The screech of metal cutting metal filled the otherwise silent air the Chamber of the Venator was known for as Mobius cut his opponent's shield in twain, knocking the caretaker of the hall to the ground. Mobius sheathed his sword with his armor moving it back across his back as he reached down to offer the caretaker a helping hoof. He accepted it with a silent grunt and wordless pantings of exhaustion.
*Never in all my cycles, have I had the honor of training a Venator such as yourself*
Came the voice of the silent caretaker within Mobius’s aura.
*The connection between you and the Panssari of the Empress is quite impressive for having only just been linked to it*
“Is this not what my predecessors felt after their joining?”
*No… The Empress must be smiling upon you*
“If she were then I wouldn’t be here. So then why is she blessing me now? I broke her code… I do not deserve her favor.”
*The answers you seek are known only to the Empress…* A mental chuckle reverberated through Mobius’s mind as the caretaker smiled in silent amusement. *You are not the first to ask this question. I remember Xarix asking the same thing when the strength of his connection with the Panssari was discovered.*
“Did he find his answers?”
*I cannot speak for your predecessor… But his aura was a sight to behold during his prayers. I dare say the Empress herself was attempting to speak with him… but that may just be my overactive imagination. It was nothing like the Queen's aura when the Empress speaks to her… Anyway, after that prayer, he held himself differently and when asked, he said his prayers had been answered*
“What was the answer?”
*He never said. Only the Empress will give you the answer you seek. Now let us conclude our training for today. It is almost time for the evening prayer, maybe you will find the answer you seek just as Xarix did. Now enough speaking, I need my energy for the Ceremony.*
“Ceremony?”
*A new Caretaker is to be initiated tonight, it is my duty to perform their initiation so that they may take over when I am with the Empress. Would you like to observe the Ceremony, Venator? It truly is something special to behold.*
“If my presence doesn't hinder its proceedings. I would be honored too.”
*Splendid I will send another to fetch you before the Ceremony.*
“If I may ask… Do I perhaps know this initiate?”
*I doubt it… he was never strong enough to be initiated into the warrior caste.*
“Really?”
*Yes now enough Questions, this much speaking is taking its toll. Venator, I shall see you at the Ceremony. May the Empress be with you.*
With that final thought, the slightly battered Caretaker of the Halls left to prepare, leaving Mobius in Silence as he now wandered what was technically his halls now as its Venator. His gaze wandered back to the many paintings of his predecessors lining the walls. All of them were traitors of the highest degree and yet they were praised as heroes. Those the Empress had deemed worthy of Redemption. Those worthy of her Love.
Would he get a painting for his death? Wondered Mobius. Would he prove himself worthy of such a work of art? He looked down at the armor that now acted as his new defacto exoskeleton. Its surface shimmered with a wave up his foreleg as the Panssari reacted to his thoughts.
It was a strange thing, the Panssari of the Venators. A Powerful weapon that carried a heavy price to those who wore it, as Mobius knew from his own ritual binding it to him. He focused his gaze as he watched its surface ripple and move in response. Its void-like surface shone back at him almost hypnotically. The Green Splotches of where his predecessors spilled their blood reminded him of how many had worn the Panssari before him.
His gaze moved skywards as he looked towards the redness covering his helmet. Some say it is where Venatrix’s blood was first split upon the Panssari. Sealing the pact of the first Venator. Others say it is the blood of the Empress herself from the wound Venatrix could not prevent. But whatever its origins were all Mobius could do was stare at it as if it were an oasis in a sea of sand.
His mind became blank, time held no meaning anymore. His mind was gone, his speech was mute and his aura was silenced as something smothered it. A sound, a Voice a whisper was heard.
*V_____ _s _h__ y__*
He blinked, and he was looking at his foreleg once again. Confusion began to set in as a headache made itself known behind his red-stained helmet.
“Was…Was ist gerade passiert?”
Questioned Mobius out loud in his native tongue, his hoof moving up to rub his now aching temples. He could have sworn he had just felt someling brush against his aura. And yet he could not remember who. He shook his head to clear his mind.
“Hmph, probably some nymph nearby connecting for the first time.” Reasoned Mobius as he stood back up. It was not uncommon for such whispers to be heard when close to the young of the Hive. He brought his hoof back up against his pounding head as he grumbled to himself.
“Damn nannies must have forgotten to repower the seals. By the Empress just who trains those damned drones.”
The pain began to slowly recede as he walked through the halls towards its exit. He had some time to kill and he had done enough training for today. He pushed the doors to the halls aside and stepped into the tunnels that spanned the entirety of their domain.
He didn't need to look at their aura’s to just feel the word *Traitor* bring directed at him from the two guards flanking the entrance to the Halls. He paid it no mind, or at least as much as he could as it reminded him of just how he ended up down there. How he ended up wearing the Panssari and the title of Venator.
He looked down the tunnels to his left and right, their almost unending length completely devoid of any other drones as he could peer into the endless darkness the tunnels of the grand Hive possessed. If it weren't for Mobius having spent his whole life down in these tunnels, navigation would almost certainly be impossible.
It didn't take the Venator long to find his way up the walls and across the various ceilings the tunnels contained to make it into the grand atrium of the Grand Hive of the Swarm.
It truly was a sight to behold for any Changeling, even those that have spent their entire lives walking its streets. Its size was comparable to that of Canterlot itself with the superstructure of the city being contained within a massive underground cavern. In the Center, standing far above all structures was the palace of the Empress.
The Place where all the Queens met, and it was where the Empress herself first declared the formation of the great Swarm a millennia ago. Its Blood-red colored spire extends all the way up towards the roof of the cavern where the City of Queens was built. A separate hanging city built specifically for the many Under-Queens of the Hive. If one were lucky, a drone might even perhaps catch a glimpse of one of their Under-Queens overlooking the city.
Its sight was as breathtaking as ever to the Venator as he began to wander the streets of the city below. The many civilians that were minding their business gave the Venator a wide berth as he walked among them. Their aura’s screaming ‘traitor’, ‘failure’, and ‘brother-killer’ at Mobius were all drowned out as the shame it was meant to bring him only fed his determination and stride as he saw his destination.
The headquarters of VOPS, the ever-vigilant eye of the Queens, and the place Mobius had many dealings with before his audience with the Queen and his trip to the Halls. The building stood in stark contrast to its surroundings with its strong, almost oppressive, black rectangular design compared to the circular and more spiral greenish architecture around it.
Drones in and out of Uniform were wandering throughout the streets surrounding it with many entering and many more leaving as not a single civilian worker dared go anywhere near this imposing structure.
He entered the Building without much fuss as everyling around him was either too invested in their conversations, work and or they just simply didn't care much for the Venator walking among them. The distinct sound of buzzing wings and documents being shuffled or written on permeated throughout the whole of the building's lobby. Even the very energy of the building itself was ablaze with activity as auras blazed, shrunk, pulsed and communicated with one another as one large interconnected system.
It was not unlike the system he and his troops had used for nonverbal communication, albeit not as complicated as the system VOPS was using here. Making his way through the building he made his way past the civilian sector and into the military one, well more specifically the office of one Agent Curxe.
“Hallo? Curxe, you in?” Began Mobius cautiously as he peeked into the office
“Mobius!” A shout came from inside. “Old friend, come in, come in!”
Mobius did so and was met with the smiling face of Curxe looking at him from behind his desk. The Venator smiled in turn as he entered fully before closing the door behind him. The Old changeling hadn’t changed one bit from when they had first met during the Civil war. He still wore the same tattered officer’s cap he had stumbled across on the battlefield all that time ago and refused to take off for any reason, nor tell anyling who it had previously belonged to.
His left eye was a dark green whilst his right remained a light blue with a large crack in the membrane visible in its pale blue glow. The remnant of an old injury that left him blind in his left eye and almost his right as well. His smile was still as obnoxious and as infectious as ever to the Venator as he began to speak.
“So mein Freund, what can I do for you today?”
“You're... not gonna call me a traitor?” Was the first question that came to Mobius’s worried mind.
Curxe just laughed at the worried Venator.
“Nein nein. You think just because the Queen says you're a traitor and puts you in that armor I’m going to do the same? Ha! Do you think so little of me that I would turn my back on my savior just like that? Don’t make me laugh!”
Mobius joined in with his own laugh this time.
“I'm your savior now?”
“Of course, Mobius, of course! Do you think saving my life during the battle for the grand Hive meant nothing? HA, the Queen must have done more of a number on you than I thought. Anyway enough catching up with your old pal, with your new position I doubt this was purely a social call.”
“As much as I wish it was, no… How are my Ribbons doing Curxe?” Questioned Mobius, his tone as serious as anytime the fate of his beautiful Ribbons was at stake.
“Pretty good actually. They naturally didn’t take kindly to your current situation, but that's the thing. They are angrier at the Queen for taking you away from them!”
“...Was?”
“I know! Just what did you do to these drones Mobius? They honestly don’t blame you for what happened in Las Pegasus. They aren't particularly happy either but it's not directed at you.”
“Well… I was not expecting that. What's going to happen to them anyway? Who is my replacement going to be?”
“Yeah see that's the thing. By the Empress, they will not accept anyling else to lead them. They said, and I quote: ‘The Ribbons without Mobius are no Ribbons at all’. Hah, they're as loyal to you as they are the Empress herself.” Exclaimed Curxe as he leaned back into his chair. “Just as stubborn as well”
“I’m flattered but... they need a Kommandant if they are to return to active duty.”
“Hmmm…” Curxe’s gaze began to dart around the room before he lit his horn in a green glow and surrounded the two of them in a bubble of green magic. “Okay so I’m not supposed to be telling you this but you deserve to know.”
“What is it?”
“The Queen herself has taken an interest in your troops. More than that I do not know. But I do suggest you talk to them sooner rather than later before the Queen takes any action.”
“Okay...thank you for telling me Curxe.”
“Anytime, now remember you didn’t hear this from me, in fact, you didn't hear this at all.”
“What were you talking about?” Responded Mobius with a slight grin.
“Good.” He displayed the shield with a wave of his horn. “Now! Is there anything else your old friend can do for you?”
“Yes. What intel have you managed to uncover on the Pony known as ‘Six’?”
“Ah her… She is the puzzle of the decade here in my department.” Curxe began digging around in one of the filing cabinets behind him. “Short answer: We got nothing. Long answer: We have so very little it's basically nothing.” He managed to find what he was looking for and brought out an incredibly thin document folder. The number 6 was emblazoned across it in changeling Script.
“That's everything?” Questioned the Venator incredulously as he lifted the document up from the desk to inspect its contents.
“Everything so far, mein Freund. We have her under investigation of course but this pony is careful. The first-ever sighting of that armor and that pony was in Las Pegasus. Before then she didn’t exist.”
“Could the rumors be true then?”
“Possibly, I’d say a 10% chance now of them being true. But this one pony does not make them true by default. If you take a look in there you can see the transcript from what one of our undercover agents managed to get when the ponies interrogated the pony in questions themselves.”
“The Ponies interrogated her?”
“Yes yes, it's all in the file. Now it's been bugging me constantly so if I may ask. How does it feel? The Panssari I mean.” Began Curxe curiously.
“It's uhh weird? By the Empress, it hurt when I completed the ritual. But now it's just there. It's like having a second…living carapace. I really don’t know how to describe it.”
“Huh neat. Well.” He suddenly reached down and opened up a drawer on his desk. When he came back up he held two glasses in one hoof and a bottle of golden liquid in his green magical aura. “Care to share a drink with me for old times sake?”
“As if you had to ask” Answered Mobius with a growing smile. Curxe began to pour a glass out for the two of them. Once he was finished he floated one of the glasses over, and Mobius took it without hesitation.
“Have anything to drink too?” Asked Mobius once he held his own glass.
“How about to a long life and having many lings to call your own?”
Mobius just stared at his friend, who subsequently burst out into laughter once he realized who he was toasting with.
“Pffff… Haha sorry, Mobius. I forgot what you were now for a second. Here.” He raised his glass up. “To dying a good death, my friend.”
“To dying a good death.”
And with a satisfying burn, the liquid went down their throats.
“Ooh, that's the good stuff right there Mobius. Fine geltisch Scotch lifted straight from the moon princesses stache in Canterlot. A crisp 856 brew. I hear that the Princess was quite upset the next morning when she found her scotch missing.” Retold Curxe as he inspected the bottle with a slight nod.
“She certainly has taste, I'll give the ponies that. Well anyway, I should be going, I’ve been invited to watch the initiation of a new Caretaker for the halls, can't show up drunk now can I?.”
“Yeah yeah, I’ve got work to do as well, you head on out. I’ll come to visit you in the halls when I’m done here for today.”
“Are you going to bring al-“
“What do you take me for? A Lemon like those down in civilian affairs?! Of course, I’m going to bring alcohol!”
Mobius just chuckled and shook his head as he opened the door to Curxe’s office and left.
Now all alone Curxe poured himself another glass and raised it to the closed door.
“To your long life Mobius. May the Empress protect you.”
————-
The trip back to the halls was a short one for the Venator, and soon he found himself back within its now somewhat familiar blood-red walls. The halls themselves now had a slightly different look since Mobius was last there as the altar where he completed his Ritual was now replaced with something more similar to that of Pony Churches. With a cushion and a tome, Mobius hadn’t yet seen before lying next to the altar where the Panssari once lay.
Scanning the room the Venator saw the current Caretaker sitting before the statue of the Empress, his aura as calm as a lake. Slowly Mobius moved towards the Caretaker, trying to remain as silent as possible as to not disturb his prayers.
*I thank you for your consideration, but it is unneeded, Venator.*
“Sorry. I simply did not wish to disturb your prayer.”
*Not a prayer Venator. I was Meditating. One can only read the scriptures of the Empress for so long before they become a poor way to keep the mind occupied.*
“Will the Ceremony be taking place soon?”
*Once the initiate arrives we may begin. But until then why not say a prayer? You still seek answers do you not?*
“What if my prayers are not answered, Caretaker?”
*There is only one way to find out, Venator Mobius.* Finished the Caretaker as he gestured for Mobius to take a seat beside him.
Mobius did so after a brief moment of consideration. The Venator bowed low to the statue before sitting upright and closing his eyes as he reached out with his aura into the void. Exploratory tendrils of his mind reached out towards his Empress, a query, a question, a prayer etched into their surfaces.
He called into the void… and it answered back. At first, it was a shift, then it was a wave in the fabric of the void. Now it was an earthquake in the plane of the void. His aura shook and shook as the quakes came in regular intervals. The darkness receded as it was replaced by a brilliant red as a star appeared in the dark void.
Its surface was wild, untamed, blinding to the Venator as it felt as if he was back in the throne room with the Queen only far, far stronger. He reached towards the Star only to fail as his tendril was burned away by its radiance. That didn't stop him as he tried again and fought through the heat, its power burning his very soul. He wouldn't be surprised if his face was currently trapped in a pained grimace back in reality.
He paid that thought no heed however as he pushed more and more to approach the star. But it was too much and the star lashed out back at him. Its energy overwhelmed him and returned his tendril back to his aura as the star burned his mind with its unrepressed power.
It felt as if his entire soul was currently burning in the core of the red giant, his mind on the verge of shattering into pieces. Then… it stopped. The pain disappeared. The energy was still flowing into him as it had before but now it was… pulsing. Expanding and contracting in tandem with his own aura, with his own two hearts even. Then it stopped as the void exploded into an Ocean of red.
*Gasp*
Mobius opened his eyes, back to reality. His hearts were beating in tandem, their pounding in his ears and his breath coming in short bursts. He looked to his side in a daze, a red tinge in the corners of his vision, and found the Caretaker looking at him with worry in his eyes. He tried to speak but nothing came out. The Panssari was pulsing and waving and moving all across his body in a chaotic dance of red, black, and green.
Before Mobius could question anymore his mind fell into the sea of unconsciousness his mind red.