Chrysalis

Morrelia was very grateful not to be on a boat any longer. She would serve no matter where the Legion chose to send her, but she much preferred to have her feet on dry land. However, she didn’t necessarily think her current position was any safer.

“Relax, tribune,” Chyron chuckled. “Unless these monsters are a lot more bloodthirsty than you’ve said they are, we are not under threat.”

The younger woman restrained her glare, as this was her commander.

“I still believe we should exercise caution. We did directly attack their leader in plain view. They could easily use that as an excuse to eliminate our entire Legion.”

She tried not to make her words sound too clipped, but she failed miserably, causing the veteran commander to bark out a short laugh.

“If they kill us, they’ll destroy the reputation they’ve laboured so hard to build. You can’t be an enlightened, peaceful species of monsters and murder entire legions at the same time.”

“With respect, commander, if we were to die here, would anyone know? We are directly beneath the Colony.”

It had been a difficult march, plunging this deep into the tunnels beneath the ant mountain, but commander Chyron had proved her strength and that of her legion. The soldiers under Morrelia’s command had performed admirably, even better than she had expected, and the force had scythed its way through the monsters.

The difference between this and the Liria Legion under commander Titus was stark. It wasn’t that her father was a poor leader, far from it, but that the gap in experience between the rank and file was that wide.

So now they were here, deep within territory newly claimed by the Colony, close to the entrance to the fifth stratum.

“We would get word out, I can assure you of that,” Chyron stated with absolute confidence. “You’re being too much of a worrywort, tribune. We are here to complete a mission. Focus on your duty, not these extraneous concerns.”

Morrelia swallowed her anger. It wasn’t her place to bicker with the commander, even if she did feel the woman was being somewhat cavalier with the lives of her soldiers.

to complete our mission here, commander?” she asked tightly. “The target is in the fifth stratum, while we are here in

soon enough. No one can stay

guilty to the same pro-Legion bias that some of the higher ups were prone to fall into. It

remind you, commander, the stated intention of the Colony is to cleanse the fifth stratum. I have little doubt they are

has been taken without permission. Report any

the commander nodded, “and we are here to confirm whether or not the target has survived the attempt. As unfortunate as it may be, we are in a poor position to complete our objective.

of Legion facilities within that stratum, it wasn’t

a scout approached the command area, breathless after a

“Reporting, commander!”

“Speak.”

the fifth.

nodded as if that was what she’d been expecting

they were down there?”

as if she were talking complete gibberish. “What do

to make any progress in cleansing the

no way to tell,

endeavour, and to be honest, that was the sensible position to take. Yet Morrelia knew better than most just what the Colony

something as insane as this, it

see what progress they

hesitated for a moment before she then

fifth has been a dream for all of Pangera for thousands of years.

pursed her lips as she

information? We can’t go into the fifth and follow them, not with our