**
『Evolution Quest complete.』
『New Rank unlocked!』
『Royal Drone』
**
Humans, in their thirst for adventure and unwavering obedience to curiosity, take for granted the peace and mundaneness of everyday life.
In fact, there are some, like Chul, who have spent the entirety of their lives wishing for chaos and disaster to corrupt the normalcy of their existences.
However, this was not true for Han.
From his day of birth until the fated day he battled a god, he had only ever wished for a normal life. One in which his family, and perhaps near descendants, would not have to fight and crawl through mud for bare necessities as he did.
That is why his mind wept silently as he stared down at the pool of honey he was half-submerged in.
He understood —without yet knowing how— that a normal life would never again belong to him.
"You have awoken," a silky soft voice said.
Han remained silent, eyes hypnotised by his hands.
"Your emergence should not have disrupted your normal alien speech," the voice said. "If need be, you may respond in high Apoidea; your chords have been refactored to speak it."
Han heard what was said, but did not listen. His attention was on the black claws that now grew where his fingers should have been. The knife-edged things had no right to be on his hands, and yet there they were.
As if to make things worse, two more hands peeked out of the shadow of his first two. They were half-submerged in the honey pool he was still standing in.
In that moment, he staggered back as if the honey pool were a vat of poison. Only, his balance was all wrong, his back felt as if a bag of stones had been sewn to his spine, and he tripped over himself.
However, before he could fall, a gust of wind pushed him upward. It was only when he heard the buzzing of chitinous wings from behind him did he understood why his back felt so off.
He twisted in an attempt to catch a glimpse of the wings that now sprouted out of his back. But that disrupted his flight pattern, and he went crashing to the ground.
Fallen, lying in a bed of golden flowers with one too many sets of hands, he looked up. Even his vision seemed unnaturally clear.
"Wh-what... what happened to me?"
Beelaques stood naked in front of the pool of honey, her slender limbs carved from golden moonlight. She had a crown on her now... as if to show off she was the victor of their duel.
It occurred to Han at that moment that he should've been dead.
And perhaps he would've been happier that way.
"What happened to my body!" he shouted, glancing down at his obsidian-scaled body... his insectoid legs, and clawed feet.
The queen frowned at him, golden eyes searching his face.
After a few silent breaths passed between them, she decided that she would not find whatever she was looking for. And so she opened her mouth.
However, it was not words that spilt forth, but a low buzzing sound.
Han seemed confused by this, but that only lasted a second.
The sound pierced his ears, travelling to his brain as an idea, and finally arriving as a thought. He noticed that it was the same mechanism he had controlled his bees with, but that acknowledgement only served to prove what he feared the most.
Information vomited into his mind. And in a fraction of a second, he came to know what had happened.
Beelaques had not won the duel.
He had.
The Hive had chosen him as the keeper, decided that whatever part of him had not wanted to die was worthy of channelling its powers. He knew this, but at the same time, he didn't.
He still did not understand what the hive was, or what it meant to channel its powers, only that he had to be reborn for it to be possible.
Han stared wide-eyed at the sky.
"I'm not... human."
The stars twinkled back in response, as if congratulating him.
Han puked.
And when his stomach was empty of that green acid, he puked again.
'No, calm down. It's only a dream. That's right, a dream.'
A strange thing it was to wake up and find that you were no longer human. He imagined it felt similar to a crash victim waking to find their legs had been cut off. Only this time, it was his entire being.
Beelaques buzzed through the air to hover right in front of him. Eyes focused on the green bile he had vomited onto his body.
"Not honey," she said, her nose wrinkling at the smell of it.
The godling seemed unfazed by Han's shivering, by the betrayed expression on his face. And he, not knowing who to blame for this, caught her by the throat.
His movements were fast, faster than they had ever been. And as he squeezed his hand around Beelaques's throat, she felt like a dry twig, something he could snap without effort.
"I give you pardon in light of your situation," Beelaques said, her face neutral under Han's vice. "But do not mistake my kindness for servitude."
"Fuck your kindness," Han spat. "Change me back. Give me back my body."
He tightened his grip, felt the vertebrae behind her neck pop out of place. In the storm of emotions that was his mind, this grounded him, made him feel in control.
"Back to what?"
Han's face twisted. "Human. Make me human again."
Beelaques twisted her head in confusion, her demeanour betraying nothing of the pain she must've felt as her throat was crushed.
"Why?" she asked.
"Why?" Han spat back. He opened his mouth to continue before closing it. Why indeed?
He was stronger now... faster. Whereas before he could not even hope to battle against Beelaques on even footing, he now held her like a doll.
The gears of his mind slowed down, and the cold embrace of logic reclaimed its spot at the throne of Han's psyche.
This was a good thing. Whatever dangers he would face in the apocalypse would be easier to deal with. The tower, the architect, these concepts were in closer reach because of this new body.
But quickly, his mind thought past them, past the apocalypse. Was survival truly all he wanted? What of after all this? Would his father love him the same if he appeared... like this? Would the rest of humanity?
What was his goal here? Was it ever power he wanted, or was it a normal life?
He had no answer to this.
"Just... Just change me back," he whispered, letting Beelaques free.