Chrysalis

[You look happy,] Granin rumbles over our link.

[Har, har. You’re a real comedian, you know that? In fact, why don’t you take your show on the road?]

[Don’t mind him,] Corun grins, [he’s just excited.]

[It’s not often you get to see a Mythic monster born,] Torrina adds.

I’m currently splayed out on the ground, my six legs stretched flat in all directions as I lay on my underside. The boredom has finally defeated me, and now I adopt the posture of surrender, unmoving and unthinking.

You can do an awful lot of not-thinking with this many brains, let me tell you. It’s like having static in stereo.

[There’s a lot of guards here…] Corun notes as he casts his gaze across the ranks of ants positioned around me. [Is there some kind of danger?]

[Not as such,] Wills, the guide for the trio, chips in. [The Eldest tried to break out yesterday, so we had to reinforce the garrison, significantly.]

I’ll get those damn centipedes if it's the last thing I do.

[Well, we’re here now, so you won’t have to wait much longer,] Granin sighs. [Once you’ve evolved, you’ll be free to move around again, from what I understand.]

[Oh, will I?] I say. [What about the Call, huh? Won’t the Ancients have an even bigger hook in my guts once I evolve? Seems like the opposite of being free to move around, if you ask me.]

Granin spreads his hands.

[Maybe yes, maybe no. It all depends on how strong they think your potential will be. It’s not ideal, I know, but at least you can take it as a sign that your evolutions are strong.]

[I don’t care. Am I clear on this, Granin? I. Don’t. Care. Whatever your precious Ancients want, I couldn’t give a single pip of Biomass. If it gets in the way of me protecting my family, I will go down there and kick them right in the teeth.]

Man, I’m grumpy. These past few days have piled insult on top of injury. Not only have I been locked here under constant supervision while hundreds of thousands of my own siblings wait on me hand and foot, building an entire fortress just so I can evolve in it, the idiot Dungeon even went and made a diamond centipede!

quite reasonably, insisted that I be released, that I might wage a holy war to purge the many-legged devils from existence, to scour them from the Dungeon until not a claw remained, I was prevented from doing so! Outrageous! Never mind the indignity of having

betrayal cuts deeper

mood,] Granin bluntly observes before he sits down in front of me, one hand resting on the tip of my mandibles. [Let’s get started. The sooner we finish our discussion, the quicker you get evolving. I know you don’t care about the Ancients and any of that nonsense, that’s fine. You aren’t an experimental subject to me, Anthony, you’re a

That’s actually touching.

second.

golgari rolls his

in decades. Torrina and Corun have never even been here. We’re acclimated to the third now, but it’ll take a week of careful exposure before we can move around down

how long until you

idiot. Now are you going to sulk or

[Sorry! Consult!]

get to

realise they risked that much to come here and help me. It warms my little ant heart to know they care that much. It also scares me, I don’t want them to suffer because of me. I do my best to shake off the

to me about the whole “Mythic” thing you

of your core. You have a rare core right now, but after you push your core all the way, it should transition to

I get a

we have

might be a better

better and better evolutions as you proceed up the tree. This is due

we kind of know

tier six, you were literally the only one to progress from worker all the way to six. We don’t mean in

there are more of you and the results are remarkable.] Even Torrina has an uncharacteristic gleam of enthusiasm in her eyes. [The Immortals and their Phoenix Fire Organ

Heh. A hilarious example.

saying… what? I can expect something

[is that you can expect

I’m going to assume that’s high praise coming from a people who

I actually think we might need to revisit plans on your

[What? Why?]