When humans attacked, they tried to smoke the bees out of Camp Rich, but accidentally started a fire on the coal ready for transport.
While Strike-99 lead a suicidal attack on the humans, Hamrwork led a selfless effort of putting out the fires before they caught on wooden parts of the forr hornet nest.
They succeeded, but afterward, many bees were burned or suffered from smoke inhalation.
There weren't even close to enough Physicians for all the wounded, or enough healthy Worker Bees for all the work they had to do.
I told the wounded bees to rest—despite their protest—and ordered others to fix the most urgent stuff first. This ant carrying the dead bodies out of the hive and making sure there were enough food and sleeping cells for the survivors.
Between all that, I sent a letter back ho, writing to Ambrosia that I was safe and sound, and about the new morphotype that we were going to propagate together—several days later, because right now, I was really busy.
Unlike morphotypes, the three giant rotting carcasses couldn't wait.
***
Next morning, I flew to check on how the bodies were doing and saw a dozen flies sitting right on a dead giant's face.
Unlike flies in my world, those looked almost holy with their gray skin, black hair and long, sharp noses. Their height was similar to mine, and they even had so feminine shapes.
But what they were doing…
They were pushing egg after an egg out of the end of their tails right into the corpse's eyes and mouth. Absolutely shaless and utterly disgusting!
Less disgusting than I imagined egg-laying to be, but still! A man who wasn't a midwife wasn't supposed to look at childbirth, or anything resembling it!
"Get the hell out before I fry you!" I shouted, flying right at them and waving my golden spear. My charge has recovered overnight, so my threat was solid.
Several flies imdiately flew away, only to land on the body several dozen ters later. Others remained, apparently considering the distance between us safe enough.
"Father, should we kill them all?" Destroyer asked.
I looked over the bodies and sighed. Flies were crawling all around them—several hundred insects, at least.
"There's too many of them. Don't bother—it's nothing I didn't expect. We need more people to guard the bodies."
There were actually fewer insects than I thought there would be. Normally, ants would want to eat fresh at, too—but I've ordered the extermination of most ants.
Flies didn't bother bees before, so they still lived freely in our territories. Maybe I shouldn't have let them…
'No, no, you can't just genocide species on first offense, Nectus. The current situation is an exception, not the rule.'
Thankfully, I already knew that more reinforcents were coming—and they ca only an hour later.
6 thousand Warrior Bees and 5 thousand Builder, Forager, Foren and Physician bees, 11 thousand bees in total—all led by Commander Bloodimina.
She had dropped all her conquests of neighboring lands to hurry to Camp Rich, alongside several thousand Warrior Bees and assorted Builders, Foragers and Foren who gathered from the nearest hives.
This army hovered in front of Camp Rich, and Bloodimina flew out in front. Bees from Camp Rich flew out to et her, and I was one of them.
"Commander Bloodimina is reporting for duty!" she shouted, only to pause at the sight of .
She didn't comnt on my new armor, but looked quietly impressed.
"You are just in ti, Bloodimina!" I grinned at her. "Now, you see those bodies?"
Bloodimina turned to the carcasses that looked more like hills.
"Yes, Father. So it's true… You killed the giants with a single blow of your spear!"
I winced.
"I did *not*. Ahem. Bloodimina, listen to official reports, not to rumors, alright?"
She straightened.
"Apologies, Father! What are your orders?"
"In short—we need to secure our loot. See those flies?" I pointed at the insects buzzing over the giant corpses.
Bloodimina nodded.
"Yes, Father."
"I want to stop seeing them. Guard the bodies from anyone and anything that tries to get close."
Bloodimina's eyes flared with zeal.
"Yes, Father!"
"And all the non-Warriors you brought will be temporarily under Chief Hamrwork's command from now on. Pass them the instructions."
"In an instant, Father!"
"Then that's all. Get going, my girl!"
Bloodimina acted quickly.
In minutes, the first squads of Warrior Bees flew to the bodies and began rcilessly exterminating every insect they saw.
Half an hour later, there were only bodies remaining!
In the anti, other Worker Bees split into two teams.
A smaller one went to help in fixing the worst of the damage to Camp Rich, while the bigger one went to dismantle the dead bodies.
"Gather everything piece by piece! Unbraid ropes that make their clothing, chip away all the tal they got, and cut leather into blocks. Yes, blocks! The massive hides they wear… I don't know what we can do from them yet, but I'm sure the Industry Adviser will co up with sothing!" I ordered, and my bees obeyed.
Soon, the first bundles of thick rope were carried by teams of bees from the bodies to Camp Rich.
I watched them work from the top of the hill Camp Rich was built in with a sense of deep satisfaction. There was sothing incredibly pleasing in watching them dismantle those massive piles of resources piece by piece.
Once again, I rembered snails and cucumbers.
And yet…
'This is too slow. There will be more bees coming to help, but even then—I doubt we can dismantle the bodies *and* do sothing with the at before it all rots. And if they rot, the stench will be here for weeks! Ugh, not to ntion it's a health hazard.'
I would be happy to get rid of the at at all if it would make the dismantling of bodies faster. The bees couldn't reach anything that was underneath them.
'So many useful items, and if the bodies rot, they will be all contaminated! But wild scavengers will tear everything up, too.'
Suddenly, a roar from above made lift my head.
"GRAAAAW!"
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