* Name: Mar

* Titles: Sovereign Swarm

* Apocalyptic Rank: 1(Seed), Tier 3

Attributes

* Potency: 6

* Mastery: 7

* Resilience: 8

Traits

* Bio-Mechanical Swarm

* Adaptive

* Non-Centralized Lifeform

* Source of Magic

* Usurper

* Regeneration

Powers

* Infection

* Reinforce Unit

* Toxic Cloud

* Create Unit

* Unit Sacrifice

* Enhance Poisons

* Mark of the Swarm

* Focus Growth

Units

Current Unit Roster

* Armored Juggernaut Spider(1)

* Fungal Honey Bees (20000)

* Fungal-Flora Cognitive Network(N/A)

* Infected Trees (700)

* Infected Insects(434 25600)

* Infected Small Animals(17000)

* Infected Large Animals(3000)

* Fungal Champions(30)

* Workers(50)

* Soldiers(60)

Units that you can create

* Workers

* Soldiers

* Swarm Champions

Current Subject Roster

* Dominion Tree Dryad(1)

* Swormsworn Human(1)

No Subjects can be created at this time

Mar examined their "character sheet" with satisfaction before turning their attention to the Logistics-Collective with more of a frown being broadcast through the Swarm.

"We have grown fabulously in the short time we have existed, we grow exponentially and yet you have concerns?"

"Well, our reason for being is to handle the logistical concerns of the entire Swarm, and we are reporting that exponential growth is not sustainable."

"Explain."

"Biomass is the key issue, our plants require little more than nutrients, water, and sunlight. But the rest of the Swarm require more than that, and presently we are facing a future crisis in that we are not able to sustain our numbers."

"Why is that?"

"The more of the forest that falls to us leads to more of us, we can only convert so much grass and dead organic material before we face a shortage. Especially since creating specialized units like Soldiers and Workers require notable amounts of Biomass in addition to energy. Resources diverted away from infections, spore attacks, and of course feeding our growing Swarm."

"Our Units are capable of feeding themselves, we can just have them turn the uninfected trees into nutrition."

"That will work in the short term, but my purpose is to help with the long term perspective. We have essentially destroyed the ecosystem of this forest, all that becomes us do not eat one another and that leads to overpopulation."

"Overpopulation is a Malthusian myth."

"Err...I am not sure that is a relevant point to our present concern. As our armies expand we gain more and more mouths to feed, and fewer sources of food. Insects are not fed on by their natural predators and so it continues for the ecosystem until we are left with too few viable sources of Biomass."

"What do you suggest?"

"Agriculture is what we need, with our earth memories rejoining the pool we have been able to use tropes from earth fiction to grasp our present circumstances. Therefore, we in the Logistics-Collective petition to the remainder of the Swarm that we strive to create Subjects out of the people of Hor rather than just make more Fungal Zombies. We need their skills, not just the information we can glean from their memories."

At that Mar actually projected her amusement at the request from that aspect of themselves. Logistics-Collective could probably feel something akin to a mental pat on the back as Mar replied with an amused twinge.

"Oh if you want Subjects to aid with your logistics project, then we shall make Subjects."

Mar turned their attention to the remainder of the Swarm and finally gave the order to begin mobilization for their conquest of Hor.

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When Baron Heraclius had returned after the expedition into Halla it threw the region and the town of Hor into chaos. More and more people evacuated their homes and fled either to the estate of the Baron or into Hor itself. Those furthest away were said to have fled the Barony entirely, and messengers had been dispatched to the Duke of Lesor as well as the largest branch of the Adventurers Guild in the nation.

Things had not improved when one of the Adventurers disappeared mere days after the expeditions. Specifically, the strange and enigmatic Listig had disappeared in the night without anyone, their team included, knowing where they had left. Which left things tenser as the desperate people filling up Hor felt that the remaining Adventurers were either untrustworthy or of little help against the threat to come.

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As both teams were down one member, Heraclius had ordered that the Light Tamers enlist in the Hor Militia while the Hornstalkers join his personal guard. Only for the duration of the crisis, but two teams of 3 people were hardly worth operating autonomously in the crisis to come.

Sorcery and divine rituals were being employed en masse to prepare the town against the horrific swarms of toxic insects that the enemy could unleash. Every Acolyte of Old Yoss, even the famously lazy Helena, were at work putting down the same blessing they usually reserved for farms. Hans Reglis was forced to hand out every charm he had ever made against insects and the like, and put to work placing down as many magical warding rituals as he could. All to hopefully stave off the coming swarms.

In the short time that the crisis had lasted it had already been enough to create a black market for "amulets" and similar trinkets that supposedly would ward of the "Thrall-King Spiders Touch", and other similar nonsense. Unfortunately, enough fell for these hidden sellers that soon enough the market was thriving ahead of the crisis to come.

Michel sat at his porch and thought about all of these factors and more and came to a bitter conclusion that he gave voice to.

"It will not be enough."

He was not alone this evening, in addition to his own family he had gathered other Woodsmen and locals whom he trusted. Michel was unique in that he had truly felt the infection of the "Thrall-King" as the locals had come to call the mysterious monster or the Sovereign which was the name that he used in the privacy of his thoughts. Gunnvor was as renowned of a healer as anyone could claim to be in this Barony let alone the entirety of Lesor. And she had barely been able to beat back the magic corrupting his body, and she had used everything she had at her disposal to do so.

These experiences made people respect his opinions which was why he had gathered people to talk this evening outside of his house. Even Helena was there and that was impressive considering she was known to fall asleep as early as possible in spite of her constant napping.

"We are preparing for a siege, but the harvest has barely begun. Most of the food is left either unharvested or stuck at the farms in question. The refugees have barely had the time or the ability to bring food enough to feed themselves for the first few days, let alone anything extensive. And I have felt that thing in the forest, I have felt it touch my mind and it was something so terrible that I frankly still have nightmares every night when I close my eyes."

Michel stopped as the images and sensations that he had felt flashed back before him and he struggled to control his breath before he spoke again. This time his voice was much more like a plea than the confident opening that he had begun with.

"I do not know what is the right path here, but we are going to need a miracle or something far more than what we have already done. Which I do not think we are going to get."

If Michel had been more attentive he would have noticed that aside from the worried mumbling and gasps from the assembled meeting, Helena bit her lip and looked away as he spoke. He continued as he turned to focus on each and every person assembled before him.

"We must flee this place. Like the people past the estate did, I think we should grab our bags and our families and leave before whatever is out there comes in here."

His proclamation did not meet the acclaim or acceptance that he clearly had expected as several of the less worried listeners grumbled in outrage in addition to the universal exclamations of disbelief that the statement was met with. Erik of the Loggers was the first to truly speak up against the idea.

"How could you even begin to suggest such a thing, Michel? Have you heard another whisper from a tree giving you mad ideas? Our lives are HERE, nowhere else, and that monster has birds and flying swarms of insects that would attack us before we could get out of this area let alone the Barony."

"Erik we can't fight what is to come-"

"Hor has a wall! The fortress of the Baron has a wall, and we have magic being set up every day. If we follow your mad scheme we aren't going to get anywhere, and we are going to be defenseless. No, I say it is better to have a fighting chance by hunkering down than to scurry away like rats and have no chance. Flames stopped it once and we can use them again if it comes here."

Michel could already sense the crowd turning against him and he tried to come with a response that would not only be true but also work to make the people see the insanity in staying put. First, he tried pointing out an obvious flaw in the reasoning.

"Well, we don't have the Adventurer who unleashed the fire here."

"Any halfwit can start a fire and we are many more than one single Adventurer. Abandoning our lives and our ancestral bones is one thing, but doing so when we are going to be weaker and more vulnerable than ever in the process of doing so, that makes it worse, Michel."

Erik rose up and by the looks that the majority of the people assembled gave him it was obvious that he had lost this round. Michel was a known eccentric and a Woodsman, while Erik was one of the most respectable Elders in the larger Hor community. He was no leader and he was not experienced in arguing like the older man was. The discussions continued back and forth for a bit as Erik began to leave, but soon enough the impromptu meeting had dispersed. Leaving Michel and his family fuming with anger and worry.

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Helena felt bad for not having even tried to help Michel during the discussion, but unfortunately, she knew something that the rest of the town did not. And that was that Yorich had been spending his days locked in the Temple...reading the one book that they had in their collection. The reading which had become more and more feverish with each passing day as the "drastic thing" that her master had promised seemed to become more and more of an imminent possibility.

She could feel something was coming, something more than just the horrible monster in the forest. It sang to her and she wondered what was hidden within the old book that made her usually reserved master so excited, and practically vibrating with anticipation and effort as he read in the singular book.

Whatever, it was...Helena was starting to wonder if she actually wanted to see it come to fruition.