Hunter knew that what he was planning something risky but he couldn't leave well enough alone. He had to help Igneous. He could just tell that his friend still wasn't over what had happened and that the trauma he experienced as a child was beginning to set in and affect the way he lived his life. It it was clear to him that Igneous needed help.
Convincing Prince Lumen to go on vacation was a snap. All he had to do was chose the right words. Sleep, pretty girls, not working, food and relaxing being them. Stubborn or not, Igneous couldn't go against his prince's orders. As soon as the Prince decided to travel to some of the farther lying villages, Igneous had to say yes. He made his negative feelings towards the idea of visiting around the area he grew up quite clear though.
Currently, as they rode on their spiders up the mountain towards his home town, the moody knight sat in silence, ignoring any and every attempt to make conversation. Slate, who was being forced to ride with Hunter as he hadn't removed his spider from her new job and because Igneous refused to speak with him as well, also was obviously not happy with this development. If he had known that Hunter would have gone behind his back and done somehing so sneaky and underhanded he would have never told him anything about what his best friend had gone threw.
"It's rather beautiful here." Corona said with a soft smile, trying to lighten the mood for the sake of the journey.
"Yes," Prince Lumen responded. "It would appear that the people here did an excellent job rebuilding with the money the crown lent them. Although they're still paying that back...perhaps my appearance here today will help get the rest of the loan back to me on time."
Igneous mumbled something completely inappropriate to even think of in the company of royalty under his breath and gave Flame a signal to speed up.
"Um...Prince? Maybe that would be something that we put on the list of the things absolutely to not do while vacationing. You know so we can actually come back?" Magma suggested. "Come on Prince, let's not make these places ban the spider riders."
"Ifonly...-" Igneous mumbled again. "-maybewhathappenedwouldn'thavehappened."
Slate groaned and bit down on his lower lip. By the oracle he was going to kill Hunter For even thinking of a plan this dimwitted! And then he would never tell him or Corona about anything that they had ever done before the two of them showed up ever again!
"The spider riders are the greatest heroes in all of Archna. I doubt that what I say will have any impact on their decisions to invite us all back," Prince Lumen replied quite Cooly. "Now, if we had brought Bugese and his family along that would have been another story."
It was no secret that some areas were having difficulties coming to terms with the peace and promise to help the others that Bugese swore. There had been protests, a lot escalating quite quickly and knights had to be sent out to calm the people down. One of them had come back missing an arm and talking about a group of rebels against the crown, ones that were fighting to kill any invectid that came in their paths. And...anyone who sympathized with them, hence the missing limb. The spider riders and Crown were also in this category. Which, of course, would make this vacation a bit dangerous. Hunter was sure when they got to the villages and had roofs over their heads, all would be safe.
They moved along slowly, starting up a gentle incline towards a mountain village. They had taken a less travelled road, through the thicker part of the forest to avoid any rebels but as they started up, Hunter could see Slate and Igneous grow tenser.
They passed an oak tree, ancient looking and bigger than Any Hunter had seen on earth, and Igneous shut his eyes quickly and turned away, in a manor that looked like he was in physical pain.
This was where he and his brother had been waiting for their father...
Hunter quickly whispered for Shadow to speed up and pass it to avoid any...serious repercussions.
"That's quite a tree." Magma noted and signaled his spider to go in for a closer look. Hunter paled and felt his stomach knot up. Igneous was going to kill him for this...is he survived the trip. Magma was unaware of any danger and slowly reached out when he was close enough to run his hand over the bark.
"Fascinating..." He said to himself, and suddenly he felt something odd. A dent almost, in the bark. He leaned and closer and discovered that it was a carving of a name and there were nearly a thousand more on this side of the tree.
"Elsa Underbark." He read out.
"What?" Corona asked.
"Elsa Underbark," Magma repeated and tried to read more of the carving. "And there's a date. I think it's year of birth to year of death..." He frowned and like he had touched his namesake, pulled his hand back and screamed. "This is a grave marker!"
Curiosity peaked and Lumen dismounted his spider and hurried over to see for himself. He leaned in and tried to get a better look at the cravings. "I would have to say...that this is some kind of memorial. Invectids attacked this area years ago, many people were killed. This must be how the survivors tried to cope, tried to remember what happened."
Something caught the prince's eye. The names were plentiful and mess tin their organization but there were three names off to the left, branched out a bit from the others. He frowned and tried to read them but two were old and worn from the rain. It was only the last name, the one on the bottom, that was still eligible. Despite the wear of the other two, it was obvious to tell that they all had the same surname. They had been family.
Lumen didn't normally care so much about the pasts of others, about the lives of those long deceased, it was how he coped with the deaths of his parents, but he hoped that it wasn't two parents and their only child. He hoped that a whole family hadn't perished that day. He ran his fingers over the more eligible name and felt a chill roll up his spine.
"Igneous..." He said.
"Yes my prince?" The knight asked, though his tone was still sollun and bitter. He didn't want to be here and he would make that obvious as humanly possible.
"Igneous," The Prince repeated. "The name here...its Igneous..."
"That's not possible. I'm not dead." Igneous placed his hand on his own chest, as if to signify that he was solid and not a ghost. "See?"
"These people think you are." Magma interjected. "They think you died with the rest of these people...weird."
"Creepy is more like it." Corona replied, and shivered at the thought. "Come on. Let's go. This place is giving me the creeps."
Magma and Prince Lumen nodded and returned to the group without further word on why Igneous' name may be carved into the tree. It was definitely going to be a sensitive topic and Igneous was already steamed at them for bringing him along on this trip to begin with. They knew better than to poke the bear.
The nearest village was near the top of the mountain, cliff edges were surely at the end of each forest that surrounded the small settlement. A few farmers were selling their wares on the streets, along with bakers and butchers. The streets had become a market place, full of people buying groceries and trying to find good bargains.
When the spider riders made their presence known, it wasn't to a receptive crowd. Some glared at them, the nice ones, that is. Others mumbled things under their breath and openly criticized both the crown and the spider riders. A few farmers' sons grabbed tomatoes from their parents' carts and prepared to chuck them at their heads. For once, Lumen could sense the danger and didn't open his mouth to worsen the situation.
"Some vacation." Igneous mumbled to himself, and told Flame to hurry up. He wanted to get out of here as quickly as they could.
"Perhaps we should seek shelter inside somewhere?" Corona suggested. "Put the spiders in their manicles and try to lay low?"
"That's probably for the best." Hunter agreed. "I think there's a pub up ahead. We can hide out there."
The pub was crowded with former soldiers and knights of Archna, farmers who already sold all their wares, and the normal drunks and teens that polluted bars. A waitress with long, curly blonde hair and an unmistakeable pregnancy bump ran around serving tables and taking orders. The spider riders were able to slip in undetected, and take refuge in a booth on the far side of the bar. No spiders, no way of possibly being able to identity who they were.
"I had no idea how hostile these people are." Lumen said, though only to himself. "They hate us, hate the whole royal family...why?"
"A lot of people don't approve of the monarchical system of government. They want democracy." Hunter pointed out. "That's what happened on Earth. They replaced the royals with elected officials."
Lumen's face twisted up in disgust. "Over my dead body."
"A lot of royals were killed during these revolutions. Some were beheaded by gulletions and others were executed."
The prince became visibly pale. "Oh. Oh my."
The waitress hurried to their table and pulled a pad and pen from her apron. "What can I get you folks?"
"Would you like help, miss?" Magma asked. "You shouldn't be working in this condition...is there anyone else on today?"
"My mother in law. She's pouring drinks and making food in the kitchen. My boyfriend is getting some supplies at the market and will be back shortly. Thank you though." The waitress smiled. "My name is Orchyess."
Orchyess took their order for food and disappeared into the kitchen to place the order for her mother in law. Magma smiled as he watched her go and Hunter could only roll his eyes. What was with his friends and falling in love with women that they could never possibly have? First Igneous and now him. He could only hope that he wasn't next in the line...
"Igneous," Slate said softly, noticing how quiet his friends had become since they entered the tavern. "Are you alright?"
Arachna's Fang could only shake his head no and leaned against the wall for support, to keep his head up. He had grown incredibly pale, more than usual, and he looked stunned. Like someone had hit him in the face with a baseball bat. "What's wrong?" Slate asked him, keeping his voice low to avoid Hunter and Corona from hearing, the traitors.
"This place is...familiar. It's like the one my family..." He couldn't finish the words. They trailed off and Igneous started to feel sick. He didn't want to be here. He wanted to leave immediately before something else could go wrong. He felt Slate put his hand on his shoulder, trying to keep his nerves from getting the better of him, but it wasn't working. Igneous was starting to feel physically ill.
The door to the pub swung open and two men entered carrying grocery bags. They were both dressed in dark clothing and had hoods up, covering their faces. They entered slowly, and headed towards the back. One of the men, the taller one, went on business as usual, but the shorter paused while passing their booth and though none of the spider riders could see his face, something told them he was glaring at them. "Narbeth."
The tall man growled and the other hurried back into line. Something about him struck the whole team as odd. He was just...intense in a way. Though they had not heard him speak yet or seen his face, they could tell he was someone to be feared, to be reckoned with.
Prince Lumen leaned across the table and lowered his voice to avoid any eves droppers. "I think he's one of the rebels. Maybe both. They have their faces covered to avoid being identified." As much as he wanted to say that was absurd, Hunter had to admit that he had a point. And this area wasn't exactly spider rider friendly anymore.
"We should leave-" he started to say just as Orchyess appeared from the kitchen and delivered their food. Magma smiled at her stupidly, and watched her return to the kitchen to gather the food ordered by another table. "I think I'll stay."
Hunter rolled his eyes and started eating. "Oh brother."
Igneous said nothing and started to pick at the food on his own plate. After a while his stomach told him that he wouldn't be able to fight the urge to eat much longer and he took a bite. It tasted like something he'd had years ago, when he was still a child. His mother used to say it was her speciality, meatloaf cooked to perfection, with a side of...something...that to this day Igneous could not identify. He set his fork down and started staring off into space. ...it couldn't be. His mother was dead. She and his brother died that night. They had never been found! Someone who survived must have been a friend of hers, someone who learned her recipe.
The tall man with the hood was watching them from the kitchen doorway, arms folded in front of his chest. Hunter was the first to notice him, just out of the corner of his eye. He frowned, and waited for him to make his move. Orchyess appeared at his side, tugging at his arm to try and get him to return to work. The man ignored her and slowly started sauntering towards them.
"Spider Riders are not welcome here anymore." He said, voice radiating confidence and a sense of self righteousness that would startle even the Prince. "You better get out."
"I beg your pardon?" Lumen asked, "If I were you I would hold your tongue. You are talking to the ruler of Arachna
I know very well who I'm talking to. I'm talking to a child who is incapable of successfully leading his people. I'm talking to a leader who could not protect his people and commands a group of untrustworthy, unreliable, morons who could not even protect one of Arachna's supposedly "beloved" villages!" He paused, most likely to calm himself and prevent any violent outbursts. "My family was murdered because of you people, the spider riders! My brothers, they were children and they died horribly! My father was killed brutally! All that was left, for years, was me and my mother so I suggest, when I say you should do something, that you do it." He straightened himself up. "Please leave."
Igneous was the first to respond. He stood up, and placed his hands firmly on his hips. He glared at the other man.
"We don't have to listen to you. What happened was...was not the spider riders' fault. It was believed that the village was strong enough to defend itself and when the invectids attacked..." He took a deep breath, almost as if he was trying to convince himself of this."It was a horrible accident and nothing more. We are sorry it happened but there is nothing we could have done to prevent it."
"What do you know? You're just some stuck up teenager. You wouldn't have been one of the riders when they attacked here! You don't know how horrible it was!"
Both igneous and the man with the hood seemed unaware of how loudly they were talking. All eyes on the pub were on them now, as their face off continued.
The man with the hood shook his head violently. "I had nightmares for years of my baby brothers being ripped apart by those bugs, crying for help that I could not provide them. They would have suffered so much-"
"There were people here who knew how to handle this situation and it was still too much. We would have just made the situation worse-"
"Keep on telling yourself that. You could have saved lives for once, You know? Instead you did nothing -"
Igneous growled, actually growled at this other man, and the rest of the spider riders could do nothing but watch and wonder what was happening before them. This was...the strangest thing they had over witnessed Igneous do. Except for Slate who had known Igneous long enough to experience how weird he could be.
"Stop acting like you know everything!" He snarled.
"At least you didn't have to see people die! I saw my own brother get gutted by an invectid! You only have your imagination!"
"You were here!" The tall man shouted in surprise. "And yet you defend the Spider Riders...Why?!"
"Because they are the only ones who will ever be capable of preventing something like that from happening again!" By now Igneous was loosing any patience he had with this man. He held his manacle up in front of his face, to try and illustrate his point. The man did nothing, said nothing, for once.
"I am a spider rider, like my father before me. I will not stop until I know everyone in Archna is safe. I will serve the crown until the day I die and protect everyone I possibly can, whether they appreciate my help or-"
The man with the hood surged forward and hugged him. He wrapped his arms around Igneous' shoulder and hugged him tight.
The knight stood there for a few seconds, confused and unable to think of a logical next step to deal with this man. He looked back over his shoulder at his friends for some kind of guidance, but most looked as lost as he felt.
"...let go." He decided to say, and started trying to wiggle his way free. "What are you doing. This type of combat is illogical."
"We blocked out any news of the spider riders that came our way..." The man started to say. "We had no idea that you were even..." He cut himself off, choking something back. A sob. The man with the hood was...crying.
"Uh..." Igneous looked back at the others again, and tried to get them to help him out here. No one moved. His friends were assholes.
"How did I not see it the moment I entered this place?" The man with the hood asked. "You look...just like him, only..."
The man with the hood finally released Igneous and took a step back. Igneous towered over him, if only by an inch or two, but both were considerably tall. "You got bigger. I remember you used to be the one who looked up at me."
"Okay..." Igneous wondered if he made a run for it, could he get outside and disappear into the market just long enough to avoid this strange man following him. "This is kinda creeping me out..."
For a moment the man didn't say a word and tried to figure out why his joy was one sided. He laughed when he realized why thought it didn't seem genuine. It sounded hollow, almost bitter. He removed his hood and held it against his hip, revealing shaggy, navy blue hair that had been tied back to avoid getting in the man's eyes. His light green eyes. The same as Igneous'. The fang of Archna felt his throat go dry and he was barely able to choke out the word.
"Tolkin..." His eldest brother, believed to be dead for ten years, was standing before him alive and well. But if this was real and not down cruel joke then...
Igneous ran past his brother, past the other man with the hood, and into the kitchen. There was a woman with her back to him, pouring drinks. She was older now, but Igneous could remember her anywhere.
"Mother." She dropped the pitcher and it shattered.