I Became an Ant Lord, So I Built a Hive Full of Beauties

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And there was a man sitting on a mat close to the cage, hands folded behind his head, staring up at the sky like the sky was a joke he liked to hear. He had a grin even when he did not smile. His eyes slid from one thing to another as if they could not stay anywhere long. A carved stone hung at his throat, shaped like a beetle.

It was Mardek.

Kai did not say the name. Cause he didn't know or perhaps he can't remember. But he saw the face one or two times. He kept his breath even.

"I am coming," he said. "I know where you are. Do not be afraid. Papa will come to save you. I will contact you when I am closer to you."

"Okay, Papa. I will be brave. I will wait for you."

The picture flickered. It went dark. Kai stopped the communication. But before it shut, a voice slid in on the edge, lazy and sharp at the same time.

"Hey, kid," the voice said. It had a hook under the light tone. "I do not know what you are doing, but do not be too smart. I want to know your parents. You are not even one star and yet the desert listens to you. You are not normal. I will take a little blood and see what you are. I think you are a prize. Before that I must find a mountain and put a man under my feet."

"I will tell you some story." He laughed softly and began to talk the way men talk when they like their own voice. He spoke of fights that ended before breath. He spoke of dunes that hid as roads and roads that hid as dunes. He told a small story about a scorpion who made friends with wind and stabbed clouds for rain. His men made the kind of laugh you make when your officer laughs and you want to be near his son.

The road shut.

Kai opened his eyes and stood. He did not break into a run inside the hall. He did not stamp. He did not let his teeth grind. He moved fast and level.

He walked straight into the main hall and called a council with a word and the weight of his eyes. People came because they felt the pull. Shadeclaw and Silvershadow came first. Lirien came with soot on one cheek. Vel and Sha came together, still bumping shoulders even when they were scared. Naaro held the nursery door and looked like a wall. Azhara came late at a half trot, tying a strap as she walked. Akayoroi moved with quick, soft steps and kept her chin up. Luna was there already. She had felt the air change and had waited for him in the ring of light near the map shelf.

Kai did not waste their fear with a long speech.

"Miryam… I talked with her," he said. "She went out to play with her friend at dawn. She heard talk of many ants crossing the desert and tried to make a report on her own. A net caught her and her friend. She is in a cage under a dome. She is east of us. A young officer with a grin sits beside her. He gave her bread that made her heavy. I saw it through the soul road. I heard him speak."

The room pulled in tight around his words. No one spoke for a breath. Then the questions came at once, too many, and he lifted one hand. All the girls wanted to go and rescue her.

"Stop. Listen."

They stopped. They listened.

"I am going to bring her back," he said. "I will not wait for them to come close. I will not let that man carry her one more hour. Here is what happens next. Azhara and Skyweaver will come with me. Azhara got the most battle experience. Skyweaver goes above us for eyes. Silvershadow and Alka are already in the sand very near to them. He will mark and guide from the ground. Alka goes high above the clouds and waits for the fall. The rest of you will stay at the mountain. Shadeclaw will hold the inner traps and the door. Lirien keeps the heat and water trap ready. Vel and Sha keep food moving and carry it to the inner part. Naaro and the twins stay at the egg chamber to guard it. Akayoroi and four (previously injured ants) sisters hold the inner ring with Luna and work in shifts. Everyone else holds the mountain. No one else comes with me."

The room groaned under the weight of that order.

Luna stepped forward. Her voice was calm. Her eyes were not.

"I am her mother," she said. "I will go. I can't stay on the mountain."

"You are the home," he said. "You stay. If they strike while I am gone, you are the anchor. I need you to be the ground under our feet. I need you to keep the mountain from breaking."

Akayoroi stood beside Luna. "Then I go," she said. "I am fast. I can carry. I can break ants with both hands."

"If I take you, we will lose one of our doors," Kai said. "You and Shadeclaw are the only ones who can run through that door in a storm. If the enemy tries to force an entry while I am gone, I need your mind and your hands here. I need your voice steady in the hall. You are a royal. You know battle tactics more than anyone here."

Azhara raised her hand without looking at them. "He is right," she said. "A small knife cuts faster. If we go with a crowd, the sand will shout our names. Let me be his shadow. I have made ugly cuts in worse places. I will not miss any enemies. I will cut them on your behalf. You all can trust me."