Flames spread widely throughout of the church. Cocoon clutches overheated and burst, liquids sprayed all over the ground. Broodlings hissed and cried out in pain as they were cooked inside their very own exoskeletons.

Rinae, Hera, and the new sibling walked through the fire and death. A broodling curled up at their feet unable to breathe through the thick smoke. Several more passed by the females running toward escape.

More pods burst from the heat, the larvae fell to the ground. Unable to support their own respiration they died. Hera picked up the carcass, she could see the magic that was sustaining them leave its vessel.

“Sister, they are dying.” She looked to Rinae.

These creatures mattered very little to Rinae. They were essentially just a means to survival to her.

The creatures made a squelching noise in its last breaths. It shriveled up and stopped moving.

Rinae’s indifference to them did not although for the same sympathetic care as Hera, perhaps that had to do with her practically being the hive’s protector.

“As long as we live, they are never dead.” She said.

Hera dropped the husk of the larva. She knew that it was pointless to try and save them. Especially since they could make more at a moments notice. Further on they spotted the massive worker, possibly the oldest one around. Its bulbous abdomen was being filled with as much magic and larva as it could possibly fit. They would meet it on the other side.

~^~

Elizabeth waited leaned against a wooden bench, men and women both wearing masks raced in and out of the room carrying clean and blood-stained rags. The night had left many wounded and more fatally. She was here specifically for her comrade that was injured during the fight. As she had been told his wounds would not cause any life-threatening problems, but still the team was all but gone.

She sat waiting for the madness to calm itself. If she were to enter the room she would only be standing around taking up valuable space in an already congested space. It was best to wait for the casualties to die or stabilize.

A voice caught her attention. “I see you’re doing fine.” He smiled.

She looked up to see the squire taking a seat on the bench.

“Yeah, Vincent too.” The two sat in silence for a moment, never really interacting with each beforehand neither knew anything about each other. Mostly because he stuck with Amalia most of the time. She decided to use that as an icebreaker. “I thought you would have been with her ladyship right now.”

He clasped his hands together interlocking his fingers. “She… needs her rest, besides I wanted to check up on the squad...what’s left of the squad.”

“Like I said, we are doing fine.” Elizabeth moved from the side of the bench to the seat. She was hesitant to ask. “Last night… What exactly did we fight?”

“I suppose I should tell you.” He put his hands on his lap. “We don’t know.”

“What do you mean you don’t know!?” She raised her voice. “When the duke recruited me, I was told that I was fighting a necromancer.”

The squire spoke. “That is what the duke believes.”

“My magic was almost pointless against it! Tell me you at least have some ideas.” She was standing from her excitement.

“We have a book.”

Her voice calmed down slightly, “How useful is this book if you still have no idea what we are fighting?”

“Almost none.” he said, “It’s a book on fairy tales.”

She had no words for this. She was completely stunned. They were the equivalent to children being sent off into the seas to fight a terror beast. She put her hands on the bridge of her nose and breathed. “What book was it at least?”

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The squired reached behind him into a bag producing a hard covered book then handing it over.

She once again looked stunned.The book of legends was the icing on the cake of anger. Her face visibly became red.

“Move aside mage.” A trio of holy knights came by. Their capes were red, armor gold and their faces still hidden beneath their helmets. They moved perfectly in sync, everything down to their cape’s movements seemed planned.

Elizabeth had no idea what was going on. None of the knights were injured what was their purpose being here? Her train of questions was interrupted by the squire pulling her out of the way. What she hadn’t noticed was the knights had their blades pre-drawn.

The didn’t say another word as the entered the medical room.

“Church inquisitors.” The squire said. “They never give a second order.”

Elizabeth watched as the door closed behind them. “What are they here for?”

“Probably mage Vincent.”

“What?” She exclaimed. “Why?”

The squire took a deep breath. And took her hand. “Do you promise, not to say a word of what I tell you?”

She nods.

The squire looked around, he spotted a corridor with a dead end, effectively this corridor would allow them enough space to eliminate eavesdroppers and ensure that the inquisition would have no business. They met at the end.

“How much do you know about magic.” He asked her.

“I know what I was taught.”

He made a motion with his hands to signal for her to elaborate.

She sighed. “Magic is what God bestowed upon us, to make us closer to him.”

He asked her. “Do you believe that?”

She nodded, “A little.”

“I used to believe in something similar.” He paused. “Now what if magic had absolutely nothing to do with god. And it was actually something you were born with?”

“That would deny the existence of God, wouldn’t that?

He nodded.

“What proof do you have?” She asked putting both her hands on her hips.

“A couple weeks ago, Lady Amalia and I were investigating unknown deaths, each body had a specific organ ripped out. It was more apparent on mages.”

She crossed her arms.

“I didn’t believe it either, but when I saw Vincent, I knew it was the truth.”

A voice startled Elizabeth as it came from behind her. “It’s what gives the church power over people.”

She turned around, it was Amalia. She was standing in full armor, seemingly back to full recovery. Amalia spoke up again. “What do you plan to do with this information.”

Elizabeth wasn’t sure, it was quite a bomb that was dropped on her. But she put one and two together. If the church didn’t tell people this information, then they wanted to maintain this power over others...which meant.

“...Vincent,” she spoke softly.

She tried to take off running but was immediately stopped by the cold gauntlet of Amalia, she shook her head. “You are no match for an inquisition squad.”

Elizabeth understood this fact. It wouldn’t make sense to fight them either. She stopped her attempt. “What should I do then?”

“Help me expose the church for what it is.” She paused. “The current crisis has shown how much they truly care about their people.”

Elizabeth paused for a moment. She changed her question. “What can I do?” She got down on her knee to prove her subservience.

~^~

The girls came through the hole in the ground, The hole was meant to expand the hive, not to be their escape plan.

Everything around them was green, the trees that grew high, The grass that grew long and the bushes that grew wide, especially the magic. For the lesser broodlings, this looked like an all you eat buffet table. Rinae, Hera and her yet to be named other sister it was barely even a snack.

By the time they left the darkness of the cave it had become morning. The broodlings had grown restless, they wanted to kill, they wanted to sink their salivating maws into flesh. Luckily the opportunity might have presented itself. A magical mist that only those with specialized tracking abilities could see.

Hera looked to the direction the magical pheromones were coming from. “Sisters, what is that?” She took another sniff. “It’s disgusting.” Her spikes wiggled in every direction.

For Rinae and the other, it took significantly longer to look for, they weren't as attuned to searching for magic quite as well as Hera had become.

Rinae recognized the smell, there were orcs in the area. Her face twisted in disgust the last time she ate one it was barely worth the trouble. But a meal for the hive was still better than nothing.

She spoke. “Spoiled food but still food.” She started for the direction but was stopped by the masked one. Rinae looked at her not saying a word.

Her “mask” unfolded itself revealed to be nothing more than mandibles, she lacked any form of lips, her teeth were just as savage and sharp as their claws. “One day, Then go.”

Rinae thought for a minute, she wasn’t exactly in any hurry to fight such a worthless prey again. She nodded. “I will wait the one day, Scarpha.”

Scarpha closed her mandibles and nodded acknowledging her new name. She scurried off into the forest.