fine,” Brenin retorted.

           “A temporary burst of anger, nothing more. I took most of my energy.”

           “What set you off?” Brenin asked with a soft voice, full of sincerity.

           “Their garbage,” Ogwen gestured to the man and the child on the bridge.

           “They do tend to do that…”

           “It’s only gotten worse. They hold no respect for us anymore. No respect for the world that supports their life. They’re destroying us, and I’ve had enough, hence the flood.” Ogwen’s voice was full of frustration. The flow of the river had become choppy.

           “I understand your anger, but acting out like that won’t solve anything. The only humans you’ll do any harm to are like the ones over there.” Brenin gestured over to the man and the child on the bridge. “They admire us. We don’t want to drive them away. After all, we could use all the admiration we can get.” There was sorrow in Brenin’s voice as they reached the end of their thought.

           The two orbs stayed silent, watching the man and child. They were talking; at first the man, then the child said a few words, then back to the man. Then there was a period of silence. The orbs watched the humans. The humans watched the river, whose flow had once again returned to serenity. The four of them were there, being. The man spoke a short phase, then embraced the child. They stood there, holding each other, for a spell, then they walked off, back into the forest.

           “They’re not all bad,” said Brenin.

           “Perhaps not. But the good ones are growing rarer.”

           “They need us, and we need them, even if they don’t know it, and you won’t admit it.”

           “I know we need them. That man and child have been the first humans to pass through here in a week. The number of visitors I receive recedes, and so does my power.”

           “I have also seen a decrease in visitors,” Brenin said, tentatively, “But what are you getting at?”

           Ogwen took a few moments to gather their thoughts. “What happens if we don’t receive visitors? Humans can cease to be. Can the same thing happen to us?”

           “I can honestly say, I have never thought about that, and I now hold contempt for you for putting such a thought in my mind.”

           “What does it mean to not be?

           “Doesn’t mean anything, does it? If you aren’t being, you aren’t feeling.”

           “What about the river? What about your forest?” Ogwen asked, hesitant.

           “That, I don’t know. I don’t know if they go on without us.” Brenin took a pause. “Why are we discussing this anyway? We are here, and have always been here, and I don’t think some garbage will change that.”

           Birds were singing, and the sun had risen higher in the sky, the heat, finally reaching the ground. Brenin’s form started to change into a roughly humanoid shape. Their glow started to dissipate, and a layer of human like skin covered their newly formed body.

           “Let’s enjoy our domains, shall we?” Brenin asked, holding their hand out to Ogwen.

           Ogwen also took on a physical form, and took Brenin’s hand. The two of them walked along the bank of the river, enjoying the heat of the sun, the rustle of foliage, the sounds of the wildlife, and flow of the river. Ogwen hadn’t taken on a physical form in a long time. They also hadn’t spoken to anyone in an even longer time.

The two of them emerged from the wood, and entered a field. The field was covered with tall grass, and patches of flowers. The grass waved gently in the breeze.

“Lovely place to lay down, don’t you think?” Brenin sat down and basked in the sun, closing their eyes, and yawning. “That’s the problem with these physical forms, isn’t it? They get so tired, so easily.” Brenin stretched their body out. “Won’t you come join me?”

Ogwen awkwardly stumbled down into the grass, and laid next to Brenin. Ogwen closed their eyes.