❝ Our greatest glory is not in never falling ❞

[returnanew]

{ but in rising every time we fall }
💮 gaja 💮 nam 💮

Comments

[flumen]

So many living things would be harmed. The fire would scorch the earth and take away food that a lot of animals around here depend on or it could harm the animals themselves. The unnatural fire could heat up the river and kill the fish and vegetation living in it. What would there be left for Nam to guard, then? What would there be for him to watch over and protect? Of course everything would likely heal in time, but that wouldn't erase Nam's failings. It would help no one in the meantime and it would lose him the river's trust. He doesn't want any of that.

He will make sure to contain the bird's fire. He will make sure that no sparks escape him. He will make sure that everyone and everything comes out of this unscathed.

"Thank me by leaving here as soon as you're able."

[returnanew]

"That could be a few days." Or weeks. It could be a handful of days before the fire even begins. Even more after for the reborn phoenix to emerge from the ashes. And more still for him to regain strength and sense enough to leave. This is truly the most vulnerable time for a phoenix.

Perhaps if Gaja were a little better at gauging the time, he could prepare better. He could find a stone cave deep in the earth. Alas, though he is a cyclical creature, there is no definite time frame for each life. Approximately a hundred years by the human reckoning. By the revolution of this world around its star. It always strikes him so suddenly. One moment he's fine, the next he's falling from the sky.