One might be surprised but being able to understand most words definitely doesn’t mean understanding what’s being said. 65536 learned that pretty quickly during the second part of Tender Feather’s hearing. Big words and phrases like ‘legislative’ and ‘framework for oversight and gradual integration and potential assimilation’ went right past the changeling drone dizzy from the transfer of knowledge, so it made the executive decision to simply curl up with Not-Blue, close its eyes, and nod off.
High ranks were talking and when they needed something, they would tell it.
Speaking of which, what rank is Luna? What rank is Sharp? Ponies are soft, squishy, and colorful, but they could learn a thing or two from us changelings. You can’t beat numbers when you want things to make sense.
The clicking of a door wakes 65536 up and it realizes that Luna must have carried it off back into her suite. A quick look through its shimmering but invisible forelegs confirms it just as the spell ends and the legs turn all black and hole-y as they should.
“Ah, you’re awake,” Luna’s telekinesis grips 65536 and puts it down on the floor.
“Nuh uh, I’m 65536!” 65536 shakes its head, “And you’re Luna!”
From the door, Sharp Biscuit snickers.
“You’re going to regret teaching the little smartass to talk soon enough.”
65539 sticks its tongue out at him.
“No, she won’t! This way I can tell her what I carried where, how long of a tunnel I dug, that I got away from the big bad worm thing that eats careless drones. I can tell her all the things! I kept trying to mind beam all that to you before but it didn’t work...”
“Mind beam?” Sharp asks, glancing Luna’s way as she takes off all her regalia and begins lighting small incense burners hanging above the bed.
“I think the high ups call it a hive link but ‘mind beam’ sounds so much cooler! WoOoOooo!” it waves its forelegs in his direction while scrunching its muzzle in concentration.
“Interesting-” begins Sharp but gets interrupted by Luna.
“As much as I would like to stay up and discuss everything we’ve learned today, I have this creeping feeling that the dreamscape is going to be boiling tonight and that I’m going to need all the power I can get to be able to fight the tantabus and the dreamweavers.”
“Oh oh oh!” 65536 hops up and down, raising its foreleg, “I can help! I made the tinnitus eat itself last time!”
“I know, but that also means it will be ready,” Luna shakes her head, “No, I have a different job for you.”
“Is it digging? I like digging!”
“Please don’t dig anything anywhere inside the castle unless explicitly asked,” states Sharp flatly.
“Alrighty then! What do you need me to carry where?” 65536 turns its head in excitement, looking from Luna to Sharp and back.
“No, it’s not carrying anything either at the moment,” says Luna and can’t help cracking a smile as the look of complete puzzlement crosses the drone’s face.
“Buuuut Imma drone. We dig, we carry, we get eaten- oh...” its ears fold back as its entire body slumps, hugging its plushie, “I see… I mean, can I have a few moments with Not-Blue before-”
“No mortal or immortal creature is eating you and if anyone tries to as much as nibble on you I will rain down fire and brimstone and drop the moon on the world so hard they will envy the dinosaurs and Sharp will rip the ballsack of anyone even suggesting such a stupid thing and use it as a punching bag in front of their potential grandfoals from other timelines while laughing at their terrified weeping FACES AND THE LAMENTATION OF THEIR MARES!” Luna finishes the loud rant with glowing eyes, heavy breathing, and lightning striking outside the window despite the clear sky.
“Uhhh… are you okay, Luna?” Sharp realizes he unconsciously backed up all the way into the closed door.
“My noggin hurts from so many words...” 65536 rubs its temples, although the conclusion that it’s quite likely not getting eaten helps a ton to improve its mood. That’s one thing ponies shouldn’t learn from changelings, if possible.
“A-hem,” Luna’s eyes stop glowing with eerie white light and the entire room seems to warm back up again, “Relax, nopony is eating you. What I meant was that if we are to show ponies that changelings aren’t just the dark swarm they saw blot out the sky a few days ago, you’re going to need to learn some things. However, I can’t take care of you for the rest of the day.”
“That’s no problem, Luna-” offers Sharp.
“And neither can Sharp,” Luna interrupts him, “At night, you will take Blazing and the rest of the search party along with Tender Feather to contact the changelings she mentioned. We need to know the state of the non-hive changelings in our city. I don’t want any of you to get into a potential negotiation without getting any sleep and I’m still wary of fully entrusting 65536 to any other Nightguards- yes?” she stops, noting 65536’s raised foreleg.
“Umm, I can just lie down and rest. That’s what we do when no one wants anything from us,” it rubs its head, “My head still hurts from Tendy linking up with me anyway...”
Luna and Sharp exchange glances.
“Then I guess it’s settled,” she nods, approaching the bed, “I only ask you to be careful. I made everything in my power to keep this suite isolated from both the light and noise outside and the burning incense will help me sleep but I still do wake up easily.”
“No worries, Luna,” Sharp salutes, “Good nigh- well, you know what I mean.”
“I’ll make you proud!” 65536 puffs out its chest, “I can do nothing like a chump!”
“Champ,” Sharp corrects it.
“I’m not a fizzy drink!”
“But you are still not asleep and Sharp is still here!” Luna, now lying in the bed with a mask over her eyes, raises her voice.
“Old mare Luna is on us. Flee!” she hears an overexaggerated whisper from a bat pony definitely not acting his age followed by a buzzing giggle, the scuttling of small hooves into a corner, and the suite door opening and closing before everything goes quiet.
***
Luna’s internal clock wakes her up just like evening after evening before. She yawns, stretches, sits upright, and takes off her sleeping mask with a mild surprise. As much as she trusted that the changeling wouldn’t want to disturb her, it’s still shown itself to be curious on the level of a foal and those aren’t known for their discipline and calm behavior.
That’s why it surprises her so much to see faint light coming from under the closed door of the bathroom without any noise of running water. A quick look around doesn’t show 65536 anywhere, so she walks over to the door, opens it, and her jaw drops.
“Hiii!” 65536 looks up at her from the tiled floor covered with scattered crayons and sheets of paper depicting everything from random lines to an almost photorealistic picture of Sharp Biscuit’s face, “Didya sleep well? Was I too loud? Was the light too much? I can see in the dark but the drawings looked weird so I went in here.”
However, no part of that is what made her freeze with a mix of emotions too complex to disentangle. The thing that hit her like a speeding train powered by a dragon on steroids was 65536’s looks.
It’s not as if the small changeling shapeshifted or anything. It’s legs and barrel are scribbled on with dark blue crayons, not even as one proper layer but just lines as far as the changeling could reach. Strips of blue and white paper are hanging from its tail stump, glued to it with a small green glob of goo, and the same goes for the changeling’s head.
“So...” she finally finds words, “Where did you get all that?” she points at the terrible mess on the floor.
“Sharp came back after you went to bed and gave it to me. Look,” it raises a portrait of a changeling drone that would bring a royal artist with a lifetime of accomplishment to tears.
“You drew that… with just crayons?”
“Yeah, that’s 52111!” 65536 beams, “We used to polish a tunnel together before it got crushed by a cave-in.”
The complete lack of emotional impact from the death of somepony the drone can recall with photographic quality gives Luna a pause but she decides to ask the easier question instead of digging.
“You can remember all those details?”
“Uh huh, ya can’t?”
“Trust me when I say that only very special ponies can recall visages to this level, not to mention straight up putting them on paper.”
“Then Imma very special drone!” 65536 beams.
“I’m beginning to see that,” Luna nods, “Speaking of paper, were you trying to look like me? Why?”
“Cause you’re awesome! Even better than Not-Blue!”
And that’s it. In the drone’s mind, the answer makes perfect sense.
“And why don’t you just transform into me?”
65536 scratches its head.
“I can’t. Dunno why. Whenever I tried, my head started hurting really bad, much worse than with Tendy, so I did this instead. This way Sharp won’t confuse us so it’s even better.”
“I see,” a swirl of darkness appears around Luna’s horn and vanishes immediately, “Now, good ponies don’t leave mess on the floor so clean up after yourself while I raise the moon.”
“Whoooooooooah,” 65536’s eyes go wide, “You can do that?! Can I watch?”
Luna ponders it before deciding on a little experiment.
“Not tonight. You still have some cleaning up to do,” she nods at the floor.
“Oh, right!”
No complaining, no begging, no nasty looks. So no, certainly not like a foal.
Luna leaves and does her daily routine. When she peeks back inside, the papers are stacked, crayons are in their respective holders, arranged perfectly as if freshly bought, and there are no signs of cheating. Yes, it’s all still on the floor but that’s only a tiny detail.
Drones dig, drones carry, drones have photographic memory, drones do what they’re told, and drones can apparently harm dreamscape creatures in the real world which is impossible without master-tier magic or divine power.
Unfortunately, there will be no time for any more experiments tonight. Luna can sense ponies going to sleep and the dark presence creeping into their dreams using the fear of changelings as a gateway.
“Put the papers and crayons into your corner while I get ready,” she says.
When 65536 shuffles back into the suite with one foreleg and mouth full, Luna is already standing in front of a swirling dark blue portal hanging in the air.
“Now, 65536, you stay put while I’m away.”
The drone drops the crayon holder.
“Where are you going?”
“Into the dreamscape, like before.”
“Huh? I thought you’d just be sleeping like before. Are you sure I can’t come too? Riding big Not-Blue was fun.”
“Not this time, little one. I sense turmoil for which I will need all my power, so I can’t stay here and only project my consciousness. However, without my body here as an anchor, I might not be able to reappear here once the dream is over or if I need to escape quickly. If you came along, you could get dropped out on the other side of Equus or in the depths of the ocean.”
“Okay.”
“If you, by some extremely unfortunate turn of events, run into any trouble, ask any Nightguard for help or to bring you to Sharp. They will at least listen if you mention him even if you are a changeling.”
“Okay.”
“But don’t leave the room!”
“Okay.”
“And don’t stay awake all night!”
“Okay,” 65536 nods.
“Draw or something!”
“I will, I’ve got ALL THE COLORS!” 65536 chomps down on the crayon holder on the carpet and waves it in the air.
Luna smiles, takes a deep breath, and jumps into the portal which closes behind her.
Now left alone, 65536 ponders its options.
“Hmmm… sleeping or drawing?”
In light of not being particularly hungry or exhausted anymore and its pervasive headache dropping to annoying but manageable levels, it opts for… trying something else.
“So, Sharp is busy, Luna is busy, but they want me to be smarter and represident us changelings in good light.”
It looks around and its eyes linger on the filled bookshelf next to Luna’s bed.
“And to do that...” it floats up into the air, “These are… book thingies, right? They have drawings in them that tell stories. I wish Tendy taught me more but with how much my head hurt already she did a great job not overwhelmeting me.”
One book is partially pulled out and 65536 recalls it being on Luna’s bedside table at one point.
“Is this what Luna is reading?” it pulls the book out and opens it at random, “Uhhh… maybe not?”
One page is filled with black scribbles that probably must be words to read and make 65536’s eyes water just from a glance.
“MAYBE YES!”
There’s a picture on the next page. Granted it’s some kind of a super complex symbol with interlocking squares, circles, triangles, and some shapes which seem to shift depending from which angle one looks at them, all surrounded by tiny thingies which might be a different kind of letters.
“Now, this is a word-y book, not a draw-y book. Ya don’t color word-y books even if they have pictures. That’s not just common sense, not even commoner sense, that’s the communist sense.”
And so, 65536 grabs a sheet of paper and starts copying. The strange and almost living image resists but the changeling photographic memory wins and within an hour, the perfect replica of the symbol is on the paper.
65536 looks at it, ponders it for a moment, and then adds some small smiley faces, hearts, and moons for good measure.
As it turns around and starts flipping through the pages of the book, the center of the immaculately drawn grandmaster-level demonologist summoning circle begins to boil and tendrils of living shadows start creeping out.
***
The full-body mirror on the wall of Luna’s bedroom shimmers, and a tall white alicorn with mane and tail of living rainbow jumps through, saying:
“Luna, I need to speak with you. I just received a paladin report suspecting there’s a changeling operating… within… the castle...” her words get stuck in her throat.
She’s lived for untold millennia.
She’s seen the horrors and wonders of the world.
She’s lived within civilizations long gone.
Never in her life has she ever seen a small changeling with blue crayon scribbles all over it and paper streamers glued to its head and backside in the likeness of her sister’s coat, mane, and tail.
What, however, makes her mind crash completely is that said changeling is attempting to bite a clump of black tentacles sticking out of a floating sheet of paper, and said tentacles holding several other rolled-up sheets and smacking the changeling ineffectively over the nose.
It doesn’t help that when the changeling notices her, it jumps away from the tentacles which curiously stop swatting at it, and beams at her.
“Gasp!”
Did it just SAY ‘gasp’?
It darts into the corner and from a small cot in the corner of the room it pulls out a plushie Celestia gave to Luna after her return from the moon 2 years ago. With it in its mouth, the changeling ecstatically rushes back towards her, trips over the toy’s legs, tumbles forwards, and ends up in front of the alicorn’s forelegs, looking up and smiling from ear to ear.
“Sunbutt!” it squeaks, pointing upwards.
Celestia’s eyes narrow as she doesn’t sense, see, or hear her sister anywhere.
“Where is Luna?” she asks coldly.
“She jumped into a dream hole and told me to draw but I wanted to get smarter so I tried reading but it was too hard so I drew a weird shifty picture and it spawned those tentacle things like the drowning wobbler back in the hive has but those are mean and eat drones unlike those,” it points to the paper with tentacles hovering in the air like a jellyfish, “We’re playing smack-bite. I came up with that,” it beams with pride.
Okaaaay…?
“And who are you?” she asks, slightly more at ease from the answer.
“Imma changeling drone 65536!” the drone sits upright and puffs out its chest.
“How did you get here?”
“This big explosion tossed me through the door. I went all crunch but I’m getting better. Luna was a bit worried at first but she and Sharp are telling me what to do now. It’s not digging but you ponies have so many nice things, like colors!”
She nods towards the tentacles now somehow exuding an aura of innocence and pretending they’re not there.
“So, Luna went off dreamwalking, left you here, you drew a picture, and that thing came out?”
“Oh my holes you’re so smart! That’s exactly what happened.”
“Vanish,” Celestia’s horn flashes, and the tentacles disappear in a puff of smoke. 65536 looks at the now completely empty sheet of paper.
“Neeeeat! You have a magic eraser. Can you teach me? I was worried I’d run outta paper to draw on but with that I wouldn’t need any more!”
“No, it is too difficult.”
“Okay,” 65536 shrugs, “I think I like being told stories more anyway because it makes the pictures in my head move, like that time when Sharp told me a story about the moon being a changeling. Well, he didn’t exactly say that but he said that it has holes and it’s made of cheese and we changelings have holes,” it raises its foreleg to prove a point, “And so I think we changelings are a kind of cheese.”
“I guess that does make sense,” Celestia nods approvingly, her horn glowing. For what reason, 65536 doesn’t know. The lights are on in the suite, after all.
For a few moments, they just sit there, eyes locked on each other. Changeling ones filled with wonder and the alicorn ones, for no apparent reason, deep sadness. That lasts until Celestia takes a deep breath, closes her eyes, and pulls the drone into a hug.
“Eeeeeeee!” quiet but high-pitched buzzing fills the room.
Eventually, Celestia lets go, pats 65536’s head, and says:
“Don’t tell anyone we talked. I have something to think about and appearances to uphold.”
“I can help ya hold stuff up! Imma drone! We hold stuff ‘n carry stuff! Swat we do!” offers 65536 with an eager hop up and down.
“I don’t think so,” Celestia shakes her head, “You have something else to do.”
“Huh?”
“...it’s been so long since I did this...” she whispers and the glimmer of her horn shifts into an almost liquid light washing over the drone.
“Woooow, I didn’t know you ponies could… transfer… love… like we… d-” it can’t finish the last word before it keels over and instinctively wraps all four forelegs around Not-Blue. With a belly completely full of fresh love, it falls asleep immediately.
Celestia stands up, and telekinetically grabs the messed up plush toy of herself. When sleeping 65536 keeps hanging on it like a tick, she gives it a curious and ineffective shake before levitating them both into what must be the changeling’s cot.
A single flash of magic later, she steps back into the mirror and disappears.
***
Several minutes later, she’s sitting in the empty throne room, lost in thought.
Luna and Sharp Biscuit found some and they hid them. A DRONE survived the explosion and yet no one else in the city found a living changeling since the invasion and both the guards as well as the paladins have been scouring every nook and cranny.
Her mouth twists into a bitter frown. After all, who would resist a chance for a little payback after failing so spectacularly defending against the changeling invasion.
Not a single living one… yeah, sure...
“Bacon,” she says out loud to the empty air.
In response, a flash of golden light flares up in the throne room, leaving behind a grey, bearded unicorn wearing full plate armor adorned with symbols of the sun.
“Beacon, Your Majesty. What darkness is so dire that you called directly for the paladin grandmaster?”
Your own.
“We need to talk.”