Chapter 315

Among so many other things, the first thing that jumped out to me on my new [Status] was the complete lack of any possible evolutions. I'd never been in that same situation before, and the lack of any specific goal to strive towards left me feeling somewhat empty. The five [Quests] awaiting my input quickly quashed that aimless feeling, but I did feel a certain pang of loss. After all, this evolution had granted me over 200 stat points in total, a sheer numerical and qualitative change that I couldn't yet comprehend. 

Though several of the stats were nearly impossible to truly tell the difference, such as Constitution and Intelligence, other than feeling healthier and smarter, my Agility and Strength were immediately obvious to me. My tail, mobile and initially unwieldy, quickly became a great help for me to balance. Each step I took, I nearly subconsciously adjusted its position to allow me to step without any superfluous movement. While I experimented, I found I'd accidentally begun outpacing Sybil and she jogged to keep up with my walk. All the while, I felt the supernaturally strengthened muscles covering my body flex and move with each minute adjustment I made. My enhanced perception of myself was almost off putting, and I forced myself to focus instead of the world around me.

The suns had risen, the warm light of late morning warmed my scales. The suns glittered off the far-off seas, and I felt, again, truly content with where my people had come to. Beyond the mere light and weather of the early autumnal air, though, was the city, my city.

In the time I'd been unconscious, Sybil's knack for planning and preparing had continued to enact sweeping changes to the city. Much of the brush that had annoyingly clogged the pathways between ruins had been cut away, and though I couldn't see it, I heard the cries that always accompany battle echoing from the center of the city. Most of the herds weren't inside the bounds of the city's walls, though the fecal reminders of their presence weren't uncommon either. Though only nine days had passed since our arrival, already we were making this place our home.

I desperately wanted to jump into my [Status] and investigate whatever had changed, learn about my new [Skill] and [Titles], but instead, I asked Sybil, "I feel like the first question would be regarding the ants."

"There is nothing to worry about, but if you would prefer to see with your own eyes, you can do so."

I flicked my tail, unconcerned with the specifics but curious. Leading the way, I again had to force myself to slow down so as not to force the entirety of my entourage to run to keep pace. Before long, the steady shouts and commands were unintelligible as Took's.

"Hold steady! Fire inbound in one minute, begin retreat!"

After so long of Solia and Hala serving as the nearly exclusive sources of fire, I was surprised to see neither present to send the flaming attack that Took declared inbound. Instead, a large pile of smoldering branches lay stacked on the ground beside the large pit. Inside, at least twenty keelish began gathering and moving at least one hundred giant ant bodies. Nearly one hundred more continued swarming and biting as they exited the nest, but heavy rocks and coordinated assaults kept them from striking any real attacks on their hunters. Large ant corpses were stacked like so much firewood beside the pit, and the twenty fighters tied up in the pit didn't seem worried. Took's warning carried over the din of battle and forced the keelish into a flurry of obviously coordinated activity.

"10! 9! 8! 7! 6! 5! 4! 3! 2! 1!"

By the time the countdown was complete, every keelish was out of the pit. At least twice as many ants had already swarmed out of the pit and were charging with reckless abandon at whatever they saw. Their massive mandibles were held wide open, ready to tear through flesh and bone, but the same second Took finished the countdown, a dozen or more torches were tossed into the pit, large bundles of kindling thrown over them. 

A blaze erupted, the heat searing my eyeballs. Before I could blink, a new, secondary eyelid covered my sensitive eyes. Everything was muddled and difficult to make out, but I could still see, and the new eye protection allowed me to see at about half my usual capability without allowing the heat to bother me. The thought of using the lid underwater or while enduring any number of environmental difficulties ran through my mind, but I focused on the battle taking place instead of continuing to think about random things. 

With the veritable explosion before us, the ants' assault was stopped, though the fact that they didn't make any noise except for the quiet sound of their feet on the ground was disconcerting. I knew dozens were burning alive right in front of me, but only the crackling of flames rang out, along with the popping of whatever burned in there. 

"How goes the hunt?" I asked as Took commanded the hunters with just a couple hand signals. They all scattered to deal with the still living escapees and Took turned to me. She couldn't hide her surprise when she had to look up to see my face. Behind her, many of the keelish stopped where they stood and gaped at me. The continued movement from hostile monstrous ants ripped them from their seemingly instinctual worship, but I could see the not-so-subtle change in the way the keelish regarded me. 

"Alpha. I'm glad to see you awake."

"Me too. How's the ants?"

Her tail flicked, half pensive and half irritated. "They're easy prey. Stupid, tough. Good to feed us with. They don't stop. Only real problem is this," she gestured at the blazing fire, "can't be our strategy forever. We'll run out of materials to burn, and while we want to keep them out of the city, we don't want the ants to die out either. Ytte's working on a strategy to see what we can see down there, and I think she wanted to speak with you as well about it."

I flared my frills. "Understandable. Anything you need help with?"

"No, Alpha." After looking at me for a moment and seeing that I didn't have anything else that I seemed to want to speak with her about, Took turned back to the hunters and resumed organizing and commanding them to fall in line. With no need to continue bothering her, I stepped back and walked with Sybil as she subtly led me to what she seemed to consider to be the next stop in our journey.

We walked past a team of Kha'Tal who worked to restore buildings, establishing lean-tos and whatever else could be used as a sort of shelter. They both bowed deeply the same second they laid eyes on me, and there was something almost supernatural with how quickly they turned from their work to me, well before anyone had said anything to alert them to our presence. Even so, I felt it to be natural, and I couldn't say quite yet where it came from. Instead, I continued walking, witnessing the changes so quickly being applied to our new home. Everywhere, the evidence of our arrival and imminent rise greeted me. 

Sybil didn't feel the need to explain everything we saw, instead walking in such a way that I saw everything she considered to be worthy of my attention. I saw the site for housing our herds, a den of sorts for eggs, and what could only be called a granary of some sorts. Then, the last stop was the most important. As I saw it, I let a wide smile crack my face, and looking at Sybil, I saw she'd expected the same reaction.

I walked into the bathhouse, a large pit of perfect sand already warmed by the suns ready for me to jump in, and Solia walked out just as I came in. When I glanced with my thermal vision, I saw that she'd heated the sands to the perfect temperature, and I grinned my thanks at her. With a wriggle of my body and a sigh of contentment, I let the grains scrub against every inch of me. My escorts stepped back, allowing me to bathe in peace, and at last, I could investigate all the changes to my [Status].