The Universe Tree pulsed beneath me ancient and infinite.
Then it shifted.
Not its roots.
Not its branches.
Its consciousness condensed.
A form emerged.
Human.
Tall. Radiant. Eyes like galaxies. Hair flowing like streams of time itself.
The Universe Tree had taken human form.
I blinked. So this is how you speak directly.
You exist alongside me now it said voice both soft and infinite.
Not above Not below. Equal in understanding."
Its presence was overwhelming not in power, but in calm certainty.
Every possibility bent gently around it.
Every timeline waited silently.
Nyx whispered It looks almost mortal.
Selene added But it's not. It's everything.
Vorin just stared And it listens to you.
I don't command it I said.
I converse.
The new companions Aeris and Liora approached cautiously.
Aeris bowed. The human form allows more direct interaction across timelines.
Liora nodded It will guide possibilities in a way even Kael cannot touch directly. Subtle, but absolute.
Nyx stepped closer smiling faintly. So it's a friend.
Yes I said.
A friend who carries infinity in a single body.
The Universe Tree in human form, extended a hand. I will observe with you it said.
Not as your tool. Not as your extension. As a companion.
I grasped the hand lightly.
Warm. Solid. Infinite.
Then let us watch together I said.
Side by side. Without interference, without control.
It nodded.
And for the first time in eons I felt rest.
Beneath the human form of the Universe Tree, surrounded by Nyx, Selene, Vorin, Aeris, and Liora I stood silently.
Perhaps infinity is easier to bear with friends I murmured.
And the human Universe Tree smiled
its eyes reflecting all that had been all that is and all that could be.