But how? Nomada thought.

Mellifera kept her stinger pointed at the Red Spider, but she lowered her face plate, rubbing her eyes to make sure what she was seeing was really happening. The kvesh had been the playthings of the Nitich people for so long. The spiders, their steeds and source of silk, the mantises, their sickles, the bees, their source of honey. Yes, the kvesh from the wild were dangerous before domestication, but they were not meant to think, to speak.

"Lower... stinger," the Red Spider said. This time Nomada heard where its voice was coming from. Rather than its mouth, its two hind legs were the ones making the sounds, vibrating into one another. The sounds came out as hissing more than words, but she was able to understand them, nevertheless.

Mellifera obliged in her dazed state.

The spider tapped its legs quickly, making a "ha" sound repeatedly. Was that meant to be it's version of laughter?

"Not first to react like this," it continued, hissing out with its legs. "Humans always think they best. Because best for long time. But this era of kvesh. Kingdom is ours." Watching the spider slowly make out words in Nitich was unnerving, it was not right. Nothing was right.

"What do you want?" Mellifera's eyes were refocused.

"To eat," the spider hissed, "But we share. Not like human. We wait for sister. We better than humans." The spider raised its head in the air. Nomada wasn't sure what that meant. Pride? Haughtiness?

Mellifera raised her stinger back at the spider. "So, why would I follow your demands? If you want to eat all of us, we will die regardless, why would I sacrifice my granddaughter and I for a boy I just met today?"

Nomada was confused but did not show it. She was sure this was one of Mellifera's tricks. It was clear that she cared more about the Fall boy than she did Nomada, and she wouldn't be surprised if she ended up offering to trade them. From a logical standpoint it was a good trade, the future of all of Nitich, for an heir without an exoskeleton or talent.

The spider went silent. Its head came back down and closed four of its eyes. Was that how it thought? Or something else?

The room's natural sweet smell intensified to the point it became sour, causing Nomada's eyes to water.

"I call brothers and sisters, if die.... you die after me."

Mellifera frowned. "Do you not value your own life?" She asked.

"My life for the colony. Colony lives before me, colony lives after me." It hissed.

"For the colony. I see," Mellifera said with a resigned smile. She lowered her stinger once more. "We surrender then."

"Radhan?" Nomada asked, feeling genuine fear for the first time. Did she truly have no plans for them? "Baba?" she asked more fretfully.

"I'm sorry Nomada. There's nothing we can do," she caressed Nomada's cheek. "I heard its call. She is summoning the same Reds that ambushed us yesteday. There's only one way out of this. But, I do want you to know that everything I did was for us." Mellifera's smile widened, "For the colony, as the spider said."

"Hey!" Fila interrupted. "I surrender too, but if I'm going to be held hostage, I'd rather be wrapped by a warm cocoon than have a cold leg to my neck. It's also more hairy than I thought and is making me ticklish," he added.

The Red Spider looked down at Fila. The smell of the room changed from sour to bitter. Fila looked up in confusion.

"It's telling you to take the stinger out its butt, son," Mellifera said.

"Not butt, it is spinneret," the spider hissed angrily. "I keep leg to neck as you do, though."

Fila shrugged casually and got behind the spider, and it raised a new leg to Fila's neck. Fila pulled once, but only part of it came out.

"Another thing humans do not have... respect. Why you no learn to speak with pheromones? You have exoskeleton no?"

"We can speak through Networks established by our own tamers. They are humans capable of pheromone manipulation. It is not a natural trait for us like your species," Mellifera answered.

"Tamers... These are ones that control us?"

"Yes, although I suppose it wouldn't work against your species any longer. Pheromone manipulation works against creatures of lesser intelligence. Due to your exoskeletons and your simple minds, your species make for workers. I was actually the one who came up with the idea, it's what raised the Apis Family to the Great Eight Families in fact."

"You are the first tamer?" The spider hissed. It bared its fangs and its hairs rose.

"I myself am not a tamer, but I taught the tamers other ways pheromones could be used. I had to make hard choices. For the sake of the colony, as you said, always for the sake of the colony. Without me, my sister would have never become Queen nor would Ceratina either. Of course, it all went to shit, but there has to be some value in it. There has to be."

"Why you tame us? What we do?"

"Nothing, you were a resource like everything else. A good leader has to know how to allocate their resources. We were at the bottom of the families, and I had to get us to the top, it's as simple as that."

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere.

The spider hissed from its mouth this time. Venomous droplets fell from its fangs.

Nomada wanted to curl into a ball. They were already dead, why was Mellifera intent on making it worse? Why was the boy taking so long? If he didn't pull this out soon, there would be no time in the cocoon, the spider would decide to eat them here and now. And it would take its time too. Nomada looked to Fila who yanked the stinger with all his force. Then she realized.

The spider yelped in surprise. Fila snapped. The spider screamed. Steam came from the cracks of its exoskeleton as it burned alive from the inside. It moved in disarray, tumbling into the walls trying to get rid of the fire, but the exoskeleton prevented it from being smothered. Nomada felt forced to look away from the spider as it continued its blood-curdling cry. This was an intelligent creature, a conscious one, and it was being burnt alive.

Mellifera shot a stinger at the screaming figure, shattering a cracked plate on the spider's abdomen and the screams stopped. But the smell of burning flesh remained.

"How could you two do that? It's a living creature just like me and you," Nomada told Mellifera.

Mellifera sighed. "All creatures are living Nomada, regardless of sentience."

"So do you evaluate the death of a human and spider equally?" Nomada asked angrily.

"In fact, I do, for our lives may be different, but our deaths are equal. Death is not befitting of anyone, and yet it always arrives, invited or not. Regardless, if it had not attacked us, I would never have attacked it. When your life is at stake, you have to do all it takes to survive. Remember this Nomada, for you will lead all the Apis in my stead."

Nomada's anger faded. Mellifera's words had an element of finality to them. She was never direct with her words except when angry. Why was she being direct?

Fila came running over to them. "I'm surprised you figured out my idea. Maybe working with others isn't so bad after all."

Mellifera nodded. "Try to work with Nomada in the future, she makes mistakes, but she means well."

"Why would I do that? The girl is saddened by the death of a single kvesh. She is clearly sheltered and has no experience with death at all." Fila asked.

"No, if you are to insult Nomada, do not do so dishonestly. She knows death well, I reckon she knows it more than you. She's been burdened with the death of millions since her birth just like all of us who survived. Those of us who still try to stand together rather than alone. We understand that there is value in every single life. I may not know you very well, son, but I've met those like you many times in my life. You are the one who has no experience with death, Fila Fall, all your decisions thus far has showed me this."

Both Nomada and Fila's eyes opened in surprise. Nomada was too shocked to even speak. She just defended her.

Mellifera looked towards the spider's corpse.

"But I hope you do Fila Fall. I hope you learn what it means to mourn the deaths of those you never knew, even the ones you didn't like. What it's like to watch everything you've built die, and still stand back up because there are still more people you don't know or like who need help. Because you don't want them to hurt like you do. Because you've experienced death. Because then you've experienced love. Still, I thank you Fila Fall for surviving this far. I know you don't want to lead our people and I understand. Leading people is one of the hardest jobs one can do. Having to manage everyone's petty little issues, their emotions. No one is able to see the bigger picture but you, and so they aren't willing to sacrifice anything. And they will fight against you, and sometimes they will be right and coming to terms with that is hard, especially because you have committed so much on you being right. And yet, I would act as the leader of the Apis Family in a hundred lifetimes, because I've gotten to love in a way few ever will. But I understand you Fila Fall, and so I ask that you simply marry one of us and have a daughter that can lead us as queen. Nomada can bring you south to the Hives where a few of our families now hide. There are plenty of beautiful, smart, driven, women who will be willing to have a child with you. Or if you prefer the dull ones, there are those too."

Fila opened his mouth to respond, but Mellifera looked back at the both of them with a look that made him shut up.

"And Nomada, I'm sorry. I know some part of you hates me like all the daughters I have raised inevitably do. Collette, Florea, Tica, Ceratina, you. I've failed all of you. Perhaps I got lost in my own ambitions, I'm not sure. But I maintain that it was all in the interest of the Apis, for all of Nitich. Things were meant to be different. Ceratina was meant to be queen, Tica, her advisor, and you, free of all burdens. But today I burden you with everything. You are to inherit the Apis Family. I'm sorry."

With that Mellifera turned forwards towards the dark tunnel where now Nomada could hear stomps coming. Nomada tried to tell her to stop, but she choked on her words and her tears. She knew what was coming. Mellifera had a third trait, a trait that is not meant to be used. [For the Family]. It converts the exoskeleton into pure mana, giving the user a burst of power far surpassing anything they should be capable of, but it comes at the cost of burning the soul as fuel. It was survivable, but the user's lifespan would depreciate immensely. Mellifera had already used it once before.

Nomada tugged on Mellifera's arm, trying to pull her back, but she was too strong. Mellifera did not look back.

A Red butterfly, beetle, cricket, and dragonfly came rushing into the room. The butterfly was the first. It saw the spider's corpse and made clicking sounds and came flying at Mellifera.

Mellifera's exoskeleton disappeared, and was replaced by a red glow that washed out all lights in the room. She was like the sun, and her enemies were nothing but shadows. She met the butterfly with a leap and ripped off one of its wings with one movement. The butterfly screamed, but it was stabbed in the abdomen with the edge of its wing, knocking all light out of its eyes. The other three figures came charging at Mellifera. Mellifera threw the butterfly wing at the beetle with enough force to cause the room to shake. It was pierced in the head, killing it instantly. The cricket jumped towards Mellifera, who ducked and ran to the beetle's corpse. The dragonfly swept at her with its wings, but Mellifera ripped the beetle's hide off its back and blocked it. The dragonfly's wings were caught in the hide and Mellifera used that as an opportunity to run the dragonfly into the wall, crushing it. The cricket chirped and leaped at her, and Mellifera jumped to meet it. They crashed into each other and grappled on the ground. The cricket used its mandibles while Mellifera used her head. They smashed into one another, time and time again, blood gushing with every blow. Mellifera's glow was fading rapidly, now having the light of a candle instead of the sun. Mellifera screamed and pulled the antennae from the cricket's head. What was easy before took her with all her strength now. The cricket pushed against her trying to make her release his head, but that only helped Mellifera pull it out. With the antennae, she stabbed the cricket over and over until the cricket's chirps were no more.

Mellifera stood up and looked back at the Nomada and Fila, blood-soaked like a sword that had been through a thousand battlefields, tall and proud. Then she fell.