Al had two children.
The eldest had already grown up, while the younger one was only three or four years old.
When Al returned home, it was to a spacious longhouse made of wood, hollowed out from a giant tree in the forest.
His wife, seeing Al from a distance, came out to meet him with their younger child in her arms.
"Dertulian, Dertulian."
Al softly called the younger child's name, taking him from his wife's hands.
Dertulian reached out his arms towards Al, giggling and hugging his father's shoulders.
Holding Dertulian, Al felt the weight of the child, who was very healthy, healthier than most children, Al thought. In the future, he could surely become the Kingdom's most renowned Hunter, second only to the Sapo King.
"Al, I heard you extinguished the fire?"
His wife asked hesitantly, finding it hard to believe.
"Yes, the fire had to be extinguished."
Al spoke softly to his wife.
Back in the Ape-man Era, they had been husband and wife, and Al had no other wives.
Among the people of Logos, only the King could have multiple wives, a custom that remained from the Ape-man Era.
His wife, still finding it hard to believe what Al said, exclaimed in astonishment,
"But this... but this, how could you..."
Al sighed, he had spent a lot of effort today trying to convince the Priests, and he was quite tired, so he called out to someone behind him,
"Yarlessto, come and explain to mother."
Yarlessto stepped forward, shorter and leaner than his father. He had been frail since infancy, unlike Dertulian.
Al carried Dertulian inside the house, leaving the elder son outside to inform his wife about the day's events.
"Daddy, Daddy, story, story!"
Back in the warm house, Dertulian patted his father's shoulders, urging him.
"Alright, alright."
Al sat down and placed his younger son on the soft animal skins.
In this prehistoric age, the people of Logos were the only ones who told stories.
No one knew how the first story came about, when it appeared, or perhaps it was just a hunter exaggerating a thrilling hunt which, through exaggeration, naturally gave birth to stories.
Al often thought that one of the most significant differences between Logos people and Ape-men was that Logos people could invent stories, they had the ability to fabricate tales.
"Dertulian, I'm going to tell you a story that you often hear."
Al patted his younger son's legs, and the latter immediately sat upright.
Logos people lived long and were highly rational. Over hundreds of years, many stories had been born.
They had no paintings, nor could they learn to write; these stories were all passed down orally among the Logos people.
Dertulian's favorite was the story of a heroic Hunter.
Stories from this age couldn't be simpler, only the heroic Hunter's story could be considered to have twists and turns.
"Centuries ago, there was a vigorous Hunter who accidentally wandered into a jungle, filled with thick undergrowth and swirling mists..."
Dertulian perked up his sharp ears, listening as his father slowly narrated the entire story.
"The Hunter saw a falcon amidst the fog, mustered his courage, and vowed to hunt the falcon, but as soon as the thought occurred, he turned into a leg-broken hare and instantly began wailing loudly."
Dertulian eagerly interrupted,
"I know, when he turned into a hare, the falcon came to eat him."
Al looked gently at his son showing off and continued the narration,
"He immediately didn't dare to think about hunting the winged tiger anymore but thought, 'I don't want to be eaten by the falcon.' Then, he turned into a fish. Dertulian, you should know, if a person kills indiscriminately, the more they don't want something, the more likely it is to happen.
The falcon drew ever closer, with death imminent, he despaired and instead thought in his heart, 'I and the falcon are as close as brothers, I need to love my brother.'
Just then, the falcon suddenly changed into a graceful swan, the Hunter watched in astonishment, tried to stretch out his hands, and found that he had spread his wings—those were the wings of a swan.
Dertulian, that is the story of the Swan Hunter."
At the end of it, Dertulian showed a satisfied smile.
By this time, Yarlessto and his mother had finished discussing the day's events and came inside.
He had heard his father's words and knew which story his father told; Yarlessto had long memorized it.
Yarlessto approached his father, skillfully picked up his brother Dertulian, and said to his father,
"Mother is still unhappy, she and I think alike: even if that fire is not the image of God, it should have been kept."
"You should listen to my words. You are the eldest son of a Priest."
Al spoke sternly to Yarlessto.
Yarlessto, feeling dissatisfied, walked away with his brother.
.........
Time passed quickly, and suddenly, night enveloped the Logos Kingdom.
Al also prepared to sleep, and as the thought occurred, drowsiness rapidly swept over his entire body, surprising him. Was he really that exhausted today?
All around was plunged into silence, his body laid on the ground, padded with two layers of animal skins, and his eyes closed, immediately falling into a deep sleep.
Al slept soundly; he dreamed a dream where all around was cold and silent, so dark that even bats would be panicked.
In this boundless Chaos of darkness, Al could see no sign of life.
A sudden fear immediately overwhelmed him.
Al instinctively struggled, trying to escape the darkness, but darkness surged at that moment, firmly imprisoning him. Cold sweat trailed down his forehead, he instinctively shouted, but found that as soon as his voice left his lips, it quickly plunged into the endless darkness.