It was nightfall when the twin hulled battlecruiser returned, her running lights showing off her elegant catamaran form. She bore no indications she had been in a battle. The Mare Crisium had handled her mission at least to the point where a ship a third her size was in tow, a dubious prize judging from the airship’s condition. Luna watched expectantly, fully aware of the status of Captain Blueblood and his ship and crew. As her sister had not yet returned from her pursuit of the gateway, the younger princess was beginning to worry.
The giant pegasus known simply as Shield had kept a healthy distance, clearly unhappy with the delays. He sat apart from the changelings, his eyes never leaving those of the ponies who in turn kept a wary eye on the huge stallion. The giant stayed even further away from ponies, though he did stare at other pegasi. Somehow, Shield knew how to shield his emotions. The gray form was as still as stone, the occasional flare of his nostrils and those shifting of the eyes the only indication he was even living. Eventually, he departed through a portal, taking a good contingent of the changeling forces with him. Luna locked eyes with him and I think they had terrible mental sex, or something as he passed through. The ice in her eyes was enough to tell me she had a bone to pick with the pegasus.
Shortly after, an anxious queen paced on the ground, her hoofsteps having worn into the soft dirt. The damage to the foliage was a path of nerves and worry. Queen Anisophira was not far from the the dark alicorn. Though the vaguely explained curse from the Empress had seen her slowly and steadily grow weaker and weaker, Annie refused to show any weakness. The devotion she bore for her hive was as strong, but the young generation meant to have a future had undergone a massive trauma. What mothers refused to seek refuge in Equestria stood in silence, as physically behind their queen as they were metaphorically. Each one had a nymph or hatchling that had either died, was wounded, or had been taken by the pirates. No more than three dozen waiting mothers held their collective breath, only to collapse upon each other in happy tears when Luna informed them their children were safe and would be soon returned to their hooves.
I, on the other hand...no, I’m not saying ‘hoof’...was busy throwing perfectly healthy glares of impending doom at the other queen who had shown up and was the cause for Daddy’s mental collapse from the very beginning oh so many years ago. A changeling queen who had the gall to make him fall in love with her, only to shatter his heart and proceed to do unthinkable things to him while he was down.
She had disappeared for a little while, some hours ago, actually. I had no idea where she went, nor did I particularly care. Daddy was currently under heavy sedation in a military tent with Fleur clucking over him like a mother hen. The sorceress still wore her white outfit and carefully monitored him, her pale violet eyes roaming over his face, her lips set to a level of determination best suited for soldiers about to do some famous last stand. That mare seemed to be able to do a little bit of everything aside from being a drop-dead gorgeous pony supermodel (retired).
Well, with the ratio of changelings in my estimates outnumbering the small military force in these woods by a ratio of ten to one, I couldn’t help but think of how dangerous things could get. Heck, that Shield guy might even decide to come back and have a go at Luna while unleashing the swarm of changelings upon the rest of the Equestrians.
I never noticed how few changelings there suddenly were until I could no longer hear the massive buzzing sound of gossamer wings carrying black forms. Alexander, Daddy’s newfound charge had apparently adopted me. Or I did I adopt him? Did we adopt each other? He now had blue eyes and his chitin had darkened to the charcoal gray of my own natural armor. He chirped happily up at me, nuzzling against my chest as I lay like a lioness in front of her den. Daddy was my cub and no visitors were allowed unless they could survive my bad mood.
And my magic. Oodles and oodles of raw changeling magic. I could, if I wanted to, summon up enough power in my horn to obliterate...well...I honestly don’t know… Chicago, maybe? It was like I was a living weapon, capable of a level of destruction best left to a B-52 Stratofortress with a full payload of conventional bombs. Okay, I’m guessing that’s what I can do. The worst I’ve done was break dishes while washing them at home!
Okay, there was that incident with the tornado I never told Daddy about.
What? Do you think I enjoy being grounded?
Didn’t think so.
And if you tell him, I’ll turn you into...erm...well…
I’ll think of something!
To be honest, I’ve always wondered why I never levelled the house while growing up. My training was pretty much learning as I went, with lots of ad libbing thrown in for good measure. Celestia thought I should have had surges, but I guess changelings don’t have them like unicorns. Or maybe I’m just a weird changeling.
Why not? I’ve got a weird father. He’s also got a way more twisted sense of humor than me.
The thing that bothers me the most on this whole nightmare of a trip is how it had started to spiral faster and faster out of control. It had become something I was not ready to deal with. Daddy was supposed to enjoy his time here in Equestria, not become some political toy for certain somebodies to play with like a rediscovered Stretch Armstrong doll with intentions to see in what ways his limbs are not supposed to stretch.
Felu was the last straw. I don’t care if she’s the mother of Daddy’s…
The mere thought of those two getting it on made me throw up a little in my mouth.
My...mother...no, that’s not a word to describe her. She who gave birth to me saw fit to lure us into this game of hers, involving my...sisters in some fashion along the way. Why? What is the point of all of this? Why so many distractions? Why did Luna and Celestia have to come? Having the two symbols of Equestrian power leave the center of their strength in order to meet with an unknown threat was pretty retarded.
I sighed, wondering what was going to happen.
Eventually, Celestia did make an appearance, having taken her sweet time. She appeared in a poof of magic and ruffled feathers, panting heavily and almost immediately seeking out her sister, calling out her name. I tried to get her attention, but she ushered herself and her sister within a privacy spell where they could speak freely to each other without worry of someone on the outside of the magical dome revealing their conversation. Even lip readers would get a badly translated kung-fu movie as the spell distorted lip movement as well.
I amused myself by making up their dialogue to get my mind off the insanity. I should have kept it to myself, but nah…
Where’s the fun in that? I hefted up Alexander, pointing him out to the princesses as I translated the fake dialogue for him.
Celestia, of course, would have the matronly voice: “I have returned. Luna, I think I’m in love. I met the most wonderful homeless man. We swapped spit. At ten paces. We’re having an Elvis impersonator marry us.”
Luna, on the other hand would have the Valley Girl voice: “Like, when am I ever going to find the bum of my dreams? Whatever!” I chirped, giggling to myself. “I’m like, so totally jealous of you, it’s not even funny.”
Of course, the made up words had to match the expressions on their faces.
“Do you think that Michael guy is hawt?” asked Celestia in the voice I had totally made up for her and was probably getting a bit too into my voiceover.
“What?” came the high pitched reply in the form of a near shriek. “No way! Do you have the hots for him? Because what a coincidence. I have the hots for him!”
“What about that Felu chick? She’s sooo totally ugly and has like, the blackest heart ever.” Yes, now Celestia has a Valley Girl voice. Their real discussion was getting quite animated.
“I know! We can get Godzilla to show up and stomp her good! Yeah! Squish! Dead bug!”
“What an interesting imagination you have,” pointed out a dry, humorless voice belonging to a certain unicorn who happened to hate changelings. “I’m sure mocking the Princesses will be sure to win the hearts and minds of those you once intended to conquer. Why Princess Luna desires I make peace with you is beyond me. Your kind have done nothing but cause even the one who claims to be your father endless grief.”
Whirling around, I met his stare with wide eyes. Alexander chirped in alarm and buried himself into my mane. I had no idea the little guy could half fly and half crawl on my neck like a mountain goat. Neat.
“I wish to understand why it is I must give you a chance. I fully believe you’ll eventually turn out to be just like the rest. Cruel. Vile. Evil. There is no place in this world for creatures such as yourself.” There was no malice in his tone. There was no emotion in his words. It was something he believed in. I could feel his resolve as it swept over me.
“Huh?” I replied with the intelligence of a master of communication in command of a PdD in psychology.
Okay, not really.
“I am supposed to follow the example of my Princess to forgive trespasses against me. I am supposed to believe you are not the creature you once were. I am told you have been given a second chance. I have been shown you have the capacity to love others. Please tell me, Chrysalis. Please tell me why I must believe all these things when my wife to this day is too afraid to leave her home?”
“What do you want me to say?” I said after staring at him for several seconds waiting for a fly to kamikaze into my mouth. I only spoke when it proved to be a futile gesture. “Please believe me, Mr. Unicorn? I’m a good girl and I’ll Pinkie Promise if I have to?”
He snorted, shaking his mane and giving me the creepiest stare I’ve ever seen since Dora the Explorer waited for me to blurt answers at her in the television when I was a filly.
I managed to reply, ‘Please go away.’ in the form of something rather...primal. The lump in my mane hissed in agreement, which triggered something primal within me.
I flared it up brilliantly with a full-blown hiss and the fear-induced instinct to flare my wings to their fullest extension. Spittle flew into the stallion’s face as he jerked backwards away from me, backpedaling madly. The commotion caused quite a few heads to turn towards us. My chitin rattled against my body, sounding not unlike an agitated rattlesnake. With my ears pinned down, I rose on my wings, gave the startled unicorn one last spiteful hiss and darted into the tent where one Michael Spriggs lay dormant, leaving in the wake of my dust the words, “Leave me alone!”
“Lieutenant Steel Jaw, what in blazes have ye done now?” demanded the voice of Quint Orca from the other side of the camp somewhere.
I ignored the argument in its infancy as Fleur looked up at me in annoyance. “Quiet, you’ll wake your papa,” she said sternly. I guess she had heard the conversation and decided to check on me. She wore a dazzling frown.
I intermittently buzzed my wings in open agitation and tippy-hooved in place. “That was so creepy!” I said to her. I repeated it after glancing at Daddy’s sleeping form with a new, improved squeakier one when my eyes locked again with those pale rose colored eyes of the unicorn.
“Lady Chrysalis?” came a voice from the other side of the tent flap. “Lady Chrysalis? Please, let me speak with you.”
Quint roared a string of vile obscenities, to which the recipient of said vile obscenities snapped back with a comeback that would make a turtle go into hibernation out of boredom.
“No!” I said to Steel Jaw petulantly. “You are the creepiest creep that ever creeped and that’s a lot coming from a changeling!” I stomped a hoof for emphasis while I scolded and added more wing buzzing for good measure. “You are a creepy creeper!” Take that!
“Mon fille!” snapped Fleur without raising her voice. “Mind where you are!” She rose from the small cushion her tush had been occupying while standing vigil over Daddy. With deliberate steps only an irritated female could do, she went to the tent flap and poked her head outside, her horn flaring to part the tent flaps.
“I wish to make amends!” I could hear the stallion blurt. “Princess Luna insisted I try to be a friend. I want to understand! I have failed too much.”
“Lower your voice, you fool!” she hissed, flicking her tail in agitation. A hind leg rose and hooked me, pushing me away from the tent flap gently, yet firmly. She pulled her head back and glanced at me. A gentle, whispering voice prodded. “Sit next to your papa. Your presence would be welcome to him, I think.” Fleur smiled at me warmly and nodded me towards Daddy’s cot. Then, she went back to addressing Lieutenant Creeper. “Now see here,” she began in a voice that gradually lowered and became quieter.
By now, the pegasus had joined in the argument and they were speaking like reasonable adults. Which meant they were arguing over me. Again. I don’t think I’ll ever get used to ponies arguing over me. It’s uncomfortable.
In the shadows of the large tent, I noted the dark form of the lunar pegasus Daddy called Bob. Anzealous was there, too, and doing a passable impersonation of someone who was worried. The earth pony mare was there...what was her name again? Meadowsong? I forgot. Well, she was sitting in a corner near Shatterdown (Bob). The clicking of her needles as she worked on what looked like a scarf paused long enough as she smiled weakly at me.
Okay, so the entire security team (minus the creeper) was in here, watching over the tent and looking like a herd of cats in a room full of rocking chairs. Everything that had happened to Daddy was a reflection on their failure to protect him, even given the circumstances.
I plunked down next to Daddy’s cot. He looked terrible. His brow was furrowed and he was sweating. A slight frown cracked along his lips. Every now and then they would twitch as though he was trying to say something. Fleur came into my field of view across from me, her eyes wandering over Daddy before coming to meet mine. Alexander popped from my mane and crawled down my neck before hopping onto the cot. Buzzing his wings, he sniffed at Daddy’s hands. He chirped worriedly, looking up at me. I could understand him. His speech patterns were comparable to an infant just learning his words. Giving him a nudge, he decided to curl up on the pillow next to Daddy’s head, resting his noggin on top of Daddy’s forehead. Within moments, his body gave little shudders akin to a kitten purring.
“Steel Jaw is...trying to come to terms.” Her voice barely carried to my ears. “His pain is bare and he is trying to do his best to deal with it. Luna asked him to do this. He is a good pony. Stricken, but good. Oui.”
An indifferent shrug was my response. “What about Daddy? Is he going to be okay? I can feel his hurt. There is a lot of it. It makes me feel ill.” I sighed. “I can’t do anything to help him. I want to hurt that witch who did this to him. I want the changelings to stop hurting my Daddy. It’s not fair and I want to do…”
The whole room had gone silent. I had not realized I had raised my voice until Fleur reached over and pressed the tip of her hoof to my lips.
“Calm. Peace. You must remain the pillar upon which your papa’s mind must rest upon, lest if all into the abyss and never know healing. What has been done was not intentional. Even I could see the pain upon the queen’s face. Did you not see the face of Felu? Hmm?”
“Screw her.”
“Anger will not help you here, mon fille. You must focus on what is important. Dreams of vengeance must be forgotten. Revenge will gain you nothing. Peace. Please. I implore you.”
I sat back down, only now realizing I was standing over my daddy. The tip of my mane brushed over his blanket and over his fingers and knuckles. They twitched at the touch. I could feel the tears welling up again. I didn’t want to lose it! I didn’t want…
Dammit.
“What do I do, Fleur?” I blubbered as I slumped down into my rump. I laid my head on Daddy’s chest.
“You can look into your father’s dreams and see what it is that needs to be repaired,” announced Luna next to me.
I jumped with a half yelp, half hiss thrown at her. Agitated wings buzzed. My tail swished.
Luna smiled. “Protective of your father, are we?”
“Wow, full-blown defensive stance,” remarked Shatterdown with a slow whistle. His eyes glittered from where he sat. Lunar pegasi preferred dark corners and he had found the only one in the tent. “I’m almost impressed.”
Luna gave him a forlorn look.
“Sorry. Trying to make the poor girl smile.”
“Just sit there and look menacing.”
“Yes, my Princess!”
“Everypony else save for Fleur and Chrysalis, please go outside. My sister will be returning to Canterlot. Some unexpected events have occurred and she must deal with them herself.” She looked at me and huffed. “Put your wings down and sit down. Calm yourself.”
“I can’t be calm when my daddy keeps getting mentally traumatized in this world!” I snapped at her. Behind the princess, the guards quietly filed out. The earth pony mare who’s name I could not for the life of me remember gave me a reassuring smile.
Luna joined me at my daddy’s bedside, a small frown on her muzzle. A wing slowly came out and settled over my shoulders with a light and reassuring touch. “I think it is best we send him home. I think it is best you go with him. Celestia disagrees. She thinks you need to at least make the journey to meet the Empress. There have been a great many violations done to your father and she must be made to answer for them.”
“I don’t want anything to do with her! I don’t want anything to do with those queens! Well, maybe Anisophira. I feel bad for her. She was nice to Daddy.”
“As much as I agree with you, my own personal desires must be set aside in favor of finding a peaceful solution between changelings and ponies. We are being tested and deliberately so.” She pulled me in for a hug. “You and your father are but a pawn. I’m sorry.”
“This whole thing is stupid.”
“Politics in general are stupid,” she agreed with a chuckle. “In the past, I would have dealt with such things directly, as in force with an army at my back. This insult to you and your father would have been met with bloody reprisal. It is considered barbaric these days. Pity.”
Her morbid recollection made me feel better. “You’d do that for Daddy?”
“You are both guests of the Royal House. You are both considered part of the family,” she explained as she considered my father. “No more delays. I will tell you what I intend to do for this moment.”
I looked at her.
“First of all, Lieutenant Steel Jaw is no longer assigned to your father’s personal guard. Ensign Quint Orca will be replacing him.” Yay! No more creepy speciest bigot! “Secondly, I am going to dream walk in your father’s mind and see how bad the damage is. I may be able to stabilize him, but I am regretfully unfamiliar with the human mind.”
“Why is Fleur here?”
“Your father has become familiar with her. I do believe he sees her as a friend. She will be joining us.”
“Oh, so it isn’t because she’s attracted to my father?”
Fleur sputtered. “Si vulgaire!”
Luna chuckled. “I’m sorry, but I’ve seen your dreams my friend.”
“You looked into my dreams?” Fleur squeaked, her ears going flat. She was blushing furiously.
“You like him and are curious about him.”
“He hasn’t had nookie in...well...never,” I supplied helpfully. “At least not as long as I’ve known him.” Was Luna on my side in this? Yay! Daddy needed someone he could trust. Daddy needed someone he could confide in. Daddy needed a girlfriend.
Daddy needed to get laid.
Still, Luna outing Fleur like this could backfire. Even I wouldn’t do something like that. I like Fleur. She’s a wonderful pony. She’s patient and kind. She’s got family experience and has outlived three husbands. She’d know how to handle Daddy and keep him in line. She’s also pretty hot.
Wait, is Daddy even into ponies? Would he be open to the idea?
“We are not going to conduct any searching within his most intimate of thoughts,” said Luna, as if she knew what I was thinking. “Matchmaking is not the goal of this mission. Michael Spriggs needs his psyche to be braced and hopefully repaired. What goes on beyond that is none of my concern. Nor should it be yours, Chrysalis.” A ghost of an uptick flickered on the corner of her lips.
“Mon fille,” Fleur addressed me sternly. “We shall have words, you and I.”
“Time is short,” groused Luna. “Make it quick.”
“Firstly,” said the former fashion model and currently most powerful unicorn in Equestria, “What I feel for your papa is of none of your concern. I am curious about him. I do have thoughts that stray from what is conventional. That being said, it is none of your business to peek into my emotions and assume certain things. Emotions are diverse and can have multiple layers. You should know this, but you were not raised by changelings nor has your discipline in reading emotions been given the attention required. Such as it is, what you read is not entirely incorrect, but on the same note, you have no right to make assumptions.”
“I’m sorry.”
“I like your papa, but as a friend. Nothing more. Understand?”
“Yes.” No.
“We are not going to discuss this anymore, oui?”
“No.” Yes.
“I want your word.”
Dammit. “You have my word.”
Alexander buzzed and giggled. He was staring at us and decided to crawl across Daddy’s torso towards Luna. She followed his progress with her gaze and smiled as he sat on Daddy’s lap and looked up at her. Sitting on his haunches, he raised his forehooves up in the universal sign of wanting to be picked up. She reached out a hoof and hooked him. Gently she picked him up until he could wrap his little hooves around her neck for a hug. Thankfully the nub of his horn he was poking Luna with was harmless.
“How adorable,” she remarked. “Perhaps he should come with us...but he is too young, I fear.” Luna pulled him back and asked him, “Will you be a good little changeling and watch over Mister Spriggs while I do my work?”
He squirmed and giggled, opening his mouth and laughing.
“Good boy. I expect you to be a most formidable protector of your new family.”
“Eventually he’ll learn Equestrian,” said Fleur. “Fascinating he can understand it.”
“So, what now?” I asked with growing nervousness.
“We sleep,” replied Luna, flaring her horn.
“Sleep? What do you—”