Chrysalis

The rest of the new Legionaries were gathered together in a cluster at the end of their ward under the watchful eye of a few Centurions.

The young soldiers felt restless. They still didn't know how to feel towards the Legion and the seniors who had cared for and trained them for so long. The pain of the Baptism was still fresh in their minds, the scars still raw. Many of them felt a strange dual emotion towards the people they had once admired, equal parts anger and respect.

Aurillia stepped forward to address them.

"Thank you for gathering young Legionaries. You have endured the pain of the Baptism and suffered the loss of friends, as have we all" she looked each of them in the eye directly, letting them see that she knew of their pain, shared it.

"I'm sure you've felt it already, the changes in your body. You are no longer what you were before. Your very flesh has been infused with mana and this means a few things will change. Firstly, you can never live on the surface without regular doses of liquid mana to support your body. The mana there is too thin. Here inside the Dungeon you'll be fine but in the upper levels you'll begin to feel a bit weak".

Murmurs erupted from the new Legionaries at these words. Unable to live on the surface without liquid mana? If the Legion were the only ones who knew how to make it, isn't this just another way for them to be controlled?

"It also means" Aurrilia interrupted their thoughts, "that so long as you are able to absorb enough mana you will be able to do things that you had never imagined possible before".

Now she glared at them. Impressing her will on them. All of them wilted before the strength she held in her gaze.

to protect you loved ones from the horrors of the Dungeon, then you've come to the right place. The Abyssal Legion stands on the frontline against the true threats and for thousands of years we have done battle far beneath the surface, an unending war that few people in

glared at them

"Come".

stood in guard positions down every down

the wall of the space in which Railleh was situated. As with all things the Legion constructed it was built on very clean lines, straight corridors and square rooms, giving the entire structure a very austere feeling. It was easy to tell that

few estimations in her head before she came to the shocking realisation than this base, indeed, the city of Railleh itself, probably predated Liria by a considerable amount of time. The Legion had been here long before the nation of her birth had even been created?

Why would the surface be so neglected that it was the last place to be developed, to be made habitable for people? She thought of her family and their humble history, working hard to carve out a life for themselves in the frontier kingdoms

entire city down here! Long before her ancestors had

vast hall. Mirryn gasped, shocked out of her thoughts by the grand scale of the space they now occupied. A high arched ceiling, buttressed

in bright light, causing Mirryn to squint against the sudden glare. Down the center of the room, between the columns stood two rows of stone statues raised on marble plinths. Each of the figures was a masterpiece. Incredibly detailed, perfectly proportioned. The level of skill that would go into making such a perfect piece of

Legionary. Men and women in full battle armour, weapons in hand, standing ready. Most of them were of advanced age, clearly senior officers or veteran soldiers. Scars criss-crossed their faces and arms and their expressions were hard, as if there was little they hadn't seen. So lifelike were they that it felt as if

of our branch have been immortilised in stone, preserved for

of the room as they

two handed hammer resting on the plinth and held casually in one hand. Even at this distance Mirryn could see that the statues features, broad chin, stern eyes and thick neck were the same as commander

to learn the commander even had a father. They'd felt as if he'd walked fully formed out of a mountain