Brassbug Nursery

393 AC - Seriously, they never cease to amaze me. Their queen is hundreds of miles away, and they've found a way to self-replicate without her help. A nursery. We've always let these critters manage themselves. We've even benefited from their services, but I have to admit that this kind of gives me the creeps. Seeing how adaptable they are, how easily they overcome their own limits… but do they really have any limits? Changing their mode of reproduction in the blink of an eye? Damn, it's a good thing they're our allies, because I don't think we'd have any way of fighting them if they weren't. They settled into the crater a week ago and promptly started building without the slightest pause.

And now we see the result, parked there in the middle of a ring of rocks. It looks like a metallic insect, standing on enormous legs embedded in the ground. Some sort of kelonic generator provides energy to the structure. Arranged along two metallic rows, transparent incubators offer a glimpse of developing Brassbug embryos inside. Suddenly, one of the clear hatches opens slightly and ejects a freshly produced newborn. Almost immediately, the whippersnapper starts flying around at top speed. Ha! Looks like the little buggers took inspiration from our drones and added a propulsion system. The hatch closes again, probably to start cranking out another specimen, just like the last. Yep, good thing they're our allies…

SUBHASH