Day 7,082
It’s been about two months since General Pharynx rescued me from the caves underneath Canterlot and I know what you’re thinking, have I reformed? The answer is obviously yes. It didn’t take that much prodding from Tymbal to get me to give love rather than drain it. I’ve always loved my squad mates, General Pharynx, and my sister of course. I find being a reformed changeling both rewarding and frustrating. It's nice to no longer be consumed by constant hunger. However, I've noticed that I can no longer produce changeling bile anymore. Thankfully it's not just me; none of us can make that stuff anymore. Apparently it's because we used our extra absorbed love to produce it.
I was a bit worried about how the other changelings would receive me when I got back home. I honestly expected a lot of distrust but in fact pretty much every changeling young and old is eager to hear my opinions about the hive. I'm told the reason for all the interest is because I never repressed our time in the old hive like they did. They were fairly curious if our hive was better off now than under the hoof of our former queen. On that question I can for sure say things are better than before. Sure without bile it's a bit harder to construct things and wage war. But now that we're not starving ourselves for no reason we don't need to constantly wage war. Also we use these things called bits to get ponies to build us things.
I also have a different perspective on General Pharynx than the other changelings. Apparently he was quite stubborn in giving up the old ways, and it took a lot of work to get him to reform. Many changelings are still a bit wary of him for being a menace in the past. However, hearing me talk about my wonderful time serving under him has allowed everyling that doubted him to see his caring side. He also got appointed to the post of grand general by King Thorax and honestly he couldn't have picked a better changeling for the job.
I should talk about my squad mates a bit because it turns out that they all survived the cave in. I could hardly believe my eyes when they greeted me and welcomed me back to the hive. It turns out when we got separated, they doubled back towards the surface where they were subsequently arrested by the Canterlot authorities. They were held as POWs for many years in a dark forgotten Canterlot dungeon before being released after the hive reformed. Seeing them alive, put much of the guilt and shame I had over the incident to rest but I still endangered them and shouldn't have. I’ve developed a bit of friendship with my former right hoof changeling. In the years after the hive reformed, he’s taken a liking to soup so much so they started calling him Soupling.
I was worried that my sister would freak out at having me back but just like Pharynx had said she’s just happy I’m alive and well. She’s honestly a lot happier now that everything’s been reformed, she used to be even more of a stick in the mud than I was back then. Buck even former grand general Cadrodia is better off with the way things are now. After the hive reformed, he quit the army and wrote a biography for Queen Chrysalis. He’s a much better biographer than he ever was a commander. I’ll never understand why Queen Chrysalis chose him to be grand general.
Ah our former queen. Apparently it’s a rite of passage for changelings to go to Canterlot to visit our queen. I just got back from a trip to Canterlot to partake in this tradition a few weeks ago. It was kinda somber really to see our former queen reduced to nothing but a terrifying statue. Even at the end of everything she went down fighting. Can’t say I liked her that much but she loved the hive and everyling in it. If only things could have turned out differently.
While I was in Canterlot I went to visit Gallus. I never realized at the time how instrumental Gallus was in my rescue from the caves. Turns out sticking a changeling underground for twenty years really messes with their head and I had forgotten a large part of the time he spent in my custody. He told me that while I was interrogating him I went off on long winded rambles about pretty much everything under the sun. Apparently in those long tangents I mentioned my adoration for my commander General Pharynx, and that's how the guards knew to get him in particular to rescue me. He also explained to me there was a secret plan in place to seal me in the tunnels if Pharynx didn’t think I would reform. Kinda cruel but I can understand why they did it. My hive what kind of madness would I have descended into if I hadn't reformed. Not to mention the pits of madness I descended into during those twenty years. My niece couldn’t have asked for a better husband in that boy, and I couldn’t have asked for a better nephew. He’s a good soldier through, and through. I can’t help but wonder if my respect for him is why I turned the same shade of blue as him when I reformed.
I also paid a visit to Ocellus in Ponyville. She was honestly thrilled to have a brand-new aunt in her life. I mentioned in this combat journal that she’s a sweet girl but I made a terrible error in judging her. I remarked she’d make a good spy one day but now I understand she’d make a better drill sergeant considering her current job. She also introduced me to her other friends and honestly we get along well.
But what about me you might wonder? Well, I never left the army. I never lost my zeal for protecting the hive and thanks to my quite frankly harrowing story I got a well deserved promotion to general. It’s nice to be back with changelings and commanding again. These new recruits are young, but I can drill them well enough to make them a squad worthy of defending the hive. My life couldn't be any happier. The hive is a much more fun place with the new reforms. This only steels my resolve to defend it and our changeling brethren from any danger lurking out there.
That said I’m writing this addendum in the face of a major crisis. There’s an evil alicorn calling herself Opaline Arcana ravaging Equestria. King Thorax has committed the hive's army to help combat this menace. Most of the other Generals have already shipped out to reinforce the defenses in horseshoe bay. I'm supposed to join them, but I broke off from the swarm half way there to go to the gryphon city of Buckbeak. Ocellus's friend Silverstream got me in touch with a friend of hers, a changeling queen who calls herself Queen Bivouac. I never knew there were other changeling queens but Queen Bivouac insists she’s the last royal aside from Thorax. She wants my help in attempting to bring back the first changeling queen to help fight Opaline. I know I'm going against orders by doing this but Grand general Pharynx ordered me to stop Opaline from harming Horseshoe bay. And if Opaline is defeated by the first changeling queen then horseshoe bay will be safe from her. So I don't think he'll mind if I go on this little side mission if it’ll help me accomplish that mission. Fortunately for me Queen Bivouac promised me she'd send her lieutenant Freya, a squad of parrot mercenaries, and four changebots to fill in for my squad at Horseshoe Bay. I have no idea what a changebot is but the queen assures me they're some of her best weapons. When I finish up with the Opaline campaign, I’m thinking about taking Soupling up on his offer to spend a day with him in Canterlot.
This is General Cephalon, leader of the third army signing out.