Twin Crossings is an old colony with inhabitants similar to Ant Island, but of much darker color and slightly taller stature. For most of its history Twin Crossings was a fairly typical colony, well-placed near sources of food. Competition with other insects was fierce, and the colony was often attacked or raided for people or foodstocks. The colony responded with hard work and rapid breeding, and generally survived under the leadership of its queens.
        One day a stranger walked confidently into the Twin Crossings and in a strange accent asked to see the queen. Calling himself Whitestone, he offered to train her ants to better defend themselves in exchange for acceptance into their colony. The queen's council was much impressed with the stranger's size and talents, and readily accepted. He chose a cadre of the colony's toughest and most experienced, and trained them to his standards. He taught them to fight as a unit rather than a disorganized horde. They learned to map the colony's surroundings to their advantage, and to select sites for ambushes and traps. Whitestone's methods enjoyed great success against the numerous but undisciplined raiders formerly used to easy prey. Cadreants became heroes, and at Whitestone's suggestion the Council authorized each to form their own group, or 'division'. Each division represented a region within the colony and recruited only the strongest ants. There was no shortage of volunteers, for with success came fame and notoriety.
        In time, Whitestone came before the queen's council and suggested the colony could be better protected if they deployed their foraging teams in a more organized fashion. Also, he said the colony was much too exposed, and presented a plan for hiding their activities and camoflaging the home site, concealing them from many random predators. This greatly appealed to the Council, and the queen authorized the plan. Whitestone's Cadre began organinzing the colony into units, with each unit assigned the protection of a division. The owning division layed out the activities of the units it protected, according to a master schedule.
        Raiders and predators soon began to fear Twin Crossings, and the colony's numbers swelled. To learn more about the dangers surrounding the colony, Whitestone organized the Rangers, hand-picked division ants who would go far beyond the colony's borders, execute aggressive scout missions, and return with reports on what they found. Ranger service made very experienced (and often very dead) ants, for the training and missions were rigorous.
        The colony's Council found their influence waning and became alarmed. They persuaded the queen to ask Whitestone for better representation in the Divisions. Whitestone agreed, with the provision that these ants meet the same requirements as other Division members. This seemed reasonable, and the queen agreed. But the young enthusiastic ants of noble birth faced training programs specifically designed to fail them. Some noble-ants completed the training and began serving in their Division, and many met with death in the field. Some died under questionable circumstances, such as one who fell into a known ant-lion pit which had somehow escaped mention in the mission briefing. Eventually only a few noble-ants remained in the Divisions, and these were so brow-beaten or indoctrinated that they were of little value to the Council.
        With the Council hamstrung, Whitestone no longer deferred to the queen. He soon abolished the Council and took the title of First Citizen. The colony was renamed 'Milaksa', which he said meant Union. His Cadre of officers took over the function of the queen's Council. Under the First Citizen and the military rule of the Cadre, the colony grew quickly and became infamous, for few insects that came within its borders ventured out again.
        Milaksa now has a vast population, and its people are crowded and malnourished. Some ants are increasingly disaffected with the Milaksan regime, as we shall see....

***

        Silver of 5th-Left-Fore had never known the colony as anything other than Milaksa, and the First Citizen and his Cadre were the only leaders with meaning to him. A queen was simply a quaint representation of motherhood-- a figurehead of no consequence except in tales. His father was one of those noble-ants who had stubbornly refused to wash out of military service, and had been subjected to extreme exercises and hazing that eventually led to his death. But Silver knew only that his father had served in his unit's Division and died in the service of the colony. His ambition was to enter his Division and serve the colony with honor like his father before him. His deep lavender color betrayed his noble descent, and as a youth he was picked on for that and his strange white markings, but others soon learned that he was not afraid to fight, and jokes at his expense came with a price.
        When Silver became of age, he immediately tried to enlist in his unit's parent Division. His ancestry placed him at a disadvantage, but it did not automatically prevent his entrance since he was not seeking to be an officer. He found the hazing little worse than what he had always put up with. He survived Division training, gathering a few scars and a reputation for quick and often extreme responses. Other Division members found he shared their disdain for noble-ants, and he was accepted.
        Silver served with distinction in his Division, eventually gaining the notice of the Cadre, which subsequently 'invited' him to go on a scout mission with the Rangers. The rangers lead him into the territory of a jumping-spider to see how he would fare, but the group itself was ambushed by the particularly clever spider. Silver lept on the spider with an unexpected ferocity. The spider was dismayed, and retreated before anyone was seriously injured. When the rangers returned, Silver was invited to undergo full Ranger training, where he learned many survival techniques and became noted for his hunting abilities. He was soon planning and leading his own missions, and his advice was sought out for other missions.
        His came to the attention of the First Citizen, and Silver was promoted to Captain, making him the youngest in his Division. His abilities and loyalty were now beyond question, and his noble ancestry no longer dogged him.

        Trouble began when Silver received word that several ants from a unit under his division, the 2nd-Left-Fore, were missing. Division scouts soon picked up their trail, and Silver was dispatched with two other Division ants to return the escapees. They easily found the renegades, two adults and their girl-child. Silver escorted the terrified ants back to their unit where he had a brief discussion with the unit manager. While the manager protested, Silver toured the tunnels where the ants had lived. After completing his tour and inteviewing a few others, he released the renegades without punishment and told them to return to their duties and forget their recent adventure.
        The angry manager reported Silver's actions, as regulations called for severe punishment for any ants attempting to leave Milaksa under any circumstances. Silver was summoned before the Cadre. He explained that these ants were not trouble-makers, but productive workers living under impossible conditions due to a cave-in over their living-chambers. He said their loss would be felt within their unit, and the blame should fall on the unit manager, for he had repeatedly failed to respond to their requests for repairs. The Cadre cited Silver for failure to comply with regulations with mitigating circumstances (a Milaksan form of wrist-slapping), and allowed him to return to his duties.

        The next day Silver was called off his Division duties and assigned to a Ranger team for a special mission, the farthest ever attempted by Milaksan ants. Silver suspected his re-assignment was related to the 2nd-Left-Fore affair, but he was delighted to participate. Milaksa rangers had captured and interrogated a small butterfly and learned of a large previously-unknown colony of barbarian ants. It was the first significant colony the Milaksans had found since the ranger patrols had begun (smaller colonies having since been absorbed or destroyed). The special team was being dispatched to map the exact location of this colony and assess its threat to Milaksa.
        Five veteran rangers were selected for the mission. Silver was assigned due to his exceptional hunting and tracking skills. Others were assigned based on their fighting and survival skills. All had great endurance records and were regarded as professionals. Larkspur, a Division Major well-known for his aspirations to a seat on the Cadre, would head the team.
        Their journey was long and hard, and they had to pack many of their own supplies as their were no ranger-caches so far out from Milaksa. As they neared their destination they encountered a huge shallow canyon of dried mud and sand. Silver knew this was a dry watercourse, but its size was astonishing-- well beyond anything they had ever known. On the far side they detected the first signs of the barbarian ants' passings. The barbarians left absurdly obvious traces of their comings and goings. Moving carefully and keeping to concealment wherever possible, the rangers followed the signs until they came upon a clearing where a mixed party of four slavers were gambling for the meager belongings of three captive ants.
        Slavers no longer ventured near Milaksa, and were not considered good fighters. Agave suggested taking the prisoners from the slavers and interrogating them might save the rangers a good deal of effort. After a brief consultation with Silver, Larkspur called for an immediate attack. The surprised slavers were no match for experienced Milaksans and were easily eliminated, leaving Larkspur's team with the captives. Three rangers were assigned to remove all traces of the fight while Larkspur and Silver questioned the barbarians.
        The captives were two grateful young adult females and a boy-child. The older of the two females was the mother of the boy-child, and the child's father had been recently killed. She was still shaking with fear. The other female was in her late teens and much more calm. She was called Morning Dew, and proved more lucid.
        Morning Dew told the two rangers that the colony was called 'Lakeside Hill'; apparently there was a large body of water nearby which they would encounter if they continued on this path. Their colony had suffered some kind of civil war, and was disorganized and badly understrength. Slavers had discovered them and found the colony easy prey. The captives were fleeing the dying colony to seek out another place to live when the slavers fell on them and took them prisoner.
        Larkspur asked many more questions concerning the Lakeside colony until he was satisfied the prisoners were not concealing anything important. When he was finished, Morning Dew thanked him for saving them and tried to ask her own questions, but Larkspur ignored her. He ordered the team to depart the immediate area and make a hidden camp. Silver let the barbarians have a few of their most prized possessions back from the pile of slaver loot, and gave them food from the team's dwindling supplies until Larkspur noticed and reprimanded him. Larkspur ordered two rangers to guard the prisoners and the remaining supplies, for he intended to make a complete circumnavigation of the barbarian colony before nightfall and preferred a smaller group for this portion of the mission.

        The Milaksan rangers began a wide circuit of the 'Lakeside Hill' colony, charting its paths and primary food sources, and confirming Morning Dew's information. Silver did his best to fulfill the mission objectives, but privately he wanted to see the lake described by the captives. Halfway around the colony from their starting point, they came upon a rise beyond which lay a cliff of eroded earth. A great lake spread out before them as far as they could see. It was a small dammed farm pond that let into the great dry streambed they had earlier encountered, but to the Milaksan rangers it was as vast as a sea. Silver would have remained and explored the border of the lake, but Larkspur called him away.
        They continued to circle the foreign colony. Several times they were forced to stop and conceal themselves as locals passed along the path, carrying packs of personal belongings while moving quickly away from the colony, often with sad little round-faced ants in tow. Once they spotted a large party of mixed slavers with several dozen captive ants. A huge stag beetle bore many looted items strapped to its back, while a damselfly flitted overhead. One of the rangers had spotted the damselfly earlier, and Silver suspected it was employed as a slaver scout. But it did not detect them, and the slaver party passed by their hiding-place. The rangers pushed on to complete their circuit. They never directly glimpsed Lakeside Hill, but they now knew its avenues and approaches.

        A light rain set in as the rangers returned from scouting the barbarian colony. Larkspur called a meeting with the others. "We'll camp here for the night." He glared at Silver. "Captain, see that the barbarians are put to work so they can earn that food you gave them.
        "My plan is to make for Milaksa at first light. We'll move fast with no foraging, so tighten your stomachs. We can't take the prisoners with us, so we'll squish them before we leave. When we get home, I'll report to the Cadre and recommend an army be dispatched back here with all speed. We'll drive out these slaver bugs and loot this place for all it's worth. It's dying anyway, right? If this works out, the rewards for us will be huge, but we have to move fast or we'll lose the opportunity. So get some rest and be ready to move out at dawn."
        The Milaksans settled in to their camp, with the Lakeside barbarians serving until they became too tired to be of use. Rain fell lightly but steadily on the weeds over their heads, but they were reasonably comfortable under a large leaf. The ants turned in one by one, except for one ranger who had the watch.
        Silver had the fourth watch, but he did not feel like sleeping yet. He was troubled. He glanced over and dimly made out the barbarian ants huddled together in a corner of the camp. He got up and walked over to them. He found the younger of the two females still awake and looking up at him with fear in her eyes. He sat down opposite her. "What did the three of you think you were doing, leaving all by yourselves?"
        "I told you, we were setting out to look for another colony."
        "With what directions? To what other colony?" Silver wondered if she meant Milaksa.
        "We didn't have any directions, and we don't know where the other colony is. In Lakeside, it's just a rumor, but they say this colony welcomes strangers, and food is plentiful and enemies don't come there."
        Enemies don't come there. These people know of Milaksa, Silver thought. Larkspur and the Cadre would have aphids if he knew about this. "What's your name again?"
        "Morning Dew," she replied. "But most people just call me Dew." She indicated her companions. "This is Thistle and her son Timothy."
        "How did you learn about this other colony?"
        "Well, some of us have been to this other place, a city with all sorts of insects from all over. They heard about the other colony there."
        "Have you ever been to this City? Where is it?"
        "I've never been there, but I know how to get there. It's a long trip, but a friend of mine has been there. She's the one who told me the story about Ant Island."
        What? "What do you mean, Ant Island?"
        "That's the name of the other colony," Dew replied. "They say Ant Island is ruled by a wise and beautiful young queen, and they have a powerful magician who can summon birds to protect them."
        "That's nonsense."
        "No, it's not! Here, look!" Morning Dew reached up to a pendant hanging beneath her neck. She untied it and gave it to Silver. It was a small piece of leaf dangling from a vine fiber thong. The leaf bore a curious design that might be a tree on a hill. Silver looked closer and found the leaf fragment coated in some kind of resin, hard and glossy. He had never seen anything like it before. "My friend gave me this as a present," Dew continued. "It means a lot to me. She got it in the City, but she said it came from Ant Island, where they make many clever things like that. It's supposed to bring good luck."
        "This was probably made by some vendor in that city you mentioned," scoffed Silver, handing the pendant back. "I hope your friend didn't trade a lot for it."
        Dew looked indignant. "I honestly believe there is an Ant Island, and I believe the stories are true."
        But Silver was no longer interested. She wasn't talking about Milaksa after all, just some mythical story-place. He was relieved.
        "Tell me about your colony," Dew asked. "Is your queen wise and just?"
        "What? Oh. We don't have a queen."
        "You don't?!"
        "Oh, I suppose we do," Silver said, "But she's only for ceremonies that old people go to. I think she shows up when new ants are born or something like that. I really don't know, I've never seen her."
        Dew was incredulous. "You've...never seen your queen?"
        "No."
        "That's so sad."
        Silver shrugged.
        "Our queen turned bad," Dew told him. "That's how all our trouble started. A lot of people wanted her to step down, or replace her. That's when the big fights began, and people started to leave. Who rules your colony?"
        "The First Citizen," Silver answered. "He came to our colony a long time ago. I don't know when, it was before I was born. Anyway, he taught us how to fight, and showed us how to gather food secretly, and he taught us how to explore very far from the colony, so that we knew all the dangers that could threaten us. He also organized us so that only those necessary for a task are above ground at any time. He's advised by the Cadre; they're generally the best soldiers in--"
        "You mean you have to ask permission to come out of your colony, every time?" Dew couldn't believe it.
        "Permission? Oh no. You come out when it's your unit's turn to come out and work or get Sun-time." He showed Dew the marks on his left forearm. "See here: My unit's the 5th-Left-Fore."
        "You can't come out any time you want to?"
        Silver looked at her. What a question. "Of course not. There'd be chaos, and enemies from all around would know we were there, and the Divisions couldn't protect everybody."
        Dew grasped the implications of what the strange soldier was saying, and was horrified. She could not imagine a place where she could not run free when her work was done. "Are you going to take us to your colony?"
        Silver looked at her, dimly revealed in the pale light of a distant barndoor floodlight. Her body was short and a very fair blue color, and not appealing to him. But she had a sweet face, and alert antennae. He thought of the morning not long off, and what the rangers would do to her and her friends then. "That...that isn't up to me." Abruptly he got up and returned to his bedroll.

        Silver could not sleep. He lay awake staring up into the darkness, thinking about what they were going to do in the morning. Impulsively he got up and walked over to Larkspur and shook him awake. "Sir?"
        "Silver? Is that you? What's the problem?"
        "I was just thinking. These barbarians don't have any idea of Milaksa, and their colony is dying, and they just want to leave it. Why bother squishing them? They'll never be a threat to us."
        "You know the regs. Bring them back if you can, otherwise no witnesses. What's your problem?"
        "I simply thought it would be a waste of time. We should head out as soon as possible."
        Larkspur sat in silence for a moment, and Silver thought he was about to agree, when Larkspur burst out laughing.
        "Ha. You're a hoot, you know that? Ha. Is it still raining? I hate rain. Now let me get some sleep, all right?" Larkspur rolled back over on his side, his back to Silver.
        Once again on his bedroll, Silver lay awake, thinking. Another watch passed, then another, and then Agave tapped him for his watch. Silver waited until he was convinced Agave was asleep, uttered a brief prayer to Moon, and made his decision.
        Quietly he gathered up a few things, grabbed his thorn-spear, then went over to Dew and gently shook her awake.
        "Wha...?"
        "Shhh," he whispered. "Say nothing, just listen. You have to leave now. Wake your friends and tell them to get up very quietly. Make no sound until I tell you it's all right. When they're both up, all of you follow me. Do it now."
        Dew awoke Thistle and told her to pick up Timothy and follow her. Silver led them away from the camp. He tried to pick a route where they would leave the least sign, though he knew it would be a futile gesture. When they were safely away from the other rangers, he allowed them to speak.
        "What are you doing?" Dew asked. "Why did we leave the camp?"
        "Listen. We can't take you back with us becuase you'd slow us down, and our rules don't permit us to leave witnesses behind to talk about us. Do you see what I'm getting at?"
        Dew immediately nodded, wide-eyed. Thistle looked bewildered, then realized with sudden terror what the tall ant meant.
        "We don't have much time," Silver said. "Which way is this City you spoke of?"
        "There's a main path that leads right to it," Dew replied. "It's not far."
        "Good. Show me."
        Dew lead them off into the shadows under wet grasses. The rain pattered down, but it was a light drizzle and the danger was slight. He urged them to move faster. His plan was to sneak away, set the Lakeside ants safely on the road to this City place, then return back to camp and pretend to have fallen asleep on watch while the prisoners escaped. It was weak, but all he could think of.
        They found the main path, and set off with Silver leading the way. The little boy-ant was now walking beside his mother, who still looked terrified but wasn't being difficult. She seemed to take her cue from Morning Dew, and that simplified Silver's problem. Dew offered advice on what to watch for as Silver guided them past several slaver camps. Far off to their right he could hear a distant rushing noise, like the wind but constant. "What's that sound?" he asked, pointing off into the night with his spear.
        "That's the river," Dew replied.
        "River?" He recalled the vast canyon they had crossed. Great Moon, if they had to cross that.... "But it was dry when I crossed it earlier today, and it hasn't rained that much."
        "It doesn't take much to bring the river up," she said. "Sometimes it doesn't rain here at all, but the river will come up anyway for a while, and then run dry again. I don't know why it does that, but it's best not to be anywhere near it when it does."
        "Does our way require us to cross it?"
        "No, I don't think so." Morning Dew looked up at the tall Milaksan. "Are you coming with us to the Island?"
        "You're not going to any island. You're going to the City."
        "No, we're--"
        Silver stopped and turned on her. "You listen to me, and you listen fast because there's no time. There is no 'Ant Island'. There are no magicians, and no beautiful queens. That's fantasy, and you don't have time for fantasy. There's only the three of you-- you can't depend on wishful thinking; you've got to depend on each other, and you've got to have a sensible destination or you're all going to die. Do you understand?"
        "Yes, but the Island--"
        Silver did a rare thing and raised his voice. "I have told you there is no time for that!" He saw that other two Lakeside ants were shaking with terror and he immediately regretted the outburst. Morning Dew looked hurt. He closed his eyes and counted to four. Sun give me strength.
        "Listen. It's your decision. You have to do what you think is best. I can only advise you. In my opinion, your best chance is to head for this City. You're bound to find other refugees from your colony there, and you'll have the best chance of making a new life for yourself with them. I don't see any other clear choices. So decide, but decide quickly."
        Dew looked at the other two Lakeside ants. Thistle looked back and said nothing. She turned back to Silver. Casting away her dream for reality, she decided. "We'll go to the City."
        "Well, then. Let's go."

        For all his ranger experience, rain annoyed Larkspur and he did not sleep well. Awaking and yawning, he decided a backrub by that Morning something-or-other would be just the thing to relax him. He got up and instantly discovered the barbarians were gone. And so was Silver. He cursed, and kicked the others. "Get up you lazy fools!"
        The other rangers were quickly on their feet. "What's going on?" Agave asked.
        "Silver's turned traitor. He's jumped camp with the barbarians." Larkspur riffled through the supplies and found a number of items missing, including a fair portion of their food and much of the prisoner's belongings. "Great Moon, I should have seen this coming. Agave, you're with me. You two, stay here. If we're not back by morning, make for Milaksa and tell the First Citizen everything. Push my idea for the attack. Agave, let's move!"

        The Lakeside ants hurried along with Silver. Their path began to descend between two ridges, leading them at last to the edge of a gulley. The path continued down the steep sides of the gulley, winding around rocks, exposed roots and mounds of earth. It was muddy and slippery going, but passable. Silver led them down to the bottom, where they found a fast-moving streamlet blocking their way to the other side.
        "What are we going to do?" Thistle asked. The fearful journey had stressed her to her limit, and she was near to panic. Worse, her fear was dumping scent all over the place. Little Timothy held his mother's hand, and stared wide-eyed at the impassable stream.
        Silver turned to Dew. "Did you know about this?"
        "I've never been here when it's been raining. I never thought it would be like this."
        "Is there another way?"
        "I don't think so. This is the only way I know of to get to the City. We always go this way. A Scout might know another way, but they're mostly dead in the fighting or gone away with the others."
        Moon chose this time to peer through fast-moving clouds, and Silver cast about for a way to cross. There were rocks scattered in mid-stream, but the turbulent water slapped over them and if they were caught on one of those rocks when the water hit, the stream would wash them away. Silver was about to despair of finding a solution when he looked up and saw the silhouette of a long twig spanning the gulley far over their heads. It was slightly downstream, but probably reachable. "Follow me," he said, and herded the others back up the path.

        The traitor's course was not hard to find. Silver was almost peerless in the wild, but the barbarians left marks and scents easy to follow. Larkspur and Agave moved quickly along the path, not bothering to hide from the slavers, who ignored two stout-looking armed male ants hurrying along on unknown business. They followed a route that ran along the southern border of the foreign colony, between the colony and the wide canyon.
        "When we find them, you go for the barbarians," Larkspur told Agave. "Don't try to capture them, just squish them. Is that clear?"
        "Yes, sir," Agave replied, hot for the chase. This was what he lived for.
        "Leave Silver to me. That bug is mine." Larkspur was truly looking forward to the coming confrontation.

        Silver and the Lakeside ants reached the top of the gulley. Silver immediately led them to the left into dense wet undergrowth. It was not his preferred path, but time was pressing; he must get back soon or he would be missed. The Lakesiders were noisy and slow, and Silver grew impatient with their progress. Finally they came out of the weeds and reached the near end of the twig.
        The twig was precariously positioned and wet with rain. Silver told the others to remain at the gulley's edge and pulled himself up onto the twig. It sagged as it spanned the gulley, only to rise up again on the other side. He proceeded out along its length, picking his way cautiously to the midway point. The bottom of the gulley was mercifully obscured by darkness. The rushing of the river somewhere off to his right drowned out almost all other sounds. He looked back and saw Dew standing at the very edge of the cliff, biting her fingers nervously. Shifting his weight, he discovered it was enough to make the twig bounce and sway gently. He moved onward, climbing up the far side. He was distressed to find the twig fell short of the other side of the gulley. The tip was caught there by nothing more than a few blades of twisted grass growing out from the cliff edge. Silver inspected it and decided if the twig hadn't fallen already it probably wouldn't for a while, but the rain water had soaked into it and made it dangerously heavy. He returned to the Lakeside ants and decided against making his fears public.
        "I think it will be all right," Silver told them. "It's time for you to go on now."
        Dew looked up at him in surprise. "You're not coming with us?"
        He shook his head. "No. This is where I turn back. As soon as you get across, turn left and follow the gully rim until you strike the main path again. Here." He removed the pack off his back and offered it to Dew. She accepted it and found it full of supplies and their more essential possessions taken by the slavers.
        Silver helped Dew put the pack on. "Stay alert. Try to keep out of sight, but don't stray too far from the path. Keep going until you find your City."
        "I wish you would come with us."
        "I can't. I belong with my colony."
        Dew fondled her pendent, then removed it and tied it in place around Silver's neck. "I think you will need this more than I." She kissed his cheek and told Thistle and Timothy to start across the twig, then climbed up herself.

        Silver was watching their progress when he was struck from behind and thrown to the ground at the edge of the gulley. His spear fell from his hand, and an icy pain bit into his right knee-joint. Rolling with the blow, Silver slammed his attacker's head into the base of the fallen twig, momentarily stunning the other ant. Larkspur's scent was immediately recognizable. Silver glanced up to see the shadow of another large ant scramble up onto the twig. The Lakeside ants weren't yet halfway across the chasm. "Run!"
        The large ant was already running out along the twig in pursuit of Dew and her friends. Silver climbed to his feet. Pain shot through his knee. He looked down and pulled out a thorn-knife, standard Ranger issue. He tossed the knife aside, found his spear and climbed up onto the twig. Ignoring the pain in his knee, he ran across the twig toward where Agave was unhurriedly stalking Dew and her friends, knife in hand, watching the Lakeside ants' pitiful efforts to flee up the other side. He was moments away from knifing the last in line, Dew.
        "Agave!"
        Agave paused and turned. As Silver bore down on him, Agave grinned and brandished his knife. Silver hesitated, and Agave lunged, but Silver's spear beat the knife-wielding arm aside. Agave brought his knife-arm back into postion, but over-corrected and swept it back too far. His eyes went wide as Silver dropped the tip of his spear under the knife-arm and stabbed up into Agave's thorax. Agave shrieked and clawed at the spear in his chest, then toppled into the chasm as Silver yanked the spear free.
        Dew had turned back and watched the fight. Now Silver was standing before her with blood on his spear and more blood running down from his knee-joint. She was reaching out to him when she saw another armed ant fast approaching from the other side of the gulley. Silver also saw him. It was Larkspur. He turned back to Dew. "Are you dense? Run!"
        Silver braced himself for Larkspur's attack. At the last moment he stepped aside and thrust out with the spear, but his injured knee betrayed him and he stumbled and missed. Larkspear's knife caught Silver in the arm, but glanced off. The two ants backed off and sized each other up. Silver risked a look back over his shoulder and saw that Dew's party had nearly made it off the twig. A plan formed in his mind and he began to retreat slowly backwards, buying time.
        "Killing Agave was a mistake," Larkspur said. "But I'm willing to forgive that. It was an accident. We're the only ones who have to know. Lower that spear and help me squish those barbarians, and we'll forget all this."
        Silver watched Larkspur closely and said nothing. He backed away a few more steps.
        "Be reasonable Silver. You know I'm a better fighter. You can't beat me. Look, we'll take the barbarians back with us. The Cadre can question them, then they can join Milaksa. All right?"
        Silver took several more steps back. He was nearing the tip of the twig.
        "Great Sun, Silver! Think of the loot that's waiting back there in that Lakeview place! It's a guaranteed promotion, and maybe a seat on the Cadre after we've sacked the place! Once I'm in the Cadre, you've got it made! I'll see that you head your Division, then we can work to get you a seat as well! What do you say?"
        "It's 'Lake/side/', and you can go eat dung."
        Larkspur lunged at him, but Silver sprang back. He jammed his spear into the grasses supporting the twig and worked it as a lever, pulling with all his strength. The tip of the twig shifted and slid off the grasses, falling out from beneath the two ants. Larkspur dropped to all fours and clutched the twig in desperation. Silver's grasp on his spear slipped, and he fell between the twig and the gulley wall. The end of the twig struck the soft earth of the gulley wall just beneath the grass, and rolled onto Silver. It lodged itself in the earth there, pinning him. There was a cry from above, and Silver saw Dew and the others looking over the edge, silhouetted by Moon. Bits of earth tumbled into the chasm beneath him.
        Laughing, Larkspur approached Silver. "Well, well. Nice try, I must admit. I didn't see that move coming." Silver struggled, but he was caught between the end of the twig and a small mound of earth. Blood seeped out of his side to darken the earth near him. Larkspur knelt down on the twig, glaring down at the helpless ant. He held his thorn-knife up in Silver's face. "Do you know what I'm going to do? I'm going to go up there and squish those barbarians you're so fond of, one by one. Regulations, you know. 'If you cannot return the captives to Milaksa, eliminate them. Leave no witnesses of your passing.' All that. Then I'm going to come back here and stick you with the same spear you stuck Agave with. So don't go away."
        Still chuckling, Larkspur pushed off the twig to reach up for the grasses above. At that moment, the wet earth beneath Silver began to shift, then fell away completely. The tip of the twig swung down into the chasm, pivoting on its far end, taking a screaming Larkspur with it. Silver plummeted down into the darkness.

        Morning Dew knelt at the edge of the gulley, tears clouding her vision. Thistle and Timothy huddled nearby under a plantain leaf. Dew called out again and again into the gulley, but there was no answer. She saw a thorn-spear lodged in the grasses at the edge of the cliff and pulled it free. "I never even learned his name."
        She sat a long while in silence. Then drying her eyes and hefting her pack, she took up the spear and turned to the others. "Well, then. Let's go."