After my ‘talk’ with Queen, and a good night’s rest, I awoke refreshed and full of energy, ready to tackle the day.

Not.

“Are you feeling alright? Your drive to work was so strong yesterday.”

“Dunno. Just don’t feel like it right now.”

While the hive members were busy as bees, either building or wax-making or gathering or any number of important tasks, I was taking a…break. Yes, just a simple break from working. I probably needed one, after all. So, I was lying in the same place I had fallen asleep, absently chewing on a chunk of meat.

“You call this a ‘break,’ but the sun has been in the sky for hours. At least, I believe it has; the clouds are just too dark. Since you love compromise so much, how about this: you do not need to do actual work but observe the work of some of the workers. No need to put deeper thought; simply watch.”

That was actually my plan. I was dying to be productive to some degree, so I had decided that on my break today, all I would do was watch the bees work. Queen was right. I had been sitting here long enough.

I tore off another bite of meat.

Disgusting. I wished for more tasty dishes. I’d have to get Bella some help or materials asap. Unfortunately, this was all I had.

So I ate another bite.

Alright, now I’m going to head out to oversee the bees. Although… work like that didn’t require much effort, right? Maybe I could leave that task for tomorrow. I’ll be doing actual work tomorrow, after all. Why not group up this task with work?

Disgusting. Not the meat. I had gotten used to its taste long ago. No, what I found disgusting was myself. I wanted to work, to be productive. So why couldn’t I just go?

My stomach gurgled. A familiar feeling tore through it, but something else happened. For the first time, the familiar gross stomach feeling was spreading, consuming me. Why did I ever stop to think? Everything had been fine when I ignored myself. Keeping busy was exactly what I needed; no need to stop and think about anything other than the task at hand.

What was this? Had another enemy appeared? I needed to be busy. I needed that distraction. Please, body. Just go work. Do something.

“…You have stopped spinning the stick.”

“I am sorry, Enno, but I do not know what is happening. This sickness of yours is intoxicating. I will do everything in my power to help.”

Queen? Could she help? She had no influence over the world; she was trapped in my mind, just like me. Her humming was getting a bit too loud for my taste.

Warmth began to accompany the humming. I lurched as an overwhelming feeling of wrong crashed into me, and a quick glance at my status showed what had happened.

[Mind Locks:

* Life (5%)

* Float (0.66%)

* Kin Link (0.18881%)

* Compartmentalization (0.01%)

]

…

* Compartmentalization (0.02%)

…

* Compartmentalization (0.03%)

This was extraordinary! Queen was manipulating the Lock herself!

As she did so, some of the fog began to lift from my head. It felt like Queen was pushing the gross feeling into a box of its own, numbing me to its effect. It wasn’t gone, just being held back. But even that was enough to clear my thoughts. It would have to be enough for now.

“Queen, I… I’ll never be able to repay this,” I shot upright. That boost was just what I needed at the moment. “Let’s change the subject to something cheery. Holy hell, you just used Mind! This is amazing!”

All I got in response was a weak yet joyful buzzing feeling. Queen’s actions weren’t without consequence, it seemed. Such a feat must have been near impossible to pull off.

Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon.

Shaking off bits of meat from my carapace, I exited the nursery into the setting sun. I knew the sun was setting because the ever-present dark was getting darker in one direction but still barely bright in the other.

When would some sunlight appear?

Queen’s herculean effort had given me another chance. Despite that, the gross feeling growled in its cage, making it clear we weren’t done yet. Too bad, gross feeling. The clarity Queen gave me has made something abundantly clear: I was needed. I had defeated Vulch; that feeling was yet another enemy that wanted to hurt the hive. I would do everything in my power to do what was needed while fighting this battle. I had done it before against the vultures; all I needed to do was fight again.

Easier said than done, though.

_______

If I wanted to observe the bees working, I would prefer to see them in person. Six groups, each with their own expertise and tasks. How in the world did I keep track of it all?

“I have arrived, Mother. Are you ready to oversee the hive?”

Oh hell yeah. Good ol’ Beatrice.

“Yeah. Lead the way.”

Beatrice led me to a hole in the side of the hive’s center, and we peeked into one of the few rooms. Belle was hard at work making wax within her own wax-making chamber. In fact, she seemed to be working even more frantically than usual.

“I knew you would notice, Mother. It is quite a conundrum. Her workload is only slightly relieved by the wax-maker policy.”

“Er, conundrum? Because she’s working so fast?”

“As expected. The drastic increase in construction has resulted in an unexpected consequence.”

Oh! Of course.

“Ah, I see. The demand for wax has exploded because construction is happening more quickly, right?”

Beatrice nodded her agreement. This was a conundrum. Couldn’t-

“As if that weren’t bad enough, the new generation cannot help with wax production. Unfortunately, neither the Construction nor Gathering Drones seem capable of creating wax at all. Truly strange.”

Ah. Actually, that also made sense, in a way. I remembered one of the options I could obtain for leveling up egg-making was called a Wax Drone. These drone-type bees seemed highly specialized and couldn’t do anything besides their original purpose. Did that somehow influence their apparent lack of higher thought, perhaps?

“In any case, if this keeps up, then I would suggest that no matter their talents, the entire new generation of Simple Workers should be engaged in wax production.”

I’d have to think about that further, but not now. I was opposed to forcing the workers into wax-making, but if that was what we needed to progress…

“I think that’s enough. Lead me to the next, hm?”

“Very well, Mother.”

Belle wasn’t the only bee ‘confined’ to the hive’s center. Another opening on a different side of the hive revealed an even smaller chamber, sporting only darkness and Beck. I noticed none of the glowing crystals were anywhere to be found in Beck’s tiny chamber. I wonder why?

“In truth, I am unsatisfied with Beck’s productivity. Their research is certainly interesting, and I appreciate the help they provide me in creating the map of the forest. However, as you can see, they spend all their time doing so.”

I didn’t see anything wrong with it. I understood Beatrice’s overpowering need for productivity, but Beck’s capabilities just didn’t fit anywhere… visible at the moment. It was quite interesting that a bee hatched whose desires and skills were essentially irrelevant to the hive for a while.

“Leave Beck be. I’m… trying to trust in their ability to do what needs to be done without micromanagement. Let’s move on.”

“Er- I-“ Beatrice actually sputtered. Just how much of a control freak was my eldest child?

“I admire her tenacity. Although, I am nowhere near that controlling. She must get it from you.”

Hee ha ha. Shush.

Beatrice slumped in resignation and led me away from the hive. Beck and Belle were the only bees who actually worked in the hive’s interior, so the rest were scattered around our territory. Not far from the hive’s center, a clearing away from the river without many charred trees saw a hectic battle.

Wait, what?

I wasn’t dreaming - the clearing was a sight of carnage and grumpy warrior bees. Bedivere hovered in the middle, casually dueling with several warriors at once. I noticed the leader warrior among those desperately fighting, but it didn’t matter.

What the hell had I eaten to make Bedivere?

Speaking of, the gigantic warrior noticed Beatrice and me observing and nodded in our direction. The warriors were so focused on their impossible task that they didn’t notice us at all. I admired their unceasing effort -surely they would eventually be an elite fighting force.

Then he embarrassed the newbees.

Apparently the bastard had been going easy on them the whole time, because in the blink of an eye, the remaining fighters suddenly found themselves bottoms-up on the ground.

“That is enough for today. Stand at attention for the queen!”

His shout visibly shook the warriors, and they finally noticed us. They scrambled to get up and salute, but some were just too tired and flopped back down.

“Er, at ease. Ya’know, maybe from now on, we don’t need to do the elaborate greetings every time I show up? We’re just here to see how you’re all doing.”

“Understood. All of you report to the dining hall. Eat a hearty meal and rest well. Tomorrow we will begin training.”

Wha?! The warriors seemed just as shocked as I did. Beatrice, on the other hand, was smiling.

These poor guys. So today hadn’t even been actual training? What the hell? As the sixteen children dejectedly buzzed back to the hive, I suddenly regretted this delegation idea. How was I supposed to know Bedivere would be a drill sergeant from hell?!

“I am quite pleased, Bedivere. Your methods will surely be as effective as you had described.”

Of course, she was in on it. I swear, these two… Man, am I glad I’m their boss! Wait. If the drill sergeant from hell and a demoniacally efficient secretary were my underlings… did that make me the Devil?!

Oi Queen, are you sure I can’t put Beatrice in charge? I feel like my image is on the line here.

“Ha! you’re funny.”

Huh?!

“So then, how long until they can begin guard duty? Have you decided on a rotation?”

My musings were interrupted by Beatrice. Actually, this was something I wanted to know. I decided to stop thinking of my inevitable fiery empire and return to the slightly more important conversation of hive defense.

“Quite. They are rough around the edges, that is certain. Even so, I will have them begin guard rotations after two training sessions.”

Guard rotations after two sessions? Wait… was he going to have them train and stand guard? I had to stop this monster!

“As for the rotation, my thoughts are this: each corner of the hive’s border will sport two warriors, while the six most accomplished warriors will guard a side each. After fighting them, I have a good idea for the five side guards, but the last eludes me.”

“Fantastic, Sir Bedivere. No matter what, each wall will be effectively protected while having reinforcements nearby. Ah,” she pounded her fist into her palm, “Perhaps a true rotation would also help? The guards will shift to the next corner or side every so often. That way, they would not become bored or distracted, and keep them active during slow periods.”

“A wonderful idea! That plan could also allow the warriors to become intimately familiar with every inch of the hive’s border.”

Something about that explanation was weird. Sides? Corners? What was that all about?

“In fact, this may be a good time to visit Bess at the border. Would you care to join us, Sir Bedivere?”

“Naturally. I would take any opportunity to personally escort my queen.”

What could I even say anymore? This time it was my turn to slump in resignation and follow the leader. I could only hope Bess’s simple, straightforward attitude would be less confounding.