A chirp and a scuttling was what woke him. Rayne raised his head. Light from the outside filtered in and the rain which had given continuous ambiance the entire night, had long since stopped. Everything had gone quiet and peaceful. Those murmurs and whispers were gone as well. He squinted his eyes and scanned the area to see if he could find that noise.

His eyes fell upon the sleeping forms of his parents and Jay. The other Kaishin were asleep as well, in restful slumbers. The chirp again. He swiveled his head in that direction. There was nothing but the dark cave.

Another chirp and a… thump?

Rayne stood up, more curious than ever now about what had made that noise. Entranced by it, he felt himself walking to the edge of his nest. He stepped over and stumbled, landing with a tiny thump on the hard stone floor below. Rayne stood again and shook himself. That fall had hurt, but only a tiny bit.

His eyes went to the forms of his sleeping parents. Neither had moved. Their chests moved up and down in a peaceful rhythm. Good.

The chirp sounded again, followed by that scuttling and another thump. He jerked his head in that direction and there it was. An odd animal, insect creature stood not ten meters from where he was. The fact that the creature was almost larger than he was, scared him a little, but Rayne was a bit more curious than that. 

It was round with tiny antennae protruding from its head. The creature’s round wings rubbed together, producing the melodious chirp he had heard before. With those large legs in the back which were meant for jumping, he would have assumed it was just an oversized cricket. It had all the characteristics of one. But then using eight normal legs, it scuttled forward. A bit perturbed, Rayne leaned towards it to try and get a better look.

The cricket hopped this time. Rayne cocked his head. This was unusual. Of course he had seen crickets on earth but those all had six legs. This one had ten. It hopped again and he followed.

Is it edible? Rayne thought as he approached it closer. If it were edible, he would probably prefer eating this than that monstrosity back in his nest.

It scuttled forward, inching its way closer and closer to the mouth. Rayne lowered himself to the ground and let out a tiny growl. He wanted this thing to know that he meant business. Then he wiggled his bum and pounced. The cricket hopped away.

Hunting it may not be so easy, he thought as he stood. If it was easy to hunt these, then why had his father brought back that other edible but not edible creature?

It hopped again, this time beyond the stalagmites. 

For a moment, he stood in silence, just looking at that ominous mouth. It was the entrance to a massive cavern. Although he couldn’t see the entirety of it from where he stood, Rayne could see enough of the cavern to get a clear picture of what might be in store if he entered. His stomach rumbled, reminding him that he was still hungry.

Urged on by his need for something tasty, Rayne ran into the mouth. He stood on the edge of a precipice. A giant canyon spread out in front of him. Stalactites hung from the ceiling, with strange, white crystals hanging from those. The roof sparkled like a starry, night sky, just like the roof of the cave he had been born into. And below he could see a bright, orb of light. Hundreds of those crickets swarmed around it, chirping and hopping.

His eyes fell on the orb and he felt himself unable to look away. It was mesmerizing and… the orb pulsated. Startled, Rayne stepped back and crashed into a solid object.

He looked behind.

"What are you doing here?" His uncle asked.

Rayne coward under Jaydeth's gaze and looked away. Out of all he could have run into in the cavern, he wished it hadn’t been his uncle.

"Relax," Jaydeth said. "I haven't come to harm you." He looked down into the crevice.

Melodious chirping echoed up from the canyon below as those crickets crowded around that light. It pulsated, turning blue and then white again. Some of the crickets strangely enough, mimicked it. Their wings became a vibrant blue, before turning back into a pale black. Other colors erupted in the swarm. Reds and greens. Yellows and dark violets. 

The entire scene, took his breath away. It was the most captivating thing he had ever seen. How some of those crickets changed their color into something vibrant and beautiful, then changed back into their dull gray black. 

“They are beautiful,” Jaydeth said. “But sometimes the most beautiful things can be the most deadly.”

Rayne glanced up at him.

“They are poisonous, we are unable to eat them… did you think we would eat those… disgusting animals outside if we had any other choice?”

Jaydeth had a good point. Both Kho and Chida had told him, that strange creature they brought back was all there was. He shook his head in reply. Even if it was the only thing, that wouldn't stop him from trying to find something better.

A scuttling on the roof above. 

Rayne jerked his head up and then he felt his eyes go wide with surprise. It was an enormous centipede. After crawling down one of the larger stalactites, it had extended the entirety of its body, reaching for the light orb.

Jaydeth followed his gaze. "We may not be able to eat them, but they do have a purpose," he said. With his nose, he pointed toward the giant centipede. “Watch.”

The elongated insect stretched and stretched, further and further down. As it approached the orb of light, it opened its giant mandibles. One of the many crickets down there in the crevice, looked up at it. There was a pause. A moment of silence. The cricket rubbed its wings furiously together, emitting a terrible, high pitched screech. The other crickets looked up and immediately began hopping at the centipede, trying to knock it down… trying to eat it?

Rayne shook his head, trying to rid himself of that horrifying sight and the screech which had nearly deafened him. He looked up into his uncle’s eyes. “Those crickets,” he said. “They are… defending that orb?”

Jaydeth looked at him and then allowed a slow smile to cross his face, “Yes,” he said. “And although that cricket was planning to eat you, it is our job to defend it as well and the crickets.”

“E-eat?” Rayne swallowed.

“Well, I did say some of the most beautiful things are the most deadly.”

“They seemed… harmless,” Rayne said.

Jaydeth shook his head. “No,” he said. His voice had become somber and quiet, reflective. “We… it is our job to defend that light. For ourselves… for our souls and our very existence. That orb you see down there, is the reason we are unable to move away from this place.”

Rayne looked up at him and there were tears in his eyes. Jaydeth was weeping silently as he stood there. They were a truly tragic species. Trapped in a place they were forbidden from leaving, doomed to spend an eternity as guardians for a pulsating, orb of light. His eyes fell back upon the object and they too, filled up with moisture.