There were certain other benefits that came with access to the Omega Force. Beyond the specific elemental powers that were granted to each Knight, there were also additional secondary abilities that were connected to them. Rachel, as the Raiju Knight, could move at near-superhuman speed, an ability she put to use in following the insectoid creatures.

She stayed just far enough behind so she wouldn’t draw their attention. But she doubted whether they would have noticed her, even if she did get too close. The hastiness of their retreat suggested they were in something of a panic to escape the flames Tom used to incinerate their brothers. And if they really were a hive mind, as Rachel had suspected, they would have felt that pain of burning alive.

Rachel quickly scaled a tree and sprang from the trunk to the lowest branch that could support her weight. She swung from it a few times before releasing, a blue streak against the horizon. Rachel grabbed another branch and flipped from that, next taking hold of a vine and swinging over the rear of the fleeing creatures. She pulled herself onto that branch and watched as the creatures moved towards a large hill. They scaled it with ease and started climbing into small entrances throughout.

“Blue here,” she said, communicating with the rest of the team. “I think I found the nest.”

Once the rest of the team had caught up to her location, Rachel dropped from the tree and landed in front of them. She turned and gestured towards the large hill.

“Right there. Though I’m not sure how you expect to get the queen to emerge.”

“Thought I’d try scaring them out with fire,” said Tom.

“After that inferno you just generated, it’d be pretty hard,” said Rachel. “That’s a pretty big nest.”

“You’re not going to get your lighting to arc all the way through it, either,” said Tom.

“I wasn’t thinking about me, I was thinking about him.” Rachel pointed at Ethan.

“Me?” asked Ethan, pointing at himself. “What am I supposed to do?”

“Remember that sparring match?” asked Rachel. “Summon the Karkinos’s water and flood the nest.”

Ethan looked up at the hill from behind the visor of his green helmet, then shook his head. “I don’t know if I can manage something like that. Maybe Tom—”

“We use color callsigns in the field, Green,” said Tom.

Ethan sighed. “Maybe Red would stand a better chance with his flames.”

“Your powers aren’t infinite. If you overexert yourselves, the Omega Force needs time to recharge. We can’t afford to have our leader collapsing right before a big fight,” said Rachel.

“They’re still new to these powers. We can’t push them too far,” said Tom.

“And exactly how long do we keep the training wheels on?” asked Alexa. “This is a risky gig, we all get that. But we can’t play it safe forever. If—” she groaned, “—do I really have to do the color thing?”

“Yes,” said Tom.

“Fine, if Blue thinks Green can handle it, then I’m all for that.”

“I suppose the words ‘chain of command’ don’t mean much to you people…” muttered Tom before looking at Olivia. “How about you? Got something to add, since this is now a town hall?”

Olivia didn’t say anything.

“I’d like to add ‘don’t be a jackass,’” said Rachel. “You’re the leader, not a dictator. Our opinions still matter. That’s what our last leader understood.”

It was impossible for Rachel to read Tom’s features behind the blank visor. But his body language softened when she brought up Scott. She hadn’t wanted to take things to that level and she instantly regretted it. Someone had to say it, though, and without Marcus here, she had to play the bad guy.

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“Control, this is Red, do you copy?” he asked.

“Are you really going to narc me out over this?” asked Rachel.

“This is Control, Red. We’re monitoring you from our end,” came Marcus’s voice in all of their helmets.

“Then you know the situation. What’s the best course of action?” asked Tom.

“Red, this is Doc.” The voice was Candace’s now. “From analysis of your energy levels, I have to concur with Blue. If you attempt a flame attack of this magnitude, it will leave you hampered once the queen emerges.”

“But—”

“That’s all I need to hear myself.” Marcus returned to the conversation. “Green will flood the nest and the rest of you stand by and be ready once the creatures emerge.”

“Understood, Control. We’ll go silent from now unless something else comes up.” Tom pointed up at the hill. “Okay, we head to the peak. Once there, Green will force them out and we have to be ready for anything.”

Tom pushed past Rachel and headed for the hill. Ethan and Alexa followed him, but Olivia lingered behind, standing by Rachel’s side. She gently put a hand on Rachel’s shoulder.

“You okay?”

“Fine.” Rachel pulled away from Olivia’s empathetic gesture.

“Looks like you two have some unresolved issues to work out,” said Olivia.

“No, he’s just overcompensating because he’s fucking terrified,” said Rachel. “Come on, let’s catch up.”

Rachel and Olivia jogged to regroup with the others. The hill wasn’t very steep, but it was still tall and took some effort to climb. There were several holes along the route and they could hear chittering noises coming from inside.

“Good bet they know we’re here,” said Alexa.

“Just hurry, sooner we get to the top, the sooner we can finish this job,” said Tom. “And once we return to Sanctuary, we’ll train you three like you should have been before going into the field.”

The last comment was in a hushed voice, but the others could still hear. An uncomfortable silence lingered in the air as the group finished the rest of the climb. After about twenty minutes of climbing, they finally reached the top. There was a larger hole than the others they’d passed at the summit and this would be the best place to flood.

“You’re up, Green,” said Tom. “Weapons free, everyone. Be prepared for anything. We don’t know how long this will take.”

Ethan stepped up to the hole and conjured the Aquatrident, green energy pulsing out from his hands until it formed into the weapon. He pointed the three trines towards the hole and began to concentrate. Just as before, he summoned the power from the Omega Force and the Karkinos, imagining water spurting from the points of the trident. A few drops started to leak out at first, but then they stopped.

“Any time now, Green,” said Tom.

“You weren’t exactly Superman the first time you tried this sort of thing,” said Rachel.

“The Heads say they’re ready, they should be ready,” Tom countered.

“You two really just need a goddamn room,” said Ethan.

“Wow, you really have no idea what you’re talking about,” said Tom.

“Whatever, just stop distracting me.”

Ethan concentrated as hard as he could. Behind his visor, his eyes were clamped shut, trying to visualize a flood flowing through the holes, overflowing at the top. And soon, he heard the sound of rushing water. Ethan opened his eyes and saw water pouring out from the trident, flowing into the giant hole.

“Hah! It’s working!” he shouted. “You hear that, it’s—”

There was something garbled in the water. It started seeping through the holes as the nest overflowed. The chittering noises from before were muffled, but growing louder.

“Get ready!” shouted Tom as flames started to surround his sword.

Insectoid creatures emerged from the holes, swarming out by the dozens. The Knights went on the defensive as they poured from the nest. They screeched in anger and came at the heroes, who did their best to defend themselves from snapping mandibles and piercing stingers.

Rachel drew her bowstring as fast as she could manage, barely allowing enough time for a lightning arrow to fully form before launching it. Olivia kept near her, swatting at any buzzers that came too close with her staff. Alexa ran across the hill, forming a kind of perimeter to keep them in, her whip moving too fast to see.

Tom stayed at the summit beside Ethan, forming a ring of fire with the Flameblade. The insectoids seemed most interested in Ethan, as he was the one responsible for destroying their home. And despite their harsh exchanges, Tom wasn’t about to let another Knight fall on his watch.

The entire hill suddenly began to shake. Ethan pulled the trident up and stared into the surface of the water, now resting just below the opening. And the water was rippling with each tremor.

“Get off the hill!” Tom shouted as he grabbed Ethan’s arm and pulled him away.

The rest of the Knights watched as the two came running down the hill and they retreated in similar fashion. The insectoids took to the air, moving in unison. They darkened the sky, slithering across it. Soon, they descended again, moving to block the Knights.

And then, the rumbling increased. The chittering of the insectoids was deafened by a louder chittering, and the hill itself started to move. Massive chitinous arms burst through the ground, pulling something large from beneath the hill. And the team watched in horror through their visors as a beast about ten feet tall emerged from the remains of the nest, its screeching piercing the meager defenses the helmets provided and reaching the Knights’ ears. Massive, gossamer wings fluttered, shaking off wet mud and raising the creature above the ground. The hexagonal shapes that made up the giant red eyes flared with anger as the beast took in her foes.

The Queen had arrived.