Chapter 540: Robbers and robbers
The village was built on top of a hill and surrounded by thick forests in all directions. Even humans had difficulties walking over them (although beasts could fly right over).
The forests weren’t tall enough to hide the group of bandits that surrounded the village, blocking its exits. Some of them shot inside the village with their bows, but they didn’t try to break past the thick living stone gates.
People who hid on the other side of the village’s wall shot back with their own weapons, but most of their shots hit only the stone shields that bandits brought with them.
Malevolence had given her army an order to approach from the side where the forests were the tallest and leave the carts somewhat behind. The bee soldiers flew ahead of humans, shooting down random hostile insects and creating a threatening, buzzing aura around the army.
Now, thanks to Malevolence’s tactics, the army suddenly emerged near the village, scaring both the farmers and the bandits with its appearance. Less than a hundred kilometres separated Malevolence’s army from the ongoing siege—the distance that human rifles could easily shoot at!
The sentries that the bandits left to ensure nobody ambushed them were already dead—Beemarine assassins killed them before they could warn anyone.
The shooting ahead stopped. The bandits quickly changed their formation, preparing to fight an upcoming threat. Some villagers cheered, welcoming the help that the Agents had promised them; others grew even more fearful for their lives.
"Keep advancing!" Malevolence ordered, knowing that her signaller would spread the word through the entire army, even if they were too far to hear. "And ready your weapons, but don’t shoot without a command."
With a stomping of hundreds of human feet, the army approached another hundred meters before Malevolence ordered it to stop.
She wondered if the bandits would run away at this point, but they didn’t. Instead, one of them separated from the rest and moved toward Malevolence’s army with his hand raised high.
"What is this human doing?" Malevolence asked Agent Eloquence, who was flying near her over the shoulder of the Lieutenant of her humans.
Eloquence, of course, already had her Agents near the humans. Most of them were spying with their astral projection, which made them even more mobile and stealthy than they already were. So she replied immediately.
"He’s a negotiator. The waving of hands is a human sign that he doesn’t want to fight. The leader of the bandits ordered him to talk with you. He hopes that if he suggests you share the spoils from this village, you might agree and not attack them. The bandit leader knows they probably won’t win against a group like yours, but he hopes that you don’t want to lose people fighting in the first place."
"Why doesn’t he just retreat?"
"These bandits are too hungry and desperate. Their food supplies are too low. They need the food of this village... They heard there’s more of it than usual. Which they are right about, as you know. This village is small, but it’s luckier and richer than all the villages we’ve met before."
"Yes. Which is why we need their supplies just as much! Especially because of the weather..." Malevolence scowled.
Her army had a few Oracles who bravely set out on a dangerous journey with her. Because there were only a few of them, the only thing they predicted with some guarantee was the weather.
Last week’s weather was calm, but next week the Oracles promised heavy storms. They would render the river—the one the army will have to cross—impossible to swim over for a while.
They will also make the army travel more slowly, especially over the forests that it will have to cross to reach the unbroken bridge over the river.
In the worst-case scenario, these storms could delay Malevolence’s army for an entire week. This will be enough time for their supplies to run out and force them to stop and farm usnea trees for an unknown time.
This was NOT on Malevolence’s plans. She wanted to reach that mountain and start building the first sub-hive, establish proper logistics and make sure her army wouldn’t have to scrabble equipment that wasn’t rotten or rusted by water from the sky.
And she wanted the results for Father, sure. Every meter of land that Malevolence conquered approached the new line of genes Father will be able to give his daughters.
"So what are your orders, Grand Commander?" Eloquence asked.
"Send our own ’negotiator’ to speak with this human in their language. Whoever is fit for this," Malevolence said. "Tell the bandits that we will feed them if they swear loyalty to Emperor Nectus Stingprince, our glorious Father! And convince them to give the right answer."
One of the blue humans—one from Eloquence’s village—walked forward from the army. When he and the bandit stood together, even Malevolence could see the huge differences in their appearance.
Although the style of clothing both used was similar, the bandit also wore dozens of necklaces with beast fangs, various colourful rocks and flowers on them. He was also much more dishevelled, and his chitin looked pale and flaking—a sign of poor health that contrasted with his wide shoulders and ferociously open jaws.
The two humans exchanged words in the Vardish language, after which the bandit returned to his people. A while later, Eloquence smiled and reported:
"The leader of bandits is going to agree to this offer. He thinks this is just as good as his own... And if you don’t have the food you promised, his band can still turn on you. They have no loyalty to the Bee Empire, but we can quickly change that. They didn’t realise yet that the insects that fly around humans aren’t random gnats, but us!"
Malevolence huffed.
"Teach them the truth quickly, Eloquence. If any of them kills a bee, they will be killed themselves!"
Then she turned to the village. All this time, people there watched, not sure what was going on. Now they probably were going to be... disappointed.
Their "saviours" were going to rob them blind!