Chrysalis

Somonax’s face is twisted into a permanent grin, her needle-pointed teeth as long as a man’s arm flashing in the red light. From her back, the thousand wires spring, each connected to one of a thousand blades.

I’ve used almost all of my Altar energy to tie down Torrifex and Pyrixan for the moment, but I’m doubtful those two bombs will be strong enough to kill them, which means I need to make the most of this two-on-one time I have with this demon of endless slaughter.

[Alright, Al. If you’ve got anything left to give, you better give it now. I’m going to run in and see what I can get done.]

[I will try.]

I’m keen to give him a motivational talk, a bit of the ol’ ‘there is no try’ stuff, but I don’t have it in me right now. I knew running headlong into the tier eight demons was going to be tough, but right now, I feel like I’ve unleashed everything I have and they’re just taking it. Once my Altar runs dry, they’ll be able to squash me like a pancake at festival time.

Time to go for it!

Somonax grins… or… just maintains her normal expression, as I turn and rush directly at her, launching a barrage of compressed stone spears as I do.

Those blades make quick work of the projectiles, shards of stone go flying in all directions as each spear is detonated when cut. I knew she’d be able to defend herself, all I wanted to do was tie down at least some of her limbs as I made my approach.

Dash!

I lunge forward with all my speed the moment I pass within the range of her wires, and it’s a good thing I do. From a dozen different directions, hundreds of those gleaming red blades slash down and the best direction for me to dodge is forward.

Even so, I get a few slices on the rear-guard for my trouble.

always the commercial zone?!

a slash from the demon. She’s not even moving her body at the moment,

receive tingling warnings of hundreds and hundreds of individual movements at

faster and more concentrated the blade attacks become, until I feel I’m facing a storm of swords rather than a demon. She’s basically making a solid wall in front of me! I can’t push forward without

didn’t harden my defences this much to shy away from a few

Here we go!

back ready to bite. Immediately, a rain of blades comes down on me, battering into

Oof!

erupts from Al, spearing toward the demon. Somonax tilts her head and gathers her blades, parrying

A chance!

VOID CHOMP!

to close

THUNK!

stab through my carapace. The force of the strike sends my legs splaying wide and the underside of my carapace slams into the ground, but I maintain my

centimetres into my carapace, almost

mandibles, you

shut, but I don’t

cast about wildly until I realise where the enemy went. She’s above me! She

pulls her thousand blades together, forming them into a gigantic point that she aims straight at my midsection before plummeting down with the force of

fast that dodge was. Not only is she so crazy strong,

I can