by Unknown
“Ah. Good information to have,” Wilbert said, glancing to either side, while the queen settled onto the cushions, crossing her legs as she watched them approach.
The queen’s eyes were glittering a bright gold as they approached, but the woman didn’t do anything more, her hands resting in her lap. None of Joy’s companions seemed to be able to smell the rich, regal scent she exuded, and Joy almost pitied them.
Once they came close enough, though, the queen spoke, her voice rich and powerful. “Welcome, guests. I am the queen of the Shadebough Hive. Just to be certain, there is no need for any formalities. While I’m aware that the term ‘queen’ means something different in your nation, it does not have such meanings here. I am the leader of the hive, no more and no less.”
“Ah, thank you for meeting with us,” Silverhoof said, pausing to glance at Joy, then he shrugged. “I assume that you know why we’re here? Your attendant seemed to indicate so.”
“Yes. You’re here to speak with us about how to go about eliminating the ants that have been a plague for the last several months,” the queen agreed, and gestured at the cushions across from her. “Please, sit if you so desire. Let us speak, and I will determine whether the hive is able to help.”
“Thank you,” Wilbert said, stepping forward. Joy was about to follow when the queen looked at her and smiled.
“Also, thank you for the lemonade, Joy. It was quite pleasant,” the queen said, and glanced at Abigail as she added, “Additionally, I must thank the people of Bearton for the iron ore they gave us. My warriors have made good use of it, and it will be counted as toward what I asked of Joy. Ninety-eight pieces were given to us.”
“Oh, um, thank you!” Joy said, blushing at the close regard of the queen, and sat, unable to figure out what to say to the queen.
“You are most welcome,” Abigail said, looking between Joy and the queen, but she sat down as well, her movements somewhat slower, and all but Silverhoof joined them.
Then, with the dappled light of the hive playing over them and an enormous number of apis standing guard, the queen asked mildly, “Now, what is it that you had planned?”
Chapter 3
“So, the most important thing is how army ants react to things. If we weren’t worried about an invasion, I’d take this the more traditional way,” Wilbert said, leaning forward in his cushions, his unease about sitting seeming to have faded somewhat. “Normally we’d draw out a wave of them, cut them off and destroy them before repeating the process. It’s drawn out, and some people have to function as bait, but it allows us to whittle down their numbers before hitting their nest. We don’t have time for that.”
“Why not?” the queen asked, looking back at him curiously.
Silverhoof cleared his throat, glancing around, then spoke bluntly as the queen looked at him. “Lord Alethus is attempting to free an ancient evil, as I’m sure you’ve heard. What hasn’t been said is what the creature is. It’s a level eighty-nine apocalypse spider, a creature that would take dozens of adventurers of its level to defeat. If he succeeds in freeing it, the army ants would be nothing in comparison. I sincerely doubt that your hive would survive, let alone the kingdom.”
Joy practically stopped breathing, her eyes going wide and horror rippling through her as she shuddered at the name. A spider was bad enough, but the level described… she could hardly even imagine it. She opened her mouth to ask questions, but it was Cora who spoke.
“Dear gods… how bad is something like that? Could we get reinforcements, maybe slow it down…?” Cora asked nervously, the elf half-off her cushion.
“Irador would fall in a day, if we were lucky,” Wilbert said bluntly, shaking his head. “The spider is pretty much unstoppable, and even if high-level heroes reacted immediately, it’d leave some of the other regions weakened. We can’t risk the possibility, which is why we need to deal with the ants fast, and keep him from succeeding.”
“I believe I understand. How do you intend to go about dealing with them, then? The ants breed incredibly quickly,” the queen answered, ignoring the shock Joy could see on the faces of almost everyone else. She hadn’t realized that Brianna and the others didn’t known about the spider either. Not until now, anyway.
“Yes, they do. They have a queen, much like bees, but one which can reproduce far more quickly than you can,” Wilbert said, and shrugged as he added, “That’s their weakness, though. According to what I’ve heard, they can’t rear a queen quickly, so if she perishes, the entire colony of army ants will retreat, looking for the colony they split off of to join them.”
“Oh! You’re thinking to kill their queen, and make them run away!” Joy said, her eyes lighting up as she clapped her hands together, and Stella gave her a sidelong look.
“You… seem surprisingly okay with the idea, Joy. I thought you might object,” Stella said, sounding puzzled.
“Why? Apis queens don’t get along, and if there are limited food supplies, they’d fight over them. Right?” Joy said, looking at the queen, who nodded.
“That’s correct. Killing the queen of another hive, distasteful as the idea might be, is the most direct solution when you’re trying to survive. Besides, these are ants, not apis,” the queen agreed, sitting back slightly as she considered. “We know where the ants have their nest, but we haven’t seen any way to assault it. They are too numerous, and the entire nest is built of still more of them. While your idea has merit, I do not know how we would be able to reach their queen. My spellcasters certainly wouldn’t have the mana to blast through the outer sections of the nest, as I’m certain their queen is near the center.”
“We wouldn’t expect you to. Instead, we intend to take a different strategy,” Wilbert said, nodding to Silverhoof as he continued. “My cavalry is enough to punch deep into their lines without taking many losses, and that would allow us to approach the nest, especially when backed up by the adventurers. We wouldn’t be able to fight a prolonged battle, but we certainly can get close to the nest, which is the important thing.”
“Once there, I have an item that allows me to use a high-level spell a few more times. I hate to use it, but I can call upon two more Meteor Strikes, which would allow us to blast open the nest,” Abigail said, hesitating before she added, “I think your apis might have told you about the spell.”
“Yes, they did. Which means that once you’ve done so, you wish for my magi and archers to finish the queen since we can fly. Is that correct?” the queen asked, tilting her head slightly to the side, watching Wilbert calmly. The man blinked, then nodded slowly.
“Yes, that is what I was thinking. I wasn’t sure you’d realize why, but that makes it easier,” Wilbert said, watching the queen carefully.
“We may be new to the world, but that doesn’t make us foolish. Some of us are, but not all,” the queen said, considering for a moment, then focused on Wilbert. “Which is why I must ask, is the kingdom, or duke, likely to attack us in the future?”
“What?” Silverhoof said, recoiling slightly.
“I’m not a young queen. I have lived here for my entire life, and I have seen your adventurers many times. Perhaps the gods chose to give me the wisdom they felt was appropriate to my age, or perhaps all of the other queens learned it as well. Either way, I am aware that kingdoms tend to try to destroy threats on their borders. I wish to pursue peace with your realm, but that does not mean that your kingdom will feel the same,” the queen explained, prompting Joy to blink in confusion. She didn’t understand most of what the queen had just said, and she looked at Cora and the others, though she doubted they could explain in their situation.
“I… well, Wilbert? You know the duke better than I do,” Silverhoof said, looking at the knight, a hint of nervousness in his expression as he pawed at the ground with a hoof.
Wilbert didn’t reply initially, tugging instead on his mustache, then the man let out a soft sigh, and growled. “I hate politics. Abigail, how does the kingdom, and guild, regard the Teeming
Jungle?”
“It’s relatively dangerous for the region, without most of the resources that we can get from other locations of similar danger. As such, adventuring parties rarely venture into it, except when they need particular herbs for potions,” Abigail replied, frowning. “As for the kingdom, I believe that most of the time they ignore its existence. I’ve never heard of anything being done with the jungle, or even any discussions of doing anything with it.”
“That’s what I thought,” Wilbert said, nodding firmly, then looked at the queen directly. “I don’t think you’ll have any problems with the duke, especially if you help us. The king… I don’t know how His Majesty will react, but I’m confident he’ll at least listen to the duke, and I can’t imagine he’s going to be upset about someone securing the border for him. If you were inclined to spread into the kingdom things might be more dangerous, but I promise I’ll argue against overreacting.”
“In addition, I know that the priesthoods have been cautioning rulers and organizations to give the apis a chance to figure out your societies. I can’t imagine that the king would want to alienate potential allies, particularly given what the Kingdoms of Darkness appear to have planned,” Silverhoof added, folding his arms.
The queen looked between them, then at Joy. Joy blinked a couple of times, then said, “Is there something you wanted to ask me?”
“I was curious as to your opinion, Joy. To my knowledge, you are the only apis who has lived among non-apis for long,” the queen said, examining Joy, and Joy squirmed in place.
“I… but, I’m just a worker! I don’t know more than a handful of Guildmasters, and the people right here!” Joy protested, anxiety causing her to squirm.
“You are still the most knowledgeable one about outsiders,” the queen said simply, and Joy felt her shoulders slump as the other adventurers stared at her, Abigail’s expression incredulous. But then she straightened, as the queen obviously expected her to reply.
“In that case, I would trust them,” Joy said, raising her gaze to meet the queen’s nervously. “It might be a mistake, but I haven’t had a Guildmaster lie to me, that I know of. Besides, if we don’t, how are you going to deal with the ants?”
“Poorly,” the queen replied with a faint smile, her gaze turning back to Wilbert as she nodded. “Joy’s thoughts mirrored my own, even if I have additional concerns. Will you assist in opening negotiations with your duke and king, afterward? I need to send a delegation, from what I understand.”
“Certainly. I know it would make milord happier to have something official to work off of,” Wilbert said, glancing at Joy in amusement as he added, “Though I wouldn’t have expected you to ask her opinion.”
“Apis don’t lie, at least not yet. I’m certain that may change in the future, but for now we’re an honest species,” the queen said, smiling. “Now, the next thing is to work out how we are going to go about this. My people will be ready whenever they are needed.”
As the queen spoke, a memory flitted through Joy’s mind, and she opened her mouth before she could stop herself. “Um, could I ask a question?”
The queen’s eyebrows rose slightly, and she tilted her head at Joy, speaking in amusement. “Of course you may.”
“Since you’re a queen, even if you aren’t a queen like humans, elves, or the other people have… can you knight people? We were discussing it a while back, and if you could, it might be able to help. Couldn’t it?” Joy said, looking at Wilbert, then at the queen. The knight didn’t look terribly pleased by her interruption.
The apis queen smiled warmly and shook her head, laughing softly. After a few seconds she spoke, her tone kind. “No, that is not an ability which is available to me, Joy. Instead, I have a different ability, which I believe is even more potent in the right circumstances.”
“Oh?” Wilbert said, looking more interested now. “Do you mind telling us what it is?”
“Certainly. The ability is Queen’s Edict, and it’s a passive ability,” the queen explained, glancing back at the other apis as she continued. “I choose what roles need to be filled in the hive, and about how many of them there should be, and as my apis level, they are given the opportunity to take the appropriate jobs until the appropriate number are filled. None of them gain what you would consider rare jobs, but it allows me to rapidly expand the number of magi, warriors, miners, or any other role that we need.”
“That… yes, that would be rather impressive,” Wilbert murmured, looking very thoughtful. “Not that I can see an easy way to use it to our advantage right now.”
Joy nodded, blushing as she spoke shyly. “Thank you for answering. I just… wondered.”
“You’re welcome, Joy. It was a thought, and one that might have been useful,” the queen said, and fixed her gaze on Wilbert. “Now, it’s time to work out… what is the term? Ah, yes, logistics, that is the word. I have forty thousand apis to call upon, aside from those that have duties I cannot call them away from. What are you able to bring into the fray?”
The look of shock on Wilbert’s face made Joy giggle, and she paused, then whispered to Cora. “Do you think I could borrow a hammer from someone? Those seem to work better for smashing ants.”
“I’m sure something can be arranged, Joy,” Cora murmured in reply, and the elf smiled at her fondly. “Now, shh. They need to talk.”
“Okay!” Joy chirped, and sat back as Wilbert recovered from his shock.
Chapter 4
“Yuck!” Joy yelped as the ant’s head cracked open, bouncing backward and glancing at her mace unhappily. It was half-covered in ant ichor, which was not a substance she liked thinking about. Or looking at.
The ants didn’t give her much of a chance to consider that, though, as two more lunged at her near-silently, with only faint squeaking sounds as their limbs rubbed against their carapaces. Joy jumped aside, bringing her mace down hard on the other, and just as she was about to attack the first, Brianna’s sword flashed, cutting the ant’s head clean off.
“Careful, they aren’t going to let you breathe!” Brianna said, glancing around them as the battle raged.
The rumble of hooves echoed through the air, and Joy winced as the knights on their warhorses slammed into the ants again. Two groups of knights were taking turns charging, each time punching deeper into the army ant swarm, and the sheer number of broken bodies they left in their wake awed Joy, even if it was also horrible looking. Some of the knights had been injured, but their priests had kept any of them from dying so far.
Some of the other adventurers hadn’t been as fortunate as they held the lines to either side of the advance, though, a thought which prompted Joy to dodge and smash another pair of ants. She didn’t like how the mace sat in her hand, but it was a lot better for dealing with the ants.
“How close are we?” Joy asked, hitting an ant a moment before Stella crushed it, and all the while making her way forward as best she could. She glanced up and grinned, seeing thousands of apis thinning the horde of ants from above. Lightning cracked, fireballs exploded, and spears lanced down from above as the apis darted down to strike. It was an awe-inspiring sight to Joy, especially since there were more apis above her than had been in Joy’s entire previous hive.
“I’m not sure!” Cora called out from behind them. She paused, then added, “Healing Glow!”
A warm yellow glow came from behind Joy, one which sent a wash of warmth through her, and she smiled as she kept beating back the ants. At least the new ability explained why Cora’s new job was called a Lifeglow Initiate.
“Just a little farther! Flaming Strike!” James called out from nearby, slamming several ants back with his shield and raising his sword, which glowed bright red as he unleashed a short wave of fire into the ants. It didn’t kill all of them, but the handsome man didn’t pause, following it up with another strike as he nodded in the distance. “Look ahead, the nest is huge!”
Joy glanced toward the knights, her gaze rising a little, and it took a moment
for her to realize what she was seeing. She’d taken the raised area with ants boiling across it as a hill or ridge initially, but James’s comment caused her to rethink that, and she flinched as she realized that the ant nest was at least five apis tall, causing her to swallow hard. Then an ant tried to bite her leg off, and she yelped, falling back just in time. Her armor held as its mandibles snapped shut, but the force was bruising.
“Joy, pay attention!” Stella scolded, crushing the ant, and Joy blushed.
“Sorry!” Joy said, returning the favor as she smashed an ant trying to catch Stella off guard. “The nest is huge.”
“That is why we want to eliminate them,” Brianna said, chopping her way forward brutally, and spat. “Ugh, this is terrible!”
“Hold for a moment!” Silverhoof exclaimed, his deep voice carrying through the jungle with astounding clarity, and he quickly added, “Apis, please fall back, I’m going to clear the area ahead of us!”
Joy paused her advance along with the others, about to crush another ant, but at that moment a passing apis speared it and kept flying, the ant wriggling on the end of her iron-veined spear, at least until she flicked it off. The apis grinned at Joy, who smiled back, relieved by the moment of rest. The apis fell back rapidly, clearing the sky in moments, yet simultaneously taking up a formation that would easily allow them to dart back in quickly, a choreography that Joy admired. She hadn’t seen the same attitude from the adventurers, though the knights came close. They had a lot more shouting of orders, though.