By the time I reached the forest’s eastern edge, my legs were sore from walking. Such a bother, legs. Flying made much more sense.
Of course, by that time I had also been joined by a host of warriors and the Ben squad, excluding the titular scout himself. Shoving against each other to be the one to lead, ironically resulting in neither guarding my front, Belial and Belphegora followed closely behind, over two dozen non-Linked warriors in tow. Such a force may not have been necessary for a brief expedition just outside our familiar territory, but Bedivere, as our master of security, had deemed it prudent to put in place a policy whereby a Mother would be joined by no less than two of the Valkybees when venturing out. Beelzebub had been a staunch proponent of the idea as someone who experienced the might of the outside world, and Beatrice supported it as a matter of course. As for the warriors, who flew under the direct control of the present Valkybees, that was to ensure whatever fears the fernen had regarding their superstitions would be assuaged.
Speaking of. Taking up the rear was a peculiar pair I didn’t see alone often, that being Follo and Enfla. Their little group had also split in two, deciding to leave their leader and Elofan behind for the other mission. It made sense, but it was simply a dynamic I hadn’t expected. Enfla, as the primary source of their concerns, had insisted she come along, and Follo thought himself worthy of serving as an additional guard. No doubt true, but amusing all the same. Our bees, especially in such a force, would be more than capable of handling a small incursion. As long as the east did not somehow include half a dozen Somuian Knight Commanders, we would survive without their interference.
Personally, the idea of such superstitions coming true was utter nonsense. There was no evidence to support some sort of terrible omen, and their myths of directionality were pure coincidence. It assumed too many things, such as my control of Yelah’s body being some sort of ‘arrival’ heralding the arrival of other figures. Vlugh had yet to do anything since arriving, and there were any number of possible explanations for a gradual decrease in the river’s flow. In fact, the water level of the river had gone entirely unnoticed for days, and the difference was likely within a margin of error. Not that I could actually say what that might be. It seemed to me like hogwash at best.
“But it's something we’ve got to look into. Something I learned a long time ago was to question myths and legends like that because they must’ve had some truth to them at some point. For whatever reason. Maybe there isn’t some supernatural ‘crossing of fates’ or whatever as the fernen believe, but they already gave hints to some of the science behind it. The river cutting straight across the forest can bring things floating from the east, right? And they even mentioned the winds, so maybe storms or whatever could have ended up here in the past just thanks to some weather patterns. So there might be something weird going on. Plus, they probably know more about the river and stuff than we do. And Vlugh is a major concern, especially with the Link being wonky. See, I think you’ve been out of the decision-making process a bit too long, Queen. Where’s your caution?”
Enno was the main driver behind this immediate action. I appreciated his quick thinking and willingness to act, but…
“Perhaps you are right. But this seems a bit excessive, no? At least to come investigate what might very well be nothing more than a too-large boulder stemming a tiny bit of river water. I may be too far on the side of nonchalance, but you have long been a bit too quick to err on the side of paranoia.”
He huffed in defiance, and I felt my legs grow heavier. How annoying! My feet hurt! I had long since crossed the threshold from where I could properly use my Mind, so I was relying on this dolt to make my life slightly easier, and he goes and begins a childish spat. In the days following my transfer, we had discovered the extremely annoying limitations of our Mind, but in due time some remedies had been found. Essentially, I could only channel Mind originating at our bee body, and he could only channel Mind originating at our human body. Fortunately, our Mind was so powerful that distance was a non factor in the central hive. Even going as far as the dome, and just barely outside of it, I could still affect the area around my human body even if the power originated from Enno’s body sitting in the central. Thus making our life slightly easier. If anything, as we practiced, we saw the potential for great applications of this power. We could, essentially, remotely control the area around us, providing we stayed within a certain distance. I could wander to the wall of the dome and still, as I had done earlier, try to make a rock hover in the air. Or, more preferably, Enno could use a decent portion of our Mind around where my body happened to be, mostly from the limitation of 5% he had encountered prior.
Perhaps it was a bit too fine and dandy. Technically, thanks to the power of our Mind, such a thing would always have been possible, with diminishing returns thanks to the distance. It was mostly thanks to the change in perception that it became a more useful tool. However, after a few days of testing and training and study, once we discovered such a cheat, we became complacent, I would be first to admit. I was perfectly content to wander close to the central hive, meeting with our bees or speaking with the fernen, staying nearby to allow Enno the luxury of more Mind while conveniently skipping training sessions. And Enno was content to do the same. After all, when would I be leaving the hive?
And so, here we were. I tried my best to control the greater portion of our Mind to allow Enno to march onwards towards his current goal, and he lightened - now ignored - the load on my aching joints. One thing was for sure: I would not be ignoring Mind training any longer. Perhaps it would not be so bad in the case of my body, since Enno was far more proficient in Mind than I, so while 5% was small in the case of our overall power, it was quite significant, generally speaking. In his case, on the other hand, well, part of his current defiance might have had something to do with me struggling to make him float at a consistent speed. I had learned, thankfully, how to keep our bee body upright, but the finer control of moving forward without jerking about still escaped me.
“Can I blame you for slacking off? I think I can. I mean, I can use Mind just fine.”
“You can put on a lid on it, that is for certain. I simply have not had the time.”
“Excuse. Look, I know it sucks because you’re good at everything, but in this case, it’s just something you’ve got to practice. Mind wasn’t insanely hard for me to figure out in terms of the basics, sure, but that’s for all sorts of reasons. And you’ve got all sorts of reasons you’re not great at it too. What matters is that you practice and get better. And figure out how to drive this thing because I might be starting to feel some motion sickness. Can I even feel that sort of thing?”
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A quip nearly escaped me, but I held my thoughts back. Not that it mattered, since he would know of my reflections, regardless. But it was an unusually encouraging little note from Enno, and it did make some thoughts sharper. He had come to this world with preconceived notions of similar powers, and had adapted quickly to the feel of it. Perhaps there was something to be said of natural talent, but as things tended to be when it came to Mind, it might have had more to do with perception. As a bee, Mind was not something to ‘use’. My mother had most of it reserved for maintaining a Kin Link, and the rest was solely to lay eggs. It was the bee way. It may have been safe to say that without Enno’s unique perspective, even if I had managed to survive that day, I would have perished. He was right. In this situation, what I needed to do was practice, alter my perception and improve. There was no other choice.
“Gosh, Queenie, what gave you that idea? You need to try? For stuff to work? What a genius you are.”
As usual, young Yelah’s commentary went ignored. Instead, I tried focusing on putting each foot in front of the other, walking along the riverbank, while also keeping Enno’s pace reasonable. Eventually, he graciously supported my trudging legs again.
“Mother,” Belphegora said suddenly. “Please wait. Belial has spotted something ahead.”
“I can tell her myself.”
“She would already know thanks to the Link.”
“So why did you tell her, you asshole?”
“You were too slow.”
My legs ground to a halt at their warning, and though they continued bickering in their Minds, they both moved in front of me without missing a beat. The swarm of warrior bees surrounded me, guarding every direction without leaving a blind spot. The pair of fernen moved forward, conspicuously keeping out of the swarm’s reach.
Thanks to Belial’s eyes, I could see what lay ahead. A dam. An honest to goodness dam. Sitting further up the river, past the point where the fernen had once made camp, was a dam that did not fit any definition I could conceive. If anything, it was closer to a structure from Enno’s world. The entire reason the word ‘dam’ came up in my head at all. Rusted metal stuck up from either side of the bank at least four meters tall, arising from four corners to prop up bits and pieces of metal carefully constructed to hold the river water back in an odd dome-like shape. The structure was incomplete, or perhaps not in operation, as water still flowed freely into our side of the river, but I could see how further completion of the dam would stem water flow almost to its entirety. It was truthfully an unholy abomination, something between an iron dome and a human dam from Enno’s world, not fitting into either category cleanly.
“What in the forest’s name is that?” Follo’s voice was low and measured. His question was not rhetorical, and although he waited for an answer, Enfla was silent, only staring at the bizarre thing in seeming confusion.
“Enfla. Are you aware of what a dam is? The structure to block the flow of water?”
My question prompted her to slowly shake her head.
“Perhaps, but not like that. I’ve never seen anything like it.”
Exercising caution, we made our way to the structure, which became intimidatingly large up close. It was all metal, sheets and bits and pieces of the stuff, most of it rusted but some of it clean. I even noticed some of the metallic spikes that still littered parts of the forest floor, broken and stretched out in some instances to serve the designer’s purposes. Whatever had created the thing had not only the knowledge and capability to create a large, sturdy structure, but the power to manipulate solid metal without any discernible tool or use of heat. Belial searched warily, and came upon a metal stake nearby, similar in appearance to the four corners of the dam. We all congregated around it, staring in confusion.
“I presume this was not the work of the fernen,” Belphegora said. I did not need to confirm with our companions.
“This was all done recently. We only finished moving from here a little over a week ago, and we never saw signs of something capable of similar construction. In fact, I would say it is likely the culprit is still nearby, considering what the Highqueen’s theory about it being incomplete,” Enfla said.
Follo was quick to respond. “Let’s destroy the thing, then. No point keeping it around if someone wants to block the river.”
“Hold on,” I said quickly. “It needs to come down, that is true, but we must first find the creator. Who knows for what purpose they created it? We should first demand they remove it and follow up as necessary.”
I looked towards Enfla to keep Follo in check, but for once the typically stone-faced woman saw shadows of conflict across her face. When she noticed me staring, curse these human features, she cleared her throat and spoke.
“Normally I would agree, but it is more than likely that the creator is the arrival of the east. Ensuring their actions are quieted is best for the future of the forest.”
“This again?” My hands flew into the air, which I found to be a perfectly acceptable response to utter confusion and annoyance.
Enfla’s eyes, despite being hidden under her mossy mane, narrowed.
“You obviously distrust our judgment, yet you came so prepared. How convenient.”
“To err on the side of caution, my dear sweet fernen. And just another reason to wait. This much might would convince any dam builder to reverse course.”
“You place too much trust in your children, Highqueen. What do you know of the world?”
“I can tell you-“
My ears were suddenly ringing and my bones running cold, only moments later realizing that a thunderous roar had exploded from a nearby outcropping of rock. The fernen were similarly disoriented, and my bees were not unaffected, but the Valkybees and the swarm of warriors were immediately in their response to the sudden threat. The metal pillar we gathered around instantly collapsed into the ground, but the Valkybees ignored it in favor of the monster that had emerged from the behind the outcropping, towering higher than any creature I’d yet seen, save for Behemoth herself.
Without missing a beat, Belial fired the guns he held in each arm, and Belphegora tore up dirt and stone in preparation. But the bullets impacted uselessly against the creature’s hide, and the whirlwind of debris screaming towards the monster suddenly stopped in its tracks. The ground beneath me shifted, and I noted with increasing calm that the air had begun to shift as well, warping around our entire group. Notably, it seemed centered around the now buried pillar. Everything had, even before the Valkybees attacked, taken on a distinctly brown hue. The Valkybees were still, which I found odd, until it became clear that they were frozen in place. Follo was still readying himself, but stopped in his tracks as something odd happened.
A cute teddy bear popped into existence just in front of us, wagging its paw in what seemed like disapproval.
“Incorrect!”
The sensation that passed through the Link made my mouth run dry. The teddy bear hadn’t spoken out loud, but in our Minds. And with that single word, the single emotion, pain erupted in Belial and Belphegora both. They fell to the ground, writhing, and I fell to my knees upon their pain. They became unable to breathe, no matter what they did, even though the rest of us were fine. It was something they could survive for certain, but watching them struggle in front of me hurt me more than any pain.
Across the way, the monster strolled causally into the area affected by the brown hue. There was no mistaking it: a bear. A massive one, with luscious brown fur and dark black pools for eyes. Enno’s world might have called it a grizzly bear, albeit one far more massive than his world could accommodate. Its rippling musculature hidden beneath layers of fur and tough hide went unused, as it simply strolled over and sat down, only a few meters away from us. The teddy bear remained floating, as if in wait.
From a massive paw, extended a single claw. Then, slowly, a second. A threat. Or perhaps a sign. We had to figure out this creature’s Ability as soon as possible, or risk defeat. Worse yet, we had to figure out its intent. Whatever the hell that might be.