//------------------------------//
// Chapter 147: Captured Chaos 
// Story: My Little Pony, Friendship is Magic: Stallion Edition 
// by SuperPinkBrony12 
//------------------------------//

The changeling swarm drew closer and closer, but it seemed like the group had nowhere to run. Thorax began to hyperventilate.

"You know, this seems like one of those moments where we need a plan." Discord nervously commented.

"What kind of plan?!" Sunburst retorted. "We're about to become a changeling snack for crying out loud!"

Just then, Starlight got an idea. "Hey, Sunburst, you still have those smoke bombs Trixie gave you?" She asked.

Sunburst nodded. "Yeah, but I don't see how they're going to help us."

Starlight just grinned. "Trust me, they'll be more useful than you know. Now here's what we're going to do."





By the time the changeling swarm reached the location of the shout, they found that there was only one pony waiting for them, Sunburst.

Sunburst looked at the changelings and smugly taunted. "Hey, you guys looking for somepony? Sorry to disappoint you, but it's only me," The changelings responded with a series of hisses, and Sunburst just laughed. "Ha, is that the best you got?! Keep up with me if you can!" Then he disappeared in a puff of smoke, reappearing on a ledge a good distance away. He kept up this act several times. Whenever the changelings got close, he would quickly throw down another smoke bomb and disappear again.

Unknown to the changelings, it wasn't actually Sunburst they were chasing. Thorax had disguised himself as the stallion and had utilized the smoke bombs as a cover to fly away undetected. The real Sunburst was watching from a safe distance, alongside Discord and Starlight.

Discord commented to Sunburst. "Okay, I suppose I'll give you that one. That's a pretty clever use of smoke bombs."

"Thanks, I guess." Sunburst replied.

Starlight, for her part, just breathed a sigh of relief. "Well, that's one crisis averted."

"Indeed it is," Thorax spoke up, as he rejoined the group still disguised as Sunburst. "I think I lost them, at least for now."

"'Klutzy'..." Starlight began.

"'Draconequus'!" Sunburst and Thorax said at the same time, as Thorax changed back to normal.

Discord just groaned. "Seriously, I think we need to come up with a better code word. Something that doesn't involve having to give up my dignity."

"We all agreed to it, Discord. Now stop complaining." Sunburst scolded.

Thorax decided to change the subject. "That was a good plan there, Starlight. Pretty good thinking too."

"Yes, but we still don't know where we're going. We're back to square one." Sunburst commented.

"Not necessarily," Starlight retorted and then said to Thorax. "I noticed that two of the changelings didn't go with the rest. You wouldn't happen to know anything about that, would you, Thorax?"

Thorax's eyes lit up as he exclaimed! "Why of course I do! With an intruder in the hive, they went to protect the queen! Brilliant observation, Starlight! I like the way you're thinking!"

Starlight just laughed nervously. "More of a lucky guess, I'd say. But I'll take it."





The group set off a few seconds later, trying to follow the path that they'd seen the two changeling drones go down when they broke away from the rest of the swarm.

But it didn't take long for them to run into another obstacle blocking their path. A door of sorts led to the interior of the hive, but several changeling guards were lined up on patrol, and their wings buzzed ominously.

"Great, now what?" Sunburst asked, as the four rescuers observed the guards from afar.

"Simple, we go in." Starlight answered.

Thorax gulped. "One problem though, even if we wanted to there's no way past the guards. We'll be spotted for sure."

"Then we need a distraction," Starlight whispered and turned to Sunburst. "Still got any smoke bombs?"

Sunburst shook his head. "Sorry, fresh out. And I don't really have anything else that'll do the trick. If I had some of Flurry Heart's toys, I could probably throw one to draw their attention."

"Guess that means one of us will have to be the distraction," Starlight concluded. "They'll need to lure the guards away, and then find a way to give them the slip so they can meet back up with us. But who's going to take the risk?"

Discord nervously commented. "Well... usually I'm the most distracting thing I know. But without my magic..."

"You shouldn't doubt yourself," Starlight told the chaos maker. "Just go out there and do something, anything. Those guards look like they'd be easily amused."





After a bit of planning, Discord reluctantly stepped out in front of the guards, holding a microphone in his paws. "Hello, changelings and changelettes!" He greeted loudly. "Believe me, I'm just as surprised as you are that I'm here now! Funny how these things work! Anyway, when I heard that I'd be playing for an entire bunch of changelings, I was beside myself! But then I realized, it was just one of you."

A rim shot of sorts echoed through the hive, as the guards hissed and snarled.

With a nervous laugh, Discord spoke into the microphone. "But, seriously, folks. This isn't the toughest crowd I've ever been in front of. But it's mostly definitely the easiest to bug! Get it?!" Another rim shot echoed through the hive, but there was no reply from the changelings this time. "'To bug'?" Discord asked, as he tapped the microphone. "Is this thing even on? Come on, guys, help a draconequus out here."

The changelings snarled again.

Discord gulped, throwing down the microphone. "Okay, okay, I get it. No more bug jokes," He commented. "Seriously, you guys are the worst audience ever. I don't know who's worse though, you or Queen Fatso, your leader."

"He insulted our queen! Get him!" One of the guards shouted, and they all chased after Discord.

This allowed Starlight, Sunburst, and Thorax to all sneak past undetected. Sunburst tried his best not to chuckle. "Gotta admit, that was pretty selfless of him to throw himself out there like that. You think he'll be okay?"

Starlight nodded. "I'm sure Discord can handle himself. Now we just wait here for him to give the guards the slip, and rejoin us."





Discord eventually managed to duck into a side room, as the changeling guards whizzed past unaware. The chaos maker breathed a sigh of relief. "For a race that's all about deception and trickery, these changelings sure aren't the brightest bulbs of the bunch. Who knew they were suckers for a stand up comedy routine?" He turned to leave as he then added. "I'll have to remember to come back with more material, then I'll give them something to really remember me by. Just hope the others haven't gone and gotten themselves captured, otherwise I made a fool of myself for nothing!"

But just then, a faint voice whimpered. "Please, help!"

Discord spun around, he recognized that voice! "Fluttershy!" He exclaimed, rushing over to the pegasus who was currently tied up in green goop.

"Please me get out, Discord! I'm stuck!" Fluttershy pleaded.

"You certainly are. And I should probably help you get free," Discord began, as he bent down to free his friend. But then he stopped himself as he considered something he hadn't thought of a second ago. "But... oh-ho-ho-ho-ho..."

"But what?" Fluttershy asked.

"But you are obviously not Fluttershy!" Discord pointed out. "I wasn't born yesterday, I know a trap when I see one!"

The "fake" Fluttershy sighed. "Oh."

Discord shook a finger at the imposter as he added. "You won't catch me off guard so easily. I mean really, how naive do you think I am? Think about it, I'm separated from the group and just happen to come across the one pony that I care most about? I can smell this setup a mile away. Little piece of advice for next time, bring your A game and don't make your set ups so obvious!"

The "fake" Fluttershy started to sniffle, as tears gushed out from her eyes while she protested. "No. You're right. There's no way you should trust me," She began to wail loudly as she added. "Just go find the others, I'll understand."

Discord refused to believe the imposter Fluttershy's tears. "Oh come on, are you for real? You're not fooling me with the crocodile tears routine."

But suddenly, an entire hive of Fluttershys appeared, all of them crying and sobbing! One of them then spoke up. "We're probably all just changelings. You shouldn't rescue any of us. That is, unless you think, maybe one of us might actually be the real Fluttershy. Oh, that certainly would be a nasty changeling trick to play, wouldn't it? Toying with your affections like that?"

"I'm the real Fluttershy!" One of the Fluttershys protested.

"No, I'm the real Fluttershy!" Another Fluttershy insisted.

"No, I am!" A third one spoke up.

"I'm the real Fluttershy, not these imposters!" A fourth one added.

Discord gulped. Try as he might, he couldn't bring himself to risk the chance that one of the Fluttershys might be the real deal. Plus, he knew that even if he tried to make a run for it, the imposters would probably just swarm over him and capture him. "What can I do? You have me." He sighed, admitting defeat, as the Fluttershys all grinned in fiendish delight.