//------------------------------// // Chapter 3 // Story: Roadtrip // by totallynotabrony //------------------------------// Maria’s eyes went between Chrysalis and I. The braid in her hair bobbed as her head moved. “Sandy, what is going on here?” I gestured at the bloody changeling. “She, uh, fell from the sky. And now she’s here. I didn’t know what else to do.” Maria took one step closer to Chrysalis and then another. “Is that...?” “I think it’s a changeling. I know how crazy that sounds.” I watched as my wife slowly sank into a crouch to examine the injured creature. “Well?” I prompted. “We should get her cleaned up. I’ll get my bag. You go to the bait store and buy some maggots.” Maria got up and turned for the door while I still stood there. She stopped and looked at me. “Sandy, did you hear me?” “Yeah, but...aren’t you going to freak out or something? We have an evil cartoon character in our living room.” Maria glanced at Chrysalis again. “Let’s get her stabilized first. We can freak out later. Now go get the maggots. We can use them to clean up the dead flesh, but also it’s an indicator as to the suitability of her body to this environment.” I thought I understood, but lingered a little longer. “How will maggots help with that?” “Non-Earth life could have different chemical characteristics. Perhaps it’s not carbon-based, or maybe the amino acids are of opposite orientation. Or maybe she’s just poisonous.” I nodded. I was really glad I had worn gloves to move Chrysalis. “So you agree that she’s female?” Maria gave me a look. “She has an ovipositor.” “Oh.” My wife turned back to her work. I left the house and got in the car. Maria had parked her truck beside it in the driveway. The old pickup had magnetic decals on the side advertising her veterinary business. The cargo compartment was covered and inside were supplies and equipment. I made a quick trip to the bait shop to pick up some maggots. The gun at my back was uncomfortable against the car seat and I made sure to cover it with my shirt before going inside. The cashier assumed I was fishing and didn’t ask why I needed maggots. I don’t think I could have come up with a very good lie on the spot. Then again, why was I worried what someone thought about me buying bait at a bait shop? It’s not like I was sneaking away from my wife to go fishing. Actually, knowing Maria, she was more likely to do that to me. It was only as I got back in the car that I realized that I had left my wife alone with a potentially dangerous creature. My drive back home was well above the speed limit. Luckily, Chrysalis still hadn’t moved from where she lay by the time I got there. Maria had put on nitrile gloves and moved Chrysalis to a more natural position. Her wounds had been partially dressed. Maria was still working, but stood up as I came in. “She’s still breathing, but I don’t know about the condition of her internal organs. I suppose we’ll just have to wait and see. Now, would you mind telling me how this happened?” I ran through the story for her. I could see that Maria was skeptical, but the proof was right there on the bloody blanket. I finished up with, “And so here we are, looking at some kind of alien-bug-pony thing in our house.” Maria shook her head. “Why did you decide to bring her here? I know all the ‘pony on earth’ fanfictions begin that way, but this is real.” I shrugged helplessly. “I guess I just wanted to help. I couldn’t just leave her lying there.” My wife nodded in understanding. She wouldn’t be in the veterinary business if she didn’t care. She stepped towards me, keeping her gloved hands covered with changeling blood away. I knew the purple nitrile material was more resistant to oils and acid than latex. Maria said, “Well, I suppose we’re committed now. We’ll find a way to make it work.” As a technical person, that was supposed to be my line. Still, I leaned forward to accept a kiss. We stood close for a moment, just enjoying being together. I felt more confident that we would indeed find a way to make this work. Our reverie was interrupted by a raspy moan from the floor. I jerked in surprise, staring down at Chrysalis. Her sides rose and fell, drawing breath deeper than before. I saw her head move slightly. My hand rested on the gun. Maria and I glanced at each other and we both stepped forward. I knelt by Chrysalis’ head, watching as she twitched again. Her abbreviated leg moved slightly at the shoulder joint. I wasn’t sure what to do. I certainly didn’t want to touch her. I shifted my weight in preparation to stand up again. Chrysalis’ large green eyes snapped open and focused on me. A half second passed as we stared at each other in surprise. She reacted first. I understood how meeting a strange creature for the first time can cause confusion and panic, but biting me may have been an overreaction. Her fangs jabbed into my forearm as I fell backwards while reflexively jerking away. The movement pulled my arm out of her mouth and I scrambled to put distance between the two of us. Maria’s hand dove inside her medical duffel bag where I knew she kept a pistol. I shot to my feet and grabbed for my own gun with my other hand. She’d bitten the arm I usually used. Several tense seconds passed. Chrysalis tried to get up but was too weak. She shifted her position to be less exposed but remained on the blanket, glaring defensively at Maria and I. “Tell me where I am.” Her voice was clear, commanding, and carried a faint buzz of inhuman inflection. At least it was an understandable language. “You’re in our house. We’re trying to help you,” Maria told her. I thought she sounded much more calm than I was. Granted, her job gave her experience in working with panicky creatures. When Chrysalis shifted her attention to Maria, I took a moment to glance at my arm. The bite wasn’t very deep but it had drawn blood. The shock was already starting to wear off and give way to pain. The changeling looked around the room, taking in the bare walls and floors and the moving boxes we hadn’t unpacked yet. Her eyes lingered on my computer. She looked back at us. “Why do you want to help?” “You’re hurt; I’m a doctor. It’s my job.” Maria edged closer, holding both her hands non-threateningly. Chrysalis looked distrustful, but let her begin finishing the bandaging of her stump of a leg. “What’s your name?” Maria asked conversationally. “I am Chrysalis, Queen of the changelings,” she replied, confirming what we had suspected. I asked, “How did you get here?” Chrysalis looked in my direction. I still stood several feet away, drops of blood beginning to slide down my arm and my pistol held at my side with the other hand. While she might not have known what a firearm was, I’m pretty sure Chrysalis understood that I was still on edge and not happy with her. Furthermore, she was in no position to defend herself. After composing herself to answer, she replied, “Enemies of mine attacked.” “The Elements of Harmony?” I said without thinking. Chrysalis looked mildly surprised, but nodded. “I do not know what effects their magic had, but it seems that I have been banished from my world, leaving my herd leaderless.” A herd of changelings didn’t seem like the right word. Maybe hive would have sounded better. Still, what did I know? Maybe Chrysalis was running a public image campaign and replacing objectionable words with friendlier ones. Maria finished up. “I’m afraid there’s nothing more we can do for your leg.” “I have not received such a grievous injury in a very long time.” Chrysalis sighed. “With access to enough love, I may be able to recover.” She could grow it back? I began to get nervous again, thinking that perhaps subsonic pistol bullets wouldn’t be enough firepower. Chrysalis’ eyes fell on the small container of maggots I had brought. They squirmed around inside the the plastic container. “What’s this? A snack?” I could see Maria’s medical mind considering that. If regeneration was possible, then maybe we didn’t need the maggots to remove the dead flesh. She opened the container and set it down in front of our guest. Chrysalis’ tongue reminded me of a mosquito’s proboscis, and it was more than a little unsettling to see her begin spearing the small insects and pulling them into her mouth one by one. “I thought changelings ate love,” I commented. She paused. “We eat anything. We thrive on love.” Eat...anything? Yeah, bringing her home was starting to look like less of a good idea. Maria pulled me away to the kitchen sink and took a bottle of hydrogen peroxide and a long roll of gauze from her bag. The peroxide - chemical formula H2O2 - bubbled in the wound, the extra oxygen stripping away to leave just plain water. It was not a disinfectant, but worked well as a cleaner. “This is serious,” Maria whispered. “We don’t know if she has venom or is carrying a disease.” I had considered that, and didn’t want to think about it. Maria slathered my arm with antibiotic ointment and wrapped it up with a bandage. Chrysalis was just about finished with her, uh, snack when we came back. I pointed to my bandage. “What did you do to me?” “I’m very sorry about that. You surprised me.” “I’m not going to get sick, am I?” She looked taken aback. “My bite is not poisonous, if that’s what you’re asking.” I didn’t know if I could believe that. I had been taking every single word that came out of her mouth with a grain of salt. When somebody has such a bad reputation, it sets a negative precedence before you even meet them. “Why don’t you tell us a little more about what happened to you,” Maria suggested. “I think I should ask a question first.” Chrysalis looked contemplative. “I’ve never seen creatures such as yourselves before. What are you called?” “The species is homo sapien, commonly called human beings, or more casually, people,” replied Maria. “Now I’m sure that I am no longer in my own world.” Chrysalis’ ears drooped. “And if that is the case, how do you know about changelings and things like the Elements of Harmony?” Maria’s mouth opened slowly, clearly unsure how to explain My Little Pony to a character that came from the show. Luckily, a great idea hit me. “Surveillance,” I said. “As you can see, we have more technology than you’re accustomed to. We have large telescopes that can watch your planet.” “Then how is it that we speak a common language?” Chrysalis asked. I shrugged, feigning casual. “You just came through a magic portal; you tell me.” Crysalis paused for a moment in consideration. “What do you know about my changelings and I?” This time, I wasn’t so cool and collected with a ready answer. Maria and I shared a glance. I replied, “We know you aren’t afraid to invade a city and impersonate a princess.” Chrysalis looked away. “I was doing it for the well being of my changelings. My intentions were not violent, but that plan unfortunately fell apart.” “Why don’t the ponies like you?” She snorted. “Haven’t you seen? We’re different. It wouldn’t take much to keep us all content, but they don’t trust the unknown.” There might have been a barb in that comment aimed at me. She knew I didn’t trust her. I thought I had a pretty good reason, though. If Chrysalis was willing to take the place of Princess Cadance and lock the real one in the caves beneath Canterlot Castle, then she was more than capable of lying about her true purpose. At the same time, I couldn’t afford to assume anything. All I knew about her came from what I saw on TV, and that hadn’t exactly been a documentary. Right or wrong, I figured that the best option was to find a way to send her back to Equestria. If she was evil, then the ponies could deal with her. I just wanted her off my planet. Then again, maybe that’s exactly the same thing the ponies were thinking when they sent her here. Hopefully they didn’t do it again and we started some sort of interstellar game of tennis with Chrysalis as the ball. I couldn’t afford to be distracted by thoughts like that. Forging ahead, I asked, “What would it take to send you back?” “Hmm. First I would need to be able-bodied. Magic is as much physical as mental. After that, I would need to send a signal for help. Once assistance from my world was obtained, I would be able to complete a spell to go home.” Chrysalis’ look turned more serious. “I would need a very large amount of love. That doesn’t seem to be in abundance in this area. In fact, I haven’t even sensed very many humans or other sapient creatures around here.” “I guess we’ll have to figure something out.” I felt conflicted about helping her. There was still a high likelihood that she was evil, but even if she was, helping her to go back was certainly better than letting her have free reign of Earth. I had seven billion people to think about, not just me. Ugh, talk about responsibility. I glanced at Maria, and she seemed to agree that our best plan was sending Chrysalis back. But where would we find so much love? The answer came to me in a moment. “Everfree Northwest.” Maria caught on. “I can’t think of a better place to find love and tolerance than an MLP convention.” Crysalis’ ears perked up. “What is that?” “Next week, we had planned to go on vacation to a convention. When you showed up, it made me forget all about it. There is a show about ponies that some people like to watch.” I gestured to my wife. “That’s how Maria and I are so well informed about you.” “Fans of the show congregate at conventions?” Chrysalis guessed. I nodded. “Right. Your personal views on ponies aside, you have to admit that they’re a good source of love. I think maybe a large group of fans could have the same effect.” “Interesting,” Chrysalis mused. “Perhaps I could be a special guest.” I shook my head. “That’s not going to work. The show doesn’t depict you in a positive way.” Maria added, “In addition, many people think it’s fictional; that you don’t actually exist. They don't know about the telescopes.” We traded a glance. Both of us kept telling these lies, building the story further, and it was lucky we were managing to pull it off. “Well, it’s a good thing that blending in is what changelings do best.” Chrysalis smiled. “It may take me a few tries to pass as human, an injured one, but I think I will be able to manage. When are you going to the convention?” “We’re leaving a few days from now. The trip will take four days.” Chrysalis suddenly looked worried. “How are we traveling? I’m certainly in no condition to walk.” I smirked a little. She had a surprise coming her way. “It won’t be a problem.” Maria checked her watch. “It’s past dinnertime. Are either of you hungry?” I hadn’t realized it had gotten so late. “Yes.” “I think I need my rest.” Chrysalis grimaced. Now that we’d gotten to know each other a little, she had time to take stock of her condition. Due to her unique physiology, she was already a lot better off than a human amputee would have been, but we couldn’t expect a lot from her while she recovered. We got her some blankets and pillows and made her as comfortable as possible on the living room floor. After that, Maria and I went to get something to eat. Neither of us could be bothered to cook an extensive meal, so we just heated some soup. We were within earshot of the living room. I pulled out my phone and set it down on the table. Maria did the same. We carried out a silent conversation through text. I don’t think we can trust her, honey. No kidding, Sandy? Still, she might be telling us the truth about how bad her condition is. I didn’t see her demonstrate any ability to use magic. Would you know it if you saw it? I shrugged and changed the subject. How far do you think we can string her along with the telescopes story? Depends on her reaction to seeing the show. Maybe tell her that the telescopes aren’t that good and we have to recreate it with animation? That could work. I remembered something I had seen in the news section of Everfree Northwest’s website. A few voice actors from the show are going to be there. What if Tabitha St. Germain actually does sound like Rarity? How are we going to explain that? Maria shrugged. We’ll cross that bridge when we come to it. I think a more important question is: how the heck is this real? I mean, maybe there’s some sort of parallel universe where Rarity does the voice for an animated Tabitha, but the concept of that is still really hard to wrap your mind around. I nodded in agreement. Just thinking about it was making my head hurt. Still, meeting Chrysalis had opened up a lot of possibilities. I could no longer say that things were black and white, possible or impossible. Suddenly being unsure of your place in the universe was more than a little terrifying. We cleaned up after dinner and began to wind down for the night. I had a feeling that getting to sleep would take a while, so I wanted to get an early start at it. After showering, I checked on Chrysalis again. She was breathing steadily and her eyes were closed. She may have been scorched, beaten, and broken, but somehow managed to look almost cute lying there. “Goodnight, Chrissy,” I murmured. Maria and I went to bed. Both of us lay there quietly for a while. Maria turned slightly and touched my bandage. “How does it feel?” “Still a little pain. I made sure to keep it dry in the shower. I don’t think anything weird is going on.” Maria’s hand slid up my arm. I could faintly make out her face in the darkness. It was nice knowing that no matter what our guest might do, I could count on my wife. We scooted a little closer under the covers. The first kiss was quick and to the point. The second was a little slower and more thoughtful. I was considering a third when there was a flicker of green light over by the door. The lock clicked open. My handgun was sitting on the bedside table and I grabbed for it. On Maria’s side of the bed, she had already picked up her .40 caliber SIG-Sauer. The door slowly opened and a pair of luminous green eyes appeared. Chrysalis grinned at the two of us lying in bed. “Don't mind me. Go on with what you were doing.”