Invalid

Invalid was not given a name.

This was unsurprising as the dungeon Invalid was born to was not a high enough level to create a named creature. None-the-less Invalid wanted a name and so he found one, grasping onto the first thing his creator called him. Not one to be discouraged by a lack of name, Invalid decided to make the best of the life he had.

Currently that meant eating away his sorrows, for he'd just been born into the world sans a mother or nursery. He didn't even have a childhood, having been accelerated from kit to adulthood. He was grateful for the energy invested in him, for it saved his life, but he was an outcast. Not only did the dungeon think he was worthless, but the other hedgehogs avoided him as well due to his physical differences.

The only one who didn't avoid Invalid was Ash, the walking tree lady. Frequently over the past week he'd be accosted from behind, convinced that the giant owl had finally grown hungry enough to pluck him from this life. Every time however it was Ash, and she would rub her face against his quills and carry him around for an indeterminate amount of time cooing and cuddling him. It was nice, and he came to love Ash like the mother that he never had. It was fitting considering she was the mother of the forest.

One day while Invalid was gnawing away at another one of the shiny nuts trying to get at the bountiful harvest he knew to be in the center of the invincible shell, Invalid spied more Ashes. There was a group of five of them that varied in size and shape, but Invalid knew they had to be the same species of Ashes and that meant they were his extended family. He followed them at a distance, nervous about rejection once again, until they entered The Hill.

A shudder ran through the mutated hedgehog at the thought of The Hill. Invalid spent a few hours pacing back and forth at the entrance to The Hill, trying to work up the courage to go and rescue his newly found friends and family from the evil that dwelled within. What could a hedgehog do against the monstrosities that lived within The Hill?

As he paced there contemplating his misfortune and mourning the loss of the new Ashes he heard a noise. There was shuffling and grunting drifting up to Invalid from within the dungeon. His family had survived! Invalid celebrated the moment with a dance, shuffling in place and rocking back and forth, so happy that he literally could not contain himself. Then he remembered.

His new family members still had not accepted him and there was no way they were going to be in a good mood after leaving The Hill. Invalid quickly darted off to the nearest warren he could find, the one his mother once lived in before she passed. He raised his head out of the hole, with a patch of dirt and grass upon his head to act as camouflage, and watched the new Ashes as they exited the hole.

"Let's get back to town, I cannot wait to cook up these bats and see what they taste like." The muscular Ash wearing tanned animal skins was the first to speak as they exited The Hill. Although he did not look particularly angry, his words filled Invalid with dread. What if he saw him as food rather than family, how could he express his love for the new Ashes safely?

"Ragnar, see if you can open up one of these, you can snack on them if you are so peckish." The smallest Ash threw one of the shiny nuts to the Ash known as Ragnar, the first one to speak. Invalid watched in awe as the larger man managed to pry open the safe with only his fingers, he was the mightiest of the Ashes for sure!

"Eck! Not for me Liam. You and Pak can stick to your plants, its meat for me."

"You're a savage Rag, but at least you tend to eat the entire animal when you kill them. Even though you don't eat from the natural bounty, at least you don't waste life needlessly either." The Ash with the hairy legs responded, that one must be the one called Pak. Invalid liked Pak, his hairy legs made him feel more welcome. More like family. Invalid watched as Liam and Pak collected more nuts, storing them in bags to eat later. The other short Ash and the big shiny one were talking to each other as they progressed towards the end of the clearing. Ragnar was speaking to a giant predator bird perched on his shoulder.

Shiver, everything about that one set off warning bells in Invalid's head and heart. He'd make sure not to be alone with that one. As Invalid worked up the courage to come out of his hole and greet his new family, they began to leave. Not one to be left behind, Invalid scrambled out of the warren as his new friends entered the tree line. He was about halfway to the tree line when he remembered that Ragnar had discard the other half of the shiny nut when he didn't like it. Invalid double timed over to the forgotten nut and gobbled it up.

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It was pure bliss, everything he'd know it would be and more. It was just another reason to follow his new friends until he worked up the strength to open them himself. Invalid waddled after the new Ashes, so long as he could figure out where their den was he could enjoy all the discarded nuts he wanted. Maybe after they'd accepted him he could even bring them nuts of his own to get opened!

"Stop. Don't follow the adventurers. Damn it all why don't you listen to me, it is literally your only job! It's not my fault Ash it is too stupid to understand us, he is going to get himself killed"

Invalid's father was speaking in his mind again, how annoying. Honestly his father was too overbearing, just let Invalid be Invalid.

After about an hour of following the group's trail, the trees suddenly ended. The new Ashes were still in sight and Invalid watched as the last of them crossed over the grass suspended over the river. With a tilt of his head, Invalid watched his new family leave the forest and walk towards the large structures in the distance. As he prepared to turn around and once again mourn the loss of his new family a glint caught his eye, Pak had discarded another of the opened nuts.

Invalid did not consider the possibility that the nut had been eaten, or that he would be leaving the only safe place he had ever known. Only the certainty that the nut would hold nirvana for him once more, and so he flew across the rope bridge as fast as he could.

The grasses outside of the forest were much taller and thicker than within the forest, at least 20 cm taller than Invalid. Not that the measurement meant much to him. That being said he could only see above the grass when he leaned back onto his hind legs and pushed himself upwards. He could not find the discarded nut in the jungle of grass but before he could be overtaken with sorrow, another glint caught his eye. Pak had discarded yet another nut.

Things continued like this for a while, until the grasses that encompassed Invalid dispersed and he found himself at the structure. He'd only found one of the discarded shells, and unfortunately that had only been a shell. His new family entered the structure and the wooden barrier swung shut behind them, locking Invalid out before he could consider entering. He supposed it was time to explore.

After wandering around the structures, ducking into the grasses every so often to avoid the new Ashes (There were so many of them here!!), Invalid stumbled upon the promise land. There is a pile of food scraps and grasses not too far from the structures, and the smell caught his attention. He scrambled up the side of the wooden receptacle, using his nails to find purchase, and flopped forwards into the pile of refuse.

Invalid had no way to measure the amount of time he spend in the bin, rummaging and burrowing to find food scraps, feasting to his heart's content. If he were being honest with himself he would have been content to spend his entire life there, were it not for the interruption.

He was jarred awake by a sound he could only identify as a squeal. Invalid's eyes snapped open and he saw another new Ash staring down at him with wide eyes. Wasting no time, he scrambled out of the bin and took off into the grassland wilderness, cursing himself for every moment he wasted napping instead of eating. After he was sure he lost the Ash, once again tried to stand up and get his bearings. He had to turn sharply to the left, but before no time he was on his way back to his forest, to the real Ash.

Unfortunately for Invalid he did not know the difference between a shout of anger, terror, or joy. Nor did he hear the blue haired Ash exclaim his cuteness to the world as she shouted for him to come back. He heard only the pounding of his heart and the racket of the grass being pushed out of his way.

It had been a long day for Invalid, and he could not wait to get home.