Quartz and her Brave Bee gang had been working on the tunnels for the last few days. Over the course, Sunny would drop by with some blueberry pie. Finally, coming to the conclusion of joining the gang in the hope of freedom.
One day, after a long digging shift, Quartz heard something from the walls. She turned around to see cracks beginning at the bottom and rising to a certain point. Realizing that her plan was about to change, she began to inform all the members before going to find Sunny to report the news.
Meanwhile, things had changed with Sunny. She slowly began dismissing and forgetting to contact her friends and mother. Slowly determined for freedom, she was losing her old life and moved towards the plan to escape. "Forgive me, my friends...but this is no place for me." Her stomach growled. She got up from her desk and went down to the fridge to make something, only to realize she was running low on food. "Ahh...looks like another trip to the grocery store then, not a problem."
After another grocery trip, she quickly hid away from Quincy, who was going through another mail run. Once the coast was clear, she walked back to her place and took out a new sheet of paper as she began to draw and write down a plan for her escape out of the kingdom and the future she could have in the outside world.
"Perhaps I could be the only Stucker to have a family! Oh, and maybe I could-"
A knock was heard on the door. Revealing to be Quartz looking quite Panicked. "Sunny! I need a word with you. May I come in?"
The Basic Bee opened the door and allowed the Brave Bee to come in. Both of them settled down in the living room.
"The walls...I saw cracks; it appears our mission could go either successful or catastrophic. There may be a possibility that if we keep digging around, the area above may cave in and collapse. There is a chance that the walls may also sink and break, opening a hole for all of us to escape through. This is a hit or miss, but I believe this could be our biggest chance that freedom is within our reach!" Quartz then handed a newly rolled plan. Upon opening it up, it shows the tunnel system that they both created and discovered. "These tunnels lead very deep into the underground, but this is perfect for our new plan. Here's the deal: we could steal some explosives from Bomber Bees or, even better, a Demo bee. We set these bombs below the wall and tunnels...once we are at a safe distance, we detonate these bombs and have the floor and walls collapse, thus making us an easier escape instead of praying that those walls just crumble while we dig."
Sunny froze, hearing the plan made her very intrigued about where they would get bombs. She thought for a moment before gaining an idea. "My friend Brock is a Demo bee, if I could try and figure out how to either sneak into the mines or steal them from him...I got this, I will contact another friend of mine to send him an invite to come over, then we can knock him out and take his bombs!"
Quartz looked up at Sunny, a grin strewn across her face. "You are a genius, Sunny. Once you've gathered the bombs, come to the hideout.
As the two bees continued to talk, another knock was heard at the door; the voice of Quincy could be heard behind it.
"Sunny? You uhh..missed my call again...listen...you're worrying me and Brock. We want to make sure you are okay..."
Sunny looked at Quartz, who was looking for a good hiding spot before the door opened. Once the Brave Bee was hidden, Sunny opened the door and sighed at Quincy. "Hello Quincy, I apologize for the silence...I had been feeling...sad...it would be wonderful for you to invite Brock over here as well...it's quite lonely without him..."
Quincy raised his antennae with a smile, relieved to see his beloved friend unharmed. "Anything for you, Sunny! We'll make sure you are comfortable and happy! Say uhh, can I come in an-"
"Not until you invite Brock! Because...uhh..my house is a mess! Yeah! It'll be ready by the time you and Brock come over!" Sunny butted in, she forced a smile was onto her face, trying go hide her agitated and nervous demeanor.
Quincy gasped in shock; the Hasty Bee had never seen their friend act in such a manner. He shrugged it off, feeling like Sunny was just stressed. "Of course, Sunny, I'll uhh...I'll go and bring Brock once he is finished with his work." With that, Quincy flew off, and a confused and worried face was present as he left for Mondo Mountain.
Quartz got up from her hiding spot and sighed, going up to Sunny with a hand on her shoulder. "I know they are your friends, but they have way too much on their hands. Don't worry, you'll make new and closer friends once we are free-"
Sunny just sighed and shook her head, knowing what she was doing was extremely wrong. She looked up at Quartz with tears in her eyes, unsure what to do. "It's just...I've known them since we were larvae, they were sweet and funny...it's going to be a little harder to accept the fact I need to let them go..."
Quartz lowered her wings as she nodded. She was so desperate to help Sunny, the Brave Bee, and any other Stuckers by providing them with a better life. She walked to one end of the room and settled down.
"Quartz...please, I just...I am still willing to do the mission...it's just..." Sunny walked up to Quartz and sat near her, folding her four front legs. "...I'm scared if something will go wrong...I feel like everyone around me thinks I'm just some useless insect...I do have those who care and protect me...my friends, Quincy and Brock...and even my mother...but...I fear that if they find out that this is what I was doing...they'd surely have me arrested..."
"Sunny...we can't go lower than what we are currently...But I don't want to be going around and being declared a position that benefits nothing to anyone...neither should you. As much as you want to stay and everything, you need to wake up and-"
"Sunny! Open up! It's me and Brock, we have a surprise for you!" Quincy and Brock waited outside the door, holding a yellow and black striped cake that had the writing "we miss you." On the black strip.
Quartz went towards the stairs. "Being the Demo one up...I'll knock him out..steal his bombs...and I'll call you up so we can leave..." She fled up the stairs as the door opened.
Brock greeted Sunny with an embrace. "Forgive me, Sunny, I had so much on my schedule that it was merely impossible for me to come see you. Luckily, today seems like I have some dismissal. We brought you this cake, it's a honey lemon cake!" Brock carefully set down the large pastry onto the dining table. "I know it's not the best thing to say, but how have things been going?"
Sunny stared at both her friends, unable to say anything as she was trying to find a way to get those bombs from Brock. "So...eheh...if I were a flower, then I had surely wilted. It is a blessing to have you both come around. Why don't we settle down for a movie and have a chat! I would love to hear your stories!"
Quincy wasted no time in running to the couch and grabbing the remote, switching the television on as they scrolled through a multitude of channels. "Boring, boring, news? Ehh..boring, oohh? Yes! Let's watch the Woolly Mantis rise again!"
Sunny sat down on her chair and watched with her friends, determining what to do to get the plan in motion.
"Sunny? You alright? You seem to be agitated. You can talk to us, you know." Brock looked at the Basic bee with a tilted head. He took off his goggles and smiled at her.
"Right, uhh...so...I've been wondering...maybe...that...what if we could find a better life? Like...outside of...of Swarm Town! I mean, maybe I can work in the fields or something...Okay, I just want to know if any Stuckers had been employed at all?"
Quincy was quite distracted from watching a battle scene on TV; he nearly missed the question that was asked by his friend. "H-huh wha? Sorry, I think I missed what you said, something about Stuckers getting to the field?"
Brock shook his head and sighed, turning to Sunny and answering her question. "I'm unsure about the answer to that question. Stuckers are pretty much forbidden from coming to Mondo Mountain. What do you think, Quincy?"
"Oh, right? Well...I didn't see any Stuckers down here either. It's like, they all vanished one night. Bet you heard the rumors they may have been fed to Coconut Crab or Mondo Chick. I believe they have their own isolated place to stay, like a shelter, but if that's the case, why didn't they take Sumny as well?" Quincy sat there, and he scratched the fur on his neck to think of a plausible answer.
As the three were watching the movie, they heard a loud thud from upstairs. Brock decided to peek at the bottom of the stairs, followed by Quincy.
"Relax, guys...it's probably an aphid that crawled inside. Why don't you go up, Brock! Quincy, stay here, we'll wait for the aphid in case it runs down." Sunny then went to go grab some broom and dustpan, handing one of the equipment to Quincy.
Brock slowly walked up the stairs, sneaking up towards the bedroom to try and search for the aphid before it could escape from his sight. He looked around the space before setting foot inside. Before he could begin his inspection, he turned to see a glimpse of Quartz hitting him over the head with a book, knocking the Demo bee out.
Quartz began to dig through the bags on Brock, taking as many bombs as she could carry. In the midst, she would make a few noises of furniture being moved to pretend Brock was still searching.
Sunny looked up at the stairway as she began to ascend the steps. "Stay here, Quincy, I'll check it out..."
She then went upstairs and looked into the room, seeing Quartz rummaging through Brock's bags before getting up with at least six large bombs.
"This is enough, we don't need any more that could weigh us down...let's get out of here before anyone notices...I'll contact the rest of the Brave Bee ga-"
"S-Sunny!? W-what the- Who is that!?" Quincy decides to take a peek to see what was going on. "Sunny! Don't worry, I'll get the gua-" Quincy was interrupted as soon as Quartz attacked, throwing the same book to knock out Brock and briefly stunning him.
The Brave Bee then grabbed onto Quincy and tried to hold him down. "Silence! Sunny! Take the bombs and open the window! Get to the hideout!"
Quincy looked at Sunny with a shocked expression, realizing that his friend was planning something behind their backs. He tried to break free from Quartz's grip as he began to talk to Sunny. "Listen! Don't do this! They might be manipulating you to whatever they are planning...this isn't you, Sunny! Please!"
Quartz scoffed and continued to hold the Hasty Bee; she grunted as she used her second pair of forelimbs to silence him. "Heard you were curious about what happened to all the Stuckers...I have an answer for you, Hasty Bee...we formed our own gang...and we will break free from these cold walls of the kingdom and run free to the outside...we are tired of being worthless beings in your society...we will have our freedom...and you won't stop it...Sunny! Go!"
Sunny looked out the window and opened it, running out with the bombs in her hands. She didn't look back as she made a detour around the houses towards the entrance of the wild area.
Quincy broke free from Quartz Grasp, who then fled out the window to follow with Sunny. "Brock! Brock! Get up!"
The Demo bee slowly woke up, groaning as he looked up at a very Panicked Quincy. "Hey...did we get the Aphid..?"
"Get the guards! Sunny is working with a mysterious bee! We've got to stop them before they do anything!" Quincy then leaped out of the window and flew to find Sunny and Quartz.
Poor Brock, left confused, but the task was to tell the guards about what was going on.
Quartz met up with Sunny at the hideout; the other members got up and took the bombs to set up underground. "This is it, the plan is now in motion, thanks to you, Sunny! Soon we'll be free from this pit...pat yourself on the shoulder, Sunny, you are a hero."
Sunny looked down in guilt, knowing what she had done to her friends. "Hero isn't the word I'm looking for...I'm just a traitor...obsessed with this whole concept of freedom for our bees..."
Quartz placed a hand on Sunny's chest and sighed, giving her a smile of reassurance. "To them, you are a traitor, to us, you are a hero...you are home, Sunny, home with us, the family you never had."
Quincy was sitting under the trees, grabbing his phone and calling for Brock. "I see them...they're at the wall in the wild area...they are far left from the sandy area of Coconut Crab's lair...did you bring the guards?"
"Yeah, we are now on our way, the guards and I have just reached the gate for the wild area...I can't believe Sunny would do this...do you think this is what she has been planning after all these days?"
Quincy looked down, sighing as Brock may have a point. He felt horrible, knowing that they could've helped her earlier to prevent something like this.
"Freeze! On the ground!" The guards, mainly consisting of Commando bees, came charging from the shrubs, surrounding the Brave Bee gang. They held various tools to apprehend the group, ranging from grapplers to tasers. "You all are under arrest for attempting to escape and destroy the walls."
Quartz gasped and growled. She backed up before getting into a surrender pose. Many of her members followed along and knelt to the ground.
Quincy and Brock looked at their friend with anger and sadness. "Sunny...please...stop...it's over...we can't let you do this...you're our friend...how could you do this...?" Quincy said as tears ran down his cheek. Brock comforted his friend as he stared down the gang.
Sunny didn't know what to say, clearly having no excuse for the crimes she had committed. She just looked down in sorrow, her antennae drooped over her head.
Quartz looked at Sunny and smiled before staring down at the guards. She then got up and put herself between the guards and her gang. "You think we are willing to surrender this easily? You are sorely mistaken...we had fought for many years for the freedom we want...you made us look no better than vermin, just becuase we are not changed by the Royal Jelly...you can't keep doing this, we had began to lose fear in you...The rules had changed as of...NOW!!"
As Quartz cried out the last word, one of the Brave bees began to detonate the bombs. A large blast shook the area; the wall began to crumble, and the tunnels began to collapse. A large hole began to form as dust began to cover the view of almost everyone. "Now's your chance! Brave Bees! Run through the hole! Freedom awaits!"
The guards began charging into the cloud, trying to arrest anyone trying to escape. With every captured Bee, another one runs the gauntlet and heads to the outside of the walls.
Sunny froze for a moment, seeing a small glimpse of her friends before she shook her head and ran off towards the hole. Quartz ran by her side as they dashed towards the lands of the unknown.
Brock and Quincy didn't waste a moment and chose to chase after Sunny. Even though she had betrayed them, she was still their best friend.
As the dust cleared, the guards had caught a handful of Brave bees and Stuckers, yet they could see in the horizon that many of them had fled outside of the walls.
"This is not good...we need to inform the event bees about this...we are in big trouble..."
At Mondo Mountain, Photon Bee was chatting with his fellow Event Bees. "And I was like, 'Why is this square so crooked?" Then Vivian was like "Photon...that's an isosceles triangle..." What does she mean? I don't speak Math! Vector bees are kinda hard to understand when it comes to their dilemma...they just go plan with what to build, then command the Carpenter bees to do the building!" The Sunny bee lets out an awkward laugh.
Cobalt and Crimson laughed in sync as they listened in on their leader. "I mean, isn't it great that we have bees who can do the work on their own? We just sit back and watch! Y'know, I kinda miss the times when me and Crims get to use our pulses to make things go faster...it's not very exciting to just sit here and stare at the kingdom below," Cobalt said as he leaned back on his chair and placed his feet on the table.
Crimson rolled her eyes and gestured to her partner to put down his feet. "Maybe we should organize a ceremony, perhaps another anniversary event in which we can perform? I mean, we are nearing almost 200 years of this kingdom, and I feel like we should do something special! We can light up the sky with our abilities, just like how Buoyant Bees do-"
In the midst of the conversation, the Event bees all heard the sound of an explosion in the distance. The walls of the headquarters began to shake, and the stained glass windows cracked.
Cobalt adjusted his abstract glasses as he got up from his seat. "What in the name of Spirit Bear was that?! An Earthquake?"
Windy Bee flew up and went to open the windows to see what was going on. As she looked at the view, her swirly eyes suddenly widened.
"Photon, I think you have to see this..." The misty-haired bee said as she pointed at what was on the horizon.
The event bees all took a look, seeing a cloud of dust forming from the wild area segment. As the bees questioned what they believed had happened, Photon received a call.
"Photon, I just got word that a group of bees had blasted the wall...they are escaping..." A stern voice is heard on the phone.
The yellow Event bee began fuming upon the news he had received. His peers looked at him with concern about what was wrong.
"Hunt them down, gather your troops...they have no idea what danger they are in and the risks they are putting to the kingdom; we have these walls to protect us from the dangers outside...ones we had never seen...do not fail me..."
"Don't worry, they won't be far from my line of sight...I'll make sure of it..." The call ended, and the caller looks forth with one eye covered in a red monocle with a glowing orange target over it.