《Just a Rock》Chapter 40: Undergrowth War
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The hunters or the hunted? Such a thing could flip at the drop of a dime. The only reason why the ants were the hunters currently was due to their numbers and the ambushes they set up. In every other way, the ants were inferior. The wasps were bigger, stronger, more vicious, and could fly. The advantage could only stay with the ants for so long.
One day, the wasps had enough of being pushed around by their lesser cousins and attacked. Alone, as they often were when ambushed by the ants, they stood no chance. When they fought together, en masse, the ants lost all the advantages they were proud of. Numbers meant nothing once an angry swarm of wasps came along. All-out war erupted in the undergrowth.
The first to go were the soldier ants, they had larger jaws and were born to battle. They stood guard over the rivers of ants and took over both attack and defense. Once the battle began, the soldiers took to the front lines in an attempt to fend off the wasps. They were ruthlessly torn apart in seconds. The wasps used their powerful mandibles to tear off their heads while their stingers stabbed everywhere they could reach.
With the soldier ants gone, the lines of worker ants were vulnerable and massacred one by one. A signal was sent out by these distressed workers through smell. The colony became aware of the attack and chose to have all the ants outside to come back. It decided to hold a last stand at the entrance of the colony. The rock was that entrance. The climax of this conflict was coming and it would happen right where the rock was.
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Mother of Learning
Zorian is a teenage mage of humble birth and slightly above-average skill, attending his third year of education at Cyoria's magical academy. He is a driven and irritable young man, consumed by a desire to ensure his own future and free himself of the influence of his family, whom he resents for favoring his brothers over him. Consequently, he has no time for pointless distractions or paying attention to other people's problems. As it happens, time is something he is about to get plenty of. On the eve of the Cyoria's annual summer festival, he is killed and brought back to the beginning of the month, just before he was about to take a train to Cyoria. Suddenly trapped in a time loop with no clear end or exit, Zorian will have to look both within and without to unravel the mystery before him. And he does have to unravel it, for the time loop hadn't been made for his sake and dangers lurk everywhere... Repetition is the mother of learning, but Zorian will have to first make sure he survives to try again - in a world of magic, even a time traveler isn't safe from those who wish him ill. ********************************** If anyone is interested, I have a story-related worldbuilding site that can be found here. I don't update it as often as I should, but there is a fair amount of content there already. It also contains a page with all the fanart, fan translations, audio books and the like - you can reach it directly by clicking this link. I have a patreon account for those kind people that want to give me money. It also contains info for those who want to donate via paypal. The story was originally posted on fictionpress, back in 2011. When I reached chapter 91, I started uploading the story to RoyalRoad, one chapter per day. The story will continue to be updated on fictionpress as well as here, and can be reached by clicking on this link if somebody is interested, though at this point there is nothing there that isn't also on RoyalRoad. ********************************** The cover you see on the side has been made by a fellow RoyalRoad user Sydorow. Thank you for your time and art skills.
8 118Power Overwhelming
A particular soul has gone through more reincarnations than it can remember. Used to living quiet and simple lives, the soul is told that the next life would likely be the last one and that it would have to go back home, to the universe where it was first born to live it. A universe that also happens to be the gathering place of other reincarnators and some of the most powerful beings in the multiverse. What can a soul do when thrust in the middle of an emerging conflict? Why would this be the last life the soul can live? And who orchestrated all of this?
8 1098Meaning: The End of the Starless Century
Magic was once a reality of everyday life, shaping the lives of the gifted and ungifted alike since the dawn of humanity. That all changed in the fires of World War I. Seeking to avoid catastrophe, humanity’s leaders enacted the Masquerade Order and segregated the magical community while also forming The Congregation to enforce the separation. As time passed, the awesome power of magic was forgotten by the world outside. This held true for a little over a century, but things begin to change when three individuals intersect in the peaceful town of Ithaca, New York. Noelle Sellers, a newly minted policewoman searching for her place in the world. Levi Wright, a mage living in Ithaca who is far more than he lets on. Lorelei Himmel, a juvenile witch in hiding out of fear of what people would do to her, and what she may do to them. As forces slithering in the darkness emerge from the murky depths of the world, the timeless battle for magic and for the future itself begins once again. Cover by Daisy Drew, @littledaisydrew on Instagram.
8 150Chains of Fate: The Prodigal Son
The Prodigal Son:Decades ago the southern continent was nearly brought to ruin by the machinations of gods and men, and a group of heroes from different corners of the world united to prevent this disaster. With their adventure complete they retired to a hidden small town and raised their children in peace. When their hiding place is exposed, the children of the heroes are thrust out into the world to find adventures of their own. But have the dark plots their parents fought against truly been stopped? Chains of Fate:Fate is the red thread that binds two people together, the guiding line that leads the great ones to their destiny, and the binding chains that keep the common folk bound in mediocrity. But what if you were free from Fate? Able to accomplish anything within your means despite the will of the gods? What great deeds could you accomplish? How many people could you save? Once you begin to unravel the will of the gods, what sort of disaster would you bring to the world? This is a serial webnovel. A western fantasy story with some eastern influences.
8 111A Tale from Entherah: The White Owl
Welcome to the realm of Entherah, the world that should have been full of adventure and discovery. Where folks of all kinds could have found their dreams in fruition. Where a princess could have been free and a warrior to finally come home. Welcome to the world of shattered fantasies and ambitions and where death comes upon those who wish for things to change. All Alve wanted in life was to be the best princess her uncle deemed her to grow into, and behave like a princess her brother wished her to carry. But to the dismay of the entire Chustern court, she was more Fae than royalty. Whatever the little mouse of the kingdom accomplishes, chaos was never far away. Born sickly and with the inability to use eth, follow the life of a gullible little girl as she trek through the impossible world where mystery, magic, and politics come to eat each other... -along with unearthing what else roams in the darkness.
8 331A Love Like This.... ✔
Completed.----------"Why is Parth calling you CEO?" He asked suddenly."Because I am one." I said proudly."But I don't know, I mean your company... maybe something small you do." Roy shrugged and rubbed the back of his neck. "Your mother knows me, Mr. Singhania." I smiled. "As well as your father. Well, we even danced at the ball three months back."Yes, I can play this game. "I see, I'm Roy." Roy held out his hand for me."Ashna Kapoor." I shook his waiting hand and that old dying flame was ignited by that mere touch. ________________Love,Loren.
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