Sunny Knight: a Pony's Tale

by TheothersideofSunny968

King of the Changelings

Charging out from the castle, Sunny and Thorax quickly ran into the crowd of frightened Crystal ponies. Everypony had been quickly rounded up just as he had ordered, faster then he expected. Sunny noticed Starlight and Sunburst at the far edge of the group lined up with the Crystal guard. Starlight appeared ready for a fight while Sunburst put on the toughest expression a pacifist bookworm could muster.

"Starlight, Sunburst" Sunny galloped over to them. "We're going to need a force feild around the base of the castle. The safety of the Crystal ponies and the Crystal Heart is our number 1 priority. Do you two think you can do that?"

Starlight's hardened expression wavered a little. "Honestly, I don't know. I've never made a force feild that big before."

Sunburst pulled a book out from under his cloak and began flipping though the pages as fast as his hooves could coinside with his vision. Finnaly he came to the right page and set the book down infront of Starlight. "We might be able to pull it off if we combine our magic. Under normal circumstances, we would need atleast a weekend two to tune our magical frequencies-"

"We don't have weeks, we have minutes" Sunny stated firmly.

Sunburst adjusted his glasses nervously, stuttering a little as he continued "Ugh, r-right, I know that. What I meant to say, was becouse we've worked our magic in conjuction before, we should, theoretically, be able to merge our magic togeather by following this spell…"

Starlight glanced over the spell several times, taking in as much of it as she could. "We don't have a choice. But Sunny, what are YOU going to do?"

The barrier that surrounded the Crystal Empire and protected it from the harshness of the tundra was turned black as the swarm of starving, hissing changelings faught against it, trying desperately do break through. Narrowing his eyes on the changeling swarm Sunny answered "I'm going to deal with some overgrown bugs."

"You can't just charge in there, alone, and without a plan!" Sunburst blurted out, making Sunny's statment seem pretty foolish.

"He isn't alone" a familiar voice spoke up from behind Sunny as a not so familiar looking pony stepped forward.

A mare, the same hight and similar build as Cadence, stepped forward. But the hight and build was about where the similarities ended. The mare in quesgion appeared to be made of wood, like a tree, with a mane and tail composed of what looked to be rose peddles. And she wasn't alone. Marching behind her were atleast a hundred creatures just like her. Beings in pony form with various foliage in lue of hair who's bodies were some kind of flexable, living wood.

Narrowing his eyes on the pony like creature, Sunny raised and lowered his head, as if changing his physical point of view would help identity of the mysterious newcomer.

"Don't recognize me, uncle?" The mare shot Sunny a half smile followed by a light chuckle as she flipped her rose petal mane. "Well, I did do something different with my mane. Do you like it?"

Sunny's eyes went wide when he realized who this pony like creature was. "Rosewood!?"

"Queen Rosewood" She corrected him, then motioned to the rest of her group. "Me and my bravest Petal ponies offer our services to you, your majasty."

"Yeah! Let's squash some bugs!" An eager stallion Petal pony cheered, getting hiked up.

"Well…" Sunny looked back at the Crystal Guards who had taken up positions to protect the Crystal ponies at the castle. He could summon some of them to aid him, but he didn't want to run his numbers too thin. Turning back to Rosewood, Sunny smiled and nodded. "We could use a hoof or two, if you and your, ugh, Petal ponies, wouldn't mind."

Turning back to her followers, Queen Rosewood adressed them in a tone of commanding authority. "Those who wish to fight, follow me! The rest of you, stay behind with the Crystal ponies, do what you can to keep yourselves and them safe!"

Sunny signaled for a third of the Crystal guard to follow him, and the rest to remain behind to protect the Crystal ponies and Petal ponies ies remaining behind. Once the group lead by Sunny and Rosewood were outside the radius of the castle, Starlight and Sunburst went right to work casting their spell.

Moving towards the center of the castle, Starlight and Sunburst sat back on their haunches and began to focus their magic. Closing their eyes for better focus, the two unicorns ran the spell though their heads, their horns flickered and flared, and became coated in their respective magical auras. Streams of their magic began to appear all around the base of the castle, weaving between one another's like threads forming tapestry. Although a bit shaky at first, Starlight and Sunburst had to focus on the spell and the sound of eachother's breath. They needed to breath as one. Their breathing now synced, the two spellcasters were able to aline their magical frequencies and a bright pink barrier formed around the castle, shielding all the gathered ponies inside. Starlight and Sunburst couldn't move while the spell was in effect, but they could peek around and see what was going on. Everypony was scared, but remained as calm as anypony could be, under the circumstances. Starlight and Sunburst silently hoped for the same thing; that Sunny and them take those changelings down as soon as possible.

Galloping towards the edge of the Empire and the barrier that surrounded it, Rosewood turned her head slightly towards Sunny and asked "what's your plan?"

"To be honest, I was going to go out there and either transform into my Celestial form or my Umbrum form and take the changelings down with brute force or magic" Sunny admitted.

"All guns blazing, eh?" Rosewood joked but her expression seemed unamused. "Got anything else? You have magical tree ponies and Crystal guards with you now, and ugh, is he with you?"

Rosewood had pointed a hoof over Sunny's shoulder. When Sunny followed the direction of her hoof, he saw that Thorax was buzzing right beside them, charging ahead with them, seeming slightly nervous.

"Yeah, He's with us" Sunny reasured his niece. "He broke away from the hive a while ago."

"Hey, ugh, Sunny…" Thorax spoke up, Rubbing his helmet covered head with one of his insect like hooves. "I… I think I hear something…"

Concerned, Sunny started to slow his gallop to a trot. "Thorax, you ok there pal?"

The closer they got to the edge of the Empire, the more it appeared Thorax's head ache worsened. "I… I think something is using some sort of spell… errrr. To control… ugh, the hive."

"King Ha Mon" Sunny muttered. "He was the one who attacked the Galla with the changelings."

"Do you think if we take him out…" Rosewood started to say.

"That maybe the changelings would stop attacking?" Sunny finished her thought.

"Ugh… it's worth a shot" Thorax spat out, trying to block out the buzzing that was growing louder and louder in his head. The more he fought, the easier it got. But the closer they got to the edge of the barrier, the more he had to fight to keep control. He could hear King Ha Mon's voice muttering behind the buzzing, ordering him to attack the Crystal Empire and feed on the love it held. But Thorax faught back, keeping in mind that this place welcomed him, that his friends lived there, and that others were counting on him.

"Let's take the king out" Rosewood stated, a smug smile spreading across her muzzle.

"You and the other Petal ponies keep the hive busy, my guards will help make a way to King Ha Mon, and I'll take the king" Sunny stated loud enough for everypony near to hear him. He then turned to the struggling Thorax and asked "are you sure you're up for this?"

Nodding his head quickly, Thorax put on a shaky smile and raised his hoof to indicate that he was well enough to fight. But I the back of his head he could still hear the buzzing and King Ha Mon's whispers.

"Then you're with me" Sunny told the armored changeling.

The group of petal ponies, Crystal guards and one changeling reached the edge of the barrier, and without hesitation, charged through into the arctic tundra.

Immediatly they were hit with feral changelings scratching, hissing and spitting at them worse then a cat getting a bath. The petal ponies jumped in, stomping one of their hooves to the ground and the other to the sky. Their outstretched hooves began growing branches at incredible speeds, wrapping around and trapping several hissing and snapping changelings in place. Other petal ponies jumped into the air and began punching and kicking with their bare hooves, the sound of their impacts mimicked the thumping of wooden clubs. The changelings were being hit with the same force as running head first into a tree. Only this time, it was the trees doing the hitting.

The Crystal guard jumped into a V formation, with Sunny at the center of them. They pressed forward, moving as one to push the enemies aside, making way to their king for Sunny to take on. Some of the guards were picked up and pulled away by changelings, who chose to gang up on them. As much as they and Sunny wanted to stop and help their commrad, they knew they had to press on. Most of the Crystal guard kept in formation, urging forward to their target; the changeling King.

Thorax, however, had remained behind, floating neat to the barrier, eyes wide at the scene before him. The buzzing orders of King Ha Mon's hive mind spell was still in Thorax's head, but his heart sank as he saw the state of the hive. It's true the hive was cold and cruel to him before. But it was under Queen Chrysalis's orders. Although she never dared to use the hive mind spell to control the hive, out of fear of growing mad, Chrysalis keep an iron hoof rule over them. Thorax never liked forcefully feeding off others, draining them of love and alot of their life. He proposed to the queen that the changelings could coexist with the enhabitants of Equestria, live side by side, and earn their love and effective, that THAT alone could sustain them. But the Queen called him a radical extremist and had the others… make an example of him infront of the whole hive. Every changeling saw what happened to a changeling who went against the 'natural order'. He had the scars and broken limbs to prove it.

But that was long ago. Queen Chrysalis was no longer in the picture. Instead, a mad king was driving the hive to destruction. Although most of the hive remained a force to be reconed with, that was simply out of desperate starvation. If anypony looked down the way the hive must have traveled from, they would see a trail of fallen changelings who were too weak from hunger to carry on, who merely looked to the Empire in desperation, begging for food. Thorax's heart went out to them. It wasn't their fault they were like this. It was… HIS!

Thorax looked to the battle feild where changelings faught to break free from the petal pony's branches, where changeling hooves hit Chrystal guard shields with a loud metallic clang, where changelings bit and clawed pony fur and bark like skin. Down the way, far from him, Thorax saw Sunny, now in a taller form with a blazing orange mane and tail, fighting with King Ha Mon, who was looking more wild and rabid looking then before. Sunny looked as though he had the upper hoof on Ha Mon. The mad Changeling king was doing everything he could to just dodge or block Sunny's attacks. That is, until Ha Mon touched his crown, who's stones began to glow a dark green.

The eyes of the changelings flashed the same shade of green. Every able bodied and free changeling was immediatly called back to their king. Sunny noticed too late that the hive had gathered around him and all togeather, the changelings closed in around him, and began sucking the love from him. They could feel the love he had in his heart, for the ponies of the Empire who he was fighting for, for his missing Cousin and her family, for his fiancé who could be on her way, the love he felt for his mother and aunt who he hoped never crossed the changelings whole searching for the royal family. All that love in one large pony was atleast a bite of food to all the changelings, which was more then they have had in a long time. Sunny put up a forcefeild to protect him from the changeling magic, only, the changelings began drawing the love through his shield. It didn't stopped their feeding, but slowed it down, like sipping a thick shake through a thin straw.

King Ha Mon chuckled, lost within the overwhelming power, he stood back, watched and waited for his lackies to finish Sunny off. Then he would turn his attention to the Empire, where his Changelings can feed on everypony hidding there. Perhapse, after everypony there has been drained of all their love, he could have the hive reform the entire Empire into his own changeling Kingdom! The idea made him laugh even louder.

Still connecting with the hive mind spell, Thorax knew what King Ha Mon planned to do. The armored changeling couldn't just stand back and let this happen. While all the changelings were busy trying to drain Sunny, Thorax cut though the sky, his insect wings vibrating faster then ever before as he hovered just a foot above the ground to avoid being spotted. Not that it mattered much, King Ha Mon was drowning too much in his twisted daydreams to notice anything around him.

With the force of a rampaging buffalo, Thorax tacked Ha Mon, knocking him to the ground. The changeling King lost his wind, but staggered his hooves, ready for a fight. When Ha Mon saw his bold attacker was a changeling, he cracked a smile and put one of his insect like hooves to his crown. The buzzing in Thorax's head became louder, but the voice couldn't stop the feeling Thorax had burning deep inside.

"You are an unfit leader, even worse then Chrysalis" Thorax roared at King Ha Mon.

King Ha Mon was shocked to see Thorax could still speak. He focused harder with his crown, trying to regain control over Thorax. The buzzing became so loud, some changelings who were feeding from Sunny began passing out from the intensity. But Thorax didn't stumble, much less show the spell was effecting him. Ha Mon growled at Thorax as the rogue changeling continued his advance, both their eyes shooting daggers at one another.

"Errrr, why won't you obay me! I AM YOUR KING!" Ha Mon barked as he got to his hooves and jumped at Thorax.

Thorax met Ha Mon's hooves with his own, blocking the attack. Locking eyes with the mad changeling King again, Thorax answered "You are no King! You're a foal who thinks others are his toys!"

Hearing this, Ha Mon moved his head and snapped his jaws at Thorax who pulled his head back, barely avoiding his face being bitten off. Ha Mon shook free from his lock with Thorax, fell to the ground and bucked with his back insect like legs. The blow landed on Thorax's side, pushing him a few inches but only becouse of the snow around them. There was hardly any strength behind Ha Mon's attacks. Thorax turned just in time for Ha Mon to jump at him like some sort of wild cat leaping onto his prey. Thorax easily threw him off and pushed Ha Mon onto the snow. Ha Mon landed in the white powder with a crunch, but immediatly jumped back and tried to attack Thorax again. Only this time, Thorax stepped aside and socked Ha Mon with a punch that sent the weakened changeling King flying. This time, when Ha Mon landed on his backside in the snow, he did not get up. He sat there, looking up at Thorax who stood over him, looking down on the fallen King as if he were a child throwing a tantrum.

"You don't deserve to be king" Thorax stated as his burning eyes looked down at Ha Mon.

"Oh? And YOU do?" He snapped, his voice crackling as he shakily got to his hooves, his eyes becoming somewhat clear as he narrowed them again on Thorax. "You… I know who you are! The kicking dog of Chrysalis. Your old queen made an example of you, did she? How sad. But what is this? Looks like you found a new ruler to bow to."

Ha mon motioned to the crest on Thorax's armor, it was the symbol of the Crystal Empire. But Thorax didn't take his eyes off Ha Mon for a second. He knew what the mad king was trying to do, and Thorax refused to play his mind games, and instead continued to advance.

"Working for ponies? I used to do that too" Ha Mon snorted, slowly taking a step back away from Thorax, hoping the changeling didn't notice his slight retreat. "And you know where that got me? No where! I was no better then a school nurse to a bunch of ponies society rather forget existed! I graduated top of my class, worked for years on progressing our medical science! All so some beurocrat could tell me my methods are unethical so he could climb further up the ladder?"

Thorax reared up and stomped his hooves hard into the snow, eyes burning as he yelled at Ha Mon "You are a whining foal!"

This shocked Ha Mon who fell over when Thorax stomped the ground. It took him a moment to recover, and when he did, all he could muster was "…Excuse me?"

"You heard me!" Thorax had never been so angry in his life. He stomped up to Ha Mon who was now crawling backwards on his back, sencing what a threat Thorax actually was. Thorax didn't stop his advance as he continued to yell " You are a foal who thinks every creature is your play thing and you make excuses for not treating others rights! 'You're a doctor' so you can torture others with wierd experiments. 'You're a king' so you can force others to do what you want. But a REAL king would put the safety of his subjects first! All YOU care about is power and control! The hive tortured and imprisoned me, and 'I' feel more for them then YOU do! They need a kind ruler! They need love! They need somepony who actually CARES about THEM! You and Chrysalis are terrible leaders!"

"Oh? And you think YOU could do better?" Ha Mon stopped retreating, trying to throw Thorax off his grove. The moment he did, Ha Mon would strike.

But that moment never came. Instead, Thorax thought about all he had learned at the Crystal Empire from Cadence and Shinning Armor. About how a real leader puts the good of everypony above themselves. About how one needs to show kindness and honesty to obtain loyalty. And a good leader does the right thing, even if others don't like it. Standing up strait and tall, Thorax looked down at Ha Mon and told him in a much firmer and commanding voice then Thorax ever had before "Yes. I do. And if you ask any of my friends, they'd say the same thing."

A new magic began to flow from within Thorax, raising him into the air, his armor peeling off like old leaves, then the magic coated him in a cocoon of pure light. The changelings who had been feeding on Sunny stopped. Every changeling turned and faced the bright light coming from the direction of their king. The light was odd, as if it held within itself a type of magic that could sustain them more then love that they forcibly steal. It was an odd feeling that seemed to warm them down to their core. No longer fluttering, buzzing and hissing, the changelings tread through the snow towards their king and the blinding light.

Ha Mon had to shield his eyes from the light coming from Thorax. After a moment, the cacoon of light began to grow and pulse until it cracked open and a new being emerged from it. The creature had a light green body in the shape of a broad chested pony, but a dark green underbelly similar to an insect. The similarities to an insect streqched to its back, where a bright violet shell opened up to release a pair of transparent wings. Where a tail would be on a pony was another transparent appendage, almost like a third wing in lue of a tail. The creature bore three gem like stones on its chest. Traveling upwards, the being had a very pony like head, but for eyes it had two shinny velvet lidded orbs that matched its shell. Two orange antlers stuck out from either side of its head, great and wide, with one tiny horn at the center of his forhead that matched his body's color. All of the changelings looked upon this new being as if he were a life time supply of food.

After a moment, Ha Mon broke out in a feat of laughter "w-what are you supposed to be? Some kinder gardener's failed art project? What is with those colors? And those horns! Are you part moose or something?"

Thorax wavered a little, but somepony spoke up from behind the crowd of changelings that circled him. "Don't listen to him, Thorax! He's scared!"

"Scared?" Ha Mon laughed louder then before. "What do 'I' have to be scared of? This … thing? Whatever you are? A moose bug thing? Ha! Don't make me laugh!"

"No" Thorax regained his confidence, turning his attention back to Ha Mon. "He's right. You are afraid. Just like Chrysalis, you're afraid of losing power! You kept the changelings starving so YOU could be the one to feed them and appear to be their hero. But you know what?! We don't need to forcibly feed on others! Since I made friends, I haven't felt the need to feed at all!"

Turning his attention to the changelings surounding him, Thorax announced to them in a much more friendlier tone "we don't need to steal love! We can make friends! And when we share friendship, it fills us more then any love we could ever steal! We can live peacefully with others. Please, my hive, I ask you to consider friendship. To consider a life where you don't have to fight for scraps! Where you can do more with your life then feed! Please, choose friendship!"

Every changeling remained silent, looking nervously at one another, unsure what to make of what Thorax was saying.

"They don't care about friendship" Ha Mon stated as he got to his hooves. "They are humble servents who need a strong leader to guide them. Simple creatures that just need to feed and nothing-"

But Ha Mon's rant was interrupted when a changeling off in the crowd became surrounded by a cacoon of light similar to the one Thorax was in. Thorax and Ha Mon both watched as it emerged and fluttered to the ground. Similar to how it looked as a changeling, only, its body was solid, no holes, and turned in color to shades of pink with bright blue eyes, instead of a black and grey. Another cacoon of light arose a little ways away from the first one. And another after that. Then a third after that. Then several at once after that! In no time, changelings where metamorphosising into new, pastel colored forms of themselves, lacking wholes in their wings and legs, fangs, and forked tongues! Before they knew it, Thorax and Ha Mon were surouded by a sea of brightly colored insect ponies who no longer craved love to feed on, but desired friendships and bods that they could share and enrich their lives.

Thinking quickly Ha Mon put both his front hooves on the sides of his crown and focused with all his might. But not matter how hard he focused, the hive mind spell amplified by the crown didn't work on the new changelings.

"Its over, Ha Mon" Thorax told him, looking Ha Mon in the eye.

But Ha Mon refused to give up. He redirected his focus on Thorax only, thinking if he could atleast control HIM, he might be able to control the rest of them. Try as he might, the spell had no effect on Thorax what so ever.

"Are you done, Ha Mon?" Throax asked.

Taking another look around, Ha Mon knew he had been beat. He slunk his shoulders in defeat and simply nodded, then removed his crown and tossed it at Thorax's hooves. Thorax raised his might hoof and in one stomp, crushed the changeling crown, which shattered like glass before evaporating into dust.

To his suprise, Ha Mon saw Thorax hold out a hoof to him, flashing his a gentle smile. "Not everypony is meant to lead. You do act like a foal, Ha Mon, but you might just need somepony to show you how to grow up. What do you say? Wanna be friends, Ha Mon?"

Ha Mon looked at Thorax's hoof for a long moment, unsure of what it actually meant. But he knew one thing now that his mind was beigining to clear, he HATED being the leader. The power was fun, but it was WAY too stressful. Maybe being by the leader's side was where he meant to be all along. It was fun when he was by Snowstorm's side. Ha Mon took Throax's hoof and stood up, only for himself to be circled in a cacoon of light as well.

Inside his own cacoon, Ha Mon felt a familiar warmth, one that he felt long ago when he made friends with a filly back in school, who's mom was a nurse. She too, wanted to become a nurse. He and her had gone to medical school togeather, but when he started messing with things he shouldn't have, that friend of his didn't want to see him again. And it hurt. Seeing her image again after so many years reminded Ha Mon what REAL friendship was all about. The light began to fade as Ha Mon broke free from his cacoon, reborn as a new changeling. Ha Mon looked himself over, taken back a little by his new appearance.

He was a pearl white color with a slight grey belly. And although he couldn't tell, his eyes were a bright yellow color. He looked no different then any of the other reformed changelings, say for his color, and kind of preferred it that way. Turning his attention to the crowd of changelings, Ha Mon didn't know what to say at first. Then something swept into his mind as he looked at Thorax, who offered him friendship, having faught him for the entire hive. Thorax would be a great king. "All hail King Thorax!"

To which every changeling replied "All hail, King Thorax! All hail, King Thorax! All hail, King Thorax!"

"I don't mean to break this historical moment up" Sunny emerged from the crowd of changelings to reach the newly appointed King Thorax, his expression flashing with great worry. He had reverted back to his smaller pony form, alot of his magic having been consumed by the changelings before their transformation. "But we need to get back to the castle, now. Something is wrong. Really wrong."

Thorax Ha Mon and the other reformed changelings all looked I the direction of the Crystal Empire. The barrier surrounding it was being poisoned, turned black and bubbling purple and grey, with only small parts at the base not poisoned by dark magic, yet.

Grabbing Sunny and throwing him onto his back, Thorax spread his wings and began flying at top speed to the Crystal Empire's barrier. "Let's hurry! Every creature, to the castle!"

The other changelings followed behind their king, even the former King Ha Mon, who was tailing right behind Thorax. All of them filled with a new since of urgency as their King rushed into what might be the second greatest battle of their lives..