Mimi

Di'Rex didn't lie about the village being a couple of days away. My scouts were able to smell the fields of harvested wheat even from a day away. The scent of anything wheat-related permeated the air itself. What surprised me the most was the massive clearing in the forest that gave way to crop. An entire circle carved into the forest, just for these fields. There was a road we had to circle around to find the path leading to the gates of tall wooden walls.

I sent scouts ahead and saw signs of recent repairs, but nothing on the level of Luf'Ard. The tainted blood of the vampires had veered for some unknown reason. This village was wholly intact despite the vampire army. My scouts could smell the people a few hours away from us. The ones working the fields were waving at us before they continued their work. It felt uncomfortable, but Di'Rex was relieved by the surprising wellbeing of this place.

The guards lazily patrolled their walls, looking every bit like a village guard. Old leather armor, with barely polished spears. The more concerning thing was that when my scouts found a group playing cards just behind the wall, one of them noticed my bugs. They appeared to know what they were and offered a small pile of sugar in their hand. "I don't like it here," I spoke loud enough so that Richard could hear me.

He looked around, Di'Rex walking beside the back wagon. "I kind of get that, usually people wouldn't be this friendly. Are you saying you want to leave?"

Someone was sneaking closer, an older human by the sound of them. Di'Rex noticed him and smiled. "I'm not sure, Richard." More scouts found bundles of flowers left hanging from the corners of homes. They knew we were coming, but why prepare so much? What was the intention?

"WAGH!" The older human had thrown something at Di'Rex, the battle cry made Richard jump. Di'Rex was laughing as he chased after the man, "I'm going to kick your ass, brother!"

Richard coughed, "I think it might be too late to leave now," the gates opened wide. I saw a statue at the center of the village, one crudely chiseled. Flowers covered the base, with four wooden poles rising to hold a roof that protected it from the elements. The words were hidden beneath the flowers, but I sent scouts to investigate. It might help to know what they worshipped.

We continued on the path, Di'Rex and his brother fighting with each other. The guards only gave us a quick glance, before resuming their game. I started to feel worse about this with every step. Finally, my scouts made it to the statue, crawling under the flowers. I was halfway through the gate when I read the words chiseled onto the base. "We welcome our protector, our saint of bugs, the daughter of Bo'Chi, Vespe."

I stopped, as Richard stood up. "Huh, that's a nice-looking statue." He waved at one of the guards that got up from their game.

"No, it isn't," I whispered just loud enough for him to hear. "This village is fine, we should go." I looked back at Richard, "I don't want to be here."

Richard raised a brow, as the guard spread his arms wide, "Welcome travelers!" Richard looked at the man, as I tried to figure out what priest made it here. Who convinced these people to make that shrine. "Please allow me to guide you to the building to house your wagon during your brief stay here." He bowed, as another guard got up, "Mark here shall guide you to our chief, Sir Richard."

Richard crossed his arms, "Okay, how do you know my name? I want answers, or we're leaving."

The guard let out a small laugh, "A few months ago our chief saw a vision of this village being raided by vampires. He's a soothsayer, so we began to plant garlic and purchased sacks of rice. He witnessed our village being destroyed, even as we fled away from the vampire army. Who was it that would have helped us repair and recover? It was you and your cherished saint." He gestured to me, "Alas, it is not my place to explain. Our chief wants to meet with you, Sir Richard. We have prepared gifts!"

I felt a shiver run down my spine, zealots terrified me more than anything else. What was I supposed to do with them? Telling them to stop was just testing their faith. Killing them just marked the one I killed as a traitor and undeserving. I could do no wrong in their eyes, they would cling to my every word. It was the exact opposite of what I wanted for my Hive. Richard put his hand on my shoulder, "They know about us, do you want to stay or just move on?"

The guard cried out, "Wonderful gifts! Please, stay the night! We..."

Richard glared at the man, "Shut up." The guard looked as if he was just slapped.

The guard named Mark coughed, "You don't have the authority! You..."

Richard shouted again, "I said. SHUT UP!" He walked away from me, to the edge of the seat to look down at the two. "It's her choice, and you should respect that." Thank you, Richard. He gave me the time I needed to collect myself, and consider what we should do. Richard was absolutely ranting at the two, while the other guards shied away.

I weighed the consequences of both outcomes, ultimately what pushed it in this place's favor was wanting to see how Di'Rex would react to all this. I smiled to myself, pulling Richard into a hug. I addressed the guards after he quieted down. "We shall stay and see these gifts. This man is my herald, so you will show him the same respect as would show me. Understood?"

Both guards quickly nodded their heads in relief. Richard got his face out of my mantle. He looked up at me, "If you want to leave, just let me know. We'll leave, okay?" He whispered to me.

I smiled at him, kissing the man. "Thank you," I whispered back, before setting him in front of the guards. "Please take me to the place you want me to drop off these wagons."

The first guard quickly nodded, "R-right this way, daughter of Bo'Chi." I waved to Richard, as the guard named Mark hesitantly guided him towards the chief's home. The building I was led to was a renovated storehouse, positioned on the end of two others almost overflowing with processed wheat. This one looked recently built. The guard quickly went to open the two doors, while the others that had been playing cards were quickly shooing any other person off.

I understood why as soon as the doors were opened just wide enough for my wagons to get through. The building was completely dark, built to make sure no sunlight got in. Twelve starving vampires were counting rice that steadily fell from sacks of rice mounted to the walls. I pulled my wagons inside, as the guard followed me. "How long have they been like this?"

"They are feral, revered daughter. We've kept them since the Count's army left our village. The statue of your person was the final straw that drove them away." The Count probably misunderstood the statue as a message from the king by the looks of it. "We have more gifts if this is not enough to please you. The chief has spoken of you turning these vampires into teleporters?"

These had already gone feral, and the men they had been, were already dead. This was a pleasant surprise, and it allowed me to create a network between this village and Luf'Ard. I nodded, before realizing the human couldn't see much in this darkness. "I shall, but they will require blood. Why were the guards the only ones to greet me?"

The man lowered his head, "Not everyone sees your kindness yet, not everyone believes in the words of our chief. Even us, the guardians of this village, were slow to understand. Long were the hours our chief spent arguing with us. In the end, we chose to trust his visions enough to leave this village so the vampires would find no blood, and then we returned after they had left. Their scouting part alone would have ruined us. Their filthy blood would have destroyed our crops and left us starving."

I see, this village is under martial law. The chief is enforcing his will through the threat of violence by these guards. I would have loved to chat with him while converting these vampires. There would be time later, and presumably more gifts. "Be glad that it is dark, the process you are about to hear is a brutal one. When you feel the prick, do not cry out. I shall send you away when I need more blood."

The man nodded his head slowly, "I will have the others set up their table nearby. There are only twelve of us guards in the village. Including the chief, there are seventy of us in total." There had been dozens working the fields. "I hope your presence might convince them to willingly aid in your miracle."

"We shall see." I hummed, while the workers moved larvae to the ears of the vampires. The workers were unnoticed and returned to the wagon while the larvae themselves crawled deeper into their ears. They changed once they were deep enough that the fingers of these vampires couldn't reach them. They reached the eardrum, and that was when the screaming started. I closed the door behind the guard while focusing on the process before me.

Brainstems were eaten and gnawed away at, as my jitterbugs buried their fleshy legs into the nerves. The vampires couldn't feel their brain being taken over, as it lacked the receptors to feel what was happening. Just the sharp pain of their eardrum being carved through, as it slowly regenerated. Without Gray to advance these bugs during his free time, it meant I would need to figure it out. I just hummed while considering the possibility of a tier two jitterbug. What might they give me?

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Richard Adams

I followed Mark to the biggest house in the village. There was a private garden, being worked on by an older woman that tended to the plants. Probably the guy's wife. There were two smaller statues on either side of the door. Kind of like the one in the center of the village. Now that I looked harder at them, I kind of saw the outlines of wings folded over the oval-shaped statue. The crisscrossing lines along the back meant to be dreads. Yeah, it was definitely meant to be Mimi without looking too much like her.

She already told me how much she didn't like the attention religious people gave her. It's nice to see she's getting along with Di'Rex well enough to stay for a day or two... No, she's probably doing it to get under his skin. I gave a small sigh, as the guard jumped. "H-have I displeased you?"

I looked at him, before shaking my head, "No, just thinking about something. Don't mind me. Is the chief home?"

The guy rubbed the back of his head, "Yes, Sir Richard. S-should I open the door for you, or what's the best way to approach this?"

"You did a good job, go join the others and I'll figure things out from here." I stepped past him, about to knock on the door.

"Come in." Came a soft, but low voice. Yeah, he can see the future, cool. I rolled my eyes, before stepping inside. An elderly man sat behind a desk with a straight beard falling past his chest. It was well kept but didn't have any braids in it. Still, he clearly took care of himself. He wore a nightcap, that had a puffy ball at the tip despite how it was folded behind his head. I appreciated the star design and the fact that he was wearing robes with those same stars. It looked like he either just got out of bed, or was about to go back to sleep.

He had a wrinkled face, with thin glasses resting atop his huge bulbous nose. Frazzled hair stretched out from under the cap, and I swear there was probably a bald spot on the top of the guy's head. He looked like one of those drug dealers that called themselves a wizard, despite almost everybody being able to do magic. Just the way he smiled at me made me think he was a bit crazy, even while he gestured to the chair in front of his desk.

"Greetings! Greetings! Welcome!" He closed his ledger, moving it under his desk. I took the seat, sitting in front of him. "How are you doing today, Sir Richard? I must apologize for having my boys come on a little strong. You see, we're just so excited to have our would-be heroes join us!"

I crossed my arms, "Surely you knew it wouldn't be enough to scare us off, so why did you want to talk to me instead of Mimi?"

He let out a small laugh, before clasping his hands in prayer and lowering his head. "Vespe is her name, but to be graced with the one she allows you to call her is wonderful. You see, I have a talent called 'Far Sight.' I can see farther than most as you might have guessed. Even as a soothsayer my talent allows me to witness things that might be well before they happen. Instead of weeks in advance like most, I can see the events that will happen in months. Sadly, it does blind me to what might happen in a week."

I nodded slowly, "Then you know she doesn't like religion right? The statues, and stuff, weirds her out."

He smiled warmly, "It's not for her, but her bugs and the ones coming after you leave. A few months from now a follower named Eric will arrive here. He's how we came to learn of Vespe's true nature as a daughter of Bo'Chi. Now, I am not calling your choice into question. I'm not upset that you wouldn't have told us while you were here, but I wanted to be prepared for him. I figured we might as well give it a shot, and the statue was finished just before the Count's army came. You can't imagine how surprised we were to find there was far less damage to our homes because of it."

That's strange, but if it works it works. I coughed, "Glad it worked out for you. It seems like you guys have everything under control, so was there anything you needed from us? Mimi kind of wants to get moving, and I don't want her to be uncomfortable."

The chief nodded, "Of course, did you know that some vampires have to count rice if it falls in front of them? What about how silver repels others, and garlic is like poison to others?"

I blinked, "Yeah? I read the monster manual, it doesn't work for a lot of them, but it is something to consider. Like how fiend blood can be used as a repellent. What's your point?"

He looked me in the eyes with a sudden intensity. "We captured a few of the rice counters, Vespe should be making teleporters as we speak. Do not worry, they were ferals as you might call them." I suddenly got a very bad feeling about this guy. "While you are gone, Mark, the vampire will come here at night. He is connected to the Hive, and is very happy about such." No, Mimi, you didn't.

I winced at the news, suddenly very worried about Luf'Fer. She would have told me, I need proof. "What did Mark look like?"

The man stroked his beard, "Red skinned, with bugs clinging to his shoulders. He likes wearing a suit." I held up a hand to stop him, my disappointment growing.

"Did he say the town belonged to the Hive or something like that?" I looked into the man's eyes.

He smiled and nodded enthusiastically, "He did, multiple times in fact. He was proudly saying the town's name was Luf'Ard now. That they changed it to be named after you. You must be so proud."

I shook my head slowly, barely holding back the tears. I asked her not to turn the vampires, to let them freely choose. She said she would, that she wouldn't do this to them. She promised, and it hurt to find out she lied like this. I buried my face behind my hands, "Yeah... I'm very... proud." I couldn't say it with confidence, my voice was wavering.

The Chief put a warm hand on my forearm, "You must be overcome with joy!" He chuckled, "Anyway, the vampires we captured are to be used instead of the bodies at Luf'Ard." I felt my heart drop even more. "Those teleporters are amazing, Sir Richard. A journey that might take one to three weeks just made instantly as we traded between our lands. Why, I've been waiting for your arrival so I could convince the others to build more storehouses. It's just so wonderful!" He laughed, almost bouncing in his seat.

"Yeah..." I couldn't hold it in anymore, as I knew where she got those vampire bodies from. I could already imagine how she probably made Mark, the vampire turn the others in town. The bugs taking them over, as she fused them together to make those terrible teleporters.

"Are you crying, Sir Richard?" He got me while I tried to wipe my face. He was still all smiles, "Fret not, I too have been moved to tears by her kindness. That is not the reason I wanted to talk to you though. When you reach your first city, you will find yourself in a great battle. You must be prepared!"

I tried to collect myself, "Prepared for what?" I croaked out.

He spread his arms, "The greatest battle the Hive will have ever faced! In less than a month you will reach the port city of Fis'Ton! There you will find an army sent by the Kingdom of Fire, on its way to attack Eclipse. While there, you will struggle, and just after leaving you shall find an army of monsters rising from the depths themselves! For the glory of Vespe, you must be as prepared as you can. Let her join that battle, and save the city! Let the bards sing her name, and spread the faith of Bo'Chi."

I swallowed hard, "What kind of monsters are we talking about? Aren't you worried she might die?"

He looked at me in disbelief, before uttering a prayer. "She cannot die, because she is the daughter of Bo'Chi. The few nightmares I had where she went silent were merely tests of faith! As her chosen, it is your path to help the goddess that walks among us, Sir Richard. I am much more afraid of the city falling without her aid. Think of the thousands lost, because you chose not to inform her. I know she would prefer to not speak to me, so I have sought you out instead. Promise me that you'll tell her, let her use the teleporters to bring as many as she can to the town of Luf'Ard."

I winced at the name, but he didn't call me out on it. I didn't know what to make of this, and I knew I couldn't say no. I just nodded slowly, "I will talk to her..." The man cheered, as I put my head on his desk. How could she do that to those people? No, she might not have done it yet. I could ask her to stop. I sat up, "I'll go talk to her now."

He gestured to the door with a warm smile, "I'll be here whenever you wish to talk. We have gifts for all three of you. Come ask me about them when you are ready." I gave him a nod before hopping off the chair. I barely managed to walk to the door, before I started running after I closed it.

I could hear the screaming in the storehouse and knew she had to be there. Di'Rex was already rushing towards the doors when he was tackled by five guards. "WAGH! Let me in!" He saw me, "Richard!"

"Keep them distracted!" The guards were already pale, as Di'Rex shrugged them off of him. They were confused by my words, allowing me to slip past to the doors. I struggled to force them open but saw Mimi shielding something from the light. Her hands were covered in black blood.

She hissed, "Close the door!" One of the guards forced it shut behind me as I grabbed the torch from my hip. The flames I had suppressed sparked to life, as light filled the room. I saw a gruesome scene that made my stomach churn. Vampire bodies laying on the ground, the flesh was torn and knitted together by bugs, while Mimi held one vampire's torso above the fused three. The ribs torn open and spread far wider than they ever should have been. The organs throbbed as a pile just laid there with bugs crawling on it.

I looked up at her, seeing her staring at me with surprise. "What did you do to Luf'Fer!?" I half asked, half demanded her to tell me.

She tilted her head, then smiled, as she turned back to her work. Bugs were falling off her wings to the intestines she tore open and had trappers knit back together. Some of the vampires groaned, as their skulls cracked stingers like her own falling just above their shoulders. "You mean Luf'Ard, I wanted to tell you sooner, but they changed the name. They recognized you as their new founder Richard."

I wobbled, my vision going blurry. "How could you!?" I fell to my knees crying, "H-how dare you!"

Mimi paused her work, to look at me. "What do you mean? They chose the name themselves. They willingly recognized you. Plus, Luf'Mi just sounds terrible, 'I am of mud.' It sounds gross, Richard." She went back to her work while I shook my head in disbelief.

"You forced them into your Hive! I thought you were better than that!" I barely saw her pause, as if considering something.

"What is this about, Richard?" She started walking towards me, as I heard someone slam at the door.

"WAGH!" Rex started to open the door, Mimi quickly went to protect the vampires with her wings so the sun didn't vaporize them. Guards were trying to pull the orc back but froze as soon as they saw me raise my torch. I let its light reveal everything. Rex forced his way in, "What is the meaning of this!"

Mimi hissed, "Close the door!" The guards hesitated but quickly decided to flee. Rex closed the door behind him, to my confusion.

"What's going on here?" He put his hands on his hips, walking right beside me. He tried to help me up, but I couldn't find it in myself to get up.

Mimi huffed, "That's what I'm trying to figure out, all while making teleporters."

Rex held me by the back of my quilt while I just barely managed to hold onto the torch. "She turned the town of Luf'Fer..." It was all I could manage. We destroyed them, I... after everything.

Rex tilted his head towards Mimi, "You broke him." His voice was low.

Mimi hissed again, "I didn't do anything! You weren't supposed to be allowed in here!"

Rex carried me closer to her, "I had come to thank you, but we have bigger problems."

Mimi sighed, "Yes, clearly. Richard, listen to me." She snapped her fingers. I barely looked at her. "The people in Luf'Ard, are fine. Tell me what this is about."

"Liar." Was all I could mutter, I barely registered the pain she sent through our bond. "LIAR!" I pointed the torch at her, then everything went dark.