Chrysalis

"Whooooooooo!" Vibrant cheered as she raced across the Plains of Leng, delighting in watching the larval demons leap from her path just in time to miss her flashing legs.

The air was boiling hot and seared against her carapace as it drove her antennae back. The smell of ash and molten rock smothered her senses as the terrain flashed by but Vibrant cared little for any of it. The rush of pure speed was what she craved and these wide open plains gave her an opportunity to run as she had never had a chance to before.

"Weeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!" she hollered, her legs flickering so quickly they couldn't be seen, her brain flashing just as quickly as she processed the barrage of visual information that flooded her eyes each second.

Far behind, though not as far as one might think, her followers were working hard to keep up as best they could. Their job was made far more difficult by the fact that they'd long since fallen out of range of the aura that boosted their own speed, since their leader had raced so far ahead. Still, they too yearned for speed, just as their leader did, and their hearts were thumping with joy as they raced across the plains as a unit, desperate to keep up.

When they eventually did so, they found Vibrant standing rock still, staring up the target of their current mission. Emilia the general was among the first to arrive and boldly approached their uncharacteristically still leader.

"Vibrant? Is everything alright?" she asked.

The large yet sleek soldier twitched her antennae as she recognised the scent.

glad you caught up!" she laughed. "Have a look up there, it’s a little different, isn't

was situated on a disc of stone that extended out from the pillar that supported the roof of the stratum so far above, but it was immediately clear what Vibrant was

much larger, isn't it…" she

hung beneath the first, in its shadow so to speak, was much smaller than that above it, as if it had only begun to form recently. Which raised the question, how

Emilia made sure to remind her

Em-em!" Vibrant cheered. "We can have a look around, deprive the city of resources, keep an eye on things and make a

her followers were emboldened. When Vibrant was happy, things were generally going well. They might be hectic, or even dangerous, but usually manageable. When she was serious, that was when they knew things were

see! Let's keep an eye on the city as we do and make sure we keep our distance! Let's also make sure that we go super-fast! Do your best to keep up with me everyone, I don't want anyone falling behind! We can regroup here after we get a couple of laps in, make sure you scan the

speeding across the plains and running a broad circle around the demon city of Orpule. They were noticed, because of course they were. Nearly

their hapless victims in a matter of seconds, before setting off once again. The experience and biomass were welcome, of course, but more than that any evolved demon was a potential recruit for the enemy. If one of these were to reach tier six and gain their full awareness, then to Orpule they would go, recruited for

was clear that those watching from above realised what was happening and a sortie was sent forth,