Hornet was an attentive young lady. She had to be. Hallownest was no place for the easily distracted. However, she was now within Pharloom. A kingdom similar to Hallownest, but with its own set of problems. She ignored a stray bug that attempted to swipe at her and jumped to the above ledge. She was going to continue her climb but paused when she heard light murmuring coming from the cave in front of her. Gripping her Needle, she went in. Hornet was greeted with the sight of a large bug who quietly mused to herself as she looked at the eggs surrounding her. Carefully, Hornet approached and stood her ground when the large bug looked down at her.
"Ssssppiiiderr, your ssstench is strange yet similar… Have you come bearing the organs of others? Or would you offer your own? Gift your sshell's warm insidess as ssweet feast for my brood'sss birth-meal?"
"I have no interest in giving you my organs, but I can provide the organs of others," Hornet answered simply. "I've slain many in this kingdom."
The Huntress, as Hornet learned she called herself, took great interest in this and leaned closer to the half Weaverling. Reaching in her cloak, Hornet retrieved the valuable remains of her fallen foes. The Huntress paid the spider for her triumphs, though whatever she couldn't pay for with Rosaries, she paid for with information. Something equally valuable to Hornet.
"The Citadel is a cursed place filled with little more than foolsss," the Huntress scorned as she looked over an organ. "Those who make the pilgrimage there are foolsss as well. Foolsss sssuch as those have no place in this world. Though this kingdom does nothing more than welcome them now."
You may think Sherma a fool, then, Hornet thought as she opened her map. Where he was going, she technically didn't know, but it didn't take much to connect a spiritual journey and a Citadel. She located the Citadel on her map near the top of the world, a crude drawing done by her being her indicator. She knew something was off, she could sense it in the air. Though whatever this mysterious force was wasn't nearly as strong as the Radiance. Or perhaps it simply preferred the subtlety of its control. Regardless, the force seemed to be involved with the Citadel if the Huntress was to be believed. But she was no fool, she'd keep her guard up. There was no reason the Huntress wouldn't be trying to trick her, even if her anger at the Citadel was genuine.
Hornet left the Huntress and her den, continuing her climb and striking down any who stood in her way. Though now that she thought about it, there was a similar bug in Hallownest. The Hunter, she believed he called himself. She had seen him many times in her travels throughout Hallownest, most notably in Greenpath. He hadn't seen her until the day he attempted to strike her down. He must've thought her easy prey, and she was quick to prove him wrong. Dashing backward, she struck his arm and used her Silk to slice his leg. She threw her Needle into Greenpath's thick foliage and let her thread pull her forward. She didn't bother looking back at the Hunter to see his reaction, she'd other things to do, like watch the Vessel that was making its way through Greenpath at the time. Though, speaking of Vessels, what was the Ghost of Hallownest doing now? She hadn't seen it in a while. She knew it wouldn't be in Pharloom, but even before she was brought here, she hadn't seen it after leaving the Abyss.
The thud and click of a gate closing behind her brought her from her thoughts. In front of her now stood two enemies: one large, heavily armored, and wielding a Club; the other small and lightly armored to allow flight and wielding a Pin. She prepared her Needle and thread, having acquired a good amount of Silk from her fights below. If done right, this fight would be quick. As she struck her foes with her Needle and whipped them with her thread, she wondered if she, too, could be called a hunter.
Author's Note: Anytime I think of the Huntress asking Hornet for her organs, I always think of Hornet saying, "You can't have mine, but you can have someone else's." Leading to this.
This drabble (or sudden fiction according to Wikipedia) was started in February 2021 and finished some time later. I've had this for a while, I just never posted it for some reason. It was part of a little Hollow Knight: Silksong drabble series I wanted to do at the time 'cause we got some new information, but I only did two and the plan was to write more when the game came out or something. Whatever the case, I'll post the second one later.
Anyway, I hope you enjoyed the read. Until next time. Bye~