Belial of Hallownest: A Hollow Knight Fanfiction

Chapter 5: A Family Reunion

Belial stepped over the corpse of another mantis he had slain, orange infected goo spilling out of its fat carcass. Belial wondered why there were so many infected mantises in The Queens' Garden as from what he learned from Grimm's teachings, the mantis of Hallownest were a proud warrior race that saw the infection as a disgusting and dishonourable way to achieve greater strength. These must be outliers then, Belial thought as the strength offered by the infection would be rather tempting to anyone with a warrior's mindset, given the fact that it can grant an ordinary citizen whom has never seen combat the strength to rip a bug to shreds with their bear hands. Moving past his musings Belial stopped at what appeared to be a grave, covered in beautiful glowing white blooms that he recognized as Delicate Flowers. These blooms, not native to the kingdom have an odd power to them, and as their name suggests, are extremely delicate. One bad hit and the flower is ruined, and stripped of its power and beauty. The stone itself read "Here sleeps the Traitor's child", the words illuminated by the flowers glow. Belial, in respect knelt in front of the grave as the dream spirits filled his head with their knowledge of the child.

"For the crime of loving an outsider, the father murdered the daughter." Belial let a few tears slip as he reminisced on how similar they were. "I too, was condemned by my father for something beyond my control. I am sorry. I will make sure this place is not desecrated by my kin when I leave. You deserve the uninterrupted peace you currently have with your lover in the realm beyond." Belial then stood up after insuring his kin would not approach this location. He then turned, and left the grave, not noticing the spirit of a young mantis girl and a tall, gray moth looking bug bowing in thanks, before departing to be with each other in the other world.

Wiping his tears, Belial continued deeper into The Gardens, slaying the mantis there with an increased zeal after learning of their terrible sins. He eventually stumbled upon a geyser spewing Void. Confused on why the stuff he was birthed from was all the way up here in The Gardens and what was beyond it as it blocked the path, preventing safe access to what was behind it to those without some means to bypass it. Belial decided to simply walk through the geyser, using his innate knowledge on Void manipulation to walk through it instead of being corrupted by it like one without Void in their makeup would be or just bounced back if they did have it. Past the geyser, Belial found a sort of observatory, with multiple corpses strewn across the ground. One of which was a large bug with a cloth bag on their head and a large, heavy looking club, while another was a massive mantis with multiple cut along their body, a crushed head and their arm pierced through the body of the other bug. His sibling must have fought what was most likely The Traitor Lord with this other bug and the two killed each other. Kicking the Traitor Lord's corpse as he walked past, he stumbled upon the ruins of a fierce battle that clearly happened long before the Traitor Lord was killed. Numerous mantis corpses riddled the ground as he approached a large spherical structure with glowing roots emerging from it's walls. Pulling himself away from looking at the roots that seem so familiar to him, Belial looked at one final corpse, but it was not that of a mantis. The corpse belonged to a female knight, with brilliant white armour, bearing a head that looks similar to a tree's twisting branches. Walking past the knight's corpse, Belial found a small entrance to the spherical structure, the feeling that something was calling out to him increasing as he entered the structure. Once inside, Belial started to regret entering. It was dark and claustrophobic, the passageways far narrower than anything he had previously explored in the kingdom. Alas, he had already committed enough to get this far, he might as well see the journey through. Navigating the cramped tunnels, Belial saw more and more glowing roots, eventually culminating in a vertical drop down into a much more open chamber with a single occupant. They were tall and feminine looking, with tight wrappings all around her body. The only part not covered was her head, which glowed with a pale white light. The roots that grew all throughout the structure came from within the bindings, as some peaked out and entered the ground. As Belial entered the room, the being seemingly noticed his presence and opened her eyes, which were a brilliant blue. However, Belial noticed they were also incredibly cloudy and unclear. This being was blind.