Chapter 644 The prize
Tiny's fists are a sight to behold. Tireless and dauntless, his hands flash out faster than the ant eye can see, each strike accompanied by a flash of light as fists of pure energy materialise and crash into his targets like trucks. As I watch he winds up and unleashes a devastating uppercut that starts at his feet and finishes above his head. An arc of light materialises from the fist and rises underneath a legionary soldier and lifts them with tremendous force to crash into the ceiling.
Holy heck! That had to hurt.
Despite the spectacular success of that swing, Tiny received numerous cuts and strikes during the wind up and recovery. He can't afford to take much more damage! Get back you tin-cans! Get back!
Doom Chomp!
The intimidating jaws of dark energy gnash and bite at the swirling melee around us. It's hard to penetrate the powerful armour of the Legion, but I know I manage to get a few good bites in here and there as I use my body as a living shield for Tiny. Invidia is doing all he can to distract the enemy and keep his ape charge standing, healing and shielding Tiny in a dizzying display of magical prowess. So far, it's just enough to keep the big guy swinging, along with my own impressive diamond carapace absorbing it's fair share of blows.
In fact, would it be fair to say that they are targeting me more than Tiny right now?!
A barrage of weapon strikes flash out of the darkness at me, carving gouges in my carapace and knocking my weight around. My nerves allow me to make precision, last second dodges that keep my legs attached to my body and protect my eyes from being punctured. The battlefield truly has descended into a complete mess, with fanatical ants literally throwing their bodies at the enemy, crawling over the roof and dropping onto the Legion from above.
More and more ants join the fray until the entire tunnel is just a seething mass of ants. Once the numbers get high enough, Tiny and I can finally relax, since there aren't enough soldiers with a clear shot at us to cause significant issues. Once they realise they can't claim the major prize, the enemy begin a fighting retreat. When they manage to group together, the Legion soldiers are adept at layering their shields and combining their strikes to sweep away a number of ants at once, giving themselves breathing room to try and free more of their allies.
I push forward hard in an attempt to stay on the front lines in order to protect my siblings, but there's so darn many of them that I'd have to crush them in order to get through. After ten minutes of shoving and snapping whenever I can, I suddenly find myself alone in the field.
Did... did we win?
"FOR THE COLONY!"
"CHARGE!"
"GET 'EM!"
The Colony has clearly not had enough of chomping on the Legion. The ants surge forward, hungry to extract their full measure of vengeance now that they finally have the upper mandible.
[Crinis! Block them! Don't let the Colony pursue them!]
The Legion has been diligent in seizing our strongholds and bringing their line forward in unison. I've no doubt that if we chase them down the tunnel we'll run into traps and reinforcements. If we aren't careful, they'll flip this victory into a defeat before we can blink!
The horde of ants rushes forward but the shadows deepen beyond black in front of them and a forest of tentacles rises from the floors. In the blink of an eye a forest of dark, writhing limbs have risen in front of them, blocking the path of the charge.
"Get back!" I call, "get back to our walls!"
With persistent calls and the odd THWACK! I manage to get the Colony turned around. I get that they're excited but I sure as heck don't want to lose any more of them. Indeed, the battlefield is littered with wounded and fallen ants. They may have managed to pile on and get within biting range of the Legion for a change, but that doesn't change the fact that those armoured soldiers pack a ridiculous punch in a small package.
The healers are already out in full force, gathering up the wounded and providing emergency treatment. Nutritious Biomass is delivered to those in most need to help kick start the natural healing process and get them back on their feet faster. I ask Invidia to help out where he can as I wearily survey the battlefield. It was a short and sharp conflict, but I'm completely exhausted. I might actually need some torpor after that one.
I wander around and find Tiny slumped against the wall with a satisfied smile on his face and his body covered in wounds. I almost call Invidia back to take care of the ape but I stop myself when I realise that most of the injuries are already closed. Even so, he must have come close to losing all of his HP multiple times in that fight. I swear at one point I saw him with one arm barely hanging on. Even with Invidia in his back pocket, he still isn't protected enough to make it out of engagements like this in one piece.
[You dumb gorilla,] I sigh at him, [fighting is good and all, but you need to make it out alive or it doesn't count.]
[Harr,] he scoffs and then winces as his wounds flare up.
[You deserve that. Rest you big lug, I'll try and get some food for you.]
Predictably, his eyes light up at the mention of food and he nods at me with vigour. Predictable.
"Quite the unexpected fight, Eldest."
Gah! I didn't even notice Wills creep up on me, I was so preoccupied.
"Don't blame me," I say, "I had nothing to do with it. Tiny decided he wanted to fight today."
"Turns out it was a good thing that he did," she says, "the real question I have though, is what we're going to do with all of that."
With a flick of her antennae, the scout indicates the two dozen or so suits of armour being dragged away towards our own walls.
"I can think of an ant who might want to take a look at those..."
-x-X-x-
The hammer of anvils and the searing heat of metal surrounded Smithant on all sides and she couldn't be happier.
"How do I manage this part?" another carver scuttled up to her and asked.
"Ah, the folding? It's like this... " she explained the process with care and demonstrated some of the techniques on her own workbench as the other ant watched with laser-like focus.
"I understand," the carver nodded, "I'll make an attempt and return to see what you think."
So saying the ant ran off to her own workspace and soon another anvil was ringing in chorus along with the others. It felt so nice to have helpers! It was only weeks ago when she was labouring on these projects by herself! Only weeks? It seemed like a lifetime ago. After breaking through with her Skills and forging the first suit of enchanted ant armour for Leeroy, she'd managed to receive the blessing of the Eldest and, suffice to say, the word of the most important ant in the Colony went a long way toward getting approval.
With more resources at her disposal, and the help to make use of them, the armour workshop of the Colony was now a small thriving community of armoursmiths, dedicated to their profession with the sort of unflinching fanaticism that came so naturally to the ants.
Filled with pleasant feelings and eager to return to her own work, Smithant was more than a little irritated to hear a clamour and rush and a horde of ants descended into the workshop, taking up space and hauling what appeared to be heavy sacks filled with the unmistakable tinkle of metal on metal. At least they were interrupting her for something worthwhile, she grumbled. As long as there was metal involved, she was interested.
"What has got you lot so riled up?" she demanded as the cavalcade of ants flooded into her workspace, covering every inch of the walls and ceiling, taking up defensive positions.
"Sorry for the trouble," came a recognised scent, "the generals are a little nervous about this stuff and wanted a full security detail. Forget that the largest soldiers won't even fit in the workshop area."
"Tungstant?"
The carver council member skittered into the room, poking and prodding at the bags on the ground with her front legs. It was quite rare for the council members to show up here, especially right now.
"I thought you were working on the defences of the three nests... What are you doing here?"
The council member shook her antennae and kept prodding at the bags.
"Because of this stuff, obviously. I've been told what we have here, but I haven't actually seen it. Come on over here and let's have a look, I'm so curious to have a look."
"What could they possibly bring in that would need this kind of attention?" As curious as she was, Smithant kind of resented having so many of her siblings crowded into her private work area. Nobody had bothered to come in here before, why were they so desperate to jump in now?!
Still, the lure of the bags drew her in. What could it be? A new mineral or type of metal? It was possible that scouts and miners had turned up something new and unexpected in their explorations. The Colony refused to abandon expansion and search efforts during the conflict after all.
Interest stirred within the carapace of the crafter and she found herself drawn to the sharply angled lumps hidden with the bags. Where the heck did the Colony even get bags from anyway? Tungstant noticed her unspoken question.
"We've started making them to help carry stuff. One ant, even a carver, can carry a heck of a lot in two bags slung over the carapace. Now help me get these things open."
It took a few moments for the two to recognise the bottom of the unfamiliar container and upend it to send the precious contents tumbling out onto the floor. The moment the gleaming plates of enchantment encrusted armour hit the floor, something magical happened, something remarkable, unexplainable and unfathomable. It was a lightning strike, an earthquake, an eruption and an implosion all at once, and it took place directly in the centre of Smithant's heart.
In that instant, she fell in love.
"What... what have you..."
Her pheromones trailed away to nothing as she drew ever closer to the gleaming plates of armour. Her antennae swept forward to caress the curved metal with an almost tender softness as her mandibles clacked together rhythmically. If she noticed this strange behaviour, Tungstant didn't seem to pay it any mind. Indeed, she'd been around the carvers long enough to know what could happen to them around the objects of their obsession. This level of strangeness didn't even approach the kind of things that stupid sculpture inspired ant had done since she'd started working.
"These are full sets of Legion armour that we seized from the battlefield, one set in each of these bags. The mages have swept over and analysed them to the best of their ability in order to check if there are hazardous enchantments on them, but if there is it's far beyond our ability to detect it."
"I see."
Tungstant wasn't confident that she'd been heard, but she continued anyway.
"If fact, from what I've been told from those who've taken a look at this, the technology on display is far beyond anything we have at our disposal. The mages weren't even able to identify the materials used to make these suits. We can't even speculate on it, to be honest. Naturally, as the foremost expert on the subject, we decided to bring this to you. Learn whatever you can from them, but be careful, we don't know what this armour can do if you start melting it down."
"Melt it down?!" Smithant cried, coming back to her senses, "sacrilege! Who would possibly of destroying such perfection?"
She snatched up one of the pauldrons in her mandibles as an antenna drooped down to pet the curved metal.
"Noone will hurt you my darling. My gem... My preciousss."
"Great! I'll leave you to it then," Tungstant said and turned around to hurry back to her own work.
The many guards and sentries remained in place, but Smithant didn't see them, couldn't possibly imagine they existed. All of the material things in creation were only herself, and the armour. All else was dust.
-x-X-x-
She knew she would have to break it. It was obvious. How on Pangera was she supposed to learn the secrets of this incredible armour without hitting it, breaking it open, melting it? She couldn't! She knew she couldn't. And yet... she struggled to bring herself to do it. She'd examined the armour in intricate detail. Every sense she could bring to bear had been utilised with laser-like focus on every curve and fold of the suits she could access. Her antennae were intimately familiar with every square inch. Her eyes had examined each marking and rune, the entire network of which (that was visible) she had copied onto sheets of metal that adorned the walls of her forge.
Several of the watchful scouts had been yelled at for allowing their legs to pollute those surfaces as they shifted around the room, disturbing her thoughts for seemingly no good reason. What were they supposed to protect her from?! The scouts fobbed her off, with generic statements about 'dangerous enemy technology', as they'd been ordered to. The fact that Tungstant had placed them there to protect Smithant in the event something went very wrong, they wouldn't say. The Colony was not about to lose their foremost armour expert so soon after she had demonstrated her worth! Not even for Legion armour would that be worthwhile.
So they carefully watched as the carver interacted with the armour, their cores in their jaws each time she dropped something or started gnawing on the armour with her mandibles, worried that something would explode before they had the chance to throw themselves on top of it.
Eventually, she was forced to weigh her affection for the incredible craftsmanship of the Legion pieces that had fallen into her claws against her own Skills and knowledge (and by extension, the Colony's). Of course, her own Skills won out. How much more precious would equally stunning works be, if they had come from her own forge? The very thought sent her into a catatonic state of joy for several long minutes.
The decision made, she wasted no time in getting to work. The ants had developed many ant-specific tools for manipulating armour in order for them to manage the process of detailing and enchanting. With the straps undone and the joints snipped, Smithant used her front two claws to lift and mount the armour on the frames she'd constructed and started the painful process of deconstructing the suits.
It took long hours of arduous (and tearful) toil. The armour was tough. Really tough. The materials were totally alien to her experience and far more durable than anything she'd worked with to date. Not only was the stuff harder to break, snap, pierce or shatter, it was lighter, responded to mana better and held enchantments more than three times as efficiently! The strange stone was a wonder in and of itself. It could detect mana sources around it and actively tried to consume that mana. She nearly had a few cores drained dry when they were placed too close to the stuff. When she tested it on herself (the watching scouts came this close to leaping off the roof in a massive pile-on) she found that even through her carapace and flesh, the stone was able to siphon away a portion of the mana in her core.
The only logical conclusion was that the mineral was, in some sense, living. The number of experiments she would need to conduct on the stuff to test it was immeasurable and would likely take years. Reluctant as she was to part with it, she had little choice but to pass responsibility for that investigation over to the mages. She had armour to make and precious little time to take on a task that could instead be done by a dozen teams of mage-ants.
The metal was a more familiar material. She wasn't sure what she'd expected to find after the encounter with the strange stone, but the steel was (as far as she could tell) inert. A relief. If the Legion had managed to find some sort of living metal and learned to shape it, she might have despaired of the Colony ever catching up to their craftsmanship.
The material was unknownto her, that much made sense. She could work at identifying and categorizing the qualities of the metal, but it was unlikely she would be able to do more until they found an unprocessed sample of the stuff for herself. Where her interest truly lay, and where she stood to gain the most from this investigation, was the techniques used rather than the materials.
And those techniques were, quite literally, next level. She was able to see what had been achieved but couldn't picture how for the life of her. It reality, this metal wasn't too much better than that the Colony had access too, at least the raw material. Smithant theorised that the processing and treatment applied to the ore was what resulted in the higher level of tensile strength and lighter weight. Which took what was a relatively small advantage in raw components and widened it significantly. This led the carver to further believe that there were far better suits of armour out there. She refused to believe that a force as old and established as this Legion didn't have access to ore that far surpassed this.
The other key advantage was in the way their smiths had worked the final metal. Although she couldn't completely reverse engineer the techniques that had been used in the forging, she was able to analyse the final result. Then she could try and make educated guesses as to the process that had been used. If she were successful in her work, she might be rewarded with a significant amount of experience towards her smithing Skill. At the very least, it was going to be a great benefit to the Colony to gain some insight into how some of the best out there made their armour.
In terms of unlocking the benefits to their enchanting methods, she was even further behind in that department. Although she worked hard on her enchanting Skills, it was her secondary profession, she wasn't the highest level in the Colony by a long shot. She'd have to bring in a few experts to help break down that tangled web.
But all of that wouldn't require the use of this many suits. The Colony had seized over ten full sets of this superb stuff, it would be a waste for it to collect dust in her collection (though she longed for it, she couldn't condone the inefficiency). She couldn't replicate these materials, or their techniques, but what she could do was hack these suits apart and then cobble them back together to the best of her ability. It would be a pretty nasty piece of patchwork, and splicing together the enchantments would be an absolute nightmare, but she was fairly confident she could get it to work. The only question was, who out there was in need of the worst best armour the Colony had to offer?
-x-X-x-
The giant gorilla shifted uncomfortably as Smithant crawled over him, taking measurements with her antennae and trying to work out the best way she could cobble the armour she had onto his massive frame.
Tiny, for his part, suffered through it as best he could. Naturally, his preference would be to smash the stupid sword people's faces in, but he'd been ordered to come all the way up to the nest by his Master and so he had no choice but to do so. In his own opinion, the previous fight had been a magnificent success. Much face was smashed, many blows landed upon the enemy. Tiny had punched until his fists bled and wrists cracked, the rage within him all but spent. Yet the Master was more concerned with 'near fatal wounds' and 'catastrophic loss of blood', things that Tiny didn't deem nearly as important. Still, the master had heard that there might be a powerful set of armour on offer and so now here he was.
Antennae tippy-tap on his arm and he dutifully raises it to allow the ant to measure his arms and shoulders.
It's a good thing the Colony managed to haul so many suits back from the battlefield, Smithant reflected, since there were only so many pieces that would be useable in this reconstruction and she had a heck of a lot of surface area to cover. The rest of the ants in attendance watched from the sidelines, slightly anxious for the outcome. The pets raised by the Eldest had achieved a strange sort of status amongst the Colony. They weren't ants, obviously, but they were still accepted as part of the family. In a sense they were an extension of the Eldest, and therefore deserving of some measure of the respect reserved for that august individual.
So the Colony stepped carefully and deferentially around Tiny as he sat and sulked during the extended measuring session. In truth, it took hours to complete since Smithant constantly moved back and forth, fetching sections of armour from her workshop and using her mandibles to hold them against Tiny to check their fit.
Gradually, the shape of what she would need to make began to take shape in the mind of the carver. It wasn't going to be pretty, and it certainly wasn't going to be something like a full suit of armour, but it was going to provide a lot more protection than fur and skin. With the rough outline complete, she got to work.
Back in her workshop, watched over by the ever paranoid eyes of the scouts clinging to the roof, she began the arduous task of making the cuts necessary to separate the armour into the pieces she would need. Hours of painful, slow and careful work followed. She had to cut the armour without weakening it as much as possible, easier said than done. She also had to keep in mind the chunks of enchanted runes inscribed in the armour and what she would need to change and modify to create a working network of her own.
Several of her helpers came to hold pieces and manoeuvre the sections for her, which helped speed things along remarkably. As the hours progressed, more and more of her team piled into her workspace to assist on the project. Eventually they were forced to take a wall down to accommodate them all as they worked in a frenzy. Sections were cut, compared, recut, straps added, bindings tied and pieces layered over each other in a thousand different combinations. After a few hours, a trio of high level enchanters arrived to study the armour and within a minute had been swept into the project. Along with Smithant, they studied the intricate rune script engraved on the armour, large sections of which they couldn't interpret.
The process of snipping, rewriting and editing the runes was a mammoth one and the ants set to it with gusto, forming a separate team working alongside the first. It was hectic work, but the ants felt their Skill levels rising rapidly as they continued, not stopping until the final product began to take shape.
As pure ant artisans and crafters, it hurt their sensibilities to send out something as rough as what they finally made. It was crude, a hodgepodge of bits and pieces taken from far finer work, but it functioned. The enchantment matrix might spark a little bit (metaphorically) but it did the job. Despite how rough it was, due to the excellence of the source materials, there was little question that it was the best armour the Colony had produced to date.
When Tiny put it on, Smithant couldn't help but think he looked that much more... eager.
The armour was spotty in places, but it did a good job of covering his chest, shoulders and belly. It was a mismatch of stone and metal plating strapped together and heavily padded underneath with cloth and leather. For the most part, they hadn't been able to cover his arms and legs, aside from some plating covering the front of his legs.
The hardest piece of work by far had been the helmet. In order to make it, they'd been forced to break apart nearly fifteen of the human head protectors and splice them together in order to fit over Tiny's much, much, much, much thicker skull. The final result was enormously heavy and far from the best fit, but it added much needed protection to the face zone.
When the armour was finally assembled and strapped on, Tiny rolled his shoulders and swung his arms a few times before grunting in satisfaction. It was uncomfortable and weighed him down, but there was a satisfying heft to the slabs of metal and stone that he found quite satisfying. More than that, with his task of getting armour completed, he was free to re-join his master once again. His greatest hope was that his new equipment would prevent him from being sent away from the fighting again. He'd lost so much smashing time.
-x-X-x-
Myrrin continued to push hard alongside her brothers and sisters of steel. The grim men and women of the Legion battled hard with little rest against endless waves of insects. She pulled her helmet off for a moment and sat, leaning her back against the rough tunnel wall. Without the aid of her helmet, the oppressive darkness of the second strata swept over her once more. She'd had her helmet on for so long she'd almost forgotten how dark it was, she could barely see her own hand in front of her face.
"Myrrin, got any space on that wall for a weary mage?" came the tired voice of Donnelan.
The young Legionary snorted in derision.
"A tired mage? How would it be possible to see such a thing? Standing at the back and waving your hands around can't be that tiring can it?"
"Leave off," came the grumbled reply as Donnelan leaned back into the wall and slid down to a seated position. "Do you have any idea how hard it is to contest the minds of these stupid ants? There's no end to them."
She felt her curiosity piqued.
"I can't really. What's it like?"
Her friend shuddered.
"I imagine it's similar to what it feels like on the front. You push forward and immediately get jumped by a dozen opponents that swarm over you in seconds. After that it's just a desperate wrestle until they give up or someone else comes along and saves you."
She nodded.
"Sounds about right," she said quietly.
She fell silent for a moment before she barked out a humourless laugh.
"What's so funny?" Donnelan asked.
She smiled in the dark.
"You remember during the wave, under Liria, when we fought for days on end against the monsters? We swore we'd never see anything that bad ever again."
He couldn't help but chuckle at how naïve they'd been.
"I suppose this is kind of similar. Endless waves of monsters to fight. Days without sleep. The commander pushing us forward like a slave driver."
"It's not the same," Myrrin refuted, "not the same at all."
"How do you figure?"
"During the wave we fought so many monsters, but they were mindless, in a frenzy. The moment they saw us, they charged forward and didn't stop until they were cut to bits. These ants... "
She trailed away and Donnelan sighed.
"Are too cunning," he finished the thought for her and she nodded.
The traps, the secret tunnels, the ambush attempts, the constant probing on the flanks, sneak attacks trying to cut off their supplies, attempted tunnel collapses, mental assaults, barrages of spells, reinforced stone walls bristling with spikes. It was brutal, draining and constant. At any moment there could be four or five tunneling attempts going on in different locations throughout the area of Dungeon they'd captured. Not a single one had ever succeeded, but the ants didn't stop trying. At first Myrrin had thought they were just being stupid, but she'd seen how draining it had been for the mages and auxiliaries to haul their detecting equipment around, setting it up all over again every time the front moved. They even had to staff the thing in rotating shifts, not for a single moment allowing the array to be unattended.
If their vigilance ever slipped, even for a period of minutes, the ants would be behind them, filling the tunnels in an instant and crawling over every wall and ceiling as they sought to inflict any damage they could.
"You're right," Donnelan said, "this is so much worse. I'd much rather throw fireballs until I passed out than engage in these mental battles. They just feel so alien."
"You should see them from the front," Myrrin said softly, "they're so desperate to bite us they crawl on top of each other to reach us. It's like watching a living wall of monsters come rushing towards us rather than a charge. I swear I can feel their rage, even though their eyes are so cold."
The mage shrugged.
"We came here to kill them all," he yawned, "I'm not surprised they're a little cheesed off. How much longer until the next push?"
"Only a few minutes," she sighed and pulled on her helmet. "I'm getting a break after this one. You?"
"No," he said, "unlike some people, I have a solemn duty to perform and I won't be caught shirking."
"Except you would if you could," she smiled.
"Hells yes."
The two friends lapsed into a comfortable silence as they drank in this rare opportunity for a break. It didn't last long. With her helmet back on, Myrrin could see her fellow Legionaries hurrying forward as they prepared for the next push. The centurions huddled together not far away, pouring over scout reports and discussing the overall strategy. Things had changed since the incident a few days ago when one of the attack groups had their shield line broken. The defensive line had been reinforced further for every push. It only mattered when that huge ant and its disgusting pets showed up to the battlefield, but it couldn't be predicted where it would show.
Myrrin herself had seen it in the field a few days ago. The magic it had cast was horrifying. For a moment it had almost looked as if the layered shield in front of her would break and she would be consumed by that void. It had held, of course, and the rest of the fight had gone according to expectations, but when she saw that creature across the field from her, she couldn't help but worry. The giant ape pet that had reportedly been a key factor in the retreat hadn't been seen since that battle. She could only hope it had been killed. The last thing she wanted was to face up to something like that.
"FALL IN!" came the call and Donnelan sighed.
"Back at it," he said as he hauled himself to his feet. "I hear we expect to reach their nest before too long, so hopefully we've reached the tail end of this campaign."
Myrrin barked a humourless laugh.
"You really think fighting in the nest is going to be the easy part of this? It'll take longer to break through there than it's taken to get to this point, mark my words."
"We have auxiliaries and more Legionaries coming," the mage pointed out, "that's going to help take the pressure off."
"I hope so..."
The two parted ways as they made their way back to their respective squads. The actions required before every attack had become so routine that the scout could complete them without thinking, but she had been warned against the temptation to mindlessly perform her maintenance. She made sure that she focused on every minute detail as she completed her equipment check alongside her comrades as their centurion watched on like a hawk. She checked every strap and buckle, tested each enchantment and examined all of her weapons before turning and doing the same to the Legionary on her left as they performed the same inspection on her. When all was confirmed ready, they reported to their centurion, a grizzled veteran from the wars on the third strata, who nodded and led them in a brisk march through the lines.
The sentries nodded to them and gave short words of encouragement as they scanned the darkness for ants and before long they had arrived at the staging ground. Row upon row of disciplined Legionaries formed up and Myrrin was proud to take her place amongst them. They weren't in the front for this assault, something she was secretly grateful for, but rather toward the middle. She cast her eyes forward but it was hard to make out what was ahead of her through the darkness.
After a few minutes of nervous waiting, the order came to advance. Eyes up, she marched forward in time with her comrades, her hand gripped around her bow. The shape of the ant defence gradually took shape in the gloom, the walls already bristling with innumerable insects that clicked and clacked softly in the darkness. Just when she had begun to relax, she saw it.
In the centre of the wall, surrounded by the thickest number of insects, that huge hulking figure loomed. Even in the dim light, its carapace glittered and sparkled, at least around its eyes. Myrrin suppressed a shudder. She swore she could feel the malice and rage emanating from it across the tunnel. Just above it flittered the small shape of the demon pet that appeared alongside it, the green light of its eye a tiny point of light in the dark. Looks like she was going to experience another battle in the presence of that creature, the most powerful ant in the Colony. She drew a deep breath. At least it didn't have that....
"ROOOOOOOAAAAAARRRRRR!!!!"
A mindless scream of rage and bloodlust boomed out from behind the ant wall, so powerful it shook the air and rattled the stone. Trickles of soil shaken loose from the ceiling fell on the heads of the Legion as they advanced.
What the hell was that?
From behind the wall a giant hand appeared on the lip, followed by another. Over the next few seconds an enormous, hulking brute lifted itself up over the edge, its eyes glowing red with fury. As she drew closer, Myrrin felt a ripple of anger from the silent Legionaries around them, a few curse words were shoved passed gritted teeth and soon she saw why.
The ape was covered in the armour of the fallen soldiers. The ants had desecrated their Abyssal armour and turned it to their own purposes. Behind the thick visor over the ape's head, she swore she saw the beast recognise their anger... and grin.
-x-X-x-
The various Strata of the Dungeon are as different from one another as can be, each holding unique characteristics that can only be found in those places. There is some discussion around whether the environment of that Strata is the cause of the predominant mana attributes in those places, or does the mana that gives shape to the environment?
Since no scholar was present as the various layers of the Dungeon took shape, it's impossible for us to know for certain. What we can do, as researchers, delvers and academics, is to study the current state of the various layers and hypothesise as to their formation. In the following pages I will provide a detailed breakdown of the layers known to the Magio Scholars of the Imperial College and give my own thoughts as to their purpose and origins.
(Inquisitor Note: Details of the lower strata are NOT for distribution on pain of death. Do not disseminate, discuss or pass on this information without the express clearance of the Inquisitorium.)
First Strata: The Layer of Beasts, as it is commonly referred is the weakest and least dangerous. The mana here is of a low concentration and is unable to support the more advanced monster types that can be found deeper.
Second Strata: The Shadow Sea, due to its nature, is far more threatening than the first layer, despite being only slightly deeper into the Dungeon. The darkness, cold and high concentration of death mana can create many unique monster types that can prove fatal to the unprepared. It has been noted by many that this layer holds special affinity to stealth Skills and types, proving the perfect hunting and training ground for those who specialise in such builds.
Third Strata: The Red Plateau. The world of the Demons and the playground of Arconidem's subjects. The mana here behaves in such peculiar ways that it isn't easy to assign a single affinity to the entire layer, but fire is certainly a persistent, and violent affinity that is found here. The Demon society, such that it is, is one that has adapted to this environment (or perhaps created it?) and certainly those monsters themselves are by far the greatest danger. Those that rule over that place are worse tyrants than any that has sat on a throne on the surface.
Fourth Strata: Mythic Realm. It is in the fourth layer that what mages like to class as the 'higher mana' affinities begin to appear, those that are beyond the basic elemental types. The monsters here draw power from many sources and are as varied as the environments that can be found. It is certainly worth noting that this layer is home to the highest concentration of many rare minerals that are prized highly by the Sapient races, making territory here among the most fiercely sought after.
Fifth Strata: Fields of Decay. A troublesome place to say the least, the fifth strata is almost inhospitable to life. Filled with mana of decay, decomposition and rot, few powers seek to fight for control over these lands and contest against the almost indestructible monsters that roam through it. According to the earliest records the Tower has access to, the first Delvers to reach this place found remnants of a different environment and traces of mana with attributes that no longer exist there. It is theorized by many that Theorazzn somehow tainted this entire layer upon his ascent, changing it into what it has now become.
(Inquisitor Note: Information of the lower strata is strictly forbidden. The remaining pages are sealed to the scroll.)
Gaining Invidia helped Tiny tremendously in terms of his survivability in combat. The numerous shields, which only get stronger as the little demon improved his Skills, with the constant flowing of sweet, sweet healing mana had done wonders in allowing the big ape to unleash his inner glass cannon. When I'd heard there was an opportunity to kit him out in some hacked together Legion armour... I have to say, I'd been a bit sceptical it would make much of a difference. However, after watching the ape nearly get himself killed diving headlong into the Legion, I knew that something had to be done. To be honest, I took this chance just to get Tiny away from the front for a few days in order to prevent him diving into bristling Legion formations for a bit. Perhaps that would be enough to cool him off.
Turns out I was wrong on many fronts. Not only did the slight visit not calm Tiny down, it appears to have bottled his rage even further, compressing it into a neutron star of fury that has apparently exploded. The moment he saw the Legion gathering to assault our position he began to roar and bellow non-stop, slamming his fists into his shiny new armoured chest and throwing punches at the distant foe. To be fair to him, the Legion didn't seem all that happy to see him, either. Once they were able to see him, I saw a crack in their usual cast-iron discipline. A visible ripple moved through the ranks and it became immediately clear that Tiny was their primary target once they drew closer. The amount of firepower directed his way was extraordinary! Sword light, spells and a few kitchen sinks flew up at him well before the distance had closed to the point that such things could hurt him.
When the battle lines closed, that was when all hell broke loose. I'd forced Tiny to remain on the wall by giving a strict, clear order using only small words which I'd repeated fourteen times. That didn't stop him from bathing the approaching Legion with Lightning the moment he could. If I hadn't ordered him to stop, he might have run out of juice before he even got to throw a punch!
When the fighting started in earnest as the Legionaries battered our walls and the ants started to apply the mandibles, that's when Tiny's new outfit got its first real test. Holy moly did they want to make him holy. That they failed is a testimonial about the effectiveness of their own craftsmanship, I suppose. With Invidia helping to blunt the damage and the armour in place to protect his vitals, the giant ape was gleefully throwing fists well past the point I thought he would need to retire from the fight. Eventually I had to dive in front of him and nearly get killed in order to force him to retreat, but even after all that, the armour held up fine. If he were to repeat his action from earlier and dive into the middle of the Legion assault, he'd fare way better than before, but I'm sure as heck not going to let him do that until we have to go for broke out the front of the gates of the nest.
It's too risky now anyway. After the last time Tiny was on the field and he broke through the enemy shield wall, the Legion has thickened their numbers and beefed up their defences when they advance on us. Not even super-mad Tiny would break through that nonsense now. I can't be mad though, having to commit greater numbers to each push means they've had to slow down a bit, and every hour gained helps.
It certainly helps me. Being in combat with these high level opponents is doing wonders for my Skills! I've got some nice improvements that I need to examine, as well as spend some time perusing the System menu for new unlocks. My biggest achievement over the last few days though has to be my stabilisation of the omni-elemental array! Now I'll be able to use the thing in battle and start levelling that Skill! Very excited.
As we retreat from the ruins of our last defensive outpost, I share a few words with Tiny.
[How did you find the new armour?] I ask.
The big ape looks at me for a moment before shrugging as we run side by side.
[Really?] I'm surprised by his lack of enthusiasm. [You've held up well under the barrage in that battle. You'd have been shredded to bits before!]
He shrugs again and waves his fist vaguely in the air before returning to running.
[You don't really care because it doesn't help you hit harder?]
He nods and grins.
THIS IDIOT.
-x-X-x-
Sarah took a deep breath and felt the frigid air of the second strata fill her lungs where she held it for a few long seconds before she exhaled, the wind of her breath so strong it nearly knocked over an ant who had been walking in front of her. She paid no mind, or rather, she didn't notice at all, her attention was focused inward, all external distractions shoved away.
She took another deep, slow breath. In. Hold. Out. Wait. In. Hold. Out. Wait.
This was a cycle she remembered learning as a human on Earth, something her psychologist had told her would help her be calm. Cyclical breathing. That was the name of the technique. It had helped her, in her past life. Most of the time. She flinched away from the memories of her previous existence and once more focused on her breathing. Each stage five seconds long.
In. Hold. Out. Wait. In. Hold. Out. Wait.
Even though she wasn't conscious of it, a team of ants crawled over the enormous bear as she lay sprawled on her belly. The great warrior Sarah had contributed much to the defence of the Colony and her unselfish fight had made the ants well disposed towards her. As she rested, they tended to her fur, cleaning it meticulously and ensuring there were no small wounds or barbs that may cause issues later. It was the same level of care with which they tended to each other before and after a battle, Sarah deserved that much. Also, they had noticed that she breathed easier when they were active around her, the aura of violence and malevolence that suffused the air around her abated when they drew close. From this they surmised that they were providing some sort of emotional comfort, another thing they were pleased to do.
From the wall of the tunnel, Jim watched silently as his companion battled her nature. He had created a burrow within the tunnel wall and only his head emerged, protruding into the open space. From the moment Sarah had joined the front lines, he had been here also. Not to fight, he wasn't much use for that, but to try and support his friend. He could feel her now, sense the internal struggle with his mind as she battled against the violent nature that had lain dormant so long within her.
[Sarah… ] he eventually asked, [are you alright over there?]
The great bear opened one eye and for a terrifying instant an overwhelming pressure of violence pressed into the consciousness of the worm, filling his mind with a hunger for battle. He wanted to rip, to tear, to do all sorts of non-worm like things. How would he even tear? Then Sarah released a great huff, knocked over another ant and the aura was gone, restrained once more in the depths of her mind.
[I'm fine,] she replied, [it's alright. I've got it under control.]
She pushed her feet underneath herself and forced herself to standing, sending the cleaning crew on her back to scatter quickly. She turned to face her friend in the wall.
[See? No problem.]
The worm wiggled derisively.
[Sarah, you're the worst liar I ever met. Putting that aside, I can still feel the malevolence inside you. I have very sensitive mental faculties, remember? You can't conceal this from me.]
Sarah just sighed and shrugged her massive bear shoulders.
[What do you want me to do about it? It's not like I can just stop fighting.]
[Why not?] Jim asked indignantly, [you've done more than enough! How long do you expect to throw yourself against the golgari to defend a place that isn't yours? You don't owe …]
[Don't I?] she cut in. [Are you sure that I don't owe anything, Jim? If it weren't for the Colony, if it weren't for Anthony, where would I be now?]
[Then what about what you owe me?] the worm demanded. [Have I been useless? Have I not supported you and helped you escape? Huh? Don't I deserve a little gratitude?]
The two looked at each other for a long moment.
[So. What? You want me to pay you back by betraying the Colony? Is that it?] Sarah asked, her mental voice low and soft.
Jim recoiled as if struck.
[What? No! I mean…]
At that moment the two friends were interrupted as Coolant arrived.
[Hello to you both,] the ant said once the mind bridges had stabilised. [I hope I find you well.]
[O-of course,] Sarah replied. [And you?]
The ant paused for a moment.
[I am also well. I am still not used to your human style greetings, I hope I was accurate.]
Sarah briefly wondered how the ants greeted each other and once the thought was in her head, she couldn't shake it. She had to ask. In response, the mage ant turned to the nearby traffic. There was no visible response, but first the passing ant's antennae began to twitch, followed by Coolant's.
[I told them to work hard,] the ant explained, [and they told me to stop slacking off.]
Sarah and Jim both stared at her.
[We usually encourage each other to work when we see others of the Colony. If we see them not working, we tell them to get to work. If we see them working hard, we tell them to keep it up.]
[Don't you ever tell them to rest?] Jim wondered.
Coolant looked nervous for a second.
[No,] the ant muttered as she turned her body this way and that, as if searching for something, [we don't say that.]
[Why do you look so nervous?] Sarah asked, confused by the transformation.
[I haven't gone into torpor for a few days,] came the distracted reply, [I'd forgot about it until just now.]
[You haven't slept? Why is that so worrying?]
[It's nothing,] once again the mage was cool and composed, [I've been sent to let you know our plan for the upcoming defence.]
[Okay] said Sarah, [ I'm ready to fight anytime.]
She pointedly ignored the bristling worm in the wall.
[That is good. We are retreating.]
[Whe- wait… what?!]
[Retreating,] Coolant emphasised. She gestured with one leg toward the procession of ants making their way past. [As you can see the process has already begun. The generals have decided to cede the final stretch of defences in order to consolidate around the gates. Let the enemy extend themselves across the distance as we recuperate.]
Sarah was confused.
[I thought you wanted to fight for every inch of ground,] she protested, [wear the golgari down, has that changed?]
[We have worn them down,] Coolant told her, [in no small part thanks to you, we have been able to force them to pay a high price for advancing. There are many circumstances that led to this decision being made.]
[Like what?] having been so ready to throw herself back into the fight, Sarah was keen to understand the change.
[The mana is rising in the tunnels,] Coolant said, [the spawn rates of the shadow creatures is rising. Extending our supply lines outside the nest is becoming more difficult and it is necessary to withdraw soldiers to defend the young. And if it is difficult for the Colony, with all our numbers, to hold off the beasts...]
[It's worse for the golgari…]
[Just so. We anticipate there will be another wave before too long. Though exactly when is not something we can guess. If we are able to repel the enemy at the gates, then our hope is that they will be forced to retreat when the Dungeon becomes too dangerous.]
Slowly, Sarah and Jim began to understand what this meant to the ants.
[The time for the final stand is fast approaching,] Coolant confirmed, [we will live or die based on the events of the next few days. Keep in mind Sarah and Jim, you are friends of the Colony but you are not compelled to fight. The battle will be fierce at the gates, so think carefully whether you want to fight. None will think less of you if you choose to sit out.]
The ant spoke to both of them, but all present understood it was to the great bear that her message was intended. Sarah wanted to reply immediately, but felt her thoughts constrict unexpectedly. Before she could force herself to agree, Coolant had vanished. Had she been less distracted she would have noticed the council member being dragged away quickly and silently by a team of ants as she struggled for freedom. With the liaison gone, she had little choice but to join the trail as they made their way back to the nest.
-x-X-x-
Chapter 651 - Under the sea
When the order came to pull back to the nest, I honestly couldn't say if I was unhappy or relieved. We'd battled these stupid Legion punks for every inch of ground. Thousands of Colony members had died in the defence. Now we were just supposed to hand over the last five kilometres of tunnel for free? As a gift? Were we rolling out the red carpet for these killers?
Of course I know that's not the intention, but it still rankles me. On the other hand, I'm freakin' tired. Exhausted even. I haven't enjoyed proper torpor in so long I swear I've sensed Protectant and her gang grouping up to try and drag me away. My body might feel young and sprightly, filled to bursting with the energy of the Colony supplied, but my mind is spongy and bruised. I need sleep! I need release from this endless war of attrition.
So it's with these mixed feelings that I finally make my return to the main nest. Each of the three nests are expected to be hit in the upcoming siege, but this is still the centre of the Colony's strength and despite not being asked to, I want to position myself here where the fighting is going to be hottest. As the massive trail of tens of thousands of ants winds toward home, it's hard not to take notice of how freaking cold it is. Ants aren't the best when it comes to dealing with low temperatures and I can see the soldiers around me are struggling somewhat to deal with it. The sea of shadows has grown thicker over the last few days, the oppressive darkness and freezing cold are pressing down on us ever more viciously.
It's obvious another wave is coming. Possibly worse than the first. This deep down we're sure to run into significant numbers of third strata monsters as they rise, possibly even the fourth. Where the last wave turned into an opportunity for us, this one may be a great trial for the Colony. If we survive our current predicament, we'll be thrust right into a fresh onslaught. Even so, I find it hard to believe the Colony will falter. My new family has never let me down yet.
Plenty of time to worry about the future when it happens, right now I need to take a comprehensive look at my situation. Fighting against the Legion is certainly good for Skills, I can't complain about that much. I've experienced growth in a lot of areas, particularly in those I've been using repeatedly. My mental Skills along with my targeting have grown by leaps and bounds along with solid improvements in my magic. My stockpile of Biomass hasn't grown by as much as I would like, opportunities for hunting have been nil for a long time, after all. The Colony did keep us well fed over the course of the battles, but not enough to significantly increase what I'd stashed away before the Legion arrived. Still, there'll be room for a few final mutations before the last battle heats up.
As I busy myself pouring through my Skill list and wondering which of my organs and body parts I should mutate next, the convoy rolls ever forward until finally we reach the gates of the nest.
If I thought things were ostentatious and overdone before, the carvers have taken things to an entirely new level now. The entire tunnel bristles like a porcupine on a bad hair day with reinforced steel spikes. I can see ambush and firing tunnels every few metres, peppering the roof of the tunnel. Even the slope moving toward the gate has been changed to a steep downward grade, forcing the enemy to march uphill to reach the gates. The massive steel doors themselves are now packed so full of enchantments and cores that I can practically feel them vibrate in place. This is just the outer gate! The inner one is surely even more ridiculous.
It was.
The carvers have not been slacking whilst the other castes have been fighting. I'm impressed as hell. The vats full of acid ready to tip on the enemy are the cherry on top of a spectacularly deadly cake. If the Legion tries to approach through the front door, they're in for a very bad time. Hopefully the Colony has considered what to do in the event that the enemy decides to try and tunnel around our defences. Magically condensed stone is wonderful and all that, but it can be beaten. We've done it ourselves after all.
Just as I make my way into the nest proper I spy a few unexpected faces before I can slither away to work on my mutations.
[Enid,] I say, [imagine seeing you here. And in such good company...]
I pointedly try to avoid looking at the thirty robed figures who crashed down to their knees the moment I appeared. The mayor rolls her eyes discreetly and replies.
[I think you're going to be more than a little surprised when you realise just what's happened up there. I don't think even you could have predicted this.]
[Predicted what?] I ask.
Rather than answer me, Enid just smiles and gestures towards the foremost robed figure, one conspicuously missing an arm. Dammit. Somehow I know this is going to be annoying.
[Beyn, if you yell at me I swear I will banish you from the Colony for all time. Try to keep it down and tell me what is going on here.]
The threat works a treat and I see the n.a.k.e.d fear take root in the priest's eyes. For once, he actually hesitates before blasting my mind with his thoughts.
[Great One. A new miracle has occurred. My fellow faithful have been blessed with a unique Class by the System that will allow the people of the surface to fight alongside their saviours. So we have come -]
[Hell no.]
He stares at me. I stare unblinking back at him.
[Do you have any idea what the Legion would do to you people? It'll be a massacre. No way.]
I turn to Enid.
[Tell him how stupid this is Enid. Unless this new Class of theirs allows them to shoot beams of pure destruction from their butts or something, there's no chance they'll be able to stand against the Legion.]
Enid blinks rapidly.
[Why the butt?] she wonders.
[I was born shooting acid from back there, alright? Don't judge me. Now explain to this moronic priest why he's such a moron.]
The elderly woman sighs.
[It's not that simple. It's a buff Class that works on sapients and ants so long as you are together. You could use a buff, could you not?]
As much as I want to say no, we are heavily outmatched by our opponents this time. Sensing my hesitation, Enid breaks into my thoughts.
[We've already spoken to Sloan and Victor and they've approved our involvement provided you agree. A lot of people from Renewal have come to help defend the nests. We feel that we have a chance to repay our debt.]
I scoff.
[Come on Enid. How many people would be dumb enough to run into the Dungeon to try and defend a colony of monstrous ants? They'd have to be completey and irrevocably insane.]
Before I even finish my rant, they have begun to arrive in the chamber. People. Hundreds of them. Farmers, merchants, craftsmen and women, each and every one of them a refugee from the devastation of Garralosh. Word of my arrival must have spread quickly, because they run towards me in waves, more of them appearing every moment. When the first arrive behind the priests, they immediately join them, falling to their knees and raising their hands in prayer towards me.
More come, then more, still more, until I stand with my pets and the great gate of the Colony behind me, and thousands of humans kneeling in a great arc before me.
[Just about every person of fighting age came,] Enid says gently. [Almost the entire town.]
I can't even shake my head.
[What is wrong with you people?]
-x-X-x-
Deep within the main nest of the young race of ants that he had come to know as 'The Colony', the sage who had named himself Grey sat in deep meditation. Nearby, his apprentice, White, sat and watched patiently as her master performed those feats of the mind she was not yet capable of. For though he sat still, not a single muscle moving across his entire frame, his mind roamed wide, seeking and communing. After several hours of stillness, he finally opened his eyes and breathed a deep sigh, relaxing the tension that had seized him.
"What were you able to find, Teacher?" White asked him.
In response he only shook his head. A moment later she felt his mind nudge against her own.
[You know better than to speak out loud in this place,] he admonished her. [The Colony are not our enemies, but they are not Folk.]
The fox-girl ducked her head to acknowledge the reprimand.
[I understand. I feared you would be tired after your Seeking and did not wish to tax you.]
Her concern warmed his old heart, but he did not allow it to show on his face.
[I am stronger than you give me credit for, youngling. I have no need of your coddling.]
[Putting that aside, were you able to contact the Bruan'chii?]
[Impatient as ever, my disciple. Yes. The Grove Keeper has awoken and begun to tend to her children. The Grove has grown so quickly, I fear that the anger of the Mother Tree has been roused.]
[Isn't that rare? I had read that the Mother Tree was a lover of peace.]
Grey leaned back and rubbed his legs secretly, trying to keep the motion out of his young charge's eyes.
[The Mother Tree is, before anything else, a tree. She can be vicious when it comes to matters that touch on her survival, or that of her children. From what I could glean, she has felt the presence of the Abyssal Legion in this place and she has no love for them, putting it mildly.]
White nodded. Knowledge of the war between the young races and the old was important history to their people. The conflict between the Legion and Bruan'chii had been particularly fierce, at the height of which the Mother Tree herself had been under siege, even wounded, by the Legionaries. Had the alliance not been brokered in time, it's possible that the Legion would have been successful in their attempts to cull this new race from Pangera.
[Do you believe that they will intervene?] she asked her teacher.
[I do. I'm not sure if they will risk open conflict at this stage, but I think a show of force will be the least we can expect from them.]
[And our people?]
The wolf-man heaved a deep breath and shook his head.
[It is never so easy to reach a consensus amongst the Folk, you know that, White. The decision to accept the Colony as a young race and allow them to join the alliance will take years, and many honour battles, to settle. The tribes are fractious at the best of times. Unless they are threatened, they will not unify quickly.]
[Surely your words carry weight there, Master. You could push them to act quickly.]
Grey turned his eyes directly on his disciple and stared hard at her. She sat still, hands folded in her lap as she looked back at him steadily. Her eyes were clear and focused, unpolluted by selfishness and greed.
[You have come to admire The Colony, haven't you child? You desire our people to reach forth their hand and shelter them?]
[I do,] she acknowledged, not attempting to deny it. [I do not believe you should extinguish an entire race on the premise that they may one day do evil. I do not see evil here, but good.]
[A simple view of the world,] he told her. [There are always currents, variables and uncertainties. The nature of 'good' and 'evil' are not so clear. Do you think the Legion to be evil? I do not. They simply do what they think is right, as do we all. It is rare indeed to find the individual who walks on a path that they know to be wrong.]
[I have heard these words before,] his normally demure student told him, her mind firm, [but they do not answer my question. Will you act?]
Grey closed his eyes once more and regulated his breathing, sinking once more into meditation. He ignored the irritated huff White released when she saw his actions and instead pondered the answer to her question. Was he willing to act? Usually so confident in his decisions, this time he wasn't sure. The branching paths of fate spread so far and wide from this point it was impossible to predict the consequences of any action. Who could walk boldly on such paths?
Deeper in the Dungeon.
The Grove Keeper was newly awakened, but already his body was flexible and lithe, filled with the power of the Mother. His memory still shifted and drifted, not yet settled in his new form, but he didn't mind. Here in the Grove, so close to the tendril of the Origin Tree, he knew no harm could come to him. So long as the Mother watched over them, they would be safe and act to carry out her will. In this moment, her will was clear. Anger and indignation rang throughout the Grove until every branch and leaf quivered with it. The hated enemy had been found attempting to extinguish new light, just as they had attempted on the Keeper's own people. It would not stand.
Around the tendril, a vast garden had formed, filled to bursting with life and greenery that drank in the dark mana of the Second Strata without pause, transforming it into nutrition that further powered the growth of each vine, flower, tree and shrub. To the outside eye, it appeared as if a flourishing ecosystem of plants had sprung to life here in the most harsh of environments, a miracle of nature. The Keeper roamed amongst the plants, caressing each in turn as he encouraged their growth and felt their energy flow into him in return.
The truth was more simple, of course. This was not a plethora of plants, but one entity. All was the Mother Tree, each and every lifeform in the grove just another expression of her careful design to draw in the power of the Dungeon and transform it to fuel her people. That energy was already being put to good use. The Keeper turned back to the tendril, the filament that extended from one of his mother's roots and saw the dozens of shapes beginning to emerge.
A smile creased the wooden face of the Keeper as he saw these new children of the Mother being born. It wouldn't be long now until they emerged, fully formed and ready to become the vessels of her anger. He raised one hand and blessed their growth, feeling the natural energies flow out from him and infuse the growing forms. The Bruan'chii were coming.
In the Legion camp.
Titus leaned against the table and examined the various scout reports laid out atop it.
"An enchanted gate made of steel?" he asked.
"That's right," Aurillia replied.
"Twenty tons?"
"At least."
"The same at the other nests identified?"
"Yes."
He raised one hand to pinch his brow.
"They've developed so fast..."
"Good thing we're here then."
He leaned back and thought for a moment.
"With the irregulars who've arrived we should be able to succeed on a full frontal assault of the gate but I'm worried about the no doubt hundreds of traps they've woven into the place."
"Ants are industrious, who'd have thought?"
Titus only grunted, too focused to even make a pretence of laughing.
"Has the siege team had any luck identifying weak points in the stone?" he asked.
The report from the earth magic specialists was already on the table in front of him and he'd read it twice but he asked anyway.
"None of it is especially hard, but none of it is soft either. We could tunnel through easily enough, but the diggers are reluctant to try and drill into an ant nest. They'll know it's happening immediately and move to counter us."
Titus frowned. The fact that this colony of ants was already capable of causing even a slight headache to his admittedly fresh Legion was a problem. If they were given a year? Or five? It would take a hefty mobilisation of forces and the number of casualties would be high. Better to strike decisively now, nip the problem in the bud.
"Looks like I'll have to frontline myself," Titus said.
"You've explored every other avenue, commander."
The Abyssal Legion did not like to let their high level members take centre stage when they didn't have to. Whereas some armies would let level seventy elites shepherd and protect rookies through hard battles, the Legion preferred to trust their training and equipment and push the new Legionaries into combat. Expecting that Titus would step in and solve every issue, fight every battle when it got hard, would only stifle the growth of the soldiers and let them embrace a security blanket that wouldn't always be there. They wanted smart, powerful Legionaries, not cowards.
Given the pressure they were under in this conflict, both timewise and in a lack of personnel, it was permitted that Titus take the field. To prevent the numerous casualties it would take to assault the gate, it was more than acceptable that he take on the responsibility of destroying it himself.
The commander stood from the table and rolled his shoulders as he took a deep breath. The mana was rising steadily. There wasn't much time left until the wave, another reason why he needed to act fast. He felt the mana stir in his bones as he breathed in again. How long had it been since he'd needed to fight hard? Not since Garralosh had gotten away from him and even then he'd been hampered by the lack of mana in the first strata. The current level of ambient mana was just enough for him to really cut loose.
It was almost enough to make him smile. His last campaign in the sixth layer was so long ago now. Did he even still have the moves?
In the golgari camp.
Kooranon Balta knelt in the stone, his blade standing straight before him, the tip balanced perfectly on the flat ground. As he had been taught so long ago, he focused his entire being on the sword, his mind and soul, seeking resonance with the blade. It was believed amongst the Blades in the golgari that the precious weapons they wielded, formed and shaped from the Living Stone to fit their wielders over a period of years, were living creatures. The stone itself was alive, certainly, but more than that, the swords could develop and grow a personality of their own.
It was to connect with that gestalt being that the High Blade now sought to do, but it was elusive. Sometimes for a fleeting moment he would sense a response from the weapon as it reached back toward him, but then it would be gone, lost as if it had never been.
After another hour he relaxed his stance, stepped forward and withdrew the blade from the ground before he cleaned it meticulously. As he nourished it with mana he felt the blade quiver in delight as it fed before it once more became inert. Kooranon was not discouraged, he knew of High Blades who had sought and nourished their blades for hundreds of years who had only received fleeting acknowledgement from their weapons. Even so, the pursuit of oneness with the blade was well worth the price.
After a moment to centre himself, he sheathed the blade with care and turned to find his attendant waiting in the same place as when he had begun his communion.
"Prepare the camp," he ordered, "it's time."
-x-X-x-
Turns out food gets scarce during a siege. I know for a fact that the Colony created a massive stockpile in preparation for this. Like, a mountain of Biomass, packed up and ready to go. Problem is that almost all of that is going to be delivered to the Queens in order to ensure that the Colony's brood production doesn't flinch from the daily maximum even during a period when we can't easily hunt. I get it. I do. The brood comes before all, obviously. We're ants after all. But dammit, I'm hungry!
I feel a nudge at the edge of my attention and I turn to see Tiny staring at me with wide, pitiful eyes.
I slowly shift my head side to side and two huge tears begin to well up within the ape's eyes.
[I know buddy. It's going to be rough for a little while, but we can survive. We're going to get through this together.]
Tiny reaches out to me with one shaking hand and places it against my carapace as if trying to draw strength through it.
[In times like this, we can only depend on each other. We've been together through the times of plenty, we can fight it out together in the lean times as well. If you don't believe in yourself, Tiny, believe in the me who believes in you. There is power in you yet. Your race is not yet run. Conquer the hunger!]
*Chomp*
What... What was that?
I look up at Tiny once again to find his hand has now grasped my leg which he has raised up to his mouth.
[Did you just try and bite me?]
Silence.
[Tiny,] I focus on him dangerously as he begins to sweat through his fur, [if you are attempting to eat me right now, I'm going to hand you over to Crinis for punishment. Now take my leg out of your mouth.]
He does.
[Ah! You got slobber all over it dammit! I can't believe I have to say this, but from this point forward you are ordered to never eat me!]
Stupid ape!
"Eldest, how are your preparations going?"
AH!
"Nothing weird is happening here, Advant! Nothing! My dignity hasn't been impacted in the slightest! And if you ask your baby-sitter squad, they'll tell you the same!"
When saying the last part I raise my abdomen high to threaten the ceiling of our chamber with a judicious acid spray to ensure that Protectant and her squad get the message. Imagine the Colony finding out that one of my own pets tried to eat me as I comforted them for a lack of food. The shame of it.
"Of course, Eldest," Advant brushes it off, "I was just wondering how you were doing making your final preparations. The council meets in a few hours and we need you to be there."
Another meeting? The enemy is at the gates! How many of these damn meetings are they planning on having?!
"I will definitely be there," I lie, "just give me some time to finish my mutations up."
"Of course, Eldest."
The soldier turns to leave me in peace for the time being and I immediately bring up my menu in order to rush through the mutation process. If I get it done quickly enough, I can vanish somewhere before the meeting starts. They're the council, dammit! I don't even technically have a seat, at least, that's my view and I'm sticking to it. Alright now, how much Biomass do I have to work with?
A quick perusal tells me that I have a grand total of two hundred and fifty one. More than I thought I might have at this point. Nice! So what lucky body part is going to get the upgrade this time? I can probably afford two here. Personally, I think it's time for legs. Legs are needed! My legs are absorbing all the mana I need. Especially down here in the second strata. Only heavy duty spell slinging can drain me. Especially once I get to draining mana using external mana manipulation. It may become a problem in the future, but for now, I'm solid. In the +20 upgrade I wanted to improve their ability to absorb damage, resulting in the Tough Rapid Absorption Legs +20. It must be noted that not having my legs cut off has been a welcome experience.
Because the Legion for sure targets our legs. The carapace is hard and tough to deal with, but if you take off an ant's legs, what the heck are they going to do to you? Even insects on Earth know this much. When ants fight each other, they're always going for the legs, with a few notable exceptions. With my potent reflexes and foresight, I'm almost always able to move my legs out of harm's way, but sometimes it just isn't possible. During the grand melee after Tiny smashed the Legion shield I had absolutely no room to dodge and had to rely on natural toughness. Which is why I'm going straight to Hardened Rapid Absorption Legs +25! Which is going to set me back a cool 115 Biomass. I have enough left to take one more body part from 20 to 25. Only question is, what shall it be?
I still need to upgrade a few things, but perhaps the one I'm leaning towards the most is my musculature. So far I've poured all of my mutations into increasing the speed at which my muscles can fire, which has given me the superhuman reflexes of a radioactive spider, but I'm not certain that I want to keep pushing down this road exclusively. My reflexes are already super fast, especially when connected to my limited pre-cognition. My nervous system can probably carry the load of increasing my reflexes further, what I need from my muscles is more power! I need some OOMPH! Tiny's mutations focus almost exclusively on the amount of strength he can punch out and although I don't feel like I need to match him in that department, I'd love to get myself a little slice of that.
Of course, my need for power is pretty isolated in terms of where it needs to be applied. It's all about the face-hands. I need to be able to bite harder. Mandibles are great, everyone should have them, but I need to be biting harder if I want to crack open the real tough nuts out there. Even the dedicated tier four soldiers haven't been able to get through the Legion armour, and all of their stats and mutations are directed to the purpose of tanking and biting. Even if I have the benefit of special evolutions and bonus stats, I can't get through either. There has to be some mutation here that can give me that edge!
I start pouring through the menu, going through the hundreds of options until I find something that catches my eye. Lock Musculature. From the description, it acts in a way that is similar to the famous trap-jaw ant from Earth. It allows the muscles to be 'set' in a certain position, poised to fire almost like a bow string. When the tension is released it can occur with tremendous power! The trap-jaw has, pound for pound, one of the strongest bites on the planet!
This also has synergy with my existing muscle mutations, since they can fire so quickly! Using this, I'll be able to pull my mandibles back and 'lock' them, stretching the muscles in my head and then releasing that pent up power all at once. Of course, with only one mutation the elasticity of the muscles isn't going to be much, but it'll help!
Lock Hyper-Twitch Musculature +25 here we come!
That's 230 Biomass gone. Yeesh, easy come, easy go these days. Lock those choices in, Gandalf! I've got a meeting to dodge!
Although I feel like I've forgotten something...
...
CHADANGADANGALOOZA!
THIS freakin' ITCH!