Belissar walked back over to where his monster bee was still making her first little hive. His heartbeat slowed and his mind calmed as he watched the bee buzz around, and little comb cells take shape.
So, he was trapped here, waiting either for the gods to judge him or for the Tower to purify the Hunger surrounding it. Oh, and the local Tower Lord’s son had burned his village to the ground, cutting down everyone in it, including himself.
Belissar frowned. He wasn’t particularly close to anyone in the village, not since the old beekeeper who took him in had died. And even before that, the rest of the village had little interest in him after he lost his parents. But still, the idea that everyone he knew, good or bad, was gone...
He shook his head. His had been an unlucky life, and now it seemed that misfortune had spread. Perhaps that was why he was now out here, besieged by the Hunger. But what could he do? The situation wouldn’t change if he sat here moping about it. The gods hadn’t smote him yet for defiling their gift, so he may as well do...something.
He walked around the field, passing by the trees and scouring the field around them. He picked up whatever fallen branches he could find. He wasn’t sure why there were fallen branches when the trees had just grown today, but he wasn’t about to complain. Especially not about the inner workings of a Tower of the Gods. He also began to pick some of the dandelions as he made his way back over to the monster bee’s tree.
And then, he got to work.
He picked the flowers off of the dandelions and gathered their stems. He found a low-hanging branch and tied the dandelion stems together, hanging them from the branch. Now he just had to wait for the sun and the breeze to dry them out.
And while he was waiting, he thought about what else he could do. He frowned as he realized his priorities were wrong. If he was going to be trapped here for who knows how long, he would need food, water, and shelter. So once again he walked through the field.
When he was done, Belissar grimaced. There was nothing there but dandelions and a handful of trees. Well, hypothetically the bees would produce honey eventually, but that would take a while, and the bees would need it for themselves. He also didn’t have any of the heavy robes needed to approach the hive safely. Well, since he could talk to a bee now, maybe he could just ask them for some?
Dozens of worker bees now buzzed around the frames. Some were filling the rows with comb, others were forming wax into an outer wall around the edges. Still others were off harvesting from the flowers. The queen herself was now busy laying eggs into the cells as the workers formed them.
Belissar blinked. Bees grew quickly but he thought it took a few days for an egg to grow into an adult worker at least. Well, they were supposed to be monster bees. So, he supposed they might grow faster than a normal hive, or something?
He crossed his arms and hummed. They honestly had enough frames...and he wasn’t even sure they needed them, seeing as they could form their hives with those basic outlines on their own. In which case, what should he do today?
At that moment, his bee companion buzzed in front of him.
He walked over to the center tree, just in time to see another monster bee queen climb out of the spawner hive. She shook herself, then flew over to him.
He made a small smile.
“Let’s build you a hive.”
The monster bee queen danced her salute and began gathering pollen as Belissar went to collect his frame materials. Another day saw another hive taking shape...and yet another day where Belissar forgot to build any accommodations for himself.
Initial Purification attempt in 1 days, 10 hours, and 15 minutes...
Belissar still tossed and turned at night, but still didn’t feel that tired in the morning. So, he got to work as soon as it was light enough for him to see.
Again, another day came and went, another hive was built, and he again forgot to prepare anything for himself.
But he didn’t mind. He apparently didn’t really need much, and he preferred working on the hives in any case. In fact, as the sun set, a few of the bees from the first hive came and danced in front of him.
“You want to show me something?”
Belissar followed the bees back to the first hive. It was very nearly complete, a box shape very reminiscent of the beehouses he had back home, only made of wax and hanging from a tree branch. The queen bee came out and flew in front of Belissar.
“You want...to give me some honey?”
The queen bee continued her dance.
“Tribute for the King.”
A few workers guided him to one of the frames. He climbed up the tree, and pulled out the frame in question, filled to the brim with golden honey. He broke off a piece and took a bite, his eyes widening.
A delectable sweetness graced his tongue. And more than that, he could feel warmth spreading through his body, of a similar sort as the core had filled him with at first.
The entire hive began buzzing and dancing at his word, the queen bee most of all.
Belissar felt a smile grow on his face and held out the frame.
“Please, have some too.”
The queen bee began to refuse but Belissar shook his head.
“A diligent worker deserves her reward.”
The queen bee hesitated, before slowly flying over to the comb, and sipping from one of the cells. Belissar’s smile grew.
As the night grew dark, Belissar gathered his materials into the core room, and continued working on more frames with the light of the core.
All other thoughts left his mind save for the task before him...
Initial Purification attempt in 8 hours, and 51 minutes...
Initial Purification attempt in 2 hours, and 13 minutes...
Initial Purification attempt in 35 minutes...
Initial Purification attempt in 4 minutes...
Initial Purification attempt in 30 seconds...