Chapter 2906 - Chry 114

Solant knew, of course she knew, how could she not? But the task before her didn't change, no matter what was going on behind her back.

"Focus your fire forwards! Don't pay any attention to what's going on behind! Hold the line!"

The fighting was still intense, though it had slackened, thankfully.

"Are you sure, general? Things are… rather dire back there."

"Leonidant, I don't care if the fortress collapses behind us, we will achieve victory here, in this tunnel, at this chokepoint!"

"But the fortress may well have fallen behind us, Solant! We don't know what's going on back there!"

For over an hour, reports had flooded to those fighting on the front that any and all communication with the central planning chamber had been lost. The fighters here in the tunnel had been cut off from central command completely.

That didn't bother Solant so much, she had a job to do, as did every other ant here, and if there was a problem in the nest, that was for others to deal with. The Eldest was back there, for The Queen's sake! If the Eldest couldn't deal with it, she assuredly couldn't.

And so, the fight had gone on.

Then the reports had changed. Not only was the central command chamber enshrouded in darkness, but the shadows were advancing down the tunnels.

Solant had glared at the scout and told her to get back to fighting.

"Rotate!" she demanded, and then twitched when she realised that the next line of soldiers was gone. There was no one to rotate forward.

Instead, all that lay behind her was a black wall of shifting shadows.

"Well… that's not ideal," she muttered.

"Yeah, don't stress about it," came a familiar scent, followed by the giant head of the Eldest. "You did a good job holding the line. Well done."

She was pleased for the compliment, but felt it wasn't deserved.

"We only held because the number of monsters encroaching on our position diminished significantly. If it weren't for that, we would have… lost."

The Eldest tapped her on the head with an antenna.

"Oi. Don't go getting into your head or anything. I'm the one who arranged that," the Eldest pointed a leg at the darkness behind them, "and I'm also the one who arranged that," next they pointed a leg forward into the tunnel.

"I'm… not sure what you mean."

"Give it a second, they'll be here in a minute."

The two waited, the Eldest swatting the occasional monster that came down the tunnel as the remaining troops, those not swallowed by the void, rested and healed themselves.

Soon enough, they saw a different type of movement down the tunnel, as a mix of large and small tree-people came into sight. The bruan'chii?

"I called in a favour from that stupid tree to cover the nest for us while everyone catches up on their sleep," the Eldest said, waving at the newcomers.

A large specimen of a tree waved back before they turned and settled in to defend the tunnel.

"Really nice to have a group like them on our side, even if their mother is a bit of a jerk. Alright, they'll take things from here, you lot can come with me."

"What? Where are we going, Eldest?" Leonidant asked, a little worried.

"What do you mean? Straight into this infinite void of darkness and shadow, of course!"

"What?!"

"Relax already. You guys have been diligent in making sure you hit your rest periods on time, right?"

"Of course," Solant replied, serious. "We were taught to always get proper rest in the Antcademy."

"And it's a good idea," the Eldest approved, "if you don't get enough rest, if you don't take proper care of yourself, then your work gets sloppy and all the ants around have to pick up the slack. Extra work for everyone. When too many ants are working exhausted, the mistakes snowball and we end up right in the… plops, I suppose."

In short order, the giant ant had rounded everyone up and cheerfully led them into the gently shifting void.

"Now, unlike you well behaved members of the Colony, there are those who routinely push the limits, who skip a torpor period here and there, or go for multiple days without resting. When that happens, someone needs to make them see the error of their ways and ensure they get a good night's sleep."

"Is that what's happening here?" Solant asked shrewdly.

The Eldest laughed.

"Yes indeed. The entire fortress is getting put into torpor. Way too many ants not doing the right thing. The whole place could have collapsed around us."

They continued to travel through the darkness, huddled together around the hulking form of the Eldest in their midst. Then, suddenly, shockingly, they were through it, emerging out the other side into the central planning chamber, freed from the shadows.

Though not entirely, tendrils of the dark mist still curled and drifted through the air, smothering the light and deepening the shade. Inside, Solant saw something unbelievable taking place. Ants were everywhere, crawling over every surface, on the room, on the walls, but even more than those ants who were moving, were those who were not.

Row, upon row, upon row of neat beds formed of shaped stone filled the space, each occupied by a member of the Colony, adrift in torpor. Thousands upon thousands of them. As they drew closer, Solant could see that each was tucked in with a thick layer of cloth, a small… toy or doll tucked in under one of their legs.

Throughout the rows, teams of ants moved industriously, carrying containers in their mandibles. When they reached a new bed, they would carefully uncover the ant within and apply the contents of their containers to special cloths that they then rubbed over the slumbering ant's carapace, leaving it gleaming. Then another ant, a carver, would go over the cleaned area with another specialised material, running it back and forth with their front two legs, until the carapace practically shone.

The decadence… the luxury of it all. How terrible. She shuddered.

The Eldest, of course, noticed her reaction.

"That's right," the giant ant observed gleefully, "if you don't take your rest on time, then you get the full treatment. So much time and effort spent rejuvenating you. How incredibly selfish!"

The ants continued to work without making a sound or a scent, collecting slumbering members of the Colony, tucking them into beds, cleaning them, grooming them.

"Is this happening all over the fortress?" Solant asked, shocked.

"Of course. Everyone is getting the treatment."

"What about them?" Solant wondered, indicating those who were working.

"They never miss a rest shift. Not even once."

That was… interesting.

"But who are they?" she wondered.

"Oh, them? Could be anyone, any member of the Colony can be one of them. One of your broodmates is probably one of them, working in the shadows when they aren't by your side."

"That's not possible," Solant insisted, "we would not hide something like this from each other."

The Eldest clacked their mandibles together and laughed.

"Oh, is that right? You hear that, Leonidant?"

The scout shifted uncomfortably.

"Anyone can be one of them," the Eldest went on, not letting Solant question her sister. "Anyone at all. Now, I think we've arrived."

"Arrived where?" Solant asked, but when she looked around, she saw what they meant.

A long row of beds. Empty beds.

"You can hop in yourselves, or, if you prefer, you can enjoy the full experience."

"Wait. We haven't missed any torpor," Solant pointed out, "why do we need to rest?"

"The whole fortress is getting a snooze," the Eldest insisted, "you are most certainly no exception. You've been given special treatment just by seeing all of this," the big ant waved their antennae around, "most people don't get a glimpse."

"And what do you mean by the full experience?"

"Well, if you're asking about it, you may as well experience it. I'll even spice it up for you. Get 'em, Crinis."

The world was suddenly nothing but darkness, madness and mouths.

Then. Sleep.

-x-X-x-

Church of the New Path.

Faith of the Great One.

The Colony Way.

The faith that sprang up around the seemingly miraculous advent of the Colony came to be known by many names. I want to emphasise I'm not being dismissive by describing the existence of the Colony as 'seemingly miraculous'. A sapient monster collective that chose to cooperate with other species rather than consume them is as close to a miracle as this non-believing academic can bring themselves to acknowledge.

For the Colony were a true monster species, unlike the bruan'chii, born from a Queen who spawned in the Dungeon and laid eggs that matured into monsters themselves. At no point in the cycle were they ever acknowledged as anything but monsters by the System, as far as I've been able to determine anyway.

This 'miracle', this incredibly unlikely occurrence, was taken by many of the early believers to be a sign of divine providence, that the Dungeon had birthed a saviour to protect them in their darkest hour. Had this belief been held exclusively by a few farmers and craftspeople, perhaps nothing would have come of it, but one of those early faithful was a Priest of the Path, named Beyn, who would eventually prove himself to be one of the most powerful religious figures of the age, second only to the entity he worshipped.

-? Excerpt from 'New Faith', by Siemon.

Fervour burned in the eyes of the priest, and he was pleased to see it reflected back at him in the gaze of his audience. He could almost feel their blazing faith like heat against his skin, hot enough to burn him to ash.

Still not hot enough. Until his soul itself was melted to nothing, he would never be satisfied.

"Remain strong in the faith," he demanded of his audience, his one hand stretching forward grandly, "and it will reward you. All of our lives have been transformed by the Great One, by the New Path, but they can change even further, spiritually, but only if you let them. This is a new world that we live in, separated from the before. Don't be like me, it took time for me to recognise what had changed, and something dramatic was required to wake me up."

He waved the stump of his missing arm at them and their gaze flicked to it and back to him.

"Embrace the new world," he urged them, "and it will embrace you back. Embrace the Colony, and they will be there to support you. Embrace the Great One, and you will become a part of them, and they will always be with you."

Beyn didn't know when or why that last part had become a regular part of his sermons, but it felt right to him, in a way he couldn't explain. He knew that the Great One was watching over him, always. This knowledge was embedded in him as deeply as he knew his own name.

"We thank you for your words, High Priest," a member of the congregation bowed to him, but Beyn brought up his hand.

"Please, I do not like to be called High Priest. Call me Beyn, or Priest Beyn, if you must."

The ants did not lift themselves up above others. If one general was higher in the hierarchy than another, did they look down on the other? No. Did they have a larger, more fancy title than the other? Also no. They were both generals, who did the best they could in the work that they did.

"I am a priest, no more important than any other priest. We work together, rise together and fall together."

The audience bowed once more, many exclaimed at how humble he was, how dedicated to the faith. At this, Beyn frowned.

"Please," he said to them, "do not elevate me, for that is not our way, that is not who we aspire to be. The Great One is watching over me, watching over all of us. I simply do my best to live in the way we are supposed to live, to walk the Path we have been shown. If we stay steady to the Path, we will walk from the darkness and into the light."

Finally, they appeared to get it and he smiled upon them as the congregation filed out of the chapel in which he was preaching. When he was alone once more, he breathed a deep sigh of satisfaction. Bringing enlightenment to the people was his greatest joy, leading the lost, until they became found. Even after the people were brought into the faith, still they needed guidance, leadership, and spiritual nourishment. All of this, he was only too happy to provide.

He was about to leave himself, when he heard something impossible, something unbelievable, something miraculous.

Not a bad sentiment there, Beyn, very antish. Looks like you actually started teaching something worthwhile. Anyway… when the heck did you figure out I could hear you?

As the words of the Great One rang out in his mind, Beyn experienced a kaleidoscope of powerful emotions that crashed through him like the waves of a storming ocean. His mouth moved, but no sound came out. His ears rang, but he heard nothing. His body twitched, but he could not take a step. Unable to process, he simply stood, jerking uncontrollably, foam dripping down his chin, his eyes staring but seeing nothing.

You didn't actually know, did you?

Beyn could not reply. His eyes rolled up into his head, and he collapsed.

Ahhhhh nards. This is going to come back and bite me RIGHT in the thorax.

-x-X-x-

"What's going on?" Jern asked, confused.

"Something's happening in town, I've no idea what, though. People just started running!"

That did indeed seem to be the case. Wherever Jern looked, people were poking their heads out of their houses and wandering toward the centre of town, or jogging down the streets after coming from the fields.

"Come quickly!" he heard a voice calling from somewhere closer to the square. "There's big news to hear! Come to the cathedral!"

"To the cathedral?" Jern asked, confused. "What's going on over there?"

His friend, Alis, stared at him as if he were being stupid.

"If you want to find out, then we need to go to the cathedral, right?"

"Good point."

Feeling slightly foolish, he put down his shovel and scratched at his cheek awkwardly.

"Soooo, you want to come with?"

Alis shook her head, sending her blazing red hair swaying down her back.

"Of course I want to find out, I'm only standing around here because I'm waiting for you! Hurry up!"

"Oh," Jern chuckled, trying to hide his embarrassment as he stepped out of the stables and into the street, being careful to avoid running into anyone. "I'm ready, let's go."

The two joined the flowing crowd of people as they made their way toward the largest building in Renewal. The cathedral towered over the burgeoning city; its tall, lavish spires and elaborate carved ants were an awe-inspiring sight, one that Jern frequently found himself gazing at, lost in the endlessly complex lines of the stone. In front of the cathedral, filling the town square, the crowd was abuzz with energy, murmuring and calling to one another, a hundred different conversations fusing into one, persistent roar.

"I feel like everyone in town is here," Jern mumbled, uncomfortable.

He didn't like being in crowds.

"Can you see what's happening in front of the cathedral?" Alis demanded.

"Uhhh, yes? Can't you?"

Alis glared and kicked him in the shin.

"No! I'm not a giant, like you!"

Jern decided not to point out that, even when she wasn't comparing herself to him, she was still considered small.

"Sorry. Yes, I can see. There's a gathering of priests over there. I think the head priest too? And a few ants. More than usual, actually."

His friend made a frustrated noise before she started poking him in the side.

"Lift me up," she demanded, "I want to see."

Jern looked around uncomfortably.

"I don't mind," he said, "but we need to move to the side. I don't want to block people's view."

"Ugh. Fine."

With him leading the way, it wasn't hard to make a path to the edge of the crowd. Once he was confident they wouldn't be disrupting anyone, he reached down and grabbed Alis by the waist, effortlessly lifting her up onto his shoulder.

"Are you steady?"

"Of course I am. Thanks."

She steadied herself with a hand on his head, idly twining her fingers through his hair as she peered intently in all directions, absorbing everything she saw.

"There's a lot of mages here," she observed, "and soldiers. That's unusual. There's even a few generals and carvers! Why on Pangera would the Colony send them over here?"

"You can tell the difference?" Jern asked.

Alis rolled her eyes.

"Of course, they all look completely different. Look at that one, you see the different orientation of the front pair of legs?"

"Yes?" he replied doubtfully.

"That's a carver. The big ones are soldiers, that's easy, the generals are smaller than them, but bigger than the mages, and they have larger mandibles. The mages can be a little tricky to work out, but they always seem the most curious, and they move around the most. If they're connected to a human with a mind bridge, they usually try and turn their body to face them directly, which is a giveaway. See! That one over there is doing it."

"You really know a lot about the ants, Alis."

She rapped him on the head with her left hand.

"Who wouldn't want to learn about the ants? They're our saviours! Most of our town was built thanks to them. And they're so interesting."

"If you say so," he said, idly scratching at his leg.

The ants were fine. As far as Jern was concerned, they were regular people who lived and worked in Renewal just like the rest of them. Except they had more legs. He knew about the nests and that there was Dungeon stuff and all that, lower down, but he'd never needed to worry about that. He cleaned stables for a living.

"Wait, something's happening," Alis said, leaning forward on his shoulder, excited.

Jern brought his right hand up, just in case she fell, as he tried to spot what she'd seen. There was a lot of movement amongst the priests, until finally, one of them stepped forward.

"I thank you for gathering so quickly, my fellow citizens of Renewal. And I apologise humbly for interrupting your day, but this news could not wait for the holy day, or be delivered in the next sermon."

"Oh, that's Beyn," Jern nodded to himself. He recognised the voice.

"Shhh!" Alis hissed, rapping him on the head again.

That seemed unnecessary to Jern, since Beyn was so good at talking in public his words felt like they flew into your ears no matter what, but he held his peace.

"I HAVE BEEN WITNESS TO DIVINE INTERVENTION!" the priest suddenly roared, his words rolling through the crowd like thunder. Jern could visibly see people blown back by the volume.

He loved a good speech from Beyn. They were never dull.

"THE GREAT ONE HAS SPOKEN TO ME DIRECTLY. WHISPERED WORDS OF GODLY WISDOM DIRECTLY INTO MY HEART!"

This got a strong reaction from the crowd, and even Alis was bouncing up and down on his shoulder.

"Careful," he warned her, but she ignored him.

"Yes, my people! No pheromones were involved, no mind-bridge. I wasn't even in the same stratum as the Great One, and yet, they spoke to me, assured me that they were looking over me."

The priest was openly weeping now, but there wasn't the slightest quaver in his powerful voice.

"I SAY THIS NOT TO ELEVATE MYSELF, BUT TO INFORM YOU OF THE REVELATION! I believe our faith has been sufficient, our belief has been abundant, and this has borne incredible fruit."

A dramatic pause. Jern loved a good dramatic pause and Beyn was the master.

"THE GREAT ONE IS ASCENDING! SOON, THEY WILL ACHIEVE A HIGHER PLANE OF EXISTENCE, AND I CALL UPON ALL WHO ARE WILLING TO JOIN ME IN A GREAT PILGRIMAGE."

He took a deep breath, calming himself.

"The journey will be long, and it will be difficult. There is no shame in remaining aboveground, but for those who are able, those who are deep in faith, join me. We will march to every city within the lands of the Colony, and to some who aren't, as we descend through the Dungeon and present ourselves before the Great One. JOIN ME! JOIN ME, AND TRANSFORM YOURSELVES!"

The crowd leapt and screamed in approbation, and Alis was so excited she slipped and fell from Jern's shoulder. Luckily he'd anticipated the problem and caught her deftly. She beamed up at him as he placed her back on the ground.

"This is so exciting! I can't wait to get started!" she declared.

"Get started on what?" he wondered.

She frowned.

"The pilgrimage!"

"Oh," he said, nodding.

"You're coming too."

"Oh," he said.

He did like a good, fiery sermon.

~~~

In the fourth stratum.

"DAMMIT!" Anthony cried. "DAMMIT ALL TO HECK!"

-x-X-x-

"Do you really think the ants are protecting us because the Great One approves of our holy pilgrimage?" Alis wondered.

Jern looked at the ranks of ants marching alongside them, guarding the pilgrims on both sides.

"I think… they probably just came along to make sure we're safe," he suggested.

His friend looked up at him irritably.

"That's all? Priest Beyn says it because they are guiding us along our blessed path and into enlightenment."

"All they really do is fight Dungeon monsters for us," Jern pointed out.

Alis scowled.

"Sometimes we have to fight for ourselves, don't we?"

He sighed and hefted the oversized axe on his shoulder. Surprisingly, an ant had given it to him, which had caused people to whisper and point. Eventually, he'd found a mage, (who did turn to keep him in front of her, which he tested by taking a few steps to either side), who'd explained that, since he was so large and strong, they'd made a weapon he could use to help protect the pilgrims.

"Yes, sometimes we have to fight for ourselves," he told his red haired friend. "Your fire magic has improved a lot since we left."

She folded her arms across her chest.

"Of course!" she declared, puffing herself up with pride. "I've had the chance to turn my flames on Dungeon monsters before. It's only natural that my Levels are increasing quickly."

Jern had to agree. Fighting against monsters really was Levelling him quickly. It wouldn't be that long before his Class maxed out and he'd need to change it into a new one.

"Still," he said, turning back to look at the long train of pilgrims behind them, "I never expected we would gather this many people."

"You really doubted how persuasive priest Beyn can be?" Alis scoffed. "Every place we go, we end up with more and more followers. I feel like we got a thousand at Rylleh alone."

"Good thing the ants are feeding us," Jern noted.

"Of course! The Great One is with us!"

The young man scratched at his cheek and said nothing. He wasn't particularly smart, so he was probably wrong, but he figured the Great One was just making sure they didn't starve to death, rather than urging them onwards.

Not that it really mattered, he was enjoying himself and Alis was having a great time, so he didn't have any reason to turn around and go back.

"Do you think this next city will be as welcoming as the last?"

"Why wouldn't they be? We are coming on a holy pilgrimage! They've got no reason to turn us back."

"But… isn't this city outside of the Colony's territory?"

"So? The light of the Great One is universal! I'm sure it'll be fine."

He turned and looked at the ants around them. They certainly didn't seem to be as relaxed as Alis, constantly on alert, with messengers running up and down the column at all times. Suddenly, two of the nearby soldiers turned toward a patch on the wall, their mandibles flexing as they readied themselves. He stepped toward them without hesitation.

When they looked up at him, he tapped himself on the chest.

"Allow me," he said.

They couldn't understand his words, but they knew what he was getting at, and stepped back a fraction. Jern hefted the massive axe off his shoulder and gave it a few swings to warm up his arms, then he waited.

A minute later, a frenzied, mad-eyed beast lunged from the wall, spraying the young man with stone fragments. He got a flash of fur, and claws, and a red maw before he completed his swing, smashing his axe deep into the beast.

With a wrench, he pulled his weapon free and stared down at the monster. When he was sure it wasn't moving, he turned to the soldiers, gave a dip of his head, which they returned with their antennae, and then jogged back up the line to catch up with Alis, leaving the soldiers to their meal.

"The ants can take care of that, you know. If anything, you're just taking experience away from them."

Jern rolled his shoulders uncomfortably.

"It must be hard shepherding this many humans through the Dungeon during a wave. I just feel like we should help out as much as we can."

Alis opened her mouth to reply, thought for a second, then closed it.

"You're right," she begrudgingly admitted. "I'll get the next one."

~~~

"Greetings, young ones," Beyn greeted them as he made his way to their fire. "Another hard day following the Divine Path has come to an end. I hope I find you well."

Jern ducked his head in acknowledgement as the priest approached, holy antennae bobbing on the top of his robe. Alis beamed with excitement, clasping her hands together.

"It was fine, thank you, priest Beyn. We did our best to help protect the column and even supported the soldiers as they fought Dungeon spawns."

"Yes, our friends informed me of how helpful you two were today," the priest gestured with his one remaining hand toward the ants, still on duty alongside them. "They are grateful for your assistance. It has been very difficult for them to protect us along this journey, given the state of the Dungeon. I fear we must step up and do more to defend ourselves if we are to make it to the journey's end."

Alis surged to her feet.

"Not to worry, priest Beyn! We are more than happy to do our part. Aren't we, Jern?"

Surprised at being suddenly included, all the young man could do was nod, jerkily.

Beyn laughed warmly.

"With brave souls like you amongst us, my heart is put to ease. Tomorrow we will reach our current destination, and I hope we will be well received, but we must be prepared to be rebuffed. We are outside the lands of the Colony at this moment, and the citizens of Torpin's Rest are not obliged to take us in."

"The Great One will persuade them," Alis gushed, "I'm sure of it!"

"Your faith is strong," Beyn beamed at her. "But the Great One may see this as a trial for us to overcome. In any case, I thank you for the warmth of your fire, but I must be off."

They thanked him for his time, but the priest was already moving, walking down the column toward the next fire. He would greet every pilgrim before the night was done, as he did every night.

"He's incredible," Alis sighed.

Jern nodded. He really was.

~~~

Jern winced and Alis bristled by his side, ready to explode, and he felt similar anger boiling from the pilgrims around him, but priest Beyn remained calm.

"Peace, friends," he said, his sonorous voice rolling over the gathered pilgrims along with the force of armed guards who had greeted them outside the gate of Torpin's Rest. "We are on a holy pilgrimage and have no desire to anger or quarrel with the people of your city. We simply –"

"Good," bellowed the man leading the procession from the Dungeon city, draped in his purple robes of office. "Then take your filthy insect masters and leave this place! You are unwanted, heathen monster-worshippers, and the sight of you soils my eyes!"

Jern blinked. He felt that was uncalled for. Alis nearly exploded.

"There is no need for this disrespect," Beyn said smoothly, but Jern thought he may have detected a slight hitch in his tone. "The Colony are a holy miracle who have saved and uplifted our people. I beg you, do not disparage them, for they have done nothing to you."

"And they never will," the man snorted. "Everyone knows the ants are too scared to approach Torpin's Rest, for they fear our righteous fury! We walk on the true Path, and won't bow to these pathetic creatures. Now, if you can find what is left of your spine, turn yourself around and LEAVE. You are not welcome here, and never will be!"

Jern thought he saw Beyn's eye twitching, but the priest retained his calm. He turned to the pilgrims and spoke to them soothingly.

"We will leave this place in peace," he said. "Let us depart."

"Yes," sneered the official. "Cowards all of you, just like your 'Great One'. If that pathetic beast showed its face here, we would smash it beneath our shoes like the bug it is!"

Beyn's calm expression twisted in an instant.

Jern sighed and picked up his axe, rolling his shoulders. Somehow, he'd thought this might happen.

-x-X-x-

"We didn't really mean to burn Torpin's rest," Alis protested. "People just got a bit carried away."

"We were lucky the Colony was there to keep casualties to a minimum and help rebuild. Things could have gotten very nasty," Jern said.

"They provoked us!"

The gentle giant next to her frowned.

"Just because someone teases me, doesn't mean I should punch them in the face. You're the one who told me that."

"That's… true. Of course that's true. But they shouldn't have said anything about the Great One!"

Jern thought for a while and then nodded. There hadn't been any need to insult their saviour like that. It was almost as if the leader of Torpin's Rest wanted to provoke them.

He stepped over a pile of rubble, and extended a hand to Alis, which she grasped as she clambered over it.

"Then what about Deepward?" he asked.

His friend released his hand and brushed off her dress, trying to pat away the dust and ash.

"Deepward was… a lapse in judgement. I think people were just excited after Torpin's Rest."

"Priest Beyn tried to stop them…."

"They really should have listened," Alis groused. "Deepward wasn't that rude to us. Still, a little more manners and…"

"And we wouldn't have burned their city to the ground?"

"Yes… that."

They came across several ants struggling to shift a beam of charred wood, carvers, judging by the size, so Jern put down his axe and helped them to lift, freeing it from the crumbling bricks that weighed it down. They waggled their antennae at him in gratitude and he smiled back before he picked up his axe and continued to walk.

"At least they were a lot more welcoming when we got to Jagtown," Alis said firmly, "they let us in, Beyn preached, we rested and then left peacefully."

"I think they were really scared," Jern observed, remembering. "People in Jagtown really seemed to want to avoid me. More than usual, I mean."

As big as he was, people tended to avoid him at the best of times.

Alis sniffed.

"Well, if a little fear is what it takes to bring out some good manners and hospitality, then that says a lot more about them than it does about us!"

He supposed there was some truth to that. If the pilgrims had received a normal welcome, then none of this would have happened. He wondered if the hostile reaction they got was due to the pilgrims, or perhaps because these smaller cities were extremely paranoid living right on the edges of the Colony's territory.

Having such an enormous and prosperous nest of monstrous ants right next to your city probably wasn't great for your nerves. In some ways, it might have been better if the Colony had just conquered them so they could find out everything was fine and just relax.

"Then we got here, to Blackrock."

Jern kicked a rock. It skittered across what remained of the shattered street and came to rest against the face of a statue commemorating the mining city's founder. Some pilgrims had pulled it down during the siege.

"Okay, this one is definitely not our fault!" Alis proclaimed, jabbing him in the chest with one finger. "We were super nice. We didn't show up with any ants. We kept most of the pilgrims well back from the gates. Beyn did everything he could to appear non-threatening and harmless. How can anyone blame us for…" she waved a hand at the ruined city around them, "... what happened?"

She wasn't completely wrong, as Jern saw it. Beyn, the ants, and the pilgrims had decided that getting into spiritual disagreements and burning down cities was not what the pilgrimage was about, so they'd made every effort to minimise the chances of something going wrong. Every effort to avoid offence, or the appearance of threat had been taken.

Yet the people of Blackrock really, really didn't want them nearby. Which was fine. If they'd just said so, then Jern was pretty sure the pilgrims would have turned around and kept moving.

But they didn't just say so. They hung banners on their walls mocking the Colony. They sang songs making fun of Beyn, of the pilgrims and the Great One. If that had been all, it might have been alright, maybe. When the delegation of Blackrock said regretful things about the Queen…

Beyn had been forced to let the pilgrims loose on the city. If the ants had found out what was said…. Jern didn't want to think about it.

He looked over the smoking ruins of Blackrock. Once a large and industrious mining town, now a blasted crater.

"I think we did something good here," he decided, kicking another rock.

Alis nodded firmly.

"I'm glad you agree. We should probably head back to the others. Priest Beyn is probably close to finishing his sermon."

The two wandered back toward the gathering, and indeed, Beyn was in full sonorous swing, preaching his heart out to the huddled and shivering residents of this once-proud city.

"A better life awaits you now!" he proclaimed. "Living in the light of truth, protected, sheltered, by the mighty carapace of the Colony. You will think back on this day and remember it fondly as the day your lives changed forever. For the better! And any who wish to join us on our holy pilgrimage are more than welcome. The time of the Great One's ascendance draws ever nearer!"

The ants were already helping to rebuild, setting up a defensive perimeter to defend against the wave and settling in for the long haul. Eventually, more ants would come to join their column to make up for those who stayed behind.

And some people would join them too. Jern wasn't sure why, but some always did. He could see it in the crowd already. A few shining eyes here and there, some ecstatic gazes filled with wonder. Those people would leave behind everything they had ever known and join the pilgrims in their long march into the depths.

"I just hope we don't burn any more cities down," Jern sighed.

He didn't like the smoke.

-x-X-x-

It was strange to be able to smell death. It seemed like the sort of thing that shouldn't have a smell. Sure, things like decay and rot, they had a distinct scent, an extremely potent one, but those were distinct from death itself. A function of death, in a way. When a person died in front of you, or around you, there wasn't a discernible odour, as far as Jern could tell. It wasn't like the soul leaving the body was something his nose could detect.

Yet, as he stood on the precipice of the second stratum of the Dungeon, he could smell death.

He didn't like it.

"It's so cold," Alis shivered as she stood by his side, looking down into the slowly stirring darkness.

"It's going to be colder once we get down there," he said.

"I don't want to think about it. At least it's supposed to get warmer once we reach the third."

From what he'd heard, Jern wasn't confident she would enjoy that heat much more than the cold. He'd conversed with a few ants from the next two layers, and it seemed to him that neither were all that hospitable. Only when they reached the fourth would they find a climate they would consider suitaboe for life.

"I never thought I'd be standing here," he noted aloud.

Alis looked at him, and then back down the sharply sloped tunnel. The border between the first and second lay before them, a sharp border in the Dungeon. To both of them, it looked like a cloud of ink that revolved almost imperceptibly, a dark pond he could toss a stone into. After a moment, he shrugged, picked up a small shard of rock and lobbed it forward, gently, just a couple of metres.

As it fell into the 'pond', the flat surface didn't ripple, it wasn't disturbed in any way, and the sound of the rock hitting the tunnel floor reached him a second later, muffled.

"What did you do that for?" Alis asked.

"I was curious," Jern defended himself.

"And what if some nasty shadow beast lunges up out of there and rips your head off?" she scolded him. "You've got to be more careful!"

Jern idly considered telling her he was much better at killing monsters than she was, but decided against it at the last minute. Alis didn't particularly enjoy being reminded of that.

"We should probably head back," he told her. "Beyn told us we shouldn't be out here too long."

"Good idea."

The camp wasn't far away, constructed in a large cavern formed from the intersection of multiple tunnels. A common phenomenon, he was told. Passages between strata were much rarer than regular tunnels, so there was often a convergence when one was around.

Walls formed of hardened stone were patrolled by armed pilgrims, hundreds of them at a time, and the ants swept the surrounding Dungeon on a never ending cycle. Even so, the effects of the wave were impossible to ignore. Monsters would burst out of the ground inside the camp at all hours; one even emerged from just under the wall, collapsing a wide stretch as it forced itself free.

Still, the pilgrims banded together and fought them off as best they could. It was probably a good thing they'd been doing so much fighting recently. Pretty much everyone was getting used to swinging some sort of weapon around.

Even the old ladies.

Jern and Alis waved to the guards, who let them in without fuss, then made their way towards the back of the camp, where it butted against the cavern wall. They found Beyn not far away, talking with a large group by a crackling fire.

"We must remain here for at least a week," Beyn insisted. "Your devotion is to your credit, Sister Myra, but I will not have members of this pilgrimage lost unnecessarily."

"Won't the Great One protect us from the Dungeon Sickness?" the grey haired woman demanded. "Everyone is certain our lack of symptoms can be attributed to the protection of the holy carapace."

"The Great One has stretched forth their mandibles to shield us from much harm, of that I have no doubt," Beyn agreed, "but for other trials, we are expected to carry the burdens ourselves. The mana thickens precipitously as we descend, and were we to advance to the Shadow Sea without tempering ourselves, then many of us would falter. It takes time, time we can use to reflect and meditate on our profound journey."

Myra didn't look like she much agreed with him until his final words. Perhaps she liked the idea of reflection and meditation since it sounded holy enough for her liking. She thanked the priest for his time and moved away, much of the crowd going with her.

The two young pilgrims approached and Beyn smiled at them.

"Ah, Alis and Jern, how fare you today?"

"Fine, father," Alis gushed. "We were just outside the camp looking at the tunnel down. Are we really going to have to wait a week before we can descend?"

The priest looked grave and nodded.

"Yes, I'm afraid we must. Even more may be necessary, though I hope that isn't the case. The devotion of these people burns strong, and I would hate to force them to delay on their holy journey. Dungeon sickness is a very real and truly dangerous concern. There are many in the camp who have been suffering silently. Were it not for the aid of our ant sisters, then I'm afraid hundreds, maybe more, would have fallen already."

He looked to his right, where the ants had dug out a large space from the cavern wall and created a low-mana zone within. All of them had been expected to spend time inside, slowly letting the mana in their bodies out, then stepping back outside. By filling and emptying themselves of mana, they would gradually adapt.

"You and I are probably due to go back in, Alis," Jern told her.

She huffed at him and then tried to cover it with a cough, not wanting to appear difficult in front of the priest. Then he remembered something.

"Oh, Beyn," he said, "I need to advance my Class and I thought I should do it today. I was hoping you could advise me?"

The one armed man smiled and brushed at his robe.

"Why of course, I would be delighted to. That has long been my calling, after all."

"C-can I get your advice as well then, Priest Beyn?" Alis squeaked.

"You need not ask. My knowledge is always available to my brothers and sisters in the faith. Please, tell me of your builds so far."

There wasn't much to tell, Jern was still, at this point, a simple Labourer, and Alis had been a Mage Apprentice, the most basic of the introductory mage classes.

The priest nodded thoughtfully as if this was all deep and interesting information.

"And what sort of Classes do you have available for the change?" he said.

Jern had some interesting choices, probably based on the more militaristic Skill levels he'd been gaining. Things like 'Soldier', 'Bruiser', 'Axe Wielder'.

"Oh, there's something weird here," he said. "What's a… 'Templar of the Great One Initiate'? I don't think I've heard of that one."

"Oh," Alis said, "I have that too. Have you… heard of… that? Beyn?"

The priest's eyes were bulging from his head and Jern thought he might be starting to froth at the mouth.

"A MIRACLE!" he roared.

-x-X-x-

The sub-surface Conglomerate is a loose confederation of brathian cities, kingdoms, merchant houses and roaming caravans that live in the waters of the Fourth Stratum.

The Endless Lake.

Brimming with life and water mana, the Lake is the ideal environment for the brathian to dwell in, though they are capable of living on land as well as beneath the waves. Historically, their people lived in or around freshwater sources outside the Dungeon, and the more peace-loving amongst them still do.

Within the fourth, however, is where the majority of the brathian of Pangera now make their homes.

-? Excerpt from 'On the People of the Fourth' by Tir

The crushing pressure of the waters abated as Theraz slipped within the pearlescent barrier erected by his people. Knotted muscles loosened and tension drained from his scales as he smiled for what felt like the first time in weeks.

In reality, it had only been a day or two, but the extra life mana thanks to the wave seemed to press in on him. The waters of the Endless Lake were vibrant, filled with energy and life, but the mana was so thick. When he swam, he felt as if the weight of the mountains that towered in the sky above was pressing down on him.

The added weight of the unending tide of monsters did nothing to help the feeling abate.

"Welcome home, Theraz. How did you find the current?"

"Piris, I should have known you would be waiting for me."

"Of course, I would not want you to lose yourself amongst the fish and become confused."

"Do I look like a fish to you?"

"Am I supposed to answer that?"

His cousin grinned at him mischievously and Theraz shook his head.

"I have returned from an important scouting mission for the Satrap, and you wait for me here on the border of our lands simply to throw insults?" he shook his golden-scaled head. "What will your mother say?"

She shrugged, her legs drifting as the waters shifted.

"What does she always say? 'You need to do better! Stop wasting your time! Cease flapping your fins!' I don't listen anymore."

This was a little disturbing to hear. Had his aunt and cousin really fallen out so badly? He'd had no idea.

"Let us not talk of this anymore," he cut off the conversation. "I must return to speak with your father, and I do not wish to hear any more of this familial disrespect."

Piris frowned but fell silent as the two swam close to the sandy bottom, darting between the lush plant life and drifting weeds as they moved deeper into the water claimed by the brathian.

Soon they came across the outer farms, tall fields of hornwart and lotus stretching high above.

Patrols of soldiers swam in organised lines, ever vigilant for monsters spawning within the barrier or for those crazed beasts who pushed through the siren song and attacked.

Beyond the farmland, they came upon Crelios proper, dome-shaped houses made of sandstone, neat gardens and enormous corals. Small fish ducked and darted everywhere, hiding in sponges embedded in roofs and walls. The brathian were everywhere, their vibrant scales of many hues glittering in the dim, shifting light. In the distance, the heart of the city loomed, towering sand structures rising from the lakebed, along with the enormous sponge fronds that rose hundreds of metres towards the light.

"We should pick up the pace a little," he suggested, "I don't want to keep your father waiting."

His cousin nodded, and the water began to twist in front of them as they employed their mana. Soon, they were rocketing through the lake, a short jetstream swirling behind them. They only slowed as they approached the outer reaches of the city centre and were approached by the guards.

"Theraz! Finally back, I see. I was worried we were going to get sent out to find you soon."

The old brathian lowered his spear and indicated the dull, faded sheen of the scales on his arms.

"I'm getting too old to go beyond the boundary, it's a good thing you found your way back.'

"You're as impressive a beast as I've ever seen in the Endless Lake," Theraz grinned. "I can't imagine a day when Mozla the magnificent will be forced to retirement."

"Then you lack imagination."

The old warrior turned to the guards on patrol with him.

"You two escort the young master and mistress back to the palace. I'll finish up out here."

"Not keen to visit the palace again, Mozla?" Theraz chuckled.

The old man made a face.

"I hate that place," he said flatly, and Piris stared at him in surprise. He noticed and grunted. "I'm too old for them to bother punishing me for my disrespect, little one. There are a few advantages to being a grey-scale like me. It's not your family that flaps my fins anyway. There's just too much… faffing about. I feel like someone has to announce you before you can enter the toilet."

She giggled.

"That's almost true. For mother and father, at least."

"Good. Now hurry up, I need to get back to work."

Theraz was made to reflect on Mozla's opinion as he spent the next two hours being passed between dignitaries (each of whom required that he be announced before being permitted to enter their presence). Access to the Satrap wasn't easy, even for his nephew. When he finally made it through to the inner palace, he'd begun to yearn for the open waters beyond the barrier again.

"Young Theraz, my nephew. Welcome!"

Satrap Umizan was… on the large side… for a brathian. Considering he spent all day lounging on his throne while dealing with administrative affairs, it was somewhat to be expected. The endless supply of sweetfish brought to him by his female attendants didn't help either.

"Father! You promised you'd stop snacking this week!" Piris scolded him.

"Oh! Piris! I… didn't see you there!"

The Satrap attempted to hide a plate of fish behind his throne with one hand and failed spectacularly.

"Don't tell your mother…."

She narrowed her eyes and folded her arms across her chest.

"Please?"

"Satrap," Theraz grinned, "I have returned from my scouting mission at the forward enclave. There is much for us to discuss."

At once, Umizan's demeanour changed and he straightened on his throne, a cold light gleaming in his eye.

"Good. I need to learn more about our new neighbours. These… ants."

-x-X-x-

"This… 'Colony'. I don't like it, Theraz, but it's new, and new can be either good or bad for business. What I need to know, as soon as possible, is which it's going to be."

"Well, the first thing I can tell you is we aren't going to be able to dislodge them easily."

"Really? That mountain has changed hands so many times recently I was starting to think it was impossible to hold. First that tree had her roots all over it, then the ka'armodo seized it for whatever reason and now these ants are setting up shop! I don't like it when others set up shops next to mine, Theraz."

The Satrap didn't get as disgustingly wealthy as he had by tolerating competition, after all.

"We are directing as many of the lake monsters as we can toward their fortifications, and so far they haven't made a dent. Worse than that, since they're monsters, all we're really doing is flooding them with Biomass, experience and cores."

"Are you suggesting we cease the siren song?" Umizen muttered, leaning his cheek against one of his hands. "Your father had the same thought."

My father is a lot smarter when it comes to fighting.

It wouldn't do to say so out loud, of course.

"Any and all matters regarding the Divine Guardian Beast are for you and you alone to decide on," Theraz replied smoothly. "I am merely reporting the progress, or lack thereof, being made."

"Fine," the Satrap grumbled to himself. "After everything I've spent on her, you'd think she could deal with squishing a few ants."

"She isn't fighting," Theraz reminded him, "she's just using her song."

"Should I send her up? Make a direct assault?"

Clearly hesitant, the Satrap suggested it anyway and his nephew suppressed a sigh. Anything expensive was an asset, and the Siren was incredibly expensive. His uncle wouldn't risk her unless he had a very good reason.

"I don't think that would be a good idea," he replied. "I've seen… I'm not sure how to put this…. I've seen a very powerful ant monster, a Mythic one, tier seven or eight probably, it was hard to tell from the waterline. It came out of the mountain and scared off a sky dragon."

He shook his head.

"It was massive. Highly evolved and highly mutated. If there are more like that in the mountain, then those ants aren't going anywhere."

At the mention of the monster, both his cousin and uncle had leaned forward eagerly, though for very different reasons.

"Do you think it's strong?" Piris gasped. "Could you beat it?"

"Do you think it's valuable?" the Satrap breathed. "Could you capture it?"

"To answer both of you: yes, I think it's strong and valuable. The carapace sparkled under the sun like a jewel and I could feel the mana thundering in its core. Secondly, no. I could not beat it, certainly not alone, and capturing it would be even less likely, since that's the only time it has come out of the mountain. Fighting through a fortress guarded by hundreds of thousands of ants isn't something we can achieve."

"But they're just ants," Piris and her father protested together.

Theraz shook his head.

"Please put that thought from your mind. They aren't 'just' anything. If a group of monsters conquered a mountain and turned it into an impregnable fortress in a few weeks, you'd have a good deal of fear and respect for them, right? I implore the Satrap to not be blinded by what they are, but focus on what they've done. This Colony is strong."

The older, pudgier brathian leaned his scaled cheek on one of his open palms, eyes narrowing.

"There's an awful lot of money sitting in that mountain, nephew," he said, a hint of steel entering his tone. "We've confirmed that those monsters are tier five, some tier six, and they all have a core. Every single one of them, and there's hundreds of thousands of them, maybe more, according to what I've read. When we include monster parts we could salvage, that's a fortune equal to what I've amassed up to this point in my life, and I'm disgustingly wealthy. You understand what I'm saying, Theraz?"

The young man felt a chill run down his spine.

"You have to be alive, to enjoy the privileges of wealth, Uncle."

The Satrap sat back with a huff.

"That's what your father said."

"Then he agrees with me?"

"He's warned me off interfering with this Colony directly. 'You have enough money, brother', and 'what's the point of taking a risk like that,' and 'how many brathian are you willing to sacrifice to get richer'. I've heard it all from him for days."

"Those are all valid questions, Uncle."

"My fear isn't only about missing out on a fortune, nephew. Those ants represent such an enormous pile of cash that others are bound to come to get it. I worry about someone else taking it and supplanting our people from our dominant position in this area of the stratum. These monsters may be a threat, yes, but if someone conquers them and is even worse? What then?"

"We are not so easy to displace from our position in the Lake," Theraz assured him. "If it comes down to it, my father and I will give our lives to protect our people, and the rest of the Scale Guard alongside us."

Umizan considered him for a few long moments before he clapped his hands together before his paunch.

"Excellent! We will put aside the expensive and draining prospect of war and focus on that which is more profitable. Jolly cooperation! It's time for diplomacy, Theraz. You and your father will be part of my envoy, of course."

He'd probably intended on this outcome all along. Dealing with his uncle was exhausting at times.

"Of course, Satrap," he bowed.

Piris snapped and rushed to her father's side.

"I want to go as well! Father! Let me go!"

"What?" he boggled. "You want to go into that den of beasts?"

He blinked, then sighed.

"Of course you do. You take after your mother too much, she always has to be having an adventure. My daughter, the real adventure is commerce!"

She went to protest, but he raised a hand.

"If we can receive assurances from the ants, then I will consider it, but if you go, I will have double the military presence at the outpost. Keep that in mind. In fact, if you're going, your mother might as well go along. She'll be furious if I keep her home and let you out."

Taking the Satrap's wife and daughter to a mountain full of monsters, Theraz despaired. It was madness.

"Is there a problem, nephew?"

"Not at all, Satrap."

-x-X-x-

Ah, it's nice to see everyone looking so lively in the fortress.

"You're looking good there, siblings! Such gleaming carapaces!" I greet a squad of ants moving to the frontline.

They duck their heads in shame and rush past me, trying to conceal the beams of light reflecting from their exo-skeletons with their antennae.

Gweheheheh.

Everyone is metaphorically shining with good health while also literally shining from the torpor police's patented wax and shine. I've never seen such a well-groomed group of ants.

"Make sure you don't miss your next torpor session!" I remind them as they flee into the distance.

The reinforcements arrived yesterday to find the fortress still in the process of waking up. Quite an odd sight, I wager. With the added numbers, including a solid bolstering of the poor, overworked healers, things are running much better in the fortress. Getting a good snooze into the tired and bedraggled defenders has done them a world of good as well. Thanks to this escapade, the fortress has a decent chance of not collapsing during the wave.

I mean, I could probably have held off the wave if I went all out, but I'm a limited resource. I can't be everywhere at once! Maybe once upon a time, I would have tried to take all the burdens onto my own back and promptly messed everything up, but I've matured!

We're ants, dammit! If we don't grasp the concept of teamwork, then nobody on this planet does!

I was able to reach out to the tree without too much trouble, and she was loath to lend me her children at first, but I told her I absolutely didn't want any of her freaky gardens popping up around the fortress, so she should just let the kids out to play.

After bickering back and forth for a while, she eventually caved, which I knew she would. For one, the bruan'chii are insistent on repaying the debt they owe to the Colony. The tree herself is weak to the pleading of her dear offspring, so she had no choice but to give in.

"Sloan, feeling well rested?" I ask.

The general jumps a foot in the air as I approach stealthily.

"I am! Y-yes. Thank you… Eldest… for noticing."

"How could I not notice? You're shining so bright!"

"Haha… ha."

None of the other generals want to look in my direction, too ashamed to front up to my obvious taunting. Which is good. I draw a little closer to Sloan.

"You understand why I had to do what I did, right? I've warned you before about pushing too hard and asking too much. This fortress was on the brink of collapse right at the point the wave would shift to its most intense. I would have been able to save it, probably, but how many would have died? Ambition is good, but failure is not. This isn't only on you and Victor, it's the responsibility of the entire Council, and every ant working under you as well. If we don't learn our limits, then we're going to lose and lose big in the future."

Despite sounding harsh, I'm being perfectly sincere and honest, which is exactly how my siblings want their criticism. She nods slowly, though I see it's difficult for her.

"I… understand, Eldest. We will do better."

"I hope so! I really don't want to have to keep poking my antennae in and messing with everyone else's business. You're supposed to be so much better than me at running this stuff."

Well, I have the advantage of being able to 'see' what every ant in the entire fortress is up to at any given moment. If Sloan had access to perfect information like that, she would have seen the problem just as fast as I did.

"I understand. You won't be troubled in future, Eldest. I swear it."

"Hey, you can trouble me as much as you want, we're siblings after all. As long as it doesn't involve the imminent collapse of a nest, you know, I'd prefer we avoid that."

I turn to go, then turn back.

"But if a nest is going to collapse, please don't hesitate to call on me, in the event that I don't know about it already."

"We will."

"Good. Great. Good luck with the defence."

Now I turn away and head off to give her and the other generals some space. They've got a lot of work to do to get the defence organised again. Some sort of handover with the bruan'chii will be necessary, I suspect.

In the meantime, I've got a little free time to try and work out just what the heck is going on in my Nave.

Sending my consciousness inside the organ, I sink within the cathedral I carry about, entering through the Vestibule along with the torrential flow of Will, until I rest among the rows of seats, each occupied by a spirit form of the person who has taken up residence here within me.

Beyn is here, obviously, along with the nameless ones, and Enid, and many others. To be honest, I haven't even finished going through all the chairs because… I don't know. It's weird. Michaelangelant is probably in here actually, I should hunt down that darn sibling of mine…. She's got something coming her way!

It's a little disconcerting is all, to realise how much Will you've accumulated from an individual, or even that they've been giving it to you at all. If it were only ants here, I probably wouldn't mind, but the humans being in here is weirding me out.

At any rate, the place was full, I knew that much from my last visit here. It was full, no seats left, and I haven't mutated it to increase the available chairs. So, in theory, nobody else should be appearing in here.

So why oh why, are there two shining, golden figures standing along the wall?

From what I can see, it's a young woman and one huge young man. This dude is built. He must be seven feet tall! Holy moly man, how are you affording shoes?

More importantly, what are they doing in here? In the Nave, glowing all golden, standing against the wall like soldiers standing guard?

Do I have to talk to them? I have to talk to them, don't I?

The last time I did this, Beyn started some stupid crusade, the idiot. In fact, this probably has something to do with him, I'd bet my mandibles on it. Ah well, nothing for it.

-x-X-x-

Jern woke with a start.

"What was that?" he mumbled sleepily.

It's me.

"Who's me?" he wondered as he rubbed at his eyes.

Anthony.

"Who's Anthony? Can I go back to sleep, Anthony?"

You were asleep? Sorry about that. I don't sleep much.

"So… can I?"

No. Well… you can in a second, I just need your attention for a minute. Two minutes. Look, I'll be honest with you, five minutes probably, then you can go back to sleep.

"I'm really tired, Anthony. Can this wait until the morning?"

I mean… it could? But I've already woken you up, so we may as well do this now. Can you go and get your friend?

"Wha… what? Which friend?"

The other golden glowy person. The girl.

"Alis?"

Sure.

"You don't know?"

Well, I haven't spoken to her yet, I figured I'd just talk to one of you and then you could get the other.

"She's… she's in the girls' dorm. I can't go in there."

Dammit. Look. Just put some pants on or whatever and I'll get her to meet you outside. I want you to be able to talk to each other while I figure this out.

Jern blinked a few times and rubbed at his eyes again. The fuss over the new Class he and Alis had unlocked had gone on for ages, and frankly, he was exhausted. He didn't need this right now. He looked down.

"I'm already wearing pants."

Good man. Go stand somewhere Alis can come meet you. Oh! If you see Beyn, do NOT mention that I'm talking to you.

That was odd.

"Why, are you a bad person? Does Beyn hate you?"

Hah! I wish. No, he doesn't hate me. He likes me too much.

"He loves you?"

I would REALLY prefer we did not use that phrasing. Alright?

"Okay. Okay. I'm getting dressed, I'll stand outside."

Thanks, I appreciate it.

He pulled a coat on as quietly as he could so as not to wake those still sleeping around him before he crept to the door.

There was no nighttime beneath the ground, no sun that travelled across the sky, something he was still getting used to. Outside, the light from the Dungeon veins was the same as always. Patrols of humans and ants were constant, and several gave him odd looks as he ducked low under the door frame and stepped out.

Shortly after, Alis found him, similarly stumbling with fatigue. He poked her in the arm and she glared up at him, a little fire returning to her eyes.

Alright. I think I can talk to both of you at the same time…. Yep. I can. Nice. Hey, how are you two?

Jern shifted his feet but Alis glared at… the air?

"I'm tired," she snapped.

He agreed.

Look, I'm sorry I woke you up! Sheesh! You've only got yourselves to blame, showing up all shiny in my Nave the way you did. I certainly didn't invite you.

Alis sighed and pinched her brow.

"Look. Could you perhaps just explain to us who you are? And how are you talking to us? This doesn't feel like a mind-bridge."

"It doesn't?" Jern wondered. Then he thought about it. Then he nodded. "It doesn't," he confirmed.

I'm Anthony. I mean, that's my name. Which you've probably never heard. The Eldest? The… ugh… 'Great One'. Does that ring any bells?

"The Great One?" Alis said sceptically.

Yep. Call me Anthony. Please.

Jern frowned.

"Should we… kneel or something?" he asked Alis.

"No! Wait, you believe it?"

He shrugged. Why not?

"The Great One is on the fourth stratum according to priest Beyn! They couldn't possibly talk to us! And why would they talk to us?!"

Well… under normal circumstances, I probably couldn't. And I AM on the fourth stratum. As for why… that's what I want to know! You guys have a Class change or something recently? Something ant related? You're on the pilgrimage right?

"How do you know where we are?" Alis hissed, eyes darting at the darkness around her.

I would really prefer we get through this without me having to talk to Beyn. Between the three of us, he can be a bit… intense. And loud.

Jern nodded. That was true.

"I like a good fiery sermon, though," he said.

Whatever floats your boat. I find it hard to enjoy them since I'm typically the subject.

"I can understand that," Jern nodded.

This guy gets it. How about you, girl? No? You seem to just be getting angrier. Fine. FINE. Have it your way. Wait a second.

They did.

There was a strangled scream from somewhere in the camp which caused everyone to turn and grow tense. Was it a monster? Was someone hurt? Before anyone could investigate, priest Beyn sprinted out of a tent, shirtless, and stared wildly around the camp until he spotted Jern and Alis.

He charged toward them as if they were salvation itself, his eyes bulging and red. Jern found it… somewhat frightening.

"Listen to the Great One," the priest choked out, sounding as if his throat were constricted by a pair of giant mandibles.

Then his mouth began to twitch, followed by his whole body. Soon, he was spasming wildly, as if he desperately wanted to say more, to do more, but was prevented, until, with a despairing cry he spun and ran back to his tent, vanishing from sight.

See what I mean? The guy just needs to relax a little.

"He's been under a lot of pressure," Jern defended him.

Alis' jaw was still working, shock plain in her eyes.

"So… you actually are… the Great One?"

Yep. That's me. Anthony. Hello! I haven't got your names yet.

"I… I… I…" Alis seemed to be broken.

"I'm Jern and she's Alis," he said for her.

Nice. Now, if you could just explain to me if you've had a Class change to something ant-related, that would be great. Then you can go back to sleep and all that.

"I… I… I…" Alis was starting to worry Jern.

"We recently advanced our Classes and were offered Templar of the Great One Initiate, which we took. There was a huge fuss. The Class benefits were a bit weird as well. The stats are strong, but the effect gives us an improved connection to the Great One, and marks us as defenders of their sanctum? Your sanctum? I guess?"

Ohhhh nards. There's going to be more of you soon, isn't there?

"Probably."

Stupid priest! Forget I said that. I'm just frustrated. Alright, I think that's all I need for now. Thanks very much for your cooperation, Jern. And Alis? Alis? Snap out of it!

"I… I! Uh. Sorry!"

Good. Don't turn into another Beyn, I beg you. Chill out. Okay. You two can head back to bed now, thanks for your time. I'll probably get in touch again… soonish. Try and learn as much as you can about your new Class so I can ask about it.

"You don't know about it?" Jern asked, confused. "It doesn't come from you?"

No! I don't control the System! Who told you that? Nobody controls that. That I know of anyway. Maybe the wizard? I can neither confirm nor deny that someone controls the System of this world. Now go to bed.

-x-X-x-

The System is responsive to changes in environment and circumstances, that much is known. What is less understood, is why.

Many have tried to predict how the System will adapt to new circumstances, but to my knowledge, they have been confounded every time. Kingdoms rise and fall without ever seeing a unique Class develop within their territory, whereas some people are given access to one for seemingly innocuous reasons.

Famously, Dillip Crant, a sheep herder from a small village on Mount Grattagan, was the first to unlock the rare 'Cloud Stepping Shepherd' Class. When scholars tried to discern what had led to the unlock, they were baffled and eventually concluded that an earlier incident in which Dillip fell from a great height and survived while herding sheep had done the trick.

-? Excerpt from 'Intricacies of the System' by Xinci

Yet another problem the priest has caused me.

Well, I'd like to say that, but ultimately the blame rests with me, and I can't get away from that. As much as I'd like to.

Whatever these… Templars? Whatever they are, and whatever they do, it's outside of my control at this point. I'll just have to rattle along and hope it doesn't blow up in my mandibles. In the meantime, there's stuff to be about in the fortress!

"Hihi Senior! How are you doing? Did you sleep? Did you force me to sleep? That wasn't very nice!"

"Hello there, Vibrant, it's nice to see you looking so rested and refreshed! You even remembered to talk slower."

"I don't like sleep-sleep," she shivered. "Standing still for that long is unnatural!"

"You need to go into torpor regularly, you moron," I give her a stern glare. "These rules exist for a reason."

"You don't have to follow rules if you can outrun them! Bye-bye!"

And paff, she's gone in a cloud of dust. Or at least, she tried to leave.

"Senior! Put me down!" Vibrant cried.

"Gweheheheheh. Think you can run away from the rules, do you? Maybe I should send you back for another snooze in the shadows. What do you say?"

The big soldier's legs blaze so fast they kick up a storm of wind, but it's no use since I've lifted her off the ground using a gravity well.

"Gaaaaaah!"

"You'll never be able to run away from me, Vibrant," I cackle. "So be good and get regular rest, or else I'll have to come and find you."

"Fine! LetmedownIdon'tlikeitwhenIcan'trun!"

I release the spell and she drops to the ground with a thud. She flicks her antennae at me angrily and then vanishes into the distance, accelerating so quickly she vanishes like a cartoon character.

I can only shake my head. Vibrant will never change, that's for sure. My next stop is to drop in on Crinis, Tiny and Invidia. Each of them is battling down in the tunnels, grinding their Skills and Levels, preparing for their next evolution, and I'm keen to see how they're going.

[DIE, YOU FILTH! HOW DARE YOU ASSAULT THE HOME OF MY MASTER! DIE! DIEEEEEE!]

Crinis is letting her inner thoughts out as she unleashes true horror upon the creatures of the wave. I feel sorry for the monsters that run into her. The tunnel has been turned into a mass of writhing tentacles that snatch up everything that draws near and brutally cut them apart before shoving the pieces into one of her three mouths.

[How's it all going, Crinis?] I call to her.

[DIEEEE–Master? Oh! I… I didn't realise you were here. Everything's fine! Just… fine!]

[You seem to be having fun.]

[I'm just… happy to be doing my duty!]

[I think something is trying to sneak past you.]

[What? YOU FILTH! DEAAAAATH!]

[Good job! Keep it up, Crinis, I'm proud of you!]

[Heheheh.]

She giggles to herself as I turn and leave. Deep down inside, she really loves being a terrorising murder ball. Good for her. Tiny is, quite naturally, rather enjoying himself. His current assignment is to sit in a tunnel and punch the heck out of every monster who comes at him, something he is particularly skilled at.

[How's it going, Tiny?]

[Fun!] he replies, as he snatches up a weird golden snake and delivers a brutal uppercut straight to its jaw.

Oof. That looked like it hurt.

[You aren't letting yourself get too worn out or injured, are you?]

[No,] he replies with confidence, knocking on his armour with one knuckle.

[Just make sure you take care of yourself. I worry about you, you big ape.]

[Okay.]

He gives me a double thumbs up before he turns with exquisite grace, balanced perfectly on the balls of his feet, and fills the tunnel with lightning.

[Try to keep an eye on him,] I ask the healers stationed well behind where Tiny is operating. [He'll keep fighting until he's on the brink of death and not even realise it.]

[We have been, Eldest. We heal him every time he sits down to eat.]

I think for a minute.

[That's a lot of healing. Good work.]

[Thank you.]

And of course I drop in on my favourite floating eyeball and find him doing what he does best, exploding everything that tries to hurt him and being envious.

[The other tunnelsssssss are better. I wantssss them.]

[They're exactly the same as this one, I promise you that.]

[I havesssss your word?]

[It's all yours, buddy.]

He thinks for a minute.

[Goooooood.]

BOOM! BOOM!

[Looks like your explosions are getting even more potent. You get a new rank?]

[Yessss. I wantssss all the rankssss.]

[Nice work! Keep practising and you'll get them all. Put that big brain of yours to use!]

We pause the conversation to allow a little time for him to blast what appeared to be a mole covered in molten silver with his green laser of doom.

[You must be getting close to evolving now, right?]

His green eye flashes bright.

[Yesssssss,] he practically purrs, his tiny little arms wiggling in delight as his wings flap lazily.

[Awesome! I'm going to have to get those demon cores ready for you three. Exciting stuff!]

-x-X-x-

To be honest, I find the thought of my three pets evolving more exciting than my own prospect of evolution. I can't wait to see how the three of them turn out. Especially Invidia. The demons are super weird in the way that they evolve, and the little dude has been stuck at tier six for a heck of a long time. His Skills have come along really nicely, since he grinds a heck of a lot more than Tiny, and more than Crinis even.

His mastery of mind magic in particular is stunning. It'll be interesting to see if mind magic turns into anything else as it goes up in rank.

I'll need to settle down and look at my own Skills and mutations soon as well. I've got some big decisions to make, especially in regards to my Nave. Things are going funky in the cathedral, and I need to try and work out a more clear direction. Not to mention the more powerful mutations I've been offered at +35. I'm keen to see what sort of effects I can get on some of my other organs.

I'll have myself fully maxed on mutations way before I even need to think about my next evolution, which will be nice. Geez, my next evolution, heading to tier eight… I have no idea what sort of insane options I'm going to be offered at this point. In fact, I won't have an option to continue my current, multi-part evolution. I might be offered something that finally takes me off the paragon path.

"Eldest, Eldest!" One of the scouts rushes up to me and I see it's Wills.

"What is it?" I ask as she runs over.

"There's something going on up top. They want you up there!"

"Eh? What do you mean 'something'? There isn't any more information than that?"

"I'm not sure. There was some weird activity down on the shoreline that the scouts found suspicious."

"Suspicious? More suspicious than the endless swarm of sea monsters sprinting on their fins at our walls?"

"Different," the scout snaps back, frustrated. "Something different than a horde of sea beasts sprinting at our walls. I'm not sure exactly what it was, but it was deemed worrying enough that we decided to send a runner to get you."

"And you came yourself because?"

"I'm the fastest scout in the fortress."

"Fair enough, let's go then."

Following along behind Wills, I rush my way up the disconnected central pillar until the two of us reach the walls. The fighting is still constant up here, and the din of battle shakes my antennae as the ant defenders subject the endless press of monsters to a buffet of acid and devastating magic. Without any ceremony, the two of us press through the rows of ants until we reach the front and Wills points with one extended leg.

"Down there!"

I look.

I pause.

I look again.

"That is weird."

"Right?"

There's a flag… a really big one, Standing tall on a long pole formed of some sort of glimmering blue stone and rising out of a frothing, bubbling patch of water.

"Yeah, okay. I understand why you got me now."

"What do you think it is?"

"Well, either someone is playing a joke, or they're trying to make contact with us."

Probably the latter, since I don't think anyone is going to stick their neck out during a wave just for laughs.

"So… should we respond? Do we put together an escort to bring them into the fortress?"

"We do not need this right now. Who is reaching out during the middle of a wave? They've got a lot of confidence, or they're just nuts."

Still, the question remains, what's the right thing to do in this scenario? We have a diplomatic contingent, but there aren't any down here on the fourth stratum at present, why would there be? All we've been doing is fighting and building. We don't need anyone to smooth talk the tree, since she pretty much only talks to me.

Only one thing to do, then.

"I'll take control of this situation. Clearly, I'm in the best position to represent the Colony to… whoever we've got here."

The question is, how do I go about it? Show of force? Humble? I need to get a bit closer if I want to extend a mind bridge, but would they welcome being connected to a monster in this way? There's a lot of questions, but I can already tell that I'm just going to do things in the most straightforward manner in the end.

That means getting out over the wall, stretching out a mind bridge as far as I can, and then seeing what happens next.

So that's exactly what I do. With an empowered gravity domain extended out around me, I can pretty much shrug off what the monsters can do to me, especially when the Colony covers me from the wall.

Surrounded by bellowing, maddened beasts, I approach the oversized flag waving gently in the breeze and stop once I'm roughly five-hundred metres from it.

Using my senses, I try to detect any mana source in the vicinity of the flag, but it's hard to get a good reading. The water itself is so rich in mana, and the monsters all over the place don't help either.

With a shrug of the antennae, I start to weave a bridge and extend my mental connection toward the general area, then start broadcasting.

[Hello out there from the Colony. We noticed your flag and assumed you wanted to have a chat. Can we interest you in tea and biscuits? Are you seeking friendly negotiations?]

Finally, I feel someone latch onto my bridge and it snags onto them, connecting us mind to mind.

[Greetings, ant. I am Olivis, and I come as a representative of the Satrap of the Brathian Island Conglomerate.]

The who?

[Well, hi and hello. Obviously, first contact between new peoples is always a little awkward. It would be helpful if we could figure out what each of us was looking for. Non-aggression agreement? Assistance against the wave? Trade?]

I can feel a ripple of humour from the mind on the other side of the bridge.

[You just said the magic word,] she chuckles.

-x-X-x-

The best way to ensure peaceful cooperation with your neighbours, is to make sure it's far more profitable to continue living together than it is to go to war. Wars are expensive, messy affairs after all. Pay for arms and armour, pay for training, pay for wages, food, transportation and shelter. And after you've paid for all of that, what does your soldier go and do? Dies! They die! Investment is lost on so many levels that it makes my heart bleed.

And for what? Territory? Raw natural resources?

Those raw resources are the cheapest possible form of that substance. After the artisans get their hands on it, the enchanters have worked their magic on it, then you have something of worth! Being the person to dig it out of the ground is hardly a privilege.

Embrace your neighbours, and profit. Only fools and fanatics go to war.

-? Excerpt from 'On Ruling' by Satrap Umizan

Eran Umizan, wife of the Satrap, wasn't an easy woman to impress. She had seen rivers of gold. She had seen a pagoda of pure sapphire gleaming with fractured light beneath the waves. The fortress constructed by the ants lacked the elegance, lacked the sparkle and shine that she had grown accustomed to, but still… there was something about it that she found impressive.

Was it the scale? Certainly it was enormous. The ants had provided an escort, welcoming the diplomatic envoy from the Conglomerate within their mountain, opening the vast gates to allow their safe passage. Within, they found cavernous halls with high-arching ceilings and grand passages that dwarfed the brathians within.

Perhaps it was the time frame? She knew that the ants hadn't been here long, a month perhaps? What they had put together in that period was nothing short of remarkable.

The precision? Every line was perfect. She leaned close to inspect the walls several times, and to her trained eye, she could find no flaw in any of them. The stonework was perfectly smooth, without chip or indent. The angles seemed to stretch out into infinity. Every arch, the neatest possible curve, every corner exactly ninety degrees.

A strong argument could be made for the art. She hadn't expected to see it within a monster's den, but it was everywhere she looked. Frescoes, statues and carvings decorated almost every surface. Each depicting glorious scenes of ant triumph, or incredible landscapes dotted with ant workers tending to crops and fields, or battle in the tunnels. Perhaps had they been formed of gold or silver, or carved in-relief from a diamond pane, they would have moved her more deeply, but there was still something about them that soothed her heart.

"They wish for us to sit," her advisor, the Court Mage, Irisod told her, gesturing toward the round table before them.

The table was carved of stone directly from the mountain itself, a part of the room as much as the walls. The chairs, thankfully, were more comfortable, made of gleaming wood that thrummed with earth mana, and appropriately cushioned.

"Thank them for their hospitality," she replied and sat, dignified.

Her flowing robes fell back from her shoulders, exposing the shimmering blue scales of her upper arms as she folded her hands in front of her.

There were several ants in the room, but not as many as she expected. The large one remained, though the monster was forced to curl its body up so as not to dominate the space. Certainly, it couldn't fit around the table.

Eran took a moment to examine the rest of her diplomatic mission. Piris, predictably, was vibrating with excitement, staring at everything around her with wide eyes. Thankfully, Theraz had taken her words to heart and stayed by the girl's side, keeping a tight grip on her arm and reminding her of proper behaviour.

Her guards were as stone-faced and prepared as she should expect, given their perilous position. Should their hosts turn aggressive, it was up to them to hold on long enough for the Siren to arrive from her position in the waters outside to secure a path home.

The mages were similarly grim-faced as they monitored the area for any hint of danger and communicated mentally with the ants.

Irisod leaned close once more.

"They are offering refreshments, Eran. Are you willing to accept?"

"It would be rude to decline."

"What if they offer Biomass?"

"Then we gracefully excuse ourselves from partaking."

It was a valid point. What would the ants offer besides what they themselves ate?

Shockingly, a smaller ant entered with strangely formed front legs, gripping a tray in its claws as it walked on the other four. With a strange insect grace, the tray was slid in front of her to reveal a steaming cup of tea, along with a buttered scone.

A confused Irison spoke in her ear again.

"They apologise for not being able to offer cake and a proper selection of biscuits. Apparently, they don't have direct contact with their other nests and are short on supplies." She hesitated. "They are surprisingly sincere in their apologies."

"They take hospitality seriously, then?"

"Apparently so."

Discreetly, she leaned forward to inhale the fragrance of the tea, allowing her necklace to hang close to the food. No reaction. Unpoisoned, then.

With exquisite motions, she lifted the cup and brought it to her lips, allowing herself a sip of the liquid. She considered for a moment, then took another.

"This tea is incredible," she murmured. "By the waves, where did they get this?"

"You want me to ask them?"

She hesitated. Would it be taken as a sign of weakness to be asking questions already? Surely not.

"Please do."

She managed not to jump in her seat as several ants clacked their mandibles, breaking the hushed silence in the chamber, though her guards lacked the same level of self control. Several swords were halfway removed from their sheaths as Irisod hastily spoke aloud.

"They were expressing happiness," she said clearly, "the Eran enquired where they sourced their tea and spoke of its quality. The ants were pleased, as they grow the leaves themselves. Apparently, the drink is a favourite with their Queen? Among their Queens. Please excuse me."

"So they have more than one, then?" she mused as she took another long sip.

"Should I ask?"

"No. They are ants. Asking after their Queens will likely lead to trouble. Let us deal with those in front of us."

These negotiations would be amongst the most interesting of her life. First contact with an entire new civilization of monsters. Who knew what could come of it? Most importantly, did they have anything to trade?