A Distant Glow

Beginning

 Long ago before the Infection, before Hollownest was formed, before the Pale King even emerged, there was a Grand Kingdom of Centipedes. The Kingdom was docile, barely ever coming into contact with any others outside of their own. They lived in small tunnels and kept to themselves peacefully. But that was before the Pale King arrived. The centipedes didn't think highly of him, but as long as he didn't bother them they didn't mind the extra company. As the Pale King's kingdom grew larger and larger the Centipede Kingdom was pushed further and further down and eventually most decided to leave. Little by little the centipedes left to find new territory. Only a few stayed and even then they tried to stay elusive. Most tried anyways. There was one centipede that was fascinated by the world above. He liked to watch the city folk go about their day from the waters, and found their lust for power and geo interesting. No one like him ever found value in such things. But, the young centipede was most fascinated by their King. A bright, Pale being said to have been reborn from a mighty Wyrm. The centipede longed to see the King; to examine and watch him. To learn of his routine and inner workings like he had so many others. However the other centipedes didn't find the King so grand, even his best friend said it would be better for them to stay away. Even though he heard their warnings, he didn't listen and crawled his way up to the surface.

He adorned a broken mask with a hole in the center, perfect for his central eye, and a pink raggedy cloak that barely covered past his waist.

"I cannot accompany you if you do this, you know."

"Yes, yes, I know. And you don't have to. This is for me, my own experiences."

"Are you sure this... disguise will work?"

"Oh please. I'm a spitting image of any other citizen aren't I?" The two centipedes stared at one another, one obviously bored of the other's snide remarks. He wished his friend well, then disappeared back into the waterways, leaving the other in the entrance. The young centipede crawled his way up, standing tall over the fragmented road. Strangely the roads weren't as crowded as they normally were, usually the public swarmed the pathways. The young centipede wandered the streets admiring buildings that touched the roof above. He admired the colors of the city, the inner walkway which he hadn't been able to reach, now open for him to inspect.

The city was seemingly quiet, almost as if an early night came down upon them. The open air was cold, unlike that of the closed off waterways down below. Small noises of inner city work created static noise to drown out the silence. The young centipede continued his exploration, his antenna twitching at every new thing he saw. Then he saw a flash. Something running, a person? Yes, a person! The young centipede filled them, there's bound to be more right? He could examine them up close, in person. The stranger yelped when he noticed the strange elongated creature still following close behind. He called for help, then others yelled and screamed at him. What was going on? Mother hid away their children, citizens closed their shutters and locked their doors. What was happening? Guards swooped in from the tops of buildings, running in from behind corners. The centipede knew of a few hiding spaces where he could escape, the only problem was how to get to them?

Large guards adorned in red grabbed his limbs, pinning him down to the floor. What to do, what to do? There was nothing he could do. The centipede stopped squirming in their grasp, but his head never stopped reeling from what was happening. The city was never this harsh was it? Was it always filled with this many shadows and stains of regret?

"What should we do with it?" one of the guards prodded him with a spear, lifting his head slightly with the pointed end.

"I'm not sure. It looks like some sort of garpede. A spy from that spider's den maybe?" One of the larger guards replied. He picked the centipede up, hoisting him over his shoulders.

"No, no garpedes aren't this small. Besides, look at it, it's some sort of hybrid."

"We'll take it to the Pale King. Perhaps he'll know what to do with it."

"The Pale King?" the centipede squeaked. His face lit up as the others drained.

"It speaks!" one of the guards sputtered. Now they all decided it was for the King to decide what to do with the centipede.