It is hard to believe that this cross-eyed, hairy man had once been an innocent child strolling alone through these dense woods.
The story of his first sting has become something of Billywig folklore from being told over and over again in our tribe. The only Billywigs to actually witness it are either long dead or in an unstable condition. I believe that Abscondio was the one to return to our tribe and tell this exciting tale. That was a long time ago, for now Abscondio flies in larger and larger circles around our territory buzzing, ‘Happiness…freedom…courage…lost, LOST, LOST!’
Although his brain has been addled, his story lives fresh within all of us;
Effervo, a tribe worker was out gathering clouds to bring back to our tribe. You see, us Billywigs live for one thing. The food and drink that falls from the clouds. Long ago our ancestors waited days for the clouds to drop food for them. Many Billywigs starved when the food was delayed. Weak and starving Billywigs started to acquire wings that they now use to fly up and retrieve cloud food for the tribe.
Effervo was a worker, so it was his job to collect cloud food for our tribe. One day as Effervo started to rise towards the clouds, a human boy spotted him. Humans by nature have always been drawn to us. Whether they are attracted by our appearance or by our enticing powers we will never be sure. As this young boy made a snatch at Effervo, Effervo had only one choice. He had the choice of stinging the boy and protecting us, or being killed by the human touch. Mustering up his courage, he spun his wings together to propel forward at a high speed. He shot forward and sunk his long, light grey stinger into the boy’s upper arm.
Within minutes the boy’s scream of pain had changed into a dazed grin. Effervo barely made it back to his nest before he collapsed and died devoid of his stinger.
Abscondio flew back and told us the story at once. The boy had smashed bush and bramble with no thought for the cuts running across his legs. His eyes had glazed over like a Glumbumble during nesting season. His feet had lifted off the ground, levitating him up a few inches. He had been so thrilled, laughing and running around like a maniac.
It was an exciting story though many Billywigs forgot it within the next couple days. Many weeks later the boy returned. He stamped into our territory, looking for the short happiness and relief he had received.
Billywigs started to whisper about who he was. Abscondio was sure that this was the same boy that had killed Effervo. The wisest of our tribe had an inkling of why he was back but our small tribe had no power to subdue him.
They say that his eyes had streamed with cloud food. His body had slumped over like a hag. He had walked through our territory searching. The tribe had scampered. They hid everywhere they could think of. Their hiding places weren’t good enough. He found an old Billywig sitting inside its nest. This Billywig was so old that his skin sagged and his wings no longer propelled him upwards. With no mercy, the boy lifted the Billywig in his quaking hands. Upon contact with the boy, the old Billywig died. The boy raised its body above his head. A lopsided grin containing no happiness spread over his face. He stabbed a blue trail in his leg with the dead Billywig.
When he left that day he was smiling like a lunatic once again. There are not many Billywigs who will speak willingly of the time that followed this incident. The boy started to come more and more often. Our slowly diminishing tribe had the misfortune of watching this boy develop into a man.
I was born around the same time as when the boy’s face started to develop hair. By that time our population had been diminished by half.
I have never known a happy, functioning tribe. There are empty nests skirting around the edges of our territory. The cobwebs and spiders have gone. Our leaders have thought of leaving our territory but the tribe would not be able to survive a rebuilding. Happiness and excitement have not worked as weapons against the man’s evil and cruelty.
The man that stands before me now is almost unrecognizable. His eyes are almost closed and a sticky white dribble of cloud food is protruding from his mouth. His nose has almost completely deformed and the skin on his face has turned into an unnatural shade of grey. His body now looks like a number of twigs attached to one another. The weight he has lost is tumultuous.
He raises a hand, outstretching his fingers. He is grasping in mid-air, looking for his pleasurable victim of the day. His hand shakes fast and uncontrollably. He has a smile permanently glued on his face. The smile is no longer happy or pleased, it is merely stuck there. It is a learned smile, a smile of desire, a lie.
For the first time, I hear another pair of footsteps entering our territory. Daringly I raise my head to gaze at another man entering our clearing. He speaks to our man in people speech. Although I cannot understand them, I can feel the anger resonating off the new man. His white hair seems to crackle with fire and his loud voice pains my ears.
With a resounding crack the new man raises his hand and hits our man in the face. For the first time in months his feet hit the ground with a crunch. His eyes open fully. His face is not exactly surprised, but it is not thrilled as usual. He follows the new man out of our territory and the tribe as a whole lets out its collected breath.
I follow them outside, showing off my daring nature. I can hear buzzing behind me.
‘Stop her.’
‘Foolish young girl.’
“What is she thinking?’
‘lost, Lost, LOST!’
I follow close behind the humans as they walk to a nearby fire pit. They throw some stuff that looks like doxy eggs into the burning fire. The fire turns into a darker shade of grey and they jump in. I fly in after them. I came this far why turn back now. It is warm, very warm. I am having trouble breathing and I am spinning like a leaf caught in a whirlwind.
As my head starts to reel a horrible thought hits me. I will never again see my nest, never again help out the queen, never again deliver another baby. For you see I am a queen’s helper. To this date I have delivered three babies, two have been killed for the momentary happiness of this man.
As I think sadly about my tribe, my family, I am thrown rudely into a large forest clearing. There are no trees and no dirt. It is like nothing I have ever seen before. I feel very trapped in here. There is wood surrounding me on all sides and there are oddly shaped nests all over the place.
The man stands in an opening of flat wood. I fly behind his shoulder to gaze into the next clearing. There is a human with long dark hair sitting in the clearing by herself. She has dark grey circles under her eyes and she wearily bounces a crying baby on her knee. Her face is sunken and has many deep lines crisscrossing across it.
When she looks into the doorway she takes a deep breath. She seems to be trying to control herself. Her and the man exchange few words. He mumbles in low, confusing human speech and she raises her voice very loudly. She shoves the baby human into his arms.
The woman spots me behind him and her look of dislike and understanding deepens. He turns around and sees me lurking behind him. An evil smile lights up his face. He doesn’t seem to know what to do with the child in his arms. He reaches both hands towards me still grasping the child between them.
The woman swats down his outstretched, quavering arms. Before he can make a step towards me she reaches out her hand. I try to fly away as quickly as I can, but it is no use. Her hand burns against my skin and my vision starts to become foggy. Black shadows enter the outer edges of my vision. The woman hisses something at the man. Her eyes could have started another fire to get me back home.
She raises me up and my whole body starts to shake.
Her hand descends very slowly.
I cannot fight her.
My stinger is pointing straight down…why am I here?
I feel the warm rush of------