ROLEPLAY

Daomei writes down a report to Wilk Potskin about what she had experienced since the beginning of the closing of the Kitin mounds. She decides to pin a copy at the walls of the stables to document the ongoing work to the public

This spring in 1. Atys cycle of 2577 we eventually could start to apply termites to the kitin mounds in Lakes and Desert. We, Mac'od Bittty and me, and later also Patriot Geyos, the other Rangers' Termite Expert in charge of the Burning Desert, had identified the place where termites could be inserted into the mounds which appeared to them like a giant termite nest. In the beginning, it did not hold any termites or eggs, but the giant amount of food of 1.000.000 units (the usual nests of Macrotermes Daeronnus in the wild usually contain 1 unit of eggs, termites, and up to 2 of food, the nests we developped using the potions prepared by Ardan and Daeron contain 150/100/200 or so on average).

The "food" is the dead wood stabilizing the mound and the tunnel. Once the termites have eaten it, the mound will be destroyed.

We used the special sawdust Daeronn Cegrips and Ardan Kaele had developped for transport of termites from a termite mound to a kitin mound. I transplanted two loads of 50 termites to the Malmont mound, then applied a yellow potion to it in order to stimulate egg production.

Below pictures of the Malmont mound:





Reproduction of termites inside the Kitin mound, unhindered by food shortage, prove to be rapid. Soon a number of 300 was reached and exceeded. At the threshold of 500 termites, I experienced for the first time the phenomenon we already knew from the small termite nest, the occurrence of predators. Goari showed up (they had the strange name "Javing", probably due to a minor irregularity in the fabric of the universe [ooc:bug]), and were of strength 44. Yet it were not 2 of them as often experienced at the termite nest near Pyr, but 12 of them. It was not hard to get rid of them, though. Same reoccurred at the level of 1000 termites. Again, the Goari died soon.



The size of the termite population is documented below. My sister Diwu, my faithful and reliable companion and bodyguard, had helped me to dispose of the predators.
The Goari appear once one starts to inspect the mound, and attack immediately. When approaching from afar and attacking, they will come in packs of 6 (okay, sixpacks *g*).



We are looking forward for stronger predators appearing as we already experienced at the termite nest near Pyr. We shall be ready to fight and call other homins to help, then. The authorities are already informed. Refugees, hunters, and foragers are kindly advised to stay clear of the two large kitin mounds at Malmont and east of the Imperial Kitin Observation Camp at Running Ridge Workshop. Oren Atys, Oren Fyrai, for all of Atys!

Daomei Lin Carthan
Diwu

Ranger Applicants, independent Scouts and Explorers

Daomei had just finished another letter to the Rangers' headquarter. She rolled it and put it into the capsule on the Izam's leg, then released the bird, which was soon out of her sight. Again she fixed a copy on the wall of the stable.

Our Work progressed ways more rapidly than I had expected. I figured that the termites doubled every cycle of reproduction after application of the yellow potion. Thus I could stop to take termites from the termite nest near Pyr after short time. I brought the population of this nest up to a healthy level in case of need for further extractions.

I had the opportunity to show and demonstrate our work to several homins, among them the Matis ambassador Ozwomen, the Fyra Ember, and Akenak Lerya. My Ranger applicant colleague Mac'od Bittty accompagnied us several times, and was informed regularly about the progress of the ongoing work.

In the beginning, figures like 5,000 termites appeared monstrous to me, yet, constant doubling led to even higher ones I never would have thought of. Before the end of the month of Winderly ((after a day)) I reached a population of 128,000 termites, which I decided not to exceed by use of further potions, especially because the "food", the stabilizing structure of the kitin mound, had already dropped to about a quarter of its amount at the beginning of our work.

Up to this moment, nothing spectacular had happened. The Goari predators appeared and had to be killed, a task not overly hard, even for me alone, much less with Diwu's help.

Around the start of Germinally, 1st AC 2577, the mound partially collapsed, splitting up in five smaller mounds. And the long expected reaction of the Kitins occurred.



(The lucio below was taken at a later time, when Akenak Lerya, helping us with the fight, inspected the collapsed mound together with us.)




I had begun cautiously reducing the number of termites in the mound, using the red potion, resulting in a number of 64,000 termites, and a food amount of 347,000 units, up from 220,000 the cycle before. Red potions halve the number of termites while providing as much food as there were termites, before. This was a minor and expected drawback, foreseeably made up for by the remaining hungry termites soon (later, I also used the blue "killer" potion for further reduction of the termites).

But now, not only the Goaris appeared (they were now visible as "Goari"), but a short moment later, a large crowd of great kipee workers, white kitin of the depths kinreys, and white kinchers popped. They attacked immediately all at once, and only due to my armor boosting my dodging abilities, I came a bit away from the spawn before they struck me down. Diwu was able to revive me, allowing me to escape using melee protection aura.

The Kitin force displayed the usual behaviour: the kipee, kinrey, and kinchers attacked as a group once one attacked one of them inside their range of reaction, it was possible though, to taunt and pull away single specimens. It prove useful to get rid of the Goari, first.



That's how it looks when the kitins are spawning:






With some tricks, it was possible to achieve the help of the Dyron guards, and also that of the Renegades' tribe. That tribe is not holding any grudges against me, but attacks every loyal Fyros coming close to their camp, so Diwu had to stay clear of them.

Still, a lot of work has to be done. Termite population at the mound has been reduced to 12,300 units, with remaining food of 16,550 at the moment. We are exterminating the kitin force every reproduction cycle, which is a lot of fighting. Yet we are looking forward for our final success.

Oren Atys, for all of Atys!

Daomei Lin Carthan
Diwu

Ranger Applicants

Daomei writes a short note.

On Folially 24, 1 AC 2577, after a large number of fights against kitin defenders, the kitin mounds on Malmont hill finally collapsed and vanished. None of the smaller kitin mounds could be found in Dunes of Exile, either.

We are awaiting further orders and are ready to help the termite experts in other regions whenever necessary.

Daomei Lin Carthan
Diwu

Ranger Applicants