Chrysalis

Chapter 2

The world before the System Descent is mystery to us now, any records of that time disappeared during the Rending or were lost in the centuries since. How did those people judge each other, unable to view themselves with perfect numerical accuracy as we so easily can today?

Was that society a more equitable place? When the worth of a human being can be weighed with such precision, strict roles and structures are easy to maintain, perhaps back then, when the qualities of each individual were more nebulous, it allowed greater freedom, greater choice in a persons' life? Many believe the System elevated us, empowered us to fight back against the great cataclysm, but many of the wise question this narrative, we know what we gained in the Descent, but we can no longer recall what we lost.

Exert from page 15 of "Ruminations on the pre-Descent society" by Illarion the heretic.

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Okay. So I have a skill point and a body point to spend? If this is a game-like situation then I would be able to open some sort of menu in order to spend my points and improve myself. How do I access this menu here in my tunnel though?

Erm. Level up!

No, that didn't work.

Escape! Escape key!

… Nothing.

I mean, worth a shot right?

Sigh.

Status!

Whoa!

Name: Anthony

Level: 1

Might:15

Toughness:12

Cunning: 25

Will: 18

HP: 30

MP: 0

Skills: Digging level 1; Acid Shot Level 1; Grip Level 3; Bite Level 2

Species: Hatchling Ant Worker (Formica)

Biomass: 1

Skill Points: 1

Wow, this is really interesting! My status huh?

The first time I saw these numbers I thought they looked high but perhaps they are actually really low? I can't imagine a hatchling ant worker has an impressive status in any way. And what are these skills?

Does this mean I can hold onto

surfaces and objects without letting go, for

return of Lord Gandalf! My lord! My savior! Truly your beard is the most luxurious, your eyebrows

of help system built into the status to explain the skills when I think of them? This is

do that. I'll have to try it as soon as I get out of here, why would you walk

my other skills do

forcefully apply a bite using fangs, mandibles

Provides sub-conscious guidance when digging to increase efficiency and

when attempting to attack from a distance using a natural acid

Okaaaaay.

belong to a monstrous species of formic acid spraying ant then. This could be very helpful, it gives me an option to attack without getting too close to my opponent, a course of action that I think would, at the

I can bite, crawl on the roof, dig and shoot acid? That doesn't seem like a lot of tools to survive

idea where the surface is or if the surface even exists in this world. I can't communicate with anything since I'm fairly sure I don't even have vocal chords, so even if I found someone prepared to talk to a monstrous ant, dialogue would

want any information I'll have to get it myself. Out, in

Hmmm.

so

many unknown horrors as a lone little ant monster?! Madness,

will not help this situation in any way. Stay rational, stay cool, stay

final question is, what can I

you like to

magnificent Gandalf, bringer of hope, bringer of light, may your beard be

my status, a

Skill points: 1

Biomass: 1

points to purchase new

be spent to improve or modify aspects of

[Skills available to purchase:

cost 1sp, improves your ability to hide

1sp, Increases speed over

more accurate and

pierce more and are more

improves sense of direction

available to

+1: harden your exoskeleton to improve

+1: toughen mandibles and

Legs +1: improve agility

Eyes +1: improve eyesight

to air current

the concentration of

difficult to choose! I have to think logically

help be escape my enemies, tunnel sense would make it harder for me to get

be game over straight away, improving my speed will be a dead end if I run into something that is faster than I am. Without information, how am I supposed to know what creatures I can

worker, I have to assume I

have made my

Eyes +1 and

like to purchase Eyes +1 and the skill:

Yes, please.

itch burst over my eyes, like a thousand mosquito bites erupting at

Gaaah!

even scratch this itch,

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