//------------------------------// // Language // Story: Murgröna's Testimony // by Powerdrainer //------------------------------// Edited by Slayerseba, Halusm, and Clawder. Language <<>><<>><<>> It was in the midst of the cold cycle when the hunter returned, bringing with her enough food for all of them and a discovery which changed their stories from there on out.  After her return, and sharing with the horde what she found, plans were made. They waited out the cold cycle, now no longer needing to venture out and risk succumbing to the cold white, they first mourned their hunters lost and joined them in their memories. Then their attention shifted to the strange skins she had brought with her, trying to deduce what they were from smell and taste, yet unable to work out what the unknown items were made of exactly. Another curiosity that quickly managed to spread under the rock was the manner in which she had been greeted by the strange creatures who shared a strange resemblance with them. Before long, all were engaged in shaking their hooves with one another to the point their life-giver had to make them stop and focus on the tasks needed to maintain their burrow throughout the cold cycle. Though she, too, could be found from time to time shaking hooves with her clutch, much to the amusement of all. But eventually, when the cold cycle gave way and the world began to turn green once again a group of hunters, some of the elders, some of the young just through their rite of passing and, of course she who had first met them set out in the slowly warming world and ventured forth to retrace her steps. Unsure what they might find but, determined to find out for themselves. <<>><<>><<>> She stepped past the couple of stumps where she remembered first seeing them, having trouble recognizing the area at first as it was no longer covered in cold white. But now she stepped out of the shadows cast by the group of trees and towards the calm stream of water glistening in the bright light in the sky.  With a hoof she adjusted the skin covering her head, realizing that it along with the others skins now made her uncomfortably warm. How or why was a mystery to her or the others, but she refused to take them off.  It were those creatures that gifted them to her, so she would wear them when they meet again.  Looking behind her, she noticed the others had moved into hiding; picking up on the same confusion and nervousness she felt the first time she saw those strange objects.  A flutter of her wings betrayed her own feelings of nervousness. Was what happened last time a fluke? would they be hostile now the cold cycle was over? How would they react when more of her horde showed themselves? A chirp came from her side, and she noticed one of the younger hunters had moved beside her. Giving a small smile in reply, she forced those worries behind her and took a bold step forwards, aware that the others stayed back and watched her move closer. Coming to a stop at the edge of the stream of water, she took a moment to watch her wavering reflection and the strange skins she wore. They were alien to her, just as they were the first time she saw them and put them on. But some part of her also recognized them as something more. Hope, maybe? A promise? She didn't know what exactly, but she intended to find out. Crossing the stream with buzzing wings, she moved closer to the stacked tree objects, dropping to the ground and sinking partially away in the tall grass she noticed several of the creatures had heard her buzz and called out to the others while stopping whatever they were doing and watch her come closer.  This close to them, she once again could feel what they felt and she faltered slightly in her steps. Back when she had returned to the rock, this strange… ability seemed to have gone away. She tried to use it with her clutch, show them what she had discovered and somehow teach it to them. Instead, she found herself unable to replicate the strange ability which allowed her to feed so much in such a short time. Eventually, after numerous unsuccessful attempts, she came to believe it was somehow connected to these strange creatures. And now, slowly approaching the growing group of said creatures, she could feel this strange and unknown part of herself once more. One of the creatures ran towards her; the young hatchling she remembered from before.  Coming to a screeching stop before her, kicking up some dirt in the process, the hatchling bounced excitedly on its hooves while an unintelligible stream of sounds spewed from its mouth. Looking at the hatchling and remembering what she deduced so far from her last encounter, she was somewhat certain the youngling was male. Realizing she didn't understand a word he was saying, the hatchling instead mirrored the action he did when they last met and pressed his hoof on her muzzle, smiling widely.  Once again, surprising both but without the shouting and flailing like last time, a strange energy flowed from his hoof and, she smacked her lips as the delightful taste filled her up just like it had last time.  A content chirp came from her, but this time she preempted the belch and managed to stifle it with limited success. Still, the hatchling laughed, then grabbed hold of one of her hooves and tried to pull her towards the open area in between the stacked tree objects. She, however, resisted and the hatchling looked at her in confusion.  looking back and towards the collection of trees, one of her ears twitched as she shared what had happened. Looking at her with a puzzled look, the young creature then followed her gaze and gasped out when, one by one, more of her horde revealed themselves. A wave of nervousness suddenly hit her, and she looked back at the creatures as they, in turn, looked at the approaching group of her horde; a rushed uttering of sounds blending together as the creatures shared glances while making some gestures with their hooves.  A subdued chirp left her as she tilted her head slightly, ears twitching as she tried to understand what was happening while the others moved closer. A shout came from somewhere within the group of creatures, and a wave of exhilaration swept over her as, suddenly several hatchlings ran out of the group towards her; looking at her with wide eyes filled with excitement and nervousness.  The young male creature turned to the others of his clutch, sounds laced with excitement spewing from his mouth to which the other hatchlings reacted in kind, each amplifying the other to the point she had to flatten her ears against her skull to block out some of the noise's volume, especially after the young male pointed out the now stopped in hesitation group of her horde. Before any knew exactly what happened, the hatchlings all ran towards her horde with unintelligible shouts and cries, circling around them in their apparent excitement while those in her horde flinched back, or lowered themselves defensively to the ground, unsure what was happening and glancing at her for answers she didn't have. A shrill sound filled the air, and she and the others in her horde flattened their ears because of it. The hatchlings all came to a sudden stop, heads turning towards one of the creatures who had separated itself from the others, a hoof stuck slightly in her mouth.  She recognized the creature. It was the female who had given her the skins she now wore, and who now slowly lowered her hoof to the ground when she saw she had gained their attention.  Stomping a hoof accompanied by more strange noises and a heated glare, the younglings slowly and somewhat reluctantly backed off while still looking with large, excitement-filled eyes at the horde.  It was then a new sound rose up. One she recognized: a tired sigh. Looking back at the female, she saw her smile apologetically, shaking her head while keeping an eye on the hatchlings as she approached her.  Coming to a stop before her, the female's apologetic smile had become more earnest as she looked her over, eyes lingering a moment on the now noticeably dirty and somewhat torn skins and, the way her nose scrunched up ever so slightly, they did seem to smell a bit.  Still, the female held up her hoof in the now all too familiar and well-practiced ritual and, she was quick to bump hooves and shake with an elated chirp. <<>><<>><<>> With a strangled gasp, Danny's eyes shot open, his mind even more in turmoil than before as more and more memories not his own played out before his mind's eye as if he had lived them himself. But unlike last time, where he would be flung from one place to the next, he was allowed a moment of respite to catch his breath.  It was during this short moment of peace he regained enough clarity of mind to realize he was in the center of a cluster of energetic strings all joined together in a massive knot, pulsating with a frequency not unlike a heart in motion. Strangely enough, despite being 'awake' and not lost within whatever the hell was going on, he could still see things play out. Not as if he was living the moments himself, but more as a bystander observing events transpire from the moment he… no she and the female… mare shook hooves. It was from that day onwards, this first true contact between the two species that something truly magical blossomed.  The others of his…. her horde who joined her to meet these creatures were all greeted warmly, with the younglings especially showing a lot of excitement.  The creatures welcomed them into their midst, showing them marvels unimaginable. Yet for all the hospitality these creatures showed, there was one thing getting in the way of truly understanding each other. A barrier that continuously showed itself each time they interacted: Language.  Those under the rock…  Changelings, that is what they are called, he reminded himself. They are telepathically linked. They have no need for vocal speech if they can share their very thoughts and ideas simply by thinking about them.  But as new images began to reveal themselves to him, he felt himself pulled back inside the swirls of energy. <<>><<>><<>> He looked down at his legs, wriggling his new hooves, still getting used to the alien sensation of now having four legs instead of just two.  It had only been a cycle ago he broke out of his chrysalis, starting the final stage in his transformation into an adult. And while still smaller than his elders, it was now expected of him to begin his lessons in helping their burrow.  Shaking his head, he looked out of the tunnel he stood in, watching the elders pass by in a frenzy while his life-giver stood at the center of it all making sure everything happened the way they should.  He cocked his head to the side, amused by the organized chaos before him when his life-giver turned and locked eyes with him.  She was not amused. Not at all, and he was quick to scramble back into motion and help prepare their burrow under the rock for time was running out.  The bright light in the sky had passed many times now since the first group left to meet the creatures she had first encountered, and now some of them were brought back to the rock. Something like this had never happened before, and none of them knew what to expect or how to prepare. And thus, without much of a plan but a distinct need to do something, they all worked to do something they thought would be useful, even if that meant undoing the work another had done a couple of heartbeats prior.  Naturally, their life-giver was more than a little frustrated and it took her several attempts to make everyone work together. Which brought him back to the present as he quickly scurried out of the tunnel and joined his horde in the chaos to make their burrow presentable. Exactly how that was supposed to happen though, he didn't quite grasp. Still, he did the best he could, even if he tripped more than a few times over his own legs, still not fully able to coordinate the new pair with the two he hatched with and, he ended up making more of a mess than the others had managed to clean forcing everything to come to a grinding halt.  Lying in a heap on the ground, pulling his legs free from the knot they somehow had managed to get stuck into, he noticed the tall form of his life-giver stand over him. Freezing in his motions, he looked up and upside down at his life-giver who in turn blew out a sigh before forcing a smile.  Pulling his legs free with a hoof of her own, she put her hatchling back on his hooves then indicated he should move to the chamber of their memories.  He stood straighter, wings up at attention and firmly shaking his head. He would help, just like all the others.  Time to argue his life-giver didn't have as right then one of the hunters who had joined her to meet the creatures poked his head through the opening under the rock, releasing a loud chirp before crawling inside completely.  All activity ground to a halt when the hunter moved down the slope, followed a moment later by another hunter and then, the reason for their fluster, a strange yet somewhat familiar in appearance head slowly moved through the gap under the rock.  With squinted eyes, the creature looked down into their burrow for a long while. It then retreated and the strange noises now associated with them could be heard. Then silence, and they all stared at the gap under the rock with confusion, almost not daring to blink.  Then, quite suddenly, the creature poked its head in through the gap, followed shortly thereafter by the rest of its body. Clearly not expecting the slope down, it tumbled down without control, slamming to the ground on its back, coming to a stop in front of the life-giver's hooves.  Another creature poked its head through the gap, also squinting as if it struggled to see when the first creature, on its back and clearly visible to be a male, released some strained sounds. The other creature's ears quickly locked on to these sounds, and turned to look at the male as he slowly turned back to his hooves.  Then, much to their surprise, he started to shuffle around while holding out a hoof before him.  Confused by this all, but recognizing the hoof held out the life-giver was quick to meet him halfway and placed a hoof of her own on his, shaking it.  A cry of alarm escaped the male creature, shocking them all while the life-giver pulled back quickly; the male fumbling back while his eyes flashed from left to right in rapid succession.  The other creature, before now still outside the rock, was quick to respond and pulled itself through the gap and slid down; the horn poking through the long hairs on top of its head glowing a light orange while an orb of white light shone on the tip.  A collective hiss escaped all of the horde as the light assaulted their eyes, and they shied away while the creatures reacted first in shock from the sound, then looked at all of them standing around them with large eyes. The light quickly dimmed, but did not fade completely, leaving a faint glow just strong enough to light up the area a couple of body lengths around the creatures; several low sounds with noticeable tension flowing between the two, which came to an abrupt stop when they saw the life-giver. Rubbing his eyes with his hooves, blinking the spots away, he looked up at the two creatures, tilting his head in puzzlement. There was a bright light outside of the rock, he knew. But how did that creature bring a bright light with it down here… and why? Noticing his life-giver slowly moved towards the two creatures again, looking at the orb of light with large eyes, he instinctively stayed close to her; watching as the creatures slowly looked up at his life-giver while their mouths slowly opened further and further the further she stepped into the light.  It was almost as if they couldn't see in the dark. A buzz went through their shared conscious when this idea formed in his mind. By now the two creatures were openly gawking at the life-giver while she, in turn, looked at the still glowing horn with strange fixation, carefully reaching out with a hoof to the glowing orb. A cry pulled them from their stupor in time to see a smaller creature tumble down the slope much like the first did, though this one managed to recover halfway down and slid to a halt before him. A loud chirp came from the gap, and she, still wearing the strange skins, looked down with concern before climbing down herself. There was a turmoil over their shared thoughts, and it took him a moment to realize it came from his life-giver. The situation developing in a way none of them could have imagined, and his life-giver was uncertain how to proceed.  With a subdued chirp, he nuzzled her hind leg, drawing her attention to him as he gave her a reassuring smile.  Smiling back at him, she steeled herself and turned back to the creatures while he suddenly became aware of two inquisitive eyes staring at him. He blinked once, twice, then pulled back in shock as he noticed the smaller creature stand almost muzzle to muzzle with him, only slightly larger than he was. A strange sound flowed from its mouth while the creature waved a hoof through the air. He took a moment to sift through the memories she had shown them, and decided that this smaller creature was most likely a hatchling in the same cycle as he was. And, taking a second look, he noticed the creature, probably a female, also had a small horn poking out of her dark pink hair for a frill; some of which was tangled up in a most unusual and symmetrical manner, hanging down the left side of her head. She also had a stunningly white fur in stark contrast to his black shell, and the bright, deep blue eyes. His gaze then moved to her hoof, which she still waved around, smiling brightly. Confused, he watched her limb move from left to right, then looked down at his own hoof, then back at hers.  Slowly, uncertain, he lifted his own hoof and slowly moved it around like she was doing.  Apparently, this was the right thing to do, if the surprisingly loud squeak she suddenly made was anything to go by while she bounced up and down on the spot. Laughter came from the other two creatures as they saw what she was doing, which in turn drew the attention of all others. Yet she did not seem to mind, or did not notice all eyes were now on her as she continued to bounce in excitement. With the steadily growing tension now broken, the first of the creatures made a sound which drew the attention of the life-giver to him. Then sounds came from its mouth with a noticeable slowness as the creature made several gestures with a hoof.  A flow of sounds and the creature pointed a hoof at its companion who in turn dipped its head. Then it pointed a hoof at the youngling, no longer bouncing but noticeable shaking on the spot, and a different string of sounds came. And then it thumped a hoof on its chest, and yet another combination of sounds followed as the creature finished with a dip of its head as well.  He was confused. They all were. And their life-giver shifted on the spot in uncertainty as she tried to deduce the meaning of what this creature meant. The same kind of doubt could also be seen with the two creatures as they looked at one another, one of them shrugging. Surprisingly, it was the youngling with them that didn't seem phased by this in the slightest as she repeated the same sounds the first creature had made, pointing a hoof at herself while doing so.  Still, the meaning behind this strange behavior was lost on them. Realizing this, she slowed down, then pressed her hoof against her chin while looking up. Then, with a gasp, she ran up the slope and through the gap, and left all the others even more confused than they were a moment prior.  A minute later, she came rushing back in, holding a stick in her mouth, coming to a sliding stop on the exact spot she'd stood before. With a blue glow, her horn lit up and a small sphere of light like the other horned creature had burst into being, shocking all of them upon seeing this while she seemed more focused on the ground as she used a hoof to smooth out the surface. Once satisfied with the texture, she used the stick still in her mouth to scratch lines in the dirt, drawing one large oval, and a smaller next to it, connecting the two with two lines. Then, drawing from the largest oval, four lines were made. Several more lines were added, while he, watching the hatchling before him work, tilted his head from left to right, trying to figure out what it was she was making. And before he even knew he did so, he found himself standing next to her. This change in perspective did finally allow him to see what it was she was drawing, as he recognized the crude shape as an image of the creature herself.  Two more images were added, one for each of the creatures. Once done, she sat down, looking quite proud of her work, then looked up and at him; smiling just as brightly and using the stick to point at the first image. The same sounds she'd made before flowed from her mouth as she tapped with the stick on the image meant to resemble herself. Then she tapped on the second image, supposed to be the other creature with a horn, and she repeated the other string of sounds, before doing the same with the third image. But then, confounding them even further, she circled around the three images several times, then made a new sound. Shorter than the others. Somehow sounding much simpler.  She tapped each image with her stick, repeating the sound once again, looking at him with hopeful eyes.  Tilting his head, he clearly showed he did not understand.  Not deterred in the slightest, she repeated the sound while pointing a hoof at her mouth, then at him. Then she made the sound again, much slower, and with a pause in between, breaking it up in two.  Realization started to dawn. Those sounds… could it be how they shared their memories? Were they trying to do so with them?  He watched her as she made the sound again, taking close attention to the way her mouth moved and tried to mirror her.  No sound came from him, but seeing him try made her squeal out in excitement as she clopped her front hooves together. A buzz went through the horde as they watched, their minds a whirl with all manner of unknowns and new perspectives while working together to make sense of it all. "F..fff..nh"  All eyes locked on him as the sound escaped him, his lips moving in strange manners to shape the sounds. The young female seemed to vibrate on the spot over this new development, and she quickly but with deliberate slowness repeated the sound again. "Fhhh… hnn…" he tried again, struggling with the strange sounds and how he had to shape them, yet unwilling to give up; feeling the others share in his struggle as they, too, worked to figure this out. "Fhhnnn.. phu."  He stopped. That last sound sounded almost right.  "Phu… phhuu," he repeated, getting a feel for it, how his lips shaped, how his tongue moved, sharing it all with the rest of his horde as he did.    Again, she reacted with excitement, the other two creatures stepping closer, watching with reaped attention while his life-giver watched the unfolding development with large eyes and growing pride, even if the full extent of what he was attempting was still lost on her and the others. Eyes narrowed in concentration, he focused on the rest of the sounds. "Phuu.. phhu...gnh… ghn….hnn… Phuuhnn... "  He was close, he felt it. It sounded similar enough. "Phuun… eee," he paused, eyes opening as he looked at the young female leaning towards him to the point she almost fell over, eyes wide in excitement.  "Phuunee…" he said. The young female squealed, loudly, and rushed forward and wrapped her legs around him. For a moment, he believed she attacked him, as did the others. But then, he felt something.  A glow seemed to flow off of the young female as she had her legs wrapped around him, surprising all there save for the hunter wearing the skins as she watched it all happen from a distance, recognizing the energy as the same she discovered when she met the male hatchling. And just as she had experienced herself, the energy began to flow from the young creature to him who, awakening to an instinct unknown, sniffed out the energy, then sunk his teeth into it. The belch that followed echoed through the burrow. <<>><<>><<>> With a gasp, Danny became himself again, his mind whirling with all he'd experienced as everything was slowly put in perspective against his own knowledge.  The changelings, still ignorant in many ways, and the ponies, already an advancing society met by chance. Yet despite the vast differences and, what he'd been told the changelings were perceived to be this day, their interactions were peaceful.  Why? And more importantly, if this was true, what happened for a peaceful encounter and developing relationships between the two species to turn hostile as it had? It couldn't possibly have been the three ponies being brought to his… their burrow, right? Thinking about it, the once incoherent sounds they made now rang with familiarity. Names.  They introduced themselves. Swift Axe, Guiding Light and, the young filly doing her best to bridge the linguistic gap, Apple Pie. Danny paused. That name. The strange yet noticeably familiar behavior of sorts. Her bright blue and almost eerily familiar eyes… Could it be? A grunt of strain escaped him as he clutched his head, more images filling his mind as a light blue string of energy crossed into the node he was in. Except this time something was different. The images he saw, the memories he experienced were not that of a changeling, and before he knew it, she had her legs wrapped tightly around her new friend in a hug as he had just spoken his first word.