The Bug in The Cave

Chapter 12:Hunger Pains

Thorax had been hoping for a clear window to take Twilight to the border within a few days. Things had been pretty relaxed for a while, relatively speaking, so it had made sense that he could find a window to request a few days of personal leave to rest himself up. The excuse that he had overdone it a little with the scouting runs, and thus needed to recover, would probably be satisfactory for Pharynx, and would not seem at all out of character for him to the other drones in the Hive.

Alas, mother nature had other plans.

Thorax grimaced when a blast of thunder filled the air, heavily muffled by the stone walls of the Hive. A few other drones nearby glanced up for a moment before going back to their prior discussion.

Thick storm clouds had rolled in from the east, blanketing a large region of the Badlands in darkness. Lightning struck frequently, filling the typically quiet wasteland with an irregularly recurring cacophony. No rain had fallen, yet, but given how recent the last major rainfall had been, it wasn’t impossible.

And if the rain did start falling, it would be all hooves on deck until it ended. Weaker drones around the Hive would be tasked with salvaging whatever water they could, while soldiers and warriors would make forays into the broken wasteland to ensure their prey wasn’t snatched away from them by angered Tatzelwurms or other such beasts driven mad by the flooding of their underground burrows.

There was also the matter of Twilight. As powerful as she was with magic, she was still woefully underprepared to handle herself against the worst the badlands could throw at her. She had barely survived her encounter with the Tatzelwurms before and had been severely wounded in the process. Her odds would be better now, thanks to her cave and her growing familiarity with the land, but her lack of sustenance meant she was steadily growing weaker with time.

“Hey!”

Thorax all but jumped out of his shell when Scorpion’s voice carved through the air. He spun on his hooves to find the other drone marching up to him with an impatient scowl. “You’re late for assignment, whelp, and Pharynx insists you be there,” he spat before turning his nose up in a sign of distaste for the head of patrol. “Sent me to find and drag your sorry shell back to the warrior’s nest.”

Thorax quickly stood at attention, mentally berating himself for losing track of time. “S-sorry! I’m on my way!”

Scorpion snorted. “Uh-huh. What, are you doing all the way down here, anyway? What, you hiding from your job or something?”

Thorax quickly shook his head. “N-no! I just have a lot on my mind, that’s all. I was taking a walk to clear my head,” he said, not technically lying.

Scorpion did not seem impressed. He scoffed and shoved Thorax towards the nearest wall just as it opened up with a spine-chilling scrape. “Gah, whatever. Just get a move on. Worthless grub.”

Thorax managed to keep his hooves under him, awkwardly turning his stumble into a brisk trot through the churning corridors of the Hive. Scorpion kept close behind him all the way, sending a chill down Thorax’s spine.

The two eventually came out of the wall of the warrior’s nest some distance up, already seeing most of the drones assembled and in position. One or two risked a glance towards them as they arrived, their glares boring into Thorax specifically.

Pharynx stood at the head of the pack, staring back up at Thorax with a subtle, disapproving look. “Thorax, there you are,” he called out once Thorax and Scorpion touched down.

“The stupid kid was down in the tunnels,” Scorpion declared with an impatient snarl. “Dunno why you wanted me to drag his sorry flank back here.”