Capítulo 1: Chapter 1: Hatching And Rules
Chapter 1: Hatching And Rules
At first, the only thing I see is black. Suddenly, my eyes are flooded with light and my antenna with smell. In my heart, nay my soul, I feel one very strong urge that I shout to the room filled with my newborn sisters and a few older ones.
"MY LIFE FOR THE COLONY, MY DEATH FOR THE COLONY!"
I roar out, along with a couple of my sisters. We were shortly reprimanded by the brood tenders and a general. We quieted down, then we start to listen to the spheal of staying alive so that we can serve the Colony and whatnot.
It's seems a bit boring, but I still listen with rapt attention. Wouldn't want to be accused of slacking after all. After that, we're shuttled along by the brood tenders to get classes on life preservation, a rundown on each caste, and we are funneled experience and Biomass. When we finally get our cores, we get stuffed with those as well.
As I eat, I ponder the 3 different general castes. There is the soldier, which fights bravely for the Colony and protects it. The caste has 3 sub castes in it, but for the most part it is orientated around combat. Scouting, planning, and fighting. That sums up this caste really well, but I'm not sure if that's how I'll beat serve the colony.
The next caste is the artisan caste. They help build nests and some help fight. However, this caste is mainly focused on making the Colony more efficient in any way possible. From building nests to researching enchantments and reconstituting monsters. This caste does a lot of good for the Colony, but I don't see myself as the type of ant who likes the more… art orientated skills. Some might argue that mages and core shapers aren't art orientated, but what are enchantment runes but carefully drawn pictures? And pets are works of art themselves, albeit ones that can fight.
The last general caste is the worker caste. They lay eggs, teach grubs/hatchlings, and heal the wounded. I personally think this caste is the one that deserves the most credit. They do a lot for the future of the Colony, be it the eggs themselves, the grubs, or even keeping current Colony members alive to perform their job for another day. This one really grabs my interest.
This lasted a couple of days before they announced that we will begin watching ants train in teamwork and some combat. They called the exercise Tunnel Ball. For some reason, as I watched the group in front of us conduct this training in a small arena, I felt my whole ant self roar with excitement. Almost like this very sport is the driving force behind my being. I don't quite understand why I suddenly feel obsessed with this 'Sport', but I don't fight the sensation. I instead decided to embrace it.
The brood tender informed us that once we got our tier 3 evolutions, we would be getting more hands-on experience in the… Sport she called it. For now, she gave us an overview of the rules.
1. Bring the ball to the other teams wall to score a point.
2. Each team will consist of at least 15 players, with more players being on the 'bench' to be switched out as needed.
3. No use of lethal force, magic or otherwise, on the other team. Violations will result in immediate punishment and expulsion from the game.
4. Teams will get 2 minutes of planning after every change of roles unless they call out for a time out.
5. Each time gets 2 time outs. Each time out has a maximum duration of 3 minutes.
6. The teams will switch between offense and defense every 5 rounds or when a point is scored.
7. A round is concluded when a point is scored or the defensive team is able to hold down the rock carrier for 3 seconds.
8. If the rock is dropped during a round, it can be picked up by the defensive team.
9. The first team to score 15 points will win, or the team who has the most points after 20 rounds wins
10. Communication between teams will be conducted by a group of 3 mates to perform mind magic in cases of differing races.
11. Full armor is not allowed, but chest/thorax armor is allowed and mandatory to allow visual differentiating signs of opposing teams.
12. Dying is prohibited during the game.
13. Leeroy is not allowed in the game at any point in time until further notice.
14. Rules are subject to change.
I listen to the rules and nod along, eager to participate. Sadly, most of the time spent here is listening to an ant named Coachant, who describes the strategies at play, the benefits and faults with each one, and how the teams could be improved for further efficiency.
According to Coachant, there are professional teams, which perks my interest almost immediately. One of my antennae shoots up into the air, which is quickly acknowledged by Coachant. "Yes, what is it nameless one?"
"Can we join a team now?"
"No, you must be done with schooling before you are allowed to join a professional team. The Eldest has decreed that all ants must be tier 4 before they are graduated."
Disappointment pricks in my thorax, but I quickly shake it off. If that is what the Eldest desires, then surely it must be correct. "Thank you, Senior Coachant." I replied gently before the older ant continues.
Afterward, we go back to learning more about the different castes and are stuffed with more Biomass, levels, and cores. Finally, they give us a limited choice of what caste we desire to join. "I need 30 soldiers, 15 artisans, and 15 workers." I notice my siblings quickly split up into groups, and my mind races for a second as I think what would best suit me and my… Personality I believed it was called. I decided on being a worker.
As an ant in the worker caste, we are funneled to a new teacher and are given much more details about the three worker castes. I predict that this is also happening to my siblings who chose otherwise. More levels, Biomass, and cores are given to us. So I take this chance to think about the three specialized castes that I will have to choose in the future.
Queens, which gives birth to the new generation. They are given a lot of Biomass so that they can reach their daily quota for egg laying. A very noble profession, one I hold respect for, but I instantly understand this caste is not the one for me. I just don't enjoy the idea of sitting around and chattering while laying eggs. I'd prefer something with more movement.
Brood tenders, the ones who tickle and feed larvae all day. They also teach hatchlings and keep track of skills and their evolutions. Another noble and very needed caste. Just like the Queens, they are very necessary for the future of the Colony. However… I also don't think this is the caste for me. I want to be able to help my siblings in battle and, I'll admit, to participate in Tunnel Ball. Despite all this time, I still think about that feeling I had in my thorax when I first heard about it.
Lastly, we have the healers. They specialize every body part they can to heal our siblings. Even going as far as to get rid of the traditional acid gland in favor of one that heals instead. This one tickles my antenna in a way none of the other castes do. I can still run around and be rather helpful to the Colony as I do so. It also helps that I have a few ideas for Tunnel Ball with this caste… Honestly, just for this 'Sport', I was leaning towards becoming a scout or healer.
In any case, it was time to resume classes and training. It went in depth for a while before it was time to evolve once more. My and my 99 siblings were all excited for evolution because it meant that we were one step closer to contributing to the Colony. We were once again given a limited choice on how we were going to contribute to the Colony.
"I need 6 Queens, 54 Brood Tenders, and 40 Healers."
The pheromones barely had a chance to permeate through the air when I started scrabbling towards the brood tender representing the healer caste. I didn't want to chance doing something that didn't sing to my ant soul. It would affect efficiency after all.
Once in my new caste, I evolved once again, entering that weird state that was worse than torpor. I enter the manual evolution menu and start going through the lists. This was some exciting stuff. Let's see… I have the healing acid gland, though I see an addition to that called the acid thickener… I think that would work well both for healing and for what I have in mind for Tunnel Ball.
I put a good amount of my evolutionary energy into might and toughness. For might I put 25% into mass and the rest into density so that I'm not too large. The rest gets thrown into cunning. Ah, I can't wait for this. Finally, I'll have my first match of Tunnel Ball!
Estado de energía semanal
-- Ranking de
Poder 
-- Piedra de
Poder