Chrysalis

I really hate this.

And when I say that, don’t think that I’m speaking lightly or any such thing. This isn’t one of those times when someone says they hate it when they put their socks on inside out, or they hate it when their food is a little cold.

I mean I hate this.

Currently, I sit, a sullen lump of sparkling carapace, in the centre of a vast formation of ants. There are scouts roaming and looking for threats. There are healers monitoring my condition. There are squads of soldiers and generals patrolling around the clock. There are teams of mages tunnelling beneath me and fortifying the stone.

Even the humans are in on it! I can see Beyn from where I sit, leading the gathered faithful in some sort of ceremony whilst his followers weep and point at me. Some even fall to their knees, raising their hands to the sky as if overcome with emotion.

I’m just evolving! This is what monsters are supposed to do, right?! It happens all the damn time… nothing special is going on over here.

[Do I really have to sit here and wait?] I complain for the hundredth time.

[Yes, Master,] Crinis says happily. [You aren’t allowed to move until the fortress is complete.]

I give her the evil eye, which she brushes off easily. The little murder-ball has been way too pleased by this turn of events. Having me under this absurd lock-down protocol seems to have finally relieved her of a deep-seated source of stress.

Namely, me.

She’s busy humming to herself and weaving her tentacles into fantastic shapes in order to practise her control, pleased as punch that, for once, I can’t get myself into trouble.

[What about you, Tiny?] I cast about for an ally. [You must be bored out of your brain, right? Want to break out and leave?]

My first ally on Pangera opens one eye lazily. Then he yawns.

[Sleepy,] he says, before he closes his eyes and rolls over.

[Traitor,] I grumble.

Invidia is my only hope now. The green eye blazes as he stares down at me from his position on top of Tiny.

[Give your levelssss to meeeee,] he hisses.

any

pressing need to maintain my dignity, I’d roll onto

here! Let me go! Let me

and dumps

so smug as she does in that moment. It’s enough to make

the cores before you bring them to me?” I whine. “What the heck are cores going to do to me? They’re

just the spherical gems that are carefully examined before being brought within the Carapace Curtain. Everything is obsessively checked, even the Biomass. It’s insane, and what makes me even more exasperated is that I appear to be the only one who realises

too careful,” Protectant smugly says, her smug

don’t you?” I collapse, filled

wanted to have

have been unwise,” Coolant says as she approaches. “The Eldest will only tolerate this for a short time,

wearily. “This is me humouring you to the best

else now, can I? I know the Will of the Colony as it flows into me as clearly as I know my own thoughts. They are determined, obsessed even, with ensuring that I evolve perfectly and safely. It’s such an overwhelming outpouring of support and love that I can’t exactly spit in their faces and say no. Right now, there are hundreds of thousands of ants rummaging

on their way down. We are doing everything we can to secure the most powerful cores we

just sit here, smush cores together

“Yes.”

“... Fine.”

being put

the advice I’ve ever had suggests that it's far better to wait until everything is set before exposing oneself to temptation. There’s no do-overs when it

of the termites?” I ask, desperate to keep the conversation going

are still finding pockets of the enemy in the depths,” Coolant replies, an uncharacteristically displeased tilt

“Something wrong?”

ponders for a moment before

ka’armodo were fully cognizant of what their creations were doing,” she replies. “They tunnelled so deep, and expanded their gardens so far, that we

at her

“What?! That’s insane!”

Despite the numbers we have available, it will take weeks to thoroughly explore it all. By that time, I believe it highly likely that one or perhaps several

That… isn’t good.

regular termites, that means any female worker can become a queen. They may not even need to evolve to start the process! Despite crushing this colony, we may have spawned another three or four smaller ones that will have to

antennae at the thousands of ants currently posted to guard me. “Don’t you

says, unruffled. “Your successful evolution is the most important priority for the Colony. It will be months before rogue termite

Dammit. Well, I tried.