BIOLOGICAL SUPERCOMPUTER SYSTEM

The group waited in silence for their reinforcements to arrive. To their disappointment, far fewer clones than expected had managed to free themselves and reach their location.

Only thirty Chimaeric demons came.

"Is this all?" Mira asked.

The clones nodded.

"The others will follow later," a clone said. "About fifty more are securing our path back to the shelter. Twenty encountered heavy resistance in tunnel B-7 and are clearing out a nest. Another thirty are checking the tunnels for ambush points and keeping the tunnels clear in case we need to retreat. They should join us within the next hours, assuming they don't find any more thaids."

Mira sighed. "It'll have to do. Amber, we should start the search then. We have already been in this cave for weeks. I'm sick of the stale air and the creepy glow of these fungi."

"We need to have a better look at the situation, though," Amber said, and then she turned to Emily. "Can you use your scope? We need to know what we're walking into. I don't want to find myself in chokepoints and dead ends, and I would like to know how many bugs we should expect."

Emily raised her sniper rifle, peering through its advanced scope to check their surroundings. From their position, she couldn't see a lot. The buildings were many, but most importantly, they were tall. Like in Liberty Watch, they arrived at the cave ceiling, which was a hundred meters tall. However, she had a somewhat good view of some of the closest streets.

After several minutes, she lowered her weapon. Her expression was troubled, and she squinted a couple of times.

"What?"

Emily didn't reply; instead, she adjusted the scope's settings one last time and checked again to confirm what she had seen.

"We are not alone," Emily said in a flat tone, lowering her rifle. "There are clear signs of activity everywhere."

She paused.

"The place looks abandoned at first glance, but I checked again and found some signs." She adjusted her scope settings as she spoke.

"And?" Mira asked.

"I saw multiple bug-like thaids constructions, but it wasn't easy to see them because the bugs made them behind the first rows of buildings. However, some of them were too large for them to cover them."

"So, the structures are big, which means there aren't just a few thaids here."

"Big? Some of them must be larger than some of the buildings themselves based on what I've seen. It's just that they are out of immediate sight."

"So, we are certain there are bug-like thaids here," Mira said.

"Yes, and not a few, judging by the nests' size."

"How many?" Bug-like thaids were among the most troublesome monsters out there. She knew they were bound to meet them again, but she hoped that wasn't going to happen.

She shuddered at the memory of her encounters with similar creatures on the Mannard continent. In the first encounter, she had been cornered in an abandoned building in the middle of the forest and only survived by collapsing the building's support beams.

The second time, a swarm had ambushed her group, back in Etrium, forcing them to run without having scouted the retreat path.

The third and worst encounter happened during a cave hunt, where she spent three days hiding in a cave with her team while thousands of the creatures searched for them. She wanted to forget them all.

"Hundreds, maybe thousands of structures." Emily's gaze swept across the ruins again. They were large too, so the number of nests was just expected.

"I actually spotted a few thaids, but based on the number of nests, their size, and the city's layout, there must be thousands living down there. They haven't just built nests—they've converted the buildings into hives. That's why the first row of buildings hides in the other nests. They've integrated themselves into the structures and made entrances on the far side."

"These thaids are too smart," Amber said, frowning. "Even by Mur's standards, this level of organization is unusual."

Mira turned to look at Amber. "Yet she says there are still thousands of nests made by them." Then her gaze went back to Emily. "If we consider the human buildings also nests, then it means there might be tens of thousands of them. Here, intelligence is not the only issue. If we are found by even one thaid, we will end up swarmed."

Silence fell over the group as they understood the implications. There was a single one, and that they would die. The Chimaeric Demons were too few to fight thousands, even tens of thousands of bug-like thaids, even if they were stronger than them.

Things would have been different if they had different powers, more neural links, and more mana, but as things were now, the Chimaeric Demons' main trait was their physical prowess.

"What do you think we should do?" June asked, his hand resting on his weapon.

"Can't you use your corrosive fog?" Emily asked Amber. That seemed the best thing they could do.

"No," Mira said. "Don't do that, because if that thing destroys the buildings, whatever information we might find would be destroyed, and we would also lose the chance to claim this place."

"We can't claim it, anyway. If there are thousands of thaids, it would literally be impossible."

The others' reactions varied. Some of the Chimaeric Demons exchanged worried glances. June's grip on his weapon tightened. Emily kept her composure as she listened.

"That's not true," Mira said. "Even if we can't use your corrosive fog, there are still many ways for us to kill the bugs. A simple lure will allow us to kill huge batches of monsters without endangering the structures. The problem is just that we can't fight, and we should keep the corrosive fog only in case we risk getting swarmed."

Amber nodded. "Yeah, you are right… It's just that the situation is frustrating."

"I know," Mira said. Then she turned to the Chimaeric Demons. As frustrating as the situation was, she wanted to have a clearer picture of the situation.

"Shapeshift into something small and scout the city. We need information about the thaids, their positions, and numbers." She looked back at Emily. "Could you find a suitable sniping spot here?"

Emily shook her head. "It's too risky. The only place where I could snipe is from one of the buildings, which we already established, are most likely nests. Even if they weren't, these thaids can climb walls—I'd be cutting off my escape route. In a place like this, getting cornered means death, and I'm not sure I can avoid it even if I use my brain crystal powers."

Mira sighed.

"Then what can you do?"

"Fight with the rest of you," Emily said. "I'm strong enough to fight these things up close, and I won't be trapped if things go wrong."

In the meantime, the Chimaeric Demons shapeshifted; their bodies shrank and changed to better suit the kind of operation they were going to perform. Some took forms resembling small reptiles, while others mimicked the small bugs like they were so used to doing.

"We'll move in waves," Mira said. "The scouts go first, mapping safe routes through the ruins. The rest of us follow in small groups. We need to keep enough distance to avoid drawing attention, but stay close enough to help each other in case things go bad."

"What about the central building?" June asked, pointing to the massive structure dominating the city's heart. "That has to be where the main facility must have been located. What are we going to do there?"

"The clones will scout it first, and if the place is good to go, we will search it," Mira said.

"Seems good," June said.

The fact there were bugs here reassured the group, but nothing said that they were hiding to avoid the monster or that the monster itself was the bugs' progenitor.

"Emily, keep scanning for any unusual activity."

"Will do."

The clones then started moving, being as quiet as possible. The rest of the team watched them go.

"How long should we wait before following?" Emily asked, checking her equipment one last time.

"Give them twenty minutes," Mira said. "That should be enough time to spot any immediate threats and to find the most suitable path to reach the main building. Emily, can you keep contact with them at that distance?"

"Yes, but the interference is getting stronger. Something about this place distorts radio signals. Maybe it's the fungi. On the other side of the cave, they take up the entire wall."

"All right… Just do what you can."

Mira looked down at the ruins with worry, her eyes scanning the crumbling structures and dark alleyways that stretched out like a maze below them. The sheer size of the underground city made her stomach tighten with unease.

The group waited, each thinking about what dangers they might find in the old city below. The strange, glowing mushrooms on the walls made shadows dance across the streets, making everyone nervous.