Chapter 778 - The new way
"You could have told me what was coming," she groused to her father as they settled into a more private setting, "I might have worked a little harder if I'd realised what the Legion was looking to put me through."
The commander actually laughed. Laughed! She was so befuddled by the rarely heard full-throated chortling of the man who raised her that she couldn't even glare at him properly.
"You've literally been working yourself to the bone since we got here," he eventually stifled his mirth long enough to say. "You haven't taken a break to wash yourself in over a week. You fight like a fury until you conk out and sleep, then get up and do it again. In my eyes, doing any more would be detrimental rather than helpful, so I decided you didn't need to know until now. If you upgrade your Class now, you'll have just enough time to grow used to any new features and Skills you develop by the time the wave ends."
"... and use my increased power to drive my levelling speed even higher during the height of the wave," she added.
"Just so," Titus agreed.
She took a deep breath, held it for a moment, then let it out, trying to drive out all the distracting emotions in her head along with it. She repeated this several times, until she felt calm and clear headed before turning to her father.
"What can I expect?"
Upgrading or changing a person's Class was altering the most fundamental part of their existence and how they integrated with the System. It was never something to be done lightly, and just as Titus had said, not taking advantage of his expertise whilst it was available would be a criminal waste. Her current Class was specific to the Legion itself and knowledge of the paths that branched from her current point was strictly contained, even she didn't have access to most of it and she was a member! But her father did... More than that, her own mother had been a Legion Berserker, just as she was now. She had little doubt that Titus had just as detailed a level of information on the berserker Classes as he did his own.
"You're currently an Legionem Abyssi Berserker, level fifty, correct?" He asked, just to confirm.
She nodded and he continued.
"As far as entry level Classes in the Legion go, the Berserker can be considered second tier, one above the basic level of Armoured Legionary. It does a decent job of marrying the strengths of the Berserker and Legion Armoured combat, but it's far from a perfect union."
It was true. She'd lost some of the benefits of her previous Berserker Class when adopting this new one. Most important being the Class Passive which allowed her to turn mana into anger, the fundamental plank of the berserk tree. Without it, she needed to work much harder to channel her own emotions to get anywhere near the level of rage she had experienced before. At first she'd thought it was far too crippling a blow, but over time she had grown used to it, though having it back would be amazing.
In return, she'd gained much, primarily access to the Abyssal Armour Skill which allowed her to wear and mesh better with the incredible Runic Armour the Legion provided. Enchantments in the specially crafted berserker set she wore helped mitigate the loss of Mana Rage, whilst simultaneously driving her stats and defence to a level far exceeding what she possessed before.
"The next step is all about iterating and bringing your two key Skills into a better balance," Titus explained, "and there are several ways you can go about that. Do you want to emphasise the Legionary side and boost the performance of your armour? There are several advanced Skills that are required before you can utilise the best suits we have, and if you ever want to wear one, this is the path you'll need to go down."
She drew a slow breath when she realised what he was talking about, just to calm herself down. Praetorian armour. The legendary equipment worn only by the most elite Legionaries in the most dangerous parts of the Dungeon. She'd never lain eyes on a set, if fact, none of the Legionaries from Liria had, even the veterans. Except perhaps...
Her eyes flicked to her father, but his face was a stern mask once more, unreadable.
She tsked audibly but he didn't react. The full details of Titus' service record were sealed to someone of her rank and he'd never been open about it. His exploits in the upper strata were well known and he was happy to talk about them, but what her parents had done and been before moving to the surface? Barely a word.
"The other way to go is to push further into the Berserker side," he continued, "which won't cut you off from later picking up better armour Skills but will significantly delay them. On the flip side, you'll have more raw power at hand that isn't dependent on your equipment."
Power was always dependant on equipment, every Legionary knew that well. No matter the level of Skills a person acc.u.mulated for themselves, there was no chance their skin was going to become more durable than a set of well-made armour reinforced with enchantments. A person could never become as dangerous with their fist as they could with a weapon, though it was possible to go close.
"The third possibility, is that you take a Class that will add something else into the mix, give you access to Skills you will find more valuable as you progress. Whether that be an alternate combat style, leadership Skills or something else you think might be necessary to achieve what your end goal."
"Do you have anything you would recommend on that front?" Morrelia asked.
He shook his head.
"I don't want to influence your decision too strongly. The System is generous when it comes to combining Skills and if you build the foundation of the final Class you envision, then it will almost certainly exist. There are tried and true combinations, but even then the details of the Classes can differ from person to person. Your achievements, circ.u.mstances, personality and d.e.s.i.r.es can all come into play when the System offers Classes."
"Don't I want to avoid taking a lower tier Class?" She asked. "I'd be stuck with low stat gain, grinding out another twenty levels, for what?"
"Gaining twenty levels on the third strata during a wave isn't going to take long," he pointed out, waving a hand at the chaos of the third stratum around them, "and if it means you get to take a fourth or fifth tier Class that is more suited to what you envision for yourself, it will definitely be worth it."
Hearing this, she sunk deep into thought as she tried to consider all the possibilities that would be available to her. It had been much easier when she was younger. All she'd had to do when maxing out her Class was choose the next in line, promoting it to a more advanced variant of itself. In this way she went from Warrior to Initiate Berserker to Berserker. She'd dipped sidewise and levelled Novice Ranger and Shallow Delver to get access to Skills that would help her survive in the wilds and Dungeon respectively before returning to the tier four Class Rage Berserker.
Her current Class had been a sideways shift and it was likely the most powerful choice she would have available would be a tier five Class that combined what she currently had with her highest Berserker Class. The other path her father had described, leaning more heavily into the Legionary Skills and armour, would likely be a tier four Class that might see her abandon her Rage Skills entirely, focusing more on becoming heavy infantry. It would mean forty levels of grinding before she would get the chance to Class Up again, but there would be little doubt the fifth tier Class option that merged her Legionary and Berserker Classes would be better.
The third suggestion was even more extreme, in terms of time taken, despite what Titus said. Taking a third path, a weaker, basic Class, then levelling it up would be easy enough to do where they were, but that was only for the initial ranks. If she wanted this third Skillset to meaningfully impact her options at the fifth tier, then she would need to promote that Class through several tiers, not just one. To raise it all the way to tier four would mean almost a hundred levels worth of experience! It was a big ask, and she wasn't even totally sure what sort of third path she might choose...
She'd already been offered leadership style Classes in the past, being in command of her own delving team had more than likely been the catalyst that unlocked them for her, but she'd never taken the option. She was certain both her father and mother had gone down this road at some point, though how far, she had no idea. They were useful Classes, to be sure, and likely a requirement if she wanted to rise far in the ranks of the Legion. At basic levels, these Classes gave access to speech Skills, making the leader more persuasive, but as they advanced, they became much more potent, granting Skills that could increase tactical ac.u.men, or even buff Skills that applied when giving orders in the thick of battle.
The real question was, what did she want? What would she be happy with? Would she be content just being the best Berserker she could be? A deadly killing machine that the Legion could reliably point in whatever direction they wanted and sit back while she went to work? She might have thought so a few years ago, but now? Ever since she had met Anthony and the Colony, she had found this idea more and more distasteful. Her world view had changed and being a mindless warrior of fury no longer appealed to her as it once had. Her life had undergone massive shifts over the past year, so much so that it was sometimes a shock her head wasn't spinning.
Now she was in a place where she needed to decide who she was, and what she wanted to be, and the answers to those questions had changed so much that she didn't have any confidence.
-x-X-x-
Chapter 779 - War Planning
"How long have you got?" Advant asked, her scent distracted and her antennae wavering busily back and forth.
"Not long," replied Brendant, similarly occupied, "I'm only off shift for under an hour and I had to travel to get here."
"I also have a lot of places to be," Victor looked tired but a determined light sparkled in her eyes.
"I don't know why you don't have that much time, I usually have heaps of time. Although I suppose I do move a lot faster than you. Maybe you just need to move faster? Or talk faster? You all talk reeaaaaallly slow and it's quite annoying, you know? I'm here waiting for you to finish waaay after I've worked out what your trying to say but it would be rude to interrupt, right? Is that a monster? No... Anyway. What was I saying? Oh yeah! You're all too slow! Try being faster!"
Advant wavered in the face of the onslaught of pheromones from Vibrant before she firmed her stance and managed to process half of what her older sister had said.
"We aren't too slow, you're just too fast!" she retorted and the others each nodded their heads.
Vibrant's evolution had only exacerbated her need for speed, and the combination of mutations and organs she had allowed her mind and reactions to keep up with her speed, which meant that quite literally she was operating on a faster pace than the rest of them.
"I do think we should try and converse a little faster, just to help Vibrant keep track of things," suggested Victor and the others agreed. Maybe they'd also get through more of their agenda if they spoke faster?
"The idea of this gathering is to lay the groundwork for our intentions once the wave is complete," intoned Victor, calling the semi-council meeting to order. "Obviously we don't want to make any final decisions now, but we can work out how each of us feel the next steps should be and then go from there. I'll open the floor, please feel free to share your thoughts."
So saying, the general stepped back and gave the others space to voice their opinions. Surprisingly, it was the healer, Mendant, who stepped forward next.
"The real question isn't necessarily, 'what will the Colony do?', but 'what should the Colony prioritise'. Our family will continue to grow and expand, even without our input from this point forward. There have been protocols and norms established for most basic processes, and despite our sophistication, we are still monstrous ants. The d.e.s.i.r.e to expand and secure the next generation is built into us. We need to be thinking about what our priorities are going to be and how we can influence our siblings. We are guides rather than commanders, remember."
So saying the diminutive healer stepped back in place and allowed the others to digest her words. Advant was the next to speak her piece.
"I agree with what Mendant had to say. The Colony has grown beyond the point where we will be able to be aware of everything that goes on and influence every decision. Instead, we need to place ourselves on the forefront of the Colony's most important initiatives so we can assist as much as possible."
It was an important moment for the Council and the realisation they had come to would be fundamental for the way they would operate in the future. Indeed, the Colony had grown in size to the point where it was much too difficult for the twenty of them to adequately be in touch with all of the goings on of their own caste. Even for the Queens, who were the smallest in number, this was difficult, since they didn't travel between nests to communicate with each other.
Instead of trying to grasp at authority, the council instead opted to narrow their focus and trust that the Colony would be able to handle itself. It had the Eldest as its guiding light after all. There was no ant who would willingly betray the will of their most senior member.
They each reflected on this idea for a moment before Burke stepped forward.
"The Colony will continue to expand, and it will continue to descend. I believe that is where our focus should be. We can only be safe from those who would attack us if we have sufficient strength to defend ourselves. That means we must be aggressive in seeking that strength for ourselves. The third strata is the natural evolution of this quest. Even without our influence, there will be expeditions launched down there, so we should commit ourselves to guiding this effort."
"But what sort of expeditions will be sent? Resource gathering? Scouting? Biomass harvesting? What exactly are we hoping to achieve down there?" Coolant asked, stepping forward for the first time. "We need to be clear about our goals otherwise we will be at cross purposes."
Each of the members present sunk into thought once more. The future of the Colony wouldn't be decided here and now, but it was an important moment nonetheless. What was the plan of action? What were their intentions? The Colony had risen to a new level of strength, but how would that strength be applied.
It was several long minutes before Advant stepped forward.
"War," she said.
There was a long pause as the scent of that word hung in the air.
"Against who? For what purpose?" Burke asked.
"Whoever we find, for however long we need it," Advant spoke determinedly. "We have been on the defensive for a long time, but now is our chance to go on the offensive. We need to take and hold the territory and resources we will need to grow powerful to protect us from that which will threaten us."
She stepped forward once more until she was in the centre of the circle, pivoting slowly to look each of her fellow council members directly in the eye.
"I propose we invade the third strata in overwhelming force. We smash any who would stand in our way and leave in peace those who mean us no harm. We cannot be afraid anymore. If we stay in the upper levels of the Dungeon and huddle close to our nests, we'll be destroyed eventually by a power too great for us to resist. The Eldest has helped prime us for this opportunity, but now is the time when we must be bold and seize the moment."
It was stirring rhetoric and each of the listeners thought deeply on what was said. The meeting ended not long after, each of the ants returning to the thousands of tasks that they still needed to complete before the wave died down at last. As they worked, each of them had the same thought swimming through their minds.
War.
-x-X-x-
The thing about the tunnels in the second stratum is that they're freezing cold, like really cold. What's more, when you get this deep, they reek of death mana, which when combined by the near total darkness makes them a rather unpleasant place to be. It's like being in a graveyard at night where it's permanently raining. As an insect, I can't say that this is the most pleasant environment for me, though I don't suffer as much as a regular ant would.
I mean, if us monstrous ants were that susceptible to temperature, the entire Colony would have gone straight into hibernation the moment we got too cold.
With the rising mana levels of the wave, the stink of death, which is usually more of a background scent, has risen to be an all-consuming assault on the senses, magical and mundane. Even worse than the smell? The monsters.
[Watch out behind you Tiny! You can't just hit 'em once! You need to turn them into paste!] I yell at the ape.
With a surprised grunt of irritation, Tiny turns around to see that the zombified mountain of flesh he'd thought was finished had gotten back up again to try and claw at his back. Hands igniting with energy, the giant ape unleashes a flurry of punches so fast his hands blur and the air comes alight with fists formed of his energy that pummel the monster into a blob, but he doesn't stop until he hears the notification, whereupon he nods to himself in satisfaction before fl.i.c.k.i.n.g the muck off his fists.
I thought I'd seen the worst of the death monsters the second stratum had to offer, but I was far from correct. The generic sort of monster that housed death mana that we'd encountered was usually little more than a shadow beast that had a few too many bones sticking out, and more guts hanging out than one would expect to see. These types though?
[Invidia! Gimme the boom!]
[Yessssss! Give me your screamsssss!]
BOOM!
The monster I had gripped in my mandibles, pinning the serpentine creature covered in writhing strings of guts, detonates right in the middle, sending a shower of gristly guts flying through the air. The monster shrieks in what I'm pretty darn sure is not pain as its face of exposed bone tries to take a bite out of me. Oh no you don't! Eat flame! A burning jet of pure blue fire ignites in front of me and burns the creature's face as I apply more pressure with my mandibles.
Crunch!
With a horrific sound of snapping bone the monster's face disintegrates as the fire burns it away and voice of Gandalf rings out in my head at last. Gah! I'm sick of these damn zombie monsters! They're so damn hard to kill! It's not like they even regenerate or anything, they just don't stop! Slice one in half, it keeps on moving. Blow them up? Still moving. Just like in the classics, the only way to finally get them to stop is to destroy whatever houses the brain, be it the head or whatever else they have going on.
Burn you darn pains in the neck!
Using all of my brains, I concentrate hard and blast out three jets of fire at once, pushing back the darkness and burning away the cold, along with a handful of monsters. Gweheheheh! Yessss! Burn for me! Won't be long until that pupa hatches and I have a new little student to teach the ways of the Dungeon and Colony as well. Man, so much to do!
[Master! They're still swarming on this side!]
[Still?! Are you able to get rid of them!?]
[I'm holding them off, but they're still coming!]
Holy moly!
[Hold on, I'm on the way! Invidia and Tiny, you need to hold down this side for a while!]
I race toward the other side of the three way junction we've been holding toward the left side where Crinis has been slaughtering her way through the crush of monsters by herself. After all, mass de-limbing is something of her speciality. When I get there I see a wall of tentacles thrashing and twisting around hundreds of monsters, each roaring and tearing with maddened fury. In the few glimpses I get through the chaos I can see the tunnel beyond is completely filled with creatures tearing at each other in their rage and d.e.s.i.r.e to push upward.
This is never ending! It's been bad the last few days, but this is just madness!
[Hold them for a minute, Crinis! I'll give them a bomb!]
[Got it, Master!]
Throwing away all my constructs and residual fire mana, I task all of my minds with one particular job: drawing out and crushing my gravity mana. With all of my brains working together, we can crunch one together pretty darn quick! Standing still, I allow Crinis to protect me as she works double time holding the monsters back, giving me time and space to work.
A minute later, doom announces its presence to the monsters with its signature welcome.
HOOOOOOOOOWLLLLL!
[Crinis! Get out of the way and brace!]
The bomb rotates with slow grace as it flies through the air, vanishing amidst the grasping claws of the onrushing monsters before it expands into an all devouring sphere of death. When the dust finally clears and the ring of notifications in my head has finally stopped the tunnel is clear. A tiny bit of breathing space before the crush starts again.
[How are you doing on flesh, Crinis?]
[I'm getting low.]
[Eat what you can while the numbers are low. It won't be long un-... what was that?]
Before I finish warning Crinis, my mana sense goes crazy as a huge pulse of energy floods through the Dungeon, racing up from the depths and past our position in less than a second.
[Did you pick up on that Crinis?] I ask her. With her much finer mana senses, she's sure to pick up on it better than I did.
[I did! Master, check the mana levels!] she cheers in my mind, full of exuberance.
In fact, her tentacles are doing a little dance as she hangs off the wall. What is going on? As she suggested, I turn my attention to the ambient mana around me, recoiling from the overwhelming fog of death mana that lays over us. I... don't think anything is different? Or is ... wait... wait?!
[It's going down?] I ask, almost not willing to believe it.
[It's going down!] Crinis confirms, flinging her limbs into the air in celebration.
Oh so slowly, the mana level is creeping down, which means the wave is coming to an end! The moment the realisation hits me, my heart starts thudding in my carapace and I unconsciously turn to face the tunnels leading deeper into the Dungeon, excitement building inside me. It's finally going to end, after weeks of this nonsense! No longer are we going to be chained to these damned tunnels fighting the same monsters over and over again! I can't wait for a change of scenery!
I'm seriously looking forward to a warmer climate coming my way once we go lower, and I am determined to go lower. There's just something about this life that makes me want to keep pushing. I mean, it's not like I let things get me too down in the last one either, but this one is different. The things I've seen, the things I've been able to do, it's incredible. I don't often slow down to reflect on it, but the changes I've experienced in this life, ignoring the difference between my current incarnation and the previous, just within this second lifetime, I don't know... it makes me hungry for more.
What's more, I want to see. I want to see what lives in the middle of this Dungeon. I want to see the heart of this planet and I want to see the most powerful monsters in existence, the slumbering Ancients. Wouldn't you?! A worm who can swallow a mountain?! I mean come on! This is only the beginning. I have everything I need, and soon enough, the Colony isn't going to need me to take care of them anymore. Not all the time at any rate.
Whatever's down there, I'm coming. There's no chance you're going to be ready when I get there!
-x-X-x-
Universal education. It's a desirable principle, but how many times has it been achieved on Pangera in any meaningful way? The only large society to apply this idea on a wide scale, to my knowledge anyway, is the Colony. Though it might not last long, the education every hatchling receives is certainly intensive, covering almost all aspects of operations within the Colony. The curriculum is focused on the breadth of knowledge an ant will need to fit into their society, how to work and function as independent members of the greater community. Each member receives a primer and introduction to the purpose and Skills required for every caste, ensuring that every individual understands on a surface level the purpose and work undertaken by every other. It may be possible that this is just as large a reason for the incredible cohesion the Colony demonstrates as their shared Monster species.
Witnesses to the process have never failed to be impressed with the robust methods and particular care taken with each graduating 'class'. Taking a fresh hatchling at the beginning, and turning out a fully capable member of the Colony in a matter of weeks. It's remarkable in every way.
-Excerpt from 'Teaching the teachers: The education of the Colony" by J Hattsie.
The cocoon shakes a little, then a rustling starts from within. This goes on for a few minutes as the creature inside tries to take control of new limbs, to stretch an unfamiliar body. I can understand the feeling, I've been there once before myself after all. The next sound to emerge is a light scraping, close to the top and I can immediately tell that the tiny mandibles within have begun to flex, to try and grapple with the fibre of the cocoon itself.
A soul is yearning for freedom! To stretch and run free amongst the Colony!
I can feel the mind with the folds of silken strands bubbling into wakefulness as the sleep falls away from her. The fierce curiosity is starting to burn once more, the impatience also and the attacks on the cocoon grow stronger every second. It takes a little while. It'll take a little more time before her carapace will harden fully so for the time being she's forced to work with blunt tools, so to speak. Even so, a few minutes later and the first strands part under her relentless pressure. Once the first few go, the next break shortly after and the progress becomes more rapid.
Normally at this point of a new ant eclosing from the cocoon, other ants would step forward to help them break out. I know this is something that the brood tenders usually do, assisting the new arrivals and making sure they don't hurt themselves in the process of freeing themselves. I don't bother. This isn't any ordinary ant we're talking about here, this is a champion! If she can't do something as simple as break out of her cocoon on her own, then what hope will she have of matching up to her senior champion sister Vibrant? So I sit and watch, with my pets arrayed around me, as the little silken pillow wobbles this way and that as the hatchling inside struggles to break free.
When it finally breaks, it all comes in a rush, with chunks falling away to the ground until at last an antenna pokes through the gap, followed by the other, and then, finally, the full head.
"I'm free! My life for the Colony! MY DEATH FOR THE COLONY!"
Ah heck, not this again...
She's so focused on gaining her freedom that she doesn't even appear to notice the four tier six monsters looming over her from behind. Instead, she frees the rest of her body, stretching her legs one by one and finally kicking away the last remnant of her pupal form, swishing her antennae through the air triumphantly.
"Where is everyone?" she wonders out loud, "I'll go find them!"
YOINK!
Her legs start to motor but before she can get any traction I lunge forward and pick her up, holding her off the ground with my mandibles.
"Oh no you don't, young one. You're going to stay right here for a little longer while we have a chat."
It's lucky we were all here for this moment. If it had just been Tiny, she might have run off before he realised he was supposed to catch her. The hatchling wobbles in the air a little, her antennae waggling about as she finally lays eyes on us. Not enough peripheral vision with such un-upgraded eyes.
"Ah! Senior! Hello there, it's nice to meet you," she dips her antennae in a polite greeting and I feel myself warm up to her a little.
"Hello little hatchling," I say, "welcome to the greatest and most magnificent Colony in the world!"
"Of course it is! I'm in it!" she boasts.
Oi.
"Out of curiosity, how much do you remember from your time as a grub?" I ask her.
She thinks for a moment, which looks a little comical as she's hanging from my jaws.
"Not much," she confesses, "just impressions and flashes."
At my prompting, Invidia reveals his wide grin and opens his mouth, putting the fleshy inside of his maw on display.
"Ring any bells?"
A shiver runs through her form.
"I-I'm not sure but I think I don't like it? Why would that be?"
"No reason, I'm sure," I tell her smoothly.
I look at the eager hatchling and can't help but feel cheered by the enthusiasm and boundless energy I feel welling up inside her and filtering into my Vestibule. I lean forward to put her down on the ground and the moment one leg hits the tunnel floor, she tries to run away.
"Not so fast, little one," I lift her back up.
"Hey!" she protests. "What's the big deal, senior? Shouldn't we go and be with the Colony or something? There's only two ants in this tunnel and I'm one of them! I'm ready to work, let me get to it! I'm sure there's plenty I could be doing right now other than dangling here!"
[Is everything alright, Master?] Crinis asks, concerned.
[She's got a fair bit of energy, going to have to slow her roll a little,] I tell the horror glomped onto my carapace.
"You need to listen to your senior a little before you go running off, hatchling. You don't know how things work in this Colony, but I do. Give me a chance to explain things, then you will too. For instance, before you can work, you need to learn. That's how it works here. And the good news for you, is that you've got me as your personal instructor! How lucky!"
She looks at me with a suspicious gleam in her eye.
"I... can't work?" she asks sceptically. "I'm an ant. The need to work is baked into my carapace. How long is this education going to take?"
"Couple weeks," I say.
"All right then," she sighs, "put me down and we might as well get started."
I lower her back to the ground and she shakes out her limbs as she takes stock of our surroundings.
"So... what are you going to teach me fir- BYE!"
Aaaand she's off.
[Crinis...]
[Right away, Master.]
Before the hatchling gets even ten metres down the tunnel she is confronted by a forest of tentacles erupting from the floor. One snakes around the middle of her carapace and lifts her off the ground before carrying her back. Hanging in front of me upside down, I confront the cheeky little thing.
"I'm a calm and benevolent instructor, luckily for you. Settle down and be a little patient would you? You'll get answers, these things can't be rushed, alright? Now, I'm going to get Crinis to put you down and then we can - aaaand she's off."
[Tiny...]
A few moments later the hatchling is presented to me on the palm of Tiny's hand.
"Time for you to meet your second instructor," I clack my mandibles with glee as I look down at the still defiant newborn. "Sadly for you, it won't be quite as pleasant a learning experience as what I had in mind..."
[Invidia. Open up.]
-x-X-x-
While the hatchling enjoyed a little solitary education, we moved back out beyond the defensive lines of the territory to drive back the swarming monsters for possibly the final time. The mana levels continued their slow draw down and with every hour that passed the spawn rate of monsters began to gradually recede. I was hugely relieved that we had managed to get through this wave without having to confront any monsters of too high a tier. My last evolution had really driven home to me the exponential rate of growth in evolutions. Since the energy doubles each time, it's reasonable to expect that a tier seven monster with a perfect core is going to be literally twice as strong as me. Wild monsters in the Dungeon with perfect evolutions all the way down the line are hard as heck to come across, so it's unlikely we would run into one, but I was quite worried that we would.
After an hour or so of throwing back the tide, we retreat back behind the checkpoint to catch our breath and plot our next moves. At this moment, I get a surprise visit, although I suppose it's not really a visit due to her more or less constant presence, from Protectant. Thanks to the addition of the Nave, I have a much clearer idea of the whereabouts of my twenty bodyguards, generally speaking, although whatever high tech stealth organ they have still manages to interfere sometimes. Looking slightly larger than before, she appears above me, clinging to the ceiling at the same moment I detect her scent.
"Eldest, I have come to report."
"Hey there Protectant! How're things going? Been a little while since we last spoke!"
It had been. I knew they'd been busy, since I'd detected them running this way and that rather than just hanging over my head all day, but I hadn't actually interacted with any of them for some time, too focused on my pets and now the hatchling. I guess I had given them a task to complete, so I felt it would be best if I just left them to it.
"You're looking a little larger up there Protectant! Is it safe to assume that you've managed to evolve to the fifth tier?"
She shifts a little from side to side, clearly uncomfortable with being exposed to plain view but, to her credit, she stands firm long enough to answer my questions.
"I have. And I'm happy to report that all twenty of us have completed our evolution, as you requested."
"Really?! All twenty of you have made it to the fifth tier? That's amazing!" I peer at her a little more closely. "You didn't get all that much larger considering the shift from tier four to five. What on Pangera did you spend your energy on? If your stats are too low you're going to suffer in the future, you know?"
I don't really want to pry too deeply, but I am a little concerned. I know that in their evolution from tier three to four, the species they chose granted them their powerful stealth capability, but in choosing that they threw away the chance to gain anything more combat related. Being able to hide from view is only one aspect of their role, after all, the other is that they actually need to be able to fight.
"Not to worry, Eldest," she replies defensively, "we have made the necessary investments to ensure we will be able to complete our function. We decided as a group that it would be for the best if we tried to keep ourselves at a smaller size in order to make it easier to remain discreet. Rest assured that we are up to the task of ensuring your security."
I allow my mana sense to wash over her and I can tell that she has already reinforced her core post evolution, possibly even maxed it out already. Looks like they've been serious about getting themselves ready for the delve to come. That's quite a relief and a massive weight off my mind. I was worried they wouldn't be able to handle it and there was little chance I'd ever be able to convince them to stay behind.
"Great job, all of you up there. Make sure you do the right thing and get your cores maxed out as soon as possible. Mutations also! Get as close as you can to a complete tier five over the last few days of the wave. Once it's finished, we'll be delving to dangerous new places! The third stratum and beyond!"
No other ants reveal themselves, but Protectant gives a short nod before she once again vanishes from my sight. Gah! That's creepy! Honestly speaking, without the Vestibule and Nave I'd have never found these damn bodyguards. At least now I know they're strong enough to handle their job going forward. For the time being anyway. I want all of them to be tier six by the time I'm ready to evolve to tier seven, which is quite a ways into the future. With that taken care of though, it's time to get back to other matters.
[Alright Invidia, let her out.]
"Hello again, little one. Did you enjoy your time with your other teacher?"
"I did not!" she flares up.
I scratch my head with an antenna, as if confused.
"But I wonder... have you learned the valuable lesson that your second teacher was trying to impart? Otherwise, there is a strong chance that you'll receive further instruction..."
The little ant stares up at me defiantly.
"I won't run away," she grates out.
"Good job!" I pat her on the head, "I knew you'd listen to your educators eventually!"
I didn't expect to be doing as much teaching in this life as I've ended up having to do, but as expected, using the methods that were used on me when I was young has worked out alright. I turned out fine didn't I? And I certainly learned fast!
"Now then, if you aren't going to attempt to sneak away every few seconds, we can finally sit down and begin your education. First thing we need to talk about, the value of a life!"
"So... if I'm fighting an enemy, I'm supposed to... not die?"
"Right."
"What if I can cripple the enemy severely in exchange for my life."
"Settle for crippling them a little, and staying alive."
"What if I can defeat them outright in exchange for my life?"
"Settle for almost defeating them and staying alive."
"What if there's a critical task that needs to be completed and only by working myself to death will it be done?"
"We stay organised so that doesn't happen. And, honestly, if you tried to do that, you'll likely be stopped by other ants."
"What?" she's genuinely shocked, "why would they stop me?"
"They take their work very seriously," I advise her, "I'm sure you'll be meeting them quite a bit in the future..."
If she's anything like Vibrant, there will be a mutual grudge there before long.
"The fundamental fact that you must keep in mind at all times is this: you can't work when you're dead." I emphasise my words with a poke of an antenna. "You might live for a hundred years or more, working hard for the Colony and achieving great things every day, or you could be dead in two weeks trying to choke a monster to death with your remains," I still remember when Leeroy tried that, "which do you think is better for the Colony?"
She's quicker on the uptake than most hatchlings. After only a brief pause to think, she responds, saying "living." I can tell she doesn't like the idea, but can't deny the logic of it.
"Quite right," I agree with her. "That isn't to say there aren't circ.u.mstances where we need to lay down our life for the Colony. Many have died already in the service of our family, but that doesn't mean we seek it out. Indeed, the longer you live in the Dungeon, the stronger you become, which means you are even more valuable to keep alive. Before I'm done teaching you, you'll be a tier four monster, with hundreds of cores and Biomass invested by the Colony in you. To throw away that investment without giving back to the family? Ridiculous notion!"
She nods along, agreeing with what I've said.
"What's a tier four monster?" she asks.
Ah. I might have gotten ahead of myself there. For the next ten minutes I explain the basics of this world. The Dungeon, the surface, the waves, the fundamentals of being a monster. All good stuff. The hatchling listens with rapt attention, soaking up the knowledge that I offer her and eagerly asking for more. By the time we're done, I feel like I'm getting a cramp from standing still for so long.
"Okay then," I sigh as I stretch out my legs, "enough yammering. If you aren't going to run away on us, I suppose it must be time for a tour of the Colony. How about it?"
I don't think I've ever seen an ant so excited.
-x-X-x-
"You must be kind of a big deal, huh?" the hatchling observes, staring up at a giant statue of me carved from glittering stone.
"Ahem! You can ignore that. Come on, we have more interesting things to see."
"This is amazing to look at," she says as I drag her away, "I wonder who made it?"
"So do I," I grumble.
One of these days I'm going to catch that blasted artist and give them a piece of my mind. Of all the things they could have devoted themselves to, making statues of me seems like a tremendous waste of time! I don't even mind that they decided to become an artist, the carvings are all breathtaking, I just resent being the subject of so much of the work! There's tons of other amazing ants in this Colony! Every damn one of them is a hero in my book! Carve them for a change!
Alas, my plea goes unanswered and the number of carvings featuring my visage seems to have only increased within the nest over the duration of the wave. Clearly the artist has been locked in here with nothing else to do...
"Now, something for you to think about," I say in an effort to distract the young one in my care, "is what sort of work you might like to do for the Colony. A worker? A soldier? A crafter? There are nine different castes that you could evolve into and each have their own specialities and jobs that they perform best at. Workers become brood tenders, healers or Queens. Soldiers become majors, scouts or generals, though we usually just call the majors soldiers and crafters become carvers, mages and core shapers."
Eyes full of wonder as we navigate through the tunnels of the nest, the hatchling listens intently to every word I say, nodding to show she understood what I'd said.
"The brood tenders care for the young, the next generation of the family. It's their responsibility to care for the eggs, keeping them at the right temperature, keeping them clean, right up until they hatch. Then they tend the larvae, feeding them, cleaning them, tickling them and playing with them until they become pupae. Once they hatch, the tenders educate them, much as I'm doing for you now, up until they join the Colony as fully grown members. It's the most important task within the Colony and one they take very seriously."
"Why aren't I being taught by them then?" the hatchling asks curiously, "aren't they supposed to educate new ants?"
"Yes they are," I confirm, "you're something of a different case, and I'll get into why that is later. Ah, here we are."
The brood chambers are as warm and cosy as I remember, filled with the motherly love of the brood tenders as they care for their flock of grubs and eggs. I spy Florence beavering away on one side of the chamber and wave her over.
"Hey Florence. Recognise this little one?"
The council member leans closer before leaping back in shock.
"Is it? It can't be?! Not this soon!"
"Accelerated feeding program," I proudly declare. "Although, we could probably describe this particular grub as being somewhat impatient. Honestly speaking, I was surprised myself when she went into her cocoon."
"Do I know you?" the former grub in question peers up at Florence.
"Let's just say you were a little difficult to take care of," I pat her on the head. "Just thought I'd drop in as we give the little one a tour," I say to Florence. "How are things looking here?"
"Busy as always," she says, keeping one wary eye on the hatchling as though she might disappear at any second. "We are always ramping up to meet future growth. No matter how much we plan and expand, we never seem to get ahead."
"The hunger to grow and expand is a natural thing for all species I think," I tell her, "it's just that we can do it about nine hundred times faster since we're monster ants. How long does it take to get a fresh egg to academy graduate right now? I'm curious."
She thinks for a moment.
"From egg to hatching takes a day or so, depending on temperature. Just about all of our incubating rooms are fully enchanted now, so temperature hasn't been an issue that we've needed to deal with for some time, such a time saver. After that, a little over a week as a larva in optimum conditions, then a week as a pupa, and roughly twelve hours to fully emerge from the cocoon and harden. Then off to the academy where our current program takes them to tier four in three weeks."
So from literally nothing to a tier four monster in just over a month. And not just any run of the mill monster, nonono. These ants have perfect mutations for every evolution. They form their cores at tier one. They benefit from an array of mutations that provide bonus stats to them on birth. They gain bonuses to skill level gain and growth speed thanks to the loving care and education provided by the tenders. Despite being one of the weakest species in the Dungeon in terms of individual strength, and the fact that hatchlings in the Colony are even further physically weakened thanks to me putting all of that potential into their brains, our graduates are powerful, intelligent and fearless.
It's a damn impressive result for a single month.
"I'm impressed as heck, Florence. A month? Holy moly. And that's thousands of ants graduating every single day isn't it? I've no idea how you did it."
Florence wiggles her antennae, happy to receive the compliment.
"It's been difficult," she admits, "working out the logistics has been the hardest thing. The food supply, transport, maximising our harvest of cores. It's all worth it in the end though," she clacks her mandibles with joy as she watches the grubs roll about and play with their carers in the dim light of the brood chamber.
"Pretty damn impressive, eh?" I give the hatchling a nudge as she stares curiously at all the goings on in the chamber.
"It is," she agrees, eyes drinking in the sight of the tenders at work. "How many eggs are being lain per day right now?"
Florence doesn't pause for a moment.
"Six thousand."
"Wait, WHAT?!" I exclaim.
Without batting an antenna, she starts to tick off the numbers on one foreleg.
"In total there are fifteen Queens operating in the Colony right now. Three in this main nest, two each in the two satellite nests, and the next eight have been prepped and are distributed amongst the territory in safe holds. As of last week, every one of those Queens has reached tier five, with the Queen being tier six. For the tier five evolution, the Queens didn't go the same path as mother, for obvious reasons, and instead have chosen to increase their egg output, Biomass efficiency and stat gain for their offspring. Currently they are each outputting four hundred eggs a day. We estimate that may climb to one thousand eggs per day at tier six."
Holy moly! So that's..
"Forty two thousand eggs a week!"
"That's right," Florence nods.
The hatchling look suitably impressed at hearing the raw numbers, beholding the vast amount of work the tenders do. Then she tries to escape...
-x-X-x-
[Alright Invidia, you can spit her out now.]
With a wet splat the hatchling is deposited onto the tunnel floor in front of me still dripping with demon saliva. With a shiver she begins to shake her legs and abdomen in an attempt to cleanse herself of the goo. She has a little success before furiously cleaning her antennae, dragging them through the elbow joints of her front legs over and over again to clean the delicate hairs that line the appendage.
"I really thought we were getting past that whole thing," I point out to her. "You're getting your answers aren't you? Just be patient."
She keeps cleaning but gives me a look that I can only interpret as "Patience? What even is that?".
"Well, keep trying if you want," I shrug my antennae, "it just means more time with your second instructor and lets me rest. Now, are you ready to see this next part of the nest?"
Finally finished getting the worst of the mess off, the hatchling immediately looks around excitedly, only to be disappointed to find we are in a plain tunnel without anything remarkable about it.
"It doesn't seem that exciting," she says dejectedly.
WHACK! I bring my antenna down on her head with a sharp crack.
"This is just a tunnel! Obviously we haven't entered it yet!" I take a breath. "Where we are headed is the industrial heartland of the Colony. This is where all the raw resources that we collect are gathered to be processed. The ores, the wood, the gems and other precious materials that we might find in the Dungeon. Smelting, carving, crafting, enchanting, smithing. All of it goes on here. Hundreds of tons of raw ore is shipped here every day by a vast network of workers and tools. Look, here comes one now."
We can hear the rattling long before anything appears out of the darkness of the tunnel, but when it does it makes a suitably impressive sight. Metal wheels grind along the tracks embedded neatly into the tunnel floor, filling the air with that metal on metal discordant w.h.i.n.e that only grows louder as it draws closer. It resembles a mining cart, except far larger, the box made from solid wooden planks reinforced with metal banding welded together by the finest of fire mages. The base of the cart glows with flowing light that is emitted from runes that run the entire base of the cart forming an intricate pattern that loses my focus the harder I look as my eyes are drawn down into ever finer details.
At the front of the cart, a mighty soldier is strapped in with a harness, pulling the immense weight of the cart behind her in a display of incredible strength. When she draws closer we shift to the side in order to make way and the soldier gives a nod of gratitude as she focuses on her work of hauling. Only when she starts to go past do I realise that there is more than one cart. Three in total make up the train, attached together by a locking mechanism. At the rear of the third another soldier is found, pushing with all her might as the train continues.
What the heck?! This is uphill?! Are these super ants?! Each of those carts is packed to the brim with ore, I can see it from here! Maybe ten cubic metres worth in each. That has to be multiple tons of material being hauled here!
The hatchling watches them go past respectfully, her eyes immediately drawn to the glowing runes around the base of the cart which causes me to look more closely also. Which leads me to another discovery. As the wheels shift forward the track lights up just before they touch, matched by a glow from the wheel itself. The moment the track has passed under the wheel, that segment grows dim. It appears as if the track is enchanted to react with the wheels in some way? Or the wheels are enchanted to react to the track?
Or both?
Holy moly, I had no idea how much development had gone on up here... If I had to guess, the carts themselves are enchanted to lighten themselves and their load and the tracks are somehow enchanted to reduce friction as the wheels pass over, perhaps with some variant of water or ice magic? I've no idea. Whatever the case, it's incredible work since it allows such a huge amount of rock to be hauled by just two soldiers.
"So this is where the raw ore is brought in to be processed," I tell the still staring hatchling, "let's move in a little deeper and take a gander at the next stage."
She nods mutely and we follow along behind the cart as it continues its journey into the heart of the antdustrial empire. Two things become readily apparent as we walk, the temperature is gradually rising and the noise is continually building. The ringing of metal, the crack and crash of hard stone and the continual waft of warm air blowing against our antennae are all signs we are drawing near.
When we come upon the site, it still almost comes as a shock. One moment we are in a tunnel, the next the ground drops away beneath us and we all freeze in surprise. What the heck have these ants been doing whilst I've been busy!? Someone needs to get these girls a hobby or something! Unperturbed by the sight of it, the soldiers continue hauling their carts, unaware that we've fallen behind.
Overhead and to my right, hugging the wall as it widens, another train of carts has gone still and the soldiers have triggered some sort of mechanism. Through the gaps in the struts I can see the steel bottom of the carts drop away, the ore within dropping through the gaps with a low roar. With a sharp crack and hiss the rock hits the side of the cone and begins to slide down, tumbling and falling end over end. After a few seconds it reaches our level, tumbling through the gap between our track and the edge of the cone as it continues on its way. As I watch, the two soldiers we were following prepare to do the same thing. The two of them grip a lever at the two ends of the train with their mandibles and pull simultaneously. Just as before, the bottom of the cart drops away and the ore rumbles out, joining the previous rockslide as it rolls its way down to the bottom of the cone and dropping out of sight through the narrow opening at the bottom.
All around me this scene is repeated as carts appear out of tunnels and onto the rail bridges, whereupon they dump their ore and then continue on their way, vanishing out of sight as their bridge turns back out of sight. With their carts empty, the two soldiers in front of us pull on the levers once more and the bottom of the carts rises and locks into place before they resume their journey, one pushing, one pulling as they return to where they came to load up another train full of ore.
I hesitate to follow, drinking in the scene that I had heard of but never before witnessed. It never seems to end. As carts unload and then vanish, another takes their place, up and down the cone. The rumble of stone being unloaded is a constant roar and my mind boggles at the amount of material being processed. This is just the ore drop off point... It must be at least two hundred and fifty metres across at this point! It's freakin' huge! Exactly how much mining is the Colony doing around here?!
-x-X-x-
The hatchling is practically vibrating with excitement as she watches all the action and I can already sense the thought of running off to explore further forming in her mind. This little thing! She needs to chill out, yeesh! Rather than toss her to Invidia for time out, I head off her burgeoning escape attempt by offering to take her deeper into the nest so we can watch the process bear out further, an offer she readily agrees to.
It takes a little while to follow the looping tunnels, but eventually we make our way down to the area just beneath the bottom of the ore drop off point. I'm not sure what I expected to see, but the work room here is just as vast and oversized as the area above it. A blast of hot air smacks us in the face as we reach the end of the tunnel and find ourselves in the massive furnace room. Carvers are everywhere in here, running around, operating the many enormous blast furnaces and processing the slag and metal that comes out. It's bedlam filled with the roar of flame, the grind of metal and the crack of stone.
Trying not to let her get distracted, I herd the hatchling toward the bottom of the cone so we can watch the process from start to finish. I have to admit that I'm super curious to see it for myself, not just to show it to the new champion in the Colony. What my siblings have achieved just blows me away and I feel great pride at the incredible things my family has accomplished. It's not just killing monsters and growing more hatchlings, we build and create, design and develop! It's exciting and interesting just what we've become capable of and I'm eager to see more.
To my shock, I find that the ants have invented something else I never expected to see in this world without me knowing anything about or having any input. The opening of the cone is still several metres across and from it pours a constant flow of raw ore. This rock drops a short distance onto a rounded slope that kills the momentum and gathers the ore together before its deposited onto, of all things, a conveyor belt.
Have they invented rubber? Nope, that'd be way too out of their league, we haven't gone quite far enough as oil processing. Come to think of it, would oil even exist? Biomass gets absorbed by the Dungeon if it's left lying about for too long... and this world isn't exactly solid all the way to the middle, far from it... Forget it!
No, the belt they have made is actually stone. How does that work, you might ask? Magic. As in, literally, earth magic. A team of dozens of carvers work above and below the belt, using their earth magic to constantly keep the thin layer of stone moving until it reaches the end of the line, where the individual blocks drop down and rotate back the other way. Close inspection reveals that guide rails for the blocks have been carved on the other side, glowing brightly with powerful rune magic. Of course something like this wouldn't be possible without extensive enchanting. The belt itself is formed of very thin but highly condensed blocks of stone that slot together seamlessly, each one only thirty centimetres or so wide but several metres in length. The other shocking thing is the length of the belt itself, perhaps as much as a hundred metres long it extends out, carrying the ore in a straight line past numerous stations, each manned by dozens of ants.
In fact, the entire thing is positively bristling with carvers, quite a few of them on the belt itself, picking through the rock and using their nimble front claws to pick and shift bits and pieces as they continuously run forward to avoid being pulled back as if they were on a treadmill.
Close to the belt I can hear a constant rumble that ripples through the air and sends shivers through my antennae. It's pretty darn intense and gets the heart pounding. I nudge the hatchling and we shift over to the stations further down the belt, curious to see what they are about. At each one I can smell the carvers talking to one another as they work.
"There, there! Get it!"
"That's granite, no, no, that one! Send it back, we want iron ore!"
"Is that infused tin? Let it roll down the line, we just process the regular stuff. Read the mana signature already!"
Quite a few of them turn to speak to me as I stroll over and I'm forced to wave off the usual accusations of slacking and loafing as we watch them work. It appears each station is part of a furiously paced sorting process as the ants use their mana sense, eyes and highly developed stone magic to pick out the minerals and ores they want at their station, dragging the rocks in magically and depositing them into huge iron 'bins' that rest beneath them. I don't know nearly enough about geology to know which rocks are which, but the carvers appear to have no trouble discerning what they want, sweeping the ore they d.e.s.i.r.e off the belt with minimal trouble, leaving behind that which they don't need. If by chance they do end up snagging the wrong thing, there are carvers running the lip of the bin itself, inspecting every single stone that falls in to ensure the contents remain pure.
As we watch, the iron ore bin, definitely one of the more busy stations, in fact I think there are two of them, fills up and we get to see the next stage. After a final check, something is done to release the bin and a team of carvers use magic to direct it along a predetermined path. Further down the line, it enters an all new processing line, where huge numbers of carvers operate all sorts of gear. I decide to take the hatchling down the iron line to ask a few questions and run into one carver who's happy enough to answer them.
"We learned most of this process from the humans on the surface," she happily admits, waving one of her claws at the vast setup, "but we've taken many steps to refine it further, obviously."
She points to the bin that just arrived.
"The new ore is a mix of rock containing iron at various purities and we need to do a ton of work in order to get something usable out of it. Crush it, wash it, filter it, heat it and after that -"
"You get iron?" I ask.
She laughs.
"No! Then you have ore that's ready to smelt!"
Holy smokes.
"Sounds like a lot of effort!"
"It is!"
As I watch, teams of carvers work to tip the bin, which only now do I realise sits on hinges attached to a base so it can rotate without being tipped all the way over. The ore is dumped out into a basin whereupon the carvers operate huge steel 'hammers' that drop from overhead before being winched back up as other carvers 'stir' the jumbled rocks using their stone magic.
"After crushing them here, we'll wash them down to remove sand, then bake them to eliminate impurities, only then will they go into the blast furnace over there along with limestone to turn into pig iron. After that it gets refined further into steel. After that we imbue it to churn out charged steel."
"Charged steel?" I ask, confused. I don't think I've heard of anything like that.
The carver nods, excited.
"It's the latest process we've been working on. Normally to produce the truly good stuff, you need to find ore that contains magic already, right? We call that imbued ore and it's really rare! The carvers and mages got to thinking though, what if we could produce steel, regular, plain old steel, and then imbue it with magic!"
"Isn't that just enchanting?"
"No! This is putting mana and bonding it directly to the steel itself! When you take imbued steel and enchant it, you get double the effect of enchanting normal metal!"
Wow!
"That's crazy! So how's the process working?"
"Not... perfectly. We're still in the test and development phase. But we're getting closer to refining our methods! So far, our best has only been about a third of the mana level found in naturally occurring ore, but it's a heck of a lot better than normal steel."
-x-X-x-
"Explain to me please, why you would ever think that sticking your head into a blast furnace would be a good idea?" I demanded of the hatchling, still dangling from one of Crinis' tentacles.
"I wanted to see what it looked like inside!" she protests.
"Inside? Inside is nothing but fire, superheated gas and liquid metal!"
"REALLY?!" she goggles at me. "Sounds awesome!"
"Yes," I nod sagely, "it IS awesome. It will also melt your face off and you will be dead."
"And that's.... Bad?" she asks.
My mandibles clack together slowly.
"Do you need more time out?"
"... I do not."
"Then tell me that it would be bad if you died."
"It would be bad if I died."
"Good."
[Put her down Crinis.]
The blast furnace had indeed been amazing. Six mage ants had surrounded the base of the huge metal construction, lined with bricks, reinforced stone and enchanted on the inside to resist the insane temperatures. When it came time to heat it, the mages had poured great torrents of blue flame into openings designed to seal shut whenever the mage drew their head back.
Out one side of the base had poured the slag, a molten slurry of impurities that had bonded to the limestone, and out the other had poured the liquid iron which would be carted away to mould into ingots. It was then that I caught the hatchling trying to get a closer look.
"Alright, enough hanging around here, time to go meet a particular carver and say hello."
With a careful eye on the young, I make my way out of the huge furnace area, picking my way between the many rows of smelters, furnaces and tracks for bins laden with ore as we walk into the tunnels and then beyond to the crafting area.
The ring of hammers and the tang of metal vibrate through my antennae as we enter, the tunnels around us alive with the reverberations of steel on steel. Nestled throughout these tunnels are the many workshops of the Colony, producing the various goods required by the ants and our allies. There's delicate work being done, fine wires of various metals intertwined and experimented on to see how well they handle delicate enchantments, as well as more massive projects, like gates for the new nests or armour suits for new Immortals.
The hatchling stares at it all with wide eyes, rushing this way and that to inspect every ant at work and see what they might be up to, asking questions and generally being a pest. I tolerate it for a little while, but we have a schedule to keep and there's someone I really need to meet.
"Come on then, we need to move a little faster."
With a bit of needling I manage to drag the little one away in order to find the workshop of a particular carver who I'd promised I'd come and meet at some point after I'd evolved. I find the insane ant hard at work at her forge, heating metal with more a slightly crazed cast to her compound eyes.
"Smithant! How are you doing, you metal head?" I say.
She turns to see my massive frame looming over her workstation and clacks her mandibles happily.
"If it isn't the Eldest! I've been looking forward to your visit for a long time! And Tiny! Welcome back, my most successful customer! How did you like that armour I made for you, eh? I heard it worked out perfectly! Are you looking to get it reforged now that you've evolved into a new form?"
The smith is practically bouncing with excitement but I'm getting massive waves of 'meh' energy from Tiny once I explain what she wants. Just looking at the bland expression on his face, I can tell he's not that interested in getting his armour back.
"He's super excited for you to remake it for him," I tell her, giving the ape a glare.
[That armour kept you alive. As in, you know, not dead?! Would you rather be dead, or wear armour?]
[You shouldn't have to think this long, moron!] I screech at him. [Just how low did you take your intelligence on this evolution? You kept it where I ordered you to right?]
He nods and gives me a thumbs up, a wide, confident grin splitting his face.
I stare at him carefully.
[So how high is it then?]
He raises two fingers.
[If that's supposed to mean twenty, then you reduced lower than I left you with... but still kept it above the minimum I set... If it means two, we are going to have issues.]
I turn back to Smithant.
"He would love to have even more elaborate and protective armour than before. Layer it on him until he looks like the elderly on a snow day. I want him round, like a dumpling."
"I don't know what those things are," Smithant flicks an antenna in dismissal, "but it hardly matters. Time for measurements!"
"Quite a bit larger than before," she clacks, "I'm not sure that we'll have enough captured Legion armour to fashion the suit like we did before. I'll have a look at the stockpile, but we might need to look for a different solution."
She turns herself toward me.
"And what about you then, Eldest? Finally ready to accept your place in the glorious ranks of the armoured?"
Her eyes are practically sparkling. Settle down a bit there.
"I'm still not sure how comfortable I am with armour," I say hesitantly. "Not for any reason to do with the armour itself," I assure the suddenly crestfallen smith, "just because my carapace is... I mean look at it!"
Indeed, my diamond carapace is picking up the flickering light of the forge beautifully. So damn shiny.
"Well, we don't necessarily need to go with fully fledged armour. There are a number of options after all. We could make leg coverings, plating for the joints, segments for the head which protect your eyes, though they do limit visibility. The more metal we put on you, the more surface we have to work with for enchantments. Though, if I'm making something for you, I highly doubt anyone will object to me requisitioning the finest cores and materials from the stores."
The mad smith is almost drooling at the thought of getting her mandibles on such precious metals and cores. The passion she has for her craft is infectious and I can't help but feel I'd like to see what she could make.
"I'll say no to any helmets or anything that obstructs my vision. But, I think I could be persuaded with some leg guards or something along those lines."
"Perfect!" Smithant declares. "Time to get measured!"
-x-X-x-
Having a smaller ant crawl all over my carapace is kind of ticklish and I was frankly a little glad when Smithant was finally finished with her work. I could tell she was pumped up, she was practically radiating the same level of energy as the hatchling by the time she was done. Without so much as a 'thanks for dropping in' she rushed about, starting gathering ingots and scratching designs into the ground with her claw before we'd even left the room.
We took our leave and now find ourselves just outside the mana research section of the mage quarters. Here it is that teams of mages along with distinguished members of the other castes put their minds to the great problems of the age, such as how the hell does one unlock spatial magic? How do those frickin' gates work? What is the most effective magic for a fully trained team of ants to use to annihilate their foes? Among others. The other key area for research is enchanting, the Colony having made massive strides in this department since the early days. The proof of that is in the incredible pudding that I've witnessed on this tour. The sheer amount and variety of enchantments that have been employed is stunning to me.
Clearly those ants who are dedicated to this area of study have been raising the rank of their Skills like crazy. I wonder what on earth Smithant is going to be able to make for me in the end? My hopes are getting higher the more I consider it.
"What's this place?" the hatchling asks as we approach the new section, the spicy tang of fire, ice and other elements brushing against my antennae the closer we come.
"This is where the smartest and most insane ants of the Colony come to unlock the secrets of mana!"
"Smarter than me?" she appears doubtful.
THWACK!
"Of course they're smarter than you," I scold the hatchling as she rubs the top of her head with one claw, "you just hatched. Tiny is probably smarter than you."
"He is not!" she flares up.
"He's smart enough to listen, now shush. This section of the nest is for magic related research. Mostly mage ants and carvers in here, though there are plenty of others mixed in when there's a need. Healers are frequent visitors, for example. Nobody has more expertise with healing and restorative magic than they do, obviously, and their services are often required to help repair damage from experiments that... don't quite work."
"Does that happen often?"
"Daily, or so I'm told. Let's go!"
"I can't wait!"
Rushing down the last section of tunnel, the hatchling draws still the moment she fully enters the first chamber. A central chamber with many smaller workrooms splintering off like the spokes of a wheel, the arcane energy swirling through the air is so thick you can almost taste it. Sparks fly from one room, belching flames from another, ice cold winds with shards of ice from yet another. The glow of runes emanates from everywhere around us, producing barriers, light, heat, channeling mana and all sorts of things.
To my mana sense, this chamber is a chaotic dance of energy that dips and twirls everywhere in tiny eddies and massive currents. The sheer amount of mana moving through this space is staggering, taking in all that the dregs of the wave has to offer. Looking closely, it's almost as if some of these enchanted arrays are actually assisting the flow of mana, bringing more into this chamber from above and below in order to power the many experiments going on. Is that something we can do now? We can gather mana from the surrounding area using enchantments? Stack them together to produce a flow of mana?
In a round... I'll say desk in the centre of the chamber sits a rather important looking ant busily scanning through what I recognise as records that have been imprinted with scent. She appears to be... filing? Have we invented ant secretaries now?
"Oh! Eldest!" she starts when she sees us approach and hurriedly slides all the doc.u.ments to one side before turning back to us. "Welcome to the research hub! I don't think you've visited before. Is there anything in particular that you're looking for?"
She's not the only one to notice our presence, quite a few ants are sticking their heads out of the many chambers around the room watching my entrance with rapt attention. It's strange, I can feel their eyes on me in quite a literal sense through the Vestibule, giving me access to their impressions even as I watch them react to my being here. Quite a few are hoping I'm here to help them with their project, or admire the work that they've already done. I don't think I can be of much help, considering that when it comes to actual meta-knowledge of the mana system in this world, I'm sure they are far more advanced than I am, even if my magic Skills and stats are higher than theirs.
"I'm just here to have a sticky-mandible. Stick my antennae in and have a look at what's going on. I'm showing the hatchling here what the Colony has been doin- wait... where did she go?!"
Dammit, I was distracted by all the attention I was getting and wasn't paying attention for a split second. How the hell did she manage to identify that moment and take advantage of it so precisely? I hope she doesn't become an unnamed one, she'd have godly skills of catching people off guard. I quick scan and I identify her thoughts coming from one of the side chambers.
"Found her," I tell the fl.u.s.tered receptionant and rush off to one of the openings.
Inside I find a large team of possibly a hundred ants working furiously around one of the captured gates, reassembled in all of its glory here for the Colony to work on. Where the heck is she? I know she's in here somewhere...
"Ah, the gate project," the receptionant says from behind me after having followed in my wake, "this continues to stump the finest minds we have in the Colony, I'm afraid. Despite having found the correct matrix to draw mana into the gate mechanism itself, without any understanding of how to properly apply said mana, it simply dissipates over time, no matter what we try."
"You know about this?" I ask her, a little surprised.
"I know about all the projects," she confirms, clacking her mandibles with pride, "I have to in order to properly manage this research division."
Not a receptionist... a mage, who's probably the most knowledgeable of all of them in here. I really shouldn't pre-judge my insect brethren.
"Can you tell me a little more about this project?" I ask as I scan the room with multiple senses for the little runaway.
"As I'm sure you know, Eldest, the gate project remains a high priority for the Colony. There are three teams this size working on a gate, but progress has been painfully slow. Part of the problem being we simply don't know how spatial constructs work. As you can imagine, creating constructs from scratch, without any guidance from the System, is practically impossible."
I nod. The mana constructs are like works of art smashed into intricate architecture. I can't even be sure if there's a series of logical laws that underpin their construction or if they are just randomly assembled and work via... magic.
"Has an attempt been made to construct a spatial array from nothing?"
She nods.
"Of course, those efforts continue. Extensive study of every known construct is a major focus of ours."
I should probably drop by and produce an image of some kind of the omni-elemental construct, if that's at all possible. I'm sure they'd love a gander at that.
"Well, it's important that we - THERE YOU ARE!"
Atop the gate standing proudly is the tiny hatchling.
"This looks so cool!" she yells.
-x-X-x-