Wasps!: Chapter 2

“Howdy! Real gruntled to make your acquaintance, there, mister…” she trailed off, but before any reasonable person would have time to reply, she shoved the plate right in Sharona’s face. “Cornbread? Made it fresh this mornin’!”

When the cat woman seemed to be waiting for his name, the human deemed it only polite to answer. "Sharona."

Hunter and Scout poked their heads out from behind the farmhouse. Their master was too set into ‘hospitality mode’ to notice, but one rider and his poncy blue stryx weren’t exactly wasp-fighting material. Pay beetle bits, get geckos, Hunter supposed. Scout slithered onto the porch, bit into the gross corpse, and dragged it away before it soaked into the floorboards.

A shadow fell over the farmhouse, and the two runners glanced up seconds before a black, leather-winged shape blotted out the morning sun. Dragon! Hunter let out a warning screech, but the creature circled back around, and as it came closer, he saw that it wasn’t a dragon at all, but an enormous black lycan, far larger than any he’d ever seen before. Its every wingbeat shook the house and flung all Drakyn’s precious cornbread right off the plate. It swept its wings back and landed back feet-- boom!-- wing-claws-- thunk!-- onto the dusty ground.

This lycan had to be thirty feet tall at the withers alone, and with every heaving breath, he huffed black smoke into the air. He had the usual chiropter’s ruff of fur around his neck, but also a rim of scales along his belly and shoulders, and his tail was far longer and more whip-like than any mammal’s. Stark white eyes swept the perimeter, and then he lowered his head and neck to the ground, allowing a figure in a ten-gallon hat and duster to slide off his back and strut right up to the group.

Well, ‘strut’ was putting it generously. The rider’s stance was awkward and hunched over, as if she would much rather be standing on all fours than two, and she had a furred, animal-like face, with a pointed snout and brown fur with black points. To be honest, considering Drakyn herself was a walking, talking cat, this really wasn’t all that unusual for Wyvera. With every step, she leaned her paws on a spear taller than herself, made of glossy ebony wood and tipped with a wicked obsidian tip.

“Heard you were having a wasp problem,” she said, in an accent that Hunter normally associated with the Maraxwar region. “Adusta Rightpaw, at your service.”

Now this! This was a proper wasp hunter.
 

*
 

As they noticed the new arrival, Sharona and Ilyse glanced at each other. When the Stryx landed, they could see it had a very strong and impressive build.

Sharona tried to resist the urge to turn around and go back. They were not as well built as this Stryx and its rider. 

Ilyse, sensing his rider's turmoil, bumped his head against the human's with a soft 'skra!' full of affection but also determination.

Sharona smiled at the Tyto. He was right, they did not take three days to come here just to get back home. Besides, they could use the reward, whatever it was.

Ilyse looked at the newcomer, then at Drakyn and her Stryxes. Perhaps if they all worked together they could do this fast and efficiently. Though he supposed the lycan would be better at it. Whatever though, Ilyse needed a bit of fun in his life anyway.

"So. When do we start?"

A loud buzzing could be heard overhead, just a few miles away.

“Think the better question would be ‘where’,” Drakyn said, and burst out laughing at her little joke. Hunter nudged her arm before it got too awkward. “Anyway! Y’all woulda read the ads-- I hope-- so you’ll know there’s a big wasp nest five miles out east that’s done been threatenin’ my mealies for months now. Swat as many as you like ‘long the way, long as you bring me the queen’s head by the end of it.”

"You can count on us, pardner," Adusta said, tipping her hat. Drakyn tipped hers back. "Shall we?" she said to Sharona, as she hopped back over to her mount. 

*

Sharona nodded and immediately mounted on Ilyse again.

Ilyse unfurled his wings and took flight. Up in the air, they could already see giant wasps come at them and fast. The human braced himself on his Tyto's back and Ilyse made to spin before closing in on the closest attacker, raising his talons to grab it. Soon, he tore into its flesh like knife on butter, screeching in victory. The human and his Stryx didn't look like much at first glance, but they proved themselves to be effective when it came right down to it.

Another wasp got to him, and he gave it a swift kick, pushing it away for the others to take care of. He followed a couple of wasps and looked to his rider for guidance on how to dispose of the rest.

"As quick and painless as possible" Sharona called out to Ilyse, and the Stryx vaulted over the giants, slashing them across their bellies, as fast as he could. They fell to their deaths, under rock outcroppings below. 

Ilyse grabbed another with his talons and smashed it into the closest rock he could find, eating the carcass as he has not eaten in a while. He flight went uninterrupted as he dodged the other wasps attacks, easy as the breeze. He occasionally pecked at them and reached a talon to injure them, but otherwise nothing.

"We're doing pretty good huh." Sharona said as he patted Ilyse's head. He then turned to the other riders.

"Where are we headed exactly?"

*

“Right over yon ridge!” Adusta yelled back. The buzzing of wings everywhere seemed to rattle her entire skull. There was no way this many wasps would be out on a normal morning: the queen must’ve riled them up, somehow.

She kept her spear primed in front of her as Imperator followed Ilyse into the swarm. She kept both paws on the haft, ready to brace against incoming wasp impact, keeping balance in the saddle with her legs. As a swarm of soldier wasps rose up to meet them, the lycan blasted them with a cone of fire, reducing them to ash.

A wasp flew up above them. The feravo crouched down, built up tension in her leg muscles, and crack! stabbed it right through the thorax. Its wings buzzed, slowed, stilled, and she pushed it off, taking the spear’s socketed obsidian tip with it.

“Skorp,” she muttered, reaching into her saddlebag to find a replacement. Unbeknownst to her, a second wasp had snuck up from behind, ready to sting…

*

Sharona nodded, and soon they saw the wasp ready to sting Imperator and his handler. Ilyse didn’t even think, veering towards them and locking the wasp into a deadly embrace. He tried as hard as he could to avoid the sting ready to stab his eye, his beak ravaging the creature before he pushed it off him.

Sharona wished Ilyse could breathe fire right now.

But whatever, they could do without that. Ilyse ripped the skin off of another wasp.

“Okay now, would you mind leading the way to the den? Let’s finish them off for real!”

*

Adusta shut her eyes as bug guts rained over her, but waved up to Sharona as he and Ilyse swept back around. Her other paw pulled out a fresh spearhead, and she twisted it into the socket and locked it in with a satisfying snap.

“Good to go, Impy?”

Imperator rolled his eyes. It seemed they’d had many prior talks about that particular nickname. He turned his head toward a small ravine between the rocky mesa and took off towards the nest.