World of Alvarra: Rise of the Vampire Lord

Lyn knew she was the best, even before she knew she was Lyn. it was just all her other zapper friends couldn’t see it. Which made Lyn a little sad, but it never got her down!

Lyn was goofing off agai-... She means… Exploring The Wilderness For Dangers To The Hive!

Just in case any dangers got too close, like what if a spider were to attack the hive? From the west! Half a day away!!!

It was Lyn’s duty to make sure all threats to the hive were taken care of, even the ones that most in her hive would not consider a danger. Don’t they know they can only live life so safely because of Lyn’s protection?

Apparently not. Because she got another scolding again today for not bringing any food for the hive and was sent out to at least gather some pollen or nectar instead. This she believed, was a gross misuse of her power. She would tell them that, but she was too kind and Magnanimous to do so. And not at all because she was afraid of getting another scolding.

So off she flew in search of some fun-err-food! To bring back to the hive. It was then in one of her flights that she found a small flower that had fallen to the ground on a nice bed of grass. Within it, a large pristine glob of nectar shined in the light at its center.

Lyn was excited! She had found a wonderful ball of delicious nectar! There was only one problem. It was on the ground.

This was a great challenge for Lyn. for she could not touch the ground. Why couldn’t she not touch the ground? Well… for a series of complicated and tragic reasons and backstories that she doesn't feel like getting into at the moment. And not all because she was just goofing around!

With the objective insight, Lyn got to work in trying to get that perfect glob of nectar! Perching herself on a nearby leaf, she surveyed the area around the fallen flower, looking for anything that could help her out. Soon, a plan formed in her head and she set out to make it work.

She got to work finding some unused spider webs, don’t ask her how. She then bent some weeds and got to work gathering some leaves. She then tied them to some trees and then to some weeds with long stalks. She got some rocks and gathered water and put some on leaves or on nearby plants.

Soon, nearby zappers stopped by to watch her work. And work she continued until the entire area around the flower was littered with junk. Half the day went by, and now she got a whole crowd of her sisters watching on with curiosity at what she was doing. Though a few knew what she was about and ignored her to do their own tasks, not wanting to get pulled along with whatever crazy shenanigans Lyn was doing.

Finally, after what felt like forever, Lyn was nearing completion of her task. But some of her sisters just couldn’t wait anymore and one of them asked. In their special method of zapper communication. What the hell she was doing.

“Can’t you tell?” Lyn replied. “I’m trying to get at that glob of nectar in the flower.” she then pointed at the flower in question, lying in the center of all the junk she had put around it.

Her sister looked at her, then at the flower, then back at her. “Can’t you just fly up to it and get it?” she asked.

“Yes, but then I risk touching the floor,” Lyn said matter of factly.

The nearby zappers looked at her as if she was crazy, then looked at the flower. One of them sighed in exasperation and flew down to gather the glob of nectar. It had been waiting for most of the day, trying to figure out what Lyn was up to. But now that she knew, she was done waiting and needed to get back to work. And she can start by gathering the thing that seemed to have kept everyone else stuck here.

“NO, WAIT!” Lyn tried to warn her sister, but it was too late. The second the zapper landed on one of the petals, something snapped.

“Eh?” was all the zapper had time to say before she was flung backward over the clearing landing on a leaf. The leaf then bent and allowed a rock to roll off the leaf, carrying the zapper along with it. The zapper then fell into a webbing that was pulled so tautly, that instead of getting stuck on it, was trampolined out of it and bounced back and forth through a series of other webbings. Screaming all the way.

The onlooking zappers looked on in fascinated horror, their head bobbing and turning to keep track of their sister. The sister in question being rolled down a tube, getting caught in a snare trap and flung across the clearing, being bounced off some leaves until finally, she smashed into the glob of nectar.

But that wasn’t the end of it. A tense silence followed, and when everyone finally thought it was over. It began.

Another snap, and the zapper, now a ball of nectar. Was flung once more into the air, something else snapped, and she was hit into another direction. She then followed another crazy series of events, the onlooking zappers going back to bobbing their heads, looking left and right, trying to keep track of her. Until finally... she landed in front of Lyn.

Silence took the clearing as everyone stared at the poor zapper that was flung everywhere and at Lyn who caused it all.

“...you know what… you keep the nectar, you deserve it.” Lyn said, she then turned to leave and hide until everything boils over. Unfortunately, it was not meant to be.

“LYYYYNNNNN!!!” one the greater zappers yelled at her. Or at least the name Lyn had before she was called Lyn, which was more a sound that just differentiated her from the other zappers than an actual name.

“Get. Over. Here.” the greater zapper said, waiting on a leaf nearby. All the other zappers took this as their cue to get back to work. Two of them helping lift the one covered in nectar back to the hive, where she can rest and they can properly collect the nectar.

Lyn slowly flew to her boss, head downcast and nervous, knowing she was in trouble. Once she was finally in front of her boss, she couldn’t look her in the eye and instead waited for her punishment.

The greater zapper sighed. “Lyn… why do you do this? You know this isn’t going to make you any allies. You are the only sister here that doesn’t pull her weight. And while at first your antics and stories were fun, now they are just annoying, or worse, getting people harmed.” pointing at the zapper who was being dragged through the air back to the hive.

“You could have just gathered the nectar-like normal, could have taken it back to the hive, could have made everyone happy. But no. You had to make a game out of it.” the greater zapper sighed once more. And Lyn looked like she was dying inside.

“Why do you do it, Lyn? Why?” the greater zapper said, though she sounded more like she was talking to herself than expecting an answer.

“I’m sorry…” Lyn said quietly.

“Sorry isn’t going to cut it! How many times have we heard that from you?” the greater zapper said. “You were supposed to be the next heir! The next queen!” she then shook her head. “Now… thankfully… we have your little sister. So you don’t have to be queen anymore, and you were given far more freedom than any other sister. And Yet You Still!...” she sighed, shaking her head once more in exasperation.

“It doesn't matter. Mother wants to have a word with you, though by now, it's probably for a few different reasons.” the greater zapper said, making Lyn’s little heart freeze in fear.

She loved her mother like any good zapper would, and her mother was very kind. But when she was mad, she was very mad. And the last thing Lyn wanted was to be scolded by a very mad mother. But she had no choice, she had to go. So, following the greater zapper's lead, she flew back to the hive.

The hive was placed in the center of a very large and old lightning tree. Every so often, the tree’s electric blue leaves will produce static, and given enough time, will send a volt of electricity out. Anyone or anything other than a zapper was liable to get fried if they are not careful or get too close. Making it the perfect home for zappers, not to mention the sap from the tree was used to make the honey that zappers made.

The flight felt long, even if it only took them about an hour, it felt like a whole day for Lyn. slowly, she hovered over the branch that led into the trunk and landed. Moving into her home where her mother and hundreds of her sisters reside.

Lyn wanted to walk slowly, but her older sister, the greater zapper, wouldn't let her and made sure that she went to meet her mother in a timely fashion. Finally, they made it into the main chamber where Mother was, sitting on her throne, carved out of the tree itself.

Mother was a lesser insect-kin, which meant despite having a human-like appearance, she still gave birth to regular zappers, unless she was willing to put the extra energy and time to make another lesser insect-kin. Something she only did for Lyn’s little sister, who was standing right next to Mother. After mother found out what a disappointment Lyn was, she put in extra effort to make sure her next heir wouldn’t be the same, or at least that was how Lyn felt about the whole ordeal.

“Lyn…” the Mother said. “I’m glad to see you have finally arrived. Do you know why I called you here?” she said in a gentle and melodies voice.

Lyn felt like her little heart stopped cold. Her mother wasn’t just mad, or very mad, but super mad. She could tell, even if her mother tried to hide it. So instead of saying anything, Lyn froze, unable to make a move or a sound.

Lyn’s mother stared at her for a few seconds before sighing. “I’m not as mad as you think I am Lyn. trust me… I’m just… too used to it by now…”

That literally made Lyn’s heart feel like breaking, she couldn’t even look at her mother, only at the wooden floor of her hive.

“Lyn.” Mother said with some more authority, forcing Lyn to raise her head. “You know why we have to do this right? We need to gather as much food and nectar as possible for the big move. We can’t do it unless everyone is putting their all into it.”

“Why do we have to move?” Lyn replied a little petulantly. “We have lived here for generations. Centuries. This is our home.”

Mother sighed. “You know why. There are more bee and zapper colonies than before. We are slowly being constrained. We have to go deeper into the forest where there are better resources. Even if it’s a little more dangerous.”

“Not to mention…” She then motioned to one side of the wall, which was filled with several layers of zapper honey and jelly. “We have to get as much honey as possible so we can trade it for sperm from the trader fairies.”

She then looked Lyn in the eye. “I used half of it on you, but gave birth to you as a regular zapper, so that you may have great potential for your future. But while that was true, you never used your potential, and I was forced to use the rest of our sperm on your sister, but this time making sure she was a lesser insect-kin like me. So while I can still make some regular zappers, if not slowly due to the lack of sperm. I can’t make anymore lesser insect-kin, nor can your sister. That’s why we have to trade for it, that’s why we have to move and get closer to the fairylands. It’s important for the continued survival of our hive. Otherwise, we would degrade back into regular insects within the next generation!” her body tensing near the end.

Mother was then silent for a moment, as her emotions got the better of her, she calmed down and addressed her daughter once more. “Lyn… you are… amazingly intelligent when you want to be. I still can’t believe half the things I was told when they dragged in one of your sisters covered in nectar,” she said, shaking her head.

“Not to mention, when it comes to the defense of the hive. You are the first one to rush to protect it and your fellow sisters, fighting back whatever is threatening us with almost suicidal zeal. And when your sisters are feeling down, or it's raining or a fog storm comes around and most of us are stuck inside. You entertain us with your stories and make us feel happy. You have a heart of gold… but…”

Mother took a deep breath. “You are also very reckless, getting into fights you shouldn’t and sometimes getting in the way of your sister's work by distracting them or… sending them to the clinic like you just did today.”

“We can’t have you acting like this anymore…” Mother then straightened her back, changing her tone into a very serious one. “Lyn, if you can’t start acting like a proper zapper, then I have no choice but to… banish you… for the good of the colony...”

“Wha-? But that’s not fair!” Lyn yelled in shock

Lyn’s younger sister also interjected. “Perhaps that’s too harsh, mother?” she said, worried for her older sister.

“I’m sorry. But I made up my mind. We can’t have your reckless actions endanger any more of your sisters, or slow down the work we have to do for the big move. Lyn… I’m sorry. But you will always be my daughter, should we ever meet again, know that I will always welcome you… as a guest…” Mother finished sadly, unshed tears barely kept in check behind her eyes.

Lyn herself felt like she was going to cry. Like everything suddenly became very unfair. She didn’t know what to do. She stared at her mother long and hard in disbelief, before turning away and rushing out of the hive.

“SISTER!” Lyn’s younger sister yelled after her. But Lyn barely heard her, she didn’t know where she was going, only that she needed to get away, far away, so far and fast that the hurt wouldn’t be able to keep up.

Absentmindedly, in the back of her head, she worried about her little sister, but she couldn’t spare her more than a moment’s thought as she rushed through the forest.

Hours went by, the forest darkening. By the time she stopped, the sun was going down and it was getting dark, and she was now in an unfamiliar part of the woods. She looked left and right, but she was completely lost. She could try to go back the way she came from but was almost as scared of finding herself back at the hive as she was of the darkening forest.

But whatever decisions she had, were taken away with a peal of thunder and a rolling mass of sound. Lyn didn’t even need to think, she knew she needed shelter, for while it was true zappers had some defense against a fog storm, a concentrated bolt would be more than enough to fry her, not to mention the things that live in a fog storm that could eat her.

Another peal of thunder and she now knew its general direction, immediately turning the other way and flying as fast as she could, looking for whatever alcove or shelter that could withstand a fog storm.

Faster and faster she flew, but the storm was slowly catching up and there still wasn’t any sign of protection. That was until she hit a clearing. The clearing had large stone-like protrusions that began to glow and shimmer. She was afraid at first but then noticed that they connected and became a shield. More importantly, there were many of those two leg creatures that seemed to be taking shelter inside. Looking at the fog storm outside the shield as more of a novelty than a threat.

Decision made, she rushed in before the shield became fully formed and she was locked out. And just in time, as the fog storm crashed into the shields with a roar.

Tired, exhausted, and very hungry. Lyn went to search for a place to rest only to bump into a two legs head, so tired she could barely look straight anymore. The two-leg didn’t seem to have felt it and instead, upon noticing her, spread its appendage out.

Suspicious, but too tired to care anymore, Lyn sat down on the outstretched hand, sensing no ill intent. Much to the joy of the two-leg. Who then gave it honey.

This was very shocking to Lyn, for she wasn’t aware two legs could produce honey, not to mention. The act of offering honey to an outcast like her, was like if the two-leg was asking her to join its hive.

She wasn’t sure if she should accept. But realizing how hungry she was and that she really didn’t have any other choice, she agreed. Giving the two-leg a few glows of her body and a buzz as a sign of agreement that she will join his hive and serve him well. Just happy that even if it was a two-leg, that someone out there wants her.