Chapter 1 Into Equestria!

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What is man? Are we fragile gods subject to the whims of chance? Do we make our own destinies or are they laid out before us like a winding road disappearing into a thick fog? Is a man as cruel as he is kind? Does he love as much as he hates? Does he hold his fellow humans in contempt or respect them as his equals? Does it matter if other humans are better or worse? Does it matter if I think of them as better or worse? Why did I walk away from my world, my race? Why did I turn my back on my family, the faces I knew well, their quirks, their personalities? Why did I turn my back on a world who never did anything directly to me as a whole? It was an imperfect world to be sure, but people as a whole tend to be kind to each other - at least in finding a route of tolerance, to be sure - and would rather socialize with a stranger than be alone.

Yet we are as violent a race as we are a loving race. We wage war, we kill, and always for reasons not really making all that much sense. Oh, for certain there have been times when war was justified. However the lessons of the past have been often written by the victor, so at what point is the truth obscured by propaganda? This is part of the nature of humans; to deceive and deflect. Those who discover their enemy was not all that competent after the dust settles find ways to glorify their actions against that same enemy. We want to feel important, we want to be heroes.

Being a father is reason enough for heroism. Daddies chase the monsters out from under the bed. Daddies roar at the monster in the closet to go away. Daddies make their little girls feel safe and secure.

I had a human daughter once. Fate deemed she be taken from me before I could know her. Where does a father turn when his love is shattered? In my case, it came in the form of a changeling. Specifically Chrysalis, future Queen of the Changelings. I don't blame humanity for the state I allowed myself to fall. I blame my own weaknesses and my own failure as a son to my mother and father. I became so involved in my little world, shrinking it further and further that I forgot what it was to be human. I simply shut myself out of the world, living a meager existence, my daughter living with her mother. The shape-shifter who came into my life on a stormy summer night through an unpredicted bout of attitude from Mother Nature. Green lightning flashed, and there she was.

That was thirteen years ago. She grew into a lovely filly on the cusp of marehood. God, that sounds ridiculously sappy, doesn't it? She became my daughter in every sense of the word, especially after I learned my real daughter died in a plane crash. Her body was never found, but her mother survived, along with half of the passengers.

I've come to accept the loss, but there's always going to be a place in my heart where Crystal will always live. Right now, I've got my other daughter I'm chasing into a world of rainbows and wishes and skipping through the damn tulips. Or maybe its just a place where you're high all the time and everything's a hazy waltz through a burning weed field.

I'll let you know when I get there.

Yay me.

While Luna pulled me through whatever the hell portal or wormhole or God knows what to call it, I could not help but think weird things about a place that by all means shouldn't exist at all save for in the minds of those with a colorful set of pastels in their imagination. This shouldn't be happening, none of this should be real. My Little Dashie is just a fan fiction written by someone who happened to be a fan of a cartoon show that hasn't been renewed in over a decade. I've turned my back on a real world with real problems where everything is practical and logical for a place where dragons eat gems and ponies have technology levels spanning across three centuries and power them with magic, of all things.

I'm an idiot, I know. I never claimed to be intelligent. Chrysalis is the smart one in the family. I'm just the lucky son of a bitch whom Discord cheated the odds for a winning lottery ticket for the sole purpose of...well...

Hell if I'll ever know his motives. Discord's an insane bastard. To this point, I like him, but at the time am scared shitless of his godlike ability. He's friggin' Q from Star Trek, for crying out loud - in animated form! I think he's just in it for fun and doesn't want to hurt anyone, but I don't know. Something about him suggests to me he's got other ideas churning between those ears. I just don't know what. Those alarm bells went off in my head the last time I saw him, now that I think about it.

How long have we been walking through this portal? Or is it a wormhole? Or is it some cosmic being's colon? I have no idea. Luna just warned me to keep my hand on her shoulder. Fluttershy - a yellow pegasus with pink hair - tagged along as a living decoy in case I proved to be less than trustworthy (I would learn later it was Luna's idea to use her as a distraction while she gauged me).

For some reason, I decided to pack a couple extra sets of clothing, stuffing them in an overnight bag as well as a few personal items.

Through the Wormhole with Morgan Freeman...

Well, I glance at Luna who plods ahead with seemingly not a care in the world, throwing a reassuring smile at me as my hand grips on her mane, not quite. I don't think Morgan Freeman would have the power of the a god, but he sure does a fine job acting like one. If God were to ever show up on earth, I'd be pretty content to see Mr. Freeman's face representing.

The man's a good actor. Shut up.

Anyways, Fluttershy is sitting on Luna's back, mostly due to the thing about maintaining contact with Luna's body for the travel (How did Celestia do it with six mares and later the addition of Chrysalis? Something to ponder!).

Is Luna a god, erm - goddess? I try to speak, but no sound comes from my mouth. I can't see anything except for Luna and Fluttershy. There's nothing but darkness all around the three of us, even though Luna's tip of her horn glows with a soft white light. Not even a bit of wind exists in this place to tell us if we're going in a particular direction. I simply have to put blind faith in the alicorn as she makes headway. I tense a bit, wary and a bit scared of the unknown. Her eye flickers back to me and smiles through her gaze, reassuring me while at the same time maintaining a serious poise and demeanor. She's all business and not one to open up freely to someone she's just met.

Namely me. I've earned enough trust to garner passage to Equestria, but I've got a long way to go before she'll trust me completely, if ever. I get the feeling I'm going on a time trial of sorts before I'm offered something more permanent. That's what it feels like to me at this point. I could be wrong, but at this point in time, worrying about things I have no control over isn't going to do me any good. Besides, I'm already committed at this point.

I wonder if I'll ever go back to Earth again. I wouldn't want to put it behind me permanently. I haven't given up on humanity, but I think I do need to set myself straight. Maybe staying on another world for a bit will help set my head straight in regards to Crystal. I want to make sure Chrysalis is settled and happy, in the meantime. We're connected mentally, if you can believe that. It's some sort of hive mind, or something. I credit it with the plain fact we never had a major argument in the thirteen years we lived together. She imprinted on me and we bonded. I was regarded as, well, her queen. Or do changelings have kings? It was never explained fully. The point is, she regards me as not only her father, but her ultimate authority figure, so any disagreements we might have almost always fairly civil.

It still didn't prevent her from developing a bit of an independent streak nor did it do anything to keep her from following in my footsteps of being a smartass. Changeling see, changeling do. Changeling mimic. Changeling talk to daddy in daddy's voice. It's creepy, yet pretty cool...and a bit disturbing the first time with the ever-so-popular proclamation of "gee, I sound like that?" whenever someone hears their own voice thrown back at them for the first time.

I didn't realize it, but I suddenly became aware I had been muttering a steady string of curse words under my soundless breath. I couldn't hear my own words, but I could feel them as I mumbled. My eyes must have been saucers as those lovely four letter words and their friends streamed from my lips, taking little bits of my fears with them as I vented. I was a kid again, going through a haunted house of mirrors, terrified and waiting for the Boogey Man to jump out of a secret hiding place and gobble me up.

How's that for a thirty-seven-year-old war veteran?

Yay me.

Luna soothes me somehow. I can only assume it's magic or whatever, but it's like a warm security blanket as if she knows I'm not comfortable.

Hello, my name is Michael Spriggs and I've rediscovered claustrophobia.

Hi, Mike! Supportive applause and I'm still walking and not freaking out. There's something to be said about having imaginary support group meetings in your own head.

Luna just rolled her eye at me.

Is she reading my mind?

I think I see a pinprick of light far ahead of us. We're walking down in that direction. It seems like it's been forever since we started walking. I think a thousand universes spawned and died while we walked. Or are we floating? Nothing feels solid under my booted feet, yet they plant firmly on something with each step. Am I walking on dark matter?

It takes an eternity, but we make it to the light until it's bright enough for Luna to douse her horn. I'm starting to feel a breeze and I smell...fresh air? Lilacs? I'm taking my first breaths of a new world, a different land, a whole other reality!

It smells like Equestria.

I feel an eagerness in my step, an extra spring in my joints. This sense of renewed vigor is very much like, well, a horse running for the stables. I know I'm almost home, if you can believe that. Well, to be fair, I'm just happy this unpleasant part of the journey is almost done and I just want to get out of whatever this tunnel thing is I've been spending forever in. So it's not so much home as it is my current destination. Calling it home is far too arrogant on my part, I realize. I'll just be a guest. I need to remind myself that. This isn't some fantasy where I get to live happily ever after. Every movement I make, every word I'll say will be scrutinized. I'll be under a microscope, poked at and prodded.

Chrysalis, I hope you realize what your daddy is going through in order to make sure you're happy in your new old world. Rather, what I might go through. It's too early to tell, but it doesn't take much of my imagination to conjure up images of me on a slab of metal with all sorts of probes and machines and other oddball things my twisted mind can think of me being attached to for study.

The light grows brighter and brighter as we approach it. Soon, I can make out blue skies and fluffy clouds making their way lazily by. The skyline reveals the outline of a castle nestled delicately, it seems into the face of a mountain. A city sprawls around it upon the slopes, the spires and walls of the castle. As my eyes adjust to the brightness, the details they pick up become more defined. With the last few steps, I feel grass beneath my feet.

I can also faintly sense my daughter. I'm beginning to grow an idiotic grin. She's sensing me as well. It fades as I start to connect to a sense of despair and it's not directed at anyone in particular. Its a distress stemming from our disconnection. I try my best to soothe her, but the distance between us is far, very far. For the both of us, it's like a faint tick in the back of our minds. We've tried to test the distance we can go in our summer long trips around America. I'm guessing she's five or six miles away. The connection is very faint, so that's medium long range for us. The range is limited to roughly twenty miles and it's like listening to a faint echo in your brain.

Suddenly, Equestria is all around me as we stand at the top of a gentle hill. The air is warm, comfortable. The breeze I felt in the tunnel is more of a welcoming caress. Oddly enough, the bag I've been toting doesn't feel like it has any weight. As I pass over some invisible threshold and come fully into this new world, the weight returns. I picture my daughter must be bouncing around like a kid finding out she's going to Disneyland for the first time.

One of the first sensations I'll note is I feel lighter, as if the gravity slightly less than normal than Earth's gravity. Weird. I ask Luna about it, and find she's been reading my face.

"The difference is slight," she notes with a nod, regarding me with a knowing smile. It's not quite as warm a smile as her sister might have offered me, but it's genuine. It's her nature to be reserved, but she is perceptive as if she's approving my mental reconnection.

Luna is the classic example of redemption. I suspect Celestia is trying to get her younger sister more involved with what's going on around her a morsel at a time. The Princess of the Night currently has a little triumphant smile on her lips, quite proud of herself.

"Thanks for guiding me through whatever that was," I say to her, grateful. "That was kinda spooky."

She raises her head proudly, her starry mane an odd contrast to the midday sun. "Think nothing of it. In time, perhaps you will be able to return the favor for the good of Equestria in the future. For the moment, I simply bid you welcome to my home."

I don't think she can help but speak formally, though the warmth in her voice overcomes the stiffness in her demeanor. It's going to take centuries for her to adjust to normal, but she's endearing with what qualities she has. She's the prime definition of the stoic defender, a lady knight of the night, her might for right.

Sorry, I couldn't help myself there.

"Return the favor?" I ask curiously. "How so?"

Again she smiles at me, this time with an apology attached to it. "I may be ahead of myself in that regard. Celestia will explain that bit at a time of her choosing, as she is far better in those matters than I."

I'm about to protest when she raises a hoof at me, waving it a little. "Stay your queries, Mr. Spriggs! I am not prepared to answer them as properly as I would like. My sister and I must allow you to acquaint yourself with our nation and of course reconnect you with your daughter. We implore your patience." Her voice begs understanding, but her eyes show a bit of iron.

"All right," I agree with a sigh and a smile.

Fluttershy speaks up with her quiet voice. I had almost forgotten she was with us. Having hopped off Luna's back she bashfully asks, "May I go, princess? I mean, if you don't need me for anything else...if that's all right with you."

"Thank you, friend Fluttershy." Luna's face was hidden by her mane as she addressed the shy yellow mare fondly. "Please give my regards to your adorable little animal friends."

"I will." Fluttershy offers me a farewell, "It was very nice to meet you, Mr. Spriggs. You seem like a nice man. I hope everything works out for you."

I smile. "Thank you, young lady. Have a safe trip home."

She nods and flies away (just a few feet off the ground) in a direction away from the castle. I notice beyond her and at the bottom of the hill we're on are a couple of smaller rolling hills partially concealing a dirt road. The road itself winds lazily towards a little hamlet a couple of miles away. The large hill I'm standing on certainly affords a lovely panoramic view of the surrounding country. Orchards and farms spread out in the valley in a very humble tribute to prosperity. It reminds me of the Yellowstone caldera, where the mountains form the rim and a large forest spreads out to the south and west of me, beyond the little village Fluttershy is currently heading for. Canterlot castle is true north of where Luna and I are standing. Fully able to make out the details, it really does look like something out of a Disney movie. There's just no way such delicate towers reaching majestically skyward should be able to maintain their grace. The sun gleams off the white stone. I assume its some sort of quartz or perhaps even marble, along with other bright colors upon the rooftops. Nestled around the castle and its pristine walls and huddling into the side of the snow capped mountain is the city of Canterlot, reminding me of something from the Industrial Revolution, without the soot and smoke, a mix of European construction. It's as if the architects wandered about the Old World from my planet and cobbled together a very picturesque scene one can only dream of.

"Oh my God," I breathe, gaping as if I'm seeing civilization for the first time.

Luna interrupts my intake of visual beauty. "It is not much," she sniffs, "but I call it home." Her giggling is at my expense. I don't mind.

She tilts her head skyward, expectantly as if waiting for something. I shift my back uncomfortably on my shoulder. "What are we waiting for?"

"A chariot for you, Mr. Spriggs."

"Call me Mike, Princess Luna."

"Not until know you a bit better, Mr. Spriggs. I'll call you by your first name when you have earned my trust. My dear sister is more open to folk as unique as you, but I prefer to act with more discretion and suspicion until my own unease with the unknown are settled."

Ouch. I guess she really didn't take that little jaunt into my dreams and memories with anything more or less than professional. She's a cool customer. "I can respect that."

She nods coolly and indicates an approaching spot in the sky drawing nearer. It seems to be coming from the castle. "Ah, there it is. Please stand firmly in the center of the chariot and grip the hand rails. We usually use this particular model of chariot you will be riding in for dignitaries from the minotaur or diamond dog nations."

Out of curiosity, I peer behind me to look at the portal I had just stepped through a few minutes ago. There's nothing there but broken stones of what must have been some floor of a long forgotten ruin from ages past. Two broken pillars, the left one roughly three or four feet high and the right just a tad taller than me are all that remain of what I think was some sort of grand columns. They're so old and faded, it's difficult to make out what they might have once been.

"Why was the portal out here?" My question has a hesitation halfway through it as I gape and gawk at the nothing that's now there. "What happened to it?"

"It closed because I commanded it to do so."

"Oh." I guess that makes sense.

"It was also out here in case something unwelcome decided to come through it."

"From my world?"

"That and there are things in between worlds that always seek a way into realms they do not belong." Her tone suggests the topic is something she takes very seriously. "There is a battalion on standby to observe what comes in and out of the portals here. Such places are scattered throughout Equestria, relics from her Golden Age." Luna paws at the ground with a hoof with a stern expression. "Most are useless and few unicorns have the ability to maintain one for overly long periods. Such magic is forbidden unless the need is great."

The next question from my mouth was probably more bitter than I intended. "Was taking my daughter from me such a need?"

"I would have been content to leave her with you and in your world," she admits softly. "I can understand the sense of isolation it must have left you with when she was gone. But, such a memory is not good for the constitution! Think instead of the happy reunion you two will surely share within the hour!"

It's not a bad consolation prize to look forward to. I tell her just that and she smiles at my words.

"Excellent!" The mare turns to me fully, expression grave. "Now, kindly remember you are a guest here at the whim of myself and my sister. You will be confined to a wing of the palace until we can determine public reaction to your presence and if such a thing would even be feasible. It is my opinion you will be frightening at first to most ponies," she speaks, stepping towards me, her head bobbing for emphasis as she is clearly trying very hard to explain this as clearly and plainly as possible. "How would you wager the attitudes of the mares who were with my sister upon that day when they first came a-calling upon your doorstep?"

I pondered her question by rubbing my chin. "Well, they didn't say much and did a lot of staring at me. I think I intimidated them."

"Indeed you did. Remarkably, Fluttershy was the least affected and volunteered to come with me once Discord's plan was discovered and explained from his very mouth. To her, you are like a manticore."

I blink. "Okay." Sure. Whatever. I've just be equated to a monster.

I'm sure Bigfoot is out there sipping on a cup of tea, reading this and saying, "Quite." Snooty nod added for emphasis.

The chariot arrives, pulling to a stop. The two bat winged stallions pulling it have dark coats beneath their dark gray armor. Each one sports an ornate helmet with nose and cheek guards trimmed with polished steel. Both of them are powerfully muscled, heavy in the chest in shoulders especially. They bow to Luna with reverence, maintaining a military bearing.

"Mr. Spriggs, your chariot awaits." The princess gives me a slight toss of her muzzle, suggesting in my eyes I should get on quickly.

"Is it safe to ride on?"

"Usually," she smirks at me and is the first to board. "Come. There is much to tell you while we ride. Not all is as you see in what we provide for your world to know."

Wait? Provide? I follow her and climb on the back of the chariot at Luna's side. My bag is shoved to the front and against the inner wall at my feet. "What do you mean by that?"

The chariot lifts off and I don't know how this is managed. Magic, I guess. I stare at everything; my ride, the two bat ponies pulling it, the princess bemused by my wonderment of what's going on. As she looks on, she explains, "We've known of your world for a long time. As a matter in fact, our time lines are converging and have been doing so for the past thousand years. As the centuries have come to pass, our worlds have unexpectedly converged, exchanging ideas without knowing it and even having famous ponies here a lot like famous humans from your world."

I stare at her, blinking like a dumb mute.

She's not paying attention to me, as her monologue comes with her looking upon her land with a distant stare as if recollecting old memories. "Where do you think the human grasp of algebra comes from?"

My answer is more of a guess, "Uh, the Middle East?"

"No. Starswirl the Bearded first came across it some fourteen centuries ago. His notes ended up being transferred through one of his experimental spells. Dimensional jumping, in the broadest of terms. Your scholars from that region found it and their curiosity and desire to learn did the rest." Luna chuckles. "He was trying out the magic my sister uses these days for sending and receiving letters through flame."

"So you've known about Earth?"

"Yes. You can't come to our world because your race has lost its touch with its magic."

Huh? "What's that supposed to mean?"

"Exactly what I mean. Did I say something amiss?"

The princess laughs, seeing my confusion as I'm clearly not believing her. "I don't expect you to believe me. The last human sorcerer in your history was a man by the name of Merlin."

"The one from King Arthur?" I ask incredulously, mindful to maintain my grip on the chariot's rail.

She nods. "The very same."

"That's crazy!"

"Only because you only believe magic does not exist." She leans towards me slightly, arching a brow with an aside, "which begs me to ponder what you thought of Chrysalis and her learning of her magic, hmm?" Her eyes twinkle with merriment.

Okay, she got me on that. I get the feeling Luna and I are going to be butting heads a lot and I can't tell if that's going to be fun or a major pain in the ass. I think I should try and get her to like me first. So, for the remainder of the trip to the castle, I listen to her intently as she tells me the do's and don'ts expected of me during my stay, as well as a few more tidbits of Equestrian history and culture. I try to pick the proper time to present a question, which is frequently I might add, as some of the Equestrian customs require some clarification. For the most part, it strikes me as not really being all that different from the culture I grew up in.

Still, being a biped in a world dominated with quadrupeds already presents all sorts of interesting challenges, I can tell.

After fifteen minutes in the air, the chariot (the flying chariot) begins to loop lazily on approach to what appears a rather large and long courtyard within the walls of the castle itself. The building we're heading towards reminds me a little of the opulent palaces in Europe (Versailles comes to mind), but with its own distinct flair. Below me teems Canterlot, her streets teeming with the populace. Bright colors and banners and flags dangle everywhere, creating an almost festive atmosphere. There are ponies everywhere. Some are even dressed in assorted odd styles. Some are simple, others ornate. I'm too high up to clearly make out details. It's certainly colorful to look at. A few eyes drift up, see the chariot. They see one of their princesses and not the hairless ape gaping down at them. Luna waves politely and smiles at those who call out to her gleefully. Her reputation has improved since returning to her place on the throne she shared with her sister, I'm thinking.

"What's the occasion?" I ask Luna curiously, throwing a hand at the bright giddiness presented by the city.

"Prince Blueblood is finally getting married," is her reply. Am I hearing relief in her voice? "My sister insisted a week of celebrating before the ceremony. He'll be wed this Sunday. I was not going to object and the family was carefully selected to deal with his...personality." Is there a faint wickedness in her smile?

"Political marriage?" I ask curiously.

"Oh, by the moon no!" she laughs. "He impregnated the daughter of the ambassador of one of the independent pony states. He was rather adamant in regards to the incident. The mare's father was quite furious with him. I suspect the mare in question did this deliberately, but I do not go into the dreams of my subjects without just cause."

"So it's a shotgun wedding?" The corner of my mouth twitches.

She pauses as she gives me an odd stare. "Shotgun wedding?"

I supply the answer helpfully, "It's a form of marriage from my nation's nineteenth century where parents often forced couples to marry as it was considered taboo for a woman to have a baby out of wedlock. The suspected father to be was often held at gunpoint at the alter by the father of his bride-to-be and forced to make the girl in question a respectable woman."

"Oh my." Luna puts a hoof to her mouth and starts giggling after picturing it in her mind's eye. "Oh my! Yes, it is an arrangement not unlike what you just described. Is that still a common practice in your modern times?"

"Not anymore."

"Pity."

I scrunch my brows as I recall something Luna said. "Wait, you selected the family this Blueblood was marrying into?"

Her eyes widen briefly. "Oh. Did I say that? It is not to be discussed further."

"You brought it up -" I suddenly have a hoof in my mouth.

"Not. To. Be. Discussed. Further." Her eyes warn me through her smile. Okay, this is one complex lady I'm dealing with. I nod. The hoof falls away.

I think the two pegasus are trying hard not to laugh.

The corner of her lips quirk upwards. "Besides," she adds in royal repose, "my sister will kill me if she is not allowed to tell you herself the gory details. In private, of course." A dangerous glance flickers towards her two bat winged guards. They clear their throats and concentrate on flying the chariot.

During the whole time, the connection to my Chryssie has grown stronger and stronger the closer I came to her. I put it in the back of my mind where it buzzed ceaselessly, as if the severed threads were reconnecting. As I've mentioned before, we can't speak to each other's minds, but we can feel each other's emotions. I look ahead and see a familiar large mare with the multicolored mane like a sunrise through a prism, with her golden crown and halter. Celestia bears tolerant humor towards a figure practically bouncing impatiently next to her. There are few ponies in front of what I assume must be the palace, and one of them is shifting restlessly from one hoof to the other next to a third member of the greeting party, Twilight Sparkle. She's a charcoal gray mare with a long and straight teal mane and emerald green eyes, roughly Twilight's size. It doesn't take much of an imagination to tell who she is.

Luna steps off first, offering a throaty chuckle upon seeing Chrysalis in a form I've never seen her before. It makes sense, considering this is a land of ponies and whatnot. I'm right behind her and as she goes to greet her elder sister, the little dark mare - shorter than the Chryssie I know - approaches me, her lower lip quibbling as she's on the verge of tears.

"Daddy, is that you?" My daughter, I know it's her, stumbles forward awkwardly after a nudge from a sympathetic (and tearing) Twilight Sparkle. Chrysalis is already crying, her lower lip quibbling, caught somewhere between joy and relief as if a personal nightmare had just come to an end.

I'm reminded of a father coming home from war as I drop my bag. Two long strides and I fall to my knees, wrapping my arms around my daughter's neck. My own emotions erupt and suddenly I'm crying. Her hooves wrap around me and the embrace is tight, a sobbing changeling and human combination feeling right. After a long, warm moment of a family embrace I had yearned for, I pulled her back.

"Let me have a look at you!" I tug playfully at one of her ears, caressing a cheek. "Why aren't you in your normal form?" My question is soft, not fully comprehending.

Her face changes from joy to resigned sadness. "They scream and run when they see what I really look like, daddy."

I look at Celestia, who nods unhappily. "I'm afraid I can't command my ponies to not be afraid of changelings. Some memories linger painfully and are not easily set in the past. The fear and anger are justified, but I assure you I am working on a solution to promote a positive relationship between ponies and changelings." Her wings shuffle uncomfortably against her sides. "Let us get you settled, Mr. Spriggs. I should think you and your daughter would like to be alone for a while. Your quarters will be next to hers. I would escort you there myself, but the duties of the crown require my presence elsewhere. I bid you welcome to Equestria and hope your stay here is enlightening."

"It is good to see you smiling, Chrysalis," Luna offers gently.

With that, the two royal sisters offered pleasant farewells, leaving me standing with my daughter, the both of us turning our attentions to the third and youngest alicorn of the group. The purple mare pulls Celestia aside and the two share a quick hushed conversation. The white alicorn chuckles and gives her student a quick nuzzle, and departs with her awaiting sister.

I notice she's eyeing me nervously, clearly not comfortable around me without Celestia. I find my eyes wandering around, specifically to the guards dotting the courtyard. They're all staring at me. None of them are overly friendly, but neither are they blatantly hostile.

"Do I scare you?" I ask plainly, offering an apologetic smile.

She shakes her head. "Oh, no, it's not that Mr. Spriggs!" Twilight insists. "I'm far too curious about you to be afraid."

"Oh, so you're hiding something else," I suppose, shifting the strap on my shoulder. "Hell of a welcome here, Miss -" her name falters on my tongue. Chryssie stares at me like I just blasphemed against the church.

"Oh! My name's Twilight Sparkle!" she tells me in a rush, flushing a little. I already knew her name, but thought breaking the ice with simple introductions might put her a bit more at ease with...well, whatever was bothering her.

"Michael Spriggs," I announce deprecatingly. "How are you and Chryssie getting along?"

"Daddy!" she hissed at me while bumping me with her flank.

"Oh, just fine!" Twilight beams. "It's nice to meet you on a less stressful level. Last time was pretty -"

"- Heart wrenching?" I offer to finish for her.

"- fascinating," she finishes her own sentence, "but yes, I wasn't comfortable when we went to your world. I mean, I was! It was the first time I'd ever been to your world to meet a human face-to-face. I don't know how long you're going to be with us. The Princess really doesn't know herself. We just want you to enjoy yourself while you're visiting."

I quirk an eyebrow at her. "You mentioned it was the first time you went to my world to meet another human. You've been to Earth before?"

Her mouth hangs open slightly, eyes growing round as she stares back. A wide smile - too wide, if you ask me - stretches across her pretty little face as I think I see a nervous twitch in her eye. "Why, whatever do you mean?" she asks. Abruptly she spins on a back hoof, adjusting her wings with a nervous titter. "Let's see you to your room, Mr. Spriggs!"

"Call me Mike."

"Let's see you to your room, Mr. Spriggs! This way!" She trots off hurriedly, hanging her head a little bit as I think I hear her muttering to herself. I follow after her, my own thoughts swirling.

"Daddy?" Chryssie falls in step at my side. "I love having you back and everything and I've got so much to tell you, but please promise me one thing while you're here?"

"Hmm?" I ruffle her mane affectionately. "What's that, pumpkin?"

"Please don't embarrass me!" she pleads in a whisper.

"No promises. God made daddies to embarrass their daughters. I thought you knew that."

She giggles, her expression much like Twilight's was just moments ago.

So, I'm in Equestria, following the swishing tail of an alicorn muttering to herself into the gaping maw of an ornate palace with my shape-shifting daughter with no idea what lays in store for me. I'm already suspicious of the obvious.

I think the ponies are planning to make themselves known to Earth.

Chapter 2 The Guard, the Chef, and the Sorceress

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My room is a spacious little den, large enough to feel like a small house, yet small enough to be considered cozy in my eye. I've got a fireplace in the middle of the far wall as you enter the room, bed to the right, bathroom to the left. The furnishings are sparse, functional, solid, and look expensive, so much so I am afraid of sitting in them. The color scheme seems to favor an off white and pale yellow along the walls, with the ceiling a fresco of the night sky blending into the day. In the middle of the night is a dark blue outline of an alicorn, the day side sporting a similar profile of a white alicorn facing the dark one. The style reminds me a bit of the art work on ancient Greek pottery, the swirling curls in the clouds soft and inviting behind the alicorns. The sun radiates the colors of the day while the moon seems to reflect her opposite shyly. They compliment each other, I think as I spend time lingering over the brush strokes and finer details.

I'm not too keen on the white and gold as it seems to make the room a bit too bright, but hey, it's not my palace. It's not like I'll be spending my life here.

Large rugs are strewn about the hardwood floor, most of them of more subdued colors, thick and feeling just right under my bare feet. I find I like walking around barefoot when I'm in my room. It feels a shame to cover them up when the rugs feel this soft! There's an odd lounge-looking piece of furniture in front of the fireplace, mostly a collection of pillows around a small frame designed I'm guessing for reclining or curling up on, its low back facing away from the fireplace. It took me a while to realize it was meant for a pony to lay on and face a cheerful fire. A low table kind of what you would expect in a Japanese house is in front of it, not too far different from a coffee table, but with two levels. Again, after moments of pondering its purpose, I come to realize its some sort of desk. It seems to be made of solid oak, the craftsmanship superb and detailed with reliefs of unicorns carved into the stubby thick legs.

The lounge thing is really comfortable to flop onto. Sprawling on it makes me feel like a kid again, waiting for mom to yell at me to get my feet off it.

The bed is huge. I understand it was meant for a pony to stretch out on, but this is ridiculously huge! Its a four post bed with a canopy holding mosquito netting, or some material that leads me to believe it is. I'll admit it seems...girly. I'm a manly man, dammit!

Men, men, men, manly men, men...

I'm not helping myself here. That show hasn't been on in years.

Winning!

Shut up, me.

Back to the bed. Ignore my rambling idiot self. I'm trying to describe my temporary living quarters while my mind is still trying to wrap itself around the simple fact I'm now in a pastel world with talking ponies, filled with magic, and with my adopted changeling daughter just across the hall from me. There's absolutely nothing wrong with any of this. It's all perfectly normal! Yes, perfect!

Yay me.

As I was saying, the bed is huge. Despite the four posts, it actually has a bit of an oval shape to it. I don't know why it is or the madness behind the creator who though such an odd bed would be neat, but the middle of the bed has a slight depression to it, allowing whoever lies in it to get the sensation of sinking into what I find to be a very comfortable goose down mattress. I took the time to ask the house mare. What was her name? It escapes me at the moment, but she strikes me as the pleasant older lady with a warm smile for guests but a flinty glare for her maids when they don't do their work to her liking. The sheets are made of cotton (not silk?) and the comforters are warm clouds to get lost into.

There are a few bookshelves and a few paintings here and there on the wall. Most of it are scenes depicting nature; mountains, forests, rivers. Bob Ross must have spent a few weeks in Canterlot. Given his personality from his shows recorded decades ago, I would not be at all surprised if I found out he actually had.

The bathroom is also large, meant for equines. The toilet is not too much different from what I'm used to, but it's a little wider and set a bit lower to the floor. There's a iron wrought tub, taps for hot and cold water and even a shower head. I prefer showers.

Oh, I almost forgot the balcony! I have a small one, large enough for a chair and a small round table for me to watch the sunrise with a cup of coffee. I'm roughly five or six stories off the ground and the view is to die for...not that I plan on jumping any time soon. The face of the wall outside has a curvature to it, I notice almost like the roundness of some vast tree trunk. It feels to me like my balcony is but an opening to the tree; leading to a squirrel's nest.

Don't ask me where I'm getting these descriptions. I'm in a fantasy world that shouldn't exist, but does. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the little convenience of being able to speak Equestrian like it's English. Or is it the other way around? Why the hell are human languages spot on with pony languages? That's too weird. It can't be a coincidence.

It's human nature to be curious. Don't tell me you haven't wondered about it either. Remind me to ask somebody about it. And no, I won't degrade myself to using words like 'everypony' and 'anypony'.

Dammit.

At least Chrysalis chirps, using her vocal chords and her wings. That's about the only language I can't even begin to understand unless my thoughts are touching hers. Even then, it's not so much words as it is vague images I can't describe. I've mentioned before it's not telepathy we share, but an emotional bond. After thirteen years, it still feels like a foreign language unto itself, but I muddle through it well enough for it to feel like some sort of sign language.

She's having her magic lessons right now. I'm pondering lunch, bored out of my skull as my first full day draws a close to the morning and swings towards the afternoon. I've been pretty much left to acclimate myself to Canterlot, keeping mostly to myself while I figure out what I want to do. Breakfast was buttered toast, a small fruit salad with roasted pecans, and coffee. Lots and lots of lovely coffee. Chryssie is going to be gone most of the day. I refuse to let her neglect her studies, no matter how much she pouts.

"You don't love me anymore!" she had teased with huge round watery eyes, giving one of her infamous raspberries before trotting off towards where ever she goes to hurl spells. From what's she's indicated, Twilight is the only one willing to teach her as the overall stance towards changelings by ponies can easily be summed up as justifiably suspicious. I felt a pang of guilt as she tried to mask her anxiety from me.

She's scared of the ponies because of what she's heard about her own actions she has no recollection of. In the conversation we had yesterday, she told me everything she could remember in the month she's been here. Oh, the princesses were nice to her, but they were wary. They did not completely trust my daughter. She could sense their fears. This explained her pony form, the black unicorn with the teal mane. She had even adopted a cutie mark depicting the masks of tragedy and comedy, like you see associated with theater.

I think it suits her perfectly. Chrysalis is a natural actress, adopting a body shape like Luna's. I understand this is considered the 'fashion model' look some mares have (not that there's anything wrong with the normal shapes). I remember wincing as she trotted down the hallway to her class, her hips swishing and having the effect of every male stallion in the area noticing the movement of her flanks and tail and instantly locking on and staring.

I nearly went on a killing spree, but reminded myself I was a guest in a foreign land.

Instead, my ire fell on a nearby stallion - one of the staff, I assume - and growled as a good concerned father, "Something about my daughter's butt you like?"

He stammered, blushing furiously and apologized before finding something important to do in the opposite direction my daughter was heading. Other ponies stared at me as I had spoken a bit louder than intended, Chrysalis having stopped dead in her tracks and hurling a startled and wide-eyed look in my direction. Flushing through her dark coat and casting a withering glare at me, she opened her mouth to speak, let it hang open, then shook her head before turning and resuming her trot down the hall.

At least she wasn't swinging her hips all over the place this time.

I could feel her embarrassment. I heard someone snickering. It died when I found a maid trying very hard to conceal a smile. She winks at me before going about her business.

As she's delving into the world's histories and all that other stuff (getting an education she can actually use is always a bonus), I decide to head down the hall some hours later with the intention of getting a little exploration under my belt. As I walk, there's this odd prickling sensation just behind my forehead. I've never felt anything like it and I look around instinctively. Nothing seems out of the ordinary; there are ponies doing their jobs in the palace and there's the guard assigned to follow me and keep me out of trouble. He's a unicorn, wears armor of polished steel and bronze trim, fitted to his chest and shoulders, around his neck and barrel. Upon his head is an open-faced helm where his long rectangular snout pokes through. His coat is chestnut and his mane is a dark blonde. I think his name is Steel Jaw, but I can't be sure. He rarely says anything and stares at me like a hawk. His cutie mark (who decided in their history to call their birthrights cutie marks?) is what looks like an ice cube on fire.

I was informed I could go anywhere I pleased in the palace and the ponies have been, for the most part polite towards me.

"Hey Steel?" He looks at me like I'm about to whip out a machete and start hacking like a maniac. "Where's a guy gotta go to get food around here?" At least he wasn't staring at my daughter's rear earlier. He's definitely got what I would call a predatory look to him and it stays on me. Always on me.

Creepy.

Impassively he answers, "Take the next left, follow it down to the end of the adjacent hall and look for the spiral staircase to your left. It goes down half a story before opening into the side of the main kitchen. The staff use it all the time." Steel Jaw uses his right hoof to point and wave out directions while speaking.

I point in the direction he described. The hall has a high arching ceiling with little square carvings decorating every inch of it in pearly white, the main entrance into this particular wing. The ornate interior bears hand carved reliefs, the hall decorated with vases and busts of what I assume are famous ponies. The floor is polished marble gleaming in the reflection of the sun streaming in through the tall windows.

My guard follows me, his hoofsteps clip-clopping ominously like some stalker, echoing down the empty hall. As I approach my destination, I can see the opening just as my guard informed me. I wonder if he'd be more than happy to gore me with that horn of his if he felt inclined. Just as I approach the top of the staircase, a mare nearly barrels into me as she rushes up them. I had heard her coming, but for some reason didn't register in my head as I was in the middle of turning to ask another question to my babysitter.

Nearly? Nah. Her skittering hooves catch my attention and I spin around, my eyes probably wide in surprise, her green ones just so as we lock. I zig when I should have zagged and suddenly there's a tangle of mane, legs, tail, and flailing arms as we fall to the floor in a heap. There's hair in my mouth and I'm sputtering, my eyes obscured as I seem to have taken the brunt of the impact falling down (it's not the fall that hurts, but the sudden stop), my lungs suddenly vacated of air. I'm gasping and gaping like a landed fish, my body and limbs frozen in place as my brain screams at my lungs to start sucking air. My lungs are currently giving my brains the middle finger. Both middle fingers. Oh, yeah the back of my head also said hello to the floor with enthusiasm.

Yay me.

"Oh, I'm so sorry!" a feminine voice calls out weakly. She squeals a bit as she struggles to right herself and disentangle herself from me. Is that a French accent I hear?

I try to say something but my lungs are still flipping off my brain. The best I can manage is a pitiful moan-wheeze thing no human being should be able to make. My head is throbbing painfully and I'm rubbing it, hissing as I fight to focus my eyes. Those pale violet gray eyes are peering down at me, surrounded by a concerned pale face imbedded within a wavy and thick rose pink and white mane.

"Oh, mon Celestia, what is he?" The question is not directed at me as her eyes raise up from me. I feel support on my shoulders and back as she helps me sit up.

"Human. I'm making sure he stays out of trouble."

"Is he some sort of pale monkey for the princess? I didn't know she liked exotic pets." She's now petting me like I'm a dog.

"Seriously?" I manage with a squawk.

"No, he isn't," growls Steel Jaw with about as much emotional support as a house cat. "He's a guest. An ugly one, but a guest none the less."

"A talking monkey!" she cries, taking a step or two from me. "Is it dangerous?" She's still not addressing me. "Wait. Did you say guest?"

"Yes. As a matter in fact, I'm sure you just insulted him." And he doesn't seem to mind pointing that out, sounding almost amused.

Her eyes go wide, her pupils pinpricks as she looks at me like I've just grown a second head right in front of her.

I'm still struggling to breathe, but I manage to spit out, "It's fine. Are you all right, miss?" I get a good look at her. She looks like your typical mare, nothing spectacular about her, maybe pretty if she wouldn't stare at me like that. One of her eyes twitches as she tries to hide her horrified expression. I really can't tell how old she is, but younger than me, I would guess. She's also a unicorn and wearing a plain gray dress concealing her cutie mark. There's got to be a more gender neutral name for them.

"I-I-I'm fine," she stammers, trying to smile through her fear. To Steel Jaw, she asks, "Is he dangerous?"

"Seems harmless enough," admits my grumpy companion. I don't think he likes me. "He's got free run of the palace, save for the usual places nopony else is allowed. He was on his way to the kitchen for a bite to eat."

"Oh," she says, relaxing a bit more, "I need to be on my way. Miss Fare is expecting me and I mustn't be late." The mare apologizes again, her eyes still a bit wild as she skirts around me and continues doing what she was doing before barreling into me. The sound of her hooves remind me of a fast walk on the verge of breaking out into a dead run.

"Who was that?" I ask as I find my legs and stand up. Steel Jaw reluctantly offers me a han- er, hoof.

"Some serving girl. New, I think." He shrugs, looking me over. "You don't seem broken."

"I'm fine."

"Good. I really don't want to explain to the princess why you were broken by a mare. Still wanting something to eat?" His expression suggests bland indifference.

I'm prompted to ask, "Do you have a girlfriend?"

"Married. Why?"

Shaking my head, I let it go. "Never mind."

We head down the stairs, my head still throbbing after the run-in with the help. The ponies down there are mostly unicorns, with a couple of earth ponies here and there. It's a busy staff, already preparing for dinner even as lunch is being served. Is it really that late in the morning already? Its a bustling kitchen, filled with those smells of fresh bread, spices, and other aromas to go with the din of twenty bodies going about their individual tasks. There's laughter in the chatter while the voice of the head chef calls out for someone to bring something. He's not hard to make out as he's constantly peering over the shoulders of his charges as they prepare ingredients for the day's meals. There are even children scampering around the legs of the adults, screaming as they play some sort of game like tag. It is a lively room, with a few complaints and grumbles thrown in just seemingly for the sake of a poor attempt at breaking the pleasant mood. There are tables arranged neatly, piled with food and bowls and plates. Vegetables are stacked neatly at each station, each pony assigned to their area working with swift ease. This kitchen is a well-oiled machine. There are brick ovens on both ends of the kitchen and a line of sinks on the far wall. The sound of running water and clinking dishes are faint in the background.

Then I get noticed. All life comes to a screeching halt, accented by the crash of a plate or two to the floor. Twenty pairs of eyes are eventually staring at me. Most are curious, others seem to be wondering if I'm there to start eating ponies whole.

"Um, hi," I say, waving at the room. I feel like hiding somewhere now. "Maybe I should come back later when people aren't scared of me."

I hear a throat clear and the pony who had been going from station to station directs my attention. "Princess Celestia said there was an unusual guest in the palace. Please! Come in, come in! Let nopony say Chef Nom Delish was rude to a guest." He was also a unicorn, his brown coat concealed beneath a white chef's apron. His lighter brown mane was cropped short. "Back to work! I will not tolerate empty bellies because ponies would rather gawk than work!"

Nom Delish was a very weird name. He beamed jovially and I noted he was a bit on the hefty side. The kitchen resumed its work, though a bit more hushed with my presence shadowing the mood. I felt like a trespasser. The head chef seemed not to give a damn I was the only creature not on four legs. Definitely the sort of guy who could make friends with anyone, it seemed.

As if to echo my thoughts, he said as he came up to me, "So glad for the opportunity to meet a new face. Welcome to my kitchen!" He offered his hoof.

I shook it and introduced himself as somehow he managed to grip my hand and shake vigorously.

"How hungry are you?" he asks with a knowing smile.

"Just a sandwich, if that's okay." I'm not a demanding guy. Maybe weirded out there are ponies everywhere but hey, I raised a changeling. I'm not really that bugged out...

Bad pun. My apologies.

"Of course! What of your friend?"

Steel Jaw grunts, "On duty."

"Bah! If you're hungry, you're in the right place. Always something for those who can't eat at regular times. Always something good for the belly. I don't let anypony leave my kitchen hungry. The princesses understand." Nom Delish maintains his grin as he motions for me to follow. I notice his flank bearing a plate over a crossed knife and fork. Steel Jaw falls in step behind me. I can swear he's growling in my wake.

As the kitchen staff slowly returns to normalcy (the kids were ushered out, I notice) I find myself staring down at a lovely cucumber sandwich made with the deft skill of a young pegasus mare with a dull red coat and a white mane.

Nom squints at me, pursing his lips. "You're an omnivore, aren't you?"

I nod with the sandwich halfway from the plate to my mouth.

"We do serve guests meat, if that's a part of their diet," he reassures me as if he knows what I'm thinking. "We get griffons and minotaurs visiting on occasion in the guest wing; dignitaries and royalty from other nations. Why, we even have a few ponies here with a taste for bacon, myself included!"

"Really? I thought you guys were plant eaters." I take a bite and munch as he starts laughing good naturedly. It's a damn good sandwich. I heft it at the pegasus and grin through my chewing, careful not to show my teeth. She giggles.

Steel Jaw is not amused, grunting his displeasure. I think that's his permanent state of being.

"Oh, no!" he hoots, stomping a hoof as he and the pegasus share wide grins. "All the ponies here under my kitchen love food of all sorts! There are no squeamish souls around my stoves."

I arch my eyebrows in surprise. I've still got a mouthful of sandwich and I don't want to talk.

"I can have a menu sent to your room so you can see what my kitchen has to offer. If there's something special you want made, my staff can cook it." He beams at me with unfettered pride, winking. "You're not the only carnivore here, so don't feel left out."

Before the next bite I pipe in with a nod, "I'd appreciate that. So tell me, do the princesses really raise the sun and the moon or is it symbolic?"

There's a moment of silence as three sets of pony eyes stare at me. "What do you think?" ventures Nom curiously.

Steel Jaw rolls his eyes. "Idiot," he mutters, thinking my little round ears can't pick up his voice.

I'm really starting to think he doesn't like me. I ignore him and reply to Nom Delish, "I don't know. It's my second day here," I say with a shrug.

His ears flicker as he thinks for a moment. "Head for the Diamond Wing of the palace. The first floor has several rooms dedicated to the old legends and myths. A lot of Equestrian history is on display there for the general public."

My babysitter rolls his eyes. I think I hear him mutter something about foals, but I'm not sure. "I'd rather do it without the grump here," I mention, throwing a thumb Steel Jaw before taking another big bite. After a few chews and watching the flat stare he throws at me, I add, "He hasn't exactly been Mr. Friendly."

"I don't want to foalsit a hairless ape," he growls, glaring at me with cold eyes. "He's supposedly the father of that...thing Princess Sparkle is stuck with day after day."

I finish the sandwich, engaging in a staring contest with a talking armored horse with a horn who probably has a hundred pounds on me. Chef Nom Delish blinks, conveying shock on his features at the rude guard. Wondering if I should actually throttle Steel Jaw, I pause as I consider his name, weighing the chances I would have against a talking horse in armor.

"Care to run that by me again?" I ask with obvious fake cheer. Turning to face him, I spread my feet apart and fold my arms over my chest.

"You heard me. You and that...mare shouldn't be here."

Neither of us has raised our voices and I'm not about to start a fight in a kitchen. Only an idiot starts a fight in a kitchen. "Thanks for the sandwich," I say to the pegasus. She's nervously watching the conversation. She smiles at the compliment. To the head chef, I thank him for his kindness, spin on a heel and head back the way I came as quietly as possible.

I'm glad I don't have Chryssie's short temper.

Mine is far more...complicated.

I was once certified by the United States Army as insane. I served three years in the Army. I was shot twice in the same battle and got shrapnel in the left shoulder. I killed in self defense, I killed firing shots in ambushes, having been on both ends. I've seen guys die. I even shot a kid once who was trying to kill me with an assault rifle. I know how ugly war is, I've felt first hand what it can do to a man's mind. It's been years, before Chrysalis became a part of my life. I can think about it now a bit more clearly and with a more level head. The memories are still painful. Remembering the road I took to get where I am now mentally is still painful, especially when my live in girlfriend took my infant daughter and went to the arms of an old flame because she wasn't happy I could not find a job that paid enough money for the lifestyle she wanted. She sabotaged my mother's thinking of me by somehow getting her hands on classified documents in regards to my mental condition and sending them to her. It turned my mom against me when I was finally able to be coherent enough to try and fight for my kid. During that time, I was a alcoholic. I drank heavily. My depression reduced me to a shell of the confident, cocky son of a bitch that once thought he was invincible. I used to be the sort of guy you'd want watching your back in a barroom brawl. Drinking with buddies while in the Army and getting into trouble with them had been a pastime. Then I became a dad, the father of a little baby girl. I only got to see her a total of three months of her life.

It was the second worst time of my life. I could never find the cowardice enough to do the one thing constantly on my mind back then. In the depths of those years, a twisted sort of miracle happened. Namely Chrysalis.

I'm working my way up the stairs, thinking of the shape-shifter I devoted most of my adult life to raising, only to have Princess Celestia come and take her from me. I was allowed to come for reasons I was beginning to doubt to be completely of my own machinations. Obviously Discord had something to do with it, but what about Celestia? I haven't had a chance to meet with her in private, so I really can't get the questions swirling in my head answered. In the meantime, I have a cold rage boiling up within me. I haven't felt this angry in a very long time. Maybe it's the stress of going to another world. Maybe it's because I'm figuring out Steel Jaw to be a complete ass worthy of a beatdown.

I won't even speak of the worst day of my life.

Dropping subtle hints in regards to the opinion of a certain changeling who happens to be the apple of my eye should be grounds for the initiation of hostilities. I can hear the stallion behind me, silent save for his hoofsteps.

Without looking back, I say loudly enough for him to hear me, "I can understand you not wanting to follow the talking monkey around. I really can."

He says nothing. I come to the top of the stairs, flexing my fingers in and out of loose fists. I'm still thinking of decking him, already knowing I'll break my knuckles on his helmet. Having not decided fully if that's what I want to do, common sense struggles with my sense of crying out against the absurdity of the decision I made yesterday to come to this place. My mind is rebelling and I'm running out of reasoning to combat it.

In the meantime, my head's throbbing and it's not a headache. It's as though I'm sensing something shift, for lack of a better term. It's been nagging me all morning, heck even since yesterday when I first started walking through the halls.

"You don't belong here in this world," snaps Steel Jaw flatly, his eyes throwing icy daggers at me. "She shouldn't be here!"

I turn to face him, my face in his, shoulders rolled forward as I have to leaned forward and bend at the waist to come down to his eye level. His head only comes to the middle of my chest, his horn poised at the base of my throat. I go down to his level. "Just what in the hell is your problem?"

He sneers at me, "There's a new queen. She will not be happy when she finds out about Celestia's little secret she's hiding here."

I'm completely confused by his statement. "What?" I blurt.

"Chrysalis is supposed to be dead, human. Dead!" he's raising his voice at me. We lock into unforgiving stares for a moment, measuring each other.

I pull away from him, staring, unblinking. Confused.

"What the hell are you talking about?" I'm practically shouting, exasperated. "Are you threatening my daughter?"

He catches himself, mouth slightly open before deflating his chest. "No," he says, taking a few breaths and looking away. "I am not. I'm only speaking the truth. By coming here, her life is in danger."

My eyes narrow. I'm still confused. I want to punch a horse. He knows it and doesn't seemed at all bothered by the hostile look in my eyes. "Explain yourself."

We're both speaking in hushed voices, still maintaining some semblance of civility. We both know it can go south at any moment. I start to realize he's looking for a fight. Maybe to get rid of me, maybe to have me sent back home. Jesus, this was not what I was expecting coming here. Stupid, naive little me thinking I could just waltz into some new world and fit right in.

No, I wasn't really expecting that. It would have been nice to think such a fantasy existed, where someone could go into a new place and be welcomed, to be a part of something peaceful, soul soothing. All I ever wanted was peace within myself. By accepting the invitation, I had hoped everything would be made all right. I damned my naive thinking, having trapped myself in the belief this place was a children's show.

It was clearly not. This place was completely different. For one thing, it felt all too real. Everything was flesh and blood and earth and solid. I could see it, touch it, experience everything Equestria had set before me in the short time I had been here. Equestria was nothing the show depicted itself to be. It began to dawn on me what it could only possibly be.

Propoganda.

"Why?" I ask, a loaded question summed up in one word.

Steel Jaw snorts. "Because they deem it necessary."

"Who deems it necessary?"

"The princesses. The only reason I know what I know is because the Lady of the Moon selected me from her personal guard to watch you and protect you."

"Lady of the Moon?"

"Princess Luna," he sighs in exasperation. "Mind you learn of this realm, human and who is in charge. She is not as forgiving as the Sun, but she was asked by her sister to provide you an escort while you learn where you may and may not go."

"And you hate it."

"I am no foalsitter," he snaps.

Okay, so it's not me he's mad at. He's mad at his boss. It still doesn't explain his attitude towards my daughter. I tell him so.

"She's a changeling," he says as if that's all I need to know.

"So?"

"You don't get it, do you?" he yells, his voice rising. A sneer begins to form. "That...that...thing is that bitch queen Chrysalis! I've seen her true form! She hides it at the command of my two Mistresses, but I know! I've seen!" Steel Jaw spat. "I don't know the sorcery behind her youthful appearance, but that is the same monster who invaded us."

This was one of the first stark differences I felt from what my daughter grew up watching and what was reality. It was painfully obvious what we knew on Earth was seriously watered down. That lightbulb flickered in my dim mind like a blinding flash. Cursing my stupidity, I tear away from the steely stare of the stallion. Even so, I level a finger at him.

"You don't talk about my daughter like that."

"What are you two arguing about?" asks a feminine voice off to my right. I look and find the same mare I had crashed into earlier staring between us, her head tilted cutely to one side while wearing a worried frown. "There's a changeling in the palace? Since when?"

Steel Jaw catches himself and sets his lips to an unhappy straight line as he turns is ire into a harsh glare at her direction. "This is of no concern to a maid! On your way!"

"I'm not a maid," she replies impudently, offering a smile. "But even a maid can see you are being unkind to a guest of the princesses. Perhaps I should go and tell them Equestrian hospitality is only extended to those who have hooves?"

How can she say that in such a kind tone?

Steel Jaw tries to match her with his own disdain, but her gentleness breaks his steel. "Who are you?" he demands uncertainly.

She ignores his question, pressing, "You know mention of that word has been expressly forbidden beneath this roof. The name is also forbidden, yet you speak it. The House of the Sun and the Moon and their word is absolute. Why have you broken the decree? Are you not oath-bound to follow the words of the Sisters?"

To me she shifts her focus, Steel Jaw seemingly forgotten as he's sputtering in her wake. "It has come to my attention who you are, gentle ape creature. I wish to apologize for my earlier reaction as I was not expecting to run into you."

She's a little taller than the other mares I've seen around the palace, her withers almost reaching my hip. Her frame doesn't match the roundness of the other mares, reminding more of my girl's shape. There is still a tinge of fear in her eyes. "It's all right," I say, calming down from butting heads with the idiot in armor. I block him out of my mind and focus on the friendly face. I introduce myself.

"I am Fleur de Lis," she says with a demure smile. "I have been asked by Princess Celestia to act as your guide while you acclimate yourself to Canterlot."

Okay, so she's named after a flower. I think. It sounds pretty. She's definitely nicer than the present company I'm keeping. She's also scared to death talking to me. How do I know? Her knees are knocking together. But she's very brave and facing me, a creature she probably thinks is some sort of monster.

"I am to escort him," complains Steel Jaw.

"You are a clumsy oaf with no manners!" she shot back at him. "You place your own selfish desires before the will of our princesses! We all know what happened in the past, but that is where it should remain. You are not the only one to have lost someone dear."

He starts to protest, but she stamps a delicate hoof down firmly.

"No! You are a fool allowing your emotions to cloud your judgement. This is not the way of your training. Begone with your tainted self and seek out the forgiveness of the Lady of the Moon to whom you pledged yourself!"

My babysitter stares at her in rage before letting out an exasperated whinny and departing with powerful stomps of his hooves upon the polished stone floor. I get the feeling it isn't over between the two of us. Not by a long shot.

"So tell me," Fleur asks after dismissing the guard from her thoughts, "where was it you wished to go?"

I pause about three breaths as I try to remember where it was Nom Delish had suggested. "Um, something called the Diamond Room, I think? There's more to Equestria than I thought."

"Indeed," she answers, pondering my words, "you mean the Diamond Wing. It is a good place to start if you wish to see our version of what we in Equestria consider the truth."

I note wryly, "That's an odd way to put it."

"It's what we know, but not necessarily correct. Come, we can chat while we walk. The palace is large and it will take us some minutes to get to our destination." She leads on, tossing her head slightly to fix a corner of her eye on me. "Follow me and I shall tell you of your beautiful guide so long as you tell me a bit of yourself, yes?"

"Fair enough, " I agree, already finding her company more enjoyable that with Mr. Grumpy. "What would you like to know?"

"Are you truly the one who raised her?"

"Yeah. I still don't get the name she goes by in here. Midnight Emerald?"

Chryssie spent the evening last night explaining the name she had to go by, telling me she could feel them staring at her despite the form she was told to take. Given how similar to her natural form it is, I'm not really shocked. However, it was insisted ponies get used to her dark form. Surprising I shouldn't mention it until now. Pushing the thoughts ponies do not forget past sins cast upon them is difficult, but it had always been there, lurking like a stranger you can't quite see in the shadows. I don't know squat about this place.

So far, Friendship is Magic has been a whitewashed watered down thing. Oh, its beautiful to look at, but the society is far more complex than simple lessons to learn at the end of the show.

"Give them time," Fleur assures me as I'm now along side her as we go at a leisurely pace. "Midnight Emerald is a lovely name for her. She has a temper and angers easily, no doubt due to stress of being so far from home. She takes a form like her true form because there will come a time when our species must coexist for the sake of a peaceful existence. She is remarkable, intelligent, and full of potential."

"So why did you tell off Steel?"

She makes a sour face. "He is not the sort you should have guiding you. His wounds from the past haunt him. He is a good soldier and a loyal son of Equestria, but he, like so many others fear the unknown. He fears the monsters under the bed and in the closet. It is understandable. The passage of time has not been long enough to heal for some."

I grunt, nodding, "I know how that feels."

We continue walking, warming up to each other to the point where she's at least not suffering from a bad case of rubbery knees. She asks a few questions about my world and of myself. Some I answer easily, others I deflect. Fleur probes, I parry and find I am very poor at it. She knows and shifts the subject when she feels her questions hit a little too close to home.

She is what I would guess in their world to be a sorceress. I barely remember her from the show, but I'm beginning to sense all the characters have some sort of significance in Equestria, their importance as of yet elusive to my tiny brain. From what I understand, my lovely guide is over a couple of hundred years old and currently has one of nobles as her favorite, whatever that means. His name is Fancy Pants.

I'm not going to get into that. The name choices are weird and I understand not a damn thing about it.

"You are a warrior, then?" she asks when I touch a bit on my army days.

"Was," I counter with a smile, "after getting enough scars, I decided I didn't want to do it anymore and became a father." I pull up my left sleeve and let her get a glimpse of my scar on my shoulder. "War sucks and leaves little reminders for those lucky enough to survive it."

She looks away from it as we turn through a pair of doors. The halls are gone and we're now passing through rooms of various sizes. Ponies are everywhere, cleaning and dusting. They chat in hushed tones and become fearful when they see me.

"Don't show your teeth," Fleur reminds me gently. "You have predatory teeth. They'll think you intend to eat them." Her giggle leads me to wonder if I should take her seriously or not.

"So, what do you do around here?" I ask.

Fleur smiles. "I serve as confidant to Princess Celestia, having come from Prance years ago originally as an ambassador. In time, she and I became friends and I have since served as an opinion for her ears should she request it. In the meantime, I continue to work in the capacity as an ambassador, though a replacement has been in place for some time. There is no pressing need for me to return home and I find Equestria suits my heart perfectly. Here, I have access to some of the richest tomes of knowledge while I continue to perfect my skills at magic. I am being modest when I tell you I am one of the most powerful magic users in the kingdom. I even teach your daughter when Twilight Sparkle has other things she needs to attend to. I try not to step over her hooves and her attention to detail is perfect for Midnight Emerald."

I nod, finding a lot of impossible in what she says with my logical mind. It argues with what I've seen in Chrysalis. "I'm willing to keep an open mind. From what I understand, this is a place where impossible is possible and dreams do come true."

She appraises me. "I expected more resistance, mon ami."

"Chry - Midnight Emerald," I remind her.

"Of course," she giggles, "I am aware. For all those years, do you think Lord Discord to be the only one who kept eyes upon you and your charge?"

I shrug, change the topic. "So why such a plain dress?"

"A mare is not defined by the finery she wears, but in the manner in which she carries herself," she answers easily as we enter a very large room. I notice it is darker than the others, the curtains having been drawn closed. Fleur de Lis presses into it, turning her body to one side slightly as her horn glows with a pale pinkish hue. "Ah, we are here!"

The curtains assume the same odd glow as her horn. It's very much like when Chrysalis uses her magic. So they have their own personal magic aura, or something. Cool. The curtains slide open and the room is bathed in sunlight blinding. Around me is a room filled with odd artifacts and weapons, baubles I can't begin to name and other odds and ends arranged neatly, each with a small plaque bearing words. They are arranged neatly, orderly, perhaps chronologically. There are great paintings upon the wall, some depicting unicorns, others with pegasi, and still others with regular ponies. Some are battle scenes, others dark and forbidding. Yet others are full of life and joy. The room stretches a great distance, the walls gilded with gold. The ceiling is a vast mural of light and dark, two familiar forms circling around each other; one the Moon, the other the Sun. In between them light and dark blend perfectly and in balance, an eternal dance between night and day. There is a great hearth, swept clean so as no soot mars the stone within. Before the hearth are a pair of low set lounges, akin to the one in my room. A table is nestled between them. But there is one obvious thing in the room drawing my attention to her like a magnet.

Standing before me is Princess Celestia herself.

"Thank you, Fleur," she says to the mare next to me, "you saved him from enduring more of the guard's misplaced anger."

"It was nothing," defers my new friend with a wink at me. "He's a most pleasant conversation, despite his rough personality. I find him refreshing and not so stuffy."

Why am I blushing? Celestia chuckles, turning her attention to me. "I apologize for not meeting you last night. I thought you would enjoy spending time with your daughter, rather than be in a possibly uncomfortable position of putting up with strangers for dinner. I certainly apologize for Luna's choice of an escort, but I imagine there is a purpose to this. She does not act in ways one would deem conventional and I suspect the lesson was as much for him as it was for you." She tilts her head towards me, her gaze steady, eyes ancient and powerful.

It's like staring into a bright abyss, those magenta pools owlish and calculating. It's one thing to be told a being is over a thousand years old. It's a whole different animal when you can see it in her eyes and feel it emanating from her presence.

I shiver.

"I shall take my leave," announced Fleur with a polite curtsey to Celestia, then myself. "Be gentle with him. He is very much a child in a new world." Mischief dances in her eyes as she trots off.

The Princess of the Sun laughs after her friend, "No promises!" To me she holds up a hoof and gestures to a pile of cushions. "Please have a seat. There is much you might wish to know and I shall be more than happy to get you started with the basics. My sister is overwatching the court at the moment and I have an hour or two to spare."

I sit down, a bit numb just feeling the presence of Celestia. "Why do I feel you without touching you? You weren't like this at my home a month ago." I'm shivering as it feels as though her very existence should break me to pieces. I don't even know how I'm able to talk.

"This is my realm," she says to me as she lays down across from where I sit cross legged. "My home. You feel my power because I wish you to understand more, perhaps than what you have been led to believe from an example we provided to your world. You suspect we know of your world and have done so for some time."

I nod mutely, awed by her.

The females here seem to be really, really strong.

"This is very true. We have been aware of your Earth for a very long time. I assume Luna gave you a taste with her words while you were in flight from the portal to our home?" A servant comes in bearing a silver tray with a teapot and a pair of teacups with saucers. Celestia's aura dims until it fades to nothing as she waits patiently for the tea to be served. I find a cup hovering to my hands, glowing with her magical grasp.

"Thanks," I say as I take the cup.

"Sugar? Cream?"

I decline politely.

The tray is left on a small table nearby.

My introduction to Equestria's history and magic begins with watching Celestia quietly enjoy a cup of tea, encouraging me to do the same with a smile.

I hate tea.

Yay me.

Author's Notes:

Yes, Steel Jaw has a serious prejudice towards changelings....he has his reasons, as do many ponies in Canterlot who remember that terrible day.

Nom Delish is a name I pulled out of the air as I was trying to find a good name for a chef. It seems to fit.

Yes, Fleur's a sorceress. Get over it. She's badass too. Get over that.

I'm still debating if I want to bore my readers with my take on how the the sun and moon are moved in my universe. It could be philosophical or an actual act as depicted in the show (all right, I'm still hammering out the details on that so it's cool).

Magic will be based off the Will and the Word from the Belgariad, by David Eddings, but with some emphasis on certain things needed to be learned. Magic has limits, and of course I'll get into that a bit more down the road as the story progresses. I'm hoping my style improves as compared to my Prince of the Changelings trilogy.

Chapter 3 Let's Talk About Daddy

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This is what I've been able to wrap my head around so far in regards to How Things Work Around Here: Magic, magic, and more magic. Magic is apparently in everything, everywhere, and saturating my body even as I speak. It started absorbing itself into my pores the moment I set foot on this planet. Everything seems to have some sort of origin tied to magic and whatever this weird glue is making the impossible things possible is getting into me and there is nothing I can do to stop it.

Keep in mind, I'm paraphrasing everything Celestia told me. I didn't even mind the fact she spoke to me like I was five. There was just a lot of crap to take in and the princess adjusted how she spoke to me based off my reactions. She's very good at reading body language. Staring and blinking incomprehensibly is a dead giveaway. At least she didn't have to resort to baby talk. Apparently, Equestria is located somewhere in a dimension nestled between dreams and reality. Celestia even suggested so far it might be possible for me down the road to acquire some sort of magical ability, though she had no idea what it might manifest itself to become. It might not even happen.

Magic, it seems all starts with a thought for the sentient creatures on Gaea. Allow me to get into the details in regards to Equestria and her inhabitants. Here's the notes given to me:

The majority of her population consists - as stated earlier - of ponies. Specifically, there are three tribes; the Pegasus Tribe, the Unicorn Tribe, and the Earth Tribe. Each tribe has unique talents suited for the tasks they excel at.
Firstly, there are the winged pegasi, equines of the skies who shape the weather through the magic inherited in manipulating the skies and providing the correct weather for the seasons. It is their job to ensure just the right amount of rain falls upon the land. It is the pegasi who make sure each day is scheduled for its allotted amount of sunshine or cloud cover, depending on the meticulate and complicated schedule planned ahead in seven year cycles. If a particular summer day is too hot, they set aside a certain amount of rainfall aided by thick clouds to cool the skies. They bring in a breeze to blow away the humidity. Equestria is never too humid nor too dry. Nor are the winters too harsh, though there have been instances where blizzards have gotten away from the usually watchful pegasi. Usually this is due to the weather system backing up and needing to be 'aired out', requiring a full purging of a very complex and intricate system still considered to be in a state of development centuries after its first crude implimentation.
Secondly, there are the horned unicorns, ponies who excell at magic and provide for the realm the magic and enchantments needed to keep things running smoothly. Thousands of years ago, their grasp on magic was vast and an art unto itself. Before the first war, unicorns were indeed powerful sorcerers and magicians, capable of wondrous deeds. These days, they are but a far cry of their former glory, with most of the old magic forgotten. Most scholars are unicorns and many of those who peruse the old tomes seek the old magics. They provide the means of power in creating wonderous machines to allow for other ponies to enjoy creature comforts, always inventing, always trying out new things even as they seek out the past. All unicorns have a level of telekinisis, allowing them to levitate objects of various sizes, depending upon the will and magic pool of the individual. Through their skill, many of the discovery in alchemy and metallurgy and other sciences have led to the creation of towering cities of steel and concrete in the newest settlements and cities (like Manehatten). Though this has never been exclusive to unicorns, but most major discoveries in magic and science can be attributed to a unicorn. Most doctors, for example, are unicorns.
Thirdly, there are the earth ponies. Gifted with neither wings nor horn, they are still gifted with magic for coaxing the most from nature, be it through mining or farming or other means of working the land. It is mostly through the efforts of these most common of ponies there is food for every pony and a heavy export of grains and fruits and vegetables to other nations. More than a few rulers owe their thanks to the farmers of Equestria during times of famine and hardship. Earth ponies are usually hard at work, building houses and tilling the land and helping establish new communities along the borders of Equestria. Even as the population expanded and new towns sprouted up along the furthest reaches of Equestria's borders along the vast wilderness. Out there, far from the protection of controlled weather and the long arm of the nation's rulers, it is the earth ponies and their rugged toughness taming the wilds and making homes for others to settle within. By all means are they far from the least of the three tribes.
All though most records were lost in the century with which the spirit known as Discord was first defeated, the power of King Sombra was quelled, and perhaps most tragically, the rise and fall of Nightmare Moon, it can be certain the greatest constant of Equestria has been in the form of Princess Celestia, the Lady of the Sun. Her true age is unknown to all save herself and no one has dared to pose the question. As much a mother to her subjects as she is a monarch, she ruled what was supposed to be a diarchy for a thousand years alone and without the most important pony in her life. Without complaint she ruled, offering her wisdom as she more or less allowed her subjects to rule themselves, allowing them to progress and grow so long as they obeyed the laws and did all things good and just. She openly loved her subjects and in turn, they responded with adoration.
For a thousand years, she gladly raised the sun each morning, only to sadly set it each evening and bring forth the moon from beneath the horizon, facing the stark reminder of a sorrowful battle. Yet she still did it with love. It was her actions so long ago that split the fabled Elements of Harmony into six pieces, forever severing Celestia from them. A thousand years passed and Nightmare Moon became lost in legend, a truth turned to myth.
The tale is well known, has been documented in more recent times of the return of Nightmare Moon and the revelation she was in fact the younger sister of Princess Celestia. Equestria, after so many centuries, was presented with the second half of the diarchy in the form of Luna, the Lady of the Moon. The Harmonies had their keepers in the form of six mares, two representatives each of the pony tribes and had vanquished the evil thing that had made Princess Luna into Nightmare Moon.

That was copied from one of the more recent textbooks, not unlike what a kid going to middle school might find. After reading it - at Celestia's prompting - I figured to ask if the heavenly bodies dictated her powers or if it was the other way around. I poured over the book after listening to Celestia (bless her heart) explain to me the general overview on how things work with magic. I'm pretty much sure I've got a good idea I have no damned clue. At all.

No, I'm not a very smart guy. Rather, it takes me some time to figure things out. It might be a little on the slow side, but eventually technical stuff (I think magic falls into the realm of techno jargon) sinks in. So far, my introduction to Equestria and her magic has been confined to the three tribes as well as the examples of all three combined.

Namely alicorns like Princess Celestia. They are powerful. Duh. When you can walk into a room and feel the sun in the example of one alabaster being with wings and a horn and she knows she's hot...

That did not come out as I intended.

I just face palmed myself. This is going to take some getting used to and the bad jokes have got to stop!

As I was saying, it's as though she is the living embodiment of the sun. Her immortality is tied to the star. She's linked to it and it supplies her magic. Her duty in 'raising' the sun is as much philosophical as it is a means of invigorating her, though the means behind which she came to be seems to be as much a mystery to herself as anything else. Celestia does remember her parents and her cutie mark appeared when she first tried to raise the sun some centuries ago (she refuses to say how many). Needless to say, she has an enormous pool of magic to draw upon, mostly due to her link to the sun and her years of study and practice in magic has honed her mind into a wellspring of skill unmatched (or so she tells me). Luna is only slightly less powerful than her sister, but she has a bit of a disparity of having spent a goodly amount of her time physically merged with the moon for a thousand years.

How the hell does someone get sent into the moon for ten centuries? Honestly, Luna spent so much time as part of the moon with no food, no water, and nobody to talk to. I wanted to ask how the ordeal affected her on a mental level (if all this was true). Even if Chrysalis solidified my own belief in magic, imagining any living being confined with no contact with another living thing for a thousand years is still incomprehensible.

So does that mean they are spirits as much as creatures of the flesh? Are they magical manifestations given physical form?

Apparently the answer is all of the above. I don't know how or why my brain came to this conclusion, but the reason behind Celestia and Luna's markings on their flanks is what ties them to the two objects rotating in the sky. Once they developed their singular talent, it became a part of who they are. Only alicorns can have that sort of ability from what I was told as they represent the pinnacle of pony power. They're so rare there are only four in all of existence, though Celestia thinks there might be a few more out there in the world, hinting only a small portion of the world is known.

Naturally the conversation after the first hour steered towards changelings and how love (and other emotions) empower them. Where rest can recharge a unicorn's natural magic reserves, a changeling requires feeding upon emotions to recharge their own pool. Also, emotions from feeding can heal wounds. That was a lesson for another day. Remind me to ask Chryssie about it. I sure hope she's got a decent grasp of her own species by now.

You know, I think I read that somewhere on the internet some years ago.

I queried Celestia about that. Imagine my surprise when she told me she's spent years using human minds to work out her own theories on changelings, using their brains and repositories for her own storage of hypothosis and thoughts. A lot of it she admits freely as conjecture and speculation, but she's also more than content to let them think it's their own ideas. It keeps her thoughts and ideas out of the hands of potential enemies on her world while supplying creative humans with a means to vent out their creative juices. At least until she was able to get a hold of a few changelings for a better understanding of them. The little buggers are elusive and damn nigh impossible to catch. She also used this impossible little trick with the help of her sister to slowly indoctrinate humanity with the idea ponies were not only real, but pushing for an eventual contact.

It's one hell of a Jedi mind trick. I still don't believe it. You can't make subliminal suggestions on humans who live in another dimension.

Can you?

"I'll tell you more as we come to know each other," she assures me, finishing her tea. "I'd like to get your take on a few things as I've never really had somepony to talk to in regards to your history. I've been watching your race for a very long time, ever since Starswirl spent time on your world as a human."

"Merlin?" I guess.

She smiles. "Did Luna tell you about him?"

"A little."

Celestia nods, pouring herself more tea. She notices my empty cup. "More?" she offers graciously. Before I can say no, my cup is brimming with steaming hot liquid.

I don't know why I don't like tea. I prefer coffee. Politely I smile. Inwardly I sigh.

"You're not a fan of tea, are you?" she asks, assuming a wounded air.

Oh, crap. I just hurt her feelings. I stammer like an idiot, trying to squirm my way out of the hole I unceremoniously dug myself.

"This is the finest tea in my personal stock," she says, her lower lip quivering, eyes moistening. Her ears have flattened out behind her, that lovely mystical mane of tri-colored etherial beauty deflating a bit as her teacup hovers in front of her, drawing to her chest almost in a protective fashion. "I only share it with those I would hope to consider a friend."

Oh. My. God.

A pathetic sound gurgles from somewhere from my throat in some semblance of a pathetic excuse for an apology.

Michael Andrew Spriggs, congratulations! You've just made an ass of yourself by committing an extreme diplomatic faux pas. Look at the princess cry! You made her cry, you insensitive son of a bi -

"Gotcha!" she giggles at me suddenly.

I stare at her, not knowing if I should laugh or yell or just sit there like a slack-jawed dumb mute. Option number three seems to drown the other two out.

Meanwhile...Somewhere I'm not...

Chrysalis fidgeted, staring at her notes while chewing on the end of her pencil. On occasion she would look at the back of Twilight's head as her instructor explained in painful detail how casting a spell wasn't just a matter of thinking of something and doing it. She had read about this portion of magic application in each of the dozen books the purple mare had provided for her to read for the past week. Seated on her haunches at a desk in a conference room near the palace library, the changeling was not uncomfortable as she was curled up on a lounge, the desk angled in front of her while a cup of water rested on a level portion of her work station to her left. Of course it made perfect sense to get the sequence of correct thoughts and process in line before unleashing a spell! Magic required thought and concentration and in proper order of alignment and especially for the most complex of spells.

Her mind fixated on the memory of earlier that morning, her father growling like a grumpy bear just woken up at hibernation at the stallions. She had no idea he wouldn't even suffer the courtesy of waiting twenty-four hours! Still, afterwords she laughed it off, knowing she would get him back for it. Now that he was here and looked to be around for a good while yet, there was time to wait and return the embarrassment tenfold. For now, she concentrated on the multiple tasks Twilight Sparkle had insisted she do while at the same time listening to and making notes of her droning, purposefully dull lectures. It was cleverly designed to see if a student with potential in magic had the acumen to concentrate and focus on a monotone voice.

She had been levitating things with her mind since she was a filly, she reminded herself as Twilight droned into the mental acuity required to handle multiple details at the same time. Hearing her mentor say something interesting, her pencil popped from between her fangs and began scribbling while the shape-shifter shifted a strand of her silky hair into her mouth, chewing out of lack of mental stimulation. As she did that, she levitated a book to her right and referenced the chapter Twilight had memorized and was practically repeating verbatim.

Chrysalis absolutely adored Twilight Sparkle. Ever since she had seen her first episode of My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic, she was determined to become every bit as good a mistress of magic as the lavender lady. Twilight was tapping her chalkboard for emphasis with her chalk as she warned her student of how important safety was when preparing to use magic. From her perspective, she understood the reason Twilight had a checklist for the checklist to make sure she didn't forget to make the checklist (the changeling admitted to herself she made that up, but Twilight was very detail oriented to the point of obsession). When class was not in session, it was fun to learn new things! When sitting at the desk and being required to retain information and listen to instruction, it was flat out boring.

Strange how that worked out. It was just the way Dad described his days in school.

It was as if her teacher decided to turn on boring mode when it was school time. Chrysalis understood the reason for her instruction as she certainly did not want to be responsible for unnecessary destruction. The darker magic was off limits to her, anyways. Of all the teachers who would eventually teach her the really cool stuff, Luna had informed her when Twilight Sparkle felt she was ready, Chrysalis would soon get a taste of the fun stuff! Right now, she was stuck with the practical aspects of magic application in everyday life.

The thought elicited a sigh of resignation as the young changeling dutifully scribbled more notes and referenced her book for good measure. Though seven or six years younger than Twilight, Chrysalis felt like a mental baby when it came to knowledge. The lavender alicorn was a walking, talking library.

Smirking to herself, she shifted in her seat as Twilight finished her lecture, assuming a triumphant air as if she had just easily and convincingly fleshed out the origins of all magic given the relative comprehension of her lone student. In fact, the lesson for the day had been about the separation of earth, wind, fire, and water when using transfiguration spells.

Chrysalis consulted her notes, her pencil a flurry of scribbling activity. Without thinking, she had created several paper airplanes to amuse herself while her friend had been lecturing. Twilight turned to see a silent dogfight between half a dozen paper gliders chasing each other over the changeling's head. Multitasking came easily to a creature who would one day be responsible for the lives of thousands, so having six individual objects acting as though they had minds of their own came easily to her.

"Am I boring you?" she asked in a small, teasing voice. "I thought my lessons were important to you." Her faint smile betrayed her amusement. She knew her student is preoccupied.

"Oh, but they are!" Chrysalis felt a bit shame-faced, her ears going flat as she assumed an equally hurt expression, but more for guilt. "I'm just trying to apply the suggestions you gave me and keeping my mind active," she replied sullenly, drawing a circle on her desk with a hoof. Her tail swished in shame. "You're not boring. The lessons are. They're important I know, but they're also boring. Please don't take it the wrong way," she insisted apologetically. "I love having you as a teacher, I really do. I just want...more."

Twilight tilted her head to one side, the gears in her head turning, clicking quickly as she filed her student's response away for future reference. She offered a warm grin. "Fair enough. I know you're smart enough to follow what I'm saying to this point and you've come a long way since we first sat down three weeks ago. Your grasp and understanding is good. Maybe I'm not challenging you enough, Emerald. Challenge accepted."

Her student beamed up at her.

Oh, Chrysalis hated being in her unicorn disguise, but only because it reminded her ponies were terrified of her true form and of changelings in general. The tolerance for them was only ever so slightly above zero. There was little difference between that form and her normal one. Still, it was fun creating a persona and a background for Midnight Emerald. She rather liked the name and her appearance was unique enough so she could maintain her own identity. Understanding the reason behind the requirement took a whole day of sitting with Celestia (she was terrified of her and especially Luna) and Twilight Sparkle (she almost wore the purple mare like a security blanket while in the room with Celestia). She clutched her little plush Twilight Sparkle unicorn plushie the whole time as a double bit of security.

A recent memory flared to mind...

It was the most terrifying day of her life. Less than three days removed from her daddy's presence, Chrysalis had never felt so alone in her whole life. The reason why her meeting took all day was simply the fact she was a miserable wreck, crying frequently for no apparent reason. Crying for daddy in front of Celestia and Twilight was, looking back also one of the most embarrassing days she could remember. Feeling the sudden brush of soft wings enclosing around her body and drawing her to a welcoming bosom was unexpected as the Princess of the Sun drew her in and cooed like a mother to her foal.

Chrysalis wondered about her real mother for the first time.

"Do I have one?" she remembered asking Celestia one day. "A mother, I mean?"

It had been a week since coming to Equestria when she asked the day half of the diarchy as they sat down for tea. Celestia wanted to have a weekly progress report with the changeling so she could see for herself how Chrysalis was adjusting to her new life. They were out in the garden, safe from prying eyes and allowing the shape-shifter to assume her normal figure. It was a typical mid afternoon day with summer fading and the first touches of autumn beginning to grace the leaves in the trees.

"I should imagine so," Celestia said after a moment. "Your race are quite secretive. Perhaps even more so after your former did what she did." The princess was very careful not to implicate the young Chrysalis at fault for the invasion long ago.

Chrysalis winced, but nodded. She was aware and painfully so.

"Are you all right?" Twilight asked her suddenly, her face right in front of hers. "You spaced out on me there, Chrysalis."

The changeling shook herself to the present, blushing furiously. "It's nothing," she muttered, her ears drooping. "I'm just thinking about how much the Princess scares me."

The mare sighed and plopped down next to the student who once tried to take her brother and now looked up to her as a heroine. "You've been preoccupied all day. You want to spend time with your dad, don't you?" A gentle and understanding hoof settled on Chrysalis' shoulder.

A little smile creased her features as she turned her head towards the only pony in Equestria she regarded as a friend. Twilight Sparkle was the only one willing to accept Chrysalis as a friend, having overcome her own lingering thoughts from the invasion. Celestia had urged her to consider reaching a hoof out to Chrysalis. The mare was so alone in the world where she was born. She needed love if she was going to grow.

The other five Bearers for the most part were not yet comfortable with Chrysalis, though Fluttershy seemed willing to give her a chance. They didn't hate the shape-shifter, but they still had no reason to trust her. Chrysalis was, well...Chrysalis. Naturally Rainbow Dash was the most openly hostile towards the changeling, growling and yelling and waving a hoof under her bewildered target's chin. Applejack had to restrain her friend and was a bit more diplomatic by simply saying to Chrysalis she was going to have to earn the trust of ponies.

She had put on her bravest face that day, saying nothing and looking at each speaker as they addressed her.

"I'm never going to fit in around here," she whispered to Twilight, tears forming in her eyes. "Was I that terrible? Was I that bad a pony?" A sniffling of her nose and pitiful expression prompted the alicorn to wrap her hooves around the changeling and give her a reassuring hug.

There was a knock. Fleur de Lis entered as the door squeaked open. She noted the two mares sharing a comforting hug and gave anther huff. "Lady Emerald, I thought we agreed you would think positive thoughts, yes?" She slowly walked, her eyes training on the six oddly folded pieces of paper chasing each other in the air. "What is this?"

Chrysalis followed the mare's eyes up and giggled despite herself. "Paper airplanes. Daddy taught me how to make them."

"Ah, Monsieur Spriggs is a most unusual creature. I had the pleasure of making his acquaintance before he started a fight with one of the Night Guard."

Twilight smiled at her friend. She and Fleur weren't close, but they knew each other enough to decide a casual friendship was worth investing in. Fleur wasn't a flashy sorceress, but she was a very efficient one, almost as meticulate as the alicorn. Almost. The white mare came around the desk opposite from Twilight as she settled at the student's shoulder. Absently she gave Chrysalis a peck on the cheek, greeting her informally as if she were in Prance. Her main focus was on the young changeling's notes, eagerly pouring over what was written down.

"Excellent organization. Much better, yes? You have learned much under Lady Twilight's detailed instruction." A wry smile was thrown at the alicorn, who returned with a sheepish one of her own.

"I can't help it," she defended herself. "My student has a complex mind and she needs to be challenged."

Fleur focused on the silent Chrysalis, who was sniffling still, but wore a little smile growing slowly over her frown. "You met my daddy?" she asked Fleur.

"Indeed! These humans, they are very tall. Not minotaur tall, but easily intimidating. I think I shall be his guide while he is here." Fleur nodded to her audience of two. "Are all human males as skinny as this one?" she asked Chrysalis.

"Daddy's always been thin," replied the changeling. "He jogs every other day."

Twilight perked up in interest, her horn flaring as a quill and parchment appeared in front of her. Maybe Chrysalis was going to offer more tidbits of human society. Even if it was something as casual as staying in shape, she wanted to add to her steadily growing stack of notes in regards to one human named Michael Spriggs. She was starting to put together a profile of the human as his adopted daughter let out bits and pieces of his personality. From what she gathered, he was a private man, quiet for the most part, but adaptable to his environment. He preferred solitude and shunned cities and kept most of his past to himself. The human did not mind talking about his childhood and offered a little about his military career. There was about a four year gap in his life he preferred not to talk about. Chrysalis knew, but she refused to tell anypony, knowing how painful that particular collection of memories were to him. Still, she was able at this point able to get at least some idea of this human's demeanor.

She had no idea what to make of him at this point. There wasn't enough information to make a safe analysis of his psychological profile. Twilight jotted down a couple of notes before dismissing the sheet to where the others were stacked in her personal study. Spike would spot it arrive and straighten it properly. He was a great number one assistant, after all!

"His visa is good for two years," she commented out loud. "Plenty of time to ask him questions and get his opinions." Twilight was musing to herself, but also to the two mares in the room. "Maybe this will be a great way to see how humans interact with other species!"

"Two years?" Chrysalis blinked. "Daddy is staying for two years?"

"Well, I don't know," the alicorn said, thinking about it as she spoke. She glanced at Fleur. "From what Princess Celestia told me, he's just here to make sure Chrysalis -"

"Lady Midnight Emerald," the white mare corrected with with a delicate smile.

"- gets established and comfortable. As for if he wants to stay past that, it's really going to be up to him. He might want to go home after that and be with his own kind. From what I understand, humans are social creatures, but without the herd mentality prevalent among ponies in general." Twilight kept forgetting to use Chrysalis' pony name in the palace. It was probably the worst kept secret, but the staff and guards were trustworthy for the most part to not run into the city and return with a crowd loaded down with torches and pitchforks. The changeling was not exactly popular. Fleur de Lis reminded her while beaming mischief. Nopony cared in the palace. Celestia and Luna were usually on the spot with selecting tolerant staff who would deal with all sorts of sentient beings. Ponies like Steel Jaw were exceptions.

"I hope he stays," Chryaslis muttered, her paper airplanes suddenly dropping as she eased off her magic, her horn's glow dying out. "I hate it here. I don't belong."

"Non, non, non!" cried Fleur sympathetically, adding her own hoof to the young changeling's shoulder. "You do belong. Twilight is your friend, oui? I should like to be your friend if you would let me. You're a charming, beautiful girl with a terrible temper," she added the last part as a tease to pull a smile from the sad mare.

Twilight grinned, nodding. "Give it time. Maybe your dad will be able to help you make that transition from living on his world to living on your world. I'd like it if you would just talk to me."

"Where's Daddy now?" she asked, sniffling as she blinked at Twilight. "With Celestia?"

Fleur nodded, maintaining her warm smile. "He is currently having late morning tea with her in the Diamond Wing. I believe the display room, to be specific. She's had your father watched all morning, despite Luna's guard selected to escort him. It proved to be a most fortunate thing as I arrived in time to stop a fight. Monsieur Spriggs is quite the hothead, non?"

"He's protective of me," Chrysalis mumbled with a slight blush. Her head tilted down as she stared at her desk. A smile formed. "I wondered why I felt him getting upset at something." She was not referring to her butt incident from earlier, though the comment made her again think back to that moment.

"What is he sensing now?" Twilight resummoned her quill and paper.

Chrysalis cocked her head slightly to one side as she mentally felt for her father's emotions. "Confusion. Baffled confusion," she mused aloud. "Just like when I tried to explain how my magic works to him. It's adorable."

Twilight threw a questioning look at Fleur. The white mare shrugged. "Perhaps she is trying to explain to him how our world works."

"Hmm," the alicorn tapped her chin with a hoof. "I guess that would make sense, considering his world doesn't have the benefit of magic. His society's idea of magic is its technological development and its application. Magic is a fairy tale to humans, so when one is thrust into a world that basically runs on magic, I think I can get the idea of how it can be confusion."

"How so?" asked Fleur curiously.

"Well," Chrysalis cut in apologetically. Twilight smiled at her and nodded for the shape-shifter to continue, "I've seen how advanced human technology can be. They can do things through mass production that makes the best factories and mills in Equestria look like a turtle with no legs. There is a massive telecommunications network around the world and people can talk to each other in seconds from opposite sides of the planet. Humans don't have any natural or magical ability to fly, but they discovered a way to make machines that can carry them into the clouds. They've ridden on the creations of their minds into doing things they would have thought impossible a thousand years ago, five hundred years, ago, a hundred, and even twenty. Humans are constantly trying to invent new things to do everything better. Imagine if you will if either one of you were to placed in a world where magic is the driving force of society and not technology. Ponies seem to have a haphazard grasp on machines and engines, but it's all adapted to work through magic. I mean, you guys still are trying to take human inventions you've taken from Earth and ponify them for easier use. I still can't figure out how some things look like they're still made for humans."

Fleur de Lis looked appropriately impressed after the changeling's description of human society's ingenuity with science and technology. It was a brief rundown, but the intelligent mare was easily able to draw comparisons between technology and magic. She chuckled, covering her hoof over her mouth as Chrysalis finished her last sentence.

"Visual appeal," grunted Twilight, herself unsure as to exactly why that was. Maybe she should start looking into that particular phenomenon? "If it looks good as is, why change the appearance? Ponies aren't known for changing what they think isn't broken." It was a lame excuse, but it got her to start another train of thought.

Chrysalis found herself laughing as she could already see the idea forming in her mentor's mind. "Humans have used their minds to overcome their physical limitations. Their ability to create and think is what has made them the dominant species of their planet."

"I know, I know," said the alicorn. "I could devote a few centuries to them and still keep finding something new to explore."

"Shall we continue talking about Monsieur Spriggs over lunch?" Fleur de Lis suggested. "I am famished and would love to discuss more on the subject of this mare's adoptive father." She indicated Chrysalis with a gentle squeeze, then retracted her hoof as she awaited an answer to her invitation.

"Talk about Daddy?" queried Chrysalis. The idea of gossiping about her dad was oddly appealing.

Fleur's muzzle was in her ear. "I want to know every little secret about him."

"Fleur!" Twilight cried out before starting to giggle.

"Oh, not that way, Lady Twilight!" said the white sorceress, waving a dismissive hoof. "Princess Celestia has asked - as I have already told you- me to be Monsieur Sprigg's guide during his visit here. The more I know about him, the more useful I can be. I also wish to avoid any faux pas with him. Misunderstandings to most troublesome to deal with and a waste of time. Oui?" Chrysalis was absolutely mesmerized by her Prench accent. "I am an absolute professional to my duties."

"Lunch sounds good," agreed Twilight as her stomach preceded her vocal assent with its own protest. She blushed, placing a hoof to her belly.

Chrysalis felt much better with the light-hearted banter. "I'd like that," she said, turning her head to both mares on either side of her and grinning.

"Come, fille," Fleur stood elegantly, sighing pleasantly, "Chef Nom Delish, such a silly name he has, non? He shall fill our petite tummies with his delicious food!"

Chrysalis grinned, shaking her head at the irony of the statement. For a mare who hung around a stallion by the name of Fancy Pants, who was she to talk? Still, tongue-in-cheek names seemed to be the norm for Equestrians, even if they translated oddly in other languages.

"Can we invite my dad to eat with us?" she ventured cautiously.

Twilight nodded. "I don't see why not. I can ask someone to check and see if the Princess and your father wouldn't mind joining us for lunch."

"What's the deal with Nom Delish's name?" Chrysalis asked Fleur curiously.

"It has a different meaning in my country of origin."

"What is it?"

Fleur laughed as the three mares started for the door. "Do you really wish to know, my fille?"

"You've got me curious now, Miss Fleur."

Laughing quietly, the mare opened the door with her magic, holding it open for her young companion and her alicorn friend. "If you say the words, it almost sounds as if Nom Delish is not very delicious."

The three mares laughed merrily on their way down the hallway.

Chapter 4 Naked Lunch

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I'm never going to understand a thing about magic. Oh, sure, I've been exposed to Chrysalis lifting things with her mind; utensils, plates, rocks, her toys, pencil, paper, books...the list goes on and on. That's telekinesis. Child's play for unicorns and other creatures who can tap into magic. It's always fascinated me how I can tell she's manipulating things when they glow green, reacting to her focus the crooked horn. As she grew older, she became more adept at using her telekinesis, but that was the extent of her magic other than her changeling ability to shape-shift and mimic voices. I've never seen her throw a fireball. I've never seen her conjure up an illusion or make multiple copies of herself. Never once in her experimentation with this oddball power of hers was she able to do anything more than levitate objects. If she wanted to, I know she could probably pick up half the things in the house back in earth if she wanted to. She can pick up a car. Hell, I remember thinking the garage was haunted the first time I went in there to see how her progress was coming in regards to rebuilding grandpa's Mustang. Parts were floating everywhere as she was pouring over the manual as she tried to figure out what went where. It was like she was the sun and they were all her satellites, circling around her slowly and in order of importance.

Now I'm in a world where every third member of the pony population is a unicorn (I'm guessing at the dispersion of that particular tribe) and therefore capable of some form of magic, their specialization varying depending on their talent. It's confusing. I don't get it. I see it, but I don't understand it. Magic baffles, confuses, astounds, and scares the living hell out of me.

Think about it: Celestia if she wanted to could simply obliterate my internal organs with a thought. All I would have to do is, oh, maybe punch her in the face. Somehow I don't think she'd actually do that, her being an all-powerful being and all. Kindness and love seem to be presented in person exactly as depicted in her little propoganda coup. The princess claims she's not a goddess, but I know people on Earth who would worship the ground she walks on. It all goes back to the simple observation in the short time I've spent with her is she wants to be loved and respected just like anybody else. In her long lifespan, she's come to her own conclusion it is far more rewarding earning the love and trust of others than to force obedience. That's all well and good, but I've come to one resounding conclusion in accepting her invitation to come to Equestria. Don't get me wrong, I absolutely love seeing my daughter again.

This place scares the living hell out of me. Unfettered, seeming undisciplined use of magic as if it was free electricity from a boundless source. Unicorns would easily conquer a third world nation without breaking a sweat. Or maybe it's just my scarred overworked imagination? I've got hyphenated horrors lurking up there as it is. Against advanced nations, I suspect they would have a rough time of it, mostly due to the advanced technological edge. However, if they wanted to, a creature like Celestia could easily conquer most of Africa or even South America.

There. I said it; Equestria is a scary place. I'd rather be running around the dusty hell hole that's Afghanistan rather than deal with talking horses who can use a power best left to the confines of badly written fantasy novels.

And I mean that in the nicest way.

So imagine if you will how I'm feeling as I sit at a table next to Chryssie, the party I'm with consisting of an addition to my daughter a unicorn and a pair of alicorns. All three could, if they so chose light me on fire with a thought and a flair of color from their elegantly curved horns. Any of these ladies I'm dining with could, at a whim turn me into a frog, put me in a block of ice, or just make my hair fall out if they felt keen to do. Needless to say, the revelation Celestia provided for me really didn't do anything to make me feel comfortable around living, breathing, sentient weapons.

Yay me.

Lady Fleur de Lis is regarding me with interest as she delicately munches on her salad. It reminds me of a Caesar salad with clovers. I must be the new panda in the zoo to her. Admittedly, I'm not behaving the most rational way to the revelation brought to light through the gentle persuasion of a certain Princess of the Sun. I think the unicorn is reading my eyes with her own large orbs, never staring and never lingering longer than becoming uncomfortable. I think she is currently taking me apart bit by bit in her mind's eye, scrutinizing every atom of my being in the most polite and unobtrusive way possible.

It's creepy.

Twilight Sparkle, the youngest alicorn in the world and possibly capable of being a magical badass like Celestia is also looking at me, smiling as we engage in exchanging questions about our worlds. She's very smart, reminding me of Chryssie (who's throwing in helpful phrasings and proddings in our conversation) while trying very hard to contain her excitement in discovering new things. I'm the first human she's ever seen, having just recently become aware of Princess Celestia's study of Earth and Humanity.

Celestia remembers the Battle of Hastings. She watched the whole thing through that magical portal. She remembers a battle from over a thousand years ago! A winged horse with a horn flew overhead and watched the battle from its staging to the end. Apparently she had been looking for Starswirl as he was still conducting 'field research' on humans and he had invited her to watch humanity actively practice its culture of war upon each other. The way she recounted it, it might have happened just a week ago. The sadness in her eyes.

I will never forget it.

Right after she recounted from her seemingly bottomless and seemingly photographic memory, a little mare in a simple white and blue dress of the palace staff had approached Celestia, offering her apologies and whispering into the bent ear of her patient and kind princess. There was a thanks and the servant was dismissed with a smile. Celestia told me we were cordially invited to have lunch with Twilight Sparkle, Fleur de Lis, and of course my daughter Midnight Emerald. I'll admit that name sounds pretty cool. Much better than Nom Delish.

Much, much better.

So, here we are, chatting up a storm with pleasant and warm conversation, me fielding a crap ton of questions while the mares all listen intently and in turn. Twilight dominates the questions and she's not too intrusive. We're actually dining in a room normally set aside for the kitchen staff. The atmosphere is pleasant, warm, and cozy. Nom pops in frequently, flourishing his next dish in bowls, on platters, mostly fruits and vegetables and nuts. The bread is sweet and warm, the butter rich and thick. I dive into the bread with gusto, paying attention to the purple alicorn as she fiddles between what looks like a sandwich with a variety of flower petals in it. The bread is wrapped in lettuce to keep the contents from falling out.

Once we're served, Nom joins us after an insistent prompting from Celestia.

Yay! Another male to hold off female speak!

I'm sorry. That was a bit sexist. Forgive me. I'm outnumbered. I'm being pressed. There's not hope for escape. I may be hiding my panic, but it's mashing the button with the consistency of a schizophrenic.

I wonder why strange females make me feel uncomfortable when they try to get to know me? Maybe a certain ex comes to mind. She was...cruel in the end. Inhumanely cruel, I should think.

No, I mustn't think of her. Bad thoughts when I think of her. Bad memories. The worse loss of my life inevitably follows.

Obviously my mind has never been exactly stable.

"- would you consider it?" Twilight's voice breaks my train of thought. I twitch visibly, staring at her but not seeing her until I come to.

"Huh? What?"

"I think you broke his brain," Chryssie murmurs with a giggle. She's maintained her unicorn disguise at the request of Princess Celestia. Changelings make ponies scream in terror, for some reason.

I snap my head to her. "Shush, you," I croak. Turning to the deliverer of the question I only partially heard, I ask, "Could you repeat the question?" I offer an apologetic smile. What is wrong with me? The throbbing in my head isn't painful, but it's so distracting! Before I shift my attention from my daughter to the lady with the question, I see her expression show concern. I manage to force the weird sensation from my head, almost the same way I push my daughter's projected emotions from my mind. I place shaking fingers to my temple, the tips touching my skin below my hairline.

Fleur and Celestia exchange glances, Twilight soon copying them. There's concern painting their features, the lavender alicorn taking the initiative to get up from her seat and trot over to me. "Tell me what you're feeling right now," she says intently. "This is very important, Mr. Spriggs."

"Head's throbbing," I grunt apologetically, "it doesn't hurt, but it's very distracting, kind of like some sort of alarm bell."

A hoof finds its way to my forehead. Twilight holds it there for a moment, frowning. "No fever," she muses to herself, almost as if I've now become her lab rat and she's just taking notes. "Let me try something."

I pull back from her, gently taking her hoof and pulling it away. "Try what?" Her horn is glowing already. "Turn me into a newt?"

"You'll get better," promises Chrysalis innocently. I give her an annoyed look before returning my attention to Twilight.

The reference is completely lost on the others who stare blankly, offering confused but polite smiles. "No," Twilight insists, "nothing like that. I just want to check your head. Do I have your permission? It's perfectly painless and only slightly intrusive."

I flinch away from her further. "What do you mean by 'slightly intrusive'?" I don't like anyone probing into my head, be it a shrink, a doctor, or a purple pony princess packing power.

Celestia offers her soothing voice, "She only wishes to see if there is some sort of magical influence upon you. It is perfectly harmless and will not hurt you in any way. Please, Mr. Spriggs. Let her help you." It's like listening to mom and I'm six again.

Yay me.

I stubbornly take a bite of buttered bread and glare at Chrysalis as she's not even bothering hiding her revelry at my expense. Yeah, she's having a gigglefest at my expense. Such a lovely, supportive child!

"Perhaps the human feels he must become a foal and resist, non?" Fleur suggests before taking a delicate sip of her tea. Her eyes dance with amusement, again at my expense. Everyone is laughing at me. "Such a simple thing! Anypony in all of Equestria could never find better hooves to be in, mon ami."

"Daddy," Chryssie coos, sliding over to my side and leaning into me, "please don't be a dork and just do what the mare tells you." Et tu, Chrysalis? She nuzzles me, ever the concerned daughter and fully aware of my distaste for mental kooks fiddling with the mush of my mind. I can feel her worry. I sigh.

"All right."

"I'll go see how the staff's doing," mumbles Nom Delish, rising and apologizing with a nervous smile on his face. He excuses himself and trots off, mumbling something about preferring the kitchen to be on fire. Celestia smiles at him. The poor guy probably was completely out of his element and really not wanting to see the mares probe the strange talking monkey he'd just met earlier that morning.

Celestia has been mostly silent, simply sitting there, watching as she nibbles from her plate. She's been enjoying the same sort of salad everyone else has been munching on. Other than a reassuring whisper to the chef as he passed her, she has been letting Twilight run the show, her eyes unreadable despite the small smile on her muzzle. Its almost as if she knows what is going on, but prefers staying neutral in this matter. This leads me to believe she does not see what is going on in my head as dangerous. After the brief discussion we had about an hour ago, I'm still trying to wrap my head around the idea she is very much immortal and possesses a sort of strength capable of impossible things, like opening portals into different worlds.

As my attention is drawn to her, she gives me a slow wink. "My student knows what she's doing," is all she says. Her salad garners her attention and she takes another bite from a levitating fork. "She has my complete confidence.

"I hate this," I mutter with a sigh. "All right. Do whatever you're going to do. Everyone at the table seems to want me a mindless zombie."

Twilight reassures me, "I will do no such thing. I'm just looking for something." Her horn again flares up while Chrysalis leans into my ear.

"Braaaaaaains," she draws out in a throaty whisper.

"Shut up," I tell her mildly, only to earn a giggle as a reply.

Twilight fights the urge to laugh, setting herself firmly as her horn looms closer and closer to my forehead until the glowing tip touches my skin. A really weird sensation flows from it and into my head, swimming around, doing the backstroke or whatever. The throbbing in my head pops back up despite my efforts to think it down. My thinking is too weak and the sensation seems to move towards the alicorn's horn. Time becomes relative and everything pauses.

"Interesting," is all she says. "I'm just trying to link with it. Some sort of detection, I should think. But there's something else, too. I can't quite put my hoof on it. It feels familiar," she drones with her running commentary, excited and almost bubbling. "Midnight?"

"Yes?"

"Would you mind taking notes? I need to concentrate on your dad for a second."

"Not at all!"

Mind you, at this point, I can't see anything and my body won't move. Twilight must sense my growing unease and offers gently, "It's just to keep you from moving suddenly. Please trust me. There's nothing happening that's going to hurt you, Mr. Spriggs."

I just want to have a normal lunch! My stomach has forgotten the sandwich already.

"Hmm," Twilight observes, our eyes locked into each other. "Hmm!"

"Mmrph?" I respond, quirking an eyebrow.

"Don't do that," she fights a smile, "I'm trying to see something."

"What do you see?" Her eyes glitter a bit. They're actually quite pretty. Almost as pretty as my daughter's. You can't really beat harlequin eyes. They're that awesome.

She seems happy to explain what she's doing. "Well, Mr. Spriggs, what I am doing is using a detection spell to figure out if what's in your head is magically inclined. So far, I'm sensing traces of it, but nothing substantial. It's almost as if its been there for a long time."

"How's that?"

She shakes me off, maintaining contact. "Hey Number One Student, you writing this down?"

"Yep." I can hear scribbling next to me.

"To answer your question, Mr. Spriggs, not all magic is in your face and obvious. In your case, this has been with you since - and I am just hypothesizing at this point - you first bonded with Midnight Emerald. I think your link with your adopted daughter has created a sort of additional mind almost at a hive level, though nowhere near as intense."

I had been drilled to say my daughter's pseudo name in public for the safety of the public. The word Chrysalis is spoken in the same way as the Black Plague from the Middle Ages back on Earth. Quaint, isn't it?

"What does that mean?" I ask, more curious than nervous.

"I can't be sure, but you can feel her emotions, right?"

"Yeah, pretty much as long as we're within a certain range."

"Hmm," she says again. It was cute the first time. Now it's just silly to hear. "Midnight, your father has developed a sort of hidden sense. I think it's developed from the years you two have established and grown your mental bond. Its more psychological than magical, but it has absolutely fascinating possibilities!"

I can hear the catch in my daughter's voice, "Wait, are you saying I made my dad a mind reader?"

"Keep taking those notes!" Twilight tells her firmly. "This is amazing! And to answer your question; I don't know yet."

"Well," I can hear Celestia chime in amusement, "it would appear my prediction happened a bit earlier than I had believed. But she's right, Midnight. It's too soon to tell. This is a first in a very long time."

A long time since what?

"Do you think he can develop it, whatever it might be?" asks Fleur de Lis with interest.

"You're not reading my mind, are you?" I ask the alicorn probing me. I'm becoming fidgety and nervous and I'm still hungry. "I'm fine, really! I can't read minds, only my kid's emotions. I don't want any special magical thingy!"

She ignores my protests; rather she just grunts them off cutely. "If you're feeling something, what are your sensations you're experiencing? Dizziness? Flashing lights? Some strange urge to eat strange foods? Are you feeling the urge to burn anything or anything specific? Is anything coming to mind this very moment? Chrysalis, keep writing those notes!"

I wish I could see if the mares are making funny faces at me. "I don't know what it is other than it's making me feel wierd!"

"All right," the lavender alicorn goes on. "It appears to be confined in the frontal lobe, between the eyes and just above the brow line. It feels like its centered about an inch past the subject's skull. Possibly impassive." She blinks, stares into my eyes. "Can you control it?"

"Somewhat," I admit, "I can push it aside like I can push aside my daughter's thoughts. It's harder to do it that way, but I can do it to some degree." I blink at her, a word she mentioned bugging me for some reason. "Subject?"

"Just a term," she offers offhandedly. Her magic, or whatever she's doing continues to poke around in my head. It feels like a tickle worm. I really don't know what else to call it. "How often are you getting your pinging sensations?"

"How'd you know it was a pinging sensation?"

"I can feel it right now."

"Oh."

"So, how often do you get them and how many times since you've arrived in Equestria have you felt it?" Her question is professional. I can hear pen on paper. Chryssie's taking this seriously as well. Somewhere in the background, Fleur and Celestia are having a conversation. It sounds like an interesting one.

"Three, I think. Maybe four?" I try to shrug. My body fails me. "Are you holding me still with magic?"

"Mmhm."

I cross my eyes at her. She notices, blinks, backs away, shaking her head.

"Hey!" she complains, "I wasn't finished!"

I find I can move. "I don't like being restrained, Miss Sparkle," I growl irritably. "They had to restrain me in the hospital and you don't forget being strapped to your own bed because they think you're nuts."

She immediately flushes shameful crimson. "Oh, I'm so sorry!" Withdrawing further, she is suddenly staring at her plate. "I didn't know."

I reach over and pat her on the shoulder. "Don't worry about it, kid. I don't take it personally. There's a lot about me you don't know and I'm not about to talk about. It's personal. Because you didn't know, I'm not mad about it. Okay?" It sounded reasonable to me. I point at her plate. "Hey, look! Food!"

She grins, the flash of disappointment gone as she sees I'm not mad at her. Cute kid. She'll probably make some stallion a lucky guy one day.

"To know me is to find out I'm nuts," I add, taking up my lunch again.

"I can confirm that," Chrysalis sighs.

Celestia interrupts the oddball conversation with a chuckle. "So, what have you discovered, Twilight?"

She levitates the notes in front of her from my daughter, pouring over them quickly. It's only one page. Nodding with some satisfaction, she turns to her ruler. "I'm not going to jump to conclusions, but it feels something along the field of empathetic manifestations, perhaps at a low level. I'll need further study to be sure, but that's my preliminary findings. Not enough for a confirmation." The young princess turns her attention to her food at the prompting of Celestia.

"Interesting," murmurs Fleur, eyeing me as a cat might eye a mouse with no legs. I really don't know what to make of it. "Are you well, Monsieur Spriggs?" she asks.

"It was never painful, just annoying," I reply as I eyeball my soup. Yeah, the sandwich from earlier has long been forgotten by my stomach. Greedy little bastard. I reach over and scoot my bowl in front of me, discovering my soup spoon and wielding it like I'm mugging my meal. I feel a little woozy. I just said what I feel. "I am a bit woozy."

"That's probably because you just had your mind probed," Chrysalis supplies helpfully. "Had a class on just that subject last week. Had a lot to do with proper procedures and what to do in order to keep the pony of interest from being harmed by it. It's a very delicate process and few ponies can do without scrambling the brain."

I stare at her, spoonful of soup poised at my lips. "Say what?"

"Now that's not very nice, dear," Celestia chides firmly, though she is amused. To me she says, "You are probably aware you're having slightly odd thoughts since arriving here. Perhaps since this morning. Growing a bit."

I eat the spoonful of soup. "What do you mean?" I ask curiously.

"The magic is seeping into you, as I told you earlier. Your body is adjusting to it, so it's going to affect your mind a little bit."

"Are you saying I'm high?"

"No." She still wears that same gentle smile of understanding. "It's perfectly harmless and perfectly normal. I haven't said anything until now as I did not want you worrying about it as it is not harmful to you in any way, shape, or form. I'll still have you monitored for the next few days until the symptoms fade as your body adjusts."

"Until my little head thing?" I venture warily.

"Perfectly normal, my new friend," Fleur de Lis assures me, stressing friend as a means of quelling my rising fear. "I am to make sure you adjust to the atmosphere. Steel Jaw, I think would not have been so inclined to be tender in a delicate transition."

Fearing the unknown is so much fun! "Oh, God this place is going to drive me insane," I sigh in resignation. At least I try to put a sense of humor behind it. It's rewarded with a table of chuckles. I dive into my soup before it gets too cold. Maybe the statement wasn't really that funny.

The mares let me eat and the chatter between them is mostly to due with daily life and how everyone is doing. Chrysalis tells me a little about how her studies are going before fielding some questions to her schooling from Celestia; how is she doing, is she happy? Twilight then engages with me some questions about Earth, bringing up a few subjects I'm vaguely aware of and asking my own opinion. At least she's not taking notes. Nom Delish arrives with grilled salmon for me. None of the mares seem particularly disturbed I'm eating meat and I find myself enjoying wonderful flavors. Its served with freshly squeezed lemon mixed with melted butter and herbs.

At some point halfway through this casual lunch, a mare dressed like a servant came in and quietly handed a note to Princess Celestia. The monarch thanked the girl and read the note before nodding to herself and conjuring up a quill pen and paper. The pen, surrounded by that weird aura scribbles purposefully with delicate strokes, suggesting she takes enormous pride in her penmareship.

Penmareship? Ugh, that's terrible. The word, not her writing. I don't even know what her script looks like.

She finishes her letter, scrutinizes it for a moment, nods, then rolls it up. Somehow a bit of red ribbon appears around the middle along with a golden seal. Satisfied, she levitates it to the girl who curtsies and scampers off as the chef starts bringing in dessert.

"Mind if I ask what that was about?" I ask out of curiosity.

"Daddy!" Chrysalis nudges me. "Rude!" All aboard the embarrassment train! Next stop: Chryssie not talking to me for a week!

"It's quite all right," Celestia says to her. "Mr. Spriggs, that was just a matter involving my nephew Prince Blueblood. They're wedding arrangements and some details needed to be brought to my attention."

"I heard he got some mare pregnant."

Twilight Sparkle starts making strangled sounds, for some reason. Chrysalis is doing the same thing. Dad does not have very good social etiquette.

If Celestia was annoyed by my statement or my rudeness, she doesn't show it. Forgiveness for the talking pale monkey! "Well, unfortunately he finally did something he has to answer for and he's not taking it very well. I rather like the father of the mare in question and the trade between his nation and Equestria is beneficial for both our countries. In order to keep relations good for both parties, the prince must stand up for his actions and answer for them. It's an embarrassment, but nothing unreasonable to deal with." Her tone suggests I drop the subject. Obviously it's a delicate one. I comply.

"So what's the real reason you brought me to Equestria?" I ask as a slice of vanilla cake with colorful frosting is set before me. Nom grins at me.

"You'll like it," he says. The cake or the reason I'm here? I wonder.

"I'd rather have this conversation with my sister present," the princess says to me. "Tonight at dinner, I will explain everything to you. I'm sure you'll find it interesting. Please be patient until then. In the meantime, the rest of the day is yours to explore the castle with Lady Fleur de Lis."

I'm into my first bite of cake. Fluffy goodness! My mouth melts in a pool of sweet indulgence. "All right," I concede without reluctance. "The cake is good," I say to Nom, pointing at my dessert as if I've just struck gold.

"Yes," she beams, forking from her own plate. "It always is. By the way, did Luna tell you about..?" she left the sentence hanging.

"Yeah, she did."

She nibbled at her bit of cake on her fork. "She never did care for him."

"C'est la vie," comments Fleur, waving her fork with a smirk.

And here I thought it was a delicate subject. Maybe I read the suggestion wrong? It's hard to tell. I can't understand females. Especially my daughter. That might explain why we get along so well. Isn't it supposed to be the other way around? Why am I feeling light headed and giddy?

"So how are you liking Equestria so far, Mr. Spriggs?" asks Twilight.

"So far, not bad if you discount the stares after half a day," I deadpan with a smile.

She can't help but laugh. "Sorry, you are a bit different."

"Yeah, I know. I will say I love how clean the air smells. It's like I'm wandering around in a civilized national park."

"That's an odd term," notes Twilight, flicking her ears. Trying to figure out if I've just insulted or complimented her country.

"Hey dad!"

I look at Chrysalis. "Yes, pumpkin?"

"Want to see something cool?"

"I see you every day, kiddo. How much coolness can a father take?"

The table laughs as she blushes. "No, something almost as cool as me." She bats my arm with one of her hooves playfully. "Magic!"

This gets the interest from all the other mares at the table. We're almost done eating, so why not some entertainment? Maybe a visual demonstration of something other than floating silverware will settle the nerves I've suddenly developed in regards to magic in Equestria.

"All right. Is it safe?" I ask.

"...Maybe," she teases.

"Well, then, be my guest!" I reply expansively, leaning back into my chair and stretching my legs. "Just don't blow up stuff. Bad form to blow up other people's things."

"She doesn't know dark magic," Twilight assures me. "It's too early in her training to consider if she's ready for it." She's leaving out a part of her statement. "Nothing is going to explode, I hope."

Chrysalis deadpans, "Thanks for the vote of confidence."

"She's been working on her shield," Twilight goes on for everyone's benefit.

"Shield?"

"Like on Star Trek, Daddy," Chryssie tells me helpfully.

I get a mental image. Fire at Will! Will is dead! And there was great rejoicing! Why am I having these thoughts? I'm normally not so goofy about this. I think it's the air in Equestria. Was there something in the atmosphere? Didn't Celestia tell me something about magic earlier this morning? My thoughts dwell on her words as my eyes focus on Chrysalis. She's slid from her chair and is standing at the table. The salt shaker rises up from the surface, coated with her aura while her horn crackles soundlessly.

Odd thing is, the sensation in my head is rising again. I follow my instincts and look at the ceiling, frowning. Remembering Chrysalis, I snap my attention back to her. So far, she's just got the salt shaker hovering over the center of the table. Her face contorts in concentration, her lips moving over her fangs, eyes narrowing slightly. With a low grunt, her horn flares quickly like a rapid pulse. The salt shaker is encompassed by a swirling green ball. I can see through it and the salt shaker at its center. Its roughly the size of a softball. Chrysalis lets out an explosive gasp and smiles as she admires her handiwork.

No, I am not going to say 'hoofiwork'. You say it. No, go on. I'll wait. Say it! See what I mean? It sounds stupid, therefore I am not going to use that pun! Pony puns are silly.

Where was I?

"Touch it," my daughter insists, her emerald green eyes aglow with pride.

I point at the globe. "That?"

"Yes!"

"Will I lose a finger if I touch it?"

Fluer stifles a giggle. "No, it is quite harmless. It is but a petite magical shield. Vous n'avez rien craindre."

I glare at her, wondering if she just made fun of me at my expense. She simply gestures at the floating salt shaker. Why do I suddenly feel as though the fate of the world depends on me touching a floating semi-transparent ball of green?

"Don't be a baby, daddy." Chrysalis is wearing a smug grin.

I give her a look that would make the moon hide behind the sun. "All right, I'll touch it. But if I suddenly find myself missing a finger, no ice cream for a month."

More giggling. The offenders shan't be named.

Without fanfare, I simply reach out with the idea of grabbing the floating ball fully. I trust my daughter, having played the game with her many times before over the years. We just happen to have a different audience to play to. Of course, back then she was in the form of her favorite breed of dog and we had been visiting national parks of the United States. Those were great times, even if we did have our little arguments every now and then. I simply don't talk about them because they're the same issues any parent would have with their child while still falling under the category of 'normal'. As if raising a shape-shifting changeling can even be remotely considered as normal. As I'm thinking this, I'm grasping the ball. It feels like I've got my palm and fingers pressed against glass. It tingles at the touch. The ball remains stubbornly where my daughter holds it.

"Try squeezing it," suggests Twilight.

I shrug, do so. There's a slight give, but it throws back my effort as a wrestler might shrug off an opponent half his size. It feels bouncy as it rejects my attempt to squeeze. I look at my daughter, then the Fleur, shifting to Twilight, over to Celestia before going back to the green shield. So fair, I'm seeing pony faces enjoying the show. I'm completely fascinated by the ball, like a cat with a ball of yarn. I want to play with it! Now I'm on my feet, the eyes on me forgotten as I focus on this ball. That ball is coming down!

"Wise guy, eh?" I put on my best Curly (from the Three Stooges, for the uneducated) face, hands on my hips as I stare it down.

The ball does not flinch from my dangerous stare. It seems to reflect my daughter's amusement, pulsing for a moment as she titters behind a hoof.

"How long can you hold that up?" I ask her suddenly.

"The longest I've been able to go so far is six hours," she says proudly, "while taking notes and levitating objects and listening to Twilight's lessons."

"Is that good?"

"It's very impressive," Celestia replies over the rim of her teacup.

"That's pretty cool, pumpkin." I reach over and ruffle her mane. "Hey, Princess. May I ask you a question?"

"Of course."

"Where is my daughter getting her love? I mean, the way I've come to understand over the years is her need to feed off of emotions. She's fed off me since the beginning, so how has she been kept fed the past month? That's been bugging me." My smile fades as I become serious. The giddiness lingers. It still feels so wierd. I might mention it.

"How well do you understand the changeling's need to feed off of emotions?" she asks me after a moment to gather her thoughts.

I ponder her question, glancing at the child I had raised who was not of my blood, but was nestled securely in my heart. She feeding off me now. I can feel it. She knows I can feel it as the years have attuned us to each other to the point where serious arguments are had with emotions and not words. The hours where we would not speak to each other, but reason first through how we feel before one of us realizes how it went wrong and the first apology was offered. So far as I know, she's apologized more often to me than I have to her. It's never a perfect relationship, but then again, there is no such thing. As we grew our link to each other, I came to know early in her life she was feeding on me. There were days I would feel lethargic, but in time, my mind and body adjusted to her and she learned as she grew older to moderate her feedings.

She's never used her fangs on me. I wonder if she uses them for a more direct, vampiric effort. She does feed on blood like a vampire, her victims the raccoons and opossums and even a deer at one point. No, I don't want to talk about that. Maybe another time.

"I know it can leave me feeling weak if she's really hungry," I say, smiling at her. It's never been an issue between us. I know she needs to survive. "Emotions help her grow and regular food is only half of what she needs."

Chrysalis looks at me, her face impassive. I accepted who she was a long time ago and tried to teach her to respect others. There were times I thought I was a terrible father, other times I thought I was the greatest dad and the reason for the emblazoned coffee mug I left back at the house.

"I would like for her to find a nice stallion she can love and would return that love equally. I think that's what she really needs." I don't know why I said that, but suddenly my precious daughter develops a coughing fit while croaking at me. "No rush on the grandkids. I'm too young to be a grandfather. Now, how about answering my question?"

The whole room screeched to a halt. Dead silence. Even the crickets packed up and left, but remembered at the last minute to leave a tip.

"We still know so little," Celestia says, regarding me thoughtfully. "Right now, you are the premiere authority on changelings. What information we have in regards to them is patched at best. There is an ambassador, but he shows up infrequently and always sends word before hand to arrange secret meetings. The Empire does not yet know of Chrysalis' return to Equestria, which means they do not know she is now far younger than what she once was. But the answer to your question is she gets it from me."

"Oh, I guess that makes sense... Wait a minute!" I look at my daughter, quirking an eyebrow. "Empire?" She shrugs, mouthing at me the word 'grandkids' in the form of a question. Her eyes widen and I'm suddenly awash with her overwhelming concern for me.

"Princess?" Twilight chirps worriedly, drawing my attention to her. "I think Mr. Spriggs isn't feeling well at all."

Yep. Room spinning. Hey, look! The ceiling! There's funny glowing in front of my eyes and I'm on a firm cushion. I'm floating, spinning, and I start to feel very much afraid. I lose my mind, search for it frantically with a body that's suspended in midair. I start screaming as a wave of my own fear bursts from the spot in my head Twilight had probed just moments ago. That giddiness I felt changed so abruptly on me that now it's a waking terror. I can't see anything but strange images, my dreams manifesting before me, the horrors especially greeting me from a past I've spent years trying to forget. The screaming goes on and on. I can't hear anything other than my own voice as the horrors won't go away.

I feel hooves going around my shoulders, the side of my face into dark fur. I'm weeping like a child, begging for the dead faces in front of me to go away, for that kid accusing me, pointing at me with a bloody hole where his chest had once been. My nightmare stares at me, his small eyes burning with hellfires. I can't stop screaming and crying and flailing at the apparition. I hear my daughter soothing into my ear, her voice gentle through her own fear for me. I can feel her love as she hugs me close.

Why won't it go away?

Please, God why won't it go away?

The last thing I remember before I'm forced into a warm darkness is the voice of my child, trying to fend off my demons she cannot see.

Author's Notes:

Having a seizure of any sort can be considered bad form at the table. It disrupts the enjoyment the other folks at the table might be having...even if dessert was already served.

Dammit, Mike...apparently magic going into a body that's never been exposed to air absolutely saturated with it is one hell of a drug! Will this be the end of our hero? Will someone else have to take over with the first person perspective? Will this have to be a third person story? Will this story actually get anywhere?

...all I know is I'm out of bread. I'm going to get me some bread. Whole wheat. Yeaaaaaah!

Oh, and as for Discord...he's on vacation. Yeah. That's the ticket.

Translations! (I forgot to put them in earlier):

C'est la vie - Such is life
Vous n'avez rien craindre - Don't be afraid

Chapter 5 Angry Princesses are Detrimental to Your Health

View Online

Edited by Shadow Blades

To say Princess Celestia was outraged would have been an understatement. Though her visage remained a pillar of calm, deep within she seethed at the indignity her guest had undergone. She watched as he fell from the table, seeing invisible horrors as a spell had been cast upon him from a source she had yet to identify. In the moment of confusion, it took a few seconds while Michael screamed on the ground for her to realize what had happened.

It was magic poisoning compounded by a separate mental probe from a source who had not taken the proper precautions. It also came from somepony with a very strong affinity in magic and bearing no small skill in the arts. The stealth in which it struck led her to believe this attack was deliberate and fully intended to make its target suffer. Indeed, Michael Spriggs suffered, the horrors of his memory pulled before him, imagined and very much real.

Chrysalis held her father, his head pressed against her chest as she hovered over him, holding him to her protectively and rocking back and forth. Her face traced tears through her confusion, her mane drooping about her and her adoptive father like the branches of a willow tree as she spoke to him gently, trying to be brave for him.

"Fleur, if you would be so kind as to shield his mind," Celestia said crisply, standing as her wings flared. It was the only outside indication of her irritation.

"But of course," her friend replied and went to the human. To Chrysalis she said, "Do not cry, little one. I shall save the day, non?" Fleur's voice was soothing in an attempt to calm the wide-eyed changeling. Chrysalis nodded in mute thanks as the unicorn sank to the ground with her. Her horn flared gently as she focused on the human.

Celestia turned her attention to Twilight. "Come with me, my faithful student. We need to visit somepony and have a talk to him." With a toss of her etherial mane of morning colors, she assumed a commanding trot from the room, her body language clearly showing she was not happy. Not at all.

"Yes, Princess," Twilight mumbled in her wake. Celestia had told her since her ascension to stop using the title as she herself was now a princess, but it was rare indeed when Celestia raised her battle flags! With almost fearful awe, the younger alicorn almost felt sorry for the poor sorcerer who had cast the spell. She had caught on to the tipping point of the human's throes of agony just after her mentor did. Her curiosity took a back seat to her concern, but Michael was in good hooves. Fleur de Lis was one of the most powerful unicorns in all of Equestria and more than competent in her magic.

"What happened?" a startled guard asked as Celestia stormed past him. She ignored him, leaving the baffled pegasus to assume a cringe through his bearing as the growing thunderstorm rolled passed him.

Twilight grabbed his attention. "Get the doctor. Magic seizure in the kitchen dining room. The victim is the human, an honored guest. Go!"

"Yes, Highness!" blurted the guard, wheeling and taking wing.

Twilight gave chase after the white storm.

"Outrageous!" Celestia could be heard sputtering, her golden shod hooves slamming to the floor in each step with growing ire. "The indecency! After I accepted their offer for negotiations, the fool does this!"

"Who, Celestia?" Twilight called out from behind, still trying to hurry to keep up.

Celestia seemed not to notice or hear the query. "She sends an envoy, he becomes ambassador and he violates one of my laws? He dares? She dares? I think not!" The fuming princess was completely out of character, but it began to dawn on her protoge why she was acting so infuriated. "All my work and effort shall not be for naught. It shall not be fruitless!"

"What work?" pleaded her student, flaring her wings. "Celestia, please! I don't understand!"

She followed the angry alicorn up a flight of stairs and turned towards the wing of the palace where the ambassadors from around the world spent the majority of their day. Here, they spoke to each others affairs of respective states, discussing trades, the weather, or perhaps shadier deals under the table. It was difficult to say, but not hard to presume. Astonished faces erupted from ponies who saw and tried to greet the day half of the diarch. Her hooves were no longer resounding off stone menacingly as they now fell upon magnificent carpeting. The glaciers in her magenta eyes broke pleasant greetings as ponies noted the normally smiling and loving and pleasant alicorn was cleary and certainly not feeling such goodwill at the moment.

A few prayers were offered for the soul of the one who disrupted the princess' inner peace, though not in favor of said soul. Ponies who angered their beloved princess to this degree certainly deserved what was coming. A few even dared to follow at a safe distance, but the guards quickly stepped in to prevent such foolishness. An unspoken command had a small contingent of guards falling in behind Celestia as any angry diarch required an escort as there was probably going to be some form of cleaning up required in the aftermath. Nervous eyes followed the back of the diarch's head as they wondered if there would be blood.

The hall stretched a goodly distance, but the lengths were devoured by the long strides of the majestic and proud form of Princess Celestia. At the far end of the hall was a recently opened room for the convenience of a particular guest of Equestria and representative of a nation one could not find on any map. Two unicorn guards were posted outside the double doors leading at the far end and they saw the approaching front of Hurricane Celestia.

Oh, Celestia could have simply teleported, saving the time and effort. She could have simply used her magic, to place herself before the offender and simply vent her anger upon said offender. Said offender would then probably wish they were dead or worse. It was either that or face the power of a ruler who drew her strength from the fiery ball in the sky. As angry as she was, Celestia deliberately walked to her destination, giving herself a chance to sort through everything and not resort to obliterating the violator into tiny bits and pieces on the spot. Despite her rather calm and collected appearance - despite her centuries of wisdom and experience hated being surprised. She hated being caught off guard. Celestia had never been able to handle being caught off guard - or so it was said. This was one of the many reasons the changeling invasion had nearly gone off splendidly for Chrysalis those scant few years ago - or so it was said. The truth was stranger than fiction. The truth remained her secret.

"Gentlecolts," she rumbled with bare civility to the pair of guards on either side of the door, "stand aside."

They complied readily, pulling the doors wide open for her. They were clearly sweating beneath their helmets.

Celestia was calmer now, but far from the mood she should be in. Twilight dared to come along side her as the princess stood before the open doors leading into a smaller part of the wing given to the newest ambassador and his staff. Startled eyes fell upon her, repeating the pattern the past ten minutes from other ponies who had seen the glowering white alicorn. Solid blue eyes from several dark forms went round at the unexpected presence. Gossamer wings previously buzzing now froze and more than a few jaws hung open revealing sharp little fangs while their owners fell to the ground, flabberghasted. Some levitated paperwork, others had been discussing no doubt very important matters concerning love. One had been asleep until the doors flew open. Now the sleepy eyes blearily tried to focus on what was at first thought to be Lady Death come to take him to the Great Hive in the Sky.

Each and every occupant in this section of the wing was a changeling.

"Where is Ambassador Anzealous!?" she demanded in commanding tone. "I shall speak with him." Celestia admittedly was harsh in speaking, the volume a notch or four above what would have been acceptable. Given the circumstances and the possible ramifications of the violations, she threw caution to the wind and decided to put a very firm hoof down. If it happened to crush a neck, so be it. "NOW!"

Using the Royal Canterlot Voice for one word did wonders. Changelings feeling the brunt of the blast were physically moved from where they stood several feet. The mares - the only ones sporting manes - had their expensively styled hair blown askew and assumed disheveled appearances in the aftermath of experiencing The Voice. Wide eyes locked on the alicorn, mostly in terror.

A small male trotted to her, braving the ire of the alicorn and clearing his throat professionally. "This way, Your Highness," he said politely. This changeling seemed unusually happy to see one of the rulers of Equestria.

Twilight followed, a sheepish and apologetic smile to the changelings quaking in fear. Secretly, she also found herself gleeful at seeing their discomfort. They had been here for less than a year and were not even aware of Chrysalis yet. She found them to be arrogant, viewing ponies as nothing more than something to to feed upon. A few were respectful, but changelings as a whole seemed to favor a sense of being a master race of sorts. It did little to dissuade the already xenophobic feelings ponies had towards strange looking creatures. Griffons, minotaurs, and donkeys were common sights, but anything beyond that was liable to start a panic, be it a single changeling or a tall human.

The single door Celestia was led to was closed. Of course it would be. The changeling leading the princess came to it at the end of this hallway and knocked politely. "Ambassador? Princess Celestia requires a moment of your time." There was a long silence. "Ambassador Anzealous?" There was the sound of muffled scrambling on the other side of the door.

Celestia shoved the changeling aside with the tact of a raging bull, using the side of her head to clear the living obstruction from the awaiting door. Instead of using her magic, she simply raised a forehoof and slammed it against the door. It splintered away from the blow, showering the front half of the room beyond with bits and pieces of oak. At the far end of the room was a desk. Behind the desk cringed a pitiful form for a moment before darting beneath with a frightened chirp. Celestia went inside, throwing a warning look at the changeling she had moved.

"Stay here, Twilight," she said in a slightly softer tone.

The office of the Ambassador of the Changeling Empire was very large with high ceilings decorated with wooden carvings and painted in a style three hundred years forgotten. The floor bore plush carpeting in swirling patterns of blue and white to imitate the waves of a body of water. Numerous bookshelves lined the walls neatly and were filled with a confusion of organized chaos; scrolls, books, baubles, and other objects strewn here in there in a haphazard way. If there was space on the shelf, a random object filled it. The desk was covered in a mountain of paperwork of all sorts from family to job, political to rhetorical.

Ambassador Anzealous was currently trying to hide under the desk. Celestia sighed, expecting no less from him and began to cast her magic to seal the room from prying eyes and ears. As an afterthought, she soundproofed the magic barrier so she and the changeling ambassador could have a nice and cozy little chat. Nevermind the wing was already masked behind several dozen spells and wards to prevent prying eyes from peering in or ears could not hear what happened within these walls. This was a secret place where negotiations between the Empire and Equestria had been in full swing for several months. The very desk upon which preliminary agreements had been signed was now serving as a makeshift bomb shelter. She then lifted the desk itself with her magic and levitated it in the air. Beneath it and curled into what appeared to be a fetal position was a very frightened and very wide-eyed changeling with his notched little ears pressed tightly against his skull.

"Before I consider expelling you and your ilk from my country," Celestia began almost conversationally, "would you mind please telling me what it was you were hoping to accomplish?"

Reluctantly, the changeling looked up at her. Anzealous was a fat changeling. There was no other way to describe him. He was also large in stature when compared to other changelings, but his was of the less impressive variety. The changeling had a puffy face and snubby muzzle. Arrogance was permanently stamped on his features along with the pompous air he normally exuded when not being stared down by an irate alicorn. Though it seemed odd, he wore a black suit for business, complete with silk red vest and gold pocket watch. Currently he was using a top hat to hide behind.

"I don't know what you're talking about," he huffed, shrinking away from her.

Celestia narrowed her eyes dangerously. "Don't be coy with me. I can sense your magic in the air. You cast a mind probe on a being not prepared for it. Your imprint was all over his mind. Have you any idea what you have done!?" Her voice rose as she barged forward until she was towering over him like a falcon over a mouse.

"I-I-I sensed a link unknown to me," he stammered awkwardly, the folds beneath his chitin quivering. "There's the strange changeling you won't allow me to see and now this new, oddly off link I simply had to sense. It's not a changeling."

"Did it not occur to you to ask?" she demanded. "Did it not occur to you Equestria is entitled to her secrets for her own safety? Did it not occur to you the ripples you just made could shatter a peaceful future I am striving to make for not only my ponies, but for all intelligent beings involved? Are you so invested in your stupidity you would risk all for the sake of a simple question I would have been more than happy to answer?"

He stared at her. The terrified ambassador was good at staring. He was simply too scared to do anything else other than stare and answer her questions without wetting himself.

"Your little office here is one such secret, lest I remind you," she said. "I don't have to imagine the reaction my subjects would have upon discovering there are changelings negotiating peace with us through the truce agreed upon seven months ago. Or need I remind you the faith I decided against my better judgement to give your empress a chance to set things right?"

"No, your Highness," he admitted sullenly. "I meant no offense."

"Of course you didn't," she sighed, her anger starting to fade. "I do question the wisdom of your empress in choosing you to act as the bearer of peace between our peoples."

The fat changeling winced. "It was a new mind, a void with no magic. I had to see for myself."

Celestia fixed him sternly. "You gave him magic poisoning, Anzealous."

"Impossibe!" he spat in shock. "Why, such a thing only happens if the victim in question has no -"

"- magic within them. The sudden flood of energies overloads the mind inducing hallucinations or bringing forth an eruption of magic bursts," Celestia finished for him. "Yes, I know. There is now an intelligent creature suffering greatly because you pushed too hard into his mind. You went into an unprotected mind, devoid of magic and tore into it without thinking. So eager were you in discovering what this mind was, you quite possibly shattered it, Anzealous."

"I had no idea," he said miserably.

"Worse of all, you tried to be sneaky about it. Oh, the trespass you have done is severe, ambassador. Your crime is grave, yet your immunity unfortunately places you above the laws of this land. You have no idea how dearly I wish to make you stand before the daughter of the victim and allow you the chance to explain yourself to her." Celestia's visage remained carved from stone, neither smiling nor frowning, but her displeasure was felt and known without a doubt.

"You hide secrets from us," he began, trying to give reason to his actions.

She stamped a hoof on the floor. The stone beneath the carpet cracked audibly through the cushion. "YOU CHANGELINGS HAVE BEEN A DELIBERATE SECRET FOR CENTURIES! HOW DARE YOU ASSUME I AM NOT ALLOWED MY OWN SECRETS! MY REASONS ARE FOR THE SAFETY AND WELL BEING OF MY CHILDREN, MY SUBJECTS, MY PONIES AND ALL THOSE WHO LOOK UPON MY SISTER AND ME FOR PROTECTION AND SECURITY! HOW DARE YOU?!"

Her Voice had bodily lifted the poor ambassador, hurling him between the two great paned windows of his office and spread-eagle against the wall on his back and staring at the alicorn. Her magic ward kept the glass from shattering and cushioned the changeling from getting smashed into a smear.

"You are most fortunate it is not my sister standing here in my place," she went on, striding forward, tossing the leather chair aside as it was on its side and pressed against the wall beneath Anzealous. It crashed into a shelf, bringing it down. It had been centuries since any soul had shattered her peaceful and serene nature. "If Luna were here instead of me, you would most certainly be experiencing a world of pain the likes of which would leave you begging for death ten times over.

"We are not weak rulers intimidated by little monsters who hide in shadows. Your arrogance in regards to the other races is nothing compared to the simple fact the world sees your kind as nothing more than parasites. You are most fortunate indeed I wish to see a peaceful path of coexistence between Equestria and the Empire or I would certainly have eradicated your kind from this world. But I would not be who I am now if I pursued that course of action. I would not be the hypocrite of what I preach. I will tolerate changelings. I will tolerate you. But this is your last warning, ambassador. Be sure to let other changelings in your charge know and practice the rules I have placed for your own good and safety.

"Until the fate of the one you attacked can be discerned, consider yourself under house arrest pending the outcome. Do I make myself clear?"

Ambassador Anzealous nodded weakly. "Of course," he croaked.

She eased him to the floor, even taking a moment to magically brush off bits of wood from his chitin and carapace. A tweak here and a tweak there, his was unruffled and made presentable under her gentle care. Soon his suit was settled neatly about him as clean as the day he had first put it on. Celestia smiled at him. "I'm so glad I decided to walk here," she mused, setting back and looking the fat changeling over. As a final touched, she lifted his hat with her magic and placed it back into his hooves. He grasped it nervously, staring at it shame-faced.

He dared to ask, "Why is that?" Anzealous felt he knew the answer.

Celestia smiled coldly. "I wanted to gather my thoughts first. I thought about the ages that have passed in which I have maintained my calm through times of trouble and hardship. I remembered when I first met you seven months ago. I was pleased to discover your Empress desired a peaceful resolution between our races. I welcomed you with open hooves even against the advice of my advisers. My dear, sister wanted to gather the army and hunt every last one of you down like dogs. I saw it as a waste of lives and resources. I agreed with the idea there could be peace between changelings and ponies. But this deliberate assault upon one I guaranteed safe conduct to is a terrible violation of the peace process. How shall I explain this to my advisors, ambassador?"

Wide solid blue eyes trembled.

"But, I certainly don't want to try and explain to your Empress why her ambassador had to be obliterated. Not that she would particularly mind, since I already know she is quite put out with you still."

Anzealous winced. "I shall have to tell her of this incident," he said.

"As do I. Let us both be honest in what we say to her." She smiled down at him, still put out with the ambassador, but no longer swimming in the urge to make him a bloody smear on the carpet. She had an image to uphold, after all. A thought came to mind, one she should discuss with Luna first. She needed her younger sister's thoughts on this. "I shall bid you good day, Ambassador Anzealous."

"As I you, Princess," he replied with little sincerity.

With a whisk of her horn, everything broken and scattered lifted into the air, drawn by magic to their separated pieces. It was barely an effort for the alicorn to repair what she had broken, doing as she had been taught since she was a filly to set right what she had done wrong. Fixing furniture was barely a half a thought for her and soon the room was as if a cleaning crew had assaulted with extreme prejudice. The last two items were the massive desk and its companion chair. Ambassador Anzealous waddled out of the way so she could place them where they were before. Some how the stacks of papers seemed unmoved from their spots, but the mounds swayed dangerously.

"I will have my mages cast sealing wards around your wings," she said when the desk was settled to the ground. "You and your staff will be severely limited in the magic you can use and you are all confined to this wing until further notice. If you wish to send communications to home, you will not be hindered, but you will be required to have one of my court mages with you to send the correspondence. Otherwise, normal delivery methods will not be blocked. Any requests for deviations beyond these rules must be submitted to the captain of the watch. Do I make myself absolutely clear? You are my guest here, but you will not run roughshod in my home."

"Crystal clear," replied the shaking ambassador. "Again, you have my sincerest apologies." He adjusted his tie and straightened his vest, swallowing nervously.

"I am not the one to whom an apology is owed. A daughter just witnessed her father go into a seizure right before her eyes because of your indiscretion," she said, deciding to use more diplomatic terms.

"Of course. I would be more than happy to convey my sympathies and profound regret for my actions." Anzealous had regained some of his composure, but seemed unsure now.

"Perhaps you will get the chance," she suggested as she turned to leave. Then, she paused, narrowing her eyes in speculation. Celestia glanced at the changeling. "What did you see in his mind?" This game was old hat to her.

"Nothing of value," insisted the ambassador all too quickly. The game was not quite so easy for him, it would seem.

"What did you see?" she demanded, her voice cold enough to freeze the sun. "You seriously didn't think I would come in here and throw a tantrum..."

He stared at her, sensing she was actually getting serious. Everything else before had been an act, hadn't it? No, that was all too real. She had composed herself and regained control over herself. That had been a genuinely angry alicorn just a few moments ago who had also fixed what she had broken. Now she was bringing her full compliment of persuasive skills to bear upon the poor unwitting ambassador.

She flared her wings before him, standing tall and majestic as she spun upon him, her body erupting with a white aura. "Do not presume to toy with me, changeling. I have seen the rise and fall of many kingdoms. Those who called me their enemy have crumbled to dust before my hooves. I guard those whom I take under my wing fiercely, passionately, and without second thought. If you think you may use what you have learned against me or against others, you are sorely mistaken, ambassador. Your Empress may be powerful, but she is not here. I am here. I stand before you. I am the sun given life. Tell me, immunity be damned."

Her magic suddenly grabbed the ambassador forcibly, lifting him off the ground as he gave out a startled squeak. Eyes bulged in their sockets, the solid blue orbs focusing on the stern and determined glare from the alicorn. "You can't do this!" he squealed in terror. This was not the kind and benevolent ruler he had been sent to keep an eye on! His hat fell from his grip, rolling a short distance on the floor in a wide circle.

Before him stood a goddess, her will easily overcoming his. The centuries of life behind her had created within Celestia a mind unlike any other in all the world. It was a vast ocean, spreading as far as the eye can see and as deep as the greatest void. The maelstrom of magic within her was stilled with but a thought, easily molded and manipulated from familiarity and knowledge. For a brief moment, Anzealous had a taste of what was within her mind and he truly knew fear beyond the influence of any changeling queen or even his beloved Empress. In this touch, he could feel himself fall into her relentless gaze, matching the reports of a certain butter yellow pegasus possessing the dreaded Stare. The eye of her storm was her calm heart and love for her subjects.

Then her mind entered his, invading with care. She was taking the state of his mind into her hooves and she was not about to shred it. Celestia was not at all pleased with the changeling ambassador, but she was not about to stoop to his level and destroy him for such a clumsy mistake. She had never been about cruelty. Justice, most certainly, but wanton acts of barbarism for the sake of revenge were not in her repertoire. If Michael was to be permanently damaged from this changeling's mind probe, then would she go about seeking the appropriate justice. For now, she wanted answers. He had taken without permission and now she was going to retrieve that which was taken, should she find it.

Anzealous discovered he was absolutely helpless before her. She would see what he had seen and know he was aware of who this strange creature was. The changeling had lingered long into the mind of this strange talking ape, having slowly ingrained himself into the complex mind. It felt fragile to him at first, when he had discovered this mind in his magical meditation. It was the mind of someone who left themselves open, a black hole in a world of colorful magic prisms. Curious, Anzealous sought out and found within this darkness a curious and confused mind trying to mask the fear it held from the world. It was like seeing a newborn with an adult's body. The inquisitive ambassador poked in and was soon to discover a name not heard of for four years: Chrysalis.

Withdrawing quickly, the ambassador was in shock. She was supposed to be dead, yet this stranger not only knew her, but thought of her fondly and in a way no changeling fully understood. Here a food source knowingly and willingly was giving a changeling himself. There was no struggle, no regret, no hesitation. She needed and he gave freely. He was linked to her. The link was the sort reserved for royals. What was a talking monkey doing with such a link? It seemed it had been in place for a very long time; perhaps even years!

A message had quickly been sent home telling of his preliminary findings and requesting what he should do. A reply was quickly given for him to continue his observations and to learn more if possible. The name Chrysalis had sent ripples upwards through the hierarchy until the Empress herself learned of it. Her reaction was unexpected.

Celestia frowned. This was not what she wanted. Not at all. She continued to probe around the changeling's mind, mindful to ignore snippets of no bearing to what she sought. The changeling ambassador had found Michael's darker memories on his third incursion inside. His greed for knowledge was beginning to show as he began to ignore the safeguards for his victim, but mindful to protect himself. His only focus was the discovery of a new creature and even more importantly; the world he had come from.

"So, you were deliberate in your carelessness," she said flatly.

"Please!" he blubbered. "My duty to my empress!"

"My duty to those under my protection," she countered.

It was going to be a decidedly bad day for Ambassador Anzealous.

As Celestia went forth to correct bad behavior, another drama unfolded as Chrysalis cradled her moaning father in her hooves. He was weeping like a child, rocking back and forth as she tried to reassure him. Fleur de Lis was there, using her magic to shield his brain and to let his mind settle. She used her considerable knowledge to ease the restlessness, but found the complex difference in the human's mind difficult to work around. The imbalance was slowly correcting itself, but she was not sure if it was going to be quick enough to prevent permanent damage, if there was any. Certainly emotional scars were already in place, but what would this episode do? She could feel through her own barrier and did so, delicately touching here and there the places within the man's mind, whispering the whole time to him and smiling reassuringly to his weeping daughter.

"Will he be all right?" Chrysalis asked as she stared at the white unicorn through the strands of her straight hair.

"Too early to tell, fille," replied the sorceress, "but I think I was able to ease his mind and give him a chance to rest. I am no doctor, but I know magic well enough to know how delicate a condition he is right now. Please be patient, oui?"

In less than a minute or two, guards leading a harried doctor arrived.

He was a thin unicorn and aged, professional as he surveyed the scene. Observing the human, he sighed and muttered through his grizzled muzzle, "It would appear I have an unusual patient." The doctor had a pale brown coat and a dark brown peppered mane. His cutie mark was hidden beneath his white field duster. By all appearances, it appeared he had been interrupted in the middle of a lecture and dragged here. He was as his plea for larger donations from the nobles had to be put on hold due to a medical emergency. The guard had been very insistent.

"What's a magic seizure?" Chrysalis asked through her tears. Twilight's orders to the guard just moments ago in regards to this strange reference to a 'magic seizure' left her in utter confusion to go with her shock. She was reluctant to release her grip on her father as the doctor knelt and began to examine the fallen human.

"One moment child," he said pleasantly. "Lady Fleur, if you would be so kind as to release the containment spell. I can take it from here."

"But of course," she purred. Fleur di Lis smiled at put a comforting hoof around Chrysalis' shoulders.

"Thank you," the doctor said as his horn assumed control of this most unusual patient. "Now, to answer your question, young lady a magical seizure is what happens when a mind is overloaded with energy from an outside source attempting to get in. This is usually an occurrence at the magic schools and their students with the experiments."

Chrysalis remembered some of the early introductions to the dangers of magic Twilight Sparkle had warned her about and nodded as she accepted the doctor's explanation.

"What species is this creatures?" he asked as his hoof turned Michael's head this way and that. "Lovely bone structure. Very ape-like if I say so myself. I know some primatologists who would love a crack at studying this fellow."

"That's my father!" growled Chrysalis dangerously. Fleur had to restrain her. The doctor recoiled from her anger.

"Non, ma petite fille," she whispered, "he means no harm. Let him do his work upon Monsieur Spriggs."

Unbothered, the doctor shrugged and bent over his patient until his horn touched Michael's forehead. "What I'm doing is stabilizing his mind so it doesn't deteriorate any further. It will take mind specialists to try and set him right." As he spoke a stretcher was brought in by a pair of guards. Still maintaining his aura from his horn to the human's head, the doctor growled, "Easy with him, boys. I've never dealt with one of these creatures and I'm not about to fiddle with his condition as it is."

Chrysalis rose and followed with Fleur guiding her with encouraging whispers and motherly nuzzles. Nom Delish simply sat in a corner and wrung his hooves with worry.

"Is he going to be all right?" he asked Fleur as she and the young changeling drew past him.

"I'm certain he will be," she assured the chef with a lovely smile. "Princess Celestia has the finest physicians of both magical and physical skill knowledge. He is in good hooves. Do not worry." Perhaps a vet may be needed as well as scholars versed in human anatomy, if possible.

"Who would want to hurt my dad?" Chrysalis wailed suddenly. "I don't understand why anyone would hurt him."

Fleur knew the changeling was the reason, but maintained her peace. She found she liked Chrysalis. This incarnation of the dreaded queen was kind and thoughtful, if very rough around the edges. She had a temper, but did not lash out blindly. The changeling was intelligent and insightful for her age. Fleur saw a younger version of herself in the pseudo pony, though was quick to stop the comparisons at the attitudes. Her own fillyhood had been a long time ago. Though her own age could be measured in tens of years - even past three hundred winters, Fleur still remembered what it was like to be on the threshold between a child and adult. Those were the confusing years, the fun years, and some of the most memorable years. For Chrysalis, Fleur did not know what it was like for the changeling. Not so much different, she wanted to believe. Speaking to Twilight Sparkle suggested Chrysalis was very much a normal girl, save for a few differences.

Still, no mare ever had a father quite like this human, Michael Spriggs. Such an odd name, too! Fleur hoped he would recover. Magic seizures could either be no more damaging than a hangover, yet she had heard of unicorns going insane when attempting spells they don't mentally prepare for. This was an unusual and most violent case. It was even rarer for a seizure to be caused by a hostile party. In the distant past, magic seizures were used as a form of torture. The unpleasant memories were quickly dashed from her mind. The land of her birth had still used such methods up until the end of the last century, thanks to the efforts of Celestia and Fleur.

That was another life, another time. Fleur de Lis had once been something she regretted. Her dreams reminded her sometimes of what her path had been, before she met Celestia on a diplomatic mission requested by her king.

"I do not know, but I suspect the Princess knows. You shall have your answers, Émeraude de Minuit." The sorceress had to steer Chrysalis physically as the distracted changeling stared at her, then blushed when she realized her guide had just prevented her from walking headfirst into the wall. They turned the corner and continued to trail the stretcher. It was being levitated by the doctor now. Fleur noted with some amusement it was too short for the stretched out man upon it. His feet were threatening to drag along the floor.

There was nothing funny of this whole matter. Fleur de Lis was the sort of mare who tried to see the brighter side of things, the little bits of humor life place along the path. Sad things had their place, of course. The sorceress had seen plenty of that. She rather wear a smile than a frown. Her mother had always taught her to smile. Fleur remembered her mother well and honored her memory by keeping her smile for others to see. She was grateful she was not as enthusiastic as one earth pony by the name of Pinkie Pie. Fleur was convinced the pink pony was borderline insane, having met her just once before at the Galloping Gala years ago.

Shaking the memory from her mind, she focused on Chrysalis - Midnight Emerald. The young changeling oozed fear for her father's well-being and understandably so. "It's not fair!" she cried angrily as hot tears fell down her face. "Whoever did this to him had better hope I never meet them." Her eyes began to flare as she replaced her fear with a swelling rage.

"Non, non," chided Fleur gently to the changeling, again nuzzling Chrysalis. "You let Princess Celestia handle this. She is as angry as you, ma fille. You can be sure to know she will find out who is responsible. For now you must stay with your papa and be the first face he sees when he awakens. He should like that, I think. Besides, did you not see the cloud over Celestia's face! Oh-ho! How I would not like to be the one to stare into her eyes at this moment!"

Chrysalis calmed visibly, nodding as the reasonable unicorn managed to reach her. "Thank you for being so nice to me," she whispered with a weak smile.

Her eyes settled on her father's still form. He seemed much calmer now and she could see his chest rising and falling. His head was still encased in the magic of the dutiful doctor. A pegasus nurse joined, falling into step opposite the stretcher and immediately began taking notes as the physician began to list Michael's symptoms. He followed that up with possible treatments and told her to go ahead and make the arrangements for immediate admission for his patient.

"He is a good papa to you, oui?" Fleur asked.

"The best."

The nurse wrote down last minute instructions and asked a few questions of her own professionally, offering her own suggestions. The doctor agreed to them for the most part and dismissed her with a curt nod, bending once again over his patient and checking his heart with a stethoscope.

"Then it is my pleasure to make sure you are there for him with a smile. We shall be friends, I think." The unicorn tossed her mane and leaned in towards Chrysalis. "We should be friends. You have only Lady Twilight Sparkle for the moment. Allow me to help you double the number of friends you have and offer myself as one. I would be honored!"

Chrysalis stared at her, the little smile growing shyly across her features. "I'd like that. I'd like that very much." She could feel the genuine sentiments from the beautiful mare and knew the offer to be pure. It was not a lie nor could she sense deception.

A dark parody of one of her favorite movies ever popped unbidden into her head:

"Hello. My name is Chrysalis Spriggs. You killed my father. Prepare to die."

It was one of the first movies she remembered watching in her first days with Michael, before she came to regard him as her daddy. She shook the thought and was soon outside where a carriage awaited her father for transport to the nearest hospital. The castle had good medical facilities, but nothing for what was ailing the human. Specialized equipment was going to be needed. Naturally she was going to ride with her daddy. He had never had anything worse than a cold for as long as she could remember. She was not about to leave his side now.

The doctor went in first, hopping up before turning and guiding the human-laiden stretcher into the covered four wheeled carriage. It was large, Chrysalis noted, almost as large as the ambulances she had seen on Earth. Four pegasus were required to pull it through the air. There was a levitation enchantment on the carriage itself. Two medical technicians swarmed over the stretcher as it floated in, taking Michael's vitals and listening to the doctor as he rattled off essentially a carbon copy explanation of what he told the nurse. As he did so, he gestured for Chrysalis to hop up. Fleur stopped short of following her.

"I cannot go with you, Émeraude de Minuit," she said sadly. An apologetic smile creased her lovely features as Chrysalis gave her a stunned expression. "I am not of the family and therefore cannot go. Besides, there is no more room even for one such as I."

"But -" Chrysalis was interrupted by a shake of the unicorn's head.

"Do not worry," the sorceress chirped happily, "I shall meet you at the hospital. We will simply be parting for but a few minutes. Be a brave fille and hold your father's hoof. He would like for his fille petite to be brave, oui?"

The door closed, leaving Chrysalis the image of a beaming white mare winking at her from beneath her wavy light pink mane.

Celestia had left the changeling ambassador's offices as quickly as she had entered. Twilight Sparkle trailed behind her along with a small army of guards still trying to figure out what had their princess in such a glowering mood earlier. She was less incensed now, but bore a no-nonsense air about her as she weaved her way through the palace, once again on hooves as she collected her thoughts for a second meeting she knew had to happen. Princess Celestia was not looking forward to it. She insisted on Twilight coming with her, viewing this as an excellent opportunity to show her protoge more of what it meant to rule. Politics was her personal animal and few in the world could hope to match her mastery. Normally she had her own army of appointed ponies who dealt with foreign affairs, serving in the various capacities as advisors and ambassadors. However, there were moments when she had to take a personal hoof in matters best kept within the confines of secrecy.

Speaking to the Changeling Empress was one such thing.

Ambassador Anzealous no doubt had already contacted Her Imperial Majesty and relayed his side of the story. More than likely he had leveled accusations of verbal and physical abuse, perceived threats, and other spins on the truth Celestia was sure had more than enough twists to it. Though not really looking forward to speaking the creature who claimed dominion over all changeling queens and their hives (and by definition of changeling society, the world itself). The only reason there was grudging respect offered from the powerful Mother of All Forms to the diarchy of Equestria was in no small part in thanks to the powers of the Sun and the Moon.

As of yet, there was no name to be associated with the Empress other than her titles. She was a shadowy creature, dark and mysterious. By now, she knew Chrysalis was no longer a name to be counted among the dead. Celestia had hoped to use the remade changeling as a wild card in her favor in case the negotiations had broken down. To have a changeling queen under her watchful eyes might have offset a possible failure of a painstaking process of finding numerous middle grounds with the mysterious Changeling Empire. It was still shaky grounds. The discovery of a budding changeling queen in her home might rile the changelings up and destroy all the work the past few months had leave the foundations to peace in shambles.

"Seal the room when we go in," she informed her student quietly. It was the first she had spoken in nearly ten minutes while thinking. Twilight nodded mutely, understanding this was not the time to ask questions, but to simply do.

Breaking off in pairs, the guards returned to their duties once they realized Celestia wasn't going to destroy anything. More than a few audible sighs of relief could be heard as they went their separate ways. The last two took up positions outside the quarters of the Sun Princess and quietly closed the door behind Twilight's tail as she slipped in behind her teacher.

For the next five minutes, both mares set about to secure the room so nothing could penetrate the security and privacy needed for what was no doubt going to be a very delicate situation. Luna joined them after receiving a mental summons from Celestia and sealed the balcony with her magic and added her own dark power. Celestia's private chambers became both the safest room in the world and the most dangerous. In one of the corners sat a small covered table, given to her by Ambassador Anzealous five months ago at the command of his Empress. It was a very old artifact predating the earliest recorded histories of modern ponies.

"Sister," Luna greeted finally once the wards were in place. "Twilight." She nodded to each as her equal as well as beloved sister and dearest friend. "Are we to call upon the Ancient Mother?"

"Unfortunately," Celestia grunted as she telekinetically drew the artifact needed from its corner. It floated towards the center of the room, the silk cover falling away as it came between the three alicorns and settled upon the floor with three soft thuds from its stand. Ancient Mother was a word the Moon Princess had come across in a very old tome now nestled somewhere in her quarters.

"What do you want me to do?" Twilight asked hesitantly.

Celestia gave her a wan smile. "Do nothing. Simply watch, listen, and learn. If she speaks to you, don't ramble and for pity's sake don't stray off topic," she said, offering a quick nuzzle. It took a moment for her to remember her sputtering rage and contempt for the Empress. She may not have directly ordered the ambassador to mind rape the human, but neither was she the sort who would not shy away from such methods. Information by methods of questionable morals meant nothing to the dark figure Celestia found herself preparing to speak with.

"She is not one for humor," Luna said darkly. "She is very old, older than even my venerable sister." She shot a playful glare at Celestia.

"Venerable?" protested the white alicorn mildly.

Twilight giggled despite the butterflies in her stomach. If Celestia and Luna were both taking this meeting seriously to the point they had to force each other to relax, then who exactly was this empress? She focused her attention to the artifact and noted its delicate design with curious interest.

It was for all sakes and appearances constructed like a gyroscope but with a glittering cut gem of shifting colors floating at its center. It was set upon a delicate stand wrought of twisted iron and fine skill. Without prompting, it began to spin within itself, the metal whirring as it cut through the air, spinning faster and faster. The gem began to rotate, giving off a myriad of colors as a tiny white light flared to life at its center, the edges of the spinning metal catching it as a low whine slid upwards to a high pitch until all three alicorns pressed their ears to their skulls and winced. Then the gyros were spinning so fast they were beyond making sound and began to catch the light cast by the gem. A rainbow of colors blended together, forming a white ball upon the stand crackling with magical energy. A cone of green and blue alternating light sprang up from the center of the gem above the gyroscope, then spreading out until a shaft of light formed and hummed.

Twilight took a step back nervously, yet stared in abject curiosity, her heart pounding at the thrill of watching this strange object emit magic completely unknown to her. How she wished she could study this! She dared not reach out and touch it. Her hesitation ended and she found herself moving forward, staring into the ball before shifting her gaze upward as the main glow of the light slowly traveled up the shaft towards its center.

"Do not touch, Twilight!" Celestia called to her sharply.

The rising band of light stopped halfway up the shaft and held there, bathing the alicorns in a brilliant flash of light, pulsing once, twice, thrice. It held a soft glow, less painful to look upon, yet still Twilight found herself flinching from it despite her scientific curiosity in wanting to know how it worked and what made it work. This was one of the most amazing things she had ever seen!

"This will be my first time greeting this empress," noted Luna to Twilight. "Do not be afraid, dear friend. I will stand with you as you have always stood for me."

Twilight offered the dark alicorn a grateful nod, blowing through her lips pent up breath as she realized she had been holding it.

"Celestia..."

The voice echoed through the room, a dreadful whisper all could hear. It was laced with the pain of loss. Twilight felt her hackles rise as her heart skipped a fearful beat.

"Celestia, thou hast mine daughter..."

The light in the shaft shifted, darkened, began to take form.

"Where for dost thou have she whom is dead in mine heart?"

The voice was a thousand whispers hissing through the air with menace. It carried with it a thousand lifetimes and was stricken with lingering grief. It was a hundred voices of Chrysalis speaking at once as one. The shadowy form undulated like a serpent ready to strike, the details of the features difficult to make out as they were shrouded in darkness. The only thing discernible were a pair of dimly glowing eyes, reminiscent of Chrysalis. They were glowing storm-swept pools of ancient knowledge, sweeping slowly over each alicorn, taking them in with no emotion. Starting with Celestia, they turned to the right, falling upon Luna, flicking up and down before moving on to Twilight. She flinched under the gaze and those eyes seemed to flare. Amusement? Annoyance? It was difficult to say. Finally they returned to Celestia and the alicorn stood firm and nodded as if greeting an equal.

"Greetings and salutations, Mother of the Changelings," Celestia called out as she stood regally. "No doubt your ambassador has made you aware of the situation in my home."

"Verily," intoned the Empress, "I am wroth with thee, Celestia for thou didst not offer mine child unto mine bosom upon discovering her life had not been reft from her. Dost thou claim the youngest of mine brood for thine own? Thou wouldst take from me mine blood? How is it thou haste obtained command over life and death? Speak unto me the truth!" The very room shook in the wake of her anger. Twilight and Luna exchanged glances, the former not so sure about weathering this sort of storm.

"'Twas the spirt of Discord who sent your daughter Chrysalis back in time and into another world," called out Celestia. "Ambassador Anzealous obtained this information you are now aware of by means uncouth and without honor. I will not claim what I did was either right nor wrong, but that I had my subjects to take into consideration. I wished to ensure the meaning behind the strange doings of Discord was not without strings attached."

The Empress narrowed her eyes. "I am familiar with this spirit. Where away is the scoundrel? Bring him forth so I may bestow upon him punishment!"

Celestia sighed. "That I cannot do."

"Why?" demanded the shadow flatly. Before she would allow time for a response, the Empress growled, "Wait! I know he fears the consequences. What world did he send my child? What manner of trickery is this memory of a pale ape raising my daughter?"

"He is a human," offered Celestia. "Even now he suffers from the most improper invasion of your servant upon his mind."

A short barking laugh spat from the shadowy changeling in the pillar of light. "What care I for the life of such a pitiful creature? I know of his race. I know of their history. Small wonder the spirit of Discord should seek refuge upon that world."

"I hope to bridge our two worlds and advocate peace. Soon will come the time when beings with the knowledge will be able to traverse freely between this world and the next. The separated sisters are joining once again after thousands of years." Celestia's mane and tail exuded calm as they flowed gently in the glow of the Empress. "Neither side can afford a war based on misunderstandings."

"Indeed," agreed the shadow. "Two demands I have for thee. Two things thou must provide me to assure the steps towards a lasting peace can be made."

Luna and Twilight mouthed a question and answer to each other back and forth. One quirked an eyebrow while the other scrunched her brows thoughtfully.

Celestia gave them a quick warning glare. To the Empress she asked, "What's the first one?"

"Return unto me mine child, Chrysalis!" cried out the shadow in a mother's anguish. "Return unto my bosom mine child I feared lost!"

The princess expected this. This would be hard on the changeling. "And the second?"

Those eyes settled upon her, becoming emotionless and boring into the magenta orbs of the alabaster alicorn. The next words flowing from the pillar of light stunned and shocked her to the very core of her being.

"Thou must give unto me the human known as Michael Spriggs to answer for crimes he has committed against mine Empire. Thou hast three days to answer if thou seekest war or desire peace." There was smugness in that terrible voice. The pillar of light wavered and slowly began to fade.

"Wait!" cried out Twilight. "That's not fair!"

She was suddenly met with enlarged eyes boring down upon her, as if the Empress swelled closer towards her until she loomed like a terrible nightmare."I ask thee, child if thou hast ever had a child wrested from thy mind upon the wings of death, to mourn a passing, only to discover the beloved child again walking among the living? Knowest thou mine anguish? Mine pain? Mine loss? Return unto me that which is mine and give unto me the one who dared to claim what is rightfully mine as his! I shall meet this human and lay upon him mine own eyes and pass judgement upon him."

Twilight Sparkle was at a loss and suddenly found herself staring at her hooves, her ears flattened as she was thoroughly deflated.

"Three days, Celestia. Until then, I await thy answer. Fare thee well."

Chapter 6 Your Mommy on My Mind

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Edited by Shadow Blades

Do you know what it's like to go nuts and actually see it happen, to be aware your own mind is going batty? It's the weirdest thing, I tell you! Curious to know what was going on in my little head while it was mind raped? Wanna know what it felt like to have all those nightmares and deepest, darkest fears wadded up into one mass and yanked into a hallucination before your eyes?

It sucked rotten eggs. Really, really rotten, foul-smelling eggs. I could use more colorful metaphors, but come on, the kids are reading.

I feel enclosed, as if something is wrapped around me. Everything is so jumbled and so confusing. Nothing makes sense. My life doesn't make sense. Why is my past haunting my present? Why can't I just move on? What did I do wrong to deserve this? I'm shattered, broken and the pieces are everywhere. I can see the faces of those I've killed. They stare back at me with blood running from their eyes where tears should be. A boy stands out among them. I know that face. I hate that face. I am afraid of that face. I want that face to forgive me.

I am beyond forgiveness. The blood forever stains me, therefore I must hate that which cannot ever forgive me.

What is wrong with me? Hate a child? Never! It was I...it was me...my trigger, my decision. Why was he armed? Why did the village…

Curious...thou art ridden by a guilt beyond the scope of your control. Such a waste of energy and thought for such a thing beyond your power. The past is beyond thy reach, creature. The future is the bleakest of mornings to come for thee, yet...

This must be the evil of my own making, greeting me, taunting me. Everything I have ever done in my life keeps repeating itself, the moments where I failed, where I struggled, where I feared the path I walked. I hear voices, at first screaming at me. I am called terrible things. Is this some sort of nightmare?

Ah, so thou art a human…

“What?”

The first fight I ever got into, I was eleven. He was thirteen. He kicked my butt everywhere, but I kept coming after him to the point where he left the field of battle. I kept screaming at him to kill me if he wanted to beat on me. I knew I was losing. My bloody nose, swelling left eye, and split lip told everyone watching who was winning. I got in a few good hits, though. The whole front of my shirt was covered in my own blood. That was the first time I was called crazy. For weeks after having my butt handed to me, I would taunt that kid and tell him to finish the job. I kept after him. He ran away.

Something pauses out there, as if noticing me for the first time. Odd. I don’t feel as though I have a body.

Was that the beginning of something I never fully understood? Did that make me crazy? I remember mom seeing my condition after that fight, going into hysterics. Dad wanted to kill someone. I told them nothing. Kids don't rat out kids because we're not snitches. I didn't feel very much like a hero when the doctor reset my nose. I fainted from the pain.

What an interesting creature thou art.

"What is that? Who is that?"

Weird. I guess I've spent my whole life getting crapped on and really didn't care. Like the time my dad first took me out to learn how to drive. I crashed the car into the bed of a pickup truck. The driver was drunk and cut in front of us, slamming on the brakes. He thought I looked like the guy his wife was sleeping with from a glance while passing us. I was fifteen. The dude had to be fifty! I was woozy from the crash when I felt these meat hooks for hands grab me by the neck and collar and try to yank me out of my seat. Dad yelled at the guy to stop, but his seat belt wouldn't unfasten and he had the dashboard in his lap. The drunk didn't realize I wasn’t the jerk he was looking for when he got a good look at me. Dad managed to pull the guy off me and hold him down after a scuffle until cops arrived.

So which begs the question: why did I drown myself in alcohol when the option was there not to? I'm pretty stupid.

I broke my leg playing football my junior year of high school. I was a wide receiver and I had a few colleges looking at me. Nothing huge, mind you. I knew I wasn't pro football material. It would have been a neat dream to chase. Breaking my leg halfway through the season ended my football career. I was having a monster game, too. Too bad.

Be thou a warrior? Once did thy dreams encompass hopes of striving beyond what thou thought a small life of no consequence?

I can hear someone whispering my name now. I know her voice! It's been a part of my world for most of my adult life. There's another voice, less intrusive. Things are becoming clearer, my thoughts and memories no longer jumping around randomly. The monsters lurking at me fade away, but I know they're there, in the shadows of my mind, watching.

Waiting.

Thy name is Michael...passed down through the generations to the first son...fascinating. What a strange tradition...

But it is not her. It is not my daughter’s voice. There is a buzz somewhere out there, around me, beyond it, just on the edge of awareness. It undulates not with sound, but with the sensations of emotions, thoughts, and other things beyond my understanding.

I feel cold, but slowly realize it's not the last cold. I see the faces of my family; mom, dad, and my sister. They stare at me through the blackness, questioning me about why I abandoned them, abandoned my world and my race all for a bunch of fake ponies. Don't they understand? I'll come home one day, when...when…

I see the face of my other daughter, the one I have seen grow and become beautiful and intelligent…

"No..."

Thy world fascinates me, human.

"What are you?"

That is not my daughter. That is not my little Chryssie. The presence I'm looking at emerging from the darkness around me pauses, just beyond what I can see, regarding me with eyes like my daughter's. I can make out a shape and nothing more. I shiver at the very presence of this shape like my child's. I feel...resentment and curiosity. I can't feel anything else except...envy?

"Am I going insane?"

Perhaps. Wouldst thou not invite sweet release for thee from the coils of reality? Thy mind is clouded, scarred, yet thou hast desire. We shall meet, human. I desire to meet thee within mine sanctuary. Thou mayest see mine glory and mine children which raise me above all the world. Thou must face thine judgement, human. Thou hast taken love reserved for mine heart from mine child and taken it for thyself.

"Who are you?"

I am a mother.

"What do you want?"

I desire mine daughter returned to my bosom.

"Chryssie?"

Chrysalis.

"...so what, you're mad at me?"

Yes.

"Why?"

Her love is not thine to have, mortal.

"I don't understand."

Of course not. Thou art not of the Changeling race. Thy ignorance of what is cannot be helped. Hence I do not rip thee asunder now and will give thee an opportunity to account for thyself, to be measured before mine eyes and weighed for thy actions. Celestia has thee under her wing and I dare not raise mine ire upon thee until she can no longer protect thee beneath her considerable shadow.

There is a pause; an uneasy silence as the nothingness around me feels constrictive. I can only feel those eyes, boring into me, seeing into my soul and taking me apart piece by piece. It's really weird. I am aware of nothing but the conversation and the darkness and the unmoving eyes staring at me. I can't move, can't breath, can't do anything. I feel nothing, sense nothing. All I can do is look forward. I can't even feel my own heart beating. This has got to be the strangest conversation I've ever had. It feels like a surreal parent-parent conference, like we're in a custody battle.

Oh, hell… it is a custody battle! I want to scream. Right. Now! As a matter in fact, I do just that, adding, “Bring it on, you buggy-eyed bi-”

Art thou not curious as to why I am able to communicate with thee?

"It hadn't occurred to me until you mentioned it."

Mine child established a link with thee when she was reverted to a foal, a means by which I know thee not capable of performing. The happenstance of thy first encounter with her was her desperate casting for a hive. Thy mind became her thing and she made it so, for that is her need, her power. She found thee in thy insignificance, yet thy emotions drew her as a moth to a flame. Such a waste. Thy power is negligible. Thou art unremarkably normal, save for a bit of insanity.

"Thanks."

Thou wert unfit to raise mine child.

"Kind of a moot point. She's already almost an adult, whoever you are." I think sarcasm escapes her.

I am she who gave Chrysalis life. I cradled her egg. I put magic within her, made her in mine image. I gave her dominion over her children so she may better serve me. It is that dominion of the mind with which she linked herself to thee so she might survive. She has thrived from thy love. Thus another reason I must meet thee eye to eye.

"I really don't think she's going to see you as her mommy."

Irrelevant. I am she who gave her life. She is my property and must therefore be brought back to the Mind. Thy journey shall be most entertaining. You may yet live long enough to meet me.

"What if I refuse to go see you?"

Then there shall be war between Our Empire and Equestria.

"Damn, lady. Deliver ultimatums much? I don’t know what’s dumber: you demanding your daughter’s childhood from me, or threatening a war with a country who had nothing to do with this mess."

She ignores my words.

I do not take the loss of a queen lightly, human. Chrysalis is mine offspring. I will go to war if mine child and the one who took her from me are not delivered before me. I believed her lost to me for three years. I mourned for her, wept for her, raged against the cruelty of fate! Thou knowest what it is to lose a child! I have seen thy memories! I have feasted upon thy pain and suffering!

"What do you mean? You saw my memories? That was you?"

Mine agent did bring unto my awareness thy mind, thy meddling of mine flesh and blood. Indeed it is so, human. Your anguish was mine. My anguish was yours. We know the loss of our flesh and blood. A third reason to spare thee from mine wrath.

"Why are you trying to find reasons to not kill me?"

There's a pause. Those eyes narrow at me for the first time, shifting. There is no other movement. Her voice to this point has been even, neither angry nor happy. I think a Vulcan would have been impressed. Now there's a definite shift in her attitude.

I wish to test thee.

There it is. Anticipation. Eager anticipation. It's in the way those harlequin eyes swirling with jade and sapphire light flare at me. So smug. So confident. Looking down at me, dismissive. Wait…

"It goes both ways."

Sudden realization. It is horrible. I feel violated, invaded, desecrated.

So you begin to understand, if just a little. The link with mine daughter. The link you share. I can feel it, touch it, touch thee.

This has officially become the weirdest conversation I've ever had. It's even stranger than the one I had with Discord. Even though I haven't been able to so much as move or break eye contact with the thing speaking around me, it's just too surreal. At least Discord was entertaining in his own way. This ‘lady’ in my head, claiming to be my daughter's mother is flat-out scary. I'm talking Alien Queen scary. Apparently she's been picking through my head. I'm realizing that now. She's putting things back where they belong. I'm beginning to feel it, the horrors go away slowly. They're yanked, plucked, and organized with ease as though...

"Why are you helping me?"

Mine child was overzealous in his efforts to please me. I accept his folly as my burden and wish to set things to rights. I bear no malice to thee, human, only resentment in my inability to correct my own daughter from the path that tore her from my fold. It is unseemly for a queen to be raised by a mortal. However, I am not wroth with thee. Nor will I pass judgement upon the in such a...crude place as this.

Okay, I'll give that one to her. My mind is a mess. Has been for a long time.

"Do you have a name? Mine's Michael." Wait. She already knows my name. Way to go, stupid!

My name cannot be said in thy tongue.

"Language barrier?"

Nay. Thou art not worthy to know it.

I love you too, you snooty master race wanna be bitch. "Okay, I shall call you Sil." Take that! Ever seen the movies Species? The alien hybrid posing as a human? That Sil. It seemed to fit. I don’t know why, it just does.

As you wish.

"So, what are you? Some sort of goddess? What is the purpose of your existence?"

A pause. She's trying to read into my questions.

I am the mother of all changelings. Mine purpose is to protect mine children and to remind them to remain within the shadows. I am no goddess. I have seen so many dawns, the years mean nothing to me. Mine children feed, I am sustained. In return, I give them mine vigilance eternal. Chrysalis was the first changeling in a thousand years to reveal her hive. I am most certainly not a bitch.

Is that amusement in her tone? Oh! Sil can read my thoughts. Wait... or is it thoughts within thoughts? My brain is a terrible place to wander around in.

Thou art a savage, Mr. Spriggs. Thy kind are barbarous despite the glorious accomplishments. Come to my gates, barbarian. Thou shalt need thy savage nature before thy journey ends! Bring mine daughter. We shall not speak again until then. It was certainly...interesting to meet thee. Until then.

Then Sil was gone and darkness enveloped me like a warm, welcoming blanket. With spiders hidden in it. Big, nasty, hairy spiders...with big nasty teeth!

I wake up. Not slowly, unsure of where I am, but with my eyes snapping open, staring at the ceiling. No, there's a dark shape obscuring the white ceiling and blocking the light. I blink, my surroundings blurry and out of focus. My head is pounding. I should know because that is what it's doing right now. My eyes come into focus and I can see the popcorn ceiling tiles and the lights dangling from white cables from the ceiling. White lamp shades, wide and plain fit like over-sized sombreros over harsh light bulbs. I can hear a beeping to my left. I follow the sound with my eyes and see a rather old looking machine befitting a movie prop from the 1950s pinging away happily. There are wires taped to my head. I'm starting to feel them and gingerly touch the connections with numb fingers. Sensation is returning to them. I notice a green curtain has been drawn around my bed. Of course. Can't scare the ponies with the sight of a middle aged white man who just had a conversation with...

"...who was I talking to?" I croak, rubbing my eyes. Rather, I try to. My arms sort of flail against my head fingers brushing against my numb face, my nerves apparently deciding not to join the party. Am I paralyzed? No, they flop about in the general direction I want them to go. I panic a little. Okay, I panic a lot, but in silence. Feeling drained and exhausted, I adjust myself in my bed. I find myself angled up thirty or thirty-five degrees to some sort of a half sitting position. I wince as the last waking memory I had haunts me with an unfriendly tweak.

I can't tell what time it is, but I am slowly becoming aware of the sound of someone snoring softly to my left. It seems to come from another bed on the other side of the privacy curtain. Roommate? Oh, crap I'm in a hospital. I hate hospitals. People go to hospitals to die. Happens all the time. I sit up with a grunt and notice I'm in something resembling a hospital gown, but for ponies. It fits terribly, chafing in certain areas. There's nothing else covering me other than the blankets.

"Oh, swell," I complain under my breath, "they probably all saw me naked and laughed." I hope they don't take my tattoos seriously. I was young, drunk, and thought dragons were cool. Hell, I really don't think about them anymore. Nobody to show them off to. Besides, the scars on my shoulder sort of messed up the artwork. It looks like a dragon with its head blown off and in its place is a ragged healed over pit three inches long and half an inch wide. The rest of my shoulder bears the marks where other bits of shrapnel tried to hug my shoulder intimately.

You know, it seems like every human in these stories wind up in the hospital at some point or another. Are we really that retarded? I'm going to assume the answer is yes. At least my nerves seem to be remembering they have a job to do. Tingling sensations begin to pop up like pins and needles everywhere, starting from my toes and fingertips, before marching slowly up my limbs and towards my body. It’s a disturbing experience to say the least. I rub my eyes and find my fingers are a little more responsive. In the process, I poke myself in the left eye. Dammit.

Yay me.

Well, I really don't feel inclined to make a mad dash for freedom. I'm too tired to get up and move about. I'm already bored. I'm thirsty. I'm remembering the conversation - if you can call it that - with a being probably every bit as powerful as Celestia in my head. I'm not entirely sure my brain has been scrambled back to 'normal'. What is normal, anyway? I certainly don't fit in with any notions of what normal is in this world. My brain feels like a baby seal that managed to survive the clubbing, but is waiting for the sailors to come back for the next round. My body is still aching as the nervous system realizes my skin is everywhere on the outside of my body and simply has to make sure every square inch has some sort of sensation!

Ever have that dream of ants all over your body?

God, I want a cigarette right now. I haven't had a smoke in years and I'm craving one real bad right now. I'm also realizing something else; I can't sense my daughter.

Sil did indeed violate me. No, wait...it’s there! Faint, like a buoy on its last charge of battery juice in the middle of the ocean. I focus on it for a moment, then abruptly have a wild thought pop up and moon me.

I'm going to kill her. If she wants a savage barbarian, she's going to get one. Out of spite, I'll put on my best Ugly American impression. I'll be the guy with the enormous beer gut and wearing the Hawaiian shirt and straw hat. I'll have five cameras dangling around my neck, but always insist on using my cell phone to take pictures. I'll speak the native language poorly using an outdated language book and I'll absolutely butcher the local dialect. Then I'll demand to know why I can't find a decent burger joint in whatever town she's decided is her capitol. I'll scream about having rights and that she and her kind can't do this or that to me. That'll teach her. Yeah, Sil, you don't know who you're messing with.

I think my mind isn't quite right yet. Oh, my aching head making think stupid, stupid things!

I can hear the faint sound of hoof steps on the linoleum floor. I'm assuming its night time. It's pretty quiet past that sound. Well, there's my snoring roommate. As I think of him, he snorts and a different bodily function makes itself known.

Chrysalis pops in, her eyes half closed as she's sleepy and floating a cup of what I suspect is coffee in front of her. Steam rises from it. Her unicorn disguise is still in place. What was her cover name again? Midnight Emo? No, that's too dumb. Midnight Emerald! Right! She's careful to keep it away from the swaying curtains she slides by, holding it to one side. My little girl looks exhausted, her mane a disheveled mess. I think she's been sleeping in the chair next to my bed. Her eyes shift as her nose twitches, crinkling in disgust. Naturally, I smell it a split second after that.

"Hey pumpkin," shoving my melancholy aside, I greet her with a weary smile. She is exactly the face I wanted to see as I don't know anyone in this place. My opinion of Equestria has taken a bit of a nosedive since that...thing happened to me. Seeing it for the first time with Luna after emerging from that portal thing was breathtaking. Having my brain scrambled with a side of buttered toast...not so much an enjoyable experience. “It wasn’t me.”

"Daddy?" she looks up, peering through strands of her mane, a hopeful smile tugging at the corners of her lips. "You're awake!" Chryssie crows, shambling forward, her coffee forgotten as it drops unceremoniously to the floor. It clatters and rolls, splashing forgotten hot liquid out of my view as my baby girl is nuzzling me happily. Gingerly I wrap my barely responsive body around her neck and embrace her as best I am able. I feel very sluggish.

I grin into her neck. "I'm so glad to see you, kid!" She smells like she needs a shower.

"I'm glad you're not drooling on yourself," she quips, drawing back to look me in the eye. Her lower lip trembles as she is on the edge of tears. "I-I-I thought I’d l-l-lost you." Her relief nearly drowns my senses. My changeling daughter, once again, flings herself upon me, the wet works beginning anew and with a vengeance. I'm really confused, relieved, and wanting to go home right now. I want to take my kid with me. This place sucks if visitors are getting their brains invaded! I'd write a letter to the ambassador, but I'm the only human on this world!

I start laughing in her mane despite myself, patting her and stroking the magnificent mane she's grown out. "Don't cry, my girl. It's going to take more than -" I frown, boggled as to what exactly had happened to me. "Say, what knocked me out? I had this weird dream where every memory I ever had mixed together in the most god-awful nightmare that never ended."

Chrysalis settles back, keeping a hoof on my forearm as she takes a moment to compose herself. She rubs it as her eyes focus on a point on my chest. "The way I understand it," she begins slowly, still collecting her thoughts, "someone had been poking around your mind without your permission. As they did so, they forced a lot of magic into your brain. They didn't use any precautions and started getting sloppy with the safeties required for mind reading and memory searching. You ended up getting what Lady Fleur de Lis called a ‘magic seizure’. Your head overloaded with more magic than it could handle and it began to manifest your memories into hallucinogenic form."

I grunt, rolling my eyes, "Sounds about right. Looked worse. Felt like I was in a living hell. Then I woke up here and decided Purgatory was going to be about as good as it's going to get for me." My eyes bore into her. "How are you holding up? You don't look like you've slept much."

"It's only been ten hours since you were attacked, daddy," she says with a shrug.

"So it's night?" I blink, pausing as her words sink in. “Wait a minute, what do you mean I was attacked?”

“I don’t know all the details, dad. Celestia got really mad, and I mean pissed and went after whoever it was that attacked you. They went after your memories. I felt them use the link we have. I really don’t know anything else. They won’t tell me anything other than you’re going to be fine.” She glances at the wall above me. “It’s a little after ten." For a moment, she shifts out of her unicorn guise, arching her back and sighing audibly. Her disjointed voice hissed through her fangs, "It's pretty quiet and there's nothing but patients and nurses and a couple of doctors now." She flares her eyes and flashes a grin before resuming her disguise. "Other than the on duty nurses, the only other pony to check on you has been Fleur."

"She does seem nice," I agree, but follow it with a bit of a face, "but I think she's a bit formal. I don't know, but there's something about her I can't quite bring myself to want to trust." I’m not about to tell my daughter I think Fleur’s been flirting with me. It’s… weird…

Or maybe I’m just weird and only imagining it.

"Well, duh, daddy," Chryssie says with an eye roll and a sigh, "you've only met her this morning and had lunch with her. I'm not all that sure of her myself, but so far Princess Celestia has asked her to be your ranger buddy." She grins.

"Don't use that term, honey," I guffaw, tapping her on the nose with a finger. "It doesn't fit." Not to mention she doesn't look the sort to be willing to sit in a foxhole and roll around in the muck and dirt. Still, the mental picture appearing now is rather amusing. I chuckle at the image of Fleur next to me in a fox hole behind a mounted M240B.

Glorious!

Not that I'm being sexist or anything, but Fleur does not strike me as the sort of lady who could go without her creature comforts. Maybe its the stereotype. Maybe I'm just being a moron, but something about her does not exactly scream 'loves camping, fishing, hiking, and canoeing'. It could also be that adorable little French (Prench?) accent she flaunts like a poet.

God, how long has it been since I’m putting a mare in the same context as a woman? I shudder involuntarily at the sudden revelation. Yeah, I think I need to get back to Earth. I just weirded myself out badly.

"I think we should blow this popsicle stand and go home," I grunt as I sit up. "I didn't travel to some other world to get involved in their stupid politics." I'm promptly shoved back into bed by my daughter's hoof.

"You're not going anywhere until I'm sure you're not going to go crazy and fall apart on me," she growls. "I love you, daddy, and I don't want to lose you. Besides, I don't think it's going to be possible for me to go anywhere."

I stare at her, gaping stupidly.

A nurse enters the room. She notices the coffee on the floor and frowns disapprovingly at Chrysalis. She's a white mare with a silvery mane and tail. Her scrubs conceal her mark. What's with all the unicorns around here? Her horn is glowing and she's levitating a clipboard in front of her. A pen is poised.

"Awake?" she asks with a smile.

"Nope," I reply amicably. My attention falls back to Chryssie.

The nurse gingerly steps around the puddle on the floor. Clucking her tongue against the back of her teeth, she glares again at my kid and goes into the bathroom. She emerges with a towel and holds it out expectantly. "Your mess. You clean it up, young lady," her voice commands sternly.

Grumbling, my daughter takes it begins sopping up her caffeinated mess.

The usual check up routine commences: how do I feel? am I seeing spots? do I have any numb digits? what is my name?... The list goes on and I comply with her questions, answering them politely and with a smile. She takes my blood pressure, draws some blood, keeps staring up and down the length of my body like I'm going to sprout hair everywhere.

I feel about as comfortable as Bigfoot in a peep show.

"When can I leave?" my question warbles with a crack. There's a small table next to the bed with some water set aside for me. I clear my throat, grab a glass of water and get a quick drink.

"When the doctor says you can. Right now, he says you can't, so you'll have to stay put." She smiles at me through her stern visage. Great. One of those no-nonsense types. "We’re keeping you overnight for observation. We’ve been checking on your recovery every hour since you came in here. It was touch and go for a while, mostly because of your anatomy and brain patterns. I think your biological makeup saved it from being much worse. Magic seizures are no laughing matter. Ponies have been known to go completely insane from such episodes. Now hold still while I check your mind."

"You're not getting into my head," I tell her flatly. Scrambling on my back, I push away from her, cringing as I place my right hand up between her horn and my skull.

"I'm not going in it," she reproaches me firmly, "just a check for your mental condition. It's quite harmless and won't hurt you."

I shake my head. "No! Go away!"

Did I mention I hate hospitals? Right next to that strong dislike are talking horses flinging magic into my brain like my skull's the microwave and my brain's the meatloaf that never quite gets cooked all the way through. Or something like that. No matter how you look at it, I'm a thirty-seven-year-old man throwing a temper tantrum like a six-year-old. I've already felt one idiot waltz through my mind in ice boots. Then he invited his mom in to redecorate. I really don't look forward for another round. I haven't been to a hospital since a trip to the VA hospital fourteen years ago.

Chrysalis looks up from her cleaning, levitating the soaked towel to a hamper by the bathroom door. "Dad, let her do her job. The sooner she does it, the sooner you won’t have her hounding you for your brain."

"Thank you, Midnight," sarcasm chuckles forth as the nurse gives her a wry smile, but reserves for my grim determination as she menaces me with her horn. "Mr. Spriggs, we can do this either the easy way, the hard way, or the very embarrassing way."

I had to ask, "What's the embarrassing way?"

"You don't want to know, Mr. Spriggs. You seriously don't want to know." Her smile is fixed and...creepy. Is that a twitch in her left eye? Me no like-e twitch-e eye.

I relent, close my eyes and cringe, awaiting for everything to shatter and my brain to be reduced to a puddle of goo. As I await my inevitable demise, the nurse begins to explain to me in a voice coated with amusement.

"We had to remove the excess magic from your brain. Though we do not have extensive knowledge in regards to how a human brain functions, we simply applied a spell to create a magic void in the form of a glyph on the back of your skull. There is currently a pattern on your scalp to help keep excess magic from seeping in. It's completely experimental."

I stare at her. "Wait, you mean I'm a guinea pig?"

She looks at me evenly. "You're coherent, aren't you?" A smile forms for me. "You're in good hooves, Mr...-" she glances at her clipboard, "- Spriggs. Please give us a chance to prove we know what we're doing. You're the first human we've ever treated and the doctor in charge of your health really wants for you to leave this hospital in far better condition than you came in."

"That makes me feel so much better."

"Please don't be that way. We want to help. I understand Princess Celestia nearly destroyed half of one of the palace wings while looking for the pony who assaulted you. The rumors and gossip have been absolutely wild with speculation!" Her horn finishes glowing. "All done!"

I blink incomprehensibly. "Done? Already?"

Chrysalis giggles behind the nurse. "Daddy, you're so lame."

"I told you, it was just a follow-up. The procedure was done already under the instruction of no less than three experts in the field of mind magic as well as the doctor who performed the removal spell." The nurse jotted a few things down on her clipboard. She looked up from her work and smiled. "I'll just take this to the doctor and let him know there are no traces of hallucinogenic magic remaining in your brain waves. He'll be pleased to hear that!"

She departs with a flippant toss of her tail at me. I really don't know what that means, but I think she's making fun of me. Or flirting. God, I hope not. Not with the flirting and the mares and the...just no!

"So pumpkin," I begin after a moment of lingering after where the nurse just departed the room, "are you feeling alright?" The curtain of course blocks my view of the door. Mike, stop it.

"Better now,” she concedes, throwing me a soft smile. “You’re okay.”

"Do you want to stay in Equestria?"

She goes silent for a moment, her eyes reflecting her train of thought. "I-I don't know, daddy. I've learned so much in the month since I left home. It's hard for me to make friends because I'm afraid of being discovered and I'm limited to where I can go. Now there's guards following me everywhere I go."

Guards? "What do you mean? Is it because I was attacked?"

She nods. “Well, to be fair, there’s always guards following me because of what I am.”

"Oh, Jesus Christ why did I come here?" I groan, covering my face with both my hands. "I should have stayed on Earth." Bits and pieces of the weird dream are beginning to creep back to the front of my thoughts. Sil. "I'm willing to bet this whole mess is my fault."

"No!" Chryssie snaps at me, shaking her head violently from side to side. "It's not your fault, daddy! You coming here means more to me than anything. I'm glad you came! I'm so happy you did!"

"Pumpkin, I think I put your life in danger," I say glumly.

"My life was in danger the moment I set hoof in Equestria. Celestia warned me it would be that way and promised to find a way to let me find my own way here. She's been good on her word and been nothing but awesome to me. The few friends I do have are amazing ponies! I've got a chance here, daddy. I'm starting to believe it. I just want your approval and your blessing." Tears are brimming in her eyes again.

Okay, that's it. My little girl is crying and I'm butter in her hands when she does that. I force myself to a sitting position, swing my legs out over the side of the hospital bed, ill-fitting hospital gown be damned. I wrap my arms around my daughter and pull her in for a hug. "I'll stay for as long as you need me," I promise in her ear.

"It may be longer than even that, I'm afraid," quips a feminine voice rather reluctantly. Fleur de Lis trots in quietly on silent hooves, wearing a smile as she pokes her head around the curtain. She sees what I'm wearing and covers her mouth with a hoof. "Oh my, this is simply precious!"

The white mare erupts in a fit of girlish giggling better befitting a teen finding out who her best friend's latest crush is. As she comes to stand next to Chrysalis, her horn glows and the air around us hums for a moment. I have no idea what she just did, but I’m not hearing my neighbor’s snores anymore. Blushing furiously, I break the hug with my kid and grab at blankets to cover my bare backside. I don't say a word, but I do eyeball the laughing unicorn suspiciously. I don't think she minds my lack of modesty. Few ponies seem to wear clothing unless it's related to their professions.

I manage to grunt, "What do you mean?"

"Let's just say certain entities have found out about you and Émeraude de Minuit and have deemed the entirety of the peace between pony and changeling upon your cooperation." She is clearly unhappy with the news herself and her face falls even further when she sees my darkening face.

"So I can't go home?" There's an uneasy silence as I process the mare's words. Wait. The dream. It all comes back to me. "Oh, dammit!"

"What is it, Monsieur Spriggs?" Fleur slides gracefully next to Chrysalis. "You look as though you've seen a ghost."

"I don't know if it was due to whatever the hell happened to me," I started slowly, mindful to adjust the blankets to cover more of myself, "but I think I got visited while I was out."

Chryssie tilts her head to one side with curious worry. "Visit? From who?"

"I don't know," I shrug. "She sounded like a million of you talking at once. I never got a good look, but I just saw these eyes. Creepy, creepy eyes." I shudder at the memory of the dream. "I don't want anyone ever poking around in my head ever again."

"Very strange," muses Fleur, her expression unreadable.

"Daddy, you keep looking at me weird."

I tap my temple with a finger. "Pumpkin, I think I met your real mother while I was delirious." As my kid stares at me incredulously, I quickly go over the dream-thing I had while I was out, leaving out little as my attention falls squarely to the white unicorn mare. Fleur listens with rapt attention while Chryssie blinks in utter confusion. I think she mouths the word 'mom' a few times to herself, her eyes downcast as her attention ebbs inward. I don't think she's ever really thought of her real mother. Neither had I, up to this point.

When I finish, there's a moment of silence while Fleur de Lis mulls over my story, her expression troubled as she glances at Chrysalis for a moment before returning her focus to me. "I must inform both Celestia and Luna of this development," she says quietly, casting a furtive glance at the door as if expecting an unwanted intrusion at any given moment. "In the meantime, there are guards posted at your door, Monsieur Spriggs. If you need anything, alert one of them. Consider yourself under the protection of the diarchy."

"Lady Fleur?" Chryssie asks with some fear in her voice. She looks up to her, then to me before back upon the mare. "What's going on?"

"I do not know," admits the unicorn with a sigh. "Anything concerning changelings is to be greeted with suspicion in regards to the Empress. She is the shady sort, non? Always, with her the secrets and the shadows and the hidden things of intrigue! The game she plays is unknown to me, perhaps unknown to the princesses. This makes her all the more dangerous, would you not agree, ma petite fille?"

"But is she -," my daughter is cut off with a gentle hoof placed to her lips.

"Shh! Be silent for the moment. I cannot answer your question as I do not know the truth. The answer will come in its own good time, non?" Fleur smiles a lovely smile, all doubt erased from her appearance as she stands. "Now, I shall go to Celestia and tell her what you told me, Monsieur Spriggs. Rest assured, you are in capable hooves and are quite safe here." With a quick nuzzle to my worried kid and a warm nod in my direction, she rises to her hooves and trots from the room, an air of determination set upon her graceful form as it sashays beyond the curtain and out the room.

The moment of silence in the room doesn't last very long.

"So, do you think she's pretty?"

I blink at the question, not exactly comprehending. "Who?" Fleur? Oh, well, yeah she’s pretty easy on the eyes… God dammit, Mike! First thing I’m doing when I get back to Earth is find a woman and get laid. Equestria is doing...things to me!

Her deadpan expression is priceless. She drops her disguise, her magic closing the door at the same time. Buzzing her gossamer wings, she stretches for a moment before repeating the question - slowly. "Do you think she is pretty? My mom!"

"I really didn't get a very good look at her, pumpkin," I say wryly. "It was a dream, or something like that. Both of you have the same eyes, I think. Why do you ask? Already wanting me hitched?" I shudder at the thought the moment those words leave my lips. I did not have a pleasant xeno experience and I really was not relishing another meeting like that. I shiver, make a sour face.

"Daddy, are you all right?" her words are full of worry as she speaks, approaching and giving me a gentle nuzzle. "You're scared. You saw something bad, didn't you? Don't lie to me. I can feel it coming from you right now."

"Chryssie, I just had a monster invade my mind, go through all of my memories and pass it on to something that made me feel like a helpless baby," I say quietly, my hand going through my daughter's spiderweb mane just behind her ear. She's frightened, maybe almost as much as I am, but for other reasons. I feel as though I had met Satan and just discovered he's really a she and she's out to do dirty deeds. My head swims and not in a good way. I close my eyes and sigh, shudder, fighting back the tears.

I hate Equestria.

"Do you blame me?" her question is tiny in her voice, full of shame.

"No!" I snap my eyes open and blaze into hers, fierce as I sit up, cupping my other hand to the other side of her head. I pull my daughter to me until her muzzle is nearly touching my nose. "I will never - NEVER - blame you for this. I love you. You're my kid. You keep me going. I'm proud of you, pumpkin. Proud! This was not your fault. This is beyond both of us. We need to stick together. Got it? Thick and thin!"

Tears brim the corners of her eyes. She offers a smile. Forcing it. "I'm scared, daddy. I don't like seeing you like this. It's so wrong!"

We embrace.

"So when will you be happy with yourself?"

The question is blunt, unexpected. Honest.

I let her go, slump back into my pillow and stare at her, not knowing how to answer. She's asked me before, but it's been a while. For years, she's become more and more aware I have never been happy with how my life had turned out. There's always been the sense she's kept me propped up, keeping me from falling over the cliff and into the black hole far below.

"I don't know, kiddo." Lying to Chrysalis is like trying to tell the tide to stop. I can't do it. Our link won't allow it. She reads me all too well. It goes both ways. "Maybe one day I will." Her question sobers me and I blink the tears away before addressing hers with my thumbs, wiping them away as they begin to spill from her eyes in large drops. "Maybe when I get home I should go visit mom and dad and drop in on my kid sister. Maybe I should start there. What do you think?"

I used to be happy. It all changed when...when...

Well, you should know by now if you've been following me. Discovering a weakness within one's self and not knowing how to fix it or solve it or ask for help about it can create a very deep hole. I'm starting to realize that. I'm starting to realize how much I've come to depend on my changeling daughter to keep me upright, to keep me from falling down.

I need to stand on my own, but how? It's never been humanity I hated, but myself. I've known that, always have, but refused to confront it. I still don't want to. It's terrifying. My thoughts wander back to Sil. She saw me for what I am, every detail. She saw everything that made me who I am, found me weak, small, insignificant. Yet she also saw something else; she saw the love I have for Chrysalis and how much of my being I put into doing everything I could to raise her to the best of my abilities.

She envied me. She hated me. Sil sees me as a threat. I took her daughter away from her and now she wants some measure of revenge. Those are my thoughts right now as I recall the dream again, going over every detail my memory can dig up.

Yay me.

Chapter 7 Chryssie's Night of Discoveries

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Edited by ShadowBlades.

Chryssie here. Hey, I think it's time I start telling a little bit about my side of the story. I love my dad, but he tends to omit certain things for the sake of presenting a positive front for anyone who might be curious. What the changeling did to him was pretty messed up and I was not about to let that slide. I didn't insist Princess Celestia and Princess Luna allow my daddy to come to Equestria only to have him attacked so brazenly. Look, my dad is a nice guy and will bend over backwards in giving someone the benefit of the doubt. He may be a bit rough around the edges when he does that, but hey, that's the way he was raised and that's how he chooses to live.

One of these days he's got to let me see Grandma and Grandpa, even if they're just a couple of crazy humans. They do strange things, but they care in their own way. I just wish he'd see it. Dad's hated himself for so long, it's a wonder he's even still letting them in. So long as he calls them on their birthdays and holidays, there's hope for the Old Man yet. He's given so much of himself to me already, I feel downright rotten for what's happened to him.

Now, to this point I'm sure you've only heard part of my story as I grew up under the roof of a mentally scarred man. You’ve probably shed a tear or two the way he waxed poetic. My dad may not be book smart, but he's seen enough living to know everything happens for a reason, even if that reason is beyond control. That being said, he's controlled a lot about what he's allowed you to glimpse in our lives as I grew up. His paranoia knows no bounds when it comes to protecting me. It's really nice to know he cares, but as I grew older, it started to drive me up the wall.

Thank God for the internet and those summer trips we took across the nation (Canada, too)! At least he didn't keep me in the cage that was my only home for thirteen years. There were also the times I would sneak out of my bedroom window at night, after he was asleep, and go do things without him looking over my shoulder all the time. Don't get me wrong, I completely understand his need for secrecy. I get it. I'm a changeling, and secrets seem to be part of our genetic makeup. The way I've got it figured, we're the ninjas of this world of magic and fantasy. According to the vastly watered down show humans have come down to know and follow with near religious zealotry, I was once a queen and had my own hive...or something like that. Yes, I can sense emotions and yes I do feed on them.

But where ever did anyone get the notion emotions are the only thing I can sustain myself on? That's just stupid! I have fangs and teeth and a stomach and intestines and all those neat little things on my insides that I need to live! I love my steak rare and would happily wolf down a large pizza if Dad would let me get away with it. I draw my magic from love and my reserves build from converting the emotions I feed upon into energy with which I can convert to magic. What's so hard about that? Well, I can secrete a mucus of sorts that hardens into a sort of building material. I can use the holes in my hooves to make a substance with which I can make those neat pods for trapping prey.

I still remember that stupid cat from when daddy took me to work with him all those years ago. My mind is like a steel trap and I have a penchant for remembering, with clarity, my fillyhood. I might not have a lot of experience, but Daddy says I've got moxy. I had to look that word up the first time he used it.

Yes, us girls can have balls, and I happen to be one not afraid to show them off…metaphorically speaking, of course. I've definitely got more than that coward who went after my daddy. He's all I have for my hive and no jackass is going to do that to my family!

Wow, that's the first time I've really considered 'hive' and 'family' in the same context. It feels right.

Yeah, hive is family and family is hive. Celestia won't tell me much about the changelings other then they're here to negotiate some sort of peace. I get the feeling the princess could mop the floor with them if she felt like it, but she's the sort of mare who will resort to war after all other options have been exhausted. I don't know where people got the idea Equestrians are timid little wussies, but there's a reason this country is the most prosperous and powerful in the known world. Having two powerful alicorns with near god-like abilities and the Spirit of Chaos somewhat in their pocket is certainly a large reason for the respect, but the army is well trained and well equipped. Let me put it to you this way: the Everfree Forest is frequently used for training. There's even a training base for the SEAL version of the pony army somewhere in there. It's a huge forest and there are stallions and mares who could live quite comfortably with the denizens of that god forsaken place!

Of course, there's the magic. Few countries can match Equestria through the arts. Unicorn power is but a third of the reason why Equestria simply kicks ass. It also helps Celestia is interested in the world as a whole and does her best to respect the other races while balancing the projection of Equestria's influence. I don't know how she does it, but she's basically got her enemies too scared of her to go to war and her allies too proud to be anything other than friends with her. I don't know how she does it, but I'm sure she's endured hundreds of years of learning experience to shape the world into the closest thing to a utopia I can think of.

This doesn't mean the world isn't without its problems. Equestria might not have any looming war clouds overhead (other than this Empress chick), but the other nations certainly have their share of squabbling. It’s often an Equestrian delegation called upon to sort out whatever mess erupted between two countries and only after both specifically petition Celestia to step in and do something about it. It's usually a unicorn who goes, like Lady Fleur de Lis. She's not only a really powerful sorceress (not quite as impressive as Twilight Sparkle, my newest and best friend!), but she's a charmer and absolutely loves to play political games like it’s her personal chess board. There's rumors she's every bit as good at it as Celestia. I've had chances to ask her about it and I've certainly not wasted them! When Twilight is busy learning stuff about being an alicorn and doesn't have time to teach me, it's often Fleur who'll offer to step in.

She knows really neat stuff! She was surprised to find out I had almost no instruction other than being self taught while growing up and even freaked out a little when I informed her my old world thought magic was nothing more than make believe. She thought humans must be some sort of pitiful race with no magic to make life simpler. What sort of creature comforts were available to creatures who had not access to magic?

Of course, she was teasing me when I immediately took offense. She never drove a Mustang! I miss that Twilight. Yeah, I named my Mustang after Twilight Sparkle. Want to make something of it? Well, to be fair, it's really Dad's grandpa's project; I sort of took over as my own little thing to do. Dad says Discord's watching over the house and the barn and everything in it. For what reason, I have no idea. Maybe the Lord of Chaos needed a vacation from this world. He's probably having the time of his life and making all sorts of things go wrong on Earth.

Meanwhile, in a certain house in the middle of America's Heartland, Discord lost himself in one of the many video games while staring with grim determination at the screen as he pushed through a particularly challenging scenario. Empty pizza boxes surrounded him like a cardboard fort (as a matter in fact, it was such a construction), complete with flags bearing his likeness. Which was odd as the nearest pizza delivery was over fifty miles away.

He sneezed a couple of times, blinked as his character died a rather noobish death.

"Game cheats," he grumbled, waiting to pick up at the last checkpoint.

Where was I? Oh, yeah. Avenging my dad. You know, revenge seems such a neat thing to me. Oh, it's not about hate or malice or anything like that. It's just going about the business of letting someone know they crossed a line and certain steps need to be taken out of necessity to facilitate the prevention of such actions in the future. To teach a lesson in a way to avoid pissing me off later on down the road goes a long way to avoid misunderstandings. My dad is off limits.

I tried to ask who the offending changeling was, starting with Celestia soon after my dad was put to sleep for the night. Fleur wanted me in my bed and resting instead of trying to make a cot out of that uncomfortable chair next to dad's hospital bed. A war of wills happened and I'm still trying to figure out how I lost. I'm Chrysalis, dammit! Seeing as I was not about to be allowed to hang around the man who raised me, I relented under that all-to-perfect unicorn's perfectly neutral gaze while she imposed her smiling will upon me.

Oh, she's good!

Instead of going to bed, I had already formulated a half baked plan to impose my will in the form of a retaliation, Chryssie style! By now, the guards assigned to me are outside my door. There's a pair of pegasi assigned to watch my balcony, and for good reason. About a week after I got here, a curious changeling using my own changeling magic against me had followed the residual wisps of magic to my room and nearly discovered me. They know there's a changeling living separate from the wing the princesses allotted them and they're absolutely dying to know who I am.

In order to fully cook that which I had half baked in concocting, I needed to do a little scouting. I've already had years of experience sneaking out of the house while Dad was asleep. I've found I really don't need much sleep anymore as opposed to when I was a filly. Three or four hours and I'm bright-eyed and bushy tailed without even needing an alarm clock! I can't recall the number of times I would go into that little dinky town and use the unwitting residents to practice my natural sneaking talents I was born with. It was really lots of fun and I would spend hours sneaking into houses and learning about the inhabitants while they slept in their beds! Right now I can give you in-depth detail on the lifestyles of fifty-seven human beings from what kind of food they like to the kind of toilet paper they like to use.

Just don't let Dad know, okay? He'd probably have a heart attack if he knew I had been doing that. And he'll probably ground me for a million years.

Where was I? Oh, yes. Revenge. Sweet, sweet revenge for nearly turning my daddy into a human vegetable. After spending some time in my room pondering what to do next with careful consideration, I considered from my balcony the overlay of the wing where the changelings were housed. As I was curious to meet more of my kind nearly as much as I wanted to plant my hoof up someone's butt, I surveyed through the darkness what my eyes could easily make out as though it were day.

I should remind you, as beautiful and elegant Canterlot is as a castle, there are a lot of additions that have been layered over the centuries. Sure, it looks pristine and pretty on the outside, the stone and mortar and plaster blending together perfectly. There's magic in the stone, enough to make the spires and towers need but the least amount of material. Layers upon layers of spells interlocking each other through bindings from the foundations to the tallest spire defy the laws of physics. A modern engineer could take one look at the blueprints and throw his or her arms up in despair unless they knew how many spells were used over the millennia to act as its own mortar. Canterlot is indeed a fantasy castle right down to the stoney core. As it is, a clever magic user could follow the ley lines of the construction much as an electrician could follow the flow of electricity from the breaker in the basement all the way to the light bulb in the attic. Thus, beneath the facade of what all see as a magnificent display of artistic construction is a myriad of confusing spells layered over each other and through each other for the sole purpose of keeping everything in one presentable and overly lovely piece.

Am I bad for wanting to find that one strand of magical thread? To give that slight little yank and sit back and watch everything collapse like a sack of broken pride? I know its a bad thought and I should feel bad for thinking it, but I did giggle when it popped unbidden into my little head.

I wasn't going to need a stinkin’ blueprint to figure out where I needed to go. I already had the book which contained the instructions on how to follow the path of magical ley lines. I simply had to seek out the right spell currently in place within the ancient stone walls. Traces of magical energy are always drawn to an active source, like iron flakes to an electromagnet. I had caught the impression of the magic from my father as he overloaded on magical energy. The distinct signature I sensed was faint, almost like pheromones. I really don't know what else to call it, but it was a residue if nothing else. I sniffed it out and recognized it being distinctly something not based on unicorn magic.

Unicorns like to have personal signatures in their magic. Alicorns even more so. I don't know why. Pride, I suppose. Maybe it has something to do with ponies not quite adept at being secretive. Fleur has told me my magic is difficult to detect unless she knows what she's looking for. She even showed me how I can pick up on the subtle ripples left behind in the wake of changeling magic. It's like camouflage against radar: sloppy ponies stick out like a 747 while a changeling's magic appears like a fly's. My magic is essentially discharged emotions, a pony - or a bright and intelligent changeling like myself can pick up on it if one knows what to look for. As I am naturally empathic, it became really easy once I figured out what I needed to look for.

The remnant in question had a trace of arrogance and mistrust with a dash of suspicion thrown in for good measure. If it was a color, it would remind me of an ugly purple welt. It took some time to find it as I stared out over the courtyard from my balcony, closing my eyes and sensing out through the literal tens of thousands of signatures. Sorting through the mess would have been impossible for me the day after I had first arrived in Equestria a month ago. It would have overwhelmed me, perhaps even forcing me to swear off magic the rest of my life.

I'd like to take a moment to thank Twilight Sparkle at how she was able to discover the best way to lure out my magical talents. Fleur helped, too, but it was Twilight who showed me the difference between pony magic and changeling magic. We discovered it together and my unique status among my race as well as the ease at which magic came to the tip of my horn allowed me to learn quickly. Tracing changeling magic became something of a game for me. To me, each changeling has a distinct fingerprint, for lack of a better word. Show me remnants of a spell recently cast by one, and I can tell you what his favorite color is.

I don't know how I do it, I just do. Twilight says its because I'm a queen and I can naturally tell the differences between individual changelings without batting an eye.

"Ah, found it!" I crowed as what I was searching for began to emerge after sifting through all the magic humming in the air around the castle. Not surprisingly, I can only do this with changeling magic. I can't trace pony magic at all. Sure, I can sense it like any other unicorn at magic, but my brain simply is not wired to track it on the same level of detail.

Well, the changeling in question is old, soft, and utterly lazy. His magic tells me that much. From what I can tell, or 'taste', he's gotten fat from years of sitting on his rump and telling others what to do. He's complacent, sloppy, and completely full of himself. He's also the changeling who popped into Dad's head and nearly turned his brain into a slurpee. Habit makes him overly fond of sweets, mares, and bathing in scented water. I'm not kidding when I say I can figure a changeling out just from his magic. Like I said, I can't explain how, but I just do!

He thinks he's the most powerful changeling in Canterlot, sensing my magic but unable to find out who I am has gotten him spooked. This was to the point where he discovered my link to Dad the moment he came close enough to Canterlot to be in range for us to reconnect. The changeling in question then simply tried a different tactic as trying to assail my mind had been like throwing shit at a brick wall.

Fleur is a mistress of preparing a mind to protect itself. She taught me well and Twilight tested my defenses many times once I had an idea of what I was doing. It's a simple spell, really, and doesn't require a lot to maintain. I've always got it up and I always know when I've got someone trying to make an unwanted visit. If only Twilight or Fleur would teach me the spells to counter such probes! They don't want me learning high level attack magic just yet. For some reason, they think I'm potentially volatile.

Since my mind was guarded, he tried to use a back door via my daddy. He succeeded and now some crazy bitch claiming to be my mother started making all sorts of demands to Celestia and Dad.

Most powerful changeling around, huh? Wait 'til he gets a load of me.

I surveyed the night sky. A clock tolled one somewhere in the city far below the walls. I threw my gaze beyond the alabaster stones and over the distant rooftops poking up from the buildings set into the side of the mountain upon which Canterlot thrives upon. Shifting my gaze skyward again, I noted the twinkling stars and the waning crescent of Luna's moon. Was I really going to do this? Was I really about to commit myself to such a brazen act I had planned over and over since I discovered what was happening?

What would you do? The changeling already had a visit from Celestia earlier this morning. I was not about to let him off the hook just yet. I wanted answers on my own terms and I wanted them directly from his mouth to my ears. I also wanted to kick his sorry ass for what he did to Dad. After that, I planned on dealing with whoever the hell was calling herself my mom. So far as I was concerned, Dad was all I needed as a parent.

Everyone wants a queen. I shall give them my impersonation of Queen Elizabeth of England. This Empress and her precious Empire will be my King Philip of the Spanish Empire. The war had been declared and they had fired the first shot.

Like a dark wraith I slipped into the shadows, waiting for a passing patrol of two pegasi guards above my window. I had already snuffed out the light with the pretense of going to bed as ordered by Fleur. As I remained in my room, I knew they would send someone to check on me. They always did on an hourly basis. The ponies don't trust me.

They are smart ponies. I selected one of the pillows on my bed and lifted it before me with my magic, considering it with a critical eye as I shifted my eyes from it to the bed. Nodding to myself and satisfied such a simple ruse would be more than enough, I placed it beneath the covers and placed an illusion spell upon it. The pillow glowed with my green aura and assumed the likeness of myself fast asleep on the bed. Smirking, I covered my inanimate replica and patted it lovingly on the shoulder. I figured I would only need at most an hour.

"Good pillow," I murmured to it, before shifting my attention to myself. It was ninja time! I concentrated, having decided I would need the form of a pegasi guard. Armored couriers were not uncommon in Canterlot as orders were constantly being relayed and carried by new recruits in some lame form of initiation the first year of assignment to the Royal Guard. It was common knowledge ponies in the Royal Guard were recommended for the honor of protecting the most famous castle in the world after a minimum of three years of exemplary service in the regular army. I assumed the look of one of them, but avoided taking on any distinctive marks. I wanted them to see and ignore me, not see and want to come by for a chat.

I kept the form basic, shrouding myself with an invisibility spell I had managed to sneak from the library. I had copied the page instead of taking the book itself. It had a ward on it to prevent it from leaving the library. It was one of those books forbidden to me for specific reasons I really don't think need explaining. I will say encouraging a creature naturally gifted at hiding to explore other methods of being better at hiding beyond natural talent would unnerve a lot of ponies if they knew. Not that they're even aware Midnight Emerald is actually a changeling. I've got assigned guards sworn to secrecy who know and those not assigned to me now to notify those same guards should I be seen wandering around by myself. Right now, I'd rather not be found out. I'm rather fond of how Fleur de Lis worded my pseudo name in her language. It rolls off my tongue like chocolate chip cookie dough ice cream.

Again, my horn flared to life as I formed the spell and released it upon myself. My vision shimmered for a moment. I checked my body and found I did it correctly. I was now a walking blur of light refracting around my body. It wasn't the perfect invisibility spell. It was more of a camouflage. I thought it was pretty cool.

The night sky was beautiful as I took note of it again, wondering how exactly Luna does it. I can sense her around, probably holding night court. My attention shifted to the task at hand: seeking out guards. To my right on the side of the balcony I went, placing one hoof experimentally on the wall. It gripped and held and I followed with the next one. Soon I was walking down the wall, moving quickly and with purpose. I could walk on ceilings too, if I wanted. I've had lots of practice. I still remember running away from Dad as a filly, halfway through bathtime and me deciding it was time to make Daddy huff and puff after me through the house. I cheated by using three dimensional escapist methods. I paused when a pair of guards swooped by, holding my breath as they passed by. I noted with a grin how they always pause at my window and peered in. If they ever used a detection spell, I'd be in trouble. Thank God pegasi can't use magic. They moved on quietly.

There are plenty of shadows to dart in and out of. I use them judiciously, slinking quite comfortably from one to the next, my only bane Luna's Light. I get the eerie feeling she's watching me. Knowing her, she's enjoying this little escapade of mine. She's easily bored and has met me several times since I got here. Night court for her is boring hours looking at an empty line of petitioners with the occasional brave soul coming before her with whatever request they had. I don't think it bothers her so much as I hear she likes to poke around the dreams of her subjects. She's a pretty cool pony and I think we've become friends...depending on how much she trusts me. The Canterlot thing a couple of years ago (which I have know knowledge of other than what was shown on television) has made her wary of me. She won't tell me what. Nobody will tell me what happened. What little detail I've gotten entails a short war, not one day of terror. Ponies died. Even more changelings fell. I've found some scars of the battle here and there within the palace grounds. I'm sure there are others. Luna is as tight lipped about it as Celestia and I'm sure the word has been passed around to not open up about it while I'm around.

What the actual hell happened? Since I'm in pursuit of a changeling, of course I'm going to be thinking of something I was supposedly a part of in my other life. It's something to do while I work my way as unnoticeable as possible to my destination. All too easy.

I made it to the wing in question. Inside there be changelings! No doubt they had their own guards posted about in the interior. I sensed roughly fifty of them. Why so many for an ambassador? I knew for a fact the griffon ambassador only had a staff of a dozen. The minotaurs had even fewer! The changeling ambassador must be a pompous ass if he thinks he needs that many bodies to see to his greedy whims.

I think he needs to be taken down a notch... or three.

Two changelings disguised as armored unicorns are just outside the main doors leading inside. There are other entrances in and out of the wing, but I've decided I want to go in the front door. I simply didn't want to try and cut through the rest of the palace as this was the most straightforward route. I fell behind a rather large manicured bush next to the building and dropped my invisibility spell. So far, nobody spotted me. I shifted into my Midnight Emerald disguise - it's my 'hey, I'm a changeling and I hide it badly in this pony disguise!' look and I've grown rather attached to her. I'll tell you her background story later...unless I forget. Midnight is now my name and flirting with stallions is my game!

Tossing my mane, I drew in a sharp intake of breath and readied myself. Nerves, I guess. Exhaling slowly, I closed my eyes and steadied my suddenly pounding heart. This was so exciting! Trotting out from behind my hiding place, I put on my best smile and assumed my silkiest gaze. I'm also starting to become aware of buzzing minds in my head. It reminds me of the connection with Dad. I pause for a moment to try and make it out, but it's almost a foreign language to me. Curious and having something to work with, I separate it and file it away to pick apart later for figuring out.

"Hello, boys," I purred to them as I approached. I swayed my hips suggestively. "It must be so boring for a pair of fine gents such as yourselves to have to stand outside this boring old door."

The two fake unicorns blinked at me suspiciously, then shared a look, then focused back on me. They sensed something wasn't right. I came closer, tossing my mane again and flipping my ears forward, looking directly first at the left stallion, then the right. Their suspicion shifted from suspicion to wavering uncertainty. Then I let them feel what was beneath my disguise. If I wanted to, I could let them know who I was without dropping my disguise. They were smelling the changeling beneath the fur. I grinned. These two guys weren't very strong compared to me.

"Who are you?" demanded the one on the right bravely as he remembered his duty. "There's no one scheduled to come here at this hour!"

"I'm here to see the ambassador," I replied sweetly, batting my eyes. "And I'm going to see the ambassador."

"What-?" began the other as my horn glowed.

"Sleep," I murmured to them both. They dropped where they stood like a sack of potatoes. "Good boys." One of the double doors opened at my magical prodding and like a slip of the tongue, I went in.

Like the rest of the palace, the halls in here were huge and spacious. They might have even been big enough for Rainbow Dash's ego. There were dim lights here and there, as changelings don't need much to see. I slipped again into my invisibility spell, confident as I hid my magical presence. All of those lessons were paying off in spades. Deftly, I worked my way up the wall until I was on the ceiling, walking with careful steps as I always made sure I had contact with three hooves at all times.

I was having so much fun with this! Quickly I moved, finding a flight of stairs and following them up. A lone changeling not in disguise was walking the halls, carrying a silver tray as I emerged from the staircase. It was a mare, her dark form slightly smaller than mine. She was interesting to behold as she was the first changeling I had ever seen. She appeared tired as she adjusted her magical grip. It appeared to be a teapot and a teacup as well as something beneath a covered plate. Some sort of snack, I assumed. It had to be for someone important if it was being lugged carefully at this time of night. I grinned and followed her after she was satisfied her tray was secured.

It was a pretty straight forward walk to the far end of the hall. We passed a couple of other changelings working from behind open doors and working on what appeared to be official looking duties involving paper and pen. A couple waved at the mare as she passed by. Were these bedrooms or offices? Everyone seemed to be working on something. At least this one seemed to be liked by the others, I noted as she continued her journey. It was a very long hallway and I wondered why in God's name anyone would want such wasted space in the form of a long hallway with a twenty foot ceiling. The first floor was the same way! Everything was just huge in this wing! I was going to have to ask someone about it.

I had heard Princess Celestia had made a bit of a terror with herself downstairs in the offices of the changeling contingent. I was now going to make some sort of statement on the second floor.

The changeling mare reached the end of the hall where a partially opened door spilled the glow of a well lit room in a long crack stretching across the glossy teak floor. Her shadow broke the streak of light as she softly knocked and pushed against the door with a hoof.

"Anzealous? I have your tea," she announced.

Chryssie, the Ninja, dropped silently behind her. I was nearly on top of Tea Girl as she went in after her call was answered with a grunt and grumble. Ambassador Anzealous did not sound like a happy camper. As the changeling with the tea went towards the sound of his voice, I turned and silently slinked up the wall before she could close the door behind her. Once the door was closed and I remained unnoticed, I then turned to take in the room.

Opulence had a name. It was This Room. I gaped at the finery and expensive things filling the room as though all the greed in the world had been desperately crammed into a large room suddenly feeling like a gilded prison. There were bookshelves filled with baubles and knick-knacks an antique road show would drool to have, along with actual books of various conditions. Most were old, a few newer. There were two love seats facing each other with an ornate coffee table between them. They were set before a grand fireplace where a blaze accounted for most of the light in the vast room. It was a bedroom, specifically a suite as I noted, a very large bed piled high with comforters and pillows and even a few unidentifiable stuffed animals. Apparently Anzealous liked his plushies. Wait. Was… was that a Celestia plushie I saw in there?

For a moment I think of my own plushie of Twilight Sparkle with her permanent place of honor on my pillow. Yes, I'm firmly a Twilight fan and I'm really glad she's taken me in as a friend. That's a story for another time. Right now, there's a certain fat changeling dressed in red silk pajamas sitting at a desk with an oversized candle as his light source next to his work. He was writing furiously, the scratching sound of his quill pen reflecting his unhappy mood. It too was an expensive piece of furniture, painstakingly carved with patterns of flowers and leaves along the corners and sides. The drawers bore hand crafted brass handles.

"The Empress won't tell me who she is!" he spat in a voice filled with the strain of a very long and unpleasant day. The changeling mare gave him a semi-sympathetic look, before rolling her solid blue eyes heavenward and silently clucking her tongue. She shook her head as she poured him a cup of tea.

"Scone?" she asked politely, levitating the covered plate to his right side. He paused in his writing and considered the offering.

"I suppose I should take a break," he admitted, turning to look at the changeling. Anzealous was sitting in a swivel chair and it squeaked in protest as he spun to face her.

I had taken the opportunity to stop my gawking and focus on what I came here for. Maybe I should be a good girl and listen? Eh, I've got all night. What the hell. I made my way towards the only empty corner in the bedroom. Well, it wasn't completely empty as a small round table bearing a crystal ball the size of a grapefruit occupied the space. I climbed up the wall and nestled myself as comfortably as I could like a bat on the ceiling and settled myself in for some intelligence gathering. Being a changeling naturally made me ninja worthy in the sneaking department. I'm a sexy ninja to boot!

"Who do you think this mysterious changeling is?" asked the female changeling as she floated his tea to him. "Celestia scared half of us to death when she came in here to take your head." Her smile betrayed her feelings on the encounter.

Anzealous threw her a pained expression. "Must you?" he complained, then took a bite from his scone. The fat changeling ruminated for a moment, staring at the floor before shifting his attention to his visitor. "That creature I stumbled across had to have been a half wit," he complained as he accepted the tea. Anzy slurped loudly, his fangs clinking against the porcelain.

I noticed the changeling who had brought the tea made no move to have some herself. "Oh, come now," she said. "Surely you could not have thought that whole thing through before reading the mind of a completely alien species. Obviously you didn't or else the princess wouldn't have came in here looking for your head."

He waggled a hoof at her. "I know!" he huffed before tearing off another bite of scone. Chewing angrily, he stared off at the ceiling before taking another slurp. "These talking monkeys, these...these...-" Anzy turned to her helplessly as he couldn't find the right word.

"Humans?" offered the mare with a touch of amusement.

"Whatever! The point is, the Empress was as interested to what was in his head as to the information on Miss Mysterious Changeling. I'm convinced we're dealing with a rogue queen, Fae. She's in league with these..."

The word was tossed out again. "Humans?"

"Yes, humans. Such a strange word. It sounds odd saying it." He shook his head, his spiney mane rustling as his fat jiggled beneath his chitin. Buzzing his wings, he stretched, popping his back. "They're dangerous. I saw what weapons they have from that male's memories. I can only assume Celestia knows about them and may be moving to array them against us while keeping her own hooves clean of the whole mess. Am I seeing too much into this?" He threw her a long suffering look indicating this wasn't his only concern on his mind. Anzealous had the appearance of one overworked government employee reduced to stale donuts and old coffee for his political survival.

I perked up at that. Well, there were a lot of things Celestia and Luna were keeping from me, but one of the last things I'm sure they'd want to do is start a war between two species. Or would they? I felt doubt immediately creep into my head. Something else about this conversation is striking me as odd. I can't quite put it to the front of my thoughts yet.

"What did the Empress tell you?" asked the other changeling. I noted she had a bobbed mane, its color a mix of gold and red, like autumn leaves. Very pretty. I supposed male changelings had spiney manes while females had manes like mine. Weird, but in a cool way.

Anzealous furrowed his dark brow for a moment, scrunching his muzzle as his fangs clicked against each other in annoyance. "I'm being relieved of my post," he said with a resigned sigh. "Apparently arousing the ire of a goddess is grounds for termination."

"Imagine that!" giggled Fae. "Look, as your sister, I just want to tell you I told you so!"

Sister? She had to be too young to be his sister! Half his age, I imagined. For some reason, I was suddenly feeling less bloodthirsty as I felt the love and sympathy the younger changeling had for her elder sibling. Why did they look nothing alike? I didn't sense a blood bond between the two. God dammit, a complication!

He threw her an annoyed glance before tossing a dismissive hoof at her. "Mother won't be happy," he griped as he polished off the scone. Crumbs were all over the front of his pajamas and on his lap. Changelings look weird trying to sit like humans. It's not that they can't do it, but after spending most of my life watching Dad sit, seeing beings built to walk on all fours attempt the same thing is comical. I prefer lounging on my tummy myself, legs folded beneath me. It's more dignified.

"Mother was against you accepting the positioned offered by Her Imperial Majesty," sighed Fae. "It's prestige for the hive for certain, but you've always been too greedy for your own good. I warned you not to push for more than what you had already learned. Your job was to work on that peace treaty and you've been stalling on that for months now!"

"I was told to stall and you know it!"

Fae rose and took a step or two towards her brother. "That's your problem, big brother. As much as you want to be in charge and boss everything around, you're already halfway in the air when the Empress tells you to jump and asking 'which way?'."

"But it was the opportunity of a lifetime!" he complained loudly, flailing with his hooves. "Peace! A chance to not have to slink around in the shadows, wondering if our hives are going to be discovered. Our race has never been in numbers enough to mount a serious threat to the likes of Equestria or Minos or those damnable griffons. I know I'm an ass. I know I'm arrogant. I know I'm a bully, but I want changelings to be able to stand in the sun and not worry about having that fear of being hated." He was truly anguished as he spoke, the conviction in his beliefs strong. They were indeed wavering. Tears formed in his blue eyes.

What the hell?

At that point, my anger deflated even more and I was really starting to lose my resolve. My lust for revenge became a twinge of pity for Anzealous.

"After we lost a queen and her hive, it changed everything," Anzealous sighed as his sisterl, quietly refilled his teacup while gently touching his shoulder with a sympathetic hoof. "Betrayed! Betrayed by our own kind for the sake of her Imperial Majesty's favor!" he cried in a mix of pity and anger, as if the act he spoke of was still just as confusing to this day. "Queens aren't supposed to do that to one another."

"Brother, you delve into things there are no answers for yet. The Empress knows this. This is why you were sent here to broker peace with the ponies."

Alright, this at first had me intrigued, now it had my attention.

"Chrysalis was favored and some of her sisters were jealous!" Anzealous went on. I was beginning to piece together some of the meaning behind his name. I smirked and remained as still as heavy air on a muggy day. The way he spoke my name bothered me. It was as if someone had just told him his puppy had been hit by a car.

"There's no proof," Fae chided him gently. "You're working yourself up for no reason again. This conspiracy of yours has never had a hoofhold."

He looked at her sadly. "So why do you still follow me? Why do you believe me?"

"You've never struck me as a liar, brother. You're an arrogant idiot, but you're an honest idiot...and you're family." Her voice was gentle, soothing and betrayed pride in him. I guess changeling families are pretty close-knit. That's cool to know and raised them a couple of notches in my overall opinion of them.

Right now they were just above a pile of shit.

The soon-to-be-former ambassador to Equestria gave her a hard look, squinting through his glum facade. "Mother isn't happy with me, but she's already asked I report directly to her as soon as I get back to the hive. I've already heard who my replacement is going to be," he relaxed, sitting back as he spoke. His eyes softened a bit and a small smile creased his face.

Fae blinked for a moment. "Oh, no. I don't want your job!" she cried as a horrible realization hit her square in the common sense. "I never wanted your job! I've my sanity to consider!" Fae flailed her forehooves in the air in vehement denial.

"Too bad. Mother chose you." Anzealous paused for a moment, his horn glowing as a neatly rolled up scroll lifted from the messy pile scattered haphazardly on his desk. It floated within the veil of his magic in front of the younger sibling and hovered there expectantly.

The mare snatched the scroll and opened it. Reading it over slowly, it was hard to see her pupils moving, but there was a lighter hue of blue at what I assumed was what would be considered her pupils. I stifled a laugh as her expression morphed from disbelief to one or morbid shock. An eye twitched, becoming more and more exaggerated as she came to the bottom of the letter. "This is your fault!" she hissed at her brother.

No, she couldn't be blood related to him. Maybe it has something to do with the way changeling society is structured? Was it a secret society? Both of them were Down With the Clown? Seriously, there are people who still follow those guys. It's like Deadheads with face paint. I digress, missing out on some juicy eavesdropping.

Anzealous actually laughed at his sister. "Yes. It is, isn't it?" he sighed, slipping back into his depression. "You've been watching everything I've done and have read the minutes. You're the only other changeling to speak to any of the princesses. They like you far more than they like me."

She sighed, letting the letter drop. "Mother expects me to do better."

"You will. We're just lucky the Empress is letting our hive stick with the negotiations. She still has faith in Queen Druanae and you can't refuse our mother."

"No, I can't," admitted the younger changeling. I noted she was not a happy camper. I sensed fear from her and even felt a little sorry for Fae. There might have been a little sympathy for her, but I carefully guarded my emotions and considered my options.

"You should contact her immediately. The letter only recently arrived. You're supposed to respond as soon as you read it."

"I know, I know." Fae sighed, bowing her head. "Of course, I'll accept the position. If Mother has confidence I can do this, I should accept her decision. Where's the orb?"

Orb? I craned my neck as I thought of the unassuming little round object beneath me and on the little round table. It bore a slight green glow. Changeling magic. Everything we do seems to have something green to it. Now, I really don't mind green but I'm starting to think my people really lack for flare. Everything needs to be subtle for changelings. I was curious as to why. Hopefully, I'd get the answers I was looking for. Fae and Anzealous both approached the orb, their faces oddly apprehensive as if the orb was going to do something nasty to them.

Or maybe two kids ready to be yelled at by Mom? I recognized their looks as one I used to have every time I broke a plate or a glass while practicing my telekinesis back home. Dad always forgave me and never really got mad when I broke things. I think he said something about doing stuff like that when he was a kid. He only got really upset when I broke one of his grandma's little figurines in the fancy dining room some years back. I digress.

"Do you think she's awake at this hour?" Fae asked in a harsh whisper.

"Mother's always said she works best when Luna's silver shines down upon her." Anzealous rolled his eyes at her. "Why are you whispering? We haven't even tried to contact her yet."

"Mother makes me nervous," she admitted with shame.

The ambassador rolled his eyes again. "You're such a child," her brother commented as his horn's tip flared to life. The orb responded to his magic. It was a slight touch as his magic activated the orb's. It pinged like a glass bell, reminding me of the ringing of a house phone from those old movies I used to watch. This went on for several long, agonizing seconds as I found I was holding my breath expectantly. "Mother loves all of us," Anzealous said, adding wistfully, "even foolish fat changelings who lose themselves in their zeal."

Suddenly a firm voice resonated from the crystal, tinged with amusement. "Your zealotry is one of the traits that both delight and bemoan me, Anzealous," it spoke. The tone was gentle, perhaps a bit tired, and patient. "What brings you to call me at this hour, my children?"

I could not see anything in the crystal, other than a green glow with dancing shadows swirling through it. Queen Druanae sounded as though she would be a human woman of late middle age as I pictured her in my mind. Somehow, the image of Betty Crocker came to mind.

Don't ask.

Betty Cro - er, I mean Queen Druanae waited patiently as Fae nudged her brother as they shared something unspoken. Anzealous quirked an eyebrow at her before responding to his queen's question. "I'm formally submitting my resignation as ambassador and humbly propose you put Fae in my place."

"You called me on a formality?" The queen sounded disappointed and a bit annoyed.

Both changelings flinched from the orb. "No! Of course not, Mother!" insisted Anzealous. "I bring news of greater importance and of great personal interest to you."

I tilted my head to one side and wondered for a brief moment if I could be sensed by a queen. They were supposedly a good deal stronger than their offspring and were far more adept at noticing magic. I hoped my masking was good enough to not be noticed. Still, I could not help but cringe as I realized I might be in a bit of trouble. I had to use the little filly's room.

Damn you, tiny bladder!

It was only slightly less annoying than the dreadful thought of being found out.

"What is this news?" asked Queen Druanae skeptically.

Anzealous cleared his throat and straightened himself importantly. "I suspect Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are harboring a rogue queen."

I held my breath. Queen Druanae held her breath. Fae held her breath, staring at the older changeling with her lower jaw dangling like a porch swing. Anzealous waited expectantly, as if wanting dramatic music to highlight his revelation. When none appeared to be forthcoming, he began to sweat.

Okay, it just got really quiet in the room as the changeling on the other line digested this unexpected bit of news about, well...me.

"Seal the room," she commanded in a tone I could only guess was bordering shock and strained imperial bearing. "I don't want the Equestrians listening in on this."

"Yes, your majesty," both subjects intoned automatically. Their horns glowed with the same green color I have, flaring for several long seconds as the room's walls took on a sheen of dull emerald. I bit back a yelp of surprise and almost peed myself.

Oh, bladder, how you hold me hostage!

"Done, your Majesty!" chirped Anzealous professionally. He jiggled when he concentrated on using his magic, I noted from my position of discomfort. Fae's eyes drifted around the room, pausing for a moment as it drifted to where I was hiding. I stood absolutely still, hoping the shadows of the room would do me a favor and keep me safely tucked away.

Queen Druanae seemed satisfied. "I want both of you to listen and listen closely. Yes, Anzealous, my child, there is a rogue queen within the walls of Canterlot." Her voice resonated like a pair of singers still trying to get in sync with each other. "The Empress has made it perfectly clear this knowledge is not to be made to certain other queens."

What was this? Why is my existance being kept by not only the ponies, but the changelings as well? What was the big deal about me, anyway? It's not like I led a rebell-

"But Your Majesty, the rebellion was crushed as soon as the failure at Canterlot," chimed Fae on cue. She buzzed her wings nervously, darting her head from side to side as if expecting something unpleasant to reach for her.

Well, this can't be good. I found myself wishing what happened. Why could I not remember my past?

"The traitors remain in hiding," admonished the queen sternly. "If they knew Chrysalis lived, it would renew the civil war." There was a pause in the room as it felt as though the shadows had enveloped all the light until the pinpoints of lights from the candle and the fireplace dimmed to the points of distant stars. The voice of Queen Druanae focused on me. "Isn't that right, my dear ssssisssterrr?"

Her hiss found me and I did yelp, peeing a little.

God dammit, bladder!

What was it Dad says at a time like this? Oh, yeah…

"Yay me."

Chapter 8 Hopes and Screams and Throwing Strange Things

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Relentless. If there was but one word the Princess of the Sun could describe humanity from what she had observed over the centuries in her study of them, 'relentless' was one word to perfectly describe them. Another word they might fit admirably within would be 'contradictory'. Yes, this word described them as well as any in the dictionary, perhaps best of all. They could not run fast, were not very strong, and required clothing to protect their thin skin from the elements. Yet despite all of these setbacks, they were the apex predator of their world, dangerous in their ability to think through complex problems. Humans were clever and invented things to compensate for their shortcomings, adapting to their environment, enabling them to live almost anywhere under almost any conditions. Their ability to create with their hands what they envisioned with their minds was in itself, magical. Over the centuries, Celestia had watched humanity grow, develop, and expand relentlessly over their world. Nothing stopped them, save for each other.

War was their passion, their hubris. War defined them as heroes and monsters, victims and victors. War showed their cruelty towards their enemies, and their compassion for each other. War was their solution when everything else failed. War was their first choice, their last choice. One human killing another had a meaning and at the same time was meaningless.

Humans loved with a passion and also hated with zeal. They feared things they did not know, though some tried to understand what was not known so they might no longer have a reason to fear. Early in their development, they responded to new things with violence. As they became more and more aware of their intelligence, this slowly gave over to curiosity and the desire to learn of new things.

There were humans who despised war and all of its forms. They were in the majority; people merely wanting to live their lives peacefully among friends and family, preparing the next generation for the rigors of a life full of its own challenges, without the agony of warfare. Their capacity for love was unparalleled and Celestia had seen the wonders of what a single, simple, human could do in the name of love. Humanity was an enigma unto itself, much more so to a being who still found them fascinating and unpredictable after more than a thousand years of watching them when her duties allowed her a moment to peer into this other world.

To Celestia, there were far more heroes in humans than there were villains. She could see humans to be very much like her beloved ponies, though the differences were as stark a contrast as Luna and herself. Ponies were prone to be more trusting where humans had cause to be suspicious, as they had spent thousands of years learning to not trust outsiders. A pony village was far more likely to have unlocked doors at night, while humans went so far as to bolt their windows shut. The princess found herself musing that, if but for a few changes in history, these terribly wonderful bipeds would not be unlike the ponies she had spent countless generations protecting.

It was with little irony she reminded herself humanity did not have an obscenely powerful alicorn nigh an immortal to watch and guide them.

Her smile faded for a moment as she pondered her most recent decision. This was a very serious matter for the princess, near and dear to her heart. She had waited patiently for this moment, for this one thing she had always wanted but the trials of her throne never presented her with an opportunity to pursue. There was time yet before the worlds would eventually merge, as she had informed Michael Spriggs at their meeting. There might not be another opportunity. She had already spoken to Luna about this. Her sister was the very soul of support, her only concern stemming on one certain student's response to the question Celestia would pose to her in the morning.

It was past halfway through the night. Luna's mind brushed her briefly, prodding her elder sister to go to bed. I know you have little planned on the morrow, but I would be most put out if you fall asleep in your breakfast, Tia. The younger alicorn's laughter rippled softly in her thoughts and Celestia bopped the mental intrusion away with a giggle.

I thought I was the elder. She pouted, putting down the scroll she had been reading. In truth, she was quite excited from her anxiety. Surely, Twilight would accept. Of course she would accept! Once the reason was explained and the need of the princess made plain and clear, surely there could be no answer but yes!

Luna left her to her own thoughts, fading off to focus on her duties, but not before a gentle mental nudge akin to a loving muzzle was offered to Tia's mind. She shifted on the cushions she lay upon; soft and white with golden tassels and, more often than not, a place the alabaster alicorn had fallen asleep while perusing through the day's recorded events, or going over bill proposals, or other official documents. Every now and then she would receive a letter from her subjects—most often a colt or a filly—which she would eagerly read and respond in kind. It was always the children who were the bravest, she noted with amusement. Right now she held before her eyes a letter with the unmistakable hoofwriting of a very young filly, perhaps having just recently learned how to pen a letter.

Such letters were precious to Princess Celestia. Over the long years as one of the rulers of Equestria, she had never, never thrown any of the letters written to her by children. They were among her most prized possessions, and she kept them all in a safe place, stored for as long as she lived in a state of perfect preservation.

The hearth in her quarters blazed with a merry fire, one that had never gone out once since Celestia had first moved into the room so long ago. The fire was always perfect to suit her needs; she was never too hot, nor too cold. She used it for other things; looking upon her subjects, sending notes, divining the possible futures with what little ability was available to her. Celestia was not one to manipulate the future, but one does not simply live the life span of a goddess without learning a few things.

Now, Celestia would never, never call herself a goddess, and neither would her sister. They were immortal as far as they knew, but they could bleed, get sick, even die from unnatural causes, but never age. Drawing their magical energies from their respective celestial bodies maintained their youth, and neither had any idea how long they would live, save for the notion for as long as the sun and the moon accepted them as their earthly avatars. It was a complicated process and the magic tying the two alicorns to the night and the day was all but a forgone conclusion to their subjects. Though they did in fact represent living embodiments of the very objects they raised and lowered each morning and evening, either Luna or Celestia could relinquish their magical link and become as ordinary as any other pony should they choose to.

There were sacrifices to go with having such power at her hooftips. Celestia knew this, as did Luna. The most obvious was to see friends and family fade away to the dust of time. The numbers of their beloved friends long gone to memory was long indeed. Each face was remembered, loved, and at times, lamented. The regrets of the princess were many, her joys in remembrance without limits. Ponies adored the love of family and friends and the lasting relationships, and Princess Celestia was no different. Even now, a few years after having Luna restored to her after a thousand years being a part of the moon in body and mind, Celestia sought to repair their relationship. Oh, it was as strong as any bond between sisters, but this greatest of crimes she had committed forever marred Celestia's perception of Luna as she had never truly forgiven herself for banishing her.

Luna had borne the aftermath in regards to her relationship with her sister with a strength that made Celestia both proud of the Princess of the Moon, and ashamed at herself for still feeling pangs of guilt on certain nights. Of course, Celestia chided herself for harboring such thoughts, but a thousand years of witnessing the results of her actions in physical form had planted a small seed of fear of losing her sister again. It was a natural, understandable fear. In a way, Celestia was glad for it. It was no different than any fear any of her subjects might have for their own family member. She appreciated Luna and having her home again always filled her heart with warmth whenever her thoughts strayed to the darker, lonely times. It could be ventured it made her feel normal, like her subjects to whom she had striven to relate with.

The wakeful princess smiled again as she tenderly ran a hoof over the sloppy hoofwriting, appreciating the effort the filly put into it, for her favorite princess. It was a simple, perfect letter in the mind of Celestia and reminded her of why her ponies were so beloved in her heart.

Breaking from her thoughts a simple filly's letter had welled up within her, Celestia smiled and clucked at herself, shaking her mane as it danced within its ethereal aura. She set the letter down and selected a clean sheet of paper, already having a response in mind to the dear who worked so hard to write to her favorite princess. Already having a feel for the child, Celestia could tell a lot from the writing the sense of personality within the messy script. With a gentle smile, she lovingly responded to her tiny subject and soon a neatly rolled scroll bearing her seal joined the steadily growing pile of other correspondence she had done to this point. She had spent most of her night responding to letters from other colts and fillies and always enjoyed every moment of it.

Stretching her neck, the Sun Princess gave a small yawn, blinking her magenta eyes a few times as she spied about for her teacup. Shifting her lithe form more comfortably, she decided to simply stretch out and did so, rolling on her back in a catlike fashion and flinging her long legs out as far as she could push them, arching her back. Then she righted herself and stood, flaring her wings high into the air, fanning them slowly. Ah, it had been a long, enjoyable evening. Luna was right, perhaps it was time to seek out her bed and crawl beneath the blankets. Suddenly her soft sheets and plush pillows called to her. Levitating her discovered teacup to her lips, she considered for a moment, sensing something was amiss.

It was only natural Luna would prove her right when her thought gently touched her mind to see if she was awake. Tia? Are you asleep?

Maybe. Celestia smiled as she felt her sister roll her eyes. Is there a problem?

It is nothing I cannot handle. One of the guards reported a disturbance in the changeling quarters. I have been informed an unauthorized changeling went within. I thought you should know, sister.

Celestia groaned. Chrysalis?

The very same.

What is going on now?

I know not. I am simply observing for the moment. Please do not trouble yourself in coming. I shall call you if I need you. Luna did not seem concerned and amusement was evident.

Is there fighting?

Nay, sister. There is a very frightened changeling who has realized she has done something very foalish and is apparently crying for her father at this very moment. There is some amount of property damage involved, but nothing too horrendous. Celestia could hear her sister’s guffaws in her thoughts.

Oh dear. Celestia shook her head and wondered why she was not at all surprised. Chrysalis was crying? The poor thing was probably terrified. Part of Celestia wanted to go herself to see what exactly was going on as she had a fairly good idea as to why the teenling was there. The other part of her wanted to simply let Luna handle it and crawl into bed. She decided and made herself lie down. I'll leave it to you, Lulu. I'll take your sage advice and get some sleep. Wake me if anything serious happens.

I will. Sleep well. 'Tis but a changeling filly in over her head. I have already dispatched the Night Guard to contain the situation until I can present myself before the issue. I had not expected her to act rashly. Was I that difficult when I was her age? Hmm?

Celestia chuckled at her sister, remembering all too well. Luna had been a terror in her teen years, causing her elder sister and parents no end to consternation. I assume the changelings sent word of their unexpected guest?

Indeed. They have grown cautious and more cooperative since your...outburst. Luna's voice exalted in her sister's mind, pealing with laughter. Oh, how I wished I had been there to see your temper flare at long last!

Celestia sighed and shook her head as she snuggled in. I'm not proud of that and you know it, Luna. It was a blatant invasion of privacy and I shudder to think how you would have handled it. It was very rare when her anger could be stirred. Anzealous had managed to do something not even Discord could evoke shortly after breaking free of his stone prison.

Such a thing to suggest! Luna gasped with an air of wounded pride. It slithered away slowly and was replaced by a darker sense of justice followed by a throaty chuckle reminiscent of a previous personality within the Princess of the Moon. I will always adhere to the laws set for all Equestrians. Never will I deem myself above the very laws I have sworn to uphold. Though I am still against this...human being here. I have nothing personal against him, mind you, but I fear his presence will alter the course you wish to follow, dear sister.

I do not wish to speak about him now. He is recovering still, and will need another day before the hospital will release him. His threat is not of his own making. He has become a pawn and that is my fault. I am thinking of moving him from the castle to a safer location. The princess forced her eyes closed, gently brushing her sister's thoughts from her mind. Do what you must. I'm going to sleep. Oh, and Luna?

Hmm?

Keep the noise to a dull roar.

I'm a load of scared shitless teenage changeling, made abundantly clear after the queen in the weird crystal spotted me and called me out. Suddenly the little changeling—Fae—flared her magic and suddenly my invisibility spell fell away, leaving me exposed and naked as a jay bird. The shadowy corner of the ceiling was clinging still where it lay until Queen Druanae made the orb she was speaking from flare to a brilliant green, burning away the shadows and leaving me gaping down from where I huddled.

Oh, yeah, I had also just wet myself. My plan was going along just swimmingly. I was embarrassed, upset, and thinking I was going to die.

"What is this?" demanded the queen, suddenly at a decidedly confused loss. "This is not Chrysalis? Or is it? Who are you, child. Speak!"

"Get away from me!" I screamed. I thought I was ready, but I could feel the queen's magic and I felt as though I was facing a dark Celestia or a toned down Luna. I could not feel her anger, but it was in her voice. Tears formed unbidden to my eyes and was suddenly flowing into my mane as I clung to the ceiling, upside down and now trembling. I was in deep shit and I knew it.

"Fae!" snapped Anzealous crisply. "Notify the watch commander. I should be able to contain our young guest. My queen, this is the rogue I sensed. She's young, but there is no mistake." He gave me an uncertain and wary stare, prompting to ask Druanae, "Begging your pardon, Majesty, but how can this child be Chrysalis?" He waggled a hoof at me with unimpressed disdain.

The female changeling faded from my view, her wings scorching the air as she darted off in the direction of the main doors. It was not unlike hearing the whining engine of a go cart. They flung open with her magic, bowling over curious eavesdroppers like little dark pins. I could hear her calling out loudly to raise the alarm.

"Be still, my son," Druanae admonished him. To me she said, "Oh, child, what has become of you?" The tone of the queen changed and Druanae hissed with a lacking malevolence, suddenly unsure herself of what exactly to make of me. "You seem like her, yet you are far, far too young to be Queen Chrysalis."

Anzealous buzzed his wings and lifted his fat little body off the ground, his face a mask of irritation and outrage. "You are in violation of the treaty signed by the Queens and the Princesses. I hereby place you under arrest un—"

I didn't let him finish his little proclamation, instead grabbing with my magic the most useful object with which to hurl at him as he came ever closer to my cringing (and slightly self-urinated) form. The orb from which the queen's eyes fixated on me was lifted from its stand on the little table, those orbs going wide as she was quick to be aware of what was happening.

"Fool child, put me down!" she intoned harshly, reminding me of Carol Burnette's rendition of Miss Hannigan from Annie. Until that point, I loved that character and had always found Carol's comedic skills amazing. Now I was going to have Miss Hannigan's disembodied eyes haunting me in my dreams. That's just great. You have no idea what it was like to have a floating head within a crystal ball yelling at you until you're huddling in a corner, hanging upside down with your hooves clinging stubbornly against the pull of gravity.

Oh, and don’t forget the pee. I’m either going to die of embarrassment or stupidity. It’s a race to see which one wins!

I threw the ball at Anzealous, a strangled cry coming from the orb and the chunky changeling yelping in sudden surprise. He was a little slow on the uptake and was in full on disbelief mode. He suddenly had the smooth crystal sphere hurling at him, his eyes locking for a moment with his queen's just before it bonked him squarely in the face. Anzy's face contorted in amazed pain, his azure eyes rolling up and back as he suddenly forgot he had been using his wings. The ball sailed upwards into the air even as he fell backwards.

"Oh!" cried the queen as she had probably a most in-your-face view of the action. Druanae probably could do next to nothing except watch and demand things.

The ambassador fell, landing on his back upon the carpeted floor, his hooves to his muzzle as blood trickled from his nostrils. Upon impact, the air was blasted from his lungs and he squeaked harshly, much like a dying rubber ducky. The orb was not done with him, as gravity soon began to do its thing. I watched as it fell right in the middle of his round belly, the impact sending all four of his hooves flailing straight up into the air as he contorted in pain. Anzealous' mouth opened in a large 'O', his eyes bulging from their sockets. For a moment, the ball stayed there, the queen calling out his name with great concern.

I stared for a moment, wondering if I had just squished the fat bug. Breathing heavily, and sniffling, I suddenly felt rotten for what I had just did.

"Ow!" wheezed Anzealous from where he lay. He rolled onto his stomach, the crystal ball rolling off him and nestling on the thick carpet indifferently. Green eyes were bugged in horror within and started about like a peeping Tom seeing more than intended. "I thig you brogged by jaw!" he complained, recovering far quicker than I thought possible. He was fat, but also made of some tough stuff. He glared at me. "Dow see here, yugg lady! Throwing by queen ad me adds assauld du your bregging and endering!" His blood was dripping like a leaky faucet from both nostrils, which freaked me out even more.

"Stay away from me!" I reached out blindly, grasping at whatever with my magic and began to randomly pelt the lecturing, bleeding changeling. He yelped and ducked for cover, the unheeded voice of Queen Druanae calling for calm. I thought I heard 'misunderstanding' and 'let's talk this out', but nah, this was more productive! I was also just now becoming aware I had done number one on myself and that just made me self-conscious and deeply ashamed. This had gone from Situation Normal, to All Fouled Up, to Fouled Up Beyond All Repair.

Somewhere in the process, we had bypassed Things Are Really Fouled Up.

Yay Daddy.

All sorts of things responded to my instinctive magical grasp: books, baubles, glass figurines, picture frames. They were hurled randomly at the changeling, who retreated from me, flinging his hooves up in front of his battered muzzle. He yelped as his chitin was struck again and again, until he found refuge behind the other side of his bed. The whole time he tried to call out to me, his queen yelled, and the whole room flashed green from the magic bolts I was starting to throw at Anzealous. I had run out of things to throw at him and decided it would be a wonderful decision to simply hurl raw blobs of magic at him. By now he had a shield up and had gathered his wits enough to make sure it was proofed against my wild attacks.

I dropped to the floor, trying to make my way out the same way I came in. I heard voices on the other side of the door, pounding on the wood to get in. There were cries to the ambassador in regards to his well being. Nobody asked me how I was doing.

Jerks.

"You bust be a queed," he remarked, wiping his nose with the back of a hoof and looking at it curiously. Anzealous scowled when he saw blood. "De fagt you gan droh so mugged stub ad meh ad once id impwessive."

It was even more impressive as it was he wouldn't shut up even with a broken nose! I spun around, seeking another way out. My eyes fell over him long enough to see he had no plans of moving from where he hid himself. I found the window and sidestepped towards it, no longer crying, but now shrieking unintelligible words at the fat changeling. More magic erupted from my will, appearing around my head and shoulders and hurling with reckless abandon in his general direction. The room was taking quite a beating. Smoke drifted into my nostrils as I came upon one of the windows and tried to find the latch.

"I want my daddy!" I cried, not at all the tough girl I thought I was. I felt dumb. Really dumb now. I wanted out. I wanted my bed. I wanted the man whom my world revolved around for a baker's dozen years. I felt safe around Dad, safer than being with Celestia, or Luna, or any of the other ponies who were entrusted with keeping me protected from the things out there they thought wanted to hurt me. Like the awesome queen I was clearly not showing myself to be, I began to cry again when the window refused to open for me. I was getting frantic, casting frightened eyes over my shoulder and past my gossamer wings.

Anzealous was approaching me from behind his hiding place, a magic shield in front of him, his head lowered and his ears flat against his skull.

"Don't come any closer!" I warned through heavy breathing brought about by my hyperventilating. Nervously I shifted my hooves to the point where it seemed like I was trying to run in place. What do I do? The window wasn't giving me anything! I pounded on it with a hoof and discovered my own limb bouncing off and smacking me in the muzzle. "Ow!"

"Hey! Do need for panigging." Anzealous was right behind me! A hoof went to my shoulder. I bucked without thinking as hard as I could.

"Get away from me!"

He looked like a little black and crimson bowling ball with legs and insectoid wings, describing a high arc into the air as he flailed at the air. A cry strangled from his throat as he went into a backwards flip—rather graceful, really—before crashing headlong into the desk. It could not handle his weight, and was smashed, sending large splinters and bits of desk flying in all directions.

"Anzealous!" cried out the queen in the crystal. I'd forgotten about her.

I really didn't have time to pause and consider the hell I was putting the poor changeling through. Looking back, he was just trying to be as nice as was possible for a changeling, given their rather ferocious and secretive nature. As he was about to attest, changelings were also exceptionally resilient. Like a demented buzzing cockroach, he rose from the shattered remains of the desk, rolling to his hooves and standing with staggering steps. He was woozy, bruised, and had no idea where he was. By some miracle, his silk pajamas were largely intact. His chest bore a pair of hoof prints I knew to be mine. He found shaking the cobwebs from his head to be his favorite game at that moment.

"Stop this at once!" roared Queen Druanae. I really don't think she could do much else but yell. This whole thing was her fault! Why did she have to be such a menacing thing in the crystal ball? "Chrysalis!" her voice sang out in desperation. "I'm coming to keep you from harming my subject."

What? I stared at the crystal ball and found a pair of hate-filled eyes glaring at me and glowing with an ever brightening intensity. I was not expecting Anzealous to suddenly become awash with a sudden looming presence within. His eyes shifted from blue to green flames, his body surging with renewed vigor. With shock I watched as his wounds healed within seconds. Bruises faded, chitin became whole. Even his muzzle popped back into proper place with dull wet sounds. Anzealous hissed in deeply from the pain, filling his lungs as he opened his fanged mouth. He exhaled, his eyes focusing upon me as I suddenly found myself cringing against the wall.

"Enough of this foolishness!" snarled the ambassador in a voice not of his own. "You have harmed my child enough, filly queen." Oh God! It was Betty Crocker come to kill me!

I wailed with renewed vigor, promising myself never to make fun of glazed beef tongue ever again. This whole thing had turned into a terrible idea and I felt terrible for going through with it. The magic crackling from Anzealous was not his own, yet it came from him and was formed through his body and mind. I was suddenly aware of an older presence within him and felt her emotions wash over me like a relentless tidal wave. It crushed what little resolve I had left and I started to cry even harder.

"I'm sorry! I'm sorry!" Anything else I tried to say was lost in my blubbering. It was pretty sad, the state I was reduced to, flinging my hooves over my head and trying to hide the awful little fat changeling in red pajamas approaching me. Maybe if I didn't have to look, he wasn't really there! I wanted my daddy.

"This ground was given to the Druanae Hive and is considered my domain, child," seethed the possessed Anzealous. "Normally I would not hesitate to deal a swift death to trespassers the likes of you." The queen was inside the ambassador somehow. Her eyes had replaced his, becoming haughty and filled with vengeance. Her voice had drifted, shifting as she drew nearer until it was as though she was talking to herself."But you are an enigma to me. You are Chrysalis, yet you are not. You look and sound like her, yet your behavior is different, You are younger, yet the magic you possess is unmistakable. You were once the greatest of us, sister. What happened?"

I felt a grip that was impossible to break grasp my chin and force me up to look into the eyes of a cold-hearted being, practical, more given to logic than emotion. Those were angry eyes, sizing me up and breaking me down as those eyes systematically took me apart. I stared into them and was nearly lost as they flared, searching into me. Mindlessly I flung up some sort of mental defense, the words of Fleur pinging distantly in my mind a warning.

"Cease your senseless weeping. Why are you here?" she asked me.

"I was invited," I snarked, earning a slap across my face from a well-placed hoof. It stung and I soon tasted my own blood.

"But not by me!" she hissed. "You may be Celestia's guest, but even you are not above the precious laws the ponies hold so dear. You have answers I want. You will give them to me."

About then, all the great windows swung inward by a great gust of wind, telling me one of the reasons why pushing against them did not make for me a very gifted changeling in the comprehension department. My one eye I could focus in that direction noted a dark form silhouetted by the moon appearing with dramatic effect.

"Stay your hoof, Queen Druanae," Luna called out in a warning tone. "The child is foolish enough in her actions. Can you not feel her fear?" She alighted easily with nary a sound, folding her wings regally to her sides, her head held high and uncompromising. Hovering behind her in a hover were four Night Guards, thestrals I think they were called. Batponies. Neat.

Impressively, the form of Anzealous managed to match her bearing with the queen controlling his thoughts and actions. Wordlessly she released me through him. "As you wish, Princess Luna, if only for the sake of our peace negotiations. You understand I only wished to protect my subject." The lie was in her smile and the pleasant tone hid her disdain for me. She really, really, really hated me! I had touched her mind enough and tasted her emotions to know she wanted me to suffer greatly.

I slumped to the ground, my hooves barely able to keep me standing. Crawling to Luna, I found her throwing a comforting hoof over my shoulders and drawing me close. Her wing draped over me as if to hide me from the changeling and his controlling queen. Fae appeared through the window, buzzing worriedly before taking an intake of breath at the destruction of the room. My tantrum had been...impressive. The changeling mare awkwardly rubbed the back of her head and stared at the carnage. She expressed her sentiment with a low sliding whistle one might do when passing a seventy car pileup on the interstate after a patch of black ice said "I don't think so".

"I am lodging a formal protest, princess," announced Druanae through Anzealous. She leveled one of his hooves at me. "I charge this child with assault upon Ambassador Anzealous and demand justice as defined by your laws. I need not explain myself to the charges. This room speaks for itself, as does the servant who came for you." She flickered her demonic eyes towards Fae. The little changeling flinched, but bowed respectfully when she was noticed.

"Noted," replied Luna coolly, stroking my mane gently. "Her wrongdoing is acknowledged and will be addressed. She will be leaving for the Heart of the Empire two days hence." She offered a cold smile. "The Empress already knows of her and has demanded her return. My sister and I have both agreed for the sake of peace."

"The Empress knows?" Druanae faltered, her gaze dulling for a moment as if she was considering something. "Why would she not tell me? I am her successor." Again, she was mumbling to herself like a snake hissing to herself after missing out on a meal. Were all changeling queens like this? Dark, creepy, and not at all trustworthy?

Was I like that to the ponies?

Luna seemed to sense my unspoken question and softened her eyes briefly when she felt me move closer to her, not wanting to look at the glowering changeling. Why did she take over his body? Why did she take control of him? Wasn't Anzealous an individual with rights to live his own life and harbor his own thoughts? Was he a pawn his queen could control at whim and against his will? Would I do that to my own subjects? Would I even want to be a queen?

I want to go back to Earth. I can understand Equestrians being afraid of me and I really think that can be fixed. But my own kind feared me...hated me. Changelings terrify ponies, not only by their appearance, but even more so by reputation.

What did the old Chrysalis do? Was it the failed invasion nobody will tell me about? I was safe on Earth. I was safe in the house of my daddy's grandparents. I wanted for nothing. There were no other changelings to hate me. I just want to be loved. I live to be loved. The hate I've just tasted leaves a taste of ash in my mouth.

The possessed Anzealous cleared his throat and used her voice still. "Very well. It is of no matter. If she is aware and has asked for her daughter, then I shall of course adhere to her wishes. I shall inquire directly to the Empress myself."

"Do as you will, Queen Druanae," replied Luna politely. "I shall have this room repaired to its previous condition. Please inform the ambassador to make a list of personal items damaged or destroyed so proper compensation may be made. Equestria will pay her dues as I will take full responsibility for this filly's actions."

"Just one question, princess before you depart."

"Yes?"

"Is this...child the very same Chrysalis who was once my eldest sister?"

Luna allowed a pregnant pause before answering. "She is. Her memories of her past life no longer exist within her. Her course through life was renewed by powers beyond the grasp of myself and my sister. As to the reasons why this came to pass, I can only point to the course of madness and chaos. It has come to pass and nothing can change it."

"I see. Perhaps the answer is as simple as it is elusive."

Luna did not flinch. "Perhaps." She turned her attention to me with a gentle but firm nudge. "Come, child. You have done enough for tonight, I should think."

I flinched, staring up at her for a moment. I read from her profound disappointment in my decision making. I sniffled and looked away from her in shame. "I don't want to be here," I whimpered and was rewarded with the briefest twinge of sympathy.

Very, very brief.

"Don't you think you need to do something before we depart?" Luna nodded her head towards the shattered quarters. A brow arched upwards and I thought I could feel bemusement coming from her.

I didn't want to, but I turned to faced Anzealous. He appeared normal now, the presence of the queen having left him as quick as a passing shadow. Straightening his pajamas, he plucked mournfully at a few tears on one of his sleeves. Couldn't she take some of the excess fat from him with her? It was terrible!

"Ahem," he said expectantly. "You did break my jaw, young lady." Unlike his queen, he was terrified of me. He knew I was Chrysalis, which led me to think he was aware the whole time Druanae had controlled his body.

I sighed. "I'm sorry."

He considered me for a moment, putting on a brave front. "If you are Chrysalis, then your return changes everything."

Wait, what's that supposed to mean?

"Ambassador," warned Luna. "It is not your place." She turned, her mane of the night and stars guiding me away to follow. "Good night."

As we left, I more or less buzzed behind her with my head hung low, not wanting to look back at what I had done. My decisions were beginning to weigh down on me and the repercussions had yet to take their toll in full force. I had only hurled things. Imagine if I had used destructive magic! As it was, I had actually performed rather pitifully.

"Luna, I -"

"Do not speak, Midnight Emerald. I think your actions have done more than enough. I trusted you. My sister trusted you. We thought you capable of acting in a civil manner. Your actions tonight are uncouth. I can see now we were in error on allowing you basic freedoms. To betray such trust has consequences." She did not look at me. Using my faux name left me puzzled. However, that was not my primary concern.

"Am I going to jail?" I asked meekly, sensing fear.

"What part of 'do not speak' are you not comprehending, girl?" snapped Luna. She was really upset with me. I had never seen her this short before.

I clamped my mouth shut and sulked in silence, my wings generating the only noise from me. I followed Luna until we were at my balcony. The guard had been doubled.

"Leave us," the Princess of the Night commanded her Night Guard crisply. Her horn flared and my room was suddenly filled with light as candles burst to life. The fireplace roared angrily, reflecting Luna's mood. Wisely the guard departed. She noted my illusion on the bed and lifted the pillow from its resting place. Considering it for a moment, the spell broken the moment her own magic aura encircled it, Luna tossed it back upon the bed, her eyes never leaving me.

I was extremely uncomfortable.

"Were you going to kill him?" she asked quietly. "A barely schooled, untrained, and unprepared filly such as yourself? Were you to fall upon your raw abilities with your raw emotions and simply smite the very life from that changeling?"

Yes!.. "No," I mumbled.

"I say you wanted to."

"No!" I denied, fresh tears forming.

"You lie."

"He hurt my daddy!" I cried, my anger welling up in me. I had turned on Luna, spinning to face her as the outrage of why I went there resurfaced. "I wanted him to pay for it!"

"Repay the stupidity of one by taking his life? How noble." Luna was cold to me, regarding me with such profound sadness to bring my welling tirade to a screeching halt. "What would your father have thought if you had gone through with this murder?"

What would Dad have done if I had killed for the sake of revenge?

"I should have stayed on Earth."

"Of that, we are both agreed," said the princess, her tone unchanged. I could not look at her, having slumped in the middle of the floor and watching my tears fall about my hooves carelessly. "But you are here. You have acted. Dues must be paid in full. The past cannot be changed. You were lucky, adopted child of the human Michael Spriggs. I expect you to tell your father exactly what happened this night when he is deemed fit by his doctors. I suspect he will be far more disappointed in you than either myself, or my sister would be."

I looked up, startled and staring into her unreadable cyan eyes. "Please forgive me!"

"I will not. I am not the one who raised you to respect life. I am not the one who taught you the difference between right and wrong. I am not the one to whom you owe an apology to." The unforgiving princess bore her eyes into mine, her ancient eyes seemingly peering into my soul. Do I have one? I wondered briefly as she asked, "Do you know what it is like to bear the burden of the death of one? A dozen? A hundred? Thousands? Do you understand the consequences of taking a life and what it might do to you? I shall tell you what is like, young changeling queen-to-be. That your sleep becomes troubled, that some faces do not vanish from dreams, and that certain final moments haunt many lifetimes past. I should know. I was once Nightmare Moon. My rebellion against my sister came at a great price."

Stricken, I shrank from her, my emotions once again welling up. My lower lip trembled as I fought those stupid tears that would not turn off.

"Not yet. In time, child I will forgive. For now, I am deeply disappointed in you. You are confined to your quarters until my sister and I can come to a decision. Such potential within you and a second chance and already you seek to follow the same path that led to your first fall. I want you to dwell upon this night and remember well." Luna's mane reached out and lifted my chin until it compelled me to look at her. It was a very firm grip and felt cool on my skin. "Do not destroy yourself as you destroyed your former incarnation. You have a boon in the form of a second chance at a life so few are granted and even fewer still take the intuition to avoid those defining mistakes." She sniffed at me delicately and added, "Clean yourself up, and go to bed."

With that, she became dark smoke with a puff and disappeared from my room, nothing but a shadow of stars streaming out the window and into the night.

I wept in silence, lost in my thoughts. An eternity passed as I tried to come to grips with what exactly I had been doing this night. Why? What purpose? Would it have been worth it? Was I really capable of murder? What was it about me that had everyone spooked? What were they not telling me? What had not been shown on that stupid show I was wishing I had never ever seen?

I noticed the sun come up. Even it seemed disappointed in me.

A servant came in and kindly coaxed me into the shower. Numbly I complied. I don't remember taking the shower, nor do I remember the face of the mare who helped me. I don't even remember drying off or crawling into bed. I was tucked in and never heard her leave, suffering in silence.

I thought I was alone. The minutes ticked on, time ignoring my little collapsing world. I felt dirty and wretched. Daddy wasn't going to forgive me for this. He's such a gentle soul, it'll tear him apart when I tell him I tried to kill for him. Daddy was going to hate me. Daddy was going to go away, go back to Earth and I would never see him again. My terror of what might happen tore at me like a vulture upon a bloated corpse.

I felt a soft touch upon my mane, a gentle stroke and a soothing voice. In the month I had been here, I knew this voice. I actually sensed her gentle love first, then her presence. Or was it the other way around? I guess it didn't matter. I rose up, gravitating to her presence, wanting to be hugged and held and loved. She gladly accepted me, sitting on the edge of my bed, enfolding her hooves around my neck and shoulders. Luna had told her, I guess. She was a mom to her ponies. That's how she viewed herself, I think. Her alabaster fur was soft and warm and smelled of a spring morning.

"Shh, little one," Celestia cooed to me as she let me cry. "It's all right. Everything is all right."

"He's going to kill me!" I bawled, sniffling like a three-year-old.

"Who?" she asked, as she nuzzled me gently.

"Daddy! He's going to kill me!" I insisted and sobbed a good deal more.

Celestia laughed at my exclamation. "Oh, I don't think so. He loves you very, very much. He might be angry with some of your decision making, but he certainly won't kill you."

For some reason, I decided to be stubborn about it. Why? I don't know. I was sixteen. Hormones. "You hate me."

"I do not."

"You do!"

"No."

"Yes!"

Her barrel and chest shook with laughter she could barely contain. Another nuzzling of my cheek conveyed the silliness of how I was acting. I blushed, snuggling closer to this immortal mother figure that had seen hundreds of pony generations come and go.

Like any stubborn child, I simply changed tactics. "Luna hates me."

Her patience with me was astounding. "She does not. Believe it or not, she does like you."

I pulled back and stared at her incredulously.

"Well," she admitted, "I promise she doesn't hate you. She simply does not trust you. Give her time. Has she not taught you some magic?"

I nodded mutely.

"Has she not spent time with you and tried to get to know you?"

Another hesitant inclination of my head in the form of an affirmation.

"Of course, there's also Twilight. She's your best friend, isn't she?" Celestia prodded, her magenta eyes smiling warmly. There was something...wistful about them.

In the short time I've been in Canterlot, I've come to discover Princess Celestia has a very strong maternal instinct. She's presented faithfully in the show almost to a 'T'. It was her idea to assume the form of a human woman and present what would become a colorful animated show as a form of propaganda for her world. She wanted to break the truth to Earth and its only sapient beings slowly, to prepare them as best she could. At least, that's what she had told me. I don't know how much of the truth she's kept from me about what I was. I'm not even sure she's told her subjects of what is coming with complete transparency. Is she ready for it? Does she have too many fears? Does she question her own decisions even though she's had immortality to figure everything out?

Equestria is her child. She and her sister Luna were both there since nearly the beginning of this ancient country. So long as they sit on the twin thrones, there is no power on this planet that I know of capable of unseating them.

"Why won't you tell me about my past?" I asked her suddenly, remembering there had been one individual who had felled the immortal Sun Goddess. Me… sort of.

She paused in mid stroke of my mane, her grip on me tightening ever so slightly. I could feel her carefully guarded emotions shift beneath her mental wall. "Fair enough. What would you like to know?"

"Everything!" I stared up at her eagerly, disbelief at the prospect of hearing what I had been dying to learn since I came to Equestria.

"Everything?" she teased. "That could take a very long time."

"Princess!" I protested weakly.

"You are supposed to be in trouble, young lady," she reminded me.

"But you asked what I wanted to know!" This was getting frustrating. I was on the verge of crying again. Why was everyone messing with me?!

She sighed and admitted, "Well, if you had some knowledge of what your history was and why you attacked Canterlot, then I think perhaps last night would not have happened." Celestia's ethereal multi-colored mane undulated as it shifted. "Keep in mind, I can only tell you what I know based on the investigation following in the aftermath. Anything beyond that you'll have to ask the Empress herself."

"Empress?" I squeaked. This was new. "Luna said something last night about me being taken to one. Am I going to be sent to her?"

"Yes."

"Why?"

The answer was filled with a bit of distaste. "Because you are a pawn in a political game, as is your father."

"What did I do?"

"You came back from the dead." Celestia was matter-in-fact in her statement.

"Why my dad? What's he got to do with this?" I sat up and away from Celestia, bouncing on the bed unintentionally.

"Unlike you," Celestia began as she chose her words carefully. I could see it in her eyes. "Changelings do not see love as ponies do. To them, emotions are but a source of power and at times a liability. It is not an evil thing, mind you. Like all living things, changelings are not inherently evil. They will do as they are taught, as their foremothers taught before them. Their instincts are those of predators and not the herd mentality of ponies. The cultural difference between changelings and ponies are shadowed by the racial differences. I think your father would use the term 'we are the Yin, they are the Yang'."

I thought about that for a moment. "What about me? How does that apply to me?"

"You were raised by neither pony nor changeling, but of a being who is believed by ponies to be a myth, much as humans would consider a dragon a myth." The Sun Princess inclined her head towards me and leaned in. "But that debate is for another time. I shall answer your questions, Chrysalis Spriggs, as to why you attacked Canterlot. But first, you will sleep, little one."

I started to protest, but suddenly felt very tired. As I opened my mouth to protest, a yawn replaced my words. My eyelids felt really heavy for some reason. Celestia rocked me gently, humming softly in the most beautiful and warm voice I had ever heard. I tried to fight it, but this seemed to elicit a chuckle from the ancient alabaster mare.

Hello, sleep. I'm Chrysalis. Wanna hang out for a few hours?

Chapter 9 A Wild Story Arc Appears!

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Twilight Sparkle wondered just exactly what it was she had been called for. Princess Celestia wanted to meet her about a matter of seeming urgency. Pacing quickly down the hallway bordering on a canter, her fast trot took her past guards and servants who were used to seeing the newly minted alicorn princess dart about the hall. More than a few remembered her as a filly racing through the palace when summoned, eager to please. Now she had ascended to an alicorn, so the stares she received were more often than not behind proud smiles. Twilight Sparkle had always been an aloof but charming filly. Her love for knowledge and hunger for reading anything she could get her hooves on was often compared to a changeling's unquenchable thirst for love.

This trip, she was asked to bring nothing but herself. No notes, no quill, no parchment, no books. Just herself. How strange was that? Idly she wondered if it was a quarter to ten in the morning or fifteen after. She calculated in her mind it was probably closer to ten, but discarded the thought as she mentally counted the minutes since she left her library half an hour ago. It had been twenty-one after nine and Spike had poured her third cup of coffee while she re-read the letter from Princess Celestia for the fifth time. It was fairly blunt, almost an invitation presenting the face of a near command. It was difficult to tell with Celestia. She could be vague in her letters at times, but this was was fairly to the point and suggested the purple pony prepare to present herself. Of course, a summons by her mentor was always a delight. Her studies could wait a bit longer. Besides, her friends were off doing their own things today.

As it was, her steps brought her in the direction of the private quarters of the Sun Princess through the upwards spiral steps of the great tower upon with she resided. Oh, she could have flown and would have preferred it, but Celestia had insisted she not be seen. This was a curious request and Twilight thought she sensed a twinge of nervousness from Celestia's letter. This was odd in itself as there was no physical way anypony could place emotions from ink to paper. This even struck the young alicorn as an impossibility as such magic would be wasteful and not really productive. Twilight reasoned as she had prepared for her journey from her library to Canterlot perhaps the princess was planning one of her high brow pranks, or perhaps Princess Luna was regressing. Maybe Chrysalis had acted up? Well, she was here in the palace under close watch and under an assumed name and disguise. Twilight had spent enough time with the changeling queen to know she was not what she would consider a threat.

Chrysalis was currently a teenager by means of magic pointing all hooves at Discord. Somehow the Lord of Chaos had managed to not only regress the former queen to the age of a young filly, but had opened a portal to the past and placed her in another world! Even more fascinating was the revelation from Celestia herself the race of beings—called 'humans'—who inhabited this world were the only form of sentient life. The egghead even found herself fortunate enough to meet one face-to-face! Unfortunately, she was only able to go if she promised Celestia she would not ask questions. As sensitive the moment was, even she would not have done so, despite her mind screaming for answers in regards to everything new and alien in her eyes. Earth was such a strange and fascinating world! Twilight had felt as though she had missed out on a great deal of study as well as an introduction to an entirely new species to her. Celestia later mollified her anguished student by promising her access to as much human culture as she would allow soon enough. Twilight's delight turned to concern when the princess informed her their worlds would soon be permanently attached. As to why Chrysalis had just spent the past thirteen years of her...'renewed' life with one particular human could only be summed up in one word: Discord.

He had apparently banished himself to this new world to avoid the ire of both Celestia and Luna as he had meddled (again) in affairs none of his concern (he argued everything interesting was of his concern). Twilight wondered this as she ascended the stairs, marveling at how Rainbow Dash had not only taught her how to use her wings, but build up her overall stamina with the rigorous exercise. She was only slightly winded by the steps. They gently wound up along the inside of the outer wall of the great spire and there were a great many of them! Still, she mused partially how these steps used to wear her out in her younger days. Another part of her lingered on the strange little friendship—even mentorship—she had established with Chrysalis. Rather, Midnight Emerald as Luna proclaimed her moniker to be while in disguise within the walls of Canterlot. Chrysalis clung to her the first week after her arrival, frightened from being away from her adoptive father. The human was invited to come only after Celestia deemed it might be necessary to re-establish the mental link between the two. Twilight theorized it was a sort of hive link and the young queen to be needed it in order to develop properly until she finished maturing.

So far, she felt she was neither completely correct nor entirely wrong. Changelings were secretive to the point even their ambassador sent to minister a peace treaty between Equestria and the Empire refused to have anything to do with any ponies other than the princesses. No amount of coaxing would budge Ambassador Anzelous from his stance, though members of his staff did indeed deal with members of the Royal Court of the Sun and the Moon. Twilight was able to figure out Chrysalis was not the only queen.

Still, there were other things to worry about. She sensed the changelings were not the focus of this particular summons—well, request actually as Celestia regarded her as an equal. Twilight thought she would never get used to being considered an equal in the eyes of her beloved teacher. Luna accepted her ascension readily and was even more so pleased if possible as it strengthened the friendship between the Princess of the Night and the Princess of Magic. Alicorns were indeed an exclusive club. The letter felt of a more personal nature, one involving a very select and small inner circle. Her feelings suggested (irrationally, she believed) Cadance would be there, also invited. It would be an alicorns only meeting.

She neared the top of the stairs, flicking her tail in amusement as she smiled to herself. As her mind sorted through her thoughts, they were nowhere near as orderly as she might appear when her (in)famous checklists were involved. When lost in thought, the young mare would often multi-task her thoughts and would occasion get them jumbled when there was no particular focus. This was part of the reason why some of her experiments in magic would go wrong, though it was not often (but with spectacular results). Powerful as she was, Twilight was still a student of magic. She was barely removed from her teens and would be in the eyes of humans considered a college student.

Chrysalis had explained it to her. Human society could be orderly and often was, but was quite confusing and chaotic in the eyes of Twilight Sparkle. Still, she wanted to see what humans knew. Apparently she now would have all the time in the world to pursue her various studies.

She shook herself from her thoughts, regaining her focus as she stood before Celestia's door. There were no guards as she preferred complete privacy. There were few in the world who could challenge the Princess of the Sun, though Twilight wished her mentor would put a couple of them on duty. This was highly irregular, in her estimation. Twilight cleared her throat and prepared to knock, raising a hoof.

"Come in, Twilight," called a familiar voice from the other side. "We've been expecting you."

The young alicorn smiled to herself, wondering how it was Princess Celestia was able to do that. The tone in the elder alicorn's voice was calm and serene as always, settling some of Twilight's fears aside. She opened the door with her magic and slipped inside, always happy to see Celestia. She was like a second mother to her. Though she was glad to see the white princess, she noted the concern etched upon the visages of the only other two alicorns in the world.

"Hello, Princess Luna," she greeted Celestia's sister warmly. Luna smiled briefly and nodded before shifting her attention to Celestia expectantly.

"It is good to see thee, Twilight," she intoned rather formally, her eye rolling back to Twilight for a moment. "Thy coming is welcome, though the reasons for thy summons warrants an explanation more for your benefit than mine."

"Oh? No greeting for me?" snarked a familiar pink alicorn to the youngest member of the alicorn family. Her tri-colored mane was of deep violet, rose pink, and pale gold. Upon her head and behind her horn rested a golden crown adorned with a pair of large rubies: one in the center and the other mounted at the tip of the middle peak in her crown. "I come all the way from the Crystal Empire, away from my husband, and away from my other boring, dull, and unending piles of paperwork only to be ignored by the very filly I once foalsat?" Her grin belied her tone as she rose from her cushions and wandered towards Twilight slowly.

Twilight's eyes went wide. "Cadance!" she crowed in delight. Her hunch was right as she dashed forward. "Sunshine, sunshine!" she began, starting a ritual concocted when she was a filly. Both mares went through the little poem in one voice, "Ladybugs awake! Clap your hooves and do a little shake!" Cadance gleefully knocked her hooves against her former charge and shook her flank at her, Twilight mirroring her. Both girls laughed when they finished and hugged.

"It's good to see you, Twilight!" Cadance said when they pulled apart. Any onlooker could tell she was slightly taller than Twilight.

Twilight looked at her, very glad indeed at this unexpected visit. "When did you get here? I didn't know you were coming. Even Pri—, er Celestia didn't mention you in her letter!" She still let slip on occasion the formal address to the white princess though she had been told repeatedly (and in good humor) to simply call her Celestia. They were equals, though Twilight would never consider herself as such to a creature most ponies considered an immortal goddess.

The pink alicorn grinned. "Oh, I had been planning this for weeks. I arrived on the morning train just an hour ago. It was supposed to be a surprise." She leaned in and gushed suddenly, "They have this new sleeper car that has all sorts of neat little things for creature comforts. It was heavenly!"

"It's just really good to see you, Cadance!" beamed Twilight. "How's my B.B.B.F.F.?"

"Still married," grinned Cadance with a twinkle in her eye. "He's doing fine. I wanted him to come, but one of us has to stay home in case an unmitigated disaster erupts during the preparations for the re-opening of the castle to the general public. We finally managed to get the last of King Sombra's presence from the last room in the castle. His little presents were everywhere!"

"That's great! I'll have to come and see what you've done to the place."

They chatted a bit more as they made their way to the elder alicorns. Celestia and Luna were both amused and enjoyed seeing the two greet each other. They settled next to each other around the low round table set with tea and cookies.

"Celestia," Luna began, wagging a hoof at the two as she implored her sister in a pained voice, "please tell me you didn't teach them that." It was the first time she had ever seen Twilight and Cadance do the foalhood rhyme and dance.

"Mayhap I did," chuckled Celestia. "You weren't embarrassed when we did it as children. I wanted to preserve some of our better memories growing up. I was rather fond of it. Shall we do it, for old time's sake?" She rose and wiggled her flank at her younger sister.

Luna blushed furiously. "We certainly shall not!" she declared, fighting a smile threatening to split her face. She stared at her sister, her resolve collapsing. "Maybe later?" she suggested in a little filly voice completely unbecoming her demeanor.

"So," Cadance said after the resulting laughter had died down, "what is so important I had to come as quick as the wind and away from important husband-wife things I wanted to do with my Shining?" Her gaze settled on Celestia, who assumed an apologetic tone.

Twilight did not want to dwell on the meanings of her friend's statement, but she assumed it involved naughty things involving a bedroom.

Four cups of swirling night and day colors artfully crafted by hoof had been laid out along with a matching teapot. It commemorated the return of Luna to the diarchy and had been sent as a gift by a young potter seeking to make his mark in the world. Crafting the exquisite piece the ladies were now all admiring promised him a grand start in the business world as both princesses decided to give the poor fellow a rather generous grant to explore his profession and build upon it. He was currently in high demand with some notable nobles with his artful craft.

There were also an assortment of cookies on a silver platter, all freshly baked that day. Almond cookies, chocolate chip, sugar cookies, gingersnaps, oatmeal raisin, peanut butter, frosted; they were countless and each one mouth watering as they awaited beneath more than a lingering gaze or two.

Celestia poured, starting with Cadance, then Twilight, moving to Luna, and finally herself as pleasantries were exchanged. It was rare indeed when all four could get together and enjoy small talk. They shared gossip and stories, the antics of Shining Armor as he still had trouble being Prince Consort to Princess Cadance making him appear the lovable bumbler in the eyes of the Crystal Ponies. They found his efforts to adjust to such a formal setting amusing and sympathetic towards his better adjusted wife.

Luna found herself grumbling over the name of one Steel Jaw, a unicorn soldier who also happened to be a rather recent addition to her Night Guard. She had recommended him herself to her Captain, citing his marvelous service record in the regular army. Though she had few unicorns in her ranks—there were mostly thestrals, Luna was made aware of the hostility of Steel Jaw towards a certain changeling and the near brawl with her human father. She griped for a moment longer about possibly disciplining him. Then Celestia suggested she assign him permanently to the human until he learns to be a bit more tolerant. Reluctantly Luna agreed, slurping loudly at her tea while glaring at her sister with eyes not focused on the subject under consideration. Now she only mulled in the back of her mind when to do it.

The matter was dropped when Twilight brought up some antics of her friends. There had been inevitable rumors of a rogue changeling roaming about the halls of Canterlot. Naturally Twilight's friends knew about it before hand, leading to a rather serious discussion with them in regards to stopping these rumors from spreading. The changeling ambassador's existence was not exactly common knowledge either, but carefully leaked information to the press in controlled amounts had made for a more acceptable level of concern for Celestia and Luna to deal with. So far, it had worked as anticipated. Ponies had always had (for the most part) absolute faith in their diarchy. But the rumors of a queen roaming about the castle brought Twilight's suspicious eye over her friends. None had exactly been sworn to secrecy, the events of the trip to Earth more or less pushing the discretion of letting out Chrysalis' current whereabouts as a passing thought rather than something of more importance.

It was a note of embarrassment for the ladies (save Cadance, who was hearing this for the first time). This also spawned a pregnant pause of epic proportions as winced looks swiveled to the wide-eyed Princess of the Crystal Empire. She had just now made aware she was in the same castle as Queen Chrysalis. Her pupils shrunk to pinpricks as she stared in utter confusion at Aunt Celestia.

"Say again?" she managed flatly, wearing a faux smile. Her eyes were starting to bulge from her pretty face.

"She's a filly now and has no memory of her past," reassured Celestia. She sipped her tea, her magenta eyes calm and reassuring. A concession was added off handedly, “Well, more of an adolescent teen.”

"Why was I not informed of this before?" Cadance demanded, setting her own cup down with an audible click of indignation.

"What would you have me do?" Celestia asked her pointedly. "Put her on trial for something she has no knowledge of? Put her before the scrutiny of a nation still reeling in shock? Do you wish me to pass judgement on a child, Cadance? I've seen her mind. Luna has seen into her dreams. Chrysalis is not the creature you remember."

The pink alicorn sighed and closed her eyes. The Princess of Love collected herself and wordlessly counted backwards from ten. Regaining her composure, she opened them and sipped her tea. "How long?" Cadance asked bluntly. Her horn selected from the tray of treats a delicious victim. A cookie was bitten savagely into. It was chocolate chip, its middle still warm and gooey in the middle. There was almost nothing left to mourn..

"A month," replied Luna as she too found herself selecting a round delight. Her sugar cookie had been baked as a moon waxing in a crescent. Or was it waning? She regarded it almost lovingly, admiring Nom Delish's kitchen staff for paying attention to little details. She bit into the cookie and chewed slowly, savoring the explosion of cookie charisma in her mouth.

"We wished to observe her carefully and have done so with utmost caution. She is always watched," the princess sighed, rolling her eyes slightly as Celestia gave her a meaningful look. "Well, up until last night."

Twilight perked up at this. As did her old foalsitter. Both exchanged stares before going back to the dark alicorn in an expectant hush. "What happened, Aunt Luna?" asked Cadance with more genuine curiosity. She was never the malicious sort. She was, after all, considered the Princess of Love and for good reason.

Luna chewed thoughtfully, studying the two younger alicorns, her eyes darting from one to the other with the practiced ease of a huntress trying to decide which doe to bring down. Her meaning was clear as she expected both of them to remain calm and not to make unwanted outbursts. This was supposed to be a friendly gathering of a rare sisterhood.

"Well," Luna began after taking a sip, "it would appear Midnight Emerald took it upon herself to seek retribution on her father's behalf for the attack upon his mind late yesterday morning. After seeing him safely emerge from his coma last night, she managed to sneak out of her room and make her way to the wing where the changeling ambassador and his staff are housed. You remember the negotiations, don't you Cadance?" Her ears swiveled and focused on the pink princess.

Cadance nodded slowly. "Are they still going on?"

"More or less. It is a bit...slow in progress," Luna admitted, allowing herself a little exasperated snort. Celestia nodded serenely in agreement.

"What did Chrysalis do?" asked Twilight as she leaned forward. She nibbled on a gingersnap as she did so, her forelegs acting as a fulcrum. The young changeling had become a friend in the month since coming to Equestria from Earth. She was nothing like the conquering monarch she remembered.

Cadance set her jaw, her mind flashing back to her personal and unexpected nightmare on what was supposed to have been her special day. "Yes," she said crisply, "please tell Twilight and me what happened."

"Cadance," Celestia reproached her gently. She refilled the ruler of the Crystal Kingdom's teacup and offered her the tray of cookies.

"I'm sorry," sighed the princess as she gave an apologetic smile. She took an oatmeal cookie this time. "Do go on, Aunt Luna."

Luna chuckled despite herself. "As I was saying, Chrysalis decided to pay a visit in the dead of night to Ambassador Anzealous. You remember him, don't you?" she queried Twilight pleasantly.

"The little fat one who kept staring at my flank when he thought nopony was looking?" Twilight noted with professional observation. "The one I would love to teleport in the middle of an ice-filled lake and drop a mountain on top of afterwards? The changeling who keeps making passes at my friends and uttering suggestions while safely snugged away beneath his blanket of diplomatic immunity? That Ambassador Anzealous? Nope. Name doesn't ring a bell."

"Don't abuse a mountain for the sake of a fool," giggled Celestia. She knew well Twilight was not only capable of dropping a mountain on somepony, but she could get it to sing on the way down. "One might sense you might dislike it as much as you dislike the good ambassador. Poor mountain."

The ladies laughed before Luna continued with her recollection of last night's events.

"Our young changeling queen decided to take the assault rather personally and decided to do something about it. Somehow she had managed to get her hooves on a spell book or two we had expressly forbidden her access to. She's got enormous power, but little mastery over it. Thankfully, most of the spells are beyond her understanding to this point." She sighed, refilling her tea and noted to her sister they were almost out. Her horn flared and it was refilled with steaming water while Celestia summoned the appropriate tea bags to seep into the teapot. The two had done this many, many times as it had almost become a ritual without thought, only reflex.

"Did she do something to the ambassador?" Cadance asked when her aunts were both done making more tea. It had been such a serene moment between the two, she dared not interrupt it. In one simple task, she and Twilight had seen the deep love and devotion the Sun and the Moon had for each other. Luna's personal healing had come a long way indeed. The sisters were truly sisters. They were the only immortal alicorns in all the world, though it remained to be seen if Cadance or Twilight would follow suit.

"Indeed," said Luna softly, sharing a sisterly smile with Celestia. She tossed her mane and cleared her throat politely, focusing her attention to the two mares who did not know the story. "Chrysalis attempted to seek out the ambassador with the intent to kill him."

Twilight's eyes went round. Cadance drew in a sharp breath and hissed, "Her own kind? What sort of monster is she?"

Celestia answered her gently, "Monsters aren't born. They are made. Chrysalis acted out of instinct to protect her family. Changelings can and will pursue a perceived threat until it is destroyed or driven from them for good. Perhaps it was something ingrained within her or perhaps it was due to the simple fact she nearly lost the only thing in her young life that has ever mattered to her."

"But still!" protested the pink alicorn, not believing such a blatant attempt at a life would even be possible within the security of Canterlot's walls. Her will faltered as she remembered. "So, he's dead?"

Twilight's hair stood up on the back of her neck. "Murder?" she managed through a squeak. That couldn't have been her own voice she just heard! It was so full of disappointment and bordered on tears. "Chryssie murdered somepony?" Tears formed.

"Nay! Nay!" Luna held up a hoof imperiously. "Stay thy tears, beloved friend Twilight!" She inadvertently shifted to her formal tone in an attempt to assure one of her dearest friends. "The details are a bit vague, but it would appear the timely conversation with another queen the ambassador was engaged with brought about the discovery of Chrysalis in their midst. No lives were snuffed out."

The heaving sigh of relief from Twilight was audible, ending in a raspberry from her lips. "Oh thank goodness," she declared weakly, a hoof to her chest as if to soothe her pounding heart. "Her father would have been really upset."

"Never the less," said Luna with a upswing in her mood, "the redecoration of the room was worthy of a three day battle! Chrysalis changed from anger to fear upon being discovered and fell into tears. What control she had of her powers fell to the point of simple telekinetic temper tantrums sacrificing all objects within the room not bolted down."

Cadance felt oddly cheated her old nemesis had not fallen upon killing in cold blood. Inwardly she berated herself, but how could she accept the fact the one creature she still had nightmares about once again roamed Canterlot? How was she going to deal with this? Nervously she sipped at her cooling tea. She should not be thinking such ill thoughts! She was the Princess of Love, for heaven's sake! Forgiveness was part of her personality. Never was there a pony in the world capable of loving and forgiving as she. Even Celestia had told her so in years past. Love was her strength and with it came forgiveness. One cannot love without being able to forgive.

"This is difficult for me to hear," she admitted out loud. Cadance felt sheepish and hunched her shoulders a bit upon speaking. "I understand why you would want to keep her return a secret from me. Aunt Celestia?" she looked up.

"Yes, dear?" Celestia refilled her niece's tea cup as she took a small bite from her own cookie.

"What is your honest assessment of Chrysalis?"

The ancient mare smiled after a moment of thought. "I believe this is not the same changeling who attacked us. Her mind is the same and her body is the same, but I think her soul has been molded differently. She knows love and compassion. She's young and does not have the cruelty I associated with her past self. I do not trust her completely, but I am confident she will do no harm now."

"But didn't Aunt Luna just say—" Cadance felt her words die in her throat as Celestia gave her a warm smile.

"She wept in my hooves like a filly this morning," Celestia said quietly, closing her eyes at the memory. "I could feel her shame and disappointment in herself. She has a good heart, Cadance. I should like for you to speak to her yourself before she leaves for the Empire tomorrow." She tilted her head to one side. "Come to think of it, you should meet the human she considers her father. A remarkable individual, if a bit overwhelmed with Equestria and possibly a bit put out with our country. A bit of a black mark upon us, I'm afraid."

"Human?" Cadance mouthed the word slowly, turning the word over and over on her tongue like tasting a strange food for the first time. "Aren't they myths? Like centaurs?"

"They exist. They come from another world, but they are most certainly not myths. As a matter in fact, I have been watching their world for a very long time. Soon, our world will be linked with theirs permanently. I'm not exactly sure how soon, but I think within twenty years." Celestia rolled her eyes to the ceiling, calculating within her head. "Perhaps sooner, closer to fifteen. The window is long and the event is inevitable."

"Is it safe?"

"He's perfectly harmless, I assure you," her aunt promised with a tinkling laugh like silver bells. "Perhaps a bit grumpy, but Fleur de Lis has him under her careful watch while he recuperates from his ordeal. He should be in his new quarters now and soon to have a much needed chat with his daughter."

Cadance remembered the unicorn mare. She had always been nice to her. Lady Fleur de Lis was nice to everypony. "Why is Fleur interested in him?"

"Didn't I tell you? No, I suppose I have not." Celestia shook her head and tapped a hoof to her chin. "Now is as good a time as any. Fleur is in charge of all operations having to do with the study of Earth and its inhabitants. She's the mare who sends the operatives to certain countries in order to prepare ponykind for humanity and visa-versa. It was her idea to push the children's books I've written over the centuries and modernize them for introducing humans to our culture, if a bit watered down. She felt it would be necessary to start with human children and work our way up. Give the generations a chance to grow with the idea of ponies existing instead of being nothing more than the fancies of overactive imaginations. We had several attempts before with mixed results, but the current one seems to have taken a life of its own. Between the two of us, I would venture to say we have much to be proud of. As a matter in fact, my visits to Earth have been most productive!"

"You've been there?" Cadance was incredulous. "What's it like?" she asked, suddenly curious.

"Crowded," chuckled Celestia. "I spent a deal of time spending a day or two in several of their cities to get a feel for humans on a personal level. Such fascinating creatures! They have advanced so quickly and are masters of invention. They dominate their world. They are beginning to become aware of their impact upon the other living things they share their homes with. They are learning, adapting, always changing, yet always stubborn. Fleur was not so inclined to be as agreeable to the cities as I was. She's always been more of a country mare."

Twilight assumed a hurt look. "Why did you never tell me you've been to this world before?" she asked sullenly. "Didn't you trust me?" So many opportunities missed!

"It's not that, Twilight," Celestia assured her. "The human world is for the most part quite orderly and very civil, but the cultural differences between our races—to say nothing of our appearance compared to theirs—would have chanced at misunderstandings. As from what I have seen, they are still learning to adapt to the changes they make themselves. There is only one race of humans, but they are in some parts of their world embroiled in conflict based on beliefs and superiority complexes. Though I am certain most of the more developed countries on Earth would welcome us with open hooves, I have noticed a few things on a political level to make even our most hungry political animals seem like kittens to them. They are not yet ready for us, and we are far from being ready from them in comparison. Until Luna and I decide it is safe, we are going to select ponies who volunteer even with the threat of their very lives at stake to go to Earth to study. You being the Bearer of Magic removes you from consideration. I am sorry, Twilight."

"But you took me with you that one time!" she protested, pouting. "We went into that human's house and I saw all those wonderful things in there! It looked so much like the houses we have, only a little bit bigger."

Celestia held up a hoof for Twilight to quiet down. "Be that as it may, I was with you to protect you."

Luna leaned over. "Oh, come sister! I do believe you owe Our good friend Twilight Sparkle some leeway. Especially considering the proposal you and I have discussed, and with great conviction at times, I might add!" She smiled at the youngest alicorn. "She's earned the opportunity, don't you think? Especially considering what it is you wish to ask of her. Even so, I know why you really don't want her to go. Though I understand the reason, mark my objections to such a stipulation. I have not changed my mind in this regard."

Twilight's eyes darted between the two sisters, her brow scrunched in confusion. Casting a sidelong glance at Cadance, she asked her, "What are they talking about? Do you have any idea?"

Cadance took a moment to regard her adoptive aunts. She knew. Her visage changed from a lost smile to a small frown having found the memory she sought. Her eyes lit up and her lips parted, bearing neither a smile nor a frown, but surprise. "Of course!" she said to herself. It shifted to a much softer tone as a certain realization seemed to strike her like a bolt of lightning. "Of course."

She suddenly found nibbling the edge of a fresh cookie the most intensive thing in the world to invest in. Cadance did so, her attention fully upon Princess Celestia as her treat hung from between her lips in an absent-minded fashion. This took a manner of seconds as the cookie faded from thought and Celestia took up her little world. "Is she the one, Auntie?" she asked in a tiny voice. There was a distant hope to her words.

Celestia drew in a slow breath, her chest and barrel expanding as she did so. Her wings adjusted as she shifted her legs beneath her body. "It's possible."

"What's possible?" Twilight asked, utterly lost to where the conversation was going. One minute, they were talking about Chrysalis, then talking about her human father, then their world, the inception of introducing Equestria to these humans, and finally...whatever this was. Though she could easily keep up with the shifting topics, Twilight was thrown by the sudden stares of every mare upon her. It made her squirm uncomfortably.

"Twilight, as you know you are the most gifted student of magic I have come to know in a very long time," Celestia said, breaking the awkward silence. Stealing a quick prodding nod of approval from Luna, she was uncharacteristically composing herself from a sudden bout of nerves. "You are the only one who can help me achieve my greatest dream. I-i-it's a selfish dream and it requires me asking you to do something no other pony has been able to do in all the years I have raised and lowered the sun." She lowered her eyes and seemed to struggle with herself. Luna gave her a supporting nuzzle and lifted her teacup to her lips.

Twilight was both intrigued and a little frightened at Celestia's sudden change. She seemed vulnerable now. "If you need my help with anything, Celestia, you know I'll be more than happy to give it my best!" she insisted adamantly, rising to her hooves. Reflex flared her wings partially to stress her point as she was eager, always eager to please her mentor.

"Twilight," Cadance cautioned gently. "You might want to hear what she has to say first."

"What do you mean?" Twilight asked her with a quirked eye. "If it's a new spell, I'm sure I can have it mastered if I have enough information to study and practice. Anything is possible when it comes to magic and proper application. Did Celestia have you try it, Cadance?"

"I tried once, but I couldn't do it. My magic just isn't strong enough to handle the responsibility." Cadance nodded towards Celestia.

The elder alicorn was bemused by Twilight's ramblings and patiently waited it out as her niece interrupted the now excited lavender mare. "You might not seem so excited when I tell you what it is I want you to try."

"What? What?" Twilight did withdraw a bit as magenta eyes bore into her as if to see into her soul. "Celestia? What is it you want me to do?" Her excitement had been replaced by a little bit of fear, but her curiosity was piqued.

Celestia gave the slightest of nods. "Twilight, my student, my sister. There is no other being blessed with magic enough to do what I am about to ask you to do. The burden of my responsibility in regards to the sun must be lifted from me and placed upon the shoulders of one who can bear it for a long time. I must relinquish my connection to the sun and give it to you, if you are willing and able to bear it until a time I am ready to resume the responsibility that has been mine for more than an age. The reason for which I wish to do this are as I stated just moments ago; selfish and personal."

Twilight Sparkle, the Bearer of the Element of Magic and most recently ascended alicorn and Princess of Magic gaped at Celestia in open shock, her body stiff and unmoving, save for the tiniest of squeaks emitting from her strangled throat. After several more moments of strangling the frog in her throat, she shook her head and blurted, “What do you mean? You want to give me your sun? Why?”

Celestia’s gaze turned away from her former student, bowing her regal head as her expression became strangely neutral. When those magnificent magenta eyes, full of wisdom and age came up again and held Twilight’s own, there was an ancient sense of sadness and loss there. Then she spoke, her voice far away and lost in the past and to a different time.

“Let me tell you a tale, Twilight. A tale known only between myself and my sister…”

Chapter 10 She Drops a Bomb on Me!

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One does not expect to wake up in a fluffy bed, sunken so deep you think you're in a white valley of cotton comfort. It's almost like I'm in a layer of clouds! The materials they use to fill the mattress is kind of like those form-fitting ones, but much softer and even therapeutic. Again, I wonder what this fluffiness is called here in Equestria. I really can't put a finger on it, but it's amazing! A warm breeze tickles my nose and coaxes me to open my eyes. My dreams were odd, I recall; strange creatures watching me, studying me where one large one I felt I recognized had me for tea with the Mad Hatter, Ronald Reagan, Maureen O'Hara, the Pope, and a big-nosed penguin named Opus (yes, a bird with more of a massive honker than a beak). There may or may not have been nachos and cheese involved. The large creature was Sil, I remember groggily as I wipe the eye boogers away and it occurs to me there were other changelings listening...erm, watching...uh, how do you describe it? It was at Soldier Field, home of the Chicago Bears. John Madden narrated. With squiggles. I really remember the John 'effing Madden squiggles from the dream. They were everywhere!

I have strange dreams, it would seem.

As I slowly become aware of my surroundings. The first thing I notice is I am not in the hospital anymore. Blinking in confusion, I groan, not wanting to sit up (I'm just sooo comfortable!) and try to make out where I am exactly in the most lazy fashion imaginable. I just move my eyes around and maybe adjust my head a little. I just don't want to move. The pillow is perfect, neither too cold nor too warm and the sheets feel so clean and soft. I feel like I'm lying on a bed of fuzzy kittens without the meowing. I miss having a cat, now that I think about it. Having Chryssie around more or less cautioned against such a thing as there was a good chance a Mr. Whiskers incident would repeat itself and actually finish with tragic results.

There's a reason why we never had a vermin problem around the house back home. Who needs a cat when you have a prowling changeling practicing her hunting skills on unsuspecting opossums and raccoons? Of course, she stored most of them in those cocoons, using the local wildlife to practice her innate changeling skills. I've yet to see how she does it, but I imagine Chryssie secrets it either from her mouth or the holes in her legs. She won't show me as it's a point of embarrassment for her.

Where was I? Oh, yeah. I'm waking up. I'm in a strange bed. A very comfortable, perfectly normal sensation of not wanting to get up sort of strange bed.

I'm also quite naked.

What? As a jaybird? Nothing but my birthday suit?

Yay Stars and Stripes Forever freaking me.

This will not do. I sit up reluctantly, blinking as I'm more aware of the fact I am sans clothing of any sort (not even the hospital gown) and laid out in a strange bed in a strange room in a strange house owned by a stranger.

"I need an adult," I mutter to myself, my stab at humor more an attempt to quell the sense of dread Equestria has begun to sow in me.

I really, really, really am starting to hate this place. Oh, sure it's colorful and pretty and makes Disneyland look like a dump, but it's the stuff behind the curtain that's making me writing a strongly worded letter to the management. I'll even use the thesaurus when I do! What is it going to take for a guy to simply check in on his kid and make sure she’s settled in? If you think about it, I’m the parent who just saw his daughter sent off to college. At least that’s how I’m trying to see it. It’s not working out really well. Somebody’s up to something behind the scenes.

I'm looking at you, Sunbutt.

Don't get me wrong: my first impression of Celestia when I met her at the house what felt like a lifetime ago was awe and fear. My tea time with her expanded on those original feelings, adding a sense what I thought did matter to her and she would do within reason what she could to make my stay here as comfortable as possible. From what I understand, she was really put out with whoever assaulted me. I think she took it personally, given the promise she had made while we chatted to ensure my time in Equestria would be no more than a pleasant vacation with the possibility of returning further on down the road. She chose not to elaborate other than to suggest her world and mine were going to be linked on a more permanent basis.

Selecting one of the sheets, I peel it from the covers as I gather myself into a cross-legged position and take in my surroundings while throwing it over my shoulders like a toga-robe thing. I don't know what else to call it other than modesty resumed. I just know I'm looking around the room for any sign of my clothes.

It's a huge room, much like the suite given to me in the castle. Am I still in the castle? I don't know. A cursory glance out the massive window taking up almost an entire wall tells me I am obviously not in Canterlot as it sits there filling half the view, perched precariously on the side of its nook in the mountain. Around it and huddling the pristine walls are the buildings of the city proper like a litter of kittens nestling close to their mother for protection. I must not be too far from the portal I came through as the scene almost matches what I had seen a couple of days ago. This feels a bit closer and at a lower elevation. The quick glance becomes an appreciative stare at the beauty before I tend to the matter at hand.

That is one impressive window, by the way. It's an expensive one, looking like three arched windows set together as a matching set, with the middle arch the tallest and bearing a fleur de lis at its center. It takes about four seconds for it to dawn on me where I might be. I stare at the white trim forming the shape and note how perfectly clean and shiny the glass is. The window pane is essentially a lounge built into the wall, arching outwards as the window itself is contoured to shape. There are white and rose petal pink throw pillows arranged neatly along its length. I think it's meant for a pony to lie there and stare outside while doing pony things.

"Where the—" I stop myself from saying a forbidden word. I've spent years trying to keep my daughter from using foul language. I'll never claim to be a saint when it comes to language, but needless to say, I'd like to think my grandparents would be proud of me for trying to 'keep that filth' out of my vocabulary. I sort of let that slip while I was in the Army. Shit and hell are about as far as I'll go, Chryssie tends to slip into some of the more colorful aspects of the human language when she thinks I'm not listening. Damn internet.

She learned about seven years ago a bar of Irish Spring is a horrible troll.

I do a mental reboot, taking in a deep breath as I figure for a moment I'm not in prison: I'm in a comfortable bed, it's a lovely day outside (noonish?), and I'm buck nekked in a stranger's house. What could possibly go wrong? I'm sure a certain Mr. Murphy would love to play havoc with the next few minutes of my life. Is it Tuesday already? Stupid joke aside, I take a moment to see the rest of the room. Its splendor rivals that of the room back in the castle.

It's large, spacious, with a high ceiling. I take note of a mural depicting ponies riding over a flowered meadow towards a fierce flock of griffons, battle standards on both sides proudly frozen in mid-flap in a breeze. The sun and the moon are both in their fullest glory - one side of the sky is lighter than the other. Within each celestial body are the faint outlines of what appear to be unicorn heads in stark profiles, facing each other in the mural. The one in the sun has the griffons fighting for...her?, I guess while the ponies are under the one in the moon. I wonder if there's a story behind it. There usually is. Murals depict a certain historical or religious event and usually embellished depending on the imagination of the respective artist. This one looks like it's painter had one hell of a vision when he did this piece of art. Each creature has startling detail, almost as if they might fall from the ceiling and drop to the floor in the throes of battle.

"Neat," I say to it as I stare owlishly. I'm still not awake. The comfy haze between full wakefulness and sleepy bliss tugs at me to do either one or the other. It's actually a pretty nice option to have when there's nobody bugging you to get up before you're good and ready.

I decide to see what else is in the room. It's a bit rich for my tastes. I've never been a fancy guy for these sort of things. But everything seems what you'd expect from what looks like a guest room to me; a queen-sized bed, a nightstand by it, an oil lamp sitting upon it, bedpan slid discreetly beneath the furniture. My eyes have shifted from the ceiling to this bit of furniture, sliding along the wall beyond to where a walk-in closet lies open. Next to it is what appears to be a small bathroom. Then there's the other wall where what I assume the entrance to the room is. There's a large full-length mirror on the wall and I can see a disheveled man in need of a shave staring back at me with wry amusement. The expression on his face sours, moving on to the rest of the room as my visual tour reminds me I'm in a strange place.

You know, I should be panicking. I should be flailing my arms, making loud noises involving chagrin and outrage. I should be running for the door, nudity be damned.

But, I don't.

I feel oddly safe in this room. This bed is a haven. Nothing can harm me here. It's a sanctuary. No, it's not. It's another reason to add to the dossier I've compiled on Equestria as a place to loathe. Waking up in a place nobody told you would be your new bedroom inclines me to believe nefarious things are afoot, or something like that. I must be drugged, or something. I simply can't seem to panic. I want to panic! Strange place means strange people! Strange people means me sitting in a dentist's chair while the dentist comes at me with a drill and asking, "Is it safe?"

My daughter's name shoves its way to the foremost of my thoughts. Where is she?

I shoot back up again, just in time to catch the door open to my left. Do you want to know the sensation of sitting up while feeling mellowed out? It made me giggle like a lunatic. They drugged me. I laugh harder. Those damn ponies drugged me! Why? No, wait. It's not drugs. I'm just losing my mind. Nothing special. Move along. Nothing to see here, folks! The reality check bounced!

"Bonjour, Monsieur Spriggs!" calls out a voice unfamiliar to my ears. A gray pony with a fiery mane enters the room. She's some sort of servant, I think based off her simple uniform and the large tray table on wheels she's pushing in with her nose. "Vous sentez-vous bien?"

I notice she has no horn or wings. She pushes the tray to a nearby table by the window, smiling at me the whole time. In her eyes I can see her nervousness. Must be the cackling human in the bed thing. I don't have a clue what's she's saying. I don't speak Fancy. The mare sets about to putting a covered plate on the table, setting out forks and what I think smells like freshly brewed coffee in a pot to go with a small tea cup. I eyeball it like a vulture anticipating a perfectly rotten corpse just ripe for pecking. The maid — I assume her to be such prattles on in her native language rapidly as if to talk the nerves out of her system. She won't look me in the eye directly, but her stray eyes catch my face as I stare at her with a goofy grin on my face. I'm not laughing anymore, but I'm sure I've got one hell of a case of bed head to make her think I'm cray-cray.

She busies herself with setting out breakfast. Breakfast for lunch? I must be in heaven! I double check the skies outside. Yep, it's lunch time and I'm smelling waffles! I find it weird she's using her mouth to set the plate and utensils. How does she get that dexterity with her lips and hooves? She combines them together in an orchestra of practiced skill. I wonder what time it is.

"C'est un beau matin," she exclaims with a titter. "Le soleil est brillant et le ciel est bleu." She then rattles off more words, shifting eyes seeking out escape. She's terrified of me. I guess she's supposed to wait for me to do something. I don't know, maybe get up?

I shift from where I'm sitting, swinging my legs up, out, and over the side, having to scoot on my butt and heels to get there first. I keep the sheet wrapped around me for modesty's sake. The mare stares at me, her smile cracking plaster as her eyes grow wider and wider. I plant my feet on the floor. It's cold. I glare at it indignantly and stand up. The mare's head tilts back as her smile fades. I'm not quite standing to my full height, but I blink, smack my lips, and scratch an itch somewhere in my scalp.

A morning groan escapes my lips and suddenly there's a rapid, "Je suis désolé, monsieur!"

There's the clatter of hooves pounding the stone floor and the sound of a door slamming shut. Before I can open my eyes, I'm alone in my room with nothing waitng on me except for breakfast. I fall upon it like a lion on a sickly gazelle. Scrambled eggs, hash browns with ketchup, buttered toast and jam, pancakes, and finally a small fruit salad: They all fall before me, their little screams completely imagined in my head as I eat with gusto. I had no idea how hungry I am until the first bite goes into my gaping maw. The massacre was complete when the last piece of pancake is chewed ravenously only to take one last fall to the pits of my stomach.

Still draped in my semi-toga bedsheet, I push back from the table and note the chair I'm in isn't really made for humans. It's like sitting at the kid's table on Thanksgiving. There by my coffee cup I notice a neatly folded note with my name emblazoned upon it in really fancy writing. I wonder why I hadn't seen it before, but shrug it off as just a case of tunnel vision. Coffee in one hand, note in the other, I pry it open with a finger and flip the folds apart. I sip as I read, fully displaying my ability to multi task.

I reflect on my most recent memories. I remember talking to my kid and how worried she was. She didn't want to leave me. Chryssie's a good girl. Stubborn, willful, and argumentative when the mood suits her, but basically a good kid. At least she doesn't do drugs. The letter hangs limply in my fingers, unread. I blink, starting out of my thoughts and sigh.

The letter is addressed to me and it's from Fleur. Aloud I read, "Dear Mr. Spriggs. I apologize for the sudden change of scenery. As you can tell, you are no longer in Canterlot castle. At the suggestion of Princess Celestia, you have been removed from the palace for your own safety as the events following the attack on your mind has made the place untenable in regards to your comfort during your stay. As I have plenty of room in my mansion, you and your daughter will be staying with me until the situation sorts itself out. My staff is not as prepared as those at the castle, so I apologize in advance if some of the ponies appear frightened by your appearance. They're Prench. They're good ponies. I've known their families for years. Give them time. I vouch for them without reservation. Your good friend, Fleur de Lis."

I glance at the bottom of the letter. There's a post script. "Oh, I forgot to mention the Lady Midnight Emerald will be joining us for lunch. Her room has already been prepared. Odd thing about your personal belongings. They appear to have disappeared from the quarters given to you in your quarters. Princess Celestia is quite upset at this turn of events."

"Great," I say as I roll my eyes to the ceiling. I wave the letter carelessly about. 'I've been robbed!" My legs splay out beneath the table as I slouch in my frustrations. The chair objects to the sudden shift of weight and its back only reaches partly up my spine. As I lean back, the front legs lift and the chair teeters precariously on its back legs. There's a pause—a dreadful, awful sensation and I topple backwards, arms windmilling as I realize gravity is making me its bitch.

"Whoa!" my voice protests loudly. My legs flop and kick, contacting with the bottom of the table. It bounces with each kick, the plate and fork falling off. The fork bounces with a ping and the plate simply shatters. My head bounces off the floor. I can confirm it's stone, ladies and gentlemen! Stone hurts. My head was still sore at that spot from my last fall. Same place! I'm seeing stars and pain trailblazing through my nerve endings like Lewis and Clark exploring the Louisiana Purchase in the cockpit of an SR-71 at Mach three while hugging the contours of the earth. I'm tied to one of the engines as it screams through the air.

Yeah. That kind of pain. I might be exaggerating just a tad, but as I've said before: Yay me. Did I mention I'm not exactly having fun vacation memories of Equestria at this point? No? Yes? Oh, yeah...a bug empress wants to see me. I think. For some reason, I didn't think this way back on earth. Something had been mentioned about the air of Equestria and the magic inherently in it having some sort of effect on my thought process. Was it Luna who told me? I think it was. I also remember she's not at all a fan of me being here. I don't know why.

A man will often contemplate such things while lying on his back, legs draped haphazardly over a tipped over chair and dressed in a bed sheet. I am no exception as I try to figure out what exactly went wrong when I first came here. It should have been an enjoyable visit to spend some time with my daughter while she acclimated herself to her real (heh!) world. Instead, I find I have been drawn into a political mess I don't even have the foggiest clue to as the whole thing seems to center on keeping my kid somewhere in Secret Squirrel status.

Gingerly I rub the back of my head, groaning a pitiful unmanly sound more like the whimper of a whipped dog. Rolling on my side with a groan, I note the shattered pieces of plate on the floor and sigh. After picking myself up, I readjust sheet around and begin to pick them up. It's a bit of a struggle, but I manage. Just as the last large chunk of plate I can manage with my fingers is added to the pile on the table, there's a soft knock at my door.

Oh, great. I look down at myself and realize I'm more dressed for a Roman senatorial debate than anything else. Where are my real clothes? Why am I only now realizing I'm dressed in a bed sheet? "Just a minute!" I holler while looking around.

"Monsieur Spriggs? Are you all right?" asks a muffled voice from the other side of the door. It's Fluer. "I came to see how you are doing. There was a loud crash. Are you hurt?"

Why can't there ever be quiet crashes? "I'm fine! Where are my clothes?" I call back to the door loudly. "I can't find them!"

There's the sound of a whispered question and a babbled answer. Then another question I can only assume to be sort of an 'are you sure?' which is answered with the (P)French word 'oui'. "Try the wardrobe. Your clothes were cleaned and placed in there. Take your time and please come out when you are dressed." I think she sounds amused.

"All right! Thanks!" So, they saw me nekked? Why am I suddenly blushing furiously?

"De rien," is the giggled reply.

"What?" Did they like seeing me sans clothing?

"I said, 'you are welcome'!" She's giggling through the door. In a softer tone, she's rattling off in her native language to someone else. Probably the made I scared half to death.

"Oh!" I feel stupid. Chryssie can speak three languages that I know of, thanks to the power of the Almighty Internet. "Why didn't you say so? Gimme a minute!"

"Take your time and please feel free to shower first!" They're having a mental image of me showering, aren't they? As I might have mentioned earlier, I need an adult!

"Ah, yeah, thanks. I'll do that!" I wander towards the bathroom after a few seconds of looking around to spy the door. I must be overreacting and imagining things that simply could not be true and would be downright absurd to even contemplate.

I hear a snort and a titter, as well as harsh whisperings followed by even more giggling. Fleur discusses things with a light voice to whoever she's speaking to and there's a response in kind. They're speaking in their native language as I spy out the wardrobe in question and pad over to it. I have a sneaking suspicion they're talking about me. Why wouldn't they? I'm probably the only white man in the mansion or Equestria for that matter.

The shower is surprisingly not unlike the ones back home. I had one like this in the palace, but it's so strange seeing something as normal as one would expect on Earth for bathroom amenities, but made smaller to accommodate equines. I have to stoop under the shower head as it comes to my collar bone. As a matter in fact, as I lather myself up with soap, I stare at the ceiling and note an oddity just now occurring to me.

Pony homes have high ceilings. They simply do. No unicorn or earth pony could possibly reach some of the shelves that are easily ten to twelve feet off the ground. Did it have something to do with a herd mentality? The need for open space even indoors? Compensating for something missing? Insanity? The need to make background scenes fill a television screen so the characters have an open space to interact with each other in?

Nah, that last one is just silly.

Finishing my shower, I brush my teeth with the toothbrush provided at the sink, but forgo shaving. Maybe I should grow a beard. What do you guys think? Should I grow one? No, wait. Fourth Wall talk here. Sure, I'm talking in the present tense, but it doesn't mean you guys won't be reading this a hundred years from now. Moot point is moot point.

I'm going to shut up and get dressed. I hang my towel up and walk in the buff back into my room. I'm alone, I can walk around naked if I want to.

Inside the wardrobe, I find my clothes: earth toned flannel shirt, black t-shirt for beneath, jeans, underwear (thank you pony gods!), a pair of socks, and my hiking boots. Of course, there's also my Australian booney hat. In less than three minutes, I'm dressed and ready to dread this world again.

Just as I tie the last lace on my boot, there's another knock at my door and it swings open slowly. A pale pony head swaddled in a pink mane pokes in with a smile, her large eyes finding me quickly. Fleur de Lis lights up visibly when she sees I look hale and hearty.

"May I come in?" she asks politely.

"Kinda late for that," I reply dryly. Lifting the note I had left on the table it's in my grasp as I glance over it. "How bad is it?" I blurt to Fleur as she enters.

Behind her is a small army of servants who swarm in, each one giving me a little bow. I notice the one who had brought my breakfast, refusing to lift her head up as she tries very hard to avoid me without being noticed. Of course, this just makes her attempts all the more obvious.

"If you would be so kind as to walk with me, mon ami," Fleur says with a warm smile, indicating the door with a graceful indication with her horn. "Let the staff do their work. Never you mind the plate. Il n'est pas important. I have an old friend I should like you to meet. Perhaps the two of you should be good friends, non?" For a moment she winces at the shattered bits of plate on the floor, then the remains I piled on the table. Did her lip just tremble?

The staff, I notice is a bunch of giggling school girls. I can't help but see they stare at me for moments while they work, then whisper to each other. Then they giggle. A lot. Fleur ushers me out the door quickly, throwing a half-hearted stern glare at them before it melts into a smile of her own. The maids only start to laugh harder as the door closes behind us.

"Why are they laughing at me?" I keep my hat in my left hand. It would be rude to wear it inside such a grand home. Or any home, for that matter. I definitely feel out of place in this massive domicile.

"Oh, they do not laugh at you," she assures me.

The mansion interior reminds me of a fancy cathedral. There are pony busts everywhere, lining the walls and each one looking very serious. Paintings line the hall and partially melted candles sit upon golden candle holders set in the wall. Or do you still call them candlesticks? The floors are wooden and shine from a recent waxing. I'm tempted to kick my boots off and slide around on my socks. Warm, bright colors festoon the walls, most of them reminding me of sunshine and clear blue skies. There is very little trim, but each room we seem to enter has a fireplace. A big fireplace. Each one seems to have its own member of the staff cleaning or dusting or straightening something. I notice they're mostly mares. They greet Fleur politely and with practiced deference, always smiling. It must be a requirement for potential employees here to have a nice smile. As expensive as everything seems to be, there's a lot of functionality and practical application to each piece of furniture managing to catch my interest as we walk. There are a lot of display cases, most of them holding something.

I'm talking the whole time. I don't know why, but I just start telling Fleur what I think of my stay to this point. I'm rather blunt, I'm afraid. I admit I'm probably not being fair to this world, but I haven't really found nearly getting into a fight with one of the Royal Guards near and dear to my heart. Nor has discovering my daughter has been stuck in a gilded cage since she came here exactly made me develop warm fuzzies for this place. Then, there's that oh-so-fun-I-recommend-it-to-all-first-time-visitors-to-Equestria assault upon my mind which probably didn't help my thought process all that much. I know I'm a psychological cripple. I've lived with the prospect of toppling into the mental abyss of a complete collapse for years. In a way, I want it to happen just so I don't have to wonder when anymore.

The unicorn simply listens attentively, not interrupting. She prods me with gentle words when I'm between breaths and collecting my thoughts, encouraging me to speak my mind freely. Finally, my rant ends and I feel a little better. I rub the back of my sore head and wince.

"You have nothing to fear from me," she assures with an understanding smile. "Speak freely, speak honestly. I imagine you have more to say, but this is what you need now. I understand your position. Princess Celestia understands you all too well. This is why she placed you in my care until tomorrow."

Of course, I have to ask. "Tomorrow? What's tomorrow?"

"It is not for me to say as she has chosen not to tell me."

Well, that makes me feel so much better! I roll my eyes but say nothing.

Eventually, we come to a grand staircase sweeping from the floor we're on to the ground floor. This must be the lobby, I presume, or whatever passes for the main room visitors first see when they enter this house. It's fairly narrow at the top, but splays out towards the first floor. In its middle is a large bronze statue of an alicorn rearing on her hind legs, her wings splayed out in glory and her head looking down upon those who grace this home with their presence. The statue is the first thing visitors would see when they come in and she seems to both welcome and warn guests. Gaping in awe of this masterpiece, Fleur proceeds to tell me to note the statue has Luna's cutie mark on one side and Celestia's on the other.

A massive crystal chandelier hangs over the center of the room, almost big enough to cover the whole floor. A pegasus is currently replacing the candles, putting the old ones in one saddlebag on his right side while new candles are plucked from the bag on his left. He smiles and waves at us before going back to work. I notice his cutie mark is a candle with a pair of gray wings spread wide.

"Celestia presented this home to me many years ago," the unicorn mare says after allowing me a moment to drink in the sight. "I protested of course, but she had no use for the estate. As I had no residence of permanency in Equestria, I realized it wouldn't hurt to accept her most generous offer. I have done little to change the appearance of this house. The original owner was very much a faithful son of Equestria. Alas, he passed with no immediate family and stood empty for decades as property of the crown."

"Who am I meeting?" I'm prompted to ask. We start down the stairs. Her hooves tic-tac lightly on the marble steps.

"His name is Fancy Pants. I have had the pleasure of calling him a dear friend for almost a decade now. A very prominent stallion with many powerful friends. He's proposed to me at least a dozen times over the years. Such a dear!" She smirks, glancing at me through the corner of her eye. Her tail flicks in my direction.

I nearly stumble. Why would you tell me that?

"Ah, so you are paying attention!" she chortles at my expense. "Non?" I must be blushing like a boy who just realized he's noticed girls for the first time. What is her game, exactly?

Females! It's bad enough I'm wrapped around a certain changeling's finger—er, hoof? Horn? She continues as we descend, my eyes lingering on the impressive detail of the alicorn statue. It looks like it could come to life at any moment!

"None of the bad things were going to happen, mon ami," Fleur is saying, a bitter sigh hinted in her tone. "You were supposed to get a grand tour of Canterlot city and spend a day or two in Ponyville. Princess Twilight Sparkle wanted to have a one-on-one question and answer session with you if you felt inclined. Princess Celestia was so looking forward to showing you the good side of Equestria as well as the difficulties Émeraude de Minuit faced. She wanted so badly to prove to her sister humanity does have some good examples of positive influence to show her beloved ponies. Nous n'obtenons pas toujours ce que nous voulons."

I'm not going to ask her what she meant with that last sentence. There's regret for sure and I'm beginning to think maybe I did overreact (justifiably, dammit!). Not feeling inclined to forgive all and soldier on, I simply nod to Fleur with a bit more understanding to her plight. I think she wants the same thing Celestia wants. Maybe. Hell, I don't know. They seem like they've been friends a long time.

We reach the bottom of the staircase where a stallion—I assume the butler waits for us patiently. He's also a unicorn and begins speaking very formally to Fleur de Lis, punctuating his words with the precision of a military commander, bobbing his head at the right time. He's dressed to the nines in a black suit fitting him perfectly. Nothing is out of place. I haven't a clue as to what he's saying.

Fleur introduces us. "Monsieur Spriggs, this is my butler, Tomas. His family has served me for generations and he is my eyes and ears for what goes on in my home when I am away."

His English (Equestrian?) puts me to shame. "Delighted to make your acquaintance, sir." He bows politely. "Might I add you will have all of your needs attended to during your stay. Please do not hesitate to ask me or one of the staff. They all speak Equestrian, despite their preferred language of gossip." He's got a smile that would make a politician concede defeat.

Fleur giggles, putting a hoof delicately over her mouth. "But how else are we to speak in front of the object of our interest openly and without guilt or shame?" says she with an air of mock seriousness. "To gossip in Prench is to make tilted ears yearn for more!"

Tomas gives her a deadpan stare. "It is as my Lady says," he says, showing a slight smile. "I shan't speak my native language in front of you, Mister Spriggs." The deference to me is a bit embarrassing. "Some of us would prefer to be up front and honorable in our intentions." Fleur stamps a little hoof, glaring at him in mock outrage. "Master Fancy Pants awaits in the drawing room, along with the Lady Midnight Emerald. She has only just arrived, along with a guard I presume to be from Princess Luna's Night Guards."

"My daughter is here?" I remember the letter Fleur wrote.

The butler nods warmly. "A charming young lady, if a bit skittish," notes Tomas affably. "One might presume she has something to say she is not really looking forward to. But what do I know? I'm just the butler." He begins to walk stiffly, yet with a certain odd flow as if there's no effort in his steps. Tomas...glides and Fleur flounces after him, nudging my hand to come with her. She actually used her mouth to grab a hold and tug on my wrist. Her lips felt odd on my skin. Not unpleasant, but just odd. As soon as I start after her, she lets go of me and smiles before turning her attention forward.

We pass through a double door and down another spacious hallway. Texas would love to have this sort of 'everything is bigger in...' housing in its borders. I'm noticing the theme for ponies. ‘We build 'em big because we can! Scale be damned!’

I remember the pegasus and begin to wonder if the high ceilings has more to do with preventing the pony fliers from feeling cooped up than anything else. Could it be that simple? The halls do seem wide enough to let a pegasus fly down them with room to spare at the wing tips. It was double back at the castle, if I remember correctly.

Tomas guides us unerringly past a few doors (honestly, how many huge rooms are there in this house?) until he turns abruptly to the right where a large oaken door frame beckons. Within is another large room with several stuffed chairs arranged around a round coffee table. In the center of the room is a Persian rug. Four windows with their heavy curtains drawn open let the sun stream in, basking mostly on the chairs and walls.

I can see an white unicorn stallion with a short, wavy azure mane (and mustache!) professionally styled. He seems to be wearing some sort of dinner jacket over a blue vest. The stallion also sports a purple bow tie. He's speaking to a not-quite-familiar mare—she's sitting with her back to me—and looks up when we enter.

"Ah, there they are!" he announces pleasantly. The stallion has an accent I place as being noble British. I think. The guest he's with spins around, her cerulean mane whipping about. Emerald green eyes fall on me and widen in happy surprise upon recognition.

"Daddy!"

Fleur and Tomas wisely step aside as a black ball of weepy happiness runs me over like a Mack truck. Only, I'm prepared for this onslaught and catch her, only staggering back a few steps as she bawls in my arms. I doubt she weighs more than a small woman. Still, I'm not the spry young man I once was. "Oof!" is the appropriate response. "Heya, pumpkin!" I say into her ear. We embrace for several long moments. It's nice to have something normal I can feel and see with my own eyes. Though, I'm not used to my Chryssie with fur. None of this trip has been normal by any stretch of the imagination.

"Are you okay now?" she asks, pulling back and looking me up and down. "I mean, you're not brain damaged or anything?" Chryssie sniffs me critically, her nostrils flaring and the sound of air rushing in and out making a distinct wish-whoosh sound.

"No more than I was before," comes my dry answer with a smirk. I plant a kiss between her eyes. "Who's this? Your new boyfriend?" I look over to the stallion who had risen and was simply enjoying the scene.

Chryssie flushes. "No! Daaaaad!" she whines plaintively, shoving my shoulder with a hoof. She drops away on all fours, glaring up at me over her flaring red cheeks. Adorable!

Fleur laughs as Tomas bows politely and departs like a passing well-dressed ghost. The white stallion is chortling. "Greetings," he says affably. "My name is Fancy Pants. A pleasure to make the acquaintance of the father of this charming young mare." He approaches and offers a hoof. I have to stoop over to shake my hand to his offering. How does a hoof get a firm grip? I note that mentally as his grasp on my hand could only come from someone used to pressing palms and meaning it. "Miss Midnight simply can't bring herself to stop talking about you."

I grin. "Nothing good, I hope."

"She says you're the most terrible creature of the foulest temper!"

"That's my girl!"

"Daddy!" Chryssie's turn to stamp a hoof. Fleur pulls up to her and is shoulder-to-shoulder with my daughter.

"Pay you no mind to your papa," she coos, using her magic to straighten a stray strand of hair in my daughter's mane. "He is the playful sort, non? Come, let us all have a seat and discuss important things." I note the odd inflection of the word important as her glance slides upon Chryssie before flicking to me.

My kid deflates noticeably and nods after heaving a great sigh. I know that sigh. I dread that sigh. I've spent years getting to know that sigh. "What did you do?" Crossing my arms over my chest, I straighten and assume the 'you're in trouble even if I don't know what you did yet' posture.

"I'm afraid she did something rather...rash last night," Fancy Pants puts in, only to be shushed by Fleur de Lis' deliberate stomp on one of his hooves. Fighting tears of pain, he announces, "Right! Right! Let us sit down!" He limps noticeably back to where he had been sitting earlier.

Fleur sashays in his wake, her tail swishing as the only display of her personal amusement of something. Other than that, she bears an unreadable expression on Chrysalis and holds it as if she were a marbled sculpture. My daughter flinches under the stare and sighs, hanging her head as she follows after. I bring up the rear, completely baffled by the sudden downturn in the mood.

My kid settles uncomfortably into her seat, fidgeting and staring at her hooves. I walk past her and her head follows, her eyes turn up and following me from beneath her mane. An unhappy frown creases her pretty face. I sit down in the only empty chair, noting the chairs are all arranged equal distance apart and around the round coffee table. A tea tray with all the necessities appears in a flash as I sit down. Out of the corner of my eye I notice our hostess' horn aglow.

If there's one thing about my daughter that's a constant, it's her ability to dive headlong into an admission and go into details. Lots and lots of details. She spills out everything even as my butt touches the cushion of my chair. It always starts out with, "Daddy, I'm so sorry, but..."

Like any good father, I listen. I might not fully understand or grasp certain ramifications, but I listen. And gape as the details are exposing my daughter's penchant for secrets as they begin to fall out into the open, exposed one by one. She starts by telling me how she used to sneak out of the house at night after I was fast asleep to practice her innate abilities and try to figure out more about what she was and what she could do. I hunch forward, elbows on my knees as I clasp my hands in front of my mouth, resting my chin on the crook of both thumbs.

I listen. The way she's talking now begs me to not stray from her words. Chryssie speaks clearly, yet softly. I'm upset with her and she can feel it, but I'm holding my thoughts. Tears are streaming down her face now, her body as still as a statue as if any movement might elicit a break in my focus on her words. Still, Chryssie keeps spilling out what happened last night. How she snuck past Celestia's and Luna's guards, snuck past the two changeling guards, got into the ambassador's wing. How she planned on killing the ambassador.

I lurch when she admits that. I really don't want a stranger listening in on this, my eyes flicker over to the white stallion. He is listening, even as Fleur has her undivided attention to my pumpkin's words. Oddly, he has no surprise at all etched on his long face.

Her words die out and she looks at me expectantly, her bottom lip quivering.

"Daddy, please say something," she begs.

How long was I staring? How long did I mull over this completely unexpected and goddamn horrifying revelation? What was I supposed to think of it? How was I supposed to react? On the one hand, I'm flattered she would go to such lengths to do something this stupid. I'm happy she actually got cold feet and Princess Luna stepped in. I'm not at all happy she thought killing someone was a solution. I'm not happy she spent years sneaking out of the house and spying on my neighbors. I'm not at happy she did not think this through and let the ponies handle this. Inwardly, I'm very proud of her as much as I am disappointed. Such inner conflict!

"Damn it, honey," I say through a slow exhale. How do you react to this? How should I handle it? Rubbing my temples, I feel a headache coming on. "What were you thinking?" I angle my head slightly so I can see her fully from between clenching my head in my hands.

"This is the reason you were moved to my home," Fleur's voice floats over the heavy stillness following my exasperated question. "Canterlot is in an uproar and somehow it was discovered changelings have been hidden by the princesses. Fancy Pants was asked to make the move as seamless as possible."

I remember the note. "Do you know why I was robbed?" I ask the stallion bluntly. I'm thinking it's got something to do with my daughter's misadventure in the night. I don't want to look at her right now.

Unruffled, the unicorn shakes his head. "Unfortunately not at this time. As the head of the RIB, I can tell you not only am I up-to-date on who you and your daughter are in terms of sensitive information inherently vital to the security of Equestria, but I can also tell you I will have an answer to your question by the end of the day. As it stands, the only possible individuals who might have an interest in you would be some of the nobility."

Blinking at the acronym, I can't help but ask, "RIB?"

Fancy Pants sits a little straighter in his seat. "Royal Intelligence Bureau," he supplies helpfully, "It's my job to keep an eye on the nobility for the princesses. Especially with the delicacy of the past year since negotiations began with the changelings. I shouldn’t worry about it. Your things will be returned to you. My ponies are very good at what they do. Your thief has been caught. All we need is the name of the noble who hired him."

That’s good enough for me, but it doesn’t mean I have to be happy about it. I am not. I’m brought to focus on this unpleasant bit of my daughter attempting murder...

"Daddy?" Chryssie's voice cracks. I look at her. She's edged closer to me, desperate for an answer, any answer from me. "Please..."

"Do you know what it's like to kill?" my voice rumbles from my throat. "Do you know what it feels like to take the life of another? Do you ever wonder why I never talk about what I did in the war?" I feel so sad now, but I know I should also feel immense relief she didn't take that final, awful step.

She shakes her head once, slightly. I stare at her hard. She shakes it with more emphasis. "No, I don't," she admits with a blurt, face contorted in shame. "I got so scared, Daddy! I wanted to run away because I knew I was doing something dangerous and stupid! I wanted to protect you, but I just got so scared!" More tears fall.

My voice is hoarse. "What were you thinking, pumpkin?"

A throat clears audibly. "Perhaps I can shed a bit of light on this," Fancy offers when my attention goes to him.

"I'm listening." My look warns him to not give me any crap explanation.

"Changeling queens are naturally inclined to protect their primary source of love as they need them, in fact to help hatch their eggs."

I look at him stupidly. "Huh?" My brain fizzles as the only logical solution pops and whirls and I go into a state of mass assumption. No...

There's a soft poke at my arm. "Dad...?"

"Are you pregnant, too?" I demand shrilly, spinning on her like Ace Ventura realizing that's not Snowflake. Chryssie draws back from me, her eyes saucers and mouth hanging agape in incredulous shock. Wait...eggs? "Who is he?"

"I don't understand," she stammers, physically shrinking from me. "He? He who?" —she suddenly realizes what I'm raving about— "Oh, nonononono! No! Nothing like tha—"

I rise like the Kraken from the sea and rage, "I WILL CASTRATE THE SON OF A BITCH AND MAKE EARRINGS OUT OF HIS BALLS!" Eggs?! I think I just broke my brain again.

"Monsieur Spriggs, calm yourself!" snaps Fleur de Lis. Her eyes are a bit wide, I notice.

How many eggs?

"DADDY, I'M NOT PREGNANT!" screams Chryssie in a voice that would do Bruce Dickinson proud.

"Mr. Spriggs, how are the grandkids today?" Someone will ask me in the park and I'll joyously answer, "Oh, scrambled with pepper and salt, thank you."

...Wait, did she just say, 'not pregnant'? Hawkishly I peer down at her. I think one of my eyes is twitching. "No?" I beg, plead, and hope all in one word.

"Positive," she assures with a squeak. Which is in itself not very reassuring.

"My word," murmurs Fancy Pants. "Do sit down and calm yourself, Mr. Spriggs. You are not behaving rationally. You are not doing yourself any favors by jumping to conclusions. If you sit down and let me finish, perhaps I can enlighten you to more details in regards to last night's incident." He fixes me with a stern glare.

I feel a tug at my hand and look down. It's coated in a green aura. I look up and spy out the owner of the glow. Chryssie is tugging at me gently with her magic, having come off her seat and moved to my side. "Daddy, I'm sorry. I'm not going to kill anyone. Please forgive me! I'm not pregnant, either. Please calm down, Daddy. I'm just so happy you're all right and safe. Please Daddy!" She's almost bawling, like she was a little filly, her slightly disjointed voice cracking and small and so very little girl-like. Her chest heaves with each gasp. Her magic tugs my hand to her face, wanting me to pet her and tell her everything is going to be all right. When did her voice begin changing?

She reminds me of me. My adopted daughter is a reflection of my emotions, my feelings from nearly two decades ago.

"Not pregnant," I parrot again. I flop unceremoniously back into my seat and stare stupidly. I do a lot of stupid staring. The back of my head still hurts. Now I've got a headache. A shaking hand touches fingers to my forehead. My brows scrunch and I pinch the bridge of my nose. No, the headache never went away, I correct myself.

"Coffee?" a disembodied voice asks to my left. "To settle your nerves? Not a good shock to undergo, non? I must say, Monsieur Spriggs, you are a most interesting specimen of this human species you represent."

Gratefully I accept the offered beverage, looking up to see Fleur smiling at me. She's always smiling. Even when she frowns, she's smiling. What a weird mare.

"Thanks," my voice manages through a forced smile. "I'm sorry. Why is he here? Why does he know about Chryssie? Let's start this whole thing over. Just let me finish this first." I heft the cup to my face, not looking anywhere else but at the surface of the steaming mug. Ah, coffee. You have never failed me.

My daughter curls up next to me, her nose pushing against my hand again. I can't stay mad at her, though I really am disappointed with her. I taught her better than that, I swear! Though the way she reacted while telling me was enough to convince me of her remorse. I don't make eye contact with her, but I do ruffle her mane between her ears reassuringly. I'll talk to her more about it when we have some privacy to have something more on a father-daughter level. I slurp my coffee and just let my thoughts set themselves as I mentally prepare myself for the shitstorm I've obviously walked into since day one.

Three and a half gulps later (or was it three quarters?) I finally look up from my cup, taking in a deep breath in the process and leveling my gaze at Fancy Pants. "Let's start with you, Mr. Fancy Pants. Since I've gotten here, I've had two things going for me: Jack and shit. Jack split about the time someone thought it would be neat to play god in my head. This leaves me with shit. So, let's talk shit. Please tell me, just what in the goddamn hell have I gotten myself into?"

I feel Chryssie stiffen next to me. Her eyes bug at me with enough force I can taste them. I don't curse around my kid. Hell, I haven't cursed since that night I first found her. Seems like yesterday. Her body tenses like a deer sensing danger. A reassuring scratch of human fingers convince her to relax a bit, though I can feel her body quivering. She's still afraid and she knows she's upset me. This is a different me she's seeing for the first time. She's seeing the warrior trained by the U.S. Army make an appearance after a lifetime of trying to forget him.

"You certainly have a rustic grasp of the common language," notes Fancy Pants wryly. "Very well, I shall endeavor to enlighten you to the best of my abilities, or as much as my position allows me to. There are certain things I cannot disseminate without permission from the diarchy or the Council."

"So what can you tell me?"

"Allow me to start with the relations between Equestria and the Changeling Empire. There's another name for it of course, but it's unpronounceable in any language unless one is linked to the Hive Mind." Fancy Pants nods as he speaks. Even though he has a stuffy way of speaking, he doesn't seem half bad to me. "After the invasion and battle following in the wake of the false wedding, there was a great deal of anger and confusion. Nopony knew why the changelings attacked and were even more surprised to find out such creatures existed."

"How long was the battle?" I ask, suddenly curious. Chryssie raises her head, her ears swinging forward as she tilts her head to one side eagerly.

"Five days. It was estimated the changeling force involved was in excess of ten thousand. It took calling up the regular army almost two days to gather enough force to effectively push the invaders out. Not only that, but Canterlot was not the only city struck. Key strategic points were all hit by at least five other hives." Fancy's horn glows and a rather thick looking stack of documentation appears, separating and shuffling as he goes through them. No, there wasn’t any sort of briefcase or folder...they just appeared! "Both princesses have authorized me to tell our lovely young guest," —he smiles politely at Chryssie— "the details of her former self and her involvement in the war."

"Why can't they tell her themselves?" I grunt. "None of what's happened in the past...forty-eight hours?" I glance at Chryssie for confirmation. She nods, I smile at her. "None of what's been going on since I got here would have happened at all if they had just let me and my daughter live in peace back on Earth."

"But she does not belong on your world," Fleur starts to say with a gentle smile. It vanishes when I interrupt her by showing her my palm.

"And I don't belong on yours," I return tiredly. "I'm sorry, but there's something more going on than just me be invited to see my kid and making sure she's happy. This whole thing stinks of politcs and cloak and dagger bullshit." I may be stupid, but I trust my instincts.

"Princess Celestia will be here shortly," Fancy insists, waggling a hoof at me. "Please keep in mind matters of state make her a very busy mare. She delegates a lot of her responsibilities to the Council, but she still has a nation to run. Your predicament is important to her. Please, I beg your patience."

"The invasion," Chryssie suddenly chimes insistently, "I want to know what happened! The show makes it all cartoony and dumb..." I can see this troubles her and immediately put an arm around her withers. She leans into me. "I mean, how did this end up with me on Earth thirteen years ago while less than two passed here?"

Fleur purses her lips as she begins to pour tea, passing cups around. What is with ponies and tea, anyways? Doesn't anyone want to have something other than tea? I suddenly find my cup refilled with coffee. I blink and stare at it for a moment. Fleur gives me a wink and a smile. Magic will be the death of me.

"It was not a sanctioned invasion," the unicorn mare announces softly while still serving the drinks. "Unknown to the world, the changelings were in the midst of a civil war. Each hive functions much like a city state: independent of each other but subject to the will of their empress. Not all changelings belong to hives nor are all changelings subject to the rule of the queen that birthed them. C'est une société très compliquée!"

"Quite right," agrees the stallion. "Changelings who are not associated with any hive must still by changeling laws be subject to rule. These 'gray changelings' are considered the children of their Empress and are required to at least offer her yearly an allotted amount of love in the form of a tax. In return, they are offered the structure needed by all changelings to thrive; a hive mind to link to." Fancy sips at his tea, gathering his thoughts. "A social network, if you will."

I give him a deadpan stare. Chrysalis simply nods as if she understands completely.

"All hives offer stockpiles of converted love magic yearly in tribute to their empress. Nopony knows who she really is," Fleur notes with a slight shake of her head. "She has never been seen in centuries. Even Celestia will not say a word in regards to this mystery changeling. One should think if such a creature has the power to remain hidden even from the eyes of an alicorn, she must be a force indeed."

"You don't really believe that, do you?" My question causes the mare to narrow her eyes a bit as if seeing me for the first time. "I mean, she's lived for thousands of years, has godlike powers, and hasn't noticed a bug under her nose the whole time?"

I can feel my daughter sour in mood at the mention of the word 'bug'. I wince. Poor word choice. Given what I just had been told and her reaction...we're in a bit of a tense spot at the moment.

Fleur snorts, sips her tea, then stares at me over her cup. "I will not claim to know the mind of the princess nor her intentions. I will, however take offense to anypony, even a guest who questions her with such rude words."

"As I mentioned," Fancy cuts in smoothly, "the empress does have the ability, it would seem to conceal herself from those she does not want to see her. It is even believed the changelings she does call upon for an audience cannot recall her features after meeting her. It's as though she deliberately takes steps to keep her appearance a secret. That being said, there is speculation that is one of the reasons why the changelings suddenly erupted in a nasty civil war.

"From what we've been able to piece together along with what the changelings were willing to tell us in the aftermath, the civil war erupted from their shadows because certain queens thought it would be a good idea to stockpile their pools of magic by draining Canterlot and several other cities of their love, as well as other emotions. We still don't know who was fighting for who or why the civil war even happened, but we do know it has something to do with some sort of power struggle. One side was trying to tip the balance in their favor by intentionally dragging Equestria into the war."

Chryssie balks. "That sounds so stupid!"

"Oh, but it very nearly succeeded," insists Fancy as he contemplates my daughter for a moment. He then turns to me. "The five queens nearly succeeded in their objectives, but were betrayed at the last minute by one of their own. The details are still sketchy. It is unfortunate more facts are currently unavailable to us. The RIB has been investigating the 'why's' on the attack ever since the unprovoked attack. It's partly the reason why negotiations have stalled. We want to know why and they - the changelings don't want to say."

I point at my kid. "So what does this have to do with her?"

"According to my sources as well as follow-up investigations to corroborate them, none other than Queen Chrysalis was the architect of the attack and she was also the catalyst of the civil war of the changelings."

My finger goes to my chest. "What about me?"

Fancy Pants shrugs and sighs. "I honestly don't know. I would venture to guess it's not just you, but perhaps your whole race in general. With Princess Celestia's insistence this world and yours will soon be permanently linked, I would imagine you are but a small piece of the whole."

I nurse my coffee, bothered by this bit of news. On the bright side, at least I won't be required to do heroic things, it would seem. I'm too old for adventures. Or am I? Why do I have this sudden dreadful premonition dawning on my like an anvil dropped on my noggin. "I don't like it," I gripe. Another slurp during the pause as I shift my gaze between Fleur and Fancy...Fancy Fleur! Brangelina ponified! "I don't like getting dragged into someone else's mess."

"I'm afraid there's no helping that now," announces a new voice seemingly hovering around the air. The great white form of Princess Sunbutt herself appears in midair, her wings flared wide (overdoing it, I think). Her body is covered with a golden aura, letting everyone feel her power. She settles to the ground, her hooves lightly touching upon the wooden floors. Fleur de Lis rises, as does Fancy Pants and they both bow to her reverently. Celestia smiles at them warmly as her wings settle to her sides.

Chryssie scrambls to her hooves, but did not bow. She was not a subject of the princess and was not the sort to bow to anyone. Way to take it to the Mare, kiddo! Grudgingly I follow suit and nod politely at the princess, much like nodding in passing at a homeless man screaming the end is nigh at a street corner while tap dancing to Enter Sandman.

Best. Song. Ever.

As she settles in her seat, Celestia announces pleasantly, "My apologies for being late. I had to meet with my sister alicorns in regards to our human guest and his daughter.”

About damned time.

She catches my obvious glare. I mean, it's basically like having Mt. Rushmore suddenly give you four troll faces while you're looking at the four presidents. I was that startlingly obvious. Still, Celestia's a pro at this sort of thing and probably worked with harder heads than mine in the past. I mean she's what? A million years old?

"I recall making a certain promise to a certain young filly earlier this morning," Celestia says as she settles herself comfortably. She manages to maintain a smile despite my stinkeye. "But first, to you, Mr. Spriggs, I owe you my deepest and sincerest of apologies. Your visit was meant to be a pleasant one for you and your daughter. I had no idea outside entities would step in so quickly or so rudely. I had hoped you would be departed from Equestria before it happened. It was misfortune and circumstance. It also affected my own judgement, I'm afraid. I did something I am not proud of as a result. I shall explain as best I can."

I'm being a jerk, I know. I am justified for my jerkiness! Okay, well, maybe not. Maybe it's not her fault my mind was turned into a slushy. Maybe Celestia did want for my visit to be a pleasant experience. Maybe I am taking this a bit too personally.

Yeah, and I'm a Chinese jet pilot.

"Still a bit grumpy, I see," she notes wryly, brows furrowed slightly as she offers an apologetic smile. "I shall try and explain to you a few truths that have come to my attention recently as well as expound on our discussion from yesterday. Again, I cannot convey enough how badly I feel for what you have undergone. I assure you, Mr. Spriggs I will personally see to it things are put to rights. I only ask for you patience for a bit longer."

Grudgingly I nod. "Fine."

"Thank you." She turns to Chryssie. "Now, I believe I promised you a bit of an explanation of what happened two years ago. Good Fancy Pants here I assume was warming you up to the subject." He nods at her and beams nobly.

"Kinda," my daughter mutters as she slides a dark look in my direction. "Daddy, play nice."

I open my mouth to retort, but the words die before they can emerge. What I want to say to her can wait until we can be alone. Motioning to Celestia, my wordless gestures are the basic 'ignore me, I don't know what I'm doing' routine. In short, whatever. My glare does lesson to more of a sulk. Very mature. I focus on Celestia and a passage from the Bible looms to the forefront of my thoughts.

And I saw, and behold a white horse: and he that sat on him had a bow; and a crown was given unto him: and he went forth conquering, and to conquer. It was from the book of Revelations, chapter six, verse two. King James edition. It dawned on me right then and there like a delayed fuse finally at its destination and igniting the realization. Celestia, despite her denials to me the other day was probably as close to a living god as I would ever come.

I could have sworn she read my mind as the gleam within those magenta orbs she cast bore into my soul. A shiver courses through my frame and I cringe inwardly.

"Your kind are very aggressive by nature," the white alicorn begins. "Changelings are a species of the shadows, striking when your prey least expects it. Changelings do not normally seek targets they cannot hold. Normally." She adjusts her wings, taking a moment to examine one of her flight feathers critically before settling it in place with a single fluff.

"Now, I've been able to do my own nosing around in regards to the why's behind the attack and the subsequent battle following. As you had me imprisoned, Chrysalis, we actually had some enlightening conversations up until the point you realized you were betrayed by one of your own sisters." Celestia adjusts her magnificent mane, her serious tone brokering no nonsense.

Well, she's cutting straight to the chase. That's good. I think.

Chryssie's ears perk forward. I can sense her trepidation. "Really?"

"Yes. You did not tell me why you were attacking my nation, my cities, my ponies, but you didn't have to." She still wears her smile, but it was a mask. I've seen it before on certain generals and politicians. The old girl has been wearing it a very long time. I wonder if she's even aware of it. Probably is. "I could read it off of you and watched how you interacted with your children."

Chryssie balks, her features having paled as Celestia spoke. "Children?"

"You're a queen, dear. You will lay eggs. You will incubate them. You will hatch them with your magic. You will raise them. Changeling queens love their children dearly. There is little else they care or live for. But there are times queens will take calculated risks for the sake of giving strength to their children through a mass infusion of love. You and the queens who threw their lot with you struck with the intention of amassing as much love as you could for your war against the other queens. You never intended to keep your gains, though your soldiers were brutal to those who resisted."

The princess seems to lapse into the past, recalling a memory less than pleasant. "I still remember the sounds of battle, the screams of the wounded, and the cries of the dying. I remember the blood as your hive became overcome with love lust. A most curious side effect to being bloated by stolen emotions like love." A wry grin shadows for a moment. Celestia snorts softly, "Zealotry is perhaps the tamest definition of what I witnessed. So many of your children died trying to take my capital. I could see you feel each one die as the battle raged. For five days I could see the mourning in your eyes. You would come to the pod I was imprisoned within and simply stare at me, asking me why my ponies dared to resist. Weak, you called them. Made soft from having such a protected and sheltered way of life.

"Other queens came to you, voicing their concerns. The cocoon I was in muffled the words, but a face is easy to read. They clearly were not comfortable in staying in the open. They were also losing their precious children. But you wanted to stay, to take more. There was not enough stored love for whatever grander plan you had in mind. Perhaps you meant to move against other queens. It would be the most logical assumption. But you also intended to take my subjects with you deemed worthy enough in taking."

Chryssie's eyes have grown wide hearing this. "I wouldn't do that," she whimpers, shaking her head slowly, her horror stemming from a combination of the words coming from Celestia's lips and the stoic expression of her visage. Her eyes seek me out. "Daddy, I wouldn't do that!"

"That was the former you," consols Fleur, somehow appearing next to my daughter and drawing her into a hug. "You were reborn, given a second chance! We have a saying where I am from, 'vous vivez seulement une fois, mais vous pouvez mourir plusieurs fois'. Do you know what that means?"

My pumpkin nods. "You only live once, but you can die several times," she mumbles as she leans into the hug. "Princess Celestia?" her question pierces a few seconds of silence.

"Yes?"

"How many ponies died?"

"Are you certain you wish to know?"

"Yeah, I think I do." She pushes away from the unicorn, straightening herself to a more dignified position. "I need to know what I'm getting myself into. I need to know why so many secrets about me were kept from me. I need to know why my daddy is so suddenly special to this bitch claiming to be my mom. I don't want to be afraid like I was last night. I never want to be afraid like that again! I want to know why I'm a monster in the eyes of your subjects. I think I deserve that much. I'm tired of wondering. I'm tired of crying. I can't be strong if I don't know who or what I am."

"Even losing one of my little ponies is too many for me,” she tells my daughter. That was in the past, in a different life for you. You need to focus on what you think you will become or want to be. That will take time," Celestia says gently, yet managing to add steely resolve. "Time you will have during your journey."

"Journey? What journey?" I demand suddenly.

The alicorn heaves a weary sigh. "Earlier this afternoon, I consulted with my sister and both Twilight and Cadance. They are reluctant in coming to this decision, as am I, but you are to travel to the heart of the Changeling Empire to meet the Empress."

"Why?" demands Chryssie in a voice that's shot up several octaves. "I don't want to meet her! She can go to hell!"

"She threatens war," sighs Celestia sympathetically. "I cannot accept such a risk. She means you no harm, Chrysalis. She does not have the means to act out her threat. The Empress simply wishes to see a daughter she feared dead."

"She hurt my dad!" she cries furiously, tears forming.

"No she didn't," Celestia assures her in a motherly tone. "She actually used her magic to repair what her subject did. Anzealous acted without thinking and he has been removed as ambassador for his actions. The Empress tried to make amends by healing that which was damaged."

I brush my fingers against one of my pumpkin's forelegs to get her attention. She looks at me. "I met her in my dream," I quip. "She's weird and creepy, but I don't think she's intent on hurting anyone. Besides, she's invited me to go, too."

It’s a trap! Admiral Ackbar shouts in my mind.

"I assume you've accepted her invitation?" Celestia asks me with some surprise.

I look at my daughter. "I have to. For her. For the light in my life. As much as I love my parents and my sister, Chryssie's been the one who's been there for me as long as I've been there for her. I need to see this through because I ain’t letting her face this alone."

Chryssie lifts her head, her emerald eyes wide with surprise. "You'll come with me? Honest?"

"I let you down once by not fighting to keep you with me," I say, flinging a quick glare at Celestia before shifting my anger to myself with a downcast stare at my feet. "Even though we both talked about it happening, I flaked on you, kiddo. I missed you so much and hurt so bad from the guilt. I feel like I abandoned you. Just like I abandoned other things in my life. I can't do that again. I can't be that kind of man." I adjust myself, fidgeting as I scan the ponies in the room. I settle on Celestia. "I'll stay until my little girl is able to stand on her own. Are we clear?"

"I believe I can agree to that," she amends with a nod. "I will see to it this terrible experience you have had to this point is compensa—"

My hand goes up. "No promises, please. Don't be a politician. There's a reason I don't vote in my country."

I hear Fancy Pants sputtering in outrage. Well, I am being a bit rude.

Unruffled, Celestia nods. "Very well. I shall impart you with truth. I believe there is another reason why the Empress wishes to see you." She tilts her head to one side, closing her eyes for a moment as if questioning herself for what she's about to tell me. "What I am about to tell you has only recently come to my realization, though at the time it became known to me, I did not know of its significance."

"Go on," I prod, jaw set firmly.

"Upon the day the flying machine carrying your daughter and her mother crashed, there were bodies never recovered."

Well, that was about as sudden as a heart attack after eating a plate of rabbit food. "Yeah?" I sense Chryssie lurching in my head, immediately moving to brace my emotions with her own. "What of it?" I'm wary and in shock she would speak of a pain still raw in my heart.

"You have always wondered why the crash has never been explained, haven't you?"

This is true. The investigation had confused the FAA to no ends. Parts of the plane simply ceased to exist, as if they had never been. Portions of the passenger cabin and the fuselage had simply disappeared. Twenty-one passengers were never recovered and presumed dead. Crystal, my baby daughter was one of them. I nod to Celestia numbly.

“I shall simply answer by telling you I am not the only being of this world to have ever invested time and energy in studying humanity. I suspect the changelings have infiltrated Earth for years for reasons I as of yet have not uncovered.” Celestia settles back and finally has a sip of that terrible tea she adores. "On the bright side," she announces with a smile. "I'll be going with you."

Author's Notes:

Vous sentez-vous bien - Are you feeling well?
C'est un beau matin - It's a beautiful morning!
Le soleil est brillant et le ciel est bleu - The sun is shining and the sky is blue!
Je suis désolé, monsieur - I'm sorry, sir
Il n'est pas important - It's not important

All right...have a chapter! We're back on track and we'll get this journey going....ten chapters in! I think I set a nice table for the little trip to come. I can safely say this is the longest chapter I have ever written...I hope it works for you guys. I had to re-write the second half so many times because it never quite felt right. It's been a challenge and I really don't see how I can make it flow better without essentially doing the whole thing over again from scratch. It gets the plot moving and it's entertaining to boot, though I'm a bit leery at how it makes Mike seem darker to a degree.

It's certainly having a bit of a gloomy edge.

All comments are read! Feel free to ask questions! Readers who have French as their primary language, please let me know if I missed anything. Google Translate can only do so much...

Chapter 11 Yeah, We Just Went to Eleven!

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Daddy was pretty quiet the rest of the evening. Princess Celestia stayed for a bit longer after telling us she was going with us on this trip, trying to calm down both Fleur de Lis and Fancy Pants as her announcement caused them both to have heart attacks.

Figuratively speaking, I think.

Daddy said nothing, but watched the exchange with that flat stare of his. He gets it when he’s upset and trying to figure stuff out in his head. I could almost hear the gears turning between his ears. His emotions towards me...well, I did just moments ago tell him I tried to kill someone. He was not at all happy about that. There was a profound disappointment coming off him like a rotten stink. With it was sadness and a sense he had failed. Worse of all was his shame.

I didn’t move from where I sat, ignoring Celestia and the two unicorns while I tried to get Daddy to notice me, to feel my sadness and regret. I really didn't want him feeling like this. He was so much more pleasant to be around when he was happy and I was basking in his fatherly love. I needed that pride he had for me. This emptiness between us might as well been the Grand Canyon. I couldn't help but think I had created a rift between us because of my own stupidity. I’ve done bad things before. I mean c’mon...I’m a kid and kids spend their years doing things that make their parents grind their teeth, don’t they?

I bucked up. Badly.

Oh, sure, he petted me and scratched behind my ears, but he wasn’t getting over his bad feelings. I hurt him worse by trying to get my revenge. It wasn’t worth the effort if this was what I was going to get in return. He sometimes forgets his actions can’t mask how he feels. Daddy has a terrible poker face when it comes to his feelings.

I was in my Midnight Emerald disguise and curled myself up into a little ball next to Daddy. I must have been shivering because he felt me. To some degree, Daddy can feel what I’m feeling, though it’s nowhere near as good as me. He was the sort of guy women would kill to have if they needed a man who could read their moods correctly. I was responsible for that. Other humans have varying degrees of reading body languages, but I think I’ve had a hand—er, hoof? at making him capable of sensing emotions. I’m naturally empathic. Daddy’s connection to me over the years made him a sort of pseudo empath. It’s either a magical mutation of sorts or some sort of genetic...stuff because of constantly being in my proximity. I was not entirely sure about that. I was not a geneticist. I have no idea how psychogenetics works, so don’t ask..

I still remember Yellowstone some years ago as we were touring America during one of our summers. Daddy almost lost me once to a dog napper. It’s true! Of course, he was trying to kidnap a puppy and not a changeling filly. How was he supposed to know? Daddy followed our link to the thief, like a hound the scent! I was in my dog disguise, was drugged and rendered useless (I was eight years old at the time!), but I kept crying out to him. I was so, so scared and thought I would never see my Daddy again. He was so scared of me being discovered!

Daddy doesn’t think when he’s angry. He simply acts. Life’s simpler that way, according to his way of thinking. Of course, when he thinks, he usually gets melancholy. I keep thinking something was taken from him and I don’t mean Crystal. There’s a massive scar in his psyche. It’s as though it was either cut out or cut off from the rest of what makes him who he is. I can’t quite wrap my mind around it, but it just feels as though sometime before I met him, he was a really happy-go-lucky guy who looked forward to life. I wish he would get better.

Something took that from him. From what I've noticed over the years and have compared to other humans, it isn’t normal at all. I can’t prove it. I can sense it. Every now and then I’ll stumble across a ‘piece’—for lack of a better word—of what is missing. It’s like someone took Daddy’s happiness and utterly destroyed it on purpose.

Hey, I’m a changeling...maybe I should become a psychologist! Nah, there’s just something wrong with having the word ‘therapist’ tagged to your name. Yeah, I have a dirty mind. Get over it.

Yellowstone would have been a wonderful memory if the thief had not decided to try and dognap me. It almost ended our summer trips right then and there. It made me feel safe knowing my Daddy would do anything to protect me. Somehow, his instincts to protect as a father became intensified several times over since we linked. There’s a reason he keeps thinking nothing bad happened while I was growing up. He suppressed them. I’ve helped him do that. I want my Daddy happy. His scary side is really scary and his emotions when he rages are painful to feel.

I looked up at him mournfully from my little ball of pity, giving him those huge pity eyes of please-forgive-me-I’ll-be-a-good-girl-I-promise. I felt a twinge of guilt from him and he ruffled my mane. It was slight, but it was there. It would be a long time before he would be able to get over this and I wasn’t sure I wanted to help him smother certain feelings anymore. Growing older meant I was beginning to realize certain things. Being away from my Daddy made me realize I might have actually been doing him more harm than good by trying to keep him calm and loving with my own mind.

I never thought manipulating how he thinks could be bad. A month without his presence opened my eyes a bit. Celestia and Luna both noticed this and spoke to me at length two weeks ago and I refused to listen to them then. There was one thing they made abundantly clear: Daddy needed to have his mind repaired if he was ever going to rediscover his happiness without outside interference. He was once a proud man filled with hopes and dreams.

His ex-girlfriend shattered that. I can’t mention or ask about her, even to this day. His eyes clouded over and there was a profound shift. It wasn’t anger, but a pit of sadness triggered almost like a trap.

I shifted my attention from him, knowing he needed his space to mull over my stupidity. Instead, I perked up a little at Celestia who had put her hoof down and gave Fancy Pants a motherly smile. Fleur had protested her decision to travel with us on principle, but had settled back to watch the stallion stammer and stutter away while using words like ‘impossible’ and ‘dangerous’ to a pony with enough power to melt mountain ranges if she felt like it.

Fleur did her best to conceal her smirk as Fancy began to realize he was being patronized by his princess. He huffed and sighed in resignation. As the argument gave out its last gasp, Celestia gave it a mercy killing.

“Oh,” she added offhandedly, “Luna will be going with us as well. She’ll watch my back and I’ll watch hers and the two of us will keep our favorite changeling and human safe and sound. Fleur will go as a representative of the free pony nations as she has been tasked with the responsibility of brokering a non-aggression treaty with the Empress and the hive queens.”

At that point, I cut in. “Why are you going?” I asked, tilting my head to one side. Daddy just watched, lost in his inner thoughts. He kept petting me, shifting to lightly scratching between my ears. His fingers stopped when I asked my question. I could feel his eyes upon me as he shifted. “I mean, what is it that’s so important about us that you feel the need to go with us?”

Celestia sipped her tea for a moment, her motherly look smiling at me with a warmth ponies have taken for granted. “Because, my little changeling,” she replied, “there are certain parties out there who would like nothing better than to see harm come to you. Your father is little more than a curiosity, a strange being in a world he is not a part of. You, however have enemies who will soon be learning you are very much alive and will take steps against you.”

“Other changelings?” I guessed, thinking of Queen Druanae.

Celestia nodded. “For the most part. There are also certain ponies as well as other races with whom they have grievances against the changelings. You may or may not have had a hoof in certain transgressions, but an unprotected changeling queen no matter who she is would be too tempting a target to simply allow her to move about freely. An escort for you would require a small army, I’m afraid. The only other option I can think of is for my sister and me to go with you to not only protect you, but to push along the negotiations. They’ve been stalled long enough and I’m tired of waiting. I’m tired of the Empress giving even her own ambassador the runaround. Anzealous, despite his recent actions, is a bully, but a well-meaning one. Of all the changelings I have come to know and speak with, he is by far the most dedicated to finding a peaceful solution between changelings and ponies. I choose to travel with you, Chrysalis because you will need someone to lean against. Luna will be there if I am not enough. Your father will be there because you need him still as much as he needs you. He is the only member of your hive mind until you begin to have your own children.”

I blushed when she said that last sentence.

“As you grow older,” she continued, flickering her eyes to my father for a moment. He made a slight movement, as if adjusting uncomfortably. “You’ll find other changelings who want to become a part of your hive. Changelings work best when they are a part of a hive. Not all of them are part of one. Some choose to live their lives as independent drones. They are called Grays. Many changeling hives are grown from hiveless changelings choosing to follow a queen who suits their desires. Some will decide to join you. Your hive mind is a queen’s security blanket. Some queens feel very powerful when they have thousands of changelings who believe in them and follow them. You will be no different.”

She sighed, tilting her head slightly. “I can’t claim to know changelings. Your race is one full of secrets and shadows. Your kind excel at pretending to be something you are not. I feel the only reason the hives have not overrun Equestria is because each queen feels the other is more of a threat to her power. Compared to the rest of the world, changelings numbers are but a fraction. If they were to unite under one banner and learn to trust each other, then even Luna and I would be hard pressed to keep them at bay. Your mother is old, Chrysalis. Very, very old and very, very powerful. She might even be a match for me. Where I push to extend goodwill and peace to all the sapient beings, I fear she seeks to drive wedges of distrust and fear between them. The empress seeks order through fear and power. She is our opposite. She cannot be trusted. Her agendas are selfish and extends only as far as her daughters. Even that is tenuous. My knowledge is only based on what Anzealous has volunteered, as well as a few ancient texts I came across shortly after the invasion.”

Celestia set her teacup down and rose to her hooves. Everyone else got up, even Daddy. I reluctantly unfolded myself from my pity ball and stood on the floor.

“I have much work ahead of me before I set the sun. Mr. Spriggs?”

“Yes ma’am?” Daddy was never one for formalities, but he was polite. I really would like to meet his mom and dad one of these days. They made Daddy a very polite man. He seemed unsettled at the ‘I set the sun’ part of Celestia’s statement, but kept his mouth shut at that comment.

“I would like for you and Chrysalis to come to the palace tomorrow morning after breakfast. I’m going to speak with the empress in person and give her the answer she’s been waiting for. I have a feeling she hasn’t exactly been forthright with her intentions for peace. I’ll also have something for you to prevent somepony else from entering your mind. It’s being prepared for you as we speak. It’s a simple enchantment, but one I feel will be more than suitable for your protection against unwanted magic incursions.”

Daddy gave her an unsure look. “I don’t know,” he muttered.

Gently Celestia pointed out, “Well, I suppose writhing on the ground and gaping like a landed fish is fun for you, but I’d really not go through seeing that happen. Consider it a personal request for your safety. It will be perfectly safe for you. I’ve almost two thousand years of studying your species to know what works for you and what doesn’t.”

“Two….thousand years?”

Celestia smiled. “I should tell you about a gentle human who once preached love and tolerance along the shores of an inland sea. I spent an evening chatting with him. Such a nice man with a kind soul. He was beyond his years.” It faded as for a brief moment she remembered a moment in her past. “They killed him out of fear.”

Okay! Philosophically, she just made Dad’s brain come to a screeching halt. It took a minute for me to figure out who she might have been talking about. I gaped at her for a moment.

“Before I created my current human persona,” Celestia went on as if her little revelation was nothing of consequence, “I fostered some other forms over the centuries as I watched and learned from humanity. It was like watching children grow and learn and struggle. I could not always be there, as my duties here were focused on making Equestria a foundation for peace and prosperity. I created a secret group of ponies whose only purpose on Earth was to watch and learn and see how mankind adapted to an environment devoid of magic.”

“Huh? Wha—” Daddy ran a hand through his hair and blinked. “Are you saying you guys have been spying on us?”

“More or less,” admitted Celestia with a playful scrunch of her muzzle. “I’d love to stay and chat, but I’ve overstayed as it is. Do have a talk with your daughter, Michael. I know you are hurt with her admission, but she desperately wants your forgiveness. There will be time later to speak more of what I know of Earth.” She looked at everyone in the room and smiled expansively. “Have a wonderful afternoon, everypony.” To Daddy she said, “I shall see you at the palace. Is nine o'clock suitable?”

“Uh, sure,” he stammered.

“Very good. Fleur? I leave everything in your capable hooves.”

“Of course, Your Highness,” replied the lovely unicorn with her trademark positive smile. “They shall be, as you say, as safe as foals in a bassinet.”

“I bid you a fond farewell, Fancy Pants,” she said at last to the stallion. He had fallen silent, a worried expression creasing his normally pleasant visage. I rather liked him as he was funny and always had something interesting to say. Fancy was very clever and treated me like his favorite niece. With a final nod, her horn flared and the Princess of the Sun vanished in the wake of her teleportation spell, golden wisps of trailing magic swirling where she had stood just moments before. Fancy Pants was left with the revelation Celestia was bound and determined to walk into a literal hornet’s nest.

Now, it took me several minutes to digest the confusion Celestia just spouted out. I considered myself a reasonably clever girl. Everything Celestia told us was within reason the truth, though judging from the way she hid her emotions deliberately, she was hiding a few things. She just hinted at knowing a certain person from human lore which opened all sorts of doors wide open. Certain groups were bound to howl and gnash their teeth should they learn of this and I can’t for the life of me fathom why she would openly admit such a thing. I get the gist of why she wants to come with us. Even if it’s mostly to offer the best protection for Daddy and me, she already alluded to the politics lumped with it.

The little speech in regards to the window she allowed into her interactions with human history only added to the confusion.

My thoughts were jarred from my inner musings when Daddy spoke up. “May I have a moment alone with my daughter?” he asked Fleur. Daddy was never one to let some things stew a bit.

“But of course!” said Fleur with a smile. “Take as much time as you need. I shall see to it the two of you are not disturbed.” I gave her a pleading look and she in turn winked at me. I felt her support and understanding as well as a bit of steel. It was as if she knew how to give me an idea of her displeasure at my antics last night.

“If you’ll excuse me,” said Fancy Pants with a polite nod. “A pleasure to make your acquaintance, Mr. Spriggs.”

“Nice to meet you, too.” Daddy offered a smile; a genuine one. He had been so unsure and uncomfortable with this place to this point. Stallion and man shook hoof and hand. I think a sort of mutual respect was reached. Guys are weird. It takes us girls a lot of work to find members of the same sex to build up the sort of trust for a proper friendship…

Or maybe it’s just my natural changeling nature to distrust females?

Ugh!

I was interrupted from my constant inner musings (am I as bad as Daddy?) when the door closed quietly and the room was filled with heavy silence. My eyes wandered over to the massive window and the world beyond it. Summer was in full swing and I noted idly the birds in the trees. Too bad I couldn’t hear them singing. I so wanted to hear the songs of birds.

“I keep forgetting we’re not the same species,” Daddy said slowly. I turned to look at him, my ears having long beaten me in my focus upon him. He slumped into his seat, reclined back against the low backing with his arms resting along the top of the couch. Fingers drummed lightly against the finely polished wood as his eyes looked me over carefully. “I want you to always be my little girl, my little princess. Even I forget you have the heart of a predator. You’re a huntress and a territorial one. Your nature is to protect what you think is yours, even violently.”

My body stiffened. Daddy tried to reason his way through the information I told him as well as what Fancy and Celestia added. Usually something like this is beyond his grasp unless he’s had a day or two to put the pieces together. He was a doer, not a thinker and even the doing could take some coaxing if he didn't have any interest. Like a pit bull, once he latches on to something, Daddy won’t let go until he’s satisfied with his findings or there’s nothing else to be found.

“Come here,” he commanded, patting the cushion on his right side. I complied like a good girl and suddenly his arms were around me. “Lose the fake you. I want to see the girl I raised and tickled and argued with in her real form.” I did just that.

“Daddy?” I asked after shedding my disguise. “How mad at me are you?” I really didn’t have to ask as I feltl his smoldering disappointment.

He knew it was pointless to hide his feelings from me. I think it might have made raising me a real pain in the ass for him. Having a daughter who can read his emotions (and even his thoughts to a degree) might have made the role of playing father a lot like asking Bruce Campbell to fill in for Brad Pitt.

Or something like that. I’m sixteen. I say confusing things. Shut up. Okay! I like Brad Pitt! He’s cute...for a human. Sure, he’s a little older now and a bit grayer, but like Sean Connery, he’s aged like a fine wine.

Oh, for God’s sake, I’ve completely lost track of the story!

Luckily, Daddy swept away my self-imposed confusion. “Yeah, I admit I am angry with you. I don’t get mad, pumpkin. Dogs get mad. Mad dogs get put down. I’m upset and angry and disappointed with you, but I’m not mad at you.”

I drooped my ears and sighed, nearly to the brink of tears again. I knew I had disappointed my Dad and I never wanted to do that. What good is a source of love when they don’t love you anymore? A changeling feels so empty when they don’t have love to fill them. It’s probably our greatest weakness, our want and need for love. It’s not just a source of power for us, but also a sense of fulfillment we can never satiate. I’ve had thirteen years to figure this out on my own and another month among the ponies to stitch it all together. I don’t have everything down, not by a long shot, but suffice to say I have a pretty good idea.

Changelings need love to feel complete. We can’t hold on to it because something within us devours it. I can’t keep it. Something burns it or uses it. I really can’t fathom it because I don’t fully understand why. I have to know why. I need to know why!

“I wanted to protect you,” I blubbered, my face suddenly buried in his chest. Daddy automatically wrapped his arms around my shoulders and pulled me into a tight hug. “You were hurt and I didn’t know what else to do! Everyone was telling me to wait and wait and do nothing while you lay there all helpless and hurt! You screamed in pain and I felt your pain, Daddy! I could feel it and I wanted to make the one who hurt you feel what I was feeling.”

A kaleidoscope of emotions washed over me. Daddy was upset, of course, but there was understanding, profound and sad as I could feel him reaching back into his own memories. I could sense he was struggling through...gaps? I was really paying attention to where he was trying to work his train of thought and I saw something very odd and even disturbing in his mind. No, I couldn’t fully make it out, but it went back to my suspicions someone messed with his head a long time ago. If only I could make heads or tails of it!

Resignation and eventual love washed over me and it broke me again from my musings. To me, it felt like a warm waterfall cascading over me slowly at first, then washing over me with increasing acceptance until it was just below what I normally felt from my Daddy.

“I forgive you,” he said quietly in my ear. “You did what you did out of love.” There was a pause. The man sighed. “You still need to be punished,” Daddy added quickly. Sternly.

I pulled back from him and stared with puppy dog eyes. I opened my mouth to say something, but it clamped shut as I realized he was right. Daddy usually was, even though he was a crusty old grunt who still could barely manage changing a tire. Still, he was my first teacher, my best teacher and more than just the guy who raised me like a daughter. He was my best friend.

“What do you want me to do?” I asked in resignation. Knowing him, I think I already had a clue.

“I want you to apologize to this Anzealous guy,” he told me simply.

I groaned. “But he’s faaaaat!” I complained. Not to mention he played with your brain like it was a goddamn Etch-A-Sketch!

He gave me a meaningful glare. “I don’t care. You’re going to do it and I want to meet him myself. I’m not too happy he poked around my head and I intend to get an apology from him first. If he doesn’t give me one, then to hell with you giving him one.”

Well, at least he gave me that.

“Fiiiiine,” I relented with a pout.

“One more thing,” my dear, lovely father decided to add. Michael Spriggs had a gift for adding details as a filthy afterthought. “You’re going to offer your help at the embassy as an apology to all the other changelings you disrupted with your antics. For a month and during their office hours, whatever they are.”

I stared at him incredulously. “That’s not faaaiiir!” I whined piteously.

“Don’t look at me in that tone of face, young lady,” he said, bopping on the end of my muzzle with a forefinger. “You don’t have to like it, but you will do it. Do I make myself clear, Chryssie?” He never uses my name unless he’s dead serious.

“But—”

“And you’ll apologize to each and everyone of those changelings personally. I know you realized you were making a big mistake and decided not to do anything stupendously stupid like killing anyone.” Dad stared at the ceiling for a moment as he considered further punishments dancing around his head. “Oh, and during that month, you’re also grounded to your room. Anything past that I’ll leave to Celestia and Luna.”

I echoed out my previous— “That’s not faaaiiir!” —and flailed my hooves at Daddy.

“Life’s not fair,” he replied as cool as a cucumber. I hate cucumbers. Unless they’re turned into pickles. I like pickled cucumbers. Especially when they’re the sweet sliced ones for sandwiches.

“This su-uuuuucks!” I complained mightily, throwing my head back dramatically..

“Punishments usually do,” Daddy said with an uncaring shrug.

You know what? I really didn’t care. All I cared for was the growing love coming from my Daddy. For those that take love for granting, trying living in the shoes of a changeling. Daddy hugs are the best things in the world, even if you think you’re too old for them. I felt safe in my dad’s arms, even if he was really mean about dishing out punishments.

He can be a lovable jerk. Celestia was right: he didn’t kill me. I sure as hell wish he had. Besides, I still owed him for embarrassing me by calling out that stallion who was staring at my ass.

The next morning I woke up in my own bedroom Fleur had been so kind to provide for me. It was the first rays of sunshine falling over my eyes that roused me from a wonderful dream involving lots and lots of children with solid glowing blue eyes looking up at me in adoration while I happily doled out slices of pepperoni pizza with sweet love sauce.

It was such a weird dream! “We love you, mommy!” they had chirped at me through mouthfuls of love pizza (yes, love pizza). The repeated chorus echoed as a fading memory. Weird, but cool. Is it normal to wake up to a sense of longing? I guess all that talk about eggs and kids yesterday stirred something within me. Judging from Dad’s reaction yesterday to the idea of me being pregnant, I’m pretty sure he’d only want that after I got married, or whatever is socially acceptable in changeling society.

“Oh,that’s right. We’re going to the palace today,” I groaned, sitting up as I rubbed my eyes with both hooves. I looked back at my pillow and noted I had drooled on it some time during the night. There was a tear in the sheet. I think I caught a fang, too. I ran my tongue over my gums. Sure enough, a bit of thread was found.

Was I trying to eat the bed?

Yes, it was a mattress stuffed with clouds and no, they were not edible. That still didn’t explain why my mouth was so dry. I sat up, yawned mightily and made a throaty noise to go with it. My jaws distended and repositioned themselves before settling comfortably back into place.

I’ll bet you didn’t know I could unhinge my jaws like a snake, did you?

The servants knew better than to barge into my room. Besides, I knew the language they preferred to speak. It’s only slightly different than French and the differences seem to be more regional than anything else. A lot of the words are more formal than informal. I imagine people from the French Revolution would be able to converse easily with the Prench ponies. It’s a pretty language and fun to speak. I took online courses and I’ve had a chance to practice with Fleur. She said I wasn’t too bad at it, though some of my inflections are a bit off. At least I can roll my ‘r’s.

I forced myself out of bed and shuffled my way to the bathroom, smacking my lips. I showered, taking my time and shifting to my Midnight Emerald disguise in the process. I wondered if Daddy was awake yet while brushing my teeth with supplies provided by the Fleur de Lis house. Surprisingly, they used some names I was familiar with.

After my shower, I dried myself off with a spell Twilight taught me and probably spent about fifteen minutes or so brushing my mane. My hair is the only thing I’m not tomboyish about. I emerged from the bathroom to find breakfast had been brought and laid out on the small table by the window. It was a simple breakfast; diced fruit, orange juice, English muffins (or whatever ponies called it on this world), oatmeal, and poached eggs. I ate quickly as the doors opened after a polite knock. Two maids came in, wishing me good morning as they asked permission to do begin cleaning. By then, I was finishing my orange juice. I asked where Daddy was on my way out and was given directions.

This mansion was huge. I would not have been at all surprised if they had provided for me a map of the grounds. He was already up and having breakfast with Fleur in the dining room, I was informed. Why wasn’t I invited? My steps took me there at a pace slightly past hurried.

As it turned out, Fleur de Lis was in the middle of checking my father’s mind for any malingering after effects of the attack to his mind. There was a nurse there sent by the hospital where Daddy had been. She was busy doing nurse things like checking blood pressure, drawing blood, taking temperatures, as well as a couple of other examinations I could not name off the top of my head. She was just finishing up as I entered the dining room. Daddy was rubbing the crook in his elbow where he pressed a bit of gauze into his skin. He saw me enter and smiled.

“What was that all about?” I asked as I went up to him.

“I’m a guinea pig,” grunted Daddy as I leaned over and pecked him on the cheek. “Good morning, pumpkin. Sleep well?”

“Like a baby,” I replied as I greeted Fleur with a smile. “The bed was awesome!” I told her.

“Thank you,” she said and nibbled on a bit of toast with jam. She chewed and swallowed. “We shall be leaving in a half an hour.”

“I’m ready to go,” I quipped, taking a seat next to Dad.

“I haven’t had my coffee yet,” said Dad as he held up his cup knowingly. “Considering everyone is up and at ‘em, I don’t think taking it a little easy is going to hurt anyone. Relax, pumpkin.”

A maid entered the room and hurried to Fleur’s side. My ears perked and swiveled as the little scene attracted both my attention and Dad’s. I caught a few words, namely ‘changeling’ and ‘wishes to speak with you in private’. Was Avon calling? Mary Kay? Jehovah’s Witnesses? The Cat in the Hat? Fleur smiled at the mare and stood up. I settled on going with Publisher’s Clearing House.

“Pardon me, I have an unexpected guest,” she said apologetically. “I will not be long, I do not think.” Fleur smiled that smile of hers and disappeared from the room with a grace I was jealous of. The girl could move!

For some reason, I thought to look at my dad to see if he watched her leave.

He did. I peered closely at him and felt…curiosity?

Well, that was disappointing.

Wait...was that a grin on his face? “Daddy?”

“Hmm?”

“Were you staring at Fleur’s butt?”

Awkward silence.

“Aren’t you currently under punishment?”

I clamped my mouth shut, but grinned at him anyway.

“Shooting for two months?” he asked as he brought his coffee to his lips.

I shrugged. “Totally worth it.” Chryssie may be grounded, but Chryssie’s revenge has just begun! “I love you, Daddy.” Apply large, innocent-eyed appearance. Let the adorableness consume him! Let thirteen years of perfected practice take over!

He grunted sourly at me, but was blushing a little bit. He might not have been outright attracted to Fleur, but he definitely did flash curiosity. I sensed a tremor in the Force!

And so it begins… I giggled inwardly.

As it turned out, the visitor was none other than Anzealous himself, former ambassador to Equestria and a member of the Druanae Hive. With him was his replacement, Ambassador Fae who had been sworn in last night. The fat little bastard was none the worse for wear as he waddled in only slightly less arrogant than I remember. Fae, I noted was a bit taller than him and was probably even pretty by changeling standards, though she seemed to have a little bit of chunkiness to her. Both were escorted by no less than four Royal Guards; two unicorns, a pegasus, and an earth pony. One of the unicorns was one Dad recognized. What was his name? Real Balls? No. Steel Jaw.

What the hell kind of name is Steel Jaw for a unicorn? From what Daddy told me, he’s a jerk and a bigot towards Changelings. Why, I don’t know. While we had been waiting for Fleur to deal with her guests, one of the maids came in a few minutes later and guided us to the same room we met with Celestia yesterday. It was there we found the guards and their changeling charges, seated at the same little coffee table clucking away like a flock of chickens.

Anzealous took one look at me and screamed like a filly. The four guards regarded me with curious stares before they put one and one together and came up with an adult changeling terrified of a teenage changeling who happened to be hot to boot! Fleur was startled by the sudden outburst from the fat bug and immediately had a hoof to her chest.

“Oh ma qualité!” she exclaimed, her eyes wide as she seemed greatly amused once she got over her startled state. Fleur de Lis began to giggle as the female changeling next to her simply sighed and waved at me.

“She’s not going to eat you, Anzy,” she told him firmly.

“That’s a queen, of course she’s going to eat me!” he whimpered as he hovered on his buzzing wings. His solid colored eyes were fixed on me.

“Anzy!” the female changeling said as she rolled her eyes. “Sit down before you embarass yourself even further.”

“But Fae…” his voice trailed as his shoulders slumped, his legs dangling limply. Keeping his eyes glued to me, he settled down next to his changeling companion. Then, as he settled on the couch, he noticed Daddy standing next to me. He squinted at him for a moment, raising a hoof and shaking it at him. “You seem familiar.”

“That’s the human you assaulted,” Fleur told him pointedly even as she moved to place herself firmly between Dad and Anzealous.

“Him?”

As the former ambassador wondered out loud, Daddy tensed and immediately screamed, “YOU!” With a roar savage enough to make me yelp in surprise and fear, he hurled himself at a fat creature only a third his size. According to my nose, someone wet themselves.

It wasn’t me this time.

He didn’t even bother trying to hide his sudden explosion of rage. It caught everyone in the room by surprise, except Fleur. With her horn flaring, she assumed a wide stance with her hooves and caught him in midair. Her pale violet eyes narrowed slightly as she not only had to contend with my father’s weight and momentum, but his willpower as well. His eyes bulged in their sockets as he struggled against her magic and her own willpower. He snarled as he realized Fleur held him fast. Their eyes locked.

“No,” she told him firmly as she stood proudly. There was a hint of sadness in her eyes. “Please. There will be peace in my house.”

Daddy towered over her, his shoulders rolled forward, his arms stiff and his hands balled into white-knuckled fists. His anger was so painful, I had to block him. I had felt a human’s anger before. It’s not pretty. It’s far from comfortable. It terrifies me to this day. The man I saw as my father clenched his teeth in hate, glaring at the cowering tubby changeling and his equally quailing replacement. His steeled eyes then went to Fleur who met him calmly and in a way Celestia would approve.

“There will be peace in my house,” she reiterated firmly, yet in a gentle tone. By now the guards were moving in, closing into a square around Daddy. “I am your friend, Michael Spriggs. The changeling has come to make amends, oiu? His queen commands it. His empress commands it. I asked for it. Are you more than a simple soldier? Are you not a being of compassion? Can you not forgive?”

Daddy’s eyes widened, regarding her. They swirled in indecision and confusion.

The guards began to move in.

“No!” she commanded them sharply. “Do not interfere.” Her horn flared and she pushed them back with her magic and her will. “You will only make things worse. My command of no violence extends especially to you guards.” For the first time, she displayed her displeasure with a simple glint in her eye. “Understood?”

I sensed annoyance from her. Annoyance and irritation. Disappointment and determination. Fleur de Lis gave me a taste of her magic right there and then. She didn’t even need to work the spell in her mind. A simple thought and application of her power and she effectively held everybody in the room at her mercy. Maybe the rumors she was as powerful as Starswirl the Bearded had some truth to them.

“Lieutenant Steel Jaw, am I understood?” she repeated her question, raising her voice just a tad and focusing it at the unicorn stallion.

Steel Jaw swallowed hard and nodded. “Stand down,” he commanded the other three guards.

“Très bon.” She smiled, turning her attention to my dad. “Monsieur Spriggs,” Fleur said to him, again in a gentle voice, “I understand your pain, mon ami, but I need you to begin your healing if you are going to be of any use to your fille, oiu? She will need you whole in the days to come. You will need to be strong, to be whole. The changelings will find your weakness and exploit it. That is how they are. In order to not fall to them, you must first learn to forgive.” She sat on her haunches and tilted her head to one side, offering a relaxed smile.

Dad stared at her for a moment, unsure as to what he should do.

“I want to earn your trust,” Fleur said. “What must I do to earn it? Please tell me. Will striking me satisfy you? Then do so. Upon my face. Across my chest. Let me feel your wrath.”

Dad flinched from her. “No!” His rage dropped like an iceberg into the Bering Sea. The
cold shock of her statement pulled him from his angry state. He slumped, his fingers unfurling from his palms.

“Daddy?” I croaked. Raising a hoof, I was about to step forward.

“No!” Fleur said sharply. “Stay where you are, ma Emeraude!” She turned her attention back to my dad. “I await your decision. If striking me will ease your pain, then strike. You have put off seeking help long enough. Know this, Monsieur Michael Spriggs: Your sorrow is not of your own making. Magic traces years old are upon your spirit and scar your soul. Something was taken from you; your joy. The zest you once had for life was taken forcibly from you. The process was slow, perhaps taking two or three years. The tests at the hospital suggest this, however it cannot be confirmed.”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Daddy demands, reeling as he clearly doesn’t believe her. I gape at Fleur is disbelief.

“Ponies have been monitoring your world for centuries. Were you not paying attention?” Fleur takes a step towards him. “If ponies are able to step into your world, who knows what else has been watching humanity?”

I suggested in the form of a loud blurt, “Changelings?” My gaze settled coldly upon Anzealous and Fae.

“This conversation is best served with the Sun and the Moon present,” Fleur announces calmly, her magical aura lessening back to being nearly non existent. “All those gathered here have an appointment to meet them this morning. Let us not keep them waiting.”

She didn’t say ‘no’. I glared at the two shape shifters on the couch. Yeah, I want to hear more about this. However, first things first. “Apologize,” I snarled to Anzealous, pointing a hoof at my dad. “That’s what you’re here for, isn’t it?”

Fleur said, “Indeed. That is why I called him here.” Her eyes shifted from Daddy, to me, then to the fat bug trying hard to make himself small. “Isn’t the correct, Ambassador Anzealous?”

He cleared his throat. “Former ambassador, if you must know.” His voice had an odd crack to it stemming from his fear of Daddy, Fleur, and little ‘ole me. “And you are quite correct.” His solid eyes dimmed for a second, then brightened as they settled on the tall, pale ape with the reddish brown hair with bits of gray beginning to show.

Daddy forgot to shave again. Three-day-old stubble seems to stick out noticeably, as if I’m just now paying attention to it. Which I am. I chided myself for not reminding him.

The former ambassador hopped to the ground and trotted next to Fleur, hanging his head in a manner that was neither proud nor submissive. It was determined. Once he stood next to the unicorn mare, he lay down at my dad’s feet and touched the tip of his muzzle to the floor.

“I beg your forgiveness, human for invading your mind. I meant no harm as I only wanted to satisfy my curiosity in service to my queen and my empress.”

It was killing him to grovel like this.

I found myself liking it.

Daddy was less eloquent. Placing his hands on his hips, he glared down at the little black ball of prostate changeling, his emotions playing over his face like a bad B movie. Fleur gave him an encouraging nod and I found myself next to him and smiling. I nudged him so he could see it. C’mon, Daddy! Bury the hatchet! I don’t like the little shit anymore than you, but I get the feeling we’re going to see a lot of him.

He considered Anzealous, closed his eyes for a moment, moving his lips as he silently talked to himself. When he reopened his eyes, he rolled them to the ceiling, pulling his arms up and crossing them over his chest. “Apology accepted,” he said as if someone was pulling his teeth.

Yes, he dragged that out deliberately. No, he was not happy about accepting the apology. Maybe something good would come from this. Or it would end up being an unmitigated disaster.

Whatever.

“Stop groveling,” he growled to Anzealous. “It’s embarrassing.”

The changeling looked up from the floor and rose to his hooves. “Yes, well, I did overstep my authority and I did do something that might have plunged Equestria and the Empire into a state of war.” A rueful smirk creased his dark face. “Imagine if my desire for peace would have ended in such a tragic state. The irony would have been bitter indeed.”

Yep. He’s an arrogant little prick. I think I made a mistake in letting him live. Said the changeling who screamed like a terrified little girl while being chased by Rapeface the Clown.

Daddy only nodded. “I really don’t give a damn about politics, Andrew.”

Fleur leaned towards him. “Anzealous,” she corrected sweetly. “I thank you for your compassion, Michael.” Indicating the other changeling still sitting on the couch (and wearing a very smug grin directed at Anzy), she introduced her. “That is Lady Fae, newly minted as the Ambassador to Equestria for the Changeling Empire, daughter of Queen Druanae and of the Druanae Hive.”

Fae smiled and waved. “Nice to meet you!” she chirped. “My, you’re a tall one!”

Dad nodded and gave her a grin. “You’re almost as pretty as my daughter,” he told her, completely changing from barely tolerant of Anzealous to being downright friendly to Fae. She accepted the compliment with an unfettered smile.

Did you know ponies find changelings in their natural forms to be, for the most part, utterly terrifying? I think it’s the fangs and the solid colored eyes. I’m thinking the only reason they’re not in disguise was because they were told not to be, or something like that. Maybe it’s because changelings are black.

Satisfied her house was not going to degenerate into a battlefield, Fleur de Lis said to the group, “Very well! Let us all make our way outside to the chariots waiting to whisk us away to Canterlot! Let us not keep the royals waiting as they are very busy mares, non?”

With that, we went to Canterlot.

After a month of living in the castle, I can still say the place confuses the hell out of me. With so much added on over the years—yeah it looks beautiful and magnificent. There are so many twists, turns and stairs (oh, God the stairs!), the place is a literal maze to those who are unfamiliar with the layout. We were where we needed to be at nine o’clock on the dot and ushered into the throne room. The number of guards were typical, but I found their eyes on me, it seemed.

Hostility! Hostility everywhere!

I guess my little jaunt into the changeling wing had cause quite a bit of embarrassment to the Royal Guards. There had always been a rivalry between the Solar and Lunar guards, but when one side failed, the other also felt the backlash of the failure to do their duty. It would be later I would figure out I had just made asses of them not once, but twice now.

I guess some badassery simply transfers from one incarnation to the next.

Princess Celestia awaited us from her throne, apparently at the end of a meeting with members of her staff as well as other government officials I had no clue as to who they were. We were announced and a few looks were thrown our way. Daddy kept a hand on the back of my neck. I don’t know if it was to keep me calm or to keep himself calm, but it was reassuring.

Fleur kept herself between the changelings as Daddy and I were on her left, the changelings on her right. Anzealous had been looking at me a lot, then would stare at Daddy. He was still terrified of me, if a bit confused. When he looked at my dad, I felt guilt emanating from him. Celestia dismissed the ponies around her and they quietly walked past us, a few curious glances thrown at Daddy and the changelings. Dad just smiled and kept his eyes on the Solar Princess. He was both frightened and in awe of her. Small wonder as to why.

Celestia dismissed the guards, but asked for Steel Jaw and the three guards with him to remain. The unicorn had been quiet the whole time. None of those in his little group spoke, but remained silent as ghosts. Even their hoofsteps seemed muffled. Training, I guess. Niceties were exchanged as well as a bit of small talk. I ignored it all as I wanted to get this thing over with. I guess this empress lady is my mom, has talked to Celestia and for some reason my Daddy.

Why didn’t she want to talk to me? Is she that much of a cold-hearted bitch I’m not worth talking to? Am I dead to her eyes or am I just a matter of inconvenience? The thoughts had danced in my mind since Celestia’s announcement, but mutely. I didn’t think of this empress as my mom. She’s a stranger, a non-factor in my life. My life was on Earth, not Equestria. My month here was among the ponies, not the changelings. Sure, things were hard without my dad, but not once did this so-called mother of mine even give a thought to me! Did Celestia protect me from her for a reason? What game was she playing? Everything was so confusing!

Daddy nudged me. “Pay attention,” he murmured.

“Wha—?” I stammered, looking up to see Celestia smiling down at me.

“I asked if you were ready to meet your mother,” she said with infinite patience (and a giggle).

“I guess,” I answered with the enthusiasm of getting a root canal. “Not really,” I admitted.

She hummed, allowing a knowing nod. “Steel Jaw, you and your guards are dismissed for now. See the watch commander for further orders.”

“Yes, your Highness,” he replied crisply and saluted. He turned and departed, his guards filing singley out behind him. I never did get a reading off either him or the guards. Was their armor enchanted? Possibly. My curiosity and unwanted thought interrupted the gnawing feeling in my gut long enough to give me a reprieve of sorts.

Celestia swept her magnificent magenta eyes warm and welcoming. “Everyone else, please follow me.”

Well, of course she’s not going to say ‘everypony’. Does my Daddy look like a pony to you? Celestia is sensitive like that.

We did so and went through a side door and into the depths of the ancient bastion of Equestria’s might. I swear, if the spells used in the masonry wasn’t proof against time and the elements, so much of this place would look weathered and worn. As it was, only the deeper parts of the castle showed any signs of how old the place really was. We passed through this part and soon began to climb up a tower leading to the quarters of the Princess of the Sun.

Luna was waiting for us, as well as Twilight Sparkle, and…

...Princess Cadence.

I splayed my ears against my skull and immediately assumed a submissive (and terrified) pose, freezing in my tracks and just inside the doors to Celestia’s chambers. For some reason, I could not move. I could not breath. I panicked. I immediately needed my Daddy for security.

She initially had an impassive glare as she scrutinized me, but that faded to bewilderment. The Princess of Love tried to look to her elders for encouragement, but could not tear her eyes off of me. What anxiety she had turned to concern.

“Oh, God...Oh God!” I whimpered after a long and awkward moment. “I’m so sorry! I’m so sorry!” Why was I apologizing to this mare I had only heard of? I remember watching the cartoon and never really thought of this moment happening. It wasn’t until I actually stepped into Equestria and her name was mentioned in a conversation. I hyperventilated then it dawned on me. I was trembling despite the words of kindness coming from one of the kindest, most loving ponies known to all, young and old, rich and poor. She had political enemies because she urged love and kindness and forgiveness. Orphans went to bed at night dreaming of her visits the next day. When Princess Cadence visited, it was not because it was an obligation to her. She came to her subjects because she wanted to and made it a point to mingle among the common everypony. She read stories to foals and made a day of it.

She was this world’s Princess Diana.

“Chrysalis,” said someone somewhere. I think it was Celestia. I was too busy focusing on Cadence to pay attention. “You’re not here for that. Cadence has already forgiven you and knows you’re not the same mare as before.”

A warm sensation washed over me. Some sort of calming magic, I think. It was very powerful.

“She does not speak like the old Chrysalis,” observed the pink princess. She gave me a small smile. “I want to think you are a different mare. Please don’t be afraid of me.” Her voice is very gentle and very kind. In her eyes was a sort of fear one gets when one realizes they’ve just run over a kitten while backing the car out of the driveway.

Daddy placed his hand on the back of my neck and gave me a comforting squeeze. I leaned into him without thinking, shrinking from an alicorn who wouldn’t hurt a fly. Twilight came around to my other side and gave me an encouraging smile.

“Nothing but friends here, Chrys,” she said, using my shortened name she and her friends called me, “and your imposing father.” Mirth filled eyes went to my Daddy.

Daddy guffawed at her voiced vision of him, but said nothing. He felt really uncomfortable standing in a room practically oozing with the living auras of concentrated magic.

“Let us not tarry,” sang Luna, her meaning swathed with the business at hand. “Sheath your fears, young Chrysalis. You are among friends, as Twilight Sparkle so notably and accurately informed. Michael Spriggs, may I present to you Princess Mi Amore Cadenza, ruler of the Crystal Empire."

While Daddy and Cadence made nice with each other, I found my crippled attention drawn to Luna.

I wish she’d loosen up. Still, that’s one of the things I like about her. For all her formal words and addresses, she still wants to be a part of modern Equestria and has a hunger to catch up with the thousand years she was locked in the moon. I asked her about it once, what it was like to be in the moon. Her response chilled me to the bone when she flashed a smile not meant for mortal eyes, filling me with cold terror. Those blue eyes of hers held me like a pair of sapphire lunar orbs. Two words drifted to my ears from her lips like an avalanche.

“Absolute loneliness.”

Before I could run from her, she swept me into a hug, begging her forgiveness. The past she had lost herself in was rightfully behind her, she told me. To feel such a thing again would be enough for her to desire an end to her immortal life. Her place was at her sister’s side, guiding Equestria to a brighter tomorrow through love and temperance. Luna asked me then to never ask such a question of her again. Some things were simply too painful to dwell upon.

“When you have age as your companion,” Luna said to me then, “When you have a kingdom around you. When you have stood the test of time and bear the scars of hard-won victories, then shall I open myself to you my sorry past.”

I came to cherish her odd mix of blunt eloquence and tough love. Luna was ancient school.

Now, her words to me were, “Stand tall. Stand proud. One day you will be counted as among the most powerful in all the world. Let this day mark the first of many crossroads in your journey through life.”

Twilight gave me an encouraging nuzzle.

Celestia came forward. “Michael, I have something for you,” she said to the man. Daddy tensed. “I told you I would have something to protect you from magic.” He said nothing, but nodded, not really sure what to expect. “This was made for you by a collaboration of the finest casters from the university. Once I told the the purpose it was for and for whom it was to be made, the unicorns threw themselves into the task with the enthusiasm of teenagers!” She wore a smile as a rather plain but beautifully made wooden box came from her desk and floated in the grasp of her telekinesis.

It floated in front of Daddy. “What is it?” he asked suspiciously.

Celestia prods him with, “Open it. It won’t bite. I promise it’s perfectly safe.” The simple-looking thing hovers there, a veritable Pandora’s Box in Daddy’s eyes.

Daddy hesitated, then reached for it. Once he had the box in both hands, Celestia released her own hold and looked on expectantly, a slowly growing smile matching her dancing eyes. She was very pleased with whatever was inside. I’ll bet a pie on a spring will come out and slap Dad in the face like a woman’s rejection.

I’ll admit, I’d pay to see that.

Nothing like that happened. After a moment or two of fiddling with the box, Daddy sheepsihly figures out the latch and opens the box, pointedly looking directly into the box and not at the bemused grins on everybody’s face from watching the chimp figure out the puzzle box holding the prized banana in it.

Figuratively speaking, of course. Well, humans and chimpanzees are pretty close to each other in terms of their DNA. Try ninety-eight point eight percent, or something around that number.

...I got off track again, didn’t I?

Daddy reaches into the box and pulls out a golden chain necklace with a simple gem cut like an arrowhead dangling from it. It swirls with colors much like Celestia’s mane. Holding it up to his eye, my dad scrutinizes it for a moment. “It’s very pretty,” he stammers, not really sure how to respond to the gift. Saucer-like eyes coupled with a hanging jaw hold the room in suspense. The poor guy is completely out of his element and the auras around him have reduced him to the point of wanting to offer a sacrifice to the goddesses around him.

“Put it on,” Celestia encouraged him. Daddy began fumbling with the clasp and working it around his neck.

Luna had already grabbed the box from nerveless fingers and set it aside. As much as she disliked humans (she’s told me many times before, viewing them as too chaotic and too unpredictable), Luna was willing to concede some humans weren’t all that bad. I think she grudgingly respected Daddy, but why eluded me. This was recent.

“What does it do?” I asked while Daddy had decided to go mime on us. Well, he was trying to say something, but a bad case of overawe had stricken him dumb. I decided then and there to act as his translator.

“It’s an inhibitor,” Twilight began, happy to fill in details with more details and details of the details to make sure nobody missed out on the details. She ruffled her wings as she smiled. “So long as the gem is in contact with the designated wearer, nopony can use any form of harmful spell directly on the wearer.”

Daddy looked at her, trying (and failing) to quirk an eyebrow. Both rose instead. “No more scrambled brain?” he asked hopefully and wryly.

“Nope!” Twilight tilted her head to one side and pointed at the gem. “There are several very powerful enchantments in the gem for the sole purpose of acting as a natural defense against unwanted magic. However, it’s drawback won’t extend to poisons or magic used in the area around the wearer. If you need magic healing, you’ll need to take it off. Also, it’s bound only to you, so nopony else will be able to use it. It’s just a simple necklace to anypony else.”

I nudged my old man hard in the thigh. “Daddy says thank you, Princess Celestia.”

“Right!” he grunted, blushing. “Thanks!”

The mares giggled, save for Luna and Celestia. “Keep it beneath your shirt and against your skin,” advised Luna evenly. “The creature with whom we are about to speak with is not above feeling out with her power for weakness. She is enormously strong, Michael Spriggs. I would not think less of you should you chose not to speak with her out of fear. My sister and I are suppressing our magic for your sake.”

Yeah...they kind of were doing that. Magic poisoning can happen in all sorts of ways. With Luna and Celestia, their very auras could if they chose crush the mind of a human with no effort. I think it was a good idea nobody thought to tell him. Daddy would have had a reaction on the scale of ‘The End is Now!’. Nobody wants that. He’s already had a hard three days in Equestria. Michael Spriggs was not exactly the poster boy for endorsing vacations to Canterlot. It wasn’t because of what they were—alicorns. No, Celestia was essentially the living embodiment of the sun as over the centuries the two became so intertwined, she was like an avatar. Luna was the same way, save the moon was her connection to the sky. Both were very powerful and thus made the mere presence of the two ancient mares like basking in the presence of goddesses. There was an old tale of Celestia lost her unborn child long ago because of her own power. It’s not a very popular one, as one can imagine. Only those who harbor bad vibes for the princess would stoop to that level. I think she’d make a decent mom.

Luckily, Twilight and Cadence did not have such connections to massive balls in the sky and could hang around Daddy like a couple of drinking buddies, if you get the idea. They couldn’t hurt Daddy. They don’t have the oppressive magic of massive celestial bodies permeating their forms.

It almost seems as if the sun and the moon are living entities themselves.

Daddy was holding up the arrowhead necklace, examining the gem. It looked rough-hewn, almost as if it was hand made. It looked like the real thing; a flint arrowhead but filled with swirling colors like a prism. It wasn’t quite the gem I thought it was at first glance. This was much, much cooler. My old man liked it.

“Time is short,” Celestia said to everyone. “Mr. Spriggs, if you would be so kind as to stand next to me. Chrysalis, please stay near your father. Luna will be next to you. Twilight, you and Cadence keep Ambassador Fae and Anzealous between the two of you. Lady Fleur, stay behind father and daughter and keep a shield spell at the ready. I don’t know what she’ll do once we establish contact, but it’ll be something against our human guest. Be ready, ladies.”

Are we making a phone call or preparing to defend? Holy Christ, is my ‘mother’ really that much of a bitch?

For the first time, I noticed a green orb a lot like the one I peed on (if you tell my dad, I swear I’ll tear your arms off and beat you to death with them). It was on a much grander pedestal. I can feel the magic begin to hum from the forms of both Celestia and Luna as they place the call. The orb rose from its resting place and began to glow, spinning as it went.

I wondered if they were calling collect.

A column a green appeared, darkened, shifting as if coming into focus. For a moment, it burst bright white like a camera flash, then it goes black like a menacing column of shadow. Magic pulsed and throbbed, thrumming through my body. This dreadful feeling gripped my heart and I felt a presence as foreboding I have ever felt. It was a darkness, demonic and thick with malevolence. A pair of dragon eyes blazed to life within the depths of the column. A magic I was not familiar with yet felt as though I should know it filled the room. Celestia braced, taking a step to the side closer to Daddy. Luna slid closer to me, her face determined. The Sun appeared as calm as a perfect spring day, the Moon as still as a winter night.

This new magic was earthy, as if it came from the bowels of the earth. The very heart of the planet seemed to reverberate through this magic. I finally began to understand little by little why it was so familiar to me. It was changeling magic, the very magic I used. Everyone in the room was bathed in sickly green light. Daddy shielded his eyes, but tried to look. I could feel his fear rising up again. A hand reflexively reached to me. In my own fear, I found I sought my father’s touch. Together, we depended on each other to face this fearful thing as she made her presence felt for all to know.

“Three days have come. Three days have passed. Hast thou brought me mine child?” spoke a voice of a thousand tones. It was a choir of time with ignorance to mortality. Her voice was alluring, terrifying; demonic yet angelic. Her voice was many, speaking with one tongue. It exuded power and confidence.

Did Chryssie remember to go to the bathroom before facing mommy? Yes, Chryssie did! Chryssie’s such a good girl!

Oddly, I felt compelled to love whatever lay hidden beneath the glow of those slitted eyes regarding me with appraisal. I feared those eyes, the way they bore into me as if my very soul was being scrutinized. I was starting to feel dizzy as something vast and impossible pressed into my mind.

Something white shot up in front of me, the sound of snapping feathers biting through the air interrupting whatever mind slap was punishing me.

“Ahhh,” whispered the terrible voice I wanted to love. “Thou art mine daughter. Thou art whole. Thou art of sound body and mind. This is good.” She did not seem to mind Celestia had intervened by thrusting her wing between our line of sight. I heaved a sigh of relief and shuddered.

Good and Evil in one room. That’s what I was thinking as a little whine escaped my lips. Celestia’s wing fell away and she gave me a studious look and a sense I was safe at her side. Still I trembled.

Ah, be thou Satan? Get thee hence, for Goddess is with me!

“Chrysalis, Chrysalis,” she cooed, her gaze softening as she looked at me. “Long did I mourn thy death. I feared thee taken forever from mine sight. Thou art the same, yet different. It is as though the course of life hath been reset before thee and thy path is untrodden. Thy way is lost. I shall give thee thy proper path. Come home, my child. Let me embrace thee. Let me welcome thee back to mine bosom.” I felt a smile upon me and thought I caught a glimpse of impressive fangs within the darkness. Her attention shifted before I could say anything.

Not that I was able to speak. Mind numbing fear had rendered me paralyzed, like I had just realized I really couldn’t believe it was not butter.

“And thou art the human,” rasped the Devil to Daddy. My terror froze me. My love for that voice begged me to fall to my knees and declare myself hers. What power was this? Why was it so overwhelming? It rivaled Celestia’s! How was this possible? “It is good to see thee with mine own eyes.” Her voice sounds disjointed, broken.

She reminded me of Maleficent. I remember the animated Disney movie, Sleeping Beauty and its chief villain, the black witch. I had nightmares as a filly, but always watched the movie. It was my favorite then and still one of the most memorable films resonating in my mind to this day. A villain had come before me, those eyes reminding me of her. I could almost make out her form.

Daddy found his voice and even managed to come across as conversational. “It’s nice to finally meet you, too.”

“Steady,” Celestia said calmly. “She’s testing you.”

Those eyes flickered to the white alicorn. “In all things, a test. In all actions, there is judgement. Yes, this is a test, human Michael Spriggs. This is the same test you have been participating in for a very long time.” There was amusement in her tone as her focus drifted from Celestia to me, then back to Daddy where it settled. “Daughter, dost thou sense thy adopted father’s love for thee?”

Wordlessly I nodded, not ready to allow myself words to her.

“Dost thou sense mine love for thee?”

A curious question, I thought to myself, looking down at my hooves. Did I sense it? Was it there? I had withdrawn into myself, fearful of touching the darkness flowing around us. Celestia and Luna kept it at bay, but the undulating shadows seemed warm and inviting. Swallowing hard, I forced myself to look up, to gaze again into those eyes and reach out with my thoughts to taste her emotions. They called out to me, a soft whisper tickling at my ears, begging for me to notice. There was nothing at first when I touched my sense to her darkness. The shadow pulsed and swam slowly over me, delicately touching at me as if not believing I was real. There was a desperation there, to be loved. It was insatiable, familiar, and terrifyingly massive. Only Celestia and Luna billowed with such a presence. It was from there the darkness originated from. It was from there her hopelessness stemmed from. It was from there she hoped to fill it with as much love as she could desperately fill. Her hunger for love was offset for a wild sense a miracle had happened and I was that miracle.

My baby, oh, my child! How I missed thee!

I was taken aback by this. Not at all did I expect such a feeling for me! Daddy loved me unconditionally, but this was profound and ancient. This was something tested by time and tribulations. This was scarred by pain and suffering the likes of which I had never sensed before so openly and with such rawness.

A tear trickled down my cheek and I drew in a sharp breath, not realizing I had forgone the key need to breathe.

This...this was not evil! It couldn’t be evil! I could feel conflict growing within me as something hauntingly familiar slammed headlong into the beliefs Daddy instilled in me over the past thirteen years. I could not move, but those familiar fingers touched my chitin and calmed me enough.

“Momma?” I squeaked incredulously.

I could hear Celestia’s smile in her voice, “I am pleased to present to you your daughter. I also insist my sister and I present her to you personally in your presence within your throne room. Perhaps we can at last meet face to face and find a lasting peace between our two races. It will then be a cornerstone to peace with the other races.”

“Thy reason is more personal, Goddess of the Sun,” whispered the creature I was still struggling inwardly to accept as my mother. “Thou doth rush because thou doth sense an opening for a pursuit thou hast sought for an age.” Smugness dripped from her tone as it became arrogant. “Thou doth distrust mine intentions and seek to go beyond thy comfortable borders of thy nation for matters not of your concern.”

“Perhaps,” Celestia allowed with a bob of her muzzle. “Peace is my goal. Two worlds converge and there must be everlasting peace. War would be devastating and a misunderstanding could be the ruin of all.”

Luna followed up her sister’s words with, “You have not the means by which to carry out a war with Equestria, Empress. Shall we dispense with the pretense and focus on the truth?”

‘Sil’, as Daddy called her, chuckled. “Truth is subjective, is it not, Lady of the NIght? Was it not the truth which led you to realize the power of the Nightmare? Was it not the truth which shattered thy silly thoughts your night could ever be as beloved as the day?”

Luna’s eyes narrowed and the muscles in her neck tightened, but she bit back whatever retort was on her lips. I could almost imagine her shadow behind her doing really bad and violent things to the shadowy column addressing us.

“Very mature,” grated Daddy under his breath as he rolled his eyes. Only my ears caught those words as his head inclined towards mine. Louder, he said, “Yeah, and acting like a badass is going to win you so many friends, Sil.”

She looks at him in what I imagine looks like unexpected surprise at his outburst. “Thou shouldst be in awe of mine power and rendered mute.”

“Told you she’d try something,” Celestia muttered to Luna.

Luna snorted.

As I realized she did try to shut Daddy up, any niceness I had towards Sil dropped like a sack of fail. “Leave my Daddy alone!” I shouted, moving to get between them.

“Mother.”

I blinked. “What?”

“Leave my Daddy alone, Mother,” Sil corrected me.

As Luke said to Vader while clinging for dear life, “I’ll never join you!” Of course, that was all in my little changeling head.

“Come home, Chrysalis. Take your place at my side and together with you sisters we shall show the world what the changeling race truly is,” she beckoned in a silken voice. She was ignoring Daddy again, as well as the presence of the alicorns, the unicorn, and the two quaking changelings pressing themselves to the floor in mortal terror. Being in the presence of their empress had overwhelmed the poor things. It was like meeting God to them.

“Do you not wish to see how other changelings live? Do you not wish to see what a changeling is? Do you not wish to partake in your heritage and claim the hive rightfully yours by your blood? Do you not wish to brood your children in the safety of your hive and under my care? Do you not wish to realize your full potential? Do you not wish to meet your sisters? Think on this. Come. Visit. Sit with me. Sit with your sisters. We shall talk of private matters not meant for the ears of ponies. Think on this. See all the splendors of our race with your own eyes. Come to my city and see the statue set in your honor on the day of your birth. Come and at least visit your mother. I miss thee and thought thee lost to the clutches of the Reaper.” Her plea washed over me, almost to the point of begging without forcing her to let go of her pride.

I have sisters? “Is Daddy invited?”

Fangs flashed within a smile. “He will be a welcome guest. He will be treated with the utmost care and respect of any male of his station. He shall be given the title of Father Consort, a rank not held by a male changeling in over four hundred years. Michael Spriggs shall be under my personal protection.”

Uh, was she supposed to come off as… hungry like that?

“As he shall remain under mine,” Celestia added ruefully. “I do not know how I feel about your convenient little declaration, Empress.” On my other side, Luna snorted.

“Then I invite thee as a Beloved Guest of the Empire.” Her voice hissed like a sand-strewn wind.

“Will you also extend your invitation to my sister, Luna?”

There was a pause. “If that is thy desire. Bring with thee an entourage befitting a delegation of peace, Celestia. We shall talk of peace as thou doth desire.” Sil shifted as if she was sitting back, her stance speculative. “None of my daughters nor their changelings shall move upon Equestria in the absence of their princesses, so I doth declare. Let this be a first example of trust between our races.”

Luna and Celestia nodded silently in neutral agreement.

“It is settled. Go ye to the east, across the sea. Seek out the ruins of Arcadus, the ancient fallen kingdom of the minotaurs. Within its shattered capital shalt thou find thy escort to my bastion. Thou mayest bring an honor guard of no more than a score. Thy hoofmaidens shall be no more than two. Heed my instructions on this. Anzealous shalt be thy guide. Queen Druanae was most kind in offering his services as a part of his atonement for his most inappropriate invasion of an unprepared mind.” Sil inclined her head slightly at my old man. “Is this acceptable, Princesses?” Her words hovered expectantly.

Celestia looked at Luna. Luna seemed to consider something. Were they communicating telepathically? After several moments, they came to a consensus, both nodding at Sil and saying in one voice, “It is agreed.”

My…mother then asked Daddy, “Hast thou accepted the invitation I extended thee, Michael Spriggs of Earth, Beloved Guest and Father Consort to the Empire? Thou shalt be as a king and honored as such.”

Daddy swallowed hard. “Uh, sure?”

Sil nodded. “It is agreed then. Thy courage is commendable in the face of my power. Perhaps my daughter was correct in her assessment of thee. Come to my home. I am eager to see thy face before me and know thy scent. Thy taste is…robust.”

Aaaaaand there’s the predatory grin! Why was I expecting it? Because it’s what I would have done. Having a badass fang-filled smile is simply epic, so long as you brush and floss regularly. I will admit I was pretty jealous at how long Sil’s fangs were.

“It will take three days to plan the trip, gather supplies, and get a ship,” Celestia said. “Perhaps seven or eight days to cross the ocean and another two to three once we’re past the Dragonstone. Two weeks, Luna?” she asked her sister.

“This sounds correct, barring foul weather,” replied her sister.

“Acceptable terms. I will give thee until the the first day of the dragon migration.” Sil’s aura lessened considerably, even becoming gentle. “I eagerly await embracing my daughter. Such a happy turn of fate! I bid thee all farewell. Thou shalt be watched.”

With that, the column of darkness abruptly disappeared and the ball settled gently upon its pedestal. The aura faded completely and the room suddenly felt devoid of energy. All around me, the mares heaved great sighs of relief. Daddy was shaking visibly while Twilight simply stood where she had been, staring in amazement at the spot where the Empress’ projection had been.

“To think she could project her power over so great a distance,” she murmured.

“Nevermind that, Twilight.” Celestia was troubled. “It’s time to make ready for a journey.”

“Of course. I made a list just in case.”

The white alicorn laughed. “I knew you would be ready for anything.”

“Ah, princess?” Daddy interrupted, holding a finger in the air. He waited until she hummed for him to ask his question. “What personal crap of yours was she talking about?”

“It’s personal,” she said coolly. “You are in no danger, for the moment. I suggest you return to Lady Fleur de Lis’ home and make your own preparations for the journey ahead. You are committed, aren’t you?”

“I choose to be with my kid.” Daddy crossed his arms over his chest stubbornly.

“Commendable. Perhaps unwise,” noted Luna carefully. “I would not see you come to harm, Michael Spriggs. Perhaps it is best you are returned to your world.”

Fleur broke her long silence. “I disagree. He must go. He has to go. There are answers to his condition at the end of his journey.” Daddy gave her a strange look, but said nothing. She merely smiled at him placatingly.

Celestia nickered. “What leads you to believe this?”

“Indeed,” intoned Luna, curious. “What is your reasoning?”

Fleur studied Daddy carefully, pursing her lips. “She knows more of him than she is letting on. I have no proof. I simply feel it. It is the instinct, non? There was the way she used her words, her tone. Perhaps she misleads, perhaps she hides the truth behind more truths.”

“I’m going,” Daddy insisted.

Mom, I’m coming, and I’m bringing my dad and two alicorns, each capable of leveling an entire mountain range. Oh, and Fleur as well. She’re pretty good at that magic thing, too. Daddy once said we would visit Europe. Guess what? We’re visiting Europe, this world’s version. The one with Prance in it. Apparently where we’re going is where Romania would be on Earth. How fitting. I swear to God, if we run into someone named Van Helsing, I’m going to scream. .

Luna moved past us and whispered into her sister’s ear. Celestia listened, her eyes locked and far away. Both cast a slow look at the pedestal, their eyes narrowed in speculation.

It dawned on me why they might be worried. Sil was very powerful and had an earthy presence about her. She felt to me like the weight of the world was behind her. Her power was like a towering mountain just moments from falling upon me, an avalanche of terror waiting to happen at the slightest offense.

Daddy and I were going to be leaving soon for her house.

I am going to die, aren’t I?

Yay Daddy and me.

Author's Notes:

I really enjoyed writing this chapter. I'm a little surprised at its length and did consider breaking it into two chapters. Still, the first major arc is done and we can now do a little exploring of Equestria. The next arc is dealing with the trip to the ruins of Arcadus, a city destroyed by the changelings during the Nightmare Rebellion one thousand years ago. While the alicorns were distracted, 'Sil' moved against the city as it was an affront and a perceived threat to her own city.

Is she evil? Is she good? Is she something in between? What is her real name and what does she look like? Why do Celestia and Luna seem troubled by her presence?

Just what are the changelings? What is it about them that is so terrifying to ponies?

So many questions to answer...but there may not be enough time to answer them all.

They may be traveling with two of the most powerful beings on this world, but forces move to prevent a daughter from meeting her longing mother....

Chapter 12 Interlude with the Empress

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She comes. The dead have returned to the realm of the living. My heart is glad. There are few things in this world I cherish more than my daughters and their subjects. They are the only ones who truly appreciate the love I have for them. They alone give me reason to seek for them a proper place in the world. Under my guidance, my precious changelings have remained hidden within the shadows, watching and waiting.
She comes. A child once lost is found and is returning home. I shall welcome her and give her my Blessing. All of my daughters are Blessed, for were they not born from my womb? My child, my child, how I mourned your loss! How I sat unmoving in the darkness, raging in fury and sorrow. My daughters again number twelve, and once again there will be a dozen hives.
She comes. With her comes a creature responsible for giving her love and sustenance so she might one day reclaim her place at my side. Oh, how his race captivates the imagination! A thinking race, capable of understanding things far too complex for those ponies and their pampered princesses. My plans must not be interrupted by her ministrations. My faithful daughter has the way prepared. Celestia will learn how distrustful humans truly are to those who do not appear as they do.
She comes. The most powerful of my children, the one who sought to surpass she who birthed her. A mere nymph now, untested and raw. A chance to remake her, to learn from her mistakes. She will be taught what it means to be a changeling. She will have her hive and she will again lead, but as a docile, obedient daughter. Those who conspired with her against me hide from me still. If they discover her, I fear they will end her second life. This must not happen.

Shrouded in darkness, the scraping of quill to parchment paused as the lone candle in the shadows flickered at her breath. Her harlequin eyes flickered and beheld the tiny flame, the light more than enough for her to see what she was doing. The aura of her magic was slight from her crooked horn as her equally glowing quill hovered at the ready as her thoughts to her journal fled her for a moment.

Ancient as the earth, she had witnessed a great deal in the aeon of her life. Empires had risen and fallen, the land shattered and remade. Chaos had reigned and it had nearly cost her life. She rose from the ashes of her own supposed destruction and found the remnants of a race struggling on the brink of extinction. Chaos had all but ruined them, these pathetic little things mewling for love. They came to her, magical beings given form and tended to her wounds even as she used her own magic to explore their usefulness to her. They looked to her with hope and she accepted them, having decided to discard her old life. She even altered herself as she healed to be as them.

She had not been disappointed.

They had abandoned her. They did not bother to search. They had left her for dead. They had forgotten her sacrifice so they might have victory against an impossible foe. She had offered up herself to him while they prepared to use the Forgotten Magic.

Ah, memories…

“Foolishness,” she scoffed, taking her eyes off the candle. Hovering the quill at the ready, she dipped it in a crude inkwell without looking. Considering what to write down next, her eyes flickered as she sat tall in her seat. Her mane undulated as a massed tangle of living, writhing contentment as she suffered a smile and resumed her journal.

I await eagerly the return of my Chrysalis. My daughter is...was the greatest of them all. No other hive has loved their queen as her changelings loved her. I suppose I should be angry with my counterparts in keeping her from me, but I am pleased they have seen to reason and have not immediately set about to punishing an unmarked soul. Celestia has always been one to avoid rash judgements and for that, I am grateful.
When has my queens become so unloving towards each other? Have I gone so far into seclusion they have mistaken my desire to have them strengthen their changelings by openly warring upon each other? Must they scheme, sister against sister? At what point did Chrysalis decide to move upon Canterlot and why did she take some of her sisters with her?
I did not sanction this war, nor did I do anything to prevent it. My queens rule their hives as they see fit. It has always been this way. If they choose to reveal themselves to other races, then they must not reveal the other hives. Only the fit are suitable to survive. Do as they must to strengthen their hives. I have called my daughters to the sanctuary of home so they may greet Chrysalis and welcome her back to the family. Amnesty has been offered to those who conspired against me. I love my daughters and would be distraught if I had to do harm to them.
I must do as I must. I seek answers. The Equestrians know only as much as I allow them. It shall stay that way. There is a danger of the plan being discovered. The Convergence looms within the next decade or two. We are not ready. Felu has kept me informed. The humans are dangerous, unpredictable. Chrysalis has lived among them, raised from her nymph stage to a sub adult. I hear she has developed into a beautiful mare with a quick tongue. Strange words I do not understand come from them.
My agents tell me Chrysalis has been...Americanized…
Such a strange term. Apparently the humans have spent their years apart from our world developing under circumstances devoid of access to magic. They are territorial, Felu informs me. Nothing surprising there. I remember what they once were. Annoyances, in the beginning, before the Great Rifting.
Chaos still owes me a great deal. There will be a—

There was a knock to her chamber door, polite and almost hesitant.

“Come,” she bade without looking up from her work. The language of the changelings consisted of layers of chirps in song-like tones. It was almost musical to her ears. Her breath cascaded gently down upon the ink even as the door swung inward. A gray form, lithe in its chitin and exoskeleton ghosted in, with eyes of twin glowing ambers.

It was a headling servant, a mare known very well to the keeper of the journal. She was a Gray, a changeling who had not chosen a hive to join and followed no queen. Those who directly served the Empress were all Grays. No aligned changeling was allowed to serve the Empress. The changeling bowed deeply, her woven mane in intricate braids of snowy white laced with silver swishing over the cold stone floor.

“Headling Sirra,” greeted the ancient to the newcomer. Her tone was as neutral, hiding her displeasure at having what little personal time for herself interrupted.

“Eternal Mother, Queen Felu has brought her daughter to the Shadow Throne, as you requested,” chirped Sirra. She kept her muzzle pressed to the floor.

The Empress nodded, still not having suffered even a glance at the servant. Sirra knew her Lady’s tendencies. “It should be good to see the nymph, I should think,” the Empress mused quietly. “How is the child in your eyes, Sirra?”

This was a permission to look up. Sirra did so, but kept her eyes averted respectfully at her pitted hooves. “Queen Felu does not display her and keeps her hidden from unwanted eyes.” Everyling knew the reason why. It was a horribly kept secret best unspoken of if a changeling knew what was good for them. The queens Tappis and Tappaz were ruthless when it came to protecting their sister’s privacy.

“Ah.” A touch of disappointment echoed in the word.

Sirra knew Queen Felu still held her mother responsible for ruining...something. As a lowly servant of the drone caste, it was not her place to ask such personal questions. She had four nymphs of her own, soon to be shedding their final husks before being considered foals. They were adorable and the center of the changeling mare’s world, along with her smaller mate.

“How are your children?” The sudden question was casually given as the Empress finally turned in the shadows until her glowing eyes settled upon Sirra. No one knew what she looked like. The Empress of Shadows lived up to her name. Only her daughters knew how she truly appeared, and such a thing was assumed. The candle could not penetrate the darkness around her, though it was a mere foot away from her face. There were faint outlines teasing at her features.

“...Fine, Eternal Mother! Th-th-they are w-w-well and will h-h-have their final molt s-s-soon!” Sirra was surprised such an interest would be taken in her family. It threw her for a loop.

“I understand your mate is still undecided in joining a hive. He has had thirteen months to decide. Does he wish to remain a Gray?” A tendril of what might have been a part of the Empress’ mane came up under the mare’s chin and gently lifted Sirra’s face until her eyes locked into twin pools of eternity. It was impossible to say.

“I believe so, Majesty!” cried Sirra fearfully.

The Empress sighed and released her subject. “Be at ease, child. I am only a monster to my enemies. There is no need for courage in my presence.” She glanced at her pedestal where her communication sphere lay. Less than an hour ago, she had spoken to her renewed Chrysalis and peered into the eyes of the human who had raised her.

“The Equestrains are coming,” she said simply. “Pass the word to the staff.” The Empress had already notified Tappis and Tappaz through her telepathy. “I want my home spotless pending the arrival of the Diarchy of Equestria.”

The gray changeling paled. “Princess Celestia and Princess Luna are coming here?” she squeaked, her eyes going wide. “Begging your pardon, Majesty, I will need more staff.”

“Are there not Grays in the city proper in need of employment? Write a proclaimation promising extra rations of love to those who accept temporary work within my house.” She never called the massive castle anything more than her ‘house’. Its walls, turrets, and redoubts were formidable and always altering with the times. The granite used in its construction was of the hardest sort and had taken thousands of changelings dozens of years to complete. Within the unbreakable barrier lay a simple and functional keep lined with narrow, open windows. A single tower rose majestically from one side of the keep and bore a balcony from which the Empress could survey her city. Though the design was simple, changelings had proven quite creative in making the Empress a home very pleasing to the changeling eye. Her magic and her sheer will melded the completed structure and mortar into a single, solid piece.

Nowhere else in the world could a ruler claim to have a home seemingly hewn from one stone at first glance. The squared keep bore reliefs within it bearing the likeness of the twelve changeling queens and the names of their hives in the odd lines of the changeling language.

“Yes, Eternal Mother,” Sirra said obediently. “It will be done.”

The Empress went back to her journal, taking up her quill again and poising it over the inkwell. “That will be all,” she dismissed the Gray, already ignoring her. Felu, my daughter, are you still upset with me?

Sirra had bowed and left, closing the door behind her and leaving the Empress alone with her single candle flickering weakly in her shadows. No answer was forthcoming immediately. She gave a small frown, tilting her head to one side as she regarded her writings with a flick of her forked tongue. Her wings buzzed in the slightest of irritation, more from having to adjust to a more comfortable position than actual annoyance at her rebelling child.

Come, child. I do what is necessary to protect what is mine.

As expected, Felu responded carefully, yet with poorly veiled anger. I am upset with you, Mother. I had everything under control before you recalled my hive. Everything was going along perfectly. Why did you replace my children with Grays? They won’t be as efficient without a hive mind.

She picked up where she left off, dipping her quill first before setting about resuming her journal. The Empress might have been mistaken for a statue if not for the slight movement of her eyes as she wrote. Ignoring the question, she had something more important on her mind. I wish to see my granddaughter.

There was a dreadful pause. It was followed by a chilled response. You would take her from me as well?

If the Empress was annoyed with her daughter’s petulance, she did not display it. Nor did she reflect upon Felu’s tone. I am merely a grandmother seeking to feast my eyes upon my grandchild. Would you deny me this?

You would take her. Felu accused.

Such a notion! I did what I did because I must protect you from something not meant for you. Enough talk of this. You will present my granddaughter to me. Or shall I send your sisters to fetch you to me? The Empress read over her writing to make sure she was satisfied with what was penned.

Resignation filtered between the two minds. I will come, Mother.

Excellent. Know I will never take a child from one of my daughters. All we changelings have is each other, my child. You are the youngest of my children. She omitted mention of the return of Chrysalis. Felu had not been a part of the Canterlot debacle, but she had been competitive with her in regards to the affections of their mother. They had met few times and had been among the few sisters who regularly corresponded with each other.

Still, Queen Druanae was the only one who knew. It was a secret in need of keeping until Chrysalis could be properly presented before her Empress.

Yes, mother. I will bring her to you now?

Not at the present. Within the hour when I resume court. I shall weigh her possibility of becoming a queen when she is of age.

Profound shock echoed in her mind. You...you think she is capable?

Perhaps. Now, I shall see you in an hour?

Yes, mother.

Good.

The Empress was left alone with her thoughts, dipping her quill again and resuming her musings on leafy page. There was complete silence, safe for the scraping lightly playing at her relaxed ears. She kept the Overmind tuned out and in the back of her mind, having long ago learned to control it with next to no effort. Within it were tens of thousands of voices capable of speaking all at once at any given time. The Overmind touched the Hive Minds of the individual queens where their own changelings nestled. They were massive families, where a changeling did not need to be of a bloodline to be part of a hive. It was not uncommon for changeling families to switch hives if they, for example were moving from one place to another due to jobs or opportunities.

She doted over all of them when she could spare the time. Soon there would again be twelve hives, twelve queens. The Empress could not bear another queen within her. The chances of the egg hatching was too small to risk and the magic required to nurture it would be immeasurable. A changeling queen was a costly investment and required copious amounts of love. The Empress could not bear the pain of losing another daughter. Now she had neither the time nor the resources to spare. Not with the other world on course to merge with this one.

There are those who would not wish this mating of our world with the other. Humans do not understand magic, yet my Chrysalis lived among them and grew and prospered. If a queen can survive among humans, through her growing stages…

She paused, reading her words. Frowning slightly, she lined out words, not bothering to use her magic. It took from the authenticity of her work. Thousands of tomes filled with her thoughts were set neatly in the darkness beyond her. The only magic she used was to preserve her journals for all of eternity. Even her corrections were precious, every bit of ink a meaning.

This human who raised her. He survived. Remarkable. Perhaps becoming linked to my daughter preserved his mind enough to leave it tattered, but unbroken. I have seen into it and find it is somewhat healed and far from whole. The scars are deep and the hurt is great.
The experiment remains a partial success.
Discord has done the unexpected. He gave my child a second chance and rescued her from the brink of madness. I am still unsure as to what to make of him. He is Chaos. He cannot be trusted. He must never be trusted. It was he who broke the old world in half. It was he who broke me and cast me down.
Still, this may yet be a boon to my changelings. Perhaps they can finally emerge on equal footing with the ponies. However, they are not my only concern. Humanity is powerful even without magic. They are dangerous. They can be unpredictable. They can be tamed. They can feed multitudes of my changelings. Soon the way between worlds will be easily traversed by even the weakest of foals by means of not more than a short stroll.
Celestia and Luna must not be allowed to ally with the humans.

“No,” she whispered, dipping her quill. She lined out the last sentence and gave her words a speculative study. “There are simply too many of them. There are as of yet too many uncertainties. Not all will join them, nor is there a guarantee our worlds will meet peaceably.”

The human question always gave her a headache. Their potential as a source of food for changelings boggled her mind, but there was also their problematic need to resort to violence in the face of the unknown. As powerful as she was, even her magic would offer little protection to her changelings. Nor could she simply gather them beneath her wings as it would be impractical and impossible to do so. Her approach was similar to Celestia’s; study the humans, learn from them, influence in subtle ways. However, the Empress took her incursion one step further.

She sent a queen and her entire hive to Earth. There, they learned to live and act as humans. They brought back to the Eternal Mother wondrous things. Disturbing revelations. Celestia had a centuries long head start, but the changelings were proving to be quite adaptable in a world blind to magic.

They even had a foothold in the form of a country. Grays now had it, having replaced Felu’s hive. The transition had gone more or less smoothly, but it was far too dangerous to give one queen so much access to so much power. Had it been a year already?

Her thoughts shifted to the passage of time between two worlds. Thirteen years on Earth was thirteen months on Equus. When the two would become one, even she was not sure as to how it would happen. Eventually both timelines will become one. What magic would come of it? What force would be behind it? It was beyond her grasp, beyond even the alicorns.

She needed Celestia and Luna to find out what this meant for their world. Would both prosper? Would only one survive? Would both cease to exist? To act rashly might doom her precious changelings and her daughters who lead them. If worse came to worse, she was determined her children and their charges would prevail at any cost.

Even if it meant eliminating the Royal Sisters.

Again, the quill scratched neatly at the parchment.

Perhaps I must move. My beloved daughters who turned against me must not be allowed access to the portal. I cannot follow them to Earth. My power wanes if I cannot be with my world. My greatest weakness is I cannot leave this world. I am too connected to even consider the possibility.

There was another polite knock at her door. It was a familiar rapping. Ah, lunch must be here. “Come.”

Noling could use the Overmind to contact the Empress. She controlled it and decided when she wanted to access it. She preferred vocal and physical communication when it came to her subjects. It felt more involved than simply speaking through their minds. Looking up from her small desk, she noted two Grays pushing in a cart bearing a trussed up earth pony stallion. His eyes were glazed over and he lay folded neatly on his stomach as if in a state of rest. It was a white and gray painted coat with a black and gray mane which caught her eye. Rather salt and pepper, the Empress mused as the servants bowed quickly to her and left.

She rose to her hooves, feeling a hunger welling deep from within. Unable to help herself, she ran her long, forked tongue over her fangs. The stallion looked to where his peripheral vision caught her movement and started. His nostrils flared. Fear drifted into her nostrils. The Empress drank it in, delighting in fresh terror.

“You’re a young one, aren’t you?” She glided effortlessly, the shadows shifting with her every movement. Only her eyes were easily discernable. “So young. Germane? Yes. I can taste your aura. Most definitely Germane.”

The stallion whimpered, struggling against his bonds. As the monstrous thing approached, he began to see great fangs glistening in the weak candle light. Pleading eyes begged for mercy.

“But I must feed,” she replied to his stare, flashing her maw. With a sudden blur of movement, she was in his face, closing her eyes and inhaling his scent deeply. “I must be satisfied. You won’t be much of a meal, but you should tie me over until dinner.” Emerald orbs opened to sultry slits, bathing the stallion’s face with their allure. “You will love me, my lovely meal. You will love me and feed me.”

“Love...you,” he whispered, completely enthralled.

“Yes...and feed me,” she commanded huskily.

“Feed..?” The stallion blinked, the word not registering.

The Empress kissed her meal lightly on the lips, adjusting herself for a better angle. “I will show you, little stallion. I will show you how to love me and you shall sleep forever, knowing nothing but happiness.”

“Yes...by your will,” he rasped.

“Indeed.” The darkness about her surged forward, around, encompassing both as she bent in, a terrible and insatiable hunger trembling through her body. The sound of a startled gasp became a weak whinny, followed by a throaty chuckle and a hiss.

Author's Notes:

Notice something different? She no longer speaks in archaic tongue. Why? First of all, she doesn't have to speak that way. She chooses to in order to keep her opponents off balance. If you had Celestia and Luna as possible enemies in a war, would you not want to keep them guessing by any means possible? She knows she isn't in a position of strength, so she bluffs.

She's speaking in the changeling language. Why is the stallion able to understand her? He is enthralled. Her magic filled his mind and she allowed him to know her words. Though he can't speak them, he can understand the Empress.

At least he's dying happy.

So...what do you think of the Empress? Still mysterious to you? Lovable? Want to love her and pet her and squeeze her and call her George?

New story arc next chapter!

Chapter 13 We're Going to Need a Bigger— Oh, Nevermind...

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Pre-read and edited by iakovl

The R.E.S. Mare Crisium was one of the newer Ambassador class heavy cruisers often used by diplomats and VIPs for fast travel across the ocean between Equestria and the old world countries like Prance, Germaney, Espona, and the United Kingdom. An airship of seven hundred feet in length and two hundred fifty feet in width, she was of an all steel construction and gleamed like a jewel in the sunlight. Less than a year into her commission, she had just completed her shakedown and prepared to embark on her first official mission. The cruiser's primary goal was to hunt down pirate ships, be they land or air. Her crew was a mix of veterans and greenhorns, complete with four fighter wings of hotshot pegasi.

Tabbed for the diplomatic mission to the doorstep of the mysterious ruins of Arcadus, her newly minted captain had bribed his way through red tape and did a lot of back hoofed actions to place himself in a position to impress his aunts, as well as his father-in-law to be. Of course, this meant bringing along his expectant bride-to-be to serve as a family witness to speak on his behalf to her father, as well as calling in certain favors from other nobles in the Equestrian Aerial Navy, (namely two admirals, two vice admirals and even a rear admiral). Not only was the Mare Crisium allowed to bring along the pregnant fiancee on board for the voyage, but for Prince Blueblood this was but another opportunity for him to gain favor in the eyes of his most favorite aunt, Princess Celestia.

Oh, and getting Luna to like him would be a nice bonus, too.

Clutching his orders in his magical grip and close to his chest, Prince Blueblood was on the platform of the airship hangar of the massive air base on the opposite side of Canterlot Mountain. Airships in refit, newly commissioned or repair were docked to their berths. They ranged from the small twenty pony corsairs of less than a hundred feet to the massive air battleships of the tri-hulled Shiva class. Ponies of all types went about their duties. Sparks flew from some of the aerial docks where pegasi repaired armor plates. Scaffolding bore earth ponies and unicorns checking hulls for microfractures. Whole engines were being lowered to the ground and upon great wagons, were they were taken to the great workshops for maintenance.

This was Princess Luna’s prized military base. It had been built during the past twenty years with Celestia naming it Sky Mountain. It was a name synonymous with the Royal Research and Development Division. Once Luna began to resume her duties, one of the latest mantels she had resumed was that of Overgeneral. Should Equestria go to war, the alicorn would lead from the front while her elder sister guided their civilians. One of the first things the Night Princess had done was familiarize herself with modern tactics and warfare. It had changed a great deal and she relished and at the same time worried over the changes. War was still war and no other living creature in the world had her combat experience.

It was she who selected the ship. As for the captain, she requested he or she be one of the highest order and competence and somepony who knew their ships. She said nothing when his name was given to her in an almost apologetic whisper.

“He’ll do,” was all she said, and went about her business without pause. There was much to do with the two days before the scheduled departure. Her sister had already settled on her nephew for his abilities, not his personality. Luna was inclined to agree. Blueblood was a master with a ship under his command.

Naturally, there was a protest lobbied to Princess Celestia, but she merely deferred any military decisions to Luna for final say. She did give pause upon word the fiancee of the prince would come along, but she permitted it as the young lady’s father had personally designed the Ambassador class. Designer Melody had given Equestria the finest cruiser in the world. Besides, her father had requested her presence in Prance for one of his functions and they would be going in that direction. Luna saw no harm in adding a slight detour to their journey. Besides, she wanted to see the young mare herself and get a measure of her.

Octavia Melody followed closely behind Prince Blueblood, not yet showing a bulge in her belly. She was pretty, with a dull gray coat and a dark glossy mane, full and lovely. About her neck she wore a white collar and pink bowtie. Her cutie mark was a treble clef. The mare was only three months along. Oddly, she had calmed most of the snootiness out of the reluctant groom, but he was doing his best to ‘step up’, as the peasants seemed keen to say. Octavia watched him like a hawk. Her father had more money than Blueblood and Designer made sure tabs were kept on the very distant relation to the Royal Sisters. Mares he associated with were approached and politely told to not allow him to sow his oats within them.

Octavia was usually there and shaking an angry hoof under their chins while two of the biggest, burliest, and meanest earth pony stallions stood on either side of her. “Never rub another mare’s rhubarb,” she would say. Twenty-eight mares heard that phrase. Twenty-eight mares refused to have anything to do with Blueblood. A couple of them needed some ’convincing’ and there was even an ugly brawl involving a great deal of mane pulling. The stallions were there just to keep anypony from interfering.

Who knew Octavia was a black belt in Mare Kwon Do? Throw in the hormones of a pregnant earth pony mare and she became a force to be reckoned with.

Of course, Octavia Melody was not normally a mare to take such drastic actions. She was refined, dignified, played the cello, and absolutely loved donating her time and talents to charity. She dreamed of becoming a master cello player, perhaps even good enough to play in the Royal Canterlot Orchestra. Her father reluctantly allowed his daughter to pursue her dreams, himself having bucked an old family tradition of winemaking to instead build ships when he was a youth. Besides, her mother had been one hell of a piano player.

No, she came from a Melody line of ponies who took family very seriously. No mare bore a foal without a husband at her side. No stallion left a mare bearing his part of the greatest of responsibilities to go it alone. Octavia admitted she had perhaps a bit too much to drink on the night in question. The aspiring musical artist may have allowed herself to be swayed under the charms of a certain prince who himself may have had a wee bit much wine. Both may have left their chaperones deliberately so they might enjoy each other’s company in private in one of the many guest rooms of a very posh hotel. One thing led to another and soon the only thing keeping Prince Blueblood’s head on his shoulders was his promise to wed Octavia and make an honest mare of her before the word illegitimate could be added before the word foal.

Princess Celestia was inclined to agree. After having a very long and polite discussion with Designer Melody (and calming him down with enough tea to bloat an elephant), both musician and prince were brought before father and princess. After a rather one-sided argument (Prince Blueblood could not speak due to the death glare Designer fixated upon him during the entirety of the meeting), it was agreed a marriage would be held before the culmination of Octavia’s pregnancy or else Prince Blueblood would be forced to forfeit his title and half of his lands and wealth. Thus was Prince Blueblood betrothed to Octavia Melody.

It was said the hysterical laughter of a certain fashionista could be heard in Canterlot all the way from Ponyville, reaching Blueblood’s ears and causing several sleepless nights.

As it was, stallion and mare made their way through the din beneath the late afternoon sun. July was in its last week and the hottest weather was yet to come. As it was, the Weather Bureau had a thunderstorm scheduled at sunset.

“This humidity is intolerable,” Blueblood whined to Octavia with a disdainful sniff.

She sighed. “You are the only one complaining, love.” Behind her was a train of servants hauling their luggage. Most of it belonged to her future husband. He sported a dashing white uniform of a naval officer. Glancing down at his orders, he huffed, ignoring his future bride’s remark.

“Now, where is that ship?” He was still unfamiliar to the outline of the new vessel. She was the first of her class and he still lingered thoughts on his beloved Constellation, a Shiva class battleship and pride of the Equestrian fleet. The Mare Crisium was smaller, sleeker, and seemed to blend in around the other airships with annoying ease. However, she was new and she presented an opportunity for ambitious stallions to add to their resume when it came time for promotion. He had also yet to see her completed form apart from the blueprints and photographs.

“Docking bay seven-A, my love,” she said patiently. Yes, he was stubborn and was prone to bouts of infantile tantrums, but she was bound and determined to make a decent stallion out of him. Maybe someday she would learn to love him. Family came first. Celestia had whispered a few helpful hints into her ear, providing an unexpected and welcome boon in dealing with the spoiled prince. Maybe it would work, but Octavia imagined many a loveless night for her in the future. Inwardly she sighed.

Octavia had a map presented to her by one of Blueblood’s servants. They naturally gravitated towards her. She was kind to them and completely had the prince completely stymied with how she had managed to curtail his roaming eye. The mare smiled warmly at the stallion who gave her the map and cleared her throat before giving it a serious lookover. “Take the right and follow the dock to the far end. The pier only can hold one of the larger ships. The Mare Crisium should be easily noticeable. Come along, my love.”

She handed the map back to the servant and pressed onwards, offering a sidelong glance and a smile at Blueblood. He stared at her, whimpering at the prospect of having to walk and even get sweaty. Pausing in mid step, she leaned into him and pecked him lightly on the cheek. Octavia whispered, “A good walk is good for you, my prince. Think of the stretching it will do for you. Perhaps tonight you’ll…?” The suggestion hung hopefully in the air.

Blueblood stammered, a lovely blush showing on his face. “Not in public!” he hissed with widened eyes. Steadying himself like a proper gentlecolt, he assumed a stoic, arrogant pose. “Very well, then. Let us proceed. Um, that way, you said?” He wagged a hoof in the direction she had indicated from her map.

“Yes, dear. That way.” She did not and would not splay her ears back at the rejection. Octavia held what she hoped was a genuine smile for her hopelessly snobbish future husband. She didn’t know if she would find herself loving him. Patience, she told herself. Do not show him weakness!

Prince Blueblood was still trying to figure out how he could have fallen victim to the wiles of an earth pony, of all things!

About that time, his party met another party. This one bore none other than the Lady Fleur de Lis and her entourage. With her was a dark gray unicorn mare (not quite black with the sun glinting off her lovely coat) with what appeared to be a dark evergreen colored mane and tail, straight and cascading perfectly down her shoulders. The tail trailed behind her, swaying with the slight movements of her hips, stirring up the dust from the wooden planks. Her emerald green eyes were wide with wonder as she gaped up at all the ships, trying to take in all the sights. She chattered eagerly a bombardment of questions. An officer—a lieutenant answered her questions patiently and with a captivated smile. The girl was very pretty. Just behind her walked a….malformed minotaur? No, Blueblood shook his head, remembering the breathless report a pony in black gave him just two mornings ago. Good bits had been paid to find out discreetly what the strange guest was in the castle. The items brought to him served to only add to the confusion.

This creature was called a human, just like in the legends. Squinting at him for a moment, the prince decided the reddish brown mane and tall, lanky bipedal frame was not all that impressive. The human wore a black sleeveless shirt and bore an ugly scar on his left shoulder. There appeared to be a drawing of sorts around the scars, perhaps some sort of lizard missing its head. Small blue eyes focused on the ships in their docks with more reserved wonder than the mare’s. He was undersized compared to a minotaur and very thin haired beast. His skin was visible! No fur, no scale, nothing! Upon his head sat a battered tan hat with a wide brim and a flat top.

Octavia gaped at the creature. She wasn’t the only one impersonating a landed fish. The mare caught herself and chided inwardly at her rudeness. Deliberately looking away from, there were several Royal Guards serving as either guards or escorts or serving both capacities. Of the four, one unicorn stallion seemed to bear a storm cloud over his head. The others looked typically stoic. She knew of Fleur de Lis, having heard of her exploits as a supermodel and rumored to have been retired from the business. From all appearances, the white mare with the pink mane looked more than fit to pose for the camera! A twinge of jealousy ran through the cellist, but she shook it off irritably. Such thoughts were unbecoming! Besides, if they were to be traveling together, why not get things off the right hoof?

Octavia also noted a pair of changelings trying very hard to be inconspicuous in the group. One was unbelievably fat and in a continental suit. A derby hat was perched at a tilt upon his head, held in place by his long ears. The other was an unadorned female trying to keep herself as unassuming as possible. Considering her garish companion, it was not hard for her to do.

She took the initiative. “Lady Fleur de Lis?” Octavia ventured, tilting her head to one side and smiling. “Could that possibly be you?”

The unicorn turned with the grace of a swan, her ears picking out her name over the low din of the very lively dock. She reflected Octavia’s smile and paused in mid step, swiveling like a ballerina to face the mare and her future husband. “Lady Octavia Melody, I presume?” she ventured in kind.

The earth pony mare blushed a little. She still considered herself not so popular as some of the more renowned classical instrumentalists out there, but she welcomed recognition when it was given. “Indeed I am,” she replied, stepping past her now annoyed fiancee.

“Protocol!” he hissed at her through the side of his mouth.

“Oh, stuff it!” she retorted under her breath. Octavia’s smile never left her lips.

The two mares converged, each one pecking the other on one cheek, then the other. It took just a moment for them to look each other in the eye and decide having a female truce before deciding what one felt of the other first. Octavia refused to be intimidated by Fleur’s rumored skill in magic and Fluer tried not to be as intimidating as the whispered reported her to be. Some noblemares did what they could to slander the sorceress for no reason other than pure jealousy of many things about the unicorn mare.

“You look absolutely radiant!” Fleur complimented her with genuine admiration. “What did you do to your mane? It absolutely looks lovely.”

“Oh, nothing compared to how full and alive yours is,” returned Octavia shyly. “I must say, I am completely at your mercy, Lady Fleur. I had always hoped the rumors of you to be untrue.”

“Ah,” Fleur giggled a bit. “Rumors. Tell me, Lady Octavia. Which ones? There are so many having me eating foals to stay young. Ah, is that one still going around?”

“Only from some of the older nobles,” said the cellist. “I shall be travelling with you and I shall inform you of the latest gossip and rumors about you!” Octavia leaned in, shifting her eyes to the left and right before adding in a conspiratorial whisper, “Perhaps a tidbit or two about the other nobles and their silly little games.”

“Over a glass of cabernet?” offered Fleur slyly.

“Sounds divine!” replied Octavia.

“It is decided! We shall be friends!” cried out the unicorn. The two mares looked at each other for a moment and burst out in tittering laughter. As if on cue, they slid devious looks towards a baffled and confused Prince Blueblood. “Prince Blueblood. Charmed as always I am to be in the presence of such a noble stallion. Enchanté.” Her eyes glinted merrily as she offered her hoof to the prince.

Recovering, he took it up and gave the offered hoof a light kiss, absolutely mortified as Octavia had, in one fell swoop, befriended one of the most prolific antagonists in his life. “A pleasure as always,” he managed, swallowing the lie as if his life depended on it. “You look well, Lady Fleur.”

“Well, I’m not dead yet, if that’s what you mean,” she responded dryly.

He flinched. “I would never suggest such a thing!”

“Of course you wouldn’t, mon cher prince,” she replied smoothly. “Might I introduce those with me?” Fleur slid aside and indicated the human and the dark, enticing young mare standing next to him.

“Ah, delighted,” he replied, eyeing the hulking human as if he were a manticore about to devour the prince where he stood. A faux smile splayed over his features.

“The human is Michael Spriggs. He is a war veteran and retired to a life of raising his adopted daughter, Midnight Emerald,” Fleur said, specifically avoiding her natural tendency of speaking Chrysalis’ pony name as she preferred to speak it.

“Adopted?” Blueblood was shocked. “By that?” He thrust a hoof at the human, who smirked and rolled his eyes, crossing his arms over his chest.

Octavia stomped on his hoof indiscreetly. “Rude!” she hissed.

“Yeah,” said the human with a smirk. “I’m all that.”

“And a bag of chips,” added the young mare, beaming up at him. “Old, stale chips.”

The human ruffled her mane playfully. “So long as they’re kettle.”

“Nah. Plain.”

“Nice to meet you,” they both said to Blueblood at the same time and creepily in the same monotone.

Fleur maintained her smile as if the pair were acting as she expected. She indicated the changelings. “Ambassador Fae of the Druanae Hive, representing the Empire,” —Fae smiled and nodded politely to the soon-to-be-wed couple— “And her brother, Anzealous, former ambassador of the Druanae Hive and current liaison during the upcoming voyage.”

Anzealous sized up Blueblood and offered nothing more than a curt nod. The two shared an icy glare before blatantly ignoring each other. Fae simply chirped something, making her brother break his stare and whip his head at her. Giving a half hearted hiss and a huff, he stuck his nose in the air, just as Blueblood did the same.

“Lady Octavia Melody, daughter of Designer Melody?” ventured Fae as she shifted her interest to the earth pony mare. She approached slowly, ignoring the pinprick eyes of the prince as she drew within his proximity. He backpedaled into a restraining hoof of his future bride.

“Manners,” she hissed, again somehow able to speak without breaking her smile. To Fae she replied hospitably, “Why, yes. Have you met my father?”

The changeling nodded. “Four months ago when he came to check on the final details on one of his fabled ships. I managed to get an hour of his time to discuss possible designs of passenger liners for Queen Druanae. Changelings aren’t exactly made for fast flight and she wanted something that would allow us to move our eggs.”

“Eggs?” piped up the dark teenaged mare curiously. She left the human’s side and approached, her ears perked forward, head tilted cutely to one side.

“Oh, yes! Changeling hives have a communal hatchery to promote the belief our children belong to all of us. Even the queen places her eggs there. Having a mobile hatchery would greatly aid in keeping our eggs from rival hives. It’s been a bit of a high stakes game for queens to try and steal the eggs of other hives,” Fae explained.

“How horrid!” exclaimed Blueblood, earning him an elbow in his side. He winced and glared at Octavia.

“As I was saying,” Fae went on, giving the prince a sweet, false smile, “If your father were to design for us an armored transport to protect our future, it would go a great deal towards preserving the future of the hive against the more aggressive queens.”

“Interesting. I shall have to ask Father if he’s given thought to the idea,” hummed Octavia. “Perhaps…?” The mare offered a hopeful, almost school filly look to Fleur.

“Of course she can join us,” assured the sorceress with a chuckle. “The more the merrier, oiu?”

Fae set back on her haunches and clopped her forehooves together happily. “Oh, we’ll have so much fun. We’ll gossip and talk about boys!” she giggled.

Meanwhile, the human had worked his way unnoticed until he was within Blueblood’s notice. The stallion glared up at him and was taken aback when the tall thing gestured at the trio of mares.

“Females,” he grunted with a wry grin. “You can’t live with ‘em. Can’t live without ‘em.”

The prince gauged the creature carefully. “Indeed.” he offered, wondering if he was about to be pounced upon.

“You’re Prince Blueblood? The one getting married?”

“I am.”

“To that gray mare there with the pretty dark hair?”

“Yes, that is my future wife.”

“Congratulations.” The human smiled at him, then went back to where he had been standing. He started asking more questions to the lieutenant while waiting for the ladies to decide to press on towards the ship.

“What the bloody—” Prince Blueblood caught himself as his bafflement of the exchange had him in a tizzy. “Such an odd fellow.” Perhaps he should sit down with the creature and find out if the adoption statement was true. An unicorn adopted by a-a-an ape? Nonsense! Balderdash! Poppycock! Perhaps he should go over the report in his possession a bit more thoroughly. Was it dangerous? Obviously not if Auntie Celestia and Auntie Luna let the thing go about without a leash.

Gathering up his courage, he went after the talking ape. “Now see here, creature!” he called out, summoning his noble heritage to righteous indignation. “I shan’t be addressed as if I were some commoner! I am of House Blueblood and am of the Royal Bloodline. I demand you address me in the proper manner.”

“Oh, you mean you’re an asshole.” The human bore a smarmy attitude, crossing his arms over his chest and tilting his chin downward to glare at the approaching prince.

“Monsieur Spriggs, he is the captain of the ship upon which you will be boarding shortly,” called out Fleur with a note of warning in her voice.

“Yet such a nice asshole,” quipped Michael affably, dropping his arms to his sides. Chrysalis glared at him for a moment, the facehoofed.

“Prince Blueblood,” Fleur said to the fuming stallion. His face was beet red as he tried to formulate a proper response to such crude language. “Please do not mind Monsieur Spriggs. He is of a culture that elects their leaders based on merit and not blood.” She smiled assuringly at the flustered prince.

Octavia hid a smile behind a hoof. Fae was less inclined to conceal her amusement. Chrysalis glared at her father. Anzealous tapped a hoof impatiently. The guards might as well been statues.

“Can we get going?” he demanded with a huff. “We have a ship to catch.”

Michael opened his mouth to retort, but clamped it shut. He still had issues with being in the vicinity of the plump shape shifter. Having his mind scrambled by an impromptu and aggressive mind probe spell had left a bitter taste in his impression of Equestria as a whole.

Still, yesterday had been spent in Ponyville with his daughter. A pink pony had thrown a party for him and he got a chance to actually enjoy himself for the first time since arriving on invitation from the Royal Sisters. Being among the normal everypony had seemed to relax him and Michael found he had even enjoyed himself. It was a day allowing him to at least consider reassessing his first impression of this world, though the odd stares from ponies still threw him into minor bouts of melancholy. He didn’t want to be someone people were afraid of. It made him think too much of his past.

The group reformed and eventually started making headway in the general direction where the airship supposedly awaited them. Chrysalis assumed her place on his right, almost on his hip. Her unicorn disguise had earned quite a bit of attention and she was sensing emotions from more than a few stallions (and some mares) she was not really ready to deal with. She blocked them out, her eyes a little wide as she sought protection through the touch of her father. Maybe using Fleur as a base hadn’t been such a good idea to begin with. She would have gone her normal form, but this was stressed as being a very bad idea. Changeling spies were more than likely to abound, despite the best efforts at detecting them. The shape-shifters were masters of their craft. Circumventing measures to sniff them out might not be that difficult for them.

“Did you have fun yesterday, Daddy?” she asked, looking up at him. “I mean, you really didn’t want to talk too much about it this morning.”

“Hmm?” He smiled and looked down at her. “Ponyville was fun, pumpkin. It was nice to see you made friends. Made me feel better.”

“Do you think we can do something like that again when we get back?” she asked.

Michael grinned. “Yeah. I don’t see why not. I liked talking to Applejack. Her grandma reminds me of my grandma. Good people.”

“Ponies,” corrected his daughter with a grin.

“Whatever. People is people.” He shrugged. “Thinking back,” Michael added thoughtfully, “It’s not really hard to imagine them as humans and just going about their lives and enjoying each other and what they have. It was kind of like Disneyland without the ass kissing.”

Chrysalis laughed.

It was true in his mind. The earth pony mare Applejack was as down to earth as one could get and she didn’t go out of her way other than to be neighborly. She was downright friendly and was happy to hear of Michael’s farmer roots with his grandparents. Ponyville was a farming community and the sense was what more than likely allowed the man to relax. They probably could have talked the day away, discussing Michael’s desire to improve his little farm he had going behind his house. It wasn’t much, but more than enough to feed him and his changeling daughter through a winter. The farmer pony offered tips and even had a few questions of her own in regards to human farming practices. Michael had to recall most from what his grandpa used to explain to him.

As for his impressions of the other mares he had met when they came to take his daughter away? It had changed in varying degrees once he had a chance to chat with them without the fear of them taking Chrysalis and was thus able to form a more open opinion. He already was familiar with Fluttershy. The butter colored pony with the pink mane was sweet, but her shyness tended to make her blend into her surroundings. She liked animals and apparently had no problems having conversations with a bear. The quiet mare was happy to see Michael, though shied a bit from Chrysalis. She was still nervous around the changeling. Of course, she apologized to Chryssie and the human’s adopted daughter accepted it with a sad little smile.

“One day,” she promised. Chrysalis liked Fluttershy.

Rainbow Dash, the polychromatic pegasus mare was a bundle of energy, always showing off and coming off as the stereotypical jock. She had all sorts of questions about his days in the army, thanks to Chryssie’s bragging. He answered as best he could and found the mare had a rather vivid (if overactive) imagination. Michael was leary of her and even found her a bit annoying. Still, she had some qualities about her he could appreciate, namely loyalty.

Then there was the pristine white coated unicorn named Rarity, with her curled royal purple mane and tail. She spoke with a sort of high society accent (Michael didn’t know what else to call it) and asked all sorts of questions in regards to human fashion. Mr. Spriggs regretted bringing up the mention of bell bottoms to her. Based on how she went one with starry eyes, he was already imagining a world of pastel ponies stuck in the 1970’s. “Shouldn’t have said that,” he muttered to himself as she went of on a fashion tangent. Still, she was the absolute model of proper etiquette.

Then, there was the living, breathing pink elephant by the name of Pinkie Pie. The earth pony took the definition of ‘party hearty’ to an extreme level. Perhaps even beyond. Excitable, goofy, and possibly the most insane sapient this side of Hannibal Lecter, Pinkie found time to not throw a party, but to do so in a manner that made Michael laughing when it was sprung on him. The human was not easily surprised, but she had been warned by Chryssie before hand to not do anything to startle him. Pinkie somehow managed to throw the perfect sort of party for a man who needed to see something like this coming or curl up into a ball or lashing out instinctively. She unfurled her ‘Welcome to Ponyville Human Michael Spr’ display (the banner ran out of room) proudly. There was cake, punch, as well as a few other assorted goodies, including cupcakes.

Pinkie Pie did strange, impossible things.

“That’s just Pinkie Pie being Pinkie Pie,” he was told.

“Bullshit,” was his half-hearted response as the pink mare suddenly popped out of a cup of fruit punch.

“Language, Daddy,” Chryssie had giggled at him.

Then, there was of course Princess Twilight Sparkle. She was still raw to the responsibilities of being a princess, but was a literal walking, talking library of just about anything she could think of. She seemed sensible, if a bit bookish (make that very bookish). The questions she flooded Michael with left the human a bit overwhelmed. Sometimes her questions led to an exposition as she reasoned out her own answer to her question without giving a human a chance to answer. It was adorably frustrating.

The visit to Ponyville and seeing the friends his daughter had made reassured the human. The four guards who went with him and his daughter maintained a respectful distance, but at the same time did not allow them to wander about as they pleased. For most of the day, they stayed on a farm called Sweet Apple Acres. Fleur de Lis had not come along, pleading forgiveness as she dealt with business matters.

Still, it was an enjoyable and overall relaxing day, just what the human needed.

Now, the next day they were looking for a ship in a dockyard full of airships. The dock they were on was easily two hundred feet in the air. Michael Spriggs, feeling less stressed now could only look at the collection of military ships as a little boy at an air show. Everything looked impressive and shiny. The grin plastered on his face was also for the hard working ponies going about their jobs and looking for all the world like the men and women he used to see back at Fort Bragg.

Not all of his memories of his time in the service were bad. Michael found himself comfortable here, almost as if it were a home away from home. Chrysalis felt her father’s wonderment and happiness he rarely exhibited these days. She hoped this was a start of something good for him. Equestria had been rough to the poor man since his arrival. Her accusatory glare fell more than once on the chunky changeling. Sometimes he caught her eyes and flinched visibly, other times he just felt her eyes on him. Sensing her emotions told him when she was looking. The poor fellow could not seem to apologize enough.

However, there was another reason why she was glaring at him. Her father had decided earlier this morning, and without consulting her, Chrysalis should spend the voyage working for the rotund fellow. Both gave the human looks of horror. Anzealous, because no queen served beneath any changeling and Chrysalis for obvious reason: she hated his guts.

The former ambassador argued against the idea vehemently, flailing and ranting as he did so. His tirade could not be taken seriously as his fat jiggled beneath his chitin as he went into detail on changeling laws and regulations. Royal changelings never, never, ever served under any ‘ling unless the ‘ling in question was of greater rank and/or power.

Chrysalis argued that Anzealous was a fat, ugly toad who only existed to slap his tongue into the brains of helpless weaklings.

That earned a glare from her father, for several reasons.

“Another week,” he told her. “As his helper.” Michael leveled a finger at the fat changeling, who by now was hopping mad (literally) as he was being ignored.

Chrysalis drew her head back, her eyes pinpricks as her lower lip quibbled.

“Now see here!” blasted Anzealous. His face burned like a green tomato. This made Michael stare, as the only other changeling he had ever seen blush was his daughter. It looked strange.

“Shut up, Andy.” Michael then turned on him and was suddenly looming over the much smaller and suddenly balled up changeling staring up at him with huge, frightened eyes. “She’s being punished for trying to kill you. She will work for you. She will do what you tell her to do. Think of this as part of the path to forgiveness for you. Deal?”

That had been less than two hours ago.

There was no point in Anzealous trying to correct the name the human had given him. I am not Andy, he thought to himself as he waddled after the group. Fae prodded him along with a smile and a rather firm hoof to his rump. The changeling stallion harrumphed and noticed Prince Blueblood had fallen in step next to him. The two noticed this and glared at each other.

“The human is insufferable,” grated Anzealous sullenly. “Making the child my ‘helper’ for the duration of the voyage.” He meant to be speaking under his breath, but his anger blinded his awareness.

Blueblood took notice. Glancing forward, he noted Octavia was chatting happily with that dreadful sorceress Fleur de Lis. Tilting his head towards Anzealous, he asked quietly, “Are you speaking of that enchanting dark mare?”

“She’s royalty,” Anzealous said warily, narrowing his eyes. It would not do at all if this noble discovered Chrysalis’ disguise. Not at all! “From a faraway land. She was brought up by that ape and now he is taking her home where she rightfully belongs.”

A gleam appeared in the unicorn’s eye. Blueblood smiled. “Really? Is she spoken for?”

“Aren’t you engaged?” sighed Anzealous. The reputation of the prince was known to the changeling. He was not impressed. “I beg your pardon, good prince, but even your society frowns upon stallions forming harems. This is not Saddle Arabia.”

“Oh, and I suppose your female changelings having multiple male consorts is different?” snarked Blueblood haughtily.

“Only the queens do that. It is necessary to diversify their offspring,” huffed Anzealous. “Mark my words, Prince Blueblood, for your own sake. Do not meddle with that filly.”

“I’m not afraid of some oversized ape,” sneered the prince.

Anzealous rolled his eyes. The human is not the one you should fear, pony.

Blueblood sighed, noting he was losing the changeling’s attention. “What is your assessment of the ape?”

“Unpredictable,” was all he got in reply. Anzealous trotted ahead, buzzing his wings slightly as if readjusting them.

“Prince Blueblood,” Fae spoke up, taking her brother’s place. “If there is anything you should take to heart, it’s the warning my brother gave you. You really, really do not want any part of the human’s adopted daughter. Her magic is raw, yet her grasp of it makes her unstable. Should you make any unwanted advances towards her, the results could result in injuries. Please do not try anything with her. I personally ask you as a favor to the Changeling Empire.”

“A favor?” Blueblood’s intrigue was piqued.

“Yes. A favor.”

“Keep your pathetic favors.”

“Fine. Then I shall tell Octavia you’re ogling other mares.”

“You wouldn’t dare!” hissed Blueblood, misstepping and stumbling a little. He caught himself and glared at the offending platform. It was predictably indifferent to his ire.

The grin Fae gave him was malicious. “Oh. I would. Watch me. There’s also your aunts who set you up with your pending nuptials. I should imagine they would be very put out with you should you decide to dally in fields you don’t belong.”

Prince Blueblood lifted his nose in the air and hurried past Fae with long strides. As he caught up with Octavia, she gave him a queer look, then over her shoulder at the female changeling. The ambassador gave her a benign smile and buzzed her wings to fan herself in the muggy heat.

Steel Jaw observed the bickering between the prince and the changelings, inwardly wishing the earth would just open up and swallow them whole. Since the morning he had nearly gotten into a fight with the human, life had become a veritable hell for the unicorn. Lady Fleur de Lis had reported his actions to his watch commander, who in turn was unhappy with being woken. The watch commander then ordered the stallion in and proceeded to inform him in a loud voice Princess Luna would most certainly hear of his unprofessional dealings with a royal guest. The Royal Guard, especially the Night Guard were supposed to be the face of the Equestrian armed forces to all those who stepped hoof into the hallowed halls of Canterlot Castle. The embarrassment of allowing one’s personal views come before duty and dedication was not to be tolerated.

The human was an unknown. Nopony knew if he would fight or if he was aggressive. Luna had some idea.

“He is a war veteran from his world,” she had told Steel Jaw after coldly discussing her own profound disappointment in the unicorn’s conduct. “He has fought hard and has earned the respect due to one who only seeks to raise his child in peace. Our sister invited him after first discussing the matter with us. We agreed to allow the father to be reunited with his daughter, for it was prudent and right thing to do. You were to be his guide and perhaps a friend. He knows nopony here other than his daughter and we thought you would be an excellent choice. You will make yourself someone the human can trust. You must be our eyes and ears.”

Steel Jaw remembered how much smaller and smaller he felt as the princess’ words bit into him, lashing at his honor and making him feel like a bully. He did attempt a protest. “But she’s Chrysalis, my princess!”

“SILENCE! THOU WILT OPEN THY EARS AND CLOSE THY MOUTH!” she had roared in her Royal Voice. After glaring into his soul, it seemed, she turned from him in disgust, then sighed. “I understand your feelings towards changelings. All felt the presence in, one way or another while they were here. Rest assured, my stalwart pony, I am aware this Chrysalis is not the monster who tried to take Equestria for herself. Both my sister and myself have proceeded upon this matter with great wariness. This creature wearing the guise of the damnable queen is nothing like her. She may bear the same name, but this one is a filly missing her only parent.”

The unicorn stallion had at that point felt very guilty. Failing Equestria was one thing. Failing his princess…

He wished he was dead.

“We shall give you one more chance to redeem yourself and remove the stain you have placed upon the Night Guard.” Luna gave Steel Jaw a hard look. “Michael Spriggs will need a friend here in Equestria. You will be that friend. You will apologize to him. You will treat him as you would an honored friend of my sister.”

“Permission to speak freely, my princess?” he dared.

“Denied.”

“Permission to ask one question, my princess?”

“Choose your question carefully, my little pony.” She offered him a half smile and a nod.

“Do you consider him a friend, Highness?”

Luna gave him a stony expression. “His kind can be dangerous. I cannot be his friend because where my sister welcomes him with open hooves in friendship, I must be wary and watch him. My banishment did have some good come of it. I will not lavish my friendship upon any mortal soul who crosses paths with me. He shall be here a short while, see to the well-being of his daughter, and go home. I see no reason to pursue a relationship beyond pleasantries and tolerance. You, however, will make that effort. Do we make ourselves clear?”

Steel Jaw bowed low. “Yes, your Highness.”

The memory stung him still, having burned itself the image of the Princess of the Night roaring in that Creator-damned Voice. Just thinking about it gave the fearless stallion the shivers. Taking the moment to apologize had taken a lot of swallowing his pride, but Michael accepted it. After explaining the trauma the attack on Canterlot had done to his wife, the human seemed understanding, though he wasn’t exactly ready to roll the friendship mat out for the unicorn. He wanted the Guard to hang out with his daughter and get to know her.

Steel Jaw balked at the suggestion.

“Eh,” Michael then said, softening his stance, “at least don’t make my kid feel like she’s a leper. This is her first time walking around openly in public and not disguised as a dog. This is her first time discovering friends and being able to talk to them. Don’t ruin it for her and you and I will get along just fine.” A half-serious glare and the human turned on his heel and went about his business for that morning, namely breakfast.

At least the human wasn’t regarding him with cold contempt anymore. Steel Jaw had to admit he did have an intimidating glare when he applied it. The slight scowl on the man’s face would do a drill sergeant proud. It seemed as though his face was naturally set that way, though a straight lipped visage did crop up almost as often. Upon spying his first airship did a smile appear and even stay there, if just a little bit. The gleam in the human’s eyes were hidden delight at the elegant beauty of the ships pushing through the August skies. His walk became relaxed, less strident. He was less the old soldier halfway through a day long march and more a colt in a toy store.

The group proceeded down the platform, Octavia giving way to the helpful lieutenant who was very professional in showing them the way. More questions bombarded him from the curious dark filly in regards to the ships. Chrysalis listened intently, nodding while the soldier answered her. A tug on her mane from her father was a warning to not bug the pony.

“I don’t mind, sir,” the lieutenant professed. “I’ve got a kid sister her age. She’s always pestering me with questions.” It was obvious he had chosen his words carefully. Very few fillies looked this naturally beautiful. Chrysalis, in copying Fleur, had made herself into a diamond in a mountain of coal. A lot of stray eyes were found upon her form.

It was making Daddy uncomfortable. Of course you don’t mind. You’ve got front row seats! Michael thought in slowly growing irritation. “Sure,” he muttered.

After a half a mile of traversing the platforms and hearing a little about the names of specific ships the officer pointed out, the soldier came to a stop, though everyone could see by now the ship they would be calling home for at least three weeks.

“Fillies and gentlecolts, the Mare Crisium.” The lieutenant stepped aside to allow an unimpeded view of the airship.

She was of a twin hull design, much like a catamaran, with her bridge set atop the deck almost like a slanted pagoda. It was not simply a gondola; it was far too large to be considered one. Everything blended seamlessly together. Beneath her command tower were several decks wrapped in metal plates and dotted with portholes. There were a few larger windows at the bow of the superstructure, jutting forward and including an outdoor deck. Her coloration was unsurprisingly drab; blues grays and whites to blend the ship into the environment in which she was designed to operate. The patterns were meant to break up the ship’s silhouette intto her background.

The Mare Crisium’s two lighter than air outer hulls seemed of standard design; fin stabilizers to for steering and a pair of massive four bladed propellers. They cut a much narrower profile than a civilian airship. At the aft of each hull were her aerial screws, or propellers. Each armored hull contained within it a massive engine. A shortened radio mast jutted from beneath the ship, a tripod design keeping it fixed to the ship while the main pole slanted towards the back of the ship. It could be extended as needed and was attatched to what appeared to be a circular observation deck hanging between the hulls. Some of the cruiser’s armaments could be seen, but her biggest bite was carefully concealed beneath her armored shell. These were the torpedo tubes; with each hull sporting a set both at the bow and aft; eight and four, respectively.

Michael thought someone had taken two world war two submarine hulls and glued a superstructure between them. It was simply one of the coolest things he had ever seen. The kid inside wanted to immediately begin crawling through the ship’s interior and explore every nook and cranny. What caught him was the lack of a number designation he was used to seeing on military ships. Instead, the cruiser bore a crescent moon with three stars imposed along the edge. What looked like chicken scratch lay within the gap. He assumed it was some sort of writing. Great ropes along the length of the dock kept the ship in place, mooring her securely to great bollards. Dozens seemed needed to keep the cruiser in place.

“That’s going to love and tolerate the shit out of someone,” observed the human dryly. He had spread his feet and had his hands on his hips, head tilted back as he took in the view of awesome sight before him. His comment stemmed from a phrase Princess Celestia had stressed was what she wanted her ponies to believe and work diligently for.

“That’s one killer yacht,” agreed Chrysalis as she nudged him. She got a light scratch between the ears in agreement.

“Small wonder the Equestrians haven’t annihilated us,” muttered Anzealous to no one in particular. Fae gave him another elbow.

“I prefer something with more punch,” grumbled Blueblood. Octavia firmly stomped on one of his hooves and glared at him. “but if Auntie Luna says this ship is perfect for the mission, I suppose I can accept something less grandiose.” The mare sighed and rolled her eyes.

“Such a lovely boat!” exclaimed Fleur de Lis appreciatively. She did like the sleekness in the design and the practical functionality. All gathered could agree the ship was undoubtedly beautiful for the purpose to which she was built. There was something to be said about being able to kick flank with style.

“Ship,” corrected Blueblood absently. “Boats belong on the water. Ships belong in the air.” He sniffed, not at all impressed with Fleur’s needling.

“My apologies, I am but an ignorant mare and uneducated in such things,” teased the sorceress. She winked at Octavia and Fae. Both mares giggled.

The prince gave her an appraising look, unsure if she was pulling his leg or just being difficult. He suspected both. “Shall we get aboard then?” The arrogant noble lifted his nose in the air and started towards the lift awaiting them beneath the shadow of the cruiser.

“Where are the turrets?” asked Chrysalis.

The lieutenant answered her query. “Each of the hulls holds her main guns beneath the armor. They’re stowed away to prevent air drag. When needed, the Mare Crisium can put up a total of eight eleven inch twin barrel turrets set in barbettes. There’s two on top and two beneath.”

Chrysalis frowned. “Aren’t they held in place by their weight? I mean, wouldn’t the bottom turrets fall out?” she asked skeptically.

“If she were a surface ship, absolutely. However, in this case the Mare Crisium’s design has her turrets and barbettes aligned on top of each other. The guns are locked to each other, yet can operate independently of each other.” The lieutenant was very proud of his explanation. “Everything is state-of-the-art. The latest systems are being used. She’s the most modern fighting ship in the world and I’d even try her against one of those older battleships.”

Blueblood was by now too far out of earshot to catch the insult to his beloved battleships. Octavia hurried after him, along with the baggage train of servants. Flinty eyes were trained on the rude stallion as she resolved to have words with him. Breaking in a future husband was not for the faint of heart.

“Because of the torpedoes?” asked Michael as he leaned into the conversation. He was gesturing at the rectangular lines of one of the bows.

The pony nodded, impressed. “The warheads have five times the explosive power of any battleship’s main guns. They’re ship killers.”

“Neat.” chirped Chrysalis, awed.

“Come, my curious little monkeys,” said Fleur to the changeling and her father, “you can ask more questions when we are out of this heat.”

“Awww!” both chimed, grinning at her.

“Fermé nous allez!” she insisted. Her horn glowed as she gave them a gentle push towards the lift now bearing the impatient prince into the bowels of the cruiser.

Anzealous and Fae followed, buzzing their wings as they fanned themselves. The pair of changelings were from a hive preferring dry heat. The humidity made their chitin and carapaces uncomfortable. Still, it was not unbearable and circulating the air over their bodies with their wings helped ease the discomfort. Chrysalis avoided the issue by simply keeping her unicorn form up. The other two changelings were regretting the agreement they had made to the Equestrians to not be in disguise. It was an unexpected drawback when both sides had been haggling over pre-negotiation agreements. ‘Chryssie’, as her father called her (and sometimes ‘pumpkin’) was an exception as she was expected to stay in a form other than her natural one.

They had to wait for several minutes while the crew unloaded the luggage brought by the prince. At least the ship’s shadow offered some respite from the sun. Michael simply basked in the humid air, completely comfortable and used to the weather. It reminded him of summers with his grandparents. He wondered if Discord knew how to tend a garden.

“The princesses are coming on board tomorrow?” he asked Fleur while the lift began its descent to their platform.

“Oui. Making final preparations for a trip made by both halves of the diarchy has a tendency of bringing about a lot of wringing hooves and the pulling of manes. Some ponies think the nation will implode if both Princesses Celestia and Luna were to step away on business.” She offered the human a smile. “Princess Twilight will have the support of the Council. They’ll do most of the work, but if anything difficult comes up, I’m sure our newest princess won’t muck it up too badly. Besides, Princess Cadence will be here to guide her and she’s already with some experience in ruling.”

“Ahem.” Anzealous attempted to get Chrysalis’ attention. “Lady Midnight Emerald, if I might have a moment of your time.”

“What?” she demanded flatly.

“Chryssie,” warned her father.

Chrysalis splayed her ears out at the tone in her name. She offered a sheepish smile. “I mean, yes?” She batted her eyes at Anzealous.

He sighed, “Please don’t do that, your Ma-, I mean young lady. It’s unsettling.” The former ambassador ran a hoof over his spiney mane and cleared his throat. “Once we’re settled, I should like to begin your education on changelings. It would appear the ponies have been lacking in that regard.”

The pseudo-unicorn nodded. “I’d like that,” she admitted.

“Then we can get about to what your father and I discussed.”

“Yay me,” she muttered.

“What was that?” asked Michael.

“Nothing!”

“Uh-huh.” The human reached out and tousled her mane affectionately. “Anzealous, would you mind if I sit in and watch you give my daughter lessons? I’m sort of curious as to see what you have in mind.” It was his way of telling the changeling he was keeping an eye on him.

“Though I don’t see the point to your presence, if it gives you peace of mind, you may join us.” Anzealous gave an indifferent sniff.

The lift finally came to a rest on the wooden planks before the group. One by one, they began to file onto it with the assistance of some dock workers. It began its slow haul upwards towards the ship after everyone was safely on board. The officer who had escorted them bade a friendly farewell and returned to his duties.

“Anyone else think it was a bit rude of our dear captain to leave us behind like that?” wondered Michael out loud. He looked down and found Fleur. “I mean, what’s his deal? What is he, an asshole born and bred?”

“He’s the sort who feels his station is far above anypony else,” Fleur replied with a pony shrug. “Since his lineage can be linked back through the generations to the Sisters, he feels there are no others his equal. Not even the likes of Princess Twilight or Princess Cadence are in his eyes equals.”

“So, why is he the captain if he’s such a jerk?”

“It’s his talent,” said the mare. “He is a fine ship commander. Perhaps the finest Equestria has seen in the longest time. Prince Blueblood passed through the naval academy with ease and received top honors. He’s never lost a ship in all his years, nor has he lost a battle.”

“Battles?’

“Pirates are a bit of a problem on the trade routes,” Fae explained, buzzing her wings. “Mostly griffons, but some Grays get in on the raiding.” The mention of the word ‘Grays’ seemed to put a foul taste in her mouth. “There are other races; diamond dogs, minotaurs— most of the carnivorous ones. A few ponies, of course. There’s also the occasional zebra.”

“Grays?”

“Changelings who don’t follow a queen are called Grays. They’re usually small family groups. If you see one, there’s bound to be a few in the area related to them.” Anzealous held a wing out and examined it carefully. He sniffed and let it settle back to his side. “It’s unfortunate unguided changelings choose a life like that. They would do more working for society than trying to disrupt it for selfish gains.”

“I agree with you,” chirped Fae. “Brother, I’ll have to leave as soon as I help you get settled in.”

“I know,” he said with a small smile. “Duty.”

She nodded. “Duty.”

Crewmembers awaited them at the center of the ship’s cargo bay. It bustled with activity as ponies went about securing cargo and loading what appeared to be munitions. Shouts and orders could be heard as the liveliness of the hold felt like a ship getting ready for action. A small army of sailors stood at attention, in white uniforms. The passengers would have been welcomed by the First Officer, but Blueblood had demanded an immediate meeting of all the officers in his ready room.

Instead, a crusty old pegasus waited for the guests at the head of the sailors. He squinted at them from beneath bushy eyebrows. With a coat like a rolling fog, his mane and tail were cropped short and colored evenly between a thunderhead and a cirrus cloud. The pegasus’ size was smaller than his kin, but he carried about him a toughness molded from a hard life. Muttonchops peppered with black and gray adorned his face. His weathered equine features spoke of years in the navy. The snowy white uniform he wore was impeccable. Not even a strand of thread was out of place. Medals adorned his chest it looked as though he had earned each one ten times over.

“The name’s Chief Quint,” he growled in a gravelly voice. “Quint Orca. I ain’t about standin’ on ceremony and I ain’t about to coddle ye landlubbers while aboard my ship. Them officers can hoot ‘an holler all they like, this is my ship. Make no mistake. This is my crew. Most of them officers are greenhorns, their money gettin’ them where they are instead of hard, honest work. This ship is a fine ship, but she’s new and ain’t broken in yet. If there’s any bad luck on this trip, I’ll cut to the chase ‘an let ye all know I’ll hold you all to a reckoning if anything ill happens aboard my ship. Do I make meself clear?”

“Daddy!” Chrysalis tugged on his arm. She motioned him down. “Doesn’t he remind you of someone?”

“The name sort of gave it away,” he whispered back to her with a chuckle. “Here’s to swimmin’ with bow-legged women!”

“Would the Great White Mouth like ta share his infinite wisdom?” snapped Quint with all the quaint pleasantness of an irate water buffalo. His gray eyes glared into the human’s. “What on Celestia’s green damned earth are you? Some sorta mutant minotaur? Flappin’ his jaws because ye didn’t get no attention from your mama ‘cause ye be ugly? Nah, ye ain’t no cowface. Ye be a monkey! A damned talkin’ monkey! What’s the world coming to when a monkey is makin’ all the bad jokes? Do us all a favor and shut up. I ain’t got time for soft land types such as ye.”

“Hell, old timer. If you want a fight, just say so instead of taking all the air,” said Michael with a broad grin. “Some of us got pretty far in life just to have you suck all the oxygen from us. That’s kinda shitty of you to do that, you crusty old son of a bitch.”

The world went silent. Crickets said, “To hell with this” and left.

Quint gave him a steady glare, working his lips as he chewed on the inside of his cheek. Finally he said, “Show too much spine ‘an I’ll be more than obligin’ to break it, monkey.” He spat at the floor and turned to leave, barking at two younger sailors to show the guests to their berths.

Fleur took several long seconds to recover her composure, taking deep breaths and counting backwards from ten. Anzealous facehoofed, muttering under his breath something along the lines of ‘queen save me’. Fae giggled. Chrysalis was appreciably embarrassed of her father like any good girl should be, staring open-mouthed at the human. He was still grinning like an idiot.

“This way, please,” piped up a young crewmember who looked as young as Chrysalis.

The interior of the ship was, in the eyes of Michael Spriggs, one long corridor after another. Everything was painted white halfway up the wall and a light blue beneath. The floor was a dull gray and seemed to have a sandpaper feel under the soles of his boots. Everything above each door bore a letter and a number. Some even announced the purpose of the room beyond. The arrivals had to occasionally press against the wall while members of the crew went about their tasks, some carrying stacks of paperwork or pushing a mop bucket. Apparently the word of guests being on board ship had yet to circulate among the crew as the stares were fixed upon them with a mix from fear to curiosity.

Naturally Michael was a stare magnet.

Whispers trailed after them and those who had no duties (or shirked them all together) followed behind the small group. The changelings lumped a bit closer to the two mares and the human. At one point, Fae bumped into the back of Michael’s thigh, startling him. She blushed and apologized profusely. He smiled down at her and patted her on the head behind her horn. The ponies following the group paused as one body, a few even gasping when the human flashed a grin at them and placed himself between them and the changelings. They took a few turns, a flight of stairs up two decks before heading to the rear to where the VIP stateroom awaited. A chief petty officer showed up when he noticed ponies herding after the odd group and began barking at them. Her tone suggested she was not going to put up with sailors lollygagging and derelict in their duties. Grumbling, the ponies broke up and went back to their posts, much to the relief of Anzealous and Fae..

In the back of the ship, on the third deck were the rooms set aside for Michael Spriggs, Chrysalis, Fleur de Lis, and Anzealous. As the cruiser was fitted out for transporting dignitaries, she was fitted for amenities not common in the typical Equestrian fighting airship. The rooms were not huge by any stretch of the imagination as space on board any ship was precious.

After being shown to his quarters, the human noticed his bag was already sitting on the floor beneath a honest-to-goodness hammock, silhouetted in front of a massive bay window. The whole back of the room was a pane of glass. He had always wanted one as a kid. Without looking anywhere else, he made a beeline for his bed for the next few weeks and immediately set to getting in the hammock. It was tricky, but he managed to get into it without too much trouble, wobbling mightily as he fought his own shifting weight to keep centered. Gleefully he swayed where he hung, using a foot to push him away from the wall. Placing his hands behind his head, Michael took in his room with sweeping eyes.

The ceiling and walls were layered in lacquered teak. The floor was metal, but had a rather plain persian rug covering it. The new ship smell wafted into the man’s nose and he inhaled deeply. A large light fixture was set into the center of the ceiling, bathing the room in a soft light. He could look directly at it and not feel blinded. The dimensions were somewhat on the cramped side, ten feet by eleven or twelve; spacious for even a captain’s cabin. There was a dresser stretching almost the full length of the room with eight drawers. Over it, a closet had been fashioned to make use of the available space. Next to the closet was a small wash basin complete with what appeared to be running hot and cold water on tap. Michael slipped out of his hammock and padded over to take a peek at the space beneath it. It was a false pair of drawers that was actually an access panel to reach the plumbing.

“Neat.” Michael grinned and stood up. He turned and found his bathroom to be nothing more than a toilet and a shower meant for a pony. Much to his surprise, upon further inspection he found the shower head was adjustable and could be raised and lowered as he saw fit. All in all, it was fairly utilitarian. “This will do.” he said to himself as he slipped out of his bathroom.

He absolutely loved the window. The hooks on the wall from which his bed hung allowed for him to slip the thick ring of one end and move it to the other end, allowing him an unimpeded view from his window. It seemed impractical to have something like this on a warship. Thoughtfully he reached out with his right hand, turning it until he could wrap against the glass with a knuckle. It felt very thick and sounded so. Bullet proof glass?

“Huh.”

He tapped it again just as a pegasus flittered by, her eyes intently focused on searching along the hull for something. She stared, the human waved, the mare hurried off, her eyes bulging from their sockets. Michael was soon left in midwave, sighing as he wondered, for what felt the millionth time, what in the hell he was doing in this world. He should be home! Preseason would be starting! Chicago Bear football whispered the promises of a good year, the playoffs, maybe even the Superbowl if the experts had the team pegged right. His birthday was just around the corner and soon after that, the end of the month would be Chryssie’s birthday!

Fourteen birthdays with his favorite girl, his dark little angel who gave him as much grief as she had joy in their years together. She was a most unusual daughter, almost making up for the empty hole in his heart missing his first daughter. Crystal would have been seventeen now, he mused, a non-existent birthday having passed three months ago. Michael had long since stopped mourning, but a father never forgets his children, even if their mother moved heaven and hell to keep her from him.

“Maybe they would have been like sisters,” he muttered to himself, not knowing why he was suddenly trying to picture a toddler as a teen, “they’d have been inseparable.”

The mare was back. Her reddish brown coat seemed darker in the shadows as she suddenly hovered into view, a sheepish smile on her face. Michael didn’t pay attention to her at first, tracing his fingers along the glass, lost in thought. A waving hoof caught his attention. His head snapped towards the movement and noted his visitor on the other side. She smiled at him. The man returned the gesture, giving another smile in return. As if satisfied she had made up for being rude, the pegasus gave a half salute and darted off.

Michael removed his hat and placed it on his hammock. He examined the wall next to the bathroom door, noting a couple of clips holding up what appeared to be a folding table. Flipping them open, a pair of legs kicked out from a hidden compartment and slid out on springs as the table flap came down. It clicked into place leaving a small table. A folding chair was strapped into the wall upon closer inspection. It was a simple folding stool much like what would be common at a camp site. There were several small compartments where the table came from in the wall holding places for paper, a stoppered ink well, and three quill pens. Everything slid in and out of place smoothly or clicked into position with ease. The construction was top-notch, even in the little details.

There was a knock at his door. Michael turned, noting the door had never been shut. Chryssie was standing there, her hoof hovering near the door. “Are you okay, Daddy?”

“I’m fine. Just thinking.” He went over to his daughter and mussed her hair affectionately.

“...Her?” She tilted her head to one side.

“Yeah.” Michael forced himself to brush the thoughts aside. “What brings you here?”

“Anzealous wants to get me started in changeling culture.” She rolled her eyes and let out a little huff. “I’m supposed to meet him in his quarters as soon as we get settled in.”

“No rest for the wicked, eh? Aren’t we having some sort of orientation today?”

“I don’t think that’s until after lunch. We’re going to be allowed a chance to settle in and have lunch before then.”

Fae trotted by, pausing expectantly with a pair of guards escorting her. “I’m off,” she told them, then blew a strand of mane from her eyes. “Anzy’s already complaining, so that’s nothing new. Don’t mind him if he seems grouchy. The heat’s been unkind to him. Were you on your way to see him, Emmy?”

“Emmy?” Michael raised his eyebrows.

“Short for Emerald,” supplied Chryssie helpfully. “I think it sounds cute.” To Fae she said, “You seem pretty cool. Good luck with that ambassador thing.”

“Thank you. I wish you luck and a safe journey. Remember, be careful out there. Changelings can be anywhere at any given time.” The ambassador arched a brow at Michael. “You keep doing what you’ve been doing. Do you still have that necklace?”

He patted his chest. “Still wearing it.”

“Good. Keep it on. Trust me on this. Such a gift from the princesses should be treasured. Good day, Mr. Spriggs. I should tell you now the residual love I’ve tasted from you is...exotic.” Her eyes became heavy lidded as she spoke, shivering as she recalled the sensation of feeding off the excess love of the human. “Well, before I leave ship, I’m off to have that glass of wine with Lady Fleur and Lady Octavia! Oh, and be wary around other changelings!”

She hurried off without another word, her guards quickly falling in behind her.

“That was weird,” commented Chrysalis as she peered over her shoulder at the disappearing changeling. “I wonder what she meant by that?”

“Meant by what?”

“All of that. She makes it sound like changelings are emotion whores.”

“Why don’t you ask Andy about it?”

“I was on my way. You want to come? You said something earlier to him about seeing my lessons.” Her voice told him she was not inclined whatsoever to spend any time alone with the fat little bug and his imperious attitude. Those deep emerald eyes pleaded for Daddy to come.

Michael was obliged to go, mostly for the sake of curiosity as he wondered about changelings. He’d heard a snippet here and there over the course of the past few days and felt he had a justifiable reason for wanting to know more about them. “You know where he is?”

“Yep. He’s on the starboard side of this deck.” She looked up at Michael. “I love you, Daddy. Having you here means everything to me.”

“I love you too, pumpkin.”

They were escorted by another ensign, this one an earth pony stallion. The steel hallway was busy with hoof traffic. Father and daughter had to excuse themselves and pardon their way as politely as possible to get through ponies pausing as they went to stare at Michael. He kept a smile plastered on his face, though the novelty of being gawked at was starting to wear thin on him. There was the constant din of conversation all around them. The Mare Crisium was a very lively ship the day before her departure from port.

“Hey Daddy, do you like having a hammock in your room?” The question was sudden, the curiosity behind it making the human smile.

“Yep. Tried it out, too!” Michael replied.

“It’s so cool!” she squealed, bouncing on the tips of her hooves with giddy glee. “I’m right next to you and Fleur’s on the other side of me from you.”

They were almost to their destination. A guard was clearly seen standing outside the former ambassador’s door. He reminded Michael of a marine. It was one gigantic stallion, a pegasus to be exact. His uniform was eerily not unlike the olive drab field uniforms of a soldier from the second world war. The man began to suspect a pattern was forming. How technologically advanced were these Equestrians?

“Can I help you?” asked the pony at the door in a neutral tone. He eyed the human whose head was only a few inches from the ceiling.

“Anzealous said I could come and see him as soon as I got settled into my room!” announced Chrysalis as maturely as she could manage. She sounded like a squeaking mouse beneath the unnerving stare of the huge pony in front of her.

Before he could speak, the door opened and Anzealous poked his head out. “Took you long enough. Well, don’t just stand out there blocking the hallway. Get in here, the both of you. That’ll be all, guard. They’re expected.”

The pegasus said nothing and stepped aside.

The pair went into the changeling’s room; it was as uniform as the human’s. Once they were inside, the changeling closed the door and shuffled to the window. He reached out with his magic to a pole dangling from the corner of the wall where it met the window. It began twisting in his telekinetic grasp and blinds began to lower from the top of the window.

“Turn the light on,” he grunted, nodding towards the light switch at the room’s entrance. “I’ll need you to drop your disguise for your first lesson, young lady.”

Michael reached over and flipped the lights on. “What lesson is that?”

Anzealous grinned. “Speaking the language of the changelings.” He released the pole once he was satisfied the view into his room was obscured. Turning, he gave Chrysalis an appraising look, his solid blue eyes noticeably shifting up and down. “Soon, I think,” he murmured.

“Soon for what?” Chrysalis asked with slight apprehension.

“You assume your rightful place as a queen with your own hive. It’s not a matter of if, but when.” The young mare was about to ask another question, the green flames of her dropping her unicorn guise flaring from her hooves and up her body to the tip of her horn. “That’s a conversation for another time,” Anzealous said as he watched.

“There’s my daughter,” Michael said with a toothy grin. “I hate seeing you have to hide in the open like that.”

She flashed her fangs gratefully to her father.

Even the plump changeling offered a grateful nod at the human for the comment. “Now, then.” He buzzed his wings and made a series of short, small chirps through his mouth.

Chrysalis blinked. “What was that?”

“That was good morning.”

Author's Notes:

This was a fun chapter to write. There's just something about building a ship in your mind that just sets the imagination aflame!

I'm slowly giving you guys more and more about changelings...I hope you like how I present it. I want to avoid past mistakes in the first story by throwing everything at you readers at once. Tell me what you think.

In case you were wondering, Mare Crisium is Latin for Sea of Crisis. A fitting name for a ship designed to hunt down pirate ships and anything smaller than her displacement. I think I should put her to the test in future chapters. Why build a warship if I'm not going to use it?

As usual, comments and suggestions are always welcome! I may not answer all of them, but I assure you I read each and every one!

R.E.S. = Royal Equestrian Ship

Chapter 14 Into the Wild Blue...aaaand She's Crying Again...

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Pre-read and edited by iakovl.
Editor's note at the end of the chapter!

Princess Luna was always pleased to see one of the newest ships of her navy ready and waiting for her and her sister’s arrival. There was a great deal of pomp and ceremony. A band played a rousing Equestrian tune of pony pride. Off duty ponies came to the docks to see them off. Even the reporters had arrived, mostly because of the presence of the princesses. Over the years as the base grew, so did a town spring up in the foothills below five miles away. The base brought in business, hundreds of ponies gathered as word spread like wildfire that not one but both princesses were off on a diplomatic mission to entreat peace with the changelings. Many believed it was a last ditch effort before the mighty arm of Equestria would fall and deal a terrible blow.

The twin hulled cruiser seemed itching to burst from her moorings and take to the sky. Her sleek lines and unique profile begged for her captain to set her free among the clouds. As much as Prince Blueblood itched to get underway, his first priority was to welcome Celestia and Luna on board the Mare Crisium. He would do so during the traditional farewell between crew and those who came to see them off.

Luckily, there was no prolonged speech; just family and friends gathered at the dock to bid the ship and her crew a safe voyage. Tears were shed as mothers and fathers were already missed. Cheers went up as husband and wives felt immeasurable pride for the significant other leaving them in their memories until the day they returned.. The ship would be hunting pirates as soon as her primary mission was accomplished. More than a handful of Equestrians had fallen in battle with the marauders. Even a few of the smaller, less armored airships had been captured. Such events were rare; what crew had survived were either sold into slavery or killed.

More than one face carried the memory of a lost friend or family member upon an apprehensive face.

The morning had found Michael Spriggs and his daughter Chrysalis sitting on the deck in front of the bridge. The man’s arms were hanging over the railing as he leaned over to look at the ant-sized crowd below. He was going from individual to individual, spotting them through a thumb and forefinger, touching them together like pincers and saying “Crush, crush, crush!” The music was loud, even from two hundred feet above them. Chrysalis was tapping her hoof to the music, unable to keep herself from enjoying it. Equestrians were emotional ponies and loved to put joy in their patriotic songs.

“Do that good morning thing again,” Michael bade his child, grinning at her from behind his shoulder. His eyes sparkled with mischief.

She grinned right back, happily chirping and buzzing her wings. Fleur de Lis had told her she could drop her disguise for the day so the crew could be given a chance to know who was trotting among them. Discreetly, she stayed away from the railing, sunning herself before it got too hot. Besides, there was always at least two guards keeping an eye on both of them from a discreet distance. One was Steel Jaw. He seemed uncertain as he watched the two interact and act for all the world like father and daughter.

Changelings weren’t like ponies! How could she be laughing and carrying on like that? Didn’t she know she was evil? Michael’s voice interrupted his thoughts.

“How do I know you’re not telling me, ‘I like putting spam on my head and cucumbers up my nose’?” he asked, then started to laugh.

“Don’t be ridiculous!” snorted Anzealous. He was off to one side, reading the morning paper while nursing a lukewarm cup of coffee. The changeling was reclined in a folding sun chair and wore a pair of thick rimmed sunglasses. Remnants of breakfast lay on a tray next to him. They had all eaten together, reluctantly agreeing if they were to be traveling together, it was best to at least try and get along. It didn’t take an Aesop fable to teach them this particular lesson. Common sense ruled the evening last night and had carried over to the day.

Chrysalis still hated Anzealous and Michael was not going to relent from calling him ‘Andy’ anytime soon. At least the child wasn’t making fun of the portly changeling’s roundness.

“There’s no word in our language for...spam,” he went on, trying to wonder just what it was. “Her accent is a bit off, but she did a very nice formal ‘good morning’.”

The music died down on the docks below. Anzealous set aside his paper and waddled over next to the human and peered over the side. Princess Twilight Sparkle was down there, speaking in a voice to the gathered ponies. Her voice could be heard, but no words could be made out. A seagull called out mournfully above them.

“Fleur’s down there, isn’t she?” Chrysalis wondered out loud.

“I believe so,” replied her father. She shifted into Midnight Emerald and joined the males at the rail. She kept to the other side of her father, pointedly ignoring Anzealous. “Blueblood, too. Everyone who’s important is.”

They could hear polite clopping when Twilight finished her little speech. It sounded like a herd of deer was having a drunken brawl at a wooden plank emporium. Such a strange sound, yet at the same time it was very much like hearing people clapping, it was weird.

“I have to ask,” Anzealous announced, looking at the human, “what is spam?”

“Processed pork,” replied Michael with a grin. “I always take some with me when I go camping. It’s actually not that bad. My grandpa got me into that habit and even my dad a little.”

“It was made famous by the British as the United States flooded them with canned meat during the second world war,” added Chrysalis. “It was easy, cheap to make, and could be stored for a period of time at room temperature. Personally, I think it’s too salty.”

The changeling was confused. “Then why would you want to put it on your head?”

“I was trying to be funny.”

“Daddy, you’re not funny and you shouldn’t try to be.”

“You brat!” he cried, flicking one of her ears. She yelped, swatting away his hand with a hoof while unable to stop from blurting out a small squeal.

Anzealous gave a pained expression. “Please don’t act like that. It’s unbecoming for a royal to act so...common.” He sighed and peered over the railing again. “I have one wish and one wish only,” Anzealous sighed wistfully. “Aside from the amends I hope to make with the both of you, I want to see a lasting peace between changelings and ponies. Perhaps by being a competent instructor, I can help you be a part of that peace, young mistress.”

Chrysalis peered at him. “Me? What do I have to do with all of this?”

“Well,” harrumphed the changeling, “you did start an undeclared war on Equestria. There’s only a cease-fire because the princesses don’t want a war. Some of the queens think that’s a sign of weakness while another group sees that as an opportunity to smooth things over. Which way you lean could hinge between war or peace.”

Michael leaned over to his daughter. “No pressure.” Before she could open her mouth and retort, the man threw an arm over Anzealous’ shoulder and drew him into a very tight and very uncomfortable hug. “Andy. Buddy. You need to learn tact. I thought I was bad at tact, but you...you make me look like Ronald Reagan.” He gave the squirming changeling a noogie before releasing him.

“How dare you!” grumbled Anzealous with outrage. The changeling adjusted his sunglasses, which had gone askew on his face. “I am not to be handled in such a manner!”

“You won’t wrinkle.”

“That’s not the point!” The changeling closed his eyes and regained his composure. When he opened them, he was much more composed. “Changelings do not normally like to be touched. Physcial contact is not encouraged.”

“Why is that?” asked Chrysalis, interested. “I hug my Daddy all the time.”

Steel Jaw arched a brow at the antics between the father and his daughter. They seemed oddly...normal. Very strange. Even if the princess wanted him to try and make friends with the human, he still could not bring himself to believe the thing calling herself his daughter was a reborn creature capable of goodness. It had to be some sort of a trick.

“Well, you’re an exception. Most queens want their subjects to be strong, both in mind and body. They must be ready to accept the loss of one of their own. Getting close to a friend or a sibling is considered foolish and unnecessary. Few changelings even consider friendship as something of a need. It’s a want and therefore not important. Love is the same way. As a source of power, it is a want and not a need. A changeling does not need love to be a productive part of his or her hive. We might want it, but there is really no need for changelings to have access to such power. That is why the queens decide who gets the love gathered by her respective hive. Love is power. The queens possess all of the power in changeling society and it is given to her favorite subjects based on how well they served them in their eyes.”

“That doesn’t explain the hugging,” pressed the curious changeling mare.

“There’s a legend, more of a very old, old myth where hugging changelings used to feed off of each other at the touch. It’s not true, but it’s become so ingrained in our culture, it’s almost like an unspoken rule. It’s usually confined within families or mated pairs. Changelings mate for life, such intimate gestures are done strictly in private. Public displays of physical affection is considered a cultural taboo.”

“Can they do that?” asked Michael as he straightened to his six foot height. “Feed off each other, I mean?”

Anzealous shook his head. “No. Common changelings—drones—cannot feed off each other’s emotions. Queens, however can strip the love stored within a subject of her hive or a changeling who has become a part of her hive mind.”

“I guess that’s kinda creepy,” Chrysalis said, crinkling her muzzle. “So...what kind of changeling are you? Drone or royal?”

“I’m just the common everyling,” sighed Anzealous. “Though my mother was a royal, she dallied with a drone and I was the result. Or so I’ve been told. If you remember what my younger sister Fae said, we’re raised in a communal hatchery. Every mare is our mother and every stallion is our father. The queen is the unquestioned alpha of any hive. Her children become aware of their mother by their first molt. They are then taken from the communal hatchery and go to be raised with other royals.”

“So, what was the deal about Queen Druanae wanting a ship to hold her hive’s eggs?” Chrysalis was intrigued now as the subject was beginning to warm on her.

Anzealous was more than happy to answer the question. He buzzed happily, “Well, as you probably heard, an aggressive hive will raid another hive’s hatchery and steal the eggs. I should imagine the only real reason why Equestria or any other part of the world is not under changeling rule is due to the simple fact we keep warring upon each other to prove our strength to the Empress and gain her favor. If a queen’s hive can steal the eggs from another queen’s hive, the losing queen loses face while the thief and her hive gain prestige and respect from the other queens. Queen Druanae has been seeking a way to turn from such a waste of energy and resources, not to mention the lives such raids cost.”

“Sounds pretty stupid,” sniffed Chrysalis disdainfully.

Steel Jaw blinked, then looked away.

“I heartily agree with you,” grunted Anzealous.

“So what’s the main point of it all? Survival of the fittest?”

Michael spoke up. “Kinda sounds like the old Viking raids back in the Middle Ages.”

“Not really, Daddy. It’s more like tribal warfare between Native Americans before Manifest Destiny happened.” Chrysalis gave him a snort of disagreement. She turned her attention to Anzealous. “Sorry about that. You probably have no idea about human warfare and all the perks that come with it.” Her smile was perky, but her eyes flashed like glinting daggers.

“No, but I can imagine easily it’s not so dissimilar to our own history.” Anzealous noted the crowd below breaking up. The speeches were over. Soon the princesses would be on board and the ship would be on her way. He quickly gathered his thoughts on the subject at hoof. “As for the comment for survival of the fittest, you’re not really all that far from the truth.”

“Go on,” Chrysalis pressed.

The fat changeling adjusted his sunglasses. “Well, we have a very old belief changelings grow stronger in the face of an adversity. It is written we must grow stronger every day as we prepare for the return to one world. Ancient texts of lore spoken of but now forbidden to see foretell of a time when changelings will be tested. Somewhere along the way, the queens decided it meant a bloody competition between hives. There’s a reason roughly half the changelings in the world choose to become Grays. They want no part in what they see as a game of insanity between power-hungry queens. Queen Druanae hopes to change all that, along with Queen Felu and Queen Odyssei. Of course, they’re the weakest hives, so naturally they want to get away from having their eggs stolen all the time. The battles have finally started to wear them down and they spend most of their time hiding from their sisters.”

“So they want mobile, armored transports capable of defending their eggs and children from raids,” reasoned Michael.

“Exactly! Or, if Queen Druanae can’t have that, at least integrate into Equestria and get help from the ponies in protecting the unborn changelings.”

A shadow fell over the trio as they had inadvertently drawn closer together through the discussion. As one, they felt the sudden loss of sunlight and turned as if on cue towards the source of the shadow.

Princess Celestia stood before them, a warm smile on her lips as she gave them each a nod. “Good morning, my little po- friends.” She caught herself and chuckled, able to laugh at herself. “I trust you are all well?”

Chrysalis eagerly shifted to her normal form, then buzzed and chirped at Celestia. Anzealous’ eyes widened slightly, then gave a little sigh.

Celestia chuckled. “I see you’ve started your lessons on the changeling language. Your accent is a little off...and that didn’t sound what I think you meant to say.”

The young mare whirled on Anzealous. “What did I say?” she squeaked, her eyes growing round.

He was starting to blush. “You...you…”

“What?” Her voice went up several octaves. “What did I say, Anzealous?”

He sighed and translated Chrysalis’ attempt. “You said it right, but the tone in your vocalization was a bit...suggestive.”

“What—” Michael furrowed his brow. “—does that even mean?” He smirked at his daughter, covering his mouth with a palm as if he was trying to physically wipe it from his face.

Chrysalis blushed furiously, wanting to curl up and die right there. “But...I thought…”

“Oh, oh, don’t be upset!” Celestia moved with swift grace and had a wing over the smaller mare’s withers. “You’ll get a lot better at it.”

The mortified changeling tried to hide in the wing. “I’m so sorry! I was trying to say ‘good morning’ formally, like I would with any royal, not...not that way!”

“I know, I know,” consoled the princess. “Don’t give up! It’s only your first day with a new language. You can’t possibly expect to learn it overnight. I am very pleased you tried.” Celestia gave the shaking changeling a nuzzle.

“I’m so embarrassed!” wailed Chrysalis.

Michael stepped forward and bent forward until his eyes were level with his cringing daughter’s. He reached out and cupped her face in his hands, using his thumbs to wipe away her tears. “Hey! None of that!” he said to her gently. Giving the quietly weeping changeling a gentle shake in his hands, he smiled. “You tried, didn’t you?”

She buzzed her wings indignantly. “Not good enough.”

Celestia chuckled. “Careful. You might turn into another Twilight.”

“Um, pardon me, but how do you understand...changeling?” Michael asked Celestia curiously.

“One doesn’t become a good ruler without picking up a few things here and there,” replied Celestia with a smug little smile.

Chrysalis gave a small laugh. “That’s not so bad, is it? Being another Twilight?”

“So long as you don’t use a spell like the Want It, Need It, you should be fine,” Celestia assured her with a throaty chuckle. “Come. We’ll be underway soon and I would like for all of you to join me on the Compass Deck.”

“Compass Deck?” queried Michael.

“It’s more like the outdoor bridge right above the ship’s main bridge,” said the princess. “It’s too lovely of a day to be cooped up behind steel and glass. Prince Blueblood has agreed to join us and captain the ship from there. Besides,” she added, “it’ll be less crowded. There are a lot of ponies trying to do their jobs and I fear you three might just get in the way, as well as my sister and myself!” Luna, not so much, she told herself inwardly. If she could, she would love to take the cruiser’s wheel herself for the simple joy of piloting. “Shall we, then?”

Chrysalis sniffled and nodded, shifting to her unicorn guise without thinking.

The group headed for a set of steel stairs winding up along the port side of the forward superstructure. Life was slowly returning to the cruiser as those who had been at the ceremony resumed their stations. Orders were barked even as the ship’s intercom announced preparations for departure. There was a general feeling of excitement throughout. Sailors were eager to be away. Beneath feet and hooves the massive twin turbines slowly were coaxed to life, slow rumbling and growing vibrations accompanied by the plaintive whine of other ship systems flaring to life and syncing up with the engines. A horn thundered loudly, announcing to the base the waking of the ship.

Michael felt a surging thrill in his heart, sensing a similar nervous energy in his daughter. As his hand was on the back of her neck, he could feel her shivering with excitement.

Ponies bowed as the princess passed. She smiled back, having a particular hitch in her step. An old, forgotten energy had overtaken her. Celestia was going to do something with her sister! They hadn’t done something together since the battle against Discord a long, long time ago. It beat Tartarus out of sitting at a desk after hours and reading over the usual paperwork. Even though the journey beyond the horizon could wind up being very dangerous, Celestia was pleased Luna would be with her. It had been far too long.

Most of the crew crawling over the ship were split between the two pontoons (calling them blimps drew dirty looks and a few choice words at the offender). They hauled up rope and coiled it as the moorings were released. The ship’s anchor was drawn up. Three loud blasts from the ship’s steam whistle was followed by an announcement over the intercom.

“Five minutes until departure. All hands, departure is in five minutes.”

When they arrived at the Compass Deck, the Lady Octavia was speaking to Princess Luna, the two sharing a private conversation along with Lady Fleur de Lis. She seemed hidden as her position had Luna between her and the new arrivals. They were noticed as an officer called out, “Princess Celestia on deck!”

Luna glared at the ensign. What was she, chopped liver? “I noticed my sister’s arrival,” she said dryly and just loudly for all gathered to hear. Nervous laughter followed.

Prince (or Captain) Blueblood had yet to make his appearance, having been held up somewhere in the bowels of the ship. The question was asked of his whereabouts, to which the answer was a shrug and passing the same question off to some other pony. It must have stirred something within the belly of the Mare Crisium, for the Captain (or Prince) finally made his appearance, looking rather dapper in a blue coat and white kerchief. He appeared more ready to command a yacht than a heavy cruiser. He wore a lofty smile and a superior attitude, and immediately began fawning over Princess Celestia.

“Oh, Auntie!” he called out, trotting to her eagerly. “So good of you to come and join me as we prepare to set sail! Would you care for some tea while we begin to pull away from the dock? It’s most charming to see the aerial tugs maneuver the ship from her dock and into the open air.”

“A splendid idea,” she agreed, giving him a quick nod. “We should all have tea.”

“Coffee for me,” spoke up the only human on the ship.

There was a distasteful quirk of Blueblood’s upper lip. “Ah, very well. You!” he flung his voice at a nearby sailor. “Fetch us some tea and a...coffee.” He seemed to flinch as he added under his breath, “Such a vile drink.”

“So,” Michael started cheerfully. “Do I call you Captain or Prince Blueblood this voyage?”

“Captain is fine,” allowed Blueblood. “But you’re not a member of the crew. As a civilian, you may choose either Prince or Captain. Of course, I have toyed with the idea of having a new rank specifically to suit my station. What say you to Prince Captain Blueblood?”

“No,” replied Luna without giving anyone on the deck a chance to digest the idea. “Your rank is captain and you will not supplement it with a title that has no real power behind it. You will assume the rank of captain for the duration of this voyage. Your prince title will await you when you return home. Are we understood?”

“But...Auntie!” he protested, again looking to Princess Celestia as he found he could not bear to look into those cold blue eyes of Luna.

“She said ‘we’ for a reason,” she commented in almost a sing-song voice. “Since you’ve allowed for Octavia to join us, then I expect the two of you to try and get to know each other. There’s going to be a wedding this Sunday and I want you two at least on tolerable terms leaning towards pleasantness.”

The poor stallion could tell there would be no leeway for him today. “Very well. I suppose if I must bear just the mantle of the captaincy, then I shall do so with the dignity only I can provide for the rank.”

“I’m sure you will,” murmured Luna.

The ship jolted slightly as she began to be pushed by no less than four tugs up into the air. Two pushed from beneath while one each at the port and starboard prows slowly began to nose the ship around. Signal flags flapped in the breeze, telling the ground crew and other ships to stand clear and make way. Ponies shouted and signaled.

Most surprising of all was the crackling of radio traffic to Michael’s and Chrysalis’ ears. Higher and higher the Mare Crisium rose into the sky, clearing the cluster of ships. Horns blasted from some of the destroyers assigned as escorts as they stood by. Blueblood calmly gave orders to the ensign, who dutifully relayed them down the voice pipes to the bridge clearly and precisely. Other officers watched carefully the positioning of the cruiser. The engines revved up and the sound of the propellers aft picking up speed rewarded those on board with a sensation of the great ship moving forward under her own power. The air tugs had already stopped herding the cruiser, releasing her to her own control.

The RES Mare Crisium was underway.

“How does it feel to have the both of us away from Canterlot at the same time?” Celestia asked Luna. The Princess of the Night basked in the glow of her sister’s glory.

She smiled at the white alicorn. “This should be wondrous,” she declared with enthusiasm. “Nay, this shall be an adventure to remind us of our joyous youth!”

“Never grow old, sister mine,” pleaded Celestia warmly.

“I never have. I’ve been twenty four for over two thousand years now!”

“And she accuses me of being obsessed with youth!” Celestia laughed merrily.

Fleur had joined Michael and Chrysalis even as Anzealous was losing himself in the moment of being on a moving ship. He appeared to not be taking it well. “I beg your pardon,” he groaned, slumping towards the deck. “I’m afraid I’m not feeling well.”

“Why don’t you head to sick bay?” asked one of the crew helpfully.

“Airsick?” Chrysalis blinked and stared. “How can you get airsick when you can already fly?”

Luna gave the former ambassador an unpitying look. “The world is full of such inconsistencies,” she said sagely.

“I actually hate flying,” confessed the portly changeling woozily. “I need solid ground under my hooves or everything starts spinning. Feeling the ship move is almost as bad to me as flying.” He was really not looking well now.

“Andy, you look like shit,” observed Michael.

“Don’t call me Andy!”

Fleur giggled and went over to the poor changeling. “Come. I shall take you to the infirmary,” she told him gently. “There are pills you can take to ease your symptoms.”

“Language, Daddy,” chided Chrysalis half-heartedly.

He fixed her with a glare with no bite behind it.

“I shall return,” Fleur de Lis announced, “as soon as Monsieur Anzealous is feeling better.” She then led the suffering changeling away like he was a foal.

Tea was served shortly after. The cruiser had by now cleared the air base and circled widely, gaining altitude. She needed to be at a certain height before going on her charted course. The engines by now had settled into a constant droning, the sound of the propellers part of the background. Pony sailors would often come up and show Captain (since that was settled) Blueblood some paperwork or relay information, such as weather reports, wind speed and direction, messages. It was busy, even if the ship seemed serene.

Michael wondered what he was supposed to do during the trip. Nobody had bothered to tell him or suggest anything. He guessed his entertainment would be left to his own devices within reason. There was always the possibility of asking someone what one could do on a warship when they clearly had no duties to speak of. He imagined he was going to have a lot of boring hours of nothing to do. He went over to the port side railing and looked out over the vastness of the blue skies, the land far below and the outline of the distant mountain range stark on a perfectly clear day. There was no haze yet. It hadn’t warmed up enough for the humidity to blur his view. They day would be warm, he decided, maybe not as hot as yesterday.

Luna joined him. “Oh, hello, princess,” he deferred. Michael hadn’t spoken to her since she brought him to Equestria. “Thanks for bringing me here. It’s been a mind blowing experience.”

She managed to look abashed. “I had not foreseen such...consequences of you coming. I accept the responsibility of the assault upon you as mine and mine alone.”

“But you still don’t want me here,” he deadpanned, wanting to like her, but put off by her seeming hostility.

“No, I do not,” she admitted. “Humans are too chaotic, yet adhere to order. They are a contradiction, slaves to their hypocrisy.”

“I notice you ponies aren’t exactly walking the straight and narrow,” said the human wryly.

“True enough.” Luna eyed him speculatively. “Lady Fleur de Lis has brought to my attention the possibility that your mind may have been tampered with even before you even came to having Chrysalis in your possession. I am skeptical in believing her theory, but I would like to get your permission to see for myself if this is true.”

The human gave her a dark look. Chrysalis wandered over. “Daddy? What are you and Princess Luna talking about?”

He smiled at her, his expression showing inner conflict. “It’s private talk, pumpkin.” He tapped the side of his head with a finger. “It’s about the stuff up here.”

Her ears flattened as she had just been told to politely mind her own business. “Uh, okay?” she pouted, not sure how to handle the rejection. Daddy never kept anything from her!

“I promise to let you know if it’s anything important,” he said to her, tweaking an ear playfully. “I don’t know what it means myself, but let me and Luna discuss it.”

“Luna and me,” she corrected absently. Chrysalis offered a smile. “All right, Daddy. I don’t like it. You always share your thoughts with me.”

“It might be nothing,” Luna said. She never seemed to smile as much as her elder sister. “It is a simple exploration in his mind —should your father allow it— to see if there is any residual traces of energy used to either manipulate or alter his memories.”

The changeling shook her head. “I don’t understand.”

“You’re supposed to be shadowing Andy,” her father reminded her. “Scoot.”

“But I can’t leave you alone with Luna!” she protested.

Luna quirked an eyebrow. “And why, pray tell not?”

“Because…”

“Because?”

“Because she thinks some cliche man/pony love thing will happen,” Michael quipped as he turned his daughter around physically and scooted her off with a gentle shove to her flank. He ignored Luna’s derisive snort at his remark. “Go find Andy! Hold his puke bucket, or something.”

She stumbled off, glaring at him over her shoulder. The discussion was far from over and she had found a battle worth fighting him over. Michael sighed, not looking forward to this evening’s discussion.

“Why should I trust you if you don’t trust me?” he asked Luna quietly. Michael went back to leaning over the rail.

“It’s not you, it’s your race in general,” Luna corrected. “You are a being in turmoil and have been for a long time. It is from within, Michael Spriggs. I assure you, my intentions are to find out why. I think the answers might confirm something my sister has suspected for some time.”

“Oh, what’s that?”

She snorted, stamping a hoof. “Changelings have been on your world for some time. Lady Fleur seems to think you were in contact with one for some time and was fed upon. The damage from the constant feeding affected your emotions, hence your constant turmoil. You can love others, but you cannot feel love.”

“Is this whole thing important to you?”

“If I think it can harm my little ponies, then it is very important to me,” she stated firmly.

“But it’s my mind, my memories. What does it have to do with your ponies?” Michael gave her a sidelong glance. “I’m not too keen to having someone else poking around in my head. Andy did it. The Empress chick did it. You already poked around in my dreams before I came here, remember? How do I know you’re not looking for some oddball scheme to go to war against humanity?”

Luna sighed and rolled her eyes. “It is nothing of the sort! Do not make this more difficult than it needs to be, human. If there is residual changeling magic in your memories, then there is a possibility this could have consequences upon Equestria when your world and mine are permanently linked.”

“Okay, I am officially even more confused.”

The Princess of the Night leaned in and whispered, “I would like to carry this conversation in private. Please, I am not used to asking, but commanding. I think the past you know it is not your true past. I felt around your dreams in the night and found some inconsistencies I should like to clarify. This has as much to do with restoring your true self to what it was before this...scarring within happened.” She paused, looking away for a moment before saying, “It may have something to do with your...first daughter and her passing.”

The human’s expression went blank. He looked away. “No.”

“What do you mean?”

“No means no. You’re not getting into my head, princess and you’re not going to bring up my daughter ever again.” Anger rumbled in his voice. When he did turn to the princess, his eyes had gone hard. “Never again. Am I clear? I don’t trust your magic, princess. I don’t think I’ll be letting anyone in my head again.”

“I...see.” Her ears fell back. “Given your recent experiences, perhaps I should not be surprised at this. I will adhere to your wishes, Mr. Spriggs and shan’t go into your dreams nor your mind again without permission. I made an assumption in regards to your safety.”

He patted his chest. “You gave me this, didn’t you? To keep another...magic...thing happening to me?”

“My sister and I thought it was prudent to give you some measure of protection, yes.” She raised her head proudly. “Do you like it?”

“I do. It’s one of the few things I’ve been able to appreciate in this world.”

The tiniest of smiles formed. “Thank you. As my sister has already told you, we sincerely apologize for the unforeseen events that have plagued you. Again, the responsibility lies with the both of us for agreeing to bring you to Equestria. It would have been best to leave you as you were, but even that might have been a cruelty to itself. We may never know that now.”

“I guess not.” Michael shrugged, his anger having already faded away. Maybe a change in the subject? “So, I hear you’re some sort of a Field Marshall in the military around here.”

“Skylord,” she said with a slight frown. “A title that has fallen into disuse over the centuries. It was only brought to light again after my return. There is no need for it other than in wartime, but the development of Equestria’s physical defenses still falls upon me. I was still in the process of integrating my mind into the modern concepts of military doctrines when the changelings invaded Canterlot. It was not one of my finest moments.”

“So, where were you during the attack?”

“Trying to fight my way to my sister’s side. I had to contend with three queens at the same time. We battled for two days and two nights! It was glorious!” she practically shone with pride, her own memory of the battle flashing before her eyes. “‘Twas difficult to lead when your foes were constantly before you and being relentless.”

“Eh, I see battle in a different light,” he said in the shadow of her elation.

“I remember your dream,” Luna told him, her gleam fading to something more respectful in the light of his memories. “You do not flourish in combat, do you?”

The Mare Crisium straightened out and slowly accelerated. All on board could feel it through their hooves on the decks of the cruiser. The air moved like a brisk breeze. It felt nice.

“No. War is the ultimate failure of diplomacy. We’ve got a saying on Earth; the politicians start the wars while the young men die in them.” Or something like that.

“War is not taken lightly in Equestria,” Luna amended. “Before I was banished, combat was done in honor. There were rules. Different as compared to today, mind you. Today, there are no grand armies in the field, not great battles. There are small skirmishes. The ones hunted these days do not have a sense of honor. Pirates are the greatest threats. Thieves in the air and on the sea. Ships like this one,” —she tapped the deck with a hoof lightly— “are designed not to line up in formation and exchange blows with a foe of equal or greater strength, but to go against those who would profit off the misery of others.”

“So what’s your take on changelings?” Michael found his coffee cup had gone empty during their conversation. Odd. When did he forget he even had it?

“If they were ever to unite, then Equestria would have a worthy foe,” Luna said with a snort. “As it is, they are far too divided, pitted against each other in unending trials of strength and cunning. It is their magic and the hive minds that make them formidable. Their Empress seems to encourage her queens to quarrel with each other.”

Michael glanced over his shoulder at Celestia and Blueblood. They were having a discussion while Octavia tried to listen in. The princess didn’t seem to mind her presence, but the prince had a twitch in his eye when she tried to ask a question. While Celestia answered, Blueblood would simply glare at her as if she were taking away his invaluable time with his aunt.

“Are you sure that guy is good at what he does?” He threw a thumb over his shoulder at the prince while returning his attention to the Night Princess. “I mean, he seems like a jerk and he treats his fiance like shit, I think I’ll call him the ‘Mighty Poof’ if he continues acting like a jackass.”

Luna tried to stop herself from giggling from that nickname, even casting a look over her shoulder at her nephew. He was oblivious to their conversation, completely involved in his conversation with Princess Celestia. She appeared polite as she sipped her tea and enjoyed the warming midmorning sun, only half listening to Blueblood.

“My sister and I are trying to convince him his attitude is poor towards other ponies. I am surprised Lady Octavia is willing to put up with his selfish ideals for the sake of a foal he more than likely will never love.” Luna snorted and shook her head. “No matter. Her father has great influence and if he wished, he could destroy Blueblood’s military career. He nearly did, but proposed the marriage so his daughter would not foal a bastard.”

“That’s pretty harsh for her,” Michael said.

Luna shook her head. “It was her decision to pursue this. As the one carrying the foal for the full term, Octavia has the law behind her in ensuring her unborn foal is brought into a world where the father must assume a measure of responsibility. It’s usually a marriage and the couple spends time together until a week before the ceremony. As this has suddenly come up, we’ve decided to have the wedding on board ship. Sunday is just around the corner.”

“Why move so fast?”

“Her father insisted either immediate nuptials or a lawsuit for care of the unborn foal.”

“You mean alimony?”

“This is not a divorce, Mr. Spriggs,” Luna said sternly. “It’s a marriage.”

“Oh, sorry. Used the wrong term. What’s the term for child support?”

She blinked at him before answering. “Do you mean foal support?”

“Yeah, that.” Michael felt pretty dumb. “I told you Chryssie’s the smart one of this family.”

“So I recall.” Luna chuckled. “I find you to be a likable character. Perhaps there is a slim chance we might even become friends. I am certain if you were to take up my offer, you shall be more likable to yourself. I assure you, the procedure can make your spirit whole again, but you must want to be so. It must be painful for you to feel the emptiness within you.”

Michael sighed, “Princess Luna…”

She waved off his warning with a tip of her mane to his lips. “Let me finish. I will not pursue the matter further. The decision will be yours and yours only. Should you decide being a whole being is what you wish, I shall keep the offer available to you. Please keep in mind, though I do not wish humans among my subjects, I wish you and your kind no ill will. Your species frightens me and always has. As I see you as a peaceable fellow, I will give you some measure of trust.”

He...he...shooed me away! My Daddy shooed me away! Like I was nothing! Like I was only a little girl interrupting adult talk! How dare he? How dare he! Daddy always let me in on the big talks. Usually it was just between the two of us as there had always just been the two of us. Still! Why was it upsetting me so? Why was I fighting so hard not to cry? Why was I so angry?

I didn’t care I was supposed to be at the beck and call of that fat jerk Anzealous. The other jerk, Steel Jaw the Imposing Unicorn of Jerkland was escorting me even though he didn’t know diddly-squat about this ship. A sailor was guiding us to the infirmary, or sick bay, or whatever you call the hospital on a ship. As we walked, I shed my unicorn disguise, startling quite a few of the crew we came across along the way. There had been a big meeting last night after orientation and I more or less was introduced to the crew in the cargo bay.

“Why are you following me?” I hissed at Steel.

“Orders.” he grunted.

My tone of voice was less than friendly. “Oh, just a good little soldier, aren’t you?”

He said nothing as I began muttering to myself, staring at the back of the head of my guide. For some reason, the sailor kept glancing back at me nervously.

“What?” I snapped at him. He quickly turned his head to the front and quickened his pace. The pony said nothing. Nobody wanted to talk to me. Figures. Nobody wants to talk to the hideous bug girl! I wonder why?

I fought the tears. Why did I want to cry? It didn’t make any sense!

Warning! Teenage Chrysalis on an emotional tear! There will be no survivors!

Four decks later and several frightened gasps thrown in for good measure from ponies not at all expecting a glowering changeling stalking through the ship, I finally arrived at the infirmary. The pitiful groanings of another changeling reached my ears and I could hear the voice of a familiar mare trying to soothe him. I wanted to grab Anzealous by the scruff of his neck and just drop him over the side of the ship.

Pretty smart idea of me in a raging mood to seek out the one creature on this damned world to hang out with because it’s a part of my punishment for trying to kill said creature. A nurse departed the room, giving me a wide-eyed glance before hurrying on and a much brisker pace.

Anzealous was sitting on the table, looking for all the world like a slumping teddybear left to neglect by an inattentive child. He looked miserable and was holding a glass of water in his hooves. Fleur was with him, her expression was of sympathy until she noticed my presence.

“Why, child, whatever is the matter?” she asked. Fleur tried to induce the changeling to drink his water. Reluctantly he complied.

“Daddy...daddy, he…” I began sobbing uncontrollably.

“Oh, oh, mon pauvre fille,” she cried, moving over to me with sympathy in her voice and her form. “Come and sit, tell Fleur all about it.”

“Dying here,” croaked Anzealous irritably.

“I hate you!” I bawled at him. “Go away!”

“None of that! Anzealous, mon ami, if you would be so kind as to leave me to attend to this? It is most important, non?”

He sighed irritation. He did that a lot, I noticed. Sliding off the table, he growled, “Fine. I’ll just go die in my room. Maybe then I’ll get a little rest.” He waddled past us, his short, fat body barely narrow enough to fit through the door.

Fleur de Lis sighed, noting he had left his bottle of pills behind. They were nothing more than airsick pills, but she lifted them with her magic and sent them after him, bonking him in the back of the head. She said pointedly, “You’ll need those.”

A grumbling, incoherent response was all she received, but the pills were quickly snatched up as if his life depended upon it.

I wailed on, as if everything I had ever cared about had been taken away from me. Or Coca-Cola was trying to foist New Coke on us again. Or another Pee-Wee Herman movie was coming out and it was the only thing they were going to show all summer. Or I had just written the story of my own childhood in a very abridged sort of self-fulfillment and just read the scathing review.

Teen angst is a horrible storm for anyone to be forced to weather, but Fleur bore it well, or as well as anyone could expect. Celestia was as good, if not better, but only because, well...she’s Celestia. Fleur’s voice soothed in my ear as she had me in a hug while we were in the middle of the infirmary room.

“I have raised three daughters, peu Emeraude. I know what you are feeling. It is jealousy you feel, non?” She pulled back and stared into my eyes with her own pale violets. “Your papa is speaking to other mares and you feel threatened by them. It was so when my daughters thought I would no longer love them as I was courted by stallions, seeking the companionship I needed.”

I stared at her like a kitten in the middle of an unwanted bath. Why must you break my tiny little trust? “What do you mean?” I suspected I already knew, but I asked the question anyway. “Are you saying I’m...I’m…”

“Jealous?” She bent forward and kissed me lightly on the brow. “I think you are. Has it always been just you and your papa?”

I nodded, sniffling miserably. “I don’t know why I’m feeling like this. I want my daddy happy and I want him to find someone to be happy with, but I’m so afraid he’ll just find another one who’ll hurt him like the last one did.”

“Ah, jealousy and fear.” Fleur stroked my mane and drew me into another hug. “You truly care for your papa, don’t you?”

“Uh-huh.”

“So do you believe Princess Luna is after your papa?”

“Noooo.”

“For a being built to hide behind lies, you are a terrible liar.”

There was nothing I could really say to that, other than sniffle and be pitiful. I was a wreck, probably seeing things that weren’t there. Luna had never given any indication she was even remotely interested in my dad, but that didn’t mean anything to me. All I knew was I was told to leave him with Luna to talk to each other privately. What else was I supposed to think? I stared blankly at my hooves, shuffling them on the floor in mute misery. Fleur’s words stung me.

Still, she mentioned daughters. “You’ve got kids?” I asked her, lifting my head to meet her eyes with my own.

“Oui. Three beautiful daughters in a span of two hundred years. Each one the daughter of a wonderful stallions I was fortunate at certain points in my life to call husband. My filles lived long, full lives and presented me with many grandchildren. An unfortunate side effect of living a life extended by my magic is seeing them fade away.” Her face clouded briefly in pain, but was replaced with loving recollections playing in her mind. “I still follow their families and visit when I am able after all these years. Now, each one of those beautiful girls were headstrong, stubborn, and wanted their mama to give all of her attention to them in one way or another. I think it is the same between what you want from your papa.”

“You’re over two hundred years old?” I blurted, staring at her. I had heard she was really old. Not as old as Celestia and Luna, but...old.

Fleur gave me a deadpan stare. “Never mind my age, young lady. We must stay on the topic, oui?”

“Sorry.” I muttered.

She smiled and patted my cheek. “No worries, ma fille.” The mare crinkled her muzzle. “Where was I?”

“Daughters?” I suggested helpfully.

“Ah, oui! Now, little girls love their papas. They look up to them, worship them, see them as the type of stallions they hope to marry when they are old enough. You,” she said as she bopped me on the tip of my muzzle with the tip of her hoof, “are no different. You are afraid you might lose him before you can find a stallion of your own. You do not want to be forgotten if your papa finds a mare he can love, be she human or pony or otherwise.”

My face fell and I looked away.

“Ma Emeraude, look at me, please.”

I did so, hiccuping as I was still crying, but not as badly as before.

“You will always be the special fille in his life, the little child he watched grow up. He will always, always love you. Your papa has seen the best in you and raised you and showed you everything he could so you could be something better than him. The only thing he wants from you is to see you do not waste your talents and all the things that make you special be left forgotten and in the dust.”

I’ll admit I was a little confused by what she just said, but her voice was soothing. I nodded. “Okay.” At least Fleur was making me feel a little better.

“He’s not interested in Princess Luna,” she said.

I abruptly stopped crying. “He’s not?”

She smiled. “Non! Absolutely not. I can assure you he is completely terrified of both her and Princess Celestia. He simply masks it well behind his sense of humor and wit.”

Hearing Fleur say that made me feel a lot better. At least the waterworks had stopped. A handkerchief floated to me from somewhere, dabbing at the corners of my eyes. The sorceress who had become my friend—even a mother figure? over the past month carefully wiped up my tears with a gentle smile. I’m sure it was one she’s used on little girls herself, her own.

“No more tears, ma Emeraude,” she crooned. “I know exactly what will help in a moment like this! Well, two things.” An impish grinned appeared on her lovely muzzle.

“What are they?” I asked, giving out one last sniffle.

“Ice cream and hooficures!” she announced in a very serious tone, her eyes dancing merrily. “Then we will check on monsieur Anzealous to ensure he is still with the world of the living.” Fleur giggled when she said that.

Who cares about Andy? Yay me and ice cream! I wonder if they have Ben and Jerry’s on this ship. Equestrians have an odd tendency towards copying certain things from the world I grew up in and adding their own unique little touches to.

Still…

Ice cream!

Ahoy readers, this is you editor speaking (not sure i can call myself an editor, still Scarheart76 thinks i do a decent job so i'll keep doing it)
just wanted to voice myself a bit and say that i'm honoured an privileged to end up editing this great fic.
while i do plan going to a month trip to china next week i will continue doing what i can so you, the readers, will be able to read this fic as soon as possible so i won't be the only one enjoying it.

see you next chapter.

Chapter 15 A Queen and Her Pawns

View Online

Edited by iakovl

At some point during the night, as I laid restless in my hammock, a realization struck; I must be insane. There was no other way to put it as I had seemingly accepted this world and its existence with the reasoning of the quadrupedal child I adopted and raised as my own. What more reason was there than that? She used magic at an early age, figuring it out on her own what I assumed were the basics. We went through a lot of cheap dishes while she figured out how her telekinesis worked. I cheered her on, mindful she didn’t try using it on me.

Was I already over the edge then, too? Was I really just a paranoid man trying to hide an imaginary daughter from a world in which she really didn’t exist? Should I have checked myself into a madhouse like “she” had suggested before leaving me? Was this all nothing more than a dream to me, where I simply participated and watched, doing little else? Everything feels so real, but what then is reality? Where does the realm of make believe ends and the realm of cold logic begins?

A rational human being would in all likelihood be screaming to go home, and get away from this topsy-turvy world of magic and talking animals. A logical human being would have taken an assault on their mind as more than enough reason to beg Celestia to let them go home. A sane human being would have refused the offer to come to Equestria and face the world they knew with a renewed sense of where their feet should be firmly planted.

This lead me to believe I was an irrational, illogical, and insane idiot drifting through this strange world alongside a white talking horse who controls the sun and her dark sister who controls the moon. Oh, and Luna wanted to fiddle with my noodle (and I mean my brain). Now I was being told sometime in my past magic was used on me. Luna told me my memory was not what I thought it was. Like I’m going to believe that...

I don’t want to know. I don’t want to be manipulated. I don’t want to trust these creatures, yet here I am, traveling with them. The reason lies in the pseudo equine teenager I spent the last thirteen years of my life raising like she was my own. A changeling daughter, a royal, and none other than the reincarnated Chrysalis, herself a pawn of Discord’s machinations. I’ve allowed myself to be manipulated because of her. Her anxieties tug at me, her fears seek me out for comfort. We are linked. All I know is where she goes, I must follow.

I’m her daddy. It’s what I do.

There is no other reason to travel to another world other than to see your daughter is well and thriving. Having the one thing that had been such a central focus of my life suddenly gone despite the mental preparation of separation still doesn’t compare to the aftermath.

So yeah, I swung in my hammock, sleepless and staring at the ceiling, listening to the sounds of the ship while I pondered my state of mind. I shifted my stare to the great window taking up the entire back wall of my cabin to watch the fading horizon and the stars twinkling in the night. We were still over land and I could make out the dark outlines of a small mountain range beneath the ship, scrolling away. The light of the full moon highlighted the world in silvery cool blues. Night was a world of shadows and silence.

“Luna time,” I said to myself. Shifting in my blanket, I let both my bare feet dangle over either side of my hammock. Her eyes never left me even after we had ended our conversation. Apparently me rejecting her had been some sort of a ‘challenge accepted’ thing. What part of ‘no’ did she not understand?

As much as I like her, she’s a creepy goth chick with far too much power, showing way too much interest in my memories. I don’t need to see her raise the moon every night. She radiates power just like her sister. It kind of feels like standing in front of a glacier buck nekked with a cold wind coming off it and hitting me.

Alicorns are scary girls. Scary cool. As much as she’s trying to let me know she’s all business, Luna is trying to give me some benefit of the doubt.

That’s another thing; why the hell am I liking all these ponies? Does it have something to with the magic of this world? It’s everywhere, even getting into me. The princess even did something to an arrowhead necklace to keep magic from hurting me.

What is magic? It simply can’t be something scientific. This stuff’s from myth and legend, stories you read to kids before bedtime. Magic is Cinderella, Beowulf, The Lord of the Rings, and the Last Unicorn. Pure fantasy. It doesn’t exist. This world shouldn’t exist. It had been what, five days since I had arrived here? Six? There’s a wedding tomorrow. A magical wedding. Just like those romance movies with happy endings. The lone exception is the groom wants absolutely nothing to do with the bride and the bride is bending over backwards in pounding a sense of moral responsibility through his thick, noble skull.

I think I’ll recommend Octavia a baseball bat. Louisville Slugger made the perfect thing for smacking a hard, round object. I wish I was on Earth. I’d buy her one as a wedding gift. Neither Chryssie nor I were invited. Ah, well. At least we might get something to munch on at the reception. Thinking of the wedding got me to thinking of my own life. Was I dumped all those years ago because I kept on putting off marriage?

My thoughts shifted, shaking a past I’d rather have nothing to do with anymore. It never leaves, constantly reminding me of a painful past best left in a hazy fog. Yet it’s always there, reminding me.

“Damn it,” I sighed, shifting and causing the hammock to sway a bit. There would be no sleep tonight. Maybe the kitchen (galley) would have something to eat. I just had to remember where it was on this ship. This crazy old ass was going to see a pony about a sandwich.

With the grace of a mentally challenged three legged rhinoceros, I got out of bed. Against my better judgement, I put on my shirt and pants, but left my boots off. For some reason, coffee sounded good. I love a good cup of coffee. Coffee and a sandwich. Before leaving, I patted my chest to make sure the necklace was still there. I think it became my security blanket. I guess it worked or did whatever it was intended to do because Sil tried something the other day and whatever it was didn’t work.

I shuffled out the door, smacking my lips and sighing at the elusion sleep was giving me. I wondered if my kid was asleep, passing by her door and pausing. Soft hoofsteps behind me made me turn. Sure enough, there was a guard, dressed from head to hoof in the silvery armor of one of Luna’s elites.

“Yo,” I said to him with a half-hearted wave. “Do you guys always have to follow me?”

He nodded. I noticed his wings. Bat wings. He was a batpony, or something. Oh, goodie, this place just gets better and better!

“Love your wings. If you don’t mind me asking, what kind of pony are you?”

“Thestral,” he replied. His voice was creepy, like a stalker slobbering into a phone, reading off government defense contracts. His pupils were slitted, like Luna’s.

“Neat. Um, do you know how to get to the galley? I’m hungry.”

He shook his head.

“Got a name?”

“Bob.”

I blinked. “You’re kidding, right?”

“I am, but if you’re going to try and remember my name, I think I’d rather give you one you can remember, Mr. Spriggs.” He grinned at me, showing me a pair of ivory fangs. “Otherwise, I’m Shatterdown.”

“So, I take it you know Steel Jaw?”

Batpony Bob nodded. “I’ve been traveling with you since Princess Luna assigned me to be under Lieutenant Steel Jaw’s command.”

“Why is he so hostile to me and my kid?”

Bob looked at me with a squint, his lower jaw working back and forth. “His wife miscarried during the changeling invasion,” he told me quietly. “She hasn’t been the same since. Good mare, just no longer right in the head anymore. She keeps imagining her foal’s alive and lapses from time to time.”

I winced at the summed up story. “That’s kind of personal, don’t you think?”

“He’s too proud to talk about it,” sniffed the thestral. “Steel’s a good soldier, one of the best, but he hates changelings with a blind passion because of what happened.”

We proceeded down the steel clad hallway. Luckily there were signs at intervals telling us what lay where. It was almost soldier proof. Bob and I passed a few members of the crew. Naturally I drew stares, bugged a few eyes, and even made one of the ponies gasp dramatically and almost faint.

I’ll admit to taking a perverse pleasure in seeing that.

We went down one flight of stairs and simply followed the signs. It took less than five minutes to walk into the galley. I was rather pleased at myself at being able to read the directions.

“I’ll be nearby, watching,” Bob said to me, then slipped off to do creepy batpony things. I wondered if they hanged from ceilings.

“I get it. You are the night,” I said softly, not wanting him to overhear and possibly do a one-eighty and beat me into a bloody pulp. Or gnaw on a leg.

“I heard that,” he called without looking back at me. “My Princess is the night.” At least he had a chuckle in his words. I really needed to remember Bob’s hearing was like a bat’s.

Well, he let me live and I noticed there were very few souls during this hour of the night. It has to be early morning. A clock on the wall inched towards three in the morning. A bored looking earth pony was wiping down a counter with what looked like a buffet line where the cook put what you wanted on the grill and cooked it for you. Breakfast smells wafted to my nostrils, along with the smell of bleach cleaner. It reminded me slightly of the chow hall back in my army days. Not a bad set of memories to recall.

There were several rectangular tables bolted to the floor, each one with a swiveling chair attached to one of the heavy legs with a sturdy bar of steel. They were built to accommodate a pony rump and were a little too low to the ground for my taste. They just looked like a kiddie table. I went past them, aware of how cold the floor was to my bare feet. I felt silly without my boots.

The pony at the grill saw me coming and threw a nervous glance as I smiled and picked up a metal tray. Was it aluminum or tin? I wasn’t sure. Behind me, I could hear voices as ponies began to filter into the galley. It was the sound of soldiers not quite awake and even a bit surly. A quick glance over my shoulder made out pegasi in faded blue flight suits trotting in, complaining about the time of morning. It was oh dark thirty, so I understood the grumpiness. I had heard the flyers always had teams of two flying patterns around the ship as lookouts, so I assumed this group to be the dawn patrol.

“What’ll you have?” asked the cook warily.

“Can you do omelettes?” I grinned at him hopefully.

“Sure. What do you want on it?”

“Do you know how to make a Western omelette?”

He nodded. “Sure can. Anything else?”

“How are your hash browns?”

“Eh, not bad for something mass produced.”

“Patties?”

“Yep.” He pointed a hoof at a tray filled with them, lined up in neat little rows. “They’re freshly cooked. You’re lucky to be first in line. Those guys usually snarf them all down. They like the carbs.” The pony deftly began to use his horn hidden beneath his cap. I could only tell because of the aura peeking out from beneath it. His telekinesis started with the eggs, scrambling them in a bowl, then spreading them out on the grill. Within moments, he added diced up vegetables. At the last moment, shredded cheese went on and the omelette was folded over. It went from the grill, onto a spatula, and on a plate. Two square hash brown patties were added to the meal. It was presented to me with a proud flourish.

“There ya go!” he said. It took less than three minutes.

I grinned, taking the plate and setting it on my tray. “Awesome. Thanks!”

As I wandered away towards the coffee, I could clearly hear the pony mutter something about me not eating him. That was a first. It also bothered me a little. After getting my cup of Joe, I spied around for a place to sit. There was plenty of places to choose from. I caught the pegasi staring at me and whispering to each other. They’d seen me before, at the orientation meeting the evening before we departed. Batpony Bob stood off to the side, watching me with a stoic expression meant for statues. His gaze fell upon the dawn patrol as they chatted loudly with each other and laughed. They apparently decided to ignore me and herded with their food to the far side of the room, gathering at a table. I had already sat down and began digging into my food. I guess I was hungrier than I thought.

Contrary to what people believe, ponies do in fact have working knowledge of utensils. I’ve seen Fleur use them. Not all beings in their armed services are equines. I think I saw a couple of griffons earlier, but that might have just been dock workers.

The coffee tasted just like the stuff I drank years ago while in uniform. The food wasn’t half bad. I only had to put a little bit of pepper on it. Halfway through my meal, I heard the soft thudding steps of hooves come up behind me.

“Excuse me? Mr. Spriggs?” the voice was vaguely familiar. I put down my fork and turned, thinking one of the pegasi had come over for whatever reason. Imagine my surprise when I found Octavia Melody addressing me. I really liked her soft and proper accent.

“Miss Melody?” I guessed, already knowing who she was. It took a moment for my brain to whirr and buzz in identifying her. I smiled at her politely.

“Oh, you remember my name!” She seemed happy about that. “It would seem sleep eludes you as well.”

I nodded. “I thought getting something to eat would help. Not a sleep night for you, I take it?”

Octavia shook her head. “I have far too much weighing on my thoughts. May I join you?”

“Oh? Sure!” I scrambled to my feet and promptly stubbed by big toe on one of the table legs. Unceremoniously I slumped back into my chair, holding my injured toe (and my pride) as I bit back a stream of curse words. That’s what I get for trying to stand up for a lady. Ouch!

“Are you all right?” Octavia asked with great concern. She started forward, but I waved her off, forcing a smile.

“Fine! Fine! Just Murphy telling me I should have put my boots on.” I laughed in pain and waved her to a seat.

Slowly she backed away from me, then found a seat at my table and slid into it. “Who is this Murphy?” Octavia tilted her head to one side, both ears fully on me. She was curious.

“Murphy’s Law. It’s the law that states anything that can go wrong will go wrong.”

Octavia brightened. “Oh, it’s an epigram!”

“Yep!” Whatever an epigram is… I noticed she had a small salad and a glass of juice. “So, why join me for breakfast? Most ponies on this ship have gone out of their way to avoid me.”

“Precisely due to what you just pointed out,” she assured me before taking a bite. Quickly she chewed. It was an angry chewing. Octavia swallowed and took a sip of her juice. “Right now, I’m just sick and tired of dealing with ponies because of one name.”

“Blueblood?” I guessed.

“He’s a cad!” she said angrily. I noticed she wasn’t wearing her bowtie. Some sort of pink choker studded with what looked like diamonds. It was pretty. “All I ever wanted to do was find the right stallion and have a lovely career in music. Perhaps raise a foal or two. Instead, I make one mistake in a night of drunken stupidity and I’m stuck with that...that...cad as the father of my foal! I feel so stupid for going through this insanity.”

Oh, God, please kill me now! Like a moron and the good listener Momma Spriggs raised me to be, instead of running away screaming, I placed my elbows on the table. Folding my hands together and rested my chin on my knuckles, I smiled at the distraught mare. “I’m all ears,” I said as I died a little inside.

It’s a little known fact if a female is in a moment of personal crisis, I simply have to listen to her. I can’t help it. Even if I would rather jump into a swimming pool full of rusty razor blades, I will listen to a woman. Even if she’s pregnant. Especially if she’s pregnant!

“But I’m not here to talk about me,” she apologized, placing a hoof in front of her mouth. Her ears splayed back for a moment as she blushed. “I’d rather ask you some questions about you and your daughter. I’m sure you must have a most wondrous tale to tell, if it’s no bother.”

“Just a dad raising his kid. Nevermind my kid was a changeling.” I left a lot out, of course. My big toe throbbed painfully. “It was like raising any other kid, but this one could use magic.”

“I would imagine you had to keep her hidden from other...what is your species called again? Lady Fleur de Lis mentioned it to me, but I’m afraid it’s escaped my memory.”

“Humans.”

“Humans. Such an odd word to say!” She giggled happily. “What was it like having a changeling for a daughter? It must have been very nerve wracking!”

“You’d be surprised,” I replied, getting together another forkful of omelette. “She was absolutely adorable the first night I brought her home. Found her in the middle of a thunderstorm. Hissed at me until a thunderclap sent her jumping into my arms!” A grin found its way across my face as the memory played itself in my eyes. “Couldn’t get her off to save my life.”

“That’s so adorable!” she cooed, clapping her hooves together.

I’m going to say this right now; ponies clapping with their hooves is probably the most adorable sight to see, next to sleeping newborns, puppies and kittens, and the musical “Cats”.

Don’t judge.

Lookouts posted in the top mast of the Mare Crisium maintained a night vision spell between the two of them so they could see in the darkness. Luna’s glowing light bathed them in silver. One of the watch was actually a griffon, with eyes perfectly suited for seeing long distances. His unicorn mare partner dozed beneath a blanket as they worked a two hours on, two hours off watch schedule. So long as they relayed their status every fifteen minutes, this was tolerated.

The night watch was boring. It always was. The airship was mostly asleep, her engines enticing sleepiness with their constant background droning. The ship’s bell tolled three, eliciting a yawn from the lion bird.

“Miserable night shift,” he muttered, scanning the horizon slowly and with expert care. It might be a boring job, but griffons prided themselves on doing as they were trained to the letter. At least it was summer and the night felt good, if a bit warmer and muggier than he was used to. Griffons preferred colder mountain climates, but a few found the warmer temperatures tolerable.

“My shift yet?” mumbled his partner from beneath her blanket.

He checked his pocket watch, a gift from his grandfather when he was a chick. “You still got an hour,” the griffon responded gruffly. “You’re too jumpy tonight.”

She yawned. “Can’t help it. I’ve got an uneasy feeling.”

“Nerva Bure, you’ve always got an uneasy feeling about something.”

The unicorn huffed. “I can’t help it if I’m nervous. I come from a long line of nervous ponies, Iovec. Having changelings on board the ship? It’s bad news if you ask me.”

The griffon snapped his beak and grinned at his companion. They had been friends for years, even enlisting at the same time from the boroughs of Manehatten. Iovec wanted something more than being just the son of a local butcher and Nerva hated the city. Both decided to join the aerial navy as soon as they graduated high school. They worked so well together, it was decided their postings would keep them as a team, where ever they were deployed. It turned out to be an adventurous life for a couple of city kids. They always ended up on ships with fighting reputations. The Mare Crisium was their fourth ship together and they had already their own share of combat under their belts. Seven years of service had earned them a position on the heavy cruiser as lookouts.

“Well, if you’re actually talking about how nervous you’re feeling,” Iovec said slowly, his eyes going to the horizon. He scanned the distant cloud formations. “I know better than to ignore it. You and your feelings. It ain’t natural.” Her worry caused him worry. Iovec felt they were too close to Equestrian airspace to think of pirates.

“How’s your vision?” Nerva asked, shifting beneath the blanket.

“Spell’s still holding. Go ahead and radio in our status. It’s close enough.”

“Okay. Do you think anypony would be stupid enough to attack a cruiser?” She reached for the two-way radio.

“With the princesses aboard?” The griffon snorted. “Not damned likely. The two of them probably have enough in them to sneeze their way through a fight without a scratch on those perfect rumps.”

“Iovec! Rude!”

“Nerva. Please.” The griffon never wavered his slowly sweeping gaze from the horizon. He paid attention to the closest cloud formations. Experience had taught him well. “Those two royal flanks are the finest in all of ponydom. There are young males all around Equestria who have posters of them in their rooms, filling their dreams with lucid fun.”

“You’re disgusting!” she laughed at him, both amused and appalled at her old friend. Both shared the moment before she steadied herself and dutifully reported in. “Command, this is Overwatch, reporting all secure. Time check oh three hundred hours.”

The radio crackled. “Copy that, Overwatch. Time check confirmed at oh three hundred hours. Stay vigilant. Command out.”

Iovec poured himself a cup of coffee from the thermos set near the mast. “Hope it’s still warm,” he growled.

“I can warm it for you if it’s cold,” reminded Nerva.

The griffon grunted, shuffling his wings against his side as he resumed his watch. A slight movement caught his attention. Holding his cup carefully in his talons, he rose up against the rail. Blinking and not staring, he swept the area, not concentrating on the center of his vision. The night made focusing at distance impossible, so the observer had to constantly keep his eyes moving. The trick was to catch movement not directly in front of him, but just to the side of the center of vision. His sweeping pattern of observation swept from left to right slowly, rising up, right to left, up again, and left to right. He repeated this process, not sure at what he was seeing. Roughly three miles away from the ship was a sizable bank of thick rain clouds. The Mare Crisium was just beyond the reach of Equestrian border and her weather teams. Natural weather patterns controlled the skies. A shadow of movement had caught his eye. He sought it out again and thought he could see something. It was using the clouds as concealment.

“Ten o’clock, at nine thousand feet,” he said quietly, his lion tail flicking his partner. She threw the blanket off and was with him at the rail in a flash, her eyes glowing from the night vision spell. “Tell me what you make of it.”

“Maybe some noble out on a late night pleasure cruise?” she suggested as she tried to make out what had Iovec’s notice.

“Radio,” Iovec growled softly.

She levitated the receiver to him wordlessly. Nerva knew better than to argue with her sharp-eyed companion. Griffons were prized lookouts on any ship.

The griffon took it quickly, staring hard at the cloud, not at all liking it. “Command, Overwatch. Possible contact port side, ten o’clock at nine thousand feet in the clouds. Identification unknown.”

“Overwatch, Command. Say again? Possible contact?”

“Affirmative. Range is three miles. Second cloud bank, the one looking like a duck at ten o’clock. Altitude is nine thousand feet.”

“Copy that. Standbye.”

Within minutes, a pair of pegasi were dispatched to investigate. Before doing so, they swooped up to the ship’s mast for a confirmation from the griffon and his unicorn partner. They quickly discussed the details before the two flyers darted off to investigate.

As they departed, the ship slowly came to life to a semi-alert status as information followed up the chain of command. Ships normally don’t hide from Equestrian warships unless they had something to hide or were preparing for an ambush. Morning was still over two hours away, so the night served the pegasi as well as the unknown ship. Skirting the small clouds scattered about between the Mare Crisium and the unknown contact, the stealthy approach and years of training served the two pegasi well. Or so they thought. Within minutes they had covered the distance. Behind them, the ship’s running lights blinked as if she was not expecting an attack.

A dark object within the cloud of interest appeared. Swirling clouds enclosed it quickly. It did not escape notice. Both pegasi looked at each other, each knowing whatever was inside was big. They went forward to investigate. Two small forms appeared behind the investigating ponies, their forms shimmering from their fading camouflage. As one, the two forms struck with grim intent. Both pegasi were snatched, one giving out an alarm to the other. It was too late. They were dragged into the cloud, struggling. More forms fell upon them, then there was silence.

Small shimmering disturbances in the air, like invisible balls emerged from the cloud. There were hundreds of them. Swarming from cover and into the night, they made their way silently towards the Mare Crisium. A figure appeared at the fringe of the cloud, buzzing on dragonfly wings. Her dark form hovered, legs dangling and relaxed as sapphire eyes glowed softly. Among her kind, she was considered a most handsome queen. Most ponies would find her terrifying, even grotesque. Her body shared hues of blue; her carapace was glossy turquoise in the moonlight while her smooth chitin a darker, more subdued shade. She was slender, with a long neck and spindly legs pitted with typical holes. Anisophira oozed power both physically and through her magic. Her midnight blue mane fluttered in the breeze, her tail a series of braids woven intricately within each other. Queen Anisophira smirked through her slender needle-like fangs. A dark and narrow crown with five prongs adorned the top of her head, tilted to the left and seemingly held in place by sheer will and a ridiculously small round base.

Her children and her hive had one goal this night.

Her hive mind monitored the progress of her changelings as the Infiltrators went forth towards the unsuspecting ship.

Are the slaves ready? She sent out her inner thought, having already found the very changeling in charge of them.

Yes, my queen. All we await is your command. The Equestrians are aware.

Of course they are. Is everyling ready? The question was in general, more of a command with an added ‘or else’ implied within. Queen Anisophira did not suffer fools. What she was doing was very dangerous, especially with Celestia and Luna together. If this failed, there would be no stopping their wrath from coming down upon her hive like a pair of lionesses upon a pack of jackals.

Eagerly her children confirmed their readiness. Not all the children were descended from her; some were Grays who joined the hive. It was a firmly held belief any changeling serving a queen became her child—blood or no blood—and therefore under her protection. The queen was always recruiting. More changelings meant more projected power, so long as she could sustain the numbers. Letting the other races do the hard work was only part of the plan. Sending others to do their fighting for them was standard, using deception second nature. Changelings had to be cunning and had spent centuries honing it against each other. Sapient races stood little chance against a fully prepared hive with a singular purpose.

Still, there were ways to measure her enemies for herself, and there were ways. A queen did not simply throw her children into battle without weighing the risks. Losing too many would weaken the hive as a whole and each queen usually took great pains to keep the bulk of her fighting changelings whole and fit. Changeling queens loved only two things: power and their hives. Everything beyond that meant little to them. Their goddess was their mother, the Empress and they tithed to her obediently and out of fear. Fighting a battle where the chances of success were guaranteed were naturally favored. Pitched battles were not a strength of a race built for hiding. Oh, there were formidable warriors within their ranks, but the true fighters were few and far between. As creatures of magic, their bodies tended on average to be weaker than the average earth pony’s.

The Empress had expressed her desire for her children to seek out clever ways to show their affection for her. Embarrassing the Royal Sisters was one way to gain her favor, but the ire of discovery would indeed bring about ruination. So why take such a risk? Why was Queen Anisophira willing to expose her children to the might of the Equestrian military?

Like any good queen, Anisophira led from the front. Once she was sure everything was in motion and everyling was where they needed to be, she cloaked herself with magic, shimmering as the light was bent around her form. The queen disappeared, her from breaking up as she blended in with her surroundings in a manner to put a chameleon to shame. Her personal guards followed suit and she went after her Infiltrators with dreadful intent in her eyes.

“I’m coming,” she whispered to one particular being on board the unsuspecting cruiser. Through her spell, she smiled and flashed her fangs. Her confidence in her hive was projected, her pride in her force swelling chests and adding to the resolve of each changeling. They felt their queen’s determination and made it their own.

Iovec could not see the changelings coming. He thought he caught something in the air, but dismissed it as the heat of the night. What was odd was it felt cool, not muggy. He blinked, staring at where the shimmering had been. It was gone. What caught his attention was the cloud was moving—no, something was emerging from it!

“Too cool for heat waves,” he muttered, focusing on the cloud. “We’ve got a ship! Unidentified vessel emerging from the cloud.”

Nerva was already fumbling with the radio and relaying his words as calmly as possible.

“I’m seeing open gunports. Sheesh, that thing’s a relic. Are they seriously thinking of firing on us?” The griffon was incredulous. “She’s swinging around! She’s gonna broadside!”

A dozen flashes flared against the dark silhouette of the mysterious ship. She had turned, still on approach but with her starboard guns pointed at the cruiser. The ship was less than half the Mare Crisium’s length and was of a standard dirigible design. She was also old, at least four or five generations out of date, but among the first with a rigid design. Her keel blended her manned compartments with the huge gas bags keeping her aloft. Other than shield magic, there was little to keep her from being torn apart by a modern airship’s firepower save her thin cloth skin. Armed with ancient rifled five inch guns, it was unlikely they would even pierce the magically enhanced armor of the heavy cruiser.

Shells whistled over the cruiser. The effect was dramatic. In less than ten seconds, the ship’s alarms were going off. The call to general quarters was issued and the sounds of shouting ponies and thundering hoofsteps brought the airship to full wakefulness. She lurched, assumed a zig-zag pattern. Her portside gunports slid open and the twin barrelled turrets emerged from within the bowels of the ship’s port hull. They turned, leveling upon their target. The Mare Crisium banked hard to port, turning to face her unexpected foe.

“Pirates?” Blueblood asked calmly as he dressed for battle. He was quickly into his jacket, having practiced this a thousand times before. His second stood patiently at his doorway, breathless as the ship shuddered and banked. Like a greyhound on a leash, she was eager to be unleashed upon the hare who dared to challenge her. Prince Blueblood felt his blood rush as he plucked up his hat and neatly placed it upon his head. “Let us see, shall we?”

The sounds of cannon balls whistling past the ship brought a cocked eyebrow from the prince and a questioning glance at his subordinate. “At least we can confirm they are hostile, don’t you think?”

“Yes, sir.”

The two made the short distance towards the bridge. Commander Stubbs knew his captain’s disposition all too well. The prince was a calculating leader. Stubbs had told him of the make of the ship facing them. A hundred years ago, she would have been considered a ship-of-the-line, a first rate air cruiser, back when the term applied to early warships.

“Have you roused my aunts?” Blueblood offered a knowing glance to Stubbs.

“No doubt the ship’s actions have at least made them aware something out of the ordinary is happening,” replied the unicorn. Twenty years of service made him more or less immune to the eccentricities of the prince. “To be on the safe side, I did send an ensign to appraise them of the situation.”

“Excellent. What’s the range to target?” Blueblood emerged onto the bridge and asked the question loudly.

“Two and a half miles, sir!” came the reply. The bridge was bathed in red light. Ponies cut hellish shadowy figures as they went about their duties.

“How is it they managed to get so close?” growled the prince irritably.

Stubbs cleared his throat. “Cloud formations, sir. The ship was hiding in one of them. The Overwatch noticed movement and reported it in. We sent two pegasi. Neither have returned yet. The ship emerged shortly after.”

Blueblood ground his teeth for a moment, then assumed his chair. Of course the new ‘radar’ was still in its testing stages. It was supposed to detect objects at a great range utilizing radio waves. The cruiser would be fitted for one supposedly before the year was out. It was a new technology following in the footsteps of radio communications, also a relatively new invention to ponies. A hot cup of tea awaited him. “Very well, are we cleared for action?”

“Aye-aye, Captain. Portside main batteries are armed and ready.”

The prince snorted, looking out the windows and into the darkness beyond to where the ship supposedly lay. Stepping towards it, he hefted a pair of binoculars and brought them to his eyes. After a few seconds, he could make out the distant outline of the hostile ship. “Bring the Mare to port. I want the forward tubes locked on that approaching ship.”

A junior lieutenant had already been trying to make out the ship. “I think she’s of the Sovereign class, sir.” He lowered his glasses and regarded Blueblood.

“Odd,” the prince noted, frowning, “even pirates wouldn’t dream of using a ship that old. Send a flight over and investigate. Something isn’t right about this whole thing.”

Another line of flashes erupted from the oncoming airship. A blink and a half later, the shells slammed against the invisible magic shield generated by a team of four unicorns focusing on a shielding crystal deep in the bowels of the cruiser.

“Time from first volley to the second?” asked Commander Stubbs.

The reply was crisp and professional, if a bit squeaky, “One minute twenty-two seconds, sir!”

“Your orders, Captain?”

“Ready two flights. I want them airborne as soon as the next volley is thrown at us. Have the unicorns ready to drop the shield.” Orders were relayed calmly and efficiently, as if this was no more than a drill or an exercise.

“Princess on deck!”

“As you were,” called out a weary and worried Princess Celestia. The Diarch of the Day entered the bridge, wary to stay out of the way of her little ponies bustling about the business of keeping the ship from harm. “Nephew, what is happening?”

“We’re being attacked by a relic, Auntie,” he replied, giving her a little colt smile. “Very odd. I’m having my pegasi investigate that ship. It has to at least be a century old.” Blueblood offered her his field glasses. She declined with a single shake of her head. “Sovereign class, if I’m not mistaken. She should be in a museum, not trying to go match firepower with the Mare Crisium.”

The junior lieutenant who had initially identified their attacker puffed his cheeks in indignation.

“Princess on deck!” came the cry a second time. Princess Luna had arrived. In exactly three seconds, she was able to deduce what was going on from a glance out the window and a quick mental exchange with her older sister.

“I’m joining the wings going out,” she stated, leaving no room in her voice for argument. “Which hangar will they be taking off from?”

“Main hanger, Highness.”

“Very well.” She gave Celestia a nod. “Sister.”

The alabaster alicorn only said, “Be careful.”

“Always.” Luna vanished into a wisp of starry shadow before disappearing altogether.

You know, the last thing anyone expects while having a nice chat with a nice lady over a cup of military coffee is to hear the alarm bells go off on the ship. The pegasi at their table took a moment to stare up at the ceiling at the same time before falling over themselves at some unseen signal as they made for the door. They yelped and hooted with excitement. Bob came up to Octavia and me and insisted we get to our cabins for our own safety. If the ship was going into battle, we were going to just be in the way.

Octavia was terrified, huddling near me as we made our way out of the galley. She kept muttering in a frightened little voice, “Oh, my baby! My baby!” She hyperventilated until I could reassure her everything would be all right.

I hoped it would be.

Ponies hurried throughout the corridors

We ran into the unwavering form of Chief Quint Orca encouraging the ship’s crew with his colorful personal touch. The battered old stallion had an unlit cigar clamped between his teeth and was making sure sailors knew where they were supposed to be. He appeared odd in a flight suit; I would have expected him to be dressed like a fisherman, wanting to go shark hunting.

“You lost, ape?” he grated at me.

Bob stepped forward, flaring his wings. “I’m escorting him as well as the lady to the back of the ship.”

Quint grunted. “Port. Starboard. Bow. Aft. There ain’t no back of the ship, it’s always aft! If ya don’t get it right, I’ll throw yer damned plot out the little round window in the side!”

It was hard to tell if what he was saying was serious or if he was joking. Hardass was etched into his personality. His tail flicked almost as if he was annoyed at the world. A grin was plastered on his face as if he found joy in calamity and mayhem. Here was a pegasus who was completely at home in the middle of bedlam. The course personality he exhibited would have done my old drill sergeant proud.

“Whatever. Let us by so they can get out of your way.” Bob moved as if to pass Quint.

“Get yer movin’, then,” snapped the old Chief. “We’ve got a battle brewin’ and you ain’t of any use to this ship but excess ballast.” He laughed, though Octavia did not find it very funny. It was the sort of laugh best associated with sociopaths or self employed plumbers. He actually managed a second of kindness towards the mare as we filed past. “Stay in yer cabins and you leave the navy to handle the baddies, eh?”

“Aren’t we still in Equestria?” asked Octavia in a shrill voice. “Pirates are in Equestrian airspace?”

Quint said nothing to her exclamation, but started yelling at a pony who wasn’t moving fast enough for his liking. He started after the sailor, his voice rising to a roar as he began to find all sorts of wrong in the actions of his crew.

Bob snorted, “Let’s go. Princess Luna will have my flank on a silver platter if anything happens to you.” He nudged me with his muzzle.

“What about me?” protested Octavia in a little girl voice.

“You, she likes. She’ll just kill me if something happens to you.”

“Thanks,” I muttered.

We finally made it to the corridor where our cabins were. Chrysalis was waiting, antsy and on nervous hooves. Fleur was talking to her and trying to get my daughter to get into her room. Having to deal with the ship suddenly lurching from one side to the other was an interesting experience. I think I got to relive my days as a drunk, but from a sober perspective. It was not fun and the advantages of being quadrupedal shined.

“Dad!” she cried out, half in relief and half pissed off. “Where have you been? I was worried sick about you!” My daughter flung herself at me and I was suddenly being hugged to death.

“Ah, would it be all right if I stay with you all?” Octavia asked. “I-I don’t want to be alone, if you don’t mind.”

Fleur, with a motherly streak to rival Celestia’s quickly enfolded the trembling earth pony mare into a hug of her own. “But of course! We shall all go to my cabin, oiu?”

Steel Jaw showed up, glaring at Bob. “Where have you been?” he snapped.

He tossed his muzzle at me. “With him.”

Steel turned to me. “Where were you?”

I pointed at Bob. “With him.” Sometimes it’s fun to be a jerk.

He rolled his eyes and growled, “Not a good time to be joking. We’ll discuss this later.”

“He was keeping me company,” Octavia cut in. “Do you wish to raise your voice at me?”

“What? No!” Steel splayed his ears back.

“What were you doing with Octavia?” demanded Chrysalis suspiciously.

“Talking about you,” I replied. “Embarrassing little family secrets. Your first molt. Your magic splurges, or whatever you call them. Your first time using the potty. The usual, pumpkin.” Chryssie blushed furiously and glared Ice Daggers of Impending Doom at me. “I love you, sweetie.” It was my best, ‘don’t kill me because I’m your daddy and I haven’t put you in the will yet’ look.

It was super effective!

Fleur giggled and began herding us towards her cabin. “I think you meant surges. Magic surges. Come! Let us go, we cannot be where we need to be if we do not get there first.” She used her magic to gently push us steadily along.

Her cabin was larger than mine, not surprising. It oozed the Feminine Touch and I suddenly felt my maleness run screaming off the ship. Pink. Everything in the room was pink. Pink carpeting. Pink walls. Pink ceiling. Pink furniture. Pink bed. Pink, pink, pink!

Did I mention everything was pink? I’m talking Breast Cancer Awareness pink. If I looked at it that way, it was all cool and I didn’t mind it so much. If I looked at it from a standpoint it assaulted my Y chromosome, I was a sexist pig and should feel bad. As it was, it was a pink room.

Chrysalis gagged. She was more of a fan of earth tones and greens. My favorite color was midnight blue. “Fleur...why all the...rosey color?” she asked when we all gaped with a mixed bag of awe at the state of the room.

“It’s my daughter’s room all over again,” groaned Bob through a helpless guffaw.

“You’ve got a daughter?” I asked, surprised.

He flicked his tail and adjusted his leathery wings. “Hey, just because I look like a vicious blood sucking pony doesn’t mean I can’t be the father of a three-year-old. Thestrals have families, too.”

Octavia smiled. “Oh, I’ll bet she’s simply adorable,” she cooed.

“So. Much. Pink.” Steel Jaw looked like he was going to be the pig of the bunch.

“Where’s Anzealous?” I asked.

Chryssie snorted. “Who cares? The fat little imp can stay in his cabin.”

“Be nice,” I said a bit harsher than necessary.

“Un moment. I was experimenting with coloring magic on a whim,” Fleur said impishly after giving us a moment to suffer in a world of pink. She moved her lips and tossed her head, the tip of her horn flaring in a point of swirling light. It flared and all the pink became the uniformed, plain colors like in my cabin. “Là nous allons!”

“Thank Celestia,” breathed Steel Jaw nervously. We could almost taste his relief.

There was a knock at the door. Steel opened it as he was the closest. Sure enough, there was Anzealous, his solid blue eyes shifting nervously from right to left. “I’m sorry to be a bother, but I am very uncomfortable in a battle. I’ve never been in a battle. I don’t want to die in battle!” He gave his best begging face impression. Andy succeeded in looking constipated. I had to feel bad for him. His legs were trembling violently and his stubby little tail was tucked between his legs.

“Oh, come in!” Fleur called out. “Plus on est de fous, oui?”

“Thank you!” chirped the fat changeling as he scrambled inside.

There was the sound of heavy thudding outside. It was muted by the thickness of the ship’s armor.

“Hey, is that a shield around the ship?” My daughter’s question filled everyone’s ears. “I mean, I just saw something blue shimmer out there.”

“It’s a standard defense spell. All Equestrian capital ships have them,” replied Steel. “We’re being fired on.”

The deck slanted suddenly as the ship made a hard banking left turn. Hooves spread out and braced against the deepening angle. Loose items rattled to the floor and rolled downhill.

“It’s gotta drop if we fire back, won’t it?” Chryssie asked, looking at him curiously.

The unicorn stallion nodded. “Or if they want to send the pegasi out for aerial support.”

There really wasn’t anything to look at out the window. I mean, the ship was facing whatever threat was in front of us. The ship’s alarms had shut off and the lights had gone red. I guess it meant battlestations, or something. It was eerily quiet as nobody wanted to talk except for Fleur. She seemed happy to concentrate on keeping Octavia from wigging out. The poor mare kept on going on and on about her foal.

“I should have stayed home. I should have listened to Blueblood,” she said to Fleur. “It’s too dangerous to be out here!” She seemed to rethink her declaration in regards to her future husband, her eyes basically reading, ‘I couldn’t have just admitted that’!

“You do not give this ship or her crew enough credit,” the unicorn said to her with a smile.

Luna flicked her tail, checking the two squadrons of pegasi with her. Eighteen pegasi in navy blue flight suits were on standby. “Are we ready?” she asked them, her cyan eyes dancing with eager anticipation. “Remember! Three seconds is all we’ll have. Be quick! Be but a blink of an eye when you move and stay with me!” With her link to Celestia, she reached out. Sister?

Soon…ah, there it goes! Incoming fire. Be ready!

The hangar doors were open and they could all see the enemy airship. A line of flashes lit up her sides in flames and swathed her in smoke, just before Celestia told her. There was the shimmering of the invisible wall of several rapid impacts against it. It vibrated and hummed, then reset itself as if nothing had happened. Then the shield dropped. Luna felt the magic fall away as the spell’s connection was severed.

“Fly! Fly my ponies!” she cried, “With me!” A step and a powerful leap, her wings snapped and pumped with graceful strokes. Eighteen pegasi followed, one after another in her wake as they dropped below the range of the shield before leveling out. They stayed in tight formation until they dropped fifty feet beneath the twin keels. Then, they fanned out in teams of two, forming a V behind Luna.

Behind them, dozens of small camouflaged forms, hidden through refracted light spells darted up and within the protection zone of the shield. The last one made it just as the four unicorns reset the spell and once again swathed the warship in impenetrable protection.

The moon seemed to dim as Luna asked it to turn away, waning away until it was a new moon. The stars flickered for a moment and winked out at an unspoken command. The Princess of the Night was in her element as she used her magic to guide her ponies on course, keeping them straight and true. She let them see through her own eyes, her dark form concealed perfectly in her night. This was her element.

She sensed something amiss. Luna flicked her ears behind her, searching for a moment as they swept around. There was an active series of spells on the ship ahead. She thought it felt vaguely familiar. Another row of rolling flames erupted from the airship. The shells whistled overhead, making more than one pegasus duck reflexively. They came up beneath the hull of the Sovereign, with Luna leading them to the middle cargo hold door. With a blast of explosive magic, she sheared away the wooden planks. As she entered up and into the ship, her horn flared with a light.

What she saw shocked her, but she issued orders quickly and without hesitation. “Gather them up, check for changelings! Be careful with them. Do no harm! Go!” She approached a form before her, obviously frightened and confused.

The changeling hugged the ceiling of the corridor, two hive mates clinging to the same surface as the three of them hung upside down. The padding beneath their hooves stuck them in place. They were concealed, appearing as odd blurs an onlooker might think of as blotches in their vision. Their keen hearing listened for approaching voices, the bottom of their hooves sensing the vibrations of hoofsteps. They darted within the shadows, the combat lighting of the ship aiding them with plenty of shadows. These three were one of many small Infiltrator units seeking out a specific target. They would converge upon the target once it was found and quickly.

The changeling maintained contact at all times with his brothers and sisters. Not all of them were blood related, some were even former Grays. The hive mind created a new sort of family, carrying with it a sense of belonging to something greater. The focus of the mission was simple: find, secure, and deliver the target to Queen Anisophira. The queen was the mother to all the changelings of her hive and she cared for them. The changelings in turn served her without question. They buzzed quietly to each other in their language, their chirps like the sounds a tentative cricket might make. He was an Infiltrator, specializing in staying hidden and unseen. Combat was not his strength, but he, like the two other with him could hold their own should the need arise.

The three intruders darted like blurs, ducking in and out of the darkest recesses of the cruiser’s corridors, the red lights serving to keep them well hidden. There were others throughout the ship, searching every deck. They had to move quickly. The longer the Infiltrators lingered on board, the greater the chance there was of discovery. Others awaited the sighting of their quarry, following behind the lead groups. Any ponies they came across were quickly subdued. Standing orders were not to kill at any cost save of self preservation.

For a minute they moved with purpose, knowing their time was short. The layout of the ship was known to them and confirmation with the hive mind prevented them from getting lost. The cabins in the aft of D Deck were where the guests were. Outside, a team followed along the row of windows and peering in. Most of the state rooms were empty, the hive mind informed them. Those with the target were not to be harmed, but had to be incapacitated. There was no way to break the glass: it was enchanted to be as strong as the enchanted steel protecting the airship’s vitals. The changelings were prepared for this. The arrangements had been made, everything planned to the smallest detail. The only true unknown was Princess Luna, as she was a mysterious figure and the Mistress of Secrets.

It was a little known fact most changeling queens admired her, though they knew next to nothing about Luna.

Celestia would be distracted. Already other changelings were darting through the ship, the Infiltrators putting down their targets quickly and quietly. Minimal magic was to be used, lest the difference between changeling magic and pony magic alert the sensitive princess. Seek and disable. Deaths were strictly forbidden.

A wary unicorn marine moved down the last corridor, wary of something feeling off. Her eyes darted about as her instincts warned her. The Infiltrators slid along the corners, the unicorn a mere foot away from them and the floor. She stopped now, her ears flicking and turning. Her senses were attuned and her horn glowed. Something made her use a sensory augmentation spell and she used this one on her hearing.

There would be no sneaking past her. The risk was too great.

Mindful of their orders, the Infiltrators dropped as a group around the mare; one in front, another behind, and the third directly above her and on the wall. The one in front appeared and hissed at the mare spitting goop at her mouth, the one on the ceiling struck her with a stun spell from his horn, and the last Infiltrator caught her before the mare’s fall could make a sound. The green secretion covering her mouth hardened, serving well as a gag. The changelings made sure she could still breathe, then dragged her limp form up the ceiling and cocooned her. Then, they continued their mission. The unicorn would live and possibly have a tale to tell her grandchildren, with embellishments, of course.

You have a few minutes more, my children. Move quickly! The stern thought of the Queen’s voice needed no emphasis. Her will was her command, Anisophira’s command spurred her changelings to act. The Infiltrators moved with renewed purpose.

The Sapphire Queen floated before the bridge of the Mare Crisium, watching Princess Celestia very carefully for any indication she was aware of the changelings yet. She would not reveal herself unless absolutely necessary and only at the right time. Anisophira did not want to face Celestia. It took three to hold a defensive battle against Princess Luna. There were no other queens to aid her against both alicorns. Still, if there was a slip or the ponies somehow noticed the presence of changelings on their ship, all Tartarus would break loose and Queen Anisophira would have to at least distract Celestia long enough for her children to make good on their escape.

So long as the unicorns at the shield crystal were incapacitated, they could get away even if the mission failed.

The shield room is secure, My Queen. A professional buzz from one of her subjects allayed her primary fear. The queen smiled to herself, then checked her invisibility. She ordered the rest of her changelings to do the same.

Are you in position? She dared to glance behind her at the ship the cruiser approached. By now, the ponies she knew were in there would be no doubt confused and frightened by what they saw. The changelings in the shield room voiced an affirmative and she shifted her attention to the old ship. Her guns had gone silent. Set the timers and get out. Evacuate. Get clear. Of course, she expected them to be discovered and disabled, but what was a wrinkle or two to give the ponies pause?

Five minute charges set. My Queen? They are fighting the ponies.

She smirked, not at all surprised by the announcement. The ponies will be too preoccupied in not doing too much harm before the ship starts falling apart around them. Get your team and yourself out, child. Remember, the results don’t matter so long as the distraction serves it purpose.

Yes, your Majesty. Should we let them go? The prisoners? Should we release them?

She hummed in thought, turning her attention back to Celestia. On the other side of the window, the princess was having a serious discussion with the ship’s captain, Prince Blueblood while never taking her eyes off the ship she could not know was doomed. Yes, undo the thrall spells binding them to the will of the hive.

As you command.

I had a bad feeling. A really bad feeling. The lights were red and everyone looked really creepy. Daddy was quietly keeping to the corner of Fleur’s room, arms crossed over his chest as he leaned against the wall. His face was turned out the window and he was lost in thought. His necklace prevented me from gauging his thoughts. We’d only been here a few minutes, but if felt like an eternity. Octavia had calmed considerably, but was still worried about her foal. I kept on looking out the window, as if we were being watched.

Steel Jaw and ‘Bob’, as Daddy called Shatterdown the thestral were at the door, guarding it as if they expected a SWAT team to come bursting through. Or a gaggle of desperate housewives crying for attention by any means necessary. I don’t know which would have been worse. I think they were aware of something going on, but not sure exactly what. I found my eyes falling upon Anzealous, as his emotions were nothing but fear.

“What is it?” I asked him flatly. “Why are you so afraid?”

His fear induced eyes flicked to me, his ears flat against his skull as he slumped where he sat. “I sense a queen,” Anzealous squeaked, staring at Fleur.

“Wha—?” Just then the door exploded in a shower of splinters and dark forms poured through, green bolts erupting from the tips of dark little horns. Solid colored eyes slitted in unwavering determination, going towards the guards and Fleur first. The sounds of very loud Madagascar hissing cockroaches assailed my ears, along with chirps of panic coming from Anzealous.

He immediately curled into a ball, his forehooves over his head as he shook like a pile of fallen leaves. That fat little coward!

Steel Jaw almost went down, grunting and cursing as one, two, then three bolts of green hit him. A changeling took the moment to leap on his back and bite down with its fangs into his neck. The thestral Dad called Bob was out after two hits, managing to get a hit on his attacker before going down to the numbing poison of a bite. Fleur couldn’t use her magic as her attacker focused on knocking her horn and disrupting her casting

Octavia was oddly devoid of panic. However, what came from her mouth was a piercing battlecry to make even the hardest of souls quiver in fear. She fought like Bruce Lee on speed. Being an earth pony, her hooves packed on hell of a whallop. After several seconds of trying to go hoof to hoof with her, the changelings shifted tactics and simply stunned her with their bolts. There was a point I thought they even felt bad in doing it.

Daddy was already moving, going after the changeling trying to take out Fleur de Lis. With a snarl, he ripped the creature off and threw it out the room violently, throwing it overhead with both arms like the Hulk throwing a Volkswagen Beetle. More changelings poured into the room, hissing loudly. Most went after Daddy, two went after me.

Octavia was ignored, but kept screaming. She was furious and frustrated. Broken sobs erupted between her cries. She lay on the ground, her body numb but her lungs fully functional. She was especially angry she could do nothing now to help. Changelings avoided her pointedly, scurrying about as they dealt with those of us still trying to fight back. They were very wary of her!

I caught little of what they were saying, but something like one word for every twenty. It was also hard as I was being herded, along with Octavia and Anzealous to the other side of the room. Fleur was able to get some magic off, but the cabin was too confining for her to really do anything beyond a stun spell. Her target dropped like a sack of broccoli. The attackers had simply taken us all by surprise and their speed overwhelmed any effort to defend. Then she was overwhelmed by several green bolts until another changeling swooped in and gave her a bite to the neck. She went down with a groan, trying to fight the toxins coursing through her bloodstream.

I fired up my magic, but wasn’t sure what I could do. Suddenly the window shattered, as the changelings who had ignored us had focused on it instead. Channeling their magic, they selected various points and had concentrated heat at them. More of them somehow appeared on the opposite side of the glass and were focusing on the same points. Their combined efforts cut through the thick glass, unravelling the magic enchantments in the process. The outside air rushed in, as did the changelings who had been awaiting.

I fought, using the only thing I could think of: my telekinesis. Offensive spells weren’t in my repertoire. Nobody had thought to teach me for obvious reasons. Teenage Chrysalis plus combat magic equals Riddick-level mayhem. Still, picking up the little bugs was as easy as picking up a bag of groceries, except they struggled and chirped and squirmed and made miserable grocery bags. I was still able to fling one, then another off Daddy before green bolts of energy hit me in the shoulder, chest, and flank. It was like getting hit by instant novacane, everything went numb and I couldn’t feel anything. One of the changelings caught me as I slumped to the floor and eased me down gently. I breathed hard, the tears streaming down my face as the fear finally began to set in. I cried out for my Daddy.

“Chryssie!” he screamed as a swarm of changelings fell upon him. He fought like a wounded bear and cursed up a storm, punching indiscriminately at the black bodies trying to bring him down. His necklace had rendered their stun bolts as useless, so they tried to pin him down and bite him. They were more nips than anything else, but it was all it took. He gave as good as he got, and soon changelings had to replace ones limping off with something bloodied or bruised (or both). Where were they all coming from? There were just a few at first, but soon it seemed like the whole room was swarming with changelings!

They wheezed and gasped as they held him down as it took the combined efforts of four changelings to hold him down while the poison took hold. He struggled, I could do nothing. Daddy cursed and spat, angry he could hardly do anything else. My whole body failed to register what my brain told it to do. The changeling holding me gave me a deferential chirp and an apologetic bow. She even took a moment to grab a pillow and put it under my head.

They communicated with each other through buzzes and clicks, with a chirp thrown in here and there for good measure. I had no idea what they were talking about. Anzealous was picked up and dragged before what I assumed was the leader of the group. They spoke for a half a minute before the useless fat turd was shoved out of the way and bitten. The invaders gathered up Daddy and lifted him off the ground, taking him with them as they went out the shattered window. In what I felt was a very creepy transition, they flickered and vanished into the night sky, as if they had never been there.

All I could do was cry silently with a body which had completely and utterly failed me.

“Changelings on board! Changelings on board!” cried a tinny voice through the voice pipes. “D Deck is swarming wi—!” The voice was cut off by a grunt following the sounds of a struggle.

Celestia snapped towards the brass fixture the voice was coming from. “What!?”

About the same time, Prince Blueblood spat out the sip of tea he had just taken. “Impossible! How did they get past the shield?”

“The shield is down,” Celestia snorted angrily after sensing for magic. The princess closed her eyes, fearing the worst. She was then in motion, her horn lighting up. Then the princess was gone in a blink, the fading golden aura of her magic swirling as if confused, marking where she had been standing.

She reappeared before the line of windows spanning the width of the ship’s superstructure. Three decks bore lines of the heavy armored glass. Within moments, she made out a broken pane, a few dark forms darting from it. She could hear them chirping and buzzing with fright when they could not help but notice her sudden appearance. Within the cabin, she could make out still forms in the shadows. Celestia feared the worst.

“No,” she whispered as a cold fear swept through her heart.

A large form appeared to her left, a surge of magic shimmering in its wake. It was another teleportation spell. Wheeling on wing towards the newcomer, she was not surprised to see a changeling queen smirking at her.

A voice rose over the alarms going off in and around the ship. “They are not harmed. None of your precious ponies have been harmed, Celestia,” she sneered, the disjointed voice mocking. “I am taking the ape for a little while. I have a need of him. An assurance of your good faith.”

“You bring war upon yourself,” cried Celestia, angry and also broken hearted. “I do not desire wasted lives.”

By now, elements of the Mare Crisium’s air cover noticed the pair and swooped down, bewildered at what was going on. Princess Celestia warned them off with a quick shake of her head. They hovered nearby, watching what was left of the departing changelings. Word spread of their location. The changeling queen hissed in annoyance at them, daring them openly to pursue her children. She then returned her attention to Celestia.

The queen smiled, showing her great fangs. “Perhaps. I must take certain risks if I believe the reward is worth it. Should you not be fearful for your sister’s safety?”

Luna? What was she talking about? Celestia began to advance on the queen. “You seek to delay me. It won’t work. There is nothing here for you! We go to meet your Empress.”

“No, I suppose not,” conceded the changeling. “I think I know what will.” Her smile faded as she warned off the approaching princess with a meaningful glare.

The princess stopped herself. “And what is it you want, then?” Celestia imagined somehow some of the other queens, or perhaps just this one had found out about the existence of Chrysalis.

“I want you to do something for me. My children cannot go where aid is most needed. Some of our hive eggs were taken, some of our nymphs. My children. My brood! My life! It was not another queen. Slavers, Celestia. Slavers prepared to repel changelings.” The queen’s eyes hardened, her lips curled into a helpless snarl. “And a dragon.”

“What would you have me do?” Celestia asked, hovering on her great wings. Magenta eyes had long since gone hard, concealing the frustration behind. She was very careful indeed to mask her emotions before the changeling queen. “Who are you? Tell me your name, changeling.”

“How rude of me,” feigned the queen’s sincerity. “My name is Queen Anisophira. As a token of goodwill, I return to you children taken from their parents, their homes, their lives. I give them back to you so you may do as you see fit. I take your pet human to assure you will do as I ask and save the children of my hive.” Her eyes flickered to the old airship.

Celestia’s eyes widened, shifting slightly to one side as she sought out her sister’s mind. Luna? What have you found?

There was a startled pause. Children, sister. Human children! At least a hundred of them. The weapons were operated by Diamond Dogs, slaves of the changelings. My ponies discovered several explosives, but I fear not all have been found out. The changelings intended to scuttle the gas bags and let the rest of the ship fall. Luna’s words were coated with outrage and disgust. I have managed to disable the explosives with my magic. They used a very weak level of magic.

“You would kill innocents?” Celestia spat at Anisophira. “You would put the lives of the innocent at risk when all you needed to do was but ask for help? And why take the human traveling with us? He is of no value to you.” How is it you have human children in your possession? The implications were not good. No, it was a nightmare. She held her tongue, needing time to mull this unexpected and potentially horrifying revelation with Luna. No doubt the Night Princess had come to the same line of thinking.

“Enough talk, princess,” said the queen, knowing Celestia was beginning to put some pieces together. “Did you think you were the only ones with access to this other Earth? Do as I ask, and I shall answer your questions and return your pet human to you.” She suddenly shifted to the appearance of a desperate mother. “Save my children, Celestia, and I will offer you my support for peace between changelings and ponies. If you desire such a peace, you must win over not just the Empress, but most of the other queens. Consider the human I now have as an insurance. You have placed some value upon him as he obviously travels with you. Will you do as I ask?”

Celestia gave the queen a look that could melt glaciers. “Very well. Where is this dragon and his slavers?” Facing a dragon, depending on its age, was complicated and usually messy. If this was a rogue dragon, it meant he could very well ignore the draconic laws most dragons adhered to.

“Thank you,” said Anisophira simply. “Maintain your course for a day.” A map appeared next to her and floated towards the princess. “Follow the instructions on this map. I will give you a guide with the intelligence you will need at the right moment.”

The princess didn’t even look at the map, but took it while focusing on the queen. “You may leave, Queen Anisophira,” she said, tossing her head. “You have given me much to consider.”

“I will notify Mother of your delay,” noted Anisophira as she inclined her head politely. “She will understand. Until next we meet, Celestia.” She shimmered and disappeared, her guard following suit.

The princess was left to see the shattered window. She turned to it and landed just within the pane and noted the bodies scattered everywhere. A quick check found them victims of changeling bites, paralyzed but otherwise unharmed. Anzealous quivered in a ball of fear, chittering to himself. After seeing he was only frightened half to death, Celestia moved on and began to check the others. There were definite signs of a struggle. There was even a few flecks of changeling blood on the floor and even on some of their victims.

Fleur de Lis managed an angry scowl as she lay immobile on the floor. “I failed,” she managed to say with a croak.

Celestia shushed her old friend with a nuzzle. “No. The failure is mine. Are you injured?”

“I am not. The guards might be.”

She had been hearing the soft sounds of a filly sobbing. The alicorn turned and found Chrysalis on her side, her head on a pillow and staring blankly out the shattered window.

“Oh, child,” she said as she leaned over and nuzzled her cheek. “Be still and sleep for now.” Her horn flicked the spell upon Chrysalis, lulling her fitfully to sleep. Just before the eyes glazed over, they flicked to the princess, pleading.

The last word Celestia heard was faint, but unmistakable.

“Daddy.”

Chapter notes:
Là nous allons - There we go
plus on est de fous - the more the merrier

Chapter 16 Decisions, Decisions

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Edited by iakovl.

Luna found herself confronting children, human children. The Night Princess was bewildered and baffled as her pegasi rounded up the formerly enthralled Diamond Dog slaves who had been wandering around the ship. The bridge had been abandoned the moment she and her small force infiltrated the main cargo hatch underneath the hull. Freed from changeling control, the dogs initially put up a fight as they were confused as to where they were, but their weakened state from starvation made them easy to subdue. The last of them were being gathered, yipping and yapping, sometimes growling at their captors. They were led to the ship’s brig.

However, her eyes were filled with the faces of over a hundred youngsters of varying ages looking at her, mostly frightened, mostly crying, and so completely and utterly stolen from their world. Unicorns were teleporting to the ancient airship, scouring the vessel for more scuttling charges. More than a dozen of them had been found and disarmed, mostly by Luna through a detection spell upon the discovery of the first one, but might be others beyond what she could detect.

The children were clustered in several of the smaller holds, crammed in like packs of sardines. They had been herded here, it seemed. The human offspring were dirty, their clothes in varying states of disrepair, but they were upon first appearance healthy and well fed.

The most telling question was if they were victims of the changelings or if the Diamond Dogs were slavers the changelings had captured. They were in turn enthralled and made unwilling but obedient servants through changeling magic. If either was true, the ramifications were unfathomable. Changelings already on the human world was trouble enough. This world’s evils preying upon the other world’s innocents could spark a war the likes of which never even dreamed of.

Inwardly Luna shuddered as several scenarios played through her vast mind.

Chief Quint Orca approached her, giving her a dip of his muzzle in salute. He was never one for formality, but in the presence of one of the princesses, he was willing to add a genuine smile on his weathered muzzle. “Yer majestic worship, ain’t nothin’ left livin’ on board this ship we ain’t aware of,” he growled when she nodded at him to continue.

The old Chief ruffled his wings and fell in step with her as she left the children to the care of a squad of unicorns bringing food and medicine. “The explosives?” she asked without breaking her stride. A pegasus ahead of them had been waiting to take her to the bridge. She now intended to take control of the ship officially.

“We got ‘em all.” Quint flicked his tail, offering a quick glance over his shoulder. “Too bad they grow up ta be so ugly,” he quipped, pulling a pipe out from under his wing. Clamping it firmly between his teeth, he slid it to the corner of his mouth facing away from his princess.

Luna frowned. “What interest would changelings have in humans?”

If the Chief was surprised by the question, it was shown by the bob of his pipe as they began ascending steps. Luna was naturally and politely deferred to go ahead of the veteran pegasus. “Can’t say, yer worship,” he amended, his grizzled countenance wrinkling with distaste. “Changelings, they be a secretive bunch. Wouldn’t be surprised if they’ve got somethin’ else in mind. Always pushin’ us ta make decisions we ain’t comfortable with.”

Luna snorted. “Perhaps it is good they make such an error in regards to us.”

Two decks of silent contemplation followed, accented by the constant sound of hooves pounding the wooden steps and decks. Shouts and orders could be heard throughout the ship. Luna was troubled, thinking this whole affair was not just the work of one queen. It was commonly believed they were reluctant to combine their forces, but the Canterlot battle had disproved such notions. The changeling invasion was still a very fresh and sore subject for Equestria’s defenders.

“I want the ship on high alert,” she said as they finally reached the deck where the bridge lay. The corridor led them forward towards their destination. “Get a message to Captain Blueblood. With my compliments. Patrols at sea level, middle, and at maximum altitude. I want reconnaissance on possible places the changelings might have gone.”

This might prove to be difficult as they were coming to the coastal plains of Equestria. Settlements dotted the ground and the hills were few and far between. Manehatten was three hundred miles to the north, Marealina two hundred and fifty to the south.

“Yes, yer worship,” Quint replied with a grunt. “You!” He threw a hoof at a random earth pony idling nearby. “Come with me.”

If Luna was bothered by the odd deference Quint addressed her by, she gave no indication. They entered the bridge and found it to be in a state of disarray. Signs of struggles were everywhere. It was wide, but not very deep. Its center consisted of a large wheel. There was a small chart table on the left side of the bridge, a section for a voice tube operator to the right. Barely six ponies could fit in a bridge built to accommodate an all griffon crew. The Sovereign class ships were two thirds the size of a cruiser like the Mare Crisium and had once been the pride of the combined griffon kingdoms. Most of them had been sold for scrap and broken up. One was on display at a museum; the Fokker in Trottingham. Foals took field trips from school to see the old fighting ship.

This one was in fighting trim. Other than her more modern guns (her original compliment of cannons would have fit in well at a museum), she could be put on display with a little spit and polish. Luna could not help but admire the craft required to make a ship like this look so beautiful on the inside. Ships like this were never built with an eye for beauty anymore.

“What is the name of this ship?” the Princess of the Night wondered aloud as she cast her gaze to drink in the entirety of the bridge.

A unicorn peered at the ship’s bell. It hung just outside the main bridge in front of the wheel. There were no windows. As it was still dark out, artificial light was needed to illuminate the bell. This was done by a simply light spell set aglow on the tip of the unicorn’s horn.

“Queen’s Justice” came the reply after a moment translating griffon scratch, as their written language was jokingly referred to as. Luna smirked at the name.

The pony Quint had accosted was signaling the Mare Crisium with a lantern, flipping a lever that hid and exposed the bright light within with shutters. Quint was by his ear, relaying what he wanted in the message. The Chief glanced at Luna. “Anythin’ else, yer worship?” he asked politely.

“Advise Blueblood we’ll be coming along side as soon as the Queen’s Justice is deemed secure. I want the engines examined to see if they are serviceable and have enough fuel to reach Manehatten.” Luna flexed her wings, shifting her thoughts to what meaning lay behind all of this. “Have engineers come on board within the hour and I want food and medicine and proper clothing for those we found on board.” She shook her starry mane. “Humans... How did changelings get a hold of humans?”

“Ma’am?” Quint chewed on the stem of his pipe, regarding her carefully.

She shook her head. “Nevermind. Musing out loud.” Quietly she added, “Ponyfeathers.”

“With yer permission, I’d like to get this ship into some form of airworthiness.” Quint shifted his pipe to the opposite corner of his mouth. Luna nodded at him. Instead of bowing, he threw the princess a wink and went off, his voice already seeking out ponies he felt weren’t working hard enough to suit his needs.

Children, sister. Human children! At least a hundred of them. The weapons were operated by Diamond Dogs, slaves of the changelings. My ponies discovered several explosives, but I fear not all have been found out. The changelings intended to scuttle the gas bags and let the rest of the ship fall. Luna’s words were coated with outrage and disgust. I have managed to disable the explosives they placed with my magic. They used a very weak level of magic.

Princess Luna could now sense her sister was dealing with a very powerful being. Perhaps the queen of this particular hive. She had yet to see one of the changelings, so it would be impossible to guess which hive this queen was of.

A moment, sister, Celestia whispered in her mind. She dares to task us! Do what you can. Michael Spriggs has been taken by Queen Anisophira.

The Royal Voice exploded forth unbidden. “Damnation!” screamed the Night Princess suddenly, rattling the ship’s bridge from the vibrations of her angry voice. Her eyes flared raging whites and her wings flared out at the moment of her outburst. With dreadful purpose, she sought out the queen’s presence, but found her intended target had masked herself and vanished. Her mane undulated convulsively as she swished her tail like a tigress denied her meal. Intaking a deep breath, she forced herself into some semblance of calm.

The bridge went awkwardly silent as all eyes fell fearfully upon her. Luna glared back. “All right, then,” she announced crisply. “Nopony told you all to stop working. Get to it, then!”

“Highness?” queried one of the ponies nosing around the ship in a slow, probing voice. “Princess Luna?”

“What is it?” snapped the short tempered alicorn, glaring at the owner of the voice.

The unicorn flinched, but managed to say in a quivering voice, “There are strange wires connected about the ship and leading to the communications room. A strange box was found in there. We don’t know what to make of it other than a possible automatic guidance system.” She tossed her head behind her as she spoke, sliding backwards and to one side as Luna started towards her intently.

“A what?” she demanded, becoming warily curious. “Show me this box.”

“This way.”

The room was small and cramped, housing a simple desk with rows of small cubby holes for notes and messages. Some had holes drilled in the back of them with wires strung through and attached to a large box beneath the desk. Upon the desk itself was what was some sort of blackened mirror on a stand, rectangular and wider than it was tall. To the lower right corner of the mirror was a little round green light. A thick wire lead from the back of the mirror to the black box. There was a flat board on the desk before the mirror with lots of little squares with letters and numbers upon them in neat rows. None of the letter arrangements made sense, but Luna thought they might resemble an elaborate sort of typewriter. The odd object was as wide as the mirror, but only half as long. As with the mirror, a wire connected it to the box. Next to it lay a small object Luna could not even begin to understand, also with a wire connecting it.

“What is it?” she asked the unicorn, her anger having given way to curiosity. Carefully she sniffed the box, then the blackened mirror. Vaguely she could make an imperfect reflection of herself in it. “It cannot be a mirror,” she proclaimed. “Some sort of scrying device?”

“It is, princess,” replied the unicorn. “It shows images.” Using her telekinesis, she manipulated the small oblong object. “I think this is a human device, though I can’t say for sure. The magic it does is like nothing I’ve seen before since my days at the Academy.”

The mirror flashed to life, showing it was indeed not a mirror at all. It displayed an image.

Luna was torn between paying attention to the device and its human connection, to Michael Sprigg’s abduction. She knew his life was in danger, but the discovery of human children on this ship had suddenly made their safety her current priority. The Night Princess had to assume her elder sister could handle the situation in regards to Chrysalis’ adoptive father.

Unexpected guilt gnawed at her. Perhaps she should have been a bit nicer to the man.

“What is this I am looking at?” she prompted the unicorn, focusing on the present.

“There is a scrying device outside facing the front of the ship,” came the answer as a little white arrow moved across the screen. “If I click this box here,” —she did just that using the strange device, causing a slight but audible click— “it switches views. Port.” The image flashed to a view of the Mare Crisium alongside the Queen’s Justice. The arrow was moved to the next box. “Starboard. Then there’s aft.” A final click, and another image of nothing but night sky. “If I didn’t know any better, I would guess this was used to steer the ship with minimal crew.”

Luna’s ears perked forward with interest. “Truly? How did you come by knowledge of human inventions?”

“I took a couple of advanced courses in the study of human technology,” said the mare with a twinge of pride in her voice. “This device under the desk is a computer and the screen on the desk is a monitor. That’s a keyboard and the little thing there is called a mouse.”

Luna nodded in understanding. “Sometimes I wish I knew more about humans,” she admitted wryly. “I have done little to see what they have done with their civilization since resuming my duties.”

The Lunar Princess narrowed her eyes, more irritated with herself and the lack of diligence in her knowledge of humans. Her visit to Michael’s house a few days ago should have clued her in to the magic of technology. It was a wonder unto itself, apparently. Still, she wanted little part of human innovations, stubbornly clinging to two thousand years of personal beliefs in regards a race she considered bent on self destruction. Equestria would be better off leaving them be. Luna herself wished nothing ill upon them, but she could never bring herself to trust a race with such a penchant for violence.

She saw too much of her own past in them. “Can you disable it?”

“It can be shut off, Highness, but I should like to see if the ship’s functions can operate normally without this computer.”

“Do what you must, but get this ship under poneual* control. No...machine should guide a ship. Put in a request for ponies with knowledge of...human devices from the Mare to come over and lend you a hoof.”

“Yes, Princes Luna. Thank you, Princess Luna.”

Luna decided to check in on the unusual cargo below decks. Something was nagging at her to see them and perhaps ask questions, if they weren’t too frightened. She imagined their conditioned hadn’t improved considerably in the few minutes since she had last seen them. Still, she felt obligated to attempt to communicate. At least Luna felt she could establish a rapport with children, if previous Nightmare Nights were telling. Foals loved her and she enjoyed their antics.

The thought of speaking to them put a lump in Luna’s throat. She had seen the fear on their faces. Steeling herself as she went along, she retraced her steps back, nodding to the bows given her by the sailors and Guards now quickly taking over the ship. As she went, she collected her thoughts and linked up with Celestia with a sense of urgency.

‘Tia, this ship was controlled by some human device called a computer.

Celestia did not respond for a few moments, but her mental humming was filled with concern. This does not bode well, Lulu. This means changelings are able to use human technology or have had somepony control the ship for them. Try to see if there was a pilot, if you can. Are you going to speak with the human children?

I was planning on it, yes.

Good. Maybe one of them was flying the ship.

Luna stumbled at the suggestion. What?

If you had actually paid attention to modern humans, you’d understand their children are more than capable of piloting a ship from a computer if it’s set up like a game. Maybe one was trained on a flight simulator. See if you can find ones familiar with flying games for the computer. There was no humor in the tone. Celestia was being very serious.

Which Luna immediately questioned. Are you serious? Children flying a warship? What madness is this?

She could feel the mental eye roll from her sister. Human children have found a way to make games from objects of war. I should imagine there might be pilots who could learn to navigate one of our airships in short order if presented the opportunity to learn. They have found a way to desensitize warfare to nothing more than a game where nopony gets hurt.

It is terrible they have grown so fond of war they should make a game of it. Luna tossed her mane sadly, knowing fully war could do. Not all humans could be so insensitive to such a terrible thing! She had Michael Spriggs as an example. His memory of combat had been terrible. The only relief was the sense of survival weighed down by a guilt that had nearly consumed him. If only he would let her take a deeper look into his mind…

You look upon the example too simply, Lulu, Celestia tried to reason. Not all humans love war. Most deplore it.

If they deplore it so much, why play at it? snapped Luna, her narrow eyes causing more than a few ponies she passed by to cringe in her wake.

She sensed Celestia’s sigh between the ships. This is neither the time nor the place for this sort of discussion, dear sister.

When is it ever? Luna harrumphed as she reached the ship’s holds.

Celestia withdrew for a moment, hesitating, then came back with, You might want to consider your appearance before you show yourself to easily impressionable foals, even if they are warmongering human children. Then, she was gone like a ghostly presence, leaving Luna feeling suddenly cold and alone.

Despite her soured mood, she knew her sister to be correct in this regard. However, the argument was far from over. A pair of guards at the door leading into the hold with the children regarded her with calm neutrality. One was a Day Guard, the other a Night Guard. The princess cleared her mind, her visage one of calm grace though she fought to quell her inner frustrations.

“Who is tending to the children?” she asked the Night Guard.

He snapped to attention when he was addressed. “There are several of the ship’s nurses among them, your Majesty.”

“What is the disposition of the foals?” she queried the Sun Guard.

He stiffened like a rod of steel. “Ma’am, they are terribly frightened and very confused, ma’am!”

Well, she was aware of this and shouldn’t have expected anything else. “Open the door,” she commanded.

This was done without hesitation. Both guards snapped to attention as she entered.

The hold was designed for the ship’s dry food stores, lasting months depending on the requirements of the voyage. One of the intentions behind the design of the Sovereign class was its ability to go on patrols of up to six months at a stretch. Hence, she was built with an impressive capacity for cargo space specifically for provisions. For whatever reason, the changelings had decided to place humans in each of the three main cargo holds. Each was crammed with form huddling close together, trying to shy away from the ponies trying to help them. Sniffling and weeping filled the air. Little hiccups and coughs accompanied young voices. Luna doubted any of the children were over the age of fourteen, but how could she tell? She was certainly no expert on the offspring of humans.

She gave herself a moment to study them as they —as a body— shrank from her. Luna was far larger than the nurses clucking over them like mother hens, her catlike eyes adjusting to the dim light through her cyan irises. Her ethereal mane of perfect night flowed slowly, enshrouding her head in the twinkling of the stars within. Mindful of her moments ago spat with her sister, Luna was very careful to at least put on a neutral face before inwardly sighing and remembering to smile. She fixed her eyes to look normal, instead of the catlike irises she favored these days.

A little girl broke from the gaggle, chewing on a finger as she stared up at the Princess of the Night with a mixture of fear and wonder. Her dark eyes blinked, went wide and stared at Luna. “Mohu si jít domů k maminka?” she asked bravely.

The princess was shocked. It was a language she was familiar with. It was an old language from the Old World, before the tribes braved the seas west and founded what would eventually become Equestria. Still, she cast a translation spell and prompted the girl to repeat her question. She did so.

“Záhy, mé dítě.” Luna offered the girl a smile. “Jaké je vaše jméno?”

The little girl smiled shyly. “Domka. Mé jméno je Domka Bosko.”

“My name is Princess Luna,” introduced the alicorn gently, offering a smile. Continuing to speak the girl’s language, she then asked, “May I ask you some questions? I will not hurt you.” Settling on her haunches, the Night Princess tried to make herself as approachable as possible.

Domka nodded. “Can I touch your mane?” she asked, completely absorbed by the flow of stars before her. “It’s so pretty!”

Luna smiled, glad the distraction was earning some measure of trust. “Of course you may!” She leaned forward, presenting the thickness of her flowing mass of night to Domka.

Other children looked on curiously, mostly still afraid and even fewer offering trust. Fear still lingered heavily in the air. Domka gingerly reached out a hand, Luna’s eyes following it softly until it went beyond her peripheral. Then they shifted back to the little girl, fixated on what she was reaching for.

“How old are you?” Luna asked.

“Nine,” replied the little girl shyly, looking up at the alicorn with a smile. She then placed her fingers into the mare’s mane, her eyes filled with innocent wonder. “You have the hair of an angel! Are you an angel? You’re so pretty! What’s your name, Miss Pony?”

Luna smiled. “I am Princess Luna. My sister and I are rulers of Equestria. I should like to be your friend, Domka.”

The little girl began petting the Lunar Princess on the neck. “Are you going to take me home, Princess Luna? I miss my mommy. I want to go home.” Her little face scrunched up and she started to cry. Before Luna knew it, she buried her little face into the mare’s chest, her arms flung around her shoulders.

Luna consoled the girl for a moment before lifting her head and gazing about the room. Lots of eyes were on her, most of them filled with sadness and the desire Domka had to go home. “Which of you piloted this ship?” she asked.

“Spreek je Nederlands?” asked an older boy, stepping from the group.

The spell was still active and easily made out the words. It was but a simple thing for Luna to speak it. “I do, child. What is your name?”

“Aalbert Mulder,” he said. The boy was blonde and had blue eyes. “I am Dutch.”

“How did you get here?”

“We have been on this ship for a few days, I think. I do not know how we were brought here. None of us do. The dark bug monsters with the glowing eyes took us from our homes and brought us here.” The boy seemed collected and far calmer than the rest. He eyed the alicorn suspiciously. “We were brought before the dog creatures. We were put on this ship then other bug-things showed up and did something to the talking dogs. They made some changes and put a computer in the ship so it could be flown without needing a full crew. They didn’t want to be on the ship when you found us, but they also didn’t want to let the dogs have it back, I think.”

She nodded in understanding. “Did you fly this ship?”

The boy eyed her critically. “The monsters told me to. Are you one of them?”

“The monsters you describe are called changelings. I am a pony, not a changeling.”

“And why should we trust you? You are not human. You are as strange to us as those monsters were.” Aalbert shrugged, jamming his hands in his pant pockets. He looked away, back to the other children behind him. “We all trusted the big bug lady. She brought us here. Not all of us speak the same languages. I think we were all brought here by her and her monsters. She told me to fly the ship. If I did, she would send us all home. She lied to all of us.”

Why? What is the purpose of bringing children of different nations together? Luna studied the human boy carefully. “That is what most changelings do, Aalbert Mulder. They lie in order to get what they want. They are feared here on this world. My sister and I can send you all home. I must ask you to remain patient.”

“I don’t think you can,” challenged the boy.

“Do not think me as a mere conjurer of tricks, human,” Luna told him gently, but firmly. “My power is the moon and no shadow can escape me. My sister’s power is the sun and no vile thing can stand the warmth of her light. We can and we will send you all home.”

The boy sneered cockily. “I don’t believe you.” Crossing his arms over his chest, he assumed a challenging stance. “Domka!” he called, waving the girl to him.

She blew a raspberry at him. “No! She’s nice!”

Something slowly dawned over both the children. They both stared at each other dumbly.

“How is it I know your words?” he demanded in confusion. Aalbert’s stance fell as he leaned towards the girl.

“Wow!” cried Domka, blinking through her tears and suddenly excited. “I can understand what you’re saying!”

Luna smiled. “It’s the spell I cast. All in this room should be able to speak to each other so long as I hold it. I seek answers and I cannot spare the time to speak to you each individually. So, with this spell, I shall be able to understand you all and you all should be able to understand each other as well as myself.”

“I don’t believe in such things like magic,” declared Aalbert.

Luna found herself grinning. “Well, you should get used to magic worlds, my little human. You are in one.”

The children were looking at each other, babbling questions and making loud exclamations of awe and surprise. The whole room became filled with their voices as they all began talking at once.

“You speak my language!”

“No, you speak mine!”

“How is this possible?”

“Does this mean I can go home?”

“I’m hungry!”

“Mama! I want my mama!”

“This has to be a dream!”

“It’s magic! It’s real!”

“I have to go to the toilet!”

Luna rose to all fours and flared her great wings out. “Silence!” she commanded. “I cannot help you if you are all speaking at once.” They went still, nervously tittering as all eyes fell upon the Princess of the Night. Wide stares met her determined gaze. When she had their attention, she smiled. “My sister and I will do all we can to get you home. We know of your world and are familiar with your nations. You will be returned home and to your families as soon as possible. I promise you all this to be the truth.”

Domka sniffled, but gave the mare trusting eyes. “Promise?”

The Princess of the Night smiled. “It is my promise.” I must discover how long changelings have had access to the human world and how deep they are rooted within.

Just then a guard discreetly entered through the door and politely coughed to catch the alicorn’s attention. Once she turned and saw him, he approached, lifting his muzzle and whispering urgently into her ready ear. Her eyes went flat at the five words mentioned.

“We have a changeling prisoner.”

The last time I had felt this miserable was the day I left my father back on Earth and came to this world. I felt as though someone had taken my heart and ripped it right out of my chest. The feeling of being completely and utterly helpless gnawed at me and all I could do was to weep. I felt like such a little girl, lost and without guidance. Those I thought I could trust had failed to keep Daddy safe.

My dad had always been there for me. I had never seen him really get mad beyond my usual driving him crazy. There was the Yellowstone incident, but other than that, my dad was always as calm as a lazy dog on a hot summer day.

Daddy was gone! Taken! Stolen! Kidnapped! It had looked so easy. Oh, how I hated Celestia at that point of my life! The way I saw it, she had all this power and is considered one of the wisest living beings in Equestria and the world, yet she let a bunch of bugs waltz right in, take my daddy, and even tell Celestia she couldn’t have him back until she did what she was told like a good little girl. The venom still coursed through my veins, but I was quickly recovering from it and had already managed to work myself to a sitting position. The ship’s doctor objected when I tried, but I glared at him with steel daggers, my natural form naturally intimidating to the poor guy. Guards were suddenly everywhere. It was hard to tell if they were there to protect me or to protect the ship and its crew from me.

I ignored them and stewed in my own thoughts as I was in my bed in my quarters. The door was open and a pony face would often peek in to check up on me. From what I could tell through conversations down the hall, I was getting a picture not a pony on board was happy with the infiltration. The Eastern Fleet had been mobilized and the ship was gathering other warships to her. I imagine this was a black eye not only to Celestia, but also to her proud navy.

Instinct told me to rise up and seek out daddy. I was connected to him and knew generally which direction he had gone. Did I intend to follow? You bet your boots I did. I was an angry changeling and a vengeful daughter. Was this beyond the abilities within me? Something told me this was something I had to do. My misadventure in the changeling consulate back at the castle notwithstanding, I was determined to do...something!

Sliding out of bed, my hooves dragged me to the door.

“Please stay in your room, miss,” said the guard posted just outside. His head had swung at my approach, his ears swiveling and locking on me. “Orders from the princess. We’re in high alert.”

Snorting derisively, I glared at him. “I demand to speak with Celestia.”

“I’m sorry, ma’am, but I can’t—”

“Don’t mess with me!” I snarled. Spittle flew everywhere on his face. It was kind of gross. “I’m radioactive right now and I really don’t think you want this disease.”

“What?” I don’t think he took me seriously, considering I was a teen and a guest of Princess Celestia herself. Still, nervous apprehension came off in small waves from him. He was afraid of me, or had no clue what radioactive meant.

“You bozos let my dad get taken,” I snapped. “He’s been living a life of absolute hell since getting here. You ponies failed him, failed me, and just plain failed period!” It took all of my effort and concentration to stay on my hooves. I really did not feel well. I moved like a retarded slug. “You all suck, you know that?”

The stallion flinched under my tirade of words, but firmly replied, “Please stay in your room, miss. Orders are orders.”

If not Celestia, why not— “Let me talk to Fleur. Now.” I growled. “Or I start taking this ship apart bulkhead by bulkhead.” Remember the threads of magic holding Canterlot castle together? It was the same with this ship, though far more interwoven to work with each other specifically for the best collaboration of enchantments. I already had found some enticing magical...threads to tug on.

“You don’t make threats, kid! We take those seriously,” hissed the poor guard. His eyes bulged and his pupils were pinpricks. Of course, him being a unicorn made what I was implying easy to understand.

I smiled at him sweetly. “Buck you, I’m motherbucking Queen bucking Chrysalis, motherbucker.” My horn lit up, which turned out to be a huge and very stupid mistake.

My magic promptly failed me, letting out a few unimpressive sparks. Suddenly there was pain in the middle of my skull, between my eyes, right where the base of my horn was. Hissing erupted from my mouth, ending in a pained yelp. Collapsing like a sack of abandoned pet rocks, the floor caught me and I immediately curled up into a pony version of the fetal position. The pain was incredible, throbbing from my head, along every nerve ending in spasms.

Some idiot put a nullifying ring on the base of my horn while I was comatose.

I couldn’t use my magic. They weren’t going to let me use it! How long was I out, anyway? It was probably a good idea to get over the screaming first before pondering that tangible.

There were shouts and the sound of pounding hooves on the metallic deck, all coming towards me. I couldn’t make out what was said as all I could do was cry out in agony at the inhibitor slicing up my brain as I found myself unable to stop channeling magic. My legs thrashed and my horn began to feel hotter and hotter until it became a new pain. My lungs screamed for air as I screamed in mortal agony. Oh, how it hurt! It didn’t feel as though it was going to stop. Thrashing my legs wildly in an animalistic fervor, my eyes sought out someone to help me.

There was a loud bang, then nothing.

The Mare Crisium altered course, following the indicated spot on the map leading to a floating island in the middle of the ocean, between the two continents. There was a great debate in pursuing the demands of a changeling queen. Prince Blueblood nearly resigned his commission and several officers in fact submitted their own. All were refused as Princess Celestia pleaded them to trust her. For the second time in recent memory, the Diarch of the Sun had been bested, this time with her sister at her side. There was also a very angry changeling princess confined in her room and constantly monitored with magic.

The day grew, noon came and passed and the afternoon was upon them. It was humid; out here, there were no weather ponies to control the patterns. There was little shade from the sun. Pegasi flew patrols before the cruiser and had triple their normal numbers. They used their innate abilities to form for themselves clouds to conceal themselves within. There was a sense of nervous anticipation, for their prey could easily turn upon them.

The swiftest couriers were dispatched to the nearest known location of a sky carrier task group: ten Airships of the Line attached to one of the largest warships in the world, the Shiva class battleship Solar Fury. The might of the Eastern Fleet would rendezvous by the next morning.

In the ready room of the Mare Crisium, there was a heated discussion in planning. It was cramped, domintated by a large rectangular table in the center while chairs were filled with ponies. Their shouts might have been heard if not for the sound dampening spell Celestia had cast. The added factor of children of the human world had sent ripples. All the crew aboard the ship were ordered to strictest secrecy. As the Queen’s Justice was now in tow behind the cruiser, there was a constant stream of ponies going to and fro between both ships. What were pirates intending to do with the humans, sell them as exotic pets and/or slaves? The changelings had saved them from such a fate? Were there other human children already victims of this unexpected slave trade? If so, for how long?

Pirates did in fact deal with the slave trade. They were considered primary sources for illegal trafficking of all sorts; stolen goods, narcotics, smuggling, and other deeds outside aerial and maritime laws. Their ships were small and fast, needing to be so in order to get away from the normally slower cruisers. They could and often did match well against ships considered to be of the escort and destroyer class, as their armaments were heavier. Some could even boast of having cloaking magic. Such aerial outlaws were not above pushing the limits of magic, sometimes to even dangerous levels. Some of the magic used to keep the airships aloft were indeed dangerous and could cost a pirate captain their ship and their lives if not properly monitored. The name of the game was acquiring wealth as quickly as possible at minimal cost. Engaging warships was probably the dumbest thing a pirate ship could do. They rarely survived encounters.

Still, the question begged to be asked: How did a pirate clan come to have sway over a changeling hive? Queens were arguably capable of collecting enough love to rival the power of either Celestia or Luna, if for but a short while. Their swarming was daunting and the sheer numbers of a hive could overwhelm most attackers. Attacking a hive was as suicidal as a suicide attempt could be. Changelings were fanatics when it came to defending their home. Hives were never stationary and often moved as their queens dictated (there were rumors of permanent hives).

As the discussion went on, a mirror was brought in and the admiral of the Eastern Fleet was soon brought into the discussion between the diarchs and the officers of the Mare Crisium. He was an ancient earth pony stallion, looking more a philosopher than a fleet admiral. His beard was white and his dark eyes mournful beneath the remnants of what had once been a magnificent mane. There were wrinkles upon wrinkles on his face and he preferred to forgo an officer’s uniform, preferring the simple garb of the enlisted, bare of rank. Admiral Briarpatch was a stallion of few words and even bore a country twang in his voice when he did speak.

“Majesties,” he greeted softly, bowing slightly upon seeing his rulers. Old eyes flicked briefly towards Blueblood. “Nephew.”

“Uncle,” intoned the prince in likewise fashion. Both shared the briefest of smiles.

“It would appear the changelings have Equestria’s number,” grunted the old stallion. Brairpatch neither accused nor suggested, but pointed out a rather blunt and painful fact.

“I would suspect the cause lies in a multitude of reasons,” supplied Blueblood after a moment asking silently for permission to speak first. Celestia had consented with a slight nod. “Despite the measures we have in place to detect for infiltration by the bugs, one problem we have yet to figure out is how they are manipulating our own kind into acting as their eyes and ears.” His stern gaze fell over his gathered officers, then to his uncle, and finally upon the two alicorns at the table.

“Treason?” suggested one of the officers as if suddenly finding a bad taste in his mouth.

“Changelings are gifted manipulators,” said a sullen Anzealous. He had been asked to be a part of the meeting to add his own personal insight. After consulting with his queen, she had assented, even commanding him to assist to the utmost of his abilities. “It would not be unusual for a victim to not even know they are being used as a spy.”

Luna growled. “Not to mention they somehow came across a ship full of human foals no doubt meant for the slave market.” She was affronted personally by this revelation. The changeling captured on board the ship confirmed this. Anzealous had been needed to act as a translator as the poor shivering thing could not speak a lick of Equestrian.

“What was the prisoner’s function on board the ship?” asked Prince Blueblood in a bored tone.

“She was one of the caretakers of the children,” supplied Anzealous nervously. He was very nervous in a room full of warlike ponies. The taste of hostility was, in the changeling’s opinion, something to be attributed to alcohol poisoning. The fat changeling cleared his throat, remembering the confidence his queen had in him to be the projection of her will and desires. “Not quite a broodmother, but an efficient caretaker learned in the ways of caring for human children.”

“How is that possible?” asked a mare, a lieutenant. “Access to the human world is limited and under Equestrian control. All portals are watched and most are dormant.”

“Unless there are portals we do not know about,” snorted another officer. “We’re still recovering knowledge lost during the War of the Sisters.” He realized who he was speaking of and blanched, eyes darting between the slightly amused expressions of his rulers. “No offense.” he bowed, smiling weakly and wishing he could die right then and there.

“It is truth,” reassured Luna. “As I was not of full control of my facilities at the time, most of what I did I have regretted and wish I could undo. However, as such a thing is impossible, I can only endeavor to be half the beacon of hope and harmony my sister is. We are a better mare now. We admit our moment of weakness in falling into the darkness of the Possession. We will work the rest of our days to rectify that mistake.” Lapsing into the old form of royal address still happened to the dark princess from time to time. It served its purpose of enforcing her spoken words admirably.

The room grew uncomfortably quiet until Celestia cleared her throat politely. “Anzealous, were you able to garner any information from Queen Druanae?”

The chubby former ambassador nodded curtly. “Indeed, princess. The...—” He blinked as he struggled with a word.

“Humans?” suggested Luna helpfully.

“Yes, humans!” He harrumphed irritably at himself as speaking the word was so alien to him. “Humans will certainly not take kindly to discovering the theft of their young from seemingly a variety of beings from a world they know nothing about.” Anzealous was grateful for what his queen was willing to inform him. Hopefully it was enough to see him through this very uncomfortable meeting. “We are on the precipice of war the likes of which are unheard of.”

“Steered by changelings, no doubt,” accused another officer. It was the mare who had spoken earlier.

“The first steps of prevention was initiated by a hive!” argued Anzealous fervently, glowering and seizing what little courage he had. Beads of sweat was forming on his chitinous face and neck. “Why would Queen Anisophira go through the trouble of presenting you a ship full of...gah, damn it!”

“Humans?” Luna sighed and found the changelings lack of grasping a simple word irritating.

He sighed. “Thank you. As I was saying, these humans are victims. My queen is not on the best of terms with Queen Anisohpira. That’s about par for the course since the thrice-cursed invasion. Queens by the virtue of pride and a sense of superiority over inferior species—” Angry grumblings rumbled around the fat changeling. “—have a difficult time asking for help from outside their hives.”

“Changeling methods of asking for help require acts of war upon those they seek help from?” grated Luna in a voice so cold it sent chills down every spine in the room. Her steely gaze fell upon Anzealous who, to his credit, did not wet himself. He did begin to shiver uncontrollably and was unable to break eye contact with the dark alicorn.

“You must understand a few things about changelings,” the former ambassador croaked. “We are not ones to seek help readily. The Empress wants us autonomous from the other species. We’re not even supposed to be communicating with you. Queen Chrysalis and the queens who joined her changed all that. If the invasion had never happened, we would not even be having this conversation right now.”

“Clarify,” said the admiral through the mirror. Briarpatch’s voice was curt and sounded as though he chewed on rocks because it was fun.

“The first law all changelings are taught when they are young is to never reveal themselves to other species. We feed off the emotions of our prey, leaving our food source none the wiser. Our magic and our power would grow. Our numbers would increase. The Empress promised us long ago when we were ready, all the hives would gather and go to a place of paradise, where we could come from the shadows. As the centuries and generations passed, the actions of the Empress came into question, but never directly presented before her. What little unity the queens had over time has become even more fractured than before. The most powerful hives are gathering up the weaker ones in alliances against their rivals. Civil war is inevitable at this rate.” Anzealous sighed, rubbing the back of his spiny mane. “The way I see it, humans have become a wild card, even if they aren’t even aware of what is to come. When they do, I can’t even begin to fathom what they might do.”

“A worlds war,” Celestia breathed, her magenta eyes lowering to the table before her. “This cannot come to be. If humans can find a way to cross here, even I am not going to presume them to speak before they act. They may approach our world with fear in their minds and vengeance in their hearts. I cannot let this happen. I have worked to prevent this very scenario.” She glanced at Luna. “What do you make of the children on the ship?”

“Many languages of many nations. Most are frightened, but curious. They are wary and do not believe we can send them home.” One sister regarded the other coolly. “I warned you of this. It cannot be helped, however. What is done beyond our notice cannot be controlled. We can do something with what we do have. I propose, against my better judgement, to return the humans to their world along with a representative to establish a formal contact.”

Celestia nodded. “Very well. We shall discuss that further and in private, my sister.” To the gathered ponies she spoke broadly and without raising her voice. She had a gift for addressing her subjects in a manner both motherly and commanding. A benevolent tyrant, she lorded over Equestria with thousands of years of experience behind her. “As to the matter at hoof, I propose we follow the instructions given to us by Queen Anisophira. In the meantime, I want a small team of ponies to track down and find Michael Spriggs. I want volunteers who can work in the shadows and keep their heads down. Suggestions?”

There was silence as her proposal was mulled over. “Ah, Queen Druanae might be able to provide for you some insight into the mind of her sister,” offered Anzealous. “You’ll need intelligence if you plan on seeking out a hive.”

“Majesty, I would not trust any changeling intelligence,” snorted Blueblood. “I’d wager a dagger in the withers the moment we turn our backs to them. They opened our nostrils to them, suffice to say.”

“Noted. Fleur would be perfect for this mission,” Celestia observed. “Anzealous, I should like to see you go as you are the only changeling on board this ship I feel I can count on.”

“Some of the Night Guard assigned to Mr. Spriggs will go as escort,” said Luna. “I insist.” She had taken the failure of her guards personally. ‘No’ was not an answer she was willing to accept.

“Four escorts then, two of them of the Night Guard?” Celestia arched a brow. Luna nodded. “Good. It’s settled. Lady Fleur, Anzealous, Steel Jaw, Shatterdown, Quint Orca, and Feathersong.”

“Me?” squawked Anzealous, sputtering. “You can’t be serious!”

“There are two other changelings on board this ship,” Celestia reminded him calmly. “One is an emotional wreck, doesn’t speak the language of her bloodlines, and is still prone to magic surges. The other is a prisoner whose information we can’t take at face value. She’s managed to tell us why there are humans here, but I sense something in the machinations of Queen Anisophira. As I have come to more or less trust your queen’s intentions in regards to a road of meaningful peace, I feel I must turn to you in hopes the path can still be followed. Please, Anzealous.”

“I shall consult my queen,” he conceded after a moment of silence. “Mind you, Chrysalis approaches the time when she will begin the final stage of her transformation. Her ascension is a matter of time, Princess Celestia. She resents you and holds you responsible for all which has befallen her father since he arrived in Equestria. I sensed her anger and her frustration as we lay there on the floor.”

“I assumed as much.” Celestia sighed, hurt flashing for a moment in her eyes. “Luna and I shall keep our eyes on her.”

“Watch your withers,” commented Prince Blueblood as he sipped his tea.

Celestia fixed him a disapproving stare before addressing the mirror bearing the waiting image of Admiral Briarpatch. “I have sent you the coordinates of the alleged pirate nest. It’s a floating island. You’ll need your flotilla of ships.”

“Yes, highness. Do we have a name for the pirate leader?”

“Indeed we do. The dragon known as Leviatan.”

“The Storm Serpent.” If the admiral was surprised at the name, he passed it off as little more than an itch at the end of his nose. The gathered ponies all gaped at the mention of the name. “Very well. I shall make preparations. Princess Celestia. Princess Luna. Prince Blueblood. Officers of the Mare Crisium. I wish you all fair weather and calm seas.” His image blurred as the mirror darkened.

“Leviatan? Are you mad?” blurted Blueblood, spilling his precious tea. “He’s accounted for over a hundred ships in the air and on the sea over the past decade. Thousands have fallen victim to him and his band. This cruiser is built to handle pirates, not a wyrm of his size!”

“You forget, my dear nephew,” Luna cut in, bearing a small and frightening smile.

“We shall be there.”

Chapter 17 A Little Love Here, A Little Love There

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Edited by iakovl.

Have I ever mentioned how much I hate this world? They call it Earth here, but it’s not my Earth. My Earth has McDonald’s, Best Buy, highways, barbeques, and football. Here, I’ve found nothing but ponies, brain rape, and a world full of magic. I stress the brain rape with the emphaticness of a mime having a heart attack while making love to Phyllis Diller against my will. I do not like magic. Magic has not been kind to me since I got here. Apparently I’m also the victim of some cruel joke, probably at a level involving things I’d rather not begin to think about. This place is where people can come and debate the feasibility of living gods walking among them and have philosophical discussions on ancient horses playing fetch with celestial objects like the sun and the moon.

What happened? Oh, right. Kidnapped by faceted-eyed changelings on board a ship supposedly secure with the ease of a team of Navy SEALs sneaking aboard a barge full of sailors passed out from a night of rum binging. I fought, Chryssie fought, Octavia simply kicked ass and took names until sheer numbers —dear God, the numbers!— of the little buggers (heh!) swarmed into Fleur’s room and made any chance of fending them off laughable. It was Custer’s Last Stand without the drama of having no survivors. I think I broke my knuckles from slugging muzzles and cut my hands on their fangs. Their carapaces were tough and hard and had practically no give. Their bites were painful, quickly numbing at the bite area before slowly taking over my nervous system. It was like being filled with novocaine. Then, they scooped me up after breaking the window. I faded out shortly after that from the venom in their bite.

How long I was out, I had no idea. When I opened my eyes, my body felt like it was made of concrete and my head throbbed as if I had spent the previous night binge drinking with a reformed alcoholic. It was my ears which announced to me my return to the land of the living. All around me, the faint sound of buzzing, muffled but constant. On occasion, there was a chitter or a chirp, smattered here and there with various hisses. There was dim lighting on the walls of an amber color, almost golden. For some reason, they felt creepy. It was as though the lights were looking at me. With that in mind, I continued to study my surroundings and wondering just what in the blue hell I had gotten myself into this time.

Lord, why do you do this to me?

I was most certainly not alone. There were eyes upon me. As more and more of my senses began to focus themselves, I became more so aware of my surroundings, shifting my attention away from my source of lighting and to what else might be within my line of sight. I was on a hard surface, with bumps set in a sort of organic pattern. It wasn’t uncomfortable, but it felt weird, like some sort of oddball back therapy bed as seen on an infomercial. My right knuckles felt as though I had spent hours punching a brick wall with reckless abandon and the places where I had been bitten felt like really nasty mosquito bites with ten times the itchiness. I was sans my boots, as my toes wiggled at me as if demanding to me as to the location of their covers. One cannot kick ass and take names if the kicking results in broken toes. Everything was sore and I felt old as I tried to collect my wits and figure out where the hell I was. I tried to recollect the events before fading out. There was no way to tell how long I had been out, but I could hear something shuffling to my right.

My muscles protested, but slowly I turned my head to look in the direction of the sound. Grimacing at the throbbing aches, I semi-rose on my side as I blinked blearily as I heard the distinct sound of a gasp. Something moved in the shadows beyond my vision. Was it really that dim in here? Curious. My ears picked up the sound of chittering and again beyond my field of vision. It was behind me, to the sides, even above me!

“Do not attempt to escape, Mr. Spriggs,” came a disjointed and feminine voice from the shadows I faced. “You are securely within my hive and are always watched. You are not shackled because you are not a prisoner. You are here as a hostage. That being said, you will have freedom to move about my home and interact with my subjects.”

“Where am I?” I asked, not at all comprehending half of what she just said. Everything was groggy and sluggish. “What happened? Chryssie? Where’s my daughter?”

The voice chuckled. “She is safe and unharmed, though her choice of protectors leaves much to be desired. However, she is not yet in danger. I cannot entrust the Sisters to your well-being, so I extracted you for the moment until a more secure form of protection can come for you.”

“Protection?” I groaned and forced myself to a sitting position. “What the hell happened? What’s going on?” Can’t I get a straight answer from anyone on this insane world?

“They didn’t tell you, did they?” the voice pressed, amused it seemed at me.

“Tell me what? Who are you?” For the third time I asked, “What happened?” Her earlier words finally sank in. “Hive? What do you mean? As in a beehive?”

“A changeling hive. My hive.” The voice stepped from the shadows. At first glance, I might have mistaken her for Chryssie, but this changeling was taller, thinner. Dare I say sicklier? She was also more blue than green to match her carapace; from her mane and tail to her wings. The changeling was taller than Celestia, but I doubt she was close to the alicorn’s weight. It was easy to assume because of her anorexic frame she might be weak, but the way this queen moved, she was clearly not a pushover. A tall, thin crown was mounted on top of her head just behind her jagged horn. It was simple, its four points flowering out and tipped each with a white pearl. “I am Queen Anisophira. I would apologize for the rudeness in which you were taken from the ponies, but alas, I am not sorry for doing it. Therefore, I feel I do not need to apologize.” She flashed a grin at me, sending chills up and down my spine. Her fangs were really long and looked sharp, like those of a rattlesnake. Again, I could not help but feel there was something out of place. Something in the back of my mind whispered and insisted she was not at all what she seemed to be.

Her mane was styled to hang over the left side of her neck, partially concealing her left eye. It was long and trailed to the bumpy floor of the strange room we were in. Those sapphire harlequins bore into me, sending an unwanted shiver of fear throughout my body. Her single horn jutted up from the center of her forehead like a bayonet that had been violently twisted twice. It looked sharp and dangerous. Each step she took reminded me of a stalking cat, smooth and deliberate as if I was to be her mouse. Yet something seemed off about her.

I patted my chest, checking to see if the arrowhead necklace was still there. I felt nothing by my shirt. Panic began to set.

“Missing something?” Annie asked with a purr, smirking at me. Next to her right shoulder and hovering just a few feet in front of me appeared my necklace. The chain had been broken and dangled as the changeling queen regarded it with mild curiosity. “Ah, yes. It would appear the link was broken during your struggle with my Infiltrators. You are quite the fighter, Mr. Spriggs. Perhaps there is some merit on the old intelligence I have on you.”

Somewhere in my mind I was wrestling with the urge to attack and lash out with all of my frustrations behind it. I wanted to start raving like a lunatic and scream every profanity I could think of, maybe in the process invent a few new ones. As my mind raced, I stared stupidly at the queen towering over me like a deer in the headlights of an oncoming semi.

Annie swung her narrow neck down to put her face in front of mine. “But enough about you. As interesting as you are, I brought you here to...talk.” She smiled dangerously, flicking the tip of her tongue out. It had the desired effect of scaring me shitless.

“What do you want?” I managed to croak.

The queen pulled away, apparently satisfied with her intimidation. “A monster has stolen my children. You are my guest until the princesses destroy it and retrieve them or fail and I kill you.” The necklace was floated over to me, bearing the green aura of the queen’s telekinetic grip. “There is a locator spell upon it. I suspected as much. Not as if I expected anything less. Princess Celestia does have an interest in keeping tabs on your whereabouts. Curious there has been no sign of her or any sort of rescue attempt after a full day. Perhaps the nobility in her efforts to save my children no doubt has put concern for your well-being on hold for the time being. Or perhaps she does worry for you as she always seems to have the worrisome habits towards all living sapient things. Even changelings. What a foolish nag. Her concern for others will be her eventual downfall.” She studied me closely as she spoke, gauging my reactions to her little monologue.

I stared at the necklace, trying to digest her words. My eyes flicked towards Annie. She smirked, inclining her head for me to take it. She even pressed it into my hand the moment I reached for it. “Why should you care?”

Queen Anisophira chirped sharply a few short notes and the lights began moving. I jerked back in surprise as I realized they weren’t lights at all! They were changeling eyes, belonging to several guards who had been staring at me warily. The buzzing sound I heard earlier had been their wings as they fanned the room to circulate the air. Quietly they filed out, hissing softly as they obeyed their queen. As the light faded with the passing of those oddly glowing eyes from the chamber, so did my pulse quicken as the only source of light was soon emanating from the twin pools attempting to devour my soul.

“You are a creature who prefers the light of the sun, are you not?” she asked coyly, slowly gliding in a predatory circle around me. She made no sound, save for her wings as they appeared to be restless. As my eyes adjusted to the gloom, I noticed her ears constantly twitching and swiveling. “Yet your kind operate with stealth and skill at night if trained properly. Remarkable. You appear to be not much of something to behold, yet your ability to adapt to your environment and skill in manipulating your world to suit your comforts makes you dangerous. An apex predator with no claw or fang to hunt with. You hunt with your minds. Yes, your kind are dangerous, Mr. Spriggs. Though too much to look at from the outside.” She paused, regarding me with a feral hunger. “But that’s not what I’m interested in.”

I dug my toes into the hard floor, remembering I was sans boots and one of my big toes was still sore from stubbing it in the galley. Thinking it best to keep my mouth shut, I simply held her gaze, strongly wondering why I wasn’t running away and screaming like a little school girl.

Annie was terrifying.

“I can taste your fears, Mr. Spriggs,” she taunted, twisting a savage grin through her fanged mouth. “You should be used to us changelings by now. Or have you only tamed ones to deal with in your experience? Docile changelings. Bah!” she spat at the ground, tossing her mane with disgust. “They seek peace with prey? Queen Druanae is weak and her weakness has sent her to pleading for protection under the wings of grazers. Bah!” She barked out a harsh laugh with no humor in it. “Were I so foolish as to spit in the face of my Empress with such ideas. Changelings do not consort with lesser races, human! Changelings do not let lesser races raise their nymphs! Changelings do not mix their blood with lesser races! Never breed with those beneath us. We are supreme. We are strong. And I am losing my hive.”

I started, wondering if I had just been brought into the presence of a living insane asylum.

“Chrysalis and I were close,” she went on, resuming her predatory orbit around me. “As close as sisters are allowed beneath the gaze of our beloved Mother. We plotted and schemed and moved upon Celestia, to teach them a lesson in superiority. We pulled in other sisters and their hives to aid our children in assaulting the hallowed home of the Sisters. We launched our assault with precision, after we had eroded their defenses from within. Our attack was perfect and we had the Sun in our grasp! Chrysalis’ plan worked perfectly and I envied her. Oh, how our children feasted upon the fears of our victims. But fear does not satisfy. Only love can leave a changeling feeling content. Only love can develop an egg so it might hatch.”

Annie sighed, stopping again in her tracks as her ears drooped dejectedly. “Mother was not pleased with us. She was not pleased with Chrysalis and we were punished. We were betrayed with a simple act of leaving the bride and groom unguarded. Oh, the ponies have all been told there was but one queen that day, but not two. Not three. There were four of us, Mr. Spriggs. Four queens bringing the full military might of their hives upon one location! It was glorious. Mother was greatly displeased with our act.” She stared through me, her eyes going distant as if recalling the memory, reliving the past in the present. “She snatched defeat from the jaws of victory and scattered us to the four winds with a simple act of pure love. Such power...such...devotion…”

She blinked, shaking her head for a moment before regarding me as if I had just appeared before her out of thin air.

“Come, Mr. Spriggs. There are some things I must show you.”

None of my questions had been answered, by the way. Annie had gone bye-bye a long time ago, it would seem. Or had she? Was she acting crazy or was she really crazy? Or was I crazy enough to see her ramblings as crazy? Numbly I got to my feet, my joints aching and muscled protesting. I needed to take a leak.

“Where’re we going?” I asked numbly, popping body parts and trying to get things to function properly. Growing old sucked.

“A tour of my home and the home of my changelings,” she said, taking on a demeanor of a pleasant hostess. All the crazy had vanished and a professional smile creased her muzzle. “You are a guest and it would be rude to not do so.”

By now I was used to the dim lighting. It still didn’t mean I could make out things very well.

“I am unfamiliar with human vision. Do you have enough light?” Her question touched with concern as she regarded me.

“It’s a bit dim,” I replied, coughing. I had to turn my head away from the changeling. It was sort of like standing next to Sigourney Weaver if she had four hooves and a long, crooked horn. What can I say? Tall women can be intimidating. Why was Annie reminding me of the actress? Was it because of the Aliens movies? Yeah, I think so. Maybe it was something about her voice that made me think of her.

Stupid rambling brain.

“The last assault damaged our light source,” Annie explained brusquely. “Somehow they managed to scramble the hive mind, rendering most of the adults helpless and unable to defend our home. My hive is not as large as some of the others. In fact, I have the smallest hive of my sisters.” She lit the tip of her horn until it glowed a soft green light. “Perhaps this will do. Come. There is much for you to see and to understand.” Without waiting for me, she surged ahead at a determined pace.

I padded after her on the balls of my feet. Shadows moved silently behind as as guards fell in step at a respectful distance. Their menacing eyes were slits as they glared at me in obvious contempt. Chryssie never felt this ominous, but this queen had me eying her nervously.

“Aren’t you afraid of starting a war?” I asked.

“Celestia would not dare put her beloved subjects in harm’s way if she could help it. She is ancient and powerful, but far too sentimental.”

I noticed there were signs of what I believed to be combat throughout the corridors. Changelings were busy trying to clean up debris on the floor and patching up crumpled holes. The place looked like a war zone. A few walked on the ceilings, giving me curious looks and chirping at each other. It gave the impression they were whispering to each other about me.

“On earth, attacking a warship can be considered an act of war,” I said.

The queen snorted with disdain. “I am more concerned with my missing children and the actions of my fellow queens than a pacifist pony princess. A dragon sends his lackeys to romp through my hive and kill my subjects and steal this hive’s future. A stern glare from the Diarch of the Sun means nothing to me.”

My sore toe was bothering me. My knuckles throbbed. I think I broke something in my hand. Still, I didn’t complain, but followed reluctantly. I jammed the arrowhead necklace into my jeans pocket and sighed, wondering why the universe hated me. At least I hadn’t been bound or thrown into a cell...or worse.

“In case you were wondering,” Anisophira tossed casually over her shoulder, “I have you in a mild thrall to keep you compliant. Nothing too intrusive. I’m aware of the scarring on your mind and I certainly have no interest in further damaging what little you have left.”

“What is with you changelings and mind raping me?” I complained.

“You happen to have some value, Mr. Spriggs. Nothing more. Your link with Chrysalis is unique and… disturbing. As a human, you should not be able to link into a hive mind, but she managed to do that with you. You are a curiosity, as well as something of interest to all the queens. Mother was kind enough to share her memory of the encounter with you. Not all the queens were impressed.” The queen followed the corridor as it turned and sloped downwards at a sharp angle. It branched off to other, smaller passageways, but I found us travelling in a descending spiral deeper into the heart of wherever the hell I was. I could hear the sounds of a crap load of changelings going about their business, reminding me of a bustling underground city. They bowed to their queen, gave me odd looks, and behaved pretty much like ponies I had met already.

If I tried really hard to apply my imagination, they might have looked like normal people in a small town just going through their daily routine. Only this was in some sort of underground cave system and some of them were walking on the walls and ceilings. The air hung heavy with high strung nerves and frightened little titters. It became easy to tell the civilians from the guards; the frightened and worried from the suspicious and determined.

I did see one changeling foal, clasped securely on the back of his mother and staring at me with huge, curious eyes. The mother saw me, buzzed her wings nervously as she bowed to the queen. It wasn’t hard to see the females were easily larger than the males. Not quite as grand in appearance as her queen, she still looked more fearsome than the...stallions, I guess the boy changelings are called? Annie’s expression went soft as she spoke in her buggy language to the changeling, maybe inquiring about the baby or perhaps asking if she thought I was a moron. I didn’t have a clue. The foal must have known who the queen was right off the bat as an inquisitive little chirp was answered with a buzzing hum. He lowered his head and Anisophira gently, oh so gently! touched the tip of her horn to the little nub in the center of his forehead.

At some point I decided it had to be a boy, but by then, we were already on the move. I waved good-bye at the little changeling tyke. He was a cute little nipper, staring at my fingers as they wriggled at him. He stared at his hooves, held up on holey appendage curiously and I think he tried to wriggle his hoof at himself. His mother took him one way, the guards slipping aside to let her by before reforming their ranks behind us while we resumed our little ‘tour’.

Anisophira wasn’t explaining anything along the way. I supposed I shouldn’t complain. I wasn’t in chains, but my feet were not used to barefoot excursions. Glumly I wondered if this would be my Bataan Death March, only without the bayonets and murderous heat. I was compelled to follow the changeling mare against my will, my eyes fixed sullenly upon the back of her head. She had an odd bob to her walk, and I found myself mimicking it.

Of course, my eyes had a mind of their own and began to wander, taking in the details of the queen walking before me. Her mule-like ears cocked at me for a moment before splaying out naturally, much as Chryssie’s ears do.

She was skinny, as I had observed earlier. As to whether or not she was pretty was debatable, considering the spindly legs had a sense of being malnourished. Where as pony legs tended to be thick and stout, these were more akin to the legs of a deer. What stuck in my mind was seeing her hip bones stick out from her flanks.

“What?” she wondered, annoyance in her voice. “Spare me your pity, Mr. Spriggs.”

“You’re starving, aren’t you?”

She misstepped, but caught herself. “Come. It’s just a little further, Mr. Spriggs. As to answer your question, no I am not starving. This is my natural appearance. Are all humans rude like you?”

“Lady, if you think I’m rude, then you’re in for a shock if you meet some of the people I’ve met in my life.” Her guards hissed at my tone, not at all liking what they felt was me being disrespectful to their queen. At least she wasn’t controlling my mouth. I decided to let it run.

Did I ever mention I’m not the smartest guy in the world?

She spun on me with such speed as to make me question why I thought she was half-starved. Before I could blink, her muzzle was half a breath from my nose, her eyes ablaze with fury. Her magic took hold of me and I found myself unable to move.

“Listen to me and listen well, human,” she hissed at me. My speech clearly pissed her off. Jimmes were definitely rustled! “I would prefer you dead, but Mother would have it otherwise. I am being punished for something I did and my hive is suffering for it. What I am about to show you is a shame all queens dread ever having befall them or their subjects. I am going to show you a broken incubation chamber where all of our eggs are gathered and cared for until they hatch. Do not suppose for a minute I do this because I like you or even think you are worth my time. But Chrysalis is connected to you and she will sense what you feel. You are but an instrument to be used, then discarded when there is no longer any use for you.” She released me and I stumbled backwards, falling on my butt, jarring my right elbow from breaking the fall.

“Christ, first you tell me you mean to protect me, then you say you want to kill me. What’s the big idea?”

She inhaled deeply, recovering her composure. “I suppose you are but a pawn in a game I myself have no other choice but to play my part in,” Annie admitted. “A trap has been set for your benefactors, more to test an unproven changeling than anything else. But that does not matter for the moment.” She hoisted me to my feet telekinetically. “Come. There is little time and much to show you. You must become educated, Mr. Spriggs. You must learn a little of true changeling society. You raised a changeling as you would one of your own young. Such ignorance cannot be overlooked. Especially when it concerns a queen.”

“I’m not starving,” she insisted, softly, her voice suddenly hollow. “I’m dying. Celestia knew this upon laying her eyes upon me. She knows I’m desperate and doesn’t want to risk me doing something stupid because of it.”

I stare at her, not knowing what to say, other than to parrot out the word ‘dying’ in the form of a silent question.

“Again, your pity is not wanted, Mr. Spriggs. Come. There is much to do. Our stock of love is low and thankfully the fiend did not take the unhatched eggs. His insufferable minions destroyed most of the reserves set aside for the hatchery. Deliberately, I should think.” She pursed her lips, an impressive feat with her fangs.

“So, what happened?” I asked as we resumed our journey. Seriously, how big was this hive? It felt like I had already walked a mile.

“Two nights ago, I received word from the Empress there was to be a gathering of the queens,” Annie said just loudly enough to hear. “A new queen had been found. Rather, Chrysalis was returning to the Cradle.”

“What’s the Cradle?”

“It’s considered the birthplace of our race and the only permanent city of all the hives. The Empress resides there, along with my two eldest sisters. The three of them maintain the city as a neutral place where the queens can gather and work out differences in opinion. Changeling law is simple and straight forward, but there are times when certain issues require the attention of the First Mother.”

“Syl?” I queried.

The queen regarded me with another flash of annoyance. “That name is meaningless to me. Where does it apply in this conversation?”

“Oh, sorry. It’s just since Chryssie’s mom didn’t bother to give me a name, I gave her one so I could have something to associate with her.”

“Pointless,” she huffed. “And we’re already off topic. Nevermind the Cradle, Mr. Spriggs. You’ll soon see its ominous glory soon enough.” Well, if that doesn’t give me a warm fuzzy of anticipation, then nothing will! “He used griffons to cover the skies while the dogs came in through the caves to prevent escape. Leviatan has a keen he can emit which can disrupt the hive mind and render most changelings as helpless as a landed fish.”

“What’s Leviatan?”

“He’s a sea monster. Rather, a sea dragon that has ruled the oceans for as long as anyling can remember. He never before bothered us, but he is a dragon and dragons by default are always seeking ways to grow their treasure hordes. One way to do it is through slavery. Changeling hatchlings are considered highly desirable by any creature who has a certain use for them. Disgusting.” She spat the last word with emphatic enthusiasm. Annie slowed in her steps, pondering for a moment the ground at her hooves before resuming at a quicker pace.

Our path began to show bits of moonlight breaking through there and there, slowly at first. We round a corner and I could smell the salty air of the sea. Faintly, I can hear waves crashing against the rocks, the din growing louder and louder with each step. Our path simply disappears in the face of a night sky kissing a moonlit sea, the breakers foaming a bluish white as they tumble ceaselessly into the base of a sheer cliff face. The stones here are jagged and broken, as if something massive had simply torn away at the rocks.

“He sang his song to paralyze us and I tried to face him, to stop him,” Anisophira said in a voice barely above a whisper. Fading away was her confidence. I understood a broken mother when I saw one. I was once a broken father. “Fifty-three hatchlings, Mr. Spriggs. While he sang and my changelings lay helpless, I battled against his might and failed. As I failed, he tore away the protection of the cliffs, exposing the hatchery. Fifty-three members of a generation were taken at the cost of more than two hundred of my subjects dashed to the waves and rocks below or felled by the minions of the drake.” She turned to me, tears coursing down her face. “But that is far from the worst of it. One hundred and forty-one hatchlings were crushed beneath the avalanche and two hundred and thirty-five eggs were smashed. Among the dead are my own eggs.” She threw a hoof at the shattered remnants of her hive. “Observe my kingdom, Mr. Spriggs. Observe my home and know my despair.”

She inhaled deeply, shuddering out an exhale. “No, spare me your pity. I am beyond such a trivial thing. Mourn instead for my dead children and the dead children of the changeling mares who worked so hard to gather enough love to start a family. We live for the next generation, Mr. Spriggs. They are always our hope for a better hive. Without them, we are dead inside.”

I stared numbly into the void of little more than broken earth and filled with the roar of the ocean.

“As I was saying, Mother announced Chrysalis would be traveling under the watchful eyes of Celestia and Luna. Her plan was to put each of her sisters in her path, one at a time so they might come to see for themselves the return of a sister they thought dead.” The change of topic left me in a lurch. “Come, there is more to show you. I might have an immediate use for you.”

“Celestia will send some of her precious ponies to collect you,” she noted, touching on something she had already mentioned earlier. “No doubt they will be expecting a hive on full alert. I doubt they are aware Leviatan has been slowly starving my changelings for weeks, chasing off my fishers who feed this hive from the bounty of the sea. Oh, we do what we can to run his blockade, but there are but three hundred of us who are able to fight. This fortress must be abandoned, lest my subjects be want not only of love, but of basic food as well.”

I thought I hear her mutter something else under her breath.

“Mother would never have let this happen in the past…”

As I paid attention to the changelings we passed, I noted more and more of them sporting what I thought were injuries of various degrees. The tunnels were soon filled with litters bearing the wounded. Pitiful changeling chirp versions of moans and groans filled the air. It reminded me of a hospital filled with civilians after a suicide bomber went off in the middle of a open market. I felt as though I was gazing down at innocent civilians, the strange insect-like sounds they made akin to people crying in pain, lamenting lost loved ones, or at a loss to what had happened.

Queen Anisophira was an emotional wreck and was barely able to hold herself together.

I followed the shambling queen past the crowd of wounded changelings in the halls. She ducked into a room to the left and I followed, seeing the attending changelings —their medical people, I assume— bow to her and speak in their strange buggy language. She smiled at them briefly, her attention turning to cocoons suspended from the ceiling. They glowed a soft phosphorescent green, each one roughly the size of a mini refrigerator. The room was filled with the things lining the wall. Most seemed empty, but the ones that were occupied were lined up together. Mentally I counted and found the number to be twenty-two.

“Our babies,” the queen whispered with a wan smile. “There is hope yet. Come. You raised a changeling. Look upon them. They sleep in their pods. They heal. All of our reserves of love have gone into making them whole again.” Without waiting for me to reply, she slowly moved forward, chirping softly as she approached the first cocoon. One of her subjects said something to her sternly, but she ignored whatever was said, her horn flaring to life. With a steady exhale, she leaned forward to the cocoon and brushed the tip of her horn against the surface. The little form within was suddenly surrounded by liquid flaring with magic.

I came closer and noticed with fascination little bits of golden tendrils flowing from the surface of the cocoon where Annie held her horn in place to the little form suspended in the center of it. My heart went to my throat as I realized it was a young changeling, maybe younger than Chryssie when I had first found her.

“Oh my God!” I gasped.

“Our babies,” the queen repeated. She withdrew, the light of her horn fading. Shuddering, she righted herself and moved to the next one. “This is only a third of the survivors who made it through the first night after the attack.” An eye flicked to me before focusing on what was in front of her.

“Why? Why do this? It doesn’t make sense.”

She scoffed. “You’re a warrior. You know perfectly well the insanity you have witnessed in your life. Why ask such a question?”

Taking a step back from the queen as she repeated her thing with the horn, I found I didn’t want to answer. But, like a glutton for punishment, I did. “When I was younger, I joined the army because I thought I could make a difference to stop this sort of chaos.”

Annie smirked. “You must have been a very naive child.” She was already on the third cocoon, moving with grace despite her weariness. It was as though being in the presence of the changeling foals in the pods gave her a new vigor. “Place your appendage on this one,” she instructed in an authoritative tone, giving a slight jerk with her head. “I do not have the energy nor enough love to feed them all.”

I hesitated. Appendage? Oh, she meant my hand!

“Can’t you freely give love to other changelings besides your adopted daughter?” she asked flatly.

“Is it safe?” came my query.

“You will come to no harm, Mr. Spriggs. If you please, touch the surface of the cocoon.”

I thought of the foal I had seen earlier. Leaning forward, I peered into the pod and tried to make out the details of the little form within. It was indeed a changeling, roughly the size of a football. He was very young. I think it was a ‘he’. I found myself blurting the question.

“A colt, Mr. Spriggs,” Annie intoned patiently, backpedaling a step to give me room.

Taking a deep breath, I closed my eyes and extended my palm towards the surface of the pod holding the changeling. I heard a slightly alarmed chirp to my left. One of the doctors, I think, or whatever changeling medical personnel are called. Annie replied sharply. The other changeling sulked as it muttered under its breath.

The cocoon felt warm to the touch. My fingers gently brushed the surface. It was somewhere between rough and smooth, with patches of both. As soon as skin touched the odd organic surface, there was the sensation of awareness from the little creature within the heart of the cocoon. I opened my eyes and peered in. The colt twitched his little legs. I could see some of his wounds, though the view was blurred with the goop he floated in. One eye was simply gone, it seemed. The other was closed, but one of his hooves seemed to reach for me. I might have been mistaken.

“Yes, feed him,” Annie cooed. Her breath fell warm upon my neck and shoulders, ragged and starved. Whipping my head towards the sound of her breathing, she caught herself, surprised at her own action. The queen gasped, “I cannot, must not!” I could hear her clattering, almost frantic hoofsteps as she moved away from me. “For them! Only for them!”

The room buzzed with the sound of changelings, but I tuned them out. I could feel the same sensations I felt when Chryssie was young; the touch followed by the tingly sensation. For a moment, I flashed back to happier days of watching television with my daughter while petting her mane between the ears. Oh, the questions she would ask!

“That is enough, Mr. Spriggs,” Annie said softly in my ear. I jerked back and away from her, my hand falling away. The sensation vanished and I was staring into the eyes of a queen who was giving me an odd look. “The next one requires love. They all do if they are to fully recover. Love is one of the most pure forms of magic. We need it to feel complete, but can never hold it. Love for changelings is elusive, for we cannot keep it. It is the key source of our power and it allows us to regenerate.”

I nodded, not understanding a damned thing she just said. Chryssie ate normal food growing up, but Celestia did explain a little about the other way changelings feed. They feed on emotions to charge their magic. It also bolsters their physical attributes and inherent abilities. It seems as though they really need love when they’re still in the eggs to help them develope. The more love a changeling gets while in the egg and as a nymph, the better chances they have at survival. I have no clue what it all means, but I guess I did something right. Chryssie is about as healthy a changeling as I’ve ever seen. Never mind she’s the only one I’ve spent any amount of time with. She grew up as happy as I could manage to keep her.

“I can feel the love flowing from you,” the queen said softly. She coughed harshly and unexpectedly, turning her head quickly as she did. Instinctively, I reached out to her, my fingers brushing the base of her throat. Those harlequin eyes flashed like green hellfires. “Don’t touch me!” she spat, drawing out a long hiss at me.

Suddenly I was surrounded by guards, each one giving me the evil eye and brandishing their sharp horns at me. I noted they were each clad in armor of some sort over their carapaces.

“Never touch me, filth!” Anisophira screamed, lunging in at me until she was close enough for her spittle to spray over my face. I fell back, or tried to, but her magic held me and fast. I had no idea she would become unhinged like this. “I will make you feel pain the likes of which you would never wish for in your deepest, darkest nightmares if you ever think to touch me. Do I make myself perfectly clear, ape?”

“All right! I’m sorry!” I cried, unable to move. “I was trying to help.”

She snorted, narrowing her eyes, nostrils flared and ears splayed against her skull. Her mane had assumed a life of its own; undulating about her face and neck like a swarm of snakes.

“I don’t need your help,” she said after a long and painful silence (with buzzing guards around us). “I am beyond help. The nymphs need what you can give them. The ones asleep in the cocoons need love so they can heal. My time is short, so I give what reserves I have to them. I will not look back upon my life and think to myself I did not give it my all to the next generation.”

Again, my mouth took over without giving my brain a chance to kick in. “Why are you dying?” I asked when I found my voice.

Hesitating, the queen regarded me, curling the side of her lip for a moment as the room went deathly quiet. “It’s a wasting disease,” she said flatly. “There is no cure. I’ve searched for one. My subjects have hunted for one. It’s been with me since shortly after the failure at Canterlot. Even Mother has deemed the progression of my malady to be beyond her ken.”

“Is there any pain?” Shut up, Mike.

“Some days, it’s a dull ache. Others, it’s as though my insides are trying to turn themselves inside out.” She barked a short laugh, condescending and pitiless. Anisophira sounded like she had given up in more ways than one. “But I must move my hive from the sea and take my changelings to a safe place so they might rebuild. I can at least do this.” She released me and ordered her guards off me. They did so reluctantly, but obediently. “Please continue to heal my children, Mr. Spriggs. Then I shall show you the other nymphs and the broodmothers watching over them.”

For what seemed like hours, I ignored my aches and pains (and that goddamn throbbing big toe), going from one cocoon to the next, peering in at the young changeling within, unable to not see their wounds and their hurts. I wept for them, thinking of Chryssie. Anisophira quietly informed me when each nymph had enough love, then I would move on to the next one. Nervous chirps from the other adult changelings were pipe up and catch in my ears. Slowly I felt more and more drained, but I was beginning to understand the need, even if the methods of healing were flat out insane. Love to heal wounds? Love to help children grow? It was taking an emotion and applying it in the literal sense.

Baffling.

Still, I did what I could. Apparently I was doing it right. I felt something for the little guys. They reminded me so much of Chryssie when she was little! I guess what I felt for my daughter had simply passed over to these helpless little victims. I also felt bad for their queen. Sure, she was a bitch, but she clearly loved these kids...foals...nymphs...whatever! Pissed at being kidnapped was one thing, but discovering the reason behind it was even more shocking.

Annie seemed to notice. “Anger will not heal those nymphs any faster, Mr. Spriggs,” she informed me in a bored tone.

I grunted in response.

After cocoon number twenty-two was done, Anisophira (or Annie, as I obviously had dubbed her) ordered me to rest while one of her medical changelings clucked over me (and I do mean clucked). Apparently my own aches and pains were enough to bother with a cursory once-over.

“They’re using the love they fed off of you indirectly to take care of you. You could say you’re loving yourself,” chuckled the queen. The smirk on her face was humorless. Somehow, I think she hurled an insult at witless ole’ me.

Which doesn’t mean I wasn’t paying attention. “How do you know about human anatomy?” I asked the changeling mare tending me. She looked up from the attention she was giving my knuckles and cocked her head to one side. A cute little mewling sound followed before she shrugged and went back to work.

I looked expectantly for a translation from her queen. Anisophira complied. “Books,” she said helpfully. “Before we move on, you will eat something.” There was no suggestion in any way, shape, or form in her voice. I had the impression I was going to eat even if she felt it necessary to order her guards to hold me down while she shoveled grub down my gullet.

Yay me. “Okay,” I said lamely. My stomach rattled its cage at the mention of food.

With the queen leading the way and me patched up by my own lovin’, I found myself in a chamber maybe a third the size of the one the cocoons had been in. A table awaited within and a small meal had been placed there. From what I had seen of the place and upon first glance at the dishes, changelings were a spartan people. People? What word would I use? Sapients? Sentients? Race? Damn it. It was like they lived as nomads, or hunter-gatherers, clinging to an old way of life that was dangerous and uncertain. I could smell the fish, as well as an assortment of vegetables. There was another place set.

The table was long and rectangular. A stool had been set up for me at one end and a high backed chair designed for certain quadrupedal queen was at the other end. In the middle of the table was set an odd bulbous lamp glowing an amber yellow.

Proudly Anisohpira announced, “Most of what you see was gathered from the sea by my changelings. They take pride in their skills as fishers. I do not think I shall ever tire of the taste of the sea. I enjoy what my cooks create in their kitchens. Do you like seafood, Mr. Spriggs?”

“I know it’s a healthy way to eat,” I replied. Not really a big fan of fish, my stomach firmly told me at this point it wasn’t going to be too terribly picky. “I don’t get much seafood, but I’m always willing to try new things.” I’m a rotten liar.

Long story short, I ate on pain of... whatever. The queen nibbled and I was stared into finishing everything on my plate. Thankfully, there was no small talk, no conversation. I could feel eyes upon me beyond those hellish orbs of the ruler of this hive. I had to eat with my hands, but a warm, damp washcloth was waiting for me. I was escorted to what passed as facilities and I was allowed to relieve myself and bathe. Changeling plumbing is weird. After some embarrassing moments of trying to figure out how everything worked, I emerged refreshed and clean, if not a bit disturbed by the whole ordeal. A pair of changeling mares attended me while I bathed, chatting in their chirpy language while I simply sat there, flushed beet red the whole time. If someone could combine a chicken and a cricket into one voice, that’s what they sounded like as they scrubbed me squeaky clean. I was not allowed to move. The best part was I survived relatively intact, if a bit resigned to the nightmares to come.

Still, my mind remained locked on what I had seen in that room with the cocoons. I had thought about them since leaving them. Each one had throbbed with the heartbeat of each individual foal within. It haunted me, moved me. Why would a monster want changeling foals? For what purpose? Annie had mentioned they were considered valuable as slaves. I hadn’t even seen what this dragon looked like, but guessing from the massive hole in the side of the cliff, I’d say he was in Godzilla territory.

“How long was I out?” I wondered out loud. It was night time, for crying out loud! Was I out cold the whole day? Two days? Three?

As I found myself waiting alone in yet another room...well, with a guard watching me like a hawk, I pulled my necklace out of my pocket and fiddled with the broken chain. Now, why in the world would Celestia give me some magic-proof arrowhead necklace only to have it be attached to a cheap chain? It was supposed to protect me from magic, but I guess the broken chain meant broken magic. It was weird feeling the pull in my mind to do the queen’s bidding. Somehow I knew she was exercising some control over my movements, but was letting my mind be free from her influence. It was as though she knew of my ordeal. How did she know who I was? Did she have some sort of spy network in Equestria? Why did she bring me here? Why would she tell me she was dying? None of it made sense yet. My thoughts were focused on those poor changeling foals.

I found changelings didn’t use chairs. They seemed to prefer some sort of raised couches made of the same material as the walls and floors and covered with cushions. As they were roughly the size of ponies, they were a bit small for me. There was nothing else to sit on, so I made due. I guess I was waiting for the queen to finish whatever royal things she had to do. She wanted to show me something else and I had a feeling there was more going on than just a simple tour of her home. The place had the feel of being prepared for an evacuation. Either that, or changelings were very spartan in their furnishings.

Another thing I noticed about changelings was distinguishing males from females. Not only were the ladies a bit larger, but they also sported manes. The males had a sort of spiky looking fin growing from their heads. It looked strange, but then again, all changelings had holes in their legs. Chryssie was no exception.

As my thoughts strayed towards my daughter, I realized she was more than likely going to be in a bit of a rage over this. How did I know this? Call it a father’s intuition. Call it knowing your child’s tendencies and temperament. Chrysalis Spriggs had an explosive temper. There was a lot about her childhood that was cringe worthy from my point of view. Our relationship had been pretty good; we had been close and developed an unspoken and unquestioned trust with each other. It was the rest of the world that had no idea about her and her desire to destroy things which might pose a threat to her daddy, when she wasn’t frightened half to death.

The minute she holds on to that self confidence I’ve always hoped she’d develop, there’s no telling what she’d be capable of.

Suddenly this hive disappearing beneath the shadow of a mushroom cloud became a very real possibility. I might have been exaggerating Chryssie’s magical ability, but her temper alone would melt the Antarctic ice cap. She knew my anxiety in this world. Chryssie knew my emotions very well and it often times confused her. Still young, still inexperienced, I was suddenly dreading what she might do. There was no question she would try to find me following our link.

“Yes, she will come,” came that dreadful voice I was beginning to fear. Anisophira appeared from the shadows. “But not before I impart upon you some knowledge. Your meeting with the Empress is inevitable. She has proclaimed all queens and their hives forbidden from imparting knowledge of changeling ways to outsiders. As I am dying and my hive will quickly become nothing more than a gaggle of Gray changelings, her edict means little to me.”

She beckoned me with her mane. It undulated like a swarm of snakes, the tips crooking at me like a hundred fingers.

“Come. You will see the nymphs that were not harmed in the attack. You will give them some of your love.” She did not offer any other options and I was inclined to acquiesce to her command.

I rose and followed, like any idiot would do and I fit the mold perfectly. I don’t think anything I’ve done to this point since coming to Equestria has made a lick of sense. Stupid is as stupid does. I just hope my daughter doesn’t wind up like me.

Yay me.

“We found a shipment of human children bound for the Old World,” Annie was saying. My attention immediately focused on her voice. “Somehow they were brought from your world and here. If Leviatan has found access to a forgotten portal, then this does not bode well for my world.”

“Kids? How many?” I blurted, hurrying to catch up to her. “What do you mean kids?”

“We intercepted a ship— stolen, mind you, and stuffed full of human offspring. The dragon’s pirates intended to sell them for profit. Slave labor. Pets. Food.” —Wait, food?— “My scouts had been watching the dragon’s lair for some time as we have been skirmishing with the pirates off and on for the past three years or so. They were in a magical slumber when we came across them.” The queen flicked her eyes at me for a moment, chancing a quick fanged grin before continuing. “They thought we took them, having little to no memory of their abductions.”

“I have a hard time believing that story,” I grunted, jamming my hands into my pockets. I rolled my shoulders into a slump and slouched as I walked. “Tell me you didn’t harm any of them.”

“I did not and had no intention of such a thing,” sniffed the queen. “Bah! Preying on children is only useful when posing as one of their parents. Far too much effort for the reward, if you ask me. Better they be handed over to the Equestrians. One of the male children had been told to steer the ship by something called a computer. A tool of your world?” She cocked an eyebrow at me expectantly.

A nod was my reply. “Yeah. I’m pretty sure civilization as I know it would collapse without them. Computers are responsible for a lot of the technological advancements on Earth. All of the developed countries have them.” I was actually surprised Annie handed the kids over the Celestia, unless… “You used them to bait us into paying attention to the ship they were on while you slipped on board our ship.”

Her smile was shameless. “Most astute, Mr. Spriggs.”

“So why all the cloak and dagger?”

“My pride prevents me from flat out asking for assistance. By giving the human children to Celestia, she will see they have come to no harm at changeling hands and be more willing to see my hive’s dilemma from a less aggressive standpoint.” Something told me she wasn’t telling me the whole story. If there was anything I could count on in this madness, it was my skepticism.

“If that’s the story you want to go with.”

“It’s rude to not address a ruler by her proper title within the confines of her home,” she told me rather sternly. “I tolerate your rudeness because you amuse me. The amusement is wearing thin.” The flash of emerald in her eyes was enough to make the hair on the back of my neck stand on end.

“I’m sorry, your Majesty. I really don’t have to deal with kings or queens where I come from, not including my daughter.” Why can’t I just keep what I say simple and to the point?

Anisophira flicked an ear and buzzed her wings. I had lost track of how far we had walked, but definitely felt we had been going up an incline. The hall had a gradual turn to the left, passing by other passageways and rooms. This place had a real organic feel to it. We kept on passing other changelings as we went, all of them making some show of loyalty to the queen. I was beginning to notice a lot of them were bearing signs of combat.

“Queen Annie,” I began, only to be hissed at. Clearing my throat apologetically, I tried again. “Queen Anisophira, there was not just the dragon who attacked, was there?”

There was a moment of silence before she chose to answer. “No. He brought a small force to fight their way to the chambers for the eggs and hatchlings and take them. What adults were able to resist were not enough to stop them. Leviatan employs his lackeys to go where his bulk does not allow him. How he discovered my hive can only mean either one of my changelings was followed home or I was betrayed. The former option is highly unlikely. The latter would suggest one of my sisters is behind this.”

What a nice family, sarcasm implied. “Why would they do that to you?”

She stopped in front of another entrance and peered within. Satisfied at what she saw, she smiled a little before sternly regarding me. “I’ve been replaced. As the weakest of the changeling queens, the Empress declared my replacement just yesterday. Queen Felu’s daughter is to replace me. In accordance to ancient tradition, there can only be twelve queens. There are many princesses, the offspring of the queens and considered queens in their own hives, but queens such as myself are the most ancient of all the changelings.”

The explanation only served to give me a headache.

She chuckled upon seeing the confusion on my face. “Enough of such talk. Come. This is what I wanted you to see.” Annie glided through the threshold. I followed and found myself in a bright room filled with simple toys from brightly colored balls to carved wooden figures of painted changelings. Three changeling mares watched over a gaggle of changeling nymphs of varying ages playing together or alone. Some napped, others snacked.

All stopped what they were doing and stared at me. They caught my scent. Even the sleeping changelings woke up as a rapid succession of chirps assailed my ears. The chattering noise were questions, each one directed at the queen, who only laughed as she waded into the milling swarm. She answered patiently, lowering herself to the floor and folding her legs beneath her regally. A very small nymph waddled over to her, fearfully eyeing the bipedal giant gaping like a moron at the scene. The small army of dark cuteness all continue to stare. I even saw one of the nymphs lean to the ear of another and whisper something. There was a nod and much hushed whispers in the form of whatever the hell they have for a language.

“Wow,” was all I could say. “Why trust me to see your children?”

“Chrysalis grew sleek and beautiful from your touch. I should like for your love to flow into these children. They have been through much. Love is good for the young, don’t you think, Mr. Spriggs?” She nuzzled the little nymph, her eyes locked on mine. The young changeling made an adorable little sound. It was an unafraid and courageous little hello directed at me, I think. Huge blue eyes fixed in an upward gaze as she had to lean back to look up at me. I saw something there I didn’t think was possible after everything I had witnessed in this place.

I saw the flicker of hope there and saw the first days with my daughter so many years ago within them. I did not care much for Queen Anisophira, but the foals (nymphs, as she called them) tugged at my heartstrings and played them like a symphony. After a moment of watching me intently, Annie buzzed something. The whole room buzzed with tiny wings as little bodies hurled themselves at me happily, their glee-filled shrieks filling my ears as I was swarmed over by an ‘army’ of nymphs.

Celestia, take a note: If you want to show a human a fun, wholesome time, put him in a room full of kids who just want to be loved.

Chapter 18 No Dragon is an Island...Except This One.

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Edited by iakovl

I remember, when I was small there was a creek not far from the house. Daddy taught me how to swim there during the summer, before we started travelling the United States. Before he won the lottery, life was so much simpler, being poor and finding ways to amuse ourselves. I also learned how to fish. Those days of watching the bobber on the surface of the water became my dream and I was a filly again. I must have been three or four at the time, too young to have an extensive vocabulary, but old enough to remember some of the brightest moments as if it was only yesterday.

Of course, it didn’t take long to figure out this was just a dream. I was looking down at my younger self, having just finished lunch and Daddy enticing me to the water. I hated being more than two feet from him. I was so attached! Nervously I had stood at the bank of the creek as he shed his shirt and flipped off his flops before doing a cannonball into the slow-moving water. Oh, how much I cried when he went in!

I knew Luna was near me. I could feel her presence, but she did not choose to reveal herself. Instead, I shoved her from my thoughts and simply stared at the little filly crying for her daddy. He emerged from the water, brushed his hair from his eyes and smiled at his little girl. The man held his arms to her, beckoning little Chrysalis to jump and adding words of encouragement.

“I’ll catch you! I promise!” Those words inspired me then, and after a great deal of trepidation, I gave in to the trust, closed my eyes, and leapt as far as my little legs could take me. Daddy’s strong hands caught that little filly and pulled her —me— to his chest, words of praise lifting her spirits. Soon I was swimming, or rather, watching myself swim. It was more of a dog paddle, really. Daddy stayed close by, rolling on his back with ease and giving my younger self a nice chest to stand on and rest after exhausting myself from mad water kicking.

Finally, it was time to get out of the water. I paddled ashore and turned expectantly to watch my daddy follow me out.

Only now, he wasn’t there.

Daddy..?

Daddy, where are you? The scene faded, and there was nothing but darkness and her presence.

“You truly love your father, do you not?” Luna’s voice? Oh, right. It’s a dream. The only way to get away from her is to wake up.

“Go away!” I cried out, lashing as I remembered it was her fault. She and Celestia had messed everything up. Why did my head hurt? Why did my everything hurt? Especially my heart.

“Chrysalis, please, let me help you!” Luna was never very good at having a gentle voice. At least, not with me. Always the distrust, the suspicions. She always have and I imagine always will have that sternness in her mannerisms. If she ever decides to have kids, they’ll be little soldiers from diapers until leaving the nest and beyond.

I decided to be snide to the Lady of the Night. “I think you and your sister have helped enough.” Without giving her a chance to reply, I concentrated, remembering a lesson on mental focus Twilight shown me once before. I clear everything out, focusing on a point of flame I conjured up in my thoughts. Luna’s gone, but I feel her sorrow as she fades away.

Maybe I should have been nicer...

“Emeraude? Awakened, have you?” She’s worried, her tone gentle as always. It’s almost motherly, but at the same time with the sternness of a teacher. Fleur’s not exactly someone I’d call a friend, but she’s been nothing but kind to me since the first time we met.

“Hrrgh!” I groan, blinking groggily. My pounding head feels like a jackhammer gone wild. “Where, wha—? Daddy? Fleur? Izzat you?” A gentle hoof stroked my forehead.

“Do not sit up yet, mon fille,” she cooed, keeping her voice just above a whisper. I can hear her voice change as she looks away from me. My head is pounding so much and her voice is like jackhammers on my ears! “Are you certain this is a wise thing to do? I cannot for the life of me see any wisdom in your suggestion.” Fleur’s talking to someone else in the room.

The raspy voice and current focal point of a lot of my hate speaks up, “Queen Druanae strongly advises this to happen. Queen Anisophira might be more inclined to listen to reason if she were there with us.” Anzealous has that arrogant tone still, as if he thinks he’s smarter than everyone else. What’s he talking about?

Despite Fleur’s best efforts to gently restrain me, I sat up, glaring at the fat little bastard. “This is all your fault!” I seethed, taking a moment for my blurred vision to clear before pointing an accusatory hoof at the now in focus changeling. He harrumphed and looked away from me, ears splayed against his skull.

“Emeraude, please,” chastised the lovely white unicorn with a disapproving look. “Your magic surge shattered a very strong inhibitor ring and you had a backlash of magic surge back into your mana reserves. Do not, I repeat emphatically, do not attempt to use magic beyond light telekinesis. Do I make myself perfectly clear?”

I wanted to ignore her, wanted to yell at Anzealous some more. If he had just kept his mind probing to himself, minded his own business, Daddy would be enjoying himself right now and not be the prisoner of a bunch of hissing cockroaches. He got one day to enjoy and the rest has just been a big pile of shit ever since. I don’t think he even wants the t-shirt now.

A hoof cupped my chin and gently eased my line of sight until they met up with Fleur’s own steely gaze. “Mon fille, do I make myself clear?” She gave me a comforting nuzzle. “A promise, oui?” All I could do was nod.

I wanted to cry, to let out all the emotions I had bottled up within me. I could feel my eyes welling up and I sucked in air and held it as if to stave off the torrent to come. My cheeks were suddenly wet, but I refused to let anything else come out. “Why?” I managed, fighting with the sadness. “Why him? Why not me, instead?”

Anzealous spoke up, “Queen Anisophira was curious to see this human who had raised a changeling for herself.” He fidgeted where he stood in the corner of the room. I only realized I was still in my room, on my bed with the covers half off.

“What did the changeling say to you?” I asked him. “Before they left, one of them said something to you. What was it?” Fleur levitated a glass of water to my lips and bade me to drink with an encouraging nod. I sipped, found myself suddenly parched with thirst and downed the glass within a few long gulps.

The fat little shit just sat there like a retard, staring at me as if I just asked him if I could geld him with a pair of dull, rusty scissors. I wish. This was all his fault, after all. The act of depriving him of his stallionhood might make me feel better. No, not really better anyway. Besides, Daddy would frown on such a thing. Or would he? After a staring contest of insignificant consequence, he sighed, chewing on his tongue before answering, “Changelings from different hives are usually hostile towards each other on principle,” he said as he straightened himself. “Given the fact our race has been fighting itself without end for the past thousand years or so, animosity is going to abound.”

“Bullshit,” I replied flatly. “I may be new to the language of my race, but I distinctly heard the word ‘brother’ thrown at you. I also noticed you don’t look like the other changelings from the embassy back in Canterlot. Aren’t they all from Druanae’s hive?”

After a moment of staring at me with his jaw hanging like a noose in the wind, he recovered. “It’s private,” he snapped, abruptly heading for the door. “You’ll address her as Queen Druanae, child!” It slammed shut behind him, the metal frame making a very loud bang.

“What’s his problem?” I sighed, flopping back into my pillow. Fleur was giving me a disapproving look. “What?” I blinked owlishly.

“Show him some compassion, Emeraude,” she chided, taking the glass and refilling it. “He has already done much to begin his path to forgiveness. This ordeal is as difficult to him as it is for you.” Offering it to me, she held it to me and I drank again, managing to pout while I was at it. The expression came with flattened ears and mournful eyes. “Now, if you are feeling up to it, I am going with a small team to go and see to recovering your papa. You have been asked to join, if you are able. Both princesses are against it, but both understand this is important for you. It is ultimately your choice. You’ve already slept the better part of the day. It’s already almost sunrise. Anzealous was checking in on you before you woke up. Now, about that promise…”

She pulled back with the now empty glass, smiling as she always did. It was nowhere near the smile Pinkie Pie wore, that manic always determined to make all those around her be happy. No, Fleur de Lis (or Lis Dee, if you’re Prench) had a warm inviting smile, the smile of a friend who wanted you to figure things out for yourself. If I had ever wanted a mom…

If ever…

...I wanted…

I collapsed into her barrel, surprising the mare as the dam broke again for me. I carried my father’s emotions, protecting him from everything emotional that had happened to him. I shouldn’t have done it, I think, but nobody told me I couldn’t do it. By all means, Daddy should have reacted strongly, but I was bearing them. I had felt his fears and his trepidations and I took them away.

I did the right thing, didn’t I? I had to be strong for him as well as myself. Fleur gently placed her hooves around my shoulders and hugged me. “I do not blame you for taking up his burdens,” she said softly into my ear. “But do you not think your papa is stronger than you give him credit for? Surely what he has seen before you came into his life is proof of his inner strength, non? The queen who has him will not harm him. He is far too valuable to her and to her hive, I should think. Oui, he is safe. We need only to go and pluck him from the hive.”

I didn’t say anything, but let go of everything, my tears staining the unicorn’s fur. I hiccuped, cried some more, sniffled and made a general mess of myself. Fleur I’m sure wasn’t looking too clean with me slobbering all over her shoulder.

“I promise,” I manage after what felt like an eternity. “I won’t use my magic.”

“For a time, I would also like for Emeraude de Minuit to not feel as though she must shoulder her papa’s emotions. You cannot protect him from them forever, mon fille.” The unicorn pulled back and regarded me, noting a few strands of my mane obscuring my eyes. With a barely noticeable glow on the tip of her horn, she moved them aside, tucking them behind one of my ears. I nodded mutely, snuffled, and added one more hiccup. Her emotions for me were positive, worried and caring, trying to be a both a friend and a mentor.

“Bon. I shall hold you to your promise, young one. For now, shower, have something to eat, and meet me in my quarters within the hour.” Then she bopped me on the tip of my muzzle, smiled, and with a flick of her tail departed. She threw one last smile at me, encouragement for me. “I shall have food sent to your quarters,” her voice trailed as the door closed behind her. A muffled voice, Anzealous spoke and she responded. Their conversation faded as the sound of their hoofsteps carried them down the hallway.

I showered, but not before looking in the mirror and seeing another inhibitor ring around the base of my horn. It was a prison without bars, confining my magic, my strength. Twilight had done a lot to help me control it, to refine what I could do and learn the rules behind magic. I had only scratched the surface after just a mere month. Steam filled the small room, the sound of water running from the shower head soothing my throbbing temples. It felt good, though using my magic felt uncomfortable and sluggish at first. Fleur seemed happy to leave me with some use of my telekinesis and I was glad to have it as I worked the shampoo bottle with it. It felt like handling a greased pig at first, but I went slow and nothing catastrophic came of it.

The inhibitor. I hated it. My prison was in the form of a ring, containing part of what made me...well, me. I looked at my face— my true face, taking a washcloth to wipe the condensation off the mirror. Noting my crooked horn and the makeshift...thing wrapped around it, I sighed and wondered what caused the surge. I hadn’t had one in three years. I didn’t know what they were completely until Twilight explained it to me. I sort of had an idea. After all, I had grown up with them. Daddy had put up with them with good humor...after he got used to the idea of weird things happening around the house.

He thought the house was haunted. I still remember it fondly now. Back then, I was just as afraid of my magic as he was. I hadn’t a clue as to what was going on.

I sighed, the tears long gone now as I toweled myself off, my head aching through prolonged use of my power. Running low, I guessed. Maybe I consumed a lot of love blowing up the ring. Should I feel bad about it? Destroying the ring, I mean? Was Celestia mad at me? Was Luna? Fleur didn’t seemed bothered. If she was, she said nothing. My temper was going to get me into trouble some day, I know it. Right now, instead of worrying about my dad, thoughts focused on the surge that had knocked me out cold. I’m too old to be having surges!

Damn it.

Unwanted surge aside, I heard noise in my cabin and poked my head from the washroom to see a crewpony bringing in a tray of food. It was a simple ship’s fare, a breakfast of scrambled eggs and hashbrowns with a cup of coffee. I wasn’t too much a fan of the bitter drink. That was Daddy’s favored beverage. The pony smiled at me weakly before leaving, in his wake a primal fear of me. Most of the ship’s crew must be terrified of changelings now, including me. I wondered if it was adding to my melancholy. Though I didn’t want to eat, I forced myself to and even downed the coffee for the caffeine. The clock on the wall chimed four in the morning.

I remembered Daddy didn’t have his hat or his boots on. After wolfing down breakfast, I trotted out the door, donning my unicorn disguise before exiting. It seemed a prudent thing to do, given the recent attack. The ponies on board might know who I was, but I thought it would be a psychological plus to not appear in my normal form.

Not surprisingly, there was a guard outside my door. “Sir?” I began, his head snapping to the sound of my voice. Eyes fixed on me and narrowed.

“What?” The voice was flat and unfriendly, as was his emotions.

“I’m supposed to be in Lady Fleur’s quarters.” I assumed the meekest expression I could. This wasn’t the same guard as before, but I was sure they heard all about my little outburst.

The guard grunted. “This way. Stay close and don’t stray off.”

“Yes, sir.” I hated being humble. It didn’t suit my personality.

I was soon ushered down the hall like an unwanted pest being shooed out the front door, the guard thumping a hoof against Fleur’s door. “The changeling is here to see you, My Lady,” he called out. The door opened, shrouded in the unicorn’s magic and I was bidden entry.

“The changeling has a name, guard,” she reminded him as I stepped over the threshold. “Mind your manners, s'il vous plaît. It would be most unfortunate if Princess Celestia was brought to her attention the rudeness of one of her own personal guards what with all the stressful events happening as of late, non?” With that, the door was slammed in the face of the astonished stallion and his last view was of me blowing a very loud and deliberate raspberry at him.

“Emeraude!” snapped Fleur. She was getting tired of my antics, if I understood the sharpness in her tone.

“Sorry,” I dipped my head shamefully. “It’s just… I mean…” My voice lost itself each time I tried to find the words.

“Lost your faith in Princess Celestia?” she offered plainly. A smile played sadly across her features, her ears splaying out a twitch or two. I nodded mutely and suddenly found the floor in front of my hooves very interesting to stare blankly at. “Ah, I understand, mon fille.”

“It’s twice she’s failed to protect my father,” I went on, straining to keep my frustrations in check. “Daddy came here to see me and how I was doing, not to become some pawn in a political power struggle between two goddesses. He doesn’t deserve this! I don’t deserve this! He’s had one nice day here and that was when we went to Ponyville to meet Twilight’s friends! Now he’s just something being used, regardless of his feelings,needs, concerns or even his basic rights and freedoms. He’s a citizen of the United States of America and a war veteran to boot. His treatment has been deplorable, despicable, and dishonorable! Celestia preaches love and tolerance, but she fails to protect the means by which those creeds are adhered by! She’s failed, Fleur! Utterly and completely and I want nothing to do with her! I just want my daddy back and I want to send him home, and away from this insane world!”

“I see.” The mare stepped into my personal space and nuzzled me. “Please do not hold a grudge against her. She has ruled for a very long time and she understands fully the hardships this places upon you and your father. Her mind is set upon her nation as a whole and keeping the nation whole and healthy, oiu? She is inclined to instinctively see to the best interests of her subjects and secure for them a future of peace and prosperity. It pains her to see others suffer in the process, but she does what she can to prevent such things.”

I shied away from her, shaking my head. “How can you stand there and let her do this to my dad? I thought you liked him, liked me!”

She sighed, offering me a gentle smile. “But I do! I am your friend and I am your father’s friend. I intend to go to the hive with a select group to secure the safe release and return of your papa. I had hoped you might be interested in coming.”

My ears perked forward as I straightened up. “Wha—?”

She gestures to the foot of her bed where a sea chest lays. Upon it are my daddy’s boots and his hat. “Somepony needs to take him his things, non?”

Without hesitating, I trotted over and nosed through Daddy’s things, as if to assure myself everything should be as needed. At least his socks were clean, I noted with satisfaction. “Do you have a saddlebag I can put them in?” I normally didn’t use them, at least not since I was younger, walking with Daddy alone in the wilds of Yellowstone. It had been more of a small harness with pouches for both sides.

One was tossed on top of the bed. I grinned at Fleur and she smiled right back. “We must hurry before the princesses change their minds, Emeraude. Now, un moment while I change and dress appropriately for this excursion.” Her horn lit and covered her form in a bright light, forcing me to squeeze my eyes shut. “What do you think?” she asked me shyly.

Fleur de Lis was dressed in a sort of armor best suited for an assassin. It was white, maybe even leather. Her face was beneath a heavy hood, shoved behind her horn. Her violet eyes shone with merriment as she tossed her head and posed. The simple elegance of the design allowed for freedom of movement while at the same time offering protection to her vital areas. It took a moment, but it fell into place as I realized this was the garb of a battlemage.

“It’s been years,” she said with a smirk. “It still feels good to wear! Come, put the saddlebag on and put your papa’s things in it. We have little time.”

The next few minutes found the two of us hurrying down to the belly of the ship and towards the aft hanger. When the other ponies saw the white clad unicorn trotting along with a nervous black teenager following determinedly behind, they practically fell over each other to get out of the way. Fleur ignored them, but wore a polite smile. At least I wasn’t getting any weird stares.

The whispering, however trailed in the background like an annoying swarm of mosquitos.

“That’s Chrysalis!”

“Suppose she’s behind the attack? Wouldn’t be surprised.”

“I wonder if she knows the prisoner!”

That bugged me. I trotted closer to Fleur. “Okay, spill it. I heard talk of a prisoner.”

“Indeed,” she replied with a nod.

We arrived. There were ponies everywhere, most of them pegasi. Almost all of them were armed to the teeth. Orders were called out as everything had the makings of something big going down.

“Pirates,” Fleur said as she nudged me. “The princesses feel it is time to pay a certain group of sea thieves a visit. Apparently they had in their possession human children with less than honorable intentions. The fleet will rendezvous at sunrise at a point and move in to engage the pirates at their base while the princesses draw out their leader. You missed a great deal while you were having your unexpected rest.”

We sidestepped some ponies moving some heavy gear I had no idea as to what purpose they served. My mind was working its way through the information Fleur had just dished out for me. Once our path was clear, we resumed our hoofsteps uninterrupted.

“So, what’s the deal? How are kids showing up in this world?” I asked. I noted more winged ponies trying in what they referred to as wingblades. “Things are going to get real heavy, aren’t they?” I wondered as thin blades sang out with a distinct metallic ring as their owners inspected them with practiced ease. They fitted along some of the primary feathers and were attached to jointed thin metal covers that flexed over the length of their wingspan. Through thought, pegasi could control them to be as supple as their real feathers or hardened to slice through just about anything. I heard the edge of a wingblade could slice through a gryphon’s body. Just seeing them sent shivers down my spine.

Fleur spotted the group of ponies we were looking for. They were kinda hard to miss considering two alicorns were talking to them. The stern and unyielding looks on their faces was enough to tell me I was going to have to put aside how upset I was at Celestia. Though I could easily feel the emotions from the other ponies in the gathered group. Hatred from Steel Jaw, nothing unusual there. The thestral called Shatterdown saw us coming and as soon as his eyes found the leather-clad sorceress, waves of lust washed over me.

Eeeew!

Brushing that out of my mind, I found Quint Orca giving off the sensation of not really giving a damn about anything. The old pegasus was odd as he never gave off any solid emotion I could get a bead on, save for something vaguely base and even that was a chore. Twilight had explained to me in one of her magic lessons some ponies or even other races had a natural ability to mask their thoughts and emotions. It was rare, but not unheard of. Quint was one of those, I assumed.

There was a fourth pony I didn’t know. She was an earth pony, with a coat slightly darker than Applejack’s and a mane she kept cropped short, save for the base of her dark brown mane. It was a single tight braid with leather strips woven in it. I think she was older, but it was difficult to tell. I sensed from her the emotion of quiet anger. She was a hurricane waiting for the right conditions. Something was off about her. Something I should know or feel.

This was the team going in to save my dad? “Fleur, you can’t mean them, can you?”

The sorceress glanced at me. “They’ll do nicely. They are professionals and one or two of them have something to prove.”

“That’s helpful, Fleur. Really helpful.” My hopes for success swirled downward like flushing toilet water. “FUBAR,” I added under my breath.

“Pardon?” she asked me, a quizzical frown on her muzzle. “What is Fubar?”

I snorted. “One of my dad’s neat little acronyms from his army days.”

“Oh?” she prompted, an eyebrow making a perfect little upwards arch.

I simply smiled and nodded, noticing with a scowl Anzealous was with the group. He was clearly not a happy camper, if I read his body posture correctly. Bent neck, ears splayed out to the sides, nasty little scowl on his ugly little black mug. Yeah, Anzy was not happy at all.

Good.

We still had not been fully noticed as Shatterdown was suddenly drawn into a conversation before he could point out our arrival. Fleur smiled and held me where I stood, just outside of the circle of ponies and changelings I quickly discovered was in the midst of an argument. It was a small miracle they weren’t shouting at each other.

“We don’t need him!” Steel Jaw proclaimed, throwing an accusing hoof at the fat changeling. Anzealous puffed himself up, his visage twisted in outrage.

“Now see here, unicorn!” He hopped up and down, buzzing his wings furiously. “I’m the only one who can translate changeling language for you! Besides, you’ll need me to get past the guards or they’ll tear this little group apart without a second thought! They’ll be expecting us, you idiot! Don’t you see? Or did the lesson in Lady Fleur’s stateroom not convincing enough?”

Well, he did have a point. The changelings had used numbers to overwhelm the two guards in the room as well as Fleur, Anzealous, Daddy, and me. They weren’t particularly strong, but they were quick and went for the weak spots. They were like poisonous snakes, coiled to strike and strike as often as possible until their prey ceased struggling. I was still sore in the places they had bitten me, but the wounds had all but healed by now. Quick healing saliva? That’s a twist!

Fleur cleared her throat. “Ah, so good to have everypony here,” she began, holding her head high and smiling. I think Celestia had a huge influence in her mannerisms. Though she was not as physically impressive as the Princess of the Sun, the sorceress carried an air of authority she exercised almost as if it was nothing more than a passing hobby. “I hope all is ready. Is there a difference of opinion to be sorted out?”

Steel Jaw straightened himself, his features going neutral as he assumed the position of attention. “I don’t understand why we’re taking him with us.” His eyes flicked to me. “She is more than enough for me to be concerned with a second possible threat within our group.”

"Excuse me?” I declared, taking a step towards him. He was not impressed.

“Emeraude,” Fleur chastised me with a gentle hoof blocking my path. “No. You cannot give in to your emotions. As for you, Lieutenant, I should hope your self-discipline is better ingrained than you are letting on. Our lives may very well depend on it.”

“We’re going to be fighting changelings, aren’t we?” he demanded, glaring pointedly at me. The unicorn stallion really did not like me at all. Racist much?

“No,” she replied coolly, indicating to a pair of large and familiar forms joining the small gathering. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna wore stern, disapproving looks as they regarded the Night Guard lieutenant. Shatterdown winced and took a step away from his commanding officer. Steel Jaw flinched and flashed a guilty expression.

I had to do a double-take when the diarchs appeared. Celestia wore gleaming armor of white and gold, perfectly polished and giving off a golden aura. Her torc had expanded, covering her shoulders and barrel, reinforced along her spine in overlapping and flexible plates. The princess’ ethereal mane and tail reflected off the perfectly smooth surface. Her helmet lay between her wings, nestled by what appeared to be the collapsed shaft of a spear. The shoes on her hooves were blunt and designed to giver her kicks more lethal results.

Luna appeared as she did as Nightmare Moon. Her helmet floated beside her, just below the shoulder. It was more open than her sister’s. I thought she seemed to be looking forward to whatever battle awaited her.

“Everyone is here. Good.” Celestia assumed a professional air, shuffling her wings as she did so. Her eyes fell upon me and softened. “It has been a difficult time for all of us. The past twenty-four hours have been very trying, especially for those of us worried about missing family. Queen Anisophira is asking for help, in her own way.”

“By kidnapping my dad?” I asked with incredulous steel in my voice. “That’s extortion!”

Anzealous cleared his throat. “A queen cannot show herself to be weak before her hive. She cannot be weak before the other queens. She will act in a way to giver herself strength, even if it is only an illusion.” Was he...wistful?

I opened my mouth to retort hotly, but Fleur pressed against me, a warning gleam in her eye. “Sorry,” I muttered, slouching unlady-like.

“Be that as it may,” Luna continued for her sister, “Queen Anisophira has one of her changelings with us. He has been most helpful in answering our questions. Though he will not openly admit it, I am led to believe he was instructed to answer truthfully.”

Anzealous looked very uncomfortable.

“It has been brought to our attention the former ambassador has a rather intriguing secret to tell us,” Celestia said.

“So, what’s going on, princess?” Quint asked grumpily. He was always grumpy. “Ain’t none of them officers much for yappin’ about events that might have an impact on the lives of us simple ponies.” The pegasus snorted. “Bein’ told ta keep my mouth shut at some of the ‘classified’ stuff at the meetin’s is drivin’ me insane.”

“Apologies, Master Chief,” Luna said wryly. “I am so appalled at our interest in national security superseding your desire to ‘spread the word’, so to speak.”

He glared at her for a moment. “I don’t care how old you are, young mare,” he stated, “I’ll still put you over my knee and give you a good spanking.”

“Chief!” cried a suddenly pale Shatterdown. The thestral wore a mask of pure unadulterated horror.

“Ya only live once,” shrugged the older pegasus. He stuck a cigar into his mouth from a slim saddlebag on his side. Grinning like the Joker, he gave me a wink even as Luna blushed from his previous comment. “So, are we going to get down to the mission and our objectives or are ye just gonna throw us out there to wing it?”

Celestia sighed and rolled her eyes. “Let’s get down to business. It’s very important we do this right. Leviatan is ancient and powerful. Most magic is ineffective on him due to his sheer size. Luna and I will keep him distracted while the fleet engages any pirate vessels attempting to flee. Now, the purpose of a small group going into the hive is to serve twofold; seek out and find Michael Spriggs. Once you have secured his safety, prepare to assist the hive in defense and retreat.”

“What, we’re helping the changelings?” demanded the earth pony.

“The hive is surrounded by hostile forces of unknown number. They have been this way for several weeks. A World Gate had been in their possession until the attack on the hive saw it stolen along with their foals.” Celestia was as regal and beautiful as her rising sun. “This is a grave moment. A dragon like Leviatan cannot be allowed to possess a World Gate. He has already sent his minions to Earth to learn and steal technologies. They have also resorted to making profits off the foalnapping of human children. No doubt Gray changelings have been in league with the Storm Serpent.”

“Feathersong,” Luna stated, addressing the mare I didn’t know.

What, the earth pony had a name like that?

“Majesty,” came the soft reply. Feathersong was one of those ponies who saw their rulers as deities, goddesses, embodiments of immortality. I knew it the moment I felt her emotions. It was also a bit in her mannerisms; the way she deferred to the Moon Princess and her sister, the love she felt for the both of them, especially Celestia.

“Your duty is clear?”

“It is, your Majesty,” replied the mare.

“What’s her job?” I asked curiously.

“Your safety is my priority,” she said to me, holding her head high. “Fancy Pants asked me to come and keep an eye on you when the princesses sent word back to Canterlot. I was teleported here by one of the Guard’s unicorns. I’m the best mare for the job for missions requiring small numbers and encompassing high risk.”

“So, this is it, then?” Fleur de Lis asked.

“Your group will be the one going into the hive itself.” Celestia flicked an ear, sweeping her gaze over us. “A small tactical team will go with you and secure the perimeter, as soon as the changelings recognize you as friendlies. As soon as Prince Blueblood is able, he will detach from the battle and give you air support once the enemy realizes there are ponies in the hive. There is a forest behind the hive. The hive itself is located along a steep cliff face overlooking a small bay. The changelings are holed up within and have been able to hold off the pirates, but their reserves of love were destroyed by the dragon.”

“They’re runnin’ outta ammo,” supplied Quint helpfully. He puffed on his cigar, oblivious to the world around him as more than one pair of eyes glared at his nasty habit.

“Not only that,” interjected Anzealous (who stared at the cigar with envy!), “Love is necessary for incubating changeling eggs and nurturing nymphs until their first molt. Think of it as mare’s milk with all the vitamins and minerals necessary for proper growth. Love also helps determine a changeling’s magic pool during the early stages of development. The more love is fed into an incubating egg, the greater the chance the changeling will become quite good at magic as well as intelligence. The standard drone is simple at best, using little magic and pretty much relegated to menial tasks. Love also determines the intelligence of a changeling before it hatches.”

“So…” I tapped my chin thoughtfully as I gave the fat little shit some credit. “Does that mean changelings can’t replenish their magic like ponies? I mean, I grew up surrounded by love—” I blushed a bit. So embarrassing! “—from Daddy, so I’ve never been...I don’t know...empty, I guess?”

Anzealous nodded, impressed. “You’re close, young queen—”

“Notaqueen!” I blurted.

“Of course. My mistake. As I was saying, a changeling without magic has almost the same feelings as a pony slowly starving to death. They won’t die, but the certainly would prefer death to the empty feeling.” Anzealous was very serious and had no humor at all in his mannerisms. I don’t think he knew how to make a joke.

“Why is she wearing an inhibitor?” interrupted Feathersong as she eyed the base of my horn. “Is she dangerous?”

“It is a precaution,” Princess Celestia replied, shifting her attention from the earth pony to me. I felt very uncomfortable under her gentle gaze. “She is beginning her final phase of her final change and her magic has become unstable. A bit early for her, don’t you think, Anzealous?” Those magenta eyes flickered to him before returning upon me.

“Usually not until she’s twenty or so,” he agreed, squinting his faceted eyes. “There are a lot of young mares like her who go through the process of assuming positions of authority in changeling society. Most of our kind are relatively simple in thought and manners. Peasants, really. The distinction between drones and royals are distinct and even more so among our males. It becomes apparent as nymphs grow if they will ascend to royal status. We’re all drones in the beginning.” He snorted, his head fin flicking up and down. “But I get ahead of myself. She’s a daughter of the Empress, your Majesty. Such unusual things cannot be unexpected.”

“She’ll be fine, sister,” Luna spoke quietly. “There isn’t much time. We must act now before Leviatan becomes aware of our presence.”

“Agreed. Fleur?” The unicorn tilted her head to one side as she regarded her oldest friend. “Are you ready to meet a queen?”

Fleur de Lis smiled determinedly. “Que le soleil illumine le bas la bonne fortune et la lune montrer le chemin.”

“What?” Shatterdown asked, blinking owlishly.

She giggled. “May the sun shine down good fortune and the moon show the way.”

“Tha’s jus’ great,” complained Quint with a snort. “She’ll be yappin’ fancy the whole way.”

The fleet rendezvoused before dawn, a force formidable even without the presence of the two alicorns. The massive battleship Justicar, one of the Shiva class leviathans in the air was surrounded by her escorts. There was only one other ship of her size and she was deployed on the other side of Equestria as part of the White Cloud fleet. Admiral Briarpatch signaled to Blueblood the desire for a face-to-face meeting with the prince and his aunts. The two alicorns teleported over, along with the Mare Crisium’s skipper. The details of the battle plan were outlined and talked over until everypony was relatively satisfied every possible scenario was covered. There was still the matter of meeting Queen Anisophira’s contact as vaguely mentioned on the map the queen had given Celestia.

Fog was rolled in by pegasi and the fleet spread out at an altitude nearly brushing their hulls to the surface of the calm seas. Destroyers screened out before the larger ships. Before them went teams of pegasi and even a few griffons as they maintained a sharp eye out for the floating island. Few had even heard of such a thing. Such things were the stuff of legends.

Celestia and Luna saw Fleur de Lis and her small group depart via a corsair airship; a fast troop transport designed to insert up to fifty ponies stealthily behind enemy lines. Equestria’s special forces came to stand behind the sturdy craft for its ability to go anywhere at any given time. Both were worried and both had reason to be worried. Too many things could go wrong. Luna was not exactly in a mood to speak with her elder sister as she was unhappy with how events had been unfolding. Too much leniency was being given to the changelings and now the queens appeared to be involving themselves directly. Even worse was the Empress seemed to be doing little to discourage such interference.

This was confirmed when a message from Canterlot from the new changeling ambassador confirmed the mysterious ruler of all changelings was indeed aware of the situation and was not concerned. Even more disconcerting was the feeling she had expected such a thing to happen. Was she testing the Equestrians to see if they would help a queen in need? Intelligence had surprised the two princesses by presenting a report supporting the theory the changelings were in a state of civil war. Twilight added her own thoughts on the matter. She believed through her letter delivered to the Princess of the Sun the changelings were using their weakest queens to test the resolve of both rulers of Equestria as well as to see if they could force Chrysalis into doing something rash. The queens, she believed, were using this moment to empower themselves through intrigue and covert operations.

The dragon was simply taking advantage of his own opportunities. There was hope the nymphs and the eggs were still on the island. It was expected they were still on board some of the pirate ships as the island was reportedly short on space. If they were lucky, the World Gate did not have enough power to open again as they took enormous magical energy to open.

Luna read the letter and clucked her tongue against the roof of her mouth. Of course this would be a game to the changelings. She indicated this with disgust to her sister. Celestia was reluctant to agree, but could not refute Twilight’s assessment. Both armor clad mares prepared to go to the front and meet the dragon before the fleet could move out of the morning fog. Their goal was to confront the dragon, and find the missing foals..

Queen Anisophira’s messenger came at first light, a dark speck in a calm gray morning. The changeling was at the coordinates given, having waited on a raft in the middle of the ocean. She was escorted to the Mare Crisium. Upon meeting Celestia and Luna, she respectfully reported the island was unaware of their approach. The Grays had caught wind of the approaching fleet and had slipped from the island during the night. They did not tell their fellow pirates as they left their non-changeling comrades to meet the might of Equestria, having suddenly found a life of clean living very desirable.

“Have you ever met Leviatan?” Luna asked her sister after the changeling messenger was dismissed.

“I have not,” admitted Celestia. “Shall we go and meet him?”

The dark alicorn smirked. “If what the messenger says is true, he shall be hard to miss.”

“All ships report they are in position,” Prince Blueblood informed them quietly from the side. “On your mark, Auntie.”

Celestia smiled grimly and nodded to her nephew. She was saddened his marriage would have to be put off until after dealing with the dragon and his pirates, but Octavia had given her husband-to-be a kiss for luck before being placed on board one of the auxiliary ships until after the battle. The cellist would make a fine wife and perhaps make a wiser stallion of her nephew. He was a brilliant captain, but was rather aloof and even rude to ponies outside of the navy. The prospect of fatherhood weighed heavily on his mind and the princess had noticed a subtle yet positive change in the unicorn.

She gave Luna an inquiring look. Her sister nodded once, her lips set to thin determination. “The word is given.” Both alicorns lit up their horns and disappeared, leaving behind them swirling air filling in the void of the space they had vacated.

They reappeared on wing, roughly a half a thousand feet in the air. The sound of seagulls and rolling waves filled their ears. Before them a dark mass loomed, jagged with sharply angled peaks reaching high into the air and in a singular row. Around the odd mountains were built a great many makeshift buildings from the wrecks of ships. Nary a plant grew in the crevices, nor was any found anywhere on the land mass. As the fog cleared in patches, they could make out a settlement of sorts with the idea of ‘good enough’ at the core of the haphazard design. Some ships had been stacked on top of each other, some on their sides, other in pieces. Numerous bridges connected them, having been built from ropes and planks. They creaked and groaned in the slight breeze, though it seemed impossible for such little air movement. The island itself was not large as far as islands went, perhaps a thousand feet long and shaped like a teardrop.

“It would appear as though the information was correct,” commented Luna wryly.

“He is large, isn’t he?” remarked Celestia. She then asked politely of her younger sister, “If I may?”

“If you insist.”

“I insist.”

“Why, thank you.”

“But of course!”

Celestia drew in a deep breath, then utilized her Royal Canterlot Voice. “LEVIATAN, SHOW YOURSELF!” The very skies froze, the seas shrank from her power and the sun loomed behind her form and seemed to blaze down upon the island like a spotlight of doom.

On the island, ship’s bells clanged as the inhabitants were suddenly aware there was not one, but two goddesses looking down upon them like holy vengeance come as living revelations. Griffons, diamond dogs, ponies, minotaurs, and even a changeling or two darted about in various states of panic. Some simply gaped up in fearful disbelief at the two alicorns watching them with impassive (and definitely unimpressed) eyes. Cries went up to clear decks and make ready what ships were moored to the island of jumbled shipwrecks. A few brave souls with wings took a moment to see for themselves if the fabled princesses of Equestria had come to met out doom upon them. Once they were satisfied they were indeed confronting living goddesses, they flew in the opposite direction as fast as their wings could carry them, straight in the general direction of the awaiting Equestrian ships.

The island rumbled.

“I think you woke them up,” noted Luna conversationally.

“We’re not interested in them,” replied Celestia with hawkish eyes. Again, filled her lungs. “LEVIATAN, WE WILL HAVE WORDS WITH YOU! RETURN THE WORLD GATE YOU HAVE STOLEN!”

“Which ship are they on, again?” Luna asked, leaning towards her sister as her eyes danced over the mayhem below.

“I should think that one,” Celestia indicated with an armored hoof a large ship teeming with pirates making way from the island. “It’s a converted passenger liner.” Her focus remained on the island itself.

The island shook.

And began to rise.

Bits of the island’s shabby buildings began to teeter and slide off the slopes of the slopes of the mountains. They crashed and fell into the sea, sending up great waves as the frothy seas about the island seemed to come to a life of their own. The island tilted and shook with violence as a great sound seemed to emerge from beneath the waves. The mountains suddenly swayed from one side to the other in a vastness of movement, organic and unlike anything stone was capable of. The last of the settlement fell into the ocean and a great head emerged at the end of a long, thick neck. Barnacles clung along its length and seaweed dangled from where the current had carried it into the scales and folds. The colors were of charcoal and stone, scales touched with flecks of white and browns. They were the markings of an apex predator, made fat and lazy from the homage paid by lackeys and fearful sailors. Yet there was enormous power here, frightening and as of yet undreamed of in all the oceans in all the world.

“Heh..,” sighed the island. Baleful yellow orbs filled with greed and hatred cracked open, from hellish slits to a pair of open fiery pits. “Alicorrrrrrnsssssss…. You come at long lassssst…” A great maw opened, a cavern to a forbidden place no creature could venture and hope to survive. Great serrated teeth capable of slicing through armored hulls of warships separated, revealing themselves to the alicorns. The largest were easily three times larger than Celestia and they lined up in jagged rows of lethal intent. It was a vice no whale could escape. Indeed, there was little left to the imagination as to what might have made a meal for the island that was in fact a dragon.

The former island straightened, rising higher and higher into the air. The massive wedge-shaped head bore a low ridge, becoming more pronounced along the neck until it met the massive barrel of the chest. Great webbed claws upon the forelegs rose, four immense sickles capable of ripping a hapless whale to pieces.

Luna looked the giant monster up and down, not believing any dragon could grow this big. She was colored impressed. “My, you’re a tall one,” quipped the lunar princess.

Chapter 19 Welp, That Escalated Quickly!

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Edited by iakovl

The Empress reclined upon her throne lazily, watching the events play out before her in the middle of her vast throne room. Around it were gathered her daughters, having been summoned to a gathering the likes of which none could remember in recent memory. Queen Druanae was still not accounted for, as she was busy keeping an eye on Equestria. Of course, Queen Anisophira was mired in the middle of a mess the Empress felt she had put herself into. Then there was the third missing queen, Chrysalis.

“See, my daughters! See the princesses of the Sun and Moon! See how they deal with adversity. Behold Leviatan, one of my most ancient servants. Let us take note of how he fares against the might of the moon.” All they could see were her eyes, flaring blood red as they focused on the moving image before them. More than a few rolled their eyes at her melodramatic declaration.

A collection of malevolently glowing eyes shifted to slits, going from the source of absolute power to where those hellfires were settled on. They shone with their own inner fires, driven by their own desires. From within the shadows, more than one queen leaned forward. The sound of buzzing filled the room, stirring the air. The only light came from what lay beyond the scrying spell currently held in place by the Empress. The great form of the sea dragon filled it with his immense bulk. It was noted how tiny and insignificant Princess Luna appeared as she approached.

“She will be devoured!” tittered one of the queens with a loud sneer.

A great gray form shifted next to the Empress, directly to her right. It was usually immobile. Impassively, a muzzle lifted, watching the image of Princess Luna addressing Leviatan. Great feathered wings shifted slowly as hooves clattered once against the stone floor in disapproval. A pair of green eyes flashed momentarily, levelled coldly at the queen who had spoken so rudely. She quieted nervously and they then resumed their normally stoic, half-lidded observation. There was a spark of interest in those orbs.

“Indeed, Shield,” she whispered, affixing a stern glare at the queen who had spoken. “Tell me, child, have you ever faced Princess Luna in battle?”

There was hesitation before an answer was given. “I have not, Mother.”

The Empress chuckled. “Pray you never do, my child. This battle was over before it begins.”

“A message from the embassy in Canterlot,” announced a dry voice from the ceiling. “Ambassador Fae reports the Equestrians will be delayed in their arrival.”

The Empress shifted to a more comfortable position. “Do tell,” she murmured. “Queen Felu, are you aware of who is with them now?”

To her right, in an alcove deep in the shadows came the reply, “I have, Mother.” She was distracted, it appeared. The Empress knew why and chuckled darkly. Her sisters followed with their own laughter, some nervously. Felu was a powerful queen and did not suffer insults lightly. Second to Chrysalis before her mysterious disappearance, Felu now held the dubious favor of the Empress. Only Tappis and Tappaz held greater power, and they were the Twin Queens.

The dark form of the mother of all the changeling queens spoke, and loudly. “Observe, my daughters. The alicorns are formidable. Watch and learn from this battle as it unfolds. Know to underestimate them is to seal your own doom.”

Leviatan considered the tiny dark blue alicorn hovering fifty feet from the tip of his tapered snout. She bore a smirk on her muzzle, hovering on lazy wings as her blue eyes unwavered as they looked into his massive slitted orbs. He had always wondered just what was so special about a creature that was nothing more than a mosquito to his massive form.

His age was unknown, his might never tested. Beneath him at the bottom of the ocean was his great hoard, gathered from countless ships over the aeons. The last fight he had involved a whale, and that had been a sport to the dragon. The whale had been delicious.

“Little blue pony, you are so tiny,” rumbled the immense beast. “What makes you think you can best me?”

She grinned, taking a quick moment to toss her head over her shoulder and wink at Celestia. Luna then faced the dragon again. “Oh, a thousand years of basically doing nothing has left me feeling a bit pent up. I think besting you in combat would be a nice way to test my physical abilities.”

Incredulously he stared at the alicorn, furrowing his massive scaly brows, before inhaling deeply, drawing his head back. The dragon slowly began to laugh sending shock waves thru the air. “You? Best me? A changeling queen defeated your sister. The whole world knows of her failure. I’m certain that if a queen can defeat the so-called Sun Goddess, then you should pose no problem to me, Moon Goddess.”

Luna sighed and rolled her eyes expansively at the dragon. “I am not a goddess! My sister is not a goddess. How many of you idiots do we have to explain it to before you get it right?”

Leviatan did not like being called an idiot. He took exception to the contempt in the alicorn’s voice. Did she not know who he was? He was the lord of the sea, the master of the oceans! No ship on the surface nor in the air was beneath his notice! All treasures were his. Everything was his! Why, even the very life of this insolent little blue winged snack was his!

“Die,” he hissed, lunging forward, maw agape.

Celestia fluffed up a nearby cloud and sat on it, making herself comfortable. This was going to be a test of her nerves, to be sure, but her sister wanted this. Luna was opening up to some of the more modern dialogue and taking to it like a fish to water. Testing out insults on the largest dragon in the world was a bit of a stretch, but Celestia trusted her little sister knew what she was doing. All she had to do was wait for her moment.

The jaws snapped at nothing but air, the blue alicorn flitting easily just out of range as her smile dropped and she began to study her massive opponent. Leviatan was a little quicker than she at first thought and Luna was unsure as to his strengths and weaknesses, obvious ones aside.

“Where did you put the World Gate, Leviatan?” she shouted at him, banking over his left eye, the tips of her armored hooves tapping his thick scaly brows. “You know not what forces lay beyond it!”

“Oh, but I do, puny pony,” boomed the dragon’s voice as his head swiveled to track her movement. His baleful eyes narrowed as he curled a scaly lip in a snarl. “Wealth beyond imagining! Access to magics to bring celestial thieves like you to heel!”

Luna scoffed. “You do not understand what you would unleash upon our world, dragon! You do not understand the humans. They would surely wage war upon you and you would fall! Arrogant foal!”

“Arrogant like you?” sneered the dragon, having locked on her hovering form. “I do not need their magic to slay you, pony.”

“You really are an idiot,” Luna muttered under her breath. Loudly, she called down to Leviatan, “I will give you one chance to surrender the World Gate.”

“Come and take it, if you dare.”

Luna rolled her eyes and shook her head once. “Where wert thou whenst they handed out the brains? Very well, let us see this farce to its inevitable conclusion.” With that, her horn lit up and her eyes flared to pure lamps of fiery white flames. About her, the air gathered, swirling as she slowly rose higher and higher into the now darkening sky. Clouds formed, gathering, heeding her call. As they came, forming from the sea and beneath the blazing sun, they thickened, towering high into the sky. All the while, they began to swirl around the two combatants. Soon, lightning flashed and thunder rolled angrily. The seas came to violent life as the wind sent white-capped waves into a mad froth.

Mind the ships, sister, Celestia reminded her gently.

I know what I’m doing!

Of course you do. Just reminding you in case you get a little too enthusiastic.

Just stay on your cloud, Tia.

Oh, he’s attacking you. Celestia smirked as her sister was distracted with their little argument.

Snorting, Luna focused on the dragon. Leviatan was not about to wait for her to complete her battlefield, having drawn his neck back and inhaling deeply. Did sea dragons breathe fire? She wasn’t sure, having never thought about it to this point other than flames being their default breath. As the dragon’s head shot forward, he again opened his mouth wide, the air around it growing as still as a grave.

Leviatan exhaled, spewing from his gullet green liquid in the form of a mist. Luna simply shot straight up into the air and out of his range. Her hooves dangled delicately beneath her as she stared at Leviatan, flicking her gaze down at the mist following after her. Summoning a gust of wind, she threw it at the poison, the massive downdraft shoving the disgusting stuff right back at the dragon who spewed it.

She called down to the dragon, her voice upon the wind of the downdraft, “At what point would you like for me to die? I hope my continuing to live does not inconvenience you too much!”

Leviatan recoiled from his own breath, closing his eyes and clamping his mouth shut. He shied away as droplets struck his thick scales, hissing as they burned into his natural armor. Smoke rolled from where blackened marks indicated where he was struck. Fury erupted from deep within his throat. He roared, shattering the skies as his rage doubled and focused on the insignificant creature who had dared challenge him.

The massive sea dragon bellowed, “You are not a goddess! You are not omnipotent!”

“Neither are you!” retorted Luna as she hovered warily. She knew the dragon was not going to underestimate her, having caught a glimpse of how she moved.

The dragon inhaled again. Luna expected more of that acid and immediately shifted her body into a rapid ascent with powerful strokes of her wings. The air rushed past her ears as her mane and tail trailed majestically in her wake. The dragon’s head shot forward, his neck muscles rippling as they bulged through his explosive exhale. Flames roared out from between his jaws, licking over his fangs and filling the air with the heat of a small sun.

The Moon Princess dodged the massive tongue of flame as it chased her. The speed she gained increased more and more until her form was but a blur of indigo, leaving behind her a streak crackling with an ethereal swirl. Her wings sang as they extended slowly with each stroke through the air, shimmering with a song like singing steel.

Nice to know this dragon breathes fire as well, she noted mentally.

Luna streaked through the air, darting into the angry, boiling clouds. Her armor flashed and her wings flared with elongating blades of magic. They flexed as she flapped her wings, undulating much as her mane and tail did, as if on a separate wind. Her horn flared indigo, her body shimmering in waves in response to the pulsing it began to emit. Below her, Leviatan bellowed and roared, frustrated at losing sight of his prey.

She commanded the storm and created a vortex; dancing, spinning and gusting, pouring more energy to it. A finger of clouds began to form beneath her, arching downwards to the sea. while in the eye of the vortex, Luna adjusted the funnel’s direction, tapping into her pegasi magic.

The Empress smiled from behind her mask of shadows. “Tell me, my champion.” Her voice caressed the giant pegasus’ ears with the tenderness of a long-lost love. “What say you to Luna, Mistress of the Moon, Lady of the Night and Princess of Equestria?”

Her daughters tittered nervously, as it was rare when the imposing pony was asked his opinion. When he spoke —if he chose to— his voice was unlike anything any pony could possibly possess. The only bodyguard the Empress ever kept near her, his green eyes always watchful. Intently he watched Luna as she darted easily from the dragon, her eyes never showing panic or worry. Her confidence was clear, faith in her abilities evident and absolute.

Shield was intrigued. A slight smile twitched on his muzzle, then resumed to being nothing. Inclining his head towards his Empress, he said in a voice barely above a whisper, “I should like to face her.” It was deep, a soft rumble only the Empress could make out.

She smiled, leaned over to the pegasus, and gave him an affectionate nuzzle before resuming her attention to the image. “Soon, my dear. Soon.”

You know what? I love being surrounded by kids. There’s a blissful chaos to be had when you’ve got a little bundle of chitin and fangs hanging on one arm, while another glomps you on the head. To my left, one chirped for my attention as he wanted to show me his wrestling prowess, distracted by his own need for attention. The sister he wrestled took advantage of this and rolled him on his back, bumping the both of them into a third nymph. She took exception to this and began to complain loudly, batting at both of them with her forehooves. Her protests sparked a chain of events which stirred their guardians from their dozing. Changelings mares were soon drifting among them, snatching children apart and scolding them in their language. Some were harsher, I thought, than others.

There were three of them. They were tired, worn out, and each bore an expression of weariness not caused by the room full of nymphs. They watched me as I moved, stopping every muscle as I sat up and leaned over, reaching my arm out towards a particularly loud colt, the wrestler.

“Enough of that,” I told him as I grabbed him by the scruff of his neck. Just like a kitten, he immediately went limp as soon as my fingers closed over the back of his neck. He weighed nothing, but I brought my other hand underneath for support and picked him up. As I picked him up, I turned him around so he could meet my gaze. He blinked at me, his solid blue eyes widening. “Behave,” I admonished him gently.

I decided to call him Bitey. As the adults watched me like constipated gargoyles, ready to intervene should i do something wrong, I pulled him to my chest, hooves facing up and cradled him like I cradled Chryssie when she was younger...and much, much smaller!

Bitey blinked again, finding himself very comfortable indeed. I began to rub his belly and he almost immediately went limp with bliss once he realized how good it felt. His tongue lolled out as he grinned, his eyelids going heavy.

Yeah, I experimented on my daughter to know just how to make a changeling like putty in my hands. Blissfully the colt chirped as I had him settled in ten seconds flat.

I think someone just guffawed. What?

For the next few minutes, I helped the mares settle down the wriggling brood of unruly changeling nymphs. Queen Annie had left some time ago, tending to doing more queen stuff, or just braiding her mane, or whatever it was changelings do when they’re under siege.

I guess I should describe the room, now that the chaos has died down to nap time. It’s a fairly large room, circular in shape...more of an oval, really. There’s a lot of nooks and crannies in the walls filled with little books and toys. More are scattered on the floor. Throw rugs are here and there, brightly colored. Lots of large cushions are also on the floor, each one bearing at least one nymph. Odd lamps dangle from the ceiling, looking more organic than mechanical in their make. It gave the room a ruddy glow, as changelings seemed to prefer less light than, say a pony. I was reminded of a room filled with perpetual sunset, just after the fiery orb had settled beneath the horizon.

Putting the snoozing Bitey on a nearby cushion, I stood up and stretched my cramped limbs, startling the adults in the process. I hated this. I hated the waiting. I hated the not knowing what was going on. My instincts told me all was not well in the world of ponies.

About then, the room came alive as the queen entered, her face grim as her mane seemed somewhat disheveled. The nymphs felt her emotions and all awoke from their naps, most quite upset. The sound of insane crickets filled the room. Scared changeling nymphs would fit right in with Ozzfest. She gave them a sympathetic smile as she swept through them, throwing out nuzzles like Miss State Fair waving at the crowd. Annie was all smiles and tenderness to them, but as soon as she came up to me, she hissed a sentence.

“Come with me quickly!”

Her voice suggested ‘no’ was not an option. Dislodging Bitey from my leg (he latched on to it when the queen woke everyone up) proved to be akin to prying a tick off with a wet noodle. He chirped at me frantically, shaking his head. It was easy to see what he was saying in his baby changeling talk.

“Don’t go! Don’t go! Don’t go!” he seemed to chirp at me, his eyes huge and already welling up with tears.

One of the mares darted in, taking him by the nape of his neck. He went limp for the second time, sniffling pitifully as he realized he wasn’t going to be allowed to stay with me. Bitey began to cry, hiccupping for breath as he tried weakly to reach out to me. It broke my heart, but the queen held sway over a portion of my mind.

Why hadn’t I mentioned anything to her about it? It was as though I couldn’t. I was compelled to obey, yet still hold on to the most important aspects of my mind and those things within that made me an individual. A living puppet, restrained, following a linear path though there were countless paths shooting off in all different directions. My bare feet stayed true to a course not set by myself. I hated it, yet obeyed with a feeling between curiosity and determination. I could feel a portion of Annie’s concern, the anger lying within her inner self. She was consumed by her worry for her hive and the changelings who looked to her for guidance.

She was an angry mare.

She was a determined queen.

She was a grieving mother.

She was a steadfast leader.

Fronts, all of them. Lies to conceal her fears. My thoughts pieced together something different, another angle, a different picture. I saw a dying old woman, left to fend for herself, her own family having forsaken her to a fate I could not even begin to fathom. Though her figure was lithe and moved with fluid grace, it was as though her very soul was crumbling before me.

Why was I seeing this?

“I must prepare the hive for her,” she told me as we followed a winding corridor. Her hooves made no sound as she offered me a passing glance. Her wings buzzed every so often, a clear sign of her agitation. “But for you, I must ask you...no, command you to take up arms. I must task you with protecting my children. We are surrounded, but we must make a breakout towards the forest and get the nymphs to safety. The dragon’s minions are beginning to tighten the noose. I imagine their master is engaged in combat. Their fleet has been scattered. Either they seek to take hostages or they seek slaughter.” Annie rambled, seemingly as though she expected me to pay attention. My feet padded on the balls and toes. My sore toe barked at me.

“We have weapons,” she went on, taking a turn that led the two of us deeper into the bowels of the shattered hive. “But we don’t know how to use them. They are alien to us. Not made for hooves. Our magic is not accurate enough to manipulate them properly and our training has not advanced enough for us to understand and properly train with them.”

Weapons?

“Human?” I guessed out loud as I used my hand to steady myself on the steepening descent. The floor felt firm and bumpy, but my instincts wanted a third contact with a surface for balance.

There was a pause from Annie. “Yes,” she replied with a heavy sigh. “We used the World Gate to steal human weapons. My hive is small and I wanted an advantage against my larger and more aggressive sisters.”

Whelp, that’s such a welcome thing to hear! “Wait, how long have you had it?”

“Hmm?”

“The World Gate. How long have you had it?”

She tilted her head, pausing a step or two before resuming our journey. “I should imagine seven or eight years now. It took five to gather enough energy to power it, figure out how it works, and establish an anchor on the other side.”

“Anchor?” I blinked in confusion.

She misread my one word question. “Vatican City.”

“The Pope!?”

She chuckled. “The Lord bless thee, and keep thee: The Lord make his face shine upon thee, and be gracious unto thee: The Lord lift up his countenance upon thee, and give thee peace. Numbers chapter six, verse twenty-four through twenty-six.” The queen stopped in her steps and regarded me with amusement. Wanted to see the shock on my face. “Honestly, Mr. Spriggs, how can we changeling collect love if we did anything other than preach love and peace?”

Without waiting for me to reply, Annie tossed her mane and resumed her walk.

“Now just wait a minute, Lucy. You got some ‘splainin’ to do!” I called after her. “The friggin’ Pope? Seriously? The whole of the Catholic faith is centered around you guys? THE. HELL. YOU. MEAN !?!?”

No way. Absolutely no way! Impossible!

“No,” she snorted dismissively. “The infiltration was recent, during your current century. The time differences between my world and yours differs greatly, expanding and contracting. I’ve noticed our timelines slowly falling in sync with each other. I should imagine them to be aligned within a generation.” Anisophira grinned to the side, allowing me a view of her fangs. “But that’s not important right now.”

“The hell it isn’t, lady!” I snarled. “Changelings on Earth? For how long?”

“Almost as long as the ponies have been. Not quite. Perhaps two thousand of your years? Oddly enough, despite the troughs and crestings of our respective time lines, the total difference between our worlds is even enough.”

Smart talk hurt brain! Mikey need smash something to feel superior! Change the subject, you idiot! Your brain can’t handle the overload! I can’t even do a proper overload because my brain is too primitive!

Something clicked in my head. “Wait a damned minute. You’ve got guns!”

“Acquired through various means,” she conceded, unabashed.

“You were trying to learn how to use guns?”

“Such a smart monkey.”

“And you’re too stupid to figure out how to make the long stick go boom?”

Michael, Michael, Michael. If you’re going to insult a being with the ability to obliterate your head off your shoulders in a blind rage, calling her stupid is a great way to start!

Instead, she gave me the stink eye. “Amusing. An implied joke involving your mind in the gutter. How typically male of you. I wonder if you would be as effective gelded.”

My boys shrank up into me. I don’t know how that was even possible, but it sure felt like it! Yipe! Yipe! Yipe! “Hey, now! Let’s not do anything—”

“Stupid?” she suggested smoothly as I felt something grab my genitals and begin to squeeze, her horn glowing a bit. She never moved from her spot and gave me the look of an old friend having a pleasant chat with me. “Oh, indeed, let us not do anything rash, Mr. Spriggs. I wonder, what words would be most appropriate for this very moment? What terms of endearment would my ears hunger to hear from such a scholarly gentlecolt such as yourself?” Annie gave me a lovely smile behind those wicked, wicked, wicked fangs of hers.

“I’m sorry?” I guessed through the pain in my nether regions.

“With more feeling, Mr. Spriggs,” she encouraged like a demented movie director. Think Quentin Tarantino if he had boobs, erm, teats, erm….whatever! The invisible hand squeezed harder making it very hard to think straight.

Since the topic of religion had made a fresh impression on my mind. “Jesus! I’m sorry! Oh, God, I’m sorry!”

With that, the pressure was gone and I immediately placed my hands over the tender spot, scrunching my knees and thighs together as I hissed in the remnants of the pain. “Too far?” I asked lamely.

“Yes.”

We continued and soon came to a door flanked by two menacing-looking guards. Without hesitation, they opened the door and the queen went through without so much as a nod at them. They glared at me. I cringed a bit, rubbing a hand at the base of my neck subconsciously. Lowering my eyes, I simply followed Annie inside.

“Behold,” she announced proudly, her horn flaring to light the room. The queen slid to one side to allow me an unimpeded view of what lay before me.

Cases of carbines. Racks of rifles. Parcels of pistols. Ammunition. Grenades. Enough weapons and ordnance to supply a small army for a month. A veritable cornucopia of mayhem.

There were different sorts as I drifted among the neat stacks, reaching out and touching flash suppressors, butt stocks, receivers…

“Oh God...you’re preparing for war!” I stopped, turned, faced the queen. Spreading my arms wide, I demanded, “Where did you get all of this?”

Annie shrugged. “Stolen,mostly. There are reserve bases and storage places where the security is lax. A simple thing to send in a small team to gather up these tools of violence. I sought an advantage over some of my sisters, as I might have mentioned. Unfortunately, word of the World Gate reached the ears of Leviatan. You know the rest.”

“How...I mean...why?” I stumbled over my own words, completely at a loss.

“Could you fight if it meant protecting the lives of innocents?” the queen asked sternly. She swept a hoof over the room. “I have but a small force and need to give them any edge I can against any threat beyond my reach. There are those out there who would surely find happiness upon the corpses of dead changelings, my own kind included.”

I blinked like a deer in the lights of an oncoming semi. “You...want me to...fight for you?” My nagging thoughts formed words and those words were what came out. “I...I don’t know what to say…”

“Would you take up arms to protect your daughter?” she insisted, stepping towards me like an ominous storm cloud. “Are these nymphs within this crumbling sanctuary not worthy of being protected? I need you to help watch over them while they make a run for the forest. The Equestrians are gathering there as we speak.”

Her eyes began to glow, her voice growing ernest.

“Take up the tools necessary to protect the future, Mr. Spriggs.”

I didn’t want to pick up what I had left behind all those years ago. Still, there was the possibility of a fight, and I would be an idiot to be without some form of defense. The urging from the queen compelled, I had to obey. Though there was a part of me screaming for freedom from these mental bonds, the other part wondered what the big deal was.

Wait...Chryssie? It was the last memory I had before everything went blank. All that mattered now was my queen. I must defend her. She is all that matters! I am her chosen! I must protect her, even with my life!

FML.

I wonder how Daddy was doing? We arrived into the hidden canopy of a bunch of trees not far from the sound of waves crashing against the cliffs. The ocean was so close, I could smell the salt in the air. The sun was finally rising and we could make out patrols of winged creatures larger than pegasi flying over a particular area. Griffons, I noted once I squinted for a better look.

Having arrived just as the first rays of the sun broke the horizon, we were quickly approached by a pair of camouflage changelings. Anzealous was nervous, but spoke to them quietly, ignoring their initial glares. They were focused on him, almost as though they knew the fat little changeling. On the horizon, we could all see dark clouds forming. Lightning flashed here and there, the sound of distant thunder making my ears swivel towards them.

“Luna’s hard at work,” noted Bob with an admiring grin. “Probably giving that dragon the fight of his life!” He was looking at me when he said that. I could feel his pride welling out from him.

Feeling her magic, or the concussions from her manipulation of the atmosphere left me in a sense of awe. Her signature was in the air, sort of like a shockwave. With it rode her confidence. I heard a roar in the distance. Or was that just more thunder?

Feathersong assumed overwatch, while Steel Jaw vanished ahead to scout out the lay of the land. Quint Orca chewed on the end of an unlit cigar, looking unimpressed as he glared at the two changeling scouts. All the ponies were armed, except for myself, Anzealous and Fleur de Lis. I was in my unicorn disguise. My eyes fell away from the horizon and settled upon the two changeling scouts speaking with the former ambassador.

Something else was here. I felt uneasy. It was the same as on the airship. I blinked as my mind worked through the initial confusion of this sensation. I zoned out, focusing on that source. It felt like something within myself.

“Ye smell her, girl?” growled Quint, squinting at me with a knowing grin. “Ye feel her, don’cha? Her presence pings around inside yer little head an’ ye know. Ye can’t explain it, but ye know, girl!” The older pony leaned in as he whispered. “Are ye good?”

“I’m fine!” I said, more than a little creeped out by the pegasus.

“Wait here,” announced Fleur suddenly. “Anzealous and I will be going into the hive to make contact with the queen. Emeraude, come with us. Queen Anisophira wishes to see you.”

Quint nudged me. “Git.”

Nervously I trotted towards Fleur. “There’s a tunnel entrance not far from here,” she said as I came within the range of her quiet voice. “According to the scouts, there are twenty, perhaps twenty-five unfriendly folk about here, watching the hive. There are three airships inbound.” She flashed flinty eyes. “They are not our friends.”

“Pirates?” I guessed.

She nodded. “There’s a squadron of destroyers giving chase, but I should think they come to finish the job. I do not know why they would do this, but petty vindictiveness, I should think.”

“How much time?”

She turned to Anzealous questioningly. He in turn grumbled, but repeated her question to the scouts. They responded, one of them throwing a hoof in the direction of the storm. I squinted and noticed three dots at a level where they nearly blended in with the dark clouds. “Less than half an hour,” was the answer from the fat changeling. “I recommend haste.”

The two scouts stared at me. Their eyes widened. One chirped at Anzealous. He sighed, nodded. They both bowed hastily to me, exchanging words excitedly with each other in hushed whispers. Finally, they turned and slinked into the underbrush. Fleur went after them, and I followed her. Anzealous brought up the rear. Considering his ample caboose, it was only fitting.

I didn’t want to follow him. “Keep your eyes off my butt,” I warned him, half joking, half willing to rip his face off if his eyes so much as wandered over my tail. My ears swiveled back on him as I kept my eyes ahead of me.

“Nothing much to look at,” he seemed to mutter.

It wasn’t long before we found the entrance mentioned earlier. It was hidden beneath some bushes and a very clever illusion spell. Without pause, we disappeared into it and headed towards the hive.

Yay me.

Luna panted lightly, the storm running wild around her. The shafts of her elongated wings caused by her extending herself had served effectively as blades. The dragon’s natural armor was rent and torn, scales dangling in places, exposing skin and flesh beneath. The dragon’s fury had not left the alicorn untouched; wounds and bruises from the dragon’s own manipulation of the storm had scored her well. The tip of her horn glowed as she readied another bolt of pure magical energy to hurl at one of the number of spots on Leviatan she had been concentrating on.

As she did so, warily circling high over her opponent, the dragon’s maw bore smoke drifting from between his fangs. Both combatants were eager to continue, neither willing to give an inch.

Luna’s eyes narrowed as she steadied her breathing. Far from exhausted, she chided herself mentally for exerting more energy than she felt was necessary in wearing down the dragon. Her constant waterspouts bounced off his hide at first, doing little more than to blind the dragon as she planned her attacks. She had no intention of killing him, despite his best efforts to roast her. The dragon was in a frothing rage, or rather near one as she stymied every effort he made to slay her. Having wings gave her certain advantages where his sheer size made him near immune to most of her magic.

Had Celestia found it yet? The World Gate? Have you spied out where the beast hid it?

I have. It lies beneath the waves in a cave within a seamount. He has been hovering over it, guarding it. I think he has minions down there as well. Very strange. I do not know the sea. Celestia mentally frowned to her sister. I shall assume the shape of a porpoise and see for myself.

Hurry! My strength is not bottomless!

You’re the one who insisted she could handle Leviatan!

You get the next dragon.

Fine!

Fine! Luna found her smirking after having a foalish outburst with her sister. I hope you get Spike. She nearly missed the flames reaching for her hungrily and skipped on wing out of the way. “How rude!” the alicorn called out to the dragon.

“Stop your prancing in the air, little thing!” complained Leviatan with an aggravated snarl. “I grow weary of your cowardly tactics!”

“Surrender the World Gate!” she cried. “This battle is already mine. You delay the inevitable!”

Leviatan screamed at her, hurling more flames in defiance. Again, she dodged out of range, plinking away with her horn in reply. Cobalt bolts of magic flashed down, striking flesh stripped of armor. Blood seeped through some of the wounds. He did not care, nor did he feel the pain, for it was nothing to him. True, he had never been harmed like this since he was a hatchling, but those memories were ancient and like the dust. He barely recalled what it was to feel such an assault upon his body.

The dragon decided he did not care for receiving harm. The insufferable mare was proving to be far too quick and agile and her command of the storm rivaled his own. Since when did wings cut such gaping wounds? His eyes swirled, unable to fathom the depths of most magics, having been largely ignorant of it for most of his life. He was aware of magic, even had his own magic abilities, like his flames and his ability to call up storms. Leviatan could create a vast whirlpool to swallow up ships so he might take them apart and take what treasures he desired for himself.

He drove the storm with his own will, finding her mind to be formidable as it challenged his. Luna knew this, understood him, and took advantage to what was before her. Already she had an idea to his weaknesses, his obvious strengths. It was as though she could see into his mind, though this was far from the truth. Leviatan was a creature of habit, so used to his strength and size, he had forgotten there were smaller beings who were capable of bringing him down.

She began to command the storm to charge up, hurl bolts of lightning at him. Again and again they struck his exposed flesh, his scales unable to deflect the repeated assaults. Each strike landing true made him shriek in agony, thrashing in the ocean, adding his own waves to the violent sea. Blinded by the growing and unending agony, he did not think to dive, driven mad with the desire to strike back at the alicorn doing him such harm. To flee was unspeakable!

“Yield!” she cried down to him, using her Royal Voice.

His great form jolted and jerked as his nerves spasmed from the damage.

Luna sighed, saddened it had come to this. So much suffering in the name of pride!

“Do you see, my daughters? Do you see the cunning behind the power?” the Empress lectured, drifting her attention from daughter to daughter. “Luna was banished in the moon for a thousand years, yet she is able to overcome the madness which threatened to consume her.”

Her mane stretched out, an extension of her will as it idly caressed the side of her champion. Within the shadows concealing her features, she smiled. An exchange occurred in the span of a glance and she withdrew into her throne until the darkness swallowed her. Only the glow of her eyes was proof she was still there.

“A loss of a day, perhaps two,” she noted dryly. The Empress lifted her chin. “Felu?”

The third queen to her right stepped on hoof forward, bowing. “Yes, Mother?”

“Go to him. After so many years, I am sure you are eager to get reaquainted.”

She flinched, but bowed her head. “As you wish, Mother.”

The Empress smiled. “Go. I think I have let you suffer long enough. Your loyalty has proven itself.” The smile faded, became serious. “Anisophira goes too far and overplays her role.”

Queen Felu nodded and herself disappeared into the shadows. The Empress regarded the scene of Leviatan being overcome by the Princess of the Moon. “Go, my love. Be a better opponent than the fool who underestimated her.” Her horn lit up and she began to channel a delayed spell as she decided she had seen enough. It was inevitable it would come to this.

Leviatan had failed, as expected.

The gray pegasus rose to his hooves, shaking out his wings. His eyes lit up in anticipation and the faintest hint of a smile played out for a moment. Bowing to his Empress, he turned, flicked his tail, and departed into the darkness.

Leviatan was in the last throes of his fight. The alicorn was too much for Storm Serpent, her will finally taking what control over the storm he held sway. The relentless pounding of the wind and the sleeting rain compounded with the precise lightning strikes finally wore him down. Stubbornly he resisted on, as dragons were not prone to surrendering. The only other creature they could even think of fleeing was another, larger dragon.

He was the largest in the world.

“Inconceivable,” he whispered in a pale shadow of his voice. “I am the ultimate predator! All bow to me! I am king!”

Luna observed the writhing mass of pain beneath her and felt a pang of pity for him. It took a moment to pass as she realized why she was here to begin with. “It’s over,” she told the dragon. A hateful glare was aimed at her. “Yield, Leviatan. Yield and submit to your fate. There is much for you to answer for. The suffering of the innocent beneath your shadow ends this day!”

She paused, observing the living mass ignoring her as it could only feel the agony wracking his body. Celestia was busy finalizing the location of the World Gate. She succeeded with the simple message ‘I found it!’ pinging in the younger alicorn’s mind. Other than that, Celestia left Luna to concentrate on the dragon.

“The Council of Dragons will be interested in taking you into custody, as they have first rights to you, Leviatan,” she said, determined he should hear her. Drifting before his massive head, she addressed him again, repeating her words louder. “No doubt the list of charges against you is great.”

He fixed her with a hateful glare, unable to do more than snort smoke in her general direction, managing to still his body enough. Leviatan sank into the sea, but Luna charged her horn and held him with a grip on his massive snout, like a great band.

“Delusional creature!” she told him coldly. “I can smell the innocent blood you have taken. I can feel the suffering you have inflicted. I am not goddess, but I am a greater foe than you have no doubt discovered for yourself. You command the storms? At my whim! You rule the sea? I bring the tides! I have shattered the glass you have encased yourself within, Leviatan. For the last time, yield!”

“Your hatred of humans is known to me,” hissed the dragon in a rumbling whisper. “Tell me, why should they matter to you? Would not the blood of humans upon the water please you? I would do you a favor by making humans suffer, would I not?”

She narrowed her eyes. “My grievances against another world has nothing to do with you, monster.” Luna shifted her focus. “Whom are you serving? You cannot have the knowledge to work a World Gate!”

Leviatan opened his mouth to speak, but froze, his eyes going wide. He gurgled, eyes rolling back into his massive head. The thrashing renewed with a frantic frenzy. The dragon rolled on the ocean, his sheer mass breaking the magical hold Luna had. He shrieked in a new, deeper agony, his claws clutching at his chest with such ferocity as to tear his scales and rend deeply within himself. The alicorn pulled away, in utter shock.

She could feel it! A powerful spell had exploded within the dragon!

“By the Maker,” she breathed in horror, watching the lights die in the dragon’s eyes. Celestia, he is dead…

The air before her shimmered, the telltale sign of an incoming teleport. The alicorn did not recognize the signature. It was completely foreign, but it was strong and solid. The caster was experienced, even taking out the bright light that normally preceded instantaneous travel. A strange gray mass solidified before her, The gray form spread its wings wide, facing her, not more than fifty body lengths from Luna. He was larger than her, his wings flaring wide. No horn adorned his head. How did he teleport here? This was easily one if not the largest pegasus the dark princess had ever seen.

“Who are you?” she demanded, recovering quickly. Luna knew this pegasus could not have possibly used magic to get here. Where did he come from? “Who sent you?”

The strange pegasus ignored her for a moment, his eyes drawn to the floating corpse of the dragon beneath him. For a second or two he stared, his expression neutral.

Luna asked again, “Who are you?” His ears swiveled towards the princess, then his muzzle came up.

“A challenger,” came the answer, his voice as unsettling as it could possibly be .

His left eye assumed a burning ember of red flame, observing balefully.

Luna did not like this, she didn’t like this at all. “Ponyfeathers,” she muttered under her breath.

Author's Notes:

Message from iakovl! "Dum Dum Dum... Shield is in the house, you'll see more of him as the story goes on. started as my nameless OC ended up with a name and a part in MDC (thx Scarheart) you'll learn more about him later on, and might end up with some sort of a story for his background. really hope you'll like him, tell me what you think of him so far"

This was a difficult chapter to write, mostly because the battle between Luna and Leviatan was supposed to be epic. I could not for the life of me get it to feel right. I faltered so many times and came up with a sort of compromise. Stretching a battle of wills into physical form is harder than I thought it would be. I hope to get better as this'll be a lesson I can take to heart.

My apologies if people were expecting something more epic.

Comments are welcome!

Chapter 20 The Good, the Bad and the Changelings

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Edited by Iakovl and DJ_Neon_Lights (formerly Shadowblades)

My name is Mike and I am a slave. It wasn’t always like this; I had a home, wealth and a daughter that loved me…

Then, I came to Equestria to the aforementioned daughter. And it’s been downhill ever since.

Hundreds of minds latched on to mine, learning what I knew, taking my knowledge as their own. I gave it to them freely, without thinking of the consequences. My Queen demanded it and would accept nothing less than my full divulgence.

Their interest lay in the human weapons; how to use and deploy them. They learned within minutes what took normal people weeks to grasp. My mind was no longer my own, my actions were dictated by her will.

Queen Anisophira might have claimed to be weak, but she held my mind in her grasp. She soothed me, cradling my mind as though it was an infant. There was no apology for taking over my actions and enslaving me to her will, but I was aware of what she was doing. I simply could do nothing to stop her.

Those eyes. Those blue eyes glowing with an intensity born of desperation, hunger...and revenge. They wanted to strike back at those who had destroyed their home, taken her hatchlings and she would do anything in her power to see them pay for it, i was just a means to an end.

...And I was teaching them how to fight like a human soldier. US Army training on basic tactics, things I thought I had long forgotten. They came easily to my thoughts and into theirs. Annie simply reached in and plucked them out as easy as pie. When I lifted the rifle I had selected, they did the same, using their magic. They easily picked up on looking down the sights and focusing on the front sight post. All they needed was hours of practice on the range,they had the basics, everything else would come with experience.

Oddly enough, I seemed to have control over my own thoughts, like I was in the corner of a small, dark room lit by a dull, yellow light. I felt Annie’s presence as she seemed to cradle this part of me as gently as a mother holds a newborn.

What have I done?

It’s not you, it’s me.

Why?

The hatchlings, Mr. Spriggs. It’s for them, for my hive. I might not live for much longer, but that doesn’t mean I can shirk my responsibilities as a queen. My changelings never went to your world. Other queens had done so.

Why are you queens so interested in me? Why your mother? Why Chrysalis?

You’re missing a queen. I saw her in your memories.

What? Who?

You heard me, Mr. Spriggs, you’re missing a queen. I allow you to have this amount of free thought because I do not intend to keep you this way any longer than absolutely necessary. My warriors have the means and the knowhow, but they require leadership. I sense the dragon has been defeated. Mother destroyed his heart. She has several dragons under her control, obedient to her only because of the enchantment she placed over their hearts. That being said, it will not prevent the pirates who served their master to give up and flee. They will want blood and the weakness of my hive will invite them to come and destroy as much as they can before the Equestrians can chase them off. We don’t have time for this. My sentries have met members of Celestia’s group. They’re in the tunnels. Your...daughter is with them.

Chryssie?

Yes. She has great power within her. Even now, I can feel her as she draws closer. Untrained. Raw. She reminds me of when she was young, hundreds of years ago. You didn’t know that, did you? She was once ancient, older than even me. Mother told all of us she regressed, became young again. Death lost its grip on her and she was torn from this world by an unfathomable power. I can see it now. I understand. I sense her bond with you. I have her hive and her hive is you, Mr. Spriggs.

I couldn’t tell if it was me talking or if Annie was yapping. It was as though I was talking to myself and worse...responding to myself. I was aware of myself, but yet she was still there with me. We were separate entities speaking with the same voice. It was very confusing, yet I understood when she spoke and when I spoke. It was the same as when Syl had spoken to me days before. God, it was so weird!

Hive?

It’s our word for an extended family, Mr. Spriggs. I think you should understand that more than any other living being who is not a changeling. You are unaware of how much of a changeling your mind has turned.

I was moving as we spoke, guided by her will. My bare feet padded along the uneven floor, heading towards the defensive perimeter. The scouts were warning of movement and the changelings were taking up their positions. The foe was a collection of griffons, ponies, and even some other changelings. It was the pace of desperation that drove me, the queen just in front of me, all outer appearances of weakness replaced by unyielding resolve and rumbling anger. I wanted to find my daughter, to be with her.

Anisophira said no. Multiple times. It was her will that drove me, as my body became an extension of what she wanted done. I hated it. She understood I hated this violation, yet was not willing to let me have my freedom or my own sense of free will. I sensed her sorrow, but she needed me and had to ensure I could not resist her desire to protect what was hers.

I won’t apologize for protecting what is mine, Mr. Spriggs.

I’m nothing more than a puppet, damn it!

Yes, you are. But you have the potential to be an effective puppet. Mother said there was something different about your mind….Ah, she’s trying to connect with you.

Chryssie?

I can’t let her do that. I need you for the moment. It will frustrate her. It will enrage her. It might awaken her enough. Perhaps it will turn the tide. Her sisters will feel her rage and feel her magic. They will remember why they feared her. This is good. They have reached beyond what has been allotted them. They must learn what happens when the balance between chaos and order is in imbalance. We changelings have our place on this world, yet Mother wants more than what has been set aside for her and her children. This is why she cursed me with this painful wasting sickness. This is why my mother has seen fit for me to die. I helped my sister plan Canterlot. I turned on her, betrayed her in order to expose the war to imbalance the scales of Light and Dark.

What do I have to do with all of this? It feels as though I’ve been a part of this for a very long time.

...That’s because you have, Mr. Spriggs. The only reason I’m telling you this is because you have become a part of a grander plan, a small cog in a great machine not everyling wants to be a part of. I am one of those. Chrysalis wanted to force the issue. Both of us wanted the same thing, but I wanted to be subtle. She wanted to bring the ponies into our inner conflicts.

Why?

The Chrysalis you didn’t know had designs on usurping the Empress and to become Empress herself. She needed a glut of love in order to do that and brought in some of her sisters into her plan, myself included. Chrysalis believed if we had enough love to power our magic, a joint operation to bring down Mother would succeed. It wasn’t going to work. Mother is too powerful and Tappis and Tappaz would never turn on her. They are her most loyal queens and only behind Chrysalis in terms of magical ability. Of course, there’s Mother’s personal guard, that soulless pegasus.

Pegasus?

He’s a monster, Mr. Spriggs. We changelings are fearsome predators in our own right, but that pony...he scares us. Mother has had him for over three hundred years and he’s no longer something you can really consider a pony. She’s altered him in ways, toyed with him. His love for her is unconditional and she has rewarded him accordingly. Gaea Shield is her champion. She has sent him before to discipline her daughters or to kill those she felt were in the way of her machinations. Mother granted him certain gifts, she can speak her voice through him and see what he sees if she so chooses. He could very well be a match against an alicorn, if but for a few minutes.

...I hate him.

We exited through one of the tunnels into sunlight. I automatically assumed a crouch as I moved, the other minds telling me there were threats in the area. The shattered face of the cliff was there and the other changelings had taken up defensive positions, breaking up in teams of two. There, they had overlapping fields of fire facing the sea.

I stayed near Annie. It’s where she wanted my body as she herself carried two of the rifles. An evil grin splayed terrifyingly across her visage and her eyes gleamed. She wanted payback. She wanted vengeance. She wanted blood.

Pirate ships were coming. Two of them. Behind them were several distant dots on the horizon. Elements of the Equestrian fleet. Princess Derp’s ships. Sorry, Celestia, but you done goofed. I don’t know how or why, but you haven’t exactly been that amazing in my eyes. I could feel the minds of the other changelings evaluating their options, questioning each other, then eliminating what they felt were the poorest of them. Flexibility was paramount in their decision making, keeping themselves open to the shifting needs of the hive. It was amazing, even more efficient than the communications of any modern military on Earth.

Annie had the final say, listening to her generals and even the concerns of her lowest ranking changelings. Those not fit for duty remained silent and I could even make out the little minds of the hatchlings as they voiced their need for food or a parent. This was pushed down gently and suppressed. Their caretakers kept them as quiet as possible. Yet their voices were added to the hive, fueling the defenders and reminding them what was at stake. They had lost so much to this point.

I understood the desperation, now that I was linked to the hive. I felt like I was part of a bad choir group with a lot of people singing off key and I could make out every one of them.

Our guests are here. I have asked they be brought to, Mr. Spriggs. I’ve already ordered the evacuation of the nymphs and the wounded. The Equestrians are here to see them to safety. I’m taking an awful risk trusting them with the safety of my hive’s future.

Eh, I’m sure they’ve got their hearts in the right place, even if they seem to like letting my brain get raped repeatedly. This is starting to become a theme for me: Come to Equestria! Feel the love as we shred your mind and your sanity right before your eyes!

Quite the melodramatic proclamation, Mr. Spriggs.

It’s bullshit, Annie.

The whole hivemind came to a screeching halt, save for the oddly out-of-place sound of a cricket chirping in our bonded minds. The queen touched my mind in a way I thought might have been a hug...or a spanking. Maybe both? I was reminded at the same time of her title and her desire I call her by her full name.

Annie are you okay? Are you okay, Annie?

Suddenly the song was being shared with everybody, and at a time best used for preparing for incoming baddies. Michael Jackson reached from the grave and gave everyone Thriller Fever. Luckily, no dancing broke out, though there was some serious humming going on in the air. Annie was not a happy changeling queen. I was suddenly on the ground, grovelling at her feet while she told everybody to shut up, both with her mind and her voice. Both were penetrating and typically female.

What?

How did she put up with you?

Chrysalis?

No. Queen Felu.

Who?

...I think now is the time for this part of your mind to rest until after the battle…

Goddamn it, who do you—

Daddy was close, I could feel him...and smell his stinky feet, unpleasant yet nostalgic smell right now. The paths he took were easily picked up by my nose and I didn’t even have to put my nose to the floor! Our escorts weaved us through a complex series of tunnels that rose and fell seemingly without rhyme or reason. Fleur followed them without complaint, as well as the others, but Anzealous was being a little jerk. He muttered constantly under his breath as we went along.

“Terrible...terrible...simply terrible…”

I could feel his terror. He was barely able to contain himself as he trudged along like a little boy on his way to a very long grounding. Blinking, realization struck, and I found myself suddenly stifling the urge to laugh. Could it be?

I looked back at him. He was staring glumly at the floor as if his life could be measured in minutes, the hangman’s noose awaiting him.

“She’s your mommy, isn’t she?” I wondered teasingly, flicking my tongue out gleefully. His emotions surged as he stared at me agape and filled with horror.

No. Freaking. Way.

“~Annie’s your mommy! Annie’s your mommy!~” I sang like a demented twelve-year-old schoolyard bully. Daddy would not approve.

“Emeraude!” Fleur glared at me over her shoulder like a disapproving mother. “That is not the proper way for a lady to behave! You will apologize, oiu?”

“No, it’s all right,” Anzealous sighed tiredly. “Yes, Queen Anisophira is my mother. I have not been home for more than thirty years.”

I immediately was curious and asked the inevitable question. “What happened?”

Fleur went on, muttering to herself, “Je vous jure, les enfants ces jours-ci!”

“I know what that means!”

“Good! Then you know what it means to be called a child in two languages.”

The former ambassador was chuckling nervously. “Don’t worry about an apology. She’s my mother and it’s my fault our relationship soured.” He looked at me as I slowed down enough for him to come up alongside me.

“You still love her, don’t you?” I asked.

“Naturally. She is my mother, after all.”

“That makes you a prince, doesn’t it?”

“Yes and no.” He gave me a half grin that held no warmth. Just regret. “Like the ponies, changelings are a matriarchal society. Our queens are also long-lived. I am in line for the throne, but should that happen, I would be the puppet for a mate of Grandmother’s choosing. Mother wanted me to stay and help develop what we had going on in our hive, which was being little more than a fishing village pilfering love from sailors we rescued from shipwrecks during the hurricane season.”

“You were ambitious,” I told him knowingly.

The fat little bug sighed and winced. “Yes. Still am, actually. I didn’t want to spend my life helping my mother rule over our small kingdom while the world turned beyond our borders. Why, I wanted us to join the world! I wanted the other great races to see us as equals! I wanted to establish relations, pave a new road to better my hive! Mother would have none of it.”

“She kicked you out?”

“No,” he sighed, a very unhappy changeling. “I stripped myself from the hive and became a Gray. I sought out Queen Druanae after spending several years trying to figure out just what I wanted to do with my life.” He was avoiding saying a lot, that much was clear. What was spoken to this point was escalating his anxiety. “Can you feel your father?” he asked curiously.

“Yeah, I can,” I replied. “Something’s...off.”

He blinked, then became peevish. “Oh, Mother...what have you done?” The defeat in his voice was coupled with a new sort of fear.

Fear of me. “What?” I demanded in a suddenly aggressive tone.

He shied from me, shaking his head. “I can’t say!” he squeaked.

“Fleur, can we please hurry?” I asked as something heavy began to form in my heart. “She’s done something to Daddy!” I could feel Daddy, but I couldn’t connect with him like I usually could.

Anzealous cleared his throat. “It’s temporary! I’ve touched the hivemind and she needs him to train her soldiers in a moment on how to use human weapons. I’m surprised she let me in, actually.” He said the last part more to himself and with some confusion.

The world came to a dead stop. I grabbed the fat little bug with my magic and jerked him off his hooves until he dangled in front of me, muzzle to muzzle. “WHAT!?”

“Emeraude, your father is safe and protected,” the white unicorn told me. “Trust your instincts. I know enough about changelings to see the queen here is acting surprisingly transparent...for a changeling.”

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to let changelings have human weapons? I know what a firearm can do, Fleur!”

“What is done is done, oui? We shall deal with it at the correct time. Now is not that time, mon fille. Put poor Anzealous down, if you please.”

“Mother was always honest enough to be considered a pony,” lamented Anzealous through the wheezing by my grip on his neck. “Could you put me down?”

I grudgingly relaxed and dropped him like a bad habit. He recovered rather quickly and was hovering on his wings, preventing his round rump from bouncing off the floor. I was disappointed.

“Thank you.”

I grunted like a cave woman tired of seeing her mate leaving dead animals piling up in front of the cave without cleaning them first. Then, I felt this enormous pressure from a good distance away...maybe five or six miles. It was in the general direction of Luna and it felt like a very dark release of magic. I hissed in surprised as my horn began to tingle...a tingle more associated with having the legs and bodies of thousands of bugs crawling over it.

“Fleur!”

“Death magic!” she cried. “Forbidden!” she seethed with sudden rage. “Changeling magic? No. Something older.” She hurried, her voice having fallen to something of being at a thoughtful loss. “Come! We must find Queen Anisophira!”

I was really confused. Who died? Luna? Was there even death involved? Why did it feel so sickening to my stomach? Why was there panic in Fleur’s tone?

Ahead of us was a din of changeling activity. Then we were suddenly fighting a flow of changelings all over the floors, the walls, and the ceilings. They were going in the opposite direction we had come. Mothers bore their kids on their backs, other changelings carried what they could. It had the look and feel of an evacuation.

Startled eyes of solid blue immediately found me and locked on as they passed, some changelings stopping dead in their tracks and causing a pileup of sputtering angry refugees. I could make out their voices quite clearly, but had no clue what they were saying. I could feel their words and those emotions required no translation.

It saddened me.

The corridor finally opened before us and we were bathed in the light of the rising sun. The buzzing of wings went off and on, some faintly along the jagged face of the cliff I could now make out. Anzealous spoke to one of the guards, asking a question. The guard shifted on his hooves and stared about the cliff face before nodding to himself and pointing.

Daddy stood out easily as I looked in the direction indicated. I smiled when I first saw him, but it slowly died on my lips as I realized what he was holding. His face bore a dreamy smile, and I felt nothing but adoration coming from him. Adoration for that tall, scrawny thing standing next to him.

“Why does he have a gun?” I demanded to no one in particular. I went up to Fleur urgently, nervous and now scared shitless. “Fleur! Why does he have a gun?”

The unicorn’s jaw was set and she frowned darkly. “She has his mind under her influence. This is disgraceful!” The mare shouted the last sentence, her voice and timbre shifting to reflect her anger. It was something rarely stoked and I could feel her fury. Reflexively, I shied from her, assuming a submissive posture.

“Do not cower, Chrysalis,” she said, using my name, her voice crisp and cold. “Stand. You are a queen. Be a queen before another queen. Take back what is yours.” Fleur’s eyes flashed with a savagery I didn’t even know she possessed.

I did not miss her using my name, and not the one she had lovingly bestowed upon me. I could not flinch. I dare not flinch!

“For now, be silent. Be still, oui?” Her tone shifted, became softer. Those eyes of hers flashed her desire for me to understand. The emotions wafting from her made me feel as though she was giving me an invisible nuzzle, brief and to the point. She turned her attention to the stoic queen and the man standing next to her.

“Queen Anisophira!” she called out, unamused and bristling with restrained fury. “You will release your hold on the human Michael Spriggs.” Aside and to me, she hissed, “Be a queen, Emeraude. She will expect no less from you.”

Anzealous nodded, his fear palpable.

The skinny queen observed us imperiously before faintly inclining her head. “Approach,” she commanded. Her guards were scattered about her presence, eyeing us dangerously. I felt their fear.

The queen suffered no such feeling. Her magic crackled around her and I could see it as I shifted my sight by quietly reading her with a spell. She showed none of the potential of say Luna or Celestia, but she and Fleur were a close match. As for skill? I had no idea. She dismissed me and focused her attention on the white clad unicorn stepping confidently towards her.

“Death magic stirs in the air, Queen Anisophira,” Fleur announced, accusing in her mannerisms. The statement in her words was thinly veiled with her contempt. “I have felt flame snuffed of an ancient being. The very world groans under the weight of such loss.”

“Yes,” replied the queen with a sneer. “I could not help but feel it. Look to the horizon, to where a storm of magic was created and even now falls apart. A battle of wills as the Night Princess confronted the Storm Serpent. Child, cease your attempts.”

Fleur looked at me, quirking an eyebrow.

As they had been speaking, I tried to reach Daddy. I met nothing but a wall. “Let him go!”

The queen regarded me coolly. “You have the ability to take control from me. You are a stronger changeling than me.”

“Sois tout de même!” hissed the unicorn.

“I don’t want to hurt him,” I cried, surging forward. My disguise fell away in green flames, revealing my true form. “You have no right to treat him like this! He is a human being!”

Guards leapt in front of us, but the queen screeched a keening sound. They drooped their ears and slid away from the path leading up to her. I forged ahead, going past Fleur. She hissed at me to stop, but I ignored her. Holding my head erect and proudly, any fear and trepidation I might have had was gone as I focused on Daddy. My anger...I could taste it on my tongue. It stung my eyes. My fury drove my heart.

“What would you do to protect your children, Chrysalis?” asked Anisophira, unmoving from her spot. “What lengths would you go to prevent the deaths of those who see you not only as their ruler, but their mother?” She pointed a hoof to the horizon. “Do you see the death coming? Do you see the ships of those who would raze this place and slaughter the innocents because their master failed?”

“Get rid of the guns,” I snarled. Oh, I did not ignore the fact changelings were wielding assault rifles. For some reason, I was expecting Chinese made AK47s. These appeared to be weaponry of the United States armed forces. Silly me.

“No,” replied the changeling. “I will not surrender a great equalizer.” She looked behind me. “Anzealous. You’ve gotten fat, my son.” The queen then began to speak to him in her language and he responded hesitantly. They went back and forth for a few moments until she stamped a holed hoof, a come here! gesture if ever there was one.

Like a spoiled child finally discovering he was really in trouble, Anzealous trudged forward with his tail tucked between his legs. His gossamer wings splayed out and down towards the ground and he kept his neck out straight in front of his body. When he was finally before the queen, there was a moment of pause. The look on her face twitched with smouldering anger, and she raised a hoof as if to strike. She brought it down swiftly, and the fat bug flinched.

The blow never came.

Anisophira hovered her hoof an inch from his cheek before upturning it and guiding the edge under her son’s chin. His head was lifted until their eyes met. She then reached out with her other hoof and drew him into an embrace. Anzealous let out a startled squeak, completely taken by surprise. Of all the beings in the immediate area he turned to for support with those pathetic, pleading eyes, why did he choose me?

Oh, hell no! I told him with a snort and a glare. “So, the act of defending your kids requires you to steal from nations that could squash you like a bug without breaking a sweat?” Shaking my head, I hope she understood the ramifications. It made me pause as I considered my own words. What if the United States found a way to get a portal here? What if it was something worse? A rogue state? I understood a little bit of how this world and the Earth I grew up on were linked. Celestia had a way to get back and forth and even had research teams scattered around the globe.

Unlike Daddy, this was stuff I would love to challenge my mind with. Working on cars is more fun, though. I miss Twilight.

My car, not the princess! Sheesh! A Mustang will always top a pony.

The queen released her son. Anzealous looked embarrassed and completely lost. “Don’t change the subject,” I growled. “The guns. Lose them. My father. Restore him.”

She gave me a mirthless grin. “Or you’ll do what, sister? I doubt you have the experience nor the acumen to force me to do anything. Not anymore, at any rate. Druanae already warned me of who you are and I accepted it, despite the glaring fact you supposedly killed yourself after losing your hive. You were better off lost in your madness.”

“This is not the time for arguing,” interrupted Fleur de Lis. She came to my side and inclined her head politely to the queen. It was barely returned. “I represent Equestria on the behalf of the diarchy. The Princesses Celestia and Luna extend their hooves to the Anisophira Hive under the protection from persecution from the Changeling Empire.” She produced a neatly rolled scroll from within her clothing and drifted it over to the changeling queen.

“Fleur,” I protested, wagging a wild hoof at the closest changeling within view carrying a boom stick. “Guns!”

“This is neither the place nor the time,” she said, shaking her head. “She does bring up a point in defending her hive and the offspring of her subjects, Emeraude. The details can be worked out with the princesses. Neither you nor I are in a position to argue the morality, oui?”

I grumbled, looked away. I felt like a six-year-old filly again under her withering glare.

“Learn quickly, little older sister,” mused the changeling queen. I gave her my divided attention. “You’ve returned to a nest of snakes. Trust none of us. Not me. Not Druanae. None of the queens, your sisters. We will try and turn you into a weapon to use against each other.”

Okay, I was officially confused and also scared witless. “What do you mean?”

“Exactly as it sounds,” she purred, looking at Daddy with a look of insatiable hunger. “I only say this now so I can remove myself from the equation. I do not wish to play the game any longer. It has destroyed me. I will not live for much longer, so the matter is moot.”

I moved again, toward her, focusing on why I was mad. As I opened my mouth to shout, she cut me off.

“I will release him when there is no longer an immediate threat to those I care about. Do I make myself clear?”

Fleur answered for me. “Agreed. What assurances do I have you will restore him as you found him?”

“He is as fragile as he is stubborn. A most unusual mind,” Anisophira said with a half smile. “I assure you, he will be fine. A bit upset, perhaps, but as fine as can be expected, given his mental scars. The Empress has touched him. As has another queen. Felu’s touch, if am not mistaking her magic signature.” A troubled cloud formed over her face.

A guard chirped respectfully at his queen, bowing as he spoke.

“They come!” The queen began to chitter loudly, rising off the ground on her hooves and baring her fangs. Her soldiers darted behind boulders and rocks, their eyes searching the skies. “Lady Fleur, Chrysalis. I’d rather have you two with the refugees, but your magic might be more useful along the defensive perimeter. We just need time.” She gestured at the incoming pirate ships. “Long enough to stall them. If they’re any good, the pirates will have unicorns servicing their offensive and defensive capabilities.”

“Death magic!” hissed Fleur, but letting the distractions pull her from her outrage. It was in the forefront of her mind and she wanted to address it, that spell. Claiming it to be a forbidden magic had left her frazzled internally. “Emeraude, you will help me with the shielding, non?”

I did a quick head count. We had less than fifty defenders. I had no idea how many pirates were on the incoming ships, but judging from their size, it wouldn’t be too far of a stretch to guess we were against three to five hundred baddies. My heart started pounding in my chest and my throat was suddenly dry. I nodded to Fleur, trying very hard to not be scared.

My knees betrayed me.

Fleur’s voice soothed me. “I am here, mon fille. Lean on me and do as I say. Think of protecting your papa.”

I watched as lion birds swooped in, feeling their supreme confidence and their simmering anger. Their god was dead and they wanted blood. Too bad their only weapons were talons, beaks, and blades of all sorts. They gleamed in the broken sunlight shafting through the crumbling storm clouds.

Then, at an unspoken command, the changelings unleashed hell, the sound of roaring gunfire upon the unsuspecting griffons. I could hear Daddy’s voice as he calmly instructed them in a language most of them couldn’t understand. I heard little of his voice over the deafening repeating shots echoing throughout the cliffs.

“Aim small!” he shouted. “Shoot when you are ready! Don’t force the shot!” It was as though he was an instructor on the range. But it wasn’t him, not really. He was a puppet following the strings being pulled by Anisophira. The smirk she gave me was pointed.

Griffons screamed and fell, some dead, most wounded. Most fell into the violent surf and was dashed upon the rocks mercilessly. I clamped my hooves over my ears and screamed, bawling at the horror unleashed all around me. They returned fire with what looked like musketts, though it was hard to tell other than they were long, single-shot rifles.

Fleur pulled me to my hooves, whispering calming words and encouraging me with gentle nuzzles. All while keeping a shield up with her magic. It was one of those one-way shields, letting objects leave, but letting nothing in. The major drawback was it kept oxygen from getting in. If she left it up long enough, those under it would suffocate.

“Ah, warfare. It is not for all,” said a voice suddenly on my other side. The changeling queen watched the unfolding battle, her eyes darting everywhere. She gave some of her attention to me. “The sting of battle. The cries of pain. The sounds of death all around you. What purpose does it serve, my little sister? Be you the attacker or the defender, what purpose is all this violence? To get something you want? To keep others from getting what you have? You were once adamant in starting a war you could not win. You once promised us all an empire separate from Mother’s. Look. Over there.”

I managed to see through my tears to where she wanted me to focus. Daddy was calmly taking shots from behind a jutting rock, his face full of grim determination. I had never seen anything like that on his face before. He was a lot more accurate than the changelings.

He was the Reaper, and he was collecting his souls.

“His training serves him well,” Anisophira commented with a slender amount of respect. “I should fear facing other trained monkeys like him. So easily manipulated. So easily trained to kill without remorse. This is why I am bowing out of this little arms race between my sisters, Chrysalis.” She ignored my tears and the glare from the unicorn supporting me. “I won’t let my hive fall in a race to destruction. Unlike Mother and her flank- kissing daughters, I want my children to know happiness and to have a sense of self worth. If this condemns me, so be it.”

“This is such bullshit!” I suddenly screamed at her, the rage overwhelming my fears. “You’re a monster! He’s done nothing to you!”

Yeah, I’m trying to carry an argument in the middle of a battle. I’m a teenager. Teenagers do lots of dumb things, like prioritizing things in a backwards manner. We’re walking bundles of emotional chaos. Don’t tell me you weren’t a teenager at some point in your life, doing things you would later look back and give yourself a facepalm.

Didn’t think so.

Amused, the queen took a step back, regarded Daddy, then came back to me. “You have assimilated a lot of his personality, sister and made it your own. You speak alike and even use the same profanities...if that is what this ‘bullshit’ is. Why you would want a bull minotaur’s manure is beyond me.”

I snarled at her.

“Bon. Feel that anger. Hold that anger. Repress your fears. They will kill you if you let them take over your senses.” Fleur was speaking as calmly as if we were sitting to tea. “There is nothing to do now other than fight to live. We must protect those who cannot protect themselves. I need you, Emeraude. Are you with me?”

She dropped her shield as the pounding claws of the griffons pushed her to her limits. Unlike Shining Armor, she was not a master at defensive magic. She exhaled, frowning in irritation as the attackers breached her defenses. They simply fell to the bullets of the scattered defenders. Some of the defenders fell, but the line was holding.

“Yes,” sneered the queen. “Don’t be a simpering hatchling and be a queen.”

“At least I won’t be a monster like you.”

She laughed. It was not a pleasant sound. “We’re changelings, you and I. We were born monsters!”

“Your Majesty,” Fleur cut in smoothly. “There is a battle currently underway. Perhaps it requires your attention, non?”

“Or course,” she replied through a wax smile. “The ships are turning their broadsides to us.” A griffon landed in front of her. She smirked as it flopped, one wing bloodied. It squawked at her in fear once it realized it was face-to-face with a queen. Her magic sizzled from her horn, blasting the helpless pirate over the ledge and onto the rocks below. “Those lovely shields of yours would be most useful right now, Lady Fleur.”

“Emeraude, link your magic with mine.”

I nodded and pointedly ignored the grinning changeling queen. Closing my eyes, I felt out for her magic with my own. She took a gentle hold and coaxed me to match her output into a reinforced shield, adding to what she already had up. My magic sight could see the linking of our magic. Not a lot of magic users utilize a spell meant to give unicorn foals a visual aid, but I did it out of habit.

Fleur smiled tightly. “Good. Queen Anisophira, if you would be so kind as to withdraw your forces into the tunnels?”

“Where’d Anzealous go?” I asked suddenly.

“Never you mind him,” shushed the unicorn. “Focus on the barrier, just as I taught you.”

“Why don’t they give up?” I asked, staring at the ships as they were in the middle of turning. I could make out the cannons bristling from their hulls. “I mean, the dragon’s dead, isn’t it?”

“Griffons are honor bound to complete a fallen leader’s final wishes,” explained the queen as her soldiers finished off the griffons within the new barrier. Some were already making for the tunnels scattered along the face of the cliff. “I suspect the officers on those ships are griffons. Surprising there are no pegasi. Their unicorns are putting up shields. They’re expecting a counter attack. The human weapons have caught them completely off guard.” She licked her lips and fangs, then grinned savagely.

I found that hard to believe. There was an airship out there with a hundred human kids that would beg to differ. Or was it? This was all very confusing. I couldn’t spare the time in thinking about it.

“They’ll fight until they win or until they die. Their ancestors are watching,” she finished sadly, despite her determined stance. “If they win, that means all of us are dead or slaves. We have no choice.”

“We could have just taken the changelings deeper into Equestrian territory!” I protested. “Aren’t we in Equestria?”

“Focus!” she snapped.

Both ships fired broadsides and my view was filled with fire and billowing, angry smoke. Immediately, my mind was pounded as if a bunch of bowling balls were being thrown at my skull. I reeled, but Fleur steadied me.

“All of my changelings are inside!’ called Anisophira.

Fleur then said, “Emeraude, end the spell.”

I found myself sobbing as I did so, not realizing I had been crying the whole time. Fleur nickered lightly, then nudged me after the queen. Daddy did not give me so much as a glance as he scanned the skies over the sights of his rifle. He looked so scary!

“Clear!” he growled to Anisophira.

She nodded in satisfaction. “Let’s go. The Equestrians can finish up here. You did well, my champion.” I glared at the back of her head as her tail swished the stone floor in her wake.

Champion? Him for her? Over my dead body!

Anzealous was ushered out from a hiding spot by his mother. I was not at all surprised to see he was letting her order him around. For a moment, I could see how alike they were in the face. They shared the same horn.

We followed after them, trotting quickly without a second look back. As we went, my mind wandered and settled on her. Anisophira’s aura wobbled and she was putting considerable mental effort into maintaining it. She was also incredibly skinny, almost sickly.

The queen of this hive was not a healthy specimen. I leaned into Fleur, a question on my face. Before I could ask it, the unicorn who was also my teacher and my friend nodded, answering it with neither pity nor anger. Disappointment? I could feel a twinge of it.

I didn’t pity her. I was glad she was dying. After what she did to Daddy?

Screw her.

“Such tasty emotions,” she chuckled dryly, glancing at me over her shoulder. “I’ll release him in good time, my darling little older sister. I don’t intend to harm what is currently the entirety of your hive. Even I am not so foolish as to try and tempt your anger and untapped potential in that manner.”

She was mocking me!

“No, she isn’t,” whispered Fleur into my ear. “I don’t have to read your mind in order to read your body, mon fille.”

“I don’t know her,” I growled, snorting through my nostrils. “She’s going around like she’s got a chip on her shoulder and I feel like it’s my fault. That’s not fair, Fleur! I didn’t do anything to her and I don’t understand any of this stuff going on! I’m confused, my Daddy is a puppet, and I think I really am going to do something epically stupid.”

“The princesses will know how to handle this,” she assured me.

Behind us, we could hear the roaring cannons. The tunnels echoed the battle in a ghostly manner. The walls reverberated from the shooting. I noted how some of the changeling soldiers were taking overwatch positions along the tunnels, peeling back one by one, always keeping us and each other covered as they retreated. It was weird seeing them hovering assault rifles near their heads.

After several minutes of nothing but the sounds of hooves on stone and buzzing wings, I felt an enormous pressure at the base of my horn. It made me flinch and falter in my steps. It wasn’t natural magic. It wasn’t unicorn magic. It certainly wasn’t changeling magic.

“ Teleportation spell,” growled Fleur with a nervous whicker. “Magie ancienne…c'est gigantesque!” Her voice rattled nervously as she said to herself, “Ce n'est pas les princesses.”

“Come with me!” shouted Anisophira. “It’s over where my changelings are!” There was panic suddenly in her voice.

Her soldiers abandoned any show of cover and swarmed past us. They were angry and I could feel their desperation.

We burst into the open, back the way we had come. There were buzzing sounds all around us as well as a tall equine figure awaiting us. Anisophira chittered angrily, masking her fear that had grown rapidly since the unicorn’s declaration. She made a beeline for a group of changelings hissing and displaying their wings while surrounding a lot of green cocoon thingies. I hadn’t seen them before. They looked like thay had...changeling babies in them?

Daddy had his rifle up and ready, his fingers adjusting on the grip as he scanned for targets and waited for orders. His face was stern and grim, ready to unleash death from his rifle. The thought terrified me. Daddy wasn’t a killer! Daddy was my dad!

Hundreds of changelings in a lighter hue of grayish brown hovered in position, cutting off any retreat and filling the sky. I had never seen so many. The darker changelings of Anisophira’s hive were in a defensive circle, with the nymphs in the middle with their caretakers, as well as the other non combatants. The few soldiers remaining in the hive had established a perimeter and growled and hissed at the newcomers.

Quint Orca and the others were separated from the others but seemed unharmed. He was yelling at the lighter-colored changelings, the string of profanities falling from his mouth like an open spigot of filth. Fleur made a beeline for the ponies, only to be cut off by a swarm of guards.

I wasn’t paying attention to her. I saw a very impressive-looking queen from whom the colors of these new changelings emulated. Her mane was like the color of fall leaves, hanging with wild abandon over her neck and shoulders. Amber harlequin eyes peered fearlessly from beneath a remarkably straight horn bearing two large holes in seperate diagonals right through them. Unlike Anisophira, she was vibrant. Like Anisophira, she was arrogant and carried a barely concealed sneer through her fangs. This was the vision of a queen I had imagined, though I wouldn’t exactly say it was something I’d emulate any time soon.

Too much bitch in her attitude.

Her glare was levelled at the skinny queen, focused and angry. Daddy caught her eye and I felt...regret?...shame…?

...Guilt?

“What have you done with my consort?” she demanded in a voice filled with furious hornets. It was sort of like hearing Angelina Jolie with a British accent layered over four or five times.

“Consort?” I blurted incredulously. “Daddy? What the hell?!”

Chapter 21 Interlude: Storm Rider

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The pebbled beach was strewn with shattered remnants of a ship. The night had tossed great waves through the great gale which could still be seen departing the horizon. The morning was gray, filled with the mournful cries of seagulls mixed with the crashing waves. Spring storms were often violent, small hurricanes said to be the rage of love lost.

The ship had been blown off course, the storm tossing it about like a toy until dashing it against rocks like an enraged child in the throes of a tantrum. It had been a simple cargo ship with a small number of passengers fewer in number than the crew.

None survived.

Save one.

Corpses of ponies who succombed to the storm were strewn along the dark pebbles, each wave following the incoming tide and pushing the bodies further and further up the beach. By the time the sun rose, the tide was already beginning to recede, leaving behind a grisly scene.

He nudged his mother’s cold, unmoving body. She had not moved since crawling ashore with him firmly in her grip. The mare had died shortly after one last titanic effort to place her foal on firm ground, her broken body finally giving out. The life had fled her as she bled out from a gash running lengthwise along her belly, her innards held in by shreds of flesh.

No amount of pleading or begging could open her eyes. No nudge or whimper could ever get her to stir again.

He was a small colt, very young, perhaps still a foal. He could barely speak. The colt refused to leave his mother’s side, staying beneath her one remaining wing. Fear kept him bolted in place, shivering against his mother’s cold form. Small whimpering sounds came from his throat.

Eventually, hunger drove the pegasus foal from his mother. The day would move on, with or without him. Instinct told him to go inland. He had no idea where he was. There was a forest growing around tall vertical ruins of once massive buildings. The gray colt did not know this, thinking them to be great rocks. His stare upon them was without interest, his green eyes vacant as his numbed systems were still in a state of shock.

Eventually, he did find a cloverfield on the other side of the trees. The clouds had cleared and the sun warmed his dirty coat. It was still cool and the breeze made him shiver. The shoots were still awakening to the change of season. The colt nibbled here and there, letting his nose seek out food for him. Grazing and not paying attention to his surroundings, he ate just a little and found his appetite waning as he found thoughts of mother filling his heart and mind.

The tears came as he missed her terribly. There, in the middle of that field of clovers, he cried for his mother. She had been his world, his teacher, his comfort. She had loved him and nurtured him, protecting him from his abusive father.

Why was she gone? He did not understand.

His ears swiveled as they picked up an odd sound. Slowly he looked up, turning towards it with trepidation. His eyes widened with fear at the sight of something he had never seen before. It looked like a pony, but he blinked as the wind shifted. It didn’t smell like a pony. It regarded him with solid blue eyes, lacking in pupils and irises. It seemed to focus on him, tilting it’s dark equine head to one side, its notched ears rotating on its head. A single curved horn grew from its head, like a unicorn. It had a black carapace. Where there was no carapace, there was charcoal gray chitin. A pair of gossamer wings slowly churned in the air.

“What are you doing here?” it asked in a strange, terrifying voice. Its tone was neither friendly nor was it hostile. Certainly curious and predatory!

Without a word, the colt squealed in terror and spun on his back hooves, his little wings flapping in panic. He ran as fast as his little hooves could carry him, bawling for his mother. Another one of the monsters appeared, baring long, sharp fangs and hissing loudly. The colt skidded, scrambling his hooves madly as he darted left. He cried and cried as he huffed and gulped for air. His lungs were already starving for air and his sore muscles were battered from being tossed all night in a raging sea.

He was weak. He was heartsick. He wanted his mother. There were monsters here!

Little clods of earth and grass were churned beneath his hooves and he dared once or twice to glance over his shoulder, the last time causing a stumble over an unseen root. The trees around him were less packed than the ones he had navigated through from the coast. The landscape now guided him upwards. The gray colt ducked through dry ravines and passed through a saddle of two low lying forested hills. His dead run fell away to a wobbly trot, his wobbly trot breaking down into a staggering walk. At the base of an oak tree, he collapsed, his barrel heaving as his lungs screamed for air. He could no longer cry: the emotional drain had been trumped by physical exertion. The pony was spent.

Flopping to the forest floor on his side, he lay there, gasping and starving for oxygen.

“Momma,” he managed, remembering his mother’s smiling face. She had also been a pegasus, a beautiful mare with a golden mane and a dun pelt. He had her eyes, she had said and he remembered them being very pretty eyes. He imagined her hooves holding him, those wonderful soft wings stroking him to sleep at night…

...he was suddenly cold. The colt shivered, drawing himself into a tight ball. He managed to slink into a crook of the oak tree, between two large roots at its base. He tried to sleep, but the bad dreams found him. The dark dreams always had the ship breaking up around him, his mother screaming, the other ponies screaming. The frantic leap into the air in his mother’s hooves, her powerful wings trying to battle the power of the storm. The wind and rain battered her into the sea and towards the rocks. Those terrible, terrible rocks!

Blinking, he unfurled himself from his ball and noticed it was dark out. The moon was in full splendor, the shadow of the Mare looking down from within it. A mewling sound came from his throat as he looked up at the moon. His mother had used to tell him stories about how the moon came to have a mare trapped in it. The cold bothered him and he whimpered. He was also hungry.

He heard the rustle of movement on the other side of the tree. Perking up, he tensed, wanting to flee. His tired body failed him, rooting the colt in place. Instead, he shrank into the tree, his wings flaring out aggressively. He could not run, but he could make himself look bigger! He puffed out his chest, staring at where the sound was coming from.

A hoof appeared. It belonged to a long leg. There was another hoof. The colt’s head followed the legs up to their owner. It was a unicorn mare. She had a dark brown coat and a mossy green mane. Her eyes glowed like twin suns. A red cloak was clasped around her neck and covered her. She appeared to be wearing saddlebags beneath them.

“What have we here?” she asked him in a voice as gentle as a warm breeze. “Are you lost?” Her brows were furrowed with concern.

“Momma,” was all he could manage, looking in the direction of what he thought was where she lay. He looked sad, his lower lip quivering in confirmation.

“Oh, you poor thing!” she exclaimed. “You’re cold! Come with me. I will give you a warm place to sleep and food. Are you hungry? Would you like something to eat?” The unicorn came fully around the trunk of the tree, her face showing terrible worry. Before the colt could do anything, a blanket appeared in a flash of magic and he felt himself plucked from the ground. The blanket was wrapped around him snugly, though he struggled.

He was terribly frightened and too weak to resist too long. Instead, he cried softly from within the roll of blanket he had become the center of.

“Oh! Oh! Don’t cry, little one,” cooed the mare. She drew him close to her chest as she sat on her haunches. “You’ve been through so much. Did you come from the wreck?” She peeled back some of the blanket and found green eyes staring up at her mournfully. A nod was his response from within.

“Bugs!” he blurted at her, suddenly remembering what had made him run. “Scary!”

“My goodness! Bugs? What bugs?” She shushed the foal by bopping him on the snout gently with the tip of her hoof.

He tried to point with a hoof, but it got stuck in the blanket. Instead, his eyes darted towards the depths of the trees. “Monsters. Want go home. Want momma.”

“Oh, you poor foal. You’ll come with me. And don’t you worry about any bugs!” she chuckled at him, her mirthful eyes flashing emeralds. “You’ll have a bed and good food, I promise.” The mare placed the bundle on her back, the foal within squirming. “Stay right there and try not to move. Just worry about getting warm. I’ll do the rest, dear.”

He felt her muzzle poke into the blanket and give him assurance. The colt settled, suddenly feeling very tired. A single yawn erupted and sleep soon found him.

“Are you certain, Mother?” asked a voice, mismatched and broken.

“I cannot trust my daughters.” The reply came from another female voice, this one deeper and more resonant. Its distortion was more pronounced.

“Including me?”

“Especially you.” A dark chuckle followed. “Observe him, my dears. An orphan. A storm upon my shores. Not much to look at, is he?”

No voice rose. The silence was deafening.

“His kind are few. Not just a normal pegasus. No, this is a strain of Storm Riders Celestia has been cultivating for years. Their lot was an idea taken from Luna’s beloved thestrals.”

“A Storm Rider? Balderdash!” snorted a third voice. It was not unlike the first one who spoke.

“There is thunder in his voice and lightning in his blood,” said the second. “I shall bring out his talents. As I manipulated our species, so has Celestia manipulated some of her beloved ponies. She understands she needs fighters. There are too few thestrals to watch over her precious subjects and she is half of a whole herself. Pegasi themselves are formidable, but they are still nothing more than ponies with death warrants.”

“What will you do with him? Make him one of us?” A fourth voice had chimed in.

There was a pause as the air became suddenly thick with tension. “No. At least not in the way you would expect. He shall be my shield.”

“Do you fear us, Mother?”

“Yes. If all of you were to stand against me, I would be sorely pressed. But none of you are willing to trust the other. I would be a fool if I did not fear what you all might be capable of.”

“Mother, he is awake.”

“I know. Begone! The lot of you!”

The sound of buzzing wings faded, coupled with the sounds of hoofsteps.

The foal blinked his eyes open, having indeed been awake for some time. His fear had again held him frozen in place and he dared not move. The presences in the room he had felt were cold towards him. He could not explain it, but there had been predators around! Instinct had taken over and he tried so very hard to blend in with whatever he was on. It felt like a bed. A soft bed with blankets and a fluffy pillow. He was not cold and he felt safe.

“Momma?” he dared softly, raising his head. He looked around to strange surroundings. The room was domed low ceiling, blending into the walls. There were cubby holes everywhere, each one holding various objects. Mostly books. The lighting was towards the dim side as candles dotted the walls and were set upon flat surfaces here and there. A small hearth in the far wall had a cheerful fire within it. It felt cozy.

His nostrils tasted the air. Food! It smelled yummy and his tummy growled. With a whimper he sat up and found the unicorn mare sitting next to him in a rocking chair doing some knitting with her magic. A blanket was draped over her shoulders. She smiled at him.

“Hungry, little one?” she asked. “You slept for a good while.”

“Food!” he said, nodding vigorously.

“You stay there,” she announced, rising to her hooves and adjusting her blanket. Her knitwork went into a wicker basket by her rocking chair. “I will bring you food. Stay warm and snuggly right where you are.” The unicorn smiled at him and went towards the source of the smell.

She returned a short while later with a wooden tray. On it lay a bowl of soup, a simple salad, a bread roll and a fresh cup of milk. A certain foal’s mouth salivated as he stood up in bed eagerly. The unicorn set the tray on the bed and bade the colt to dig in. He wasted no time and attacked with the ferocity of a starved wolf.

The unnamed mare watched with amusement, letting the foal eat. He was small and scrawny now, but she could already see the signs he would be a big brute. Points of fangs were showing unseen under her lips.

Within minutes, there was very little remaining to indicate a meal had once existed. Even the crumbs were not spared from the searching tongue. The colt announced the end of his meal with a resounding belch, pushing the tray away. It was immediately levitated and set aside on a nearby end table.

“Better?” the mare asked.

The colt nodded. “Momma?” he asked, tilting his head to one side.

Sternly she regarded him. “You will need a new one, I think. What was found on the shores was given proper services. I will be your mother. I have never had a son before. I think I shall like it. What is your name, little one?”

He thought about it. No memory of a name jostled from within his mind. The colt shook his head, splaying his ears out to the sides.

“I shall let you earn your name, then,” she decided, smiling warmly. The mare leaned forward and gave him a kiss on the forehead. The young pegasus found himself leaning into it. He felt safe with her. Her eyes were mesmerizing, promising him a home and being part of a family. “I am Gaea. I have had many daughters, but never a son. You shall be my first. You shall earn your name. All in due time. I will teach you many things. You will realize your potential. I will love you and you will love me as the mother you have always wanted. Perhaps more.” A golden glow began to shine softly from her eyes, those amber orbs swirling with magic.

She sat on the edge of the bed and stroked his mane with a fetlock. Without thinking, the colt crawled into her hooves, snuggling up against her barrel.

“New momma?”

“Yes, my dear. I am your new mother. For now, I want you to rest and eat. You were near starving. I do not think she was taking proper care of you.” Gaea pulled him back and looked down into his eyes. “I will do better. She was not fit. Yes, she was not fit and you were sent to me.” Her glow in her gaze shifted to emerald green. “You are mine, little Storm Rider and I will mold you into my vision.”

The pegasus foal mumbled tiredly, “Love you.”

He could no longer remember the face of his mother.

“Why a pony, Mother? Of all things, you choose them?”

“I like the ponies, dear. Of all the races, theirs is the love we grow the most from. I have plans, my child. Great plans. You, my daughter, along with your sisters are a part of those plans. This little colt, this foal is one of the last of the Hurricane line. Storm Riders can bend the weather to their will. Storm Riders are the strongest fliers in the world. They are durable and loyal. Very loyal.”

“Surely you could choose another. Perhaps a changeling—”

“I have made my decision. He shall be my apprentice. In time, he will spend time with each of you queens and you will teach him our ways. I will be watching and I will watch closely. Chrysalis, of all my daughters, you are the most ambitious. You are always curious on how to become more powerful with your magic. Follow the guidance of the earth. Always follow it.”

“Yes, Mother.”

“I love you, my little Chrysalis. I love your ambition. If the day comes and you remove me from power, I shall be most proud of you.”

“Mother, I would never—!”

“Be still, child. I have foreseen my own death. My Shield will fail me, though not for lack of trying. Have you felt his love for me? It is delicious. He trusts me completely. He knows my true form and I have yet to show it to him. Remarkable. One day, he shall be yours, Chrysalis. It is my will.”

“As you wish.”

“Good. Now, in order for Shield to become a part of us, he must be changed internally and mentally. Each queen will put some of her essence within him. Each of you will receive instruction. It will be obeyed to the letter. He will be able to join any hive mind, but only one at a time. He is, after all, just a pony.”

“May I ask you a question, Mother?”

“Chrysalis, what troubles you? Speak!”

“What is your endgame?”

“My endgame? It is a simple one, my beloved daughter. We cannot exist in a world in the clutches of Celestia. When her sister returns, they will consolidate their powers and seek me out. The Sun will pool her resources, perhaps she will even ascend more alicorns. She will avoid war, of course, but she will see me as a threat to her precious harmony. Right now, she is alone and she is paranoid.”

“We could strike now! If what you say is true, then we should have no trouble taking Equestria as our own!”

“Ah, foolish, foolish child. Violence? War? Death? Is this what you desire? We cannot take love from subjects who fear and despise us! You have a magnificent mind, Chrysalis. Use it.”

“My apologies, Mother.”

“Do not be so foolish as to think such an attempt would bear you fruit, girl. The glut of love in our system makes our thoughts unclear and our focus a mangled mess.”

“Of course, Mother.”

“No, I plan to remove my changelings from the influence of Celestia. Her sister will not be banished forever.”

“The Mare in the Moon? I remember the stories you told us.”

“Yes. Luna. She will return. But enough of the alicorns. Shield will grow and he will become powerful. I should wager for a short few minutes, he would even be able meet Celestia on even terms. But not for long, I fear. His body would not be able to withstand the strain. I need my daughters to gradually enhance his body, make him a part of us without needing to be a part of us. Shield must always be on the outside, looking in. We cannot change him too much lest we lose the uniqueness of what he is.”

“I will keep him as whole as you wish, Mother.”

“Excellent. Once he is recovered fully, I shall begin his instruction. Once I think him ready, you will have your chance to teach him. Love him, child and he will fill you with his love. Be his sister and he will be your brother.”

“As you wish, Mother.”

“Good. Now leave me. He will awaken soon and he is not yet ready to see us as we truly are. He will be hungry. I am hungry. We will both feed.”

Chapter 22 That Painful Revelation

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Edited by DJ_Neon_Lights and iakovl

I was stunned and staring. My jaw hung like a rusty porch swing. Daddy stood there like a blind, deaf mute. His expression was slack, giving the impression he was a mere yokel. Anisophira glared at the golden-eyed queen, this new queen was not at all impressed.

“Felu,” the gaunt queen greeted icily.

“Release my consort, or I will rip your anorexic head from your dilapidated body,” growled Felu. Her mane danced around her face and neck with her rage. The sight alone was enough to make me backpedal a step or two.

Oh, yeah...she was angry. Dare I say, furious?

The skinny queen harrumphed. “As you wish, dear sister.” I could feel the venom in her words.

She looked to Daddy meaningfully and he wordlessly dropped the rifle. Her eyes then flared the brilliant green I was all too familiar with. Daddy slumped, tensed, then looked up and around blearily. He staggered, and I moved to support him.

Only, I was not fast enough. Felu slithered up next to him, her form shifting effortlessly, flashing the green flames I used when I changed form. In the blink of an eye, she was a woman, a head shorter than Daddy, with dirty blonde hair to match the shape of her changeling form’s style. It hung to her waist. Her skin was tanned, like country girl on the farm. Her clothing was simple: black sleeveless t-shirt and cutoff jeans.

“Michael?” she spoke his name haltingly, her hands on his chest and shoulders as she steadied his wobbling form. “Michael, baby?”

His eyes snapped open, fell upon her and stared. All color drained from his face.

I was making weird sounds from the bottom of my throat. They might have been words. They might have been gibberish. All I know is I wanted to start beating this bitch to within an inch of her life.

“Tabitha?” he managed in an unmanly squeak.

So many confusing emotions! I wanted to scream my rage. I wanted to weep. Everything I felt was raw between the two and open. It was dangerous, like forbidden love.

“What are you doing here?” he asked, trying to sound like the man in charge. That unmanly squeak was obviously threatening to take away his Man Card. Daddy refocused himself, straightened and pushed her away. “What are you doing here?” Anger bubbled out like lava from a volcano. “For God’s sake, Tabbitha, what the hell are you doing in Equestria?”

She rolled her golden eyes. “I live here, you big idiot. I’m from Equus.”

“Where’s the popcorn when you need it?” I could hear Anisophira snicker just loud enough for everyone to hear.

I was on Daddy’s other side, peering around him and staring icy daggers at Felu. She had a body that women would kill to have and a face to make Cameron Diaz jealous. And Daddy knew her! He knew that body, at least. I was insanely suspicious and I was busy hissing at her as I slid my head across Daddy’s chest. As I gave her the ‘Look of Death’, she finally seemed to notice me and smirked.

She smirked! Oh no you didn’t!

“Hello, sister,” she bade gently.

I felt him give me a reassuring squeeze. “Pumpkin, not now,” Daddy said, putting his hands to my face and neck. Gently he moved me aside and fully faced Felu. “I hate you.” He stated to the woman/changeling queen.

“You don’t know what was going on,” she pleaded softly. “I wanted what we had so badly, but Mother forbade it. I didn’t want to leave you.”

Daddy stared at her hard, not believing a word she said. “You took my daughter from me, found some other chump to bang, and began to turn my mom and dad against me. You threatened me with lawsuits and custody battles. I went insane. Then my daughter died. And in the three years she was alive, I saw her for all of three months, Tabitha. Three! Now you show up here, here of all places, and expect me to be all lovey-dovey with you? You sadistic bitch. Daddy cuffed his hands around my ears, but I could still hear the rest of his sentence. “Fuck off.”

I guess love is not the only four letter word Daddy knows.

“Can we discuss this somewhere less in the open?” she asked plaintively, spreading her hands and looking about. “My guards are getting upset with you.”

Daddy blinked in confusion. “Guards?”

Felu sighed sadly. “There are a lot of things you don’t know about me. I’m surprised you haven’t connected the dots already. Then again, you always were a bit dense, love.”

Aaaaand she shifted to her natural form.

Daddy stared, mouth hanging open. He staggered away from Tabitha A.K.A. Felu. As the changeling queen revealed herself to him, I could practically see the gears jamming in his head. His left eye twitched. His pupils shrank. Horror slowly crept across his face. Beads of cold sweat formed on his neck and face. “No,” he began to moan. “No, no, no, no, no, no. Dear God, no…”

Queen Felu stood before him, not quite as proudly as she did when she first appeared, and not quite as arrogant. For a flash of a moment, I felt her hurt. Then, the steel doors to her emotions slammed shut and she stared down the man who was emotionally crumbling before her. Daddy collapsed as his legs went rubbery and all sense escaped him. Bursting into tears, he covered his face with his hands and wailed bitterly.

Fleur de Lis stepped between the two. “Comfort your papa,” she said to me softly. “The cruelty of the queens shows itself yet again.” The unicorn glared unafraid at the queen towering over her.

If there was ever an example of a pale queen, Felu fit the bill.

Fleur had her eyes on the bigger picture. “You will let Queen Anisophira’s hive go. This is Equestrian soil and you will not violate the laws of this nation for your petty civil strife. They have requested asylum and I have the authority to grant it. I have granted Anisophira’s hive asylum and will not allow them to be pursued. Any actions of your changelings upon this hive will be considered an act of war.”

“I am to convey Michael, Chrysalis, Queen Anisophira and you, Lady Fleur, to the sanctum of my mother, the Empress,” Felu said with full authority. “All answers to questions can be asked directly to her, though I do not believe you will get the answers you want to all of them. If you wish to know why human children were brought to this world, come with me. If you wish to know why your nymphs were taken from your hive, sister, come with me. If you, Chrysalis, wish to know of the changelings and your one true mother, come with me.”

Her gaze lingered on Daddy’s form and softened. He has his arms around me. His head was tilted down, staring at an object on the ground. I followed his line of sight. It was on the rifle. The crying had stopped, but the heavy breathing was intense.

“No more,” he gasped, reaching for it. I already could sense what he was doing, but he firmly shoved me away. “No more,” Daddy repeated as I numbly watched him grasp it with his right hand. “No more hurting.”

Before I could blink, he pulled on the charging handle. An unspent round flew out of the ejection port and another one was chambered as the slide slammed forward. With both hands, he spun the muzzle and put his mouth over it.

“No!” I screamed, freezing his hands in place. Hell, I froze his whole body. “Fleur, take the gun! Take it now!”

“So, he is broken,” quipped Felu sadly. Her regret was a bitter taste to my pallet. “I should like to help—”

“Don’t you think you’ve done more than enough, you bitch?” I screamed at her, holding Daddy to me possessively.

He clung to me like a frightened toddler, mumbling incoherent words over and over again. The air was heavy with his grief and despair. I channeled my own love and poured it into his heart.

“I love you, Daddy. I can’t lose you. Not here,” I whispered to him. “You’re going to grow old and happy, with grandkids on your lap. You’re going to spend evenings on the porch, watching the sunset with the woman you love. Stay with me, Daddy, and I promise I’ll make sure that happens! Please, Daddy. Stay. I love you!”

As I soothed Daddy, Fleur snatched away the horrible killing instrument.

A hurt-looking Felu looked absolutely perplexed and, at the same time, greatly pained. She quickly recovered, assuming her arrogance and turning to the skinny queen. “Your hive may remain here. You are coming with us, along with Chrysalis and her...father.”

Why weren’t they speaking their own language? It dawned on me the changeling queens were speaking in Equestrian. Why?

“So you already said,” I growled, clutching Daddy to my chest. “What do you changelings want? Why should I go with you? What if I decide right now that I refuse to have anything to do with you all?” I was screaming at her, my mane flying everywhere. My fangs must have flashed in the morning light.

The onlooking changelings flinched from me, as well as Fleur de Lis. What had once been a rifle was now a ball of metal and plastic in her telekinetic grip.

Queen Felu glowered at me, peeling her lips back slightly to make her fangs seem longer. “Because lives hang in the balance, Chrysalis. Mother manipulates us all to do things we would rather not. It’s how she stays in power. Part of the reason your life is a mess right now is because of her. She is one of the most powerful beings in all the world and the linchpin of changeling society.”

“Mother’s pet is engaging Luna—did engage. Dead, now,” growled Anisophira, her eyes going distant for a moment. “A distraction? What of Celestia?”

Wait...they are speaking changeling…

What?

Annie rambled on, growing more and more agitated as her wings buzzed angrily, “What of my nymphs? Was it Mother’s idea to have them taken by that monster? Was it Mother’s idea to have them maimed and wounded? To kill them? To shatter my hive I have labored for so long to make a home for my changelings and their families? All because I would not bow down to her wishes? All I have now in my heart for her is HATE, sister. That you, a queen I considered the most even keeled of all my sisters would side with her madness…”

I can understand them both...but my lessons only began yesterday!

“Do you think you are the only one she’s gone to great lengths to destroy from within and without?” Felu screamed suddenly, her anger exploding volcanically. “She held my daughter hostage, dangling her with the command to destroy him!” The enraged queen threw a hoof at Daddy, her eyes glowing green with enraged passion. “I was trying to escape with my daughter and Mother had to show off her power by snatching her from my arms in the middle of a flight! She mocked me as the plane fell about us, holding me in her grip while holding the plane at the same time. The people saw her, they screamed, they panicked and I knew they were going to die. Right then and there I realized there was no escaping her reach, Anisophira. She took my Crystal, teleported back to Equus, and left what remained of the plane to fall to earth with me properly chastised.” She grunted back her emotions, her tears falling freely. “All because I did not break the human I had fallen in love with...all because...I would not be the dutiful daughter she wanted.”

“Why are you saying all of this?” I asked, not believing a word she had just said. I was sticking to English, thank you very much. “Why are you lying? What point is there in going on with this charade? You’ve done it. Congratulations, you bitch. He’s broken. You can go home now.” I hugged Daddy tighter to me. I knew Felu was not lying, but I didn’t want to believe her. She was a monster. They were all monsters!

“We are predators, little sister,” Felu sighed, choking back a sob. “We were never meant to fall in love with our prey. We were meant to feed from them so our power might grow. When we had our fill or they were drained, we toss them aside. Humans are... different. They can give a changeling boundless love. I used Michael, but in the years I came to know him, I fell in love. I gave him the greatest gift any changeling can bestow to someone. I gave him a child. Our child. Mother punished me for giving him my love. You have no idea what it was like to have her voice screaming in my head to destroy him. I could not. I went mad myself. I acted out, did...terrible, evil things against him. I took his daughter away.”

I glared at her, wanting to hate her with all by being. “I don’t believe you.”

“Would you believe it if you saw his daughter? My daughter? Our Crystal?”

Daddy once wished I could have met Crystal. He had once thought we would have been good sisters. But, if time passed a lot more slowly in this world than on Earth...then she would be a little more than four years old!

“I would,” I admitted sullenly. “Doesn’t mean I’m going to like you. I still hate you.”

She composed herself and nodded. “Fair enough.”

The whole time, Daddy tried to shrink himself into my chest, not wanting to look at this so-called queen. The words he spoke were unintelligible and came rapidly, almost as if he was babbling a prayer. I opened my mouth to speak, but Felu hissed sharply.

“He comes!” Who?

Just then, I heard the sound of an approaching mass in flight. I spun my head upwards, feeling it, no, him.

With a loud thud, four massive hooves slammed into the earth not a dozen feet away to my left creating a small crater. The ground... rippled. Dust and debris swirled. A snarl of frustration was heard through the mass of gray pelt and feathers. The largest pegasus I had ever seen had his wings flared out in a threat display, staring down anything within view of him. Electricity crackled from his hooves. His eyes glowed with unrelenting frustration as electrical currents raced up and down his legs and pelt. This pegasus was a living storm, a walking tempest and I could feel his strength.

“Distraction complete,” he rumbled with a voice like a fading storm. It crackled as he spat, shifting his eyes to the heavens. “Luna is strong. Gate has been moved. Celestia has chased after it.” His marvelous green eyes swept back and forth between Felu and Anisophira.

There was the tell-tale pressure of an incoming teleportation. “KNAVE!” bellowed Luna’s voice from up above. “FACE ME, YOU CRETINOUS EXCUSE FOR A PONY! I WILL NOT BE DENIED!”

I stared at this massive pegasus. “Who are you?” I squeaked, drinking in every inch of his magnificence.

“Lord Shield,” Felu announced, quickly composing herself. “You did not pick a fight with the Lunar Princess, did you?” It was a rhetorical question, if the sigh in her voice was any indication.

“Mayhap,” he replied with a dark chuckle.

Luna landed to my right, taking stock of the situation. She spied Daddy. “What is the matter with him?” she demanded, her glare immediately falling upon Anisophira. It went to Felu. “Who are you?” Icy daggers were hurled back at the massive pegasus. “You tricked me!”

I noticed Lord Shield looked a bit battered, but a slight smile graced his stoic muzzle. “I am ordered to return to my Empress. I must obey her will. You would have beaten me, Princess Luna.” He fluffed his wings and settled them against his sides.

I noticed Luna looked as though she had stuck her hoof in a light socket. She was, well...poofy. “What happened to you?” I asked. Daddy stirred against my chest and whimpered. He was oblivious to the world around him.

The alicorn shook her head, never taking her eyes off the pegasus. “Never mind me, what happened to Mr. Spriggs?”

“She happened.” I glared at Felu. “She’s the one who started it all!”

“Hardly,” interrupted the giant pegasus as Luna opened her mouth to speak. “All can be explained in the lair of my mistress. Now, come.”

“You,” snapped Luna with the sort of calm best associated with psychopaths before going on a killing rampage, “are under arrest for assaulting me!”

“I am not Equestrian,” grunted the stallion harshly. “I serve my Empress.”

She glared at him before readdressing my semi-comatose father. “Why is he not wearing his protection? I do not detect the necklace. It should be around his neck. Where is it?”

Annie blurted, “Right front pocket. I might have coerced him in taking it off.” She shied from a very pissed of alicorn princess who moved in a blur of blue shadow, flaring her wings and standing tall before her.

“You foal!” Luna sighed, staring at Daddy sadly.

Lord Shield moved almost as fast, forcing himself between the queen and the princess. “I cannot let you closer to a daughter of the Empress. Stand down, princess of Equestria.”

Oh, God, he’s so hot!

“There is too much shenanigans here,” Luna roared, stamping an imperious hoof. “You!” She glared meaningfully at Shield, “You assaulted me. Why?”

I busied myself by digging Daddy’s necklace from his pocket. It was easy to find as a bit of the chain was sticking out. As I fixed it around his neck, the giant pegasus answered Luna.

“Gauging you. Assessing your strengths. You are strong. Stronger than me, in the long run. I made a mistake and held back.” He ruffled his feathers as his green eyes fixed on her coolly. “It matters not. I would have lost.”

The pegasus stared at Daddy, ignoring a fuming Princess of the Night. “Of all beings in existence, the Empress fears his kind. Queen Chrysalis, assist him to his hooves. I will be activating a teleportation stone shortly. The Empress has already contacted Princess Celestia at the underwater grotto where the Gate was hidden. I am instructed to escort the other queens and the selected guests of the Empire as soon as the immediate needs of the refugees have been seen to.”

He snorted, lifting his head and glaring coldly at Anisophira. “You were told not to invade his mind. You have defied the Empress, Queen Anisophira, and you will answer for this. How many more times must you defy her?”

She laughed at him mirthlessly. “What can she do? I am dying. My hive is shattered. Half of my nymphs are dead or wounded. I have a scant handful that escaped injury, but the mental wounds to them are deep. The others have been taken by agents of the Empress to be sold into slavery or worse. Do not begin to tell me of defiance, Shield. Was I not once your teacher? Was I not a loving elder sister? Did I not teach you the future generations are what matter the most to the common changeling?”

Snorting softly, the pegasus turned to Anisophira. His expression remained stoic, yet his eyes had a moment of gentleness. “You were, and I appreciate all that you have done, but that was then and now the circumstances are different, I am no longer a foal and you have angered the Empress for the last time.”

Princess Luna snorted, offering no sympathy. She announced loudly, “I want these armed changelings out of Equestria immediately. All refugees are under Equestrian protection. Any changeling requesting asylum will be given it immediately and without question. Details will be sorted later and under less stressful circumstances. Lady Fleur?”

“I have already extended Equestrian hospitality to the refugees, your Highness.”

“Good.” Her eyes flashed dangerously, causing the gathered queens to flinch visibly. “I want to know why your kind are dallying in human slavery and why some of you deem it proper to enslave your own kind. You have much to answer for and yet you dare cry out for peace?”

“I wish asylum for my changelings and myself,” said Anisophira boldly. “I want my nymphs back. My mares cry out for their young and I will never be at ease until families are reunited, Princess Luna.”

“Not doubt Lady Fleur has already offered asylum, but it is granted,” replied the dark alicorn without so much as a blink. She glared at Felu. “Stand your soldiers down, changeling queen.”

“But of course,” replied Felu, who had recovered. Her eyes flared and the air was filled with buzzing wings as changelings broke away from their positions. Those they had held up were free. They went towards Quint Orca and the others, staying on the ground and being submissive. I could hear nervous chirping coming from some of the refugee changelings. “I will be taking my sister—”

Luna glared her down coldly.

“Chrysalis.” Luna’s eyes sought me out and made me freeze the moment we locked. “Place the pendant around your father’s neck. Stay with him. This whole thing was a mistake. The two of you will be going back to Canterlot and under my personal protection. I am sending your father home.”

My heart surged with hope.

An armored pegasus in golden armor landed next to Luna, bowing to her immediately. “Highness! We were not sure of our orders and held back. We were expecting non combatants, not—” he waved a hoof at the armed changelings “—them.” The Guard appeared on the verge of panic, but had enough professionalism to maintain his bearing.

“He goes,” growled the giant gray pegasus the queens seemed to be terrified of. I looked at him and fought the urge to drool. Then I realized he was pointing a hoof nonchalantly at Daddy. “The Empress requires his presence to restore her daughter to her fold. I am to enforce the mandate set before Queen Felu at any cost.”

I suddenly found him...not-so-hawt. “The hell he’s going!” I snapped. “You mind rapists have messed his head for the last time! If any of you bitches so much as twitch a brain cell towards my Daddy, I’m ripping your heads of of your necks and making all of your skulls into fucking bedpans for my Daddy to piss in.” I felt my magic building up in me as I spoke, my voice rising along with it.

“Emeraude!” hissed Fleur de Lis, slapping my horn with the tip of her hoof. “Stay calm, ma fille! Put the gift from the princesses around his neck as Luna instructed you. Do it.” Her voice soothed me through the storm raging in my mind, breaking through the slowly rising red haze.

Snorting derisively, I flashed my fangs at Felu, then focused on the task given me. Taking up the pendant, I held it up to the light of the morning sun and stared mesmerized for a moment. The arrowhead glittered and twinkled from both the magic within and the sunshine striking it. Tenderly I put it around Daddy’s neck, shielding his inert form from the view of the onlooking queen. Oh, how I hated her!

“I love you, Chryssie,” mumbled Daddy as I fastened the necklace, noting one of the links had broke. I fixed it with a quick and easy spell and cast another the strengthen each silvery link in the chain by ten.

“You’re going home, Daddy,” I whispered into his ear. “I’m going with you. This place can rot. Luna’s taking us back to Canterlot.”

“I’m sorry,” he said.

“It’s not your fault, Daddy. It was never your fault. And I love you, too.”

The voice of the giant pegasus broke our moment. “You cannot go back. The Empress has commanded me to bring you to her.”

“Shut up, asshole,” I snarled at him, turning my head so fast, I made myself dizzy so I could glare him into a puddle of goo. I wish I could have glared him into a puddle of goo.

“Language!” snapped Fleur in exasperation. “Control! Self control! Can you not grasp the nuances of the human language so ineloquently?”

I wheeled on her, ready to again lash out with my tongue. What I saw in her eyes was a sadness and disappointment I could never properly describe. My anger faltered. “Can you help me with him? He’s heavy.”

“I can walk,” Daddy said.

We ignored him. “Anzealous, could you please fetch a litter?” Fleur had spotted the fat changeling off to one side, near Anisophira. Wordlessly he nodded and went off in search of one.

“I can walk!” Daddy repeated, placing his hands on my chest and shoulders and pushing me away. His shove was rough at first, but he caught himself, gripping my chitin with his fingers. He squeezed them reassuringly. I leaned into him for a hug.

“No, Daddy, you’re not right.”

“Michael.” Felu’s voice floated over us. “Michael, I’m sorry. Please. I’m so sorry. Everything can be explained, if you would just come—”

“Leave him be, changeling,” Luna commanded. “I know not the circumstances…”

“He is my consort!” blurted the queen.

“Is?” Luna arched a brow as I gave her my attention. “Since when?” Her expression faltered as some things fell into place in her mind. “By my moon, there are changelings on Earth! For how long? How many?” Huffing in exasperation, she muttered under her breath, “Sister, what is taking you so long?”

“The human and Chrysalis are coming with me to meet with the Empress,” the great pegasus interrupted rudely. I could hear his voice turning from asking to commanding. “The Empress had commanded you to come and you will obey.” His glare started to dig holes into me.

“Or what? You will drag us with you?” I snapped, again lighting up my horn. This... jackass —even if he is drop-dead gorgeous— was not going to take one step near my daddy!

“If I must.” I heard a distinct crackling sound at his hooves. I could hear it first, my eyes following where my ears were trained. Static electricity was making Daddy’s hairs stand on end, slowly rising as the energy in the air intensified.

“They will do no such thing!” Luna declared loud enough for everyone around to hear. “You cannot take them, scoundrel!”

He snorted at her, “Then you leave me no choice.” The pegasus closed his eyes.

What the hell is he planning to do? When he opened them, there was a change in their appearance. One of them was blood red. There was a gasp followed by waves of fear from the changelings who were looking at this pegasus. Felu and Anisophira quailed in the face of this display, paling with widening eyes.

“What's happening, Fleur?” I could feel pure terror from some of them, why did such a small thing scare so many of them

He spoke in a reverent voice, as if to himself. “My empress, your shield asks permission to enforce your will.”

“Who is he speaking to?” I wondered out loud. Empress? Somehow, I was looking around as if I was expecting a demoness to appear and start hurling death and destruction down upon us.

Eh, me and my overactive imagination. Oh, look! Impending doom looming in front of me! Why am I suddenly so afraid?

“GRANTED!” A voice came from him, but was not his. That word filled me with terror beyond my wildest dreams. That one word had the same effect on all changelings around us, and then i saw it, Lord Shields eyes changes again, now both of them to a golden color as he cracked a smile and i felt my heart drop, this was not a pegasus... not anymore. This was an avatar of lightning! Bolts of crackling electricity was arcing from different parts of his body.

“Who are you? What are you?” I could hear Luna asking with her eyes wide open, she was stunned by the display before you “You are a pegasus, how can you do such things?”

His answer was simple. “I was a pegasus, but not anymore.”

I saw some changelings falling to their knees, lowing their heads and exposing their necks, they submitted themselves to his mercy.

“MOTHER!!!” Anisophira shouted into the open space in a trembling voice, “I KNOW YOU CAN HEAR ME, MOTHER! Call Lord Shield off! We will come to you! We will all come to you as you wish, but for creation’s sake call him off.”

The pegasus turned to her. “I knew you could be shown to see reason,” hissed the voice of power from the pegasus. The crimson glow of the left eye faded away. The lightning around this so-called ‘Lord’ Shield’s body started to die off, his golden eyes rolling back to green. “I am glad you stopped me Queen Anisophira. It would be a shame to see further harm come to you and your hive”

“Why did you promise such a thing?” Luna asked Anisophira. “I will have a say in this matter! Nopony and noling is going anywhere until I am answered!”

“Because if I haven’t, none of us would have made it out of here alive, while mother prefers subtle manipulations and vast plots… she also knows how to use a Hammer when she need things done. you don’t want to see what could have happened if i haven’t ask her to call him off, none of us would.” I could feel her fear diminishing

“Why do all of the changelings fear that pegasus?” Luna wondered “What is he?”

Anisophira looked at her. “He is Mother’s shield and enforcer, our brother and watcher. We fear him because we know what happens if you do not stop him when he changes. For a brief moment, he is like a god, his power unmatched. Mother says he can challenge one the likes of an alicorn. Princess Luna, there are few things changelings fear more than him, we know what he can do when his eyes turn gold, pray that you never have to find out.”

Luna snorted. “If you are so formidable, pegasus, then why did you flee me?” Her attention had shifted towards the pony known as Shield. I could sense her wariness. “You proclaim your desire to engage me in combat and flee.”

“I was denied permission,” grunted Shield flatly. “To fight you would be one of the pinnacles of my life. Another time, perhaps.” A smile seemed unnatural on his muzzle, yet one formed there.

By now, Luna had slowly placed herself between us and the giant. “So you say.”

“Your sister awaits us in the home of my Mistress,” Shield went on, ignoring her barb. “She has met with my Empress in the place where the Gate once was. It was moved. I am commanded to inform you the dragon had broken the thrall placed upon him and was acting on his own and unfortunately in the name of the Changeling Empire. The Empress expresses her desire for peace and is willing to concede some points of interest Equestria feels is necessary for her security. But not here,” he added, looking around, settling for a long moment at the ponies ushering changelings into the forest.

“Anisophira, your hive may remain here. They will be unmolested.” His eyes flickered to Felu.

She curled a lip in a slight snarl at him. “I do not prey upon changelings who cannot defend themselves.”

Fleur de Lis was not paying attention to the monster. Instead, her attention was diverted to something small and buzzing chirping at her hooves. We both looked at the source and found a small black changeling approaching Daddy. He was so tiny and adorable! For a moment, I forgot the tension around us.

“Bitey.” Daddy’s voice broke that moment, his right hand reaching for the little changeling. Was I ever that small? What was with the name? The little guy’s ears perked up and he bounded into Daddy’s lap, happy little changelings sounds as adorable as adorable could be.

All eyes went to this little union. I could certainly feel the trust from the little colt for Daddy. I could also sense the beginnings of a bond. Then I knew this new changeling was a part of our little family. A clicking sound came from my throat, soothing and welcoming. I wanted him to be a part of our family. I wanted him to feel safe and secure. I wanted him to feel loved. What was happening? It was as though our minds had linked, much in the same way Daddy’s mind was linked to mine.

The next thing I knew, our muzzles touched and we chirped at each other in a slow exchange of back and forth. What was I doing? Why was I doing it? The scent on him was...vacant, as if a vacuum needed to be filled. No. It was more than that. It was as though a tapestry was missing an image that needed to be woven within it. I felt a warmth in my heart and the world for the moment consisted of only me, Daddy, and the little colt he called Bitey.

“What are you doing?” Daddy asked, his face following the chirps as if he was at a tennis match. “It sounded...nice.” He stroked Bitey between his ears. The little guy crawled into his lap, butting against his chest like a cat.

“I have no idea,” I admitted.

“Congratulations, sister,” Anisophira said softly. “Your hive has been reborn. Love him like your son, lead him wisely, and he will never forsake you.”

“I approve,” buzzed Felu. Her tone suggested she was not happy about something. I felt longing from her. Longing and sadness. She doused it before I could focus, but I suspected Daddy had something to do with it. He was pointedly ignoring her, curled around Bitey protectively and petting him. “Hail Queen Chrysalis.”

Bitey is a crappy name, isn’t it?

“As it should be,” growled Shield. I still thought he was nothing more than a big jerk. A big, sexy, delicious jerk.

I would love to shove something splintery and bad down his throat. I didn’t like the vibe coming off him...yet why was I so drawn?

Anzealous returned with a stretcher, as well as Quint Orca and the rest of the team. It was rolled out and Feathersong helped set it up. She eyed the nymph in Daddy’s lap and gave it a gentle smile. Steel Jaw and Shatterdown glared at the changelings. The unicorn looked ready to start a brawl. Fleur leaned into his ear and whispered, indicating towards Princess Luna and Shield as her words carried some intensity. I could barely hear what she was saying. Basically, she was telling him to shut up and mind his manners, or else he’ll just piss off Luna and the Big Gray Beast.

“Yer worship?” Quint asked Luna, warily casting his eyes at the two queens and the massive gray pegasus. “Orders?”

“Bear the human. He requires immediate aid. Mental fatigue induced by mind manipulation. Post traumatic stress disorder.” She flattened her lips, a single ear flicking as she narrowed her stare at Felu. Then, she regarded with gray pegasus. “I have not yet heard from my sister. I will not move nor allow anypony or anyling from this spot until I have contacted her. I need to know if she secured the World Gate.”

Shield growled, taking a step towards her menacingly.

“I really do not care if you frighten these queens. I am not afraid of you, pegasus.” She flared her wings and straightened, her ears perking forward and her chest sticking out. “Until I hear from Celestia, we are not moving. I will happily engage you in battle if you wish to contest my will. I will also have words with your Empress, who seems content to hide behind your eye instead of meeting me face to face.” Her eyes were white flares, crackling with intensity.

Shield appeared unsure of himself, flaring his nostrils. I could tell a part of him wanted to attack Luna, he closed his eyes for a second. “We can wait,” he said, grudgingly. Something was holding him back.

“I want to know what happened to my nymphs,” Queen Anisophira mewled worriedly. “Why did Leviatan take my nymphs? I have mothers fraught with worry. Half of them are dead, Lord Shield. You were supposed to be the guardian of our kind. Why would you let a dragon take the lives of those who have yet begun to live? I helped to teach you, Shield. I showed you how to love and care for our nymphs. Where were you?” Her voice grew stronger and stronger as she approached the brutish pegasus.

She threw a hoof at Daddy with Bitey. “Look at that young one, Lord Shield. Tell me, would you forsake that? Would you abandon an innocent to the whims of a monster?”

Unflinching, he replied, “We are all monsters, Majesty. Some more then others.”

The queen gave out a hiss. “I freely admit I am a monster, but you are the keeper of monsters. You are a monster to keep us monsters at bay.” She curled her lip. “But we have purpose. Mother will not let us live up to that purpose. We want peace. She wants everything.”

Luna perked her ears at that statement. “Everything?”

Shield sighed heavily. “That is not the truth.”

“Mother wants all the queens to kneel before her and obey her every whim. She taught us all to rule our hives as we see fit, to move them when we think they are threatened. Of late, she has wanted us all gathered. Her motives are unknown to me. I never want to know anymore. Nor do I care.” Anisophira had turned to Luna, her ears splayed back. “I wish to check on my changelings. Their well being...I must…”

Luna nodded.

Meanwhile, Daddy was resigned to lying down on the stretcher. A doctor had materialized from somewhere and was already checking his vitals. I took the moment to fish out his hat, a pair of socks, and his boots. Bitey was curled up on his belly because it was warm. Nobody bothered the little guy as Daddy was checked over. A hand was busy scritching behind one ear, then transitioned to the other. Bliss was the mask the little colt wore and he wore it proudly.

“Those my boots?” he asked when he noticed me fishing through my saddlebags. I set them on the ground next to him.

“No, I stole these off a homeless guy,” I replied with a grin. I wanted to see him smile. Right now, I was seeing an old man, teetering on the brink of insanity.

“Awesome,” he grunted, reaching for them.

The doctor put a hoof on his shoulder and gently forced him back down. “Those boots aren’t going anywhere, Mr. Spriggs. Please, just relax.”

Feathersong spoke. It was the first time I had heard her speak. “Do as you are told,” she scolded.

He gave her a look. “Lady, that sums up this hell since I got on this world. I haven’t been able to do much for myself. Everything everybody else wants me to do. Right now, I want to put my goddamn boots on. Pumpkin, take Bitey, will you?”

“I refuse to call him Bitey,” I groused. “Come here, little guy I promise to find a better name for.” I beckoned him with a hoof. The colt happily slid from Daddy’s stomach and bounded to me, chirping loudly. He wanted to please me.

Oh, crap, I’m a queen now, aren’t I? I don’t wanna be a queen! I wanna be Chryssie! I don’t wanna be Queen Chrysalis! I wanna be Daddy’s little pumpkin! My rump fell to the ground as the realization struck me. Bitey simply latched on to one of my front legs, making happy sounds. Daddy grunted his way to a sitting position, dusted off his feet and began pulling the socks out of the boots. As he shod his feet, I was still turning over my slow realization of what I had been called by a changeling I never knew to be my sister.

So much to take in!

“Tabitha?” I looked up and saw Daddy looking with firm line of determination in his face. He finished lacing up his boots and wrapped his arms around his knees. “Tabitha!” he called again, louder this time.

“Mr. Spriggs, you are in no condition—” insisted the doctor before Daddy reached over and put his hand over his muzzle.

“Is your name Tabitha? No? Shut it.”

“Mr. Spriggs, please,” insisted Feathersong. “You just tried to harm yourself. I don’t think it’s a very good idea for you to continue stressing yourself.”

“Right sex. Getting warmer.” Daddy gave her a snarky glare, then looked past her. “Tabitha! I just have one question for you, dammit!”

Both ponies looked pleadingly at Luna. She merely shrugged and motioned with her head for them to back off. Warily she watched Daddy, fully aware he had tried to kill himself.

Craning my neck during the commotion, I could see she was startled at his voice and the name. She had done little to approach him. I could clearly make out Daddy’s anger and confusion, but there was something else: curiosity and a desperate hope.

“Where is my daughter?”

Fleur drifted in like a ghost, nudging me to move from my father quietly. “Let us give them time. We shall not go too far, oui?”

I nodded mutely, gathering up Bi—

You know what? Screw that moronic name Homer Simpson gave an opossum.

“Alexander,” I said to the changeling nymph. He looked up at me. “I name you Alexander.” The newly minted cutie bug chirped at me happily as I scooped him up with a hoof and set him on my back. “Daddy, I’m going with Fleur. Call me if you need anything,” I said, throwing icy daggers at the bigger queen...and apparently my sister.

His fingers brushed against my shoulder in reassurance and Fleur whispered something into his ear. Daddy blinked, gave her a look of confusion and a single, hesitant nod. Luna, I noticed, was some distance away and talking to some guard officers and Quint Orca. She paused in what she was doing and gave Daddy her attention. The alicorn excused herself from the group and moved to meet Fleur. Feathersong and the doctor stayed very close to him, watching him like a pair of hawks.

He was on suicide watch.

Queen Felu’s form again flashed green after she spent some time regarding the man she had just moments ago claimed as her consort. The human form once more emerged from the green flame with downcast eyes and fidgeting hands. Her clothing had to be an illusion spell.

As a human, she was a few inches shorter than Daddy. She was pretty in a natural way, I guess. She was perky, but not big. Smallish, but with good muscle tone. Felu had played on Daddy’s preferences when it came to human females. Even though he had proclaimed his hatred for her, I felt a stirring from him that could only be described as lustful. It was the grossest thing I had ever felt come from him when it came in regards to a changeling that had basically driven him to the brink of madness.

Darkly, I growled under my breath unintelligible words. Even when I changed into a human girl for Daddy last year, I went with what I wanted to look like, not what he wanted in a daughter. She was trying to get into his good graces. She had a long way to go down that hellish road before he would even blink neutrally at her.

I was going to do my damnedest to make sure it was going to be harder than that.

“What does she want with him, anyway?” I complained to nobody in particular. Alexander chirruped my mood. His little perforated hooves encircled my shoulders and neck as he pressed into the back of my neck through my mane.

“A guilty conscience can strike even the hearts of the most powerful of monarchs,” replied Luna mysteriously. She sighed sadly, looking at the human and the transformed queen with the eyes of an oracle. “They have a little one to discuss, do they not?”

“Crystal. He had a little girl named Crystal.” I did the math between the two worlds, pausing briefly as I tilted my head slightly in consideration. “She’s four years old here, I think. Maybe five.” The very idea had me reeling. I could only imagine what was going through my daddy’s battered mind. The fact he had gone from weeping like a child just told his mother had died to a man seemingly in full control of himself. I knew better.

“Sheer stubbornness,” remarked Fleur de Lis as she turned and looked at the awkward meeting at the stretcher. “I do not think the human is capable of understanding the meaning of self defeat. Ma Emeraude has kept his madness at bay, I think.”

“Perhaps,” Luna agreed, giving me a smile. “It is said the stronger a queen’s mind, the better those who partake in her hive can prevail in the worst of times.” Her interest shifted. “Chrysalis, what do you know of this daughter your father has with this other queen?”

Shaking my head, I replied, “Not much, really. Sorry.” Alexander climbed up my neck and draped himself between my ears, making funny clicking sounds at Luna. “Behold, my mighty army,” I giggled, rolling my eyes up at him. He sneezed twice, riled up for a third go and decided to let out a mighty little yawn instead. It was a nice distraction from the tension building.

“He seemed attached to Mr. Spriggs,” observed Luna as she smiled at the little guy. She was worried about her sister.

“I think Daddy fed him love. Anisophira either asked him or forced him to do that.”

“Humans are very emotional creatures,” Fleur said. “I have unfounded suspicions in regards to the very sickly queen and her reasons for taking him, but I suspect her focus is indeed the well-being of her foals. There are a goodly number of them wounded from what I have seen, les chéris malchanceux.”

She was right. There was a ton of the little nymphs that had to be carried. The sounds they made was pitiful and heartbreaking. Luna wickered sorrowfully. “I will see what I can do to help. I did not anticipate so many injured. They need aid. Let us go to them and do what we can to offer succor and comfort.”

I shook my head. “I can’t leave them alone!” I cried, glaring at the humanized bitch. Alexander echoed my sentiment with a raspy hiss and buzz of his wings.

“She means him no harm,” Luna ascertained firmly. “He is forcing himself to confront her. Mr. Spriggs should be an emotional storm, yet his control is astounding.”

“He’s leaning on me,” I said. “I’ve always supported his mind with my own. I take his pain and give him my calm. I keep him from falling apart. I always have.” No ex girlfriend is going to wreck my Daddy’s mind. But they had a kid together. What does Crystal look like? She’s a half human, half changeling, right? Is she weird? Does she do strange things? Can she walk on walls? “I always will for as long as he needs me. I still need him. His daughter needs him.”

Luna paused in consideration, then nodded. “This is an interesting development. If there is a hybrid child between the two of them...most interesting indeed. I can understand the conflict, I think.” Pity etched across her flawless face. “What I cannot understand is the bond between the two of you. You are a changeling. He is a human. Two vastly different minds able to connect and support each other.”

Wordlessly I turned my head and regarded Felu...Tabitha. “She changed him. I think she did, anyway. I don’t like it. She’s done nothing but hurt him.”

Daddy was filled with barely restrained anger. His lips moved carefully. Clearly the words forming in his mind were screened, put through the tortures of American customs agents, before taking the journey to his tongue and coming out as speech. A vein in his forehead throbbed and his eyes were as hard as diamonds. Felu had folded her legs demurely beneath her and sat on her heels, her hands folded neatly on her lap. She would not look at him, instead focusing on the ground between them. When she spoke, her words were quiet and meek. Felu would on occasion be the one asking a question, her eyes darting up long enough for the question to escape her lips before falling back down.

“Anything from Princess Celestia?” I asked, wanting to not think of Felu and how she had Daddy wrapped around her hoof for a long time before I fell into his care.

Luna was silent, looking off into the horizon. “Not yet,” she answered a few seconds later. “We can only communicate between each other in our minds to a certain distance. I should be able to hear a faint whisper from her, an acknowledgement of her presence, at least. I sense nothing.” She shook her head. “Come. Let us follow Lady Fleur’s suggestion and lend our aid.”

“What about that Shield pegasus? He’s just sitting off to the side looking smug with himself.” I indicated him as he sat alone, watching the queen and Daddy discussing whatever.

“He is dangerous, but seems content to wait. I will be watching him closely.” Luna snorted derisively. “The Empress needs him. He is far older than he should be. His magic is not fully pegasi. He’s been changed. It’s all a game to him.” If it was possible, her fur shifted to a darker blue, like midnight. “No, he has another purpose.”

“What do you think it is?”

“He said it himself. He is a distraction. I fear something is amiss.”

“What about Daddy and...her?”

About then, Daddy was being pushed onto the stretcher by a pair of ponies while the doctor quietly spoke to him with pleading urgency. Felu kept starting at the ground, listless. Daddy reluctantly lay down, glaring spitefully at the pseudo human.

“They will be fine,” said the white unicorn, shifting in her pale armor. “Let them be. Mr. Spriggs still loves her, I think. A strange love. He is the master, not the queen.”

I think Fleur de Lis was jealous.

Wait…

What?!?!

Chapter 23 Roundtable

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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—”

Chapter 24 Into the Mind of a Man

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Iopened my eyes, trying to dissect what had just happened to me. Blinking away the disorientation, I noted I could not feel my body as I normally could. Memory served up the fading vision of her horn lighting up and to sometimes-too-serious expression I had come to know and love.

Oh.

She put me to sleep, Princess Luna.

“Wha—?” Shaking my head, the surroundings I found myself in were...strange. “Huh?”

“They’re frantically trying to find you,” said an unfamiliar voice somewhere to my left. “It would appear your father’s mind is a grand mansion filled with many rooms. So many memories.”

I whipped around, immediately on my hooves and in a defensive stance. Wings buzzed in irritation. “Who’s there?” For some reason, I could not make out my landscape. Everything was blurry and out of focus. My eyes kept trying to blink. It was very disorienting.

A shadowy figure slowly materialized some distance away. Or was it right in front of me? It was tall, distinctly feminine. Humanoid. Well, human.

Human?

“Tabitha?” I growled, baring my teeth.

“No,” came the amused reply. “I am much older than my daughter.”

The form solidified, stepping forward on bare, charcoal black feet. They were dainty, the legs shapely like a ballerina’s. She wore a simple dress covering her knees. It was modest, though still managed to accent her curves tastefully. Her hair spilled over her shoulders, a mix of white and green, with little braids in front of each pointed ear. Large, emerald eyes blazed softly, hypnotically. Her face was a perfect oval, her lips not quite full and dark red. I took a guess she was somewhere between a C cup and a B. The dark woman was also quite short, barely over five feet tall.

I could look her in the eye. She was beyond exotic in the beauty department.

As my observation of her physical form was going on, another part of my brain started screaming at my conscience, banging on the thick door as loudly as possible. No, it didn’t quite click yet who I was looking at. The woman’s words were telling me I should know who she was by what she had just said.

“I have not seen you in a very long time,” cooed the woman as she slowly made her way to me. Her steps were slow, as though she were approaching an easily spooked horse. I found I could not move as my eyes were locked on hers. “So very long. You look well, Chrysalis. Very healthy. A second nymph stage. Or foalhood.” She smirked gently, lifting her right hand. Her ebony skin was flawless. Her nails were perfect. Not too long and sculpted with expert detail.

The touch to my muzzle was electrifying. I gasped, flinched...or tried to.

“I find I like the human form. Though the color choices of the skin is a bit lacking,” she admitted as she slowly petted my muzzle. “The fingers are a wonderful set of tools. Opposable thumbs...such a marvelous example of evolutionary domination done as simply as possible.”

Those eyes bore into me as she scrunched her face into an impish smile.

“Let me see your human form, child.”

Without my help, my body decided to morph, shimmering and altering. My forehooves shrank, narrowed. I rose up on my rear legs as they changed. There was no pain, nor was there the usual feelings of discomfort. The first time I had changed into a human girl was not the only time. I had practiced for months, trying to find the perfect form that suited me. Changelings can’t just turn into anything on a whim. It’s a lot easier when it’s another creature that has a base form similar to ours. Bipedal forms bring up a lot of inner body complications I had never anticipated.

In short, I fell down a lot when Daddy wasn’t in the house and I was trying to practice walking as a human. Frustrating. As. Hell.

The form I took was the one Daddy was eventually shown. I was a little taller, as I must have had a bit of a growth spurt since the last time I had it. Did changeling disguises age along with the user or was it an effort for us to keep up appearances?

I was upright now, as a human. Naked.

The dark woman took a step back, fingers curled around her chin. Her eyes inspected me with scrutinizing darts. Slowly she made her way around me, taking in every aspect of my being. It was embarrassing.

“A little taller. A hair over a hundred pounds. Still a wisp of a thing. Developing quite nicely. Your mane looks lovely. Why the pale skin? Pale pink, actually. So plain. So...blah." The dark woman made a face.

I tried to retort. Nothing came out of my mouth.

“Of course you can’t speak. I placed a silence spell upon you the moment my fingers touched your muzzle. Be still and let me look at you, child.”

I could feel her fingers tracing over my arms, over my shoulders. She hummed as she moved, poking me every now and then.

“You need to eat more,” she observed. “I suppose you are still developing physically, but you really do need wider hips. Males are attracted to females with wider hips. It suggests you are physically capable of bearing a child.”

Then, as my face was brightly lit up with flames, she was in front of me. The smile she wore was somewhere between motherly and predatory with a dash of creepy thrown in for the hell of it.

...motherly?

Something in the back in my mind clicked, accompanied by something akin to a ‘finally!’. There may or may not have been sarcastic clapping involved.

“Call me Mom, dear,” said the dark woman with a smile.

And then she hugged me.

In a dreamscape, sensations can be controlled. They can be muted or intensified, but to a certain degree. Luna once told me such things are necessary to maintain the host awareness’ attention either away or towards you. A good practitioner, she had said, could mask herself from the dreamer and walk with impunity throughout the mind of the host. A master could bring a guest, as Luna had once done for me. Back then, she was proving a point she was always watching me, waiting for me to show any potential reversion of what I once was.

The woman was at least as good as Luna.

“I want you to just listen and follow. There is much to discuss. We also must do something about this human’s mind. It is an absolute mess. We will walk. I will talk. You will listen. As we do this, we will repair the damage done by my daughters— your sisters —and hopefully restore your father. It may require removing some of his memories. So long as we stay out of the Dreamscape, Luna will not detect us. I will be shielding the both of us from her. You will not be able to use your magic, dear. I love you, but I do not trust you. I imagine you would at this moment prefer to be with the princess. Luna, I believe would have wanted to guide you on this journey. But her realm is of dreams. It is not of the mind. That is my specialty.”

With a flick of her wrist and a snap of her finger, I felt my body relax. I stumbled a little to regain my footing. Another wave of her hand and I was clothed in shorts and a tee shirt. My feet remained uncovered, like hers. I did not like being poked and prodded like a slab of beef. Glowering, I did my best to melt the woman with my stare.

Sadly, it did not work.

“Firstly, I know your thoughts. You must learn to control your emotions. You do not understand the grand scheme of what I have planned. You have your role to play. You have played it magnificently, to this point. As has your father. I have the gift of clairvoyance, to a degree. Celestia is also gifted. Luna, on a smaller scale. All alicorns do. It is one of the prices we pay for immortality. I suspect both Cadence and Twilight will grow into the gift as they pass their natural life spans and begin their immortal journeys.”

I gave her a questioning look.

“I adapt to what happens around me. I adjust. I was distraught when I thought you had been driven to madness. You disappeared. I mourned. A year later, you returned. But before then, I discovered what had happened to you and had you watched.” Her eyes drifted up and around. “Come. We must not dawdle. There is much to be done. Time is relative in a mind, but it still goes forward. Never backward. We will go to the library. Most of his memories are there. If we see anything broken, we will try to fix it.”

She waved her hand again, and I was free.

“Stay close. Do not wander. If you do not know what you are doing, you could very well cause more harm to your father’s mind than good, despite your intentions.”

Again, I tried to say something. Again, it felt as though I was trying to talk through a brick wall in my mouth. I stumbled on faltering steps, completely not used to walking.

“It’s mind walking, not the physical thing,” said the woman. Daddy called her Sil. I will think of her as Sil. “Just move one foot in front of the other. The adjustment won’t be as tedious as if you were actually in human form.”

Reluctantly, I did just that and nearly tripped over my own noobness. An arm caught out and fingers grasped at my shoulder and arm to steady me. Sil laughed. It was a deceptively happy sound. I felt as though she really meant to eat my soul at some point. I mean, I was beginning to become aware of how powerful she might be. And this was a mental projection I was feeling this from!

I padded after her on bare feet that made no sound on the wooden floors. As I realized I was walking on a floor, a room took shape around me. A sense of familiarity washed over my senses. I looked around and saw pictures on the wall. Photographs. Daddy not in them, but they were people I assumed he knew. Immediately I made out his parents and his sister, saw images of people I did not know but felt he did.

“This house represents his memories, his hopes, his dreams and even his fears.” Sil guided me by the hand down a hallway. The lighting was low to the point of giving everything an orange dimness. “We will find what is loose. We will put things where they belong. My daughters were sloppy. The minion was sloppy. Your father’s mind was to have been observed and categorized so we might understand humans better. He is the first.” She straightened a picture frame. The photo was one of me, little and in a bathtub filled with bubbles. I was a cute kid, I noted.

“My daughters. They are inconsiderate at times. I tell them to do something and they harm those I do not wish to see harmed.” We entered into a room. Judging from the shelves and furniture, it was a library. Books lay strewn across the floor. The ceiling had a single chandelier lit up with candles. There were wooden reliefs carved in intricate shapes and radiating from the only source of light.

I did not like what she was implying.

“In Canterlot, I touched his mind for the first time after a foolish changeling tried to discover the owner of the magic he had sensed. As your mind was guarded, the servant could not get into your mind. He found a way when he discovered the link between you and the human. Human minds cannot handle intrusions.”

She leafed through the pages of a book she had scooped up from the floor, her golden eyes drinking in the contents of the pages. Gold? I thought they were green. And why did she choose an elf form? A dark elf, on top of that. Was that the dress I had worn for Daddy? No, she was six inches shorter than me. Same color. A bit more on the sexy side.

I had more modest tastes.

Why are you looking at me like that? I do.

Sil closed the book and ran her fingers over its spine. Her expression was unreadable until she lifted her chin and gave me a smile. “I have come to respect your father, Chrysalis. My agents have been watching him ever since it was discovered where you had been sent.” A somber cloud darkened her already dark features. “I nearly lost my mind searching for you. Did you know your losses had thrown you into the pits of madness? So many minds had been linked to you for the battle, the sudden extinguishment of so many rent you. You had regarded them as your children, offering them a kingdom on a platter if they but did one simple thing and give you a chance to strike down the Sun and the Moon while they were unawares.”

Her eyes glazed over, assuming a distant stare. “I punished those who had turned against you. While it was true I did not want you to succeed, I was beyond angry when you were rendered destitute through the loss of your army. Your hive was broken the moment your mind was shattered. Tens of thousands who regarded you as queen suddenly found themselves Grays.” Slowly, she placed the book on one of the shelves, moving with slow, seamless grace.

“I am hard on my children. I must be. I turn them on each other, or else they would loose themselves upon the world. I must be a monster to contain the monsters I have created. I love them, but I fear what they would do if I could not reign them in.” Sil bent and picked up another book, this one thicker. “Oh, you can start picking up. His memories are here. The ones that help define who he is. This is as good a place as any to begin helping him. This is as good a place as any for me to make amends, if such a thing is possible.”

I did so, my thoughts a jumble. For what seemed an eternity, I picked up books and helped the strange changeling-turned-fantasy elf sort out Daddy’s memories. Sil did not add to her explanation and I could not ask her. My lips were sealed. Why was she telling me all of this? I did not remember her. I did not view her as my mother.

She looked like a fantasy elf, for crying out loud! Oddly enough, a short one.

Every once in a while, I would steal a glance at the woman. Even though she was not in her changeling form, she still had an air of authority I had only seen in Celestia or Luna. The aura she radiated was unmistakable, nor did she bother to mute it like the alicorns did. She wanted me to feel her power. She wanted me to know exactly who she was.

But in Daddy’s mind? Here? Why?

I reeled, partially glad I could not speak. What would or what could I say to her? It was like discovering your mother was in truth an evil lich queen who was going out of character to be nice to you and the family who had raised you...for what?

She was up to something. But, supposedly what we were doing was helping Daddy, though I had a really hard time picturing the recesses of his memories being confined in what appeared to be a mansion I remember from the old Westerns Daddy and I used to watch on television.

If you’re still reading this, then you must know I’ve written all of this after the fact. Piggy backing Daddy’s writing is a bit weird and he insisted I pick up where he had left off. Or haven’t you noticed? Keep in mind, I am scared shitless at this point. I’m in my father’s head, listening to a woman who’s fiddling around with his memories and talking as though she and I are the bestest of friends.

I seriously think I hate her. She’s toying with me. She’s toying with Daddy.

She’s also implying Celestia and Luna are idiots, and in a familiar way. Did she know them? Were they aware of her beyond the farce of peaceful intent the changeling empress clung to like a starving tick in the ass of a deer? I was not sure, but…

Sil motioned ‘come hither’ with a hand at me, her fingers curling slowly, beckoning as her eyes settled upon an oversized book at her feet. She levitated it with her other hand. I approached and she turned to me. The book opened. I peered in and noticed it was a photo album. The pictures were all of me. Sil slowly leafed through the pages, her eyes drinking in every detail in every image, an unreadable visage. I was still mildly disturbed by the ‘come hither’ thing. There was nothing sexual about it, but the motion was more of a master beckoning his dog than a mother motioning her child over.

Bitch.

“Oh,” she cooed. “You were adorable. If only cameras had been available when you were but a hatchling.” Sil’s eyes were misting. Misting!

A finger caressed a picture of me in the tub, covered in bubbles. I was staring up at Daddy, apparently in the throes of deciding if bubble baths were fun or not. The page turned, and there were more embarrassing baby pictures of me. The humanized changeling empress squealed in delight as her eyes fell open each new photo, taken directly from my dad’s memories.

Without looking up from her perusing, she said in the form of an afterthought, “You may speak. One question and one question only. Do I make myself clear?” Golden eyes flicked at me and held until I nodded under a cloud of trepidation.

Of course, the first question was for me the most obvious. “Why a drow?”

The expression on her face briefly flashed really? before she sighed and closed the photo album. Sil did not answer, taking a moment to place the album onto the bookshelf and letting her fingers slide down wistfully along the spine. “Your father has certain...fantasies he still plays out in his mind. He happens to take a fancy to exotic females. I believe this one was from a...tabletop game of some sort. A... dark elf, I presume. Picking through your father’s head has been...educational, to say the least. I had no idea such a common human would have such a vivid imagination. Did you know he drew as a child and into his teenage years? Quite good, actually. A talent, completely developed without outside assistance. I should imagine he might have been a successful artist if he had the courage back then to pursue his dreams.” Sil shrugged. “His choice of a military life was more of a search for employment rather than a need to serve his nation.”

I mulled that over, recalling Daddy’s desk in his room. He still doodled on occasion. Nothing of his interest in drawing had ever been pressed to my ears. The man still had secrets, even if it involved paper and pencils. Well, he still drew his World of Warcraft characters. Females, all of them.

Forever alone.

Well, the jokes on the meme as Daddy has me and another daughter. At least he helped make Crystal. Which brought to mind another question. I opened my mouth to ask it, but my throat felt constricted and no sound dared utter itself from my lips. Mommy magicked my mouth shut.

Oh, goodie.

The glare I threw her would have melted adamantium, but she guided me along and pointed at the books scattered on the floor. “Start picking them up. They are in chronological order. Simple. You’ll know them apart by simply picking them up.”

I’m sorry, but where in the manual did it say fiddling with someone’s noodle was simple? On top of that, what bloody manual? A human mind is a terrible wasteland. Daddy’s mental man cave belonged more to a bachelor who tried too hard to pick up women.

Hey, Daddy would have found it funny!

Without thinking too much further into the subject of what makes my daddy’s mind tick, I crouched down and began gathering up nondescript books. As I scooped them up, I began to realize there was nothing printed on the covers nor the spines. They looked like the sort of books you’d find in an old nineteenth century Victorian library. As I stood, Bigfoot materialized in a plush chair reading a rather large copy of Guns and Ammo and looking at me through a monocle.

“Quite,” he said, before disappearing into the recesses of Daddy’s mind in a swirl of smoke, leaving behind nothing but an empty chair and a neglected magazine.

Where the hell did that come from?

I was about to point out something to Sil, standing up and pointing with one free hand. I tried to speak, but Sil’s words came back as nothing came out of my mouth. I don’t think I was prepared for what was to come next. Her face was impassive, but her eyes had become saucers. Her body had gone rigid and magic crackled in swirling green and gold hues about her frame. A hand went to her lips.

“Oh, my.”

I stepped towards her, clutching the book.

“You shouldn’t be here. You shouldn’t even be aware!” she cried, taking a step back.

From the doorway emerged Daddy, wearing a glowering mask as he strode in like Lazarus from the grave. It was as though he was angry death had eluded him and he wore the images of his most haunting life experiences within his eyes.

“Sil,” he spoke with the calm before the storm. “What are you doing here? This is my house.” He blinked. “How do I know who you are? Why do I know who you are? Are we enemies? Are you a friend?” Confusion clouded about him and he swayed on his feet unsteadily. Daddy found me. “Chryssie? Pumpkin?”

I flew to him, flinging my arms around his neck and hugging him for all I was worth. I felt his pain! I felt all of it! It was soul crushing and I knew why. With the waves of pain came his memories of having his mind raked for information on how to use human weapons. Behind those rolled every moment when Daddy took a life as nonchalantly as one would pluck a flower from a bush. His agony became mine and I wept. So much sorrow! It was as though his world would shatter and drown everything in the tears of his despair!

How long did we cling to each other? I don’t know. It could have been forever and I tried everything I could to take his pain away. Daddy had enough of it in his life. He deserved to be happy! He deserved to be left alone! I was his purpose! I was his reason for being! I…

I…

Oh, God, I was keeping him from being himself...of being truly free!

No! It was her influence! Her touch! Her madness! Her children! She! They! All of them!

I fought against the pressure containing my voice. I raged against it with the fury of a cataclysm! I gathered myself as though I was pushing against the water behind the dam. It would not stop me! “He’s mine!” I shrieked, pushing him away and behind me, facing the Thing that dared to call herself my mother. “I am whole with him! I have no want and no need! I protect him, not you! Never you!”

She staggered backwards again, clutching her chest as her lips twisted in a snarl. Her hair spilled over her face as she bent, nearly crumpling to her knees. Sil held still, her balance precarious. Her other hand came up, as if to ward me off.

“Don’t be so difficult,” she hissed. The woman raised her head and I could see from between the strands of her hair her glowing whites. “Child, you know not the power before you. My might cannot be bested by the tantrums of a child.” She straightened, the hand held towards me pointing a finger. “You broke my spell. Impressive.” The smile I saw was not that of a proud mother. It was predatory.

“Why are you doing this?” I challenged.

“Why? Because Celestia follows voices in her head! She heeds the words of an oracle read to her so long ago few even know the most minimum of snippets! We all of roles to play in this world and she oversteps her bounds! I must balance everything! I must do what I must to maintain this world’s integrity! The Gods will awaken and I must do what I must to protect my changelings.” Sil took in a deep breath and deflated slowly. “She has grown lax and complacent. She does not know the darkness that will come when the worlds merge. I have spent countless generations preparing my changelings to protect this world from that darkness. I am the lesser of two evils, my daughter. I have purpose and I will fulfill that purpose. Your slate was wiped clean, child. Your purpose is beyond the ken of Equestria’s guardians or mine. Your father, as you see him, has been drawn into this.”

Sil approached, opening her palm. “You can break the cycle, Chrysalis. You have the power to heal. You have the gift of the Second Sight. You are the Chosen One.”

I stared at her.

“Please. I will not influence you. I cannot influence you. But I beg you, come home. Let me look upon you with my own eyes. I wish to restore you to your former power, give unto you that which is your birthright. You must become a Queen, Chrysalis. You must have your hive. You must have your colony returned to you.”

Her eyes went beyond me. “You, Michael Spriggs. You must return to me my child. Stand her before me, you at her side. Let a mother be reunited with her lost child. There is little I can give you in return, save your daughter.”

“My what?” Daddy’s voice carried its disbelief.

“Crystal Spriggs. She lives. She thrives. She thinks of you often and always asks when she can see her father. She knows what her mother did. She does not understand why. Crystal is an intelligent child, remarkably so.” Sil offered a small smile. “My granddaughter is a joy in my life. It was regrettable what my daughter did to you. She followed my orders.”

There was silence. Uncomfortable silence. I had turned and was trying to read Daddy’s face. Being in his mind while his emotions roiled like a hurricane made me woozy.

Crystal was alive? Didn't Felu say something to that effect? I think she did. It felt more profound experiencing it a second time. The emotions were overwhelming and could have only come from one source.

“She’s...my daughter...she’s…” Daddy began to fall forward, his eyes rolling into the back of his head. How he could faint while in his own mind was beyond me, but I was bearing a phantasm weight upon my shoulders, straining to keep a man twice my size upright while in the middle of bleaching his brain.

No, that isn’t right. That totally came out wrong. But, hey! You try bearing the weight of a man’s imaginary world upon imaginary shoulders while a dark succubus is standing there, staring at the two of you!

“Stay away!” I yelled as she stepped towards us. I don’t care if she was going to help or start eating faces, she was on my no-mail list for Christmas cards! On top of that, she just admitted she was evil, making her more than likely the prime villainess in this story.

Or was Felu to blame for all of this? Then there was that anorexic queen that had forced Daddy to do those terrible things to those admittedly terrible pirates.

“You were not supposed to be aware.” Sil dropped her hand to her side. “You were supposed to be in a state of rest, dreamless while I repaired the damage to your mind. Michael Spriggs, you are a surprising individual.”

“Why do you look like a dark elf?” Daddy pushed himself off of my shoulders, his fingers giving a squeeze of my shoulders. “I haven’t associated with that stuff since...well…” He faltered, blinking as he tried to focus his mind. “Crystal is alive? The plane. It crashed. Her mother walked away from it. Hundreds died. You? You did this? You did that to so many families? Why? Why would you do something like this?”

“Get out.”

I had the sensation of his powerful grip pulling me aside and out of the way. With a roar I never thought possible to come from his throat, he charged, reaching out towards the dark woman. He was swinging a fist, only to meet with empty air as she simply disappeared.

I cried out to him. He stared at me, his cheeks stained with tears. Daddy roared his frustrations, howling at the ceiling before collapsing to the floor. Clutching his head, he was again a miserable shamble of broken man.

“I will help you, Mr. Spriggs, whether you want it or not. I cannot allow you near my grandchild with your mind in the state it is. I have given you the truth. I cannot lie. I can mislead, but I cannot tell a falsehood. I hated you, at one time, Mr. Spriggs. I despised the face one of my daughters would love you far more than she loved me. I despised the fact you presumed to be the surrogate father and mother to Chrysalis. I hated you. I watched you. I could do nothing. I would not do nothing. I had power, yet was powerless against you. The bonds you formed with Chrysalis are unlike anything I thought possible between a human and a changeling. I was dubious with the bond you had with Felu. My doubts were broken when I felt Chrysalis back in this world, her mind as it was, but not as it had been.” A pair of eyes, massive and enveloping the very space around us took shape and loomed over us. They were the eyes of a queen, a monster.

Daddy looked at me, his lips moving, forming words I could not believe. He shook his head, pleading with me.

No, Daddy!

"I should heal your mind, make it whole. I owe you this much. You have suffered. You have endured more than any human should. You have done things no other human has done. You should have stayed on Earth, but you are here.” Sil’s voice had dropped to a soothing whisper. It was like having a lover sing sweet nothings or a mother’s assurance to a frightened child. She sounded as both in one. It was a horrible thing to experience, to see, to feel.

Daddy stopped trembling, turning towards that mesmerizing voice. He slowly calmed, until he was simply staring, as if at nothing. I rushed to his side, touching at his face and trying to get him to look at me.

“He will be fine. I had to put his mind to sleep. Come. There is not much time. No doubt Luna is aware I am here. I can keep her at bay for only so much longer. She may be desperate enough to risk harming him inadvertently.” The woman appeared again from nothing as she had disappeared just moments before.

“I will restore his daughter to him and send them back to Earth. I think he has earned his daughter. Crystal will stop being upset with me, I think.”

“Why are you doing this?” I asked.

“Because I am responsible. His mind is scattered. You witnessed it for yourself. Did he not just ask you to end his life? He still has a purpose. He still has a duty. I have my duties. You will learn yours in time, Chrysalis.”

“But…”

“Either help me with him or I shall expel you from his mind. I brought you here to show I mean him no harm, that I am capable of doing something good. I am not some mindless fiend seeking to dominate the world, Chrysalis.”

Her sincerity was overwhelming. Her stance was submissive. Her voice, pleading.

I sighed, once again cradling Daddy in my arms. A kiss went to his imaginary forehead. A hug more for myself for good measure. I closed my eyes and contemplated. Finally, I asked, “What do you want me to do?”

Sil smiled. “I will show you, my daughter.”

Chapter 25 Bacon and Cream

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“Pumpkin?”

I awoke groggily, my head feeling as though someone—or somepony—had been using the inside of my skull as a racquetball court. Everything was like a quivering pile of jello. I could hear a voice. A familiar voice. The relief I felt was amazing and a weight was lifted from my shoulders. Daddy was alive! He could speak! He could ground me again!

Well, I suppose I could handle that.

Sil was—is— a manipulator. I did not know exactly how powerful she was nor where she got it from, but it was clear to me at least she had something on par with Luna when it came to the dream realm. At least I thought so. I was having troubled thoughts when I woke up. It started when I saw Daddy’s eyes opened and focused on me. His stubbled face was creased with lines surrounding his smile, weak as it was.

Daddy looked...old. He had always seemed, well…not old for as long as I can remember. The wrinkles were those of a middle aged man who struggled to hold on to his youth in a losing effort. Where did those gray hairs come from? When did he change from a young man to one growing old?

I woke up to this, to my thoughts of seeing him in a new light, my mother’s words echoing in my mind. Did she want to help? Was this just a distraction from something else? With the human children here in this world and their involvement with pirates, things were not making sense. Such things flooded my thoughts as I lifted my head from Daddy’s chest, smiling weakly at him.

“Hi, Daddy.”

“Hey Pumpkin.”

Alexander nuzzled me. The little guy had a worried look. Buzzing his wings, he crawled from me to Daddy, nuzzling under his chin. Without thinking, fingers were immediately scratching under a chitinous chin. He purred and Daddy turned his smile to him.

“Hey little guy.”

My eyes watered up. His did, too. Pain filled his soul, it seemed. “I saw them. I felt them. It was...i-it was…” Daddy could not finish. He did not have to. His emotions were of pain and old wounds. A past he would have rather left behind had suddenly erupted back into his life and his suffering was painfully palatable. He could recall everything that had happened while he had been under Queen Anisophira’s thrall. Daddy focused, tussling my mane with his other hand as he used the other to pull Alex into a hug.

“I remember the little ones. They needed love. They were hurt. There was not enough love. They didn’t have enough love. She didn’t want them to suffer anymore. It was hurting her to see them that way.” Daddy’s voice was quiet and sullen. His grief was hers. She had given it to him and he voiced it, showed it, and felt it. Through the connection we shared, everything he had felt and was feeling was now mine to experience. Anisophira had suffered. She had given her suffering to Daddy. The queen had made him kill to protect what was precious to her.

An unforgivable act. Understandable, but at the same time…

“Daddy, don’t,” I murmured. Instinct pushed me to take the pain away.

“I remember everything. I remember.”

“Daddy, stop.”

“I remember Tabitha. I understand why things happened, now.”

“You can’t do this to yourself.”

“She told me everything. She told me why.” Daddy released Alexander and cupped my chin with both hands. “Why everything happened.”

I blinked. “Who? Tabitha? You mean Felu?” The Bitch?

A sad smile changed into a frown. “Sil.”

“Oh. She said she was going to fix you. She asked me to help fix your mind.”

“She told me things.”

Worried, I pulled back and blinked, feeling creeping fear filling my heart. “God, Daddy, what did she do to you? Are you all right? How do you feel?”

“I’m...doing. I’m not fine. I’m not okay, but…” He shook his head as his voice trailed off, his attention now a thousand yard stare. “It’s better than what it was. I think. Some things are still fuzzy. Confusing. I saw a dark elf, Chryssie. She sat with me and we talked. We talked for a long time. She told me everything she wanted to tell me.”

I never recalled that. Then again, the mind was a complex thing and the dreamscape could be bent and twisted at the whim of the weaver. Or so Luna had told me. Time had no meaning in dreams. Creation happened within them. Creation and destruction. From there, the imagination knew bounds limited only by the mind of whoever was in control. Normally, it was restricted to the mind, but it could be heavily influenced and guided by an outsider, given the outsider was strong enough to wrest control of a dream from the dream’s owner. Very few ponies were strong enough. Changeling queens could do it to a limited degree, but the hive mind was a completely different beast in that respect.

No, Princess Luna ruled over dreams without peer. Or so the Germans would have had me believe! Sil moved through Daddy’s mind through his dreams with the ease comparable to the act of breathing.

“What did you talk about?” I asked, not knowing what other question to ask. I could have opted to not ask any questions at all, but that went against my curiosity, morbid as it could be. Was it masochism? Probably. Every girl needs a hobby.

“My daughter. Crystal.” A shudder went through Daddy’s body. “She is very proud of her granddaughter. Gentle with her. Not like how she treats her daughters. Sil says she is a very sweet little girl. Her mother—” Eyes flashed anger and conveyed loss and sadness, “—sheltered her from her aunts. She did not want them to influence her. Crystal is precious. Crystal is alive. Pumpkin, she’s alive!” Disbelief. Awe. Uncertainty clouded his thoughts, confusion broiled. On one hand, he was relieved, even happy. On the other, Daddy was hurt at having missed out on much of his daughter’s life. “My baby. She’s only aged thirteen months. She’s still a toddler. Sil said that. She said I could see her again. She wants me to be reunited with my daughter!”

Daddy suddenly fell into a fit of coughing. There was a pitcher of water on the nightstand next to the bed. Someone had placed it there while I had been asleep. Probably Fleur. Where was she, anyway? Mentally I shrugged as I filled the glass halfway using my telekinesis and pressed it into his hand. Alexander chirped nervously, looking at me as if I was the only being in the world that could make things right. The little nymph blinked his solid blue eyes, the glow within flickering briefly and chirped again.

I slowly pulled myself off the bed, getting to my hooves and buzzing my wings. Waiting while Daddy drank his water, I pondered over what he had just told me. It was a revelation I had not expected. Then again, none of this would have happened if Anzealous had not mind raped my father. The little shit still had a beating coming to him. Oh, I hated that fat changeling! Another part of me was quick to interject with reason the outcome of his actions would probably not have led to this point. Oh, I could lay the blame at Celestia’s hooves. I could point at Anisophira for her transgressions.

I could blame life, if I felt like it.

Screw that.

Oh, I had my list. I kept it updated in my head. As much as Daddy wanted me to be a good girl, revenge was the sort of thing that was starting to have its own appeal. Like the Grinch before embarking on the mission to steal Christmas, I inwardly grinned as the foundations of a plan was beginning to bud. Everything pointed to the Empress. Everything was due to her meddling. She twisted things against the harmony of what was natural to suit her needs. Sil had her own plans.

Daddy finished his water and handed me the empty glass. “Where are you going?” he asked.

“I need to talk to Fleur about something. I also need to talk to Celestia or Luna. I have questions and I need to tell them about…”

“What’s wrong?”

“I saw inside your head, Daddy. I’m sorry, but some of the things I saw, I never knew. You hid so much from me. You suppressed so many memories. A lot of them were against your will.” I sighed and looked away. “I have my own questions. I don’t understand everything myself. I barely understand my own magic. I need answers. I need to better prepare myself so I can protect you. I’ve failed because I simply don’t know.”

He furrowed his brow and shook his head. “It’s not your fault. Some things you simply have no control over. That’s life. I know it more than you know.”

“That may be true,” I argued as I met his worry with determination. “I need to learn. I need to know. We’re going to meet a bunch of queens wearing their best rape faces and I really don’t want to go in with my pants down.”

Daddy laughed. “That’s not a very nice picture you’re painting, sweetie. You also don’t wear pants.”

“Now you know why I’m nervous,” I quipped with a grin. We were both terrified. Appropriately, we masked that fear through a horrible sense of humor. It was a very American thing to do. Wait, was I an American? I could definitely play the role, that was certain. “They’re my sisters. I can’t ignore that fact. Felu is my sister. Anisophira is my sister. Druanae, as well. I need to know about them. Until now, I knew nothing about them. I didn’t even know I had sisters until after what happened to you.”

Both of us faltered for a moment, our grins fading. “Pumpkin,” Daddy said seriously, “I don’t want you becoming something you’ll regret later in life.”

I retorted, “And I don’t want you turning into a quivering mass of fu—”

“Language!”

“—funky mental goo.” I finished lamely, curling a lip in a weaksauce smile.

“I didn’t raise you to curse like a sailor,” muttered my Old Man. “Where did you get that mouth of yours? I never taught you it was okay to say them.”

“I’m sorry.” No, not really.

“I don’t think you are,” he groused, crossing his arms and giving me the stinkeye. Alexander imitated him. It was adorable. “Look, Pumpkin, we’re in over our heads. We’re in the middle of a power play between goddesses.”

“Greek gods?” Alexander, meantime, had fluttered over to me. Apparently, he could fly. Or at least hover clumsily. “Seriously?” I let him settle on my back between my wings. I was hungry. Daddy was going to stay in bed while I got everyone food. As a queen, such decisions were mine to make and mine alone!

Wait, what?

“I’m going to get you some food, Daddy. Are you hungry? I’ll go see Celestia later.”

“I’m hungry,” the man admitted. He began to sit up.

“No, stay put,” I told him sternly. “You’re in no condition to get up. The ship’s doctor hasn’t checked on you yet and I’m not getting in trouble. I’ve gotten into enough trouble as it is. Luna still has me in her doghouse.” Well, this was true so far as I could tell. Luna had me under her microscope.

“Chrysalis Spriggs, I am your father. You do not tell me what to do!” Daddy growled.

He was cute when he thought he was in charge. Silly human. Silly beloved father figure! You are not in charge here! If you leave this room without Celestia’s express permission, I’m sure there will be hell to pay!

“Not going to happen.” I smirked, leaning in and nuzzling him fondly. “Celestia said you are to stay put until the doc clears you. I am not going to argue with a pony that can move the sun on a whim.”

“We’re on the ship, aren’t we?” He did not acknowledge his bedridden assignment. Even after all these years, he was still a soldier at heart.

“Yeah,” I said. “We put you back on board the Mare Crisium and found you a more secure room. No windows and you’re close the the ship’s infirmary. There are wards on wards for the wards to make sure you’re warded from being kidnapped again. It’s very complicated and would be even more impressive if not for the damage done to the crystal matrix down in the shield room.”

“Is that so?” Daddy asked with some interest. “Near the engine room?”

“No, Daddy, there are two engine rooms, one in each hull. The shield matrix room is near the center of the bottom deck just in front of the aft hanger. It’s one of the most protected part of the ship. The changelings got in when they figured out one of the ship’s weaknesses.” He gave me a confused look. “Ah, I kinda went over the ship’s blueprints when I was bored.”

Just about then one of the nurses entered after knocking. “I see you are awake, Mr. Spriggs,” she said cheerfully. She wore the plain white uniform of the navy. A stethoscope was draped over her neck. The mare flinched when she saw the big bad teenage changeling with the nymph on her back staring at her. The effects of the raid was still making some ponies flinch from the sight of a fanged bug horse with green cat eyes. Her smile faded a little, but she recovered as she approached Daddy’s bed. “How are you feeling?”

“Hungry,” he replied. “My daughter was about to get me something to eat.”

“Well, I won’t stop you from doing that.” The nurse brightened as her stethoscope was brought up from its place around her neck. She cleared her throat as she began checking vitals.

“Twice in one week,” Daddy muttered. “This is starting to feel like a horrible story.”

Okay, if you are reading this and you think this is a horrible story, I don’t blame you. Sometimes life is a horrible story. Just ask Charlie Sheen. What? Don’t look at me like that!

“Anything you want?” I asked him, quirking a brow.

“Bacon. Eggs. Pancakes. More bacon. Orange juice. Bacon.”

“You said bacon three times.”

“I like bacon.”

“No guarantees. Is there bacon on board this ship?” I had turned on the nurse.

“We do have a small contingent of griffons on board. There should be something that you will like,” she replied while nodding.

For those of you who think ponies are squeamish at meat eaters, take that!

“Awesome!” I giggled. “I’ll leave you two alone. Try to keep it down!” And without pausing, I trotted out of the room, leaving in my wake the sounds of sputtering and awkward laughter.

Now, any warship you go through does not have wide corridors. On pony ships, it was a bit wider to allow for a pair of equines to pass each other without scraping the walls. Because of this, a lot of pony designs, I discovered, focused on wide beams for stability. Equestrian designs were focused on sturdiness and close quarters combat for ships like pirate corsairs or even some of the larger converted merchant ships. They were also designed to match up against other nations. Ponies are peaceful, sure, but it’s not only the fear of goddesses other species have of Luna and Celestia. Oh, no. The Equestrian navy is plenty capable of going toe-to-toe with other capital ships from, say, the griffons or the minotaurs.

So long as they don’t get the ship like the Mare Crisium involved in a battleship duel, she should serve out a long and busy career. As the first ship of her class, there was already some talk in converting her into a museum, but that was a couple of decades from now.

I’ll bet you weren’t expecting me to be familiar with the Equestrian Naval Doctrine. Hey, I like machines. I miss my Mustang. I wonder how Discord is doing with the house sitting thing?

Somewhere in the middle of the American Heartland, a certain farmhouse sat where it had always sat since its foundation had been laid more than a century before. It was a typical house one might pass while driving on a dusty country road; two stories with an attic, a completely redone roof, solar panels, and a massive winged unicorn weathervane with its rear raised up high in the air while the neck stretched out into the wind. If one looked closely, the winged unicorn appeared to wearing a comical face as if in mid grunt.

Now, next to the house was an old barn a bit larger than the house. A Hyundai sat in the driveway just before the great double doors. It had been recently washed. A bucket of dirty and soapy water sat next to it. On the side of the barn was a massive recreational vehicle. It too had been washed. One of the doors had been opened just a little, letting the light of day fall inside. A sliver of sunshine fell upon one of the headlights of a black little Mustang, a vintage model lovingly recrafted and rebuilt into a mint condition.

Next to it stood a certain draconequus. He loomed over the car much as an eagle might loom over a loom. Or something. With his lion paw, he tugged at his thin little beard, contemplating flatulating mice while his eagle claw arm scratched at an itch of creativity on his belly.

His manic, misshaped eyes roved over the Mustang with the eagerness of a mole chasing earthworms. The moles were armed with grenade launchers. The Military Channel had been insightful.

“Hmm,” he said, his tail twitching as he began to slowly skip around the car. “Nice craftsponyship. Everything looks professionally done. Looks like that girl did a real bang-up job in restoring this old beauty! However!” He peered into one of the side view mirrors and switched his lone snaggly tooth from one corner of his mouth to the other. “It’s missing something. Dice hanging from the mirror?” He looked inside. “Yep. Leather seats? Check. Restraints? Check. Life sized blow-up doll of Sunbutt? Check! Oh, wait, that was Sombra’s.” Sheepishly he plucked the offending thing from the driver’s seat and threw it into a convenient wormhole. With a snap of his fingers, it disappeared behind the sound of a deflating whoopee cushion.

Then, an idea occurred to him. A terrible idea. A wonderful idea. An idea so awful and amazing it would make the Grinch’s heart curl into a cruel, cruel grin and make his face grow three sizes too big! Or something like that.

“This is what happens when I don’t get enough exposure in a story!” cackled the draconequus. But, at the last moment before he obliterated this story from existence, Discord sighed and let his arms drop. “Then again, why waste a perfectly good car? It would be a shame, I think. Don’t you guys? Yes, I know you’re watching. I can smell the neckbeards among you. I suppose you guys are wondering just what it is I’m doing in this garage, lurking over dear little Chrysalis’ coming of age project here.” He patted the hood of the car. “It’s missing something, don’t you guys think? Yes? No? Some of you don’t know how to drive?”

“I wonder...I wonder...oh, how I wonder!”

Discord smirked, grinned, then began to chortle. His mad eyes swirled. “Well, I can’t do anything unless I know every characteristic of this car from a personal standpoint. I think I shall take it for a spin!” His form shimmered, taking on the guise of the long legged and skinny man who had given a certain human a certain lottery ticket thirteen years ago. Cackling as he slid into the driver’s seat, he pulled the door closed and strapped himself in. With a snap of his fingers, the doors opened. The Hyundai stood up and walked to one side, bowing as the Mustang rolled by on a purring engine. The RV sang dramatic opera as a shaft of sunlight spotlighted the emerging car.

“Twilight, my dear,” Discord purred, drumming his fingers on the steering wheel, “it’s time to have a little fun!”

As he drove off, two field agents representing Uncle Sam while sitting in an unmarked black SUV stared in muted awe and fear at what they had just seen.

“Did...did we just record that?” one asked the other after an immensely long moment of shocked silence.

His partner checked the equipment. “Jesus Effing H. Christ!” she uttered in a shuddering breath. Yes. We got it.”

“Let’s call it in.”

Yeah. Nothing wrong could happen, could it? I’ve never met Discord and Fluttershy says he’s a very nice person...being...thing...draconequus. So, I guess I really don’t have a choice in the matter. I just hope my car is okay. I really would like to see it.

I found the galley easily enough, though the stares at the back of my head carried some unfriendly and fearful emotions along with them. I had expected it, but it still hurt. I guess I could sum it up as feeling like long distance bullying. It was painful, but I ignored it. I tried to, anyways.

I loaded up a couple of plates. There was bacon to be had! Daddy would be pleased. It took a few moments, but I had food grasped in my magic and gingerly I made my way back from whence I had come. Alexander made himself useful by tugging at my mane and chirping loudly at any ponies we happened across. He was trying to be friendly as his tail wagged excitedly like a beagle puppy on a sugar rush.

Stares were still going in my direction, but I didn’t care. Daddy was awake, probably baffling the doctor. He was supposed to have still been in a coma. He wasn’t now. I guess Sil did something good to him. Was she a good person? I don’t think I want to trust her. I don’t think she is worthy of my trust. I frowned a little as my thoughts drifted off to her. It was obvious my mother wanted something besides my return to her side.

Shaking myself free of such pondering, I smiled toothily at one of the marines. He was going in the opposite direction and gave me a professional nod. I sensed indifference from him. “Excuse me,” I intoned politely, expertly handling the food so nothing spilled or was overturned.

In turn, he hugged the wall to allow me and the massive pile of food aside.

“For the human?” he asked curiously.

“Yep!”

Satisfied with the answer, he resumed his journey to wherever, giving me another nod. “I like the human,” he said just loud enough. “Nice to see a changeling who’s not a bitch.” I don’t think that part I was meant to hear. I have very good hearing. A little better than the average pony’s hearing, but nowhere near as good as a thestral.

Where had he met a changeling before? I wondered, dismissing the recent events. Ah, well, I guess everypony who’s ran into changelings has their own horror story associated with it. The shrinks are probably raking in a lot of business when it comes to changeling horror stories. Am I a horror story? I can’t be a horror story. I’m adorable! If you like fangs, chitin, gossamer wings, and soulful eyes.

Soulful?

Eh.

Eventually I made it back to Daddy’s room. Now he had the doctor checking up on him while the nurse was taking vitals. And I wanted to tease him and the nurse a little more. Oh well!

“Food!” I called out as I entered. “They had bacon!”

“Bacon!” Daddy crowed happily. “Gimme!”

A very confused doctor backpedaled from my entrance and manic grin. “Excuse me!”

“Bacon!” I said to him.

“Bacon!” Daddy parroted, reaching hungrily for the aluminum tray piled high with bacon...and a few other things. Bacon is important.

“Bacon?” Squeaked the doctor nervously. Oh, he was one of those types of ponies. Intolerant to bacon and its bacony goodness.

“Bacon!” I growled as the food was now in Daddy’s grasp. “If you fear the consummation of the greatest food in the world and my father, I suggest you leave. It’s about to get messy. Daddy is in his natural environment.” Daddy has a very good appetite. I’ve spent years cooking for him. The kitchen is usually my domain.

Yeah, not only am I a crack mechanic, but I’m also one hell of a cook. If there are any feminists reading this, don’t be offended. Cooking is an amazing hobby that lets you experiment in new and tasty ways to tease the taste buds! Now, before I go further off on a tangent, can we please get back to the story at hand? Hoof? Whatever.

The doctor excused himself, becoming a little pale under his fur. The nurse sighed and rolled her eyes at him. “Sorry about that. He was raised in a pony only community and has trouble dealing with omnivores and predators. He’s a good doctor. One of the best, actually. Please don’t hold it against him. He was drafted.”

“Drafted?” Daddy asked, bacon almost touching his lips. “You guys have a working draft?”

“Well,” said the nurse, rotating a hoof in the air slowly as she gathered her thoughts, “Yes, but almost exclusively in the medical field. Very few doctors go through medical school with the intention of joining the military. There’s no bits in it. So, whenever, say for example, the Guard are short on doctors, they institute a draft. The ratio of doctors to guardsponies is set to a certain percentage for maximum efficiency.”

“That’s kind of shitty,” Daddy grunted then popped bacony goodness into his mouth. He chewed for a few moments. Through a mouthful, he added, “Keep in mind I’m talking from the perspective of a soldier of a nation where it’s an all volunteer force.”

The nurse nodded with interest. “Ah, so are you familiar with how a draft works?”

“Yep. All males on the age of eighteen are required by law to register for the draft. It’s only used in dire circumstances, say if war were declared.”

I ate in silence as the two discussed armies and war and the sorts of things one would not expect a nurse and a patient to talk about. Usually Daddy was pretty sullen and withdrawn when it came to talking about his years in the army. However, the conversation never steered towards his own personal experiences beyond what had just been said. Alexander helped himself to what I had on my tray. I giggled and noted he had a lacking education when it came to using utensils. I decided to spend the rest of the meal teaching him the ways of the Fork Master. Of course, I had a spork to work with.

Sporks in Equestria….go figure.

Eventually the nurse had to go do her rounds, having lingered longer than her rounds allowed. There were plenty of injured ponies recovering from the changeling attack. The whole ship was a bundle of frayed nerves. At least they seemed to not mind me as much as they probably should have. More than likely the princesses had words with Blueblood and he in turn passed it on down the chain of command: Leave Chrysalis alone.

I gathered up the now empty trays and deposited Alexander on Daddy’s lap. He had tried to use the utensils, but now he needed a bath. I really needed to find the princesses. Daddy waved me off while Alexander curled up on his belly, imitating his motions when he saw what the human was doing. I rolled my eyes.

“Yeah, yeah, I know when I’m not wanted,” I complained dramatically and then grinned. “Be back later.”

“Promises, promises,” tched Daddy.

I left, flicking my tail in my wake. Once again, I was trotting down the corridors, rooting through my memories the inner map I had of the ship. Where would the suites be? Celestia would no doubt be in hers doing paperwork. Or she could be rutting one of her guards for all I knew. Did she take pleasure along with her business? I think she mixes them. When you’re thousands and thousands of years old, have infinite cosmic power, you can pretty much do whatever the hell you want. Yes, she has an image to uphold, but she’s a mare and a mare has needs.

I really don’t want to walk in on her getting her freak on. That would be awkward.

Insert mental image here. That’s okay. I can wait. It’s going to take me about three minutes to get to her door. Imagine some thinking music while you create that imagery. Good? Let us proceed! And no, I don’t want to know what your twisted imagination is showing you, you pervert!

There were two Solar Guards outside her door. There were always guards on her door. Luna also had guards outside hers. I smiled at the stallions. They looked ahead, stoic as always. Such professionals!

“Is Princess Celestia in?” I asked sweetly.

“She is.”

“Is she taking visitors?”

The guard on the right broke his staring contest with the wall. “I will ask, Miss Spriggs.”

“Thanks, cutie!” I beamed at him and batted my lashes. I have long, sexy lashes.

His companion snerked while the door was opened and the first guard poked his head in. “Miss Spriggs is here, Your Majesty.”

“Send her in, please,” came the motherly voice.

I went in, fully expecting an orgy of Roman proportions to be underway. Every seen the movie Caligula? Yeah. Me neither. I was both disappointed and relieved to find Celestia was sitting by her window, sans regalia and golden slippers, and just observing the clouds drifting by. I could make out small islands a thousand feet below as the ship passed over them. The window was opened and I could smell the salty air and hear the distant calls of the gulls over the humming engines. She was drinking tea. Not soda. Not water. Not kumquat juice. Tea. As usual. The Solar Princess appeared very naked without her crown. Naked and stunningly beautiful. Wowza!

“Do you ever drink anything other than tea?” I asked, not thinking. She smiled up at me and beckoned me to the seat across from her small table. I complied. Once I was close enough, she reached out a wing and used the tip to ruffle my mane behind my horn.

“I do. But there are many varieties of tea for different things. It is Valerian root tea, blended with chamomile. Very bitter. This is a calming tea. It’s quite good. Care for some?” Her smile was gentle and motherly. I like it when she smiles. It is always a genuine smile. And the love behind it….she really does love all of her ponies, you know that? I was tasting it. It was the love of a mother. It made me see the burden on her shoulders was massive. How did she do it without Luna for all those years? Chamomile for miles?

Clearly, she wasn’t having sex. “Sure, I’ll try it.”

“Are you familiar with adulterating?” Celestia asked.

“Adultery? Who are you cheating on?” Why did I ask that question? It just came out!

The white princess in all her perfectness laughed. “No! Not adultery. Adulterating. It’s putting something into a tea to change the flavor. It is considered weakening the tea, making it inferior by adding something else to it. It could be as simple as cream and sugar. Usually, it is mixing other blends of tea with whatever you have on hoof. It is a very broad wording. I personally have experimented with many blends over the years. I like to think I am quite proficient at it.”

“Oh!” I was blushing. I could feel it. “I feel stupid.”

“Don’t, my dear,” Celestia patted my cheek with the same wing tip. “Learning should be an enjoyable journey. We can discuss whatever is on your mind while we have tea. The past few days have been quite hectic. The damage to the ship was a bit more severe than initially believed. Human children were found captives on a slaver ship. A dragon fought my sister. We thought him dead, but his body disappeared sometime during the night. There is no trace. I suspect a very strong outside source is responsible. I believe it is your birth mother. The Empress. She is toying with me, my sister, and our patience.” She poured. “How many lumps?”

I was staring at her, jaw swinging like a porch swing. Shaking myself of my dumbfounded expression, I managed, “Two, I think?”

Two lumps went in. None came out. “Cream?”

“Sure,” crawled out of my vocal chords.

Celestia smiled as she creamed me. She asked, “How is your father?”

“Daddy’s awake. He just ate.” I gave her a broad smile, buzzing my wings.

“I am glad to hear that,” she sighed in relief. “I like your father. He is focused on your happiness.” Celestia’s smile faded and she sighed, flicking her gaze out the window. Her tea cup lifted to her lips and she took a practiced sip. Her attention went to me again as the cup lowered. “My dilemma is layered. Some are coming to light and they trouble me. I suspect the world you grew up may have an interdimensional war at its doorstep.” She stared into her tea. I numbly did the same.

“Why are you telling me this?”

“The Empress is not interested in war against Equestria,” Celestia hummed thoughtfully. “I would even venture to think she has her sights somewhere else. She is planning something big. Everything to this point has been a distraction. She is trying to make a point.”

“What point is that?”

“Obviously, she already knows about the world you grew up in. Based on that, I should imagine she is very much aware of my work towards my goal of establishing diplomatic relations with humanity, what nations would be willing to accept my little ponies in friendship.” Celestia sighed again, took another sip of her tea, then said, “I suspect the Empress does not want this to happen. I do not know why human children were involved. It is quite possible some of her non-changeling lackies decided to help themselves to exotic slaves. However, there are reports that suggest she is herself a dealer in the buying and selling of sapient flesh.”

I blinked. “You want me involved. Why?”

She smiled. “You have the unique experience of being raised in a home full of love. You know the society in which you were brought up. You are familiar with humans far more intimately than even my most covert of operatives scattered around the human world. I think you can be a bridge between our world and theirs. I should like to offer you a role as an ambassador between the United States and Equestria. Or at least as an advisor to the ambassador I intend to appoint.”

What!? “Me? Why me?”

“Facebook,” Celestia replied with a wry grin. “You have over two thousand followers on Facebook. You use your photos as your own art. You post them everywhere.”

I frowned a bit. “What does that have to do with anything?”

“That is your social media, isn’t it? One of them, at least.” Celestia sipped her tea again, her smile never wavering. She had That Look in her eyes. That Look was directed at me. “The human world is connected through computers. Humans are by nature very social creatures.”

“Yeah, I guess they are,” I mumbled. I sipped my tea. “May I have more cream?”

“Certainly.”

“So, what is this about using social media?”

“Did you know some of your followers are actually members of the Federal Bureau of Investigations? They have been watching you for some time. Perhaps the time to reveal my little ponies a little sooner than I had hoped. Events are constantly shifting, nothing is ever idle. You are as connected as any pony I have embedded on Earth.” Celestia hummed thoughtfully as I stirred the fresh cream in my tea. “It would also prepare the humans. How they will react will vary, I think, depending upon the regions.”

“The Feds?” I squeaked, my eyes shrinking to pinpricks. “What do you mean? The F.B. freaking I.? As in the G-Men? How? When? For how long?”

“Five years, from what I can tell.” Celestia poured herself another cup. An ear flicked as I began to hyperventilate. “Calm down, child,” she assured me gently, “I have a pony within their ranks who is high enough to keep the dogs at bay, as it were. To this point, their orders were only to observe you and your father and only interfere if you pose a threat to the local populace. This was also how I was able to ascertain your location.”

I made sounds. I think they were words. It was a wonderful sort of babbling, if being horrified was one’s cup of tea. Yay me!

“Relax, Chrysalis,” Celestia bade me.

I felt the ship shudder as her engines cut down. Both the princess and I felt the ship heave to starboard gently. There was a knock at the door.

“Enter,” called out the princess. The alicorn smiled at the officer who entered. He bowed deeply to his ruler. “Rise and report, my good stallion.”

“We have arrived, Your Majesty. Prince Blueblood wished me to inform you there is a formation of changelings approaching. The admiral felt it was prudent to put the ship on yellow alert just in case.” The unicorn waited for Celestia’s response.

“A welcoming party, I should imagine,” surmised the princess. “We arrived a bit late, but things could not be helped. Advise my nephew I shall join him on the bridge shortly. I leave everything in his capable hooves.” The officer bowed and departed as quickly and quietly as he had come.

“I do apologize, Chrysalis,” she said to me with a sigh. “But we must cut our conversation short. Do think about my proposal. There are more details I would like to go in depth before you make a decision. Keep in mind my purposes are always in the name of peace and harmony. All can live beneath those two principles.” She gave me a nuzzle. “Changelings, ponies, humans, and all the others.”

“I’ll think about it,” I promised. I should have blew a raspberry at her, but hey! Nobody’s perfect! I love Celestia to death. I just wish she wasn’t so damned perfect. “Is it okay if I go back to Daddy’s room? He’s still not feeling exactly normal after everything that’s been going on. Daddy is miserable. He wants to go home.”

“Of course,” she said sympathetically. “I will drop by to see him before we go to the surface.” We both rose at the same time to our hooves. She adjusted her wings while I buzzed mine. “I like your father. My sister likes your father. Fleur...well…” She tittered knowingly.

“I’ve felt it,” I agreed with a giggle. “Not sure how I feel about it though.” I frowned. “What of Anisophira and the Bitch?” I had a new name for Felu. It fit her perfectly.

“Language, dear,” Celestia reprimanded gently. “They will be present with me when we greet the entourage. Don’t worry, they know not to come near you or your father without permission from either of you. Now, get to your father. There is much to be done.”

Of course there was. Daddy was going to meet Crystal again. I could feel it.

Chapter 26 He Likes Her Not, He Likes Her

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The island was massive, sporting three ancient volcanic peaks at the northeastern end. Great lava fields spread south and west from them, covered in dense cypress forests. Here and there could be seen ruins of the former masters of this land, the minotaurs. Anzealous prattled on happily the history of how the changelings had invaded and eventually kicked out the horny cow people. Minotaurs. I never met one personally, but from what I can tell, they’re pretty full of themselves.

Fluttershy had an encounter with one once. She wasn’t satisfied, as I recall.

The Mare Crisium banked slowly as she approached the island. The battlecruiser shifted and we all had to lean a little bit to the side as she turned. Which was strange, considering this was a strange turn. Anzealous stopped speaking, thank God, and put his face to the glass of the ship’s forward observation deck until his snoot pressed into it.

There were other ships of the Equestrian air fleet, but they were at a respectful distance. This was changeling air space and there were other ships in the air.

Like hovering vultures, great black airships circled in formation a thousand feet or so above us. Most of them were half the size of the Mare Crisium and they were acting as sort of escorts for the dignitaries on board our ship. Luna and Celestia gave them passing glances but for the most part paid them no heed. They spent most of their time whispering to each other. More than once their eyes fell upon Daddy. He wore a haunted expression and I worried about him. His face was like what you’d see in those old photographs of soldiers who had survived the Bataan Death March.

His fear filled the room. It was a taste I really did not like. That other changeling, that bitch who broke his heart years ago was on the other side of the observation deck and refused to look at him. She was masking her emotions, but I suspected she felt some remorse. I was thankful Alexander was under the care of a nurse and was currently napping in my cabin.

Too late for that, you heart-breaking whore.

She must have felt my hate. The changeling turned her head towards me, her eyes narrowing as she pinpointed where the bad vibes were coming from. If it had been any other changeling, I might have taken a moment to notice she was a bit shorter than me, willowy and demure in appearance. There was more fluff to her tawny mane than mine and it hung around her left shoulder, spilling over her leg and chest. Her tail was the same way and was curled around her legs as she sat taking up as little space on the floor as possible. ‘Tabitha’ flared her nostrils and flicked an ear before blinking and looking away. The eyes had softened and it didn’t take a genius to see the regret creep across her face like the Mongolian Horde. I could hear her mutter something as she rose and left the room as a passing squall.

My attention went over to Daddy. He was the poster child of misery. I shuffled sideways towards him. Reaching out with a hoof, I tapped him on the thigh lightly, prodding him like I used to when I was little.

“Daddy?”

Fleur de Lis was at his other shoulder. She was doing a good job at being a friend for him. She smiled and got up to find something to do that wasn’t intruding on father/daughter time.

Daddy’s hand reached out and found the back of my head. It hesitated and there was a flicker of fear. He then began scratching with his fingers, their tips kneading into my skin. It always felt nice when he did that. “I’m not okay, Pumpkin.” His voice was the whisper of a dying man. The smile on his face was that of a ghost. “I’m not okay at all.”

“What do you want me to do, Daddy?” I tilted my head to one side so I could look into his sad eyes. It was pretty depressing. The very things holding his mind together had been stripped away in less than twenty-four hours. “How can I make things better?”

I noted how the other ponies in the room were politely looking upon us with genuine concern. A few looks of displeasure were leveled upon any changeling that happened to be in line of sight. Anzealous was prattling on, oblivious to the hard stares. I think I heard somewhere he was deficient in sensing emotions, but I could have been mistaken. The arrogance he had sort of overrode his other senses, including common.

The observation deck was pretty big for a warship. It should not have been too surprising, considering this ship also served the princesses as a personal transport. Of course there was going to be creature comforts the princesses would insist upon. Luna herself had told me before all of the shenanigans happened she liked to be able to sit in front of the huge windows and watch the world from the magnificent view the deck provided. Daddy fell in love with the battlecruiser when he first came into this room.

“Where’s Guinan?” he chirped with a smirk back then.

Ah, the confusion that followed was subtle and amusing.

Now, he sat at a small table at a corner window, trying to shrink away from the world. He was flinching from me at first. This broke my heart. When he reassured himself it was me, there was an apologetic touch to his fingers.

“I’m not okay at all,” he repeated, teetering on the brink of defeat.

A muffled sob departed the room.

“This was supposed to be an adventure. It was something for us to do together as a family,” I nuzzled him. My emotions were starting to well up. Hooray for sappy stuff! “I wanted this to be fun and I wanted to meet Crystal. I wanted to see you have something good happen for you, Daddy. But they don’t want you to be happy. They don’t want me to be happy. My so-called mother is a soulless bitch.”

“Don’t,” Daddy said, his fingers stopping mid scratch. “Don’t say such things. Be the better person. I know what you mean and I understand how you feel. But hate solves nothing. Hate isn’t worth it. If there’s anything I want you to remember, it’s that.”

A misty-eyed Luna interjected herself into the conversation. “We are feeling guilty in regards to your predicament,” she sniffled, trying and failing to be princess-ey. “We feel as though we have failed in our duties. It is our duty to be there when those placed under our protection are endangered. We bear the responsibility with a heavy heart and the sense we could have and should have been able to do more.”

“You killed a dragon,” I reminded her, wiping my eyes. “A friggin’ huge dragon!”

“Alas, a dragon such as that one cannot be easily slain,” Luna sniffled again, drawing back and sitting up. She smiled at Daddy, “Leviatan is immortal, like my sister and I. I also fear I did not deliver the decisive blow. His heart was exploded from within. I suspect foul play.” Her voice carried a twinge of annoyance, as though she had been robbed of her honor in some way.

Luna was an odd duck. Creepy, yet cool. She scared me, yet I admired her a lot.

“Rest assured,” she went on, her ears perking up straight as her mane undulated around her face and neck like a demented night sky, “We will not fail you a second time.” She assumed her best rape face, complete with that winning smile that accompanies all rape faces.

Daddy’s hollow voice sounded, “There’s nothing to apologize for.”

“But our honor and our dignity is bound to your own,” she objected, assuming a perfectly authoritative face and tone. “We would be your friend, if you would have us.” Her mask fell away and she pleaded in earnest.

Daddy stared at her for a moment, his face unreadable. A blink of his eyes was followed by another, slower blink. It in turn became a flurry of blinks as he leaned forward slightly. The scratching of his fingers between my ears resumed. “Okay,” was his world shaking reply.

“Truly?” Luna’s eyes had grown large and hopeful. I knew she had a hard time making friends. This was a huge, huge leap for her.

Daddy gave a small, genuine smile. “You have cool hair.”

Luna let out a squee, “‘Tis done, then! Our friendship shall last forever!” She clapped her forehooves together. It was adorable.

Her statement made Daddy laugh. It was an honest chortle. Luna, you clever, beautiful bitch! Again, she became serious. “You have had enough happen to you, Mister Spriggs. You have become a pawn in a game you did not want to play. As much as we would like to extract you from the shadow of the Empress, there are some things beyond our control. Until we can find out what it is she wants, we will do what we can to keep you safe. I vow to return you home when this is done, safe and sound.”

Huh, I noticed the change in how she enunciated herself.

I also felt… jealousy?

With a slight shake of my head, I straightened up and followed the emotion to its origins. Ah, I should have known. Fleur de Lis was throwing daggers at the back of her princess with her eyes and wore a cute little pout.

Daddy wasn’t ready for a relationship, much less a love triangle. Besides, Luna was being platonic. Speaking of Luna, she gave me a grin. “Fear not, little one. I shall let the sorceress have her chance,” she whispered without moving her lips. How was she doing that? “I need friends. A lover is the last thing on my mind, believe you me.” To Daddy, she smiled and winked, “We will be watching over you, friend Michael. We go into the den of darkness with eyes everywhere.”

To me she said, “Stay near him. Let nothing separate the two of you. I feel this is something you must do as one.”

With a straight face, his eyes filled with disbelief, Daddy grunted, “I heard everything you just said, princess.”

The color of the princess’ cheeks darkened. Her eyes went round and her pupils shrank to pinpricks. “I must beg your pardon!” she sputtered before bowing and scampering off in unroyal fashion.

“What?” blurted a very confused human. Like a wooden puppet at the hands of an amateur puppeteer, he sought out and found Fleur. I followed his sight and found the sorceress trying very hard to appear nonplussed. A slight shade of pink glared through the fur on her cheeks, but she met his gaze with a demure smile. “What?” he repeated intelligently. It was dawning on him like a lizard on a rock awaiting the first rays of sun to warm his frigid scales.

It muted his depression enough to make him seem like his old self. I knew it wasn’t going to be any sort of cure. There was no cure for depression, but it could still be defeated.

“Daddy?” I wanted to know what he was thinking. His face contorted in confusion.

Fleur excused herself and departed the observation deck. She was still smiling.

Princess Celestia had remained silent, wearing her princess mask. She did flicker a glance of inquisitiveness at her sister, but said nothing. Luna ignored her, focusing on Anzealous as he continued his lecture, unaware his words and presence had been ignored to this point.

That poor little fat buggy bastard.

“— leading to the establishment of the first colony,” Anzealous finished with a flourish, turning his head towards his audience. “It is truly a magnificent city and the largest underground settlement in all the world!”

“Built within the magma chamber of one of the dormant volcanoes?” Celestia inquired in polite tones. “Fascinating. How large a population can it sustain?”

“Well,” he was ticking numbers off in his head, “We’ve recently began expanding. Twenty years ago, the city could have easily housed five million inhabitants. As it stands, I should venture to guess the actual population is about a million or so.”

Queen Anisophira stared at Anzealous, her own features bordering boredom and nap time. When he had finished prattling, she shook her head and snorted. “We should be going into the final approach. Mother will be sending an escort. Two escorts, specifically. Large, living ships. They will approach. Do not alter your course or speed. Let them guide the ship in. They will do no harm to it. Their job is to make the docking as efficient and perfect as possible.”

“Noted,” Celestia nodded once and smiled. “Prince Blueblood needs to be informed.”

“It has been done, Princess Celestia,” replied the queen. She was sipping on a glass of brandy. “I made sure to let him know before you asked us all to gather here. I am curious as to the reason why.”

Celestia sipped at her tea. She was always drinking tea. I think she had a tea fetish. “I simply enjoy having company,” was her reply. She took a second sip, then a third, her eyes flicking to what lay beyond the windows. I noted how sedated she appeared, perfect in her control. If anything was bothering her, I couldn’t even get a whiff of it through her emotions. Celestia was a statue of beauty. This was what made her so damned terrifying. Oh, sure, she was a beloved goddess figure for ponies everywhere. For those who were not of equine descent, she was terror in the flesh.

Why?

She was such a gentle creature, a mother figure who built her reputation on being a caring, benevolent being. Yet she wielded the power of the sun. Princess Celestia was, in the crudest form of thinking, a cuddly Godzilla. Not inaccurate, if you ask me. I tried to imagine what Luna might have been like if she hadn’t been banished for a thousand years. I doubt Celestia would have been tempered as she is now if she still had her sister at her side for the past ten centuries.

The speculation could be debated for years.

Luna was still figuring out her way in this modern world. This made her a wild card. She was unpredictable and openly so. Celestia could also be unpredictable, but she was established. Anything surprising she did would be a shock to her friends and foes alike.

So how did Sil feel towards this alicorn? How did the most powerful changeling in the world stack up to the most powerful pony to walk the earth?

Daddy had spent an afternoon conversing with her. His thoughts on the princess always seemed to steer towards her motherly nature. She cared for him, and anyone for that matter. Life was a precious thing to Celestia. A lot of people who would assume she did not care would have a change of heart if they met her. Celestia had once bore three of the Elements. She and Luna had also shared a seventh element, Love.

It had been quietly argued Love might have turned Luna into Nightmare Moon. If not, it might have been a part of twisting her heart and mind. Love is a strange, powerful thing. It can be good or bad. It depends on the individual. At least, that’s how I see it. As an ‘emotivore’, I have a little bit better an insight in regards to emotions, but I am still an amateur.

My thoughts were interrupted as the ship’s speakers crackled, “Two unidentified warships approaching from the island.”

Ponies and changelings crowded the windows, peering out with keen interest.

A pair of huge, sleek forms borne upon massive dragonfly wings buzzed towards the Mare Crisium. Each one was easily half as long as the ship herself. They were armored in black chitin. It was as though someone had taken a pair of changelings, made them massive, and turned them into dragons with holes up and down their legs. Even their tails bore the holes of my kind, from halfway along the length towards the spiked tips. Amber eyes glowed even in the light of the sun, giving them an eerie, sinister appearance.

At the end of each leg were clawed feet. They were like sickles at the end of each foreleg with sets of three on each one. The back feet were more for movement on the ground, with larger birdlike toes ending in claws.

Anzealous was more than happy to supply an answer to the question on everyone’s minds. “Those are the only dragon changelings in all the world,” he chirped. “They were constructed from the sacrifice of volunteers thousands of years ago. They have guarded the island faithfully with blessings from the Empress. It was their notice which allowed the Empress to create her greatest champion!” The fat little changeling was beaming like a proud kid showing off the most amazing science project in the world. His grin faded and his resolve wavered.

Anisophira was giving him a hard glare. “Fool.”

Daddy stood up and began backing away from the glass. “I can’t stay,” he croaked. He turned and hurried out of the room. I was hot on his heels. His fear had me reeling, but I was determined to stay with him. I could smell Fleur as she uttered an unladylike curse and chased after us.

Of course it wasn’t going to go away in a few minutes. Daddy would need years of constant help and support if he ever wanted to live a normal, happy life.

Damned if he ran straight into his ex.

Queen Felu was staring at him, desperately looking for a way to escape. Daddy was pretty much in the same frame of mind. It was strange. Two adults staring at opposing walls, making it a point to avoid making eye contact, physical contact, hearing contact, or any form of contact whatsoever.

Talk about poor adulting.

I paused in my tracks, watching a very narrow hallway jammed by a human and a changeling, trying to squeeze past each other. It was as if an outbreak of cooties was threatening to melt the two on the spot. Daddy was a mess on several levels and was threatening to have another mental collapse.

This begged the question: why did Celestia insist on the two being in the same room together? Was she hoping for some sort of closure? Did she want Felu and Fleur get into a catfight? Was this sport to the alicorn? I pondered those questions and more while Daddy and Felu shared the same space in the most painful, awkward way. It was cringeworthy, and Felu looked as though she was willing to shove herself through the steel wall.

“Why don’t you just keep going that way?” I demanded, throwing a hoof down the corridor. “I just want to get my father to his room and away from triggers like you.”

Felu glared at me, her eyes flaring with magic. A wordless snarl escaped her lips and she flashed her fangs. The snarl died when she spun and found Daddy staring at her with terror stricken eyes. “If I could take it all back…”

I pressed myself between them, my wings buzzing in anger. My tail swished behind me, then flicked as I hissed at my sister. “You can’t take it back. You made a choice and now you have to deal with that choice. You couldn’t just disappear after his daughter was taken from him. You had to stay behind and drive the dagger into his heart and twist it. That’s something I can’t forgive. That’s something he’ll never forget!”

The ship shifted and leveled itself. We were descending quick and smooth. As the engines revved down, the twin hulls shuddered and hummed. Daddy used a hand on the wall to keep himself upright. His body had frozen and he stared at the changeling queen with the tawny mane.

“Mon fille,” Fleur’s voice drifted to my ears gently. “This is neither the time nor the place. Come and help me take your papa to his room, oui?” The unicorn wore a diplomatic smile as she nuzzled Daddy in the shoulder. “Come, Monsieur Spriggs! I think you need some rest before we disembark. Some rest and perhaps something to calm your nerves, non?” That smile never faltered as she gazed at Queen Felu. “Pardon, votre Majesté. I think we should all rest before we go ashore. Clear thoughts make for clear decisions, do you not agree?”

Felu took the break in the moment to regain her composure. “I— of course, Lady de Lis. Perhaps that would be for the best.” Even though I hated her guts, the changeling queen was beautiful and graceful on her hooves. “You will look after him, won’t you? I’ve done so much and regret even more.”

“I will. You must do what is best for all involved, Queen Felu. Be well.”

As Queen McStabbyintheback waltzed off, Fleur guided Daddy and me to my quarters. The ship’s crew we came across gave us curious and worried glances. Some even offered to assist, but Fleur waved them off with a smile and some kind words.

The pony assigned to foalsit Alexander was barely older than me. She was an earth pony and her uniform was starched and pressed. The little guy was asleep on the bed and we found her reading a book. She was thanked and dismissed. Daddy was put into his bunk with Alexander in the crook of his arm. The unicorn cast a spell and Daddy quickly fell asleep. Both were content for the moment.

“We still have three hours,” Fleur said in a soft tone. “There will be a ceremony and a speech. The Empress will be greeting the princesses personally.” She pursed her lips as we both sat at the small table in the cabin. “I am interested in reuniting a papa with his daughter. I am certain you share the same thoughts, oui?”

I nodded under her searching stare. “I want Daddy happy. Did you—?” A furtive glance went towards the bunk.

“Sedate him? Oui. His mental state is shaken. He needs professional help, but he will not get it here. The environment we are entering will be very hostile to him, I think. I would recommend we send him home, but I do not think he will get the right help. Canterlot would offer the best chances for him to make the recovery most desirable for his well being,” Fleur sighed. “Earth would not understand the magic at play. They would simply lock him up and make a case study out of him. He would be a mystery and they would not treat him to the fullest.”

I narrowed my eyes at her, “So, what’s with the hesitation?”

“Ponies know magic, but they do not know humans. Humans do not think like ponies and ponies would be confused by a human mind. Even ones as experienced with minds like Princess Luna would miss subtle cues. If we were to help your papa, it would have to fall into the hooves of those who do know the human mind. I would suggest Miss Lyra Heartstrings, but she has an unhealthy human fetish.”

I’ve never met Lyra, though I have heard the stories. Half of them were confirmed through the sea of paperwork that mare created in her sojourns into Earth. Her fetishes got so bad she was barred from joining any other expeditions to Earth. Several times she was caught trying to smuggle a human to Equus. Having had enough of her antics, her superiors kicked her from the Earth expeditions. Far from disgraced, she is currently writing a book on human-pony relations for future posterity. She’s batshit crazy, too. Luna likes her and uses her work to keep up on her studies on humanology.

“This is Discord’s fault,” I growled.

Fleur gave me a look. “What do you mean?”

“Discord set up Daddy’s trip here. Luna went to fetch him.”

Fleur nodded and placed a hoof on my shoulder. “Destiny guides even one such as Discord on this world. Humans have the luxury of having a choice in their destinies, more so than the denizens of this world. Destiny guides us here and it is because of the magic that is a part of us. Destiny is altered on the world your papa came from because of a stronger need for self reliance.”

She went on. “Our worlds are coming together and destiny, perhaps, needs to be readjusted. Perhaps this must be done to prepare for what is to come.”

“What would that be?” I asked.

Fleur took in a deep breath and closed her eyes for a moment. When she reopened them, her gaze was on the sleeping figures. “I do not know. Humanity is a series of volatile hegemonies, constantly contesting with each other for supremacy in one way or another. It will be a clash between a thought of always progressing and thoughts of keeping things as they are. Equestria has had one ruler for a thousand years. Humanity has had thousands of leaders in the same span of time. Thoughts have constantly shifted and changed for humans, growing and developing. Celestia is at her core a creature of habit. She understands this and her greatest fear is for humanity to see her as a threat. Some humans would see her as a goddess and that would and could incite other humans to act badly, perhaps even violently.”

“What are your thoughts on Felu?” I had no idea where the question came from. “What is her ‘destiny’ in all of this?”

The mare flicked her ears, flattening her lips in a straight line. “You do not think highly of her,” she observed in a dry tone.

I crossed my forelegs over my chest. “Not really, no.” A sneer etched itself across my muzzle. “She’s a bitch for what she did.”

“Her sins are hers to bear, not yours.”

The glare was upon me before I could blink. “I didn’t start it!”

“But neither will you let it go, non?” Fleur shifted in her seat and leaned towards me, her eyes gentle. “Emeraude de Minuit, have you ever paused to realize it is not your responsibility to pass judgement to others? It is not your place to do such a thing. Not here. Not now. Not while you do not yet realize your potential. Things happen for a reason. Queen Felu is perhaps a victim herself. Do not rush to judge. I do not agree with her actions, but I am in no position to decide her innocence or guilt. I also do not have all of the information, and I do not know what happened for her to decide to do what she did. The truth, it is perhaps painful to her, don’t you think? She feels the pain as keenly as your papa, but for different reasons.”

I blew air through flapping lips, slumping my shoulders and letting my ears fall limp. I found myself staring at the table in front of me. “So, you’re saying she’s as much a puppet in all of this as Daddy?”

“Oui.”

“Well… shit.”

Fleur gave me a light tap on the shoulder. Her tone was disapproving. “Language! You must act the lady. Always act the lady, mon fille. You will soon take the mantel of royalty, as it is your responsibility. You need to think of those who thought you lost to them forever and how your return will affect them now. Like it or not, you are a changeling queen, even if you feel you could never assume such a position.”

“Double shit!”

The next smack was far less gentle. It was also upside my head.

“Hey!” I complained, rubbing the area of the smackdown gingerly.

“Behave!” she demanded with a huff. “Such conduct is unbecoming!” The corners of her mouth refused to budge. She was not amused. If anything, there was a tick of a frown there. Wow, she was serious!

“I’m sorry,” I whined.

“Not good enough. Don’t be sorry. Be a queen! That is your destiny here on Equus. You exist to lead other changelings. You must be the example for others to follow! You have power others cannot even dream of!” The mare levelled the full fury of her displeasure in the form of a slightly upturned muzzle followed up by a profound look of supreme disappointment.

“With great power comes great responsibility?” I mused.

“Exactement!”

I couldn’t help myself. “Thanks, Uncle Ben.”

The ship’s public speakers picked that time to crackle to life. “Attention all crew. Embarkation procedures are underway. Report to your stations for docking protocols. Secure all loose items and standby for further orders. Attention all crew. Embarkation procedures are underway. Report to your stations for docking protocols. Secure all loose items and standby for further orders.”

“We’ll be docking within the hour,” Fleur said with a small sigh. “I am thankful this journey is done. It has been most stressful, would you not agree?”

I blinked, my thoughts shifting to what Luna had said earlier. “Do you like my father?” I asked. It was a rather abrupt question.

“Pardon?” She became unreadable, a living statue.

“Do you like my father?” I flicked my tongue to my lips with nervous habit. “I mean, do you look upon him as someone you’d like a relationship with beyond just friends?” My ears swung up and forward as the question tumbled out. “Don’t think I haven’t been paying attention to you, Miss Fleur de Lis.”

“The question is inappropriate,” she dodged, blowing a bit of mane from her eyes. “Whatever I might feel towards your papa is my business. For the moment, he needs a friend in this world. I made a promise to be a friend.”

Silence fell over us for a few moments before my mouth jumped ahead of my brain again.

“So you’re saying he’s got a chance?”

My Daughter Chrysalis

by Scarheart

Chapter 1 Into Equestria!

Chapter 2 The Guard, the Chef, and the Sorceress

Chapter 3 Let's Talk About Daddy

Chapter 4 Naked Lunch

Chapter 5 Angry Princesses are Detrimental to Your Health

Chapter 6 Your Mommy on My Mind

Chapter 7 Chryssie's Night of Discoveries

Chapter 8 Hopes and Screams and Throwing Strange Things

Chapter 9 A Wild Story Arc Appears!

Chapter 10 She Drops a Bomb on Me!

Chapter 11 Yeah, We Just Went to Eleven!

Chapter 12 Interlude with the Empress

Chapter 13 We're Going to Need a Bigger— Oh, Nevermind...

Chapter 14 Into the Wild Blue...aaaand She's Crying Again...

Chapter 15 A Queen and Her Pawns

Chapter 16 Decisions, Decisions

Chapter 17 A Little Love Here, A Little Love There

Chapter 18 No Dragon is an Island...Except This One.

Chapter 19 Welp, That Escalated Quickly!

Chapter 20 The Good, the Bad and the Changelings

Chapter 21 Interlude: Storm Rider

Chapter 22 That Painful Revelation

Chapter 23 Roundtable

Chapter 24 Into the Mind of a Man

Chapter 25 Bacon and Cream

Chapter 26 He Likes Her Not, He Likes Her