11 Chapter 11 A Farewell

(AN: sorry for those of you that liked the ant queen but I've had a change in plans.)

Water dripped onto the grains of sand, turning the pale white to a light gray. The centipede shook off the excess water, taking a look at his current [EP] count after hunting for 5 days.

104.7 points. The amount of shrimp in the sea was abundant, but the constant moving without a day's rest had tired him out. They weren't strong either, but fortunately, he had found a swarm of them a bit farther away near a kelp forest along with what looked like a hybrid of an oyster and an octopus.

Something about that area seemed strange though. Maybe it was just him overthinking, but it felt…ominous. His senses would tingle whenever he got near, neither in fear nor anger…or disgust…it was just…for a lack of a better word, suspicious.

Maybe it was because of his previous experiences with the plant, but seeing the growing number of seaweed was disconcerting.

It was the very reason he had swam ashore even though he probably could've continued to hunt for a few more days…

He had planned to go back the next day for another hunt though. Worrying about a kelp forest in the ocean wasn't enough of a risk to prevent him from going back.

At least, that was what he thought back then. By the time he arrived, the entire ocean was…quiet? Similar to how the bugs in the forest would go silent when a large predator appeared, nothing, absolutely nothing showed up.

He had to give up and spend the time back in the cavern, waiting for the ant queen to finish her nesting while his scorpion companion played around with a silk ball it had found somewhere in the jungle(he followed it back to a spider's lair, though it seemed to have been abandoned for a long while).

The same thing repeated for the next 3 days until he gave up. Maybe the marine creatures had been scared off by him and were being cautious? He wasn't sure, but he waited another week before re-attempting his hunt.

Although a few normal looking fish appeared, nothing on the scale of "mutated" showed up. He was disappointed, on the brink of finding a new hunting spot.

Everything only changed on the 15th day when the ant queen finally left the cavern to eat. He went back to the shore with nothing to do, but the ocean was completely red, soaked in blood and guts. Bones floated to the surface and the sand was stained crimson.

He didn't go back after that…but he swore he felt something watching him somewhere he couldn't see, observing from afar. His instincts unconsciously made him return back home quickly, but that feeling never went away.

Today now marks the 22nd day since his first initial leave. The ant queen finally allowed him to see her burrow. It was simple, with only a few compartments to hold her thousands of eggs. To be honest, the nest had likely taken 10 days to make, while she used the remaining 5 to lay eggs. The next week was spent making sure her litter was healthy.

He enjoyed watching since there was no form of proper entertainment like a TV or phone, but his mind always wandered to that sea of red, or that feeling of being stalked like prey.

He made the decision to go someplace else for the time being. Mostly because he wanted to investigate the abandonment of the spider nest.

Something about that area was disconcerting as well. Time is always constant and changing, and he didn't know how to keep up. "Scree?" The centipede perked up, remembering the scorpion had followed behind him.

He wanted to leave it as a guard, but more than that, he bet his legs they'd just leave to go somewhere else anyway. He responded back with his own screech, but paused.

They both froze in place, a large shadow looming over them. When he looked up, he just barely caught a glimpse of a fiery bird holding what looked like a whale.

It was the magma vulture, newly dubbed [Roc Bird] from mythology he had read about somewhere before. He wondered if it had some kind of preference for sea creatures despite being of a fire nature.

Unfortunately, the moment he had that thought, a loud explosion went off in the distance. His antennae shook. That was in the direction of their home.

…

The ant queen was content..for a short while. After the destruction of her colony by the claws of their natural enemy, she had been the only one to escape the horror.

She was left dilapidated and hungry, but for the sake of her children and the sacrifices of their older siblings, she had to keep moving. The first time she met the large creature with many more legs than her, she had been afraid.

What point was left in fighting when in front of one's natural predator, weakened and delirious? Still, in her last, desperate attempt, she flared her psychic abilities and spoke to the creature.

And through that, surprise, surprise…it understood her. It had stopped its advances, and with almost child-like excitement she had only ever seen in her own offspring, it spoke back to her.

The creature, no, her savior, a single centipede that she wouldn't have even considered a predator had she still had her army, helped her heal and even allowed her to stay and care for her new children.

What more could she have asked for? But it didn't stop there. He gave her food, shelter, protection..all in return for one thing that could be broken at any time. Obedience.

If he had asked her to stay, she would've accepted and given him her heartfelt loyalty, but maybe it was because he was doubtful…he never did.

She was okay with that, maybe a little upset, but it was okay…after almost a month, she was nearly ready. Her children had hatched out of their eggs 2 days ago. It would not be long till their shells harden enough to withstand attacks, but…

Maybe it was due to the scent, but that monster had found them again. It was to be expected. She hadn't gotten very far with her weakened body, but to be found as soon as she was nearly done…

Maybe it was finally her time to go. It was a short life, but a good one. She just hoped that through her life, her savior could take care of her offspring.

In the distance, she could see that black and red carapace her eyes hadn't been able to see as often as she would've liked. It'd been nice if she could've said goodbye.

In the end…just like that, her life came to an end, leaving behind thousands of lives.

To be continued…