There, inside the titanic nest, are baby Aso'une'aawn. Two of them. The birds lay curled up, their bodies barely filling their massive nest as their gigantic, tendril-like tails wrap around their fuzzy bodies. Their crests lay flat, their wings folded tightly around them like great feathered blankets against the chill breeze of the underworld. They shift, squeaking and chirping softly like an infant would.

A quiet, primal, unstoppable "awww" escapes your mouth as your eyes widen in astonishment. Sero looks over, grinning at you like a madman.

"See?" He whispers, still grinning, "Wasn't this worth the journey?"

You nod fervently, only sparing him a glance.

The two Aso'une'aawn sport bright, downy, cerulean feathers, some of which are as long as your forearm and others no longer than the tip of your thumb. The soft, blue down is spotted with speckles of white, like stars in the night sky. The Aso'une'aawn shift again squeaking sleepily. Their tendrils, long and sinuous, wrap around their downy bodies, keeping them warm in the crisp breeze that you hardly notice. At the end of the massive tail tendrils, each longer than you are tall, is a large, vermillion plume.

Sero puts his fingers to his lips again, looking at you for a moment, before suddenly reaching his hand towards the leftmost bird.

You swat at him, but you don't make contact. "What are you doing?" you hiss.

"Sh, sh," he shushes you, "Just watch." He reaches his right hand into the nest, resting his fingers on the down of the leftmost bird. Suddenly, his hand bursts alight with faintly green light. The white-green light seems to ooze and flow like a liquid on the feathers of the Aso'une'aawn. The avian creature shifts comfortably, seemingly unaware of what is happening. Sero then reaches up and grasps your forearm close to your wrist, it isn't a firm or loose grip, but something in between. It too comes alight, and you suddenly feel a connection to this Aso'une'aawn chick, something that transcends a best friend or significant other. You Know this bird. Everything, from its playing with its brother to the loneliness of its mother leaving every day to this very moment. Everything. You gasp in astonishment, what is this feeling?

The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement.

"Name him," Sero says, not caring to explain. He is looking right at you.

You pause, taking in this Aso'une'aawn's life.

"...Haan'il."

"The Path Forward," Sero says, translating the name's meaning, "A fitting name."

Sero adopts a look of total concentration. "I Name you Haan'il, little one. Take this name unto yourself, but do not allow it to rewrite who you are."

He releases his grip on your arm, and the feeling of Knowing this creature subsides slowly, like a limb coming back awake.

Sero moves to the other Aso'une'aawn. "I Name you Aur, little one. Take this name unto yourself, but do not allow it to rewrite who you are."

He keeps his hand on Aur's feathers for a few more moments. He then gets up, a sad but hopeful smile on his face.

"Let's go home."

***

L'Oos, Goddess of the Sun, Freedom, Expression, Self, and a multitude of other things sits among the branches of a Titan Tree, staring out into the open sky. She sits alone, watching the common birds flock and the Aso'une'aawn wheel in the playful abandon of the open air, her flames are a beacon that draws all to her. L'Oos' face is serene as always, her fiery, orange hair dancing in the breeze, but deep inside, memories churn like an angry, yet tightly chained monster.

Sa'bel is stirring, and that terrifies her. The creeping anxiety of being unable to do anything about his reawakening is the destructive side of the coin. The other side is overwhelming relief. She would finally be free of this miserable planet that she created. She wants to smile at that, but she cannot. The other side of the coin is still there, preventing her from feeling the better side.

So, she will wait longer. Over the millennia, she had gotten so much better at waiting. She could handle a few more days.

She knows the end is near.