The summer season was just about over at Stella Lacus adventure summer camp. Amie and her younger brother Wes were eager to return home. Unfortunately for them, their adventures had only just begun.
All at once, the entire summer camp and the mountain it was built upon shifted universes, leaving Earth behind for a far stranger world. In the same moment, every camper, counselor, and staff-member transformed into strange insectoid creatures, with unknown powers and incomprehensible needs.
Instead of returning to nursing school, Amie has a new goal: keep her little brother alive. If only the other campers didn't look at him like food...
Updates every Saturday. Editing by Two Bit and Sparktail.
Awesome cover by SimonDrawsStuff.
This story was sponsored by Canary in the Coal Mine on my Patreon. Thanks so much for your support!
You have my attention
A fine start. I look forward to seeing how this progresses. I especially like her brother's sensation of "not supposed to be there" and the implications of it. Will he still be human? Pony? Or maybe something else entirely?
Hey, you wanted an adventure…
Fascinating opening. Looking forward to seeing just why Wes is the odd ‘ling out. Let’s hope the place doesn’t go full Lord of the Flies… though that also leads to the question of whether there are any queens present.
Welcome to the strange land, strangers. Leave your skepticism at the door. It tastes terrible, after all.
You have my attention.
Phew, that cover is adorable, and the premise is interesting, but those red tags are no friends of mine. Looks like comfort zone and I are gonna have to part ways for a bit.
Science must be done
Looks like shits about to go Lord of the Flies
So the younger brother is actually one of those colorful changelings. Because he's a kid or just sensitive to notice that something was coming?
Either way, Amie will have her hooves full protecting him, and what was Wes thinking in just going into the forest. MLP is not as safe as people think. Hidden dangers are always a thing.
Wes is starting to bother me, and it's because of how nonchalant he is. Which is partly good that he isn't panicking, but he's also not taking the situation seriously, and took note that he can't fly and in the story pic he's caught by the stream.
Maybe the reason he's so colorful is because he's so carefree unlike the older people. Quite frankly, he seemed excited about the whole situation than worried or scared.
At least Amie has a good head on her shoulder.
An adventure into Equestria. Certainly not in the brochures but let's see if Wes gets his money's worth now.
So comes the question: Why him? At the very least, he could be the vector to converting the other changelings. Of course, that depends on whether he survives the hunger of the mob. A mob that may or may not include his sister.
Amie strikes me as genre savvy.
This be giving off some classic Last Pony on Earth vibes. Definitely worth following.
Witness her!
It could.be made clearer that they are ALL Changelings, rather than a mix of races. I only know from the story description(s).
Well then, this is certainly an intriguing start. We've got one pastel changeling and one pre-ref changeling in attendance, and siblings at that; one in a leadership position, the other not seeming to be bothered by the situation. And that tag combination certainly has me interested…
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Even with the red tags, these are Buggo sibs we're talking about here. C'mon, you know you're gonna wanna stay.
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i.kym-cdn.com/entries/icons/original/000/032/632/No_No_He's_Got_A_Point_Banner.jpg
Interesting, I await more.
Cool! Interesting start, let's see where the story goes.
Off to an interesting start. Dunno if a lot of "Human(s) in Equestria" stories often feature a transformation into changelings specifically, but then I don't really read them usually, so I'm not particularly genre-savvy. Also I don't really know who Kafka is other than he wrote some books and some of them involved human-to-insect transformation, I think? At least that's what I gather from jokes and memes on the internet.
Anywho, those tags up there are a bit concerning; can almost forget they're there this early on. Amie and Wes probably have plot armor, but that doesn't really reassure one, does it? I do sort of wonder how the implied future violence towards Wes comes about, as his sister reacts to him just fine. Though maybe that's because she already knows him...? Also, somewhat concerned some humans-turned-bugs are gonna get ganked by pony guards, here. The protags are gonna suffer through a bit of canonically prejudiced pony hell. Is this set pre-reformation, or is this in an AU where ponies don't exactly know that changelings are an actual thing yet?
Really, what drew me in was the nicely detailed cover art. Also bugs. If there's one thing I can definitively say I am a fan of specifically in regards to MLP: FiM, it's the changelings, especially pre-reformation. Those and the Kirins.
Oh this is a rocking good story.
but is this going to be a PAP based story?
Their reactions feel… off. Like, muted. They’re not really reacting to what’s happened. I mean, there’s been comments, both mental and not, but nothing that’s like “omg what’s happened”, it’s more been along the lines of “ok gotta adjust”.
Of course this could be a scenario of shock, or some other mental block causing their emotions to be muted and they’ll react more soon, but it’s still unsettling to see how calm and non-reactive both characters are.
I’ll also admit to having some difficulty trying to visualise the characters here - more in a personality sense than a physical one. Granted the story is extremely short at the moment so there’s not much to go off, but is Wes a “geek” or “nerd”? Is he compassionate or kind? Is Amie controlling or protective? I can’t really get a good gauge so far.
I don’t want to be overly critical of this story when it’s only just started so I won’t say any more, especially as a lot of what I’ve said so far is opinion-based to some degree.
Everything might be calm or ordered now, but the hunger will come. And food will not satiate that.
Worse thing than a starving group of changelings is a starving group of changelings right next to the capital of a nation attacked by other changelings.
A thousand? Oof. I wasn't expecting anything more than a couple of hundred-ish people. That's going to get out of hoof real fast.
A thousand? Isn't that too much? With any luck they will realize what their bodies really need to feed on. The faster they adapt, the faster they can prepare before shit hits the fan.
I wonder who will be the first that learns about their magic and their ability to transform.
Also, who will start the conflict between the campers and the ponies? That Death tag is there, or is it just for shock factor?
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Worse because most of them are not even young adults. Teens still. Emotional, starved teens is not good. The counselors need to hurry to [properly] feed the campers.
Very convincing.
Yeah, no one can really be prepared for this. At least they have their own power and water supplies, but turning into life not quite as we know it will prove a great logistical challenge indeed. Let’s see how long it takes for things to fall apart… or if the camp surprises me.
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No, this isn't PaP. It's an entirely new world.
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Maybe by some miracle Thorax will appear to the rescue?
He could be after leaving the hive or after befriending Spike in Crystal Empire
Imagine him becoming something of a council member of the new human/changelings hive XD
Now I had this funny idea
ㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤㅤMLP Season 6 Finale
Chrysalis:"Ha HA HA I defeated all your friends Thorax, nobody will stop me"
Thorax:"I will,we will !"
Chrysalis:"You and What Army?"
Thorax:"That" looks at a big hole in the throine room and points a hoof at approaching changeling cloud to the rescue XD
I mean imagine everyone's reaction if Thorax kept their existence a secret to even ponies(with expectation of Spike) and out of nowhere he helps lead a changeling hive with completely new changelings XD
11190101 (I was going to ask that in separate comment above but decided to delete it and do it in one)
What's PaP?
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A previous series I wrote. https://www.fimfiction.net/story/265629/the-last-pony-on-earth
I'm loving her internal monologue. Most of the time when somebody transforma they just go through some denial phase, or panic and then calm down. She's just straight up "ew," which feels pretty appropriate.
Well that's dark and ominous.
Remain calm. You just transformed into hideous bug ponies, but try to keep your wits about you.
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I kinda agree. Amie took to her transformation with surprising grace, and Wes kinda feels like he expected this to happen.
"Welp, we're horses now." And yet he disclaims magic. What the heck does he think happened, then?
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That really depends on what timeline they landed in. Thorax might not be a thing just yet. The Wedding invasion might have been recently and the fear/hatred against changelings are high. Maybe even before nightmare Moon came so no Mane 6 to the rescue or for diplomacy.
The timeline is the most important thing of them all.
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If the invasion happened then Thorax already left the hive ,so at least that's stage is done possibility for him to find them
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And for this reason the timeline is the most important to see if the campers are screwed over, or if they have a chance for all to come out alive.
Oh boy. In situations like this being different can be a VERY bad thing. Her brother might be killed by some whack-jobs who assume he had something to do with it. When stressed, people always go looking for someone to blame and anyone who is different is going to be a target. I'm liking this so far, please keep up the good work.
i am liking this. but it is still not clear if this is a local event or world wide.
Does he know the term ISOT?
I wonder if this is a version where changelings can eat normal food but it won't energize that as much as an emotion but at least, they won't starve.
Though it shouldn't be hard for them to share an emotion or even metamorphose, unlike normal changelings.
Beceuse unlike normal changelings who were always encouraged to be one-dimensionally in bad mood (but not Thorax), humans shouldn't have a problem with that
Thought it could be cool if their metamorphosis wasn't into normal colorful changelings
But maybe with them still having their dark, essentially not colorful colors.
Because on the mind,brain, psyche level they are different.
This is pretty good, I think I will follow
So Wes thinks this is a nightmare and that's how he's coping...I wonder how long that will last.
Did Amie get fed from the hug?
Poole is a prick if he's salty that Amie gave useful information. She just saved the counselors a lot of time from trying useless avenues of escape. I feel that he's going to cause trouble for Wes to use him as the camp's lunch source. He seems like the type to suggest something like that, if it means he looks useful.
I'm sure the locals will be overjoyed to discover they have new neighbors
Eh, depends on when you are. “We come in peace” can go a long way… though there is the question of how powerful love-hunger is when exposed to positive emotion for the first time.
In any case, the clock is ticking for Wes, even if no one realizes it. Yet. We’ll see where things go from here. The problem with a mountain settlement is that it’s so easy for it all to go downhill…
Won't be long until the locals get wind of them. Things are going to get ugly.
It's a pretty big deal. Without any knowledge, Wes has no context on the relationship between his form and the rest of the campers. He has no idea if there's anything unique or dangerous about himself. Finding an answer to the mystery should be a higher priority.
Sooner or later, the seriousness of the situation is gonna hit Wes like a brick wall. Kid's in for the shock of his life.
Forgot to mention this early on, but I recall that someone was talking to Amie when she was first waking up. At first I assumed it was Wes, but then we found out that he'd already wandered off by that point, presumably (we don't actually know for sure how long she lay flopping around there). There was a mention of a... contented buzzing/humming? And the voice seemed gentle, at least, to Amie. If I recall correctly, it also knew who she was.
Is this, perhaps, related to the reformation of the changelings? Specifically before Chrysalis ensured herself the Bad End for her and her comrades, but after she was already ousted from the Hive. Is this somehow her doing? Was she the one talking to Amie? Is the camp some attempt to gain reinforcements? If so, then why is Wes, the weird outcast kid, the one that's fine/different? I wonder when Amie will change as well. It's possible for them to change, and she seems like she'd be the best candidate, due to exposure to her brother- though, given the implied less than friendly attitude of her campers and peers, it might make it difficult for her to be so giving. There's also the matter of them not really knowing what they need to survive, yet.
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This one from Ch.1, right?
I'm pretty sure she was talking to herself. The buzzing likely coming from her own wings when she was trying to get up.
The blogpost for the story does mention that all humans who enter this world turns into changelings and this apparently happened many times in the past. It would be interesting for them to meet with the hive and understand their new bodies (Wes especially) and perhaps hive history. At the very least, they can be certain they have a better chance of surviving with them than with ponies.
“Even the ones too scared to overnight.”
Granted, “overnight” can be a verb, it just feels strange.
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Ohhh. that makes sense, lol. I must have misunderstood, but casting it in that light it makes more sense.
Also, I had not seen any blog posts about this story; I don't follow them, and I don't usually pay a lot of attention to blogs, lol. That's... a really interesting thing to learn. That it's happened more than once, and that it's always changelings in this universe... I wonder, does this mean that all changelings everywhere were once human in this version of events? Kind of curious to see where everything goes from here.
You've gotten my attention and looking forward to the upcoming adventures that Ami, Wes and the others will experience in Equestria. Keep up the good work.
Interesting. I wonder where that is. I wanna guess Starlight's Village "Our Town", but part of me doubts that since she's not in the character tags.