I was immediately struck by how big Queen Buzzbuzz was. She towered over us, making the throne seem tiny by comparison. “Welcome, heroes!”, she waved. “I’m sorry you had to see Pollentown in such a… divided state…”. I almost didn’t notice it, but her voice carried no accent.

  “Yeah, about that”, Phoebe replied. “What have you done to those people outside?”.

  The other bees in the courtroom whispered among themselves, while the queen straightened. “We’ve invented honey that can free them. For millenia, the other species have struggled to build their own hives. Sadly they were born with a mental defect- one that gave them selfish, violent impulses. But now, we can embrace our less fortunate brothers and sisters within a hive that loves all, as was always meant to be”.

  Queen Buzzbuzz glared at the other bees in the room. “There have been some growing pains, as my subjects have been eager to point out. But they will suffer what they must for the good of the hive”.

  “You’ve taken away their free will”, Phoebe objected. “Not everyone wants to be part of your happy bee cult”.

  “This world needs harmony”, the queen replied. “I would’ve thought you of all people would know that. Surely you’ve seen that this world is on the brink of collapsing. Humans, ghosts, slimes, bees… we all shed our blood over meaningless quarrels. Join me, and let’s overcome those differences. Or else, we will all be consumed by them”.

  Silence filled the chamber. Then… “I agree”. Hex floated forward.

  We looked at him in shock. “Hex, you can’t be serious”, I said. “This doesn’t sound like simple mind control. Do you really want to give up your own identity? That could alter your very soul!”.

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  He turned back to us. “Peace will never come cheaper. I don’t like it, but Queen Buzzbuzz’s plan will save lives. It would’ve saved my mother. And it would’ve saved your sister”.

  Phoebe took in a sharp breath. “Lucy would’ve never agreed with this. Don’t speak for her”.

  Hex glanced between us. “Of course you’d refuse. You’re only human”. I flinched at his words.

  Queen Buzzbuzz considered us from her throne. “Just picture it. You’d be loved as part of one big family. Your life would have meaning as part of a greater whole. I believe those aspects appealed to the other human”.

  We shook our heads, mortified that she was now trying to appeal to our self interest.

  The queen frowned. “I don’t understand. Why are you so attached to your imperfections?”.

  “What else do we have?”, I replied. “Are we truly ourselves without them? You promised our lives would be filled with love and purpose. Is it really love if you won’t accept us as we are? And how is working for the hive meaningful if we have no choice either way?”.

  She shook her head in response. “I pity you two. You’re enslaved to your own small egos, and yet you see it as ‘freedom’. Truly, you are dirtbound. But I forgive you, and even if through force, I will heal you”. The bees around her rose into the air, stingers primed.

  “[Spooky Maze]!”, the two of us quickly escaped into a pocket dimension. Hex was the only other entity there. He stared at us for a moment, before turning away. We took the hint and quickly fled the hive. None of us wanted to fight each other.

  Queen Buzzbuzz rubbed her mandibles after we left. After some thought, she turned to Hex. “You will be our Chief Enforcer from now. Your first mission is to convert those two”.

  Hex’s eye widened. “What…”. The White Bee zipped forward and stabbed him from behind, sinking in its stinger. Hex gasped as the honey flowed into him, and a golden iris slowly faded in around his black pupil. “…As you command, Your Divinity”.