Chrysalis

“Something strange is happening,” Zluth said, his voice burbling as if rising from the depths of a particularly thick bog.

“Oh?” Shozzl replied, not particularly interested.

Zluth continued to operate the array with his numerous, spindly limbs as he leaned closer to the readout.

“Many of our monsters are being lost under D-6. Too many.”

“Which mountain is D-6 again?”

“It’s next to D-5.”

“I know it’s next to D-5, you slimeless stooge. How does that help me?”

The fierce, primal anger that dwelt within all his kind boiled up in Zluth now, hissing within his slug flesh. He suppressed it. Those who surrendered to the rage too often soon found it became more difficult to resist. It was hard to find a role within the tribe when one had a nasty habit of biting off the heads of one’s partners. And those without a role were meat for the pits.

“D-5 is claimed by the tree, huccop,” he spat, a thick wave of mucus overflowing from his mouth. “Remember now?”

that had previously

Even now, she defies

continued to operate the array, but subtly turned one stalk to monitor his partner. She was getting a little too heated, and a little caution was

device and sliding it within the

“I won’t,” Shozzl declared.

He cursed. Of all the

be forced to report

that emerged along with his words would have

of the Blubbeast, perhaps you will find your spawn mother there. I’m certain she still lives,” he concluded, eyes

blazing red with her mindless anger, and Zluth raised his limbs for the

he slithered through the slime-soaked

in pain as it was eaten away and reformed itself, struggling to

what is going on up here?” he muttered to himself, checking the readings on his detection array

when someone tampered with the blessed filth of the fifth. This in and of itself wasn’t unusual, the so-called ‘civilised’ races always beat back the slime, but as far as the Slee were aware, this mountain was empty except for those useless termites. Having collected useful samples already, they had hoped to clear out the bugs and nurse a ripe pit of filth within its cavernous halls during this wave. At the last second, they

himself into the ooze. Faster and more agile than a slime-snake, he powered forward, his mucus-drenched foot propelling him

before he saw it. Vibrations, travelling through the slime and even the rock below. There was a

eyes close to his own acidic flesh. He stuck to the shadows and the deeper pools,

was nothing… a group of fourth stratum monsters, spawned by the wave, had attacked the slime and triggered this rage. Except that didn’t explain why it was still going on. The monsters of the fifth were inherently superior to those of the fourth. When the two clashed, it was inevitable