Chrysalis

As I keep stuffing my face, Granin and I discuss my various body parts and what might qualify as a good option for a 'reset' in my next evolution. I remain a little cagey about a few things, such as the existence of the Vestibule, but I try to be as honest as I can during our discussions. A few things get ruled out pretty fast. No need to do anything fancy with the pheromone glands at this point, for example. I'm not even sure what sort of new functionality I would gain for my pheromone gland. Demon pheromones? Pheromones made from flames? Geh.

In this way we eliminate candidates and before long we arrive at a shortlist. Carapace (obviously), Mandibles, Acid Gland, Legs, Regeneration Gland, Eyes. All the big ticket items. Would be great to do my brain, but it’s not even mutable at this point, so it can’t be reset. The carapace is there for very clear reasons. I was promised a reset of pure diamond and by Gandalf, I'm going to get it. If an option appears to reforge my mandibles into some awesome demon chitin or something of the sort then it would surely be a significant boost to the strength of my bite, which is always handy. My legs are an obvious weak point and although the diamond carapace does offer them some thin protection, changing their base properties to something more durable would help to keep me from being legless quite as often. The Regeneration Gland is a (literal) life saver and a significant upgrade there would be incredible. My vision speaks for itself. Better eyes means better life. Being able to see stuff coming is a useful trait to have, and with the reset, who knows what sort of crazy options I might see?

I personally feel like there's a strong chance that the Vestibule will come up as an option to be reset in the evolution choices, given that my current species includes the term 'juvenile'. It would make sense that the natural progression would be to a 'mature' Colony Paragon of some variety, and the key organ of this species is the Vestibule. Exactly what sort of option would be provided to reforge the Vestibule itself, I've no idea, but I think it will be powerful. There is the likelihood that such an upgrade would have adverse side effects, such as giving the Colony an even larger window to sneak their Will into my mind, but there's a good chance that the trade-off will be worth it.

[You might want to rethink your idea of picking carapace on this evolution,] Granin tells me.

[What!? My carapace is a life-saving, incredibly shiny part of my body! What could possibly be more important than that?]

Granin holds up both his hands.

[Whoa there. It's beautiful and amazing, we all get that, just take a second to hear me out.]

He waits until I settle back down and get back to shovelling Biomass into my face before he continues.

should hold off during this evolution. Firstly, the options you may get at this stage of evolution are inferior to what you'll get next time. In my opinion, your carapace and plating, upgraded to +30, are going to

the tone of his thought suggests he knows

happen to know what I might get if I hold off?]

He nods.

Diamond, Liquid Diamond, just to name a few. All are

awesome! Liquid Diamond?!

to hide my excitement and totally failing, [what about the

it's done more than you realise to keep you alive to this point, but it can do more. The synergy between the carapace and plating isn't what it could be. I'm suggesting that when you reset your carapace, you reset the plating at the same time. This will let you pick options that harmonize, and allow you to reconfigure your mutations to line up perfectly, giving you the best possible outcome. Does that

make a

and I'm also full. Step back a second for me, would

both of my stomachs full of Biomass. Geh, I feel like I'm gonna chuck. Is this what a replete feels like? I used to wonder what

need of mutation, some of them more than one. Eyes, pheromone gland, Neural network, my

mutations for the

hard to tell, but I think Granin quirks an eyebrow at my

want any advice on