Chrysalis

“Congratulations,” Enid smiled down on the still recovering young woman.

“Thank you mayor,” Lilin replied, radiantly happy despite what she’d just been through.

“We’re very happy,” her husband Phillip said as he stared lovingly down at his wife.

“And how has the care you’ve received been?’

“Oh, just perfect,” Lilin said.

“We couldn’t be happier, mayor. Thank you,” Phillip said.

“That’s good. After the effort we put into building this place, I’m glad it’s all come together.”

[We told you it would be fine,] the on-rotation ant-medic said. [I still don’t understand why you doubted us in the first place. When is the Colony anything but first-rate?]

[I should have believed in you,] Enid admitted, [but even I wasn’t sure how well you would be able to run a maternity ward. You don’t know anything about human reproduction.]

[Bah,] the ant groused, [our queens give birth hundreds of times every day. You think we can’t heal someone who has given birth only once? Don’t be ridiculous. Now get out of the way, I need to check the patient.]

Healers, medics and doctors always managed to be rude and ill-tempered. Even the non-human ones! In some ways, Enid took comfort knowing that this fact of life was even more universal than she’d thought.

quite reach, the antennae certainly did. The recovering mother was lightly tapped and brushed by those curious feelers as Lilin’s eyes

they imparted a quick burst

ant backed up and began to make her

fine,] she said, [the baby has been cleaned up and checked. It will return to this room in

of another healer ant. For a moment, Enid was forced to confront just how bizarre it was that she could see a genuine Dungeon

cheerfully, and Enid could only assume it was a younger, less evolved healer. She hadn’t had

as her new baby boy returned to her arms. As Phillip leaned in to embrace them both, Enid brushed a tear from her eye. Such a touching scene, one that she would never tire of. How long had it been since she saw

leave you to it.

mayor,” they replied and she smiled at them once more before

a year ago that they had fled the ruins of their

before she exited the facility, doing her best to stay out of everyone’s way. She stepped out into the

lived on in Liria. This sort of mage-work was laborious, and expensive, which made it rare, at least, rare before the catastrophe. Every street in Renewal was formed this way, crafted by the carvers with exacting precision. Not

Traffic flowed so smoothly, it was rare to

on their minds. She

the people were thriving. Renewal had more than delivered upon its

situated in the same building. She walked behind her

a few minutes. They were so stiff these days, and healing

began to compose a letter. It wasn’t overly long, but she carefully pondered each word, which dragged out the time. As

the time to place it in an envelope and seal it, but decided against it. A waste of paper. Too inefficient, as the