Keep going!
Canary's heart jumped from feeling to feeling, never settling on a single one. The escape felt dreamlike—unreal. She trudged forward through the mud, squinting through the heavy rain.
Hive!
On leaving Korporis the instructions felt less clear yet somehow much stronger, like a drum at the back of an orchestra.
Home!
Canary decided this was what pigeons felt like—driven to their home though they had no idea how. The promptings were light, like a feather brushing her forwards.
Hurry!
The rain was still getting stronger—the drops were starting to sting.
Canary fell into the mud for the twentieth time, resting her head on the ground before her.
Keep going!
Canary sighed. How do I even know if Echo is behind me?
I'll be just fine.
How do I know that's even him? How do I know that's not just my thoughts?
It's not.
That mantra kept repeating: Hive; Home; Hurry! It was hard at first to put words to those feelings—a strong sense of belonging, of safety, and of urgency—but she had found that putting words to her thoughts made them invigorating instead of exhausting.
Canary struggled back to her legs—they felt a thousand pounds. If it weren't for these impressions, I'd have stopped moving ages ago.
One more step.
Canary struggled to raise her hoof from the devouring mud, but each drop of rain fed the mud's appetite—her chest was barely above the mud now. She struggled her hoof forwards through the mud and collapsed in exhaustion.
A buzzing filled her ears while her consciousness slipped away.
Hive.
« ~ »
Warmth. Peace. A faint buzzing. Canary felt like she was waking from a dream—light, almost weightless. It was bliss in comparison to her pain. Pain? Her thoughts swirled slowly in her mind. She scrunched up her face in concentration, but nothing came. Canary threw open her eyes and saw blurred shadows conversing in a green haze. She reached out to them, but her movements were slow, as if she were pushing through mud. Her hoof was stopped abruptly by some barrier. Canary stared at her hoof in confusion, then suddenly became aware she was trapped in a capsule of green goo.
The pegasus flailed her limbs wildly to escape. After a pop, she felt a sudden drop, a burst of cold air, and the familiar pain of gravity on her flank.
Canary shook as she lifted herself from the cold ground. After attempting to inhale, her body forced her to cough up a bucketful of green ooze. She shook herself clean of the goop, scattering flecks of green around her.
Eyes widening, she looked back at her left wing. It barely flinched when she tried to lift it up. Sighing, her attention wandered to a noise from above. Once it drew her gaze, she felt substantially smaller.
A large cavern stretched from left to right, at least ten buildings tall. The massive hallway reminded her of Korporis, with its glowing caves, but the glow looked healthy and vibrant in comparison to the sickly glow from the moss. She also noticed a constant hum in the background—it made her feel safe, as if she belonged here. Her eyes wandered back to the pod she had fallen from, appreciating its intricate structure. So this is the hive.
“Feather horse.”
Canary jumped at the buzzing voice behind her. One changeling stood near him, wearing a helmet and breastplate, with five other guards in a close semicircle behind him. Though she couldn't explain how she knew it, none of them were Echo.
“Where is he? Where is Echo? Did he make it back?”
The drone only jerked its head right, gesturing down the hallway. “Follow me—the queen decrees.” The other changelings moved around her in a tight circle, easily persuading her to follow.
Canary kept her eyes wide open, searching for her bug, but the glowing hallway had such stunning architecture and such a magical feel that Canary couldn't keep from staring. Peering into one of the cells, she—WHUMP. The guard in front of her glanced back in annoyance at being stepped into. “Sorry!” she squeaked.
She couldn't help but stare. The cells dotting the walls held a variety of scenes: some were empty, some had young bugs, some stored weapons, while others cradled sleeping changelings. The constant movement made the hive feel alive—each drone worked in perfect harmony with the others, a great dance in perfect order.
As they neared the end of the hall, the ceiling sloped downwards steeply, leading down to a round black door with green light bursting from its edges.
Cozy, she noted. Though the chamber they entered was nearly as large as her entire house in Woodburn, it somehow felt small. Green veins of luminescent ooze lined the walls, giving off a relaxing warmth. Despite the ring of guards at the walls, Canary felt comfortable, as if she'd been there before. A changeling stood centered in the room, a good two heads taller than Canary. Her shell mirrored the room's glowing green veins perfectly. Then Canary's eyes fell on the changeling to her side.
“Echo!”
Canary ran up to her changeling and locked him in a tight embrace. The changeling held her tight enough to hear his heartbeat. “Good to see you too,” he whispered.
“Welcome! Glad to see you're awake!” The voice came from the taller changeling. Though the voice sounded on the verge of laughing, Canary got the distinct impression the changeling could crush her at any moment.
Canary opened her mouth, but a flood of questions kept her from voicing one. What is going on? Where am I? Who are you?
The changeling smiled. “Your confusion should clear up soon. I am Libra, Queen of this hive.” Libra held out a hoof. “And you are?”
“C-Canary,” she stammered, meeting the changeling's hoof.
Libra dropped her hoof and shook her head. “No, you said that like a question. What's your name? Who you really are! Say it like you mean it!”
Canary tilted her head in confusion. “Canary,” she repeated.
The queen clicked her tongue. “What's the point of saying something without any emotion behind it? Think about who you are and then tell me your name.”
Canary frowned in thought. Trying to dispel her annoyance and confusion, she focused on her past: her imprisonment in Korporis, her time with Echo, her flights with Aether, her parents' deaths, her studies in Feathermore…
“My name is Canary Tiger.”
“That's more like it!” The queen licked her lips. “Much tastier.”
Canary shuddered at the queen's word choice.
The queen smiled. “You're quite the treat for us. We're not used to having willing visitors, so we don't have any guest quarters. You'll have to stay with Echo so long as you're here.”
“Which is how long?”
Echo spoke up. “You at least need to recover your strength, which should take a few weeks.”
The queen smiled, though it looked more like bearing her teeth. “We'd rather you stay much longer though. Imagine a fully cooked roast walking in your door, looking for a place to stay. Each time you take a bite, it grows back. And,” she added with a grin, “it enjoys being eaten.” After a burst of laughter, she said, “You can stay as long as you want. And longer.”
Canary felt a knot form in her stomach. “That doesn't sound healthy.”
The queen's laughter trailed off while she thought. “No, I'm sure there are no long-term side effects.” She looked at the drones for reassurance, but they only shrugged. “You'll be fine,” Libra assured with a smile. “We can stay in one-on-one relationships with others for decades without a problem. Your stay in the hive will be no different.”
Canary rose an eyebrow. “I'll be out of here as soon as I can—I need to find a way to save my friends.” Pausing, she asked, “Where is this, anyway?”
The queen waved away the question. “It's far enough away that you'd never make it back in your current state. Besides, the path is dangerous enough you should have an escort. Don't try to leave without one.” Her expression softened and she continued. “But you should go to your chamber to rest—you left your pod prematurely, but a good rest should finish healing your wing.”
Canary beamed, and a fresh vein of gold ran through the cave's green goo.
Libra gestured towards the door. “Echo will show you to your room. Welcome to the Hive, Canary Tiger!”