The footsteps were soft, nearly silent. If Kai hadn't been straining his ears, he might not have noticed them at all.
His breath hitched.
Someone was here.
His eyes flicked toward the cave entrance, but the dimming light made it hard to see beyond a few meters. Shadows stretched along the cavern walls, shifting ever so slightly.
Kai forced himself to sit up, ignoring the ache in his muscles. His instincts screamed at him—Say something! But his throat was dry, and his brain hadn't caught up with the situation yet.
Then, from the darkness, she appeared.
A small figure, barely reaching his chest if they were standing side by side, stepped into view. A child? No—something about her posture, her presence, felt too composed. Too precise.
She wore a dark cloak, the hood pushed back just enough to reveal pale hair and sharp, watchful eyes. She was carrying something in her hands.
Kai swallowed, suddenly very aware of how defenseless he was.
The girl tilted her head slightly, studying him.
"…Uh, hey," Kai tried, his voice rasping. "You lost too, or am I trespassing in your evil lair?"
No response.
Her gaze flicked downward, scanning him—his weak posture, his trembling hands. Then, without a word, she took a step closer.
Kai tensed. "Whoa, wait—"
She crouched down, setting something on the ground between them.
A batch of fruits.
Kai blinked. "...Huh?"
It was round, about the size of a grapefruit, with a rough metallic-looking shell. He had never seen anything like it before.
The girl pushed it toward him slightly, then rose to her feet.
Kai hesitated. His throat was parched, his stomach gnawed at him, but still—mystery cave fruit? That seemed like a gamble.
He looked back up at her. "You… giving this to me?"
She didn't nod. Didn't shake her head either. Just stood there, watching.
Kai let out a weak chuckle. "Not much of a talker, huh?"
Again, silence.
Then, as quickly as she had come, she turned and vanished into the darkness.
Kai scrambled to prop himself up. "Wait—hey! Who are you? Where am I?"
No answer.
Only the distant echo of footsteps faded away.
Kai stared after her, then looked down at the strange fruit she had left behind.
"…Well. That was creepy."
His stomach rumbled again.
"…And inconveniently timed."
He sighed.
Against his better judgment, he reached for the fruit.
Kai rolled the strange fruit in his hand, still unsure if this was a terrible idea. But his stomach made the decision for him.
"Alright, mystery cave fruit. Either you kill me, or I survive and regret nothing."
He bit down.
A sharp zing spread across his tongue—like licking a battery, but somehow… pleasant? His whole body tensed from the shock, but then a strange warmth spread through his limbs. The sluggishness in his muscles eased, like a fog lifting from his brain.
He exhaled. "Weird… but not bad."
Feeling slightly more alive, Kai forced himself onto his feet. His legs wobbled, but he managed to steady himself. Now that his head wasn't spinning from hunger, he could actually look around properly.
The cavern was vast, jagged rock formations stretching toward the ceiling. But what caught his eye was the rubble near the center—a pile of something broken.
Kai frowned and shuffled closer, careful with his footing. As he reached the shattered remains, his stomach twisted.
It was crystal. Large fragments of what must have once been a towering pillar were scattered across the ground. They had lost their color, their once-brilliant glow reduced to dull, lifeless shards.
Kai swallowed. "Did I… break this?"
His mind replayed the moment before he blacked out—the blinding light, the sheer force of it. Had touching the crystal done something?
He crouched, brushing his fingers over the smooth remnants. The air around them felt off, like static still lingering after a lightning strike.
Then, something moved.
Kai jerked back, eyes snapping toward the rubble. One of the smaller pieces had shifted, revealing something underneath.
A small, round object.
"…An egg?"
Carefully, he reached out and picked it up. It was smooth, almost glass-like, yet surprisingly warm to the touch. As he turned it in his hand, a faint glow pulsed from within.
Kai's pulse quickened. "Okay, glowing eggs—probably not normal."
The glow brightened.
Kai froze. "Uh…?"
A thin crack split across the shell.
His breath hitched. "Oh, you're—wait, are you hatching right now?!"
The egg trembled, tiny fissures spreading across its surface. Then, with a soft pop, a fragment fell away—followed by a tiny, wiggling creature.
Kai's eyes widened.
It looked like an axolotl. If axolotls were sky-blue, slightly translucent, and floating.
The tiny creature blinked at him with large, star-like eyes. Then, with an almost lazy motion, it hovered into the air.
Kai watched in awe as the tiny axolotl drifted in the air, its translucent blue body shimmering faintly. The way it moved—graceful, effortless, like it belonged to the air more than the ground—was mesmerizing.
The little creature spun in place, its frilled gills fluttering, almost as if it were testing its newfound freedom. It let out another soft trill, tilting its head at Kai in curiosity.
Kai ran a hand through his hair, still trying to process what he was looking at. "You really are something else, huh?"
He glanced at the shattered remains of the crystal pillar. It had been blinding, like staring into the sun itself—so bright that it burned the moment into his memory. And yet, from that brilliant radiance, this tiny creature had been born.
Like dust scattered from a dying star.
Kai's lips twitched. "…Stardust."
The creature chirped.
He grinned. "Yeah, that fits, doesn't it? You were born from that crystal that lit up like a miniature sun—so, Stardust."
The little axolotl twirled midair, clearly pleased with its new name.
Kai chuckled. "Alright, Stardust. Let's figure out what the hell we just got ourselves into."
Kai let out a long sigh, rubbing his face. "Okay… nvm, it's dark already. We should sleep." He looked around the cavern, then at the pile of crystal rubble. "Not like I have a better plan anyway."
He lowered himself onto the rocky ground with a groan. The cold immediately seeped into his skin, making him shiver. "Great. No blanket, no fire… Maybe there's something I can use to keep warm."
As he mulled over his miserable situation, a soft glow flickered beside him.
Kai turned his head.
Stardust, who had been lazily floating nearby, was now glowing—red. The warmth radiating from its small body washed over Kai like a gentle campfire, chasing away the chill in the air.
Kai blinked. Then blinked again.
"…Are you serious?" He held out a hand, feeling the comforting heat. "You're like… a floating space heater?"
Stardust trilled, bobbing in the air like it was pleased with itself.
Kai exhaled a laugh, shaking his head. "You know what? Maybe the first day won't be so bad after all."