Chrysalis

Breathe.

In. Hold. Release. Hold.

Breathe.

In. Hold. Release. Hold.

Slowly. Patience was required. The sharpest blade couldn't be forged in a day. The metal had to be unearthed, refined, smelted, shaped, heated and cooled over and over again until the final temper had been achieved. The perfect weapon was the work of a lifetime.

And so was Orrina.

She was the Legion's weapon, its sharpest and most perfect. She had been forged over many years, placed in the fire, moulded, quenched, then thrown back into the heat once more.

Breathe.

In. Hold. Release. Hold.

As she repeated the mantra and controlled the air that flowed into her body, so too did she influence the mana around her. It pulsed, rising and falling along with her lungs. Vast quantities rushed into her body, were contained, and then released. Each time she drew it in, the energy within her grew that little bit more rich, more vibrant. It wouldn't be long now.

Breathe.

In. Hold. Release. Hold.

not reach her. All that would remain was the pure core: her instincts, her training, and her unending warrior spirit. She honed her mind as the blade was honed, until it had reached the

aura that rolled off her in dense waves felt as if

A final time.

Breathe.

In. Hold. Release. Hold.

body now in a violent torrent. A storm of energy that begged for release. Her mind had been reduced to the point of a blade, nothing remained

opened

steel stood before her. An impossible construct of complexity and engineering so profound it was nothing short of a miracle. A fitting partner for her. She was the greatest the Legion could produce, an example of martial perfection. Her equipment

in the same ritual as she. Those thoughts were ignored, allowed to drift away without touching her singular focus. With measured steps, she moved towards her armour, her balance effortlessly perfect. A ladder had been prepared, but she didn't need it, vaulting up to land on the wide pauldron and look

So blue it hurt to look at. A shimmering pool of intense light, so vibrant and filled

Liquid mana.

One last time. Breathe.

In. Hold. Release. Hold.

on either side of the opening and smoothly lowered herself in, plunging

Agony.

vast rivers of magic that flowed through her came into contact with this new power source and found a delicate equilibrium. If she were any less saturated with mana, she would have died the moment she dropped in, but this was far

she was, Orrina found the straps that bound her in place, tying them off expertly before she reached up to pull

armour hummed

with the metal, her unique skills, possessed only by the

suddenly she could see through the thick plates of metal in front as if they weren't even there. Her body moved, the armour moved, and Orrina

around the hilt of her beloved sword. Blade in hand, she strode

her fellows emerged from their pens, ready to fight. This was a rare occasion, one that hadn't happened in her entire career. Ten of them had been called up for this action. There was