Chrysalis

The trail has been detected!

It looks the members of my colony have been to this lake after all! This is incredible news, I could possibly just wait here next to the lake for them to show up and follow them back to the nest!

Staying close to the lake I tip tap my antennae on the ground and follow the trail away from the water. It absolutely seems like a solid trail has been lain down here. The more often ants use a particular path the more they will reinforce the trail with pheromones, making the trail more and more solid.

I don’t think this path this path has been in particularly heavy use but members of the colony have certainly been here a few times.

I retreat back to the safety of the lake and can’t resist a small dance of happiness.

Nearby monsters are looking at me funny out of the corner of their eyes. It probably isn’t very often they are treated to some amateur ant freestyle tap.

My new family is with reach!

After being on my own in this Dungeon for days on end it’ll feel so nice just to see another entity that doesn’t want to eat me!

I’ll get to see my Mother in another world, the Queen. I wonder how big she is?

I really didn’t get to see my mother much back on earth, most of the time I’d been on my own. Hopefully this time I’ll be able to help out a bit more and we can work together!

Gah! I’m too excited!

Need to chill, need to calm down.

It’s important I don’t forget where I am, this environment is incredibly dangerous. If I run about whilst this distracted I’ll just get myself killed.

I scout around for a few minutes until I find a nice nest site and dig myself my now patented L chamber and close over the top.

Ensconced in total darkness I once again begin the exhausting process of training my Mana Manipulation.

*puff*

The chamber is briefly illuminated every time the small cloud of mana is released from my mouth.

*puff*

last attempt, unsuccessfully directing the energy due

ahead

done I decide to rest, entering the state of torpor, the sleep equivalent of the insect. I’m getting more and more accustomed

feeling much more

Phew.

to continue to take it slow

original plan of staying here to level up Mana Manipulation isn’t a bad one, the added benefit now is that if I keep track of the lake there is a chance I’ll be able to join up with a group of

try and follow the trail back to the nest on my own but

here and continue to train

may not be the flashiest skill, the best use in combat or indeed, particularly

But I like it!

their incredible capacity to construct

tunnels in a few directions just a meter under

from the lake and it isn’t long before I encounter tree roots the buried stems of

ventilation and also just to scope out what is happening around the place. This mini exits also provide a nice place to ditch my

through. When I stop working and try to think about how much time has passed I realise I must have been digging for

Level five Dig!

skill point, I’d be super curious to see

am getting a little hungry, it may be time to think about trying to hunt for

to see if my colony has shown up for a

my own kind there getting some refreshments but

still a wide variety of creatures drinking here but I can’t see any ants

Ah well.

Hopefully next time!

guess the only things left for me to do is to either try and go hunting

Wait a sec...

the hell is

the distance I can make out some shapes making their way over the crest of a small hill overlooking the lake. At that distance I can’t see perfectly but I can see enough to think that

And they aren’t monsters!

and start scurrying away from the lake and I don’t stop until I make it under

are these humans

some human shapes over that hill. Have they

directly down a shaft, the most direct possible route, who