I feel a connection form with the gold Blue

* The safest route away from the command center is to the North-East, Then you must turn West, we are on a huge peninsula, almost an island and there is only a small land bridge that connects us to the greater mainland, I do not think that you will be able to outpace any pursuers to it. I would recommend crossing the strait separating us from the mainland directly before disappearing into the forest. Choose a good tide.*

Along with his statement comes a mental map demonstrating some possible routes my group could take. Turning the Blue strides back in the room my Violet had taken it from without any further acknowledgment of our existence.

I stare at my Violet for a second before ordering the group back into movement. Thanks to the gold Blue I had a pretty good idea of how to leave the command center. As my group starts moving down the hall we have to part to allow an even larger group by. This group is made up mostly of large Reds. They walk past us hauling a variety of strange items such as a deconstructed four-poster bed and an enormous copper tub.

Eventually, the group is past and after a few more twists and turns we were out of the Command center and re-enter the defensive works. Off in the distance the sound of artillery spells crashing into the second wall had reached a fast tempo, clearly, the primary lines had fallen completely.

The pushing and shoving necessary to move through the defenses before is no longer difficult, as my Reds, led by my newly blue striped Red, clear a path for my group through the tightly packed Coptos. As we push our way through I muse on the profound changes in my mind. Where once the movement of the individual Coptos looked random now I can see the currents and eddies as other Blues move the groups of Coptos back and forth on different missions and assignments. I can even tell which ones are not currently being influenced.

I snap out of my idle observation with a panicked thought. I quickly turn to my ever more indispensable Violet.

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* We do not have any Greys, if we wish to move quickly we need scouts!*

* Worry not everything has been provided*

I glance at him confused. We are finally clear of the densely packed central defenses and have re-entered the more sparsely populated barricaded area between central command and the secondary lines. No artillery is hitting the shield in front of us, it seems that the general’s advice is sound. The Violet turns and I follow him into an alley.

* observe the gift you have been given*

The Violet connects to one of the many Yellows that make my group. I allow him control and the Yellow walks over to stand in front of the Violet. The Violet places both of his hands on either side of the Yellow’s head. For a second nothing happens, and then the Yellow dissolves, becoming a swirling ball of yellow sand hovering between the hands of the Violet.

* What have you done, you have deconstructed him, why would you waste a unit like that we have no injured*

* Watch*

The Violet connects with one of the Greens, who then walks over to stand in front of the Violet. The Green opens his mouth and I see that instead of the sharp shark-like teeth that most Coptos have the Green has only two curved plates of pseudo-bone covering its jaws. The ball of yellow powder splits into thin streams which flow into the mouth of the Green until the essence of the Yellow has been completely devoured. The abdomen of the Green begins to swell making me think that it’s processing organs are far more advanced than my own dead-end mouth.

* In two hours we shall have four new Greys to use as scouts*

* general amazement*

It was clear to me now what purpose the Greens serve. Before Coptos had been assembled, the lesser ones by Blues like me the greater by the Maker himself. Yet now the assembly process could be done internally in a Copto designed specifically for the task. I wonder for a second what use would have been found for me once these new Greens became common before refocusing.

I re-assume command of the group and we begin to move towards the wall again. The alleys twist and turn between the buildings which are made of poured concrete in this section of the city. I look into the Mundane realm.

In the Mundane realm, the storm is still raging with bits of debris swirling through the air. No humans can be seen and all of the buildings look fairly undamaged. A thin layer of water covers the street, if I was fully in the mortal realm it would be halfway up my shins. Thankfully on the other side, the layer of water is not present. The only similarity I can think of for it here is the charged feeling that fills the air from the enormous amount of magic being employed in the city.

Not long after I stop examining the Mundane, my group reaches the wall. There are not many Coptos here and I don’t see many signs of fighting. It is time to prepare to leave the defenses.