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.

I’m carrying you to the cages,” Experimant replied as she snatched up the smaller ant, threw

w-w-w-will save the

she’s

emptied, sending the volatile substance flowing through the underground pipelines and into the gate matrix. As predicted, the matrix blew almost instantly, rocking the chamber once more and sending

roared. “I CAN

close to the unstable mass of power she could reach out and touch it.

“L-l-leader! Be c-c-careful!”

“BAH! CALL ME BRILLI-”

flashed white, then expanded rapidly, enveloping the entire room in a second. Brilliant never got a chance to complete her

as stone and debris rained down from above. The chamber had been built to withstand magic detonations, but that last

minutes before the room stopped shaking and Experimant felt confident enough

a quick

here,” Brilliant said, emerging

course you are…”

to know

“Not really-”

Brilliant!” she boasted, slapping herself on the carapace with a front leg. “And that was the best experiment we’ve run so far! The

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

all of you out of the

arrays melted?” Experimant grumbled as she helped the rest of

that’s fine, I got a good look at what they were

I extract your brain to study it, then?” Experimant said, then realised she said it out loud, went to apologise, then shrugged and

off hand, “I can project it if necessary. My brain, that is. Come on! We are on the verge of a breakthrough after this

about, shouting and exclaiming all the while. Assistant hesitantly made her

come on, come on… YES!” Brilliant punched the air with her two front legs as an array embedded into a

to the next. In short order, she’d either repaired or fatally damaged all ten of the outer detectors and started poring over the printed scent-pages of information along with

LOOK AT IT! The kick of power we got by infusing the liquid mana was just what we needed.