The staff of Canterlot Castle were working furiously to finish the last minute preparations in advance of the guest they were about to play host to. Tables were dusted, linens were changed, vases of flowers were either filled with water or had their flowers changed out for fresher ones, and every floor in every room was washed and polished to a mirror shine. A quick review by both Princess Celestia and Luna was given the veritable seal of approval. Now, all anypony had to do was wait for the guest to arrive.
In their message to King Apidae, they informed him that they would greet him in the palace garden. He was to come to the main gate and give a specific code phrase, and he would be escorted to the meeting place. As the preparations were complete, both Princess Celestia and Luna were sitting at a patio table in a small gazebo. A privacy curtain was drawn; it allowed enough light to be able to see well, but obscured to interior enough from the outside that anypony in passing wouldn't be able to see who was inside or what they looked like.
Celestia herself had a nervous expression on her face, which Luna quickly picked up on, as well as deduced the source of the anxiety that caused it. "You are fearful that this is all still a farce?" she asked, though knew the answer she would receive.
As expected, Celestia gave a small nod. "We've prepared for everything that we could possibly think of," she replied, "but will it be enough?"
Luna at first had her own uncertain look, but after taking a breath, adopted a more resolved one. "If our efforts are not sufficient and this is a prelude to another invasion, then we shall not go down without a fight!"
Celestia looked at her sister for a moment and then smiled. "You were always the more strong willed of the two of us" she commented. "I suppose that's why when responsibilities were split between us, I gave you charge of the military."
Luna could only laugh at that remark. "Forgive me sister," she responded, "but I do believe that I very strongly asked to be put in charge of the defenses of Equestria."
Celestia gave a nod, but then thought of something that she had never thought to ask before. "Luna," she began, "I never asked this before, but do you think we have ever dealt with changelings before the attack that happened a month ago?"
Luna sat for a minute thinking back to the time before her banishment, when she had ruled with her sister, and specifically to when she had been in charge of the royal guard and the military that was dispatched to deal with the more aggressive of nations that stood as enemies to both Equestria and the world.
"...perhaps" came Luna's reply.
Celestia frowns upon hearing the response. "When?"
"During the years of Discord" Luna replied. Taking another sip, she begins to tell her story.
"I recall during that time, when we were trying to find a spell or weapon to stop him, I received a letter calling upon us for aid. I answered the letter and traveled to the village where our help was needed. Once I arrived, I could tell things were not right. The villagers walked as though they were forced to work through the night, and when I spoke to them about the danger their mayor had requested help for, the looks I got were as if they did not care. It had befuddled me to no end. I searched for answers through the whole town and was about to give up, until I found a mare living in a cottage just away from the town."
"The mare was... strange, to say the least. As I was invited to her home, she made a great deal of fuss about me proving I was who I claimed to be, and only after consuming a rather foul mixture did she accept my claims as truth."
"This mare then began spinning wild tangents that made little sense to me. She spoke of monsters from the woods, a cave of sinister green light, and ponies who had been twisted by so evil a curse, it left their bodies incomplete and alien."
"She then gave me a warning: Never sleep without an anointment of peppermint oil. It would be the only way to ward off the 'monsters that steal your heart'."
"Naturally, I assumed she had went mad because of Discord's tyranny, and it made me redouble my efforts in finding what would turn out to be the elements of harmony. Of course, when we did find them and use them, I returned to the town to see if what had happened to the citizens was reversed, but I came back to a scene of horror."
Celestia looked at her sister with worry. "Horror?"
Luna nodded. "The town was gone. It had burned to the ground, and the citizens were nowhere to be found. I went to the home of the old mare, who I still found to be quite insane. All she had told me was that the villagers had been taken, and the 'wretched queen of the accursed' had set fire to the town, watching it burn while cackling the most evil laugh that could be heard."
Luna sipped her tea before concluding her story. "I thought nothing of her story at the time, but upon the revelations of this recent attack, I dare say we may have met this 'wretched queen of the accursed'."
Celestia grimaced as she thought of the war she and her sister fought against Discord, and what it had cost them in the long run. Her grimace changed to a frown as she realized this village likely paid for her failure to stop Discord in time.
Luna noticed her sister's reaction and offered a comforting hoof. "Apologies, sister. We did not mean to cause you to be pained by old wounds."
"It's okay, Lunaa" Celestia responds. "We did our best at that time. I just wish we could have done more."
"As do I" Luna concurs. "Had I known back then what I knew now, I would have found that cave and made those creatures pay for their horrible crime."
Celestia nodded in agreement with that statement. There was a silence between the sisters for some time afterwards. Luna elected to break it.
"Sister," Luna says to Celesita, "I noticed Raven come back into our study as I was leaving. Was there something wrong?"
"No" Celestia replies. "She was simply informing me that all of the preparations were complete, so all we needed to do this morning was to wake up and prepare ourselves for the meeting."
Luna gave a nod. "And that was all?"
Celestia looked to Luna for a second. The lunar princess had many gifts, and one of them was sussing out the truth. Taking a breath, Celestia filled in her younger sibling.
"I asked Raven for her opinion on the matters at hoof, and more specifically, what she hoped we could achieve here today."
Luna nodded, then pried a little further. "And what is it that Miss Inkwell hopes we can achieve?"
"She hopes that we can make peace," Celestia replies, "and that we can begin to bring back the peace of mind here in the city. There are many who were affected very negatively by the changelings, and not just the drained ponies in the hospital."
Luna again nodded, but this one was far more somber. "I see. If that is what she hopes for, then I think we should see to it that we are able to make these hopes a reality."
Celestia nodded with a smile. They often had differing opinions on different topics, as is typical among siblings, but she was happy that they could both agree on this.
Before anything else can be said further, a guard quickly approaches the gazebo and steps inside. Giving a bow and salute, he addresses both princesses. "Your highnesses," he says in an official tone, "the king and his entourage have arrived."
"Entourage?" Luna parrots in a startled tone.
"Yes, your highness" the guard confirms.
Celestia looks a bit surprised to hear the word entourage as well. "How many are in this entourage?" she asks the guard.
"Only four" he replies. "We've sent word to the other guards to keep their eyes open for any activity in the city."
"Very good, guard" she commends the stallion. "Do these four appear to be of any significant threat?"
"Not as far as we could tell" he answers. "One did have a set of saddle bags with them, but a magic scan and physical check of them revealed no items that were considered a security risk. They complied with our request to check them, so we saw no reason to hold those items."
Celestia nodded. "What were the nature of the items?"
"Articles of clothing, your highness."
Celestia nods in acknowledgment. Luna then asks her own question. "Are you certain this is the king?"
The stallion nods. "It is your highness" he confirms. "He has used the agreed upon code phrase and he matches the description you also provided."
Celestia and Luna both look to each other, a small amount of relief crossing their faces. So far, this king of changelings has honored his words.
"Thank you" Celestia tells the guard. "Please escort the king and his entourage here. Tell a member of the palace staff to bring four more chairs out here and set them up as well."
The soldier again bows and salutes, then exits the gazebo to carry out his task. As he left, Luna looked to her sister again. "The time has come" she remarked to her. "Now we get to meet this changeling king for ourselves."
Celestia nodded. "I hope things turn out well. We don't need any more paranoia about a potential infiltration of the city."
Luna nodded in agreement. "Things are already difficult as they currently stand. We would do well by ourselves not to allow things to get worse than they already are."
Celestia nodded and hummed in agreement with her sister's opinion. This meeting would be especially important. As they finished speaking, a servant had brought out the requested chairs and set them up. Now all the princesses could do was wait for the guards to bring the king and his entourage, which looked like it was arriving now.
The sisters looked out of the gazebo and saw a squad of guards approaching them. There were six guards total and they were set up in a hexagonal formation; an earth pony in lead, two pegasi and two thestrals on either side, and a unicorn bringing up the rear. Inside that formation were five ponies, or at least what appeared to be five ponies. Four of them were random types of ponies: an earth pony mare, pegasus mare, unicorn stallion, and a pegasus stallion. Leading the group was a pony that had the exact appearance as was described to Celestia by the changeling king in his film, right down to the cutie mark of a bee in a flame.
Celestia rose and spread her wings, a show of dominance that was matched by her sister. They fully intended for the meeting to be peaceful, but both still felt it was important to make clear that the two princesses were not to be underestimated and would stop at nothing to protect their city and their ponies, should the delegation's intentions prove to be sinister.
"Thank you, guards" she said to the sextet of armored ponies. "We shall handle things from here."
The lead guard looked nervous but gave a nod. The group of guard broke their formation and formed two lines of three and began to move back to their assigned post. As he moved into the formation, the disguised king gave a bow of his head and told the guard "Thank you" as he walked away. The guard gave a quick nod back and moved to join the formation with haste.
With the guards gone, it was only the group of disguised changelings and the two princesses in the gardens. Celestia moved from her previous spot and walked to the edge of the gazebo. The king took notice of this and made a gesture to his followers. All at once, the delegation bowed to Celestia and Luna, the latter falling in to her sister's left as they addressed the king and his entourage.
"Please rise," Celestia addressed them, "and find a seat if you would. My sister and I would both like to commence this meeting." The two sisters then retake their seats.
The king rose and gave a nod, then gestured to the other four, who nodded in response and moved into the gazebo, electing to sit around a chair that faced the two princesses directly. The king himself took this chair and faced the princesses.
"Princesses Celestia and Luna, I am so glad that I finally have the chance to meet the both of you face to face" the king said to the two sisters. "I only wish that our first official meeting were under better circumstances."
Celestia gave a nod to his remark. "I share that same sentiment as well. It would have been more preferable to have had this meeting before my subjects were given such a bad first impression of your kind."
The king frowns and bows his head. "Yes, that is something I cannot entirely blame your subjects for. For the capital of your nation to be attacked, and for you yourself to be taken as a prisoner, if but only for a brief amount of time, I would want retribution brought to the culprits as well."
"However, I do not think it would do us good to review those topics right now; we can discuss that topic a little later. For now, let us discuss the matter I have reached out to you for originally: establishing peaceful diplomatic relations between Equestria and my hive."
"Yes," Celestia agreed, "let us speak on the matter of establishing these peaceful diplomatic relations. To start, I would like for all of you to dispel your pony disguises. As with your messenger Aulus, I wish to address all of you in your true forms."
"I agree" Luna chimed in. "If we are to have these meetings, they should be face to undisguised face."
The king considers the words of both princesses and nods. He then turns to his entourage, quickly noticing their trepidation at the idea of intentionally revealing themselves to another creature. The king addressed them so as to exert some authority in a gentle manner.
"Now, now," he said to them, "we must demonstrate our willingness to cooperate and be peaceful, and if dropping our disguises is how we accomplish that, then so be it." Without any warning, the stallion before the princesses was wrapped in a turquoise wall of flames, which then disappeared to reveal the changeling king in all his glory.
His height was similar to the princesses, and he may have been just a bit taller. He had the hallmark hole-filled hooves that all changelings seemed to sport, and the gossamer wings resting about a plating on his back. Strange bands wrapped around his barrel, and were a darker color than his eyes. In addition, he had his mane cut short; it was in a similar style to the regulation mane cut of the royal guard.
After his disguise was dispelled, one of the other changelings approached him with a set of saddlebags. The king used his magic and produced two items from them that were familiar to the princesses. One was his ornate crown, which he settled onto his head, and the other was the cape that covered his body.
Having dawned his royal vestments, the king resumes his seat. Before he addresses the princesses again, he notices that his entourage has not yet acquiesced to the princesses's request.
"As I said," he spoke to his subjects again, "we must do as the princesses have asked and dispel our disguises."
The changelings looked at each other and nodded. Four flashes of magic, and four changeling drones sat where four ponies had been sitting. The king noted the princesses slight flinch upon seeing the changes, both his and his subjects. The drone who provided the king with his vestments resumed their seat.
"I apologize, but we have no actual control of the appearance of our magic" he told them. "All we can control is our appearance when we use it."
Celestia tried to relax as she responded. "It is okay. If we are to have a successful meeting, then we must accept that there are things about your kind that we may find... uncomfortable."
The king digested this and gave a nod. "Yes, there is likely a great deal about us that you might find, as you put it, uncomfortable. However, that doesn't mean that we cannot establish a peace between us."
"That is true," Celestia concedes, "but there is much to be done before we can see the fruits of both our labors. My subjects still carry mistrust of changelings as a whole. I fear that even with time, their opinions will always be sour in regards to your kind. Your willingness to dispel your disguises is a good first step with my sister and I in regards to establishing peace, but you will also need to sway the opinion of my subjects. I do not command them to agree with the things I decree; only that they respect them, and when applicable, obey them."
King Apidae nods. "My hive and your Equestria are very similar in that regard. Other queens and kings demand unquestioning loyalty from their drones, but I do not. I have found that solutions to problems are often found in minds that are not afraid of voicing their opinions, even if they are what the majority would consider to be 'unpopular'."
Luna looks at him quizzically. "You do not punish your drones for insubordination?"
King Apidae gives a small laugh. "Oh, make no mistake, I do expect them to obey when I give a command. What I meant was that if they should say something that I or another changeling of my hive were disagreeable to, then they would not face retribution for having voice their dissent. In fact, a great many of our laws have been proposed by the drones of our hive and not by myself and my advisers. My thought on the matter is that the laws will affect the day to day lives of the drones, so they should have say in the matters that affect them."
Celestia smiled upon hearing that. "What you speak of sounds like democracy" she comments.
"It is very much in that school of thought," the king admits, "but there are some affairs that I consider to be a bit too complicated for the average drone. After all, you don't ask for the opinion of the nobles and farmers when deciding how taxes shall affect them; they would always rule that other ponies should shoulder more burden than they themselves should and fail to see the consequences of such an action."
Celestia did have to concede on that point; the nobles would exempt themselves from taxes altogether if they could. Quickly, she realizes that the conversation has been derailed slightly.
"I agree with your opinions on governance, but I feel we must address the topic at hoof, which is proving your intentions to our citizens."
The king takes a sip from one of the tea cups before him. After setting it down, he looks the two princesses in the eyes with a serious look. "You are inquiring of my intentions to assist in capturing the rogue queen?"
Both Celestia and Luna nod. "Do you know of the name of this queen?" the night princess asks, deciding to participate in the conversation more actively.
The king frowned slightly but nodded. "Her name is Chrysalis" he told the princesses.
Celestia digested the information with restrained enthusiasm. Chrysalis. Her enemy now had a name, and hopefully soon, the enemy would be in chains and receive the punishment she so desperately deserved.
"May we know the names of the subjects you have brought along with you?" Luna asks, electing to change to a more lighthearted subject.
The king smiles. "Of course" he says as he points to the four drones and tells the princesses about them.
"This drone is Socrates. he is a philosopher and gifted statespony. Any matters that we have on diplomacy, we have approached him to advise us help resolve any problems. He actually earned several degrees right here in Canterlot under the guise of Honey Gold. Next to him is Dionices, who we have placed in charge of our medical needs, as well as any other wounded creature that ends up in our care. Over here to my left is Nero, my commander for the defense of the hive. He is a brilliant strategist and has helped to devise many ways to keep our hive safe from threat. Lastly is Andromeda, my personal assistant. She assists me with my day to day affairs, and also acts as a sounding board for any decisions I think of implementing."
Celestia and Luna looked over the drones seated before them on opposite sides of the king. Each of them wore a look that spoke of discomfort. It was pretty clear to both princesses that the quartet did not like the idea of being in front of ponies without disguises, sticking out like a sore hoof.
"Socrates, Dionices, Nero and Andromeda," she addressed the four changelings, "I welcome all of you to Equestria and hope your stay here will be comfortable. The palace staff has been made aware of your visit, and will accommodate all of you to the best of their abilities."
As soon as her greeting was finished, she turned to King Apidae and gave him a gentle, yet clearly displeased look. "Of course, we would have had proper arrangements ready for you in time had your king made us aware of your arrival."
"Yes, and our guard would not be scanning the city for further threats" Luna added under her breath.
Apidae blinked for a few seconds before he then smacked his face with his hoof. "I do apologize Princesses," he says to them. "I thought that I had mentioned my assistants in one of the previous two film reels that I had sent to you. That was a lapse on my part, and I certainly hope you will not hold it against me; surely you have made the mistake of overlooking a small detail in one of your previous affairs?"
"I have" Celeista admits. "However, given the nature of current affairs, this lapse could have had much more negative ramifications, had my sister and I chosen not to be as hospitable as we have been."
Apidae sipped at his tea as the sun princess spoke, but the message she had sent him was clear: she and her sister were not happy with him. His not mentioning his entourage joining him had caused Equestria's already stressed security to be even more on edge than before, and all because he forgot to tell the princesses about the guests he intended to bring with him. He silently hoped that this misstep would not be a stumbling block for future negotiations.
"I appreciate your understanding on the matter, and I do apologize for my forgetfulness. Please pass along my apologies to those guards who have been inconvenienced by the 'wild goose chase' I've unintentionally sent them on."
"I shall" Celestia agreed, and then took a sip of her own tea.
Luna speaks up as her sister drinks. "You called these drones your assistants. How do they assist you, besides the roles that you have mentioned?"
Apidae finishes his tea and places the cup down. "These four work in areas that involve many of my drones. Socrates is representative of all the scholars of my hive, be they scientists, alchemists, authors, artists or whatever intellectual interest my drones seek to study. Dionices represents my doctors and other medically inclined drones. Nero has the ear of my soldiers, as they have his, and Andromeda often speaks with the remaining drones that simply live to keep the hive working as it should."
"So, they have heard the opinions of all your people and they relay it to you as needed?"
"They do, and I also listen to their ideas and complaints as they share them, though there are only so many open slots in open court that I can accomodate. Admittedly, I have had to postpone my court for as long as these talks shall take place."
"Do you not have a regent?" Celestia asks.
"I do not" Apidae answers. "I appointed a regent once in the early years of my reign, but I made the mistake of trusting a usurper. He had the support of many of my soldiers at the time, and I had to personally deal with him to remove him from power."
Celestia and Luna both looked at him with concerned looks. "And when he was removed?" Celestia asked, leaving the question open ended.
"He was tried for treason and placed into prison, where he lived out the remainder of his life" Apidae answered. "I don't execute drones. A drone hasn't been put to death for some time in my hive."
"That is... good to hear" Celestia admits. "I was given the impression by Chrysalis that your kind were not so adverse to matters regarding severe punishment."
"I consider punishment of that nature necessary only when no other punishment is justifiable. In most cases, there is a suitable punishment."
"And those cases where there isn't?" Luna prods.
"In those matters, a jury presides over the process of selecting a punishment. The process is akin to a trial, though by the time this 'trial' is convened, the guilt of the accused it already confirmed, so the matter is specifically to decide what punishment the convicted is to receive."
"I must say that your hive is rather democratic despite your position as a ruling monarch."
"As I said, I value the opinion of my drones very much. I have no kingdom without them choosing to be my subjects."
Celestia smiles as she sees Apidae consider his drones with a smile, and sees those same drones smile back. It is not a forced smile that a dictator would command of underlings, but the sort a parent has with their children.
"You share a strong bond with your subjects" Celestia observes. "I do believe that we can work together to establish the peace that you seek to make with us. Sister, do you believe as I do?"
Luna considers her sister's question for a moment, but then nods. "I believe that through this conversation, King Apidae and his assistants have proven their desire to make peaceful relations to be true."
"Splendid!" Apidae announces, causing the two sisters to turn towards him in surprise. "Then let's not delay any longer! Let us commence in the talks to establish peace between our kingdoms!"
Celestia and Luna both look to each other and smile. "Yes, let us" they both say in agreement.