Prophets of the Ghost Ants by Clark Thomas Carlton

Author:Clark Thomas Carlton
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: HarperCollins
Published: 2016-12-13T05:00:00+00:00

CHAPTER 35

JATAL-DOZH

Ghosts were supposed to be made of something like fog. The men who grabbed Anand and yanked him to a distant tunnel’s entry had fingernails that gouged his skin. They threw him to the tunnel’s floor and cursed him in a language that was somewhat intelligible and shared Slopeish words. The recruits were doused with the kin-scent of ghosts and had antennae jammed on their heads. Prodded by swords, the recruits were forced to run through the black tunnels. The only light was from torches set at distant junctions where crude signs with pictographs indicated different destinations.

The recruits were herded down a tunnel with a sign depicting the primary opening at the top. As they progressed, the tunnel filled with the traffic of ants and humans. Though it was dark, Anand marveled at the size of the passing ants which could support several human riders. Every man he passed was an armored warrior. He did not see any women. The new recruits chugged up a long and exhausting incline, but to their eventual relief, daylight seeped into the tunnel as they reached the top. Anand emerged from the dark to the gruesome spectacle of daily life among the Hulkrites.

Jatal-dozh was a noisy tangle of activity. Its people were living in endless tents on and around the mound, but they were in the process of emptying the sand-and-lacquer dwellings of their ancient dust to make them habitable. Everywhere warriors were practicing with weapons or betting on matches of hand-to-hand combat. Some warriors bid on slave girls and children at an auction. Semiprecious minerals were used as currency, as well as arrowheads and daggers. A few men were openly engaging in intercourse with their new purchases.

Before Anand knew it, a ghost ant was behind him and rubbing his antennae for kin-scent. He stepped back and turned, shocked by his first view of the transparent ants in daylight. Even their legs and antennae were like some living quartz with a vague green tint. He saw tubes inside them pumping with green blood as well as the digestion of the day’s meal.

Visible in the thorax of the probing ghost was a reddish pulp that might have been the remains of humans. Only the ghost ant’s massive eyes had color, a bright yellow-green. Anand surmised that these eyes were excellent for night vision, but were useless during the day, allowing in too much light. The ants looked to rely on their long, always whirling antennae during the day to make their way and seemed sluggish unless prodded.

The ant came closer and Anand knew it was best to submit to antennation. He looked into its hideous mouth with its sharp, crystal mandibles. He thought of what must have been his mother’s paralyzing horror when she looked up, then was swallowed by one of these abominations. Someday I will kill every one of them, he thought.

The Hulkrish men were painted white and their bodies were covered in armor of their ants’ ghostly chitin. Through the transparency, Anand could see this armor left them vulnerable.

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