Don't Trust the Hive Queens

It had been what felt like years since the end of the Holometa-Chemibrion War and the plague of the Morphians began on Sokondro. The Chemibrion Empire's Oligarchs had vanished from the face of the planet, with their underlings left to face the amorphous death without their guidance. The Dorcasom Hives, meanwhile, were in shambles with many devoured by this ever-changing, ravenous horde of ghost white mudskippers, including four of the Hive's Queens with the latest being Hymeno Siric. It was supposed to be a simple escort mission during a time of war for that queen in particular, but it all changed as suddenly as when the Lepturobans launched surprise attacks on their enemies.

Hymeno Siric was a new queen put in charge of her hive when her mother Hymynn was too ill to attend to her queenly Glaphyr duties. Hymynn thought while the Chemibrion Empire was growing powerful, the Hives initiated the conflict because High Queen Hiero Holometa had acted on her paranoia about the Empire's technological might towering the Dorcasoms' own. She may have aligned with the other Hives of Sokondro, but it was to keep watch of Holometa's actions and to ensure that her successor would protect her Hive should something happen to either of them.

Hymeno had only been having her soldiers be on the defensive. This was until she was summoned to Holometa's territory to speak with the other queens of the alliance. She went with an escort of Lucanid and Necydalian soldiers, but kept a pair of Lepturoban guards known as the Viren Twins by her side. These twins, Akime and Piodes, were assigned to her since she hatched and was deemed the successor to the Siric Glaphyr Hive by her mother, and they were ready for assailants that these queens would send after Hymeno for daring to speak out of turn with them. They were extra security when meeting with this council of the other 32 Queens.

The higher queens wanted the Hives that weren't on the offensive to push their troops towards going after the leaders of the Empire, the Chemibrion Oligarchs. This came in light of the Great Battle of Ecdysaedia having killed Explosmuto Chemibrion and so have made the big Queens feel they had a chance to bring down the Empire.

Queen Rhag Nepalen said, "Those Narkelegens won't stand a chance with their so-called gods being reminded of their mortal frailty!"

Hymeno and another queen named Coelio Ecdysaxis, among others, objected to this.

Ecdysaxis in particular said, "Doing this fight against the Narkelegens will bring unspeakable devastation to our people and land. It would mean sending more of our children, including those unfit for being soldiers, to their deaths with how much more secure the Oligarchs made themselves since that battle happened."

Those words fell on deaf antennas, and Holometa declared, "The Chemibrion must pay for their brutality against our children in Ecdysaedia. We must send whatever it will take to put them down for good before they get a hold of the Glaphyr royal honey."

That shut down all opposition and was reason enough to send Glaphyr Dorcasom that weren't fit for battle off to this needless war. This included the Ecdysaxis crown prince, Aphodius.

Another council was held for how to deal with the Empire weapon in the facility in Araven. Her mother had warned of the arrogance of Hiero Holometa and the other Queens, and so she was disgusted they would want it to hold power over the Oligarchs that were grieving the loss of their family. They had lost their brothers and were fighting the Hives because of Hiero Holometa, but she knew her words and those of the queens that opposed this action would fall on deaf antennas once more.

The acquisition of the weapon was for naught for catastrophe had struck while Hymeno Siric and Coelio Ecdysaxis were in transit through the forest land of Blaberatan to a shrine of Orkudra within Cryoctis City for absolution. The Morphians had come without warning, devouring any and every organic thing in their path. The Virens had to follow the Lucanids out of their transit as quickly as possible to keep Hymynn's daughter safe, but Queen Ecdysaxis was taken by the Morphians before she could follow with the Lucanids that had come back for her. Hymeno couldn't help but weep for the sister she never knew she needed.

These soldiers were willing to expend their lives to keep this queen to the Siric Glaphyr Hive safe from this new enemy that had surfaced. They had to spend a lot of time within Blaberatan to try to make it to a further point in Erebuk, knowing that the mainland of the Siric Hive would've been flooded by the Morphian scourge by the time they got there. It didn't take long for news to hit of the fall of two other Hive Queens to the Morphians, namely Cinella Psyllo and Sabatin Caustica. They had the most fortified Hives of the alliance to where even the Narkelegens couldn't breach their walls, but they were no match for the enemy that had no allegiance to either side of the war. It really made them wonder how long it would take before they reach the sanctum of the mighty High Queen.

Hymeno didn't know if these were beings from the weapon that Holometa's inner hive wanted or were awakened by their feud with the Empire. Either way, as she, the twins, and her entourage were getting out of the nightmarish war zone, Hymeno thought this was karma for Holometa waging war against the Chemibrion Oligarchs and their amphibious honor-bound underlings. The queens that were killed before Ecdysaxis were those that were in favor of sending soldiers that weren't as battle ready as the other types of Dorcasom, especially the Necydalians. The Caustica family felt like they didn't have to lift a finger because they were within Rakasa, a sacred land to the Necydalians. The Psyllo Hive was well within the inner circle of those Holometa entrusted her secrets to. That Hive's territory also held some sacred jewels that were the target of heists by Lepturobans prior to the formation of the Holometa Hive alliance that united all the Dorcasom types.

They were then hit by flash bombs that came from Morphians that had the traits of some Lucanids, Narkelegens, and Lepturobans. They were within the trees above them, sneering at the Dorcasom before them. They proceeded to drop down on the young queen and her entourage, cackling on the way down to their prey.

The Viren Twins slashed through some of them, protecting the young queen as her mother had ordered them to since her ascension to the throne. They and the Lucanids were able to slash through some of them with their pincers vibrating at high frequencies and the Lucanids' acid spit eating through some of these Morphians' newly acquired durable exoskeletons. However, some of the Lucanids started falling to the Morphians' numbers and their ability to regenerate and adapt to their tactics.

Hymeno then eventually shot out a paralytic stinger at a Morphian that was about to hit Akime Viren, causing the creature to foam at the mouth in agony. The Viren Twins were in shock their queen did that.

Akime Viren asked, "Your Highness, why would you..."

Hymeno interrupted, "I can't just do nothing while everyone around me dies to these monsters, and I wouldn't be able to bear to see you two die before my very eyes. War is Yunamikar after all."

Hymeno coughs up some honey mixed with blood from her mouth.

Piodes Viren looks at the young queen with concern and explains, "You shouldn't use that power the soldiers can use more easily. You use any more of those, and you're..."

Hymeno waves a hand to silence Piodes as more Lucanids come in to deal with the Morphians. She then explains, "Don't trust the queens of the Hive within the inner circle of the High Queen."

These words were similar to the words spoken to them by Hymynn on her death comb.

Hymeno then told the twins, "You must follow these final orders as your queen and your friend, Akime, Piodes. Do whatever it takes to bring down the ones responsible for this Morphian calamity, and the deaths of me and of my Siric Hive children!"

The Viren Twins were in shock that Hymeno would suggest treason against the Holometa Hive, but with all that they considered, they nodded to her and flew off, slashing through Morphians along the way.

Hymeno shot another paralytic stinger at a Morphian that tried pursuing the twins from behind, shooting it down. She was surrounded by many sneering Morphians in the twins, as she coughed up honey mixed with blood.

The creatures spoke, "Swallow the will of all things..."

Hymeno then prepared the remaining stinger she had.

She muttered as the Morphians came at her, "Orkudra, protect them."

The Viren Twins heard that their queen had fallen as they got out to the furthest part of Erebuk. The loss of the queen they were sworn by the previous Siric queen to protect was felt between the two. They had to keep going because if they had time to mourn, the enemy would kick them while they were down, and they had a dying wish to fulfill. They were going towards Neydat, land that hadn't been touched by the Morphians yet. They had to go there to find brethren they hadn't seen in a long time, not since the Holometa Hive was formed.

This battle was far from over for all involved, but for the Viren Twins, this was personal, and they won't rest until the Queens pay for their arrogance that had brought about the end of Sokondro.