//------------------------------// // Chapter 16 — Incompatibility // Story: In Sheep's Clothing // by Kydois //------------------------------// — “Are you sure about this, Sweetie?” I furrowed my brow at the closed door before me. It was the front door to my home, but it was larger than I expected. I realized quickly that it wasn’t that it was larger, but that I was shorter, somewhere around my undisguised height. I didn’t answer the voice immediately. Dad was always the worrier, even more so than mom. Mom said it was because he thought too much about things, which was why he was such a good researcher, but there were times where I wish he wouldn’t try to control me so much. Day in and day out, saying the same things over and over like a record player. I didn’t have my own home or my own job, but I wasn’t stupid. I knew his perspective. I just wish he’d let me make my own decisions, and this was one decision I wasn’t going to turn on. I put a hoof on the door and he called out again. “Wait.” I heard him heave a sigh, and there was a moment of silence as he tried to think of the right words. I waited, of course. I owed him that much, even if I wasn’t likely to listen to what he had to say. “I… I understand,” he said, a hint of resignation in his voice. “I don’t like you going to the guard at your age, but I understand why, considering what happened to Persimmon. Just… good luck, Sweet Spot.” “And please stay safe, my little Nymph.” I pushed open the door. NOW Nymph The streets in the morning were bustling with the start of the work week, and it was hectic trying to get past the crowds of ponies. I still had a week to myself off from guard duties, so I grabbed my saddlebags and trotted out to the castle, leaving Lily back at the condo. It wasn’t ideal to leave her unattended, but I left her something to eat for most of the day and tried to shut away anything flammable. It’d be enough, hopefully. The castle’s ward, the area between the outermost wall and the central structure, was readily accessible to most ponies, particularly those wishing to make appointments with the crown. Certain areas further in, however, such as the gardens and the barracks, were understandably restricted from civilian access. Familiar sights greeted me as I passed through the gate. The embassy was immediately on the right as I entered, and the tall walls to the left closed off the gardens, including the hedge maze. Once I entered the central courtyard, it was pretty easy to locate and make my way into the barracks and training grounds. My hooves knew the location by heart, and once I showed my identification to the gate guards, I made my way inside. “So, Overwatch, why here?” I jumped a little. It was the first Crystal had spoken since we’d left the condo, after I informed her of my destination. “A-a couple things, I guess. I wanted a secure place to start testing my limits with my magic. You know the stallion that hit Lily a couple days ago? Went a little overboard and nearly brained him with a dumpster lid. There’s also a good place for me to show you the memory spell I cast without worrying about any potential damage to my furniture.” “There should not be any collateral damage. The memory spell I know of was not very intensive on magical stores, and all you need to do is hold the spell matrix on your horn. There is no need to release it.” I grimaced, my gut turning a bit. After learning just what little I knew of the spell I cast, I was not confident at all on anything about it. “If you say so. I also wanted to see if there was anything in the armory here that might potentially be helpful and see if I can shore up my close combat uhh… deficiencies.” “A good decision, though we shall see how much you can improve. Have you considered learning how to use a lethal weapon?” “Err, kinda? I do have a sword,” I sent to her as I scanned the grounds. The obstacle courses had a large group running through drills under the shouts of a sergeant, and the firing ranges were similarly occupied by archers and spellcasters alike. It’d be better to return to those after the morning training ends, so I turned to the armory building near the back of the compound. “Yes, I noticed you had a sword during your visit to your assigned guardhouse, yet when you were informed of a potential hostile in your sergeant’s office, you decided not on the sword, but on the club.” I pouted, but I had barely formulated a response before Crystal spoke up again. “Not that I disapprove of your choice, given your weakness in repelling a close-range attacker. Perhaps it was better off that you did not bring the blade, lest a more experienced and trained combatant turn your weapon against you.” I sighed in response. “So you’re saying I shouldn’t learn some sort of weapon?” I cast a leery eye at the front door of the armory and trotted off to the side. Even if I was certain about my ability to get past the security desk, I was less than enthused about leaving a record of my visit here. Plus, I already knew an alternate entrance. I hadn’t used it often, but it was still good to know just in case I needed a little something extra. My withdrawals were always registered with them later through Steel Blade, so no harm done if they ever take inventory, right? “More knowledge and skills means you will have more options when the time comes, and while a lethal option is undesirable, that does not mean it should be passed over. Just know that if you pick up a weapon, you should be prepared to use it to its fullest capacity.” I breathed in deep. “Alright, I’ll go take a look, at least.” I took a wide path to the back of the armory and found a discreet back door as well as a high window. The back door was locked, but the building had enough ornamental features jutting out on the outside that I could easily make my way up to the window. I would need to work on the locked latch a bit with my magic, but I could get in that way as long as I wasn’t worried about time. Instead, with a quick look around to confirm I was alone, I took my lockpicks out and began working on the door, and it only took a moment before the lock clicked open. I blinked. Crystal did have a point about having more options, I supposed, and I made my way inside. The inside of the armory was immaculate if a little sparse on decorations. The racks for the training weapons and armor were almost empty, but the rest of the equipment was still here. The lack of security was a bit surprising on some of these items, but the armory was already in an area only guards were allowed into, and most ponies would only be able to access this room from the front. I couldn’t sense anypony else in the building besides at the security desk, so I focused on the contents of the room. The various arms on the wall gleamed in the light menacingly. Swords and clubs featured prominently, but there were also spears, axes, and even a small section for maces. A few knives sat in a low cabinet as well. I hummed. “So, any recommendations?” “As an infiltrator, something small would be preferable, of course. The polearms are right out, despite their power. Swords are fairly standard, but personally, I prefer the axes.” I stumbled a bit, furrowing my brow as I looked back at the section for the axes. “Axes? Really?” “Yes. Is there something wrong?” “Sorry, I just… didn’t expect that. Axes just seemed like the polar opposite of the diplomacy and ‘silver tongue’ stuff you’ve been emphasizing all of yesterday.” “I find that when communication breaks down, violence is a very universal language that everyone can understand.” I blinked. “But what about the knives? Aren’t those standard fare for the whole sneaky, stabby sorta pony?” “Don’t get me wrong,” Crystal replied quickly, “daggers and throwing knives are good as well. You should keep one on you purely for their utility, but if you are behind someone poised to strike, there are other, less messy ways to take them out, usually involving magic. “In a straight fight, however, you will want something different. Ideally, you should never be in a straight fight, but plans have a tendency to not work out as we intend. Should you find yourself facing off against an opponent, your first goal is to make them stop hitting you. While the cutting edge of swords and axes do well in this regard against flesh and tissue, you will likely be facing changelings specialized for combat and protected by thick armored shells. In this case, axes are much more effective than swords and when you are stuck in a tight spot, being able to brute force your way out can be invaluable.” I levitated one of the axes off the walls, and it was once I felt the weight of it that I realized what exactly I was hefting. Crystal had mentioned that I should be prepared to use it to its fullest capacity, but was that really something I could do? To kill? I wasn’t alien to the concept. It’s not an uncommon theme in fiction, and though I considered the idea carefully, I found surprisingly little resistance from my gut to the idea. A logical part of me said that if somepony were to attempt to kill me, I should have no qualms about defending myself. It was either me or them, after all, but in the heat of the moment, would I really be able to end a life? What about murder on an unsuspecting foe? Could I do it without hesitation? Rather than disgust or horror at the idea, I felt anger and a sort of sadistic joy, broiling up within my breast. My magical grasp on my weapon seemed to tighten, the emerald glow becoming a little more opaque. Alarmed, I shook my head quickly. I made a conscious attempt to slow my breathing, and I noticed that even my heart had started to beat faster. I tried to remember those feelings, and it seems now that it was less anger and more… vengeance? How much of this was Overwatch? What could possibly warrant such an unexpected reaction? I certainly don’t remember anything from the hive that could have led to… that. In a way though, I had my answer. I examined the weapon in my magic closer, staring at it critically. It was lighter than the standard issue sword, but small enough not to be a hindrance to carry around. There were a few specialized holsters available for attaching it to a rear leg near the hip, so I took one down and sheathed the axe. I was certain I already had a knife with my armor at the guardhouse, so I skimmed over the rest of the weapons and arrived at the more specialized equipment. Through the metal grating on the numerous shelves, I spotted items like the books of explosive runes and the electrical staves. Unicorn guards were trained to replicate some of the spells within this section, so I trotted past a majority of the items that were a touch too high-profile or destructive. “Stop, what are those? The canisters.” I backpedaled a little and looked a little closer. At the back of my mind, I noticed a niggling feeling on my empathy sense, something much closer than expec— “Snuck in again, huh?” I spun around with a shriek, bracing myself against the nearby cabinet and staring at the intruder. It was an older pegasus in dress uniform, well into middle age, and though his grizzled face was familiar, I couldn’t place a name on him. My eyes found his rank insignia, and I immediately snapped to attention. “C-Captain!” He simply nodded at me. “At ease,” he said with a barely concealed smile. “Caught you taking the long way around out the corner of my eye. You getting old, Corporal Overwatch? You used to be able to hear me whenever I so much as looked at this building with you in it.” I stuck my tongue out at him defiantly, reminding myself to keep closer tabs on my empathy sense. “My apologies, sir. I was distracted, sir.” He snorted. “I can see that, corporal. You know you can go in through the security desk here. You have the credentials to take anything you need, within reason.” “I just wanted to stay in practice,” I replied, my voice much calmer now that I had gotten over my fright. “I report everything I take anyways, sir.” He rolled his eyes. “I’ll have to talk with my son at some point to stop circumventing the system. Now, what are you here for, corporal?” I shifted my weight back and forth uneasily, but I eventually levitated the sheathed axe I had taken earlier. “Sir, I uhh… I wanted to try learning how to use this, sir. To better defend myself, sir.” He narrowed his aged eyes at me, as if searching for something, and I tried to stand firm under his intense gaze. The captain gave me a curt nod and a small smile. “I like that look. Reminds me of when you were younger,” he said, turning away and trotting for the exit. “Make sure you go through the front when you leave.” “Sir, yes sir,” I said, with another salute. He was just about to leave the room, however, I called out to him. “Oh, sir! Just a quick question, sir.” The captain looked at me curiously, but made his way back slowly. “Alright then, what did you need?” I shuffled a bit to the side and motioned towards the item that Crystal had pointed out earlier. “Sir, I haven’t seen these before. What are they, sir?” He picked up one of the metallic cylinders, examining it closely. It was about as round across as a small beer bottle, with a black stripe near the top end and a small yellow warning sign right below the stripe. “Ahh, these. Something the research people wanted us to test. I think I’ve heard recruits calling them fumes, though from what I heard, they have compressed clouds in them.” I raised an eyebrow. “Compressed clouds?” He shrugged. “Don’t ask me how they work. All I know is you push this little thing at the top, chuck it where you want it, and it’ll release a thick, black, fog-like cloud from the other end. Just one can fill a large room in seconds. Couldn’t see anything, and whatever they did to make it black really sucks out the light. Takes a bit too long to disperse and the room was a little humid afterwards, but I could see a few uses for it. Why, you interested in trying a few out?” I looked at the rest of the canisters on the shelves. “Well, sir, I uhh…” “Take however many you can get.” I nodded. “Yeah, I’d like to have a few of these. How many am I allowed to take, sir?” The captain hummed in contemplation, tossing the can in his hoof up and down. “I’ll authorize three, so long as you don’t get into any trouble with them. You can take another if you want to take one for a test run in the pit. There’s a couple pouches in the drawers there if you need one of those as well.” “Sir, thank you, sir,” I said, snapping another salute. “Sir, I think we might have another visitor as well, sir.” He turned around just as another guard entered the room, still wearing his training gear. The new arrival saluted to the commanding officer and said, “Sir, the Princess is here to see you, sir.” “And that’s my cue. I shall see you later, corporal,” the captain said, trotting over to the private. “Don’t get into any more trouble, alright?” “Sir, yes sir!” I said, with one more salute before the two ponies left, leaving me alone in the armory. I turned and slammed my head into the drawers. I can’t believe I completely blanked on the name of the Captain of the Royal Guard. He even sounded like he knew me. Thank Celestia I hadn’t needed to address him by his real name. I think he mentioned his son at some point? Maybe I knew his son better than I knew him. A question for another time. I raised my head and opened the drawers, finding the storage pouches for the fog canisters as the captain had said. They had individual pockets for each canister, but it looked like there was only room for three cans. The straps on it were the reverse of the axe holster, so the two wouldn’t interfere with each other too much should I choose to use both, and it looked as if both could fit with the guard armor. I carefully put each holster on before nabbing the closest four fumes and slotting three into the waiting pouches. The last, I put into my scarf. There was little else of interest on the shelves that weren’t also in the armory at the Penumbra Guardhouse, albeit at lower quantities, so I turned to leave. And then I turned again so that I would go through the “proper” entrance. For boring ponies. Celestia “Auntie!” I turned my head to find an unfamiliar face trotting up to me, a purple pony with a mane of hot pink, though it was not very difficult to put two and two together. Cadence’s strong suit never was in creating good disguises. “Cadence, you seem well today,” I said, with a warm smile. “How have you been doing?” With my secretary taking my left side, Cadence pulled up to my opposite flank, matching speeds with me as I made my way down the castle steps to the courtyard. “I’ve been doing amazing! You wouldn’t believe the night I had yesterday. I originally thought bartending would really help me to know and interact with ponies, but Karaoke Night was a smashing success. I don’t think the manager could even believe how great it was.” I raised an eyebrow. “Oh, one of your ideas?” “Of course!” Cadence beamed at me, and I had to chuckle at just how jubilant she was. “His bar was already doing well, but he wanted a few ideas on events to host to really bring in the night crowds. He won’t be forgetting last night, that’s for sure. We had so many ponies there!” I nodded politely. “Really now?” She nodded excitedly. “Yep! I think we had a lot of ponies from college, but we really started when the guards showed up, and then it was just… Mmmmm! We had so many good singers. Hey, maybe Fancy Pants could hire a couple for his big party,” Cadence said with a giggle. “Oh, I have heard mention of this big party for the nobles. When was that again?” Her happiness really was infectious, and I strode into the barracks of the Royal Guard with a smile to match hers. “It was… in two weeks, I think?” Cadence said, counting in her head. My secretary, Silver Scroll, cleared her throat from my other side. “Twelve days, Your Majesty. It’s on a Saturday.” “I see. Hopefully he won’t be too tired for our meeting the next day,” I said with a chuckle before I turned to one of the trainees waiting on the sidelines to recover his energy. “Private, where might I find the captain?” The private seemed a bit surprised at my presence, but he snapped to attention immediately and saluted. “Princess! The captain told us he was going to the armory. Should I get him for you?” I nodded. “Yes, please. No hurry though. I just wanted to speak with him before I head to court.” “Of course, Princess.” He snapped another salute before taking off towards the back of the compound. I took a deep breath of the fresh morning air, taking a moment to enjoy the calm and the rhythmic sounds of guard training. It was times like this I really envied Cadence’s more open schedule, though I knew that if circumstances were different, she would give it up in a heartbeat. For centuries now, ever since the loss of the Crystal Empire, she’s been looking for anything to keep herself busy. Though perhaps not “anything.” She stoutly insisted on not helping to rule Equestria, and part of it was knowing exactly whose horseshoes she would be trying to fill should she rule at my side. I understood her decision and was thankful for any assistance she could lend, but it has still been difficult to find time to relax as the sole Princess of Equestria. Such is the penance I serve for the mistakes of the past. I turned to Cadence, who was scanning the training grounds intensely, perhaps looking for a few familiar faces. “So, new disguise?” She nodded. “Mhm. I can’t use the disguise from yesterday. Too many guards were at the bar last night, and it would be a tad difficult to explain why Miss Tango was walking with Princess Celestia through the Royal Guard Barracks.” I exchanged a grin with her, though my thoughts went back to the Summer Sun Celebration. Cadence’s disguises never really changed her body shape unless there was an age spell paired with them. She had the magical power for it, but disguises were very tricky, and the pony who could impersonate the sergeant in a brawl must have been very talented indeed. Not to mention whoever was casting the transformation spell on Lilywater. My first thought was Overwatch, since Lilywater’s sharp teeth when she came to find me seemed to go away once the two were reunited, but I discarded that idea when I found that her teeth had morphed back into a regular pony’s teeth before Overwatch even regained consciousness. Plus, Overwatch’s file with the Royal Guard noted no such talent for transformation magic. It still left two ponies out there with extraordinary magical talent, one of them a definite criminal for assault and theft. I could not discount the possibility they were the same pony, though it seems more likely they were unrelated. My musings were cut short by the sight of the private from earlier, returning with the captain. “Ahh, Princess Celestia!” Captain Brave Blade called out. “How may I help you, Your Majesty?” I gave him a small nod of my head. “My apologies for the unannounced visit, but I just wished to speak with you before I head back for court. Private? You may return to your training.” The private saluted one more time before departing, leaving the four of us a good distance away from any prying ears. I watched him depart for a while before I turned back to Brave Blade. “Captain, how fares the training? You know we only have fifteen years.” “They’re going as expected for now,” he said solemnly. He knew as well as I the gravity of the situation and just how close we were to potential disaster. “There’s a good number of trainees getting the necessary experience and training, and we are constantly looking for better ways to improve our methods and equipment. I’ve also been keeping an eye out for promising ponies to help lead the Royal Guard in my stead.” He looked out at the fields of recruits battering away at the dummies or sparring with each other, training hoof, horn, and wing. “They do not know the full extent of their duties yet. We’ve kept the details on a need-to-know basis for now,” Brave Blade said, before turning to me, “but rest assured we will be ready for the one-thousandth celebration.” Cadence shakily breathed in and out. “It’s almost time, isn’t it?” she said, sounding a bit in disbelief. “Even one and a half decades out, it feels like it’s coming too quickly, but we’ll finally be able to see her again.” Brave Blade smirked. “Well, I’ll try to hang on until then. I’m already feeling my age creep up on me.” Cadence returned the smile, but turned to me with a concerned look. “Auntie, you have felt nothing from the Elements of Harmony?” I shook my head and sighed. “I have not, unfortunately. It is regrettable we must pull so many able bodies for this cause, especially when it leaves the Royal Guards out in the streets of Canterlot understaffed and their surveillance full of holes.” I turned to address Brave Blade. “You have heard of the recent assault in an empty guard house on the morning of the Summer Sun Celebration, have you not? It grows difficult for the guard to prevent such problems as we prepare.” The captain harrumphed. “Indeed, Your Majesty, but it was at least the only serious report I received that day. Corporal Overwatch’s name has been appearing a lot in my recent paperwork, though not in the places I expected. Have to say though, I just stumbled on her sneaking into the armory again, and she seemed fine after being the victim of both a manticore attack and being knocked out. She had that look in her eyes, reminds me of when she first came to the guard. Always serious, always prepared to learn, says ‘sir’ too much. If anything, I think her incidents only served to galvanize her. Might be able to pull her into our plan if I can get a replacement for her on the street.” He looked off towards the armory and snorted. “Ahh, there she is. Finally using the front door this time.” I followed his gaze, and sure enough, I saw a charcoal-colored mare in the distance looking at us curiously, but it wasn’t the expression I was expecting from a pony who happened to spot royalty. She had her head slightly tilted to the side, her brow furrowed, and her eyes squinting, almost as if she was confused at what she was looking at. A movement to my side drew my attention to Cadence, who appeared to be looking at herself. She brought her front hoof up and stared at it before sweeping her mane into her line of sight and looking at that too. I raised an eyebrow at her. “Cadence, is something wrong?” “N-no, auntie,” she said, clearing her throat. “I recognize her from yesterday, at the bar. I thought she might’ve recognized me.” “So she was there during karaoke?” She nodded. “Yep! She was super awkward at first, but she managed to get into the swing of things. I could see some strapping stallion picking her up one day,” she said with a wry grin. “She was a pretty good pony, and seemed to have some close friends despite having the tact of a brick.” “Hmm, and was one of those friends bright green? Really flashy mane, strong accent?” Her eyes widened a little. “Yeah, she was.” Cadence furrowed her brow at me. “How’d you know that?” I grinned at her and turned back at Overwatch, who had averted her gaze once she realized I was looking back at her and trotted off quickly in another direction. “I’ve met them a couple times before.” I turned to Brave Blade and gave him a slight bow of my head. “Captain, I shall be returning to the castle for court now, but I’d like to ask, you’ve heard about Lilywater, have you not?” “I have, Your Majesty.” “See if you can figure out who’s working with her. Mages that can change a pony’s species don’t come every day.” “I will, Your Majesty.” Nymph I trotted to the next building where the Pit awaited, my mind still trying to resolve itself around what I had learned. “That’s Tango. There’s no way that’s not Tango,” I thought to Crystal, staring down at the ground and my moving hooves. “It was difficult to tell at first, but the underlying emotional signature was definitely hers.” “Indeed, even her apparent magical signature had me fooled for a moment until I could take a much deeper look.” I pursed my lips. “Do you think she’s a changeling? She didn’t change her colors all that much, but she did change.” “For that level of power, she would have to be a queen, but I have my doubts. Her magic is closer to that of a pony, and the way she reacted to your gaze would indicate a very inexperienced infiltrator. Should somepony question your disguise, the first thing to do is not to check whether you are wearing your disguise or not.” I nodded. “Perhaps we should ask her about it later?” “For matters like this, I would save it until you can leverage it effectively. Showing what you know prematurely could end poorly.” I grunted in affirmation before opening the door into the Arcane Containment Chamber, also known as the Combat Simulation Area or the Pit, depending on who was speaking. It was a vast circular arena with an extremely high ceiling, almost thirty meters up. The bottom portion of the chamber had to be built down into the foundations of the mountain to give it a less dominating appearance above-ground, and the walls were said to be enhanced by Princess Celestia herself to withstand even the most zealous ponies. The walls showed a little scuffing over the years, but the inside was, for all intents and purposes, indestructible. Luckily, it was completely empty, the perfect place to fling around some magic and readjust my power usage, especially since last night recharged my magic reserves. I took out the fourth fume I had taken, examining it closely. I had been a bit slow on the uptake, but now that I thought about it, these canisters could turn out to be extremely useful to a changeling like me. “Here goes nothing.” I took a deep breath before twisting the top, depressing the button, and throwing it as far as I could. I could see what the captain meant when he said it could fill a room in seconds. The bottom of the can sprayed out some sort of dark liquid before the entire thing exploded to its full size, and it was mind-boggling just how much fog cloud were stuffed into that tiny canister. The black clouds from the fume stretched almost ten meters in every direction and was completely opaque. Tendrils of fog crept slowly towards me, though the rest of the cloud seemed to stick to the air around it, like water slowly creeping down a windowpane. “Oh yes, this will do magnificently.” I couldn’t help the grin that came to my face. “Alright, alright, Overwatch. Calm yourself. Do not forget what we are here for.” I groaned, but I took a calming breath. “So, the memory spell, I take it?” “Yes. You need only to hold it on your horn. I see no reason to attempt it in a building such as this, but if you believe that it is safer, so be it.” I nodded one more time and closed my eyes. The memory spell that my mother taught me so clearly came to mind, and I let a little of my magic fill it, resting the spell matrix on the tip of my horn. It was difficult to say how much time passed. I felt a little of the lightheadedness from the last time I used the spell, as well as a sort of disconnect from my own body. I found my worries and resolve alike slowly dissolve into nothingness, and my head seemed like it was drifting away. “I… I have seen enough. Overwatch, dispel your magic.” I slowly siphoned off the magic from the spell matrix as if in a dream. The sense of my own limbs seemed to snap back into place, and the sounds and sensations of the world rushed back in. I stumbled a bit, and I shook my head to clear it. “So, what did you find out about it?” “It’s… This… It’s no memory spell that I have heard of.” I startled a bit, my eyes widening. “So what in Tartarus is it, if it’s not a memory spell?” “Do not misinterpret me, I recognize a few features of it, but… well, do you know what the difference between a pony’s magic and a changeling’s magic is?” I shook my head. “Nope.” “To put it in short, a changeling’s magic is much more intrinsic to their being than a pony’s magic is to theirs. Within a changeling’s magic are their thoughts, their memories, even how their physicality matures. It is what makes changelings so adaptable to any situation, and it is the foundation of a hive’s hivemind. “For a pony, they are as much defined by their physical body as they are by their magic. Their memories are similarly tied to their physical body, and now we reach the crux of the issue.” She seemed to focus on me, as if intensely glaring at me. “A single memory spell cannot work on both a changeling and a pony. They are inherently incompatible. There are all sorts of different memory spells over the years, but the spell you cast is very similar to something I have seen in the past. Before, the spell was targeted towards changelings and would take a little of their magic and attempt to integrate it into a ling’s own magic field. This was how they breached another hive’s hivemind. The spell took a hefty price to use and was faded out of usage along with the rangers. “This spell, however, scans and attempts to copy the target’s magical field completely. Remember how I mentioned that a changeling’s magic also included their memories? This was how it transferred memories over: by partitioning your magic and simply turning one part of it into the target themselves.” I mulled over the information, chewing on my lip. “So a memory spell targeted towards changelings attempts to copy their magic entirely?” “Yes, now imagine what that sort of spell would do if used on a pony, whose magic is intensely interwoven with their physical body.” Oh. Oh no. I hissed at Crystal, hiding in my scarf. “Is that why my magic is all messed up? Because I turned some of my magic into pony magic?” “And it’s likely why you have a very limited access to Overwatch’s memories. You just cannot process them the same way as a pony can because you are not one, and yet your spell attempted to turn a part of you into a pony. There are little to no safeties on that spell. It is reckless and wildly dangerous if used incorrectly. Perhaps the creator never cared about potential improper use,” Crystal spat out venomously. I rubbed at my head, trying to fend off the throbbing. “So what about a memory spell targeted towards ponies? How do those work?” “Rather simply, but it can be a bit time consuming and requires the magic to convert a pony’s memory into something readable. That’s why you need two lings to cast a memory spell for ponies. It’s just… this all seems so familiar, the memory spell you were taught. I swear I have seen it before, but just… where?” She was silent for a moment. “I must think on this myself. I thank you for your cooperation. You were here to train your magic, were you not? Forget about the memory spell for now while I gather my thoughts.” I blinked at the sudden whiplash in Crystal’s personality. She had seemed so… serious, perhaps lost? I knew Crystal had lost her memories, but seeing my spell had stirred something up within her. Maybe what I saw wasn’t her confusion, but her… desperation? I charged up the first spell I wanted to be sure of, a simple stun spell that I had already used recently. Whatever was up with Crystal, I trusted that she had her own reasons to keep it to herself. I could always broach the subject later, but for now, I had my own problems to resolve.