Content warnings for this fic: violence, blood, character death, animal death, mild swearing
A/N: This is my own interpretation of Morpho Knight and their past, which doesn't entirely coincide with canon, also this story takes place before the events Kirby games, and also that Asteri is my name for Kirby, Meta Knight, Galacta Knight, and Morpho Knight's species. Please keep all that in mind while reading, and please enjoy the story, and please review and fave if you'd like to!
Life flowed through their tiny, fragile body. The life they had stolen from the great bird they had landed on. The life they needed to reclaim their glory. As the avian's body turned cold, the form of the life stealer was shrouded in a scarlet glow, which slowly grew larger until it burst, revealing the true form of the being.
A pair of vermillion wings grew from their back, a stark contrast from their dark body. Their pale eyes were somewhat hidden under a red, armored mask with horns somewhat like a butterfly's antennae. Finally, after so many ages, their true form had been restored.
They looked towards the beast they had slain, and silently grieved for the life they had stolen from it. It had seemed to be quite ill, so the winged knight could at least reassure themself that it did not have much time left anyway.
So… What would they do with their newfound freedom? Well… they would see. The feeling of being truly alive was… a strange one, after so long. Perhaps they would search for new companions… No, attachment could end up badly for them. So for now, they would wander this night alone.
They waddled outside the cavern they were in, and were greeted by a view of a world blanketed by the night. The world was accented by blue, and the deep sky was lit by thousands of twinkling stars and a full moon. Below the cliff that the being stood upon was a small forest, doubtlessly filled with life.
Perhaps that forest would be their first destination in this new freedom. A silent, calm realm with few visitors… The knight spread their scarlet wings, and swooped down towards the woods.
They landed softly, flapping their wings as they landed upon the gentle grass. They watched as moths danced around them, perhaps attracted by the subtle red glow of their form. Or perhaps, the insects were drawn by a sense of kinship with the being. Either way, from the view of this form, it was rather calming to see the activity of such tiny lives.
The being decided to keep venturing through the sleeping woods. As the dusk was far past, not many were awake at this time. As such, the being did not expect to discover any beings of particular note.
Little did they know, that would be wrong.
Deep within the forest, while the darkest hour of night had passed, the being heard a cry. At first, they thought it to be a nocturnal animal of some sort. But upon listening closer, they realized that the one crying out was speaking.
"Hello? A-anyone? Help, I'm lost…" the soft voice seemed to whimper. The winged knight estimated that the voice was coming from a few feet away to their left, and turned that way to find a slightly rustling blueberry bush.
Quickly, a small being broke out of the leaves. They appeared to be blue, but it was difficult to tell if this was their natural color or if it was due to the night's tint. As the knight looked upon the little one's round form, they realized that this was…
An Asteri! Of all things, they had not expected to find another of their species here. And from their petite size, they appeared to be a very young child... The winged knight was rather worried, both for the safety of the child and that their own appearance could be frightening to one so young…
But the child didn't flinch, simply looking at the knight with tear-filled eyes. "P-please…" they pleaded, "Could you help me?"
The knight started to internally panic, they were not the right person to be taking care of a lost child! "I'm sorry. I cannot help you." they responded in a solemn tone.
"Wh… What?" the child cried in distress. Their eyes started watering even more, and they covered their face with their paws as they kept sobbing.
The knight was taken aback. They shouldn't have just bailed out on a scared child lost in the woods like that… "...Fine. I'll just take you to your family, that's it."
"But… they're g-gone…" the child whimpered.
So, this little one wasn't just lost, they were an orphan. Damn it… The winged knight was most definitely unprepared to become an adoptive parent to an orphaned child… But they couldn't just leave the poor thing to die out here! "I… I'll take care of you." they swore. The little one was still sobbing, too miserable to have been listening. "I said, I'll take care of you." the knight repeated, in a louder tone.
This time, the child had heard them. "R-really? You promise?" Their eyes were still damp, but they were more calm than they had been a few seconds ago.
"Yes, I promise. What's your name, young one?"
"I… my name is…" They paused and looked around, as if unsure what to say next. After looking over to the blueberry bush they had hopped out of, they uttered "B-berry…" From how they had said it, they seemed to have just come up with it on the spot.
"Ah, I see… My name is…" The winged knight paused. They had sworn an oath to not form attachments, and telling their true name to another was such a thing. "...Just call me… Morpho Knight."
"Oh… C-could I just call you Morpho?" Berry asked, still somewhat teary-eyed, but much less than a few seconds ago.
"...I suppose." Morpho Knight responded. They sighed. They had not anticipated having to take care of a child, but this little one didn't deserve to die all alone. "I promise… I'll protect you, Berry."
Even if they had the ability to take the lives of others, they swore that they would keep this one safe with their own.