Another day in the tunnel.

You creep through the darkness for some time without another use of your potions of dark sight. There are only two vials remaining in your pack, so it's best to ration them out, but it's also not all that hard to navigate without them. It's certainly strange spending hours in complete darkness, but the tunnel is mostly straight, and you haven't yet encountered any sort of branching pathways. The longer you spend in the shadows, the easier it becomes. With the aid of your Kitty Sense, you're even more effective at feeling your way around. It may not grant you the powers of Daredevil, but you feel more aware of what's around you--every sound, the touch of the soil and stone, even the gentle breeze that wafts through.

As you continue on, you feel a sudden panic shoot up your body.

You halt your next step with incredible reaction time. After you do, you listen closely to hear the slithering of flesh through the dirt directly in front of your boot, as well as a quiet hiss. You hold still until the sound disappears once again. Only then do you continue walking.

Just a snake, but a hefty little guy, at least from what I could tell. I can't believe I didn't step on him. I can't slow down now, but I gotta be careful too. All sorts of critters can be found in here, especially if nobody has come through in awhile. Snakes. Spiders. That's just normal stuff. I'm in a fantasy world, so who knows?

Speaking of which, it isn't much longer before you hear a noise ahead. It sounds like speaking--not whispering, so nobody is sneaking about. You reach for another vial of dark sight potion and schluck it down like a shot of whiskey. The world around you appears once again, spreading out to first reveal the ground at your feet, the nearby wall, and then at last, a couple figures not far away.

Two short creatures stand clad in nothing more than deep brown, skimpy bikinis--bottoms like g-strings, and tops that barely do the job in covering their tits. They have matching brown bob cuts and small, bulbous, abdomens poking out from their lower backs. Each stands as armed and armoured as all others you've seen, which in general have all been identical in appearance so far. They have gloves which reach up to their elbows with metal claw-like guards on the fingers, and knee-high boots. They're peering curiously into what seems to be a crack up the walk as their thick antennae twitch forward, as if trying to detect something unseen. It isn't directed at you, however. They're inspecting something else.

Formica insectrin are strange little creatures. They're smaller than most people, though still a bit taller than goblins or gnomes. They also appear rather adorable despite their strange bodies. Upon closer inspection, one would see their odd, multi-lensed, orange irises, and tiny pincers extending from their mouths. These ant-girls can also supposedly communicate with one another through some sort of telepathy, almost like a hivemind, though they are all still individuals. With enough of them, it's no surprise Elok was able to dig this tunnel, especially given what else he has at his disposal--monsters, constructs, etc.

You can't help but wonder, however, how they think. Do they do all this willingly? Do they understand why they're doing it? There are so many, and surely they found them somewhere around Muian's old lair. Maybe they don't know any better. I guess it's complicated. They might all look identical, but maybe they vary more than they seem.

As you ponder, they disappear into the wall.

Curious, you sneak ahead. No sound is made by your footfalls or even your breaths, though you still move carefully as you peek around the corner. Bumping into someone could spell trouble after all, especially if one of the ant-girls communicates what happened with the rest. There's no telling how cautious they are down here when it comes to possible intruders. When you peer into the crack, you see a natural cave open up.

Just like Minecraft. You try digging a nice base underground, and this always happens. I guess with such a rushed, massive tunnel, they must have ended up breaking into caves all the time. It must still happen on occasion, when the walls grow weak.

Their antennae continue to twitch as they peer around the cavern.

"I guess we should just collapse the roof near the opening," one says. "Good thing we caught this. The crack in the wall is still growing."

The other points backwards. "Right there. If we dig around that spot, it should fill it up enough to where it won't matter."

While you don't distance yourself too far from the tunnel, just in case their destruction job is too quick and you end up being sealed away in here, you make your way a bit ahead of them. You squint your eyes and take in the green-shifted stone and the various, tiny tunnels that have naturally been carved by water and the natural movement of the stone. You wonder if without the potion, there could be all manner of colours down here, or if you stand in a room of grey. That's when something catches your attention. It isn't something you see or even hear, but something you feel. There's an odd tension in the air. You turn your eyes towards one particular hole in the wall.

Suddenly, a deep violet blur dashes out from within. A stout creature lunges towards one of the ants, and through pure instinct, you vault yourself towards the conflict as you draw your blade from its scabbard. The invisible Lauo stops the enemy's strike with a long, reverberating pang of metal against metal. You stare at the assailant--a purple beetle-like creature with thin swords for hands which moves on two human-like legs. The point of one of the monster's blades has met with the flat of yours, though it has absolutely no idea what happened. You pull back, and leave some distance between you and the others.

Both ant-girls scream in panic at the rapid attack. The one nearly skewered covers her face, but peers between her fingers just as the creature steps backwards in confusion.

"How did you--" the one comments.

"Aah! It's a bleetle! Let's get him."

Still uncertain of how her friend repelled the strike, the other nods. They lower themselves into defensive stances, though it isn't long before they're aggressively on the offense. They lunge forwards and slash the bleetle open with their razor-sharp gloves. After they catch their breath, they finally make their way back to the entrance.

You slip by, and watch them to their work.

"Are you ready?" one asks.

"Let's do it!" the other cheers.

After a quick high-five, they leap up and climb the inside of the crack. It takes little time for them to hack away at the stone and dirt until it begins to collapse. They do so with expert precision. As soon as they stop and retreat, the entire entrance collapses once again. It'll require some cleanup, but by how the sound continues, you can't imagine there will be anymore trouble from that cavern.

They're really good at digging. I can only imagine what dozens and dozens of them could do in tandem. A couple is a little dangerous, but I don't even know what I'd do if I had to fight an army of them at once. It'd be like fighting a blender.

"Let's head back," says the one before sprinting off. "Race you!"

"That's not fair!" shouts the other before following behind.

They're going the direction you're headed. With them clearing the path of any critters in the way, you seize the opportunity to run as well. They're quick little creatures, but you're pretty fast yourself. Matching their pace, you're able to save some time as you allow them to lead the way.