I was fed, cared, and healed. Star had brought more than just my team along for the journey. There were soldiers from the delegation, his adviser —whose role in the situation had become drastically important— and a healer.

She had a six-digit identity number that started with a four and ended with another four. She was tired; they all were. I didn’t have to guess. There were far too few of them. A delegation so far would have at least had a couple of dozen members, while only a dozen occupied the chamber. The worst was the absence of my troop leader Y2K and the comedian 384th. They did not make it.

Did the termites—

5555th soldier shook her head. She held my antennae as tightly as she could both out of need and worry for me. The loss of her teammates had hit her hard. She was in mourning and I was her only reprise.

Beside my community members, there were also two termites in the chamber, standing at the exit, keeping an eye on us —especially me. I knew I was staring. That I couldn’t help. Everyone had time to digest whatever they had learned, but I was still playing catch.

Suddenly the 5555th soldier stirred beside me. It wasn’t the termites. She scented. What attacked us was-was indescribable. It was malice given form and let loose. It carried the signature of an ant, but its scents made no sense. They were all very powerful and mind-numbing, containing emotions that were binding and hurtful. They were many, a whole army and they attacked us without any cause, and-and—

5555th was shaking. I rubbed her head with my antennae. Moving the antennae hurt far more than anything, but I continued regardless, for the touch soothed her. The constant usage had put a big strain on them. I was lucky that they were still attached to my head. She dropped her head from the stimulation, unable to hold her emotions in check. I was washed in the scent of her torment. It was not a good experience.

Star noticed it soon enough and took her away to the back of the chamber. Suddenly left alone, I grew nervous. My mind started racing again and I grew worried for all of us and those not with us. Thankfully, he returned a while later and took a seat beside me. My heart calmed a little from his presence.

How are you? He asked.

Confused, I confessed. What happened here, Star? I came here looking for answers, but all I see are more questions. The mystery is starting to irritate me.

What’s Star?

It’s the name I gave you because of the… I didn’t know how to break the subject to him. I had given him the name on impulse, to remember him among the numerous new faces that had suddenly arrived at our doorstep. I never thought he would confront me about it.

He touched his forehead with a front leg and released amusement.

I’ll be fair. He touched my head. I have been called Scar before, but Star… you give me too much honor.

I— I tied to apologize, but he pounced through without giving me the time to make amends.

Well, anyways. He looked away. It must be an embarrassing subject of matter that he didn’t want to talk about. I dropped it on the cue. Where do you want me to start?

Start from the very beginning. I told him and he nodded.

Apparently, after killing the frogs, which they did thanks to my tip regarding the frog’s blind spot, he found himself filled with anxiety and worry. The reason behind my journey kept him on the move, but he couldn’t find anything to do. The frogs provided enough meat for them to go without hunting for weeks. And since most of his troops were leaving to join the war on the western front he felt truly anxious.

He had promised to bring me there, to the 47th city, but since I was taken by a frog —he didn’t use the word, dead, which I was thankful for— he couldn’t live with himself.

So you made up your mind, banded together with the few soldiers you could find, and decided to curb your anxiety, to see if I was right, or wrong?

No. She forced me to come. He pointed at 5555th soldier. She was talking with the hateful one, who was cleaning her antennae and taking care of her? When did that happen?

Turns out, I had missed an important point of development between the two.

She was Very persuasive. He scented, making me look away from the two and back at him. I couldn’t deny her request. Truth to be told, I was looking for an excuse to leave the city. The sudden peace and the stillness made me nervous. It directly clashed with your warning. It was a matter of time before I would have picked up and left with my troops anyways, but she accelerated the process. And we managed to save you thinks time.

There were only six of us from the beginning. With two dead, one missing, and the last one I believe having returned back to the city, they must have felt pretty lonely. But to think she would decide to follow through in my place and Star would keep his word,

Thank You. It was the least I could say.

No, thank you. If it wasn’t for you who knows how many more would have died to the frogs. And from what I have seen here… He shifted on his feet, becoming uncomfortable and growing serious.

You must want to know what happened here, right? Are you ready? Can you get up?

I nodded. He helped me up, held me when I stumbled and stretched my limbs. The soldiers watched from the side, whispering to each other and getting ready as if we were going to war.

I was shaking after the stretching, but it was a case of weakness rather than injury. I was delighted to be back on my feet again, but the emotion wasn’t enough. The termites had to be plotting something. But why save the others then? It made absolutely no shading sense!

Alright, I’ll be right back. He left me standing on my own to talk with the two termites that carefully listened to him and then left the chamber.

No one came to take their place.

I was so surprised, even Star grew concerned.

What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Do you want me to call a healer?

I held him tightly instead. My head spun like a feather in freefall, but I needed to get to the bottom of the situation before the termites return. They were not here to keep an eye on you all? I conveyed by touching his antenna. Direct contact was the safest form of communication around. Even it leaked chemicals, but not on the level hat a scented message did.

Star stood a bit straighter at the mention, then grew visibly relaxed and patted my back. That must mean something, right? He was either really confident regarding the termites and the situation or-or… I had no idea what else it could mean.

I would have assumed the same if I was in your place, but you don’t have to worry about them; at least not for now.

It was really hard to believe. Those back home would have laughed at me if I told them that I saw ants and termites living under the same roof and cooperating with each other. We just had too much bad blood between us. What was happening around me was nothing short of a miracle; if it was really happening that is. I was half sure it was a ploy by the termites and the survivors were simply clutching at the short straws to stay alive.

This was their land once! We pushed them out in the name of territorial expansion and made them scramble for a new home in the desert where nothing grew. There was no way they were letting that memory to rest. The Embers would have burned with a vengeance until we had our revenge, had the same happened to us.

You are absolutely sure this isn’t some ploy by them? I asked, clutching at straws and hoping that he wasn’t completely siding with them because that would be plainly awful. Star was the leader of the campaign. The soldiers were going to listen to him no matter the order.

Well, I believe in cause and effect. The rain brought us the frogs, and trouble at home caused you to search out for a solution outside. Similarly, the termites will want revenge for being thrown out of their own territory, but that’s for the future. He scented. I breathed in relief. At least he wasn’t delusional enough to believe everything the white liars had fed him.

He continued, antennae moving to face the exit. Right now we are facing the same storm and I believe they say the truth. However, in the future, when the situation is under control? Who knows what will happen. You should talk to my advisor if you want to discuss the future; I only believe in the present.

Alright, I could work with him if he only believed them for the time being.

So what is it? I asked, finally confident enough to venture deeper into the termite's trap.

That suddenly curbed all of his enthusiasm. Star, whom even the giant frogs couldn’t scare, grew gloomy. His antennae dropped to the floor and head followed. I believed him when he told me to have patience, but it wasn’t enough.

The termites went to call their elder. He’ll show you everything you want to know. He didn’t seem comfortable talking about it but explained further upon noticing my blatant show of dissatisfaction, which included: antennae whirling, ground tapping with for legs, and beating with the abdomen. It was a classic technique and caused him much amusement, however, his vigilant remained. The way he stood on his haunches, ready to run, made me wonder and reminded me again of the graveyard, the torn limbs, and the chaotic scents.

You will understand everything once you have seen that thing. The story will make sense then. Everything will seem like lies without it. Believe me; we have all been through this. Why do you think the soldiers pity you?

Did they pity me? A quick look told me he was right. At least all their antennae were still upon me. They had seen a sky predator take the frog and me along with it. No one comes alive from that kind of an incident. They were bound to be suspicious and intrigued. I wasn’t the only one impatient about the truth. And Star wasn’t any different.

Say, He started, mandibles playfully open. What happened to you after the sky predator took the frog you were trying to kill?

The soldiers slid closer toward us at his loud mention. He was clutching onto the tip of the grass blade to not slip into dismay, but I wasn’t in the mood of telling my heroic tale. No need for pepper snorting; it was a heroic tale, alright, an epic journey.

I forced his mandible close by pushing them with my antennae and told him to ask me later.

You will only understand everything once you have seen that thing. My story will make sense then. You will call me a liar otherwise.

Alright, alright— no need to repeat my own words. I understand.

Our conversation ended, but the wait continued. However, the mystery did unnerve me. Fortunately, I sensed someone coming around the corner and my mind went silent. The termites entered the chamber; their numbers had increased from two to three.

Elder, Star dropped his left antennae and head in respect. That itself made me uncomfortable. The new termite was far too young to be an elder or maybe she wasn’t.

While the soldiers were pale white with hints of light brown to their exoskeleton, she looked to have baked in the sun all her life. Only her jaw retained the natural whiteness, the rest of her was reddish-brown, though not a single scar marred her body.

But I felt something stir inside me when she put her attention upon me. A wave of emotions hit me left, center, and right, and I couldn’t find a place to run toward. The emotions made me want to respect her. It was not a good sign. I retaliated. I stood my ground, fought the rush. I had experience dealing with such attacks, and it was the only thing between my free will and forced submission. No wonder Star was singing their praises. However, to think there was someone else who could use overwhelm, and in such a way that made the target obey instead of taking them out for good… I could not be impressed. That would have been her victory.

Eventually, the rush passed and I stumbled a few steps back from the sudden release of the pressure. She was surprised and impressed, but that didn’t mean she started favoring me all of a sudden.

I had killed five of her soldiers, most of whom I had stopped fighting back. I understood that we would never come on equal terms. If anything, my little stunt had only proved that even if a termite decided to step back, an ant might not. It was not a healthy gesture from us, considering they were trying to help us —that’s what I understood from my conversation with Star.

And that’s the question she started with.

Why didn’t you stop?

There was no answer to that. I could only question her in return. Since we were not going to be on the same leaf, there was no need to be friendly either.

What are you doing here?

We are here to take back what’s rightfully ours; to take back what your kind forcefully took from us. What do you think?

I will think of it as the truth and return to warm the mother city, Agnee-Rath-Ji, the fire that burden your kind away from this land in the first place. That reminder got me a reaction. Her soldiers buzzed their heads in a warning. The elder also couldn’t hide the spark of fear that had come into existence at the mention. That was a win for me, and I felt her agitation when she spoke next.

And you think I will allow you to do that? If you think YOU have intimidated us then you are a fool, worker.

Just think about it —I went for her neck— if a worker could push into your stronghold, what could a soldier have accomplished if they were as desperate as me? I waved an antenna toward the soldiers. How many would have died to them before they succumbed to weakness —not her soldiers? Do you wish to know?

You have a lot of heart little worker, spurting such words and showing so much hatred when you are in the middle of MY camp.

I’m an ember ant, number 5996 (5th gen, 6th lay, number 99). I might not be fire incarnate, but a spark still burns inside me like the rest of them. You will need more than petty ticks to extinguish it.

Alright, 99, let’s see whether the fire you speak off is the real deal or a figment of your imagination.

Let’s go.

We were not leaving for a fight. She had just agreed to show me what Star was talking about, to unveil the mystery.

The elder left the chamber with her two guards. They didn’t forget to give me their warning head shakes, but that was protocol. Only Star followed me. We were led higher up the advanced post. The others had shown extreme reaction and even repulsion at the idea. It was suspicious, but everything was suspicious and nothing made sense, so it was all the same in the end.

The termite’s construction didn’t have small, narrow tunnels that opened into larger chambers, but open halls stuffed with soldier termites. Even the passageways were large enough to house soldiers, and they stared at us as we passed through. I pondered the chance of them pouncing at our backs and found it extremely unlikely. They already had us boxed inside the post structure, living on their mercy.

However, the sickly white termites moved into action every time we passed close to one, afraid as if we were monsters. An unhealthy number of them were young and newborn. No wonder they were so quick on their feet. The seniors were rare and far in between. And that was a problem. If they had a queen tucked inside one of those advanced posts, pumping eggs by the thousands, then the area was as good as theirs.

The higher we climbed the louder our surroundings became. A chaotic banging rang above our heads. There was something trapped above. I could feel it and its rage. So mind-numbing it was I almost lost myself for a second. I had to shake Star to wake him for he was lost to its rhythms. That curbed all my excitement and put worry in its stead. Maybe the termites weren’t really all talk and did indeed have something show me.

This was where the elder stopped and faced me with a warning. She had no eyes but could see me still. I knew because the opposite didn’t make sense.

What you are going to see is what we are fighting. Don’t get too close, or this time I won’t stop my soldiers. She advised and climbed up the last stretch.

I found Star staring at the ceiling, his antennae straight and body tense. He was shaking slightly.

Are you all alright?

Huh, oh, yes.

You can stay here if you want. He actually contemplated the idea, making me wonder what could be waiting for us above, but he decided that he had to do it.

I can’t leave you alone with that thing up there now, can I?

That’s real mature. I scented. He pushed me forward and took lead himself, lowering his weigh to the ground and gearing up to face that which scared him so much.

It was dark inside the final hall and filled with a scent that had no head or tail. It meant nothing but was full of emotions at the same time. It detailed of pain and hunger, mostly the latter, but also of fear and madness.

There were soldiers inside, a large group of them, and all were staring at the center where the cause of the commotion lay. It was a giant… ant?

One of our own: an ember ant! I could see the red spots on her body. They glowed in the darkness like real embers! The ant gave a bust of scent at our admission. It was rage. I knew because I had lived it, and understood it better than anyone else.

It had the form of an ant: six legs, tri-segmented body, and mandibles; but that’ also where the similarities ended. If the termite inside the pit back on the 41st floor of my city was a beast, then this, whatever this was, was a true monster.

It had wriggling antennae growing out of its body at more than one place. It was taller, at least three heads taller than Star, who was a giant of a soldier himself, and sturdier. Ants have exoskeleton protecting the body; its exoskeleton had spikes growing out at the ends, and was at least twice as thick. So thick, it was protruding up from the base and could be distinguished easily from the flesh beneath. It reminded me of stone because that’s what it looked like. The ant looked like a stone that had grown flesh and limbs!

Somehow the termites had fixed it to the floor by cementing its limbs and had also created bars of the same cement to separate the chamber into two.

What is that? I couldn’t believe what I was seeing. It was a nightmare incarnate. How could something like it exist in nature?

That’s a tanker from your city in the rock. Don’t get too close to it. The various antennae move irrespective of the body and can crush you in seconds.

I couldn’t even distinguish its gender. It was all too convoluted a mess; too many pointed ends, skeleton and antennae that swayed in the air.

What happened to it? That’s… Anger flared inside me when I thought about the termites that were immune to poison. Did you do that?

Yes, The elder said, making me freeze on the spot. The ‘No’ that followed put some life back inside me. I swear to the shade that was she a little late I would have charged at her without faring for the consequences.

This is the infection that we are fighting, that you will be fighting if your kind wants to survive.

Lie detection said it was the truth. But she had admitted to being the cause of the infection. She wouldn’t have told us that if she didn’t have an answer prepared, but she didn’t know that I had the means to catch her lies.

The elder sat down on the ground, facing us. Behind her, the monster continued fidgeting, trying to get out of its confines, but I knew getting out of the cement was impossible once it had hardened. I had almost succumbed to it at the tower. I poked Star on the chest to know what was happening, but he was as confused as me.

The elder asked us to sit down. Well, what else could I do? Things weren’t exactly going my way. I hoped Bella would be alright. The monster ant looked menacing from appearance alone. If it also had the sharpness in its movements then she would be in danger. Well, she was intelligent and a wasp; infected or not the ants were still ants. She spent her day’s hunting spiders; ants weren’t going to be a problem for her. And she could always bail.

The termites were a problem, which I needed to thoroughly understand. And our host looked like she was ready to open up a treasure of secrets that no one but her kind knew. The silence made me anxious, but what followed was a pit full of rotten bodies that I would have been better off not knowing.

For you to know the truth behind the infection —the elder started— you must first know what happened to us after we were defeated by your queen and thrown out of this piece of land. You need to know our story.