Oh, well, I'm back!

Sorry for the long wait. Oh, I just remembered something. On the ship, Hunter is like the only person out of the entire group of riders that can do anything to keep the ship moving. He cooks, he cleans, hefreaking keeps the ship on course. So then I thought that Hunter has the potential to be actually quite the caring and motherly sort of person, as weird as that seems. Or he could've have accidently become a sort of linchpin for the group. Just a thought. I read the previous chapters and I winced at how BAD they were… I'll do what I can in order to improve.

Hunter woke up, a dull ache returning to his wounds. He knew his injuries weren't fully healed, but he felt all creaky like this. He woke up and washed up before slipping on his blue manacle and hurrying to the mess hall for breakfast. He always hated having to get food and go to where Igneous and Magma were sitting. Even though he had been here for a year, there was always talk going about as the other inhabitants of the palace discreetly stared. The maids were especially gossipy, but Hunter had realized from experience that the few rumors that came from the soldiers and male workers were the worst. It was annoying being an Earthen sometimes.

He quickly piled food onto a plate and sat with his friends who looked at him, surprised.

"You're up early today," Igneous said with a smile.

"Dunno. Didn't sleep well."

"Really? You were running around the whole night!" Magma called out.

Hunter laughed it off and started to eat. The two watched as Hunter polished off his food in record time.

"You've been eating a lot nowadays," Igneous commented.

"I know," Hunter mumbled through a mouthful of food, "I've just been really hungry."

Along with the sudden increase in his appetite, Hunter also noticed how he was getting taller too. He was almost as tall as Aqune the last time he saw her. Hunter also knew he was growing from how his old clothes from the Surface didn't fit as well anymore, but he didn't pester the other Riders about it.

The rumbling thunder snapped him out of his thoughts.

"It's a summer shower," Magma commented as he looked out the window.

"Not yet," Igneous mused, "only the clouds are coming right now. It should be a few hours judging by how far away those grey clouds are."

"Are we still gonna train?"

Igneous raised an eyebrow at Hunter.

"You take a look at your body and tell me if you can train."

"Point taken."

"Well, we can still patrol and keep things in check, right?" Magma asked.

"Of course we have to. The festival is still not over. I'm hoping it doesn't rain tonight, or else it will be a very wet celebration."

"Are celebrations only at night?"

Igneous nodded.

"The spiders have their own festival as well, you know. We do this so that we can celebrate together."

"Are spiders even nocturnal?"

"Why don't you ask Shadow?"

Hunter looked at the green gem on his Manacle. He tapped it a few times before finally getting a response.

"Ugh, what is it?"

"Shadow, are spiders nocturnal?"

"Eh, most are. Well, I guess you could say we're more energetic at night."

"'We're?'"

Shadow gave a sort of exasperated utterance.

"Well, since I'm your Spider, I can't do anything but force myself to adapt to your daylight schedule. So now I kind of rest at night and do my best during the day."

"Oops. Sorry about that."

"You don't need to apologize. Wait, can you let me out for the festival tonight? It's been years since I enjoyed one."

Hunter laughed.

"Sure thing! I don't think anything too crazy is going to happen anyway!"

"It's nice to be away from an idiot every once in a while," Shadow sighed.

"Do you still want to go?"

"Sorry."

Igneous and Magma had been watching the entire exchange the entire time before they burst out in laughter. Hunter looked between the two of them, yelling at them to stop, but they kept on laughing.

"You two really are the best of friends!" Igneous managed to gasp out.

"No kidding!" Magma followed.

Hunter could only sit and blush. He was laughed at on the Surface, but this kind of laughing wasn't intended to wound or ridicule him. It was genuine laughter springing from humor and camaraderie. That was why he found it so awkward to experience. Something darker did seem to loom under its surface though.

"Hey, stop it!"

Igneous stifled he laughs and Magma gave himself a few moments to compose himself.

"Sorry Hunter! Hey, Igneous, is Hunter really that much closer with Shadow now?"

Igneous looked kindly towards Hunter.

"Yes, it's true. Didn't Brutus mention something about Venus saying that? You didn't have to ask me for confirmation."

For once, Hunter ignored the stares from everyone else in the room and tried to enjoy himself with his friends. They ate and headed out into the surrounding areas.

It was amazing how the place looked completely normal after a night of festivities. It was almost as if the kingdom had a dual personality; mundane by day and boisterously giddy by night. Hunter couldn't help but anxiously look forward to the festival tonight.

"Oh, Hunter, I suppose I should tell you that yesterday was the second day of the festival. Tonight the ceremonies and proper celebrations start."

Hunter walked briskly, making sure his heels dragged long marks in the dust.

"Like what?"

"There's a ceremony honoring the Oracle," Magma cut in, to Igneous' annoyance. "The entire village gathers in its center and offerings are made to her."

"I wonder if she's happy right now."

"Hunter?"

"During the times I saw her, she was smiling, but she also looked, kind of lonely."

The two didn't know quite how to respond.

"Haha! Sorry, I brought down the mood, didn't I? My bad," he said with a grin.

"I-I never expected you to be such a depressive person, Hunter," Igneous said. He looked almost comically scared.

The idle chatter continued for some time until the rain drops began to fall. Magma and Igneous ducked under an awning, followed by Hunter.

"Guess tonight's festival is going to have clear skies, huh?"

Igneous nodded and bunched up his cape into a knot. The rain had created deep puddles and mud that stuck to shoes and clothes and left hopeless stains. Hunter gave his own boots an examination. Dirt caked the shoes an inch above the soles. The laces had gotten frayed ends, but the material that the boots were made of was good quality and endured the scuffs and stains of everyday use without any holes or rips. The only major problem with them was that the soles had been worn smooth, even before he arrived in the Inner World.

"We need get you some new shoes?" Magma asked. He had caught Hunter staring.

"Wah? N-no! I like these boots!"

Igneous leaned in to inspect Hunter's tattered vest with holes in the pockets instead then. His gaze also drifted to Hunter's shorts, which were beginning to hike up past his knees.

"May I suggest some new clothes, then? You've really let your appearance go to rags, Hunter. Literally. A Spider Rider should maintain a proper image and set a good standard for the citizens."

Hunter waved away Igneous.

"S'okay. I'm fine with these clothes," he mumbled. His two friends gave him questioning looks.

"Really?" they asked simultaneously.

He shivered and took a step back.

"Yeah?"

"That's no good. How can you wear those clothes after constantly putting them through your little adventures every single day? All the laundry servants want to know your secret for getting out bloodstains," Igneous said.

"This weeks th' festival too. Not quite sure about this, but I'm pretty sure some of the folks around here won't like one of the Oracle's own Spider Riders bumming around looking like he fell through the forest," Magma commented.

"I was wearing this when I fell through the forest, and I'm not 'bumming around'!"

"And that's why I really think you need to get some new clothes."

He stared uneasily at his friends' expectant looks and fidgeted.

"I- I guess so. I just don't like asking for new stuff. It's weird."

A sudden bout of pain made him wince and hug himself tightly.

"Hunter?"

"Mmph. I'm fine. It just hurts a bit. Don't worry guys."

"Excuse me?"

The three of them turned to face a young girl.

"Oh, I remember you! Obsidian, am I correct?" Igneous asked politely.

The girl shyly fidgeted with the cords of her cloak as her dark bangs fluttered over her purple eyes.

"Y-yes. It's me. Thank you for saving me."

She looked directly at Hunter.

"It fine. Don't let her hurt you anymore," he said weakly.

"It's okay. She can't anyway."

"What?"

"I actually wanted to thank your spider as well. He was the one that killed her."

Hunter stared at her in shock. His jaw went slack, and he found himself unable to form words out of the emotions and disbelief that had suddenly erupted from inside of him. How could Shadow do something like that? Shadow was supposed to be the noble warrior of the two of them. What… He couldn't think.

He had lost his mind and rashly acted, but he didn't want to kill her, or maybe he did- no!

"Thank you so much Mr. Spider. Excuse me, sirs, but I found something strange on the outskirts of town, in the forest. There were people trapped there, I think. Could you please come and help?"

Igneous and Magma glanced worriedly at Hunter.

"Just go."

"Are you sure Hunter? You-"

"I'm fine Magma. I wanna go back right now. You guys just do whatever you have to do."

Obsidian smiled brightly and fastened her hands around Igneous and Magma's wrists.

"Thank you so much! Please hurry!"

She ran off with the two, surprisingly strong as she dragged them along behind her. The rain soaked them as they fled. Hunter watched them silently as he stepped out into the rain.

"I'm sorry Hunter. I don't know what happened. My mind went blank and before I knew it, she was-"

"It's fine."

"What?"

"It's – It's fine."

"I thought you'd be ready to kill me after I told you, so how are you so calm right now?"

"What do you mean?"

"You have this willingness to kill that's almost scary, but it was because of you didn't always understand the whole situation. I thought you had matured a bit though. That you'd be upset about it!"

"When did you become such a shrink?"

"I thought you weren't this indifferent!"

"Shut up."

"Aren't you scared or confused that I killed her? What's wrong?!"

"Please just shut up!"

"Hunter?"

"I don't want to talk about it! I don't ever, want to talk about it! Got it?!"

Shadow stirred at the sudden collapse of Hunter's demeanor.

He had forgotten that the boy was still just a boy.

"Sorry."

"Let's head back to the castle."

"Try not to open your wounds."

Hunter said nothing.

The dead silence that followed them all the way home clung stubbornly.

-0-0-0-

Hunter had been dead intent on giving Shadow the cold shoulder the entire time. He refused to properly answer Shadow's questions or talk. He lay relaxed on the window sill, taking in the view of people busily setting up decorations and stalls as the sky darkened. Finally, he swung his left wrist across his body and out the window.

"Shadow. Spider out."

"Hey, wait, aren't you on the second floor?"

Shadow burst out of the Manacle and landed on the ground with a heavy thud.

"It'd be nice to get a warning next time!"

He leaned over to stare down at Shadow.

"You wanted to go to the festival right? I'll go check on Igneous and Magma."

Shadow paused and couldn't help but look up at Hunter.

"I said I'm sorry."

"Don't worry. It was my fault," he answered with a faint smile.

"I'll be going then," Shadow called before leaping away. His threads gleamed ruby in the fading core light.

Hunter watched pleasantly as Shadow seemed to glide through the air. Why couldn't he be that smooth when he was riding? At least Hunter's own sense of balance was good, or else he'd be thrown off all the time.

He quickly ducked as something shiny narrowly missed his temple and bounced off the wall. It rolled slowly to a stop in front of his feet and its core began to glow as it played out whatever message it was supposed to carry.

Hunter Steele. Your friends and the girl are unhurt at the north-eastern woods. Arrive so that terms may be discussed.

The orb promptly shattered into fine powder. It took Hunter a few moments to gather his thoughts, before he immediately rushed to look outside. Whoever the messenger had been was gone. That person had specifically waited until Shadow was gone before contacting him. He clenched his fists and sprinted into his room. He still had his grandpa's secret journal carefully concealed under a loose flagstone, along with some of the other tools he had brought from the surface. He lifted the slab of rock and pulled out a box-cutter. A year of disuse had not seemed to affect it in any way. There was no rust and the blade was still sharp. It seemed his worries were unnecessary.

As he ran through the stone pillars and the laughter of the people outside, he became increasingly aware of how far he was leaving behind the people. Rage began to overtake his thinking and he ignored any worries he had. He ran and ran and ran until he saw Obsidian waving him over, fear spread about her face.

"That scary person let me go so that I could tell you where your friends were!"

In one fluid motion he flipped out the box-cutter, the clicking sounds echoing as he extended the blade. He aimed straight for her neck, but she flipped gracefully and landed in the center of a small clearing. She eyed him warily. Hunter followed her but stopped near the edge. Gone was the faux innocence in her eyes as it was replaced with a cool, calculating expression. She dusted off her cloak and straightened up.

"You didn't fall for it for even one second. I was right to not underestimate you. As I said, your friends are unharmed," she said. She whistled and a giant sized golem came plodding out of the woods. It looked like dark rock that had been thrown into sagging clay that had not hardened yet. Every step it took made pieces of it crumble. Its hands were fingerless blobs that had a nub that resembled a thumb. Clutched in them was Igneous in the right, and Magma in the left. Their heads limply looked down and they swayed with every twitch of the golem.

"I intended for it to be disposable, as to not leave any traces of my magic, but I do pity it."

She walked over and leaned against its rough surface.

"What a pitiful thing. Made for the sole purpose of being used. Well, at least his existence wasn't accidental."

Her gaze drifted and locked onto Hunter. In an instant, he realized that she knew everything there was to know about him. He pointed the knife at her.

"Who are you?"

Her smile was so kind and peaceful that it reminded him of the Oracle herself.

"I am the Fallen Oracle. The woman who was thrown away when it was clear that her friend was so, so much better suited to the role."

Hunter dropped the knife and stumbled back.

"What? What do you mean?!"

"Since you're going to die, I might as well tell you everything."

"Like I'd let you kill me!"

She hummed something quietly and vines sprouted from the ground and encased him, binding his limbs so he couldn't move an inch.

"If you think Shadow will save you, think again. My allies should be in a skirmish with him as of this moment. He can't help you. In fact, I think they'll probably eat him given the chance."

She smiled over her own little secrets, much to Hunter's anger.

"What? Who are your creepy friends?!"
She giggled and clung to her golem.

"Why, they're other spiders. Female ones, to be precise. Quite savage, they are. They eat their mates after all is done and finished. I guess that's why they're ostracized by the other spiders. Who knew such an inconvenient trait would actually survive against all odds to present day? I would have expected natural selection to do at least something."

Hunter shuddered and tried desperately to reach for his knife. He screamed as the vines grew thorns and tightened to the point they were digging into his flesh.

"I apologize. Technically, you shouldn't be able to move all that much, but I felt a precaution like this was necessary."

He bit his lip and tried to block out the pain. He needed to help Shadow, but what could he do?

Obsidian began to pace about for no reason.

"I believe I said I was going to tell you everything? In my opinion, watching someone suffer and die is better than watching them flail about wildly."

"Shut up and let me go!"

"Why do humans always spout nonsense or ask for the impossible? I'd prefer if you'd listen," she complained lightly, and tapped the golem. It began to squeeze, and Hunter stopped yelling.

"Listen, or their ribs shatter and their organs burst. As I said before, I was originally going to become the Oracle. I suppose you wouldn't undertstand without some more information. There is power flowing throughout the entire Inner Earth. In fact, the Inner Earth you could say is an alternate dimension resting underneath the earth's surface, fueled by the heat energy of the earth's molten core. However, the power that allows the Inner Earth to actually exist is quite special. It's something someone or something high above decided to do on a whim a long time ago. In order to keep that power in check and provide a conduit of some sort for it, an Oracle was needed. And so, I was chosen. My body was to become a pathway for that power to safely disperse into the Inner World. Are you listening?"

She walked over to Hunter and lifted up his chin.

"If you're that worried, your mount is still alive and fighting for you. Hurt, but determined to come to your aid. One of those foolish spiders must've let something slip. I trained every single day to become a suitable vessel, and every single day I confided to my friend for support. Before, I was simply a knight of those strange creatures that we never saw, doomed to never accomplish anything, and now I could become a goddess! My diligence and work had paid off. Then, one day, I made a mistake. The power threatened to overwhelm me, and my kind friend grabbed me and all of a sudden siphoned it into her body without dying! She never had any training, but rather instinctively knew the flow of power. I was abandoned without a second thought."

"So you decided to wreak your vengeance or something like that? That's stupid," Hunter spat.

She smiled malevolently.

"I did, in fact. They cursed me, fractured my mind, and sealed me away. I was supposed to be caught in an eternal nightmare. Those Oracle Keys are actually quite important, you know. They are a direct line of power coming through her. They were made to seal me in, due to my own power. The only reason I'm alive is because she begged and pleaded with them and told them tearful stories of the way I recounted my struggles to her. It was only after Mantid took them for his own purposes that I was awakened. It took me some time to gather my strength and recover from the previous damage, but I made it."

"Then why haven't those things from above come down to get rid of you? Why hasn't the Oracle done anything?"

Hunter was visibly subdued as there was no tension in his body. All the fight and rage was all in his massive glare.

"I checked. They apparently went to war eons ago and ended up destroying their precious home and killed many of their brethren. The miniscule few that are left only reside as hermits in the far corners of the Inner Earth. Too shell-shocked and guilt-ridden to do much. As for the Oracle, well, my friend is an interesting case. She wanted to be an all-seeing part of her own, personal world. So she decided at some point to abandon her body and simply exist as the omnipotent goddess of her world. She can't touch me directly. She can manipulate her power to perform miracles, but I'm quite skilled as well. Anything she does I would reflect or at the very least subvert, causing massive damage to the Inner World. She could make this whole forest attack me, but I would undo it or send it elsewhere. We both fully completed our training. She was just more suited to the task. When I was sane again, I decided I wanted to make her suffer. I couldn't kill her, so I would destroy her precious Inner World instead, and I'll begin, with Arachnia."

His eyes widened and he tried to lunge at her.

"Go die! This is my home! I won't let you hurt everyone! How could you do that to your friend?! She saved your life!" he howled. The thorns cut at his skin but he struggled and kicked at them helplessly.

"Who said I liked her that much? To me, she was just lower class trash that took a liking to me. I talked with her to relieve my boredom."

A jab of pain shot through Hunter's heart and he knew they were the Oracle's own emotions.

"Don't lie! This entire time, you've been calling her your friend!"

"That's enough!"

With one kick, she ripped Hunter out of the vines and he smashed through the trees and landed in a shallow pond. The Oracle Keys floated beside him, bobbing gently in the water. Everything hurt, and when he crawled to his knees, he cried out and collapsed again. He coughed out globs of blood and thin tendrils dribbled from his lips. Internal damage. Great. As if things couldn't get any worse. Obsidian appeared with a small splish, her feet gracefully sinking into the water. She stepped on his head, pushing it into the water-smoothed stones.

"The Oracle can't fight, so she depends on her Riders, but she wasn't prepared, for me," she said, kneeling down to whisper the last part in his ear. His face was half submerged, but he could still speak.

"Go… to hell."

The words bubbled and blurred, but she understood the intentions all the same.

"I won't. Not for a long time. By the way, your mount is coming right now for you. He's too late. A valiant little thing, he is. Too bad he had to be stuck with an incompetent boy like you."

Fury dulled the pain, and he caught her off guard, pulling her down and curling his fingers around her neck. His whole body was trembling from nigh unbearable pain, and blood kept welling up from his throat. Some of it dripped onto her face, yet she still smiled.

"Can you really kill me?" she asked. She reached up to cradle his face in a palm. The gesture was oddly warm and maternal in this hellish situation. This was the woman that would have become the Oracle. As skilled and unbalanced she was, there was still a figment of that sage kindness that had survived her mind imploding on itself.

"You're full of light, Hunter Steele. The darkness that threads your soul is only grief and sadness, and a dash of ignorance. Even now, your interactions cause them to fade with time. Should you kill me, something irreparable will happen to your psyche."

Her eyes, full of knowing, sparkled brightly in the dim light. Hunter was too weak to murder her. She could see him struggling to stay conscious.

Still, she knew his willpower was a force to be reckoned with. She actually considered making him a slave, but decided against it. That force was a double-edged sword. He would probably break out of any brainwashing used on him. Her bracelet twined itself about her wrist and sharpened to a dagger.

In a single moment, she stabbed Hunter through the chest. Hunter uttered pitifully as she pushed him to the side.

"My hair's all wet because of you now."

She gave a cursory glance at the Oracle Keys that floated hear him, then turned away. Their touch was poisonous to her. She could not use them and had something much better anyway. She turned her back on the boy who was about to become a corpse and the pond of red.

With a ringing of bells, she vanished.

Well, I'm done with this chapter. I was watching the first episode (because of this fanfic!) and I realized that Hunter must have a good sense of balance since he's able to ride Shadow without any training and in the temple he has pretty good reflexes. (Not to mention the impromptu surf boarding.) So I figured I'd add that in.