Fourth Queen Pezuya oversaw the end of the battle. She organized a rotation of sigmaka warriors to keep a presence among the alliance, arranged for the wounded to be treated by the magical healers of the Tower Keeper and the fair folk, and negotiated over the loot as the queen who could present the sigmaka’s contributions as a firsthand witness. Afterwards, she returned ho with the bulk of her warriors and reorganized their defenses. In particular, a great many spiderkin had begun moving through the Underway. Thanks to the fair folk’s wards, the spiderkin had not seed to have noticed them yet, but the Fourth Queen knew better than to hope her ho would remain hidden forever.
And now, after ensuring the battle was fully settled and her ho was as well-protected as she could make it, Fourth Queen Pezuya returned to her regular duties as the commander of the royal guard. Today, she personally accompanied King Ratuatapi as he went about his business.
King Ratuatapi lead them to the royal ranch cavern. There, an orchard of trees grew around a giant light crystal formation that made the cavern as bright as the surface. Giant aphids clung to the trees, happily sucking on their sap. King Ratuatapi went around inspecting each of the aphids, brushing their backs and speaking kindly to them. The aphids wiggled about at his touch and made bubbles of honeydew for the royal servants to collect.
Fourth Queen Pezuya waited quietly for King Ratuatapi to make his rounds, knowing that he greatly enjoyed this part of his day. Once he had inspected the last of the royal aphids, she stepped forward to approach him.
“King Ratuatapi, may we speak?”
King Ratuatapi smiled at her.
“Sure, Pezuya. What is it?”
Fourth Queen Pezuya kept her face serious. Unfortunately, she would have to use this ti alone with her king for business.
“I would like to discuss the battle and how we can keep our people safe going forward.”
King Ratuatapi’s smile fell as he settled back into a neutral expression.
“I see. I will let the First Queen know she should arrange a eting, then.”
But Fourth Queen Pezuya shook her head.
“I wish to speak with you first. Alone.”
King Ratuatapi frowned.
“Pezuya, you know we’re supposed to gather together to discuss anything important.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya glanced around, making sure the servants were busy carrying the honeydew away. Then, she turned back and made eye contact with King Ratuatapi.
“My king…you know you don’t need to follow those rules, don’t you? You know that we only told you that so that you would make no decision we hadn’t agreed to, right?”
King Ratuatapi crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes.
“I am aware, Fourth Queen Pezuya. But I am also aware that those rules are for the good of our people. I was not ready to rule, I needed all of your support, especially First Queen Nyoyanke’s. I still need that support.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya shook her head.
“Perhaps, but you are starting to grow on your own, my king. Your opinion diverged from ours on the matter of the Tower Keeper, didn’t it? And I’ll admit it, we were wrong. The Tower Keeper has been a better ally and better friend to us than I ever could have imagined. You were the first to see it, even Berbiya just saw him as an opportunity.”
King Ratuatapi raised an eyebrow.
“What are you trying to say, Fourth Queen?”
Fourth Queen Pezuya gave him an intense stare.
“I am saying that right now, we sigmaka are facing one of the most important tis in our entire people’s history. The decisions we make now will decide the fate of our people for all ti to co. These decisions are too important to leave the anyone else and I know you have your own opinions now, apart from our own. King Ratuatapi, the ti has co to stand up for your people. You cannot allow us queens to control and manipulate you as we have done since you ca to the throne. The ti has co for you to stand on your own and make your own choices, without being swayed by us.”
King Ratuatapi glared at her.
“Just as you are trying to sway now? Co now, Fourth Queen Pezuya. It’s obvious you want to do sothing that the others will disagree with. Do you expect to trust you not to manipulate in a matter you don’t want the others to hear?”
Fourth Queen Pezuya blinked and leaned back for a mont. Then, she started to smile.
“…you’ve grown, my king. I suppose you are right. I…will bring up the matter I wish to speak of in the next gathering. All that I’ll ask for is that you hear out and that you make your own opinion and your own choice on what the sigmaka should do, regardless of what the queens tell you. Even including .”
King Ratuatapi glared at her for a mont longer before he slowly began to nod.
“Very well. You’ve always fought to protect and our people, Pezuya. If there’s sothing you think is important for our future, then I’ll hear you out.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya gave him a salute.
“Thank you, my king.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya then stepped back to the usual position for the royal guards and said nothing more as she watched over King Ratuatapi.
King Ratuatapi and the queens of the sigmaka gathered once more. First Queen Nyoyanke led the discussion as usual.
“Now then, it seems Fourth Queen Pezuya has a proposal regarding our defense that she wants us to review before implenting. Fourth Queen?”
Fourth Queen Pezuya steeled herself before she spoke.
“I propose that King Ratuatapi and the sigmaka as a whole offer to beco Tower Keeper Belissar’s sworn defenders.”
The room went silent. The other queens gaped at the Fourth Queen until Third Queen Penaseconza scoffed.
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"That’s a poor joke, Pezuya, even for you.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya turned to the Third Queen without a single change in expression.
“I do not joke about the survival of our people, Third Queen.”
First Queen Nyoyanke shook her head.
“Be that as it may, your proposal is still unthinkable, Pezuya. It is clear from your report that this battle has you shaken. You need rest, let us adjourn for now so that you may return to your duties and clear your head.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya did not respond, instead turning her gaze to King Ratuatapi. The sigmaka king t her gaze. He sat up straighter and took a deep breath.
“I would like to hear Fourth Queen Pezuya’s reasoning, at the very least.”
First Queen Nyoyanke frowned briefly but quickly shook it off and turned to King Ratuatapi with a soft expression.
“My king, Pezuya is clearly not herself, through no fault of her own. The latest battle was truly dreadful, one that would wear on even the greatest of warriors. I think it would be best for her to rest, perhaps she should even have a break from her duties to comport herself, so that she may return to your service once she is at her best.”
King Ratuatapi, however, shook his head.
“I’ve made my decision, we’ve always relied on the fourth queen to keep us safe. I will at least hear what she has to say."
First Queen Nyoyanke frowned again, furrowing her brow for a mont. She sent a look Pezuya’s way, but ultimately, she simply sighed.
“Very well. Fourth Queen Pezuya, explain yourself.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya gave King Ratuatapi a grateful nod before replying.
“You heard my report, we are utterly outmatched and we are not growing fast enough to change that. I took all of our best warriors, all of whom earned blessings in the Tower, and confronted a single one of the humans’ soldiers. We barely took him down and three of our warriors were critically injured in the process. Ten of those soldiers could have inflicted a disaster upon us. A hundred would wipe us out altogether. One of the elites could have destroyed us without taking a scratch.”
First Queen Nyoyanke raised an eyebrow.
“Yes, that is greatly concerning, but the battle is over, is it not? The humans are now busy fighting themselves and half of them are our allies. We have ti now.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya shook her head.
“Do we? A spiderkin army now shakes the Underway beneath us even as we speak, they would sweep us away in an instant if we didn’t have the fair folk’s wards. And what will co next? An incursion by the Hunger? Another Sacred Den? What if our human allies lose their civil war? We are exposed out here and we don’t have the power to protect ourselves. We probably never will.”
Second Queen Berbiya furrowed her brow.
“I see what you’re saying, Pezuya, but we can and have use diplomacy, can’t we? We’re already allied with Tower Keeper Belissar and the Calwaskon Compact. We can survive with their assistance, can’t we?”
Fourth Queen Pezuya’s face turned dark.
“That’s exactly the problem, Berbiya. We’re only surviving right now because of our allies…and we’re contributing very little to this alliance. Tower Keeper Belissar and the Calwaskon Compact could have defeated the enemy without our help, they practically did so given how little we were able to achieve in this fight. All we contributed was our land and our knowledge of the Underway…knowledge they now know. So, what happens when they start asking if they really need our help? What if they decide the only way to protect us per our agreent is to take us over? What if they delay their help to take care of their own priorities next ti? We are completely at their rcy, we survive on their convenience.”
Third Queen Pezuya raised an eyebrow.
“And becoming the slaves of Tower Keeper Belissar would change that how, exactly?”
Fourth Queen Pezuya relaxed just a bit.
“Because Tower Keeper Belissar takes care of his own. The karnuq are much in the sa position as us, but they did not suffer the sort of casualties we did because they only needed to deploy as part of his forces, not prove themselves an equal mber of the alliance. He only deployed them in places that suited them and always with the full support of his bee army and his allies. And while the battle was happening, all the rest of their people were safely behind his defenses, under no threat. Tower Keeper Belissar has taken good care of their tribe and done everything he could to support them and help them thrive. If we submit to the Tower Keeper willingly, he will do the sa for us. He will not defend us at his convenience, he will defend us as one of his, and he will do everything he can to see us grow strong.”
First Queen Nyoyanke shook her head.
“We would give up too much in exchange, Pezuya. Our ancestors fled the tyranny of the Sacred Dens to create a ho for ourselves, a sanctuary where the sigmaka could rule themselves with no masters above them. To give that up…it goes against everything our people have stood for, throws away all they have achieved. And there is still hope for us, isn’t there? General Rippotis has already promised us Sacred Dens of our own, hasn’t he? We just need to survive until then and then we will have Tower Keepers of our own.”
Fourth Queen Pezuya still did not back down.
“Do we? We know nothing about running Sacred Dens, even if we received so of our own we would be trying to catch up against adversaries well-versed in their use. We would still be weak, still be vulnerable, and still dependent on our allies’ generosity. They could easily seize control of our promised Sacred Dens for safekeeping, or to educate us on their use, or any number of loopholes. And the end result wouldn’t change, would it? Our people would still end up dependent on Sacred Den Masters, whether ours or our allies. Our sanctuary without any Sacred Dens was breached the mont we t Tower Keeper Belissar. Our only choice now is which Sacred Den Masters deserve our trust and loyalty. From everything I’ve seen, Tower Keeper Belissar does. He will both protect and respect our people, and he has the knowledge and the power to keep us safe.”
Second Queen Berbiya rubbed her chin.
“It’s…still an extre option, but we might be able to preserve so of the agreents even if we did sothing like that. Tower Keeper Belissar will need people to run his share of the Sacred Dens, one of which has already lost its master. If we could convince him to assign one to us, we could still keep our own Sacred Dens, but with his support in setting them up…”
Third Queen Penaseconza balked.
“Berbiya, you can’t seriously be considering this madness?”
Second Queen Berbiya shrugged.
“Submitting ourselves entirely is extre, but making tighter ties with Tower Keeper Belissar in general is an option worth considering. Fourth Queen Pezuya isn’t wrong about the threats we now face or about our position in the alliance, plus we must consider that the Sacred Dens we were promised are not guaranteed. Who knows when or even if General Rippotis’ side will win the civil war? And even if they do…those Sacred Dens are all very far away from our ho. Even if they belong to us, any of our people who remain here will still need protection…”
First Queen Nyoyanke, however, shook her head.
“It is still too extre an option, based off hypothetical issues and threats. We should still do our utmost to maintain our sovereignty over ourselves and our lands. Maybe we can consider it if sothing threatens our ho that we cannot handle or if our alliance takes a turn for the worst. However, I will not see our entire people’s history overturned over hypotheticals. Fourth Queen Pezuya, please do take so ti to refresh yourself from the stress of the latest battle.”
First Queen Nyoyanke was about to stand and adjourn the eting…when King Ratuatapi spoke up.
“I would like to speak with Tower Keeper Belissar.”
First Queen Nyoyanke spun around with wide eyes.
“My king? What are you saying?”
King Ratuatapi made eye contact with Pezuya, then turned to face the First Queen directly.
“I think Tower Keeper Belissar has been a good friend and ally to us. I think it’s a good idea for us to get closer to him. So, whether or not we’re going to swear to him, I’d like to speak with him. There’s no harm in just talking, right?”
First Queen Nyoyanke frowned.
“My king, even bringing it up may signify weakness, especially if you do so yourself. You will indicate to the Tower Keeper that we are not confident in our own power, which he may use to his advantage in further negotiations. I would advise against it. Perhaps the second or third queen could probe the Tower Keeper in a more subtle manner…”
King Ratuatapi, however, shook his head. He did gulp before replying, though.
“N-No, Belissar’s a friend, I trust him. I’d like to speak with him regardless…unless you’re saying that I, the king, cannot?”
First Queen Nyoyanke’s eyes widened once more. She furrowed her brow…but ultimately let out a sigh.
“I suppose a eting between sovereigns could be beneficial. However, you must be careful not to make any binding agreents or to appear desperate. Let’s talk more about the agenda and the etiquette required…”
First Queen Nyoyanke began to overwhelm King Ratuatapi with minutia and conditions regarding any eting between him and Tower Keeper Belissar, but Fourth Queen Pezuya still smiled. King Ratuatapi had stood up to First Queen Nyoyanke and started to realize the authority he held, the authority the First Queen had long wielded ostensibly on his behalf. Pezuya had a feeling future etings might take on a different tone from now on; their young king was growing up faster than any of his queens had realized.
And as far as Pezuya had seen, the sigmaka needed to grow more than they had ever imagined if they were going to survive their rapidly expanding world…
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