-----V-----

We gathered ourselves and got ready to take on the closest hive in Smittis. My group, that had Franek as the leader, was twenty in all. Amara, Braxton, and Ivona were all the people I knew, then we had six soldiers from Vick, while the rest were artifact hunters. Some of the soldiers had what looked like flamethrowers. They weren‘t artifacts, but they would likely be able to burn the carapaces of the kypseli.

As I was helping out piling up the kypseli corpses, I heard from the other soldiers that this was the fifth time of the kypseli managing to climb over the wall. Five times in only two months. I managed to get more details from the soldiers.

„The matriarch queen has made some great improvements with her swarm, their carapaces are a bit tougher now, and even the artifact-kypseli have gotten better using their programs,“ one of the soldiers told me.

„We would have likely managed to stop them before getting over the wall if we hadn‘t taken some of the turrets away,“ another soldier said.

„Why take some of your defenses away?“ I asked.

„Because the Dynami Empire has gotten more feisty, their army is closer to our borders, much closer. And our leaders said that we needed to move some of our equipment to the front line. They even took the vehicle artifacts!“

The people on the planet still hasn‘t found the way to replicate energy-based artifacts, so they only use the ones they find from vaults and dungeons. They don‘t have many turrets to protect their walls, and also I heard they have only vehicle artifacts in the single digits. Thankfully, I don‘t live in this country, so this matter doesn‘t matter with me.

I glanced over to my group. Some of them were Wilmer‘s people, and some were not. I can‘t go around asking who is with him, I will likely talk to the wrong person, they will have to go to me and Amara.

The map Franek was given, had three hives that we were going to take care of. The gemstone I needed was close to the third, so I need to help them with two hives before I can get it. Wilmer‘s people have somehow managed to get the right map in Franeks‘ hand, it was likely a soldier who managed that, it couldn‘t possibly be an artifact hunter who did it.

„And that‘s that, you all are ready?“ Franek said after reviewing the map for us all.

We said that we had all the gear that we needed, and we finally took our first steps towards Smittis.

The wall was less than a dozen kilometer long, and at both ends was the ocean. This small landmass was the only place to go over to the other continent of Smittis, but you could also cross to Smittis through Oxy, which there they also had walls and protected their lands from the kypseli.

Only an hour in, and the surrounding has already changed quite a bit. There was snow all around, and thankfully I bought my self some warm clothing before I left Tyrida, it had fur and all that. Braxton had his winter clothes, while Amara just wore her artifact armor which could keep her warm.

I thought at first it was snow, but it wasn‘t entirely. The queen has tainted her land with strange disgusting mucus that completely eradicates any plant life. Though it was a bit slimy, it wasn‘t that hard to walk on. The color of the snow was white, of course, but because of the strange mucus it was glowing purple like the kypseli itself.

I don‘t understand how this benefits the kypseli, but it really is irritating to walk on. Not because it was a bit slimy, but because of the sound it makes when walking on it. The squelching sound will be the thing I hear for the next few days, I really hope I will lose my hearing before the next day. Maybe that is its purpose, to annoy the hell out of us, and to make sounds so we can‘t sneak around. That‘s why the kypseli have pointy legs? Because they can just pierce through this yuck?

We encountered a few wandering kypseli which we took down with no injuries. But as we kept getting closer to the first hive, we have started fighting more kypseli in larger groups. One soldier got a bad gash on her back and needed to be treated quickly before she would have bled to death. The woman was tough, she still wanted to keep going after she was bandaged up, but she couldn‘t bring her chestplate armor which was completely ruined. An artifact hunter was gracious enough to give her a spare winter clothing.

Since leaving the walls, I have been on the lookout for Wilmer‘s people and was quite thankful when a man named Chase walked up to me and started talking quietly.

„Vincent, right?“ he said.

I nodded. Chase glanced around, then spoke quickly and with concern.

„I am with Wilmer and so are some others here, but there are only a few of us. We only managed to get six of us if you include me. So with your group of three and mine, that would make us nine that are with Wilmer. The soldiers here aren‘t on our side.“

Nine against eleven, I don‘t like that. But if the soldiers aren‘t with Wilmer, then the soldier who took a bad gash on her back wouldn't be a problem. So it would more likely be nine against ten and a half. That‘s a bit better.

So with the soldiers, Ivona, and Franek being together, then there are three artifact hunters that aren‘t with Wilmer, but they could also not be on Franeks‘ side. We could try and convince them, but it would jeopardize us if they won‘t ally with Wilmer and his group.

„The other three hunters, are they with Franek?“ I asked with a low voice.

„That I don‘t know. I can try and get more information about them by talking to them.“

„Alright, I will give you the signal after we near the third hive, so you and your men best be ready then.“

„Got it,“ he said and walked slower to get some distance from me, and joined with other artifact hunters.

----------

We continued to the first hive, and I started glancing at Braxton a few times. It was just that mask, I haven‘t seen his face once. I really want to know what he looks like, he doesn‘t even take the mask off when we take a break and eat. He has always been in my sight since leaving Slefend, and the guy hasn‘t eaten a thing. He keeps his distance from others when we sit around near a fire. Who is this guy, really?

„Amara, can you tell me more about Braxton?“ I asked as I walked up to her, trying to ignore all the squelching noise beneath me.

„Braxton, eh?“ she said and glanced towards him. „Nope, can‘t say.“

I sighed with irritation.

„Why?“

„He just doesn‘t want me to tell others about him.“

Damn you lady! I don‘t care what he wants, just tell me, will you!

Braxton Yorik, the gunslinger. The guy who has a cowboy hat and wears a mask that has glowing red lines across it. Who is he? He can somehow use two artifacts at once without one defying the other, but he hasn‘t once used a program that I have seen. His face is hidden, he might not even have a face. And apparently he doesn‘t even need nutrition. And he barely says a word to others.

Now even when we walk in a group towards the hive, he is on the side, watching into the distance.

----------

„The first hive is in sight,“ Franek said and turned to look at us. „This fight will get nasty, so fight bravely, fight with the artifacts that you hold with your life, and let‘s do this without any injuries. Are you all with me!“ he shouted encouragingly.

The group shouted back with agreements. I heard some talk about how many they will kill, others saying that they are with him all the way, while one other guy saying he is going to be the best kypseli exterminator around.

„Wow, so high and mighty,“ Amara murmured.

Franek seemed to have heard as he glared quickly towards her, but ignored it.

„Soldiers, prepare your flames, we will march to their nests with the might of Stratos!“

Then we marched through the tainted snow, and the flamethrowers were brought down at the hive‘s entrance.

The hive was underground, dug out piles of dirt and rock was everywhere. Small beetle-like kypseli were coming in and out, digging out new tunnels or making the main cave bigger. These ones weren‘t warriors, they were merely workers of the hive. And they burned to a crisp by the flames.

A few warrior kypseli of the same type as the ones from the gate were defending the entrance. They were taken care of rather easily, their armor was weakened when the fire burned them, allowing even normal swords to cut them as if they were only paper.

The soldiers were saving their flamethrower fuel, not using even a single drop until we would encounter the first hive. And as they burned the snow, we could finally walk on something that didn‘t make that irritating sound of squelching.

We entered the hive, and the cave stretched out bigger than a cathedral, rows of pillars held the ceiling from falling. Eggs lay all across the floor, and some were already hatching. The disgusting mucus was not only on the floor, but it also was on the floor and ceiling, lighting up the cave with indigo color, I saw some of the worker kypseli spitting out their yuck on the untainted walls.

„God the smell, it‘s horrible,“ I said and held my nose.

Amara didn‘t seem to notice the stench, most likely because of her helmet and artifact armor. I really should have bought myself a gasmask before going to Smittis.

The kypseli screeched and charged forth. Their numbers were uncountable, at least in the hundreds. And we were only twenty, fighting in their territory.

I also saw the things they called an egg layer. Instead of a bug queen that lays the eggs, it was these that were created by the kypseli matriarch, the swarm‘s leader, but most people just call her the queen. Even though there are other lesser queens out and about, they still call the alpha kypseli, queen, instead of the matriarch.

The egg layers had six elongated legs, their body mostly just a sack where they created their eggs. There was no face to speak of, but they did have a small head with antennas on. And they were completely ignoring us.

Two of our artifact hunters held rifles, and they started using programs immediately. And their bullets were shattering the kypseli left and right. Their zettra power would have been depleted just in a few seconds if it wasn‘t for us giving them energy from our lesser artifact weapons. The people who had weapons for short range gave us their energy so we didn‘t need to go close to the kypseli.

I really hoped that they rifle users were on our side, but Chase said they weren‘t. And I damn hope they won‘t ally with Franek.

The flamethrowers bathed the insects that were getting close, then we continued moving forwards slowly. Small hatchling larvae that came out of the eggs burned, not even a minute of their birth and they were already dying. Sure it was really cruel, but in my eyes, they were just insects that threaten the nearby kingdom with their ravagery.

Franek wasn‘t going to allow me to get some free teeth, he went in with his sword, taking down everything in his path. The tentacles never reached him, and no kypseli scraped him.

The hive was at flames, and we were starting to take down the kypseli egg layers. There was a handful of them, and I managed to kill the same amount as Franek.

The first hive was almost cleared, and it wasn‘t hard at all even though we fought on their soil. But there were some who took injuries, thankfully not lethal.

This hive was rather new, so there were not strong bugs here like a lesser queen or an artifact-kypseli. This was only the first hive of three, so the next one will most likely contain a more dangerous foe to deal with. And we might then get some casualties.

We left the hive when we finished burning all the eggs and made sure everything was exterminated. People don‘t want the cave to be hollow, so when we are done with a hive, we plant explosives around the pillars and walls, then let the gunpowder do the rest. It is so that the kypseli need to dig out everything again, giving the folks in Stratos and Oxy a breather.

„One hive finished, two more to go. This can‘t be this easy, can it?“ Amara said.

„Likely not, this was just the entrance of their ant city. And the deeper we go, more numbers of the swarm will start to show up, it will get a lot messier,“ I said.