“Unfortunately. Most of the tier sixes have been sent down to the fourth, apparently. The rest are on the front lines of the expansion war. We just can’t find enough to interview to complete the evolution tree.”
She could tell how upset he was at that prospect. In all the time she’d known him, she didn’t think she’d seen the old man so enthused with his work, as she imagined he must have been in his younger days. He was obsessed and determined to burn the candle at both ends if it meant furthering his knowledge of this new monster-type he’d thrown his lot in with.
“Have you determined anything yet?” she asked him.
He flicked a glance at her.
“Not here,” he said. “Let’s get back to the rooms.”
Corun and Torrina shared a look at his caution, but they were conditioned to follow the triad leader, and so they did not question him, following along as he led the way.
They followed the corridor around the outside of the hill toward the area where their rooms were located. Candelabras of gleaming metal held small cores that burned with beautiful, dim light, illuminating the intricate carvings, woven rug, and tasteful embellishments that lined their path. Even such luxuries didn’t compare to the view she glimpsed through the occasional window as they passed.
Through a full metre of reinforced stone, she could see the vast open space of ash and smoke that was the skyline of the third stratum, the ominous red light bleeding from the outside into the corridor, infusing it with a macabre glow. Despite the opulence, it was impossible to forget where they were, or how high up. She’d been shocked at how quickly the builders put together this truly titanic nest, the capital of the Colony in this stratum, for want of a better word.
From the floor of the stratum to almost reaching the bottom of the plate on which the demon city of Roklu sat, the great nest was kilometres high. The internals were still being worked on, the vast majority of the nest’s volume remaining unused, but for now, a segment close to the top had been allocated for the allies of the Colony to use. Barracks, training rooms, and medical facilities for the troops, along with a separate area for Granin, Corun, and her to conduct their research.
The engineers had been embarrassed when, out of curiosity, she’d asked them why they’d chosen to place their rooms and corridors as the external walls of the nest. They’d timidly told her of their thoughts on a new technique, muttered something about crumple zones and then assured her they’d done everything they could to ensure they were as safe as possible. She’d shrugged and told them she thought they would want the view for themselves, but the ants had looked at her as if she were mad.
What care did they have for a grand vista? None at all. They wanted the dark and security of their cramped chambers and tunnels.
After walking down several flights of stairs, they arrived at their private rooms, greeting the few humans and golgari they saw along the way before filing into Granin’s chamber, the large Shaper closing the door behind them.
“Why the secrecy?” she asked, confused.
He flicked her a glance before he walked to his plush couch and took a seat with a sigh.
It had taken the ants a while to grow used to the idea of furniture specifically for golgari; their true skins didn’t allow for the same comforts as a human might welcome. Her people didn’t like soft or fluffy things, and they needed materials that were durable enough not to scrape or dent when exposed to the hard minerals that coated their bodies.
After some time, the ants had developed a soft, springy material that was firm enough not to be damaged by them, strong enough to hold their weight, and with enough give to provide comfort. It was quite a feat, and Torrina wasn’t sure she could live without the stuff anymore.
She and Corun sat as Granin leaned forward to discuss his thoughts.
“I have a few matters of concern. The first of which relates directly to Anthony himself.”
He considered his words for a moment before he went on.
“I’m sure you’re seeing the same thing I’m seeing with the tier six ants, but tell me what you think is unusual about them. I want to see if you’ve picked up on it.”
The two younger Shapers glanced at each other before Corun spoke.
“They’re strong. Very good evolution options, even at the basic level. Good stats and more than acceptable bonuses almost across the line. I’ve only encountered a few dud choices, which is rare.”
“I concur,” Torrina admitted. “No matter the ant, their Skill Levels or evolutionary energy, the choices provided by the System have generally been good.”
“Exactly,” Granin nodded, pleased. “And I think you are smart enough to make a few deductions as to why.”
“Ants aren’t supposed to make it this far up the tiers,” Torrina said.
“Right. A tier six ant should be as rare as a golgari with diamond skin, basically non-existent, yet now there are hundreds. The Colony has made something common that the System considers rare, and thus they are benefiting from these powerful evolutions.”
“This could still only be considered compensation for their weak starting position, don’t you think?” Corun argued. “The Law of Evolutionary Propulsion applies particularly well to ants since they have such a poor initial state.”
“Indeed, that is also the case,” Granin agreed, “which is having a compounding effect. We have a monster type achieving heights that the Dungeon considers rare, and thus rewards, as well as them having weak starting positions, which accelerates the quality of their evolutions. Across every caste, their options have been good. It’s almost unheard of.”
An excited glimmer sparked in the old man’s eye as he leaned forward.
“So, you’re particularly excited for what Anthony might get at tier seven, is that it?” Torrina asked.
“In part. Considering he’s maxed his core at each step, and in fact gone a little beyond where he should have, his core should reach the bottom of Mythic grade during his next evolution.”
Although they knew this already, the two nodded solemnly as they considered it. Going from a Rare core to a Mythic was a big deal for a monster. It meant they were on the road to being an Ancient. As far as she knew, there were only two classes of monster higher than Mythic, one of which being Ancient. Although, researchers couldn’t be sure exactly what grade of core those god-like beings possessed; nobody had ever seen one of their cores, after all.
Mythic grade demons were exceptionally rare, since they almost never evolved with maxed cores, but on the fourth, they became more common. The tier eight Mythic monsters were the true powers of that stratum.
“His next one is going to be big, and we should prepare ourselves for what’s coming,” Granin stated.
She nodded, then asked, “What else were you worried about?”
The triad leader grimaced.
“I got an annoying message delivered today,” he grumbled. “I hate dealing with those damn Red Truth idiots.”
116. When a Man Meets a Lizard
Arranging a meeting between two cult members wasn’t easy, especially given the current conditions between the Colony and the ka’armodo. Granin grumbled at a constant rate as he and his fellow triad members trekked across the dangerous terrain of the third stratum. It was a testament to how wild the land was in this layer of the Dungeon that even the Colony, with its enormous numbers, intelligent approach, and absurd dedication, hadn’t been able to construct countermeasures to ward off the never-ending spawns. The best they could do was prune and manage the higher tier demons that still roamed the wastes between cities.