Chapter 40
No Doubt, Humans are a Violent Species
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Scorpion Knight
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System Journal Entry added to Violet Secret Library.
Dated a day before the attack of the Wolf Squad.
Error. Readjusting.
System Entry is as follows:
The Scorpion Knight, Nightshade, entered the small administrative office located in the Ant Clan Enclave’s garrison. He took note of the humble chamber, constructed from dark, polished wood with ornate engravings adorning its edges. Upon entering the garrison commander's room, he surveyed his surroundings. The area was bathed in the warm, flickering light of several candles, casting a soft glow throughout the space. Wooden shelves lined the walls, stocked with countless parchment scrolls, leather-bound books, and quills. In the center of the room stood an imposing oak desk, it's surface buried beneath a mountain of papers and documents.
That was when he noticed the figure behind the desk. There was a stout bureaucrat with wire-rimmed spectacles, poring over a stack of letters with a furrowed brow. The air was thick with the scent of ink and parchment, and the only sound that could be heard was the occasional scratching of a quill on paper.
In one corner of the room, a small iron stove provided warmth, and an inkwell and feather quill lay on a wooden tray nearby. The atmosphere was a mix of solemnity and efficiency, with a sense of purposeful industry permeating the air. Despite the small size of the room, it was evident that much work was done there, and the presence of the unassuming yet determined bureaucrats that worked there commanded respect.
The Scorpion Knight squad leader took in the picture of Neeza. She was a small, black-ant humanoid standing only three feet tall. Her exoskeleton was shiny and smooth, and her antennae were long and delicate. Despite her age, Neeza moved quickly and with purpose. She wore a pair of spectacles perched on her nose and carried a small leather-bound notebook at all times.
Nightshade had a feeling that Neeza was a no-nonsense administrator with a sharp mind and a keen eye for detail, just like his garrison officials. He could tell she took her job very seriously and expected those around her to do the same. The captain sensed that Neeza was not one for small talk, preferring to get straight to business, especially when he entered the room and she did not greet him.
The guards above expressed that Neeza could come across as gruff and demanding, but she had a heart of gold and genuinely cared about those under her charge.
Nightshade took his chance, “System Scan,” he whispered.
System Notification: Stealth Scan Skill levelled up.
System Details Provided:
Name:
Neeza The Care-Taker
Race: Black Ant Clan
Class: Administrator
Subclass: Footman
Age: 60
Level: 30
Attributes:
Skills:
Strength: 8
Intelligence: 15
Administration: 18
History: 12
Dexterity: 10
Wisdom: 16
Negotiation: 16
Constitution: 12
Charisma: 14
Perception: 14
Equipment:
Spectacles
Quill and ink
Ledger book
Short Sword
Basic Leathers
Keyring
Abilities:
Swarm Mind:
Rare Racial
Neeza can communicate telepathically with other ants, allowing her to coordinate her work effectively.
Analytical Mind:
Common
Neeza can analyze information quickly, making her an efficient administrator.
Persuasion:
Common
Neeza has a way with words, able to negotiate with others effectively.
Morph:
Epic
The user has the ability to morph their body into any form they desire. They can change their size, shape, colour, and texture to mimic any living creature or object. This ability allows the user to blend in with their surroundings, move unnoticed, and access areas that would otherwise be inaccessible. The user can also use this ability to heal injuries, regenerate lost limbs, and alter their physical appearance. However, the user must have a clear understanding of the form they wish to take and must be able to mentally visualize it in detail. The amount of time the user can maintain a form varies based on the complexity of the form and the user's level of control over the ability. Overuse of this ability can cause physical and mental strain on the user.
Weaknesses:
Fragile:
Neeza's small size and lack of physical strength make her vulnerable in combat situations.
Limited mobility
Neeza's old age physiology limits her mobility and makes it difficult to navigate certain environments.
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System Note:
As an elderly black ant humanoid administrator, Neeza is known to be fiercely protective of her responsibilities and those under her care. However, she can become quite stubborn and inflexible when it comes to following rules and protocols, often to the point of being frustrating or difficult to work with. Additionally, her shapeshifting ability can make her a formidable opponent, so caution is advised when interacting with her.
Nightshade squared off against the garrison commander, his voice laced with urgency, “Greetings Neeza. I am Nightshade, Squad Leader of the Scorpion Knights tasked with scouting out our troop disappearances in the Badlands.”
“What does that have to do with me, and at this hour? Come back in the morning after booking an appointment. I have a whole garrison to maintain. I can’t drop everything to fit your needs.”
“We are leaving at dawn, and we have a formal request for three fire troopers.”
Neeza stopped writing and carefully set her ink pen down. Slowly she took in a deep breath. Neeza turned to the scorpion knight and with a stern tone warned, "Fire ants? I see the bad moon risin' and trouble on the way. You might as well be asking for earthquakes and lightnin'.
I see bad times today. That's a terrible idea, squad leader. Their fire is highly dangerous and they're known for their aggressive behavior. We don't want to provoke them unless we have no other choice."
"I implore you, we need those troops now! The enemy is at our doorstep, and time is running out."
"I understand your concerns," the commander replied calmly, "but we can't simply send our soldiers into battle without proper preparation and strategy."
"Preparation and strategy?" the Scorpion Knight scoffed, "The enemy won't wait for us to make a plan. They'll strike when we least expect it, and we'll be caught with our pants down!"
Neeza used a reproachful tone and said, “Compose yourself, squad leader. Is this how a Knight of the Queen of Queens behaves?”
“I am acting as my station demands, worm. I am not asking. I am telling you. I will be leaving here with three of your fire ants.
"We will not act rashly," the commander said firmly. "The lives of our soldiers and the safety of our people are at stake. We must take every precaution. Fire ants are known for their aggressive behaviour and tendency to attack without provocation. They are like ticking time bombs, always on the brink of exploding. Once triggered, they become unhinged, moving in waves with unrelenting ferocity. It is precisely this unhinged behaviour that makes them so feared and dangerous, a force to be reckoned with in any battle."
"Precaution? We've been taking precautions for months, and where has it gotten us?" the Nightshade retorted, frustration evident in his voice. "We need action, not more talk. I have my orders. I will be taking them with me, just depends if I am also taking your head."
The two were waiting in that office in tense silence, their eyes locked in a battle of wills. The Scorpion Knight knew that time was of the essence, and he couldn't afford to wait any longer. He took a step forward, ready to plead his case once more, this time using his sword.
Neeza hesitated for a moment longer, her antennae twitching nervously. She pulled out a form from her desk and began to fill it in. She knew the dangers of using fire ants, but she also understood the threat of a Scorpion Knight's request. She liked her head attached to her body after all.
After a deep breath, she relented and spoke in a resigned tone, "Fine, I'll gather the fire ants for you, but be warned, they are unhinged creatures and difficult to control. Use them at your own peril."
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Violet- Alex
Present
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The sun blazed down on the area I planned on building a small town, I can picture Alex as the sheriff squinting up and down the railway tracks, waiting for the mail train to roll in. There was a Western my Dad used to love, I never had the heart to watch the movie, but I remember seeing it countless times there on the shelf: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly.
The reality and my daydream were not too far apart. Alex knew that bandits, or in our case the scorpions, were coming. I can picture Sherfit Alex tipping her cowboy hat and in her cute snake voice saying something like, “They always hit the train car at noon,” and she would end the sentence by spinning her revolvers and flipping them into the holsters.
I had a few moments before the battle started and I took the time to talk with Alex. I was using one of my Skelton models to talk with her, “Research Project Finished and we started a new one. I need them up and running, soon.”
Alexandra inquired, "Great Sage, I think I've made an interesting discovery in our research. But I'm not sure if it's a good thing or not. Can we discuss it?"
I nodded my basic skull and replied, "Of course, I'm always interested in hearing about new discoveries. What have you found?"
Alex murmured, "Well, I've found that our new experiment in magic and summoning the frogs have a significantly higher success rate than our current treatment data would suggest. But the downside is that it may have some side effects that we haven't fully studied yet."
I questioned her, "I see. That's definitely a significant finding. Let's review the data together and discuss the potential risks and benefits of this new spawn. We need to ensure that any direction we take is safe and effective."
SYSTEM NOTICE:
Current research project to be completed in…
20:45:41
She muttered something, but my attention was being pulled.
That was when Alex looked at her pocket watch - 5:55 pm. The sun was beginning to set. She would have to act fast when the scorpion war band arrived. The gunslinger was watching and waiting for any sign of the notorious black scorpions. This was going to be her first taste of battle. She knew that it was only a matter of time before they came to burn our world to the ground.
My voice box model, the non-combat body, channelled my voice to Alex, “It is going to be alright, Alex. You and your sisters will stop them.”
She spoke kindly and softly, almost like a grandmother more than a deadly gunslinger, “What is the point of fighting, Great Sage?”
I paused for a brief moment and then said, “Ultimately, the point of fighting is often tied to the values, beliefs, and goals of the person or group involved in the conflict.”
“What is your belief? You have killed Beastkin before. Some argue that you were cruel to Oliver and Grace in their test.”
“Blah, right in the heart Alex. That is why I love you. I know that I was hard on Oliver and Grace, but I didn’t know if they were like the wolves or the scorpions. I am happy it worked out and they are part of the Oath Bound now.”
“Sage, you haven’t answered my question. What about the killing? The cruelty of life?”
My voice got cold, without me even thinking and the words just came, “You best believe that if you dare come for me, you'll be messing with the whole crew. We live, work, fight or die together, and any threat to one of us is a threat to all. So, if they’re thinking of making a move, be prepared to face the wrath of not just me, but every single one of my loyal comrades.”
“Yes, Sage. I think I understand. Should an individual or entity attempt to harm or pursue our community, it is likely to result in consequences that extend beyond the scope of my personal affairs, as it may involve and implicate others who are associated or connected with me.”
“Sorry, Alex. My attention is split. Goliath has three wolves at the entrance to the grasslands.”
Alex spurred, she was guarding the area between the swamps and Golaith’s forest and grasslands. The badlands stretch for miles, a desolate landscape of rocky terrain and twisted spires of red sandstone. The sky above is a deep shade of blue, with sparse clouds that offer no relief from the relentless sun. The air is hot and dry, and the only sound is the occasional whisper of the wind as it gusts through narrow canyons and over jagged ridges. The ground is hard and cracked, with occasional patches of prickly cacti and scrubby bushes dotting the landscape. I was able to change a good part of my canyon into a swamp thanks to pumping water out of an underground lake and blocking the sun with adapted and modified trees.
Goliath was able to maintain the trees in the shady area of the canyon, there was a southern location between the two areas, and this is where Alex protected. In the distance, towering mesas rise from the earth like giants, their slopes steep and treacherous. The area of the mesas was on the opposite side of Alex. The badlands are a place of isolation and danger, where survival is a constant struggle and danger lurks around every corner. Well, we aren’t isolated right now.
I watched as the rest of Alex’s Librarians were waiting, they were pawing at the dirt in anticipation. They all knew what was coming. The bandits, the raiders, were notorious for their violence, strength, and the bugs always come prepared.
Alex started moving up her line of fighters, as she reached the apex the bandits appeared on the horizon at my domain boundary. She stopped at the front and leaned against the wooden post marking off a future build site, the brim of her hat pulled down low over her forehead.
The anticipation of battle loomed heavy in the air, sending shivers down the spine of every Liberian waiting in the ranks. The sounds of weapons being sharpened, guns being triple-checked, and armour being secured echoed throughout the defence line intermingled with the occasional shout or curse. Despite the bravado and confidence they displayed to one another, each citizen was plagued with nerves that threatened to overpower them. The fear of the unknown, the fear of death, and the fear of failure all weighed heavily on their minds.
They tried to hide their nervousness, but the constant fidgeting, pacing, and checking of equipment gave them away. Some prayed, oddly a few prayed to me, I didn’t like that, but most prayed to the Huntress. On the other hand, some talked to their comrades, and some simply stared into the distance, lost in their own thoughts.
The air was thick with tension and the expectation of what would come. The weight of responsibility for their own lives and the lives of their fellow soldiers was almost too much to bear. Despite their doubts and fears, the gunslingers stood firm and resolved to do their duty. They knew that they were about to face a formidable enemy and that there was a chance that they might not all make it out alive.
Side Note: The news about the spider mecha being unable to respawn spread faster than a Catholic school girl, even faster than Becca Gray. Let me tell you about our grade nine school dance. Wait, no, focus, Violet. Okay, where was I?
But they also knew that they were trained for this, that they had each other's backs, and that they were fighting for a cause greater than themselves. With this thought in mind, they tried to calm their nerves and prepare themselves for the inevitable clash of steel that awaited them.
Alex stepped forward, and addressed her people, “You can't feel the heat in the air. Until you hold your hand over the flame, you will never know what you are made of. This is our fire, this is our moment. You have to cross the line, we aren’t going back. Just remember where all of this lies. You won't know your worth now, daughters, until you take a hit or two. You won't find what might beat you until you lose yourself. We won't back down, we won't run and hide. We are going to send all those bugs to hell.”
Alex’s hand tightened on the grip of her revolver as she watched a cloud of dust approaching from the end of the future street. Her heart began to race as she saw the unmistakable shape of the Black Riders riding towards them, their faces obscured by bandanas.
"Get ready, girls," Alex called to her librarian gunslingers, who took up positions behind the sandbags the Canadian Foxes made for them. They had placed around a bottleneck that lead towards the temple. The lookout on the cliff readied his rifle, eyes fixed on the approaching bandits.
The Black Riders rode closer. Alex couldn’t make out their mounts at this distance, but from what I could tell they were a mix of a rhino, a lizard and a horse. The Black Riders drew their weapons, and the dust exploded into a hail of fire, bolts and arrows. At that moment the air was filled with the sound of gunfire as the two groups clashed. Alex and her men fired back, ducking behind the sandbags for cover. The lookout on the cliff picked off a few of the bandits with well-aimed shots.
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Attack Squad
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The attack squad spun around, 360 degrees, trying to locate the source of the voice. But there was no one there. Just the mass of eyes. The voice seemed to come from everywhere and nowhere at once, echoing through the darkness of the hedge.
Nyx felt a shiver run down her spine. She had never heard a voice like that before - it was deep and menacing, not like when Bloodthrone gets angry, but with an almost supernatural quality to it. She couldn't help but wonder if it belonged to one of the creatures that owned the hundreds of eyes that were still watching them.
Bloodthrone, on the other hand, was unfazed. He had been on enough missions to know that fear was a luxury they couldn't afford. Instead, he looked around, his hand reaching for the hilt of his sword.
"We mean no harm," Hunter called out. "We're just passing through."
There was a long moment of silence before the voice spoke again, this time sounding closer than before. "Passing through, you say? And where are you heading?"
Hunter hesitated. He didn't want to give too much away. But he knew that they needed to tread carefully if they wanted to make it out of this alive.
"We're on a mission," he said finally. "For our clan. We don't mean to intrude."
There was another long pause before the voice spoke again, this time with a hint of amusement. "Ah, the Alpha. I should have known. Very well, but if you meant no harm, Hunter, then why did you kill one of my brothers? You may enter the domain of Violet. But be warned - the woods are not safe, especially at night. You would do well to hurry along."
With that, the hundreds of eyes began to fade away, disappearing back into the darkness from which they came. The attack squad breathed a collective sigh of relief and quickly made their way through the hedge, grateful to be leaving the hedge and its mysterious inhabitants behind them.