Devourer

Chapter 177: Hive Indomitable

I patted myself on the back as I watched  Rosa sit up, her eyes wide and her cheeks streaked with tears from the procedure. If I hadn’t paralysed her, she would be screaming from the way I was cutting into her. But regardless, the operation was done quickly, in just fifteen minutes. The fact I can change my body undoubtedly made operations quicker.

“Can I have some clothes…” Rosa replied softly as she took a shaky step forward.

“Not yet, they would just be ruined after the test.” I said, and Rosa froze as she looked up at me.

“Test?” Rosa asked warily.

“Yep.” I replied cheerily before I snapped my fingers. A maw opened above Rosa, and it spat out a burst of Hellfire. The sickly red flame engulfed her, and Rosa screamed on instinct. The Vampires were all too aware of their vulnerability to fire. The Demons undoubtedly made them this way since they wanted them to be always at their mercy. Fire was the forte of the denizens of hell, so creating servants who were vulnerable to fire was a good idea for control. Plus, chances are the Vampires were used for fighting things that were not from the Searing Hells, which would explain why a demon-created species was found exclusively on Terra and so well adapted to feeding on local species.

But as I looked on, I saw no significant damage even as she desperately cast spells to douse the flame. After a few attempts, the fire was out, revealing a wide-eyed and panicked Rosa, who was completely unharmed. Even her long platinum hair was unsinged.

“Well, that worked well,” I said with a satisfied smile. Rosa just turned to look at me with a vaguely traumatised look on her face.

“Alright, so get dressed and get your stuff in order we’ll be heading out in a few days.” I said as I turned away without another glance. I could sense Rosa just staring at me leave as her vitals hovered comfortably on the border of a full-blown panic attack.

Yes, I could be gentler, but that wasn’t a good idea with vampires. They understood the power and callous cruelty. If I were too nice, they would no doubt try to take advantage. So, I had to be harsher to the Vampires than I was to everyone else. But on the other hand, I would also use them for more brutal functions.

For instance, Ordias suggested forming a secret group of agents that handled internal security. Something like a secret police force whose primary purpose was to defend the Empire from internal threats. Thus, the ASB was born, short for the Averlonian Security Bureau. Naturally Ordias suggested he himself head this new organisation, and given that it was a rather good idea, Cecilia and I decided that it was fine. 

Rosa, on the other hand, not wanting to be left behind, suggested a new avenue of research that would help facilitate covert operations. To that, Cecilia agreed as well, competition was good, and greed was good. We had no use for complacent servants.

Strength was born from adversity and threats, as long as Cecilia and I were able to prevent infighting, this system would promote strength. This spirit has slowly infected every aspect of society. Everything from the students in the academies to the dwarven clans and the merchants dotting the empire. The directive was evident across the Empire, merit and strength ruled. The weak were only taken care of on the off chance they could produce capable individuals. 

The crown’s stance was clear: the weak were not cared for due to some vague sense of empathy, mercy or virtue. It was a purely practical consideration made possible due to abundant resources. This means in lean times, these protections could easily be stripped away at any time. So pick up the pace and strengthen yourself you never know when the crown’s patience may run out.

On Rosa’s part, she seemed to have finally found her wits when one of the tentacles extended towards her, offering a tailored dress that perfectly matched her tastes. I laughed as I took off into the air, my mind still tracking the sight through the hive mind. Rosa gave the tentacle a complicated expression before receiving the clothes. It must be awkward for her to see the very same tentacles that were stabbing and cutting into her earlier, giving her some nice clothes like some twisted peace offering.

I took off towards the sea, and with a bit of mischief in mind, I shot up towards an angel that was circling above the city, no doubt monitoring it. I was cloaked, so there was no way for this one to see me. As I approached, I recognised that this was one that I had screwed with before. I tore past him as I let out the usual crack from a burst of acceleration. I laughed as the angel spun in the air momentarily from the shockwave before stabilising their flight. They looked around in annoyed confusion before visibly sighing and continuing his patrol route.

This was the third time I had done this to this particular angel. The angels know it's me doing it, and they aren’t surprised I can find these patrols. Since they were legally allowed to do these patrols, and they weren’t even cloaked. With angels now walking the streets of the major cities, their winged forms were no longer a rare sight. In perhaps a point of irony, their presence has removed much of the mysticism that surrounded the angels. 

Up close, they were powerful but far less menacing than some members of the hive. I even let some members of Project Briar poke their heads out, which was quite alarming when they showed up next to Cecilia. 

When I reached the Azure Sea, I dived straight down, tearing through the air, and tucked my body in. Although I was travelling fast enough to cause a decent shock wave, the magic surrounding my body made sure all that appeared was an inconspicuous plop when I dropped into the water.

I switched to swimming, and with some clever ether propulsion, I shot towards Serchax’s palace. When I arrived, she was almost expecting me despite my stealthy arrival. 

“Ah my liege, how kind of you to join me.” Serchax said as she slithered up to me her blue eyes gleaming with excitement.

“I have seen some interesting things in the threads of fate.” Serchax said as the glowing magic eye in the centre of her forehead glowed for a moment.

“Mind telling me what you saw?” I asked dryly as she did a little spin in excitement.

“Fire my lord!” Serchax said with a flourish.

Fire? Well that probably points towards her seeing my upcoming field trip. I have also been experimenting with these seer abilities, but from what I gather, they were horribly unreliable. Also, the irony was not lost on me that an aquatic creature like Serchax was excited about fire of all things.

“Yes, we are going to hell. Alastor has been in touch. We are going down to take over.” I stated and Serchax nodded eagerly.

“Ah it has been so long since I visited that delightful place. A pity I didn’t get chance to meet Alastor again, he is so delightful in bed.” Serchax said with a laugh.

In bed? Her and Alastor? Oh right, Serchax can create illusions so real that it tricked reality itself. Part of that ability means she can transform into a humanoid form. She did spend some of her time seducing the odd sailor or two from the Merchant Princes. If the stories are to be believed her song was so enticing she wrecked ships on beaches because she made them sail right onto shore.

“A few things as well. Now that we are at least officially finalising the alliance between the  Mugummans and the Naga I need something in the interim.” I stated, and Serchax tilted her head questioningly.

“Cecilia won’t be going for obvious reasons involving political interests and general safety. So I need the Mugummans and the Naga to understand that they are to intervene if something happens in the Empire even if that stupid piece of paper hasn’t been signed.” I said, and Serchax nodded in understanding.

“It will be done my lord, I will send out the orders. When will we be departing?” Serchax asked.

In a few days. I still have some things to address…

◦◦,`°.✽✦✽.♚.✽✦✽.°`,◦◦

Malegaros slithered along the walls as he observed the latest creations of his lord. He let out a gurgling growl of approval. These new designs were astoundingly inspired. Twin ether cores were extremely expensive to create, but the power they yielded was more than worth it.

These creatures were not that large, standing merely three meters tall on their hunched frames. They had a pair of digitigrade legs and long curved blades for hands. They had two other lesser arms that were designed to cast magic and they were using a new type of muscle fiber that was practically covered in ether circuits. 

From Mahaila’s estimates if she got jumped by a dozen of these she would have to bid a retreat. His lord has just made a critical breakthrough in the genetic arms race. Twin ether cores would allow for some exciting things, such as a significant resistance to jamming since the current jamming spells were designed to target a single ether core, not two.

The Great Beast, in his generosity, has offered this improvement to Mahaila herself once he has acquired enough power. This wasn’t a point of distrust it was that as an Heir of the Firstborn the her ether core was so swollen with power over the millennia that the Great Beast simply did not have the power to do it for her at this point.

But Malegaros could only imagine the power someone like Mahaila could bring to bear with two ether cores. The Lord’s favourite human, Cecilia was no different, she was also pending such improvements, but the Great Beast was waiting for… something…

Malegaros could only speculate what grand scheme his lord had in mind for that woman. But judging by what he has done so far he could only guess that it involved pouring more power into that small frame.

These latest creatures would be having their first debut in the Searing Hells, and Malegaros was tasked with finalising any designs. Adaptations needed to be implemented to ensure they perform well in the searing hot environment of hell.

Malegaros skittered up to one particular Briar, and it lowered its head obediently, and Malegaros got to work. The nature of these creatures meant that the changes had to be done individually rather than the usual process of melting all of them down and simply making a new batch.

He got to work doing what he did best, spinning essence and making flesh take form. He watched as the Briar twitched and it let out a growl of pain. Malegaros knew that each one of these creatures could tear him limb from limb with as much ease as a his lord could stamp out a fly.

But he was not afraid, in the hive, the key was the Hierarchy. The Briars knew their place…

SILENCE

OBEY

Malegaros barked into the hive mind, and the creature stilled like the obedient pawn it was. His command crushed the will of the creature before him. His command was powerful enough that even the living walls trembled in submission. 

Malegaros was not like the others, he was not like Nafas, who commanded calmly with cold logic, nor was he like Legiana whose precise command can target individual creatures with none of the other creatures being aware of the command’s presence, and he definitely was not like Azatherine who commanded with fiery passion and boundless arrogance.

No, his way was the way of the old world, the strong ruled and the weak beneath him would bow and obey. He would brook no disobedience, and every creature under his command knew that. His ruthless and cruel method of command was precisely why his lord gave him command of his brood. A brood built for terror and sheer destruction. 

As Malegaros implanted a line of code that would modify its adrenal glands, his mind wandered again to how his lord had distributed the command of his hive. Legiana was his second in command, and she commanded a group of humanoid-type creatures designed for stealth and commando operations. A perfect match for her precise method of command.

Nafas on the other hand commanded the general broods. Scores of common soldiers and standard units. Her command dictated a broad-spectrum strategy. She would command entire fronts of a war and her ability for cold logical assesment greatly lended to her ability to perform in this task.

As for Azatherine she was to bring hell from above, a searing blaze to wash away the foe in a flash of incinerating flame. So she must be fiery in her passions, if she wishes something dead she will stop at nothing. She will turn the battlefield to glass if that was what it took.

Malegaros on the other hand was given a unique position. A position he greatly cherished and appreciated. The new world was soft, and weak. Malegaros did not fulfill any conventional strategic role as far as war was concerned. No, he was a chained beast for the world would not survive him. He was a reminder of the old world, where blood was used to write history not ink. 

So he waits, patiently, eagerly and almost desperately for the next great war. He knew it was inevitable and his Lord agreed. There would be no peace only war. A return to the old world, where there were mountains of corpses and rivers of blood. Malegaros would do what he does best, wage war against his lord's enemies. May they suffocate under the bodies of thier fallen fellows, and may their flesh feed the Hive.

“Malegaros.” he heard the familiar voice ring out in the hive mind. The proximity of the signal indicated that she was right behind him.

Malegaros did not turn instead he continued his work, using a acid concoction he generated to melt off two of the Briar’s right ribs to get access to a deeper organ. The resistance to fire was not high enough, insufficient, weak… unacceptable.

“Require assistance?” Malegaros replied as he dug his hand into the chest cavity of the Briar and it let out a soft gurgle of pain.

SILENCE

OBEY

OR SUFFER

“Heavy handed as usual I see.” Legiana said offhandedly as she walked next to Malegaros and watched as he shoved a new organ into the chest cavity as his other hand spun the essence to allow the Brair’s body to tolerate its presence.

“Orders clear, silence demanded, obedience demanded.” Malegaros replied curtly.

“Our King is speaking with the great serpent Serchax as we speak, you need to hurry on this. Our king wants to bring twelve of the Briars into Hell.” Legiana stated plainly.

“Acknowleged, modifications will be completed.” Malegaros replied as he extracted the hand and healed the chest of the first Briar’s chest shut before moving on to the other one.

“You do not approve of our King’s alliance with the Great Serpent.” Legiana stated as she probed his mind with her usual precise navigation of the hive mind.

“Do not approve of usage of organisms beyond hive.” Malgeros replied as he sawed the next Brair’s chest open.

“Disloyal, unpredictable, messy, absent of intelligent design. Adaptations and strength born of random chance, lack strategic consistency of design.” Malegaros added as he readied to saw through the next set of carapace-like ribs.

“But with their unique utility.” Legiana said and Malegaros paused a twinge of annoyance radiated from him into the Hive mind causing the surrounding creatures to wilt from his displeasure.

“All utility can be fulfilled with Hive design, external organisms redundant.” Malegaros replied as he turned to stare at Legiana who just flashed him a wide-fanged smile that reminded him very much of his Lord.

“Hive indomitable.” Malegaros stated as if it was the most obvious fact. Legiana in response just let out a laugh as she shook her head.

And that is why you work for me and not the other way around…

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