[When the ants descend on Meridian’s camp, Liem is resting, convalescing from the severe beatdown he’d received only slightly earlier at the hands of one of his own sect-mates. Aggressive regenerative abilities and a healthy sip of divine blood speed him back on the path to wellness, but the local fauna decline to give him even the few hours that he needs to recover. He is swarmed, limbs clamped tight in viselike jaws, and rushed through the shadowed greenhouse into the twisting, lightless tunnels of an immense colony of monstrous ants.]
a. for atsumu [The crushing pressure of ant jaws around his chest must make him black out, because the next thing Liem knows, he’s coming to in total darkness, half-buried in earth and gravel-like sand. The darkness doesn’t bother him; he’s never needed light to see, and doesn’t bother casting his light spell as he wiggles experimentally around in his shallow tomb. Though he’s able to push his upper half free of the dirt easily enough, shedding a shower of it as he does, he sees from across the cavern a pair of huge ants begin their approach, attracted by the movement. Liem lies back down and goes motionless as the ants examine him with their antennae; he barely even dares to breathe as they carefully cover him back up, replacing the shed soil until little more than his head and shoulders are exposed.
If he’s going to get out of here, he’ll need to be quick — or he’ll need a distraction.]
b. for john [Some time later, Liem is free of his ant tunnel tomb and wandering the tunnels, still in utter darkness, dodging ants with frantic frequency. The flow of air tells him that he’s nearing the exit, but the magic he uses to teleport out of sticky spots is starting to run dry. If he doesn’t reach the outside soon, he’s going to be in a very bad position the next time he runs into more than just one ant at a time.
If only he had run into an ally in these tunnels, instead of just a bit of ant-bait. He would welcome someone to watch his back right about now, and the lack of friendly faces in the tunnels worries him a little, besides. He couldn’t have been the only one captured in the raid on Meridian’s camp, surely, and he’s sure those remaining would have noticed his absence besides. The longer he goes without seeing another person he knows, the more he starts to suspect that something else must have gone wrong up above.]
Ant Tunnels
a. for atsumu [The crushing pressure of ant jaws around his chest must make him black out, because the next thing Liem knows, he’s coming to in total darkness, half-buried in earth and gravel-like sand. The darkness doesn’t bother him; he’s never needed light to see, and doesn’t bother casting his light spell as he wiggles experimentally around in his shallow tomb. Though he’s able to push his upper half free of the dirt easily enough, shedding a shower of it as he does, he sees from across the cavern a pair of huge ants begin their approach, attracted by the movement. Liem lies back down and goes motionless as the ants examine him with their antennae; he barely even dares to breathe as they carefully cover him back up, replacing the shed soil until little more than his head and shoulders are exposed.
If he’s going to get out of here, he’ll need to be quick — or he’ll need a distraction.]
b. for john [Some time later, Liem is free of his ant tunnel tomb and wandering the tunnels, still in utter darkness, dodging ants with frantic frequency. The flow of air tells him that he’s nearing the exit, but the magic he uses to teleport out of sticky spots is starting to run dry. If he doesn’t reach the outside soon, he’s going to be in a very bad position the next time he runs into more than just one ant at a time.
If only he had run into an ally in these tunnels, instead of just a bit of ant-bait. He would welcome someone to watch his back right about now, and the lack of friendly faces in the tunnels worries him a little, besides. He couldn’t have been the only one captured in the raid on Meridian’s camp, surely, and he’s sure those remaining would have noticed his absence besides. The longer he goes without seeing another person he knows, the more he starts to suspect that something else must have gone wrong up above.]