"New Samurai are prone to burnout. They need time to consolidate their understanding and learn their new reality. They also need to recover from the stress of initialization. So every member of the Family is trained to guide these new heroes past this traumatic time."

  – Ball Buster's introductory words to new Family members, Fall 2032

  Before I head north, I decide I need a better view. “Ysys, I need spy drone blueprints. I don’t want it to be seen by antithesis, yet able to patrol anywhere. It needs to be able to find hidden hives, so I expect class three sensors. It also needs communications that won’t easily be stopped by ECM, patrol time of at least a week. It should also be fast enough to evade a model eleven. What should I get?”

  You already have blueprints for suitable sensors and ECM. The best way to handle ECM is with a line-of-sight laser relay. This is a short range system suitable for a swarm. For long range, they will need a directional com with signal boosters. Blueprints for the Vulture Scout 17 are eight thousand points.

  “Sounds good. Get it, and then start printing at the Fortress enough to cover a five mile circle. No, make it four circles. Then send them as four swarms to check out the three suspected hives, and send the last to check out where the worst of the monitoring losses look like.”

  Blueprints for the Vulture Scout 17 – 8000 points

  New Total – 41,507 points, 2 tokens

  “How soon will they have the hives in sight?”

  The first should be visible within the hour, the third within the second hour.

  “Okay. Let’s watch. Please show it on the screens.”

  Suddenly, the center screen showed an augmented satellite image with the fortress centered, and an area around it of about one hundred fifty by two hundred miles total. Four screens lit up with empty circles, and a number from one to four outside. Those same numbers were currently showing on the fortress. Five minutes later, the numbers left the fortress, and the circles filled up with a background satellite image and foreground detection data of the monitors.

  Number four was the first to show something interesting. It had reached an edge of monitors and stopped. Then it followed the edge, and soon discovered antithesis attacking the monitoring sensors. I had it continue, so as to get an estimate of how many were attacking.

  By the time the first hive was spotted, it was clear that there were a lot of antithesis in the field. The hive was out in the open, with several giant roots leading into the lake. This explained how such a large hive grew so quickly. They must be fed from somewhere in the lake. After getting a complete map of the hive, I send that swarm to follow the roots until they lose them in the lake.

  As the roots get deeper, the swarm slows down to verify it is tracking them. They are still following when the second hive shows up. I have it do the same, and when the third hive shows. The roots went down the deepest part of the lake, but didn’t disappear until near the center. Circling the area, I found a megahive not far from Fort Resolution. While not up to the Vegas megahive size, it was underwater. This is going to be a problem.

  I spend the rest of the night considering. In the morning, I called Handy Hank.

  “Hello, Jane. Ready to show off your cooking again?”

  “I’d be happy to show you, but unfortunately, I’m calling on business.”

  “Oh? What’s up?”

  “I found a megahive up north.”

  “Yeah, that’s worth a call.”

  “Underwater.”

  “Oh my. The will be hard to deal with. What have you thought so far?”

  “I’m going to go after it, but first, I want to take out some linked land hives. There’s enough small Samurai here that it would be a good way for them to earn some points on the land side. Once that is done, I’ll see if there are any volunteers for the megahive. Once it’s destroyed, I want to trace any other linked hives.”

  “Small Samurai may not be enough. Do you have a safe place to operate from?”

  “Yes. Did you hear about the Fortress of Solitude I made up north? It’s less than two hundred miles away.”

  “I heard about that, and even know a few Sams that visited. Interesting place you got there.”

  “It’s an experiment in automation. Until it encountered the higher numbered models, it was doing fine.”

  “Sounds like it should be sufficiently safe. How do you think I could help?”

  “I have some detailed scans of the area, but am unsure what will happen when we start taking down multiple hives. I don’t think they will just sit still.”

  “You are right. One, maybe two hives, they might, but more? They will come. And when they do, it will be in force.”

  “Would you be willing to backstop me? Be part of the planning sessions?”

  “Sure. Let me know when you are ready, and I will set aside some time.”

  “Thanks.”

  We spoke of some recipes for a few minutes before we ended the call. My next call was actually to the group chat. There I posted a request for volunteers for point farming far north. I gave the general details about the multiple hives, infested countryside, and megahive. I then asked for a meeting in a week in the chat. I also had Ysys print many attack spiders to reinforce the cleared zone around the fortress.

  I spent the time waiting by overseeing the upgrade of the Falcon and the building of the spaceport. I also had the fortress print two dozen Eagles, half with cargo pods, the other half with passenger pods. At the front of the cargo pods, I installed the class three autodoc, just in case.

  By the time of the meeting, all the printing was finished. In the group virtual room, I started the meeting, saying, “Hello all, welcome to the meeting concerning the northern megahive.”

  There was a chorus of “hello”s, “hi”s, and so on.

  “Hopefully you all read the info packet. I intend on taking that megahive down, including the underwater portion. I welcome help, and for you younger Samurai, it will be a great way to farm points. I just want to remind everyone that I cannot accept everyone, as I don’t want to leave our cities defenseless. That said, who is interested? Please indicate on the list over there. You do not have to stay for all of it. Nor do you need to be part of the team going after the megahive.”

  Over the next minute the list filled out with marks indicating who wanted to go, who wanted to stay, and who had yet to decide. The list was sorted by city. When it looked as full as it was going to get, I asked each city’s leader if they felt their city had sufficient Samurai left to protect itself.

  “Okay. Those of you not going can exit the meeting. You can also stay, but please be silent unless you have something constructive to add. In a few minutes, we will be joined by a senior Samurai, Handy Hank. He organized the take down of the megahive near Vegas. In the meantime, I’d like everyone to add a little note to the board about their main attack forms, so we can organize.”

  I place a countdown timer for when Hank was due to join us. By my name I placed sniper, crowd control, and printing. Coyote from Casper listed guns and grenades. Li’l Wonder and Liberace added theirs. We were the senior Samurai. At first I had been surprised that Silent Strike had accepted the invite, but a few moments later I realized he was probably hurting for points. His name showed only silent guns. Soon enough the other seventeen added at leat one primary attack form.

  When the time came, Hank called me, and I added him to the virtual room. I called out, “Everyone, please welcome Handy Hank.” I then indicated he should speak.

  “Howdy folks. Please call me Hank. I recognize a few of you, but for most of you, this is the first time. I see on the board you have listed your specialties. Mine is teleportation. If you look to your left, you’ll see what we know so far about the antithesis. That megahive will be a tough one to take down as it is in water. Jane assures me she can eventually take it down, but wants to take out some of the support hives.

  “As there are three known such hives, I recommend Li’l Wonder, Liberace, and Jane take the lead on those. For the assists, those from the same city should go to the same hive. This should help those Samurai get to know how their local comrades fight, as they will likely fight together a lot. For the rest, lets split them up to round out the teams, keeping those from the same city together. Liberace, you have the least, so you get Cheyenne’s four. You also get Sturgis, for a total of seven. Li’l Wonder, you get three from Casper, giving you seven also. Calamity Jane, take Gillette’s two and Sioux City’s one for a total of eight.

  “With that, I hand it back to Calamity Jane to tell you where you will be staying.”

  “If you will note on the map, at the eastern edge, there’s a small circle. Let me show you the zoomed in image.”

  Suddenly, to the right of the map, the circle duplicated, then zoomed in to show the fortress from above. Then I had it angle to a side view.

  “This is an experimental automated city. I call it the Fortress of Solitude. Some of you may recognize it. Yes, it is like the movie. But it is still a functioning city, just without people. It’s about two hundred miles from the megahive, but it provides a lot of support, including industrial printers. I have plenty of blueprints you are welcome to use on this trip. This includes everything an elite PMC needs to be kitted out. It also has a large chunk of medical items, including class two nanoregeneration packs. Lastly, the ships I will be sending to pick everyone up have a class three autodoc in case anyone gets hurt bad.

  “If you want to use your own blueprints, my printers can make them as will. Class one and two, and some stuff from class three. Finally, I have a teleport delivery system, a poor man’s protector supply. It has several hundred miles range, and can deliver whatever the printer makes. Not as fast as spending points for instant delivery, but no cost for a small delay. I suggest you make use of it when in the field for anything that is not immediate. It does have a size limit, so you can’t get everything delivered directly.

  “If any of you need weapons or armor, even a vehicle, I can print it. I will send everyone access codes to those printers. I am waving my usual payment, as I am asking your help. But I welcome donations of blueprints. That said, what time shall we head off? Will tomorrow morning be acceptable, or are their any difficulties with that time frame? I expect it may take several weeks to clear everything.”

  There was silence as people checked schedules. Some had problems, but after some discussion, we decided to leave the morning of the day after.

  “Okay. I will dispatch vehicles to pick everyone up. Let me know if you will be bringing a lot of equipment, so I can send sufficient vehicles. Hank, thanks for your advice.”

  “Glad to help.”

  After the meeting, I asked Hank if he wanted to visit, but he declined, saying he could attend via hologram.

  I sent the Family notice that I and a number of other Samurai were heading north to take out a megahive and point farm and that we would be busy for a few weeks.

  I sent an Eagle for every two sams in a city. This way, there was one or two per Eagle, and it had enough cargo for any equipment they had. While the group chat was open, I didn’t say much unless asked a question. However, there was a lot of chatter. I let Ysys tell them about the ships. While our starting points were hundreds of miles apart, the speed each ship went was calculated so that we would all arrive together, right behind my Falcon. Azure and Sherry were with me.

  The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation.

  When we came close to the fortress, the chatter increased, and I just basked in their comments. Once inside and down, I gathered everyone, and told them the city’s AI was Jor-El, and to contact him for whatever needs they had. I then suggested we head to the hotel. As I did, several hovertaxis arrived. I told them they could leave their luggage, as the drones would deliver it.

  Soon, we pulled up to the Metropolis Grand Hotel. We each were met with a hologram bellhop who led us to our rooms. When I got to mine, I saw our luggage. The adjoining room was empty. Azure and Sherry would sleep there. I sent out an alert to meet in the main dining hall in an hour, so they could all refresh themselves as needed. At dinner, I introduced Azure and Sherry. After dinner, I asked them to follow me to an empty conference room. Hank’s hologram was there waiting for us.

  “Good. You are all here. The first order of business. Your teleport receivers. Please have your AIs contact Lara, the logistics AI, and choose the form of your receiver. Azure here is wearing a belt. It can also be a necklace, a bracelet, or most any other thing. Please have your AI tell Lara your preference.”

  Once Lara informed me everyone had selected a form, I said, “Okay now. Please hold out your hands. Ysis, please print everyone’s receiver and deliver it to them.”

  Less than fifteen seconds later, each hand was filled with a small box with my company logo.

  “Open the box, and equip your receiver. Connect to it with your augs. When you do, hold out your hand and have your AI ask Lara to send a nanoregenerative to your hand.”

  One after another, an unboxed, but branded nanoregenerative appeared in their hand.

  “By design, a fair number of things are kept in stock for immediate delivery. Meds and ammo are the most common. But also PMC guns, a number of grenades, flesh melters, and more. Your AIs can access Lara’s list of stocked items. Additionally, I have a huge stockpile of blueprints that can be printed, since I basically have printed everything a city needs. Not everything you might want, but most everything. Your AIs can navigate the lists. The printers can make a number of vehicles, but the teleport only handles about a six foot cube. If you want something stockpiled, coordinate with Lara. Now, the best part.

  “Li’l Wonder, I know I have a blueprint for some of your drones. Why not ask Lara to teleport three to you. It may take a bit, but I want to show everyone what the system can do.”

  “Okay. Dyxie, please have Lara send me the latest model drone I have blueprints for.”

  We all heard in the conference call, Estimated time forty five seconds.

  Forty five seconds later, one of her drones poofed into existence right in front of her. The second and third appeared almost immediately after.

  “Woah! That’s cool. How do you do it? My printer takes over fifteen minutes to make even one!”

  “Behind the teleporter is an Arc printer. A fast industrial printer. You’ve all seen how big they are. Many drones can be made in a single batch, but the size limit constrains how fast they can deliver. I also note this blueprint is not the you used on my printer before. Any one of you can get blueprints for the price of ten of whatever. While we are on this mission, my printers are fairly open. Any first or second class blueprint I have can be made. Anything you provide blueprints for as well. For class three and up, ask me. They are a bit more powerful, and I am careful about letting others have such.”

  Coyote asked, “What do you have gated in class three?”

  “Those spaceships you arrived on? They are class three. So is the autodoc each carries. While they don’t seem immediately harmful, they could be. I also have matter energy power plants. The sheer power density they have means they could make potent bombs in the wrong hands. The missile systems that shielded our cities from the Phobos incursion are class three, and I think you will agree they need extra care in vetting. Don’t worry. If there is a need, just ask. I am sure we can work out something.”

  Hank speaks up, “Yes people. Higher tiers require more maturity. Better judgment, or very dire circumstance. Let’s hope we don’t see that last one. The first two, however, your AIs will tell you when you have shown what is needed.”

  I spoke, “Don’t stay up too late, I want to have an early planning session after breakfast, and I want us taking down antithesis before noon. In the meantime, enjoy the hotel’s amenities. We have full mesh access, so you won’t miss your favorite shows. That’s all for now. I’m heading to one of the hotel bars for a nightcap. This meeting is over.”

  As I walked away, a great hubbub rose behind me, as they all made a few tests of the teleport supply system. Hank’s hologram followed. Once my drink was delivered, he spoke from the barstool next to me.

  “I did a quick recon of this place. Big. Impressive. Congratulations. I don’t think anyone every thought of doing something on this scale. So much for the obvious. Even more impressive is that instant logistics. Not as fast or capable as protector supply, but within its limits, quite impressive. I heard rumors your PMCs were somehow getting remote delivery.”

  “Yeah, I have another center in Sheridan. As I have blueprints, I can easily set up more, and I plan to at some point. But I’ve not yet had a need for it. I figured I have all this industrial capacity, but no way to deliver any better than anyone else, so I looked into upgrading logistics. Along with the dimensional storage, I can now deliver stuff far more efficiently. Considering how much of Rock Springs my trucks carried to the eight cities, everyone knows about that. But I’ve not yet let it out into the wild.”

  “But you did let hovertrucks out into the wild.”

  “Yeah, but except for power, we can almost make them ourselves. Soon, new currents will occur in the economic waters, but the disruption shouldn’t be too bad. I am keeping an eye one it.”

  “There is quite a scramble for kits down my way.”

  “Even so, that is normal for a scarce resource. While I could saturate the market, doing it slow lets the market adjust better. As new patterns emerge, new ways to cope will be created. Soon, a new normal will occur. By also providing highway cover, this region should see an economic explosion of growth. I intend to guide it into a strong federation of city states. Like Greece of old. As we rise, others will follow.”

  “You have some long range plans.”

  “The same as the protectors. I want humanity to lift itself up, and go take its place among the stars. I may not live that long, but I intend to create the foundation.”

  “I look forward to seeing how things develop. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  I said goodbye, and his hologram faded out.

  I stayed for two hours, occasionally receiving company with assorted questions. Then we went upstairs to sleep.

  In the morning, I enjoyed the hotel breakfast bar. There was some self serve, but also a number of drones cooked food to order. Azure and I loaded up, and we took turns feeding Sherry. Later, we gathered in one of the larger conference rooms, and I had a projection of the entire area, like I had in the group chat. Hank was watching, but letting me carry the ball. When it was time, I called for everyone’s attention.

  “First order of business. You may have wondered why I brought my child, and a non-Samuri with me. Azure is my clone. I decided on that method of protection when I realized I could not take quite as many chances with my daughter’s future. Azure and I both have a class three body, so she is as tough as I am. As my clone, I am able to control her completely, like a robot. When she is not under such control, she is as she seems now. Aware, but without that spark of originality people have.

  “Rest assured, the protectors would not allow creation of a person only to let it become a slave. She is a clone, but without being a person. If she dies, I will morn her loss, but as a favorite weapon or jewelry, not as a person. When we go into battle, Sherry and I will be in the Falcon, on overwatch. Azure will be in the thick of things. Her gear is the same as mine. She already has cleared a few hives.

  “Azure will pull our weight. For this mission, treat her as an independant Samurai. While I will control her actions, it will be easier to think of her as a distinct person. Less confusion for you to deal with. After the mission, it’s fine to imply she is a Samurai, but please don’t actually say so. Neither mention she’s a clone. I don’t want to public to panic or be too confused.

  “Now, lets go over the teams, and the targets. We know of three hives. There is no hurry, so lets do this safe. While I have excellent medical support, I’d rather not need it. So, as you farm points, take the time to upgrade yourselves, however you want. If you buy a consumable, I recommend getting the blueprints and have Lara print you as many as you need. If you will need a lot, let her know to stockpile them.

  “Team one consists of Sheridan, Gillette, and Sioux City. We will take the largest of the three hives. The map labels it as hive ‘A’. I am team lead. Team two consists of Billings and Casper. They will target hive ‘B’. Li’l Wonder will lead team two. Team three consists of Boulder and Cheyenne. They will target hive ‘C’. Liberace will lead team three.

  “The three team leaders all helped out on the Vegas megahive. We know just how bad it can get. The rest of you have less experience and points. Lara can supply you with elite PMC level equipment, so you should have at least that before going in. If you aren’t sure, have your AIs discuss with Lara if she has anything worthwhile to you. Also, I plan to share my first and second class catalogs with you all. I recommend you do likewise. Don’t worry if you only have one or two. You might just have exactly what someone else wants, or it will be combined with other catalogs to give something unique.

  “The two rooms to the sides are already set up for hive ‘B’ on that side, and hive ‘C’ on this side. This room will plan for hive ‘A’. The Eagles are transports, not combat craft. I suggest you ask Lara for some armored craft. It will be delivered in the hanger before we leave, but be sure to request it early to prevent delays. Feel free to print anything in the class one and two vehicle blueprints she has. Okay? Lets break into team planning.”

  At this point, we split into three groups, and as my group settled in, I began our planning. Ysys walked us through the existing data, and we brainstormed our plans. An hour in, I called the sessions, and said to meet in the hanger bay in fifteen minutes.

  I saw two HTs, and they were claimed by Liberace and Li’l Wonder. The latter had a bunch of drones on it. A number of other PMC craft were there, and some had more than one rider. I gave the command, and we all left. We traveled together for a fair distance, then split off as we reached the area where the hives were. As they did, I dropped seventy percent of the attack spiders in the Falcon’s cargo and had them split and follow the others. When we neared our hive, I dropped the rest, and Azure stepped out and flew down to begin her attack.

  As part of my overwatch, I was listening to the other team leads in case they needed help. I also linked to all the attack spiders and had them back the others up to keep the antithesis contained. But I didn’t go strongly after the antithesis as I wanted the others to get as many points as they could. I told Ysys to give the points those spiders earned to those teams. In addition to all the attack spiders, I was also monitoring the latest drones. Their information feed was also given to the other team leads to help them decide how they wanted to attack.

  Azure had her scattershot out, and was clearing the lesser antithesis. She was leading Fast Pitch, Flashpoint, and Biohazard. They were coming from one side. From the other side, Brute was leading Silent Strike, Twin blades, and Cricket. The two prongs would close in from each side. While the central focus of my concentration was on Azure, that accounted for only about a quarter of my attention. Most of my attention was on the attack spiders backing all three teams.

  Almost as soon as we started taking out antithesis, they reacted. Model ones, threes, and fours poured out and tried to surround my two squads. Azure and Silent Strike were clearing the air. Flashpoint and Cricket were accounting for most of the model threes and fours. The rest gave cover to the ones taking out the masses. Keeping ones that got past from attacking them. Kind of hard in Cricket’s case since he would jump into a bunch of antithesis, then jump out the next moment, leaving behind a bomb that then exploded taking a bunch of antithesis out.

  When model fives and sixes started showing up, Azure used her plasma casters to take them out. Brute, on the other hand, waded into them. He got hurt, but would pull back every few minutes to heal up. After the fifth time, I called him. I also checked the day’s point count so far.

  “Brute. You’re allowing too much damage. Please ask your AI for assistance in making you harder to hurt with some upgrades. You should be able to afford something now.”

  “Huh? I do have some points! Finally. Typhon, do I have enough for the dragon scale skin?” Brute paused a moment, then fell back like he was about to heal some, but instead said, “Do it.” Holding out his hand, he got a syringe he immediately used and discarded. Then he rushed back into the fray.

  Nothing happened immediately, but soon, his skin became covered in scales, and I noticed the antithesis were having a harder time scratching him. I relaxed a bit, and went back to monitoring everyone in my team and the other team leads. Even as that was happening, Lara indicated several new blueprints have been added to the stocked equipment. I assumed it was assorted ammunition. I’m glad I showed them the advantage of printing.

  I called out to my team, “Team, slow down a little. We have the advantage in the open. Azure and Brute are heavy hitters, and the rest of you look to be decent as well. As long as they are in the single digits, you shouldn’t have any problems, and we will drain their fodder.”

  We continued for another ten minutes, facing hundreds of low level models, before the higher numbered models arrived. When they did, I moved the falcon over to the other half of the team. It’s size alone pulled some of the attention off them. Azure used her plasma casters to take the teen models, while I provided support with the Falcon when they were having difficulty. Yet it was clear that a number of my team were upgrading on the fly. The rates of fire went up, the explosive power increased, and the antithesis attacks were shrugged off easier. Each of these upgrades were incremental, but they added up.

  When several model elevens arrive, Azure and I each took out the ones near us. As for the model twelves and thirteens, I let Brute handle what he could, and helped if too many came at once. I knew Azure was good up to the thirties, so I wasn’t worried over there. When a fifteen showed up on Brute’s side, I called him.

  “Brute, I’ll handle it’s spike balls, but you lot go take care of it. Find a way to take it out. Don’t forget, when it dies, it explodes.”

  They talked a bit before Silent Strike disappeared. At least from most eyes. Once out of sight, he circled around, avoiding other antithesis, and finally struck the fifteen. Then he hastily returned back to the group. He must have invested in a sensor upgrade, because his delayed explosions went right where they needed to go to kill it instantly.

  “Good teamwork.” I called back to them.

  We managed to farm almost two hours before the twenties came out. When they did, I had the local attack spiders close in.

  “Team, focus on the heavies. The attack spiders will keep the lesser stuff clear. Upgrade as you need, but be sure to have someone cover you when you do.”

  The Falcon and Azure killed the worst, and eased the pressure a little for the rest. Soon, they had all gone through an upgrade cycle, and began to focus on the heavies. It was clear their damage output had almost doubled from this morning, and their damage avoidance improved. Some used speed, others reflexes, and others armor. Whatever worked for them. When Brute was up to speed, I pulled the Falcon back to general support of both teams.

  “Brute, you are now leading the penetration. Tell Azure how you want her team deployed, and deploy your team as well. I’ll provide recon.”

  With that, I handed over lead of Team A, and also had Lara send me a large batch of locusts, which I sent into the hives for recon. A lot were destroyed, but more got past the initial openings and explored the hive. As they scouted, Ysys consolidated the info into a 3D map of the hive that I sent to my team.

  In less than five minutes, Brute had Azure lead the way while his half went in from another entrance. I parked some attack spiders behind them to guard their exit, as well as others at the other four entrances the locusts found. I wanted the antithesis bottled up in the hive.

  I had Azure offer the others with her opportunity to go against the higher models, so they could gain confidence in their strength. But most of the time, she led her group. With two teams going in, the hive split their attention rather than focus. The hive tried several ambushes, but my locusts were up to the task of spotting them. The nines had no chance against them, not even with a twelve’s ECM. But when the seventeens joined in, suddenly Brute’s squad was hard pressed.

  Brute called out, “Twin Blades, find and kill that seventeen.”

  “Why me?”

  “You’re a ninja. You think sneaky. So does it.”

  “… Dang it. That makes sense. Okay.”

  I later learned he used a smoke bomb of flesh melting nanites to activate his stealth, then used his gear to climb the wall and go across the ceiling looking for signs of the seventeen. Only took him two minutes to find it and take it out with a pair of slices. As that broke his stealth, he used another smoke bomb, and the seventeen’s body quickly degraded from the nanites. A minute later, he was back in his assigned position.

  Things went differently when the hive tried that on Azure’s squad. Her Cuckoo senses easily spotted it, and she quickly dispatched it, and the twenty-two it was hiding behind.

  When Brute neared the heart of the hive, I called him. “Brute, you’re nearing the hive proper. I suggest you wait at the entrance. Let the big guys come to you while you still have some cover. Be careful of antithesis tunneling in behind you.”

  “Sounds like a good idea. In fact, I’ll spend some points upgrading.” Soon, Brute called out to everyone to upgrade before breaching the entrance to the hive proper. Azure told her people she was already upgraded, and would cover them.

  With a pause of less than two minutes, both halves were ready. Brute ordered us to the entrances. At the entrance, Azure could spot Brute, and we set up a crossfire. By this time, everyone could handle most of the teen models, so Brute and Azure focused on the larger models.

  It took nearly another three hours before the hive was taken. When it was done, Azure pulled a pair of attack spiders from her belt, then started having Lana send her spider crew, locust swarms, and flesh melters. I sent out a reminder to my team that I could teleport flesh melters in bulk. Soon all the other Samurai at this hive were tossing them everywhere.

  Azure pulled out a lot of locust swarms to cover the entire hive for cleanup, then followed with spider crew. Once sufficient had been deployed, I called the team back to base.

  Hive – 500 points, 1 token

  Assorted antithesis – 97,429 points

  New Total – 139,466 points, 3 tokens