Hive Queen

by Sinclair, Grayson

  With that nod, a deal was struck. And one never bargained lightly with the Alice.

  The Alice rose from her throne and stood over Raven. She raised her hands to Raven’s face. Her fingers crawled over Raven’s cheeks and toward her eyes. The Alice rested her thumbs just above Raven’s cheekbones as her fingernails elongated, forming wicked, pale claws. The Alice dipped her fingers into Raven’s sockets ever so slightly, puncturing through the cornea and bringing crimson pain to drip down her face.

  Raven screamed in pain as her body twisted and contorted, bones snapping and shifting under her skin.

  Wings black as sin sprouted from her back as her body stopped convulsing. Raven lay on the floor panting as sweat dripped from every pore. Her fingers wiped the long red streaks from her cheeks, and Raven stood.

  With a smug grin, the Alice left Raven and returned to her throne as darkness once more came for me.

  The last scene started with Raven walking through the forest alone. She was wearing a version of the leather armor she’d worn around me, and she carried no weapons. She stepped through the forest like a ghost as light from ahead of her cast dancing shadows over her face.

  Raven strolled out of the woods and into a campground, a dirt clearing that had over a dozen tents hammered into the ground and fires going. Men and women sat around the largest fire eating and drinking while a massive boar roasted on a spit over the coals. They were too busy enjoying themselves to notice Raven, who’d slunk behind them. She stopped and pursed her lips in what had to have been a whistle, as everyone turned at the sound.

  A large barrel-chested man with brown, unkempt hair and tattoos over his arms rose from the log he was sitting on to walk over to Raven.

  I knew the man.

  Hal had never been the brightest of the bandit kings, but he made up for it in savagery. He didn’t care who he killed as long as he got paid. And he stood over Raven, staring at her like a woman to bed, rather than as the threat she was.

  Raven thrust out her hips, throwing a lazy smile on her face, and as Hal reached a hand to grope her chest, Raven shot out her clawed hand and ripped his throat out.

  Hal tumbled to the ground, his windpipe and bloody spine showing through the torn, ragged flesh as blood gushed over his chest.

  When he hit the ground, the others stared in shock, but none immediately went for their weapons. Not that it would have saved them, regardless.

  Her midnight wings sprouted from her back as she flew into the mass of bodies, her claws raised as she tore into the bandits with gleeful murder in her eyes. Her jagged black talons shredded through the bandits with ease, and even the few who’d managed to bring their weapons to bear against her were no match.

  She flew into the air and peppered them with her razor-sharp flechettes. In minutes, the dozen or more bandits were dead or dying from blood loss.

  Raven took her time, going to each body, and dead or not, she pulled a dagger and thrust it into each bandit, again and again.

  As the last of them died, she dropped to her knees, crying and screaming at the top of her lungs.

  She’d gotten her revenge, but it had cost her everything.

  The scene faded out, and as I returned once more to the darkness, I filled in the rest.

  The Alice wasn’t known for her kindness or mercy. Raven had willingly sold herself, body and soul to the Alice for power, and she in turn had sold Raven’s contract to Magnus.

  That was the end for her. Raven would never taste freedom again.

  I came back to myself, blood stained on my lips with Raven still holding me, my face buried in her chest as she got her breathing under control. I pulled back and she looked up at me with glassy eyes. “That was…it was─it wasn’t unpleasant.”

  “It was good for me,” the Aspect said, speaking through me. “Her memories were so sweet in their bitterness. Did you like the ones I showed you? She had many more, but none were as sweet as those.”

  Raven pulled back, her eyes wide. “What? My memories? What are you talking about?”

  I sighed, wiping the blood from my lips. “When I drink blood, I get a glimpse into the person’s life whose blood I’m drinking.”

  “You saw my life?” she asked, her voice quivering.

  I nodded.

  The Aspect was right. Though it didn’t leave me much choice, I still made the same choice she did. I judged her without knowing anything about her. I’d have made the same choice. I have made that choice.

  Who am I to judge anyone? My sins are greater than hers will ever be.

  I stepped away from her, my heart heavy, and started up the stairs. “I’m sorry.”

  “For what?” she asked at my back.

  “I’m just sorry,” I whispered.

  Chapter 13 - Silvanus Darkwoods

  Eris

  It seemed like I was the only one who was shocked by the sudden revelation. I didn’t really understand the implications of what was going on, but I knew “empress” was a title that demanded respect.

  The others were very nonchalant about the whole thing.

  After the threat to our lives had disappeared, the remaining bandits went to loot the houses and the dead while Cassimere stood with a few of his men and talked to Adam and Evelyn.

  “What are they talking about?” I asked, sliding over to Makenna and Gil.

  “No clue, but it’s not my business, so I’m staying away.”

  “I really don’t understand what’s going on. Can someone please fill me in?”

  Gil sighed and wound his hand over my shoulder, leading me back inside the inn, which had suffered the least amount of damage.

  Once inside, Gil picked up one of the knocked-over tables and chairs while Makenna went and got a round of drinks. I just sat back and stared through the broken door frame at the twins while they conversed with the bandits.

  Gill thumped down heavily in his seat and propped his chin under her hands. “Where to start,” he mused, ruining his fingers in staccato rhythm over his thick chin. “The best place to start would be the beginning, I guess. I already told you how Duran and I met,” he said.

  “He tried to rob you, right?”

  He nodded and smiled, turning his head when Makenna came back with our drinks. “Thanks, Kenna,” Gil said and kissed her on the lips.

  She blushed and returned the kiss with abandon. It was both heartwarming and incredibly depressing to see. It hurt to see such love and not think about Sam. I hope he’s okay right now.

  I still couldn’t feel him since he’d closed off our connection, and I didn’t think he needed the distraction right now, not with everything going on. I took a few sips of my mead to try and calm myself, and it helped. By the time Makenna sat down next to Gil a few seconds later, I was much calmer and composed.

  “So where did I leave off at? Oh, right, Duran was in the middle of robbing us. We’d fought the bandits tooth and nail, with heavy casualties on both sides. It had gotten bloody and over half of the guards we’d signed on with were lying in bloody chunks next to the pay wagon we’d been sent to guard.

  “Most of my guild perished during the initial attack, and for the most part, it was just me and Duran left. One of the best fighters I’d ever crossed, though given his teacher, I never stood a chance. I fought till my fatigue was maxed—the other bandits had already surrounded us and were just watching the spectacle. Duran was just toying with me at this point, goading me to max out.”

  I winced. Listening to Gil tell his story was hard, only because I knew how Sam fought, and imagining him going against his best friend like that twisted my stomach. I pushed away the mead; its sweetness no longer held any appeal for me. Gil looked over at me, took one look at my face and grinned sheepishly.

  “Sorry, Eris. The worst part is already over with. Well, once I’d maxed my fatigue and seized up, the rest of their group were calling for my blood. But something changed in him, and he refused. To this day I don’t know why he spared me. Never worked up the courage to a
sk. Scared of the answer, I guess.

  “But Duran did. Even when his king ordered him to end me, he refused.”

  “What happened after that?”

  Gil paused, taking a drink and continued his story. “D fought his clan to the last. Slaughtered them all. Bandit king included. After that, he let me go. ’Course he took the entire pay wagon for himself. But I wasn’t in a position to argue. With my guild wiped, I had nothing to go back to, so I stuck with him. Something about him just made me want to follow him.

  “We rode together for a few months, but of course word got back to Evelyn about what he’d done, and she and Adam came after us personally.”

  Makenna let out an involuntary shiver, despite the heat in the air, and Gil laughed. “You have no idea, Kenna. As scary as she is now, it’s nothing compared to back then. Evelyn’s actually mellowed out quite a bit since those days.”

  Makenna laughed, snorting as she tried to take a drink and splashing it over the table. She slammed the mug down, flushed with embarrassment, and tried to wipe her dripping face. “I don’t buy that for a second.”

  “Don’t buy what?” Evelyn asked, startling all three of us.

  She walked through the door as calm as could be, with a look of mild curiosity as she joined our conversation.

  “Oh, nothing, we were just talking about how we met,” Gil said hastily, shooting me and Makenna a pleading look.

  Evelyn smiled a predatory smile. “Oh, you’re talking about the time I nearly killed you and the guild leader?”

  “I wouldn’t put it quite like that.”

  “How would you put it, then, hmm?”

  “That we fought with honor and dignity and gave you hell doing it.”

  Evelyn threw back her head and laughed, her golden eyes practically alight with flames as she shook with laughter. “Sure, you can think that all you want. Doesn’t make it true.”

  “So what actually happened?” I asked, raising my hand.

  “What…what she said. Evelyn eventually caught up to us and beat us black and blue. But the stars aligned, and she felt merciful that day. She didn’t kill us when she could have and instead decided to ride with us for a while.”

  “We’d gotten bored at the top of the pyramid,” Evelyn said, stealing my mug of mead and tipping it back. A line of purple trailed from her chin down her pale throat as she gulped down the drink.

  She tossed the empty glass on the table and leaned over. “Fast forward a decade, and here we are. Now that’s enough of story time. I’ve convinced the bandits to escort us the rest of the way to Slaughter Woods. So I suggest we all get some sleep. We ride at first light.”

  After her words, her and Adam headed upstairs, leaving us downstairs with a gang of ruthless killers just outside.

  “Who’s up for bunking together?” Gil asked, craning his neck to peek outside the inn.

  ***

  I rubbed my eyes and yawned, trying to breathe some life into my tired bones. I hadn’t slept much; the hollering and looting of the bandits had gone on till the early hours of the morning. Tegen and Cheira had huddled close to me, scared to sleep with all the new humans around.

  “It’ll be okay,” I whispered into their hair as they nodded off to sleep in the saddle in front of me.

  Lacuna huffed and snorted as we left Odelpha, wary of the new additions to our little group. The bandits had stolen all the surrounding horses and joined around us, herding us as we left town and skirted along the marsh.

  I don’t think any of us, other than Evelyn and Adam, liked having the scruffy men and women close by. They talked too loudly and about the crudest of things. I developed an instant distaste for them, but there was nothing I could do or say to get rid of them.

  It was Evelyn’s show now.

  So I kept close to Makenna and Gil. They were nearly as unhappy as I was about the situation and kept talking in hushed whispers, so I trotted Lacuna close to them.

  “I don’t like this. We were fine by ourselves,” Makenna hissed.

  “Yeah, I know, but fuck else we can do about it.”

  Gil eyed me as I approached but relaxed when he noticed it was just me.

  “Morning, Eris. How are you and the kids?”

  “Tired, and more than a little concerned, if I’m being honest,” I replied.

  He nodded and swept his eyes over the dozen or so bandits. “Bad luck on our part, but they won’t dare defy Evelyn, and hell, they’ll take a few arrows for us, so I’m not going to complain too heavily if it means we get to keep ourselves safe.”

  I pondered his words while we rode past endless gray trees and long stretches of muddy road. Gil’s right about that, as callous as it sounds. But am I okay with people I dislike dying in the place of my friends and family? Does it make me a bad person if I am?

  His words had brought up a question I wasn’t sure I wanted the answer to. And I shied away from it, focusing on Lacuna and the road and making sure the bandits weren’t about to lead us into an ambush.

  A few drops of magic pooled out of my fingers as I took control of the scant few insects in the trees and burrows by the road. I tried to expand my reach as far as it could go, pushing my consciousness a few miles in every direction, but there was nothing but more miserable swamp and a few shades too far away to notice us.

  “There’s nothing into the woods but a few monsters, and those are too far away to be threats,” I told Gil, leaning over in the saddle to whisper to him.

  “Thanks for keepin’ an eye out, but the bandits won’t dare try and go against Evelyn. She’d tear them apart if they tried.”

  “Yeah, I’m beginning to see how dangerous she actually is.”

  We rode in mostly uncomfortable silence for a few hours, passing out of the last of the marshlands and back to stable ground. The stench of salt fled from the air as a cool breeze blew through the grassy plains we rode onto.

  I breathed in deep and couldn’t help the smile that broke upon my face as the wind swept my hair back. Our time spent in the brackish swamp had reminded me that even after centuries in the void, I had taken fresh air and sunshine for granted.

  We continued for a few more hours until we were well and truly away from the Salted Mire. By the time the sun was highest overhead, I think we were all ready for a break. Luckily, I wasn’t the one who complained first.

  “All right, I’ve had enough of this godsdamned saddle,” Gil bemoaned, twisting side to side and stretching. “Hey, oh mighty empress, let’s break for lunch!”

  Before any of us could react, a sheathed dagger flew like an arrow and struck Gil in the center of his forehead.

  Gil’s head rocked back from the blow, and he nearly careened off his horse. “Ow, fuck!” he shouted, rubbing his forehead where a welt was already forming.

  Evelyn didn’t react further, and we pressed on for another hour before she deigned to allow us to stop and rest.

  We stopped in a glade of tall trees, and with a single whistle from Evelyn, the bandits got to work setting up a fire and getting lunch going. There were a few dead trees that had been knocked over in a storm, their roots pulled up from the ground like veins. I walked over and sat down with the children.

  Makenna came over and sat beside me. Tegen and Cheira had gotten used to our group, and Cheira crawled into Makenna’s lap while she laughed.

  “Seems they don’t mind us so much anymore. Shame it’s only when we’re about to arrive at their home.”

  My heart fell at hearing that. I hadn’t realized we were so close. “How much further?” I asked.

  “Maybe a day, maybe less if we keep pushing like we have. We’ll be there tomorrow at any rate,” she said, letting Tegen hang off her arm like a monkey.

  “I see…”

  Makenna looked over to me and smiled, rubbing my shoulder. “Cheer up. It’s not like you’ll never get to see them again. I bet once we take them home, you’ll be allowed to visit them whenever you want.”

  Despite her obvious attempts,
her words did make me feel better, and as I watched them play together, I smiled. This isn’t the end. It’s the beginning of something great. The Arachne still live, and that means that the other Hive could still be out there. Maybe they’re even with the Arachne.

  The apocritans and mantearians were the weakest of the Hive and would have likely taken refuge with either the Arachne or the scorpius clans. Maybe more of the Hive will be waiting for me. I hope so, at least.

  I was so consumed with my thoughts that I nearly failed to pay attention to the object sailing through the air towards my head. I caught it on reflex and sighed when I looked down at my hands.

  “Do we have to?” I asked, standing up.

  “Of course. I can’t whip you into shape if you don’t practice, and babysitting isn’t my strong suit,” Evelyn said, sauntering towards me, practice sword raised.

  Before she could take another step, I launched myself at her and swung with all my strength. My wooden sword connected with hers just before I’d have slammed it into her neck. She stepped back, absorbing the impact and counterattacked. The tip of her blade jammed into my stomach, taking the breath from me.

  I doubled over, fighting to stay on my feet, but a swift kick from Evelyn, and I was on my back, wondering where I’d gone wrong. Evelyn frowned when I got back on my feet. Her furrowed brow and downturned lips cast doubt towards me.

  “What?” I asked, my voice cracking.

  She shook her head, still holding her soured look. “Again.”

  I brought my sword up like she’d taught me and tried to play it cautious instead of aggressive this time. I stepped toward her slowly, watching for any sign to predict her movements. Her body poised perfectly, she gave me no hint as I crept closer. Each inch brought my heart rate skyrocketing, because I knew I could never beat her, but I had to try.

  Evelyn shifted, her hips tilted to the left, and her foot slid forward half an inch. It was just enough to let me know which way she was attacking, and I stepped to her right, thrusting my sword toward her exposed ribs.