Present Time...
Nadia remains idle as the statue wreak havoc against their comrades.
In fact, the battle was terribly one-sided as the golems' sizes made it difficult for them to reach the head and they hardly receive any major damage besides a few cracks from their limbs and chest.
In a matter of minutes, the enemy had been decimated by the golems' assault and those that were still alive were executed by the golems' weapons or crushed underneath their feet.
Nadia was thoroughly impressed by the golems' performance. Thus, deeming them to be a waste should she throw them away.
With the right means to preserve these golems, she pulls out two rune crystals via Spatial Magic and placed them separately.
A few moments later, the golems shrunk to a reasonable amount, then used Spatial Magic to store them within Nadia's inventory.
Before she leaves, she collects the souls of the underlings and consumed them to prevent any means of resurrection for these people. For Nadia's methods, those she killed, must stay dead.
Eventually, she leaves to find Assassin and take the Evolutionist back to her base of operations.
Moments Later...
Nadia arrives at the lower levels of the Outpost and finds the cell where Assassin and the Evolutionist are located.
Upon entering the room, Assassin sitting on the ground with her legs folded onto her thighs and her eyes closed while the Evolutionist remains idle in his cell.
But when the latter sets his sight on Nadia, he was soon captivated by the very sight of her.
"Intriguing..." The Evolutionist said,
"What is?" Nadia inquired while Assassin opened her eyes and turned towards him,
"Biological Background closely resembles Arachnid Species... Yet, Genetic Strands are different. Complex Sequences but Clean," The Evolutionist stated, "Completely Different at Core,"
[If he were human, he would have been called a pervert]
"So you're analysis shows that I'm much different than the Arachnids? It intrigues you, doesn't it?" Nadia inquired while ignoring the comment from her mind,
"Must take sample. Study new Sequences," The Evolutionist said, and reaches out to Nadia,
But Assassin intervenes and her blades were shown. Causing the Evolutionist to back away.
"Take one more step, I will exterminate you," Assassin warned,
"Hey, we're here save him not kill him," Nadia reminded, then takes one step forward, "You seek knowledge now, don't you?"
"Knowledge is all that I seek, You are one of them," The Evolutionist stated,
"Then I ask you, which queen do you serve?" Nadia inquired,
"None, Queens Are Gone, Taken. Forced Others into Hiding," The Evolutionist elaborated, "served once, Now serve not, yet."
"So you serve whoever piques your interest?" Nadia said,
"Precisely," The Evolutionist responded,
"Good," Nadia stated,
Then pops one of her spider legs from her right, pulled it close to her left hand, grasps it, then breaks it off with a single chop. Causing her to scream and fall on one knee.
This caught Assassin by surprise, and the same can be said for the Evolutionist. But his reaction was more of a puzzling thought than a shocked expression.
"Nadia!" Assassin cried out in concern and tries to reach out to her,
"Stay back!" Nadia ordered,
Assassin hesitates but complies with her order while still donning a concerned look on her face.
As the dismembered leg was still bleeding, Nadia focuses her magic on the point of injury and promptly seals it before she loses any more blood.
When she looked down at the puddle, she notices that her blood was blue instead of red and it symbolizes one certain truth. She is an Insectoid, and she has to live with it for the rest of her days...
After relieving herself from the pain, Nadia picks up her dismembered spider leg from the ground and presents it to the Evolutionist, "You wished for a sample, right? Work for me, and you shall have more,"
The Evolutionist then takes Nadia's spider leg from her hands, and thoroughly examines it. Not only that, he grabbed a small piece of it and threw it into his mouth much to Assassin's disdain.
Once he finished his analysis, The Evolutionist hummed in approval and brought his large three-fingered hands together, "My Services are yours,"
"Good, Now let's get going..." Nadia declared, and pulled out a warp crystal,
The three gathered around, and Nadia strikes the crystal into the ground. Moments later, the three of them were transported out of the Outpost.
Tavern...
Osman and his group remained idle even after the Ant Bartender returned and told them of Nadia's infiltration.
Eventually, they soon return to the tavern. But they also noticed that one of Nadia's spider legs had been cut off and this brought some concern as they rushed toward him.
"What happened to you? Was there an enemy that we should be wary of?" Osman questioned,
"No," Nadia assured,
When Osman turns to the Evolutionist, he then saw Nadia's missing spider leg, and tensions grew between him and this person as he and his group drew their blades from their waist.
"Who is this? Is he the one who cut off your leg?" Osman questioned while his gaze is fixated on the Evolutionist,
"He didn't cut my leg off," Nadia explained, "I did,"
Their hostility soon turned to confusion as they turned their attention back to Nadia.
"Seriously?" Adham questioned,
"As the plague, Yes," Nadia responded,
Tension was still fresh in their minds, but they grew to accept it while keeping their eyes on the Evolutionist as he examines Nadia's spider leg.
"So what's next on the agenda?" Nassor questioned,
"With the outpost out of commission, what comes next is the Colony's Capital," Nadia declared, and sat down on a chair, "We take that, then we'll consider this colony liberated from enemy control,"
"Sounds easy enough," Shakir said,
"The Capital is different," Nadia said, "For the enemy, there have twice the numbers and every floor is swarming with both underlings and slaves. Also, I have yet to tamper with the communication circle there,"
"And anything we do will result in the enemy learning of our presence in this colony," Osman stated,
"So what are we supposed to do now?" Nassor questioned,
"Opportunity," The Evolutionist spoke, and everyone turns to him,
"You got something to say?" Osman questioned with disdain,
"Genetic Strains of Arachnid Nadia holds Potential," The Evolutionist stated, "Engineered for Immense Potential. Can be used for Ant Adaptation,"
"You can implant biological mutations to ants?" Nadia questioned,
"Ants hold immense potential for Adaptation. Genetic Strands Change one's growth. Become Stronger and Efficient," The Evolutionist explained,
"Interesting..." Nadia muttered, "Perhaps freeing you has some merits after all,"
"Wait, What are you suggesting?" Adham questioned,
"Just as used their own toys against them. Then maybe I could do the same to their slaves," Nadia suggested,
"Wait, Wait, Wait. You want him to mutate our people with your power?" Nassor sternly questioned while raising his finger towards the Evolutionist, "If so, then I'm against this sort of plan,"
"We're here to free our people, not turn them into monsters," Osman reminded, "There has to be another way to handle this problem,"
"I know, but I didn't say all of your people," Nadia corrected, "Rather, I referring to the slaves kept with the capital. Besides, the Queen of this land is long gone, Taken to Astranul's Stronghold in the Main Colony of the Region,"
"Astranul?" Shakir parroted,
"He's the Demon Lord's subordinate in charge of the Western Region," Nadia explained, "The one you all seek to kill. But let's put that matter aside and work on the now since we have yet to handle the threat of this colony,"
"We know that much, but turning our people into monsters? That's too much," Osman said,
"I get it, you want to save your people. But what you all want can't be achieved so easily," Nadia said, "I've learned that the hard way, yet I still went with it since I wasn't going anywhere just by waiting... Because doing so had cost a lot of lives,"
'Even my own...' Nadia muttered, while secretly clenching her right hand in reminiscences of her past life,
The room was soon filled with uncertainty as Osman's group doubted Nadia's way of thinking. Their desire to save their region is still clear and strong, but sacrificing a few for the many has always been a problem for them.
Especially when the battle they waged always led to circumstances where they were forced to witness their comrades sacrifice themselves for their survival.
But now was different, and they were determined to do whatever it takes to save their region...
For the sake of their former queen...
"As much as I hate to say this but..." Osman sighs deeply, then he and his men faced her with a determined look on their faces, "What do you want us to do?"
Nadia nods in approval, then turns to the Evolutionist, "Speak, what do we need?"
"Sample collected from you is the first. Second is Biological Material," The Evolutionist listed, "Alive and Dead not matter. But Former is More Manageable,"
"Will the underlings at the outpost be enough?" Nadia questioned,
"Genetic Sequences, Sloppy. But Usable," The Evolutionist stated, "Will suffice if sufficient,"
"Then we'll make a quick run at the outpost since their corpses still litter the ground," Nadia said, then gestures at Assassin and Osman's group to follow her,
With that in mind, Nadia and co. departed from the tavern via warp crystal.
Outpost...
Upon arrival, they find themselves at the Evolutionist's former cell.
That's when they begin their operation as they gathered each and every corpse they could find in the lower levels. They also searched the cells and found either dead or dying ants after months of confinement.
Thus, Osman and his group gather these people and ensure that their lives were not in vain. Those that were still able to move were treated by Nadia and warped back to the tavern.
With the cells cleared of anything valuable, Nadia and co. proceeded to clear out the rest of the lower level. During their search, they stumble upon a large amount of treasure and weapons in separate rooms.
They would mark these rooms for Nadia and she would collect these things for herself as they hold some value in the near future. The same can be said for the underlings' weapons...
Once the outpost had been wiped clean, they move on with the upper levels and collected whatever they could find. Corpses, Treasures, Weapons, Accessories, and even Food that was preserved in a storage room.
At the end of their operation, the outpost had been cleaned, everyone makes their back to the lower levels of the outpost, and returns to the tavern via .
Back at the Tavern...
After they've returned with the corpses of both underlings and ants, the Evolutionist prepares the necessary procedures.
Firstly, he focuses on the deceased ants before the underlings since his standards are always set for his own kind. Then, he proceeds to consume some quantities of their flesh.
The Evolutionist soon nicked a piece of Nadia's severed spider leg, and stuffed it into his mouth much to Nadia's disgust, and Assassin and Osman's group's disdain.
Sometime later, the Evolutionist hummed to himself, then followed by one word he said out loud, "Intriguing..."
"What is it this time?" Nadia questioned,
"Complex Genetic Sequences yet Highly Compatible to Genetic Ant Sequences," The Evolutionist stated, "Immense Potential, Beyond Unlike any other"
"So I'm a special case then," Nadia inquired,
"Correct," The Evolutionist responded, "Must Study Further,"
"You can do that later, Just do what I told you already," Nadia said,
The Evolutionist then turns to the corpses of the underlings, regurgitates some of his saliva from his mouth, and places it onto its left hand in a ball-shaped form. Then the Evolutionist proceeds to cut open one of the Underlings and implants his saliva into the designated wound.
With that said and done, the Evolutionist lifts the corpse and places it on an empty table.
"Genetic Sequences Complete, Ready for Augmentation," The Evolutionist said,
"That's it?" Nadia said, and the Evolutionist nods in response,
"Consumption is Required to Complete Evolution," The Evolutionist stated, "Devour Flesh, Change Occurs,"
"If you say so," Osman said, takes a step forward, and tore a piece of the underling's flesh right out,
He then proceeds to eat it, and what followed was the results of the Evolutionist's modification. Osman falls onto his knees and grunts loudly as his body undergoes the grueling process.
"Osman!" Nassor exclaimed in worry,
"Hey! What in the world did you do to him!" Shakir demanded as he drew his sword, and pointed at the Evolutionist,
"Wait!" Nadia loudly ordered, then turns to Osman"Just give him a minute,"
"Why should we wait? Can you see he's hurting there," Adham pointed out,
"He isn't hurting..." Nadia said, as she watched Osman grunting on the floor, "He's changing..."
[And it's fascinating to see... Especially when his genetic makeup is being merged by the Evolutionist's Modification]
A few minutes later, Osman grunts soon turned to pants upon completion and Nadia lends him a hand.
Osman glances at her, then accepts it as Nadia assists him on his feet and straightens himself up after he regained his energy.
"How do you feel?" Nadia questioned,
"I... I don't know," Osman replied, "But I feel so... Different,"
"Let's find out then," Nadia said, takes a few steps back, and stretching an open hand at him, "Give me a punch, but not too serious,"
Osman nods, clenched his right hand, punches the palm of Nadia's hand. The resulting blow caused Nadia's feet to slide back a little. Then she pulls her hand back, and wiggled it a few times.
"How did it feel?" Nassor questioned,
"It hurts," Nadia said, and it surprised Osman's group, "I'm not going to lie, it actually hurt. But it's not too serious,"
[If you were a regular human, that blow would have broken every bone in your hand down to your elbow.]
'Gee, thanks for the insight,' Nadia sarcastically thanked, then turns to the Underling, and a thought came into mind, 'I wonder...'
Nadia then approaches the corpse, cuts a large piece of it, and proceeds to eat it since she has the taste of an Insectoid instead of a human. Moments later, her body stiffens, and her tolerance skills activates as something surges within her.
As she remained standing on her feel, her spider legs suddenly emerged from her back, and molded all the way up to the very claw of her legs.
Then, the exoskeleton started to shed and it soon revealed a much smoother exterior compared to its original form, and the claws of her legs gained a much sharper tip. In addition to that, the spider leg she broke off had regenerated and Nadia brings it forth to feel the smooth exterior on her hands.
"Amazing," Nadia muttered, then smiles before turning to the Evolutionist, "It seems you're not so bad to have after all,"
The Evolutionist shows no expression, for the only thing that interests him was his work, Nothing more...
In time, everyone else was convinced and feasted on the corpses as soon as the Evolutionist merged the genetic sequence within them. The effects of the Evolutionist's modification vastly improved even the average ant present.
Nadia had her share of the feast, and her body structure improved as well. Not only that, she gained the [Adaptation] Skill after filling in the requirements. It lessens the required amount of essences for her next evolution and it unlocks or upgrades other skills such as [Regeneration], [Hardening], and [Improved Senses].
"With this kind of power, it almost feels like I can rip armies apart," Shakir remarked while punching the air with heightened speed,
"Don't let your confidence cloud your mind, Shakir," Osman said, "Our bodies may have improved, but the same cannot be said for experience,"
"Wise words, Osman," Nadia commented, "But let's put those discussions aside for now. Because this experience had just given me an idea,"
"And what would that be?" Nassor inquired,
Nadia smirked, then turns to the Evolutionist, "By any chance, you could mix this among the food supply of the ants?"
"Possible, If Quantity of Biological Essences is Acquired," The Evolutionist stated,
"Good, then let the liberation commence..." Nadia declared, and everyone seemed thrilled at these words...
The Following Morning...
In the Colony Capital Building, a majority of Astranul's underlings patrolled both the inside and the outside of the structure while their ant slaves provide all the manual labor such as transportation of food, maintenance of weapons, and services of the men.
As soon as it was time to feed the slaves, a group of five underlings carried several bags of food and large jugs of water onto the entrance of the capital while the ant slaves stood and wait for their rations to be given.
To ensure that nothing goes wrong, there were several heavily armored guards beside the providers and they will not hesitate to push anyone out of line for the slightest of trouble.
With a total of five providers in the area, they disturbed the rations in small proportions and the ants didn't hesitate to chow down on their food and drank their water since they only receive their rations once every week.
As soon as half of the ant slaves were given rations, an occurrence stirs among the crowd.
The providers and their guards were soon bothered as some of the ant slaves sharply gasp after consuming their rations and some fell to their knees and raspy gasps as they clutched onto their chests.
When one of the slaves let out a scream, some parts of his body grew longer and larger before going limb in the end. Followed a few other ants that went through the same thing.
When things went quiet, a few of the armored guards decided to get a closer look at these slaves while the rest remained beside their providers. They order the other slaves to back away and drew their weapons in case they try anything.
"Hey!" An armored guard yelled at the nearest ant,
When he received no response from the kneeling ant, he growls and takes a few steps forward.
"Hey!" The armored guard then kicks the kneeling ant on the back, "I'm talking to you! Turn around and answer me alread-"
Before he could finish his sentence, the kneeling ant slowly from the ground, and turned around to reveal its drooling face and twitching antennas.
With the very sight of this ant, the armored guard didn't hesitate to try and strike down the ant for looking different. But his attack was easily parried, and the guard met his fate when the ant dashed forward and chomped its teeth right into the guard's neck before being pushed down to the ground.
He screams in utter agony, and the rest of the guards were alarmed by this sight. Thus, they sprung into action and attempted to aid their comrade.
Sadly, they were met with the same fate as the other ants that went crazy and started attacking the guards by tackling them to the ground and chomping their way right into their necks.
The remaining guards and providers became frantic as they wished this horrific scene to unfold. Though all but one provider smirked as he stood up from his seat, and made his way towards the ant slaves.
Beside him were two armored guards walking towards separate ant groups.
"Hey! Get back here at once!"
The provider and his escort gave no response to their demand, then they made a psychotic grin for all of them to see. When a magic circle briefly appears from their chest, their bodies rapidly grow into unnatural proportions and the last thing they let out was a psychotic laugh before exploding amongst the crowd.
The remaining providers and guards were horrified when some of them were sprayed with a moderate amount of blood. As for the ants, they too held the same expression as them.
But their expressions changed when the smell of blood was mixed with a certain aroma that they couldn't resist. Awakening their repressed hunger as they lay their eyes on the providers and the guards.
Then...
...
...
...
Chaos struck as the ants went into a feeding frenzy...
As there were remains around them, the frenzied ants didn't hesitate to lunge onto said remains and proceeded to tear the meat apart with their hands and mandibles. Not even the bones remained when they were through with it.
The same can be said for the guards that were caught in the middle of the crowd. Though, they were eaten alive as the ants piled onto them.
Having enough of this scene, the providers and their guards ran their way back into the building. But the entrances and windows were soon sealed from the inside and both the providers and guards were locked outside with the ants' slaves.
As they panicked, they tried to break the doors down and force their way in. But to no avail, as the doors were sealed tight and their pleas fall to deaf ears.
Some of the brave guards took a stand as the ants turned their attention toward them. Before long, the ants finished their meal and set their sights toward them.
The guards made their final stand against them while the providers pleaded for the doors to be opened.
Capital Building
Sitting in an open window, Nadia watched the chaos below her while Assassin was standing by the edge watching over the ants as well.
Behind the two was a blood-ridden hallway with bodies littering all over. Compared to the men here and the men below. Their deaths were far less gruesome than those below...
That is it for this update people! And you may all wonder how Nadia and her group did all this plan. Well, I will provide a short recap, the next time I update this story. Which is next month.
With that aside, It's time for that important discussion that I wanted to have with all of you. I've been writing stories for the past 4 years (I started somewhere in 2019), and at some point. There is something else that I want to earn.
And that something is money.
Don't jump to conclusions just yet, though. The reason why I want it is not out of self-interest or profit. But a way for me to provide for my family and myself. (I'm not poor if you're all asking)
Because one day, I will be providing for my own expenses rather than someone else in my family.
Rest assured, I will keep updating my stories until that day comes and I have yet to set up an account for a donation platform. If I did, I'll let you all know in the future.
That is all I have to say, stay safe from the virus, and I will see you all in the next update!