Molepire: The Serpent's Silver Tongue

Royally fucked - [9]

[9]

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Emotions were a fickle thing; understanding why we experience them was one thing, learning to process them were another. The James-Lange Theory of Emotions is one of the earliest theories of modern psychology; yet, it still failed to explain to me why I was in a flurry of overwhelming feelings - I felt as if I was drowning in a vast sea of confusion, none of this made sense.

I inhaled deeply, trying to calm my shaky nerves. Shame burnt and lingered in my stomach as bile bubbled in my throat. I was only trying to help our plan, why was Casper so ashamed of me? I bit back any horrendous thoughts rambling around in my aching head. I really didn't have time for this today, I needed to start work on my empire. Albeit, I wanted to clarify if my brother had taken the book - the last thing I wanted or needed was someone else messing this all up. I waited until he finished taunting my fruitless effort before dragging him over to the kelp farm, I forced excitement onto my face in the form of an manic laugh.

"DID YOU ACTUALLY TAKE IT?!" I demanded, but I quietened down when his eyes reached my own. The hazel irises that usually swirled with pride and power were filled with embarrassment, the ignominy of his brother's failed attempt at a heist hung over him like a storm cloud. I spoke up again, quietly, "Are we still allies?"

The truth that lay hidden from his sight was, I had more plans - plans that he will never know about. He hissed back a reply, scorn dripping with every syllable that tumbled from his lips, "Yup, but don't do shit without telling me first." He tugged his arm from my grip, his hoodie sleeve ruffled from my irrational movements. His grey wings sat snug and firm against his back, his black-framed glasses balanced on his nose. "Stealing the law book in front of everyone was a really dumb move." He continued, crossing his arms across his chest.

His impatient glare for an apology met my eyes but it never fell from my mouth. He raised an eyebrow, scoffing at my inconsiderate mannerisms. "What, no 'sorry for fucking everything up'?" I swallowed a laugh, not wanting to make this already stressful situation worse. "Killing me in front of everyone was a dumb move." I shot back, a melancholy expression flashed across his features before he sighed exasperatedly. He looked at me, his words playing on his tongue, "I don't want it to look like we're on the same side though," I nodded, pretending to be lost in thought; guilt swam through my body like a salmon swimming through rivers, it was one mistake, man. "Then they'll suspect us messing with the election votes."

He held a good point, I didn't intend on proving Aster's suspicions anymore. I sighed, nodding my head - I couldn't bare to tell him the vote had already been cancelled, I could do without another arrow in my head. I waved shortly to him, hurrying off towards my base.

The pleased shrieks of birds followed me like a hawk, the grunts and snorts of pigs throughout the forest brought a small smile to my face - more food for me.

Now, my base was nothing short of lamentable. Multitudes of chests lay stranded as a plain white bed sat neatly in the middle. To my chagrin, I now had to find and move all of these chests to a securer location. I groaned, grabbing handfuls of supplies and stuffing it frantically into my inventory. The trek to actually find somewhere was going to be a pain in the arse, considering many moles had already scattered to find bases. I began walking over the swampy hills, hoping to find something.

~~

Now, this was something.

A ragged, stony cliff lay before me; rocks and jagged lumps of stone protruded from the sides. Plain, grey plains lay before it, the barren wasteland warming my heart ever-so-slightly. I grinned, tossing down some chests I'd grabbed. This is exactly what I needed for my factories. I began to light up the area, mining the copper and coal ore that I found exposed to the world - the smell of smelting stone and copper brimmed in the surrounding forests, a homely sense making me feel at home. I wondered if anyone was near here, but after looking at my co-ordinates, I safely assumed no-one would be around here; I was miles away from the Mole Hole, the last signs of civilization presenting itself in the form of an abandoned and ransacked farm.