Starlight set a bowl on the kitchen table. She grabbed the box of cereal with her hooves and began to pour it into the bowl. When she had poured enough, she placed the box back on the table. She turned and reached for the carton of orange juice, but out of the corner of her eye, she noticed the cereal box start to lean. She had stepped sideways to reach the orange juice, and the cereal was now beyond her physical reach. She lit her horn and—
“Ow!” A current of blue energy arced from the tip of her horn to the iron-banded ring at its base. Starlight reeled backwards and rubbed her horn as the cereal box hit the floor. “Oh, Starlight, you clumsy foal!” she said to herself. She trudged into the bathroom and looked at herself in the mirror. The black scorch mark around the ring had now grown from the last time she had made that mistake. “I hope that isn’t permanent,” she mumbled as she rubbed her horn and forehead.
Back in the kitchen, Starlight picked up the cereal box and replaced it on the table. As she was searching for a broom, she heard the front door open. “Starlight Glimmer?” Rainbow Dash called.
“I’m in here,” she called back. Rainbow Dash walked into the kitchen with a changeling on either side of her, one Blue and one Green. “So, you’re a Bon Bon?” she asked the Blue Changeling.
“I’m the one who came out to meet you yesterday,” she replied.
“Bon Bon Zero, then?”
“That’s correct. You already know Rainbow Dash from a few days ago. We’re here to see if you recognize her,” she said, pointing to the Green Changeling.
Starlight tilted her head. The changeling’s only distinguishing feature was its Stetson hat. “Let me guess. Applejack?”
“That’s me. How do you know me?”
“Well, I’m from a different timeline. Or universe, or reality—whatever you want to call it. But basically, I don’t live here in this—place.”
Applejack stepped forward. “So you’re here because…”
“I kind of messed up bigtime. I interfered with Rainbow’s first Sonic Rainboom, which pushed it back a week and made Fluttershy die and Twilight shoot her brother in the face and—well, a ton of other really bad things happened. Things are a lot different where I come from.”
“Different how?” she asked accusingly.
“First of all, Twilight Sparkle and her friends—uh, that’s all of you—exposed the fake Princess Cadance and got Chrysalis banished to beyond Equestria’s borders. Then, when the Crystal Empire appeared, Twilight and her friends went north and saved the Crystal Empire from King Sombra.”
Applejack squinted and turned her head off to one side slightly. “So where you come from, Twilight Sparkle’s a big shot?”
“A Princess. And the Element of Magic.”
Applejack lowered her gaze and frowned. “Well,” Rainbow Dash began, “how much of what she just said is a lie?”
“I—I can’t believe it. I don’t think she’s lyin’ at all.”
“One more thing,” Starlight said nervously. “Applejack, could I—see your horn.”
“Beg your pardon?”
“I know, I know. It’s a strange request, and I understand completely if you don’t want to show me. It’s just—I feel responsible for all this.”
“Well, I don’t see how takin’ a look at my horn is gonna help that, but I s’pose you can if you want.” Applejack lifted her hat off with a hoof and lowered her head for Starlight to see. It looked as though the horn hadn’t fully healed, and Starlight realized then that it might never. She shook her head and stepped backwards. “Seen enough?”
“Yeah. Does it hurt?”
“When I really think about it. Or when I bump it.” Starlight cast a glance at Rainbow’s leg, then at Bon Bon Zero. “You ok?”
“Yeah. It’s just—I don’t know. When I saw all this before, it was through an alicorn potion. I couldn’t interact with anything or anypony. Now that I’m finally here, it’s all so… surreal.”
“War does that to ponies,” Rainbow said. “You don’t even wanna know what I’ve seen.”
“I’ve seen them too. Applejack’s horn, your leg, Fluttershy, Ponyville, Cheerilee, Rarity and Sunburst, everything.”
“So now what?” asked Applejack.
“I want to make things right. Last night, I was visited by Princess Luna. She told me of a nearby town that was under attack. An ancient pegasus ground colony called Mareathon. Apparently there was a raid a few nights ago.”
“Mareathon?” Bon Bon asked curiously.
“Well ain’t that somethin’. That’s the same place the rest of us have been dreamin’—”
“Ahem,” Rainbow interrupted, “Yeah. Great. You dreamed of a town that needs a bit of help. That’s like, half of Equestria right now. Look, Applejack, Bon Bon, could we take this conversation into the other room?”
“You heard her yourself, Rainbow!” Applejack replied. “Princess Luna’s been talkin’ to her same as the rest of us. Now, Starlight, go on and tell us about this dream of yours.”
“Well, I was walking through the house last night—or at least I thought I was—when suddenly, out of nowhere, I heard Princess Luna…”
Sleep did not come easy for Starlight her first night under house arrest. She felt like an outsider in the city. The fact that her front door was unlocked put her on edge, despite the knowledge that there were guards posted there. On top of that, the feeling that she was being watched never quite went away. She tossed and turned for what must have been near an hour before she finally decided to get up and go to the bathroom.
As she passed a second-story window, she thought she heard her name. She paused and waited, and heard her name again. “Who’s there?” she asked. It sounded like the voice had come from outside. She went over to the window and looked out, only to behold an unfamiliar city below. “That’s not Canterlot.”
“Starlight Glimmer,” the voice whispered again, this time definitely from outside.
“Who are you? Where are you?”
“Starlight Glimmer,” the voice boomed, a sudden shift from the whispers it had used prior.
“Is that—Princess Luna?”
“Yes, it is I.”
“Where are you? And—respectfully, your Highness—I thought you were dead.”
‘'Being without a body is not a novelty to me, Starlight Glimmer. I practiced this skill for hundreds of years before I got it right. Of course, Celestia eventually caught on and learned to stop me. But the time left to me is running short, and I feel my essence fading with each time I call upon this ability.”
“You're—magically dying?”
“When I was banished a thousand years ago, my body was never killed. It merely ceased to exist.”
“But Chrysalis didn’t banish you. She killed you.” Starlight hung her head, raising it a moment later. “How did you know I was here?”
“I could not help but sense a surge of magic from the Tree of Harmony when you first arrived and left again. These events captured my full attention. The moon is my eye, and I watched you depart. Then, I felt a similar surge of magic again when you returned. Although I could not watch you through the day, I found you in the cave a few nights ago.”
"Can anypony else sense across distances like that? Do Chrysalis or Sombra know I'm here?"
There was a pause, as though the Princess was thinking. "I do not know. Perhaps I sensed your coming and going because I once wielded the Elements, and the Elements are connected to the Tree."
Starlight pondered the question and answer for a moment before returning her thoughts to the present. “Do you—do you believe me?”
“You have come back to this world through the portal made by the Tree. Why?”
Starlight laid her ears against her head. “Oh, Princess Luna, I’ve made such a mess of this world! I was wrong to interrupt the Rainbow Dash’s first Rainboom! All the bad things that happened here are my fault! I just want to see this world restored, if that’s even possible.”
“I understand the regret you feel more than you know.” As Luna spoke, Starlight felt a comforting presence envelop and calm her. “Yet you must prove yourself by actions, not by words.”
“How? I can’t prove myself to you or to the others so long as they have me here under house arrest!”
“That is why I am showing you these things, so they may know that you have my blessing.”
“Things? What things are you showing me?”
A cold wind blew through the house, transforming it into a cottage whose roof Starlight now stood upon. Starlight looked over a Hellenistic city. The buildings’ architecture mirrored that of Rainbow Dash’s house, Cloudsdale, or some other pegasus city. Stone columns rose up where cloud columns might have, and many buildings sported rainbow fountains. Yet the city was on the ground. “This is the city of Mareathon,” Luna stated. “This city is an ancient pegasus ground colony. Though all three races now dwell within its walls, its layout and architecture still hail back to its pegassan heritage. It has been said that the legendary Commander Hurricane planned and founded this colony.”
“Is this the city the 42-kilometer race is named after?”
“Starlight, please. Time is fleeting.”
Starlight made a low bow. “Apologies, your Highness.”
With a flash of light, the city became populated. The time of day had not changed; darkness still shrouded the city. Yet there was much noise coming from the street below. “This city near you is in grave danger,” Luna said. Starlight carefully made her way down the sloped roof until she could see the street below. Equine soldiers whose armor did not match that of the Manehattan soldiers were doing battle with changelings. “Yet they are not without hope.”
The roof crumbled beneath Starlight’s hooves and she fell into a side street. She watched as a trio of changelings closed in on a pair of fillies who were fearfully clinging to each other.
Suddenly, a white-coated pegasus landed between the changelings and their would-be targets. “Stand back!” she said, though her quiet voice was less than intimidating. The changelings paused, but not for long.
“This is Winter Wind,” Luna stated. “See those pink eyes? She’s an albino. Her vision is not particularly strong, but her hearing is beyond that of an ordinary pony.”
A changeling fired a horn blast at the pegasus where she stood. As the fiery green bolt approached, Winter Wind reared up and flapped her wings, summoning an intensely cold wind which countered the changeling’s magical attack. She then took to the skies and repeatedly flapped her wings down onto the changelings, causing them to shiver and back away.
Guided by a beam of falling moonlight, Starlight's gaze was drawn to the street behind the changelings where she saw a pastel blue earth pony mare whirling one end of a bola with her mouth. She released the weapon, and as it drew closer, Starlight saw that the wooden balls were actually red-and-white swirled mints. Their appearance notwithstanding, the bola functioned as intended when it hit the first changeling’s hind legs, entangling and tripping him as he tried to turn around.
“Surprise! Hehe!” she giggled.
“Who’s that?” Starlight asked as the pony pulled a small spherical object out of her pink, fluffy mane.
“Gumdrop Holiday is the Mareathon confectioner,” she explained as Gumdrop threw the sphere towards the changelings. “Her cheerful spirit is as indomitable as her will. For three months, she has aided in the defense of this town.” The thrown sphere rolled to a stop just between the two remaining changelings. As the changelings turned to look back at Gumdrop, the sphere exploded, coating them and everything around them in a layer of bright pink taffy.
“Taffy bomb!” shouted Gumdrop. The changelings attempted to move, but found themselves stuck to the ground. Gumdrop trotted up to them, smiling as she hummed to herself. “Looks like somepony’s in a sticky situation! Get it?”
The changelings did not find the joke funny. They hissed and bared their fangs, wagging their forked tongues at the blue pony, who stood just out of reach, quite satisfied with her work.
Winter Wind turned her attention to the fillies on the ground. “Are you two alright?”
“Uh huh,” they replied.
“Here,” Winter said as she scooped them off the ground. “Let's get you two to the Acropolis.” The fillies made no attempt to resist as they were hoisted away towards safety.
Suddenly, the ringing of a nearby bell captured Starlight’s attention. Winter Wind gasped. “That bell—it’s got a sharper tone than the rest.”
“Huh?” asked Gumdrop.
“It’s the Changeling Alert Tower on Oak Street. Hurry!”
“I’m on it!”
Gumdrop Holiday galloped away, Starlight right behind her. The farther they got, the louder the bell became. When the freestanding bell tower came into view, Starlight saw that it was protected from attacks from all sides by an oblong, violet shield. A pink unicorn stood at the base of the tower, firing bolts of violet magic at the changelings above as they strafed the tower. “Double Dare!” Gumdrop shouted.
The pink mare turned her head towards Gumdrop. “About time! Limelight and I were beginning to think the rest of the town suddenly went deaf!” she said.
“Limelight’s here too?” Gumdrop asked as she slowed her gallop to a trot.
“Behind you!” shouted a third voice. Starlight and Gumdrop both turned around to see a changeling make a hard landing, forming a small crater. “Never mind, I’ve got it!” called the voice. As the changeling got to his hooves, a lime green earth pony tackled him to the ground. The pair rolled once before the pony kicked him against the violet shield, leaving him to limply fall to the ground. The green mare rolled onto her hooves and snorted.
“I’m guessing that’s Limelight,” Starlight said aloud.
“Yes. She lives with her family on the lime orchard just east of town.”
“They’re able to grow limes—here?”
“Earth pony magic is a curious thing,” Luna replied.
“Are you alright?” asked Gumdrop.
“Yes,” Limelight said, reaching a hoof up to the back of her head. “Though I’m afraid my updo is not.”
“Can your mane wait?” asked Double Dare. “They’re coming around again.”
“Well if I can't see because my hair is in the way, then I can't clear the town of these overgrown bugs. Besides, what do you expect us to do down here on the ground and without magic? Distract them with our beauty?”
Double Dare thought a moment, then smiled. “Actually, yes. Guide them to me so I have a clear shot.”
“You what?”
“Yeah! That’s a great idea!” chimed Gumdrop. “Sing at ‘em and make them fly in a straight line! Use your trance music!”
“It's actually just ‘The Trance.’ Anywho, here goes.” Limelight drew a breath, timing her song to the bell.
“Listen, changelings, listen to my song.
Listen to my words both clear and strong.
Listen to the pealing of the bells.
Once you’ve heard my song you won’t rebe-el.”
Starlight watched as the the mare’s cutie mark—a forest green tied sixteenth note imposed over a lime—began to glow brightly.
“Single file all the while.
Heed the tolling of the bell.
Here’s a sign that now you’re mine;
Hear my voice and hear it well.”
Sure enough, the changelings lined up single file before banking into their final approach for the tower.
“Here they come!” Gumdrop eagerly announced. Starlight cast a glance in her direction, then did a double take when she saw that Gumdrop had somehow obtained a bag of popcorn. Double Dare charged her horn and began firing bolts of magic at the incoming line. Despite their losses, the changelings held formation.
“At this tower hurl your power.
End the tolling of the bell.
Some will fall, but you won’t all;
This bell’s ringing you must quell.”
Limelight held her final note just long enough for Double Dare to hit the final changeling. With the skies clear and the threat passed, Starlight was whisked off to another time and place.
Starlight was surprised to see that she was not on the ground this time, but rather she was following Winter Wind, the two fillies still in tow. The fillies were very cooperative in her grip. They neither squirmed nor cried. Yet Starlight could see in their faces that they were ready to get back down onto terra firma.
Winter Wind’s left ear swiveled to face behind her. Starlight might have missed the movement altogether had Winter not turned her whole head a moment later. Starlight turned her head to see what had caught her attention, but saw nothing. No, there was a small turquoise blur off in the distance. Then, she heard it—the buzz of a changeling’s wings.
When she looked back at Winter Wind, she saw that the pegasus had already begun to speed up. Starlight did the same, but wondered how a pegasus carrying two fillies was going to outfly an unladen changeling.
Starlight could see the Acropolis straight ahead. They were getting close now. Winter turned her ears backwards again—both of them this time. Starlight also cast a glance behind them. She could make out two individual changelings now, and they were catching up. Another glance forward revealed that the fillies had become aware of the changelings’ presence as well.
“Um, I think they’re following us.”
“Don’t worry. I hear them.”
“Are we gonna be ok?”
“Yes, you’ll be ok.”
The changelings were closing fast now. Starlight figured that they knew their target was not as fast or maneuverable, and they were now doing the aerial equivalent of a sprint so as to secure their prey. So far, Winter Wind was holding her course, her ears still pointed backwards.
When the changelings were right behind them, Winter made her move. Angling her wings upward and keeping her feathers close together, she rose into the air, dramatically reducing her momentum. The first changeling, unable to react in time, darted underneath her. The second changeling fared a bit better, managing to slow himself by the same rising maneuver. Winter accounted for this, and banked left into a shallow roll.
With the second changeling now behind and slightly above her, Winter turned hard to the right, diving sharply. Trading altitude for speed, she began to put some distance between herself and the changeling. It was here that Starlight realized how different this situation was from her duel with Twilight. Against the night sky with only their eyes and wings to distinguish them, the changelings were almost invisible. Furthermore, keeping track of two enemies at once was far more difficult than just one. Starlight found that when she glanced away from one changeling to look for the other, she had a hard time locking back onto the first one.
So she looked at the white pegasus in front of her instead. It wasn’t like she was in danger, anyways. She was just dreaming. Winter’s ears rapidly changed directions. Perhaps she, too, was having a hard time tracking the changelings. Before, she could have heard them in stereo, but now she had to dedicate one ear to each changeling. To Starlight’s ears, the changelings were somewhere behind and above them.
One of the changelings behind and in-plane with them revealed himself by firing a green bolt of magic just wide of Winter to the right. Winter dodged to the left before turning her head to the left and gasping. Starlight watched as the other changeling descended sharply seemingly from out of nowhere and attempted to snatch one of the fillies from her. He laid hooves on her, and a brief tug-of-war began. The filly shrieked as she was torn from Winter’s grasp.
Winter came to a halt and turned around. “We have to go back for her!” cried the second filly.
“We—we can’t! I have to get you to safety!”
“She's my sister!”
“I can’t carry you both!”
A nearby hiss drew their attention. The changeling behind them had caught up, and was barreling down on them. Winter’s next maneuver was to simply stop flapping her wings. Before gravity could overcome the momentum of her last downstroke, Winter angled herself so that she would fall headfirst into a ninety-degree dive. Just as she started to fall, the changeling caught her tail as he passed, yanking Winter Wind in that direction. The second filly screamed as Winter and the changeling began to flap in opposite directions. Winter grit her teeth and moaned in pain as the changeling pulled on her tail.
“For Mareathon!” shouted a nearby stallion. With a literal flying kick, the pegasus stallion’s royal blue hoof connected with the changeling’s jaw, releasing Winter Wind. The changeling dropped into a spin as the pegasus stallion caught up with Winter. “Are you hurt?”
“No. But there was another. He went that way.”
“He has my sister!” the filly shouted.
“Don’t worry. I’ll take care of it.”
Starlight watched the stallion fly off. “This is Storm Patrol,” Luna informed. “He is a dutiful and honorable soldier, but in peacetime he had aspirations to join the Royal Guard.”
“So now that the war has started, he's a front line fighter,” Starlight added as she began to follow him.
“That is correct,” Luna affirmed.
Storm Patrol was a strong flier, and it was difficult for Starlight to keep up. Thankfully, following him meant she wouldn’t be the one tracking the near-invisible changeling through the night sky.
A sharp cry came from somewhere ahead of and to the left of Starlight’s position. She and Storm Patrol turned toward the sound, expecting to find the abducted filly to be the owner of the voice. After a short while, a second shriek followed the first, closer this time. Starlight thought she heard buzzing, but wasn’t certain. Then, a third cry, this time a discernible call for help from below them. Storm Patrol held his wings level and began gliding, looking down onto the town all the while.
At last, Starlight spotted the changeling. Storm had maneuvered above the changeling, and was now silently descending towards him. “Stop that!” the changeling said just above a whisper. “If you squirm much more, I might drop you! And neither of us want that!”
The filly whimpered softly from beneath the changeling.
Storm was now directly above his target. He folded his wings and dropped the equivalent of several stories onto the changeling’s back, landing with one rear hoof. The changeling spun in the air horn over hooves as Storm spread his wings to catch himself. The filly, who had been released when the changeling was hit, began to scream again. The instant Storm caught her, she opened her eyes and stared at him with disbelief. “It’s ok,” he said, “I’ve got you now.”
“H—How do I know that you’re not the changeling?”
“Him? He’s down there,” Storm said, pointing into the street below. The filly leaned onto Storm, wrapping her forelegs around his neck. “Besides, would a changeling take you back to the Acropolis?” he asked with a smile.
The flight to the Acropolis was uneventful. Once the courtyard came into view, Starlight saw a crowd of ponies in the middle of the courtyard. Two pegasi in the same armor as Storm flew out to escort him in. As he neared the ground, Storm lowered his hind legs and touched down softly before gingerly setting the filly on her hooves. The filly took a few wobbly steps before collapsing. An earth pony mare shoved her way through the crowd and embraced her daughter, who was now trembling uncontrollably. “Mommy’s so sorry,” the mint green mare said. “I thought you were right behind me!”
“I—I’m ok, M—Mommy,” she stammered.
“Good work, soldier,” called a female voice from behind Starlight. She turned to see a pegasus mare with a plumed helmet.
“Thank you, Governor Gale. But I didn’t act alone,” Storm replied. “That mare aided me in recovering these two fillies,” he said as he pointed at Winter Wind. The crowd parted, leaving Winter standing alone.
“Um, hi,” she managed to eke out.
“There was also somepony stationed at the Changeling Alert Tower on Oak Street.”
“Oak Street?” the Governess asked. “We didn’t station anypony there.”
“A simple ‘Thank you for your contribution’ would suffice.” Starlight turned to see Double Dare leaning against a stone column in front of a building, her right foreleg crossed over the left. Limelight and Gumdrop Holiday stood beside her.
“Oh, do be kind and share the glory among us all,” Limelight chimed.
“Guess somepony wants her chance in the... limelight! Get it? Eh? Eeeeh?”
Limelight sighed and rolled her eyes, but she couldn’t help but smile and shake her head.
“You civilians held down a bell tower?” Gale asked as she approached the trio.
“Well, actually just those two,” Gumdrop answered. “But I helped Winter Wind. I took out three changelings!”
“And I got ten!” said Double Dare, puffing her chest out.
“Five,” Limelight interjected. “I helped. We each get five.”
“But I shot them down! We’ll split it six and four!”
“Fine.”
“However you split it,” the Governor said, “Mareathon is safer due to your actions.” Gale then turned to the crowd. “The rest of you, get some rest. We’ll search for the rest of the missing ponies in the morning. Tomorrow night, let’s try to all be within the Acropolis walls by curfew. Can we manage that?”
A response of “Yes, Governor Gale,” came from the crowd.
“Good. Dismissed.”
A crisp breeze whipped through the town, and all the ponies vanished from sight. Nopony was left in the moonlit town. “For near a month, Chrysalis has been attacking this town,” Luna explained. “Each time, the inhabitants flee to the Acropolis, where they have had limited success in defending themselves. However, they cannot hold out forever. They are besieged and their numbers are dwindling. This battle is one of attrition.”
“Would you have us reinforce the city?” Starlight asked, directing her gaze towards the full moon.
“I would. I may not know the finer details, but you are important to this world. You know what you must do.”
“I do. But how will I do it?” Starlight squinted as the moon’s glow became brighter.
“You may begin by telling the others all that I have shown you.”
Starlight’s vision flooded with light, and the dream-consciousness fled from her as morning arrived.
“That’s amazin’! I saw the selfsame thing!” Applejack said.
“Woo hoo,” Rainbow seconded, sarcastically clapping her hooves as she hovered beside Applejack. “What a compelling story.”
“Rainbow Dash!” Applejack scolded.
Bon Bon approached Starlight. “Zecora dug up some more information about the changeling potion we’ve been applying on each other the past few months. One side effect of interdimensional travel is the glowing you exhibited. Definitely not a normal side effect, though.”
Rainbow Dash shook her head. “You’re all crazy.”
Starlight softened her tone. “Rainbow, the threat of infiltration is making you paranoid. Just let me help you.”
“No it’s not. I—Have you been trying to use your magic? There’s a dark ring around your horn!”
“Well, no. I mean, not intentionally. I tried it on my brush when I got up, and, I don’t know, it’s just second nature to me.”
Rainbow scowled and crossed her front legs. “A likely story.”
“Using magic is as second nature to me as flight is to you. I do it without even thinking.”
“You were trying to escape, weren’t you?”
Starlight raised an eyebrow. “You’re hovering right now and I’ll bet you didn’t even notice it.”
Rainbow’s eyes widened, then she glanced down at the ground. She uncrossed her front legs and dropped to the ground, avoiding eye contact with Starlight.
“Princess Luna has spoken,” Bon Bon said. “We are to help defend Mareathon from Chrysalis’s forces.”
“So then, I’ll be coming along?”
“We’ll keep you on a pretty tight leash,” Rainbow said, “but yes. You’re technically coming with us.”
Queen Chrysalis and an armored changeling walked towards five changeling regulars. Behind the five changelings was a vehicle with large treads which seemed to have been retrofitted over pre-existing wheels. The vehicle also sported sloping armor down the middle, and a short, barrel-like protrusion facing forwards. The nearby royal palace provided shade for the vehicle and the changelings. “So,” Chrysalis said as the armored changeling stepped into line with the others, “is this is the crew of the new armored vehicle?”
“Yes, your Highness.”
“Very well. Report.”
“The vehicle has passed its field tests and is ready for deployment effective immediately. And these are the lucky five who get to operate the weapon. In order of descending rank: Hot Shot, tank commander; Bombardier, gunner; Carapace, shield engineer; and Millipede and Centipede, drivers.”
“Excellent.” Chrysalis smiled. “Build me more of them. I want a full armored regiment ready as soon as possible.”
“Yes, my Queen.”
Chrysalis approached the first changeling of the five-drone crew. “Commander Hot Shot, how does the vehicle compare against the ponies’ weapons?”
“They have nothing like it, ma’am,” he said in a voice which sounded more like a pony's voice than a changeling's, “and no hard counter for it. With our capture of Flim, we captured the only known machine of its type in Equestria, then made significant structural modifications to it.”
She approached the second. “What of its weapons, Bombardier?”
“It relies on the gunner’s magic,” he growled. “There’s a pair of lenses in the barrel that amplify the magic fired from the gunner’s horn. It’s accurate, powerful,… and even fun.”
“And the shields and armor?” Chrysalis asked the third changeling.
“I’m responsible for casting the shield spell around the vehicle,” Carapace said. “We were able to cross the field where we trained several times while under heavy fire before the shields gave out. The armor is impenetrable to crossbows and swords, and the other changelings’ magic failed to penetrate the armor. They did force a retreat, but the vehicle was still in one piece.”
“They repaired the armor, I hope.”
“Yes, ma’am. The vehicle is designed with replaceable panels so that damaged vehicles can be back on the field in as little as a few hours. I should know; I’m also the mechanic.”
Chrysalis nodded approvingly. “Drivers? How does the vehicle handle?”
“At top speed, the vehicle can just outpace a galloping pony,” said Millipede, “but flying changelings or pegasi are still faster.”
“How maneuverable is it?”
“It has trouble going in reverse,” he continued, “but between Centipede and myself, we can turn it around very quickly. The steering has been rebuilt from the ground up so we can operate each tread independently.”
Chrysalis glanced between the two drivers. “Do you foresee any problems with it?”
“It performs poorly in certain terrain,” Millipede said.
Chrysalis stared directly at Centipede. “Such as?”
“Swampy ground,” Millipede began. “The hull isn’t waterproof. Hilly ground; our speed drops significantly. Densely forested areas; we can run right over small trees, but the larger ones—”
“You,” Chrysalis called out, pointing a hoof at the silent changeling. “What is your job?”
“I—I’m a driver, ma’am.”
“Why are you silent during the report?”
“Well, I—I’m the lowest-ranking soldier here, and I—I thought you were talking to both drivers, so—I just let Millipede report for both of us.”
Chrysalis softened her tone and began again. “You have been given an important task to fulfill. I trust that the Experimental Weapons department did not make a mistake when they selected you.”
“No, my Queen!” he said, snapping to attention. “I can do this.”
“We’re counting on you. I look forward to hearing the report of your first victory for the hive.”
As Chrysalis turned to leave, a messenger arrived. “My Queen, you are needed in the nursery.”
Chrysalis nodded, spread her wings, and took off. She wasted no time, making a beeline for the north tower. She lit her horn and opened the windows before descending into the room. She had cantered all the way over to the crib before she noticed the changeling standing beside it. “Your Highness,” the changeling said, “it’s almost hatched.” Chrysalis joined her alongside the crib. She placed her front hooves on the rail of the crib and leaned in. The egg was cracked almost all the way across from one side to the other. It wobbled and bulged as slimy grey-green fluid oozed out onto its exterior. The egg rocked back into its previous position, then the grub within breached the top with its horn. Soon a tiny hoof appeared, then the rest of the grub’s head. The grub blinked a few times before raising its blue eyes to meet its mother’s.
Chrysalis levitated the grub out of the egg and into her hooves. “A daughter—I have a daughter!” she squealed. “What should I name her?”
“What about Chrysalis the Second?” offered the changeling beside her.
Chrysalis smiled briefly. “I’d thought about that, but Chrysalis would be an awfully hard name to live up to, wouldn’t it?”
The grub cooed in her hooves as it squirmed about, reaching for her mother with her tiny hooves. “What of her father? Or a mare in close relation to—”
“My daughter will not have a Ponish name,” Chrysalis said. She thought a moment, then smiled. “She will be called Princess… Pupa.” She then nodded in satisfaction. “It’s similar enough that she will always be my daughter, yet different enough that she can one day be her own queen.”
Chrysalis brought the grub close to her chest, and for the first time in as long as she could remember, she shared love.