With newfound determination, we plowed through the earth at record speed; the dirt now being much more malleable than we were higher up. We stumbled upon a large tunnel, one that led to a multitude of passageways and chambers, most of which lay empty and abandoned. “Odd, and an ideal home for a Queen.” I’d thought. We continued navigating through this intricate maze, a subterranean labyrinth that was the ghostly echo of a once mighty ant colony. The size of these tunnels suggested that the original inhabitants were of considerable size, triple our size, in fact, or perhaps they’d designed their home for efficiency, allowing ease of movement.
In this subterranean odyssey, we crossed paths with ants of every shape and size, some familiar and some utterly alien to my knowledge. Each ant appeared as perplexed and intrigued as we were, explorers trying to make sense of the labyrinth. However, they posed no challenge for my ant bodyguards, who were naturally fortified with greater strength and stamina. I, meanwhile, was the Achilles’ heel of our trio—a king without a crown or armor. My bite was weak; my exoskeleton was fragile. My primary role was essentially that of a cerebral leader, a fact that irked me but was hard to ignore.
We delved deeper into this murky maze, my vigilant guards maintaining a defensive formation on either side of me. Although the atmosphere was palpably eerie, my Calm Mind skill kept my anxieties at bay. I couldn’t help but speculate about the fate of the colony that once thrived here; the tunnels were bereft of any clues.
As we plunged further into the winding tunnels, hostile encounters increased in frequency and intensity. Numerous skirmishes unfolded before our eyes, with different ant species wrestling for territory or food. We acted as the de facto cleanup crew, waiting for the weakened victor to emerge before delivering our own decisive blow. This predatory opportunism ensured our energy reserves remained steady.
Interestingly, my newfound ant physiology eliminated any aversion to consuming the spoils of battle. While my past human self would’ve found the act revolting, I was now somewhat relieved by my lack of taste buds.
Turning away from the remnants of the fight, we headed down another path, deeper into the tunnel in hopes of finding a Queen that had settled down here. What we encountered, however, was far from that. A cacophony of clicks emerged as the tunnel we were in took a sharp right, and it seemed we were only getting closer as we moved on. My rational side told me to stay away from here, but my curiosity overcame me. The large-scale skirmish seemed to be occurring below us, and we were in a tunnel that was directly above it. As we slowly crept up the tunnel, I ordered the two ants to remain silent.
Veering away from a recent battlefield, we plunged down another tunnel, driven by the hope of finding a dormant Queen. Instead, what we found shook us to our core. A sudden cacophony of clicks filled the air as we took a sharp right, growing louder as we pressed forward. Despite the inner warning bells, my curiosity got the better of me. A surreal ‘vrrmmm’ sound emanated from the chaos below, followed by an explosive ‘boom’ that shook the very foundation of the tunnel. Chunks of soil rained down from the ceiling, unsettling the air with its disquiet. Panic surged through me—whatever had caused that explosion had compromised the stability of the ground beneath us.
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We crashed into the center of a large chamber, it had only one entrance, one that had been attempted to be sealed up, evident by the small stone pebbles and dirt strewn around it. Behind us, at the very back of the chamber, stood an odd ant with an exaggerated abdomen; a Queen ant! That wasn’t its only peculiarity, though, it had two sharp horns that protruded from each side of its head, as well as an exoskeleton that seemed to be glowing with an uncanny luminescence, slightly lighting up her surroundings.
My excitement was short-lived, as I noticed the unbelievable amount of corpses strewn around the large chamber. Ants of various species, from black to red and all the way to green. There were a few alive, situated on both sides of the Queen. The Queen was half our height, while the guards were roughly the same as us. They were a bright red color, similar to the Queen. Though, all but 1 didn’t have the glow that the Queen had. As I scanned the chamber, another detail I noticed was a cluster of charred corpses, scattered in a radius.
My thoughts were quickly interrupted by the glowing ant, as a familiar “vrmmm” sound emerged from its direction. I whipped my head towards it, only to find a ball of fire, gathering in front of the glowing ant’s face, one that was slightly larger than its face. My eyes widened in surprise, but I didn’t have the luxury of admiring the magic unfolding before me. “SCATTER” I contacted the two ants hastily. They instantly darted off, to the left and right side respectively. The glowing ant, however, was aiming the fireball directly at me, unperturbed by the two ants darting away.
Mustering all the strength in my legs, I leaped to the right, just in time as an orange sphere raced towards the air where I just was. “BOOM” The ball of flame slammed into the wall behind me and exploded, sending the charred remains of various ant corpses into the air. My mouth was left agape at the sheer strength of the magic fireball. Fortunately, the side effects of the magic seemed to have taken a toll on the supernatural ant; its legs were shaky, barely able to hold up its body.
A large quantity of the remaining ants hastily situated themselves in front of it, defending it from any danger. This, however, left a weak spot at the back — the guards protecting the queen. “attack them from the left.” I commanded the ant at the left. Heeding my order, it charged in recklessly. The ants responded as I’d expected, surging forward to meet the attack. The guards, however, remained stationary. “fall back. You, attack the glowing ant!” I hastily ordered. The ants, seeing their assailant retreat, rushed forward to chase him down. Unbeknownst to them, another ant had infiltrated their defense and was before the ant they were supposed to be guarding.
By the time they realized, it was already too late. “Crunch” The neck of the glowing ant was snapped. As the ants turned around, intending to rush at the other assailant, I ordered both ants to attack them once more, causing them to be flanked by both sides. The ants, with their commander gone, fought without formation and strategy, becoming easy pickings for the two physically stronger ants, who were heeding my orders.
Before long, all that remained was the corpses of bright red ants at our feet, and the Queen and her guards at the end of the chamber.