Chrysalis

As the approaching wall of legionaries draws closer, I perform a final check to make sure everything is ready for the battle to come. Do I have a giant ape? Check. Crazy shadow blob of unending horror? Check. Weird eyeball dude? Check. Omni-elemental construct fired up and ready to go? Check. Even my spiffy diamond carapace is back to full shininess. I couldn't possibly be more ready to deal out the pain.

[Tiny, you remember what you need to do?] I ask.

The big bat-faced gorilla turns to look down at me and nods slowly, a broad grin splitting his face.

[Tiny smash,] he declares confidently, one car tire sized paw patting himself on the chest.

With his patchwork armour and helmet strapped on, he makes quite the intimidating sight. Smithant outdid herself when slapping this stuff together, her work has kept the big fella’s injuries down to an almost unheard of level. He's going to need every bit of that protection for this one, as there is simply no retreat. We fight until the fight is won.

[How about you Crinis? Are you going to be alright?]

[I would rather stay by your side, Master,] she complains yet again.

where you are rather than hanging on the back of my carapace. There's no avoiding the danger this time, we just need to

worry about you. I will do my best to

supply of shadow flesh runs out, you

[I know!]

plan for this battle, so I understand why she might be a bit frustrated. I've been doing all I can to try and make sure that my pets will survive the fight, but in Crinis' case, all she cares about is if I survive.

Invidia? You

eyeball is hovering further back towards the gate amongst the other mages of the Colony, further back than the front-liners like myself and Tiny. Going to need to rely on his firepower pretty heavily if we want to make it through this. The Legion is going to put a big target on him for sure

am alwaysssss ready. They wantsss to take

immediately the long range acid artillery kicks into gear. Huge, dense arcing jets of sizzling acid fly overhead, the force of the shots so powerful that even the

to lean on this new-fangled piece of technology for this battle. Normally, I'd be winding up a massive gravity bomb and chucking it at the Legion, but I don't think I should in this fight. Although the bomb does a great job of causing chaos and inflicting the occasional casualty, as well as serving the intended purpose of wearing down the barriers the Legion puts up, taxing their mages and soldiers alike. It's a great plan and I loved it, but this fight isn't

brains are quite up to the tasks they've been assigned on their own. Maintaining the construct and helping to create the desired mana types is too much for the larger sub-mind, which means my main mind needs to chip in and help. Similarly, the two smaller sub-minds aren't quite up to the task of producing and weaving the mana

out when needed then it all comes together to a reasonable degree. It's not perfect, but it's usable. If fact, the time to put it to the test has finally arrived. I absentmindedly raise my abdomen to start aiming my own acid barrage toward the oncoming Legionaries whilst my focus turns inward. My main sub-mind is already straining under the pressure so I jump in to aid it as the two sub-minds begin to operate the construct. Raw mana flows from my core which is quickly replenished by the flow pouring up through my legs, before splitting into halves and entering the many layered sphere at two separate points. Now the magic really begins. As each segment of the construct rotates in its own direction, the sub-minds hold onto the flow of mana that they control and direct it carefully through a labyrinthine route