The Real Gray

Our targets had their groups, after only thirty-six hours since this battle started. The thralls numbers were swelling to the thousands, yet there was a limit. Thralls wouldn't win this, nor would any ghouls made by the others. The enemy forces were growing stronger, loss was unavoidable. We had a solution to this, now was the time to plant the seeds.

Ston'Gar assumed their positions as gargoyles sitting in their spots. They overlooked the street, while the net of thralls began to herd a hundred disposable survivors towards this spot. Spread out before me were the ill-gotten gains we acquired thanks to the double-mouths and our teleporters. A freshly cooked feast, for those destined to die.

Killing them would be such a terrible waste of potential. Our Queen had created a new caste to try out, despite her grief. How she found the time, I did not know. Between being paraded about the hovels of those insipid gang leaders and mourning the loss of the great king Berry. I lowered my head, thankful once more that such news was not hidden from us. The trust, the faith, everything our Queen gave us, it was inspiring.

One by one, the rats were driven from their burrows. Those unwanted men and women were brought here as fodder. They would only become basic vampires at best, unfit to even be targets with their tragedies playing out by the hour. Disposable in every sense of the word, yet we had managed to make fifty cyclops weapons. I rubbed the wooden lid of the black kettle, positioned between two statues of Bo'Chi on an alter. As our Hive grew, we could control more thralls. Our personal chorus moved them as they practiced for the bodies they would eventually control.

We were not able to make ghouls yet, we needed to experiment and make something different work. The writhing worms inside the pot were eager to show what they could do, excitement coming from them as the first few survivors filtered in through the alleyways. They stood in shock, looking at me for a split second before running to try and escape. Only, others were coming in as the net continued to close around them. Two hundred thralls outnumbered these unfortunate men and women. Forcing them to crowd together as a few bold members stabbed into the thralls.

With a snap of my fingers, those weapons were broken by an explosion of fire. Thralls gently took the broken things away from the flock, gently guiding them towards me. They picked up those that fell to their knees in despair, carrying them gently so they were sitting at the front. Despair clung to the air, desperation in each of their eyes. Too many of them were scrapped and bruised, too many so close to breaking. A few of the broken ones even laughed as they caught the scent of the feast before them.

"Greetings, warriors," I spread my hands in a welcoming gesture. Almost all of them flinched, but none dared to speak out. They were selected for this, after all. Every shade had been watching their actions very closely for a while now. "Do you know why you are here?"

"You're going to fatten us up before you eat us!" One of the women cried out.

A chuckle escaped me, I shook my head, "No, you poor unfortunate people. You are hungry, so we have prepared a meal for you. We have stumbled across the idea of a final meal, it felt appropriate to give you such. Though this may not be your last meal. You have been brought here for an offer." I walked between the food, grabbing a bowl of hearty stew. I presented it to one of the men that were entirely too thin. He barely stopped himself from drooling before he shoveled what he could into his mouth.

All of them were wary of me, each of them watching my every movement. I turned my back on them, "Those in front shall grab what is before them, they will distribute it to the others. Take this time to rest, to calm yourselves. You are all tired, but you need not be hungry. I will tell you my offer after you have eaten and gotten your bearings."

There were murmurs among the crowd, as the first shakey hands plucked plates from the silken carpet. Many of them were afraid that touching the fabric might kill them, others asked if the food was poisoned. I held up a hand, "What is the point in poisoning you all here? The food provided was what you were owed from the army that cast you here to die. Stolen, from those that refuse to acknowledge you as people. Does it matter, however? To those that shunned you, you are already presumed dead. If you are found, they will execute you for dissertation. A proper meal is the least you are owed, or am I wrong?"

Few of them shook their heads at my words, while others started to cry. They glared at the bowl, as if it would make them traitors. Those paranoid few that had refused to eat any of the dried goods from the shops they broke into. As more of them started to eat, more of them gave in. A few even crawled on the silk carpet to grab wooden cups to fill from the buckets of water provided. They were slowly eating their way towards me, while the thralls followed from a safe distance to keep them from pulling away.

The minutes passed, while I watched them eat. Those in front doing as I ordered, eating last. They were so used to orders and following them, it was the most important thing they were taught, after all. I had the thralls move to gently tap a few that were eating too much too quickly, "Do not force eat so fast, you will make yourselves sick. The food will not be going anywhere, in fact, if you accept my offer, you will be able to eat frequently."

Wide-eyed stares greeted me again, more than a few of them contemplating if they should accept my terms now. Why wouldn't they? I was the first being to treat them as something other than an object. I had fed them, and given them a level of respect they never dreamed of. Their hearts were slowly starting to waver. I maintained my silence as they ate, some chewing slowly to savor the food around them.

One of the more desperate came towards me, "You won't kill us, right? If we accept?"

"Before you accept, you must hear all of my terms. I do not wish for any of you to believe you have been deceived. I offer food, but that is one of the many things I have brought. What's more important is that you must understand, that you have a choice." I gestured towards them all, "All of you here have that same choice."

"JUST TELL US!" One of them shouted, "KILL US AND BE DONE WITH IT, WHAT DO WE HAVE TO DO?" They were all starting to clamor, the food restoring their spirits and energy.

"I was hoping to wait until you all had your fill, are you content with me explaining everything while you eat?" Almost all of them nodded, some even shouting again. I nodded, "Very well, gather around. You may ask questions, though I do not wish to be interrupted too much." They began to move, taking spots they were comfortable with. It was a neat formation, something drilled into them by the army no doubt.

Once they were settled, I began, "As we understand it, all of you were drafted into this conflict. All of you are either slaves, criminals, or otherwise completely unwanted without connections to prop yourselves up. From the shadows, we have observed you, striking down those that would rape your comrades, those of you that would kill your brothers and sisters and arms." I turned, to look at every single one of them. "You hundred have been chosen because you did not give in to your base desires. You continued to persevere despite the hopelessness of this situation."

I raised a fist, before bringing it to my chest. "As vampires, we drink the blood of people races. We were once people ourselves, turned into monsters by another. At our core, every vampire believes they are still a person. Your plight has moved us, no one should be forced to lay down their lives for something as simple as a name. No man or woman should be forced to die on the whims of nobles. We see you as people, while even the gods themselves have cast you from their eyes."

A few murmurs spread, one even speaking out. "The gods have not abandoned us!"

Raising my hand towards them silenced the murmurs. "You are right, not all the gods have abandoned you. When I speak of those that have abandoned you, I mean the Golden Circle. Another has taken interest in you, a human that rose to godhood from his talent. A man that was cast from the kingdom of fire, such as yourselves in the time before Dark Fell collapsed. You see, vampires are long-lived monsters we have seen many things change over the decades. You have noticed the statues and the alter, correct?"

The crowd nodded, glancing at the statues in question. "What does it matter? How can this Bo'Chi help us?"

I put a hand over my heart, "While he was alive, he befriended many of our kind. Bo'Chi taught us to love people, as he explained what it meant to be a person. He reminded us of what we were before we became monsters. The world he sought, was one where people and monsters could help each other. My offer is this; renounce all other gods and accept Bo'Chi as your one true divine. Those with faith shall be rewarded."

"What do we get?" One of them asked. "Do we even have a choice?" Another said. The murmurs grew before I spread my hands to silence them all once more.

"You came here as enemies, invaders to take away our homes. Those that sent you, would have us slaughtered for the crime of existing. Something you are all too aware of. What god worth worshiping would allow such a thing to happen? Bo'Chi only seeks acceptance and understanding. May I have a volunteer to show what might be gained?"

One of the men stood up, his body shaking with fervor. An older man took shaky steps to take my hand. "I have served the gods my whole life! I have never seen a miracle, nor have I never been this full!" He was crying, "If I accept, can I feel this again?"

I nodded, "Yes, more than just that. You shall soon understand." I took his hand, leading him towards the alter. I lifted the lid to show the writhing worms inside. He looked at them and hesitated.

"W-what are these?" He asked while the others tried to stand to see what was in the kettle.

"These are called writhing worms. Accepting them is proof of your faith, you will gain the ability to control fire. As you give Bo'Chi your faith, he will give you blessings in return. One of these worms will go inside you, they will increase your strength, and you will hear the voices of others. It will hurt for only a second, your body will become infected with black blood. This is to prepare you for the embrace of a vampire, should you prove your faith. You will join us, you will have a home here, and you will help us defend it. No one will betray you, as the others had."

The old man shakily grabbed the rim of the kettle, "I'm scared." He whispered.

I patted his back, "It is understandable," I turned to the others, "None of you have to do this. Choosing not to will allow you to leave this circle, but you will be our enemies once more. We will hunt you down, we will feast on your blood. You were destined to die, once you came to this kingdom. This choice means that death is merely not the end. As all vampires are undead."

A plopping sound could be heard as the man stuck his head in the kettle. One of the worms went into his nose as ordered, before eating through the back of his throat and connecting with the spine and brain stem. His body jerked back, while I caught it. The old man's eyes rolled into the back of his head, as he spasmed a few times the crowd becoming less enthusiastic. Then he blinked before looking down at himself. "The pain! The pain is gone?"

I tilted my head, "What pain, faithful?"

He was crying, "I can't feel the pain in my back anymore! I prayed for years for it to go away! My joints!" He flexed his muscles, moving his limbs despite the popping sounds. "It doesn't hurt!?" He was smiling, while I sent a mental impulse for him to summon fire.

In truth, it was nothing more than a parlor trick. The writhing worm sorted through the information the nerves gave, filtering out the chronic pain. He was connected to the Hive, able to use the Breeders to summon fire in front of himself. To everyone watching, it truly looked to be a miracle. I smiled, |"We welcome you as one of your own."|

The man jumped, "I-I heard a voice in my head!"

"Yes, that was me. All of us are connected. What you went through, is what I personally experienced not too long ago. Focus, can you hear the others? Ask them everything you want." I turned towards the others as the man asked mundane questions. "There are plenty more writhing worms, those that accept are to become initiates, faithful in other words. If you prove your devotion, you'll be turned into vampires or ghouls. Please, form a line."

A few of them got up, stumbling over while others just gawked at the old man who was working out how to control the flames. We went through five more initiations before the old man stopped. "Brother! I hear voices from those weapons!" He pointed at the cyclops armaments.

"Yes, they are another gift from Bo'Chi. Walk towards them, and see if any of them call for you to wield them. They will increase your control over fire. They are our sisters, brothers. Treat them with respect, and they will help you through the battles to come. I cannot ensure your survival from those that would take our homes, but the believers of Bo'Chi will always have a place among the chorus. Death is only the end when you desire it to be."

The old man walked towards the cyclops and picked up a short spear. Others moved to join after they found him twirling it around as though he were a practiced veteran. Some of the initiates were rejected, from holding one of the chorus as a weapon. They had not been chosen, those that forced it would receive a headache that forced them to stop. To them, it further solidified that only those chosen by Bo'Chi could wield the weapons made from bugs.

Thralls began to fall, as more connections were established. The ratio was one to five in the writhing worms' favor. Converting people in this way was far more beneficial, as we also gained a part of their brain for processing. We only needed to repeat the success of this experiment across multiple groups. We also gained the knowledge that the new members held. Meaning we knew that ten thousand of the forty thousand that came here were white banners.

A smile crept across my lips as teleporters appeared at the Queen's home. She was establishing connections to give us even more bugs. Returning what she took while giving us even more suggestions. We knew where the others were, while she knew about our agreement with the Count. It was just a 'coincidence' that she happened to return the teleporters with certain knowledge and bugs to recover the home the invading army trampled over.

The fields outside were razed, and most shacks were outright destroyed or broken down for raw parts to build the catapults. The orchids were no better, as even the Queen's dome was ransacked. It would be rebuilt after this affair was over, after we returned to her. It was just another slight, that continued to make it all the more satisfying that we were turning the enemy against themselves.

Double mouths ate into the supplies of the civilians in the back, as well as the army's. Slowly perpetuating a cycle of accusations and unjust punishments on the white banners that kept the logistics going. They had enough to survive for three months, but already it was dwindling by the hour. Our bugs were merciless, forcing the enemy to constantly repair their gear. Making conditions worse for those already on the verge of outright rebellion.

We did not need to control the battlefield, only the morale, and resources of the enemy troops. Something, our hive uniquely excelled at. It had bothered me when we learned that the extra five thousand in the back were all family members of the soldiers sent here. Civilians were coerced to follow their families while taking care of mundane needs. It made sense logically, the best were at the back of the army, protected by the civilians who acted as fodder in their own right. Ready to be slain should those on the frontlines attempt a coup.

Any attack on the backlines would only enrage those on the front while warning those in the back of such an attack. It was as cruel as it was effective. At least, it would have been if we didn't have swarms of bugs steadily chipping away at their supplies. Entomancers snuffed out while they slept. No one seemed to care about the bugs, so long as they didn't bother anyone in public and were seen killing vermin.

I shifted my focus back to the people accepting Bo'Chi, letting them figure out how to talk to each other through the connections that were formed. One by one, the cyclops found their partners. Even I was unsure of the method, though it was described as the 'tone' one's soul gave off. A melody sung by those present, something that enticed the cyclops to accept their wielder.

Clapping my hands, I got their attention, only twenty individuals refused the offer. "Brothers and sisters, you have made your choice. You lack experience, observe." I summoned fire from the giants in my hand, letting the mental impulse wash over those still struggling. "These flames come for our god, you must ask to receive." They began to waver and flicker, "Trying to take will only distance yourself from Bo'Chi. It is not something that can be forced, it is a part of you. You cannot force the air to move, you can only breathe."

The ones that struggled the most began to understand, as their fire became more controlled and serene. "Bo'Chi used fire when he was alive, he now passes these flames unto each and every initiate. He wants community above all, so he allows those under him to talk to one another through their thoughts. Rest your eyes, think of the one next to you. Imagine casting out your thoughts towards them, accept their response. Do not force it, breathe."

"We already got as much, why are you doing this now?" One of the quick-witted men spoke out.

I smiled at him, "Not all our brothers and sisters are so quick to grasp what is before them. Getting everyone on the same level is important for the group to move forward. What comes naturally to you, may not come naturally to another. We do not admonish those that struggle with the basics, as they may grasp the harder aspects faster than ourselves. Community means sharing what we learn and helping those around us."

"Why have we never heard of this god before? Why aren't there more followers?" One of the women asked.

"Bo'Chi is not interested in complete devotion. He is a god that seeks to elevate those that struggle to his level. With the tides of time, his power will wane and grow. Only those good men and women will be accepted, you were all chosen based on your actions here. Now it is our duty to aid you such that you may bring others into our fold. The gods would sooner see Bo'Chi die, than have others ascend alongside him."

Silence fell upon the others, as they contemplated my words. Finally, one of the youths spoke out, "What do you mean? Bo'Chi will have others ascend alongside him?"

I nodded, "That is the goal, Bo'Chi does not need power or worship. What he seeks is the elevation of all those that accept his doctrine. It does not matter if they are monster, beast kin, elf, human, dwarf, or what have you. Only that you accept a place within the community and fulfill your role when asked." I spread my arms, "I sense that you have all grasped the basics," I turned towards those that rejected this offer, "You lot may leave and continue your struggle for survival. My suggestion is to find one of the fountains and set up at the closest smithy. Such spots are havens."

They had jumped when attention was drawn to them but slowly shuffled away as the thralls parted. Some of the initiates were asking me why they were let go, they received the same answer. |"Because everyone should have a choice, if they do not fight there is no reason to slay them. One day they may accept, or they may return home."|

With the stragglers gone, I redoubled my efforts towards training these initiates. Teaching them how to use their flames for motion, how to swing their weapons, footwork, and more. The street became their training area, what they learned was shared among them. Subconsciously their stances were adjusted with each swing. Their forms were studied by the web and molded to the best potential that could be brought out. We moved on to attacking the thralls for hours, cutting into the ones too damaged to be of use anymore.

Frequent breaks were had, while my initiates slowly adopted this way of life. The hours passed by in a blur for them, while thralls brought discarded scraps of armor from the blue warrior skirmishes. Pieces refitted and fixed before being worn by those I taught. The enemy was creeping closer, ground lost by the hour. Everything was still going as planned, these people would be ready to strike against their oppressors. Every single one of them felt acceptance and power for the first time in their lives. They were ready to die defending their 'homes.'

I held up my hand, sending a message to them all, |"Enemies are invading, here are the positions you must take."| They looked at me, fervor in their eyes. |"You have all received a great gift, now I ask you to join me in defending our home."| They nodded, going to the positions I directed them to. The thralls surged into the encroaching platoon to kidnap the next batch of targets. The screaming individuals fighting and kicking to break free while the enemy was drawn into my trap.

The alter and statues were moved, the food distributed to those lurking in the alleys in wait. The marching of feet was heard with the squealing sound of thralls rushing towards me. A grin split my face, as those fools with a blue banner came into view. All of them had their weapons drawn, the man in front shouting their war cry. "CHARGE!"

I spread my arms wide to receive them, while the initiates screamed and poured from the alleys. "ATTACK!"

The relief on the platoon's faces was short-lived, as the first of them were caught down by those with red blood. Murmurs of rebellion and traitors cried out as both sides engaged one another. The enemy commander cowering behind his own soldiers. I tutted, walking into the fray among my men. After all, I was a teacher, there was a lesson to be taught.