The Ant Mound

Meanwhile, in This Dimension…

After school, on her way home, Zero crouched by an ant mound, watching as the tiny workers tirelessly carried pebbles out of their tunnels, each moving with purpose. A few feet away, she noticed hundreds of ants swarming around a lollipop, likely dropped by some careless kid earlier.

“They’re fascinating,” she murmured to herself.

She gently reached into a nearby puddle, trying to rescue an ant struggling to stay afloat.

“What are you doing?” a voice mocked from behind. It was Spiral, passing by on her way home.

Zero didn’t look up, her focus still on the ant. “It’s suffering,” she said softly. “I’d like to think that if I were in its situation, someone would rescue me too.”

Spiral squatted beside her, gracefully arranging her skirt as she sat. “They are fascinating,” she agreed.

Picking up a stick, Spiral began to poke the ant mound. A wave of panic surged through the colony as ants poured out of their tunnels, scattering in frantic disarray.

“Hey! What are you doing?! That’s mean!” Zero jumped to her feet, her voice filled with distress.

Spiral’s eyes sparkled with amusement. “What? Don’t you want to see how they react?”