//------------------------------// // 8th: Ecophobia // Story: The Rule of King Cocoon of the Changelings // by Hooves Like Jagger //------------------------------// The Rule of King Cocoon of the Changelings "Somepony else wrote on your rock?" "Yes!" "In your weird language that only you can read?" "That's what I've been saying!" "No, you've just be pacing awound in circles and rambling like a madpony. You need to calm down!" Chrysalis flew up and smacked me across the face with her tiny hoof. It actually helped, despite the looks of horror that crossed Plundergrub's and Bloodbuzz's faces. "Sorry, you're right. I need to hunker down and figure out who did this." "What? I didn't say that!" Chrysalis shouted, smacking me another good one across the cheek. "What does somepony writing on your rock have to do with getting yourself home?" "Two heads are better than one. If I can find out who wrote this, we might be able to work together and find a way home together!" I explained. Chrysalis didn't look convinced, but that was nothing new. "What exactly did they write?" she questioned. When I told her, she snickered. "Yes, it sounds like they will be very helpful. Great plan." "They just need a little convincing, that's all. I can't imagine that they don't want to go home." I was having trouble believing my own words. The message was about as clear as it got. I offered a way home and they rejected it outright. Why? I'd have to do a little investigating. "C'mon Chrys, we're going incognito." "We are already incognito!" Sharp as a knife this one. "I need a different disguise and a different alibi. Last time I made one up on the fly and that ended... badly. This time I've got it all figure out! We need to be unicorns, you and I." As I said this, I shifted into the form of Unsewn Bolt from Manehattan. "If you say so," Chrysalis mumbled. She got all four hooves on the ground and shifted into... Sweetie Belle? "Uh... not that unicorn." "What? Why not?" Chrysalis protested. "I saw this filly at the royal wedding, so she shouldn't get recognized in Appleloosa." "Yeah... that isn't the problem. Look, just change into someone else." "No!" "Do it." "No!" "Do it." You get the picture. After several rounds of bickering back and forth, I finally gave up. I explained My Little Pony: Friendship is Magic to Chrysalis. After concluding my lengthy explanation, she peered up at me in awe. "That's the stupidest thing I've ever heard!" "Just change into another unicorn already!" I demanded. Chrysalis rolled her eyes and shifted forms, this time into a pony I didn't recognize. The light blue coat and jet blue mane made us look somewhat related though, which is what I was aiming for. "Perfect. Now, I'm your father and we're in Appleloosa to see the sights." "That doesn't sound like it would be much fun." "I am your father. It is my job to bring you to horrible places and convince you you'll thank me when you're older. Anyway, as for you two..." "Yes, your majesty! Shall I be the mother?" Plundergrub offered. "Eh, no... just.... you two just hang around. I'll tell you if I need you." I discarded my thoughts of Plundergrub acting motherly or... affectionate. A shudder ran down my spine. "What about the message, your majesty?" Bloodbuzz asked. "Just leave it. If the person... or pony I suppose, who edited it sees it was moved, he or she will get suspicious. Now you two go, me and PC here are going to begin our search." My grunts saluted and flew off, leaving me and Chrysalis to wander into the pioneer town of Appleloosa in the early morning bustle. "What does PC mean?" Chrysalis questioned as we trotted along. "It's short for Princess Chrysalis. It's my nickname for you, like it?" "No." "Tough. Mind if I ask you some questions?" "You're probably going to ask regardless." I get the same vibe off of Chrysalis that I do off my little sister. She acts abrasive and tough, but I can tell she doesn't hate me. You might think a familiar feeling would make me feel more at ease, but it just makes me more homesick. "So, is there usually a King or Queen plus a Prince or Princess?" I start into the matter that had been eating at me for a little while. "That is correct. There is always a ruler and an heir." "Where do the heirs come from? It can't be like bees or ants because I know you didn't sit around laying eggs all day." "No, we are not like bees or ants. Think more along the lines of a praying mantis." The image of Chrysalis feasting upon the head of another changeling flashed through my mind. It was not a pretty picture. "Queens will select a trusted adviser to consume, and then that changeling will be reborn as a royal egg. The royal eggs will remain unhatched until a ruler passes away." "What if the heir passes away?" Chrysalis chuckled at the very thought. "Who knows? An heir has never been lost." "What about your heir?" Chrysalis frowned and looked up at me. "They didn't tell you about Prince Mangle?" "... No." If a dude is named "Mangle", I would really hope someone would say something about him. "Oh... well apparently he is still alive somewhere. He was in the Hive for a while, but he left when the changelings wefused to obey his commands." "He's the Prince though, why wouldn't they obey him?" "I was presumed dead, so technically he should have become king. For whatever reason, the swawm only recognizes you as king and I emerged as the new heir. There was no plae for Mangle in the traditional hierarchy, so they just ignored him." "Shrimp... that dude probably has it in for me, doesn't he?" Chrysalis's silence told me everything I needed to know. The Abandoned Prince Mangle is out there somewhere, and he probably wants to see me dead. If Chrysalis helped bring him up, he'd probably be a proper King. He'd know more about the world around him, he'd be more ruthless in his feeding, and he can probably fly too! I was up against a more dangerous version of myself. I need to get serious about finding a way to fight. "So, how do you plan on finding your 'friend'?" Chrysalis diverted my train of thought with her question. I hadn't even seen heads or tails of Mangle yet, so worrying about him now is just a distraction. Besides, he's probably not so stupid as to attack me in broad daylight where all the ponies can see. "Well, being the resident expert on humans, I can honestly say there is no way to know for certain what they're up to." "Really, you've got nothing?" Chrysalis squeaked. It was true, I had no idea where to start looking. Fortunately, looking for our mystery pony-person wasn't the first step. "We can look after we gain the townspeople's trust. Our target is probably wary, so if we appear to be snoopers he or she might throw us off their trail. For now, we just do as tourists do and see the sights. I wonder where we should start." "I might be able to help y'all there!" A twangy, southern voice calls. Chrysalis and I turn about to face the enthusiastic stallion. ... Indeterminate and ever confusing Nonspecific Deity it's Braeburn as I live and breath! "Howdy and welcome to AaAaAppleloosa! My name is Braeburn an' ah'm kinda the welcome wagon 'round these here parts!" Now you have to understand, the only recognizable characters I'd come across so far were Chrysalis and Discord. Both experiences were slightly dampened by the fact that both wanted to kill me at the time. Here before me was a beloved protagonist who instead of making death threats was rolling out the red carpet as he pushed me and Chrysalis around the little town. I'd given up hope that there were any decent ponies in all of Equestria, but with the sudden app- "And that's our little town! I reckon you've got somethin' to say 'bout it now, Mr. Pinhead!" ... Wait... did I miss something? Okay... uh... Braeburn introduced himself, I began to panic, we were moving, I think someone asked me some questions, and now Braeburn is calling me... Pinhead? I look around at the expanse of apple trees in the valley below where we stand. I don't really remember coming here. I glance down at Chrysalis. She is snickering to herself! What did she do? "It's... very nice... your town... Braeburn. I'm looking forward to our stay," I manage to spit out, coming down from my ratehr embarrassing stupor. "Ah'm shore y'all will have a great time, you an' Ms. Blue Bolt here. Do y'all know where yer stayin'? I'd be more than happy to escort you!" Braeburn offered. "Oh, we don't have anyplace to stay." "Yer kiddin'!" I felt Braeburn's heart go out to me. I chewed on it while I pondered what I should do for living arrangements. "Well, what's yer budget look like?" "We're broke because daddy is a deadbeat." My, what would a loving father say in this situation? "As much as I hate to admit it, she's right. I haven't got a doll-er, bit to my name." "Well shucks, at least y'all still got yer name, Mr. Pinhead." Oh yes, thank goodness for my name. "Ah might know somepony who can put y'all up, but it won't really be for free." "We'll take what we can get, right sweetie?" I flare my teeth at my "daughter". She responds in kind. "Whatever you say, daddy." Our alibi is so convincing, isn't it? "Fantastic! Follow me! Cain't have y'all sleepin' on the streets while yer visitin' Appleloosa! I kin understand yer eagerness to visit though, and I know plenty of ponies who git by on just a hoofful of bits," Braeburn talked on as he lead us back into town. By now, the town was bursting with activity. The town smelt of baked goods and chimney smoke, a testament to how rustic it was. Ponies pulled ponies in carts while others pulled lumber, food, and other wares down streets. We passed the sheriff's office, complete with Sheriff Silverstar standing outside with what looked like one of his deputies. "Mornin' Sheriff, Mornin' Deputy!" Braeburn gave the two ponies an ecstatic wave. Braeburn recieved two tips of a hat before we proceeded. "That's Sheriff Silverstar and Deputy Quickdraw. There ain't too much trouble 'round here, but the pair of them help keep this place safe. If y'all need anythin' and can't find me, the two of them would be willin' to help!" Braeburn explained as we came to a stop in front of a relatively newer looking building. "Is this the place?" Most of the buildings around Appleloosa were made of wooden slats, but this one was made out of red brick. It wasn't tall, but it was pretty long and wide. There was a painted sign over the paned double doors, but I wasn't able to read it. "Yessir! This here is Appleloosa Library!" The thought of staying in a library was not appealing seeing as I can't read one word of Equestrian. "The place just opened, so the librarian needs help unpacking and cleaning. I know he has a spare room in his home, so y'all might be able to stay there!" Braeburn lead us into the library. When he opened the double doors, I relished in the cool breeze that wafted out. The inside of the library did indeed look like the place had just opened up. The vast majority of the shelves were bare, but the floor was littered in crates full of books. Behind what looked to be a reception desk sat an elderly, grey maned, auburn unicorn. He pulled his beard out of the book levitating before him and faced us. "Good morning Braeburn, what brings you here?" The old stallions voice was crisp and deliberate. It was the kind of voice you'd expect from someone far wiser than yourself. "Howdy Tomesworth! I brought y'all somethin'!" Braeburn stepped aside and allowed me and Chrysalis to approach the counter. "Well now, we don't get too many unicorns in Appleloosa. What brings the two of you here?" "Sightseeing! I'm Pinhead and this is my daughter, Blue Bolt." "They've come all the way from Manehattan to visit, but they ain't got not place to stay. I was thinkin' if they helped out with the library you could put 'em up?" Wordsworth turned and looked Chrysalis and I over one more time. I don't know when I'd told him we'd come from Manehattan, but I guess I have Chrysalis to thank for that one. "I can use all the help I can get. I wasn't planning on starting until Sweet Tea arrived, but considering that she is fifteen minutes late I may as well get to work with these two." Almost as if on cue, somepony burst in through the double doors. "Sorry ah'm late Mr. Tomeswoooooooorth!" the mustard colored mare screamed as she tripped and fell flat on her face. The sound and sight of it made me cringe. "Oooow~" the earth pony whimpered into the floor with her orange ponytail (not the one attached to her rear end) dangled over her forehead. She sat up and tenderly touched her now bleeding nose. "Are you alright Ms. Tea?" Braeburn asked as we all rushed over and helped her up. Tomesworth took her head in his hooves and inspected her. He sighed, probably because her nose was obviously broken. I'd never seen someone break their nose from tripping before. "I think it might be broken," Tomesworth observed without much certainty. "Any difficulty breathing through it?" I asked. The victim nodded. "Definitely broken," I confirmed. The mare, who was apparently Sweet Tea, turned to me. "A-are you s-s-sure?" she sobbed, tears flowing from her eyes just about as fast as blood was dripping down her nose. A person's broken nose and a ponies broken nose were eerily similar apparently. There really wasn't much that could be different. "Pretty sure. Hold still," I ordered. I don't exactly know why, but I grabbed her nose with my magic. She jumped and tensed up a good deal since she hadn't expected it. "Calm down and exhale on my command. Ready?" "No!" "Three, Two, One." We exhaled simultaneously, uniting our beings for a brief moment. When I changed into Summitplunge, I hadn't carried over his injury. If I could fix my own body and determine the complete state of a foreign body, it stood to reason I could return foreign bodies to their complete state. I put theory into practice as the exhale ended, commanding bone and flesh to move back into place. "Yeeeeeeowch!" Sweet Tea yelped at the top of her lungs as her nose popped back into place. The pain ran away from her face shortly afterwards as she sucked some air in experimentally through her nostrils. Aside from navigating around crusty blood, her face lit up when she realized her nose had been restored to perfect condition. "Huh, cool," I mumbled to myself. "Oh thank you, thank you thankyouthankyouthankyou!" Sweet Tea squealed as she put me in the mother of all bear hugs. Out of instinct I try to free myself, but this strange body of mine doesn't know what to do with itself. Thankfully, the mare releases me before I pass out. "That was amazing, mister! Are you a doctor?" "That's what I'd like to know," Tomesworth muttered, stealing an obvious glance at my posterior. He had a point. You wouldn't expect a broke tailor to be able to fix a nose like that. Taking a look at the mark I had to work with, I thought up a quick lie. "I'm not a doctor, I'm just good at mending things." It was a good cover if I do say so myself. Tomesworth bought it and Sweet Tea ate it up. "I say, y'all are mighty lucky Mr. Pinhead was here. I don't know if the Doc at the infirmary could have done such a bang-up job!" Braeburn praised. The three ponies were beginning to open up to me, allowing a steady stream of admiration and trust flow into me. Sweet Tea in particular was very impressed based on the stream coming from her. "Braeburn is right, Ah don't even know how to thank you Mister... Pinhead, was it? Ah was afraid Ah was gonna have to walk down the aisle with my nose all bandaged up." "Walk down the aisle? Are you getting married?!" Chrysalis beamed brightly and began to jump up and down. If she was merely acting, she was doing a good job of making me think she cared about the wedding. Considering what weddings meant, perhaps it was no surprise a changeling would get excited over it. "Why yes Ah am, in just less than a month now," Sweet Tea admitted, leaning down close to Chrysalis. "Do y'all think you'll stay in town that long?" Braeburn questioned. Chrysalis turned and beamed right up at me. She smiled all her teeth at me and expanded her eyes to the size of dinner plates. She must really want to go to this wedding. "Well... we have time to spare-" "YIPPEE!" Chrysalis cheered, bounding up and down around the bride to be. Was there some connection between changelings and weddings I was missing or did Chrysalis just really like weddings this much? Maybe being a little filly is messing with her brain. "Alright, alright, that's enough excitement for now. We've got work to do," Tomesworth reminded us, clapping his hooves together. "I trust you know what your job is Ms. Tea, so I'll be showing Mr. Pinhead and his daughter the ropes. You two just wait here a second." Tomesworth wandered out into the rows of shelves while Sweet Tea trotted off towards some open boxes. I got down to Chrysalis's level and whispered in her ear. "You really like weddings, don't you PC?" "Not as much as you like alibis." "Huh?" "I don't care about a stupid wedding, I was just getting us an alibi for sticking around here." "Oh... quick thinking." "Somepony as to do some!" she hissed. I should probably be thankful that I got to work with Chrysalis to help put the books in their proper place. Seeing as I can't read, having her secretly tell me what certain books were made things run smoothly. It wasn't terribly exciting, but it was what it was. We are building an alibi, and doing that right takes effort. "PC, what does this say?" Chrysalis looked up at the book I was levitating before her face. "M. U. Quill's Collected Works. Put it over with the poetry." Thankfully, there was no such thing as the Dewey Decimal System in Equestria. Things were arranged merely by genre, which made my job quite easy once I knew what the book was titled. I read very little back home, but there were a whole lot of books here I wouldn't mind cracking open for a while. Books like "The Complete Equestrian History", "Legend of the Alicorns", or "Inherit Magic of Equestrian Races". The cosmology of this world was something unknown to me, so finding out more about how this world came to be and what laws governed it would be fascinating. If I wanted to read though, I'd have to learn how. Chrysalis is probably okay with reading the titles of books if we're doing it for a job, but I'm willing to bet she won't read me any bed time stories. "PC, what's this one?" I levitated yet another book before the little Princess. She looked up from putting a book up on a shelf and eyed the title idly. Her eyes grew wide. "Uhm... I'll take care of that. You go put these under Historical Nonfiction," Chrysalis ordered, taking the book from me and trotting off. I looked at the large stack of volumes she'd left me with. It figures that she'd leave me with the bigger job. I inhale as I wrap the books in my magic and exhale to lift them all into the air before me. I can't help but think Twilight Sparkle made this look to darn easy as I drop the entire thing. As an amateur who has only been at this for a few days, I probably shouldn't be comparing myself to the Element of Magic herself. Fixing a broken nose is apparently pretty impressive, but changeling magic is just suited for it. What is unicorn magic suited for? Maybe it's variable. There really isn't any use in conjecturing about aspects of either changeling or unicorn magic. When it comes right down to it, I'm doing just fine in learning by myself. Magic, like most other activities a person does, is deeply connected to the rhythm of their body. Controlling the rhythm is as easy as breathing in... and then back out. If you keep it steady and controlled, you will achieve higher levels of concentration and power. Learning to breath better can improve natural movement, posture, stress levels, and endurance. It might sound far-fetched, but think about it. What would happen if you stopped breathing? I settle for transporting the books onto the shelf two at a time. I could totally do three or four, but, you know... I don't want to finish things too fast. It is not an excuse, it's just a reason why. "I think that'll do it for today." As I put the book Chrysalis dumped on me onto the shelf, Tomesworth appears. "As per my promise, I'd like to show you to a place the two of you can rest your heads." "Did Ah hear that it's quittin' time?" Sweet Tea appeared from the stack of books she'd been napping behind. Tomesworth rolled his eyes. "Have you seen Blue Bolt around? She ran off to put a book somewhere..." "I saw her over in the children's section. She was looking at a picture book pretty intently," Tomesworth revealed. Queen Chrysalis of the Changelings does not look at picture books. She's up to something. Before I can figure out what, the changeling in question comes trotting up behind Tomesworth. "Time to go home, sweetie." "I'm tired. Carry me." It seems I have no choice in the matter as she gets up onto my back. "Aww... Ah hope my kids are as cute as yours," Sweet Tea gushes. "I wouldn't wish that on somepony I just met..." "Pardon?" "You never told us who the groom was!" I point out, making a flawless recovery. The three of us walk of the library and into a nearly dark Appleloosa. Unlike Manehattan, there are no street lamps or lights from huge buildings to keep things bright. There are only a handful of windows with light in them, but hardly enough to illuminate the dusty road. Luckily, the moon and the stars are clearly visible all the way out here. I hadn't realized we'd been in the library so long. "Ah don't reckon you know Deputy Quickdraw, do ya?" "Not personally, but Braeburn pointed him out. Is he your beau?" "No, he's my fiancee," Sweet Tea attempts to correct me. I understand she's not exactly Einstein, but this pony had a few of her tools out of place. "He was awfully kind to me when I first came to Appleloosa. I'm pretty new to... well, a lot of things. I don't know how I would get by here without him." My brain jumped to a conclusion. Phrases like "first came to", "I'm pretty new", and "get by here" didn't sit well with me. Was Sweet Tea a human? Had I really stumbled upon my first human so easily? It's too soon to say anything definitively, but I'd have to keep my eyes on this mare. "Sounds like a nice pony." There isn't much more conversation for the rest of the walk. Sweet Tea is the first to break off, returning to the hotel she's put up at. Tomesworth takes us to his home, a modest little place. He shows us to a small, upstairs room where he says we can sleep. There is only one cot, but he claims there is room for a father and daughter. Thank goodness we won't be doing any sleeping. The last hurdle of the day was dinner. The two of us had to eat it, and all of it to keep up our impression. Apples were on the menu, so I had prayed that by some miracle that food would actually taste good. Much to my dismay, apples taste like boxer shorts deep-fried in motor oil. Even if I do get home, I might be ruined for food forever. With all our interactions with ponies done for the day, we return to our little room and draw the blinds so we can assume our natural forms. I had been wondering what we should use the night hours for, but Chrysalis apparently already had something planned. "PC, I can't read. Besides, we don't have a book." "We do!" Chrysalis runs over to the cot and produces the book I had handed to her in the library. "I stole this!" "... PC, it's a library, you're supposed to take the books." "... I stole this for you!" she insists on having committed some kind of crime. "Fine, what is it?" Chrysalis jumps on my head and levitates the book to my face. Magic brings it open and flips through the pages, stopping about halfway in. "Oh yes... I see... I still can't read." "This is a book about Changelings! I'm going to use it to educate you," Chrysalis explained. "You are a changeling. Don't you already know everything there is to know about changelings?" "I do!" I am failing to see the point of this the further and further along we go. "The pony who wrote this book hardly knows anything about us!" Chrysalis successfully makes me abandon all hope that there is a point to this exercise. "I've got a better idea: let's go into the nighttime streets and go human calling. We'll just dangle you from some fishing wire and use your cuteness as bait." "... Are you being serious?" I find it hard to believe she actually considered it for a moment. It does have a chance I suppose... "Of course not. Why should I be reading a book about changelings that isn't true?" "Because, it'll give you insight into how ponies view changelings." "Don't they just, you know, hate us?" I asked a pointed question. "Fine I'll give you an example: it says here that a changeling's poison will take hold at the slightest contact." Chrysalis pointed a porous hoof at the page, as if I could read it for myself. "That's a common misconception. Our poison can only take hold of a body that's been significantly drained of love." "I don't see how that's helpful." "Ugh! Why are you so stupid!" Chrysalis complained as she began to stomp on my head. "Ponies think even feeding off them a little will cause them to be poisoned, so as long as we don't poison anypony, nopony will suspect changelings." "I didn't really have my heart set on draining anypony completely." Chrysalis grunted and flipped through the pages. "Changelings can only feed off romantic love between two ponies." "Now I know that's not true." She leafs further into the book. "Changeling drones only act on the orders of their monarch." "That's kinda true..." "Ponies aren't aware that we've got a hierarchy within the swarm. Drones are just mindless warriors that have only just awoken, Scouts are Drones who manage to survive long enough to gain some sense, Captains are Scouts who have shown leadership capabilities, and the Hive Minds are the eldest among the Captains." "So that's how it works." I'd been wondering for a while how changelings received their rankings. Just like in any other monarchy, it's not easy to work your way up unless you're already at the top. "What else don't I or ponies know?" "Says here that a changeling's bite is lethal." "Is it?" "Only if you tear out their throat." "Eugh..." "It gets better. There's a whole chapter dedicated to ways you can identify a changeling clone," Chrysalis giggled. "It says here, word for word, 'All changelings are allergic to lemons. A changeling clone will refuse outright lemons or lemon products.' Isn't that a riot?" "All food is terrible if you're a changeling... terrible." "Ponies sure are dense. 'Changelings have an aversion to water, so if someone you love is more reluctant to bathe than usual they may be a changeling.'" We fell silent. "My, you smell terrible. Have you taken a bath recently?" "Nope, don't need it." "Changeling!" Chrysalis accused, grasping my head with all four legs. "I actually haven't bathed in a while... do you think I should?" "Our magic does a good job of cleaning us off when we switch forms. As long as we change forms periodically, we won't smell," Chrysalis explained, standing back up upon my head. "Does it say anything about changeling sleep habits?" Chrysalis flipped through the book until she found what she was looking for. "Changelings cannot maintain their form and sleep at the same time. If you wake up one morning to an empty bed where there should be a lover, you may have had relations with a changeling." "That just sounds like wishful thinking..." We spent the remainder of the night pointing out all the other fallacies in the book, such as changelings are attracted to bright lights and have a tendency to overpay at restaurants. Ponies apparently don't know much about changelings at all, and what they do know is just conjecture based off arbitrary observations. Bad conjectures, I might add. A preconceived notion is the greatest advantage you can give someone. Stereotypes and second-hand observations are distractions. You don't really know something until you've seen it happen or heard it said right before you face. Thanks to this book, if I eat lemons and jump in every puddle I find, nopony will suspect I am a changeling. I must adopt this tactic for finding the human in this town. If I believe a human will do this, then that, and then something else, I'll get thrown off if it doesn't happen. Only an open mind, open eyes, and open ears can determine what is important and what isn't. Looking at things through a checklist can tell me what has and hasn't happened, but it can hardly tell me anything beyond that. Finding a human is going to be difficult and it's going to require a great deal of patience. I hadn't counted on just how much patience I'd need...