//------------------------------// // Chapter 22: An Odd and Highly Inconvenient Change in Behavior // Story: A Time to Think // by The Sonic Mage //------------------------------// To Thorax’s surprise, everything was going better than expected. Sure it was a bit nerve wracking to have the Elements of Harmony wondering about the Hive, as well as sitting in a room with the three Equestrian Princesses. Aside from that, however, there was no reason to panic. In fact, the more he continued to (awkwardly) exchange pleasantries with the Princesses, the more confident he became in the situation. ‘By Faust,’ Thorax thought, ‘I just might be able to pull this off.’ The sound of laughter returned his attention to reality. Cadence was finishing up a story about the time Shining Armor went to the dentist to get some extra teeth removed. The details of his appointment were hilarious. “The dentist had given him so much anesthesia, that he couldn’t talk right for weeks!” Cadence said through her laughter, “He sounded like a newborn foal!” The rest of the table laughed. Luna even smacked the table. The idea of a grown stallion being so numb in the mouth that they couldn’t form a whole word was funny all on its own. The fact that the pony in question was Shining Armor just made it even better. “Oh, that poor boy,” Celestia commented as she recovered. “I could do an impression of what Shining Armor would be like in that state, but I’m not gonna,” Thorax said, wiping his eyes. Luna’s attention quickly went to the young king, “Oh, please do! We demand to see it!” Thorax rubbed the back of his neck. “I don’t know. I mean, it’s rude, and-” “Thorax,” Cadence interrupted, “We’re all grownups, and he’s not even here.” Thorax bit his lip for a moment, but soon caved. With a swirl of magic flame, he looked just like Shining Armor. Of course, he let his tongue partly hang limply out of his mouth. And to take it even further, he spoke with his tongue out to impersonate Shining’s voice. The room burst out in laughter. “That’s perfect!” Cadence exclaimed. Celestia continued her efforts to not completely bust a gut, when she noticed the position of the sun in the sky. “Oh dear,” She said, “Honestly, where does all the time go?” Celestia’s comment drew everyone’s attention to the time as well. Thorax looked around the table trying to work out an organic thing to say. “I suppose you need to get back home?” Thorax said, making sure to sound down about it (Truthfully, part of him was a bit down about it. The little meeting had been fun, though a little hectic). “Indeed,” Luna said, rising from her seat, “We can only stay away from the palace and our duties for so long.” “I’m sorry Thorax,” Cadence walked over to the Changeling King and gave him a friendly hug, “Wish we could have stayed longer.” “It’s okay, everyone’s got work to do,” Thorax returned the hug, then went to open the door, “And besides, I’ll come and visit you next time.” “That sounds lovely Thorax,” Celestia said with a smile as they exited the room, “Do send a letter when you can.” Thorax smiled and nodded. ‘Unlike me, you’re guaranteed to read it.’ Hoof steps drew the attention of the group. “I think that might be the rest of our group.” Cadence said. Indeed it was, and the Princesses would have greeted them if it weren’t for their appearances. Pinkie-Pie and Applejack were messes of powder, batter, icing, and a host of other things involved with baking. Rarity had her hair in a bun, with sewing pins stuck into the base of it looking over a sketch book. Fluttershy had some dirt on her as well as a collection of very exotic looking flowers. Twilight was carrying a ludicrous amount of notebooks and loose papers both in her saddle bag and in her magic. The only thing any of them had in common was that they were still talking to the Changelings that the had met with. The room was abuzz with chatter, and the exchange of ideas. Thorax and the Royal Sisters could only stare, but Cadence got everyone’s attention. “Wait!” She exclaimed, causing everyone to stop, “Where’s Shining and Rainbow?” It was only at that moment that everyone realized that they were indeed missing two members. Fortunately, the sound of hooves coming down the hall to the group’s right, drew their attention to three figures, two ponies and one changeling, approaching them. “Hey everypony!” Shining called as he came into view. “Oh, good there you are,” Cadence breathed a sigh of relief, “I was worried that you-Oh my goodness!” Cadence’s reaction was not uncalled for. Rainbow Dash on her own was a sweating mess, panting like a dog and wheezing like an asthma patient. She looked like she had spent three straight hours in the shower and forgot to dry off. This was indeed one of the rare times where Dash was legitimately tired. Shining Armor and Pharynx were even worse, as the leaned against one another for support. Aside from being sweaty, they also looked like they had been in a fight. Shining had several bruises all over his body, with a slight limp in his left front leg, and Pharynx had similar bruises plus a black eye. “What?” Shining asked as if this were a normal occurrence. “Shining, what happened to you?! Are you alright?!” “I’m fine Cadence, really. It’s okay.” Pharynx was about to remark “I’m fine, thanks for asking”, but Thorax came to check on him with similar concern before he could. “Pharynx! Are you alright? It’s anything broken? Are you-you-you…You challenged Shining to a sparring match, didn’t you?” The Pony Captain and Changeling General simply smiled and said, “We neither confirm, nor deny,” in unison. There was some laughter and worry-filled complaints (Mostly from Cadence and Thorax) that filled the room. However, in the midst of this, Pinkie-Pie twitched. Normally, she would have made an outcry to warn everyone, but she didn’t. This wasn’t a normal twitch, like when her tail went off. This was something different. Rather than telling her to run from something, this was telling her to go to something. She looked down the hall behind her, and there was a spiral staircase that went up and down. This new, nagging feeling compelled her to take the staircase down…somewhere. In her usual Pinkie-Pie way, she stood at the foot of the stairs, looked at the rest of her compatriots and called out, “Hey, Thorax!” Thorax looked over Pinkie-Pie was. “Yes, Pinkie?” He said, only to mentally seize up, upon seeing exactly where she was standing. And he wasn’t the only one to notice. Pharynx, and the two Changeling guards that had escorted “The Queen in Question” down those stairs, took notice as well. Thorax began mental praying, ‘Please don’t ask what’s down the stairs, please don’t ask what’s down the stairs, please don’t ask what’s down the stairs’, as did all the other Changelings who knew what lay several flights below. “What’s down these stairs?” Pinkie called. ‘Pony Feathers!’ Thorax was so close to cursing out loud, but he managed to hold back the words, and maintained the same expression, despite the little beads of sweat forming on his forehead. “Just some empty space. Nothing really interesting,” Thorax said in a calm, warm voice that was more for himself than anyone else, “Now, how about I personally escort you to your ride home?” “Come on, Pinkie,” Apple Jack said. The group started making their way towards the exit of the Hive, but Thorax stopped walking when he noticed the lack of the sound of spring- filled hoof-steps behind or among their group. Cause for even more concern. Neither Thorax, nor his brother, nor the two Changeling guards accompanying them, wanted to look back. But alas, they had to. All at once, these four Changelings turned around. They didn’t like what they saw. Pinkie-Pie was standing at the foot of the staircase, staring at the group like a clueless child. She quietly blinked and tilted her head to the left, only furthering the comparison. It was getting harder for Thorax to fake a calm demeanor and a warm smile. A bead of sweat fell from his face to the floor. It went unnoticed. Rarity spoke up, saving Thorax the trouble. “Pinkie-Pie, are you alright,” She said, seeing that their friend hadn’t moved from that very spot, “Darling, we must be going. Surely you have things to do at home?” Pinkie-Pie looked at the staircase, then back to the group. Then back to the staircase. Then back to the group. She held her gaze on the small crowd of Changelings and Ponies for a while. Silence filled the hall like a tub, and the tension that was present was so tight that one could play the violin on it. Thorax, Pharynx, and the two guards, hoped-prayed that Pinkie would just bounce right over to the group. That would solve so many problems they had at the moment. Pinkie Pie lifted a hoof off the ground. They got hopeful. *Zip!* With a single stretch of her impossibly elastic body, and a cartoonish sound, Pinkie-Pie disappeared down the staircase. There was a moment of silence, as everyone’s brains tried to catch up with, and comprehend what just happened. Silence… And then… “AAAAAAAAAAA!!!!” Panicked screaming from four Changelings in the group. “Get Them!!” Pharynx barked at the two guards under his command. They didn’t waste time with salutes and “Yes, Sir”s. They immediately went into action. Using their spears to vault over those in their way and round tight corners, they quickly pursued the pink party pony. Thorax, in a panic, ran down the steps to try and stop Pinkie-Pie as well. “Thorax!” Pharynx called as he then began chasing his brother. Unfortunately, the rest of the group would soon follow. Applejack ran after the four Changelings and overly hyper pony, “Pinkie-Pie, get back here!” As the crowd of ponies, Royalty included, joined the fray, their Changeling escorts were quick to chase their guests. They didn’t need a briefing to intuit what was happening and why it was probably bad. An entire crowd of ponies and Changelings were racing down the spiral staircase, all in persuit of their fellows. Not everyone knew what was happening. But those that did knew that more likely than not, this was going to go very, very wrong