Duke hesitated at the edge of the slope leading down to the heritage pillar. “How does this plant drain my fortune?” he asked. “Is there a reasonable explanation behind it? In the first place, is someone’s fortune something that can be quantified?”
“Of course,” Grigar said. “Why are some souls born into the bodies of flies and not mantids? It’s because of their fortune. Less fortunate souls will live tougher existences.”
“So, it’s similar to karma?” Duke asked. “Does committing bad deeds cause one’s fortune to drop?”
“Sometimes,” Grigar said. “Benevolent entities grant fortune, and by committing bad deeds, you’ll scare some of them away. The energy from those plants down there terrifies benevolent entities, leaving you with no chance to obtain good luck.”
Duke stared blankly at the mantid. “If those plants are so unlucky, how are they thriving?”
“Are they thriving?” Grigar asked. “They can only survive in the presence of malachite. Where can they go but here? They’re trapped.”
Duke rubbed his chin. Although he wasn’t certain about the effects of the plant, and his chakras were most definitely not all unlocked, he still wanted to take the risk. What if those plants had special properties he couldn’t obtain anywhere else for his talent? This chance might be the only one he’d get in his lifetime.
“I’m going down,” Duke said, glancing at Grigar.
“If that’s your wish,” Grigar said and took a step back. “I won’t stop you. In fact, I’ll watch you go from up here.”
“You won’t come with me?” Duke asked.
“I don’t want misfortune to befall me,” Grigar said as the mantid took a seat, its legs bending more, allowing its lower belly to touch the ground. “You can go. I’ll wait for you here. As long as you don’t try to touch the heritage pillar, the guard ants won’t attack.”
Duke nodded. “I’ll be right back,” he said and made his way down the slope. It was steep, and he had to circle around the hole’s walls as if he were a piece of poo swirling around a toilet to reach the bottom. As he approached the first guard ant on the slope, he slowed his pace, and the insect turned its head towards Duke as it detected the vibrations caused by his footsteps.
“Excuse me,” Duke said in a slow and calm voice, “I’m just going down to take a look at the flowers. My friend Grigar said I could.” He turned his body to the side and pointed at the mantid waiting on the top of the slope. “You can ask her if you don’t believe me.”
The guard ant walked next to Duke, poking him with its antennae. After a thorough patting, the ant, which was the size of a large dog, walked backwards and turned its focus away from Duke, finding no issue with allowing him to pass. Although Duke was the most interesting thing it had seen in a while, the ant had a duty to guard the path, so it dismissed Duke from its mind as it stared straight ahead, waiting for the next intruder. It was a shame the guard ant could only detect the presence of others through vibrations and what its antennae could feel; it didn’t notice the little creature sneaking its way in to the center of the hole, and neither did any of the other ant guards that met Duke. In fact, Duke didn’t notice the black blur tailing him either.
After passing several inspections where ant antennae frisked him all over, Duke made it to the bottom of the pit. The base of the heritage pillar looked even larger up close, and the purple plants that had seemed so tiny when he was at the top of the slope were actually a bit taller than him. They looked more like fungi than plants with thick stems holding up large mushroom-head-shaped bulbs, the stems drooping from the weight.
Duke gulped as he recalled Grigar’s words. Would he really be cursed with misfortune if he came into contact with the plants? Was it simply mantid superstition, or could fortune actually be calculated as such? Well, Duke supposed he was about to find out. He stretched his hand out towards the nearest purple plant, and he swore its bulb extended itself towards him. For a second, he thought it’d open up and clamp down on his arm; however, it didn’t. Duke’s fingertips touched the plants bulb, and he took in a deep breath before activating his talent. The familiar sensation of vibrations shifting from the plant into his arm occurred, and then the heritage pillar vanished.
Duke stared at the now-empty space where the heritage pillar used to occupy. There was a circle of empty ground surrounded by purple plants. Why did the pillar vanish? Did it have something to do with him absorbing the properties of the purple plant? The ants seemed to think so. They swarmed Duke, grabbing him with their pincers, tearing lacerations open along his exposed flesh. “Grigar!” Duke shouted. His voice turned into a shriek. “Grigar, save me! Help!”
Although Grigar didn’t know how Duke managed to get rid of the heritage pillar, the mantid scuttled forward to help the man out. If he died to the ants, it’d be a huge problem. How would they assign the blame for the loss of the pillar if the main suspect was no longer living?
“Spare his life, but don’t let him get away,” Grigar said, the mantids screeching voice washing over the ants. The cluster of ants calmed down, their writhing limbs coming to a halt.
As the insects fell still, Duke took in a shaky breath. His limbs were being held by four different ants, their mandibles quite harsh against his skin. However, he wasn’t dead, bleeding, yes, but not dead.
“What did you do?” Grigar asked, the mantid looming over Duke and the four ants holding him in place. “Where did the heritage pillar go?”
“I didn’t do anything,” Duke said. He shook his head, but the motion caused his limbs to scrape against the ants’ mouthparts, so he stopped. “I only touched the plant, and then, the pillar vanished. Is the plant capable of causing hallucinations? Maybe we’re just unable to see the pillar that’s definitely there.”
Grigar picked up one of the ants nearby, lifting the dog-sized insect over its head. Then, the mantid threw the ant at the space where the heritage pillar used to be. Both Duke and Grigar watched as the ant flew through the empty air before landing in the sea of purple plants on the other side of the brown circle. The ant twitched a few times before rolling over and standing upright. It waved its front legs in the air at Grigar, indicating it was alright. The mantid took a few steps to point its body at Duke. “Was that an illusion as well?”
Duke stared at the ant before turning to look at Grigar. “No,” he said, “but you and all the ants were watching me. I didn’t do anything except touch this plant!”
“It wouldn’t be the first time a human destroyed one of our colony’s belongings on accident,” Grigar said. “I’ll take you to the queens, and we’ll see what they have to say.”
Duke’s brows furrowed. He really didn’t have anything to do with the disappearance of the heritage pillar. What in the world would he want their heritage pillar for in the first place? It was large, unwieldy, and quite frankly, completely useless to him. He glanced at the purple plant before looking at Grigar. “It must be this plant’s fault,” Duke said. “You told me it sapped people’s fortunes, and I didn’t believe you, but look, I touched it, and now I’m going to be punished for a crime I didn’t commit.”
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Grigar’s expression didn’t change, not that Duke would’ve been able to see the mantid’s emotions fluctuating without having his Ajna unlocked first. “I warned you,” Grigar said. “You didn’t listen. Now, you have to face the consequences of your decision.” The mantid rubbed its scythes together. “Take him to the queens.”
***
Sam yawned, sucking air in through his nose. It wasn’t as satisfying as yawning through his mouth, but it still got the job done. As for what the job was, it was expressing his boredom. Silva Volucris wasn’t a boring place, but when all Sam was doing was riding around on a wooly pig and taking in the sights while peeping on insects living their everyday lives, could he really be blamed for showing his exhaustion after several hours of riding?
A buzzing sound filled the air as crickets chirped, and the beetle walking alongside Manga stopped. Sam turned his head as the wooly pig came to a halt as well. “What’s up?” Vercedei asked, talking to the mantid riding atop the beetle’s back. “Why is it so loud?”
“That’s our alarm,” Greg said. “It only rings when the queens have something to announce.”
Sam’s All-Seeing Gaze showed him most of the insects in the vicinity mobilizing in the same direction, and a quick look around with his eyes confirmed it was true. “Is everyone gathering somewhere?” Vercedei asked for Sam.
“Yes,” Greg said, and the beetle underneath it headed in the same direction as the rest of the insects. “We should be going as well. It wouldn’t do to miss an announcement by the queens.”
“Is it alright for me to go there?” Vercedei asked. “Since I’m not really a citizen.”
“I can’t watch over you if I’m not with you, so you should come with me,” Greg said. “It won’t take long, and isn’t this what you came here for? To see and experience Silva Volucris. The queens’ announcement is quite the sight to behold.”
“Alright,” Vercedei said. “Lead the way. Are these announcements good news or bad news?”
“Either,” Greg said. “We never know what the queens will announce until they announce them.”
“Great,” Vercedei said. “I love surprises.”
Sam couldn’t help but wonder what the queens needed to say that they had to call every available insect in Silva Volucris to gather. Maybe Raindu acted and slaughtered the ants guarding the mantids’ heritage pillar? Perhaps they were going to mention something about the grayling refugees being integrated into mantid society? Either way, he was going to find out soon, so he didn’t think too hard about it.
After a bit of traveling, which would’ve taken less time if there weren’t so many insects using the road, Sam arrived at a plaza of sorts. It was massive and made of rippling metal, the surface of the plaza reminding him of concentric rings of water created by a pebble falling into a puddle. The larger insects positioned themselves in the depressions of the plaza while the smaller insects took their seats on the crests, allowing everyone to get a good look at the center of the plaza where there was an empty stage.
Sam and Greg stayed relatively far away from the center of the plaza since the size of their mounts would definitely interfere with the viewing experience of everyone behind them. Sam scanned the crowd with his All-Seeing Gaze. Other than ants and mantises, there were earwigs, ladybugs, and other beetles. He didn’t see any giant dragonflies like the ones back in the spectral jungle, nor did he see centipedes or millipedes. “Are these the only kinds of insects allowed in Silva Volucris?” Vercedei asked.
“Yes,” Greg said. “We’re a community of mantises, and the creatures the queens deign acceptable to walk amongst us are the only ones that can.”
Sam supposed it was fair. Humans liked dogs more than other animals. Why couldn’t mantids like earwigs more than cockroaches? “What do you think about roaches?” Vercedei asked.
“What do I think about them?” Greg asked. “I’ve heard they’re quite tasty, but I grew up eating cafeteria food, and I haven’t met a wild cockroach yet myself.”
“Oh,” Vercedei said. “So, you think of them as food.”
“As a mantid, I think of everything as food first,” Greg said. “You know the saying: food, friend, or foe.”
“I’m friend, right?” Vercedei asked.
“Yes, absolutely,” Greg said. The mantid turned towards the center of the plaza. “It’s starting. Be quiet.”
Sam looked ahead at the stage, but he didn’t see anything. A few seconds later, the sky went dark as a swarm of beetles covered the sky. Sam looked up, and through his eyesight along with his All-Seeing Gaze, he observed hundreds of beetles hovering in formation, staggered and layered such that they blocked almost all the light reaching the ground below.
Then, orange lights flickered into existence, pulsing on and off. An innumerable number of fireflies filled the region, their existences like tiny sparks in Sam’s All-Seeing Gaze. A grinding sound rumbled from below, Sam nearly missing it because of the droning coming from the beetles in the sky. The stage opened up, and a mantid rose out of the ground, lifted into the view of the masses.
A few of the beetles in the sky spread apart, allowing a ray of sunlight to shine through their mass, letting it land on the stage below. The sea of fireflies flew around the stage in a spherical formation, and they flashed their glowing butts in a pattern, causing a sphere of orange light to ripple from the bottom to the top of the stage. The mantid let out a screech that was translated in Sam’s mind.
“The council of queens has an important announcement to make,” the mantid on the stage said. “Listen, and listen well. The heritage pillar has vanished. As such, anyone who locates a new stone fit to be the heritage pillar shall be richly rewarded.”
Neither Sam’s face nor his aura showed a change in response to what he had heard. He had his suspicions the announcement was going to be related to Raindu’s task, so when his theory was confirmed, he wasn’t surprised.
“Also,” the mantid said, continuing its speech, “the culprit who destroyed the heritage pillar has been captured and is currently in custody. The human who did this will be placed on trial, and if found guilty, his life shall be prolonged indefinitely, and we will take his sense of sight, hearing, and smell.”
“That’s a pretty harsh punishment, huh?” Vercedei asked in a whisper.
“Shush,” Greg said. “The queens’ envoy is still speaking.”
“Sorry,” Vercedei said, the blue snake’s head heaving an exaggerated sigh before looking around, a slithering sensation crawling along Sam’s face. He ignored it.
“Since we’ve lost a world seed and heritage pillar to the humans, we’re no longer allowing human visitors to Silva Volucris,” the mantid said. “Will all humans please leave the region after this announcement. We’ll reopen our borders after some time has passed, but for now, we hope you understand, and we apologize for the inconvenience.”
Greg turned to look at Sam.
“Well,” Vercedei said. “It looks like I won’t be accompanying you for much longer. I guess after I’m kicked out of Silva Volucris, I’ll go deal with the blue avians’ calamity detector. I hope you’ll let me back into the country once I complete my task.”
“I’m sure the queens will make an exception for you,” Greg said as the stage sank back into the ground, taking the queens’ envoy with it. The beetles in the sky dispersed, and the fireflies scattered. Clacking sounds filled the air as the insects marched back to where they had come from, but a few insects came to a halt beside Manga and stared up at Sam. Greg patted the beetle’s back, and it whirled around. “Come, Sam. I’ll pack some supplies for your journey.”
“Kicking me out already?” Vercedei asked. “Well, it’s understandable. Another human ruined another one of your stones, so why wouldn’t Silva Volucris prevent such things from happening again?”
“Sorry,” Greg said. “I don’t dislike you as an individual, but the queens have spoken. Come with me, and I’ll show you the road to the blue avians’ territory.”
Manga let out a cry and followed after the beetle, ignoring the insects around it as they scampered away from the pig’s cloven feet. Sam closed his eyes and focused on his Ajna, entering the field of candy after a brief moment of meditation. There, he saw the black ferret munching away on a flower petal.
“Hello, Sam,” Raindu said. “I found a chance to grab it without getting swarmed by the ants.”
“I heard,” Sam said. “We’re about to leave Silva Volucris. Do you think you can find your way to us? You can give me the malachite after we’ve created some distance between us and the mantids.”
“It’s easy for me to find your location,” Raindu said. “I’ll bring the malachite with me, but it’s very big. We’ll have to go extremely far to avoid the mantids’ detection.”
Sam debated asking Raindu about the framed human, but he decided not to. He didn’t want to feel guilty, and he knew he should’ve since someone took the fall for something he had put into motion, but if he couldn’t match a face or name to the person, then he could forget about them and move on more easily. People were taken advantage of all the time, and would Sam even be here if that mysterious entity hadn’t told him about the mantids’ malachite? Someone else had tasked him with taking the heritage pillar, so if someone were to really be at fault, Sam would only be partially responsible, right?
“No, it’s your fault,” Manga said, the wooly pig appearing behind Sam and speaking in words that weren’t mangalitsa. “You wanted this; this was your goal. You don’t have to feel guilty or apologetic for stepping on people in your path to greatness, but you can’t shirk your accountability. Own your own actions.”
Sam wondered what his life had come to. He had never dreamed of receiving a pep talk from a wooly pig, but here he was.