The Hollow Moth: Reincarnated as a Caterpillar

Fourth Zone sucks.

No light. No heat. Just damp rocks, ominous air pressure, and the constant spiritual vibe of "you shouldn't be here."

Whatever. I've got spatial sense. Sight is for amateurs. I map the world with pulses and mild anxiety. So far, so good.

Tessa's behind me, pretending her glowing wolf eyes let her "somewhat see." I call bluff whenever she smacks her snout into a stalagmite and insists it "wasn't there before."

Victor's trailing behind her, carrying Goldy like an overfed psychic burrito. She's in Soft Cocoon now — can't move, can't eat, but still manages to comment on everything through our link. Amazing how much attitude fits inside a silk lump.

Spiky's bringing up the rear with Vex strapped onto his back like a particularly grumpy backpack. He doesn't say much, doesn't complain. Just walks. Dependable as always.

We find a decent enough alcove and pile in. I map it — tight walls, low ceiling, no monster breath yet. Good enough.

Everyone settles.

Except for the two caterpillar kids.

They huddle near me. The girl's all bristle and nerves, trying to disappear into the stone. The boy's still figuring out his legs post-evolution. He wobbles even while sitting. It's kind of impressive.

I did promise myself I'd name them once they survived this far. Damn it.

"Tch. Alright," I mutter, "you two. You made it. You get names."

They go still like I just activated a trap.

I jab a leg at the boy. "You. Fast, twitchy, evolves in the middle of a crisis. You're Rin. Try not to embarrass it."

He nods so hard I think his head might fall off. "Rin… got it!"

I shift to the girl. "And you. Misa. You've got brains under those spines. Don't pretend you don't."

She whispers, "Thank you," and nearly sinks into the wall.

Goldy chimes in through the mental link, smug as ever: "Naming ceremony complete~ Our princess finally blesses her court~"

"Goldy, I swear to Mother, I'll roll you off a cliff."

Victor chuckles. Tessa hides a laugh.

Spiky doesn't react. Vex vibrates faintly in his cocoon. Judgment, as usual.

Whatever. Names done. Guilt cleared.

Now if something doesn't try to kill us in the next hour, I might get half a nap.

But knowing my luck?

Yeah. No chance.

"…You've been here before, haven't you?" I ask, half out of curiosity, half because this silence is making my antennae itch.

Tessa hesitates, ears flicking back. "Yeah. Once. With the pack."

I glance back at her. She's keeping pace, but there's a stiffness in how her paws land.

"What was it like?"

She scratches the floor with a claw, her voice lower now. "Dark. Scary. Worse than this even. There were these… floaty egg-shaped things with spikes. A lot of 'em. They were fighting these shadowy cats — real sharp, real fast. Claws like blades. It was chaos."

Her breath hitches just slightly. "Because of that fight… Brother Wolf and Mama Wolf… couldn't get away."

I stay quiet.

The others do too.

Well. Great. Nice one, Nur. Poke a wound and act surprised when it bleeds.

"…Those floaty egg-things," I murmur after a moment, "with spikes. That doesn't sound a little familiar to you?"

Tessa blinks. "Wait… oh."

Yeah.

"Isn't that basically what Goldy and Vex look like right now?" I point a leg toward the two oversized cocoon blobs being carried like glorified luggage.

Victor hums thoughtfully. "Verily. The depiction doth closely correspond with our present chrysalis state — albeit whether those were constituents of our colony or another remains… dubious."

"But if true," he continues, "it doth signify that we must exercise caution regarding the 'cats' which thy pack hath encountered. Should they be indigenous to this locale, they are either territorial or predatory in nature. In either case, they present a formidable issue."

I grunt, eyes flicking toward Tessa again. She's gone quiet. Too quiet.

Victor must notice too, because he softens his tone. "We shall exercise due caution. And… I shall not pursue the matter further. It would indeed be a cruelty to reopen a wound that hath yet to heal."

Tessa offers a small nod. Doesn't say anything else.

Good. We leave it there.

For now.

Tessa's been… quiet.

Too quiet.

Not her usual "pretend-to-be-sneaky-and-then-trip-on-my-own-tail" kind of quiet, either. This is the brooding, ears-low, eyes-down kind. She hasn't cracked a joke since we crossed into Zone Four. Hasn't even complained about the cold rock floors or the "bad vibes," which is very un-Tessa of her.

Not hard to guess why. This is where she lost them.

I slow down a little, let the others crawl ahead. Victor throws me a look but doesn't interfere. Good.

Tessa lags behind, paws dragging just a bit. Her tail's not wagging. It hasn't been since we got here.

I fall into step beside her. "Hey."

She doesn't look at me. Just keeps walking.

"You don't have to be here."

Still nothing.

I sigh. "I'm serious. You could've stayed with Ypal. The Third Zone is safe and stable. Weird fungus people practically love you. You'd get food, rest, a weird mushroom pillow or something. No pitch-black tunnels. No… memories."

She finally glances at me. Her eyes glow faintly in the dark — not with fire. Just sadness trying to look brave.

"I know," she says softly. "I thought about it."

"Then why are you still here?"

She takes a breath. "Because you're still here."

Tch. Of course, she'd say something like that.

She shrugs. "Besides… I'm scared. But I don't want to keep running from the place where I lost them. If I can make it through this with you guys… maybe it won't hurt as much."

I don't respond. Just keep walking beside her in the dark.

I'm not good at this comforting crap. But I don't leave her side either.

She's my best friend.

Even if this zone eats us alive, she's not crawling through it alone.

We keep moving.

The stone's colder here. Tighter, too. Like the zone's starting to breathe around us — slow, suffocating breaths. Tessa's still walking beside me, quiet, but a little steadier now.

Then Victor stops.

Not dramatically — just a sharp, still halt like he froze time.

"I perceived something," he says. Calm. Controlled. But his tone's clipped.

"Direction?"

"Forty-five degrees north. Fast. Arcing downward."

I don't question it. My senses whip toward that angle — narrow, pointed like a spear. Something's moving. Fast. Cutting through the air like a wasp.

I don't think — I react.

One of my arcane spines launches from my thorax, spiraling outward in a sharp streak. It collides mid-air with a metallic clang.

Swoosh—crack!

The impact echoes for a second, then something falls to the ground ahead of us.

I refocus. Trace the flight path. The shape. The composition. The way the mana clung to it.

That's not a monster spine. That's…

"Wait," I mutter, crawling forward cautiously, "was that an… arrow?"

I reach out with my senses.

Yep. Definitely an arrow.

Thin. Fletched. Metal tip. Slight magical residue — barely. It's old. Worn.

Someone — or something—just tried to snipe us. Quietly. Precisely. And from a damn distance.

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Tch.

This zone just got worse.

I stay still.

Everyone behind me stops too. Tessa's ears perk. Victor narrows his eyes. Even Goldy and Vex's cocoons pulse slightly — that twitchy kind of tension we all recognize now. Danger.

Then I hear it.

Voices.

Faint, echoing softly through the dark like water dripping into a cavern pool. Can't tell how many. Two? Maybe three?

They're speaking, but—

"…kyen-ah ree-tol venahr…"

The words hit my ears wrong. Twisted. Slippery. Not beast speech. Not dungeon instinct growls. Actual language. Structured. Rhythmic. But unfamiliar.

"What the hell is that?" I whisper.

Victor's expression darkens. "Not Myconid. Not Insectoid. Not anything I've catalogued."

Tessa shakes her head. "I've never heard that before. Back then it was just growling and screaming."

I stretch my senses toward the sound — not too far. Just enough to catch more of the speech.

"…lor-en vassu ta-en morra. Hael."

There's cadence. Emotion. It's not spellcasting. Not monster chatter.

It's a conversation.

Real conversation.

A language.

And none of us know it.

Tch.

Another arrow. Another whisper.

This zone is crawling with things that talk. And they just noticed us.

Goldy's voice drifts into my head like cold syrup.

"Humans."

The word hangs heavy.

"Careful," she adds. "They're crafty."

Crafty. Manipulative. Resourceful. Dangerous in ways that don't rely on claws or fangs.

I click softly in annoyance. "Of course it's humans."

I turn toward Victor, who's already scanning the dark with that calm, unsettling precision of his.

"How many?"

He doesn't pause. "Three. Moving cautiously. One ahead, two staggered behind. Standard formation. Probably expecting traps."

Of course they are.

I shift my legs, eyes narrowing even though I can't see. "Weapons?"

"Uncertain, indeed. Yet, the missile was of standard iron-point, possessing but a trifling enchantment. They are not novices, I assure you."

Which makes them worse. Amateurs panic and die fast. These… these might think they're on a hunt.

I let my senses stretch a little further — not enough to alert them, but enough to feel their shapes.

Humanoid.

Armored.

Steady steps.

Yeah. That's human movement.

And they're coming this way.

One of the shapes breaks the formation.

Fast.

Not cautious anymore. Charging straight at Victor like a cornered animal trying to bite the biggest thing in the room. Idiot move, honestly — Victor may look like the refined, silent type, but the guy hits like a collapsing building when he feels like it.

I can't see much, but I feel the movement — upright posture, armored, two legs, one arm raised. Sword? Axe? Doesn't matter.

Probably a male human. Aggressive. Loud steps. Not thinking.

Victor doesn't move.

He's patient like that. Never strikes first unless provoked beyond reason.

But the human doesn't get the chance.

Tessa blurs forward in a snap of wind and muscle.

WHUMP.

A solid impact. No killing blow — she holds back, just enough force to knock the breath out of the charging idiot. He slams into the ground with a grunt, weapon skidding out of reach.

Tessa plants a paw on his chest, a low growl rising from her throat.

"Try that again," she snarls, "and I won't stop at your ribs."

The human groans beneath her. Tries to say something, but it's just garbled language they speak.

I can't understand a word.

Victor doesn't blink. He just looks down at the man, expression unreadable.

"Impressive loyalty," he murmurs. "Foolish execution."

Tessa doesn't move. I don't tell her to.

Let the human think about their life choices.

Preferably while pinned to the floor by a firewolf.

The human under Tessa suddenly yells — loud, desperate, something sharp and commanding in that weird garbled Common Tongue.

"Fas sevan deras!"

And just like that, the dark explodes with motion.

Whfft-whfft-whfft.

Arrows. A full volley. Arcing fast.

I don't even have to shout.

Rin and Misa react on instinct.

Their thorax spines launch in a crisscross pattern — crack! crack! — Slapping the arrows out of the air mid-flight. A few bounce off the stone walls. One splinter against Victor's carapace, harmless.

"Idiots brought bows into a cave?" I mutter. "Genius move."

But I don't get to enjoy the moment, because—

Another human. Charging.

Another male, by the shape. Taller. Heavier. Axe in hand. He's gunning straight for Victor again.

"Tch. Persistent."

I surge forward, muscles coiled, and fire.

Thhhmm—CRACK!

A trio of Arcane Spines whistle through the dark and pierce clean into his left leg.

He stumbles with a yell, crashing down hard. Axe goes flying. His helmet clinks against the ground.

"Congrats," I say coldly, stepping in front of Victor as the man writhes. "You've just won the 'fall face-first into your own stupidity' award."

Victor sighs. "I had that under control."

"Sure you did," I mutter, already charging another volley.

Two down. One unaccounted for.

And it's never the loud ones you need to worry about.

"Good," Vex growls from his cocoon, voice echoing straight into my skull like a blade being sharpened.
"Now finish them."

Of course, he'd say that.

Goldy chimes in next, silk-soft but sharp. "They attacked first. End it. You know they would've killed Victor if they could."

Yeah. That's true. It should be simple.

They're on the ground. Disarmed. Breathing hard, panicked. One clutching his leg, the other pinned under Tessa. The third is still lurking out there, probably lining up another shot.

My body's already aligned — spines half-drawn, magic coiling at the tips. One volley, that's all it would take. Just one. Easy.

So why…?

Why aren't I doing it?

I've killed before. I've survived before. Monsters, beasts, things that slithered and screamed and bled colors I don't even have names for. I've done worse things in the dark than most of them can imagine.

But this?

These?

They're humans.

And for some stupid, irrelevant reason, that makes me freeze.

My legs tighten. Mandibles click shut.

I don't lower my spines… but I don't fire either.

The one with the wounded leg locks eyes with me. Can't understand a word he says, but I feel it. That look. It's not begging.

It's familiar.

Fear pretending to be bravery.
Cornered instinct trying to wear honor like armor.
Like I've seen that face in a mirror once before.

Why the hell am I hesitating?

Vex hisses, "What are you doing, Nur? Do it."

Goldy's tone sharpens. "They won't show mercy. Don't be stupid now."

I grit my teeth.

I know that.

I know that.

Then why is it so hard?

I'm still frozen.

Just standing there with spines drawn and nothing fired, like some confused hatchling playing predator. My breath's steady, my aim's clean—but my will is just… stuck.

Then Victor moves.

No hesitation. No sound. Just motion—smooth and brutal.

He strides past me with Goldy coiled silently on his back, regal and watching. He doesn't speak. Doesn't ask. Doesn't judge.

He just reaches down—grips the fallen human by the jaw—and rips.

A sickening crack-pop sound echoes through the stone as the head tears free from the spine. Blood hits the ground in thick, wet pulses. The human's body jerks once, then goes still.

Victor doesn't even look back.

Goldy hums approvingly, a quiet psychic whisper: "That's how you end a threat."

Spiky steps forward next, Vex on his back radiating pure, vicious glee.

Tessa flinches slightly, still pinning the second human. She looks at me—uncertain. Waiting for a cue. Some sign from me.

But Spiky doesn't wait.

He leans down, pulls Tessa aside with a rough nudge, and clamps his mandibles down on the second man's throat.

One twist.
One wet snap.

Another life gone.

Vex's voice pulses out, dark and electric. "There. Simple. Efficient. No room for hesitation."

And I just stand there.

My spines still drawn.

My body still coiled.

And all I can think is—

Why did it feel so easy for them?

Why does it still feel so hard for me?

They're just humans.
So why does it still feel like killing something I used to be?

I turn my senses toward the far end of the corridor—Misa and Rin are still there, bristling with tension, spines loaded, posture tight. They've been trading shots with the last one—the archer. Quick, precise volleys against a faster, sneakier target.

But now?

Nothing.

I stretch my sense a bit further, and—

Gone.

That heartbeat, that shifting weight, that flicker of movement in the stone?

Vanished.

"Tch," I hiss.

Misa clicks once. "I think he ran."

Rin pants beside her, mandibles twitching. "Slipped into the tunnels. I almost hit him but—he knew the terrain."

Then, from behind me, Vex lashes out.

His voice slams into all our minds like a psychic slap.

"Big mistake on our part."

His aura spikes—venomous, furious. It rolls off him like heat.

"Why the hell were you two standing around for?!" he snaps, aimed directly at me and Tessa. "We had them! We had them! And now one's escaped because you couldn't pull the damn trigger!"

Tessa flinches beside me, ears low, but she doesn't respond.

I grit my teeth.

"Shut up, Vex."

"Make me."

Goldy sighs from Victor's back. "Not the time, boys."

But Vex isn't done.

"You hesitated. And now that stray's going to alert whoever they came with. You think humans travel in threes down here? Hah. Cute."

I want to argue. I do. I want to scream that I know, that I saw it, that I felt it too, that I chose not to act—

But all I can do is stand there in the dark, surrounded by the aftermath, and feel the echo of a decision I didn't make.

One archer.

One escape.

And probably a whole mess coming right behind them.

Goldy speaks next—soft, but sharp where it counts.
"I agree with Vex."

Of course she does.

"I know both of you were human. I haven't forgotten that."

Her voice isn't mocking. Just… tired. Stern. The way Goldy gets when she's full from a fight and still has something stuck in her throat.

"But you've been through everything with us. You've survived things humans wouldn't last ten seconds against. You're not them anymore. So why are you still hesitating like you are?"

Tessa lowers her head. Doesn't say a word. Her tail curls in tight, like she's shrinking into herself.

I look away.

Goldy doesn't stop.

"They attacked first. They aimed for Victor. If you hadn't reacted, they'd have buried an arrow in his throat."

A pause. A beat of silence.

"So what's the problem, Nur? Guilt? Nostalgia? You think the rest of the world's gonna hesitate just because you used to be one of them?"

I feel something coil in my chest. Tight. Ugly.

Vex spits out one last jab. "Because right now, all I see is weakness."

That's the part that stings.

Not because it's cruel.

But because some twisted part of me wonders if he's right.

Tessa's voice comes out barely above a whisper.

"…Sorry."

Not defensive. Not snappy. Just raw. Quiet.

She doesn't look at anyone when she says it. Not even me. Her ears are still low, her tail still curled. And hearing her apologize first? That hits harder than anything Vex said.

I swallowed whatever sharp comeback I had loaded in my throat.

"…Yeah. Me too."

That's all I can manage.

Not an excuse. Not a defense. Just those two words.

I feel Victor's gaze settle on me, but he doesn't speak. He doesn't need to.

Goldy's quiet now too.

Even Vex, for once, doesn't reply.

We all just stand there in the dark, surrounded by cooling corpses and the memory of a choice I didn't make.

Somewhere out there, a human is running.

And next time…

I won't hesitate.

Victor, ever the master of dramatic timing, clears his throat like we're all gathered at some awkward noble dinner party instead of standing in blood-soaked darkness.

"Well," he says lightly, "for what it's worth, their formation was crude, their equipment standard… but their aim? Rather direct."

He tilts his head toward me, voice smooth as polished silk.

"Though I must ask—were they aiming for me… or for you, young Highness?"

Tessa turned..

Even Misa lets out a tiny surprised click.

Then it clicks.

I glance at Victor. More specifically… at what's on Victor.

Goldy. Wrapped in silk. Silent. Radiating presence like a lazy psychic sun.

Royal cocoon.

Obvious now.

"…Tch. Yeah," I mutter, "they weren't gunning for your charming personality."

Victor smiles faintly, like I just confirmed some personal theory.

"Thought so."

"Guess carrying around an actual royal evolution in progress puts a target on your back," I add, eyes narrowing.

Goldy hums from her perch, smug as always. "I am very desirable, thank you for noticing."

Vex groans. "Please drop her. Just once. For me."

Victor chuckles. "Tempting. But no."

So that's it. They weren't just random human scouts — they were after Goldy. Or rather, what she's becoming.

And if one of them made it out… they're going to bring more.

Fantastic.

Spiky finally chimes in from the back, voice dry and matter-of-fact as ever. "Didn't Mother say something about Royal Brood being constantly hunted by humans because of their golden silk?"

He glances up at Goldy, cocooned and glimmering like a walking treasure chest.

"And Goldy here is practically wrapped in it."

Goldy does a slow, smug psychic twirl from Victor's back. "I'm radiant. It's not my fault I'm irresistible."

I sigh. "Yeah. I figured you'd sell for a lot."

Tessa winces. "That… came out a little dark."

"I meant her silk," I mutter.

"Still sounded like a threat," Rin offers helpfully from the side.

Misa clicks once in agreement.

I rub my forehead with a leg. "Okay. Temporary solution before we get jumped again…"

I flick my gaze to the rest of us — dull silk, muted gray or brown threads, basic-tier peasant fashion.

"Alright. Let's cover Goldy with our silk."

Victor raises a brow. "You mean smother Her Radiance in… commoner silk?"

"Exactly. Wrap her up like an old broom. Hide the shine. Make her look like a regular oversized silkworm loaf."

Goldy's psychic tone turns offended. "Peasant silk? Really?"

"Yes. Peasant silk. You want to get harvested like a luxury throw blanket?"

She grumbles.

Spiky's already spitting a strand and layering it over her cocoon.

"I feel ugly," Goldy mutters.

"You are ugly," Vex replies, deadpan.

Tessa snorts.

Temporary solution engaged.

Now let's hope peasant fashion saves our lives.

Goldy lets out one last dramatic sigh as we finish cocoon-wrapping her in the equivalent of dungeon rags.

"This is humiliating."

"Good," I mutter. "Means it's working."

She looks like a dusty rock now. A very smug, slightly vibrating rock. But hey—no glow, no shimmer, no neon target painted on Victor's back.

It'll do.

I turn back toward the tunnels. The dark presses in again, thicker now that the fighting's stopped. But we've made our point.

Sort of.

One human escaped. More will probably come.
But now we know why.
And next time, I won't hesitate.

"Let's move," I say.

Everyone falls in.

We disappear into the dark.

And the zone keeps breathing.

End of Chapter 47