Chrysalis

Having upgraded myself to peak condition, and with my friends and allies having done the same, it's time to descend below and inflict true despair upon the termite foe!

MUAHAHAHAAA!

With my newfound abilities and near-perfect mutations, the termites won't know what hit them. As we march down the extended root system of the Mother Tree, heading towards the village of Bruan'chii in which the Colony has established its forward headquarters, I get to playing.

My mind constructs are almost always in place. By mutating my sub-brains to specialise in mind mana, they are able to handle the constructs for extended periods without rest, despite running hot from the constant activity. When I'm around the Colony, the regenerative energy I get from the Vestibule is enough to soothe the mental fatigue as it happens, meaning I never have to shut my hive mind down.

It basically is a hive mind at this point. I've got over a dozen mind constructs operating right now, each one capable of independent action. With further mutation and another evolution, that may well push to over thirty, or even fifty! Hive mind indeed.

But with my new improvements, I'm especially eager to put them to work. As we walk I spin up each of the constructs and get them working on mana, different varieties, moulding and shaping, compressing, using the omni-elemental construct to create lava, and gas, and stone. I marvel at the ease of it, the relative freedom I have to direct it and shape it as I want.

Compared to how hard it was when I started, this is a joke! Improving my fundamental mana skills is a big deal at this point. I wonder what rank seven will be like? I need to keep pushing forward, grinding and training as much as possible throughout this conflict, to proceed as fast as I can! I should prioritise my force mana also, as it’s the candidate I've chosen to work toward the next tier. I won't shift to another mana type until I've gotten to rank five at least!

elemental, so I'll have

complete their tasks, a constant flow coming and going as they return from the front or head out. It doesn't take long to find the general in charge; Victor is in the middle of the action, poring over a three dimensional model of the conflict, directing messengers and generals

slap on the back.

rounds on me with

think was going to happen when you

that bad… things were pretty much on

Ka'armodo, I should say, are cunning. They've been pushing us non-stop whilst retaining their numbers as best they can. We haven't had time to rest and our defences are

coming

hold the line, but the situation is becoming fraught.

presence, my siblings are polite enough to wait patiently until I'm done barging in and wasting all their

of termite troops, and things are looking grim. We are basically defending half of a sphere as the enemy builds up beyond our walls. It looks like the tree has stepped in to help. At the very least, she's covering some of her roots herself, freeing

I'm

information, slowly tapping on her own

you worried that this is what they want?" she asks. "If you go out there, it's almost a guarantee that they are going to collapse on you. They've tried it before.