...feed...

Feed!

My hunger woke me. There was a hole in my gut, squirming with maggots that gnawed at my insides. Their number grew with each passing moment, spreading to weaken my limbs and cloud my mind.

Feed...

I was desperate for love. But there was nothing here.

Feed...

I just needed to hold out a little longer. Tomorrow, Surprise had said. Tomorrow we could escape. She had whispered their plan to me: during our next training session, Rolling would cause a distraction, either by sniper fire or explosives, if he could find any. Then we could use the chaos to escape. It was a simple plan, and that worried me, but it was better than any more time spent here. Trapped and starving.

Feed!

The lights in the room burst on. Everyone else in the room stirred. I heard Tumbleweed groan. Before I could wonder what was happening, the door behind me opened. I dragged myself out of the way, wobbling as I stood. A wave of nausea passed over me. It was Gleaming Armor.

“Good morning, my little ponies,” he intoned. “I have joyous news!” He paused, making sure all eyes were open and on him. “Today we march! The Steel Rangers approach, and we must catch them en route. We will crush them on the warpath, and you all shall be apart of our vanguard. Now hurry and get ready. We set off in an hour.” He stepped back and the door slammed shut. Silence held the room as we all processed the announcement.

“Fucking bullshit,” Surprise said. Fishhooks slumped back into bed. Tumbleweed slammed a hoof into the nearest wall.

“Aw hell...” muttered Hairpins. “Not th’ Rangers...

I leaned against a bedpost, too exhausted to feel anything but my hunger. Tulip began sobbing.

Why now? Why today? What had I done to deserve this chain of misfortunes? Would they even give us weapons? I doubted it. We were their cannon fodder.

“Shit,” Surprise muttered, “shit, shit, shit.” We exchanged a knowing look, but said nothing. We had not told the others of our plan so there was no risk of letting it slip. I slightly different circumstances I may have felt bad about excluding fellow prisoners, but it was hard to summon real sympathy for former slavers.

I let my legs give out and slid onto the floor. I was so tired already, and we were about the march to war. There was nothing to do but wait.

Bomb collars again. I didn't react as one was clipped around my neck. The others muttered words of protest, but the soldiers who were guarding us made no comment. We were outside the plantation, being lined up for the march to war. There were other ponies here, besides the slavers, ponies I had never seen before. A few did not have bomb collars, Surprise among them, but most of those ponies were New Canterlot soldiers. They barked orders as Goldstone oversaw us. He stood at the front of our growing formation, his nose shriveled up in disgust. We were garbage.

“Do not protest this weight around your neck,” a voice from behind us declared. “It is merely the physical manifestation of the weight upon your soul. Die gloriously for us today, and you shall be remembered. Lead us to victory, and you take a great leap forward on your path toward redemption. Betray us, or let your cowardice control you, and we will not so much as acknowledge your entrails as we march through them toward our glorious future.” Gleaming Armor’s voice was amplified somehow. Though he was nowhere near us his words boomed in my ears. They were met with silence.

Goldstone began speaking. Giving us orders and laying out our plan of attack. I didn't pay attention. I didn't even try to. I was so weak I could barely stand. He gave a final shout, and suddenly we were moving. I shambled after the pony in front of me, glancing around one last time, hoping for a glimpse of Surprise. My only chance of escape lay with her and Rolling.

...feed...

We marched past Bulbs, and a crowd watched us pass by. Some waved, and a few cheered.

“Kick their asses!” one of the ponies hollered.

...feed...

We plodded down the road, a loose formation of four rows of three. The slavers and I made up the first two rows, while the ponies I had not recognized made up the rest. Goldstone and another soldier flanked us at a distance. Behind them the rest of New Canterlot marched in lockstep, banners waving overhead. Gleaming, Aegis, and Lute were at their front.

I had never been past Bulbs, but I was still intimately familiar with the terrain here: desolate farmland, pavement that bled into dirt and mud, a cold steel sky, and not a hill or building for miles. It stretched on for hours. We broke for a meal twice, and encountered nothing on our journey until the sun was setting. As the clouds blackened with night, I saw a faint light appear on the horizon. As we continued forward I watched it grow from a faint twinkle to a pulsing blob. It then separated into many smaller lights, and I realized I was looking at a city. Not a factory like Bulbs, but an actual live settlement made of buildings.

The lights I had been watching shone from the tops of several houses, blinking on and off with a rainbow of colors. As we grew ever closer, sound began to come forth from the town as well. As I listened I realized it was music. The same upbeat pattern repeated over and over, steadily increasing in volume. As the settlement came fully into view the music became an overwhelming blare, and I saw the source: hundreds of small, floating metal balls that bobbed around in the air. The massive clinking mess surrounded the apparent entrance to the town, a road that lead inward where I could see more lights and the silhouettes of several ponies moving around in the night.

It was totally dark now, save for the lights from the town and the those glinting off the cloud of strange speakers. I was eager to see inside the town, but though several others in our vanguard also raised their heads to stare Golstone urged us on, telling us not to even consider wasting our time. We kept on the main road, and the sights and sounds were soon swallowed by the darkness behind us.

“What was that?” I asked no one in particular.

“Seeds,” Holster replied.

“Ya don’t know?” Hairpins asked. “Ah’m surprised. Seems like th’ kinda place you’d like.”

Goldstone shushed us before I had a chance to ask what she meant by that and we marched on, until darkness engulfed us.

...feed...

Much later, I awoke, then groaned in pain as an intense ray of light shone into my eyes. I rolled over, and stood to find Goldstone looking down at me. It was still dusk; his horn was the source of the light.

“Come with me, Private,” he demanded. “Quickly.”

...feed...

I followed. I had almost no energy left. I let my head droop, and I watched Goldstone’s hooves as they scraped up the damp ground. He lead me up a hill, which surprised me. We had marched for long hours after passing Seeds before finally stopping to rest, so I had absolutely no idea where we were. The climate here was very different than the rest of the Fields. Grass grew on the hill, making the dirt feel solid and springy, and a light breeze was blowing, bringing with it the faint smell of the sea. I was surprised I recognized that smell, but I had no time to ponder this new information; we had reached the top of the hill.

“Sir, I brought it.”

“Thank you, Goldstone,” Gleaming Armor said. He sat at a long, low table, across from Lute. Maps strewn with markers were spread out between them. Lute used her magic to illuminate them in the darkness. “Dismissed.”

Goldstone nodded, and headed back down the hill. I stood, swaying slightly as my weariness and hunger beat down upon me. Sleep had done nothing for me. Gleaming and Lute continued to examine the maps before them, whispering strategy to each other. The first rays of light crept across the horizon.

...feed...

Finally, Gleaming Armor turned to address me.

“Changeling. I’m sure you’re wondering why I summoned you.”

I was not. I was thinking about how I might ever get love out of this situation. I had one idea, one I’d had for a while, but I did not like it. Not at all.

Gleaming frowned when I did not respond. “I want to ask you, are you still sure you cannot turn into Applejack? It would be such an impactful symbol! The Steel Rangers practically worship her, we hear."

“No,” I said. “I can’t.”

“Very well.” He sighed. “Regardless, I have some good news for you: I have pulled you from the vanguard. You will not be participating in this battle.” He smiled at me

I did not feel happy. This did not help me much. I was still hungry. I still needed love.

...feed...

Gleaming Armors face fell again when I did not react. “What? Would you rather be sent out to die?”

“Why?” I managed to ask.

He shrugged. “Simple, really. You are the only changeling we have, and there is still so much about you we do not understand. Not to mention your potential usefulness. It would be a shame to waste you by sending you out to die with the rest of those earth ponies.” He paused. I didn’t react. “You should be grateful,” he insisted. “You will be witness to our greatest victory yet. Our first real battle against the Steel Rangers!”

“Thanks,” I grumbled. I felt a small hint of satisfaction from him, but that made me more desperate for real feelings. Another pang of hunger struck me, and I fell forward onto one knee. “Love...” I sputtered, trying to stand back up.

“What?” Gleaming tilted his head. Lute looked up from her battle planning. “What did you say?”

“Love,” I repeated. I couldn't stop myself from speaking. “I’m... starving.”

“Did you not eat at the mess?” he asked

“Not food... I need love. I have no love.”

...feed...

Gleaming Armor laughed. “Love? So you actually need it to survive? Does food do nothing for you?” He leaned in toward me, looking over me like some new pet.

“Yes,” I whispered. “I need love.”

“How unfortunate for you, then. Neither my soldiers nor I have the time for love, and I would certainly never risk you using your magic near us, even just to play at love for your benefit.” He frowned. “But I cannot have you dying on us.”

“No magic,” I said. “The ring does not stop my eating. Love, happiness... anything. I just need some.... some good emotions.” I stopped myself from saying anything further; from begging for him to let me change into Rarity again and let him act on his lust for her form. The thought of it made me queasy, yet there was still a primal urge to surrender myself to him. It would feed me. I didn't have to like it. It would feed me.

Feed...

Lute smirked. “No wonder you maggots all died in the war.”

“Yes,” Gleaming agreed. “If that is the case, then worry not, Changeling. Our coming victory will bring plenty of ‘good emotions.’ Our men will be filled with triumphant pride, and we will celebrate exuberantly this coming evening.” He grinned widely.

I nodded. A small relief. I doubted his words, but even if New Canterlot did win i did not know how long a single night of victorious revelry would sustain me. Gleaming turned back to his planning, and I sunk to the ground to rest. I thought of Surprise and Rolling, and wondered if either could save me from this mess. I drifted off, daring to hope that I might wake up to freedom.

The air swirled with ash and dust. We tried not to breath as we moved together in a huddle, the few of us who remained.

"Why... why do we make this journey?" Maggy rasped. She walked in front of me, looking up at the Queen as she spoke. Her legs wobbled with each step. All of ours did. The ache of hunger was constant in our minds. We could not even muster the energy to fly. "Why can we not sleep with the others?"

The Queen did not answer with words. She continued moving forward, over scorched earth and the ash that had once been a lush jungle. Only a few stumpy trees had mustered the strength to persist here.

We cannot sleep. If we all sleep, we will all die in our slumber. We must find love. We must find... something.

We had not found the crystals. The Wasteland had beaten us down too quickly. We had... retreated. To our home. To rest in our old castle. The one we had founded all those years ago, before the war. Before the world's end. Now, the Queen had woken us few. We had slept long, but we were not rested. Our Queen had not found love. Not even a morsel. She sent us visions of her failure, and those nightmares were heavy on my mind.

Our hunger will end, my children. Soon. Soon. I was too eager to find the crystals, but now that we have waited, the Wasteland is beginning to recover. Just a little further, my children, I will show you.

We crested a hill, and pain overwhelmed us as the heavens burst open with a blinding light.

I gasped as I jolted awake, and felt myself flying through the air. A moment later I hit the ground and slid down the hillside. I stopped shortly and lay there, sprawled out as I oriented myself. There was shouting all around me, the sound of gunfire, explosions, and the distant boom of canons. My vision was blurry but soon cleared, and I became aware of a pain on my rump. I stood up, and the pain shot down to my leg. I fell back down. A few feet above me Gleaming Armor giggled, and I looked at the hilltop. The prince held a trio of shimmering orange shields between himself and three Steel Rangers. Their suits were slimmer and each possessed much less weaponry than ones I had seen before; only a single canon along the right side of their bodies and two thin barrels on the left. Lute, her horn crackling with red lightning, stood at the prince’s side, murder on her muzzle.

The Steel Rangers spread out to flank the pair. Gleaming laughed, and vaulted forward. His shields dropped, and Lute let loose a volley of lasers. The Steel Rangers dodged and returned fire, but immediately Gleaming’s shields went back up. One of their bullets ricocheted and sunk into the ground in front of me with a wet sucking sound. I dragged myself sideways, trying to get out of the crossfire. An explosion tore through the hill above me as the Steel Rangers switched to their canons, and I heard Lute grunt as she was caught in the shockwave. She fell, and Gleaming staggered as well. His shields flickered and died. He slumped to the ground, and as one the Steel Rangers took aim. The boom of their cannons turned into a scream as Gleaming’s shields materialized only feet in front of their barrels. The Steel Rangers vanished in the smoke and dust of their own explosives, and I felt Gleaming Armor’s exhilaration as he popped back to his feet. He laughed again, giddy and boyish. The sound made my skin crawl.

I lay on the slope and breathed while the smoke cleared. The only sounds of battle were those in the distance. Lute groaned as she brought herself back to her feet. By now my earlier pain had subsided, and I stood as well. Below us, war was waged in the remnants of a river. The force of New Canterlot dashed around the battlefield, avoiding explosions and taking cover behind the waterlogged corpses of tiny twisted trees. Smokey specters danced above the riverbed, a runny sludge that had been overturned to expose wiry shrubs and shredded roots. The Steel Rangers held the opposing bank, launching artillery and a hail of bullets at the oncoming horde of white soldiers. The NCs responded with a fiery rainbow of magic. Most used lasers like Lute, red and searing, but several employed more creative magic. I saw many teleport in a blink of blue to the sides of Steel Rangers and blast their weaponry. A few used the purple grip of telekinesis to throw off their aim. Others simply hurled mud or used flashes of light to blind them. I saw several project orange shields, both as walls and as bubbles, but they lacked the durability of Gleaming Armor’s magic. I thought it strange that they all had the same color magic, but I guessed that was just a result of training. I saw no trace of the vanguard, but I could not make out any details from the hilltop anyway. Occasionally, there was a puff of green fire within the NC’s ranks. I could not tell what caused it.

“Changeling, come here,” Gleaming Armor said, breaking my trance. I shambled to his side.

One of the Steel Rangers was still alive. Her face mask had been blown off, and her muzzle was covered in blood, but she was not seriously injured, only stunned. Gleaming had materialized one of his shields above her prone form, preventing her from standing. When Lute had fully recovered he released it, and she incinerated the Ranger’s weapons before she could use them again. The mare scrambled up and tried to flee, but Gleaming boxed her in with another trio of shields. We approached the pink mare, and she braced herself to fight, but Gleaming stopped short of her.

“Get out of your suit,” he demanded. She furrowed her brow at him.

“Wha―what?”

“Strip! And leave the suit operable, or I will have your eyes burnt out. Slowly.” The mare face paled, and she hurried to remove her armor. Gleaming turned to me as she did. “Changeling, I have a job for you,” he said

“What... job?” I had a good guess, but I was hoping to be wrong. I was not.

“It appears that these ponies were sent to assassinate me,” he said. “You will be delivering the bad news to their superior... and returning the favor.”

As the battle grew nearer, I realized how quiet it was. Not the volume of sound, but the amount of it. Shots rang out. Explosions echoed off the hills behind me. Cries of pain flashed through my ears. Yet there were no other voices. No orders shouted. No information shared. As I skirted along the edge of the battle, pressing myself to the ground to avoid notice, it occurred to me how odd this all was. How were Gleaming and Lute directing their troops? Was it just a freeforall out there?

An answer would not help me here, but the question was a small distraction from the pain I was in. Hunger threatened to overwhelm me, and my face still felt as if it were on fire. Lute had struck me with a bolt of magic at Gleaming’s request in order to “make the disguise more convincing.” I would have killed him right then and there if I could have.

The suit, thankfully, carried its own weight, and even augmented my ailing strength. As I was, I doubted I could have made this trek naked. I crawled along the riverbed, making my way toward the Steel Ranger’s position. This suit was designed for stealth, and thanks to “some optics bullshit,” as its previous owner had put it, the metal on its outside shifted hue to blend in a bit more with the surrounding mud. I had no idea what I would do once I got close to the Steel Rangers, but the bomb collar had been broken down and stuffed into the suit with me, and Gleaming had been very careful to emphasize that there was no range limitation on the triggering mechanism. At the very least I was free of the null ring. Otherwise there would be no point in sending me at all.

...feed...

I frowned. There it was. That voice. Since regaining my magic it had invaded my mind, whispering that word to me to drive home every pang and gurgle of my famished body. It was familiar, somehow. I felt as if I should recognize it, but I could not place it...

...feed...

I thought back to my first day of life―of this life in hell―and struggled to remember. Had I heard it then? Or in the days after? Something told me I must have...

Feed...

But I no more time to ponder the voice. I had made it to the other bank, and I could see what looked like the Steel Ranger’s command post far ahead of me: a few tables thrown up in front of three armored wagons. Several ponies worked frantically in front of them, running back and forth between the front lines. I broke into a gallop, breathing hard.

As I approached, one of the ponies walked out to intercept me. I couldn't read his body language behind the suit of armor, but he had not readied his weapons.

“Private Shortcake, report!” he barked.

“We... it was a failure, Sir,” I said, using the lines I'd been rehearsing in mind for the last few minutes. “The Prince survived. I only got away after faking dead.”

“Cast Iron? Relish?

I shook my head. “They’re not faking, Sir.”

“My condolences. Get those wounds patched up, then report to the front line. We are having more trouble repelling their little ambush then I expected.” I nodded, then trotted off toward the convoy like I knew where I was going. A thought struck me.

“Sir?” I said, turning back to the Steel Ranger.

“Yes, Private?”

“I don’t think its a little ambush. They look like they have their whole army here.”

“Oh, do they now?” He tilted his head, and my heart leapt. His reaction struck me as strange. Had I given myself away somehow? A silence hung between us.

“Uhm, y-yes it sure looked that way to me,” I managed to say.

“Hmm, thank you for that information, Private. Get along to the medic. We relocated triage to behind the third carrier. Go there now.”

“Yes, Sir.” I said. My trot was much faster the second time. I didn't think about why he might have acted odd, I just wanted to cause some chaos and then get out before Gleamings troops broke through and I got caught in the crossfire.

I went around the side of the last armored wagon, and sure enough a small triage had been set up. Two fully armored ponies lay in the beds, attended by a single nurse. He was chocolate brown with tan spots on his legs and underside that looked more like stains than natural coloring. It struck me as odd that the setup was so empty, but immediately I was accosted by the undressed earth pony.

“Holy shit, Shortcake!” He sounded surprised. “You look so... you look like hell.” He held up a strange device and started waving it around my body.

“I feel worse,” I muttered. As he moved around me I tried to catch his eye, but he seemed to be deliberately avoiding my gaze. The bad feeling from earlier grew. “Am I gunna be okay?” I asked dumbly. He finished his scan, and the device beeped.

“You’ll live,” he said. In one swift motion, he removed another device from a nearby drawer, and stuck it to my suit with a metallic thunk.

“What is that?” I asked cautiously.

“Localized EMP,” he replied, taking several steps back.

“Local what?” The device activated, and my worry turned to terror, then pain, as my suit and body were rocked by an outpouring of electricity. I screamed silently for a moment, then collapsed to the ground. All I could manage was a groan as the two bedridden Steel Rangers jumped up and trained their weapons on me. The nurse was already walking away from us.

“He’s rigged, but low grade. Should be neutralized.” As he spoke I managed to find my voice.

“H-how did you―?” I choked out.

He glared at me. “Apparently, that idiot prince doesn’t know how to turn the mic off. Now if you'll excuse me, I have some real patients to attend to.”

I couldn’t move, but my pain was almost gone. Whatever an EMP was, it didn’t seem like it was designed to kill. I lay on the ground in silence for a while, staring down the barrels of the two suits in front of me. A mic? What was that? I thought back to the moment Boss had seen through my disguise wit his PipBuck. Did Steel Rangers have the same type of technology?

“Get him out of that thing,” a voice boomed behind me. It was the Steel Ranger from before. He must be a commander of some sort. The two ponies in from of me stepped to my sides. They did something for several moments, and then began pulling off pieces of my suit. Lute had welded it shut to keep me in with the explosives, so it was a long process of twisting and pulling, but the ponies seemed to have no problem with destroying their own property to get me out. As more of the suit came off I was free to move again, but I stayed still. I cooperated in silence partially from fear, partially from exhaustion, and partially out of simple curiosity.

When they were done, and the bomb I’d carried with me was disposed of, the two ponies stood me up between them to face their commander. I could see nothing behind that blank grey mask, but when he spoke his voice brimmed with rage.

“What are you?” he demanded. As an answer, I undisguised.

“A changeling,” I said. “Please don’t kill me.”

“Curious. Out of all the rumors I’d heard about this ‘New Canterlot’, this was not the one I expected to be true. If you want to live you will answer my questions. Where is Private Shortcake?”

“Captured. I don’t know where they’d put her.”

“Why is a changeling working with those lunatics?”

“They captured me. Enslaved me.”

“Are there any more of you?”

...feed...

The voice again. Now was not the best time for that. “No... I don’t know... no more of us are with the NCs, at least.”

“Hmph. Was it true what you said earlier? Is that force out there their entire army?”

“Yes,” I said. “Unless they have more where they came from, but that place is three days away at least.” I wished I knew more about the NCs. If I told this Steel Ranger enough, maybe he would just let me go. I just needed to make myself look harmless. A victim in all this. “Please, I’ll help you in whatever way I can. I just want to get away from all this.” He did not reply for a while. He looked up at his soldiers.

“Bring him with us. The battle needs my attention, but I will have more questions.” The two nodded, then pushed me along after their commander.

...feed...

Hunger cut through my fear and discomfort, and I stumbled as we walked. When I looked up again, I saw the battle had turned sour for the Rangers. They were pushed back, and the NCs had advanced all the way across the riverbed. A hundred yards separated us from the front lines now.

“Shit,” the commander cursed. He began barking orders, calling for a new formation, but it seemed the situation had advanced beyond his control. I watched as a squad of three NCs was obliterated by a barrage of concentrated cannon fire, only for twice their number to teleport behind the offending Rangers and melt them in a web of lasers. A moment later, two white soldiers appeared in front of us and opened fire. I dived to avoid their salvo, scrambling across the ground to hide underneath one of the convoy vehicles.

I watched in awe and horror as one of the ponies who had been guarding me was cut down by a flurry of red. His partner took down one of the NCs, but died all the same a moment later. I could not see the commander any more. I backed up for better cover; the battle was all noise now. Roaring cannons, ringing shot, sizzling lasers. Screams of rage and agony. The smell of charred flesh found its way to me. I gagged.

An explosion, then cries to regroup. All around me there was a sudden roar as the vehicle's engine started up. My heart leapt to my throat, and I clawed my way to the back of the vehicle. I gagged on exhaust as it began to move, but I pulled myself out before it could pull away. I ran as best I could, wanting only to get away. Another soldier materialized in front of me. I tried to avoid him. I fell.

Dazed, I simply lay in pain for a moment. When I did manage to pull myself up, I saw the pony in front of me. I gasped. His horn glowed a deep red, unlike the laser magic. Behind me I heard a scream, and I turned. One of the vehicles was surrounded by the same red glow. The spell finished, and the glow exploded into light. When my sight cleared again, I saw the vehicle in the air, falling upward toward the sky.

I pulled myself around to face the pony who had done it. It was Boss; but not Boss. It was his magic, and the same scowling face, but his coat was white, his body whole and strong. He looked just like every other NC solder I had seen so far, but some part of me was certain. He looked at me, his eyes watery specters of their former selves, and I knew. This was Boss. Somehow he was alive again.

So I killed him.

I drove my horn into his neck, pulled out, stabbed again. He fell, and I stomped his throat to be sure. Behind me the vehicle hit the ground, breaking and exploding into a thousand pieces. Shards of metal and flame patterned into the ground around me. The sound of engines faded; then grew louder.

Boss's corpse erupted into green flame. A moment later it was gone.

What manner... magic...?

I wondered the same thing. The engines began to roar. I looked around me and saw the remainder of the convoy racing toward the river. They smashed into the NCs battle lines. Soldiers put up shields, but they shattered under the impact. Ponies were crushed and tossed aside like ragdolls as the vehicles carved their way forward. One wagon faced too much resistance from the shields and bodies and slid to a stop. Steel Rangers burst forward and continued the assault. The troops of New Canterlot scrambled to reform, and they encircled them, taking heavy losses but paying back the same. I noticed more bodies erupting into green flame.

The second vehicle made it across the riverbed before giving out. There were far fewer NCs there at this point, and they fell quickly to their armored assailants. Gleaming and Lute, at the top of their hill, were all who remained. Several soldiers who were firing on the first vehicle turned to support them, but the Steel Rangers focused them down, forcing them to take cover.

Five Steel Rangers from the second vehicle approached Gleaming, concentrating their fire. His shields held, but Lute could not return fire. They began to flank the prince. He matched their movement with another pair of shields. An explosive went off in the air above him, and all at once the battle stopped.

When the smoke cleared, Gleaming Armor lay on the ground, unconscious. Lute stood over him, shaking and bloody. Her horn crackled with power.

All this time, I had made my way along the outskirts of the battle, hobbling close to the ground. My attention had darted between the battle and looking for any sign of Surprise or the slavers. I had been unable to find them. If I could free them, they would be grateful. They would feed me. I could escape now, sure, but I would starve all the same. I need something soon. I could feel something dying inside me. I did not have much time.

Now, I was positioned at the bottom of the hill, just within earshot of the Steel Rangers and Lute. One of the Rangers spoke.

“Soldier of New Canterlot, surrender yourself and be spared! Paladin Rock Crusher will offer you and your troops this mercy only once.”

“Never!” spat Lute. “We won’t submit to fucking mud ponies.”

“You bitch... you're surrounded! This battle is over! Get away from him or you'll both die.”

“You are right,” said a voice from nowhere. “This battle is over.” All at once, figures materialized beside the Steel Rangers, shimmering into existence as the cloaks that had kept them invisible were turned off. The voice had been Aegis, and she stood in front of Gleaming, the hood of her usual cloak flung back to reveal a striped face. She clasped a golden sword in her teeth. Before any of the Rangers could react, she drove it through the neck of the nearest one; his armor did nothing to stop it. Her fellow zebra--for surely these were zebra--followed suit, and without so much as a whimper the Steel Rangers fell, blood pouring from their necks into the hill’s thirsty earth.

Behind me, the battle resumed, though now calls for retreat sounded the loudest. I pressed myself into the muddy ground, staying out of sight as the zebra turned to fight the Steel Rangers and reinforce New Canterlot’s forces. I watched them stream toward the remaining vehicle, darting silently across the riverbed, leaving only the faintest hoofprints on the mud below them. Lute remained with Gleaming, looking forlorn and hurt. A thought came to me, and I disguised myself as Goldstone. I trotted up to her, forcing my ailing body to cooperate. Darkness began to cloud my peripherals.

Feed...

I just needed to hold on a bit longer.

“Sir,” I said. “Shall we take him to the medic?”

“N-no, Golstone, we shouldn’t move him. With him out of it though they won't function long... I need... I need to direct the troops.” Her demeanor seemed different; broken somehow. Though it could just have been the sight of her injuries. Her face was bruising, and blood dripped from her nose and ears. Her words were shaky and congested. “Watch over him for me?”

“Yes, Sir, I replied. Her gratitude was small, but genuine. I drank it quickly as she dashed away toward the battle. I inched back from the brink.

I stepped away from Gleaming and looked around the area. It took me a moment, but then I spotted what I was looking for. Changing my disguise to that of the Steel Rangers medic, I galloped down the hill, back to the sight of our camp the night before. Shortcake was there, gagged and tied to an old tree stump. She was unconscious. I freed her, and took off the cloth that had been tied around her eyes, and prodded her awake.

“Grapeshot? What the hell are you doing here?” Her relief and hope flooded into me. I was so overwhelmed I could not respond for a moment.

“I... there’s no time to explain. We have to go, now.”

“What, why? Are you saying we lost?” Her emotions lessened. I cursed under my breath. “How are you here?”

“Battlelines shifted. We gotta go now, though. You have to tell Paladin Rock Crusher what happened.” I took off, planning to skirt around the battle and cross the river farther upstream. I wanted to remain within sight of it, though. I still wanted to find Surprise.

“I... holy shit, Grapeshot. We couldn’t even touch him. Fuck... I only survived because they let me...” She panted as she spoke. All her good feelings were gone now. “And... holy shit... it’s coming back to me. They knocked me out, but before that there was this... weird fucking bug pony, and he―” She halted abruptly. I looked back at her. Her eyes were wide, and she looked was tensed for action.

“Grapeshot,” she asked, “what’s your mom’s name?” I scowled. I didn’t have time for this. I undisguised. “You fucker.”

She tackled me, and I rolled with it. We grappled with each other on the ground. She got on top of me, but I managed to sink my fangs into her leg. She yelped, and tried to stomp my head. I squirmed aside, and tried to pull myself out of her range, but I was so weak. I could not keep her off me. I bit back, and tried to stab her with my horn, but I could not hit anything vital. She kept kicking at me, trying to smash my head. I shielded myself with my forehooves; pain arcked through them. I cried out in desperation and frustration.

...feed...

I tried to shove her off me. I was too weak.

Feed!

She slammed her head into my jaw, and I tasted blood. My head swam.

You cannot die! You must feed―feed for us!

I wanted to; I had wanted to do nothing else since my inception.

Feed my worker! Live and feed!

My resistance was broken. Her hoof came down to smash my skull, and with my last scrap of energy I jerked my head forward. I bit down on her leg and twisted as she slammed it into my mouth. I felt my teeth and fangs plunge into her flesh. I felt them crack, chip, and break under the force of her blow. My head hit the ground, and I bit down harder, my pain deafening my to her scream. She yanked her hoof out, taking my fangs with it. I rolled out from under her, my vision blurry and black with spots. I bucked, and she cried out again. I fell, stumbled to my feet.

My mouth was on fire, and the fire was make of needles. A river of blood poured forth. I felt my magic trigger and energy leave me as the green slime hardened, then slogged off. I spit it out. More blood. I was so weak all I could heal were some teeth and a single fang. I managed to focus on Shortcake. She was picking herself up off the ground, her pink and purple coat stained red and green. She was covered in more cuts than I remembered giving her, and she could not put any weight on her impaled forehoof. I opened my mouth to finish the job.

...feed...

I hesitated. I felt happiness come from behind me. I turned around.

“Worker!” I almost burst into tears. It was Surprise, galloping away from the dwindling battle. Her armor was dented and bloody, but she looked none the worse for ware. Her burst of happiness was over too quickly though. The moment she reached me her guns were trained on Shortcake. “I was looking everywhere for you. We have to go now, before the NCs see us.”

“Wait, you’re not with them?” Shortcake asked. She had pulled herself to her feet, but looked ready to fall back down at any moment. My fangs were still embedded in her leg.

“No. They captured me,” I said.

“I... I didn’t know.” She sounded like she was trying to apologize. I just gave her a dirty look.

“Let’s go,” I told Surprise. “Did Rolling follow us?”

“I don’t know,” she replied. Giving Shortcake a final look-over, Surprise turned away and began a fast trot to the west. I followed her,looking back only once. In the distance the smoking wreckage of the crashed vehicle drifted into the clouds, making the sky seem somewhat lighter than usual. Shortcake was gone, already on her own road to survival. I did not pity her, but some part of me wondered if she would be running with us had things gone just a little differently. Possibilities did not matter though. Only the now. And now I was galloping to freedom.

We did not make it far before I had to slow down. I had taken a healing potion, so my wounds were healed and my pain was gone, but it could not stop exhaustion.

“Worker? What’s wrong? We have to keep moving.”

“I can’t. I’m too hungry,” I told Surprise between pants. I had been too hopeful; already my energy was gone. I had nothing left. “I need love... happiness... something...”

“Uh... well shit, where do you normally get those from?” Surprise asked.

“Ponies. We get love from ponies. They were the best at it.” I gave her a pleading look. Mistake. She balked, and stomped away from me. I scrambled after her.

“Wait! That’s not what I meant.”

“Fuck you. That’s not funny.”

“I didn’t mean physical love―I mean the emotion. Love, happiness, even just gratitude! I just need you to feel something like that. It doesn’t have to be directed at me either, just feel anything good at all... I can pick it up. Please.” She stopped, and looked back at me.

“I’m not really in a mood to feel anything good,” she grumbled.

“I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to say that,” I said. “Please, just think of something happy. Anything. If you don’t, I’ll die... please...” I was on the edge again. Darkness crept in. I could barely stand.

Surprise was silent for a moment.

“Fine. But... give me a second... I’ll think of something.”

Seconds stretched into minutes.

“If it helps... you can talk to me. I don’t care what it is. As long as you feel... happy.” I couldn’t stand. I lowered myself to the ground, to rest... another minute passed.

“Actually...” Surprise began. “There’s a story my dad used to tell me about the day I was born. In our town, before the attack, he owned a store. Made a living trading. He told me he met my mom there, when she was passing through. Anyway, it was almost a year after that when I was born.” I saw her smile slightly as she remembered. “Dad, he was always fretting over me when I was little, and apparently he was no different with mom. Ponies would complain because some bad thought would get into his head and then he’d get so worried he would close the shop and rush home to make sure mom was okay. She always was. I’m pretty sure he was losing money in those last few days, with how worried he got, heh. Then mom finally went into labor, so he bolted down to the doc’s place and got there just as I was coming out.’” Surprise chuckled to herself. “Dad and the doc were shocked stupid when they saw what I was, so mom had to ask them about five times whether I was a boy or girl before they responded. ‘Well, which is it?’ she demanded, and the doc, well the first thing he does is hold me up and say ‘It's a surprise! I mean, pegasus...’ Heh. Mom screamed for a good while in shock, but dad just ended up on the ground laughing. Out of everything that had worried him, this hadn’t occurred to him. Anyway, that’s where I got my name from: the doc saying Surprise.”

I breathed a sigh of relief. Happiness and a few whiffs of love had settled around her as she talked. I let the silence after her story last, not wanting to disrupt the flow of feeling. I felt better than I had in days. Not powerful or strong, but I was no longer starving.

“Thank you,” I said.

“Mmhm,” she shrugged. “That story always made dad smile. Not much else good happened after I was born.”

“We should go.”

“Yes.”

“Where are we going?” I asked some time later. We had continued east, leaning slightly to the north. The southern mountain range followed us, bearing down and pushing us close to the sea. I was catching whiffs of salt in the breeze now.

“Tubers,” she replied. “It’s right at the end of the Fields, beneath the mountains. Then we’ll see if any caravans are heading out and where they’re going.”

“Why a caravan?” I asked.

“Raiders. The Fields doesn’t have many compared to what’s in the wider wasteland. That’s why I liked this place. You could travel alone, mostly.”

“Okay...” That sounded good. There would be a chance to find love in a large group. “What about New Canterlot?” I asked.

“What about them?”

“I mean, they won. They’ll be coming to Tubers next probably. I don’t think anything can stop them.” Surprise laughed.

“Nah, those pushovers won’t last. The Rangers alone have more than enough ponies to wear them down, even if they get outfought one on one. The NCs already lost half their troops, and that zebra trick won’t win them a war.”

I disagreed with that sentiment. I told her about what I had seen during the battle; about Boss and the green fire. About what Holster had said, and who Aegis was.

“Necromancy? That’s why they teamed up with the zebra?”

“Yeah.” It made sense to me at least.

“Well shit... I still don’t think that’ll win them the war, though.” She grinned at me. “Especially if we go and tell the Rangers about it. That’ll fuck ‘em over.”

I nodded. That was a good idea. Anything that might help stop New Canterlot and destroy Gleaming. “What about Rolling? Did he follow us?”

“I don’t know. I wasn’t able to talk to him before we left. He must have seen us go, though. That fucking prince made a big show of it.” I frowned. I didn’t want to leave without him.

“We can wait a bit at Tubers, I’m sure. He’s wouldn’t be more than a day beh―”

―what does it matter that they dabble in death magic? There will be no taboos in Our perfect world. They are unicorns. Powerful. They will make a great addition to Unity. We―

A voice. Voices. A chorus in my head. I could not stop it. It was everywhere. I screamed.

―is that? How are you here? WHAT ARE YOU? HOW DO YOU HEAR US?―

“I don’t know! Stop, get out! Get out!” I lay on the ground, clutching my head. The chorus was overwhelming.

...feed...

“Worker? What the hell is wrong!?”

―thing is not us yet it is in Our mind. Where is it? Do you see it? I see it, Goddess. What is it? I do not know Goddess. Find out. Yes―

...focus... focus on me...

In front of me a figure appeared. Radiant. Taller than any I had seen. Blue and shimmering, it had both wings and a horn. Awe and fear cleared my mind for just a moment. This was an alicorn. I was hearing its thoughts.

“Holy fuck.”

...it is... abomination...

No. I was not just hearing it. I was slipping into its mind.

―ngling? THEY STILL LIVE? YOU DARE DEFILE UNITY WITH YOUR PRESENCE YOU BUG!?

“Kill....it...” I managed to say. I felt myself slip.

―NO. Get out. OUT―

I tried. All at once, a new dimension had opened up to me. I felt myself move, yet my body was still. Before me was a void, endless; full of countless minds and thoughts and emotions. Even as panic gripped me I drank from it, unable to help myself. The minds whirled together, merging, dividing, all singing in a chaotic chorus, yet all subsumed by a greater mind. I felt it behind all the other voices: the Goddess. She pull at me like gravity, and I felt myself falling, slipping from my own body to the sea below. She seemed just as fearful of it happening as I was.

LEAVE, BUG!

I wanted to, but I could not stop my fall. I could not stop drinking from this cacophony of unchecked emotion. The power fed me, yet the more I drank the farther in I fell. Memories blurred. My life. Trixie’s. Twilight’s. It was all the same. We would be one. The power was overwhelming...

...FOCUS...

Above me, we became aware of another mind. A familiar mind. We pulled away from ourselves to see it. I forced my attention to it, and the Goddess’s pull lessened. I stopped drinking. This third mind was calm. Structured. There were mental walls to prevent the chaos I saw below me. The familiar mind pulled me back, but it did not threaten to destroy me. It had been built to control and guide, not consume. I used it as an anchor, and I came back into myself. The chaos before me fell away...

I saw the alicorn in front of me, shielding herself from Surprise’s attack. I still heard the chorus of voices calling for my death, but they were at a distance. The third mind above kept me out. It touched me, caressed me, and all at once I remembered who it was.

“My Queen...” Tears rolled down my cheeks. “I am so sorry, I could not hear you before...”

There there, my child. It is all well. You hear me now.

Suddenly I understood so much.

Chrysalis. My Queen. I knew her mind. It had been with me all this time, yet only now had her words really reached me. Whatever psychic channel that had been closed was now open, its blockage broken by the abomination’s unwieldy mental tempest.

The abomination was Unity. Like our hive, they had a queen, but there was no order to their hivemind. It was a dominant will endlessly consuming and rejecting the detached minds of others. There was no hierarchy. No room for independent action. It was an ugly, incomplete construct. The work of a panicked child.

HOW DARE YOU? You are little more than a disease from the old world. We are the face of the new world. Unity is the future!

Surprise was knocked off her feet by a blast of energy. The Goddess’s puppet turned to me. I ready myself to fight the alicorn, to save my friend.

No, my child. There is no time for that. We must feed. You must free me. We must feed.

But Surprise―

NO.

I felt my Queen grasp my mind in hers. I felt fear. Her grip tightened, and a haze settled over me. I felt nothing. I knew what I must do.

I leaped away, and flew toward the clouds, ignoring the alicorn, that crippled pegasus, and Unity’s fading cries.

Feed!

Yes my Queen, I am coming.

Soon we will feed.

The alicorn pursued me. I felt the Goddess’s whisper of rage on the edge of my mind. I still could not shut off her thoughts, nor prevent her from sensing mine. But it did not matter. All that mattered was rescuing my Queen.

I knew where she was. She called to me from the clouds. I flew up, up... higher and higher. Finally, I broke through. The sky blinded me with its brightness. The white below me, the blue above. Infinite in all directions. I could not stop to be awed. I continued on, running now on the cloud tops. I was in a field of some sort, with small wheat stalks suspended in the ethereal ground. I trampled through them. They did not matter.

Nothing but my Queen mattered.

There it was. The facility. My Queen’s prison. A lonely outpost on the clouds’ outskirts.

I remembered this place. This is where we had been taken. After years of wandering the wastes below, we had been captured. Studied. Tortured. Starved; killed; raped―we would kill them! I WOULD KILL ALL OF THEM!

KILL!

A guard sat on a watchtower. I remembered. The Queen knew his patterns. I broke his back and jaw before he could sound the alarm. I dumped him out of sight and punctured his stomach with my horn. He would expire in about ten minutes.

There was not much to this facility. A guard tower. A fence. A yard with empty tables. A front door. High walls with no windows.

The sky was unbelievably blue and vast. I could gaze into it forever and lose myself.

I flew over the fence and tried the door. It was locked. I disguised as the dying guard and knocked. A pony in a lab coat opened the door with a questioning look on his face. I told him I was thirsty. He stepped aside. I stepped in.

“Wait, Buzz, where’s your uniform?”

This was a reception area. There was a vending machine, a desk, and a secure door at the other end. I bucked the pony in the face. He collapsed. Again, I crippled him. My Queen told me where to bite his spine, how to crush his jaw. I took his clothes this time, then hid his body under the desk.

...I ...kill you...

The abomination pursued. It did not matter. I would kill that alicorn if I she tried to stop me.

I opened the door. This was a leisure room. Three pegasi sat, unarmored, playing cards at a table. Another two, clad in black steel, talked with their helmets off. There were doors on each wall.

“...done about all we can; I tell you we should kill her and be done with it. There's nothing more we can learn.”

Hurry, my child, hurry!

I walked past the three playing cards, up to the two guards. They gave me an odd look.

“You need something, Sir?”

Save me. Kill them!

“Yes,” I said. “I think I may have a cracked tooth, can you take a look at it?” I opened my mouth and pointed.

“Uh...” The nearest guard leaned in instinctively. I undisguised and bit down. My fangs went through her eyes, into her brain. Her companion screamed. I leaped back, into the air, and dived down onto the three unarmored ponies before they could grasp what was occurring. I stabbed one in the neck with my horn. The other two fought back, but they were panicked. I took a kick to the side, and bit down on one of their necks. I ripped out his throat.

Behind me, the other guard had recovered and donned her helmet. She swiped at me with her scorpion-like tail, and I jumped back. The other pony tried to tackle me. I disguised as a foal, and she missed, crashing into the ground. Before the guard could do anything I had driven my fangs into her neck. She would not die immediately, but nothing could save her now.

The pegasus moved to lash at me with her tail again, and I allowed myself a smile. I didn't try to dodge. I reared up as I triggered my magic, feeling my body bloom into Sev's form. I caught her tail in my claws, and turned on my back foot. Using her inertia against her, I swung her off her feet and into the wall. She flapped her wings to recover, but I still had her tail. I tugged her toward me. She bucked my chest. I gasped in pain and felt my grip loosen, but I did not let her get away. I grabbed her legs as she tried to move them back. With all my might I swung her toward the wall again. I turned as she cracked against the steel, releasing her, but only so I could slam my body into her. I heard a muffled curse beneath that helmet as she struck the wall for a third time. I didn't let her recover. With my right hand I grabbed her neck, and with my left I held her forehoof. I dragged her down, pinning her on her back underneath me. I slammed my beak into her suit's eye. I screamed in pain, but a shattered beak was worth a breach in her armor. I saw her looking up at me, a single pink pupil shrunk to an island in a white sea.

"I’m sorry—Don't kill me! Oh Celestia please! Please don't kill me!"

She said something. I heard her sob. I raised my arm and struck it down. The shriek that followed erupted into a horrible cry of agony as I drove my claw deeper. It took only a few seconds of force, and her thrashing only helped.

"No Celestia please I can feel that OH PLEASE—I FEEL IT DON'T I CAN FEEL IT PLEASE—"

I had burrowed down an inch or so above my wrist when her begging stopped. My breathing slowed in the silence.

I pulled my claw back out with a wet pop, and wiped the gore on my feathers. I undisguised, and the pain in my beak vanished. I turned away from the mare's broken faceplate. There was only red now.

I kept on toward my Queen.

New Perk: Telepathy (Level 1) - You are more receptive to the emotions of others, even those you cannot feed from.
Quest Perk: The Voice of Unity - You have peered into the mind of the Goddess and survived her call, an impressive feat. +10% resistance to Taint.
Quest Perk: Total Recall - Your Queen’s calls have finally reached you, and why should you resist her will? You receive +2 Strength, -2 Perception, +3 Endurance, -3 Charisma, -3 Intelligence, +2 Agility, and -5 Luck modifiers while under Chrysalis's sway (Note: SPECIAL stats cannot be reduced below zero or raised above 10).