Chrysalis

Titus was a renowned Legionary above and below the ground. He was known for his strength, his iron will, his leadership and his willingness to put himself in harms' way to protect his fellows, he was a leader who never spared himself.

Most of all, he was known for his unyielding sense of duty. He had sacrificed over and over again in order to perform the role he filled and he would damn well do it again. He never hesitated, did not regret but often, he grieved.

Looking down at the eager trainees below him he felt sorrow grip his heart.

But it didn't stop him.

"You are about to undergo the final trial on the path to becoming full members of the Deep Legion" he announced.

Serious expressions overtook the trainees at the word trial. What would they need to do?

"You have experienced severe mana saturation sickness on the way here and we have done what we can alleviate the symptoms, but we have not cured you. Behind that door lies the greatest secret of the Legion. We will cure you of saturation sickness permanently, the process will also make you stronger, faster, smarter, more powerful than you currently are. When it is done you will be reborn".

A few gasps and disbelieving murmurs erupted from the youths in front of him. Was any of this even possible?

Titus pointed to the door behind them. "Beyond there lies the greatest secret of the Legion. It enabled the first Legionaries to perform the heroic feats deep in the Dungeon that helped end the Cataclysm thousands of years ago and it fuels us today. Every full Legionary you have ever met has undergone this process, including me".

The commander took a deep breath. No avoiding it.

"Let's go in and I'll explain further".

gestured to Alberton who squeezed through the cramped chamber before unlocking the enchanted seal on the door and striding through. Titus waited on the stairs

a sudden fear gripped her heart. The way they moved, it was almost

stone chamber. The chamber itself was long, but narrow, with regular offcuts down the right side. Pushing past her fellow trainees, Mirryn saw that in each offcut a narrow basic had been chiselled into the floor, almost like a bath carved into the stone. Counting

the ceiling directly above each basin was not as simple as she had first assumed. Incredibly fine, intricate runic patters had been carved into the surface, the lines so thin she almost hadn't seen them. In the center of the pattern a thin hole could be seen, perhaps for something to flow through and fill the basin? Even the

musing was interrupted by a sudden clap from the commander. All of

process to you" the commander said crisply, his eyes hard with

there to ensure he had their full

will strip down and lie in a separate pod. From the ceiling above we will release pure, condensed liquid mana that will fill the basin until you are submerged. The fluid will be absorbed

mind flicking at lightning speed. If mana could be condensed into a liquid, wouldn't it

confusion. He did not move

of your lives. Every cell in your body will become super saturated with mana, tearing at the seams. There are powerful healing enchantments built into the basin. You

silence as the trainees stared back at their commander

them, his voice weary with sorrow. "To defeat the monsters, to protect the civilisations on the surface the Legionem Abyssi decided that to be human was not enough. In order to overcome the Cataclysm, to make sure that it would never happen again, this was the step

gripped their hearts as

was that standing in the doorway, they thought bitterly. Commander Titus. He was a legend in the Legion. If all of them unleashed their most powerful skills at once would they shave even one HP

Titus announced grimly, bringing relief to the trainees. Before they could start to celebrate he pulled the short sword on his hip from

of us. If you wish to spare yourself the suffering, step forward and I will give you

did once the trainees had begun their transformation.

to, able to tolerate levels of mana saturation beyond what a normal person could ever dream. They would be able to take the fight directly to the monsters, able to chase them down wherever they chose to hide. That

the first Legionaries had been kept ever since those days. As Loremaster it was Alberton's role to keep the histories of those days and the determination, the sheer will of those men and women had

mean they liked