Chrysalis

"What will we do with them?" Morrelia's voice was subdued.

Titus stared unblinking at the five bodies arranged before him.

"They will be returned to their families for burial. If their families do not claim them, or if they requested it themselves, they will be taken to the surface and buried in the Legion memorial in Tanna."

Morrelia turned her head to gaze up at her father.

"There's a Legion memorial?" she'd never heard of such a thing. She hesitated for a moment. "Is that where brother…?"

He nodded grimly.

"We don't bury our dead in the Dungeon. They deserve the light of the surface, not this cursed world below."

The commander stood with his full guard as watch for the fallen Legionaries. Found outside the camp, there had been little mourning, or even surprise when their comrades had been found. Death was part of war and the Abyssal Legion was always at war.

Alberton approached from one side.

"Interesting that they were not eaten," he observed, "most monsters won't pass up the opportunity for Biomass, especially social insects."

Morrelia was shocked by the man's callous attitude but Titus merely nodded.

"This was the abomination's work," he said.

"You are likely to be right," the loremaster agreed. "Either it wanted to send a message, or wasn't ready to feast on its former species."

who had spent a considerable amount of time with that 'abomination', Morrelia felt sick at the idea of Anthony being responsible for what she

protested, "all of the ants are

daughter was a fierce warrior, but she was still too

would be no reason for a regular monster not to eat the bodies," he pointed out, "it's sad to say, but most Legionaries who fall within the Dungeon do not get buried. No, your father and I

the thought, but struggled to accept it. Ever since the campaign had begun, she had been trying to understand what the right thing to do was. The Colony was peaceful, she knew that, yet the Legion insisted that they be wiped out before they became a greater threat. The ants were peaceful for now, but what about in the future? What if Anthony died, and the Colony were left without the leader that held them back? What

don't understand why you refer to them as 'abominations'", she said, "aren't they just people? Humans, like us? They didn’t choose to come back this way, right? The

the loremaster

human in their past life, but each and every one of them is twisted, broken. The records tell of numerous occasions where we encountered such beings. In every case they were eventually put down at great cost. The Dungeon chooses the

commander backed

monster. Truth be told, the abominations are the most dangerous of all monsters.

it decided to strike now?" Alberton thought

grunted, "that's the easiest to understand. We pushed hard into the ants and killed many, so it decided to strike back. In a way, this is my fault. We could have

do in this moment. Should she confront her father and tell him the Colony was peaceful? After what had been said

she was far from as experienced with these things as her elders were. What if she was wrong? The idea of the Colony turning itself against humans the way Garralosh had done seemed absurd, but the damage they could do if they chose to… As devastating as the beast had been to the frontier kingdoms, she knew that Anthony's

snapped out of her thoughts to realise that her father and the loremaster were

from the fortress?"

at the least. The Legion is deployed in a lot of places putting out fires after the

about calling people

Titus grunted.

what do you think it's going to be like down there? Besides, we can't afford the time it would take to acclimate them to the thinner mana. No, we'll have to make do with what we have for now. It's going to take longer than I'd

the golgari be

"You think I care?"

Far above.