The [Nest Seed] got to work, using the abundant resources in the pile to construct a nanite ‘nest.’ This nest would produce the free nanites Alpha would need to build other things. Like even more nests.
Some in the Federation complained about nest seeds, of course. Depending on their setting before ‘planting,’ it could take quite some time to set them up properly. Yet, the Federation had learned long ago to be careful with nanite technology. After all, the nano-plague toppled the Second Federation and nearly wiped out all life in the galaxy. The vast majority of the Third Federation accepted a bit of inconvenience as a necessary precaution if it meant a second plague couldn’t happen again.
So, while the seed got to work, Alpha just had to wait…
… and wait…
… and wait…
… … …
(╯°□°）╯ ︵┻━┻
“This is boring!” Alpha mumbled to himself.
“At least when I was building the drill, there were zombies to kill!” Now, he had nothing to do but sit here.
In a wall…
Doing nothing…
Just thinking about the drill got Alpha thinking about the city it had been left behind, which got him thinking about Jīshí and his stolen TAWP. The rage threatened to boil over again, but he pushed it down for now.
Revenge was a matter for the future, though it would come. Alpha would like to see how Jīshí stopped a Ziz-class airship parked over her city!
He needed to focus on establishing himself and building a working base for now. The first step would be to build new nests and explore the area for resources. The piles in the royal chambers, as Alpha had decided to name them just that minute, were nice but limited. From what Alpha has observed of the ants, they regularly resupplied the piles with new materials. Some materials were used to reinforce the walls, while others just… sat there for indeterminable amounts of time before they were removed and taken elsewhere in the nest.
Where they were taken and what they were used for, Alpha didn’t know. Eventually, he would have to follow one of the ants and see what they were doing with the materials.
Several smaller ants would make regular rounds of the royal chambers, cleaning the queens, removing messes, and repairing damage. One such ant had made several passes by Alpha, further reinforcing Jerry’s amateur repairs. The larger ant had laid the foundation of the repairs by shoving Alpha in the hole and wedging in larger stones or ore. But it seemed it was the smaller ants’ job to finish the finer details.
Soon, the section of the wall that Alpha was embedded in would be just as smooth and clean as the rest of the patchwork ore and gemstone walls.
“I should probably learn more about my… hosts…” Alpha thought to himself.
Building a new base would be a priority, but he first needed to know what he was working with. If he was going to stick around, then he wanted to know what sort of creatures he was working with.
The smaller maintenance ant wasn’t very large. A little bigger than a cat. Massive compared to the vast majority of ant species he was familiar with, sure, but tiny when compared to what could be found in the nest.
The ant that had been touching up Alpha’s wall walked over his core as it passed by. The surface of said core transformed suddenly from a solid to a liquid, and several tendrils of nano-material wrapped themselves around the ant. In the blink of an eye, the ant was dragged into Alpha’s core. It gave a surprised shriek before disappearing, and the royal chamber broke into chaos for a moment.
Large soldier ants scrambled into action, either surrounding the queens or blocking off the various exits. Others scouted the chamber, tapping around the ground with antennae as thick as a human male’s arm. One such ant caught onto a trail and followed the maintenance ant’s trail all the way to Alpha. The ant paused, tapping the surface of Alpha’s core a few times, and Alpha feared the jig was up. But the ant soon moved on, following older trails.
After a good 15 minutes of confusion, the ants finally settled down, and five minutes after that, things were back to ‘normal.’ Though Alpha noted a few more guard ants had joined the chamber. It seemed these ants were more sensitive to sound than their smaller cousins. Good to know.
With things calm, Alpha turned his attention to his prize.
The small ant was still alive, fresh air supplied directly to its spiracles, but was otherwise completely immobilized by Alpha’s core.
Physically, the ant followed a pretty standard design. Three body segments and six legs. On its head it had a pair of antennae, mandibles, two large compound eyes, and three small ocelli on top. Its outer carapace was different, however. Even along its legs and thorax, it was broken into dozens of tiny, hexagonal plates, giving it a patchwork appearance like a tortoise shell.
These plates had minute gaps between them, offering the creature a surprising amount of flexibility without compromising their protection very much. Each plate had a few small spikes. Nothing like Jerry’s had been, but still unpleasant to bite down on, Alpha imagined.
To Alpha’s surprise, he found the carapace contained trace amounts of various metals as well, greatly increasing its strength. Such biometals weren’t unheard of, especially in insects. A few had been synthesized for some niche uses, but overall, they were of little interest to the Federation. Even so, Alpha could have to store samples away for more detailed analysis later. Use the whole buffalo as it was.
However, the ant’s internals were totally foreign to what he was expecting. While logic dictated that the internal structure of a creature this size would have to adapt as well, part of Alpha had still expected something at least somewhat similar. Instead, the internal structures more closely resembled that of a large herbivorous mammal or avian than an insect’s.
Its large head was taken up mostly by its eyes, a small brain, and a small crop close to the mouth. The thorax was filled with powerful muscles and little else other than the digestive tract down its middle. On the other hand, the abdomen was filled with a complex digestive tract, and several organs Alpha couldn’t place the function without testing.
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The digestive tract split into a dozen different pathways with various morphologies. Each of these pathways contained its own organs, and each ended at a different opening along the end of the abdomen. Alpha pondered why, but a quick examination of these orifices revealed their secret.
Some contained traces of various pheromones, while others extruded wax, silk, oil, and even a mild acid, as well as a few other substances Alpha assumed the creature used in its duties of maintaining the nest.
Five different heart-like organs pumped the ant’s equivalent of blood through its body: one in the head, two in the thorax to either side, and two more in the abdomen. The ant’s nervous system was surprisingly complex as well. It had a central brain in its head, yes, but it also had dozens of small nodules spread out through its body. Like mini-brains, able to think independently.
What purpose this could serve, Alpha didn’t know. But he could find out.
One interesting find was what Alpha assumed to be an atrophied venom sack, as it connected to a small stinger on its rear.
Thanks to their complex nature, venom and poisons often had many uses, both organically and in processing other materials. Alpha collected a sample just as he did the carapace before turning the ant over to his sub-AIs for further, in-depth study.
“Well, that killed a few hours… but the seed’s still not done…” Alpha complained to himself.
“I could catch up with some shows in my databanks...,” no, that was a waste of time. Alpha dismissed the option.
He was already behind schedule, thanks to all the craziness in the prairies. Sure, he didn’t technically have a real timeline, but he’d never been this far on his back foot, either. Alpha was used to dominating right out of the gate. Not having his tools or equipment was making him nervous. But what else could he do?
“My best option right now is to explore the area catalog what resources I have available,” he said to himself.
The materials in the royal chamber were nice, but who knew what else this nest could hold? The question was, what was the best way of doing so? Sonar mapping was out of the question. While it would be effective, given how sensitive the ants seemed to noise, there was no telling what effects it could have. The same went for physically exploring with his core. Right now, the ants didn’t seem to suspect he was anything more than a chunk of metal. But if he started up and moving around on his own, that would quickly change.
That left him using the [Wasps] he’d already deployed or using another seed to create a few scout drones.
“The [Wasps] are already deployed, but their numbers are limited. I want to keep them in key locations, so I miss nothing important. Yet, on the other hand, the scout drones would take even more time to build, and seeds are limited… hmmmm.” Alpha considered his options.
In the end, it came down to one major factor. Stealth.
While the scout drones were technically built as stealth drones and even had minor cloaking abilities, most of their kit was aimed at staying hidden from technology. The [Wasps] weren’t as flexible or powerful, but their small size and cheap nature made them a better choice in this instance.
Alpha had even noticed several kinds of more ‘normal’ insects inhabiting the next. Even some small mammals and reptiles, mostly in the various gardens, but the ants tended to ignore them. The entire nest was an ecosystem in and of itself, so the [Wasps] would have a far easier time blending in than the obviously foreign scout drones.
His decision made, Alpha decided it was time to go exploring.
— — — — — — — — — — — — — — — —
Garrelt strapped on the leather bracer and pulled the strap tight with his teeth. He shook his arm, going through several motions before being satisfied, then moved on to the next piece. Several others around him performed their own checks. Maggy, a young woman in clean, red, and blown robes, polished her new staff with a chunk of beeswax. She stared at Garrelt and rolled her eyes.
“Why do you do this every time, old man? You’ve worn that same armor for six months now. I doubt it’ll have changed any since yesterday,” she said with a sigh.
Garrelt paused, then turned to Maggy, his eyes narrowing slightly. He remained silent for a moment, then turned back to his gear check as he spoke. “An Adventurer’s life is in his gear. Whether you succeed or die often comes down to the small things. A loose strap, a missing plate, or a rusted blade. If you’re going to survive longer than a few years, girl, build the habit of knowing your gear like it’s your lover.”
Maggy rolled her eyes again. “I’m mean, sure, making sure your gear’s in good condition makes sense. But this is just a waste of time,” she said.
Garrelt shook his head as he continued to check each piece of gear methodically, not bothering to respond. Maggy, seeing that the older adventurer would say nothing more on the matter, furrowed her brow and puffed her cheeks, but before she could say anything else, someone else spoke.
“Ok! It looks like this is everyone! Glad you could all join me!” said a man in full plate armor, the dark steel metal glowing slightly with the various arrays carved into its surface.
Robert was relatively well known in the Halirosa Explorer’s Guild. Full metal armor was rare among adventures. The cost and required training to fight properly while wearing it made it more popular among guards and nobles. Rumors abounded Robert was secretly the bastard son of some noble house from the Gaia continent, and his sharp, exotic looks didn’t help dissuade such things. But no actual proof had ever been found. Not that it stopped various fan clubs from forming secretly among the female population, adventurers and civilians alike.
Robert’s stunning smile swept across the room, pausing briefly on each of the seven others gathered together. They were a mix of human and awakened, of all types and skill sets. Maggy felt herself swoon slightly as she felt his gaze pass over him. She could have sworn she saw him wink at her. At least that’s what she’d tell her friends after all this was done.
“Aye! Get on with it pretty boy! I’m gettin’ bored already!” a rough-looking, scarred man in thick leathers called out from one corner as he sharpened his stupidly large cleaver. Maggy glared at the man, but Robert just chuckled.
“Glad you could join us, Bert. I was worried you’d turn me down,” Robert said with a smile.
‘Bert,’ only grunted while Robert continued, “As I was saying, all of you here today have shown yourself competent adventurers having either fought by my side in the past — ” Robert nodded to a few in the room, Garrelt included, “ — or been recommended to me by someone who has.”
Robert smiled brightly and held up a scroll for the room to see before continuing. “What I bring to you today is a unique opportunity and the chance for everyone here to make a lot of money.”
Bert stopped sharpening his weapon and turned to Robert, grinning. “Now you’ve got my attention. I like money. What do you have for us, boy?”
Robert returned the grin and pointed the scroll at Bert before answering. “What I had, my good man, is a 3-Star C-Rank Commission to explore a newly discovered cave system west of Halirosa.”
The room froze, everyone’s eyes wide in surprise. Even Garrelt stared at the scroll with a raised brow.
Bert jumped to his feet, staring at the scroll, hungry. “Wait, yer serious?! Untouched?!”
Robert’s grin spread from ear to ear. He nodded and said, “Yep. That’s what the Guild believes, at least. They bought the information from a loose cultivator a few days ago. Everything points to this being a totally new system. And I… we have been hired to scout out the location.”
That got people talking. The room was suddenly abuzz with questions as people tried to talk over each other. Even Maggy felt a little giddy.
A totally untouched cave system! Just the thought of the riches that might be hidden away there made her unable to suppress her smile.
Robert broke the young woman out of her daydreams as he quieted the room.
“Quiet! Quiet now! I’m sure you all have questions. I’ll be glad to answer what I can, but for now, let’s try to work out the details going forward from here. Once that’s done, we can prepare for the expedition!”
Robert flicked his wrist, and the scroll disappeared into some unseen spatial item. He smiled at the room and spoke up. “Now, let’s do our best, people! We leave for Sundown Mountain in a month!”