//------------------------------// // Everfree Mission // Story: The Dragonfly Hive // by Silver Dragon Blade Wing //------------------------------// Everfree Forest A few days after the Laying Spotter slowly moved through the trees and brush, heading towards his destination. Earlier that morning, before Dragonfly had even woken up, one of the Scout teams had reported something unusual happening close to the center of the Everfree Forest. Under normal circumstances none of the Hive would venture that far into the Everfree but the Scouts had been getting very strange readings, which shouldn't have been there. Spotter, being the Hive's best Scout, volunteered to check it out. While it was probably nothing, Spotter was a bit suspicious, years of scouting and tracking had taught him a thing or two. The fact that what he was going to take a look at was close to the center of the Everfee was a major factor, as far as he knew no one had been there since Celestia abandoned it after banishing Nightmare Moon. While Spotter didn't think there'd be anything left of value, he knew that something or someone near or in the Everfree City ruins was very suspicious as that area was all but forgotten. Still it was probably nothing. Right? He eventually reached the brush covered cliff edge that overlooked the ruins, he slowly pushed a large leaf up a bit to get a better view. He was not prepared at all for what he saw. Down below was a massive army of Timber Wolves engaged in battle with an equally large army of Changelings, and not the ones from the Dragonfly Hive! Spotter didn't even need to look at the Changelings' back plates to know what Hive they were from, as he soon saw her. Chrysalis, standing at the rear of the army. This changed things completely. Without pausing Spotter send an alarm through the Hivemind. Dragonfly Hive Spotter's alarm came through like an out of control freight train. "ALARM!!!!!!! Chrysalis is near the ruins of the Everfree City with a large army! Repeat, Chrysalis is near the Everfree city!" Many of the Hive's Changelings, Dragonfly included, were snapped awake by the mention of Chrysalis. Dragonfly rushed out of the Egg Chamber with two Hive Spiders following him down to the Throne Room. Dragonfly: "Spotter, keep an eye on them, we're on our way." Spotter: "Understood, out." Once everybuggy was gathered Dragonfly took Seeker, Rhino, Darter, ten Drones, five Healers, and two Hive Spiders with him while the rest stayed to keep an eye on things in Ponyville. Dragonfly send Thunderlane a message about what was happening and to keep his eyes and ears open. Once his group was ready they moved into the forest towards Spotter's position. Mission: Everfree City Part One Main Objectives: Rendezvous with Spotter Dragonfly, Seeker, Rhino and Darter must survive Do not engage any of Chrysalis' forces if encountered ________________________ Bonus Objective: Locate Hiveless Changelings (2 Groups) ________________________ New Unit(s): Hive Spiders, Soldiers, Weapon Teams ________________________ Briefing Dragonfly: Alright everybuggy, Spotter has seen Chrysalis and her army near the ruins of the Everfree City currently engaged with an equally sized army of Timber Wolves. I don't know why she would try to find and enter the long forgotten place but the fact she's here, on the field, tells us that she wants whatever it is really bad. We must reach it first, whatever it could be it must be either very powerful or important. Rhino: That's certain, Chrysalis wouldn't ever enter the field unless she wants what she is hunting badly enough. It is also really important that we do not engage any of her forces should we encounter them, Chrysalis can not know of our Hive or Dragonfly's survival yet. Two Scouts will be coming with us to help guide us through, to reach Spotter than the city we will have to cut through deep Timber Wolf territory so the Scouts can allow us to avoid unnecessary conflicts. Dragonfly: Backing down from a fight?! Rhino, don't tell me you've grown soft while I've been away. Rhino: I said nothing about backing down, we likely wouldn't have that option. Timber Wolves may be mindless constructs of wood and magic but they are relentlessness and bloodthirsty. Spotter also said there might be two small groups of Hiveless Changelings, if we find them they can join and give us some support. I should also mention that because of how deep we will be flying wouldn't be an option due to the winds and predators in the area. The group quickly moved along the path, jumping, ducking and weaving through the various obstacles in their way. Dragonfly did a once over of the Drones and Healers, with the amount of resources the Scouts had been finding since the Hive was set up he'd been able to buy both upgrades for them. The Drones' new armor consisted of a helmet and chest piece(1) while the Healer's had chest plate that covered their chest, underbelly, back, and flanks while the helmet had a plate added to the front to better protect their heads and horns along with a backpack made of Changeling Slime Gel. For traits He had selected Magic Caster for the Drones and Healing Spheres for the Healers. "Okay everybuggy, keep your eyes, ears and Emotion Sense open and your tails covered. Let's move, once we rendezvous with Spotter we'll head to the city." Dragonfly said. Moving along they encountered several groups of Timber Wolves, mostly light and regular with a few Brutes, which were taken down with ease, though the wolves did land some hit which the healers took care of while the two Scouts helped them avoid both Large groups that were either on their own or engaged with some of Chrysalis' Changelings. As they moved forward Seeker spoke up. "Dragonfly, since we're out hear would like to learn a bit move about a Royal's "Commanders"." "Sure Seeker, these wolves aren't really a threat to us right now so go ahead." "Well like you each commander, in this case me, Rhino, Spotter and Darter, each have their own selection of abilities and levels that, again like you, we can only have one in each level active at any one time though we are able to switch them out. Usually we each will pick which abilities we have active but you can take a look and chose for us if you want to. At the moment we only have one level and like you as we gain more experience we eventually "level up", which unlocks the next level of abilities." Dragonfly smiled as he thought it over. "I'll have to take a look once we're back at the hive, what are the types of Commanders and your guys current abilities?" "Well for Commanders there are the Offensive, Defensive, Support, Scout, Armor, Infiltration, Hybrid, and Proto-Royal." "Proto-Royal?" I'll explain latter, now I'm a Defensive Commander which I think fits with my Advisor role, my current ability is Dome Shield which not only blocks incoming damage but also heals any friendly units inside the shield, problem is the shield is fixed to one spot once I cast it and it only lasts for a short time before fading out, if not taken out by damage first. Rhino is an Offensive Commander, his current ability is Blast Sphere Barrage. Using his launcher he can fire up to six Blast Spheres, which are small hoof-sized Slime Gel spheres created to work like explosives, over a small area. These spheres not only damage enemies but also slows them down for a few seconds. Darter is a Support Commander, his current ability is Mark Target. This ability "marks" a selected target that will than take a bit more damage from attacks and allies will have an easier time hitting it. And Spotter is a Scout Commander, his current ability is Hide Allies. This ability effectively "cloaks" an friendly from enemy detection for a short time. As we unlock levels we gain better and more powerful abilities." The two Scouts stopped suddenly, their antennae waving towards the right down a path that split from the main trail. Dragonfly walked forward. "What is it you two?" "Sir, we're sensing a small group of Changelings locked in battle with Timber Wolves, and they're not Chrysalis'." The left one said. "Are you sure?" "Positive sir, they're not giving any Hivemind emissions." "Must be Hiveless than, or Rogues. Let's go find out." Dragonfly said turning down the path with the others following, while Dragonfly was cautious about the possible Hiveless Changelings, he knew he could trust the Scouts. Nebula had long ago made slight modifications to her Hive's Scouts, which was passed to his. The modification to the extremely sensitive antenna allowed them to pick up Hiveminds emissions from Changelings, allowing them to detect ones from other Hives and know which Hive they belonged to as the only creatures Changelings could not sense emotions from was each other. It was also only known to only a select few that Hive Changelings give of faint emissions from their Hivemind that would be otherwise undetectable. So since only Hiveless or Rogues didn't give those emissions, that would mean they had no loyalty to Chrysalis or her Hive though they might have an idea on why she was here. The group reached a small clearing where they found a small group of seven Changelings, Drones, fighting for their lives against about ten Timber Wolves, and they were losing. Even though they were fighting back quite well it was clear they were running out of energy and were getting tired, they were also clearly Hiveless by their grayed out wings and backplates. The only one that had color was the one at the front of the group, this Changeling (Male by the body shape(2)) was a slightly larger Drone that had light green wings and a green back plate, Dragonfly shot a hoof forward and barked an order. "Hive Spiders, web those wolves!" The two spiders charged forward and arced their thoraxes, unlike other spiders Hive Spiders were very flexible and could bend and twist their bodies like no other spider ever could. As the spiders attacked Rhino spoke. "Hive Spiders: Our closest equivalent to attack animals, Hive Spiders were domesticated thousands of years ago and serve as guards for a Hive's eggs and young as well as support units on the field. Each of their legs are tipped with a barb which is able to pump a small amount of non-lethal venom that slows their targets down with each hit, their fangs are able to pump a more potent version that slows them down for longer and their webs are capable of slowing groups of enemies." The seven Changelings were surprised by the sudden but very welcomed help and they quickly pulled back, the colored one leading them towards the Healers who meet them half-way. With the fresh Drones and the webs the Timber Wolves were taken care of quickly and their remains were burned to keep them from rebuilding. One that was done they got a good look at the Changelings they just rescued, when Dragonfly and the colored one locked eyes they both gained shocked looks. "Thorax?!" "Dragonfly?! I though you were dead." "Nope, just badly wounded. Mom and Dad simply took my blooded scarf to make Chrysalis think I was dead, you remember my reputation of never taking my scarf off unless I'm bathing or sleeping right?" "I do, so by Empress Nebula showing up with the blooded scarf, Chrysalis would believe the greatest threat to her reign was gone." "While I was healing in safety, still I was very close to dead that day though so I'm surprised I survived that." Thorax went over and wrapped his forelegs around Dragonfly who returned the hug. "Either way, words couldn't express happy I am to see you alive." "Great to see you too buddy." Getting out of the hug Dragonfly asked. "Where's Pharynx, I thought he would be here with you?" Thorax's smile dropped as he closed his eyes and looked at the ground, tears starting to flow. "He's dead, Chrysalis killed him." That shocked not just Dragonfly but the others as well, while Pharynx was a bit of a jerk he did love Thorax in his own way, and was consisted one of Chrysalis' best Commanders so her killing him was something completely unexpected. "What?! Why?" Rhino asked, "If I remember Pharynx was one of her most loyal followers." "He was, she killed him because he was "too good" at what he did." "She wanted Commanders who were unquestioningly loyal to her, but wouldn't be a threat to her rule." Seeker said, understanding. "That'll leave her with Commanders who are loyal but incompetent, we can use that to our advantage." Darter said, Rhino nodding in agreement. "Still we are sorry for your lost Thorax, Pharyns was a bit of a jerk but he was an okay Changeling. Speaking of that though, Thorax, do you have any idea why Chrysalis is trying to enter the Everfree City?" Dragonfly asked him. "Thanks, He was a bit of a bullying big brother but he did still love me, as for Chrysalis, she said something about "The Founders of Equestria" but that's all we know." Dragonfly, Seeker, Rhino, and Darter looked at each other in confusion. "Why would Chrysalis be looking for Founders of Equestria? They've been dead for over a thousand years." Darter said. "If I remember my history right, did the six of them actually raise Celestia and Luna with Starswirl?" Dragonfly asked. "Yes, and didn't Chrysalis have a long rivalry with Commander Hurricane?" Rhino asked. "Could it be she trying to get something that belonged to him?" Thorax asked. "Maybe, but what? I'm certain there would be nothing left to find there." Seeker said. "Well we wouldn't found out staying here, let's move out." Dragonfly said. As they moved on Dragonfly went deep into his thoughts after connecting the new Changelings, Thorax included, to his Hivemind which they were more than happy to. They soon said it was far better than Chrysalis', at the very least he wasn't trying to force his way into their minds like she did. Dragonfly couldn't but wonder what she had meant by the Founders of Equestria, the six of them had been dead for over a thousand years so... what was Chrysalis after? The Founders were well known to the Changelings, after all they were the ones to unite the Earth Ponies, Unicorns and Pegasi together first to defeat the Windiego than the Griffin Hordes and than finally the Centaur Empire. Dragonfly knew about them very well and could recall what he knew easily. There was Puddinghead, an Earth Pony Mare well known for her baking skills and "Pinkie-like" mannerisms including the friendliness. Smart Cooke, another Earth Pony Mare who was more down-to-earth then Puddinghead known for her smarts and leadership skills. Princess Platinum, a Unicorn Mare who many believed was a typical spoiled brat but was in fact far nicer to her friends and apparently was the head of a large and powerful spy network in her time. Clover the Clever, a Unicorn Mare that while she wasn't very strong physically was well known for her intelligence was perhaps the smartest of the six. Pansy Shy, a Pegasus Mare who while being a bit shy and timid around those she didn't was well know for her kindness towards her friends and troops. And finally there was the only Stallion of the group; Commander Hurricane, a Pegasus who while know for his combat prowess and was the "leader" of the six and cared for them as much as he did for his troops. From what Dragonfly knew, the tale of Hearts Warming was actually wrong. But then again, it was easy for things like tales to blur over time. In turth the six of them had actually been outcasts in their respective tribes. Puddinghead due to her less than normal mannerisms, Smart Cookie due to being Puddinghead's only friend, Platinum and Clover had tried to be controlled by the nobles at the time before the two were finally exiled, while Hurricane and Pansy were just unlucky. Hurricane had been born in a noble family but was abandoned and left to die as a foal while Pansy was the "runt" so to speak. Platinum and Clover had been in exile for over two years and were in deep trouble regarding their supplies when they met Puddinghead and Smart Cookie who had just been exiled themselves the week before, despite the hostile feelings the tribes held towards each other both the Earth Ponies and Unicorns understood that their only chance for long term survival was to work together. They eventually met Pansy who had fled from her tribe to avoid being "culled" and she ran into the four of them, who took her in. A lot of the story after that point had be lost to history, only the part where the five ran into Hurricane was know to the Changelings. The Pony in question had, not long after being abandoned, found by a Western Kirin scouting party who took the crying and scared Colt back with them to their camp. The Kirins decided to raised the Colt as one of their own, teaching much about their culture and how to fight. Hurricane shined in the Clans and rose up the ranks quickly, soon leading his own squad. It was during one mission to take out a small advance force of Centaurs that he met the five Mares. Puddinghead, Smart Cookie, Platinum, Clover, and Pansy had been fleeing from two the the creatures from the force the question. Puddinghead, Smart Cookie and Platinum had just had their magic drained and were held by their tails in the hands of one of the Centaurs while the other finished doing the same to Clover and Pansy. The five, too weak from having their magic drained, likely would have been taken into Centaur slavery then, if not for Hurricane being in the right place at the right time. He had been on a sole patrol when he heard the Mares screaming, the Centaurs, too busy gloating over their victory, didn't see him coming. The Centaur holding Clover and Pansy was beheaded before he even knew what hit him, the other one dropped the other three and tried to drain Hurricane's magic. Only to discover that Kirin rune magic was immune to that type of draining and Hurricane's rune-enchanted armor and halberd protected his Pegasus magic as well, which left the Centaur too surprised to protect himself. After Hurricane slayed that one he turned back to check on the Mares, who weren't doing well. While they got all their magic back after the two Centaurs were slayed, they hadn't been able to find food for the two days they were chased and they were quite sick to top it off. Hurricane immediately sent a signal through his helmet and within moments his clan brothers and sisters arrived. They quickly brought the Mares to the Kirin's camp they the received immediate medical help, with Hurricane watching them the entire time. This was another point were a good bit of the story was lost but it is known that the six of them joined forces and raised an army of other outcasts like them and went after who had hurt them first: their original tribes. After another large gap their was the day Hearts Warming was created, though unlike the more commonly know story where Puddinghead, Platinum and Hurricane had fought with each other, the six of them had really just huddled together waiting for the end, with Hurricane's wings wrapped around the five Mares, shielding as much as he could even if it was in vain. It was their friendship with each other they had built over those many years that sparked the Warming. After that it was known that they built what would eventually become Equestria, with Hurricane eventually marrying the five Mares in a herd and the six of them having several offspring. Their ultimate fates were unknown however, the six of them just simply disappeared about two or three years before Luna became Nightmare Moon. Beyond that the only other known thing was Hurricane's rivalry with Chrysalis, who had only been a Young Queen at the time. From what was known she had hated the Pegasus Stallion for a large number of reasons, one of which was Hurricane's joke flirting with her every time they crossed paths. The most famous of these was when he had been carrying an artifact in the shape of a ring, Chrysalis had demanded that he give her the ring, Hurricane's response... "Well Chrysalis, I know you love me but I can't give you the ring, I haven't even taken you out to dinner yet." Apparently that quote, even in the current times, rreeallyy peeved her off. Dragonfly was brought out of his thoughts when he heard Rhino Shouted, "Timber Wolves ahead!" Ahead was a pack of ten of the wooden wolves, four Light, three Regular, one Brute, and two new ones. The new ones looked like Regular but had what looked like many wood spikes on their backs, which they started firing at the Changelings who dove for cover after Rhino yelled, "Don't just stand there and let them shoot you, grab some cover!" They got behind cover with any a few being hit by the wood spikes, their armor deflecting the hits with ease. The wolves were soon defeated and the group of twenty-five Changelings and two spiders moved on, after a bit of walking and avoiding more large fights Rhino spotted something ahead. "Look, up ahead. Its a Reinforcement Spire!" The Reinforcement Spire was a ten foot chitin spike with numerous small green crystals dotting the spike. "I've heard of those," Dragonfly said, "they're used to teleport in Changelings from the owner's Hive as reinforcements on the field." "Right Dragonfly, but by the looks of that spire I think we'll only get one, maybe two squads out if it before it becomes too unstable." Seeker said looking closer. He was right, the Reinforcement Spire had many hairline cracks, many of the crystals glow was almost gone, and the spike looked ready to fall over. The group activated the the spire and Rhino summoned a group of five new Changelings, and as Seeker had predicted, the spire broke apart after the new ones came through. The new Changelings looked like Drones but with three differences; first was their shape, from a Pony's perspective a Changeling Drone would closely resemble a Mare regardless of the actual gender. These Changelings' shape was much more Stallion, complete with the more angular face. The second was their size, they were about the size of Big Mac, matching the Pony's bulk. The third and final one was the armor the group wore, it resembled the kind worn by the Royal Guard only instead of covering the back and head, this armor was more or less fully enclosed, giving their wearers full protection. Dragonfly noticed they were armed with halberds with hatchets siting in holsters at their sides, as he looked them over Rhino spoke. "Soldiers: The true basic infantry of a Hive, Soldiers are Drones had have focused their training solely on combat. As a result their bodies have grown bigger and bulkier to fit their roles, when they first arrive on the battlefield they are equipped with halberds and hatchets and their armor allows them to take a lot of damage before breaking. On the field they can be further equipped with different items to counter different foes, for example; shields to give them better protection, crossbows for ranged combat, heavier armor for further durability, or Blast Sphere launchers like the one I use for armored foes. It is important to keep in mind that they keep their halberds and hatchets along with what ever "upgrade kit" they are given, and a squad can only be given one of these kits during a battle but each squad across a force can have a different kit." The Soldiers took point with the Scouts, Dragonfly decided to hold off on the upgrade kits for now, not seeing a need for the options yet. For awhile after that nothing else really happened, just some scraps with Timber Wolves. The only other thing that happened was Spotter calling in that the battle he was watching was still a stalemate, but he wasn't for how much longer as it was very slowly starting to turn in Chrysalis' favor. He also told them that the Timber Wolves in his area were starting to get a bit crazy so he needed to move, telling them he would met them at the remains of the south gate of the city After some more walking the group came up to a small clearing with a half collapsed tower and another Reinforcement Spire in the center, when the Scouts suddenly stopped. "Sir, we're detecting a large force of Timber Wolves headed this way. We can't get a fix but we think about forty to sixty, mixed group." "Alright, everybuggy take cover behind those debris. Rhino, grab that spire, you said before we left you had another new unit ready?" "Yes, that spire can only bring in one unit but that should be enough if we garrison them in the tower." "Bring them in then." Rhino activated the spire and the new unit came in, the new squad of three changelings were Soldiers but had a different weapon. The weapon was shaped like a rectangular box with a smaller one on the left side and two tubes sticking out of one end. "Weapon Teams: Soldiers trained with heavy weapons, these units use their weapons to deal heavy damage to or slow down enemies. These ones are armed with a Chitin Launcher, a weapon that fires chitin shards at a very high rate. While the shards deal little damage on their own they suppress enemies and slow them to a crawl. Weapon Teams can swap their launcher for three other weapons on the field; the Crystal Beam, which deal heavy damage to single armored targets. The Magic Pulsar, which fire a a large ball of unstable magic that deals splash damage in its blast zone. And the Shell Slinger, which lobs an explosive projectile of Blast Gel encased in a chitin cover over longer ranges. Like the Soldiers each squad can only have one of the four weapons at a time, but they are able to switch at any time to adapt to different foes, the weapons also require a brief "set up" time before they can fire or be moved." Once the Weapon Team had set up on the tower the other Changelings took cover behind the rubble, just as the large force of Timber Wolves arrived. Thanks to a series of water-filled trenches with rubble piled about the wolves found themselves unable to maneuver like they usually would and instead kept stumbling over each other as they tried to the Changelings, it didn't help that the magic attacks and the shards of chitin raining down on them. The battle lasted fro a short while as more Timber Wolves came by, but the Changelings managed to keep most of them at bay, some did get through and attack but the Changelings' carapace absorbed most of the damage with the Healers dealing with what got through. It was at some point during the battle that the Changelings heard a strange sound, Rhino's ear perked up while his eyes widened a little in recognition. "Wait, I know that sound. Berserker!" A large Changeling, twice the size of Big Mac, came barreling through a group of Timber Wolves, turning many into splinters. Besides the size, the Berserker had two sets of large fangs and a long horn which looked able to spear a Yak but otherwised looked like a greatly enlarged Drone. Its eyes and backplate were grey, showing that it was Hiveless. As the Wolves tried, and failed, to harm the Berserker, Rhino explained the breed. "Berserker: A powerful and heavily armored breed used to smash through enemy formations and wreck havoc among them. Their carapace is able to take incredible amounts of damage and they are immune or at least very highly resistant to magic attacks, they are however not very smart. Their attack plan couldn't be simpler; they see their target, they attack it, it goes done, some would see Berserksers as either the best soldiers or the worst as they are smart enough to follow orders and will do exactly what they are told. Out of combat however they make surprisingly productive members and are very gentle, especially towards eggs and young." Finally after bringing down at least sixty wolves the remaining ones turned tail and fled back into the trees, the Berserker not following. "They're afraid, we most likely won't have to deal with more on the way to the rendezvous." Darter said. "We don't have much further to go now, let's say we move before anything else happens." Rhino said. The Berserker approached Dragonfly, who waited until it stopped a few feet from him. The Berserker shifted a bit and lowered its head and ears, showing submission towards the Young Royal. Dragonfly cautiously came forward and touched his horn against the Berseker's. Said Changeling gave no resistance as Dragonfly reached out with his Hivemind, in the next few seconds Dragonfly saw what the Berseker had seen and been through. First was the Changeling chained to the floor of what he guessed was Chrysalis' Hive and was being whipped and shocked by what he assumed was her personal guards, than the Berseker being dragged onto the battlefield against the Timber Wolves, the Changeling fighting hard against its handlers. Finally the handlers being "taken out" by the wolves, the Berseker crashing through the wolves then the trees, away from the torment before arriving here. Dragonfly slowly reached out, carefully soothing the Changeling and comforting it, before opening up. It only took a few seconds before the Berseker joined, the remains of Chrysalis' severed Hivemind being replaced completely with Dragonfly's. The Berserker's eyes and wings changed to metallic red and its backplate to shiny metallic silver and the short spike grew in the center. Dragonfly pulled back and the Berserker started rubbing against him happy, like a kitten. He reached up with one foreleg and hugged the Changeling. Once everybuggy had regrouped they quickly moved on, encountering no further wolf packs and eventually reaching the remains of one of the Everfree City's gates were Spotter was waiting for them. They exchanged greetings with Spotter telling them that Chrysalis' forces were very slowly pushing the Timberwolves back, he estimated about two hours before she reached the city. Dragonfly nodded and lead them into the ruins, saying "Form up guys, still have a bit to go." Mission: Everfree City Part One; Complete Main Objectives: Rendezvous with Spotter; Complete Dragonfly, Seeker, Rhino and Darter must survive; Complete Do not engage any of Chrysalis' forces if encountered; Complete ________________________ Bonus Objective: Locate Hiveless Changelings (2 Groups); Complete, Thorax found, six Changeling Drones found, Berseker Unlocked ________________________ Everfree Forest Everfree City Mission: Everfree City Part two Main Objectives: Reach the remains of the City's Great Hall Dragonfly, Seeker, Rhino, Darter and Thorax must survive ________________________ Time Limit before Chrysalis reaches the City: Two Hours Briefing Dragonfly: Now that we've reached the Everfree City we need to find what Chrysalis is after and why she would come here. However we are now on a time limit and we will need to get through the ruins to reach the Great Hall, anything of value that is left would have been kept there. Unfortunately we can't go straight there as the wreckage and rubble blocks our path, forcing us to find our way through. Spotter did a scan while he was waiting and discovered that the city's defenses are still working even after a thousand years, so move carefully and Say. Together. I'm not losing anybuggy to a forgotten city! Spotter as also detected strange magic signatures hidden throughout the ruins, they're not Changeling or Timber Wolf so be ready for anything. Everfree City Gate The Group consisting of Dragonfly, Seeker, Rhino, Darter, Spotter, Thorax, sixteen Drones, five Healers, five Soldiers, One Weapons Team with three, one Berseker, and two Hive Spiders for a total of thirty two Changelings and Two Hive Spiders sealed the gate behind them and took note of their location. As Dragonfly and Spotter had said, what remained of the city was rubble overgrow with plants. Any clear paths were gone, blocked by massive piles of debris that would take hours to clears, time they didn't have. "Let's get moving, I don't want to be here when Chrysalis shows up." Dragonfly said with a sigh. Getting through the ruins took a fair bit of time, having to weave through the rubble, but they surprisingly encountered no threats. However this did nothing to ease the Changelings, while they were carefully avoiding the still active defenses, they were sensing... something or rather somethings moving through the rubble staying out of sight and reach but watching the Changeling group from afar. As a result the group was on edge, they knew that something was watching and following them, waiting... hunting. They soon reached the remains of the City Hall, the building was actually rather intact though still in ruin. Opening the heavy doors they were met by a dark hallway covered in dust, webs, and other debris. From the looks of things they would be the first to walk through here in a long time. "Into the darkness," Dragonfly muttered before looking at the others, some of which looked scared. He walked over and gently rubbed their backs, trying to comfort them. "Alright everybuggy, we're going in more or less blind. Stay together and watch each others backs, no one has been here since it was abandoned so be prepared for anything. We know that something has been watching us and we are on their turf now, so keep your eyes open. If any of you see anything call it out right away, I'd much rather have false alarms than the real thing. We all clear?" The response was was yes all across. "Good, now let's find what Chrysalis is after and get out of here, this place is really making my carapace crawl." They slowly walked on the hall, using their horns to lit their way. They had just moved out of sight of the open door... when a shadow rushed passed, and it wasn't Changeling. (1) Like the "Armored Changeling" seen in Canterlot Wedding - Part 2. (2) Most Changelings have very subtle differences between males and females, subtle enough that most other species wouldn't notice unless they already knew what to look for. Voice and any personal items can help with identifying the gender.