"Everyone, hurry up and eat! An Anomaly will be here any moment!" At the edge of the crater, a Fire Mud clansman a full size larger than the others wriggled and vibrated toward the crater's interior, his voice emerging through those vibrations.
The thirty-odd Fire Mud clansmen rolling across the magma sped up at his words.
Their language was entirely different from human speech, more like vibrations transmitted through the air.
From a human perspective, the Fire Mud Clan looked as though they were having seizures, their entire bodies trembling without making a sound.
But to the Fire Mud Clan, this was simply how sound traveled.
Just then, a Fire Mud clansman who seemed to have finished eating came running over from the magma inside the crater.
"Lord Yemo, I'll help you!"
As he spoke, a tiny black speck suddenly appeared in the sky, then raced toward them at incredible speed.
It was an Anomaly resembling a mosquito, but with feathered wings. Instead of densely packed compound eyes, it had eight eyes like a spider, and its mouthparts had a metallic sheen.
"Lord Yemo! An Anomaly is coming! This one can fly!"
"Leave it to me! Go back and tell everyone to hide in the magma!" The larger Fire Mud Clan leader, addressed as Lord Yemo, gave orders to the clansman behind him.
But the Fire Mud clansman hesitated at his words. "Lord Yemo, I should stay and help you."
"These Anomalies are terrifying."
"It's fine!" Yemo pointed his single horn at the approaching Anomaly. "Don't forget, I'm a warrior under our ancestors' protection!"
As he spoke, his horn gave off a fiery red glow, and the surrounding air grew scorching hot. Then a searing jet of flame shot from its tip toward the Anomaly.
"Our ancestors' blessing makes me