The Antventure Begins

6. Exploration is Perilous

Filled with the contented and happy feeling of being in my own enclosed space with a full stomach for the first time in this world, I awake refreshed, and ready to, cautiously, approach my next challenge.

I need to explore the cavern farther, gather more information on my situation and try to identify my next prey. Before that, there is something else I want to try. After eating, Gandalf informed me I had unlocked a basic profile of the Spinetta Lacertos. I haven’t yet tried to access this profile. It’s time to experiment and see if I can learn something.

Unlock!

Access Profile!

Open Sesame!

Spinetta Lacertos!

[Spineta Lacertos: Thorn Lizard. Spines are sharp and contain mutated venom.]

Woo! There you go! Spinetta Lacertos is translated to Thorn Lizard, and what is the rest of this information… The spines are sharp and contain venom. Isn’t that obvious the first time you look at the lousy thing?

Well, it’s only the basic profile after all. Perhaps if I hunt and consume more of them, I’ll be able to access a more detailed profile with more useful information.

With that out of the way, it’s time to pursue the next task.

Emerging from my nest, I make my way across the roof to the rock pool. A now familiar scene greets my eyes. A collection of monsters, types I’ve seen before, loiter at the water’s edge, warily guarding against each other while drinking from the glowing pool.

In fact, with my newly improved +2 Eyes, the pool seems to be glowing slightly brighter than it did in the past.

The curious thing to me about this situation is that all these monsters are here to drink, yet in the several days I’ve been here in this monster ant body, I’ve not felt thirsty. Since I am also a monster, just as these creatures are, what compels them to drink the water when I feel no urge to do so? Is there something different about them or me?

The next mission today is to investigate this mysterious water. I will take a bold, brave, possibly stupidly suicidal step to shed some light on this puzzle. Continuing to move in my almost habitual slow method, I creep across the ceiling to the nearest wall, make my way down and onto the cavern floor. Then, slowly at first, but with growing confidence as each step propels me forward, I approach the pool.

First to notice me is a lizard hound, the wolf looking creature with a long reptilian tail. There really is a large proportion of lizard-like creatures here in this place, the huge bipedal crocadilic monster and the spiked lizard I hunted earlier have some form of reptilian features. Is this some form of pattern?

When the hound sees me, it immediately begins to growl, shocking me slightly, but then something odd happens. As I continue to approach, the hound backs away and makes ground for me, almost as if it was afraid.

Observing the wolf, I step farther and farther into the light emitted from the water, and a heaving mass of centipedes becomes aware of my presence. Their reaction is very different!

As soon as they see me, the slithering, clacking tangle of creatures begins to hiss furiously and writhe over each other with even more speed. One of the monsters emerges from the tangle and slithers forward on its spindly legs a few metres. Then it begins to posture, hissing and clacking with sharp-looking mandibles and claws.

However, it doesn’t fully approach or attack.

Phew! I was terrified when they started rolling. There must be six or seven of the horrible things piled up over there. If they tried to attack, I would have had to escape with all my might.

Luckily, the peace of the water source held. There is only one reason that the survival minded me would risk coming into the open here. Only one reason I would show myself in front of all these creatures who could so quickly kill me: never did I see a creature approaching, drinking or leaving the pool attacked.

Not even once.

There was plenty of conflict during the two days I spent scouting the armoured lizard, but I never witnessed any dispute here. There’s something special about this water source, and I don’t think it has to do with hydration. After all, I still don’t feel any need to drink. Monster physiology in this world does not seem to be simple.

I continue to approach until I reach the edge of the pool. The glow is so bright up close it’s difficult to see into the water, even with +2 Eyes. The pulsing lines on the floor of the cavern seem to converge on the centre of the water source, in the pool’s depths. The most intense light originates from that juncture.

The water itself seemed to flow and move in strange, concentric circles, despite the lack of a current or propulsion of any kind. Almost like a lava lamp, the waters seem to have a motion and swirl all their own.

Ignoring the continued hissing and posturing of the stupid centipedes, I lower my mouth to the water and taste.

It burns! Holy moly, that burns!

A fiery sensation enters my mouth and flows straight through my three body segments to my stomach, from which the heat begins to permeate my bloodstream until my carapace itself feels like it’s on fire.

What is this, hydrochloric acid? Yeouch!

This is what you creatures have been coming here for? This painful, burning water of death! What is wrong with all of you? Is this the cavern of masochists!

The burning sensation gradually subsides, and I can’t help but stare at the other creatures incredulously. What the hell are you all doing here? Many pairs of eyes stare back at me. I feel self-conscious now…

I once again examine the slowly churning water before me, the dense light seemingly suspended within, like jellyfish coils, see-through and yet not.

I carefully analyse my condition, not feeling worse in any way, I think. I hurriedly opened my status and checked my Health, no change.

Strange.

This is seriously weird. What on earth is the attraction these monsters feel to this stupid pool. It must be important, otherwise why would there be this unspoken truce at this place? No answers seem to be forthcoming.

It isn’t like my fellow guests at the pool are in a talkative mood.

Feeling more puzzled than before I tasted the water I prepared to leave. But before I do, I can’t resist one more sip—

Gah! It burns! P-tooey—Nyaaar—Pff! Pff! Ugh. Horrible…

Curiosity killed the cat, as they say.

I begin to leave by first backing away from the pool, watching for any reaction from my fellow drinkers. Most creatures seem mildly relieved to see me go, moving to take up the space I abandoned and returning to their drinking. The stupid centipede is still snapping and posturing at me. I can almost hear it flinging insults as it scrapes at the cavern floor and pretends to start charging at me.

Back at you, dumb centipede.

As soon as I reach the comfort of the shadows, I spin and race to the wall, not slowing until I’ve achieved my most secure position, hidden in the deep shadows along the outer edges of the cavern roof.

Ahh, home.

I won’t be leaving again any time soon, I hope!

Now that I’ve somewhat investigated the mystery of the water pool, it’s time to explore this cavern and begin to map this cave network using my new Tunnel Sense!

Moving in the shadows around the edges of the cavern, avoiding the denser areas of light-veins, I weave between pillars of dark stone that stretch from the floor to the ceiling, as if spears had pierced through the ground or plunged down from above.

Following this pattern, I move farther from the pool and my own nest than I have before. Along the sides of the cavern are tunnels branching off into the darkness now and again, some large and some small. There’s strange air wafting through a few of them. Who knows what lurks within these strange tunnels?

I move ahead for another ten minutes, making steady progress. The cavern has begun to widen enough that I can no longer see both sides at once. I start making cautious passages across the centre to check both sides as I make my way.

Whoa!

A vast tunnel entrance appears before me. Perhaps a thirty-minute travel away from the pool, this entrance is massive, spanning almost from the floor to ceiling of the cavern and just as wide. It clearly tilts in a downwards direction, heading deeper into the earth.

But there’s something strange about the way the stone here is shaped.

Is that… stairs!