Gunner simply crushed the bug in his hand right away, wiping the mucus on a cloth. He then turned to the other ones who had been trying to hound Xela.
However, it was a fruitful attempt as the Elven Princess had enough Agility to dodge them like she was Neo from the Matrix.
Gunner then grunted and smashed his palm on either side of the tunnel, causing the walls to shake a little. This disrupted the movement of the bugs due to the seismic activity, giving Gunner enough time to rush forward and grabbed them all at once.
Once again, a group had their lives snuffed immediately.
After cleaning his hands, the Branded Servant duo continued to journey deeper into the tunnel network, narrowing the distance between themselves and the hive they were targeting.
Xela moved quietly enough to not be noticed as Agility concerned more than raw movement speed, but Gunner's muscle mass was far dense to have his Agility help him in this regard. As such, all Insects that perceived their surroundings through Seismic Sensation or a variety of it rushed towards them.
The duo were often besieged by strange variations of the bugs that sought to devour their flesh and strengthen themselves. Ultimately, what they got was a one-on-one happy session from Gunner, which interestingly enough, only ended happily for the half-giant.
Eventually, the two of them stopped to check the map once they reached a fork. After reaffirming their direction, they went down the left road for 500 meters before entering a large cavern.
This cavern was not dark and was lit by some glowing minerals that had been gathered carefully. After all, this was the living area of the hive and even if they could live in utter darkness, some light was needed for certain special matters.
There was a strange and eerie silence in the hive though. Not a single bug could be seen crawling out of the various holes they had dug into the ways or the ceiling. The intense silence would have creeped out any normal person, but Gunner could sense the presence of his targets hidden in the walls, just waiting for him and Xela to walk far enough into the hive that they would be trapped.
Gunner could also sense the struggle of the Insects, as their hunger tempted them to rush out and get the first bite. The only way for them to resist their instincts was the presence of a nearby Bug Queen.
Xela too seemed to see something with her Divine Sight and gasped lightly. She was definitely creeped out by the huge amount of bugs that were waiting in ambush for them, goosebumps growing on her skin.
Gunner patted her shoulder and stretched an arm out. A green light condensed in his arm that Xela knew all too well. Luckily, Gunner did not activate his Earth's Guardian, or they would probably destroy this entire section of the tunnel system.
The bugs seemed to sense the danger brewing and began rushing out ahead of time as their queen screeched her command. However, it was too late as Gunner fired his Eraser Cannon right into the middle of the hive.
The ensuing explosion washed over the entire cavern and slightly beyond. Gunner and Xela easily retreated right after the blast landed, gazing at the devastation before them.
The majority of the bugs got wiped out in a single hit, with only the stronger ones within the hive able to retain a sliver of life. Gunner idly walked back in, finishing off those he encountered while digging for the Bug Queen who had been buried under rubble.
He eventually pulled out a disgusting lobster-like insect that was screeching madly as its many legs thrashed about in fear. It realized that it was about to join its brood, something no sentient would willingly accept, so it started to plead for its life.
Gunner however, was the deliverer of death upon those who crossed his path, yet his hand was stayed by Xela. She had an intrigued expression on her face as she made an astute suggestion.
"Hm, since Darius is currently working on ways to harm the Insects remotely, don't you think he might appreciate some prime samples? Let's just send him the Bug Queens of the hives we destroy and it might speed up his work!"
Gunner was surprised by this, but nodded eventually. The idea made sense and cost them nothing. Since it would be a waste of time to return each time, he removed a Guard Android from his Inventory and asked the Solena AI to activate it.
"Send this back to Darius above ground." Gunner commanded the Guard Android while handing over the still struggling insect.
The android took the quarry and nodded, rushing out from the edges of the cavern to the tunnel which Gunner and Xela had come from. Although Gunner did not specify where Darius was located, the Solena AI was able to easily direct it to where Darius was located as he also had a HoloBrace.
It just needed to follow the metaphorical yellow brick road that was also conveniently called GPS. However, Gunner was skeptical if the android would actually reach Darius as Insects could interrupt its journey.
Even though they had cleared out the tunnel on their way here, who knew how many were passing through or had already been attracted by the sounds of battle?
Not to mention the way that Queen Bug was screeching, some others might be attracted over to try and save it from death.
Gunner and Xela then searched through the cavern to find anything useful. Apart from the various minerals that could be kept as light sources for when they trekked deeper, there was nothing else of note.
After completing this task, the duo then left the cavern and began moving forward once more. This cavern had a tunnel connecting it to the deeper bowels of the earth, and Gunner noticed from the map that there was likely another hive a bit further down the shaft.
As the Branded Servant duo disappeared into the depths, Darius up above soon received the Queen Bug with a smile from the hands of a battered Guard Android.
"Hm, you should prove useful in my research."
