Hive ship
one parsec from the Tree Animal System
Eight days after the Battle of the Jaleeni system
The queen had never felt the way she currently did as she watched the small transport leave the Hive ship and head towards the large animal fleet that had flashed in and surrounded the Hive ship and the cruiser being controlled by her sister commander drone.
Her machine friend was on the small transport, along with all the other animals, and she felt a strange sensation as she watched it enter a large animal ship in the distance. It was the one that had sent the thought sounds to the animals for this meeting, becoming more insistent that it needed to make its animal friend better.
She was there to watch the machine friend bring the animals onto the ship, and she felt something she could not categorize it. It was like loneliness, but not. She asked the Hive mother within if she knew the emotion she was feeling.
The machine friend had finished moving the animals onto the small ship, and it turned towards her and moved one claw in a side-to-side motion. She responded with her both claws, finding the motion awkward to do with her triple-jointed thorax legs. It signed to her, making two distinct thoughts appear in her mind: good absence. She returned the claw sign, and it turned around and pulled the lever to close the ramp.
Now she was in the command chamber, and the void left by her machine friend grew larger as she watched the small ship enter the large animal vessel and disappear. She was alone, and she did not like it. Before the journey to this location, it had taken pieces of the exoskeleton of the queen mother animal and fabricated a device that enabled it to send thought words to the animals, and it showed her how to use it to convey her thoughts into animal shapes.
The device was in front of her, and she waited for the animal shapes to come into existence on the black glass. She entered a state of rest that allowed her mind to roam freely as she waited, and she was lost in her thoughts when the device made noise and she came back to her place. It had been half a solar day in time since the machine friend had left the Hive ship.
She looked at the black glass, and she saw animal shapes on it. She concentrated and made the shapes into thoughts in her mind. It was asking to view her. She remembered the machine friend showing her how to view others on the black glass, and she lightly tapped the icon that activated the viewer, afraid of damaging the glass.
On the black glass appeared images, and she took them in as her mind tried to process what she was seeing. She saw two animals, one with longer head growth than the other. The machine friend explained the concept of the animal genders and differences, and she looked at the one with longer growth and focused on the upper thorax area, seeing the two fleshy mounds there. It was a queen, and the other one with shorter head growth must be a male drone.
She could see the differences in the facial structure, and she committed the minute details to her memory to help her discern the two genders. Shapes appeared on the screen, and she turned them into thoughts.
WHY ARE YOU HERE?
She ignored them and started slowly tapping the panel with the animal shapes under the screen that the machine friend had shown her to use.
She saw her thoughts appear on the screen as she tapped the individual shapes.
WHERE MACHINE FRIEND
The two animals looked at each other, and one moved its feeding hole and made noises, their thoughts appearing on the screen in animal shapes.
YOU WILL SPEAK TO US. WHY ARE YOU HERE?
She ignored the thought shapes and tapped out her thoughts again.
WHEREMACHINEFRIENDWHEREMACHINEFRIENDWHEREMACHINEFRIEND
The two animals moved their heads closer, turned to their sides, and moved their feeding holes, quietly making sounds to each other. The male drone was moving its head side to side, and the queen was moving hers up and down. She made louder sounds with her feeding hole and then turned back to face the black glass and put up her two claws, making sounds.
The animal shapes appeared on the black glass, and she again turned them into thoughts.
IT IS COMING HERE. PLEASE WAIT.
She felt happiness and patiently waited, continuing to look at the images on the black screen. She could see other animals in the background and saw that there were also different animals than the ones she was sharing thoughts with.
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The animals continued to send thought shapes on the black glass, and she ignored them, making no move to tap the shapes and respond. She saw the queen make a different shape with its feeding hole, and all its teeth became visible, and it made rapid animal noises. Was it threatening her with its teeth?
The machine friend appeared on the black glass, and she started tapping the shapes as fast as her claws could. Behind the machine friend were two other animals holding what looked like weapons. She did not like them; they seemed like they were holding her machine friend hostage.
I HAPY YOU HERE MACNE FREND
She noticed that the shapes looked wrong and tapped again slower.
AM HAPPY YOU ARE HERE MACHINE FRIEND.
She saw the animals look at each other, and the animal queen made noises with its feeding hole to her machine friend, moving its claws and pointing towards the black glass.
The machine friend moved its head up and down and turned towards the black glass. It started making claw thoughts to her.
Please call me Bandit; that is my name.
She responded with her claws.
~ Yes, bandit friend. Is your animal friend better? ~
Not yet. You must speak with the two animals. The female is the queen of the animals.
~ I will speak to the animal queen with you. The shapes are hard. We make claw thoughts better. I am sad animal friend is not better yet. ~
Yes. Thank you. She wants to know why you want peace and an alliance. You make only war on the animals, and they do not believe you.
She felt anger that they thought she was deceiving them like she did to her Hive mother and sisters. She was here. They could destroy her. Are these animals mentally defective? She made claw thoughts to bandit friend.
~ Is the queen mentally defective? I am here, sharing thoughts with them. I do not want to make war on animals. I want to save the Hives and stop the war. ~
She watched as Bandit friend made noises to the two animals and the animal queen made the same noises as before and bared her teeth again.
~ Why is the queen threatening me with her feeding hole? I am here in peace. ~
She is not threatening you. You are making her laugh.
~ What is this? What does it mean? ~
Laughing is how animals show happiness. You were amusing her when you asked if she was mentally defective. The queen wants to know why your species has retreated to their space and left the territory they conquered. They left Hives and millions of worker drones on the animal worlds they destroyed.
The queen was shocked by what he was saying. The Hive mother retreated. Why?
~ I do not know. I have closed off my thoughts to the rest of the Hive. If I open my thoughts, they will know where I am and come for me. I do not want that. ~
Bandit friend made animal noises to the two animals, and they responded. She wished she had the necessary structures to make the noises; it would make communication easier, and she could share her thoughts directly.
Bandit friend turned back to the black glass and resumed making claw thoughts.
The queen wants to know what your intentions are. How do you want to make an alliance?
She ignored the question and asked her own. She had to know.
~ Is she a queen mother? Has she laid eggs yet? ~
Bandit friend made animal noises to the animal queen, and she responded, baring her teeth again.
She is the proud mother of six eggs. She wants to know how many eggs you have.
The queen was shocked by the pitiful small number. How do they sustain themselves with such small numbers? She responded to the question with her claws.
~ I have laid more than twenty million eggs since I emerged from my pupae over two hundred cycles ago. One in a million has the greatness to become a daughter; the rest become worker drones. The daughter eggs can only be fertilized by the Hive mother, and she takes them away from us. Only the Hive mother can give life to the daughter egg. I wish to become Hive mother and give life to my daughters. I want to share their thoughts while they pupate and be there when they emerge as my daughters. ~
Bandit friend made animal noises to the others, and she saw the effect it had on them. They did not make noises in response for a short time. Finally, the animal queen made noises to bandit friend, and he turned back to the black glass.
The queen expresses her sorrow that you do not know the thoughts of your daughters and that they are taken away from you to be given to the Hive mother. She says that to be a mother is the greatest gift of life, and she hopes that one day you will receive this gift.
The queen felt wild emotions at the words of the animal queen, and she felt a connection to her for knowing the pain she had gone through every time her daughter eggs were taken away from her by the Hive queen. The Hive mother within sent her thoughts, and she received them.
Bandit friend had continued to make claw thoughts as the animal queen made noises.
The queen still wants to know what your intentions are. How do you want to make an alliance?
She responded with her claws, finally answering the animal queen’s question.
~ I need a safe place. I have made the change and can become a Hive mother and make a new Hive, but I require an empty world free from danger. There, I can build my brooding chamber and fertilize the eggs on my ship. I can show you how we build our ships and their weaknesses. I can show you how we think and how to stop this war. I can make soldier drones that will fight alongside you, and I will stand with you queen to queen and bring an end to this destructive war. When my Hive is strong, I will go to the Queen World and kill the Hive mother, taking her place. We will have peace and be friends, and no Hive will ever make war upon animals again. ~
Bandit friend made noises to the two animals, telling them her thoughts. She watched as the two animals made noises, and after some time, the animal queen made noises to bandit friend, who then turned to the black glass, making claw movements.
The queen requires that the world they give you have animal warships in orbit. You will not build any ships until she gives permission for you to do so. You will land on this world and leave the Hive ship and cruiser empty for the animals to take apart. You will not make soldier drones; only machine soldiers like me will be allowed in the Hive. You will only have one Hive. If you do not follow her commands, the animal ships in orbit will destroy you and your Hive. Do you agree?
The queen asked the Hive mother within for her thoughts, opening her mind. The Hive mother answered almost immediately.
The queen thought about the demands, furiously thinking about the possible outcomes. She did not think the animals would let her leave alive; if she said no, they would destroy her Hive ship and cruiser. She felt trapped, having no choice but to accept if she wanted to continue living.
She made her decision and made claw movements to bandit friend.
~ I will be hostage to the animal queen. My life is hers, as is my Hive. I will be a good friend to the animals. She will see the truth of this. ~
She stopped making claw movements and waited, feeling apprehension as Bandit friend made noises to the animals. The animal queen made noises to bandit friend, who turned back to face the black glass and made claw movements.
The queen will find you a world nearby where you can build your new Hive. You will remain here until she has done so. If you attempt to leave, they will destroy you.
The queen made claw movements, accepting her fate.
~Yes, Bandit friend. I will obey. ~