Swarming Sovereignty

The next few weeks went by smoothly. The celebration for Lia and Rose’s wedding was held, a small, subdued affair that was really just a few hours spent relaxing and enjoying everyone’s company.

The Glens finished sending the rest of the civilians, and unfortunately there was no blacksmith among them. That, unfortunately, meant that the swarm would have to make one of their own. To that end, Amelia had begun producing forge tools such as anvils, hammers, tongs, bellows, and basically anything else related to metalworking they could think of.

Lia had approached Connie about buying the soul of a great blacksmith, but Connie had once again asked for one hundred thousand Blood Money in exchange. Lia’s stocks had begun to replenish over time, but she still only had three thousand Blood Money to her name, so the idea was tabled with the intention to look into it again once they were more financially stable.

Their scouting and mapping of the area had been going well. They had located several potential mineral deposits, interesting new types of trees, and numerous other resources that could be exploited, but they still needed to send experts out to appraise those resources and figure out what they all were.

Unfortunately, they didn’t have most of those experts. The only expert they did have was the botanist, and they were still hammering out the exact details of what a research expedition with her would entail.

Everyone had been progressing in levels as well, but no one had quite managed to hit evolution, not after the changes Jerry had made to things. Most of those who had any sort of combat capability were on the cusp of evolution, however, so Lia was looking forward to what the future would hold for them.

The only exceptions to this were Amelia and Ophelia; as people who were much higher on the evolutionary tree, they had only gained ten or fifteen levels, their growth greatly hindered by not being able to fight enemies similar to the strength their races should have given them, were they not bound.

And, finally, Amelia’s emotional training, for lack of a better term, was going well. She had become able to name most “common” emotions after only half a second of thinking, but she was also…unstable. While she tried her best, she was clearly not adept at suppressing emotions, and even minor things tended to have a larger effect on her than they should have.

In many ways, she was like a child in that aspect, her emotions coming through pure and unfiltered. She would cry after taking minor wounds, devolve into uncontrollable giggles when she found something amusing, and very often acted attention-starved or overly affectionate, and, if her switch got flipped, seductive and insatiable.

But slowly, very slowly, progress was beginning to be made. She was gradually beginning to be able to handle slightly more intense emotional triggers without having a full mood swing, and those mood swings were becoming shorter and less intense.

Marginally shorter and less intense, anyway. She was difficult to handle at the best of times, but both Lia and Rose had come to find a sort of satisfaction in watching Amelia claw her way out of the emotionally dead state the Urge had left her in, and found themselves looking forward to the next time she would excitedly come up to them, telling them about some new emotion she had felt. It was remarkably innocent for someone so…jaded and twisted as Amelia had been, and that innocence only served Lia and Rose’s protective instincts.

Time seemed to blur, the peaceful days passing by as Lia waited for the next important event. And, to her surprise, it came in the form of Chrys knocking at Lia’s door. Lia opened it, giving Chrys a warm smile. “Hey Chrys, are you looking for Rose?” Lia asked. “She’s out on an errand right now.”

“I-I know.” Chrys stuttered. “I, um, wanted to talk with you alone.”

Lia raised an eyebrow and ushered the girl inside. “What’s up?” She asked. “Are you having a fight with Rose or something?”

Chrys shook her head. “No, I just…finished sorting out my feelings about your marriage and our relationship.” She said. “And I, well, I wanted to talk with you about it.”

Understanding dawned on Lia, and she led Chrys over to the couches. “I’m listening.” She said. “I won’t think worse of you, no matter what you say, so please, give your real feelings to me, I can take it.”

Chrys shifted from foot to foot, not taking a seat. “Well, I’ve done a lot of thinking.” She said slowly. “And I…I just can’t see you as my mom, sorry.” She said. “It’s…well, if you were older, it wouldn’t be an issue. And I know that Mom’s body is as young as yours, but I just…I mean, I dunno. It’s not that I dislike you or anything, I just can’t picture myself calling you “Mom” or like…expecting you to fill the role that I imagined mothers would have.

“You’re…well, I mean, it’s more like you’re the big sister I never had.” Chrys said. “And I’m sorry about that, but I can’t see you in a motherly way yet. Maybe in the future, but…not now.”

Lia chuckled, and Chrys’s expression morphed into one of surprise. “You know, I’ve been doing some thinking, and I can’t picture myself as a mother either, not yet. I have a lot of growing to do before I think I can picture myself as a mother, and I’ve got the sneaking suspicion that much of that growth can only be done after I have a kid.”

“So, you and Mom are going to have kids, then?” Chrys said quietly. “When?”

“We don’t know.” Lia said. “But before you begin thinking anything strange, I want to make one thing abundantly clear: if, when that day comes, you feel like you are being neglected or treated differently, I expect you to come talk to me, and we’ll get it taken care of. The last thing we want is for you to feel that way. We’ll likely have to make extra time for our daughter when she’s a baby, just because babies need that attention, but you are just as important to us as any kid the two of us have.”

“But…I’m the illegitimate –”

“You are not.” Lia said sharply. “It doesn’t matter that you’re not directly descended from me, that sort of thing doesn’t matter to me at all. In fact…”

Lia stood, and the shadows seemed to lengthen as she felt herself begin to tap into that other set of power that Amelia had granted her. She hadn’t intended to, and she didn’t know what she was doing, but she knew without a shadow of a doubt that it would only strengthen Chrys, so she let it happen. “As Queen of the Swarm, I, Lia Mios, officially recognize Chrys as the Crown Princess of the swarm, and all that entails. This Title is non-transferrable, and may only be removed should Chrys herself truly wish to give it away, or she knowingly takes actions that would greatly harm the swarm or go against its interests.”

Chrys’s eyes widened, a gust of wind enveloping her and causing her hair and clothes to flutter wildly. And, right before Lia’s eyes, Chrys began to transform. Her simple shirt and trousers made of leaves expanded, blending together as they turned into a regal dress, and a golden tiara encrusted with rubies appeared on her head. Her green skin lightened considerably, going past the pale green of Rose’s skin before settling on tanned skin tinged ever so slightly green.

And then the changes took a sharp turn for the strange. The structure of Chrys’s face began to subtly alter itself, rearranging itself before settling in a way that, though it was undeniably Chrys’s face, was slightly different, slightly familiar. Her fingernails lengthened, forming into small claws, and, just above the tiara, a pair of auburn fox ears appeared, a matching tail following closely behind.

Chrys herself seemed unaware of this, though, as she was engrossed in reading a window in front of her. “What did you do, Lia?!” She asked, panic creeping into her voice, an ever-so-slightly different voice than the one she had had just moments ago. “I evolved and got a Title and my status is saying ‘Chrys Mios’ and…wait…Lia. Lia. Lia. Liiiiaaaa.”

“Chrys…” Lia began hesitantly. She wasn’t exactly sure what she had done, but she had a guess that seemed more and more likely every second.

“I can’t call you “Queenie”! Or…Lia? No?” Chrys continued, seemingly unaware that Lia had spoken. “Why?!”

“Chrys, I think we should –”

“Lia. Lia. Lia. Big sis. Sister.” Chrys paused for a long moment. “Dad. Wait, Dad? Why does that one work?! Does…Mom. Yes, that works too, but…”

That last term made Lia feel strange, but…in a good way. Still, she had to get through to Chrys. “Chrys!” She yelled, causing the other girl to stop, blinking slightly as she focused back in on Lia.

Lia grabbed Chrys’s arm, and towed the unresisting girl towards the bathroom. As they reached the door, Lia took a deep breath. “Don’t freak out.” She said. “I’m…sorry, it was an accident. I really didn’t mean this.”

She opened the door and gently pushed Chrys inside, motioning at the mirror. “Take a look.”

Chrys stared in disbelief at her reflection, then tentatively reached a hand up towards her ears, and another to her tail. “What?” She whispered. “This…this isn’t me, but it feels so…normal. And it’s…” she frowned, studying herself closely, “kind of familiar, in a weird way? Not only the “this is my face” familiar, but the “that looks like someone I know” familiar.”

Lia took a deep breath. “I…I think I made you the biological daughter of me and Rose.” She said. “I…I was just thinking about how much I wanted you to feel like you belonged, like you were every bit as much our daughter as any we would have together, and I didn’t want you to feel like you were just the product of some failed marriage or…” She trailed off, shaking her head. “We have to get your mom. And we’ll find a way to get this undone, I promise.”

“I…no.” Chrys said. “No, you don’t need to put me back.”

“But you’re –”

“Fundamentally unchanged. My feelings towards you haven’t changed a bit, I still don’t see you as anything more than a big sister. I’m a little younger, but that’s fine; my age has sort of been…in flux this past bit anyway, so I’m sure it’ll change again. I…I may be biologically your child now, but that’s…fine. It’s not like blood determines who your family is, not really.

“You know I had a rocky relationship with my old mom, that I’m trying to leave the past behind, and this is just one more way to do that. I have no doubts that you could turn me back, but I also know it wouldn’t be cheap or easy. So…I’m fine with this, for now. As long as you don’t try and change our relationship because of this, I won’t complain. But, if you do, then I’m going to start pestering you to undo it.

“And, to tell you the truth, I have no desire to be crown princess. So…I’m abdicating. To who? I don’t know, but I just don’t want that weight on my shoulders.” Chrys sighed, then gave Lia a smile. “Olivia would be pretty pumped about it, so maybe try her?”

“No.” Lia said. “Chrys, I know you have some hang-ups because of what happened in your last life, but I think you’ll make a fine crown princess. You’ve learned from your mistakes, and you aren’t going to be swayed by those sorts of people again. You were taken advantage of during a particularly difficult part of your life, and I can’t see how we’d ever end up in that situation again.”

“But I –”

“Will be great.” Lia said firmly. “Look, let’s give it a try, just for a year. If I feel like things are getting out of hand, I’ll put a stop to it. I know I worded the bestowal such that I can’t arbitrarily say you’re not crown princess anymore, but I think, if you give me permission now, valid for one year only, it’ll work. If it doesn’t, then I’ll figure something out. And I won’t hear any further argument on the subject.”

Chrys bit her lip. “Why?” She said. “Why would you word it like that? It’s just making trouble for you.”

“Because I wanted you to know that I wasn’t going to renege on this if I had a child with Rose. Such a position is a shallow comfort if I can immediately give the position to anyone else at any time. But…look, let’s go call Rose, she’ll know what to do.”

Chrys nodded. “Yeah. Um…she should be pretty close, will you call for her instead of me? I…need to prepare myself.”

“Of course I will.” Lia said. “This is my fault, so I’ll do anything you want, aside from making someone else crown princess.”

After a short wait to make sure Chrys had nothing else to say, Lia mentally called out for Rose. Rose, can you come back to our room ASAP? We’ve got a bit of a…situation here.

Is Chrys okay?! Rose replied immediately. I know she was coming to talk to you, but I didn’t think that could go wrong, given what Chrys had told me…

You knew?

Yes, that’s why I’m out on this errand in the first place, to give you and her some alone time. But…she is okay, right? You’re worrying me.

She’s fine, things just got…weird, and we need your input.

I’ll be there in two minutes. Rose said.

“She’ll be here in two minutes.” Lia relayed. “Do you want to go sit somewhere comfortable, or…”

“The couch would be good.” Chrys said distantly. “Um, sorry, it’s…it’s really hitting me now, I think.”

Lia gave her a worried smile and led her over to the couch. “I’m going to go meet up with Rose, I’ll be right back. Call out telepathically if you need anything and I’ll come right back, okay?”

“Um, yeah.” Chrys said. “Thanks.”

“It’s the least I could do.” Lia said, giving Chrys one more worried smile before heading out of the dorm. She used the vision of the unenlightened members of the swarm to locate Rose, and met up with her about a minute away from the room.

“Lia?” Rose huffed, slowing down from her sprint. “What’s going on?”

“I…made a mistake.” Lia admitted, beginning to run back towards the dorm. “I named her crown princess and when I was doing that I felt that power Amelia gave me start boiling up and I let it happen thinking it couldn’t cause problems and –”

“Slow down a little.” Rose requested. “You what?”

“She...she was feeling worried about being an “illegitimate” child, and I just wanted to be extra clear that I felt she wasn’t, so I named her crown princess and it sort of got...more real than I intended. You, um, should probably see it for yourself.”

They reached the dorm, and Lia opened the door. “Chrys, we’re back.” She called out.

“Are you okay, sweetie?” Rose asked worriedly. “I’m not totally sure on the details but...” Rose’s eyes widened as they came into view of Chrys, and she trailed off mid-sentence. “Chrys?” She whispered.

“It’s...it’s me, Mom.” Chrys said anxiously. “Lia...I’m not really sure, but she...” Chrys trailed off, giving Lia a pleading look.

“I...I think I made her the biological daughter of the both of us.” Lia said. “I’m sorry. It really wasn’t intentional, I just was thinking about how I didn’t want her to think she was lesser and that we would love her just the same and it sort of mixed in with appointing her crown princess and she evolved and –”

“Lia, calm down.” Rose said soothingly. “I know you didn’t mean it. Do we have a way to get her back to normal?”

“Probably? But it’s untested and –”

“And I said no.” Chrys said. “It’s...it’s just one more step in distancing myself from who I used to be. My mind is unchanging, so it’s fine for now, so long as Lia doesn’t try and change our relationship because of it. I...I know that the old me was the last real reminder of my old mom left but –”

“But nothing.” Rose said, walking over and bringing Chrys into a hug. “Chrys, I love you unconditionally, and that means I don’t care one bit about what you look like. You are my precious daughter, and nothing will ever change that, even if you somehow get changed and we’re not “biologically related” anymore.”

“I don’t think my old mom would agree.” Chrys said quietly. “You know how important it was to her that the heir was ‘her blood’ and not someone else’s.”

“Then she didn’t deserve you.” Rose said, rubbing Chrys’s head affectionately. “You are my world, and my most important person.”

“Even more than –”

“Even more than Lia.” Rose said. “I will always have time for you, and though I might not be able to drop everything any time you need to talk or play, I will make sure you get that time, no matter what it takes.”

You mean it?” Chrys asked.

“I mean it.” Rose confirmed, holding Chrys tighter.

“Do you, um...like me more like this, or like how I used to be?”

“That’s a silly question.” Rose said. “I like you most in whatever form you feel more comfortable in.”

I’m...I’m going to let you two have a moment. Lia told Rose. I’ll go make sure everyone knows what happened, so just stay here and keep her company. Let me know if I can do anything at all for you two, and I’ll get it done.

Thanks, Lia. Rose said. It...it means the world, the way you’re accepting her.

As I told her, she’s like another one of my little sisters, of course I want to make her happy. Um...in the future, will you let me know if there’s anything I can do to help Chrys? I want to be there for her as much as I can.

I will.

Thank you. I’ll be back in an hour or two, okay?