Hearne, the young god, let out a sharp whistle that echoed through the vast wilderness, signaling his animal companions to awaken from their slumber. Although blessed with divine powers that made them stronger and more resilient than their ordinary counterparts, these creatures still required rest, food, and water to survive. Hearne, mindful of the delicate balance that control of his power required, spoke to his loyal friends with a restrained sense of joy, announcing he had finally found names for them.

Upon hearing the news, the devoted beasts were filled with such excitement and eagerness that they pranced and pawed at the ground to the point that Hearne had to use his divine powers to pacify them and after they had calmed down enough, he pointed his finger towards his falcon, who promptly glided to his shoulder, eagerly awaiting the bestowal of her name.

"Dear friend," he said, "I will name you Órlaith. Your feathers will testify that you are the golden ruler of your kind." As Hearne stood beside Órlaith, he delicately ran his fingers through her feathers. In response to his touch, the feathers began to shimmer, turning into a magnificent shade of gold. After a moment of admiration, Hearne shifted his attention to the black stallion standing nearby.

"I will name you Ahearn, dear friend, for you will also be the ruler of your kind." Hearne was struggling to come up with any alterations to make to Ahearn. Despite his best efforts, he couldn't think of a single thing that needed changing. As a result, he decided to leave everything about Ahearn untouched.

As the group became more confident with their newly chosen names, they continued on their journey with renewed vigor. However, they soon realized that they did not have a clear destination in mind. Órlaith took to the skies to scout for the nearest human settlement to rectify this issue. Meanwhile, the other two members of the group remained behind, trusting in their friend's abilities and eagerly awaiting her return. The vast expanse of the wilderness surrounded them, and they could feel the cool breeze on their faces as they waited patiently for Órlaith's return.

Upon her return, Órlaith conveyed some grave news that demanded immediate attention. "Master," she said, "I have discovered a small town nearby. However, it seems to be abandoned. What shall we do next?" Hearne took a long pause before responding to the question. He had always been a solitary person and never really formed close relationships with anyone other than his family in Herne's Forest. However, despite his introverted nature, he was still aware of the people who lived there and the lives they led. Therefore, the notion of an abandoned place was completely foreign to him. He couldn't begin to fathom how a person could exist in a desolate, empty space, void of human activity. The thought alone sent shivers down his spine, and he couldn't help but wonder what kind of place could be so devoid of life.

As he sat lost in thought, his mind wandered back to a time when Hearne was just a young boy. He remembered his mother carrying him on her shoulders as she led him to a beautiful tree house she had built herself. This special place was where many of his childhood memories were made; where he had taken his first steps, spoken his first words, and experienced many other firsts in his life. No matter what happened, this place would always hold a special place in his heart.

If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

"Come on, Mother, why are we here? There is nothing here." The young god cringed as he remembered his childish voice, his lack of experience, his entitled attitude, and many other petty things. It wasn't until he had left Herne's Forest and, with it, his mother's comforting lies, that he realized how rude he had been. Thankfully, he had grown out of such juvenile behavior.

As the young mother turned around, she uttered those words that he had heard several times before, "I wanted to show you something special, but perhaps another time." But the boy knew better than to demand an explanation from his mother, who was always full of surprises. As she turned around to leave, he noticed a twinkle in her eye that made him even more curious. He couldn't shake off the feeling that there was something extraordinary about the treehouse that his mother had built for herself once upon a time. Despite his mother's repeated attempts to lure him with promises of showing him the "special" feature of the treehouse, the boy couldn't resist the temptation to explore it. So, he continued to fall for his mother's tricks until the day came when his mother taught him something that he would never forget.

"Mother, everyone has been using an unfamiliar word lately. Can you please help me find out what it means?" The young boy said as he looked down, unsure of if his mother would help him with such a petty thing, this was a time when he had been so unsure of himself even he couldn't believe it, but godhood changes people and it had made him more confident whether this was a good thing or not was yet to be seen.

"Of course Hearne, you tell me and I will help you"

"The word that everyone says is abandon, please tell me what it means"

After a short silence, the young mother replied, "To abandon something to give up on that thing or to stop looking after someone, but to me, it means a little more than that." She pauses again to catch her breath.

"For me, it also means the slow decay of the person or thing left behind. A simple example would be a random corpse, It is buried somewhere, someplace in the earth by their family and they don't have the time to leave a mark on it for some reason, the first and second generations may remember where the corpse is but the, third and fourth generation don't remember and so it is forgotten to the sands of time."

"I don't get it." The young boy replied

"And that's okay. When you are older, you will understand." She said she pinched her son's cheeks. "Now let's go home."

He slowly awoke from that memory and finally grasped the lesson his mother had taught him long ago: to be forgotten, is to be abandoned, and one is only forgotten if they do not leave an impact. This presents a great opportunity to leave an impact. "Let us find those people and return them to their homes. If we are lucky, then I might even find a worshipper or two." With renewed determination, Hearne quickly mounted Ahearn and set off in the direction from which Órlaith had returned. He was determined to confront the kidnapper of the citizens and put an end to their reign of terror once and for all. The fate of the abandoned towns was now in the hands of Hearne and his loyal companions.