Forbidden Flowers

by Dragonqueen5900

Chapter 1: Coffee in Manehatten

The train pulls up at Hayston station, screeching to a halt and letting off its passengers. A changeling Heer officer steps off the train, carrying a large brown suitcase in her green magic. She takes a moment to breathe in and appreciate the sights and sounds. Hayston station is huge, made as the hub of travel for the entire eastern Equestrian seaboard. Long, black banners emblazoned with the trident of the Changeling Hegemony hang from the ceiling at regular intervals, illuminated from spotlights shining down on each of them. Sunlight pours through the domed, glass roof, providing the rest of the station’s light and causing an echo-like effect for the many conversations being held below. Ponies and changelings alike meander through the crowds, entering and exiting their respective trains or passing through customs. Some armed Heer soldiers stand near the exit, on the lookout for any trouble. It looks and feels so different from the hives, but not in a bad way. This place feels more inviting if nothing else.

Nyceris smiles, excited to finally be deployed, especially to somewhere so thrilling as Manehatten. It’s been one year since the Great War ended, and while she was in officer’s training during that time, she knows that there is still much to be done to secure Equestria, and for that, is ready to serve the Hegemony. She pulls her suitcase along as she begins walking towards customs. There is a long line of ponies standing in front of it, and another, much shorter line for changelings. She goes and stands in that line and waits. While waiting she can’t help but think about her future here.

“Okay Nyceris, you got this. This is what you’ve been training for.” She thinks, straightening her hat with her magic. “I hope I get somewhere exciting! Maybe near Bridleway? Regardless, it’s bound to be better than the academy.”

The line shortens, and eventually it is her turn. She steps forward towards the somewhat imposing customs station. A changeling officer sits in the booth, holding a ledger and a pen in his magic as his eyes meet hers. “Name and reason for visit?” He asks blandly, clearly too bored to put any emotion into his words.

She clears her throat and speaks. “Oberfeldwebel Nyceris. I’m here on deployment for the city garrison.”

He suddenly looks much more alert, and sharply salutes. “Oberfeldwebel! Apologies ma’am, I didn’t see your rank badge.”

Nyceris feels a tinge of embarrassment at the overly respectful display, adjusting her uniform with her hoof out of habit. Since she doesn’t want to make the same mistake, she looks at his badges to check. “At ease Unteroffizier. I just need to get through here to head to my post.”

“Of course, ma’am.” She hands him her documents, and he takes them with his magic, easing his posture. “Anything to declare?”

“No. Just my carry-on bag.” She gestures to her suitcase. He nods, and stamps her passport, then hands it back to her.

“Welcome to Manehatten officer.”

“Thank you.” She puts away her documents and carries on through the gate towards the station’s exit. She nods to the soldiers on her way past, and they respectfully nod back.

She emerges into the streets of Manehatten, and is instantly swarmed with all the sights and sounds and smells of the city in the morning. There are ponies absolutely everywhere, mixed together with the occasional changeling, including several patrols marching through. Multi-story brick apartments line the streets, with cars of all sorts driving down the roads in the middle. The sounds of conversation, car engines, and other big city noises are nearly overwhelming, and the smells of food, oil, concrete, and ponies is similarly hard to deal with. Despite it all, Nyceris’ eyes widen, and she can’t help but feel drawn to the place. “This is all so different from back in the Hives, but I think I am going to like it here.”

Shaking her head to pull herself out of her trance, she begins trying to orient herself. “Now, just to head to the right guardpost.” She pulls out the paper containing her orders and reads it. “District 7, southeast Bronclyn, position TBA by superior.” She flutters her translucent wings as much as would be acceptable in public. “Down near the port! I bet a ton of stuff happens there! Now I just need to get a bus.”

She searches for a little bit, being forced to ask some passing soldiers for directions, but eventually finds herself a bus stop, and boards once it arrives. She takes a seat near the window, throwing her suitcase in the seat next to her. She looks out the window and watches the scenery pass by as the bus ferries her to her destination. Hundreds of apartments and shops pass by, signs and entryways zooming past her vision as the bus carries along. She looks down at all the pedestrians going about their business. “There’s so many ponies here. I don’t think I’ve seen this many in my entire life.” A small pit forms in her stomach, causing her to worry. She knows she’s good at her job, and has all the training the Hegemony can offer, but despite that she still feels nervous. “What if I’m not good enough to control them? What if they try to fight back and I can’t stop them?”

Her thoughts carry on like that for a while until she finds her resolve. “No. I have to do my best, and it will be enough. There’s nothing that a bunch of ponies can throw at me that I can’t handle.” She smiles, thinking about ponies trying in vain to stop the Hegemony.

A few minutes pass, and she is suddenly drawn back to the world when she hears the squeal of the bus’s breaks. She looks around and notices that she is at her stop, somewhere in southeastern Bronclyn. The vague smell of salt hits her nose as the doors open, and she shuffles into the aisle, grabbing her suitcase in her magic. Stepping out onto the dull, concrete sidewalk, Nyceris pulls out her orders and reads them again, just to reassure herself. She looks up once more, and checks the names of the nearest streets. “SE Trotter’s Way and Celestial Ave? Who names their streets like that?! Numbers are way more efficient!” She hangs her head downward and her face scrunches in frustration. “Stupid ponies don’t even know how to name things properly. How am I supposed to find where I’m going like this?”

She tries wandering around at random, hoping that her destination is nearby, but instead she just wastes a bunch of time going through unfamiliar streets, passing unfamiliar buildings and unfamiliar ponies. Eventually, she starts to get desperate. She spots a pair of changeling soldiers patrolling on the other sidewalk, and she briskly walks across the street towards them, waving a hole-filled leg to let them know she’s coming. “Sorry to bother you, I am trying to find the District 7 HQ, but I am a bit lost. Could you point me in the right direction?”

The two soldiers obey without word, and the one on the left points her hoof down a nearby street. Nyceris nods her head in acknowledgement. “Thank you. Carry on.”

The soldiers give her a quick salute and continue along their patrol. She follows their instructions and travels along the road they pointed at. After about a block and a half of walking past more same-looking brick apartments and shops, she arrives at a large corner building with the words ‘District 7’ written over the front entrance. It is three stories tall, with Hegemony banners draped over all the windows of the second and third floors. Relieved to have finally arrived, Nyceris walks towards the entry door. There is a guard posted outside, though she looks bored out of her mind, and is leaning against the wall smoking a cigar.

Nyceris approaches her and greets her in an official-sounding voice. “Hello. Is this the District 7 headquarters?”

The guard turns towards her and looks up at her officer’s cap. Her eyes go wide and she pulls her cigar out, coughing out smoke. After taking a second to pull herself together, the guard stands at attention and salutes. “Officer, ma’am. My apologies for my slackness.”

Nyceris gives her an awkward smile. “As you were soldat, it’s alright. I just need to meet with the district commander. Are they present?”

She loosens up some more, and hastily responds. “Yes ma’am. He is on the second floor. Go right on ahead.” She gestures with her hoof to the door.

“Thank you soldat… um…” She looks to her to answer.

“Retrin ma’am.”

“Thank you Retrin.” She opens the door with her hoof and walks through, paying her no further heed.

The inside of the headquarters is made up of brick walls and a wood floor, with vertical windows spaced evenly along the outward faces of the building. There are several soldiers sitting at a group of circular tables off to the right, playing card games and doing general camaraderie, and in front of her is a long reception desk with an officer sitting in a chair using a typewriter. The left of the room is blocked off by a wall, with a closed door on the far side and an open area with stairs leading up. From the looks of it, this had to have been some type of inn or hotel before being repurposed for the military.

The officer looks to her as the door closes behind her. “Ah, you must be the new officer the commander requested.”

Nyceris nods. “Yes, I am. Oberfeldwebel Nyceris reporting.”

She hears some shuffling sounds, and sees that the officer is looking through a pile of papers which she assumes are her documents. After a minute, he finds the one he’s looking for and looks up to meet Nyceris’ eyes again. “Here you are Oberfeldwebel.” He hands over a piece of paper to her using his magic. “Just read that over and sign at the bottom.” He pauses for a second before continuing. “This is just to make sure that your arrival is recorded and such. Bureaucratic stuff.”

“Right. Do you have a pen? I seem to have forgot mine.” She says, somewhat ashamed of the fact.

“Of course.” He pulls out a pen and places it next to the paper.

She skims over the document and signs her name on the line, then hands it back to the officer. He smiles, and points towards the stairs. “The commander is in his office, fourth door on the right on the second floor.”

She nods appreciatively “Right. Thank you.”

He nods back, and Nyceris pulls her suitcase along as she makes towards the stairs, but she is interrupted by the officer before she arrives. “You can leave your baggage with me until you come back down.”

“Of course, thank you again.” She floats her bag over, dropping it behind the desk, and heads up the stairs.

The second floor consists of a hallway with stairs at the opposite side and two more hallways branching to the left and right of the center. There are doors along the walls, several of which are open, as command staff rush between them going about their business, the sounds of planning and organizing abound. The electric lighting was clearly put in long after the building was built, making Nyceris wonder how old these buildings actually are.

She walks past the other changelings, who mostly seem to ignore her, just moving around her if needed. At last, she arrives at the fourth door, and knocks twice. She hears the word “Enter” in a deep, authoritative double-toned voice.

Nyceris turns the handle with her magic and pushes the door open. Inside is a well-kept changeling officer with red, iris-less eyes and a small nick in his left ear. He is sitting behind a stately desk, with a window behind him obscured by a black banner, leaving most of the room’s light to come from a single domed ceiling lamp. There is a leather couch to the side of the room, and a coat rack behind the desk. She notices the officer’s rank and performs a crisp salute.

Looking up from a report he was reading, the officer glances her up and down before speaking. “At ease. You must be Oberfeldwebel Nyceris, correct?”

She relaxes, putting her hoof down. “Yes sir.”

He seems content. “Good. Please, have a seat.” He says, gesturing to the two chairs set in front of his desk. Nyceris obeys, and goes to sit down, closing the door behind her. He waits for her to do so and then continues speaking. “My name is Leutnant Caracin. I am the commander of the District 7 garrison.”

“Well met.”

He nods, then puts his hooves together on the desk. “I figure we’ll just get right down to business if you don’t mind.” He takes her lack of response to mean she does not. “Right. So District 7 has had some problems facing terror attacks since Manehatten was first pacified. When I took command recently, I requested more soldiers to fill the garrison. We are now having a dedicated patrol squadron for every neighborhood in the district, and that is why you are here.”

Nyceris makes sure her face is paying the utmost attention, but her mind can’t help but stay on what he just said. “Terror attacks? Have the ponies really been putting up substantial resistance even a year after they surrendered? That can’t be right… it has to just be accidents or foreign spies or something.” She notices her mind drifting and returns her focus to his words.

“…and because of that I will be assigning you to the Portside neighborhood. Mostly residential, within walking distance of the wharf. The nicer housing units in the area have been seized for use by changelings of course, so you’ll be living there. Specifics of your location and duties can be found in this file.”

He pushes forward a manila folder with the changeling trident on it. Nyceris grabs it, and turns back to the Leutnant. “Thank you sir. I will fulfill my duties to the best of my ability in the name of the Queen.”

“See that you do.”

As Nyceris stands to leave, Leutnant Caracin raises his hoof. “One more thing. I read your report from the academy. It seemed to me that you get along well with one Feldwebel Scutellum who was in the same class as you. Seeing as how we need everyling working at their best, I took the liberty of having him deployed here to work with you.”

Nyceris can hardly believe what she’s hearing. “Scutellum is here?!” She says, trying to contain the elation in her voice. He was a classmate of hers in the academy. They would always sit next to each other in class, and were pretty close outside of school as well.

“Yes, he arrived just yesterday. He should already be on duty down in Portside now.”

“Thank you very much sir.” She says as she salutes, happiness clearly present as she speaks. “We won’t let you down.”

He waves her away, and Nyceris is sure she catches the barest hint of a smile as he does so. She makes sure to take the file folder with her and leaves the room, turning to head back downstairs. The soldiers playing cards seem to be in the process of returning to their duty, leaving the room feeling much less jovial than it did moments prior.

She opens the file once she gets to the bottom and reads the contents. It provides instructions for her duties in detail, as well as her new living accommodations and address. It comes with a list of subordinates, as well as defining the area for which she will oversee. She only skims it for now, mainly focused on the address so she knows where to go.

She folds the file back up and makes for the exit. Seeing her approach, the reception desk officer floats her suitcase over the desk to her, and she picks it up with her own magic. She smiles at him. “Thank you for holding my bag.”

“No problem Ma’am. Good luck with your duties.”

Nyceris opens her suitcase and places the file folder inside so she doesn’t lose it. She notices a shelf next to the door she didn’t see on her way in. It contains a number of brochures and other papers, seemingly about the district and regulations and the sort. Spotting a pile of maps among them, she seizes one with her hoof and leaves the building, walking past Retrin on her way.

She travels by hoof to her destination, following the newly acquired map the best she can. The city’s layout is nothing short of chaotic, and everything is named instead of just having numbers like she’s used to, but despite that she manages to reach her garrison post just fine.

The exterior of the Portside garrison post is very similar to the District 7 headquarters, but much smaller and with only one side facing the street. She opens the door and walks in. The building clearly used to be a store, with empty display windows to the left and right in the front and a counter to the left. Stairs leading both up and down are on the far side, and a pair of soldiers stand off to the right, talking about nothing of consequence.

Nyceris takes a deep breathe, committing this place to memory. This is her post, and the soldiers here under her command. “I can hardly believe I’m finally here! I’ve dreamed of this day since enrolling in the academy, and it’s finally happening! And Scutellum should be here too!” She looks around, not seeing anyling besides the two soldiers. “Perhaps he's upstairs?”

She goes upstairs into what seems to be a repurposed apartment. There are several office spaces in the open area with several changelings working at them, and sure enough one of them is the changeling she's looking for. She strides forward, smiling warmly. “Scutellum! It’s good to see you!”

The slender, green-eyed changeling looks up from his paperwork, and upon seeing her his face stretches into a smile as well. “You’re finally here! Welcome to Portside!” His voice is cunning and smooth, just as she remembers.

Standing directly to the side of his desk now, Scutellum has to stand too, to face her properly. “Thank you! I’m glad to finally be here.”

“And just in time too. You may be the commanding officer here, but until you arrived I was, so I’ve been doing your paperwork for you.” He levitates a big stack of papers and files and drops them in front of Nyceris.

Her smile turns to faux fear. “Do I really have to do all of this?

“Yep. It’s not easy running a garrison squadron you know. You’re lucky I didn’t just save it all for you to do.”

She scoffs. “I guess.”

“But we can do that later. You just got here, and most of the squadron is on patrol right now. Why don’t we both take a little time off to celebrate your arrival, hm?”

She looks at him quizzically. “What do you have in mind?”

He speaks as he walks out from his office space. “Well, we used to get coffee a lot at the academy, so I was thinking we could go to a café or something. I saw a nice-looking one while on patrol last night. We could check it out if you’d like?”

Nyceris smiles. “That sounds great! Can I just leave my suitcase here for now? I haven’t had a chance to go to my housing unit yet.”

He points to an area next to his desk. “You can just leave it there. We can pick it up when we get back.”

“Okay. Thanks.” She moves the suitcase over to the spot he specified and leaves it there as the pair head downstairs.

They walk out onto the sidewalk, catching up on things they missed. Scutellum is telling Nyceris all about his one day as if he’s been here for months. “…but yeah, Portside isn’t the most flashy place in Manehatten or anything, but it has some character. The apartments we get are much bigger than the housing units in the hives, and nicer too.” Nyceris is listening as they walk, thinking about all the things she will be able to do here.

Scutellum continues. “And the ponies around here pretty much do anything you say. It’s great.”

Nyceris gives him a suspicious glance. “You’re not abusing that power too much I hope?”

He smiles flatly in response. “Don’t worry, I have my fun every once in a while but I know my limits.”

“Uh huh. Sure.”

Scutellum picks up on her sarcasm, and looks a little offended. “Hey! I’ve become much more professional since I graduated you know. I’m responsible now.” He stops and pounds his chest with his hoof.

“I’ll believe it when I see it.”

He sighs, then moves to keep up pace with her. “I suppose I deserve that. Still, we’ll be working together from now on, so I’ll have plenty of chances to prove it.”

They carry on in silence for a few minutes, allowing Nyceris to look around a bit. She notices two ponies, seemingly a father and child, coming in the opposite direction they are. Upon seeing her and Scutellum, the father ushers his foal into the street to allow them to pass. She meets eye contact with him for a brief moment, but he quickly looks away, clearly fearful. She doesn’t know why, but the exchange makes her stomach churn.

Scutellum meanwhile, remains completely unfazed. He keeps heading forward, and before she knows it, they have reached the place he was leading them to. “Ah, here it is. Quaint, isn’t it?”

Nyceris looks up at the words printed on the glass walls of the first floor. It says ‘Olive Branch Café’ in bold, white letters with a green outline, written in Equestrian. Inside it looks like a fairly cozy café, not unlike those in the hives. There are some tables off to the side with chairs next to them set up against the dark green wallpaper, several of which have patrons, mostly ponies but with some changelings as well, sitting at them, sipping their drinks and eating their pastries. At the back of the room is the serving counter, where a pair of ponies move about, taking orders and filling drinks for their customers.

She turns to Scutellum. “It looks rather nice. Shall we?”

He gestures towards the door with one hoof. “After you.”

Nyceris pulls the door open with magic, and a small bell attached to the handle jingles quietly. The two officers walk into the café, drawing the attention of a few ponies, who try to look like they are not watching them. “It's not like we're here to hurt you. Go back to your coffee.”

She walks up to the cashier, looking at the menu written on a chalkboard hung above the counter. She can read Equestrian pretty well, but many of the names for menu items include words she’s pretty sure are from other languages. After finding something she actually recognizes, she turns towards the barista. “I’ll have a…”

She finds herself paused for a moment as she meets eyes with the pony in front of her. She is an earthpony, with a deep purplish-red coat and a cream-colored mane tied up in a bun. She is wearing a plain, green apron and glasses, which only serve to accent her rose-colored eyes. Her face is quite pretty for a pony, but looks unsure. Then her muzzle opens to speak. “Yes?” She says, sounding a little nervous.

Nyceris shakes her head to refocus herself and tries again. “I’ll have a medium caramel latte please.”

The strangely entrancing pony nods, and picks up a pen with her mouth, writing it down on a piece of paper. She then looks up to Scutellum for his order. Nyceris stands off to the side while he tells the pony his order. “I’ll have a double expresso and a vanilla scone.”

The pony writes down his order and very politely says “I'll have that for you in just a minute.”

Scutellum throws a couple of bits on the counter, and Nyceris goes and sits down at an empty table, followed shortly thereafter by Scutellum. He gives her that look that says he’s trying to figure something out about her, which has always made her uncomfortable. In an attempt to change his focus, she starts conversation. “So, how are the other changelings at our post? Do they… do good work?”

Her ploy seems to have worked somewhat, as he shifts mostly back to his normal half smile. “Yes, they do. Though not much happens around here so they are mostly just bored. Maybe you should try giving them some more exciting things to do than patrol. I’m sure that’d boost morale and whatnot.”

“Maybe. Though what would I even give them to do?”

He looks at her wryly. “I don’t know, I’m sure you’ll think of something.”

The pony from before comes over carrying a tray in her mouth. She places it on their table gently as to not spill the drinks. “Thank you.” Nyceris says softly. The pony quickly nods in acknowledgement and hurries off.

She pulls her latte off the tray and brings it to her mouth, ready to take a sip when Scutellum remarks on her words. “You know you don’t have to say ‘thank you’ to ponies right?”

Nyceris lowers her coffee, opening her mouth to speak without thinking but deciding better of it. Her ‘thank you’ was very much not intentional, but he doesn’t need to know that. So she quickly comes up with something to say as justification. “Well, I’m trying to show that ponies don’t need to be afraid of us, and it would be hard to do that if we don’t ever speak to them properly.”

Scutellum suppresses a laugh. “Changelings are supposed to dominate ponies, not befriend them.”

She looks down nervously. “I know, but still. It would be nice…”

For once he doesn’t speak, instead taking a bite out of his scone. She takes the opportunity to sip her coffee. “Hm, it’s pretty good for something not made in the hives.”

The two finish their drinks in silence so awkward it's palpable, then get up to leave. “I rather like this place; we should come back sometime.” She says nonchalantly, hoping that Scutellum has already forgotten about their previous conversation.

“Sure, it can be our new place like we had back in Vesalipolis.”

“I’d like that.”

The two changeling officers walk out of the café, ready to return to their duties in service of the Hegemony.

Author's Note:

Thanks for reading the first chapter of my first fic on this site! Hopefully you enjoyed, and I appreciate feedback if you have it.