The animals stood in the color center.
Silent.
Uncertain.
“How are we supposed to do this?” asked the squirrel.
“We have lost our old colors.”
Kiko shook his head.
“Maybe they’re not gone.”
“Maybe we just hid them.”
Everyone looked at him.
“Hidden?”
Kiko nodded.
“Because we thought we had to be like the others.”
Silence.
Then the chameleon stepped forward.
“I used to like my real colors,” it said softly.
“Not just the ones everyone thought were cool.”
Its body began to shimmer slightly.
A little green appeared.
Very carefully.
“I liked my stripes,” said the squirrel.
And suddenly thin lines appeared on its fur.
Not neon.
But real.
Gradually more animals stepped forward.
Everyone remembered.
Everyone became a little… themselves.
And with every new color…
…the room glowed a little brighter.
Kiko stepped back to the color core.
This time he was not alone.
He placed his hand on it.
And the others came closer.
Very different.
Very diverse.
Completely themselves.
The color core began to glow.
Stronger.
Brighter.
More colorful.
KRRR… DING!
A burst of light filled the room.
And suddenly…
…the city was full of colors again.
But different than before.
Not just bright.
But diverse.
Unique.
Real.
The owl smiled.
“That is Coloropolis as it should be.”
The chameleon looked at Kiko.
“You were never boring.”
Kiko grinned.
“I was just… me.”
The robot penguin beeped happily.
“System stable.”
“Diversity restored.”
And high above the clouds, the city shone brighter than ever before.
Because it had understood:
That every color counts.