Chrysalis

It took ten minutes for the ants to herd the humans into a side tunnel and from there into a small but comfortable room, complete with chairs and at which they could sit. Enid herself had no eyes for the furnishings, instead her focus was laser sharp on the ants around them who definitely appeared more tense and alert than they did a moment ago.

Antennae twitching, mandibles flexing, sudden, jumpy movements were all indications of nervousness that she'd witnessed in the ants and all of those signs were present in those watching them at this minute. All except Coolant, that is. The powerful mage was as her name, relaxed and comfortable as she asked for the humans to sit and took her place at the head of the table on a strange, ant shaped seat.

It slowly dawned on Enid what it meant to be so close to the brood. She knew how the lifecycle of the ants went. The larval ant monsters demanded a huge amount of Biomass before they could weave their cocoons and mature to full grown members of the Colony. Somewhere nearby, a literal army of flesh eating grubs were being served mountains of monster remains. In the back of her mind, she almost felt as if she could hear the sound of thousands of mandibles tearing into meat and crunching bone.

She felt sick.

Beyn on the other hand, was totally elated! He was so close to the heart of the Colony, he could practically hear the heartbeat thudding in the walls. It filled him ecstasy, yet also humbled him. What was one, pathetic life next to the majesty of the Colony and its children? Thousands of young miracles were being reared nearby, angels of the System. What could one such as him do in comparison to that?

The rest of the council looked nervously to Enid for leadership and she laboured to pull herself together. It wouldn't do to shame herself or the proud people of Renewal here! Come on Enid, pull yourself together! She reprimanded herself harshly and rallied her spirit, chasing the gnashing sounds away.

[Thank you for accommodating us here, Coolant,] she gestured to the seats and table, [it's clear you went to some trouble to make us comfortable.]

[Oh, it's nothing. The furniture is but stone and wood, things we shape easily enough.]

Aarran harrumphed quietly at this insult to his profession, but Coolant either didn't notice or ignored the man.

[We thank you anyway,] Enid continued as she kicked the idiot craftsman under the table, [though I must ask, why bring us so close to the brood chambers if it makes you uncomfortable? I, for one, am happy to relocate to another place if our hosts will be more at ease.]

Please let us leave!

[That won't be necessary,] Coolant replied, dashing her hopes, [the Eldest made it clear to us that if we want to receive trust from another sapient being, then we must extend trust. This is true on an individual level, but also on a societal level. It is our intention to seek greater trust from you and your people, so it is necessary that we display trust towards you. For that reason we have brought you here, next to our heart.]

The mage turned toward one wall to better gesture for her human audience.

[Through that wall and down a tunnel lies the egg-laying chamber of this nest where the Queen resides.]

This announcement was met with a stunned silence in the room. Not a single human made a sound as they stared toward that unassuming wall. None except for Beyn. The priest's eyes bulged in their sockets and a strangled gargling sound croaked out of his throat as he desperately tried to hold in his jubilation. So intense was the war of feeling within him that his face turned a deep shade of red and he was forced to bring his hand to his throat to prevent his roars of praise escaping his soul. This bizarre demonstration quickly drew the attention of everyone in the room, including Coolant, who had no idea what she was looking at. To the humans, it appeared as if the priest was actively trying to choke himself to death.

Enid wanted to leap across the table and knock the idiot out, but at her age and with her stats, she wasn't likely to succeed. The closest to Beyn were his acolytes, who insisted on sitting behind him, but they were just as lost to religious fervour as their leader, either silently praying with frantic energy or actively in the process of fainting. Before Enid had a chance to rectify the situation, Coolant went and made things worse.

[It was our intention to bring any who were willing to meet the Queen down into the chamber once our discussion was complete…]

Coolant sounded ever so slightly hesitant as she took in the strange mix of reactions she was getting. Nevertheless she pressed forward with the Colony's most generous offer of hospitality. Holding the mind bridge in so many divisions was taxing, even if she had help, and interpreting human responses was difficult at the best of times. When the two different groups were presenting her with such divergent expressions, she didn't know what to make of it.

When Beyn heard those words, a piercing shrill escaped his mouth, like the scream of a dying eagle, which caused him to clamp down on his throat even more vigorously, cutting off that noise and strangling it down to a low croak. By this time his eyes were completely bloodshot and his face had begun to darken its shade of red to verge on purple. He desperately needed oxygen but he wasn't willing to risk it. He couldn't! What if he disturbed the Queen?! What if he were to startle the larvae as they grew?! No, better that he do what he must to prevent such a travesty from taking place. Better he were dead!

The rest of the acolytes were in little better shape as they each battled to contain an entirely new, even greater wave of exultation. As if their previous dam had been able to contain the waters of their joy, but this new flood, so soon after the first, was just too much for their reinforced banks to withstand. First one, then more, began to sway on their feet and collapse to the floor.

Beyn himself continued to hold on, though it only appeared he suffered more for it. The town council watched with horrified fascination as Beyn continued to croak and gurgle with his one remaining hand locked in a vice grip on his own neck. Wild eyed and trembling, the priest began to foam at the mouth as his eyes rolled up in his head and for the first time in months he wished he had his other hand back. The better to strangle himself with.

There was a profound silence in the room as the addled priest finally slumped from his chair, unconscious.

[I am uncertain what has happened,] Coolant said.

[Erm,] Enid stammered, [p-perhaps we might say that the honour of meeting the Queen was too much for Beyn and the acolytes. They felt that they were unworthy.]

The massive ant considered that for a moment before she nodded.

[It is well that they hold such respect. The Queen is the progenitor of us all and deserves such consideration.]

Enid breathed a sigh of relief as she inwardly damned Beyn and his idiot followers. They'd come so close to disaster thanks to these morons! Ironically, if they'd been any less devout, things would have been much, much worse!