Chapter 1295: Tidal Wave

Chapter 1295: Tidal Wave

Zluth had known the Krath would refuse to attack the giant ant, so he'd repositioned himself on the other side of the tunnel. He'd had to dodge several members of his own tribe on the way. The Krath'lath still had sway amongst the members of the Slee tribe, and he couldn't be too careful.

Still, it was necessary that he be able to truthfully claim he had done the task assigned to him. So he slithered down the tunnel, using his cunning and guile to evade the ants and his own kind in order to arrive at the other side of the invaders' advance.

He had expected the Krath'lath to fail in her assault. The Blubbeasts and various pets painstakingly raised by the tribe would go to waste, and perhaps some of the Krath would be caught in the mess as well.

What he saw exceeded his expectations many-fold.

The surge of blue mana had been so potent, so rapid, even he had almost been caught up in it. For a moment, the acid had congealed in his flesh as the blue menace had raced towards him. Only by squeezing himself back into the tunnel and fleeing did he manage to survive.

When the corrupted mana retreated, he cautiously emerged once more, extending a tentative eye-stalk into the open to see what had transpired.

It was a catastrophe. The gathered strength of the Slee had been obliterated in less than a minute. Amongst the carnage, he could see several of his fellow Krath, broken and burned by the toxic power spread by the invaders.

Despite the catastrophic loss for his people, Zluth felt a surge of triumph. The Krath'lath, even if she had survived, was finished. He would need to rejoin the others soon to ensure he secured himself a taste of her despair. It would be easy, after that, to position himself as a potential replacement. If Goszi followed through on his intentions, then he had a good chance to seize that position.

It felt... so strange. The strands of thick mucus that should have hung from floor to ceiling... gone. The thick layer of slime that should carpet the tunnel floor... gone. Everywhere he looked, fungal blooms and gardens of mould that had been so poisonously vibrant only minutes ago now lay withered and dead, choked to death by the mana of the ants.

There were golgari there as well, and bruan'chii, and ka'armodo! As he watched, oblivious to the approaching wall of blue mana, Zluth's mind churned. Just what was he witnessing?!

All of these factions, aligned in purpose?!

Of course! It all made sense now. The ants were not the leaders of this expedition, they were a creation, a tool, wielded by the sapient races from further up in the Dungeon against the fifth!

This wasn't some random monster invasion, this was a unified effort, an alliance of kingdoms, seeking to crush the fifth once and for all!

Snapping back to himself, Zluth retreated along the crack, then forced himself out and began to race away.

He had to catch up with the rest of the tribe. The Slee alone would not be enough to take on such an opponent! The Krath would need to unify for the first time in centuries!

As he fled, he turned one stalk behind him for a final glimpse at what they faced. The reinforcements were endless. Every time one of the platforms came down, it was loaded with people, ants, and supplies. Unloaded in seconds, it would vanish back up into the tunnel, then reappear again seconds later with another full load.

Before he escaped into one of the narrow off-shoot tunnels, he'd already lost sight of the entrance. The ants... no... the invaders... had already blocked his view with walls.

It would take days... perhaps weeks to bring the tribes together. Just how established would the invasion become in that much time?