A chrysalis was not an unnatural thing, and so Azrael did not initially pay attention to it as he slid through the narrow tunnel, but then, just as he had walked past, there was a crack. That did manage to catch his attention, quite suddenly. He turned, just in time to see the young wolf scrabbling against the crystal walls of her own chrysalis, fighting to break free.

He stood and watched, for a moment. It was important that children break their way free on their own. And this one was a fighter. He appreciated that, as he watched it emerge. He took a step forward, kneeling down so that he was not towering over it so much.

A gruff snort huffed from his nose as the head burst free. "Keep fighting," he rumbled. "Fight to be free. You will make it."

Azrael grinned and suddenly slammed a fist against the ground. "That's right - FIGHT!" It was a bellow, not one to be terrifying, but one to be invigorating. The child struggled, the chrysalis would not give them up easily, but they fought fiercely. It was a sight Azrael had not witnessed in...a long time. The ruby had not fought in this way to be free, it had broken from its chrysalis as if it had been thrown out by some unhappy force removing it from what came before living. Banshy had been given the gift of an easy hatch.

This one had neither, and yet it fought. Yes...YES. It was invigorating to watch. It was invigorating to be here to witness this. It was something primal and good and Azrael felt the need to herald its hatching with something more then his presence.

A clench of his fists and a deep rumbling sound in his chest were like a generator to the magic that reached upwards, towards the lights above them. They began to flicker, some growing stronger, others going out, signaling the hatch of a new life that would fight.

"Yes," he growled. "FIGHT. Fight for your right to exist here, for your right to breathe, walk, be free! FIGHT!!!"

The pup's final and full emergence was heralded by a full-chest roar from Azrael that shook the walls - let everyone hear, let everyone know, that a new life had fought their way into the world! It wasn't that there was something particularly special about this one - it was simply a lanky wolf, like a more plain and pure version of the corrupted one Azrael knew - but it had fought its way free and he had been there to witness it. Such things should be celebrated.

"You are FREE," he bellowed, shifting forward to follow where it had tumbled. "And you have earned it." He noted the sheen on its fur - still wet from the chrysalis fluid. It wasn't cold in here, but he recognized it might be unpleasant. He reached out one of his burly hands as warmth began to sear under his skin and light poured from the eye in his palm. Just one hand would make a suitable furnace for the wolf to dry themselves next to.

"I will announce your name to the walls and stone, if you have one." He noted that they had already began eating the moss - not what he expected from a wolf, but it didn't seem to be sick. So he did not stop them.

Azrael nodded and threw back his head, sucking in a great breath - that was all the warning the young maned wolf would get. "ADI," he roared, his deep, bellowing voice bouncing off the close-walls of this tunnel, powerful enough to cause a bit of dust to rain from the ceiling. He looked down to the small wolf and nodded in approval. "Now these caves know your name and the stones will remember it." The wolf might not know, but Azrael did - the stones did have memory that could be extraced. Perhaps one day, someone would touch the stones and listen to their history and hear the demon roaring the name of this child for the world to hear and remember.

A mark permanently left in history. Even if a relatively small one.

"I am AZRAEL. The Darkness. Now that you are named and awake, now you must decide - what do you want to do?" His head tilted just a bit as he looked at the child. Perhaps if someone had sat him down when he was fresh-hatched and guided him this way, things would not have gone the way they did for him.

Perhaps he could do better.