Chrysalis

Again?! I have to say, I’ve had enough of these waves. Each one is worse than the last. I mean, the Colony has been able to grow rapidly thanks to the injection of experience and Biomass, but the risk rises exponentially each time. This time, we’ll be fighting across four strata at the same time!

What a nightmare.

At least, if we can find ways to block off the ascent of the monsters here in the fourth, we lessen the pressure on our territory above.

Ugh. I just realised that this means I’ll have to take on more of those scum from the fifth. That poison is no joke! Countermeasures will need to be put in place… but I’ll leave the thinking to the smarter ants. When they work out where they want me to go, I’ll go and help as best I can. In the short term, that’ll mean taking on multiple tier eight demons, which is going to suck, but that’s the challenge I took on when I picked the evolution I did.

“Sloan! What the hell is going on up there?” I demand as I burst into the central planning chamber of the new fortress nest.

There’s a swirling vortex of generals, mages, carvers and shapers centred around the council member in the middle of the space. The moment I burst in, everyone freezes, staring back at me, their antennae drifting slowly from side to side.

“Ooookay,” I say. “Don’t let me… uh… interrupt.”

“Bit late for that, don’t you think?” Sloan said. “Welcome back, Eldest. I assume you’re talking about the situation on the third?”

“Y-yes.”

They’re all still staring at me, like mice looking at a cat, hoping they won’t be spotted if they don’t move. It’s unnerving!

“Uh. Brilliant popped out of nowhere and gave me a quick update, but I thought I should talk to you to get a clearer picture.”

from the most reliable. She tends to miss details, or gloss over them, which

shake my antennae. Brilliant? Intelligent? I’m not so sure about that. She’s a mad scientist. There’s a certain level of genius there, but there’s a whole lot of… gaps? She’s going to be an

be turning herself inside out in some

are fighting all over the place. Even some

the cities

to try and keep the peace, which

to what’s

underlying cause. If we can work out what it is, then maybe we have a

too busy making preparations and fighting up there to do much investigating. More to the point,

Good point.

that’s

are especially deadly. The spawn rate of demon larvae skyrockets and the

The entire floor of the place is a literal living carpet! I guess we just get several layers of

abandon the plains and do our

tier

clacks her

them, considering the general insanity that’s going on. They don’t always move together, but every now and again, the three of them seem to gather for reasons we don’t understand. The general consensus is that