The hivemind is conquering for me?

”Tammy! Go right!” I shouted as I dodged a blue shockwave that I really did not want to be hit with again.

Tammy didn’t reply. In combat, when ordered, she was a machine. I had good combat reflexes, but hers were something else up close. With the defender pulling back to reposition against Tamara, I fired a volley of disruptive bullets towards the defender in hopes to draw her attention away momentarily.

A mistake.

Talia was then ripped off the ground via telekinesis and used as a literal meat shield taking my bullets before being thrown at me.

I tried to dodge her body, as cruel as that was to her, but it seems my dodge was calculated as another massive blue shockwave then came towards me at an even faster pace than before and I was sent flat on my ass.

Before I had a chance to get up to try and counter attack, a rapier point was at my throat and a muffled voice spoke. ”Yield.”

I took a moment to assess my chances, but the defender, as nice as she was out of combat, was ruthless in combat. ”I yield.” I declared and the moment I did. Beth took off her helmet and yelled over to the side.

”Medic!”

She then put her rapier in the ground next to her before extending her hand downwards. ”Sorry about the strength used.” She said innocently, looking down at me with a deep regret in her eyes. Elizabeth was a very gentle creature, especially around me these last two months with my elevated training.

”Don’t apologise for that. It’s good to be taken down a peg, aunty.” I said, prompting Miss Duvile to beam with happiness. Like every other time I call her that.

”I am glad you are mature enough to understand that, Apollo, especially with your strength well above your age group. It is easy to fall into hubris with such power.”

I nodded at Elizabeth’s sagely wisdom before turning towards Tamara who was being attended to.

”Tammy? Are you good?” I asked. She didn’t reply audibly, she was doing her meditation or she would get back up and try to maul Elizabeth again. She simply raised her thumb up before it was swatted down by the medic.

I smiled and nodded seeing that. Since our hunt, Tammy and I had come to be good friends and even better combat partners. Despite what just happened, we were actually a very serious force. In our grouping of elites, the only team that could actually beat us was Orchid and Sigfried, but despite Sigfried’s strength being quite admirable, it was Orchid being Orchid that got them the wins in the spars.

I then looked away from Tamara and over to the side. Hailey and Valerica were addressing a group of onlookers, mostly first years alongside some of my friends about the battle. Another outcome of the hunt was I could not walk around without getting recognised anymore; What we did was a big deal.

As such, when training now, we are often watched despite a great deal of pressure to buzz off at first. But when people kept turning up, the powers at be just decided to make an extra curricular out of it.

”I’m going to go make sure they aren’t laying it on too thick, you know what they are like.” I said to Beth before she giggled.

”Oh please. They are speaking the truth. You just don’t like being praised by your loved ones in front of people. Like how shy you got in class the other day when I said-”

”-Bye!” I began jogging off and the sound of Beth’s laughter made me want to have another run at her while her guard was down, but my survival instincts knew better.

As I got closer, I heard Valerica talking. ”-So even though Apollo and Tamara are incredible fighters. Miss Duvile has seen literally hundreds of years of Psionics and what people are capable of. She can use your greatest strengths and turn them into weaknesses.”

Hailey then added on. ”Which brings us all back to knowledge.” Her repetition caused an audible sigh of torment from the group, which she chose to ignore. ”Sure you can sit in a cave for decades accumulating power. You could be incredibly strong at that point. But then you come across an enemy. They appear weaker and you gain confidence in your power. But this weaker enemy has seen your Psionics before, knows its strengths and weaknesses and uses them against you. Meanwhile you have been sitting in a cave, only understanding your own powers. You are blind to what your opponent might do. It is imperative to your Psionic journey to absorb as much knowledge as you can. It can and will save your life.”

Everyone went silent before Valerica spoke up again. ”Right, since the knowledge police has bored you all. There are no more fights today, clear off!”

”AWW!”

As the crowd began to disperse, Hailey turned around and smiled at me. ”Hey, babe.”

”Hey, babe.” I replied back before I leaned down to kiss her. I ignored those nearby heckling the kiss as there was a scary force staring at me after I pulled back from the kiss.

I then reached across and also kissed Valerica on the cheek and the scary force disappeared.

”How is your chest?” Valerica asked, pulling up my shirt. ”That heartless bitch doesn’t hold back in a fight. She tries to hurt you more than necessary again and she will feel my wrath.”

I chuckled and was about to reply ’That won’t be needed.’ But I was interrupted.

”Apollo, are you alright?”

”Y-Yeah, that last blow looked like it hurt.”

Mindy and Evanthe walked over from the crowd. Ever since I addressed the concern the other month, we had been hanging out at least once a week, but often more.

”Yeah, I’m fine. It takes a lot more than that to put me out, as you all know well enough.” Seeing the duo though, my stomach started rumbling. We were having dinner together with some other friends and I was excited.

”Well, since my stomach has clearly announced what it wants, are you ready for food?”

Mindy and Evanthe then looked between one another, a conversation was being had with their respective, beautiful eyes, before Evanthe stepped forward. ”Um, Apollo.” She said, still acting shy despite our friendship.

She then pulled out a wrapped box from behind her back and presented it to me. ”We, um, we made you some chocolate.” She said and her pale white complexion suddenly let on a healthy hue as she blushed for some reason.

Hailey then suddenly latched onto my side tightly and began staring with her icy demeanour for some reason.

Mindy then added on. ”She says ’we’ But all I did was sit off to the side and eat way too much honeycomb and lick spoons. Try it, she made it with love.”

”Mindy!” Evanthe whisper yelled while I took the box and opened it.

The moment I opened the box. I almost got a food boner. They smelled amazing. As I picked up a chocolate from inside, I first brought it up to my nose to take in the scent. I couldn’t smell the honeycomb, but the chocolate itself smelled amazing.

As I was about to put it into my mouth, I suddenly realised something.

’Why is everyone staring at me?’

I shrugged my shoulders, they weren’t getting my chocolate, they already do heists for my Millie cookies. This is mine!

The moment I bit into the chocolate. ”Oh yeah.” A light milky chocolate with a honeycomb crunch bombarded my tastebuds with their divine flavour. It was perfect.

Evanthe’s eyes lit up as she raised her hands to her chest. ”Do you like them?” She felt the need to ask, despite my involuntary verbal outburst.

After I swallowed one, I put another in my mouth. ”Are you kidding? These are awesome! I don’t think anything could ruin my day now I’ve had these.” I declared.

”Apollo Lambdason!” I suddenly heard yelled out from behind me. Turning around, it was the deputy head.

”Leanna? What can I do for you- *smack* Mine!” I got distracted and swatted like a cat towards Valerica for trying to steal one of my choco.

”What can I do for you?”

Leanna continued to walk forward until she was right in front of me. She then handed me a scroll of all things before declaring.

”Apollo, you have been called forward for an emergency expedition. Get your affairs in order. You set off to the Drakoshi front in two days’ time.”

Leanna then turned and began to walk away before pausing and turning around. ”Good luck.”

I briefly read over the scroll. Due to the sudden nature of the expedition, considering I wasn’t due for a combat expedition for another two months, I was being heavily compensated.

Those around me had a worried look on their face and Valerica had taken the scroll from my hands at this point, but I wasn’t worried. In fact, I felt a rage burning in my chest.

Those Drakoshi had been fighting my dear little hive for the past month in a big bloody conflict in their territory. I don’t know why Jewel was all the way down there, but one thing was for certain.

I wasn’t going to just stand by and let my wife fight them alone. It was about time I joined the frey.