The journey home was peaceful.
Almost...
Too peaceful.
The Guardian's Gift rested securely between Ethan's mandibles as the group wound through the narrow tunnels.
Behind him, Pip hummed happily while carrying several glowing mushrooms almost twice his size.
"I've never brought this much food home before."
"Then today is a successful day."
Pip smiled.
"...You're surprisingly optimistic."
"I'm trying something new."
The worker ant walked at the front of the group.
Alert.
Her antennae constantly swept the air.
She hadn't relaxed once since leaving the Root Orchard.
The Shellback Burrow Squirrel waddled along behind everyone with bulging cheeks stuffed full of seeds.
Every few steps...
He looked over his shoulder.
As if making sure no one was following.
Stone Sense pulsed.
Faint.
Very faint.
Ethan stopped walking.
"...Wait."
Everyone stopped.
Pip looked around nervously.
"What is it?"
"I..."
"...Thought I felt something."
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The vibration disappeared.
Nothing.
"...Maybe I'm imagining it."
Iris spoke immediately.
[Stone Sense has never produced a false positive.]
"...That doesn't make me feel better."
The tunnel ahead narrowed.
Roots crisscrossed the ceiling.
Loose stones littered the ground.
Perfect terrain for an ambush.
Ethan's instincts screamed.
The worker ant suddenly raised one foreleg.
Danger.
She had sensed it too.
A pebble rolled from above.
Tick.
It bounced once.
Then stopped.
Silence.
Pip whispered,
"...Don't move."
A shadow detached itself from the ceiling.
Then another.
Then another.
Then...
A fifth.
Five glossy black ants landed without making a sound.
Each one was larger than Ethan.
Their mandibles were chipped from countless battles.
Unlike Ethan's smooth crystal-lined carapace...
These ants wore scars.
Old ones.
[Appraisal]
Soldier Ant Scout
Level 4
Another.
Level 5.
Another.
Level 4.
Another.
Level 4.
The final one...
Level 5.
Ethan's heart skipped a beat.
"...They're ants."
The worker ant froze.
A flood of emotions surged through Ant Instinct.
Recognition.
Fear.
Hatred.
The largest scout stepped forward.
Unlike Ethan's colony...
Its antennae had been painted with streaks of red sap.
A symbol of rank.
It clicked its mandibles.
The others spread out in perfect formation.
Blocking every exit.
"..."
"...Iris."
"...Tell me they just want directions."
[Negative.]
The lead scout released a sharp burst of pheromones.
Ethan couldn't fully understand them.
But Ant Instinct translated enough.
"Food."
"Outsiders."
"Kill."
Pip slowly backed away.
"...Ethan..."
"...Why are they looking at us like that?"
"...Because..."
Ethan lowered into a fighting stance.
"...We're lunch."
Without warning—
One scout lunged.
Not at Ethan.
At the Guardian's Gift.
"...They're after the fruit!"
The worker ant intercepted the attack.
CLANG!
Mandibles crashed together.
She was forced backward several steps.
The Level 5 scout barely moved.
Another scout darted around Ethan's side.
Too fast.
Its jaws closed around Pip's mushroom basket.
Pip yelped.
"My mushrooms!"
The scout ripped the basket away—
Only for a tiny furry blur to slam into its face.
BONK!
The Shellback Burrow Squirrel headbutted the ant with its shell.
The scout stumbled in surprise.
The basket flew into the air.
Glasswings that had secretly followed the group scattered in every direction.
Chaos erupted.
Five scouts.
Four companions.
A tunnel too narrow to maneuver.
Exactly the kind of battlefield Ethan hated.
Which meant...
He had to make it work.
His engineer's mind raced.
Count the tunnels.
Measure the walls.
Watch their footing.
Find the weakness.
Then...
Stone Sense pulsed again.
Not beneath him.
Beneath...
The enemy.
One scout had placed its weight on a cracked section of stone.
A smile slowly spread across Ethan's face.
"...Got you."
The Level 5 scout looked into Ethan's eyes.
For the first time...
It hesitated.
It had expected prey.
Instead...
It saw a plan.