//------------------------------// // Unity and Reunions // Story: Changelings of Harmony // by Prismfire Productions //------------------------------// Life. Ever since the beginning of time, ponies often wondered what was its meaning. Was it just a simulation? An elaborate arcade game in which they were just characters, controlled by some unknown, higher presence that lurked right under their noses. Many philosophers had noted in case studies that everyday pony society followed a strict set of patterns and probabilities, but every attempt that was brought to Celestia was quickly and quietly dismissed. Was it a meaning of existing? Nopony had been able to trace back to the first pony, or a griffin, or dragon, and all attempts to go further back than six generations before Celestia and Luna led to dead ends. Yet, at the other end of the spectrum, death was certain for every creature. When that exact time happened was factored by a lot of different situations and circumstances, with everything from cancer to old age being natural causes, but unfortunately, there were times when one's life was cut short by their actions. For ponies, this often meant that they were in the wrong place at the wrong time, crushed under debris from a rogue monster attack or suffered a fatal blow from a runaway cart. For dragons, that meant losing their entire horde and causing their flame to die out. Griffins and yaks were victims of stabbings over gold and yak rages, respectively, but the cruelest fate was for changelings who had the gall to disobey the First Mother's rulings. Fault Line was one such changeling. With his deed done, and punishment carried out, he had been left to rot in the Badlands sun; teetering in the void of limbo between life and death as his soul waited for his body to give up on him. He knew he was bound to go to a place of evil and malice, where the only love there was available being diluted and buried under the intense force of hatred, greed, and corruption. A place where no matter how much he fought and clawed for the thin wisps of the sustained emotion, it would never be enough, damned to an eternity of hunger that would drive him mad. All the while, timberwolves of fire would crew at his chitin, making him scream in agony due to not being able to defend himself from the magicless void that place was. "Where did I go wrong…" Fault Line thought, his question being lost to the vast emptiness he floated in."I served My Queen well, going above and beyond the call of duty whenever she summoned me for missions. I've effortlessly replaced Celestia's cook, seen the secret blackmail of the Crystal Empire, and was even an accountant for Dragon Lord Ember! I've seen it all, done it all, and put the needs of the entire hive on my shell to prevent it from collapsing due to starvation. "Alas, it wasn't good enough! Those ponies and their meddlesome ways corrupted my brother, making him lose his reasoning when it came to siding with me. First Mother be DAMNED, DAMNED I SAY! My Queen is the one who shall conquer all, not those colorful false prophets of hope. They are nothing more than cheap imitations, and to make it better they turned their backs on their species. Soon they will see… oh how they will see…" An unknown amount of time, to him, had passed since he had entered this limbo stat, so when he saw a speck of light in the distance it filled him with apprehension. Slowly the speck grew, in both size and luminosity, a swirling pool of the color spectrum that brought forth a sense of life as if the universe itself had opened and showed him the fundamental basis of existence. Peace… Harmony… Those two words reverberated in his mind, a soft, tender female voice that spoke with the gentleness but firmness of a mother teaching their foal something valuable. He could feel its warmth wrap around him like a warm, fuzzy blanket as the brightness reached maximum intensity and forcing him to shield his eyes from whatever fate awaited him. However, soon he felt the vague sensation of a cloud mattress, the ones that hospitals used in trauma wards to keep their patients as comfortable as possible for extended stays. This made him open his eyes, only to be met with tranquil blue pupils staring back at him… Except, those pupils were those of a queen. "Gah!" Fault tried his best to move from the captivating lure he was facing, but found his efforts futile from the restraints and tubes that were holding him in place and providing him with a concentrated love IV. "Where am I?! What are you doing here, you imposter of a queen? Themis has a grand plan, one that will establish her as the one in charge, and reveal your hive as the weaklings you are. Those precious ponies you call friends will now before the might of Queen Themis, the Supreme Ruler of Eques!" "It is a pity, really it is," Fluttershy said, sitting by the bed as she kept looking at Fault Line with a sad frown. "You will never fly or be able to use magic again, your shapeshifting limited to beings with no horn or wings, yet even while receiving proper care you are still full of anger and hatred. Why is that? Is it because me and my friends have furthered our species from near extinction to achieve feats that even your former queen never thought possible? Or is it a sense of jealousy, knowing that the Fallen One's hive rose like a phoenix from its ashes to become the most powerful hive in the Collective?" "As if I would tell you!" Fault Line spat, only for it to come out as a gurgled mess that ended with him in a wheezing coughing fit. "That would be aiding the enemy, which would prove destructive to My Queen's grand plans." "In case you have forgotten, you don't have a queen anymore," Fluttershy said, her horn softly glowing as she internally scanned Fault Line for any damage that might have been missed. "Loss of hivemind connections in your brainwaves, which I can feel, show it was severed rather violently. This means you are a queenless drone, so anything you tell me will have no repercussions from her. Not to mention, any information you give me that can minimize Themis' attempt will be seen in your favor for when she is stopped." "You think you are so smug, trying to have me slip my hoof to give up my secrets," Fault's face was twisted into a scowl, which he was trying to hold despite the dull pain coming from his forehead. "Unfortunately, she is always three steps ahead, and by the time this conversation is over she would have fractured your precious little Conv-" "Do you want to live, little drone?" "Wha..." Fluttershy's question stopped Fault Line dead in his tracks, causing him to silently blink several times as he processed it. "What kind of game are you playing? You were correct when you sensed I have no hivemind, because in accordance with the First Mother's laws, what was done to me was the penalty for the crime I committed." "You mean the same laws where it states a criminal drone is to be brought forth to the Head Queen for proper sentencing?" Fluttershy smirked, having used her poker playing abilities to her advantage by hiding a few cards under her shell. "Or, did Themis covalently disregard that part and make you a discarded asset because she saw it as a threat to her plans?" "That's preposterous!" Fault said, rage swelling like lava in a magma chamber. "She would never do such a thing. I have always been one of her best, following every command, what makes you say such blasphemous things?" "She is in longer your queen," Fluttershy said, leveling her tone and gaining a serious look on her face. "You had to do something bad to have the punishment you were given, and should be thankful that two of Rainbow's and Twilight's drones found you while doing a training patrol. Is your head that heavy on pride that you can't see what is reality? You were left for dead, so, is there any use still trying to proclaim a losing ideology? The way I see it you have two choices, either cooperate and I will make sure you are well taken care of, or I can have you on a one-way flight to the center of the Badlands. The choice is yours." "Keeping it simple for me huh?" Fault said, slowly thinking over everything that Fluttershy had spoken and finding, much to his dismay, she was right about everything. "Ok, lets say that I cooperate, what would I get in return? I have killed your kind before, I've done horrific acts that left my victims traumatized for fun, so what could you give me that would have me side with you?" "You have killed other changelings then," Fluttershy said, taking a deep sigh but never losing her regal composure. "That was in the past, and as the Head Queen I can issue a pardon. Should you take the offer and help bring her down, you will be given a full pardon ship by me for all past crimes, enough love to hold you over for three months, and be placed with a guardian pony that will provide you with a place to stay and a job." "A guardian pony? Such a laughable concept," Fault said, snorting a bit as he tried to chuckle. "What purpose would that serve for me? Perhaps, to keep me 'inline' per se, making sure that I don't try to kidnap any more ponies? That feels like slavery, or as you stupid ponies say, a 'villainy redemption program'. It will never work, for it is against the changeling way!" "So, by ensuring a steady love supply for everyling, and making sure all love stores are maxed out, I am going against the changeling way?" Fluttershy rose off the floor, towering over the bedridden drone. "You can't pick which laws you choose to follow for your own benefit, it is either follow all of them or none of them. As the Head Queen, I am held to a higher and stricter standard because I have to answer for all actions of every changeling, including those of your former queen. Now remove those rose-colored glasses and give me an answer, what are you going to do?" "F-fine, I'll cooperate," Fault said, never changing his unreadable expression. "However, I want a few token things in return. You say you can give a full pardon? Fine by me, but you will have to guarantee any pony, or creature for that matter, who tries to judge me for my past will be arrested and given trial." "That's surprisingly reasonable, and doable," Fluttershy was surprised at the addendum, since it was something that actually would help in the long term. "Anything else you request, or is that it?" "I have a few more items," Fault's repl6 was one that she had expected, but she still inwardly groaned. "First being that I get front row seats to whatever punishment you give Themis. Second, make sure she can't injure me any more than I already am. Third, I want a complete file on the pony that you are going to assign me to. Last, but not least, a jumbo chocolate love smoothie." "Done," Fluttershy said, leaning in close as a folder with a muffin on it appeared in Fault Line's lap. "Now start talking." It had been two months since Fault Line had agreed to the deal, and in the time since the collective anxiety of Canterlot's nobility had reached critical levels. Every day a new rumor made its way around the noble gossip circles, with everything from another invasion to suspecting other houses of being changelings in disguise were often brought up, with all accusations resulting in dismissal. However, inside the throne room of the castle, there was a noble who was more anxious than everypony in Canterlot combined. "What is taking her so long?!" Spoiled said, having worn a small circular rut in the floor from how much she had paced. "It is nearly noon, she promised she would be here by now!" "Now Spoiled," Filthy said, sighing as he watched his wife continue her pacing and having given up several hours prior on trying to stop her. "She said that she will be here before Day Court begins, so therefore she has another two hours in her window before she is late. I am just as worried about Diamond as you are, but you still have to show that you can handle yourself in stressful situations. If you don't, other houses in the district will see you as a weakling, do I need to remind you that you married into my status?" "No love, you don't," Spoiled said, finally giving up her pacing and leaned on Filthy's shoulder. "I guess it is true what they say about old habits dying hard." "It is worse when you are as old as I am," Celestia's statement announced her presence, making the couple now before her. "I just received a letter from Spike, he said that Fluttershy is entering Canterlot as we speak, but she wants you both to remain here because she has business to address with me and wants it all done in one go." "Well, we've been waiting for two months, I guess a few more minutes won't hurt," Spoiled said, gluing her eyes on the door, and a few minutes later the Head Queen herself entered. "I'm surprised that you are already here, for Day Court is not for a few more hours. Is Diamond with you?" "I gave myself that window just in case something came up, that way I would have an excuse to be in the proceedings." Fluttershy said, sighing before gesturing behind her with a hoof. "Diamond is in the hallway with her friends, however, I must warn you that there was an unforeseen situation that was part of her rescue." "Unforeseen situation?" Spoiled tone briefly cracked as her lip quivered, a sharp wave of fear coming off her and hitting Fluttershy like diamond-hard icicles. "Is my little princess ok? She isn't disabled or anything serious I hope." "Physically, she is in perfect health," Fluttershy said, stressing the word 'physically' before Spoiled could press any further. "However, mentally is nervous about rejoining you and Filthy, and that leads into the situation I mentioned. One of Themis' drones got it in his head that the best way to prove his loyalty to his queen was by doing an ancient ritual to turn Diamond into a drone, one that would be a member of Themis' hive. The ritual is strictly forbidden, as deemed by the First Mother herself, and Themis had to carry the judgment to have him punished by those guidelines. "Unfortunately, the process is irreversible, so the plan shifted from a simple rescue to trying to preserve as much of Diamond's free will as we possibly could. We got her back to the hive and put her in a pod while pumping her full of a mix of magic, friendship, and positive emotions. She spent three weeks in it just to ensure that there would be no lasting negative impacts, and after she hatched we put her on a crash course on changeling abilities. She has become a great flier and is top of her class clutch in multitasking while using magic." "Oh…" Spoiled's demeanor visually dropped along with her shoulders, her excitement dimming a little after Fluttershy finished her explanation. "I can see why she would be nervous, especially after all I put your hive through with laws and allegations, but she is still my daughter and I still love her the same. Can I see her?" "You may," Fluttershy said, a smile lighting up her face. "As I said, her and the others are out in the hall, but please use a low voice since they are doing a mini-study group for a class project." "I will," Spoiled said, heading for the door but pausing before reaching it as she looked up at the Queen of Kindness. "And thank you for keeping your word." "No problem," Fluttershy's smile grew, relieved that Spoiled had taken everything better than she hoped to be possible. "Although, how about you listen in on them first, they are pretty deep into the details of the project and it would be rude to distract them." And listen she did. "I can't help but feel that we are overlooking something obvious," Scootaloo was fin-deep in notes, but had become frustrated enough to speak her concerns. "Queen Sparkle giving us this as 'extra credit', with a guaranteed A from Cheerilee if we pull it off? Seems fishy to me." "We wouldn't even be in this mess if you had kept your mouth shut!" Sweetie said, huffing as she glared at her friend. "I know that our queens spent a lot of resources trying to find us, but kissing up by having us do Queen Sparkle's backlog is not the way to do it!" "Girls, please," Silver Spoon buzzed her smokey grey wings, a hoof under her chin as she gently tugged the two bickering drones' ears with her silver-colored magic. "Arguing isn't going to get us anywhere with this. Queen Sparkle gave us a month, which ends in five days, and despite no punishment if we fail this assignment I rather all of us give it the best shot we can. After all, what are we?" "THE CUTIE MAGIC CHANGELINGS!" Sweetie Belle, Scootaloo, and Apple Bloom exclaimed, their shout echoing down the hall and making a few guards cower in fear. "Exactly," Silver released her grip on the two, choosing instead to levitate up some papers as she brushed her grey and purple-hued fin with a hoof. "The thing that bothers me the most is that Queen Sparkle didn't even clue us in as to what she was even researching. All we have to go on is photos of Discord's clue board consisting of a pencil sketch of a yarn ball, a partially eaten bowl of spaghetti with one intact meatball and one that is obliterated, a capital letter Q, a map of Eques, and Celestia and Luna's cutie marks." "None of those items correlate," Apple Bloom remarked, rubbing her own forehead as she tried to fight off an oncoming headache. "We got a cat toy, food, the planet, a letter of the alphabet, and the Canterlot sisters' cutie marks. Considering that Discord gave Queen Sparkle the clues, they are meant to be chaotically entwined. Question is, how?" "We've been trying to figure that out since day one!" Scootaloo complained, slumping to the floor as she let the papers she was holding in her magic gently fall. "When you toss in the star charts and we have unlimited access to high altitude weather balloons to make measurements with, it makes less sense with more questions! Maybe we should give up, I made a mistake, time to own up to it." "No…" Four sets of eyes turned to the fifth drone in the group. She was a hair larger than the others, with a silken mane and tail and a tiny set of bottom fangs. On her head sat a miniature crown that matched the one on her flanks. She spoke with a soft but firm tone, one that gave the others pause as she looked at them with a neutral expression. "We just agreed a few minutes ago to press on, so there is no turning back. I have been sitting here in silence thinking everything over as you all discussed what we have before us. Yes, the individual pieces don't add up, but when you take into consideration I have spent all my free time the past few weeks at the Royal Observatory and have had several meetings with Princess Luna, everything makes more sense than you realize. "One thing I am grateful for is the fact, as changelings, our minds develop faster than they would have if we had remained fillies. This has allowed me to think on levels I never had before, and part of that is the ability to read between the lines. Long story short, Discord showed Queen Sparkle why Celestia and Luna need to turn the world each day, because it was hit by one of its moons in the distant past and halted the planet's rotation. He told it through Pictionary." That got everyone's attention, and caused Celestia to activate a few of the castles built in wards to ensure only the five drones, Fluttershy, Spoiled, Filthy, and herself remembered anything from the conversation taking place as a bubble of silence formed around the two parties. "Now hold on a sec," Apple Bloom said, the others scooting back a few inches out of precaution. "We all learned in Cheerilee's class that they move the sun and moon, and Luna crafts the sky each night, are you accusing her of lying?" "Lying? No, but rather an unknowing pawn," Diamond levitated one of her snack apples, which she had not started to eat, and suspended it in the center of the group before adding two grapes orbiting around it. "I am going to use this as a scale demonstration, so pay attention. Early Eques, per my hypothesis, is represented by the apple and the two moons by the grapes. Notice the orbits are in equilibrium, that is because the gravitational fulcrum is directly at Eques' core. Follow so far?" "Yeahhh," Scootaloo said, drawing out the word with a slow increase in pitch as she figuratively arched an eyebrow. "The orbits would be uniform, with the coasts getting tides from either moon depending on which side of the world you were on. Still, if your theory is right, what happened to the other moon?" "Discord," Diamond's answer seemed to chill the air, as if the molecules themselves shuddered at the Lord of Chaos' name. "It is documented, and verified in my talks with Princess Luna, that he roamed free in the days before they ruled. In fact, it is because of his pranks that Celestia's fur is white, but he still was a massive pain in the flank for their parents. My theory is that he made the second moon hit Eques, obliterating that moon and a piece of the planet in the process." Silence reigned around both groups, and even Diamond's parents could not prevent their jaws from dropping at their daughter's startling revelation. Fluttershy seemed impressed, a gentle smile of approval forming as she noticed Celestia pale. However, none of them said a word as Sweetie Belle spoke up. "If what you say is true," The egg-white drone was busy writing down formulas, the hive mind allowing her to multitask while doing so. "Then how come the planet didn't disintegrate on impact? Let alone, if the planet somehow came out pretty unscathed, there would be some sort of crater to show that there was a strike. However, all world and ocean maps have no existence of one, so how do you explain that?" "It was a glancing blow," Diamond said, moving the position of one of the grapes so it hit the apple with enough force to slow its spin while all the juice from the grape was on the surface of the apple and dripping to the floor. "The moon got ripped apart in the process, but the planet did not come out fully unscathed. I have reason to believe that our world is not a perfect sphere like every globe projects, but rather there is a significant chunk missing on the far side where the globes show a vast endless sea. "In addition, the impact robbed Eques of its angular momentum, making the planet cease to rotate and was knocked far enough off the original axis to bring the Frozen North into existence. Evidence of this can be observed by remembering that without both princesses, the sun and moon are observed in the sky at the same time. Not only that, when Celestia raises the sun and Luna the moon, they remain stationary until it is time to lower them. It also explains why pegasus magic has evolved to move the weather, because there is no planetary spin to do it on its own." "Diamond Tiara," Celestia's voice caused the drones to jump, not realizing the princess and the other adults had approached. They all felt the alicorn giving off a sense of accomplishment, while Diamond felt a sense of pride being directed at her from her smiling parents. "The fact you took bits of information from Discord and your own research and pieced together a part of Eques' past that is not known to anyone except me, Lulu, and Discord is truly remarkable. You cracked a code even my brightest student could not beat, and show the wisdom of a mare far beyond your years. Well done, and you took control of an escalating situation and derailed it in a way that shows you will be a fine queen in your own right one day." "Queen?" Spoiled turned her attention from Diamond to Fluttershy, the Head Queen now looking rather sheepish. "You didn't mention anything about that in the room." "Yes, mother, a queen," Diamond stood up and approached, her steps slow and deliberate as she mimicked the strut Fluttershy often used in the presence of dignitaries. "Queen Sparkle hypothesized it is due to my noble blood interacting with the love and friendship that was pumped into me to prevent me from losing myself to Themis' sinister clutches. I do hope that isn't a problem, your little princess leading a full army of drones, and being one of the creatures you so despised." "N-no," Spoiled stammered, withering a bit under Diamond's pointed words. "I have spent the last few months trying to undo the damage that was done on that front. I have inquired with Madame Velvet on how to organize a shift at my milk plants that is entirely made of changeling workers." "And Mrs. Velvet works for me as my hival secretary, convenient dontcha think?" Diamond smirked, giggling a bit at her mother's blank look. "She is doing the day-to-day stuff until my body has grown enough to properly take the throne, but all important matters are run by my hooves to sign off on. When I do take the throne, Silver will be my second." "No surprise there, you two have always been rather close," Filthy said, looking at the moondust-colored drone. "So Silver, why did you decide to become a changeling? I hope your parents didn't give you too much hassle over it since they have been one of the more accepting houses." "They made me love drunk with how much they funneled into me when I went to talk to them," Silver giggled, an embarrassed blush creeping up her cheeks. "I mean, they literally gave me enough love to the point I got drunk. I'm still their little filly, and they are excited to see how I will do with my new role. To answer your first question, the reason why I became a changeling is because I felt bad about Diamond losing her ponyhood, so I asked the Harmony Queens to make me a drone out of support for her." "Which was much appreciated," Diamond said, smiling at Silver as she picked up where her friend left off. "The reason she didn't end up a queen despite her noble blood is because the goo in her cocoon was no different than the mix that was used to convert the CMC." "That's all well and good Diamond," Spoiled's tone had dramatically darkened, piercing into Fluttershy like a dragon stalking its prey. "However, I want to know what sort of punishment is in store for the queen that thought it would be a wise idea to fillynap my daughter." "That's actually what I came to talk to Celestia about," Fluttershy said, clearing her throat as she met the Princess of the Day in the eyes. "Princess Celestia of Equestria, I, Queen Fluttershy of the Harmony Hive, request that Themis be kept in the Canterlot dungeons for the next week. She will be under close guard each night by one of my coqueens, and at noon of the seventh day I want her brought to the courtyard to be beheaded for all to see. That Is my sentence for all the crimes she has committed, do you grant these terms?" "I-..." Celestia stammered, just as shocked as the Riches that the normally timid mare had issued a sentence so harsh. "Are you sure that you want to do that? You personally redeemed Discord, if you can redeem him after all the crimes he has done, why can't you do the same with her?" "The difference is he cares," Fluttershy did not drop her stern look, only solidifying it with traces of her Stare. "Themis has no regrets, and she made it perfectly clear that she would want ponies on their knees serving her than be redeemed. She is a lost cause, and even a stint in Tartarus wouldn't be good enough. I believe it to be the best course of action, for changelings and our allies, to ensure prosperity without worrying about retaliation. All drones in her hive that still sided with her have been dealt with, the rest are the start of Diamond's reign on the throne." "Very well," Celestia sighed, lowering her head in a slight nod. "I will have my couriers get the word out with haste. Bring her to the dungeon after sundown, that will give my guards time to prep the cell with the necessary magic suppressing wards." "I shall report back then with Themis and Rarity, who agreed to take first watch," Fluttershy gathered her magic, her horn softly glowing as she readied a teleport spell. "I will let the Covenant know that you granted permission for extradition to be executed, and let Twilight know to expect a letter from you verifying Diamond's findings. Until we meet again, may Harmony guide your way."