Duradel has been tracking the Roc bird for two days now. Then, something strange happened. Three ogres and an army of ants crossed his path. He prepared to fight, and then one of the ogres had stepped forward with its arms held defensively before it.

“Peace, vampire. The ant Queen has a request for you,” said Bob as his brothers nodded behind him.

“The ant Queen?” Asked Duradel. So, this is where the famous ants that were headed to the Badlands were.

“Her Grace wants you to join our legion. She saw you scouting the cliffs for a nest. She knows where the bird you seek is. Besides, we spoke with the dungeon core who rules these lands, and he gave us a translation crystal. Charged us a million golden coins’ worth of an interest too!” Complained Bob.

It was true that their travel with the ants was smother now that they had the crystal, but a million coins were a million coins. A daylight robbery, is what it was.

“You know of the Roc bird? I am going to the Badlands to rescue princess Lea. But I cannot leave these lands unguarded,” said Duradel.

An ant clicked her antennas lightning fast and Bob was quick to translate.

“Her Grace says that you can keep the reward for the princess, but the land must become a part from the Dawn Empire, with the Bone crusher dungeon becoming property of Theanore the nymph,” said Bob. Then he scratched his head.

“If he keeps the reward, what do we get, your Grace?” Asked the ogre. The ant Queen began clicking her antennas again.

“Dragon bone? Really? Sweet!” Said Bob, and he turned around to high five his brothers.

“I accept your assistance in killing the Roc bird,” said Duradel, and he bowed. Then he noticed the ant shaking its head.

“Her Grace says that she is forbidden from killing by her overlord. And that there is no honor in the act, besides. We shall recruit the Roc bird and have it guide us to the Badlands,” said Bob.

“I…see. And what will you offer the bird?” Asked Duradel.

“Three ogre servants…wait, what?” Asked Bob, outraged.

“Your Grace, my brothers and I will not be reward for a bird!” Protested Bob.

“Oh, you didn’t mean us? Then who? Ah, criminals from Norgog’s tribe. I see, I see,” said Bob as he scratched his chin.

“Bob, what if the Queen is lying?” Asked Hob. He was eyeing the ant with distrust, and he gripped his club.

“Yes, Bob, three ogres, she says. We are three,” said Gob.

A horde of ants toppled him to the ground and began to tickle him.

“What do they want?” Screamed Gob between laughs.

“The ants say they like us and that we should trust them. I say we trust them,” said Bob, and then everyone turned as they heard a screech.

The Roc bird glided from a cliff and landed in the river, its golden feathers glistening in the sunlight.

The ants immediately crowded around it and toppled it on the ground. They began to vibrate again, but as the bird was a creature of fire, it managed to take flight. Ants falling in the river.

“This won’t be easy,” said Duradel as he took off his whip from his belt. “Don’t kill, huh? Haven’t done that in a while.”

Duradel unfurrow the whip and aimed at the beak of the Roc bird. When the whip wrapped itself around the creature’s beak, he pulled.

“Ants, begin to pluck the chicken!” Screamed Duradel and the ants, angry at how some of them had nearly drowned, began to pluck feather after feather off the Roc bird’s legs.

The bird kicked, swashed with its talons, and whined, but it couldn’t dislodge the ants. Finally, it bowed its head and exposed its neck in defeat. The ants gave a war cry and lifted the bird as if it weighted nothing. Then, they continued forward.

Duradel followed these strange creatures. They marched during the day and rested during the night. On the third day, they were at the Spine pass, the entrance to the Badlands.

The vampire took point at the front and the Roc bird walked behind him, the tunnel that was the mountain pass too narrow for flight. On the fifth day since their meeting, they managed to cross the pass.

The sight that greeted them was straight out of a horror story. Shambling corpses were everywhere. The ants gave another war cry and began to attack the corpses, biting their kneecaps off and watching as they wiggled on the ground.

Duradel looked at the ogres and the Roc bird, and he raised his eyebrow.

“Won’t you help?” Asked the vampire as he unsheathed his thin sword.

All four shook their heads and Duradel snorted.

“Let me show you how it is done,” said Duradel, and he charged at the nearest corpse. He took the example of the ants to heart and slashed at the kneecaps of the corpses.

By the time the carnage was done, Duradel and the ants were covered in thick, green, mucus. Duradel went from corpse to corpse and decapitated them. The ants may be forbidden from killing, but he was not.

When he saw the ants lining up, he went and took the translation crystal from Bob and went to hear the speech of the ant Queen. She was missing an antenna and had a big scratch over her left flange.

Duradel appraised the ants as he walked. Scratches, missing antennas and sometimes missing eyes were the norm, but the ants had a certain pride to them and Duradel would not pity them now.

Daughters! Screamed the ant Queen to her subject. Today we have taken the first step to clearing the Badlands. No corpse shall escape our fury. When the other eight thousand of us come, they will march unmolested ever forward! Ave Theanore!

The screaming of Ave Theanore was heard. Duradel supposed that to anyone else it sounded like the screeching of ants. If this was what a thousand of them could do, Duradel wanted to see what the other eight thousand could come up with.