As we approach the colony, I notice something is going on. It looks like there’s a lot of activity around the anthill. Heaps of ants and… humans? What the heck is going on? Each moment we draw closer, the number of questions I have mounts. The humans have been grouped together, surrounded by workers on all sides, and they seem to be moving closer to the anthill. They almost appear to be about to climb up with the intention of going into the nest.
That would be insane! Certain death!
What on earth do they think they’re doing?
Weariness forgotten, my legs scrabble wildly into the dirt as I break into a sprint, rushing for the nest. The workers are the first to notice me coming, and make way before I crash into them. I don’t drop any speed until I reach the front of the human group and notice a few of the twenty are waiting for me.
“Sloan!” I yell at the ant general. “What the heck is going on here?”
Sloan flips her antennae around in a confused manner. “We found these creatures living in close proximity to the nest. In your absence, we weren’t sure what to do, so we convened a council and discussed the matter.”
“And?” I demand.
Sloan’s mandibles twitch slightly at the tone of my pheromones. The twenty hatchlings I trained had to put up with my angry roaring on many occasions. I can almost see the fear of thwacking rising within her.
“Well, uh, we decided it would be best to remove the threat and collect the Biomass that these creatures represented—”
THWACK!
All of the nearby ants react with a twitch when they hear the sharp, kinetic thud of my antennae impacting the poor general’s carapace.
“You wanted to eat the village!” I roar.
“We were going to feed them to the queen!” Sloan protests. “When we approached these creatures, they were strangely unafraid of us. They even approached us of their own volition! So, we gathered some workers to herd them over this way and they came without a fuss!”
“You didn’t think that was a bit odd? That these things would just wander up to the nest and feed themselves to the queen without protest or fighting back in any way?”
I can see the gears turning in the general’s head.
“No,” she replies firmly.
“Why?”
“I would gladly give my life to the colony. Perhaps these creatures feel the same?”
THWACK!
“Not every organism on the face of this world is so eager to die for the sake of the colony, you eejit! Think it through. I don’t want the village harmed. They have a great deal of information they can teach us!”
“You never said anything about that to us!” Sloan protests weakly.
THWACK!
“Never mind that!” I roar. “Spread the word that these humans are not to be harmed and they will be returning to their homes shortly.”
“Of course, eldest.”
Alright. I might have stuffed up a little there. But why the heck are the humans just going along with this situation? Where the hell is Enid? Or Morrelia? Surely, they wouldn’t be so stupid as to let their people march into the nest!
I cast my eyes amongst the crowd, desperate to locate them so I can form a Mind Bridge and explain this event away with some excuse that doesn’t let the village know how close they came to being queen food.
Unfortunately, I don’t spot Enid or Morrelia. I do notice one man, dressed in a white robe, with one hand, waving enthusiastically at me from the front.
Stupid Priest!
37. Feast Averted
Beyn displays a face-splitting grin, his eyes alight with energy and passion. This moron is still obsessed with the colony. Me in particular. He probably thinks the village is being ‘blessed’ with a visitation to the nest, when in fact the twenty have arranged the village for a surprisingly peaceful slaughter!
I weave a Mind Bridge and connect it to the fool. What on earth am I going to say? How can I explain this away? Gandalf, bestow upon me your wisdom, your sweet gravelly voice, and your dominant eyebrows.
[Beyn, you’ve come to the nest.]
I don’t want to talk as if I have no idea why they’re here. I’m supposed to be the ant who decides what happens with the village, and I’m the only one who’s interacted with them so far. If I don’t know what’s happening, it might raise some suspicion in the priest’s mind that I’m not quite as in control and omnipotent as he seems to think. If possible, I want to get out of this situation without destroying the trust between the village and the colony. They still have much to teach us and I don’t feel it’s right to destroy these people who have done nothing to harm us.
[OH, GREAT ONE!] he bellowed. [WHAT A MOMENTOUS—]
[Loud!]
[Oh! I’m sorry, Great One. My excitement has gotten the better of me. I’m just so happy to get the chance to bring the people so close to the holy mountain!]
Mountain? What mountain? Does he mean the anthill? How is this even a mountain? It’s only twenty metres tall.
[Ah, yes. Welcome here, to the foot of our great, uh, mountain?]
[We are all so honoured to be here, Great One! When the esteemed members of the great colony came to the village and began to gather us together, we were filled with shock and joy. I can only imagine what you have gathered us here for today!]
[Yes, oh it’s, incredible stuff… Could I ask where Enid, Morrelia and her warriors are?]
Beyn grimaced at my words. [It is most unfortunate timing, oh Great One. They have left with many of the strongest villagers for a somewhat extended training session in the Dungeon. We have sent scouts several days out from the village, and so far, we have encountered no sign of another incursion. Morrelia deemed it would be wise to make use of this breathing room to push as hard as possible to raise the Levels of our best fighters.]
Dammit! Of course they aren’t here. They wouldn’t have let something stupid like this happen!
[Yes, that is wise of them.] I nod in what I hope is a sage-like manner.
[For what purpose have you brought us here, Great One?] Beyn eagerly asked. [Will you be inviting us within the precious sanctum of your colony? Are we to be inducted into the great secrets of your kind?]
The guy’s face is practically shining. So full of hope and light, I’d close my eyes if it were physically possible. Oh boy, come on, Anthony, think!
[I have brought you here to announce something!] I declare.
Beyn turns to the people crowded behind him, their faces bright with expectation. He raises his hands, bringing a hush to the gathered throng before he tells them I will be speaking to them. At once, every face is turned to me, where I stand slightly above them, perched on the slope of the anthill.
I can’t help but feel a little self-conscious with all of these eyes on me. I nervously clean my antennae and I hope my carapace is at its sparkling best. I haven’t had a chance to inspect it too closely since the Expanse, and I’d hate for my glorious exo-skeleton to be unsightly at this moment.
[Ah, I wish for you to inform the people that, err, that the, ah, colony has undergone a glorious rebirth!] I stutter out.
Perhaps if I give them some small details of the evolution our species has undergone, they’ll be satisfied with this announcement and return to the village.
Overreacting, as per usual, Beyn fell to his knees at my hesitant pronouncement.
[Oh, Great One! How could the radiant and System-borne colony of indomitable workers be made even more perfect? Exactly what has changed within the colony?]