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.

are rather than hanging on the back of my carapace. There's no avoiding the danger

about you. I will do my best to bring a

there. When your supply of shadow flesh runs out, you need

[I know!]

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

about you Invidia? You ready to

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

wantsss to take what we have? I envy

give our enemies their due, they have been working hard. The massed ranks of the Legion begin to step forward with their slow, measured tread and immediately the long range acid artillery kicks into gear. Huge, dense arcing jets of sizzling acid fly overhead, the

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

manage to use the thing effectively. My current setup is to have the main sub-brain focus on maintaining the construct whilst the two sub-brains operate the thing. The only problem with this is that none of the brains are

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 that only they can see. As the energy traverses the construct, it begins to change, taking on the properties of the desired elements and then rising through the layers once more