Chapter Text
Prologue
In wilds beyond they speak your name with reverence and regret,
For none could tame our savage souls yet you the challenge met,
Under palest watch, you taught, we changed, base instincts were redeemed,
A world you gave to bug and beast as they had never dreamed,
-From ‘Elegy For Hallownest” by Monomon the Teacher
The interior of a large, egg-like building, was blanketed in shadows. Thousands of shapes and lines indented the walls, only deepening the shadows. In the very center of the room, a large figure hung, suspended by many bulky, dark chains hooked to the ceiling. More chains, even larger than the ones suspending the figure, attached to those other chains, keeping those connected to the floor. The figure suspended by these chains had a large, white head with two tall horns resting on the top of its head. Two large, gaping black, almost void-like eyes were set into the lower portion of its head. It wore silvery armour, looking more grey than silver in the dark lighting. Its legs dangled down, seeming just as void-like as its eyes.
A light is ignited deep within the figure. It stays for a moment, and time itself seems to hold its breath. That moment leaves just as fast as it came, and the light expands, taking on an orange, goopy nature as it rushes to consume the figure. As it reaches the confines of its shell, the figure's eyes glow with that same orange light, and a jagged crack forms above its left eye.
It lets out a scream, loud and guttural, and it seems so loud that possibly the whole kingdom can hear.
Outside the egg, a large door covers the only entrance. It, as well as the outer shell bear the same markings as the inside. The door has three prominent shapes carved into it, each the shape similar to that of a mask. They all have a slight pale glow to them, adding to the eerie atmosphere. The mask on the top bears only one eye, an oval close to the bottom of it, the mask on the left bears two eyes, in a similar location to the first, and the final mask on the right bears six eyes, stacked two by three and spanning the full mask.
Through the fog, atop a rocky path, walked another figure. This one was much shorter in stature. Its white head also bore horns, but they were much smaller and less pointy. It had void-like eyes set into its face. The figure wore a ragged cloak with a blueish tint that billowed in the wind. Its body and legs were also pitch black and void-like. The figure wielded a nail, small compared to many other weapons, but the perfect size for this creature. It had many dents and bumps in it, clearly it was old, used to cut down many foes before this moment.
The path was lined with houses, all a dark grey with spiral patterns set into them. Lamps illuminated the area, the tops of them curled into spiral shell shapes with small, metal beams filling the spirals. The lamps had white, glowing butterflies, if that’s what they were, contained by glass spheres. They let out a bright, white glow. The figure, no, the Knight, clearly that’s what it was based on how it held itself, reached the end of the path. It looked on, revealing a faint glow far in the distance, coming from what seemed to be a town. The Knight then looked down, a large drop between them and the kingdom beyond. It stood for a moment, watching the drop, and then leaped off the edge of the cliff, plummeting into the shadows beyond.