**Congratulations you have leveled up**

With that notification came my status window which had a few numerical differences.

*Status*

Name: Crete Species: Cleial Isopteran (Nymph) Gender: Male Level: 0 > 1 Health Points: 15/15 Stamina Points: 35/35 Mana Points: 0/0 Spirit Energy: 6/6 Strength: 2 Endurance: 1 Agility: 3 Vitality: 1 Intelligence: 11 Spirit: 5 Luck: 4 Perception: 6 Will: 10 Undistributed Stat Points: 0 > 5

Experience Points: 1/10

Skills:

(Active)

Desperate Chomp- Lvl 1

Chomp- Lvl 3

Inspect- Lvl 1

(Passive)

Strong Body- Lvl 3

Pheromone Communication- Lvl 4

Compound Eyes- Lvl 2

Hyper Metabolism- Lvl 3

Titles: N/A

Achievements:

First of the clutch (15 % faster experience gain)

Observing my status I noticed my level and the amount of my undistributed stats increased. Bewildered, I was unable to understand what these changes meant but any increase must be a good thing... right?

Cutting off my train of thought, a blast of emotions came from the termite in front of me, who I chose to conveniently named Grubby, she was urging me to follow her. Looking up from my position and the inedible remains of the now non-existent grub, I observed Grubby and took in my surroundings.

It appeared I was in a cave of some sort, or a chamber to be more precise. The realization that there was no light in here hit me and that my eyes were able to see in the dark or well see better than I could have before being what I was now…

Upon further inspection, I noticed there were other eggs inside my chamber, about 9 others. They were about the same size as my egg as well and I was able to see some semblance of movement inside of them as well as a dull scratching sound.

Ah, they’re just like me trying to hatch I concluded. Blasting me again Grubby transmitted its impatience and displeasure at being ignored. Deciding I shouldn’t make my only source of food at the moment displeased, my legs began to move and I progressed closer to her as she looked me over once more before taking off at a pace that required me to jog slightly.

I followed after her as we left the chamber and into a tunnel of sorts; that was decorated with openings similar to the one we just left. Suppressing my curiosity and growing need to explore, we moved in silence around corners and up slopes for a while until she entered an opening.

Hot on her heels I barreled past into the chamber??? No, calling it a chamber didn’t do it justice, the opening led into a massive dome about twenty times the size of the chamber I hatched in.

Along the walls I saw holes from which other termites emerged, some resembled grubby while others had even more massive heads and bodies, and even more ridiculously sized mandibles that could bisect my body as easily as I bisected that grub.

Feeling slightly fearful and apprehensive of these mind-boggling sites I moved to dash back into the hole I came from but Grubby was already blocking that hole and moving its antenna at another termite that looked like it.

The other termite approached Grubby and by extension me as I was already hiding behind her but it didn’t even stop to observe me as it disappeared into the hole we came from. Another blast from Grubby came, this time one of mostly amusement but reassurance as well, as if she was telling me that none of the other termites would attempt to hurt me.

Annoyingly I found myself agreeing with her as my primal mind had already been telling me that but I was too shocked by the massive change in environment to pay attention.

Urging me to continue following her I grudgingly followed while mentally scolding myself for being afraid. I was the first of the clutch, one of a kind, to be afraid of anything would bring shame to that accomplishment.

Wondering where that blast of pride came from I mindlessly followed behind Grubby as she scaled the wall- Wait I was scaling the wall too!!. Shocked at my ability to climb walls, I idly wondered if I would be able to shoot webs from my legs or whether there was a cute redhead termite out there for me.

But as soon as the thought came I dismissed it because Grubby led me into a new hole, but this one was well maintained and an invisible pressure radiated from the depths of it.

Sensing my apprehension at the pressure, Grubby funneled over some reassurance and we continued moving. The further we went the more I noticed the walls growing in width and density as if made to ward away any creatures that would find purchase in the soil.

I started feeling minute tremors the closer we got to wherever we were heading, which either meant a lot of some things were moving or it was something else… something big.

A short while after I started noticing the tremors my eyes started to feel something I realized was always lacking before, light, a light green hue of it. It overflowed from its source and spilled over into the halls whose end I assumed was approaching based on the way Grubby slowed down.

It wasn’t long after that we came upon an incline, which at its end was home to the brightest and the largest opening I had seen yet. Turning around Grubby waved its antenna at me and once again transmitted some emotions that were a confused jumble of apprehension, reverence, and anticipation. It soon settled on reverence however and with it came a confusing notification.

*DING*

has leveled up! (Lvl 4 > Lvl 5)

Due to attaining max Lvl, it will undergo evolution

*DING*

has evolved into

I was unable to even process the weight of those words as a wave of nauseousness overcame me. It was like a stirring in my brain as the emotions Grubby was transmitting to me before changed and it abruptly clicked into place, “Prepare. We soon meet the Queen”. At those ominous words, the primal mind I housed beamed with the same confused mess of feelings Grubby initially had before similarly settling on reverence.

Not waiting for me to process those words, Grubby immediately turned around and made way for the opening, and as we walked the gears in my mind slowly turned and the significance of those words with it.

Wait, I was about to meet the Queen right, at least that’s what I understood from what Grubby told me, and she’s a termite, so this Queen must be a termite of some sort.

Heh, I chuckled inwardly at my overwhelming wits, I was probably the mos- Oh CRAP. Finally being able to link meaning to words, I was swamped with nervousness because it seemed the reality only occurred to me just now, I’m a termite...