Immediately as the butterflies stepped into the grand meeting chambers, a group of about twelve soldier ants rushed in from behind, their movements a calculated blur. The soldiers moved to surround the three Monarchs from the sides, back, and front.
The scrape of metal on chitin filled the tense air as the ants unsheathed their mandibles from their waist sheaths.
The two guardians supporting Luminara immediately released her. A sharp flick of their wrists drew their thorny whips, the long, sharp weapons. They moved with sudden, focused energy, creating a bristling defense around the blind Monarch.
Luminara reached out, a hand clad in white exoskeleton settling upon one guardian's shoulder. The fine blonde hair resting against her neck did not shift.
No... that is not necessary. We are here to form an alliance, not to provoke conflict and multiply our adversaries.
"Another step, and you die."
Ignatia's voice was cold, flat, and absolute, cutting through the murmurs of the Elders. Her crimson eyes, fixed on the armed ants, were utterly devoid of concern.
Lieutenant Tavian moved instantly in front of the Queen. His hand snapped to the hilt of his sheathed weapon. Sergeant Samuel unsheathed his mandibles, the bright blade catching the fungal light, and stepped closer toward the Monarchs.
What are they doing?
Ari's antennae twitched back slightly, a mixture of confusion settling on his face.
Valeria, still positioned beside the surprised ant, simply folded her arms. The light reflecting off her exoskeleton shifted as she closed her eyes, a gesture of quiet assessment.
That was quite the entrance.
Near the throne, Princess Tanya sat utterly frozen. Her heartbeat hammered against her chitin plating. She was rigid with fear of the unsheathed blades, yet her eyes couldn't look away from the source of the conflict.
The Monarchs' wings—the bright orange and black of Seraphina and the profound, dark indigo of Ignatia—were a sensory shock against the dusty, somber chamber.
The color of their wings... they are beautiful.
The young Ant Princess thought, lips slightly parted in silent awe at the foreign, startling beauty that had just violently invaded her world. Her own small, clear wings trembled slightly against her back.
One of the Ant soldiers—a lance corporal stationed closest to the Monarchs—buckled under the pressure. His hands trembled over his hilt, and a bead of sweat dripped from his chin. Driven by raw panic and fear, he shouted as he rushed forward, aiming a clumsy, desperate slash at Ignatia's flank.
Ignatia did not acknowledge the attack.
The blow never landed.
In a flash that blurred the space between the two groups, Seraphina moved. The chamber heard a quick, sharp series of metallic sounds—a chilling "cling and clang"—followed by the whistle of air rapidly displacing.
The soldier who rushed Ignatia suddenly stumbled back, clutching his wrist in pain. His weapon clattered harmlessly to the ground. In that same blink, the other eleven pairs of mandibles flew from the grips of the surrounding Ant soldiers, skittering across the packed earth floor.
The soldiers took a step back, visibly stunned.
Seraphina smiled, a cruel, easy curve of her lips, as she smoothly sheathed a long, segmented barbed whip back into its housing on her side. Her orange and black wings settled, completely untouched by the conflict.
"Oh my... it seems you did not understand my sister's statement." Her voice was laced with mockery. "Do you truly value your lives so little that you challenge a power that disarmed you without effort? I see that all of you possess a death wish, then. Proceed against us again, if that is truly your desire, or return to your guard duty like good little soldiers."
Lieutenant Tavian, frozen by the sheer speed of the maneuver, could only watch the array of disarmed weapons. The sudden movement had silenced the council, and his own antennae remained rigid, fixed on the scattering of blades across the packed earth.
Elder Junon lunged halfway out of his seat, fueled by pure, unadulterated fury and contempt. His layered chitin scraped against the stone. The grey hairs of his beard bristled slightly with the intake of breath.
"This is outrageous! How dare you violate the sanctity of command and threaten our soldiers!" The Ant Elder spat the words, his face tight with controlled rage.
Ignatia's crimson eyes drifted away from Queen Celeste and fixed on the Elder. Her indigo wings twitched once, a subtle shift of color in the dim light.
"Hold your tongue, you old fool. This matter doesn't concern you. Unless... you wish to be silenced."
The glint in her red eyes was cold, lethal, and utterly sincere.
"That can be arranged."
Elder Junon staggered back in genuine fear, his rage dissolving instantly into raw self-preservation. One of the other Elders remained perfectly still, posture composed, eyes half-lidded as he observed the Monarch with an unsettling calm that bordered on reverence.
Another slowly laced his fingers together and rested his hands beneath his chin, elbows on the arm of his stoned seat, studying her with sharp, measuring silence. The Monarch's death threat did not shatter the chamber with panic—only with tension.
Junon drew in a shallow breath to steady his voice. The tremor remained. His arm lifted, the chitin of his forearm catching the light as one shaking finger leveled at Ignatia.
"You threaten me within the Queen's chamber… Very well. Commander Valeria—remove these infiltrators."
Valeria did not move. She remained beside Ari, arms still crossed against her chest. One antenna dipped a fraction, then steadied. The chitin along her shoulders shifted with a quiet scrape as her stance settled deeper into place. Her gaze stayed fixed on Junon.
"Spare yourself the effort, Junon. I do not answer to you."
A brief pause followed, the air tightening with it.
"Least of all now."
Junon's arm dropped to his side in a sharp motion. The brown chitin along his shoulders and upper chest drew tight as his posture stiffened. Heat crept into his face, tightening the skin around his eyes. His jaw clenched hard, lips flattening into a rigid line as his breath pushed out through his nose in short, controlled bursts.
Queen Celeste watched the Monarchs in steady silence. Her pale wings remained perfectly still behind the throne as her gaze tracked Ignatia with precise focus. The unrest in the chambers pressed in from all sides, yet her breathing stayed even, her posture unchanged.
"Silence."
The single word settled through the air, firm and absolute. Her eyes did not leave Ignatia.
"You entered my colony in search of refuge… and yet you chose to raise your weapons within it."
Ignatia held the Queen's gaze without blinking. The faint tension in her face never shifted.
"If I remember correctly, your soldier was the one who aimed his blade at me.
"Luckily, I did not slaughter him… due to the promise I made to one of yours not to harm anyone in this colony."
Her eyes flickered briefly toward the tense, unmoving form of Ari. The movement was brief. Precise.
Her gaze returned to the throne.
"You wish to know why I am impatient. Because while you waste time deciding the fate of a mere lance corporal over a minor altercation, our chance of ever triumphing continues to deplete."
Her chest rose with a deeper breath, the indigo wings at her back remaining still.
"That aside, this was the only way left to seize your attention, Queen of this colony… and to provide you with all we know of Magnus—"
A measured pause followed.
"—and his plan to plunge this entire region into darkness."
Queen Celeste paused, taking in the combined weight of both threat and insult. A diplomatic bargain had been offered—pressed forward at the edge of a blade.
She raised one hand. The motion stopped the ant soldiers at once, their unsettled breathing still audible in the quiet that followed.
"Very well. All soldiers, stand down."
The command settled through the chambers, firm and final. One by one, the disarmed soldiers retrieved their weapons, the soft scrape of mandibles sliding back into their sheaths carrying through the air as they withdrew.
Seraphina's blue eyes followed their departure until the last of them vanished from view.
Only then did Celeste return her gaze to the sisters, her expression calm, measured, unchanged.
"But before we proceed… I would like to know the fate of the soldiers who guarded the boulders."
"Rest assured, my Queen. They were not harmed."
Chief Warden Seth stepped fully into the chambers, the muted weight of his armored feet settling against the floor. The line of his posture remained firm, his stance disciplined and unmoved by the tension still lingering in the air.
"I was the one who ordered them to stand down and allow the Monarchs to enter."
Elder Junon rose at once, the tension in his posture plain.
"Chief Warden Seth… by what authority did you permit them to approach our Queen, when their intentions were yet unknown?!"
Seth met the Elder's gaze without wavering. His expression remained even, his breathing steady beneath the tension in the chambers.
"It is true that I was not given the full circumstances. However, I was informed by Lieutenant Brooks to ensure that they were granted an audience with the Queen without delay."
Ari's antennae twitched, the tight knot in his chest loosening by a small degree. Wait… didn't Brooks say he wouldn't get involved…
The thought lingered as his breathing eased. I never expected him to be the type to tug at my conscience when he knows he's capable of explaining himself.
A quiet exhale passed through him. Still… thank you for stepping in, Brooks.
Seth continued, his posture unchanged as he conveyed the remainder of Brooks' message with practiced clarity.
"He also warned that something ominous is at work. He is attempting to uncover what that may be… and has already departed on his own mission."
Queen Celeste's eyes narrowed by a small degree, the edge of challenge in her gaze giving way to a trace of respect.
"I see. In all the years I have known that ant, he has remained perceptive and devoted to his duty… and his instincts have yet to fail him."
Her hand lifted in a quiet dismissal.
"You have my thanks for this information, Seth. You may take your leave."
"My Queen."
Seth inclined his head in a measured bow. As he straightened, his eyes passed over Ari for a brief instant, the look layered and unreadable. He turned then and departed the Grand Meeting Chamber, the muted sound of his armored feet carrying faintly behind him as he went.
Queen Celeste's antennae lifted as she turned toward Ignatia, the pale brown surface of her exoskeleton giving a low, controlled click against the armrest.
"Now then."
A light breath moved through her chest, the edges of her wings shifting with the quiet motion.
"You have clearly gained my attention on this matter. Now tell me all there is to know of this Magnus you spoke of… and the threat he poses to our colony."
Ignatia did not answer at once. The faint tension returned to her posture, her breath held for a brief moment before it left her in a slow exhale.
"The one called Magnus is the leader of the moths."
Her red eyes steadied.
"He is the one who brought down my guardians… and left me at the edge of death. He is not a threat that fades with time. Even now, his strength remains immense."
A pause followed. Short. Heavy.
"He is darkness itself."
Her shoulders settled, as though setting aside something she had carried for too long.
"Our original intent was to rest within your borders and strike at the moths by dawn."
Another breath passed through her chest.
"That will no longer succeed, given the circumstances."
Her gaze lifted fully to the throne once more.
"Now, there is no choice left to us. If a temporary alliance is not formed between us before the full moon in two days' time, the entire region will fall under his shadow—bound to darkness and control."
The words slowed at the end. Deliberate.
"Not even the Tyrant Hopper himself would be able to halt what follows, should Magnus succeed."
Her wings held still behind her.
"So we must act now."
One of the elders drew in a sharp, uncontrolled breath, the sound caught tight in his throat. Another leaned forward slowly, fingers tightening against the armrest as the weight of the words settled in full.
"M… more powerful than the Tyrant Hopper?"
The question left the air strained, disbelieving, and edged with unease.
Junon's head snapped toward Ignatia. His jaw drew tight, his lips pulling back.
"Ludicrous. There is no being in this region capable of standing against the might of the Grasshopper Chief."
Queen Celeste raised her hand partway into the air. The motion alone stilled Junon.
"You claim this threat will extend across the entire region… yet something does not align."
Her fingers remained lifted as her gaze stayed on Ignatia.
"In two nights, upon the full moon, this Magnus is to surpass even the Tyrant Hopper in strength. By what means will such power be attained."
A brief pause followed.
"And how does this draw my colony into his design."
Ignatia hesitated. Her fingers curled tight at her sides, the dark purple chitin along her knuckles drawing firm as her jaw set beneath clenched teeth.
A pale hand settled against her shoulder. The touch was light and steady. White wings remained folded behind Luminara as a soft smile formed on her lips beneath the green cloth veiling her eyes.
"It is all right, Ignatia. I will take it from here."
Luminara shifted forward by a single step. The movement barely broke the stillness.
Ignatia's hand closed around her wrist, firm but restrained. The contact stopped her at once.
"Do not… Luminara."
Her grip held, the plea carried low and tight with held breath.
Luminara turned her head a fraction, blonde strands shifting lightly along her cheek as her white wings remained folded and still behind her.
"It is our only option. They must know the full truth—our motives, and why this matters to us—if their Queen is to be moved by the danger that lies ahead."
Ignatia's grip lingered for a brief moment longer. The tension in her fingers eased.
Then she let her go.
Luminara drew a steady breath, her posture settling as she faced the throne.
"Queen Celeste… I am Luminara, High Monarch of the Kaleidoscope. I beseech you."
A brief pause followed, the air held between them.
"I will tell you everything… from the beginning."