The Young Warrior: Eternally Paternal

Fortuna sighed, gesturing for the two to come with her. They stood up, confused, and followed the Golden General through the hallways of the Hive. They were heading into the throne room, where Fortuna paused.

“Okay, go ahead and sit while I get Ocellus and the little warrior. It’s a long story, I know they'll want to hear it as well.”

The twins nodded before heading for the throne. Thorax sprawled out in the oak seat as usual, while Pharynx sat at attention beside him. Fortuna chuckled softly at the two before leaving.

The brothers were still in their exact same positions when Fortuna returned with Ocellus and Apex, making her laugh. Apex bounded over and leapt up onto the throne, sitting upright in front of Thorax, tail curled around his hooves, looking like a smaller version of Pharynx as he rested against the monarch’s side. Ocellus, meanwhile, took a seat on the opposite side of the throne, not in a guarding position like Pharynx, but focused.

“Alright, I know you all want to know why Meta didn’t stick around after Pharynx and Thorax were conceived.” Fortuna began.

Apex blinked in confusion and looked up at Thorax. “Whas’ tha’ mean?”

“Well, um– Pharynx will tell you when you’re older!” Thorax said, smiling awkwardly.

“Like Tartarus!” Pharynx retorted. “Take responsibility for your child’s education!”

Fortuna cleared her throat softly, catching their attention again. “The two of you can discuss that later. As I was saying, it is true that Meta left the Hive shortly before Pharynx and Thorax’s eggs were laid. Now, I don’t know the full story, but I can tell you what I do know.”

The group nodded, and Pharynx gave her a gesture to continue.

“Right, well, Meta was fairly young when Chrysalis first noticed him. He had been enlisted in my guard, but after a couple years I authorized his dismissal, as the guard clearly wasn’t for him. I know he helped out in the kitchens for a little while after that, but otherwise he didn’t have anything to do. That was when Chrysalis met him officially.”

“Officially?” Apex tilted his head. “So she’d me’ him ‘afore?

“The Queen used to perform a naming ceremony for each new generation of nymphs.” Ocellus explained to him. “Your generation got one, and so did my generation, and my little siblings’ generation got one too – they were the last generation to get the ceremony.”

“Exactly, Ocellus.” Fortuna smiled at Ocellus, who blushed shyly. “The Queen had, of course, been the one to formally name Meta like she named every new generation, but it’s not like she pays that close attention to them. It was when Meta was jobless when she first really noticed him.”

“How did she find him?” Pharynx asked.

“Well, Chrysalis found him in that old room that technically counted as a library, and decided since he seemed to enjoy studying and reading, she could make him her archivist. But it seemed like her motives were deeper than that.” Fortuna continued. “Meta told me how she would constantly bother him when he was trying to work, and kept trying to flirt with him.”

“Why is that such a bad thing? Wouldn’t most drones have been grateful the Queen found them attractive?” Pharynx asked.

“Because, Phary, your father is gay.”

“What?!” The two brothers jolted up in surprise, making Apex leap off the throne as his position was disturbed. Fortuna dove forward, catching the little nymph before he could land. Apex giggled and hugged Fortuna gratefully as she stood back up.

“Did she just not know?” Ocellus asked.

“Oh, she definitely knew.” Fortuna chuckled softly, setting Apex down so he could scamper back to Thorax. “He told her after a while, but she just kept insisting.”

“But that’s awful! Why would she do that?” Ocellus asked

“Because she wanted heirs, Ocellus.” Pharynx responded for Fortuna. “Clearly our father was someone she knew would give her strong heirs, so she was determined to breed with him.”

Ocellus stared in shock as Fortuna just shrugged. “Well, he’s not wrong.”

“But– but–” Ocellus huffed. “She’s worse than I thought.”

“I thought so too.” Fortuna smiled softly as she glanced at the brothers. “At least you two came out of it though.”

“But how did we even end up being conceived?” Thorax asked

“He eventually gave in and went on a few dates with her, to get her off his back.” Fortuna explained, flinching slightly and trotting over to cover Apex’s ears. “But she may have gotten a bit demanding, and, well, you can infer what happened.”

“So she just–?” Ocellus cut herself off in shock, and Fortuna nodded.

“When Metamorphosis woke up afterward, he realized what happened and panicked. He knew that Chrysalis would use what they had done to force him to stay with her, despite not knowing you two had been conceived. So he ran for it.”

“That’s why he left?” Pharynx asked hoarsely as Fortuna let a squirming Apex go.

“One of the reasons. He explained to me that the real reason he left was because he knew there was a better way of living outside the Hive. He had also always felt like he didn’t belong, I couldn’t blame him for that. What Chrysalis did was the last straw, so he left the Hive in the early morning. Shortly after that, Chrysalis announced he had been exiled, and was never to be spoken of again.”

“So he left because of Chrysalis, not us.” Thorax looked at Fortuna with tears in his eyes. “Does he even know we exist?”

“Of course he knows you exist!” Fortuna trotted closer to the alpha, putting a hoof around him in comfort. “I told him myself.”

“You did?” Thorax whispered, and she smiled softly.

“The second I saw him again. I told him all about you and your brother.”

“I’m guessing he wasn’t happy to hear we exist?” Pharynx muttered, and Fortuna lifted his head.

“Pharynx Ray Elytron–”

Ocellus promptly burst out laughing, and Thorax covered her mouth. Fortuna chuckled softly, nuzzling her oldest son.

“I do not want you to ever think he was unhappy to know of you. He was shocked, yes, but in the end he was overjoyed. He has two wonderful boys he never knew about, who his own cousin was able to raise the way he would have wanted.” Fortuna nuzzled Pharynx gently. “He talks every day about how much he wants to see you.”