A Familiar Void

Chapter 39

"City of Tears, City of Tears, City of Tears..." Louise mumbled as she flipped through the pages of the book that was titled 'Tristain's guide to Hallownest and Insects Vol 4'.

Next to her, Bug and Sib were both similarly flipping through their own books. Having followed her example once she started flipping through a couple of books herself.

Normally she'd appreciate the help. But considering Bug was flipping through a Bestiary and Sib was flipping through cook book, she wasn't sure if they could produce any results that she would want.

She shook the thought out of her head and kept flipping through the book as she tried to catch a glimpse of the city that Bug had named.

The city that had produces such vivid memories within her mind.

A city with impossibly tall buildings that reached higher than some castles. With steel walls and glass floors made so abundantly.

The Insects were known of their rather amazing architecture, not as much as their mining capability, but Hallownest was often known to be a place where their houses were built underground. Yet they could hollow out entire cave structures and build an entire city, with buildings that often put castles to shame.

Their most famous city, was the Grape Vine. It was a city that was said to have the roots and vines from Tarbes many grape plantations be used as organic decorations. It was even said that in certain parts of the city, the vines and roots themselves were shaped into houses and buildings for them to live in.

So to hear about a place called the City of Tears, a beautiful city that was apparently built underneath a blue lake, and acted as the Capital of Hallownest.

And to not immediately find it in the many books she had gone through about Hallownest?

The memories of the city being overrun by corpses that walked again was the first sign that something was off, considering she didn't recall anything about Hallownest having been ransacked by walking corpses.

Bug had been insistent about it being the Capitol. When she asked about Grape Vine, it asked if she meant Green Path.

That brought a new series of memories that she didn't want to deal with.

In the end, she found herself looking through book after book to try and find something about a City of Tears.

Putting down the book in her hands, Louise found no such cities. And her pink eyes stared into the image on the front cover of the book she had been reading.

The city of Grape Vine was the background, while a single object was plastered in the middle of it.

It was a red Insect shell, with four fang like horns at one end while a diamond shaped stud was placed at the other. From both sides were it's 'Wings', three membrane shaped wings on each side.

"A Seal of Hallownest? These ornate seals were the official symbols of the King and his Knights, and were treasured by those who carried them."

Her head started to pound again, as memories that weren't hers started to seep into her brain.

"Knights?" She gritted out, wondering why the symbol was making her head spin.