51- The Last of Mantid

"That transformation!" Magma exclaimed in awe. "It's wonderful! This is exactly how Brade was said to look in the legends. I'm so moved I can't stop crying!"

"Dagger, Spider Out!"

For the first time, Brade's legendary red spider was revealed to the others.

"Oh my gosh!" exclaimed Magma, overjoyed to see it.

"Mantid!" Hunter yelled. He was impressed by Brade too, but now wasn't the time to stand around in amazement. "I'm going to defeat you!"

With Shadow's help, he took to the air, until he was in range of Mantid. Hunter unleashed an attack, which Mantid easily blocked. The Rider crashed down to the floor.

"Hunter!" Corona was horrified. So were the others.

"Hunter, stand back," Brade declared. "Let me try!"

The Hero took an inhuman jump to the sky, blasting Mantid with an attack. Surprisingly, the attack actually connected, causing Mantid to flinch.

"Amazing!" Magma cheered. "You can do it, Hero Brade!"

"You're better than I thought you would be," Mantid said. "But you greatly underestimate my abilities." Mantid retaliated, sending a shock at Brade, similar to Aqune's attacks. Brade keeled over on the floor in pain.

"No!" screamed Magma.

"What was that?" Aqune yelled.

"You should recognize it, because it was your attack," Mantid replied. "With the Oracle's power, I can do anything I want. I can throw back anything you Spider Riders attack me with."

"Why are you doing this?" Hunter asked. "Aren't you also from the Inner World? How could you wish to end this world?"

Mantid laughed.

"Perhaps I should tell you my secret," he said.

"What secret?!" Brade demanded, as he stood back on the ground.

"That I was never from this world," replied Mantid. "Just the insinuation that I was disgusts me. I am an Earthen. A human."

"But how?" Sparkle asked. He didn't look human at all. She looked to Grasshop, wondering if he might have known, but he just shrugged.

"I changed my body," Mantid responded. "Insectors are stronger than humans, and can outlive them. In order to survive, I became one of the pitiful creatures of this world. Of course, it was much easier to gain the trust of the real Insectors this way. There has always been bias between Insector and human, so I did all I could to make these people loathe the humans of the Inner World even more. When their sunlight was taken away, I knew it would devastate them. Especially because the humans could still live in the light."

"I still don't understand why you would want to destroy the world," Hunter spoke.

"As revenge," replied Mantid. "I fought for the Oracle long ago, in the days before Spider Riders even existed. I swore to protect this Inner World. I was naïve back then, thinking that I could make a difference. In a short time, I lost everything I held precious, including Lorraine."

"Lorraine?" Corona asked.

"My love," replied Mantid. "I could not forgive this world who took her from me. I swore that I would destroy it for her sake, resurrect her, and return with her to the Outer World."

"That's crazy!" Corona replied. Of course, she thought to herself, if Hunter died she would be devastated. But she wouldn't go through such an extreme reaction. How could anybody even think like that?

"Arrow of Light!" Corona fired at Mantid, angrily.

"Electro Whip!" Aqune ran to Corona's side, and also launched an attack. What Mantid was doing was horrible, to her. Just because of his loss, now she'd lost Buguese, and many more lives could be lost. Unfortunately, both attacks couldn't do a thing to Mantid.

"You're weak!" he said. He blasted the two with a fiery attack.

"My turn!" Magma declared.

"I'll help," Igneous said, looking to Magma. His comrade nodded.

The two attacked in unison, but Mantid blasted their attacks right back at them.

"Lumen, why don't we try?" Sparkle asked.

Lumen looked apprehensive for a moment, seeing what happened to everyone else. But still, they couldn't just do nothing.

"Alright," he decided. The two siblings launched a desperate combination attack. But Mantid blew them away.

"Sparkle!" Grasshop shouted, worriedly.

"Everyone!" Hunter was angry, watching all his friends struggle. Though his first attack on Mantid had no effect, he had to try again.

"Hunter!" Brade called. "Let's attack him together!"

"Yeah!" Hunter replied. Just the thought of combining his powers with the Hero Brade was like a dream come true. He just hoped it would be enough.

"Let's go Hunter!" Brade and Dagger leapt at Mantid.

"Got it!" he replied, following with Shadow. The two of them fired their best attacks. Mantid shot out the same attacks. Both blasts collided in the middle, and then dissolved.

"Impossible," Brade said, though he knew it was very much a reality. Although the two hadn't been hurt like their comrades, they weren't able to hit Mantid either.

"I see you're in despair," Mantid stated. The Riders looked weakened, afraid, hopeless. "It's not just you, I assure you. The light is fading all over the Inner World."

Illuma saw the dimming sky outside the castle windows.

"Is it too late?" she thought out loud. Worriedly, she closed her eyes. "Corona… please be alright."

"What is happening?!" Similar worried cries echoed from many of the soldiers in Arachna.

"I don't know," Grey said. "But I'm going to have faith in the Spider Riders." It was times like this when he felt useless, being a normal human. But he knew Igneous and the others were amazing. There had to be something they could do.

"I will never give up!" Hunter stared at Mantid, boldly. "You can do whatever you want, Mantid, but I'll stop you, somehow!" He proceeded to attack Mantid once more, but was violently thrown down.

"Hunter…" Corona hated seeing him hurt. "Aqune, is there anything we can do?"

"I don't know," Aqune replied. "But… though it may be faint, I know there's still sunlight shining on this world. Spirit Oracle can still help." There was an impressive aura of light around Aqune.

"It's over for you, Hunter Steele!" Mantid declared. "And I know the perfect attack to finish you with!"

Mantid generated a giant version of Corona's arrow in the sky. He thrust it down at Hunter.

Corona gasped. Then, Aqune took her hand.

"Concentrate on protecting him," Aqune said.

"Alright," Corona replied. She felt her remaining power, and the enormous power that was rising inside Aqune come together. "We will protect Hunter!" she declared. Just as it was about to hit Hunter, the arrow stopped.

Surprised, Hunter looked to the two girls, and realized it was their powers that protected him. Now, he decided, it was his turn.

"Never give up!" Hunter yelled. With more might than ever before, he turned the arrow, which was covered in the Oracle's light around. The arrow flew back at Mantid, and struck his body.

"What?!" Mantid was shaking, from the enormous force of the attack that hit him. But then he realized, the attack had done more than just hit him. The four Oracle Keys appeared above him in the sky. Then they fell into Hunter's hand.

"What was that?" even Brade was amazed by what he'd seen.

"Truly, it's a miracle," Corona said.

As for Mantid, his body transformed back to its normal state from before he had the four Keys. He could no longer keep levitating, and ended up crashing to the ground.

"Th-this is impossible…" Mantid stuttered. "After everything I've gone through, my power was taken away?"

"Now is your chance to finish this!" Igneous yelled.

"Yeah," replied Hunter. He looked to Shadow. "Are you ready?"

"I'm ready any time," Shadow replied.

"Oracle Keys!" Combining the power of all four Keys this time, Hunter and Shadow reached an all new transformation. Human and spider had never been more in synch with each other.

"Amazing," said Aqune.

"He's an Oracle Master," Brade said, in awe. "I expected no less from the second coming of the Brave."

"It's over now, Mantid!" Hunter declared. He launched an attack like none before. And the attack made contact.

AN: And, one more to go after this!