AN: I've noticed while working on this story that Grasshop can be super-fun to write. I never really write him much, though.
31- A Parting Trap
Grasshop hadn't forgotten about his plans to crush the Spider Riders and steal the Oracle Keys. Well, naturally he was distressed when his travels bought him to Arachnan territory, and he heard talk in the streets that the Spider Riders had all left for Nuuma.
And so, because he didn't have a boat, or a flying transport of his own, the dedicated bug worked as quickly as he could, with parts he had stored in a secret location, to build a flying machine. He would single-handedly peddle it and make it to Nuuma. Well, that was the plan, anyway. But stormy weather came, and Grasshop had crash-landed down on an island, where he still was today.
"Why me?" he mused. "Why can I never succeed in anything? I know Nuuma can't be far from here, but yet here I am on this lonely little island, without any tools to even fix my poor little machine. The mighty Grasshop has taken a terrible fall."
The Spider Riders, who had successfully made it back onto their ship, had only been sailing for a short while when they heard voices up ahead.
"Don't tell me it's another ghost," Lumen said.
Igneous bit his lips nervously, but chose not to say anything.
"I don't think it's a ghost," Hunter replied. "It sounds like Grasshop's voice."
"Grasshop?" Corona questioned. "What is he doing here?"
But she saw, as the ship approached another small island, the unmistakable figure of Grasshop on the shore.
'What's that ship?' Grasshop wondered to himself. 'Wait, it's coming this way? Maybe I could escape this island if I got on board.' He then called. "Help! SOS! No wait, you're on the ship. That doesn't even make sense! Just save me!"
"He wants our help?" Hunter asked, puzzled.
"Obviously, we can't help him," said Igneous. "This is a trap for sure."
"I don't know," Hunter said.
This got him a collection of weird looks from everyone else.
"No, really," Hunter said. "Grasshop was annoying, and he was evil, but he was never really much of a threat. I kind of feel sorry for the guy. We beat him up more times than I can count."
"Exactly. He's evil," said Magma. "It doesn't matter if he's weak. We can't seriously let him on board this ship."
"Why not give him a chance?" Sparkle suggested. "Doesn't he look kind of sad?"
"Well… he does," Corona replied, though she wasn't really sure if helping him was a great idea.
"How about this," said Hunter. "We go over and talk to him, try to find out what he's up to, and then make a decision to let him onto the boat or leave him on the floating island."
"Alright," Corona agreed.
"I'll stay on the boat," Lumen said. "That way, we can ensure it doesn't stray too far from shore… or the shore doesn't stray too far from the boat. Sparkle, you should stay as well."
Sparkle looked disappointed, but nodded reluctantly, especially because Hotarla didn't look like she wanted to go either.
Well, when the group of Hunter, Corona, Igneous and Magma left the boat and stepped onto the island, Grasshop was shocked to say the least. The Spider Riders that he had been trying to track down actually came to him.
"Hey, Grasshop!" Hunter called. "What are you doing here?"
Though Hunter sounded somewhat cheerful in asking, Grasshop was pretty worried by Magma and Igneous' murderous expressions.
"Well you see," he said. "I'm stranded."
"You were heading to Nuuma too?" Magma asked.
"Yeah, I was," he answered. "But not as part of the invasion."
"I can see through your pathetic lies," Magma replied.
"R-really, it's not a lie!" Grasshop whimpered. He tried to make the most pathetic expression possible, which wasn't too hard because he felt horrible anyway.
"Well, he might not be lying," Corona said, though she still had her doubts too. "Grasshop, if you're not part of the invasion, what business do you have in Nuuma?"
"First, you should know that I'm not with the other Insectors at all," Grasshop explained. "Back when you annoying heroes thwarted my last brilliant plan, that was the last straw, and Mantid fired me. Mean old Buguese kicked me out, and Beerain said mean things to me too. All I ever did was for the sake of my precious family, and now I can't help them at all. Not unless I do something to get myself in a favorable position again."
"You have a family?" Corona questioned.
"Yeah," he said. "What, you think no woman has ever fallen for my charm?"
She shivered, not seeing any charm at all. And it bought back memories to that awful dream she had where Grasshop was in love with her.
"So, you want to be able to help your family is all?" said Hunter. "That doesn't sound so bad. I can't believe they kicked you out. Those Insectors are so cold."
"I know," Grasshop agreed. "They're as chilly as it is when you eat a popsicle in the arctic. Not that I've tried it, but it sounds cold."
'Wait,' Grasshop thought to himself. 'Why am I sitting here acting friendly with the Spider Riders? This is my chance to attack them, and take the Keys. But, now that I think of it, I still can't get off this island. If I can win over their trust, they'll take me onto their ship, and then I'll take the Oracle Keys and the ship, and bring them back to Mantid-sama. Stupid Buguese and Beerain can go off to Nuuma and maybe get that one Key if they're lucky, but Mantid-sama will love me even more, because I bought him two. Not to mention, my kids will find me super cool, and my wife won't be able to stop swooning over me like when we were lovesick teenagers.'
"So, how is going to Nuuma going to help you get a better position?" asked Igneous, curious. "If the Insectors fired you, they're not going to let you back in so easily just by showing up there."
"I know," Grasshop said. "Isn't it sad? What can I ever do to gain their favor again? A failure like me couldn't possibly make a difference."
Being the dramatic guy he was, it wasn't too hard for him to make a stream of tears for effect.
"Wait, I know! Maybe I can't ever get back into Mantid-sama's good graces. I think I should just give up, and go find myself a new profession when I get back home. Maybe a carpenter. That sounds fun. But it's a hard profession to break into if you're not a termite. Oh, don't worry, I'm sure I'll think of something."
"I guess that's a good idea," said Hunter, though he was fairly weirded out. "Alright, we'll help you off the island. But if you do anything bad, we might change our mind and throw you overboard."
"No! Nothing bad!" said Grasshop. "I promise."
"Really?" Magma asked, looking at Hunter.
"Why not?" said Hunter. "I think he's as sick of the other Insectors as we are. He does have a family he loves, and besides, he isn't really a threat to us in battle."
"Yeah, I agree with Hunter," said Corona.
Magma sighed, but decided to go along with Hunter's judgment for now. Especially because Igneous had nothing to say on the matter either, seemingly trusting Hunter as well.
And so, the Spider Riders bought Grasshop on board their ship.
'This is perfect,' Grasshop thought to himself. 'My sad act worked like a charm! As for getting the Keys, it's a good thing I bought one last trump card along with me for safe keeping.'
As soon as he got the chance, and positioned himself close enough to Hunter to go for the Keys, Grasshop unleashed a Machine-Sector onboard.
"Suckers!" he yelled, and grabbed at Hunter. Meanwhile, the weight of the enormous bug was crushing the ship. The wood began to crack.
"The Keys are mine! All mine!" said Grasshop.
"As if I'd let you take them," said Hunter, annoyed. Actually, he was rather disappointed. "I guess Insectors really are evil. Magma, I'm sorry. You can take care of-"
Although, as he tried to finish his sentence, he fell back in the swaying boat. It was going under, fast.
"No!" Lumen exclaimed. "Our father's boat!"
But the thrashing of the violent machine continued. One by one, the passengers were thrown out into the sea. Even Grasshop, much to his dismay. The waves, which were still fairly strong from the recently passed storm, swept them away. As for the heavy metal machine, it sunk down to the sea, along with the boat.