We move through the nest with Burke running alongside and once again I'm stunned at the sheer level of industry that the Colony has grown to. The farming territories swarm with ants, culling the ever-spawning monsters and ferrying a constant stream of Biomass back to the nest. From there the food will be transported around the territories, to the Queens, to the satellite nests, to the academy. Biomass is the lifeblood of our growth and for the moment, an endless river of it is flooding into the Colony such that we have never seen before. For however long the wave will last, provided we can fend off the never-ending foes from below, we are going to experience incredible wealth in terms of food.
The future is bright!
Though it's past time I got back to doing my bit. Past the farms and deeper into the tunnels we come across the emergency medical facilities, packed with wounded soldiers and other castes with heavy injuries. Medics fuss and fidget over them, using their medical skills to heal as best they can, feeding Biomass to the injured in order to speed up the healing process. Beyond them we come across the inner walls, each manned with a full complement of ants despite the wave not having penetrated this deep. As we progress deeper and further from the nest, we pass more layers of fortifications, walls, traps, pits, barriers, and spiked ramparts still being worked on by perfectionist carvers.
"They're preparing for another round of satellite nests?" I exclaim as Wills reveals the council's plans. "Is this really the time for that?!"
"It was Victoriant and Antionette who pushed hard for it. I can't say I disagree with them either. It takes a significant amount of time to raise a Queen and lay the groundwork for a new satellite nest. The territory needs to be mapped out, the construction and preparation of the tunnels takes time, forging the gates, gathering the resources for enchanting. The egg-laying chambers will need to have the Dungeon veins removed. There's a ton that goes into it."
"I get that, but how exactly is any of that supposed to take place during a wave?!" It seems like madness to me.
"The preliminary work can get done. Tungstant and Cobalt are already working on designs and pouring over the maps we were able to build before the siege started. For now, I think they're hoping to build four."
"Yep, with two Queens in each. From what I gather, they'll be built quite a ways away, but together in a cluster, if you take my meaning. Since they'll be so far from the main nest and we can't support them at short notice, the idea is that they'll be able to lean on each other when needed."
Another eight Queens… if each is laying two hundred eggs per day… that's another sixteen hundred hatchlings PER DAY?! Holy moly! And two hundred is a lower bound… When they evolve further that can jump to as high as five hundred, each, which would be four THOUSAND. A DAY.
Things are getting out of control here aren't they? What the heck is the Vestibule going to be like when there are literally millions of us? Do I even want to think about that? I know ant colonies on Earth could grow into the millions, that's not surprising, but thinking about my Colony, with giant, thinking ants, it paints a different sort of picture. How are we going to feed that many grubs?! All of a sudden, the vast farms the Colony has constructed feel entirely too small. We need to scale up! Quickly!
Even so, the council really did take my call to be ambitious seriously, didn't they? Four more satellite nests already in planning… The expansion of the Colony really is speeding up to an absurd degree!
Whilst I'm still digesting the news, we arrive at the frontline, the din of battle rising to near deafening levels as a blast of pheromones hits me right in the antennae. As expected, the fighting is fierce, ants swarming in numbers behind their choke points, pouncing on every monster who sticks so much as a foot through, dragging them back and piling onto them before they can fight back. Even with all of our advantages, ants still get injured, or worse, as the fighting intensifies.
We find a general nearby, directing traffic and providing buffs to the fighting.
"Reporting for duty," I snap out a quick salute with an antenna, "mind if we jump in for a while?"
"Eldest!" she seems surprised to see us here. "By all means, it'll be nice to have the pressure taken off."
[You heard the lady,] I tell my pets, [we're going through.]
I give a significant look to the ceiling as well, letting my guard detail know that I expect them to be levelling as well.
"You coming through with us?" I ask Wills.
"I think I'll provide some long-distance fire support," she replies, "I'm not exactly built for the front."
"Suit yourself," I shrug.
We charge forward, giving little warning to the ants who scurry out of the way. I burst straight through the choke point and drive into the horde of scratching, biting and clawing monsters on the other side, my mandibles gnashing for battle.
Notifications ring in my mind, but I pay them no heed. With a little space created, Tiny bursts into the gap, his roar of fury and joy ringing from the stone walls as fists of light manifest and snap out with blistering speed.
[Get to work Crinis,] I remind her, [we aren't here for me.]
She replies as she peels off my carapace, growing into her proper size, her three maws open wide, the dark void within ready to consume all that she can see.
[You and I are on support,] I tell Invidia and his pulses green to show his understanding. Already he's binding shields to Tiny and healing the minor wounds he's received.
I spin together the omni-elemental construct and prepare to start grinding levels. Every time I level up the Skill, handling the construct and the elements it creates becomes that little bit more fluid and intuitive. As time passes, I'll be able to fling around elemental spells with wild abandon. I do need to keep in mind my need to grind mind magic also, but that can wait for the time being. The elemental magic is going to be far more useful in this situation, so it gets priority.
We quickly settle into a rhythm, Tiny and Crinis in front, battling hard and fighting for every drop of experience they can get, with Invidia protecting and healing them whilst I throw fire, lava, ice and whatever else takes my fancy. Every now and again a more powerful monster, such as a demon, comes forward to challenge us and we team up to put it down hard, ensuring that the experience is taken by someone who needs it. This goes on for hours until our energy starts to dip and I order my group back through the chokepoint to rest.
[Wasn't too bad was it guys? Nothing compared to our last expedition!]
Tiny harrumphs, as if to say that the last expedition was pure madness, and nothing should be measured against that standard.
[Well, get some food into you and have a quick nap. We're going to relocate and then do it again as soon as you're ready.]
Crinis sighs and stretches a small set of tentacles as she settles onto my back, preparing to snooze while she can. I haven't even finished talking before Tiny is out, snoring up against the wall. Thanks to the Vestibule, I'm full of energy, but these two have been doing the bulk of the fighting and don't have my benefits. It's going to be a rough wave for them, since this is all we're going to do until they reach level eighty, which could take over a week.
I snack on a small piece of Biomass I snagged outside the wall and lower myself down. The life of a monster really is an endless grind.