The entrance to the Glimmerwasp Nest was a big, dark hole. A low, humming sound came from inside. It was a scary sound. The air smelled of poison.
"Are you sure about this?" Lyra asked. Her shield was almost broken, and Ren was just hurt in a big fight.
"I've never been more sure," Ren said. His new level-ups made him feel stronger than ever. "The drones inside will be easy now. We just need to be quiet and find what we are looking for."
They went inside. The nest was a maze of tunnels. The walls were sticky and made of mud and bug parts. The humming was louder in here.
They soon met two Glimmerwasp Drones. Before Lyra could even lift her shield, Ren moved. He was a blur of motion. Two quick flashes of his sword, and the drones were cut in half. They died without making a sound. Lyra was amazed. At his new level, Ren was treating these monsters like they were nothing.
They went deeper. They passed rooms full of big, white egg sacs. They saw another room where baby wasps were eating dead swamp animals.
"I wonder if they taste good," Ren whispered. "Maybe like shrimp."
Lyra gave him a look of disgust. "If you try to eat one, I will leave you here."
The humming sound grew louder and louder. They saw a soft, pulsating light at the end of a long tunnel. They followed it. It led them to the biggest room in the nest: the Queen's Chamber.
The room was a giant cave. The walls glowed with a yellow, honey-like substance. In the middle of the room, hanging from the ceiling, was the Glimmerwasp Hive Heart. It was a giant crystal, as big as a carriage. It glowed with a soft light.
And it was not alone.
A giant wasp was on the Heart. It was the Glimmerwasp Queen. She was as big as a horse. Her shell was a deep, royal purple. Her stinger was as long as Ren was tall. It dripped with a black poison. Her eyes were big and full of a cold, scary intelligence.
When Ren and Lyra entered the room, the Queen turned her head. She saw them. She let out a very loud shriek. It was not a sound of anger. It was a sound of command. It was an alarm.
Instantly, the humming of the whole nest became a roar. From all the tunnels, they could hear the sound of hundreds of angry wasps coming towards them. The way they came in was now blocked by a wall of wasps.
They were trapped.
The Queen stood between them and the Hive Heart. She was ready to attack.
Lyra's face was white with fear. "Ren," she said, her voice full of despair. "We're trapped. It's over."
Ren looked at the swarm of wasps behind them. He looked at the giant Queen in front of them. He looked at the priceless Hive Heart. He did not look scared. He looked thrilled. A wild, happy, and completely crazy grin spread across his face.
He raised his Wasp-Sting Longsword.
"Okay," he said, his voice full of excitement. "New plan."
He looked at Lyra, his blue eyes on fire with energy.
"Kill everything."