Chrysalis

"Where you followed?"

"I don't think so…"

"You THINK? THINKING isn't good enough!"

"Cool it! Your scent is spreading too far. Are you trying to bring them down on our heads?"

"… I'm sorry. I'm just so stressed."

"And tired? Maybe you should sleep! Torpor usually takes care of that. So I'm told, I don't do it much. I find it's too slow for my pace. So, what have you all been up to? I've been running around doing heeeaaaps of stuff. It's so busy right now! I can't believe how much stuff there is to do! Can you? And the Eldest is Evolving! That's exciting! I wonder…"

"Vibrant! I'm too tired to listen to you for too long today, can you wait a second while we try and get settled?"

The hyper-energetic soldier subsided with a sigh whilst the rest of the Council settled into the crude and cramped chamber that had been prepared for the meeting. A far cry from the luxurious carved surroundings of the normal meeting chamber, this room was intended for use as a Biomass storage chamber, recently emptied of its stockpile in order to fuel the Eldest's evolution. It was small, dark, cramped, and best of all, almost nobody in the nest knew that it was even available. Perfect for a group of ants attempting to avoid being dragged off to torpor.

They were all there, even Antionette and Victoriant. Sneaking that pair out of the nesting chamber was a feat in and of itself. It would have been impossible without the assistance of the Queen, who aided them in the interests of seeing the two younger royals get out of the egg-laying chamber more often. A sedentary life being waited on hand and foot wasn't healthy for a good Queen, in her opinion.

"You calmed down yet, Sloan?"

The general nervously rubbed her antennae through her forelegs.

"I think so. I've been so damned busy, and arranging this on top of everything else has been such a hassle…"

"I feel like those damned torpor enforcers were giving us a break during the siege. A ton of ants, including almost all of us, went well under the required amount of rest and there were hardly any dragged away. Now that the siege is over, they've been popping out of the woodwork all over the place! I lost every member of my two best teams today!" Bella complained. "They just vanished! I walked past their work area one minute, all of them where altering cores, I come back two minutes later, gone! No traces!"

They all shuddered.

"I say they've gone too far!" Advant slammed an antenna down on the rock they'd gathered around with force. "The Eldest did demand that we all sleep, but forcing us to sleep against our will? Don't they understand how much work there is to do?! There's a wave on right now!"

"They're following the commands of the Eldest," Burke wryly informed them, "are you really going to go and tell them that the Eldest was wrong and that their orders don't need to be obeyed? Or perhaps, you want to go to the Eldest and tell them that they are wrong?"

Every member of the Council felt the pain of a thousand thwacks echo from deep within their memory at those words. No. No they wouldn't be going to the Eldest and asking them to change their policy.

"Let's just focus on what we came here to do," Coolant injected wearily, "I know all of us are well past due for a rest, and we will need to enter torpor at some point. Let's make use of the time we have productively."

"Agreed!" The others chorused and they quickly settled in to conduct their business.

off, let's go around the table for a status update, starting with

on the new gates has

and trying to take in the overall state of the Colony during this critical time so that they might better offer their own perspective and wisdom. Underneath it all, though none would admit, there was also a slight fission of smug self-satisfaction. They'd done it. It had taken a frankly ridiculous amount of

could almost

into the Eldest's face, one of the team members signed from the

the nameless one signed back

by such blatant disobedience beings shown by the only ants in the Colony to have received the instruction of the Eldest directly,

of your positioning, she signed again, and saw several

If it weren't for the intervention of the Shadow, they would never have reached this place before the council arrived. Sneaking in with all twenty in the room already would have been almost impossible. As it was, they were limited in how many of the order were able to hide within the chamber, the other teams were positioned

impatience as she waited for her turn to speak. She'd checked the Vibrant board within the Sanctum before

this time, the nameless one

of their surroundings, the council members attended to their business in high spirits. They were halfway through discussing the placement of the second farming expansion when their antennae reacted to a new scent at the same

"Working hard I see…"

slowly turned their focus to the ceiling, where they finally noticed the unnaturally dark shadow above their heads, a shadow that slowly materialised into an ant staring

work time is…

Everyone scramble!" Sloan

from the corners of the room and released some sort of sleep pheromone directly onto their

and get me!" Leeroy yelled, her heavy armour clanking and screeching as

into the room, dividing themselves instantly amongst the

supply to the brain, just as they attempted to slip into a hidden escape tunnel that they must have dug in advance. Overwhelmed, the other council members could only put up a token resistance before, with cries

All except one.

Too slow!" Cackling madly, Vibrant burst out of the chamber and into the tunnel, somehow sliding past the waiting mandibles of the nameless one, who had positioned herself above

Dammit!

two legs and swung her body through the entrance and into the corridor,

time, Vibrant!" Came

and saw that the members of her order had formed a blockade further up the tunnel, using their bodies to close off the

enough, the nameless one

readied themselves for impact, bracing their legs, gripping with their claws and extending their mandibles. There was no way she could get past

WHOOSH!

there, completely still for a moment, as the ants behind her appeared frozen in time. Then, one by one, they began to

Thump! Thump! Thump! Thump!

peeled off the wall and landed on the hard

Tsk! Need to keep

SNAP!

So close!

straight through, trusting that Vibrant would clear the obstruction for her, which she did. Her sneak attack, launching from the wall, was so