The echo lay unconscious in the courtyard, its trembling silhouette barely holding together. Wisps of aether curled off its form like torn cloth caught in the wind. Arav knelt beside it, eyes wide with worry.
"Is it… disappearing?" he whispered.
Sharanya shook her head softly. "No. It's changing."
Meghala crouched on the other side, squinting hard. "That's not an echo pattern. Look—its threads aren't scattering. They're converging."
Aaryan stood silent and still, gaze fixed on the shifting light.
Arav leaned closer, breath held.
The trembling outline began folding inward—light gathering, compressing, thickening into a denser weave. Aether threads that previously tore apart now realigned with surprising intention.
Sharanya placed a steadying hand on Arav's shoulder. "Stay calm, sweetheart. It's reacting to you."
Arav nodded, though his heart thumped loudly enough he wasn't sure the cub couldn't hear it.
The rippling mass glowed brighter—two soft orbs of light opening within it, like tiny suns peeking through fog.
Golden.
Arav gasped.
"They're eyes…"
Meghala blinked twice, then loudly:
"OH. OH absolutely NOT. Is that a—?!"
Her voice cracked so loudly even Isha's frogs croaked in protest.
A shape resolved beneath the glow:
small
round
fur-like texture emerging
ears forming
paws unfurling like petals
Arav's breath hitched.
"It's… it's a little…"
The silhouette stabilized.
Light folded in on itself—
and a tiny white lion cub curled on the stone floor.
Not translucent.
Not echo-like.
Not flickering.
Real.
Its fur was pure snow-white, shimmering faintly as if reflecting moonlight even under the morning sun. Two golden eyes blinked open—slow, dazed, unfocused.
Arav's flame stirred wildly.
Sharanya covered her mouth, tears gathering in awe.
Aaryan stiffened with the weight of understanding.
Meghala whispered something unprintable.
The cub let out a soft, broken sound.
A chirp.
Not a roar.
Not a growl.
A small, fragile chirp—weak but alive.
It looked around with unsteady confusion, then slowly lifted its head toward Arav.
The moment its golden eyes met Arav's flame-touched gaze—
a connection snapped into place.
A silent bond.
Instinctual.
Old.
Resonant.
The cub took a shaky step forward.
Then another.
Then, with surprising determination, it stumbled into Arav's lap and collapsed against his chest—breathing in his warmth like a lifeline.
Arav froze.
"Is… is it hugging me?"
Sharanya laughed breathlessly, tears falling. "It feels your warmth. Your flame is comforting it."
Meghala touched her head. "No. Absolutely not. I refuse to believe a cosmic beast just imprinted on a four-year-old."
Aaryan finally spoke, voice low.
"That is no mortal beast."
He stepped closer, examining the cub carefully.
"Look at its chest. The pattern."
A faint golden line shimmered along the cub's sternum—a symbol of something ancient, something powerful. It flickered like buried starlight.
Meghala inhaled sharply. "A primordial mark?"
Sharanya whispered, "But primordial beasts don't enter lower dimensions…"
Arav looked from adult to adult, confused. "Primordial? What does that mean?"
Aaryan knelt beside him, eyes serious.
"It means this little one… comes from far beyond our world."
The cub chirped again and pressed its face deeper against Arav's robe.
Arav hesitantly raised his arms and hugged it gently. The cub relaxed instantly, tail curling around his wrist.
He whispered, "You're warm."
The cub let out a soft puff of aether—warm, pure, gentle.
Meghala stared, stunned.
"By the Flame… it's linking with him."
Sharanya touched Arav's back tenderly. "It trusts you."
Aaryan's voice sharpened. "Trust is not what concerns me."
They looked at him.
He was staring toward the forest.
Sharanya followed his gaze and stiffened.
Meghala conjured a flame instantly.
"The fog…" she whispered. "It's gone."
Aaryan nodded.
"Withdrawn."
Meghala exhaled. "It lost the trail."
Arav hugged the cub tighter. "So the bad thing can't find it anymore?"
Aaryan placed a hand on Arav's shoulder.
"For now."
Sharanya forced a smile. "Then that's good, sweetheart."
But Aaryan didn't smile.
He looked down at the small lion cub curled around Arav, golden eyes half-open, breathing softly.
"There is a reason something hunted this child."
He touched the cub's fur lightly—
and his expression changed.
Shock.
Recognition.
Fear.
Respect.
Sharanya whispered, "Aaryan? What is it?"
He lifted his hand slowly.
"This cub…" he said quietly,
"…is not just from another dimension."
Meghala leaned forward. "Then what—?"
Aaryan looked at Arav.
At the cub.
At the sky.
"This cub carries the echo of a Cosmic White Lion."
Sharanya gasped.
Meghala choked.
Even a frog croaked in disbelief.
Arav looked down at the tiny creature in his lap.
Golden eyes blinked up at him.
It chirped softly.
He smiled gently.
"Hi… I'm Arav."
The cub butted its forehead gently against his chest—
as if it understood.
As if it accepted.
As if it had finally found the warmth it had searched for.