Little Pink Starfish

What are humans made of?

Aiden pondered as he stared at the entangled cluster of lights before him.

In Greek mythology, humans were shaped from clay, with Prometheus breathing life into them to complete their form. After the great flood, it was said that the surviving man and woman threw stones over their shoulders, and from them, humanity was born.

In Norse mythology, Odin and his brothers crafted man from an ash tree and woman from an elm. They gave them life, emotions, and senses.

Common among all these stories was the belief that humans were always made from something. It was a strange thing. In all the myths, the original form of humanity was never “nothing.” Though heaven and earth could be created from void, humans always needed materials—be it clay or branches.

‘I don’t know why that is…’

Reaching toward the light, Aiden thought,

‘But in this world, all the soil and branches must be made of souls.’

Some say people become flowers when they die. It’s a common tale rooted in myth. Now that the existence of constellations was known, Aiden believed such things couldn’t be dismissed.

Gather the soil.

Stack the branches.

And thus—create a human.

<The foundation is in place.>

A voice called out from behind Aiden.

When he turned, he saw the Mother Who Burns Eternally, wearing a faint expression.

He smiled at her before turning back toward the light.

The glowing mass, composed of the materials he had gathered, was now forming a human shape. To ordinary people, these materials would seem mundane—just dirt and sticks.

“Almost everything is ready.”

<So it seems.>

The Mother Who Burns Eternally stepped beside Aiden.

<It’s a familiar sight.>

“Does it remind you of the past?”

The Mother Who Burns Eternally didn’t answer. As a goddess involved in a creation myth, the human-shaped light before her surely stirred memories.

<I met the Savior Who Is One and All along with Izanagi… just as heaven and earth were being formed.>

Though her figure in mythology took a different form, she and her former partner had once received a proposal from the Savior Who Is One and All:

[Would you like to create a world?]

“I’ve read about Japan’s creation myth, too,” Aiden said, placing a hand on her back. “Izanagi and Izanami’s first child… was born without bones, wasn’t it?”

<Indeed.>

Their first child had no bones. It was little more than flesh. As she recalled the shape of that first child, the Mother Who Burns Eternally gave a faint smile.

<Creation was a task far too difficult for Izanagi and me, who had only just come into being. The Savior Who Is One and All seemed to observe our failures as a kind of trial and error. After countless failures, we barely succeeded in forming the edge of a world.>

“And after you finished creating it… how did you feel?”

<You’d find that in the myths. I was an immature creator god, through and through. Only a constellation can kill another constellation, and ironically, I died giving birth to one.>

It was a shameful memory. No records existed of any god dying while giving birth to another. Only the Mother Who Burns Eternally had fallen to the underworld after perishing in childbirth.

Yet…

<Looking back, the underworld wasn’t such a bad place.>

She told Aiden about her life in the underworld.

The domain of the Twelve Kings Who Govern the Netherworld. The underworld was merely a place of transition, caught between heaven and hell, where the dead were judged for their good and evil deeds by those kings.

But such judgment didn’t apply to her. As a constellation, she was beyond the laws of morality.

<And so… I just remained there.>

She watched countless souls head toward heaven or fall into hell.

<One day, I met the Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell.>

The faithful right hand of the Creator.

One of the first brothers born from the Savior Who Is One and All after the creation of the universe.

He had been sent by the Savior to observe the Mother Who Burns Eternally.

<He was diligent.>

The Archangel Who Cast Down the King of Hell offered her a place in heaven.

<The Savior Who Is One and All considers your death a service to the world… would you not accept a reward and come to heaven?>

Recalling his words, the Mother Who Burns Eternally smiled.

<Had I accepted, I might have gained even greater divine stature.>

“Why didn’t you go?”

<I died giving birth to a constellation. If creation is a divine act, then it also has the power to kill gods. Ironically, I was slain mid-creation. That’s when I gave up the belief that creation was inherently good.>

“So that’s why you remained in the underworld?”

She nodded.

<One day, I met the Star Hated by All.>

Once the most beloved being of the Creator—now the fallen King of Hell.

The other of the two first brothers created by the Savior Who Is One and All.

“What brought him to the underworld?”

<He said there was no particular reason.>

Just… the Mother Who Burns Eternally let her voice trail off with a hollow laugh.

<He said he simply wanted to see me.>

The Star Hated by All looked at her with what could only be called delight.

<For a King of Hell, he was far too innocent.>

There wasn’t a trace of malice in his demeanor. It was like gazing into the heart of a curious child. Perhaps that was because children, full of hope, can derive joy even from sorrow.

Yet ultimately, she realized he was fit to be the King of Hell.

Because innocence that knows no malice—can become the most cruel of all.

As one who had died giving birth to a child, the Mother Who Burns Eternally could only believe that.

<Having died during creation, you can no longer love mortals. Come with me to Hell.>

She recalled his words, lost in thought.

<…For a time, I regretted not going with him.>

Had she gone to Hell, she would have lost her status as a constellation—but by the time she fell into the underworld, she had long since given up the desire to live as one.

There was only one reason she declined his offer.

<If I had accepted…>

She had hoped her partner might come for her.

<Then I wouldn’t have had to meet Izanagi again.>

“You don’t have to think about it anymore,” Aiden said, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“If he fled because he found your appearance hideous… then he simply wasn’t worthy.”

<Oh my.>

The Mother Who Burns Eternally laughed.

<That’s quite the blasphemous statement, don’t you think?>

“Maybe. A mere creation judging the worth of a god. But that’s fine…”

Once again, Aiden looked at the glowing figure.

“Soon, I won’t be a creation anymore.”

Everything was going smoothly.

There were still a few essential components missing—but he already knew what they were.

After all, Aiden could now discern the properties of souls scattered throughout the world.

He could see fragmented, recombined souls like pieces of a puzzle, and recognize whom they once belonged to.

That’s how he was able to find it.

“I can feel it,” Aiden murmured. “…Keui’s presence.”

The glowing form Aiden was constructing—

It was made from the souls of those who had once been human.

The final condition to become a constellation was to touch upon the authority of creation.

In other words, to create life.

Aiden was attempting the most difficult process of all. The Savior Who Is One and All considered even living narratives or academic achievements a form of life creation. For him, life wasn’t limited to plants or animals.

But Aiden was trying to resurrect the dead.

Not because he cared about becoming a constellation.

He merely had to become one to fulfill his purpose.

<You must already know…>

The Mother Who Burns Eternally said.

<The human you’re trying to bring back will likely reject your decision.>

“I know,” Aiden said calmly.

“That person will probably hate me. Even if they don’t, they’ll never understand me. But that’s mutual. I can’t understand him either.”

It truly was incomprehensible.

Why had he made that choice?

Aiden didn’t understand anything about the person he was reviving.

You…

Jeong Hangyeol had once stood at the very pinnacle for Aiden.

Then why…

Not once had Aiden thought he was unhappy. How could he, when Jeong Hangyeol had been achieving his dreams?

He’d made it to the debut team through CYB’s male idol division. He was with Codess, continuing a successful career. His relationships with his group members weren’t bad. While he wasn’t the most popular member, everyone knew he was the glue that held their eccentric group together.

And yet, suddenly—

He died.

It wasn’t an ordinary death. He had intended the erasure of his existence. It was, in part, a double suicide.

He erased himself along with his constellation. Using a forbidden authority, Jeong Hangyeol removed both himself and his patron from the world—an act the Savior Who Is One and All had forbidden.

And Aiden remained.

The only human who remembered it all.

Why did you do this to me?

He tried to resent him, but all that remained was sorrow.

Why didn’t you erase yourself from me, too?

That question haunted him.

To ask it—Aiden was creating a human.