Chapter 413 Formo returns (1/2)

[Is there a particular reason why you Sophos are so loud?]

[LOUD? WE'RE TALKING MENTALLY YOU CRETIN. NOT A SOUND IS MADE!]

[Formo! You know exactly what I mean! Every time I form a mind bridge with a Sophos I've had my head rung like a bell! Can you tone it down a little?]

[WE ARE SIMPLY EXUBERANT, MY BOY! FULL OF BEANS!]

[I seriously doubt you eat beans, Formo.]

[WELL, NOT UNLESS IT WAS A BEAN MONSTER I SUPPOSE!]

[Just, take it down a notch, please?]

[I SHALL- ahem. I shall try. I must say young Anthony, I didn't expect that I would see you again. Judging by your change in size, you've been quite productive over the course of the wave.]

[Well, once the colony got rolling, the wave was almost more help than it was harm.]

[Hmm. I wonder if you understand why that might have been the case.]

[I'm not sure what you mean.]

[No matter. Come, my boy, let us wander this way. My domicile is found near the forge.]

The two of us continue our stroll through the Sophos community. I'm not sure what I expected, but the place is much more humble than I had a.s.sumed it would be. After my first meeting with Formo, I envisioned the Sophos to be an all-powerful community of core shapers without compare. I'd a.s.sumed that they would live in the lap of luxury, but that isn't the case.

The village is built along wide tunnels, with domiciles carved out of the rock. I'd asked where the giant worms and such lived and had been informed that most of them lived in holding areas beneath the village. I'd been a little surprised at that. I'd expected that they might treat their pets a little better, considering how much they relied on them. Tiny and Crinis have been sent down there as pets are discouraged in the upper levels. I've been a.s.sured they'll be treated with the utmost respect, and I really have no option but to trust them. Formo has never steered me wrong yet.

The other thing that struck me is the total lack of Mana Veins here. The walls are bizarrely clear of them, light instead being provided by a series of core powered lighting installations. I was pretty darn interested in learning how the heck they did that but Formo was cagey about it when I asked. d.a.m.n you, you bulbous headed Sophos! Give me your secrets!

Another thing that struck me was how few Sophos I saw. Most of them looked fairly similar, the real defining feature I could pick out was the mottled colouring of their skin. Most of their skin was green, but some had patches of red, or blue, or even orange I saw. Other than that, their featureless faces appears the same from one to the next. Mind you, they would probably say the same about us ants.

[I don't see a whole lot of your people around Formo. Is it a market day or something? People sleeping in?]

[What? Of course not! There just aren't many of us! We've worked hard to ruffle the Dungeon's feathers and it doesn't appreciate it, not a whit! So the sp.a.w.n rate for Sophos is abysmally low.]

Even I can tell how bitter he is from his tone.

[How does that even work? The Dungeon just up and decided your people were monsters?]

[BAH! You touch on a sore subject, old boy. We don't much like talking about, but when the opportunity to rant about the Dungeon pops up, who am I to pa.s.s it up?!]

[I'm sure I wouldn't know.]

[INDEED! My people were underground dwellers long before the Dungeon appeared. When mana began to seep through the ground, we were the first to experience and make use of it. When the Dungeon tunnels connected to ours, we were the first to come into contact with monsters and battle them. The surfacers ignored our warnings and laughed at our pleas for help. I have to say, their att.i.tude towards us was much the same back then as it is now.]