Chrysalis

The Legion advances to where I lie convalescent, still recovering from my grievous injuries. The only blessing I can see is that the one man army who cut through half of the gate is no longer in the frontlines, replaced by a wall of armoured bodies that hold their weapons and shields with perfect discipline. Once Crinis has pulled me clear, the Colony continues their barrage and a horde of my siblings sally forth from the gate to surround me.

"Get me back behind the gate," I squeeze out, "we didn't plan to take a stand here."

The ants around me don't respond at all and I wonder if they smelled what I had to say at all.

"H-hello? You need to either move me behind the gate or leave me here. What the heck are you doing?"

"Eldest, I mean this with all my respect, but please shut your pheromone hole. We're trying to heal you and you need to stop moving."

Who was that?! Mendant?! Where the heck do you get the nerve to speak to me like that?! The healer looks completely unperturbed, as if an enemy army wasn't closing on her position with each passing moment. Are these ants crazy or what? We can't fight here, we'll get slaughtered! If I can't be moved, then just retreat to safety, I'll fight my way out! This won't be the last you see of me! Before I get the chance to insist, the ants have already formed ranks around me, hundreds turning into thousands in mere seconds. I quickly realise that they aren't going to give me up.

[Crinis! Can you move me again? Through the shadows?]

[I can't master, I'm sorry. It took almost all of my shadow mana to get you this far,] she sounds panicked.

[It's going to be fine,] I reassure her, [my face is almost back together, see? I'll be in biting shape again in no time.]

my words. I see her twisting herself into mind bending, non-Euclidian shapes that I'm certain are formed of more dimensions

feeling there's going to be a scrap in

I can sense something I never expected and moments later, I see one. What the hell are the humans doing out here?!?!? Led by that manic priest, at least a hundred humans have marched forth from the gate to squeeze in amongst the much larger bodies of the soldiers and scouts in the front ranks between me and the Legion. The priest himself has a short spear gripped in his one good hand which he waves back and forth with frantic energy as he bellows words

to whisper of the ant's desire for battle, to make the enemy pay for the damage they've done. It's difficult for me to ignore them in the heat of the battle. I feel the urge to scurry forward on my three remaining legs and try to stab the Legionaries to death with my one remaining

think that will

moved yet?"

swear by

dead right now. No, you can't be moved," she tells me as she continues

going

together as the Colony and its allies press forward to allow more room between the fighting and me. Are you kidding me?! The battle right in front of the gates and I'm

Colony,] I ask her,

are heavily injured, Master. You need

to protect my family more. Go on, Crinis. Do this

and wait for the healing to complete as the sounds and vibrations of battle rise to a fever pitch moments before the two armies crash. Even now reinforcements pour out from behind the gate, piling up on top of each other until the tunnel is almost filled to capacity from bottom to top with a writhing mass of

talking (with the exception of Beyn), the ants communicating in perfect silence whilst the Legion are too disciplined for random noise, yet the sound is still deafening. The clash of steel on

"FOR THE COLONY!"