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Chapter 723: 723

Back to work then . No rest for the wicked, so they say . Not that I’m wicked . Whatever . Leaving the egg-laying chamber and embracing the rush of mana that comes once I leave the dungeon vein free zone in the heart of the nest, I try to get my bearings and work out exactly what I should be doing next . Quite honestly, there’s a lot on my list . I could talk to Granin and the crew, get my bearings on what to do mutation and skill-wise going forward . Or I could go visit the other golgari prisoners, it’s been ages since I dropped in on Irette Plamine and co . What the heck have they even been up to all this time? How do they feel about the golgari failing in their assault and being left behind? Come to think of it, what the heck are we going to do with them from here on out? Eh, I’m sure the council will work it out .

There’s also White and Grey to think of . From what I’ve heard, Grey put on quite the show and absolutely humiliated the leader of the invasion during the siege, which would have been amazing to see . I should definitely squeeze in a convo with them before I leave the nest . I should probably check in with the council at some point also . I’m sure each of them are furiously busy, what with the wave and all that, but I’ve little doubt that there are things I could do to help them out . If I end up visiting each caste, I’m sure to wind up with a laundry list of tasks as long as my body . I could probably take the time to go and see the branchies again as well . They’ve proven to be quite a bit more powerful than initially expected and if we can get their ‘mother’ on our side then she would be an incredible ally . Not to mention it’d be nice to get to know another reincarnator such as myself . At least, one that isn’t likely to kill me .

I’d love to hunt down that miserable worm while I have a chance, but I just don’t believe that I’ll find him . If he wriggled away and the golgari didn’t capture him again then he could be anywhere . If my guess is correct, he’s well beyond our reach, burrowed into the deepest darkest hole he could find, somewhere not even the Dungeon will reach him . Eventually the wave will end and he’ll have to stick his nose out . When he does, we’ll be there .

Gah! I’m getting mad thinking about that traitor, I need to get to work in order to distract my thoughts .

Our first port of call is to collect Tiny . After kicking the ape awake and dragging him out of his comfy nook by the leg, we set a course looping through the nest in order to visit all the individuals I need to catch up with . I find Grey and White meditating together in their chambers, as usual and I try not to cheese off the wolfish ‘Folk’ over the course of our discussion . As our chat winds up, Grey lets me know that he will be leaving shortly .

[Oh? Why’s that? Our hospitality not good enough for you?]

[Far from it,] the wolf remarks, [considering what and where you are, our accommodations have been much better than expected . But it is time to return . White must complete her training journey and it will be necessary for me to provide witness to our leadership before they can make a ruling on the matter of your sapience . Should things go well, then diplomatic channels will be opened with your Colony and you’ll be afforded the respect a new race deserves . ]

[That’d make a mighty change from the treatment we’ve experienced so far,] I remark .

He waves a hand, a frown on his face .

[You’ll find all of the so called ‘new races’ have experienced harsh treatment from the old . Only through many battles in which we proved our strength were we afforded the space to stand on our own . Although the peace has endured for many, many years, anger still runs deep on both sides and small scale fighting is incessant . You’ll never truly be at peace with the old, but with time and further battles, you may be able to secure some measure of peace . ]

[You mean they’ll come back and try again?! Don’t these people have hobbies?]

He chuckles and even White hides a smile behind her sleeve .

[They do: killing you,] Grey laughs . [I wish that was a joke . They’ll be back . It might not be the Legion and the golgari, or either of them for that matter . There are plenty of others out there who are intolerant of your kind of life . In fact, once the word gets out, expect a horde of hunters to descend on this area to prey on your people for resources . ]

[We’ll put them in their place . ]

He shrugs .

[Then stronger ones will come . This too will be a problem you cannot avoid . Not in the short to medium term . ]

Well… that sucks . On that cheery note I leave them be and head over to visit the prisoners in the nearby cells . Turns out Irette hasn’t taken the defeat of the golgari all too well . I think she might have been holding out hope that they would win, liberate her and she would be able to return home to live in comfort amongst the Shapers once more . Her dream shattered, she’s but a fragment of her former self . Can’t say I’m super sympathetic, but it’s still a bit sad to see someone brought so low . Hopefully she can pick herself back up soon . After that I continue to whip around the Colony on my whirlwind tour, dropping in on each and every caste, saying hi to the council members and trying to get a picture of what is needed from me .

None of this is strictly necessary of course . If I want to know what members of my family really want, all I have to do is open my mind to the whispers pouring through the Vestibule . But I won’t! Face to face meetings are more polite after all! Let’s stick with that reason . As expected, each member of the council has a huge list of things that they need done, but are strangely hesitant to ask for me to do anything directly . It’s only when I run into Sloan that the general tells me why .

“Granin has convinced us that the best thing for the Colony is for you to power up,” she says bluntly . “Which means that the members of the council are under instructions not to load you down with chores . ”

“But that’s no good!” I protest . “What’s the point of being the strongest member of the family if I don’t do anything to help the family?”

“The idea is that we have you around to deal with the stuff that we can’t deal with ourselves . For the time being, just get out into the Dungeon and defeat monsters . The pressure from the wave is building and it’s getting harder to hold our lines, especially in the places where we aren’t fully entrenched . In this case, just go out and take all the experience and Biomass you can . That’s the best thing for us right now . ”

I guess I can do that . Time to put my newfound muscle to the test!