Chrysalis

Coolant looked out from her perch next to the upper sally port of the great gate and felt nothing but confusion.

"Do you want to go tell him, or should I?" she said to Sloan who was clinging to the wall next to her.

The general shook her head, bewildered.

"I mean. They have to know, right? There's no chance that they don't know."

"I assume they know. I mean, what are the odds the two forces aren't communicating to this extent?"

"Almost none, surely. Such a lack of organisation in our foes would throw our plans way out."

"Hasn't this thrown them way out anyway?"

Sloan hesitated.

"That's… true."

The two of them looked out in silence for a few more moments at the totally unexpected scene before them.

"What do you think we should do?" Coolant asked, her scent as calm and unruffled as it always was.

"I don't know!" Sloan fretted. Why would these idiots perform this sort of moronic action now of all times? It didn't make any sense!

communication washed out over them, rippling through the ambient mana in the

reincarnated one here, or this one, a

first gate, a procession of golgari stood with one of their own forced to kneel on the ground at sword point whilst an elaborately armoured figure reclined in a chair next

could they possibly want?"

percent chance that they don't know

for some reason, why not let them

involved, there might be some element at play that we don't understand," Sloan sighed. "Anytime something weird happens, it's usually to

trouble like a Queen taking

to move a little closer, I don't think I can extend a mind bridge that

"I'll arrange an escort."

ready to escort the mage closer to the enemy

you think a thousand may

"What do you mean?"

total of.." she counted quickly, "eight golgari over there. If we walk closer with a thousand, might they think

is too many?" Sloan rubbed the top of her head with an antennae. A thousand didn't feel like many to her. Then again, she was

ants cautiously advanced toward the golgari delegation, ready to flee at a moment's notice. Sloan had considered things carefully and the delegation contained a healthy mix of mages, for raising shields, scouts, for detecting foul play, and soldiers, to hold the line in the event the others needed to retreat. Once they had covered half the ground toward the first gate, they very obviously stopped and parked themselves for a moment. Acting with great caution, Coolant wove together a mind bridge and extended it toward the trio of mages

formally, [I have come to clarify exactly what

for a long moment before a reply

High Blade Balta. He wishes to expunge the shame the

what? Some imagined insult? She couldn't