Hive Knight: A Dark Fantasy LitRPG (Trinity of the Hive Book 1)

by Grayson Sinclair

  "All right, let’s get going!"

  Chapter 27 - The Obsidian Throne

  Once out of the Compass Kingdom, we sped away as fast as our horses would let us. With Lyahgos and the others, we could ride for longer, switching riders when one grew tired. I stayed on the reins for the most part, as Eris was busy with the two spiderlings.

  After nearly a full day of riding, they were finally comfortable enough that they stopped being afraid of me. According to Eris, they spoke Rachnaran, the language of the arachne. A language that my translator couldn't understand.

  And I was kind of okay with it. I didn’t know how to act around children, especially half-spider children who didn’t speak English.

  Their names were Tegen and Cheira, and they were kind of cute, but I left Eris to take care of them, which she took to with abandon.

  She spent most of her time with them on the trip back. Making sure they were okay and had someone to talk to besides each other. It was incredibly endearing to see her like that, but it also meant most of her time was spent with them, and we didn’t get to spend much time together.

  I busied myself with keeping a fast pace, but even still, there was only so much distance we could travel without breaking the horses wind, and I didn’t want that to happen to Lacuna.

  When it got dark the first night, we stopped and set up camp in a large clearing just off the main road. There weren't any trees around, but I wasn't worried since we had so many people in one group. Lyahgos helped get his people’s tents set up while I worked on ours. Eris dug out the fire pit while Tegen and Cheira hunted.

  Despite their young age, the children were fierce hunters. They crept over the grasslands like ghosts and managed to bag a large buck single-handedly and carried the several hundred-pound carcass by themselves—much to the entire camp's amazement.

  Eris praised them for nearly an hour while I cleaned and cooked the meat. The rabbit-men's diet mostly consisted of vegetables, but they weren't opposed to eating meat, so when the deer was prepared, we all sat around the fire and ate, told stories, and just enjoyed each other's company. Eris laid her head on my lap after the meal, and I stroked her hair while Lyahgos and I talked.

  It was a perfect day, one of the best I'd had since coming to this world.

  I leaned back and sighed with contentment, reaching to wind my fingers through Eris’s. I wanted nothing more than the moment to stretch on forever. That thought caused me to chuckle. I’ve really become a sap, haven’t I?

  Eh, guess I don't mind so much. Though I couldn't deny the change I felt in me, even from the relatively short time we'd spent together. I was a better person for Eris being in my life.

  After too many years of holding on to all my bitterness and self-loathing, my past mistakes and failures, Eris was the person capable of breaking through all of it.

  I may have been a hybrid now, something more and less than what I was, but it was because of Eris that I’d regained some of my humanity. I couldn't make up for my past, the awful things I'd done. But having someone who sees the monster you've become and still loves you for it?

  That kind of person is worth changing for.

  I leaned down and kissed her cheek. “I love you.”

  Eris smiled, basking in my affections. “As I love you, my bonded.”

  We stayed like that for some time, letting the fire die, but too soon, Eris took the children and went to get some rest along with the rest of the camp.

  I volunteered for first watch, mostly because I had too much on my mind to be able to sleep, and because our tent was now occupied with the spiderlings.

  While I kept watch, I pulled up my interface to check my stats and character page.

  Combat Results

  1 Killed: (Human) 1500 Exp!

  Total Exp: 1500 Exp!

  Exp: 4100/5100

  Character Name: Durandahl

  Level: 51

  Exp: 4100/5100

  Race: Hybrid (Hive)

  Class: Hive Knight

  Reputation: Wanted Criminal

  Bounty: 1300 Gold

  Stats (-)

  Strength: 100 (Max)

  Sub-Stats (-)

  Attack Damage: 30

  Constitution: 100 (Max)

  Sub-Stats (-)

  Health: 25

  Health Regen: 25

  Durability: 15

  Endurance: 75 (85)

  Sub-Stats (-)

  Battle Fatigue: 10

  Battle Fatigue Regen: 10

  Agility: 50 (60)

  Sub-Stats (-)

  Attack Speed: 15

  Movement Speed: 10

  Wisdom: 25 (35)

  Sub-Stats (-)

  Mana: 20

  Luck: 0 (30)

  Charisma: 0 (10)

  One of the rabbitmen girls came and relived me a few hours later. Charlotte was in her mid-twenties with long, chestnut hair and a cute, round face. Her eyes were the same blue as the others, and her long bunny ears were gray and spotted with a little black. She yawned and sat by the embers while I went and got some sleep. When we set off in the morning with the spiderlings happily chatting to one another, I had a thought. I haven't asked, but I guess those two are coming with us. I brought up the subject, and Eris surprised me.

  "They'll be coming with us for a short time, but I have to get them back to their home."

  "They have a home? Where?"

  "The Silvanus Darkwoods."

  Shit, really? Well, I guess that explains why no one's seen the arachne in a thousand years. I'm not looking forward to that adventure.

  The Silvanus Darkwoods resided far to the south, past the South Kingdom and the Salted Mire. The Darkwoods were shrouded in mystery and terror, and in all my years here, not a single person who entered ever returned, which earned the Darkwoods a much more infamous name.

  Slaughter Woods.

  An apt name if it's actually the home of the arachne. Given how swift the spiderlings are, I'd hate to fight an adult. The spiderlings were confident that we could pass through unharmed. They assured me—well, they assured Eris, who then assured me—that we would be fine as long as we brought the children with us.

  "Do we have to go?" I asked.

  "Of course, we do. We have to bring Tegen and Cheira back. Plus, I would very much like to meet the queen."

  "The queen of the spiders, color me terrified."

  Eris playfully smacked my arm, smiling at me. "Oh, you worry too much, it'll be fine."

  Yeah, the spider queen, who kills any who intrude on her territory. Yeah, I'm sure she's a beacon of patience and morality. But I kept my mouth shut.

  Can't blame her for wanting to go. She just learned more of the Hive survived. I couldn't imagine how happy I'd be if I found out some of my family survived. The age-old hurt returned to my heart when I thought of them, but it wasn't as painful as it used to be. Maybe I can finally put Micah and Sophia's ghosts to rest. It's been too many years since they died. It's time to move on from my grief. I need to start living in the present.

  The days blurred together in a mix of riding and camping. At night, when it wasn't my turn to watch, I crawled into our tent, but we had two new additions, and I was relegated to sleeping by myself while the spiderlings snuggled up to Eris. After an hour of tossing and not being able to sleep, I climbed out of the tent and went to keep watch again.

  Charlotte was the one keeping watch tonight while Lyahgos got some sleep.

  She looked up with a nod and went back to keeping watch, though her eyes were wasted as she'd hear anything long before we saw it. She's kind of cute, if not very sociable. Eh, I guess we're mostly strangers, I was the same way before I met Eris.

  I pulled out my flask and took a few long pulls before I tapped Charlotte on the shoulder and offered her some. She took it and sipped politely, but from the look of disgust on her face, it was too strong for her. She passed it back, and I took another drink while waiting for dawn to break.

  When the sun finally rose, I woke
the others, and we packed up camp. It went that way for the entire trip home. Ride as much as we possibly could, then set up camp and eat, followed by me trying and failing to get a wink of shut-eye. I'd quickly gotten used to having Eris by my side, and with her absence, I couldn't sleep more than a few fitful hours each night. By the time Castle Gloom-Harbor peeked over the Rolling Hills, I was utterly exhausted.

  We rode up to the front gate, and with the passphrase, the man at arms lowered it. I climbed off Lacuna and stabled her before I got the rabbitmen settled. I grabbed the first maid I found and told her to get Amber. She departed with a bow.

  I went over to Lyahgos. "Head inside. Amber, our head maid, will get you all settled in and find the best job for you."

  "Right, sir!" he shook my hand and left with Charlotte and the others. I was about to head inside myself when a voice called to me. "Greetings, Duran. How kind of the fates to ordain this meeting."

  I found Markos walking up from the direction of the gate. His shaggy hair was slick with sweat, and his ordinarily pristine white robes were soiled with dirt and bits of filth. I walked over to the man and clapped him on the shoulder.

  "Good to see you, Mark. How goes the Gloom shrooms?"

  "Good news and bad news on that front. Our supply of Gloom mushrooms is gone."

  "What?”

  He held up his hands, backing up automatically—the vein at the base of his throat pulsed with fear. I shouldn't have yelled at him. "Sorry for yelling, you just surprised me is all. Tell me what happened."

  "Well," he said, fumbling over his words and his robes. His hands twiddled absentmindedly while he worked up the courage to speak. "When I introduced the Gloam to the Gloom mushrooms, they spread quickly, and assimilated the weaker strain, converting the entirety of our stock to the gloam."

  "How is that even possible?"

  "I'm not sure, honestly. The winds of chance blew in the wrong direction, leaving us in a mess."

  I turned from Markos. I'm no botanist, let him sort it out if he can. "Fix it if you can. Miguel will be sending a ship to collect our next shipment in a few days. If we don't have any Gloom shrooms to give him, let him have the new stuff."

  "Of course, I'll do what I can."

  "Good man."

  I left the mage to his work and went inside the castle. My little chat had gone on long enough that the entire guild was aware that we'd returned. When I opened the door, I was met with the hulking face of Gil, eyes nearly bulging out of his skull.

  "D.! What the hell did you do to my armor?!"

  I grinned sheepishly. "Man, you wouldn't believe me if I told you."

  Gil grumbled under his breath, his hands pantomiming wringing my neck, but before long, he composed himself, though I could tell he was still mad. "You better explain everything."

  "Of course. By the way, did you get my gift?" I asked, hoping to appease his anger.

  My diversion had the exact effect I wanted as his eyes lit up. "It arrived a few days ago, and I can't believe you bought that much ale. That many casks will last me a good while."

  Good, hope it gets you off my back about the armor at least. I smiled at him. "Glad you liked it, now where’s Wilson? We need to call a meeting."

  A whisper behind me alerted me to the rogue’s presence. "I am here."

  I turned my head to speak, and Wilson was just over my shoulder, leaning against the railing to the second floor. "I'm glad you made it home safely, old friend," he said.

  "As am I. Could you do me a favor and call a meeting? I want to go over everything, and I'd rather not do it more than once."

  "Right away," he said, inclining his head and vanishing back into the shadows. Soon as Wilson left, Gil swept me up into a giant bear hug. Which I returned as best I could.

  "I missed you too, buddy," I said.

  By the time my ribs stopped creaking, Eris had joined us, flanked by Tegen and Cheira. Her face split into a wide grin when she saw Gil. She padded over to him and hugged him.

  "Gil! It's good to see you again."

  He returned her hug gently, patting her on the back. "It’s good to see you too, little miss."

  The Aspect made its displeasure known, writhing up from within my heart to rage wordlessly that another man put his hands on what was ours, but I shut it down. I'm in control, not the other way around.

  “Now, why don't you believe that?” it asked.

  The deal I’d made with the Aspect was still a mystery, and what it made me give up frightened me. But I'll deal with it as it comes at me—nothing much else I can do.

  This whole trip had aged me fifteen years, and I wanted nothing more than a hot bath and twenty uninterrupted hours of sleep, but business came first. Gotta let the others know what I learned. Well, what little I learned, at any rate.

  Wilson took care of getting everyone to the guildhall. I sent Eris and the children up to Eris's room while we conducted business. After a week on the road, we all needed a bath. She leaned over and kissed me.

  "I'll see you upstairs in a little while."

  "Soon as I can," I promised.

  I walked the guildhall while Eris went upstairs. It was midday, but the stone hallway was chilly. The soft light of the torches along the wall did little to warm me as I went. Has it always been so cold in here? I put my discomfort out of mind and opened the wooden door, each of the faces of the guild carved into the oak. Alistair won't be back to join us for some time. Should I remove his face for the time being?

  No, he'll be back soon enough, and it'll be good to have a reminder that I need to be more careful in the future.

  I sat down at the head of the table and waited for everyone to join me, a laboriously long process that took over thirty minutes. Glad to see some things never change. One of the maids came in with several pitchers of ale and glasses. When everyone finally decided to grace me with their arrival, we got down to business.

  First things first, I told them about our trip, of the difficulties we faced on the road. More than a few laughed at me when I told them of the fight with Wolf.

  "You fought a werewolf by yourself and lived?" Evelyn asked.

  I nodded. "I would've died without Eris, but we scraped through by the skin of our teeth."

  "Haha, good on you!" Yumiko said, laughing.

  Figured the vampire would get a kick out of me slaying a werewolf. And I was right. Her blooded eyes were positively sparkling. I also told them of Darren and the slavers. Of Phineas's betrayal and his revelation. The name of the man who started all of this.

  "Magnus?" Wilson asked.

  "Yep, why? Does it ring a bell?"

  "No, I've never heard it before, what about any of you?" he asked the room. A slew of head shakes, and noes resounded through the room. Course not, looks like I'll have to go the hard way.

  "Well, see if you can find anything else out. That's our last shot before I have to resort to the more drastic methods."

  Gil looked at me incredulously. "You're not thinking of calling upon her, are you?"

  I picked up my glass of ale and drained it. "What other choice do I have? The Alice is the best bet for information."

  "Yes, but you know what kind of price she'll ask. Do you really want to be indebted to the fae?" Wilson asked.

  "Course not, but I want that bastard, and I'm willing to play her games if that's what it takes."

  "Fine, call up the queen of the fairies, but on your head falls the consequences," Evelyn said.

  "Thanks for your concern. You're all heart."

  She scoffed at me and returned to conversing with Adam. Though I managed to get her attention again when I brought up the fight with Liam and what he could do with magic. Everyone looked rightly shocked at the news. I witnessed it with my own eyes, and I can hardly believe it.

  And lastly, I told them of the arachne spiderlings and what was really lurking in Silvanus Darkwoods.

  "I guess what I'm getting at is that Nexus is home to a lot more dangerous foes than we previously though
t. We're going to have to bolster our defenses and work on getting stronger. It feels like the calm before the storm is coming, and I want to be ready for anything," I told the room.

  I sat back down and poured another drink while everything settled. It was a lot to absorb at once, and I saw a few cups being drained and refilled. I didn't blame them. I drank mine much slower and waited for everyone to be on the same page. Then I spoke about our upcoming trip.

  "We'll be heading that way in a few days after we've rested. If you guys want to accept a few contracts while I'm away, that's fine. Just be sure to vet them to the highest degree you can and make sure to have Wilson approve anything."

  “Speaking of, I left Evelyn in charge for a few days and went to investigate the theft quest.”

  “Ah, right.” I forgot all about that. “What’d you learn?”

  Wilson sighed, taking a sip of his ale. “Nothing much. I learned the thief was a woman, pretty from the description, with brilliant red hair. Other than that, she’s a ghost.”

  “What was taken again? A ruby amulet, right?”

  He nodded. Pretty redhead. Sounds like Morgan. And wasn’t she wearing a ruby necklace when we met?

  I chuckled. “Best to let this one go. You’re not going to find her.”

  “Yeah, my thoughts too, it’s too big of a haystack for one woman,” Wilson said, sighing.

  Quest: Thief Taker Abandoned.

  Reward: 0 Exp

  With that taken care of, we got down to the more mundane items on the roster. Even with me only being gone for two weeks, small things still piled up and had to be addressed. It droned on for another hour, and I was grateful when it ended.

  With our debrief complete, I dismissed everyone and went to take a bath.

  Eris was getting the spiderlings settled in. I let them bunk in Eris's room, but they didn't want to sleep alone, so Eris went and slept with them, sparing me a kiss and an apologetic look as she left. I don't want to sleep apart, but maybe it's a good thing. Perhaps some time apart will do some good. We'd spent nearly every waking moment together, and I hadn't had a moment to myself where I could just relax.