Mato sits just out of reach of the rain and begins meditating. "Go look around Marx's study for anything useful, kid."
"Sure, why not." Hat Kid goes to the study entrance and opens the door.
She jerks her body; startlingly Snappy. "T-timepiece, there's a timepiece nearby, I sense it. She starts opening drawers and tossing furniture around frantically looking for the timepiece. She tires out and falls to the floor. "Uhg, I've searched the whole room and nothing."
She pounds the floor with her fist. The sound echoes below her. "Hm? I think it's hollow under here. But how do we get under there, it's concrete. There must be another way down there."
She picks up a book she threw in her frenzy. "Let's see what there is to see."
She begins reading. "I have acquired a very intriguing artifact on my patrol of this city of tears. An hourglass by the looks of it, I sense the sands inside hold great power, nothing like soul, infection, or even the newly discovered essence of void. After about a month of studying it I have no conclusion on how to use it. So I have decided to keep it safe in the pit of mistakes; below where I meditate."
Hat Kid closes the book and puts it in her hat. "So it appears Marx had a timepiece, bless the universe for him not figuring out how it works."
She goes back outside to the battlefield. Mato looks over at her. "Wait there, kid."
"What? In the rain?"
"Bama."
Hat Kid sighs, "Fine, the dampness of my clothes is insignificant to me."
"I know not what magic you possess but I fear it now that I've seen it."
"You have no reason to fear me Mato... unless you become my enemy."
"Look, kid, I've seen what happens to those who are consumed by power beyond their control."
"I'm sure I'll be fine, Mato."
"Well, do you know what you did to Marx?"
"No."
"Hm... do you want to know?"
"Very much, so I can hopefully get rid of it."
"Very well, there is a historian somewhere in this massive building, perhaps he can explain what happened to you. Anyway, I best be going back home, see ya round, kid." He starts going back the way they came while Hat Kid stands in the rain.
"Mato wait!" She cries out.
"Hm." He turns around and Hat Kid tackles him with a hug.
His body stays in place. "Ah, kid, you're all wet!" She doesn't say anything and just keeps hugging. Mato hugs her back for a few seconds.
They let go and Hat Kid wipes her eyes. "Wiping the rain out of your face, kid?"
"Y-yeah."
"Goodbye... Hat Kid." Mato leaves her... just like everyone else has.
"Everyone has their own lives to live and that's that." Hat Kid goes back in the rain and sees the soul master's spirit above his body. "Every time I absorb this kind of stuff I feel like I'm melting... but it definitely makes me feel stronger."
"Scyaaaa..."
"Let's break this glass roof and get where the timepiece is." She hits the glass with her mantis claws. "Nothing, it's too strong." She looks to the upper building walls and scales up the building with the mantis claws. Once she's to a moderate height, she prepares to jump with all her weight.
"It isn't that high, I can do this." She jumps off and guards her face with her arms, smacking into the glass with a crack... her body, not the floor. "Peck... that hurt on so many levels."
She lies there in the rain while Snappy stays dry in her hat. "I think I broke my everything." She says in sadness on the floor.
Once her body recovers enough, she goes to try again. "I think my body weakened it so another one should do it. This time I'll try dash cloaking before I hit for extra power."
She does the same thing and dash cloaks, turning into a void model again and slamming through the glass; tumbling on the floor. "Not again! Why does that stuff happen?!" She starts to feel like she's going to throw up. "I don't like it. This void stuff makes me feel sick."
"Scyaaaa."
Voices of suffering start to grow around them and mistakes start crawling out of the piles of corpses used for experimenting. Hat Kid and Snappy fend off the ever growing monsters, Hat Kid, kicking them off as they try to climb and swarm her.
She eventually sees IT gleaming on a table below a one way hatch. "You'll come with me." She says kinda creepy as she picks the timepiece up and puts it in her hat. "Though it's not enough to make a difference, it's a start." She opens the hatch and re-enters the Soul Master's study. "Never a dull moment in this kingdom, huh, Snappy?"
"Scyaaaa."
"Let's go see if we can find that historian."
They descend the Soul Sanctum and find a new elevator down. Once they hit the bottom, Hat Kid hears the rustling of stone and metal in a nearby room.
"Apold!" A voice beyond says. They enter to see a short bearded bug picking up some stone tablets.
She sits down in front of the counter with the bug behind it. She rubs her eyes and yawns. "Hey there, I'm Hat Kid, are you the historian I've been told about?"
"Relic seeker, but yes, I know history."
"I have a specific question but first I want to record everything about this kingdom for the time traveler's archive."
"Time traveler? Ha, no such thing."
"Sure, whatever you want to believe."
Hat Kid takes off her timewatch and places it on the counter and sets it to record. "Let's start from scratch, who are you, relic seeker?"
"Uh ok, I'm Lemm the relic seeker and I collect artifacts, I know about some higher beings to... well most of the ancient kingdom."
Lemm tells Hat Kid and the timewatch all about the different areas of the kingdom and how they came to be, within 2 hours. "The memorial outside of this window is something of a mystery to me, the princess of Hallownest probably knows more about it than I."
"Thank you for all this info, Lemm, what do you know about void?"
"Velmiartrid, void... It originates from a place below the ancient basin, the entrance was sealed by the king and the snail shamans used it in some of their crafts but I believe they're all dead now."
Hat Kid turns off the recording and re-equips her timewatch. "Alright, that was very insightful, Lemm, your contributions will be written out and you will be credited by the historians of the TTA, that stands for Time Travelers Association."
"That's not a thing, kid."
"You know a lot, Lemm, but not everything."
With a gentle goodbye, Hat Kid is back outside in the rain with Snappy.
"Let's check out that memorial, Lemm, was talking about." She finds the statue and reads the words inscribed on the stone below the statue. "In the Black Vault far above, through it's sacrifice Hallownest lasts eternal." "Lemm said something about the vault being by Dirtmouth but that's all he knew, we need to find Hornet since she is the princess of Hallownest and might know more."
A long needle emerges from the sky and Hornet comes flying in with grace. "Hey again, kid!"
"Oh, it's you." Hat Kid says very monotone.
"No need to be so enthusiastic, kid."
"I was literally just thinking about how I would find you."
"Must be a twist of fate, like meeting you, kid."
"Normally I'd say fate isn't really real since time can be manipulated but in this kingdom... I suppose it is."
"Glad to hear it, time traveler, why were you looking for me?"
"Well I wanted to ask you about the figure in this statue."
Hornet looks up at the hollow Knight statue. "My sibling... or at least the one my father deemed hollow enough to trap the infection. It was considered a pure vessel, because of that quality, the pure one's life was built to suffer. Most of my siblings are either dead or will be dead by my hands."
"That doesn't sound pleasant at all... um, what do you know about void."
Hornet stops looking at the memorial. "It's what separates my siblings from me, that and my mother. What do you know about it?"
"Nothing, that's why I'm asking. So you say the infection is trapped inside your sibling, the Hollow Knight?"
"Correct, though they are not hollow, which is why the infection is leaking and everyone is being infected. I've killed any of my siblings I've found because the only reason they exist, the only will they possess is to break the seals that keep the Hollow Knight locked up."
"What will happen if the seals break and the Hollow Knight is freed from it's prison."
"I don't know, only vessels, my siblings can enter that place without being drained. I think we've talked enough, and why we did it in the rain is beyond me."
"Dramatic effect?"
"Sure, dramatic effect, I'm off, see you another time, Hat Kid." Hornet throws her nail into the air and is pulled away into the dark sky.
"Right, now that I know pretty much everything about this kingdom, It's time to search the ideal places that might have timepieces, starting with the closest area. Mantis Village in the fungal wastes."
They take the bridge back to the fungal wastes and descend to find the Mantis Village. "Lemm said these mantis are proud warriors so hopefully we can reason with them."
They come to a checkpoint which marks the entrance to Mantis Village. Two mantis come out and surround Hat Kid. They say nothing. Snappy pokes his head out of Hat Kid's hat and the 2 mantis notice him.
Hat Kid speaks to the Mantis in a friendly tone. "Ah, hello friends, I am Hat Kid and I-" Before she can finish, one mantis yanks Snappy out of her hat and takes off with him. "Hey!" Hat Kid jabs at the other mantis who pulls it out of the way with one claw and slashes Hat Kid's scar with the other. Hat Kid falls to the floor clenching her fingers in pain. "AHH! Why on the healing wound!?" The mantis wraps a web around Snappy and his mouth, rendering him helpless. They take off while Hat Kid recovers from the pain. She looks up after being able to collect her thoughts, but it's too late, the mantis are gone.
"Where did they even get the webs?" She whips the drizzling blue blood below her eye, smearing it on her cheek. "Blood!? Oh wait, nothing new." She starts heading down the crossroads in hopes of finding the mantis.
"Should I go get Grimm? Or will he be angry that I let his child get kidnapped... time is hollow, Snappy could be in imminent danger, I'm comin for ya, Snappy, I can't go back to talking to the voices in my head... I'm doing that aren't I?"
Hat Kid finds herself in the heart of the village with many ah mantis watching her. "Any of you honorable mantis care to challenge me? 2 of you ran away earlier like cowards."
A single mantis comes down and ready's it's claws for a fight. "You will find swift death upon my claws' outsider."
"Pfft, try it peck neck!" She says with smugness and rage. The mantis lunges at Hat Kid, she dash cloaks', sliding under and tripping the mantis off balance. Hat Kid pulls the mantis to its feet and holds her nail to its neck. "Alright! Listen up! 2 mantis from your tribe took my companion and I want him back, so take me to whoever is in charge of you, folk!" The mantis take her down deeper below as she keeps her hostage.
They arrive at the bottom where 3 tall mantis sit in thrones.
"Are you the bugs in charge here?" Hat Kid asks.
"We are, before we continue; we would like to ask you to release our tribe mate."
Hat Kid releases and pushes the mantis away, letting it go back to the upper village. "I'm here for my companion, Snappy. 2 of your mantis kidnapped him and wrapped him in a web, he's kinda small, black and red."
"Teaca!" The mantis shouts, summoning a mantis to come with Snappy wrapped up. "We actually... well I wouldn't call our action a rescue. Your friend was taken by 2 mantis from the traitorous tribe who reside in the queen's garden."
"Oh, well thank you very much for being kind bugs."
"You know, strange one, if you wanted to speak with us; all you had to do was ask, we are very honorable... unlike your display of taking a hostage, though it was rather impressive you were willing to have an honorable fight with her."
"Yeah, guess I did lose my cool there... sorry. But I'm glad you're giving Snappy back."
"No, kid, I'm sorry, this nightmare child cannot be allowed to fulfill its role."
"Then I have no choice but to kill you for him."
"Kill?! Well I'll be, you dare to challenge us, child, the Mantis Lords?"
A fellow mantis lord speaks, "You got this by yourself sis."
The middle Mantis Lord stands up tall. "You are absolutely right, sister, she is but a child, no match for me." She signals the mantis with Snappy to hit a lever which lowers a cage, locking them outside of Hat Kid and the Mantis Lords.
Hat Kid starts to look worried. The Mantis Lord starts dashing around the cage at blinding speed. The Mantis Lord lunges at Hat Kid with her lance and Hat Kid keeps dodging looking for an opening to the quick foe.
Hornet flies in with her needle and clings to the outside of the cage. "Hey! Hat Kid!"
"Busy at the moment, Hornet!"
"Yeah I can see that."
Hat Kid unequips and connects her nail to her back and the Mantis Lord stops in front of her.
"There's no surrendering, child, you will die trying or not at all."
"I never said I was surrendering, mY lOrD." She gives the mantis her smug smile.
"Perhaps I won't make your death a swift one, child."
Hat Kid keeps dodging, analyzing her attack patterns. As The Mantis Lord dashes at her, Hat Kid jumps on the lance and lunges at her face, grabbing her helmet and pulling her into the ground with both of them tumbling.
The Mantis Lord gasps, "You cracked my helmet!" She smacks Hat Kid off her and jumps back to her throne seat. Her 2 sisters get up and all 3 hold their wrists.
"Whaat, was I too much for you?" Hat Kid mocks.
The 3 Mantis Lords crack their wrists simultaneously. "DROSA!" They shout, proceeding to scatter around the cage.
"Three! A little help, Hornet!"
"Couldn't if I wanted to, you're in a cage remember... actually."
Hat Kid grabs her nail and starts panic blocking. Hat Kid doesn't know who to focus on as one comes charging. Before Hat Kid is stabbed, the mantis is yanked backward and hits the cage. Hornet rips the lance out of the dazed Mantis Lord's hand; rendering her without a weapon. She pulls her needle out of the Mantis Lord's Helmet. "You're welcome, kid."
The Mantis Lord leaps back to their throne seat while the others keep fighting. "Guess that's it for me then."
Hat Kid charges a great slash as another one comes dashing at her. Hat Kid backflips and releases her great slash upside down; slamming the Mantis Lord's Lance out of her hands and out of the cage; almost hitting Hornet. "Hey! Watch it, kid!"
"Sorry, I was aiming for her head."
The mantis lord accepts defeat and goes back to their throne, leaving the main lord left alone. "Wow you're good... but I'm better, kid." The Mantis Lord swings her lance at a distance, creating an air shockwave that spirals at Hat Kid. She jumps up dodging it but in doing so; leaving herself exposed in the air. The Mantis Lord swiftly and precisely impales Hat Kid from the air to the floor though her crest with her lance, causing Hat Kid to scream in pain.
Hat Kid talks breathlessly as her blue blood leaks from her mouth. "S-so this is how I die huh? Heh, I thought it would be by a missed calculated jum-ow!" She cries in pain. The Mantis Lord let's go of her lance and the cage rises.
Hat Kid see's Hornet rush in. "You didn't need to kill her!"
"She cracked my helmet." The Mantis Lord replies.
Hornet flails her arms at her. The Mantis Lord looks very unconcerned. "She's just lucky I subdued her properly."
"Lafenufenido! Subdue!?" Hornet looks over at Hat Kid who is weakly holding her hand out to her. "You impaled her!" Hornet slaps The Mantis Lord and receives a dirty look.
"Oh relax, princess, I know what I was doing."
Hornet rushes over to Hat Kid and holds her hand as she blacks out; bleeding out.