The Promised Land

Normally, the rotted-out log would not have been able to hold even one faction of the Fairies who called the area home. Until now, no one had noticed it since it had rested at the very top of the hill. But after the ground stopped moving and everyone still able to walk had gathered, all three factions fit inside the log, sheltering from the rain, with enough room to cluster in private—some watching the others, and some glaring, especially the Wingless Folk.

Outside the log, the mounts for the Snake Riders and the Spiderlings were separated on either side, to ensure their weren’t fights or accidental envenomation. Most of the mounts survived, even if their riders did not, but in the case of the Spiderlings, whole nests of eggs were wiped out, some exceedingly rare breeds that would be impossible to get again.

The smallest faction was the Wingless Folk, who were huddled near the driest part of the log. Their normally neat and pristine clothing was spattered with mud, dirt, and even smears of blood in some cases. Some worked furiously to scrub their hands and faces clean, trying to keep their usual calm composure. They whispered amongst themselves, the few Council members gathered together, trying to look like they knew what to do, but when it came to chaos and disorder after a natural disaster, they were at a loss at what to do next, and did not want their few people left to know this. They also kept shooting dirty looks whenever the sounds of laughter and shouts would come from the entrance of the log.

The Snake Riders were not the biggest surviving faction, but there were more than the Wingless. They were caught off guard by the landslide but had managed to act quickly, though they also suffered losses. Three clutches of eggs were lost, along with a few of the breeding snakes they had, so now they had more people than mounts, and it looked like they weren’t going to get more soon. Their Chief had been killed, buried somewhere on the hill, after saving some of the younger Riders. His son, Harlen, was quick to take control and try to keep his people calm while trying to figure out what to do next. In the meantime, he was trading jokes and laughing with the others, if only to stop himself from breaking down for a little bit longer.

Near the back of the log, in the dark corners, were the Spiderlings. They had the least amount of losses, having sensed the disturbance through webs and tunnels, and had been almost clear of the worst part of the slide when it hit. They lost the eggs, being too sensitive to move, but most of their mounts were saved. Now, their Queen, Missulena, sat in silent contemplation as she thought of what to do next. She looked around the log, noting the separation of the other factions, and counted them from her seat as her people talked quietly amongst themselves, sometimes looking up to the Queen, seeing if her mood changed. Their conversations were more private, and caused the most looks, as they spoke in soft clicks, trills, and chirps of their native language. The Spiderlings were the most private and isolated of the factions, mostly from how the others viewed spiders with more disgust than fear like the Snake Riders.

Finally, Missulena stood up, and it spoke of her presence that even the Wingless and the Riders looked towards her. Even with her deep red hair darkened by the rain and her red, black, and blue battle dress that was covered in mud and bits of grass, she was such a striking figure that the Council of the Wingless even paid her heed. When she spoke, her voice was quiet and steady.

“Let us start with a moment of silence for those we have lost to this great tragedy. Regardless of our differences, I for one, would never wish this pain on another.” She said, and bowed her head, the other Spiderlings following her lead. The Riders also bowed their heads, some placing their hats over their hearts, and even the Wingless paid their respects. After the moment had passed, Missulena looked up.

“I request a meeting with the Council of the Wingless and the Chief of the Snake Riders. I believe we must discuss what to do next.” She said, starting to move to the side.

“And why should we discuss our future moves with you? I think we should work on our own kind, like we have always done.” A thin Council member spoke up, looking down his nose at the Queen and Harlen as he had moved over to join Missulena. Missulena, for her part, did not even blink.

“Because while you are trying to cling to whatever version of normal you had before this, I have been counting, adding, and subtracting, and based on the answers I have gotten, none of our factions will survive long. We will be lucky if we last two generations past this date if that. And the losses of our mounts have crippled our economy and means of trade.” She said bluntly. The Council member pursed his lips but stayed silent. After a tense moment, the rest of the Council moved to join Harlen and Missulena. They gathered in an area far from the others, so they could speak in private. Harlen tried not think about how he was the youngest among them.

“Now, I ain’t one to question royalty, but are you sure you got your numbers right?” Harlen asked, crossing his arms, but keeping his tone respectful. Missulena nodded.

“I did, and while I didn’t account sickness or another disaster, we will not last long. This area has already wiped away any evidence that we lived here, and in time, we will be gone and this land will have no memory of us.” She said. Harlen looked down, his lips pressed into a thin line as he tried to wrap his mind around the notion that they would be gone in a relatively short time. He was born and raised on this land, as was his father and his father before him.

“So, what do you suggest? Cross breeding?” Another Council member said, his voice dripping with disdain at the very idea of breeding outside the Wingless faction. Missulena leveled a look at him.

“Not yet, but the idea is not outside the realm of possibility. The first move is to find a new home, one that will support all three of our factions. Once we establish a place to live, we can discuss the idea of making three factions into one.” She said. A few Wingless Council members scoffed at the idea, others shake their heads, while Harlen coughed a bit. He had only been Chief for a handful of hours, and already he was supposed to find a new home not just for his people, but two other groups as well, and solve the problem of low population. He personally didn’t have a problem with the Spiderlings, they were a little standoffish and frankly, the eyes creeped him out, but they were alright in the long run. He also thought the Wingless were cutting off their own noses to spite their faces, since they had the lowest numbers of the three factions.

“Do you have an idea of where we can go? Or are we to just start walking and pray the birds don’t finish us off?” One of the Council members asked. This made Missulena pause. That was a good question: where would they go? It would be too dangerous to just up and move everyone without a clear plan in place. To her surprise, it was Harlen that spoke up.

“My daddy used to tell me stories that his daddy told him, and so on, about a great land, almost like it was built for the Folk, and is just waiting for us to find it. He would tell me it had something for everyone, and that those that called it home would never want for another place again.” He said. Missulena looked at him not with annoyance, but with interest.

“Did he ever say where it was or how to get there?” She asked. The thin Council member scoffed.

“Are you seriously going to listen to some country bumpkin tale?” He asked but shrank into himself when Harlen locked eyes with him, the reptile coming out in his hazel eyes.

“This ‘bumpkin tale’ has been passed down since before you were born, which is a mighty long time by the looks of ya.” Harlen said. He turned back to Missulena.

“My daddy always said you had to start when the sun was born and follow its steps until you get there.” He said. Missulena nodded.

“So, head west. My people have also heard tales of a land of promise for our kind, though only our kind. They also said it was in the west.” She said. A younger-looking Council member spoke up.

“Our records have said there is a land of plenty in the west. Many have tried to find it, but only rumors and a few writings have made it back to us.” She said.

“It seems our factions have one thing in common already: a promise land to the west.” Missulena said.

“Are we to move everyone on a rumor? What if on the way there, we run across something worse than this?” the second Council member asked, gesturing around the log.

“No, we send an expedition. Two members from each faction to scout ahead and hopefully come back with a safe path. If they find it, they can send one each back to get us, and the others will keep the land ready.” Missulena said. Harlen nodded, liking the idea of getting to represent the finding a land he had always heard about.

“I’ll go talk to my folk. I reckon they’ll jump at a chance to get out of here and do something useful.” He said, before going back to talk to the Riders. He stepped up on a little rock to put himself above everyone.

“Alright, listen up! We are going to be working with the Spiderlings and the Wingless to find a new home for everyone. I need two for this special mission we got planned.” He said. Near the back, a hand went up.

“Where we going to go?” The voice asked.

“I pretty sure y’all have heard of the Promise Land? Well, we are going to try and find it.” Harlen said. Another hand went up, this one closer to Harlen, and when Harlen saw who it was, he smiled a bit and nodded for him to speak.

“Yeah, how are we supposed to find the Promise Land if we don’t even know what it look like?” Wyatt Rattleback asked. Harlen didn’t even look at him.

“Need one more volunteer.” He said. Wyatt swore up a storm as the others laughed at him. Harlen looked and saw his next brave soul.

“Silas, you look like you having no fun here. You need some fresh air, you're going with him.” Harlen said. Silas sighed through his nose and closed his eyes.

“Really?” was all he said. Wyatt had a loud opinion about his travel companion.

“Now hold up! You gonna send a cannibal with me?” He asked.

“Just because Kingsnakes eat other snakes doesn’t mean Silas is a cannibal.” Harlen said with exasperation. Silas leaned around to look at Wyatt.

“Though you do look mighty tasty.” He said, giving a small smirk. Wyatt took a few steps away.

“That ain’t funny, that’s just wrong right there.” He said over the jeers and laughter from the others.

Over by the Spiderling group, Missulena looked over her own people. After explaining the mission, she also asked for volunteers. Unlike the Riders, one Spiderling was more than ready to go on the expedition. A young Spiderling with bright red hair in spikes and eyes that were almost as big as his mount’s, was bouncing up and down, though he was hard to miss with all his bright colors.

“Oh! Oh! Pick me! I’ll go! I’m ready! I wanna go!” He said, waving his hand all around. Missulena didn’t even look his way.

“Do I have any other volunteers?” Most of the Spiderlings raised their hands.

“To go with Jax?” She said, and all the hands went down. Jax looked around, hand still up.

“Kinda hurts my feelings, guys.” He said. Missulena looked around as one of her black widow guards leaned over to her.

“Ma’am, might I suggest a tarantula? They will need plenty of supplies.” He said. Missulena shook her head.

“No. Tarantulas are too big; they would go too slowly. But you are right, send a pack spider.” She looked around.

“Brindle, you shall accompany Jax.” She said. Brindle looked up from her spot on the wall and then over to Jax, who was beaming at her with both thumbs up. She sighed through her nose and closed her eyes.

“Really?” She asked. Wyatt had heard the exchange and pointed.

“Hey Silas! Found your twin sister. Explains a lot if you ask me.” He said. Silas looked and had to admit; the female Spiderling did look a lot like him. They both had the same dark hair but short, but Silas had less curl in his, and Brindle had a fuller face than he did. But both had the same tired look of now having to deal with two very active travel partners.

The Wingless did not ask for volunteers, as they already knew who they would send. Master Orris Thistleviein was not a member of the Council, but he was a well-respected member of the Wingless community. He had served his faction as healer since he was a young man, and was a great help tending to the injured with the other healers.

“Master Orris, we feel you are one of the best representatives of Wingless culture outside of the Council. This expedition needs a healer, and a member of the Wingless culture to claim part of the new land in our name before the talk of intermingling our factions.” The thin council member said, shuddering a bit at the very thought of their faction joining with the other two, as he looked over at Wyatt and Jax, both who were trying to see who could maintain a handstand the longest.

“I accept this honor with dignity and pride. I promise I will represent Wingless in every way that matters.” Orris said, bowing a little, the chain of his spectacles swinging a little at the motion.

“While being the healer and prime example of our way of life, we have another matter for you to take upon yourself. Your partner will be Nella Quill.” Orris raised an eyebrow at the name.

“The map makers apprentice? Isn’t she a bit… young for this? Perhaps the map maker himself?” He asked. One of the other Council members cleared his throat.

“While we feel you are a prime example of what it means to be Wingless, Nella is the opposite. She is always asking questions, upsetting things with her curiosity and endless chatter. So, we see this expedition as a way to get her out of our hair while we focus on rebuilding. If something should happen during the quest…” The Council member gave Orris a meaningful look. Orris looked over to the young Wingless girl in question. She was sitting on a pebble, writing something in a journal. She had lighter hair than most, despite the dirt, and bright curious eyes that was always looking around. They were right, she was far too inquisitive and talkative for a Wingless her age. The map maker said she showed promise in marking landmarks and making maps, and she was very eager to please, but she needed to learn how to focus more instead of her attention switching from one thing to another like a squirrel with shiny things. To the order loving Wingless, she was seen as more than an annoyance, she was a thorn in their sides.

Orris gave a single nod. He knew what was being asked of him, and that it was up to him how to go about it.

“A lot can happen, I agree. I will do my best, but I will be limited with the supplies I have.” He said. The Council members nodded. Orris turned around and raised his voice.

“Miss Quill, if you would come over here, please.” He said. Nella looked up and scurried over, eyes wide and hopeful.

“There is to be an expedition to find a new home and talk of our three factions combining to one once we find this new place. I have been selected to be the healer, and after much discussion, you have been selected as the map maker. It will be your job to map the best course, and mark down our trek.” Orris said. Nella had to stop jumping up and down in excitement, knowing she would be admonished for her happy outburst, and this was a serious matter, so she wanted to show she could be serious. But it was the chance to travel and see more of the world outside the hill. She schooled her expression and bowed deeply.

“Thank you, Master Orris. I promise I will handle this responsibility with the pride and humility as befitting a Wingless.” She said. Orris nodded.

“We trust you will, Mistress Quill. You were just who we had in mind when we were thinking of who to send.” The thin Council member said, smiling a little. Nella nodded.

“Thank you. I promise, I will make you all proud.” She said. The Council members all nodded and smiled.

“I am sure you will. Now, pack what things you have, and we will go through the remains of our town for more supplies. Meet the group at the entrance in five ticks.” Oriss said, opening his watch and tapping it. Nella nodded again and hurried off. Orris looked at the others.

“We wish you both luck, Master Oriss.” They said, and he walked off at a more sedated pace to collect his satchel.

***

“We will stop by my place on our way out of here, it is still mostly intact. Gotta pick up the cooking supplies if we are gonna be well fed on this trip. I can fix a beetle leg so good, melts in your mouth.” Wyatt said as he and Jax were waiting by the entrance, Brindle was bringing her spider around to the front to load up what supplies they currently have, and Silas was going to bring both their snakes. Jax rubbed his stomach, making a sound of appreciation.

“Can’t wait. And we got Brindle and her wolf spider, both are great hunters.” Jax said, bouncing lightly on the balls of his feet. Wyatt’s smile faded a bit at the mention of the type of spider Brindle had.

“Wolf spider? Aren’t those the ones with the big eyes?” He asked. Jax nodded.

“Yeah. I wanted to get a tarantula to come with us, always wanted to ride one of those.” Jax said, not noticing the nervous look on Wyatt’s face.

“But like I said, they are good hunters, and decent pack spiders.” He said. Wyatt was about to ask another question, when he heard footsteps behind him, and turned, only to give a short squeal of fright as Brindle came forwards, a large grey and brown wolf spider behind her, already with a few packs on its back. The large eyes were staring at Wyatt, a little concerned over the loud noises he was making.

“Something wrong?” Brindle asked dryly, pretending she didn’t know why Wyatt was going out of his way to not stare at the spider. He was taking deep breaths, telling himself to calm down.

“I’m fine! Just fine! I will have to get used to the eyes, is all.” He said, forcing himself to look at the spider.

“You think those are bad, just wait.” Jax said, turning, putting his thumb and finger in his mouth, and blowing a sharp whistle. Wyatt looked and gave another yelp of fright as a spider jumped over to them. It was just as brightly colored as Jax was, and like Jax said, the eyes were bigger than the wolf spiders. Jax knelt down, scratching the jumping spider on its bushy head, right above its eyes.

“This is Button. You can pet him if you want.” Jax said. Wyatt declined, trying to reclaim what dignity he had lost after meeting both spiders. Silas was coming up, a red, black, and yellow kingsnake slithering behind him, already saddled. Silas was now dressed in his cloak to match his snake, but the red bands were touching yellow, instead of red touching the black like his snake.

“Judging the sounds Wyatt has been making, he has met the spider mounts.” He said. Wyatt used the excuse to look over his own snake as it came up behind Silas to get away from the spiders.

“Luna is a gentle spider. Wolf spiders carry their young on their backs, so she can handle our supplies. Like you, we plan on salvaging what we can from our home.” Brindle said. Jax went over to see Wyatt’s mount. It was a large snake with bold diamond markings down its back, ending in a black tail that was segmented at the tip. Wyatt was scratching the snake under its chin, talking to it. He smiled as Jax was a little nervous, slowly coming closer.

“Don’t worry, he don’t bite unless he really wants to. This is Judgement. Eastern diamondback.. Also known as the best snake ever.” Wyatt said. Judgment gave a brief shake of his tail as if to confirm what Wyatt said. He lowered his head to Jax, and nudged him with his snout, making the Spiderling stumble backwards, but he laughed and patted the snake. While Jax was making friends, Brindle came to study Silas’ snake as he checked the saddle and secured his few bags. She looked at the stripe design on the snake and his cloak.

“Did your snake shed the skin to make your cloak?” She asked. Silas shook his head.

“No. This is Mercy, and she is a kingsnake. They are non-venomous, but their coloring mimics the deadly coral snake, to ward off enemies. I got this cloak from the skin of an actual coral snake, to let others know I am someone to watch out for.” He said. Brindle patted Mercy on her side and looked out of the corner of her eye at Silas.

“And are you? Someone to look out for?” Silas gave her a wry smile.

“It is the image I want to project. Most Snake Riders are a rowdy bunch, as you can tell.” Silas gestured behind Brindle, who looked and sighed. Wyatt was showing Jax Judgement’s fangs, letting the Spiderling stick his head in the mouth of the snake.

“I tend to like the quiet. So, I took inspiration from my mount, and made a reputation as standoffish, cold, and possibly a cannibal.” Silas said, giving one final tug on the harness.

“I can understand that, maybe not the cannibal part. I also tend to keep to myself, though that isn’t so different than most Spiderlings.” She said. Silas looked as Jax gave a command for Button to shake his hand with a leg, and offering Wyatt to shake his leg, which Wyatt was not wanting anything to do with.

“I take it Jax is the exception.” Silas said. Brindle just nodded.

At about that time, Orris came to join them. Wyatt noticed him first and gave a snort of laughter.

“Look who we got here, I’m guessing you are the medic of this group.” He said. Orris gave a sniff, lifting his chin in the air to look down his nose at Wyatt.

“I am Master Orris Thistlevein, and you will give me the respect my position and reputation deserve.” Orris said. Wyatt held up his hands and took an exaggerated step back.

“Oh, don’t you worry, Master Thistlevein, my momma always taught me to respect my elders.” He said. He then noticed Nella coming up behind Orris, a pack on her shoulders. He quickly stepped to the side of Orris and stepped right up to Nella.

“Well, hello. My momma also taught to always be kind to a lady.” He said, offering his hand. Nella couldn’t help but giggle a bit, and took the offered hand, which Wyatt took and kissed her knuckles.

“Names Wyatt.” He said, not ready to let go of her hand just yet. Nella felt her face heat up a bit at the cheeks.

“I’m Nella.” She said, and the smile Wyatt gave her made her face heat up even more.

“Now that is the prettiest name I ever heard.” He said. He would’ve said more, but was pushed to the side by Jax, who stuck out his hand for Nella to shake. Wyatt noticed he had smoothed his hair down in an attempt to make it neater.

“Hi there, I’m Jax. You ever ride a spider before?” He asked. Nella shook her head with a small smile.

“Well, if you ever want to learn, I am a great teacher, and Button is a great starter spider.” He said. Wyatt scoffed.

“Snakes are easier to learn to ride than spiders. You don’t want to learn to ride a spider.” He said. Brindle and Silas were watching from a few feet away.

“Great, those two will be tripping over their tongues the whole trip.” Brindle said, watching Wyatt and Jax shove each other when Nella had her back to them.

“Yeah, but at least they will be out of our hair. And more in the hair of Master Orris.” Silas said, grabbing Mercy’s reins and leading her to the others. Nella saw them coming and gasped in awe, walking over to get a closer look at Mercy, who lowered her head to Nella could pet it.

“She is beautiful.” Nella said, petting the scales of the kingsnake. Silas nodded in acknowledgement, and shot a brief look to Wyatt, who frowned.

“I’d be careful, Miss Nella. Them snakes eat other snakes, who knows what else they eat.” Wyatt said. Nella laughed again as Mercy butted her head into Nella’s chest, until Orris cleared his throat.

“Miss Quill, may I remine you that you are here to act as cartographer for this expedition, and a member of the Wingless Faction. I expect you to act accordingly.” He said, causing Nella to step back a bit, tucking a bit of hair behind her ear.

“Sorry, Master Orris, but I can’t help but be a little excited about all this.” She said. Orris raised an eyebrow.

“Excited?” He asked. Wyatt and Jax were now watching the exchange. Nella nodded, standing a little taller.

“Yes, we get to go out into the world, find a new home for all of us. I am meeting new people and who knows what else we will find out there, and who else we will meet.” She said, smiling a little more now. Orris nodded.

“Yes, and I wonder how excited the people who we lost are? They are the reason we are even doing this, so while you play around with Riders and Spiderlings, do try to remember the whole reason we need to do this in the first place.” He said. Nella’s ears visibly drooped as her smile fell. Wyatt stepped up, his own smile gone.

“Now look here, Master Thistlevein, she can be excited about this whole thing if she wants to. I reckon she ain’t never left her village, and now she gets to travel and find us a new home and map the whole thing. She can be respectful and still be excited about this whole thing. Truth is, I’m also excited about it, don’t make me a bad person.” He said. Orris gave another sniff and turned away from them. Nella looked up at Wyatt.

“I do miss the ones that we lost.” She said. Wyatt put a hand on Nella’s shoulder.

“Don’t you worry. When we go through your home, we can say a few words and leave a special mark for those folk that fell.” He said. Nella’s smile came back a little.

Brindle shook her head and stepped up, Luna just behind her. She walked past Wyatt trying to tell Nella about the wonders of an Eastern Diamondback and approached Orris. She bowed a little.

“Master Thistlevein, I am Brindle, I guess you can call me the quartermaster of this expedition.” She said. Orris gave her the briefest nod of his head but didn’t say anything more, so Brindle continued.

“Luna will be carrying most of the supplies, if you have anything to store, you can.” She said, gesturing to Luna. Orris patted the satchel on his side.

“Thank you, but I intend to carry my supplies at all times.” He said. Brindle nodded, turning to mount her spider.

“I intend to stop at the remains of our village to pick up what we can salvage.” She said as she settled herself on the saddle. Silas followed suit onto Mercy.

“I want to do the same with our village.” He said. Jax hopped onto Button, who was moving around, clearly ready to go. He smiled at Nella.

“If you get tired, you can ride with me on Button. He won’t jump too much when you are on with me.” He said. Wyatt steered Judgment between them.

“Snake is a lot smoother ride. You just tell me if your feet hurt or something, and you can ride with me.” He said, flashing her a grin. Brindle reached down and touched Nella’s shoulder.

“If these two start to get on your nerves, just let me know, and I will deal with Jax while Silas deals with Wyatt.” She said, and Silas nods his head.

“Thank you, but I’ll be fine.” Nella said, adjusting her pack and taking her spot by Orris.

“The Rider village is to the east, we go there first, then start working out way to the west.” Silas said, steering Mercy around.

Harlen and Missulena stopped them before they could set out fully.

“Good luck out there. Hope y’all send work back soon. We will work on moving everybody to a safer spot to wait.” Harlen said. Wyatt and Silas shook his hand, Orris gave him a brief nod, and Nella a fuller one. Missulena gave a few clicks and trills, which Jax and Brindle returned in kind. Nella looked at Jax.

“Spiderling blessing. While we are traveling, I can teach you a few phrases, some you can say in front of Master Orris and he won’t understand you.” He said, winking at her. Nella giggled again, looking down shyly. If Orris heard them, he chose to ignore them. Nella turned to wave at the others, some of whom waved back. She looked until they disappeared over the ridge and couldn’t help the feeling in her chest. That nothing was ever going to be the same again