Lyn woke up with a start, confused as to where she was until she realized that she was back in the old man’s room. His name being loe or something, as far as she can remember. Getting up she felt slightly off-balance, only for her to realize that she was bigger than she remembered.
“Did I… become a greater zapper!” she turned her head back and forth, trying to get a good look at her body. And her suspicions turned out to be correct, she had indeed turned into a greater zapper. She flipped through the air with joy, zipping around the room faster than ever.
Lorenzo, who had been going through a few of his notes on his desk, turned around when he heard the zapper zip by and smiled. “Well, someone is in a good mood,” he said gently. “Now that you're awake, why don’t we go see Van, I'm sure he would be very excited to see you.”
Lyn didn’t understand all the words the old man said, but she understood enough to know that she was offered to be escorted to her hive mate. So she unabashedly purred her approval.
With that, the old man got up and she followed him out of the room. A while later they arrived outside, the morning air feeling wonderful on Lyn’s new body as she happily zipped around, feeling more powerful than ever.
The old man then started to talk to a few people as he made his way to one of the carriages, he got in one to settle a few things, Lyn followed after, expecting her master to be in it, only to be disappointed. But only a minute later as the old man went out again and to get a few things to add to his carriage, was he stopped by Van.
But Lyn didn’t know this, not until she felt a tug on her, a strange sensation like a magnet or string was trying to draw her into a certain direction. It felt familiar until she realized who it must be. Excitedly she followed the feeling until she found her new master, zipping around his head with joy and trying to snuggle up to him until he relented and stretched out his hand for her to land on, which she did with a purr.
After that, Van and Lorenzo talked for a few minutes, once done they turned and left to their own carriages, Lyn now following Van back. Upon entering the carriage she found a new unfamiliar person inside who exclaimed loudly at her.
A little put off but still a little curious about the new addition, she flew a little closer, trying to get a better look at the girl. She then felt another strange sensation with the connection that Van and Lyn shared, one telling her that this new person was okay and safe to be around.
So with that, she got closer, and was able to smell the scent of her master on her, she then realized that she must also be a new personal mate of the hive mate. A little miffed that a new personal mate was chosen without her knowledge, she still played with the new addition and showed her acceptance by purring for her, much to the new addition's delight.
Not soon after that, the doors closed and they were sent on their way towards another stone hive. Or at least that was what Lyn could sense between the connection, she was a little sad to go so soon, especially since staying in the moving wooden hive was so cramped and boring. But she will bear it out, she was mature after all.
And so the days went by.
---
It was pretty fun all things considered, whenever they left the carriage she would fly out to explore the new sights around her. A part of her in the back of her mind, hoping that she might find evidence of the direction to her old hive, but finding none.
But that never got her down, she still tried to enjoy life as much as she could, and still held out hope that one day, they will meet again… so that she can shove it in their faces how good she was doing. She thought with an evil grin or a zapper’s equivalent.
Or at least that was what she liked to think, it still didn’t change how worried she was.
Finally, after what felt like forever, they arrived at the new stone hive. It wasn’t as big as the previous one, but it still was formidable and imposing in size and numbers of workers… no not workers… citizens?
Whatever the name, she sensed through her connection with her master that he felt the most at home here, the most safe. So if he was happy with this stone hive, then so was she, and was excited to explore this new home.
So excited was she, that the second they opened the door, she zipped out to explore her new home.
But first things first, she had to find the flower beds, after all, any good hive would make sure to protect their important pollen and nectar resources. So flying high and as far around as she could, she searched for the flowers. Until she realized that they were called gardens, then she started to look for gardens, whatever that was. It was so hard trying to make sense of some of the info that was shared between her and her master sometimes.
Either way, she soon found what she was looking for, and she had to say. She was a bit disappointed, she was expecting some very large flowerbeds, and while the flower beds she was looking at were indeed impressive. There was no way they could feed a stone hive of this magnitude. Even if it was a super large area of flowers of all kinds and in great health the likes she had rarely seen before.
“There must be tens of thousands of… citizens… in this hive, how do they feed them all?” She then thought back to the big cavern in the previous stone hive, though she wasn’t really paying attention, she did remember that there were many fruits and animal carcasses on the tables. “Perhaps they don’t just eat honey and nectar?” which she felt was pretty weird, any good civilized people would eat honey and nectar, though she guessed there must be some drawback to having so many… citizens… and a large hive made of stone. Not to mention she also saw her mother eat fruit and meat from time to time.
But her exploration wasn’t just done yet, she went to check out the defense of this new hive of hers. As well as any other secrets that she was excited to learn.
Zipping around, she decided to make a pass over of the entire castle grounds and get a good idea of the layout. Her search found her a training ground, a pool, a barracks where they kept the short green-looking citizens, and a large tower where citizens with large wings for hands or on their backs resided.
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In fact, the more she looked around, the more she realized that each of the… citizens looked very different from each other. Not that that was too surprising to her, even zappers differed slightly in appearance to each other, but it was the first time she ever found entirely different types of insects-er-races working together in harmony.
If this was back in the forest with her colony, the thought of instead of fighting off encroaching rival colonies and instead working with them was… a strange idea… not that it was unheard of to work together or form alliances with other zapper colonies, but to work with the bee’s… that would be weird.
And yet, all these different races all followed the rule of the high queen. In a way, it was awe-inspiring, and kinda made sense, after all only a truly powerful high queen could pull something like this off. It gave Lyn a great amount of respect for such a queen.
Lyn then flew all over the place, watching people work and play. Seeing how they did things and trying to figure out why they did them, looking at the strange structures and buildings, and marveling at thoughts of how they could have been made.
“It’s amazing to think… that all of this must have been made by hand.” Lyn thought to herself as she flew all over the place. Flying into the kitchen and smelling the sweet aroma of baked foods. Flying to the pool, marveling at the man-made lake. Going to the goblin barracks and watching them mate with each other or a few hive mates that were delegated to them. Watching all kinds of races training together on the training fields, people bringing things back and forth and doing tasks all for the sake of keeping their hive working.
Everything looked so different, but while she could not completely understand the language, she saw enough to know that they were not so much different from her old hive. Everyone is doing their best for the sake of the whole. It kinda tugged at her heartstrings and made her a little homesick.
But she shook such sad thoughts off the best she could. “This is my home now, these are my people… I will make sure that I will not be the failure I was in my past. Now I am a new zapper! Now I will protect my new family and show the world the might of Lyn and make this hive the best hive in the world!” Lyn promised her herself, vowing that she will not be the silly Lyn of the past. Or at least not too silly.
It didn’t help that not even a second later she instantly got distracted by a flower petal floating on the wind that moved right past her. Chasing it like a dog would a thrown stick.
---
Something special was happening today. Lyn could feel it in her bones… or at least would if she had any…
But that was just semantics, she had a gut feeling that something was going to happen today, and she knew it to be true because this time she definitely had a gut!
She was riding on her master's shoulder, sticking onto it for dear life, very nervous as to what was going to happen next. She didn’t know what her master had in plan for her, but she knew it must be something important with the way he was acting and making sure she didn’t move or fly anywhere.
The sense she got through their connection was one of excitement and nervousness, which also made her excited and nervous.
Entering into a strange room filled with even stranger devices and filled with the smell of rare herbs and potions. The old man she knew from before was standing and looking over a strange glowly circle thing when he looked up and welcomed her master in.
Not soon after they got to talking and talking, nodding with each other and going on about this or that, nothing Lyn could really understand. But it all accumulated into her master trying to prompt her into entering the glowing circle on the ground.
With some hesitancy, Lyn did what her master bid and entered the circle, feeling very nervous but doing her best not to show it lest she worry her master. Soon after, Van and the old man started to talk once more, and then her master said something that Lyn will never forget.
Taking a deep and nervous breath, her master gave her a name. “I bestow upon you the name… Lyn…”
It was like Lyn got hit by lightning. To name someone like her, it was like taking a life mate! No… it was like taking… Lyn couldn’t think what it was, all she knew was that now the relationship between the two of them all of a sudden got far more personal and deeper.
And that’s when it happened, it was like an explosion went off in her mind, like a series of small and large epiphanies went through her head in rapid succession. Like she reached some sort of enlightenment. She had a name, she was an I. “I… Am… Lyn!”
If Van were to realize what naming her did, he would think of the old saying of. I think therefore I am. To describe this moment for her.
Right after that realization of Lyn finding herself it began. Power flowed from unknown sources into her, and from her master. Information about words and thoughts and ideas, so much more than before, entered her head with their meanings and secrets.
It felt like her head was going to explode like her brain was literally being ripped apart and frying under the onslaught of knowledge that was trying to cram itself into her tiny mind. Her insides were melting away and her body was being forced to contort and shift into positions that no natural zapper should ever bend into.
Then it happened again and she screamed inside her mind for she could not scream it out loud, her throat already too far changed to let the garbled words of her pain through. It was painful beyond belief. And she loved every second of it…
The power flowed through her, changing her, perfecting her. Revelations danced through her mind, the secrets of the universe making themselves known but playfully hiding from her view. The feeling of strength and power coursed through her veins. She was power, she was energy, pure and simple, without form, only thought.
And that was what happened, for only but a moment, she lost her body, and she truly became one with the energy, one with the universe. She lost form and in exchange, gained understanding. Her mind rising higher than she had ever flown.
And then it all came crashing down. She wasn’t energy anymore, her body changed for what felt like the last time. Her figure taking on its final form. She felt the bones form and connect, the veins and nerves following after, the organs taking their place, the flesh to support it and the skin to cover it all.
She stood there… no… floated there… gently… not even aware that she was doing so. She looked at her hands, opening and closing them, feeling the muscles move and flow. Her eyes gazing upon her new body with new insights and colors, her mind making sense of it all with greater understanding, like a fog being lifted off the face of the world for her to see its true nature.
She danced then, well not so much a dance, more like acting on a feeling and turning it into a beautiful motion as she glided over the air. She spun and weaved an alien waltz through the air, slow but with every movement meaningful.
“Lyn?” Van said
Lyn spun around upon hearing her name. Looking at her master with new eyes, she knew what he was now. He was a god, she felt it, knew it, through the new stronger connection that they now shared. It had to be true, after all, look what he did, he turned her into something so much more. Something greater than ever before, something more than just a mere zapper, she owed him not only her life but her very soul. And vowed to repay his act of godhood one day.
She flew to him, arms wide, doing her best to give him something called ‘a hug’ and did so with all her might. Only to be turned down for something as silly as not wearing clothes.
After that, her master and Lorenzo started to talk again, this time she understood every other word, even if she couldn’t speak for herself just yet.
She was then told to stay behind with Lorenzo, later started to poke and prod her with strange devices. But she accepted it all with good grace, knowing that it was all for the sake of her master. Who was also staying around for a bit for her sake.
After the day was coming to an end, and her master left for bed. Lyn was still experiencing the high from what happened today. Vowing over and over again to serve her master well for the rest of her life.
With that, Lyn herself called it a day and would do her best to look for some clothes that would fit her for the sake of her master. So that she could show him unrestrained how much she loved him.