It had been several days since Emery and his group had taken refuge on the Insectoid homeworld. The planet's true name was difficult to pronounce, but throughout the Magus Universe, it was known simply as the Fifth Colony—one of the eight Insectoid homeworlds.
The planet was unlike any place he had ever seen—an endless stretch of chitin-coated cities and sprawling hive-forests that pulsed with muted life. From orbit, the world shimmered like a mosaic of amber and obsidian, its continents divided by vast fungal rivers and crystalized honey lakes that reflected the dim light of its twin suns.
