//------------------------------// // A Sudden Start // Story: Thirteen Reasons // by canonkiller //------------------------------// There wasn't even a lag time. Celestia's head hit the pillow, and when she opened her eyes, she was in Ponyville. She jumped at some noise behind her, before realizing it was just Membrane. "You okay, Cocoon?" "Yeah, fine." Celestia stared down at her hooves, following in Membrane's hoofprints. There wasn't a time jump, but Celestia felt... different. Her vision was a little bit blurry, and her body didn't feel like her own. The second was more comfortable, made more sense. The first was unnerving her. What if she had damaged the orb somehow? What if she was going to lose the Queen's message? The ground under her hooves rippled and transformed into a plush carpet. Celestia jumped backwards, hitting what seemed to be a leg, as the impact was followed by an angry cry. "Hey! That was my leg!" "Oh, sorry." Celestia stumbled around, looking up at an older pony. One she recognized quickly. "Whoa, Cocoon, how'd you get ahead of me so fast?" "What?" Another Magic Shimmer stepped out from behind the older pony. "Oh no." Membrane lunged forward, grabbing Celestia and galloping away. The Other-Shimmer followed. "That's my sister!" Celestia paled, squirming to see around Membrane's head. "Sky! Sky, help!" The Pegasus colt took off into the air, catching up quickly. With a resounding crack, he kicked the back of Membrane's head. She ran a few more meters, stumbled, and fell, plowing into the ground and losing her disguise in a flicker of green flame. Celestia was knocked away, vaguely noticing that she had hit the Other-Shimmer in the process. Sky charged up, snorting, and grabbed the Other-Shimmer. "Never take my sister again!" He double-barreled the fallen Changeling with his back hooves, grinding her into the ground. Celestia was half-aware of Venom and Feed landing on either side of her. "Wait!" She yelled after the fleeing Pegasus. "I'm... I'm Shimmer..." "Come on, Cocoon." Venom growled, casting poisonous glares at the stunned ponies around them. "Let's go home." Celestia found herself nodding, somewhat stunned. Feed gently hoisted Membrane onto wobbly hooves, eventually slinging her over his back and taking off. ----- "You may not have noticed, Princess, but everything you say, everything you do, is against your will. That's the nature of a memory. You can't change it." Celestia started, seeing the Changeling Queen open her eyes. She had almost vanished into the dull gray of the cell. "You can't change the past." She sighed. "But somepony may as well hold my burden once I'm gone." Her head jerked up, the orb quickly pushed to her side, under a wing. Light flickered in from the hallway, a lit torch. There was a clatter as a small plate was slid under the door. A few sprigs of celery, a bundle of grass, a canteen filled with water; all looking dead and limp, the prison fare. Chrysalis sighed, condescendingly kicking the platter against the wall. The canteen burst, making the meager meal look even worse. "Ponykind never really thought about Changelings, did they? They never really... considered them equal." She paused, dabbing some of the water on the ground with her hoof and running it through her mane. "So I guess your choice was the right one." She turned, looking into the orb again. "How many prized pupils have you had, Celestia? How many of them had to die for you to realize the Elements were your only hope?" ----- Celestia sat up, a cold sweat starting to form. She shivered. Nopony knew about that. It was secret. She brushed her mane. Nopony saw. She retrieved her Regalia from beside her bed. Nopony saw. She looked out the window, seeing that she seemed to be up earlier. Nopony saw. She turned to leave her chamber, pushing the door open with a hoof. Somepony saw... ----- "Sister, are thou alright?" Celestia rolled her eyes, scanning the room. "We're only among your guards." "Ah, yes. I'm practicing for the dignitaries coming later this week. Did you forget already?" "Eat your grass." Celestia commanded quickly, resorting to the tactic she had used when they were younger. Luna grinned and resumed her snack, tilting her head so her mane blocked the sunlight. "Griffon Prince by the name of Gruff, and his Princess Gwen. On the topic of border skirmishes." "Thank you." Celestia replied, downing a full cup of coffee in one go. "Are you feeling alright, sister?" "Fine." "You look like you had a horrendous sleep." Luna raised one eyebrow, leaning over the table. "Do you want me to take the day shift? I can lose a day's rest." "No, I'm fine." Luna leaned back, frowning. "Whatever you say... guards! I am departing to my chambers." "Good day, Princess Luna!" They replied in unison, flaring their wings and following her. Celestia waited until her sister was gone before grabbing what was left of her coffee and chugging it too. ----- The day passed in a caffeine-fueled blur. Celestia soon found herself back in the darkness of her bed, the coffee starting to wear off. She levitated the orb to the space in front of her, noticing how the small green flickers had dulled. With a sigh, she ran her hoof over the surface. "I made a mistake, Queen Chrysalis. I really did." ----- The word had spread like wildfire - there were creatures in Equestria that were taking the place of ponies. Defensive spells raced to priority in schools, unicorn detectives were hired, and thousands upon thousands of Changelings found themselves out of food. Starved carcasses lay amass in the country areas, more in the unsettled lands between cities. Cocoon was not among them. She had kept up her disguise surprisingly well, despite the guards scavenging the towns. She didn't know where the real Magic Shimmer had gone, and she didn't really care. Membrane, Feed, and Venom were long dead, she presumed. Possibly before they got back to the hive. If that happened, Shimmer's body would certainly be there with them. Celestia felt her foalish disguise fade away as she lay back on her bed. Tomorrow would be her entrance exam - she was the top of her class, probably because she was older than her teacher - and she might be able to get into a school for gifted unicorns in Canterlot. She still vaguely sensed the hive mind, the network of thoughts growing stretched and frayed as less and less Changelings lived. There had been a single day when all of that changed.