The Bee Dungeon

With a new plan set out, Belissar decided that his next move would be an expansion purification. He needed either an extra floor or room slot for the planned mini-volcano room, and more options might provide either a Fire-type room or additional Fire-type features to add to the room. Additionally, Chief Rohsuak let him know she had received additional blessings from the God of Fire and had grown stronger than she was during the emergency purification. She claimed she was not back in her prime, but launching another fire attack like she did wouldn’t be an issue, particularly if Belissar fed her more mana honeycomb.

That went a long way to reassuring Belissar, but he decided to wait on two more conditions. First, he wanted to give the Flower Meadow queens a chance to raise some lancers. Next, he wanted to test Beero and the wounded lightning soldiers’ attacks, and ensure they could be evacuated safely afterwards. He figured that those two new attacks, along with the reassurance that Chief Rohsuak could assist them again, should be enough to handle another expansion purification.

Additionally, now that the Apiary queens were delivering honey to the Flower Meadow the number of Maddening soldiers and sprayers was rising. The digging queen’s hive was just about stable, so she’d be able to start contributing some honey as well. He might start seeing some sort of digging soldier soon, which would allow the soldier bee army to attack within the Dirt Tunnels. The bumblebees as well continued growing their hives. The third floor Flower Meadow was now filled with bumblebees happily at work…and the bumblebee queens had now started to grow larger.

The First of the Fifth’s hive was hard at work cross-pollinating the other plants as well. Maybe he’d see a mana flower variant of the sleepy chamomile soon? The other plants too, though since they hadn’t resulted in new bee types Belissar wasn’t sure if a more magical variant would either. He’d just have to wait and see.

Still, all of that would take time, so upon consulting with the bees and Chief Rohsuak they decided lancers and a successful lightning attack would be sufficient to proceed. Anything else that occurred in that time would be a bonus.

And it may not be that long at all. The Orchard hive had already finished prototypes of woven slings, and the soldier bee army was now practicing moving the wounded soldiers around. Belissar still wouldn’t risk it against a faster shade, but if they got some sort of turtle variant they could test out the attack as soon as today.

And indeed, when he triggered the daily purification…the moment came. This time, a small turtle shade appeared, about height of his thighs instead of his head. Belissar considered the soldier bees’ training from earlier today and hesitantly gave his permission. Today, they would see how Beero and company’s lightning would fare…

Beero’s antennae twitched as the wind blew past her, causing her remaining pair of wings to flutter. The soldiers holding her up released some calming pheromones and mana, causing her antennae to droop a bit.

She had mixed feelings right now as she swayed about in the air, held only by woven stems that wobbled about. On the one leg, having her sisters carry her was…not the most comfortable of situations. It was a stark reminder of her current helplessness, of all that she had lost and could no longer do. And the fact that she had to take two of her sisters out of the fight, tasked with carrying her about like a piece of pollen, was…less than ideal. She would have never have proposed it had the King not ordered it himself.

But he had. And both her queen and her sisters reassured her. Since the majority of the soldier bee army held back from the fight in the reserved force, having two carry her about did not actually take them from the fight. Additionally, she now could do something that they could not. It was only natural that they would do what they could, and she would do what she could.

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And then there was the other side. The other side that felt the wind blow past her and saw the ground shrink before her. The side that once again was soaring through the air alongside her sisters, something she never thought she’d ever get to experience again.

That side could not help but be happy. But she pushed it down, as her sisters had not been pleased the first time she wiggled about and nearly caused them to drop her. So, she stayed as still as she could while her sisters carried her along.

All too soon they arrived at their destination, lowering the stems upon the wooden platform the King had built. Beero crawled off and danced her gratitude. Her sisters twitched their antennae in reply and hovered back, still holding the stems so they could swoop in and pick her up at a moment’s notice. The other wounded bees, Beero’s new comrades, all landed as well. Without any delay, they all scrambled into their positions, ready to stir up their mana at a moment’s notice.

For today was the day. The King informed them the enemy was coming, and one that was suitable for them specifically. Indeed, if tales of the latest battle were true, this enemy might be suitable only for them alone.

Beero knew that was the true reason her queen and her sisters had been so eager to accommodate her. The soldier bee army had failed to stop the latest enemy. So, if Beero and her comrades’ newest attack could, then the soldier bee army would spare no effort to assist them. They would stop at nothing to fulfill their duty to the King and the hive of hives. And neither would Beero.

And so, she waited, ready to once again fulfill the duty she had been born to do.

And she waited…

And waited…

And waited…

Until she heard the King speaking out to them all.

“Um, sorry everyone but…it looks like it fell into the first Pit Trap. It’s stuck in the Dirt Tunnels right now.”

Beero…didn’t know how to react.

Eventually, the King spoke with them. Beero indicated her continued desire to test her attack, and the King agreed. And so, after a bit of rearrangement, Beero was once again being carried by her sisters through the air. They slowly hovered through dark, cramped tunnels while the King himself lit the way with one of his fire sticks. Her two sisters barely had enough room to spread out and hold her up, and the whole group was moving at a crawl. It was not the most pleasant trip Beero had been on.

But, finally, they arrived. The enemy was trying to crawl out of the pit, but the effects of the maddening honey was causing it to slip. It had fallen back on its shell, with its spikes driving into the ground and preventing it from flipping itself over. It was utterly helpless, and the King could destroy it in an instant with his fire stick.

“Ok, here it is. Um, Beero, will you be able to direct the attack down into the hole, even if you can’t see it?”

She saluted to the King’s request. She and the others had practiced sending the lightning sting in different directions, so it wouldn’t be a problem.

“Ok, in that case, go ahead. I don’t think it can get out, but just watch out in case it uses its breathe or something.”

Beero crawled forward and peeked down into the hole, memorizing the enemy’s position. She and the others gathered up, the tunnel was barely wide enough for their dance but it would do. On her signal, they began.

The tunnel lit up as lightning crackled over their heads. The shade seemed to notice and began to growl, but Beero and the others ignored it. They danced the dance they had practiced countless times in the recent days without a single leg out of place, each of them performing their part to perfection. Their mana, which should have clashed as they were all from different hives, joined together thanks to the common element of the lightning, while the mana of the King’s realm itself wrapped around and bound them all. Beero even noticed the mana of the Conduit and caught a glimpse of her dancing as well. She’d thank her, but later, for now was the time to focus.

The others completed their dance, and then Beero danced to set the final direction. A sphere of lightning moved forward and over the pit…

Then a stinger of lightning formed and thrust downward. There was a crack of thunder and the shade roared. Light and smoke began billowing out of the pit as the honey caught fire as well. Beero wanted to step forward and see what they had done but the King shook his head…and then smiled.

“You got it, Beero.”

Beero went still even as the black mist of the enemy began to mix with the smoke, indicating its defeat. A moment later, she began to dance, and the others joined her.

It hadn’t been the battle they had expected. It was a helpless enemy the King or the her uninjured sisters could have dealt with alone. But still…she had rejoined the fight and brought victory to the hive of hives. She and her comrades had done that which they had thought would be impossible.

They could once again call themselves soldiers of the King and the hive of hives.

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