"Wake up... Child... Wake up..." a coaxing voice, yet ancient voice entered through my mind.
"Huh," I replied through my drowsiness.
In all honestly, I just wanted to sleep some more. Tired and fatigued my whole body ached from my misadventures.
"Wake up." the voice repeated. "Wake up." it kept on repeating.
It was annoying... and I couldn't take it anymore so I got up.
I peeled my face from off the branch. Streams of sticky saliva mixed in with mucus dripped down my face as I did.
Sliding out from within my shell, I felt my head rocking back and forth. The chips of bark that were littered all over my face and inside my mouth began to fall off as I did. Gulping I swallowed the evidence that I had been sleep-eating into the depths of my insatiable stomach.
My head pounded like I was hung-over. But that didn't stop me from opening my eyes.
"Who's there?" I asked as I cleared my caked eyes as I felt the morning's warmth. The clouds were gone now. Just a clear sky and a beautiful sunrise.
Half expecting it was a heavenly being that was coming to me, I smacked my own face to wake up faster as I looked around.
"Here child." I heard the voice call out once more.
'Below.' I thought.
It was coming from below.
I slid towards the edge of the branch in record time and looked downward.
Bright yellow-slitted eyes welcomed me.
It was the ancient snail.
"You're alive!" I exclaimed without holding back.
They ancient snail looked deflated. Dried up sagging, it was a shadow of its former righteous self.
"Ha..." the ancient snail chuckled. The tree rattled in response as I felt the branch shake.
'Such strength!' I thought as I stared downward.
"Is there anything you want from me... dear ancestor," I asked as I continued to look at the ancient snail. Its shell was shattered, but its wounds seemed to be healed over.
"Child... I have been watching you," it replied weakly.
"Why me?" I asked as I stared at it... I mean I was a tiny snail and I shouldn't have been that interesting to catch the attention of an ancient being that possesses immense strength.
"Of course I would watch you... and your siblings. Children of my child's child... I can feel her blood flowing through you all." the ancient snail sighed.
"Wait... mother?" I asked.
"Yes, child. I'm your great-grandmother... I was surprised to find her clutch here..." the ancient one murmured.
If I wasn't already awake, I was quickly snapped out of my drowsiness. My heart pounded. It was big news. I knew that I was about to get more information about my parents that had abandoned me, us.
"Mother... where is she?" I asked.
The ancient one's eyes stared straight at me and seemed to penetrate deep within my body. As if she was doing something to my body, I felt my blood churning from within.
Then she shifted her gaze... like she was in a trance, she tilted her giant head around and looked into the distance. It was like her gaze could travel through barriers and walls. She looked past the forest, the fields... the crater and into the beyond.
Pausing for a moment, she turned her head back once more as my tree moved with her movement.
"She's far... far away. In a land unknown to us ancients," she replied as she sighed. "That silly girl..." the snail said as she looked down as if she was reminiscing about something. Her actions were definitely genuine. I first had reservations about her speech, but I saw it within her eyes. A sadness... the same sadness that I knew all too well when I watched my siblings die in front of me...
Minutes later, she looked back up to me.
"Your mother's a special one. Don't judge her child... I'm sure she has her reasons for leaving you behind."
"I'm not worried... I'm... I'm just tired." I replied as I couldn't describe the feelings that I could feel inside myself. My family... what was a family? Just like my mother had abandoned us... I was met by another fate much worse... even my siblings abandoned me...
"You did well child..." The ancient continued. "I saw what had happened... but trust me, child... You'll definitely go through more and tougher hardships than this."
The ancient snail sighed once more. "We have to be as strong. Stronger than our shells."
Deep down, I knew that my ancestor was right. I knew that I had to get over it no matter how much it plagued me.
I looked down. I knew I needed to ask as it was my only chance. Deep I didn't want to know... because she wasn't there since day 1... but I needed to know.
"Tell me more about my mother..." I said slowly.
"She... she was different from us snails..." My ancestor began. "Born with a rainbow shell... she was such a sight... she looked different from all the others in her clutch. Instantly, I knew that we had a mutant."
"Mutant?" I asked the word mutant was familiar to me.
"Child... your mother's bloodline is special. From a young age... she just started transforming. Pulling off impossible stunts... defeating larger and larger beasts as she grew... changing... changing as she did. Mutating..."
"Is that why I am mutating as well?" I asked.
The ancient snail stared up at me with a surprised look. "If that's true then..." the ancient muttered to herself before she replied to me. "Yes, child. Your blood is indeed special."
"Why... why isn't mother her now...?" I asked.
"It's a long story child. But for you... I'll do it. In exchange you must promise to listen to me... you see, I'm dying child..." the ancient continued.
"But you seem fine," I replied as I looked down at the snail's body. Yes... her shell was obliterated. Yes... her body was in ruins. But she wasn't bleeding, nor dead.
"I'm weak... I know I don't have much time left... so please child. Do this for me... do this for your great-grandmother." The giant snail looked up at me.
It was pitiful.
"Okay..." I replied.
"All I want you to do is... is when you meet your mother. I want you to tell her I gave you one. I'm not as selfish as I once was... and for her to forgive me."
...