Chrysalis

[And there you have it, folks. We bring the first half to a close in record time. Blisteringly fast rounds here at the stadium, but I’m certain none of the crowd are disappointed with the action.]

“Absolutely not. We are witnessing history here today, and I for one am just thankful we get another half of this incredible spectacle.”

[You really have to give it to the Endless. Every round, on offence or defence, they’ve tried something different and shown us some incredible play. Fast passing, decoy balls, innovative trap setups, unique formations. Against any other opposition, they would be dominating this game.]

“I quite agree. This is a performance that lives up to the team and its formidable reputation, but despite outnumbering their opponent ten to one, despite their experience and superior tactics, it simply isn’t enough to overcome the difference. If all twenty of them were out there, I’m not sure it would be enough.”

[Well, it’s break time. Tea and biscuits are being served here in the recording booth and down on the field to the players. It looks like… yes, actually, someone has gone ahead and made the Eldest a cake! What a lovely touch, making sure they feel welcome here on the second stratum of the Dungeon.]

“And WHAT a cake! You could feed three weddings with that thing, but it still looks tiny before the Great One. Hopefully they don’t overeat before we head into the second half. Commentant and I will take a brief rest, and then we’ll be back to analyse the first half and bring you all the action in the second.”

~~~

Holy moly. I can’t believe those little ants almost managed to knock me over!

I came within a whisker of being dumped into a hole by ants so small I can walk over them. What a grand sight that would have been, the mighty Eldest knocked over by hatchlings barely out of their cocoons. I would have had to retire to the fourth stratum and bury myself in a hole to escape the embarrassment!

Thankfully, I managed to hold my ground and make it look like it wasn’t close. I don’t feel quite so bad with that point on the board. If the first half had ended without me scoring a point….

Stupid rules!

But it’s halftime, which I understand involves a break in proceedings, which is nice. I’ll just flop down onto the ground.

CRUNCH!

Ahhhh. Nice. It’s good to stretch out the legs every now and again, give them a bit of a wiggle in the air. Across from me, the Endless are similarly resting, though not as efficiently as I am, the fools. Solant is talking to everyone, probably gathering information, or talking about mixing up their strategies.

it

overwhelming power, and then I proved it. There’s nothing they can do to stop me repeating the

there’s stuff being delivered out to the field?

a table right in front me, upon which they place the largest cup of tea I’ve

I mean… what?

break, but I thought that was just phrasing! Are you telling me this is literally a

and sipping

indicating they’ll have a nice crunch, and the tea smells nice, but… I’ve never eaten human food since becoming a monster. I have no idea if the taste buds even work the same

Here goes nothing….

lower my head toward the cup, letting my mouth come into contact with the

HOT!

But tasty….

tea is quite refreshing! A certain depth of flavour that leaves the palate feeling cleansed

as well give

Nibble.

I haven’t tasted in this entire lifetime. It’s almost

And what’s this?!

MASSIVE, decorated cake. It still looks small to me, but this cake must be almost the size of

that the characters and scenes rendered with remarkable skill on the icing are mostly pictures of me during my various exploits…. I can even recognise a few motifs

Not satisfied with plastering my face on every bit of flat rock you can get your

of these days… I

take a bite. I barely got to eat any cake as a human,

~~~

asked, looking

agree,” the general said, “attempting to inhibit the Eldest’s performance through underhanded means is completely