//------------------------------// // Fool Me Twice // Story: Harmonics // by ezra09 //------------------------------// Thistleroot lay in the settling dust. Several small pieces of rock fell, bouncing off his head one after another, and then everything was still. He coughed and pushed himself up, wincing. His right side was sore from where he’d been bucked. “That’s gonna bruise.” He was alone in the cave. Behind him lie several tons of rock and dirt, and before him a tunnel that curved to the right out of view, barely illuminated by the green stones that seemed natural to the hives. “Oh come on,” he said once he’d managed enough of a breath. “We haven’t been here for five minutes!” He stood and looked around the cave again. “Okay. You’re alone, Thistleroot. Yup, alone. Nopony else is here. I mean, obviously that’s what alone means. Just you. In the changeling hives. Alone.” He stepped forward nervously, and then stepped back. “And you’re talking to yourself. Yeah. Okay, that’s just something you do when you’re nervous. And right now, you’re pretty terrified, so that’s fine. Sure. Uh, but if you keep talking the changelings will probably hear you and they will find you and then they will, uh...” Oh, hey, that’s actually a good point. Alright, thinking then. Thinking is good. Great, so you got yourself onto the third team and infiltrated the changeling hive. Good work. Great. The next time I have an idea, I’m going to ask Apple Bloom to just buck me in the face. Sweetie Belle. Next time I have an idea, I’m going to ask Sweetie Belle to buck me in the face If I start walking, I might find somepony, but I might also run into changelings. Okay, yeah. Better just stay here until Scootaloo and Biggs find me. Thistleroot sat back on his haunches. After a few seconds, he stood again. On the other hoof, that was really loud. Changelings might already be making their way here. Okay, moving it is. He started walking, following the curving passage to the right. His steps felt faster than they should have. It was hard to orient himself with nothing but the cave for reference, but it felt like the floor was at a decline. Spiraling down the main hive shaft, maybe? Scootaloo hadn’t said anything about this path, so it was hard to say. Thistleroot listened as he walked, trying to catch any sign of the telltale buzzing of wings that would indicate approaching changelings, but all he could hear was his own quick breathing. That was a good sign, right? Unless they were waiting in ambush ahead. Or walking. “Okay, no need to overthink things,” Thistlerooty said, then winced. Okay, no need to overthink things. Changelings haven’t arrived yet because they went down the central passage to check out the noise. That’s all. Ahead of him he could see the right wall of the passage curve away, forming a T intersection. Oh great, just what I need. A decision. Okay, I can do this. If I keep to this path, I’ll get lower into the hives, and maybe come across what we’re looking for. But if it’s guarded, then that doesn’t do me any good. On the other hoof, if I turn deeper into the center of the hives, I might find a path that connects with everypony else, but I probably have a better chance of running into changelings. And if I wait here, those hoofsteps are going to get closer and I... Hoofsteps? Thistleroot’s eyes widened as he realized he could indeed hear hoofsteps drawing closer. One changeling. Maybe two? Coming from the turn to the right. He looked around desperately, unable to see any hiding spots. He could retreat further back up the tunnel, but it was a dead end. If the changeling was heading in that direction, it was sure to see him. He swallowed. There was no choice. He had to take the changeling by surprise, and he had to do it here. If he retreated further back and the changeling ended up following him, it would see any attack coming. He scanned the ground and grabbed a stone the size of his two hooves together. He moved to the corner, reared onto his back hooves with the stone held in his front hooves, and held his breath. His heart was racing in his chest. Each beat seemed like it should have been loud enough to give his presence away, but the changeling kept coming. Just another moment. Thistleroot closed his eyes, clenched his teeth, realized he couldn’t see, reopened his eyes, and leapt forward. He brought the stone down with the full weight of his entire body behind the blow. Wind Rider gasped and skipped back, barely avoiding the stone. “Hey, hey, it’s me!” The rock bounced on the stone floor, and Thistleroot, unbalanced by the sudden lack of its weight, fell onto his back. In one smooth motion he flailed wildly for several seconds before rolling to his hooves. “Nice one,” Wind Rider said, rolling his eyes. “Real glad you're on our side. Are you done yet?” “Yeah, I think I’m good,” Thistleroot said, light headed, heart still racing. “Whoo, okay, yeah.” “Glad I found you,” Wind Rider said, “but we should get moving.” “Yeah. No, wait,” Thistleroot paused. Now that he had a moment to calm down, a nervous prickling started at the back of his neck. Wind Rider hadn’t tried to confirm his identity. He hadn’t actually even used Thistleroot’s name. “Yeah,” Thistleroot said again. “Yeah, we should get moving. We have a lot to do. You know, for Canterlot.” Wind Rider tilted his head. “I guess that’s one way to put it. Oh, right! Uh, and the princesses.” Oh, okay, Thistleroot thought. It’s really him. Good old Wind Rider... that was having mysterious meetings with Discord and... oh yeah, that. “Are you just going to sit there, or are we going?” Wind Rider asked, taking a step forward. Thistleroot took a step back without thinking about it, and Wind Rider paused. “What? Did I get the password wrong? Hey, it’s actually me.” “Heh, yeah, sorry,” Thistleroot said. Okay, you can’t let him know that you saw that. He thinks you believe he’s one of the good guys. Just go with it. Unless he’s just going to lead you into an ambush. If that’s the case, it would be better to try to knock him out now, before he knows you suspect him. The rock was still there between them. If he waited until Wind Rider turned around to lead the way, he could grab it. But what if Wind Rider wasn’t actually a bad guy, and the conversation between him and Discord was just some wacky, out of context misunderstanding? Unlikely, but still possible. Wind Rider shifted his weight back, eyes narrowed. Wait, had Thistleroot looked down at the rock? Yeah, he had. Did Wind Rider guess what he was thinking? “Thistleroot, what’s wrong with you?” Wind Rider asked, voice sharp. “Nothing, heh, just, uh, you know how it is.” “No, I don’t.” “It’s just, well, I wanted to make sure you were the real Wind Rider. Yeah, that’s it. Like, what if a changeling overheard the password from somepony else, and is using it to surprise me.” “So, what, you’re just not going to trust me?” “I mean,” Thistleroot gave a vaguely apologetic hoof wave. Wind Rider rolled his eyes. “Fine, you’re right. You got me.” He took a step closer, putting a hoof on the rock. Thistleroot took a step back. “Uh, what do you mean, got you?” Wind Rider smiled. “I’m an evil changeling. Congrats.” ***** Scootaloo barely dared to breathe as she leaned against the wall, peeking out around the corner. One of the royal guards had flown up and over the intersection to do the same across from her. “The cave was entirely blocked. We do not know know if the squad posted there survived, nor if any ponies made it inside. We were just about to send teams to check the outer paths.” Beyond the intersection, the passage opened up into a large cavern. More passages opened to the left and right, and at the end of the cavern was a large drop off, a vertical shaft that could access multiple floors of the hive. Mimic had led her up through one during their escape. It wasn’t the same one, but the hive seemed to be built around a central crossroads of sort. From what she’d seen of the hive, and where she thought she was on her internal map, she thought she’d probably be able to find her way from there. Standing in the large open area were five changelings. Four stood together facing the fifth. To Scootaloo’s surprise, the fifth was noticeably different. It was maybe two inches taller than the tallest of the others. Its back was darker and its eyes were more purple than blue. It spoke. “There is no need. I have new orders for you.” The other changelings perked up, curious. “We’ve diverted too many forces toward the upper floors. All remaining soldiers are to return to the throne room. If ponies break through, it is there they will look for the key.” “Shouldn’t we stop the ponies before they get to that close?” One of the changelings asked. The purple-eyed changeling focused its attention on it and the soldier changeling cowered back. “The key has been moved to the cells. It is well protected. You are to go to the throne room and protect the throne.” Another of the soldier changelings bowed. “As you command, Overseer.” The changelings dispersed, the overseer turning back and entering the passage behind him, while the soldiers made their way to the vertical shaft and flew down deeper into the hive. Scootaloo backed away and the other Royal Guard joined her. A few more steps and they were with Biggs again. “The tablet we’re looking for seems to be in the cells,” the guard said. “They’re moving most of the guards to the throne room.” “Scootaloo, do you know your way to the cells?” “Sort of. If we make our way down, we can probably find the path I took before.” “Then lead the way. Cloudy—” “What?” Scootaloo asked. “We can’t go down yet! We haven’t found Thistleroot.” “Cloudy Showers,” Biggs said, voice stern. “Can you make your way through this level and check the other passages?” “All the changelings are going to the throne room,” the pegasus that had been listening with Scootaloo said. “Shouldn’t be too hard.” “Then go. Find Thistleroot and Wind Rider if you can. Catch up with us if possible, find a way out if not.” The pegasus nodded and turned down the left passage, opposite where the overseer had turned. “I’ll go with him,” Scootaloo said. “No.” “But—” “Scootaloo.” Biggs’s voice was level, not angry but not allowing for any interruptions. “You said yourself that you’re the only pony here that’s been through these hives. We need you to guide us down to the cells.” “Then let’s find Thistleroot first and all go down together. You promised Shining Armor that you’d get him in and out. We can’t just leave him behind.” “I have no intention of leaving him behind,” Biggs said sharply, “but we can’t risk failure either. We need you with us, and you need to trust your allies. You can’t do everything yourself.” Scootaloo wanted to argue. Her friend was alone in the changeling hives, and he was there because of her. But Biggs was right. Every minute they spent in the hives was another minute they could be discovered, and if they failed all of Equestria could pay for it. She remained silent. “Scootaloo, lead the way. Zephyr, Sunlight Spear, let’s go.” ***** “You’re right,” Wind Rider said as he tilted his head to look down his snout at Thistleroot. “I’m an evil changeling. I was sent by Rosalia to sabotage your attempts at fighting back. Now that you know that, you can go ahead and stop me.” He began moving closer, each step slow, deliberate. Thistleroot backed away until he bumped into the back wall. “So, what’s the plan, then?” Wind Rider asked. “Are you going to call for help and attract the changelings? Are you going to fight me without your magic? You’re alone in enemy territory, with no weapons and no magic.” Wind Rider closed the gap between them in an instant, wings flared aggressively. Thistleroot tried to back up further, pressing his side into the wall. They stood, neither moving for a few second before Wind Rider spoke again. “Do you understand now?” He took a step back. “If I were an enemy, there wouldn’t be anything you could do about it. I wouldn’t need to lead you into a trap or try to gain your trust, so why would I lie?” Wind Rider turned and started walking away. “Now stop wasting time and let’s go.” Thistleroot blinked, still leaning into the wall. “Wait, what?" Wind Rider ignored him and disappeared around the corner. "You’re actually not evil?” ***** Thistleroot and Wind Rider were gone. The passages they’d ended up in were empty. There’d been no sign of a struggle at least. It was likely they’d moved further into the hives. With no leads, Cloudy Showers had caught up to Scootaloo and Biggs after only a few minutes, confirming his identity with the password. Scootaloo wanted to go back and keep looking, but she bit back the request. At this point, they were as likely to find Thistleroot by moving forward as they were going back. She just had to hope for the best. It soured her stomach to realize there wasn’t more she could do. The passages of the changeling hive all looked the same, but eventually Scootaloo managed to find a vertical shaft larger than the one before, falling away out of sight. “This is it.” She led the guards down. Ten levels, then twenty. At the bottom of the shaft was a familiar hall. Scootaloo held up a hoof to her lips and then moved forward. No guards were in the hall outside, but the tablet itself was sure to be protected. Scootaloo crept to the edge of the opening she remembered from her first visit. The room she’d spent her time as a prisoner in was on the other side, and to her surprise it was empty. Open cells lined the circular room, and there was another passage opposite their current position that she’d never been down. Standing at the center was a natural stalagmite, and resting on the wide top of the stalagmite was the stone tablet. “That’s got to be a trap,” Scootaloo whispered. “Yeah, probably,” Biggs agreed. “I don’t see any changelings. Maybe it’s magic.” Scootaloo felt around for a loose stone and chucked it into the room. It hit the stalagmite and bounced off. Nothing else happened. “Maybe it’ll only go off if a pony gets close,” Sunlight Spear said. “Or it’s a tripwire.” “Well, there’s only one way to find out,” Zephyr said. “Yep,” Scootaloo said, and then before she could think twice, she bolted into the room, closing the distance to the stone tablet, brushing it with the tip of her wing, and continuing past. She tucked into a roll as she reached the safety of the far passage, shielding her head from any traps she might have sprung. Her mad dash was met by silence. The royal guards cautiously entered the room behind her. “Scootaloo, get back over here,” Biggs said. “You’re going to get yourself killed.” Scootaloo got back up, brushed herself off, and reentered the room. “Hey, Zephyr’s the one who said there was just one way to find out.” She approached the tablet. “No traps though. Maybe it’s a decoy?” “No, it is very much real,” an echoing voice said in a brisk, businesslike tone behind her. Scootaloo stiffened. “I have no intention of letting it out of my sight.” ***** Rosalia broke free from the fountain of butterscotch pudding, pushing her wings harder and harder to gain altitude. Her horn glared and green fire poured down toward Discord. He yawned and opened an umbrella to catch the flames. Once the fire had faded, Discord took a deep breath and blew up into the umbrella. It lifted him higher, carried aloft by his breath until he was above her. He gave it a shake and dozens of hoof sized jawbreakers rained from the inside of the umbrella. They pelted Rosalia like hail until she used a blast of magic to scatter them and tear through the umbrella. “Must you turn this into a food fight? Fighting you is already undignified as it is.” “Well, I’m sorry, but I missed breakfast.” Discord caught one of the last jawbreakers and popped it into his mouth, biting down with a loud crunch. Rosalia readied another blast, but Discord rolled his eyes. “This isn’t nearly as much fun as I remembered.” He vanished, reappearing in front of Rosalia with a giant pillow. Her eyes widened as he swung, smacking her out of the sky with a muted thud. She tumbled head over hooves and bounced into Shining Armor’s shield. Before she could recover, Shining Armor had appeared standing on the shield beside her. Faster than the changelings could react, his horn flared again, surrounding himself in a second smaller shield, and Rosalia in a third. Rosalia recovered and slammed into the shield as she poured her magic into it, but the shield held. Discord landed beside them. “Well, I do think that’s checkmate. You just couldn’t have made it interesting, could you?” Rosalia looked at him, teeth bared in snarl of rage. She turned back to Shining Armor, and then to Discord again. The anger faded, and Rosalia smiled. She chuckled. “Hmm, what is it?” Discord asked. “Oh, did you just remember a joke? Do tell, I love jokes.” “Of a sort,” Rosalia said. “Though I don’t know which one is funnier. The fact that you honestly think you can win,” she turned back to Shining Armor. “Or the fact that you ponies fell for the same trick twice.” A moment passed as Shining Armor looked around. None of the changelings were attacking them. They weren’t even trying to break through the larger shield. “What trick?” Discord asked. “The same one we pulled at your gala,” Rosalia said. The gala? Shining Armor’s stomach lurched. “No. No, no no.” Rosalia sat back, and with a flash of green light she became a smaller, purple-eyed changeling. “Do what you will to me, pony. We win.”