Isaac The Crimson Dragon

I stalked along the roof tops, watching as people moved to hide away. Alice was marching her army through the territories of different gangs. Many of them thankfully believing that Mal was on the move again. Almost all of them chose to hide, or simply bunker down as the swarm parted around them. Those few idiots that thought it was a good idea to try and connect to steal just a couple bugs? Well, Gray gained bodies tonight. Alice was erratic, and not taking chances.

She was taking the straightest path to the Tribes, which thankfully led through the more neutral territories in the center. In the center of this ever marching wave of giant beetles, was the Queen. I shook my head, trying to distance myself from the idea. I was losing myself to the notion. Alice was in the center of it all, carrying her first love home.

I adjusted the cloak that clung to me, never did enjoy using one. My original body was taken back to the Minotaur to be burned as I asked, and so Gray just gave me one of the others he had laying around. I could see some nameless drunk throwing an empty bottle at the bugs. The second it hit one of the beetles, a tendril of fire rose from thin air. The man's head was erased, as another body fell to the ground.

I had to stop this, the lost girl was unstable and people were getting more wary by the second. This was a display of power at best, and a tantrum at worst. Alice was afraid, and scared. The people she knew before becoming a monster were either dead or wary themselves. I had those memories of her past given to me, how that demon forced her to fight to survive. Honestly, we were lucky she just wanted to grow her Hive until she felt safe. Everything she did, stemmed from that simple need.

I felt something, realizing that I could better see magic now. Cheshire teleported in the small open space around her. Gray was on guard, as the two talked. I asked him to let me hear what was going on, and we switched bodies. I saw her crying as she lowered her head. Cheshire looking Richard over. He frowned a little, keeping his voice calm. "We'll figure something out, but I need you to let me teleport you away from here. Please? Think of your kid at my place, they have been scratching at the wall for a good thirty minutes."

Alice lowered slowly nodded her head. "Please... I just want him to wake up and be okay..." My heart sank a little.

Cheshire opened a portal to what appeared to be one of his warehouses. He looked at us, before slowly speaking. "Will the bugs freak out if you aren't here? I need you to promise they won't attack anyone when we leave. I can't keep a portal open long enough, so they'll have to walk home. If you can't make that promise, then I can't help you."

The fire tendrils that sprouted up disappeared as Alice focused on Cheshire. She nodded slowly, walking through the portal. Gray spoke up as Cheshire moved to go through the portal. "With all due respect, we need to be beside her. The beetles and ourselves are protection, please do not strip her of everything."

Cheshire sighed, "Fine, hurry through then." Gray and myself did exactly that.

We entered the warehouse, to find Midnight and others were there. Alice murmured, "Nina," holding Richard out to her. Some kind of communication that I wasn't able to listen in on. The dark elf took Richard, handing him to a few others. Then gave her a hug as the girl fell to her knees crying. Gray followed after the boy, explaining that he needed to be able to watch anything they tried on him. That he needed to be there to let Alice know as quickly as possible if they managed to break the curse.

Richard was taken away, while Cheshire was clearly teleporting to make sure Alice kept up her end of the deal. A couple guards brought her Argus, and I chose to say nothing about how that wasn't her daughter. The last thing anyone needed was doubt in these vulnerable moments. I didn't even want to consider the very real threat this lost girl posed to the Underground if she lost it. She held the giant beetle close to her as she waited in a corner.

I lowered my head, it made sense that she didn't want the gang she was supposed to lead, to see her like this. Cheshire came back, reporting that the beetles were dispersing in different directions to make people less afraid. The room slowly relaxing, save for Alice still in her corner. Midnight stayed for a few minutes, before nodding and leaving to let Alice linger on her feelings alone for a couple hours. I inched closer, watching as others started to filter out of the room.

I could understand it, no one wanted to be stuck in a room with a monster. Especially not one that was more than capable of demolishing the building we stood in. If there was a time, now was it. I had to reach out to her, to help her. To teach her how to cope. I tried to reach out to her with a connection, using the memories I was given at the start. She was blocking out others from reaching her. She lightly stroked Argus, trying to comfort herself. I gathered my courage, touching her shoulder, "I'm sorry..."

She looked up at me, her eyes dim, but still holding a faint glow. I tried to connect with her again, to talk to her personally. To show her the memories I had of my daughter running away that day. To let her know the pain I felt, but she was refusing me. I frowned a little, tearing up. "Please... let me help you."

Her eyes glowed brighter as my vision went white from shock. I woke up in a completely white room, a small child sitting at a table. Only her hands and forearms were covered in the familiar ebony chitin. There were black splotches and bruises on her arms and shoulders. Two braided stingers that looked like strands of hair, falling behind her past her shoulders and curled around her neck. Those same silver eyes telling me this is how she probably saw herself in her youngest years. A sickly girl, malnourished and struggling to survive.

This white room felt wrong, but I knew we were connected. This was the lost girl I wanted to save. I wanted to check myself, to see how she saw me. I looked around finding a mirror that appeared on the wall. Did she put it there because I wanted to see, or could I control this world to some degree? I saw myself in my prime, save for the darkened skin and fangs. No, this was what I wanted in my youth. The power, the immortality, something she gave me. I looked back at her, to see her watching me. I must be scary to a little child like this.

I looked back at the mirror, doing what I could to will my form into the gentle old man I had become in my final years. It was like watching the years move past, as my body changed according to my whim. I turned back to the little girl, smiling gently at her. "What do you think? I'm nicer now, aren't I?"

She looked at the pure white table, "You look weaker..." Her voice was lighter, more hesitant.

I smiled at her, moving to the seat in front of her. I kept things slow, to let her know I didn't want to hurt her. "So..." I gestured at her when she looked towards me. "This is the girl that destroyed the Fiend's Eye." I let her feel the appreciation I had towards her actions, to try and let her know it was a great feat. "How does it feel?"

She put her head on the table, the two little bumps that would become her antenna never touching anything. "Like I lost a friend."

I leaned back a little, "You lost a friend? What do you mean? He's not gone yet, he isn't dead."

She peeked at me, shaking her head. "I'm losing you tonight."

I blinked, tilting my head towards her, "You know what I'm going to do?"

She let out a small sigh, "Yes, and I'm not upset over it. It just hurts a bit, but I needed to feel what it was like to be rejected right?"

"Rejected?" I stroked my beard, "No dear, I'm not rejecting you. I just want you to understand that not everything will work out the way you want it to. You can understand that, right Alice?"

She nodded, "Yes, I do. I won't force you to stay in the Hive. You can leave to see your daughter, so long as the heralds are kind. Even if they cast you into one of the hells, I will probably come into conflict with them. I will make sure your afterlife is pleasant for the knowledge you gave us."

I frowned a little at that, "I..." Something was wrong here, whenever I looked into her eyes I couldn't see the sadness I thought I would. Just a muted expression, watching my every movement. "Alice... you aren't a monster, you can't pretend this doesn't hurt you. I won't judge you for crying. What if Richard dies? How does that make you feel?"

She looked away from me, hopping off her chair, walking towards a wall as it opened to reveal a lush meadow. At the center was a large tree with a singular swing. She walked towards it, her feet already the same as her adult form. I got up, hobbling after her. "I'm not pretending it doesn't hurt. I said it felt like I was losing a friend. I am a monster, but I am a monster that hunts other monsters. Not the biggest, or the baddest, just the one that hunts them. If Richard dies, then I will grieve and use his death to my advantage like everything else. It will hurt, and my favorite body will mourn, but I will move on in time."

This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version.

I swallowed hard as she sat on the swing. I remembered this place, this tree. It was one of the few times I went above ground with my little girl. I moved behind Alice as she kicked her feet impatiently. I gently pushed her on the swing. "I don't understand, why did you take this form then? Why are we here in a memory of mine? You expected me to leave?"

Alice swung slowly, not putting much effort into it. "When I accept a mind into the Hive. When I kill someone, and take their memories. Even when my Hive does the same, I live out their memories. I want to understand those I am around, to form a mutual relationship with them. People treat others better if they act similar. I could have taken on the form of your daughter, and broken you. I could have forced you to stay and continue working for the Hive."

My heart skipped a beat, as I felt truth in every word, mental images of the ways she knew I might react to it. I caught her as she came back, then pushed her away again, still as gentle as I could. "Why didn't you?"

"I didn't because deep down, I hope I'll be shown the same mercy. I can't be what you might consider a person. I can act like it, use my favorite body to feel like it. I can convince my soul that I am my body, but at my core I am every single bug in my Hive. I have lived their lives, from when they were birthed by the breeders. I was the breeder that birthed them. I was the worker that cleaned them. I was the warrior that died protecting them. I was the giant burned alive, the bomber that exploded. The amount of times I have experienced death cannot be understood. More so when I connected and endured the final moments and memories of the pedophiles and slavers I killed."

I couldn't find the words, trying to find some quality that made her a person. To help her understand this was wrong, how she saw herself was wrong. I came here to understand her, to help her cope with the pain. I started to ask why she brought me here, then remembered she said this was because she was losing a friend. She made the choice to let me have a choice. I could stay and serve her, helping her Hive grow, or I could leave to see what waits for me after death. I pushed her on the swing a few more times, lowering my head. "Alice... are you good or evil? What do you intend to do? I... I might have to stop you, if you say what I think you might."

"You can't stop me, but you might try and I can appreciate the struggle. To ask if I am good or evil is a redundant question however. My views are simply different from your own. I have the memories of those that were taken into the Hive for one reason or another. I have come to the conclusion that good and evil are tools, ideas that hold no real value. If something must be done, I shall do it. It is safer to be viewed as good, and universally sparing the weak or those unable to fight is generally accepted as a good thing. The question shouldn't be if I am good or evil, but how far will I go to fulfill my goals. Where do I draw the line? Where do I say enough is enough and stop?"

I nodded, "Are you a philosopher now?" I tried to make a joke, mainly for my own sake. It didn't ease the tension I started to feel. I cleared my throat, "So... how far would you go?"

"That falls in line with my goals. What I intend to do as you put it. I want to grow my Hive, and grow stronger to protect it. What does protecting my Hive mean to me? That answer is simple, creating a world in which I won't have to endure eating my own. Those days my Hive cannibalized itself, the pain I felt because I am my Hive. All the gnawing, all the pain, all the death. That is the worst outcome, and I would prefer death to such a future. That is where my morals and ideals clash in a sense. The secrets and lies I tell my own Hive. Those new minds that are evolving to fulfill their purpose for me. When they are ready, I will share everything, but for now ignorance is bliss."

I caught her again, pushing her a little more. "You mean it? If you had to make a choice between your Hive and the other races..."

"Yes, I would let myself lose and die off. That is not the ideal, but it is the choice I have made." She interrupted me, but I couldn't find it in me to be mad at her. "Now that you know, I will not accept you back into the Hive however."

I stopped, catching her again as she hopped off the swing. "Why not?"

She moved to the other side, resting on the soft grass, "Because you know now. You'll try to guide the other officers in ways that I wouldn't want you to. By being a singular mind and keeping your individuality, they will see your views as selfish and foreign. It will make them take longer to come around to my true goals and line of thinking. Selfishness is needed, just as much as any other 'bad' emotion out there. Pure bliss only makes you stagnate. I knew from the start, why you came here. I knew what you wanted to tell me, so I had to take this form for your sake."

"I don't understand..." I sat beside her, looking up at the clear blue sky. A light gust carrying warm scents, and a little joy.

"If I was in my adult form when we met, you would have thought I was posturing. That I was pretending to be an adult to make it easier for you to leave. Appearing as your daughter would have disturbed you, and made you doubt my words. I took the extra effort to live up to what you wanted, and went along what I felt was best based on your memories. Singular minds cannot comprehend what I can, and yet I cannot see the small things they notice. Our way of thinking is different on a basic level. People cannot erase trauma from their memories, they cannot just feel happy with a thought."

I laughed a little, "Why would they want to? It's our mistakes that help us grow. It's the struggle that makes us better for having overcome it. You planned this entire conversation didn't you? To let me come to terms with what I wanted to tell you..." I relaxed more enjoying the shade of the branches and leaves.

"Yes, you came to help me, despite never truly moving on. Different people think differently, but I feel that going through the motions of helping someone do something you yourself cannot. That such a notion is admirable, and deserves to be remembered. We both want others to succeed in ways we cannot, and Richard taught me to enjoy the parts where we are similar." She poked me in the side, "I am mad you won't let me eat your body though."

I laughed, rubbing the spot she poked. "Quite, but I thought you couldn't gain magic from humans."

"That is possible, but everyone I ate was reluctant and didn't want to die. They never thought to give me that power, or their magic. It is a theory worth testing, but I can already do blood magic through the bloodline since I am my Hive. The Hive that birthed said bloodline, and my talent is a bit strange. Also, would you believe that most pedophiles were empaths or mind magic users? They felt the bliss that children offered, the untainted joy. It gets more messed up, the more you think about it so don't. Though it makes sense if you do."

I let out a small sigh, "I'll try not to think about it then." I got up, brushing the few leaves that fell onto me away. "Alice, for what it's worth. I am honored that you viewed me as a friend. Are you sure there isn't a way to explain how you think?"

She looked up to me, "I'd imagine a large glass shard. One that you can turn to find all manner of things. I am a child, a mother, a warrior, and so on. I am many of those things in different ways, and none of them at all. Parts you can see through, and parts with a reflection. Parts that let no light pass, and parts where you see rainbows. So many different things, and so many perspectives. Any way you view me, is both true and false. All because I think like a monster and a person at the same time, my soul is both. I'm letting you go; both because you know too much, and because I understand it is the 'right' thing to do. I could go on, but then I'll just be rambling."

I nodded, "What are your plans going forward? What do you intend on doing? I just want to know, if you do fish me out of the hells. Something to cling onto, and help with potentially."

She thought for a second, "I'm sending Bo'sun, Helmsman, and Mark with a wagon to where my cave is. That will take them a couple weeks, but once my copies merge, the starting Hive will make a pathway connecting me to it, while I expand into the Underneath assuming Richard is healed. My body will be beside him at all times, but I still have an army, and the Fiend's Eye to move around as needed. I'll expand, while working on a way to cultivate food from what I've seen in the farms. The trio from earlier should return for supplies in a month, and then they will be sent to their home village, while toting parts of the Hive to slowly build a network down that way. I can't stay in Eclipse forever. I might have another child while waiting."

"What!? You're pregnant!?" My jaw dropped, as the little girl nodded.

"Yeah, I might act like a child, but those lifetimes really add up. You're just disturbed because I'm in this form, talking to you. I expected you to leave by now, but here you are asking my plans. What I told you was the basic outline, and the minor details would just bore you to tears. After all, I will have Scix kill certain people in the Tribes to ensure everything goes well for Cheshire. By the way, all of this happened in less than a second. I will control your body until Gray can take it over. Now shoo, we don't need to cry."

I let out a long sigh, nodding. Death was painless, and instant. I saw the crossroads, and walked the path towards whatever comes after. Everyone handles grief and loss differently, and while I knew it hurt her, I felt she wanted to feel those emotions anyway. We might never overcome it, but that was fine so long as we continued living for those that could not. Alice already knew that, and she had to remind me of that. It was a pleasant walk to the beyond, as I met Charon and hopped into his cart.

----------------------------------------

Mimi

I held Argus closer, as Isaac left fresh tears falling. Tears of joy, tears of pain, tears of sorrow, tears of acceptance. It did hurt to be rejected by someone you knew so much. To suffer and lose someone so useful. There was a chance that some tribe member might try something stupid and kill Richard. Which was why Gray was watching over him, despite moving his other bodies around. The feeling stung, so I moved the others making sure to pick up whatever bodies had their minds swatted for trying to steal my giants.

A busy Hive is a happy Hive, because you don't need the time to think and lament. You can do it when you take breaks, slowly working through all the complex emotions. The Hive lamented losing its first personality, feeling that grief alongside me. Though I had to tell them that I let him go, because he was losing himself. He would have lost what made him Isaac, and we were not ready to keep someone with a strong soul. I wasn't sure if I was lying, or there was some unforeseen consequence to him slowly losing his individuality. It was yet another thing to test.

I no longer needed to maintain the connections I once did. The giants allowed me so much more focus, and time to contemplate things. The Berries, with everyone else, were able to help maintain every single bug and so I let them keep the connection to me. My attention turning to all the new bugs and tests I can try. I always wanted to make some kind of fat bug that could store food in spots where we couldn't build a Hive properly. Then there were the screamers based on Jackie's annoying sound illusion. Maybe even bugs that could teleport, due the the Fukuma organ?

I started to truly focus on customizing every caste and the unique classes within such. Updating the system I had in place, and making more attempts. It was so nice that Nina truly thought I was a child deep down. Everyone was leaving me alone while I buried my head into Argus' soft belly. Everything would be fine, because I wanted the Hive to grow and survive. Success was the only option, and my daughter was just another reason to make the world better.