Shadow walked through the cave, his path forward lit by a single fire torch in his hand. Goldheart followed not far behind him, tracing his fingers along the stone wall of the cave, his green eyes shining with excitement. The black hedgehog chuckled softly. He loved seeing his first mate—his partner—happy.
"I wonder what we'll find," he said, smiling at Shadow, "piles of gold?"
Shadow shrugged, his boots kicking away pebbles as he made his way deeper into the tunnel. He was rather keen to find what lay in the cave; whether it be a chest of treasure or piles of it, Shadow wanted to know as much as Goldheart did
A blueish glow from deeper within told the captain they were growing closer. Stepping into the light, Shadow blew out the torch.
In front of both hedgehogs was a lake, a glowing river of light. Shadow looked up, seeing the roof of the cave covered by tiny, blue dots. He chuckled. Glowworms—one of nature's greatest wonders and gifts. It truly was a stunning treasure, better than any amount of priceless gold.
Goldheart gasped at the sight before him. It was as if the night sky was painted onto the cave's ceiling, and the river was the soul of the cosmos. It was beautiful, and the blue hedgehog savoured every morsel of it. He danced under the calming light of the glowworms, spinning on his feet as he basked in it. Shadow simply watched, a gentle smile appearing on his muzzle as the one he loved frolicked.
Goldheart pulled Shadow to dance with him, to which the captain did not argue. Together, they swayed in the blue glow, holding each other close as the glowworms flickered with their bioluminescent light. Who would've guessed that a cave on a deserted island packed such beautiful spectacles?
The sun outside had long disappeared under the horizon, but the two pirates had yet to leave the cave. And they haven't made any plans to depart either.
Shadow and Goldheart danced for hours on end, among other things, and even took the time to leap into the lake and play-fight with each other in the slime-like liquid. But eventually, they must return to the ship. And Goldheart made a small request.
Once outside, the two hedgehogs scoured the island. Returning to the cave's entrance, Shadow and Goldheart began to conceal it with a curtain of vegetation—vines, leaves and flowers created the perfect cover for the entrance. Smiling at their work, the pirates left the cave and returned to their ship.
And it lay untouched.
Until the flowers bloomed across the islands once more, the snow melted from the ground, and the water nourished the soil and brought about new life. The spring winds blew across the sea, calling to the ARK for her return to the island.
Warm, ocean waves crashed onto the beach as a longboat was left abandoned in the sand. Footprints in the sand led into the forest that regrew in the sunlight of the new season.
A cave that was left alone through the previous summer, fall, and winter was now uncovered; the curtain of vegetation lifted.
Deep within the cave, two hedgehogs danced slowly with each other, under the light of the glowworms.
