The Primal Hunter

Jake knew that the logic of ectognamorphs was something he truly couldn’t understand. Vesperia also looked at him as if what she had said was only natural… which in her world it was. He had already known that the Endless Empire was the most hierarchical organization in the entire multiverse, putting even demons to shame, but still.

Throughout the multiverse, power was the ultimate decider of status. Jake was the Chosen of the Malefic Viper, yes, but he also knew that not a single god in existence viewed themselves as beneath him. Them being nice to him was either a display of respect toward the Malefic Viper, or because they found him interesting for his future potential. None of them would ever agree to be his subordinate and swear loyalty to Jake as a person, as he was ultimately just a mortal who was beneath their statute.

For Vesperia, it was different.

During the following conversation, where Jake asked some more things about how sure she was things would work out fine if she approached a bunch of other Hive Queens on Earth, and Vesperia explained a bit about her time at the Endless Empire,

She told him that during her time there, many variants of the Vespernat Lineage had made their way back to the Endless Empire. They had been independent factions before, operating by themselves with only a friendly relationship with the Empire, but when they heard – and felt – that a new Vespernat True Royal had appeared and resided at the Endless Empire Heartlands, they made their way there.

This included Hive Queen gods. Even a few at or around the realm of Godqueen – powerful beings with much renown in the multiverse in their own right – hurried there. Not just to see Vesperia but to recognize her and swear their loyalty without even knowing anything about her. It was also merely an implicit understanding that they were now part of the Endless Empire, ruled by Vesperia and Vesperia alone.

Despite how much weaker she was, they recognized her as their unquestionable leader. It was simply blind, biological devotion and loyalty, with no thought for rhyme, reason, or logic. They were just compelled by their nature. And while Jake had a good grasp of following his instincts… he did find the entire concept tough to fully grasp.

“I… to clarify, if you told a bunch of gods from your Lineage to go kill someone…?” Jake asked, just to clarify, after Vesperia was done with her explanation.

“Hm, I reckon they would ask the reason and offer me advice if it’s a good idea or not to carry out the order,” Vesperia answered without much thought. “Of course, that assumes it’s someone that’s controversial to kill.”

“They’d naturally carry out their duty.”

“What if the other True Royals of the Endless Empire disagree?” Jake tried again.

“In that case, I would certainly consider the matter carefully,” Vesperia said, thinking a bit more about that one. “But I find the probability of that happening low. My desire to want someone dead badly enough to even disagree with the other Hive Queens beneath me will more likely than not be a desire born of the greater good of the Endless Empire, and my sisters would never disagree with something like that. However, let’s say that I want to do something everyone disagrees with. Just know that, no matter what, they do not have the authority or right to command me, even if I respect their opinions immensely.”

“What if Jake asks you to do something and the other True Royals oppose?” Sandy decided to also ask a hypothetical that Jake wasn’t sure he really wanted the answer to.

“That… would be problematic,” Vesperia answered with a frown. “I guess at that point, I would have to understand both sides and the essence of the disagreement and then simply decide for myself what I believe is best.”

Alright, that was a very balanced and reasonable response.

“To clarify, I am not going to be causing trouble,” Jake said. At least he wouldn’t cause any problems on purpose.

“Sure, sure, but what if the Endless Empires decide to make you an enemy for some reason?” Sandy continued to try pushing their hypothetical scenario.

“That wouldn’t happen,” Vesperia simply shook her head. “The Endless Empire does not declare enemies that easily, and if only one of the True Royals part of the council disagrees, it won’t happen.”

“So there you have it, no reason to fret over something that won’t happen,” Jake said, closing the subject.

“Fine...” Sandy said, sad they couldn’t cause trouble anymore. “Well, this has been fun, but I’m going to go and say hi to that scientist guy again and see if he has procured anything tasty since last time. He promised me more snacks if I visited again.”

“Sounds fun, enjoy yourself,” Jake waved the big worm off as Sandy took to the air and headed toward Arnold to do who-knows-what, leaving Vesperia and Jake behind in the valley.

“Sandy sure is a peculiar creature,” Vesperia commented once the big worm was gone. “I looked through the library of the Endless Empire and even consulted my sisters, and there were no traces of knowledge about their race anywhere. Then again, neither could I find anything regarding Sylphian Hawks. Don’t get me wrong, my hope was to perhaps find something to help assist them in their future growth, but… nothing.”

“The Malefic Viper also doesn’t seem to know much, if anything,” Jake shrugged. “Not that it matters, does it? I doubt they need much help to progress or to be told some historical facts about what’s best to do. They just need to follow their own instincts, and I believe they can go far. The same is true for you. Just keep doing what you’re doing.”

Vesperia smiled at his words. “Perhaps you’re right. Simply following my instincts without considerable forethought just seems foreign, yet also familiar. As if it clashes with my inherited memories.”

“Well, you aren’t just a normal True Royal, if there even is such a thing.”

“You’re right… I am also one of Sire’s creations,” she nodded in agreement.

Jake still wasn’t super keen on someone calling themselves his creation, but he just nodded nevertheless as he cracked a joke. “You’re not just a Vesperia… you’re also a Vespy.”

She smiled and lowered her head a bit as Jake got the hint and placed a hand on top of it. Having seen what she was capable of – and what kind of forces she commanded - he was already looking forward to what kind of chaos Vesperia could cause on Earth.

“Would it be fine if I call Miranda over? If you wanna help with the Prima Guardian defense, it would be best to keep her in the loop, and I’m sure she has some good information to get you started,” Jake asked Vesperia.

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“If you deem that the best course of action,” Vesperia agreed with a nod.

“I do, for sure,” Jake said as he pulled out a one-way communication token and quickly infused a message. “Besides, if I don’t keep her in the loop, I’m gonna get quite the scolding later. I can already imagine Miranda sending some poor party into a hive, only to find it already overrun with wasps, causing panic for the poor wayward adventures. Better to work together.”

“I’m still not entirely sure what this Miranda woman is to you. Is she not serving you?” Vesperia asked with some genuine confusion. “How could she dare scold her master?”

“She works for me,” Jake clarified. “No, I guess it’s more accurate to say we work together. I help her, she helps me, it’s all about mutual benefits. I also trust her, and she’s good at her job. But if she wishes to one day leave, I won’t do anything about it either. The same is true if she one day falls too far behind or fails to live up to expectations, at which point she will be fired. I don’t hope that happens, but it’s a possibility.”

“You humans have such odd relationships,” Vesperia sighed. “Truly difficult to understand.”

“Maybe,” Jake shrugged as he would argue it was ectognamorphs who had weird as fuck relationships, even if they were a lot simpler on paper.

Waiting for Miranda, they sat and talked a bit more on a bench in front of the pond as he continued to pat Vespy. It didn’t take long before Jake detected the resident witch, who’d quickly made her way over. Jake couldn’t blame her either… a True Royal visit had to be considered a major thing, right?

He just hoped Miranda and Vesperia could get along. If not, things would get awkward.

--

Miranda was already stressed enough with all of the factions who would soon arrive on the planet. Making sure that fights wouldn’t break out was a damn struggle, and there was also still all of the usual existing problems. Earth had truly become a melting pot, and melting pots always had their own unique challenges.

But, she had believed things were getting under control. Everything was finally calming down a bit… and then she got word that Sandy had returned to Earth. That in itself was fine, as the giant space worm didn’t really cause much trouble on their own. There were a few annoyances from people wanting to meet Sandy, such as representatives from the United Tribes, but nothing the Chosen of the Lord Protector couldn’t deal with on their own.

However, the passenger Sandy brought along wasn’t someone Miranda could take lightly. Not in the slightest. True Royal was truly a deserved title, as they represented the peak of the Endless Empire – a pinnacle faction of the multiverse.

What’s more, the power a True Royal wielded was of an entirely different nature to people who simply had a high status. Jake was the Chosen of the Malefic Viper, yes, but he was still “only” a C-grade for now, and he wouldn’t be able to command the forces of the Order of the Malefic Viper unless the god agreed and gave him express permission.

A True Royal needed no permission. All on her own, she was that peak figure who could command even gods to do her bidding. The ectognamorphs were the only race Miranda was aware of, where the deciding factor in the hierarchy wasn’t power but the status of one’s caste. What’s more, this power in the hierarchy wasn’t just some agreed-upon social construct but a tangible biological component of their races. It was simply the nature of every single ectognamorph to follow the command of their True Royal – their queen of Hive Queens.

And now one of those True Royals was on Earth. A thought that was far from comforting. It wasn’t just that she was a powerful being in her own right, but that Miranda was legitimately afraid of the consequences if something should happen to her.

No, look on the bright side, she could also prove very useful, Miranda tried to tell herself, as she was finally contacted by Jake to go meet this True Royal. It was honestly a huge relief he contacted her, as she had honestly put it down to a fifty-fifty if Jake would keep her in the loop about what he and the True Royal were planning. Good to see they didn’t have another Eternal Hunger on their hands from him unleashing a True Royal on Earth haphazardly.

Arriving in the forest part of Haven, she hurried to the lodge. She could already feel the presence of the True Royal there, and she made sure to calm herself down fully before having her meeting with a being that truly deserved to be called royalty of the multiverse.

While she had briefly met the True Royal prior, this would effectively be their first real meeting, and she wanted to make a good impression. It was also undoubtful that this kind of encounter was impactful on her progress as a Court Witch.

Walking into the valley, she turned a corner before finally laying her eyes on Jake and the True Royal sitting on a bench in front of the small pond. Miranda had a lot of thoughts beforehand and felt quite nervous, but…

What she saw was a True Royal, capable of commanding armies that could destroy galaxies with ease, sitting with eyes closed as Jake ruffled her hair. What’s more, she didn’t lean away or object but leaned further into the hand as if she were a cat getting petted.

Kinda cute… Miranda thought before catching herself and clearing her throat.

The True Royal instantly sat up straight, while Jake had clearly already been aware she was there. Miranda chose to act as if she hadn’t seen anything weird as she bowed slightly. “I greet Her Majesty of the Vespernat Lineage.”

Seeing her stand up, Miranda only now saw how damn tall the True Royal was as she also greeted Miranda. “It’s a pleasure to meet the Court Witch of the Verdant Lagoon. I have heard good things from my Sire about your abilities.”

Their tones were formal, but the words of the True Royal made it very clear she viewed Miranda as someone of clearly lower status than herself. That wasn’t something that really bothered Miranda, as she also knew the only reason a True Royal even bothered being on Earth and was willing to help them was because of Jake.

“I do not wish to waste your time, so let me get straight to the point: I have been informed Her Majesty is willing to assist us with handling ectognamorphs on Earth and address them before they become potential issues during the Prima Guardian event?” Miranda asked clarifyingly, including what Jake sent in his brief message.

“That is so,” the True Royal simply confirmed. “I was told you had some information that would make this task easier for me. Also, it would be best to ensure I do not interfere with your ongoing operations, especially the operations of the Void-Touched Mechanic.”

“Naturally,” Miranda nodded, agreeing having her and Arnold clash wouldn’t be a good idea. “I have brought along a map and an overview of where we are currently focusing. May I ask how Her Majesty plans on approaching the task of spreading the knowledge of her presence?”

“I will send drones with my pheromones across the planet and into any hive they detect,” the Vespernat Hive Queen said casually as she received the items Miranda had brought along, containing all the information she would need. “After a brief discussion with my Sire just before your arrival, we agreed that I shall not exterminate or make them surrender to us outright but merely order them not to take part in the upcoming event in any way. That way, you can continue using them as nourishment even after the event concludes.”

“A good strategy to keep them around,” Miranda nodded. In truth, she wasn’t really worried about the ectognamorph hives on Earth. They were more hunting spots than real dangers, as Earth was more than fully capable of handling them. Having the True Royal make sure they wouldn’t interfere during the Prima Guardian event would definitely be nice, though.

“Naturally. It was one Sire proposed,” the True Royal said, Miranda having to fight really hard not to comment that Jake’s ideas weren’t usually in the camp of being “good.”

“Just to jump in, we did also discuss having some of her drones help map out the underground while employing the hives she encounters to help,” Jake joined the conversation.

“I see,” Miranda said. “Definitely coordinate with Arnold on that front, as he has also been working on mapping out the underground in the area beneath human-controlled lands.”

“Got it,” Jake nodded as he turned to the True Royal. “I assume you can discuss with Arnold alone?”

“I will do so,” she nodded, her tone very different when she talked with Jake compared to Miranda.

“Goodie,” Jake nodded. “I also just had a thought… can you leave one of your Queen’s Guards here for a bit? I want some of its venom. For science.”

“Of course,” the True Royal instantly agreed to what, according to all the etiquette books when dealing with a True Royal Miranda had read, was a giant no-no.

“Great,” Jake smiled brightly as he patted the True Royal on the head. “Thanks Vespy.”

Rather than be insulted at the pat and nickname, the True Royal simply smiled and lowered her head as Miranda once more had intrusive thoughts about the Hive Queen being quite adorable.

Miranda also couldn’t help but think…True Royals were terrifying, yes. But if they were considered terrifying, then what the hell would you call the guy who was casually patting one on the head while calling her a cute nickname?

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