"So, like this?" Ember asked, scratching away at a piece of paper. She put her pencil down, holding up the page. Crudely written on the page was the sentence, 'My name is Ember.'
Floyd smiled and nodded. "Yeah, I think you're getting the hang of it," he praised, tapping his own pencil against the sentence. "Once we get to a certain point, we'll work on improving how you form the letters. For now though, let's work on your reading." He picked up a flashcard he had made during dinner, displaying a sentence for her.
Ember leaned in, squinting at the card. "M-my sales er bwue..." she rattled off, frowning at her terrible comprehension.
Floyd forced his smile to stay on, doing his best to channel Sunburst's methods. "You were close there. Let's try that again slowly," he said, pointing at the word 'scales' on the page, the tip of his pencil resting on the 'C'. "Sound out this word."
Ember groaned, looking at the letter. "I feel like a hatchling..." she grumbled, sorting through the various sounds that Floyd had gone over with her.
Floyd chuckled, his smile becoming less forced, "Trust me, I feel the same way with learning how to read and write in Equish. Just remember that this is for the job and push through." He tapped the 'C' again, "Now, how do you sound this out?"
Ember took a deep breath, trying to ignore how humiliating it felt. She stared at the page for a few moments, mouthing all the sounds she knew. "S-sc-scales?" she finally got out, giving Floyd an unsure look.
"You got it," Floyd nodded, giving her a thumbs up.
She sighed in relief, a small smile on her face as she returned the gesture. "Thanks, I'm not used to learning like this." She rubbed her eyes with two of her claws, "Really wish there was a faster way to do this, though."
Floyd set the cards down and said, "Yeah, learning extra languages is pretty hard. I was lucky, I grew up speaking two. Never got the hang of Spanish though."
"So you speak a language other than this one?" Ember questioned, setting her pencil down in front of her. "Do you mind if I hear some of it?"
"Of course," Floyd sat back, putting his hands behind his head. "You have very nice eyes," he said in the People's language.
Ember's eyes widened, "Wow, that sounds a lot like a Buffalo chant I heard one year during the migrations."
"Oh yeah? That's pretty interesting."Floyd snickered at Ember's confusion. "It's a pretty hard language to learn, if you didn't grow up speaking it."
Ember nodded in understanding. "Sounds like that language is part of your heritage," she observed.
"Grandma didn't let me forget about the tribe's history," Floyd explained, sitting up. "My cousin Jason and I used to get into so much trouble at the reservation. We burned down a barn making moonshine, once."
Ember chuckled, a smile spreading across her face, "I used to get in trouble a lot too. My dad tried to keep a tight grip on me, so of course I'd sneak away from him whenever I could. One time I got into a fight with a diamond dog over some gems." She flashed a grin and let smoke rise out of her mouth, "One fireball later, I won." She then grimaced a bit, adding, "Of course, Dad kept a literal tight grip on me for a month after that."
Floyd nodded in interest, "You know, there's a pretty famous album back on Earth called Diamond Dogs."
Ember tilted her head, "Do you have Diamond Dogs on your planet, too?"
"No, it's just the title," Floyd explained. "I'm not certain how they came up with the name of the title song of the album, but on Earth we have a saying that 'diamonds are a girl's best friend' and another that 'dogs are man's best friend,' so that could have something to do with it."
Ember nodded, her mouth forming a quick 'o'. "Dragons don't really do the whole music thing. I've faintly heard some during migrations but never an entire performance." She huffed and rolled her eyes, "I asked my dad about it and he said music is for soft and weak ponies."
Floyd snorted, shaking his head, "Your dad's never heard heavy metal."
"Oh, I'm sure he'd find some way to mock that too," Ember replied, waving her claw around. "That scale-head is more hard-headed than a mountain."
Floyd shook his head, picking up the flashcard again, "Alright, you ready for another round?"
Ember nodded and studied the card for a few moments. "My scales," she paused, looking at each letter of the next word and working out how to fit them together, "a-are," she stopped on the next word, frowning as she ran through the previous lessons, "b-bw-blue?"
"You got it right at the end," Floyd smiled. "One more time."
Ember nodded and looked at the card again. "My scales are blue," she said, a hint of pride in her eyes.
"Excellent," Floyd grinned, putting the card down. He had never pegged himself as a teacher, but, he couldn't help feel a bit prideful at Ember's progress. That, or, she was just that good of a student.
Ember's smile matched his and her tail moved to drape across her lap. "Thanks for all your help," she said, "I never would've made this kind of progress on my own."
Floyd waved off her gratitude, "Nah, don't worry about it. You're pretty cool, and I need more people to talk to than the other guys in my unit."
Ember nodded and stretched her wings out for a moment before readjusting them on her back. "I get that. Colonel McDowell is kinda hard to talk to. He's a good leader and everything, just distant. The only one in my squad I've really had a decent conversation with is the cultural officer."
"Who's doing that job?"
"A zebra named Anansi," she told him. "The rhyming takes some getting used to, but he's a chill person."
"Yeah, I've gotta ask one of them why they do that." Floyd leaned back and put his hands behind his head. "But I don't want to sound like a jackass. You know, the whole cultural disconnect."
"Uh, why would you be worried about sounding like a donkey?" She tilted her head at him.
Floyd stared at her for a moment. "It's an expression, Ember. Sorta means being a..." He mulled it over, trying to articulate the point. "An obnoxious jerk."
Ember's mouth formed into a small 'o'. "I don't think he'd mind if you asked about it," she assured him. "He seemed more than happy to answer all my questions about his culture. Just expect to answer his in return." Laying down on her side, Ember rested her head on one clawed hand. "He wouldn't stop asking me about dragon stuff."
"Can't say I blame him," Floyd said, reaching down to grab some more of his teaching materials. "There are stories of dragons all across Earth. I've been sorta curious how they stack up to the real thing."
Ember casually blew a few smoke rings. "Alright, I'll tell you a few things," she finally said. She sat up, cracking her neck before continuing, "If you can beat me in something."
Floyd put his hands down and sat up straight. "Oh yeah, what's that?" He quirked an eyebrow at her.
Shrugging, Ember narrowed her eyes, "I dunno, Stick Boy. Think you got it in you to beat a dragon in anything? I'll even let you pick any weird human thing you're good at."
Floyd chuckled and grinned, "Okay, I'll pick." He held up his pencil. "Whoever can lift this off the floor without physically touching it, wins." Placing it down, Floyd locked eyes with Ember. "You first."
Ember gritted her teeth, staring at the pencil. "I'd be mad, but I knew you'd stack the challenge in your favor," she huffed. Her eyes then lit up and she unfurled her wings. She flapped them as hard as she could, angling them towards the pencil. The pencil rolled across the room while several papers went flying and scattered everywhere.
Floyd blinked, brushing the hair out of his face. "Well, you moved the pencil. Didn't pick it up though."
"Ugh, I was so sure that would work," Ember huffed, folding her wings against her back again. "I guess it's your turn." She sat down and turned her head, waiting for him to announce his victory.
Floyd held his hand out towards the pencil and tapped into his magic. He then pictured the pencil rising off the ground as a grey glow covered his hands. The glow encompassed the pencil, slowly lifting it off the ground.
"Looks like I win," Floyd announced, bringing the pencil towards his hand.
Ember crossed her arms, snorting, "I should have expected that."
"Let that be a lesson to you," Floyd grinned and pointed at her with the pencil. "Never let me pick the challenge."
"Alright, alright, I get it," she rolled her eyes. "We gonna do more studying, or what?"
Floyd smirked and clicked his tongue at her. "Ah, ah, ah, you can't worm your way out of our agreement," he wagged a finger. "You owe me some dragon questions."
"Fine," Ember gestured with a claw, "give me your questions, already."
Floyd crossed his arms over his chest and closed his eyes. "Hmm, there are stories of dragons hoarding giant piles of treasure back home. Is that something dragons do here, and if so, why?"
Ember shrugged, "Hoarding is just something dragons do. It's why my dad okayed any dragon being involved with this kinda stuff; who knows what valuables we'll find out here."
Floyd nodded. "Guess that makes sense. You said that dragons don't do music, does that extend to other art forms as well?"
"Art?" Ember asked, tilting her head quizzically.
Floyd chuckled weakly, running a hand through his hair. "That answers that question," he muttered. "Art is a way for people to express themselves creatively. Things like drawing, writing and making movies are just a few examples," he explained.
"Those all sound kinda lame."
Floyd chuckled and flashed her a bright smile. "That's because you've never seen what us humans can do with those. I'll have to show you the Alien series at some point."
"Right," Ember nodded, unimpressed.
Floyd was about to respond before being struck by a sudden thought. He started to snicker. "I bet you'd love art if you gave it a chance. I can totally picture you as an art student."
"Whatever." Rolling her eyes, Ember sat up. "Can we get back to the studying thing already?"
"Sounds good to me," Floyd gathered up the scattered papers and returned to his seat. "Now, I want you to write out the sentence you just read."
Ember groaned, taking the pencil from him. "This is gonna suck..." She picked up her discarded piece of paper, taking the pencil to it. Glancing at the flashcard, she did her best to copy it. After a few attempts and desperate motions with the eraser, she felt confident that she had completed the sentence and showed it to Floyd.
Floyd leaned over, scrutinizing the sentence, "You definitely got it. Your penmanship leaves something to be desired though."
Ember sighed in relief, leaning back in her seat. "As long as the people who read the mission reports understand it, I don't care how it looks."
"Then you've never been to public school," Floyd joked. "Alright, I think we've taxed your brain enough for today."
Ember nodded and stretched her arms and tail, "Yeah, I'm starting to get tired." She looked at him and gave him a smile, "Thanks for all the help."
He waved her off again, "Eh, it's not a big deal. What's one more set of lessons on top of what I'm already doing?"
Ember stood up, flexing her wings, "You wanna do something else? Bet I could beat you at arm wrestling."
Floyd chuckled and stood up. "Sure, why not? I'll let you make up for the pencil challenge I pulled on you," he said, shooting her a playful grin and flexing his arm. "Though I don't know if you can beat me. I've been jacked up by Ancient tech."
"Ha!" Ember responded with a toothy grin. "You haven't ever arm wrestled a dragon before!"
"And you've never arm wrestled a magic man before," he shot back. He held his arm out towards the door. "Now, why don't you pick where we do this?"
"Gladly," She walked past him, only to collide with Bon Bon, who was just walking in. "Hey!" Ember huffed, stepping back. "Watch where you're going!"
Bon Bon fought to keep a frown off her face as she stepped into the bunkhouse. "Sorry, I wasn't expecting anyone to be in the doorway." Closing the door behind her, she eyed both of them carefully.
"Hey, Bon Bon," Floyd greeted, hoping to defuse the situation. "Is Ly right behind you?"
Bon Bon shook her head, "No, Lyra is talking with one of the zebras." She took a moment to take off her vest, tossing it on her bed. "Floyd, is there something we need to know?"
Floyd quirked a brow at her, "Huh, what are you talking about? I already told you guys I was helping Ember out with doing her eventual mission reports."
Bon Bon shook her head, "Floyd, humans have been giving me weird looks all day. Not only that, I've caught them doing 'shady' things all around the camp." Trotting up to him, she gave him a hard look, "I count you as a friend, Floyd. What's going on?"
Floyd scrunched his face up in thought. "Actually, I've noticed something weird too," he said, recalling the first day on the gun range. "Higgs was talking to two guys, talking about some plan. Higgs said it was a bad idea, specifically because he said that you'd sniff it out instantly. Whatever's going on, I think it only involves the senior staff here."
Bon Bon backed off a bit, glancing at Ember. "What about you? Notice anything weird going on?"
Ember relaxed slightly, shifting her weight and crossing her arms over her chest. "I've noticed that my squad leader has been pretty distant," she said. "I haven't really seen any of the looks you're talking about, though."
Bon Bon rubbed her chin. "Something is definitely going on here," she mused.
Floyd nodded, "I'll keep my eyes peeled and see if I can overhear anything else; I think the senior staff here are gonna be cautious around you."
"Yeah, I noticed." Bon Bon walked to the door, looking back at him, "I just hope it's nothing."
Ember watched her leave and quirked a brow. "So, think what she's talking about is actually nothing?"
Floyd sighed, running his hand through his hair. "I trust the general. I mean, a guy like Doctor Jackson wouldn't be friends with her if he knew she was just some military stereotype," he reasoned.
"Then I guess this is just a wait and see kind of thing," Ember shrugged and turned back towards the door. "I'll tell you and the earth pony if I spot anything."
"Thanks, Ember," Floyd gave her a thumbs up. "Same time tomorrow?"
Ember returned the gesture and chuckled, "Unless I magically learn how to read and write, yeah, same time."
Floyd watched her go, finding himself alone. Sighing, Floyd laid back on his bed, closing his eyes.
Twilight could barely contain her excitement as she sat in the back of what she had been told was called a Jumper. She was receiving some odd looks from the other chosen researchers as she vibrated in her seat. She closed her eyes and recalled the letter from Princess Celestia informing her of the chance to work on human technology. She couldn't respond to it fast enough.
"Here we are," the pilot spoke, landing the Jumper. A few moments later, the back of the Jumper opened up, forming a ramp. "Watch your step on the way out."
Twilight jumped out of her seat and rushed down the ramp. She blinked, finding herself standing at the base of a cliff. Built into it was a metal structure, a pair of doors marked with the royal seal getting her attention. A few diamond dogs lingered around, some talking animatedly with what appeared to be the building's staff.
She turned back to the pilot, confusion evident on her face. "I thought we'd be doing our research in Shangri-La," her muzzle scrunched up, thinking back on Celestia's letter. The location of the research had only been mentioned as a place agreed on by both parties.
The pilot shrugged his shoulders, "I only go where they tell me."
Twilight nodded and turned back to face the building. "Oh well, I was given a job and I'll do it!" A bright smile spread across her face as she trotted towards the diamond dogs and researchers. "Um, hello!" she called out, getting the attention of one of the more important-looking ponies.
"Ah, Miss Sparkle," the older mare said, turning to face Twilight, "glad to see you could make it." She flashed Twilight a smile. "I must say, your last published paper on magic theory was top-notch."
"Ah, well," Twilight blushed, rubbing her neck. "Thank you. My work isn't very big in Ponyville."
The other mare tittered, a knowing smile on her face. "Believe me, it's not just there. Ponies that aren't in the scientific community tend to ignore our work while reaping the benefits of it." She leaned in and whispered into Twilight's ear, "Just like with my steam engine."
"Oh! That was you?!" Twilight's eyes widened and she looked at the mare with an awestruck look. "I had no idea you'd be on this project!"
"Yes, allow me to introduce myself," the mare extended her hoof out, "Doctor Smoke Puff, at your service. As for my presence here, how could I say no to something that makes my previous work look like a foal's science fair project by comparison?"
"It's a pleasure to meet you, doctor," Twilight raised her hoof, tapping it against Smoke Puff's. She glanced behind the older mare. "Do you know what this place is? The princess was rather vague in her letter."
"This is a unique research center," Smoke answered. "It started out as a geological station to study rock layers and measure seismic activities. It was funded and overseen by the princess herself, and the Diamond Dog pack you see here," she indicated the Diamond Dogs that were talking with the researchers, "helped with the construction. Nowadays, this base is used for multiple fields of study, including engineering. The dogs can be a little gruff, but they're good neighbors. They help with some of our research, and we tell them the best spots to dig for gems."
Twilight smiled at that, "I think I'm going to like it here."
Smoke glanced over Twilight's shoulder, seeing a few other ponies disembarking the jumper. "Ah well, why don't we gather the others and get you all settled in?"
Twilight nodded and walked over with Smoke to the other ponies assigned to the project. After a few moments they were all together and walking towards the door to the building. Smoke pushed the doors open, revealing a spacious front lobby: fluorescent lights hung from the ceiling, giving off a low buzz; a few security guards approached the assembled researchers and checked their paperwork. Unlike the royal guards of Canterlot, these ponies didn't have ornate gold armor and instead wore a blue uniform on their upper half designating them as security. They also wore belts that contained pepper spray and a baton. Twilight felt a little nervous as she handed hers over despite knowing she had double and triple checked her papers before the trip.
"Alright, they're clear," the security chief nodded, passing Twilight her papers back.
She let out a sigh of relief as she took her papers and stepped forward to allow the next pony to be checked.
Smoke gave her a sympathetic smile, "I know security can be a little scary, but, given what we have, the princess doesn't want to take chances."
Twilight returned her smile. "It's nothing I can't manage. I'd rather deal with them than any potential thieves or any other actual threat to our research," she admitted.
Once everyone was cleared, Smoke led them deeper into the facility, "We've had to do a lot of expansion since humans arrived. The princess plans to make this our primary xeno-research facility."
The researchers nodded, looking into a few of the labs to see humans working alongside ponies. Their faces lit up when they saw equipment that had obviously been brought in by the human scientists.
"The princess doesn't like to rush our projects, but we only have a few months with the generator," Smoke explained. "Shangri-La could only spare the one generator, and the charter of our alliance states that all parties involved will share whatever knowledge we obtain. So, in the meantime, we'll occasionally get visitors from other countries."
"So we'll have to crowd around the one generator we have," a unicorn stallion in the back concluded. "Hope nopony's claustrophobic here."
Twilight was about to ask a question when she spotted one of Elmis's changelings entering a lab. Pushing down her negative emotions, she turned to Smoke, who gave her an understanding smile.
"Forgive me, I should have said something sooner. Queen Elmis agreed to station a few of her drones here. I promise you they won't shift into anyone you know, they're here to learn just like us, and to safeguard against infiltration by Hallan changelings."
Twilight took a deep breath through her nostrils and exhaled out of her mouth. She pushed away her knee-jerk reaction and called upon all the friendship lessons she had learned through her time in Ponyville. "It's okay, Doctor," she said, "these changelings aren't the ones who attacked us. They're allies of Equestria just like the humans are." She turned back to the other researchers and flashed them a bright, somewhat forceful, smile. "Isn't that right, everypony?"
The collective group nodded, though a few did so a little awkwardly.
Smoke cleared her throat, "Just as a warning, the changelings are a little different from ponies. If you're talking to one and they seem to have zoned out, that just means they're talking to each other through their hivemind. They're still listening, so, please don't think they're being rude. They also don't exactly have names in the traditional sense." Smoke pointed at a nearby drone and indicated a name tag on their chest with a number on it. "For our sake, they've agreed to wear name tags and differentiate themselves by number."
The stallion from before spoke up, "Why don't they use names?"
"Ah," Smoke smiled, "well, changelings recognize each other through each individual's mental imprint and their emotional signature. Things are less verbal for them than they are for us." The stallion from before moved as though he was about to speak again before realization dawned on Smoke's face. "Ah, now the kings and queens of hives are a little different. They take names to better interact between hives. Each queen is the mother of her hive, and she acts as the mouthpiece for the collective whole. And as for the king, once he reaches maturity he sets out to find a recently matured queen from another hive to start an entirely new hive. The new hive will not recognize his mental imprint, so a name is a necessity to help give him an identity to them."
She stopped at the beginning of a hallway. "These are our quarters. They're a little bare, but you're free to decorate them as you'd like."
Smoke led them into the hallway and steered them towards the vacant rooms. Once everyone had picked out their rooms for their stay, Smoke led them back towards the labs. She led them down another hall and stopped in front of a door marked Engineering.
"And here is the lab where we'll be working on the generator," her face lit up, "I've gotten a peek at the notes on it and it is absolutely fascinating!"
Twilight shared Smoke's smile, "I can't wait to get started!"
"We can begin today," Smoke assured the younger unicorn, opening the door to the lab, "but first, we should have a brief word from the human head of this project." She waved her hoof over to a central table where the generator rested with a labcoat-wearing human checking on it.
Twilight drank in every last detail she could about the device. For a moment, she was confused by the simplicity of the outer structure. How could something as simple as a small metal box with a pad on top be the key to the human's energy sources?
The human looked up, giving them a toothy smile. "Ah, Smoke, are these our new researchers?" she asked.
Smoke nodded, and stepped to her side, "That's correct, doctor. These are the best and brightest minds that Equestria has to offer."
The human nodded and looked between the assembled ponies. "Then allow me to formally welcome you to the first official joint project of the Equestria-Shangri-La alliance." She put a hand to her chest, "My name is Doctor Jenna Freeman and I'll be the overseer of this project. And this," she waved her hand over to the box on the table, "is the Mark V Naquadah Generator. This is a prime example of the leaps and bounds that can be made thanks to gate travel. We developed the Mark I with the help of people from a planet called Orban, and we've been improving on our design ever since."
"It doesn't look like much," another mare spoke, pointing at the generator.
Dr. Freeman chuckled and tapped her hand against the side of the box, "We've put function over form with this incarnation of the generator. In fact, this design more closely resembles the Orbanian generator design than our earlier models. If you'd like, I can demonstrate its capabilities." She stepped over to a table on the other side of the lab and grabbed electronic measuring equipment and a bundle of cables meant to attach to the generator. She quickly put everything into place and turned the generator on. She then displayed the screen of the measuring equipment towards the ponies.
Twilight leaned in close, examining the screen.
"To put this number in perspective," Dr. Freeman chirped, tapping on the measuring equipment to make the displayed numbers larger, "one of these is almost enough to power Shangri-La, save for the city's shields."
"This can power that whole city?" the mare from before gaped. "How do you keep that much power inside a little box like that?"
"You can thank the special properties of naquadah for that," Dr. Freeman replied, turning off the measuring equipment and disconnecting the cables. "To put it simply, it amplifies energy; the Ancients utilized this material in a lot of their technology. That includes the Stargate, which is almost entirely made of it."
"And to think, we never imagined using Alicor for something like this!" Twilight beamed, soaking up the information.
Dr. Freeman nodded, a wide smile on her face, "We haven't run any preliminary tests on our available Alicor samples yet, but I'm personally hoping that the Mark I Alicor generator will be able to maintain Shangri-La's shields for prolonged periods." She placed a hand on the generator. "While one or two of these can power the city's main functions, the shield requires a lot more energy, currently requiring an energy source built by the Ancients which we have no means of replicating."
Twilight tapped her hooves together, a twinkle in her eyes, "Then what are we waiting for? Let's get started!"
Dr. Freeman smiled, "I completely agree." She walked over to a drawer and pulled it open to reveal several chunks of refined Alicor. She placed them on the table and then turned to Smoke Puff, "Doctor Smoke, could you grab some extra pens and stacks of paper from the supply closet? I have a feeling we're going to be crunching a lot of numbers today."
Smoke nodded and trotted out of the room, returning a few minutes later and placing the materials on the table. The gathered researchers grabbed their materials and eagerly began their work. Twilight fought hard to keep expression of her excitement in check, especially when talking to Dr. Freeman and the other human researchers, absorbing everything she could from them.
Queen Elmis sat in a private train car, looking through a stack of papers. When the princesses had explained what had happened between the ponies and changelings of Halla, she had felt compelled to do something, electing to leave Shangri-La in order to travel Equestria. She wanted to make sure her hive was accepted by the ponies, and she felt the best way to do that was to show her commitment to coexistence. She turned to look at her schedule, steeling herself for her departure.
Around her sat her praetorians, elite changeling drones. While not as armored as kings were, they were far more suited for combat than a regular drone. They didn't converse verbally, the group sharing their thoughts and feelings through the hivemind.
She looked up from her preparations, reaching out to them through the hivemind, 'Tell me, my children, how do you feel about what I am doing?'
The oldest among them answered first, 'It has been far easier to collect love, mother, easier than any generation has had it.'
She smiled a bit at that, nodding to them, 'Yes, while the humans' love is not quite as tasty as the ponies', we are fortunate that they are so willing to give it freely.' She then tapped a hoof against her papers. 'However, I was referring to this campaign to improve our standing with the Hallans.'
The youngest of them flittered their wings for a moment, giving her a hard to read expression. 'I feel there is a certain risk to this plan. Some of the ponies may believe that we are just like the hive belonging to that Chrysalis that the princesses mentioned and take extreme actions.'
Elmis turned away from her papers, giving her guards a reassuring smile, 'I am very aware of the danger I might be facing, which is why I have brought all of you along with me. I have the utmost confidence that if anypony tries something, you'll end the threat before I even know about it.'
'What will you do if the other queen challenges you?' the oldest asked, gazing at her intently.
Elmis giggled, standing up and flitting her wings. 'If she challenges me directly then that would be the most foolish thing she could do. Thanks to all the love I'm being fed, I'm the strongest I've ever been.' She let her horn glow and distributed a small bit of love to each of them. 'She does not stand a chance if we were to clash.'
The group shuddered as the tiny bit of pure love reached them, each greedily drinking it in.
Elmis's smile grew and she returned to her seat, grabbing a quill in her magic as she prepared to adjust lines in her speech. 'Thank you all for sharing your concerns with me. I promise you this, if things do seem to start getting dangerous, then I will end the tour immediately and we will return to Shangri-La.'
This seemed to reassure the group, and they talked amongst themselves for the remainder of the train ride.
The next day, Elmis was standing at a podium while a swarm of reporters and citizens sat before her. She could sense her guards among them, each in disguise. She had gotten used to the flashes of the cameras and the use of the microphone after her first few stops on the tour; tapping her hoof against it and clearing her throat, she made sure everything was ready.
"Good afternoon, ponies of Manehattan," she began, "I am glad you've allowed me to speak with you today. I know you have reasons to be distrustful of changelings, and while I cannot hope to speak for all of my brethren that call this world their home, it is my hope to assure you that my hive and I have nothing but peaceful intentions." She paused for a moment, gauging the reaction of the crowd. Many were very wary of her, but there were others that seemed to have high hopes about her.
"I have learned a few things in my time living among the humans inside Shangri-La," she continued, looking around the crowd, "including some of Equestrian history from Doctor Lyra Heartstrings. You ponies were not always harmonious. You distrusted the other tribes of your kind, just as you distrust me now. The humans have a similar history, fighting each other for one reason or another. But your two species have something else in common: when faced with an enemy you could not hope to defeat alone, your kind came together to triumph. For you ponies this was the windigoes, and for the humans it was the Goa'uld, then the Wraith and the Ori. I believe that history can repeat itself once more and my kind can become steadfast allies just as all of ponykind is."
Spreading her wings, she swept an arm out before her. "This is the first world, the place my kind comes from, the world where the first queen laid the first egg. If there are other worlds with changelings, ponies, deer and so on, they came from Halla."
She paused again, sensing the emotions of the crowd. There were still some that were wary of her, but many were starting to warm up to her words. "I, for one, believe that this will be a world worth living on and working for. A world that embraces harmony between peoples is one my hive and I can support fully." Elmis bowed her head. "I hope we can work together towards that vision."
The crowd was silent for a brief time, digesting her speech. Then, applause started to come from a few members of the crowd. The sound grew and Elmis smiled at the sight.
"I'll be happy to answer any questions you may have," Elmis gestured to the mic stand at the front of the crowd.
A line quickly formed in front of the microphone, stretching out to the back of the room. A unicorn mare was at the front, tapping her hoof on the microphone to check it.
"Will your hive live in Equestria, or will they continue to take up residence in the human city?"
"As a part of the expedition, my hive will be staying in Shangri-La. There is more than enough room for us, and it allows us to more easily suss out any infiltrators."
The unicorn mare quickly thanked her and returned to her seat. An earth pony stallion took her place in front of the mic, adjusting it due to his height. "You said you were taught our history, does that include recent events? And if so, what are your thoughts on the invasion that Queen Chrysalis attempted?"
Elmis sighed, closing her eyes to gather herself. "I believe Chrysalis is insane. Look at it from our perspective. Changelings need love, if those around us are not happy, no love can be gathered. I have no idea why she decided that conquering Equestria would be a good idea, but it wouldn't surprise me if her hive ousted her."
The stallion thanked her and trotted to his own seat. The questions continued for some time, ranging from reasonable to the outright absurd. One pony actually asked, "So, are you guys bugs or what?"
It took everything Elmis had to not lose her temper at that remark. While it was technically accurate, it still felt rather insulting.
It was the last mare in line that set Elmis on edge. As she approached the mic, the praetorians went into motion, secretly positioning themselves in the crowd. The mare in question sported a deep black coat, with a mane that sported different shades of green. Locking eyes with Elmis, she spoke, her voice full of venom, "What would you do if you were confronted by Queen Chrysalis?" the mare asked, her gaze boring into Elmis.
Elmis straightened up, matching the mare's gaze, "That would depend on her. If she came in violence, violence is what she'd get."
"And do you believe you'd win in such a confrontation?" the mare questioned, a fire burning in her eyes.
Narrowing her eyes, Elmis gave a tempered response. "I would make her regret the day she molted into adulthood."
All of a sudden, the mare's attitude shifted, her eyes losing their intensity and her muzzle curling up into a bright smile. "It certainly sounds like you have the situation under control. Thank you for answering my questions." She turned and started to walk away.
'Let her leave,' Elmis commanded, her eyes following the mare as she made her way through the crowd. 'I believe we heard each other, loud and clear.'
'Should we follow her, mother?' the youngest of the praetorians asked. 'We could discover the location of her hive.'
'No, I don't want any of you getting hurt. Just see to it that she leaves the city. When this is done, I want you to fan out and make sure there aren't any ponies in cocoons.'
The praetorians gave her an affirmative and subtly followed after the mare. They exited the building, watching as she took a taxi.
Elmis cleared her throat, addressing the crowd. "I want to thank you all for coming. I know it must have taken a lot to come and see me, and even more so to ask me questions. Thank you for your time." Bowing her head, Elmis stepped away from the podium, allowing the mayor to wrap up.
Keeping herself open to what was happening around her, Elmis navigated the hivemind, linking with one of the drones she had stationed in Canterlot Palace. The drone was currently in the throne room, sitting near Celestia's throne.
"Your Highness," the drone spoke, cutting off a rather long winded noble, who had been going about something Elmis had no particular interest in. If the emotions in the room were anything to go on, it was a sentiment shared by many ponies.
Celestia put up a hoof to cut off the noble before he could go on an angry tirade against the drone and turned to the changeling. "What is it?"
The changeling hopped up, trotting over to the throne. "Mother has something urgent to tell you." It gestured to the line of petitioners, "In private."
Celestia nodded and turned to face the crowd, "I'm sorry everypony, but Day Court will adjourn for a short recess."
The crowd muttered in annoyance, but allowed the guards to lead them out. Stepping outside, the two guards pulled the throne room doors closed behind them.
The drone's head dipped, allowing Elmis to speak, "I believe your 'Queen Chrysalis' attended our rally today. She seemed quite... hateful."
A frown slowly formed on Celestia's face. "I'd imagine so, her hive was blasted out of Canterlot not too long ago and now yours gets to be an ally."
"Thankfully, it doesn't seem like she made any moves. I have my children out in the city now, making sure she didn't have anyone replaced."
Celestia nodded again, "Thank you for informing me of this. We'll have to take future precautions. I have a bad feeling about Chrysalis making such a brazen move. Knowing her, she's up to something."
"We'll stay on alert."
Celestia took a deep breath and released it. "Thank you very much, Elmis. We'll be alert on our end too. Perhaps we should increase security at the research center?"
The pair worked out a few more security improvements before Elmis released her grip on the drone. She came back to the present, shaking her head. Things had gone from simple to increasingly difficult. Steeling herself, she turned to the crowd and gave a smile. No insane queen was going to ruin what she had started. Over her broken shell.