Antvance into the Unknown

45. Infernal Conversation

“If you’re going to talk to that thing, you better make it quick, Eldest!” Protectant calls as the fight continues to keep the press of demons from overwhelming me.

Right, don’t want to waste any time here, need to get our info and get the heck out of here. Still, this is a precious chance to talk to a fellow sapient monster. I’ve heard that there’s tons of them down here in the third stratum. What to ask? What does the Colony need to know the most?

[You mentioned a city?] I ask the trapped Anga. [Whereabouts might I find it?]

[You don’t see it?] the demon says in a near mocking tone. [Look down the spire!]

I’m going to assume the spire refers to the gigantic pillar we are close to the top of. Glancing over the side of the ramp, I can see straight down the absurd, vertigo-inducing sight of the giant stone formation holding up the roof of the third stratum. Just as before, the rocks are teeming with lifeforms climbing their way up, dotted by flowing rivers of lava that flow out of the pillar at various points. Then I notice something odd. It takes me a second to reconfigure my perspective to understand exactly what it is I’m looking at.

Is that… what I think it is?

What I had originally thought was a rock formation around the base of the pillar appears to be something else. Looking almost straight down at it, I couldn’t quite make out the difference, but when I look a little harder, it isn’t actually on the ground. What I’m seeing is, in fact, a plate-like rock formation that circles the entire pillar about halfway down. And those aren’t just rocks, but rather buildings that are formed on that flat ring. That’s a city?

It appears as though I might have found it… Suspended halfway up the pillar, multiple kilometres above the floor of the stratum, the demon city exists on the pillar itself. How do they avoid getting swarmed by the climbing monsters, though? Try as I might, I can’t make out the details from this distance to work it out.

I feel the thoughts of my captive shift in an unpleasant direction, and I wrench his arm with my mandibles, returning my full focus to him, dashing his hopes of knocking me off the edge.

[I’d tell you not to think about it, but I don’t think you’re capable,] I say.

[Demonic nature cannot be changed,] he agrees.

[You came from the city on the pillar?]

[I did.]

[What for?]

[This is the only time that we demons can rise to the second stratum. I was sent to scout and search for developments in the overworld.]

Makes sense, I suppose. The wave gives the demons a chance to move up in the world, so to speak, and why wouldn’t they seize this opportunity to check out the lay of the land? In a general sense, they have more to fear from attackers descending from above than those rising from below, since waves are rare. If an army like the Legion, or perhaps a giant colony of ants, were to start setting up shop above them, the residents of the city would probably prefer being aware of it.

Even so, I feel like there is more that I’m not being told, though I can’t figure out what it is.

[You were sent by yourself? Hardly seems like enough.]

The demon gurgles a laugh out loud.

[A full-grown demon has little to fear moving up, usually.]

[You’re just an unlucky sap who picked on the wrong ant, I suppose.]

He’s not wrong. How many tier six monsters would he run into on his climb if I hadn’t been here? None, probably.

[Does the city have a name? Or this place… this area of the third stratum?]

The demon grins.

[You are above the Plains of Leng, bug, and the City of Roklu.]

Interesting. It doesn’t mean a whole lot to me, but it’s nice to know that the place has a name at all. Perhaps Granin will be able to tell me more about it.

[So, another question that I have, is what happens to you when you crawl back to your city injured, having failed your mission before you managed to leave the stratum?]

[Another will be sent, and I will be punished.] I can feel from the demon’s mind that he doesn’t much care. [They may decide that Anga is to be food and throw me to the vats.]

Vats? I’m not sure I want to know.

[I am done with your questions, insect,] the demon growls. [Either finish me or let Anga go free.]

[But we were getting along so well,] I tell him.

[I will speak no more,] he says and cuts the Mind Bridge.

It’s odd that he would know how to do that, as I sense no strong ability for magic coming from him. Certainly, he didn’t cast a single spell during our fight. It makes me wary, thinking that there might be further depths to this demon that I don’t yet understand. Still, if he doesn’t feel like talking, I can hardly take the time to try and make him whilst exposed here on the ramp. I release my bite on the demon and slowly back up, allowing him to gradually put his feet under him.

With his right arm nearly severed and the tongue from his main mouth cut, Anga is not much of a threat. Still, I don’t let up my guard for a second while he steadies himself before turning to move back down the ramp. Before he’s taken two steps, my antennae tingle with warning and I curse, jumping to one side. The demon spins with an alarming speed, and fires his one remaining tongue-spear from his left arm from near point-blank range.

I don’t bother to fully dodge, merely shifting my body to the left to put the demon between me and the edge of the ramp. With a loud THUNK, the spear slams into my carapace, once again failing to penetrate all the way through. I pay it no mind, coordinating with my sub-brains to condense the Air Mana I need for this spell to work.

BOOM!

With a concussive blast, I unload two condensed air bolts right into the demon’s chest from close range, providing the force needed to knock the demon backward, but not quite far enough. Hit him again!

BOOM!

Unable to correct his balance in time, Anga is blown back, slipping over the edge. For a moment, I can feel the aura of murderous glee rising from the demon before he slips out of my sight. With a powerful snap of my mandibles, I sever the spear that still connects us and wait to see if I get a notification for the monster’s demise.

None comes. Dammit.

He had to have known he wouldn’t be able to defeat me, as wounded as he was, so why bother making the attempt? I get the feeling the demonic mindset is going to be very different than what I would expect to see from a normal sapient creature. Still, we learned a few valuable things from him, such as the name and location of the closest demon settlement to the Colony.

We’ll need to scout it out in more detail in the future, since I’ve little doubt we’ll be conquering the place as our first port of call to extending the territory of the Colony into the third stratum. I glance out to the vast terrain that is laid before me from this high vantage point. Won’t all this be better when it belongs to the Colony? I look to the teeming hordes of demons down below. Just think of the farming possibilities…

“Alright, everyone,” I call to my bodyguards. “Time to go!”

[Pack it up gang, we’re retreating to the nest.]

Hopefully, the way back up is easier than the way down.