//------------------------------// // Five from the Hive // Story: Twilight's New Logic Puzzle Adventure // by Coyotek4 //------------------------------// Cloudstitch and Sunbolt stand agape at Zodiac’s assertion as Twilight turns to ‘Oak Tree’, concerned how the latter will react. Spiral turns to Zodiac. “What’s gotten into you?” she asks tersely. Zodiac’s tone softens as he turns to Spiral. “My apologies for being so curt, but what’s the point of all these little ‘tests’ of worthiness …” He trots over to ‘Oak Tree’. “… if we simply invite changelings into these hallowed halls?” “That is a serious accusation to levy, least of all on such a young filly,” Cloudstitch states, finding her voice. “What proof do you have for this charge?” Zodiac snorts derisively at no one in particular, then faces ‘Oak Tree’. “We’ve all become so fixated on notions of ‘proof’, when one can see the truth simply by gazing into the eyes.” He addresses her softly: “Go ahead … there’s no more need to hide your true self. I promise you, nothing can be gained by continuing this charade.” ‘Oak Tree’ turns to Twilight, seeking guidance from her expression. Twilight closes her eyes and nods … and Ocellus morphs back into her true changeling self. The other three faux-alicorns stare in disbelief at the former pegasus’ true self. Sunbolt then turns to Twilight, anger burning from within. “How DARE you bring a changeling to our headquarters!” Cloudstitch walks over to her son and places a forehoof on Sunbolt’s shoulder. “That’s enough, Sunbolt; there’s nothing to be gained by shouting or violence.” She then turns to Twilight. “On the other hoof, you do have some explaining to do.” “Cloudstitch,” Zodiac starts, “I would like to question this changeling further while you and the others get what information you can from our Princess of Friendship.” Cloudstitch nods, and Zodiac beckons Ocellus to follow him out the door. “I’m coming with you,” Spiral states as she turns to the door. “I think I can handle this on my own,” Zodiac replies. “We’re partners, remember?” “I’m … well aware of that,” Zodiac retorts, “but I also think it intimidating enough for a youngling to be interrogated by one alicorn, let along two. Besides, I think the more ponies there are to get answers from Twilight, the better.” Spiral opens her mouth to respond, but Cloudstitch interrupts: “Perhaps he’s right; she may be a changeling, but she’s still just a child. You stay with us.” She turns to Zodiac. “Do not be too harsh … but find out as much as you can.” “Understood.” With that, Zodiac and Ocellus make their way back through the doorway. “We don’t need to get other alicorns around here riled up,” he tells the changeling upon leaving the room, “so kindly turn back into your ‘Oak Tree’ disguise.” Ocellus nods and morphs back into her pegasus form. They travel down a myriad of corridors, passing several other faux-alicorns along the way, until finally reaching an unoccupied hallway with an open window. Ocellus looks around, not seeing an interrogation room. “Is there some sort of hidden entranceway?” Zodiac turns to the faux-pegasus. “You’re pretty smart, Ocellus. How’d you like to be real smart?” Ocellus looks at him quizzically. “I … I don’t understand.” “You trust Twilight, right?” Ocellus nods in apprehension. “Then I ask you to trust me. Now follow.” Zodiac spreads his wings and flies out the open window. Ocellus takes one look behind her, then soars out the window in pursuit of Zodiac. “… and when I woke up, me and all my friends were covered in slime but otherwise unharmed. And all the changelings, well, changed to their current forms.” The three faux-alicorns digest the information Twilight provided. “Is that why this young changeling appeared as she did?” Cloudstitch asks. “It’s who she is,” Twilight replies. “When I think of changelings, I think of four-legged black bugs with pockmarks and a sinister demeanor,” Sunbolt states. “How can you be certain the form she shows you now really is her true form?” “It’s not just appearance,” Twilight answers. “She’s pure in heart and mind, just like King Thorax.” “Thorax?” Spiral asks. “What about Queen Chrysalis? Did she change as well?” “No … she fled from her former home. She popped up once, while I was away on friendship business, but nopony has seen her since.” “Then how do you know Ocellus isn’t working with Chrysalis?” Sunbolt asks. “For that matter, how can you trust any of them?” Twilight turns to Sunbolt and stares daggers at him, her response nonthreatening but resolute: “Actions speak the loudest of all … and the actions taken by King Thorax and, indeed, all the changelings since the Transformation tell me that they’re reformed. That they want to be part of a greater good. That they have the best interests of all civilization … regardless of what some naysayers would believe.” Sunbolt starts to respond but is stopped by Cloudstitch: “You really care for this ‘Ocellus’, do you not?” “I care for the well-being of all my students … and of all creatures, pony or otherwise.” … “You’re very convincing,” Spiral states, “and I believe that you believe everything you state. But that doesn’t deny the possibility of at least some renegade faction of changelings, those still aligned to the old ways.” “No, I suppose not,” Twilight admits. “But I haven’t seen any ‘old-school’ changelings since the Transformation. Have any of you?” Twilight turns from one faux-alicorn to another. “You all seem deathly afraid of a changeling invasion,” she continues, “but I haven’t seen any hints of such a thing, not now and not during my last trip here. Perhaps you could start filling me in on what’s been going on.” Cloudstitch begins to craft a response … but an alicorn bursts into the room, causing the others to turn to him. “Sorry I’m late,” Zodiac starts, “I got detained on my way back this morning from Elysium.” For all intents and purposes, Paradise is no different from Utopia. A greater number of pegasi roam the streets and frequent the homes and businesses of the village, but a visitor from the outside would otherwise see little to differentiate the town founded by pegasi to that founded by unicorns just off the other pathway at the fork. Similar residences, similar structures … a similar inn, whose entrance ‘Zodiac’ and ‘Oak Tree’ land near. The twosome enter the inn and head to a room already occupied by a pair of pegasi. ‘Zodiac’ addresses ‘Oak Tree’ as he closes and locks the door. “You kept up with me very well. You’re a stronger flier than I thought.” “Nice of you to notice … uncle.” ‘Zodiac’ morphs into his yellow-clad changeling form, turns to Ocellus and smiles. “How long have you known?” Ocellus morphs back into her changeling form. “You called me Ocellus. I never told anyone here my name … but Twilight called it out in your presence last night.” Coccyx laughs. “I knew you were smart. You always were a smart one … the smart, quiet one who hung around in the back, always keeping to herself.” Ocellus looks away briefly. “I’m getting better,” she says as she turns back to face Coccyx. “I have friends now. Friends who’ll be there for me in times of need, and who can count on me when they’re in need.” “Yes, I’m sure that school is doing wonders for the good of society,” Coccyx dryly states. “But while you learn about the abstract, some of us deal with the concrete.” Ocellus gives a Coccyx a look of curiosity. “We have much to discuss,” he continues, “but first some associates of mine would like a demonstration.” Coccyx turns to the pair of pegasi in the corner and nods; moments later, the twosome morph into a twin pair of lavender-colored changelings with red wings. “Took you long enough,” one says. “It ain’t easy just lying around while you gallivant as one of those ridiculous ‘alicorns’. “I got done as fast as I could, Tar” Coccyx replies. “How did the two of you fare.” “We held him up as long as we could,” the other twin answers, “but he’ll be with your new ‘princess’ friend soon enough. And then they’ll be looking for us.” “It’s a large region, Carp. A lot of places to check for creatures who can blend in with the scenery if need be. I think we have enough time for one more demonstration … which the two of you insisted on, I might add.” “You’ve been talking this little one up since last night,” the first twin states. “I’d like to see her in action before making my own judgment.” The second twin nods in agreement. “Fair enough.” Coccyx then turns back to Ocellus. “These are my associates, Tarsus and Carpus. We have some plans for these out-of-the-way Equestrian towns … and we’d like you to assist us in those plans.” Ocellus turns from Coccyx to Tarsus and Carpus, then back to Coccyx. “I won’t do it. I won’t return to the old ways.” Coccyx turns to the twins … and the three of them share a hearty laugh, catching Ocellus by surprise. “You … *heh heh* … you think we’re trying to suck the life out of these ponies?” Coccyx chuckles again. “No, my dear, we’re not planning anything of that sort …” His demeanor shifts to a more serious tone. “… but we are planning something of an incursion, and you’re welcome to join us.” “An incursion? To what end?” “Ah ah ahh …” Coccyx replies. “First, Tarsus and Carpus would like to see what you’re capable of. Prove your worth, and I’ll tell you everything you wish to know. Then you may decide whether to help … but I believe you will.” Ocellus thinks back to her glowing wings from the previous morning … how she was brought to the triple towns for a reason … and carefully considers Coccyx’s offer. “What sort of proof do you need?” Coccyx explains his test: “The ponies in these towns are quirky when it comes to notions of truth and falsity, particularly with regards to their town of origin. We need to be certain you can recognize what’s OK to say and what isn’t. Here is how you’ll demonstrate this ability to us.” “I will ask you to turn away for a moment; when you turn back to face us, we will appear as three ponies who come from the three towns. We will each speak, and then you must determine who is who. Now, Tarsus will always represent a truth-telling pony, either a Utopian unicorn, a Paradisian pegasus, or an Elysian earth pony; thus, any comment he makes will be true. Carpus, however, will always represent a lying pony, so he may appear as a Utopian earth pony, or a Paradisian unicorn, or some other such combination.” “And what about you?” Ocellus asks, causing Coccyx to chuckle. “I may appear as any combination of pony type and place of residence … but whatever combination I choose, my comments will be the opposite of what is normal. So if, for example, I appear as a Paradisian pegasus, my statements will be false. Or I could appear as an Elysian unicorn, and my statements will then be true. Got all that?” Ocellus pauses. “I … I think so.” “Then let us commence. Please turn away for a moment.” Ocellus abides and turns away; moments later, she turns back and sees a unicorn, a pegasus, and an earth pony. The unicorn states that he is from Utopia, the pegasus states that he is not from Paradise, and the earth pony states that he is from Utopia. Ocellus quickly identifies which is which. “That one was meant as a warm-up,” Coccyx says. “Let’s see how you do on the next set.” Ocellus again turns away, and upon turning back she now eyes three earth ponies. The first earth pony states that all of them are from Elysium, the second earth pony states that none of them are from Elysium, and the third earth pony states that the first earth pony is from Elysium. Ocellus takes but a moment longer than before to identify Coccyx, Tarsus, and Carpus. The third time Ocellus turns away, she turns back to see a unicorn and two pegasi. The unicorn states that both he and the first pegasus are from Elysium, the first pegasus states that the unicorn’s comment is true, and the second pegasus states that none of the three are from Utopia. With increasing confidence in her voice, Ocellus again identifies which changeling is which pony. For the fourth test, Ocellus eyes a unicorn and two earth ponies. The unicorn states that all three of them come from Utopia, the first earth pony states that he is from Paradise, and the second earth pony states that none of the three are from Elysium. For the fourth time, Ocellus identifies all three changelings correctly. For the fifth and final test, Ocellus again sees one of each pony type. The unicorn states that each of the threesome is from a different town. The pegasus states that neither he nor the unicorn are from Utopia. The earth pony states that both he and the unicorn are from Elysium. Ocellus ponders the three statements for some time, then turns to one of them. “I know you’re not Tarsus …” she states before turning to another, “… and I know you’re not Carpus.” She then turns to the remaining ‘pony’. “And you could be anyone … so I ask you to answer this: ‘Are ‘you’ from Elysium?’ And answer me in a way consistent with the rules you set for these tests.” The ‘pony’ she addressed answers with a ‘Yes’ or ‘No’, and Ocellus then identifies each of Tarsus, Carpus, and Coccyx. The threesome morph back to their changeling form, the twins shaking their heads. “I stand corrected,” Tarsus admits as he turns to Coccyx. “I had no idea how intelligent she was.” “Then again,” Carpus states, “she could have just gotten lucky on some of those.” Coccyx turns to Carpus. “Well let’s see … 6 combinations for each test, 5 tests, that’s …” He pauses for a moment of mental calculation. “… seven thousand, seven hundred, seventy-six possibilities. I suppose she could be the luckiest changeling alive, though.” “Come off it,” Carpus defiantly retorts. “Obviously she was going to get at least some of those.” He turns to Ocellus. “I’d like to hear how you knew all of those.” “We don’t have time for—” “I’m sure there’s enough time,” Carpus states, cutting off his twin as his eyes remain focused on the young changeling. “Go on then … I’m all ears.” “Well … OK …” Ocellus starts. “The first test was easy because Coccyx already used that statement last night, or at least a variation of it. No pegasus from these towns would ever state that they were not from Paradise, so the pegasus had to be him. And since no earth pony would ever truthfully state that they were from Utopia, you had to be the earth pony, leaving Tarsus as the unicorn. Ocellus directs her remaining thoughts at the trio, as Tarsus and Coccyx each bend an ear. “With the second test, it’s not possible for all the earth ponies to be from Elysium, since none of them could then be Carpus. It’s also not possible for none of them to be from Elysium, since then none of them could then be Tarsus. That means the first two ponies lied and the last must have been Tarsus. That means his statement was true, so the first earth pony was from Elysium but still lied; that one must have been Coccyx, and the second earth pony who spoke must have been Carpus.” “Both of those puzzles were simple,” Carpus states. Ocellus ignores the comment as she continues. “With the third group, suppose the unicorn’s comment was true. Then the first pegasus would also be truthful, and both of them would be from Elysium … but then both of them would be truthful but contrary to the rules of these towns, and only Coccyx is allowed to do that for these tests. That means both of them lied, and the second pegasus must have been Tarsus. Since Coccyx lied, he must have been either a Utopia unicorn or a Paradisian pegasus … but it couldn’t have been the former, since none of them were from Utopia as the second pegasus stated truthfully. So Coccyx must have been the first pegasus, and Carpus must have been the unicorn.” “As for the fourth group, Tarsus couldn’t have been either earth pony, since each made a statement that no earth pony from these towns would truthfully say. So Tarsus must have been the unicorn, and all three ponies in this case were from Utopia. So both Coccyx and Carpus were Utopian earth ponies, and Coccyx must have been truthful with his statement; since the second earth pony was truthful, that must have been Coccyx, and Carpus must have been the first earth pony.” “That fifth test, though, was unfair,” Ocellus states as she focuses on Coccyx, “but you knew that, didn’t you.” “Had to make things a little more challenging at the end,” he replies with a smile. “So you admit you guessed?” Carpus inquires. “No … I figured out what I could, and asked my question accordingly.” “And what did you figure out?” Tarsus asks. “To start with, I knew the unicorn could not be from Utopia. Suppose he was; then both the pegasus and the earth pony lied, so Tarsus would had to have been the unicorn, and his statement would had to have been true. In this case, the pegasus and earth pony would had to have been from Paradise and Elysium, in some order. But with a Paradisian pegasus and Elysian earth pony, neither could have been Carpus. And with an Elysian pegasus and Paradisian earth pony, both of which are lying in accordance with the rules of these towns, neither could have been Coccyx. So that rules out the unicorn being from Utopia.” “Astounding,” Tarsus says to himself as Ocellus continues. “So now I know the unicorn is not from Utopia; he’s either Coccyx and telling the truth, or Carpus and lying. Now if the unicorn was Coccyx, then his statement was true and the threesome must be from three different towns … but in order for one to have been Tarsus and one to have been Carpus, it would follow that exactly one pony type would match his town’s initial, and that one couldn’t be the unicorn. What if the earth pony were from Elysium? Then he would had to have been Tarsus … but his statement was a lie, contradicting the rules you set for these tests. That only leaves the possibility that the pegasus was from Paradise … and here I found a possible outcome: Coccyx is an Elysian unicorn, Tarsus is a Paradisian pegasus, and Carpus is a Utopian earth pony.” “Remarkable,” Carpus says to himself as Ocellus proceeds. “What if the unicorn was Carpus? Then the pegasus and earth pony would be Coccyx and Tarsus, in some order. What if Tarsus was the pegasus and Coccyx was the earth pony? That would mean the pegasus was from Paradise, and the unicorn was from either Paradise or Elysium. But Elysium causes a problem: the earth pony’s statement would then either be true if he were from Elysium and false if he weren’t … but all of those cases fall within the rules of the towns, so in none of those cases could Coccyx be the earth pony. But it would be possible for the unicorn to be from Paradise, making the earth pony’s statement false regardless of where the earth pony was from, so now he could be from Elysium. That led to a second possible outcome: Carpus is a Paradisian unicorn, Tarsus is a Paradisian pegasus, and Coccyx is an Elysian earth pony.” Coccyx simply smiles as Ocellus carries on: “Could Coccyx have been the pegasus? That would force Tarsus to be the earth pony, and therefore from Elysium. The earth pony’s statement would then be true, so the unicorn would be from Elysium too. The pegasus couldn’t be from Utopia, as that would make his statement false which would be within the town’s rules; he would have to be from either Paradise or Elysium, and his statement would then be true … but for Coccyx, that rules out Paradise. Thus I got a third possible outcome: Carpus is an Elysian unicorn, Coccyx is an Elysian pegasus, and Tarsus is an Elysian earth pony.” “So from your original statements,” Ocellus concludes, “I knew that the unicorn couldn’t be Tarsus and the pegasus couldn’t be Carpus … but the earth pony could have been any of you. And that’s when I decided to ask the earth pony if he was from Elysium. Had the earth pony said ‘Yes’, I would not have been able to figure out whether that answer was true or false … but I got a ‘No’ response, which of course could only have come from Coccyx. That led to the final answer: Carpus was the unicorn, Tarsus was the pegasus, and Coccyx was the earth pony.” Coccyx turns to Carpus. “Need any more proof?” In response, Carpus turns to Ocellus. “I … I had no idea you were … wow … that was, incredible! I apologize for ever doubting you!” Ocellus smiles sheepishly, accepting of the praise but cautious as to their motives. “Now can you tell me why you’re here?” “Of course,” Coccyx quickly states, “you’ve more than proven yourself to us. The truth is—” A loud pop interrupts Coccyx’s response, as the four changelings all turn to a corner of the room. All are stunned to see Twilight staring back at them, displaying a look of determination and fear. “You have five minutes to explain everything you can to me, before the Society breaks down the door!”