On the "Iron Dragonfly", in the quiet "Stargazer's Nook," Celeste sat with her knees drawn up. Before her, Kai's Essence Prism was glowing strangely. It was no longer the dull grey with a flickering orange flame.
Now, the prism hummed softly, coated in a solid, bronze-like light, within which the orange fire burned brightly and steadily. Occasionally, a ray of yellow light—the color of self-confidence—flashed around it.
Celeste widened her starry eyes, full of amazement and delight. She wasn't just sensing emotions anymore; she could see faint, fleeting images: a monster falling, a swift dodge, and Kai's determined gaze when he snatched back the lighter.
"Wow..." Celeste exclaimed, gently touching the prism. A mixed but powerful surge of emotions rushed back: clear physical pain, but above all, a sense of victory, pride, and unusual maturity. "He... he's amazing! He fought! And he won!"
She jumped for joy, hugging the prism to her chest like a treasure. Echo materialized faintly beside her, its ripples of light also shimmering as if sharing the joy.
But the joy quickly gave way to worry. Celeste sensed the danger Kai had just experienced. The wound on his arm, the confrontation with the bad guys... His world was so harsh. "Spiritual strength alone isn't enough," she whispered to Echo. "He needs to survive. I have to help him more."
That thought made her eyes shine. If last time she "spoon-fed" the Essence positive emotions to strengthen his spirit, this time, she needed to find something more practical. Something that could directly help Kai survive.
Celeste ran around the ship's compartment, thinking constantly. She observed Teron meticulously repairing a machine part with deep understanding. "That's it! Knowledge! He needs to know how to treat wounds, how to find clean water, how to avoid dangers!"
But how to transmit knowledge? Essence Prisms usually only contained pure emotions and memories.
Suddenly, Celeste remembered something. In the Iron Dragonfly's archives, near where the Stardust Wisps often gathered, floated a group of Dream Speakers. They were translucent light-beings, shaped like small, bobbing clouds, emitting a soft, rustling sound. They often traded beautiful dreams for fragments of memories. But more importantly, they had the ability to weave complex pieces of knowledge into "digestible" dreams.
"Can you help me?" Celeste whispered, approaching the Dream Speakers. They hummed softly, emitting a warm light as if agreeing.
She carefully placed Kai's Essence Prism among the Dream Speakers. The light crystals immediately surrounded it, beginning to murmur and glow. Instead of cold, mechanical data streams, soft threads of light woven by the Dream Speakers wrapped around the prism in a lively manner.
They weren't "uploading data" mechanically, but "telling a story"—a story of survival. "I'll give you a library. You can explore it yourself, learn what you need."
Celeste could see vividly woven images: pictures of a type of leaf that could staunch bleeding, images of underground water flowing beneath arid soil, fluid evasive maneuvers... All were transmitted like a vivid dream, easily imprinted on the subconscious.
Elsewhere in the universe, in his hideout, after roughly bandaging his wound, Kai suddenly felt a strange fatigue and fell asleep. In his sleep, he didn't have the usual nightmares. Instead, he found himself walking into a magical forest, where every tree, every stream whispered secrets of life.
A gentle voice, like a breeze, guided him: "Look closely, these purple leaves can help stop the bleeding... That clear stream comes from an underground spring, remember its signs..." The process was slow. Celeste sat down nearby, patiently waiting. She believed this was the best way to help: giving Kai the tools to save himself, rather than just protecting him.
Kai woke up, his mind not dizzy but instead strangely clear. The new knowledge appeared in his head clearly and intuitively, as if he had just experienced it firsthand. He looked down at his clumsily bandaged hand, and for the first time, he knew exactly which type of leaf to find nearby as a replacement.
On the ship, Celeste observed that Kai's Essence now not only had orange and yellow light, but also sparkled with tiny specks like letters, symbols of knowledge. She smiled contentedly.
"Become even stronger, Kai," she whispered, sending a warm, encouraging wave of emotion. "I'll always be here, the gardener tending the seed of your courage."
She knew Kai's journey was long and fraught with challenges. But now, he had not only courage, but also wisdom. And with that combination, his chances of survival had multiplied.