Chapter 73

Etson National Forest, Etson - 8:40 AM

The forward base had been set up nearly a mile away from the Vespae hive under the cover of night and pitched with the best camouflage that could be picked up. It wasn’t large, but it would have given us ample warning to change plans if the enemy forces were mobilizing to attack or defend.

So far, the distraction had been a success. The volunteer army had not been slowed down by anything other than the forest and the thick morning mist. With no Serranras to help move things around, only Kayla and Jeff would be unfettered while walking through the underbrush. A scout who climbed the trees to get a better vantage point reported that more Vespae were swarming the area we lit on fire and seemed to be trying to put it out, which was fantastic for us.

I heard the group coming before I saw them through the trees. As quiet as I knew they would try to be, there was no way five hundred untrained volunteers would be able to move through the forest stealthily.

Kayla, Jeff, and Elder Tet were in the front, while Thomas, Gabrielle, and Corwin walked just behind them. Gloria and John were nowhere to be seen, and I knew they’d be in position as leaders of different groups. Corwin bounded towards me, a bastion of carefree happiness in the gloom of an upcoming battle.

“Anthony,” Elder Tet said as the group approached me. “It is good to see you. The tree mother sends her regards.”

I smiled down at the small Kobold and reached out to shake his hand. Like before, the black and white dog man wore his thin green robes and held a thick, gnarled wooden staff. This time he had painted his snout with red and brown lines, and I knew he was ready to throw down his life to remove the Vespae threat from his people.

“It’s good to see you, too, Elder Tet,” I replied. “Everyone.” My gaze shifted to everyone in turn, checking out their armor and weapons. Thomas still wore his fur-lined bomber jacket, though he had replaced his warhammer with the Sword of the Eternal Spring that he now wore on his hip. Jeff didn’t have anything extra on him, but Kayla had picked up a leather jerkin that matched her pants and gorget.

While I didn’t say anything, I still had some trepidation on bringing Kayla along. She just wasn’t ready for the fights we had coming up against Ylstin and the queen, but she wouldn’t take no for an answer. And when she didn’t take no for an answer, that meant Jeff didn’t take no for an answer even though I could tell he thought the same. She had a job that only she could do, but that didn’t make me feel any better about it.

“Ready to kick some ass!” Gabrielle said loudly. She raised her Dove’s Rod of Peace in a salute when she caught me staring at her. The young woman wore chain mail that seemed too long for her, hanging a few inches above her knees, and a thick leather helmet that hid her dark, curly hair. In her other hand was a wooden kite shield with the letters EF painted on it, though the F had been painted over with a red X. Out of all of us, she and Kayla were the only ones who were properly armored.

Still, even with some of the issues we were going to face, I looked on at our strike force with pride. My smile remained as I looked from Elder Tet to Thomas. “Any problems integrating the Kobolds and the humans together?”

Thomas was the first to shake his head. “No, but we already planned for that during registration,” he answered. “The Kobolds are excited about finally getting a chance to lay into the Vespae, and they’re doing great things for morale.”

When he nodded off towards one of the passing groups, I turned to see two of the Kobolds walking with the humans. They wore wooden armor that seemed to fit them very well, and had their crossbows slung across their backs. The spears they carried looked brand new, like fresh branches that had been straightened and cut into wickedly sharp points.

“The tree mother has been working tirelessly to ensure that we Kobolds are well prepared for this battle, and we are,” Elder Tet said proudly. “We may be only forty strong, but we’ll show you humans what we’re capable of.”

“I know you all will,” I replied. The Kobolds could be ferocious little terrors when they needed to. It was incredibly dangerous to look down on them due to their size and cuteness. I glanced to Kayla and Jeff. “And you two are good? Corwin, too?”

Jeff released a heavy sigh, and Kayla took his arm in her own. “We’re good to go,” she replied confidently. “Jeff’s still apprehensive about letting Corwin come with us, but we trust you when you say he’s going to be an asset to the team.”

“Yeah, boss, we’re ready to go,” Jeff added.

I nodded as I looked at them. Everyone was twitching and fidgeting at the fight ahead of us. Knowing this group, they would be sharpened by the fear rather than beholden to it, which was the whole point of bringing them in. Other than trying to get Jeff the Needle Lancer class, of course.

“Okay, let’s walk and talk,” I said before I began leading them. Todd and Carl’s crew had just emerged from the tent looking refreshed, but worried, and I gave them a nod. They saluted me before moving towards where their group would be. As much as I wanted to bring Todd along so that we could Amalgamate Ylstin, he was too useful on a battlefield full of corpses to waste inside the hive.

The volunteer army hadn’t stopped even as their leaders broke away from the group, but instead continued. Each of the groups had their own commander and second in command to make sure things ran as smoothly as possible. They had their orders to keep going straight even when the strike team stopped to rendezvous with me.

“Alright, so, we’re going to be going in with Gloria’s group,” I said, speaking a little louder so that my team could hear me over the sounds of the marching army. “No using abilities that cost resources or skills that have a long cooldown. Speaking of cooldowns, Thomas, did you get that sandwich?”

“Sure did,” he confirmed. “Judgment of the People is locked and loaded.”

“Excellent. Gabrielle is the only exception to this, but only if someone will die immediately if they’re not healed,” I said. “Each group has healers allotted to them, and they should be at the top of their game today.”

“Save my mana for the strike team, but save lives when necessary,” Gabrielle repeated, nodding.

“Precisely. Our way in is a worker’s tunnel that Gloria’s group should be heading towards. If it’s where we’re expecting it to be, it should be about eight feet off of the ground and big enough for us to move through at a crouch. Once we’re inside, Gloria will guard the tunnel behind us.”

“And once we’re inside, it’s my turn to shine,” Kayla said. “I’m to take on the form of Fertro and backstab any workers along our way to the central area.”

“That’s right. The worker’s are non-combatants, but they can still attack, fight, and warn the rest of the hive. They’re only worth a single point each and you’ll be killing them in one hit,” I replied. “Kayla, I want you on the outskirts of any fights we get in and looking for targets to surprise. Thomas, protect Gabrielle so she can focus on healing. Jeff, Corwin, and I will be in the thick of things with Elder Tet backing us up.”

“I promise that you will not fall on this day,” Elder Tet said solemnly.

“Don’t use my super buff on Ylstin, but wait for the queen, right?” Thomas asked. I could tell that he wasn’t asking because he forgot, but because of nerves.

I nodded and gave him a thumbs up. “Yes. We’ll run into Ylstin on the way to the throne room, and she’s going to be a bitch of a fight. Even so, with our composition we should be fine barring any unpleasant new developments. Jeff needs to be the one to get the last hit on the queen, too, for class purposes.” I sighed as I thought about anything else that might need to be said. The trees were becoming more sparse as we closed in on the hive. “Any questions?”

“My stomach hurts, can I call in sick?” Jeff asked in a nervous, but mostly joking tone.

“Sure, we’ll take Kayla and Corwin in there without you and we’ll let you know how it goes,” I answered seriously without missing a beat.

“Oh, well, would you look at that? I’m feeling better already,” Jeff retorted. “What a miracle it is, having something to fight for.”

“We all do, Jeff. Remember, the faster we get through this and slay the queen, the faster the rest of the Vespae will give up and hand us our victory. Ylstin is the only exception. Get in, kill Ylstin, kill the queen. I want to be back home in time for lunch.”

The people around us began surging forward. The mist was becoming less substantial as more light was able to filter in through the trees. Before we knew it, we saw the hive. I could tell that the sheer size of it caught the breaths of a lot of other people, and I understood. They couldn’t have seen it through the trees or fog before, but now it loomed over them like a fortress.

I heard Gloria roar and the rest of her group went up in a war cry. Reaching into my inventory, I pulled out my Vague Stick and willed it back into the shape of a spear. I clutched onto it with both hands as I began running. All around I heard the sounds of weapons being pulled out of sheaths and scabbards, and my heart began to pound from the excitement.

The direction our attack came from wasn’t the one the Vespae had started building towards. They had started encroaching in the opposite direction towards a series of small lakes instead of towards Etson. That left us with nearly a quarter mile of clearing between the tree line and the hive.

High above us was a cloud of Vespae flying in and out of their home. Most of them appeared to be gathering from the nearby wilderness rather than holding on to weapons. Indeed, these were the workers of the hive. They leaned to the larger side of the Vespae, about four feet tall, with a black and yellow stripes. As the volunteer army gained ground on the hive, more workers began turning around and heading back.

“I can’t believe it worked!” Thomas yelled as he ran behind me.

“Sometimes you just have to trust me!” I yelled back, though I didn’t take my eyes off of the sky. As the workers began filtering inside, I could begin to pick out the soldiers who were patrolling the skies. It was a large group, equally as uncountable as the ones that came after me and my group at the lookout tower. They didn’t stay high above us for long. Or rather, they couldn’t.

The sounds of gunfire began to pop up nearby as ranged units began firing. Bullets tore through carapace and wings alike while crossbow bolts and arrows, while slower, did their work just as well. Vespae began to fall out of the air, and soon they all began to descend. It was hard to tell which ones were dead and which were merely falling, but the people were vigilant.

Gloria’s group scattered as the Vespae began to hit the ground. Those that had their wings sliced through hit the ground hardest, but they were light enough to survive their fall from the sky. Thankfully for us, there was no shortage of people who had no qualms with squashing a bug while they were down. Many of the people around me, sans Gabrielle who had a pacifist build, began stomping, skewering, and slicing through the easy foes.

The other Vespae weren’t making it easy; the wasps flew down so that we humans were in range of their spears. While some people were looking down for quick points, others such as myself were looking upwards. I willed my Vague Stick to grow longer, stretching it out into a pike that would give me the range advantage against the Vespae soldiers.

Despite the attack from above, Gloria’s group continued to push forward, and the strike team fell forward with them. Gunfire sprang up from all around us, though my ears no longer hurt from the constant cacophony of noise. I could tell that it was getting to a lot of people in the group, but not enough to keep them from fighting.

Fighting upwards with a pike was difficult, but I made due without my Warmind abilities. Instead of aiming for the bodies as I normally would when going for kill shots, I went for wings. The Vespae wings were tough due to their size, but they couldn’t hold up against a proper weapon. Not everyone had guns or ranged weapons capable of fighting against the reach of the enemy’s spears, so that’s what I was aiming for. For each Vespae I dropped, someone else claimed the kill.

Not far in the distance I saw a large gray sword that looked like it belonged in a pool arc over the crowd. It sliced through four Vespae who had been unfortunate enough to be lined up without slowing down even a bit. “Pumping!” a high pitched voice called, and I shook my head. It would be about five seconds before he could swing that again, but Jason Dodge was well protected. He had a job as an interceptor thanks to his outrageous weapon, and his group was to go after any Guardwasps that would come to help protect the hive.

As I continued to pierce the heavens with my pike, I had a front row seat to watching Gloria work. For a woman in her late forties, she was putting in the work of several people combined. I was momentarily distracted as I watched her jump from Vespae to Vespae, leaping incredible heights as she landed on their backs and slashed at their wings much like I was doing. When she ran out of insects to run on, Gloria simply ran through the air before jumping to get higher.

“Your sister is, like, life goals, man!” Gabrielle yelled to Thomas as she watched the Storm Sentinel dance through the enemies. Her head snapped to the side as one of our people was skewered, and fell to the ground. Without even glancing around to see if any other healer was watching, she raised her hand in his direction and a soft, honey glow enveloped the injury and he stood back up ready for more.

“What?” Thomas yelled back, clearly distracted as he blocked blows coming from two Vespae that had begun to tag team him.

I pierced the wing of one of them, and the Vespae fell on Thomas’ sword. Thankfully the wasp wasn’t so heavy that the man buckled under the weight of it. The Justicar began blocking with the body on his sword before awkwardly attempting to fling the body towards its living comrade. It would have been cool if it worked, but unfortunately the Vespae dodged out of the way.

Helping Thomas out, I returned to destroy the other Vespae’s wing so it could fall in range of the man’s sword. He killed it, and we locked eyes for a moment before he spoke. “You saw nothing.”

“Nah, dude, I definitely saw it,” I responded cheekily, swatting a Vespae that was approaching him from behind. “Almost had him, almost.”

“Pay attention, you two!” Kayla ordered as she rushed past me and sliced the Vespae I just downed before it could stab Thomas in the back.

“Yes, ma’am,” we both replied before returning to the fight, but at that point she was already gone.

As our group moved forward, we left a trail of dead bugs behind us. It was unfortunate, but humans were falling too, though not nearly as fast. Despite the deaths, more Vespae soldiers were coming out of the hive at an increased rate. I knew that the bulk of the volunteer army had to be fighting in full force by now.

The Vespae soldiers were starting to fight a lot smarter now as some of the Royal Guardwasps flew out to command them. As much as I wanted to, I couldn’t justify breaking ranks in order to take care of them myself. The hive was coming up fast and resistance was getting stronger.

Eventually, Gloria had to land amongst us. “Almost there!” she yelled, and I received a very welcome notification.

[[Notice]]

You are under the effect of an ally’s Helpful Breeze. Dexterity has increased by 8 for the duration of the ability.

I grinned as a refreshing breeze passed over my body. Gloria had used this during the fight with the Writhing Zeppelin to great effect, though it had only been level 1 at the time and provided a bonus of 4. It was good to see she had increased it to the scenario cap of level 3, as this was the perfect setting for her to use it. Immediately after the notification, I noticed that the Vespae were starting to become slower as Helpful Breeze’s debuffing counterpart, Harmful Gale, was activated.

“Yeah, Gloria!” Jeff hollered as he attacked another fallen Vespae. Unlike the other warriors on our side, Jeff had taken matters into his own hands when it came to grounding the wasps. He dodged, ducked, and weaved, but almost always reached out for the spears when they came his way. With his high Dexterity stat and accidentally high Strength, he was able to grab the enemy’s weapons and pull them towards his waiting rapier.

I snorted at the brute force method, but had to hand it to him that it was an effective one. Any Vespae that relinquished their weapon either out of fear or not being able to keep a grip lost that weapon for good. As Jeff yanked one of the spears free, he tossed it backwards to Corwin. The dog caught it with his already bug-bloodied teeth and snapped it in pieces before bounding off to tear into another fallen wasp.

The hive was now merely fifty feet away, and I could see our destination. The lowest of the worker’s tunnels was in front of us and clear of bugs, and would stay that way. None of the warriors would come from this direction because using these tunnels were beneath them, which would be their downfall. It always struck me as odd how they could be such a proud species and yet fail to expect things like this from their enemies.

It may have been odd, but I was grateful for it. It was going to be the key to our victory, after all.

Elder Tet may have been the most impressive, though. He did not attack often on account of being told to save his resources, but when he did it was noticeable. As the Kobold swung his staff upwards, a dozen spires of earth and dirt rose from between the members of the volunteer army. They lunged towards the sky with a grudge before grabbing the Vespae out of the air and pulling them in range of the warriors to strike. It was incredibly effective.

“Activating cloud cover!” a woman yelled as we fought our way closer. I turned to see an elderly lady start to glow pink as she raised a pure white scepter over her head. It turned dark in an instant and a thick cloud began to envelope the area around her.

“Strike team, you know where to go!” I yelled as I started advancing. The cloud became thicker as I pushed through until it almost became hard for me to see through. I looked behind me to see that Kayla had grabbed Gabrielle and Jeff had grabbed Thomas to lead them through the fog. Thanks to Serranras’ Trust, this didn’t hinder us in the slightest. Elder Tet and Corwin had no problems finding us through the crowd, and we soon arrived at the base of the hive.

“Kayla first, then everyone else,” I said as I put my back against the hive and offered my hands for a boost. Kayla didn’t have to ask twice, and she allowed me to help her up. “Thomas, you’re next. Remember Kayla’s going to put on an illusion. Gabrielle, Tet, let’s go.”

I kept an eye out as Jeff helped each of the other members of the strike team get their bearings. No threats were coming after us specifically, but the rest of the volunteer army was fighting as well as could be expected. Jeff helped Corwin up after Elder Tet, and soon he was helping me up as the last one.

The worker’s tunnel was damp and small, causing everyone except for Elder Tet and Corwin to have to duck. Even Kayla, the shortest of us all, had to dip her head. A light yellow glow showed us the way forward and the group began the trek deep into the Vespae hive. Ahead, Kayla used Part of the Crowd to shift into a Vespae with a metallic blue sheen to its carapace. This was the form of Fertro, the Blue Mud Wasp Vespae. With her daggers in hand, she began leading us deeper into the tunnel.

At least, she had begun taking us deeper into the tunnel until a feeling of dread and hatred washed over me. It came accompanied by a series of notes that had been ingrained in my mind since the day I first heard them.

Dom!

Domm!!

Doom!!!

“Motherfucker," I swore, unable to help myself.