They came back to the Snatcher's tree—army in tow—only to be greeted by the minions with a mix of shock and terror. Most of them hadn't been alerted to the girls' impromptu trip to the swamp, causing an initial panic at the sight of the spirits. Those few that had been aware of their mission couldn't seem to believe that they'd actually managed to complete it! Either way, several of the ragdoll-like beings stopped what they were doing and took cover as the troop passed by. A few ran off to get their boss.
The small number of fire spirits that were close showed little more than warry disgust. Kit, however, shrank back at the newcomers' approach: Eyes wide, she stood up from her circle of embers and beelined toward one of the large, glowing mushrooms that circled the giant tree to take cover behind. She clutched her tail around herself nervously as she peered back around. A handful of swamp spirits seemed just as curious about her, but most just rolled their eyes in disdain at her timid reaction.
They weren't impressed, Thane Fen least of all. Still, they held themselves back from saying anything until Snatcher glided out of his home with a raised brow—half disbelieving, but still just as snide as ever. Although he waved his minions off, he had no problem coming forward, towering over everyone as he usually did when patrolling the forest. He wore a hardened expression that was difficult to read.
"Well, well! If it isn't the devil of the swamp himself," the phantom began, sizing the thane up with a scrutinizing look, "And here I figured you and the rest of your kind would stay hidden for this whole mess."
Thane Fen wore an ugly grin, challenging him with a curt reply of his own, "Of course I came! When my people fight, I fight—unlike certain others who'd have children do their dirty work. What is it, Shadow? Run out of those mafia oafs to torment?"
"I've to get my kicks somehow. Your little fish stopped coming up here for me to fry a long time ago… Until now, anyway."
Hat and Bow shared a nervous glance. They hoped the two wouldn't clash so much that they'd throw away everything they went through just to get the swamp spirits here. Both supernatural beings continued to stare each other down, but thankfully neither raised a hand against the other. They really did seem too similar for their own good…
"Until now…" the thane echoed in agreement, giving him a small nod, "But, for the moment, we're all 'friends' here, yes? I hate it, but I gave my word and those children said that you lot need our help."
"Unfortunately, until we push Vanessa back, that seems to be the case…" Snatcher briefly eyeballed the two girls—a quick glance that questioned whatever they had said to the thane—and then looked over the swamp spirits' numbers. There were plenty to divide across the forest, and now they had the elemental advantage they needed to deal with the possessed statues.
It was only for a second, but Hat Kid caught how his harsh expression faltered. Like the young alien before, he recognized the Florist even in her current state. Of course he did: Whatever kind of person the Prince was, he seemed to have cared deeply for all of Subcon and she was involved—however unwittingly—with his and the queen's fallout. He was clearly shocked to see her, so it was likely that he was just as clueless to whatever happened to her as Hat was. However, he didn't say anything and none of the swamp spirits seemed to notice the momentary change that had passed over him.
Instead, he continued, "Until Vanessa shows herself or makes any major moves, you and your people need to cover the fire spirits while they maintain their barriers."
Thane Fen made another nasty face, but didn't argue, "What does she seem to be after anyhow? It has been a while since the queen left her manor."
With a snap of his fingers and a puff of smoke, Snatcher manifested an aged map of the woods. It levitated before the group and he used his magic to make vibrant, temporary markings along its surface. "At first, it seemed like her ice was expanding across Subcon as a whole. However, she's concentrated her magic along a direct path past the ruins toward the deeper parts of the forest."
"Toward the spiders' nest?" he snorted, "I wouldn't complain if she froze them out, but I can't imagine what she'd want there."
A sickening feeling hit Hat Kid in the gut. Deep within the spider's territory, there was a waypoint that connected to the Horizon, a spiritual realm set in its own plane of existence where Moonjumper—a being split from the Prince-ruled. Maybe it was a stretch to think she was after him, but it didn't seem like a coincidence… How would she even know to look for him there though, after all this time? As far as the child knew, out of the people in Subcon, only Snatcher, Bow, and herself were even aware he existed.
If the phantom shared her suspicions, he didn't bring them up either, "Beats me. It doesn't matter. She's still going to destroy everything in her path if we let her."
He turned to wave Kit over from her hiding place, much to her surprise. Her ears fidgeted to attention and she glanced around, confused—as if she expected one of his minions to have suddenly appeared at her side and come forward at his call in her place. She pointed to herself.
"You may not be one of the fire spirit elders, but you'll have to do. Besides, you're the only one of those mutts who can fully speak English, dimwit: We need you to get through the them. Tell them to play nice with the swamp spirits."
Kit pouted at the insult, bundling the front of her skirt in two tight fists while nervousness turned to indignation. Her face flushed, "I'm not one of your little servants! You can tell them yourself, you nasty Shadow!"
"So, those foxes have their own dweller pet…" the thane observed. Kit's bravado faded as quickly as it came. Visibly stiffening under his curious stare, she tried to hold herself high only for the continued, anxious wringing of her tail to give her away. Thane Fen smirked evilly, "You poor creature, trapped with those beasts. If it weren't for your mark, I'd invite you to visit our realm, but then again, well… your flame might not last long there."
Some of the other swamp spirits snickered at his words.
"What say you, dear? Fancy a swim?"
The only one who didn't enjoy the near threatening jeers was the Florist. Instead, Lily looked at the other woman with pity. Whether because of the uncalled-for bullying or because of their shared experience, she moved forward to interrupt, her expression otherwise unreadable, "Maybe we should keep on topic, Thane? I can go with her. Since I'm not exactly a spirit, so they might take to me easier."
He sighed at the end of his fun. Still, he couldn't argue with that logic, "A compromise then! Return here when you've made your rounds. The Shadow and I will be discussing our tactics for a while."
Snatcher glowered at the other's momentary siege of command, but didn't contradict it. Hat Kid sneezed, a chill running up her back. She wanted to talk to the Florist, but with all of the adults busy and the two young aliens temporarily forgotten in their rush, it looked like it would have to wait. Besides, the short nap she and Bow had taken earlier couldn't compensate for the exhaustion she felt now. She needed food and some real sleep, back in her ship and out of the cold.
Now was just as good a time as any to excuse themselves for the time being. The pair waved some of the minions goodbye before leaving, promising to return later. The ice was still struggling against the fire spirits' barriers. The snowfall that covered the forest was steadily only getting worse. As they marched through the woods to find a clear place for them to beam back up to the ship, they made sure to keep an eye on their surroundings and kept their voices low.
"I think maybe we need to warn Moonjumper," Hat Kid muttered, "Just in case things don't go as planned and Vanessa manages to get to the Horizon." Due to his memory loss, he probably wouldn't recognize the queen, but she absolutely would recognize him. That… couldn't be good for either of them, and the Dwellers of the Horizon would only be caught in the middle.
Bow didn't even question why her friend would even want to warn him. She'd stopped questioning that sort of thing after their first adventure on the Artic Cruise, meeting so many of the latter's former enemies. A lot of them were people who did bad things, but weren't necessarily bad people—not to mention Hat always had a compassionate streak that rivaled most anyone's patience. Although she'd been informed about how dangerous Moonjumper could be, she imagined he was another one of those cases. She just had to make sure to keep her friend alive.
Bow shrugged, "It couldn't hurt. Maybe we could even ask those snow women you talked about for help while we're there. You said they were related to the queen's powers, right? Maybe they know something that could help us stop her."
Hat Kid nodded. She wasn't really sure that the trio of ice elementals would help—as self-serving as they acted—but Bow had a good point. No one, not even Snatcher, seemed to understand Vanessa's power or frame of mind as much as they claimed to. By abilities and nature, they were practically one in the same.
The only thing Hat Kid was worried about was getting to the Horizon in the first place. Sure, because of the mark the fire spirits put on her, she could pass through the waypoint just fine. Hopefully, it would extend to Bow as well as long as they were together. Even if it was only in a memory, the young alien could still envision where exactly the waypoint was as well. However, they would have to get past the spiders' territory first, and then risk Moonjumper potentially attacking them on-sight.
We could bring Kit… she mused to herself. Chances are, they'd be outnumbered by the giant bugs on their own. Bringing some literal fire power with them to burn their way through the tangle of webs would help them clear the way to the Horizon as fast as possible. The waypoint should spit them out right across the ravine from the phantom ruler's town. After that… Well, they'd just have to try to get Moonjumper to listen first.
Bow mumbled her own, quiet musings, "You know, from what you told me, it's starting to look like everyone from Subcon is trapped in some way."
Hat blinked at her, "What?"
"Well, you've got the obvious: Snatcher and the Dwellers are stuck as ghosts. It looks like Kit and that Water Lily are stuck with their spirits. Queen Vanessa kept herself trapped in her manor until now, and Moonjumper's trapped himself and his subjects in his made-up home. It's sad to think about, but it's like after Vanessa locked her prince up, no one was really allowed to leave. You could even say that goes for Snatcher's victims too, whenever he takes someone's soul."
She never really thought about it that way, just in the sense of hurt people hurting other people. It was true though, in part—even with cases like Kit and the other souls who had nothing to do with Subcon besides losing themselves in a dangerous place. Physically or mentally, the once beautiful forest was a prison none of them ever truly left and they just kept trying to lock up more people with them. Snatcher's and Vanessa's victims, Kit's captives, Moonjumper's subjects… No one seemed to know how to open their cell doors any other way.
What would it take for them to learn? She wished she knew. She wished she could help everyone, but she and Bow had their own problems and theirs were too complicated to solve easily. Maybe all of this was a good thing though then, if Vanessa's actions now forced every denizen of Subcon to work together. Maybe they'd start helping each other and try to restore the forest to how it used to be.
One could only hope.