Chrysalis

“MORE POWER, DAMMIT!”

“We don’t have any more! We don’t have the power!”

“It’s so close. So close! Empty the tanks, we need every drop!”

“But… but that’s madness!”

“It’s not madness… it’s BRILLIANT!”

Electricity crackled, lightning flashed and sparks fell like rain from overhead as the ants scurried to follow the orders of their leader. Atop her observation spire, Brilliant cackled, her mandibles snapping together in a staccato rhythm as the flashes and explosions lit her from below, projecting her demented shadow onto the wall.

“Th-th-the b-backup m-m-matrix is collapsing!” Assistant whimpered.

“It’s fine, we have three backups!”

“This IS the third backup!” Experimant roared.

“Not to worry, I installed a secret fourth backup matrix and didn’t tell you!”

“That’s just a lie, isn’t it?!”

Another explosion rocked the chamber and Brilliant teetered on the edge of her spire, a hair's breadth from losing her grip and falling into the swirling maelstrom of light below. The many-faceted eyes of the mage were filled with an unearthly glow, and for a long moment, Experimant was convinced she’d finally lost her mind.

“Dump the tanks and then hit the cages!” she shouted and hundreds of lab ants rushed to follow her orders.

“Th-th-th-th-th-this will overflow the matrix for sure!” Assistant said.

the cages,” Experimant replied as she snatched up the

w-w-w-will save the

she’s beyond

emptied, sending the volatile substance flowing through the underground pipelines and into the gate matrix. As predicted,

roared. “I CAN SEE

spire, so close to the unstable mass of power she could reach out

“L-l-leader! Be c-c-careful!”

“BAH! CALL ME BRILLI-”

white, then expanded rapidly, enveloping the entire room in a second. Brilliant never got

The chamber had been built to withstand magic detonations, but that last one had been beyond even what Brilliant was normally

before the room stopped shaking

a

said, emerging from the

are…” Experimant said

you want to know how I

“Not really-”

the carapace with a front leg. “And that was the best experiment we’ve run so

“Y-y-you're alive?” Assistant mumbled.

of you out of the cages. We’ve got to

Experimant grumbled as she helped

I got a good look at what they were detecting

said, then realised she said it out loud, went to apologise, then shrugged

“I can project it if necessary. My brain, that is. Come on! We are on the verge

the dust and began rummaging about, shouting and exclaiming all the while. Assistant hesitantly made her way from the perimeter as

punched the air with her two front legs as an array embedded into a reinforced stone pillar flickered to life. “Someone extract the

before running to the next. In short order, she’d

AT IT! The kick of power we got by infusing the liquid mana was just what we needed. See these readings? Are