[Ghost Stealth (VI) has reached Level 94.]
Not now! She focused her senses and body to the utmost, ensuring that no sight or sound would be noticed. She was fortunate to escape without being seen and made her way into the Dark Passage. Once inside, she urgently messaged her fellow team member who awaited her.
It’s a body double! Sloan has been replaced by another ant cloaked in some kind of light or illusion spell!
Are you certain? the other ant signed back intently.
The shadow betrays them! It doesn’t fit the body. I believe that every member of the Council we are shadowing has been replaced and the real members are hidden!
Her fellow order member cursed silently.
We will need to confirm this as soon as possible. Return to the meeting place whilst I spread the message. We should have confirmation in ten minutes.
The two of them rushed to perform their tasks knowing that time was of the essence. When she arrived and relayed the news to the members gathered in the planning chamber, the reaction was much as she expected.
Damn this beast! Are they daring us to put them under 24/7 surveillance?
They need to put more effort into their work rather than spending all this energy trying to dodge torpor!
What is wrong with their heads?
It was fine to be angry, but they didn’t have the time to waste on such useless emotion. The nameless one stepped forward.
Your frustration is understandable, but a waste of energy. We have a task to perform, don’t lose focus on the work.
With her signed message, the group got back to planning how they could overcome this disaster. They were deep in discussions when word came back from those shadowing the other members of the Council. As suspected, all of them were fakes.
What do we do? one member of the group demanded. We’ve already lost track of the targets and we have no leads on where they might be! Regular methods have been exhausted. I suggest we appeal to the shadow.
The others paused for a moment as they contemplated that suggestion. It wasn’t forbidden to ask the shadow for assistance, but it certainly wasn’t encouraged. Even if they were to ask, there was no guarantee that they would get an answer. The entity known as shadow preferred to communicate through those few acolytes dedicated to receiving their messages, rather than reaching out to just anyone. The nameless one considered the suggestion and decided it might be worth a try.
We are out of time. The meeting is intended to take place in only ten minutes, and we have no clues as to where. The situation has become desperate, and I am unwilling to let it go. I suggest we all appeal to the shadow and see if it will intervene on our behalf. This mission was originally brought to us by the shadow, after all.
After a little more discussion, the group agreed. The chamber entrance was sealed and all light in the room was suppressed as each member channelled as much Shadow Mana as they could, blanketing the room in utter darkness. The Mana thickened gradually, seeping into the air around them and saturating all it touched as the ants bowed low in supplication, covering their eyes ceremoniously.
For several long minutes, nothing except the growing density of shadow marked any change in the space as they each remained perfectly still. Then, there was a faint sound, almost like a sigh, and the gathered Shadow Mana scattered in an instant, bringing the light back.
The nameless one raised her head eagerly as others leapt to reopen the chamber. As sight returned to them, they found words written in pure darkness engraved on the wall and they felt joy in their hearts.
There was no escape for the targets of the order.
23. The Sanctum of Sleep, Part 4
“Were you followed?”
“I don’t think so…”
“You THINK? THINKING isn’t good enough!”
“Cool it! Your scent is spreading too far. Are you trying to bring them down on our heads?”
“…I’m sorry. I’m just so stressed.”
“And tired? Maybe you should sleep! Torpor usually takes care of that—so I’m told. I don’t do it much. I find it’s too slow for my pace. So, what have you all been up to? I’ve been running around doing heeeaaaps of stuff. It’s so busy right now! I can’t believe how much stuff there is to do! Can you? And the Eldest is evolving! That’s exciting! I wonder—”
“Vibrant! I’m too tired to listen to you for too long today, can you wait a second while we try and get settled?”
The hyper-energetic soldier subsided with a sigh whilst the rest of the Council settled into the crude and cramped chamber that had been prepared for the meeting. A far cry from the luxurious carved surroundings of the normal meeting chamber, this room was intended for use as a Biomass storage chamber, recently emptied of its stockpile in order to fuel the Eldest’s evolution. It was dark, cramped, and best of all, almost nobody in the nest knew that it was even available. Perfect for a group of ants attempting to avoid being dragged off to torpor.
They were all there, even Antionette and Victoriant. Sneaking that pair out of the nesting chamber was a feat in and of itself. It would have been impossible without the assistance of the Queen, who aided them in the interests of seeing the two younger royals get out of the egg-laying chamber more often. A sedentary life being waited on hand and foot wasn’t healthy for a good Queen, in her opinion.
“You calmed down yet, Sloan?”
The general nervously rubbed her antennae through her forelegs.
“I think so. I’ve been so damned busy, and arranging this on top of everything else has been such a hassle…”
“I feel like those torpor enforcers were giving us a break during the siege. A ton of ants, including almost all of us, went well under the required amount of rest, and there were hardly any dragged away. Now that the siege is over, they’ve been popping out of the woodwork all over the place! I lost every member of my two best teams today!” Bella complained. “They just vanished! I walked past their work area one minute, all of them were altering cores, I come back two minutes later, gone! No traces!”
They all shuddered.
“I say they’ve gone too far!” Advant slammed an antenna down on the rock they’d gathered around with force. “The Eldest did demand that we all sleep, but forcing us to sleep against our will? Don’t they understand how much work there is to do? There’s a wave on right now!”
“They’re following the commands of the Eldest,” Burke wryly said. “Are you really going to go and tell them that the Eldest was wrong and that their orders don’t need to be obeyed? Or perhaps, you want to go to the Eldest and tell them that they are wrong?”
Every member of the Council felt the pain of a thousand thwacks echo from deep within their memory at those words. No. No, they wouldn’t be going to the Eldest and asking them to change their policy.
“Let’s just focus on what we came here to do,” Coolant injected wearily. “I know we’re all well past due for a rest, and we will need to enter torpor at some point. Let’s make use of the time we have productively.”
“Agreed!” the others chorused and they settled in to conduct their business.
“First off, let’s go around the table for a status update, starting with the carvers.”