They walked in silence for some time—if time could be measured in this place. The platform beneath them shifted imperceptibly, drifting across the void like a raft caught in a current no one could see. Aouli's thoughts were a tangled web: Gaia's fall, the cosmic convergence, Elysia's solemn lessons. It all felt too vast, too sacred for a single consciousness to carry.
Then—abruptly—the quiet was broken.
A figure stepped out from behind a jagged arch of stone that hovered midair like a shard of some shattered planet. He was already smiling, as if he'd been waiting for them, though how he'd known where they would appear was anyone's guess.
"About time," he said. "I was beginning to think you'd lost your way in your own metaphors, Elysia."
He was human. Or close enough. Shorter than Aouli, with unruly black hair and a half-cloak slung carelessly over one shoulder. His boots were scuffed. His clothing—a blend of durable leather and woven fiber—was patched in several places, though none of the repairs looked desperate. His skin was sun-darkened, and his eyes sparkled with mischief and calculation.
"Kaero," Elysia said, her tone measured. "You're early."
Kaero shrugged. "Time is a suggestion here, isn't it? Besides, I figured I'd meet the legendary Star Child myself before the Crossroads gossip turns him into a three-headed solar wyrm or something equally ridiculous."
He turned to Aouli and extended a hand.
"A pleasure. I'm Kaero. Traveler. Occasional thief. Rarely an optimist."
Aouli hesitated, then reached out. Their hands met—his, still pulsing faintly with cosmic glow; Kaero's, warm and solid and unmistakably real.
"You don't look like someone who came from a dead world," Kaero said, cocking his head. "But then again, you don't look like much of anything. You glow. That's new."
Aouli opened his mouth, unsure how to respond. Kaero grinned wider.
"I like you already."
Elysia didn't return the smile. "Kaero, we're not here for amusement."
"We're not?" Kaero glanced around theatrically. "And here I thought you dragged him across half a dozen dimensional membranes just for the joy of enlightenment. Forgive me."
Aouli frowned. "Do you… know why I was made?"
Kaero's face shifted. The grin faded, not entirely, but enough for something darker to peer through.
"I know what you represent," he said. "And I know that idealism, especially when wrapped in divine purpose, tends to leave scorched footprints behind. The multiverse is full of beings with good intentions and no plan."
"Kaero," Elysia said, her voice sharper now.
He held up a hand. "I'm just being honest. Someone has to be."
Aouli studied him. Kaero didn't radiate wisdom like Elysia, nor did he seem powerful in any obvious way. But there was something else in him—survivor's intuition. A man who had seen the worst the multiverse had to offer and still kept walking.
"Why are you here?" Aouli asked.
Kaero tilted his head thoughtfully. "Same reason anyone's at the Crossroads. I'm looking. For something I lost. For something worth protecting. Depends on the day."
He reached into his cloak and tossed Aouli a small object. Aouli caught it reflexively—it was a worn stone coin, etched with a strange symbol that shifted depending on the angle of the light.
"Keep it," Kaero said. "Token of goodwill. Or insurance. You'll figure out which soon enough."
Elysia sighed. "He means well. Sometimes. And despite his… flare for the chaotic, he's crossed more realities than most. His perspective has value."
Kaero bowed extravagantly. "And yours is as polished as ever."
Aouli turned the coin in his hand. It was warm.
"You don't trust her?" he asked.
Kaero's grin returned. "I trust her to believe in what she believes. That's more than I can say for most. But belief and truth aren't always the same."
Aouli glanced at Elysia. Her expression was unreadable.
"I'll be around," Kaero said, turning to leave. "When you start asking the questions she won't answer."
And then, without a sound, he was gone—vanishing behind a fold in reality like someone stepping behind a curtain.
Aouli stood quietly, the coin in his hand, his thoughts heavier now.
Elysia spoke after a long silence. "Not all wisdom is clean. Some truths wear scars."
Aouli nodded slowly.
"I want to know all of it," he said. "Even the parts you're afraid to tell me."
Elysia turned to him, her expression grave.
"Then your journey truly begins."