Mimi, The Detective

Six days were left before we had to leave. The trio had left for the home village of Bo'sun and Helmsman. The Hive made it's preparations, Rose slowly working on the provided outposts to the East. I failed to communicate with Richard, and he surprised me by buying a wagon for our journey with the coin I had given him for supplies. He laughed it off, when he learned I had a wagon already purchased, offering to return it. I declined, since his looked a little nicer.

I spent the rest of my day visiting the dead drops for the final requests Vivian had to offer. Everything she was potentially worried about, or suspected. There were five in total, with varying degrees of difficulty. Each one she would have had Brian do, but his focus was elsewhere. Leaving the majority of work to Wyatt, who only knew how to approach these kinds of things in a direct way.

The old wagon I purchased was busy being repaired by the Hive, while Richard's was given a sort of wax coating I wanted to try out. He explained how I didn't have to pull them both if I didn't want to. That it might be seen as demeaning, and yet that was what made them perfect for our approach down South. The Fire Kingdom was opposed to monsters having any sort of rights, and the zealots became worse the further we planned to go.

On the fifth day I gave Richard more coin to gather supplies and gear for our trip. He mentioned getting blue haze from Lewis, as well as dried foods and plenty of water. I smiled at his foresight, before heading to one of the places on Vivian's list. It was a small bar recently hit by one of the thug groups in the slums. The damage was enough that the place itself was closed. The task was a simple hunt to find the people responsible and turn them over the the Guard with evidence.

I moved into the bar, finding no one there. Harpers with black hair leaving bits of coin, and glass as payment as they went about their lives. I saw the wooden door broken inward, against the hinges. A feat that suggested some impressive strength or magic. It was more surprising that no body reported hearing any sounds on the day of the attack. I moved behind the counter, going over the missing bottles. There were too few missing for it to be common thugs. They came for something specific, and it was starting to look like it was more than the coin.

I saw the deposit box where coin was placed after a sale, the front torn open with a hint of black blood along the hinges. It had dried already, but the feeling I got was from a vampire of some kind. My escort had the scent, and the crime scene was only a couple days old now. The only reason I decided to do this little hunt first. I moved up the stairs, the floor creaking from my weight before I used the shadows under my feet to stop that. The upstairs was dim, my scouts filtering out and finding minuscule droplets on the walls and floor to confirm the vampire went this way.

Whoever they were, they were trying to keep a low profile after tearing the safe open. I followed the trail to the very back where the owner kept their records. I entered the room to find it pristine, not even the dust on the top of the cabinets or desk disturbed. Save for a damningly clean drawer that was clearly opened and closed frequently. I pulled it open, finding files and bank notes. Most of it going five years back, with ties to a lower noble, that hinted at them opening the bar and selling it to their 'friend' for cheap.

Some of the bank notes were clearly missing, but it made no sense given the bank would have duplicate copies as well. I memorized the name of the bank, before leaving the room and closing the door as it had been. Everything put back the way I found it, as I continued to follow the trail for the thief's exit. It led me to an empty room with a broken window, not unlike the others on the ground floor. This was made to look like a random robbery, or intimidation from a local group of thugs, but it was clear there was something more going on here.

I peeked outside the window, finding scratch marks on the wall of the building next to the bar. It was day time, and so the vampire would stick to the sewers to both hide his movement, and keep his base a secret. By this point I should just report what I've already found to the Guard, and move on to the next request, but I still had plenty of time left and everyone else was handling their jobs well. Curiosity spurred me onwards.

I jumped out of the window, with my escort clinging to me. Quietly grabbing the wall, and climbing up it to the roof. There were a few droplets of black blood, confirming that the vampire was using it to quickly leave the scene. I followed the direction set by the trail, moving quickly from building to building. Finding more droplets every few buildings, with the direction changing suddenly a few times. Finally I arrived at what appeared to be a dead end, and looked around to find a manhole leading to the sewers only a few alleys from the last few droplets. I landed in the darkness, a few common thugs moving around nearby. My scouts found the scent, a bit fresher than the blood, meaning the perp was using this as their way of getting in and out of the sewers.

I lifted the manhole, jumping down into the sewers. The place held a welcoming dark, my eyes allowing me to see everything just fine. The smell wasn't that bad surprisingly, with a constant flow of clean water taking the filth to one of the many holes that led deeper into the Underground's system. The sewers were clean enough, and tall enough for me to walk through without having to slouch like so many buildings I entered. My scouts were able to pick up the vampire's scent, and we began following it again.

There were a few slimes hanging on the ceiling, but none of them made any moves to drop down on myself. The viper rats quickly ran away whenever they saw me, while other small creatures either swam through the water, or used the sewage pipes to stay well away. The scent ended right against a wall with a few runic markings on it. I could smell the blood of a few humans creeping out from the cracks that allowed the sewer air to enter.

I knocked on the wall, listening to the echos from behind it, my ears giving me a good layout of the room and the three women inside. A fourth one was laying down, in a dormant state, suggesting they were the vampire. It was everything I needed to force my entry. I crashed through the door, my wings deflecting most of the rubble away from me. The vampire's eyes snapping awake, but unable to utter a word as I grabbed her by the neck. The other three women were in a daze, clearly under the effects of domination. The vampire fruitlessly tried clawing at my chitin.

I felt magic, and even the divine power of a talent flare up. The vampire was a ki user like Brian, and all the noise in the area was suddenly silenced. I tossed the vampire against the opposing wall outside her haven, before she could even strike me. She coughed up blood silently, her fangs bared at me, as she tried to use domination. I smirked, allowing the connection, and forcing her into a deep slumber. Using her own mind, I undid the domination she had used on the three women that began screaming.

I tore off their shackles, finding a box with all the documents and bank notes that had been stolen. A bit of explaining later, and I was carrying the vampire and one of the three women who were too weak to walk. A few questions were asked, but simply telling them I was taking them to the Guard gave them all the trust needed to follow after me. I had all the evidence, and Gray was told where he could find and repair another Haven for his bodies. Which he set upon with one of the ones he had working on his teleporters.

I went through the vampire's memories, learning what this was all about. Her connections to a few minor nobles, and some local slum lords. Her talent was useful, but eating her would just make the situation more difficult than it needed to be. I draped my wings over the vampire, keeping her from the sunlight when we walked onto the streets closest to a Guard building. A few hours were spent explaining everything and the evidence. I left before Wyatt even had the chance to arrive, going on to the next job as the sun started to set on Eclipse again.

The next two requests were laughably easy as it was simply tracking the movements of the gangs, and the supplies being moved. It was simple enough that I only had to send a couple scouts onto the boxes, and workers inside the corners of their fake businesses. I considered setting up a nest, but that would just be too big a hint that I was watching the gangs as they moved. The others could do this to maintain easy relations with Vivian later. The reports given didn't account for everything, since some of the people were working for Kobe. Which meant the more illegal contraband would make it difficult for me to get my own goods when I returned.

I took the time to return to our home on the fields, resting with Richard. We ate together, and talked more these days. His progress was slower than my own, but he was still making progress. He talked a little about trust, and how it hurt him to not know every member of the Hive. It wasn't an argument, but a point that he wanted to discuss. Which meant the rest of my night was spent idly explaining who the members were, before we fell asleep together.

We woke up with four days left, and I only had two remaining jobs to take care of for Vivian. We ate breakfast, while I asked Richard if he wanted to climb a wall with me when we left. To see the sunrise, and the forest we were going to traverse. He teased me a little, by saying it was a good way to get the blue haze outside without the guards taking it. Then he smiled, promising to enjoy the view with me. He wanted Pandora to be there, but she wasn't quite ready to join our adventure, or leave the Underground without protection.

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The day started well, as the last two jobs involved scaring a couple of thugs for information. Explaining how terrible their lives could be if I didn't get what I wanted, did the trick just fine. One of them was a little cocky, knowing about my exile. He was terrified after I gagged him with some silk, and threw him up to the top of a building then threw him higher, before catching him at the bottom of the alley. The final reports were sent through the guards Vivian wanted them sent through.

I was done with everything that I needed to do, making the night and three days I had left rather empty. I spent the remainder of that specific night outside the walls to do some more practical training with the suppression magic I was taught. The sun was rising on the fifth day, when I reached the edge of my link with the Hive. Whispering wolves that saw me quickly fled, while I climbed up into the branches to just focus on controlling myself.

Slowly I felt the voices grow more quiet by the hour. The others had a firm grasp on the pain they had to deal with, so disconnected posed no issues. Here at the edge, I would be forced out of my body while it went berserk, but I could reconnect at anytime. I needed to understand why this happened, what made it act that way. Night had come when I finally felt the pain in my own body, with less than five hundred connections. It was my soul, or my body's lack of it whenever it went berserk. My body wasn't adapting to my soul, because it was spreading out among my Hive. The Hive was my vessel, while the body wasn't ready to hold it alone.

I smiled to myself, even as my body shuddered under the strength of what I was. I needed to strengthen it in a way I could not sense before. I needed to prepare it so it could hold what we are. It might take weeks, but it was something to do while traveling through the forests. It would be easier to achieve out there with just a wagon holding tens of thousands of my bugs. I searched a little trying to find the optimal number, deciding that while we pressed forward, I could just make Hives to link me back to Eclipse when needed.

Then it hit me, this was what the king meant by contacting each other once a month. I had thought I would leave a copy of my personality in Eclipse to handle a few things, but that bastard had as much planned from the start. Which meant he knew I would take this course, and that I was still following his plans. It was annoying to know that I would tell him as much in the future, while it also confirmed we would become decent friends.

I wasn't about to compromise the benefits of having a network of Hives set up in the South, just because my plans aligned with his. It didn't hurt to follow the outline. Especially if it kept him on our side, and the others safe. I took a second, to realize that the Hive didn't come first to me anymore. I looked through a few memories trying to find where this shift came from. It was a combination of factors, with the biggest one being that I knew my Hive would survive without. That I could afford to sacrifice tens of thousands of my bugs without making a dent in the population or the amount the Breeders could produce.

I had to protect those members that couldn't be reproduced. The bugs had become a tool, for ensuring safety, and dealing with threats on a scale I couldn't with this single body. I looked up at the stars in the sky, happy that my Hive no longer really needed me anymore. That I was free to go out there, and find new sources of strength to make it even stronger. I knew from how the elites spoke to each other, the tension their little meeting caused, I knew I would always be their Queen.

I took a peek to spy on Richard to see him preparing dinner while humming to himself. The flow of information coming back to me as I teleported with the eyes of the bugs Rose controlled. A quick breach of the outer walls and I was inside, on my way to enjoy another night with him. I looked forward to his cooking, I had given him two children already. According to the memories of those minds we claimed in the Underground, this meant we loved each other. Though the bond we shared suggested there was something missing.

He smiled at me, putting a plate on the table before making his own. I waited for him, going through the memories of those that felt they were in love. I couldn't figure out what was missing. I knew Richard would never leave me, but our bond felt like that of close friends instead of lovers if I was looking at it right. Richard sat down, digging into the food. I did the same, it was enjoyable as always.

Richard felt me looking over his bond, raising a brow, but not saying anything. A few minutes passed while we ate in silence, before he finally spoke. "If you have a question, just ask it." He smiled at me, while going back to the pot and bringing it over to fill my plate with seconds.

"I am trying to figure out why our bond isn't deeper. You're able to use mind magic in a sense that it's helping you think clearly, yet I'm not able to use alchemy yet. I thought our connection would be much stronger than where it is."

Richard shook his head looking up at the ceiling as he put the pot back on the stove. "You're trying to move too fast, and you're thinking of love as a goal, an objective. Something where you cross a certain line, and boom it's yours. I can feel you offering everything you can, because that's how you think it should be. What if I told you there are different kinds of love out there?"

I nodded slowly, seeing that the love one held for a pet, their child, and their lover were different. "I would agree, but what does this have to do with us and our bond?"

Richard took a bite from his plate, making me wait while he chewed his piece. He was the only one that would do this to me. He could use our bond to communicate, but the seconds ticked past before he finally swallowed it. He laughed a little, before speaking, "I figured you out, is all."

"Richard, you know there are no games, no tricks here. That the affection I offer you is genuine. Why are you denying me?" I stared at him, leaving my food untouched for the moment.

"Because you want to become one, and make me a part of your Hive. I don't doubt that what you offer is genuine, but I don't want to be a part of some collective. It scares me, Mimi. Plus I'm still not over the king taking our kid, and you sending Pandora to act as a body guard to Cheshire. You hurt me, but I understand how you can think you did nothing wrong. I see glimpses of who you could be, and how amazing you are deep down. I do love you, but not in the way you are able to love me yet. I actually talked to a couple tamers, and figured it out from the rumors and stories they told me."

I took a bite of my meal, knowing he was right. A mixture of warmth and sorrow going through me. "Is that why you haven't finished getting all the supplies yet?" He opened and closed his mouth, looking a little embarrassed. I smiled at him, hating that he would put our affection above practical things we needed. There was still time though, "You know Richard, putting it like that, the way you phrased it. It's almost like you're suggesting my love is wrong."

Richard chuckled, "You know, Mimi, trying to force me into it like this. Well, it almost feels like you just want me for my sweet, sweet magic. I know alchemy is hard to find, and you read Oswald's journal. You're almost drooling over the chance to apply it with a few of your bugs."

I giggled a little, "You make it so hard to lie to you. You have caught me, but truly you should be grateful I even want your inferior magic. Even you need drugs just to be half as effective as me."

Richard got up, rocking his arms over his chest in a playful manner. He pretended to be upset, but his bond showed he was enjoying this as much as me. "Oh look, I'm a mind mage. I can trip whenever I want, and talk in people's heads. All we have going for us is how we use magic to make us smarter. Better than sewer crawling alchemists pouring alcohol into cracks to get the kernals out of them."

I laughed, before he broke out laughing with me. It was a shame so many considered the magic we used to be inferior to elementalists, or more direct types. Though it was also why so many that wanted to become something more clung to figures like Oswald. Still Richard got his point across, I needed to not try and force him. Asking him about that could be seen as rude, even though he accepted that part of me.

Richard grinned at me, finishing his food, while I did the same. "You know... I kind of still wanted to see Ember hatch, Mimi. It's sad to think she'll never really get to see us in person. Not until the king is done doing whatever it is he's doing with her. It hurts so much, but I know there's nothing we can do about it right now."

I nodded slowly, "He's just a stepping stone, I'll have the power to overwhelm and destroy anyone or anything on this planet. Then, no one can do something like that to us ever again. He better hope that we become friends with him, as he said. Otherwise I'll make certain he suffers."

Richard shook his head with a sigh, "That's treason, now as a proud member of Eclipse I sentence you to exile for a whole year. Maybe nine months if you're on good behavior, or an important noble speaks up about getting you back sooner."

"I'm already exiled, but my tamer made me say it. I'm just a simple monster, that won't even wear clothes in public. It's what he talks about all the time." I shook my head, as Richard blushed.

"Wait, I thought you only felt like that whenever Spring came around." I looked me over, his whole face slowly turning red.

I grinned at him, "I can feel your emotions Richard. They feed me and my Hive. We need to take care of the one that feeds us, let me take away that delicious need. It's a safe season."

He laughed, taking the plates to a corner so the bugs could clean them. I dimmed the lights, while he took off his shirt, "See? This is what I'm talking about. This is why you're so damn amazing."

I undid the silk blouse I wore, letting my wings glow dimly to create the scene. The elastic chitin still covering the fun bits, since he enjoyed the little battles we had with moving them out of the way. "I'm explore Eclipse properly with the last days we have left. I want to find the perfect spot for us to sit when we finally leave, and the best places to check out when we finally come back."

Richard turned to me, a grin showing as he undid his pants. "I don't know why you'd bother, when I got the best sight in all of Eclipse right here."

I laughed a little, feeling joy from just making him happy with such a simple thing. We felt joy from making each other smile, and laugh. If his idea of love was more enjoyable than this, then I realized I wouldn't mind waiting until we could both understand it. I was looking forward to seeing where our journey would take us.

My final days were spent checking out the city for the first time since I came here. There was so much of it, that I couldn't see it all in one day. So many different slums, and districts. Churches like the temple of Bo'chi, that I hadn't even known about. The city itself was so vast, that even with the two days I had left, I couldn't find everything I wanted. There was still so much potential here, but that would be for the Hive to uncover in my absence.