Fated Antagonist

54. Big Brain

Tiny looked down at the little one cradled in the crook of his arm and felt a smile creep up on his face. It was good to protect the little one, and make sure she survived as she slept. Keeping her safe when she was awake was much harder. Tiny preferred times like this. It made him feel good, feel strong, when he cared for the little ones. They took care of Tiny, brought him food, were family with the master, so, he would care for them in turn.

The other thing that made him feel strong was the curve of his arm as he held the little one against his chest. This angle, this position, allowed him to flex his big bump of an arm muscle to an impressive degree, something he was sure to emphasise as he moved, so that all could appreciate the wonderful sight.

In truth, it absorbed his attention perhaps too much.

On several occasions, the little one had tricked him by asking him to pose and then escaped when his back was turned! Trickery! One time, she asked him which arm was thicker, his right or left, and Tiny had become so absorbed in the question that he remained as still as a statue for six hours. Only when the master realised that both he and the once-hatchling had gone missing did he return to find Tiny looking at both arms, flexing and straightening them one after the other with a thoughtful frown on his face.

Luckily, the master wasn’t too mad, though he did check Tiny’s core just to make sure his Cunning stat hadn’t changed.

Tiny found that a little insulting. No, he hadn’t changed his stats! He just devoted most of his brain to hitting things, and muscles, which were a key part of hitting things. Now that he had more brain than before, he could think even more about hitting things and muscles! He didn’t mind it so much, though sometimes he wished his shoulders were a little larger and his brain a little smaller.

(It should be noted that Tiny has truly, ridiculously, absurdly large shoulders.)

[Tiny. I believe that Brilliant may be stirring,] the voice of his sister broke into his thoughts of shoulders large enough to hoist a mountain on top of, and his gaze flashed down to the small form in his arm.

The shadow spoke truly; the young one had begun to twitch and wriggle, much as the grubs do, in small increments as she returned to the world of the waking. Moving gently, he placed her on the stone floor with one massive palm, then stepped back, peering carefully at the waking ant.

He didn’t want to make a mistake and have her run off on him again. The master would get annoyed, and then his brain would have to be even bigger for his next evolution… which would mean less energy for more important things! His fists curled in determination, which did interesting things to his forearms, but before he became distracted, he snapped his eyes back to the little one.

That was close…

[I have informed the master; he will be with us soon,] his sister informed him, and Tiny gave her a quick nod of gratitude.

That meant he wouldn’t have to focus for too long, which was a good thing. With the imminent arrival of their creator, they settled in to wait. Little brother decided he didn’t want to float any longer and settled himself on top of Tiny’s head, his two stick-thin arms supporting him. It was a shame the little brother has such a weak body, he’d never know the true joy of smashing things with his fists, which made Tiny a bit sad. On the other hand, the little brother was very good at smashing things with his brain, which Tiny couldn’t do.

Perhaps smashing things with the brain was just as fun?

He considered that for a second before shaking his head in denial. No. There was no chance of that being true, but the little brother enjoyed it, so that was good. At the movement of the head beneath him, Invidia stirred, forced to adjust his position, and Tiny felt a connection snap into being between the two of them.

On the other side of the bridge, the giant ape could feel his little brother’s mind, not so little right now, the weight of that ponderous brain looming like something that Tiny didn’t think he could lift.

[Be stillsssssss,] the little brother chides, his eye flittering down to his resting place’s massive frame. [Your sssstrength will be mine one day!]

Tiny shook his head again, causing the little demon to hiss with irritation. He knew the little brother would yearn for his great power. A pity he would never be as huge as Tiny.

Then the hatchling sprang awake, leaping onto her six legs and pointing an antenna fervently behind them.

[Look out!] she cried over a hastily-crafted connection.

Both Tiny and Invidia immediately turned, only to see nothing behind them at all, just a wall. Perhaps she wanted them to see the wall? Before the pair could lean in closer to more thoroughly inspect said wall, there was a skittering noise followed by a thump behind them. They turn back to see the hatchling splayed out on the ground, each of her legs bound by a coil of shadow.

[W-when?] the newly evolved ant groaned.

[Since before you woke up,] the sister said. [Stay still until the master arrives and I won’t mention your attempt.]

[Fine.]

She tried to escape! Tiny realised this and thumped one massive fist into his palm, then turned to his sister and gave her an energetic thumbs up. The patch of darkness that had bonded itself to the wall wibbled and sighed, then a tentacle extended and moulded itself into a matching gesture that Tiny happily bumped his own fist against before settling back.

Teamwork. It felt nice to have others he could rely on. It took him a long time to understand that.

Shortly after, the master arrives, rushing up in a blur before stopping and looming over the little one in a cloud of dust. At the last moment, the shadowy restraints slip into the stone and vanish, allowing the hatchling to stand once more.

[Thanks, guys,] the master told them, his honest gratitude shining over the connection, warming each of them like a gentle flame. [I really appreciate it.]

Then he poked and prodded the little one a few times.

[Now let’s see what you’ve done.]