Chapter 56 Anthonys colony growth strategy (1/2)

More and more reinforcements appeared, plunging directly into battle without fanfare.

I was once again struck by the coordination and eerie silent aggression of the ants.

If a wave of soldiers were to appear, their gallant charge would be accompanied by shouted battle cries, faces adorned with n.o.ble expressions of sacrifice, determination and the thirst for victory.

This scene would stir the hearts of all who saw it, bringing tears to the eyes of elf maidens as they hastily composed epic poetry and songs about the das.h.i.+ng heroes who had so boldly, so heroically gone into battle that day, songs that would live on forever.

This moving scene would never occur when the colony advanced into battle however.

The workers made no sound, no battle cry, as they advanced on the enemy. As soon as the ants were close enough to detect the battle they simple ran forward to engage the foe, their cold eyes showed not a flicker of fear, hesitation, joy or triumph.

To me, this behaviour is heroic in another way. The ants are truly selfless, not considering preserving their own health, willing to sacrifice their life at a moment's notice to further the growth the colony. They needed no high ideals to do this, they were not seeking reward or riches, in the minds of the workers this was their task, their job, their purpose in life.

I appreciate you workers! Even if n.o.body else cares, I Anthony, am deeply moved by your single minded dedication!

Viva the workers!

Viva the colony!

It is for the sake of these workers and their growth that I have launched this anti-ape crusade. From the time I approached the tree and cut it down to all the time I spent charging through the horde of monsters and knocking them around I've been careful to injure the apes but never deal the finis.h.i.+ng blow.

No, I have been saving all of this delicious Xp and Bioma.s.s for the workforce. After evolving and levelling up I doubt I'd be able to benefit much from these apes anyway. Instead of taking all of the resources for myself I'll help the colony by creating opportunities for the workforce to develop its strength, absorbing Bioma.s.s and gaining levels, as well as providing food for the colony to grow the next generation.

More and more workers are flooding into the battle, as many as fifty of the monstrous ants have engaged in bitter combat by this time, gradually overwhelming the apes with their vicious mandibles and acid bombardment.

The scene has become increasingly chaotic as acid rains from the sky upon ants and apes locked in deadly combat. Everywhere I turn there are groups of monsters battling to the death, workers darting here and there, using their mandibles to savagely bite down on their enemies even as the apes scratch, punch and discharge their electricity towards the insects.

What a vicious melee!

I continue to run interference through the ranks of the enemy, scattering them whenever it seems like a worker will become surrounded or threatened. With all of these factors working together it isn't long before the entire horde of spark chimps has been defeated, becoming fuel for the powerful engine that is the colony.

Feeling tired and satisfied, I survey the battlefield. Workers are picking through the remains of the apes, some of them already eating, others picking up the food and beginning to transport it back to the colony.

The workers are smarter than they appear in many areas, they know how much food the colony needs and will be sure that any excess isn't wasted. Particularly since the first creature to eat a food source is the one to gain the Bioma.s.s from it, pa.s.sing on food stored in the social stomach will cause the worker to miss out on nutrition but not Bioma.s.s.

Perhaps this is why the workers transport so much back to the nest, this way the Queen and the workers who are almost full time helping the brood are also able to ama.s.s Bioma.s.s points. Since we have successfully secured more food than the colony realistically needs to keep all of the members going today, the workers will take it all for themselves rather than let any of it go to waste.

In this way my goals have been met.

I'm sure lots of workers were able to gain levels during this melee, not to mention the huge amount of Bioma.s.s consumed will allow many of the ants to mutate and improve the performance of their bodies. This will make the workforce more effective in fighting and growing the colony which will in turn allow the workers to ama.s.s more experience and Bioma.s.s as they battle, creating a positive feedback loop that I have no intention of slowing down.