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Chapter 1417 - Solant’s Plotting
🕑 Added 2024-08-01 02:01:37 +0000 UTCThe influence of Solant on the organisation of the Colony is difficult to understate. Perhaps of all the champions who arose within the Colony, her impact was the greatest, even when compared to Brilliant, or Merchant.
By our very nature, the ants of the Colony formed an effective military. Cooperative, egoless, selfless, unafraid of death, we were able to organise readily, train relentlessly and confront our enemies with confidence and overwhelming numbers.
Solant was not satisfied with that.
She turned the Colony into a proper military. Every caste was brought into a unified command structure that made best use of their talents, in ways no other ant had ever dreamed of. It was no longer enough to simply train, gain experience and improve levels. Endless drills, complex formations, backup plans within backup plans, contingencies, redundancies, the exhaustive drive and intellect she possessed was laser focused on one single thing: preparation.
Yes, Solant was the greatest battlefield general the Colony ever produced, but her true power and influence was in reshaping the Colony’s approach to not only battle, but war.
It is due to Solant that we came to be so feared.
- Excerpt from the private notes of Historiant
Some among her closest advisors, her brood mates who she’d grown up with, considered Solant to be something of a pessimist. They all saw the wisdom in planning for the worst, but she truly seemed to expect it, which appeared excessive to them at times.
To her mind, it was only prudent. If she expected the worst, then she wouldn’t be in the slightest surprised when it almost inevitably happened. Also, she wouldn’t be too shocked when something even worse occurred.
So far, everything to do with the invasion of the fifth stratum had been going according to plan. According to her expectations, that meant that something awful should happen right about….
“General Solant!”
… It was difficult at times, always being correct.
“Make way for the messenger,” she demanded, cool and calm as always.
The forward command post was a hive of activity, not least because it was constantly moving. As the area covered by the purified mana pushed deeper into the fifth, so too did the frontline of the invasion. As the commander she needed to stay close to respond to any disasters as they took place. Such as now.
The many bustling ants gave way and soon a clearly stressed scout stood before her.
“There has been some form of attack!” she burst out. “Toxic mana is spreading everywhere, within the safe zones!”
What? That shouldn’t be possible…
“How?” she demanded. “Has anyone identified the source?”
“Yes, general,” the scout nodded her antennae frantically. “It’s the vents! Those strange openings along the tunnels. They suddenly opened up and started spewing toxic mana everywhere! Some parts of the invasion force have already been cut off!”
Of course. Even worse than the worst case scenario. If the local Krath hadn’t overplayed their hand so severely, this would be the perfect moment for them to have attacked….
She’d gotten lucky.
Silence fell over the post as Solant sank deep into her thoughts, considering every possibility. Those vents…. The Colony had identified them during the first scouting mission, but been unable to determine their purpose or function. Why would they open now? What had triggered this event?
It didn’t matter. What mattered now was limiting the damage, preserving the strength of her troops and ensuring the invasion didn’t lose momentum.
“Come with me,” she ordered quietly, and led the entire command group to the model of the fifth. Even now, carvers were hard at work on it, filling in the details, shaving away at sections of rock, or adding new ones as reports came in describing the terrain of the surrounding Dungeon.
“Spread the command that every squad is to engage Shell-Epsilon tactics,” she instructed.
Stop advancing, act as independent, defensive units until further orders arrived. Yet another thing they had extensively drilled.
“This command must reach every battalion and squad, regardless of the state of the tunnels? Am I understood?”
The scout nodded.
“Gather any additional scouts you require outside the command post and coordinate with the staff here. Go swiftly.”
As a result of this order, several of her siblings would die, infected by the toxicity of the fifth beyond any hope of recovery. She hardened her heart. If the messages didn’t get through and the troops didn’t go into the trusted defensive formation, a great many more lives would be at risk.
Until the tunnels were cleansed and every inch of the safe-zone reconnected, every squad was on their own.
“Carvers, mages, up front,” she ordered, and waited as those she needed crawled forward. “We have to do two things as quickly as possible, first locate every active vent and modify the pipe network to allow intake from them. If necessary we may need to adjust the wuffer-node layout. It will be up to each team's discretion on what course of action they need to take. Second, we need to find every inactive vent, if there are any, and prepare pipe lines to each of them. If they start expelling mana, we have to be ready to syphon it away immediately.”
The situation was bad, but had the potential to become so much worse.
“We have to move quickly. Go now, and send back progress reports every ten minutes.”
Dozens of ants rushed away, already issuing orders as Solant stared at the model, as if trying to discern the future from the hard, cold stone.
“Leonidant,” she called to her trusted broodmate, who leapt to her side in seconds. “You will go to this area and be responsible for coordinating the response.”
She used her front leg to indicate the zone she meant, specifying the exact sections of tunnel at which her sibling’s area of responsibility would end.
“Washingtant, I want you in charge of this section.”
“Juliant, you will take this section.”
“Napoleant, you take this area. Go.”
Those she knew best, and who understood her mind the most, rushed to obey her commands, and Solant sat back, still thinking hard. So long as her troops were able to do as they had trained, this disaster could be overcome. She wasn’t worried about that. Her mind, of course, was busy calculating a new reality. Now that this had happened, what was the new worst thing that could possibly occur? And how could she be prepared?
“Bring the Eldest to me,” she instructed, “I have a task that they are not going to like.”
Comments
Cypha
Solant "was" foreshadowing her death? Hopefully not! :) Damn the colony is going to be a real amazing playground for a Merchant based champion :D
Runaway_Cactuar
Has Solant's broodmates considered that Solant is a pessimist because she had to play against the Eldest that one time and got her plans crushed by magic she didn't comprehend?
Runaway_Cactuar
"the ant of wall st." Coming soon to a colony near you~
Shotgun_Samura13
Why the short ass chapters???
Gopard
Thanks for the chapter!
Wolve
TFTC
CentaureHeart
Terrible that they've been cut off but if they manage to purify those vents, wouldn't they have vents spewing pure mana thereby accelerating even more the invasion? As long as rhe source can be converted and not just destroyed I guess.
CherMi
Past tense in the excerpt is very concerning.
Kevin
Sol = Sun Sun Tzu
יותם רוזנטל
I read Marchant as Marchant and l was like "oh cool ant mecks" and it didn't seem weird to me and l love it
Rahsheem Reid
Something just occurred to me… we have been reading private notes of many different ants. They might actually all be exterminated In the future and all their possessions taken for processing. Maybe Anthony went way deeep and left the colony to fend for themselves and everyone turned on them …
Koala Man
After brilliants escapades as a grub it would be fun to see one counter all the new methods the matrons put in place to counter another brilliant
taukid
Is Solant named after a great general like her broodmates?
BelligerentGnu
We have the name of our next champion! Merchant!
Grey Knight Lord
OH! Anthony talking to the Mother Tree, she should be able to help them right? Times like this his recklessness has the opportunities for chaos or turn out excellent Ch: 14 Anthony found the Mother Tree and is getting her to move her lazy butt just like he did with the Termite Invasion. When the Brunchi didn’t want to allow her to fight, but Anthony forced them or the Colony would ditch. She better move them roots and help.
Grey Knight Lord
Anthony doesn’t say it, but he has that big brother aura. Be careful how you talk, but they will normally here you out
Anthony Romanov
I want Anthony to break Solant expectations!!!! 😏
DrDankness
I love how Solant is probably the only ant besides the Queen that can outright order Anthony around. Sure he bops her on the head when she gets cocky but he inevitably acquiesces to demands.
kev mil
I can't wait for Solant to say "What do you mean you can't find the Eldest?!"
fair3238
Sneak new colony champion
