Her Majesty's Swarm

Prologue

They were an army of the repulsive and the grotesque.
An aggregate of pure malice and bloodlust.
An inescapable nightmare given form.
A symbol of death most gruesome.
They served as an evil omen, heralding the coming of catastrophe.
These agents of memento mori were like the black plague itself; they played out the danse macabre, reveling betwixt the living and the dead.
Their distorted flood would surge up from the cesspool of insanity to wash away villages, cities, and nations altogether.
The name of those that rushed and trampled over all was...

♱

Once upon a time, there was a certain real-time strategy game. It had the commonplace setting of a fantasy world where a multitude of races vied for supremacy. There were a total of twenty-one factions, each split into one of three alignments: good, neutral, and evil.
One good faction, Marianne, gained power through pious faith. A neutral faction, Gregoria, was ruled by dragons since the days of old. An evil faction,
Flame, was a savage tribe hell-bent on spreading destruction across the world.
I remembered there being all kinds of races and factions, each with their own unique characteristics. They all had their own distinct units and structures that allowed for unique, entertaining strategies. But among all the factions in the game, there was one I liked most: an evil faction called the Arachnea.
The Arachnea consisted of a race of insects—or rather, its units were more similar to spiders—and its political system was totalitarianism. Its ecological structure was that of a colony built around one queen.
As for its military, the Arachnea formed troops that devoured their enemies, leaving only bones behind. They invaded the other factions indiscriminately, never once engaging in diplomacy. If I felt like being a bit cynical, I could even go so far as to label it fascist. But it was the one faction I found easiest to play, and I gradually came to adore its many units. When it came to online matches, I would always pick the Arachnea with fixed devotion.
Early-game rushes were one viable tactic to achieve victory; lurking behind the faction’s defenses to build up an army big enough to sweep the map was another. Teching into the most expensive units to crush the enemy with punitive force was yet another win condition.
So long as you were able to look past their exterior designs, Arachnea units were relatively balanced and well-rounded. I won countless matches with them, even earning victories in some online tournaments. All my consecutive victories with the Arachnea had earned me a moniker among the other players: “BugSis.” I found it to be a rather cute, charming little nickname and liked it a great deal.
“BugSis is a real Arachnea master.” “r u cool w/ rl bugs too? i can’t stand spiders :x” “hey BugSis, I heard there’s a new counter for that macrophage tactic you hate.” I recalled talking about this and that with my online friends in the in-game chat. Our conversations were always lively, whether we were celebrating a successful new strategy or breaking some record.
But despite playing this game for years, I couldn’t recall its name.
I couldn’t remember.
Why am I...?
Where am I?
My memory is so foggy...

♱

Click... Clack...
An odd sound jolted my consciousness awake.
Click... Clack...
It was a peculiar sound unlike the ticking of a clock. It was more like... the sound of a stapler multiplied several times over. Perhaps it was metal clinking against metal. Whatever it was, the sound was wholly unpleasant. It reverberated near my ears and caused my fight-or-flight response to kick in.
“What the...?” I looked around, still feeling groggy. Immediately, my breath clogged in my throat. Before my eyes was a gigantic spider much larger than a human being. No... maybe it was an ant? Or a scorpion?
The sight of this indescribable creature made me scramble backward in terror. But my back instantly bumped against the mercilessly cold and hard wall behind it. There was no escape. I glanced around, only to see hundreds more of these quasi-spiders swarming around in the dark space. For the first time, I felt a chill of genuine fear scuttle down my spine.
They’re going to eat me alive, I thought.
“Her Majesty has awakened.” “Wonderful. Splendid.” The moment these eldritch abominations spoke, a grand realization came over me. Weren’t these creatures the Arachnea’s soldiers that I’d grown so fond of over the years? Weren’t they... the Swarm?
It was all coming back to me—these arachnids were part of the Swarm,
collective troops of the evil Arachnea. The brilliant luster of their black,
elegantly curved exoskeletons... Sharp, vicious fangs which struck the fear of death into all who witnessed them... Scythe-like appendages that could slice through anyone and anything... Lethal and effective venomous stingers gracing their carapaces...
This was the very same Swarm I had spent countless hours nurturing with only the computer monitor separating us. The ones standing in front of me had long, sharp scythes that were disproportionate to their bodies and long,
narrow legs. These characteristics belonged to the Ripper Swarms, an easyto-mass-produce type of Swarm used for early-game rushes.
There was no mistaking it. I had used legions of this type of Swarm to smother enemy factions dozens upon dozens of times. No unit could be more nostalgic for me. They even helped secure my win in some tournaments.
If I looked beyond the Ripper Swarms, I could see some Worker Swarms,
too. They were the worker units that built new structures, repaired existing ones, and produced siege weapons. I often found myself enchanted with the insectile architecture and design of their constructions. They were grotesque but had a beauty of their own, reminiscent of what you might see in a high-quality horror film.
There were also some Digger Swarms next to them. Their production cost was higher than that of the Ripper Swarms, but in exchange, they were capable of a unique action—burrowing underground and digging their way into the enemy’s base. They were meant for surprise attacks and were fairly difficult to use. Once mastered, however, Digger Swarms would prove to be dependable units capable of felling entire strongholds without the aid of any siege weapons.
How could I have forgotten about these units after having spent so many years using them in the game? No... Why is my memory so hazy to begin with? Where is this, anyway? Why am I here?
“Her Majesty has returned.” “Glory to the Arachnea.” I knew it. They really are the Swarm, and this is an Arachnea camp. But what am I doing here? The Arachnea only exist in the game world, and certainly not in reality. Is this some kind of dream? No, everything feels far too vivid and real for it to be a dream.
I reached out to touch one of them. I could feel the smooth sensation of the Swarm’s body. The sound of their clicking fangs echoed in a way that wouldn’t be possible in a dream. This was real. The Swarm in front of me,
this cold cave—it was all real. Things I thought only existed in my favorite game were right before my eyes in striking detail.
“Order us, Your Majesty.” “We desire a leader. A leader to guide us.” “A queen to lead us to victory.” “A queen to serve as our core and order us.” The Swarm spoke up, ignoring my uncertainty. Then they all raised their hands and bowed their heads—the Arachnea’s gesture of obedience. They assumed this pose when a player produced them and when they won a battle.
It was the sole friendly emote the Arachnea’s insects were capable of. They wouldn’t show this gesture to anyone else but the player. All others would be greeted with scythe, fang, and stinger as the Swarm tore their enemies to bits without a hint of mercy, only to devour their bodies afterward.
The problem was that I wasn’t a queen at all. Even if they called me their queen, I couldn’t live up to that role. I steeled myself, speaking to the Swarm that had insisted I was their queen, worshipping me in the process.