Hive Queen by Sinclair, Grayson (positive books to read .txt) 📕

“Gil!” Makenna shouted and ran over to him.

I held my breath as my heart drummed fast in my chest and drowned out any other sounds. Time stretched as I waited for Makenna to tell me he was okay.

She sighed and smiled as Gil spluttered, his eyes shooting open. Thank the gods!

“Guys, we can’t stay here, it’ll just wear us down, and we don’t have the space to stop and think. If we can leave, I say we retreat and come up with a plan!” Makenna shouted as she half-carried Gil.

It was the exact same thing I had been thinking, but she said it faster than I’d thought it and put it into a plan of attack in under two seconds. I was so impressed that I couldn’t even bother to be annoyed that she’d beaten me to what I was going to say.

Whatever. No time for that. We need to get moving—now.

“On me!” Evelyn shouted and sprinted toward the far wall.

Everyone followed Evelyn’s lead and took off towards the rocks that separated us from the greater jungle.

Evelyn gracefully climbed over the rock and balanced atop it before mentioning us to hurry. “Let’s get some distance between us before the giant spider catches up!”

I sped forward as the five of us took off into the woods. Reina and the other Arachne shouted at our backs, but I was too far away to clearly make out what was said, but I was betting it wasn’t something nice. Rough overgrown grass and vines rose from the worn dirt path, and we were in the thick of the forest.

It didn’t seem like Evelyn had a destination in mind as we all ran full sprint through the brush and heavy flora. Monstrous, primeval trees stood like stalwart bastions, watching over the forest which no human had ever trespassed.

We ran for a few miles, and even though it looked like Evelyn wanted to push deeper in, we couldn’t keep running. Misumena was strong and devious, but it wasn’t fast on its feet. We had time to stop and think up an idea or two.

“Guys, we can stop!” I shouted, nearly clothes-lining myself on a low hanging branch as I ran.

The others slowed up, and Evelyn turned back to face me. “Not yet. I haven’t found the perfect spot yet.”

“For what?” I asked, huffing as my heart rate settled.

“For an ambush. Back in the arena, we were playing by its rules, but once we draw it into our desired location, we can trap and kill it.”

I glanced around at the endless sea of trees that stretched skyward with hundreds of thick, gnarled branches and shrugged my shoulders. “What’s wrong with right here?”

Evelyn sighed, pinching her fingers just under the bridge of her nose. “Does someone other than me want to explain to her the basics of tactics and strategy?”

“Easy there, sis. I’ve got this. Don’t have an aneurysm.” Adam ran his hand over her shoulder and smiled widely at me. “She’s really a nice person once you spend a few decades with her.

“But basically, this location is poor because it offers too much cover and open spaces,” he said, motioning around him at the wide-open spaces and lush foliage which obscured anything beyond. “We couldn’t control which area—Misumena, was it?—comes from, and if we can’t control that, our entire ambush fails.”

“So where would be a good place to set up be?” I asked.

“Somewhere with limited access and preferably some high ground,” Adam said.

“Which is what I was searching for before you stopped us,” Evelyn snapped.

I held my hands up in apology. “Let me help,” I replied with a smile, already taking control of all the nearby insects in the forest.

“Do what you gotta do, Eris. But we need to hurry. We’re losing our head start,” Gil said as he struggled to heft his mammoth axe on his shoulder.

“Gil, you need to rest,” Makenna said.

“Don’t think it’s going to let me stop and catch my breath. Don’t worry about me. Once the bleeding debuff fades, I’ll be right as rain.”

I tried to pay attention to the conversation some more, but the magic already flowed through me, and I saw through my little ones’ eyes and tried to find a spot that met Evelyn’s demands.

It took a while, and I had to push the bounds of my consciousness as I pushed further out, but after a few minutes of searching, I found a place that would have to do.

“All right, follow me!”

Without waiting, I took off to my left through the dense foliage.

“Shit, wait for us.”

“Eris, hold up! I’m short, godsdamn it!” Makenna shouted a second later.

I slowed my pace and let them all catch up. From surveying the area, I knew the best route to the location, and we made excellent time as my feet found the exact purchase they needed to keep my pace as I rushed over the roots and vines crawling from the earth.

It took us around fifteen minutes to reach the area, but it was even better than I’d seen through the eyes of my insects.

As we broke through the dense vegetation, the forest opened up around us. The roots and vines fell away to soft grass and then to gray rocks that lined the riverbank. Rushing water roared as the crystal blue waters swept over the large boulders that dotted the low points through the wide river.

The wide river snaked and disappeared behind an outcropping of trees a dozen yards away while the mouth of the river gaped and plunged down a steep drop, falling to crash in a shallow pool far below us.

It was serene, an oasis in an alien place, but I was in love with the beauty of it all.

“Not bad, little queen. It’ll do