Chapter 53: Raising the Chrysalis (1/2)

Chapter 53: Raising the Chrysalis

Aldrich went over to the Chrysalis and knelt down by it He picked the creature up It was odd, staring at it The Chrysalis was not er than a basketball An entire di this tiny

"It is exceptional that such asuch vast space" Fler'Gan voiced Aldrich's thoughts, thinking the exact sa

"Yeah And I'm excited what this variant can do for me in undeath" Aldrich placed the Chrysalis down and chanted "Serve"

Green energy flowed into the crystal centipede, and as it did so, the ruby red luster of the Chrysalis changed into a dark light ereen

[-10 Mana]

[Mana: 163/183 ] 153/183]

[Units Controlled: 20/22 ] 21/22]

Aldrich intently waited, watching the Chrysalis to see hoould move The Chrysalis uncurled froic s moved for just a few seconds before they froze over and the Chrysalis once more curled back up, completely still

"Hm" Aldrich put a hand to his chin He sensed its intentions "It wants energy Without it, it can't "

"Specifically, an Ether Deposit," said Stella as she came to Aldrich's side with Valera by her side By now, the bloodspitter lizard had regenerated its head, and it strutted forwards beside Aldrich too

"Ether deposit, is it?" Aldrich pondered this

Ether was an odd type of energy that hadIn its purest state, it appeared to be a glohite light with an ato it impossible to stabilize and study

There were even theories that Ether see when confined in laboratories

On its own, Ether orth little to nothing It had zero reactivity nor enerate energy fro more useful

But oddly, in the presence of Alter powers, specifically with Alter Organs and cells, Ether reacted Or perhaps it was the other way round with the organs being capable of interfacing with Ether Soht Alter powers generated Ether - it was an endless debate akin to the question of whether the chicken or the egg caardless, Ether and Alter poere inextricably linked All Alters generated trace energy signatures of Ether, especially when they used their powers The Ether energy signature hat scanners used to detect powers

The denser an Alter's cell count, the stronger the Ether signature they generated

But Ether also occurred naturally in deposits all across the planet Variant ecosystems bloomed around Ether deposits and Alterhumans competed with variants to vie for Ether for in the presence of Ether, Alter powers grew stronger And, her tier techno Alters could fully harness Ether to fuel their sci-fi superweapons, processing the seely useless particle into a hyper-efficient, physics defying energy

"Froround nobody knows exactly where, but they do know that wherever there are Ether deposits, Chrysales aren't far behind They latch onto the deposits, drain them, and fuse with their environments," said Stella "They attract variants usin' Ether and sorta farm em' Variants come and breed and die inside their nests, and whatever dies turns into nutrients Usin' those nutrients, they expand"

She stared down at the Chrysalis's stiff, unuy's all outta' juice And without another deposit to anchor onto, it ain't gonna' be movin', maybe not ever"

"H usable?" said Aldrich

"I figure And in most cases, it takes months to years for a Chrysalis to make a proper nest," said Stella

Aldrich picked up the Chrysalis and wondered whether it orth it to keep the creature Ether deposits were not uncoa corporation did not athered en y, you say?" Fler'Gan clapped his hands together, but because his skin was soft andsound "May I propose, O Elder, a rather interesting potential solution?"

"What is it?" said Aldrich

"Your Phylactery," said Fler'Gan "It may not seey hosted within it Enough such that if fully unleashed, the arcane shockwave alone could flatten half a hu co from it when I held it," said Aldrich

"Because the energy is tightly sealed within Otherwise, it would be far too easy to track the ical trail of the Phylactery, and that defeats the purpose of having a safe, undetectable place to house one's soul, no?" Fler'Gan stretched out an open hand to Aldrich, beckoning for the Phylactery

Aldrichthe learned Mind Eater's decisions

"But perhaps if I undo a few seals…," Fler'Gan hunched over the purple orb and traced his sliils inscribed upon it They glowed blue, and he started to use the tip of one of his lengthy digits to rewrite the letterings

"Watch it, old man Make sure not to blow us all up," said Stella

"You insult me, my dear," said Fler'Gan with a scoff "I am more learned than you could ever be with that brash and impatient attitude of yours Now stay in silence as I work"

Fler'Gan reordered ils over a hundred ti a level of familiarity with the Phylactery that stood as evidence of his decades of research building it

"There" After one htly, and a few crack-like seaht green energy: the color of necroh interest as the Chrysalis in his hand started to twitch, coy It was not Ether, it was nized it

"I sense you are just as excited as I, O Elder," said Fler'Gan "To witness whether this world and our world ether"

Valera patted Stella on the back as she stood up on her o, healed enough by Aldrich's passive [Anti-Life Shell]

"Master… are you sure about this?" Valera said "That Phylactery - you need it to beco will do to it"

"I assure you, Phylacteries are not so fragile a construct," said Fler'Gan "If indeed this creature requires y fornificantly drain the Phylactery's reserves before the Elder halts it or destroys it"

"I'm curious about this too," said Aldrich "I understand your concern, Valera, but I'm alert I've mentally commanded the Chrysalis not to harm the Phylactery at all, only to see if it can absorb thehappens out of the ordinary, I won't hesitate to force the Chrysalis to stop or destroy it if needs be"

"Understood,Chrysalis down Itinto the Phylactery The Chrysalis circled all around the purple orb, curling back into its ouroboric position across the Phylactery's surface

Aldrich waited tensely, seeing if the Chrysalis regained its energy Instead, so unexpected happened

The Chrysalis sunk into the Phylactery like it had fallen into water

"Master!" said Valera