Chapter 58: Chapter 58

Belissar gasped as his mind caught up to the scene before him. The shade was soaring across the Flower Meadow, flying at about the height of the trees as it raced towards the Apiary door. And the flying shade, of course, ignored every single Pit Trap and Sticky Honey Trap Belissar had placed. Not a single one of his preparations would slow the shade down in the slightest.

The soldier bees raced after it. The air buzzed as they beat their wings as fast as they could go. But the sheer size difference between the wings of the bees and the shade meant they couldn’t match its top speed. Now that it had gotten out ahead of them, they wouldn’t catch it.

Belissar’s mind went blank and his expression slowly twisted as he realized that there was nothing to stop the shade from reaching the end of the Flower Meadow. It could tear the Flower Meadow hives to shreds before their soldiers arrived to defend them. It could continue on straight into the Apiary and attack him, or the beehouses behind him. It could even keep going...and fly straight into the core room.

Niobee frantically danced commands in the air while Belissar was stunned, and the soldier bees from the Apiary spawners began to assemble. But the soldier bee spawners capped out at fifteen each and there were only two of them. The small force of thirty soldiers seemed paltry in comparison to the shade heading towards them.

But Belissar couldn’t think of anything else to do. He wasn’t even sure if he should do anything, or if he should run and tell the bees to hide. Maybe the shade would target the core and some of them could survive.

Either way, he was too late. The shade was fast approaching the entrance to the Apiary and did not divert its course. It would fly into the Apiary, and into Belissar, within moments. Niobee was frantically dancing in front of him, but he didn’t notice. There was nothing and no one between him and its snapping beak.

The little head of a soldier bee popped up above one of the Memorial pillars, the one closest to the Apiary entrance. One single soldier bee with a missing wing climbed to the top of the pillar. The wounded soldier watched carefully as the shade approached, tensing her legs. She waited for her moment...

And then she leapt off the pillar. She beat her single wing as she glided through the air, willing herself to go even a little bit faster. Hoping that she had timed her single chance correctly...

“Get some healing honey, quick!”

Niobee flew off towards the Apiary as the queens of the Flower Meadow rushed to check their honey stockpiles. Belissar gritted his teeth as he held the soldier bee. His mind raced as he tried to think of a way to help her.

Her antenna twitched faintly at his words. He felt her mana stir. She had more than the average soldier bee, but it was quickly fading. He narrowed his eyes.

He stirred up his own mana.

He took one of his hands and moved it away from the bee, trying to condense his mana above it. He didn’t want a blast of mana to hit her if she failed. But if he could just condense his mana externally, then maybe he could give her some of his own. He didn’t know if that would actually help, but he felt he had to do something.

The mana burst into light and Belissar snarled.

“Come on, work already!”

He willed with all his heart for his mana to obey his command. And as he did, the nearby Shrine of Bees began to glow. Belissar didn’t notice as both he and the soldier bee took on a similar glow.

The mana released from his body but did not explode beyond its control. Instead of a burst of white light, It condensed into a small ball of yellow light above of his hand...and began to stretch out into lines. It formed hexagonal patterns reminiscent of honeycomb which flashed. Then...the yellow light began to condense further into a ball, becoming more and more solid...until soon it became a shimmering yellow liquid.

Belissar had no idea what was happening and he didn’t care. He brought the ball of floating, glowing honey to the soldier bee’s face. She slowly extended her probiscis and began to drink...

The wounded soldier had been satisfied. Despite her injuries, she had been able to join the battle. She had been able to strike a blow against the invader and ensure victory for the hive. For a soldier bee, there was no greater joy than that. Though she would perish, she would gladly join the sisters of her former squad who went before her. She was no longer ashamed to have endured, to have spent the resources of the hive on a soldier who couldn't fight.

Until she heard the words of the King.

For her, that was enough. The command of the King was absolute, for her above all. She only lived to this day by the will of the King. Her life was his to end.

And so, she fought back. She stirred up her mana and tried to purge the enemy’s attack from her battered body. But it wouldn’t be enough. She would fail the King’s final command to her.

Until suddenly, she was bathed in the warmth of the King’s mana. A ball of honey appeared before her, brighter, sweeter, and more beautiful than any she had ever seen. She began reaching out before stopping herself. She wanted it, more than anything, but was she truly permitted such a thing? She, a mere crippled soldier?

But the King’s mana filled her with warmth. As well as another’s...

She reached out and began to drink. Warm mana flowed through her body and began to burn. Heat scorched her as the mana attempted to heal her wounds. She trembled as the black lightning resisted, surging through her once again.

So, she began to beat her remaining wing and moved her body, rubbing her legs and hairs together as best she could. She filled them with mana as the movements began to create the tiny-lightnings that the workers used to help gather pollen. The tiny-lightnings began to carry her mana, and the mana granted to her from the honey as it joined with the black lightning surging across her chitin.