NOVEL NEXT Chapter 149: Victory is at hand
〔Electrical charge〕: 0%
I imagined that there would be cool special effects. Bolts of lightning! Sparks flying all around!
Reality was more mundane.
Just as I remembered from all my assorted trivia, the electrical charge tried to find a way from the charge organ to the ground. First it went to the golden wire that was touching it, then to the tip of my spear, then into the flesh it pierced, if just a little.
From there, the current took a path of least resistance all the way down, scorching everything in its way. The leather soles of the green giants' boots weren't the best insulators. Just a minute earlier, I had a perfect opportunity to see how wet they were from walking over the local tropical forests.
There was a sound of exploding popcorn and a single white spark. Where my spear was touching the giant's eye, the chitin darkened, and I smelled a sharp whiff of fresh ozone.
〔Critical hit! You deal 21 damage!〕
The old giant Rath gasped and twitched away. His eyes half-opened, only to roll to the back of his head.
After a second of stumbling, he fell to the ground like a massive, felled tree that shook the ground with its landing. The thud of Rath's body hitting the ground was drowned out by alarmed shouts of younger companion Vit.
I stared at it with wide eyes, barely believing my eyes.
This worked even better than in my best hopes—the system didn't lie about "massive electrical damage"!
The electrical shock must've hit something vital on the way down—probably the brain, as I hoped when I hit Rath in the eye.
And while Vit was distracted by Rath's falling, Destroyer's squad reached him. I didn't see them stinging Vit, but I saw his health going down.
His cry of pain was so loud it made me wince. It physically hurt my eardrums!
Now, like Jit next to him, Vit was holding his leg and convulsing on the ground. Nearby, Rath appeared to be completely unconscious.
"Our enemies are down! Father has killed the enemy with his incredible might!" Malevolence shouted, flying up to me. "Victory is at hand!"
Other Beemarines cheered as well—but I couldn't share their mood.
All the damage we did, all the efforts we spent, have only incapacitated the green giants for a time. A short time.
If we didn't do anything, they would be out for revenge!
But how would we kill someone so huge, even if they couldn't resist?
My eyes fell on the bees at Camp Rich's entrance. There were at least several thousand bees: everybody who could fly at the moment, probably.
Enough stings for all the humans, but… those would be their last stings.
'Or should they be?'
An idea hit me like a second electrical charge.
"Malevolence, we must meet your sisters from Camp Rich," I gestured with my spear at the defensive swarm. "Follow me, quickly!"
I flew forward immediately after, using the last remainders of my stamina.
My already exhausted Beemarines went out of breath almost immediately, but there was no time for me to let them catch up. I had to get to my girls and give them orders before the humans got up!
They saw me flying and flew toward me, too. Despite that, it took me a minute before I could see statuses and names of the girls in the swarm.
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Those weren't Warrior Bees, or even Foreman Bees. Those were ordinary Foragers, Builders and Cleaners—bees that weren't supposed to fight anyone at all. Instead of normal weapons, they held their work tools: some hammers, knives, and plenty of shovels and pickaxes.
They were led by Chief Foreman Hammerwork, whose eyes shone with awe and relief at the sight of me despite her singed hair or several burns covering her cheek.
"Father! This is the luckiest hour of our lives—we got to see you now! And to deal with those giant creatures that took the life of Chief Warrior Strike-99!"
I couldn't help but smile proudly.
"Hammerwork, I'm so glad that you are still alive, and that despite all the losses, there are still so many of my girls that live. Anyway, this isn't the time to chat. Our enemies aren't dead yet, and we can't let them recover!"
I pointed at Vit and Jit. Rath was still out cold, but these two were gradually getting over the agonizing pain.
"Yes! We will kill them—we will sting them as many times as it takes! Everybody here is ready to lay our lives for the Empire!"
I shook my head.
"The spirit is good, but… Look, just pass this order on—and quickly. We must act *now*!"
I told Hammerwork the gist of my idea, together with a few tactical hints. She caught on quickly—it was not a complicated plan. I just had to ensure that this won't be a suicidal attack for my girls.
"Yes, Father! It will work out, I'm sure. Simple, but brilliant!" Hammerwork assured me, then turned to the swarm to give out commands.
In no time at all, the massive swarm spread into three groups of bees, each of which flew toward one of the green giants. My participation was no longer needed, so I hovered in the air and watched.
The still conscious ones tried to wave the bees away, but those waves were too slow. Even these bees, many of them already wounded, easily dodged the blows, and the poisoned giants didn't have the strength to get up and run away!
My bees landed on the bodies of their targets. Each group held at least a couple thousand girls—there were enough to cover parts of giants' bodies like a carpet.
Vit and Jit tried to slap them away, but my bees had their orders, and dodged in time. This robbed them of the opportunity to attack, but there were still hundreds of other bees clinging to the giants' skin.
And all of them stung at once!