A couple day pass when Amy and Josh finally have a chance to ask Prof. Rio in class about what happen with the Fire Ant empire at the peak of their power. “Did they really almost destroy the world by expand and consume everything too fast?”

Prof. Rio was caught by surprise but ensure the student that he know exactly what happen that day. “However, this story is not mine to tell” so he claims “you should ask Prof. Tonia. She would suit to tell this story better than I do.” Rio then process to teach as if nothing happen.

Eirian can’t help but smile at how Prof. Rio toss a hot controversial topic to another teacher, ignoring Josh and Amy confusing face. ‘This story would indeed be better hear from the Ant themselves. I guess we'll have to wait for Prof. Tonia to give us her version of what happen.’

Prof. Tonia is our teacher in Earth magic and International Law. She also responsible for managing the construction of the undercity where she and most Ant live.

After a few more day of Amy trying not to get into argument with Josh we’re finally going to visit the undercity of Ant with Prof. Tonia as a guide.

Eirian come down to visit the undercity before but he didn’t dare go further into the depth since there are four split tunnel the moment you step down and each tunnel seem to split again many times to different direction. The stair is as far as he ventures last time but now with Prof. Tonia they will go down as far as level three.

“Everyone please sticks together with your group and follow me. If you are lost ask any Ant to point you to Wemba”

Prof. Tonia then call Marco out to help hold the green lamp, seeing him being quite tall and white so he will be easy to spot for other student should they lost sight of their group in tunnel.

The lamp is fill with some kind of glowing bug that emit green light while the tunnel is light with a yellow bulb but only in few numbers and mostly install only on junction, stair or hole connected different level. Most long tunnel has little to no light at all.

“So small, I feel as if wall is closing in on me” Josh said as he bends his head down and only look at the green light ahead even the tunnel is tall enough for even Marco.

“Bird are not used to underground huh” said Amy “You should try look around more we already pass some big room where they keep food supplies”

“Too dark” Josh said as he holds his wing with Biscuit hoof who also scare of the dark. Both are shaking.

“Here” Eirian cast a ball of light to illuminate the tunnel but not too bright so it won’t out shine the green glow in front that everyone needs to follow.

“Thank you”

They walk a few stairs down pass by many ants who travel in a row before they reach an open area underground.

“By the eternal” Eirian says as he looks at a vast open space with a small fort of 20 meter in the middle almost touch the ceiling.

The fort doesn’t even have a stair since ant can climb on almost any surface but to an intruder they will have a hard time get pass this point while being swarm from every other tunnel on different elevation.

“Alright, Is everyone here? Good” Prof. Tonia look to check the number before continue “This place is call Wemba, it one of the hubs inside a hive to serve as a landmark and defensive position to defend an intruder. This place is not a colony since there is no queen living here but we built this underground city to keep supplies and house some ant who prefer to live underground.”

“As you may noticed most of the ant here is smaller than your classmate. This is because they are worker ant and your classmate is likely to be Ante, a royal. A royal is stronger, smarter and can use magic which lower rank ant can’t. For this hive I am one of the Ante here, an architect who run this lower city. For today class I just want to give you guy a chance to tour an ant hive since outside this city some of you will properly never get a chance to step into an underground city again.”

“Telus” Prof. Tonia stomp her leg and a section on the fort sink become a door for them to move past the fort. They are now free to enter into any tunnel they choose.

“I’m giving you guy a few more of this green lamp.” some ant worker come and give student a lamp “You are free to travel into any tunnel you please but please try not to venture down lower floor. If you are lost just ask for a way back to Wemba, I already tell all worker here so they’ll know which Wemba to send you.”

Each teams start to walk around in Wemba first to see the fort they built under the earth. On the wall some ant can be seen climbing from wall to wall and don’t even touch ground level before enter other tunnel 10 meter above.

“They are quite a climber aren’t they” Eirian said.

“Our leg has claw to help with the grip alongside a sticky pad on our foot. It weird to see a stair inside a hive but I guess they make them so other races can walk around too” Amy explained “Usually we just dig a big hole connect upper and lower level. A stair takes too much space and hard to walk when a slope will do just fine.”

“If you don’t make stair I fear some of us may slip on the first floor and tumbling down like a boulder into a pit. The angle on some of the tunnel I saw on our way here might as well be a cliff.” said Eirian.

“It’s not that bad.” Claimed the ant “Come I show you guy around—I already survey this place a little”

“I think Josh and I will stay here” Biscuit console Josh who is now shrink into a black ball.

“Lady Estellia please guide us through the wind for we are your children and we follow..." Josh pray as some of his feather start falling off.

“Are you ok Josh?” Eirian asked.

“The sky...there is no star. If I die here, Death will not be able to find me and I’ll be lost in darkness.” Josh stare at the abyss above.

“You better stay with him then Biscuit” said Eirian with worries.

‘He must be claustrophobic. It would be better for him to stays in big open space than another tunnel.’

“I’ll also stay here with Josh and Biscuit, seeing all this massive army of ant make my skin crawl for some reason” Bill says as he rubs his shoulder.

Calamity, Eirian and Amy look at each other before hand the lamp to Calamity and let Amy lead the way.

Behind them Bill and Biscuit is patting Josh and tell him to close his eyes. “Don’t worry Josh. We’ll be here with you.”

After they left Wemba Amy take them into one of the tunnels and they walk pass many junctions but Amy keeps walking with confident.

“Where are you taking us?” Eirian asked.

“It’s a surprise”

“Are you sure we not lost?”

“Our eyes and ear may not be that good even after awaken but with a pheromone I always know which way to go and what is happening in the colony.”

Eirian wants to doubt her but there is no reason for Amy to cause then any harm so the three of them keep following her until Calamity say he smell something weird.

“We have arrived” Amy takes left turn into one of the rooms and inside is a large room fill with a white fungus. Each room near by is fill with different color of yellow, blue and green fungus. Every room is occupied by a worker who is taking care of the fungus and cutting any spore they don’t want

“Wait is that a MAM?” said Amy before turn to one of the Ante who managing worker and tap her antenna with his.

“Welcome to our humble farm my lady, how may I serve you?”

“Why is there a MAM in here?”

“To manage temperature and humidity of course” a male ant replied.

“Oh, I see. I didn’t think we could use MAM like this too”

“Your colony don’t use MAM like this?” Calamity asked.

“No, we do it the old fashion way where we let ant who walk out in the sun to come down and cool down inside the colony. Keep temperature just right for our people and larva.”

“That seem like a difficult task”

“Well, we can’t light a fire in here after all. Anything we need a worker must carry from outside and farming need a very specific environment. To think other colony would use a method like this.”

“Yes, lady Tonia introduce this MAM to us after a talk with Roy. He’s kindly made these MAM specifically for us although we still have to pay money when refilling magic core, it is a reasonable trade.”

“Indeed. But I thought this hive is not a colony since there are no queen so who is your leader who made these decisions?”

“Most of us were sent from other colony from an agreement with headmaster Osmond where we shall help him built undercity so mostly we follow his order which he will pass down via lady Tonia. Most of us are worker here with very few Ante like you my lady.”

“I see. Do you have any recommend for me and my friend to visit here? This might not be a real Fire ant colony but our hive is still unparalleled in its beauty.”

“We do have a underground pond where we divert a water from the great red river to store here. The room is...” he then tap his atenna with Amy to show her the way.

Amy nod and turn to her friend “This way”

Afterthey left the room Eirian said to Amy “Shouldn’t we thank him before we left?”

“I already did” Amy waves her antenna “we don’t really use word; a pheromone is more than enough.”

“I see” Eirian turns to Calamity consider putting his hand up to mimic an antenna movement behind Amy back but put the thought away after seeing Calamity plain face.

‘Ah it too childish anyway’

Eirian cast a light orb to light the way as three of them walk in silent before coming to a stop at a pit.

“Well...the fastest path to the pond is down there but I guess you two can’t fly.”

Eirian then throws a light orb down into the pit and it reveal many tunnels few meters down along with few ants climbing up and down before the magic fizzle out, they couldn’t see the bottom.

“They don’t even have light bulb here.” Eirian speaks in green glow of their only lamp “Maybe we gone down too far already—we should head back.”

“Back? We barely see anything yet”

“I’m sure your pond is very impressive but me and Calamity can’t climb down with you”

“I can try using my claw.” Calamity jap his claw into dirt trying to see if he can climb or not.

“No, too dangerous. I know you are leader today Amy but can I ask you to let us go back?”

“Fine you two can go back but I’m going to see this pond. Could you go back on your own? The way is left, right, left, up then turn go in second tunnel from your left then right and up and right then you should be back at wemba.”

Eirian can’t tell if she is messing with him or is this really a way to go back “we’ll ask other ant for an exit.”

‘Do we even go down that many level? I don’t remember we went down stair at all.’

Amy then climbs down into darkness outside of the green glow. Eirian turns to ask Calamity “Perhaps you remember a way back?”

“If we don’t find any ant there is a possibility we will starve down here.”

“...”