KNijiht

Chapter 1

A shooting star grazes the sky.

Beneath it, three young boys run.

Behind them — a group of Elf boys, closing fast.

"There's no point in running, Astro!"

"Pretty soon we'll be Majors—"

"—and you guys are the first ones we catch!"

"Shango — don't stop!" Cleo's voice, breath ragged behind him. "Just keep moving!"

A bully laughs from the back of the pack.

"The only one of you three with Major potential is that softy hiding behind you, Astro! At least your Oni friend isn't stupid enough to dream that big. But YOU?"

The voice sharpens.

"The son of Oba — an A-rank outlaw. It's only a matter of time before you've got a bounty just like him."

Shango stops.

He turns.

And buries a fist in the closest face.

The bully drops back into his friend's arms. Another swings — Caesar steps in, catches the wrist, pulls it forward into a counter-punch.

"We're not running because we're scared of you guy—"

Caesar freezes.

A tail-aura.

Behind them.

A Major with 3 glowing tails behind him stands in the street, arms crossed.

"You two just made your last mistake putting your hands on those boys."

His eyes pass over the Elf bullies — almost sympathetic — before settling cold on Shango and Caesar. He tilts his head toward the Elves.

"You boys get out of here. I got this."

The Elf bullies don't argue. They go.

The Major's gaze drifts to Cleo.

"…Aren't you gonna go too, lil miss?"

"I'm his brother." Level.

The Major blinks.

"…I see."

A beat.

"Anyway. There's nothing I hate more than a misbehaving Oni. Imma have to teach you two boys a lesso—"

"Shango — and is that the twins?"

A woman's voice. Sharp. Unmistakable.

The Major glances over.

He doesn't move at first. Just exhales through his nose. Holds the moment a beat too long — long enough to make sure everyone watching knows he could've done something. Then he steps aside.

"…Tch."

Shango's mother walks past him like he isn't there.

"What are you three doing out so late? Come — I'm sure your mother's worried sick." She gathers them with a hand. "You know how these Elves get this time of year. Not you, Cleo — you're beautiful. You three need to be more careful."

She doesn't glance back at the Major.

She doesn't need to.

By the time they round the corner, he's already gone.

The lamp is already low when they get home.

Cleo follows Caesar behind into their door. Shango walks the last stretch with his mother in silence.

"When we get inside, I have something to give you."

"A graduation present? Mom, you didn't have to."

"In a way." She doesn't look at him. "It's something your father wanted me to give you. If he hadn't returned by now."

Shango doesn't answer.

She rarely speaks of him.

Inside, she disappears around the corner. Comes back holding a worn notebook. Edges soft. Cover stained from years of being held by hands that weren't hers.

"Time flies." Her voice is gentle. Tired. "I can't believe you're graduating. I wish I could be there — but I'm working in the morning. I won't see you till after."

She sets the notebook on the table.

"Promise me you won't use this as an excuse to stop being safe. Every day, you remind me of the man I love in your father."

A beat.

"So please. Just be safe."

Shango picks the notebook up like it might break.

"What's the big deal? It's just a notebook."

He glances at her. Eyes too bright to match the words.

"…But I promise. I'll be safe."

He opens it.

Every page is dense with his father's hand. Maps. Creatures. Energy diagrams.

One page catches him.

Three sketches of the same creature. Small, with folded wings. Then larger, all claws and scales. Then both at once — wings unfurling from the giant body.

Beneath them, three words in his father's writing:

Fairy(moon). Giant(sun). Full Release.(eclipse

His eyes light.

He shuts the book, kisses his mother goodnight, and takes it to his room.

The lamp in his window burns long after the rest of the street goes dark.

Morning.

Shango ties the white sash of his graduation gown with the notebook tucked under his arm. His mother is already gone — only a cold cup on the table to prove she'd been there.

He runs to school.

The field outside the schoolhouse is set with rows of folding chairs. Oni and Elf students stand in two separate lines, gowns catching the wind. Shango finds his place between Cleo and Caesar without a word.

The Elf line stands taller. Parents filling the front rows.

The Oni line shifts. Empty seats where someone's mother or father didn't come.

Shango's gaze drifts past the field, past the schoolhouse roof, past the edge of town —

To the mouth of a cave on the ridge.

It's the one from the book.

Has to be.

His grip tightens on the notebook.

A way to awaken.

That's what his father wrote. That's what he stayed up reading until the lamp went out.

If he can awaken — he can take the Major exam.

He can prove every voice that ever called him just another Oba wrong.

He could leave right now. Just walk. Past the chairs, past the field, straight to that ridge.

But his mother made him promise.

And even if his father is innocent — leaving him and his mother alone is its own kind of crime.

A name is called. The Oni boy two rows ahead stands and walks the line.

Shango exhales.

The bell tolls.

He slips through the crowd before the certificates are done, the notebook clutched against his chest, and breaks into a run.

He doesn't look back.

But he knows, without looking, that the twins are behind him.

The entrance to the mine comes into view.

Shango slows.

He's never been this close before.

The air feels heavier here.

He glances back. The twins are right behind him, breath steaming.

"You know," Shango says, catching his breath, "I was trying to protect you guys. I'm not even sure this isn't a bad idea."

Caesar shrugs. "That's why we're coming. So you might as well tell us why we're here."

Shango hesitates.

Then exhales.

"My mom gave me something. My dad's notebook — from when he worked here. He told her to wait until I graduated."

Cleo raises a brow. "Okay. But why does that bring us to a creepy cave?"

"There's a map inside." Shango lifts the book. "It points here. Says there's something in this mine…"

He swallows.

"A way to awaken."

Cleo steps forward, expression serious now. "These mines aren't empty. They're usually crawling with ioi."

Shango nods. "Immortal hive species. Absorb energy from their surroundings. Can't take them down without an ioi tool."

"And you don't have one."

A pause.

"They don't give those to non-Majors."

Caesar looks at the dark mouth of the cave.

"…So what's the plan?"

Shango stares into the dark.

"An abandoned mine like this shouldn't have many left. We sneak past whatever's there. Head straight for the core crystal."

Cleo sighs. "Not a great plan."

Then he glances at Shango.

"But it is a plan. And I can already tell — you're not turning back."

Shango doesn't.

"I'm tired of being told what I can't become. That because we're Oni, we're meant to be Minors."

He looks toward the cave.

"I'm going in there. I'm going to awaken. Then become a Major."

His voice hardens.

"Strong enough to bring my father in. So I can rewrite what it means to be an Astro.

Silence.

Shango steps forward.

"Last chance to turn back."

He doesn't wait for an answer.

"I'm going in."

All three step into the cave together. Dim crystals line the walls, their glow barely cutting through the dark.

Chapter 2

Any light that once shone from the crystals had long since been drained by the ioi.

The walls are dull. Lifeless.

As the three venture deeper, something feels off.

There are no ioi.

Not a single one.

Only a few scattered across the ground — frozen in their crystal state.

Caesar exhales. "Looks like there was nothing to worry about after all." He steps forward casually.

"Just watch your step," Cleo says. "If those things absorb enough energy, they'll wake right back up."

Shango doesn't respond. His gaze lingers on the empty cavern.

"…There should be more."

Shango slows.

The silence presses in.

Not abandoned — cleared.

A line from the notebook surfaces in his mind:

Ioi have only one natural predator.

His jaw tightens.

They press on. The dim crystals barely light their path. Shadows stretch along the walls. Eventually even that fades, and they're forced to feel their way forward.

Caesar exhales. "Kinda late to turn back… but how are we supposed to find this thing in the dark?"

"It's supposed to glow," Shango says.

Cleo glances at the dull walls. "Yeah. And apparently the whole mine was supposed to glow too."

"…Fair point," Shango mutters. "I'm starting to think I should've planned this bett—"

He stops.

Something flickers in the distance.

Faint. But real.

"…There."

His grip tightens around the notebook.

That's it.

That's the stone his father wrote about.

He starts forward. The others follow. The narrow tunnel widens — and opens into a vast clearing.

The two Oni boys take off toward the crystal.

"Hey — don't just run off like that!" Cleo calls, hurrying after.

They can feel it before they reach it. The energy hums through the air — subtle, undeniable. Almost alive.

Caesar slows. "You feel that?"

"Yeah."

They stop a few steps away. The light pulses softly.

Cleo catches up, out of breath. "Shango — let me see the notebook."

He hands it over without hesitation.

Cleo flips through, then slows. "There." Cleo scans the page. "Touching the core crystal can either awaken an Anijiel… at least for the unawakened. After that, the effect changes?"

A pause.

Cleo closes the book slightly. "…So who's going first?"

No response.

Cleo looks up —

— and both boys are already at the crystal, hands pressed to its surface.

Their hair turns white.

Their bodies shift — subtle at first. Then unmistakable.

Sharper canines. Faint markings tracing their forearms. Their eyes pulse beneath closed lids with a light that isn't theirs.

Still. Unmoving.

Then Shango opens his eyes.

They burn gold.

And he sees it.

Beyond the crystal. Hovering in the dark.

Small. No bigger than a hand. Wings folded tight against its body.

A flicker of memory — pages from his father's notebook. Three sketches. Three forms.

Fairy state.

"Shango?"

Cleo follows his gaze, brow furrowing.
"What? What are you—"

But Cleo doesn't see it.

Neither does Caesar — eyes only now beginning to open.

Shango's grip tightens.

"Get back — now—"

But before he can finish —

The thing unfolds.

A blur tears across the cavern in the space of a breath. Silent. Inhuman.

Behind Caesar — something hits him hard.

Caesar drops.

"Caesar!"

Cleo lunges forward, catching him before he hits the ground.

"Is he okay?"

"He's alive." Cleo's hands move fast, checking him. "But something hit him — hard."

Cleo's voice falters.

"…What hit him? I didn't see anything—"

"You couldn't?"

Shango's gold eyes don't move from the dark beyond the crystal.

Something steps out of it.

Tall as a man now. Twice as broad. Scales catching the dull light. Eyes pinning him.

"…A draijion." Shango's voice is low. "Giant state. The one that hit Caesar was its fairy form. You couldn't see it?"

The creature doesn't respond.

It moves.

Fast.

Shango ducks just in time, the strike cutting the air where he stood.

"This is my fault," he says through clenched teeth. "I shouldn't have brought you guys here."

"Now's not the time," Cleo snaps, tightening the hold on Caesar.

"Cleo. Go. Get help."

"And how are you planning to hold that thing off?"

Shango hesitates. "…I'm not sure."

Behind Cleo — the draijion shifts. Its focus changes.

It's targeting Cleo.

"Cleo—!"

Shango throws himself forward — intercepting the strike. The impact jars through his arms as he barely deflects it.

"Listen to me," he says, eyes on the creature. "I don't know what I'll do if you get hurt too. I'll hold it off as long as I can. We're not beating this thing — not like this. Not with Caesar down."

A beat.

Cleo meets his eyes.

Cleo sees it. Shango's serious.

Reluctantly, Cleo nods.

"…Don't die."

Shango almost smirks. "Wasn't planning on it."

Cleo turns and runs — full speed toward the entrance.

The draijion shifts to pursue — but Shango cuts it off, stepping between them.

"Your fight's with me!"

The creature lunges. Shango barely holds his ground.

Now that he's closer, he can see it clearly.

This isn't like the ones in the notebook. The structure. The markings. The way it moves.

Different.

A memory surfaces. Fragments from his father's notes.

There have to be more… twelve, maybe twelve distinct races…

His grip tightens. But his father had only ever recorded three.

Only three.

This isn't one of them.

A chill runs down his spine.

So this is one he never found…

His breath steadies.

Then I'm the first.

The fight drags on.

Shango weaves between strikes, each faster than the last. He missteps — stumbles across something on the ground.

Bones.

A skeleton. Still clutching a blade — an ioi tool.

Someone came here before me. And they were prepared.

A chill.

And they still died.

The draijion lunges again. Shango barely rolls clear, scrambling back to his feet. His breathing is heavier now. His body slower.

So this is it? I finally awaken… prove them wrong… just to die here?

Silence.

Then —

His stance steadies.

Something shifts. His focus sharpens. Energy stirs within him.

Naturally. Instinctively.

A tail release.

A translucent tail of raw energy flickers into existence behind him.

The air changes.

Shango clashes with the draijion — barely holding his own. Each strike rattles through his body. But his confidence grows.

The ioi blade in his hand begins to glow. At first faint. Then brighter. Too bright.

"Wait — what—?"

The blade shifts. Twists.

And reverts.

Back into its monster state. It latches onto his arm. Shango gasps as it begins to drain him — energy, strength, everything.

"Get off—!"

He rips his hand away, dropping the weapon. It hits the ground and immediately begins feeding, pulling energy from the floor beneath it.

Shango stumbles back, clutching his arm.

Numb. Useless.

That was my last chance…

He looks up. The draijion stands still. Watching.

Then — it moves.

But not toward him.

Toward the ioi.

Right. ioi are their prey.

The draijion lunges at the creature. Pins it. Tears into it.

For a brief moment — Shango is ignored.

He can see the scales beginning to pulse. Faint at first. Then steady.

…It's drinking the iji back.

His father's words rise — the natural predator of ioi are draijions.

…Now's my chance.

He turns and rushes toward Caesar, dropping to his side. "Come on… come on…"

He tries to lift him —

Then —

Silence.

The sound of the rustling stops.

Shango freezes.

Slowly, he looks up.

A glow reflects off the cave wall.

The draijion stands there — and from its giant back, translucent wings flicker into existence. Folded once. Then half-open.

Not the fairy form.

Not the giant.

Both.

Full release.

Its mouth opens. A sphere of fire builds within.

Between them — half-buried in the stone — another ioi blade.

Shango's eyes lock onto it.

A choice.

Run — and maybe escape.

Or take the blade and end this here.

His jaw tightens.

If he runs, it could still follow.

If he stays, he might not survive.

The fire swells.

And Shango has to choose.

Chapter 3

He breaks into a sprint.

Too late.

The fireball surges toward him — heat blinding, swallowing everything in front of him.

He can't see the blade.

But he remembers where it was.

He has to.

Shango pushes forward — straight into the flames.

He reaches down — grabs hold — and swings upward.

The fire splits, consumed by the ioi blade.

For a brief moment, he sees it.

The draijion. Right in front of him.

Then —

Darkness.

Talons cover his field of vision. Too fast. Too close.

…This is it.

His body tenses.

So this is how it ends.

A bitter thought crosses his mind —

At least I proved them wrong. Oni can awaken.

A pause.

So maybe… this wasn't all for nothing.

Then —

…I should've run. I could've lived.

A slash cuts across his face.

Shango flinches —

But it doesn't hurt as much as it should.

He blinks. Once. Twice.

The draijion — is farther away.

Drifting. Suspended.

Not moving on its own.

Held.

The creature thrashes against an invisible force, struggling to break free.

Shango turns —

And sees her.

A woman stands beside Cleo.

Calm. Unmoving. Two hands slightly raised.

Like the space between them has been frozen.

The draijion thrashes against the invisible hold.

The woman doesn't move.

With a slight motion of her hand, she releases Shango — guiding him gently into Cleo's arms.

Then that same hand lifts again.

An ioi blade is pulled from its sheath.

No hesitation. No wasted movement.

She steps forward —

And in a single, fluid motion —

Cuts through the draijion.

The creature lets out a final, distorted cry —

Before reverting into a crystal.

Silence returns to the cave.

The woman turns toward Shango.

"Are you—"

Before she can finish —

His vision fades.

And everything goes dark.

Shango's eyes flutter open.

Dim light. Familiar faces.

Cleo sits beside him. The woman stands just beyond.

"I'm… alive?"

He jolts upright.

"Caesar—"

He stops.

Caesar is there. Leaning against the wall. Looking back at him.

Alive. Seemingly uninjured.

But —

Something's off.

Before Shango can ask, the woman speaks.

"Though I did what I could… that scar will remain."

Shango reaches up, brushing his face.

"You lost a tooth, too. The replacement should suffice. A Gold cap — from the Land Elf mountains."

Shango starts to protest, but she shakes her head.

"I saw your decision. You chose to fight instead of run."

A brief pause.

Her expression softens.

"I have a daughter around your age. You'd probably get along — just as hard-headed. Hopefully she's smart enough not to end up in a situation like this."

She glances at Cleo and Caesar.

"Especially if what your friend says is true. You're not even Majors yet."

A small smirk.

"…You've got potential, kid."

A quick wink — then she looks at all three, more serious now.

"You all do."

She doesn't leave them there.

"My name is Andromeda." She rises, the smirk gone. "And we need to move. You should know — ioi come out at night. This meteor mineshaft won't stay empty much longer."

The three follow her toward the entrance.

Behind them, the cave begins to wake. Dull crystals pulse along the walls.

One ioi stirs.

Then another.

But they don't stop to fight.

They run past — straight for the exit.

Shango clutches the notebook against his chest. Caesar follows just behind, jaw set against the ache in his shoulder. None of them speak.

Behind them, the cave is waking.

Ahead — a sliver of night sky.

They emerge into cool air.

Above the ridge, the stars are out. The town's lanterns flicker in the valley below — small, distant, almost unreal after the dark of the mine.

Andromeda turns one last time.

"Now go. Quickly. Before the rest follow."

She holds Shango's eyes a moment longer than the others'.

Then she steps past them, into the dark — and is gone.

For a moment, the three of them just stand there.

The wind moves across the ridge. The town below sits warm and unaware. Caesar exhales — half a laugh, half a wince. Cleo drags a sleeve across the eyes. Shango feels the place on his cheek where the scar already begins to pull when he moves.

Then —

A streak of light cuts across the sky.

A shooting star. Bright. Falling fast toward the valley.

The three of them watch it go.

Shango's grip tightens on the notebook.

Cleo glances at him.

Caesar lets out a slow breath. "…You guys feel like running?"

A pause.

Shango almost smiles. "Yeah."

The three enter their tail release states and take off down the ridge — full speed, side by side, the meteor blazing ahead of them toward the lights of home.

This is just the beginning for these Shooting Star Chasers.