Author's Note: This chapter is being rated MATURE do to violence and descriptions of gore. Reader discretion is advised.
The next morning saw Feather Duster and Elbow Grease being led out of the Crystal Palace by a pair of royal guards. Once outside, the two were told that they would only be permitted to return with the permission of Princess Cadance or Captain Shining Armor, or if they went through the proper channels of requesting an audience during royal court. One guard turned to go back inside while the other remained to see off the two unicorns that were now former employees of the palace. When the guard going inside was completely in the building, the other guard made a motion to Feather to come closer.
"The preparations are all complete", he told her as he handed her a paper,"This disguise spell will let you turn into whatever pony you wish for about ten minutes. A friend of mine has two spare sets of guard armor they can loan you."
"Be careful!", the guard warned Feather,"The spell only works on physical appearance, not voice. Try to speak as little and as briefly as possible."
Feather took the scroll from the guard and then levitated a bag of bits to them. Their transaction complete, the mare turned and walked away, taking a quick glance at the scroll and adopting a rather pleased smile. "That bug won't know what hit him!"
Thorax's day started the same as any other had, but quickly changed rather abruptly. After waking up and feeding, he was brought to the cleaning crew he would normally work with for the day, but was surprised when he was met with Brass Polish alone.
"Where's Feather and Elbow?" he asked the mare.
Brass looked at him and replied "Gone. Princess Cadance left them both go last night."
Thorax looked at her with shock. "What happened?"
"According to what I was told by Ammonia", she answered,"Cadance did some snooping around and found out that both Feather and Elbow were the culprits behind the bathroom incident on your first day. She also interrogated Elbow and he admitted to abusing you on your first day, so she dismissed them both because of that."
Thorax was surprised to hear that happen, but sad at the same time. "I didn't much care for the way they treated me", he admitted,"but I didn't want them to lose their jobs either."
"Don't feel sorry", Brass told him,"They got canned for their own stupidity."
Thorax looked confused. "Canned?"
"It means they got fired", Brass explained,"or given a pink slip, or got sacked, or any number of other idioms that mean they aren't allowed to work here anymore."
"Well", Thorax continued,"in any case, what happens now?"
"Madam Ammonia will be giving us two new ponies for our crew", Brass replied,"We're just gonna get started with our usual stuff, and then they'll jump in once they get here."
"Okay" Thorax answered back. The two went about their daily routines for about a half hour before Ammonia and the two ponies in question showed up.
"These are the two new unicorns for your cleaning crew", Ammonia announced with gesturing towards them with her hoof,"This is Bicarb and Bar Keeper. Bicarb and Bar, this is Brass Polish and Thorax, the changeling we told you both about." The two ponies, a stallion and mare and both unicorns, gave small waves and nervous smiles towards Brass and Thorax, which both unicorn and changeling returned.
"You've been taught the spells you need should the changeling prove unruly", Ammonia reminded them,"but Brass can attest better than anypony here that the changeling hasn't exhibited any behavior to warrant the use of such spells. Still, keep them in mind as a precaution." The new ponies both nodded to their superior as she turned and walked back the way she came. After more personal introductions by both Brass and Thorax, the group set to work for the day.
Sunset fell upon the Crystal Empire, casting yellowish-orange light across the city scape. At the base of the Crystal Palace, ponies were going to and fro, with guards standing watch at the base of the tower. Also beneath the tower was the Crystal Heart, the magic gemstone responsible for protecting the city from the harsh weather that plagued the Frozen North. The energy from the heart traveled up the tower-like palace, using it to project its spell in the same way a radio broadcast used an antenna tower to project its signal.
Nearby, in an alleyway occupied predominantly by dumpsters, two unicorns stood in armor the same as the guards standing below the tower. "Are you sure this is a good idea?" one asked the other.
"Of course", replied the second,"Just focus on casting the spell right, then get to the servant's quarters and change into the disguise. Once you have it on, head to the spot and wait. I'll signal our contact to send the message, then come and wait at the spot."
"Okay", the first one agreed,"but what about the signal?"
"That's easy", the second replied,"A bathroom break will serve as the signal. Once they're inside, we go. Remember, don't hold back!"
The first pony nodded grimly. Uncertainty was still on his mind, but he trusted his cohort to know what they were doing.
"Okay, the shift change is coming up", the second said,"Cast the spell and follow me."
The first pony nodded, and a moment later, both ponies were shrouded in a veil of magic that looked not much different from a changeling's magic. When it dissipated, two new ponies were standing in their place.
"Come on" the second pony urged the first as they both trotted their way into the palace.
The day had been the best so far for Thorax since he began his stay in the Crystal Empire. Bicarb and Bar Keeper were very wary earlier on in the day, but a discussion with Brass at lunch time had convinced the ponies to give the changeling a chance. This resulted in Thorax getting to learn more about the ponies.
Bicarb, short for Bicarbonate, was a mare that once lived in Ponyville and cleaned for the Golden Oaks library before Princess Twilight was sent there by Celestia. Bar Keeper, a stallion from Manehattan, once had aspirations of becoming a professional buckball player, but he had lost the passion to pursue it and was now hoping to earn enough money to open a bar in some small town and enjoy a quieter life.
While it was great to learn about the two ponies, it was even better for Thorax to hear their general approval of him. "When I heard about Canterlot, I figured all you guys were nothing but vicious bugs that wanted nothing more than to terrorize everypony in Equestria", Bar Keeper admitted,"but now that I've gotten a chance to meet you, you guys might not be so bad."
"Yeah", Bicarb chimed in,"Maybe you guys ain't so bad after all? Just a little misguided because of that queen perhaps?"
Thorax agreed to an extent; While the hive followed the will of the queen the majority of the time, he'd seen plenty of times where changelings simply allowed bad things to happen to ponies when they could've intervened. Nothing where the outcome would cost a pony's life, of course; That'd be a waste of love. Just small things like letting a pony step up to their barrel in a deep mud puddle or getting hit with a hoofball during a game.
It was now evening, and Thorax was being escorted by two guards back to his quarters. This would've been a fairly normal occurrence, but something felt off to the changeling. Of note, the one stallion seemed rather fidgety as the group got closer the the servant's quarters. His fellow guard took notice.
"What is wrong with you?" the guard asked in confusion.
"Had too much to drink at dinner mess", the other replied,"I'm gonna need a trip to the colt's room soon."
The first guard huffed. "Can't this wait until we get the changeling to his quarters?" he asked with annoyance in his voice.
"I'll do my best", the second replied,"but no promises."
The trio continued moving until they came to a hallway, but something wasn't right here either. For one, the lights appeared to all be off. A check of a switch nearby confirmed that not to be the case.
"A magic fuse must've blown" the guard deduced. The second, antsy guard was walking almost wobbly, a look of discomfort across his face.
"Sorry", he apologized,"but this can't wait anymore." The guard took off down the hallway to where a sign denoting a restroom could be see. The first guard went to follow his partner, but gave up after a few steps.
"Fine", he shouted to the other guard,"but don't even pause to shake it!"
The other guard dashed into the bathroom as the guard and Thorax stood and waited patiently for him to return. As they waited, Thorax examined the hallway around him, and realized right away why things didn't feel right: This was the perfect set up for an ambush.
As if on cue, two dark figures fell from the ceiling. The first fell in front of the bathroom door and held it shut. The second fell behind Thorax and the guard, firing two stun spells. Both hit their mark, and the guard and Thorax were sent forward by the impact. Recovering quickly, the guard stood up to face his attacker, only to be knocked back down and set upon by the attacker.
Thorax took a little longer to recover, but saw the stranger that was attacking him and the guard, and his heart sank. Standing over the guard with a hoof pushing them to the ground, was what appeared to be a changeling.
The equine figure had some of the telltale marks of being a changeling: fangs protruding from the muzzle, curved horn, insect-like wings, and the signature holes in the legs and hooves.
Despite the appearance of the creature, however, something felt off about it.
"Keep that guard in the bathroom!" shouted the changeling in a mare's distorted voice, then looked down at the guard with a predatory smile. "I'm going to get a little recharge from this one."
The changeling holding the bathroom door shut looked at the other with disbelief. "You got the last pony too!" he protested, his voice clearly male and also distorted. "Wait", Thorax thought,"Those voices sound familiar."
"Then go in there and drain the guard!", the female ordered,"Just stick them in a stall so whoever finds them thinks they fell asleep on the can!"
The other changeling gave a huff before opening the door and going inside. "Now", the female directed her attention back to the guard on the ground, who was starting to recover. She pushed her hoof down to hold them in place and opened her mouth, her horn glowing with magic. A moment later, and a stream of pink left the guard's body and went into her mouth. After a few moments, the pink stream stopped.
"Not all that much", the female commented,"but there's plenty of ponies in this palace to drain." She turned away from the guard and faced Thorax. "Unfortunately, they'll have to wait until we deal with you" she said coldly to him, her magic lighting up her horn.
Thorax looked at her confused. Her magic wasn't the same green like all the other changelings. He was about to question why until he felt something heavy and sharp collide with the back of his head. He fell to the floor in a heap, letting out a grunt of pain.
The female changeling walked over to him, and in her magic's grip was a large spiked mace. The weapon was clearly not something ponies normally used. "I'm going to enjoy this" she said with a bright smile as she lifted the mace for another blow.
"Starting the fun without me, Cervix?"
The female looked up at the other changeling, who just left the bathroom he'd entered a few moments ago. "Took you long enough!" she spat at him.
"Hey!", the male protested,"I had to stuff him into a bathroom stall! These ponies aren't light, y'know!"
"Shut up!", she barked,"Just get your weapon so we can finish this quick!"
The male complied and grabbed another weapon from nearby: A club with a few spiked studs on the end. Thorax, who was now recovered enough to stand, took stock of the current situation. These two creatures, masquerading as changelings, were intending to cause harm to him.
No, that wasn't it at all. They were going to kill him.
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Thorax wheeled around and ran in the opposite direction. He had only one concern in mind: Find somepony to help. Sure, he could end up in trouble, but he would be safe from whatever the two faux changelings wanted to do to him.
A blast of magic collided with Thorax and knocked the wind out of him. Unable to breathe, the changeling fell to the floor in a heap. As he tried to recover his breath, a telekinetic grip took hold of him and sent him flying into a wall, making him let out a pained grunt as he collided hard with the unyielding crystal wall.
Thorax fell to the floor and let out another pained grunt; somewhere between the first blow from the changeling's mace and the hit with the wall, his carapace had cracked. The wound was already bleeding, and a small amount of blood was dripping from it onto the crystalline floor. Feeling the wet liquid flowing down his carapace, Thorax tried to get to his hooves, but the changelings both delivered blows to his side, causing him to let out a yelp in pain as more cracks formed in his carapace.
"You know something funny, Phallus?" the female fake changeling asked her male counterpart.
"What?" the male replied.
The female wore a grin and replied "I remember something I overheard a pony say once: Can't make an omelette without cracking some eggs."
The male let out a deep laugh and replied "Yeah, whatever an omelette is."
"So, wanna finish making our omelette?" she asked, gesturing her mace towards Thorax.
"Yeah, lets" replied the male.
Thorax was recovering from the recent round of abuse when a hoof connected with his side. The strike caused more blood to flow from his wounds, coating the floor in more red. The changeling let out a cry of pain that was quickly silenced by more blows from the weapons of the two attackers.
Then, something happened Thorax hadn't expected: One of the blows had caused the belt holding his wings down to either come loose or break apart. Instinctively, his wings shot out and began fluttering, trying to carry the changeling away from his attackers. As soon as the faux changelings saw what happened, they redirected their blows to the now free wings. Thorax screamed out in pain as the sensitive muscles at the base of his wings were bashed into nothing and the membranous wings were torn to shreds. The delicate wings were immediately pulled in in an effort to protect them better.
The male faux changeling stopped what he was doing and addressed his partner. "Maybe we should stop", he suggested,"We already broke one restraint. What's gonna happen if we break the others."
Her response was to look at him coldly and reply "When we're finished, there won't be a need for restraints."
Thorax, upon hearing confirmation as to exactly how far they were going to go, found new strength and jumped up to run as fast as he could. He was caught in magic and held in place as the mace was swung into his face, tearing into the chitin and drawing more blood.
The force of the blow had caused Thorax's world to go fuzzy as he staggered. As he recovered, he suddenly realized he could feel a familiar sensation: Emotions. He could feel, anger, contempt, hatred and fear all at once. The faux changelings had knocked the magic ring off his horn!
Another blow from the mace sent Thorax falling backwards into a wall. This time, the muzzle on his face fell off as the strap holding it in place was obliterated by the spikes. With this new freedom came the return of the fuzziness, and this time it was not leaving him. A feeling of wooziness accompanied it, telling the changeling that he was now concussed. His ability to balance himself was gone and he fell to the floor in a heap.
"Well", the female faux changeling said rather snidely,"looks like we don't have long to go. One more good blow to the head ought to finish this." Of course, to Thorax, this sounded like it came from a mile away due to a whooshing sound in his ears.
The male faux changeling sounded a little more sympathetic. "Dear Celestia", he remarked,"he is in a sad state."
"Don't break character!" the female spat at him.
"What's it matter?", the male questioned back,"Just look at him. He's a mess, and he's making a mess of this whole hallway."
"I don't give a damn!", she countered,"If he figures out who we really are and manages to live long enough to say something, it'll mean our flanks! Besides, you and I both know who'll be cleaning this up later, and she deserves it for betraying her own kind!"
The male had no more arguments. He lifted his club to deliver the killing blow, but paused. Looking down, he saw the changeling unresponsive; Apparently at some point during their argument, he'd passed out. "Feather, I don't think he's alive anymore" the male said to the female.
The female shot him a glare as she walked over and examined the changeling. She couldn't hear any breathing, and so assumed that her male counterpart was correct. "I don't hear breathing", she told him,"but I'm gonna give him one more good whack to make sure." She raised her mace to deliver the final blow, but the mace was wretched from her grasp. The female looked to her male counterpart to see he'd taken the mace from her.
"Elbow, what in Tartarus are you doing?!" she spat at him.
Elbow replied "Putting a stop to this, Feather. You're literally about to beat a dead horse."
Feather glared daggers at him and replied "That thing in NOT a horse, or a pony for that matter!"
"Whatever", Elbow shot back,"Besides, we've wasted enough time as it is. We need to leave right now, before the guard in his room gets curious and comes looking for him."
Feather wanted to argue but knew Elbow was right; The longer they stayed, the higher their chance of being caught. "You're right", she said while calming down,"Head back to the spot we stashed the armor and remember that spell from earlier. There should be another guard change, and we can slip out without anypony suspecting us." With that, the two disguised ponies gathered up their tools and walked out.
"Say, Feather", Elbow asked,"What was that pink liquid in the bottle you had?"
The mare replied "Just some water with a special dye to make it look pink."
Custos had been waiting for nearly an hour for the guards escorting the changeling back to his room to show up. This clearly meant something was wrong, but he couldn't just abandon his current post without good reason. Little did he know, that good reason came pounding on the door.
Surprised, Custos opened the door and saw one of the custodial mares looking at him with a terrified expression in her eyes. "COME RIGHT NOW!", she shouted at him,"Something terrible has happened!" The mare wheeled around and took off at a gallop down the hallway. Not having the time to question what was going on, Custos followed at his own gallop, trusting that he would get his answer in just a few short moments.
The mare and guard turned through several hallways before the mare came to a stop near a wall and dropped to her stomach. Custos was about to ask why when he saw the reason over her withers. Lying against the wall was the changeling he was supposed to be guarding. Nearby, the two guards that were supposed to be escorting him were sitting on a bench, with one rubbing the other's back.
Custos approached them with an icy glare, one he chose to adopt upon realizing the two in front of him were lower ranks. "I trust you two have an explanation for all of this?" he asked in a less than pleased tone.
The more alert guard gave a reply. "We were attacked, sir", he told them,"and I'm pretty sure based on my squad mate's story that it was a pair of changelings."
Custos went wide eyed and became livid. He turned to face the changeling on the ground and demand the truth of what happened, but stopped in his tracks.
The mare was weeping over the changeling on the ground. His black chitin was severely cracked, so much as for blood to be leaking all over the floor. In fact, some of the chitin had been broken off into chunks that littered the floor, leaving the flesh underneath exposed and blood to pool in the crevices.
Aside from the damage to the chitin, Custos made note of a series of long cracks going along the changeling's face and horn, those also seeping with blood. The nature of the damage, combined with the extensiveness throughout the changeling's body told him that this creature was not an aggressor, but a victim.
Custos jumped into action. "Mare", he ordered her,"There is a medical officer in the check station at the front of the palace. Go get them!" The mare rose to her hooves and gave a quick nod and took off as fast as her hooves could take her. "And tell them it could be a changeling attack", he shouted after her,"The castle needs to be put on alert now!"
"You two!", Custos then addressed the two guards,"Get the materials necessary to start treating these wounds. Then, I want you in the barracks office so that you can give full and detailed reports!" The two nodded and took off to search for supplies. However, one of them stopped.
"What are you going to do sir?" the guard asked.
"I'm staying with the changeling until the medical officer arrives, or until you two get back with medical supplies" he answered. The guard gave a nod to his superior and ran after his comrade.
Custos turned to assess the changeling. Using a basic diagnostic spell, he determined him to still be alive, but in a very poor way. As much as he detested the creature, it was important to keep him alive; he was also a witness to what was happening, and clearly the target of the attack.
Princess Cadance was sitting in her study reading when Andesite came walking into the room. Cadance looked up to greet the mare, but noticed the pale white expression on her face. In that moment, she knew something wasn't right.
"What is it, Andesite?" Cadance asked her.
"I-", Andesite hesitated before simply saying,"I-It's about the changeling, your highness. He... He was attacked."
The book in Cadance's grip was released and fell unceremoniously to the floor, a look of horror upon her face. She rose from her chair and looked Andesite in her eyes. She had only one question to ask after that.
"Where is he?"