The Rooster's Dawn

Previously

…For a fleeting second, his legs felt rooted to the spot, his mind a blank canvas of pure panic. He saw the egg, the symbol of their shared dreams, so close to being crushed, so close to vanishing. He saw Henrietta, his gentle Henrietta, so weak, so exposed. And then, something shifted within him. It wasn’t a sudden surge of courage, but a quiet, resolute blooming of defiance. The fear was still there, a cold whisper at the back of his mind, but it was no longer in control. Love, fierce and protective, had taken the reins. With a guttural squawk that surprised even himself