Bittersweet Legacy

A chorus of buzzing filled the air as soft green lights filtered through strange, veined walls. In the center upon a dais stood a creature with insectoid features.

Upon her head was a large black crooked horn, a small group of antennae that appeared to take the shape of a small crown, both surrounded by long and thin fibrous hairs that took on purple and blue hues. Her body vaguely reflected dimly, various reflections of what was around her as if it were a chitinous and glossy black shell.

The only exception was around the middle of her body where there were several ridges, light yellow in coloration around her stomach, darkening to a dark green at her back. Raised above a pair of nearly clear wings and elytron’s which twitched now and again, whether from reaction or emotion was unclear.

She stood there, with imperceptible movements seeming to guide the creatures around her. Her legs were unnaturally thin, though they flared out with similarities to that of an equine.

Features of both insect and equine two things that should not mix, yet somehow, she existed. Eyes of black and blue moving, coordinating her offspring. Creatures of smaller likeness as their queen. She oversaw everything from the throne room of her entire hive.

As she moved her eyes to look upon another group that were creating a new tunnel, she gasped. Her wings moved in irritation before she regained control as her head turned over her shoulder. Her eyes were fierce and commanding, though her countenance contorted to show disgust as if looking at something far beneath her.

A slow smile crossed her featured before she began to turn back around as though whatever drew her attention no longer concerned her.

She had not turned completely back around before she stopped and cried out in rage and pain. Her wings rose high and buzzed mightily, her breathing heavy suddenly as if physically hurt.

“Leave it!” She snarled, her command echoing seemingly at nothing.

A group of her children had been patrolling when they became aware of light and wild electricity nearby. Upon investigation there laid a creature unlike anything they were aware of. Two of the three had approached only to fall and begin to turn white as they died.

Their last moments were shared by her, and as she brought herself back under control, she gave her command to the final, her chest heaved momentarily.

It would take a considerable amount of magic to contain this thing that was near her land, and she did not car to strain herself any further. Instead, it was best to leave to those that crawled beneath her.

If it survived, perhaps it could be used, and perhaps it would help with a small infestation she sought to erase.

There was darkness all around him, he opened his eyes to see mostly more of the same, though with what little light there was it looked like there was no sky, only hard packed earth above him. He felt something move next to him and he looked to his right seeing a small creature with large eyes looking down at him.

His head hurt as things tried to crowd his mind, yet he could not understand any of it.

With a groan he tried to raise himself up only to stop when he heard the voice. His eyes widened before he turned to the creature next to him. As he blinked as if trying to shake something away and clear his vision, he could take in her features now.

A small light violet horse with reddish mane and tail with streaks of green here and there looked back at him. It had moved as if afraid of him, but remained nearby, on leg partially raised in the air.

He raised a hand to his head, “Geez, I thought you just spoke to me. I must have hit my head hard. There is no way a small horse that looks like you could possibly talk, unless I’m asleep.”

Again, he heard it speak, but in a vocalized language he had never heard of before. He stared at the small horse his mouth agape, until she carefully, and slowly moved a small hoof to close his mouth.

He moved his eyes to take his surroundings in and spotted a few other various creatures not too far away sitting around a small fire. One of which looked like a griffon with a hungry look to it.

The small horse sat back a about a foot away and pointed a hoof at its barrel chest and said something.

“What…?” He asked absently, feeling confused.

With that the head tilted with what he swore was a look of confusion he could only fathom as reflected in his own face.

Suddenly there was a deep bark, and the creatures seemed to stir and stand putting the fire out and standing to the wall.

Ja- Jay?

He tried to think of what his name was as he heard the small horse call in a loud whisper, she motioned for him. He swore it was almost human, and impossible for an animal to move as she had. He noticed she had already moved to the line of animals and guessed she was motioning for him to do the same. At least from the sounds he took it as the small horse was feminine.

He stood and nearly fell to his knees again as he tried to gather himself.

There was another bark, and he looked up to see what looked like a bulldog standing on it’s hindquarters, but with a body that was slightly hunched forward and didn’t look unnatural or uncomfortable as it stood there staring at him, a set of crude metal bars forced into the opening of where he and the other animals were housed as if in a jail of some kind.

He looked over at the small horse, but it did not look back at him. He struggled but made his way over to stand in the line.

“You want me to stand here?” He asked.

The dog growled and barked something that sounded like the small horse but in a more guttural way as drool dribbled down its jowls.

But after a few seconds of standing there not moving the dog seemed happier as it seemed to reach and grab a large tool from a bin behind it and he marveled at the dexterity this dog man had as if its paws could move like hands.

The dog began to toss multiple metal tools through the space of the bars, letting them land with bits of dirt raising in small clouds.

Once done, the dog man seemed to bark-speak again before moving to open a crude doorway that the man had missed seeing previously.

One by one, the creatures moved from left to right one at a time to grab a tool and march slowly tiredly from the cell and began to make their way around a small bend next to another cell much like theirs though this one was empty.

Without missing a beat, even without the need to see the concerned look from the small horse he followed suit, only once he was armed with a tool he waited until the dog man was closing the door and unleashed his full fury.

He felt vindication at striking the dog which released an ear-splitting yelp as it flew back to land unconscious.

He took the shovel as he heard a noise from nearby and turned to struck by the griffon and everything went black after a bright light overtook his sight.

Waking up he found himself chained to a wall, with aches and pains and one eye sore and swollen shut.

The same small horse from before was at his side with a small bucket of water between them as she dipped a cloth and looked up hesitating for only a second seeing him awake before carefully and with skilled precision and gentleness of a bedside nurse she wiped at his swollen eye.

He took a breath through his teeth as he felt the pain, he could only make out the apologetic look in her face to his reaction.

“I wasn’t expecting one of you to do that. I thought we were all prisoners, and it would be a good idea to escape.”

He mouthed, now picking up a slight dirty copper taste in his mouth.

The small horse tilted her head as she absently dipped the cloth back into the bucket to wet it again.

With a frustrated sigh he laid his head back a second before returning to look into her face and motioned the two of them and then circled and a running motion with two of his fingers.

This brief pantomime seemed to work in understanding as the horse said something and shook her head.

“Ah, I’m guessing you just said something like ‘no escape’, huh?”

With another untranslated word he took for confirmation or confusion he motioned his fingers as running again but this time held up his two index fingers in an ‘X’ shape and she seemed to nod.

“Well, let’s see if we can’t break through the first barrier.” He said before moving to lean forward wincing in pain as he began to trace familiar shapes of letters in his language in the dirt, a few at a time.

It took time, and he learned that they were held by a vicious pack of dog men hybrids, his guess, that wanted him and others to mine somewhere underground from the various holes in a large, packed dirt area and would exclaim excitedly when they found gemstones or crystals and would barely feed them when they barely walked back to their little cage.

The horse, who was female, as he learned was able to pick up some aspects of his language quickly.

“Berry Rush,” she said.

“Ok miss named after a drink.” He tried to tease to which Berry only tilted her head.

Obviously, his joke went over her head.

“Come on, now Jay, you need to continue to learn my language as much as I am learning yours.” She insisted.

“Yeah, but it just feels like your language is backwards or something, I’m having trouble picking it up.”

“So, you are saying it’s not easy, well neither is yours. It’s so simplistic and almost like a child babbling.”

“Yeah, because my race cannot speak with inflections of magic fused into our language.”

“Yes, it is also strange you do not seem to hold any semblance of magic aside from being able to create a small orb of light. I thinking it be a reason for your troubled words.”

“I’m thinking this is the reason you are having trouble with words.” Jay corrected.

He had not been able to remember his name, and even though he felt off being called jay, it was at least something he could latch onto, and it helped them both to better communicate.

“I seriously cannot believe you are teaching that thing our language. I preferred when it thought it could escape and fell like a bag of potatoes when I beat it down to the ground.” Came the annoyed voice of the griffon.

“Flintlock, enough is enough. Please stop trying to pick a fight with him. And he is not a thing, he is a creature just like us, has the same needs and needs the same care.” Berry tossed back. Jay tried to pick up what he could and only understood he was being insulted as per usual.

Though of his understanding Griffons could be pretty callus towards any creatures even their own, and the only time they changed their tune was for money which was usually like a rose growing sharper thorns.

With a sigh Jay offered that it was about time to turn in since many of the other creatures were settling in for the night. To which he was grateful she agreed.