The passage was long and sloped downward. Murals lined the walls, one after another, stretching into the darkness.
Kurapika led the way, the soft red glow of his Scarlet Eyes illuminating the paintings.
The first depicted a sea of fire.
Amid the flames stood an enormous figure, half human and half bee. She held her head slightly bowed, her six bee arms hanging at her sides and her transparent wings drooping limply. Countless humans knelt at her feet, each holding up food in both hands as though making an offering.
"Is she accepting offerings?" Gon leaned closer and frowned.
"No," Kurapika said quietly. "Look at her eyes."
Everyone moved closer.
In the mural, there was no cruelty or arrogance in the half-human, half-bee figure's eyes.
Only sorrow.
"Let's keep going," Kurapika said.
The second mural depicted a peaceful land.
Green fields surrounded neat rows of houses, and people worked the soil. Above them flew the half-human, half-bee figure, followed by countless bees. They gathered nectar and scattered honey over the fields. The crops grew exceptionally lush, and the people smiled.
"She's helping the humans," Leib said softly. "Nourishing the land with honey."
The third depicted war.
Human invaders in armor charged into the land with swords and torches. They burned, killed, and plundered, trying to seize the honey and hives. Fields went up in flames, houses were torn down, and people fled in every direction.
The fourth depicted a battle.
The half-human, half-bee figure stood before the invaders, her six bee arms lashing out as stingers rained down. Invaders fell in droves, but more kept coming. Torches burned her wings, swords cut her arms, and golden blood spilled across the ground.
The fifth depicted a slumber.
The half-human, half-bee figure stood in the deepest part of a hive, surrounded by