Excerpt from Archmage Vildius’s lecture on swarm aberrants - Scholars debate on how an aberrant can maintain a sense of self while also being a part of the hive mind. Some say it is like how an octopus's arm can make some decisions without input from the brain, yet executing much more dexterous actions when directed. But as an aberrant has a separate body of its own, I believe those who reach that conclusion and stop researching are the true failures of the educated. When an aberrant and the hive mind are truly in sync, the more intelligent aberrant can control the overarching decisions, with the mind acting as an army of mathematicians providing real time calculated results, creating a perfectly optimal fighting strategy. Only fools will try to face an aberrant without making proper preparations and without a team.

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The hobgoblin is paralyzed in fear, but I am so beyond just paralyzed I am visibly vibrating. Maybe if I vibrate fast enough I can just phase through objects. I mean, this is a fantasy world. Who am I kidding… that hobgoblin is going to aim straight for me, the weakest one here as the stupid Voice is commanding me to suicide. The soldiers form a ring around the hobgoblin, probably 20 feet in diameter, yet none rush in to fight. The stupid goblin is smiling! It probably realized that a ring like this means it is only going to fight one at a time, and it's insane logic states that since it is the strongest being, it can just fight all day. Or maybe it's just happy that it can take more bugs out before it goes. I have not the faintest clue to the mind of a goblin willing to fight over a shiny blue rock. 

I resist with every fiber of my being, but the command is too strong. I slowly make my way to the ring, soldiers parting to let me through. Time to stop being scared. I know my attacks do pitiful amounts of damage. My best hope isn’t to use my claws, but other two forward legs. If we were strong enough to break that rock, I am damn sure they can be used as spears. I just need to somehow create an opening large enough to actually get close enough to use them.

Finally having made it to the edge of the arena, the soldiers raise their arms and interlink them, giving a nice visual of a wall of sword limbs. The hobgoblin notices me step forward. He lets loose a bloodthirsty cry and charges me. I quickly leap to the side, barely dodging the fearsome swing of the club. Attempting to get behind him, I back off almost immediately as it swings again to where I was going to set up. It is too used to attacks from behind from my earlier plan, whelp, time to improvise. I back up to the edge, close to the soldiers. Hopefully he charges here and runs into one of these big bugs. I don’t know if it will make the Voice order its death, but at the very least it can achieve a similar effect to how the other worker bugs impaled themselves on spears. 

The hobgoblin rushes me, and as I leap out of the way, he does ram straight into the waiting sword arms of our make-ship arena. The soldiers don’t even budge from that full force charge. The hobgoblin fares much worse, as he now has lashes across his skin. Nothing lethal, but it's the most damage that has been dealt to him so far. I line up again, preparing for another charge, but this thing is too damn smart. Instead of charging like a moron again, it slowly approaches me, club raised and ready to swing when I jump aside. Well, I guess this is it. Do or die. I know I won’t be able to dodge when it is prepared to swing either way, unburdened by the restriction of movement I was granted by its stupid charges. 

I step forward a bit, giving myself more space behind me. I feel time slow down. It takes ages for the hobgoblin to reach me, slowly raising its club to swing. I somehow know exactly the moment to fall back. I dodge the smash with millimeters to spare, and as soon as it misses, while the hobgoblin is still following through on its swing, I jump at its face, primed to stab. Time still running slow, I position my sharp forelegs to stab directly at the eyes. I feel a sickening squish and crunch as my spear like limbs pierce the head of the goblin. Waves of triumph and approval flow through me, and with that the combat is finished as the club makes contact with my body, blowing me off its dead face. 

Damn, it must have been swinging at me as soon as I jumped, and I was too stupidly hyper focused on finishing the fight. Not that I had enough time to jump out of the way. As hurt as I am, I still feel the waves of pride and accomplishment flowing through me from the Voice. The soldiers are approaching my wounded body. My consciousness starts to slip. I can only hope they are coming to take me to safety, and not to eat me. What a stupid Voice, making me fight....