//------------------------------// // Crystals // Story: I Am a Pet Changeling // by Queen Sanguine Dreams //------------------------------// "Lieutenant Olive, any sign of movement from the hive entrance?" An 'away team' comprised of a few volunteer soldiers and eager scientists was on a slow approach to the quickly rising alien structures that had begun to form around Cheyenne Mountain's base entrance. Lieutenant Olive was volun-told to lead the mission while the senior officers and scientists monitored their progress via the team's helmet cameras. Colonel Bunker was becoming worried about the queens that she had been ordered to safeguard. Several hours had passed since their initial flight into what remained of the base and it was well past the time to investigate. The ground leading towards the cluster of alien structures, what Doctor Vahlen had dubbed 'The Hive', was coated in what appeared to be Dursine. The grassy ground would suddenly give way to this new material as if it belonged there like a buried bolder the size of a parking lot while it merged with the high rising structures that the drones swarmed around to create with expediency. The buildings spiraled upward with a fleshy and almost organic quality to them, despite their durability. Lieutenant Olive could see several larger and apparently armored changelings giving his group a suspicious glare. "There's quite a lot of movement. Warriors are camped out atop the structures and in what seems to be windows." Olive reported, his handheld radio scratching audibly with static. "That's strange..." Olive voiced quietly to himself, "There shouldn't be any interference this close to the radio tower." He looked behind himself towards the base and to the makeshift radio array that allowed temporary communications in the remote area. Using cell phones wasn't a secure method of communication, and Colonel Bunker was following standard procedure anyway. Olive clicked his radio on once more to continue his report. "Are you getting interference on your end? We might be having some kind of equipment malfunction, over." There was no immediate reply from the lead operations post, so Olive took the moment to check in with his team. "Muldaney. Anything?" A soldier to Olive's right shook his head. "I don't have anything that you don't, Lieutenant. There's not exactly an 'alien incursion unit' where they get trained for this sort of thing, is there?" He pointed with all of his fingers in a flat and knife-like movement towards the nearby changelings that had started to gather around them. "Think they'll attack us?" The drones that had spotted the group seemed not to be warriors. They were far smaller than their armored counterparts and their glowing eyes seemed more curious than wary. A brave changeling moved its way through the group of its hive-mates to stand directly opposite to Olive. Its head tilted sideways, what would normally have been in the place of an eyebrow raising with its carapace in curiosity. "What are you?" The drone chittered in a higher pitch. "Not minotaur?" A scientist quietly gasped joyfully at the mentioning of a mythological creature while Olive responded calmly. "We're humans, and you're on planet Earth. What's your name? My 'name' is Olive. At least now it is." He added with a quiet grumble. Lieutenant Olive was originally named Lieutenant Shepard, but thanks to circumstances beyond his control, he had been re-branded as a playful joke amongst the base personnel. "You are named 'Olive'?" A different drone asked eagerly. "Do you plant olives? Are you a farmer?" "It's more of an inside joke, really." Olive replied tactfully. "We do not have names, Olive." The first drone answered. "The queen must see us worthy of a name, and we would not overstep in asking for one. It is a great honor to be named!" "You must be very important to have a name, Human Olive." The second drone added. "Are you part of the royal family of your own hive?" "Well, I guess you could say I'm something like that. It's not entirely accurate, but close enough." Olive smiled before changing topics. "Have you heard from your queen in a while? She went into the base earlier and none of us have anything to go by, and we're getting worried." The demeanor of the drones gathered around changed rapidly. They looked amongst themselves with worry and anxiety before a few in the fringes of the group flew away towards their hive. The first changeling gathered their composure and shakily replied, "W-well, um, you tried, I guess?" "Hey bug," The soldier known as Muldaney interrupted, "You know of any other people that look like us around here? We have some missing persons that we'd sure love to not list as KIA. We heard you got some kinda hospital around here?" The drone was taken off guard by the soldier's questions but soon replied, "There were some not-minotaur we found crawling around outside, so we brought them to the building..." The drone turned around, their right hoof on the side of their face while they buzzed unintelligibly to them self. They seemed to be looking for a specific structure, and sure enough it soon pointed one out with its hoof. "That one! It's the one with the blue mist next to the queen's tribute." Olive followed the small changeling's hoof to a multi-storied structure in the distance next to a large replica of Queen Blue Sun standing very authoritatively in a plaza surrounded by watchful warrior drones. "I can take you there if you want. The queen said not to upset any of you, and I think it's considered rude to let 'guests' wander around lost..." The drone meekly added, looking up at Olive. "So, um. You want to go?" "Lead the way, buddy." The lieutenant replied while gesturing towards the building in the distance. The group readied itself and moved after the quickly traveling drone that had begun to weave its way through the mass of fellow changelings. After some uncomfortable chittering and fierce stares, the hive began to split in half and partially take to the skies in order to allow the team passage. "Kind of makes you feel special, doesn't it?" Muldaney quipped with a smirk. "Red carpet and everything soon, right?" "Just keep your rifle pointed to the floor, corporal." A nervous scientist whispered behind the two soldiers. "We still don't know what actions will provoke the hive into... self defense." "Come on, doc. Have you even paid attention to these bugs? They can't stand up against a water bottle. What makes you think they're any kind of threat to us?" Corporal Muldaney reasoned, taking his left hand from his rifle to point out a distracted changeling that was staring at the statue of their queen with an open mouth of awe. **** Inside Cheyenne Mountain "You know, I'm actually surprised the mountain hasn't collapsed on us fully by now." Blue Sun pulled her head from a stuck together clump of dirt and rock to witness Queen Catalyst attempting to brush debris from her orange and red mane. "Were the pretty rocks worth the near death experience?" She coughed. The 'rainbow rocks' as they had been dubbed were collected in a pile next to the black and orange queen, her tail draped over half of them as Catalyst sat down to fiddle with her mane even more. She was having difficulty using her hooves as a brush for reasons that seemed to escape her. "Definitely worth it!" she replied with frustration. "They even give a painful jolt of magic whenever you touch them. I should place them all around my sleeping chambers to wake up in the morning! Maybe I could use them to ward off curious dragons!" She added with a pained buzzing as a clump resisted her efforts to become untangled. Using her wings to create a burst of air, Blue both maneuvered her legs free of rubble and blasted a cloud of dust over the both of them. Queen Catalyst seemed even more annoyed by the slowly settling particulate and shoved over a rock with her hind leg, sending it clattering across the broken concrete flooring. Reaching out with a hoof, Blue gingerly tapped the rainbow colored glowing rock and jerked away. A loud crackle discharged from the rock and scorched what remained of the structure around them with a short screech of magical energy. Their manes standing on end and in every direction, the two shared a look of discovery before Blue tapped the rock once more with a gleeful expression. "Would you stop tapping the rocks!?" Catalyst protested, "Once was enough!" Blue paused for a moment, her hoof hovering over the rock. "Did you feel that?" She asked with wonder. Catalyst's eyes narrowed as she struggled with a clump in her mane. "Feel what?" Blue's hoof drifted closer to the rock, just far enough away to not make contact. "From the rock, when it does its zapping thing." Blue explained. "Watch." Another tap, and a small spark zapped off of the rock and arced across Blue's hoof. She smiled widely at Catalyst and tapped the rock once more. Catalyst was not amused, and her mane was in an even greater state of disarray. "What are you talking about, Blue Sun?" "These rocks have love in them!" Blue explained excitedly, tapping the rock again. "Whenever I tap them, I get a burst of energy. They're like batteries!" Now Catalyst was confused. "Batteries?" she asked with a raised brow. "You're speaking nonsense, and I also don't feel any love from those rocks. Maybe the collapse took what was left of your mind along with it." A pile of rubble shifted in the corner of the room, drawing the attention of the two queens. A white hoof poked out from the top of a mound, and was accompanied by muffled chittering and strained buzzing. "The defective." Catalyst hissed, hopping to her hooves and charging her horn. "It's awake." "Augh..." The defective groaned, "Was I struck by lightning or a fireball?" Tapping itself on the head a few times and shaking itself free of dust, the drone stood atop a small chunk of half melted concrete intermixed with charred glass and twisted pipes. "It felt like it was both!" "Are you alright?" Blue Sun asked, carefully approaching her drone with concern. "You can stand, so that's good." She glanced at Catalyst with annoyance, "All things considered." "My Queen!" The white drone chirped with glee, "How may I serve the hive?" "Not killing all of them with hunger would be an excellent start!" Catalyst called from further away, as she had been inching towards what remained of the room's doorway since the drone had awoken. "I would never endanger the hive!" The drone barked back angrily. "I would give my life for it!" Blue Sun softly rested her hoof on the drone's back, gaining its attention. With a soft melodically buzzing voice Blue tried to ease the drone's worries. "I am glad that you are alright, but we must leave this mountain before it shifts again. You are not in trouble, and you don't need to worry about the hive's reaction to you when we leave. I will ensure your safety." She added with a pleasant smile, (For a sharp toothed and fanged changeling queen). "Heartwarming." Catalyst deadpanned. "Let's leave before the roof collapses." "Here," Blue Sun quietly mentioned, "Take these gems into your care. I think they will be useful later." With the defective drone being given its first task, its big blue and purple eyes lit up with wonder and duty, returning a smile to its queen and taking the sparkling gems along with it in its hooves where the holes were. They turned out to make perfect holding spots for them, and Blue Sun approved of the ingenuity. With Catalyst leading the way from the inner workings of the facility in order to get away from the defective, their time left in Cheyenne mountain would end quickly. Catalyst was carving a path straight out of the mountain with her magic. **** 'Away Team' Entering Alien Hospital What counted for doorways in a changeling building was something the away team had never seen in any science fiction movie. The drone in front had lead them to the flat surface of a tall building near the central plaza of their makeshift town, and right before the scientists and soldiers had begun to question the alien's sense of direction, a tear in the building opened itself in front of their eyes. A cool mist began flooding from the opening, causing the team's skin to bristle on contact. It seeped straight through their uniforms and protective equipment, greatly worrying the science team that had come along. "What's the point of a sealed suit if alien fog can just float right on through it!" One scientist remarked, ripping off his gloves and pulling his head free from the sweaty helmet with a suctioned pop. "Nothing makes any sense with these creatures, I tell you." "Keep your glasses on, Doc." Muldaney quipped while reaffirming the grip on his rifle, "I don't want any of this to go Xenomorph on us, so if I see an egg, I'm bookin' it." "That isn't how the changelings work." Lieutenant Olive calmly replied, taking the first step through the 'doorway' onto a moist, almost mosslike floor. "It's more... unexpected." he added cryptically. "Oh, you would know." Muldaney muttered under his breath, following after the Lieutenant and uneasily testing the floor beneath him before fully committing his weight. "I'm Olive, all the aliens love me, I sprayed their queen with a fire extinguisher, nyah nya nyah." As the rest of the away team made their way into the structure, they spread out with awe and caution. The fog that had drifted out from the doorway had been originating from the very top of the building. Over some kind of organic and sturdy railing sat an orb-like blob of mass that continuously pulsed out the fog, almost like breathing. There were no stairs, and unsurprisingly there weren't elevators either. The drones within the 'hospital' simply walked across the ceiling or up to the next floor. Some even flew in a dash from room to room, finding other patients to tend to. What drew the eye of the Lieutenant was a certain human in the corner. "Jack? Is that you?" The man in question was laid on his back in what seemed to be a reclining hospital bed made of the same mossy-resin of the floor. Two changelings quietly buzzed near him working tirelessly on something that Olive couldn't make out. Bringing Muldaney along with him and informing the rest of the soldiers and scientists to have a look around, the Lieutenant made his way towards the missing in action operative. "No, not like that, just- give me that part!" Jack grumbled as the two got into earshot. A changeling buzzed further back to hover in the air next to Jack, and it was revealed that the two changelings had been attempting work on something approaching a wicker sun hat. "There, see? You make the brim of the hat wider so it catches more sun and keeps it off of your head." "Jack?" Olive asked uncertainly. "Are you alright?" "You finally made it!" Jack O'Neill rejoiced. "I've been stuck in this... wonderful hospital ever since the base went to hell." He added with careful sarcasm. "Take a look at my arm." He asked abruptly, pointing to his left arm with a sly smile. "See anything out of the ordinary?" The arm in question was slightly tanned as was the rest of his body, for some reason missing a shirt and most of his clothing. What stood in its place was some kind of thin fabric with a blue-ish purple shine almost like plastic. On closer inspection, Olive noticed that his arm was lacking any hairs on it whatsoever. "They shaved it?" Olive guessed. "Not even close, but kind of close." Jack replied smugly. "This arm was a complete wreck. Toasted down to the bone with bits of muscle looking like steak before these gracious little bugs decided to drag my unconscious body to their hospital thing and give me a once over." "We did not drag you." A drone pointed out with a raised hoof. "You were flown." O'neill waved a dismissive right hand to the hovering drone. "Semantics. You still saved my arm and probably my life." Olive was caught offguard by this revelation and took a moment to collect his thoughts. Looking around the room, he noticed that the drones had apparently done their best to mimic a normal human hospital bed, probably taking guesses based on Jack's descriptions and doing their best with the resources available. The lieutenant spotted a few 'salvaged' metal boxes fused into the wall nearby with clear logos of the base's operational number on the side, but there were other far more important things that needed to be addressed first. "You seem to be in a good mood, Jack." Olive noted. "You feeling alright?" A drone butted in before O'neill could answer. "The patient is probably feeling a little loopy from all the... fun things we put in the air. They should wear off when he leaves, but if you're uninjured, they shouldn't have any effect." Olive raised an eyebrow at that, and Muldaney arrived almost unheard from the softness of the mossy floor. "Lieutenant, you're gonna want to see this." Giving the changelings a questioning look and getting pleasant waves of alien hooves in return, Olive followed Muldaney to the center of the hospital where the group of scientists had gathered around. Making his way through the crowd, he witnessed a large glowing pool of thick liquid in the floor with a round barrier covering the edges. The liquid moved as if something was causing waves within it and the scientists nearby were murmuring theories and sharing baffled head shakes at what they were looking at. "Bit of a trip, ain't it?" Muldaney commented, gesturing to the moving pool of liquid. "Blue and purple, just like everything else in this freakin' hive." "Has anyone figured out what it's for?" Olive questioned, leaning down to try and look through the almost slimy looking liquid. "Or why it's just in the middle of the room?" "We could try asking a changeling, Lieutenant." A scientist suggested. "They haven't given us trouble thus far, despite our worries." With a shrug, Olive attempted to wave over a changeling to ask it just that. Eventually, and after earning a few awkward hoof waves in return, one changeling finally understood what the Lieutenant was trying to do and flew down to greet them. "Hello! How may I help you, friends of the Queen?" The drone pleasantly chittered, its eyes wide and searching. "Hey, what's this goop do?" Muldaney asked bluntly with a thumb jabbing over his shoulder towards the pool in the center. Looking to Muldaney, and then to the pool, the changeling ceased flight and landed softly on the moss-like ground of the hospital. Apologising for bumping into scientists and armed soldiers, the alien made its way to the edge of the pool and dipped a chitinous hoof into it, scooping out the material as it jiggled itself into place. "It fixes stuff." The drone replied equally bluntly. "We put it on hurt drones, and the drones get better." It added, pointing to Jack O'Neill in the corner who was still making finishing touches on his sun hat. "We didn't know what it would do to you... not-minotaur things, but we figured it was better than doing nothing. Apparently it works almost as well on you as it does us." "Almost?" A scientist asked while scribbling down notes. "What do you mean by that?" The drone frowned, making its fangs less pronounced for a moment as its face contorted. "It takes more goop to fix you. More goop means more love needed to make the goop, so... we need to improvise. Your friend over there was disheartened for some reason, and we did what we could to cheer him up. In return, we gained some measure of affection, and were able to heal his wounds. We also topped off our supply from the excess, which is very beneficial for the hive!" The drone added with some enthusiasm and pride. "You getting all of this?" Olive asked, tapping the side of his helmet-cam. "Affirmative, Lieutenant Olive." Colonel Bunker chimed in. "We're getting new reports of seismic activity out here. Something is happening in the mountain again. Is that building secure? Things are shaking all over here." The hospital seemed grounded, and had the Colonel not mentioned the commotion outside, Olive would have been completely oblivious. "Not a single rumble here, Colonel." "Maybe we should make bunkers out of whatever this stuff is." Muldaney added, now tapping the ground with a more appreciative intent. "Doesn't care about anything, does it?" "Stay inside of that building until you hear an all clear. Out." The Colonel ordered. ***** The Crystal Empire Crystal Throne Room Equiss A wall of guards lined the far side of the room in a complete stupor. Bits of ceiling chipped off and clacked to the ground beneath it, sometimes glancing off of a guard's helm. Paper fluttered across the room in a complete mess before settling down, and a very frazzled looking purple alicorn stood with widely spaced hooves and even wider eyes at the circular scorch mark that dominated the center of the room. Galloping hooves announced the approach of Prince Shining Armor and Princess Cadance, followed by an upset Queen Sanguine. The three moved past the stunned guards while taking in the scene before them. Windows had been shattered, glass had melted where it lay, and a gust of wind carried bits of cracked crystal and dust around the room. The thrones themselves had been split in two with dark purple crystals prying them apart. Tapestries had been shredded, bits of colorful cloth and the empire's flag intermixed in the scene of destruction and the room was silent. Twilight tried to blink away her confusion and turned to the waiting assembly of ponies behind her. "So... um..." She announced nervously. "It turns out I did a whole lot more than I intended with that book of Sombra's." Shining Armor and Cadence were equally confused, and Sanguine was annoyed. "What do you mean, Twilight?" Shining asked. "Well..." Twilight nervously trailed, "It turns out it wasn't just a book written by Sombra, it was one of his phylacteries. He's a whole lot more powerful than anypony knew, I suppose!" "Phylacteries?" Cadence asked. "I could swear I've heard of them before." Twilight nodded, taking swift steps away from the still smoking crater in the center of the room. "They're really bad news, especially with Sombra involved." "Just what exactly happened in this room?" Queen Sanguine asked while bumping a guard aside. "It looks like somepony exploded in here." "He may have heard about a certain baby alicorn?" Twilight cringed. "I swore he was just a ghost, honestly! I mean, who could've known that the real King Sombra would just re-appear some day because somepony opened a book!? It wasn't my fault that he immediately went and opened a portal to who knows where in search of some magical gems and-" "Wait, he knew about Flurry Heart?" Shining Armor nervously, his eyes wide with fear. "Did he get her? Where is she?" Twilight placed a hoof on her brothers side. "Flurry Heart is fine, Shiny. Sombra got sidetracked the second he found something was missing in this room. I guess he figured a baby alicorn would be next to the throne room because he always kept his most important things in here, like the Crystal Heart when he was still in power." "What kind of gems?" Cadence asked, still wanting to check on her daughter but also interested in what Twilight had to say. "I told him that the Crystal Heart had been shattered, and... then accidently about Flurry Heart, but when he got here, he went crazy. Magic flew everywhere and I tried to stop him, but then he just tore open a hole in the fabric of reality and leaped through! All I saw was a bunch of snow on the other side and some... mintoaur that didn't look like minotaur. They were thinner, they had clothing on and they didn't have horns either. Some loud bangs happened that hurt my ears, and the next thing I knew was this giant hole in the floor." Twilight was shaken at this point, taking deeper breaths to offset the realizations that had just reached her mind during her explanation of her story. "If he's out there somewhere, hurting other ponies because of something I did whether I meant to or not, I have to do something to stop him." "And how do you suppose you'll do that, Princess of Friendship?" Sanguine sneered. "Follow the example of a reborn king and 'tear open reality' like he did?" Twilight's horn lit with a powerful lavender glow. "Well..." She calmly replied, using her wings to distance herself from the group. "Somepony has to do it, and Celestia taught me a thing or two about dark magic. I'm sure I can copy his spell and--" "Twilight, hold on a minute." Cadence interrupted in an almost scolding tone. "What did I tell you about magic?" Sparkle was confused, her horn ceasing its glow as she drifted to the ground. "Huh?" "When you were a little filly, you would always try to use magic to solve every problem you had, without thinking. You're distressed, you're upset and you're worried. You're not thinking clearly right now, and I don't want you to get hurt because of it." Cadence explained, walking toward Twilight. "You have friends to help you, and the Princess of Friendship shouldn't have to do anything alone, should she?" Cadence added with a smile. "Oh please, I'm all for affection and love but this is making me sick." Sanguine gagged. "Don't worry, I didn't mean you." Cadence sassed at the grumpy queen. "I meant Twilight's friends in Ponyville and the powerful magic users she already knows. Princess Celestia and Princess Luna. They've been around longer than anypony, so they might know the right way to follow Sombra to where ever he's gone." Twilight took a deep breath and slowly exhaled the stress from her body. "You're right. I'll see what I can do. In the mean time, please don't open any other books in the library? I don't want another Sombra to hunt down on top of this one. Or worse." "You got it, sis." Shining Armor smiled, quickly adding a light hearted jab. "Next time though, try not to have the evil not-dead king blow up our living room?"