Chrysalis

After chatting with Enid a little more, she finishes her tea and heads off to rest. The next day of talks will prove to be an eventful one, I'm sure, given what we've discussed, but for now I have two expectant looking Golgari to deal with.

[Been a while, Anthony,] Corun greets me coolly, [how were things down in the Dungeon? Anything interesting happen?]

Torrina is looking at me with her usual deadpan expression, but I can tell that she's a little more frosty than usual. It's easy to see that something is up with these two.

[Alright then, what's gotten into you two? It's not like you guys to skirt around the subject, goodness knows Granin wasn't even physically capable of holding his words in.]

That got a slight smile out of Corun, and perhaps a mild release of tension around the eyes for Torrina. Even so, they still took a long glance at each other before Torrina spoke to me.

[Anthony, why do you think we are here?]

Well, that's quite the question, isn't it?

[I suppose because Granin thought I had potential to become an ancient and he wanted you two to keep an eye on me and record my progress for history? Make note of my successes and failures so that you can implement the knowledge better for future subjects?]

She shakes her head.

[Not exactly. We're supposed to be here, not just as some sort of supervisors, but as guides and assistants. We are willing and able to take on a much more hands-on role than you seem to have envisioned for us.]

[What do you mean,] I protest, [I haven't told you what you can and can't do at all. As far as I'm concerned, I trust you guys and you're free to do what you want concerning your mission and myself. I just recommend you step lightly around the family, they can be a bit touchy sometimes.]

Neither of them blink at me describing a growing civilisation of thousands of murderous ant monsters 'a bit touchy' which shows me that they're acclimating pretty well to life around here. Murder ants are the norm in the nest!

[I thought this might be the case,] she sighs, [you think you'll just leave us to our devices and we'll work things out? That's not exactly how we want to operate.]

do you want to operate? My time amongst the Golgari wasn't exactly a happy memory, you know. I'm aware that it wasn't your fault, but the

want you to hear ours a little.] She gestures to herself and Corun, [we can help you a lot more than we have been able to so far, we just need you to trust us, and bring us along. When you dive off into the Dungeon for a week at a time and leave us behind, or when you take us to the surface and then vanish back underground

you want to tag along a bit more

short, yes]

more than enough people following me around as it

or anything. So long as we’re in the general area so

I think about it.

know what, that sounds pretty

tea. I excuse myself and get back onto the pheromone trails. Things to do, ants to see! Back into the bustling tunnels and my first port of call is the industrial district. The crafters have turned this section of the nest into their own empire. The mining efforts of the Colony have expanded to cover hundreds of square kilometres of Dungeon by now, and every scrap that is

down the slag, extracting and purifying the metals. It's hot, hard work, but the smallest caste of all is more than up to the task, using tools and ingenious devices, even magic, when their frames aren't up to the task. Buried deep at the end of this maze of workshops I find the remarkable ant I

"Smithant, I presume?"

she's poking and prodding at her forge, manipulating whatever she has heating in there, with another she's working her pulley hammer, pounding a sheet of heated steel into shape, using her mandibles to grip and bend the material, whilst also using magic to inscribe runes onto yet another, finished piece. I've heard about working hard, but this

"Hello there? Everything alright?"

pausing in her work, the ant

rest enforcers are getting more insufferable by the week! I can't be asleep, and fulfil the order the council has placed for armour at

days eh? Sounds like someone is well

"I TOLD you…. Oh."

to face the doorway fully, Smithant finally sees who has come to visit and the

to sleep. No

She deflates a little.

"Yes, Eldest."

your work, the suit you made for Leeroy? Amazing! I'm told you also enchanted it

compliment. "But that suit is nothing," she fires up, "complete garbage compared to what I can make now. My enchanting and smithing keep levelling and the refinements I