"Run, little one! Run! Show me what you got!" his voice filled with passion and hunger, chasing the ant, ever so close behind him. The cricket's voice echoed down the tunnel like a cruel song, laced with glee. I didn't look back. I couldn't. Every nerve in my body screamed forward. I could hear him behind me, he jogged behind, enjoying the fear on my face. Each breath tore from my lungs in broken gasps. My chest heavy, my heartbeat thundered in my ears. Each strike sudden, loud and relentless. I ran with everything I had, legs pumping like pistons. My limbs tore across the ground, driven by pure fear.
Thuds echoed behind me, deliberate and playful. I imagined his mandibles grinning as he stalked me, each step slow enough to give me hope, fast enough to keep it just out of reach. His breath ghosted behind me, steady and amused, like he was enjoying the chase. I could hear him breathing just behind me, each exhale thick with twisted delight.
The tunnel ahead split into chaos. Three ways. Four? No, five. My heart lurched. My mins split apart, each arguing amongst themselves. I wished I could just split my body in five parts, escaping into each tunnel. Then a harsh voice echoed behind me.
"Left or was it right?" the cricket's voice called mockingly, disembodied and bouncing from wall to wall. "Or maybe straight? I forget…" The echoes twisted in on themselves. I couldn't trust the sound. Panicked, I picked the tightest tunnel, no time to think. My shell scraped the edges immediately, jagged stone clawing at my carapace. No turning back. Breath caught in my throat as silence fell.
I was safe, there was no way he was going to be able to enter into the narrow tunnel. I paused; my legs trembled with fear as they gave way. I sat, catching my breath. My mind slowly started to come back to me. My whole body became relaxed and light. A long, weary sigh slipped from his mandibles. But it still wasn't over, I had no idea where the tunnel lead but staying would not solve my problem. I got up.
But then.
BOOM.
The wall to my left exploded in a shower of dirt and rocks. I flinched, a raw screech tore from my throat before I could stop it, as the entire passage trembled. The cricket clawed through like a demon reborn from stone, eyes glinting with feral delight. "Oh, come now, don't run off again. We were just getting started!" he howled, lunging.
I bolted, skittering through the tunnel. It narrowed too quickly, but I forced myself through. Rock scraped against my exoskeleton. My leg snagged on something sharp. I bit down a cry, forcing every inch of my body to squeeze through the tightening gap. The earth tried to swallow me further as I made way. escaping the tunnel with a pop. Behind me, the sound of clawed feet slowed, then stopped. Silence? No.
Scratch. Scratch. CRRRRCH.
He wasn't following, he was making his own path again. The vibrations in the earth confirmed it. He was slower now. But relentless.
I sprinted harder. My legs burned. I reached a sharp curve and turned—
SNATCH.
Pain flared as something yanked my leg back.
"Gotcha…" the voice was close. Right behind me. Cold breath over my thorax.
I screamed and twisted, mandibles flashing. I bit down on anything I could reach, scraping with my forelimbs, kicking blindly. My mandibles hit something soft. A hiss, then laughter. The grip loosened. He let go.
"Go on, little prince," he chuckled. "Let's keep the game going!" his voice turned into maniacal laughter.
I stumbled forward, panting. A voice suddenly rang out from a tunnel just ahead, soft and familiar. "This way!" I froze mid-step. The tone. It was too smooth. Too slow. It echoed wrong. I didn't move. I didn't even breathe. The illusion shattered in my mind. Something was trying to sound like one of my own. I turned silently, picking a side passage. It was tighter, darker, but it kept me moving. Until—
A glow.
Pale light spilled into the passage ahead. I blinked, stepping into a wide pit chamber lined with mushrooms that shimmered with pale green bioluminescence. Luminagari Mycena. I recognized it from the core memory flashes. Soft, sticky caps that reacted to movement. I bit on a few, chocking on them as they made their way down my throat. Hurriedly munching on them, before the cricket caught onto me. Then I heard a sound.
I turned, and sure enough, the cricket stood at the chamber's mouth. His towering form loomed like a nightmare, casting long, jagged shadows over the glowing caps. Each step crushed the fungus beneath his feet, releasing a chemical scent.
I couldn't outrun him much longer. But maybe…
I let panic show. Twitched my antennae erratically. Ran a few paces forward, then stopped, turned, kicked up dust like I was lost. I remembered the trap zone. The larval chamber with still-sleeping ambushers.
"Come on… take the bait…" I hissed under my breath.
The cricket stepped forward, laughing again. "What's wrong? Scared again? So dramatic."
I darted to the far side of the glowing pit, where dust had barely settled. One hairline crack in the floor, almost invisible. I collapsed, the hair just out of reach.
"What's the matter? If you give up now, then who will amuse me?" The cricket made his way forward slowly, as it nearly hovered over me.
I stepped directly on it.
CRACK.
The floor exploded from beneath as a larva erupted, springing out like a coiled nightmare. Its jaws slammed into the cricket's midsection, crushing in with a wet crunch.
"AGHHHH—!"
The cricket screeched, flailing as the larva dragged him down. The tunnel quaked. Mushroom spores burst into the air.
But the victory didn't last.
With a shriek of fury, the cricket twisted its body violently, smashing the larva against the rock wall with a sickening snap. Its fangs tore through the creature's body—ripping it in half. Guts sprayed across the cavern floor.
The cricket stood. Breathing hard. Bleeding.
"That…" he hissed, his voice low, unhinged, furious, "was clever…"
His eyes locked onto mine.
"Now you die screaming."