The Indun Empire wasn't a traditional empire in a sense, but a scattered, rudimentary mass that stretched through the entire forest. As Felonious continued to ride the bug, he caught sight of the daily activities that had been happening.
Children laughed and played, leaping from tree branch to tree branch like spider monkeys, using their inhumane agility to their advantage, making play and recreational activity a much more enjoyable experience. Alongside the countless wooden platforms that stretched numerous meters, crops of native vegetables and fruits could be seen and smelt, even from this distance.
At this moment, Felonious paused as an illusory barrier of greenish-blue energy phased into existence, one that expanded for what seemed like miles, coiling around the perimeter of the city. A platform composed of rock and leaves stretched from the ground, and atop it were a group of Vulpur-humans. They all gazed at Felonious with questioning looks.
Their leader, an elderly woman with the same tails and features, stepped forward and arched an eyebrow.
"Felonious? By Mother Nature's spouse, I didn't think you'd return in time for the feast."
"That's ...not what I'm here for," Felonious responded.
"Lower the barrier and let me on my way."
The members standing on the pillar of stone nodded in agreement, and soon after the barrier of illusory energy phased out of existence, and Felonious was allowed to pass.
...
"As you can see, even the smallest of bugs have sentimental value."
Within a large, isolated hut, a Vulpur male knelt in front of a small glass jar containing a multi-colored spider. He looked back at the mass of students looking at the jar, their eyes wide with curiosity. Most of the students were gathered on one end of the classroom, except one of them. They were a human male, possessing curly golden locks, radiant blue eyes, and clad in the traditional school attire—a dark green robe.
Seeing this, the teacher sighed in disappointment, yet he couldn't help but feel a small wave of understanding towards the majority of his class.
"I know Charlie is a ...new addition to our class, but we must teach and show him respect as if he were one of our own."
One of the Vulpur-humans, a girl with straight black hair, rolled her eyes. "He's a human, the same humans that tried to burn our forests to the ground."
"That was a very, very long time ago, Meera. In fact, long before I was even born."
"Still..." Her eyes remained on the human boy, who remained enraptured by the small spider.
"I don't trust him."
After a few seconds of silence, the teacher clasped his 'paws' together and smiled. "Now, how about we voyage south a little and see what other insects we can find. I'm sure Charlie here would love to join us."
"Sorry children, but I'm afraid that'll have to be postponed."
Felonius peeled back the cloth covering used as a door, allowing sunlight to filter in. A few of the students hissed, covering their sensitive eyes. Charlie, on the other hand, remained silent and looked towards Felonious. His expression, previously calm and docile, transformed into a grin as he ran towards the man, leaping into his embrace.
"Papa!"
Felonious returned the embrace, his tail habitually wrapping around the boys back, as if attempting to press the duo together and conjoin them.
"How have your academics been treating you?"
"Great! I learned about massive bugs and cool animals!" Charlie responded, his tone giddy.
Judging by the way the boy still trembled in his grip, he could explode at any moment. The white-haired man sighed as he put his adopted son down, turning to the teacher.
"Mind if we talk outside?"
The teacher reached into his hair, using a snake's exoskeleton to tie it into a neat ponytail, before smiling softly.
"Sure, what is it?"
...
"If you're concerned about your son, I'd say he's doing ...fine." The teacher sighed softly, tucking his hands behind his back as he made his way across the bridge.
"How have the other children been treating him? The least of my concerns are for his studies, that's for his mother to analyze."
Both men chuckled softly as they kept walking. Felonious suddenly recalled Velomeia's expression, how the woman had looked so disappointed in him for choosing not to attend the feast. His ears dropped slightly, and he trembled as he spoke.
"But, I'm afraid I'm not here to discuss Charlie's academic life. I'm not here to discuss the child at all."
As they made their way off the bridge, Felonious's tail tucked in between his legs as he paused, leaning against a tree.
Seeing this, the teacher paused and cocked his head in curiosity. "Is everything all right?"
"I'm fine, Cedar. It's just..."
He trailed off, looking at a group of children playing among the trees. They were playing with sticks, pretending to use them as swords and swinging them about in a mockery of an actual fight. One of the kids let out an audibly fake cry of pain as he was 'impaled' by one of the sticks, falling to the ground in a bout of laughter.
"...I'm looking for people to help me. I need people who want to help others, not just our own species, or even our own island. I know our people are looking to help them, but I also see cowardice among our ranks."
"Elaborate." Cedar crossed his arms, leaning back against the tree beside Felonious.
"I wasn't sent off here because you wanted me to help protect them, but I wanted to do it anyway. I read scrolls and stories about famine and chaos elsewhere, and when I looked among my own people, I noticed none of it."
Felonious's brows twitched as he huffed. "The regular person would be grateful, but I was more sad than anything. While we, and many other species here, laugh and celebrate, others starve and are murdered in cold blood by monsters and other people—people they trusted and relied on."
Hearing this, Ceder gazed at a large portion of the empire among the trees, marveling at the mass of diversity in terms of both Vulpurs and humans. Though, the ratio of Vulpurs to humans was unfathomably large. He'd only seen two humans in the entire empire, one that sat among the ranks of a farmer, and the one that was found and raised by Felonious.
His expression softened as his ears dropped. "We only protect ourselves to ensure we survive, not because we're hiding away. After all, we have a few humans living among our people."
Ceder turned to Felonious. "With your logic, why not bring the entirety of the Katshin Empire to our city, it's massive and can hold everyone."
The white-haired Vulpur scoffed, crossing his arms. "Our food poisons them, the only reason that Charlie can live here is because we used our abilities and cultivation to heal him. We can't heal an entire empire. Even if we did, it would take decades, maybe even a century. Think of how long it took to fully condition Charlie."
"Right..." Ceder recalled the ordeal.
Charlie was kept in an isolated hut with a myriad of colorful plants that kept him stimulated and radiated specific pheromones dedicated to keeping one calm. For the first few weeks, he was in a constant, almost perpetual state of anxiety and overstimulation. He had been given water from the lakes and appendages from dead insects to be kept alive, as the materials within them were enough to keep the boy alive and somewhat well.
Though, they hated doing this. The insects they had used were endangered and on the brink of extinction, so for every meal the boy had, the forest was slowly losing one of its declining species. Gradually, his body adjusted to the ingredients within the bugs, and his body slowly yet surely built an immunity to any sort of danger.
As for the human who had become a farmer, Felonious, and even Ceder, had never met them before, but they knew he was among the empire working on the crops.
Felonious took out the letter given to him by Kael, handing it to the other man. "I was instructed by one of the Emperor's highest ranking subordinates to gather certain individuals, ones that would benefit the other kingdoms."
Ceder unfolded the letter and gazed at the information, his brows furrowing as he read the contents. "W-we ...don't have any of these aside from the agricultural professionals."
As for the positions of government, Ceder was even more taken aback. "Isn't everything decided by our ruler?"
Felonious's brows furrowed in confusion as he took back the paper, re-reading it to ensure he wasn't crazy. The positions Kael was asking for didn't exist in the Indun Empire, as they didn't have any need to. Their ruler was a kind and benevolent woman, another Vulpur female, Queen Calista.
"Then why would he ask this of us?"
"I don't know," Felonious's tail twitched as he rubbed the tufts of fur protruding from his cheeks.
"I told him I didn't know if we had those qualifications. If he really absorbed that statement, why would he have personally commissioned me?"
The rest of the council run by Alexander and Kael was composed of other nobles and ambassadors. Some of the other nobles originated from the Adligon Clans, the Indun Empire and the Katshin Empire. Each of them possessed their own qualifications, and Felonious knew of the empire's political power. So why would he select the Indun Empire—the most mysterious one—personally?
"I think we should bring this matter to our queen, she'd dissect this dilemma and give us feedback."
...
Anyone was allowed to enter the palace. Though, it wasn't really a palace, just a part wooden house belonging to the queen. She believed in humility and prosperity, meaning she'd never have a regal palace built to situate herself instead of something more ordinary—more humble.
Felonious and Ceder knocked on the large wooden doors, and they opened on their own. The inside of the queen's establishment was adorned with colorful flowers and foliage. A stone statue of a plump woman, her hair composed of vines and cradling a fawn in her arms, was situated in the center of the foyer. It was Mother Nature, the religion Queen Calista had imposed upon her people. This would have been a forceful move in most eyes, but the people of the Indun Empire had always been benevolent towards nature.
Queen Calista was wearing an unassuming outfit, a simple small dress and a crown atop her head. A small storm cloud hovered over her palm as she rained down water droplets onto her plants. Her hair was a sleek gray, though she wasn't old. Her eyes were calm and gray as well, giving off a wise aura. She too possessed ears and a tail, though hers were much larger than the others.
Rumor had it she was blessed by Mother Nature herself.
"Your Majasty, we have an issue that we'd like you to investigate."