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.

bed Lilin rested in. Even if the eyes didn’t quite reach, the antennae certainly did. The recovering mother was lightly tapped and brushed by those curious feelers as Lilin’s eyes took on that slightly glazed expression

they imparted a

backed up and began to make her

[the baby has been cleaned up and checked. It will return to this room

nestled in the mandibles of another healer ant. For a moment, Enid was forced to confront just how bizarre it was that she could see a genuine Dungeon monster skittering around with a newborn in its grip and feel absolutely

he is,] the new ant said cheerfully, and Enid could only assume it was a younger, less evolved healer. She hadn’t had time to absorb the

in to embrace them both, Enid brushed a tear from her eye. Such a touching scene, one that she would never

will leave you to it. Congratulations

they replied and she smiled at them once

than a year ago that they had

one hand to pat at the expertly cut stone walls before she exited the facility, doing her best to stay out of everyone’s way. She stepped out into the streets of Renewal, and finding herself in a reflective mood, began

the sort of roads only the wealthiest 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

could take some credit for that, but even there, the influence of the Colony was felt. Traffic flowed so smoothly, it was rare to see someone waiting

made her way to her destination, the citizens pleased to see her and unafraid to approach and ask whatever questions were on their minds. She welcomed it. Where not long ago these exchanges were a never ending series of

the people were thriving. Renewal had more than

walked behind her desk and sat with a weary sigh, her old bones creaking as she took the weight

so stiff these days, and healing magic didn’t help at all. It wasn’t possible to

wasn’t overly long, but she carefully pondered each word, which dragged out the time. As it turned

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