Tim passed his fingers over the straps, checking one last time that they were tightly secured and the harness would hold him even if something was damaged. They didn’t usually focus this much on such security precautions, but considering his current mount and what might be coming, it was better to be safe. The leather was still thin enough that he could cut it easily with his claws if the need arose, even if he didn’t have full range of motion, so he wouldn’t be trapped going down with it if his mount was shot down. Not that he was likely to survive the landing, either, unless one of the mages or Regina acted to save him.

Despite the risk, he really wasn’t afraid, and the check was more out of conscientiousness than for any other reason. If all went well, he probably wouldn’t be involved in a fight himself. He was here as a commander, and Regina had gotten more cautious about exposing her sapient drones to potential harm. It made sense since their Hive’s Swarm had grown so much, he supposed.

Through the psychic link, Tim checked on the others, making sure they all checked their equipment as well. It was a small strike force by the standards of the war they’d fought in Nerlia, but most of their soldiers were still needed elsewhere, especially there. And his brothers and sisters in this group were intended more as commanders than soldiers, as well. They did have a much larger force of Swarm Drones to do the fighting.

All ready? Ben asked.

Tim rolled his eyes. He sometimes got a bit anxious before a fight, if he wasn’t there himself. Of course, and we’re going to stay ready, Tim answered.

Since Regina’s endeavor with the Delvers appeared to have succeeded, they’d started preparing in earnest for this operation. It wouldn’t restart a full-out war … probably … but it was definitely the start of a new phase. Tim suspected Regina wanted this to go ahead now because of her dealings with the Delvers, perhaps to prove a point. He wondered if they might get the help of the Delvers in the future. It wouldn’t be necessary, though; he’d be damned if the Hive couldn’t beat the gnomes on their own.

All checks completed and having touched base with everyone, Tim told his ride to rise into the air and watched as the others around him took to the air as well. He was currently riding a new type of drone, a Light Winged Drone Mount, a rare Evolution that he suspected was at least influenced by Regina’s new Form Drones, although those weren’t high-level enough for this yet. It was a Drone Mount with the typical body type of its Class, but sleeker and with larger wings, and he’d been told it had lighter bones somehow. That meant while it wouldn’t stand up to enemy fire any better, he’d be more nimble and maneuverable in the air, with better control over their velocity and the potential to stay up for longer before his ride got tired.

While they turned in a sharp curve to head to the south-south-west, Tim checked on the other drones he had to keep an eye on. They’d spread most of their forces around, out of necessity. The difficulties of supplying large armies in the mountains aside, they just couldn’t bunch the drones all up in one spot, especially if they wanted to keep the gnomes in check and retain the ability to surprise them. The tunnels the Hive had been digging helped immensely. A lot of War Drones were in them, now, prepared to march out of the exits. Winged Drones circled in the sky or waited on mountain peaks or in the crowns of trees.

The gnomish force they were here to stop today kept their fighters are lot more concentrated, probably because they knew the Hive wanted to pick them off. The terrain was slowing them down, and since the Hive had been watching them since before they left their own tunnel — a few Scouts’ sensory Skills that were specialized for the underground or detecting life force had proved quite useful — the gnomes had not had the time to get far. Not that they would get the chance now.

Tim took his attention away from the gnomes briefly to check on the other drones and ensure everything was proceeding without issues. They reported in quickly and he relayed what was happening over the psychic link to Ben. This was his show, but that didn’t mean he needed to keep him out of the loop, after all.

The gnomes had been sending larger and larger forces out recently, and been sending them more often. Tim knew they might be trying to analyze the Hive’s response, but that didn’t mean they could just let them continue with it. Besides, this one was a big enough expeditionary force that losing it had to hurt the Confederation, even if they’d planned for the possibility. He didn’t know what other aim they might have with it, unless they really thought they could get a victory. Maybe take out a few Hive outposts? I wouldn’t be surprised if there was some internal politics involved, too, he reflected. Maybe some faction just wants to do something, or wants to be seen doing something.

He was glad the hive didn’t really have to worry about stuff like that.

Right now, Tim sent a few Winged Drones a bit lower to get a better look at his target, despite the slightly increased risk. The gnomes had spread out a little bit and he could tell they were using what camouflage or invisibility Skills they had, maybe a bit of magic too. There were gaps where he’d learned to expect more of their forces. The trick would be to tell where, exactly. Although, once they got closer, the drones should be able to hear and smell the gnomes. It still reduced their visible forces and made it easier for them to evade notice, he supposed, especially since they were keeping to paths between mountainsides and under rocky overhangs or in valleys as much as possible. They were high enough up that forests weren’t really an option for hiding, but the mountains still offered a lot of other opportunities.

Of course, the Hive was still tracking them, even if he wasn’t quite as confident in the details as he would wish. Tim reached deeper into the psychic link and focused on the mental picture of where everyone was, the gnomish forces and their own drones.

It’s starting, he whispered. Get ready. First to third strike groups, start moving.

A few scattered acknowledgments came back; most of the Swarm Drones’ units were directed remotely by sapient drones, and most of those were in the air with him. He still ensured that the flocks he’d named were moving in accordance with the plan, just to be sure.

A few minutes later, their targets started to shift in his mental map. The gnomes must have realized they were going to be attacked, or perhaps they’d just seen the increasing numbers of Winged Drones in the sky that were evidently looking for them.

We’ve been made, it looks like, Ada said calmly.

He sent agreement through the psychic link. Everyone, keep a cool head and stick to the plan, he reminded them, not that he thought it was really necessary. Ada, you can go ahead and get started distracting them. Make sure not to expose your heavy hitters too strongly.

Yes, Tim, she agreed, then he felt her moving away as she urged the drone she was riding to pick up speed.

He supposed one of the downsides of these mountains was that getting anywhere, especially quickly, pretty much required you to fly. It was why he’d kept careful count of the gnomes’ fliers, or at least tried to, and told the others to do the same. It might not have caught every one of them, but at least he could be confident that the hive had the edge in numbers. Although any remaining gnome able to fly or ride a winged mount would probably wipe the floor with a Winged Drone in a straight one-on-one fight. Luckily, the Hive never went for those if they could help it.

Tim waited in tense silence, urging his mount to circle a little higher as he approached the main concentration of gnomish soldiers. He should be high up enough now that they couldn’t shoot him down, and he could see them through other drones’ eyes.

The Hive started with a bombing run, like they usually did. Tim gave the go-ahead, and then watched as a flock of Winged Drones descended above the gnomish soldiers, spreading out until they covered the sky above them. They were carrying different versions of explosives; the Hive rarely let an opportunity to field-test new developments go to waste. Tim had high hopes for the smaller, grenade-like balls of dynamite, or whatever the actual substance was called. He wasn’t an expert, but Tia did good work.

A small rain of bombs, supplemented by rocks and other projectiles, went down over the gnomes’ positions, sending up dust and smoke, but not enough to obscure visibility. Many of them were stopped and wasted their power against magical shields, or were deflected away by gnomish soldiers. But trying to do damage or to rattle them was only one part of the plan. They’d dispersed their shots over a wide area and now the sapient drones paid close attention to where their payloads hit, and where they didn’t. It revealed the soldiers the gnomes had tried to strike. Perhaps not perfectly, but watching it through the psychic link and sensing what the others pointed out, he had a much better picture of their forces now.

The gnomes struck back faster than he’d expected. Their ranks wavered, but they held, and while the flying drones responsible for the strike were still ascending further up to get away, they counter-attacked. Gusts of flame shot into the air, at least half a dozen. Most of them missed or fell short, but two managed to tag several of the flying drones, and a few of them tumbled back to the ground with burned wings. Tim almost flinched at the sharp pain from drones he’d just been focusing on. At the same time, several less showy projectiles shot upward as well. Unlike the fire, they didn’t seem to have a range limit but continued into the sky. Most of them looked like gray or silver spears, larger than most javelins, but a few actually launched into a flurry of smaller javelins shooting upwards in a cone from the origin point. Those tagged several drones at once, and more of them plummeted from the sky with severe injuries.

Tim clenched his hands, fingers digging into his harness, and took a deep breath. He wanted to respond, to launch the next attack right away, but he knew it would be a mistake. Instead, he waited, watching, as they drew together, getting into combat positions. As his ground-bound drones advanced closer to them. From experience, they had an estimate of how close they could get without the gnomes noticing them. He pushed the edges of it, now, hoping the distractions worked.

And then they were in position. Tim dove into the psychic link, sending a message to all drones. Go. Attack. Follow the plan.

They rushed out of the ground and from their hiding spaces, joining into a large wave. The main groups of drones who’d kept outside the gnomes’ view rushed forward as well. The others managed to organize everything so that they all arrived at roughly the same time, in a coordinated charge.

The gnomes were ready to receive them. There was no way to take them completely by surprise, not in this situation. But they hadn’t had long, and it still showed. Tim watched as the horde of drones crashed into the front ranks of the gnomes (not that it had been the front before), and went into and through them. Their momentum was too high to stop. Then it devolved into a brawl.

Tim winced, watching as some of his drones were massacred by the gnomes. They were still not on their level in a one-on-one fight. Luckily, they’d disrupted the gnomes’ formation enough that the following ranks could pick up where they left off and work their way further in. Now they ganged up on the gnomes, attacking them from several sides. Doctrine called for at least three drones to take a soldier if possible. That was a bit optimistic here, but not too much.

Especially not when the next wave of fliers came riding in. This time, there were fewer of them, but not just Winged Drones. They were accompanied by Shooters, Fliers and stronger Swarm Drones, going for more targeted strikes than just sowing confusion.

Tim’s mount jerked to the side, and he almost bit his tongue. He blinked, trying to ignore the stinging of the wind in his eyes, and looked around just a bit frantically.

There. The gnomes had sent a flier, and now he saw them.

Tim made his mount dive, speeding up to put more distance between them. Without him having to ask, a small flock of senior Swarm Drones directed by a Flier advanced on the enemy fliers, engaging them from a distance with javelins and a few dropped rocks. Most of the attacks missed, but they distracted the gnomes from intervening. There were only a few of them, gnomes on several different large birds. He sent a command to the Hive forces and watched as they spread out to form a half circle around them, boxing them in.

The gnomes clearly decided the best way out was through and started to charge the center of the formation. Before they reached it, a wall of fire swept through them, their own forward momentum preventing them from evading it. Tim felt Ken’s excited grin as the other drone followed it up with a barrage of Firebolts. Those were hardly necessary; most of the gnomes’ mounts had spooked already.

Their loss of control left them open to the rest of the drones’ attacks, and Tim watched them quickly head towards the ground before too long. He smiled a bit before he turned his attention back to the main battle.

While he was distracted, it had proceeded pretty well. He’d expected it to be a short fight, but even so, he was almost surprised to see how scattered the gnomes had become. They even seemed to realize that there would be no winning anymore rather quickly. While he was still trying to feel out the flow of battle, several groups at the edges broke away.

Following a predefined pattern, he realized after a moment. They were expecting something like this might happen, or had at least set up contingency plans and rally points. Well, that was fine; one point of this was to get information on their doctrine and how they reacted.

Tim absentmindedly pulled his mount up to get a bit higher and then contacted his subordinate commanders, congratulating them and organizing their forces. With more and more gnomes seeking the better part of valor, or at least a good path out of this mess, the battle was basically over. They might not get as many kills as projected, though, but that was fine, too.

It was a pretty decisive victory, after all, and appearances mattered.