> Shadowed Souls
>  by The Grimm Reaper
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

> Chapter 1: Death Row
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	It’s difficult finding your place in the world, especially when it isn’t your world. But no matter how hard things get or how long it takes, life finds a way. The human race is built on the natural instinct of survival. To succeed in something is a form of survival. The better you are at something, the better your chances. Every race tries to survive, but none are better than humans. Sadly, time allows us to forget some of the things that helped us to survive in the past. Now, in a world of projectile weapons, guns and explosives, mankind has forgotten the way of the sword; the true art of war where enemies would meet face to face and kill each other when within their own reach.
My brother and I used to love the whole concept of fighting. We wanted to join the army and fight for our countries, but as we grew older, my own passion faded from military combat and evolved into melee combat. My brother joined the army at nineteen, and I became a policeman when my time came. Things were relatively simple; I did my job, got paid, paid the bills, chatted with my brother when he wasn’t on mission. Things were steadily leading to a great life. How I ended up where I was now, is a complete mystery to me. I recall walking into a petrol station, unaware of the armed robbery that was occurring. I recall feeling a bullet in my hip, then seeing a white ceiling from a hospital as I was being moved into intensive surgery or whatever they called it these days. I remember the taste of the anaesthetic gas and a white light shining over me. Then I was here.



My mind was riddled with confusion as I was distracted from my thoughts. The sound of metal clanking together. Armour on the ground, keys against the armour, it was all there. My own prison guards had come back for another visit. How I hated them. I could no longer remember the feel of grass under my feet, or the taste of meat. All I knew was cold stone, rotting vegetation and the occasional bodily fluids of my jailers. In a world where humanity is a myth and sentient mythological creatures rule in our place, I stood no chance against their magic, their utter strength, their precision.
I was taken to their leader, or leaders as the case had been. A world that was dominated by a division of three equine species. General, Unicorn and Pegasus. These three species were ruled by two beings that seemed to be a combination of all three. Winged Unicorns, or Horned Pegasi, they had both attributes of the unicorn and Pegasus species, and undoubtedly shared the physical strength of the general equine populace. Their stature was three times that of the public and they loomed over me like a great Dane looms over an infant. Not a creature of magic like they were, I could still feel their power.
I was surrounded by a court of sorts, where these two alicorns sat before me. Among the court, there were yet another six that stood out. I didn’t know them at the time, but whisperings and idle conversation from my jailers revealed them to me. Twilight Sparkle the purple Unicorn; despite her seemingly feminine name, Twilight was a master of destruction and irrevocably devoted to her princesses. Having learned from one of the princesses, the ways of magic and war, she was the General of the team of six.
Rainbow Dash the blue Pegasus. The only one more loyal and devoted than Twilight, she was the Captain of the Pegasus branch of the princesses’ military. Her rainbow mane and tail was said to leave rainbow trails wherever she flew, but that was just a beautiful sight to behold before your demise.
Applejack the orange ‘Earth’ pony. Stronger than any other pony, male or female, her livelihood of applebucking gave her the strength to claim Captainship over the ground forces of the royal army.
Rarity the white unicorn. Despite her seemingly Victorian taste in fashion, her designs are supposedly as protective as the mythological elven armour. Like mythril, she designed the strength of the soldiers armour to be as hard as dragon scales and as light as a feather. Though weak and hardly a threat, she holds a bond with the six that would make her almost impossible to oppose unless the others were out of the picture.
Fluttershy the yellow Pegasus. Her shyness has evolved to a general phobia of life itself. Clinically insane, she is often kept asleep and carried around by Spike, Twilight’s dragon. Should she wake, neither side of a war is safe as she uses her natural affinity for animals to bring forth wild destruction. Dragons, hydras, timberwolves and the like can’t escape her stare as she goes mental.
Finally, there’s Pinkamena Diane Pie. Easily the fearsomest of them all, her pink fur does little to mask her sadistic appearance. Darkened by blood, her mane and tail are straighter than the bars on my cell. Her eyes are constantly watching, never changing, and her smile could frighten the Cheshire cat. When discovered to have had the unnatural ability to appear wherever and whenever she wanted, the princesses ordered her execution, but no matter how many soldiers were sent forth, they all returned just in time to die horribly in some manner. The princesses’ army had been reduced to a tenth before they gave up her execution and hired her instead. Despite her nature, she holds her friends close to her heart and will destroy anyone who threatens her friends.
Had I known what I knew now, I would have likely died of a heart attack. I couldn’t help but wonder that if they were as bad as that, what must the princesses have been like? The sun princess I got an answer from, but the moon. Nothing. As silent as the night. Celestia was a warmonger. She wanted nothing more than absolute domination of everything that could possibly exist. She was a natural born conqueror, a goddess of war. She was the ringleader and Luna was apparently along for the ride, nothing more, nothing less. These creatures frightened me beyond all reason. They spoke in our language, they acted as we did. I didn’t dare try to fight them, an action I regret.
Now, after having been questioned about my race, what we were like, our strengths and weaknesses, I was discarded, stored in the dungeons in case of any potential future use. At first, I thought this was all just a bad dream, a symptom of the blood loss to my hip. But the experiences I felt under their watch were more real than any bullet I’d ever taken. My… guards, jailers beat me, broke me, tortured me… even raped me. It was all I knew now. Stallion or mare, either were intrigued by the human and its stamina and endurance both. It mattered little to them whether or not I yelled, broke or just plain failed to achnowledge them. I suffered their various assaults for twelve years and I no longer knew my name, neither my passions as a child. I couldn’t remember my brother’s face let alone his name. The same thing went for our parents.



I heard the bars to my cell open once again. Time for another round. I barely noticed their presence, but I did recognise a third set of hooves. So another participant came to play. There was a heaving sound and a sudden thud. Something or someone heavy was thrown in here with me; that was new. I heard the third party scuttle along the floor while the two jailers chuckled amongst themselves.
“Got you something to play with, Human. You should feel honoured.” the first guard said. He was the male one. An unfamiliar voice responded to his statement.
“H-human? I don’t like the sound of that.” my new cellmate said apprehensively. She was female and had the slightest hint of a flanged voice.
“Shut up, Changeling! Nopony said you could speak. Not that your opinion of the human matters.” the first guard snapped at her. So the voice belonged to a Changeling. She obviously hadn’t seen me yet. Not surprising seeing as I was chained to the wall, the shadows looming over my body like clothing, which I sadly lacked thanks to them. The cell doors closed once more and I could hear the Changeling scurrying once more. I expected her to go to the door and beg to be let out, but instead she joined me in the shadows, still unaware of my location. I heard her bundle herself up and start shaking violently. I began coughing badly, which alerted the creature to my whereabouts. As I coughed, she jumped away in fright.
“What in Equestria are you?” she demanded, sounding as regal as the princess. I hated that. I opened my eyes to her and looked at her face. She must have seen my eyes glowing in the dark or something as she met my gaze and began shaking once more.
“What I am… is beyond any form of rage I can think of.” I said in between wheezes as I started coughing again. The Changeling said nothing more as silence took hold of us, save for my coughing fit.
“You must be someone she really hates to be put down here with me. I hear enemies are often executed.” I said, wheezing again. She just eyed me and turned away. I saw her through the shadows. Her appearance wasn’t that dissimilar from theirs. She would have stood about as tall as Luna, but certain attributes were different from any other pony I’d seen (even if I’d only seen a few). Her legs were hollow, like Swiss Cheese, and her horn looked more like a broken branch than an actual horn. Then there were her wings. Elongated and transparent, holding the same shape as a dragonfly. Even her eyes were unique in the respect that they shared the dragons’ appearance. She was like an Alicorn, but not an Alicorn at all. This was a Changeling; insect-like and slender with a black exoskeleton. Despite her fearsome appearance, she seemed weak, malnourished. Hardly a threat to Equestria, so why was she here? Perhaps she was just an experiment to see if humans and changelings were compatible. I hated those Princesses.
“I have to get back.” I heard her mutter. Curiosity took hold of me.
“Back? Back to where? I highly doubt those bitches would have left anywhere still standing if they’re going interdimensional to conquer other species.” I said. The Changeling ignored me for a while.
“My hive. It’s in the Everfree forest, the one place Celestia can’t conquer. There are too many natural predators in there that would take down her soldiers, and she never gets her own hooves dirty.” she said.
“And Luna?” I asked. The Changeling was hesitant at first, but answered in the end.
“Luna observes, nothing more, nothing less.” I couldn't be bothered investigating further and silence reigned supreme once again.
It was a further three hours before she spoke again. “My name’s Chrysalis. What’s yours?” she asked. Idle conversation was something I’d long since forgotten.
“Can’t remember.” I replied. She was silent again.
“How long have you been in here for?” she asked after another few minutes. I hesitated to answer, but saw no harm in it.
“Twelve years.” I said.
“That’s enough time to think of a way to escape, right?” she asked. I began to wonder if she wasn’t in fact a spy working for Celestia to see if I had any plans of escaping. But there would have been no point. Celestia wouldn’t have waited twelve years to try this trick. I didn’t know much about her, but I knew she was a mare of action. She wanted results and she wanted them fast. Patience was not a virtue to her and twelve years was a long time to wait for such a deceptive trick. No, this Changeling was legitimately a prisoner.
“Possibly.” I replied. She seemed interested in me now. She scurried over to me, forgetting that I was human for a moment.
“Please, help me escape too. I can’t survive on pony food for long. It’s like sating hunger with water, it doesn’t work.”
“Speak up, I don’t think our jailers heard you well enough.” I growled at her. Catching on to what I was saying, she lowered her voice to an acceptable tone and went on.
“I’m the Queen of the Changelings. Help me escape and we’ll forever be indebted to you. You hate Celestia too, right? Take me with you and I can lead you back to my hive. My Changelings will be yours to command and you can storm the castle however you want.” she offered. Such free use of her own hive was more than unlikely. She was lying. She had no intention of simply giving me her Changelings.
“It’ll take more than shape-shifting ponies to defeat Celestia. I’ll let you escape with me. After that, we team up. I’ll help you in whatever way I can, but Celestia is mine to kill, understand?” It wasn’t a request, and Chrysalis knew this. She nodded, sealing the deal with a hoof shake. Or that would have been the case had I a free hand.
	
> Anouncement
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Quite a few of you have gotten on board with this story. This makes me happy and I'm sure Sweetapplejacker is equally pleased. I suggest you give him some love because this is his story I'm doing, and he's given me the freedom to twist it however I want, so long as it stays within the borders of the Primary plot, which technically wasn't completed, so I have free reign now. I'm rambling but I don't care. So check him out, he hasn't done that many stories, in fact I think he just did one. I've yet to read it, but I'll get around to it.
Chapter 2 is being written as I type (no pun intended, stop that). I told trickmaster that the human was going to go through ponies like Starkiller goes through Stormtroopers. A better comparison would be (regretably) Prototype without the consumption. Kill kill kill!!! Only one pony is left alive so far, but you'll find out who in the upcoming chapter. Until then, Ciao!
> Chapter 2: Fuck Everything
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	Chrysalis regaled me with talk of her species and their abilities. I’d managed to goad her into believing I needed to know all of her physical and magical properties in order to pull off a successful escape plan. I had an ulterior motive regarding her at the time. Should she prove to be allied with Celestia after all, I would know just where to hurt her. She explained that Changelings fed off of the emotions of other species, love being the most potent source of sustenance for them. I understood why she was as desperate to escape as she was. Starving was a slow and painful process, and she would get no love from her captors, at least not in the sense she had described.
In exchange for information, I had to regale to her my time in this cell. She was disgusted to say the least. It had taken me a week to figure out the routine of the guards and factor in Chrysalis’ changeling abilities. Over the course of that time, Chrysalis mentioned that she’d somehow managed to find a source of food from my emotions. Perhaps I liked her to some extent. Then again, ‘the enemy of my enemy’ as they say.



I had a concrete escape plan, but I didn’t tell her that. I waited for the right moment. If I was to trust Chrysalis, she needed to experience the true extent of my hatred by suffering similar disgraces as my own. Right on cue, the male guard entered alone without his female comrade. In the sunlight, he was a white stallion with a red mane. The red was nothing special, just like the red on a Toyota hatchback; plain and simple, much like the pony the mane belonged to. He had a familiar glint in his eye, one I knew all too well. As I expected, he ignored me and focused his gaze on the Changeling. Chrysalis’ instinct kicked in and she tried to back away into the shadows, but the guard grabbed her by one of her legs and pulled her back out into the light. Chrysalis screamed, trying to force him off. She’d gathered a considerable amount of strength since feeding off of me, but it wasn’t enough to deter the stallion. He forced her down and onto her back. She tried to fight still but was butted in the head as a result.
Dazed by the helmet, Chrysalis stopped struggling and was open for assault. And assault her he did. I watched with empathy as Chrysalis was broken into, that battering ram of a horse cock ploughing into her. It took me more strength than I thought was needed to prevent myself from helping her. I could have escaped my shackles now I’d used the forks left behind from the past few meals to create a makeshift key. But it wasn’t the right time.
“No! Stop! Please, stop!” I forced myself to listen to Chrysalis beg for mercy in vain as the sex-crazed guard ruined her.
It was a slow descent into madness. First came denial, then pleading, then submission. It didn’t take her long to submit to this cruel debauchery of the flesh. I could see in her eyes that she’d surrendered completely and utterly, but I could also see that she wanted nothing more than to escape from such a world. From within the darkness, I watched her silently plead for my help. Al the while I remained silent and unmoving, practically dead to the world. I watched as one of her hooves slowly moved towards me, trying to touch a part of me. She needed something to hold on to. I offered her my leg and she took it graciously. The guard was none the wiser as he was engrossed in what it was he was doing.
Fortunately, the torture came to an end with loud grunts, a full womb and empty balls. As the guard pulled his now exhausted member out of the Changeling, it was still leaking slightly. He took the opportunity to clean himself on Chrysalis’ surface, going the extra mile to make sure something went into the holes in her legs. Chrysalis was disgusted beyond belief. A fitting groan from the indecency escaped her lips and a chuckle was all he responded with. I watched as he left the cell, closing the door afterwards. He then noticed me and pointed a hoof at me.
“See you tonight, boy.” he threatened. as he walked away, I couldn’t help but smile behind his back.
“I wouldn’t miss it.” I muttered as he ascended the spiral staircase across from the door. Alone once more with Chrysalis, she began to cry. A queen of a unique and amazing species had become a sex thing for Celestia’s guards, and reduced to a snivelling mess. Her wails filled the dungeon and she refused to move her body. She still had a grip on my leg. I used my other leg to grasp her hoof between them. With a lot of difficulty, I dragged her towards me and pulled her up to my level where she buried herself in my chest and cried even harder. She knew now how I felt. I wasn’t a proud person, but she was. Just one session like that for her was equal to all those I’d had. She’d lost her pride and her dignity both.



That night, I explained the plan to her and she agreed with everything. We knew I couldn’t factor in variables like the stations of all the guards, or how many there were, but we were sure we could at least take down the two guards that posed a threat in here. I unlocked my shackles, but kept my arms where they were, pretending that I was still shackled. Just in time, the male guard emerged from the stairs, alone. This had happened before. He was often quick to finish his food so he could come down here and have some fun while his partner remained behind to eat at her own pace. The delay was fine; it made things easier.
The guard had a renewed hunger in his eyes. Apparently, I was his special pet. I huffed at him as the cell door opened.  He made his way to me when he noticed Chrysalis’ reaction to him. She was terrified, scurrying into the corner to try and fit through the bars. He smiled and turned his head back to me.
“I can wait.” I said. He chuckled and nodded, turning back to Chrysalis and slowly approaching her like a raptor creeping towards its prey. With his attention on her, I slipped my hands from the shackles and stood up, getting behind him. Chrysalis’ whimpers turned to laughs, confusing the guard.
I threw my arm around him and put him in a stranglehold. He tried to fight me off, but I was taller and stronger. Chrysalis dealt a sharp kick to his stomach, winding him. With my arm around his neck, he couldn’t replace the lost air and he lost consciousness. Releasing him minutes after and letting his dead body fall to the ground, I decided to chain him up where I was. I took his keys as well as his sword and belt. The belt was too small for my waist, so I tied it over my torso, letting the blade sling over my back with the scabbard. Shortly afterward, we heard another set of hooves descend the stairs. Chrysalis took on the stallion’s form and waited at the foot of the steps while I hid in the shadows.
“Quick Flash, is everything alright? I thought I heard some rustling around. It didn’t sound like your usual shuffling. Chrysalis smiled and shook his head.
“Everything’s fine. Better than it’s been in weeks, actually.” The female guard looked beyond ‘Quick Flash’ and noticed the real one chained to the wall and Chrysalis missing. She was quick to deduce the outcome.
“Oh no.” She went to draw her blade and retreat, but I brought Quick Flash’s blade around her throat.
“Drop it.” I ordered. The female swallowed hard and did as commanded. Chrysalis went to pick the fallen blade up and handed it to me. I took it graciously and smiled.
“I wonder, does it feel like twelve years to you?” I asked the mare. She began shaking nervously. I brought the pommel of the sheathed blade to her tail and pushed it aside, rubbing the end of the hilt against her marehood.
“It felt like twelve years to me. They say twelve years isn’t that long if you think about it, but I thought about it every day, and it was like a lifetime.” I forced the pommel into her and she whined.
“I counted the ways I would get revenge on you both. It was over too soon for Flasher boy over there, but you… What do you think Chrysalis, can we spare some time?” I asked. The Changeling shrugged as she changed out of the Quick Flash disguise.
“An hour won’t make much difference, and I’m not starving thanks to you.” she replied. I grinned and pulled the pommel of the blade out of the guard mare. She whimpered at the prospects that presented themselves. I switched my grip on the blade and began to slowly insert the point into her. She gasped in surprise as the cold metal and sharp edge made thin little cuts in her wet nether region.
“I don’t think it’ll take an hour.” I said and leaned forward, nibbling on the mare’s ear. She gave a little yelp before trying to appeal to my sense of justice.
“Please, if you do this… you’ll be no better than us or Princess Celestia.” she argued. I just chuckled and turned her face towards me with Flash’s blade. I planted a kiss on her lips and grinned at her.
“Your Princess is a monster. Experience has taught my kind that it takes another monster to kill one. I’ll gladly leave my humanity behind in this cell if it means absolute revenge. Celestia can’t stop me now.” I saw all hope leave her eyes as she realised death was upon her. Such a look made me giddy with excitement. I twirled the blade around inside of her a few times, eliciting pained and pleased moans in response. The mare had surrendered too easily. I brought the sharp blade out of her and handed it to Chrysalis. Then I undid her belt and slung it across my torso, like I had with Flash’s. I took back her blade from Chrysalis and sheathed it.
“Though, compared to him, I suppose you’ve been rather good to me these past twelve years. You fed me at first, and you didn’t really do anything depraved. I suppose I’ll let you off the hook. Maybe I’m sexist, I don’t care. But I warn you now; cross me again and I won’t be so lenient.” I placed my hand over her flank and led her into the cell. I took her keys and closed the cell door, locking her in. The keys were tossed on the counter where they would sometimes do actual guarding.
“That was fun. Shall we your Highness?” I asked, offering Chrysalis the stairs. She chuckled and accepted. Before she got a few steps however, the guard mare addressed us.
“You know… most of us believe in what the Princess is doing. But the rest of us are too scared to cross her.” she said. I turned to face her again.
“And which are you?”
The mare sighed for a moment. “The latter.” she replied.
“Then keep doing what you’re doing. When the opportunity presents itself, pick a side and fight for either your Princess or your freedom.” The mare looked at me.
“Are you fighting for your freedom?” she asked.
“Well I’m certainly not fighting for my Princess.” I replied. The mare managed a smile despite the situation she was in.
“Hey, if you manage to get an army against Princess Celestia, I’ll fight for you.” she said. I nodded at her and left it at that. Ascending the stairs with the Changeling Queen, she took on the form of the mare in the cell. At the top of the stairs was a door. When I opened it, the area was clear.
“Come on.” I said, leading the way. The corridor was long and each of my footsteps smacking the stone floors echoed throughout it. Together we ran, hastily, indefatigable through the castle. I began to grow uneasy at the lack of guards.
“Hold up.” I said, stopping the trek. Chrysalis obeyed and looked around.
“You noticed it too then? No guards.” I nodded, cursing not having brought that mare with us.
“I think we should find a place to hide within the castle until things don’t seem… too easy.” I suggested. Chrysalis gave me a look.
“Hide in the castle? How could we do that? They’ll be on full alert when they realise we’re missing.”
“Relax, we just need to find a disused room, that’s all.” I said. I opened a door and peeked inside. Sadly, I was met with dozens of faces and one I recognised. Some form of party was going on and all eyes had been on the General, Twilight Sparkle.
“You?!” she growled at me.
“Well fuck. Chrysalis, run!” I called. I slammed the door shut behind me and bolted alongside the queen as angry soldiers chased us.
“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, FUCK!!!” I shouted with each step I took. As we went to turn a corner, we saw more guards running toward us from that direction.
“Whoa boy! Other way, reverse, reverse!” I said. Chrysalis followed suit but stopped as she saw another group coming from the opposite direction. We tried going back the way we came only to see Twilight and her guards pursuing us.
“Was this in your plan?” Chrysalis asked. I hesitated to answer, looking around for an escape. There was a window. Next to it, a stone statue of Celestia roughly the size of my arm.
“Oh, god yes!” I said. I picked up the statue and raised it in the air. I could see Twilight’s face darken at the prospect.
“You know what? FUCK–EVERYTHING!!!” I shouted, throwing the statue at the window. Both shattered into pieces. I grabbed Chrysalis and jumped out with her. How we got up so high, I’ll never know. I positioned myself on her back and held on tight.
“You said you could carry three times your body weight, well start carrying.” I said. Chrysalis caught on amidst the frightening descent and opened her wings to the fresh air. I groaned as the sudden halt to our descent crushed my nuts.
“Sonofabitch!” I croaked, as I lay forward on the Changeling.
“I swear you weren’t this… stupid when we were in the cell.” she noted.
“I’m excited, alright? Twelve years suffering what you did earlier today, you’d be a little crazy too. Who am I kidding, you would probably be mental.” I said.
Our conversation was cut short however, as a spear flew past our heads, missing us by inches. I turned around on Chrysalis’ back to see the Pegasi following us, led by Rainbow Dash.
“Oh great, the gay pride flight squad.” I growled, standing up on the Queen’s back.
“The what?” she asked.
“Seriously? Rainbows, homos, you didn’t get the connection?” Chrysalis shook her head. I sighed. “No wonder they’re the dominant species.” I muttered under the wind. I saw another spear headed my way, and I unsheathed both blades, knocking the spear off its trajectory. Rainbow Dash sped ahead and met me blade to blade. With her skills as a swords…woman/pony/mare combined with her flight speed, she was en-par with my own skills. I managed to get a little foot room, careful not to step on Chrysalis’ head or her wing joints. This bitch was good. She had me turning around, dodging everything that came my way. I saw only one way of beating her at this rate.
“Chrysalis, get ready.” I said.
“For what?” she asked. I decided to answer practically. I jumped off of her back and fell towards the ground. As I’d hoped, Dash followed me. I could see Chrysalis trying to catch me first, but I had dash right where I wanted her. She’d gone for a spear dive, her blade pointed directly in front of her. I abandoned all defence and swung one blade across her dive, knocking hers away from the vital areas. She still managed to get my shoulder, but with my other blade, I thrust forward. With my longer reach, I had no trouble piercing her wing. I heard her yell and felt the blade shudder as Rainbow Dash cried in pain. Abandoning one blade, I used my wounded arm to punch her squarely in the face, knocking her back.
As I gripped Dash’s blade which was in my shoulder, I felt Chrysalis slowly reduce my descent before levelling off. Holding the blade in my shoulder prevented it from moving as she caught me.
“Alright, where are we going now?” I asked as I sat myself upright on the mare.
“The Everfree Forest. It’s so dangerous not even Celestia would go in there. And she certainly won’t waste her army trying to find us inside. She’ll wait until we strike her.” I pulled the blade out of my shoulder and saw the blood flowing out, forced back by the wind blowing by.
“When we get the chance, I’d like to get some clothes.” I said, feeling the cold creep up on me. I looked back to make sure we weren’t being followed. As expected, the other guards had stopped their pursuit in order to aid their Captain. I sheathed both blades over my back, the left one with some difficulty. “Also, I need a bath.”
	
> Chapter 3: Bug Ponies
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

The Everfree Forest didn’t seem very different to me. Granted, it was like those jungle scenes in the old movies and looked faker than Victor’s climbing of the wall on ‘Wolverine’. It wasn’t until I remembered that most weather was controlled by pegasi that I realised that it was out of place in the world. I imagined I would feel right at home here. Chrysalis was enjoying her newfound freedom, causing me to suffer my newfound fear of heights. If she was going to do loops in the air with me on her back, the bitch needed seatbelts.
She led me to the entrance into her hive. Funnily enough, it was near the edge of the forest on the other side from Equestria’s border. Griffin territory loomed over the entrance like a foreshadowing event. We were quick to enter in order to avoid yet another conflict. I expected to go further in for a few yards before being met with open Swiss hooves. No such luck. We were ambushed just a few feet in. Smaller versions of Chrysalis surrounded us. They spoke in their own language, which Chrysalis replied in. They seemed primarily focused on her at first, but then I felt eyes and spears on me.
“Chrysalis…if you’re backing out of our deal now, I swear to whatever god you pray to, you’ll meet him soon.” I said. Chrysalis didn’t respond, but a seemingly rushed and frenzied clacking and buzzing followed my comment and the spears were removed.
“Sorry, my children are very protective of me, especially since I was captured.” I heard her say. I took a step forward and felt something hard hit my head.
“Ow! Damn, I can’t see a thing down here. I thought creatures with magic horns could create light.” I complained.
“Changelings have never had the need. Come on, I’ll carry you further in. The crystals give off a natural light. It’s rather dim compared to the daylight, but it’s probably brighter than that cell.” I hopped up on her back once more, the chitin still warm from where I had been before. More of that bug talk protruded from her lips and I heard conversation throughout the group.
“Chatty bunch, aren’t you?” I said.
Chrysalis chuckled. “Sorry about that. It’s just that our language is faster, and they’re eager to find out what happened.” she said.
“Well make sure to leave out the part where that guard molested you.” I said. The chattering stopped amongst the changelings and so did the Queen’s stride.
“They understand you, you know.” the chattering picked up again, and it was louder than before. Chrysalis was frantically trying to calm them down, or so I assumed, it was all white noise to me. I sighed and just slouched forward, stretching my arms out.
“This is going to get real dull, real fast.” I muttered.



I was wrong. Lime green crystals lit up the caverns showing what looked like a desert city, but made of dirt and rock. There was an exceptionally large crystal that gave off most of the glow that illuminated the city. I was led to an arena where Chrysalis explained the situation.
“Sorry, I thought they’d take my word for it, but my children want to see you in action. You’ll be fighting the Champion. He’s one of my… bulkier kids. A real pain to hatch–.”
“I don’t need your egg-laying details, Chrysalis, I just need to know what I’m up against. Is he strong?”
“Yes, but he’s slow. He’s a heavy warrior. You’ll be allowed to use your blades, though I don’t think they’ll be much good.” she left me with that.
“Wait, what?! Why, what’s he using?” She didn’t respond, but I got my answer as the gate opposite me opened and a freaking giant emerged. If Changelings were ants, this big bastard was a beetle.
“Ah, shit!” I said, drawing my blades from my back. Looking again, if I tried to stab this guy, it’d be like thrusting a butterknife against a tank. I took a look around the arena to see if I could use anything to my advantage. Short of flaming torches, nothing. I needed to know more about what was going to happen.
“Hey, Chrysalis! What’s the deal, do I beat him or kill him?” I asked, addressing the queen who looked the part in that great big observation box with the royal throne, likely made out of their own shit.
“The Changelings won’t accept you until you kill one of them. Your rank will be assigned to you based upon how well you do.” she replied.
“What?! I didn’t help you break free just to join your ranks. You’re supposed to help me, not the other way around.”
“I said I’d give you my changelings to do with as you pleased. But the only way they’ll follow you is if you defeat one of them and join their ranks. We’re like family and we look out for each other. You become part of the family, then they’ll help you.” she replied.
“And I assume if I get a low rank for this, I won’t be able to lead higher ranked changelings?”
“Correct.” I growled at the prospect.
“I should just kill you instead.” I muttered under my breath. While conversing with chrysalis, I failed to notice the tank approaching. He was already half way through his swing when I noticed him. Fortunately, he was slow. I jumped between his hooves and crawled around to behind him. Slowly, he lifted his massive horn to reveal a big groove in the dirt.
“Hang on, is this guy gonna try to kill me too?” I shouted. Chrysalis ducked her head under the fence out of sight. Chicken shit.
“If he kills me… I won’t be able to kill Celestia.” With this realisation fixed in my head, I brought all my focus on the massive bug. By now, he’d finished turning around to face me. I wasn’t going to let some slow ass bug take away my revenge. I saw no such future.
“Ah, so that’s it.” I said as I figured out how to beat him. How to kill him was still a mystery, but to stop him at least was enough to give me the time needed to find out. I waited where I was, prepared for him to attack. He reared his head and slowly, but surely brought it downward. I jumped to the side. It surprised me to see that he’d compensated for my last dodge. He was learning. I took this time to get all up in his face, literally. I sat on his snout, curling my legs around his mouth to keep my balance.
“Sorry big boy, but your brothers and sisters made the rules, not me. I tightened my grip on both of my blades and thrust them forward. There was a squelching sound, followed by an earsplitting screech from the changeling. I leaped off of him and ran to the other side of the arena to look over my results.
There lay the changeling, squirming and writhing in pain as he clawed… clopped at his eyes. I chuckled to myself before realising something. I lifted my arms and looked upon the blade.
“AAAAAHHHHH!!!!! Changeling Eye juices!” I threw my blades to the ground and began dragging my arms along the dirt to try and get the stuff off. It was really disgusting. I took a look at Chrysalis’ reaction and saw she was subconsciously squinting her eyes as she looked at her ‘big boy’. I observed the Changeling’s shape and form. I noticed subtle differences in his physiology compared to the other Changelings. He was bigger, yes, but he was also narrower. This left his chitin too small to cover his entire body. There were fleshy parts that were likely vulnerable.
I swallowed my disgust at the eye juice and grabbed one of the blades. I crept closer to the changeling who had stopped moving for some reason. I didn’t dare think he was dead. Chrysalis would have stated so by now. I was close enough to do what I planned and as I brought the blade to the soft bit, I was kicked in the side. The air was knocked out of me as I was sent flying away. I coughed up blood at one end of the arena while struggling to breathe. I struggled to my feet and put my head between my legs, trying to get the air flowing through again. I made sure to keep my eyes focused on the bug to ensure I wasn’t surprised again. As the air returned to me, I went into another coughing fit. Heavy breathing and raspy heaves overtook me and I felt like I was dying.
“Damn that mare.” I said as I recalled being kicked in the chest by Applejack. Ever since then I’d been cursed with this terrible cough. I felt like I was General Grievous, only weaker.
It wasn’t until I took a moment to relax that I noticed something. The blade that I’d dropped when I was knocked back had been lit on fire by the stray flames of the torches. A smug little idea crept into my head as I gripped the other blade, cleared the hilt of the bug juice and placed it against the torch. It ignited almost instantly. I couldn’t help but grin as I entertained the idea in my head. I waited a minute for the blade itself to grow red hot. Then I bolted towards the giant changeling. With a quick and powerful slash, his horn was cut off. More screeching followed suit and I continued on with the Changeling’s limbs, cutting them down one by one until it was just a head and body. Blood seeped into a ring around us and I brought the blade down to it. The Changelings’ blood was also flammable. A ring of fire surrounded the tank and myself, closing us in.
“Sorry mate, but I won’t let anyone stand in my way. I’ve got too much hate to let it go.” I said. I raised the blade up and drove it down into the changeling’s skull. There was a soft sigh before everything in him darkened and he died. I’d won.
Kicking dirt over part of the ring of fire, I made a pathway for myself to exit. I stood victorious amongst my victim’s brothers and sisters. That damnable language was all they spoke as a ruckus grew from whatever it was they were saying. Chrysalis made a point to shut them up as she screeched louder than them all.
“I take it they’re not happy about having to honour their part of the bargain?” I asked her. She shook her head in disappointment. “Well tough titties, bitches!” I called out to them all. I could have sworn I heard Chrysalis stifle a snort of laughter.
“I won fair and square. And if you renege on your promise, then your word means less than shit. In which case, I’d be wondering if my family would actually help me if I were you.” The Changelings remained silent as they looked at each other for an answer.
“Regardless, the decision is mine to make now that you have done what was asked of you. And the rank I give you is non-negotiable.” she stated the last part mainly to her ‘spoiled’ children, but I imagined it included me as well. She had better just hope I received a rank I felt would be useful to my goal.
“The rank I bestow upon you is…” Fucking suspense! “King!”
There was a pregnant pause from all of us. I rubbed the wax out of my ears to make sure I heard her properly.
“Say again?” I asked.
“King.” she replied.
“King?”
“King.”
I wanted to say something, but I didn’t know what it was I wanted to say. My mouth just began to systematically open and close until I crossed my arms and then covered it with my hand.
“Is that right?” I asked. Chrysalis smiled and nodded her head at me. “Did you just force an engagement on me or something?” I asked.
“I don’t know what that is, but I don’t think so.” she replied. I didn’t want to take the time to explain the term engagement to her, as it had a number of meanings.
“So… King, huh?”
“Yep! We’ll need to do something though, so as to force them to obey you.” she said. Curiosity took hold of me and I followed her out of the arena. “But before we do anything, I’d like to introduce you to one of my spies. I just hope you’ll give her a chance.” she said. It seemed as though Chrysalis was leading me to a private room with no windows and only one way in or out.
“Well if she’s on our side, I guess I could take a minute to hear you out. Besides, you sound as if it’s going to surprise me. I highly doubt it. It’s actually Twilight, isn’t it?” I asked, chuckling.
“No, somepony much closer to Princess Celestia.” she replied. As I stepped into the room, I grew confused.
“Wait, who’s closer to Celestia than Twilight?” I asked.
“I am.” a voice replied. It was a voice I’d never heard before. But as light somehow magically grew in this room we were in, I looked upon the owner of the voice and my jaw dropped. There, sitting before me was a tall Alicorn figure with cyan eyes and a dark blue pelt. Her mane and tail were like tears in the night sky. It flowed slowly, but lightly like a flag in the wind. She wore black regal attire, consisting of her horse shoes, her chest plate and her diadem. Her chest plate carried a crescent moon on it, facing downward.
“You?”
> Chapter 4: Burning Cold
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	I found myself running at the often silent bitch as I was both surprised to see her and pissed off that she hadn’t done anything to help either of us escape. Sadly, she anticipated my reaction and lifted me into the air, out of reach of absolutely everything. I floated there, swinging at air as I got it all out of our system.
“You’re probably wondering why I didn’t help you escape. The fact of the matter was I did help. I suggested to Twilight that she do something to boost the soldiers’ morale. You’re the one who alerted every guard in the castle to your unchained presence. I did my part.” I crossed my arms at her explanation and just sat in the air with crossed legs.
“And you didn’t think to do that eleven or even twelve years ago?” I asked. Luna dropped me on the ground, and I landed on my back with a loud thud. I think she pulled something.
“To be honest, I didn’t really see any use in helping you, nor did I care for your well-being. You’re a foreign entity to my world. But when Chrysalis was captured, my opinion of your usefulness changed. The fact that you remain still vexes me, however. Perhaps Chrysalis has uses of her own for you.” Luna said. I growled at her.
“She’s labelled me the King of the Changelings.” I said.
“Is that so?” I watched as Luna raised a brow to the Changeling queen who seemed unperturbed by the look she was being given. I rose to my feet and tried to bring as much of a prideful stance as one could standing in their birthday suit.
“Why she did it doesn't matter to me, nor should it matter to you. What does matter is Celestia and killing her.” I said. I saw the disturbed look in Luna’s eye and the beginning of a glow around her horn. But she’d made the mistake of dropping me right in front of her. Before she could cast any magic, I reached my hand out and grabbed her horn, squeezing it hard. She gasped and scrunched her eyes. Pain or pleasure didn't really matter to me, I’d stopped her spell.
“You brought me from my home and sent me to hell. Your sister is the devil and must be exterminated.” I could feel the tingling of her horn as it tried to focus magic again, but I clenched harder, dispelling it.
“That’s enough, both of you. I’ll not have my hive turned into a squabble fest.” Chrysalis interrupted. Reluctantly, I released Luna’s horn and she refrained from blasting me with whatever was up her arsenal.
“Now I agree with you, but you have to take into account Luna’s feelings on the matter too. She’s not your enemy. Would you settle for sealing her away?” Chrysalis asked. I considered the new factor as well as the option. As much as I wanted to kill Celestia, perhaps banishment into a seal would be even crueller.
“I’m thinking of putting her in a similar situation to myself. Strip her of her power and throw her in a cell or something.” I replied. Chrysalis shuddered.
“That seems a bit drastic, don’t you think?” she asked.
“You’re kidding, right?” I said. There was no way she could have forgotten what happened earlier that day.
“I agree with your friend, Chrysalis. As much as it pains me to admit it, Celestia will never rest, even if she had a thousand years to think about what she’d done. She has to die.” Luna interjected. I couldn’t help but start liking Luna already. I fought off a smile for the sake of what little morality remained in me.
“Perhaps we should talk about this some other time. We still have to make you a King, my friend.” Chrysalis said. I dropped the subject as she’d suggested and focused on her instead.
“Yeah, you mentioned something about that. We had to do something in order to make the Changelings obey me.” I replied. Luna gasped.
“Chrysalis, surely you don’t intend to do that? He’s not of this world, the results would be unpredictable.” she protested.
I turned to her. “What do you mean? What’s she trying to do?”
“You said it yourself, Luna he’s of little use to us as he is now, as good as he is with a blade. He wants revenge, but two blades won’t cut it when facing your sister. He needs power.” Chrysalis replied.
“What’s going on?” I asked again, turning to the Changeling.
“Proceed with this and he could become a mindless monster, you could kill his mind or destroy his body.”
“What?”
“I know what I’m doing, Luna, that’s why I called for you. Your magic needs to act as a stabiliser so his mind stays safe.”
“What about my mind?”
“That’s why you called me? I thought you had a plan, not a damn fool’s afterthought.”
“Alright, both of you, SHUT UP!!” I interrupted, stepping between them. I faced Luna first. “What the hell are you both talking about? What is Chrysalis planning on doing?” I asked. Luna sighed and shook her head.
“A foolish thing, I’m afraid. She’s planning on turning you into a Changeling.” the princess replied, sitting down as if exhausted from the argument. I stood there, staring at Chrysalis.
“It’s the only way. You’re a good swordsman, but that’s not enough if you even want to get close to Celestia. Become a Changeling and you have a chance–.”
“But there’s a good chance he’ll die in the process.” Luna added.
“He’s dead either way. If he remains as is, he’s as good as dead. If he changes, he might die, but at least he’ll have a chance of surviving and taking his revenge.” Chrysalis argued. I’d heard enough at this point and the decision was clear as daylight.
“Let’s do it.” I said. There was a pregnant pause in the room as the two members of royalty worked over my words.
“Very well… but I believe you should at least become king with a little dignity.” Luna replied. Before I could ask what she meant. She lit up her horn and there was a flash next to her. I suddenly saw my old clothes folded neatly together, cleaner than when I appeared in them.
“Ah, just what I wanted.” I said, going to grab the clothes, but Luna moved them out of reach.
“You’d best bathe first. Clothing and smelly human don’t go well together.” she said.
“Yes, Mo~om!” I groaned, motioning for Chrysalis to lead the way.

The shower was cold, but one would expect that from an underground waterfall. Luna and Chrysalis watched me bathe. Their gazes didn’t bother me, although I was sure they would have had I not been in such a bad state for a dozen years. Shame, privacy, manners and morality were long lost to me. I might as well have already been a Changeling. I was hardly human anymore. Sadly, neither equine thought to get me a towel. With a sigh, I dried myself off with the aid of Luna’s magic. It felt strange to have clothes on again after all this time. I’d lost so much weight, they barely fit me anymore, but with a little tightening of the belt, I managed to get by. A pair of jeans, black steel-capped boots and belt, a white short sleeved shirt, a grey zip-up hooded jacket and a black leather overcoat later and I felt almost like my old self. All that was missing was twelve years and a name.
“Somehow, that suits you.” Chrysalis said. I chuckled and slung an arm over her shoulder.
“I always knew how to dress with style.” I mused. The changeling giggled at the joke and we walked together with Luna to some place.

So my Coronation was to take place at the highest point underground. Kind of ironic when I thought about it. There wasn’t much to the tower itself, even less to the roof. It was just a circular dome that allowed you to see the entire hive. If anything it was a good place for seeing the sights, assuming your eyes were used to dim lighting.
“This is it, this is where you will become a Changeling. As a King you will be able to feed off of the love of other Changelings, including me.” she said.
“Assuming you and they have love to give, correct?” I asked. She nodded.
“Now, I’m afraid this is going to be a painful process. Are you sure you want to do this?” Luna asked.
“I’ve suffered worse.” I replied. Luna nodded.
“No doubt.” Chrysalis stood beside Luna and they both stood inches from me. Chrysalis was to my left, Luna to my right. I closed my eyes and tensed my body, preparing for the pain that was sure to come.
It was a slow thing. Something even the strongest of men would dread. It felt like two bullets slowly entering through each side of my chest. Chrysalis’ horn, being jagged, was more painful than Luna’s. I couldn’t help but cry out in pain. I felt blood trickle down my torso, staining my clean clothes in my own blood. My heart was beating like a mad thing just before Chrysalis pierced it. It was at that moment that I felt myself dying, but at the same time, coming alive. Magic flowed through me from the epicentre of my heart. It was cold, freezing. On Luna’s side, I could feel her magic working its way up to my mind like a brainfreeze, but more comfortable than anything else. I remained conscious thanks to Luna’s aid, and I endured the pain from their horns and the freezing cold from Chrysalis’ magic. My entire body felt like liquid ice was coursing through my veins instead of blood. It was as soon as my eyes began to burn that I felt it; the change. I pushed both mares away from me, forcing their horns out of my body. I could tell that was the wrong choice as both of them protested to the action. I curled in on myself, gripping my arms and pulling them closer. I roared in agony as the freezing feeling turned to searing heat. It now felt like liquid metal was coursing through my veins, boiling hot. I felt like the Ghost Rider.
I was brought to my knees in pain. And of all the times for it to start up, it had to start then. I began coughing up red. But instead of falling into my hands, the blood swirled around in the air and shot back towards me, spreading itself along my clothes. I coughed more and the process repeated itself. I was scared. I didn’t know what was happening, and Chrysalis’ stunned and confused look only aided the fear to take hold. I tried to wipe the blood off, but then my clothes became all sticky, stretching out of place and attaching itself to my hand. Leather was not supposed to stretch, at all. I felt everything about me engulfing the rest of me. It was like a power struggle of the flesh. I imagined I looked like a cacophony of tentacles and tendrils of blood and stretchy leather.
I tried to think of a good memory, anything that might remain still in my old life, but all there was, was emptiness and the burning hatred towards the one primarily responsible for my situation. Celestia. With my hatred in mind, I felt and heard the flesh around me cease to move. Then it began to creep onward, slowly at first. I thought about surviving so I could kill her and release all my rage on her and the flesh cringed in on itself. I gave out a roar of hatred and my flesh began to return to its normal self. I was regaining my original form. The leather returned to normal, the clothes underneath returned to normal, even my wounds had healed completely. I looked myself over. There were slight changes to my clothes. My hooded jacket was now red, and my jeans were grey. The leather jacket was covered in a veiny looking surface that seemed like it was part of the item. I imagined what my blades would have looked like had I worn them, and suddenly, my arms began to fluctuate and I felt the extension and hardening of my fingers. A black mist surrounded the change and when it dissipated, I had four blades for fingers on each hand. My thumb remained as it was, but was covered in black. I tried bending the fingers to test them. They bent as though the blades were just an illusion. I tested their strength on the floor. It was like cutting through butter. I smiled at my new toy, then looked to the Princess and the Queen who had both their jaws dropped.
“What? I like these clothes. I certainly wasn’t going to change into something that couldn’t use them. I’ll do that later. For now,” I flexed my arms and hands and the blades disappeared, reverting to regular limbs. “I want a new name. I’m sick of not having one. What do you guys think?” Chrysalis and Luna shook their heads both and fixed themselves up.
“Yes, right. Your name, what shall we call you?” Chrysalis asked.
> Anouncement 2: Names
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

Right, so it was not a hard decision. Most of you chose names that dealt with his hatred and lust for revenge. Some of you had a little fun with it, but we ultimately chose a pair of names that best resembled his feats so far.

Zamiel - From the German Opera; Der Freischütz. Zamiel was referred to as the dark hunter who made a deal with Kaspar. The latter failed to uphold his end of the bargain and was thrown into a pit to be eaten by wolves. For those of you who watch Hellsing Ultimate, refer to the conversation The Major has with Rip Van Winkle before she dies.
We chose Zamiel because, like him, the human had also been trifled with by an entity that was supposedly good. The reference to the wolf pit was also considered a prison of sorts, therefore the link to Zamiel and the human was found.

Alcatraz - Probably the best known prison in history throughout the world, there was a shoddy no escape record held and the possibility of two having escaped exists to this day. Alcatraz was supposed to be inescapable, yet two made it out, just like in the story.

So we'd like to thank:

Chrony for suggesting Zamiel

and
Dale for Alcatraz, Thanks guys!
> Chapter 5: Inauguration Night
> --------------------------------------------------------------------------

	“I’m thinking Zamiel.” I said as the two mares failed to produce any meaningful name whatsoever.
“What kind of name is that?” Chrysalis asked. I smiled with glee and took on a somewhat dexterous posture.
“Zamiel was the name of the Dark hunter in the German Opera Der Freischütz. Like the devil, he made a deal with Kaspar who failed to keep his end of the bargain. As a result he was thrown into a pit to be eaten by wolves, much the same way we were in that cell.” I replied.
“And what about this second name; Alcatraz? What does that word signify?” Luna asked. I turned to her and kept my smile as it was.
“Alcatraz was probably the most historical prison island in human history. Supposedly no prisoners managed to escape, despite the number of attempts. But two may have managed to escape together. Because nobody knew whether they had or not, the record remained perfect and the prisoners were presumed drowned. Do you see the connection?” I asked.
“No, you’re completely mad.” she replied. I thought I detected a hint of sarcasm in the statement, but I wasn’t sure.
“Prisons, my dear Luna. The wolf pit and Alcatraz were both inescapable prisons. My life began anew when I escaped from that damned dungeon and I want to have a name that I can remember it by, so I choose those two words to be my name.” I declared proudly.
“Zamiel Alcatraz? Sounds stupid.” Chrysalis interjected. I turned back around to her.
“Have you heard your name? Other than the lights, you have no connection to crystals whatsoever.” I argued.
“I honestly don’t care anymore.” Luna muttered, walking away to let us argue.
It was an interesting dispute about who’s names were better, but my goal had been accomplished, and I had my name. Chrysalis led me to yet another chamber where what looked like the entire Changeling population stood. I was placed haphazardly in front of them. To the left of me was their queen, to my right, Princess Luna. The Changelings were silent as they gazed upon me. It was as if they could see something I couldn’t; like my appearance was just a hallucination that they could see through.
“The changelings are going to watch as I share with you my ability to control them, by force if need be, and our language. You’ll be able to speak and understand all the speech you undoubtedly thought was gibberish.” she said. She wasn’t wrong about the gibberish. While I didn’t care to learn the language, I figured it would be helpful in the long run. With a deep breath, I nodded, accepting the offer. The possibility of abandoning both parties now I had power entered my mind, but something stopped me. There was something about the way she looked at me; as if when she did, she was filled with pride. She seemed happy, and throughout the week I’d known her, she’d never been happy. It was a comforting look that suited her. I could feel her joy and it grounded me in place. Twelve years of suffering had been overpowered by an alien emotion, and I wanted what she was offering, everything she was offering.
Luna was in stark contrast to Chrysalis. I could feel apprehension radiating off of her like a bad stench and it was off-putting.
Chrysalis’ horn began to radiate a sickly green as did her eyes. The light touched me and I could feel the knowledge she promised enter my mind and fuse itself there like a tattoo to the memory. I gradually began to feel sick and I wondered if my body was rejecting the information until I started understanding certain murmurs within the crowd of Changelings. With a heavy sigh, I closed my eyes and let the nauseating feeling halt at a steady intensity before diminishing entirely. All speech was as plain to me as the English language and I took a moment to just listen. The chittering was very different, but felt the same. It was an odd feeling, the familiarity of something completely new; it was like discovering a new level of something you’d done your entire life.
I revelled in the conversations. Some of them were still slightly uncertain about me, but others had been convinced of my belonging when I’d killed… ‘Brute’. So that was his name? It fit him perfectly.
With that, I spoke up in their language, drawing their attention completely.
“I know some of you if not most are still a little apprehensive about my joining you and your cause. I wish to put that apprehension to rest; as your new king, it is my responsibility to put the good of the Changelings ahead of any personal vendettas. While that will undoubtedly be no problem in the long run, I know you all believe that my revenge will come ahead relating to Celestia.” I heard the chittering agreements to my claims of their worries.
“Once again, relax. Our cause coincides with my desire for revenge. Celestia is a warlord who’s thirst for blood and conquering borders on the sociopathic. It is in the interests of the Changeling race that she be stopped by any means necessary. Your Queen was captured by Celestia and assaulted. Would you let that stand?” I began to play on the collective adoration I knew they felt for their queen. Aside from speech and a second mouth (the latter being negotiable), they weren’t that different to Xenomorphs. As I’d suspected, they began to sway towards my way of thinking. Chrysalis’ assault would not go unpunished in their eyes.
“The one who assaulted her directly is dead, however, the threat of a repeat event is still real so long as Celestia rules over Equestria. Help me to end her reign, and we will place Princess Luna on the throne in her stead. With Celestia gone and Luna ruling, ponies and Changelings may find a way to co-exist happily.” There was a chorus of cheers from the Changelings as their minds were swayed easily. Now the task of bending my revenge around to suit the needs of the ‘people’ was my only remaining obstacle. And I’d require Luna and Chrysalis’ help for this.
I turned to the Changeling and saw her pride swelling. She was obviously excited about the future to come.
“I’ll need your advice on some things. Could you and Luna meet me later tonight?” I asked. I felt her pride turn to curiosity, and I knew what she was going to say.
“Sure, but why not now?” she asked. I smiled at her and changed one of my arms into a bladed claw.
“I’m going out to play with my new toys.” I replied. I turned the claw back into my arm and left the area. I found my vision to be better than before as the darkness of the tunnel entrance vanished under the gaze of my enhanced eyes. I could get used to this.
With the light from the end of the tunnel reaching me, my eyes automatically adjusted so I barely recognised the difference in light. The forest was just as beautiful as before; my perception of colour and distance was enhanced. It was like looking at a video game world where the graphics were better than the real thing, which made the appearance of two gryphons at either side of me all the more startling.
I jumped in surprise and began running straight forward. I heard them follow me. They sounded very hungry; their emotions hinted at it as well. The forest quickly came to an end and gave way to a wasteland that looked like a cross between a swamp and a desert. What stopped me was another group of gryphons surrounding my point of exit. They’d planned this. So gryphons were pack hunters, just like wolves, with certain obvious advantages wolves didn’t have.
The two that pursued me came up behind, effectively boxing me in. Their methods were flawless. There was no speech between them, they all knew what to do and when. They could prove to be useful, or rather, their knowledge could. I looked at my hand again and considered the possibilities.
“I wonder…” I trailed off for a moment before coming to a decision. With a smirk, I recoiled in on myself and changed my internal organs. When that was done, I threw my body out in all directions and the organs went forth in a tentacular explosion. The gryphons were surprised to say the least. Some of them tried to back off out of range, but it was too late. All of them had been entrapped within my tentacles. I stood there, fleshy bits sticking out of my stomach. I grabbed each one and tried to step out of the centre. My imagination gave shape to them as they all joined together in one large ball. The gryphons tried to struggle against the tentacles, but they struggled in vain. I stepped toward the closest one and examined it.
“You look like the ringleader in this little group. I’m guessing you planned this?” I asked. The gryphon screeched at me and snapped at my face, grabbing thin air. I tutted at the hybrid, waving a disapproving finger.
“I’m trying my hardest not to become like a fictional character on a popular video game, but you’re making it very difficult. But perhaps if I… tweaked the consumption process a bit, I’ll be morally saved.” I experimented with the idea and found myself sporting a third eye the size of a basketball across my chest. The eyelid was made from my jacket as the zipper opened in the middle. This was interesting. The iris opened and I watched as the gryphon showed signs of being coaxed toward the pupil. The feathers ruffled and some ended up coming loose, flying into the eye. I chuckled, releasing the tentacles grip on the gryphon. He flailed about before colliding with my body. He tried as hard as he could, but the eye acted like a vacuum, sucking with the force of a cyclone. I wondered if I would get anything from the gryphon after he’d been sucked in.
I winced slightly as the gryphons strength failed him and he gave up. His back snapped and the shock on his face was what got to me. As he disappeared into my eye, his knowledge on planning and strategy added itself to mine, much like the transference of the Changeling language.
I fell to my knees and threw up at the sight of the gryphon’s death. It was then that a coughing fit began to emerge and I was powerless to move as both problems overthrew me. I could feel the tentacles melting away, releasing the potential threats. While most of them flew away, wanting a second chance at life, one remained intent on taking advantage of my weakness. Still coughing, I was prepared to take a beating; but as the gryphon slashed at me, his claw got stuck in my body. The leathery surface snapped at him, clawing its way up his arm. I forced the image of the gryphon’s fright to the back of my mind and focused on engulfing the current predator in my body. It was then that the leather turned into a large fist as it wrapped around him. It clenched with ease and I heard the frightened and quickly halted screech of my enemy as he was crushed within the grasp of my third, giant fist.
“An auto-defence system? No, that’s not it; survival instincts, how interesting.” With my coughing fit gone, I rose back up to my feet and took a deep breath. Upon exhaling, a feather left my mouth. I ignored the remaining gryphons and turned back into the forest.





“It’s time we began training.” I said, stepping into the meeting room. Chrysalis and Luna were both present. They looked at me as I took a seat across from them.
“Training? I’d have thought you would want to charge right in.” said Luna, raising her brow at me.
“The thought did occur to me, but recent events have made me consider preparing further for the attack. Chrysalis has given me control of her changelings, and if I’m going to lead them into battle, I need to make sure they’re ready, which means making sure the death toll for our side is minimised. That being said, I’d like to ask you a favour, Luna.” I said. Luna’s other brow rose at this.
“What do you want me to do?” she asked.
“Do you know the name of the guard who would have been found in my old cell, the living one?” I asked. She nodded.
“Dust Cloud. Yes, what about her?”
“She told me there are those among the guard who believe as we do. I was wondering if you could gather some ponies together to add to our rebellion?” Luna seemed surprised to hear about Dust’s true opinion on the matter of Celestia, but not altogether disturbed by the concept.
“I’ll see what I can do from my end. Is there anywhere you’d like us to meet, or do you want them to meet you here?” she asked.
“What’s the smallest town within Equestria’s domain?” I replied.
“That would be Apple Loosa. It’s the southernmost town from Canterlot and directly south from the Everfree Forest. It borders along the Southern Gryphon territory but isn’t viewed as a threat to their land so they didn’t dispute its proximity.” she began to trail off, but I quickly brought her back to the issue at hand.
“Is it safe?” I asked.
“Yes. I haven’t known a royal guard to ever visit there, let alone Celestia herself. The town is rather closed in, so gossip won’t leave there. That being said, I don’t think a Changeling sighting would go unspoken beyond the town. You’ll have to learn how to change into a pony to avoid any trouble.” she said. I found the idea of being one of them repulsive, however, a very bad idea entered my mind that made up for it.
“Sounds good to me. I could have some fun with that.” I replied. Chrysalis cleared her throat, drawing us to her presence.
“So what do you plan to do with our children? How will you train them?” she asked. Our children? Great, now I was a step-dad; not bad for an escaped convict.
“Leave that to me.” I replied. There was nothing more to be said and I leaned back in my seat, closing my eyes. I wanted to get some proper sleep, and the bed proved uncomfortable for me after so much time sleeping at a right angle. Sitting proved to be more comfortable. Just another mark of my hatred.